Playing the Election Glad Game

When things start getting ugly, there's no better game than the Glad Game. I'm betting that someone's going to win and someone's going to lose. So, instead of spending the next four to eight years complaining, we should start thinking about who we are not voting for and try to play the Glad Game. Neither candidate is pure evil. There are good things about all four people involved and their families. Think of those things so that if your vote doesn't happen to lead to a victory, we can still find a way to get through it.

The Sounds on the car go....

"te-te-te, clink,clink, DING, te-te-te-te-te-te, clink, DING DING....."

That's kind of the pattern of sounds my car makes while driving down S. 7th. The "te-te-te" sounds are probably because of some missing parts that may or may not be important. The "DING"s are probably from a toy that I can not possible find without taking the car apart but are only heard when we hit a bump. And the "clink"s are a mystery but probably have something to do with the "te-te"s.

Pray for LaLa (Lucy named our car)and that she will make it for a little while longer.

This great fall

I can not tell you how bad I needed to see this today. Trust me, it gets better with each viewing. I go from laughing to feeling bad about the injuries to laughing harder. It's a roller coaster of emotions that even the professionals can't handle.

The Phelps Minute

See more funny videos at Funny or Die

LPM

This weekend I attended Beth Moore Live in San Antonio. It was a very refreshing time to spend with 10,000 other women. The praise was amazing. I love live music of almost any type but when "that" note is hit during a song to God it almost takes your breath away. I wish there was video of that to post but after much searching I have nothing. Right now my spiritual struggle is with my emotions so this was a great weekend for me at least chip away at some things. Beth Moore is in a lot of ways on dangerous ground because she has a following in the Christian women community. It's really easy for us to put people on pedestals and end up worshiping the person that's teaching us about worship. Obviously I don't know her personally but after doing several of her studies and reading her blog I really think that she is grounded. Her personality is not as grounded and she's a tad on the crazy side which under most circumstances would really turn me off but her insight to the Bible is amazing and her relationship with her daughters is really inspiring. She's not for everyone but I think the good outweighs the quirky.

Olympics day 5

Now that we've found the perfect antenna configuration so we can at least tell what country is in what lane, I can finally start enjoying the Olympics. I missed the big relay a few nights ago so I was excited to watch M.Phelps last night in two races. What's the point of watching when you're going to win by that much? My favorite part was the announcer insisting over and over that Phelps would make the other swimmers look like boys. Speaking of of little ones, we watched the gymnastics with mixed emotions. I would rather have silver and not be torn away from my family. Here is a blog about the scenario that is pretty much exactly what I was thinking and I can't do a cartwheel either. Seriously, they are still pretty amazing.

Things I can rely on

Here are a few things I can rely on happening.
1) There's going to be someone pulled over near my house.
2) Someone will puke on me.
3) I will cry at the end of Pollyanna.
4) After tailing a car, I will then call the driver and tell them to give me the vacuum in their trunk.

I did not know that all four things would happen in one day and that #1 would include many guns, #2 would include my face, #3 would teach me to be glad yet again and #4 well, it was my vacuum.

Social Experiments

Well, this weekend was our biannual yard sale. It was a doozy. Not only was it over 100 degrees, we also had a great thunderstorm that ended in us wringing out our clothes. This is my second yard sale in a row that I 'cleaned up' by frantically throwing stuff on a porch. One of my friends (not naming names here) has been known to put some pretty interesting things in our sales. I mean, I'll probably never buy a pair of thong underwear from a yard sale. Somehow she sells it. She has sold more underwear and used bathroom products than I've ever thought possible. So when I saw that this time she was selling ovulation predictors I decided to throw in a box of cheap tampons to see if they'd sell. They sold! I sold a cheap box of tampons for $1 but couldn't sell my old recliner for $5. Something is either very wrong or oh-so-right. You be the judge.

On another note.....I love bargaining as much as the next person...BUT when someone comes up to me and says 'how 'bout I give you $1 for all of these cd's instead of $2 each because I don't even know if my husband wants them' I about lose it. If you don't know if he'll like them then don't buy them but it's not our fault that you don't know if something will look good on you, or if you don't know if your daughter is having a boy or a girl. When a onsie costs $.25 just take the risk. It's a yard sale for pete's sake.

Hopefully everyone knows that this photo is not from my yard sale even though it's felt like that sometimes.

Lars and the Real Girl

Seriously, watch it. It's one of the best movies I've seen in a while. It's sweet, sad (not too sad), funny and inspiring.

This Song

After totally crying on the season 2 finale of Grey's Anatomy, I had to get the Snow Patrol song Chasing Cars. Since it was from a cheesy romance-drama, I didn't have much hope in their whole album. The whole thing isn't great but how many are anymore? This song though is on it's third round of being all I can listen to. I really like Martha's voice here but don't like everything that she sings which is the way I feel about her brother Rufus.

Oscar Nominees

This past weekend I finally watched There Will Be Blood. When it came out everyone kept talking about milkshakes. Note that movie really has nothing to do with milkshakes. I knew that. I believe that you should not be allowed to use a catch phrase until you've seen the movie. So now, many months later I can be all about the milkshakes and I can appreciate this SNL sketch even more than before.

Richard Steven Millhouse Legg

He goes by Steve and we throw in the Millhouse when we want him to feel more prestigious. This is exactly how he should feel this Father's Day. My dad is known for his line of poems "Ode to...." so I thought I would write one for him today.

Ode to Steve.

What do you get for a man that's no fool?
He has three sheds and owns almost every tool.

He's spent much time out in the forest.
And when he is down all he needs is Chuck Norris.

But that's why he has a dvr and the Dish.
Recording Dallas and Walker fulfills every wish.

Oh, the stories he can tell but most I can't repeat.
If you ever get a chance then you're in for quite a treat.

We can not talk about the upcoming vote.
But I can explain to him the meaning of "air quotes".

If I were there I would toast an O'Douls with him.
But the chances he's still be sober are very slim.

It's impossible to explain what my dad means to me.
There are too many stories to write here, you see.

Some are funny to all. Some are funny to us.
He wants his hair buzz cut so that it's no fuss.

Just thought I would throw that in.
Cause that's what he'd do in that situa-shin.

So to my own, on a day that's for dads
For the last 31 years you've been pretty rad.

Tim Russert

Oh, I loved this guy. I think that he might have been my favorite person on television. It has been a tradition for my family to watch Meet the Press while we get ready on Sunday mornings. I don't know how this election will be watchable without his whiteboard tallies. I've never seen anyone get so excited about a whiteboard. I can't say much more than what everyone else is saying on tv right now about him.

I loved hearing him talk about his dad. But, for Father's Day here is a clip of him talking about his son. I know that tomorrow is a hard day for everyone that has lost their father.



I hope to be a parent that gets that kind of respect from my kids.

FORGET IT!

Well, I can safely say that I am not capable of being a vegetarian. At least not at this point in my life. I'll still try to buy better meat and maybe eat less of it but life is too short to give up something that tastes so good.

Gone Baby Gone

In the past few weeks at church we've been talking about hospitality. Today we focused on our neighbors. We watched the movie Gone Baby Gone a couple of nights ago and I keep thinking about how much of this is what we are talking about. Even though this is just a story, it's still a somewhat accurate depiction of how so many live. In my neighborhood people are addicted to drugs, people are hungry, people are poor and kids are in the middle of it. They are paying the price of bad choices and bad circumstances. So what do we do? Part of me wants to not allow my children to ever play outside without leashes and to have them sleep with us every night. The other part of me knows that we need to be part of a community. We have responsiblities. Who's going to help if we don't? The person that Casey Affleck's character is sitting with at the end of the movie reminded me that we can't change people but we can help them.

I don't know if this video will work or not but it's a clip from the Today Show about a man that was hit by two cars on a busy street and it took over a minute for someone to stop and help. The expert says that part of the reason for this is our lack of community.


Connecting Caring Communities

NOTE: Gone Baby Gone is not a family friendly movie. It's hard to watch or even think about some of the things that happen. I still think it is worth it. The story is challenging and makes you think. That's what a good story does.

Veg challenge

For the month of June my brother, parents, Kevin and I are not going to eat red meat and possibly any meat. We are all doing it for different reasons so I won't speak for them. I am doing it because of animal treatment. Not in a PETA kind of way but I just wanted to step back for a month and try to think about things. I do believe that God intended for us to eat meat and that we would have to kill an animal to get the meat. I also think that God intended for us to care for animals. If you've ever driven I-5 in California between the Bay Area and L.A. you've probably considered becoming a vegetarian. Knowing where your meat comes from and how that animal is treated isn't just about animal rights as much as it could be about your own health. The hormone/antibiotic-free labels are popping up more commonly now because it's something to be concerned about. These types of meats cost quite a bit more but if you cut the amount of meat that you consume per week you would be able to afford it and the benefits would definitely be worth it.

I don't plan on continuing past the month. I can't imagine a life without steak, Chick-fil-a or hot dogs at a BBQ. But, I am committed to being more aware of what I'm eating. Plus this gives me a good opportunity to get those 9-13 servings of fruits and vegetables that we're supposed to be getting per day.
Eating, drinking, breathing and just living are scary things these days. I don't want to spend a lot of time being worried about them but if there are easy changes I can make then why not? I also want to say that I'll still buy food that's not perfect because budgets are tight and choices are slim in this town. Relationships are always more important than anything else so it's more important for us to eat together than to be concerned about what we eat. Also, before anyone thinks I am 'greenier than thou', know that I drank a 44oz coke yesterday and dreamed of a bacon cheeseburger from Rick and Carolyn's. Right now my goal is like it was with recycling. I'm going halvsies.
On a side note, basically this is my ideal way of living. I know, nerdy-hippie.

Two Books and a Movie

http://www.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gifFirst Book: The Power of Play. This book was a great reminder of what my kids really need to be doing. It made me realize that what I really need to do is think back to the things that made me happy when I was a kid and not try to elaborate too much. Since reading the book I have noticed that my two kids are actually much happier riding their bikes or playing in dirt than they are trying to figure out whatever electronic toy I bought them to help them learn the alphabet.

Second Book: Tom Cruise: An Unauthorized Biography. This was a small step up from People magazine but just as addicting. I think that the author had an obvious agenda but the stuff about Scientology, if even 75% true, is pretty scary. Since I have spent most of my younger years with a huge crush on Maverick, I was relieved to have some certain rumors quenched. But, the whole Scientology thing is putting a damper on the volleyball scene I have always appreciated.

Movie: Juno. We loved it! Usually when I have high expectations for a movie I am disappointed. This was not one of those situations. We really, really enjoyed it. I might have to watch it again before it goes back into Blockbuster's greedy little hands.

WITWIML?

That's short for Where in the World is Matt Lauer? Otherwise known as my favorite week of the Today show. There's other great weeks but this is by far the most exciting. It's over now and it was so great. We incorrectly guessed 4 of the 5 locations so that made me feel super smart and we always learn so much about places we will never be able to visit but who knows? right? So as another great week wraps up with a killer performance by the one and only Niel Diamond I want to say Well done Matt, Well done.

Theme Songs

There are not many TV show theme songs that you can sing along to these days. These are some of the classics.

Sha-na-na-na









There are too many to list but here is a link to see a list of the top 50 of all time.

Things I'd Like to do today

1. Get my house clean using some sort of magic.

2. Win any amount money legally.

3. Wrap my kids in Charmin so they could go one day without a scratch or bruise.

4. This....

Adele - Hometown Glory

This is my favorite song right now. Instant replay. Not sure about the way the video was shot but the song is great. The studio version on Itunes is better so don't be afraid to go buy it.

Living like Ed.

I am loving this book. It has a lot useful examples of how to live a little greener. Not all of these ideas are realistic for me because of where I live. There are a lot of cities that support this kind of living but ours does not. But there are several great tips and things to think about. Eco-Friendly living is a process and it's hard to get used to in a way. What I really like about this book is that it isn't full of scary facts that make me not want to shop or eat again. There are some realities in it but nothing I can't handle.

I am going to track some of my journey to the "green side" here mostly for my own sake but also to show that if I can do it anyone can.

I started out with recycling. I bought some stackable storage bins so I have one for paper, one for cans, one for glass, one for plastics #1 and #2 and a bag for cardboard (this is mostly cereal-type boxes flattened). It's unbelievable how much trash would have been thrown in the dumpster in just a week had I not recycled it. And that's just me. Then I greened my cleaning by using Method products from Target. Other great products are Meyers, Seventh Generation and even Clorox Green Works which is really affordable. Palmolive makes an eco-friendly detergent that is not much more than their regular product and you would be surprised of the dangers in dishwashing detergent. I have also switched many of my personal items. I bought the Organic makeup by Physician's Formula and I really like it. I have also switched my shampoo, soap, etc. I finally bought canvas bags for groceries. They are only $1 so that is worth not having 500 plastic bags to deal with. My current challenge is to quit buying stuff. I could afford the more expensive good-for-me stuff if I could just quit buying the little things that I don't need at all. We are keeping it simple by buying things used or not at all. It's hard and we still buy some things that we probably shouldn't but it's a process also.

There are so many reasons to change the way that we live. I am doing it for three reasons. The first is so I can prevent disease for my family as best as I can. The second is because I believe that God did not give us the earth to destroy but to use in a healthy way. The third is that once I have learned certain facts, I no longer have a choice but to live different. So it is worth it to check out some books and find out the dangers and the solutions yourself. I am not perfect and still have many things I need to improve (sonic cups being the main offense) but if we all did something little it could equal something big.

The Gazelle

My big purchase of this past weekend's yard sale was the one and only Gazelle. I have been wanting this little treasure for a few years and when Mr. Kilmer carried it onto my lawn I knew that God wanted me to finally have it. Look out Tony Little! After watching this video, you'll want one too.

Old Movies

A few weeks ago I was watching the 7th season of Gilmore Girls with my sister-in-law when Laurelei and Christopher were watching Funny Face. So on my weekly trip to the library I happened to see Funny Face on the shelf and decided to give it a try. I am not a huge Audrey Hepburn fan. I may be the only person that doesn't really like Breakfast at Tiffany's. To my surprise I liked this movie. I didn't love it but I enjoyed watching it. If you have ever seen Gilmore Girls you know that it is overflowing with references to movies and music in a way that I could never catch up with but I decided that there may be a lot out there I am missing. Next on my list was Funny Girl. Again, not a Streisand fan but I loved this movie. Maybe I am now. Here are some recommendations.

The Philedelphia Story, Whatever Happened to Baby Jane, Bringing up Baby, That Touch of Mink, The Glass Bottom Boat, Funny Girl, Funny Face, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, His Girl Friday and An Affair to Remember.
Obviously I like Cary Grant.

Any Suggestions?

The Snuggler

Mr. T

This goes out to everyone I know. I wish I could pop-up video this one. Please note two things in particular: the dancer on the left in the church dress and Mr. T's shorts. That being said, how sweet is he about his mother?



As a disclaimer, I am finding these little treats on www.bestweekever.tv.

My new football team

Kevin is a Colts fan but I've never really committed to an NFL team. That is, until now. I officially declare my love for the Los Angeles Rams. Please don't tell me it's too late.

BTW, give this video a chance. It takes 14 seconds to really get started and once it does, your day will be so much better.

On the radio

Besides being a great song by Regina Spektor, the radio this morning gave me some little gifts. I was on my way home from a killer workout when I turned to 98.1 and what do I get? Pearl Jam Black. I basically wanted to call everyone I knew from my freshman year of college. That is my favorite Pearl Jam song. After a stop at the grocery store I change to the pop station and get a little R. Kelly which made me want to call Jaime but it's too early. Then I am stopped at a light and hear the classic from "the year 2000"(I am saying it Conan style but it's up for interpretation), Creed's Arms Wide Open. A strange thing happened. Just as I was making fun of Creed in my head, exaggerating his already exaggerated voice, three white birds flew above the power lines with the sunlight glowing under them. It was like they were gliding to the music, telling me to lay off Creed for a few seconds. I'm thinking it should be the next video on the Trinity Broadcast Network. If you haven't seen the videos on that channel then you are missing out on the guy with the super-perm mullet and a lot of sunshine.

I think that today will be a good day. "And not just because of that yogurt that makes you poop." -Tina Fey

Too much

Many times there is nothing to blog about. In an unexpected twist, I have found that I have too much to blog about. So much that I haven't done anything about it. So, here are some random thoughts.

I watched a video called An Introduction to Scientology today. I decided that I couldn't make fun of Tommy any more if I didn't know what was up with the craziness. It's not totally crazy. Well, except Mr. Hubbard's view on the mentally insane. The quote "they already failed" comes to mind. If that peaks your interest and you want to watch an interview with someone that talks in a very strange manner then you need to check it out.

I've been reading a little more than magazines but not enough to be in a book club. In the last 24 hours I finished two books I have been working on. The first was Celebrity Detox by Rosie O'Donnel. Along the same lines as the scientology video I thought that it would be interesting to see what was really going on with someone that I generally like and says some controversial things. It was a great insight into her life and how she has an addiction to being a celebrity. I enjoyed it. It made me understand why she is the way she is a little bit more. The other book I finished was Financial Peace by Dave Ramsey. This is just the beginning of our financial makeover. Let the money diet begin.

Several nights ago Kevin and I were playing an innocent game of Skip Bo in our kitchen. We were startled by what sounded like gun shots next to our house. They were indeed gunshots. Makes me a little nervous about the Monopoly game we are about to start here soon.

I'll have to do another post another time. Kind of the point of blogging.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Old Spice and Will Ferrell

Let's face it, Will Ferrell is pretty much the same character in all of his "sports" movies but that character really never gets old for me. Here are some Old Spice commercials he did as his character from Semi-Pro. Funny.

Green Cleaning

This post is in direct relation to my belief that I poisoned my lungs this weekend with bleach. All of my cleaning products are green. But, I didn't know what to do with my two bottles of bleach. Saturday night I decided to take some extreme measures and bleach my bathtub due to some unsightly things that I couldn't take any longer. Instantly I had a headache and so I opened the window and tried to get everything out as quickly as I could. Sunday morning I woke up feeling like I had the black lung (the Zoolander version, not the real thing, it's actually quite bad). I've been trying to figure out why I am sick and not the kids. I usually only get sick from them so this is my conclusion. It was confirmed (at least in my mind) tonight as I was re-reading Green This! by Deirdre Imus. This book is so great at explaining why the products we usually use are bad and some really good (and cheap!) things we can do to replace them.

I could go on about the dangers of all the things we are cleaning with and the things that we are feeding our kids but it's really better if everyone makes this decision on their own. But, if we really want to keep our kids safe, we'll at least make researching this a priority. Many of these things are just things we don't even think about and are really easy to change.

Amazing people

I have been blown away by this story over and over again. There is nothing I can say that would tell it better than this site. There have been several people that have made a difference helping these kids but these kids are so inspiring. They were on the Today show the other day and then I looked on Mike Cope's website and he talked about them also so I thought I would let anyone that didn't see either of those get the opportunity.

NKOTB

In case you haven't heard the awesome news....The New Kids might possibly, maybe, most likely be having a reunion soon. If that's not the "right stuff" I don't know what is. If you click on the link please make sure to read the comments. It's worth it to know, for example, that a fan has corrected the writer on the actual ages of all the guys. And, someone is a big Joey fan and will defend his reputation by arguing that he would never degrade himself by being on Big Brother 9. Seriously, he's got a rep to keep. I will have to have my mom ship me my NKOTB sheets and life-size puzzle (unopened, it's going to be worth so much money now).

And now for your viewing pleasure...


If that's not enough for you then you can borrow one of the live concerts on vhs.

God

I love God. I totally believe in him, his love, his grace, his mercy and his desire for everyone to live with him in heaven. Because I believe he loves everybody, I won't say what I want to about this church and their desire to picket Heath Ledger's funeral. I linked this site because I didn't want to traffic anyone to their actual website. It is a sad day when this is how "christians" show God to other people. That isn't the God I believe in. Let's pray that the people that are a part of this church will soon know that God even loves people that pretend to be gay. And though there is a hint of sarcasm in that, I believe it to be true.

Let's also remember that just because someone is a good actor, it doesn't make their death any more tragic than the thousands of other lives that ended yesterday. Every life is important.

DIY meets WCS

This video is like if the DIY network got together with the Worst Case Scenario series and had a baby.

Good Music For Kids

Nothing against the Wiggles (I actually don't hate them) but there are only so many kids songs that we can take, right? This Website has some really great choices from artists that normally make "mommy and daddy" music. This is great for any parent, aunt or uncle that likes cool music and wants their dearest nieces and nephews to have cool music (ahem, Uncle Brandon) also.

On another note, while I have been typing this I have seen a Vanessa Hudgens commercial for some gold shoes 8 times. I know that High School Musical has all the ingredients of a perfect Jenny treat. But I cannot seem to embrace this series with the kind of love that the rest of the world has. I mean, this is coming from someone who adores Grease 2, Valley Girl, Xanadu, Bring it On... Ahh, 9 times, the commercial just came on again. So, why can't I love this? I think that (most everyone I know needs to close their eyes) Zac Ephron looks like a lady and I am offended that he is doing a remake of Footloose. I am offended that anyone could doubt the perfection of the movie Footloose. There is nothing that can be done to make it better. Is nothing sacred?

The Magic Bullet

Like so many others I know, I've seen the infomercial for The Magic Bullet several times and at many different hours of the day. It's a treat to watch them whip up some alfredo sauce while blending 4 different types of margaritas then within 5 seconds they've also added a great chicken salad out of nowhere. It's almost unbelievable. I am now a proud Magic Bullet owner and apparently it takes practice and a little bit of Red Bull to do what they do. Still, I can get our shakes made within a few minutes. The best part is that I blend our shake right in the cup and when I am done I just rinse it out and throw it in the dishwasher. It's so simple and for only 3 payments of $19.95 it can be yours. BUT WAIT! If you call in the next five minutes........

Watching, Listening, Speaking

Watching. Christmas brought an answer to my 'what to watch' dilemma. Big Love Season 2, The Office Season 3, Northern Exposure Season 4, Flight of the Conchords Season 1 and Friday Night Lights Season 1. All great. For those that have forgotten, or never heard of, Northern Exposure, it is such a great show. It's not fast-paced but it is so enjoyable to watch. I love shows about quirky small towns, i.e. Gilmore Girls, Everwood, Twin Peaks, etc.

Listening. A Fine Frenzy, Sugarland's Stay, The Be Good Tanyas and Flight of the Conchords.

Speaking. I am talking about....scraping the crazy texturing off Lucy's walls (depending on lead test), Beth Moore, sending "Happy New Year" cards that will eventually turn into "Valentine" cards but hopefully not "St. Patrick's Day" cards to family a friends.

When Christmas is over

I love Christmastime. It's so great with the lights and the food and songs and the things of that nature (Say that Arnold style-it's funnier). I also love the meaning of Christmas and agree with most that the true meaning should be celebrated all year. But, as soon as it hits January 1st I am done. No more caroling, no more decorations and no more blow-up snowglobes of Santa in the yards. Lucy doesn't get this concept yet and so she innocently sang Jingle Bells 20 times in a row while in the car today never knowing about the Grinch in my head. I will try to be patient with those who insist upon carrying Christmas through the new year but I am done. Having said that, I should probably take down the wreath on my front door.

The Olsen Twins Conspiracy

I really liked the video on my last post and am sad that it is no longer available. I am also too lazy to go to YouTube to find another matching video so chalk this up to another way the Olsen Twins are mysteriously mysterious.