All We are is Dust in the Wind

When we looked at the forecast this morning, we must not have looked very closely at the "Real Feel" temperature, because we had it in mind that it would be warm enough to go biking today. It was only 41 degrees when we finally got in the car with the bikes loaded, and it was at that time that I started to question whether or not it was a good idea. Yet, I still had the hope that perhaps the sun would come through for us on the way up to Noblesville. There are some great, traffic-less roads up there that were perfect for biking. Perfect, that is, if there aren't any winds. 30 mph winds. And if it's not 41 degrees outside. My kneecaps were trembling as I put on my helmet, but I thought, "What the hell - I guess my body will warm up as I get my legs moving." WRONG. WRONG, WRONG, WRONG. This was flat, featureless land and the wind cut right through me. We went 6 miles (at the most!) and I got cold boogers all over my lip.

On the bright side, I feel really good about dismounting with my shoe clips now.

Easter 2008

Happy Belated Easter!

Dave is playing laser tag by himself right now. If you're wondering how that is accomplished, he is holding a gun in each hand and shooting at each one. Fun times, my darling.

I mapped out my route for commuting to work by bicycle. I'm a little worried about the last mile downtown. I'll have to ride on the street with traffic. Another negative -- it's $3/day to park my bike in my parking garage!! What a rip. My company won't let me take my bike up to my office; otherwise, I would do that. Actually, I'm lying. I AM allowed to take my bike up to my office, but I can't take it through the front door. This means that I have to go through the alley behind the building (which is full of glass and trash. mmm... glass and trash), press a 'call' button, and wait for an angry janitor to open up the freight elevator for me. Maybe I'm just being lazy about it. I think I'd rather pay the three dollars and avoid having our custodial and security staff mad at me for bothering me.

Maybe I Shouldn't Have Said That

Me and Dave were watching CNN tonight:

[ Anderson Cooper is shown on tv ]

David: What happened to your face? (to Anderson) You get punched??
Katherine: Uh... he has skin cancer.....


Also, here's a video of Sprinkles vs. Popcorn.

Frost and Bulbs

We awoke to see our lawn covered in frost this morning. I hope these cold days are over soon. The tulip bulbs are starting to poke through the soil, and I can't wait to see what they will look like when they bloom. I also hope that more than the 3 that are poking through will actually survive this crazy weather.

I got my hair cut yesterday and chose a drastic style - with BANGS. BANGS, people! I didn't think that I had the balls to go through with it, but the stylist was reassuring enough to convince me otherwise. I like it a lot, though I have been getting made fun of at work. They're calling me "Cleopatra." I have been meaning to get this style for a while, but I was always afraid of the long-term commitment that comes with bangs. That, and I wasn't sure that my poodle hair would be appropriate for that kind of style. Thank you, God, for creating people that created the hair iron.

Ye Olde St. Patrick's Day

I'm too pooped to write much, so here's a summary of our weekend: women's church retreat, biking, and a St. Patrick's Day party.

Some pictures from the St. Pat's shindig at the O'Shea household...

Lilly waving hello.

Rachel and Rachael and Lilly.

Rachel and Petty (appropriate name!).

Photo evidence of Dave holding his first baby (!) and Jessica's head sandwiched between, hehe.

Countdown to Bowel Destruction

Our small-group dinner last night was a success. I was nervous about cooking for so many people, but casseroles make it easy. I made homemade mac 'n' cheese and a vegetable casserole. I left the vegetable casserole out all night without refrigeration, but I was bold enough to take the leftovers to work for lunch today. It was eaten approximately 3 hours ago, and I am counting down the time left for my bowels to explode from some sort of wicked food poisoning.

We locked Sprinkles up in our room for the two hours while we had guests, and I could have sworn I heard her trying to get the door open.

A few days ago, Dave caught her in the garage, and he swears that the door to the garage had been closed. She has to have opened it! It was ultimately satisfying to me, because months ago I told him that I thought she opened that door by herself, and he didn't believe me.

Yes, it's an exciting life we lead.

Organize This

I visited the office supplies area today at work. There was a box of blue ink RSVPs (see Unofficial Cheap Pen Test), so I snagged a couple for the homestead.

I'm changing jobs at the end of the month (from SEP to Bluefish Wireless), and I must say, I'm excited to investigate my new employer's office supplies. I get to explore a brand new stash that will hopefully include RSVP pens and many varieties of notepads and sticky notes.

I love the thought of me being meticulously organized.

I also love the thought of completely clearing or flipping a table in response to an outrageous remark or disastrous ending to a board game (...Risk comes to mind).

RE: Stressed Out

After meetings like that one, I can't help but wonder if I am not cut out for the business world. I get so completely nervous, and when someone asks me a question that I can't answer, I just stare at them until my brain spits out some words in the wrong order. Case in point: (this happened today, and please excuse the acronyms)

Person: "So, the question is, what is the benefit of holding onto ARRs versus directly converting them into FTRs?"

Katherine: "........"

Katherine: ".... Um, I was really just.... afraid of... um... well.... values... negative"

WOW. AWESOME.

I think I just need practice. Practice and confidence. Unfortunately, after my performance this afternoon, my confidence seems to have headed in the wrong direction. And this is the fifth meeting that I have run by myself.

Stressed Out

Ugh; I have to give a huge presentation later today and I feel ill.

One hour of ugh, coming right up!

Why did I have to invite the mean guy?

You Are What You Eat

If you're a fan of bread and carbohydrates in general, I command you to go to Trader Joe's to buy their Pretzel Sticks. There's a subtle beauty to the artisan bread that always leaves me craving more.

Thoughts on Money

Is capitalism against Jesus' teachings? Is it wrong to save money for the future?

Is it sinful to strive to be the best?

It seems like without capitalism, motivation to improve and invent products would not exist.

Would we have the medicines we have today without the drive for pharmaceutical companies to make big bucks? I don't think so. I'd like to think that doctors and scientists would still want to save lives, but maybe it's not enough.

Get. OUT!

I still can't believe it, but somehow I won the "People's Choice" chili award on Saturday night. I really only won because one person loved my chili so much that they voted with a twenty dollar bill. 1 penny = 1 vote. Anyways, I was definitely excited to have won something. I may have even pumped my fist in the air when they called my name.


Somehow, the minutes ticked by and we ended up spending almost five hours at the chili cook-off/auction. It was really great being able to spend time with our church family and donate to such a worthy cause. At last count, the Cook-Off ended up raising about $8,000 for the youth group. Awesome.

After the Cook-Off, we headed to Rachael and Chuy's place to hang out with some other friends and talk, and that was wayyyy too much fun. Hahaha. I think we got home at 3 AM. It was worth it, though. There were more than a few laughing-so-hard-we-were-crying moments.

Miraculously, we were able to wake up early on Sunday.

Dave went out on his first bike ride of the season with Justin (he owns Indiebike.com) and a few others. After he got home, I was itching to go riding myself, so he ate about 3,000 calories worth of food and then was nice enough to go out again with me. The Monon Trail was SO crowded because of the unusually nice weather. We got off the trail as soon as possible and onto some side streets. We only went 9 miles, but I was happy to be outside at all. I took my hybrid, but I vow to take my road bike the next time. I only hope that we go riding at 3 AM or a place at which people can't see me panicking after not being able to clip-out my shoes and then falling over, embarrassing myself, and scratching my arms and legs. Is that too much to ask for?

New Addition to the Family

Pump Up the Chili

Well, it's D-Day. Or C-Day. It's the day of the Chili Cook-Off, and I'm pretty sure that I'm going to get last place. I tried four different chili recipes, and now I've run out of time without finding one that I'm really happy about using. Many of the recipes had too much tomato and too much sweetness. Personally, I like a chili that is super spicy and a little salty. We'll see, I guess! The chili is made already and is simmering in the crockpot, and I am going to attempt to add some Katherine-ness with the addition of unsweetened cocoa, more jalapenos, and some Guiness.


Yesterday we went to the Five Guys burger place in Fishers for dinner. The place has been getting glowing reviews since it opened not so long ago. Dang, that was some greasy shiz. It was delicious of course, but not as good as our beloved Schoop's back in Crown Point. I'm embarrassed for even thinking that Five Guys could beat Schoop's. It wasn't even a contest!

Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go daydream about Schoop's own hamburgers, cheese fries, and Coke with cherry syrup... Oh God.........