44 books...... I suck!!

Well, 2008 ends in 7 hours and 7 minutes.. and I'm about to go to a three hour movie, so I don't think I'll be able to get any more books read.

My goal was 50.

I read 44.

I didn't make my goal and I'm bummed by it! But this year has been a busy and an intense year, particularly since August. And the fact that I basically read a book a week is pretty impressive, I think.

How many books did YOU read?

I guess for 2009 - I'll aim for 50 again. I'd like to meet that goal. I'm good enough, I'm smart enough, and doggonit, people like me.

Be safe tonight ringing in '09.

I'd like to introduce......

..... two more friends whose blogs I'm linking to my page.

To have your blog linked on my page, you must go through a rigorous screening process to see if you are deemed worthy enough. Most people fail, but a few pull it out.

Actually, if you are a smart ass and/or your blog makes me laugh, I link you. I'm not that picky - sheesh.... I mean, you've read my blog, right? hahaha

Here they are:

1. JDHTEACH - J is a co-worker of mine. Like me, he was an AP in our district for a couple of years and then he moved up to principal. (He did it, so he helped me realize I could make the same move too!) He was principal for a few years, but he got sick and has moved his career in another directionwith our district while he allows his health to improve. I admire him greatly for that. I've always liked him because he's funny. We also have all these weird connections too - his mother-in-law and I worked together and his step-brother-in-law and I grew up together. So it's like we've known each other for a long time even when we haven't. He has a great blog (though I hate Queensryche!!) and it's always sure to make you laugh.
2. First Year Principal Like Me - E is a first year principal of a junior high school (God love her!). We worked together as APs for the past couple of years and became good friends. She's smart, funny, and someone I've come to trust and confide in. She moved south and I miss her awful. Her blog is a new blog, but a lot of fun to read and enjoy.

I hope to add more as I can..... it's fun to read and share each others' blogs. Keep writing!!

Virus on my computer!?!?!

I truly think that my world almost came to a stand-still on Friday, December 26 at 1:05 PM. I realized I had a bitch of a virus on my computer and I needed help to get it gone.

When I was on the Internet, pop up advertisements kept coming up, my computer was slow and I couldn't interact with society (aka Facebook). I was panicked, freaking out, so I called for help.

My one techy friend realized that this might be beyond his scope and wimped out. Thanks, Chris!!

So... not sure what to do, I called "The Geek Squad." Now, geeks do NOT come cheap. But they do come on Sunday afternoons and that worked well for me.

Nolan, my "Geek," arrived about 4:45 and by 6:30, my virus was gone and I was surfing away on the Net and interacting with society (aka Facebook) again. Now I'm able to live my life like the Internet-aholic that I am.....

Amen for Geeks!!

Is someone trying to tell me something?

Did everyone have a Merry Christmas? I hope so! Mine was hectic (XMas Marathon '08), but I had a good time, ate some good food, and spent time with my family.

We started at my Dad's - where we ate, opened gifts, then played Rummikub. My family is vicious when playing games - we all want to win and are all convinced that everyone else is trying to cheat us out of the win.

Then we headed to Mom's. We ate a delicious dinner, opened gifts, and chatted. It was nice, but I was tired at this point. I came home and crashed about 10 PM.

I received a Kindle from my Dad. I'll blog more about it when I get it in 8-12 weeks (March 9-20). It's awesome and I can't wait for it to get here!!

My sister knows I'm a freak about books. A freak. She likes to call me a "bibliophile." She says that I devour books. It's true. (I'm only 6 books away from my goal of 50... and I still have 3 days left, I'm not giving in until the last minute!!)

So my sister and her hubby get me a book, "1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die." Of course, I want to start looking and seeing how many I have read. (Ed.'s note: The print is so small I needed my reading glasses - I am getting OLD!!)

I'm sad to report that I have only read 26 titles. (Ed.'s note: If you counted Cliff's Notes, then I could probably add another 10-15 to that number. If you counted movies I've seen, I could bump it up another 10 or 15.)

The good news is that I have 7 of the books in my pile to read beside my bed. That's good, right? That brings me to a grand total of 33 books, or I've read 3% of the books I must read before I die. At this rate, I'll need to live for another 1,113 years to read all of the books listed. Not a problem!


I took a picture of my new XMas present (left), with my travel "bible" that Sigh Sister Betty and I use. Notice a common theme between them?

Now, I've done much better on my places - I've been to 68 places so far. I have another 11 places planned for 2009 (2 in March, 8 in June/July, and 1 in November), so I'm doing a bit better here. I have a whooping 6.8%, but will have 7.9% this time next year - maybe more, if I get to travel more. (Ed.'s note: And yes, I mark the pages with the date I went to visit the place. I know I'm a dork, but I love it!!)

I'm 38 1/2 years old today. Though I bitch that I am old, I'm not. I shouldn't die for like another 35-40 years...... so why do I have these books? So I can get a head start before I die? I can't die with these paltry percentages - I've got to get my numbers up!!

Or is a new theme once you hit your 40's - everything is "(insert something here) before you die?"

Try to Have a Non-Dysfunctional Merry Christmas!!

Well, it's Christmas Eve. Wow, where did 2008 go? And don't give me the crap about that time goes faster when you are older (even though it does!).

So many of you are travelling (or have travelled) and are preparing to spend the day with family and friends. Lots of noise, chaos, potential dysfunction......

Me?

I'm alone. And I'm loving it. I had two gift wishes this Christmas - a new TV and a day for myself to do whatever I wanted.

Well, the new TV went buh-bye when I had to get a new radiator and O2 sensor for my car. So tonight I'll be unwrapping a picture of my new radiator and thinking how great it will be to be able to drive. It's the small things, right?

My second gift - I can't tell you the last time I had a day to myself to do what I wanted - wait, I can.... it was in July!! So today is my day. I'm showered and in a fresh pair of PJ's. I'm watching "Footloose" because I can. I may read or nap later. I'll make something yummy for dinner tonight, light a fire, and finish my bottle of Bitch wine. (Keep the Bitch wine comments to yourself!!)

The rest of my family spends time with their "other" family today - my sis with her hubby's family, my Mom with her hubby's family, and my Dad with his "friend's" family. I don't have another family. So I get the day to myself. (Ed.'s note: Please note that there is no tone of complaining, whining, or requesting for pity here. I'm HAPPY about this.)

What I'm not happy about is that both of my parents expect to see me on XMas Day. This is about a 100 mile round trip for me, not to mention lugging gifts and food (because you can't come empty-handed, I wasn't raised in a barn, ya know!). It's like a job, it's exhausting. People are drinking, and in my family, that usually leads to some form of unpleasantness, meanness, or just dysfunction. I have to eat two full meals so as not to offend them. I have to balance my time because God forbid I spend more time at one house or another.

I want to see my family, but why on that day? Couldn't we get together on the 26th? My mother has not been to my home in 2+ years, my father has not been here in 15 months. They never come to Frisco or want to see me here. I have to come to them all the time. For my birthday even, if I want to see them, have dinner, get gifts.... I have to go to THEIR house..... Heck, I can count on one hand how many times I've seen them this entire year, but by God, we had better be together on Christmas Day.

Don't get me started.....

So today, I will enjoy my day - I will rest and gear up for the Christmas Marathon of '08. They are my family and I love them.

But next year.....

I am hosting XMas Day at my house. 3 PM. Mark your calendars. There will be food and Bitch wine for all. Leave the dysfunction at the door.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!!

Do you have a wine named after you?

The gift to get the bitch who has everything. Note the screwcap top? Classy, babe.... pure class.

(Ed.'s note: Like it displayed next to my Christmas flowers for the holiday feel? Hey, what can I say? Merry Christmas from the Bitch!!)

My Break Begins...... cue the Hallelujah chorus!!

So as of 3:30 PM today, my break officially began!! I have 16 days of no work ahead of me. This is so awesome!! It's almost like I don't know what to do, but then I start thinking about all the things I need to do......

* Finish reading books to get to my 50 for the year
* Go by school and pick up all of my plants and flowers that I couldn't carry out today
* Clean out my Tivo
* Christmas shopping - haven't even started, not even sure what to get people..... yikes....
* Scrapbook my last three trips
* Create my calendar pages and get those mailed out
* Pick up box of checks that has been sitting at the bank for at least a month now......
* Get my 02 sensor fixed on my car and hope that's the end of my car troubles
* Clean out my office closet and go through my clothes
* Catch up with some friends that I haven't seen in a while
* Blog about my Thanksgiving trip and post some photos

And that's all I can think of..... I mean, just 5 hours ago, I was nodding off at the salon getting my hair colored (and boy does it look good!)........... and I've had a couple of appletinis since then.

Happy Holidays!!

My Friend Richard

Richard Smith passed away this evening at 6:30 PM. He was 38 years old. He was married to his high school sweetheart, Misty. They had two kids, Dawson is 9 and Massei is 12.

Please pray for Misty and the kids to find peace during these upcoming weeks. Pray for all of Misty's friends and family to find the strength to support her as her life changes directions.

My heart hurts.

The Truth About Santa Claus

This is for adults only...... anyways, your kids shouldn't be reading my blog. Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year!!

Why?

I'm not the most religious person you will meet. I am spiritual, I do believe in God and I do pray. But I'm not one who goes to church or is involved in the more formal trappings of religion. I think my years in all-girls Catholic school did that to me.

My friend Richard is dying. I can't believe I wrote that sentence. He fell 25 feet onto concrete on November 20 and has been in the CCU at Medical Center of Plano since then. He's a McKinney firefighter and has been featured in the newspaper and on the news. He has so many injuries. The doctors said they would tell us when they were losing the battle and they told us that last night. Richard flatlined after surgery yesterday and barely made it back. His organs are failing and it will be a miracle for him to survive. And I'm praying for that miracle. I am holding on to that shred of a miracle.

I was at the hospital from 4-11 last night. I went to be strong for Misty, his wife. Misty is my friend and my secretary at work. She keeps me in line, organized and on-time. She makes me laugh when I'm ready to kill and encourages me when I'm ready to quit. I can't think of a person better suited for being my secretary aka psychological gatekeeper (as I like to call her) than Misty.

I sat in the chapel last night praying and crying. I came home and cried for hours. I don't understand God's will. Why? (Ed.'s note: My therapist tells me Why? questions are the worst because you rarely get the answers to them that you want or need.) He has two small children, why? He is a good, Christian man, why?

As my Facebook page says, I'm trying to open my heart to God's will. But it is hard. I may never understand the Why. So I will soldier on and be strong for my friends Richard and Misty. I love them. And I'm scared.

Respect the Grand Poobah's Authority!

I'm a principal of a small school in a small district in a small town. I like my district. Being small allows everyone to know each other and there is a real feel of family. I love my school - it's new and we have some growing pains, but my staff is strong, the kids are good, and I know that we will be a force to be reckoned with as we continue to grow and mature.

As I've blogged, I've put in a lot of hours into my new job. I've even slept on the clinic cot (which is surprisingly comfy) because I was too tired to drive home. I believe in doing Whatever It Takes, so that's just what you do.

Weekends are sacred to me. I like to have one day to run errands, clean, do whatever I need to do and then I like for my other day to be what I call a "Sloth Day."

On a "Sloth Day," I may get dressed. Or I may stay in my pj's. I may shower or I may not. I could nap all day, or curl up with a good book on the couch. I could watch TV or play on my computer. I might scrapbook or I might do some baking. It's doing whatever I want, when I want, how I want. Some days start as a "Sloth Day," but an offer comes along and I jump on it. On some "Sloth Days," I don't interact with society at all. No phone, no texting, no IMs. It's all about me. I treasure these days as they don't happen very often.

Being a principal has really cut into my sloth days. I knew it would happen, but it still makes me pout if I don't get my time. It is what it is and I'm getting used to it. I'm learning to manage my time to sloth whenever I can, rather than waiting for a whole day that may not happen.

Tomorrow I have to go to a fundraiser for our school from 10-12. I shouldn't complain because we truly have the BEST PTA I've worked with in a long time. They are caring, hard working, and committed to our kids and staff. Then we have our local tree lighting festivities at the park tomorrow. I'll be one of the judges judging the floats in the parade - that starts at 3:45 PM. I have dubbed myself the "Grand Poobah" of the parade even though I won't be in it. After that, I'll head to the tree lighting and then see my choir sing. I'm so excited to see the kids sing, they did a practice run today and they were phenomenal!!

But there goes my whole day. I'm glad to do it for my kids and school, truly, but I'm tired and need to start doing Christmas stuff too. I don't know when I'll get my cards out or mix my annual (as well as highly regarded and demanded) Holiday Jams.

Soo much to do and not much time to do it in.

But no worries, I'll try not to think about it while I "sloth" on Sunday. "Rock of Love Charm School" and "Survivor," here I come!!

Just Call Me Judgy McJudgington......

I know I haven't blogged in a while... I've been busy. I'll blog about my trip and I'll blog about why I've been busy later. When I'm not so busy. Sometime.

Last week, my aunt and I were in our hotel in Branson. (Ed.'s note: Two strikes against Branson: old people and country music - one of the shows was called "Baldknobbers" - I kid you not! The great thing about Branson - excellent shopping opportunities!)

We were tired, we had a busy day and we were glad to be sleeping in a modern hotel after our night in the Haunted 1886 Crescent Hotel. We were in our jammies, watching "Dancing With the Stars" when it starts........

"Look at that outfit, doesn't she look ridiculous?"

"Oh, my, not the best dancer in the group."

"What is up with that kick thing? Oh, no she didn't!!"

My aunt and I are totally trashing the contestants on the show. While in bed. In our jammies. Eating cookies. Like we are professional dancers. Which we are not.

I start giggling..... we keep trash talking. We are ruthless and unforgiving. Finally I say to my aunt, "God, are we the most judgmental people in the world?"

We burst into smug laughter. It's easy to judge from the confines of a hotel room in Branson, Missouri. Heck, I couldn't do any of those moves, but I sure felt qualified to judge.

The show ends and "The Real Housewives of Atlanta Reunion Show" is on. The next thing I know, we are doing it again....

"Ewww... she's not pretty."

"What's up with hair? Is it a wig? She looks like she's 40!"

"These people are a total trainwreck."

We look at each other and die laughing again.

You know, it's not easy being as perfect as we are. Do I feel bad for those people? No, they choose to go on these shows and should expect ridicule at times, especially when they are so stupid they make no sense.

I think I've have a piece of pie and judge... uh, I mean.... watch either Survivor or Top Chef.

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Before I take myself to my Internet 12 Step Group, I want to wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving. While I personally am not a fan of the holiday, I hope all of you are with people you love, enjoying the day and what it stands for.

I fly home to Dallas tomorrow and have many pictures and more blogs to write including my counterfeit money, throwed rolls, and other assorted adventures from my trip.

Gobble, gobble!!

Hi, My Name is Mo and I'm an Internet-aholic!

Okay, I've accepted that I have some issues. Heck, we all have issues. I don't know if it's because I'm single, I live alone, or I have a lot of friends that I enjoy keeping up with in various forms of communication, but....

I'm addicted to the Internet.

I have become what I used to make fun of.

Last Saturday, I flew to St. Louis to spend Thanksgiving with my family. We had a terrific first day - which I already blogged about. We get back to my aunt's house and I immediately start jonezing for the Internet.

I have a BlackBerry. My Facebook is on it. My home e-mail (one of them) is on it. I've forwarded my work e-mail to my home e-mail that is on my BlackBerry. Yet, I feel strangely disconnected from the world at large....

My aunt shows me where the computer is and I'm on it for an hour checking the following:

1. Facebook - any new friends? Any posts? Are my cars parked? Trees harvested? New requests?
2. My Space - why? I reject two people I don't know that want to be my friends.
3. AOL e-mail - most of it I've handled through my BlackBerry, but a few that I need to address
4. SBC Global e-mail - most junk mail, but still check and weed out
5. Work e-mail - again, mostly junk mail, but weed out
6. My Blog - moderate new comments and add a post

Really? I need to do all of that? I used to make FUN of people who did all of that...

We leave on Monday for a little side trip and there is no Internet access, by Wednesday when we return, I'm almost going apeshit, hands shaking, needing a drink because I haven't been connected to the Internet. Again, another hour or so updating all of the above.

I need a life. Wait, let me specify. I need a 3-D life - I have one heck of an active cyber life that I can't keep up with!!

Greetings from Villa Ridge, Missouri!!

Ahh... the joys of the Internet.... I am able to blog about my adventures from the road, instead of having to wait until I return home. Now, pictures will have to be posted when I return home.

Yesterday morning at the airport ran so smoothly. We took off on time and landed on time. No big hassles, I even caught a little catnap on the plane.

My aunt Betty and cousin Kate picked me up at the airport. We then went to the Arch and I took some pictures of it - but we were too close, so I'll take some more another day. After that we headed to the Anheuser Busch brewery tour.

Wow - it was really a great tour and experience. Especially the two free beers at the end. I have some great pictures that I will post upon my return home.

After that, we did a drive by of the City Museum. I really wanted to go in, but with it being a Saturday, kids were everywhere - this is something I'd rather do on a day that might be less crowded - it looks like an amazing museum - very interactive.

We then went to the Basilica of St. Louis. It was amazing - ornate and so beautiful. They just finished it in 1988 and it took them over 60 years to build it. The Catholic in me was quite touched by the whole thing!

After that, we dropped Kate off so she could do her thing with her hubby and Betty and I went for a DELICIOUS Italian meal at Cunetto's on The Hill. The Hill is the Italian part of St. Louis, lots of good restaurants. We really enjoyed our meal!!

We came home and just relaxed, watching "Sex and the City" movie and doing nothing until I crashed about 10:30 PM.

What a wonderful first day of vacation!! :)

Happy Thanksgiving!!

I leave tomorrow morning at 8:10 AM for my Thanksgiving adventure. I've been a bit stressed tonight getting everything done and ready, but I'm now ready to go and I think it's going to be a fabulous trip!

When I get there, Betty & Kate will be picking me up and we'll be doing St. Louis touristy things.... such as the Arch, The City Museum, Anheuser Busch tour, Union Station, and the Cathedral downtown. We'll eat on The Hill, the Italian part of St. Louis - yummy!!

On Sunday, we'll have a traditional Thanksgiving dinner with Betty, Kate & Tommy, and some friends of theirs. It should be a lovely day and a lovely meal.

On Monday, Betty & I head to Eureka Springs. We'll shop and explore the town. Monday night we'll stay in a haunted hotel and take the ghost tour. Should be spooky!!

Tuesday we'll finish in Eureka Springs and then head to Branson. We'll see Branson and spend the night there.

Wednesday we'll head back to Washington, taking our time and seeing what trouble we can conjure up for ourselves.

Thursday we'll serve dinners at my aunt's church and take in a movie.

Friday, I'll come home - exhausted but having had a wonderful adventure.

I'll be blogging from the road and will share with you adventures that I have. Pictures will have to wait until I return next week.

Whether your Thanksgiving is functional, boring, or full of festive cheer - I wish you the best. I know I have much to be thankful for (and I'm thankful all year long, not just on this day!!).

What was the #1 song on your birthday?

Thanks to my buddy Gordon Keith, here is a great website that allows you to look at the #1 songs on your birthday. Now that's pretty cool..... and now you are about to have to look at most of the songs that were popular on my birthday....... (this is going to take a while to get through)

Flashback Charts - you know you are curious, don't lie!!

• June 28, 1970 - The Day of My Birth (did you know that when I was born, I thought the world began this day and that if you were older than me, you were just born that way on my b-day? Am I total narcissist or what?!>!?) "The Love You Save" by the Jackson 5 (probably the one Jackson 5 song I'm not a fan of)
• 1971 - "I Feel the Earth Move" by Carole King - this is off of one of my all-time favorite CDs, "Tapestry." I love this song!!
• 1972 - "Song Sung Blue" by Neil Diamond (song sung blue, weeping like a willow, song sung blue, sleeping on my pillow.....)
• 1974 - "Sundown" by Gordon Lightfoot - I love this song!!
• 1975 - "Love Will Keep Us Together" by The Captain and Tenille - this is one fine karoake tune.... trust me.... and my apologies in advance to the man who I might marry, this one will be coming at you, LIVE.... and now I have reason, it's my b-day song!
• 1976 - "Silly Love Songs" by Paul McCartney & Wings - I remember this song..... I love it!!
• 1977 - "Gonna Fly Now (Theme From Rocky)" by Bill Conti - oh, yeah..... flying high now........... trying hard now........ running up the steps..... getting to the top..... jumping up and down and punching arms out..... (Ed.'s note: I used this song as a motivational song for my ghetto kids, they used to just laugh at me and shake their head......)
• 1978 - "Shadow Dancing" by Andy Gibb - I love me some Andy Gibb.... he's my favorite Brother Gibb.....
• 1979 - "Ring My Bell" by Anita Ward - you can ring my bell...... oh, yeah, baby......
• 1981 - "Bette Davis Eyes" by Kim Carnes - I got this record for my 11th birthday..... I wanted to be Kim Carnes.... I remember at Lori's b-day party.... me, Jen G., and Amy sang and danced this song (do you remember singing and choreographing songs? If you do, you probably also had a Grease book too!)
• 1982 - "Don't You Want Me" by The Human League - don't.... don't you want me... you know I don't believe you when you say that you don't need me...... I used to always get Human League & Animotion mixed up
• 1983 - "Flashdance (What a Feeling)" by Irene Cara - need I say anything else?
• 1984 - "The Reflex" by Duran Duran...... the summer of '84 I was on a softball team called "The Reflex." We cut our shirts sleeveless, wore Jams for shorts, and basically sucked ass on the field. I think we won one game, on my birthday...... but we had fun. We'd blast this song as we got ready for the game..... I think we were going into 9th grade and we were coached by two seniors...... haha
• 1985 - "Heaven" by Bryan Adams..... I still love this song....
• 1989 - "Baby, Don't Forget my Number" by Milli Vanilli - I still have this cassette tape..... CASSETTE TAPE!!! I'm convinced someday it will be worth money and I will retire..... and when I'm sad, I like to sing and dance like Milli Vanilla..... RIP Rob Pilatus (Ed.'s note: The only other cassette I still own is Eddie Murphy "Comedian" - classic.....)
• 1990 - "Step by Step" by NKOTB - you know from previous posts that I love me some NKOTB
• 1992 - "Baby Got Back" by Sir Mix-A-Lot - I like big butts and I cannot lie, the other brothers can't deny........ CLASSIC........
• 1997 - "I'll Be Missing You" by Puff Daddy (aka PDiddy aka Diddy aka Sean John aka Sean Combs) & Faith Evans Featuring 112 - I like this song.... of course, I like Puff Daddy.....
• 1998 - "The Boy is Mine" by Brandy & Monica - two sistas fighting over a man.... the timeless struggle
• 2001 - "Lady Marmalade" by Pink, Mya, Lil' Kim & Christina Aguilera - So love this song..... wish they had been looking for a fifth, I was available
• 2002 - "Hot in Herre" by Nelly - this was the summer I moved home from Florida.... I love me some Nelly..... Country Grammar, anyone?
• 2004 - "Burn" by Usher (or Urshur) - just let it burn........
• 2007 - "Umbrella" by Rihanna - I just love this song....
• 2008 - "Viva La Vida" by Coldplay - this is one of my current favorite songs.... I didn't know the name of the song, but I knew it was Coldplay..... great song.....

And there you have it...... so what's your favorite song from your birthday years?

I'm gonna have to download the songs I don't have and make a "Mo B-Day Mix"........

I have a new counter......

..... and let's see if it works!!

We have 1100 hits.....

.... and my damn counter broke!! Next time, I'll shop at Target instead of Walmart.... so I guess I'll start counting..... AGAIN!!

Introducing Special Guest Blogger.... my sister Sarah!!

My sister Sarah is a faithful reader of the blog..... you'll see her comments peppered throughout.... and her husband Mike (whom I've blogged about before) isn't a big fan of the blog....

Sarah & Mike went to see the Holiday Inn implosion on Sunday morning. I would have gone, but I was busy preparing for my school dedication ceremony. I told Sarah that I thought this event was blog-worthy - so she should report it for me. And she did. (Ed.'s note: I think she's worked hard on this and is a bit nervous about it being well received. So only nice comments - I am the big sister and I'll beat up anyone who messes with her!!) Here it is:


Holiday Inn Implosion
Sunday, November 9th

I read about this event in the Dallas Morning News on Saturday and asked Mike if he wanted to go. We were taking a non-commital, "let's wait and see" approach. TRANSLATION: "It depends on how much we drink on Saturday night." If we were awake on Sunday morning, then we would go. If not, we'd watch on TV. No biggie.

We woke up at 6:45a on Sunday (it's fun having two dogs--once they sense you are awake they are relentless in their efforts to try to get you out of bed).

We headed out around 7:15a with provisions: cream cheese coffee cake, orange Gatorade, and Mountain Dew. While driving I was second guessing our decision. "Are we total dorks? Will anyone else be there? Should I have worn a bra?" My questions were answered as we drove along the service road across from the hotel site. Cars had jumped the curbs and were parked askew in the grass. Lines of cars were forming as people were waiting to park in apartment and business parking lots facing the freeway.

I estimate we were in the company of at least 200-300 people, including lots of families with kids. We met one man who had arrived at 6:45a; we offered him coffee cake. Many people brought cameras and recording devices. We stood next to the Channel 5 news van--strategically set up to capture the event. Anchor Suzy Solis was asking people to stick around afterwards to give comments. Overall a very festive atmosphere . . .

75 was shut down for 10 minutes in both directions. Very eerie, to see the freeway and not one single car . . .

Horns blared loudly three times just before 8am. Then, THE LOUDEST "BOOM" I'VE EVER HEARD IN MY LIFE, followed by smaller echoing booms. As a relatively intelligent person, I knew it would be loud--I had no idea just how loud. The magnitude of it all made my eyes water.

89 pounds of dynamite were used to take down the 9 story building. It crumbled from the center first, with the east and west sides of the rectangular building folding inward. Less than 30 seconds total. I stood watching in awe--I can honestly say I've never seen anything like it in my life.

Crowds cheered and people high-fived one another while huge billows of dust and debris plumed upward. A westward wind carried these clouds in our direction. A man nearby yelled, "Here comes the asbestos!"

Suddenly we were engulfed in the cloud. I covered my mouth, which did nothing to stop me from ingesting large amounts of the dust. I could crunch my teeth on the grit in my mouth. I looked back in the direction of where the building once stood, but all I could see was just more dust and debris. Eyes stinging, I ran for the car (I wish I had worn a bra).

Once in the car (also covered with dust and small debris) we drove home silently, enjoying clean air and taking in what we had just seen.

At home, I dusted off, brushed teeth, washed face, etc. We were just in time to see Suzy Soliz (also covered with dust and small debris) and the replay coverage on Channel 5.

To this day, one of the coolest things I have seen!

Not bad, eh? Maybe Sarah should get a blog of her own. For the full effect, here's a video of the event:

My thoughts on the election?

Well, I voted.

I'll tell you who I voted for. John McCain. I describe my political views as "Republican with Democratic tendencies." But this election, I just felt that I was more in line with McCain than Obama. I didn't (and still don't) think he has the experience needed to run a country. However, history has shown that many presidents didn't have that experience (like W.) - sometimes it worked out and sometimes it didn't.

I hate Joe Biden. He's a pompous ass. But he likes to get his drink on and party and he does have a lot of experience. And frankly, between him and Palin... he's the lesser of two evils.

So on election night, I knew pretty quick that my guy wasn't going to win. And I pouted. Which only resulted in Ohio and Pennsylvania going to Obama.

I watched McCain's concession speech - which was amazing, eloquent, thoughtful and downright passionate. The most passion I'd see from McCain was in admitting defeat, not running for office. I thought he was respectful to Obama and he was a graceful loser. Had he run his entire campaign with the same fire, thought, and candor..... heck, he might have had a chance......

I waited up for Obama to speak. I was going to turn the TV off at 11, whether I heard him or not. He came on. I will admit, I don't care for his dry delivery style, but I listened to his words. And watched how people reacted to him. People were crying. People were happy. People looked hopeful. When was the last time you saw that at a presidential election? Not in my lifetime...... maybe Kennedy?

I liked what he said to those of us who didn't vote for him. That he would work to earn our respect. That stuck with me. That was powerful.

While Obama doesn't have much experience in government, he knows how to unite people, to inspire people and give people hope. That's a quality that you can't learn, no matter how much experience you have.

I'm going to give Obama a chance. I think he may be the change we need. I'm going to watch him work to earn my respect. I'm going to watch how he unites people. And I'm going to watch and pray that he doesn't gouge me next tax year.

(Ed.'s note #1: I do have to say that I will miss Tina Fey as Sarah Palin - pure comic genius!)

(Ed.'s note #2: Mr./Mrs. Condescending Ray of Sunshine - I'm dying to see your blast on this post - hit me with your best shot!!)

Thanksgiving - what's the point?

Okay, so I just realized that Thanksgiving is like three weeks away..... big deal, right?

This holiday serves two purposes:

1. Be thankful - shouldn't we be thankful every day? How can you remember all year long the things you are thankful for and then be thankful for them on one day? Or are you supposed to not be thankful the other 364 days of the year and just expected nice shit to happen to you just because? Explain......

2. Eating - okay, I like to eat. One look at me and this would be a rhetorical comment. If we are so worried about health and obesity, why do we have a day that promotes eating until you are ill? Anyone???

Thanksgiving is a holiday spent with your family. Families are dysfunctional in the best of circumstances (if you don't think so, I've got a cruise on the river Denial with your name on it!!). Holidays are even more stressful. Drinking occurs, people are ubersensitive, and something ugly has the potential of happening.

So what do I do? Am I functional and face the day, knowing it could be a challenge?

Hell, no - I do my dysfunctional move that I've trademarked.... AVOIDANCE!

I avoid Thanksgiving. Hate it. Hate turkey. Hate pecan pie. Hate stuffing that has bread crumbs and/or apples and celery in it.

I travel. Or host people travelling.

Last year was my first "Un-Thanksgiving Thanksgiving." I had my dear friend John in from Florida and his friend Sandra from Houston. We stayed in our pj's, cooked, watched bad reality TV, drank, played Rummikub and had a very stress free day. With my trademark deviled eggs (which I know John is now trying to take credit for as his own in the Florida market - I'm on to you, John!). Don't get me wrong - we ate. But there was no dysfunction and no guilt.

This year, I'm going to Missouri to see my Sigh Sister Betty and Cousin Kate. We'll start off on the 22nd getting a full tour of St. Louis (been there so many times, but never done touristy stuff because family lives there) and we'll eat dinner on Sunday the 23rd. Marthalocity and Bettylocity will travel on Monday-Wednesday to Eureka Springs and Branson. We'll serve Thanksgiving dinners on the day. Again, no stress, no guilt, no drama, no dysfunction.

That's how I like to roll on Turkey Day.

We have 1000 hits!!!

Thanks to all of you who cruise my blog and check on my wacky life. I've hit over 1,000 clicks and that is exciting!! (And I've only had a counter for the last two months...... so you know I've been hit alot since starting this in January!)

Keep reading and keep the comments coming!!

With the holidays around the corner, you know I'll have some blog worthy material!!

Get out and vote today!

Make sure that you get out and vote today if you didn't already early vote. I voted last Wednesday because I never know with my job if I'm going to be able to get out of work at a decent hour.

I don't care who you vote for (actually I do!) but just make sure you get out there and vote.

Remember - you can't complain about our government if you didn't voice your opinion about who leads us!

Wonder how long it'll take before they call it tonight?

Happy Election Day!

Happy Halloween!!

I know many of you will be with your "precious cargo" (aka your kids) tonight, but this is what I will probably end up doing. The couch, bad TV, and many beers. And it may get ugly, who knows.....

Happy Halloween!

I'm too tired to tell my BlackBerry woes......

Yesterday, I told you I'd tell you about my adventures with my phone. Well, I spent another hour today dealing with it. And I'm still mad.... so instead, I'll show this clip sent to me by my dear friend John......

Stick with it at least until 2:58..... it's worth the wait......



I have to be at school at 5:30 in the morning for Donuts with Dad.... Mo out!!

A Classy Night.... from Reginald to Tony to BK.....

Tonight was our Tony Bennett concert. I honestly didn't think that I was going to make it there - my afternoon was way messed up!! I'll have to save the first part of my trip (Reginald from the title) for another blog entry...... it was interesting to say the least.....

Because I'm running so late, I meet Brooke in the CVS parking lot by SMU and we head to the Meyerson. We got there in like 10 minutes, found a great parking spot across the street (that cost $15 - parking is SUCH a rip!) and were inside the Meyerson by 7:40. (Ed.'s note: The Meyerson is beautiful and great, but I like the Bass in Ft. Worth better.) We gulped down a couple of RC Cola's (we hadn't had time to stop for dinner) and we were in our seats ready to go by 7:55.

Kudos to Brooke for our fabulous seats! We were like 10 rows back and right near the aisle. We had an excellent view of Tony.

At 8:00 promptly, Tony came out and sang. He sang for 90 minutes. He talked a bit between songs, but not much. He threw names around like it was no big deal. He was absolutely amazing - he voice was clear and strong. He is 82 years old..... and he worked the stage for his time, never sitting down and always full of energy. He smiles constantly and you can really tell he is enjoying singing his songs for you.

I loved how he would throw his hands up in the air after he'd sing a bit or after one of the band members would do a solo and on command the entire audience would applaud. He did this often and each time the audience applauded. By the end of the show, we were trained. There were also at least 3 standing ovations during the show.

One of the most powerful moments was when he turned the microphone off and sang a song to a friend of his in the crowd. His voice filled the Meyerson and it was beautiful. It was amazing. There was not a sound in the theatre. When he finished, there was thunderous applause!

At the end of his set, he simply waved and walked off stage. The crowd kept clapping over and over... he came out a few times, wave, and then walk away. We kept clapping. (Ed.'s note: I think after all of the rock concerts I've been to lately, I was somewhat trained that if I clap long and loud enough, they'll come out and do an encore.) No such luck with Tony. When he was finished, he was finished.

We left and went to Burger King for a quick bite. Hey, after a fancy night at the Meyerson, BK is the perfect post concert stop. Brooke and I ate and caught up, then she took me to my car.

Tonight ends my October concert run..... 4 concerts (Buble', New Kids on the Block, Rick Springfield, Tony Bennett), 4 venues (Ft. Worth Convention Center, AAC, House of Blues, Meyerson), 2 cities (Dallas, Ft. Worth). It's been a great run!

Long Live The Chess King!!

Sorry, it took me a couple of days to get the Chess King on my blog. Not a bad picture from a BlackBerry in a dark concert hall (thanks, Laura!). However, you can't see the bedazzled rhinestones so that does take away a certain appeal. This is a lot of shirt to wear!! I don't know many men who could pull this look off.......

Many of you have asked me what is Chess King? It was a store in the 80's where all of the hot guys shopped. Us gals shopped at Judy's or Contempo Casuals.... the boys shopped at Chess King!! Unfortunately, like many things of the 80's.... it peaked and then plummetted into bankruptcy in the 90's.

Long Live The Chess King!!

Forget Jessie, I wish that I was Rick's girl!!

Apparently last weekend's stroll down memory lane was not enough.... tonight I went to see Rick Springfield in concert at the House of Blues.

Laura & I met in Lewisville and grabbed a quick bite before heading downtown. We valeted and waited for the doors to open. Once they did, we got some drinks and got settled into our seats. If you have not been to the HOB, I totally recommend it. It is an amazing venue - very intimate, very clean, very easy to navigate.

And our seats? WOW! Laura did an awesome job! We were in the Box on the second row. We had the best vantage point - we could see everything and see it well! We sat on the comfy tall barstools. It was so worth the money; if I ever go back to the House of Blues, this is the only place for me to sit!

So the opening act is "Escort Service," a local band from Dallas. They were fair. The lead singer apparently had a bet going with how many times he could drop the f-bomb during their segment. I enjoy a good f-bomb (or 2 or 3 or 4), but even I was like enough! Then he tells us his daughter is back stage - nice parenting, buddy!! My favorite song of theirs was the last song, which they a cover of a Billy Joel song.

I would be remiss to not introduce the people sitting around us. To my right, Mr. and Mrs. "I'm Hell Bent on Not Even Reacting to the Concert Tonight." I never heard them sing, clap, or talk for that matter. I almost pinched the lady at one point to make sure she was still alive. If I'd had a mirror, I would have put it under their noses. Why pay $100/seat to just sit? I don't get it. To Laura's left, Mr. "My Girlfriend Drug Me Here." He was about as thrilled as my neighbors to be there.

But the real highlight of the night, second only to Rick, was "Chess King." (If you don't know what Chess King is, take a stroll back to the 80's... or even 90's.) This dude was one sexy beast. He looked like the guy from Grease... the one with the crater face that drove the car that shot fire out of it's exhaust? He had the exact same hair do, except he had a Bluetooth in his ear.

But the piece 'd resistance was his shirt. It was a floral-y print with either rhinestones or sequins on it. It looked like it had been bedazzled. Laura kept taking pictures (much to Mr. "My Girlfriend Drug Me Here"'s chagrin.) and I will post one here when I get it. I can't even begin to do it justice as much as I'd like. He apparently was a big wig because he had his own person that came by and checked on him and his date.

And my darlin' Rick. Laura said he was 58, but I looked it up and he is 59. 59 years old!! He sure didn't look like it and didn't act like it. I was worried that he'd a bad dye job, some heavy eyeliner and some pancake makeup to try to give him some youth. He looked HOT! He threw himself into the audience and was all over the place. (I wonder how bad he's gonna hurt tomorrow? How much Percocet will he need?)

He was great - I heard the songs I wanted to hear (Human Touch, Bop Til You Drop, Affair of the Heart, & Jessie's Girl) plus some new songs from his new album, which were pretty good. I didn't want it to end - I had so much fun!

House of Blues gets 2 thumbs up..... and so does Rick!!

My last musical journey is Tuesday night..... Tony Bennett at the Meyerson!

Am I old, am I stressed out, or am I an idiot?

Have you ever turned your head too fast and pulled your neck muscle? It hurts, right? But after a few days, it goes away.

I did this on Tuesday. It hurt bad. I had my receptionist give me a massage, which usually works. Yesterday I was in pain. It hurt to turn my neck at all. Vanessa gave me another massage, and Christine shared with me her neck roll thingy that you can heat up. It did feel better after all of that.

I had a hard time sleeping last night - every time I moved, I woke up in pain. I took some Percocet and was able to sleep through the night. Amen!!

When I woke up this AM, I couldn't move my head AT ALL. The pain was unbearable. I thought it was because it was stiff and would loosen up as I showered and got ready. Well, I never got that far because then I had some vomiting and gastrointestinal issues.

Yuck......

Went to the doctor and I have a Grade II muscle pull? I'm on anti-inflammatories and have to ice it 15 minutes of every hour.

When the doctor asked me what happened, I was like, "Hell if I know.... I just turned my head."

He gave me a look like I'm an idiot......

But I'm also getting older........

And I've been under a lot of stress at work.......

This is a reality show that I might like to watch.......

We've got Barack and Sarah on "Dancing with the Stars" and Joe Biden on "Celebrity Rehab." Wonder what reality show John McCain will show up on? hehehehehehe (Ed.'s note: I'm SOOO ready for the election to be OVER!!)

Discuss.....

I've been "Hangin' Tough" with the "Right Stuff"..........

Well, tonight my 4 concerts in 4 venues in 2 cities continues......

It was New Kids on the Block at the American Airlines Center......

I just got home about 15 minutes ago (12:25 was when I got home) and I am exhausted. So I may start this blog and add to it tomorrow when I've had some rest.

Sarah and I met up and had a quick bite to eat before we headed downtown. We got inside, got a beer and got settled in our seats just as the opening act for the opening act was starting. I still have no idea who it was, but she was a bizarre little trollop who talked more about her skirt than anything. She only sang 2 or 3 songs, then was gone.......

After a quick break, Natasha Bedingfield came out. That sista can SING! Her voice is amazing, she did about a 30 minute set and it was fun. She ended her set with the song "Unwritten" (aka "The Hills" theme song) and it brought the place down.....

In between Natasha and NKOTB, I ran over to Section 114 to say hi to Elizabeth and her cousin. Then I rushed back to my seat.

I was again in Section 111 (see my previous post about Van Halen in April). We had awesome seats with a great view.

As quick as the concert started, it was over. The boys sang for 2 hours, but it felt like 2 minutes. They did all the standards and some of their new stuff. There was a lull in the middle where they took turns singing slow songs, I'm guessing that was a bathroom/costume change/water/catch your breath break. They came out and rocked it... ending the show with "Step by Step" and "Hangin' Tough."

Here's my individual reviews:

1. Donnie Wahlberg - I can truly say, he is the heart and soul of the group. He's the audience stirrer and head rapper. He apparently also is an exhibitionist, showing us his drawers as well as having the camera focus on his crotch numerous times. He got the audience going and was fun to watch. You could tell he was enjoying himself. Sadly, he wore a hat the whole night to hide his male-pattern baldness. Get rid of the hat, Donnie, we love you for more than your head of hair!!

2. Joey McIntyre - I had NO interest in him back in the day. But he has grown into a fine young man (he's actually 36 - I had no idea he was that old... I was thinking he was like 32 or something!!) with the bluest eyes ever. He can sing and he did a fair share of the vocals. He can also dance - I think "Dancing with the Stars" probably helped him.....

3. Jordan Knight - I was impressed with how many of the high notes that he could still hit. He has a great voice, and he chose to sing a song while wearing an open shirt and allowing a fan to blow it open. He's cuter than he was before... and a much better dresser..... no acid wash jeans or overalls the entire night!!

4. Danny Wood - God bless Danny!! He's not the cutest, and he's not a major vocalist, but he does contribute all spoken lines in any song...... that is important!! He also featured break dancing during a number, and talked about Breast Cancer Awareness and losing his mother. He has a good body, a lot of heart, so I give him a lot of props for his work tonight.

5. Jon Knight - I think Sarah and I agree that he was the worst. He literally phoned it in. He could not have been there and he wouldn't have been missed. Is he just doing it for the paycheck? My sister LOVED Jon 20 years ago, but is less than impressed with him now.

It's almost 1 AM and I have to be up in 4 hours to work. I may add to this tomorrow after a good night's sleep.

Let's just say I had a wonderful time!! I'm glad I went!! Happy Belated Birthday, Sarah!

Next up..... Rick Springfield at House of Blues on Saturday night...... let the tunes continue!!

My 20th High School Reunion

Well, it's over.... and I'm kinda sad about it!! The funny thing is I spent all of this time worrying about tonight and seeing everyone, how it would feel...... and it was silly! I had a total blast!!

I went to HH after work and had a few margaritas - then I spent too much time talking and had to rush home, hurry getting ready, and get out of the door fast! I hightailed it down the Tollway to Wycliff, where I was meeting Brooke.

She was 20 minutes late! That didn't really bother me, but the more I sat there, the more nervous I became...... would people remember me? would they talk to me? would I feel left out and stupid?

Brooke arrived and we headed over to Mattito's. As soon as we walked it, it was like time had almost not passed. Everyone looked pretty much the same and it was fun catching up with people. A few glasses of wine and 3 hours later, I felt like I had seen everyone I wanted to see and almost everyone there. We missed a few friends who didn't show up, but we had a decent turnout. The local girls talked about meeting a couple of times a year for brunch or happy hour just to stay in touch.

Tomorrow during the day is the picnic (no hubby or kids for that) and the tours of the school. I am kind of interested to see the new Ursuline - I know it has changed a LOT since I was there 20+ years ago.

Tomorrow night is the party with Jesuit at Jesuit. While I do want to go, I also want to go to the Lake Highlands shindig so I can catch up with all of those old friends.... what to do?

I'm so glad I went tonight.... I knew I would be!! UA Class of '88 RULES!! :)

This is a guy I might like to party with......

Joe Biden drunk and singing a song from an infomercial about some community in Florida..... he may not make a great VP, but he knows how to party!

Three posts in one day..... I either must be bored or avoiding work!!

Yesterday D and I went and saw "Nights in Rodanthe," the new Nicholas Sparks movie. Don't keep reading if: a) you want to see this movie (spoiler alert!!) or b) you aren't in the mood to listen to bitching.

This is a typical Nicholas Sparks movie with all of the appropriate elements:

1. Takes place in North Carolina
2. Someone has died, is dying, or dies dead during the film
3. People fall in love
4. Shit happens that keeps them from being in love (ie. death, mentioned above)
5. Women in the theatre cry at this crap

Now, I've seen several of his films (The Notebook (liked it, loved the book), A Walk to Remember (liked it, loved the book), Message in a Bottle (hated the movie, never read the book) and I can predict them like noone's business.

I knew when Richard Gere didn't show up at Diane Lane's house for dinner, there was some big shit going down..........

I'm not a crier. I was raised that crying is for the weak. I'm not weak.... I am woman, hear me roar!! I cried when I READ The Notebook and A Walk to Remember, but not when I saw the movies. (Ed.'s note: I think crying when reading a book is much more impactful than crying at a movie. This is my opinion.)

I'll be damned if I didn't cry when Richard didn't show up for dinner.....

And all I could think of was, "DAMN YOU, Nicholas Sparks!!! When will you be making "The Wedding" into a movie?"

Tony Bennett is coming to town... and I'll be there!!

In my quest to see as many different concerts in as many different venues in one month, I've been invited to see Tony Bennett with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra at the Meyerson on October 28. Thanks, Brooke - 2 adventures in one month -we rock!!

4 Concerts, 4 Venues, 2 Cities..... I'm partying like a rock star voyeur!!

There is a God... and Michael Buble' is his name!!!

I've just gotten home from the concert.

All I can say is that I am in love!!

Brooke and I headed over to Ft. Worth for the concert this evening. We were going to eat down near Sundance Square, but there was a beer shindig going on and every restaurant had a 1-2 hour wait. We just didn't have time for that.

So we cruised to the Macaroni Grill - 10 minute wait and we were in and out within an hour. Gotta love chain restaurants.... they 'da the bomb!!

We get to the Ft. Worth Convention Center at about 8:10. We park in the garage on the top floor. We head into the concert, curious as to the open act. It was a comedian and he was done by the time we got to our seats at 8:30 PM. From what we were told, we missed nada.

We had good seats - on the right of the stage about halfway up. We were in the middle of our row and it was a pain to get to our seats, but it was a good view of Michael and the stage.

He came on at 8:45 and was done by 10:15 - the time flew by too fast. He did a great set of songs. He also did a lot of talking and he was funny and witty. He involved his band, which was amazing. Some of the band guys were real cuties.

It took us longer to get home (2 hours 15 minutes) than he played, but I can tell you it was worth it!!

I'm going to sleep and I hope to dream of Michael Buble' serenading me!!

Politics, anyone?

I received an e-mail from a reader of my blog asking why I never tackle politics in my blog. Great question!

I find it hard to discuss politics when frankly I'm just so freakin' frustrated with the entire thing.

Okay, you've got the Democrats: Barack Obama and Joe Biden. Barack doesn't really have much experience and Joe Biden is cocky.

On the Republican side: John McCain and Sarah Palin. John has lots of experience and Sarah's got a big mouth.

I'm really mad about Sarah Palin. I really wanted to like her. I was excited to see a woman run for Vice President. I wanted her to be smart and articulate, witty and funny, someone that a woman like me could look up to. Well, that really hasn't happened. At all.

But I hate that people rail on her because she has kids and was a PTA mother. All of these people who are bitching about it, who raised you? Your mother! Why can't a mom have a career and a family? I mean, how 1950's are we? Let the gay men run and don't judge..... let the black men run and don't judge...... but god forbid a mother runs....... (Ed.'s note: Yes, this is the same person who wrote the blog entry "Happy Hour.... with Children." Like I said, I don't want/have kids... and don't judge me for it.... and I won't judge you for having 'em.)

Is our country in a bad place? Yes.
Do we need new leadership? Yes.
Is Iraq a mess? Yes.
Is our economy &*$%%#* up? Yes.

Who will I vote for? I don't know. I'm about as inspired to vote as I was in 1988 in the Bush/Dukakis campaign. Neither side does it for me.

Is it bad that I get most of my political information from Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, Jason Sudeikis, and Will Forte?



Don't forget to vote on November 4!!

Oprah Winfrey Presents..... The Color Purple.... My Last Musical for this Season!!!

I'm a little sad tonight, so bear with me...... tonight was my last musical of this season, "The Color Purple." I was a little nervous because the State Fair was going on and I was worried about going alone and parking. A few weeks ago, I went and bought a special valet pass (for $30) to guarantee that I had valet parking for the show. (Ed.'s note: I walked farther than I normally walk when I don't park valet so that I could park valet tonight. Go figure!!)

I started the evening by meeting Mike & Sarah at Snookie's for a burger. As usual, we had great conversation. (Ed.'s note: We discussed whether you can use "golf" as a verb. Do you golf? Or Do you play golf? Discuss.) We also discussed my previous blog about US Americans and dumb Southern beauty queens such as.

I leave dinner and head down to Fair Park. I use my magic valet pass and have to hike my fat ass across two parking lots to get to the Hall. As I'm waiting to get my ticket scanned, the girl in front of me asks the usher how long the show would be.

Girl: "How long is the show tonight?"
Usher: "2 hours, 50 minutes."
Girls: "2 hours, 15 minutes?"
Usher: "No, 2 hours, 50 minutes."
Mo (to self): This is one long damn show. And I'm glad I'm not trying to be at work at 6 AM tomorrow morning. Thank heavens for boring staff development days that don't start until 9 AM!!

I get in and get settled into my seat. Roland and Sylvia are already there - they had spent a few hours at the fair before coming to the show (you can get into the Fair with your ticket to the musical - $14 bonus value!!) We chit chat and I find out that R & S live in the same neighborhood as my mother!! It's a small world after all!! (It's a world of laughter, a world of tears..... sorry, I digress.... it IS my favorite ride at Disney World!)

The gay guys come in at the last minute and we all talk about how sad we are that our season is over, but we are all overjoyed (seriously!) that we are all renewing tickets for next season! Tarzan, here we come!!!

The show was good - singing was amazing!! There was some material that I think offended Sylvia, but I enjoyed it. How do I know it offended Sylvia? When she said to me at the intermission, "I could have done with less of "that." I got the gist without them having to be soo graphic about it." But me, I was glad that I had the chance to see it! It was 2 hours and 50 minutes long.... I started to fidget at about 10:30 PM.

When it was over, we all said goodbye. The gay guys hugged me and shook my hand. I was a little choked up - I've bonded with all of them. And the gay guys helped me with my daily quota of sarcasm......

But we'll be reunited (reunited and it feels soo good... reunited cause we understood..... sorry, I'm punchy and feel like singing...) in March 2009 for Tarzan!!

Hasta la vista mis amigos nuevos!!

Are you one of the US Americans who knows where the USA is on a map?

Okay, apparently, I've been working too much lately and can't believe I missed this....



This doesn't look good for blondes, beauty queens or residents of South Carolina.

Really? US Americans? Our education should help us, no help South Africa and "The Iraq" such as.

Thanks to Jimmy Kimmel for the explanation:



For what it's worth, I've been in education for 17 years and I'm NOT responsible for this girl. I've only taught US Americans in Texas and Florida such as.

Guess what everyone is getting for XMas from me? Maps!!!

Blogging - it's like crack sometimes!!

You know, I just really enjoying blogging. I know most of you could probably care less about what I write about and I'm okay with that. I enjoy it, it makes me laugh, and that's all I really care about.

I do spend time reading other people's blogs too - I steal ideas, I laugh and I realize I'm not the only one who loves to blog!

Some of my favorite blogs are located on the right hand side of my blog. I'm constantly adding to that list as I find blogs I enjoy.

Some blogs I've found but didn't bookmark and wish I would have. One blog showed what a guy wore each day. One blog showed what a lady ate each day. Those were funny to me.....

Here are some other fun blogs I enjoy looking at:

1. Sexy People - People send in timeless pictures of themselves - it makes me laugh!! Check them out!! I particularly enjoy when people send in multiple pictures so you can see a progression over the years.

2. Jennsylvania - Jen Lancaster has written three of my favorite new books: "Bitter is the New Black," "Bright Lights, Big Ass", and "Such a Pretty Fat." She's plus sized, sarcastic and isn't afraid to say what she thinks..... gosh, she sounds a lot like me!

3. I Hate Green Beans - Lincee cracks me up. Years ago, she started writing an e-mail that got passed around after each Bachelor episode. Now she's on a blog, blogging about that and other crazy things. I bet she'd be my friend if she knew that Chris Harrison was my step-brother. Hmmmmmm......

4. Cute with Chris - Chris is a Canadian who's come to America. His blog has people submitting pictures of pets. He talks about "Crazy Cat Ladies" and the like. He does a weekly webcast. He's sarcastic as hell. I hate cats. I love Chris. Check him out!

I have many other blogs I read, both by people I know and people I don't know.... I'll be sharing those with you soon.

Happy Blogging!! (c'mon, Mike, you know you want to!!)

Dallas Summer Musicals List for 2009 Revealed!

I was anxious to get my Sunday paper today because today is the day they were going to reveal the shows for next season's Dallas Summer Musicals. As many of you know, this is my first season to be a season ticket holder and I have really enjoyed it!! I got season tickets by myself because none of my friends would commit to the whole season, but I have had a blast getting to know the people in my section and I have loved almost every single show!! A couple of friends have expressed interest in going in for tickets this upcoming season, but I've decided that I'm renewing tickets whether or not they choose to join me.

So here they are:

1. Tarzan (March 17-29) - not really sure about this one
2. Happy Days The Musical (May 26-June 7) - again, not really sure about this one, but I liked the show and the music should be good, right?
3. Wizard of Oz (June9-21) - I'm kind of excited about this one, I love the movie, so I'm hoping that I'll love the musical too
4. Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (June 23-July 5) - this may be my "Ring of Fire" musical - no interest in seeing it at all
5. A Chorus Line (July 7-19) - I'm soo there!!
6. Legally Blonde (July 21-August 2) - this is the musical I've been waiting to see!
7. Mary Poppins (September 24-October 18) - I'd really like to see this one too......

In addition - they have some special shows:
1. Rent (May 5-10) - YES!! Two of the original Broadway/movie actors (Anthony Rapp/Adam Pascal) will be in this tour - I'm soo there!
2. Fiddler on the Roof (May 19-24) - not too interested in

As I was talking with my aunt this AM, I agreed with her and my cousin's philosophy: You usually have a strong season followed by not such a strong season, then it rebounds. I'm hoping that the season we are just finishing is a strong season (and I think it is), that next season is a weaker season (which I think it is) and that means that the following season will be awesome!!

Here's to another year with Roland & Sylvia and the Gay Commentary Couple!! WOO HOO!! :)

Should I go to my 20th High School Reunion?

My 20th High School Reunion is 3 weeks from tonight. I'm not sure that I want to go. I'm really wrestling with the idea of attending.

If you've noticed my poll to the right of this post, please vote if you haven't done so. Vote even if you don't know me. I'm curious as to what people think.

Why am I hesitant? Well..... I've changed a lot since high school, some for the better, and some maybe not. Girls (I went to an all-girls school) can be so judgemental and harsh... and while we aren't girls anymore, I just don't know if I'm ready for that were it to happen. While I feel like I'm an accomplished person, I'm not married and childless and to some people..... that I'm missing those things....... makes everything else insignificant.

So I'll go ahead and pay my $40 for the Friday night event and take it from there.

If you've had your 20th, did you go? What did you think? What advice would you give me?

I have 21 days to figure this out....... and I don't want to regret the choice I make...... so talk to me!!

Meet Latarian Milton......

Latarian is an adventurous seven year old boy who lives with his grandma in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. One day he got mad at his momma and stole his Grandma's Dodge Durango and went joyriding with another 7 year old friend who "smokes with cigarettes." They hit parked cars, moving cars, and wrecked the car into a sign.

I love his reasoning why he did this: "I wanna do it because it's fun - fun to do bad things." Lovely.

Grandmama wants to beat his butt and would if she wouldn't go to jail. Perfect. And Latarian's punishment: "No video games for a weekend??"

You know, I can't do this justice..... here you go:



(I'd like to thank John for introducing me to Latarian!!)

You might think that's all we will hear about Latarian. But.... ohhhh... noooooo.... Latarian was at his neighborhood Walmart with his Grandmama when he wanted some chicken wings. Grandmama said no, but he ordered it anyways and when Grandmama put her foot down, Latarian done come undone.

So now he's in a hospital for a mental evaluation......



Moral of these stories: Don't make Latarian mad and let him have his chicken wings!!

We interrupt your lives for this important message......

Clay Aiken is GAY!! No, really, I'm totally serious!! I know - this is amazing news! I would have never thought that!! How surprised are you?? Are you in shock?? (C'mon, he wears more makeup than I do!!)

Well, if Clay Aiken is gay than I'm an almost-40 year old, overworked, underpaid, single and never going to get married dried up old bag......... oh, wait, I am!!!

You may now resume your lives already in progress........

Stitches are finally out!!

I feel like the skies should part, a ray of sunshine should shine down on me (but only if I have sunscreen with at least a 45 SPF and my sun hat), and the choir should be singing, "Hallelulah" as I'm now done with my skin cancer!!

I called today first thing to see if I could get in the AM, but the best they could do was this afternoon. But..... they are out, everything is healing perfect, and I'm good to go.....

.... that is for the next two weeks - then I have my 3 month checkup and the fun gets to begin all over again!!

STAY OUT OF THE SUN!! WEAR SUNSCREEN!!

Happy Hour.... with Children??!?!?! UPDATE

I regret to inform all of you that "Happy Hour.... with Children" ended with one child going to the ER for poking a stick in his eye. Guess it's good that there was only one bottle of wine for adults, so that they could think quick and get the appropriate medical attention.

I still stand by my earlier blog...... and I do love children..... just not as much as their parents love them......

Happy Hour.... with children ?!?!!?!

So..... you've had a rough week, you want to relax and enjoy the upcoming weekend, so what do you do? Go to Happy Hour, right? Have a few drinks, some snacks, and just relax - thankful that the week is over and you've got some time for yourself.....

Not for everyone.....

My sister was invited to a Happy Hour of sorts..... her friend with kids invited them over for Happy Hour tonight (who does Happy Hour on Saturday?).... there will be 1 bottle of wine (this tells me either to bring more wine or that drinking more than a glass around their "precious cargo" will be frowned upon) and some appetizers.... however, only people with children can stay for pizza dinner with the kids... others may use this as a jumping off point for their evening activities......

WTF?

What if you have kids and don't want to bring them? Is that okay?

What if you have kids and don't want/like pizza? Is that okay?

What if you are childless and love pizza? No dinner for you?

What if you are single, childless, hate wine, and love pizza?

I'm kinda confused by the whole concept.... I think sometimes people with children think that everyone loves to be around kids. If you think back, you probably didn't like being around other people's whiny, dirty kids when you were childless. You know what, get a babysitter and go out for goodness sakes! Don't subject us childless people to pseudo events disguised because you either don't want a babysitter or think everyone loves your kids as much as you do!!

Or, if you are too cheap for a sitter....... then invite us over later on in the evening after the anklebiters have gone to sleep.... we can drink and visit, your kids can sleep.... and the two don't mix!!

For me personally, after a week in a school, the last thing I want to do on the weekends is to act like I love being around kids when I don't have to/want to be..... (Ed.'s note: I LOVE children!! On Mondays-Fridays from 7:20-3:20. When I'm not working, I want to have the choice of whether I am around them or not. Most of my friends have cool kids and I love being around them. Some, however, do not.)

I'm sure the comments are coming, so let 'em rip!!

Hello, dumbass!!

Okay, it's been 24 days since my skin cancer surgery. Today is the day I'm getting stitches out..... or so I thought!

I left school, came home to change clothes and then I was heading to Plano. I pick up the paper I got when I had the surgery to take with me. It originally said I was to return in 12 days (09-08-08 at 3:20 PM). Then it had both of those marked out and under the 12 days, it then said 19 days.

So I assumed that it was now the 19th. Hello, dumbass!!

So as I read the paper, it's got the office hours and it shows that today's hours are from 10-2. There's no way that my appointment was today. So I get a calendar and count 19 days from my surgery. It was on Monday, 09-15-08. One week after my 12 day appointment on 09-08-08.... lovely!!

So basically I'll have these stitches for an extra week and who knows when they can get me in to take them out??

Why didn't someone call and confirm my appointment on the 15th? I would have been there if I had a call!

I'm sooo frustrated and mad right now!! I guess the good news is I'm home for the weekend early for once.......

Richardson Reads One Book.... and Mr. Mackey's New Career

Last night, I decided to do my yearly literary outing with my sister. Sarah lives in Richardson. While I've never lived in Richardson, I did go to RISD schools. I began my teaching career in Richardson. It has a special place in my heart.

Each year, they do a program called "Richardson Reads One Book." They select a book and invite the author to come and do a talk. We've seen Jodi Picoult and Jeannette Walls the last two years that we have gone. This is free to Richardson residents (I'm telling you...... free tickets and discounts on the Wildflower Festival.... I really may need to consider moving!)

The two previous years, we've had to park and hike. It's crazy - like every old gal over the age of 60 is there! It's a who's who of retired RISD teachers and librarians. It's held in the auditorium of Richardson High School (BIL Mike's alma mater - gonna mention Mike in my blog every chance I get!!).

When you walk in, there are blue tickets, pink tickets and yellow tickets. Yellow is the preferred color, with choice seating in the front. Pink is good seating, and blue is the free and cheap section. The last two years we've had blue seats, not great seats, but good enough.

We decide this year to have a plan. Mike is going to drop us off at the front right at 6:45 when the doors open so we can bust in and get good seats. He'll pick us up so we don't have to fight the traffic. This is genius!! So Mike drops us off at 6:45 and we are the second people in the door. We rush to the front of the blue section and grab our seats. PERFECTION!! So we spend the next 45 minutes chatting and people watching. (Ed.'s note: There was a plastic rat in my seat. Was it saving the seat for someone? I don't know... I put it in the seat in front of me, the girl was clueless and the rat ended up on the floor by my feet. If you set a rat free and it comes back to you, then it is yours. So it's in my purse waiting to scare the &*%#$*& out of someone sometime soon.)

The featured author is Chris Bohjalian (prounounced Bo-jay-lian). He was a great speaker and very engaging. Time flew!! We were so proud of our choice seats until we noticed that the place was not near as packed as last year!! We did not let this discourage us in the least!!

We decide that for next year we are going to make a donation and see if we can break into the pink/yellow sections. But we are definitely using Mike's shuttle service for the future - it rocked!!

Mike was waiting when we walked out and we were gone before most people had exited the auditorium. We head to eat dinner at a restaurant in Richardson (it's all about Richardson this night!). We get a table and choose to sit outside because it's sooo beautiful out.

Our waiter was a lively jovial fellow who only said.... "mmmmkay" and "thank you." Here's how it started out:

Waiter: What would you like to drink?

Sarah: A glass of wine

Waiter: Wine? mmmkay, thank you

Waiter (to me): And you?

Me: Water

Waiter: mmmkay And Sir? (to Mike)

Mike: Wine

Waiter: thank you... mmmkay, would you like bread?

Basically, it's like this video clip, just insert wine, bread, pasta, pizza in between the mmmkays and you'll get the drift:

You get the idea? It's like Mr. Mackey from South Park!! Dinner was good, th company was better and I enjoyed my literary cultural event. Now we have to wait until April or May to hear who will speak next year!! I can't wait!! :)

My Brother-in-Law Mike

My sister Sarah has been married for a little more than three years to Mike. I like Mike. He is a good guy, he treats my sister well and makes her happy. Our family isn't the easiest group to break into, but he's done a super job! He's smart, he's sarcastic, he's fun to go with for dinner and beer. Mike & I get along really well. (Ed.'s note: At least I think we do.... for all I know, he may hate my guts, but I don't think so!!)

Mike doesn't like chocolate (which amazes me that ANYONE would not like chocolate). He is an avid golfer - most weekends when I call Sarah, he's hit the links. Mike really enjoys meat, cheese, bread and beer. He ate 3 cheeseburgers for lunch the other day, thus earning the name the "Burger King." Mike hates "The Hills" and it drives him crazy that smart girls like my sister and me love to watch that show. Mike and I can annoy my sister when we gang up on her to talk about things, like his sandwich shop (I can't say the name, but it's a good one!).

So on Friday, Mike and Sarah meet me for dinner at the Blue Goose in Plano. It was 8:15 on Friday and we got a table right away, which was awesome! So, I'm not really sure how we got to this conversation, but we started talking about Facebook. My sister is kinda getting into it (but I don't think she wants to admit it), and ironically, Mike was having Sarah look up names too. But he just thinks that Facebook is ridiculous. So is My Space (which I do kind of agree with him on this one). He asked me, "How old are you? 18?"

But he really went crazy when I told him I had a blog and that I blogged. "Why do you blog? It's a diary online." I tried to explain that I'm funny, people like to read what I write and that it's usually very sarcastic observations about life or my obsessions with musicals, books, and Facebook. I got the same lecture that I did when he realized my sister and I love to watch "The Hills." He finally realized that he wasn't going to win this conversation, and we changed the subject.

So for fun, I told him I'd do a blog entry all about him...... so here it is!

PS - I talked to my sister today. They went to eat with Mike's family last night. Apparently Mike asked his younger sister (age 30) if she had these things (blog, My Space, Facebook). She did not. But he found out his older sister (my age) has all 3. ALL THREE!! So he told Sarah that it must something "our" (meaning his older sis and me) generation does and that "they" (meaning Mike, Sarah & Mike's younger sis) don't.

In case you are wondering, Mike is 4 years younger than me. Not a generation younger. Nice try, bro-in-law!

Mike, when you finally join the program and get a Facebook page, will you send me a "'Lil Green Plant" for my Green Patch? I can blog all about it!

Mamma Mia!!

Despite Ike's best attempts to mess with today, Danyielle and I went to the Bass Performance Hall in Ft. Worth to see "Mamma Mia!" I loved it!! Having seen the movie numerous times, I was hoping that I'd love the musical..... and I did! I always love me some good ABBA music!

The Bass Performance Hall is beautiful and amazing - it was my first visit there. It's a small theatre, only seating 2000 people. We had amazing seats, downstairs on the right side. We had a great view of the stage.

The music was great and the storyline was good. At the end, everyone was up on their feet clapping and singing as they did the two closing numbers..... what fun!!

It was a great day, despite all the rain!! Hoping my Houston friends are safe!

Hate when you miss one of my blogs?

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Now you can subscribe to my page and never miss a beat. Scroll down to the bottom of my page and find the subscribe button!

Now there is no excuse to keep up with my adventures being 38 and Absolutely Fabulous!

Remembering the Day.....

It's hard to believe that it's been 7 years since 9-11. The memories are still fresh in my mind. I was living in Tallahassee, teaching 4th grade. I was teaching math when my principal came in and handed me a folder and told me to read it. I remember it saying something like:

"There is a terrorist attack happening in NYC and Washington, DC. Do not turn on the TV or alert the students about what is happening. Stay calm and we will keep you posted. We will meet after school briefly to discuss what will happen tomorrow."

She left my room and I tried to resume teaching. I kept repeating the same phrase over and over and the kids knew something was wrong. We took them to special areas and sat in one of the classrooms, watching in shock. The towers collapsed while we sat there, crying and scared. I remember picking up my class and trying to stay positive. It was the longest day ever!

Students starting getting picked up early and the remaining kids said, "Why is everyone going home?" - I think I told them that they all had dentist appointments. Somehow we made it through the day, met with our principal, and went home.... not sure what the future held for us.

During that car ride home, I called my Mom, Dad, and Sarah. I was scared. It was then that I decided I was moving home to Texas once the school year ended.

One of my fourth graders lost her aunt and uncle in the World Trade Center towers. My heart still hurts for her and all the others who were lost.

So.... here we are 7 years later..... today we wore red, white, and blue to celebrate "Patriot Day." But are we really celebrating..... or remembering? As I interacted with kiddos today, I realized that our kinder, first and most of our second graders weren't even born.... and our 4th graders were toddlers and don't remember it......

I don't think I can ever forget it.

God Bless America!!

(Ed.'s note: My normal whiny, sarcastic self will be back on the next post. I needed to mark this day in a serious manner.)

Something to Look Forward To!!

Well, you know how I love to travel to places and have new adventures. I'm starting to line up my travels for the rest of this year and for next year. Here's what I've got so far:

November 2008 - Thanksgiving in Villa Ridge with Sigh Sister Betty and Cousin Kate. We'll do some things in St. Louis (Anheiser Busch brewery, City Museum, Italian food on the Hill), then cruise down to Branson and Eureka Springs for a few days. So it's like a trip within a trip....... and be sure to check out the blogs from the road on my adventure!!

March or April 2009 - Return trip to Bartee Meadow and Hot Springs. Our last visit was October 2007, so we will be overdue for a return trip.

July 2009 - Middle America Tour...... Two chicks, a map, and an RV..... heading to Mt. Rushmore.... where will we end up and what will we find.... (you know I'll find us some good stuff!)

(Ed.'s note: Whenever I say "Middle America," I use my Pauly Shore voice from "Son-in-Law" when he lays on the ground, saying, "Mii-iid-dle Aa-mmerr-iii-ca"! Anyone?)

And even farther on down the road....

• Sigh Sisters Retribution Tour - You wouldn't come to us, so we are coming to you!! Watch out!! Stops might include New Jersey, Wash Mo, and Richardson
• Oh, Canada! Tour - visiting our neighbors to the north and to celebrate my big 4-0 (but FYI, that's a LONG time from now!)

I love knowing I have adventures waiting for me!! WOO HOO!! :)

I am human...........

Alright, after three days of sleeping, reading, watching crap on TV, eating crap, and staying glued to Facebook to see who else I can find (can anyone say stalker?)..... I'm ready to announce that I am feeling better!!

I actually do feel well rested, my sinus infection seems to be waning, and my head doesn't hurt, but is still very tender and very oily with polysporin - I'm not sure what I'll have to wash my hair with to get it all out - it'll also be better when I can scrub it more, it's still too tender to lather it up well. For now, I'm just washing every other day until my scalp toughens up a bit.

At times like this, you learn who your real friends are and I'd like to thank those people who called to check up on me and/or offered to stop by and drop things off (some I took up on their offers, others I was doing fine and just appreciated the effort).

I plan to relax tomorrow, but resume my life on Tuesday - if I can't get my hair clean, then with my cute hats.

If my pathetic Labor Day weekend isn't a good enough reason to use sunscreen and stay out of the sun, I don't know what is....... trust me, YOU DON'T WANT TO DEAL WITH THIS!!

Still complaining, just not as loud.......

1. Head still hurts - took some Extra Strength Tylenol - waiting for it to kick in.

2. Took my first shower in 3 days - I couldn't completely wash my hair, but god do I feel 100% more like a human being.

3. No change

4. No change

5. Thanks, Danyielle!! She brought me some chocolate ice cream and then sat and visited with me like I didn't have the plague - and this was BEFORE I was able to wash my hair!!

6. I'm going to the Netflix and the Pay-Per-View (movies, not porn) to combat this.

7. I'm still tired, and will continue to be tired as long as I lay around. Got to beat this sinus infection and the headwound.

Just wanted you to know that even when I complain, it's not for too long. :)