My co-worker's husband died of ALS today - on the same day that they're holding a Bris (sp?) for their first grandson. Jewish equivalent to a baptism if I understand correctly?...I'll read up on it...

It affects the whole company...we're only 12 and everyone's connected if not by blood then by connections and time together.
I'm sad for her....and if I'm honest...a little relieved for her.
Sad for him too of course - but...nobody really talks about the burden the family (especially a spouse) takes when your loved one suffers and there's nothing you can do about it but bear the emotional and financial burden.

And it took over so quickly...a year? what a terrible terrible disease.

I think it's wonderful though how the Jewish faith/culture support each other.
Quite frankly (from my outside opinion) Christians and people in general can stand to learn more on altruism from the Jewish community. It doesn't stem from guilt or duty or pity...

And so this year hasn't been the greatest no - but I'm reminded to count my blessings....nothing like death -  and this vantage point of being removed from it (but close enough to see how people deal with it and how it affects them) that can make you think about what really matters right...

cliff-hangers! music,Unfriending, cults and hermitting

Friday - Chris Knight and Jason Boland were as good as expected,...Jason Boland a little better maybe? - the guy never sounds bad. Gas monkey live - good (huge) venue - the crowd was kinda lame - a guy in front of me kept yelling "play Waylon!" to Chris Knight.
Are you freakin' kidding me!!! I wanted to punch him in the mouth.

We didn't get to sleep till close to 2am - oy can't hang like I used to. We start drinking at 4 and done/home by 11. This is how non-amateurs do it...heh...
 At least we didn't reek of cigarette smoke like back then. Whisper Britches for dinner - low expectations from the chef of Casa Rubia but actually pretty good fried chicken...it's no Babe's but still good.

Saturday - Jamie left for golf in Louisiana, I went to Urban Crust for the surprise party.
The gal that disappeared with her new boyfriend 6 months ago - was (oddly) there. I think she figured out that I unfriended her on fb. . ..oops. She wasn't my friend anyway. I didn't dislike her - it's just I don't really have much in common with a 25 year old - even when I was 25. And times have changed! a 25 year old today isn't at all what I remember being like at 25?
I thought I was pretty good at finding something in common with anybody but I swear, more and more 25ish and younger something typical Texan/ Americans are like stale bread. Even though/if they've traveled around the world and experienced things like I'd never been able to at their age...communication skills are lacking! Lacking I say!!
It is what it is....I wonder if I intimidate them?...I have been told I'm a little "up-front" for some people...

Got to talking with a couple - clive owen looking type guy and pretty/plain-ish friendly gal (30?) - he wanders off to talk soccer - she talks about going back to school and working in hair and traveling etc etc. Then she non-chalantly mentions that she was raised in a cult.
My curiosity KIKI (as in Que?Que?) flares went right the F up

I wanted to ask her a million questions ( I've seen documentaries! the shunning , the isolation, the brain-washing!) but given the parameters of the event and how everyone was already moving on to the next bar I withheld. I think she could've withstood my barrage of questions - but (again) oh well ...maybe next time....see I do have a filter....

Didn't go to the after party - i really just wanted to be home AND Jamie was out of the house...so I finally got the house to myself!!

and so my hermit-ing (sp?) began

Finally -
watched Age of Ultron - i can see why I didn't hear all that much about it...it's overdone.
Watched all of Easy A - HA! i seriously love Emma Stone (see there's one 25ish? gal I think could be my homie - i'm not a total lost cause...)

Finished reading  2 and 4 more of Elisa Braden - i guess i'll come back to 3 at some point.
And finished Arcana Rising - and so...it wasn't so bad I guess...it is like most other  books that have the same leads for 3+ books - you still like them but about the 3rd book you're losing interest - i almost wish she did what she's doing with IAD and given each character card their own book to carry the story...anyway ...cliffhanger end yep...who tricked her? ...going  "pearl harbor" movie way?

Fast-forwarded through vma's - oy boring and a whole lotta ass everywhere. Are we done with the leotard yet? Eh - Beyonce though! "SLAY all day U-S-A!" (like Leslie Jones) I have a song or two of hers, I'm no mega-fan  - can't deny that was a performance though...

if you want to hear a love song...

so i elbowed Jamie's head in our sleep
I was dreaming that he bought a helicopter and then decided to celebrate at a bar with his friends.
Then I couldn't make the phone work to get an uber.
I was still mad at him when I woke up and he laughed at me.
Husbands...

Finished Maggi Anderson's - Lady Honor's Debt -
I could see how she went old school with it. It was just so far restrained that I didn't really care and it was hard to believe the "my loves" at the end. so i'll stop there with her.

Also read Elisa Braden's Madness of Viscount...liked this one much better! will continue on with her.

Think I'm starting to get out of my historical phase right now though - maybe we'll see....

going to see Jason Boland and Chris Knight  - can't wait...band withdrawal and I need the therapy. Tried the radio, its not as bad as it used to be...but it all sounds the same and doesn't tell a story? same words over and over again - where's the story?

I'm on my own tomorrow as Jamie leaves for a golf trip - plans going to meet up with people!

a messy (Houston) wedding story

yep houston was houston. bleh - give yourself at least an hour to go 10 miles.

MORE the wedding was kind of a mess -
the dress was rushed in 20 minutes after the wedding was supposed to start - kind of a mess.

Almost an hour late, no programs (who are they?) , can't hear, my cousin looks miserably hot, then wedding ends. We get up to mingle while they set up the tables, tables are set and 15 (of our side) couldn't find anywhere to sit. After 20 minutes we literally ended up standing around our parents (so at least they could sit).
On top of that - the bar doesn't open for another hour.

So now of course tempers start flaring - doesn't take much for us anyway - but seriously...we can suck it up, (we're all WELL aware of how much a wedding costs) but there's only so much we can put up with - especially wearing heels and nobody on the brides side is making any effort to help!

Not to mention how my cousin (that just got divorced) didn't bother to introduce his new fiance to anyone, my aunt that no one had seen in 10 years wanted attention etc etc
WEDDING ETIQUETTE 101 - don't be freakin rude -  introduce your damn "other" to your family AND if you've avoided us for 10 years don't expect for us to fawn over you. My other aunt (the fun one) really needed to put a bra on too though -  cause whoa.

but really...again.....(back to the subject at hand)
DEAR FUTURE BRIDES, want secrets to a good wedding?
1) make the venue for the wedding kinda smallish -  it's kinda awkward to have to spin in a complete circle to make sure we faced her the entire procession!!! (PLUS it forces people to mingle/dance)
2)don't waste people's time (def don't force them to sit for almost an hour for it to even start, then long vows & long first dances),
3)do have open bar asap after the wedding 4) AND HAVE ENOUGH SEATS FOR PEOPLE TO SIT at the reception.

Bottom line -  look at this as though you're the general and your wedding party are your troops.
Something's going wrong, they help you fix it! This is your one day to be the center of attention - don't fuck it up from the get go....ugh. Needless to say Jamie and I ended up being the last ones in our party of 40?? and we didn't even make it to the end...oy. Best wishes though cuz ...hope you're having fun in Aruba.

Moving on - got home and just wanted to read. After a chaos full weekend I was really hoping to not be disappointed. Whereas I'd usually go to a re-read in this case I grudgingly tried Lenora Bell's - How the Duke Was Won . Not sure how I found this one...? Think one of "my" authors referred it? 

Far-fetched in real life historical  - but I'm no stickler, so took it as a story and overall I liked the conventional/unconventional! Found a total new book boyfriend in James. yum!  Kinda wanted a little more backstory (and potential comedy) on how she was trained as a lady. Maybe a little more incidences on how not being raised a lady worked to her advantage. The book did it's job (in my case) - kudos to the author. Kinda wary of the sister's story though (ugh the spoiled, coddled ones),...we'll see!

pedal to the metal cause Houston gets me down

Heading to Houston tomorrow for cousin's wedding - ugh Houston,

Still I like weddings!...not so sure about the girl...but I like weddings....
Still not bought the new Kresley Cole Arcana Rising - keep reading that it's a filler books - ugh filler books...

And so we Ryan Bingham - Bread and Water
I've lived without bread and I've lived without water
Stuck outside the middle of the desert wishin' I was home
Long way from no where, wishin' I was somewhere
Sangre de Cristo to the Devils Backbone

I've been to California and North Carolina
Hung with the hippies in Austin and the cowboys of Mexico
I've laid up in Fort Worth with beautiful ladies
Hitch hiked on down 281 and hit the rodeo in San Antone

In the back of a Ranchero, I rode down to Laredo
Had a good time at the la posada, yea you know I was left alone
On a rig out of El Paso, rainin' down in Houston
Told the truck driver put the pedal to the metal cause Houston gets me down
On down to Louisiana, Whiskey River Landing
Crawfish pie and eat jambalaya with a big ole coon ass smile

the job market escape room!

almost 10 years workin here but peek my head out every once in a while to see what the job market looks like.

The whole process has gotten even more ridiculous - it's a facade of efficiency. How in the world does anyone set themselves apart enough to even be found in a digital black hole of information?

I read an article about a book store that, as part of the interview process, prospective employees take a quiz to match book titles to authors. It's a book store!  That makes sense!

I'm not sure how you can apply that logic in the business world. How do you quiz superiority complex and ineptitude?

I think even a "senior" person should be interviewed, and as a next level,
(to get away from canned responses)
they should go through "escape room" scenarios to determine their real personalities and how it would fit in the company.

that would be fun!!!

Not sure how well I'd do though - i took a test that determines masculinity/femininity and apparently I have many more masculine tendencies - HA!

Not in book reading though! - my historical romance run continues - just finished TA Warren's - My Fair Mistress - saw it coming a mile away, the months of avoidance was a little much but a good getaway book regardless.

oh and speaking of "getting lost in a black hole" - can't stop clicking on this link for people in Louisiana looking for their family -
http://batchgeo.com/map/984218ef8a04f3587f6e723561501e89
See this is a great way to utilize the internet! This helps people - why aren't more news feeds talking about it I wonder? Are they just distracted with the olympics and the election?

and so we Uncle Tupelo - the Macon Greyson version
Persuaded, paraded, inebriated, and down
Still aware of everything life carries on without
'Cause there's one too many faces with dollar sign smiles
Got to find the shortest path to the bar for a while

A long way from happiness
In a three hour away town
Whiskey bottle over Jesus
Not forever, just for now
Not forever, just for now

There's a trouble around, it's never far away
The same trouble's been around for a life and a day
I can't forget the sound, 'cause it's here to stay
The sound of people chasing money and money getting away

A long way from happiness
In a three hour away town
Whiskey bottle over Jesus
Not forever, just for now
Not forever, just for now

Denver day trip and I'm over this year

so Denver -
uber was $35, I forget how far away the airport is. Definitely taking the $9 train next time.
- Denver Biscuit Company - ate the Franklin! oy and then we wanted to take a nap.

- Highland Tavern - good neighborhood bar feels
- Coors Field as good as I remember - aging though and lord it was so super hot. No wonder it's $90 a ticket. Never again in August...- we rallied to win so that was nice.
- rioja - good charcuterie board,  the lamb was really good. Not outstanding but overall a good meal.
- we stayed at the Marriott City center on points - it's dated, air conditioner barely worked and we could hear doors slamming down the hall all night. Good thing it was on points cause I would be pissed to spend $300+ a night there.

Read Christi Caldwell's  - scandalous series, just finished #4 - a little repetitive but good!

Big (and not good news) happened yesterday - are we in retrograde or something? Hoping this just means on to better things....

confessions of a (Olympics) mean wife

Quick cause ack!

I'm olympics obsessed - posted this...
my poor husband....

we also headed up to Denton for lunch and over to Lake Kiowa for Ari's 1st bday. I lasted an hour (oy all that energy wasted on the youth) but hey we went!

bought/read "Day Zero", I thought it'd be wasted $ but I actually turned out ok with the quick facts and deeper info - i'll be pissed if it's retold in a later story though!....and re-read "Dead of Winter" cause the next one's coming out next week!!!!

We leave to do Denver SUPER early ($90 RT flight though! woo) for the Ranger game tomorrow. Maybe they'll finally win a game for me?...i'm 0 for 3 this year.

VERY worried the dvr is gonna max out while we're gone. I can't believe men's v-ball lost to Canada!!! (FIRST WORLD PROBLEMS).

now...back to work!!

i guess i still love you, if I ever did

Sold my Dixie Chicks tickets for this Friday.
I'm kinda bummed but I just have no interest in the traffic chaos AND bearing the 100+ degree stifling heat outside - even for them.
Hopefully they'll come around again so I can finally see a full show.

listened to my co-worker talk/cry about her marriage of 35 years ending.
they couldn't adjust as empty nesters,
He's moved on to find another girl after two years of separation and she's not even close to closure. 35 years...wow.

I know like 5-10 middle-aged single women...where are the middle aged single men I wonder? I actually like some of these girls - and I don't like most girls!!

Tried R+D Kitchen last night with D - lord the girl is a mess - the restaurant didn't do much for me food-wise - and not to be a snob or anything but for all the bars we've been to I feel slightly vetted...I think it's a bad sign when the bartender doesn't know a drink and asks how to make it. Nobody expects every bartender to know every drink ever made but just say "ok" and then look it up. right?

Finished more Tracy Anne Warren - this time the "Trap" series (skipped the middle one though - had no interest in the spoiled twin sister) Pretty good get-away!