A short one

Alrighty. The projects are coming along...slowly. I am currently at that point where everything is much messier than when we started. You know, the supplies are purchased, but the room is not yet painted. The closet is empty, but the clothes are not organized. The tile is spread out, but the kitchen is not yet backsplashed. I do not know if you can make "backsplash" past tense, but screw it. It is my blog. I will post pics and more details later this week. Hopefully.

A bit of everything

This will be a little all over the place.

1.) I have GOT to go back to work soon!! I am not being as productive as I was hoping. Basically, my friend C and I are having the same problem. We need to be working, but are trading it in to sit by the pool and get some sun. But she is actually doing cool, crafty things. Check out Columbia Lily Designs.
2.) I have spent WAY too much money in my time off. This was a concern of mine back in April, but GEEZ!! I did not think I would buy a sofa just because it was on sale. Sooooo, does anyone want a red sofa for a dorm, 1st apartment, playroom, classroom etc? I got one if you are interested.
3.) Through this whole blogging thing I got to reconnect with a good friend of mine, Julie. We used to work together like three years ago, but then she moved.
:( We had a chance to get some BW3s (YUM) this week when she was in town for 24 hours. She and her son have convinced me to get a Wii Fit. I am scared. It was awesome to catch up. Miss yall!
4.) In my last two weeks before I really crack down and get to work, I need to finish a bunch of stuff in my house. I will post it when the projects are actually complete. Hopefully that will motivate me.
5.) I am making a deal with myself. There will be no more posts until half of my projects are DONE. Wish me luck. I may never see you again.


For Eb…
Good Luck Kiddo!
Just stay present and remember to have fun playing the game you love. :)
You can do this Caddyshack style. Love ya.

For Julie

Where have we been hiding him? To answer your question in one word...rehab. Long story, but we have had him less than 2 years and before that it was REALLY rocky. I can not wait to catch up with yall!

It just keeps getting better

I forgot to tell most of yall that I seriously love this new job!! It does not officially start for another 5 or 6 weeks, but I have been researching quite a bit in my time off trying to get ahead.

Well, a new boss was put into place a week or two after I was hired. I am not worried about it because she used to work at my old job (along with three other people in my new department), and she went out of her way to come down and meet the two new people (including me) at one of our May meetings. She is super nice and has a philosophy that is remarkably similar to mine.

Now, the even better part. She emailed early last week and asked if I would take my new kids camping in September!! Obviously, there will be plenty of other adults there, but HOW FUN IS THAT?! Camping is something that I enjoy, but rarely ever go out and do. I do not under any circumstance think that this will be like the relaxed camping I am used to with my friends, but I know that I will have a good time and learn a lot. Plus, they give us a week off of work to go! Well, sort of. We will still be working. Keeping track of the kids, going on ropes courses, etc., but STILL! HOW FUN!

I really hope this job is this exciting when it actually begins!

Decision made. And Holy Rangers!

I will not be attending the wedding. I weighed the options, had a nice, long phone chat with my mom (Really. It was nice.), and decided to stay home.

With quitting my job, not working this summer, and a recent death in my family, I thought it would be best to save my money so I can go up to MI a few more times this year. I know that those trips would mean more to my family than my presence would mean to Dan. Not to say that he would not appreciate me making the trip, but he is one of those friends that would totally understand. He would be cool with a visit later in the fall where we could all go out to dinner and a concert or something.

Plus, Eb called this afternoon and said he could not go because of the whole Friday night wedding thing. He is taking days off of work for more pressing things in his own life. Like tournaments. (Nothing snide meant by that) I am swelling with pride that he has recommitted to golf. I know how much he does love it. Even in the frustrating moments.

So there. Decision made. I emailed an ex and asked him to pass along my congrats and tell the old gang hello. I feel good about it. Done.

Side note...
I will spare you all the details of how the Rangers have been doing this season because I know most of you are not baseball fans. SAD! But I just wanted to reiterate in print that I will be at the ballpark for the World Series. (Even if I am 80.)

Debating

So I was invited to a wedding this weekend. It is one of my good friends from college (and during his post college days when he lived here in town). I RSVPed “yes” despite the fact that I HATE weddings!! But I do not think I am going to make it. I am upset about it for a few reasons.

1.) Danny was a great friend to me during some REALLY crappy times in my life. The worst two years of my life, in fact.
2.) I truly appreciate him as a person and enjoy hanging out with him and his future wife. I do want to support them in this new adventure. Plus, if I ever get married I would hope that Dan would be there when I “stand before God, family, and friends”.
3.) I will get to reconnect with old Dallas friends. I gave them to an ex boyfriend in a “divorce” of a breakup and would love to catch up with them. Yes, my ex will be there, (I think he is in the wedding) but we have both VERY much moved on in the past 2+ years.

Part of me thinks, go, it is just one night. The rational side of me thinks, save your money so you can go to MI and see your family. I just do not know. Plus, I would really like Eb to go with me. I have not spent much time with him in the past two months, and the last time we took a road trip for a wedding it was super fun! My old friends are as laid back as people can be and I know he would get along great with them.

I really just do not know!

Random

Alrighty...I know it has been a while, and I do not have a big post today, but I could not resist this one.

I never really watch The Bachelor/Bachelorette. Fine. I will admit it. I used to watch it religiously, but then Trista and Ryan just ruined it. They were too over the top for me. I decided to stick to Amazing Race and So You Think You Can Dance with a smattering of others when I am bored.

WARNING: SPOILER BELOW! DO NOT READ ON IF YOU ACTUALLY WATCH THE SHOW!

Well, tonight I watched it. A friend of mine is out of town so I DVRed it for her and got sucked in to the "reality" of it all. (I feel like I have to justify why I watched it.) Probably because the guy she picked would have TOTALLY been my pick too. Exactly what I would fall for despite the fact that I would know that I should go for the other guy. The stable, family man. Nope. I would fall for the crazy, fun guy that has a job you can only do while you are young, fun, and crazy.

I digress. This is not the point of the post.

The point is...can we please turn this into a drinking game?! Seriously! If I took a shot every time they said "amazing", "wonderful", or the phrase "falling in love", I would have my friends drawing a curly mustache on my face in about 15 minutes. Including commercials.

Could I please go on this show just to demonstrate to America the joy of a thesaurus? Someone please call ABC and nominate me. I will even give a pocket thesaurus to all the guys to use during their interviews.

Does anybody have a Sharpie?

Robyn? Tiffany, maybe? No. Probably not.

I have been looking to get a new tattoo, but I can not find a decent artist that will not charge me an arm and a leg. I mean seriously, what do they want me to do? Fill their semi with gas? I have only talked to three people, and the one that sounded good had this totally bizarre design in his head. Dude, I got the design down.

A little background…I have four tattoos that I want, but given my career and new single status I need to wait on some for a little while. Basically, I want to be the best role model I can be for these young ladies at my new job. That, and I never want to answer the “oh my heavens, what did you do to yourself” question from a fiancé’s grandma because I have a huge penis inked down my spinal column. Oh geez! The SuperBad sketches suddenly come to mind.

That brings me to my quandary with the previously mentioned “artist”. I wanted something Texas related, but can not get the little nautical star thing because then Eb and I would have matching tattoos. (Since he is not talking to me right now, I do not think that is advised.) I turned to a bluebonnet. Um…I never knew how phallic that little flower looks. I do not mean to use the words “phallic” and “little” in the same sentence. Anyhoo, I AM committed to the piece. I just need to find someone that can draw it so I do not have to explain anything.

Therapy in many forms

My Aunt Meg turns to shopping (and Diet Coke) to heal all. So she and I skipped out for about an hour and headed to Target. Aunt Pat loved, loved, loved to hang out on the deck in her back yard, so when Meg and I found these hats I stopped in my tracks. I could just see Pat messing with her flowers in the back with this sun hat on. We bought the ones with the pink ribbons for a little breast cancer salute. (I don't know why we all have the same haircut. I am just glad mine has grown about an inch since I cut it!)

Jennie (my cousin, Ray's, wife), Meg, Mom, and Me

Uncle Dave even got into the spirit with his sisters-in-law and the hats. I tried to get him to wear it while we played dice (he and Pat's favorite games), but he had to "focus".

My cousin's son, Adam, is one of the cutest kids I have ever seen. Those of you that know me are very much aware of the fact that I do not say that unless I mean it. This little one just seems to sit and smile. If you look at him and make even the slightest face, he will laugh as though you just won Last Comic Standing. He definitly cheered everybody up. He really does have that big grin on his face from the moment he wakes up!

Everything I needed to know I learned from genetics

Well, I have been home from MI for a week and a half. It was incredibly sad, but amazing to see what wonderful people live up there. As a proud Texan, I often think that “northerners” are truly strange. Now, don’t get me wrong, they are a little different, but they are the most genuine, kind hearted people I have ever come in contact with. People came to this funeral from all around. Everyone was represented from tatted up Harley riders on their way to a big rally in OK City to head honchos of GM. (My uncle has worked for them for like a million years.) Kids that my aunt babysat since birth came back from college to say goodbye. It was just very touching. I can not keep writing about it because it makes me cry.

I do always love going up to MI because almost my entire family still lives there. I have one uncle (dad’s side) here and an aunt (mom’s side) in AR, but everyone else is near Detroit. Well, this trip was no different. I do hope that we can start to get together for weddings or births instead of funerals. Funerals are a tough stage for a reunion of sorts.

However, I learn a lot about myself each and every time I see my family.

1.) I am NOT a planner!! I will show up where you need me, when you need me there. I like to know roughly what is going on, but I by no means have a minute-by-minute itinerary. That job is for my sister. She LOVES doing it!
2.) The baby of the family is usually very similar to the other babies. My Aunt Jeanie, her youngest Karen, my cousin Brian? We all have very distinct personalities, but are also pretty carefree. All of us are up for anything. Even the bad stuff in life. We are also all really independent and resilient.
3.) The men in and around my family are simply good guys. My cousins, brother, uncle, and second cousins were so stoic, noble, and generous with their time. They did everything they could to address others needs, make us laugh, and dry our tears. My uncle even took me out for a drive his 1954 Oldsmobile because he knew I have been itching to do that for years. (I also think he just had to get out of the house.)
4.) My family members have GREAT stories. Granted, they lived during some pretty cool times in history, but they so enjoyed themselves as kids. And have the tales to tell.
5.) They are all crazy! Some literally, others, not so much, but we all definitely carry the gene.
6.) They love to laugh! I know that my Aunt Pat would have wanted it that way. She was always the first to bring a smile to a room.

There is plenty more, but I think this pic of my mom will just sum up her pre-children years. And oh the stories from that one!

I will post more pictures later tonight. I have some cleaning to do before So You Think You Can Dance. PRIORITIES PEOPLE, PRIORITIES!!