World Spin

My Juan

2006-10-18T12:01:00.000-05:00

Juan es mi novio. Lo amo mucho y estoy alegre yo lo satisfice. Él hizo 2006 un buen año para mí. Estoy pasando con muchos de cambios en mi vida, pero espero que Juan siga siendo constante en mi vida porque lo amo mucho. Besos a ti Juan.

Who says University of Chicago Students Can't have Fun?

2006-09-02T09:36:00.000-05:00

Here are some pictures from our recent trip to the White Sox Game.

We had a blast even though neither Juan or I are baseball fans. Pictured with us are some of Juan's most admired lab mates: Rafe, Rafe's girlfriend Lindsay (she's actually a med student) and Zach. The University sponsored the event so we got a private buffet with hot dogs, hamburgers, fried chiicken and ribs! Most importantly- free beer! So much fun!

Lance

2006-08-09T11:18:00.000-05:00

As in Lance Bass!
I found this poor guy while I was walking Sam and Mia the Friday before I left for Denver. He stayed with us for 2 nights and then my sister offered to take care of him while I was away. Well, apparently he chewed some of their stuff, and ruined a door while they were at work and he ended up going to my Grandma's house since she is home all day. Lance didn't get along with her dogs though and her neighbors fell in love with him. He ended up getting a new home with one of her neighbors friends who lives on a farm and is retired and at home most of the time. He'll get the attention he deserves! I'm so glad I helped this stray out and could find him a home. My mom said that when his new owner came over to my Grandma's house to meet the dog, he immediately jumped up on her lap and it was love at first sight for both of them. I wonder if she still calls him Lance?

Going to Denver

2006-07-26T16:07:00.000-05:00

I'm going to Denver, CO for the first time next Tuesday. I'm just now starting to get over what's been more than a week long illness that was strep throat and a touch of flu. It was aweful. I hate being sick. Hopefully I'll be fully recovered in the next few days before the trip to Denver. I'm going for work. We're having our Annual Conference there- last year it was Washington D.C.

I hope the weather there isn't as humid as it was in D.C. last summer! Juan will be in Puerto Rico while I'm in Denver, so we'll both be traveling. I would gladly trade spaces with him though! If it's like last year, I'll be working 12 hour days, getting up around 6am to go sit at a booth all day long and then go to work parties that I'm required to show up and attend. Not what I call a relaxing getaway- but the upside is I get the following Monday and Friday off. That will be nice.

Usually when I go somewhere I try to read up on the place to see what there is to do and what are the main attractions. This time though I don't know if it's because I'm just getting over being sick or just plain apathetic- I haven't taken the time to do any researching. That's why there isn't some cute picture of Denver next to this post...Maybe I'll take a few interesting pictures when I'm there, who knows? I take my dogs to my parents on Sunday before the trip. Oh, and another thing bad is that I miss Franklin coming back from his Austria/Germany trip. I wish I'd be here to hear everything when he gets back, but I'll be heading out of Chicago on my own adventure...

The Mousetrap

2006-07-18T08:59:00.000-05:00

Cute story

A mouse looked through the crack in the wall to see the farmer and his wife open a package. "What food might this contain?" The mouse wondered. He was devastated to discover it was a mousetrap. Retreating to the farmyard, the mouse proclaimed the warning. "There is a mousetrap in the house! There is a mousetrap in the house!" The chicken clucked and scratched, raised her head and said, "Mr. Mouse, I can tell this is a grave concern to you but it is of no consequence to me. I cannot be bothered by it." The mouse turned to the pig and told him, "There is a mousetrap in the house! There is a mousetrap in the house!" The pig sympathized but said, "I am so very sorry, Mr. Mouse, but there is nothing I can do about it but pray. Be assured you are in my prayers." The mouse turned to the cow and said, "There is a mousetrap in the house! There is a mousetrap in the house!" The cow said, "Wow, Mr. Mouse. I'm sorry for you, but it's no skin off my nose." So, the mouse returned to the house, head down and dejected, to face the farmer's mousetrap-- alone. That very night a sound was heard throughout the house -- like the sound of a mousetrap catching its prey. The farmer's wife rushed to see what was caught. In the darkness, she did not see it was a venomous snake whose tail the trap had caught. The snake bit the farmer's wife. The farmer rushed her to the hospital and she returned home with a fever. Everyone knows you treat a fever with fresh chicken soup, so the farmer took his hatchet to the farmyard for the soup's main ingredient. But his wife's sickness continued, so friends and neighbors came to sit with her around the clock. To feed them, the farmer butchered the pig. The farmer's wife did not get well; she died. So many people came for her funeral, the farmer had the cow slaughtered to provide enough meat for all of them. The mouse looked upon it all from his crack in the wall with great sadness. So, the next time you hear someone is facing a problem and think it doesn't concern you, remember ... when one of us is threatened, we are all at risk. We are all involved in this journey called life. We must keep an eye out for one another and make an extra effort to encourage one another. Send this to everyone who has ever helped you out and let them know how important they are in your life. Remember: each of us is a vital thread in another person's tapestry. Our lives are woven together for a reason!

Opening Ceremonies Pictures

2006-07-17T17:40:00.000-05:00

Juan and I got to be in the Opening Ceremonies of the Gay Games as Flag Bearers. We had it all worked out so we would get there on time and beat the traffic, but I forgot my badge at my place and we had to go across town to go get it.

We got there at 5pm and found a long line of other people waiting to sign up to carry a flag as well. Juan ended up carrying the sign for Spain and I got United Arab Emerites! We waited around until 8pm when the athletes were supposed to go onto the field and that's when I found out UAE didn't have any athletes there! So all that waiting for nothing! Here's a picture of Juan , Reza and I in the area we had to wait in before we got on the field. What amazed me most was how many athletes there were from California! There were teams of so many different cities there! Being part of the ceremonies really made me want to be a part of the whole thing. I wish I had signed up as an athlete. It would have been so much fun. The weather here in Chicago is not exactly cooperating though. The heat index today was 105 degrees! Some sports were delayed due to the heat and they have already reported taking some athletes to the hospital due to overheating.

Reza carried the Swedish flag

I didn't want to miss going out on the field so I just went over to where the Spanish team was waiting and explained the situation and no one really minded that I went on the field with them.

It was so cool to be on the field. There was such a cool energy.

Everyone was in party mood. Here are some pictures of the whole thing...

English Language- Did you know?

2006-07-11T09:03:00.000-05:00

Interesting, probably lesser known facts about the English language...

1) Maine is the only state whose name is just one syllable.
2) No word in the English language rhymes with month, orange, silver, or purple.
3) "Dreamt" is the only English word that ends in the letters "mt".
4) Our eyes are always the same size from birth, but our nose and ears never stop growing.
5) The sentence: "The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog" uses every letter of the alphabet.
6) The words 'racecar,' 'kayak' and 'level' are the same whether they are read left to right or right to left (palindromes).
7) There are only four words in the English language which end in "dous": tremendous, horrendous, stupendous, and hazardous.
8) There are two words in the English language that have all five vowels in order: "abstemious" and "facetious."
9) TYPEWRITER is the longest word that can be made using the letters only on one row of the keyboard.
10) All 50 states are listed across the top of the Lincoln Memorial on the back of the $5 bill
11) A dime has 118 ridges around the edge.
12) A cat has 32 muscles in each ear.
13) A goldfish has a memory span of three seconds.
14) A "jiffy" is an actual unit of time for 1/100th of a second.
15) A shark is the only fish that can blink with both eyes.

Gay Games in Chicago!

2006-07-10T09:22:00.000-05:00

My boyfriend Juan and I are going to volunteer to help with the Opening Ceremonies of the Gay Games here in Chicago. We both signed up to be flag bearers and we're pretty excited about it. We went to an orientation meeting last night and tonight we have to go to a training session at Soldier Field. Our friend Reza told us about it and is also volunteering. Should be a fun time! Juan wants to carry the Puerto Rican Flag, but we're not sure if we are allowed a choice or not. Some of the entertainment there will be Andy Bell of Erasure and Margaret Cho the comedian.

A Day at the Races

2006-07-08T17:57:00.000-05:00

We all went to the races today for Bill's birthday. I'd never been- it was pretty fun and I can see how it can become addicting. I won on the first race and then lost the next two. I lost about $12 but Franklin actually won about $20. Had a great time- here's the picture we took. Juan and Franklin are missing, they were taking the pictures... Happy Birthday Bill!

First Day of Kindergarten

2006-07-07T10:55:00.000-05:00

Little guy

I came across this picture as I was going through my dresser drawer. It was taken on the first day of Kindergarten. I remember that day- I walked to school for the first time (our house was only 5 houses down from it) and met my new teacher, Mrs. Skaltsas, who I instantly adored. She was so nice and was one of my favorite teachers. I remember getting my own cubby hole to put my school supplies in and drawing with the other kids. One of my favorite things at school was a rug that was on the floor with pictures of streets and houses. I loved playing with cars on that rug. My glasses were another story. I remember having to get my eyes examined and getting eye drops. They had to hold me down to do it because I was crying and screaming. I hated my glasses and felt really self-conscious about them. My Grandma still tells the story (she was my nursery school teacher) that when I came in with glasses I didn't want to play with the other kids because I thought they were all looking at my glasses. She said she pulled me aside and told me to play with the other kids or I wouldn't be allowed to come back. She then said I went straight to playing again! I don't even remember that...

Don't you love my mom's glasses? So 80's. Love you mom!

One of many firsts!

2006-07-06T13:51:00.000-05:00

Top 10 Reasons I wanted to start a blog:

All the cool people have them
It's time I did more things technologically
My boyfriend does it, why can't I?
I've never been good with keeping a journal or organizer...will I fail at this too?
I need more reasons to go online!
Organize thoughts because I have really bad short term memory.
Post pictures
I was addicted to searching random blogs and decided to try my hand at this.
A place to whine about the world so my friends don't have to hear me- they can just go online and read about it!
Encourage world peace

Is this Fashion?

Everyone has their own idea of fashion, myself included and I happened to see this image in the Tribune and thought to myself who would be a fan of this clothing? Stealing a line from Carrie in Sex and the City, "I couldn't help but wonder" Do clothes make the girl or does the girl make the clothes?

I was also thinking when I saw this how funny it would be to see someone wearing this on the street. Do people do stuff like this and I'm just not present to witness it? Seems pretty funny to me. Props to any women who has the guts to wear this stuff. Either she really wants attention or she has a very unique way of expressing herself. I guess I'm just living up to the Midwestern stereotype of not being in tune with fashion. But in my defense I think fashion took a step in a weird direction...

HOT BEEF

Who doesn't like hot beef? All my friends do. What about yours?

The Taste of Chicago is on and I'm probably going this weekend if I can make time. My sister wants to treat me to some hot beef. mmm...me likes....