My coworker Jim came back from his vacation to Italy today, and brought back these delicious Ferrero candies that are basically a bonbon-sized liquid-filled chocolate covered espresso bean, made with creamy italian chocolate and the best coffee i’ve ever tasted in a candy. Christian, don’t let me forget, we have to look for these in Italy! Mom, you need to try these! So good! They’re so cool they even have their own ski team! If anyone can find somewhere to buy them in the US, i will love you forever. I might even let you ride in my car… ;)

In an august survey by Yahoo 77% of yahoo users would rather clean a toilet bowl than sort thru the spam in their inbox. That’s pretty funny. Spam is probably the number one complaint i get at work from users. Especially ironic considering i’m only responsible for their internet connection and keeping their keyboard working - i have no control over anything related to their email accounts. And i get as much spam as they do. ;) What’s really so frustrating to me about spam is the same thing that drives me crazy about telemarketing: it wouldn’t happen if it didn’t work. People out there are buying stuff when called randomly during dinner, they’re clicking the link in their email to purchase viagra without a prescription, they’re being swindled out of their credit card numbers by the shiny baubles on qvc. If no one succumbed to such evil sales tactics, they would not be viable business methods and they would cease to exist. You hear that america? Stop complaining about annoying sales tactics; smarten up and stop buying their stuff!

Okay, so spam is annoying. Know what’s not annoying? “Free money!” Well, yes. “Sunny weather!” Ok, yes, unless maybe it’s really hot. “Free candy!” Okay, enough guessing for you. What’s really really not annoying is my lovely new Z. :D I actually tried to sleep in today, but couldn’t do it - i was too excited to get up and drive to work. You catch that? I was excited to get up and drive to work. Yes, my new car is getting me to work on time, because it calls my name so loudly from across the yard that it keeps me awake at night. ;) Of course, if our flake-tastic landlord will ever call me back, it might be calling my name from the garage instead - i really hope she wants to rent that! Anyway, it’s very pretty and fun. My friends have been great and are all very excited for me. I do still really need to figure out what everything is and how it all works, but i can already tell this is the beginning of a long and beautiful friendship. ;)

Good friends help you shop… great friends drive 500 miles to help you shop for a car… ! ;) I’ve been home long enough to unpack and download the pictures… Steph, Danielle and i just got back from a very long but very rewarding weekend trip to Medford, OR. It was sunny and amazing, a perfect roadtrip. The top was down on Steph’s convertible once we hit central oregon and the temperature hit 65. By Medford it was 80 and i was nervous, excited, and we were all a little sunburned. A huge bonus on the drive home was catching up with Sasha and Ty for coffee - so great to see them after so long!

My fortune cookie at lunch on tuesday said “you will soon have a happy adventure” and it couldn’t have been more right. The adventure itself was very happy, results notwithstanding. But in this case, the results were as happy as the journey! :D I’m the proud new owner of a beautiful 1991 Nissan 300zx. It’s previous owner, Mark, took such meticulous care of it that it feels and looks brand new, and it’s something i know i’ll enjoy very very much for a long time. As if it wasn’t beautiful enough, it’s less every month than the Maxima was and a serious head-turner. I’m instantly popular with gas station attendants and half the drivers on the freeway. Steph and i enjoyed the looks, smiles and pointing towards both our sweet rides all the way home. I don’t think i’m going to be getting anywhere on time for quite a while. ;)

So, the part you’ve all been waiting for… visual aids. :D

So gimme a call and you can be the first one to ride in it… well, the third one, after my roadtrip partners… :D And if you see me smiling so hard my face wants to explode, you’ll know why! :D :D :D

This week has taken forever! Augh! I’m all excited to head south this weekend and look at a really promising Z, and it’s been like 40 days since monday when i decided to go! Thankfully, some other good stuff this week to keep me busy. Danielle and i have been spending a lot of time just hanging out, as she’s moving north to Victoria the end of the month, so we’re trying to squeeze in some last quality time. I wish we had more!

Tonight i met Kim, Dawn and Julia for sushi and cocktails, and then we caught up with Gabe at the ski swap expo thingy downtown. Another big room full of equipment i can’t afford to buy, but still a good time - came home with a big handful of stickers and a couple sweet posters - one of Big Mountain in Whitefish, MT, a gorgeous sunset shot of the mountain, very cool. Coolest part was chatting with Eric Pollard, a killer pro skier with his own model of Line skiis and a starring role in several of my favorite ski movies. A very down-to-earth guy, we talked about some equipment and some of the great places he’s skied this year. He mentioned how lucky he felt to be traveling and skiing like he does - what he modestly omitted are his immense talent and extreme determination to raise the bar on himself. Either way, i’m sure impressed by Eric’s accomplishments, and i’d hope if i was ever in that position i’d be as unpretentious and laid back as he is about it. If i had it to do over, i think i’d skip college and just ski for a living. :)

Bored at work today? Tired of sitting in your cubicle alone? Need to stretch your legs, shake your thang, get your groove on? Check out Stealth Disco! Bored office employees like yourself bring the spirit of the 70’s to the workplace, in secret or in public! Next time you’re standing in the back of a time-wasting meeting or behind your boss at the stockholders presentation, break into some jivin’ disco action… it’s guaranteed to make you smile.

In other news, if you thought your cell phone bill was high, be glad you’re not some guy whose at&t wireless bill this month was for $39,000. Maybe he needs a plan with more minutes? ;) Actually, someone stole his identity and signed up several more lines, started calling Nigeria with them. Just one more reason why you should shred your bills and receipts before you throw them away… yikes.

On the personal front, my car loan got funded today, and i’m working on reservations for a hotel in Medford, OR. If all goes as planned, i’ll be a Z owner by sunday nite - wish me luck! I’ve been breaking into fits of glee every time i think about turbos and blow off valves and t-tops. Hopefully i’ll be able to contain myself and my drooling and whimpering long enough to negotiate a price with the guy and sign a bill of sale with some semblance of adult behavior… ;)