Welcome to my crazy, busy, fabulous life!

While I realize I need to update this thing more, and I have the best intentions of doing so, it never seems to happen. Although my life is going swimmingly, my marathon to-do list never seems to get down to "update blog."

I miss the days when preparing for vacation meant shopping for swimsuits and stocking up on film. These days I work like a mad woman to get as much done as possible prior to vacation so that I can actually enjoy my time off and not spend it working. The blessing and the curse of technology is that I'm always accessible, so vacation is relative I suppose. I may be two states away, but email gets delivered in Texas just like it does in Arkansas.

This week the fabulous Amanda has been staying with me and commuting to her new job in Rogers. I love it when she's here because she'll eat almost anything, so I get the chance to try out new recipes and dazzle her with my culinary skills when she stays here. Monday night we had three cheese pizza with atomic salad, Tuesday night we had brie pasta with fresh green beans, and Wednesday night we had grilled salmon and asparagus salad. And now my pants are too tight.

Tonight we had a going away party for my friend/sorority sister, Valerie, who's getting ready to leave for a two-year mission trip. We all met at Bonefish for bang bang shrimp and girl time. I never thought when I pledged a sorority that I'd make so many lifelong friends. All for the bargain price of $28 a month.



Tomorrow night I'm meeting my friend D in Tulsa to see Rascal Flatts. I had plans to go to a toga party at my friend Lela's, but when D called and said, "Hey, I have VIP/meet and greet tickets..." I blew off the toga party for the special treatment at the BOK Center. Luckily, Lela is a good enough friend that she's given me a free pass on skipping her party because I had a better offer. I've known D for over 20 years. He has a really cool job and has had the opportunity to meet a lot of amazing people, so my goal tomorrow night is to be as blase as he is about the experience. I swear, he's one of the least pretentious people I know, but when he randomly throws out phrases like, "One time when I was at the White House correspondents' dinner..." I find it hard to retain my dignity.

Did I tell you Usher was on my flight from Atlanta?

Saturday I'm picking up birthday cake for Memaw and Taylor and partying with the fam. Then on Sunday Chance and I are caravanning back to Texas with Lonnie and the boys.

Tuesday it's a tour of Cowboys Stadium, then Jen is taking two days off on Thursday and Friday, so we're all going to the beach.

Whew! I don't know when I'm going to work in a pedicure or a tanning appointment, but this diva is overbooked the next few days. Yes, it's crazy and busy, but very, very, cool.

The best things in life aren't free

Yes we can, indeed. And if you drank the Obama Kool-aid, there's no need to read further.

I openly acknowledge my high maintenance lifestyle. I consider pedicures and massages to be necessities in my monthly budget. I don't color my own hair or mow my own lawn. I insist on nice hotels, great meals, and fabulous handbags.

In other words, my life ain't cheap.

Luckily, I went to college and despite all the partying, managed to graduate and go on to earn a master's degree. My job is stressful and often it's more than 40 hours a week. But I don't mind because I'm fortunate to have a job I love, and because I am well compensated for thinking about work 24/7.

With a nice salary comes some nice perks, like a nice home and a dependable (albeit recalled) vehicle, cosmetics from a department store counter, and the opportunity to travel. See, I'm obsessed with weekend shopping trips and concerts and nice dinners. I find myself planning months full of weekends to Dallas and Kansas City. Right now I'm saving to buy my nephew a laptop for his high school graduation. I have 20th row tickets to see Bon Jovi in Tulsa next month. I'm headed to Temple twice in April, once for a race and once just because I miss Jen. I'm currently trying to talk Scott and Alisa into Dallas in May to see Jimmy Buffett, and I want to schedule girls' weekend with Sorne, Kelly and Amanda to see SATC2 Memorial Day weekend.

Ruth's Chris for dinner? That's just a Wednesday night for me and my pal Lori B. And in December, Krista and I will be happily ensconced in our Times Square hotel suite in NYC.

If you're going somewhere, I want to go. If a great band is playing, I want to see the concert. I like stuff. I like places. I love spending time with my friends.

But often, I find myself having to stop planning things. Not only do my weekends fill, but I run out of funds. And when you don't have money, you have to stop spending it.

Unless you're Congress. Then you can continue to spend money you don't have on people who don't need it.

See, when I use credit to pay for things, I have to pay it back with interest. Where's my blank check?

But you know what? If someone gave me a beautiful new red patent leather Louis Vuitton bag with the understanding that it was totally free to me, but someday my niece and nephews would have to pay for it, I'd say no. Because I believe in paying for my lifestyle, even if it means doing without.

You listening, Nancy Pelosi?

Let's make plans for July, when I might be solvent again!

What not to wear, how not to feel

SHUT THE FRONT DOOR! I've been obsessed with "What Not to Wear" for months. I watch it faithfully as I walk on the treadmill. Sometimes two or three episodes a day. So I am indebted to Stacy and Clinton for not only making my thighs smaller, but for taking my fashion knowledge from so-so to "hello!" S & C taught me that accessories should not match but "go" with your outfit. I learned all about proportion. That jackets help tie your outfit together and always make you look better. That your purse shouldn't match your shoes. And that said shoes should always be pointed toes.

Tonight I went to the first night of class for a new group and, bored while the teacher was talking, checked my Twitter feed to discover that Stacy London's coming to NWA tomorrow. During break I asked the Sam's peeps what time she'd be at the store. Turns out one of our students works for the company she's coming to represent. And she's going to ask if I can stop by their office tomorrow for a private meet and greet. OMG! I am giddy. Can you imagine? What in the world do I wear to meet such a fashionista (shut up, Amanda, the gray streak makes her look distinguished!)?

Other than excitement, my other emotions of the day included exasperation, impatience, and puzzlement. Plus, a first-rate case of jealousy. I hate feeling jealous. See, I love my life and most days I wouldn't trade places with anyone (save Giselle and Stacy London, who gets to tell people they dress like crap). But something happened today that brought out a serious case of the green monster.

So driving home tonight, I called Jen to make me feel less guilty about my petty feelings (and she did, 'cause she's awesome that way). But I'm still obsessing about it. And thinking that the boy ought to feel special that I care enough about him to be jealous. Because that's what jealousy is about, right? Being so into someone that you don't want them spending time with anyone else, or putting something before you?

Halfway home my iPod shuffled to a new song by the David Crowder Band, "How He Loves." And the opening line is "He is jealous for me. Loves like a hurricane. I am a tree, bending beneath the weight of His wind and mercy."

I'm ashamed. Not just because I'm so petty, but because I don't consider often enough how very lucky I am that the incomparable God is jealous for me.

"I don't have time to maintain these regrets when I think about... How He loves us..."

Happy 501st post!

This is my 501st post. Man, that's a lot of drivel.

Happy birthday today to the amazing Amanda! I went to Tulsa last night to meet her and Sarah at the Cheesecake Factory for a pre-birthday dinner (although she thought yesterday was actually her birthday, and she's only 22).

Speaking of birthdays, since mine was so crappy this year, I decided to start a new birthday tradition and bought myself an expensive new handbag today (thank you, VISA!). If I can't find a man to buy me nice things, I'll buy them for myself. Scratch that... if I can't find a man I WANT to buy me nice things... So I decided that was my new tradition. By the time I'm 60 I should have quite the collection. Not that I don't already...

Today's the first textless day in quite a while. Perhaps he's finally gotten the hint.

I'm finally crashing from my three-hour sleep stint on Monday, so I'm off to bed. I have a trip to Springfield tomorrow with my boss and some other peeps.

Happy Hump Day!

Signed, sealed, delivered... I am so NOT yours

"How do you tell someone it's over? You send them a notarized letter, right? Well, what if the recipient is your notary?"
~Angela Martin, "The Office"

For once, I identify with the tightly wound Angela. I mean, I've never sent a notarized letter, but I'm near needing some sort of restraining order. How many texts do I ignore before he gets the message? Seriously, if you want to get on my good side, don't text me at 7 a.m. on a Sunday. I am not awake. It does not endear you to me in any way.

Today was the first Monday I've worked in over a month, and this marks the first full week in nearly six. Plus five trips to Rogers. But I got a lot done today. I love my new office. I was turning into one of those bosses... the ones who are out of touch and don't know what people do on a daily basis. Our admin is on vacation this week and today was eye-opening. I mean, I knew she was all kinds of awesome, but I had no idea all of the junk that she deals with so I don't have to. I am humbled. I don't want to answer the phone anymore. No, I don't know where your class is. Where's my diet coke?

I also realized today how not good it is that I'm within walking distance of Target and the mall. It's super convenient to run errands at lunch, but not good for the ol' checkbook.

Dad and V came up after work to treat me to a belated birthday dinner, then I introduced V to my beloved Promenade. I'm sure my Dad is not pleased.

I was uber lazy this weekend, but I did get to see the Texas fam on the 4th, and I'm hoping Jen updates her blog soon with the story about burying the 60 lb. dog in a plastic box full of ice and leaving him in the kitchen overnight. On her birthday. Please, please forgive me for laughing, but that makes my own birthday experience seem less painful. Sure, no one came to my party, but at least nothing died. Except perhaps my dignity.

Tomorrow's another busy day, then it's off to Tulsa for dinner at the Cheesecake Factory to celebrate Nanner's birthday. I walked four miles tonight in preparation.

And Christy, in case you're reading this, I promise to update the other blog soon. I'm praying for guidance!

Oh, and is anyone else sick of hearing about Michael Jackson? Over the weekend, Steve McNair was murdered, there is a serial killer loose in South Carolina, Roger Federer made tennis history, Palin resigned as Governor of Alaska, and our President is decreasing our nuclear capacity, yet Michael Jackson was the subject of the first ten stories on GMA this morning. People, let's get some perspective! He was talented, yet a freak. Let's not canonize him anytime soon.

Love, life and the pursuit of the perfect blouse

I can't believe the weekend's over.

After spanning two states and multiple stores, I finally found the perfect blouse to go with my (size smaller) navy suit to meet the governor on Thursday. It's weird; when I was in high school and ran for state office in FBLA, my mom and I picked out a navy power suit and cream-colored blouse. The new suit is more fitted and pants instead of a skirt, but still... the more things change the more they stay the same. Nothing says powerful like a navy suit and pearls. A Southern lady always has a great set of pearls in her wardrobe.

Yesterday Amanda and I trekked to Tulsa and waited for 2.5 hours to eat at the Cheesecake Factory. That place is great, but geez. And it wasn't just Valentine's Day couples. Old people, young people, families, singles... everyone in the great state of Oklahoma was in that restaurant yesterday afternoon.

We thought it appropriate to celebrate our V-Day singleness with "He's Just Not That Into You," but it was sold out, so we saw "Confessions of a Shopaholic" instead. Today we caught "Into You" in Siloam among a packed house of four other people. I was a bit disappointed in both movies, having loved both books, but I give them both a solid one-thumb up. Passable entertainment, but not stellar. Perhaps my expectations were a bit high. And you know what they say... never judge a great book by its movie.

Only two days in the office this week, then I'm off to Little Rock for a tour of the Presidential Library (I've never been, believe it or not), the Capitol and the Governor's Mansion. And guess who'll be there? The boy.

Weekend update

Evidently Jen's worried about me since I haven't updated (yeah... like she so regularly updates), so here's a synopsis of my exciting life.

I've had a sinus headache since Friday morning. Ugh. I tried to buy some Sudafed during lunch on Friday and Walgreen's wouldn't let me because I'm supposedly past my limit. Weird.

Amanda's been without cable and internet for several days, so she came over to hang out with me (and my lovely cable) all weekend. She went home a few hours ago and still doesn't have cable. Evidently she called Cox to report the continuing outage and some unsympathetic operator tried to make her feel guilty for having electricity since so many don't. She allegedly retorted, "Yeah, and there are starving children all over the world. But you don't work for Unicef or Swepco, so please fix my cable." Hahaha.

Now I'm doing laundry and watching the Super Bowl. Go Cards! Love me some Kurt Warner.

Where's the Ben Gay?

I am an old, old woman. Jen and I agreed to run a 5K together in Texas in April, so I've started training. I'm sure Jen has been running 20 miles a day while doing surgery and making a gourmet meal, but it's killing me. And I'm only doing about a mile a day. At less than 4 mph. At this rate, I should finish the 3 miles in about 12 hours.

The bad news is that, other than the joint pain, I can't stop eating. I ran out of Weight Watcher points about two hours ago, and I'm still munching on whatever I can find. Luckily my house is absent of anything really bad for me, and it hurts to get out of bed, so a trip to the kitchen is out of the question.

This weekend was pretty restful, although I did go to dinner with Amanda and Kelly and to see "Bride Wars" on Friday night. Great movie! Sunday was Mason's birthday, so I met the fam in Rogers on Saturday for pizza and gifts, then we went to the Razorback game. Obviously I'm bad luck. I haven't been to a game in over a decade and the first one I walk into they lose big time.

So I guess I'll just lie here in bed and ache.

Monday update

Only one more day to work this year, unless it starts to ice tomorrow morning, in which case I'll be headed south early. I'm spending tomorrow night with my brother and the kids, then Christmas Eve with Sorne and Amanda.

Sunday evening we had Christmas with my mom's family, which was great, but I lost my camera, so I guess you'll never see the great pic of me and Dr. Jen. I hope whatever Lonestar server went home with my Canon enjoys my family pics.

Boo, Texas!

Tonight I uploaded pics from my camera since my Chicago trip. So here's a random assortment of photos from the past couple of months.

The zebras from mine and Amanda's zoo trip



Peacock



Avery's pre-birthday party



The boys, watching a WWII documentary... they're OBSESSED with Army stuff



Brady, on our way to Austin



Royal Stadium at the University of Texas

Friday preview

Wow. I just realized I haven't updated you all on the exciting happenings of my life.

There is much to say but little to share, so for now, please review what I've learned this week:
1. There are many, many people in the world who are less fortunate than me. Many of them live nearby.
2. It is 36 miles from Siloam Springs to Rogers. The distance increases exponentially when you've driven it five times in six days.
3. No matter how old they get, boys are still really, really hard to figure out. Anyone have a manual I can borrow?
4. Most people talk a lot and say very little worth remembering (i.e., this post).
5. Exercise may get easier in time, but it never gets enjoyable.
6. Sometimes life gives you lemons. Sometimes life gives lemons to your friends. And a lot of times life just isn't fair.
7. Girls who love football are destined to date men who don't. What a waste.
8. Chick-fil-A never gets old.

Guess that's all my wisdom for now. I'm off to Rogers (again) to have dinner with Kelly and Amanda to celebrate Kel's birthday. It was yesterday, but given all the sadness of 9/11, we picked today to party.

Chivalry isn't dead

I consider myself a moderate feminist. I'm all for equal pay for equal work, but when it comes to fixing anything mechanical or killing bugs, I revert into a helpless female.

Amanda and I spent the whole day watching "The Office" and random things on E! It was a pretty uneventful day, save the glass baking dish that exploded in my oven, but that's a different story. So, about 7:30, when she went out to head to Bartlesville... dead battery.

I've lived alone for a decade and have never learned to deal with car issues. So I called my only Siloam friend, Lindsay, and asked to borrow her husband's jumper cables. We brought them back to my house and I remembered that it's extremely dangerous to use those things if you don't know what you're doing. Yeah, there were instructions, but I was nervous nonetheless. Thankfully two guys walked out of my neighbor's house and I played the girl card. "Excuse me, do you guys know how to use these?" (Note to chicks: I've discovered if you act helpless, men won't just tell you how to use them, they'll do it for you.)

So we went to Auto Zone at 8:30 to get a new battery. Amanda learned well. She told the poor guy, "Um, I don't know how to install a battery." I'm sure he wasn't shocked, but he put it in for her. Good as new.

I'm sure Gloria Steinem would be ashamed of us for using our womanly wiles. But I don't care. Fair or not, when it comes to car problems, I've got no issue playing the chick card. Works every time.

Lions, tigers and camels, OH MY!

It's been a busy couple of days. Last night Amanda, Kelly and I went to dinner at PF Chang's and to see "Mamma Mia." It was corny and I loved it.

This afternoon we saw "The Dark Knight" then went to Gentry to the Wild Wilderness Safari. It was a bit scary when an ostrich charged the car. I took lots of pics that I'll post tomorrow. In the meantime, feel free to read Amanda's account of the zoo trip.

Buon compleanno, Amanda!

This afternoon, after work, Kelly and I trekked over to Tulsa to meet Amanda and her friend Sarah for dinner to celebrate Nanner's birthday. We ate at Macaroni Grill (which I love) and I had the pasta milano (which I love more) and for dessert, the cute waiter brought out some chocolate cake and sang "Happy Birthday" in Italian. Così romantico!

I want to go to Italy and find a cute boy to sing to me. Even when it's not my birthday.

Happy birthday, Amanda!

Happy 21st birthday, Nanner! We shall party tomorrow like it's 1999... when you were 12.

Lazy, hazy weekend

The past 72 hours have been filled with medicine and movies. I spent a couple of hours at the office yesterday morning, but other than that, all I've done is dope up on Nyquil and clear my DVR. You would think my allergies would give me a break in the heat of summer, but no dice. I did manage to watch seven or eight movies.

Thursday night I met Sorne, Vance and Amanda in Rogers to celebrate my birthday and Vance's promotion. Sorne evidently robbed a bank since she treated us all to Ruth's Chris Steak House. It was fantastic and quite a dining experience, but I'm quite sure she could have purchased a new handbag for what dinner cost.

While we were there Vance snuck into a private party in the back to see some sort of lady pool player who's evidently famous and on ESPN. The rest of us didn't care.

I can't believe I've managed to waste an entire three-day weekend. But I'm actually ready to go back to work tomorrow. Weird.

Running nowhere

Do you ever feel like a hamster, spinning around on a wheel, running your little legs off, and never getting anywhere? Today was one of those days for me.

I'm the only one in my office all week, at least in theory since I was out all day on Monday and most of the day yesterday. I did work in the office nearly all day today, with the exception of the time I spent getting a massage. That's considered work-related, right?

Anyway, I realized today that I'm one of those bosses with fleeting self-awareness and little or no understanding of how to do simple tasks. I did answer the phone all day and managed to talk intelligently and answer most questions. It's amazing how much you can figure out when your back's against the wall. So I started feeling good about myself and my abilities, until I realized that I hadn't gotten any mail this week.

See, every other day the mail has just appeared on my desk. Hmmm... turns out that someone actually has to go to the post office. And know the combination. Weird.

When did I turn into Michael Scott?

I'm having company the next two nights (Amanda tomorrow night and Lon and Jen on Friday night), so I cleaned the house tonight and walked a couple of miles. The treadmill did nothing to alleviate my hamster on a wheel feeling.

The other half

I come from modest beginnings. I grew up in a town of 700 people. My childhood was filled with love and friends, but eating out usually consisted of KFC (known back then as the politically-incorrect Kentucky Fried Chicken) on Sundays and Western Sizzlin on special occasions. We stayed in motels where you could park outside your door and enjoy a vibrating bed if you had enough quarters.

I'm lucky enough now to have a job that requires a lot of time in nice restaurants and moderately nice hotels. But this weekend proved to me, once again, that I was meant to be treated well.

Kelly and I arrived in Tulsa around 7 Friday night and were given the key to our room on the gold-status floor (Kelly travels a lot with her job)... a floor that you had to insert your room key in the elevator to gain access to. Our room had a sweeping view of one of Tulsa's nicest neighborhoods. Our beds were plush. Our morning meal was served in an exclusive lounge on our exclusive floor, where a nice lady brought me juice when I was thirsty and kleenex when I sneezed. I could definitely get used to being pampered.

After Sorne and Amanda joined us at the hotel Friday night, we drove to Cheesecake Factory for dinner, where I enjoyed a delicious ahi tuna salad, followed by decadent lemon raspberry cheesecake. And, since we were celebrating Sorne's birthday, our waitress was nice enough to bring her dessert (apple crisp) to the table with a special message and a song.



Sorne and me



Amanda and Kelly



After dinner we headed to the theatre, where we stood in line with hundreds of other women, many of them overdressed in really tacky clothes, to see the 10:30 p.m. showing of "Sex and the City." I must say, as a huge fan of the TV show, I was not at all disappointed. It was 160 minutes that I didn't want to end. I know the reviews have been mixed, but I thought it was fabulous. And Sorne, who's never seen a single episode, loved it, too.

So we got back to the hotel around 2 a.m., when Amanda stopped at the front desk to ask for her doubletree chocolate chip cookie. We rehashed the movie and Kelly's love life until around 3, when we finally all went to sleep.

After breakfast and showers, we all headed to the mall for some serious shopping (and a 10-minute massage for Kelly and me), after which we ate a late lunch at Macaroni Grill. It was my favorite meal of pasta and heavy cream, and given that I'd eaten raw veggies and fruit all week, I paid for it all the way home and all night last night. There weren't enough Tums in the world.

I was in bed around 8 last night, and after waking up with a stomachache at 2 a.m. and a hail storm at 5 a.m., I finally crawled out of bed at 8 this morning and got ready for church. I took a 2-hour nap this afternoon, then went to the theatre here in town by myself (something I've never done) to watch a movie twice in 48 hours (another thing I've never done).

What a great weekend! I feel really lucky to have such great friends. Friends who appreciate fine dining, good entertainment, great shopping, and fantastic conversation.

Happy birthday, Sorne!

Thursday update

Those of you who were worried about me (Dad, Kelly) will be glad to know that I ate real food today. I had fruit for breakfast, but salmon and bread for lunch (yum) and an Arby's roast beef sandwich for dinner. But still no Diet Coke. Hooray! And the detox resulted in an 8-pound weight loss overall. Not too shabby.

I left my house at 7:30 a.m. and drove to Little Rock for lunch and three job interviews, then I drove back home. And now I'm tired. The bone-weary kind of tired. Poor Lola got a $53 fill-up and 420 miles on her today.

Tomorrow's another vacay day, although I do have to do a lunch interview and have a meeting with my boss. But other than that, no work. Really. Well, probably. And then Kelly and I are off to T-town to meet Sorne and Amanda. I am so excited! I'm really craving Cheesecake Factory, so that's my dinner vote. And then it's the premiere of SATC at 10:30. I hope I'm still awake by then. I'll probably have to take a disco nap tomorrow afternoon.

Much ado about nothing

Boy, I've really been neglecting the ol' blog. I'm not quite sure why I never make the time to update this thing anymore, except that my life is really dull and there's not much to say.

I am excited about the three-day weekend, although I was under the weather yesterday, so I played hooky from a wedding I was supposed to attend. I have enjoyed multiple does of Nyquil, three naps, eight romantic comedies, five episodes of "Friends" and two magazines in the past 48 hours. This afternoon I started feeling better, so I managed to complete some tasks I've been avoiding, like polishing my silver and taking stuff up in the attic. I also cleaned my bathroom (ick) and washed my sheets and rugs.

See... told you my life was dull. But at least I've been a little productive. Hopefully tomorrow I can finish cleaning the casa and get some more rest. Only three days of work, then it's another three-day weekend. Woo-hoo! Amanda, Sorne, Kelly and I are headed to Tulsa on Friday to catch the SATC premiere and dinner and celebrate Sorne's birthday.