Song answers

Bella started this. Darth followed. Now it's my turn.

"Choose a band/artist and answer these questions only in song titles by that band/artist."

I choose Pat Green - Texas country artist - he & his wife went to Tech, and he spoke at TBF's undergrad commencement. Great song writer. Cool cat.

Are you male or female: Baby Doll
Describe yourself: Temporary Angel
How do some people feel about you: Crazy
How do you feel about yourself: Holdin' On
Describe your ex girlfriend/boyfriend: Adios Days
Describe your current girlfriend/boyfriend: My Little Heaven
Describe where you want to be: Somewhere Between Texas and Mexico
Describe what you want to be: Going Down in Style
Describe how you live: Take Me Out to a Dancehall
Describe your current mood: Just Fine
Describe how you love: Wave on Wave
Share a few words of wisdom: We've All Got Our Reasons

Numbness?

Weird experience this morning: I was sitting in court listening to the judge lecture some kid about the real expense of a dime bag of weed ... court costs, fines, atty fees, probation fees, drug classes, etc - a fantastic lecture by the way - will definitely share this with my kids one day ... oh, but I digress ...

Anyway, I was sitting there when I noticed that my left thumb was completely numb. Odd. I was leaning my left elbow on the arm of the chair, so I figured I'd just been zoning out too long and cut off the circulation. No biggie.

About 5 mins later, my left upper lip was all tingly and numb. Hmmm, what is going on here?

Not too long after that the lip numbness faded but now the tip of my tongue is numb. WTF is this??!!

Now I'm familiar with the symptoms of stroke etc, but I'm not in any of the high risk categories - African-American or Hispanic, male, over 50, history of high blood pressure or diabetes etc. Other than that I have no idea what the problem could be...

For about an hour after that I actually had to work (imagine that!), and forgot about the numbness. In actuality, the numbness all faded pretty quickly, so what I temporarily forgot about is the possibility of dropping dead in the court room, and whether or not I'd put on matching bra & panties this morning - yes this did cross my mind, and no they don't match.

When I got back to my office, I felt fine, but did the obligatory Google search anyway. Oh my God. Do you know how many horrible diseases and conditions have a one-sided numbness as a symptom?!! Besides stroke, we have heart attacks, multiple sclerosis, non-hodgkins lymphoma, lyme disease, and the list goes on...

Although I'm no doctor, and I could make myself crazy trying to self-diagnose, there seems to be a more reasonable and likely alternative: some sort of nerve damage due to two car wrecks in the past three months. Ugh. Maybe, just maybe, I should go see the doctor.

Lunch

You ask for pictures? You get pictures ... of my LUNCH!

Mmm, sushi. This particular meal was smoked salmon and cucumber rolls prepared by our local United. Complete with a dab of wasabi and loads of pickled ginger. Delish! I got a kit to make sushi a couple of Christmas' ago, but I've never used it. Does anyone make their own? Is it worth the hassle?

Dixie

Since so many of us were on a music kick last week - PhoenixNYC, Vegasgustan, ACW and Jesster - I thought folks might find this article interesting.

As you may remember, in March of 2003, Natalie Maines (a Lubbock native, she still has family here) of the Dixie Chicks told an audience in London, "Just so you know, we're ashamed the president of the United States is from Texas."

Loads of radio stations around the country thought they would somehow send a message of disapproval to the Chicks by banning their music. Two years later, this unofficial ban in Lubbock is still in effect. Ugh, this conservative town really ticks me off sometimes.

I think the Dixie Chicks are hugely talented - I loved Fly and Wide Open Spaces - albums that I can listen to anywhere, anytime. Cowboy Take Me Away and Once You've Loved Somebody - gorgeous songs.

Thank goodness for iTunes so I don't have to depend on stupid Lubbock radio to hear the Chicks.

On another musical note, I'm pretty disappointed that Mikalah Gordon was sent home after the American Idol re-vote last week. Don't you know that she's beside herself wondering if she also had the lowest votes on the original vote, or if someone else (like Anthony or Nikko) would've gone home if only the graphics dude had got the numbers right on Tuesday night. Poor Mikalah.

Ha!

Friday Feast

First off, just wanted to let you know that I snapped out of my 'meh' work attitude just before I uncrewed my cubicle and let all walls tumble to the floor ala Office Space. Wouldn't the ensuing maddness have made for a great post?! Oh, and besides I don't have a cubicle. Stupid private office with 4 walls and a door. Thanks for the laughs though! :)

Nice surprise - the boss let us off work at noon today. Hooray! I wanted to go to straight to the bar, but TBF intervened and reminded me I promised to email my prof a paper tonight (it was due Tue and I got an extension, oops). I initially said we could go Crickets for "a couple hours", then I'd come home and finish the paper, but he gave me THAT LOOK. Yeah, we've never gone to the bar for a couple hours, and won't be starting tonight. When we get the chance to hoop it up, we do it right! Not to mention the kind of paper I'd crank out after a half a dozen (or is that 2 dozen?) pale ales would not impress my professor.

So, case conceptualization of "Maria", here I come. But first, here's today's Friday Feast.

Appetizer - What is the worst movie you've ever seen?
Easy. Bad Santa. Horrid. I had the misfortune of watching this movie with my future-mother-in-law (whose idea was that anyway?!), which made it all the more embarrassing. I have no problem with a few well-placed 'damns' or 'shits' in a movie, but I've honestly never heard so many inappropriate 'fucks' in my life. And the poor kid ... what non-money grubbing parent would ever allow their child to co-star in this movie?!

Soup - Name something that reminds you of your childhood.
Roller rinks. My parents had some sort of chart of the stuff I was supposed to do, and rewards I'd get for doing them. The reward I almost always chose was going roller skating at 8-Wheels. An afternoon of skating with my Dad, a couple cokes, a disco ball, and the Bee Gees - what more could a kid ask for?

Salad - If you had to live in a large city, which one would you want it to be?
Um, right now I have my eye set on Austin. But if I had to leave Texas, I might shoot for Boston. We were up there a couple summers ago, and it is a marvelous town. Not to mention the coast, ah, the coast.

Main Course - What's a "big word" you like to use to impress people?
Aw, I don't use big words to impress people, or for any other reason. I keep thinking about getting one of those word-a-day calendars so increase my vocabulary. Maybe next year. If I do use big words it has to do with school - counseling stuff - probably nothing you haven't heard about in a PSYC 101 class.

Dessert - Describe your hairstyle.
Straight, all one length, about 6 inches below my shoulders, naturally brown with golden highlights. Quite lovely even if I do say so myself.

Late-edy-late-late

Do you ever have one of those days when you just don't care about being late to work?

I set my alarm for 6 this morning (to work out) then snoozed it until 7 (screw the work out), then reset it again for 7:30. Mind you, I need to leave the house by 7:45 to make it to work by 8.

After I finally rolled out of bed, I took time for some yogurt and CNN headline news, a deep conditioning treatment in the shower, plus I shaved my legs (something I never take time for when I'm running late).

By this time it's already 8:15, and instead of throwing my hair up in a bun I decided to blow dry and Chi it. Then instead of grabbing my usual I'm Late Wardrobe (ie: a wash and wear sweater set), I chose a button up blouse that had to be starched and ironed.

Around 8:50 I leisurely strolled into work to find 6 voice mail messages and just as many emails - all apparent emergencies. And still I say, "Meh".

I feel kinda like Peter in Office Space after his hypnotist croaks and he just stops giving a damn about his job...

Rebuilding iTunes

I received my refurbished Dell Latitude late last week, and so far it is marvelous. Fortunately, I haven't become aware of any of my old documents or papers that I just couldn't live without. And although I know all those hundreds of digital pics are gone, I couldn't tell you anything I'd be doing with them in the coming months anyway.

BUT. Starting over with iTunes is a different story. I have most everything on my iPod, and TBF even found a site explaining how to move songs from your iPod back to your hard drive (very cool). But I'm not sure if I want all those songs back on the computer. There are just so many that I never listen to, and some that I don't even like that I ripped from old CDs. So, before I move all 1800 songs to the new laptop, I'm considering starting over with my favorites first. I always thought building a new music library was kinda fun.

As I write this, I'm in one of those kinda funky - funky as in blue funk, mellow, thoughtful - moods, so if I had iTunes at work I might start with these songs:

Classic Girl (Jane's Addiction)
Leaving on a Jet Plane (Jewel)
Rocket Man (Elton John)
Every Breath You Take (Police)
Sweet Jane (Cowboy Junkies)
She's Got a Way (Billy Joel)
True Colors (Cindi Lauper)
America (Simon & Garfunkle)
The Wheel (Grateful Dead)
Romeo & Juliet (Dire Straits)
Wendy (Concrete Blonde)

So are you willing to share a couple of your favorite songs that would be among your top 10 favorites, depending on what mood you are in right NOW?

Lousy t-shirt

I went to Austin and all I got was this lousy t-shirt.

Wait. I'm lying. I did go to Austin this weekend*, but I didn't get a t-shirt, I finally got another car! I've been car-less since mine was totaled in a sorry ass accident a couple weeks ago. And here is its replacement:

A '94 Camry. It's cloudy in this pic, but it is a super cool dark metallic green color (oh, how I love anything sparkly - from diamonds to easter eggs to those sporty racing boats - I'm such a sucker for all that glitters). It's a little ragged on the inside (damn previous owners, how dare you smoke in my to-be-car?!), but it drives like a dream. Ah, Japanese cars.

The best part: thanks to collision insurance and a hunk of my savings, it's paid for.

Oh, and a funny thing - this pic happens to show that there is no front license plate. My dad said it didn't matter. The state trooper who pulled me over this side of Lampasas said it DID. Hmpf.

*I spent the entire weekend eating, doing car stuff with my dad, and doing wedding stuff with my mom. Sadly no time to get down to SXSW (what kind of fun would that be with the 'rents anyway?!). And no, no sign of MooCow :(

Now I've said so

I've told my fiance. I've told my parents. And now I've put it out there for the blogosphere to read. If I ever have the misfortune of being in an accident that causes my brain to turn to mush and/or the doctors say I'm never going to eat/breath/relieve myself without the aid of machines, like poor Terri Schiavo, PLEASE PULL THE PLUG.

It's okay.

Truly.

I know it'll be difficult for you initially - you might think you see a sparkle in my eye when you sit down on the side of my hospital bed or perhaps the edge of my mouth turns up a smidge when you tell my about your day. But I will only truly smile again when I've moved out of that crippled and dying body. Let me go. I realize it will be hard if you are the one chosen to tell the doctors to shut off the machines - but in the long run it's better for all of us. Go ahead, it's what I want.

Lazy TB

Do you want to know how lazy I am? Here's a telling example:

My new office is about 2 blocks from my old office. My parking spot (and all my coworker's offices where I have to drop off and pick up paperwork) is at my old office, which means I walk back and forth (once) from parking spot to office at 8, (twice) to drop off paperwork around lunch, (thrice) back to my office, and (whatever 4x is) back to my car to go home at 5.

Sooo, on some days when I'm either running late or the weather is nasty, or when I'm just feeling rebellious, I will take my chances and park in a 1-hour spot on the street by the new office. And I leave it there until lunch time. 4 hours = 4 possible tickets. Would you believe that I've gotten 3 parking tickets on the same day without ever moving the car? The parking attendant is a big B. Sometimes she tickets, sometimes she doesn't, so I never know how lucky I'll be that day. Damn you Skinner and your random reinforcement!

Last week I went to set a court date for my traffic citation (I am NOT going to take full responsibility for that accident!), and the officer asked if I knew I had parking tickets. Oops. Something I should've taken care of before I attempted to pronounce my innocence of all things traffic related.

Me: "Uh, yeah, I've been meaning to take care of those."
Cop: "You should do that. They'll probably go to warrant next week."

Audible gasp followed by stunned pause. I've never had a warrant in my life, and sure as hell don't want to start with some gay-ass parking tickets!

Me: "Oh, I'm so glad I came in. What's the damage?"
Cop: "Let me check..."

Ever had one of those hung-over shopping sprees at Wal-Mart when everything looks delicious and you feel inspired to prepare multiple feasts over the next 10 days? Just me? Well when you eventually make it up to the check out the cash register receipt just keeps printing and printing and printing... If you can imagine that sound, please insert it here.

Cop: "Seventy bucks. That's a lot of tickets." *

Well no shit, Sherlock, thanks for pointing that out. And thanks for reminding me what a lazy bastard I am. $70 in parking tickets, those are $3-5 tickets, just to avoid walking 2 blocks. Man, I suck. Needless to say, I've been doing a lot more walking this week.

* Confession: there are more. On my old car which I turned over to the insurance company in January. Should I pay these? I don't have the car, don't have the title, and don't even think I have the citations. And they evidently aren't on my record at the PD. Hmmm, for now, I think I'll let these slide.

Newman!

There is a great little restaurant down the street from my job where I walk about once a week to pick up lunch and bring it back to my office (to blog of course - I've become so antisocial - all free time must be spent in front of the computer!). Anywho, it's called Paddy's, and they make a mean philly cheese steak sandwich - well as mean as it's gonna get in West Texas anyway.

Since I try to limit my carbs (unless I'm eating pizza) and increase rabbit food intake (when I'm not chowing down on burgers and fries that is), I always order the philly cheese steak SALAD. Yep, I said it. It's a regular green salad, but topped with the meat, melted provolone, bananna peppers, and sauteed mushrooms and onions that are usually on a philly. Mmmm. I always eat all the goodness off the top first, then add my ranch dressing and eat the lettuce last.

So this is where it gets interesting (if you are kind enough to call it that). The nice lady at the counter always puts two packets of ranch in my bag - Paul Newman's Ranch to be exact. I only eat one, and usually throw the extra in a desk drawer (c'mon you never know when you'll get a hankering for a side of ranch on your saltines, cup o soup, thin mints, or any other dry goods that get stashed in the food drawer of my desk).

But today as I was digging for something or another, I noticed a smell, a bad smell, a dirty-baby-diaper-milkshake type smell. And then I saw them. Five of my precious Newman's Own ranch packets had puffed up to the size of a small squash. I was so scared to pick them up, they were so inflated, I was pretty sure that with the slightest jostle they were going to burst all over my grey cashmere sweater. Luckily, they all made the delicate journey to the trash can, all but one, the one that had already popped and led to the smell that is still making me a tad nauseous.

SO. I just finished cleaning all the soured yellow ranch globules out my food drawer. I have scrubbed and sanitized the drawer, but had to throw away a ton of plastic utensils, a couple cans of tuna, some soup, a bag of sun flower seeds, several ketchup packets, and a perfectly good box of Lipton green tea. I just couldn't bear it if my next cup of tea tasted like rotten ranch. Blegh!

Though so tasty, and better on fries or tots than ketchup anyday of the week, I've learned my lesson:
I will NOT hoard ranch packets.
I will NOT hoard ranch packets.
I will NOT hoard ranch packets.

P.S. Speaking of phillies, are the authentic ones up north really served with that spray can cheese, and is this tasty?

Inspiration

And on that uplifting note, here's one of my favorite quotes:

Tough times never last.
Tough people do.

- Robert Schuller

I'm baaaack...

...and it feels good. I needed the break, but I'm refocused and things are looking up.

I picked up the insurance check for my totaled car. ((Do you know how hard it is to not go shopping with an "extra" $3500 burning a whole in your pocket?!)) My dad found a car in Austin that I may be able to buy this weekend. And TBF's parents have a couple options as well.

I bought a great refurbished laptop off eBay - Dude! I got a Dell! - and it should arrive on Wednesday. I decided to just dump my old and busted hard drive and not worry about the $300 bill to attempt to retrieve my files. What are the chances I'll ever reuse any of those college papers? And my resume? I'm sure it needed a fresh start anyway. As for the pics, TBF has most of the good ones on his laptop (backed up of course!) and I've emailed a bunch of the others to friends/family and can get them back if needed. And mp3s - well it's always kind of fun to rebuild a music collection from scratch.

School is under control again. I still have a ton to do for next week, but at least there is nothing due this week, and I'm going to do some studying each night to stay ahead. I've also now completed my last group project EVER. Yes, ever! Oh how I detest group work - overburden myself and the entire group gets credit for a great project, or let everyone do their equal share and turn in a half-ass project. Sigh. Thank goodness it's behind me. And don't you DARE mention me going back for my PhD. Don't do it. I'll cut you.

AND it's Spring Break! Of course I still have to work all week, but both my judges are out of town doing fun stuff with their kiddos, and I am thrilled to not have to go to court for pleas or hearings. I have a huge to-do list which I might actually be able to finish. And I can wear jeans on Friday - woot!

I'm looking forward to getting caught up on blog-reading, as well as updating my blog roll later this week once I get my new computer. Until then, happy Monday to all! :)

BR's Blogger Challenge

Well, leave it to Bathroom Reading to drag me kicking and screaming off my slatted beach chair, spilling my fruity drink with the yellow umbrella all over my mindless summer novel... Oh wait. I was just on vacation from blogging. Still in West Texas and there is no beach in sight. But I did finish a major presentation tonight, and for all practical purposes it is Spring Break. Ahhh. I feel better already. Thanks for all your sweet comments - you guys are the best. And I will be back to blogging on Monday (going to Ruidoso this weekend to hang out in the mountains with TBF).

But for now, here's the promised submission* for Bathroom Reading's challenge. Texas vs. Expats. Read this to find out more. It's long, but it's worth it.

The evening sun had just slipped behind the horizon when Hank left the
surprise retirement party thrown for him by the staff at Bell
Automotive. He had expected a small tribute to celebrate his 30 years
of service to the company, but did not expect the entire staff to show
up to present him with a Rolex watch that cost more than what many of
his co-workers would make in a two-month period. After opening his
gift and giving a short speech, Hank declined an outpouring of
requests to move the party elsewhere. After all, tonight also happened
to be he and Carolyn's 25th wedding anniversary. Hank knew that
Carolyn would expect a surprise of her own when she returned home from
her shift at the salon.

The story of how Hank and Carolyn Sanders met and fell in love was
well known by their friends and family. The story was a favorite among
their children, who each had cited it at their wedding receptions.

Hank worked at the Munford Hotel with the same diligence and
enthusiasm he would eventually take to Bell Auto. The shift manager
knew Hank would be the first one to volunteer when another staff
member fell ill. Hank scraped for every hour he could get, especially
amid rising tuition costs at the Harper College Business School that
he attended during the day. He had been working an extra shift that
rainy Tuesday evening when the Strensin family had arrived at the
front desk, soaked and tired from their cross-country drive from
Connecticut.

Carolyn Strensin was a fresh-eyed and delicate 17-year old who had an
ability to break the hearts of boys she had not yet met. She was
unaware that even the hearts of several of her father's friends ached
for her. Her shyness protected her from the trappings that other girls
in her school had long ago fallen victim to, instances that usually
involved awkward and sticky fumblings in the backseats of cars
belonging to members of the Hill Valley varsity basketball squad. She
had not noticed Hank's heartache while he walked behind her and her
parents, struggling to manage the Strensin's suitcases while politely
acknowledging Bob Strensins barking commands.

"Make sure that our wake-up call is at 8am sharp, I know how you kids
like to screw around at the front desk and forget to write things
down," he said. Hank assured Mr Strensin that everything was taken
care of, and noticed as Carolyn's long, auburn hair fell from its nook
behind her ear and over a corner of her eye.

Bob Strensin's panache for eluding opportunities to tip hotel staff
had preceded him, but Hank was too occupied with his thoughts of
Carolyn to worry much about it. He left the Strensin's room and made
his way back to the elevator. It was then he heard her voice for the
first time.

"Hank?" a voice called out. It was Carolyn, smiling awkwardly, engaged
in a half-walk, half-run towards him down the hall. "This is for you.
I'm sorry about my dad."

She handed Hank a dollar and fifteen cents in dimes and quarters.

"This is all I have," she said. "But my parents are about to go eat,
and they were wondering if you would bring a fireplace stoker up
sometime tonight. Our room is still cold." She smiled delicately and
dashed back down the hall.

Hank waited a polite period of time before returning with the stoker.
Carolyn answered his knock at the room. Her parents had gone to
dinner, leaving Hank ample time engage her in conversation first about
the weather, and then about his family. The conversation turned to
school and music, then dreams and wishes. Carolyn realized she was in
love with the bellhop at about the same time her parents entered the
room.

Hank thought he was in trouble, and instinctively reached into his
pocket for the fork he had been told to deliver from a guest room back
to the kitchen earlier that day.

"Fork," he proclaimed, "In case you had leftovers." He laughed
nervously before exiting in a hurry. Bob Strensin examined Hank as he
strode by with a glare that suggested he might be feeble.

"I hope you brought that damn stoker too, boy," he said.

Carolyn returned one year later to join Hank at Harper College, and
the rest was what love stories came to be based on.

Almost.

Hank returned home from the retirement party whistling a happy tune.
He always enjoyed he and Carolyn's anniversary ritual. He would greet
her at the door with a fireplace stoker and a silver fork, and say,
"Stoker. And a fork. In case of leftovers."

He would have a hot bath ready for her, and would massage her feet as
she soaked. They would flip through their wedding album, and at some
point, he would produce $1.15 in quarters and dimes, smiling smugly
and asking Carolyn what he could get for it. He would usually get a
schoolboy's fantasy in front of the fireplace.

Carolyn would be home any minute. Hank went to the couch in the living
room and fished out some change. He trotted upstairs and turned on the
bath. He leaned into the oversized sauna bathtub, and turned the
faucet.

He almost missed it. On most days, Hank would have never looked to the
rear of the bath while turning on the faucet. If he didn't have to
turn to position the wedding album and coins on the sink, destiny
would have taken a better turn. Hank wasn't so lucky, and his eyes
caught a glimpse of purple next to the bar of soap. It contrasted
against the bright white tile. He adjusted his eyes and leaned closer,
and his face turned from joy to horror at the site of an unrolled
condom. His expression would almost be deemed comical by an onlooker
reached for it, and saw that it was soiled.

Hank stepped back, releasing from his fingers the wedding album and
coins, which spilled onto the marble floor. His hands shook, and he
made a haphazard attempt at preventing the stoker from falling from
his arms. He leaned over and stopped the bath, and drained it.

It had been the technician that had come last month to do electrical
work on the house, Hank thought. Sweat spilled from his brow. He
hadn't thought much about the fact that the technician had been coming
by every other afternoon to "double check" the installation.

"Just wanted to make sure we got it right," he'd say, before hurriedly
running off to his van. He had called often, usually asking to speak
to Carolyn about the lighting. Hank had noticed on several occasions
that he sounded drunk when he called.

At about the same time Carolyn threw her keys down onto the counter,
calling out Hank's name, Hank had pulled his car over at the rest
stop, just behind a picnic area where he was out of view. As Carolyn
signed her name on the anniversary card, licked, and sealed its
envelope, Hank cried and banged his fist on the steering wheel. Just
after Carolyn stepped into the bathroom and awkwardly noticed the empty
bath, Hank was staring out over a cornfield, wiping the tears from his
eyes.

Carolyn's face came undone as she saw the condom at about the same
time Hank's came undone from the lone bullet that entered through his
mouth, briefly piercing the roof of his mouth before journeying
through his brain, out his scalp, and neatly into the roof of the car.


*I must confess up front that I did not write this. I was chatting with a fellow Texas blogger (so no, it's not cheating, it's a team effort!) over at Winter of Discontent, and he offered to write the submission for me given my rather fragile state this last week. Good, ain't he? Now go visit his blog - he's being interviewed by VH1 for a blogging show. Very cool.

Mini-vacation

Hello all. It's been a rough couple of weeks for TB. After the laptop fiasco (it's still in the shop, hopefully will get the estimate today and find out if it's worth the cost of repairs to an old laptop just to get my docs, pics, and mp3s back, or if I should put the $ into something new), PLUS I was in another major car accident last Tuesday (yes, my beautiful new Maxima that I'd only driven for 6 weeks is totaled and I'm doing the car-search thing again), PLUS regular work BS and a half a dozen more school projects due, I'm running on emotional fumes, and flat don't have the energy or spirit to blog.

SO! I'm giving myself a week off to get my act together and focus on school (yes mom, I know buckling down now, even though it seems like just a stupid paper for a stupid class, will pay off in the long run once I get my M.Ed.). Just one more week until Spring Break. Five. More. Days. By that time I should be back on track physically and emotionally and will have plenty of stories to share.

Until then, I hope you are all fine & dandy. And don't forget to be super cautious on the road. Even when you're sober. Even in the middle of the day. Even when the weather is clear and sunny. Even if you are driving legally, it doesn't mean everybody else is. Careless Maniacs!

Tomato bath

Ah, time for another Friday Feast. I don't know why I still do these, never get many comments. And after this, I have officially joined the ranks for comment whore. Good for me.

Appetizer - Who is the one person you email more often than anyone else? Long emails with far too many details updating all the drama (and non-drama) in my life to my mom.

Soup - So far, which year of your life has been the most enjoyable? Senior year in high school was pretty good - officer on our dance team, lots of parties, lots of alcohol, graduated magna cum laude, planning for college. There were some pretty sucky years in the mid-late 90s, but truly, every year since 2000 has gotten better and better - finished my undergrad degree, got my first real job with benefits, met TBF, suckered my way into grad school, got a place to call our own, got engaged, planning 2 graduations and a wedding in the next year. Now we're working together to meet the rest of our goals and that is very exciting.

Salad - Name someone with whom you have lost touch but would like to reunite. Don't even have to think about this one. I have two friends from Calallen whom I miss dearly - Alison and Andi. We were so tight in high school, but moved to new towns after graduation, and I've been horrible about staying in touch. Sigh.

Main Course - What was the tastiest meal you had this past week? It should've been Olive Garden on Saturday night, but it sucked - as did the service (and they were out of calamari!). OH, actual tastiest meal was prepared by TBF on Tuesday: enormous steaks (New York strip, I think?) topped with crumbled blue cheese with sauteed mushrooms on the side. Mmmm, yummy.

Dessert - Using the letters in your favorite color, write three words that describe your personality. Whaa? There are more than three letters in my favorite color, so I just pick any three letters? Aw, screw it, here ya go:
R - radiant
E - energetic
D - dynamic
Okay, red isn't my favorite color and I'm not really any of those things this week, but hey, this post is now over because I've got to get back to work. Happy Friday to YOU!

Idol on Wed

Well, well, well. It turns out that Simon must have been listening when Mr. K was dishing out American Idol advice last week. We now have no singing losers and a 1/2 results show - hooray for Mr. K!

So who's gone? Joseph, Celena, David, and Aloha. None amazingly talented or even very memorable (I must agree with Joseph who said he didn't get much air time during the audition shows, I think that does make a difference because we don't really "know" him).

But in my opinion ALL were better than two that got to stick around: Anthony Federov and Janay Castine. BLAH! Janay butchered Hit Em Up Style (if that is what it's called). She look terrified, and she's been bugging me because she never has any emotion when the other performers are singing. She needs to go. Soon.

And my current favorites, you ask (or maybe you didn't, meh)? Well Nadia is no longer on my short list. As much as I want her to kick ass, she just isn't doing it for me. So Mikalah Gordon has replaced her as the number 1 girl for me - especially after that magnificent performance on Tue. She took Simon's advice to heart and toned the spaziness down a bit and I think it really paid off. I was also especially surprised by Bo Bice this week - he did great. It was so easy to watch him perform, and I wasn't worried about if he was going to hit the next note or stumble off the stage. He's just an especially confident performer. And I still have my fingers crossed for Anwar the music teacher as well. Until next week. Seacrest. Out.

Unscripted

Is anyone out there watching Unscripted on HBO? It's an improv comedy/drama based on real life experiences of struggling actors in LA. They ran a marathon last Friday which I've been watching on TiVo, and this show is WONDERFUL! Six Feet Under is and will always be my favorite HBO original series, but this is a very close second...

HBO says: As its name implies, Unscripted features no written lines of dialogue. The cast members improvise their lines in situations based on their own experiences and those of the show's creators. There are no rehearsals, no retakes and no reshoots. The result is a dry-humored insider's look at what it takes to make it big — or at least make a living — in Hollywood.

There are dozens of cameos including Uma Thurman, Meryl Streep, and Brittany Murphy. I also read, but haven't yet seen the episodes where Brad Bitt, Angelina Jolie, Noah Wyle, and Hank Azaria show up to audition for a role or have lunch with a director. Cool. I love celebrities being themselves.

Krista Allen is one of the main characters (you old-school Days of Our Lives fans will remember the good Billie - oh wait, she was never good - let's just call her the hot Billie).

I laughed so hard at this scene:
Enter handsome hungover guy in his grundies.
Enter equally handsome and equally hungover roommate.
"Dude, there's a girl in my bed, and I have no idea who she is".
Stop. I've retyped it three times and can't do it justice. Just imagine the girl coming out of the bedroom wrapped in a sheet, and she figures out her previous night's lover can't remember her name. It's classic.

There's another hilarious scene where one actor happens to be at the right place at the right time to stand in for a commercial-actor who doesn't know how to ride a horse. So we see our guy galloping majestically down the beach on his white horse, his curly locks flowing in the wind, a gorgeous damsel enveloped in his arms. (Uh, do you see where this is going?) Cut to the guy and his roommate popping in a video tape to watch the finished commercial. The guy smiles proudly watching the commercial with the romantic music in the background. Then the voiceover cuts in: "Do you want to last 20, 40, even 60 minutes in bed?!" or whatever the hell they say. Guy in complete disbelief. Roomate laughing his ass off.

I've never been big on the trying-to-make-it-as-an-actor/musician/writer-in-the-big-city type films, but this is one is a classic. It's oddly easy to relate to the characters and their struggles. And it's really funny. Oh, and did I mention our friend George Clooney is producer? Check it out.

More biscuits

wOOt! I made it up to #6 on Google's texas biscuit search. Thanks guys, I'm thrilled!

However, I'm also pretty pleased with some of the other texas biscuit's listed. Check this out, especially the link to #4:

• #1 Texas citrus website - a Texas Biscuit Baba (huh?) recipe - oranges, biscuit mix, an egg, marmalade, and wine?!! BARFORAMA!!
• #2 Biscuit Hill vacation rental home in Canyon Lakes, TX.
• #3 Good ol' Beer Biscuits!!!
• #4 Biscuits O'Bryan - the cowboy poet and chuckwagon cook. I wonder if I should consider him for the wedding - caterer & musican all rolled up into one!
  
• #5 More Biscuit Hill B&Bs - where is this Canyon Lakes anyway?
• #6 Me! THE Texas Biscuit!!

I know I've said this before, but it never ceases to amaze me what a person will do to avoid studying. I think I'm supposed to be researching theories behind the emotional transmission of psychosomatic symptoms in families. Either that or developing circular questions based on the Milan approach of family counseling. No, I didn't think so either. It's still early, right?!