Its like a Mexican house in here -  Jamie's making my Ita's frijoles getting ready for our NYD thing.

We're going out tonight as our end of year. So I'ma bout to make myself up fancy and go on date with the husband....BUT FIRST...recap

Met for over two hours (!) with my house district candidate, a very nice, super smart lady.
cathartic - and yep I straight out told her I'd be her work horse and to put me to work next year.
Not playin'...
but it's not like the same build-up feel as when I used to tell my coach to put me in so we can win the mf'n game...
this feels more like "I went crazy for a while but I've turned the crazy to resolve and I have no idea what I'm doing so point me in the right direction and lets f'n go!"

...it's kinda fun....:)

I've lost track of all I've read this week - finished all but two of Stacy Reid, and I've read a McQuiston and Tessa Bailey... not gonna search them out.
Caught up on Netflix movies Logan, Guadians OTG and thought I found a new super interesting documentary called "MissRepresentation"
but it's from 2011...crazy how all these years have gone by and we're still totally there. 
Still...I think progress (from where I was last year at this time)...I'm cautiously hopeful.

From the city of the 915
Where all the girls are pretty
And they're down for the hype
All my boys are with me
Going up for the night
But who cares, who cares
'Cause this is our year

a bit off-balance

My mom just texted that they might not be coming for Christmas since the flu/strep throat has struck their house. yuck. Seems like lots of people are getting sick....

Jamie and I took his grandparents jewelry to get it repurposed for a right hand ring and a pendant necklace for me. I guess a Christmas gift, even though we stopped giving each other "mandatory" gifts years ago. I got him an "El Paso" shirt....just a bit off-balance....oh well

oh wait - I also got him a headlamp that he seems to really like!? It's kinda weird how much he likes it actually...he's worn it almost every day for some tinkering or other.
I got one for all the rest of the family guys too -
The redneck brother in law is from middle of no where Mississippi.
The gamer black brother in law is from bad-part New Jersey.
The gun-toting Puerto Rican and the mama's boy from El Paso....we'll see how they like it...hopefully it's a universal guy thumbs up thing....cause seriously I'm out of ideas. 

Speaking of being baffled - with with all these sexual accusations/allegations coming out, the most interesting to me are republican-leaning mothers with sons. It's fascinating conversation the dichotomy shifting from the perspective as a  woman and perspective as a mother....

Books - Finished - Stacy Reid (Calydon Series)
#1 - disgraced seamstress, cold duke accused of murder - novella
#2 - playboy brother of duke wanting to settle finds gal that just wants to experience life. 
#3 - he wants revenge from sister "cold duke" had a hand in suicide, targets dukes sister, tries to ruin her
meets her, changes his mind almost too late. 
She's getting better for me each book....i like her. 

Found old school Brenda Joyce Masters of Time bundle for $1.99....halfway through the re-read...and so 
...granted it's been 15+ years since  I read but I'm just not getting why I liked this series so much?

Separately, meeting with my HD rep next week for coffee....not really sure why she wants to meet/ how I can help...but hey whatever ok with me.
Also checking out the senior center to maybe volunteer there...cause old people have the best stories.
Lined up girls night. New Kristan Higgins is coming out. Bake day...then new years oy...
Stoney's in town tomorrow. Acoustic...probably won't go but lets Feet Don't Touch the Ground

ack been distracted this week!

reckless on Friday.... it'd been a long while, they still sounded good. I just don't love them like I used to. I guess it just happens? or maybe it was the crowd?
Jumped on the Hallmark channel bandwagon and watched (mostly fastforwarded through) a few cheesy movies. I think I've got the premise, a gal with a coffee cup and guy that's kinda dopey/spaced out(?), a cat or a dog, a shitton of twinkling music forever going on in the background annnd there's a romantic movie! bleh. There are sooo many good books out there...what happened to basic chemistry? why's it so difficult?

Might see Dirty River boys tomorrow? Not sure I'm in the mood to do that.

And since "I've chosen to focus on what I CAN do, where I CAN make a difference, who I CAN serve, how I CAN contribute..." Gonna check out the SD challenger in my district on Sunday. I reached out to him via email and his response was nice but full of typos....i'm choosing to overlook that part. 

Think I've finished Christmas shopping? Have to start mentally preparing for that next weekend...

Looking at Travel - think we're gonna narrow baseball roadtrip to Pitt,Cle and Detroit? It's just...those cities don't seem to have any personality?... I hope I'm wrong.  And checking cruises to Alaska for the in-laws next year -....oy (see gif above) I was hoping my "cruise" days were done. My kindle will be my savior.

Finished
Duchess Deal - Tessa Dare - The book group was raving about this one - I liked the witty, playful banter. Not bad but this author still doesn't grab a hold like others.
Naughty Boss - Whitney G. - i'm already forgetting this one...umm...ok lemme think. Oh yeah the assistant is treated awful because of the attraction, she missends an email...eh...

tornado warning

last week recap -
since we had to miss the weary boys (boo. an old friend hopefully was able to pass the tix on), we hopped around deep ellum saturday -  Still interesting to see how it's revived. As I said ""Hide" is pretty bougie but a spot on charcuterie board! "High and Tight" - nope. "Brick and Bones" not bad. Naturally, ended at Black Swan"

Greek/wine with the W's last night, fun time.
Three billboards movie - good. frances mcdormand is such a good actress.

Annnnnd the neighbor festered and then popped off  last week to us
"could you not honk your horn all the time? My baby is sleeping".

The way she came across lit my inner-bitch up right quick. 

Jamie just walked away to get in the car...
I paused - strongly considered my response, bit my tongue and just said "sure. no problem." and got in the car.

Here's the thing - I'd been nice - I'm a mostly nice person.
When they moved in we invited them over/ out - they showed no interest...which is fine (not everyone wants to socialize/be friends right).
If they'd showed an interest in cordial reciprocation initially, she would've known that shooting us a text saying "the baby has me in megabitch mode. Can't sleep. Lay off the mf'ing horn - yeah?"
 I would a been like "ha. okay then!".
But nope, that's not how she wanted to play it *smh*
I'ma give her some slack...
this time.

goosfraba

on the plus side - I finished Badd MF'r - Jasinda Wilder - i mean...sure...not terrible.
Re-read Jennifer Crusie's Bet Me - I remember liking it the first time. I liked it better again the second. Definitely love the liking kids but not wanting to have any representation. 

Heading to see Reckless on Friday - been a loooong time.

More Turnpike - tornado warning

so our New Mexico trip (before I forget)
although I'd like to forget the part where my dog was attacked by another dog (also staying) at her sitters house in the early morning a few hours before our flight. Her ear/cheek is swollen and she's traumatized, poor thing. I go between "these things happen sometimes" to "that dog should be euthanized". 
ugh...smh. Now we have to settle with Rover....*sigh*

Back to New Mexico

Flew into ABQ because it was cheaper.
$25pp to take the tram up the Sandia mountain. Is it worth it? Hmm...I guess so. I don't regret it.

Jamie wanted to swing by the Walter White/Breaking Bad house too - meh. They had to put a fence around it cause people were throwing pizzas on the roof. As far as I can tell there's really not that much left to see in ABQ.

Then off to Santa Fe- 50min. drive -  didn't have high expectations but Santa Fe definitely exceeded them!  I am officially a green chile fangirl. Plaza cafe Southside and Geronimo have made my food list.

I found a SF private tour guide site and sent a request for someone to take us up to Chimayo  - since it's a James Beard winner - we'd buy lunch and tell us some history. $100ish.  Scheduled and met up with Bob at the hotel lobby. It was his 82nd birthday and I think there's something so wonderful to talk to someone who's experienced and knowledgeable about so much.
It's literally living/breathing history.
You could see him almost struggle to pick a story to talk about and then he'd start on five different stories at once. heh. Old people are awesome.

The tribes (pueblos) have a very strong presence, super interesting to note their language differences, that they are matriarchal and that they gathered together at one point to push back against the Spanish and were successful....for a time.
He then took us down to Madrid's cemetery and yeah I could've spent a few hours there.

On our way back to ABQ we stopped by the Coronado Historical site in Bernadillo (sp?) - where the Kuoua tribe/pueblo thrived (until he came through). It was beautiful with the Rio Grand and Cotton wood trees and mountain backdrop...I imagine it was doubly beautiful back then. We'd apparently just missed an amazing Fall color change and major air balloon festival - bet that's a sight to see.

Fry bread at the Pueblo Harvest Cafe - yumm...

Overall - it feels like NM is a somewhat forgotten state with people who are nice but a little odd  - and I hope it stays that way. 

Sat next to a single mother with a fussy two year old on her lap on the plane the whole way back. I've no idea why people put themselves through that - i felt exhausted for both of them - but gotta give it to the mom, she kept that kid from kicking the chair in front of her and as calm as possible without numbing her child with a ipad (like everyone else seems to do). In my book that's good parenting - pretty sure (if I was a parent) I wouldn't have that kind of patience.

Moving on - finished watching Alias Grace on Netflix - wonderful acting and interesting story (especially with it being true) def feel like I need to read the book though. That's the bad thing about movies/tv series is that it's almost force fed to tell a story. I bet the book has much more subtleties relaying the info. I'm taking it as a survival story....we'll see.

Tried to read Octavia Butler's Fledgling - and no - hard stop. Don't care if she's a thousand YO vampire in a child's body. It's a childs body. Unacceptable. 
Rock Redemption (Rock Kiss Book 3) - Nalini Singh - I finished it but just can't seem to get into this series of hers. 

Re-read a LK Hathaway - hotelier meets not a pushover.

Irresistible You (The Chicago Rebels Series Book 1) - Kate Meader - hockey. has potential. 

And so we were supposed to go see the Weary Boy reunion on Friday in Austin - no go with BB getting attacked and having to be supervised. We gave our tickets away....maybe we'll see them again....

we way socialized last weekend! well mostly....
squeezed in two dinners w/ the friends
and a housewarming @ the old neighbors new house - waaay out there in Wylie...it wasn't bad...there just  wasn't really a chance to socialize with strangers without barging in on their conversations (and I was certainly not tipsy enough to do that). Even Jamie was kinda wandering aimlessly...we basically just talked to each other.
Kids evvvverrrywhere. oy.

Packed Tgiving, pulled most of my Christmas stuff down,  finished watching Sense8  - and look in no way am I a homophobe, I just want the story and it felt pushed upon...it detracted almost, just get on with it. I hope it ends well. 
Started watching Alias Grace - murder mystery period story (with a twinge of paranormal?) and I'm hooked - great acting. 
Re-read som LIone. Feel like I've read something new but can't recall what - i'm in a new author reading slump.
Work is totally gone quiet...we leave soon!

My Sheldonita played me Ryan Bingham this morning on the way....i think i need to dl more of his stuff

almost regret taking yesterday off cause then I have to come back to the chaos that was today.
i loathe salesforce.
The whole 6th floor of my building was laid off yesterday via a conference call.
The deli downstairs is closing today.
My boss was like "it seems like everyone is getting laid off or quitting or miserable"....and yep it's true....it does seem like that.

Heading for seafood tonight...haven't seen our friends in ages...maybe they're getting into a hermit phase (right when we're getting out of ours)...oh well.

Figured out who all the challenger reps are. Wrote to one to hopefully offer a rebuttal to asinine commentary from my current rep about planned parenthood.
Housewarming party for the old next door neighbors in Wylie tomorrow.
We bought Weary Boy tix for Austin Dec 1....woo

Still I got to read yesterday! Finished
- Breakaway(Portland Storm by Catherine Gayle - this whole book was him helping her get through her trauma or hockey plays. 
And I love hockey...it's just I couldn't get locked in here. 
1001 Dark Nights - Tessa Bailey - I almost thought it was a vampire book at first? ha. 
Not sold but I'll see about trying more of hers. 
10 Dates: - Emily James - I finished it but yeah I struggled through this one. 
It's a constant struggle with contemporary books. It tried to be funny or cool and she really just 
mostly made her look foolish and immature. 

Volunteered for Beto O'Rourke's town hall Thursday night. Glad I did.
And for selfish reasons..it made me feel better to be able to say I'm not just bitching about things - I question, I research , I vote, I volunteer - I'm doing what I can.
#mytexastake

Getting ready to have the fam over for our Thanksgiving today...
Jamies mom: (3 hours ago) should I make gravy?
Jamie's mom: (2 hours ago) let me know if I need to make gravy.
Jamie: (1 hour ago) no we don't need gravy.
Jamie's mom: (just now)  okay. well I'll make it anyway.
...*sigh*...ya just have to shake your head and laugh...

...so quickly
stayed up kinda late to finish Penny Reid's "Ninja" -
Might've over done it with the reading yesterday...my eye keeps twitching. ....

(I kinda skimmed through the adventure part not gonna lie...) and with that one, I've now read all her books to date. It's kinda sad. Like a hermit hoarder, I held off as long as I could... She's definitely moved up to my favorite top 5 authors
Kissing Tolstoy - great chemistry and of course her logic lines are bomb.

Also finished Every Night I'm Yours (The Spinster Club Book 1) Christie Kelley - eh. best friends brother, hate to love. finished but barely hung on. Lots of pointlessness Won't finish the series. 

saved by love

So I went to San Antonio to hang out with my dad, he seems happy and settled.
It's so interesting to recall how he used to be with his past wives/girlfriends....he always had this kinda caged (?) energy. 
She's not at all who I would've thought he would've picked for his (maybe?) last wife.  
But yes...he's calmed. That's good.

Then back up to New Braunfels for Wurstfest.
Hottest one ever.
I wore my dirndl but just went with flip flops...putting high-socks on in 80 degrees was a no-go for me.
First time ever we saw a fight between a man and a woman happening there....
It coulda been also though that I wasn't shitfaced and spinning/dancing so much this year so I noticed a lot more?

...oy...maybe I'll forget last year's headache and go hard next year....cause not gonna lie...it is fun in the moment :) 

But yes...Wurstfest most always makes people happy...It's kinda hard to be angry with German tuba polka music playing in the background ...seriously...
the lady kept grabbing onto the man and he'd shake her off in a rage, yelling.
Jamie kinda went in to stop it...they just moved away and I guess were escorted out.  smh...

Then we left for Dallas to find that the biggest mass murder in Texas had happened in a church behind us.
Again, I grew up with a gun(s) in the house. The majority of the people I know owns a gun. The "come and take it" posts aren't necessary ....I'm not hearing people around here saying to take your guns away *insert eye roll here*. I think we should agree though that there is a proven common denominator for men who do this kind of atrocity. For those that have a history of domestic violence/abuse of any kind, they AT THE VERY LEAST  should not be allowed to buy/own a gun - especially an assault rifle. They don't know how to control themselves. And ladies please, you're the front line, say something.

And moving along, it's been year since the election - "sweeping victory for dems" is making the rounds on feeds today.
 Cynical me keeps wanting to warn people to stop with the "rah rah". They shouldn't care that their party has won/lost some victories....they should care to keep an eagle eye their reps so the same fuckup-ery doesn't continue to happen.
In other words...I really hope people (continue) to give a shit to how they're being represented and how/what laws are being made/passed on their behalf. ...

oy ok...off my pontification! bleh...

Finished:
Get Lucky (Lucky in Love Book 1) - Lila Monroe - find love in Las Vegas story. eh. Emma Chase's was better. 

Wilde in Love: The Wildes of Lindow Castle - Eloisa James - she's still a favorite...but I hate to say it, this one was kinda boring. I liked them as characters but I've already kinda forgotten about them - if that says anything - also  I'm not a fan of inserting the kind of villian she did. And oddly, I recall thinking  that the detailed description of the clothing/fashion took precedence over the story...I like that kinda detail though soo and I know EJ posts stuff about clothing all the time so that 's her thing...maybe I'm just nitpicking. 

Maid for the Billionaire (Book 1) (Legacy Collection) - Ruth Cardello - eh....pure fantasy

My Sheldon-ita played some Chris Knight this morning....good call...

that Bell(e) can't be unrung

it's been a whirlwind!
jamie and i went bar hopping for halloween - we won the costumes if I should say so myself. Everyone either didn't dress up or they had lame costumes on. Granted we started at 4:30 and ended at 10 but whatever.

I made the newspaper opinion column, volunteered for B O'R's town hall next week, made reservations for Santa Fe next month, my car has stuff wrong with it, planning thanksgiving....and work has been beyond crazy. I really don't know how publishing title's are going to make it....it's chaos.

Can't believe the astro's won a world series before us....Altuve ugh.
We're heading to Wurstfest tomorrow (well I'm going to San Antonio cause I havent' seen my dad in so long....i'm a terrible daughter *smh*) and then Wurstfest on Saturday....think i will wear my dirndl this year. Hottest year yet. Beer...gross.

Finished:
Bookshop on the Corner by Jenny Colgan - She totally gets how to describe books and reading. Read a little scattered at first but pulled together and ended up really liking it.  Definitely makes someone want to go to Scotland.

More than halfway with EJames' new one....um hmm...i'll wait to finish.
Still listening to the new Turnpike Troubadours album - so so good.

german dirndls, mexican calaveras, bluegrass music - halloween!

I informed Jamie that we were going out for Halloween this year.
He said he might need a tux for his calavera/sugar skull outfit.
I paused and said "no, you're wearing your bacon outfit".
He said, "no i want to do day of the dead too"....
I thought "ok then" and let it go

...but i'd paused and I've wondered at my pause.

It's not like I'm rah rah-ing my Mexican heritage in this case...
(And really, if I'm being honest - if I were going to go the "Mexican culture appreciation" route - between the two of us Jamie would probably win.)
As far as I remember, day of the dead was never really celebrated in El Paso.  I actually had to look it up in high school.
It's southern/central Mexico...Aztec native american culture honors/celebrates the life of the dead this way. And as the people merged it's remained and (obviously) evolved. So heck yeah, to me, it's a wonderful custom. We're rah-rahing that native american heritage custom. Plus it's kick-ass and I love colors and glitter...

ANNND I'm planning to wear a dirndl in a couple weeks for Wurstfest ...I don't have a drop of German/Bavarian/Austrian  - is it any difference?

No...i don't guess so -
before I bought the dirndl I looked up how/why it came about. It's basically representative of Bavaria/Germany's working class.
I have an appreciation for the working class.
And, I've not been to Germany -  but what's more representative of people/culture than their food right? I have an appreciation for german food (most ESPECIALLY the spaetzle! - YUMMMM).
Plus all the German people that I recall meeting are super blunt/to the point. I'm a fan.

So I say if you're wearing something, especially if that "something" represents a culture, if you have a basic knowledge and appreciation for that culture (meaning it's not meant for mockery or to demean) I'm good with it.

This extends to anyone wearing any comic book character (especially Rogue)
and/or
any political figure/statement - you better answer my basic questions cause otherwise *eyeroll*

next...


Lastly, if you're wearing a scary clown costume and I'm startled - I might accidentally punch you in the face (no offence)

Besides that  - wear what you want  - Halloween is just for fun, I don't over-think things :)

Let's celebrate Halloween/Samhain/Dia de los Muertos!

Oh also - we went to the bluegrass festival and it was lovely. A buncha gray hairs were passed out on their lawn chairs. ha. Nothing carries a feel like bluegrass country music.

This gal - Molly Tuttle was there - I'm now a fan

I re-read Lisa Kleypas (Lillian and Wesscliff) and Kresley Cole (Abyss) again.
Oh and tried Kristen Ashley - Furthest Edge - hmm...I mean I read it, def. eye opening but not my thing. Won't search it out.

pride prejudice crash and burn

I saw Pride and Prejudice play last weekend in Addison - gno (and glad for it cause Jamie would've been miserable). Several of the gray-hairs in the audience didn't come back after the intermission. It was quirky, cross dressing etc but once I got over that it was a unique adaptation, I enjoyed it.

So I posted #metoo - the oddest thing is that it's sounding like with all this uproar, men are questioning where the line is?

"So you know those women that dress like....?"
Answer:  regardless if she is dressed provocatively or not - never touch her.  

"But what if it's loud and she can't hear the guy?" -
Answer: A glancing touch on her shoulder/arm (preferably not on her skin)  to get her attention then.

It's not difficult.
Don't be gross. Don't be creepy. Don't be smarmy. If she's shit-faced pass til the next day.
start with being friendly and go from there
bottom line - if she wants you to touch her you'll know, she'll make it obvious,  she'll initiate contact.
And def stay away from the psycho girls - there are many out there -  listen to your red flags!

I've said it before, I'll say it again -  men should read romance novels to learn how to be (and not be) with women...

Speaking of
An Extraordinary Union (The Loyal League) - Alyssa Cole - the fb groups raved and I just could not get into it. DNF....
Idol (VIP Book 1) - he crashes passed out in her yard spiralling, she helps him,  she can also sing. not bad and
Managed - opposites attract. liked him more than her. Kristen Callihan
The Trouble with Love: Lauren Layne - 2nd chance story - young/miscommunication/broken engagement/left at altar -  my kindle said i'd apparently already read this one, so i started just to remind myself but didn't remember til 1/4 through and then by then I just re-read it all. Liked it. 

Been going with the new Turnpike Troubadours - Pipebomb Dream - last few days. My favorite of the pre-release - it certainly does have a little of that Old 97's twang. I'm diggin' it.

I just gave the suicide prevention line # to a guy that called at work.
He called from Oklahoma, I couldn't hang up on him - he mentioned his wife left him and he was sick and alone and on and on.
He sounded reasonably intelligent and rational...until he just kept talking in circles and about how "they" are out to get him etc....
I had no idea what to do.

All I can think is that this is how bad things happen....
Brendan Jenkins' - Finger on the Trigger song playing in the background in my head.

he said he wasn't a threat to himself or anyone else any more. Any More!
omg...this is awful.

There's something seriously going wrong in this world.

to the limit

dinner with V&J and we vented to each other over cocktails :) .
Also went to the Fair with the M's this weekend.
It was freaking hot and it's $40 for us to even walk in the door. It's crazy. I mean at least once in a lifetime sure but I think this is my 12th time? oy ....No idea why they love it so much?

I wrote to my Senator today
(Cornyn - not Cruz cause I was done with that guy since he campaigned for the man who said those awful things about his wife)  -

..not about women's rights, or immigration or taxes or anything important like that.

I wrote saying - "Please tell our President to stop talking. I'm embarrassed to be represented this way on a daily basis. It's exhausting. We apparently don't have a lot in common -  but as a fellow Texan, please -  stand for us."

Why? Because there are people dying in PR, there are wildfires in CA, military service men were just killed overseas....it's never ending the awfulness that is happening...
and he's tweeting asinine/juvenile mockery!...
I just saw a fact check that said the President ytd has told over 1100 lies. *sigh*
As a granddaughter and daughter of veterans. As a Texan. As an American.
I'd never imagined hitting this limit. I'm so embarrassed.

Finished:
Buns (The Hudson Valley Series Book 3) -  Alice Clayton - my least favorite of the series...there's a depth missing in her people. I still like her though. 
The Cad and the Co-Ed (Rugby Book 3) - Penny Reid - ditto above....
Where Dreams Begin - Lisa Kleypas - i liked this one, widow, boot straps, instant chemistry. I learned that Ravenshill doesn't have his own book and vented on the OSRBC group....they understood. That's so nice.

wtf

i'm weary.
I'm not sure Jamie knows how close I am to taking a week off to just get away from here.
Like Montana and sit and look at trees.

sadly though....the first thing I thought that morning was:
"what does the shooter look like?"
cause if he's anything but white, that group - black, latino, muslim etc. is going to be horrendously targeted.

And so he's white guy and I go onto the "conservative" fb pages I follow to see their opinion -
and they're blaming the "antifa/hillary lovers left."
*ugh*

I'm sad and I'm pissed off that this keeps happening
And i say this as a person that has, most always, had a gun in the house.....
so I wrote to my U.S. rep to stop silencers, armor piercing bullets and automatic machinery to civilians.(not that I think it'll do anything but maybe collectively? if there are enough people writing in)
*sigh*

Went to see Turnpike Troubadours last weekend - it wasn't the same -
maybe cause I'm older,
maybe cause i'm weighted...
Jamie said there were a bunch of kids running around with shirts that had pro....
well shit...it doesn't matter....
I'm weary
this totally sucks.

Read/Finished:
Sweetbitter - Stephanie Danler - i tried to like this one. Especially for my love of food. I don't like the "flash" writing style though....just a quick glimpse of a story doesn't work for me.
The Hook Up  Kristen Callihan - believable instant chemistry...good one.
Sara Ney How to Date a Douchebag: The Learning Hours - he's self deprecating or dealing with bullies (including from his "other") for most of the book. Not a fan

The Player and the Pixie (Rugby Book 2)  - Penny Reid - didn't get the character depth well here. Both were shallow. 

battlestar

Had dinner with my oldest gal pal. We hadn't spoken in (5?) months...
'cause life - that's how we do.
I was hoping to tell her story about how exciting her adventure for baby number three was....

but here's just (yet another) story about a pregnancy in Texas that doesn't end well. And she's a nurse...
I think now I'll just say *again* that the maternity care in Texas is a nightmare. (if you're over 35 especially) get an amnio so you know exactly what's going on.
Be your own advocate, cause nobody else will be.

I mean I get the desire to protect life and babies but where's  the urgency to protect the life and well-being of the women who carry those children? ...hell even the basic respect for them to make their own decisions about their own bodies? Where is it?

What else is going on? hmm I completely disconnected last weekend while Jamie was out of town - marathon watched Battlestar Galactica while doing arts and crafts....my book bricks came out nice.

My mom's husband  the devout Trump supporter is from PR  - he's  constantly posting the pictures/videos of the crisis now.  I wonder what he thinks about the response...cause seriously all I can think is there are such things as ships and airplanes....what's taking so long.
But maybe it's just the kind of cynically mood i've come into ....

My father in law asked me yesterday what I thought about the NFL bending knee. I told him it's a free country. He thinks they should "be sent to Afghanistan if they want to disrespect the flag and military like that".

*smh* I'm surrounded. My gal pal suggested that I make more minority friends so I can have more people to talk to that can understand or a least empathize with the thought process...the sad thing was that it was never a conscious decision to associate myself with any specific skintoned person. It bothers me that she even feels the need to offer the suggestion as advice

and it bothers me that I've crossed some sort of line that now partially agrees with her....

Finished
The Game Plan (Game On Series Book 3) - Kristen Callihan - ethan dex the bar scene
Beauty and the Blacksmith: - Tessa Dare -
Walk of Shame (Love Unexpectedly - Lauren Layne - dislike to love, I just couldn't be made to love the gal? Read her defense of romance writers/readers....to her point....why is this even a thing that has to be defended. *ugh*
Then Came You (Gamblers Book 1) - Lisa Kleypas - his past love died, she's has a child held for ransom, chemistry, they help each other.

arts and crafts party *insert evil smile here*

ok! i'm still in my hermitting phase - i had six fb event reminders and did I go to any of them? no.
I did arts and crafts shopping and read
*shocker*.
The m's came over and we just chilled.
And well Jamie and I bickered a little too...he's in his "fixer" stage....he can fix anything and everything!
...when i just want to throw glitter everywhere, not finish anything and bitch about things.

He leaves for his guys trip this weekend -
I'm going to have an arts and crafts party *insert evil smile here*
...he's already told me he's worried.

Moving on...we happened to pass by the house where the husband killed his estranged wife and 6 (?) of their friends during her football watching party last week. It was taped off....
maybe it's just that i'm just noticing now?...but all I can think is that this is more and more a re-occurring story....it's almost like the way young people are being raised they don't know how to handle failure/failing marriages?...domestic abuse/violence is constant now.

Oh I also wrote to my rep to consider proudly boasting about representing all of the other people in our district, not just the tea party (as he so posted on his fb)....ugh...

Finished:
The Hot Shot - Kristen Callihan - I vaguely remember the other I read of this series. This one was much more memorable - liked the opposites attract chemistry....even though I think the gal dropped out of character a couple times. 
Reread -  Secrets of a Summer Night (The Wallflowers, Book 1) - Lisa Kleypas - yeah this one's a good re-read rotation book
(And speaking of) The Hooker and the Hermit (Rubgy Book 1) - Penny Reid - she wrote a little close to me telling him in my head to "just walk away, she's too much work" but overall a good read. I think it's a given that if it's a rugby guy there's a little more leeway. Not sure about the next one though....he really came across as irredeemable...to make him the lead in the next book?...hmm.

My Sheldonita played a good song this morning on the way to work
...what was it? ......................ahh yes! Bobby Keen
"we made a mess of things, it makes no difference now, lets chalk it all up to the blues..."

believe in you

thought I was gonna have a battle on my hands with AA and VRBO to get refunded for the weekend's hurricane/Destin cancellation. Surprisingly (and gratefully) not so!

So I volunteered to help make care packages for Houston - had to be there by 8am (half asleep) - there were only like 12 people there.
The owner described the trip to Houston last Thursday. "We pulled up to the church seeing hundreds in a line that wasn't moving. Knocked on the door, there was a small group in a prayer circle. Apparently they had nothing left to offer the people, they had submitted a request for assistance and had to resort to praying as a last resort. Fed 700 people that day. This is why we're here..."

A family was there to volunteer - the mother had a moment and started crying, someone asked her if she was ok, she said "I'm just looking at my boys and how proud I am of them right now..." . It was sweet.

It's definitely manual labor - was sore yesterday - I'm glad I went. I'd go again.

Also took BB to the dog pool day - oy that dog *smh*....
she was happy the first 5 minutes,
nervous at 10 minutes with so many dogs showing up
and made a run for the exit at 15 minutes.
They had to catch her. She got in trouble.

We lasted 18 minutes at the pool.

Finished:
I Knew You Were Trouble - Lauren Layne - actually liked this one, bad timing, hate/love. not bad. 
Challenge - Amy Daws - almost quit after the first few chapters but hung on and she developed the characters better as it went. 
Re-read Eloisa James novella - Winning the Wallflower - again good. 
The Girls: Emma Cline - only a few pages in... 70'sish setting, already losing interest. She's fascinated by "bad" girls....not doing it for me. 

Jamie got home late after going to the Ranger game with his friend....he sang (awfully) Don Williams to me before he could let us go to sleep. And so we Don Williams...cause it's just good music.

ultima noche mad-house cruella

a man pulled up next to me this morning on the way to work and told me he likes my mini and my hair and my smile. Not like creeper-like though... i didn't think so anyway? 
I think he actually just meant it as a simple compliment...
So I said "thank you!"

Interesting is that I've stopped coloring my hair - ...just got tired of coloring it.
I didn't think it was looking so good right now with an inch growth of canas on the front half of my hair  against the pitch black on the back
 Cruella de Vil here I come....

But hey, that was super nice! I'll take it.
and when i want to add in purple or pink or whatever it'll go in much better with white hair! yay.
 Hopefully it'll look okay...? :o/ Jamie seems to think so...

other news - cancelling my trip to Florida this weekend - bummer - but no way am i playing roulette with this craziness. scary. And so worried about Anguilla.
hope I don't run into issues with vrbo and aa.
I am going a little stir crazy - i need to get out of this city...

Just volunteered to help make care packages for Houston on Saturday...figured the chaos to help is winding down so why not right...

moving on...I turned into a hermitting phase and had a reading frenzy this last weekend  - (besides that boost coffee gave me on Saturday morning when I brought all my Fall stuff down from the attic by myself - whew - who needs uppers when you got caffeine right!) I actually think I read too much, and might've hit my reading limit....my poor eyes were dry dry dry the last couple days.

Finished:
Ten Days in a Mad-House Nellie Bly - super interesting non-fiction read 

Blame It on the Duke: The Disgraceful Dukes - Lenora Bell - he asks her cause he has to, she just wants to travel,  - slow going, finished.

The Pleasures of Passion (The Sinful Suitors Book 4) Sabrina Jeffries - young, asks her to run away she says no, he comes back they're grown, she's widowed w/ child and the spark never went away. not bad, finished.

Date a Douchebag - Sara Ney - #1 - was super warry to start this one d-bags are the worst (even saying it in my head sounds awful) library scene, he's dared, she's underestimated, he's clueless, it works out. Actually (surprisingly) really liked it.
Date a Douchebag - Sara Ney - #2 - another library girl, this guy was so unlikable almost passed redemption. She brought him back but liked #1 better.

The Ugly Duchess (Fairy Tales Book 4) Eloisa James - my kindle says it's a re-read, I just couldnt' remember reading it and I actually really liked it. grew up together, forced-ish marriage, he betrays her, goes away, they grow up, he comes back.

The Duke Is Mine (Fairy Tales Book 3) - Eloisa James - i liked it, the opposites attracted....until they have to go away. skim read to the end. 

And I thought of my ita this morning on the way to work - a beautiful day, windows down and jamming an old school spanish song like she used to listen to. And since apparently my president doesn't very much like my kind, i enjoyed it even more....

we shall see

My mom on Friday was like - oh they're just saying the hurricane will swing through. We'll be back in school Wednesday....
umm no not so much mom...at least they haven't had to leave their house....
The local news inside their convention center was awful.
Don't know how Houston's gonna come back...at this point its almost like they shouldn't rebuild in some areas....it just keeps happening...

And so...seemingly already people are slowly but surely moving on...I guess if you don't know anyone in Houston it doesn't matter to them as much.. and there's only so much you can do right....I hope they're not forgetting though?...
and really, I think those of us in DFW should care a little more - it seems like we're fixin to get a whole lot of displaced people coming up our way with nothing but the clothes on their back...it's worrying.

Now another one's forming out in the Atlantic - and we're supposed to leave for Destin next weekend...we'll see.

In other news - SB4 - where someone that looks like me (or darker) and detained or arrested (or realistically at some points maybe even just be walking across the street)  can be asked for their "papers" and/or have their very presence questioned by local police officers. *shakingmydamnhead*- is supposed to go into effect Friday. On the plus side -  people texting and driving can also start to be fined starting Friday too. I believe....

Finished:
Only Enchanting (A Survivors' Club Novel Series Book 4) - Mary Balogh - i forget how...gentle? her books are. Didn't love them as a couple...but not bad. It is interesting the options widows had at that time.
Claiming Her SEAL (ASSIGNMENT: Caribbean Nights Book 1) - Kat Cantrell - yeah i think i'm kind of officially over military heroes books....and it's not cause of how the men are written...it's cause the women are annoying. I wonder if there's a military girl hero stories? That could be interesting.
Tangled (The Tangled Book 1) - Emma Chase - a re-read that i didn't remember much of...surprisingly cause I actually really liked them and the push/pull, hate/love dynamic. Super sexy times too whew...

It's mine from the finish

Friend N's surprise birthday Friday, we get there early to help, he's nowhere to be found and she's cleaning the house with two other "partyers" sitting at the dining room table.
surprise!
He didn't tell her that they had friends from out of state flying in plus 30 more people coming for her surprise party that started "now".
So she gets home on her birthday and panics trying to get ready for all these people coming.
I told Jamie he's not ever allowed to do that to me. Husbands with good intentions *oi*....

we hung out for a few hours then went to see Chris Knight.
Maybe for the 20th? time...
Some boys got way tipsy, singing at the top of their lungs and yep grown men cried.
I got to talking to this guy that said he and his wife had just moved back from living in New Zealand for a year.
29 years old and up and moved to New Zealand. Cause they could. Nice.
 He was very "Dallas" in bringing up his money situation...and then made a weird face when I told him "yeah money helps but it doesn't make people ultimately happy."

ha...he looked at me weird and said "people don't think that way nowadays"...
Still it's a personality trait for people to listen to our kind of music...I can't say anything bad about people who go see Chris Knight in concert.

Went to the Ranger game saturday at the company suite. Nice.

Emailed my mom about the hurricane coming - yikes - and i leave for Destin in two weeks....

Re-read - A Knight in Shining Armor JDevereaux - I remember loving this book way back when, I dunno I guess now that I've read so much more I didn't love it....it definitely had an 80's "Mannequin" feel to it. 
When Strangers Marry (Vallerands Book 1) LKleypas - so...this is the first of Kleypas that I gave up on....just couldn't get into it. 
The Scandal in Kissing an Heir: Sophie Barnes - apparently i'd read this one...and digging back apparently I thought it was ok. I don't know why? I went to 30% and stopped
Dating-ish - Penny Reid - yeah good one - journalist gal awkwardly meets nerd robot guy. she remains consistent
Tanner Sarah Mayberry - finished...didn't like it like her other "best/worst" book. The gal read needy.
Brought me back to the rodeo cowboy I used to date - we met at Billy Bob's at a Tracy Lawrence concert no less. It was fun...for a while...and that's all i'll say about that. 

awoken

if it wasn't vaguely sexual sounding I would post on fb that Jamie woke me up at 1:15 this morning to tell me "It's 6:15, time to line up the putt." then he pat my ass and went back to sleep.

He does not at all recall. And it really wasn't sexual, I guarantee he really was dreaming about playing golf....smh...heh.

Moving on...my friend N who's never voted and doesn't "feel her vote would matter either way."  asked why I still consider joining the protest this weekend even after what happened last week.
I said I felt that now is more important then any other time,
if I knew Jamie wouldn't be a worried madman I would definitely be there.
It's not about anti anybody or thing (for me) so much as feeling there's things going wrong and tired of just ignoring things -  "I'm a thinking human who lives in a troubling world". protesting allows me to know that I'm not alone in feeling that way. FB/online  groups are nothing in comparison.
So no, this time, for my husband, I won't go tomorrow but that's not to say I won't ever go again and doing what I can otherwise.

Speaking of....I did get a letter in the mail from my Texas State rep....of all the things I've written him, he (or his staff) typed a letter back about maternal mortality, it was a pretty cookie cutter response. Still! at least he responded! I've considered going library books shawshank redemption on him... :)

my mini sheldonita played me some old school pattyloveless today...i'm down

today's been a long week

so much going on in the world.
(i've had this sentence as a draft for 3 days)
For lack of a better way to describe it - it looks like the simmering is starting to boil.

Also, I'm not quite sure why people are so shocked at the president's remarks and/or lack of empathy? It wasn't shocking to me...he's shown his colors already, long ago...

Finished
Singh's Silver Silence - much less angsty than her others...got a little irritated with the all the silly-ish bear references (if I'm being honest)
Reid's Beard in Mind - so i liked the uniqueness of it...I've not read a story that discusses real life issues like OCD.
EChase's - Ellie the little sister story - quick read.good.
Also watched Harlot's on Hulu - wonderful acting and really clicks on what I've only imagined in the historicals I've read.

Wrote on my fb groups, reached out to my reps, twitter is blowing up

and....and...really remarking on the books I've read and tv I've watch seems crass...but it helps me. So that's good....
I really wanted to end with a good recall from the past week but I'm weirdly kinda numb right now.
oh...dinner with friends tonight.

retro and recovery

well it was supposed to be a stay at home weekend but Saturday Jamie and I test drove a truck for him,
then we went for margaritas and snacks,
which led to another place for drinks and snacks
and then the w's came and we joined them/their friends for a hip hop cover band.

fun - we lasted about an hour and a half there, lyft'd home annnd passed out by 11:30.
Again recovered Sunday - not miserable though - I'd paced well if I should say so myself!

Apparently I'm on a Penny Reid kick - finished #1-#3 Elements of Chemistry - whereas usually I hate a series to run about the same people - she did well with showing an evolution. 
Great one-liners too.  Soo young though... 
Also read Grin and Beard it - Sienna/Jethro's story - not my favorite of hers (I think that's Cletus? re-reading that one right now for kicks. I actually stayed up way too late reading it and I'm draggin ass) but good. 

Also my Sheldonita was in an 80s (90s?) country kick so we continue the Judds....

all was alright again

we got there just in time to see the last 1100 Springs song Thursday...
very few people were into them... so odd that one of the best country bands out there (IMO) have their best following/shows not in the suburbs (where we were) but way down in deep ellum dallas? 
Huge crowd for Stoney, and yes still surprising from" way back when" seeing him with 20 people in the crowd - speaking of...they were a definitely different crowd - not a lot of younger people - a whole lotta cougar/cross fit/tan gals and/or mommy looking types. Guess that's what happens in the suburbs.
I was wearing an old school JBS cap and he commented on it from the stage.
Super nice to have a $12 uber ride to/from this new venue...

Saturday - charlie's bar and went to dinner with the M's down in bishop arts - we went on to see charley crockett. Loved it. Good times. Fun times.
Wanted to go back to NOLA. Good for the soul. And all was alright again.

That gal - Nikki Hill - was good too -following her.


Finished:
The Governess Was Wicked - Julia Kelly - meh.
Beauty and the Mustache - Penny Reid - the sister of the six brothers. I liked what she did with this one. I'd kinda forgotten about her. I'll get the others. 
Shameless - Cherrie Lynn - short story...umm you over hear him and that's it?...it's just a little icky. 
Royally Raised - Emma Chase - short - i liked the look into the older them
The Girl with the Lower Back Tattoo - Amy Schumer -  so i finished this one. yep I think if we took compatibility tests she and I would be highly matched. Since I've never had a one-night stand I'm glad she shared hers. That's the only good one I think I've ever heard. And of course she loves New Orleans...of course she does...(besides that weird doll obsession?) I'm just such a fan.  
Also, oddly the most interesting is just the basic stuff about growing up rich and poor in that part of the world. I know nothing about "living on top of people" or people that just live off their parents like how she described.

Surrounded by every food imaginable ....and I'm eating a Wendy's salad - (i had 3 donuts, 2 kolaches and pizza yesterday. oy...but hey we were in hangover recovery...)
I thought I'd be sad - salad makes me sad...but  I like how they cut the lettuce pieces small - trying to shove a piece of over-sized lettuce into your mouth just ruins everything.
ooo - just saw religious leaders are joining the lawsuit against SB4- right on!
 was a no-brainer to me...what took so long really?...
Beltre hit 3k
...it's the little things :)

catch you when the next sunrise comes back around.

watched people get arrested at the state capital live on FB today.
there is so much going on in the state special session and in the country (in general) and most of it is embarrassing/disheartening (enter other pessimistic words here). 
All I can do is shake my head at this point and continue on.

Had a long "catch-up" talk with D about how things are going from her perspective down in South Dallas -  She said people in her area have pretty much just stopped doing much of anything. Saving what they can, not buying, not spending. They've laid off half the people at her work. She knows people that have had things happen to them but don't trust the police to do anything to help so they don't call. She mentioned how laughable it is to be accused of taking advantage of the "system" wth food stamps when she's never even thought about it and works 7 days a week to support herself and her son.
We both agreed that the awful things are happening faster then we thought and that up  (north of DT) nobody seems to have been affected yet. We guesstimated within a year the "inconveniences" to them will start to finally be noticed.
Maybe we're wrong?...but I've been right so far....And overall i'm beat down today...
The best quote I read today: "I don't know how to get you to care about what's going on. "

Heading to see 1100springs and Stoney tomorrow - def could do with some music therapy

Finished
Breath of Magic - Teresa Medeiros - actually no I lasted 2 chapters? a whole lot of non-story. not my style. just no. 
King's Cage (Red Queen) - Victoria Aveyard - thought it was the end.  didn't realize this was a middle (filler book) grr...
The Theory of Attraction - Delphine Dryden - nerd neighbor, she helps him. surprise dom, well it was different. finished it. Won't search her out. 
The Dark Lord - Le Veque -  medieval. another i didn't finish. forced myself to to 30% and couldn't hang on anymore. 

Double Dare - R.L. Mathewson - fav. trope hate to love. liked this series enough to follow but this one was her worst IMO. it jumped around,  finished but really lost interest several times.

The Girl with the Lower Back Tattoo - Amy Schumer - just started this one, amusing. That part where she can talk to anyone but needs to go hide in the bathroom (me! ha!) and/or the Irish good-bye.....yeah I think we could be friends in real life

so we stoney (as prep) Look at me Fly

what happened

so I love my mother in law - she's funny, loyal, honest, loving etc... 

we were at a restaurant and she and I got to talking about The Handmaid's Tale.
She's just finished reading it and she yells very loudly
"I read it in one day. It was disgusting, it's like the Muslims"
annnnd.... I slowly close my eyes and shake my head. 

I've given up trying to understand - like what happened to make them think/believe some things like that?
We got to the point a couple months ago where she'd made another comment that blew my mind, so I said "knowing the wide variety of books you read, and how that forces you to see things in different perspectives - how can you still feel these ways and think these things about people who don't look, think and talk exactly like you?" She got up from the table and walked away.

We're a little more tentative on "hot" subjects since then...

But that she can read a book like The Handmaid's Tale and be furious is something I guess?

She had no idea women dressed as Handmaid's were in the capital or why - I suggested she look it up and moved on to another topic...
Speaking of...Texas is in special session right now - super important decisions regarding women are being made...my state senator just tweeted that "public participation is good for democracy" but then posted "#20for20" in the same sentence, basically meaning (the way I'm reading it) that "it doesn't matter and I don't give a shit what you're saying, I've already made up my mind. This will pass."
ugh i get so frustrated!!!!!

Moving on..There was a movie in the 90's called "If These Walls Could Talk" - Cher and Jada Pinkett and Sissy Spacek and Demi Moore -  what happened to it? It should be brought back.

I have like 6 TBR books waiting. It's driving me crazy. I don't feel like doing anything this weekend, especially with this heat....we'll see.

a story (from a gal on the sideline)

the charity event at the frisco ballpark was this weekend, jamie pretty much single-handedly busted his ass to organize it (I'm constantly baffled at the disorganization of the organization) but hey...they raised $1600+ for Children's hospital/Camp Moss. It's something to be proud of.

It was freaking hot outside there for a bit, but these babies and their families come up in their light blue shirts and didn't complain one bit.
In fact, the parents kept saying "thank you, thank you" getting emotional at seeing their child happy.
Everything they have, they put back into the healthcare of their child.
So it's one thing to give money -  but it's amazing to witness (and have just a little bitty part of) people enjoying their time together.

Finished
The Millionaire Makeover - Naima Simone - it's just....she just falls right back like that? Still, I finished it...that says something....
Riveted: - Jay Crownover - same kind of girl as the one above - so (too?) nice....but just because it isn't what I would do, doesn't mean it doesn't fit the story...i'd read more of hers, just not eager to do so.
Prisoner of My Desire - Johanna Lindsey - actually not finished yet but ...so yeah i forgot about her books and the reality of the terrible history times. Set in that time I don't guess it's far fetched but lord...halfway through and it's a little overkill for this being a romance genre. Really though I can't help to think that Kresley Cole read this book and then wrote her Demon King book (and that book's a favorite soo)....

oy - just vaguely overheard a co-worker that I've known for 10 years re-telling a joke from one of her friends (who's boyfriend is black) with the word "n*****" in it. And she said it.

I don't consider myself a touchy person but  from my point of view,  you say it, even in the context of a story (and especially if you're not Black) you just lowered my perception of you - you make yourself look uneducated and ignorant. I told her I didn't hear the story but now I don't want to hear the story -
I think she took the hint, and we moved on *smh*
Maybe it's just me getting older but I've kinda had it up to "here" with not calling out things and just going with what's they might perceive as "nothing important". I mean...I don't think I'm being confrontational (that never solves anything anyway) but seriously....

not knowing

we did a random day trip adventure on Saturday - packed a cooler, the M's picked us up @ 10a, and we headed north.
Jamie and I had no idea where we were going - cause why not -  it's part of the fun.

So up we went to Clark's in Tioga, to Arbuckle Wilderness park in Oklahoma, down to (lose my ass again) at Winstar (seriously....they owe me money) and then breweries in Pilot Point.

and I just have to vent a little - my dear, sweet friend M is turning into a full fledged stick in the mud middle-aged adult. And I have no idea how to tell her to stop. She didn't used to be that way?!
It's supposed to be a relaxing/fun time but a lot of the time she was worried, or harping on her husband about something...oy.
I advised her that she needed a drink....but since she refused.  And she's so nice and sweet about it I can't even be my default "strait up bitch real" to her about being a buzzkill. I gently asked her why she's become such a worry wart - she responded sadly  "I don't know....I guess it's because I'm 40 now?..." and that was the end of that. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ whadayagonnado...
so I proceeded to take my own advice and got a little tipsy. :) Besides that hiccup...the day was fun!

side note: that "wilderness park" ....i'll never understand the need to cage animals, especially exotic animals, for people's amusement. Want to know what a white tiger looks/acts like? Youtube it. I guarantee it's not normal for a newborn white tiger cub to be pacing in an enclosure like it was....ugh. On the flip side the donkeys, emu, goats, ducks and horses looked happy and were certainly well fed. 

Wrote an email regarding all upcoming TX special session items to my rep.
Failed on the "non-snarky" effort with a few, like this one:
-Preventing cities from regulating what property owners do with trees on private land.-

I said:
"Really? we're paying an extra $1million+ for this to be on the same platform as pregnant Texas women dying and school teachers pay? This is a waste of money and time!!!"
(...couldn't help it) *sigh*

Finished:
The Chosen - Ward - good yes. Didn't love it. I guess she "kept it real" with the arguments but I'm not sure anyone could come back like how quinn/layla did.  It was too quick hot/cold for me. Xcor's story really took a backseat. Not sure where she's going with the re-do on the shadows story? And yeah I get the drama with V, I didn't love their match ....but (again) this is the topic is off-limits for me for redeeming. tricky tricky.....
Something Wonderful - Judith McNaught - (the fb group reco!) and  i really like what she did with this one! jaded duke falls for the innocent. I believed them. I liked her transition. I feel like I've read her before? I guess it's before I started writing it down. I'll continue here. 


And so we Eli Young band - 

then nappy time.

I had 5 days off -  it feels like I've been gone a year...
and since it's slow...

- fireworks and thunderstorms made my dog (and therefore me) a basketcase  last night....i swear I heard a firework at 5am this morning.....grrr

We went over to Wylie to check out some bluegrass music - didn't stay long - much better in Farmer's Branch in October. 

had the M's over for BBQ and Ranger game - a full belly, a couple of beers and the guys passed out - I woke them up in time to catch the last inning. *smh*
whereas before it might've been a drink and drown all day and pass out at 4am.
Now it's a play golf, eat lunch, have a few beers and then nappy time.

Volunteered to help register people to vote in Addison  - it was miserably hot - still I think they got a few people in? Better than nothing! There's not really any organized thing...you just go up to people and ask if they've registered.
I don't think a lot of people know that when they move counties (and don't update their DL/voter registration) they can't vote in their new county.
I should probably get deputized so I could've helped more....
I stood and chatted with the Planned Parenthood folk for a bit - nice, I asked if anyone had ever been mean to them and they said "sometimes, but you choose your cause and stand with it".

I'm still looking to see what I want to volunteer for - I want to help but it's like joining a sorority - i don't want to be "locked in", I just kinda want to help when I can.....I really wish these people/overlapping groups would just band together and submit one newsletter together - so when a person can tear away for an hour or two they can reference it easily and go. 

- I saw Wonder Woman - yep as good as everyone is saying it is. I never got into her growing up - I always thought She-Ra was cooler. 
- Day of the Dutchess - Sarah MacLean - so i'd kinda forgotten the back story but oy yeah good on her on tackling the subject and actually redeeming him. Not everything is cut and dry but woo yeah in this case for me it is. Still, good story...even though I kinda wanted a little more of their "back then" story.
- The Friend Zone - Kristen Callihan - hmm............. ack! i've already forgotten!...lemme go see (again this is why I needed to write things down...) - oh ok yes - this one was just ok. Not believable and the girl lead was just kinda "i'm the cool girl,  here whenever you want" kinda thing that was a turnoff. 
- Playing it Cool - Amy Andrews - rugby (yes!) and the unconventional "curvy" girl with an unconventional how they meet, get together story. Not bad. 
- Confessions of a Dangerous Lord - Elisa Braden -  she thinks he only wants to be her friend, he almost loses her in trying to keep her safe, an evil villain - I put this one down a couple times. I think I'm more and more veering from the conventional "evil villain" drama plot line
- re-read Desire Unchained - just 'cause - 

My mini-gal played this for me today - good one

suddenly you and (i saw) red queen

was watching the Roald Dahl "Faceoff" episode the other day,
Jamie walks in and says "who's Roald Dahl?"
I looked at him like this

*sigh* only the one who hooked me into the wonderful world of books Jamie....

we were invited and stopped over to some friends of friends house....very nice OU folk we've met a little through years. Parents of a special needs boy - he's old enough now where they can start to come out of their shell. A lot of Jamie's friends are getting to where they have kids old enough and can start to come out to play.
It's pretty interesting to witness how it's almost like they're kind of coming out of a cave -  unsteady on how to be still young, but not who they used to be.

Re-read - Larissa Ione's Passion Unleashed.

Finished Suddenly You - Lisa Kleypas - (I joined a FB group dedicated to old school romances from Jude D's page... and lord I can't keep up with all the reco's! It's so exciting but I can't hang. It's like the politically active info....can only take in small doses. heh.) So anyway...this one was one of my favorites (if not the favorite?) of hers. She's an author, he's not who she thinks he is, sparks, nothing immature... I liked them both a lot.

About to finish the second in Victoria Aveyard's YA Red Queen series (glass sword) - slow going but it's keeping me hanging on. It's just hard to transition from well paced/written/edited to a YA that has a lot of potential but a lot of unnecessary-ness (pretty sure that's not a word...oh well)

Bought the new Sarah MacLean - probably can't get to it till Friday. we'll see.

Every major Texas city (except Fort Worth) has joined the lawsuit against the state of Texas regarding SB4....I just  have to think....does this not even a little sway reps? How do they continue to ignore things?  (i dunno -  I've asked mine and the silence continues....)

all over the place

so I've been at my job 10 years now.
10 years (!) of herding people and revenue and  account reviews and hurry-up-and-wait.
This year has already been the craziest - I'm not sure where cross-platform media is going but...oy
Needless to say - where before I would've been nagging Jamie for us to start planning next year vacations.
Now not so....

moving on, walked into B&N the other day and kids were running around ruining it. *sigh*
is no place sacred anymore.

speaking of - heard the new Sunny Sweeney  - Bottle by My Bed -  friends commenting on it and their struggles with fertility. I can't relate but kudos to the story/song that means something.
That new selena gomez "it's not me" song ...
i mean it's not bad...it's just after the first few lines wheres the story and how does she sing it live...is it all just pre-recorded?...it has to be.

dammit - I just realized I missed the season premier of FaceOff! I've been marathon/fast-forward watching - loooove that show.

oh and jamie remembered about my blog, stalked me and saw my last venting post about him. oops. oh well.

Finished:
Power Game - Christine Feehan - yeah much better than the last two. In this case the love story complimented the action. It played well. 
Darkest Promise - Gena Showalter - Misery's story.  Lazarus faded for me. Definitely will hold till "paperback" prices for the remaining. And I'm not sure where she's going with the quick 2nd option for William but ooo she has to be careful with that one.
Shadow's Seduction - Kresley Cole - got a little irritated after about the 4th denial from Caspian. started skimming after about the 15th. Not awful...just towards the bottom on my list for KC standards. Especially after totally fan-girling the Dacians so far....

I don't know what happened but when I went to buy 3 new books from "go-to" authors of mine in kindle, they were each around $14+!
Kindle! The paper back was $7.99. I might need to make a u-turn here....or just wait it out.....

wishbones

so i went to another "huddle" over the weekend.
A lot fewer people than before -  but can't say I blame them...
Almost talked myself out of it too, just to sit on the couch a little longer with the husband to do a whole lot of nothing....
We planted sod this weekend - and um yeah... seriously - anyone who says that's fun is lying or crazy. We were beyond exhausted. 
Even more of an appreciation for those that work that field.

but back to the huddle
(sore and slightly sunburned)
Glad I went.  Just for the stress relief alone.
Organization is happening. The year is half done though....not sure it's happening quickly enough? Or if it'll change anything?

So much is going on - not  a whole lot of good -  steadily these last 4 months really...
"this country is fraying around the edges" has got to be true....
We continue on.

And I continue to stick my head in a book -
...and it continues to help.
Dating You Hating You - Christina Lauren - yeah just eh. Not even close to the Hating Game chemistry.
Dear Aaron - Mariana Zapata's surprise one - the surprise was fun. The book...it's just, 80% of it was back and forth over email/text dialogue. Don't think that worked for me. The immaturity at times was a little "eh" for me - but maybe that's just me being a stick in the mud.  The lead had good points but nothing that made me love her like the Kulti girl, i wish she went a little more depth on the guy...

we Slaid Cleaves - my MiniSheldonita has been in this mood lately for me:

forewarned and advised

not sure if it's a personal thing or just a normal "getting older" thing
but lord,
wives should be forewarned and advised how to handle roller-coaster husband's in their mid-40's....just saying.

Lessons learned though, sometimes it's just better to let it lie for a bit and then bring it up (for example) when you're in the drive-thru line at Dairy Queen, that maybe there are some issues.
But don't let it lie too long though!...cause then it's "huh? what are you talking about?" *lost-cause territory.* 
oy these delicate steps we must take in marriage. I guess I kinda just thought that it gets easier the longer you're together, and in a way it does, but getting older doesn't mean you don't change in some ways...so it's a constant adjustment too .... -  i'll leave it at that.

Saturday's impromptu date night was nice - the play was in a tiny venue (200 ppl?) - a humorous take on stereotyping/racism/borders/entitlement that they actually pulled off pretty well.
Again, it's nice to do stuff out of the "same old things" rut.

every major city in Texas is joining the lawsuit against SB4 that the governor signed into law.
I'm happy....well I'd be happy...
I just wish so much of our money wasn't being wasted on special sessions and lawsuits, Russia etc.
This is ridiculous.

Was on a Sarah MacLean re-read roll.
Finished Emma Chase novella - Sidebarred - entertaining quick one
Bought the new Christina Lauren - 25ish% in.....able to put it down, not bad though just not fully in it yet.

And so we reckless kelly - i still do

do people know what they're singing about?

Turnpike Troubadours 1968 just pulled up in play rotation while we do our chores around the house....
got me thinking - when we saw them in Birmingham, with all those guys in their confederate flag gear singing along with this song at the top of their lungs...

Are those guys aware that the song is partly talking with nostalgia about Martin Luther King?
...Or am I misunderstanding the lyrics to this song?
 And maybe their confederate flag pride is about their Southern American pride than pride in oppression of people?

I'd really love to hear the point of view from the band....
I can't even find an address to send a letter to ask (like the olden days).
And yes I'm well aware this thought is a bit teeny bopper-ish for a gal my age 
(is the word "teeny-bopper" even used anymore?...lord I'm aging myself)

And not that I'm thinking they have time to answer -
but still for my own peace of mind.... it'd be really nice to know.
#firstworldproblems

We're heading to a local comedy play tonight in Addison - for something new to do... why not.

"If you've got nothing to hide, you've got nothing to fear" - Joseph Goebbels

quick recap -
Friday - Dinner at the new Del Frisco's up at Shops at Legacy with the friends - nice upstairs bar with open windows - otherwise it's just overrated IMO. Most steakhouses are really.

Saturday - Went to Houston (bleh) to visit mom.

Saw the SB4 protests in Austin online Monday -
*again our Texas representatives make global news*
In a way.... it's almost a relief for true colors to be displayed. Maybe then people can stop pretending.

I'm glad they stood up against Rinaldi's instigation...on the other hand, reps (especially hispanic reps with the obvious extra obstacles) should remember they are on the floor of the Texas capital.
Be smarter. Defense isn't always defensive. Represent.
How could it have been handled better?

It's interesting too -
how some people say nothing about Rinaldi's instigation but just jump to justify his actions...
Really, it's just chilling to read so many "normal" people saying things (even outside of this incidence)  that I've read in history books - variations of hateful things that have been said during wars etc.

Like just right now (in this SB4, racial profiling, Rinaldi/Romero/Blanco, immigration etc debacle on the floor for instance.)
All kinds of people spewing things
And this post stood out:

If you've got nothing to hide, you've got nothing to fear"  - Joseph Goebbels 

and people were agreeing with it!
in this case I'm not sure if the person who posted it meant it insidiously or he was trying to open peoples eyes. Either way,  for people agreeing/liking it,  I really hope that it's just them being ignorant not knowing who Joseph Goebbels was.  seriously....chilling. 

Heard there's a protest outside of Rinaldi's office today at 4.
There was a "die-in" protest outside of Cornyn's office today too....

Finished
Fever Song - KMM - this finally ends. I'll never again read a series like this...i dropped out of Nalini Singh's Angles and I think I should've dropped out of this one a long time ago. Not that it was bad. It's just not necessary to keep throwing every dilemma in to extend a story. It's really not. And does this mean Dani's story ends here too? I'm almost wishing it does.
Silent Melody - Mary Balogh - i'm catching on to her writing style again. she writes well but it's just missing a small bit of sass for me. And throwing in the villian thing...eh.
Between Devil and Duke - Kelly Bowen - i'm almost finished here. Another historical that's not bad, it's just missing something. It's like i'm catching her at her beginning and once she gets a few more under her belt (and does away with the "hmm's) she'll be close to Eloisa James/Sarah MacLean level for me.