ARGH!!

I know, I KNOW. I wasn’t going to look at my 401k balance. I wasn’t going to check what the recent stock market events were doing to my portfolio. Even though I just celebrated a milestone birthday, I still realize that I have a good 25 – 30 years left to work (which is depressing in and of itself)….I’m in this for the long haul. This is a buying opportunity…You’re not supposed to try to catch a falling knife.

But curiosity got the best of me. Today, I pulled up the information online. Today, the numbers were green. But the year to date was red. And the total number was 10% less than it was when I last looked.

(As an aside, I used to walk past that bull on my way to work in the morning….it was fun when a new stock was getting listed on the stock exchange, sometimes there would be free stuff handed out.)

Sorry for the disjointed post. Work has been crazy when there’s no need for it to be like that. Couple that with the fact that all the cold weather has me contemplating hibernation…I need a palm tree and umbrella drink!!

iPod Meme

This looked fun, so I did it.

Here are the instructions:

1. Put your music player on shuffle.
2. Press forward for each question.
3. Use the song title as the answer to the question.
4. NO CHEATING.

Q: What does next year have in store for you?
A: New Sensation by INXS

Q: What does your love life look like next year?
A: Autour Du Rocher (live) by Jimmy Buffett (I hope this means I get to spend some time partying in the Caribbean!)

Q: What do you say when life gets hard?
A: Havana Daydreaming by Jimmy Buffett

Q: Song that reminds you of good times?
A: That’s My Story and I’m Sticking to It by Jimmy Buffett

Q: What do you think when you get up in the morning?
A: We are the People Our Parents Warned Us About by Jimmy Buffett

Q: What song will you dance to at your wedding?
A: 40 by U2

Q: Song that reminds you of your first kiss?
A: Whenever, Wherever by Shakira (uh oh – what does this say about me?)

Q: Your favorite saying?
A: It’s Five O’Clock Somewhere by Jimmy Buffett

Q: Favorite place?
A: Throwing it all Away by Genesis

Q: Most Missed Memory?
A: All this Time by Sting

Q: What song describes your best friend?
A: It Wasn’t Me by Shaggy

Q: What song describes your ex?
A: Let’s Get Loud by J Lo

Q: Where would you go on a first date?
A: Underneath it All by No Doubt

Q: Drug of choice?
A: Purple Rain by Prince

Q: What song describes yourself?
A: Brown Eyed Girl by Jimmy Buffett

Q: What is the thing you like doing most?
A: Knees of my Heart by Jimmy Buffett (that should light up the Google searches!)

Q: The song that best describes the president?
A: Last Mango in Paris by Jimmy Buffett

Q: Where will you be in 10 years?
A: The Waiting by Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers

Q: Your love life right now?
A: Defying Gravity by Kristin Chenoweth and Idina Menzel

Q: What is your state of mind like at the moment?
A: Somewhere Over the Rainbow by Israel Kamakawiwo’ole

Q: How will you die?
A: Nothin’ but a breeze by Jimmy Buffett

Yes, I admit I am a Parrotthead. I think the majority of the songs loaded on the iPod are Jimmy Buffett (which probably explains why some of the answers are a little funny).

I won’t tag anyone since I don’t know who does/doesn’t have an iPod.

Little lessons

1. If you are making a standing rib roast for your Christmas dinner, get a good meat thermometer – one that you can leave in the oven with a monitor outside. This was the first year in the past 3 since we’ve hosted Christmas dinner that the roast wasn’t overdone.

2. When you use the fancy meat thermometer in your roast for Christmas dinner, make sure you don’t put the tip next to a bone. This will cause the temperature to register incorrectly (it will appear to be taking FOREVER to cook, when in fact it’s dangerously close to becoming too well done).

3. If you volunteer to host the breakfast for celebrating the birthdays in December, and 9 people are going to be eating said breakfast, you need more than a dozen eggs. The eggs needed to be rationed. There was more than enough sausage however, and the cinnamon crunch bagels from Panera were a big hit.

4. Do not believe your brother when he says he only spent x per person on gifts. He’s a liar. And while in theory I agree it’s kind of ridiculous for adults to give each other gifts (when you can go out and buy whatever you want yourself), it’s nice to get presents.

5. Snow is pretty the first time it snows before the holidays. After that, it’s a pain. Even if it’s only a few inches, shoveling every day gets old. Remind me again why I live in the only part of Connecticut that got any frozen precipitation this past week?

6. It’s nice to shut the Blackberry off and not look at it (except for use as a timepiece) every once in a while.

7. That my 6 year old daughter knew about “ripping” and “burning” cds through the computer to get onto the mp3 player. She knows more than I do!!

Happy New Year!!

I have a post percolating about things I've learned this past holiday season, but it takes a back seat to filling up my new toy...I've gone through the gift card that came for Christmas and am still finding songs I want to add!!

Hope everyone has a happy, healthy and safe New Year!!