I have not a lot going on today.
I’m at work, planning what I’m doing with the rest of my today. Dare I say go out to eat… do my nails… and watch TV?
Should I skip TV and just exercise?
Okay so none of these thoughts have anything to do with today’s doodle. Today’s doodle just showed up because I let my mind wander:
Happy Thursday everybody!
♥Lauren
I have been vacationing. Or as cool hip people say “Stay-cationing”.
And it was nice.
Got to see my family. Got a super cool tan on just my arms.
But let’s be honest. I am not Justin Timberlake and I must go back to work a lot sooner than in 7 years. The poor girl I am got more like 4 days (3 if you count one of them was a national holiday). And so I got into the office kind of keeping a low profile as I left the office last week with pretty cold feelings about the dudes I work with.
I got through to lunch by talking to Amber, getting my work done… and very seriously ignoring the other 2 like crazy.
And then I went to the bathroom, and I was engaged in small talk. With the more silent, but equally insulting person I work with. A person who before I went on my break called me “the weirdest person he’s ever met” without humor behind it and who had previously told me some pretty cruel unasked for observations on my personality. A real stand up kind of dude, if you would.
While I was talking to him about my family’s trip and a really strange day to pick at Disneyland. BECAUSE HE ASKED, I REMIND YOU! I notice another coworker giving him a look and then rolling his eyes at me. They both looked at each other and smiled. And I don’t know what that meant, but I knew it was about them being straight up not nice people.
To quote Stephanie Tanner:
Usually I try to take their insults with stride, trying to be the bigger person. But I am quite candidly done. I am not running for new Mother Teresa. After that special conversation I realized, I am not crazy about them, and I don’t find them to be respectful characters in my life. But seriously, I had only talked to them for about 3 minutes in a whole work day.
I cannot forgive their rudeness today. I mean they only have to see me for 3 days, why can’t they just be pleasant?!?!?!
Well at least this conversation left me inspired to make today’s doodle:
I hope everyone else’s day was a little less rude. Also, I have permanent marker all over my hands because I cannot handle pens…
Now I’m going to draw sections of buildings and be happy.
♥Lauren
I like to make people really excited about not really exciting things.
I consider it a talent.
Eating and growing vegetables, going to the optometrist, buying hairspray at pharmacy… I can make these things/events seem like the best thing that could ever happen to you. I mean have you been to a CVS… they have everything including hyper ugly statuary! And $.99 plates shaped like dog heads!
So let’s get back to the making people excited part of this story. My mom has been having a hard time with work lately (seriously does anyone like where they work right now?) And I decided in my own goofy gander way to cheer her up.
She doesn’t need any thing… because she makes the little mermaid look like a minimalist. I mean I have asked her to borrow a black sweater a few weeks ago and she has told me I have 8 options, not including the sparkly ones.
So I was like… what can I do to make her smile?
She doesn’t really seem like she wants to go out to a restaurant after she gets home. And seriously I am not into hearing critiques on my cooking (totally different story).
And then I was like… hmmm a doodle sounds great!
And then I remembered how much she loves sea otters. And I remembered how much I like puns. So I made her this:
She bought a frame to hang it up in her house. And yes the little otters are obviously me and my sister. Really great depictions too.
♥Lauren
And I’m big girl excited to take the next few days off and be a tourist in my own town. Stay-cation here we come!
Today’s story is just about how I don’t get things.
I was raised Roman Catholic. I was big time into all doing the communion stuff when I was growing up. I have a rosary by my bed given to me by my grandmother. I love me some gilded paintings of Jesus. I even for like 4 months at 16 thought about being a nun…. Which I later discovered I would have really sucked at (seriously, me not accessorizing to quote the great Cher Horowitz… “As if”). Nor could I really be like an Indiana Jones of religious relic’s (apparently searching isn’t as exciting as Harrison Ford makes it). And last religious confession. There is some Saint Francis statue in my backyard that I am terrified to move because he’s broken… and I don’t know what to do with him, especially since he’s broken. So he can sit there forever according to my logic until he once again becomes a part of the Earth.
Now that I have relinquished this information about me, I would like to say that in no way am I closed off or judgmental about anyone’s beliefs (but I think this blog makes that evident). And one more thing every religion is cool… and no one should use any of their beliefs to make them think they are better than anyone else, or bring others down… because no religion except for Meanology should be into that.
But, back to my story of not really understanding things. Being raised Catholic I have never really understood “Bible Study”. When I was a kid in communion classes, Bible Study was really like studying the Bible. And for that matter I pretty much had my fill of religious learning after my last religion class in High School. It according to me and my friends, was obviously a punishment for all of our sins. And consisted of 5 days a week of an elderly man talking about whatever he felt like. 2 days were dedicated solely to his love of coca-cola products. Other days about the song “Waltzing with Bears”, because the local hillside was on fire. I actually considered it a blessing when our class was interrupted by a fire imposed break. And then when we resumed he would tell us about how he felt about appropriate theater applause, candied apples, and of course how he felt about WWII. After that I never wanted to be an organized studier of anything, especially if I could end up with a lecturer like that.
Well anyways flash forward a few years and here I am. I am constantly hearing that people and my coworkers are going to Bible study. Having a bible study. Attending a bible study weekend. Going to a bible study conference. Leading a Bible Study. Taking a Bible Study to a hot date on a Saturday night.
And here I am thinking that all they do in their spare time is read the Bible. I mean they’ve been reading it for years, they must spend their time quoting thing like about, peace and doves, and puling camels through the eye of a needle. But they never quote the Bible at work!?! Which is cool since this is an architecture practice and not a Bible Study group. And that is how I carried on with my days.
Until Mindy Kaling taught me a little bit about Christianity. In an episode of the Mindy Project she had a Bible Study. And I finally felt like I had an in… my questions about this are all going to be answered. And I get to see Chris Messina in a speedo.
Oh boy, I pretty much forgot about the Bible Study thing for a moment there. So Mindy’s Bible study. She had wine, and a banner, a nativity, and there was food, and weird paintings of Jesus (both black and white Jesus) and she was playing Amy Grant for mood music. It was actually kind of fun looking:
Then I told my coworkers about this and they told me that Mindy was lying. That isn’t what a Bible study was. And where I was a little concerned that Mindy was not telling me the truth … I still got to see Chris Messina in speedos. (Bright side of life… right?) Then I was told in their Bible Study they don’t even study the Bible… they just like meet as a group and discuss life, or how to be successful in relationships, and stuff.
And I was like…. WHAT?!??? No multi-racial Jesus pictures? No wine? No Amy Grant?
And well even though the whole meeting and discussing life thing is super great….I think the title is misleading, it should be called something else. Like religious people of liked mind’s. But I think that may sound scarier than it actually is. Anyways, I totally know what “Bible Study” is now. Now to go uncover other truths about things!
♥Lauren
Okay I’m going to admit something. There is nothing more that I like than celebrating things that just exude happiness. And one of those things is Birthdays! No matter how old you are, it’s just a really good time to be appreciated by your loved ones. And I really like that I get a day to make my friends feel as special as they really are to me.
I am so sorry that this post is late. But, I finally got this drawing colored and I still want to make this post super special.
Nancy Tang is one of the coolest people that has ever been in my life. There is something really quite magical about her ability to try everything (and be quite good at it.) There is no sport, or game, or challenge that she hasn’t faced without giving her all. She also has this incredible energy around her that makes you feel like you can accomplish anything, if she believes you can. And I have benefited from that several times. Not limited to the most stressful game of charades that we played this weekend. A pep talk from Tang could get you to run for President… and depending on a few swing states… you could most possibly win.
The best thing about Nancy is that she is the kind of person who you can become inseparable with, and can talk about anything with… and at different times in our 7 year friendship we both definitely have. It’s like having your own personal cast of Golden Girls, but only like 1 other person.
Another lovely thing about being with Nancy is… there is always dessert. Whether it’s deliciously crafted cake… or even home made cupcakes… there is always a sweet time when you are with her. And this leads into the doodle…
Happy Birthday Nancy… have the best 31st year that you can possibly have!
Also this year we will master the red velvet cupcake! And we will go to at least 2 super fun concerts. I totally promise.
♥Lauren
We all have our protocol quirks in my office.
-Proper phone etiquette is a biggie. (I always tell people to have a nice day when I say my professional tidings.)
-Being more streamlined. (this is all the Professional.)
-Getting our deadlines done. (I think most people want this.)
-Not having a break-room full of ants (sane people.)
-Refilling the water for the Keurig (People who don’t want the world to end. My boss wants coffee.)
-Getting prints at a good quality (the printer is my nemesis )
-Using the tri-pod to take project photos (Ahem, Professional)
-Not having enough bullet points (it seems like enough, now :) )
And well now I know one of my new desk mates big professional gripes… incorrectly folding invoices:
So remember when you send us stuff, and you want Amber to not be mad… tri-fold it like you mean it.
Does anybody else have a serious office procedural quirk? Or just how you think things should be done? Are we just crazy in this office?
The world may never know.
♥Lauren
This doodle is more like a fan shout out than a personal thing.
Everyone who watches TV knows the Office is ending after 9 season’s of being on the air. And well I think I may have mentioned it before on this site I’m a fan of the crazy antics of Dunder-Mifflin all the characters are so zany yet grounded that we can relate and feel like we know them.
Personally, I work with a girl like Kelly,
a guy like Ryan,
an Andy/Dwight,
and even a Pete.
I have always related to early season’s Pam and well now that Pam is grown up and has it together, I can relate more to Erin. I have always loved to draw, and I’m a little bit on the kooky side, and I am awful at Scrabble. And I love to assist in pranking our Andy/Dwight as much as humanly possible, and he CANNOT take a joke.
So in this Office nostalgic post… I share with the lovely internet, a Pam Beesly drawing that I made very ironically, while at work:
Also I wonder who could guess which coworkers are which :)
♥Lauren
I think Jimmy is going to be mad at me for posting this.
But I have known him for nearly 10 years and sometimes the things he tells me still makes me burst out with laughter. (But hey, I laugh a lot)
We all have really highly specific things that make us smile. For example: Phil Collin’s to me is like a musical angel who makes everything alright when I hear his voice, and Matt&Kim can save me from 99.2% of despair.
We are not all the same though. This weekend Jimmy shared this musical nugget of joy with me:
And just in case you are wondering what the song that is #1 on the charts in the nation of solely Jimmy:
Somewhere at this very moment… he has this queued up to watch on YouTube.
♥Lauren
P to the S that crisp white doodle paper that all the kids are talking about can be seen, purchased and hugged right here… emnote notebooks!
I have spent too much time away from my blog.
And I have suffered consequences.
I am stressed, my hair is turning white. I am drinking 2 sodas a week. And umm.. I can’t think of a third thing…. but I’m sure that it’s happening… and that it is on the equivalent of 2 sodas bad.
I guess I have been too busy. But that doesn’t really excuse me, because a lot of my joy is sharing silliness with people. In a strange was it is what calms me. And right now I totally need this before I start work-related-crying. (I have been redoing the same project every other hour for the last 15 work hours… and none of the printers are working and… my head is about to explode.)
So I took a moment during my lunch break to color a few things and this is one of them.
Because I am such an odd bird, I don’t really think this drawing needs much context… because well this kind of stuff happens to me… a lot:
♥Lauren
Viciously Sweet 