Quick Update

I had my MRI yesterday. Talk about uncomfortable. I have to get the MRI because I have severe back pain but in order to get an MRI done, you have to lay on a cold, hard plastic table for 30 minutes. Makes complete sense. It was agony. Not to mention that I'm claustrophobic and they don't allow much room in there. Somehow I made it through though and I should find out the results when I get to the chiropractor this afternoon. Fingers crossed.

Saturday was 110 degrees like expected. I decided to sleep in instead of getting the oil change. We made it to the BBQ where our friends were cooking though. I have no idea how they were smoking butts and cooking ribs and chicken in that heat but they were. Howard and I bought a chicken from them but then realized we had no place to eat it. It was too messy for my car, too hot to eat it outside and we couldn't exactly take it to the bar with us. Luckily I walked inside a gas station to get a drink and noticed they had a deli with a seating area. I asked the cashier if we could bring our food inside and he didn't mind at all. It was so yummy.

Next we went to the Luau at the bar. Except it was too hot to play any games outside so everyone was inside. A couple people hula-hooped but that's about the extent I saw of any game playing. Basically it was just another day at the bar. I couldn't help but borrow a copy of the menu they had printed out for the day though. It's a gem. I really love bonelss chicken sandwitches on tosted buns.

Sunday we played 9 holes of golf and by "we played" I mean Howard played and I drove the golf cart around. It was a lot less hot thankfully and we had a great time as usual. Sunday night, I got wild and sat on the couch playing with the legos for 2 hours. Here is my finished product...

After I was finished, I disassembled and packed it all back up to send to Anthony. However, I left the box on an end table and sometime during the night Copper decided it would make a good chew toy. Luckily I never planned on reselling the set on eBay. Speaking of Copper, how cute are Jack and Copper sleeping next to each other. Jack does not like dogs and he usually won't let one within a couple feet of him. This past Christmas, I took Jack home with me and we stayed with Jeannette. Jeannette had just gotten a little yorkie named Joey. Jack would be sleeping next to me on the couch but if Joey crawled up near him, he would growl and run away.

Awwww!

TGIF...Again

It's finally FRIDAY!! Not that we have big plans or anything for the weekend. Today I have my 3rd appointment with the chiropractor. I went on Wednesday after feeling like I was out of options since no one seems to care about my health in Kentucky. I called and made the appointment at 1:00 and was surprised when he said he could see me at 3:30. When I got there he took xrays and did a lot of exercises with me to find out where the pain was and what was causing it. It's his opinion that I have a bulging disc in my lower back. The xrays pretty much confirmed it. I have to get an MRI to be sure though and that is scheduled for 11:15 on Monday AM. I'm feeling ok right now for the most part but sitting down, especially driving, is excruciating. I want to go back to that ER doctor that saw me on Tuesday and told me there was nothing wrong with me and ask him how he got a medical license.

When the chiropractor told me I was going to have to get an MRI, he asked me if I had any place in particular in mind. I told him that I didn't know of anywhere around here and I would take whatever suggestion he gave me. He asked me where I worked and told me there was only one place in Mayfield that does MRI's, Pine Box Medical Center. I told him I had never heard of it. His reply: "Well it's actually called Pine Lake Medical Center but we call it Pine Box because they kill more people than they help." WOW. Obviously, I am NOT going there. He set me up with some place he recommends in Paducah instead.

I heard yesterday that a guy who used to work here in January was arrested this past weekend. He worked here for less than a week before he claimed he hurt his back on the job to get worker's compensation. A couple months ago I drove by his trailer on the way to work and noticed that it was just a pile of blackened rubble. Word is that he torched it himself for the insurance though I haven't cared enough to ask about it lately. But that has nothing on this. He stole a flatbed trailer and took his two small kids with him up to Benton, where I live. He parked this trailer less than 200 yards from a school and began brewing up Meth in the back of it...while his kids watched. BUSTED. It will be a loooong time before he sees the light of day again.

Those of you that know me, know I hate liquor and I strictly drink beer and the occasional Buttery Nipple. However, I have found my 2nd most favoritest little concoction. Equal parts Raspberry Stoli, Orange Juice and Pineapple Juice. It's delicious. Try it :)

Tomorrow should be pretty eventful. I need to get an oil change first thing in the morning, then we have to head to a BBQ and then a Luau to end the evening. Should be interesting to say the least. I would like to spend most of my weekend indoor in the A/C though. The temperature is 99 right now but it feels like 105. And since the A/C in my office is clogged by about 10 years worth of dust, it's 90 in here today. Is that even legal? I'm attempting to drink lots of ice water but every time I take a bottle of water out of the fridge to drink, it gets hot within minutes. Tomorrow the heat index is 110 degrees. Fun stuff.

Have a fantastic weekend everyone!! And congrats to Amanda on her new job :)

WPBA Great Lakes Classic

Let me just start by saying I will never make fun of Howard again for following the women's billiards circuit. BEST WEEKEND EVER despite a few problems I had. We left Friday after work to make the 6.5 hour drive up to Michigan City, IN. For those of you who don't know, I did something to my lower back a little over a month ago and it hasn't been the same since. 6.5 hours in a car was not what my back needed. When I got out of the car in front of the hotel at 11 pm Friday night, I realized that I couldn't stand up. My back was locked up. Once I finally managed to straighten up enough to walk, I could only make it about 3 or 4 steps before I would double over in pain. While we were trying to find our room, I told Howard I would wait for him next to this bar because walking wasn't doing me any good and we couldn't locate the elevators where we needed to be. I was standing there when I noticed someone walk by me that I knew I knew. I just couldn't place where from. Then I saw someone else sitting in a chair behind me that I was fairly sure I knew. It dawned on me that these were the pool players and I had seen them on TV. When Howard came back to get me, I was discreetly trying to point at Kelly Fisher behind me when he told me I had to man up and walk with him a little ways because Alison Fisher was around the corner. We were star struck! We finally made it to the room and I was determined to go out and explore the casino. That lasted all of about 30 minutes before I was sprawled out on the hotel bed crying in misery. I literally had to crawl to the bathroom. Poor Howard didn't know what to do with me and I was embarrased for him to see me like that so I kept making him leave the room.

Saturday morning, I woke up and was able to make it to the bathroom without any issues though my back was still killing me. We went down to the buffet to have breakfast and the minute I sat down, the pain about knocked me out. Standing was a whole lot better than sitting however we were about to go watch 8 hours of pool tournaments. We walked down to the room they were holding the tournaments in and started talking to some guys who were setting up. They told me they didn't think it would be a problem at all if I were to stand next to or behind the bleacher style seating they had. PERFECT!

The pool tourneys started and I was content standing next to where Howard was sitting. When the first set ended, Jeanette Lee was signing autographs at the booth where they were selling WPBA memorabilia. Howard and I walked over once everyone else had left and struck up a conversation with her. He then asked if he bought 3 of her cue balls, if she would sign them for him, his brother and his dad. He made the mistake of asking her if she thought Alison Fisher would sign them as well after her match. Those two are like rivals being they are the best in the game. She looked at him a little odd but said that Alison most likely would. A couple minutes later after she had signed the balls he paid $20/piece for, it came out that I was her fan and not Alison's. She reached into her bag and pulls out the glove she just played her match and won with. She put it on and signed it and then handed it to me. HAHAHA, I didn't have to pay anything :) Jeanette Lee and Alison Fisher ended up having to play against each other that afternoon so Howard was extremely excited. Alison ended up winning and he was able to catch her after the match to get her autograph. I was able to get a couple pictures as well.

Alison ended up losing that evening to Kelly Fisher who ended up being in the final two on Sunday. Saturday night we went out to the casino and lost some money. I played an actual game at a table so I crossed that off the list! I only played one hand for $20. And lost. I'm definitely no good at Blackjack. We stayed out until 3 am when last call finally came around. I had not sat down since 9:30 that morning at breakfast and my feet officially hurt more than my back, yet I was rather pleased by that.

Sunday was the semi-finals and finals. Both Alison and Jeanette were out of it already but we still had a blast. I had paid $20 for 7 raffle tickets on Saturday for a chance to win one of five Cuetec pool cues worth around $250/300 each. Right before the final match between Kelly Fisher and Jazmin Ouschan, they picked the five winners. They had said you didn't have to be present to win so I had filled out all of the information on the little tickets. I had even complained to Howard that my hand was hurting from writing so much. The announcer picked the first ticket and said he didn't think this person was going to be present since they had written a novel on the ticket. Howard whispered "Dana Benson" under his breath to me. And then they called DANA BENSON! So I won a pool cue. I had it signed by 12 of the players there. I had watched people all weekend hunt down the players for their autographs and made fun of them to Howard. But all of a sudden I turned into one of those people I was making fun of and began stalking the players down. Such a nerd. Howard also got his dad a set of practice balls used by them in the tournament. I love how the #4 ball is pink.

We went out that night to a bar in the casino because we were tired of losing money gambling. While sitting there, the bartender from the bar next to us came over to chat with the people working at the bar we were at. He mentioned that a bunch of the players were over celebrating Jazmin's win. Howard and I made our way over there and he bought both Jazmin and Kelly a drink to congratulate them. Except he was too shy to take it to them so I did. Next thing we know we are partying the night away with them. We closed the bars down again that night but this time we did it in style with our new friends. Seriously, me and Irish Julie Kelly are BFFs. I even introduced her to Buttery Nipples. Her world will never be the same. Wouldn't you know I left my camera in the hotel room and didn't feel like going to get it because I thought I might miss something. Now I have no pictures to prove what a fantastic night that was.

My New BFF, Irish Julie Kelly

But all good things come to an end and we had to leave Monday morning. I spent the next 6.5 hours in the passenger seat trying to move around so my back wouldn't lock up again. It was miserable. I went to the hospital this morning and they took Xrays. The doc said he didn't see anything wrong with my spine which is fabulous news so it must just be a muscle issue. He prescribed some steroids for me but basically told me that I shouldn't have come to the hospital for medical attention. He said to go find myself a general practioner to help me out. I love how everyone in Kentucky gives me the run around when I'm seeking help. My boss told me not to worry about coming in today so I spent the majority of the day laying in bed reading Twilight. Fun times.

I picked up Jack and Copper last night from the boarder's house. They were all fresh and clean. She let them sleep in her bed with her and her husband. They were completely spoiled. I'm so glad I found someone I trust my children with!

LEGOS!

I received my lego set yesterday and I've finished the main part of it! I was going to wait until we got back from Michigan City on Monday but I'm way too impatient for that. I still have to build all the trucks and helicopters though. And yes, it was just as much fun as I remembered :)

T-Squeezy

Did anyone else see this video last night on the CMT Awards? I go back and forth on how I feel about Taylor Swift and her music but I absolutely loved this! I thought it was hysterical...



On a different note, I need to vent for a moment. After I flushed the phone, I went to Verizon to get a replacement Monday morning. I pay the $6.00/month insurance so I figured it shouldn't be too difficult. I was given a pamphlet and told to call a number to file a claim. So I got to work and called and then was told on the phone to do it online. So I did that and paid $50 for my new (refurbished) phone. It was overnighted to me and I received it on Tuesday. OK, so not so bad. However, as we all know, I'm a dork and I had previously downloaded a bunch of games to my old phone and paid the subscription rate (one time fee) so I would not have a recurring monthly fee to pay. None of these games are on my new phone and I didn't expect them to be but I also figured I could re-download them and it wouldn't cost me anything. So I write an email to Verizon asking them about the process to get my games back for free. Here is the response:

Good evening. My name is Norbert, and I welcome the opportunity to address your inquiry regarding the applications that are not on your replacement phone.

You must re-download your applications to your replacement device. You will be required to re-purchase your download purchases. Free downloads are only available when equipment is replaced due to manufacturer defect. I apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.

Well then Norbert, screw you!

Bye Bye Phone

As many of you already know, I flushed my phone down the toilet on Sunday. What most of you have asked is how that could possibly happen. Apparently it's extremely easy. The phone was in the front pocket of my sweatshirt. As I turned to hit the flusher, it fell out and I didn't notice until it was too late. I heard something hit what I thought was the floor, reached into my sweatshirt and realized my phone was gone. As the water drained down the toilet, I searched the bathroom floor only to realize my phone was nowhere in sight. I went into the living room and grabbed Howard's phone and proceeded to call my phone. It didn't ring. That's when I noticed some water drops on the toilet seat, which I then realized was from the splash my phone made when it hit the water. I put my ear next to the toilet to see if I could hear it ringing in there. No such luck. My phone with all my games, pictures and numbers is now chilling with the porcelain gods. And no, there was NOT any alcohol involved!! I'm just that dumb sometimes.

Howard had Roscoe outside Saturday morning when a little girl playing outside asked him how Copper was doing. Copper meaning Roscoe. Copper has been around Benton for a couple of years now according to the girl's father. He has seen him at the last two Tater Day's held in Benton where we live. We took Copper Roscoe to the vet later that morning to find out approximately how old he is and what health he's in. The vet put him at 1.5-2 years, gave him some shots and told us he was in great health. We took him over to the bar and chained him up outside because Howard thought that once the servers had a look at him, someone would want to take him home. They gave him water and a 5 lb. hamburger trying to fatten him up. One thing led to another and eventually Howard was on the phone with one of the server/bartender's mom. We made plans to meet her on Sunday between 3-4 so she could take the dog. I was pretty sad but I knew it was for the best. Well Sunday came and went and she called and told us that her husband wouldn't let her get another dog. So he's still ours for the time being :)

While waiting for the lady on Sunday, I picked up the 2nd Twilight book and started reading it. 6 hours later and I was done. I'm going to catch up to the girl that is letting me borrow them before she's even done with the 4th one. They are seriously addicting. Howard kept asking me when I was going to stop reading. I promised just one more chapter again and again until I was finished.

For the past 6 months, I have been listening to 87.7 in my car which broadcasts NBC all day. On the way to work, I listen to the Today Show and get all my relevant news. On the way to lunch and back, I listen to the Doctors and on the way home, I get to scream out answers to Jeopardy to make myself feel smart though no one else can here me. But now that they have switched from analog to digital, they can no longer broadcast NBC over the radio. This makes me so sad. I keep flipping to the channel in hopes that it's back but so far all I get is static.

The sky just changed from bright blue to dark black in a matter of seconds and now the rain is coming down in sheets so thick I can't see out my window and the thunder is shaking this metal box they call an office so peace!

TGIF!

Yesterday after I received that strange phone call, I thought long and hard about whether I should tell the employee about it. On one hand, I didn't want to start anything between him and this guy but on the other hand, I figured something was already started because it was obviously a personal vendetta this guy had for him to call us in the first place. I decided to keep quiet about it for the time being. This morning, the employee asked me point blank if I had received a phone call yesterday. Apparently word travels fast around here. He explained to me that the guy had been calling everyone and spreading lies and threatening his life over a trailer. See, this employee is having trouble with the trailer he's living in now. Fuses, leaks, etc. This old woman in the trailer park they live in owns a nice, little trailer that she was in the process of selling to the guy who called me. When she found out the employee and his family were having problems with their trailer, she kindly offered to back out of the negotiations and sell it to his family instead for $100/month for 35 months which the employee gladly accepted. This has angered the other guy and he is now trying to find a way to get my employee fired or put in jail so he cannot afford to make the payments. Seriously, where am I?


The opening bid on Ebay for my 1991 Fire Control Center lego set was $19.95. I bid on it on Monday and was the only bidder up until 3:06 pm yesterday. The bidding closed at 3:09 pm. Luckily, I am a true dork and was watching the countdown getting more excited as each second ticked down. So 3 minutes to go and all of a sudden someone bids $20.45. I re-bid with $25.00 as my max and it takes my bid up to $20.95. Nothing happens for a minute and I think YAY! But then I'm outbid again at $26.00. So I enter $27. Then $28. Then $29. Then $30. I can't seem to outbid him. He was winning with 3 seconds to go at $31. I entered $32 as quickly as I could and hit submit with 2 seconds remaining. I WON! I don't feel so bad about paying $32 for it considering the same set is on Ebay for $319.99 and $399.99 right now.

Have a GREAT weekend :)

Never a Dull Day...

I hadn't been in the office this morning more than 5 minutes before I got a very strange phone call. A guy tells me "we" have a problem with one of my employees. He tells me who he's talking about and then goes on to tell me that this employee uses and sells marijuana, is on lortabs (prescription pain killers) around the clock and is stealing diesel fuel from the plant. He tells me to drug test him today and he would fail. I asked him who he was, told him I wasn't at liberty to discuss employees and transferred him to my boss who pretty much told him the same thing. The concerned citizen told my boss he was calling the Better Business Bureau and hung up on him. This guy definitely has a personal issue with this employee and he was trying to get him fired. I'm pretty sure that if I drug tested everyone here, everyone would pass because the drug test doesn't work. However, if I sent them all to the clinic to be tested, then at least 75% would fail. Unfortunately, that's just how it is. We pay these guys $7.50 an hour to work in the insane heat and frigid cold doing manual, back-breaking labor. I wouldn't do what they do for $100 an hour. Not a chance in hell. I don't condone what they do outside of work but it's their business and their life. All I can ask is that they show up to work and do their jobs. As for the diesel issue, we solved that relatively quickly by installing a lock on the tank.

There was a guy who came in last summer to apply for a job. We weren't hiring at the time but my boss told him he would pay him to cut our grass out front. His house was across the street so he raced home to get the lawn mower and was back out front working 10 minutes later. It began to rain when he was about halfway done and he came in the office to get the money. I told him I wouldn't pay him until the job was done but he somehow convinced my boss to pay him in full. My boss told him he knew where to find him obviously since we can see his house from my office window. He never came back. I saw him a couple weeks later when I was walking to the post office next to his house but he either didn't or pretended not to hear me when I yelled his name. One week later, he was dead from a heroin overdose. He was 19 years old. His mother has lost 2 of her 4 children to drugs. One year earlier her oldest son, who was 20 at the time, crashed his car into a telephone pole one mile down the road and was killed instantly. He was high on drugs. An absolute shame.

I did bring the guys cookies to work today so I've crossed that off my list :) They were all very appreciative and most of them made a special effort to thank me. Some even lied and told me they were good. I attempted to make brownies last night as well but they didn't turn out so great. Actually I don't know how they tasted because I couldn't get them out of the pan. Oh well. I won an indoor herb garden kit on Ebay on Tuesday so once that arrives, I can get to planting and knock that off my list too! When I told Howard about the herb garden, he laughed and asked me why I needed herbs when I never cook. I think he's secretly excited though.

I think the list item I'm most looking forward to is building the lego set. My brother and I were crazy about legos when we were younger. The guest room in our house in PA was dedicated to our lego town. We had two long tables set up with our town stretched across them. There was a fire station, police station, hospital, gas station and airport. Every kid in our neighborhood had their own lego house in our town though mine was always the prettiest because I stole all the lego flowers and placed them all over my pretty green lawn. A few years back when both Anthony and I were still living in Northern VA, we went to Tysons to Christmas shop for our parents. We walked by the lego store and both stopped dead in our tracks. We decided we would just go take a peek at the newer sets. A couple hours later we finally left the store to continue our shopping. We just had to sit down in the tiny kids' chairs with our knees up to our chins and build a house together. It's one of my most favorite recent memories. When I told him I was bidding on the 1991 Lego Fire Station, he was just as excited as I was. When I'm done with it, I'm going to send it to him to build with Brooke and Paige. This is what Heather thinks about me:

me: 2 hours until the lego set is mineeeeee
Heather: haha, you might be the biggest dork i know

Yup.

Monday :(

So the weekend flew by like usual. Friday we went to happy hour...shocker. One of the waitresses was reading what looked to me like the bible but turns out it was the 3rd book in the Twilight saga. I swore I would never read those books. She convinced me though. She brought me the first book on Saturday and I've barely put it down since. So I guess I can cross off "find new favorite author" on my list. I'm hooked...

We had another pool for the Belmont races on Saturday. There were only 10 horses racing so we were lucky to even get a spot in the pool this time around. Howard pulled #4 and I pulled #2. He placed first with Summer Bird and I got second with Dunkirk, however he's the only one that got the money. I had placed a side bet with the bartender for $5 which I won so at least I covered my entry fee. Howard did the nice thing and bought everyone a round. I wouldn't have been so generous so it's a good thing he won.

Saturday night, Roscoe returned. He had been gone since Tuesday morning. He was outside on our front porch waiting for someone to come outside. I picked him up to take him up the stairs to our apartment and he yelped. Once we were inside, I laid down on the floor with him and noticed that he had open wounds all over his belly. I'm not sure what kind of trouble he found but the poor guy can barely move. Everytime we take him out, we have to pick him up to go up and down the stairs :(

Sunday, it was beautiful outside so we decided to rent a boat and go fishing on KY Lake. We packed up everything we needed while discussing the fact we needed sunscreen. Once we got to the lake, we realized neither of us had brought the sunscreen because we both thought the other one had it. Needless to say, we are both pretty burnt. For some reason, I had decided to wear a regular t-shirt instead of a tank top and I'm extremely happy about that. I have one hell of a farmer's tan but at least my shoulders and chest aren't going to blister. I had a great opportunity to cross "bait my own hook" off my 1001 list but I just couldn't do it. I was opening the tub of worms when I dropped it and they all fell out onto my feet. I screamed and it was over from there. I couldn't even pick them up and put them back in the container. I don't know how I ever played with worms when I was a kid. Howard caught 3 fish and I caught a whopping ZERO. But we still had a fantastic time!

So a little side story about work. Last Wednesday, "Randy" called in and said he couldn't come to work because he had caught his old lady with another man in their house. He told me that he went a little crazy and threw the man through the coffee table and stormed out. He couldn't come to work because he needed to move his stuff out to his dad's house. I told him not to go to jail over something like that. He didn't come in Thursday or Friday either. He told me today that his old lady went to jail on Thursday for not paying a $200 fine and she's still in there. He also said he finally figured out that the man was her cousin. He told me that he felt really bad for throwing him through the table but also because in his jealousy-induced rage, he told her about the other girl he's been sleeping with. WINNER!!

101 in 1001

Inspired by Jayme's list, I've decided to create my own. Here are the rules:

The Mission: Complete 101 preset tasks in a period of 1001 days.

The Criteria: Tasks must be specific (ie. no ambiguity in the wording) with a result that is either measurable or clearly defined. Tasks must also be realistic and stretching (ie. represent some amount of work on my part).

Why 1001 Days? Many people have created lists in the past - frequently simple goals such as New Year's resolutions. The key to beating procrastination is to set a deadline that is realistic. 1001 Days (about 2.75 years) is a better period of time than a year, because it allows you several seasons to complete the tasks, which is better for organizing and timing some tasks such as overseas trips or outdoor activities.


Beginning June 3, 2009 and ending February 29, 2012. So here goes...

1. Visit a zoo and see the hippos!
2. Attend an Eagles game at any stadium
3. Make it home to VA every Christmas (0/3)
4. Plant a vegetable garden
5. Plant an indoor herb garden
6. Carve a pumpkin
7. Make 20 new recipes (0/20)
8. See a concert at the Grand Ole Opry
9. Read 25/100 Best Novels of All Time (0/25)
10. Send a card to 10 friends for no reason (0/10)
11. Attend a Nascar race
12. Eat at 10 new restaurants (0/10)
13. Obtain a lego kit and actually build it
14. Get corrective eye surgery
15. Convince at least one friend to visit me in KY
16. Donate at least $500 to charities (0/$500)
17. Get my passport
18. Watch a fireworks show
19. Color an entire coloring book
20. Go one month without putting any money in the MegaTouch
21. Play something other than slots @ a casino
22. Try 10 foods I've never had or swear I hate (0/10)
23. Go rock climbing
24. Attend a wine festival
25. Go one month without a soda
26. Go camping at least once a year with out of town friends (0/3)
27. Read 5 biographies/autobiographies (0/5)
28. Leave a $20 tip on a meal under $20
29. Build a gingerbread house
30. Collect a quarter from every state (22/50) - WV, SD, CT, MD, ND, HI, SC, CA, NH, IA, TX, RI, NC, MN, WY, VA, NV, VT, NE, IN, AR, TN
31. Create a recipe book
32. Find 10 reasons why I like living in KY... (0/10)
33. Learn to properly swing a golf club so I can actually hit the ball
34. Visit two different states to see friends...VA doesn't count (0/2)
35. Bowl a score over 150...and not in Wii Bowling
36. Buy flowers and send them to someone just to brighten their day
37. Pay for the person behind me in the drive-thru
38. Inspire another person to come up with 101 things
39. Give up at least two reality shows I'm addicted to (0/2)
40. Do not curse for an entire week
41. Visit the resting places of my grandparents
42. Go on a tropical vacation with Howard
43. Donate blood
44. Update my blog at least once a week for 2 months
45. Bake a batch of cookies and bring them to work for the guys
46. Participate in a fantasy football league each year (0/3)
47. Clean out my closet and donate to Good Will
48. Drink 6 glasses of water a day for a month
49. Play miniature golf
50. Speak to my mom on the phone/or in person at least once a week (1/143)
51. Spend one whole day lounging on the couch watching girly movies alone
52. See my nieces AT LEAST once a year (0/3)
53. Buy a plant and keep it alive for 2 months
54. Find a new favorite author - any recommendations?
55. Find a reputable nail salon in KY and get a pedicure twice a year (0/6)
56. Floss everyday for one month
57. Go tubing
58. Go one week without text messaging
59. Ride a mechanical bull
60. Get weight down to something I feel comfortable with
61. Visit the casino in Tunica, MS
62. Get a massage once a year (1/3) - June 3, 2009
63. Eat vegetarian for one week
64. Bring my lunch to week for 2 weeks straight
65. Find one piece of jewelry I will enjoy wearing as much as the necklace I have...and wear it
66. Invent my own cocktail
67. Get up really early on a Saturday and go yardsaling
68. Switch to diet coke instead of regular
69. Attend a baseball game in this area (professional)
70. Attend a hockey game in this area (professional)
71. Attend a basketball game in this area (college or professional)
72. Attend one random sporting event
73. Help somone achieve a task on their 101 in 1001 list
74. Go one week without signing into Facebook
75. Make Eggs Benedict for Howard
76. Decorate a Christmas tree
77. Test drive a car I cannot afford
78. Make a snow angel
79. Take multi-vitamins everyday for a month or until the bottle is empty
80. Make the soundtrack to my life
81. Send 20 birthday cards (1/20)
82. Build a campfire without any help from Howard
83. Bait my own fishing hook with a worm and take the fish off myself
84. Fly a kite
85. Send Christmas cards out each year (0/3)
86. Donate 10,000 grains of rice through Free Rice (3,210/10,000)
87. Enter 10 contests (0/10)
88. Play BINGO
89. Brew my own beer
90. Make my own wine
91. Go to 2 movies in the theatre (0/2)
92. Go to a comedy club or see a stand-up comedian
93. Frame and hang a picture I take of something other than people
94. Hit a pinata
95. Finish the puzzle that has been sitting on our table for months...and the one we just got
96. Visit 5 state parks (0/5)
97. Buy new glasses and wear them for one full week
98. Remember to actually mark things off and update this...
99. Put $5 dollars in saving for every task completed.
100. For every task not complete after the 1001 days I must donate $5 to my choice of a charity.
101. CELEBRATE!

Weekend Shenanigans

Friday afternoon, Howard and I went to our favorite bar after work. I was, of course, sitting at the MegaTouch machine when I saw someone walk in that I recognized (shocker!). It was a man that works for a freight company I use occasionally. He brings me pizza sometimes and is really nice but I just wasn't in the mood to small talk so I sort of hid behind the MegaTouch. Howard asked me why I was hiding and I told him about the guy. What does Howard do? He nudges me out from behind the machine and yells "Hi!". So of course, everyone looks over including the freight guy which then means I have to talk to him. What a guy that Howard is! His explanation was that maybe the guy would buy me a beer so he wouldn't have to. It didn't work. He offered but I didn't take him up on it.

Saturday it was beautiful so Howard and I decide to go hiking. He picked out a place on Land Between the Lakes that was closer to our entrance. We figured we could drive almost to the lake and then get out and hike for a mile or so. Well once we turned onto the road and went a little ways down, we realized there was no way to cross over some parts of the road in a Camry. So we got out and started walking. The first mile wasn't so bad. But then the heat and gnats really started to get annoying. Then we heard the glorious sound of a truck coming up behind us. Two guys in a Ford 150 had no trouble navigating over the rough road. They stopped next to us and asked jokingly if we knew where the nearest McDonalds was. And then they kept going. My heart sank. But then they stopped! But then they started going again. But then they stopped! And this time the driver leaned out the window and asked if we wanted a ride. So we hopped in the back of the truck and they drove the next mile and a half to the lake. Once we reached the lake, we attempted to find a nice fishing spot but instead found a bunch of ticks crawling up our legs. Neither of us were in the mood at that point to be anywhere near the woods so we gave up and started walking back. While we were walking, I started having auditory hallucinations that the Ford 150 was behind us again. And then suddenly it was. They said they didn't see us down at the lake anywhere so they figured we were walking back and thought they would come give us a ride. So hiking pretty much turned into hitch-hiking but at least we got some exercise. We have agreed that Land Between the Lakes is off-limits for the summer. We are going to rent a boat this weekend and fish out on the water free of the little blood-sucking vampires.

Saturday morning, Howard took both dogs for a walk while I was asleep. Jack was on a leash and Roscoe wasn't. Roscoe took off. We drove around looking for him multiple times. We figured he had gone home or someone else took him in. But come 9:00 Sat. night, he was waiting outside the door when I went to walk Jack. He ran away again this morning, so I can only hope that he's there waiting at some point tonight...He's really grown on us and Jack loves him. It's so nice to have two dogs that get along because instead of bothering me, they entertain themselves all evening.

Sunday, we went to brunch at a new restaurant called Martin Fierro's Argentenian Grill. It was $14.95 a person. You got a drink, salad bar and a portion of 5 different meats from the grill. I figured the salad bar would be just that, a salad bar. Not so much. It had everything you could think of, different pasta salads, asparagus, corn, broccoli, artichoke hearts, quiche, deviled eggs, crab salad, soups, etc. Needless to say I was stuffed by the time they started bringing out the meats. I took one bite of each just to get a taste but my plate was full when we were done eating. The dinner portion is $37.50 and includes 10 meats. I don't know how anyone could possibly eat that much. I was in a coma just from the salad bar!