I'm In A War...

Fleas.

My house has been attacked.

Ginger and Socrates left me a pricey present.

Round #1 - I salted the entire house. Someone told me you cover house with a layer of salt, let it sit for awhile and then clean it all up. No more fleas. Not the case! It took me hours to get the salt up and still have fleas.
Fleas:1 Beth:0

Round #2- Raid flea bombs. I thought 3 then was told that would be too many. I did 3 anyways. When I showed up expecting no fleas, I was jumped! Sigh.
Fleas:2 Beth:0

Round#3- Goes down between 6-8pm tonight. The Orkin man is coming. He will be visiting me 4 times. He was pricey. (Reasonable though when you have been attacked!) He does come with a money back guarantee. This one is mine boys!
Fleas:2 Beth:1 (hopefully.)

Summer Trip: Portland, OR

How can you not love Oregon when seeing scenes like this?!?!

I did not get to stay the full two weeks like I had hoped, but did have a very enjoyable week. My friend Josh that went with me will stay on for another week.

Portland is a city after my own heart. Can't wait to visit again!

Run down of things I did...

• Met some wonderful people!
• Worked at the Oregon's Brewers Festival
• Volunteered at Zenger Farms
• Biked until we physically couldn't
• Visited the Washington Park Rose Garden
• Went to a "special" dessert place (don't want to ruin this for others who might go)
• Go a private, after hours tour of Widmer Brewery
• Spent hours at Powell's Books
• Tried Stumptown coffee
• Drove down the Oregon coastline
• Visited Oregon's shortest lighthouse
• Saw sea lions
• Ate grilled PB&J's at a food cart
• Tried several of Portland's 30+ breweries
• Ate award winning clam chowder
• Fell in love with the public transit system (Oh Nashville maybe one day!)
• Sadly, did not take many pictures

Playtime is over and it is time to get back to the swing of work. I'm excited about the school year ahead, but also thankful for this break before things get really hectic.

I love Portland.

Out of the Office...

I'm in Portland, OR for two weeks (Lord willing!)... Not sure how much I will blog, but expect big blog upon return...
:)

You've Got To Be Kidding!

To renew tags for Vespa you have to pay the same as a car in Nashville.

Ridiculous.

How to Live Like Socrates

So this morning while checking email, I saw this on my "How-To" sidebar.

"How to Live Like Socrates" (taken from Wiki-How)

1. Begin by reading some of Plato's dialogues.
2. Don't change your life immediately.
3. Follow Socratic principles and ideals.
4. If you truly wish to live like Socrates, then you need to devote yourself entirely to philosophy and searching for the truth.
5. Make sure where you debate with others is in a public area.
6. Never be afraid to voice what your think, or more importantly the truth.
7. Never fear death.
8. Show humility.
9. Remember the Socratic paradoxes.
10. Stick to your principles even in the face of death.
11. Be sure to "know thyself".
12. Meet distinguished or influential people.
13. Remember that the truth is the most important thing ever and you must do everything you can to find it.

While interesting, I thought I wonder what my Socrates' list would be...

"How to Live Like Socrates (the dog)"

1. Begin by looking as cute as possible so the humans take you home.

2. Change owner's life immediately.

3. Follow owner as close as possible to her heels.

4. If you truly wish to live like Socrates, you must eat twice a day, take as many naps as possible, and eat something of the owner's at least once a week.

5. Make sure when you bark is when humans are asleep.

6. Never be afraid to bark at 5:45am. Your owner should know that you think it is time to play.

7. Be afraid of everything that comes near you.

8. Show love.

9. Remember to jump on owner when covered in mud.

10. Stick to the couch when all else fails.

11. Be sure to "mark your territory."

12. Meet other dogs with loud bark or ferocious growl.

13. Remember being handsome is the most important thing ever and you must do anything you can to be that way.

Over Already?!?!

I can't believe I am saying this, but...

So ready for this summer to be over.

Ultimate Checklist for Myself

I am a "to-do list" kind of girl.

If you dig through my purse, you would surely find at least two checklists. It might be on the back of a receipt, on a cute teachery piece of paper, or just on a post-it in my planner.

The thrill of marking something off is exhilarating. I will go back and add things that weren't on my list just so I can mark them off.

So in my newest venture in art journaling, I came across several people that make a 101 in 1,001 list. Sign me up!

Then, I got to thinking about it. I will turn 30 on April 27, 2013. (Insert a four letter word here.) So if I plan to end my 101 in 1,001 day adventure on my birthday then I have to begin on July 31, 2010. (Makes 30 seem so much closer!) I have so many things already on my list, but this will give me a couple of weeks to mull my list over. I will blog list on my first day.

A checklist that ends at 30... This is so Beth Quarles.