HIMYM

For those in the know that stands for How I Met Your Mother. I've been a fan of the show since the second season. I like it because it's about people my age going through some of the same things I am or have experienced. This week's episode was a one-two punch of issues that I or my friends have dealt with. Lily and Marshall are anxious because they haven't gotten pregnant yet and I have one friend in particular that is experiencing this problem and it has caused her and her husband so much anguish. The other topic snuck up at the end of the ep when Lily had to tell Marshall that his dad died. Oh. Such a sucker punch. There is something that is inexplicable about losing a parent. If you haven't had it happen you can't know how it feels. How you think you're over it and then something sets you off. How you see other people with their mom or dad and you are sooooo jealous. How you have things to tell them or things you want advice on. My mom died almost seven (!!!) years ago and it is much better, but I will miss her for the rest of my life. The only thing that does make me feel better is that I was somewhat ready. During the episode Marshall chokes 'I'm not ready.' When I was 19 the doctors told us to expect the worst and start making arrangements. It was the middle of the night when I had to reach out to a friend and sob that I wasn't ready. That I didn't know how to take care of myself. I didn't know how to cook, or do laundry, or all the things I thought it meant to be an adult. When she did die 6 years later I was as ready as you can be for something like that. That is what I'm thankful for at the end of the day.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:Home

Are you out there?

I need help. I may even tell you what I need.

housewives fever

I am ridiculously addicted to almost all of Bravo TV's Real Housewives series - the exception would be the ladies of D.C. - BORING! Regardless, I like watching their ridiculous antics, spending habits, and what they consider 'normal.' Currently, the featured towns are Beverly Hills and Atlanta. One of the more annoying women is Camille Grammer, soon to be ex of Frasier. I watched the episode where her friend, Allison DuBois - inspiration for the show Medium - was on. I have watched Medium since it started over five years ago. Good stuff, kind of spooky, but also a good mystery each week. On the Real Housewives episode she was a total bitch. She turns out to be a rude, electric cigarette smoking nightmare. I was sad that the last episode of Medium is on this month, but seeing how Ms. DuBois is a effing nut job quack, I think I'll get over the loss.

Many movies

Over the course of the holidays I saw quite a number of movies...

True Grit, 2010: A-
True Grit, 1969: B+
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 1: B+ (lower grade because I wanted to see both parts at once)
Inception: A-
The Big Lebowski: A (first time I saw it all the way through. The Dude also inspired me to enjoy a few White Russians - yum)
The Ladies in Lavender: B
Young Victoria: A
The King's Speech: A, someone give Colin Firth an Oscar already!

All in all a worthy movie watching time was had :)


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:Pelham, AL

Southern Gothic

At the beginning of December I visited my family in Louisiana and learned about family stories that I had never heard and it has inspired me to think about writing in a more organized and professional manner. There is some true humor and tragedy in my family history and I think I would like to write something inspired by these accounts. I'm by no means a writer, but I have felt I have a story to tell for a while. This blog was originally part of this feeling, but I think I want to step it up a bit. Thoughts? (assuming anyone reads this...)


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:Nashville,United States

how low can you go?

I was just reading a little more about the Drew Peterson case - you know, the scumbag police officer who is accused of killing his third and fourth wives. Well, it has got me wondering...what do these women see in him? When he was arrested for killing his third wife they showed a picture of his current fiancée and she is cute and really young. Is it some sort of daddy complex? Are they so lacking in self esteem that some guy in his 50s (to your early 20s) seems like a prime catch? Oh and did I mention that his third wife "accidentally" drowned in a bathtub with no water and his fourth wife suddenly up and left leaving her two kids behind? Where do I sign up for Mr. Right? Clearly, I have been looking in the wrong places for a significant other. I need to start scouring the newspapers for men under a cloud of suspicion for killing their domestic partners. I am just too picky I guess. I so find felonies unattractive.

Baffling

Hanging around my family reminds me that there is a strong contingent of people that really loathe Obama. Most of my friends (except you, AEC) are pretty big supporters of our president and breathed a sigh of relief when he won the election. I had to listen to several family members discuss how he is a Socialist and he is trying to tax people to death and all of those wonderfully enlightening things that Fox News (Fair and Balanced, people - if you say it, it's got to be true) spouts off about. One of my favorite family members also said that like her granddaughter, I will change my mind when I "grow up." Talk about mixed messages. Everyone says that I need to be more responsible now that I have hit 30 and that all my good years are behind me (usually from the people younger than me) and now I hear that I am still waiting to grow up. I tried to be nice - since she is a favorite - and noted that I am eight years older than her granddaughter and I can think for myself. Aaargghh.

Treating myself

I have been on quite the shopping extravaganza the last few days...I got my haircut and colored ($135) got Teddy's haircut ($48 - can you believe that!) and I bought an iPhone! I was going to be sensible and not succumb to the need boiling inside of me for something to replace my iTouch, but when I didn't get anywhere with VERIZON WIRELESS again I decided to just throw in the towel and head for greener pastures. Luckily for me, the AT&T store was just a few paces down the road and I was steamed enough to just throw caution to the wind and buy one. As you have probably already imagined....I love it. I can't wait to take it home and sync it with my computer. (I'm in Nashville at the moment) Such a nerd. I will be keeping this one with me at all times and I will have a net tracker on the b*tch to make sure no one runs off with it!

Happy Memorial Day and I hope everyone is enjoying a relaxing few days off from work!

Oh, Yes, Hugh Jackman

This past weekend I went to see Wolverine with the roommie. I have wanted to see it ever since I saw the trailer where he emerges from the water all sorts of naked and muscle-y. The movie was full of eye candy and it didn't disappoint. In terms of a storyline it was no Iron Man and certainly no Dark Knight. That's okay, I wasn't really expecting a cinematic masterpiece. I think the next movie I am going to see is Star Trek. I believe hell hath frozen over because I would never have predicted that I would have an interest in anything having to do with Spock or Kirk. Just not my thing. My first cousins on my mom's side are big Trekkies and I could never understand it. The unattractive outfits, the elf ears, the strange hand gesture that I have to concentrate to make...eh, I never really got it. Now that Chris Pine has come on the scene, I believe I can get on board. He is one fine looking gentleman. I would love to be in a Hugh Jackman/Chris Pine sandwich. The only problem with that would be the gay vibe. I mean, would they start hooking up with each other? Not cool. Maybe I should just look at them as two separate pieces of cake that need to be consumed on different days. Hmmm. Ponder, ponder, ponder.

Yes, people, this is what I think about.

Here are the many things

That I could give a flying f*ck about

Rhianna and Chris Brown - two people who are too young with too much money

Swine Flu - if it gets you it gets you

Lindsay Lohan - she's just sad and lost

People complaining about taxes - I would rather my tax money go to "socialist" causes than a pointless war without an end

American Idol - Please, Jesus, make it stop. It is like a bad penny. It just keeps coming back

Twitter - get on it or don't, but quit talking about it like it is the second coming

Alright, I am feeling a bit like Eeyore, so I best get myself to bed.

Best Business Practices

About a week and a half ago I dropped my phone on the pavement. It was open at the time and I looked it over and it seemed fine. I dialed my brother's number and put the phone to my ear, but I didn't hear anything. It soon dawned on me that something was wrong with the phone. After a little experimentation, I realized the phone would only work on speakerphone. Now almost 14 days later it continues to do this, but intermittently. Sometimes it works like it should and sometimes not, but there is no predicting. I took the phone to VERIZON WIRELESS and the lady was very nice and suggested that the problem could be that I hadn't updated my phone and the data was outdated. I tried to explain that it wasn't a data issue but a mechanical one. She said that it didn't really matter. I still had to do the update and needed to demonstrate what was wrong with the phone. Remember the intermittent part? Um, yeah. A little hard to predict when the phone will work or won't. My option? Nothing. She told me that they couldn't replace, repair, or generally do anything until I am due to get a new phone in November. NOVEMBER. I kindly asked her when my prison sentence would be up with VERIZON WIRELESS (and then I speculated that 2012 sounded about right). As it turns out I will be paroled in March but if I want to get out of my contract before that they will expect me to pay a penalty of approximately $34,000,000 - give or take a few zeros. So if I talk to any of you on the phone just remember that the conversation is potentially being monitored by anyone that happens to be in the vicinity.

Seriously?

If you are a facebook friend, you have probably already seen this, but my beloved iPod Touch was absconded with. Someone stole it. I am so f*cking mad, it is unreal. I think I know who did it, too. There were these two kids in the department I work in at the library and I left my desk and when I came back it was gone. You know what makes me so mad about this whole thing, though? I worked for that piece of technology. I spent my money on it and now it is gone. I follow all the rules and then some worthless person walks off with MY property. WTF? I changed my pw on gmail and on facebook, so hopefully they won't be able to access my personal info. I hope. I hope they are playing with the motherf*cker and they wander into traffic. So now I have to decide if I am going to buy another one. Probably. It's like someone cut off my reliable connection to heroin. Sh*t.

People, let me tell you about my best friend...

So the trouble with the title of this blog is that I don't have one. Now that is not to say that don't have really good friends, but they all have someone else. For the last year or so I have been feeling quite lonely. It is what finally encouraged me to do the whole online dating thing and just generally bitch about my state of affairs - or lack there of. Tonight I was walking Teddy and just pondering the whole subject and I realized that I have always had a best friend. Someone that I spent quite a lot of time with and we just hung out all the time. This gets to the tricky part of this post. I am not going to name names, but if you think part of this post is about you you're probably right. So, to begin, let's trace the trajectory of my bfs over the last three decades. I had one main bestie from early childhood to high school. There were other people who I was very close to at the time as well, but one person in particular. Off to college - freshman year I had a new bestie, sophomore and junior year I had another, senior year up to about a year or two ago I had another bff. Now, everyone has moved on to better, more fulfilling things and I am still here. It makes me sad. I don't know how to go from here. Oh I still have some great people in my life, but the circle keeps shrinking and it feels like I'm truly going to be alone. I can't tell you how depressing that is. I just don't know what to do. I wish I could go back in time and prepare my 15, or 20, or 25 year old self for this because it sucks. I always feared being alone and I guess that was a self-fulfilling prophecy, huh? Ain't it a bitch.

Two posts within one week? No!

Back from the wedding. Things were interesting to say the least. A little drama (alright, a lot!) but what weddings don't have that? I only have one wedding left for the next several months. That one is in D.C. and I'll get to see several friends! Yay!

Tonight's post is regarding a show I was sucked into watching tonight..."I Didn't Know I was Pregnant!" on the beloved (and always classy - Toddlers and Tiaras anyone?) TLC. Each episode is an hour of extreme idiocy. Most of the lovely young ladies I saw were from the South - Cheers to us! Generally while they were unknowingly hatching a baby they were off smoking and drinking and doing God knows what else. Several of the babies were delivered directly into toilets. Seriously. Can you imagine? "Excuse me, I need to use the bathroom. I'll be right back. Oh My God! How did THAT get there?" I found the woman who was pregnant with twins to be the most baffling. She claims that she was probably around 130 pounds at the time (and she is 6'0"), which I find highly unlikely because she is quite the sturdy looking fellow, er, lady, these days. Also, how do you not notice you are lugging around two humans at once? Oh, the thought that these people wander the earth without some sort of guardians or helmets.

The diet from hell

Hi All. Once again it has been too long. Life has been interesting and busy as of late, but in a good way. The more interesting news is the new eating plan the roommie and I have embarked on. I was watching Oprah the other day and Dr. Oz did a story on Calorie Restriction. Basically, the idea of this meal plan is to feed your body as efficiently as possible and it is supposed to maximize your health and help you live longer.

Here is the truth. That all may be true, but as I have recently found out life is not all that fun without sugar, bread, salt, and alcohol. This past weekend I reflected on how hungry I was and how miserable that made me. I will grudgingly admit that I am feeling pretty good physically. Based on how I feel, I have determined I might have a slight food allergy. I feel more rejuvenated and just clearer. Don't get me wrong I am still hungry. Let me give you some examples of what we are eating...

lots of leafy green veggies, particularly spinach
tons of broccoli and cauliflower
lean protein like chicken and turkey
egg whites
yogurt
lentil soup
nuts (of which I generally despise)
1 or 2 tbl of olive oil a day - you still need to ingest fats
protein bars and protein powders (mixed in food to make them quite inedible)
fruit (I had some fantastic dried mango today that was the best thing I have eaten on this diet)

Let me repeat, there is no candy or other sweets on this diet. I am currently not salting my food - which is a huge challenge for me. Also, not drinking, but that's ok I would rather eat my calories than drink them.

So...where do we go from here?
Well, to me, this is not a sustainable way to eat. I feel like I could forage in the woods and find more delicious things to eat. This weekend Peyton is getting married and I plan on enjoying the food available. I pity anyone that steps in front of me at the buffet line at the rehearsal dinner - people could be hurt. After we return home I think I will be doing WW points. It is an easy plan to follow and it is bound to feel downright luxurious compared to the prison food I am currently 'enjoying.'

The roommie has hidden the scale from me, so I have no idea if I have lost weight or not. If I haven't lost weight...well, hell hath no fury...

I'll give you an update soon (I know, I know, you've heard that, but I mean it this time...)

I have good intentions...

I really do mean to post more, but life seems to get in the way.

I continue to settle into the new job. I think I am having the normal feelings anyone else has where they wonder if they are ready for the responsibility. I think I have them more because I happened to be in the right place at the right time and everyone knows it. It's not my fault my boss decided to retire early, but I think I can do this job and not make people miserable while I am at it. My personal life has taken a decidedly backseat position to everything else. I feel like I don't have nearly as much "laying about" time. You know how I love to sit on a couch and watch some TiVo. Sometimes I get home and can only watch one or two programs and then it is off to bed. What happened to the Katie of years before? I guess she got a lot more sh*t to do. What about everyone else out there? Peyton is getting married and we are having a little get together at the G-unit mansion in a few weeks so that should be fun. My old roommate from college is getting married in May so that is another wedding I will be attending. Woo. Hoo. That's about it. Hope all is well out in the virtual world!

Two movies and other stuff

Today I got off early from work and decided to see a movie on my own. This was only the third movie I've ever seen by myself. So what did I see on such a momentous event? Paul Blart: Mall Cop. I was a little bit ashamed of going to see this movie, but none of my friends would see it with me so I went alone. Review? Eh. Not so good although there were some funny parts. Later on tonight I went to see another movie with the roommie. We chose Slumdog Millionaire. Awesome movie!! You should definitely go see it. It was really compelling. The only other Oscar nominated movie I have seen was The Wrestler. It was also really good, but I think Slumdog edged it. I still think Mickey Rourke deserves the best actor Oscar.
On to other topics, I've been feeling a bit blah as of late. My life is just a little boring right now. It definitely has an impact on how I feel about other aspects of my life. I hate ask for excitement because then I will probably regret it, but I need something to break up the monotony. Oh well.

Knowing what you're worth

So, as I have mentioned before I have a new job. This new job didn't become official until Friday, but the part I am quite proud of is how I handled the income aspect. A few days earlier my boss told me what the salary was going to be (I received a bump when I took the temporary position) and I will admit I thought it would be a little more. I had a night to mull it over before we talked about it seriously and when I met with her the next day I asked for more money. The Katie from 6 months ago would never have done that, but I wanted to be true to myself so we negotiated for more money. I have to admit I am quite proud of myself. I feel like am more self assured when it comes to my career and that is good. It makes it easier to be decisive and to have people respect you. I never thought I would be like this, but I'm glad I am!

2009 - busy,busy,busy

So, the year has already been busy...as you can tell from the title. I have been settling in with the new job and trying to be a good and fair boss. I have also tried putting myself out there in terms of dating and I actually went on a date last week. This is the point where I would like to tell you we hit it off, but then I would have to worry about growing a nose the size of pinochio's... Let's just say it was interesting and will make a good story for years to come. I am not off the dating wagon, but I need a little time to regroup and plan my future strategy. I guess the most exciting thing that has entered my life in recent weeks is the iPod touch which I am currently posting from. It is so sweet. Loving it - you have to get one!! Alright so it is a quick post, but I wanted to drop by and say 'hey.' So, 'hey'. :)

Back in the 'Ham

I came home today. I decided to go ahead and get back to the apartment and not put it off. Last year I kept putting it off and spent several extra days at home because I was trying to avoid work. Not this year, I like my job more and life seems to be a little more enjoyable. It's late, but it is officially New Year's Eve and it makes me look back at 2008. Let's see...this is what happened over the course of the year...

I went through three coworkers and that was a bit challenging.

I also experienced a time when I thought I would leave my job and look for something else

I seriously thought about moving - particularly around the time I wanted to leave my job

I turned 30

I survived a family vacation

I got a new job

I made some positive changes in my personal life

I made some new friends

All in all, 2008 was good for me. I know it wasn't for everyone, but I am trying to be happy for myself. I wish everyone an awesome 2009!