AAAArrrrrrgggggghhhhhh!

My day has consisted of:

Waking up late

Leaving the house, late for work, stepping in dog vomit on the rug at the bottom of the stairs

Cleaning up said dog vomit, thereby making me even later for work

Getting yelled at by a construction worker on the way to work

Dealing with nasty lawyers, frustrating clients, never ending emails and phone calls at work

Going home at lunch to find bloody dog stools on the hardwood floors

Going to the vet where Chloe was put on a 4th medication

Coming home after the vet to a non-working toilet

Putting gasoline in my car at a cost of $72.74!!!!!! I've never paid seventy dollars for gas in my entire life!!!!!! SEVENTY-TWO DOLLARS!!!

Learning my favorite Rapids player, Pablo Mastoeni, is going to leave at the end of the season to go play for Italy.

Grabbing a pint of what I thought was chocolate Boulder Ice Cream at Marczyk's on the way home only to open it up, take a bite, and realize . . . it was Mexican chocolate . . . . meaning cinnamon in the ice cream. I don't do cinnamon with chocolate . . . . and tonight I needed that chocolate.

Walking down the hall to change out of my clothes and stepping in dog vomit in the hallway.

It's 7:00 PM . . . I'm going to rest for 30 minutes and then go work out at the JCC. I hope a machine doesn't fall over on me tonight.

Where has the time gone?

I can't believe it's been almost 2 weeks since I've posted anything. It's been just a blur of activity. All of the last minute preparations (and anxiety) associated with getting Bug to camp on Sunday, June 15th. Then dates, dinners with friends, and lots of exercise to pass the time have consumed my time alone.

I officially have a new favorite restaurant in Denver. It's called Bang, in the Highlands area at 32nd and Lowell. Phenomenal food! Absolutely wonderful. And the sweet potato toast is incredible -- could have made an entire meal off of that, but the tilapia and cous cous were amazing too. So those of you coming to visit, expect a trip to Bang. It's funky and fun. :)

On Saturday, I was REALLY missing Bug. I mean . . . looking in her room, looking at her pictures, re-reading her letters, crying . . . ugh . . . major league missing her. My very best therapy is shopping, so off I went. Mostly, I bought things to send to Bug in a care package. But also, I decided I should treat myself as well. Here is my bounty:



The Nike sports head phones are for my iPod to use while walking and working out at the JCC. Actually, I've been using Bug's iPod because she has a Nano with the cool arm band. I have the big guy that shows movies . . . . not the best for working out. Although, I'll have to remove my music from Bug's iPod before she gets home from camp. She gets irritated when I download what she terms "inappropriate music" . . . yes, I know . . . big time role reversal in my house. Anyway, I have a couple of "explicits", Justin Timberlake's "Sexy Back", and "Nasty Girl" of which Bug would not approve, but boy are they fun to get down with on the elliptical trainer! LOL

The book in the picture is for my book club that starts up in July. We're reading Jhumpa Lahiri's "Interpreter of Maladies". I haven't read it yet, but loved her book "The Namesake".

The cologne is Armani's "Code". The commercial real estate developer/tennis player I went out with last week smelled better than any man I've ever smelled in my life. It was great --- I kept inhaling while in the car on the way to the restaurant . . . a very fun, fast ride in his new Audi TT. Then, over dinner at Lola (another great Highlands restaurant), the breeze and the candle kept his cologne wafting towards me --- I finally asked him what it was . . . Armani (another Armani guy, go figure). Anyway, I went to Macy's on Saturday to ask if Armani made something comparable for women. The British saleslady put 3 Armani's on me, in different areas, told me to go off shopping and come back in 30-45 minutes as "Armani needs time to settle, dahling, before you know which Armani is you". Wow . . . am I "an Armani"???. . . hmmmm . . . so off I went. I debated and debated (i.e., sniffed myself repeatedly as I was walking through Cherry Creek mall . . . I'm sure people wondered), and finally chose Code over Diamond and the other one which name escapes me. The Code has a bit of orange blossom in it and reminds me of a fragrance by Escada called "Ocean Blue" that I haven't been able to find in years. The Diamond seems more of a winter fragrance. As I made the purchase, British saleslady said "so, you look very sexy, now you smell very sexy . . . tell me, hot date tonight?" Sadly, I told her "no", that tonight I was on my own. To which she replied, "no, dahling, just walk around a bit, you look very sexy, men will respond." Seriously???? Seriously??? I'm supposed to walk around Macy's or the mall . . . and pick up a date? Seriously? I don't think so. Was the fragrance supposed to be that powerful? Hmm . . . maybe . . . I remember my reaction to my date, and I wasn't super attracted to him (we had way too many differences on BIG subjects), but boy he smelled HOT! It didn't work though . . . I remained dateless Saturday night . . . no pick-ups (as if I would).

The final treat in the picture that I gave myself are the cupcakes from "Lovely Confections" on Colfax. These cupcakes are SO GOOD!!!!! I bought a chocolate and a carrot cake with cream cheese icing. By nightfall, I'm embarrassed to admit, all that remained were a few crumbs, which meant I spent extra time on the machines and skipped dinner absent a handful of wheat thins. In an effort to test the Armani Code, I did shower, dress up a bit, and take Chloe for a walk through Cherry Creek North during the evening. (Cooper is aggressive with other dogs, so I can't walk him through CCNorth, but Chloe is guaranteed some attention with her perpetual smile and chubby little Boxer body.)

The next morning, I woke up early, jumped on my bike and headed downtown on the Cherry Creek Bike Path. My intent was to ride into the downtown area and treat myself to an omelet at one of the breakfast places. But it was such a beautiful morning that I just kept riding. I rode upon a fox about to have duck for breakfast. I took a picture as he was scowling at me for interrupting his hunt.




Then I snapped some shots of some artwork along the river . . .



And the wonderful "Dancers" sculpture outside of the Denver Performing Arts Center . . .



Here is my building. My office is on the top (14th floor) . . .



Here is the beautiful South Platte River area right downtown.. . .



After settling for a scone (over the intended omelette), I grabbed a chai latte from Starbucks and headed down to sit by the water. There were the cutest dogs playing in the river, a gorgeous German Short-Haired Pointer and a very large English Bulldog.

The Starbucks I went to is located in the R.E.I. (Recreational Equipment, Inc.) building on Platte Street.



It is a beautiful historic building . . . huge . . . there is even a climbing wall inside, along with every possible outdoor adventure product ever made or sold. Let me tell you, this is where all of the beautiful, fit people hang out on Sunday mornings in Denver. I needed a drool rag! Good grief . . . I've decided all men are sexy in bike wear, helmets, and sunglasses. And they ALL congregate at REI on Sunday mornings to meet their buddies, drink coffee, and organize rides. I've definitely got to spend more weekend mornings at REI.

I continued my ride up into the Highlands area, which was quite hilly. My quads still are feeling that part of the ride, even today. But it was great. I found another ice cream shop to take Bug as we continue our search for favorite ice cream store.

It really was a wonderful experience. The ride home was a little tough because I had ridden so much farther than I ever intended, and I was fighting the wind the entire way home. I got home, walked the dogs, and took a much needed nap. Still thinking of the cupcake consumption from the day before, I went back to the JCC for a workout before settling in to watch "Dan in Real Life" (isn't Steve Carrell the cutest thing in this movie???).

Yesterday found me back at the grindstone of work. Too tired last night to even work out except for a couple of walks with the dogs. I'm so ready for Bug to come home. She's my very most favorite person to spend time with, and I want all the time I can get before the sullen withdrawn teenage years hit. My plan is to be at the camp by 9:00 Sunday morning --- cant' wait.

A Snowy May Day

I wish I had stuck my camera in my purse this morning, but it was one of those mornings. I found my daughter's monthly lunch form that was supposed to be turned in . . . . yesterday ("no late exceptions" in bold on the form). So, I not only had to make a lunch at the last minute, but now also was required to go to the office and plead for "the exception" so she could actually eat for the next month without suffering through my homemade lunches. And it's SNOWING, yes snowing, on May 1st. Actual snow. Huge white flakes. Which means traffic into downtown will be a bear. I'm already late before I even leave the house . . . . and, the icing on the cake, I have a trial today . . . my first trial with my new employer . . . in a town in Colorado I've never been to . . . and it's friggin' snowing . . IN MAY!
I race to school and park . . . oops . . . that's a fire hydrant (isn't there a law about that? . . . oh well, I'll just find another spot). My next spot invokes the wrath of the "carpool police" (this is only for people dropping off their children, you can't park here ). WhatEVER! At least my child can get into the school at this point . . . I still can't. So I drive and park . . . 2 blocks away . . . and now I'm running in my skirt and heels with the lunch forms . . . IN THE SNOW. I plead my case . . . whew! . . . they actually made an exception. Good, good, my daughter can eat, so now off to work . . . except the nice Catholic school office workers tell me I can not leave because it's time for morning prayer and the pledge of allegiance. (Are you kidding me? . . . No, I can tell by your stern looks that I, in fact, am under Catholic house arrest until we pray and pledge. ) Finally, I'm off and running . . . again in the skirt and heels . . . again IN THE SNOW . . . and wow, it's really cold and I left my winter coat at home . . . huh . . . why did I do that? . . . oh yeah, BECAUSE IT'S MAY!



My office is downtown on the top floor of a building. My back wall is nothing but windows overlooking the city. And once I had caught my breath, warmed up, and dried off, I was able to appreciate the snow. I have never, ever, ever seen such large, beautiful flakes. Some were as large as half-dollars. So sad I did not have my camera. Interestingly, there is a huge Four Seasons going up across the street from me (where, for just a few million dollars, I too could live in one of the penthouses and just walk across the street to work every morning), and the guy in the crane was working --- he has to climb an unbelievable amount of metal steps every day, higher than my 14-story building, and get in the crane to work. And he climbed those steps and operated the crane in that incredible snow storm. My colleague who grew up in Michigan said he'd never seen such a thick snow storm before . . . and he's from Michigan!



I reviewed my case, returned a few calls, and had to head out in the snow storm to a town I had never been to, to try my first case in Colorado. When I was driving into the outskirts of the town, I saw a Starbucks sign . . . aah . . . good . . . it's a civilized place. :):) I looked at my watch . . . yes! . . . . I had made good time despite the storm, there was time for a mocha . . . not my usual Starbucks drink, but I needed the combination of chocolate and caffeine to get through the rest of the day. When I arrived at the courthouse, I had to go through metal detectors, and something I was wearing (unknown) set them off, which meant I got to spend an inordinate amount of time with Barney Fife running the scanner up and down me. Finally, I was deemed safe to pass. On the way to the courtroom, I passed windows overlooking a courtyard with the most wonderful sculpture entitled "Called to Jury Duty" --- it was a huge bronze sculpture of ordinary men and women contemplating their call to justice. It really was riveting . . . again, remorse over not sticking the camera in my purse. Oh well, it was time to focus on business at hand. Upon arrival in any courtroom, my usual practice is to approach and shake hands with the opposing party and lawyer . . . there's no reason not to be civil, even if you're about to do battle . . . but, for the first time in 18 years of practice, the plaintiff refused to shake my hand . . . just looked me up and down with disdain. I simply smiled and lowered my hand (and muttered under my breath as I walked away, "that's fine because I'm about to squash you like the bug you are"). His unmasked anger throughout the proceeding worked in my favor with the judge. I prevailed, thankfully. My client was very happy. The day was looking up.



I drove back to the city, this time in rain. It rarely rains here. This is only the second time I've seen it since I moved to Colorado. Because I had left my umbrella safe and dry in the car, I was quite damp for my drive back. Ended up picking my daughter up on the way and just calling it a day. I was cold and tired. When we got home, I treated myself by actually cooking dinner. I had been saving some lime cilantro fettucine purchased from my favorite Italian boutique, Bella Pasta, for a special occasion. Tonight was it. I sauteed some diced chicken in olive oil, threw it into a sundried tomato alfredo sauce, tossed it with the fettucine (which gives off the most amazing citrus smell), and . . . aaaaaaahhhhh . . . it was good, and it was warm. I was so proud of myself for making it, I took a picture with the camera I had wished for all day.







It was raining and 38 degrees outside . . . no cycling or jogging tonight. So I grabbed a blanket, snuggled with Chloe, and watched Grey's Anatomy . . . thank goodness the writers' strike is over!

Chloe

I don't want to leave out my other Boxer from my postings. This is Chloe. We adopted her from a Boxer rescue organization when she was almost 2. She is THE sweetest dog ever . . . can not believe someone would give her up. Chloe will turn 4 next month.





Like Cooper, she has some health challenges. A year after we got her, she started losing her hair. Diagnosis: hypothyroidism. So she's on monthly meds for life too. Then, this past November, she just wasn't "acting herself", so I took her to the vet for a check-up. She had a large amount of blood in her urine (not visible to the human eye). After 4 additional days and $1400 of diagnostic testing with a board certified internal medicine specialist, no diagnosis and no improvement . . . and we were days away from the move. I'm now taking her to the same vet who diagnosed Cooper with Addison's Disease, and he thinks he has a handle on it. She's now on another daily med which is supposed to be the equivalent of cranberry juice for humans. That, combined with a round of antibiotics and prednisone have resulted in a much lower quantity of blood as of last week. We're hopeful she's on the upswing. Again, this vet is incredible. Symptomatically, she acts like the old Chloe. She tries desparately to talk, and her favorite trick is to wait until I'm in the shower and then come open the door and stick her nose through the shower curtain. I don't have the heart to lock the door because she seems to enjoy bursting in on me so much. :) Both of my Boxers know how to open doors --- I've never had any other breed of dog that did that.





Here's another picture of her my daughter took that she calls "Snowy Chloe".