Dooo yoouuu know what today is?

... It's our Anniversary. Abbie and I met exactly 1 year ago and we haven't been able to get enough of each other since.

We met while saving sea animals from an oil spill. Our eyes met when I passed him the Dawn.

Okay, okay, we met at a bar in Orlando. He was with his very drunk friend Garrett. Garrett was actually hitting on me while Abbie hit on Jen. That's right folks - but I used my irresistible ways and wooed Abbie away. The rest is history. Below are pictures of the night we met.

Needs which must be met...

I took a behavioral studies survey to analyze how I behave in a work environment. The findings were dead on. Below is a list of "some needs which must be met in order for Ashley to perform at an optimum level"

I particularly love #9. In case you are wondering- "tangible things" include: money, jewelry, puppies, cookies and flowers.

Ashley Needs:

1. To set professional and family goals.
2. 
   Conditioning prior to change.
3. 
   Reassurances that she is doing the job right.
4. 
   A program to encourage creativity and self-worth.
5. 
   A quality product in which to believe.
6. 
   Clear assignments with detailed instructions.
7. 
   A feeling of belonging--to know how important she is to the team.
8. 
   Shortcut methods that don't affect quality of the work.
9. 
   Rewards in terms of tangible things, not just flattery and praise.
10. 
    Support in the clutch or when pressured for quick results.
11. 
    Capable associates with which to work.
12. 
    Assistance in new or difficult assignments.

**an example for #9

ooops! I did it again...

Apparently I haven't learned from my mistakes. I dyed my hair last night and I guess I left it in too long because instead of a nice chocolate brown my hair is Bunkie black. It looks like I'll be spending my weekend at the beach trying to lighten this mess up.

I took this picture at work today to show Jen my hair- and realized that I have a hole in my shirt! This is not a good start to my day...

Candy from strangers

Today I had to make a bank deposit for work and the teller gave me these two pieces of candy! I was so excited! It brought me back to my childhood when my babysitter Marty would take all of the kids to the bank and there was always a big debate between everyone whether we should:

A- sit real real quiet so the teller will think we are good and give us candy

-or-

B- be real real loud so the teller knows there are children in the car so she'll give us candy

Back then we would only get dum-dums. Today I got the good stuff. Perhaps these treats are a product of some bailout money. hmmm...

The Smurfs are stupid

Tonight we met up with some friends for trivia night at the English Pub. What a disaster. We were the worst team there – answering only 33 of 70 questions correctly. To top it off we had this guy staring down at us in disappointment.

We decided though that we were hands down the youngest and best looking people in the bar and that – as we all know- always trumps being smart.

(our team name was “Smurfs” which was the only answer to a question that we didn’t have to guess)

Happy Birthday to Me!

I was walking Bunks yesterday when all the sudden this Happy Birthday Balloon came floating across the street. It was the most random thing. I looked around- no people, no cars- so I took it.

I love balloons. They make me so happy!

KOL

I just bought a fantastic CD-Only By the Night by Kings of Leon. It hasn’t left my car CD player or my ipod playlist yet.

Now I know this album has received a lot of flak from its fans – stating that they have lost what they use to stand for. All I have to say is - get over it. The CD is great. Great music leads to getting played on the radio more which means more fans and more money for the artists. I think it says a lot about an artist when they can change up their style and it still sounds good. That is why I love John Legend so much- none of his albums sound the same.

I know what it’s like when you feel like the band you love is the best kept secret and you get upset when their song comes out on the radio and all of the sudden everyone loves YOUR band too. But calling a band a “sell out” because they produce something more mainstream is just obnoxious.

Sorry… back to the point. The CD is great. Buy it. Share it. Sing it. Love it.

Spinderella

For those astute readers of mine… you might have noticed that under the RUNNING category there is only one sad and lonely entry. And that quite frankly that is because running sucks. It sucks! I hate running and I don’t know why on earth I thought that I would somehow magically start liking it. I think I like the idea of being a runner. I feel that runners are better people. They are usually early risers and they are so committed to their fitness that they’ve picked an activity that requires no gym membership - an activity that they can do anywhere- even when they are on vacation! And there is no denying the amazing legs that are the result of running.

I fully intending on become a runner but when I realized that I would rather get a root canal than run- I stopped. I did however, replace it with something better. Spinning. I started taking spinning classes at my gym about 2 months ago and I love it! Unfortunately I can’t write anything interesting about my spin classes but I felt the need to explain my one entry (now two) under the running category. Who knows, maybe this will give me those sexy runner's legs I’ve always wanted- if that happens there will surely be another post.

Mrs. Julia Gulia

Sunday night I watched another one of my friends get hitched. What a crazy time in my life right now- half of my friends are still single and the other half are getting married and popping out babies.

I’ve decided by the time I do get married I will have gone to so many weddings that I would know exactly what kind of wedding I want, as well as what works and what doesn’t. I also thought that by the time I get married all of my good friends would probably be settled into their jobs enough to buy me really nice gifts :-) Start saving girls!

** I looked fat in the picture with me and the bride- so I am posting the one of me and Abbie instead