That is it, I have procrastinated enough, I am posting. It's almost a threat, I'm posting and there ain't nothing you can do about it - rawr. I think of it more as, I mean besides a threat, me living up to my reputation ("I don't give a damn about my bad reputation", I'm bringing on the cheese early today). Excuses, excuses for my (consistent) tardiness, that will land you in the principals office missy (this was my life 8 years ago)...

Some of my ol' addictions have come back with a fury including choosing too many books from the public library. I will walk around with a stack of books, my arm hurting, knowing I won't be able to finish them all but I still check out too many every time. I was actually a little shocked by the amount of people who were at the library during my last visit, at least the library is being utilized, yay for utilization.

I have read/listened to all but the last two, I've been trying to work on the F.Scott/Zelda Fitzgerald one but I keep getting distracted by my other current obsessions. I made a day out of my library experience, ate some fruit (this bosc pear was perfection) and read some books. It was a delightful day.

My boyfriend and I returned to the converted church restaurant I mentioned in a previous entry with his friend Charlie for a belated birthday dinner (fiance/boyfriend, I go back and forth with his title but you get the picture) - we had a really good time and talked well into the night.


We visited our friend Row and on the way there saw the Americas 9/11 ride departing from Frederick, just miles and miles of motorcycles and supporters, it was actually exciting to witness. I really wanted to be on one of those motorcycles, I haven't been out (besides sitting on my friends motorcycle at Tysons parking lot and accidentally touching the accelerator...) on a motorcycle since I was a kid.  

"Honey, can you get a motorcycle and... some chaps? I'll be your bestest friend" we will see if that works!

We got lucky apparently because people were sitting on the grass areas, holding up signs, set up on lawn chairs, and we just happened to have good timing to come across them.

Once we got to Frederick, Row and I dragged my fiance to Common Market for some wraps but the wraps weren't quite as good this go-around, they were good but not earth shattering like last time. Afterwards we drove around a bit and had a funny experience with a spiked bracelet wearing cashier at Giant Eagle where Row and I made some innocent jokes back and forth with him, "I'm always careful with my pie" sort of thing. She was telling me how she went back later in the week and said "Does your momma know you're hitting on old ladies?" (she was saying about herself, which is looney because shes not old) and he said "I didn't see any old ladies then and I don't see any right now." <3

Row, Megan, and I also took a little trip to Pier 1 Imports to coo over what they had. They have the cutest selection of masks for Halloween! You've gotta go check them out. I also found a really pretty necklace, a necklace from Pier 1, who knew? I thought I got a picture of the masks but I can't find it so I'm going to share with you a picture of me that I HATE but I'm wearing one of the said fabulous masks so it's worth sharing. You may kind of be able to tell my new hair color but I will post more pictures concerning my hair later. Ugh, this picture, I look like I'm 10 years old... just eek.

Speaking of Halloween, which I'm obsessed with, I get so excited every year! I have to watch 'Hocus Pocus' 9 million times and come up with 500 Halloween costume ideas that I never actually do and search every store in sight for cute items for our future place. The last few years we've gotten the cutest nutcrackers, pot holders, cups, etc all "spooky" themed. It doesn't even seem like a theme to me, it's just our taste. Homegoods especially triggered the jumping up and down like a little girl reaction from me a few years ago, we went back this year and I got to choose one thing.

Now that I'm looking at the above & below picture I keep seeing more and more things I like. We went to Michael's and Target (Target, Target? No way!) as well but we did not look at Targets Halloween section which can be very hit or miss. But I'd have to say I'm happy with my choice since I have a soft spot for snow globes and I like the black base.


Oh Halloween, how I love thee'.

As always I'm getting a bit carried away so I think I'll do a part two tomorrow. I have some superexciting vacation news, pictures finally of my new hair, talk of movie and restaurants, and my general nuttiness to come so please stay tuned. I leave you with a video someone took on the same road we took the day of Americas 9/11 Ride, some music, and a little Beetlejuice.

Has it really been over two weeks since I lasted posted, wow, where have I been? The last few days I have not been feeling all that well, a few dizzy spells and lots of continued chaos in my tummy area. It is not a good time. But my tummy hasn't been the only thing in chaos - mother nature has been throwing a little temper tantrum in my (somewhat) part of the world. Somebody got Malibu barbie instead of Ballerina barbie for their birthday... that is not who Mother Nature is, she is GRACEFUL! DELICATE! Anyway enough of needless movie quotes (needless? never :)

The Earthquake was a bit unexpected and although the news about when it will happen and the nature of ol' Irene are a little up in the air (over the ocean - har har, get it? over the ...ocean... shut up Rachel) it doesn't sound like it should be anything too serious here.


So the morning, afternoon of the earthquake I was at home asleep in bed when I felt one of my cats run across or jump on me - just as I sat up to see what was wrong I felt the shaking. I was not sure if I was dreaming and my first thought was, "We don't have earthquakes here?" as my entire bed shook. My second thought was "Have I finally lost it? Am I going to be possessed like in The Exorcist (see video)?".


I kind of thought for a split second perhaps there was a large vehicle passing by but the nature of the shaking was much more jarring that anything I had ever experienced. I sat calmly in bed till the shaking dispersed. I'm not sure how long it lasted but not long enough for me to really have time to think too in depth about it. I immediately called my fiance at work at 1:52PM EST who said the second floor of the building he was in was still shaking but that everyone was fine. Getting cell phone service was a little difficult for a bit but it quickly cleared up and I have not heard of any damage, it didn't even shake products off our cheap Walmart shelving unit in the bathroom haha. The cats were not happy campers and Hero laid under the desk with his head on my feet for hours after. It certainly was something I had never experienced before... I thought it was kind of fun being that it was just a little harmless tossing and turning. I live about 80 miles North of the Epicenter of the earthquake by the way.

I wasn't really planning on doing a full post at the moment because my stomach is really not happy with me but I do plan on doing a full update ASAP. I dyed my hair, saw a few movies, went out to dinner, visited some friends, did a little shoppin', and explored some new areas so that will all be coming up in my next entry. Hope everyone is swell, toodles for now so I can suffer through some tum tablets, err yuckies.

In my last entry, where I admittedly was a bit ridiculous ("uh, that is every post?") I said I would be posting the next day - well I, I got distracted by... good question, what did I get distracted by? Right now I'm distracted by the smell of red onion and green pepper I threw out from my chef's salad I ordered for lunch. I really don't like red onion or green pepper, I like almost every other variety of pepper and onion but those two, yucky-ewe.


So onto the Part II: Saga Returns/Back in the Habit/Electric Boogaloo/The Two Rawrers of the birthday celebration week for my Monkey. We had a quite jam packed week of restaurants, friends, and visits to the movie theaters around our area. I am always determined to try new restaurants, I get sick of chain restaurants, and I like the little guys. I like supporting local businesses and I ALWAYS advocate for the underdog over the mass corporations. I might be a fan of some corporations (target for instance, as you WELL know) but still the small business is where its at (although its easier to shop at small places when you have more income, which I do not) shh down with the corporation take over. I always argue with my mother that when you travel somewhere new (or at home), you do not go to a chain restaurant, you try something local - that is the only real way to experience a place in my opinion. For instance my mom went to NYC recently and went to a flippin Cosi, I was like "Mom, NYC is known for their delis and you go to a chain sandwich shop, whats the matter with you?" and she was like "I didn't know, I never heard of a Cosi." I facepalmed.

Anyway, the picture above is a restaurant we tried called 'La Capilla' (the site is down at the moment or I'd link you to it, the picture to the left has a bit of history on the church, it was in a movie *nods* never heard of this movie but it was...in a movie) in a converted and quite stunning church on Main Street (I love Main streets) in Manassas. It took some convincing to get my boyfriend there and I conveniently left out the fact that it was a tapas place (oppsies :). The service was great, the food was delicious, and I love the decor. It was a bit pricey and my boyfriend complained about being hungry after but I hope we'll get to go back. They have a bar as well in the bottom level of the church which I didn't get to see but I very rarely go to bars, I've been to clubs a lot more than bars. I could probably count on two hands how many bars I've been in. The reason I'm talking about it in the detail I am (get on with it) is just because I loved the entire experience. I even ran across the street to take a picture to share with you where I tripped on a 1inch landing and almost sprained my ankle and then the light took forever to change, I yelled to my boyfriend who was on the other side "We may never see one another again." It was a joyous reunion... 5 minutes later.

Outside

Inside

I really liked the Main street area of Manassas even though it is a bit small and a few blocks from Main Street I stumbled upon this section of gorgeous homes. I really wanted to take a picture but the area was super busy and I felt silly pulling over and taking pictures. I am determined to go back and take pictures though, it will happen.

I really enjoyed everything we ordered at La Capilla (snappy name, say it, you know you want to: La La La Capilla), we had: chicken enchiladas that were ahmazing, chicken meatballs in a tomato broth, some chorizo queso, and I had a chicken breast stuffed with asparagus and cheese. Rawrnomnoms.

We also tried a new place in Frederick called AKA Friscos with our friends Row, Megan, and Cody. All the girls ordered bakers or baked potatoes, mine had roast beef on it and it was really delicious. Cody had a sandwich and my Monkey had chili. It was a cute little place and they played Heart! Heart is a way to my heart (pathetic, cheeseball).

Afterwards we went to the mall and saw (a bit early) Halloween stuff including witch hat and gloves, a couple who looked like they stepped out of that famous American Gothic picture except young or perhaps Children of the Corn - they were seriously cool, and then to Hot Topic where Row got asked out by a cute chick that worked there, the girl was really sly in her approach and Row was so adorable about it. After we went back to her house for a bit and took an impromptu late night drive to Emmitsburg. We couldn't see much but I love spontaneous adventures.

We also went to Maggianos (twice actually over the course of the week) on my boyfriends actual birth day with Darrell and Alexia. Afterwards we saw 'Cowboys vs. Aliens' (it was okay) and carried on like we usually do. They were amused by the fact that I do this little bark/chomp expression, its inspired by my cats trying to catch a ribbon with their mouth, kinda hard to describe but if you have cats you might be able to picture it. I tried the gnocchi and o-m-g, you must try it. It is melt in your mouth-potato-epic-goodness and quite filling.


I was determined to get a picture of my outfit I wore for my boyfriends birthday but alas, this is my final product, full of split ends (I really need to get my hair done, yikes). Maybe you can kind of tell, the outfit that is? I'm wearing a dress I ordered (and spoke of awhile back) from ASOS, one of my favorite cardigans (bought like 8 years ago) from Bmoss , and black target sandals. Hey, I tried. I am successful in taking pictures where my feet look... weird? Its the little successes that count...

These are the Target sandals I mentioned, they are still available if you happen to likie them. Link Here.

There was a rainbow (a double rainbow in fact) on my boyfriends birthday, I was driving so I didn't get a good look at it or a good picture but D, Z, and I found it a bit ironic since my boyfriend is not the rainbow appreciation type. My boyfriend likes to see himself as dark and mysterious so D & Z described it perfectly saying "Rachel is the rainbow and you're the dark cloud behind it" and he was pleased with that answer, as was I. Monkey provided the picture.

We also saw 'Transformers 3' (again for me since my boyfriend had not seen it), 'Captain America' (x1 1/3 times, long story to why the one time we saw only a third of it), 'Bridesmaids', 'Rise of the Planet of the Apes' (I realllyyyy liked), and as I said 'Cowboys vs. Aliens'. I don't know if I've ever mentioned this fact but I collect movie ticket stubs, I have since about 2000 or 2001. Sometimes I forget but I try to always remember to keep them. I laughed a lot during 'Bridesmaids', I really like Kristen Wiig. I enjoyed 'Captain America' too but I felt like it started off swinging and kinda went downhill after.

We also had some Thai that was really delicious, so delicious I forgot to take a picture, and more Mexican at Don Pablos and another little (local) place in Manassas that I didn't really like all that much. Also stopped by American Cafe for dinner & a smore sundae and lastly Red Robin for some burgers, fries, and shakes. Yes the last three are not local restaurants, we try, what can I say. We did a little shopping as well at Wegmans, Target, FYE, and Hot Topic.

The last birthday adventure day was Friday where we celebrated the birthdays of both my boyfriend and our roommate Chris. We went to Big Bowl in Reston with Jamie, Chris, and Christina. Reston Town Center is a zoo but we had a really great time ranting and joking with everyone. The Big Bowl was quite tasty and I had hibiscus tea, chicken wraps, and stir fry with chicken and noodles. Afterwards we saw a movie and stopped by a cupcake place I mentioned in my previous post.

Reston and Tyson are a bit too snobby and upscale for my liking, I'm not fond of pretentious people, I don't see a need for pretension. I prefer laid back people and areas with old world charm. It was especially irritating at Tysons II where Maggianos is (and there hour and 15 minute wait), we kept getting so many dirty looks from the my shit don't stinkers who think they rule the planet because they can shop at high end retailers like Chanel. In my experience people who act really stuck up, judgmental, or discriminatory are very insecure people who have never really established their own identity. If they were truly comfortable with themselves they'd be comfortable with other peoples differences and accept everyone. I'm sorry for the mini rant it just gets really frustrating at times especially when you're a chubby, eccentric, sometimes loud person who likes metal, some gothic stuff, and hello kitty. Its exhausting feeling as if you have to try all that much harder for people to recognize you as who you are instead of what they may think you are. 

So anyway,  we had a lot of fun, we explored many a place (as you might tell). I'm currently awaiting for a dress to come (which I will have to tell you about later since it too is a loong story) and the house search stuff is the same as it always is - frustrating, nerve wracking, and a lot of waiting. I have my eye on a few houses I'm dying to see and my itch to look at architecture is large as always.

Oh, oh True Blood has been keeping me on the edge of my seat the last few eppys. I really don't like the Jessica/Jason angle they are shooting for though and Down with Debbie Pelt. I don't trust her, I got my eye on her!

All three GORGEOUS houses above are for sale by the way, in case you're in the market to buy me a present, so if you've got Scrooge McDuck type fortune, snatch em up and send me the deeds. Me kidds' although I must admit, that would be nice.

Well I think I've said quite enough already. Question: Is my excessive chat working against me? I get the feeling I'm probably saying too much and scaring people off? I hope not, but I will try and cut back. Anyway it has become a trend so, I'm going to leave you with a few music videos.

Here it is, another new month, time flies by when you... owe rent money at the first of every month. Things have been a collection of good vs bad, stable vs insanity, cupcakes vs sharktopus - everyone knows the cupcake always wins.


I celebrated the birthday of the love of my life, my best friend, my furry baby daddy, and the metal God that is my fiance Jason. I love the pictures above, one is of him as a baby and he is so cute, look at that face! The other I took during one of his live shows while I was sick (awhile ago) and too lazy to walk closer to the stage but me-me-me-owwww. The birthday mention a'here is a wee bit late but we celebrated much over the course of this week.

With the good vs bad though, he was diagnosed with shingles several days prior to his birthday. He is on a lot of medication and in frequent pain, luckily this flare (hopefully there won't be many more to come) is on its last gasps of air from its death grip it has held on my poor Monkey's side/back. Not much is known to why some people get shingles and why others don't and it is unpredictable; it could come back any time, never again, and anywhere in between. But I love him very much and feel like the luckiest nutball in the world to get to have him in my life, he is the best man I've ever known, and he makes me so happy. He took the week off for his birthday and we pretty much celebrated all week, I'm pretty sure he felt like the prettiest girl at the ball sexiest metal God of the arena.

I can't.. not make jokes, its a damn obligation somehow.

This week included a lot of restaurants, movies, window shopping, hanging out with shnazzy people, some rants, shark week (his freakin birthday is during Shark Week, pfft, he gets all the cool animal shit for his birthday. Skank), and many amusing accidents (like when I almost broke my ankle because I failed to notice the 1 inch incline in the sidewalk whilst taking a picture).

I met a new friend, toy, toy I could not have, hand puppet who I thoughtfully (I had to search the confides of my brain, it was like searching for a lost Pharaohs tomb) named Rex the Sex.  

Tip: Add "the sex" to things, it works, one of the first jokes that caught me my Monkey was me joking about the Domino "the sex" Sugar sign in Baltimore. The Monkey flipped his hair, batted his eyes, giggled, and exclaimed "teehee, you're so funny." To which I nodded and winked, I knew I had him then :P

I have a thing for hand puppets, they amuse me, a couple of years ago I really wanted a beaver (not in hand puppet condition just regular stuffed animal) from Ikea. Year after that it was a squirrel and this year it is one of the last dinosaurs of the "borderassic" period. Every time my monkey gives me this look like "You're 23/24/25 I'm not buying you a friggin hand puppet you can constantly hump my arm with." Anyway, Rex the Sex and I walked around the store scaring the vultures who were drooling at the mouth over the poor demise of the Borders corp. Rex and I head banged in the Self Help section, did the robot in the CD aisle, laughed as he humped posters, and lastly I begged the Monkey to let me take him home. Monkey said no, as he usually does with coveted hand puppets, even insulting 'Rexy' saying he was in poor condition "look at the threads hanging down." BUT this (insanely lol ridiculous story, and I wonder why no one reads my blog) has a happy ending, Rex the Sex met a girl dinosaur, and they continued to mack in the children's section as I walked away.

Quick, someone photoshop a heart around their heads!

...Is anyone still there? *cricket, cricket*

I have bought a few things over the last two weeks I thought I'd share with you, now I must warn you, I think I've had a surge of I don't know, "silly power", so much so that I say asinine things like "SILLY POWER." If I could, no I mean I can, if I actually wanted to slap myself for this post, I would.Perhaps I've been in a time machine and my 10 year old self is in my body and I don't realize it. So onto those purchases I mentioned:

Rainbow necklace, me like the colors and I look dumb here.

Target flip flops, please (I beg you) ignore the state of my feet but I HAD to put up this picture because my Halo had to show off his feet too.

I also got two pair of Hello Kitty earrings from Hot Topic (almost made my boyfriend spit out his drink while I told him I had a brain fart and said "the hot... topic" like I had never heard of this little place before). A "ner ner ner ner, ner ner ner BATMAN" um, Batman t-shirt. A 'She Wants Revenge' cd, and lots of strawberry fanta. I think that is about all really. I lusted over many more things but since Target doesn't sponsor me to shop at their store for free, despite my continuous loyalty, I did not get anything else. Sad panda.

Target, listen to my words... You want to give me free shopping for life.... Me very, very loyal... I wear head to toe and even butt covered Target almost all the time... Gimme free access entirely to your store for lifeeee... Rachel needs more Target stuff... I'll get a Target bar code scanner tattooed on my heiney....

Awaiting Targets' CEOs email of free pass for life....

Oh, I discovered a local cupcake place, I had the oreo and it was delish. The place is called Edibles Incredible, visit it if you're in the area.


So I think I've been annoying, foolish, and pointless enough for one post. I leave you with one last cupcake (see the cupcake swallowed the shark whole and turned it into itself) imagery and a slow, horror movie villain wave. Be prepared because I have another post coming tomorrow. 




Clue is one of my favorite movies of all time. Shake it.