i haven't had a good night's sleep since friday. i'm becoming increasingly braindead, which is making it harder for me to handle a situation that is cropping up at work. of course, having a situation to handle at work when i'm in a different time zone is part of why my sleep schedule is a mess. and so the cycle continues.... 

you know, i used to get really excited about the prospect of traveling to foreign countries for work, but it's become more of a pain in the ass than an adventure. 10 hour work days, conference calls in the middle of the night, having to introduce and prove myself to a new group of people each week, i'm tired of it.  by the time i leave the office, i don't feel like sight-seeing or being adventurous or enjoying another culture. i just feel like eating and sleeping. this trip in particular is annoying because the few people i already know in each office that i'm visiting are all on vacation, so my built-in social network is gone.

i also don't feel like i'm really settled in london since i'm always on the road. grimbil and i meet cool new people, and then i don't see them for months because i'm on a trip. makes it hard to develop a circle of friends. 

does this mean i'm getting old?

 in tokyo now. sooo tired - only a few hours sleep last night, and a 10 hour day at work today. plus i have a conference call at midnight.

but, saw some sumo wrestling last night. pretty cool!

i' ve arrived in Singapore and will be here til Sunday. So far all I've done is work out (go me!), eat an awesome meal at the hotel resto, and take a stroll along orchard road. The great thing about Singapore is that it's incredibly safe even at night. Now I'm trying to figure out what to do this weekend before I fly off to Tokyo. Any recommendations?

I made the mistake of buying The Lovely Bones to read on the flight over, and consequently spent most of my flight sniffling and trying really hard not to cry. It's a very good book, but my god so sad. Thank goodness for the little privacy screens between seats on British Airways, otherwise the guy next to me would have thought I was a nutjob. 

Here's hoping the jetlag isn't too bad.

happy anniversary goodgirlfriday!

and happy cinquo de mayo to the rest of yall

It's a long weekend, so we took the bike on our first road trip. Destination: Brighton. A seaside town that the royal family used to visit back in the day when bathing in sea water was thought to be theraputic. The ride was great, gorgeous weather and lovely countryside.

Brighton is a fun town, one of the most liberal cities in England. It reminded me of a cross between San Francisco and New Orleans. Unfortunately it's also the bachelor/bachelorette party capital of England. I have never seen so many girls in matching t-shirts and silly headbands. But still, we had a great time.

Tonight I'm off to Singapore. Grimbil will be all on his own for the next three weeks. Just him and GTA4....

i love the way my hair looks when blown dry on the bike - shaggy and kind of rock n roll

Today was my first dress fitting. It was just a mock-up, not the real thing but still, so exciting! We finalized the fabrics, selected the embroidery, perfected the fit and shortened the length to just below the knee. Next fitting is in July, at which point the whole thing should be made and all we have to do is decide where the embroidery will go. Definitely along the hem and the neckline, but maybe also scattered around the skirt.

I'm so glad I'm getting it custom made! It's great to be able to play with the details and the dressmakers I'm working with are really fun.

In other news, it's absolutely gorgeous outside. If this is what British summer is like, bring it on!
Off for a jog around the common.

we got guitar hero 3! and we're getting rock band! w00t!

our friend chad is a supertalented artist, and his clip on vimeo shows him at work. I'm floored!

I've been using the upcoming wedding as an excuse to indulge in pampering that I normally wouldn't. I'm now getting facials every 6 weeks (it really does make a difference), am searching fervently for the perfect lipstick (Mac's long wear lipgloss lasts forever, but I can't find a good shade for me), and I've started working out again w/ the help of a very buff coworker.

Monday I crossed the line to what I previously thought was frivolity: eyelash extensions. They're essentially fake eyelashes applied individually to your existing lashes. Theoretically they last up to 2 months, though if mine make it for 2 weeks I'll be happy. I'm not so good at maintaining stuff. The plan was that if this trial run went well, I'd get them for the wedding and not have to worry about mascara flaking or smudging.

It took about an hour and a half to do. The only uncomfortable part was at the beginning when they put something over my lower lashes; I'm not so good at remaining calm while things come towards my eyes. But after that I just closed my eyes and the guy went to work. I even napped a bit. I think before he got into the eyelash biz, the guy must have painted names on grains of rice; he was very precise.

The result? Gorgeous lashes that curl just so. It looks natural. I look like a mascara commercial, not Tammy Faye Baker. I want longer extensions next time. Yeah, I said it - next time. I'm hooked.

http://improveverywhere.com/2008/04/07/best-game-ever/

(from the polenblog)

9:30 am: asked a co-worker for recommendations of where to buy helmets etc for our new bike. His answer? Milan

1:30 pm: same co-worker drew me a map of *the* store to go to, *the* restaurant to have lunch at, and the spot for a certain Milano tradition

2:30 pm: flights booked for a one-day shopping spree in Milan this Saturday

And that's why I moved to Europe.

One of my bad habits is that I'm a terrible procrastinator. It's really becoming an issue now that I have a lot more paperwork and reporting to do. Before I could just attend to the day to day stuff and it was fine, but that doesn't work anymore. So now I have to write up goals for my team, reviews (still!) and make a business case for hiring another trainer. All in a very short time frame.

The thing is that when I finally start to work on this stuff, it actually is a relief to get it done. Why don't I remember that and just take care of stuff in a timely manner?

Just got back from 2 weeks in LA
Need to get to Geneva sometime in April
First weekend of May Grimbil and I will head to Brighton Beach. It's not far, but we're taking our new bike!
Last weekend of May we're going to visit friends in the French countryside
At some point I'll probably be shipped out to Tokyo for a bit (Boyce, will you still be there?)

It's all going to be fun, but I also have to get things done in London.....

Three couples we know got engaged over Easter weekend. Congratulations! I think after this we only know one long-term couple in the States that isn't married or engaged.

I wonder how long before the babies start arriving?

i'm in LA this week, taking a course on how to be a good manager. now i remember why people think london weather sucks....

Grimbil and I are going to see Punch Drunk's production of Masque of the Red Death. So psyched! If only we were going on a Friday or Saturday; the after parties sound wicked.

on thursday i'm heading off to the colonies for a little over two weeks, and since this is our last night by ourselves before we leave Grimbil is making me dinner: pork chops, asparagus, and sourcream mashed potatoes.  i'm a lucky girl!

It's review time, so in an effort to buckle down and write these reviews,  I've booked an office for myself today (instead of my usual very open and distracting workspace).

Besides the perk of having a door, I have floor to ceiling windows. The view? Buckingham Palace's gardens, with the London Eye, the Gherkin, and St. Paul's along the skyline. 

I'll tell the queen you said hi.

You've probably heard me mention the Moth here before. It's one of my favorite things to do in NYC. It's fun and it's inexpensive and you'll hear amazing true stories from a wide array of people - cops and astronauts and voodoo priestesses and hollywood types and pickpockets etc. If you're in NYC I recommend checking it out. 

If you're not in NYC, you can still enjoy the stories of the Moth now that they have a podcast. I'm so excited! Now I can get my Moth fix no matter where I am.