Life Advice

That's right everyone.  I am going to dispense some life advice on y'all.  You ready for this?

Here ya go:

One of my good friends sent this to me, and while I can see that it could be an advertisement for rapists, just hear me out.

When I was kind of tired Saturday night, and was ready to go home, I just went with it.  I loved getting to hang out into the wee hours with new friends.

When I thought that I was going to lose my cool at work, because some people don't have respect for other people, I just took a deep breath and went with it.

Sometimes, it is probably easier to just "go with it," than it is to fight about something.  In my line of work, I listen to people complain on the daily.  I'm pretty sure that is in my job description, but hey, when I think about it, I am their only advocate.  It is up to me to make sure that they are taken care, so I just have to go with it.

When someone asks you to meet them for a drink -- just go with it.  You never know what kind of shenanigans you'll get to see or friendships you'll forge.

Again, sometimes you'll just find yourself way too tired to fight back, and those things that you are trying to hang onto?  Sometimes not worth it and it'd be better to just "go with it."  I've said it many times before on here; people enter and leave your life for a reason.  If you put up a gigantic wall for fighting -- you'll never get to open yourself up for the things that could happen if you just went with it.

I'm not saying be complacent or an asshole when it comes to this -- just every once in a while, break through the barrier and just go with it.

100 Dishes In Alabama

I had contemplated for all of a day and half about taking a blogging hiatus.  That was just a fleeting thought, obviously, because I'm back.  I got way too into the soccer game on Sunday night; more than I thought I would, and then decided that watching Moonstruck for the millionth time was way more important than blogging.

Then, with my good intentions, I brought my laptop to work yesterday, but was so busy, I worked right through lunch, left the laptop at work, and just said, "well, eff this."

I am clearly a day behind on blogging about my weekend, so here goes.

Saturday morning, we got up earlier than normal and decided to go running.  I'm talking at 7 in the morning folks, and just so you know, it's still humid as hell and running still sucks.  After that, we decided to go to Pepper Place Market.  I was in search for another succulent wife for Antoine, but alas, they only thing my little stand had that day was some blackberries.  And even though they looked awesome, they didn't make a suitable wife for succulent Antoine, but we did get to visit the 100 Dishes in Alabama exhibit, which was awesome!

It was a really tiny exhibit, so it took about 20 minute to walk through the whole thing.

After that, I was about to eat my arm, so we grabbed some pork sliders and a cinnamon roll from the jim n nick's stand and also grabbed an iced coffee.  I also didn't know that Octane was a sister company of Jim N Nick's...so there's that too.

That night we got to meet up with Nadine and her hubs, Chris, for beers at World of Beer, then dinner at Jack Brown's followed by late night cocktails at Crestwood Tavern.  We were up till 2am.  2am.  Which made it completely acceptable for me to lay down and watch TV all day.

It was an awesome weekend and Nadine and Chris are super awesome people.  I really think everyone needs to have more weekends like that.

Father Memories

Since I was my normal self and loafed around the house on Thursday instead of doing a blog post, I missed out on getting to do a Father's Day post.

Well, better late than never they always say right?

I won't get all sappy and junk on the blog, but I know my dad loves me and only wants what's best for me.  He's an awesome dad (even to his new puppy, Rosie), even though he did, in fact, spoil the crap out of me and my sister.

He's a great person and an awesome dad, so what better way to celebrate with some awesome old pictures?

I don't know why I do this sometimes; I know that he has way more embarrassing pictures of me than I have of him.

One day, I know he's just going to put them all on the internet.  I'm waiting for it.

Anyway, love you dad!  Hope you had a happy father's day!

On Being 30: The Things I Know

I have been 30 for ohhh, about five months.  I believe that gives me some authority to share what I have learned (or maybe already knew) while in these five months.

* Your dog will love you more than anyone possibly can.  They love you no matter what.  Everyone should own a dog at some point in time.

that face though...

*  One or two really great friends is way better than having a million acquaintances.  And it doesn't matter what part of life these people came to you in; high school college, work, whatever.  Quality over quantity, they always say.

*  It's perfectly okay to drink an entire bottle of wine in a night, and then open a second one if you feel like it.  Bonus points if it's been a super bad day, and you're in the bath tub belting out Adele.  

*  Trying to be the winner in an argument all the time is pointless.  You end up hurting people or getting hurt, and honestly is it worth it?  I'm not saying to not fight for something you believe it, but if the argument is over something of little importance, just suck it up and admit defeat.

*  Tell the people you love that you love them, before you can't.

*  A wise friend told me a couple days ago, "Like what you like."  

*  There is nothing wrong with buying second-hand.  They have got a ton of good shit at Goodwill, and if you're fortunate enough to have one in an affluent area of town, a pair of American Eagle jeans will run you $12.  You can also get books for a quarter.  A quarter! 

*  Travel to new places, but always have your old stand-by.  

*  Root loudly and proudly for your team.  Those who understand will love you, and those who don't will never understand.

*  Exercise is a necessary evil.

*  Don't let people tell you "Put your camera away,"  Those are always the people that want to see the pictures first.

*  Elementary school had it right:  Read, read, read.

*  It sucks to have your family live far away from you.  Like really, really sucks.

really crappy quality picture of my sis and my mom, but I love it.

So there ya have it folks . Please feel free to share what you've learned during your time on this planet!

Lately Part 3

Another cop out for a blog title, but I feel like this could be a million-parter.  For when I really just want to talk about what has been going on or nothing in particular.  

It's been a weird couple of weeks; work has been non-stop stressful.  It seems as though my board of drivers is cursed; had the ultimate accident with a fatality and drivers quitting left and right.  I know that it's not because of me, but it's still super hard to deal with.  And pair that with the fact that this girl is incredibly hard on herself, it makes for a couple hard weeks.

I also haven't had a weekend not at home in a month and a half.  Every weekend in April and the first two in May, I have either been away or have had to work, or both.  This upcoming weekend will be the first one where I am able to sleep in both days, and have absolutely nothing planned.  And I plan on keeping it that way.

     

The cutest kid ever for his birthday party.  Well worth the trip to Atlanta.  Almost makes me want one.

I'm pretty sure that adorable kid also has something to do with the baby fever that has hit me pretty hard.  This is the first time in my life that I will freely admit it; but it still goes in and out.  One minute I'll want one, and the next minute, I won't.  

Stell-dog actually sprained her tail.  Yes, sprained her tail.  I didn't even know that was a possible thing; it's almost possible to break the tail, and in the worst case scenario, they actually amputate it.  Please don't read the internet to find out what is wrong with your dog.  You will end up in tears thinking they're going to cut your dog's tail off.

Yeah...that face.  I mean.  Can I please just duplicate her and have a million?

Also, I really can't believe that Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore are doing another movie together.  That would definitely call for alcohol sneaking into the theater.  But I'm also not going to waste my money on that.  I'd rather find a movie with Bradley Cooper or Ryan Reynolds, even if I know how that rom-com nonsense is going to work out.

I get to see this awesome chick again at the end of May for Oyster Fest . Yes, an entire food festival dedicated to the amazing oyster.  There will be po'boys and raw oysters galore.  Pretty sure I'm going to starve myself for a week, so I can save room for all of the amazingness that I'll be eating.

That felt better.  Sometimes in life, you just need to get it all out. 

Lately

It's been really rough in my life lately.  There is so much going on that it's hard to share on here.  I know that I've always said that I will keep it personal and real on this blog, but some things are just too hurtful or too honest to share.

I hope that one day I can reveal all the happenings, but for now, enjoy a few beautiful scenes from the past weekend in New Orleans.

Mardi Gras 2014

It's no shock that in this family, Mardi Gras is a big deal.  With our love of New Orleans and the culture, we have adopted the whole Carnavale idea.

So the house was decorated in purple, gold and green.  Pat O's Hurricane mix was bought at World Market.  Bags of Zapps and Moon Pies were scattered on the table.  Fleur de lis decorations everywhere.  Mardi Gras beads hanging from chairs and off the chalkboard.

The only thing that was missing was a New Orleans Big Chief roaming in front of our home.  Birmingham even had a parade.  A very small and modest one, but there was one.

Here are some pictures from our Mardi Gras spent at the house:

homemade!

I hope y'all had a great Mardi Gras and hope you have a great weekend!

Sisterly Love

Last weekend I flew up to Pennsylvania to visit my mom and sister who I hadn't seen in forever.  I went by myself, which sometimes, I will admit, I enjoy more so I can focus my time and attention on just being around family.

I flew in Thursday night; my first flight took me to Chicago, and then onto Philadelphia.  I didn't get to my mom's house until around two in the morning.  Needless to say I was exhausted, and my dinner of pizza and a cheeseburger didn't help the cause.  Neither did those two beers or vodka drink.

The only thing awesome about flying at night is how exhausted I was; it was pretty easy to fall asleep on the plane and keep it that way through both of the flights.

Friday was spent shopping around, eating Mexican and then having happy hour at Chili's...

My Juney-boo having a margarita thing... I don't know.  She said it was delicious.

Saturday we spent in Lititz, PA, where I spent too much money on Wilbur's candy.  We stopped at a British pub for a snack, and then headed back to the house.  We went to a really awesome place, Speckled Hen, in downtown Reading for dinner, but I didn't want to bust the iphone out and ruin family dinner, so I didn't.  Trust me though; if for some reason you find yourself in downtown Reading, PA, definitely check it out.

Sunday was a family dinner, complete with aunt, uncle and grandma.  We drank, ate spaghetti, and watched The Family Stone.  Some awesome outtakes of me and Juney in the midst of our drinking.  She'll kill me for putting these up here, but hey, she lives about twelve hours away, so I think I'm good.

I totally have old lady neck in most of these pictures, but I love them.  I also tried to talk her out of that vest she's wearing, but to no avail.  It was really cute.

It ended up being an awesome visit.  I was actually sad that I had to leave.  I spent that entire Monday on planes and in airports, flying from Philly to Orlando and then finally to Birmingham.  

My takeaway from that weekend?  Probably should visit more often.

Chop Chop

This past Saturday, I realized that in just three short weeks I turn 30.

Yes, 30.

I have been dreading this birthday for a long time, and I'm not really sure why.  It's honestly just another day, and since I've started running again, I'm starting to feel better.

So why, oh why does turning thirty scare the bejesus out of me?  

And I guess it's even scarier, because I can't answer why it scares me.  Could be that I'm thirty, and all I have to show for it is a career in transportation?  Although, the job I'm at right now is completely fulfilling, and I for once, love the company I work for.  Could be that I'm thirty, and I don't have kids, while everyone around me is throwing up their pictures of their dogs all like, "I can't wait for my baby brother to get here!"  Maybe even the scariest part about that is, I don't know if I want to have kids.  

Maybe I'm not where I want to be financially (not even close), or where I want to be geographically (again, not even close).  But I couldn't tell you.  Quarter-life crisis?  Yep, in full swing.  

So that's when this happens... bye bye hair!  

Yep, I'm a very cliche kind of girl.

When the going gets tough, a girl cuts her hair.  And to be honest, I haven't cried about it at all.  It feels so much better to not have all that hair on my head.

Anyway, I'm hitting NOLA for the big day, so that should alleviate a lot of my concerns!

Here's to being almost 30!

My Pretty Friend Rachel...

this past weekend, my pretty friend Rachel came in from Atlanta to spend some time with me.

Rachel and i met and became friends in sort of a weird way.  we dated the same guy.  i went to high school with the dude, but "dated," and i decided to add quotations, because i should be using that term loosely, but we "dated," after college.  he dated miss Rachel sometime in college.  after a facebook conversation, she started to not like me too much.

fast forward to six years later, where i see her again for the first time at a Braves game with lo and behold, mr dated man, and we click.

just click.  and although she's way smarter than me, we both share a lot of interests; in those including a love of delicious beer, Bruce Springsteen, and hair products.

she's a little crazy, but she balances out my quiet reserved side.

those things she's about to devour are the boudin balls at J Clyde.  

they are amazing.

and i had a super fun weekend with her.  i'm hoping to get to do it again sometime, except spend the weekend in the big ATL.

Just Another Decompression Session

Last Friday was awesome.

 

It was the first time I'd been able to get together with some old co-workers in a long time.  One of the best things that I ended up loving about CRST was the actual long-term friendships that I made with the people there.

 

I'm not sure what the connection was and why it was so different than with the people at Penske, but it really is.

 

I actually care about these people and their families.  They've become part of my family, and I truly love them.  Nothing makes me happier than getting together with them, having a few drinks, and getting to talk about our new lives; outside of CRST.

 

This kid is quite possible the cutest baby I've ever seen.  He almost, almost, makes me want one of my own.

 



 

And these sweet kiddos belong to another old coworker of mine.  I absolutely adore them.  They are some of the best behaved children I've ever met.  She is doing Taekwondo and loves it, and he's doing tackle football.

 

I know it's very out of character, but I love these kids.

 

I'm so glad that even though I really didn't enjoy my job at CRST that I got these people out of it.