Blue Devils are Back on Top!

My Duke Blue Devils are National Champions! Heck yeah! I'm one happy girl :)

Congrats Coach K!


Quote of the day: "I've been fortunate enough to be in eight national championship games, and this was a classic. This was the toughest and the best one."

"I told them before we came here and before we said a prayer, 'You are a great team. You are a great team.'" ~ Coach K

Hope You Are Happy God!

Today we got about 4 inches of snow! Doesn't sounds like much, but for the DC area it kinda is, and for being December 5th it kinda is too.

As much as I love snow and was ecstatic to wake up to whiteness out the window, it really couldn't have come on a worse day. During the week I work until about 5:30, so by the time I get home, my day is pretty much shot. Usually even if I had the intention of going shopping or doing something productive after work, when the time actually comes around and its dark out and I'm tired from a long day in the office...my plans get thrown out the window.

So...today was going to be my big get-things done-day. I was going to look at apartment after apartment until I found one (yes, I'm STILL living on my best friends couch) and then after that I was gonna get a serious grip on my Christmas shopping and then meet up with a friend for dinner and a movie. No trip to NY standing in my way, no plans to go home and visit the fam, no have to be there or have be here. Nope NOTHING at all on my calendar...just apartment shopping and Christmas shopping.

Well, guess God didn't really like my plans, so he took it upon himself to alter them. Guess he'd rather see me sit inside, watch Duke basketball while scrapbooking and drinking a glass of wine.

So, that's exactly what I did. Why fight it? Hope you are happy Lord ;)


Quote of the day: "Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans” ~John Lennon

Home is Where The Heart Is

Last night after work I left the city and drove home to Cumberland to spend a long spoil-me-its-my-birthday weekend with my fam. On a good day the trip takes about 2 hours and 15 minutes, and luckily for me yesterday was indeed a good day! Thank you beltway/270 traffic...I really appreciate it ;)

I arrived home just in time to watch the Duke game, and although my mom was off at the hospital delivering babies (or more likely sitting around labor and delivery watching movies with her coworkers...which is what she usually does) my dad and I enjoyed watching the game together nonetheless.

When it comes to Duke basketball there aren't many people that I can stand being around while I'm watching a game (I kinda take it seriously if you couldn't already tell), but my dad is one of them. Although he won't outwardly admit it, he is just as big of a Duke fan as I am so I don't have to worry about any stupid Duke-hater comments coming out of his mouth.

Here's a couple pics of my room at home, just to give you a taste of how serious it really is...lol

Unfortunately my blue devils just didn't bring it last night and thus, in the round of 16, they went down for the count :( I always hate it when their season is over. Just the thought of 7 long Duke basketball-less months brings a tear to my eye.

But one thing that can wipe tears from my eyes and bring an immediate smile to my face...CHEESECAKE. Ahh! I'm sitting in my parents kitchen right now "working", while my mom is making me some cheesecake. I can already tell this is going to be a great weekend! Hope yours is just as scrumptious.

Quote of the day: “Where we love is home, home that our feet may leave, but not our hearts.”~ Oliver Wendell Holmes

Is the Weekend Over Already?

Friday night was suppose to be our much anticipated "Made in the 80's" Party and let me tell you, I had the most radical getup picked out. Here's a picture of my shoes, just to give you a little taste.

Unfortunately one too many people couldn't make it, for one reason or another, so rather than sitting around with our side ponies, singing Milli Vanilli, and eating ring pops by ourselves we decided to postpone the party to a more suitable weekend.

So the four of us, who could actually make it, decided to go out for a nice dinner instead. As a pre-birthday celebration for moi we went to Gordon Biersch, a brewery restaurant in downtown Rockville. I had never even heard of the place prior, but the food and drinks were awesome and the company and conversation was even better. The only complaint I could muster up is that our seats were much too far away from the TVs, so I couldn't see the basketball action the way I would have liked. Luckily Duke wasn't playing that night so it really didn't create too much anxiety for me

I had a delicious Raspberry Bay Breeze cocktail, Crab & Artichoke Dip appetizer to share, and Tuscan Chicken Pasta as my entree...Yuuuummy. Just thinking about it makes my mouth water all over again.

After a rather late night, according to my standards, I had to wake up bright and early Saturday morning (waaaay too bright and early if you ask me) for a day trip down to the National Harbor. A group of fellow photography enthusiasts were meeting up there to learn a little, laugh a little, and of course try to get a few nice shots. Here are a few that I took with my measly camera, that I'm now on a mission to replace with a nice Nikon or Canon. (A special thanks to my model Kara (aka my bestie) for her participation in a couple of them)



Hope you all had as good of a weekend as I did!



Quote of the day: “Photography is a way of feeling, of touching, of loving. What you have caught on film is captured forever... it remembers little things, long after you have forgotten everything.” ~ Aaron Siskind

Monday-itis

Ughh...I've got a serious case of the Mondays :(

Maybe it's the fact that it's been rainy and yucky around here for quite a few days now and its finally starting to rub off on me...Maybe its the never-ending roommate drama that I'm stuck in the middle of, that makes being in my own apartment extremely awkward...Or maybe its the fact that exactly three months ago today is the last time my ex has made an attempt to contact me and it's making me feel so easily replaceable and so quickly forgotten about.

But whatever the exact reason is, most likely a combination type deal, today in particular, its really all getting me down. So in an effort to snap out of my funk I'm gonna do a little A-to-Z survey thing. 1) Because surveys in and of themselves make me happy, and 2) as a way to focus on the positive, happy things going on in my life, rather than the bad and the sad.

So here it goes:

A-1 STEAK SAUCE. Random I know, but just thinking about the stuff makes me happy. Yumm-oo!

B 3 months and counting until I'm on my way to BERMUDA!
White sand, clear water, hot sun...I can't wait!

C For many years while in college I fell out of the routine of going to church because no one I knew in the DC area went and I feared going by myself. But with God's help and perfect planning, I have now found a new CHURCH that I absolutely love!

D Yesterday DUKE won the Atlantic Coast Conference B-ball Tournament.
2009 ACC champs baby! We are, you're not!

E This Friday night my bestie is having an EIGHTIES PARTY.
It's been a long time since my last crimped, side ponytail. Should be fun!

F Starburst FAVEREDS are for real my friends. I'm in love.
I bought my first bag on Saturday at Giant. Practically already ate them all.

G My GIRLFRIENDS are the best! Really don't know what I would do without them right now.

H Tomorrow is St. Patrick's Day. And my office is having a St. Patty's day HAPPY HOUR. Yay! Happy hours make me happy :)

I have a whole box of ICE CREAM SANDWICHES waiting for me in the freezer.

J I love my JOB. Really couldn't ask for better. And in these tough economic times I am all the more thankful I even have one.

KEEPING UP WITH THE KARDASHIANS is back for an all new season. Not even sure why I like the show, but I do. Now that "The Girls Next Door" are gone Kim, Kourtney and Khloe are the new center of my Sunday nights.

LUCKY CHARMS are on sale this week at Giant. Ahh! I love my lucky charms. The real breakfast of champions.

MARCH MADNESS kicks off this Thursday. Nothing puts a smile on my face like college basketball...all day...everyday.

N I love a good afternoon NAP. If only we had a designated nap time at the office like we used to in preschool.

O I need to stomp on all the fear and insecurity I have and be OPTIMISTIC about what my future holds.

P This coming Saturday morning a group of my friends and I are meeting down at the National Harbor for a fun "PHOTO JAUNT" event. A time to walk around together, enjoy the sights, and take pictures.

Q I love a good QUOTE. When I'm bored at work or at home I just google quotes and can spend hours sitting there reading them.

R Memorial day weekend my girlfriends and I are are going on a ROAD TRIP. Not sure where to just yet, but where ever I know its gonna be a blast.

SUMMER is right around the corner and I couldn't be any more happy about it. Out with the coats and scarves and in with the bikinis and flip flops!

T Hard to believe but I'm gonna be turning TWENTY FIVE in 9 days.
Time flies when you're having fun I guess.

U No matter how UNFAIR life seems I know and truly believe that everything is working out for my good.

V Every summer the last week of July/first week of August my family goes on VACATION to Bethany Beach. I'm already looking forward to it. Always a fun time!

W So thankful for my WEDNESDAY night small group. It's me and a small group of ladies from my church who get together every Wednesday night for a weekly bible study/prayer time. Has really made a great impact on my life.

X I know that just because my EX is not acting like he's hurting doesn't mean he is not. I know his lack of contact and refusal to express sadness doesn't mean he doesn't care, or that our relationship meant nothing to him, it's just how he deals with his emotions.

Y I'm really loving the color YELLOW...Think I'm gonna wear it out this summer. Always looks great against sun-kissed skin.

Z Who the heck careZ...there is nothing that starts with Z and if there is it requires too much thought. So that's the end. Definitely feeling a little happier after that...at least for now anywayZ.


Quote of the day: "The world is round and the place which may seem like the end may also be only the beginning. " ~ Ivy Baker Priest

Let the Madness Begin!

Unless you have been living under a rock for the past couple weeks then you probably know that it's March. But what you might not know is that I LOVE the month of March!

Yes, it would be slightly better if it fell in the summer (because everyone knows summer makes everything better) but I still love March nonetheless. Besides the most obvious reason...that I was given the gift of life in the month of March (25th to be exact...don't forget it!), March also means COLLEGE BASKETBALL...ALL DAY....EVERYDAY. And for a b-ball junkie like myself that pretty much makes the next three weeks HEAVEN ON EARTH.

Although we are still a couple days away from the much anticipated "Selection Sunday", the conference tourneys are underway, so already, at any given time, you can most certainly find me glued to a television set somewhere.

I'm gonna go out on a limb and guess that I'm not the only one though. I'm pretty sure that overall office productivity will be making a sharp nosedive over the next few weeks as employees nationwide call in sick, reschedule appointments, and ignore phone calls in an effort to sneak a peak at some of the games or obsessively scour the Internet for score updates.

I LOVE that even people who don't like sports or keep up with college basketball at all will be sucked in... filling out their brackets and chipping in a few bucks to compete in the office pool. The madness is contagious.

Last night after work my girlfriends and I met up at a local sports bar to root on our Terps, who played (and beat) the NC State Wolfpack in the opening round of the ACC Tournament. I put on my best Terp fan facade, but tonight is when Duke plays and everyone knows that's my REAL TEAM!

So Let's Go Blue Devils!

March...I love you <3 So glad you're here!

Quote of the day: "Winning isn't everything, but wanting to win is." ~ Vince Lombardi

Out of the Closet

I know many of you sports lovers might cringe when you hear this, but I am the world's biggest Duke Basketball fanatic...And have been actually since the early 90's when I developed my first crush on Grant Hill.

~Ahhh, just thinking about him now brings back that giddy feeling I used to get as an 8 year old seeing him sweat in those short shorts~

Well, anyways, last night Coach K and my boys made their annual trip to College Park for their game against UMD...and you know this superfan definitely had tickets.

Wearing all blue, my sister and I stuck out like a sore thumb in the massive sea of red...but we were okay with it. I nearly got in a fist fight with an obnoxious Terp fan sitting in front of me...but I was okay with that too :)

The truth is, although I've been to several Duke - Maryland games over the years this was actually the very first time that I could proudly sport my Duke attire.

Why you ask?..well...I must admit it, I'm a Maryland Alum. Yep, you read right. A Terrapin that loves her Blue Devil Basketball (Shhhh! Don't tell anyone.) At a school that hates Duke more than Kim Kardashian loves herself, openly admitting my affection for Duke Basketball by wearing my blue in the student section would have been a BIG no-no. And by big no-no, I mean they would have killed me...literally. Terp fans are nothing to mess with.

But now that I have graduated, this Duke fan can finally come out of the closet.

And come out of the closet I did...with a huge smile on my face.

Maryland 67
Duke 78

Quote of the day: "As part of what they called "Operation Scheyerface," the majority of the Maryland student section brandished a teasing picture of the Blue Devils guard...But it was Scheyer who got the last laugh." ~ The Diamondback

Heartbreaker

Today is a pretty lousy day for me :( Feeling like I'm in a total funk. Not sure exactly why, but maybe it has to do with this annoying cough I have, me burning my forehead with my curling iron this morning, or maybe having to spend an hour digging my car out of the snow and ice before I could even leave for work.

Oh yeah, or it could be the most obvious reason...my Duke Blue Devils lost last night to Wake. So much for our #1 ranking...That sure was short lived.

As excited as I was in my blog yesterday, that's pretty much how disappointed I am today.

Wasn't a 44 point embarrassment or anything like that. Nope, complete opposite. It was a buzzer-beater. Which in my opinion is way worse. After being down by thirteen points, when everyone counted us out, we climbed all the way back and tied it up with 2 seconds left. Still shaking from Gerald Henderson's amazing shot, I was pumped that we were miraculously going to send the game into overtime. But no...like a dager in my heart, with 2.8 seconds on the clock, they threw a short inbounds pass under the basket for an easy layup. And just like that, the game was over. No overtime. No chance for us to score. Game over :( 70-68

Painful, I know. Brings a tear to my eye just thinking about it again. Then to make matters even worse, it hit me like a ton of bricks, when the game ended and I wanted to pick up the phone and share my pain with someone, I had nobody. And by nobody I mean no J. Sure I was texting with my sister and a couple other of my Duke hater guy friends, and I'm sure any one of them would have been more than willing to talk if I wanted to, but the truth is it just isn't the same. For 3 1/2 years J was the person I called. When I was happy, when I was sad, when I was scared, or when I was just lonely, whether he really wanted to talk or not, he was always there for me. And now he is not. That's a hard thing to get used to. Losing my boyfriend is one thing, but losing my best friend is a total other thing.

Don't get me wrong, do I want him back? No. Would I take him back if I had the chance? No. Is it really even him that I miss? No. But does that make my heart hurt any less? Unfortunately, no :(



Quote of the day: "You know, Hobbes, some days even my lucky rocketship underpants don't help." ~Calvin

What's All the Hoopla?

Tonight is the big night baby! Whatever you do, you do not want to miss this one. That's for sure!

No losers, I'm not talking about American Idol, its #1 Duke vs #4 Wake Forest. Tonight...7pm...ESPN...don't miss it! If you haven't seen one of the million ads on TV for this game by now, then shame on you, you don't watch nearly enough ESPN. Either that, or you're a horrible excuse for a basketball fan.





As for me, I've already got my Duke apparel on. Shirt, shorts, socks...the works. It's barely after noon, but game time can not come soon enough :)

Can you tell I'm a little bit excited? Excited that is, until my blue devils decide not to show up, and their first week back at #1 in two years becomes their last :( Boo!...But nah, I definitely don't think that's gonna happen. I'm pretty confident in my boys this year actually. My dad really believes they are good enough to win it all this year, and who am I to argue. So if Gerald Henderson and Kyle Singler come to play tonight then I certainly like our chances against these young demon deacons. Guess we'll have to wait and see though!

As for my Terps...what the heck has happened to them? Despite being absolutely tickled pink when Duke embarassed them last week (85-44 for all of you who missed it), I really do like seeing my alma mater suceed, believe it or not. But come on Gary, enough is enough! Isn't it time for you to hand in your whistle and hang it up? I mean, we've had one NCAA tournament win in the last four-soon to be five- seasons. Are we done riding this one out yet dude? I sure know I am. Their 76-67 loss last night to BC (after having a 16 pt first half lead) definitely solidified it for me.



So if I were you Gary, I'd be posting my resume on monster.com. It's just a matter of time buddy.

Oh yeah...and P.S....GO DUKE!



Quote of the day: "I can think of maybe something better to say than "That's my house" before you go into Cameron to play." ~ Gary Williams on Greivis Vasquez