Oh, DVD, Oh, DVD...how lovely are thy branches...

So! I have not been blogging a lot lately but that is because I have been busy, busy with everything Christmas-related. Christmas shopping, Christmas cards, Christmas present projects, Christmas parties, Christmas thoughts...

My biggest time-consumer has been the dvd project I am working on for my dad. I am transferring all of his 8mm video camera tapes onto dvd. This sounds like no big deal, but it has been the biggest pain in my you-know-what (yes, elbow) and it's been one problem after the other. After many failed starts, I finally found a way to transfer the tapes and have been slowly making progress. Did I say slowly? I meant, SLLLLOOOOWWWLLLYYY. Seriously, it would have been faster if I had built a time machine, gone back in time with a current video camera, and retaped all of our family memories. And maybe while I was there, I could have given younger Erin a clue about her hair, clothing, and nerdy tendencies. Well, maybe just the hair and clothing. I have yet to get away from the nerdy tendencies.

While watching all of these old family movies, it occurred to me that I'm really glad there was no Myspace or Facebook when I was growing up. Someday, kids today are more than likely going to regret having their awkward years so well documented.

Anyhoo, onto fun holiday pictures...

Me and Miss Sarah Noel at Dawn & Scott's Holiday Extravaganza in Livonia...

Kitchen Chaos @ Dawn & Scott's (with Bill in the middle, of course)...

Kyle and Nicole helping each other potty....

Dani, me and Bri at Cory's mom's Saturday night holiday party...

Bobby Thunder & me at the Saturday night holiday party...

Dawn waging a broccoli war around 5 a.m. Sunday morning...

Anyhoo, Christmas is 3 days away, which is insane! I hope you all have wonderful, happy Christmases!

Today is me and Cory's 3 year anniversary, ooh-la-la! Lovey-love!

Merry Christmas!

At Last!...Some Jo-obs Have Come Along!

Today I get to start off with some really good news!! Cory and I both got new jobs! Cory starts tomorrow and I start at the beginning of January, which is fine with me cause that means I still have the holidays off, which is always nice. I'm super excited!! Being unemployed is terrible and uncomfortable and having 2 people in the same household unemployed is worse. Things are really looking up! Hooray for 2009, I think it's gonna be a great year. :)


Now for a quick Thanksgiving trip recap:


We went to visit Cory's aunt and uncle for Thanksgiving, like we do every year. We went to see the movie Twilight (totally my idea, I read all the books, I am 16 inside). I loved it, which is cool cause I expected to hate it, cause movies made from books are usually a disappointment and I was unsure about the actors. But, yeah. It was a really good movie and now I'm super excited for the next 3. Especially the 4th one cause the 4th book was my favorite and was the most vampire-y.


We went to Philadelphia, where I got to go to the Mutter Museum of Medical History, which was a little gross but mostly super interesting. Loved it. Highly recommended if you ever find yourself in Philadelphia. To further entice you, the mannequins in Philadelphia look like this:




You know, in case learning isn't enough to get you there.



We also went to the Yeungling Brewery in Pottsville, PA. This brewery is the oldest in the U.S. Yeungling is delicious and the brewery guy said they are trying to start selling it in Ohio soon, which I'm all for.



Mural of disgruntled Yeungling workers (you'd be disgruntled, too, if you had to work in a hot, unventilated room in those outfits):


Me, Dawn, Cory and Colleen in the old keg filling room:

The trip was a really good time and Cory's aunt and uncle are always the best hosts. They go out of their way to take us places to do fun things, and his aunt is a great cook, and everyone knows Erin loves delicious food.

And now it's Christmastime! I love Christmas! I already have my tree up and stockings hung, and I've watched The Grinch and visited the Manor House Homespun Holidays with my mom. Next up, Lights at the Zoo.

Darren was in town this weekend, and we got to hang out on Friday and go to Lauren's 'Tis the Secor art show. Very good times, and Lauren's art, as always, is amazing. I highly recommend that everyone keep an eye out for shows at Secor Studios, the place is full of awesome artists and the shows never disappoint. Especially when you visit Lauren and Jerry (Quest for Fire Studios) on the 7th floor.

Hope everyone is having a happy holiday season or at least, a happy Tuesday. :)

Leavin'...In A Honda...

About to embark on our yearly trek to the outskirts of Philadelphia for Thanksgiving weekend. It'll be a nice 10 hour drive that will end with Cory's aunt making us a delicious breakfast.

Hope everyone has a Happy Thanksgiving!

Dog Day Afternoon

I would like to start out today by telling you a quick story. My family has always had a lot of pets. When I was younger, we usually always had 2 dogs. About 14 years ago, one of our dogs, Muttly, passed away and we were left with just one dog, Roy. My parents were thinking about getting a new dog and told me that we could get a border collie. My dad had told me all of these great things about border collies and I was really excited to have one.

At the same time, the local fire station was having a coloring contest. First prize, a dalmation puppy. My mom let my youngest sister Kyle enter this contest, even though me and my other 2 sisters told her not to. My mom's famous last words, "Oh, it's not like she'll win."

Win, she did, and so began our time with Max.

Max passed away a couple of weeks ago, and it was very sad. That dog was a part of our family for a very long time, and he definitely had a unique personality.

My parents were dog-less for the first time ever, in my entire life. My parents hate being dog-less. They LOVE animals, seriously. So, this past weekend, my dad called me and asked if I wanted to help them pick out a new dog. And I finally got to pick out my border collie (well, border collie mix, but whatever).

This is...well, we haven't named him yet.

We got him from the Humane Society and he is a year old, and is already named Abe, but we can't decide if we should keep his name Abe or change it because he doesn't answer to Abe, anyway. We have been tossing around names like Harvey, Henry, The Amazing Crepso, and Zeke, although all of my sisters and I have vetoed Zeke and only my mom really likes it...

This dog is so sweet and well behaved. We were having a hard time deciding between him and another border collie mix who was a puppy, but this dog won me over, big time. And now I am going to go take him to the park.

But before I go, today is my dad's birthday.

Happy Birthday, Dad!!

Let's Play Good News/Bad News

Good News: Holly's second baby was born on Thursday!! His name is Wyatt Thomas and he is super cute and not funny-looking like some other newborns I've seen (and of course I'm not talking about any of my other friends' babies when I say some of them were funny-looking newborns. Ahem.). Both Holly and Wyatt are healthy and doing well. Kyle and I went to see Holly and Wyatt at the hospital yesterday and her son Johnny kept kissing Wyatt and patting his head. Adorable. Lauren and I are going back up there tonight.

Bad News: My parent's dog (our "family dog", if you will), Max, passed away the other day. Max was a dalmatian that Kyle won in a coloring contest at the fire station when I was in junior high. He was 14 years old, which is old for such a big dog. Max was also a very good dog. Sometimes he would nod out while begging for food at the table, and when he was a puppy he would run so fast at me when I got off the bus everyday that he wouldn't be able to stop before he'd hit my legs and knock them right out from under me. Every time. And I taught him how to catch food in his mouth so my mom wouldn't know I was feeding him Doritos and/or carrots. He knew the upstairs was off-limits when I lived at home, except for during thunderstorms, when he would show up at my door cause the thunder scared him. Sara says he is getting lots of puppy love in doggy heaven. I hope so, cause he didn't get out to many dog clubs in this life, so bitches were scarce.

Good News: I got to be back in downtown Toledo for the day yesterday, in a law office with a great view. Toledo is very pretty from high up.

Bad News: I did not mention this in my blog before, but I am currently unemployed and have been for a few weeks. My position was eliminated due to lack of work, which was not too big of a surprise, given the current economy in this city and the poor state of the industry in which I was working.

Good News: Cory and I are thinking of using this opportunity to finally move out of state like we have always wanted, since we now don't have much holding us back. So far, our two top considerations for a new city are Atlanta and Las Vegas. We have already started getting rid of excess belongings, etc. I will keep you posted.

Bad News: My car stalled out and left me stranded in the middle of Alexis Road today. Only one person stopped to see if I was OK and to offer assistance, and he was a very elderly man. Because it was cold outside and slightly damp, I told him that my dad was on his way and thanked him. I didn't want him to get sick or overly strained trying to help me push my car into a parking lot. A young woman with an emergency light on top of her SUV blared her horn at this nice man and threw her arms up at me in anger as she sped past once I had convinced the man I had help on the way. It's a good thing certain people get into public service.

Good News: My dad did come and save me yet again (this is the second time he's had to come and rescue me from a stalled car in the middle of an intersection, seriously), and since my mom is out of town, I am driving her car for the weekend. I am hoping to get a tow truck to take my car to my mechanic soon...hopefully that doesn't take too long...

Good News: LOST has a premier date set! January 21st! HOORAY!

VOTE!!

Today is a big deal! Get out and vote!!

These Are the Erin's I Know, I Know...

So, today is my 27th birthday. I haven't figured out how I feel about that quite yet.

This morning, I woke up with the Vandals birthday song in my head. "It's my birthday and I'll do what I want to. Fuck you! It's my birthday."

Then, inexplicably, the song changed to "These Are the Daves I Know" from Kids in the Hall. "Some of them are Davids... 'But most of us are Daves!' They all have their own hands but they come from different moms." My favorite part of that song is when he gets to the one guy and says, "Dave Capisano, I hardly know him..." and then they just stand there. Canadians. So funny.

Anyhoo. I'm stressing out a little bit at the moment for reasons unrelated to my birthday, but I'm sure it'll all work out.

Cory and I had our birthday/Halloween party last weekend. We had the party at my parent's house and it was a really, really good time! It was cold, since October has decided to be December instead, but my dad built a giant bonfire and all was well. Except for the part where I tripped over things I knew were there cause they've been there for the last 26 years, and fell on my dad, thereby bruising my finger on whatever he had in his hand. I think it was Beefeater.

Oh, and there was cake!!! CAKE!!

Me and Pouty Sara...(she was really dressed as MaryAnne and her boyfriend was Gilligan, but it got cold so she put on a coat, and it got late so Gilligan passed out in a car somewhere).

Me and Un-Pouty Sara...

Yaarrr, me ale!



Burglar Bobby, Emo Stu, Jabbawokee Jenny...



Nicole Dorothy and Jabawokee Kyle...

Pippi Lauren-Stocking, Me, and Beth-orothy....

Tonight my mom is making me lasagna, and Dustin is in town, and we are all supposed to head up to Mickey's for some fun, excitement, and hip-hop (or so I hear).

Hope everyone's enjoying Erin's Birthday Day!

Hock-in-the-Hills

Cory and I finally got to take our rescheduled trip to Hocking Hills. We had so much fun, we didn't want to come home! But we also thought the owner of the cabin we stayed in might have noticed if we didn't leave... By the way, from investigation of the guest book in the cabin, it sounds like the cabin owners had pet monkeys. Now, we didn't see any monkeys, but I'm not ruling it out. What else are you gonna do with that much property if not put monkeys on it?

Our cabin was super cute and cozy. And WAY out in the middle of nowhere. The drive through the back roads felt suspiciously like the beginning of the horror movie Just Before Dawn...without the helpful man at the bottom of the mountain to warn us away. Oh, and we weren't later brutally murdered by twin brothers who were the product of incest. Other than that, it was exactly the same.

The first night, we got there too late to do any hiking, and decided to just drink some beers and have a camp fire...till we realized we forgot the beer! After we calmed down, we decided we'd better go out and try to track down a store that sells beer, that is open on a Sunday evening, in the middle of nowhere. After realizing the only store in the closest town was closed, we came upon 2 girls who were maybe 13-14 and got directions to the nearest beer store from them. Kids. They know everything. Our night thus saved, we drank by a camp fire under a full moon and then spent some time in the hot tub on our balcony. Good times.

The next day, we went to the little store in the little town and got directions from the sweet store lady. We hiked Old Man's Cave....

By going off the marked trails, we also made a startling discovery- the elusive Diaper Tree!!

Every fall, the rare and special Diaper Tree gives off its fruit, scattering across the forest floor its diaper-y goodness...

I also climbed a hill of tree roots...

And we found a Snake Tree. Which is not in the same tree family as the Diaper Tree, although they dwell in the same forest.

We hiked to the Lower Falls, Upper Falls, and Cedar Falls, but alas, there were no falls to be found. Seems the rains haven't been raining as much as they usually do, so things are a bit dry. But, the area is still very beautiful.

After our hike, we BBQ'd burgers back at our cabin and had another campfire.

And this is the face I get for insisting on one too many pictures with Cory...

The next morning, we got up after way too little sleep and watched The Mist while packing up the cabin and cleaning and whatnot. Side note on the movie The Mist: I don't think I've ever been more pissed off at the ending of a movie in my life. Those people are stupid. That's all there is to it. No one would be that stupid. And if there are people out there who are that stupid, maybe the end of that movie should happen to them. I'm just saying. Sheesh.

Anyhoo. The weather during our entire trip was f-ing fantastic. Here is a picture of the side of the road near the area we were staying in, and the pretty blue sky and fall leaves...

Now, back to Toledo. Booo!! But at least it's our birthdays and birthday party and Halloween soon. Hooray!

Have a lovely Wednesday, everyone!

Sad Heart...

My grandpa passed away on Wednesday. Last night, my mom and I went through a whole bunch of pictures, many of which we'd never seen before. I'd like to share a few of my favorites...

My grandparents, young and in love...



My grandparents on their wedding day...

Grandpa...way before he was Grandpa...

My grandparents bringing my dad home...this picture was apparently published in the newspaper...

My Grandpa and my dad....

My Grandpa, messing with me while I get my picture taken...(he also used to make faces at us whenever we sang in the little kids choir at church or participated in Christmas and/or school plays, which means I never made it through a single performance without laughing really hard and sometimes forgetting the words)...

My Grandpa and me on my 18th birthday...he turned 81 the same month and liked that our ages were the reverse of each other...

My grandparents, in the only church portrait he smiled in...he said the guy taking the picture was making faces at him. I said, "Oh, and you wouldn't know anything about that kind of behavior, would ya?"

I miss my grandparents....

Race Ya There!

Lauren, Kyle, Bethany, Sara, Courtney (Sara and Bethany's co-worker) and I all walked the Race for the Cure on Sunday. We had a really great time. We're definitely doing it again next year, and we might even be a little more organized about things next time! Maybe...

The girls and I at 7:30 a.m.

The bagpipers and Chris Peterson from WTOL, before the Race...

The girls, with the crowd, waiting for the starting bell....

A horse wearing bunny ears!

Lauren and Sara, during the Race...

Courtney and Bethany, during the Race...

Kyle, dance-walking to one of the many bands that was performing along the Race route...

These guys, who were cheering us on, were the coolest of all the guys/girls cheering us on....

...mostly because of this....

Anyway, it was a great experience and it's amazing to see the number of people who participate in this, and even more amazing to see how many of them actually run the whole thing! While their seemingly endless group ran by, I commented that there were this many people in Toledo who are more motivated than we are. Bethany said she wants us all to run next year instead of walk, but we'll see if that happens. I can tell you already, Kyle SO isn't into running.

Speaking of Kyle, last night Kyle called me to tell me that cops were driving by her house (my grandpa's house) shining spotlights in her windows. We talked for a bit and I told her to call back if anything else happened. She called me back a few minutes later to tell me that the neighbor had called and said, "Hello, Mr. __'s granddaughter? The cops are driving by looking for guys who might be in the woods behind your house. But don't worry, we're right next door if you need us." Needless to say, this scared the bejesus out of my already-skittish sister. In the end, nothing happened except that she lost a lot of sleep due to waking up and rushing out to investigate everytime one of her cats made a noise, which means I'm now allowed to laugh really hard at the picture she sent me of the "weapons" she had ready in case anyone did try to come in and get her:

You don't F with the bleach cleaner, yo.

On a completely different subject, my family is currently going through a difficult time. Things are very up-in-the-air at the moment and we don't really have a choice except to wait and see, and take things one day at a time. So, I'll give an explanation and an update when I have one.

In the meantime, hope everyone is having a great Monday!

Egg-citing Things To Come...

I haven't gotten very much sleep in the last 4 nights or so. On Saturday night, I was up till 5 a.m. at Bethany's get together, then woke up on her couch at 9 a.m. and stayed up for the rest of the day. On Monday night, I first woke up to my cat very loudly attacking what sounded like a plastic bag, but when I got out of bed to take it away from him, I couldn't find whatever it was and instead found just the cat, running up to me like he was SOO happy I was finally awake and let's play! I went back to bed, only to wake up around 4 a.m. to someone's car alarm going off. FOR 10 MINUTES!! Seriously, who doesn't hear their alarm for that long and turn it the fuck off?? I even went out to make sure it wasn't my car, and saw a bunch of other people doing the same, but obviously not the right person. Grrr.... Then early, early this morning, Bobby was spending the night on our couch and his cell phone alarm started going off. He didn't wake up to it, so I had to get up, wake him up, and hand it to him. He was very apologetic, but still... Erin's sleepy.

Anyhoo. Enough whining.

Lauren and I took a short road trip on Sunday to and from Lansing to drop off her old college roommate, Jillane. On the way home, we got lost in Lansing. I saw a road name I recognized and told Lauren I felt like we should go "this way" (translation: she should have gone the opposite way). We ended up dead-ending suddenly at a river, in front of which there was a sign that said "Road Ends". I told Lauren that I recognized the river as the one that goes behind Dawn's old apartment, and that sometimes they find dead bodies in there. Then I wondered aloud why I would point that out to her while we were sitting in front of it, in a secluded area where the road, you know, had ended. We turned around, wondering why there were no signs before the end of the road warning us that the road was about to end. Then we drove back up the street and realized that we had passed at least 6 signs, on either side of the road, warning us, "Road Ends 500 feet" and "Dead End Ahead". We are awesome.

P.S. We later stopped at Qdoba in Ann Arbor and the water in the restroom sink smelled like eggs on fire.

Up until Monday night, the only food Cory and I had in our refrigerator was 4 different kinds of cheese. Nothing else. Just cheese. BUT, 4 different kinds of cheese.

For the past few Saturdays, I have been listening to my The Very Best of Prince CD whilst showering and getting ready to go out. I have decided there is no better getting ready CD out there. And I hope my neighbors enjoy listening to me singing "I Wanna Be Your Lover" and "Purple Rain" as much as I enjoyed listening to them playing Uncle Kracker at full volume in the courtyard on Saturday morning.

This weekend, me, Sara, Lauren, Bethany, and Kyle will all be walking in the Race for the Cure. I'm pretty excited about it. I'm thinking about wearing my pink squirrel pants in honor of the pink breast cancer theme. Seriously, though, the community in this area is inspirational when it comes to their support of breast cancer survivors. Cory's mom is a breast cancer survivor, and while she was going through chemo, there were so many wonderful support groups and even people who donated things just to make life a little better and easier while she was going through something so terrible- gift baskets, massages, dinners, etc. It's wonderful that there are so many people out there who make an effort to show they care.

On a completely unrelated note, Cory and I will be going to Hocking Hills soon. I'm very excited about it. I reserved a cabin and everything. I used to go to Hocking Hills every year with my parents when I was little, but the last time I was there was when I went with Angel and her family during Spring Break our senior year (Spring Break '99!). This will be the first time I've gone without my parents or Angel's, so it should be interesting to see how often we get lost. :) Should be fun, though!! Hocking Hills is so beautiful, I can't wait!

Hope everyone is having a lovely week and if you know Cory's sister Dawn, be sure to wish her a happy birthday today!!

P.S. I tried to find a picture of an egg on fire by typing "eggs on fire + pictures" into Google, and this came up:

I don't know who that guy is, but I sure don't want him making my breakfast.