Eat Your Veggies

My car is home! Super yay. Nothing too major wrong. Two things that has to do with the ignition switch. Both parts were switched out. Glad to have my baby back. I seriously love the Saab more than any car either, and in winter, it may be solely for the heated seats. Yes, raising hand, I am a girl! ;).

Kurt has been in a divorce trial the past two days. I love hearing about Kurt's trials, something amusing always happens and Kurt always seems to piss the other side off a lot. He is amazing to watch in trial, it's like he does not even need to think or look at notes, or anything. Love watching him. Being an attorney really is like acting sometimes and Kurt would be oscar winning, LOL. I really hope we win this trial, of course, the decision comes while we are in St Maarten on Friday. I will have to have Angie email me or something. He got the decision of another hard trial he did where the Mom was trying to terminate our client's rights. Long story, but we won that one too and he gets to start seeing his kid again, so he was thrilled. Super yay.

I saw Million Dollar Quartet at the Fisher last night with my Aunt. part of our season tickets. Anyway, I was not expecting anything uber awesome, but I absolutely loved it. Awesome singers, interesting show and just great all around. I loved the guy who played Jerry Lee Lewis. Anyway, highly suggest this show. We had dinner ahead of time at Carabba's, which was super yummy and a total cheat meal. ;). My new snack idea, which is working out well, is baby carrots. I take them daily to work in a little baggie and eat them throughout the day as a snack. It's making my not snack on anything else, which is awesome. We have been eating a lot of clementine oranges too, and I think I am doing fairly well at my trying to eat more fruits and veggies just by only snacking on those during the day and nothing else.

We are closing the Ypsilanti office this week & I am thrilled. We opened it initially because a former associate lived near there, and it worked better than cuz she did all the appointments out there. Since then, it's been a pain as Kurt has been going there a lot, and that causes back ups in work in Taylor, it's a vicious circle. Im excited to steal the super kewl retro furniture I had there and put it in the Monroe office. So, we are now just going to have Taylor and Monroe, which are the ones I like. Yay. Anything that takes some work off my plate makes me happy.

I found this house listing online in Tarcoles, Costa Rica (right next to jaco) and the place looked perfect and the house was an amazing deal. Wrote the realtor and it was sold. BOO. It's fine cuz we kinda want to wait to buy until closer to our move, but at the same time, I was like HEY, why can't things sit on the market forever like Michigan? I guess it's because people would rather live in paradise, or at least I would.

I need to start planning my March Tampa trip. I am taking my Mom to visit my grandparents in late March for a weekend as her bday trip. We had so much fun last year, I can't wait to go again, and I think I have enough miles to get free tickets, score! and of course, we have a free place to stay. can't wait to sit by the pool there, go shopping and run outside.

Off to bed. Hope all is well with everyone.

Newt Gingrich, Breast Feeding and Healthy Choices

click here to read this funny article about why Newt Gingrich annoys me. And I am not posting this to say I support Obama in the next election, because I do not. Newt just terrifies me, LOL. Go Ron Paul! Or if I can't have my way with that one, go third party candidate.

And while we are on are things that annoy us and pet peeves, here are some topics that annoy me lately.

1. Societies obsession with breast feeding and breast feeding in public. OK, you are a Mom and you breastfeed. That's awesome if that is what you chose, and what works for you. It is not the ONLY way or the BEST way and it does not make you superior to Moms who do not breastfeed, nor does it make your baby's health superior. Some Moms cannot breast feed for one reason or another and some choose not to. Do yourself a favor and stop judging before you know the facts. I, for one, was not breast fed, and neither was my sister. We are both healthy, intelligent adults. In fact, i rarely get sick and have never been in the hospital for anything, so my Mom's choice to not breast feed did not lead me into an adulthood of being sick all the time like the articles one reads would lead you to think. No idea if I would breast feed or not, but I would make my decision based on what it best for me and my baby, and not because a doctor or moms out there pressured me into anything. Also, babies need to eat, so if a Mom is breast feeding in public, stop staring in disdain or muttering under your breath. It is a natural thing done to feed a child. So, stop acting like mothers are offending you by feeding their child. Just get over it people. Vent over.

2. Working out, different forms of eating. PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE PEOPLE. Stop acting like your way of eating or working out is the superior way, or better than someone else's way. I wish everyone could just be happy for everyone else and their way of being healthy. I am a pescatarian. I try to eat healthy, which to me is low fat, high protein, low cal. My workouts consist of a lot of cardio (running, biking), and strength training (light weights, resistance bands , etc). This has worked well for me and has helped me lose 60 pounds and be in the best shape of my life. I wear a smaller size and have more muscle tone than I did in high school when I was in sports year round. MY way would not work for everyone. In fact, it may not work for most people. On the same note, YOUR way may not work for everyone and YOUR way is not better than mine. To each their own, right? The internet has just made it so much easier for everyone to judge everyone else far too harshly. I like to research different ways of living and eating and mixing them into my own. For example, I have friends who eat Paleo/Primal and I find it interesting because I like learning about other's lifestyles. I like how it takes processed foods out of your diet and focuses on being more natural, this is a diet goal of mine too. But, when I try to read up on it, the blogs are soooooo judgmental, almost condescending. People will ask valid questions and get snotty responses from the blog writers. Seriously. i am sure that attitude makes people see things YOUR way. Also, I don't care that your 10 minute video means you are done working out in 10 minutes and in amazing shape. I enjoy working out longer than that. It's a time of the day I get to zone out and not think. So, if I want to run 5 miles, please just let me do it, and don't tell me if I did your workout, I would be done in 10 minutes. less time does not necessarily mean better unless that was your goal to begin with. Not mine and not many others either.

3. How society is so complacent and just accepts everything the government says and does without question, especially if society believes that it is protecting us from alleged 'terrorism'. we now have laws that allow the government to imprison us for no reason. if they think we might maybe be a terrorist. Sigh. Ron Paul is the ONLY person running for president right now that sees a problem with this. well, of course. most politicians love control that is almost dictatorship like. Who wouldn't want to be the ruler of the World, right? Who would want to answer to the House and Senate, those pesky people there to make sure there are checks and balances in place, what a nuisance. LOL.

i think that's enough annoyances for the day. i am going to go work out, and hit my kickboxing bag while thinking of these annoyances, and having a great workout. What is annoying you lately? :). Happy Sunday!

Uggs and Car Probs

Poor little car.

I was driving home from court today, talking to my Mom on the phone, and suddenly, my car (the Saab) started not accelerating. weird. Hung up with my Mom and pulled almost to the side of the road and it just turned off. Fabulous. I was not quite to the side of the road, on a major highway (the Lodge Freeway) and in a spot right around a corner where people could not see me until turning the corner. Called AAA right away, and got out of the car so I was not sitting there in danger. Of course, it was freezing today, about 27 degrees. So, I am standing on the side of the road, wearing a skirt, nylons, and 4 inch t-strap heels, waiting for my Mom. A bunch of people stopped to see if I needed help, and eventually two guys pushed my car to the side of the road. People are so helpful, truly. One guy stopped, I told him I was fine, and he came back 10 minutes later telling me that he has two sisters, and he would not want them standing on the side of the road in Detroit alone, and he insisted on standing with me. And then, one of my attorney friends stopped, left, then came back and said he could not leave me standing there. The tow truck was there by then, so my attorney friend gave me a ride to the office. Kurt and I met the tow truck at the car mechanic and we left the car there. Not sure what is wrong yet, but apparently, something is wrong with my gas reader thing, as I know I had like 40 miles left until I needed gas, yet the guy said I was out of gas. They did say there is something else going on as well with the ignition or something, so they are checking that out as well. Had to cancel a facial and a nail appointment for this week since I don't know when we will have the car back and both the Porsches are parked for the winter, so we are down to one vehicle now (the jeep).

Was happy to come back to the office to a large box from Ideeli which contained my new Uggs. got an amazing deal on them, and I plan on wearing them for my walk to court then changing into heels for these cold days. They are super cute and comfy. LUV THEM. Cannot believe I waited this long to purchase, however, I could not stomach the retail price on them. I got them for about $100 off retail. Also, this dress arrived. I loved the color, and it is super adorable on. I love the belted dress look.

American Lung Cancer Climb

I talked Kurt into a charity event with me. We are climbing 70 flights of stairs at the Ren Cen in Detroit, MI, to help raise money for lung cancer research. We both have to raise $100. We started a Haskell Law Firm team, so if anyone in the area would like to join our team and be part of a really kewl experience, please sign up on the site.

Click here to donate to our cause. We would really appreciate it, it's a tax write off, and you will be helping an awesome cause and organization.

Happy Climbing!

Nothing New

****me and grama, late holiday party Jan 2012. auntie's house.

Nothing major going on, I feel like there is a lack of posting here lately! I think I will do some bullet points, just to post some things that have been going on with us.

• Friday night, had dinner with Kurt, Kory and Rebecca at a fav place of mine in downtown Detroit, Fishbones. We were supposed to use a Groupon I had at Detroit Fish Co., but when I called to make a reservation, they were closed for a private party. On a Friday night. How weird is that? Anyway, had soup and crab cakes at Fishbones, both were awesome. Weirdly, I ran into a guy I had met at court once and gave legal advice to. He saw me walking to the restroom when I walked in and says "lawyer!" I did not turn around cuz, yea, there are a lot of lawyers in downtown Detroit. He then came up to me and we ended up requesting to be sat in his section. Got amazing service. Another great experience at Fishbones. We went and walked around Greektown Casino since they had redone some of the interior. Yea, it solidified why I don't like the casinos in downtown Detroit. It was fun to walk around and throw some money in the slots, but it's no Vegas. The clientele in the casinos in Detroit is not of a high caliber for the most part. People seem depressed, not having fun, and totally too serious.
• Saturday, had a late Dziegeleski christmas at Auntie's house in Canton. It was nice to see everyone, and we all exchanged gifts. It's getting harder for Grama to get around, so we decided to simply order in from a local Italian place, Antonio's. I had broughtb dessert, which was good as well. I got a chocolate creme pie for my Dad (his fav) and tiramisu, which everyone in my family loves. Overall fun night.
• The Detroit Free Press was at the office today to take my picture. weird story, but I have them on Facebook as someone I see statuses too. About a month ago, one of the reporters posted something, asking readers if anyone counted calories on an online program, and had it worked for them. I posted back to tell her about my experience, and that yes, for me, it worked. She ended up calling me, talking to me for a while about the details, and then asking if they could take my pic. So, I may be in the paper. Crazy!
• We are getting excited about our St Maarten trip. Still need to rent a cheap car, but other than that, Im ready to get out of here! :).
• Work for January has been insanely busy. Generally, January is a pretty average month. We are WAY up money wise for January and slammed, which is odd. Good since we just gave everyone raises, but odd. Usually we kinda know our busy times of the year vs average, so I have no idea why this January is so up. Kurt blames the weather. He may be on to something
  
  
  
  **me in my new stuff from grama. warm. great for the colder weather we have coming up! :)
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• Kurt is looking at Greece for my birthday in May. I am a little nervous about booking Greece until closer to my bday because of the back and forth financial issues and turmoil they are having. I guess we will see.........
• Im jealous of my friends Lisa and Brian right now, who are in Poland. well, kinda. It's cold there. but, it's still vacay. :)
• I talked Kurt into doing this stair climb (70 stories) for lung cancer research $$ at the Ren Cen in Detroit. He may kill me at the end, but that's OK, it's for a good cause. hehe. Our friend, jeff, is going as well. And possibly some people from the office.
• One of the things I wanted to do this year was eat less processed food. That goal is not going so well. I think it's much easier for those who don't work the hours I do. Sometimes, I need to grab something quick and I don't have the time to prep my food for the week. I need to make a better effort at this. And no, this does not mean I am going Paleo or Primal, just want to make an effort to eat more natural food. Since there is a frig full of Lean Cuisine meals at the office, this is obviously not going to happen 100% of the time--I still am counting calories on livestrong.com, trying to eat low fat/calorie, and high protein. it's works for me, so I am sticking with it. :).
• working out is going great. Have been working in a LOT more free weights, resistance bands, kettle balls, etc. and i am totally noticing the difference in my arm and leg tone. Super yay.

I think that's about it on the posts! :). Like I said, nothing major going on, but wanted to post an update before too much time went by. Hope everyone is doing well in the new year!

*me and kurt at greektown casino.

Jamaica

****Holiday tree some guests put up from a branch in the jungle the staff found and all natural ornaments, i.e. shells, etc. The same guests have been putting up an all natural tree on the beach the past 5 years.

So, I suppose I should post about Jamaica before too much time has gone by.......

We decided to stay at Couples Sans Souci in Ocho Rios. Left on Dec 20 and came home Dec 26, flying Delta via Atlanta.

Flights went smoothly on the way to Jamaica. No delays at all, which was nice. Got there, and there was a long wait to get through customs. When we got the front of the line, Kurt had to go to a special health area to be asked questions because he had been out of the country in the past 6 weeks (his Costa Rica business trip). I found the luggage while he did that and we headed to the Couples area of the airport. The resort had an area of the airport where you checked in, could use the bathroom, get a drink, relax, and wait for the shuttle to the resort to get there. About 10 minutes in, the shuttle was ready. It was us and two other couples in the van, and they were actually going to another Couples resort. Ride took about 1.45 from Montego Bay to Ocho Rios. We talked to the other couples quite a bit--could not watch more scenery as it was getting dark. Got to the resort and check in was easy, we were the only ones in the lobby. A beach party was going on that night for dinner, so we headed to our room E8 (evergreen building), changed into better hot weather clothing, and headed down to the party. Got down there, found a place to sit and ate. We were starving from not eating very much that day. We were pretty tired, so we did not stay much for the show at dinner. Headed back to the room, threw bathing suits on and headed for the jacuzzi and to check out the resort. Found the gym, all the pools, the hot tubs, restaurants, etc.

The rest of the trip was mostly spent doing one of the next few things--working out (once a day), sitting on the beach (most of the day), drinking (most of the day), playing tennis (most days), and having meals (three times per day). We also read a couple books and RELAXED. It was totally what I needed. I was exhausted going into this trip. Loved lying on the beach all day, napping, walking on the water, using the pool and hot tub. I think I napped more on this trip than any trip I have ever been on, which caused problems with my work productivity the first week back, LOL.

**on our way to the resort after flying to Jamaica.

We ate at all three restaurants while there. My fav was Bella Vista, which was on the beach. This was the only place that did not require a reservation at the resort, but I thought had the best service and food. They had this snapper there that was amazing. The other two places were good as well. We had breakfast at a buffet all mornings but one when we ordered room service (which was included in the price of our room as well).

We went into town one day to shop, and it was not really a fun experience. They took us to this area I think it just for tourists. The people there were realllllly pushy, moreso than anywhere we have been. It made us not want to shop as you could not really browse leisurely without being hounded. At least in nonEnglish speaking countries we can act like we dont understand. :). We ended up hanging out at a little bar and having a snack and drinks. More relaxing than being hounded shopping.

***heading to dinner, night one, the beach party.

Overall, the beaches at the resort and Jamaica, at the resort anyway, was absolutely beautiful. The water was totally blue and gorgeous. We loved our time there, and we spent the trip doing just what we wanted--nothing. I would not recommend Jamaica if you want a place to explore a lot in the country, as I don't think it's really safe to explore a lot on your own and not on tours.

You can click here to see all the pics from the trip.

St Maarten

I am going to watch this video daily as something to look forward to soon......

The Cliff at Cupecoy in St Maarten from thecliff on Vimeo.

Heading Down to Watch the Underwear Bomber Hearing Tomorrow

by Kurt Haskell

Although the underwear bomber trial concluded in October with a plea deal, Umar filed a motion on December 12, 2011 to replace stand-by attorney Chambers. This motion is too little too late since the only matter left in the case is sentencing, which will occur on January 19, 2012. A copy of the hand written motion can be viewed here:

http://www.mied.uscourts.gov/hpc/docs/21.Motion%20to%20Appoint%20New%20Stand-By%20Counsel.pdf

When it was filed in December, the press jumped all over it claiming that the crazy Umar wanted to fire his stand-by attorney and replace him with a muslim attorney. To me, this motion is something else. Let me explain. When Umar took his plea deal, it consisted of him pleading guilty to all of the charges, which require a life sentence with no chance of parole. NOBODY ON EARTH TAKES A PLEA SO THAT THEY CAN NEVER GET OUT OF PRISON! Plea deals involve give and take on both sides. Not only that, but stand-by attorney Chambers told me earlier in 2011 that Umar was offered very lenient plea deals because the prosecution "Just wants this case to go away". Umar rejected all of the lenient offers. Therefore, there is more to the plea deal that we will never know about (i.e. that Umar will be secretly released after sentencing for example). What was also an apparent sham to me was the concocted speech that Umar gave when he made made his plea "deal". Umar had written a statement in advance and read it in open court. It can be found on the internet with a little searching. To me, the statement did not seem like it was written by Umar or even in language that I heard Umar use before. It seemed much more likely to be the exact wording that the prosecution or government would want him to say as if they had prepared it themselves. It was a statement that the prosecution and press could blast everywhere to show that Umar is indeed a "crazy Muslin terrorist" and not the mere patsy that he is. I believe that whatever the real plea deal was, it involved not only that Umar read the statement prepared for him, but that he also file this nonsensical motion. The purpose of the motion would be to allow the press to again label Umar a "crazy Muslim terrorist" and continue to spread the government's propaganda. I was in contact with attorney Chambers on multiple occasions during this case. I know that not only did he not ignore Umar, but he tried everything in his power to become Umar's regular attorney and to get him off of the charges. It was Umar that withheld evidence from Chambers and failed to discuss most of the case details with Chambers. It was obvious that Umar was withholding evidence from Chambers because Chambers would often learn of important details of the case from me or from reading my blog. What really is the smoking gun in this motion is the following sentence "I do not intend to have my new attorney to have my discovery materials and things". WHY THE HELL NOT???? Umar again is going to hide evidence from the only person that can help him. Guys, this just doesn't happen in the real world. In my blog post last July, I discussed what would happen if Umar's stand-by attorney obtained the evidence in this case........It could be obtained by subpoena by interested third parties (me for example). Is this why Umar withheld evidence from his stand-by attorney and wants to do it again? This sort of thing just doesn't happen in the real world. Then again, maybe the underwear bomber case is really the government concocted fantasy I've been saying it is. Nevertheless, I am heading down to Judge Edmunds' Courtroom at 11:00 A.M. tomorrow to watch the theatrics.

Sum Up the Year, Yo

I stole this from Nancy.

1. What did you do in 2011 that you’d never done before?

*** Traveled to Germany, Jamaica, San Diego, and Puerto Rico. Wore an all sequined dress. Became obsessed with running and actually placed in my age group in many places. Adopted a stray kitty.

2. Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year?

*** I did not. I failed miserably. I wanted to learn Spanish better. I have already made some more. I want to run a 10K. I want to learn Spanish. I want to eat more fruits and veggies.

3. Did anyone close to you give birth?

*** Yes.

4. Did anyone close to you die?

*** Yes.

5. What countries did you visit?

*** Costa Rica, Puerto Rico, Jamaica, Germany, many places in the US

6. What would you like to have in 2012 that you lacked in 2011?

*** More free time.

7. What dates from 2011 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?

***There are really no dates that totally stand out this year. I had a lot of good times, but I am horrible at remembering dates.

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?

*** I think I would have to say the races I ran and my times continually improving.

9. What was your biggest failure?

*** Not spending as much time with family as I would have liked to.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?

*** Yes. I was hit by a car while riding my bike and hurt myself, but not too badly.

12. Whose behavior merited celebration?

*** My husband's.

13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?

*** Most politicians, like the ones who recently passed a law making it legal to detain a citizen, without cause. Most of the American public, for thinking this is OK and just accepting the BS that happens without question or second thought.

14. Where did most of your money go?

*** Besides office expenses, prob travel.

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?

*** all of our trips.

16. What song will always remind you of 2011?

*** Moves Like Jagger

17. Compared to this time last year, are you:

a) happier or sadder? Happier!
b) thinner or fatter? thinner
c) richer or poorer? richer

18. What do you wish you’d done more of?

*** spending time with friends and family

19. What do you wish you’d done less of?

*** Working

20. How will you be spending Christmas?

*** Spent it in Jamaica with my husband

21. Did you fall in love in 2011?

*** Yes

23. What was your favorite TV program?

*** Girls Next Door

24. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year?

*** No. I don’t really hate anyone.

25. What was the best book you read?

***Nothing really stands out. Any travel book is great

26. What was your greatest musical discovery?

***Paul McCartney live was amazing.

27. What did you want and get?

*** Trips, clothes that fit right, a continuing successful law practice

28. What did you want and not get?

*** More free time

29. What was your favorite film of this year?

*** Dont know. I dont really watch movies until they have been out on video for a while

30. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?

*** I was 34. We took a trip to Puerto Rico, which rocked.

31. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?

*** Not working as much. Seeing my Mom more.

32. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2011?

*** Great shoes make every outfit.

33. What kept you sane?

*** Running. My husband. Calls with my Mom.

34. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?

*** Kate Middleton.

35. What political issue stirred you the most?

*** See above. The law passed to detain citizens with no cause. also, any laws that take our constitutional rights away by lying and telling the US it is to protect us from terrorism.

36. Who did you miss?

*** My Mom.

37. Who was the best new person you met?

*** Well, not new exactly, but new to the office, Angie.

38. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2011.

*** Sometimes I cant do it all and need to ask for help.

39. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.

*** I've got the moves like Jagger. hahahahaha.