The Penske Chronicles

My dog, Penske, is an 11 year old boxer who still thinks she's a lapdog and a total puppy. This dog has all the personality in the world and is truly one of the best dogs I've ever seen in my life. She is most known for sleeping all day every day, but of course her sleeping locale depends on what's going on around the house. Her new favorite game is trying to trick her way into getting more treats by wanting to go outside, waiting on the deck for a minute, and then coming back in and expecting to get one. We think she's finally catching on that we're not going to fall for it, but she keeps trying none the less. Here are a few pictures I managed to catch of her holiday adventures this week.

This is Penske cuddled up in my bed. She usually gets up at the crack of dawn with my mother, but after going out, eating her breakfast, and scoping out what's going on around the house, she can usually be found in bed with me until close to noon for her morning nap.

Here we have Penske in her typical favorite spot, RIGHT in the middle of all the action. To be more specific, sleeping on top of the strand of lights we were attempting to put onto the christmas tree. She hardly flinched as we tried to pull them from in front of her and then just plopped her head down on top of them without a care in the world.

Penske can also be quite a dainty little lady, and here she is with her paws crossed laying under the table post-Thanksgiving dinner patiently waiting for a scrap of the food that she is apparently unaware is no longer even on the table.

I guess she realized the "patiently waiting" part wasn't working out so well, because here she is taking a proactive stance (and possibly working on her imitation of a mountain goat) trying to sneak some pie from my dad.

The BUCKET GAME!

We'll start this with my acceptance of the fact that IU lost this year. Again. Honestly, whatever. I enjoy the bragging rights that carry over for the year following the game, but I truly just have never been good at following sports or really caring about them, so I'm really not that concerned. Plus as I have stated multiple times, IU is still better at partying, hence the fact that most of us don't really even remember losing (but mostly Lauryn). I will warn you this one's going to be a little long, but probably worth your reading none the less if you've got the time.

Regardless- the day was entertaining in all sorts of ways. It was great to take a break from studying. We had a bit of a last minute issue with not having appropriate tailgating supplies, but scrounged up enough of a variety to get us where we wanted to go. I think you all know what I'm talking about here.

I obviously had to rock my "Puck Furdue" shirt- which led Kelly and I to the realization that we probably will be needing to make some flat out "FUCK PURDUE" shirts in the near future. My goal for next year's tailgating season (that's all I'm really concerned with) is to get an oversized IU football jersey on sale now that the season's winding down so I can just throw on leggings and UGGs and be good to go. Well, UGGs or Cowboy boots, since we somehow just now figured out that they're both perfect for the sneaking of flasks into games.

We also happened to tailgate with THREE of our teachers from high school. And let me tell you- when you're drinking, this always seems to be the most entertaining thought. On our way into the game we happened to stumble on this befittingly decorated tree. What better ornaments for a tree at an IU tailgate? I think Lindsay even added one of our empty IU Bud Light cans to it.

When we got in, we found out that since the student section was "full" thanks to so many Purdue kids, they were redirecting those with student tickets to the COMPLETE OPPOSITE SIDE OF THE STADIUM in a section next to the Purdue band. I'm sorry. I was not having any of this. We bought those tickets months ahead of time and last time I checked WE are the ones whose tuition goes to that school! At that point I was a little rowdy and was ready to throw down with an usher or physically remove the first five people I could locate wearing black and gold so we could have their seats. Thankfully the ushers were telling everyone to only go in "if you already have seats" to which I responded "OF COURSE WE DO" and pushed our way right past. Granted, the seats we got weren't anything wonderful, but at least they were not next to the Purdue band.


Now, note the blue sunglasses on the head in front of the camera. At some point Lauryn thought it would be funny to try to take them off her head, and after a few failed attempts the girl's friend finally caught on and the girl held them in her hands for the rest of the game. I admit it, we're really awful people that sometimes shouldn't be allowed out of the house.

THEN Lauryn and I decided we would try to go get some food. This was a great idea since on top of our pregame and tailgate we had managed to sneak a few beers in through a hole in the liner of her purse on top of the flask in Kelly's UGGs, and at that point Lauryn was basically not aware of anything going on. We ATTEMPTED to order a hot dog, a chicken sandwich, nachos, a slice of pizza, and a drink. Good thing they were out of practically everything, because we ended up with just a hot dog, nachos, a bottle of water and a diet coke between the two of us.


On our way back to the seats, we seemingly went in the wrong entrance, and found ourselves having NO clue where we even were. Trust me, this is not a drunk thing, but really just the fact that I had been paying no attention to where we were actually sitting in the first place. After several texts to Kelly sounding something like "We're Lost! Come find us!" we were able to find our way back to the seats.

After this, we went back to the apartment and I slept for probably around 15 hours, only to get up to study yet again. All in all, I'd say it was a good day. And definitely representative of how we do it here at IU. Wildly, and obnoxiously, but definitely chock full of fun. And what can I say, I'm not the least bit embarrassed, because with the semester I had and only being able to tailgate and go to TWO of the home games, what else would you expect?

New Hair! New Jacket!

I was luckily able to get a last minute "'trim" in with my stylist Lacey yesterday, and ended up going for a trim on the ends, more layering on the left, and finally doing something about those bangs. I had been trying to grow them out but that mostly consisted of constantly clipping them to the side, and it occurred to me that I didn't really know what I was planning on doing with them once they got grown out anyways. So, we're back to last year's winter bangs!

I also decided that I was sick and tired of laying around in sweatpants and sweatshirts for the last two weeks of studying, and decided to get myself in an actual outfit to cocktail at my best friend Steven's apartment. The outfit worked nicely with the new purple bomber jacket I FINALLY got around to buying from Target.

(I know it probably doesn't appear purple in these pictures, it's a really dark, subtle purple, which is nice, since I was originally aiming for black.)

Bomber Jacket- Target
Dress- Target
Zippered Leggings- Target
Black ankle booties- Payless
(One hell of a cheap outfit!!!)

It had originally bothered me when I couldn't find a single pair of solid colored leggings without a zipper on them, but I'm starting to become kind of fond of them. They went nicely with these shoes- which I bought months ago and have not had the occasion to wear until now!!

I'm still just counting down the days until I have either a webcam or a real camera back to get some better pictures! This has not been a good tech-related semester!

Forever 21 Sales!

Meant to post this a while ago and have of course been without a computer and caught up in the frenzy of studying and stressing for finals. This is a picture of one of the dresses I got on MEGA CLEARANCE at Forever 21. And by that I mean... around $5. Which, even for Forever 21, is quite the steal. I also got one in the same pattern but purple, because as far as I'm concerned you cannot have too many summer dresses, especially when they're only five dollars.

This one I wore with brown leggings, my trusty Durango Cowboy Boots, and I also wore my brown Old Navy CardiCoat over it. I didn't get a picture with the sweater, but here's one of the dress. It's super fun and flowy and I think will pair well with a million things I've got in my closet, so I'm pretty excited about it.

I'm ALSO pretty excited about the fact that I got to my parents house today to see that my two pairs of Steve Maddens that my mom ordered me for Christmas have arrived! Of course I had to try them on to be sure they fit. The gold Merriees fit LIKE A GLOVE. The Fiesstaas are a little bit more loose as far as what I'm used to in high heels, in that they don't seem to offer as much support. I still love them, and can't wait to get used to them.

I was a little disappointed that they weren't as pink as the looked in the picture. In this picture they look almost purple, but they are definitely a fuschia. In all fairness, that's what the color was listed as on the website... but the pictures all made them look HOT pink.

Regardless, I do still love them, and can't wait until Christmas when I get to unwrap them and WEAR THEM!!!! It's going to be a high heeled Christmas in Alex's Wonderland, that's for sure!

HARD CANDY!

Had to share this with you- because it is my absolute favorite nail polish ever! It's called Hard Candy, and I actually got it in a set of lipgloss/lipstick/nail polish from my friend Jenna for Christmas a year or two ago. AND I LOVE IT!!!!

The shade I have is a really good red color, and kind of deep once you put on a few layers. It's also got the embedded shimmer so it's not too out of control but subtly sparkles!

I really like it because I'm not a fan of the nail polishes that go on too thick or gloppy and are hard to get even, smooth coats with. This one is perfect. I'm not completely sure where all you can get it, but I did just read that it is now available at Wal Mart... which is AWESOME, as it is listed online at only $5! So if you're frustrated with any nail polishes you've been using- definitely check this brand out!

TGIT!

(Thank god it's Thanksgiving! Or, Thanksgiving break, rather.)

Finals have FINALLY finished. Thank goodness. I wasn't sure if I was going to make it out of them alive or not. I did, which I guess I will have to be Thankful for on Thursday, but I don't think my GPA will be so lucky. Either way, ICORE is almost all said and done, with the exception of the 10 day case coming up between Thanksgiving and Christmas Breaks. I am hoping my group can some how rise to the occasion and pull of an A so I maybe have SOME hope of an A in at least one of my classes and not have to settle for all B's! Though, when all is said and done, I guess I would be ok with that.

I am also hoping I'll be back to a more regular blogging pace here in the near future. I am crossing my fingers that I'll have my laptop back by the end of this week, but we will see!! Regardless, being home in good old Newburgh, Indiana at my parent's house for the week, there will at least be quite a few updates coming to you in the next few days!

My main priority is going to be to get a Bucket Game blog out there, because Saturday was full of all sorts of interesting little tidbits and pictures I HAVE to share. So hopefully that will be to you later tonight or tomorrow!!

A few picture updates!

Just wanted to share some of the pictures I've uploaded from my phone from Chicago. I'm sure there will still be another once I get home this weekend and get my camera uploaded. Also- I've updated a few posts over at Wonderland Kitchen so if you aren't following that yet you should check it out. Again I'll apologize for the so far vagueness of ingredient amounts- I promise I'll start keeping better track!!!

My dad's AMAZING lamb osso bucco, winter root vegetable mash, and sauteed spinach!

Soldier Field and Lake Michigan from the roof of my Dad's apartment building.

On the roof of my Dad's apartment building- awesome views!

My sauteed garlic shrimp downtown at Joe's Stone Crab- SO delicious!!!

Chicago sunset from my Dad's balcony.

Come on take a ride on the Indiana weather roller coaster!

It's almost halfway through November, and it was 70 DEGREES outside today!!!! I have no problem with this, though for fall I'd generally prefer it to be a little cooler. The only issue is the attempt to appropriately dress yourself for the varying temperatures that occur on a day to day and even hour to hour basis.

We'll start with last week. I have no idea what the actual temperature was, my guess would be somewhere in the 50's most of the time, but it was cool enough to need to keep yourself covered. (Not to mention the room I've got all my classes in is an absolute icebox). This was an absolutely comfortable yet not lazy outfit from one day of class last week. Old navy black t-shirt dress and grey cardicoat, zippered grey leggings, and the ever trusty black UGGs which I'm afraid I've drug through hell and back (The other day Kelly asked why they don't stand up straight on their own when I'm not wearing them. Haha, they're WAY worn in).

Today, I get up and see the temperature is 70, and almost start freaking out because I just don't know what to wear. I've always had a transition issue, and tend to just mentally dive straight from warm weather into cool weather, and vice versa, and put all old outfits out of mind for the time being. I ended up wearing a black t-shirt with a small ruffle around the neck, arms, and bottom (I know, I wear black a lot- but always try to accessorize with color!) and a purple scarf from Target, paired with Jeans and my Old Navy silver sandals. I ended up being a little cold thanks to not taking into account the wind chill or the fact that my classroom is freezing, so I'd say as far as being weather appropriate this outfit was a fail.

I guess the point of this story is that I'd really just appreciate if this whole global warming thing could cut it out, or if the Indiana weather gods could just get their act together and start regulating the day to day stuff a little better... anything to take the guesswork out of trying to get ready in the morning!!!!

Hello from the Windy City!

SUCH a gorgeous weekend in Chicago! Though definitely windy, as one would expect.

Kelly and I drove up this weekend to visit my dad, as he just moved in to an apartment up here for his new job located just a few blocks east of Michigan Ave and just a bit north of Soldier Field. One of the best locations I could possibly imagine! Here's the view from his balcony...

Last night we went to dinner at this wonderful restaurant called Opera, located a few blocks west of his apartment on Wabash. It was sort of a Chinese fusion type restaurant, and was absolutely delicious. It's so awesome how close the apartment is to so many cool places like that. The inside was really dark with this gorgeous, colorful, dim lamps hanging from ceilings, and the kinds of tables with mismatched chairs that went surprisingly well together. Our service was also great, and I'd totally recommend this place for anyone looking for somewhere cool and a little out of the ordinary!

After Opera, we went to see KISS at the Uniter Center. (Yes, they're still alive. Yes, they still kick ass even if you CAN see their wrinkles through their makeup). If you've never seen KISS, and you're even a LITTLE bit of a fan, you have got to see them before you die (or before they do). It's such a great show, with all the flashy stuff along the lines of fireworks and flames, flamespitting, blood, flying, you name it. This picture taken during ROCK AND ROLL ALL NIGHT pretty much captures the mood. CONFETTI STORM!

Today we went for lunch at Joe's Stone Crab, which was SO SO good. We got the crab claws, and Kelly and my dad got the chopped salads: Seafood and Chinese Chicken, both of which were fantastic. I got the Garlic Sauteed Gulf Shrimp which was just as good.

After that we headed to Michigan Avenue for shopping, and let me tell you: BIGGEST FOREVER 21 (XXI) I've ever seen in my life. Twice as big as that in the St. Louis West County Mall. Almost overwhelmingly big- it's hard to direct your attention and focus on anything. I did manage to get two summer dresses and a shirt that were on SUPER Clearance, as well as a pretty cute dress that wasn't on clearance, but was only $25 dollars. Overall, I got three dresses, a shirt, a clutch, and three pairs of earrings for $60. I'm not complaining!!!

Tonight I think we're staying in to do my dad's always delicious cooking, as well as cocktails, of course! It also looks as though I'll be relying on my camera phone for pictures for the rest of the trip since my camera battery cover (Which has been on the fritz, per se, for a while) finally fell off and was lost in the KISS confetti storm, and now the stupid camera won't even turn on. I'm so over all of these technical issues with computers and cameras and everything else! I guess this is just a sign that I finally need to take it in for repair- something I've been meaning to do for a while but haven't had the time with Halloween and various trips I didn't want to be camera-less for!

RIP Halloween :-(

So since my laptop isn't working it's going to be a bit until I can get MY pictures uploaded, at which point I'll have some good ones of the costume, Tink and Peter, and various others. For now we'll have to suffice with those stolen from other facebook pages or e-mailed through my phone...

Halloween was pretty good. Not as crazy as years past but we did manage to find an amazing house party with good dancing and free booze! I also apparently have a new boyfriend in the form of the 60 year old Russian late night bus driver who hits on my every time we ride the bus. "You have a nice night, pretty lady!" Other highlights include me in a verbal throw down with the douche bag dressed as Nick Carter on the bus about who knows what (I get feisty when I drink dark liquor, I guess), meeting the entire crew of Sesame Street, and COMPLETE confusion that ensued with the time change.

Not only could I not remember whether it was forward or back an hour (Even with the saying "Spring forward, fall back" I kept getting it confused) but the time changed automatically on our phones, which NEVER happens on mine, and we couldn't figure out if the bus schedule would still be the same since it was technically a different hour. I still don't remember if it was or not... because when we got to the bus stop there was a guy dressed as Michael Jackson with a babydoll pinned to the crotch of his pants which I obviously found way more amusing and then found myself in an intense discussion about Marketing and which professors to take grad school with. (Another habit of mine, serious drunk conversation? I don't know why this always happens...)

Here's a preview of the Tink and Peter couple costumes Kelly and I did.... in all our glory...

Here is my best friend Lauryn, sporting her makeup job I provided her with for her Lady Gaga costume. :-) I think we should just drop out of school and go pro at being Lady Gaga and a Makeup artist. Though I did just notice the bottom right part of the lightning bolt is a little crooked and my OCD will never let me live that one down. (By the way Nickie- I saw pictures on your facebook of your outfit and you were one hell of a Lady Gaga too!!!)

I'll leave you with one more group shot, where I unfortunately have my eyes closed, but you get the picture. I'm hoping a real update will come sooner than later!!!