Passing Ships

I left on Sunday for a business trip to Sacramento. I came home Monday from the airport to be greeted by my fiancee who was leaving for a business meeting of his own in LA. He came home yesterday and I was kinda looking forward to some hot action last night. You know, because of all the not seeing each other and missing each other. So imagine my glee last night when Dave called out to me while he was in the shower. I ran to his call and barely held myself back from stripping along the way. I get to the shower door and ask what he needs (all the while in my head I'm thinking 'I know what he needs! Mwahahahaha!'). His need? To not forget to pay the car insurance.

Gee honey. Thanks.

ABC's

Stolen from Renae

A is for age: 26
B is for booze of choice: I don't really have just one. Red Syrah Wine when I want to wind down. Corona Light when I want to socialize. Long Beach Ice Tea when I want to get crazy. Caiparhinas when I want to act frou-frou. Diet Cherry Vanilla Coke with Bacardi Coconut Rum Light when I want to be on a diet.
C is for career: Big Boss
D is for your dog's name: No dog for now. Maybe someday when we have a yard.
E is for essential items you use/love everyday: Face moisturizer, Sirius radio, & my cell phone.
F is for favorite song(s) at the moment: "Earthquakes & Sharks" by Brandston & anything by Death Cab for Cutie
G is for favorite games: I'm not a big game player. Maybe tetris?
H is for hometown: SoCal
I is for instruments you play: None
J is for jam or jelly you like:Strawberry all the way.
K is for kids: No thanks.
L is for last kiss: When Dave got home at midnight last night, he gave me the most intense welcome home kiss. *sigh*
M is for most admired trait: I'm organized. Like really, really organized. Always have been.
N is for name of your crush: My fiancée of course! Dave
O is for overnight hospital stays: When I was 11 I had my appendix removed old style (back when they cut you all the way open and left you with a huge scar)
P is for phobias: Snakes & Car Crashes (especially dying in a crash)
Q is for quotes you like: Seen on the side of a Nike shoebox: "You run like a girl. Good for you"
R is for biggest regret: I had this relationship back during my senior year of college that was toxic yet thrilling. I f'ed up several times and did things I shouldn't have done and he f'ed up several times and did things to hurt me in return. The relationship would never have worked out but I often look back and wonder what would have happened had I not f'ed up.
S is for sweets of your choice: Chocolate in any form (but without nuts!)
T is for time you wake up: I'm supposed to wake up at 6am but that doesn't always happen.
U is for underwear: Haha! It used to be cute little Victoria Secret undies in all styles. But now I lean toward the comfy cotton things that are faded and worn.
V is for vegetables you love: I'm a veggie whore. Give it all to me! Spinach, asparagus, broccoli, green beans, salad! Mmmm ;-9
W is for worst habit: I can be a bitch sometimes. Don't get on my bad side!
X is for x-rays you've had: Too many to list.
Y is for yummy food you make: I love cooking. My best is probably crock pot spicy chicken. Everyone always loves it and it's super easy to make.
Z is for zodiac sign: Taurus

Ok. Now it's Tammy's turn!

Picture Post

The town I live in:

The boy I love:

The furry belly that makes me melt:

10 Months

Dave is in Missouri for a business trip until late Thursday evening. He's only been gone since Monday and I already miss that boy something fierce ;-( Distance really does make the heart grow fonder. Don't get me wrong, I'm really glad that he got such an awesome job for such a fantastic corporation AND he works from home. But (and we all knew there was a but) I really hate that he's going to be traveling just as much as I travel. For most of the next few months I'm gone one week and he's gone the next week or we're both gone at the same time and Fluff is left home alone.

Anyways, on to happier news: In exactly 10 months, Dave and I will be getting married amidst the beauty of Yosemite. Only 10 more months! EEEeee!!! I'm starting to get excited and in the 'we're getting married' mode which is great because maybe it will motivate me to lose some weight! I've been horrible lately. Really horrible. I've always been NOT naturally thin and had to work hard to maintain my weight. But for the past 6 months I just haven't cared whether I gained weight. Donut? Yes please. Coke or diet coke? Mmmmm ... coke! Go to the gym tonight? Nahhhh! Go to the gym anytime this week? Maybe next week! Beer? Give me 5. I love empty calories!

I really need to get back in the habit of watching what and how much I eat plus exercising daily. I keep thinking that I can do this by myself but I've been trying to lose weight for the past 2 years and have been unable to (in fact I've gained 40 pounds). I think it's time I try LA Weight Loss, Weight Watchers, or some other structured weight loss program even though it makes me feel like a failure. I've lost 40+ pounds twice before in my life (I told you I'm not naturally thin) and I just can't understand why I'm lacking the will power this time around to lose the weight for a 3rd time. I'm getting married in 10 months and will be wearing a big white dress! Wouldn't you think that I'd be able to think of that and stay away from the brownies in the office kitchen. Sadly no. LA Weight Loss here I come ...

Many Moons Ago ...

August 2004
We won last night. Twice. Yep. Wooooo. OK I'm too tired to 'woo'. AndI'm too sore to 'woo'.After work, I drove to the sports park for my 1st softball game. The team was super nice and young (and a few of the boys were super cute) but I don't know. Maybe it's cuz I'm hormonal this time of the monthor something like that but I just didn't gel with the team. They were nice and everything but I couldn't help feeling shy and a bit outsiderish. So the other team didn't show up and we won by default. Immediately after the game, I ran home and made myself a turkey burgerbefore heading to the gym for my 7pm 30 min abs class. Then I had a yoga class that began at 7:30. Cool. I like yoga. It helps me stay flexible and get better balance. SO after my yoga class I went home and checked my email real quick before I had planned to jump in the shower. One of the email messages was from a guy I met who also plays on a softball team and who needed an extra girl to play that night in15 minutes (9pm). So I quickly ran down there and played yet another game of softball. We own. And I loved the team!!! So I think that I'm gonna stay with that team (but now I have to break it to my other team which sucks). But I really fit well with this team and we played well together and they seem like awesome people. YAY.
And it doesn't help that the team manager (Dave) is a super cutie and super nice. He's a Sigma Chi alumni from Long Beach State, blond & tall. Yum. We're supposed to meet this weekend and do some practicing as well as go get some beers. YAY. And I'm gonna make him cookies ;-) Anyone got a good peanut butter cookie recipe? I gotta show the boy that I'm not only a super cool chick who can bat with the best of them but I'm also a domestic goddess. Gosh I forget how much I rock sometimes ;-p After the game I came home and Scott wanted to spend some time together so we watched SBF Stunning SF. SBF is a local stunt bike riding crew that lives (literally) right down the street. Most of the stunts they perform are down right on the main street that we live offof. It's pretty cool to watch their videos and recognize all the local landmarks. Not to mention that they do some pretty sic stunts.

August 2005
I'm in Wichita, Kansas this week for a work conference. I'm scheduled to give an hour 15 minute presentation tomorrow to the entire group (about 100 people). Holy cow is all I can say about that.I leave here on Friday, fly into Oakland, then take BART directly to San Francisco where I'll be meeting Dave at a hotel. We plan on celebrating our anniversary with a nice dinner on Friday then DMB on Saturday. Dave was joking around and made it clear that I wont be getting a ring as my anniversary present. ;-( Of course his comment hurt my feelings but it lead to a nice discussion on us and marriage. Surprisingly, the discussion was mostly lead by me OPENLY, honestly and effortlessly telling Dave how I felt on the whole subject (such a huge step for me since I suck at the whole communication thing). Dave and I agreed that we want to get married because the time is right for us and NOT because all of our friends are doing it. We both want to talk about marriage and wedding plans extensively before becoming engaged which we'll be a bit difficult for Dave since he is able to show how he feels easily but forgets that he needs to say how he feels too. We both agreed that we're at a good time in our lives to get married (financial stability, established careers, educated, mature, etc). And we both agreed that we want to keep each other and that we both hope marriage is in our future together. Ahhhh! I love that boy!

A Love Story

Last Christmas I got Dave a Sirius player and subscription because I had no idea what else to get him. The boy already has everything he could ever want or need. So after 3 hours of walking up and down the Best Buy aisles I threw my hands up in despair, grabbed the closest box, and walked out. The closest box happened to be a Sirius Radio Sportster which he opened on xmas eve to mild delight. (I told you he had everything he wanted or needed and satellite radio did not happen to be one of his wants or needs). To be honest I had no interest in satellite radio either but I figured what they hey. It was something under the tree.

A few weeks later, Dave and I were road tripping to SoCal (this was back when we lived in the Bay Area) and we decided to give Sirius a try. Within 1 hour I was hooked. Who knew this satellite radio would be this fantastic! And clear! And chock full of music choices! And each station was packed with quality music! And no commercials!

I immediately did what any caring girlfriend would do. I removed the Sirius from his car and had it installed in my car. I also bought this super cute boom box so that I could listen to it at work. For the next 4 months, Sirius and I were inseparable. We were together at work, in the car, and even at home thanks to streaming audio over the internet. Imagine my dismay when we moved down to San Diego and I discovered that I no longer received satellite reception in my sub-basement office. Then my sticky suction cup holder fell off in the car. Sirius and I decided to break up.

OK. So this is turning into a long story and it really shouldn't be. Flash forward to today when I forgot to bring my
CDs so I decided to try the ye olde Sirius. It works! And I'm in love again.

Sirius + Cori = 4ever

We're Parents ... To a Cat

Doesn't he look cute while he sleeps??

The rule in our house is that if Fluff jumps up on the kitchen counter then he is immediately given a stern 'no' and then spritzed with a water bottle. Repeated use of this method has worked really well for us. Often all he have to do is say the stern 'no' and Fluff immediately stops doing whatever it is he was doing. Fluff rarely gets up on the counter anymore unless it is because he detects something was left on the counter that he is be able to bat with his little paws. Such as a derelict pen or bottle cap or wineglass. Needless to say the wineglass batting didn't go over well with all parties involved.

To recap: Fluff on Kitchen Counter = Stern 'No' + Spritz from Spray Bottle

Last night as I'm trying to fall asleep I feel Dave get out of bed. I open my eyes to see what he is up to (we can see the kitchen from our bedroom). Fluff is on the kitchen counter and Dave is bending over so he is eye to eye with the cat. In the calmest voice Dave is having a chat with Fluff. "Hey buddy, you know your mom and I don't like it when you're on the counter. Your paws are dirty and then you walk on the counter and it is unsanitary. So let's stay off the counter. Okay bud? ok." With that Dave gently lifts Fluff off the counter and places him on the floor.

What a push over.

I Suck at Recaps

I woke up at 1:30am last night (this morning?) to the sound of coyotes howling under our bedroom window. Directly under our window. Like less then 100 feet from my body. The 1st thing I frantically did was look for my kitten. Maybe they were howling because my kitten had gotten outside and they were now feasting upon his body! Ok. So they probably weren't but I had to make sure. Luckily I didn't need to search very hard for my kitten since he was curled up in a ball in the crook of my armpit.

The 2nd thing I did was get mad. Vile coyotes were howling under my bedroom window in the middle of the night and keeping me awake. But then I realized that I live next door to a nature preserve and I should expect coyotes and other wild creatures. (Especially since $1.5 million needs to be raised to keep the preserve from being developed but thats a whole different story).

In other news, we're back from Vegas. It was very nice but I suck at reviews and recaps so I'll spare you. During the day we slept, read, and layed by the 5 pools and lazy river of MGM Grand. During the night we ate gourmet meals, gambled, and drank. One night we watched a Cirque du Soleil show that involved alot of nekidness. I think I saw a penis.

Viva Las Vegas

Dave & I are off to the City of Sin.

During the day you can find me here:

At night we'll be here:

Be back Saturday!

I'd Rather be Blogging ...

Nope, I haven't taken another break from blogging. I've just been super busy with life and work. Here's a quick run down of my past 2 weeks:
* Future MIL & FIL came to visit for 4 days along with their grandson (Dave's nephew)
* Took MIL and Nephew to SeaWorld in San Diego. Got Burnt. Turned Brown. Dark Brown.
* Tried to survive 4 days with Nephew. Barely did so. That boy is a handful and almost convinced me that I am not cut out for reproduction.
* Celebrated Dave's 31st bday. Made him a chocolate peanut butter cake that ended up being an inch high (with both layers stacked on top of each other). Not sure what went wrong????
* Kitten got sick. (I think bcs of the nephew but I can't be sure of that). Nursed kitten back to health.
* Flew to Orlando, FL for a 5 day work conference.
* Spent LOTS of time with Tammers. I miss that girl so darn much ;-(
* Met the wonderful Renae. I wanted to pack Tammy and Renae in my suitcase and bring them back to to Cali.
* Got incredibly drunk at work conference 4 of 5 nights. Didn't make too much a fool of myself. Luckily.
* Flew home. Slept 16 hours.
* Realized that in my drunken stupor I forgot to take several days worth of birth control pills. Tried to catch up. Spent Sunday feeling nauseous and crummy. Damn pills.
* Bought portable air conditioner unit bcs Dave and I can't stand the 85 degree heat anymore. It wouldn't be so bad but the condo maintains a humid 83 all day long. When it's 83 I don't feel like cuddling (or anything else).
* Got laid. Thank the heavens for AC.
* Planned a VERY last minute 4 day trip to Las Vegas. We leave Wednesday morning.
* Returned to work to find a huge mountain worth of work on my desk. Hyperventilated then attempted to reduce pile. Still attempting.

15 Million Reasons

Just when I think that we've reached the stage where the romanticism has died in our relationship, my fiancee finds a new and creative way to let me know that I am wrong.



I found this waiting for me at my office. Dave found out today that he got a job as an account executive at a big corporation. He let me know by sending a dozen red roses with a note telling me the good news. ;-D

PS - Best of all is that the bastard is going to be working from home. ERRRR!!! I want to sit on the patio all day and work from my laptop!

He Who Grows Like a Weed

He's only 16 weeks old. He doesn't even look like a kitten anymore. What happened to my little baby????

Cori Needs ... (Friday Fun)

Google your "name needs" (ie "Cori needs") and list your top 10 needs!

Here are mine:
1. Cori needs to eat 1 banana for each mile she travels. (that's a whole lot of bananas)
2. Cori needs a forever home wth a loving and caring individual who will give her plenty of attention and an occasional treat. (I tell that to Dave everyday!)
3. CORI needs major reform (We all knew that!)
4. Cori Needs Help! (no comment)
5. CORI needs to strategize how to take advantage of recruiting and connecting members. (ummm ... ok)
6. Cori needs her babies . (I do need Fluff)
7. cori needs a vacation! (Yep)
8. Cori needs a mixture of talent, drive and more than a little luck.
9. CORI needs to improve adherence to legislation (I'm already a stickler for policy and rules)
10. Cori needs 2 majors to finish her title and there has been almost no majors in Florida since the SFLRC's specialty in May. (I wonder what my title will be?)

Today is PT Day!!!!!!!! YAY!!!

I had mentioned upon our return from Cabo that I had been in an ATV accident. I was a bad blogger and never shared pics of our time in Mexico nor did I explain how I ended up in the bottom of a rocked out flood control ravine. The pics of our vacation in Mexico will have to wait to another day when I'm bored but for now in honor of the fact that today I have a physical therapy session, I will post pics of the accident.

Here we are before riding the vehicles of death (aka ATVs). Dave really wanted to ride the ATVs while we were in Cabo and I was trying to be a good fiancee and go along with his idea.

This is what being a good fiancee got me. A 15,000 peso ride in an ambulance on a stretcher.

We were about 45 minutes into the ride when we began going down a medium size mountain/hill. The soil was a bit sandy and my bike was starting to loose traction and get squirrly but I was still managing fairly well. Our guide stopped in the middle of the hill. I was having a hard time stopping (I couldn't get good traction) and was about to hit the lady on the atv in front of me. Instead I decided to try and stop along side her so it would give me more time to slow down. My bike still wasn't stopping and I hit a rock that sent me sailing into the ravine on the side of the mountain. Down I tumbled with the bike tumbling right after me. As you can see I was lucky that the bike got wedged behind a rock and didn't tumble over me. The guide thought my back was broken (and I thought my back was broken too since I landed hard on several jagged rocks. They called an ambulance which came 30 long minutes later. They put me on a stretcher then carried me all the way up the mountain you see in the pic. Not an easy feet since I'm no light feather!

Once I got to the Cabo ER they did tons of xrays to make sure my back wasn't broken. No broken bits but lots of bruising and swelling all over my body.

This is my back 24 hours after the accident. As you'll notice I have a gorgeous eggplant color on my entire lower back. You'll also notice the lovely stretch marks. Those are from my back swelling up so much so quickly after the accident. I looked like a hump back. Seriously, the swelling easily added 8-10 inches around my waist. I couldn't believe that it was possible for a body part to swell and bruise as much as my back did. It took 2 months for most of the swelling and bruising to go away. 4 months later I still have some swelling but not to the extent that you see in the pic.

Which leads to today's physical therapy session. To treat the swelling that still exists and to get rid of the blood clots that feel like gumballs in my back (due to the intense brusing) they have been giving me 30 minute messages during eash PT session. After that they rub gooey stuff all over my back and run the wand of an ultrasound machine over my back repeatedly to break up the clots. *sigh* I never knew physical therapy could feel SO good!

More Pictures

Our 56" plasma TV.

The Kitchen. Lots of counter space and cabinets!

The best part is that I can watch TV while I cook!!!

The balcony. Small but relaxing.

The master bedroom. The last room that needs to be decorated. I plan on registering for new bedding when we get married. I want to an asian zen type theme. Think simple design and nature colors. Like you walked into an asian designed day spa.

Pretty Picture Post

I love our new apartment. If I could I would buy this place.







The view from our living room windows. The canyon/nature preserve/lagoon.














As you can imagine, I love sitting on the couch and looking at the window. Very relaxing after a hard days work.












The 2nd bedroom & office. Very spacious. Except do you notice that the bedskirt is missing off the bed? It was the only thing lost in the move. The only thing! How did the movers lose a bedskirt (and only a bedskirt)???












A bad shot of the 2nd bath
















A better shot of the living room

Grunions Galore

I'm going grunion hunting tonight. Only in Southern California ...

Can fish run? The famous grunions do on San Diego Beaches.
A summer evening is a perfect time to have a SoCal experience. If there is anything that is uniquely Southern Californian, then this phenomenon just might personify it. Picture yourself on one of San Diego's beaches - at night - with a few dozen other people. The tide is high and the waves are rolling pretty far up the sand line. Suddenlly, as a wave recedes, you spot hundreds of silvery things, wiggling on the sand. Then, just as quickly, the next wave rolls in, then out, and with it the silvery spectres. Yep, you are witnessing a famous California grunion run.
Grunion? you say? What are grunions? Well, California grunion (Leuresthes tenuis) are small silvery fish about 5 to 6 inches long found only along the coast of southern California and northern Baja California. Most of us would be unaware of their existence were it not for the unique spawning behavior of these fish.

Unlike other fish, grunion come out of the water completely to lay their eggs in the wet sand of the beach. And that, my friends, makes us privy to the California grunion run, or more sprecifically, the grunion's sex life.

Along San Diego's sandy beaches, from March through September, one of the most remarkable life cycles in the sea is completed when the California grunion comes ashore to spawn.

According to the California Department of Fish and Game, as if this behavior were not strange enough, grunion make these excursions only on particular nights, and with such regularity that the time of their arrival on the beach can be predicted a year in advance. This phenomenon can be seen on many beaches in southern California. Shortly after high tide, on certain nights, sections of these beaches sometimes are covered with thousands of grunion depositing their eggs in the sand. Hence, the popularity of both grunion watching and grunion hunting.

Yep, you read it right: grunion hunting. Because, even though they are fish, you don't exactly catch them with a pole and line. Nope. Since the grunion basically wash up to your feet, you have to chase them down and grab them barehanded if you want to catch them. That's what makes grunion hunting so uniquely SoCal!

Since these fish leave the water to deposit their eggs, they may be picked up while they are briefly stranded. Often there are more people than fish, but at other times everyone catches fish. So, no expensive fishing gear is needed (just your bare hands and a bucket or sack to hold your prizes. Oh yeah, and a valid State fishing license and a willingness to get a little wet.

More Information About Grunions

Tale of 2 Cities

I was just reading Rosalie's blog post about moving to Providence from Florida. She talked about how her move has felt like she moved to another country. Her post made me start thinking about my recent 435 mile move from the Bay Area to San Diego. I know that Rosalie moved several states away while my move was only from NorCal to SoCal but I've been quite surprised to find how similiar the 2 cities are.
* Both have the same stores with the minor exception Safeway is called VONS here (but both look exactly alike on the inside).
* Everyone has the same accents and similiar vocabularies (dude, hella, etc).
* There isn't a major change in the weather. SD is usually a more constant 80 year round while the Bay Area gets more rain in Jan/Feb and a little hotter in July/August. Other then that it's the same seasons (summer, summer, spring & spring).
* Bay Area people are a little more laid back and liberal but SD people aren't too far off that mark either.
* The buildings and the landmarks are very similiar too. My apartment building looks just like something that I would find in the Bay Area.

So what are the differences????
* It seems like 75% of the people here surf or do some other ocean centered activity. I guess thats bound to happen with 117 miles of coast in the county.
* There are tons of military bases in the county. TV and newspapers tend to focus WAY more on the military life and american pride then I ever expected.
* There's tons of hills in SD (and I thought the Bay Area was hilly). The bad part is that some of the roads get pretty windy. The good part is that finding a house with a view is fairly damn easy. I've fallen in love with looking out my huge windows at the canyon below my apartment.

A Few of My Random Thoughts:

My Kitten
When did my tiny little kitten get so big??? Fluff has put on 2 pounds in the past 2 weeks and now resembles a small full grown cat. ;-( I loved my tiny little baby. He's only 16 weeks old and I really didn't expect him to grow up so quickly. Lucky for my heart, he still acts like the cutest, most playful little furball. This morning I held Fluff and we ran after Dave while he swatted and tried to catch Dave.

Wedding Plans
Dave and I along with his parents made a 2nd trip to Tenaya Lodge a few weeks ago. The lodge has been booked, wedding website created, photographer and baker selected, and dj and floral are coming from close friends. I can't believe all that's been done! All that remains is invitations (3 months before), wedding registry (Septemberish), save the date cards (Octoberish), and some other little details. Oh yeah and I still need to go wedding dress shopping. Ughhhh ... I really wanted to lose a few pounds before that happened. I suck and so does wedding dress shopping when you feel like a whale.

4th of July
It was nice having a 4 day weekend even though I felt like we were constantly on the go and didn't have much time to stop and relax. On Saturday we flew to Sacramento to spend the weekend with Dave's parents and extended family. Monday we flew back. On Tuesday we decided to do some chores around the apartment and relax at home with a caprihina (me) and beer (Dave). Nothing wild but I've kinda grown out of my wild days. A relaxing evening at home with my kitten and my fiancée seem to be what I enjoy most these days. The only disappointment to the weekend was that I had thought we'd be able to see the fireworks from our balcony (we have an amazing view of a wildlife preserve). Unfortunately, we could see the fireworks but the marine layer made it a bit hazy and a hill blocked a portion of the fireworks.

Vacation Part Deux
Dave and I got it into our wild little heads that we're going to do a last minute summer vacation in 3-4 weeks. I love that boy and how spontaneous he can be! So we're still doing frantic research but I think we'll shoot for 4 nights at an all inclusive in Mexico again. WOOO!!! So far we've found decent resorts with air fare for $800 per person. Not bad!

I Feel Old (and Boring)
I've stayed away from blogging for the past few months and I really want to get back into the habit. I love exercising the creative part of my brain (I'm much too analytical) and I love having a journal of my thoughts. My only problem is that sometimes blogging makes me feel SO old. Gone are the days when I talked about school or my sorority. Gone are the days when my crushes on boys changed from day to day. No more exciting tales of dates and sex. My neurotic thoughts towards getting engaged are now settled and passed. Oye Vey. Do I have anything interesting to say??? I have no kids to talk about, no pre-marital problems to stress over, no big life changing decisions to loom over. Even wedding planning is nothing to get all tizzied about unless people enjoy my writing about the various shades of sage I saw at the linen store yesterday?

Fluff

Cutest kitten ever! He really is.