I’ve been going through some old textbooks from my last job.  I’d forgotten how cool it was to constantly write new material and then have it published and widely distributed.  I get to write and edit a lot now, but everything is proprietary so very few people can read it.  And I can never bring my current projects home to show family! 

I wanted to share a few pages from some textbooks I worked on at my last job.   Writing samples, in case you are interested!

Next week is my favorite holiday of the year: Thanksgiving!  I mean, what is better than spending time with family and eating a ton of delicious food?  I always spend the day at my cousin’s house, and there’s lots of people there and it’s tons of fun.  I probably wouldn’t enjoy Thanksgiving as much if I didn’t have a lot of people to spend it with, but for now it takes the Number One Holiday spot on my list! 

I sometimes feel bad for Thanksgiving.  It seems to always get overlooked in favor of Christmas.  Especially now, that Christmas stuff comes out in stores in August.  I love Christmas, but to me Christmas is more about celebrating the entire season rather than just one special day.  Thanksgiving, on the other hand, is one day that doesn’t require a ton of preparations (unless you are a host/hostess, of course).  

That’s why I love Thanksgiving.  The holiday itself is never disappointing.  Whereas there’s such a long build up and anticipation for Christmas that the actual holiday is usually a let down.  Yes, I enjoy spending time with my family, but Christmas makes me a little bit sad because it’s the end of a great season.  I think a lot of this stems from the fact that once you get to a certain age Christmas just isn’t as fun anymore.  I think that’s why some people have kids – so they can have excitement on Christmas morning again!  

Do you have any fun Thanksgiving plans?

I have severely neglected this blog, and I need to rectify this! 

I’ve been thinking lately of taking up some new hobbies.  My friend Amy is a big knitter, and I’m always intrigued when she posts about a new scarf or socks or blanket that she’s made.  I’m intimidated though, because I have absolutely no knowledge of knitting other than “hand-made objects are pretty”! 

Another option is becoming more serious about cooking.  I really enjoy cooking, but I never feel up to the task of making a big meal after a day at work.  I think I’d like to try a new recipe every weekend.  Does anyone have any good suggestions? 

Also, I think after the new year I’m going to go back to Jazzercise.  I’ve been going to the gym for the past few months, and it’s nice because I can go whenever I want.  However, it’s just not fun.  Even with TVs and podcasts, my mind always wanders and I keep thinking “I’m really bored–I want to go home!”  Plus, I miss all my Jazzercise friends.  Hopefully my schedule after the New Year will allow me to go back. 

Finally, I enjoy writing and blogging, so I am making a resolution to keep this blog updated on a regular basis!  If not, you can poke me!

My vegetable adventure is still going strong.  I estimate that I’m eating about 1 to 1.5 cups of vegetables a day, which is very good considering I previously didn’t eat any vegetables!  I’ve been trying new foods whenever I go out, and I’ve been mixing in vegetables with my dinner (I’ve found that spinach goes well with everything!).  The other day I went out for pizza with some friends, and my friend Amy commented that I should pick the pizza because I’m a picky eater.  I replied, “Not anymore!”  We ordered a cheese pizza and veggie pizza and I ate a slice of each.  I, Nanci the veggie hater, ate a slice of vegetable pizza and liked it!  Needless to say, I’ve been very proud of my progress and hope to continue. 

With that in mind, I am really looking forward to my cruise in two weeks.  I can’t wait!  Not only do I need a vacation from work, but I’m very excited about seeing new places and relaxing on the ship.  Last time I went on a cruise, my aunt challenged me to try a new food every day.  I did, but did so grudgingly.  This time, I’m actually excited to try new foods!  It’s the perfect environment to do so: the food is excellent and I can order whatever I want so I don’t have to worry about not liking stuff.  Just looking at the sample menus makes my mouth water!  I’m glad that I plan on doing a lot of walking in the ports and working out on the ship, or else I’d gain about twenty pounds on this vacation!

(Speaking of weight, I’ve lost my desired five pounds.  Yippee!  Now I can gain it back on the cruise.)

I wasn’t always a picky eater.  My mother has told me many times that I used to gladly try new foods and loved all kinds of vegetables.  This changed when I became a toddler, and for as long as I can remember  I have been deathly afraid to try new foods.  I was more than a picky eater–I was a scared eater.  I honestly believed that new foods would make me throw up, and trying a new and unusual food was one of the worst things I could do. 

This past weekend, I did some decorating on the screened-in porch.  Finally it resembles a place where I’d enjoy spending my evening!  It’s amazing how much a few rugs and plants will spruce up an area.  It also helped that I repaired a back cushion that had been so lovingly torn apart by my darling puppies.  (At least the Icky Spray stuff seems to deter them from chewing.)  Monday night I sat on the porch and finished reading my Real Simple magazine.  It was very peaceful!

Fixing up the porch has given me even more motivation to do home repairs; unfortunately, most of the things I want to do aren’t do-it-yourself tasks.  However, I do plan on finally changing out my window treatments, getting Philip to get on the ladder and change the lightbulbs in the kitchen, and putting down some stick-on vinyl tiles in the bathroom to make the floor a little more bearable.  Now if I only I knew how to lay tile on the back porch, paint the exterior of the house, and remodel kitchens and bathrooms!

In one week, I will be gallavanting around London, eagerly anticipating boarding Oceania’s Regatta for the Scandinavian Splendors cruise.   I’ve done some more planning, and have made acquaintances with some fellow cruisers on the Cruise Critic website.  One of them took the same cruise last year and wrote the virtual cruise review, which was very useful while making plans.  Even Philip is getting excited now, and I cannot wait!  The only downside to the trip is that I will desperately miss my puppies.

Last week, LucasArts and Bioware released a cinematic trailer for their upcoming game The Old Republic.  It is the second Star Wars-based MMORPG (Massively Multiplayer Online Roleplaying Game), and is a sequel to the Knights of the Old Republic (KOTOR) games. 

KOTOR 1 was the first video game I enjoyed playing as an adult.  I always avoided video games because I felt they were too complicated.  After being frustrated by my husband’s “obsession” with World of Warcraft, I wanted a game of my own to play.  He suggested KOTOR and I got hooked.  I played to the end but never could finish the game.  Then I started playing WoW and left KOTOR behind.

The trailer for The Old Republic got me extremely excited.  I haven’t felt this excited about something Star Wars related since Revenge of the Sith came out.  I know that the gameplay won’t be anything like the trailer, but I can’t wait to immerse myself in a Star Wars-based world.

I’ve been struggling to find a good hairstylist for years, even since I moved from Daytona Beach to Orlando four years ago.  Since then, I’ve basically salon-hopped, if you could even call places like Hair Cuttery and Supercuts salons.  I’d get my hair cut, and like the style, and then a few weeks later it would be annoying all over again.  So frustrating!

Last weekend, I decided I needed a haircut badly, and so I decided to try a new salon that just opened in Posner Park, near PetSmart.  It’s called Envy, and was advertised as a Paul Mitchell salon, which I guess means that they use Paul Mitchell products.  The price quoted to me wasn’t that expensive, and the place was empty, so I was able to walk right in.  The girl who cut my hair was very nice, and she gave me the best shampoo.  And she told me that I had “model hair!”    I really like the haircut she gave me, and I’ve washed it twice so far without blowdrying and it still looks good!  Normally if I don’t blowdry my hair it looks like crap.

I was disappointed, though, that the salon was empty.  One woman came in with her daughter while I was there, but that’s about it.  The shopping center isn’t completely full yet, but there’s enough people there on a Saturday, yet the salon was dead.  I hope that they will do better, because it was a great experience for not a lot of money.  Definitely a thumbsup!

Thirty-two years ago, in movie theatres across the country, Star Wars premiered.  It became a cultural phenomenon and changed the movie industry, and my life, forever.