You Can't Make This Stuff Up: Volume 8

A friend of mine (who co-writes this fairly awesome blog) said it best when she termed it "the Department of Weird Things Spilled on our Interstate"

cucumbers.
all over I-40
just about 30 minutes outside of Nashville, and about 15 minutes from my house

News story here...but there's not much there.

Other random things spilled on TN highways recently:
chicken nuggets
fuel (not odd, but it seems to happen a lot--most recently in January)
adhesive

and there's more, but honestly I'm a bit too lazy to search the articles.
:0)

It's a Great Day to Take Care of Business

(join here)


Busy weekend: another 5K, Colts play!

Good morning all! Weekends are becoming crazy around here--this morning I'm out for another 5K! You may remember that I did the Zoo run a mere 2 weeks ago...and twisted my ankle less than 24 hours following that. Unfortunately my ankle isn't all that much better so I may not match my (awesome) time of 48:36 walking...especially since I hear there are some major hills on our route this time around. But I will NOT be discouraged! I'll be good to finish, happy coming in under an hour...thrilled to make 50 minutes or less, and estatic to beat last 5K time. We shall see!

Thankfully, I have a massage scheduled later this afternoon, which I shall savor. And THEN I get to babysit for 2 of my good friends--4 sweet kids total, all of which I adore (and who, thankfully, adore me right back)

Tomorrow our youth group is 'invading' another church...kind of. The praise band/choir has been asked to lead worship for their service and I am going to lead the choir. It's going to be fun!

And then...

and THEN

My boys play...

:)

Ok, for those of you not into football, you can start reading again. The next little bit is about awards and blogroll and all that housekeeping stuff I really need to do around here!

First of all, I've been given 4 awards that I haven't posted about. At least. There could possibly be more, and for that I apologize! I'm going to give one of them today, and the other 3 will be intermittently given over the next week or so. I feel a little overwhelmed giving them all out at once!

First up is the makes my heart smile award from Brooke. Brooke is one of my absolute favorite bloggers. She is partially (a big partially) responsible for me even DOING the 5Ks that I find myself involved in lately, so it's only fitting that I FINALLY award this one on a day that I'm 5King it :)
(i may possibly have received this award in june. just maybe)



I'm supposed to give this to bloggers that make my heart smile. Well...there are SO many of you. I really hate choosing favorites. So for that reason (and this sounds like a copout but it's SO not) if you're a follower you automatically get this award from me. I can't even express how much I appreciate that people actually want to read what I have to say here.

I'll also give a shout out to 5 specific bloggers who have made me smile in the last week

LolaB - Kasey has some of the best picture stories in her blog, and she's just amazing. I think she had me at her love of all things Parisian, but I just love the way a story unfolds from her fingers. Plus I always like the music she has playing when I visit :)
Marin - this chick is always posting recipes that make my mouth water, and though I follow quite a few foodie blogs...she is one of the few whose recipes I consistently try.
Lemonade Makin' Momma - I love how honest and fun this woman is. I enjoy every post she writes, and I don't say that about most blogs with 'mom' in the title, believe me! :)
Catholic Teacher Musings - perhaps it's the 'teacher' connection, but I often find that her posts strike a deep chord in me. Funny, serious, profound...she runs the gamut and it's all GOOD
Jasmin Loves Coffee - I think this is my most recently followed blog, or pretty close to it. Jasmin is fun and fresh and I may be a tiny bit jealous that she lives in California...right now I'd love to see that gorgeous state!

Last thing (wow, this is quite the novel of a post here!) is...blogroll. I've toyed around with removing it completely, but that doesn't seem quite fair. So...scroll down. If you're not on my blogroll but you WANT to be, please leave a comment and let me know. Simple as that. If you are and don't want to be, please comment as to that or just email me.

There are more housekeeping things to be done in the next week or so, but that's enough for one post! I'll see you all later :)

Thursday's Ten: V-day gifts

So...I had this great idea of posting these great gift ideas for your honey for Valentine's Day.



Unfortunately I HAVE no great ideas.

So here's a list of other great ideas...
(please, if you have a list of great ideas yourself, link and post! You'll be helping me out!)

Valentine's Day Gifts

1. Mini Love Albums from a favorite blogger
2. Geeky Valentine Gifts
3. Frugal ideas
4. Homemade Gifts
5. Out of the Box ideas
6. Gifts for Men (since most of these sites are more for the guys buying for us...)
7.a bunch of creative ideas for couples OR kids
8. lots of fun ideas here
9. more ideas for your man
10. and for those of you with more money than I to throw around...

Please join in...especially if you have ideas of your own!

:)



<center><a href="http://lorablogs.blogspot.com/"><img border="0" src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v441/msmsctchr/tt-1.jpg" /></a></center>

(grab the button and sign MckLinky please!)


Next week will be your favorite quotes, sayings, songs or experiences of "love" or romance. It should be a fun one--start collecting now!

Snow Days

I'm not even going to get into the Nashville drivers on the icy roads (they were bad) or the fact that all the schools in the area got off not one but three days and counting (which is ridiculous)

I'm just going to tell you that I've tremendously enjoyed the snow.

And what better way to relay a story than through pictures?

It began with a bit of snowfall...backyard view

normally when I open the back door Emi comes running in the hopes of going outside. every time I opened the door in hopes that she would come and explore...

Emi stayed in her box and said "NO!"

attempt to get a picture of the snow actually falling

my neighbor Mattie and her sweet dog Izzie...we went on a picture taking walk :)

cracked UP at this. the street was still clear and someone apparently still ran up on the yard...

one of the few pictures of myself that I'm digging

Mattie and Izzie

headed back in...

I eventually forced Emi to go outside for a minute. she was not a fan.

"that's enough!"

The next day I had a bit of cabin fever. So I decided to go to Anthony's house and play in the snow. This was quite a venture...first came unearthing the car.

20 minutes later...

we won't talk about the lovely human being in my neighborhood who owns the mid-80s model car with slick custom tires who thought he should also get out. who blocked traffic for nearly an hour when it was all said and done.

we also shouldn't mention the fact that the interstates were nearly as bad as the side streets as far as ice went...and that people on them really didn't seem to know what they were doing for the most part.

we'll just skip to the next part of the story: playing!

and eating the snow

and finding cool shapes in the snow

and putting snow on our heads

...and kissing in the snow...

♥

and throwing snow at each other (it was good sledding snow...not so much good snowball snow)

and shoving the snow in each other's faces

and holding hands in the snow

and taking self portraits in the snow

and kissing in the snow

(hey, give me a break. a snow like this only comes to nashville once every 5-10 years)

Sunday's Song: Grammy Thoughts Edition

*disclaimer: this is most likely going to "spoil" a couple of the awards for you, namely Album of the Year. So don't read if you haven't watched and want to. That is all.

Most of these are either random thoughts I had while watching, or texts I sent to Anthony...

Lady Gaga and Elton John...I heart you.

Pink eyed green peas!

Dear Taylor Swift: Please stop looking so shocked when you win.

(however it was a nice and coherent speech. Props for that)

Simon Baker makes up for it though. Yummy.

(I still like you better though. No worries :)

Nice crotch hold, Beyonce.

Oooh, Seal!

Holy shit P!nk! Ok, that's pretty stinkin impressive. Pretty sure I could never sing while I was doing that!
I'm kind of terrified she's going to electrocute herself with the mic and the water...
I've always loved her...now even more.

Why have I never heard of anyone in the best new artist category?! Do I live under a rock or what?

I gotta admit. I'm kinda digging the Black Eyed Peas. Hey, new workout music!
But what in the world are the dancing robot things? Or dancing...stereo speakers?!

Ewwww, Jonas Brothers.
And I can hear a fangirl screaming in the background. At the Grammys. Klassy.

Dang. Serious competition for Best Rock Album.

I remember thinking Chris O'Donnell was soooo cute when I was a teenager.

I can't tell if Taylor is really off key as much as she sounds or if she's just being a whiny teenager. My money's on pitch problems though.
(and I think she's cute and a good songwriter. She just...doesn't do well live. When she sings. Speaking she's good.)

Maybe I'm just callous, but I'm SO.TIRED. of hearing about MJ.

Ahhh, Bon Jovi. That's the way it's sung. I've gotten used to the rock band version and I almost forgot. :)

Placido Domingo and Mos Def...wow. Lots of funny phrases are trying to create themselves in my head. I must restrain myself.

Wait...I'm on a Boat is a song besides the SNL version?!

What an ADORABLE child! I also like his speech the best. "do you wanna say anything?"
"No Thanks!"

Wow. Andrea Bocceli...Mary J Blige...David Forrester...wow.

I'm so glad they're plugging music education. Do you think maybe that means that maybe I'll be able to start teaching again?!?!?!?!?!?!? It would require music teaching positions to be OPEN...

Quentin Tarantino are you fo'real?!

Ok, with all the other nominees for Album of the Year...I don't agree at all that TS won it. Are ya kidding me?!

All in all, a fun show.

Review: The Search for God and Guinness

As soon as this book popped up for review on Thomas Nelson's blogger book review site (now booksneeze.com), I knew I had to read it.

A book about alcohol (even beer) and spirituality was too intriguing to pass up.

I have long known that my views on alcohol consumption differ from most of those of my Protestant friends. Perhaps that's why I'm so drawn to the Catholic church (among other reasons!)...they have no issue with drinking in moderation!

Plus, because of my ancestry I'm interested in all things Irish.

So I ordered this book and it did not disappoint.

The Search for God and Guinness begins with the history of beer and weaves in the story of the Guinness brand in particular with the amazing members of the family who created it. From the very first Guinness, the family has been involved in spiritual formation, unification of Catholic and Protestants in Ireland of all places, and humanitarian efforts. Members of the family that were not involved in the company have been clergymen, members of government, and highly respected members of society. However, the book mainly focused on the family members who became the acting head of the Guinness brand and how their spiritual journey corresponded with their passion for their life's work.

I was especially intrigued by the story of one of the descendants who upon receiving his wedding gift of 5 million pounds, took his new bride and went to live in the slums in order to best serve the people there. Amazing.

Guinness is one of the more recognizable brands around the world, and there is a reason for that. I'm not going to share much more of the story, because I truly feel it's a read that will be more fascinating if you discover the little treasures for yourself.

The book stressed that for those members of the family who took on the company, beer making was their passion. And that's something we can all learn from. In the eyes of this particular reader, though the point was never stressed in the book, I truly think that the author was trying to convey that there really IS no separation between the sacred and the secular. So many of us try to create a chasm between the two...but it is God who gives us our passions, talents and gifts, and I think He blesses us when we choose to live out those passions.

To give a fair and honest review, although I was fascinated by this book, I couldn't read it in one sitting. The names, dates, and details sort of swirl around in my mind so that I would have to take a bit of a break (of a few days normally) between stretches of reading. However, it is a wonderful read and I highly, highly recommend it.



Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze.com http://BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

It's a Great Day to Be Snowed In

It snowed...It Snowed...IT SNOWED!!!

Nashville finally has seen snow. And it's completely shut the city down. Offices closed, restaurants (even Cracker Barrel) closed, and no one's going anywhere.

4 inches, ladies and gentlemen. 4 inches.

We ARE supposed to get more. And in all fairness, I think the biggest snowfall I've seen here in Nashville in the last 10 years has been 3 inches.

I'm headed to Anthony's to play in the snow with my beau. I'm smelling a monster snowball fight. Pictures to follow!

(so I guess it's not true that no one's going anywhere. Nashville drivers...stay OUT of my WAY!)