Yahoo! for New York

Photo by Chris

As I mentioned previously, I got an amazing opportunity to go to New York and learn from the best of the best at Yahoo! about social media. I was very fortunate to be able to bring a "plus one", Chris, my boyfriend.
Unfortunately, I didn't know until we got there that he wasn't allowed to come to the learning sessions with me, it was for "insiders" only. So I guess each of the 9 plus ones would have to hang out on their own all morning of Thursday and Friday until our sessions were over.

Highlights of the trip:

1. We got lots of awesome Yahoo! swag and learned a bunch about writing for the web thanks to the author of Yahoo!'s official style guide, Chris Barr. (see photo 1)
2. Yahoo! took us to dinner and a Broadway show, "Rock of Ages" which was so great. I've been rocking out to 80s music ever since.
3. I got to try lots of different yummy cupcakes and get inspired.
4. The weather was beautiful-- oh yeah, except for the part where we got stuck in Hurricane Irene. It poured all night and was windy all day. (see photo 3) Then it went back to being beautiful.
5. Our flight on Sunday night was canceled due to the weather. We couldn't get another one out until Tuesday night. We silently delighted in the fact that Irene prolonged our vacation so we could enjoy the rest of New York.
6. I woke up early to be on the Today show. Got my 15 seconds of fame! (see photo 4)
7. Tuesday's flight was delayed which made us miss the second leg of our flight from Chicago to Seattle, so we were stuck in Chicago for the night. Luckily, Chris's best friend (who plays for the White Sox I might add) lives in Chicago so we stayed at his swanky apartment.

While it was a little stressful missing 3 whole days of work that I wasn't planning on missing, I absolutely loved getting those two extra sunny days in New York to explore and play tour guide for Chris.

Photos:

Photo 1: lots of Yahoo! swag

Photo 2: the view from Yahoo!'s 43rd floor

Photo 3: Central Park is closed due to Irene!

 

Photo 4: My appearance on the Today show!

Click here to see more pictures and read about my cupcake experiences in New York.

Change in plans

Life has a crazy way of happening, that's for sure. I will no longer be able to make it to BlogPaws this year, by choice, because something else came up.

I have been selected by Yahoo! as one of their top social media contestants in a promotion they recently ran and they are sending me+1 to New York! Coincidentally, it occurs at the same time as BlogPaws, and sorry DC, but my heart belongs to NYC. Plus I'm super excited about learning about social media through the likes of a giant company like Yahoo!.

Through the month of September I will be begging for your help to click the links that I will subsequently post in hopes of winning the grand prize of a new Macbook Air. The winner is determined by who has the most influence, in other words, who gets the most clicks on their links.

In other news, Ellie gets to spend the next two weeks with Goldie because I'm watching her all this week and then my sister will be watching Ellie next week when I'm in NY. Should be a handful lots of fun.

BlogPaws 2011: 2 Weeks!

BlogPaws is in two weeks, I'm so excited! Seems like just yesterday that I was at BlogPaws 2010.

This year, it's in Tyson's Corner, VA which is about 20 minutes outside of Washington D.C. It also means that my flight is about as long as possible, across the country from Seattle. While the hotel and event are pet-friendly, I won't be bringing Ellie because I have a fear of putting her in the belly of a plane.

I'm looking forward to meeting Caren from Cat Chat for the first time and seeing Angie from Catladyland again!

Who else is going? :)

Backyard BBQ

It's been a while since I've updated this blog! I have been busy baking and updating my other blog, as well as getting outside on lots of walks! This past weekend, we went to a BBQ for which I baked some really fun cupcakes (see below)!

Most recent news: Ellie ate half a stick of butter. Yes, 1/4 cup!
I was baking cupcakes and used a reduced recipe in which I cut off 2 out of 8 tablespoons that are in a stick. After coming back from happy hour, I find the butter wrapper on the floor with only about 2 tablespoons left, so I guess Ellie ate 4 tablespoons before she decided she'd had enough. The good news is that she hasn't thrown up or had any other tummy issues so far!

Tired after playing ball at the BBQ

Click to see more pics!

Ellie, My Hero

Last night I was shutting my bathroom door, which is a sliding door, when suddenly a spider about the size of a quarter drops down on a thread from the top of the door. It landed on the floor and while I was processing the act of getting my vacuum, it quickly started scurrying around on the bathroom floor. This thing was quick!

I jumped out of the bathroom, thinking that maybe the carpet was like hot lava to spiders and that it would stay on the linoleum. Knowing I didn't have enough time to grab the vacuum (because the spider would probably hide somewhere and then I wouldn't know where it is and be freaked out all night long) I quickly called Ellie over.

She loves to chase flies and other bugs so I knew she'd be up for this challenge. She quickly got to pouncing on the thing, which evaded her attacks a couple of times. Finally, she snatched it up in her mouth, chomped on it a couple of times and then swallowed. I could tell the thing was putting up a fight inside her mouth because she was making movements with her tongue as though she was trying to force it down.

Still shaking from fear, I brought Ellie over to the pantry where I gave her a huge treat to wash that disgusting thing down. She saved my life!

"What? What'd I do?"

Furry 5K Walk

This past weekend, Ellie and I enjoyed a beautiful sunny Sunday at Seward Park in Seattle for the Furry 5K walk/run to benefit the Seattle Animal Shelter.

We were both overwhelmed with the number of dogs and people who showed up - hundreds! And the dogs were all shapes and sizes. It's always so much fun to see such doggy diversity.

Love big Danes!

Waiting to walk

In going through my pictures, I also realized that we went hiking on Saturday too! I went with a big group of girls and there were very few people on the trail which meant Ellie got to be off leash. She LOVED it. She kept sprinting ahead and then running back to make sure we were keeping up.

Ellie in front of the half-frozen Heather Lake

Lots of physical outdoor activities for us this weekend!

Graduating from the crate

I have been trying to crate-train Ellie for a number of months now, ever since I realized that she was slightly destructive when left to her own devices. If allowed, she would get onto the furniture (where she's not allowed) or scratch at any closed doors, including the front door.

Well, I finally realized that it was not the fact that she was left alone, but the beeping from the cable box that caused Ellie so much anxiety which lead to her destructive behaviors.

A few months ago, I traded out the cable box and there have been no beeps and no anxious episodes since. And last week, I decided to give her another chance at being left alone without being confined to the crate.

I am pleased to report that she is doing famously! When I return home from being away, she sleepily trots to the door to greet me. In other words, she isn't waiting by the door panting from anxiety of being alone or scared. She is well-rested, and even ate any treats that I left (something she won't do when anxious)!

While I am still crating her at night so that she stays used to the concept, it is such a relief to know that I can leave her home alone and she can still stretch her legs and get water when she needs it!