Natala la la la ... ... ...

Sunday, April 23, 2006

home for 18 days! 

It is so good to be home - esp. with all this sunshine! The above picture is from one of the nights out in DC, at the beginning of the trip (ok so not the best picture of JB...). I still need to upload pics from this weekend. I'm very happy to be homeand I intend to blog about it all... dinner with old friends in DC, easter brunch at the Smith's, the WMW conference, an amazing baseball game at Fenway, catching up with friends in Boston and then the weekend in Chicago with my best friend. awww. i miss everyone already!

but for now, sleep calls.

Friday, April 14, 2006

through rain and snow... 

Did you know you can have your mail held at the post office? Yep, they just stop delivering it for you for a certain period of time. Last year I created an account on USPS.com in order to buy some stamps...and lately i've been travelling a ton...and the mail just piles up. It's horrible. Well, today I finally went to check and see if I could have my mail held via an online form... And i can! And you can do it anytime online and it can start as early as tomorrow! It was sooo easy - login, select "hold mail" fill out the *start* and *end* dates and voila! your mail is held and delivered when you want. This may become my new favorite free service.

update: adding the USPS unofficial moto:
Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds.

Wednesday, April 12, 2006

mindcamp 

well, it's official. i've decided to go to mindcamp 2.0.

What is it? I'm not quite sure, but after a couple of people suggested it, and I read this description, “It’s an overnight party-time fun-house for smarty-pants types.” How could i resist?

If you are planning to go, lmk.

Tuesday, April 11, 2006

dining room v3 

Thanks to my mum's visit, I finally bought a dining room table. I liked the japanese style floor seating i've had for the last year...but i really just needed a table to do projects on and, well, to eat with guests ... after much seeking and long debates over the correct size (i wanted 6 feet, one long smooth topped trestle table) and shape (round or square or rectangle) we finally decided to just buy a dang table. My biggest concern was getting a table that was too big and wouldn't fit into a smaller house should I ever have to downsize (aka move back to CA). We went to the antique store (this store is amazing -- 3 floors of wonderful stuff, hundreds of chairs, tables, buffets, thing-a-ma-bobbers) and tested out 5 tables and finally settled on a classic 3 foot square table with two 1 foot leaves (so 5 x 3) oak table. It has jacobian swirly legs that match the table from JB's mom. I still feel that it is a little bit smaller then i wanted, but i am really loving the practicality of it. What I really love are the chairs that we got to go with the table. They are "coordinated" (aka not matching) chairs in an art deco-ish style. Also oak, with these little circles on the top -- i love them. Plust they are sooo comfy.

Three phases of my dining room:
Empty:


v2:


v3:

(yes, i'll update with a picture that includes the arch.)

Saturday, April 08, 2006

one shining moment - 2006 

Here's the link to the 2006 video on You Tube:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=WAtX7PuNjpg

Also - just want to give a shout out to George Mason. They were amazing during the tourney and deserve lots of props.

Photo: CBS Sportsline

Tuesday, April 04, 2006

numbers 

I like numbers...palindromes, you name it. In the morning I typically set my alarm to 6:33 am or 7:07 AM. This wednesday, at two minutes and three seconds after 1:00 in the morning it will be:

01:02:03 04/05/06

how cool is that? Thanks to Feld and 2-Speed for the tip.

Monday, April 03, 2006

one shining moment 

The ball is tipped
and there you are
you're running for your life
you're a shooting star ....

Tonight was the last night of the tourney (the Gators won btw)...and I just watched my favorite sporting tradition -- The One Shining Moment Video Montage at the end of the Tourney. I swear it brings tears to my eyes.

Here's a link to the 2005 Montage on You Tube -- check it out:


Lyrics can be found here.


Of some note, I started blogging just over three years ago, right after Google acquired Blogger, when I was convinced by Evan and the Jason's that blogging was where it was at...My first post was about my beloved Wildcats and the NCAA tournament: http://natala.blogspot.com/2003/03/wildcats-wildcats-wildcats.html

Sunday, April 02, 2006

family wisdom 

My uncle eric has been sending me little ericisms...spots of wisdom that are both slightly cheesy and super helpful. Yesterday he told me "If you aren't living on the edge, then you are taking up too much space!" and today he sent me this list from General Colin Powell:

13 Rules:

1. It ain't as bad as you think. It will look better in the morning.
2. Get mad, then get over it.
3. Avoid having your ego so close to your position that when your position falls, your ego goes with it.
4. It can be done!
5. Be careful what you choose. You may get it.
6. Don't let adverse facts stand in the way of a good decision.
7. You can't make someone else's choices. You shouldn't let someone
else make yours.
8. Check small things.
9. Share credit.
10. Remain calm. Be kind.
11. Have a vision. Be demanding.
12. Don't take counsel of your fears or naysayers.
13. Perpetual optimism is a force multiplier.