Wishful Wednesday - Dream Room (i'm biased)

It's time for Wishful Wednesday, courtesy of my IRL lovely friend Miss Kelsey.

'I wish' I could come home to...

this bedroom each and every night!

I LOVE the bamboo construction and funky low profiles. Just my style :-) I would want it with different (maybe Bamboo?) floors and a shaggy white carpet...

I'd have to throw in this "Chiffonier" ... I just learned this word a few months ago and basically refers to really tall dressers like the one above. It would be PERFECT for all my little clothes.. not like pre-college weight, but you know.. socks in top drawer, then undies, then bras, then bikinis, etc. etc.

Okay, okay. Full disclosure: I'm a little biased.

I helped design this furniture!!! 

Yup, our family company makes this bedroom collection and we sell it on Costco.com here.

Plus, I helped develop the flash product demo for it... check it out, but just warning the music get's really annoying. I take responsibility for ensuring the inclusion of a MUTE button :-)

It's my most favorite bedroom collection we sell, and I would totally have it in our little house, if our bedroom was just a teensy bit bigger. Because of the low profile overhangs (which I love) the bed takes up quite a bit of space... maybe in our next house!

Of course, to complete the dream bedroom, the window in the picture would need to look out upon this view, and not the fake skyline we painted for our furniture showroom :-)

 image source.

To play along with Wishful Wednesday next week, head over to Miss Kelsey's blog The Seattle Smith's!

wish i could give all my moola to sarvey!

Disclaimer: If you don't like wild animals or are a fan of Sarah Palin, you probably won't like this post. Actually, you probably won't like me either. Just saying...

I haven't played in a long while, but this week Miss Kelsey my amazing IRL friend who does her thing over at The Seattle Smiths used *my* idea for Wishful Wednesday.. so even though I'm a day late and a dollar short, here goes:

 

"I Wish" I had never ending funds 
to donate to Sarvey Wildlife

Sarvey Wildlife is a wildlife rehabilitation center that takes in injured or orphaned wildlife - from starlings to black bears and everything in between - and cares for them in hopes of ultimately being able to release them back into the wild. It is a small non-profit run exclusively on donations and the hard work of volunteers.

All images from www.sarveywildlife.org

I first learned about Sarvey when I was around 10 years old. My family was in a park when a baby Grey-Horned Owl fell out of a tree. It was going to be attacked by dogs so since it clearly couldn't fly, my mom grabbed a towel and scooped it up. Shortly thereafter the mama owl swooped down and put her talons in my mom's back so needless to say we hurried to the car with the big fluffy basketball baby owl. After several phone calls we made our way 90 minutes north to bring the baby to Sarvey. It was spring time and they were so slammed when we got there, a lady begged us all to help with the babies. What did they have us doing, you ask? Oh, just bottle feeding and "pottying" baby raccoons... a never ending supply of baby raccoons. We later learned the baby owl was released several months later in the same park, and well.. that was the beginning.

When I was in highschool I did my senior project up there, working full time as a volunteer "intern" for a month. Sarvey is a very special kind of place where, in just a few hours, you may be cleaning crow shit from a cage one minute, and hiding food for a bobcat the next. One of my most memorable experiences there happened late one night when it was just Sarvey's founder the late Kaye Baxter and me in the clinic. She was hurriedly working to hydrate and remove bullet fragments from a gorgeous golden eagle that had been shot (who does that?) when a baby deer came in that had been hit by a car. It had a huge gash on its head. The golden eagle obviously took priority, but Kaye told me to fix up the deer... Say Whaa?? I didn't even know where to start! Kaye was very calm (or totally out of her rocker!) and told me it was just like sewing a hem. Well nevermind that I didn't (don't) know how to do that either... I gave it my best effort. It was probably the best sewing I've ever done :-) I don't think that baby deer lived, but in that moment I was so... alive! Anywhooo...

Nowadays I don't have much money, but I still make time to go up to Sarvey to volunteer. Last year my brother turned 13 and started bugging me to bring him. The age minimum is 14 but we fudged a little bit on the volunteer form and now brother and I go up pretty much every week!!! He keeps me company on the long drive and is becoming quite the little caretaker! I love spending time with him working up there, and we have had some amazing, some hilarious, and some not so funny experiences.

• Towel drying river otter pups... they are just like puppies, and you haven't lived until you have seen what otter pups do with a towel!!!
• Surprises when "pottying" baby raccoons. I will just say this: PROJECTILE.
• The time I held the hawk while Gabe tube fed it and somehow the food missed the hawk's throat and went directly into my eyeball.... Not fun.
• Chasing the escape artist squirrels all over the clinic.... It's a fun little game!
• Sneaking a peak at the "off limits" black bear cubs... they couldn't see us, so it was ok :-)
• Chopping up frozen rats... not pleasant!
• Bottle feeding wobbly baby deer... precious!

Gabe and a *fat* river otter pup after bathtime

Gabe's first time 'catching' a bald eagle for meds

So if I am MIA from blogging Wednesday evenings, it's because I'm probably being pooped on by a baby raccoon, sorting through frozen rats to feed the raptors, or maybe stitching up a deer's head!

Disclaimer: They are much more professional now than a decade ago, and they would never just be like.. go sew that deer. But truly, it happened!!

If you can't tell, I'm a major animal lover... and like I said I don't have much money, but I do donate (not my time but my beer fund) to a few other awesome charities as well:

Conservation International
World Wildlife Fund
National Resources Defense Council
American Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals

and my favorite...

Defenders of Wildlife
because Sarah Palin and her aerial wolf hunting can go to Hell makes me want to vomit.

The only downside of these $10 here $20 there donations? They put you on massive mailing lists and now I get junk mail from every NPO from here to Timbuktu... and address labels. I have a lot of address labels :-)

omg new ski boots please?

'I wish' .... 

Santa would have remembered
New Ski Boots were on my list!

Well actually, I didn't tell any of my Santas this really... but I think it should be obvious by the fact that my feet bleed every time I go skiing. Seriously.

However, in all fairness no one can really pick out ski boots for someone else. Heck, I don't even think I can pick them out for myself!

They really should have trial periods for ski boots.. not just, like, put your foot in and walk around the store. A full day of skiing trial, I think, is mandatory to determine if a boot is gonna work or not. Just sayin'

In all seriousness, though, Santa didn't miss anything this year... I was quite spoiled.

image source.

image source.

To get in on the Wishful Wednesday fun, go check out Miss Kelsey's blog. You won't regret it :-)

wishful wednesday - bleh

Sorry. I'm incredbly annoyed and upset and possibly tipsy right now... and you know what??? It's not even Wendesday anymore. So here's my effing WISHFUL WEDESNEDAY *("WISHFUL"  looks wrong?? did I spell it right?? or is it just one of those words that looks wrong sometimes?)

anyway... ugggh. here it is.

Best holiday I can remember, besides the obvious that Kelsey already did, is Thanksgiving in Cabo. It was my mom and dad and my sis and my lil bro and I.

My sis and I are older and only 15 months apart. My lil' bro is only 13 now, and everyone always asks us if he was a mistake. The funny thing is me and my sister were apparenly both 'mistakes'... however; I distinctly remember my mom giving her IUD to my dad in a ring box about, umm... 14 years back or so. My dad wanted a boy. My mom was 36. She gave him her IUD for X-MAS.

So he was the only planned one. Anywayyy... back to Cabo Thanksgiving. No more words. Here's some pics:

We found a Christmas tree in our hotel.

My dad and my lil bro.

They made my sis and I take

walkie-talkies out cuz its MEXICO...

My lil bro and mi mama!

Our whole family, pre-Thanksgiving dinner.
Gbae is anti-sressing up :-)

Oh 12-year olds hehe

On the van ride ride to dinner!

In a golf cart. The whole fam!!

Kenzie introduce me to the BEST.BOOK.EVER.

Why Men Marry Bitches.

They have Corn Pops in Mexico :-)

Looks like CHRISTMAS!!!

Apparently I'm not happy.

It was cold.

It's a teepee.
Thanksgiving theme?

Wishful Wednesday - Chore!

I Wish... I never had to do

 Doggy Chef Duties again! 

Now most people probably are wondering how the hell feeding the dog is a CHORE... Oh, yes it is!! Wanna know why? See my pup Bondi has a lovely protein-losing enteropathy (intestinal disease) called "Lymphangiectasia" that nearly killed him (remember?), which means he can eat ONLY:

• Rice
• Tofu Potatoes
• Tuna in water
• Chicken breast
• Turkey breast
• Non-fat cottage cheese
• NO (less than 3%) FAT
• NO GLUTEN

Unfortunately, there are no commercial dog foods that meet the above criterion... (and even if there were, I highly doubt they would be palatable to Mr. Bondi) so to keep my dog alive, I get to for cook for him.... three.times.a.day.every.day.for.the.rest.of.his.life.

 bondi's food. really MUCH larger bowl than it looks. the pills are TUMS :)

This involves buying chicken breast and potatoes in bulk... we're talking 50 lbs at a time, which ain't cheap!! (In case you're wondering, our freezer is pretty much filled to the brim with chicken breast at all times, and our cabinet stays full of tuna for whenever we're in a "Bondi Food" pinch.) Then, we either boil or grill the chicken breast 10 lbs at a time and store it in VERY large Tupperware. Thank God for microwaves, because I can cook his potatoes in about 6-8 minutes.

On any given day, Bondi eats:

• 3-6 chicken breasts
• 3-6 potatoes

I KNOW!!! What an OINKER, right???

Special... the vet said to feed him "as much as he wants" because due to his permanent (now manageable) condition, he will always be susceptible to rapid weight loss. (Jealous much? hehe). Oh, and because his diet is pure protein and starch, it's seriously lacking in nutrients. So CAN'T forget the vitamins and - get this - TUMS for Calcium/Magnesium.

ALAS... you see, cooking for Bondi is quite a CHORE and I would be ecstatic to never.ever.EVER do it again. Lucky me, I have an amazing boyfriend who shares Doggy Chef Duties with me, and I get a wonderful (alive) dog who warms my heart:

yes. this is bondi in a box. (my NEW computer box!!!) hehe

PS: This post reminds me, just a few days ago I realized how terribly rotten Bondi's teeth are getting :-(  I was so busy trying to keep him alive for so long, that I didn't even think about his teeth. Without any hard food or bones to keep the plaque and tartar away, his teeth have totally gone to hell in a handbag. Now he has to go in for professional cleaning - possibly extraction! - on Monday.. they'll have to put him under to do this. And I feel SOOOOOooooo terrible for not noticing earlier. Seriously... seriously negligent. So umm, take home lesson... brush your dog's teeth? Uggghh

To participate in Wishful Wednesday, head over to:

The Seattle Smith's!

Wishful Wednesday - Whistler!!!

I wish I could re-live

Spring Skiing in Whistler

over and over again!!

This was a WW topic from guest blogger Tracy at The Seattle Smiths...

Disclamier 1: Lots of pictures to follow.
Disclaimer 2: It's such a great topic that I might have to sneak a couple extra Wishes in at the end.

Spring skiing in Whistler is heaven on earth. Can't beat a ski trip weekend with good friends, great snow and sunshine! We always stay in the same Stoney Creek Condominiums and cram a ton of us (and our dogs... huge plus for me!) into the place. We pack up lots of food and drinks and split everything, so it actually works out to be quite affordable. The condo has it's own hot tub and is just a few minutes from the gondolas. It's pretty much awesomesauce.

This past April was INCREDIBLE. We went up for Telus Festival, and we couldn't have asked for better snow / weather / group of people / hilarious stories / amazing fun times.

Chair lift to the top of Blackcomb. BLUE SKIES!

Here I am. On top of the world... (or about half way down, haha)

My sis, dear friend Ashley, college bud Zach, bf Joe and me..

at the top of Blackcomb

Just Joe and me :-)

My boys (sans Bondi) and me on a chair lift...

These two bad-ass skiiers were tough to keep up with!

Me, happy as a clam, on the new...

Peak-to-Peak Gondola from top of Whistler to top of Blackcomb!!!

May have just shotgunned a Kokanee.

 

Some of us girls, slopeside at the lodge.

My college roomie Lucy (the witty one, remember?) is on my left.

4:30 PM - Apres slopeside! :-)

Of course there's lots more to Whistler... chillin' in the condo, great shopping, and zillions of nightlife options from Irish bars to techno clubs. But being on the biggest mountain(s) in North America in great conditions with amazing friends... it just doesn't get much better than that.

POST SCRIPT

A close 2^nd place goes to Deep-Sea Fishing in Cozumel with Joe. It was just the two of us, the captain and the open sea! Oh, and this 36" 25 lb BAD ASS BARRACUDA that I caught! I felt bad about it, except that we ate it for dinner, and what we didn't eat we gave to the staff at the hotel.

And... 3^rd place goes to REHAB at the Hard Rock in Las Vegas. I've been twice, and I'm QUITE sure this outrageous pool party would make 1^st or 2^nd place, except I can't remember why ;-) Here's a nice bloggable picture... my others didn't make the cut.

Wishful Wednesday.. thoughts on Halloween

So I'm a little late on this Wishful Wednesday from Kelsey at The Seattle Smith's ... but as I always say, better late than never!

"I Wish" ...

I was 6 years old and going Trick-or-Treating,

and my costume would be...

 this "Sexy" Pirate Wench.

photo found here.

Okay, just kidding. I picked this costume because I just want to say, WTF???? What is wrong with our society that we are marketing a "Pirate Wench Child Costume" to our youngsters??

Actually, the Consumerist (if you don't read it, I highly recommend...) did a story on this, urging online retailers to remove costumes described as "sexy" and displayed in children's categories. The Examiner also did a piece on the trend of sexing up children and tweens with borderline whorish halloween costumes that leave little to the imagination. Definitely worth a looksy:

"Halloween is a great time for kids to dress up and live out their fantasies and lately girls have been able to live out their dream of really hot and sexy and naughty... Wha? Wha??!! Halloween costumes have gotten out of hand. Gather any group of parents and you'll quickly hear about how the choices of costumes have gone from witch and princess to sexy witch and pouty porn princess."

Now, don't get me wrong... I'm all for sexy Halloween costumes!!! But I am 25. Not 6, or even 12. Come on, Culture/Society/Parents, etc. - Let's not encourage our little girls to wear "sexy" costumes. They have many, many years ahead to do that.

On that note, I know lots of people bitch about how women use Halloween as an excuse to dress as 'sluts' ... but I'm going to refrain from judgement on this one. I say, once you're an adult, you can make your own decision on what to wear... and if you want to dress as a Playboy Bunny, go riiight ahead. (I'm sure you won't hear MEN complaining.)

I myself dressed as a "Dead Baby" last year... not too "PC" but I didn't have to worry about seeing a hundred other girls wearing my costume.

This year, I think I'm going to dress as a Jellyfish. Wear white.. hang some streamers from an umbrella or something.. I don't know. We'll see how that turns out.

And in closing haha.. I would just like to say, what has this world come to?? Sexy DOG Costumes?  Seriously?

 

photos found here.

I'm not gonna lie. I might have wanted to get one for Bondi :-)

Wishful Wednesday: Vacation

I wish I was going on vacation tomorrow,

and I would want to go to Costa Rica.

Nevermind that I just arrived in Atlanta, where I'll be spending the next few days. I'm thinking VACATION... (thanks kels!)

I've been wanting to plan a trip to Costa Rica for awhile now.. I think it's the ideal vacation destination, because Costa Rica has the whole white sand beach thing, scuba diving.. and MONKEYS!!!!

See, how cute are they??? :)

I hear if you stay at a beach resort, sometimes they have tame monkeys that will come try and steal your drink from you if you're not paying attention.. and then they get drunkyyy!! What a RIOT:)

I think I'd totally opt for chillin' in hotsprings with the snow monkeys in Japan, except that I'm not a huge fan of the whole *freezing my ass off* thing. Islands are supposed to be warm and tropical. DUH. But seriously, these Japanese Macaques are pretty freakin' cool!!

Which brings me to my ALL TIME FAVORITE island: Australia. I totally would've picked Australia, except a vacation just ain't gonna cut it. I need lotsa time Down Under.

I lived in Australia for six+ months during my junior year of college, and it was absolutely Heaven. On. Earth. I lived in a "flat" with six other students from Duke.. and I'm not gonna lie, it was pretty Real World - esque. Check out the view from our place:

The view is of Coogee Beach, a suburb of Sydney. Everything about Australia was amazing, and I would love to go back. But like I said, I need more than just a week or two. Luckily, Joe had an amazing experience in Australia during college also, so I have no doubt the two of us will be headed back there someday, hopefully sooner than later!!!!

FUNNY FACT: Bondi, my dog, is named after Bondi Beach in Australia. Bondi Beach is right next to Coogee Beach. I wanted to name my dog as a tribute to my time in Oz. However, I couldn't see naming my dog "Coogee"... sounds to much like "coochie"... Can you image, "Coochie, COME!" :)

Anyway, that's all I got for now. To join in on Wishful Wednesday, check out Miss Kelsey's blog at The Seattle Smith's~~~