Brandi's Place

In other words, I have nothing to talk about. I went in to work at 6:30 this morning, left at 7:15 tonight. I am all sorts of tired. It was worth it though because for a brief 5 minute period today I was completely caught up... but then I checked my email, received a fax and double-checked my calendar. Damn.

Shelton brought me a grilled cheese and a beer for dinner. So good. Made my day. It was a Killians no less... good times.

I just wiped out 1/4 a DQ Ice Cream cake made to serve 12 people, leftover from Shelton's birthday yesterday. I am capable of doing that math and basically I just ate enough ice cream to feed 3 people. Can you say fatty-fatty-fatty.

I would also like to congratulate Sarah and Jeremy on the purchase of their first home. The deal goes down end of May. Best of luck to you.

Posted by BrandiK at 4/28/2005 08:14:00 PM | Permalink | Comments

Today is Shelton's 25th Birthday. That means our car insurance goes down!

I love you, and I hope your day is fantabulous!!!

Posted by BrandiK at 4/27/2005 08:03:00 AM | Permalink | Comments

Tonight Shelton and I had tickets to watch the Wichita State/OU Baseball game. My media man snagged some sweet seats for us, probably 30 ft behind home plate. We were one of the few flashes of red in the crowd, but you know my "Boomer Sooners" were strong and loud!!!

When we left the score was tied 4-4, bottom of the 6th. I just checked live stats at soonersports.com and it looks like going in to the bottom of the 9th, WSU is up 3 runs. We kinda knew that's how it would go.

We stayed for the good part and left when we couldn't feel our appendages any more. We each put back 2 BIG, yummy hotdogs, mine was washed down with a cold beer, Shelton's with Hot Cocoa. It was nice to be around some Sooner athletes.

Posted by BrandiK at 4/26/2005 10:03:00 PM | Permalink | Comments

A week ago tonight Shelton and I received word from the dad-in-law that the condo had at long last found a new owner. Yes, our beloved condo is no longer ours. It's all moving so quickly now, we close on the 6th!! We're glad for the new owner, it's a fabulous little abode.

I would have mentioned the sale sooner but I didn't want to jinx anything. That's always my luck. Get super psyched about whatever event may or may not be happening, tell the world, practically send out a press release and then BAM!- it's gone. Ain't gonna happen.

I think the little statue of St. Joseph I buried in the backyard 3 weeks ago might have had something to do with it. I'm a beliver. Amen.

Well, so long little condo of ours. It's the first address Shelton and I shared. It's the home we were engaged in, married in, thought we were going to have a baby in, graduated college in, lived and loved. 3003 River Oaks Dr. you were good to us. So long old friend.

Posted by BrandiK at 4/25/2005 09:20:00 PM | Permalink | Comments

Friday a group of KU ad students came to the office for an agency visit. I've been on these visits probably 50 times. I know what makes an agency visit suck and make a kid never even consider working for you, and I know what makes them rock pretty hard, to where you'd do anything to get a desk at that very moment. I wanted their experience to be the rockin' kind. I know a lot of people don't believe me, but our agency is hot right now, I want these kids to know this is absolutely a place worth considering.

Anyhow, I went in to speak to them about the work we do for my client, my experience as a recent grad/job seeker, the agency, etc and so forth. I really enjoyed. They asked some great questions and I really feel that I gave great answers. I gave them my business card and told them to give me a shout if they had any questions or something.

At the end, their prof, who apparently worked at KU with Avery, told me, "You are definitely the product of Avery, no doubt." I laughed. Pretty big compliment, I thought.


The rest of the weekend has been pretty mellow. Shelton and I went on a date Friday night, been a while for that. Real thing- I wore a dress, he wore a tie. There was wine. Ice cream. I pooped out before we made it to the movie though so the date ended abruptly... is this what it's like to have kids?

Saturday was a wash. HAHAHA- I did laundry ALL day! oh, I crack myself up. Spent the day at the auntie's using her water supply and appliances. We had a wonderful dinner and talked until about 11.

This morning is a calm, quiet, non-bom-bom-bomping kind of morning. AHHHHH, what's that I smell... VICTORY! We are Panera bound and then the reality that tomorrow is Monday will set in.

Posted by BrandiK at 4/24/2005 08:45:00 AM | Permalink | Comments

Ok, so the saga with the downstairs neighbors continues... the good news is it has an ending. We had to go back downstairs Monday night at 11:30 after we were both awaken from a calm and peaceful slumber. Yes, the bom-bom-bomping was back. I staggered out of bed, went downstairs and on the way down lost my footing and slid the rest of the way down. Knock on the door, the girl answers and looks completely dumbfounded. Dumby, why do you think I'm down here? So I asked her to turn the music down AGAIN and she goes, "Well, what room are you in?" I said, "Umm, the bedroom, because it's midnight, and I'm sleeping!!" 10 minutes later the music was off.

Last night we come home. By 7 the bom-bom-bomping was off and running. I stood up, slammed down my important scrapbooking implement and screamed, "NOT TONIGHT! I'M NOT PUTTING UP WITH THIS CRAP TONIGHT!" I called our apartment security and of course, they never showed.

At 8:08pm we went down and knocked on the door- AGAIN. And I know it was exactly 8:08pm because the Chuck E Cheese manager downstairs screamed this at us. Apparently he is good at reading digital clocks. He couldn't believe we had the audacity to ask him to turn down the bom-bom-bomping at 8:08 at night. He's never had this problem before, none of the other neighbors complain, and he doesn't believe our floor is vibrating. I would have invited him up to test it himself but I didn't want him to leave Chuck E Cheese smell in my house.

So he threw a big hissy fit and I came upstairs to call the office and leave a message. I explained the situation to them. I called back this morning to see what was happening and apparently Chuck E Cheese and his wife went in first thing this morning to complain about our "nagging them incessantly." Turns out, they don't want to live near us. SO THEY ARE TRANSFERING TO A DIFFERENT APARTMENT. Happy dance over here... Happy dance over there!!

BYE BYE, GOOD RIDDANCE!!! Don't forget to pack your speakers... ass.

Posted by BrandiK at 4/21/2005 08:51:00 PM | Permalink | Comments

The kids downstairs are SO CA-UTE! The boy is probably 4 and the girl is probably 5. Our back patio is open and we can hear them playing outside. They have forgotten Shelton's name, so every few minutes you hear them yelling, "Hey! Dude up there! Hey!" They ask him to come out and play or tell him they need help. It's pretty funny.

Posted by BrandiK at 4/17/2005 11:57:00 AM | Permalink | Comments

We woke up this morning at 9am! Doesn't seem like a big deal, but consider the fact that my body NEVER lets me sleep past 7:15 on weekends anymore. It's a shame.

So we both made it to 9 this morning. Enjoyed that quiet morning talk, "Good morning," "How'd you sleep," "You're breath stinks," "Yeah, yours too."

Then conversation lead to what a beautiful morning it was and then we decided to get up and go to Panera. The temperature was perfect, the sun was shining, very slight breeze, cinnamon rolls, juice, coffee and a newspaper. We sat on the patio and just enjoyed the morning. I felt sixty but it was so enjoyable.

We came home and I was greeted at the car by the little boy downstairs, he's maybe 4. He handed me a freshly picked, white-top dandilion. It's sitting on my kitchen counter and reminds me of a time when all my Sunday mornings were filled with laziness.

Posted by BrandiK at 4/17/2005 11:45:00 AM | Permalink | Comments

We are slowly getting accustomed to apartment life. It's very different from the condo, believe me. It makes me feel like I'm in college again, the early years. Except now I have nicer stuff and I am fully capable of paying my bills and buying groceries that have pictures on the package.

One of the adjustments is the lack of color on the walls. I'm not allowed to paint or paper anything. So it's institutional white and by the end of this that just may be where you find me- in an institution.

Another adjustment is that the toilet doesn't flush right, the garbage disposal sounds like there is a gremlin trapped inside and the front door will blow open with the slightest whisper of wind, and that is when it's locked. I can't just call a repair guy to fix this stuff. I have to be put on a list and wait for someone to come out. They have fixed these things, but still, weird and inconvenient.

The biggest adjustment is the CONSTANT and INCESSANT bass that is pounding my brains out. The woman living below us loves, loves, the beat so much she should marry it. And she wants the whole building to love it with her. It has not stop bom-bom-bomping since Saturday. All day. All night. It just doesn't stop. Last night as we were falling asleep the bass was bom-bom-bomping away and Shelton and I had had enough. We all know what happens when Brandi has enough. This time, I was the one playing it cool. Shelton was stomping on the floor and I was all, that is not how you handle this situation. I calmly walked downstairs at 10:30 at night in my PJs and knocked on her door. She looked like a stoned deer in headlights. "Oh, is that bothering you"? And I replied, "Yes, I'm sorry, we have to get up early and GO TO OUR JAY-OH-BEES.". The bom-bom-bomping ceased and was only heard for a few minutes this evening.

Cute place though and we are very much enjoying getting back to our lifestyle. If we learned anything from the past few months, it's that you should appreciate all the alone time you have together... and to be very thankful for good friends.

Posted by BrandiK at 4/13/2005 09:50:00 PM | Permalink | Comments

I took off work Friday so that I could start moving. Got everything out of the basement and into the apartment no problems. Did it with enough time to find a wireless network in the apartment and grab some Chipotle for lunch.

Shelton, my Aunt and myself left for OKC about 6:00 Friday night. Made it to Moore by 9 and by 10:15 the UHAUL was completely loaded. My brother and his girlfriend made it in and Kyle was a rockstar. He took over in a super nice way and made it all fit nicely. The best part was that Shelton found my Cure CD I lost over a year ago! SWEET!!

Saturday morning we went to Norman to bury the statue of St. Joseph that my client bought me from the Catholic book store. We said the prayer, buried him in the dirt and now we hope that he will sell our house. (According to the box, he has helped 1000s sell their house!!). :)

After that it was Northern bound with our 3-vehicle caravan. Shelton drove his first UHAUL and it made for a good story. The alignment was all out of whack and well, the usual UHAUL wierdness.

Made it here and had the whole truck unpacked in about an hour and fifteen minutes. DAMN!! It all went smooth as silk until it was time to bring in the very last piece... the couch. Geeze louise was that a mess. That thing was not coming up the stairs. And by not I mean, we were calling people to see if they needed a free couch. It was too big for the doors and stairs and the guys decided it couldn't come over the patio. Then my uncle showed up and realized we could take the sliding doors apart. So the guys hoisted the couch up to the patio and we had ropes to hold on to it while they ran allllll the way upstairs to take it from us. My aunt took pictures of this chaos but I haven't received them yet. I'll post once I do.

For now we are completely unpacked except for the office. Lots of space. It's very similar to the condo. Happiness has been restored.

Posted by BrandiK at 4/11/2005 08:01:00 PM | Permalink | Comments

Today is moving day, yet again. I am a fruit cocktail of emotion. I almost cried last night when I said goodnight to Russ and Sherry. However, at work yesterday, I made an announcement over the intercom that I was holding my new apartment keys. We took one load over to the house last night where my first housewarming gift was waiting... a jug of Cheer laundry detergent with a red bow sat on the stairs. Thank you Shelton, you are the sweetest.

I am off work today, which I hate doing. I amazed at the amount of work that piles up if I'm out for a 2 hour meeting... let alone an entire day!! I managed to "sleep in" to 7:45 this morning. See what adult life has done to me, stripped me of my ability to sleep until 1pm and then maybe decide to get up, maybe decide to stay in bed... who really cares?!

I'm about to take my first load over. The luxury of today is that I have the time to go ahead and arrange the closet and the bathroom since all of that stuff is already here.

We leave for the promised land tonight (OKC). The dad-in-law is picking up the UHAUL and we will start loading about 9pm tonight and hopefully back on the road by noon tomorrow. You know what an anal-obsessive planner I am. If the schedule falls 2 minutes out of whack I'll probably have a nervous breakdown.

And soon enough, I will throw the last box away only to have to acquire more boxes to pack it all up again in January.

Posted by BrandiK at 4/08/2005 08:10:00 AM | Permalink | Comments

Things are going pretty well for us lately. I really don't have a single complaint. Well, maybe tiny ones like Shelton didn't let me buy those REALLY cute shoes last night. But no complaints that have any true substance.

I got a fabulous new haircut on Tuesday. I've gotten more compliments in the last 2 days than I even know how to handle. I wish I had a camera so I could show it off.

Moving day is tomorrow and I'm pretty jazzed about that. We have started packing a few things around the basement. Shelton picks up the key today and I have taken off tomorrow to start shuttling things over. My parents let us use the Durango this week so that will certainly help. And, it came with Dad's gas card, that REALLY helps! Anyone need a ride??

My title has nothing to do with this post and this post really has nothing to do with anything. I read an article yesterday that Prince Rainier of Monaco died and one line said, "He died in a hospital room overlooking a yahcht-filled harbor." May we all be so lucky.

Posted by BrandiK at 4/07/2005 08:29:00 AM | Permalink | Comments

It's official. I found some place on earth that has more closed-minded conservatives than Oklahoma does, and it is called Kansas. The people voted yesterday to have congress vote in a gay marriage ban amendment. I mean, are you effing kidding me?!?!

Way to play God and judge these people's lifestyles. Thanks, but I'll let God himself judge me at the end, not a group of wheat farmers.

Whether you agree with such a lifestyle or not, you have not one iota of space to make a judgment on it. Don't look in their bedroom windows and they won't look in yours. Because remember, what you are doing in yours grosses them out. Hmm, something to think about.

People of America, WAKE UP! It is 2005 and this is the changing face of our land. More immigrants, less english-speaking people, gays falling in love and living happy fulfilled lives and gas costs more than your mortgage. Time to accept it.

If we pass an amendment allowing the segregation of one group of people, what is going to stop us from doing it again? No one is safe. This country has spent a huge majority of its history trying to desegregate races and sexes. Let's keep moving forward.

I'm not asking for people to agree with me... I'm just asking for people to pull their heads out of their butts. Live your life, let your neighbors live theirs. It's pretty simple.

Posted by BrandiK at 4/06/2005 05:40:00 PM | Permalink | Comments

Wow, I can't believe it's been 2 weeks since I last wrote. We have been very very busy. I'm currently in Joplin preparing the princess for her ball... my sister's prom is tonight. So hard to believe that Jenna is going to prom. Not that she is not capable, just can't believe she's this age.

Tomorrow we stop by Grove to visit my dear friend Sarah and her two little boys. Then it's back to Wichita, where we will pass through the final week with Russ and Sherry. They have been so amazingly good to us these past 5 months. I honestly do not think we could have made this transition to Wichita without them. They have truly been a blessing.

On Thursday we will pick up the keys to our new home... an apartment. We are waving our little white flag to the house-selling gods. We will stay in the apartment for 9 months and hopefully at the end of that time we will have a real house.

Good news yesterday at work... I have been given a second client!!! It's a small step but it feels gigantic. I'm glad I was chosen to take on this project. Unlike my current client, I will be working this one on my own. It should be a lot of fun. I'm looking forward to the challenge and being able to work on a completely different area. See- this job is too much fun!!

The TV spots I went to KC to shoot at the end of February started airing last week. That's pretty friggin cool. A lot of buzz about the spots and huge kudos from the client. I'm starting to realize this is exactly what I'm supposed to be doing. I love it more and more everyday.

And a final note, found out yesterday that my professor from OU will also being joining our staff for 15 months. How cool is that?!?!

More news on the upcoming move.

Posted by BrandiK at 4/02/2005 12:02:00 PM | Permalink | Comments