Entries from December 2009 ↓

I decided that, after a week of spending money every day (even it was only about $3), I needed a day of buying nothing. That day was today.

Yesterday could have been the day, too, but I needed to get gas for my car. A stupid, necessary evil.

Anyway, so today I resolved not to spend any money. It definitely felt like I had an angel on one shoulder and a devil on the other—I wanted stuff all day long.

Coworker Jen wanted company to Target over lunch. I said I would go, but I couldn’t buy anything. When we got there I had resolved that if they had the right kind of filter for my vaccuum (which I was 98% sure they wouldn’t) that I would buy it. And I would buy some socks.

Of course, they did not have the filter.

So I looked at socks and I looked at toys and I looked at movies and video games. I also looked at purses and long underwear*. And I wanted to buy so many things, but I refrained.

At the end of the day I started thinking about dinner. I thought about how much I wanted pizza (from Pizza Man, yum-yum-yummy!) but I think Jason and I will order one tomorrow night. So I wanted Chipotle instead, but now I always think about calories and carbohydrates and my brain totally ruins these kind of cravings for me.

Instead I went to the gym (even though I didn’t want to—yet another internal battle) and then I went home, where I ate brats. If I had spaghetti sauce I would’ve had spaghetti and garlic bread (which would’ve induced a two-hour nap, for sure).

And now it’s 11 p.m. and blah blah blah I’m rambling.

Tomorrow I will go back to spending money (on pizza and Redbox rentals, at least) and Sunday I have brunch plans, followed by a trip to the Mall of America. I’m not buying anything there, though, unless it’ll be an awesome Christmas present for someone.

P.S. None of the photos posted with this story are actually related to the story. In case you couldn’t tell.

* Side note: How have I lived in the Midwest all of my life and never owned long underwear? It’s friggin’ cold here in December and January.

In case you haven’t heard, Pantone just announced that the color of the year for 2010 is turquoise!

Pantone is pleased to announce PANTONE 15-5519 Turquoise, an inviting, luminous hue, as the Color of the Year for 2010. Combining the serene qualities of blue and the invigorating aspects of green, Turquoise inspires thoughts of soothing, tropical waters and a comforting escape from the everyday troubles of the world, while at the same time restoring our sense of wellbeing.

I’m quite a fan of the color.

In many cultures, Turquoise is believed to be a protective talisman, a color of deep compassion and healing, and a color of faith and truth, inspired by water and sky. Through years of color word-association studies, we also find that to many people, Turquoise represents an escape, taking them to a tropical paradise that is pleasant and inviting—even if it is only a fantasy.

Whether envisioned as a tranquil ocean surrounding a tropical island or a protective stone warding off evil spirits, Turquoise is a color that most people respond to positively. It is universally flattering, has appeal for men and women, and translates easily to fashion and interiors. With both warm and cool undertones, Turquoise pairs nicely with any other color in the spectrum. Turquoise adds a splash of excitement to neutrals and browns, complements reds and pinks, creates a classic maritime look with deep blues, livens up all other greens, and is especially trend-setting with yellow-greens.

If you need suggestions for a turquoise fix, go visit the House of Turquoise.

I attended Adobe MAX in Los Angeles this year with my friend and coworker, Erin. My purpose at the conference was to focus on learning Flash Catalyst and to develop more web design/CSS skillz.

I’m just a girl who wants to be a better nerd.

Erin and I made friends with the locals. Everyone from Los Angeles was super happy!

The stage in the Nokia Theatre L.A. LIVE was cool, but had no bearing on the presentations like it did last year. I wish the speakers had interacted with it more, I guess.

Erin and I met Kevin Lynch (Adobe’s CTO)! He’s definitely the right kind of “celebrity” for Adobe-loving nerds like me.

Erin picked this woman as her favorite bartender.

Like last year, I drew the Pearson VUE logo on the community chalkboard. Gotta represent, yo!

Celebrities that attended include Mark Hamill (accompanied by Chewbacca and Darth Vader, with Queen Amidala and Obi Wan Kenobi clones) and John Mayer. I don’t care about either of them, but I do care about…

Stephanie Sullivan, the goddess of CSS! If you’re a web designer, you need to read her book. I have learned so many practical and useful tips. It was very cool to talk to her a bit this year—we kept running into each other! It’s a small MAX, after all.

The MAX bash wasn’t quite as crazy/cool as last year’s (though can anything beat the Cal Academy?). Erin and I checked out all of the entertainment (the Conga Room, the Grammy Museum, and the ESPN Zone) then spent most of the evening on the Nokia Theatre L.A. LIVE plaza, listening to the live band (fronted by an Adobe employee) and chatting with new friends.

Ok, so maybe I was drinking a few beers, too. (I paid for that the next day.)

Erin and I drooled over this car for a while. We asked if we could get in, but they wouldn’t let us. Dang.

I don’t think I’ll be attending Adobe MAX 2010, but who knows? It’s a whole year away.

I brought home a bunch of fun stuff, including a fully autographed copy of Stephanie Sullivan and Greg Rewis’ book, a coffee-splattered attendee badge, and silly little buttons (“Kiss Me, I’m Suite” and “I Weave Dreams” are the cutest). All in all, a good conference. Using what I learned this year, I’m working in Adobe Illustrator and Flash Catalyst to develop a departmental holiday e-card. Wish me luck!