Power of a Great Dress

It's been a long time since I felt the Power. If you are a girl you know what I'm talking about--the power of a great dress. Last Friday night I had to go to my friend LJ's wedding. I did not want to go and when I received the invitation I half hoped it would be this weekend so I wouldn't have to go but it was last weekend and I was in town so I knew I had to go. I adore Lynley and wanted to see her happy but you know...weddings. Ugh. Full body shiver.

I desperately needed something hot to wear and had looked around a little bit but mostly just waited until the last second and then freaked out about having nothing to wear. My friend Z came to the rescue with the most incredible dress...the dress completely transformed me. It was so pretty and flattering and with the dress and the jewelry and really great hair I felt like a princess. Not creepy Barbie going to the Prom princess but like a good kind of princess. Actually, I looked so little like me that LJ's dad didn't even recognize me and her mom started crying when she saw me. All I can say is clothes can give you power and for a teeny tiny moment I got to experience that power.

Law of Accountability

Last week I agreed to run a 5K on June 26th and I know the only way to keep me accountable and on track is to blog about it. I'm sure a 5K is no biggie for most people but for me it is going to be huge. The fact that RHC couldn't get me out of my reading chair to take a walk tonight makes me skeptical that I can begin the training this week but I said it and I wrote it and now I have to do it.

Go me.

P.S. my new reading chair is really comfy and my book is really good and I feel really shizzy lately so there are a few reasons that I couldn't go on the walk. Not just pure laziness.

Fear and Loathing Volcanoes

A not smart person would say that it is ironic that a while ago I likened myself to Iceland and now that lovely country's act of God is messing up my vacation plans. However, that not smart person would be taking vocabulary lessons from Alanis and not from Richard Castle or Troy Dyer. Irony isn't really really bad luck. Today I got the official news that Meredith is stuck in Dubai and then London until after I leave to come back to The UC. I'm not mad. I'm not even terribly upset. I'm just kinda sad. I will still have a terrific time next week in New York seeing my friends and exploring all of my favorite places but I was very much looking forward to doing a lot of that with Mere. Oh, and also damn happy that I got distracted by something dumb last week when I was going to buy surprise theater tickets for the two of us for Tuesday night. Now I can just buy one and call it good. Guess it is a good thing that I'm kosher doing things by myself. Oy vey.

P.S. Mere--I'm super happy you finally got a ticket out of Dubai.

Thoughts about Mothers

About a month ago my good friends found out that their mother's cancer was back and that she was very ill and beyond treatments. It's been a very rough month for their family and will only get worse as the end gets closer. I've struggled so much with wanting to do something but being completely impotent other than random homemade deliveries and being there for Ju when she needs a Lost break. Today she shared the news about her mom with a bunch of her closest friends and also included a link to her sister's blog where sweet Emily had written a very special tribute to their mother. There I was, sitting in my office holding my phone up to my eyes so I could read the text with tears streaming down my face. The tears were getting in the way when my phone was sitting on my desk so I had to hold it up so I could actually read. Emily is an incredible writer and had so many wonderful things to say about their mom and about how time has been for their family. I couldn't control the tears and finally had to have my friend Z distract me with random conversation so that I could stop crying. I'm so sad for my friends and their family and for the fact that they are literally watching their mother slip away but also because there's no way to experience this with someone you love and not think about it happening to you. Of course my parents drive me bonkers. They are both so kind and good to me and I love them dearly but as hard as they try to relate to me they have no idea what my life is like and no real concept of the things that I go through. Even with all of that and the normal and not-so-normal struggles that we face I cannot imagine my life without them--thus the tears and the fact that I'm crying yet again. To my mom and to all of the other mothers in my world thank you so much for your example and for the gifts that you share with me every day. To Nate and Emily and Julia I wish you peace.

Baseball, anyone?

I just drove past a ball park and nearly burst into tears. Yes, I hate the sports but I love me some live baseball and love watching my little nephews play ball. The best part about having three little boys playing baseball is that there is always a game to watch. This year will be different. My boys and their sister (and their parents) moved last Saturday to Atlanta and so there will be ZERO games for me to watch. I could and probably will watch Steve on Sunday afternoons. He plays in the Hispanic league and those games are pretty decent. Not as fun as watching little guys figure out how to play ball but better than nothing. Of course there are always my Owlz too. Hopefully RHC is up for more baseball than usual and will invite me along.

Oops...I forgot...

I forgot one of my new favorite things: The Moth podcast on iTunes.

Laughing so hard I can't catch my breath.

Crying like a baby.

Loving every single second of every single episode.

Stuff I Love

I complain a lot on my blog so tonight I thought I'd do something a little different and list some of the things I love...

New Kotex commercial
Will, Emma, Rachel, Terri, Quinn, Finn, Puck, Sue, Kurt and the rest of the gang
The Chocolate
The Word The
Blue Lemon
Wearing cute shoes again
Incredible friends
20 little people
Steve Jobs
Cruise control while on 1200 E in Lehi
DVR
Red
Freshly laundered sheets
TV on DVD
Sunday jeans
Perfectly manicured fingers
Earrings
72 degrees
New books
Not stupid people a.k.a. smart people
Diet Coke from work
Baking
Smiles
8:30
Chanandaler Bong
Massages
Shuffle
Nicknames
Mountains

I'm sure there are hundreds of other things but these are the few that popped in my mind while I was trying to positive prime myself.