Today I watched more of HGTV than I have in months. Now I think I remember why I don’t watch it often. I watched a couple of shows where they redesigned rooms, and this one room was just ridiculous. The woman said she wanted something sophisticated and girly. Well, they decided to paint the walls two different shades of pink, but on camera it looked like pink and orange and nothing in the room seemed to go together. It makes me wonder what some of these designers are thinking.

It’s also kind of depressing to watch super rich people spend insane amounts of money on decorating just one room. The other day I was doing a little research for one of my stories, and I needed a house to sort of reference for the look I had in mind. I spent a lot of time just looking, and it was kind of amazing how many houses I looked at had home theaters. And I’m not talking just a big screen TV, but the actual theater seating, home theater lighting and the whole shebang. It was really kind of amazing. What I wouldn’t give to live like that.

I feel so icky today. Well, I have for the last couple of days. My throat and eyes are all itchy. I’m not sure what brought this on. I think maybe it’s because it got really hot in here the other night while I was sleeping. I woke up with the dry throat, and when I tried to speak before drinking anything, I basically made a croaking noise. Very attractive, I’m sure.

I’m starting a new job this week. Well, technically, I’ve already started, but I’ve just done some stuff from home. I’m going in either today or tomorrow to look at the programs they use in the office, so that will be interesting. I’m charging up my iPod now just in case. I’m not sure if I’ll be allowed to listen to it there or not, but I want to be prepared just in case. I don’t work that well in silence. I either like to listen to music or an audio book while I’m working. I think it keeps my brain from going numb from staring at the computer screen for so long.

I’m off to take something for the headache I feel coming on, and then I need some eyedrops for my itchy eyes.

Today was my grandma’s birthday, and we had a dinner for her. My mom made potato soup, and it was really good - and that’s really saying something since I typically don’t care for it. And we also had chips and lunch meat for sandwiches. My mom made a caramel apple cake. Cakes seem to be her specialty. She likes to experiment with them. Most of the time they turn out pretty good, but there have been a few botched efforts, such as the Kool Aid cake.

After we ate and the presents were opened, my mom, Allyson and I went to Goodwill, TJ Maxx and Kohls. I found a cute shirt at TJ Maxx, and a couple of pairs of shoes at Kohls. I also went shopping yesterday and got a shirt at Maurice’s before I stopped by Sears to pick up a gift card for my grandma’s birthday.

I really need to buy some new make-up. I’ve been trying to take care of my skin, washing it at night - especially when I’ve been wearing make-up, and then moisturizing with some facial lotion. I almost bought a blackhead remover while I was at Target yesterday. I know that Clean and Clear has a product for that, but sometimes that brand dries out my skin, so I was kind of reluctant to get it. I might go to Wal-Mart tomorrow and see if I can find some other brand for the same thing, and see about buying some new foundation while I’m at it. I’ve almost spent all of my birthday money, which is just kind of depressing.

On a completely random note, I burnt my tongue eating the potato soup today and it hurts.

I had the absolute worst case of heart burn in my entire life earlier. I guess it would right to say yesterday, technically, but who’s counting? It really bad. I just wanted to cry. It just felt like my entire chest was burning, and I got all hot and sweaty. I even went outside for a few minutes just to try to cool down. Finally, I came back inside and sprawled out on my bed in the dark, and after maybe fifteen or twenty minutes, it went away.

I have no doubt it was a direct result from the chili I had for dinner. I thought it was kind of spicy, and even as I was eating, I was afraid this might happen. Usually I’m not too bothered by spicy food, but I had a bout with heart burn a few weeks ago. This time definitely overshadowed the last, but it was scary and uncomfortable. I was half afraid I was having a heart attack or something, which is just ridiculous.

I hope I’m not getting acid reflux like my mom has. She can’t eat any kind of peppers, which wouldn’t be a problem for me since I avoid them anyway, but even so, it’s just not something I want to deal with.

But it has got me thinking about my health, and I’m thinking about going back on Weight Watchers and possible going on alli as well. I read before that the Weight Watchers diet is compatible with alli. I think since alli helps speed along the weight loss it might help out a lot because my biggest problem with dieting or trying to eat healthier is that I tend to get frustrated when I don’t see any results. Then the fatty foods that I usually crave start to win over again and I give up.

I guess I’ll just have to see. It’s really all a matter of money, but that’s the story of my life.

Well, the Black Event, also known as my birthday, has come and went. I survived. It does kind of kill me to admit that I’m now 25, but I guess that’s just part of life.

We had seven layer salad and manicotti and cake and ice-cream on Thursday night so that Allyson could come. She brought along her friend Gail and Blaine brought along Cody, but it was nice. I got $90 - $40 from my grandparents and $50 from Bart - and my mom got me some perfume and lotion from Victoria’s Secret. It’s called Pink, and it’s fruity scented. I think it smells kind of like cotton candy, which is yummy, so I love it. I kind of had a feeling that was what she was going to get me because I was with her twice and told her I liked it both times.

My grandma’s birthday is coming up next. I have no idea what to get her, and she wasn’t very forthcoming about what she wanted. My mom called and wanted to know what we should have for dinner for her, and tacos was her first suggestion. Then my mom called back later and said she was going to make potato soup instead. Just for future reference, I kind of hate potato soup. I’m considering looking up some Mexican recipes, and taking it upon myself to cook instead. I haven’t spoken to my mom about it yet, and I guess it really depends on how ambitious I feel. I’m kind of lacking in the cooking skills. I’m great with baking, but I can’t really remember the last time I cooked an actual meal that didn’t originate from a box. Pathetic.