SO MANY GREAT EVENTS!!!

Yay for the past couple weeks! My wonderful friends made my birthday absolutely phenomenal (organized by Rachel - she rocks!), and I had a most excellent trip to El Paso and Austin, Texas. Here's a summary in photos! I also put together a little highlights video (at the end of this other fanfare). Fair warning: Juan drops the F-bomb some. If you want to avoid indecency - skip over his karaoke sections. You can see the other MILLION photos at my Flickr site: http://www.flickr.com/photos/zachmorrisishot/

Telephone recording for podcasts on the CHEAP (or FREE)!!

Ingredients:
1. Skype (SkypeOut optional, but useful!)
2. Pamela
3. Audacity
4. Really cute niece!

Step 1: Download and Install all these programs. This was done on Windows XP, but with Mac OS X you can simply substitute Pamela with a program like Audio Highjack Pro. But - Pamela is best.

Step 2: Make the call with Skype! SkypeOut is a plug-on for Skype that allows you (for only $30 a YEAR) to call whoever, not just Skype users.



Step 3: With Pamela installed, a dialog box pops up: Would you like to begin recording this call? Click "Yes". The conversation records as an mp3. Pamela logs them for you:



Step 4: Pull the mp3 into Audacity and you can edit away! I am in love with Audacity - open source audio editing is my best friend. Then, just export as mp3 or wav and VOILA! You've just captured a phone conversation for FREE (or $30)!




Example:
Here's a snippet of a conversation I had with my niece, Alexa, and my sister, Crys. One of my favorite parts is Alexa moaning: "Whooooooaaaaaaa"! Gosh, she is freaking cute as H.

Click here for the goods: "I love you."

I love my EP parents... despite their forgetfulness (see previous post).

Another phone call (this time honest and apologetic and sweet) from Tom and this great email from my Mom later...

Parents - of COURSE I forgive you.

I love you sister,

I'm sorry we didn't call you. We'll go to Burlington's and have a shop-out.

Love, Mom

P.S. See attached!

June 14: Mom and Tom forgot me.

IN BETTER NEWS HOWEVER: My birthday was fantastic! My party that Rachel organized at Santarpio's was the greatest!!! I have so many wonderful friends - it worked out perfectly. I feel very blessed to say that only the very tightest of peeps were in attendance and we were at max capacity in the place!

A MILLION PHOTOS ARE FORTHCOMING! YAY!

10:51 AM
Natattack: Gorgeous -- I hope you had the GREATEST birthday

me: I did

Natattack: i'm so glad
thanks for letting me part of it


11:02 AM
me: you rock, dude
sorry
i was on the phone with my parents

Natattack: no worries at all!
i figured you were busy

me: yeah, they totally forgot my birthday
i got a message this morning
saying
why didn't you return our call? we wanted to wish you a happy birthday!
and then when i called them saying they totally didn't call me
they got all defensive

Natattack: oh no

me: and the story changed to their phones must not have been working
whatever
and then my mom gets pissed
and she says
"fine if you're gonna say it, we did" and hangs up

Natattack: oh honey
i'm so sorry

me: its okay
well
not raelly
but you know - it will be
i had a really great party
so, that's good.

Natattack: that is good...
but it's okay to be upset about your family
they're two mutually exclusive events

me: ok
thanks
yeah, i just don't want to seem ungrateful

Natattack: no, it's not ungrateful at all
like i said, they're not contingent upon each other

me: yeah

A photo post is in order.

So, as you faithful readers know, I was off to Texas this past weekend to celebrate my brother graduating from medical school. Yay for him!



I am absolutely IN LOVE with my nephews and niece, and I took 18 million photos of all of them. Oh man, I am the luckiest Aunt in the world!!! I also seem to be a lucky girl in the man realm - I was at my brother's graduation dinner and the super hot waiter (bilingual, drummer, artist) adored me and asked me out! Yes! Obviously, nothing could really come of this considering I live across the country, but it was great to know I've still got it. (I was beginning to think I didn't... Boston has not yet yielded this sort of attention... another reason I love Texas! Ha!) Anyway, you can check out all the photographic evidence of my weekend here (again, a warning - MANY pictures of my lovely kiddos): http://www.flickr.com/photos/zachmorrisishot/tags/dereksgraduation/

I also have neglected to post all my pictures from a wonderful date Peggy and I went on (Peggy - I need you in life, stat!). The MFA had a free night where you could go check out all these floral arrangements that were interpretations of art favorites on display at Boston's Museum of Fine Arts. I LOVE the MFA - we had an excellent time. More photos of our expedition at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/zachmorrisishot/tags/mfa/




I also finally posted photos from the Red Sox game that Seth, Rachel, Tim and I went to, a wonderful surprise from Jenni, some Diet Coke addicts, some crazy balloon dude, and more. Check 'em all out at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/zachmorrisishot/

Loving someone who does not love you back is decidedly, and most assuredly, the greatest waste of energy in the history of time.