Heinz 57

I know that most people do the "100-things-about-me" lists, but I couldn't come up with 100. So, in honor of my awesome hometown of Pittsburgh, I decided to list 57 things about me!

1. I’m a very passionate person. When I’m “into” something, I’m in 150%.
2. My favorite place in the world (so far) is Central Park.
3. I love dogs and I’m allergic to cats.
4. I wish I could tap dance.
5. I have an addictive personality…I’m also a bit obsessive/compulsive.
6. I love Johnny Depp. In everything he’s done.
7. My favorite color is green.
8. I sleep with books. I’ve done it all my life. I love to fall asleep reading.
9. I listen to sports talk radio on the way to work. I never thought I’d turn into someone who listens to AM radio, but there it is.
10. I have two dream jobs. One is to work for the FBI, studying serial killers’ behavior. The other is to sing & dance on Broadway.
11. My best purchase ever was a navigation system for my car. Now I’m not afraid to drive anywhere.
12. I talk to myself. Sometimes I wonder if I said the thought in my head out loud.
13. I love daisies.
14. I’ve been to over 20 Dave Matthews Band concerts. Their music makes me so happy I can’t even explain it.
15. Washing dishes is very therapeutic for me. So is playing solitaire online.
16. If I can’t remember something, I have to look it up asap or it’ll drive me crazy. I love researching useless trivia on the internet.
17. I’m addicted to Diet Coke
18. I’m extremely self-conscious. I don’t like when everyone’s looking at me.
19. I love cheesy TV shows like Charmed and Buffy the Vampire Slayer. I’m also a reality TV junkie.
20. I want to live on the water. Ocean or lake, it doesn’t matter.
21. I’m terrified of needles.
22. I hate crowds. Tall people never understand that fear.
23. I over analyze just about everything.
24. I like to go shooting with my dad, even though I’m bad at it.
25. I have over 800 CDs. I’ll go to just about any concert, except country music.
26. My roommate thinks it’s amazing that I can crack open eggs with one hand.
27. I love to watch sports…any sports. And I hate it when people (guys) assume I don’t know anything about sports just because I’m a girl.
28. I talk in my sleep…and I kick people when I have to share a bed.
29. There was a time when I’d see someone famous every time I was in New York City. Then I started to expect it and now it doesn’t happen anymore.
30. I recently started learning Russian. Just because. And now I can count to 10 in five languages.
31. I suck a miniature golf. And I once hit a squirrel out of a tree when trying to play real golf.
32. I’ve never seen the movie Titanic…and never will.
33. I hate mushrooms. Who in their right mind would eat fungus?!?
34. I like to be tan. It makes me feel better about myself. Yes, I know that I could get skin cancer, but I still like to be tan.
35. My first kiss was at the Lincoln Memorial when I was in 7th grade.
36. I will not sing by myself in front of other people. But I always sing at the top of my lungs when I’m alone in the car.
37. I can be a tomboy, yet also very “girly”.
38. When I was 7 I wanted to marry Terry Bradshaw. When I was 15 I wanted to marry Gene Kelly. Now I want to marry a Marine.
39. I love to travel and have a huge list of places to go. I want to own residences in Manhattan, New Orleans and Venice.
40. I love cherry limeades from Sonic and it infuriates me every time I see a Sonic commercial on TV because the closest Sonic is about 2 hours away (with no traffic). Why do they advertise in my area?!?
41. I’m not good at verbally expressing my emotions, which is why I love greeting cards.
42. I like giving and receiving a mix CD.
43. As a teenager, I was a fan of New Kids on the Block. I still secretly like them.
44. I constantly check my email…it’s just another obsession I have.
45. I’d kick butt on the Price is Right. I’m very good at guessing the actual retail price.
46. I internalize my emotions. And my stress.
47. I’m a very conservative Republican who actually likes George W.
48. I love the Steelers. Meeting Rocky Bleier was one of the best nights of my life.
49. If I could be any superhero, it would be Wonder Woman. At age 6, my best friend and I would spin around, hoping to “turn in”.
50. I can tie a cherry stem into a knot with my tongue.
51. I cannot keep plants alive. Even the so caller “impossible-to-kill” spider plants.
52. I used to play the trumpet. I sometimes wish I still did. Because of that I love jazz, brass music, etc. Especially Louis Armstrong and Wynton Marsalis.
53. I love trees. I think they’re very interesting and could sit and stare at a cool looking tree for hours.
54. I kinda want cupcakes at my wedding instead of a wedding cake. Or maybe cherry pie…
55. I’m a sucker for a guy with a southern accent, but hate country music.
56. I’m NOT a morning person.
57. I’ll do just about anything if you give me ice cream.

Pink Martini - Hey Eugene

And here's another one. This song isn't their "typical" sound, but I love it. I guess they don't really have a "typical" sound. They sing songs in many different languages (french, arabic, italian, portugese, etc.). This is a good video though.

Pink Martini - Donde estas Yolanda - Live at London

I saw Pink Martini on Monday night with some friends. This band is worth checking out if you haven't already. And if you knew about this band and didn't tell me about them, you're in BIG trouble!

Soup

Lately I've been eating a lot of soup. Why not? It's good, there are many varities, it's low fat, low in calories and fills me up. It started with the Marriott cafeteria. It's been a busy few weeks, with many lunches spent at my desk working and soup is an easy choice. Plus, there are three different kinds served each day and they're different every day of the week. And they're GOOD. Last week alone I had some great soup...tomato basil, potato leek, butternut squash, lentil and good old fashioned vegetable. Soup & Diet Coke have pretty much been my meals at work for a while now.

So I decided to not only eat it in the cafeteria, but to try to make some at home (less expensive). Last weekend I made some great (if I do say so myself) vegetable/bean soup...full of tomatoes, green beans, chick peas, black beans, zucchini, celery, carrots, etc. I ate it most of the weekend and again for lunch today. My roommates enjoyed it as well.

Now I'm on a mission...and this is where all you blog readers come in! I'm looking for some good soup recipies. A few rules though...I'm NOT a good cook, so please make the recipies easy. Skip the heavy, creamy soups (too many calories). Cold soups welcomed. I'm dying for a good (easy) borscht recipe. And no mushrooms allowed! Thanks!!!

National Race for the Cure

Last weekend, my roommates and I participated in the 2007 National Race for the Cure. This year marked the 10th year in a row I've been to one (or more) of these races, but this was the 1st time I've actually been able to walk/run in the race! I'm usually at the Ford booth handing out bandannas and fighting off crazy people who can't seem to understand that they do not, in fact, need an entire box of bandannas (probably to sell on Ebay). I was excited to be able to walk in honor of my friend Cecily (diagnosed in her late 20s) and my mom's boss JoAnn (a two-time breast cancer survivor!).

We got up bright and early (6:00 a.m. to be exact), packed on the metro with thousands of other race participants and headed downtown. After a quick sweep of the "good" vendor booths for give-aways (i.e. salsa, Sunchips, visors, foam bunny ears (I live with teachers, remember?), cereal bars) we stopped at the Ford tent so I could say hi to my old co-workers. It was fun to see people and even more fun to not have to fight those crowds over bandannas! We then headed towards the start line. Here's a glimpse...and this was before it got crowded!


Here's a nice shot of the Capitol building before the crowds started arriving.

And here's our favorite part! At the end of the race, we were hot and tired (and those of you that know me, know how I feel about big crowds!). So we hurried to the "food/water tables", which were piled high with bananas, juice, water, cereal bars, Yoplait, etc. It's a great way to end the race!

This year, the National Race for the Cure had over 45,000 participants and raised over $2.7 million for breast cancer research. It's a great cause and I'm proud to have supported it now for 10 years!