Act Now!

Have you ever bought something and later (or even immediately after) asked yourself, "What was I thinking?" I made one of those purchases about a month ago. It's bad. Real bad. I saw an ad in the newspaper for a once in a lifetime opportunity and it just so happened that this "deal" was that day only. Plus there were limited quantities, so I had to act fast in order to be one of the lucky owners of this item. I first wanted to see if I was too late for the purchase or if they had any left. I mean if I was too late then I could have said it wasn't meant to be. So I called the number and sure enough while they were "going fast", there were still some left. Well now that I had the salesperson on the phone, I couldn't just say "Oh I just wanted to see if you had any left. Bye." That would be rude. So I bought it and ever since I hung up the phone I have regretted it. I didn't tell my husband because he was out mowing the lawn. To my credit, I tried knocking on the window while he was outside, but he couldn't hear me. And even though is the beauty of having separate bank accounts, we still we try not to make stupid or rash purchases and are usually quite successful. Unfortunately, this purchase qualified as both. So I called my mom because I thought if I confessed to someone it would make the purchase seem more reasonable. That was not the case. Even she asked me what I was thinking.

I decided to put off telling my husband and pushed the mistake to the back of my mind. Then one day there was a giant package by the front door. At first I thought it was a surprise present, but I soon realized what it was and my stomach dropped. I had forgotten about the deal of the century. I didn't even open the box. I hid it in the guest room closet hoping that my husband wouldn't go in there for anything. I knew I had 90 days to return it, so I held off my confession. I thought about writing a blog post while he was out of town, so that way he would find out while he was miles away in a hotel room. Then I decided to put it off longer and he came back in town. My time was running out. I played the conversation in my head and the more I played the more comfortable I became. Maybe he would be excited about the purchase and my eclectic taste. I would tell him how I worried and we would laugh about it over a glass of wine. Then he would take me to a nice dinner because this item would SURELY increase in value and make us rich someday. So finally this past Friday I let him in on my secret. We opened the box together and he just shook his head restraining himself from the 1500 jokes he had, all at my expense.

So what was the item you ask? Only all 50 State Quarters and 6 Territory coins. Uncirculated. I will say I was smart enough not to buy a set from each of the U.S. Mints. Which sadly, I considered. All of this begs one question... Well, two really. "How old am I?" and "What are the 6 territories?". I didn't go blow my paycheck on a new pair of Jimmy Choo's or a designer dress. I bought COINS. COINS. FYI- my 88-year-old Grandpa buys coins. That and an Amish heater that he swears is the greatest thing on earth. My husband asked me how much they were and I asked him to guess. His reply was "I hope not more than 56 X $0.25". Spoiler alert: They were $88 plus s+h. Technically the coins were free. I just had to buy the crappy frame that doesn't even have glass. Did I seriously think I was going to display these in the gargantuan "antique" wall frame they came in? Everyone else buys home decor from Pottery Barn. Not me, I've got coins on the wall. Correction, ALMOST had coins on the wall. Saturday I woke up bright and early and sent the coins back to the "World Reserve" where they belong. They will soon be someone else's treasure (or mistake). Hopefully all this lesson cost me was the shipping and handling. Well that and the embarrassment it has caused. But FYI, the Tennessee state quarter has already increased in value 1100%. This may have been my ticket to early retirement.

Come On Big Money!

I am not a huge gambler by any means. If I actually make it to Louisiana, where gambling is legal, I take my set amount of $$ and try to make it last as long as possible. Yes, I am BORING, in all caps. Someone like my brother, however, would go in, and put it all on red. Of course, he has really good luck and would come out ahead. But, when I go into these casinos, I always feel a little sad for some of the people there. I mean, they are chain smoking their last ciggie and throwing their electricity money away in the quarter slots. I mean, seriously, it gets HOT in Texas and Louisiana, so you definitely don't want to be without A/C! So where am I going with this? Well, I totally cannot see the urge to gamble so much that you are risking your life savings and friendships over the tiny chance that you may beat the House.

Ok, but to be honest, that was YESTERDAY's thinking. That was before my friend Mike mentioned to me that the Texas Mega Millions Jackpot had reach astronomical proportions (around $333M!!!!!!). All of a sudden I JUST HAD to buy a ticket. The only problem was, I needed a dollar. So Mike gave me a dollar and with specific instructions told me to purchase a ticket with the "cash value option." See, he is all about finance and understands that the lump sum is better than the payout over several years. Whatever. I was like a little kid skipping to the 7-Eleven with my sole dollar held high above my head. I am going to be RICH baby!

People-not gonna lie- I spent all day yesterday thinking about what I would do on my first day as nouveau riche. Stream-of-thought: I quickly decided that I needed to keep my job, because otherwise I would be bored. Then I would pay off my house and my car, but then I thought, well maybe because I was so rich that I would need the tax break for my house, so maybe I should buy another one, then I thought, screw it, I will just have to put in a call to Suze Orman and have her help me figure out what to do with my new found wealth.

Everyone-I haven't won the lotto (Although, I haven't technically lost either because they don't pull the numbers until tonight!!!) And although a piece of me thinks that maybe I could win, the truth is that tomorrow I will be the same person I am today and still a "working middle class" American (which really sucks). But now I kind of see what all the gambling fuss is about and how people get addicted. For a whole day, all I could think about was "what if?" Just FYI, I would so be the "nice" rich girl, dashing all over town in my designer originals leaving little $100 bill presents in random places for people to find. I would be known for my kindness and generosity, as well as for my killer bod that my new personal trainer would help me sculpt. So, after all that thinking, I have decided that it is ok to dream about this, because hey, you never really know how things will turn out, but you just have to make sure that at the end of the day, you have money in the bank to make the mortgage payment.

Going Dutch

My husband and I have been married for over two years and still have separate bank accounts. I never thought anything of it until we were out with friends and I said to my husband, "I'll get it". To which someone asked, "What does it matter? It all comes from the same account." Um, no it doesn't. You would not believe the conversation this sparked (mind you, my husband and I were the only ones on "our side"). I still don't see anything wrong with it, just like I don't see anything wrong with sharing accounts. It just works for us. We track our money together, and we consider it "ours", it is just in separate accounts. And this way, if we have a "date night" or one of us wants to treat the other to a trip, we can truly do that...and we do.

Whenever we go to dinner with friends, we still put up with comments like "Oh they have to decide who is going to pay", but a couple of weeks ago I got my revenge. We were on a road trip with the same group and had to stop to use the "facilities". The only place was (conveniently) an outlet mall. As we pulled up, all of the husbands (except for mine) said "We'll stop, but you only have $40 to spend." To which I asked no one in particular, "How do you like sharing a checking account now?"

Now when we have kids it will be a different story :)

Why Hasn't He Emailed Me?

Recently, I was contacted by a guy friend from my past. The two of us had become friends, although not close ones, during an internship our senior year of college. He was good looking, shy, smart, and very nice (which in my world, equal soo hot)! Unfortunately, our relationship stayed "just friends" and we lost contact with each other when we went back to our respective schools at the end of the internship. I hadn't really thought about him for many years when I received a random Facebook message from him wondering how I was and what I was up to these days. When I tried to respond, my anti-virus software would redirect me stating that if overridden, my computer would have "malicious software downloaded." Crap. Well, being the scaredy cat that I am about that stuff, I never got a chance to FB him back. Then (3 weeks later), I had a bright idea: go on to his FB page, get his email address, and email him from my hotmail account! What luck- while on his site I was able to a) confirm that he was still good looking (and possibly in better shape than before); b) find out that he was SINGLE and still interested in WOMEN (check and check); c) that his network was in D/FW (holla!); and d) what his personal email address was. With a girlish giggle, I was able to dash off a witty yet breezy response to his email telling him how fabulously I was doing, complete with invitation to get together for catching up if he was still in the D/FW area.

Ok-that was LAST week! Why hasn't he called, ooops, I mean, emailed me? Is it completely sad that I am wishing and hoping for some freaking words on a computer? Seriously, I have been walking around my house with a bounce in my step and checking my email more that usual in hopes that he has emailed me back with a hello, an update on his life, and an invitation to dinner. ALL because I received a three-liner asking me how I was. Either I am a) desperate; b) a hopeless romantic who is less cute than Ginnifer Goodwin in "He's Just Not That Into You"; or c) placing all my faith in a guy I actually know because my Eharmony subscription for anonymous Johns has yet to pay for itself!

My Question Dear Readers is: Why hasn't he emailed me? He started it! I answered. It's his turn again!

Restaurant Week

Every year the Dallas/Fort Worth area hold Restaurant Week. This is a great chance to get a 3 course meal for a prix fixe price of $35 per person. Most of the top Dallas restaurants participate in this event, so it's a great time to be able to try these restaurants without breaking the bank. Plus $7 of every meal is donated to the North Texas Food Bank, which I think is a win-win.

That being said, last week my husband and I went with some friends and enjoyed a fabulous steak dinner at III Forks restaurant. Last night we went to Abacus for date night and it was amazing. Luckily some of the restaurants extend the week-long event, so we were able to enjoy two wonderful meals without them being back-to-back.

If you are in the Dallas/Fort Worth area and don't know about this event, I highly suggest you check it out. I am surprised by the number of people that aren't aware this goes on every year. Several other states participate in it as well, so it's well worth a Google search. I look forward to trying new restaurants next year!

Project Runway Rewind

*Warning-spoiler below

Last night was Project Runway’s first episode of the season, which is now showing on Lifetime, instead of the usual Bravo. I always look forward to a new season of designer cry babies as they deal with gasp! “reality.” For those of you who missed last night’s episode and don’t want to know who was kicked off, beware of a spoiler below.

The designer’s challenge this week was to design a dress for the red carpet, and they could pick any red carpet event they wanted. Here are the 16 designers in order of first appearance with my first impression of them, followed by my impression of their design on the runway:

Ra’Mon from Chicago, IL
First Impression: Med school? Designer? Wow. That takes guts to go from “Hi, I am in med school studying to become a neurosurgeon. What do you do?” to “Hi, I am trying to become a designer and hoping to make it on Project Runway. Can I borrow some money for the subway?”

Runway Impression: It’s really awesome that Ra’Mon has a profession to “fall back on,” but this guy is soooo not going to need it. His dress was awesome! Of course, he will have to shake it up a little in the future as the competition gets fiercer, but for now, I’m digging him.

Logan from Seattle, WA
First Impression: He plucks his eyebrows. Really, that’s all.

Runway Impression: This dress was red carpet ready for the Cate Blanchett-style crowd, with a very elegant look, but I felt the gray color looked more old and matronly than hip.

Johnny from LA, CA
First Impression: Woah, another recovering addict? Project Runway’s had one before (anyone remember Jeffrey, who made that girl’s mother cry???). At first I was not too sure about this guy, but I definitely give him props for overcoming a meth addiction and for giving new meaning to the phrase “try, try, TRY, again” (he added that third “try” in there and finally succeeded in getting on Runway!)

Runway Impression: Ok, after a breakdown on day 1, I was ready to write this guy off. I have a personal problem with people who CRY on reality TV-especially over a DRESS! But this guy got some Tim Gunn advice, locked it up, and made a spectacular runway dress. BTW-I did love the red, even if Michael Kors wasn’t a fan.

Gordana, Charleston, SC
First Impression: This woman has the drive to succeed. She emigrated from former Yugoslavia and now owns her own shop. That doesn’t just happen without a lot of hard work and talent.

Runway Impression: Her runway dress was very futuristic, and although I did like the color and style, the top around the bust was a little too avant-garde for my taste.

Malvin from NYC
First Impression: He has a look about him that screams “I am dressing weird and provocatively, but acting like this is totally normal, but really I am just bursting inside knowing that everyone is staring at my asymmetrical hair and flannel top that is now cool thanks to Lauren Conrad on The Hills. Oh, and also, I know everything. Even more than Heidi and Tim combined. So ha.” At some point on this show, the whistling sound you hear will be his ego deflating.

Runway Impression: Oh Malvin. His dress, although it had interesting details, looked like it was made in a time before dye was discovered. The dress was the color of a wheat sack, which completely washed out the nice detailing on the front and back. Also, it was more suitable to wear on a Sunday stroll with your significant other than on the red carpet.

Carol Hannah from Charleston, SC
First Impression: I don’t have a clear first impression of her although I believe she has had some success as a small-boutique dress designer.

Runway Impression: Her dress had a unique shape to the bodice, and I did like it, but it was not a top pick for me.

Qristyl from NYC
First Impression: She designs clothes for all sizes and shapes. This will be a problem in the future, as the models Project Runway uses are tiny. However, I do love her, “I don’t call it plus-size, I call it plus-sexy” mantra.

Runway Impression: This dress looked like my third grade bedroom curtains threw up over a bolt of purple satin fabric. Not a fan.

Shirin from Richardson, TX
First Impression: Her name means “sweet” in Farsi. How come I have a feeling that “sweet” won’t last too long on this show? However, she is from right down the road from me, so I feel the need to provide her some Collin County support. Also, I love that she features items that can be worn two ways, which is great for us gals on a budget.

Runway Impression: She gets props for creating two pieces, a dress and a shrug-which solves that tricky problem of what to wear over a nice dress on a cool night. However, I am not wowed by the color or the styling of the dress, although the back was creative.

Nicolas from NYC
First Impression: Mr.“basically, I’m known in NYC as the Feather Prince.” Ooookkkay-I don’t know what that means, but I am willing to bet you are one of those people that goes around and tells people what nickname they should call you a la George on Seinfeld. Like, “hey, you can just call me Feather Prince, everyone else does.” And his BFF is like, “Dude, your name is Nick, with a “k.”

Runway Impression: This short black and gray criss-cross dress looked like haute couture for a construction worker. The gray criss-crosses along the front of the dress resembled the reflective fabric sewn into running clothes and other night gear. This dress was meant for a rave not a runway.

Mitchell from Savannah, GA
First Impression: I am trying to figure this guy out. He might be too much in tune to the business side of things, and not so much in creating designs, but we will see. Also, I am willing to bet he is a Drama King.

Runway Impression: Poor model who had to wear this dress. Think of a Victorian collar attached to a floor-length see-through cloak. Yikes.

Epperson from NYC
First Impression: Lovin’ the dreads. He is a father with kids the age of some of his fellow designers. I think the judges will be impressed with his maturity and how his life experiences influence his designs..

Runway Impression: His dress was very dramatic, both in styling and color, and although I loved the overall image of it, I did not think the tea length looked matched the high drama of the dress.

Christopher, Shakopee, MN
First Impression: Wow. Minnesota-didn’t expect that. Never went to college and completely self-taught. You gotta have respect for people who walk in to Project Runway and compete against the contestants who have been previously employed by famous designers or contestants who are already known around NYC, aka “the Feather Prince.” The “some day I will be amazing” mantra is a little corny though.

Runway Impression: Wow. His dress is exactly what the Mileys and Vanessas of today are wearing. The cute short dress was very hip, yet still had a classic shape to it. I could totally see myself rocking that dress! The only bad thing is, Chris cried during the runway show. AHHHHHH I hate that!

Ari Fish, Kansas City, MO
First Impression: She talks to fabric. This could be interesting. She seems the most conceptual of the group, and very futuristic. Also, she does not sketch, instead she meditates and stands on her head.

Runway Impression: I think when the judges say “design a dress for the red carpet” they mean design a dress so that one of their celebrity BFFs can call them up tomorrow and say, “Nina, dahling, I simply MUST have that dress I saw on Project Runway for my movie opening tonight.” I think what Ari thought when they issued the challenge was, “It is the year 2080. All the stupid people have been killed off through a process of natural selection. The only people left are beautiful and smart; therefore, it is possible that someone may be receiving an Emmy AND the Nobel Prize in one fantastic night! This woman will accept her awards in a reflective vest and hot pants because dresses will be considered environmentally unfriendly for using too much fabric.” It was a mere misunderstanding on Ari’s part, that’s all.

Althea, Dayton, OH
First Impression: She had good internships at well-known designers, but I did not get a good feel for her personality.

Runway Impression: Althea’s runway dress was surprisingly old-fashioned in a glamorous and stunning way.

Irina, NYC
First Impression: Her dog is her inspiration.

Runway Impression: I liked the dress, but didn’t think it was one of the best.

Louise, Dallas
First Impression: She has a retro look to her, and loves vintage. I think her love of 20’s, 30’s, and 40’s inspired clothing will give her designs a unique flair.

Runway Impression: Her dress was stunning again, in a vintage way. It was two-toned, had amazing detailing on the shoulder of the dress, and an interesting hemline. Also, she had constructive criticism of her own dress on the runway, which not too many designers do. I am willing to bet that her ability to think practically and not let her ego get in the way will be a good thing. This designer is one to watch.

In the end, the bottom three were Ari, Qristyl, and Mitchell, and our futuristic gal-pal Ari went home. This was a mistake I think, to send home one of the most creative and forward thinking people on the show. No Ari would not have won the competition, but I would have loved to see some more of her concepts play out on fabric before sending her home. Qristyl was my pick to get the boot, er, I mean stiletto. There is no way to overcome bad design and bad fabric choice. At least Ari had a good explanation for how she developed her design, and Mitchell had a semi-good excuse for his disaster. Oh well, I guess we will have to wait until next week to see if it was a good idea to keep Qristyl.
Any thoughts Readers?

Are You Sure You Want To Eat That?

Why do men (specifically older men) at work feel it's necessary to question everything their women co-workers eat? For instance, there is a man at work that considers himself everyone's personal nutrition and fitness expert. The problem? No one (that I know of) solicits his advice. An example. As stated in my initial post, I love all things sweet. Unfortunately for me and my waistline, another co-worker feels the need to sit a GIANT bowl of chocolate (that he refills everyday) right by my desk. I don't know where he buys this chocolate, but I could swear it is the freshest chocolate that has ever touched my lips. I try to avoid the bowl, but temptation gets the best of me around 3PM, so I get my daily fix by way of a Miniature Hershey's. Okay, it's two Miniature Hershey's. Mind you, I usually workout before work and eat a healthy lunch, specifically so I can enjoy my chocolate because I know that either way, I am going to eat the chocolate. So everyday when I am on my way to get the chocolate, I look to make sure my health advisor is not around, but what always happens? He jumps from around the corner with a "I Caught You" look in his eyes and then he tells me that I need to go back to the gym since I ate the chocolate. These words literally came out of his mouth.

So what did he do today? Our work was giving out free donuts and my friend got one. After all, they were free. Like clockwork, this guy was lurking around waiting to pounce on his next victim and says to my friend, "You better be careful, you don't want to get any 'door dings' from that donut." Are you kidding me? Did he really say that out loud?

Another favorite was when I ran into him in the cafeteria and he told me I looked like I lost five pounds. He followed that with "Well, the five pounds you had gained, but at least I was smart enough not to say anything when you gained it". If the reader is asking if I ever told him I gained five pounds, the answer is no. It's no wonder people are self-conscious. Not only is this man seriously looking to get decked one of these days (by me), but he's not the only one that makes these types of comments.

So why do these men feel it's necessary to ask (and at an octave that EVERYONE can hear) "Are you sure you want to be eating that?" Yeah I'm sure. I didn't say anything when you were eating a cheeseburger and fries while I had a Lean Cuisine. So lay off.

Do I Know that Girl? Oh Crap, I Do!

My friends Mojito Maven (Double M) and Sweet N' Lo (SNL) are always telling me that I must blog about my experiences with online dating because some of them I admit, are downright hilarious. To be candid, I do in fact subscribe to an online dating service known as Eharmony (yes, as in, "this will be an everlasting love for me . . . "). Well I would have loved to start off my first Eharmony post talking about some guy that I went on a date with, but instead must tell you about the most unusual situation which I encountered tonight.

I logged on to Eharmony to view my most recent matches. After clicking on a few guys, I found myself staring at Jason's profile. As I always do when I evaluate a prospect, I click to the pictures first, and there . . . staring right back at me, was Jason and . . . do I know that girl? Oh crap, I do! Oh sorry, I got sidetracked by my own shock but have now recovered. Staring back at me was a girl whom I do not care for one tiny bit. I would not say that I despise this girl, because let's face it, I do not know her well and do not often find myself in social situations where I am subjected to her annoying "look at me" antics and exclamations of "ooooohhhh, my God, I absolutely can-NOT get drunk tonight because I didn't even get home until 4am this morning" (this of course being yelled at full volume while double-fisting a couple of cocktails.) BTW-Yes, I realize the irony of my last statement juxtaposed with the fact that my pen name is symbolic of a wonderful blend of vodka and a splash of apple or other fruity mix. But, no, I don't despise her because I feel sorry for her, and instead of letting her craziness get to me, I merely try to avoid her. However, THAT apparently is harder to do than I originally thought because now she has invaded my Eharmony account by being BFF enough with one of my Matches to warrant a picture on his profile!!!! It may be illegal in the United States, but not in the Courtroom of Princess Tartini-I declare that Jason is guilty by association! Match is CLOSED.

Deep breath.

Now that I think about this situation, it has occurred to me that this is the perfect segway into my next Eharmony post, which will occur next week, where I detail out the top seven types of photos that SHOULD NOT be used as profile pics on an online dating site. HINT: Picture with you and another girl who is NOT your sister or your MILF is one of those seven types! Also, picture with you and a drama queen of a girl who is recognizable by potential Match is also a definite NO. Please keep on the look out for another Eharmony post where I will explain in great detail that yes, a picture can be worth 1,000 words.

Questions for my Dear Readers:
1) Have you ever been on a dating site and recognized someone in the picture that your Match had posted? Were you like, "hey, saw you on Dan's online profile . . . so you like camping and dogs too huh?"
2) Have you ever been an accessory person in a photo that someone has posted on a dating website? Were you even AWARE of this?

Respectfully,
Princess Tartini

That's Not My Name

They call me Sweet N' Lo. Well, truth be told no one really ever calls me that, but it has become my pen name, so I embrace it with open arms. While my love for "the pink stuff" is an open addiction, I never knew it was observed by others until Princess Tartini (PT) and Mojito Maven (MM) suggested the name. Thanks girls.
I am happily married, currently kid-free (although the pressure is mounting), and on the downhill slide to 30. I've lived all over the US, dream of living abroad, and call Texas "home".
In this blog, PT will share the adventures of the dating scene and I will provide a view of what all this dating leads up to...marriage. You can also be sure there will be plenty of entries about our everyday lives, thoughts, and the interesting people we encounter.

How Should I Introduce Myself?

The way that someone introduces themselves has a lot to do with what sort of mood they are in. For example, I just finished watching a rerun of the last episode of Friends, so of course, I am feeling more solemn than fun, mostly due to the fact that I just lost six of my closest friends in a 30 minute season finale. Very sad.

With that, let me begin. My name is Princess Tartini, PT for short. You may have read about me on my friend Mojito Maven’s (Double M’s) blog, makemineamojito.com. Double M, my other good friend Sweet N’ Lo (SNL) who will co-write this blog with me, and I have been friends for about 3 years now and owe our deep friendship to Company XX, where we all work.

I live in Allen, TX with my dog J-Dog, who is a continual source of goofy laughs for me. I am 26, single, and attempting to date via Eharmony . . . I will have much to say about this subject in the future. Double M tells me that my tales of profile pics gone bad, office horror stories, and other happenings that “funny” stars like Raymond and Bill Engvall get paid the big bucks to tell about are worth publishing on the WWW. That's it for now, I'll be in touch!