Classy Pony Afternoons

| Viciously Sweet

I’m working on a really important doodle right now, and *hint hint* it’s about my wonderful friend Isabel. While it is not done right now I feel sad neglecting the doodle-hood of the internet… So I drew a pony. A pony that wants to be shared with the world.

And in related news Isabel is trying to lure me into leaving the San Gabriel Valley for the lush oceany wonderland of San Diego. And it does sound promising. My Brother and Sister-in-law are luring me with Seattle. For some reason I’m eternally lured to Chicago. And somehow Christine and I ended up discussing Boston. Does anybody else have any ideas of where I should relocate? Maybe France? Australia? The Moon…. of Jupiter?

All I know is that I can’t stay where I am anymore. I just know I won’t make it. I don’t know whether to put a song in this place to describe how I feel about where I am at work and in life or a picture. But since my picture idea can have Jim from “the Office” I’m going to go with picture. And if you watch “the Office” even the context of this picture is right:

I need advice to figure out what I really want, I guess. Or a transfer to Stamford.

♥Lauren

I’m no Superman

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Today I’m out in the world away from the old computer, and even more so away from the office. It’s not like I don’t like work. I just needed some time to be away, recharge. I foresee some trying times ahead, and well I might as well have fun before I have to face those problems like I’m a Spartan in the  Peloponnesian War.

I’m sorry to burden the good people of the internet with my silliness… But here it is: I see all the imaginary train tracks of my problems are pointed towards each other and are poised to crash at any minute. Simply because I trusted the wrong person for too many years, never thinking someone would have bad intentions towards a-this-gal. And all I know is that I have to soldier on through this bad time, and maybe the trains/problems won’t crash at all, maybe the train full of problems will make it through in the nick of time missing the collision with my everyday good time train. And somewhere some evil villain will curse the sky.

I just know as I was told there is not going to be a knight on a white pony to save me from it… I mean seriously, how would a guy in metal and a pony be helpful in that situation… I’ll just be optimistic that Superman will swoop in and save the day, he always saves people at the last moment.

I hope Lois doesn’t get all jealous. Because I will supply him with many doodles as payments.

Maybe I need to listen to my sister in law, maybe I need a more permanent change of scenery… but for now… vacation.

♥Lauren

Excuse me Miss… your confidence is showing.

| Viciously Sweet

This week I’ve been living in the future. True story. And it’s not like the Jestson’s future. I can see the good things that are heading my way. I mean I just got paid for making doodles for people. I have a client based on something I see as the most fun side project ever!

And when I met up with my good pal Christine this week she told me that I was looking way more confident than usual. And honestly, I think I am. I am not like on a Charlie Sheen “winning” high or anything. I just know that my optimism is going to get me somewhere really great. And in the middle of this icky tunnel I’m in, I see out the other end and that all the little things I can do well are really going to help me in the future, especially when I emerge from the other side. And most importantly all these things/people trying to bring me down are just temporary. In fact I have how I feel about it lusciously illustrated below:

Also I think this is the best time of anytime to share that I’m going to make this doodling thing into a side business made with heart. I want to make shirts, and bags, table cloths, pillows, and birthday party hats. I want to make custom doodles for people. I want to share my joy with as many people as possible. And I’m going to do it. Maybe you’ll pick up a bag or hat or just keep reading and smiling… stay around and watch my dream come true.

♥Lauren

The Pen to my Paper

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Sometimes you just know people who make your everyday so much better just for knowing them. I know this may not be true for everyone*… but it is for me! Christine is one of those people, she is like the biggest champion of my endeavors and the best advice giver of all times… basically the wind beneath my wings you know.

She is in a word….. “fanta-stic”

She is so fantastic that pretty much completes me like we exist in that Tom Cruise movie… Last night for example, while meeting up for our Lady Night I showed up with a hunger in my tummy and only a stack of paper. She showed up with presents for me, and only pens.

Then we combined our weapons like we were a part of Voltron and partied for the rest of the evening.

And also because I watch too many movies… telling me she had a plethora of pens in a parking lot reminded me of this:

* My cool pen story footnote: Someone in particular recently told me they have no one in their life that they feel lucky for knowing. Not one person… in their entire time on this planet. I mean I feel really lucky for (and totally am enamored of) the people who just read this blog and leave me a comment every once in a while. I think almost everyone is worth knowing, and so many people are worth appreciating. But this person’s sad story didn’t bring me down, I stopped listening to this person seriously when they told me they think I’m immature because I am so cheery all the time. They can go suck it in Not-Nice-Ville population: 2. The other person in not niceville is described here, they are perfect to spend an eternity together in Not-Nice-Ville…

♫Lauren

The Secret Professional

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So a few people have been asking… what is going on with the professional? Why are there no posts any more guiding me to the professional promise land? This has a complicated answer… as earlier this year the professional we knew did a King Edward VII , and abdicated his professional throne. The Kingdom of Professionalism was then thrown into anarchy and professional turmoil,  after the great battle and the “Treaty of Dab and Lauren” an interesting event transpired…

I think there is a new professional in town… and her name is my name too.

And I don’t know when it happened. I feel like some sort of were-professional…

In the last week:

♥ I have been carrying business cards in my purse

♥ I was caught updating my contact list

♥ I’ve worked late 2 nights in a row

♥ I’ve had a business meeting after work hours

♥ I used the term “collated” more than once in the last 8 hours

♥ I’ve been making lists with bullet points! (Although, the bullets are love hearts ♥)

Anyways the polls are in and it looks like I’m the new professional in town:

And on a “I work in a weird place” side note yesterday Amber and I took a quiz about who we are in the office and this was my answer:

And I was not surprised. That description is my 8-5, every Monday-Friday. The only difference is I have no Jim to giggle with all day… Okay, I’m going to go CC: people on some work like things ;)

♥Lauren

Yardy Harg! It’s Leif Erikson Day!

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Now here’s a widely known fact… I love strange holidays. I like them obscure and delicious (ahem, taco day). And today is my favorite holiday of them all… Leif Erikson Day! And where the silly government likes to celebrate Columbus Day around these parts of the United States (and gets the day off for this). I have learned enough history from my college years, and from Spongebob Squarepants to know that Leif Ericson was the true discoverer of the Americas in which I live. My good friend Leif was like the Dark Knight of America discoverers finding America in the year 1,000 calling it “Newfoundland” (not a good namer was he) and he was like the discoverer we deserved, just not the one we need right now… hence we celebrate Columbus Day.

Also, true story… I have a personal vendetta against Christopher Columbus because I really hated having to color him in a stupid boat every year for 7 years in a row, just because Fall happened. And not one teacher would let me cover him in glitter… NOT ONE! Also don’t get me started on those cornucopias…

And a bonus over the Spanish discoverers to all of you Spanish supporters*, Vikings have better accessories, grog and far less smallpox.

Now that I have you 98.4% viking approved:

 

But can anyone explain why his name is Leif Ericson, but his day is “Leif Erikson Day”? Is that Columbus’ final joke? Dude, that guy is totally evil!

♥Lauren

*I bet I was related to some of his traveling buddies as my family comes from that part of the world…  And everyday I dress like a flamenco dancer…but, eh go VIKINGS!

Sentimentally Me

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Do you ever think about what’s important? Like what means the most to you in the whole big universe? Would they be important to another person from the other side of the world?

Mine are nearly 100% sentimental, I’m a sentimental kind of gal. I always think, “things” shouldn’t be your in your lists of favorites. But as much as I enjoy the sun popping back up after a few grey days and seeing kids play with bubbles, or watching old chunky dogs giggle down a sidewalk… I still can’t help some of my favorite things being tangible objects.

A few examples, my navy sweater from my high school… I still wear it, and every time I wear it I feel sentimentally fantastic (also, a little bit like a nun from the 1950s.) My favorite toy from my childhood, is a stuffed animal of Littlefoot from the “Land Before Time” and he resides on my sleek modern desk chair… and I smile every time I use it and see him sitting there. Also, I smile because I imagine Herman Miller does not design their fancy chairs to shelter my childhood memories…

I still have loads of letters written from my high school friends and even a few spectacular ones from middle school… full of stories about the cutest boys we went to school with, teachers who were a little to attentive to our teenage existences, and one of the funnest word games you could ever fathom.

And if I were to come home and find them gone, I would be beyond devastated like on par with people stealing my car and my computer, or stealing the crown jewels from the Queen. I’m that serious about my silly junk, okay. But the thing about these objects (and unlike the crown jewels) is that and when someone else would have them in their possession, they would have none of the feeling. They would see a thick navy sweater from a Catholic girls school, a dinosaur toy with a really worn neck, and a pile of useless paper.

Not that I’m equating my worth to a sweater, dinosaur and pile of paper… but going through my belongings I understand that most people outside of my brain just wouldn’t understand why a notebook of drawings is more important than a pair of fancy earrings…

And that brings me to this… my first attempt of making wordy art. The quote is from “Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium” and it is Mr. Magorium explaining his records to his new straight lace accountant. Also I think it sums up 82% of the paper discovered in my house… as everything has a doodle on it:

 

Have a nice weekend, and enjoy something really, really simple… and don’t be embarrassed about it. I’ll be working on a few projects and pretending to be fancy, personally.

♥Lauren

My Cupcake Caper

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I realized my joy is getting braggy. And I’m not going to unpack the brag bags… because that is annoying. And my Inner Pam Beesly told me “Take it down a notch, the world knows about your joy.”

So I took a cue at not to make myself a real life Mary Sue, and to look at my sketchbook and pull a drawing from my archives that I already should have shared. (Hehe, I have archives!) A few months ago I was not feeling the joy, and much like the friendship of Turk and J.D. from “Scrubs” my Lady Turk counterpart (Nancy) told me to drag my booty to her house to experience the “WORLD’S GIRLIEST WEEKEND”. And we did, we watched teen movies until we passed out, we ate fancy hamburgers, we made crafts, we packed goodie bags for children, we went as lady dates to a wedding…

And

then

we

tried

to

make…

red velvet cupcakes…

from scratch.

Being our first go of making red velvet cupcakes from scratch we pulled out the recipes, and not wanting to risk making a horrible huge batch Nancy decided to cut the recipe… in 4s. And most impressively she had all the math all figured out, but that wasn’t the difficult part. The most difficult thing  was attempting to mix .375 teaspoons of baking soda with a 1/2 an egg. But we were in it. We were committed. Everything was going on the good side of moderately strange until I had to add the red dye to the mixer…and like most things that were happening to me at that time, the mixer decided to stage a mutiny, and it exploded in my face, and hands and all actually over my person.

My face was red… with more than embarrassment.

However the cupcakes were then baked and finished… and were fabulous except for 2 small flaws…

1. They were burgundy and pink, like a weird steak.

2. They were crunchy on the top.

We covered that stuff up with frosting like crazy! So we may not be opening that cupcake shop like the “2 Broke Girls” afterall:

♥ Lauren