I just had to say this.

Wow.

I was cutting out articles from the paper at work and a resident in Draper wrote an editorial about how Salt Lake City mayor Rocky Anderson was unfairly blasted by Bill O'Reilly on FoxNews. Bill just insulted him and cut the interview short (as is his modus operandi).

Bill O'Reilly bothers me for that reason. He doesn't allow any points of view outside his (and FoxNews) to be expressed. He blasts people with differing opinions using incendiary insults designed to stun the interviewee and strengthen support for his side of the issue at hand.

That is not an interview.

Well...the reason I'm mentioning this is because the guy who wrote the article lives in Draper. Draper, as my friend and I determined, could be accurately described as "Children of The Corn meets Stepford Wives."

It's a creepy, creepy place.

They might even polish the gutters.

Which is fine if you like that sort of thing.

I don't.

The fact that someone there not only has this opinion, but is willing to express it publicly in the paper makes me feel just a bit less isolated here.

Just a bit.

Here is the letter. You may want to consider the author's advice.

Rocky's right
Public Forum Letter
Article Last Updated: 03/23/2007 09:11:47 PM MDT

Just days after Fox News abruptly canceled his debate with Sean Hannity, Mayor Rocky Anderson had to know he was stepping into a buzz saw when he appeared on "The O'Reilly Factor" on March 20 to defend his call to impeach President Bush.
In true Fox fashion, conservative pundit Bill O'Reilly was openly hostile, constantly interrupting Rocky to call him "foolish," "kooky" and "insane" before cutting the interview short. O'Reilly's smear tactics backfired as usual, further exposing him for what he is: (Fox owner) Rupert Murdoch's propagandist.
So much for "We report. You decide." We wouldn't want the world to learn anything, now would we? Here was a chance to hear Anderson, a great patriot, speak for millions of Americans who are fed up with the right-wing agenda. Whether you agree with Rocky's politics or not, surely you'll agree that an open dialogue is essential to a healthy democracy. These so-called "news" organizations are supposed to keep us informed, not ignorant.
So I plan to do the only fair and balanced thing: boycott Fox News.

Todd Ouzts
Draper

Bar of Granola

I LOVE Nature's Valley Vanilla Nut granola bars!

They are 4 points if you're asking.

4 points of ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS GRANOLA CRUNCHY WONDERTASTE.

Also I wore my socks all afternoon at work. Shoes just weren't on the menu.

Thank you. That is all.

Today was the Silver State

So I went to Wendover, Nevada today.

Nevardah!

I CAN'T STAY IN ONE PLACE BECAUSE IT IS SPRING.

Thank you.

City of Park

Hi! I went to Park City! Take a look see:

Pictures, yo.

Isn't it funny how you can't find a place to park in Park City?

Yeah...I don't think so either.

Today/Hoy

Today is going much better. Granted I choked on my own saliva while trying to finish a granola bar, but at least I have FOOD TO EAT.

Now I have to cut articles out of the newspaper. Hooray.

I want a donut.

My nose is tingling/Mi nariz siente hormigueo

I have no idea if that title is correct but I don't care. I did my best and that's all that matters.

I was sitting here all peaceful on the computer when there was a tickle just under my lower left eyelid. That lead to a BORRAGE of GUNFIRE sneezes rendering me breathless, teary and red-faced wondering what the HELL just happened.

Spring is here, my friends.

What else? Oh...there are some really pretty apartments I wanted to look into. After talking to my mom (who was a social worker for years), she told me that area was a haven for drugs and crime and I was to avoid it like the plague.

Lovely.

Work was awful. I don't even want to start on that.

Oh yeah...I feel fat today too. YAY!


Was your Monday as shitty as mine?

Belated post/Tarde escritura

HOLY SNOT IT'S BEEN A WEEK!

I am so, so sorry. I will never say "Holy Snot" again. That was lame. I mean, holy snot.

ANYWAY...let me tell you about my weekend! I don't have pictures this time BUT STAY TUNED FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THAT JIBBA JABBA.

FRIDAY/VIERNES

My friend Rebecca (the Cajun one, not the one from last weekend) asked if I would go with her to the airport to get her hubbie. We had a VERY NICE dinner at Cafe Trio where THE HOTTEST SERVERS ON THE FRIGGING PLANET made sure we were taken care of. Heh.

*daydreams about hott servers*

What? Oh...so after dinner Rebecca drove me by the old apartment in Sugarhouse where she lived before meeting Michael (hubbiebubbie). It's an adorable attic apartment on top of a cute old house. Down the street was the brick house they used in several episodes of "Touched By An Angel."

Yes, the show was filmed here.

Yes, I see the irony.

This is also interesting: FLIM SALT LAKE

Anyhow, we grabbed some dinner at Wild Oats (soon to be Whole Foods) for Michael and picked him up. It was nice to "hang out" with the two of them, even if it was just a ride home from the airport. They are funny. Very funny.

SATURDAY/SABADO

On Saturday my mom and I went to Weight Watchers. I lost 5.6 pounds so far (6 weeks) and that was cool to find out. It would be nice to have lost a little more, but as soon as those soccer moms were clapping and woohoo-ing for me and they gave me my gold sticker with a 5 on it, I was okay.

My mom actually told the speaker too. I wasn't going to say anything. Thanks mom. I like my sticker. :-)

Immediately after that my mom had a hair appointment so we went to the salon and I drove around town in her car. That makes perfect sense, doesn't it? It was a GORGEOUS day. Absolutely wonderful. I'm glad it was her car because she has a sunroof. So very nice.

We met up and went to Olive Garden for lunch. They have good soup. The weather is getting warmer which is great, but that means soup may not be as tempting as it was a few months ago. All the more reason to have had soup, right?

I went home after this, did laundry (DO ME!), and met Jackie at her friend Amanda's house. We watched "Four Weddings and a Funeral" and played racing games on Playstation. I forgot how fun it is to play those. Especially when you drift into the wall at 175 mph. Hee hee hee!

Kids...don't try that at home. Or something.

All in all it was a lovely day.

SUNDAY/DOMINGO

On Sunday I took pictures around the area for "26 Things" which my friends and I have decided to do. So far I have 9 pictures. When it's all done I'll post the link to my Flickr account.

Now I am listening to Madonna's "Holiday" on iTunes and thinking about going to bed.

I am so exciting you don't even know it.

SUNDAY/DOMINGO

WHAT AN AWESOME DAY!

Let me tell you what happened. My good, good friend Rebecca (1 of 3) was in town for the day so we HAD to hang out. We met at The Gateway.

On my way...

Once there, I saw this guy playing Amazing Grace on bagpipe. I assume it was for the upcoming St. Patrick's Day holiday but since it was downtown you never really know.

St. Patty's Day?

At this point I found her and we took a celebratory picture.

Awwww.

It was an absolutely gorgeous day.



We shopped around a little bit because how can you go to The Gateway and not shop? Just a little? Rebecca found some linens she REALLY liked at Anthropologie.

Rebecca: EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!! SO SOOOOOOOOOOOFT!!

By that time, our good friend Eric met us and we all hopped in the new Prius Rebecca bought for her company to grab some lunch. SNAZZY!

Oh Eric. You're so very gansta up in tha Prius. Word.

I was seriously going to look into the camera, but just as the lens snapped I noticed a sale banner at Restoration Hardware.

We went to Fiddler's Elbow for lunch. The service was awful but the food was delicious. We'll go back I bet. In the parking lot we found two other environmentally-minded Prius owning individuals. We had to take a picture.

The Prii!

This led to conversations about pollution, oil consumption, global warming and what solutions to those issues exist to utilize today. We decided that because we took Rebecca's Prius we were part of the solution. That became our catchphrase of the day.

"We're part of the solution, bitches."

After a delicious lunch we took Eric back to his car. Rebecca and I then blasted past a somewhat bewildered Eric...



...and high-tailed it to the NEW IKEA!! GRAND OPENING MAY 23RD BABY!! WOO!!



Do you think it would be weird to camp outside the night before?

Maybe it would be.

I don't care.

After that we went to Southtowne and looked around a little, then decided to head back downtown. After chatting with her friend Aimee (HAPPY BIRTHDAY SWEETNESS!!) we thought it would be fun to grab some ice cream. That was when Rebecca LET ME DRIVE THE PRIUS.

Woohoo!

She cut my head off on this one but you get the idea.

After ice cream, a swoop through Wild Oats and a little more witty banter, we both went home. Rather, I came home and Rebecca went back to Aimee's to spend the night as she is leaving tomorrow morning for a week in MAZATLAN.

Not bitter.

This was an incredible day. Thank you Rebecca!! When you get back in on Sunday we MUST do it again!

Ooo!

My sister went to the Chicago Midwest Beauty Show and met Nick Arrojo from What Not to Wear!



Isn't she a lovely young lady?? I think so too. :-)

Laundry wants me to...

There is a HUGE pile of laundry at home in the bedroom. I have to get it done tonight or I will face severe consequences (read: NO MORE UNDIES LEFT). So to remind myself, I placed a note on the top of the clothing pile that reads: "DO ME!"

I can't stop laughing. Hee hee hee!

Also I would like to let you all know that I have just finished off a pound of baby carrots in about 30 minutes.

Mmmmm.

Thank you. That is all. Have a pleasant day.

HOO!

I haven't been here in awhile. Sorry. Everything has been great and all that, I just haven't written much.

I made a rice dish the other day. It was brown basmati (DID YOU HEAR THAT JAI? I MADE BASMATI RICE) with marinara, black beans, basil, oregano, garlic and fresh grated parmesan sprinkled all about in a big casserole dish. I took it to a party and everyone said it was delicious which made me very happy.

Speaking of that party, let's recap the weekend! Woo!

FRIDAY NIGHT

I went to Rooster's (the snazzy new one in Layton) with Jackie and Kevin for dinner and then shopping at Target afterward. Kevin and I were OUT OF CONTROL and embarrassed Jackie as much as possible - which was not intentional. I don't think I've laughed that hard in months. It was awesome. Dinner was farfalle and sauteed vegetables in a light tomato sauce and THE BEST TOASTED BAGUETTE I HAVE EVER HAD. WHOOOOOOAH. I am so going back just for that. Mmm.

After dinner and Target we went to Blockbuster and said hello to our friend Ashley who is just delightful. She was working that night otherwise she would have been with us.

Then we all went home to sleep. Hooray.

SATURDAY

On Saturday I took some pictures downtown and came back home to a VERY UPSETTING LETTER from a rental car company I recently did business with. I will give you more details about that later, along with the pictures I took of downtown.

Saturday evening I went to a housewarming party. My friends Jen and Ken (Jeniken) just bought the cutest old home (with CROWN MOULDING AND PORCH COLUMNS!!) in the historic part of town and we all got together to celebrate their new home and Jen's birthday which was Sunday. Jen's mom was there and I forgot how sweet and wonderful she is. We all brought delicious foods and her mom made her famous focaccia bread with olives and basil leaves and everything! YUM!! She also baked a million cookies and one of them was heart-shaped. I found it and she had no idea it had baked that way. We, along with our very fantastic and lovely friend Hannah, all decided it was a sign and I should eat it post-haste. I did and it was tasty. We'll see what happens. Heh.

That was a great night. It was so good to see everyone!

SUNDAY

On Sunday I met Jackie, Ashley and Jackie's friends Cat and Adrianne at the coffee house. While there I spotted this guy with a Golden Retriever and a Black Lab who looked exactly like Mandy Patinkin! I called my sister and told her through her husband as she was coloring her sister-in-law's hair at the time. That wasn't complicated at all.

After coffee, Jackie and I trekked the Wasatch Front looking for a cordless coffee bean grinder for her dad. He had some sort of a grinder emergency and it HAD TO BE CORDLESS. Unfortunately we couldn't find one but we did find lovely groceries at Target and got a surprise when we went to Olive Garden for lunch. Our friends Kelly and Melissa were there having lunch too so we all sat together. What are the odds, I ask you?

So this weekend was full of friends and laughter. Those are the best kind. You know, whether this continues or not, I feel more connected to where I am in life now more than anything. I really hope that feeling sticks around because it's wonderful.

Have a good week!