Wednesday, April 30, 2003 05:47 a.m.
My stock keeps tanking! It is a sick feeling. More then half my stock is totally worthless at this point!
I have been sucked into the realm of American Idol. I am ashamed. I sit glued to my television week after week. Watching them sing, talking to myself after each act trying to determine who will be voted off the next night. The following night, if the person I guessed doesn't get voted off I get upset, the show is rigged! Yet, never once did I get off my lazy ass and call to vote. I don't have that dedication, I am a fraud. I watch, bitch and don't vote. I am not worthy to decide who the next pop idol is. Speaking of which. Why do we need another pop idol? Don't we have enought Britney's, Christina's and Justin's in the world? Oh, the humanity! Why vote for another pop idol, they will all have their 15-minutes in the end anyway. They do their "Idols Tour" (how funny)!. I read recently that some of the castoffs from last season along with Vanessa (the redhead) from this season are doing some mall tour right now. I think this is funny. They are totally ripping off Tiffany's (remember her?) path to stardom! Also, the pop-stars to be, collect a weekly 00 check for just being on the show doing what they are SUPPOSE to do. I think if they didn't get paid they would still, live at the mansion, sing on TV and be adored by millions of fans. Listen up FOX save the money, they'll do it for free. AAAHHHH....I am sucked in. The Idols on Fox have sucked me in. I cannot think straigh, hence this entry! Bye!
Saturday, April 26, 2003 06:54 a.m.
This pita has become my own personal venting groung! Not the original intention but I think very theraputic. My job is making me feel old and tired. (Oh the self pity.) I have a severe lack on energy and no motivation. I think it may be a result of the office environment. My co-workers are great, my boss(es) are great, the work itself is more then tolerable. I'm moderately bored. I'm lacking the stimuli necessary to keep me interested. I feel like I can't look for another job because I don't think I will find one that is "cushy" like this one, offers the same benefits with the same or more pay. I don't think it exists.
The season finale of Fastlane was last night. *SOB* I love Fastlane. I admit right here, right now. Yeah, its a little cheezy but so what! This TV show shows of LA in all it's smog-filled glory. I'm convinced that this should be used at the visitors bureau to increase tourism in LA. What would be even more pristine if you are recruited as a toursit via an episode of Fastlane, you should receive 1-time only VIP pass to Sky Bar or White Lotus.
This is going no where today im done.
Sunday, April 20, 2003 08:49 a.m.
Easter Schmester! Really it's just another day, but with nothing to do since everything is closed! You would think retail would remain open at least a half-day. Family events don't normally take place until mid afternoon-so what are hungry consumers suppose to do in the meantime?
I have no Easter plans. T's family is Jewish so its just another day for them. I have no relatives here to do anything with. So by process of elimination I’ll be at home. Actually, it's starting to look like a nice day so I guess I will do some outdoor household things. I've neglected this since I moved it so maybe this is a sign to get off my ass and take care of business!
Mom will be out here in a few weeks. I have been preparing for her arrival by resting a lot and breaking in all my tennies. Mom likes to shop in the Fashion District. It is tiring, hot and frustrating. You see, I like to shop, I really like to shop but it is really nothing compared to my mom's shopping ability. She totally and completely wears me out! I will be prepared this time, I will have my cell phone (in case of emergency), extra water bottles and a push cart so we don't have to carry uber shopping bags.
The best thing about Mom coming is that I will be on vacation. I will have 10 consecutive days of nothing to do but to chill. I look forward to eating out, shopping and doing some touristy things I would never normally do in El Lay. We have Mother's Day reservations at the Four Seasons in Beverly Hills. This is actually kinda funny. The only reason why we are going here is because I told mom about the abundance of celebrities we rubbed shoulders with when we had brunch there for my b-day. Mom has yet to lay eyes on any celebrity here, so this will be her chance. I told here, if she makes I scene I would leave her there. Although she is adamant that a scene will not be made, I have no confidence in her decision. The story will unfold on May 11.
I had to witness my greatest pet peeve at work on Friday. VISIBLE PANTY LINES! (VPL) Gross! This bugs me so much! I cannot comprehend how a woman can leave her home with visible panty lines. Worse then the normal VPL is the thong (VPL)=TACKY! A woman in my building had on some skintight beige (who wears beige pants) pants on and a cropped tee-as she walked away from me I could make out every seam of her thong. I simply wanted to gag. I was blinded in that moment and just wanted to go home. A VPL police swat team needs to be enforced at my lovely Internet company. Women should not be able to enter the premises if there is evidence of VPL and its evil sibling thong VPL!
Sunday, April 13, 2003 04:51 p.m.
I so badly need a vacation. I am counting the days. I plan on a taking a week and a half off next month which will be well deserved!
I went to a A.R. birthday dinner last night. It was really nice but I didn't think we would have to wait a 1-hr +/- for a table at the Macaroni Grill. By the time we sat down I was just starting my third Jack and Coke. mmmmm....mmmmm...
We have two pairs of friends getting married next month. One pair leaves in O.C. and we hardly get to see and the other pair live on the East Coast. Other then them we don't have much "couple" friends, they are a all single. I don't mind that but sometimes I wish we had "couple" friends too. We had a pair of couple friends but that disintegrated when they overstayed their welcome when they moved to California. Now we don't speak to them. We are all still traumatized.
Wednesday, April 9, 2003 05:46 a.m.
I want to retire! Independantly wealthy would be idea, but I don't forsee that happening anytime soon. So, retirement will be my next option. I know most people would say "I want to win the lottery," but I know the chances of that happening is slim to none, so I won't even bother. What brought this on was my recent excursion to Barneys New York. It was a Monday and T and I hit the restaurant, we figured we'd go up there, check out the restrooms (I have a "thing" with having to check out the restrooms in places)and check out the restaurant for our next breakfast outing. Anyway the place was packed! I could not believe it. I couldn't tell if people were just hanging out or actually working. Whatever, the case I want that life! Everyone was dressed to the nines and looked like the just stepped out of a Folgers commercial. Jealous!
Wednesday, April 2, 2003 07:11 p.m.
I try to be a good friend. Staying in touch by any means, e-mail, phone, "old fashioned" letters. I love communication by any means. Although, I think I am always the one calling, writing etc....I'm being a pissy winer.
Calling customer service sucks! You are on your knees to these people. They suck. Reps can be uncooperative, the want to see us squeal and writhe in pain. You now they can solve your problem yet the torture us in this sick, wrong way. I've resorted to the old realiable, "I want to speak to your manager now!" In my line of work I occassionally get screamed at from my customers and get called every rotten name in the book. Because of this, when I've had a rough day of name calling I find joy in making my customer service calls and screaming and yelling at the rep. Somehow, I feel like a weight has been lifted. The gray skies have cleared, hallelujiah (said in a very elated, sing-song kind of way.) This is a terrible habit! But (and I stress the "but") I feel better and stress free. To bad people, when you accepted your job you knew this was going to happen and it's payback for all those time when the Reps were pure bitches to me!
Tuesday, April 1, 2003 05:11 p.m.
Work sucked! I just wanted to go home.
Sometimes sitting at home doing nothing is the best thing in the world. Got my special InStyle "Makeover" issue, Yeah!
I am bored. It's one of those days where you sit and reasses your life and wonder what other options there are to stir things up a bit.
This is all self-pity. I'm an only child, 'nuff said.
Saturday, March 29, 2003 07:36 p.m.
I was so excited about going horseback riding today. We went to the Sunset Ranch Hollywood stables. How Hollywood is that? We got there and had to park at the bottom of a small hill below the stables. As we were walking up to the stables we noticed that they were filming a tv/movie/commercial spot today. Yeah, whatever about that. Keep in mind this was a small hill at a slight slope and 10-15 steps up my ass was so sore. I felt more "burn" walking up this hill then actuall going to the gym and working out. Okay, we hopped on our horse and off we went, on our one hour up through the Hollywood Hills near the Hollywood sign. The view was spectacular! A.R. amd T had normal, nice horses that could actually keep up the pace. Not me, oh that would be to simple, you see, I must have had the grandma horse. It was slow and dumb. I was so far behind it was so sad and lonely. No matter how hard I kicked the horse it wouldn't go faster. Sometimes it actually came to a complete stop which put me even further behind. As much as I want to say I had fun it is hard to escape the fact that I went on a one hour ride practically alone with nobody to talk to. If I had an earpiece for my cell phone I would have talked on the phone the entire time. How sad.
Tuesday, March 25, 2003 03:40 p.m.
I have a huge spot in my heart for Target. You gotta love Target. When I lived in Chicago there was a huge Target Greatland in the 'burbs. Don't get me wrong, I realize there are other Greatlands around, as a matter of fact, there is one not 10 minutes away from me. Anyway, this Target was a dream. It was two maybe two and a half times the size of your average Target but what made this one special was that it was a "one-stop-shop" kinda place. Not only could you do the normal mindless wandering around the store but there was a grocery store that you could utilize to legitamize the outing. I hear there may be one of these Target Greatland's in San Fran but I have yet to confirm it with my own eyes.
It is so easy to get sucked into Target. I walk through those red-trimmed doors and I am immediately hypnotized. Those flourescent lights beaming down on me, lighting up that main walk way that so gingerly snakes you around the store! One cannot escape, we are bound to the pathway, weaving our way up and down the each aisle. Slowly absorbing around surroundings. The end caps of each aisle are like the toys in a Cracker Jack box, what will be on clearance today? I love the seasonal aisles. Right now, it is all pastel knik knacks, chickens and bunnies. How can you not smile. Most of the time I don't need to buy anything. Sometimes I leave the store shocked that I was consumed for 2 or more hours, where does the time go in Target?
I sometimes think of that movie Career Opportunities, with Jennifer Connely and Frank Whaley, and wish I, too, could get locked in a Target overnite. Ahhh.....
Gotta Love It!
Sunday, March 23, 2003 11:17
One of my new faveorite television shows is The It Factor Los Angeles. This show is definelty worth struggling. It's a reality show that takes place in LA. The camera follows around a handful of would be actors and we all get to watch their struggles and accomplishments. Just watch it! You'll get hooked. There's a marathon on Bravo today so I am hooked.
My neighbors suck! I hate living next to this dumb old man and his family. I heard, from the good neighbors, that he has rehabbed his house 3 times. His grown kids (they're my age) live with him. Instead of expanding your damn house kick there asses out. Nope, he does construction on his house, his kids drive expensivce cars and don't pay any rent. Whatever, he's a retard!
Enough, i'm lazy and am slowly getting sucked in to The It Factor.
Friday, March 21, 2003 06:29 a.m.
Hmmmm....Do what you wish with door number one and door number two.
Friday, March 21, 2003 05:52 a.m.
The media coverage of the "War on Iraq" is frieghtening. I am having a hard time determining if it is true frieght or frieght that has been forced upon me. The media have been using words like "terror attack" and "decapitation attack." Pharases such as this instill fear in the general public. People are protesting and rioting across the nation it is truly amazing. This definetly was not something I felt I would witness. My personal feeling is disgust,indifference, fear, anger, confusion, panic, divided, rage. My hands are tied together because I do not know what I can and should do.
Individual concerns and feelings are so divided. I hear go in there and kill them all! I don't get it. I don't know how I feel. Was this the right thing to do? Why didn't we do this sooner? Are we animals? Would this still have happened if He wasn't president?
I understand why we are at war, I understand it is for the greater good, I understand They are protecting against future terrorist attack on America.....ok...but.....
Amongst all this confusion and indifference there is a severe right-wing side to my view on this war. I refuse to speak this view, I do not want to offend anyone. I feel as though we had the opportunity to "obliterate" our target and we missed. My view is unethical, undiplomatic, yadda, yadda, yadda.
I cannot write about this without getting upset and scared. I am child-like during this war.
Monday, March 17, 2003 04:44 p.m.
What exactly is the lure of an "Open House?" I see one, examine the exterior, then decide if the house is worthy enough for me to get out of my car and check it out. The best open houses are those when the current homeowners aren't moved out and the house is still filled with their crap. Yesterday I went to a few open houses. With the exception of one home, the houses were UGLY!!!! And the worst part is was that they were priced over one million dollars. The current homeowners had zero taste! I have a theory about money. There are people who have always had money in their life and their taste usually run on the more traditional, conservative side. This isn't a bad thing, these people's taste are just, lets just say "safe." Next there are the people who have worked hard and gradually saved up their money and make purchases as investments. They are a little daring and have an eye on design. These homes are typically sleek and orderly. The last group is those people who have had what I like to call a "sudden run in" with money. These are the worst kind of people. The have no taste at all and are normally the type of people that will by a life-size ceramic Dalmatian. These are also the people that own all the home furnishings with that cheesy gold edging and euro trash decor. Ok, this third group, well that's how the homes were decorated. It was truly disgusting. I was lucky enough to stumble upon these homeowners wedding pictures. I stood there staring at their picture wondering what exactly possessed these people to buy this stuff. I cannot convey in words what I had to experience in these homes.
Last night I went out for dinner and drinks with my friend A.R. We had dinner at The Standard in Hollywood. I had my most favorite soup, butternut squash soup, it was simply irresistible. After dinner we headed up to Yamashiro for drinks. I had an amazing martini called a Shogun Soju. The glass was rimmed in red sugar crystals, there were pieces of orange pulp, raspberries, and blueberries floating in the glass, and the liquid was the most brilliant red color. The view from Yamashiro is amazing. It is perched up in the Hollywood Hills overlooking the entire city.
Monday has been a day of rest and I have so much to do at home but I am just too lazy to do it.
Friday, March 14, 2003 04:46 p.m.
I compulsively obsess overthings. One day/week/month it's my hair then the next day/week/month it's somehting else. There are times that I obsess over multiple things at once. The newest obsession is my kitchen. It needs a mini-renovation. I say mini because I don't have the dough for a full blown overhaul. I can deal with the space I have but it tis completely inefficient. I've decided that I need to paint the cabinets. I belive this can be accomplished in a weekend. The old residents of this house claim to have "renovated" the space, but that is crap! Can you believe they added GOLD handles to the cabinets it is completely tacky! Just writing about the kitchen is making me upset.
I think becoming a homeowner has changed my perspective on many things and my priorities have totally shifted. I used to be very adamant about hanging out with friends and going to bars every week. I am now content to chill at home with the T-Man and watch Netflix movies. When I rented a house I was lucky enough to have a landlord that allowed us to paint. We went crazy painting, it looked as though a Crayola box had exploded in our house. Now that I own my house I am terrified to paint. I've painted three rooms so far (dining room, 1 bedroom and the bathroom) I'm afraid i'll paint and I'll hate it. I'm even afraid of hanging pictures on the wall.
I think one of my most fave. foods is the entire candy genre. Candy! Candy! Candy! I'm not a big chocolate fan, but please bring on the licorice, sweet candies, sour candies, tart candies, jelly beans, and hard candies. Mmmmm....One of the chocolate junk foods I cannot get enough of is Thin Mint Girl Scout Cookies! People love the Samoas but the Thin Mint's kick some serious Samoa's ass!
Try this on for size! Tee Hee.
Thursday, March 13, 2003 07:44 p.m.
When I visit an office supply store I feel like a kid in a candy shop. So many things that capture my attention, pens galore, shiny paper clips, and binders in all sizes and colors god...my senses are slightly overloaded! Even if I know exactly what I want I have to wander up....and...down every aisle. I'm totally caught up. I'll see something like a mileage log notebook and suddenly I feel like I have to have one, as though somehow my day-to-day life is not complete if I cannot log my daily mileage. I'll pick the book up, flip through the pages and wonder how I’ve gone about my daily routine without this simply, bound little book. Really, now, I’m not a sales man, my job does not reimburse my mileage, I do not need this but I feel compelled to buy it. I briefly escape the dreamlike state and place the book back on the shelf and walk away. I do this practically on every aisle with some odd or end that I do not need. I manage to escape the store with maybe one extra item not on my list. However, the next visit whether the next day or the next month, I fall back into the same old insane ritual.
I want to be on a home improvement show. Something like "While you were out." What better way to renovate a room then for free. I have absolutely no qualms about appearing on television, having strangers paint the walls, and build me furniture. I have a den in serious need of a makeover. T uses it as an office and I hate looking at it. He has managed to mis-match every shade of furniture in the room. It would be a dream come true for someone to contain the disaster.
I bought Chocolate-Espresso covered malt balls and they are awesome!
Thursday, March 13, 2003 05:55 a.m.
Is it totally wrong to want an army of dogs? I want a fleet of Boston Terriers, a black & white army! When I think like this I feel like I'm on the verge of crazy, spinster cat lady. EEEKKK!
I made a promise to myself to not turn the television on as soon as I got home from work. So far, so good. It was slightly sad. I got home at 3:30pm and immediately put my pjs on and watch tv until I fell asleep. Don't get me wrong I was NOT physically glued to a chair staring at my TV. I would fix something to eat, do the laundry...all with the TV on in the background. I finally reached a point where I was so disgusted in myself and new I needed to make a change.
Speaking of TV....I am totally addicted to CSI. I simply can't get enough of these crime dramas! I hope someday they will fall into syndication heaven like Law & Order and come on the boob tube 300 hundred times a day!
Sunday, March 9, 2003 03:56 p.m.
There's nothing better then looking through other peoples junk! Garage sales and flea markets rule! When I lived in Chicago we would drive out to the Northern Chicago 'burbs to check out estate sales and garage sales. The garage sales were pretty good but for every cool piece you would find you had to sort through umpteenth doilies, tupperware and discarded vacation souveniers. But Estate Sales in the 'burbs kicked some major garage sale ass! We would totally make out at these Estate Sales. We picked up everything from pristine womens vintage from the '40s and '50s, A complete set of 1940's Matson Crusieline menus illustrated by Eugene Savage; tons of vintage fabric going for twenty-five cents a bundle and so much more. I doubt i'll come across any of those finds in California but I still find it hard to resist pulling over and checking out a garage sale. Because my encounters thus far has been less then okay I have resorted to the drive-by technique. You know, following all those little garage sale signes through residential streets only to reach the house creep up slowly in your car and pause for a moment directly in front of their driveway. At this point we scan the goods decideing if it's worth actually parking for. More times then not we end up driving right by. I feel bad. I feel like we're teasing those poor souls.
Saturday, March 8, 2003 08:59 a.m.
I used to really enjoy watching Buffy on Tuesday nights but it seems like this season, although the final season, really hasn't been up to par. I think I stopped watching the show when Joe Millionaire aired. Although Joe didn't take much brain cells it held my interest much more then Buffy did. In a way I feel like I abandoned an old friend but really, the show needs to end. The timing is good. Was it the writing that turned the show sour? Or was it UPN? Whatever the case, Buffy will be in syndication heaven after this season. Trust me, I've read some of the articles alluding to this fantastic finale and as much as I have missed this season I will be glued to my little silver box watching Buffy and the Scooby Gang battle the forces of the Hellmouth.
So I have these two little beasts and every so often I take them to the Silverlake Dog Park. They start off okay, playing with the other beasts but after about 20 minutes or so they start to gang up on a specific beast and torture it with their nipping, barking and jumping. As the owner of these beasts it's so embarrassing! We have had to leave due to their mobster-like techniques. God forbid a third or fourth beast of their breed show up! It normally turns into an ugly mob scene with all these bigheaded creatures attacking pretty Labs and Corgis.
I'm going to share one of my petty little pet peeves = VISIBLE PANTY LINES. There's not much worse than this. I don't understand how a person can doll them self up for the public only to wear the wrong kind of underwear with their outfit. Don't get me wrong, I don't stand around staring at butts but it is very distracting when you see a woman looking very classy only to see these intruding, diagonal lines crossing her butt area. Ladies, please invest in a thong or some nice seamless undies. Trust me this small investment will do wonders!
I did see a horrifying site yesterday. There was a woman with white parachute pants at the dog park. She bent down and to my horror her black and fuscia thong was out for the world to see. How tacky is that? I mean it wasn't like the top of her undies sticking out it was the THONG (and not to get to graphic) part of her but sticking out. Personally I find that totally gross! And I almost feel embarrassed for the other person.
Wednesday, March 5, 2003 05:49 a.m.
So I was watching TV last night and saw the most freak show kid. At the same time I was intriguied and totally baffled by this 7-YR OLD FREAK SHOW name Little Hercules.
05:49 a.m.
I disturbed many people today with those horrendous images of Little Hercules. That is just sick and wrong! Remember those days of circus sideshow freaks, Tiny Tim, Lobster Boy, The Bearded Lady......Little Hercules could have a full time job! His dad would be so proud. There is a small part of me that wishes I never saw Little Hercules on TV. I will forever be haunted by these images!
Tuesday, March 4, 2003 08:37 a.m.
I sat an hour and a half in the car yesterday to brave the Crate and Barrel Outlet. I must give major props to the Desert Hills Premium Outlets in Cabazon. Almost all of my faveorite stores are there. There's, Barney's New York, Crate and Barrel, Coach, Off 5th Saks Outlet...I didn't indulge in anything for myself. I was there on a mission and that was it! Isn't that the most pathetic thing? I sat for 3-Hrs (total) in the car to go to the Crate and Barrel outlet.
I spoke to an old friend of mine and in doing so I realized I keep in touch with more people who I went to Junior High with then High School. My high school reunion took place this past summer. I actually flew back home to attend, but I made the fatal mistake of looking at my senior year yearbook. I kept thinking "Who are these people?" They were not anyone I fully recognized. At the last moment I decided not to go. I don't really regret it but should there be a 15 or 20-yr reunion I will attend. I have several good friends that have been around the since the age of 12. We did not attend high school together and when I asked them about their reunion they did not attend theirs either. Maybe it wasn't the school, maybe it was us. Who knows? Most of all, who really cares?
Part Deux
So I have a 7.77-mile commute to work. I have this drive down to a science. I am able to make this commute in 5 minutes (at the fastest) on average it takes me anywhere between 5-7 minutes. I am quite proud. Although if I were a cop looking to score with the speeding tickets, I would definetly stake out the I-210 at 5am in the morning. I may be going super fast, but I am getting left in the dust too. It is pretty fun to drive this fast but when I am in the passenger seat I am the biggest baby and tend to get a little sick by the high speed.
So I was searching the womderful internet today and came across this thread about a little girl who ate some Baskin Robins ice cream called "Shrek Swirl" which contained Pop Rocks. After reading this inane article I thought two things (1) I would never eat an ice cream called Shrek Swirl (2) If you're going to feed your child ice cream with Pop Rocks in it you have no right to get pissed if the child gets sick, you, the parent are to blame. As a grown human being wouldn't you, at some point, have heard the urban legends surrounding Pop Rocks? In this day and age who hasn't?
Sunday, March 2, 2003 6.22 pm
I have learned to never, ever, ever go to the fabric/craft store on a Sunday! That was an evil thing to do today. I was rather bored and wanted to buy some fabric to make a skirt. Ok, easy thing to do. So I hopped into my car and zoomed off to Jo-Ann Fabrics. Evil! Middle-aged women on a fabric frenzy! I will stick to going on these errands on Mondays.
One of my guilty pleasures is the Anna Nicole Show. I'm almost embarassed to admit it. Tonight is the premiere and i'm really excited. It's really kind of sad how E! promotes the premiere as a "Supersized" episode. The show is normally a half hour and this "Supersized" event is a whopping 33 minutes. Can you believe it? An extra 3-minutes. How generous of E! I would understand if they said "Supersized" and it was 40-min. Whatever!
Tomorrow will be the hubby's and mine Outlet Shopping Extravanganza. How I got him to agree to drive to the desert to shop is beyond me. One thing that we have to do is go to the Crate and Barrel outlet. We are such cheap bastards that we received some cute glassware as a housewarming gift, we returned it and decided to use the credit at the outlet store where we'll get more bang for our buck. Scoff if you must but there wasn't anything at the regular store that we really, really wanted.
I need to figure out how to get pictures in my pita world. I'm sure it isn't to difficult but believe me once I figure it out, there will be pictures galore!
Saturday, March 1, 2003 1.43pm
I've decided to begin my 29th year with my very own Pitas universe. I don't care what people say but I truly enjoy life in Los Angeles. Yeah, there's smog, but as all angelenos say "that's why our sunsets or so beautiful." Honestly I don't really care about that i just like being in a warm climate, not to far from snow and LA has great people watching! There are some strange facets to this city but I believe it's part of the charm.
Over the last year i've realized I have a "thing" for heads. I have a crazy headvase collection. When moving from the windy city to the left coast I found a mini collection of rubber doll heads. I have little sculptural/tchocke/kitchy head statues and little furry tissue boxes with faces. To top that off I have to little beast like dogs with giant heads. I wonder what that says about me? I will need to find an answer to my question and when I do, believe me it will be posted!
I used to be a major Coca-Cola adict, sometimes drinking as many as 5 cans of syrupy goodnes per day. When I actually had a count to how many I was drinking I nearly made myself sick. I was quickly able to curb the thrist to 2 per day then two maybe 3 per week then just on weekends. I done good! My place of employment offers free vending! How evil! I was doing good for a while, limiting myself to water and the morning coffee. But have re-fallen in love with the sweet, syrup...mmm...mmmm....Gotta ween myself off again!