Oscar Meyer, meet Oscar De La Renta

Tonight we had Oscar Meyer wieners and watched the Oscars. Here's the proof.

Does anyone else think this is funny besides me?

Anyway, I need to catch up on my movie watching. Slumdog Millionaire KILLED tonight. Haven't seen it yet. Other Oscar-worthies I'd like to see: Rachel Getting Married, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, The Reader, Revolutionary Road, Milk, Frost Nixon and Doubt.

I have seen Changeling, The Duchess, Wall-E and a few others. I liked all of them, so maybe those Oscar people do know what they are talking about.. I guess I'll find out and report back.

The Recording Process

The Funktion has been recording here at the house for the past month. (I will blame this for my lack of posts.) The house has been a bit of a construction zone, and I am just now remembering to post pictures! They have started some mixing, but they still have a little way to go. "Dead Men are Heavier than Broken Hearts" is going to be amazing.

Here is Jackson, working the Bass. (He is set up in Corey's room. Their sound booth, if you will.)
Mark in the basement. He also has keyboard tracks on the album. (pardon the washer in back.)

Corey set up on the bumper pool table. (I like the Foosball handle in the foreground of the pic.)

Drew on drums in the practice room. (it's under construction from the leak. Aren't those walls pretty?)

All in all, I think the album is going to be incredible. It's a mix of Nightlife and Prayer, so it's pretty rockin, but has that mellowness you can groove to. Here's to mix down!

Ladies Lunching

Mom and I went to see "Taken" a few weeks ago. We usually set a date once or twice a month to just have lunch and see a movie. We ate lunch at Ruby Tuesday in Oak Ridge and headed to the movie afterwards. It was great! Here we are en route to Ruby's. We like to be goofy. Especially when we know people are watching...

I had to take the opportunity to post a "mommy and me" picture. Our dates are so rare these days between my work schedule and hers, so I really wanted the chance to post one of us. Love you mama!

Passed..... Out

Mark passed his test for work! I am so proud of him. He really hit the books and worked hard. He was pretty anxious about it as well. When he got home on Wednesday night he told me he made the highest grade in the class. There were some people who didn't pass. He felt bad about them and was worrying a little, so I took him out to celebrate. I also made him sit still for a Hip-hip-hooray picture.

He really hates it when I do this, but he's a good sport. : )
Congrats, honey! I knew you'd be just fine!

He started 4 10's this week and it has really hit him hard. He has to be at work by 6 just to get checked in. Glad we celebrated last week. We'd have to hit the early bird special at Shoney's if we had waited, he's going to bed so early! He gets Friday off now, so that's a definite plus!

Just Another Saturday Night

It was just another Saturday night at home.... until Courtney showed up with her bottle of Jack Daniels. We were bored and Corey had asked her the previous week to give him a haircut. (He had gotten some new clippers for Christmas.) So we figured why not? Her mom cuts hair. Her sister cuts hair. It must be in her DNA somewhere, right? The video is pretty short and a bit blurry. (The camera man had been nipping out the bottle a little as well.)

Well, it turned out a little short. Poor Corey has been wearing a toboggan. Can you blame him?

Ambien Update

Mom is fine. I called her early this morning and she she said she didn't really remember a whole lot about the previous night. Whew. She's also calling the doctor to find out about changing the nightime meds.

Good for you momma!

Late Night Phone Calls

Have you ever gotten a phone call late at night, and you just knew the news wasn't going to be good? That's what happened to me tonight.

After a lovely dinner of Duck rolls at Beth's, Mark and I came home to settle in for the night. I got my phone out to check and see if Holly had called me, as she had been en route to Georgia today, to say that she had made it safely there. I did have a missed call, but it wasn't from her.
My grandfather had called, and he left me a voice mail. He never calls me. The call was from his cell phone. Even more strange. My heart stopped for a moment. I get the nerve to check the voicemail. It went something like this:

"Your mother cleaned the floors and did the wash today. She was busy all day long. She worked very hard. She ate a lot of cake. I took a nap and when I woke up she was in the kitchen floor. She said she was dizzy. I made her use grandmothers' walker to get to the bedroom. She also said she took her nighttime medicine. Just thought you should know. Bye."

Dear God. Please let me be dreaming. What kind of message is that? I call my grandfather's cell phone back. (An oddity in itself.) He answered and told me the same story again. I asked where my mom was now and he said "She's sleeping."
I asked him if he thought I should come up and he said, "No, I think I was just a little excited when I left the message. I think she will be fine, but you can come sleep on the sofa if you want to."

What to do? I told him to go check on her again while I discussed meds with Mark. Mark thinks it's just the "nighttime medicine" doing it's job. His actual words were, I believe she's having an Ambien Trip. He also said that sleep walking and dizziness are side effects of Ambien. Poor mama. Cant sleep with the meds, can't sleep without them. anyway, I called him back again and he said she was fine and still sleeping. Hopefully that is all there will be to this story.

Except for the fact that I am still worried and now I can't sleep.

Bad Behavior

Have you ever had a job where part of the job was for everyone to talk about everyone else? Pretending to be best friends when around one another and then dogging the shit out of them as soon as they are out of earshot? This is the job I am referring to as Teenage Mini Drama Job. I wont say where, but I am currently working two jobs. OK, three technically, but one of my jobs has definitely fallen into this category. I am so sick of hearing about everyone and their slacker habits. Ugh.

Which brings me to my next point. Am I a slacker too? Are they talking shit about me when I leave the room? If they are, it's only to make sure I fit in, because I am definitely the one doing all the work, which disqualifies me as a slacker. Ugh. That is so off putting.

Sense of Smell

Do you know what I am talking about here? Ladies, I think you must.

In an effort to be a stellar best friend, I spent the night with Courtney at her parents house on Saturday because she was looking after their dog while they took her grandparents back to South Carolina. She didn't want to stay in the big house alone, and has granted me this favor several times when Mark was out gigging, so I really couldn't turn her down. The tricky part was we still have three puppies at home and we couldn't leave them alone. Mark was going to have to stay behind this time.

I hate spending the night away from him. Even if I am in my own bed, it's still not the same. I miss curling my feet around his, preparing myself for sleep; curling into "my nook" with his arm cradled around me, but most of all, I miss his smell. It's the signature of my sleep, and I do not fare well in a nocturnal state without it. I have gotten far too used to, or spoiled, if you will, by his scent.

Nothing comes close to it. It's the essence of him, or maybe of us, that lulls me to sleep every night. Scent is a powerful thing. It makes us comfortable. I never got comfortable on those 700 count sheets, in the queen size bed that night. Not even with the 12 pillows I had tucked around me for "fake" support. I missed Mark and nothing was going to make me feel better.

I came home early Sunday morning. The first thing I did? Curled up on his lap while he was playing video games and took a nap. I breathed in his scent and drifted happily off to la la land...

February's Loves

Things that I am enjoying this month:

1. The freakishly warm weather, but technically its only been warm yesterday and today
2. Rereading some old favorites: Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse and Breaking Dawn
3. The small boom in Massage Business
4. The idea that spring is just around the corner
5. Tanning- always makes me feel good.
6. Saving Abel- Addicted: it's vaguely dirty
7. Liam Neeson in "Taken"
8. Grey's Anatomy. It's finally getting interesting again.
9. My favorite pair of old jeans. They almost have holes in the knees.
10. Homemade Double Chocolate Brownies with Icing. Mmmmm...

What are you enjoying?

Itchy and scratchy. me and myself.

So today, a friend of mine asked me, "Hey! Don't you love the snow?" Let me get back to you on that.

We were supposed to get a bunch of snow about 3 times this week, and I have only seen flurries. Nothings laying on the ground and school has been called off. WTF? Sure, sure I get it. Being out of school is fun, and I am sure some back roads had icy spots, but with all this buzz about snow, you'd think we would have gotten some accumulation already. Jeez.

All I've gotten from our imaginary snow is really dry skin, chapped face and lips, and 6 dogs who would rather be inside tearing paper off the roll in the bathroom and stringing it about the house like someone put crack in their kibble.

Is it spring yet? I am actually looking forward to allergy season.

No, I hate imaginary snow.

For Dad...

Here is what I am missing...yesterday, today and tomorrow. That goofy grin....

Saturday was rough. That anniversary always is. January 31 marked 3 years since my fathers passing. I really tried to make the best of the day, by honoring him in a way I felt happy and comfortable doing. My sister and I traveled to Books a Million and purchased children's books to donate to the Kingston Public Library in memory of my dad, Jeff Metcalf. We took some scrapbooking paper and made a message to tape into the front of the books. We made the journey together, and all in all it was a nice way to spend the day. Much better than the past two years when I spent the day under the covers crying and feeling sorry for myself. It's a step in the right direction, but it was still really tough. I thought time was supposed to heal all wounds? Isn't three years long enough? I suppose not. I never want to forget him, just the pain of the whole ordeal. Yes, Saturday was rough. Perhaps the pain never truly leaves us, but I think at least I am managing it in a more positive light this year.

For my Dad, I miss you everyday, not just days like Saturday. I still love you so much. You'll always be the man who loved me first. Love and Kisses, your little princess....

Superbowl Highlights

For me, the best thing about the Superbowl is usually the commercials. Unless I have a team favorite who made it all the way there, I gear up for the commercials. Which is odd, to me, because I follow Tennessee Football very regularly. No matter HOW BAD THE SEASON IS, and I don't leave the TV except for commercials. Weird. Anyway, I spent "game time" this year, going to the bathroom, getting a fresh drink or playing with the cutie pie nephew and "Commercial time" trying to compile a list of my favorites. You can see any of these at http://www.nbc.com/ if you happened to miss them. Pepsi and Doritos were really killing it this year. Here they are from bottom to top. Enjoy.

* Honorable Mention: Budweiser: Show Off
6. Bridgestone: Mr and Mrs Potato Head
5. Cheetos: Pigeons: Give Daddy a kiss
4. Pepsi: I'm Good!
3. Doritos: Luck Ran Out
2. Bud Light: Swedish Conan
1. Doritos: Free chips, but no Promotion.


*This one isn't really funny, just cute. Love those Clydesdale's! There's another one with Clydesdale's about Daisy and the Circus, if you are a lover of these beauties, like me.

Happy Superbowl!

Can Steve Martin revive SNL?

The answer from my Magic 8 Ball: outlook not so good. I barely made it through the horrible digital short about "Laser Cats" before politely bowing out. I thought Steve had standards! Kristin Wig is the only female in the opening credits, and she's hit or miss a lot of the time. Where are the funny ladies? I miss Tina Fey and Amy Phoeler and Sherri O'Terry. Hell, I miss Will Ferrell too, and they weren't even on the cusp when Saturday Night Live was really good. When is SNL going to be something I look forward to again??