Got Talent?

Tomorrow is the night you have all I have been waiting for. My big acting debut on America's Got Talent. However, I don't have a talent. And the show isn't all that great.

But...you should still watch.

When we were in NYC back in April, the four of us snagged tickets to the taping of the show. Surprisingly, it was a blast! 

After waiting in line for hours and checking all electronics through security - Kari handed over her Garmin, digital camera, and 2 cell phones - we were picked from the crowd of "average looking" folks and taken to the very FRONT ROW directly behind these fools for the taping. Sharon is gorgeous in real life!

 

image here.

Before the crazies talents started, the producer asked us to do some prompted audience shots ~ 1,2,3 "laugh"....1,2,3 a random guy is sticking a drill up his nose...1,2,3 there are rats crawling on the floor...those kinds of things that really test your acting abilities. I must say ours were superb, but I can't guarantee what they will be showing me laughing at after editing ~ hopefully nothing too inappropriate.

Anyway, half of my face may be on the show in the audience for 0.00032287 seconds, so tune in to NBC tomorrow at 9est!

Year in Review & Welcome the New

A new year is upon us, so it is only fitting to recap all that happened in 2009.

What an eventful year!

I started 2009 with my best friends from college, lived in the ever-entertaining sorority house with the company of 45 other wonderful women where I had every meal prepared for me, went to class about 8 hours a week and spent the rest of the week goofing off. I did spring break, bar crawls, and date parties with grace.

In May, I finally graduated with a degree in Finance {yipee!}. In June I moved to the big city {to live in a newly furnished apartment, thanks to graduation money}. In July I was blessed to start a great full time job. In October dad moved 100s of miles away {hard for a daddy's girl to handle}. Essentially, my life has seen a lot of change.

I now live alone in a 1 bedroom apartment. I have learned to shower, sleep, and live on my own without letting my imagination {or loneliness} get the best of me {with the exception of the occasional nightmare or pitty party ~ it happens}. I am learning to cook and be independent. I am gradually meeting new people and exploring the town. I am learning more than I could have ever imagined at work. I am officially acting like an adult.

Reflecting on how much things have changed and how much I have grown in 2009, I can only imagine where I will be a year from now. 

In 2010, I hope to:

• Continue to meet new people and make the new city feel like home. I want to be more open to new things. Even though something or someone is different, that is ok.
• Create a better work-life balance {thus also supporting the aforementioned goal} while also learning and growing in my job.
• Start living a healthier lifestyle. I want to continue working out regularly, but "change" can no longer be my excuse for not eating healthy.  

I have learned so much about myself this year, and I hope to begin finding what truly makes me happy in the new year. This year has been full of good times, but has also been very, very challenging. I will continue to focus on the positive, and with that I know 2010 will be outstanding!

This has been a year of change {excuse the cliche Obama catch phrase} for many of us!  What is your favorite memory from 2009, and what would you like to change in 2010?

HS Reunion

On Saturday night, we had our annual friends Holiday Party ~ tacky Christmas sweaters and all!

I am so glad that all of our high school friends still get together regularly. It is sooo much fun to catch up, remember old times, enjoy a couple too many drinks, and pretend like we can dance.

It seems like just yesterday we were going to prom, dressing up for basketball games, and having poker nights. I miss those days dearly, but am happy we are still such good friends.

Cheers to old times!

Tacky Sweaters to the MAX

Sarah's outfit put everyone else's to shame ~ so funny!

It was also Jason's birthday ~ Happy Day!

Surprise!!!

Upon arriving at my friend's house on Saturday night, I was surprised by 6 of my best friends from college in town for the evening!

I could not have asked for a better birthday present! :)

We started out the night with dinner & wine at Mitchell's Fish Market, one of my favorite restaurants in town {where I felt extremely grown up...as we were all sipping wine and discussing our work lives}.

The food was delicious! "Best meal I've ever had"...as Kari some people would say. As this was a joint birthday celebration, we got THREE free desserts...7 Layer Carrot Cake {tdf}, Ice Cream Pie {also delish}, and a Java Lava Molten Chocolate Cake {my favorite dessert ever...}. Needless to say, this sweet tooth was in hog heaven.

Here's a picture of the Happy Birthday Girls:

The size of my smile could be directly related to the size of my dessert. I'm just sayin'...

The entire group at dinner:

Enjoying the city skyline:

I didn't stop laughing all night as we caught up on stories about our lives, reminisced about old ones, and made even more lasting memories.

We ended up at a very random bar full of very interesting people. Very entertaining to say the least! As my dad has always said, "It's not where you are, it's who you're with." No matter where I am with these friends, I have a wonderful time.

To my amazing friends ~ Thank you for the fabulous surprise! I only hope you had as much fun as I did! I miss you guys every day, and cherish the times when we are all together again. No matter where life takes us, when we are with each other it feels like no time has passed. I believe that is a sign of lasting friendship. I love you all!

BOOtiful Idea

Halloween is coming up and I need a little help with costume ideas, seeing as I've been an indian 4 years in a row.

Last year I copied the fabulous idea of being a rock star. Which I LOVED because it was so out of character for me.

Please note the fabulous acting skills.

I was thinking of being a rock star again this year, but I'd hate to be a repeat costume offender yet again. I better get to work...the big day is getting close. I have Halloween plans before I even have a costume...eek!

TOP 10 things I LOVED about college:

1. Going out every Thursday night and knowing over half of the people in the bar. Dancing like no one is watching me. Only paying $5 for all you can drink for the night. And when they kick us out at closing time, being able to simply walk home.

2. Not having any obnoxious obligations class until after 10am...only four days a week...Fridays were for doing nothing/shopping/resting after Thursday night.

3. Baking giant chocolate chip cookies the size of my face with our house mother in the sorority house. Even though we weren't supposed to be allowed in the kitchen. She had her favorites =)

4. Recruitment. 150 girls living under one roof provides an opportunity for lots of drama, but also for many hilarious memories. You get to know each other on a whole new level. Love it. And when it's all over and we set a record for recruiting the largest pledge class in the school's history, it feels so rewarding!  

5. Football Season. Period. Tailgating, dressing up, pretending to understand the game, the random things that go on afterwards, and always ending up at the same bar...

6. Enjoying Snow Days locked up in the sorority house playing card games and eating hot tamales until we couldn't feel our tongues anymore because they were on fire. Then, even though our tongues were raw, our house mom would make homemade hot chocolate and we'd drink that as well...usually resulting in burns to the mouth. But so delicious...she topped it with marshmallow fluff and a chocolate covered peppermint stick...mmmm!

7. Teaching a freshman orientation class and having all the clueless freshman look up to me and come to me with innocent questions and worries about college.

8. Wasting time in the TV room...but there were always at least 5 other people in there wasting time as well, so I never felt that bad about being lazy and catching up on gossip. The Ellen Show was a house fav...we watched it every day before being served dinner at 5pm like we were living in a retirement home, not on a college campus. The food was always delicious and I ate too much of it though, so I can't complain!

9. Gaining leadership experience through the many opportunities provided on campus. I learned more being President, working with others to manage all the girls in the sorority than I did in any single class.

10. Giving campus tours as a guide at the school Visitor Center. I loved meeting all the soon-to-be freshman and helping them make the important decision of where to go to college. It also provided many other opportunities...like being in school photo shoots for promotional material, traveling to school college fairs, and meeting many interesting people....which eventually led to being invited on the best ski trip I've ever been on ;)

There are so many other things I love and miss about school. I can't wait until I can make a list about this next stage of my life because good and exciting times should be coming soon!