Smiling Right Now

The Record Keeper has just made my day. I was reading her blog and noticed some changes to her sidebar links. That's when I saw it...the link to my blog is titled "shoe queen."
She just makes me smile. :)

For Your Reading Pleasure

During the course of a phone conversation last night, the subject of reading came up. It's a subject that is dear to my heart. I started reading when I was four and have spent the ensuing 22 years tearing through as many books as possible. In this conversation, it was suggested that a love of reading is a learned passion based on modeled behavior. In other words, if the parents or influential adults in a child's life model a love of reading and encourage the same, the child will likely love reading. This is true in my case.

My parents both love to read. I clearly remember both my mother and my father reading to me and encouraging me to read on my own. Trips to the library were a weekly ritual. As I got older, my parents shared books they loved with me. My father encouraged me to read The Hobbit and later the The Lord of the Rings trilogy. My mother shared Anne of Green Gables and Little Women with me. By the time I was a teenager, I was checking out books and plays by Dickens, Shakespeare, Jane Austen, Thomas Hardy, Arthur Conan Doyle...the list goes on.

After I got off the phone, I was thinking about the effect of literature in my life. I have read more books than I can even remember, but they all have helped shape who I am. The one that sticks out more than any other is Island of the Blue Dolphins. If you have never read this book, you should. It is a short work of youth fiction. It really resonates with me and is a book I have read several times. I know most of the people reading my blog don't have kids and likely won't have kids any time soon. But keep this in mind for when you do. Your children will follow your example and even something as simple as sitting down with a book and enjoying reading can be passed down as a legacy.

Overheard

So I was in the Starbucks on Woodway and Voss waiting for my grande, non-fat, no whip peppermint mocha, when I overheard a conversation between two people. Well, I couldn't help overhearing it because the man was talking so loud that the whole store became an unwilling audience. The conversation was clearly between two acquaintances who ran into each other during the morning coffee run. Here's how the conversation went.

Loud Man says to Middle-aged Woman: Hey there!! How are you?!
Middle-aged Woman: Doing well, how are you?
Loud Man: Hey, what happened to your eye? What caused that big bruise?
Middle-aged Woman: mumbles something inaudible
Loud Man: What did you say?
Middle-aged Woman: quietly answers (I still can't hear what she said)
Loud Man: BOTOX!!! BOTOX did that to your eye??!!
Middle-aged Woman: yes, they say it can cause some bruising.
Loud Man: Geez! I can't believe Botox can do that! That's really bad!

By this point in the conversation I had my coffee and exited the building. I bet Middle-aged Woman was fuming and wishing Loud Man would shut up and leave her alone. I almost felt bad for her...but then I changed my mind.

Shout-Out to Moms!!!

I am cracking up right now. I just got an email from a friend who informs me her mother is a lurker on my blog. Her mom has taken pity on our roach infestation (yes, two roaches can count as an infestation) and forwarded the name and number for their pest control company. But the part that cracks me up is the beginning of her mom's email, which says "Well I just read Laurie's blog and she is having trouble with the roaches again." This just makes me laugh and laugh because we have never even met. In fact, I never even knew she was a lurker...but she knows I'm having trouble with the roaches again. Priceless! Thanks Moms!!!

It's Us or Them

Saw another roach last night. I was sitting on the loveseat and one crawled out from underneath and ran right past my feet. Shudder. Needless to say, I jumped off the couch and tried to get the raid. Unfortunately, the roach was blocking my path to the kitchen...I couldn't get to the spray. I ran upstairs to see if we had some up there...nope. Went back downstairs and he was gone. Do you realize how upsetting this is to someone who has an irrational fear of roaches? I knew he was in the house somewhere, but had no idea where he was or if he would try to make another appearance. I stood in the middle of the room, trying not to cry. Then I left and went to my friend Julie's house. She had invited me over for a dinner and I decided it would be better to show up at her place early then try to stay in my house with a roach on the loose. I'm currently looking for a new home...I will not co-habitate with a cockroach.

The Pillsbury Conspiracy

So I was watching the Olympics the other night and this commercial came on. The Pillsbury doughboy was standing in this couple's kitchen watching them canoodle. The music in the background was "two for tea, and tea for two..." and the whole commercial was about how if people come in pairs, biscuits should come in pairs also. Different couples were shown in the commercial, doing couple-y things...on a road trip in a convertable, reading in bed, snuggling on the couch, eating breakfast together etc. For all those perfect people out there who come in pairs, there is Pillsbury Perfect Portions Biscuits. That's right, if you aren't part of a duo you're not worthy of the Perfect Portions biscuit. If there's only one of you, you're not a perfect portion kind of person. The tag line of the commercial is "Add a little love." Great. Now even a biscuit has the ability to make me feel inadequate and unloved. Thanks Pillsbury. That's just perfect.

Blog Block

I have nothing to write about. Well, that may be a slight misrepresentation of the facts. Let me put it this way. I have nothing to write about which can be published on a public domain. So until a few things fall into place, I've got nuthin. Many of you may be thinking "what's the big deal?" but to someone who posts blog entries almost every day...this is stressing me out! I need new material.

Oh wait! I've got something. Which Winnie-the-Pooh character are you? Last night, two individuals determined that I am Piglet. Wait for it...
The reasoning was this: I am sunshiny-happy and lovable and everyone likes me. Plus I wear scarves. In my mind, these are not bad reasons to be Piglet.

We also determined that our circle of friends includes Eeyore (lots of blue and gray, morose), Winnie-the-Pooh (easy-going, self-indulgent and slow-moving), Rabbit (some anger issues although really just misunderstood), Tigger (bouncy, trouncy, flouncy, pouncy) and Christopher Robin (protective, kind and adorable).

Just so ya know...I'm the only girl in the bunch.

A Tale of Two Deposit Checks

Sooo...the landlady wrote two checks to refund the deposit. One of them was to Kristen, the other was to Dinah. The one made to Dinah bounced yesterday as well. Kristen took hers to the landlady's bank today to see if she could cash it. Nope. No money. Acid bath.

But the good news is that my fearless roommate Kristen removed the cockroach corpse from our domicile and we are getting a washer and dryer tomorrow (we hope). Thanks Sam! You're awesome!

Battling the Beast

This morning had such promise. I woke up early (well before the alarm) and got ready for a beautiful day. Kristen made some extra coffee and since I had extra time I made myself a cup. I sat in the living room, drinking a hot cup of coffee. It was so nice. I wasn't reading anything, or watching anything, or listening to anything. It was just coffee and silence and my thoughts. It was a great quiet time, in the sense that it really was quiet and peaceful. Just time alone with my Lord, simply sitting in His presence.

After coffee and quiet, I got up and prepared to leave the house. That's when I saw the beast. A HUGE cockroach was blocking my exit. I thought about hollering for Dinah to come down and rescue me, but I had a sense that she might not be much help. Sorry Dinah.

My mind was racing. Should I leave the room to get roach spray and take the risk that it would run away and disappear? Or should I stand there staring at it's evilness and pray the Lord would strike it down before me? I have full faith in the Lord, but I opted for the spray.

I ran into the kitchen to get the spray and ran back into the living room prepared for my duel. I sprayed that sucker and it started running TOWARD me! That's when I started shrieking. Why do they have to run toward me??? If I am the one killing you, wouldn't you want to run away from me?

Dinah heard my screams and came downstairs. She calmly surveyed the situation and told me simply "they sense your fear." By this time there was roach spray all over the floor and the beast was still not dead. He finally collapsed. I got some paper towels to wipe up the floor...but he was right there and I couldn't get close enough. I had to go get the broom and use it to push the paper towels around on the floor. I am desperately hoping one of my roommates has pity on me and removes his corpse from the house before I get home.

The Saga Continues

Just when you think it can't get any worse...God says yes it can.
Monday was the first day on which it felt like things were beginning to go right in the new house. The hole in the ceiling was repaired and finished. The toilets were working and the dishwasher had been replaced. We had hot water and then discovered our heater was broken, but they fixed that on Monday afternoon before we got home from work. The only thing left is to purchase a washer and dryer. It seemed like things were falling into place. Until today. One of my roommates just emailed me to inform me that the check she received from our former landlady to reimburse her deposit bounced when she tried to deposit it at her bank. Our landlady gave her a hot check! For the love...

Happy S.A.D.

I just wanted to wish everyone a very happy Single Awareness Day! Some of you will celebrate this day through denial. Others of you will choose misery and despair. Still others will bask in the glow of love while your friends watch you with feelings of disgust and bitterness. Good times.

Hugs and kisses to everyone!

Reason # 63 Why I Love My Job

Today's funny press release: 14 Ways to Love your Liver.

I love my job.

Reason # 273 Why I Love My Job

You just never know what is going to happen in this business. I am working on a story for next week and I just felt like I needed an additional element to add, but didn't know quite what I was looking for. My source for the story dealt with very theoretical concepts and I really wanted to find something or someone that could give me a tangible project regarding this topic. What to do, what to do.

So today I was given an assignment to go to a luncheon to hear what a local speaker had to say on a particular subject. The luncheon was predictably boring and the topic was predictably stale. But I was seated at a table and began casually conversing with the woman next to me. It turns out we had some mutual acquaintances and knowledge of similar people and places. Then I asked her about her job and this is where I got excited. She is working on a project for the City of Houston that directly correlates to the aforementioned story. The issues were the same and the concepts were the same, but my story lacked the one element that she was able to provide. So after the luncheon I did an interview with her and now my story is complete!

Miracles Really Do Happen

We have heat. We have hot water. I nearly hugged the CenterPoint man.

Friends who help you move are AWESOME!

Did I mention that five amazingly handsome, studly and all-round stellar guys helped the Fab Three with their move?

Of course the award for coolest male mover goes to Dave. Hands-down cool. He may not look pretty when he runs, but put him in the back of a U-Haul and give him a few mattresses to move and the man is simply a machine.

Best married male mover award goes to Dustin. Wow. Has there ever been a married male mover quite like this one? He can swear with the best of them, and is always good for a beer run. What a stud.

Best brother male mover award goes to Josh. The bestest brother ever and awfully funny. Even when he feels stuffy and achey, he is there all the way.

Best fake future roommate male mover award goes to Kirk. Ladies, this has to be one of the sweetest male movers you'll ever come across. The cuddle just oozes out of him. And he's good at heavy lifting too!

And the award for Best Male Mover of All Time goes to Troy. The man put in eight hours of dedicated work on everything from furniture moving to light bulb replacement to cable repair to bed assemblage. All this, plus moral support and encouragement for the low, low price of a batch of blueberry muffins.

Five Male Movers...winners all.

I'm Not Bitter

It's the story everyone has been waiting for. Most of you have heard it already...some straight from the source, some through the Summit Gossip Machine. It's a story that just keeps getting better.

This is the story of three single women. They were three women who just wanted a cute, affordable, well-situated place to live in a quiet, safe and trendy neighborhood. Was that too much to ask? Apparently the answer is "yes."

So the Fab Three moved this past weekend.
Day One: The nightmare began when I arrived at the house to drop off a load of boxes on Friday. I walked upstairs to find the ceiling in the hall caving in and water seeping through a huge crack. The carpet was saturated (and beginning to smell) and the ceiling on the first floor was damaged as well. Fantastic.

Day Two: Repairmen show up early on Saturday to seal the leak in the roof and cut out the soggy sheetrock. They leave behind a wet, smelly carpet and a gaping hole in the ceiling, loosely covered with plastic. The moving progresses...no bodily injuries and only minor damage to furniture. Then the DISCOVERY is made. The water heater runs off a gas connection. We were told everything was electric...so we haven't contacted the gas company. The realization dawns...no gas means no hot water. No hot water means no showers. No showers means grossness. We recover from the shock and keep on trudging. It's really cold in the house so someone turns on the furnace...guess what. Yep, it runs off of gas also. No hot water. No heat. Still day two. We can't get in touch with the woman who was going to sell us her washer and dryer units...so no washer and dryer. No clean laundry. No hot water. No heat. Day two continues. Someone flushes the upstairs toilets...the one in the master bath leaks around the base. The second one won't flush. No laundry. No hot water. No heat. No toilets. There are some dirty dishes brought from the old house. We load them into the dishwasher. The dishwasher turns on. Yes! The dishwasher won't cycle through and stops working. No dishwasher. Day two finally ends.

Day three: No dishwasher, no laundry, no toilets, no heat, no hot water, a gaping hole in the ceiling and a wet, smelly carpet.

Day four: The ceiling is fixed! The toilets are fixed! The dishwasher has to be replaced, but at least we get a new one! Still no heat, no hot water, no laundry.

Day five: CenterPoint Energy promises to show up some time during the day to connect the gas. My mom sits in the freezing house all day waiting for them. They never show. We call, they say they came by and no one was home. They are lying. They say they will send a night crew to come out, but can't guarantee what time they will show up. Kristen sleeps on the couch all night, waiting for them. They don't come.

Day six: We call CenterPoint. They say they came at 10:30 last night and no one was there. Bull. All three of us were home and awake and anxiously awaiting their arrival. Do they perhaps have the wrong address? We confirm they have the correct address. They will send someone out today and call ahead of time. It is now 3:20 and no phone call. I get on the phone with one of my media contacts and tell her the problem...can she help in any way, please? She says she will have a supervisor call me and take care of it. That was three hours ago. No laundry. No heat. No hot water. No more patience.

Wordsmith

Some words should be used more. I love words and frequently get flack about my use of so-called "big" words. Here's my personal list of words I feel should pop up more in casual conversation.

Scandalous
Nay
Muster
Fie
Minutiae
Germane
Rhapsodic
Ignominious

Feel free to post your most/least favorite words.

My Favorite Flower

I was driving past a plant nursery this morning on my way to take a shower (which is a whole other story). The nursery was clearly trying to advertise the sale of Blooming Mums. However they ran out of the letter "M" so the sign says:

Blooming

Nuns

I sooo want to go in there and request to see their collection of nuns.

Happy Birthday Erin!!!

If you don't know Erin, you should. She rocks. Happy Birthday, eh.
I hope your cake doesn't freeze!