new quote...

got this from my nurses desktop calendar. gotta love mom for always finding it and placing it under the christmas tree. and gotta love the calendar. some pretty funny stuff...
i was terribly behind on the calendar due to the new room and me not wanting to deal with the calendar until the room was ready. so i was ripping off all of the pages trying to catch up and stumbled across this quote. could be one of my new favorites.

• nothing in all the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity. mlk jr.

how true is that? i love it. when asked about traits i like/dislike in people, i often reply that i'm not a huge fan of ignorant people. now let me clarify. according to webster.com ignorant and illiterate are synonyms. in the land of shannon, the word ignorant is used more as an unwillingness to learn. that someone who has the opportunity to do so chooses not to. just wanted to clarify... i have nothing against the illiterate. in fact, i'm amazed by it. how can a country, a so called 'powerhouse', have people who can't read or write?
i have a patient who is such a challenging case because he can't read or write. now how do you explain to someone when to take their pills? how can they tell the difference between them? how can they remember a schedule? so sad, so frustrating.
alright enough sad stuff...

i had a person other than my husband tell me i was beautiful today. i'm not sure i've ever had that happen and totally beyond unexpected! i mean, coming from a significant other i kinda expect it. i know i shouldn't but i sometimes do...
so back to the story, it was sooo cute. i was taking care of a patient when another one gently tapped me on the shoulder. he quietly said, 'excuse me. but you are beautiful.' seriously. that never happens! ever. i'm 100% sure that i blushed. which is silly since it was a 78 year old man! and then makes me wonder, maybe i really do look better as a brunette since he never said anything before! ;oP

i'm in love...

with the food network.
more specifically, i am addicted to iron chef america. nope. can't handle the original. too many subtitles for me. but holy cow, the american version. seriously. one of my favorite t.v. shows.
the pressure. one hour to cook 5 dishes. the creativity. turkey ice cream?? the mad skill that all of these chefs possess. makes me jealous. makes me want to cook. but i guess that is the point. the show is supposed to make me want to get up and starting cooking... not that i plan on making turkey ice cream anytime soon! oh heck, who am i kidding. that i plan on cooking anytime soon. i'm the queen of the crockpot and that is as far as my culinary skills go.
another favorite rachael ray. that woman is so darn perky and you just have to love the fact that she can whip up a meal in thirty minutes! i do get the magazine but honestly haven't tried anything yet. i tend to make up my grocery lists while at work and never have the darn thing with me!
another good one... the secret life of food. my mom and brother caught the bagel one, hence the impromptu bagel drop off! which she lied about. she didn't drop off the bagels. forgot she changed her mind! silly lady! ;)

people pleaser...

yup. i confess. that is me. i have a hard time saying no... and i want to do the greatest good for the greatest number. who said that? kant? philosophy class was quite some time ago!
anywho. back to pleasing people. gosh, did that just sound dirty or what?!
some people may argue me on this point.. because i run my mouth like nothing. oh yes, i talk the talk but i definitely to do not walk the walk! for instance, a waitress might make me mad... shan is chomping at the bit to complain about her to anyone at the table the minute she walks away. but would 99.9% of the time NEVER say a word to her about it. why? because i'm weird. because i'm a people pleaser. because i want everyone to get along. because i would never want to hurt someone's feelings. who knows. and i know plenty of people who will argue me on the getting along part.
i know i shouldn't run my mouth sometimes. but i honestly can't help it. i'm not sure if that is the way that i get my stress release.. to actually feel better about what i see going on around. yup, that is me. the one who wants everyone to get along but can't seem to do that herself. who mutters a negative comment almost any chance she gets. hippocrite? maybe. sarcastic? definitely! but sometimes i just can't help myself. you know, people can be just plain stupid! ;)

so where is this rambling coming from you might ask... from crazy shan. my mind works in the strangest ways. i called my hairdresser today. i almost didn't because i was worried about hurting her feelings but then i thought... i'm not happy. i should speak up. part of her job is to make me happy and she can't do so if i don't tell her... she squeezed me in and told me that i should never hesitate to call. that she would rather know than me be mad or upset and not give her a chance to fix it. true. she hasn't done me wrong in 3 years. why would i all of the sudden question her abilities? {trust issues are a whole other topic...} she also explained that going darker is way harder than going light. {not sure how true but it's her job.. so i believe her!}
also i have had some troubles with people asking me to scrapbook for them. now i have no troubles helping someone with ideas or little things. but to expect me to do a giant project when i know you would never do the same for me, i'm not gonna do it. so i put my foot down. got some slack for it. but you know what? i love this hobby and would never want to lose the passion. the drive to create. i want it to be fun. not a job.
some the moral of shan's gibberish: hmm... to remember that i'm a people {yeah, i know it should be person, but people fit the title so much better} and it's not only about making those around me happy but myself as well. :)

blech.

yup. that is how i feel. like crud. had a darn scratchy throat all weekend. got sent home from work today... knew tomorrow would be busier and that i should rest up. so i did. got a four hour nap. feeling better. still not great.... i hate being sick. bummer was my mom stopped by work. and i wasn't there. she NEVER comes to visit me... but her and kevin, my brother were watching the food network and saw some program on bagels. so they decided to pick some up. she was just going to be sweet and drop them off for breakfast and finds out i'm not there! she called and told me about... warned me that my coworkers might eat them!
wish i could have talked to her longer but my throat just wouldn't allow it. i'm sure nick likes it. no one to remind him to do the laundry or the dishes! :)
missing out on a lia sophia party... nick enforced mom's old rules. if you miss a day of school no extracirricular activities that day! too funny. but glad i'm not going... definitely cannot handle crazy family right now!
and i'm blonde again. so mad. my stinking highlights are gone. it has only been two weeks. gonna call and complain once i get my energy back. i mean, seriously, i paid how much for them to come out in less than two weeks. and to top it off you cut my hair crooked so i've already been back in... i don't get it. i've been going to this girl for three years. i guess it might be time to find someone new. we shall see...
alright... i'm off to my exciting evening of curling up on the couch with nicholas and watching the olympics. it's women's figure skating... and those fueding speed skaters!!

happy shan.

just felt like posting some things that make me smile.

gifts and cards from fabulous online buddies for my birthday. to the two of you who made the following. you are fabulous. and i'm so lucky to have one of a kind creations from some published scrapbookers! you girls rock! and not that i didn't love the cards. but i'm too lazyto scan all of them. so thank you ladies too!!! oh and the fabulous qk donation. how generous!!! loves it! {and sorry that the clipbard didn't photograph too nicely. it's awesome in person!}













and for this...ali edwards personally wrote a birthday message to me. thanks to a kick arse friend who didn't mind asking her for a crazy favor. i'm sure the flat boodle one might have been crazier...but fun nonetheless. and completely thoughtful!
nick thinks i'm a loon. but i think it's fun. now to figure out how to scrap it! or do i just frame it?! :o) that just might make me completely crazy tho!

now some simplier things. non birthday fortnight related...
~these heavenly peanut butter, caramel, chocolate creations. now i'm not a super huge chocolate fan but caramel or toffee. i will eat all day every day!
~black cherry vanilla coke! now i will admit. i was completely bummed when i found out coke was going to be discontinuing their vanilla flavor. but i am happy again... they have combined the best of both worlds. cherry and vanilla!!
~awesome gum! yummy flavor and you can blow bubbles too. how great is that?! oh and they strawberry kiwi one isn't that bad either!
~target! is now less than 3 minutes from my house. fun yet dangerous! and it even has a starbucks! bonus!!
~meredith's kick ass witty response to my paper, rock, scissors thread. and that some of my scrapping buddies have now added adhesive to the mix! but we need a hand gesture people! and i have played with rocket and a few other random items. yes, my friends are silly...
individual packets of koolaid. good times. no more making a giant pitcher!!! oh yeah!
alright. that is it. i'm tired and need to go watch some olympics with nicholas... ;)

rock, paper, scissors...

is one of our favorite games. we always use it to decide whatever it is we are deciding: who picks dinner, who drives home, who serves first in volleyball. and heck, sometimes just because! if any of you are closet rock, paper, scissor freaks i hope you enjoy it as much as i did... gotta love random, funny emails! oh and pardon the language. i didn't write it, i promise! you can probably tell by the capital letters. :o)

I understand that Scissors can beat Paper, and I get how Rock can beat Scissors, but there's no fucking way Paper can beat Rock. Paper is supposed to magically "wrap round" Rock, rendering it immobile? Why the hell can't paper do this to Scissors? screw scissors, why can't paper do this to people? Why arent sheets of notebook paper constantly suffocating students as they attempt to take notes in class? I'll tell you why - BECAUSE PAPER CANT BEAT ANYBODY! Rock would tear that shit up in 2 seconds. When I play rock/paper/scissors I always choose rock. Then when somebody claims to have beaten me with their paper, I punch them in the face with my already clenched fist and say "Oh, I'm sorry - I thought paper would protect you, asshole"

i've been yelled at...

about not posting! :)
sorry. i hate when life interferes with my daily activities. i haven't forgot about my faithful blog readers just kinda ran out of time!
been absorbed in the olympics. does anyone else get emotional when they see a fellow country man on the medal stand and hear the national anthem. i honestly do not know how some of them aren't crying. i would be a blubbering idiot.
was caught up in the birthday fortnight. still can't convince nick that i get a fortnight. he says only a week. bummer. but i have been gorging myself on my favorite ethnic food. i could eat mexican every day. yum. thursday i made my nummers pork tacos. soo good. a family favorite. {fyi... i don't use onions or green pepers in mine and sometimes i add some jalepenos.} friday i had taco bell. not real mexican but one of my favorite fast food restaurants. saturday we went to chela's, a local mexican restaurant, with friends. didn't get to go downtown to frontera. they only take reservations same day. nick called at 10:31 {they opened at 10:30} and they were booked. apparently they open for reservations at 8:30. but a great time was had by all! good laughs, good food, good company. sunday we hit another local restaurant with my family. monday we tried a new mexican place, habeneros. tuesday was schoops. romantic, i know! a local burger joint that is oh so good. greasy but good. oh wait, does greasy equal good?? yesterday we went out with his dad's side of the family. casa del rio. mexican again!! almost had it for a week straight! so great. today, i'm just relaxing. had a totally crazy week at work. had a fun weekend of cropping ahead. can't wait. gotta finish up some odds and ends for that!
so there it is... my week in review. so excited that i took tomorrow off!!!
oh and td.. to is a wide receiver. caused a lot of troubles for the philadelphia eagles this past season! ;)

thankful.

for sooo much. my loving husband, my family, kick ass friends, a pretty amazing job with great coworkers, good health, our home. the list goes on and on and i won't bore you with those details just yet.
so far 27 doesn't feel different from 26. same ole, same ole. 30 might get me. i know nick is dreading his and he still has 2 years! 25 was hard for me. made me realize that i was now officially a grown up. i had gotten married, bought a house, had real bills, got an awesome job at 24. so when 25 rolled around it was like holy cannolis i did a lot that year!
i got some awesome gifts in the mail from some of my 'online' buddies. love that and will share pics as soon as i can scan them. they are unbelievable and i'm totally sure the online pictures will NOT do them justice! crazy that some of my online friendships seem to have more substance than some of those real life ones. i've talked to quite a few of you about this.. that these friendships mean so much to me. that never in a million years would i have thought that i would consider someone that i haven't even met in person a friend. thankfully, i have met some of you and the rest of ya, we gotta figure something out! i forsee trips to switzerland, texas, iowa, pennsylvania and michigan of course! didn't mean to leave anyone out! sorry if i did! it's must be my old age! ;)
but really, as corny as this sounds. it is true. i've had quite a few crappy friendships that have left me bitter and leary of women. there are a select few that i still keep in touch with and for them i too am thankful.
thank you to everyone who posted birthday wishes! and to those of you who answered my olympic questions! hera, i would totally be a skier if i had some alps. this flat cornland doesn't do much for skiing and i doubt cross country would be my thing! and tracy those olympic bodies. yum! i totally understand what you are talking about. loves me some t.o. he has an amazing body!!

the olympics are coming...

yippee!! i love them. i think it is so great and would be so awesome to be one of the best at what i do. nick and i have a trip to the olympics on our list of things to do before we die!
we were trying to figure out which we prefered: winter or summer. and what sport we would want to be the best at. nick's was easy. volleyball. seriously, that would be cool. look at kerri walsh and misty may. but then there is the whole girly aspect: gymnastics, figure skating. but how kick butt would it be to be a snowboarder. to do all those crazy tricks? but then again it's cold and i'm not such a big fan of that!
so i honestly haven't a clue what i would want to be good at. maybe that is why i'm not at the olympics. because if i did know what i wanted to do i would be phenomenal at it and be in torino or where-ever!
it's funny because everyone is asking what we are doing for my birthday. if we have any big plans. my answer. nope! i want to lay at home and watch the opening ceremonies. take in as much of the olympics as i can. gorge on food and dream of what could have been! ;)
saturday we are going downtown with jay and chris for dinner. and sunday we are hanging with the 'rents. haven't a clue about his side. but then again, i'm not really worried about it! i did take the day off from work. the first time in my work history! should be nice! maybe do lunch with nicholas. we shall see.
thanks for all the kind comments on the room and hair. i will share more pictures soon. the room is pretty much done! weeeeee!
so back to the topic: olympics. what would you want to be the best at????

brunettes have more fun!

so i really don't know if that is true or not. just needed a witty title! this picture is as good as it gets for the moment. {don'cha love my bad lighting!?} it was all we could come up with at midnight last night while organizng! {and blogger was being a pain in the rear so i couldn't upload then!} the darn hairdresser cut it crooked. at first, i thought i was just lopsided but my lovely coworkers all agree. one side is definitely longer. gotta have that fixed tomorrow! once that is done, i'll give you a better one. it's super short. well, the shortest it has been in a long, long while and my hair finally matches my eyebrows!!!
the room is almost done! weeeee! have to figure out some minor storage snafus but we shall see... the sewing machine in the closet. not so much, considering all the outlets are covered by this honkin furniture! anyone use three ring binders for their albums? i need some new album ideas!

coming to you live...

from my new studio! woot woot!
i don't want to leave the house today. maybe ever. ;) i totally just want to sort and organize and then scrap. it's seems like it has been forever!
this is just a newly installed pic. i will definitely update when i get everything sorted. i have to say that my ribbon looks super cute on the teeny tiny shelf above my printer! the printer is on the lowest shelf where the island is. we adjusted the shelves and the little jars fit perfectly! makes me smile! nick's side is closet to the window and i pretty much get all the rest!

the view from the doorway...

had some major okay maybe minor snafu's when installing. like they forgot to drill the holes between all bazillion units. so we had a nightmare with computer cords and ended up drilling our own. that and the fact that they pushed it all they way to the wall before we could plug anything in. grrr. so we had to figure out how to dismantle and climb between the pieces. what fun! nick's mom did stop by and take down on concerns/complaints. so hopefully they can be taken care of soon.
the glasses and champagne came from the company. we never got around to drinking it... wanted to get stuff situated first!

i couldn't wait all day for them to deliver it, so i made a haircut appointment. i am now officially a brunette! a short haired one at that! might have to take some pics and update my avatars!

validated...

so i was talking to the girls i work with about scrapbooking. about how a lot of people have a negative perception of the hobby. they totally thought i was crazy and think it is one of the coolest things ever. {could totally be a ploy to trick me into making fabulous works of art for them...anywho.} i told them that a lot of times i am leary of telling someone that i scrapbook. so sad. i'm a grown woman. who cares what other people thing, right? wrong. it bugs me and i know it shouldn't but i'm sure i have a zillion insecurities that years of therapy may not even touch. but now that i have had a card picked to be published, i almost sort of feel validated.
i know. horrible right? i always said that this hobby was for me. that i wasn't doing it for anyone else to be published. but now that it's happened, i am kind of relieved.
that if someone ever snickers after i tell them that i scrapbook that i can oh so maturely, zing back at them, 'oh yea, well, i've been published.' what the heck is wrong with me...
again the girls thought i was a loon. love them for being supportive. i might even have suckered a few of them into this hobby!
any thoughts? shall we discuss? or should everyone just tell me that i'm nuts? :)