Happy Friday! New Things & The Contest*

Welly, well, well! Looks like it's Friday again, my friends. I've been working hard on Citygirl today to update some things. If you look right under the masthead you'll notice some nifty new pages that I'd love for you to check out. They'll tell you more about me and the writing projects I've completed. Plus! If you'd like to take advantage of my writing services there will be another page available shortly that'll spell all the options out for you. Yay!

Now, the contest! A few days ago I noticed something cool had happened with Citygirl; I've hit 30 followers! As a thank you for reading and supporting my work here, I'm having a little contest.

The first five people who email me at rockette74@yahoo.com with the subject line "Contest! Woo! Yay!" by 2 p.m. CST on Monday will be emailed a photo from my extensive library of the shots I've taken over the years. Just let me know what category of pic you want (Animals, Cats, Nature, People, or Inanimate Objects) in the email.

All photos will carry a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs license, which means you can do whatever you want with the photo as long as you don't alter it or make money off of it and give me credit for the image. You can check out my photo blog, A Girl And Her Camera or many of my previous posts here to see more of my photos.

Phew! Now, lovelies, on to some interesting things around the web!

1) Job seekers are getting creative.

2) Ever thought about starting a small business? These websites might help.

3) If you want to see a movie this weekend, you might not want to bet on Adam Sandler's Jack and Jill. It's getting zero love, friends.

4) Someone got inappropriately creative with a wedding dress.

5) Kate Moss has a modeling little sister. Unfortunately, "little" means only 13 freakin' years old.

6) Kim K. Just. Can't win. And I don't care.

7) Sometimes, Americans are stupid.

*Wouldn't New Things & The Contest be a cool band name? Just sayin'.

Happy Friday: Hole Up For The Heat Wave!

Well, well, well. Another Friday is here and if you're anything like me, the weeks are going by faster than a runaway train. It's already ridonkulously hot in the STL and it aims to get hotter over the weekend.

Our neighborhood has it's annual homecoming festivities this weekend. And by 'homecoming' I mean fuck-safety-let's-block-all-the-streets-into-and-out-of-the-'hood-with-random-drunk-assjacks festivities. HUBS and I, in years past, had tried leaving the house and coming back later, hoping to miss the bullshit. Alas, that only works if you plan to stay away for a solid 24 hours, the partying is so intense.

Last year we just said FUCK IT! and loaded ourselves up with good eats and entertainment options so that we literally wouldn't need to leave for anything while Party Apocalypse took place. This year we'll do the same. Which is fine, since it's gonna be hotter than a ho in church tomorrow.

If you're planning to keep things cool and indoors this weekend, why not try some of my favorites?

The IT Crowd: A Britcom about the three person IT department at a huge company. It never fails to make me laugh so hard I almost pee myself. Be prepared, though; there are only about six episodes per season and you will find yourself craving more when you're done!

Better Off Ted: Another workplace comedy, this time American. Also a bringer of reliably huge laughs.

Designing Women: Ok, technically this is another workplace comedy about the women of an Atlanta design firm, but it's about so much more: relationships, social issues, lady issues...And all wrapped in a crazy-funny package that still works over twenty years later.

Carnivale: If you're looking for something a bit deeper and darker, this is guaranteed to do the trick. A creepy, supernatural, chill-inducing, mythology heavy head-scratcher that will keep you guessing.

The Wire: God, HBO knows how to do TV! I honestly believe that this is one of the best shows that's ever been on television anywhere in the world. If you don't know, it follows a group of Baltimore, MD police detectives and the criminals they're trying to put away. All five seasons were the absolute best shit out there. I miss this show.

Hung: This takes us back to the lighter side of things. It's a little show about a divorced dad who takes up prostituting himself to make some extra cash. Funny, weird and always interesting.


There! Those should get you through the roughest of weekend heat waves cool, crisp and well-entertained. (I don't need to mention classics like Buffy, Angel, Gilmore Girls or Alias to you...Do I?)

What do you watch for a weekend indoors?

And Now For Something Funny...

Well, we're still smack dab in the middle of some stray cat stress, and after hearing about all the horrible tsunami happenings, I have to say, don't a lot of us need a laugh?









Happy Friday!

Music Monday On Tuesday! Music For Expansion

My apologies for not posting yesterday. I joined HUBS at his job for the day and forgot that their internet security settings block blogger. We didn't leave there until around 7:30 p.m., and then we headed out to St. Peters for dollar bowling and hot dogs at the Brunswick Zone XL.

I hope everyone had a great weekend that wasn't too cold or snowy or cabin-fevery. We got about eight inches of snow last Wednesday and then another two yesterday. Luckily, it didn't stick to the streets where I live, so it didn't really effect travel...though, we ended up not doing any of that anyway. We spent the day eating leftovers and watching the last three episodes of The Walking Dead, which (surprisingly) didn't stop me from going to sleep that night at all. Yay!



Now, about my EXPANSION project for the year. I had a breakthrough moment last Tuesday when I was shopping at PetCo. I always take a brief look at the cats they have up for adoption, and this time there was a woman and her toddler looking around also. She mentioned something to me about how all the cats seemed huge to her and we started chatting. We ended up talking for about 20 minutes as we wandered around the store to keep up with her roaming daughter. It was so much fun! And? She's also a photographer!

We're around the same age and seem to have plenty of things in common, and she even cursed while we were talking so I won't have to watch my sometime horrible potty mouth around her. We exchanged info and she friended me on Facebook Thursday. I cannot tell you how awesome it feels to connect with another photo chick. The big thing now will be staying in touch with her and actually having some face time now and then. We could go on photo walks, maybe, and stop for lunch or coffee. Yes! I am EXPANDING my life!

Tuesday Tipday: To Serve Man

For years now I've been against buying cookbooks. When you subscribe to as many magazines as I have (ok, do) you get plenty of recipes in your mailbox every month, not to mention the scores of cooking ideas you can find online, on TV, or from the library.

One of my favorite cooking shows is Everyday Food, and I also get the magazine from the library and scan the recipes I'd like to try. I was looking through an issue and saw that one of the hosts of the show, Lucinda Scala Quinn had written a cookbook that helps you deal with feeding men. Feeding men, y'all!

I cannot tell you how much she read my mind! After several months of low-level poverty where figuring out what to cook and eat was a daily trial, I needed this book. By the time I found out about it HUBS and I had recovered some financial stability, but I was still feeling like I didn't really know how to cook for us.

HUBS can only cook pasta with jar sauce, burgers and fries; if I want anything besides that I have to cook, and that's fine (usually), I like cooking. But, back when I was living alone, if I didn't feel like cooking or didn't have anything much in the house and didn't have much cash to shop, do you know what I did? I ate cereal, or a salad, or a sandwich and I was fine.



That won't work with HUBS. He needs massive quantities of meat to feel like he's eaten anything other than a snack. I believe I could feed him an entire box of cereal and a half gallon of milk for dinner and within two hours he'd go "Yeah, that didn't really feel like a meal."

I. Love. This. Book! It's not just the tips and the recipes but the book-iness of the book: the design of the cover and pages, the photography, the heft of it and the textured, cloth-like cover. In the intro she acknowledges that "men eat differently from women." Yes! I thought I was going crazy over here, watching HUBS eat five Arby's roast beef sandwiches with a large order of fries and a giant soda in one freakin' sitting! It's not just me, apparently. Men just do that.

For Tuesday Tipday I'm going to share one of her suggestions with you: serve the man you cook for. I know, I know. He's a grown-ass man, he can walk, you did all the cooking and the least he can do is fix his own plate, but guess what? If he's what I like to call a Hungry Jack, he'll literally eat everything if you let him.

Once I started putting reasonable portions on HUBS' plate, he ate it and was generally satisfied. He rarely even goes back for seconds now. This means that when I cook enough for six people, I will actually have four servings of leftovers instead of one! Amazing!

The long and short of it? If you like to cook, you can't go wrong with this book. If you like to eat, you can't go wrong with this book. And if you're still getting used to feeding a man, you cannot go wrong with this book!

This Year I Will: 2011 Edition

Shakes relaxes with his body threaded through our TV antenna. Cats have such simple goals, don't they?

Yesterday you saw what I got done in 2010, now let's take a look at what I want to do in 2011. I tried to narrow the list down to things I could actually fully accomplish this year.

For instance, at first I put down 'publish a book', but that's not something that's really totally dependent on me (if I were trying to get it published through traditional means, anyway). So, I amended it to 'writing book proposals and sending them out', which is a goal I can complete this year, even if said books don't get published until 2013.

Well, then, off we go...

This Year I Will: 2011

1) Write another screenplay and enter it into at least one contest
2) Promote my blogs
3) Sell photos through at least one online agency
4) Write proposals for my book ideas and send them out
5) Create a workable budget
6) Travel more
7) Network
8) Grow my freelance career
9) Add 1,000 steps to my daily walking, to equal 6,000/day
10) Use pen tablet weekly
11) Try more new things
12) Watch less TV and do less meaningless internet roaming
13) Call PT more
14) Make the money to buy a car within two years
15) Promote past freelance work online
16) Figure out a way to organize our home library area and get more storage in this house
17) Keep track of family birthdays better and connect with family more
18) Work on becoming more sexual

There! I think that's it for me.

What do you plan to do in 2011?

Eat This Sandwich

Holy crap, it's like a god.

Everyone loves a grilled cheese sandwich. Well, everyone who loves cheese loves a grilled cheese sandwich. And if you don't love cheese you can't be American...Or human, so I've got no interest in what you eat, anyway.

But, cheese loving people all over the world need to find a way to make and eat this sandwich. Now, I've made grilled cheese all kinds of ways over the years. I think, though, that I've finally made the best one ever. You will need about four thinly sliced pieces of apple (I used a Pink Lady), three different types of cheese (for me it was fontina, Borden pepper jack and a shredded Italian blend), honey ham, good wheat bread, cracked pepper, Italian seasoning and cooking spray.

Now, lay out your first piece of bread and cover it with a cheese slice, top it with the apple slices, more cheese, cracked pepper, ham, Italian seasoning, cheese, and last piece of bread. Spray both sides with cooking spray and, here's what I think really makes a difference, put the sandwich in a hot panini press or Foreman grill. After a few minutes you can turn the sandwich 45 degrees to get cross-hatched grill marks, but as you can see from the photo it's not a requirement.

Take it off the grill and dig in. Oh. My. Gawwwwwwwd. The best part, the thing I found so amazing, is that it stayed hot the entire time I ate it. I've never made a grilled cheese that didn't get cold two seconds after I took it off the stove. Never.

Ok, finish your sandwich, wipe your mouth and hands and thank me. Aren't you glad you read this blog? I knew you would be...

Recent Obsessions: Man V. Food!

I guess I don't need to tell you that eating is very important, and that eating well is even more important. Now, something that's necessary for the soul, if not always the body, is a good, curative, fun meal out.

You know that feeling you get when you walk into a restaurant with the perfect ambiance for your mood and perfect company by your side. You get a really good waitress or waiter, someone who knows how to walk the delicate tightrope that is attentiveness minus cloying-ness. You look at the menu and everything sounds so good it's hard to decide. But when you finally do, and the meal arrives deliciously piping hot before you, isn't it bliss? Like, one of the best things that's ever happened to you?

HUBS and I love going out to eat at what we like to call bring-me-some-food-bitches-! restaurants. (FYI, we would never say that to someone who could defile our victuals.) Being waited on is a nice feeling that most of us don't get to indulge in all that often. Combine that luxury with good (preferably inexpensive) food and you've hit the foodie mother lode.

In the weeks since Thanksgiving, where I was reintroduced to Man V. Food via my mom's cable subscription, I have watched at least two episodes on Netflix view-it-now almost every day. Except for that one day when I watched eight. In a row.

Here is why I love this show: it's the perfect combination of travel, food porn and awe. The host visits three different eateries per city and always ends with a ridiculous food challenge guaranteed to either entertain or horrify. Above is the first part of his visit to my hometown, St. Louis, and below is the second half. I hope everyone who loves eating out loves my recent obsession. Enjoy!

Blast The Bah Humbugs!

Well, thank God! I've successfully pushed away my bah humbuggeries by getting off my ass, baking homemade peanut butter chocolate chip cookies, blasting Ella Fitzgerald holiday tunes and putting up some additional Christmas decorations. I've been craving fresh baked cookies for weeks now, and I'm even cooking dinner for the first time since Monday. EEEEE!


Granted, I went up and down the stairs too many times (made me feel a bit weak and dizzy) getting out decorations, but overall? I feel so much better. Much of this is due to waking up and feeling like a real, non-sick human being this morning and having it last all day long. I didn't even have to take a nap!


Alright, maybe I went overboard with the cookies. But how was I supposed to know the recipe was going to make a million of them?

Listen to Ella, y'all, and make your yuletide gay!

Citygirl Bites!

The soft pretzels and cheese and Kirkwood Ice and Fuel.

Since HUBS and I like to try new restaurants and eat out in general, I've decided to begin a new feature here on citygirl where I review some of these places for a little bit of food porn.

Up first is Kirkwood Ice and Fuel. We've been passing by this place for three years and finally went in the Sunday after my birthday back in November. It was surprisingly dive-y inside, but luckily that doesn't mean the food is crappy. These folks know what they're doing!

Those pretzels were perfect, soft and warm with a bit of crispiness outside and just the right amount of salt. The cheese sauce was warm and creamy. Very nice.



I got this Cajun chicken sandwich which came on a nice wheat bun. It was perfectly seasoned and juicy and the onion rings were amazing, just filled with crunchy, onion-y goodness.



HUBS went with the chili nachos for his meal, and even though it's really an appetizer there's more than enough for a main course. Good, cheesy, bean-y chippy nachos.



If the look on HUBS' face isn't enough, listen up: GO TO KIRKWOOD ICE & FUEL. I don't believe you'll be disappointed.

Music Monday: Kitten Rescue!

HUBS and I did something that felt really good on Saturday; we rescued a one month old kitten.

We were about to eat dinner when HUBS looked out the window and saw a tiny kitten following some of the other strays around. We'd never seen this one before, but earlier in the day a neighbor knocked on our door because his mom had sent him to ask us what to do about a bunch of kittens wandering around in their driveway.

Why'd she send him to us? 'Cause the whole street knows we're the cat people. Observe our front yard on a daily basis:



Anyway, it was pretty obvious that this kitten got away from that other bunch because he was so small and aimlessly following the others, meowing and praying someone was his mom. The other cats were not being nice to the little guy, so we went out to see if he'd let us catch him.

It took about ten minutes but I was finally able to sneak up on him and scoop our new pal up. HUBS ran inside, covered our dinners, got my purse and his keys and we set out for the Humane Society. We got there in about 20 minutes and in that very short time came up with a name for him: Murray Von Katenstein. I think it suits him well, what do you think?



So, for this Music Monday, I'm sharing some songs to rescue kittens to. Enjoy!

Show Your Knees!

These are totally as good as Naomi Campbell's knees...I'm just sayin'.

I had an epiphany recently. Last month, I bought and started wearing a pair of shorts. And these were not just any pair of shorts, oh no. These shorts show my knees. I know, I know, that sounds ridiculous, so let me give you some back story.

I have not worn shorts since sometime around 1995 when I was still in college. At the time, the only shorts I wore were guys shorts. They weren't tight or showy and they hid my knees. Oh, my knees. They've been a sore spot of mine since I was a wee child. When I was about 10 years old I decided my knees were best left an unseen entity by the known world.

My issues with them were many and varied:

1) They were badly scarred and discolored from an accident when I was 6.
2) They were fat.
3) They were stretch-marked from all that fast food I ate.

Alright, so I only had three issues with my knees, but they were bigguns y'all! And until last month I'd firmly committed myself to never letting them see the light of day. (Aside from the odd trip to the pool, which brought up so many other body traumas that my fatty, marked-up knees actually became the least of my concerns.)

So, what happened in August? Well, I was shopping for another pair of work appropriate walking shorts. You know, something in a nice, tailored style that would let my legs breathe a little but not show too much. I was browsing one of my favorite sites when I saw these:


photo courtesy OneStopPlus.com

Oh my God, I thought, they're so cute! And they were ten bucks, so I bought them. I got them home and tried them on. They were downright cozy, those shorts! Nice, airy fabric with a nice color and nice pockets. I felt good in them.

Until I looked down and saw my knees. There they were, two banes of my existence just hangin' out and saying How Do! to the world at large. Dammit, I thought, can't keep 'em.

I had resolved to send them back. But, over the course of a week I tried them on for my mom and HUBS and put them on at least twice just to look at myself in them again, something I never do. Generally when I buy clothing, that's it. I try it on, I like it, I buy it, I cut the tags off and put it away. I couldn't do that here. There was a new kind of feeling I had when I put these shorts on. I felt nervous and excited and free and scared. Like I was doing something naughty; maybe even something that the general population wouldn't approve of...And? It felt good.

I decided to cheat a bit: I'd wear the shorts out once, and if I felt uncomfortable or kept tugging at them or kept looking to see how others were responding to The Knees, I'd send them back. Do you know what mighty amazing thing happened? I totally didn't care what random strangers might be thinking! And I was comfortable! And I didn't tug at them once!

I was freeeeeeeee! Over the course of the next month I wore my new Freedom Shorts about two or three times a week. Now I'm thinking of getting tights (something I haven't worn since about 2000) so I can keep rockin' my freedom as the weather gets cooler.

The lesson here, I think, is that so often we tell ourselves what we can't do/shouldn't do because of our or others' outdated ideas of ourselves. People! I missed out on shorts because, decades after I made the decision to keep them under wraps, I figured that was still the best option for me. If I'd tried to wear shorts earlier, who knows when I would have realized that I didn't need to hide anymore.

So? Just do it! At least once every few years, see how it feels to show your flabby upper arms (been there; busted that fear with my sleeveless wedding dress two years ago), your raggedy feet, your varicose veined calves and yes, even your fat, imperfect knees.

One day you may find clothing that makes you feel good, even with your (former) dislikes flashing the world.

Another New Thing I'm Trying

I know that I can be negative. It's one of the things about my personality that haunts me most. I've been prone to depressed cynical-ness since I was a little kid.

So, in an effort to recognize good stuff more, I'm going to try bitching about what I need to bitch about...And then writing down an upside to the problem at hand.

It'll go like this: HUBS and I have very little money for groceries. The good thing about that is that I've had to get seriously creative and have come up with some cool little recipes all on my own.

See that photo above? I made that all by my lonesome! No cookbook, cooking show or semi-divine inspiration from Daisy. Here's what I did:

Heat enough olive oil in a large skillet to cover bottom. Slice 2 or 3 medium potatoes (I use Yukon Gold) to no more than 1/4 an inch thick and layer in pan with sliced onion, fresh basil, pepper, sea salt and deli sliced honey ham. Cook without turning until the bottom layer is nice and crispy, then, flip the whole thing over and let that side get golden. Feel free to add more olive oil if you think things are sticking to the pan. I usually flip it one more time to let the stuff in the center get crispy, and then I put a lid on it for about 10 minutes to make sure all the potatoes are done through.

While all that's cooking I put a bed of field greens or baby lettuce (I prefer baby lettuce) on plates, drizzle on some red wine vinegar and sprinkle on some cheese (parmesan, reggiano and asiago work well). When the potatoes are done, throw them on top and you're ready to eat! The whole thing takes about half an hour.

Chow down, lovelies!

Taking Care Of Business

Don't let his cool exterior fool you. Tux loves money.

So I got word from my temp agency today that the job will officially last 2 1/2 weeks (starting tomorrow...EEEEK!). We've got some things we definitely need to buy with that money a little at a time. Here's the list, so I don't forget important stuff (Or get my hands on a check and go Oooh, money! Must. Have. Expensive. Cheeses.).

Things To Get

1) 2 forms of birth control. Uh, since we're really strapped right now I have been without my standard, mandatory two birth control thingies: Nuva Ring and Conceptrol.

2) Giant litter box with lid. In the past three months we've gone through about four litter boxes. We're having logistical issues with liner ripping and size which have led to boxes being thrown out in anger because they're literally crapped up and to having to pick up loads of litter and doody off the basement floor. No more. We've got our eyes on a box at PetCo.

3) Water filter. Our faucet filter was supposed to be replaced early last month. We'll need to get that done now.

4) Pet meds/Tux's annual vet visit. We've got three cats to keep Revolutioned up. A six month supply lasts two months split among them. And? It's time for Tux to get all his shots.

5) Food. Oh God, y'all. We had to seriously truncate our grocery shopping last time. I had to forgo buying animal crackers, mayo and chips, and we still spent more money than we should have. I am going to buy some good food. And, yes, I will buy at least one expensive-ass cheese.

6) An item of clothing, possibly a blazer. The interview suit I got two years ago is way too baggy and unstructured on me now. I fully intend to have it tailored when I get something more permanent, but until then, I at least need a blazer that fits better and won't kill me in the heat.

7) Anniversary-worthy dinner out. We're not talking about spending 100 bucks, but at least 50. This will likely involve booze.

That'll probably about do it for sort-of-extraneous spending from my temp job. It feels good to know that I'll be contributing financially again. Fuck, it really feels good.

Cooking And Eating And Things

Fresh green beans, brown rice and pork chops. I killed it!

A couple of weeks ago I bitched about food/cooking/summertime heatwave stuff, and wouldn't you know it, just a couple of days later I made the fab meal above. Here's how I made it.

Green Beans
HUBS' parents had given these to us from their garden the day before, but I didn't want to boil them because A) that's how I always make them and B) we had just had them like that at his folks' house. I decided to fry them in margarine. I know, I know...It sounds like it's horrible for you. Well, it tasted fucking fantastic so let that be a consolation. I washed and snapped the beans while margarine was melting in the skillet, and added sea salt and cracked pepper once I put them in. As they cooked I chopped up some almonds and stirred them around with the beans. When that stuff was almost done I added light feta cheese to the pan so it would get all melty.

Pork Chops
Baking was out of the question since it was almost 100 degrees outside. (Yes, we have central air. Why do you ask?) I got another skillet, sprayed lightly with cooking spray, salted and peppered the chops and threw them in.

Brown Rice
While all this other wonderfulness was going on I cooked a pot of brown rice with two chicken bullion cubes for flavor. I think that little trick is one of the best culinary things I've come up with lately. You don't need to add anything else to that rice.

I am completely proud of this meal! And, I've made a few good ones since this, too. Of course, now we're mostly out of dinner-type food, and since I have to wait until HUBS gets paid to go shopping we had a different kind of dinner last night. It's what I like to call a Side Dish Dinner. This is where you doctor up easy side dishes as much as possible to make them dinner-worthy. We had mashed potatoes from two mixes (loaded baked potato and sour cream and chives flavors) with Kraft whole wheat mac & cheese (with Mexican corn, sun-dried tomatoes, hot sauce and chopped turkey pepperoni added). It was surprisingly filling and good.

How are you guys beating the heat in the kitchen these days?

Ahhh...

So ends an entire week of HUBS on vacation. He's quite the Type A personality, so we did spend last Monday, alone, at his office so he could finish a project that he felt was going to take over his thinking if it went undone while he tried to vacay.

As so often happens when I accompany HUBS to work, it turned into an hours long extravaganza. We spent 11 and a half hours there. Him working, me reading books, magazines and going through a collection of new links to see what I wanted to look into further. I actually got a lot done myself. After, at 2:30 in the morning because that's when we left his office, we went to Denny's for coffee and apple pie a la mode. Going anywhere at that hour feels like a little adventure, doesn't it?

It was good to have you home HUBS. We did way more stuff then I thought we would (I'll fill you guys in over the next week). Can't wait 'til next time.

Candy Good!!

MMMMMMMMMMMMMMM&M

Have you guys seen these? We tried them a couple of months ago and loved them. The ratio of pretzel to chocolate to candy is exactly right, plus there's a teeny bit of salt with the pretzel that makes everything pop. Yum!

HUBS has been buying an insane amount of candy lately, especially M&M's. I'm usually pretty good with eating my favorites (reds and blues - I swear they taste the best) and leaving the rest to him, but lately I've been M&Ming like a fiend, too. Not good.

Maybe it's backlash from when I was a kid and my mom never allowed me to have candy in the summer. Gum and mints were ok, but she was positive that anything else was bound to have worms in it. Apparently this happened a lot when she was a kid, so she finally learned her lesson. I have to say, there was one time my dad decided not to listen to her silly candy fears and bought a Bit-O-Honey. He took a bite and, sure enough, found a worm.

I just realized that story has no business in a supposedly appetizing post about good candy you should try. Oh well, here we are anyway.

Have a nice weekend!

Awesomeness is Awesome!

HUBS and friend. Let's call him Zombie Apocalypse.

You know how when you get back from vacation, and you spend a couple of days getting back into your routine (doing laundry, working with stupid people, making lunches...), it can feel like you were never gone at all? That's how I've been feeling this week, because Saturday was so much fun it felt like a vacation.

HUBS only has one friend, Zombie Apocalypse, from when he was growing up that he still keeps in contact with. About a month ago he let HUBS know that he and his wife would be heading through St. Louis on their way home to Ohio from Oklahoma, and asked if they could stay with us. Of course we said yes. HUBS and ZA haven't seen each other for, hold on now...15 YEARS!!

We were both looking forward to Saturday; it prompted me to clean some things I've been neglecting (blinds, walls, window sills, baseboards) and it's the only concrete opportunity we've had lately to socialize with people who are not family or ourselves.

Anyway, the day was so much fucking fun! I think I was nervous, because I barely got any sleep the night before, but we all got along like we see each other all the time. I'd never met either ZA or his wife, Gentle Teacher, but everything was just plain awesome!



We went to:

The Gumbo Shop for lunch.

The St. Louis Art Museum, The Old Cathedral and The Arch for touristy stuff.

Ted Drewes for Route 66 historical frozen custard goodness.

Miso for sushi dinner.

There was lots of talking, laughing, political commiserating and bonding. Gentle Teacher had brought her do along and we let him stay in our bathroom while we did our running around. I was a lot calmer about having a dog in the house when she told us he was a therapy dog for autistic children; I knew he'd be well trained and unlikely to tear anything up.



I swear, this is one of the best, fullest days we've had in a long, LONG time. I want to know more people and do more things with them! I want to talk to folks and have them in my house! I want to socialize like a normal adult! I want to have mutual friends with HUBS so we can go on double dates! Double dates!! I want to have fun like this on a weekly basis!

WEEKLY!!! Yea! Yea! Yea! Yea! Yea!

Red-Haired Temptress

Oh, God, y'all. I think I love Kathy Griffin. Have you ever watched My Life on the D List? Or seen her do comedy? Well, I never paid much attention to the woman until our honeymoon. HUBS was having an off day, not feeling particularly touristy and wanting to stay in the hotel and chill a bit. This was totally cool with me because a) it was a hot-ass bitch in South Carolina in July if you weren't under an umbrella on the beach and b) we don't have cable at home, so I finally had more than six channels of nothing to flip through.

In my rabid flipping I came upon a marathon of D List on Bravo. I was immediately taken by how goofy and honest she was. Although, if being on the D List in Hollywood gets you a fucking HUGE mansion like that...well, I think that might not be all bad. I bet Kathy has more than THREE closets in her house.

About a month after we got back from the vacay, I looked her up on You Tube and watched a marathon of her comedy specials. Freakin' hilarious. Then, a week ago Friday, I woke up at 4:15 in the morning to pee and couldn't get back to sleep. I started watching more D List on You Tube and guess what? I was transfixed. Get this, I literally spent NINE AND A HALF STRAIGHT HOURS watching her show. I only got up to eat and pee more. The only think that broke my stride was taking a shower at 3:30pm.

By the time HUBS got home around 6, I had already collapsed into the bed. All laughed out and ready for some serious sleep.

Why do you lure me with your devilish siren song, Kathy? WHY?