Name the Year...

- Top Movies included Pearl Harbor; Vanilla Sky; Bridget Jones's Diary; Shrek and Ocean's 11
- U2 won Grammys for Beautiful Day for both Song of the Year and Record of the Year
- Other top Songs included Survivor by Destiny's Child; Hanging by a Moment by Lifehouse; Fallin' by Alicia Keys; Drops of Jupiter by Train; Kryptonite by 3 Doors Down; The Way You Love Me by Faith Hill and Get Ur Freak On by Missy Elliot.
- The Baltimore Ravens defeated the New York Giants in the Super Bowl
- The Arizona Diamondbacks won the World Series against the New York Yankees
- The Colorado Avalanche defeated the New Jersey Devils to win Lord Stanley's Cup.
- Dale Earnhardt was killed in the  final lap at February's Daytona 500 when his car crashed into a wall

- Federal spending was $1,864 billion and the Federal debt was $5,807 billion

- The Unemployment Rate was 4.8% and the Cost of a first-class stamp was $0.34.
- The Anthrax scare was in full swing.
- Heather Mills became engaged to former Beatle Paul McCartney.
- Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman decided to separate and ultimately divorced.
- Gladiator won five Oscars, including those for Best Picture and Best Actor, Russell Crowe.  And, Julia Roberts won for her role as Erin Brockovich.

- George W. Bush was sworn in as the 43rd President of the United States.

As for me, well.....

Senior Prom

- Lindsay was a Senior in high school.
- She was a member of FBLA, FCCLA, National Honor Society and even took 4th placed at the State FBLA competition in Accounting. 
- She worked part-time as a Third Key Manager and Ear Piercing Specialist at Claire's Boutiques.

Lindsay Hard at Work

- She signed a letter of academic intent with McKendree College for the Fall.and pretty much was trying to figure out where life was going to take her.
- Finally, if there was any free time left in her crazy, busy schedule (there's one thing that hasn't really changed!), she could be found hanging out with Shell, Lizzie, Amanda, Cara, Greg or Matt.

Project Graduation -- our school celebration after the BIG DAY!

Think you know the year????


If you guessed 2001, you'd be exactly right!!

Tonight I am attending my 10 year class reunion.  I'm not sure what to expect and I am excited to see how much has changed for everyone else over these last 10 years.  Sure, I check in on Facebook nearly every day and I follow what some of my classmates have been up to, but I think it still will be fun to catch up on a more personal level.  High school for me was not a walk in the park; I worked hard and aimed for perfection in nearly everything I did.  I was quiet and shy and tried my best to stay away from any sort of attention throughout my 4 years in high school.  Now, I am proud to show off my accomplishments (to an extent!) and actually feel comfortable talking to people and being somewhat normal and personable.
Broccoli is going with me tonight and I'm also excited for that.  In the time we've been together, I've really just glossed over my time in high school and besides telling him I was a big nerd, I haven't given him much of a clue as to those 4 years of my life.  I'm not sure what he expects, but my main hope is that we have a fun night out!

10 years!  Geez, I still can not believe it!

Source for non-Lindsay related facts: 
http://www.infoplease.com/year/2001.html
http://www.musicoutfitters.com/topsongs/2001.htm

Source for Lindsay related facts: 
the one and only Random Girl!

In 9 innings and beyond?

Saw this pic on Facebook today and had to laugh:

Tonight I'm on pins and needles waiting to see what happens in the Cards-'Stros game and Braves-Phillies matchup.  Could we have a one game playoff or could my team be headed to the post season or could my team be packing up tomorrow and getting ready for winter?  I guess we'll find out in a few hours.

I, myself, probably will not be watching the game since Broccoli says I jinx the team and cause them to lose when I either watch it or attend one, but I'll be rooting for them while watching episodes of Restaurant Impossible on Food Network.

LET'S GO CARDS!!!!

The Next Bobby Flay

I got a text from my brother this afternoon that read this:

So I wrapped boneless chicken breasts in bacon.  Seasoned with ginger and hot sauce then marinated with italian dressing overnight.  Pan seared then roasted in the oven with red peppers.  Then I reduced some white wine with butter and garlic salt and dressed angel hair noodles with that.  That's right. Your bro reduced wine and made a sauce.  :)

He also sent me this pic just to rub it in:

Besides being highly impressed,  my initial thought was, geez, I should hire him to cook for me.  All I had tonight for dinner was sauteed veggies in a rice vinegar glaze and some grapes.  Obviously not the dinner of champs here but after a long day at work, its about all I could muster up with the little bit of energy I had left.  Of course it didn't help that my stove and oven didn't work all weekend either due to circuit breaker issues and couldn't plan ahead with a few pre-cooked weeknight meals.

Also, you can bet that when he comes over for our next edition of Sibling Saturday this upcoming weekend, I'm putting his butt in the kitchen to whip me up something delicious.

A new chapter

A few days before I started my new position, this email was sent by my new employer to my email and all of my co-workers:

It is my pleasure to announce the following additions to our Team:

Lindsay will be joining us on September 12^th; filling the open Staff Accountant position.

We are excited and confident that Lindsay will bring her expertise in accounting and enthusiasm to the accounting department.

New Sales Rep (NSR) has accepted the position as the new Midwest Representative for Really Awesome Shoes. NSR lives in Chicago and will come to the St. Louis office Thursday to meet everyone and pickup her samples.

Join us in welcoming Lindsay and sales rep to their new roles!

And from that, I was accepted into my new position.  I can say it's definitely been a crazy two weeks but I am slowly adjusting to the new job.  It's a big change from the business and industry I came from but I think eventually everything will click.  I have become more comfortable in some of my responsibilities and I even got my key to the office this Friday. (I hope this means I'm a keeper!)  I got through an inventory on Friday and this week is month-end (eeeek!).  Ultimately, I need to stay positive and remember I can handle just about anything thrown my way.  (Broccoli has been drilling this into my head since we've been together, guess I should really listen to him now, it may really come in handy.)

Perhaps the coolest thing so far was after work on Tuesday when Coco and I decided to go to dinner and hit the mall.   While browsing one of the stores, I found numerous styles of one of our brands and more specifically one of the brands I do all of the Accounting for.  I became a giddy little school girl and had to take a pic with my phone to send out.  (Yeah, my friends think I'm quite silly!)

In any case, I'm starting to get into my groove and hopeful that things continue to move forward and look up.

Moving on

So my last day at work went fairly well.  There were tears but there were also promises to meet up for lunch in the next couple of weeks.  My new position is literally down the street from my old place and I have told everyone that just because I'm not in the same building we can still all hang out from time to time.  Coco, of course took my leaving the hardest.  We became good friends because of the job and experienced a lot of stuff over the past 6 years on both a personal and professional level.  She came into work Friday with a little note saying thanks for being my friend all these years and these for me --

I, of course, had a card written out for her too saying thanks for putting up with me and getting me through everything life has thrown at me.  I was also going to pick up flowers for her, but I knew she was supposed to head out of town after work to catch her son's college soccer game so I put that off until a later date.

Broccoli met me for lunch on Friday and tried his best to deal with my roller coaster of emotions.  He offered support and encouragement for my new position (yes, I am a bit scared!) and understood why I was crying about leaving the old place (cue, Memories please) and overall eased my mind.

After work I decided to finish out this job the same way I started it 6 years ago.  I went to my Mom and Michael's for dinner with them.  Back then we went to Chevy's for Mexican.  This time, I wanted to change it up a bit so I decided to on Chinese from one of my favorite hometown spots.  I had a good time catching up with them and mostly tried to de-stress from my two long weeks of training everyone on every little duty and job detail in my head.

Saturday was the second edition of Sibling Saturday 2011.  I met my Bro at his apartment and we spent some time catching up and just hanging out.  We also went into town to pick up some much needed apartment essentials for Ryan and his room mates and then grocery shopped so we could make dinner for my Dad.  Ryan and I thought it would be fun to surprise Dad with a visit and dinner.  And Dad was surprised when he came home from work and found both Ryan and I camped out in kitchen creating a masterpiece.
Our creation --

Our version of Moo Goo Gai Pan

 

 

 

And here is Bro enjoying our delicious meal --

Today I've spent my day just trying to prep for my first day tomorrow.  I have my clothes ironed, my paperwork organized and my lunch packed.  I am excited and nervous but overall I'm ready for 9 am.  Transportation turned out to be quite an interesting industry, I can only imagine what shoes and the fashion world will be like.  :)

Simple vs. Real

This was sent to me the other day and I thought it was the perfect thing to post today.

A Simple Friend has never seen you cry.
A Real Friend has shoulders soggy from your tears.

A Simple Friend doesn't know your parent's first names.
A Real Friend has their phone numbers in the address book.

A Simple Friend brings a bottle of wine to your party.
A Real Friend comes early to help you cook and stays late to help you clean.

A Simple Friend hates it when you call after he or she has gone to bed.
A Real Friend asks you why you took so long to call.

A Simple Friend seeks to talk with you about their problems.
A Real Friend seeks to help you with your problems.

A Simple Friend wonders about your romantic history.
A Real Friend could blackmail you with it.

A Simple Friend, when visiting, acts like a guest.
A Real Friend opens your refrigerator and helps herself.

A Simple Friend thinks the friendship is over when you have an argument.
A Real Friend knows that it's not a friendship until after you've had a fight.

A Simple Friend expects you to always be there for them.
A Real Friend expects to always be there for you and for you to know that they are.

Today is my last day at work and I can say, I consider quite a few of my current co-workers my friends, but ultimately I know who my Real Friends are here and who I will continue to remain friends with as I move on to a new phase in my life.  They are the few people that in spite of my attitude or tears or days that I didn't have much time to catch up and chat because of my workload, still cared and still wanted to help make things better.  These are the same people who encouraged me to move forward and make myself happy even if it meant I couldn't see them and spend time with them every single day.


I work closely with two of my closest, dearest best friends.  They are two of the most amazing people you could ever meet.  They have provided me with an infinite amount of support and have helped me through some of the hardest days of my life.  To them I am eternally grateful.  Leaving my position was a piece of cake, leaving them is proving to be a bit harder.  Yet, I know, we will always be Real Friends.

The Final Countdown....

Thanks to the helpfulness of one of my co-workers, this song by Europe has been stuck in my head ALL DAY LONG!  He started his morning by asking if I was ready for my last 4 days in the office and proceeded to sing part of the song to me.  Of course, me being the music lover I am, started singing the rest of it and now that's the only song stuck in this head.  As I was training my replacements, I'm humming it to myself.  As I'm doing data entry to help Coco, I'm humming it to myself.  As I go to lunch and try to chill out and enjoy the early fall-like weather, I'm singing to myself.  Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!

I hope tomorrow someone has another good bye tune for me...something has to get this out of my head!

Almost like the real thing

Broccoli would probably completely disagree with me, but I found a great alternative to a hamburger.  I've been making turkey burgers rather than using ground beef for the last year or so and finally on my last grocery shopping trip, I decided to try something different.
So, let me introduce my newest food adventure --

To me, they taste like a regular burger.  I may even go as far as to say that they are better than a regular burger because I wasn't left feeling stuffed or like I had just clogged my arteries with all sorts of fat.  In any case, I just heated them in my new Paula Deen skillet and then made a burger like normal.  Of course, Broccoli would tell you that the only reason why it tasted like a beef burger to me is due to the fact that I pile my regular burgers with so many "extras" (lettuce, tomato, pickles and onions) that I never really taste the meat anyway.  I did the same thing with my Boca burger.  :)
Now I'm ready to test out some other Boca products -- who knows what kind of yummy lunches or quick dinners I can whip up with their veggie burgers, crumbles or chik'n patties.  It's amazing how many more foods I am now willing to try and prepare when I know calorie counts and other valuable nutritional info.

Note:  I have not been paid by Boca in anyway for this post.  But, if you happen to know someone there, would you tell them how much I love these burgers and have them donate a few boxes to me?!?  Thanks!  :)

Sucked in

It's a 3 day weekend and I've already spent my Saturday running errands and cleaning up my apartment.  While I was at the gym this morning, I was flipping through my favorite channels and happened to find a marathon on Bravo.  Of course, I got sucked in and I've decided that since its a gloomy day here in the Lou, I'm going to spend the rest of my day chilling at home and being entertained by:

It's definitely a train wreck, but so fun to watch.

Hope you're enjoying your Labor Day weekend!

And so it begins...

At 11:36 am an email went out from my boss to the entire company,

I am writing to inform you that Lindsay with be leaving (insert company name here).  Lindsay has been a valued asset to (insert company name here) for 6 years and we are sorry that she has decided to move on.  She has graciously agreed to stay on with us until Friday, September 9 to transition her responsibilities to others.

(Mean girl with a horrible attitude) will continue to do driver payroll, but will assume the weekly mechanic and guard payroll, so please send that payroll information to (Mean girl with a horrible attitude) starting with the next payroll.  For now, everything else should be directed to me, and I will assume it.

Again we greatly appreciate the many contributions Lindsay has made to (insert company name here) over the last 6 years.

And with that, everyone found out...I'm leaving. 
It's possibly the best decision I have made lately.  The stress is slowly (actually very quickly) taking its toll on me.  When my boss said he will assume all other responsibilities, he has no idea what he is in for.  Not only do I handle all Accounting functions, I handle nearly 90% of all Admin and HR functions in our company.  It makes my head spin and I've been under this mountain of work for 3 1/2 years with nearly no time off, no lunches and 9-10 hour days.  Good luck with all of that!  And good luck finding one person to take on all of those tasks.  I am training our new part-time Accounting clerk, who officially was given a full time job when I resigned yesterday, but as a fresh Accounting grad, it's going to take awhile to get into my full on "intense Lindsay mode" groove.  But, I hope that I can train him and pass along as much of this knowledge that is in my ever expanding brain.

It was nice to see some of the replies from my closest co-workers too:

"What am I going to do now!

You will be truly missed and I want you to know I greatly appreciate everything you have done the last year to help me.  You are a great person and I wish the best for you in what ever you do."

"sorry to see you go, good luck. you will be missed by most of us around here.  especially the cool people like me.  keep in touch."

"Hey what the heck????????????  Good luck in what ever you're going to do, I will surely miss you dearly.  You have been a great friend.  Thanks for everything"

"AWESOME FOR YOU, SUCKS FOR US. ALONG WITH YOUR (insert company name here) CONTRIBUTIONS I WOULD LIKE TO EXPRESS MY GRATITUDE FOR MAKING THIS PLACE A LITTLE BETTER LOOKING EVERYDAY, THANKS YOU ROCK. PLEASE SAY YOU'LL STILL POP IN FOR HAPPY HOUR SOMETIME, I'VE YET TO SEE YOU HAMMERED, I HEAR IT'S QUITE ENTERTAINING :)"

"Damn girl, I hate to see you go.  (Boss) let me know earlier and it made me sad.  But I'm sure you are doing what is right for you, and I wish you well."


"I don't get to speak with you very often or see you.  But I wish you the Best of Luck with whatever you do!! Thanks for helping me when I do need something!!"

"WOW..!!!  Really..?? I wish you the best of luck and hope that you are happy with your career change..

I am very happy for you....Just wondering, I was planning on having you do our 2011 taxes..Will you still be available for that??  Let me know, and I wish you the BEST....GOOD LUCK!!!!!"

My response to them and just about everyone else that I talked to today was similar, I'm heading back into the world of being a Staff Accountant.  I will be working in a completely different industry but one that I love and hope I can be successful in.  I am excited for the change and ready to get back to my Accounting roots and I start my new position on September 12th.

Oh and as for happy hours, taxes and keeping in touch, I am planning on all three and hopefully more.  Some of my best friends work at this company and whether I work there or anywhere, they are my friends for life.  I will find a way to make it all work.

Mantras for a happy life

Post 300!  Hard to believe that I've continued to post my randomness for the last 6 years and still find  something to write about on a semi-regular basis.  Things have been a bit out of control around here lately and I have been contemplating many things, much of which affects numerous aspects of my life.  I had to talk myself out of quitting my job, packing up and moving to Memphis/Northern MS and starting over more times than I would like to count over the past 2 months.  It's not because I want to live without all of the good things I have here, but I just figured it was easier to start with a clean slate somewhere relatively close rather than trying to fix all of the stuff affecting my attitude and daily well-being. (Brilliant idea, I know....just keep following me, would ya?)

So instead, I tried to look for other ways to make small changes.  I'm not one that likes to admit failure, but I can tell you, I've failed tremendously at trying to keep my attitude in check lately.  Then I happen to find the two quotes below while researching a happy life online and something just clicked.  I've decided to make these my mantras for a happy, balanced life.

Someone once said..."There comes a time in your life, when you walk away from all the drama and people who create it. You surround yourself with people who make you laugh. Forget the bad, and focus on the good. Love the people who treat you right, pray for the ones who don't. Life is too short to be anything but happy. Falling down is a part of life, getting back up is living."

It doesn’t just end at being passionate about what you do. It’s about taking care of yourself (physically and mentally), striving for happiness in a relationship, and having a hobby or interests that stimulate your brain.

My life is changing at a fast pace and in order to get through everything, I need to accept whatever is thrown at me.  That doesn't mean that I can not still fight for what I believe is right and fair.  I know this change will affect multiple aspects of my life.  It will send me into another unknown phase, but one that I am hoping to bridge with some of what is already familiar.  I've run more ideas by Broccoli and Coco than I thought humanly possible, hoping they can figure out how to decipher all of this.  I've been on a roller coaster of emotions and from one minute to the next I don't know if I'm happy and excited or sad or scared or angry.  Ultimately, I want to be happy.  I want to have that life I've dreamed about.  

I know these changes will make the difference.

Riddle me this....

What is one way to make an extremely overwhelming and stressful Tuesday a bit better?!?! 

How about some Paula Deen cookware?!?!

I know it seems silly, but after being stood up for my consulting gig tonight.  I decided to hit the gym for a little de-stresser elliptical workout and then make my much anticipated cookware purchase.
As of right now, it's still packed away nicely in the box, but I'm breaking these bad boys out tomorrow night!  CAN NOT WAIT!!

Yes, I'm easily pleased.  :)

More randomness

Sorry, right now there is a lack of time for me to formulate a clever post, so I'll just update you on the stuff floating around in my head at the moment.  Ironically, most of it links together is some weird way.
So here we go!

-- Reserved my spot for my 10 year class reunion being held in October this past week.  It's hard to believe that I've been out of high school that long and for me, A LOT has changed in these 10 years.  While I debated as to whether or not I wanted to go back and relive any of that, I decided it may be fun just to check in and see what others have been up to over the years.  We will see what I think after I attend.

-- What's even more crazy is that my dear precious little Nicole starts high school on Tuesday.  That seems darn near impossible.  I felt old when Ryan went to high school, I'm feeling ancient now that its Nicole's turn.  I may just have a mid-life crisis when she graduates.

-- Speaking of age and birthdays, my Mom's birthday was yesterday.  (Happy Birthday Mom!)  I invited her and Michael over for dinner on Friday night and I must say, I was highly impressed with my dinner of strip steaks, roasted sweet potatoes, sweet corn on the cob, salad and most importantly, orange dreamscicle parfaits.

-- Every time I cook a dinner for more than myself, I realize I need to get better pots and pans.  This again was the case after Friday night so I went browsing while I was out running errands yesterday.  I found two sets that I liked and now I'm trying to figure out if and when I will break down and buy a better set than what I currently own.  I'm not sure why I need to justify that this is a good purchase, but I am thinking it over way too many times.  Yes, I need new pots and pans.  Yes, I enjoy cooking and need something better than the starter set I bought when I moved out on my own 6 years ago.  No, this is not a life-altering decision (well, unless you consider the fact that I have to choose between Paula Deen and Rachael Ray).... 
GO BUY SOME POTS & PANS LINDSAY!

-- Tonight is the season finale of Next Food Network Star.  While we are all thrilled Mary Beth isn't competing in the finale, we're torn between the final three.  I'll watch any of the three however, I will be a bit irritated if my signature sammich recipe ends up on Jeff's show.  Of course, then I'll know for sure the casting directors read my 11 page application!

There are some of the highlights of items rattling around in this head.  I'm off to enjoy the rest of the afternoon before I head back into the out of control world of Transportation Accounting tomorrow morning.  Catch ya later!

Matchbox Twenty & Kitchen Gadgets

I'm sure you are aware how much music rules my life and how much I relate songs I hear while working or driving or working out to every little aspect of my life.  This morning was no different.  I was heading home from my Saturday morning workout, feeling a bit over-whelmed by the amount of projects I had to today's to-do list, and all of a sudden a blast from the past came on the station I've been listening to lately.  (St. Louis' own 100.3 GenX Radio for those of you with the iHeartRadio app) -- Matchbox Twenty's Real World.  And then it hit me as I was belting out the lyrics to the song -- I wish the real world, would just stop hassling me.

So rather than letting all of the chores and side projects I felt needed to be accomplish today overrule trying to de-stress from another wild week at work and other things I wanted to do, I promptly came home, handled a few things, showered and did something I felt was more important.  Something dorky you may say, but something I promised my Bro after he helped me through my (unsuccessful) casting call last weekend -- I bought some kitchen gadgets for his new apartment.  Shopping (and not even for myself!) actually calmed me down enough to come back home and finish the next part of the tax project I agreed to work on. 

Household chores aren't finished and who knows when I'll get around to them.  But right this second, I'm telling the real world to stop hassling me.

Chasing a Dream

With the two most important guys in my life by my side, I took a leap of faith this morning and went to the Food Network Star casting call in downtown St. Louis.  I wasn't sure what to expect especially since it is the first time I have ever done any sort of thing like this, but I figured this was the perfect platform for me to represent my cooking skills and my ideas regarding healthy living and eating.  After my short interview with the casting rep, I walked out of there confident that I presented myself to the best of my abilities.

Perhaps the funniest part of the morning came from the fact that while I was waiting for my turn in my group, my Bro was in the holding area making friends.  When I got back from my interview, I find him talking to another applicant.  Broccoli's response, "You can tell you two are related.  You will make friends wherever you go." (Of course, this is also after the fact that when he stopped by, I was in line talking to other women in my interview group.)

Overall, it was a memorable morning and I'm so glad I gave it a shot!!  *Fingers crossed for what's next!*

And Bro and Broccoli -- you two definitely inspire me.  From taste-testing all of my dishes over the years, to listening to my tips and tricks about healthy eating & fitness and even proof-reading my application, I'm grateful for all of your support and I thank you for being there today!

Back to the real world

Another weekend I had been looking so forward to has come and gone.  It's amazing how long I seem to wait for these things to come around and how fast the 36 hours of fun passes.  The good news is that we had an absolute blast together and I have an extra day to rest up since I took a vacation day tomorrow.

And yes, we are an unbeatable team.  :)

6 years going on a lifetime...

Today is my 6 year anniversary at work.  It's the longest amount of time I've spent in any one company and I've faced enough trial and tribulation in the past 6 years to last me a lifetime.  To anyone who ever thinks that a semi is just a tractor-trailer on the road or that the transportation business is just about moving freight, feel free to come visit me for a few days.

Right now, I'm holding my breath that I can at least get through my day somewhat unfrazzled, leave at a reasonable hour and not be left with a huge backlog for tomorrow.  I may need a celebratory drink if I make it through and don't yell or cry at least once today.  (You may laugh at this, but the two people that usually get me through my rough times are both gone today.  I'm on my own and not feeling so confident in my abilities to stay grounded.)

Ok, time to take a deep breath and put on a happy face....here we go.

Thanks Pooh!

I forgot how much I liked this song until I saw the trailer for the new Winnie the Pooh movie.  Now I can't get it out of my head, which I'm fine with at the moment.

So why don't we go..........

Somewhere only we know.

Taking the plunge

Fearing a commitment and debating whether or not this was the right time to upgrade, I finally decided on Friday to look into something bigger and better than my current options.  By the time I compared services, features and equipment, it wasn't that hard of a decision after all.
Allow me to introduce my brand new main squeeze --

HTC EVO 4G

It's only been a few days and I'm in love.  It surprises me constantly and has left me with a warm fuzzy feeling.  Who knew?!?!
(Don't worry -- Broccoli understands completely and actually encouraged this relationship.)

Sibling Saturday, Summer 2011 Edition

Seems like forever since I've posted and the past few weeks have passed in a blur.  If I'm not working at my full-time job, I'm working on my side projects or I'm at the gym.  Sleeping appears to be non-existent.  (And, not really by choice.)
In any case, that's not the reason why I'm posting and don't worry, I'll get through all of that.
But.....today is a BIG FUN day here!  It's the first Sibling Saturday of 2011.  Yes, I realize it is July and I seem like the biggest loser sister for not planning one of these sooner but both my bro and I have been busy and our schedules haven't worked out until now.  There are no set plans for the day, just hanging out and doing whatever sounds good.  Plus, I'm visiting him with gifts!!

I think I should be the best sister ever!!