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Showing posts from April, 2009

The cure to what ails ya

Today I went for the Venti Caramel Frappachino at Starbuck's to go along with an attitude adjustment. Normally, that does wonders for my overall state of mind, but today, it failed. I must have built up an immunity. Speaking of immunities, just because I had insomnia last night does not mean that I have the swine flu. That's just a random point, but I would like to go ahead and point that out. Since I'm on the topic of immunities, Coach, who follows me on Twitter (oh, I've already told ya'll that), got immunity tonight. BOO! I think it snowed last night around Rapid City, SD. This might be my first chance to see real, true snow fall. Not Texas snow fall. Not snow on the top of the mountains snow. That might be interesting. Get ready for lots of pictures and lots of stories when I get back. I do have a few posts planned for while I'm gone, so stop by and see what I have to share. I'm leaving town at 5:05 after work tomorrow, so I'm off to go really, s

Oink? Is it the new boo?

You know what's insane? The swine flu. I don't really know where to go from there. Maybe I should head on out of Texas now. South Dakota hasn't had any report cases yet, at least I don't think. My dad has " vacationitis " this week. He says he's had a headache for a week and claims he has the flu. He does this before every trip. Mom and I just sit back and wait for him to get sick. And he's been really sick before some trips. This is truly a strange phenomena. I must have stressed myself out today - I always do trying to check off a list before I head out of town. Always happens. I came home, slept an hour and a half on the chaise before getting up trying to figure out something to blog. (I figured I had to blog something since I wouldn't be able to access a computer to blog from the road next week.) I talked to much on the phone or something today. My throat feels a little off from talking, but I do not have the flu. I really need to go pack. And

6 Degrees... I can beat that!

To add to the wackiness of yesterday morning, I checked Twitter and found that I had a new follower. I often wonder about the practicality and real purpose of Twitter, yet, I tweet. I'm beginning to second guess this now. Last week, I commented in the idiocy of Coach from Survivor this season. Whether it is indeed the real Coach or not, Coach is following me on Twitter. #1 the guy creeps me out #2 that's sort of cyber-stalkish-y #3 it's even more disturbing to me that he might comment on this blog #4 I sure hope he gets voted off this week. As soon as I find this information, I yell for Tracy McCarter to come see. (I name drop her full name just so that she can Google herself. Go for it Tracy!) She was quite amazed as was Rick. Vicki thought it was scary. (There - shout outs to the whole B&B staff that watches Survivor.) So, here's my question of the day... actually my questions of the day are... Who is your most famous Twitter follower? Who is the most famous perso

A woman is always prepared

You could say that this was an exciting morning in Corsicana , TX. When I went into work earlier than usual this morning at 7:30, it was raining just a little bit. Before long though, it started raining harder. The skies were getting darker. By around 8:30 or so, the weather sirens started sounding. My comment was, "well, that's not good." I kept working though. My office is the only one in the building without outside windows on and on the ground floor. No need to panic. Tina and Nancy head downstairs, as well they should. They migrate to my office trying to decide the most inside office. Christi and Tracy come on in from across the hall. I don't know the last time that many people were in my office at once. I look around and start to notice... with the exception of Tina, everyone brought their purses with them. After all, a woman is always prepared. Granted, that's where their cell phones were, and Tina brought her cell phone on into the office as well. Once she

Travel advice

So, in just a few short days, I'll be on my way to South Dakota. Does anyone have any travel advice, must sees to share or stories about trips to Mt. Rushmore? If so, bring them on!

The good news is, there's nothing to report...

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...the bad news is, there's nothing to report. You will all be pleased to know there were no scenes made at last nights t-ball game to report. However, with nothing to report on that stage, there's nothing to report period. Today was a pretty unproductive day other than picking up some things that I needed for vacation that I'm leaving for next week. Speaking of which, I'm leaving next Friday after work for a week. Anyone want to lend me a laptop so that I can blog from the road? I can guarantee some good stories... My parents are going to be beat come tomorrow. Since it's our annual Friends Day at church tomorrow, Dad told Paige and Peyton that they could invite their friends Emalee and Macee to church and have a slumber party the night before. So, Paige, Peyton, Madison, Emalee and Macee are all over at their house tonight. I was over there for a while, played a heated game of Pictionary , and came on home. I can assure you that they have their hands quite full.

Have you ever seen your momma go after someone?

Many people who have heard my real life stories about my family have said that it sounds like a soap opera. If Jerry Springer had been out at the softball fields tonight, it might have been an on location show. I walked back up to the fields from the restroom before Paige's softball game and saw her mom aka "the psycho witch" speaking to my parents. I almost fainted from shock. I should have known it was not an amicable scene. As I approach, the ex-wife is yelling at the current wife or vice versa , and my two parents are sitting in between. I walk off with my fingers in my ears toward my brother, who asks, "WHAT?" I just shake my head. A big scene with witnesses ensues because ex didn't know that any of the parents could order team t-shirts to match the kids. They didn't order for all of the parents - if they got them, they got them on their own. Now granted, I don't think anyone was real mature about the whole thing, and I'm glad that I was not

Savannah Comes Undone

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Tonight I bring you a quick review of the book that I just finished reading - Savannah Comes Undone , the sequel to a book I reviewed a earlier this year. I decided to finish the book last night, but was so tired, I almost dozed off several times while I finished it. (#1 I wanted to accomplish something and #2 I wanted to start the book that I'm supposed to post on the week I'm out of town so that I might have a review done on time.) I ended up staying up too late and was really tired at work this morning. Here's the back cover copy: Seeing my mother as the lead story on the six o'clock news was no great cause for alarm...until the camera revealed her chained to a downtown monument! I thought I knew my mother-but right now I'm not sure I even know myself. I'm currently a journalist for the Savannah Chronicle. And I don't need drama. Really, I can create my own. Who needs extra? But in spite of the mind-boggling events in Savannah this week, the truth is goin

Preview to the coming week

T-ball, Coach pitch, T-ball. Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, I shall be at the softball fields because not only am I campaigning for the World's Best Aunt, I am the scorekeeper. I do believe that Paige has introduced me as that before. "This is Audra. She has to be at our softball games because she is the scorekeeper." Paige, Peyton and Madison were all on the same team last year, but this year, Paige moves up. I shall be one busy scorekeeper. They've changed leagues, so I hope someone informs me of the rule differences before I start tomorrow night. That would be nice. And practical. I'll try to remember my camera and post some pictures.

A trip to La-La Land

OK, so it was not actually La-La Land, but it was not without its similarities. Jenny asked if I wanted to go up to Dallas to church with her today. I said sure... sometimes you need to mix things up a bit, get out of town, and worship can be fresh and renewing in a different place from time to time. Our destination was Prestoncrest in Dallas, where her brother Doug attends. Prestoncrest has long been the mecca of singles in the metroplex . In college, I knew a couple of girls that didn't have enough guys to choose from within the campus center group, so went on down to Dallas from Denton to see if they could find them a man before graduation. After graduation, I knew of people that went there because that is where you met members of the opposite sex, even if you just visited. I've visited a few times over the years, though I did not go for the hook-up. A friend or two tried to convince me that we all needed to go up there to scout for mates, but going to church for the hoo

Battered, bruised and sleep deprived?

I'm tired. The first 24 hours of my weekend did not go as I had planned, not that I had any plans. When I left the office yesterday, I headed towards my parents house, but before I could get there, Mom called me to do her a favor and pick up Paige and Peyton from Julie's grandma's house. When I drove up, Paige had headed out the door and jumped in my car, telling me that she was the only one coming. This didn't sound right to me, so I walked up to the door, and sure enough, Peyton was supposed to be coming along, but hadn't seen me drive up. Paige is not a convincing liar, and I'm not sure how long she would have strung me a long, but she had me for a time. She was obnoxious on the ride home. Peyton was quiet and tells me at one point in a whisper from the back seat, "just don't talk to her." Where Paige was nuts, Peyton was a bit clingy. I said something to Mom about not knowing what was up with Paige, and she answered, "They've been at t

Short on insanity

I was going to post something (I'm not sure what) last night, but after I turned my computer on, I had to turn it off because there was a thunderstorm and thought it was the responsible thing to do. Tonight, I'm trying not to take too much time because Peyton decided to make tonight her "BY MY-SELL-F" night. We played mini-golf on the Wii (her Wii that's been over here for quite a while now), and she's had her bubble bath. She's yawning, and wants to play Cars on the computer. Once she starts yawning, she'll be out soon, so I don't want her to just have to sit and wait on me. I'll feel bad if she falls out asleep. The main reason she came over here, I think, is because Paige went insane today. I don't know what got into her, but she was "a lying pants." She jumped in my car when I went to pick her up, and said Peyton wasn't coming. It's not like her to try to pull something like that. She's over at my parents house a

A question to other bloggers

Do you ever want to blog about something, but just can't because there is a chance someone that you don't want to see it might happen upon your post? After all, whatever you post is available for all the world to see. I have something that I could certainly make into a hilarious post tonight, but there is a long story as to why I can't post about it at this time. Perhaps down the road I can the story. It's really a shame though, because I'm coming up empty right now on things to post. I can verbally share with my co-workers tomorrow at the office, so remind me, and I'll tell you about it. I guess I'll just share some absolute randomness now... Just some things I found funny, but not worth sharing on their own. Paige spells phonetically, just like her dad did. Her version of pantyhose was painehous . (She has an accent to add to her phonetics too.) Instead of writing "Grandma", she writes " Granmal ." A couple of weeks ago, she asks me, &q

Uh, some guy answered your phone

Nothing really exciting happened today, so I'm telling this story and will just let Michele shoot me later. I'm going to take the blame for this, so maybe I'll survive. About 8:50 this morning, Tina called down to my desk. "Would it freak you out if I asked you to go get Michele at the airport?" "No, not at all. What time does she come in?" "10:00." "Oh, I guess I better go then." Usually, it takes a while to get a gate at DFW , so I figured if Michele was waiting on me, she wouldn't be waiting long. By the time I got up to 183, nature was calling, but there wasn't a good non-ghetto place to exit off, and I missed the Starbucks. I was really hoping to find a place because I hate driving around the airport in circles looking for the signs when my eyeballs are floating. I don't mind it, but anyone who has ever driven around DFW airport knows the place is pretty insane to get around when you have to figure out which terminal

Cautiously optimistic? Not so much.

My computer has been on awhile, during which time I've debated what tonight's blog would be about. Once I finally decided, I closed my eyes again and went back to my nap. (For some reason, on Monday evenings I get really sleepy and tend to doze off while watching TV.) I have to say though, I'm more optimistic at this point than I was when I decided what I was going to blog about. "So get on with Audra!" I hear ya, I hear ya! So, off I go. Not sure how this is going to end because we are in the 9 th inning of tonight's Ranger game. When the Rangers started their season last Monday, the sports world (OK, just Texas fans) were full of hope. They kicked the Indians butt to open the year. The radio hosts and the fans calling in were sure this was a sign of great things to come. However, there was the gentle warning, "it is too early in the season to make a lot of predictions." Yes, I agree, the season was just 1/162 nd through the season. After two game

FW Botanical Gardens

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"Audra's Day"

Last Saturday, I sort of threw myself a pity party complete with a blended caramel macchiato because I was really kind of annoyed at my mom for not wanting to go to the Ft. Worth Botanical Gardens with me. She knew I really wanted to go and get out of the house, but she wasn't into it last Saturday. She did end up agreeing that she would go with me today though. I sort of got a late start this morning, just not real motivated to get going, I guess. Before I could get over to my parents house to pick Mom up, Paige called to see what I was doing. She was at Mom's house at the time. I wondered how well this boded for our trip to FW . Mom gets on the phone and said that Paige was hanging out with Pops while Peyton had to go shopping for an Easter outfit with Julie and Madison. I think Peyton was annoyed because she wanted to stay with Paige or go with us, but here's where Mom gets her points back. Mom said that the girls would have to hang out with us some other time because i

Tom Doyle's Breakthrough

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It is time for a FIRST Wild Card Tour book review! If you wish to join the FIRST blog alliance, just click the button. We are a group of reviewers who tour Christian books. A Wild Card post includes a brief bio of the author and a full chapter from each book toured. The reason it is called a FIRST Wild Card Tour is that you never know if the book will be fiction, non~fiction, for young, or for old...or for somewhere in between! Enjoy your free peek into the book! You never know when I might play a wild card on you! Today's Wild Card author is: Tom Doyle and the book: Breakthrough: The Return of Hope to the Middle East Authentic (February 15, 2009) ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Tom Doyle pastored churches in Colorado, Texas, and New Mexico for a total of twenty years before becoming a missionary in the Middle East. His passion for Israel was fed through guiding tours there, eventually becoming a tour guide for the State of Israel. Tom also serves as the Middle East director for e3 Partner

Delirious?

Tonight's blog is going to be short for several reasons: 1. I'm tired 2. I have a headache. 3. I need to take my contacts out because they are dry, but I can't read the computer screen with my glasses on if I get up to take them off now. 4. I don't have much to say unless you want to read what I have to say about the commentators on the Ranger game. (Side note: poor Saltalamacchia's name is so long with the new shadowed letters on the back, that his name is almost tucked in his pants. Saltalamacchia is Peyton's favorite player, by the way, and now they have the same number - 21.) And seriously? They have to talk about 10 cent beer night every time they play Cleveland. Oh, sorry, back to blogging. I have two new blog followers - WELCOME TO SERIOUSLY?! I'm not sure who one of you is, but the other is Angie (Shout out time! - I do that from time to time, Angie.) Angie and I went to jr . high together and she asked me via Facebook what my blog was when I comm

Thou Shalt Not Fear?

Did you know that the most common command in the Bible is "fear not" or "do not fear"? I happen to know this is a fact because last year I worked on a book entitled Running Scared - Fear, Worry and the God of Rest by Ed Welch (New Growth Press). Along with fear goes worry and anxiety. I'd have to say this would be my most frequently broken command lately. My worries and anxieties have run the gamut . There is a very real possibility that I may have to give up my home and move out. There's a number of things that go along with that which would not be the best situation, including more family tension than already exists. (You know since my brother is still not back in a home of his own and all.) My parents will tell you that moving is a very stressful ordeal. I'm worried about my dad. He's had some dizziness lately and is getting around like an 80 year old right now, and I don't know why. At one point, I seriously wondered if he was going to mak

Rangers Opening Day 2009

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Every year, my dad and I go to the Texas Rangers Home Opener. (I've been to all but one of the past eleven.) It's always an exciting atmosphere and everyone is geared up for a new season and there is hope for a successful season. The pre-game activities are always the highlight of the day. Especially the fly over with the military planes. It gives me goosebumps every time. You can hear the roar on approach, and they fly so low that it's so just awesome. AND... the Rangers beat the Cleveland Indians 9-1 today. YEA!!! It was in the 50s today with the wind chill pushing the temperature on down. It was down right COLD in the concourse area. If you were in the shade or up high where the wind hit, you were freezing. Thankfully, we were in the sun (just see my face and my hands that were sticking out of my sweatshirt), so it was really nice. Here are some pictures. Somehow, the balloons were set loose too soon. Because of the wind, they blew around a while before they floated off

Last Mango in Texas

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Last month, I did the blog tour for Ray Blackston's Last Mango in Texas with a promise to post a review as soon as I finished the book. I jumped on the chance to pick this book up on the blog tour because I've read all except one of the author's books ( A Pagan's Nightmare just didn't compel me to buy it even though I've thought about it), so I was going to eventually buy this one at some point if it didn't come up on tour. I'll start off by giving you the book description: Texas Tech student Kyle Mango is attending a fraternity party when he meets Gretchen, an artsy animal lover whose independent spirit immediately sparks his attention. But after a month of bliss, they suddenly find themselves in rough waters. When Kyle inherits four oil wells from his uncle, he sees his affluence as an opportunity to impress Gretchen. But just before he makes his move, Gretchen hears news of an oil tanker spilling its load near the coast of Alaska. Leaving Kyle behind

It'd be funny, if it weren't so creepy

Monday night, there wasn't anything on TV late, and I was watching a repeat of something on TLC. I think I was watching 101 Kids and Counting (sorry, got my Duggars and Dalmatians confused) . Anyway, as one show rolled into another, I ended up watching Toddlers and Tiaras for the first time ever. I always knew pageant people were peculiar and a bit obsessive, but, oh my... This particular episode featured the Chittlin' Strut, an annual tradition in a small town in South Carolina. The director of said pageant introduced the event by explaining what a Chittlin' was. In case you weren't aware of the exact definition, a chittlin' is a three foot piece of pig intestine. However, it is not a requirement to eat chittlins if you win, but it would be really good if you did. OK. Here's my first question. Why name a beauty pageant, and one that was stated several times to be a GLAMOUR pageant, after a piece of pig intestine? But, even though it was a glamour pag

The wrong kind of attention

I had planned to do a lighthearted post tonight. I'll either do it later tonight, or I'll save it for tomorrow (sorry, Penny, I know I already gave you a tease). Something is just really on my mind right this minute, and I want to get it out of my system. I have certain people in my life that only call me when they want something. And they ALWAYS want something. They are the kind of people that most certainly receive, but never give. I have a hard time saying "no", so I usually give, knowing I shall never receive anything in return. While I do understand ' tis better to give than to receive as a general rule, there becomes a point when enough is enough. I've come to that point with some people lately. Then, there are some people that you hate to ask, but you know that they would do anything in the world for you. They are your "person" - kind of like Meredith and Christina on Grey's Anatomy . They put up with you regardless. Seriously! If you hav