Over Christmas break, I had a chance to do some sleeping in, played some board games with the family, took plenty of walks with the dogs and my sister and caught up on some good movies. My parents and I also went to see "It's Complicated" on my birthday. Although they all might not be technically 2009 movies, here are some of the flicks I've seen over the recent past that are worthwhile to watch:
- The Hangover (good clean drunken debauchery)
- It's Complicated (love Alec Baldwin in 30 Rock, loved him in this movie)
- Inglorious Basterds (gotta love Brad Pitt's Tennessee accent)
- Sex and the City (the movie lived up to the hype from the great hit series)
And the "don't waste your time list":
- Made of Honor (McDreamy tricked me into watching this)
- I Love You Man (bro-mances don't make great movies)
- Pineapple Express (I was expecting more from this film)
Sunday, January 3, 2010
The 29th Birthday
Yes, it's official...only one more year until I'm 30. I enjoyed a lovely birthday celebration this year with my family and our neighbors the Ullmers. My sister Alicia made this fantastic cake for me. She's currently working for a CRO in the Cleveland area, but I think she might be better suited for a fancy cake-making business. Any cake designers out there looking for a young prodigy?
Travel Boggle
Over Christmas, my sister, my mother, and I played some board games. We indulged in Boggle, Scrabble, and Yahtzee. Of the three, we played Boggle the most frequently. Since I am a naturally competitive person, the board games were competitive (but fun as well).
My sister likes to give me a hard time for being so competitive. In fact, she takes such pleasure in watching me get all worked up and then lose, she was conspiring with my mom to beat me. Questionable ethics on Christmas vacation? Perhaps, but it's all in the game.
The first day we played Boggle, my sister kicked both of our butts pretty handily. However, by the last day, I gave her a run for her money and actually eeked out a victory. It was great.
In the airport on the way home, I saw this travel edition of Boggle. I plan on practicing during the year so next Christmas break I'll be able to whoop up on Ali.
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Avery and Tucker
It's been awhile since we've had a chance to hang out. They're as sweet as can be (as usual) but aren't quite sure what to make of Reggie yet. She has a little too much energy for them...
Sleeping Beauty
Behold, my younger sister Alicia partaking in the afternoon nap after running the dogs at our local park.
Dear Delta: A Little Common Sense Would've Been Appreciated
There was nearly a massive flaw in my plan to fly home with Reggie and spend the week relaxing with my family. Our plans included meeting Greg, my sister's boyfriend for the first time, as well as letting Reggie hang out with Uncle Tucker and Aunt Avery, my parents' dogs.
Upon arrival at the airport, I checked my bag in curb-side and the Delta check-in guy escorted me with Reggie upstairs to the "Special Services" line to check in. However, instead of putting me in the real "Special Services" line, he stuck me in a line that was intended for people on a flight to JFK that got canceled and everyone needed to be re-booked. After 10 minutes of standing there listening to people complain about missing connecting flights (one woman's trip to Egypt was apparently being massively screwed up), I moved myself over to the true "Special Services" line where I was surrounded by families with children. I believe there was only one representative checking people in, so after about 20 minutes of waiting and not moving at all, I moved myself (again) over to the normal check-in line.
After waiting 15 minutes or so, I was to the front of the line. And this is when the real craziness started. Despite my discussions with several Delta representatives on the phone assuring me I didn't need any special certification for taking off with a dog when the city I was flying to was cold, the lady at the counter tried to bar Reggie from the flight because it was sub-45 degrees in Atlanta (a chilly 39 degrees). I tried to explain to her my prior discussions with Delta representatives, but she wasn't hearing it. She kept saying how it was for the animal's safety, etc., but I wanted to grab her and shake her and tell her that Reggie is a lab that would be perfectly fine sitting in 39 degree weather for 30 minutes while they transferred her from the Atlanta connection to the Newport News connection.
After a 30-40 minute debate with several of the representatives, they decided if my vet could fax in an acclimation certificate Reggie could fly. Thank you Windan'Sea Veterinary Clinic, Dr. Dorian and Dr. Lindsay for your help. After this, we were all systems go. However, this ridiculousness with us checking in made us miss our 9:25 a.m. flight to Atlanta, so we had to be re-booked on the 11:15 a.m. flight. The lady at the counter re-booked me with a first-class seat so then I couldn't really complain too much. I was just happy to be on my way to Virginia, with Reggie safely on the plan, heading home to see our family for the break. Whew.
Upon arrival at the airport, I checked my bag in curb-side and the Delta check-in guy escorted me with Reggie upstairs to the "Special Services" line to check in. However, instead of putting me in the real "Special Services" line, he stuck me in a line that was intended for people on a flight to JFK that got canceled and everyone needed to be re-booked. After 10 minutes of standing there listening to people complain about missing connecting flights (one woman's trip to Egypt was apparently being massively screwed up), I moved myself over to the true "Special Services" line where I was surrounded by families with children. I believe there was only one representative checking people in, so after about 20 minutes of waiting and not moving at all, I moved myself (again) over to the normal check-in line.
After waiting 15 minutes or so, I was to the front of the line. And this is when the real craziness started. Despite my discussions with several Delta representatives on the phone assuring me I didn't need any special certification for taking off with a dog when the city I was flying to was cold, the lady at the counter tried to bar Reggie from the flight because it was sub-45 degrees in Atlanta (a chilly 39 degrees). I tried to explain to her my prior discussions with Delta representatives, but she wasn't hearing it. She kept saying how it was for the animal's safety, etc., but I wanted to grab her and shake her and tell her that Reggie is a lab that would be perfectly fine sitting in 39 degree weather for 30 minutes while they transferred her from the Atlanta connection to the Newport News connection.
After a 30-40 minute debate with several of the representatives, they decided if my vet could fax in an acclimation certificate Reggie could fly. Thank you Windan'Sea Veterinary Clinic, Dr. Dorian and Dr. Lindsay for your help. After this, we were all systems go. However, this ridiculousness with us checking in made us miss our 9:25 a.m. flight to Atlanta, so we had to be re-booked on the 11:15 a.m. flight. The lady at the counter re-booked me with a first-class seat so then I couldn't really complain too much. I was just happy to be on my way to Virginia, with Reggie safely on the plan, heading home to see our family for the break. Whew.
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