Friday, June 28, 2013

Ya might be southern if...

Yay it's Friday!! This week went by much quicker than last.

Enter a GIF displaying how freaking excited I am for it to be Friday.........


Yesterday I was browsing blogs and found this gem. I read a lot of her posts and whatnot, but her latest one made me smile. It had a quiz posted on an online store's site, Bourbon and Boots (don't click if you have an online shopping addiction like me), and I couldn't help but take it. I like to say I'm half southern, but a definite country girl. And considering my results, I guess I'd be invited to sit on the porch :)

From Bourbon and Boots--
We’ve had a lot of border states claiming the South lately, and we’ll admit, Southern-ness is largely a state of mind. So how can you know for sure if you’re a Southerner? Take our completely fabricated Southern citizenship test, and see if you make the cut.

You’re a bona fide Southerner if you answer yes all of the following statements. If you answer “yes” to all but two or three, don’t worry, we’ll still let you on the porch.

1. Buying alcohol on Sunday is a royal pain in the ass. UMMMM yes what the heck is with this phenomenon in the South??? It became habit for me in Memphis to have to make a trip to the liquor store not on Sundays. Here in California, liquor stores are sketchy little shacks run by middle-easterners and a really good place to get shot at. You just buy your liquor/wine/beer all at the same place: The grocery store.
2. I once parked a car in the backyard for a week, and it was nearly overtaken by kudzu. Yep. Try a whole freaking summer. I left my old car Preston (a Honda accord) parked in my dad's lower driveway in Johnson City, Tennessee, for the summer. Good ole dad didn't bother to take it out once the whole time, and when I got in it to pack my stuff, it was infested with CARPENTER ANTS. I mean INFESTED. Thousands. All over. I had to take every box that was already in the trunk (the whole summer) out, shake everything off (not an easy task when you're terrified of bugs), and drive to home depot (with the little fuckers crawling all over the place) to get Raid since my dad was gone and my stepmom was working. THEN the next day I had an 8 hour drive back to Memphis during which I kept a can of raid in my cupholder and killed an ant every half hour or so. It was super fun. I had to bomb the car once I got settled in Memphis.
3. When it comes to real estate, a pecan tree in the yard is a valuable selling point. For sure. I love me some pralines.
4. If everyone is driving very slowly, it must be Sunday. Um or every day?
5. My state has a team in the SEC. Try 2 (when I was in college)
6. Gambling. We all do it, we just don’t talk about it. Check.
7. If you’re over the age of 7, sugar does not belong on grits. Heck no. Put some shrimp, cheese, and spices in those bad boys.
8. At least once in my life, I have been the deserving victim of a “whipping” with a “switch” of my own choosing. True. Even though I grew up in San Diego I still got these. It's not the norm, though, don't worry.
9. That fizzy sweet drink is pronounced “coke.” And so is that one. Yeah. I never conformed on this one. I stuck to saying soda and getting made fun of every single time. Coke is coke. Sprite is sprite. Dr. Pepper is Dr. Pepper. Sorry I'm not sorry!
10. At least one member of my household regularly hunts. Yep.
11. I have ridden in the back of a pickup truck … as a young child. Of course. I also learned how to drive a stick shift in my dad's truck on a mountain road before I had a permit.
12. There’s unsweet tea, and then there’s regular tea. Haha YES! If you ask for Sweet Tea in California the waitress will say "we have regular tea and sweetener?" No, dummy. Not the same thing.
13. I do not live in Oklahoma. Lol correct.
14. I have seen numerous episodes of “Hee Haw.” Actually no. Oops.
15. At least one thing in my home is monogrammed. Uh duh.
16. Banana pudding is a requirement at any potluck dinner. If I wasn't completely revolted by Bananas, sure.
17. St. Louis-style barbecue does not count. No it most certainly does NOT. Memphis BBQ is the only real BBQ.
18. The car in front of me has its blinker on. It probably won’t turn any time soon. Nope. And if a car in front of you is suddenly stopping in the middle of the road (not in the turning lane, even though there is one), they're probably about to turn.
19. There’s a very important difference between cornbread and hush puppies. Was this really ever a question? Hush puppies are one of my favorite foods on the face of the planet. Cornbread's cool and all..but it's definitely not the same thing.
20. I have seen Graceland, and it was good. Ummm like the place? Yes I've been. I lived in Memphis. But this is phrased more like it's a show or something? Hm. But anyway. Graceland was actually cooler than I thought it would be. It is in the HOOD though. Fair warning.

If you live/have lived in the south, definitely take this. It's sure to inspire some silly stories and I'd love to read them!!

So now I'm sitting at my desk, looking through insurance options. Ugggggh. This is how I feel about enrolling in insurance...
It's expensive. I get my birth control without insurance for $9/month (and it would probably be more if I enroll in one of our options). I'm broke as a joke as it is. What are your thoughts on insurance??? I really feel like by the end of the year, when I can enroll again, I'll have been promoted and making more money, so I might just hold off. Or just enroll in dental, since I really need to get my teeth cleaned.

Now for a little rant. We all know I love my job, and most of the people I work with. However. There is a certain someone who works in a different department as me but we still have to communicate often, who was hired the same time as me. We had our orientation together and right away she just rubbed me the wrong way. I won't say her name but it's a name that she insists on people pronouncing a certain way, which to me is just obnoxious. And it's spelled like it always is and I've never heard anyone insist on it being said phonetically. I would liken it to if my name was spelled Nichole, and I insisted on people pronouncing it "nitch-ole". See what I'm sayin'??? IT'S ANNOYING.
Pretty sure that ^^^ is what I looked like when she first introduced herself to me. And then her department's supervisor actually sent an email out to the ENTIRE HOTEL explaining how to properly say her name, y'all! I'm not lying!! I would copy and paste the email if it wouldn't be violating a bunch of HR rules. Anyway. She's also very pretentious and snobby, but fake nice. So I fake nice back to her. But last night she crossed the line. I came into work this morning and there was sticky shit on my keyboard. I thought, wtf? I didn't eat anything sticky yesterday. Then I went to log into MY computer and her name was in the login username box. BUSTED, bitch.

I so wish I could actually do that. Am I right in feeling annoyed/like my personal space was invaded??? But do I say something to my supervisor about it or would that make me look like a brat?? HELP ME.

Alright fools, that's all I got for today. Tonight we're taking Caitlin to Orfila to wine-taste and then they have an outdoor movie, which I'm super excited about. Except the movie they're showing is Almost Famous, and since I have a 4-year-old's attention span I'll probably fall asleep or have to get up and do something else because I know that movie doesn't interest me. Oh well.

I digress.

Have a happy Friday, everyone!!


Thursday, June 27, 2013

My size is cute

Ahhh it's almost Friday!!! Heck yesssss.

So good news, I weighed myself this morning and was down to 182. That means I'm officially back to 20 pounds lost (since January. Eff). Technically it's 21, but whatever. I'm happy. Now I just need to maitain it without any gym time this weekend. And wine tasting. And Mexican food. I'm pretty set on getting fajitas tonight when I take Caitlin out for real Mexican food, so hopefully I stick with that. And don't give in to getting fried fish tacos or something.

Anyhoo. Since I can't afford the 4th of July 5k, I've been looking into some other ones. There's a color-type-run in August here in San Diego that I have a 15% off code for thanks to a local blogger, and then in October there's a redneck 5k................yeah....check it out. That one is pricy, #1, and #2 I was already planning on a weekend girls trip to Palm Springs for my birthday that weekend. So we'll see. But it looks like so much fun! And let's face it, that's right up my alley.

Anyway. I just wanted to give everyone a little motivation from Honey Boo Boo, one of my favorite people ever.

So true.

Also....the 4TH OF JULY IS NEXT WEEK!!! It's my favorite holiday of the year!!! Time to celebrate the birth of this great nation that I love so much and be thankful for our freedom. I'm so excited!!!! I've been scouring pinterest for cheap recipes, and I found these:



They seem pretty easy. Famous last words, though. Anyway. I think I could do it. And it doesn't require a whole lot of ingredients I don't already have.

I'll definitely be going to the beach, drinking lots of white wine, and eating yummy food. Haven't exactly figured out the details, but I know it will consist of those bad boys ^^^.  What are your plans for the 4th???

Alright peeps. That's all for now!

Tomorrow's Friday!!!


Wednesday, June 26, 2013

Lots to holla about today

Happy Hump Day!!!

Yesterday was a helluva day. I worked from 8-4:30, sat in an hour of traffic getting home to pick up Caitlin, and drove right back to work! But it was OK. I was staying in the hotel for free. I got a free night, free dinner for 2, a free movie, and free breakfast this morning. I also get a spa treatment that I'll get next week (hopefully).

We got upgraded to a room on the 3rd floor (top floor) with a view and a fireplace! Hollaaaaa


Yes, we were watching Storage Wars.

We had a balcony.
We went to dinner at our restaurant, Kitchen 1540. It was AMAZING. I got Beef Tenderloin (right) and Caitlin got Lamb (left). Soooo yummmyyyyyy.


Then we went and sat in the hot tub for over an hour. We chatted it up with some nice people from New Mexico. Look at how beautiful this place is


And I ate good this morning! I got an egg white ommelette that had crab meat (YUM), avocado (DOUBLE YUM) and cheese and tomatoes. It was scrumptuous.


Ahhhh. I just love where I work. And the other day my supervisor actually brought up me moving up soon! Fingers crossed!!!!

Now onto my Sweet Summertime 7 update (finally). Sorry for the hiatus last week.

Sweet Summertime 7:
A Heart Like Mine
<div align="center"><a href="http://ahlmblog.blogspot.com/" title="A Heart Like Mine"><img src="http://i1161.photobucket.com/albums/q512/nmdwards/SS7.png" alt="A Heart Like Mine" style="border:none;" /></a></div>


  1. Run a 5k: OK. I feel the need to divulge some personal info. I had a *pretty hefty* fradulent charge on my DEBIT CARD this weekend. Thanks for that, Walmart. So my bank account is basically frozen until I get that money back and all my payments (car payment, credit cards, etc) have cleared. I'm using my credit card for everything and it is terrifying. I hate it. I haven't registered for the 4th of July 5k and it's $50. Soooo. Long story short I don't have the money to do it. So now I have to find another one to do.
  2. Get down to 165 lbs : I weighed myself yesterday morning and it was 185.
  3. Get down to a size 8-10 and Medium : Workin' on it.  
  4. Learn portion control: I'm actually making progress here!!!
  5. Do a fitness class every week : Haven't been to the gym. Once Caitlin is gone I'll be able to go again though. Until then I've just been running outside.
  6. Feel comfortable in a bikini in a picture without a cover-up :Workin' on it.
  7. Go on a hike at least once a month : This is turning out to be harder than I thought. But I have to make time.
I'm also linking this up for Weigh-In Wednesday.

Pretty Strong Medicine

And, in the spirit of Weigh In Wednesday and everyone's fitness posts...

When someone says they actually enjoy working out



Hahaha sorry, friends, I couldn't resist.

Now real quick I just need to get on my soapbox for a minute about some current events.

This football player who allegedly killed another football player (semi-pro). He just signed a $40MILLION DOLLAR CONTRACT TO PLAY A FREAKING SPORT FOR A LIVING. And he threw it all away because of some stupid fight he got into at a night club???? (Allegedly). This is how I feel about that:

Preach, Theresa.
 You know, there are men and women who put their life on the line every day defending our freedom, sacrificing extensive time away from their family and friends and loved ones, and what do we pay them? Not even a fraction of what that prick makes. It's disgusting. Our culture seriously amazes me some days.

Oh. And the whole DOMA/Prop 8 thing....all I really have to say about that is, if this means legally married gay couples get to pay the same taxes as the rest of us, I'm thrilled for them. Hollaaaaaaa!!! <rant>And for the record, I really just wish people would read the news or make some attempt at educating themselves on this issue before they post a facebook status about how prop 8 was 'overturned' (it wasn't) and all of DOMA has been done away with (it hasn't). It is a victory for gay rights, sure, but face reality people. They have a long fight ahead of them still. < /rant>

And one final thing...it's good, I promise...remember my little issue I was having?? Well, my 2-week-long period has finally ended!! Holllaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!! It actually ended two nights ago. But I didn't want to jinx it. Now it's gone.

OK peeps, I hope everyone is having just a fab hump day while I work until 9:30 tonight. Woohoo.

Love y'all!

Tuesday, June 25, 2013

The time I walked in on my dad...

Happy Tuesday, dudes.

Today I'm linking up with Holly and Amy for Vacation Dreaming. I love this linkup because I realllllllllly wanna vacationnnnnnnn!!!! I can't tell you how difficult it is to go to work at a 5 star resort on the beach every day and go home to a trailer park. Yup. That's my life!!! (Side note: Tonight I get to do my familiarity stay so I get to stay in the hotel [with my visiting sorority sister]  eat at the restaurant, do whatever the eff I want, and check out tomorrow. Then come to work haha. And I get a spa treatment too but we're holding off on that).
button

Anyway. First, I just want to tell a funny story of one vacation I went on with my dad and stepmom. First of all, it was my high school graduation present. I told my dad I wanted to go to Europe, like Greece or Italy or Spain. That then turned into a European cruise (dad's idea) so we could take in more sights. Then he realized how expensive it would be to buy plane tickets to GET to the cruise, so my trip to Spain turned into a Caribbean cruise. Not my idea at all. I also thought it was strange my dad was so gung ho about a cruise since the last cruise he and my stepmom went on he bitched the entire time about how annoying everyone was and how he had to dress up for dinner and it was too crowded and on and on and on he went. But I went with it. We got to our room (which thank God had a balcony [you know, in case I needed to jump off it]) and I realized I'd be sleeping on a teeny little mattress that FOLDED DOWN FROM THE CIELING above my dad and stepmom. Cool, guys.

My dad continued to complain the entire time, referring to all the other cruisers as "lemmings" (the little rodents that all follow each other off a cliff) who can't think for themselves and of course he complained we wouldn't let him wear his crocs to the dining room, then he offended another family at our dinner table in a drunken stupor, and THEN...this is the kicker, y'all................he sent me to get my nails done (my one and only present the entire trip) and asked how long I thought it would last. I didn't think too far into that since we had to be at dinner shortly after, and I thought he was just being a planner (wrong). I said about 45 minutes. I guess I came back 40 minutes later and the sign on the door said "please service." I swung the door open and heard my stepmom laughing hysterically and saw my dad's naked ass fly off the other side of the bed. Then he said "what's the sign on the door say?!" And I said "service please (you fucking idiot)" and that's when he realized he'd put the wrong sign on the door. I didn't speak to either of them the rest of the night.

This is the only picture I have from that trip. There are more, I just don't have them:

Try not to get blinded by my translucent legs.
So so far that's the worst vacation I've been on. Luckily my dad and stepmom redeemed themselves two summers later by renting a beach house in Charleston for a week after my sophomore year of college. It. Was. Gorgeous.


I did a lot of this...

...collected lots of sanddollars....

...and found a sea sponge! It's still on display in my dad's house.

That's some historic lighthouse. Notice how it leans. BTW, can
you tell I started tanning by this point???
 And on our way out of town we stopped to visit the Angel Oak. It's this ancient massive oak tree and it was pretty cool:
And now for some places I'd just like to go...


Monterrosso's Beach in Italy. Still never got to go to Europe.

St. Lucia

Hawaiiiiiiii!!! I wanna go so badddd!!!!
Ahhhh. Vacation.

I'll take lots of pictures for you all tonight. I really do work at a beautiful place.

On that note, I'll shut up now and start reading about everyone else's vacations!!!

Ta ta for now, friends.

Monday, June 24, 2013

Whatta weekend

Well it's Monday.......and already.....

Oh well.

Let's discuss my fun weekend!!

Sami's Shenanigans

Friday turned around for the most part and by Saturday morning I was all peachy again. Still an emotional trainwreck thanks to my period, but I had it together mostly haha. I made those cherry beer-ga-ritas and spike sweet tea (sweet tea from scratch, rum, and fresh squeezed lemon juice) on Friday night with my best friend, and then we watched Miss Congeniality. I just love that movie.


Gliiiiide!!!




She's beauty and she's grace...
Love. Love. Love.

Anyway. Saturday morning I got my nails did by Olga, and I went with ombre!!


I love them.
And then it was time for Countryfest!!!


Not quite sure what was happening here...

But I still like him ok.


He actually found some people tailgating who were doing arm wrestling contests. Some 50 year old guy was a reigning champ. The friendboy managed to tie him. Pretty impressive for the old guy. But seriously look at the friendboys arms...nice, right?

By the way, my shirt was from Sugar Love Boutique. I used the Skinnymeg code and got THIRY PERCENT OFF. Hollaaaaa. And I love the shirt and got tons of compliments.

So then yesterday I literally sat on the couch and cuddled with Winnie all day. And I watched that lunatic tightrope across the Grand Canyon. Did anyone else watch that shit???


No. Fucking. Thank you.
Seriously. He's a complete psychopath. I mean, props to him. But really. I did appreciate his thanking Jesus the entire walk, though. BTW, someone explain to me the point of having a paramedic stationed at the bottom? You know, 1500 feet down??? Pretty sure if he fell that paramedic wouldn't have been able to help. And he said his next walk was going to be between two skyscrapers in NYC. That walk across the Grand Canyon was taller than the Empire State Building. Not impressed, Nik. Come up with something better please.

I digress.

So in other news, I'm pretty pissed off at Personalized From Me To You. I paid $70 for a monogrammed otterbox (that I love) and it CRACKED within 30 days of me receving it. I called them over a week ago to find out they will only communicate via email, so I emailed them. Twice. And wrote on their facebook wall. And have commented on two instagram pictures they've posted. Still nothing. Finally I dug around on their website and found a form to fill out, but it won't let me fill it out now because the 30 day period has passed. But guess what? I could have submitted it within 30 days IF THEY HAD RESPONDED TO ME. I still haven't received any response. So I filed a claim with the BBB yesterday. Sorry I'm not sorry. That is bullshit.

Wanna know what else is bullshit? Walmart just volunteered my debit card for someone else's purchase of EIGHTY DOLLARS over the weekend. My card is now locked, I have to go to the bank, and I have to wait 10 days to get my money back. Fuck you, Walmart.

Anyway. It will be better soon. Tonight one of my sorority sisters from Memphis is coming to visit for a week! I'm so excited. I haven't seen her in forever!! That will make this Monday a lot better :)

I hope you all had a fabulous weekend!!!


Friday, June 21, 2013

I'm lettin' the housewives take this one.

It's Friday, fools!!
So. I'm feeling extremely bleh today. I definitely called my best friend crying last night before I fell asleep. I'm not going to go into too much detail because I'm really hoping the reason I'm such a basketcase is because of my hormones clearly being 10 kinds of effed up (otherwise I wouldn't be on day 13 of my period!), not because anything in my life is really that bad.

Anyway. I'm going to let the Real Housewives explain everything:

In regards to my period...
It's making me feel like this ALL. THE. TIME. ...

And then when something little itty bitty happens, I turn into this...

So what do I need for this weekend???


Duh.
 Because, well...
And this is what I plan on happening at Countryfest tomorrow...


I hope you all enjoyed that. Thank you, http://realitytvgifs.tumblr.com/.

Sorry this was such a downer post. The gifs were my attempt at making it not-so-depressing.

BTW, last night was our last kickball game of the season (which I played in less than half the games, thanks to my toe breaking). We played the #1 team, and they were a bunch of douches. Seriously, you're #1 in a for-fun KICKBALL league. Get over yourselves. Wanna know how important that would be to me?

Yep, it sure is.

Needless to say we lost 7-1. Not as bad as lots of other teams have lost to them, so that's nice, right?

Well. I guess that's all I got at this point. I'm pretty excited to get my nails done tomorrow. I feel naked without shellac on my fingas. And if that's the highlight of my weekend I might just spiral into a depression. I'll stop being a debbie downer now and let you all have a wonderful Friday and weekend.