Books read in 2007

A Man of Faith, David Aikman
Hannibal Rising, Thomas Harris
All of the President's Men, Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward
House of Sand and Fog, Andre Dubus III
Jack: A Life Like No Other, Geoffrey Perret
Shadow: Five Presidents and the Legacy of Watergate, Bob Woodward
Manhunt: The 12-Day Chase for Lincoln's Killer, James L. Swanson
The Manchurian Candidate, Richard Condon
Leni Riefenstahl, Rainer Rother
From Here to Eternity, James Jones
Cultural Warrior, Bill O'Reilly
Ava Gardner: Love is Nothing, Lee Server
The Man Who Would Not Shut Up, Marvin Kitman
Clint Eastwood, Richard Schickel
Notorious, Donald Spoto
Katharine Hepburn, Barbara Leaming
Empire: The Life, Legend and Madness of Howard Hughes, Donald L. Barlett
Diana, Andrew Morton
Mrs. Kennedy: The Missing History of the Kennedy Years, Barbara Leaming
Judy Garland: The Secret Life of an American Legend, David Shipman
Shadows of a Princess, P.D. Jephson
Just Jackie, Edward Kline
Leni, Steven Bach
Breakfast at Tiffany's, Truman Capote
The Devil Wears Prada, Lauren Weisberger
Cary Grant: A Class Apart, Graham McCann
Princess Grace, Sarah Bradford
John Wayne's America, Garry Wills
Jack and Jackie, Christopher Andersen
Henry Ford and the Jews, Neil Baldwin
General Patton: A Soldier's Life, Stanley P. Hirshson
Diana, Sarah Bradford

Currently Reading: Hitch: The Life and Times of Alfred Hitchcock, John Russell Taylor
Up Next: Ingrid, Charlotte Chandler

I got nothing. Look at these pictures.

Nothing exciting happened to me yesterday or today. Wait I take that back. I went to the dentist for a cleaning. I'm sure you all want to read about that. Instead I posted photos that I love from my shoot at Kathy's house Sunday.

Road fun

Don't you love it when you're the only car on the road? You're cruising at a speed of 62 miles per hour, no one ahead of you or behind you. Then a truck pulls out in front of you instead of waiting because no one is behind you and drives slow?

Yeah, that happened to me the other night. I was cruising at a wonderful 62 mph and a truck pulled out in front of me. Of course since he was driving slow I caught up to him in a hurry. I stayed back because I didn't want to tailgate a guy in his truck. This guy couldn't decide how fast he wanted to go. First it was 60, then 55, 65, 50, and that bothered me. I wanted to pass him, but I couldn't. Every time we came to a passing zone traffic was coming. I decided to be patient and wait for the upcoming passing lanes.

Once we approached them the truck didn't indicate that it was leaving the fast lane. When I saw that he wasn't moving over, I merged to the right lane. The truck decided at the last second to do the same. When he did that I pulled back over in the left lane and started to pass him. He didn't like that. I was up to 70 mph and the truck started to mirror my speed. Then the driver decided to go about 90. I didn't want to get in a road rage incident with him, so I jammed on my brakes (no one was behind me or even on that stretch of road besides the truck) and let the truck go.

The truck continued his high speed until he got caught behind some traffic. I caught back up to him a couple of miles later going 62. We were both stuck behind a bus and we entered a passing zone and the truck made its move to pass. I followed him and passed as well. Clearing the bus, I put my cruise control back on. The truck continued at his high speed. Again, a couple miles up the road I caught back up with him at a stop light. The light turned green and we went. On a two lane road, I actually passed him. He didn't like that so he sped back up. Unfortunately I had to slow down because a van was in front of me, but I didn't mind because my turnoff was just ahead. So the truck and his friend, who probably thought it was funny the entire time, drove away from me down the highway. Hopefully he will play that game with another person and a cop will be nearby to stop and chat with him.

Weekend update

Saturday morning my assignment was moved back an hour. The time was changed late Friday. Since I didn't know, I went by what I had on my schedule. I arrived at the site and no one was there. That should have tipped me off, it didn't. I found out about 20 minutes later and it didn't make me happy. To pass the time I walked some of the trails and took pictures. That made the time go by faster. I didn't finish working until after 2 pm and that made my husband and I rearrange our plans for the afternoon and evening.

After I got home from work Saturday, I saw my sweetest day gift on the dinner room table. It was a bouquet of sunflowers and a card. A couple of years ago I told my husband that S.D. wasn't really a holiday, so we really don't buy each other gifts. The flowers were really pretty and now they are in a vase of water brightening up my dining room.

We then got in the car and drove to Toledo, Ohio. Our first stop was to the new Fallen Timbers mall outside of Maumee. It was really nice. Some of the stores/eateries weren't open yet, but there was still a great turnout at the mall. We walked around that mall for a half hour and drove back to Toledo. We stopped at Bed Bath & Beyond to find a toaster. We didn't like the ones that were in stock so we left without one. The next stop was to Franklin Park Mall. I bought some books at Borders with a gift certificate from my birthday. My husband bought shorts for both of us at Dick's Sporting Goods. We looked for toasters at the mall but didn't find any. After a couple more stops at Best Buy and a furniture store, we had dinner at Outback Steakhouse.

Sunday morning I drove up near Lansing to visit my friend Kathy. I took photos of her and her family. It was great seeing them again. It is so hard to visit when they live so far away. I stayed at their house for two hours. When I got home I didn't do much. I downloaded my memory cards, took a nap, ran and watched Dexter on DVD. It was a busy but great weekend.

One of my favorite photos of Kathy

Books read in 2007

A Man of Faith, David Aikman
Hannibal Rising, Thomas Harris
All of the President's Men, Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward
House of Sand and Fog, Andre Dubus III
Jack: A Life Like No Other, Geoffrey Perret
Shadow: Five Presidents and the Legacy of Watergate, Bob Woodward
Manhunt: The 12-Day Chase for Lincoln's Killer, James L. Swanson
The Manchurian Candidate, Richard Condon
Leni Riefenstahl, Rainer Rother
From Here to Eternity, James Jones
Cultural Warrior, Bill O'Reilly
Ava Gardner: Love is Nothing, Lee Server
The Man Who Would Not Shut Up, Marvin Kitman
Clint Eastwood, Richard Schickel
Notorious, Donald Spoto
Katharine Hepburn, Barbara Leaming
Empire: The Life, Legend and Madness of Howard Hughes, Donald L. Barlett
Diana, Andrew Morton
Mrs. Kennedy: The Missing History of the Kennedy Years, Barbara Leaming
Judy Garland: The Secret Life of an American Legend, David Shipman
Shadows of a Princess, P.D. Jephson
Just Jackie, Edward Kline
Leni, Steven Bach
Breakfast at Tiffany's, Truman Capote
The Devil Wears Prada, Lauren Weisberger
Cary Grant: A Class Apart, Graham McCann
Princess Grace, Sarah Bradford
John Wayne's America, Garry Wills
Jack and Jackie, Christopher Andersen
Henry Ford and the Jews, Neil Baldwin
General Patton: A Soldier's Life, Stanley P. Hirshson

Currently Reading: Diana, Sarah Bradford
Up Next: Hitch: The Life and Times of Alfred Hitchcock, John Russell Taylor

TV matters

This morning at work I glanced up at the TV to see "After the Onions Rings" in big letters across the screen. I knew that they were going to talk about The Sopranos. Since the TV is turned down in the newsroom because it annoys people, I had to find the link and read about it. I was lucky to find it in the New York Post. Sopranos creator David Chase said Tony lives! I read so many postings about the final episode, everyone thought Tony was killed. I didn't. I hoped that he was still alive in TV land. Today it is true. Maybe Chase will make a Sopranos movie down the road like Sex and the City. Who wouldn't want to see Tony and the gang five years from now?

The show that I have have been getting into is Showtime's Dexter. I loved Michael C. Hall in Six Feet Under and I love him in this show. Who doesn't love a funeral director and a lab technincan/serial killer? I recorded the season two opener with my DV-R and have been hooked since. Of course I had no clue what was going on, but I still loved the show. Through Netflix, I've watched Dexter season 1 through episode seven. I will finish the second DVD this afternoon, send it back and wait for the third disk of season 1, patiently. I know that the series is based from the book, Darkly Dreaming Dexter by Jeff Lindsay. I usually don't read fiction, but I will be picking up this book and the rest of the series. I'm obsessed with TV!

Photo Credits: HBO, Yahoo TV & Showtime

Miles run in 2007

I did run after my soccer game last night. It was an easy two miles on the treadmill. I was hoping to run today and tomorrow, but I can't. Early this afternoon I have to drive to another soccer game which is about an hour away. So I will have to wait until Thursday for my next run. I hope it doesn't rain tomorrow. It has been a while since I ran outside. I would like to get in a long run outside before my upcoming 5 and 10K races.

Miles run through October 17:
2007: 450.2
2006: 386.9
2005: 280.2
2004: 234.4

Random things

It is supposed to rain all day. I'm not too excited about that. I have to photograph a district soccer game later this afternoon. I'll be the one holding an umbrella and taking pictures at the same time.

I'm hoping I'll be motivated to run after my soccer game. I wanted to wait until tomorrow to do my first run of the week, but I may have to photograph a game instead of having the afternoon off. It is either run later tonight or tomorrow afternoon during nap time. The good thing is if I run tonight I will pass 450 miles run for the year. My New Year's goal was to run 500 miles. I'm getting closer and I have two and a half months left in the year.

A couple of days ago I mailed in my race forms for two upcoming races. The first is a 5K that is going to be held in a cemetery in the evening. The cemetery is very hilly. It will be a challenging run. The second race is a 10K. For the last two weeks, I have been running 6 miles on my treadmill to prepare for this race. I really like this race but the last hill with less then a mile to go always gets me. My goal for this year is to run strong up the hill and continue that to the finish line.

Engagements and traffic

I had an engagement session with a fun couple yesterday, Casey and Matt. We met at a park in Taylor, Michigan. The engagement session started out dry, but it didn't stay that way for too long.

After we walked to our first location, the gazebo, it starting raining. You wouldn't know it, but the photo posted with this entry, they are getting wet. They were awesome and didn't complain once. I was also thankful they were both wearing dark colors. It helped hide the rain drops from being seen in the photos. For the rest of the session, it continued to rain off and on.

On the way home, I was going smoothly on I-94 West. Over by Metro Airport, my speed dropped from almost 80 miles per hour to 60. I thought there was a crash or a cop pulled someone over, so I waited patiently while it felt like we were crawling. After continuing on for a couple of miles, none of those listed above were the cause for the slowdown. Everyone just slowed down for no apparent reason.

About a mile away from my turnoff to US 23 South, I tried to get around a slow semi. I merged into the most right hand lane. I saw the US 23 exits in front of me. But then I realized it was the wrong US 23. The lane I was in was an exit only for 23 North. I wanted 23 South but I was blocked in. I turned on my blinker hoping the car behind the slow semi would let me in. A Saab was the car behind the semi. The woman driving the Saab didn't let me in. I was forced to take the wrong exit. Twenty minutes later, I was finally back on US 23 South and going in the right direction towards home.

When I arrived home I was so tired. I do not envy people that have to drive on the interstates everyday. My drive was 133 miles round trip and it wore me out. I had no energy the rest of the night. During dinner I couldn't stop yawning. By 8:30 pm I could hardly keep my eyes open. I went to bed at 8:45 pm. It was a good day except for the three hours I was stuck in my car driving.

Random things

Monday I watched The Next Iron Chef that I recorded from Sunday night. The chefs on the show are competing against each other to be named the fifth Iron Chef. All of the chefs chosen for the program are professional and very successful. I thought it would've been nice to see head judge Chef Tom Colicchio from Top Chef compete on this show. I know he is a chef thanks to Padma when she introduces all of the judges. I googled Tom and found out he is Chef/Owner of Craft Restaurants. As judge on Top Chef, he is always critiquing food, I would like to see him go head to head with some great chefs and see what he can make.

I photographed a college soccer game Wednesday afternoon. The temperature around game time was 50 degrees and it was windy. With that, I wore my winter coat and hat. After standing in the cold and wind for the first half, I went back to download the photos. People made comments about how bundled up I was. One person said, "She must be cold." You would be cold to if you had to stand outside for an hour photographing a soccer game.

After the game, I went home to run on the treadmill. Around 1.5 miles, my lunch made a surprise visit. I threw up in my mouth a little. It was nasty. For the rest of my run all I could taste was onion rings. Gross.

In a couple of hours, I have an engagement session. It is a very cloudy day, windy and 50 degrees. I hope the rain holds off until we are done.

Colors

Blue and Brown.

For a while now, I have been loving those colors. I see them everywhere and I think that they look good together. My husband is really not a fan of these colors. Especially brown. He dislikes brown because it is the color of his uniform for work.

Yesterday, he took me to Lowe's to pick out floor tiles, walls and a color scheme for the laundry room. After picking out the tiles and the wall boards, it was on to my favorite part: color. I went straight for blue and brown. I picked out nine color swatches of different blues and browns. I told him that I wanted a room in our house to be these colors. I don't know if I will win on the laundry room, but there is still the kitchen and the full bathroom that needs to be redone. I still have a 1 in 3 chance to have a room in my dream colors.

Weekend update

Saturday morning I photographed a cross country invitational. It was so hot and humid. I felt bad for the runners. One team that was there, all of the runners collapsed at the finished line. They all needed help from the volunteers to pick them up. Two people made comments to me saying it was like that team was trained to do that. I doubt that they were, but it was odd the only runners that collapsed were from one school.

One of the oddest things seen at the cross country invitational was two boys running to the finish line together. They were both neck and neck. One of the runners thought he could beat the other runner to the line by sliding head first. I wanted to tell him it wasn't baseball season and the finish line wasn't home plate. Come on who slides head first through the finish line at a cross country meet?

In speaking of hot and humid weather, a Michigan police officer died running the Chicago Marathon and another runner collapsed and died near the finish line at the Pentagon during the Army-Ten Miler in Arlington, VA.

I decided over the weekend I will train for the 2008 Detroit Free Press/Flagstar Half Marathon. I have over a year to get ready for this race. I can do it.

Watch your step

I saw an older man stumbling around on a sidewalk in downtown. I noticed him while waiting at a stoplight. I thought he tripped over something on the sidewalk. He regained his balance thanks to a wall of a building. Once he got his balance he tried to walk again. This time he was stumbling all over. This guy just didn't trip, he was drunk. He was drunk at 7 pm on a Thursday night. My question is who gets staggering drunk around 7 pm on a Thursday evening? Apparently that guy.

Random things

I've been watching America's Next Top Model regularly since Cycle 4. I have caught the first three cycles thanks to marathons on VH1 and MTV. Every season has a bad girl. This cycle it is Bianca. I always hope for them to leave early but they never do. Last night Bianca was in the bottom two. Of course she got a second chance and someone else was sent home. It always seems like the bad girl always escapes elimination until the final 5. The last couple of seasons that was the way with Renee, Melrose, Jade, Bre and Keenyah. They all made it overseas to different countries. The bad girls probably get to stay to create drama and keep the show interesting. I'll admit it does keep the show entertaining.

Last night was the live finale of Top Chef. I haven't watched it yet, but I already read the recap this morning. I know Hung won. I really liked Casey and Dale, but I had a feeling that Hung would probably win due to his technique. This season why did they need to have three finalists instead of two? Whatever. I'll be back for Top Chef 4.

***SPOILER ALERT - Sex and the City***
Earlier this week, I read on Page Six of the New York Post that Sex and the City was going to be filming at St. Patrick's Cathedral. Carrie and Big are getting married. Then this morning I saw the pictures. SJP looks lovely in her dress, but what is with the feathers? Come on where are the photos of Chris Noth?

Krista still needs help raising money to run a marathon with Team in Training. Please donate to a worthy cause.

I've been tagged

The rules:

1. Post these rules before you give you the facts.
2. List eight random facts about yourself.
3. At the end of your post, choose (tag) someone and list their name (linking to their page).
4. Leave them a comment on their blog letting them know they’ve been tagged!

Eight random things about me.

1. I'm the youngest of seven children. All of our first names start with D.

2. I grew up on a hog farm. My brothers, sisters and I showed hogs at the county fair until we were all 18. In 1995 my hog was Reserve Grand Champion. It sold at auction for over $1000.

3. I love the smell of coffee, but I hate the taste. Once I was getting my car fixed and the auto shop made a fresh pot. It smelled really good so I poured myself a cup. It was gross and I threw it away. It could have been gross because it was coffee in a auto shop.

4. I eat Applebee's nachos at least once a week.

5. Most of my friends drank during college. I didn't. My first drink was on my 21st birthday.

6. During the summer I always wear my watch when I'm outside. I like the "watch line" I get on my left wrist to see how tan I am.

7. I am a clean freak. Everything around me has to be clean and in order. If is not, I straighten it up. Sometimes when talking to a co-worker I'll start cleaning her desk. I just can't stand to look at filth.

8. In college I didn't pursue a Bachelor of Fine Arts because I was afraid to defend my work in front of the art professors.

I tag BCal, Kris and Erin.

Dog in the window

Just before 7 pm this evening, someone knocked on my front door. I wasn't expecting any company so I walked into my bedroom to look out the window. I saw a SUV parked in front of my house. Whoever was at the door kept knocking. I just finished taking a shower, so I had to make myself decent to answer the door.

I walked downstairs and opened the front door. It was a man and a woman in their early 20s. They said they were from Company X and they are going to be opening a office in town. After this I stopped listening because my two German Shepherds were knocking down their gate that locks them in the kitchen. When I heard the gate fall down, I stepped onto the porch with them and shut the door. She continued on with her spiel. Next thing you know my 120 pound German shepherd Blitzkrieg was standing on the window sill barking. The two people on my porch backed up because they were frightened of my barking dog. I told them that my dog doesn't like visitors. With that she asked when would be a better time to come back. I told her tomorrow. I really wanted to tell her not to come back, but I wanted to be nice. When they come back tomorrow they will be talking with my husband. I'm sure he will shut the door faster then I did.

Books read in 2007

A Man of Faith, David Aikman
Hannibal Rising, Thomas Harris
All of the President's Men, Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward
House of Sand and Fog, Andre Dubus III
Jack: A Life Like No Other, Geoffrey Perret
Shadow: Five Presidents and the Legacy of Watergate, Bob Woodward
Manhunt: The 12-Day Chase for Lincoln's Killer, James L. Swanson
The Manchurian Candidate, Richard Condon
Leni Riefenstahl, Rainer Rother
From Here to Eternity, James Jones
Cultural Warrior, Bill O'Reilly
Ava Gardner: Love is Nothing, Lee Server
The Man Who Would Not Shut Up, Marvin Kitman
Clint Eastwood, Richard Schickel
Notorious, Donald Spoto
Katharine Hepburn, Barbara Leaming
Empire: The Life, Legend and Madness of Howard Hughes, Donald L. Barlett
Diana, Andrew Morton
Mrs. Kennedy: The Missing History of the Kennedy Years, Barbara Leaming
Judy Garland: The Secret Life of an American Legend, David Shipman
Shadows of a Princess, P.D. Jephson
Just Jackie, Edward Kline
Leni, Steven Bach
Breakfast at Tiffany's, Truman Capote
The Devil Wears Prada, Lauren Weisberger
Cary Grant: A Class Apart, Graham McCann
Princess Grace, Sarah Bradford
John Wayne's America, Garry Wills
Jack and Jackie, Christopher Andersen
Henry Ford and the Jews, Neil Baldwin

Currently Reading: General Patton: A Soldier's Life, Stanley P. Hirshson
Up Next: A trip to the library

Random things

After two weeks of waiting, AMC had a new Mad Men on last night. I recorded the show with my DV-R, but haven't watched it yet. Like the obsessive person that I am, I read the episode recap this morning. I guess that I like knowing what happens on the show before watching it. To others it may spoil the show, I don't think it does. Since I don't know all of the characters name on the show, its nice to know who is doing what.

Last Friday, I thought Notre Dame was hosting the Notre Dame Invitational. Saturday morning I checked their site for results, none were found. I checked the local college, Siena Heights, site because the men's cross country team was scheduled to run there. Nothing. I couldn't understand why there weren't any results anywhere. Its like it never happened. Earlier this week, I was still checking the site hoping for something. Monday afternoon a story was written saying 15 ranked teams were going to be competing in this invitational. That is when I checked their schedule. The meet is being run today. I guess I better start reading things better. I will be checking the results later tonight. I would like to see the outcome of the Siena Heights men team and especially the women's blue race. I wrote about this before that I'm a fan of the University of Michigan's women's team and right now they are ranked No. 2 in the polls. Also I want to see how Notre Dame's freshman Marissa Treece will do. I saw her run in the Michigan cross country division 4 finals three times and win all three times. I wonder how she will do against many ranked teams?

While driving around town yesterday, I saw things on three different vehicles that were similar: bullet hole stickers. I think that they look ridiculous, but that is my opinion. Some people like them and have them all over their vehicle. I found a website that said that bullet hole stickers was the world's hottest auto trend. If it so hot, why is my car without them?

This is Alumni Weekend at my college, Siena Heights University. There is only one event that I participate in is the 5K. The Saints Run starts at 9 am tomorrow. It should be a bit chilly, but otherwise sunny. This is my first race since July and I hope to improve my time from last year's run.

Oops, I did it again

While traveling through downtown yesterday in my car on the way to an assignment, I made a left turn and squealed my tires. Normally that is not a big deal, unless you do it in front of a cop who is waiting at the stop light.

When the cop's light turned green, he got in close behind me. The light we were both waiting at turned green and the cop followed for a minute, then decided to turn on his overheads. I quickly found a vacant parking lot and pulled over. Even before the cop was out of his car, I was already getting my license, registration and insurance ready. I rolled down my window and the cop walked up. He asked me where I was going? I told him I was going to a volleyball game at the school down the road. He then asked for my license, registration and insurance. When I found my current insurance card, I gave it to him. He asked me why I thought I got pulled over. I honestly didn't know. He said I squealed my tires when making the left turn off of Main Street. I told him that I didn't hear it, which I didn't because my music was up too loud. Before he went back to his car to run my information, he asked if I had a good driving record. I told him I did.

At this time, my phone vibrated. I answered the two-way, it was my husband. He heard my name on the scanner and asked what I did. I told him that the officer said I squealed my tires in downtown. My husband asked if he was writing me a ticket. I looked in my rear view mirror and said he was running my information. I saw the officer getting ready to get out of his car so I told my husband I had to go. The officer comes back to my window and hands back my license, registration and insurance. He told me to slow down and went back to his car.

Three times I have been pulled over. Two times for speeding and once for squealing my tires. I have been fortunate so far not to receive any tickets. I hope to continue the streak. Knock on wood.

Why can't I hear the sweet, sweet music?

Last week, I thought it would be a good idea to start taking my headphones home with me from work. Every morning when I work I listen to music to help keep me sane. If I didn't have my music, I would be forced listen to the police scanner, look at the TV and everyone else's conversations at normal tones. I always have my music down low enough to actually hear the scanner and everyone's conversations. We can't hear the TV because the volume is always low.

The day after I took my headphones home, I took them out of my photo bag. They looked like they survived the trip because they weren't broken in half. I plugged them in and stuck in a CD in the tower and waited for the itunes to come up. When it did, I pressed play. The music was great, until the singing started. I could barely hear George Strait singing. In both ears I could hear the music just fine. Only on the left side could I hear the singing, just barely. What words I did hear, it sounded like someone was playing the music down the hall with the door closed. That made me sad.

Monday morning I put a CD in and started itunes. This time I could hear only the music. That really made me angry. Since I couldn't hear the words, it was a waste of time. I found another pair of headphones in my drawer and used those the rest of the morning. These headphones were worst. The good part was I could hear the music and the singing, the bad part was these headphones had the earpieces that went in your ear. These aren't the nice earpieces that come with ipods, these earpieces were huge and really didn't fit in my ear. After five minutes of having them in my ear, I had to take them off. They were hurting my ear and giving me a headache. I kept that up all morning. I probably shouldn't have, but I had to listen to music.

After using the headphones from hell yesterday, I went back to my old pair. Before putting them on, I twisted them in hopes of making the left side work. A half hour or so passed and out of nowhere I heard singing out of the left side. It was awesome. The joy didn't last long. I moved and the sound went away. For the rest of the morning, I was moving my head constantly to get my headphones to work properly. One second the sound would be back, the next it was the music down the hall again. I finally gave up and accepted that I need to buy new headphones. When I do buy them, they will not go in my camera bag without a protective case. I don't need to bust a move at my desk just to listen to tunes.