Back in 2010, when I was working at Country Club College, I turned 29. My student staff seriously made my birthday rock… and it started with balloons.
My staff was sneaky and got into my office and filled it with balloons for my birthday.
My staff worked with some of my colleagues and filled my entire office with balloons. I mean, I could not get to my desk. It was awesome. Granted, I knew something was up when I got to work that morning because my co-worker Eddie was ohsosuspiciously standing around with his cell phone trying to capture my reaction on video. It was pretty classic though.
Great students, great Thursday, great memory.
Translation Tuesday: When Life Gives You Scraps…
When life gives you scraps, make a quilt.
via southernweddings.com
I actually haven’t heard this one used, but it does not surprise me. It is a nice and fun saying that doesn’t involve a reference to alcohol. That one would be… when like gives you lemons, add tequila and salt. Or, when life gives you lemons just add vodka. I like the sweet one.
Throwback Thursday: Friends at a Wedding, June 2010
2010 was the year of the wedding for me… I was in or attended 10 weddings in 2010. There were a lot of jokes about the 27 Dresses movie. This throwback is to the Bestie’s wedding in June 2010.
The girls posing at the Bestie’s wedding. June 2010. Left to Right.. Val, Lisa, Bestie, Me, TT
This is me with four of my dearest friends… going back to middle and high school. I’d like to tell you how wonderful and fun the Bestie’s wedding was… but all I really remember is how much I was running around doing as much as I could to make her life easier. I do remember GREAT cake though. Come on, we all know I love some wedding cake. And she was a beautiful bride and I LOVED her dress.
Life Without Target
Somehow I have managed to not go to Target in a full six months. I first mentioned it in the winter HERE.And I have managed to keep it up.
I’m not mad at Target, I’m not trying to not shop there because of the whole data breach thing, I’m really just in competition with myself… cause I am weird like that. Now, it did start with being annoyed with the data breach but now it is just plain old competition.
So, what has the result of not shopping at Target for six months been?
- I shop at Walgreens and Ulta a whole heck of a lot more for makeup and beauty products.
- I am buying better shoes that seem to last longer… unsure how all that fits together, but some of my new flats from other stores have a lot less holes in them from wear.
- I have bought more products from Publix and Kroger. Where I used to buy cards, cleaning products and such from Target… I now get them from Publix and Kroger… which does mean I am spending a little more money on them.
- On the other hand, I am spending less money on random things. I can’t tell you how many times I would walk into Target only needing one thing and come out with ten. Darn those sales and the dollar bin! But that has happened a lot less in the last six months.
- I miss the little snack shop in the front of Target. How sad is it that the thing I miss most is the snack stand?! But it is true… a popcorn or soft pretzel often were the best snack/ dinner and I miss it! Now if I want a soft pretzel I have to force myself to deal with the mall!
So, my goal was to make it six months without Target. I met the goal, yay me! Now I think I am going to push for nine months. It is hard to resist sometimes, we’ll have to see how it goes. Anyone else avoiding a store? Tips on how to keep it up?
Translation Tuesday: She just flew off the handle
This one I have heard many people use. Generally when explaining why their mother/sister/wife/friend/female co-worker lost her temper.
via pinterest.com
This usually is describing a woman who has lost her temper. I have often heard it used with: “I didn’t do anything. We were talking about my mother wanting to visit and she just flew off the handle.” It is often accompanied by whoever was the target of the sudden temper not realizing that they did anything to cause it. 😉
I will never forget when I saw the movie Sweet Home Alabama for the first time. I was in college and Gail and I did a girls night on a Friday evening to see the movie. It was the first weekend it opened and the theater was packed.
The South: People should need a passport to come down here. From Sweet Home Alabama
via http://www.pinterest.com/pin/194147433910677310/
This quote was said early in the movie and it is so true! It is just such a wonderful and unique culture down here. To me that is one of the beauties of the United States… it is so very diverse!
But back to the first time I saw the movie. In that packed theater on a Friday night in the heart of the south. There is a scene towards the end where Melanie breaks off the wedding and punches the potential Yankee mother-in-law. The father of the bride cheers and says something along the lines of “the south rises again.” The ENTIRE theater started clapping and cheering. Seriously. Gail and I were totally taken aback. It was unlike any movie-going experience that I have ever had. Cheering in the middle of the film?! Only in the South 🙂 Gotta love it!
The Book Bucket List
So, I’ve done my favorite list and least favorite list… therefore, it shouldn’t surprise anyone that I have a book bucket list. The tricky part about this is that I am always reading something, so fitting books in is hard. Sometimes it is a journal article about higher education, sometimes a mystery, sometimes a great literary work or the latest bestseller. I read romance novels, memoirs and non-fiction historical accounts. In general I am not a huge fan of westerns or sci-fi… but other than that, I read a lot of different genres. So there is always something new being added to my Amazon wishlist. The list below is full of books I know I want to cross off the list in my my life, in no particular and not counting the next books in series I am reading:
- All The Kings Men by Robert Penn Warren*
- The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
- Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell
- On the Road by Jack Kerouac
- Ragtime bu E.L. Doctorow*
- Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh
- The Sound and the Fury by William Faulkner
- Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe
- Mansfield Park by Jane Austen
- Emma by Jane Austen*
- Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen*
- The Three Muskeeters by Alexandre Dumas*
- Breakfast at Tiffany’s by Truman Capote
- Tune In: The Beatles, All These Years by Mark Lewisohn
- When Everything Changed: The Amazing Journey of American Women from 1960 to the Present by Gail Collins
- Friendkeeping: A Field Guide to the People You Love, Hate, and Can’t Live Without by Julie Klam
- The Monuments Men: Allied Heroes, Nazi Thieves, and the Greatest Treasure Hunt in History*
- The Jurassic Park Series by Michael Crichton
- Maine by Courtney Sullivan
- The North-South Series by John Jakes
- The Help by Kathryn Stockett
- South of Broad by Pat Conroy *
- We Were Liars by E. Lockhart
- That Summer by Lauren Willig
- The Guns of August by Barbara Tuchman
- The Autobiography of Malcom X
- Any non-fiction book that Jen Lancaster writes!
- John Adams by David McCullough
- Team of Rivals by Doris Kearns Goodwin*
- Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil by John Berendt*
- Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand
So what books do you think I HAVE to add? What books are on your book bucket list?
*Indicates that I own the actual book, I just haven’t read it yet!
Throwback Thursday: Cousins Reading, July 1989
So, I’m on the book kick this week. It is amazing, for all the reading I do, there are not a lot of pictures of me reading. Now, there are plenty I have taken of my friends and family reading… but very few exist of me doing this… weird. Therefore, I really had to dig to find this gem…
Jenna on the left, me on the right reading to her. July 1989
I’m like 8 in this picture and Jenna is probably 5. We were at my Nana’s condo during a family vacation down South. She and I were killing time waiting to go to my Uncle’s photography studio for a family portrait. And we killed time by me reading to her. And yep, we are both color coordinating in our little kiddie 1980’s dresses!
Translation Tuesday: What Pray Tell…
Love Southerners… always finding a nice way of saying things… even cussing.
via Pinterest
Instead of saying “What the hell are you talking about” (like I would, because there is always an inappropriate word coming out of my mouth) they say “what, pray tell.” Not only do they manage to change the phrase, they add in religion! Love it!
My Best Reads List (ever)
Joy! It is summertime! FINALLY! Work is moving along at a nice steady pace and I have a slew of events and activities on deck for the summer…. including an upcoming staycation. It is coming up at the end of the month and I am preparing with what books are going to be on my reading list. Book number one… A Long Time Gone by Karen White. Anyway, as I was starting on my “to-read” list I started thinking about my fave books. Mainly because I really want to re–read the Harry Potter books on vacation, but can’t seem to find my copies. Buried in a box somewhere! This is my list:
1. A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving
• Thank you to Teri Foltz, my AP English teacher for making us read this. Hands down this is my favorite book ever. Such a wonderful story about friendship, loyalty and growing up. I can’t tell you the number of different types of papers I have written on this book through high school to grad school… just a wealth of material in one good book. John Irving pretty much rocks!
2. Catcher in the Rye by JD Salinger
• My Dad first bought me this book in 5th grade and tried to get me to read it. Winter 1993 at Tri-County Mall. I can still remember sitting in the food court and reading the first page and seeing the word “shit” in the dialogue and saying “no way.” As was often the case in my childhood… my Dad was right in trying to push me to try something new and move away from all the Baby-Sitters Club and Nancy Drew. So when I has to read it senior year of high school, it wasn’t a surprised that I was hooked. JD Salinger was such a great writer and I still have that same copy sitting in my room that my Dad bought me back in 1993.
3. The Harry Potter Series by J.K. Rowling
• Are there even enough words to describe how creative and fabulous this series is in the history of books? I need more Harry Potter books Ms. Rowling! More! Some more back stories or never before told side tales about the many, many characters in those books!
4. The Little House Series by Laura Ingalls Wilder
• I started reading these as a child, and have probably re-read them every three to four years as an adult. Visiting DeSmet, South Dakota is totally on my (rather long) bucket list of places to visit.
5. The Chronicles of Narnia Series by C.S. Lewis
• Another series I fell in love with as a child and re-read every three to four years as an adult. I loved that they started making them into modern twenty-first century movies and I really wish they would do them all. Such wonderful and powerful stories!
6. What Now by Ann Patchett.
• I talked about this one HERE. It speaks volumes to me for such a little book.
7. The All Souls Trilogy by Deborah Harkness
• I randomly stumbled across the first book in this series when I was browsing at Barnes and Noble in 2011 and I was hooked. I read the whole thing in a day and a half! It is nearly 600 pages, so that is impressive! I then had to wait until 2012 for the next one to come out and finally the final book comes out next month! I can’t wait.
8. Burning the Map by Laura Caldwell
• This is a chick lit novel that I came across in grad school and just loved. A fun and breezy read about a woman in her twenties figuring out her life and exploring Europe. Totally hit me for where I was at the time and still today gives me some of my favorite book quotes!
9. Bitter is the New Black by Jen Lancaster
• I boycotted reading this for the longest time. The Bestie and TT kept telling me to read it and I was just adamant that I would hate it. After a year and a half of harassment from them I finally caved and I LOVED IT. They still like to rub it in that they were right. This is a great memoir from the wittiest of writers. She is so sarcastic and real. If you want to laugh out loud and have tears running down your face… read this book!
10. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
• Duh, it is Dr. Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet… need I say more?
11. Best Friends by Martha Moody
• 14 years after I read this for the first time, I still love it. I pretty much cried like a baby this book was so real. A tale of two women who meet in college and tell the story of the up and down of their friendship and various relationships through the years after college and into middle age. This one is timeless to me.
12. Summer Sisters by Judy Bloom
I cried even more at this one because of the heartbreaking ending than I did during Best Friends. Such a powerful story and great characters.
13. The River of No Return by Cleveland Sellers
• I had a class with Dr. Sellers in college and pretty much consider him one of the most brilliant men I have ever met. The River of No Return is his memoir of his time in being an activist in the Civil Rights movement and SNCC (Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee) in the 1960s. A very powerful and first-hand account of a fascinating time in American history (in my opinion).
14. 84, Charing Cross Road by Helene Hanff
• A professor I was a TA for in grad school had me read this and I loved it. A short little story based on the real correspondence from Helene Hanff in NYC and a bookshop owner in England during the mid-twentieth century. Just a sweet gem of a read.
15. The Tradd Street Series by Karen White
• Give me a book by Karen White and I am a happy girl. Of all her works, my favorite is the Tradd Street series. Set in Charleston, SC (we know I love the South) and diving readers into the world of the South told through Melanie, Jack and a full cast of characters… I love everything about these four books. I wish she would write more!
That is my list of faves! What are your favorite books?
Throwback Thursday: Lighthouses in Maine, March 2011
In March 2011 I flew up to Portland, Maine for a conference. Leaving my small metropolis at 3:30am, driving to a bigger city to hop on a plane. To fly to fly to Newark. To fly to Portland… on a prop plane. I hate prop planes. It was a long day for us to even get there before lunch! As soon as we got the rental car, we headed to the coast to see this beauty:
Portland Head Light House. Cape Elizabeth, Maine.
So, yes, there was still snow and ice on the ground. I work with a lot of people in my field who like to plan conferences in cold weather locations. Maybe they get better rates because of the cold weather? Maybe they like seeing this converted southerner avoid the ice patches? Who knows.
Anyway, I had a lovely time exploring the Portland Head Light in Cape Elizabeth, Maine before the conference started. Portland is adorable, and this light house guarding the coast is just breathtaking! Check it out if you ever make it to Maine!
Adulthood…
A funny for your Monday. Appropriate since I came home and wanted to take a nap (I just closed my eyes for 20 minutes, I didn’t nap).
via Pinterest
Adulthood… if you’re not tired, you’re not doing it right.
Terrifyingly funny and true. Agreed?
Throwback Thursday: Mount Vernon, 2009
Back in 2009 Gail and I did road trip to DC for the Fourth of July. It was a blast and I ADORE Washington, DC. If driving there didn’t drive me batty I would totally move there!
Me on the back porch of Mount Vernon in July 2009
My one major instance for our whirlwind long weekend was that we stop at Mount Vernon. So on our way out of town we made the stop at President George Washington’s home and I loved it. Sitting on the back porch and watching the river was wonderful, as was meandering through the pretty gardens. So very pretty and picturesque along the Potomac River. Definitely worth a visit if you are in the area.
One of Those Weeks: Random Brain Dump
Random Brain Dump… because that is about all my brain can handle today.
- What is it about when I wear a white shirt, I drop something on it? Is there some unwritten law out there saying if wearing white the shirt will be ruined? A strawberry at a party was the culprit on my LOFT linen tank this past week.
Why is it always something falling on a white shirt?
- I’m recovering from the allergic reaction… that for the texts and comments of concern. The swelling has gone down, now I’m left with a scaly and slightly less itchy mess that makes me think I look like a lizard around the eyes. It looks awful…. I am not posting another picture of the scales!
- Meet Norm, my new neighborhood pet. Or, maybe her is like Norm XXI. There are a lot of these guys running around. He likes to hangout in the garden…. lots of plants to chill under.
the neighborhood pet
- I made my last box of Betty Crocker Rainbow Chip Cake last week. Apparently they discontinued it…. which is the most ridiculous thing ever! This was hands down the best funfetti mix out there and my office loved it. Really, it could have had a cult following by my office alone. So sad we can’t have it anymore.
my last box of Betty Crocker Rainbow Chip… so sad
- I like shoes in case you didn’t know this. I reorganized my closets a couple of weeks ago… I got rid of six pairs! Progress?
shoes, shoes and more shoes. Cleaning my closet.
- And sometimes the nail polish wins. Note to self, close the bottle all the way when you are done. Oops.
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close the top of the nail polish bottle…
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