31 Days of Adventure: Day 8

So, there are no pictures for this day of adventure, but it did involve epic garage sale-ing which resulted in a beach lounge chair for $2.00 and not a penny more!  And then there was a righteous 2 hour nap followed by chips and salsa and fish tacos.  I'd say Day 8 = Heck yes.

31 Days of Adventure: Day 7

My mom busts rhymes about tacos. What does your mom do?

How to save a garden.



Yeah, I know. We're cute. 

Oh, the confusion of it all!

Glamour Shots.  Keepin' it real.

31 Days of Adventure: Day 6

Road trip!

Road warrior.

Yes.

Texas wildfire devastation.

31 Days of Adventure: Day 5

Looks like Adventure got over that little shy spell from yesterday because he was all up in my face all day today.  Must be feeling more comfortable now that we are getting to know each other better.

Today included a long lunch break due to Customer Service Week (!!), which allowed me enough time to go home for a bit and do some laundry and some puppy hugging.  I had a mucho productiv day at work, then afterwards, I speed erranded to get myself ready for a trip to Texas tomorrow.  I tell you it is not easy to get packing and cleaning and laundry and preparing done when your dog insists on doing this...

You know that tummy is just begging to be scratched.

Today was a win in adventureness! Tomorrow starts 5 days of adventure in the Lonestar State.

Standby for awesome...

31 Days of Adventure: Day 4

This whole adventure thing is turning out to be quite an interesting adventure in itself.  Today's adventure was feeling a bit shy for most of the day.  No matter how closely I looked and stopped to ponder, it just refused to show it's bashful little face. There were events and happenings, sure, but adventures?  Psssh.  Not even.

And you wouldn't even believe where that little sneaker turned up today.  On Twitter.  Right?!  Who would think to look on Twitter for an adventure?  But there it was all bright and beautiful staring back at me from the Blackberry while I waited in line at the grocery store.

Care to see it?

I have no words for the feelings I get when I look at this picture.  One of my very bestest is playing this adventure game with me this month, and these are her beautiful kids.  She posted this as her adventure today, and I realized how much I look forward to seeing what the day brought her.  I was on Twitter for the sole purpose of seeing if she posted anything.  I honestly felt excitement when I saw she did, and that's when I realized someone else's adventure was my own.  Not because I was physically there, but because my heart was invested in it, fully present and experiencing this moment.  Seeing this picture fills me with joy in ways that probably can't fully explained.  In it, I see her dreams realized in a son and daughter and know that they have the greatest Mom and Dad that God could have ever picked for them.  And because she is my soulfriend, her adventure is mine.

31 Days of Adventure: Day 3

Well, no pictures because no camera AND no phone on the same day.  But, I can tell you with my word pictures that the adventure of today began with a fat, rainbow-colored hot air balloon floating right above my office building.  It was like going to work at Oz or something.  You know, like, if Oz had hot air balloons or something.  I didnt' really think that all the way through, but you know what I'm saying.  So, hot air balloon!

Then, after getting my FREE breakfast for FREE breakfast day due to Customer Service Week(!), I found the tiniest grape ever in my FREE fruit.  Tiny! Grape! Adventure!

Onward!

31 Days of Adventure: Day 2

It started with dog hair and ended with a smooshy baby.  Win!

31 Days of Adventure: Day 1

I woke up this morning to Autumn flashing her brilliant blue sky my way and letting loose those cooler temps that she's so famous for.  She obviously put a lot of thought into her appearance today, and it would be rude of me not to show her some admiration.  To the lake!

Say Cheese...

Can we please talk about Taco Bell? And how sometimes I wish I was a taco just so I could marry a taco and have little tacos running around the yard to ensure that the taco legacy will live on forever? Okay, I admit that sounds much weirder when committed to the written word than it did when twisting and turning through my brain on the Thought Coaster, but do you see what I’m saying? And perhaps tacos and roller coaster analogies should never belong in the same sentence. Because all of a sudden, I am intensely nauseous, and also, I seem to have lost all sense of where I was going with this.


Reboot.

Okay, so, tacos. There is a new Taco Bell commercial that is killing me, y’all. I was going to go try to find it on YouTube and link and embed and all that, but really, I don’t think you care that much, so use your imagination muscles. It’s basically something about cheese, I think, and I don’t even know any more than that, except that there is nacho cheese pouring or something and then there are nachos and then more cheese pouring, and then I black out, and, when I come to, I am sitting at the coffee table with my face in a plate of everything Taco Bell. How does this happen is what I need to know? It’s like kryptonite, that commercial. It’s not even so much that I love Taco Bell, but more that I am mad, deep love with Taco Bell’s nacho cheese.

Which brings me to this past Saturday. The day my life was Changed.

I was cruising on down to the outlet mall to take advantage of a particularly substantial Gap Outlet coupon, when I remember there is a Taco Bell a couple blocks down from the mall. Woop! Now I know you’re all thinking “Girl, I know you are not going to eat Taco Bell before you go try on pants,” and while this is exactly the same thing I would think if the situation were reversed, my response to you is “Heck yes I am!”

Side note: I would like to take a minute right here to discuss with you the logistics of a Taco Bell drive-thru. Have y’all noticed that those things are like taco lockdown once you get in line? Like, there are usually curbs or a fence or some other obstacle on either side of the single lane, requiring some serious border commitment, because once you are in, you’re in. I guess the higher-ups know the reality of Taco Bell remorse and had to get serious to keep people from bailing after ordering when they realize what they’ve just done. I know you are relating to this.

The order I placed was (1) cheesy fiesta potatoes, (1) Mexican pizza, and (1) order of regular nachos with an extra side of cheese, please. The order I received was (1) cheesy fiest potatoes, (1) Mexican pizza, (3) regular tacos, (0) nacho chips, and (2) nacho cheeses. (Question: Does anybody else ever feel like they are playing taco roulette with Taco Bell drive thru? For real, the only constants in life are death, taxes, and Taco Bell will get your order wrong. I mean, right? And I know this could be resolved by double checking before I drive away, but really, where is the fun in that? This way you never know if you’ll have 12 regular tacos or one of those chalupa/gordita/burrito steak fiesta hybrid things. I mean, this is excitement, people!)

So I’m sitting here with all of this nacho cheese and no chips. Sadness ensues! But please, do not despair for me, because you know I’m about to eat that stuff straight out of the little container. I would use the spork, but it’s not like they gave me one, so just do not even get me started on that. While eating free taco numero uno (respect that espanol, homies!), I stare at the cheese. The cheese stares at me. And I swear, like heavenly divination, an idea descends upon me!

What if…

I dipped the taco…

INTO THE CHEESE?!

Right?! 30 years and it had never once occurred to me to pursue this! OF COURSE THE CHEESE SHOULD MARRY THE TACO!!! It’s so obvious! I have to say I kind of feel like my parents failed me here. (Mom, I will need you to meet me at therapy. K, thanks.) Do you SEE what happens when you do not check your Taco Bell order?! This is deep on so many levels.

So, pretty much, the point is that nacho cheese is like the color black, in that it goes with everything.

And, also, you should never eat Taco Bell before trying on clothes, especially if it is anything even remotely form-fitting.

The end.

Welcome Wagon...

I thought y'all might like to see what I see when I pull into my carport....

It's the highlight of my day. :)

It is well with my soul...

Or more specifically:

Know what I mean?

For the Inquiring Minds....

The Mac 'n Cheese pizza is literal keeping it real mac n cheese.  Cheddar and all.  Make it just like you'd make it at home (not the Kraft stuff though...sorry) and throw it on a regular pizza crust apparently.  Life = changed.  You're welcome.

Also, it can be found in it's natural habitat for viewing/tasting parties at CiCi's Pizza. 

Go forth and be merry my friends.

Geez Louise...

It seems every time I want to tell you guys about something and work up draft #1 in my head, the next thing I know, I'm all tired and fussy and I just don't wanna go through all the typing and posting and stuff. I mean, it's hard work getting my thoughts all filed in an organized fashion and then lined up just so in the disembark area and then loosing them while trying to eloquently throw them out here for you to make sense of.  Who has that kind of energy when the whole day is said and done and all that and so on and so forth?  And on occasion when I'm just so blinky tired but my systems are not entirely ready to power down, I'll decide to read some of your lovely stories instead.  But here's what happens when I try to execute that plan of action.  You are all too lovely and funny and I find myself relaxing more and more and more as I read, and then don't you know I'm too tired to comment.  Isn't that just the saddest thing you've ever heard?  It really is, isn't it. 

Did any of that make sense?  Does it matter?  If you want the truth, the only reason I am writing this is because I really wanted to tell you about the Mac 'n' Cheese Pizza I had the other day.  Mac 'n' Cheese!  On a pizza!  Have you ever heard such nonsense in your whole life?  And I tell you this:  Best. Pizza. Ever.  I don't know why I've never thought of this before?  Why haven't you?  Why hasn't America?  I mean, you guys, this kind of awesome was beyond my scope of comprehension. I ate four whole pieces.  FOUR!  

It wasn't regular elbow macaroni though.  (Thank you to Google for helping me figure out that it was Cellentani pasta.) So cheesy cellentani pizza thrown on a pizza crust.  No sauce. No other bells or whistles.  Mac. Cheese. Pizza crust.  Amen.

And it was all pizza buffet and stuff and don't you know while we were sitting there with piece #2, this whole busload of high schoolers walk in the door.  Panic!  I ran up to the buffet and grabbed the last 2 pieces. There is no way the appetite of a high school dude is going to be able to resist the magic of the PizzaMac.  But don't worry.  I took care of it and polished off every bite of it. 

So.  There you have it.  PizzaMac = life changing.  Bet your glad I stayed awake long enough to tell you about it.  You're welcome.

Goodnight.

Getting better....

I just got the word that Grandma is doing better.  She did have a minor stroke but is now back to being awake and alert, so thank you Lord for that.  My dad said that she should be released in a couple of days so she can get back to home to her babies (the kitty cats).  Whew! 

I have some other stuff to tell you guys, like how I accidentally ate a bad potato (what is UP with potatoes these days, man?) and something else that I can't exactly remember at the time being but will inevitably pop back into my head while I'm driving and nowhere near a computer (it totally happens to you too right?).  But it'll have to wait a bit, because I can't talk right now because I have to finish packing up this destruction of a room I'm in.  Why am I packing?  Because I'm moving tomorrow.  Did I not tell you that?  Wow, okay yeah, we definitely have some stuff to talk about.  For now, I'm going to go down a handful of ibuprofen (cuz this headache is RAGING yo) and then it's pack city.  But we'll talk later.  Promise.

Jenny out.

***OH WAIT!!!! I remember what the other thing was!  But I'm not telling you now because I am all about anticipation and suspense and DRAMA!  Do you want a hint though?  I'll give you a hint.  It's about a movie star.  And that I saw him.  Up close and personal.  From about 15 feet away.  Chew on THAT for a bit why don't ya?  (Also, it wasn't Brad Pitt so you can calm down. Nor was it Clooney so we can just ahead and make our peace with that disappointment now.)  Ugh, ok, my head is pissed.  Gotta got get that ibuprofen now.  Later.***

EDIT: I am fully aware that Brad Pitt is looking especially goat-like these days, and honestly he's never really rocked my world anyway, even in the Thelma & Louise days, but it was the first name that popped in my head.  I just though we should clear that up.  Thank you for your time.

Rock it out...

March 2009

So I've been in Louisiana the past few days.  Long story that I'll tell you another time, but the main idea is I'm staying with my BFF, Shara, and her hubs, George, back in LA where I grew up.  Some mutual friends (Amanda and TJ) of all of ours live just down the street or around the corner or something, so tonight they came over for dinner to visit before I head back to the TX. George made some rocking cheeseburgers, and Shara made yummy brownies for dessert. (win-win!) 

After a dinner of magic cheeseburgers, we decided to play some Guitar Hero.  Well, I use "we" as a very loose term.  Technically, Shara decided we should play Guitar Hero, because Amanda and I chose to make Shara choose the game.  I've only played Guitar Hero (actually, it was Rock Band) once before in my life, and truly? It changed me.  Forever.  (Please see pic above.)  I was visiting friends in Virginia Beach and Kris (left) had just gotten it for her birthday.  Needless to say, we represented.  No one has every committed themselves to Rock Band the way we did that weekend.  We were golden.

 

This is exactly why this girl is my friend for life. 

So tonight when Shara mentioned Guitar Hero, I was in.  Sure, I've played this before.  It's just like Rock Band, and I think we can all agree that I was created to play Rock Band.  Bring. It On.

First up was The Joke by The Steve Miller Band, and surprisingly, these lovely group of people suggested I sing. Me. Sing.  This is amazing for 3 reasons: (1) I am not good. At all. (2) Shara regularly tells me to not sing, which I regularly IGNORE, and (3) I was not allowed to sing during above mentioned Rock Band party (see reason #1). So getting the mic this go around was the highlight of my life.  And let me just tell you...I. Nailed. It.  96% my friends! 96!!!  I mean, who even does that?  That means I hit 96% of the notes. What that means exactly, I have no idea, but I know it's good even if my voice isn't!  To all the haters, I have one thing to say:  Boo. Yah.

Since there were 5 of us and only 3 instruments, after each song, we rotated right.  Next up for this rock star? The drums.  You guys?  I LOOOOVE the drums.  Love them with my whole heart and soul.  It has been a lifelong dream to play.  So Bon Jovi kicks on and the band plays and I kid you not, within like 4 lines of the song, the band "loses" thanks to who? The drummer.  Which is me. Gah.  Okay, let's try one more time.  Here comes Bon Jovi.  Shara is rocking the guitar. Amanda is singing her heart out.  Drums kick in.  Fail.  TWICE!  The game gave up on me (Hi Kathryn!). I slowly slid that drum set right back over to TJ who was owning it before I got my hands on it.  They finished it in style.

On the Road Again by Willie Nelson.  Instruments move to the right so I'm on guitar.  I got this.  I can do guitar.  Observe:

Music kicks in. Drummer is drumming.  I start what I believe is about to be one amazing performance.  I'm pushing red, green, red, green, yellow...and nothing is happening.  Silence from the guitar.  George says "You gotta strum Jenny!"  Oh right.  This little bar thing over here.  So I have to do one thing with my left hand, and something else entirely with my right?  Not my strongest quality.  So I'm strumming and hitting buttons and things are just going downhill fast, when all of a sudden - FAIL.  Geez Guitar Hero, is there no learning curve here or what?  When the whole game gives up because of your lacking button pushing strumming skills, it's just not good.

Dude, whatever.  Where are those dessert brownies?  The brownies never give up on you.  And you know what?  I will never give up on the brownies.

Happy 101....

What a wonderful surprise!  My dear bloggy friend Lise at Every Last Drop awarded me with this fantastic Happy 101 award.  And get this?  The acceptance directions involve list making!  Lists!  Is there anyone who does not LOVE a good list?  I think not.

So here we go.  Presenting the Jenny's Top Ten Things That Make Me Happy List:

1. Animals.  I'm happier laying around on the floor with a stinky, dirty dog than I am all fancy hanging out with people.
2. Knowing I made someone smile or brightened their day in some way.
3. Letting the people in my life know how much I love and adore them. 
4. Yoga pants.
5. Potatoes.
6. Dancing until all hours of the night to my favorite songs with my favorite girls.
7. Finding the shirt I've been shop stalking on clearance for under $5.
8. Singing loud in my car.
9. Realizing that someone really, truly gets me.
10. Big, noisy thunderstorms.

I think today I will spend some time cuddling with a sweet dog.  And maybe make some potatoes for lunch. :)

What things make you happy?

Behold the awesome...

In case I've not mentioned it before, I come from quite a musical family.  I grew up to the sounds of my dad's acoustic strumming away in the background of our everyday life.  My brother turned out to be a natural talent as well and has been part of a few bands.  Once we moved to Austin, my dad joined a band as well and now rocks the rhythm guitar for an awesome local band.  Several extended family members play guitars, drums, etc. so family functions are known to include spontaneous jam sessions.  It is absolutey fantastic, and I owe my complete obsession and need for music to being surrounded by it my whole life.  Now, granted, the talent apple skipped this particular branch altogether, but I can certainly appreciate other people's talent.

Anyway, I tell you all this because I thought you might like a vid of my dad and bro jamming on Christmas.  I know I'm a little biased, but I think it's really great.  Makes me happy every time I watch it.  I don't think I need to point out who is who. :)  Behold:

Top that...

So you know how you have the favorite movies and shows from when you were a kid that you thought were just so completely awesome? And now anytime someone mentions it you're all "OMG that was my fave when I was a kid! It was so great!" But technically, you haven't seen it since you were 9 so you really don't remember exactly what it was about? And then you accidentally stumble on a clip from said movie 20 years later and realize it is by far the cheesiest and most ridiculous thing you've ever seen?

I give you Teen Witch.



I'm pretty sure this is when my love of all things rap music started. Top that.

Soooo tired...

Tonight was the Brad Paisley concert. It was absolutely one of the best shows I've seen. I was so impressed by him. I swear the man did not stop playing the guitar for 2 solid hours, and it completely exhausted me.

I bought my dad tickets for Christmas because, as many of you know, my dad is a rock star. A real one. In a band and everything. We stopped for some Burger King on the way downtown, adn I gotta say, I completely forgot how awesome Whoppers are. That's good stuff. We got to the arena about 5 minutes before Dierks Bentley started, which means we missed Darius Rucker. I don't know any of his stuff anyway, but I've heard he's good. But whatever, we missed him. Dierks Bentley comes out, and I just really don't get him. Everybody I know just thinks he is the hottest thing and loves his music, but it just doesn't click with me. I can think of only one or two songs of his that I really enjoyed. But he was alright.

Brad Paisley? IS THE MAN!!! And for real, if he wasn't married to that adorable Kimberly Williams who I just love like crazy, then Brad and I would be married. Tomorrow. He is just pure candy. I always forget how much I like his music until I hear it, and then it's just WOW to me. SUCH a fun concert. He had a really cool stage set up with lights all over the place, and not the typical cheesy textbook concert lighting. Probably 40 amps all stacked up to form a riser and all the amps lit up. That's cool stuff right there. Fantastic. He tore that guitar up. Or should I say those guitars. I'm pretty sure he switched out every song or two. Rock it out Brad.

As soon as we got to the car, I realized my entire body was aching. Like hard to walk aching. Then I got home and my hamstrings were all tight and my back hurt. I felt like I had been in the gym for hours. It was all from sitting there watching the show. He was so on the whole time and lights and loud and videos and screaming people and just complete sensory overload. It wasn't until we left that I realized that my entire body must've been just completely tensed the entire show. Hahaha. I was so into it, that I didn't even realize it. So I got to see a great show AND it feels like I got an intense workout. That's multi-tasking.

Our seats were awesome! Way up but in the front of the section and it was only one of those 3 seat rows so we didn't have people climbing over us all night. Perfect. No crazies all dancing in front of us either. And you guys, I just completely LOVE hanging out with my dad. He's so awesome. It really made me happy to be able to watch that with him and know that he was really enjoying the music too. Great show, great seats, great company. :)

Oh and this drunk guy totally fell down the stairs as he was dancing down them. How do you top that?

My genius, let me share it...

Hot baths are one of my most favorite things in the world. I take at least 2 a day on an average day, but it can creep up from there if the day is bad or if I'm feeling cold or fussy. I don't do bubble baths though. I don't really understand the point of them. They just keep foaming and that bath starts overflowing with bubbles before you ever get enough hot water to relax in. Not for me. Just hand me a good book or magazine, throw in a couple drops of some lavender essential oils, and I am golden. Yeah, I know. I'm such a girl.

The reason I tell you this is because I had a moment of enlightenment. Of all the baths I've taken in all the years of my life, this idea has never once come to me. While I was letting the water heat up, I ran into the kitchen to get a glass of water. This is when I realized how hungry I was and saw the box of Rice Squares (generic Rice Chex). Ooooh, a bowl of cereal sounds super yummy. But wait, I don't have time to eat a bowl of cereal. By the time I'm finished, the bath water will be all room temp and that's not even what bath time is about. LIGHTBULB!!! What if I eat the bowl of cereal while I'm IN the tub???

Oh yeah. I totally ate my rice squares in the tub. Best. Bath. Ever.