Fergie, the little engine that tried and tried

Poor Sarah Ferguson.  I really and truly do feel bad for her.  She has the worst luck and the worst timing, doesn't she?

First she is second princess behind Diana who was so beloved by all that it wouldn't matter what poor Sarah did, it would never measure up.  She could be laying golden eggs and no one would care.  Or notice. And then because she doesn't have anorexia or bulimia she is called "the fat one" by the press.  Nice.  Nothing like waking up to seeing your flaws and your cellulite plastered all over to get your morning off to a good start.

Then she had the nerve to give birth to not one, but TWO, count them, TWO, girl children.  o. m. g. Where are the little boy princes?  Nope, Diana got the boys.  Poor Fergie is always second fiddle.  Which brings me to "Fergie".  Did anyone every consider a nickname like that for Diana?  "Spencie"?

One thing Sarah Ferguson had going for her was the fact that she got the good prince.  Prince Andrew was a hottie.  He was cute, he was charming, he wasn't the one with all the pressure on him and consequently he was probably waaaaaay more fun than that drip Chuck.  And what happened?  She got caught having her toes sucked by some rich Texan oilman.  Not very princess-like behavior, that.  It seemed to me she started down a hill and started rolling and going faster and faster toward a bad end.

The divorce seemed inevitable after that.  But what's the deal with the leaving her and those precious girls high and dry with no income?  Does anyone know?  Is there no money set aside for alimony or child support?  These girls are just as much in the royal family as Diana's boys.  Why are they having to depend on their mother to write books?  Sell Weight Watchers?  And now apparently sell an introduction to Andrew to pay her bills?  I don't understand this at all.

People are always making deals and arrangements very politely and covertly.  Getting an introduction and access to a famous and influential person has always come with a price.  Granted, it is not usually discussed in polite conversation or quoted in exact amounts, but there is always a quid pro quo thing going on.  Let's not kid ourselves.  What she got caught doing was being open and up front in a business where people prefer to be shady and obscure.

And I know no one asked me but the biggest thing that should be looked at in this situation is why was she in this financial pickle in the first place?  Why aren't she as the mother and sole caretaker of two of the Princesses to the crown, and the Princesses being looked after in a better fashion?  Isn't Prince Andrew embarrassed that everyone in the world knows that he is shirking his responsibilities?  The Queen should have been able to foresee that a possibility like this might come up and put her family under scrutiny again and stepped in to make sure it didn't happen.  There is plenty of shame to go around here.  It doesn't need to be heaped on Fergie.  What did they think she would do?  Is she supposed to get a job as a secretary?  Work at Starbucks?  Sell over-priced crap at Harrod's?

But that's me.  I like a bold, fun-loving woman.  Doesn't she seem like a person you could invite to your next Girls Night Out?    And have her girls been in the news for being in trouble?  Never.  Have they ever been shown to be slackers or hooligans?  Nope.  So I am going to go ahead and give props to their Mama for guiding them through the horrendous maze of growing up in the spotlight.  With no money. Or support from the rest of the royals.

I will raise a toast to Sarah, Duchess of York, Bold Feisty Mother and Fabulous Red Head.  Let's not be so quick to judge single moms who have to go to extraordinary lengths to raise their kids.

Bucking the System

My sweet blog friend Joann over at Laundry Hurts my Feelings is following yet another really good blogger  thegirlnextdoorgrowsup and they are doing Feel Good Friday. And as much as I would love join in the fun, my contrary side wants to buck the system and rant and kvetch and bitch about something.  Anything.  Just for the fun of ranting.

So I am going to do some more stream of consciousness blogging and we shall we whether it is more ranting or more good stuff, won't we?

~~Right now I am so thrilled with my gorgeous 24 inch iMac that I don't know what to do with myself.  Recently I talked about my niece who tragically lost everything in a house fire except her new husband and her 2 dogs.  And of course that got my brain rolling on to what would I try to save if I were in such a situation.  And how on earth am I going to get 3 dogs and 4 cats herded out of the house to safety (the kids are now technically adults and on their own, I am afraid).  I would be hard-pressed to leave my iMac.  That's what I was getting to.  I don't just use it for email, reading the news, facebook, but now that I am feeling a little more confident with the iPhoto and iTunes I am having lots of fun with it.

Here's something my kids will tell you that drives them nuts about me.  I get a song stuck in my head and I will listen to it in my car on repeat.  Just that one song.  On repeat. For weeks.  Weeks.  Weeks on end.  And guess what?  I can now do that on my iMac too!

Last week is was "Man on the Silver Mountain" to honor Ronnie Dio. R.I.P.

~~I don't know about the rest of you, but I visit certain sites on a regular basis.  Not necessarily on the same day each week, but whenever.  And the two that bring me the most joy and always bring me to tears are Where the Hell is Matt and The Free Hug Guy  And I love the music on both sites.  Matt is getting ready to head out again and do more dancing around the world, so I will probably get obsessive to check it and see if he is heading here.

~~Last week my son and I went to a town hall meeting that was being held at one of the local universities.  It was a panel of experts on drug addiction and all were locals except for Jeff Van Vonderen from the show Intervention.  Anyway, it was a really good and informative meeting.  The last half was opened up for Q&A and there were so many brave people who got up to share their pain, heart aches, triumphs, and loss.

~~My uncle is in the hospital right now.  He was taken in with chest pain and had a million tests run on his heart.  He has to take medication and reduce stress in his life and lose weight.  I hope they gave him specific instructions on how to do the last two.  Because if he already knew how to reduce the stress and the weight, don't you think he would have done so?  This is the kind of advice that pisses me right off.  "Lose weight".  Seriously?  How?  Which of the 20 gazillion weight loss systems is the right one for me?  "Reduce your stress"  Really?  Cause I was just rocking along here in life assuming that high stress was how it is.  That kind of non-informative advice irritates the beejeebers right out of me.  How do I reduce stress?  Is meditation right for me?  Is yoga?  Is going to the gun shooting range?  How do I know?  Give me a list. Give me some guidance.  I am not a total Goober, but a little shepherding to the right stuff might me in order here.

~~You know how people used to ask who your heroes were?  People you admired, wanted to emulate? I had a list of 4.
1. Groucho Marx

2. Howard Hughes

3. Frank Zappa

4. Rod Serling

So I was thinking about this and the only thing I can come up with that these disparate people had in common was a fierce independence and a need to flaunt the rules.  "Make the reality you want" seems to  be a recurring theme with them.

It is kind of sad that I didn't have any women on there.  And the first woman that popped in my head when I typed that was Mae West.  Now, there is a pistol of femininity right there!

~~I have been cleaning out drawers, closets, and all the accompanying detritus.  If I didn't have family coming to spend the weekend with us I would spend more time and be brutal about getting rid of more and figuring out why I have so much crap.  And why I have felt the need to box it up and haul it around the globe with me through 10 moves in 4 countries, 8 cities and 14 years.

I have already decided that I am not taking any doula clients after my two June clients deliver.  Just till the end of August.  Sept. 1st I will get back to business.  But that will give me some time this summer to really focus on clearing things.

Enjoy the long weekend.  I hope you all get to spend it with someone you love.  If they can't be with you, give them a call just to say how much you love them.

Thank you for coming here and spending a few minutes with me.  I appreciate your comments so much.

T.V. shows 2010 Part 7

Not a full update here, just a Readers Digest condensed version of what has been going on.

LOST - I already told you in a separate post my views on this series finale.  I am still on the fence about it.  Some of it was really good, and some of it just irritated the beejeebers out of me because they didn't address things.  Whatever.

Biggest Loser - Michael won!  Here is the interesting thing, if America's vote had gone the other way and Koli had been in the final 3, then he would have won.  His percentage of weight lost was greater than Michael's.  As it is, Koli got the $100,000 and Michael won the QUarter of a million dollars.  Allison Sweeney kept saying Korter.  And every time she did I wanted to reach through the t.v. and smack her.

DWTS - How in the world could Nicole and Derek NOT win?  Honestly, she is so good.  Just built for dancing, wasn't she?  Any of the final 3 would have been great winners.  No complaints here!

Saving Grace - ok, they finally started back with the last few episodes.  And I am a bit lost.  There was such a gap in time from the last show that I can't figure out what the hell is going on with Earl.

Breaking Bad - Did y'all see this last episode?  Holy flyswatter, Batman!  Hilarious!!

Tudors - Not many episodes left.  Ole Henry VIII is not looking good.  And that gross, disgusting ulcerated  place on his leg?  Pretty nauseating.  He is on his sixth marriage and we are seeing a little more about the progeny and what kind of people they will become.  And they keep advertising the upcoming series about the Borgias at the end of each episode.  That should be a real winner.

U.S. of Tara - I really like this show.  And I can't figure out where we are going next.  Actually, I am continually amazed at the ride we get to take with these people each week.  Good writing, Diablo Cody!

Survivor - Praise the Lord that Evil Russell did not win.  Not a single vote.  He really is a nasty little troll of a man.  I liked that Sandra won.  The only 2 time winner in Survivor history.

and last but not least . . . .

BIG BROTHER coming in July!  I will let you know as soon as I get any scoop on what is happening over at the hamster house.  You do the same, won't you?

Are you still Lost?

Lost.  Thank you for a great six seasons.  Thank you for keeping me completely and totally bumfuzzled the whole flipping time.  I never knew which end was up.  And you know what?  I still don't!

I sat through the whole 4 1/2 hour long marathon.  Then I got up and stretched and regained feeling in my body and sat through Jimmy Kimmel Live.

I consider myself a fairly intelligent person.  I am smarter than the average bear.  I have a bit of common sense, too.  Which is way under-rated, by the by.  And Lost just confounded me.  I am not sure I buy the whole story of "Oh yeah, we had this planned out from the get-go.  We knew exactly where we were going and how we would end up at this point all along".  Really?  Let me just re-cap some of the many, and I do mean, many, things that were never resolved.  Were these all just red herrings?

1. The polar bear

2. Mr. Ecko, Ana Lucia, Michael, Walt, and all the other Tailies, Others, Dharma Dudes and such. Never explained.

3. Vincent the dog.

4. Where were the wildlife on this island?  No regular snakes, bugs, monkeys, feral hogs, deer, ducks, anything?  If there were no bugs or bees, not a lot of the fruit would have been pollenated.

5. What about the women who couldn't have babies?  Except for the French lady who was Alex's real mom.  There were exceptions to everything.

6. If Jacob was "Good", then why did it seem so creepy and evil in that cabin when Jack's dad and Claire were there and seemed to be brain washed?  Was Jacob really good and the brother/man in black guy really evil?

This is a lot of things to go unexplained.  Things that were just filler to distract us from the real story.  "Oooh, look, shiny objects!  Watch this!  Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain!"

From the first season people were saying in all the chatrooms and message boards that the island was some kind of purgatory and everyone was dead.  And the writers kept saying "Oh no, we are going in a completely different direction."  Was all the smoke and mirrors to keep us interested until they could give us the "yeah, they really were dead and in purgatory all along" ending and not have us all pissed off?  who knows?

All of that not withstanding, I truly did enjoy my six seasons of Lost.  I loved getting to know the characters, even the island which was a whole character of its own, don't you think?

Did you have a favorite character?  favorite scene?  story line?
Are you going to miss Lost?

Lemme hear from you!

Top Five List for Joann

I have a blog friend who is the most eloquent and fabulous and entertaining woman alive.  And she has bestowed upon all of her readers an award that was formerly bestowed upon her own self.




Here is the award:

Aren't you all impressed?  Don't you want one of your very own?  Here is the link to Joann and all the rules and her own selections.  Say hey while you are there.  She will make you feel all cozy and welcome.  Especially if you are a lover of all things Bono.

I loved all of her choices.  I made a list of my very own and tried and tried to narrow it down to 5.  But 12 was about as good as it got.  However!  Since some of Joann's were the ones I would have chosen, I am selecting my 5 that are different from her 5 even though some of hers (Gerard Butler in p.s. I love you) ranks way up on my list.  So, as they are wont to say on Dancing with the Stars all the flipping time, "And now, in no particular order . . . . "

Here are 5 of my top 12:

Rodrigo Santoro in Love, Actually.  Even with Colin Firth, Hugh Grant, Liam Neeson and all the rest, when this guy was on screen my heart just melted.  Laura Linney was a big fat wiener for not turning off her damn cell phone!  Good Lord, what was she thinking!  Brazil, I thank you mightily for sending us this fine man to share on the movie screen.

I know, Joann chose Robert Downey Jr. in Ironman.  But for me, this character from Only You is the most romantic person he has ever played.  I adore this movie because of him.

Jeffrey Dean Morgan.  Aaaah. Remember him as Denny Duquette on Gray's Anatomy?  Remember him as the poor recently departed husband on Weeds?   Remember him as the Other Irish Guy in p.s. I love you?  Fabulous.

Do you have any idea how hard it is to find a photo of Lenny Kravitz without sunglasses?  Lenny with no hair, hot.  Lenny with puffy afro, really hot.  Lenny with his really long dreads, steaming smoking hot.

Naveen Andrews.  aka Sayid on Lost and that other guy on the English Patient.  Just look at that handsomeness.  So dashing and strong and full of confidence.  Love him.

In order to cut down on the length here I am just going to tell you the rest of my list.

Bruce Willis - I have loved Bruce Willis since the first episode of Moonlighting.  There is nothing like a man with that much self-confidence, self-deprecating humor and just enough swagger.

Stanley Tucci - His new role in The Lovely Bones, not withstanding.  He is a beautiful man.  And those eyes.

Carey Grant - more of the handsome self-deprecating funny and just too much fun.

Denzel Washington - I don't even know how to describe how handsome he is.

Gerard Butler - honestly, with Harry Connick, Jr. and Jeffrey Dean Morgan starring along with him in p.s. I love you, you wouldn't think he would steal the whole movie would you?  But steal it he did.  Along with the hearts of every woman who saw it.

Colin Firth - back to the cast of Love, Actually.  I can't imagine how this movie could have crammed any more gorgeous men in that cast.  Colin Firth is such a good actor that when I went to look at pictures online, every photo was completely different.  He is chameleon-like in his ability to become the new character.

John Corbett - I believe some of you may already know of my adoration of Mr. Corbett.  My love of him goes all the way back to Northern Exposure when he was Chris in the morning.  Oooh!  And have you seen the new previews of Sex and the City 2?  He's in it!  Yea!  Plus, you can watch him every week on Showtime in the series United States of Tara.

That's my 12, I mean 5.  Plus 7 extras.  : )

Enjoy and feel free to post your 5 right here!

and then again, there are these idiots

Read this article from the news today.  Hurry, and then come back so we can cuss and discuss this moron.

It boggles the mind how people are able to reproduce when they can't take care of themselves.  Dipsticks, that's what they are.

There are some good people out there

and companies too!  Do all of you have Panera bread?  They are a good company making an outstanding product.

And now they have outdone themselves.  Check this story out.

Did you read it?  What do you think?

I surely hope that the local clientele get this off the ground and that they do expand.  Seems like a fun idea to me!

Random Thoughts

It has been a whole week since I have actually posted anything.  I am kinda shocked.  I have been busy as well.  Shocked and busy.

So I decided I would do some random stream of consciousness musings, ramblings and maybe even a rant or two!

1. Which do you find most annoying?  People who smack their food, people who slurp their soup, coffee or whatever, or people who do that weird breathing thing when they talk like that douchebag Dr. Phil?

Let's face it, all three of those are annoying in the extreme.  Just curious.

2. I love, love, love, pink puffy heart, love my Kindle!!!  And you know what else I love?  My Borsa Bella carry bag for my Kindle.  Isn't it cute?  It's stylish, functional, and protective.  It has a front pocket that holds the power cord, a cel phone or whatever else you might need.  Love the Borsa Bella bag!  Check out her site.  She has bags for damn near every electronic device you could have.  She has purses, totes and even the cutest diaper bags ever!  And no, I do not own this company, I do not even personally know anyone affiliated, or anything else.  I seriously love my Borsa Bella Bag for my beloved Kindle! and by the by?  The one I linked you to is the one I got!  I do love those big flowery things!

3. This one might be a problem.  I went to the free books for Kindle site to get some fabulous classics for free for my Kindle.  I got some great books by the by.  But then somehow I mosied over to the not-for-free books and was throwing them in my shopping cart willy-nilly just as if I were still in the free area!  Word to the wise:  Never shop both areas at the same time!  Never.  And let me just reiterate:  N E V E R.

4. My friend Patty Cakes is out of town.  So I have no one to read the obits with.  It's sad and not near as much fun to read the obituaries all alone.  There I was reading yesterday with my highlighter in hand ready to find some little gem, some fabulous turn of phrase, someone who really took the time and wanted to showcase their dearly departed's life.  And nothing.  Yes, people died.  Yes, it was sad.  But, nothing really stood out.  It was a (I hate to say it) a dull week in the obit section.  Maybe that is a good thing?  Maybe we don't want our fabulous, flamboyant, and living life to the fullest people to be dying off?

5. My niece got married last fall.  She is such a sweet and beautiful girl and made a lovely bride.  Anyhoo, she and her new husband built a big, beautiful home and furnished it together and filled it with wedding gifts.  They have 2 dogs and are a happy new family.  Then Friday night we were completely covered in thunderstorms.  The whole area was inundated by rain, flooding, thunder, and lightning. Her husband woke between 4 and 5 a.m. to the sound of the smoke alarm going off.  He opened the bedroom door to see what was going on and found himself standing in water and able to see the night sky above him.  Night sky surrounded by flames where their roof used to be.

He grabbed his new bride, they got their dogs and her purse and ran out and watched their house burn down.  All their belongings gone.  Their wedding photos gone.  All the wedding gifts gone.  I know, they are lucky to be alive and have each other.  And it makes you sound ungrateful if you don't preface with that thought each and every time you say "all my stuff is gone".  But if I were in her shoes, I would be falling apart.  You can not plan for a random lightning strike.  And all weekend I have been having these thought creeping into my consciousness "what would I do?, how would we go about corralling all our multitude of pets?, what would I want to grab and take with me on my way out the door? what will I have regrets over?"

See why I have no great and interesting thing to post today?  My brain is completely absorbed by this tragedy.  I keep thinking of her day-to-day life and how every aspect of it is changed.  "oh, I need to get dressed.  wait, I don't have any clothes", or "I will just put that in the washer.  nope, no washer."  She has to start completely over.  New clothes, new makeup, new shampoo, temporary place to live.  I haven't even asked yet if their cars were in the garage and are now totalled or not.

6. I can't end on news of my niece and her home. So here's one more thought.  Are you gardening?  Are you composting?  Are you harvesting rain water?  Are you using less of those horrendous plastic bags? You should know by now how I feel about those bags.  They are worse than Dr. Phil.  At least he doesn't sit in my pantry and multiply.

Serial Killer Strikes Again

It started out like any regular normal morning.  I got up and made myself a cup of tea. I came into the office to do the morning ritual of reading email, blogs, news, etc.  And as usual there were any number of cats perched on all the cat furniture things in front of the window.  

Then I heard it.  A sad, plaintive, mournful cry.  Where was it coming from?  I got up and looked in each room.  I looked in the closet just in case one of the cats had gotten themselves stuck in there.   Finally I was able to discern that it was coming from outside.  Aha!  Some stupid cat had snuck out when someone was on their way to work.  Bad kitty!  

I never let the cats out before noon.  The morning time is when the early birds are getting the worms, or bugs or whatever the hell it is that the early birds get.  And it is unfair for these cats to go out there and upset the balance and start killing off birds who are just getting their breakfast on.

Back to the story.  I couldn't figure out the sound, but I opened the front door and in trotted Angus MacPhee.  Angus "the serial bird killer" MacPhee.  Bad Angus.  And he has a "mostly dead" bird in his jaws and is going "Mmmm Rowwwr" which sounds like he is trying to meow with a bird in his mouth and it is coming out more like he is gargling.  I then had to scoop up the killer and the victim and toss them both outside.  Sorry, I know someone is going to ask why I didn't try to save the bird, but I have done this too many times and it always ends badly.  Better to get the killing over with quickly rather than to let him linger in pain while the damn cat keeps batting it around.  Oh, that Angus is a wee little killer.  He is all small and cute.  Skinny, stripey, scrappy and feisty, he is.  A cute, skinny, killing machine.

After I tossed his killing ass back outside, he went right back to yowling/gargling "mmmrowwr" at the front door.  Like a freaky homicidal maniac trying to get in. Or maybe like a stalker cat who wants to show off his kill to the other fatter, lazier cats who slept in.

And now?  It is the afternoon and Ole Killer McKillerstein is curled up taking a nap.  But where is his brother?  Yes, Angus MacPhee has a brother.  His name is Fergus Jackson MacPhee.  At last check Fergus was outside playing with the dead bird.  Rolling around with it, throwing it up in the air, and trying to get it to "play" some more.  That poor bird has had a bad day, is what he has had.

You should be thankful that I decided today would not be a blog-with-pictures kind of day.  

Obit Reading and Reviewing

Mother's Day reading of the obits.  That's kind of a sad thing, isn't it?  Everyone in there was either a mother or had a mother.

This first one just broke my heart.  According to the dates, she is younger than me by a few months but looks about 20 years older.  Not a flattering picture.  But then I read this "Jane Doe bravely and quietly suffered illness for 29 years. She overcame odds throughout the years, dedicated her life to practicing her Catholic Faith, dutifully serving her husband and selflessly caring for her family. She leaves a great void but there is great comfort in knowing she is resting peacefully now."

I am sorry but that does not cry out "Oh, I am a fulfilled and happy person!  I love life and live it to its fullest" now, does it?  It really made me sad.  And then it made me curious as to what she suffered through for 29 years.  That is more than half of her life.

Then we had a really cute one:  "The Lord called Selma home to fill up the square on May 4.  Selma enjoyed square dancing with her husband Gilmore for more than twenty years."  Then it goes on to state how she leaves behind her loving husband and others.  Wait a minute!  She is going to heaven to fill up a square dance but leaving behind her twenty-year partner?  Whose square is she filling up?  Who is going to be her new partner?  What happens to poor loving Gilmore?  Who will be his new partner?

For the first time I read this about a newly departed loved one "Harold, always known as a mover and a shaker, re-invented himself in the real estate business"  Ha!  a mover and a shaker!  Moving and shaking up that real estate business.  Love it!  Go get 'em, Harold!!  Move it!  Shake it!

Best bunch of names goes to the family of Dora H. Dora passed into her Lord's hands on May 6 at the age of 83.  Here is who she leaves to mourn her passing: Raymond, Edward, Gerald, Joann, Geraldine, Daja, Rolando, Mark, Greg, Jessica, Erica, Ricky, Gina, Fernando, Emilie, Samantha, Cliona, Cayden, Alexis, Fernando, Romeo, Jeremiah and Daisy-Rain.

Now THAT is quite the varied bunch of names!  2 Fernandos probably father and son, but Cliona and Cayden?  Daja?  and Daisy-Rain.  Interesting is what I think.

And we had one more homeless veteran die.  He had just had his 50th birthday.  When I read these it makes me so sad and then almost immediately afterward I get furious.  Why on earth do we have homeless veterans?  It is such a sad thing that this can happen.

So, let's raise a glass to Square Dancing Selma, and that moving and shaking Harold, and Dora, and all the others and wish them a life well-spent.  Slainte!

T.V. shows 2010 Part 6

It has been forever and a day since I did any t.v. show updates.  But let's try, shall we?


Survivor - I have no words.  I am totally and completely bumfuzzled.  As much as I hate to say this, I am going to go ahead and say it:  Parvati deserves to win.  She has manipulated where she needed to, she has won the challenges she needed to, she has totally bamboozled Evil Russell and she looks damn good doing it!  The "Heroes" team?  Meh.  They all look like tired, older versions of their former winning selves.  There is no pep in their step.  Sad, but true.

AR - While I am happy to see the OK cowboys in the finals, I can NOT believe that that moron Caite is still in there!  WTF???  I have met doorknobs, tree stumps and lightbulbs all brighter than this idiot girl.  And her idiot of a boyfriend/partner?  Well, all I can say is thank the Lord these two Goobers found each other and are not making 2 other people miserable.  

DWTS - I can not believe I am going to say this, but I am really sad that Pamela Anderson went home.  I was really enjoying watching her grow as a dancer.  The last week when they did her makeup so that it was more age-appropriate, didn't she look gorgeous?  Really sad to see her gone.  It seems to be a toss up as to who is going to win, doesn't it?  I guess that is better than having only one really good choice and a bunch of slackers to pick from.

Real World/RR Challenge - Anyone watch this crap besides me?

Castle - I still like this show.  I like the main characters.  I like the supporting cast, and especially Susan Sullivan playing his aging diva of a mom.  She is a hoot!

Modern Family - Without a doubt the funniest show on t.v.!  Tell all your friends and family to make sure to tune this in so it doesn't get cancelled by some executive who doesn't have a clue.

Breaking Bad - That poor DEA agent brother-in-law guy.  What is his name?  He is in bad shape this season.  At first I thought is was Walt, but nope.  I think this guy is either getting killed or having a heart attack or a breakdown.  It is not looking good for him!

United States of Tara - Twists and turns, everywhere!  OMG!


Biggest Loser - This cast seems to have made the biggest changes of any cast so far.  Can you believe the difference in Sam, Koli and Darus?  Unreal.


Glee - Hi-lar-i-ous!!!  OMG!  I thought the Madonna episode a couple weeks ago was the best until this week!  They started out with Sue dancing to Physical, which was funny enough all by itself, but then they went to Ice, Ice, Baby!  And that was enough, but NO!!!  They had to top it with Can't Touch This and then finish it all off with total Eclipse of the Heart.  So much fun!


The Tudors - Henry VIII is not looking too good.  His latest wife is a slut.  Let's face it, every other wife is a slut.  First wife was a good woman and everyone loved her, but he wanted a slut.  So he got himself a D. I. V. O. R. C. E. and married that little trollop Anne Boleyn.  After she lost her head, he went back to a nice "goodly woman" and she had the nerve to die on him.  Poor Anne of Cleves didn't really count since he thought she looked like a horse and refused to do the deed.  Things are not looking to good for little Miss Hotpants Catherine Howard, right now.


The Borgias - If you watch the Tudors, you will have seen Jeremy Irons doing promos at the end for his new series that will be coming about the Borgias.  It looks awesome!  More historical stuff!  


I know there is more, but that's what I can remember right now.  Any other good stuff out there?  Lemme hear from you!

Feelings, whoa, whoa, Feelings

Real feelings, not the ones from that cheesy damn song.  Yes, indeedy, it has been Feeling Central around here.  Lots of things happening to bring up feelings.

First up, my aunt sent me an email (which I have not responded to yet but only because I am totally unsure of what to say) in which she recounted her meeting a person that used to cut my Papa's hair.  My dad was her older brother.  She is my dad's younger sister and is exactly 1 year and 4 months to the day older than me, so we have always been more like cousins.  Anyhoo, she met the hairdresser person who on learning of my aunt's relationship with my dad, her brother, proceeded to tell her this story of how she and my dad had been discussing spirituality and heaven and all that stuff when my dad was near the end of his life.  They agreed that whoever went first would come back and let the other one know what was what.  Her story goes that about six months after my Papa had died, she felt his presence in the room and he was letting her know that he was alright and that heaven really does exist.  It was  quite a powerful experience for her.  And now 15 years later she shared with his sister, who has now shared it with me.  Let me tell you that this does bring up some strong feelings.

Then, I was speaking with someone who started sharing some really intense personal matters (that I am not at liberty to share) and it has started me thinking and trying to figure out what I can do to help.  Other than to just "be there" and let her talk, I am not really sure how to be of service here.

And I got an email from Classmates.com asking me to renew my Gold Membership that I had let lapse about a year or more ago.  I have received many of these emails over time and just deleted them.  But this one said "you have 2 messages in your inbox, don't you want to see what Jim and Scott have to say?"  Well, Scott is my friend who died in December so yes, I do want to see what his last email to me had to say.  So I got out my credit card and ponied up the 9.95 and opened my inbox to read this final email from my good friend.  And I sobbed and sobbed.  I had been trying to work up a heartfelt letter for his brother since I heard that he had died 5 months ago and every time I tried, I just cried and couldn't do it.  Literally, I had tears flowing and couldn't see the screen or the keys to type.  But, I took this last message to mean "Get off your ass and send something nice to his grieving family!" and so I did.  It was really hard, but I did do it.  I really hope it was received in the same way it was meant.

My daughter, the lovely, talented and clever Rachel Pie, is at a crossroads in her life and is unsure of making decisions on which way to go.  I really hope that I am giving her advice that is for her benefit and not my own.  I know she questions that.  Is Mama telling me this because it is what she wants me to do or because she really feels it would be the best choice?  I am really bending over backwards here to see things from all sides, but it is not so easy when it is your own precious baby child out there.  That is the truth!

Now that I have laid all these feelings and emotions out there, I am going to wish you all a beautiful and loving Mother's Day weekend.  Please, tell people you love them.  Don't wait.  Don't live your lives with regret over what you didn't do, what you could have done, what you should have said.  Do it now, say it now, and remember to get your 12 hugs a day.  That's what you need for optimum mental health, 12 hugs a day.  Get out there and hug people.  Hug them like you mean it.  None of that bend at the waist, barely lean in and just 3 pats on the back like Oprah does.  I hate that crap.  If you are going to hug, put your whole self in it and just really BE with that person for that amount of time.  Trust me, a good hug goes a LONG way!

Happy Mother's Day!  Feel those feelings, people!

A little Provence in Texas

Check this out:  Lavenderfest  is quickly approaching!  Woot!  This is one of my favorite events and I am really looking forward to it.  This is not too far a drive to go up for the day and back.

Can you smell it already?  They have free tours of the lavender farms, there are lots of speakers telling you how to grow lavender organically and music. And stuff for sale!  Lavender soaps, lotions, lip balms, honey, teas, pot pourri, lavender sachets, plants, pretty much anything lavender infused.  Here are my two favorite items:  Frozen Blueberry lavender lemonade (omg!!!) and bottles of lavender margarita mix.  What do you think of that?  That frozen blueberry lavender lemonade will rock your world, I guarantee it.

My very own lavender bushes in my front flower beds are from this festival two years ago.  They are growing well and are about to flower for the first time.  I am so excited about that!  Love, love the lavender.

Obit Reading and Reviewing

Oh My.  There were a LOT of obituaries yesterday.  A LOT, is what I am saying to you.  Many, and oodles, and plethora, like they use in the obits for the quantity of friends and loved ones.

Let's get right to it, shall we?  First up, a lovely lady that looks like a ton of fun, a hoot and a half, a real corker!  She was 90 years old and in her picture?  She is wearing a big ole straw cowboy hat! And earrings.  But since she was 90 she probably called them "ear bobs".  She had 3 daughters, 7 grands, 19 great grands and 3 great-great grands.  Nice legacy for her, isn't it?  Cowboy hat wearin' Margie.

There was a really nice one about an 80 year old lady.  Beautifully written and from the heart.  Here are a few of the best things they said:

"passed away after 80 years of joyful, exuberant living. Her keen wit, artistic talent, strong principles, love of family, friends and country, appreciation of music, funny stories, and the well-turned phrase, left a powerful and lasting impression on all who knew her."

"she met the love of her life, at the lake the summer after graduation and before her freshman year at Wellesley College. He was a student at Harvard Medical School working his summers there at the lake. He spent every free moment courting the 17 year old Anne. After a whirlwind romance, he proposed, Anne accepted, and they were married the following summer. Thus began a lifetime of travel and adventure."

***Note, that sounds straight out of Dirty Dancing doesn't it?

Winner of Best Family Names goes to this crew:  Sally, Eddie, Bose, Minnie, Roy, Alma, Kiddo, Charley, Ray, Ruth, Chester and Wallace.  Kiddo?

And the sad, break your heart one of the week goes to 18 year old Matthew who was an honor student in his senior year who had an athletic scholarship to play football at a state college.  He leaves behind siblings, parents, grandparents and great grandparents.  His services will begin PROMPTLY at 10 a.m. with Pastor Herman officiating.  As sad as this is, Pastor Herman sounds like a stickler for punctuality, doesn't he?

I know you aren't going to believe me when I tell you this, but my husband's aunt passed away last week and we drove up for the funeral.  And I did not even get one copy of the obituary!  His cousin was upset that they had messed it up somehow with misspellings or something and was going to ask them to do a re-print next week.  So I did not end up with a misspelled copy.

I hope all of you are well and all your loved ones too.  I keep thinking of how I want my obit to read and what items my family will deem important enough to put in and share with the world.  It's interesting to ponder these things, isn't it?

Weird but fun!

So, I get home yesterday afternoon and I am reading the paper.  You know, the obits, the comic pages, what's on sale at World Market, etc.  And in the Taste section (which is restaurant reviews, recipes, wine, gastronomic events and such) there is a giant photo of Dan Aykroyd holding a glass skull-shaped bottle.

Here is the website for his venture.  I have always liked Dan Aykroyd and especially Ghostbusters and the Blues Bros.  But I never knew he was batshit crazy in real life.  Did you?

So he is going to be at a local liquor store on Thursday signing bottles and I will be in line to buy one of these interesting little gems.

They are really cool looking and they claim to have won several awards for their high quality vodka, so I not at all worried about it tasting like crap.  And I get to meet Mr. Aykroyd and get him to sign a bottle for me.  It should be a fun event!

What I want to know is if I am the last person on the planet to know about this?  Am I that far out of the loop?  

Oh, and it's Game Day!  Semi-finals, game 1, Spurs vs. Suns.  I am wearing my usual black and gray with lots of Spurs regalia.  Go Spurs Go!!