October 13, 2006
I woke up to a house at 55 degrees!!
Getting out of bed to that, I almost froze my little bitties off!!
But I'm too stubborn to turn the heat on .... So I'm still in jammies, a hoodie, and my squishy leopard slippers until the sun warms up the house.
Guess there are worse ways to spend my day...
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October 12, 2006
Dad's came to town for the weekend too, so now it is time to relax.
Until Monday, when I face another interview ...
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October 10, 2006
Keep On Going, Don't Slow Down
You might get out
Before the devil even knows you're there
That was the best advice I heard all day ... some random country boy ... quoting some random country song ... but the right words nonetheless ...
I had a rough day. That's all I can say about it.
There are more on the horizon before a break will come ...
Haven't I already been told eight times over that I'm under too much stress?
::: heaving a mug of herbal tea :::
What doesn't kill me, makes me stronger
What makes me stronger, helps me heal
What helps me heal, brings back my smile
What brings back my smile, helps heal others
So in the end, it's all for a good cause ... right?
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October 09, 2006
Two years ago, I pushed my entire schedule for the evil, dreaded cross-country move so that my friend and I could go see Toby Keith's Throwdown Tour together in the very amphitheater where we had first met (also a country concert). She and I showed up looking all cute in our gear ... sans beer, sans lighter, sans cigars, sans binoculars ... we were just so excited to see Terri Clark and Toby Keith that everything else just went out the window.
This time, I enlisted the help of another friend of mine and three of us had a good ol' time singing along to Toby's Hookin' Up and Hangin' Out Tour. We remembered warm clothes, money for beer, binoculars (which we didn't use), sandwiches and snacks. We were effin' prepared this time.
Neither of my friends knew who Joe Nichols was though ... until we got there. Once he started playing Brokenheartsville, Tequila Makes Her Clothes Fall Off, and the like ... then they knew who he was.
I'll tell you right now though ... I am not a passive concert goer AT ALL. I am on my feet, shakin my booty, singin the songs, and goin' nuts. It is one of those times when the dancing around the room in my underwear, singing along to the radio, pretending its me on stage Â… actually gets seen in public. But hell, I'm having a good time ... so what if I look like a total doof in the process.
I will note that I came prepared with my blue bandana to both concerts though ... and when Toby sang about his little Whiskey Girl (blue bandana tied all up in her hair) ... I was right there waiting for him to take me home.
My Ragged-on-the-edges girl
Ah, but I like 'em rough
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I'm doing my best on this side of the pond to keep a little bit of Texas country alive here in London.
Hope your new place is helping to keep you happy!
JaredOctober 07, 2006
Your Dominant Intelligence is Interpersonal Intelligence |
 You shine in your ability to realate to and understand others. Good at seeing others' points of view, you get how people think and feel. You have an uncanny ability to sense true feelings, intentions, and motivations. A natural born leader, you are great at teaching and mediating conflict. You would make a good counselor, salesperson, politician, or business person. |
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October 06, 2006
I personally donated for a lot of reasons, but most of all, because I tend to buy the cookies out of guilt and then feel guilty for eating them - I have such little willpower when it comes to cookies. I can tell myself no to the cookies on the store shelves, but when I know what it felt like to be that little girl selling cookies and how disappointing a "no thanks" response felt ... I just have to buy a box. This way, I have satisfied the guilt I would have felt for saying no to a little girl but I won't cry when I try to squeeze my jeans on and know that the cookies are partly to blame.
Plus, those Marines are going to enjoy them waaaaay more than I do.
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October 05, 2006
Yummy, delicious, kill-ya-dead-on-the-spot Scotcharoos.
They sound like some kind of alcoholics dream, don't they? But I didn't get the recipe from either of the Scotch Afficiandos that I know, so there must be some other recipe that is a scotch drinkers second vice.
Nope, this is a recipe passed down to me and traceable to the hands of my great-grandmother, who I never met. I have no idea where she got it from but I've heard it had a pretty popular hayday back when.
1 cup sugar
1 cup light corn syrup
1 1/4 cup smooth peanut butter*
6 oz Rice Krispies (half a 12 oz box)
1 sm package of chocolate chips
1 sm package of butterscotch chips
* you can reduce this to 1c, the extra makes for a softer treat at the end
** It helps to have everything pre-measured or pre-poured prior to starting the recipe as sugar burns easily and gets difficult to work with as it cools.
In a 3 Qt saucepan, gently heat sugar and corn syrup until the sugar melts. Remove from heat and stir in peanut butter. While still warm, add half the Rice Krispies to the saucepan and mix. Continue mixing the sugar/cereal mixture with the remaining cereal in a large bowl. Mix until combined.
Press the mixture into a well buttered 9 x 13 pan. Glass is the best type of pan to use for this.
Melt the chocolate and butterscotch chips together. Pour over the cereal mixture and smooth.
Allow to cool slightly, refridgerate, and cut into squares.
I made these tonight and I'm waiting for the chocolate to set up in the fridge ... just the leftover bits and pieces were so yummy. Come on, peanut butter, butterscotch, and chocolate all in the same crunchy, chewy little bar ... that's just heaven waitin' happen. I can't wait for the finished product!!
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Thanks for this!October 03, 2006
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October 02, 2006
In general, I think my biggest issue with the families that grate on my last nerve is the monumental hypocracy that goes on within them. They treat family members with less respect than they would anyone else on the planet and then say, "but I'm family!"
Don't buy a plane ticket and THEN tell me when you're coming. You'll find yourself sleeping in a hotel and doing a self-guided tour of the things you wanted to see.
Don't try to monopolize my holidays. I will spend them where I think I should. There are more people in the world that I care about than the people I am most closely genetically matched to. And if that one day matters to you so much, quit making me go to all the effort.
Don't think for a minute that that annoying whine of 'but I'm family' will buy you one ounce of exception. I don't give a shit who's family you're from ... if you wouldn't do it to your neighbor or your best friend, what makes you think it is ok to do it to me?? Period. End of Discusion.
(And that goes double for any potential in-laws that ever happen upon this as well)
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September 28, 2006
Life's been busy putting my family in knots again
In the span of four days, what has been settled in Kansas for months has been undone, turned upside down, redone, and left unspun.
The guy that killed my grandmother decided to change his mind - he wanted to plead guilty at the last minute (a week before the trial was set to begin. (Note: he requested this trial date ... far earlier than anyone expected him to).
My family rushed to understand what it meant and everyone changed their travel plans accordingly.
Defense counsel apparently had other things in mind. He called up and argued with the prosecutor over the classification of the crime (which had been settled by a judge previously). When the defense counsel ended up with the answer he didn't want - they took back the plea.
We'll all go back and change our travel plans again and sit on the pins and needles this case is putting us through. We are back to facing a trial ... eventually ... we just don't know when
Tonight, my stomach is killing me.
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September 27, 2006
Fuck 'em. All of 'em. These are our blogs.
We put the blog out there to vent, to deal, to be validated. But we aren't always going to be validated. And what we think isn't always going to get a great response. Your mom doesn't want to read that you think her gazpacho sucks after she has been making it all these years ... but maybe she needs to. Maybe your friend needs to hear that you think she's being a giant bitch ... and maybe she needs to realize you're telling her for her own damn good. Maybe we could all use just a little bit more realism in our lives.
Treat people with respect, but fuck what they might think or who they might say something to.
If you don't want to keep reading about my opinions, you're welcome to stop. Don't get me wrong - If I can't say how I feel because of what someone might think, then maybe I need to reevaluate what I think. But if I am as comfortable saying to someone what I feel like blogging, it is fair game for the blog ... whether they like it or not. My only rules are protecting the feelings of those caught in the crossfire and covering my ass when it comes to work. Beyond that, I answer only to myself.
This is the written stream of consciousness from my mind, no one else's.
I used to be afraid to blog because of what someone might think. I wanted to be "in" and I didn't want to jeopardize that. I know that the gossip is going on, that alliances are there, and that your basic meddling is affecting lives all across the 'sphere. It kept me from being honest about what I thought. Of course I want to be liked, just like any other normal, regular person on the planet ... No one wants to be excluded, for any reason ... but, you know what? I'm not going to change who I am in order to be included.
If how I feel or what I think can destroy a "friendship," fuck 'em.
In some cases, that level of authenticity has left me on the outside of the circle. To be honest, it hurts. It hurts because I know I am an authentic, caring, fun individual. It hurts because I was genuine and not accepted. It is raw rejection without a sweet candy coating.
The friends that can survive disagreement and strife are the ones I want by my side, through the good and the bad.
There are people out there that think they are holding all the cards, that they have the world fooled with their innocent act, and that they are mighty enough to "bring people down" or have people ostracised from the group - mostly because they have been able to achieve just that - but no one holds all the cards, all the time.
And I think we've all heard the phrase 'what goes around comes around.'
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September 25, 2006
You would have been 85 today. I probably would have forgotten to send anything but an e-card this morning. I always say I'm going to do better and remember in time to at least mail a card, but I always forget. Dad would have sent you yellow roses like he does every year and put all our names on the card - he knows those are your favorite.
The trial starts next week. I still have to write my victim impact statement and send it to the prosecutor, but I just don't know how to explain to the world what losing you has felt like.
I wish there was more that I could still say to you and I wish I had said I love you more. I wish that so much had been different.
But I love you, Grammy.
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September 22, 2006
Evryone, Everywhere, Would Be Happy The Princess Palace (I thought I'd try it out ... see how the name sits...) finally has cable. It only took about 10 phone calls since Tuesday to my "friend in the digital age" to get it done and they haven't even finished all the installation yet. But, I've got my stories back and Sheila's gone wireless ... well, abandoned the CAT 5 anyway.
I still haven't managed to find the camera yet, but when I do ... I've got the most amazing sight to show you. Walking by last night, just after dark in the brisk fall air, it was emphatically perfect.
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September 19, 2006
I will tell you though, as cluttered, chaotic, and unkept the new place seems in the midst of unpacking ... it is still SOOO nice. I just may have to start calling it The Manor, but I shall open a poll for the official name once I find the camera.
Unfortunately, I have had trouble sleeping the past couple of nights... but, I think that will pass. The overhwelming peacefulness of lying in my own bed, in my own house, listening to the crickets under the moonlight pouring across the ceiling has made me see how much stress I have been carrying over the last two years ... just from the tension of my living arrangements.
The guy I lived with was just the wrong person for me. Without placing too much judgement ... our personalities might as well have been oil and water. What was I thinking living with a Democrat? As awful a roommate as he thought I was, I hope karma sends in my place someone worth complaining about. My landlord was just too much of a slumlord for my taste. I have had better luck with apartment complexes with incompetent management. And the track-star children living upstairs were maddening. Having my car keyed in the parking lot didn't help my comfort level either.
I see frequent and prolonged use of my new soaking tub in the near future.
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September 17, 2006
As of Friday, the settlement paperwork was signed (no thanks to my hangover...)
As of Saturday, I was having chinese take out and sleeping in the new master bedroom
As of Sunday, I have a welcome mat, a flashlight, a fire extinguisher, and hand-me-down furniture
As of Monday, maybe something will be put away ...
I don't have the net set up at the new place yet, but I am still paying rent for the old place so I have net there. Sheila and the beloved desk will migrate over sometime this week.
Coming soon ... PICTURES!!!!
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September 13, 2006
I spent yesterday taking pictures off the walls. The corkboard is gone, the magnetic white board is gone too. All my princess items are put away. Even the stuffed animals are off their ledge and in a box.
But somehow five things managed to keep their place on the wall a little bit longer.
1. My cowboy hat
2. B&W view of waves crashing in the moonight
3. My beautifully framed diploma from UCSD
4. The Marine Corps Flag
5. The American Flag
I guess that tells you where my priorities are in life.
What do your walls say about you?
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September 11, 2006
Philip L. Parker
Philip L. Parker, 53, of Skillman, NJ, Senior Vice President of Aon Corporation, died Sept. 11, 2001, at the World Trade Center site. His office was on the 99th floor of the South Tower.
To so many, this is all they will ever know about Philip L. Parker. It is my job today - not just as a blogger but as a fellow American - to keep that from being commonplace and to honor him and his family with a fitting tribute.
Philip L. Parker emigrated to the United States from Canada in the early 1950s and became a naturalized U.S. citizen while still in high school. He is survived by considerable family both in the United States and Canada.
I never met him, personally, but I did meet him through the wonderful words that his friends, colleagues, former co-workers, and family have said about him since his tragic death. He was clearly a kind-hearted, loving, family man with a temendously generous spirit. He was a vastly passionate man with a love for his family, his green MG convertible, and music.
Portions of the posts on Legacy.com bring home just how lucky the world was to have Philip L. Parker for the time that we did:
"I worked with Phil for 2 years. Within minutes of meeting him, I knew he was a special man. Kindness, compasion and warmth were only a few of his qualities." -- Christina McCoy (Mt. Laurel, NJ )
"He had a wonderful sense of humor, a quick wit and he always made time to say hello and catch up." -- Patricia Barraza (New York, NY )
"He had a charming wit that he easily put to paper and pen. He made coming to work a joy. Heaven has an angel." -- Randi Seeley (Brooklyn, NY )
" Phil was always a joy to work with and compete against; a true gentleman and friend." -- William Hopkins (Annandale, NJ )
"It was a joy and a privilege to know Phil ... I am sure I am not alone in having had encouragement and support from Phil..." -- Fred Shearer (London, England)
"I had the pleasure of working with Phil as his Admin Assistant for six years. Phil was one of the most intelligent, articulate, honorable and generous men I have ever known. He was deeply committed to his family, friends and his work. He revered "quality" and strove to achieve it in all he did." -- Laura Petticrew (Philadelphia, PA )
Donations may be made in honor of Philip L. Parker to the VH1 Save the Music Foundation, Philip Parker Fund, 1515 Broadway NY 10010. The purpose of the foundation is to re-establish music programs in schools that lost funding to do so.
To Joan, his wife, and Stephanie, his daughter:
Thank you so much for sharing with the world a person whom you could have kept to yourself but that created so much joy for others. Thank you for letting us see your love for him and your personal loss so deeply. Please accept my deepest condolences.
We as a society are truly at a loss for having lost such a great man that day. Yet, our society will be forever indebted to him for having left behind such a tremendous legacy and having brought to so many people his gift of love and laughter.
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September 10, 2006
Before I left, I felt good about going. I was enthusiastic about being a pair of feet on the pavement to prove we have not forgotten - that I have not forgotten.
As I left, I felt tired and heavy. I had just learned about another death in the family. He died of cancer ... and I didn't even know he was sick.
Before I walked, I felt blessed. I had friends to keep me smiling and my mind on bigger and happier things. I live in a city where I can show my support in big ways for those I will never meet.
As I walked, I remembered the family and friends that this walk would mean something to. I thought of the people who are gone, that gave us a reason to walk.
Before going home, I sat in the Pentagon parking lot, listening to an operetic rendition of a song about America ... but I honestly cannot tell you which song it was ... and I thought of my now missing uncle.
He didn't die in an attack on America but, when he died, a little bit of real American history died with him. He came from nothing and made something of himself. He lived in a town formerly named for our lineage where he became the largest landowner the town had ever seen. He farmed. He farmed and he farmed and he farmed. He was Old MacDonald if I ever saw him.
He passed his trade along to his son, with whom he shared a name. I only met Junior the one time and his kids a bit younger than me, but he came from good stock and he seemed to carry on the traditions of his pa.
My uncle was good people. But they seem to be going fast.
I have only their essence to think of now ... the lessons they taught to those they knew ... their spirit that lives on through the family ... and the hope that generations will mimic what came before them to continue the America that we all came from.
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September 08, 2006
I don't anticipate being home much this weekend ... I've already got plans for the next 28 hour or so and I'll be seeing all of you DC residents at the Freedom Walk on Sunday night, right?
You've still got time to sign up to walk, you know ... just go here and then put your feet on the pavement to show you aren't willing to forget. There's no fundraising, just good ol' American togetherness.
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September 07, 2006
Everywhere And Everytime I Am Yours And You Are Mine Lookie what surprise came in the mail today ...
They are flip flops AND they are purple! What more could a girl want?!?
And as if that weren't enough, they are sooo squishy and comfortable!!!
Although, somewhat slippery as I almost busted my ass trying to walk across the hardwood floor in them.
Cuteness takes practice, yo.
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