...Chugger

...chug...chug...chug. Has the steam from my engine puttered out? Have I given up on blogging?   

…Negligent Blogger

I’ve been a bad, bad girl who’s neglected her little ol’ blog for too long. Poor little blog. It’s been naked for lord knows how long (my free background template moved locations and left my blog exposed!). I found a new free background site, Shabby Blogs. They have so many cool designs, it was hard to choose! 

More posts to come...I promise.  

...Chipped Tooth

Sometime yesterday between snacking on a delicious cupcake and happy hour with coworkers, I chipped my bottom tooth. And swallowed the itty bitty fragment. It’s weird to have a portion of your tooth permanently gone. I like to think of it in Tooth Fairy Land, and not working its way through my intestines. Tooth Fairy Land is a much happier place.

My insecurities about my chipped tooth definitely came into play today at work. I smiled less, and when I did smile or laugh, I used my hand to cover my mouth. Very coquettish of me, I know.

I can't get into the dentist until next week which is a bummer. I should have learned from dental mishaps of my past. Remember the ol' emergency root canal? Oh (laugh), gosh (laugh), that was a blast! My chipmunk cheek, the gnawing pain, talk about a riot! Ha-lar-i-ous!!!

I should have been keeping up with my regular dental visits. But truth be told, I haven't been to the dentist in two years! Boy time sure flies when you're trying to avoid the dentist. As a result, my bottom teeth have been slowly thinning at the tops, compounded by the fact that I'm not only a grinder, but also a clencher in my sleep. So each and every night, my teeth die just a little bit more.

Cheers to dental health!

...Amateur Photographer

Coaxed by the rainy weather mixed with patches of sun over the last few weeks, my flower garden is really starting to shoot up! My lilacs are in full bloom (and their wonderful fragrance envelops my home!), hostas are sprouting up everywhere, ferns are beginning to unfurl, clematis are already climbing, cheery pansies are smiling, catmint are already staking their claim and traveling throughout the garden, and my peony bushes are now at least three feet high! I can't wait to see and smell the peonys' fragrant blooms later this month. They are one of my favorites, of course I say that just about every flower! But I think peonies are such a wonderful old-fashioned flower, and they always remind me of my mom, which makes them extra special.

I took this photo last summer of one of my blooms. How can any one resist these spectacular flowers?

...Band Widow (Continuing Saga)

It's been nearly three weeks since I last saw my hubbie. His band has been touring around Europe and I miss him something terrible. Our pooches miss him too. His band, Banner Pilot, almost didn't get out of Minnesota due to the crazy volcanic ash. (The uncertainty of the tour even  made local news - second page of the Star Tribune, baby!)

Thankfully, their flight was pretty non-eventful and they made it to Belgium in time to play Groezrock, a two-day music festival with some big headlining bands. It was by far the biggest crowd Banner Pilot has every played to. My hubbie said the crowd was awesome, and there was a constant stream of surfers, as you can see in the following videos.

Thank you "elephantstone1984" for posting video from Groezrock on YouTube. It's alot of fun to see my hubbie rockin' out.




And thank you "Siscolito" for also posting a video from Groezrock.

...Book Nerd

Kathryn Stockett's presentation tonight at Barnes & Noble was amazing! She was cute as a button, charming, and adorably funny. She spoke to a crowd of maybe 200+ about her book The Help, and then answered a few audience questions and signed copies. I arrived early so that I could grab a seat, and I'm glad I did because most people had to stand. While I waited for the discussion to begin, I finished chapter one of Dead in the Family. (Am still so excited the book is finally here!)

At the end of her discussion, Stockett briefly spoke about her book being made into a movie. Filming will start this summer and Steven Spielberg will be directing it. And though not confirmed, it's rumored that Sissy Spacek may play the role of Mrs. Walters, who will have a larger role in the movie than she did in the book. So fun to have the inside scoop!

 

...Logophile

I love words. I especially love putting the right combination of words together to encapsulate something so succinctly, so perfectly.

For example, I love the phrase SHIT STORM.

As in...

"Ooh girl, I can't believe Denise done caught Dwayne cheatin' on her with Tonya. Shoot, he's only been out of a jail three months and I heard Tonya's knocked up. What a SHIT STORM."

It's a funny, descriptive, and pragmatic phrase that you can use in a variety of situations, in a variety of ways.

I recently heard an upgrade to the phrase, which I had never heard before, and which I'm now adopting and using as my own.

So I think I'm going to have to break up with SHIT STORM.

Dear SHIT STORM,
We've had some really good laughs over the years. You'll always have a special place in my heart. But we're just not working out anymore. A new phrase has come into my life, and it's really special. I really have fun with this new phrase. It's just bigger and better and funnier than you are. I'm really sorry, but I am trading up with my meteorological jet stream phrases. I hope we can still be friends.
-Jennifer

So what phrase have I just fallen head over heels in love with?

Meet SHIT TORNADO.

Yes, when a storm can no longer describe the extreme shittiness of a situation, you bring in the tornado. How can a mere storm even compare with a tornado? Poor storm never had a chance.

SHIT TORNADO is especially effective when said with a southern drawl where all three syllables in TOR-NA-DO can really be drawn out in their full glory, adding even more emphasis to an already disastrous situation.

So if you thought Denise's situation was bad before, just wait until the SHIT TORNADO hits.

As in...

"That Dwayne's sure been busy. I heard he's also been catting around with that girl Misty from down at the Pump and Dump. She's already got eleven babies, all with different baby daddies. All this goin' on, and then poor Denise's trailer catches on fire last week. She done lost everything. Shoot, she just had new aluminum sidin' in-stalled last month. The po-lice are saying a little 'coon done started the fire, bit Denise on the ass, and then just took off. Denise's had to get 5 rabies shots. Can you believe that? What a real SHIT TORNADO."