I’d be hard pressed (what does that phrase mean, anyway?) to identify a more gorgeous day weather-wise than this, the 26th day of May, 2004. I mean, today was nearly flawless. A light breeze, plenty of sunshine. If not for the rain this morning, it could’ve been a Top 10 Day. Ah, I love the spring.

Another good meal today, but not one topping Tuesday’s tuna melt: bow tie pasta with marinara sauce at Boston’s. A tasty meal for a Wednesday afternoon. My editor, Ron, bought me a McDonald’s sundae this afternoon. Talk about yummy! Vanilla ice cream with warm fudge. As if today couldn’t get any better.

I must be hungry if I’m writing this much about food.

I had, BY FAR, the BEST tuna melt ever today at Goldberg’s. Jason and I had lunch there today. For years, I’ve always considered ordering the Goldberg’s tuna melt, but never took the plunge. Today, however, I did. And, oh, how happy I am that I took the plunge. It was delicious!

My weekend was busy and went much too quickly. Dinner Saturday night; watched “Big Fish” last night. Good movie! Perfect for a Sunday evening, I’d say. Production at the paper today and Friday, due to Memorial Day next week. But, no work for me Sunday or Monday. That’s something to celebrate :-)

I’m still on the hunt for new bedding for my bedroom, not to mention a corresponding wall color. I combed the ads on Sunday, but didn’t find much.

Saw Conor Oberst at Crane Coffee Sunday morning. That was rather exciting, I must say. I was having coffee with my mom when he and another guy walked in, ordered their beverages and left. The coffee house was pretty empty, so nobody made a fuss. I considered asking him to sign his article in this issue of Spin, but decided against it. Who wants to be bothered on a Sunday morning, right? Right.

P.S. I’m going to see Simon and Garfunkel next month. They’re coming to Omaha for a Sunday night show at the Qwest Center. I imagine it’ll be fantastic.

Matthew and I celebrated our six-month anniversary last night with dinner at V. Mertz in the Old Market Passageway. It was pricey, but very, very good. Our busy waiter was awesome, and gracious enough to take these photos after our meal, which included a terribly delicious chocolate torte for dessert.

Two CDs have snagged my attention. I rarely purchase CDs, more a fan of digital music files. The new Alanis Morissette album and the new one by Loretta Lynn and Jack White are both extremely intriguing. Alanis was the artist who turned me on to that genre of rock: emotional and powerful, but with an indie edge. I don’t know much about Loretta, but the single I heard on radio is fantastic. I like Jack White and The White Stripes, and I can kind of pick up their music in this single. When payday rolls around Friday, who knows what’ll happen. Perhaps a trip to Homer’s will be in order.

P.S. My email is back! A downtime of less than 24 hours was hardly an inconvenience, especially when it landed on a weekend.

I’ve been told that the server my email calls home is moving to California. As such, emails sent to me may not arrive in a timely manner. Reversely, emails I send may not arrive quickly. Everything should be flowing normally by Monday. Keep your fingers crossed.

On a totally unrelated note: I spent the evening doing laundry and (gasp!) washing my kitchen and upstairs bathroom floors. They look fantastic! I’m now doing laundry from California and making a box of macaroni and cheese. Yum.

My first day back in the “real world” wasn’t nearly as challenging as I thought it’d be. Sure, my brain has been in beach mode since last Wednesday. Today, however, I merely paced myself and didn’t let the 51 emails and six voice mails bring me down. In all honesty, I got caught up by the end of the day.

This is a pretty boring post, I know…

I’m afraid the only photo I have to post is of our tickets to see Ellen. What a story that is. We planned to leave Fullerton (where my sister lives) at noon yesterday, bound for Burbank. Shortly before noon, Katie took her rental car (a mini-van) to get gas. After filling the tank, the van wouldn’t start. She walked back to her apartment, called Enterprise Rent-A-Car and waited for another rental to be dropped off. After a series of drop-offs, we were on the freeway by 1 p.m. We weren’t sure we’d even make it in time, as the show tapes at 4:30 p.m. We needed to be there no later than 2 p.m.

We rolled into the NBC studios shortly after 2 p.m. Unfortunately, the studio was full, so we were placed in what’s lovingly known as “The Rif-Raff Room.” This room, just behind the stage, is for the overflow of guests. We were on TV once and even met Ellen up close. She came back before the show began taping and said hello to us 30 or so rif-raffers. She’s super nice and very, very pretty. A great lady!

We watched the show on TVs. The guests were Simon Cowell and a woman from “C.S.I.” But, there was more: Avril Lavigne (sp?) was there to tape a segment, which will be aired later this month. So, we got a free concert from her, which wasn’t too terribly bad. But perhaps best of all: Everyone in the audience received the third season of “C.S.I.” on DVD! I’m not a fan of the show, but it was a cool gift, nonetheless.

With that, our trip to California ends today. Our flight leaves in a few hours. Better get showered and packed.

What I learned at Huntington Beach on Sunday: Wear sunscreen! So I got a little crispy while laying on the beach. No big deal, really. I’m a little sore this morning, but I certainly have been in worse shape. A cold shower and some lotion will do wonders, I’m sure.

Today, it’s off to see “The Ellen Degeneres Show” in Burbank, Calif. The show doesn’t tape until 4:30 p.m., but we need to get there early.

Tomorrow, we fly home. Until then, enjoy these photos from the beach :-)

More beach photos!

Did lots of shopping yesterday at South Coast Plaza, an upscale shopping center. Tons of nice stores, 90 percent of which were out of my price range. I refused to buy anything from Gap or American Eagle, mainly because I can find those stores in Omaha.

Katie got me a gift certificate to Sephora, which I used yesterday on some eye shadow. I also got a pretty, red floral skirt from Robinsons-May (a department store), and a little purse from Macy’s. (I think I’m going to wear the skirt to the Ellen show on Monday.)

We stayed in last night and made dinner. (Well, I should say Katie made dinner: chicken stroganoff, bread and spinach salad.) All were very, very tasty. Billy fired up the new blender and made everyone mixed cocktails.

Today, it’s off to the beach! I’m looking forward to the surf and sun, the latter of which will help improve my tan ;-) Then Monday, we’re going to a taping of “The Ellen Degeneres Show.” I’m excited about that!