a work meeting

Today I attended a meeting with my department (admin). It was led by you know who. This was the first meeting we've had together as a department and actually the first meeting I've attended in the Director's Conference Room. I felt important.

Until...

1) I walked in 1 minute late and everyone was already there...waiting for me.

2) They started using big words and acronyms that were a foreign language to me.

3) My boss started defining words for my benefit.

4) I looked down at my neon green folder with one of Andy Warhol's Marilyn Monroe images (like this:)

And suddenly panicked that it actually looked more like this:



I thought, "Oh my gosh! I look like I have a Lisa Frank folder!" Everyone else had leather bound portfolios and such.

5) As I was looking down at my completely juvenile folder, I noticed this:
"Oh great! Good thing my nails are hot pink right now. Compliments the Lisa Frank look quite well."




That's when my posture, eye contact, and everything else gave me away, big time. I decided that I shouldn't be shrinking away from this meeting. I told myself I was important. They wanted me there, and even though I had absolutely nothing to say in the meeting, that I should sit at the table like I was confident, like I was listening and learning, etc.

6) Then out of the corner of my eye, I saw this:

 and this: 

That's right. Haven't I mentioned that the Trapeze school DC has set up their outdoor gym right outside our office building? And our 4th floor conference room has the perfect eye level view of the graceful flips, flying, and handing off of Trapeze artists? It's really something to watch, BUT NOT DURING A MEETING! I kept telling myself to pay attention! Make eye contact with whoever is talking! Don't get distracted. It was tough.

Well, towards the end of the meeting, the topic changed to something that I could help with a lot of input. So I felt more fulfilled by the end, but seriously, at the beginning I was thinking, "what am I doing here?! I am so in the wrong department!" But from what we discussed in the meeting, it is looking like I will be gaining much more responsibilities and will soon no longer be "the receptionist." Hallelujah!

I'm still figuring out this whole job thing.

starting to part my hair down the middle. It's a big change for me.

reflections

Hmmm. Interesting. Yesterday in two completely different conversations, I was told who I look like. The first conversation was with my cute artsy friend at church who studies art at the Corcoran. She ran up to me and asked, "Do you know who Lily Allen is?" I stopped and thought about it, because I thought it was someone in the ward who maybe I should know. Then I said I didn't. She said, "You should look her up. You look EXACTLY like her. She's a British pop star--like the equivalent to Britney Spears." She just kept going on and on about how I look just like her. So I google imaged her and this was the first picture that came up. I can kind of see it. Can you? I thought it was funny because last year two girls in my ward in Provo who were Americans but had basically grown up in Russia said I looked like a "Swedish pop diva."

THEN, later that evening one of the sister missionaries asked me if I was half Asian. THIS HAS HAPPENED MANY TIMES BEFORE! In fact, I've even attended an "Asian When Convenient" party--a party for all us caucasians who are starting to wish we had some ethnicity to help us get scholarships. Do I look half Asian? How can I look Swedish, British, and Asian all at once? So I google imaged "half white half asian" (It's crazy what google has to offer) and this is the first pic that came up. Again, I guess I can kind of see it a little here too. What do you think?

Who do people tell you that you look like? Or what ethnicity do you get asked about sometimes?

a disappointment

Well folks,
I was really excited to see An Education, but I must admit I was very disappointed. There are three reasons and only three reasons to watch this film. 1) Beautiful vintage styles 2) Handsome and beautiful faces and 3) Some beautiful scenery. If you feel like those are reason enough for you to want to watch the film than you might just get a little of something out of it. But if you can't stand womanizing men, ditzy women, women who too easily forgive men when they are WRONG. seriously WRONG, and pedophilism, then don't even bother watching this. I left the theatre dismayed at the lack of substance.

Dear friends and family

Advice needed.

I feel like I'm ready for a change. In my hair. I'm working towards this look:

You know super long, some highlights (scary I know! I've never done it but I'm really thinking about it, I mean I already made the hair appointment!) The above look would be a kind of wild look.

Leighton Meester's look has really inspired me too. You know, for good girl hair days. (LOVE the coloring and long hair in front with hair parted more towards the middle)

BUT when I see pictures like the one below on the left, I just get all nostalgic and heartsick about loosing those awesome funky straight across bangs. Girls (and guys for that matter), Please give me your input. What do you think I should do?

a foodie's paradise

Last night I did perhaps one of the coolest things I've done in DC. March of Dimes had a swanky event called the Chefs' Signature Gala in the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Washington DC. My friend Megan was an intern for the March of Dimes last year and she was helping out with the event this year too. She recruited me and a bunch of other people to help out. All I did was stand at the bottom of a staircase for about 30 minutes and say hello to people as they walked passed (and stared at celebrities) and then I was let loose in the ballroom and outside hallway which were FULL of chefs from many resturants in the DC area. There were dozens and dozens of chef stations and they all served samples from their menu. I went CRAZY!

Here's an idea of the types of things I got to sample. (a sample was actually fairly large ~5 bites or so)

• puff pastry with morrell mushroom sauce
• Grouper with a walnut crust, mashed potatoes, and sauce, *** 2nd fav
  
• endive salad
• Wild boar with creamy polenta
• butternut squash soup
• chips and fresh guac
• beef and pureed carrot
• sausage and beans
• meatball and creamy polenta
• crabcake and tartar sauce *** 3rd fav
  
• bacon biscuit
• dehydrated blue cheese and walnut popcorn
• lamb and gnocci
• chestnut soup and pork*** my fav!
  
• pork and bread pudding
• beef and mashed potatoes***4th fav
  

desserts:

• gourmet smore (pumpkin marshmallow, chocolate, whole grain graham cracker) So good I had two of these
• chocolate torte (tiny tiny)
  
• lemon torte (very tiny but beautiful)
  

We even got the bar tender to mix a non-alcoholic drink for us! Apple, lemon, dry something or other. So good.

Oh my gosh I'm such a pig! Seriously I am feeling a little embarrassed about how much I ate, but it was all SOOOO good and absolutely worth it. There was still so much I didn't get to try because I got too full! Bummer! I wanted to try the fried green tomatoes, a lobster something, and the salad from Poste but I just didn't have room.

Time to work out.

Isn't this so cute?

The management at my apartment complex decorated our whole neighborhood for Halloween! It's so cute and festive. They did a great job!

my neighborhood in the fall

My neighborhood was so beautiful today I couldn't help driving around and taking pictures!

This one was taken from my bedroom window! Such a lovely view. Sometimes nature makes the 45 minute commute worth it.

This is the parking lot right next to my apartment building where I park my car.

Another bedroom window view.

The gate that leads into the apartment complex next to mine.

The pretty drive down the street to my apartment building.

I love fall leaves!