2013~~Happy New Year

Happy New Year!!

It's still 2012 where I am but I'll probably not be awake to see it it and  it's 2013 somewhere!!   So happy new year everyone!!

We already read about my 2012 so I wont rehash here.  Instead I'll put forward my plans?  Resolutions? Dreams?   Whateve you call them.  I have the standards.  Lose weight. That one is eternal.  Save money.  I need that one too.  Socialize more.  That one is hard for me.  Watch lessTV.  That one is getting easier because TV is kinda crap.  I need to read more.  Write more.  Be kinder and more patient.  

Today I watched Dr Phil.  I like him although I cannot take a steady dose of him.  Actually, he is ok but he has some mean and stupid guests and they just have crap I don't need to see too much of.  But today was about resolutions and, as usual, he makes sense.  So I'm going to do it for the weight loss. Here is his plan, paraphrased:

1.  Set a specific goal.  It's hard to achieve something without a name. I still don't have the courage to write a  startingnumber here but I'd like to lose 30+ pounds.  I'd be happy with 30 but will take more.   To that goal, Weight Watchers online.  

2.  Set a goal that has a measurable outcome.  That one is easy.  Watch out scale!!

3.  Assign a timeline.  Ok, 2 pounds a week is doable.   I've done it before on WW.  But I'm going to give myself more time.  30 gone by the first day of school for 2013 school year.  Late August.  I don't know the actual date.

4. Choose a goal I can control.  Easiest of all.  I make all of those decisions.

5.  Identify small steps.  I'll be using the online tool and I'll post the small steps here.  Prepare to be bored.

6.  Create accountability.  This is the hardest I think.  It says I should have a person I have to report to. I'm gonna have to think about this one.

7.  Set your environment up to succeed.  I can do this.  So many things are WW friendly.  I just need to be a better food diary person.

8.  Change your lifestyle.  Easier said than done but WW is just that.

I want all of these things every year.  And all any of us can do is try, try to be better.  Better than we did last year.  We can only hope for things to get better and easier.  We'll all see.  Maybe this will be my accountability. 

Fiscal Cliff?

I'm not a very political person.  I vote but am truly not sure what I do matters.  I live in a red state and the electoral votes are going Republican every time.  It's a fact.  I tend to lean Republican more than Democrat in that I don't want government too much in our business and I have figured out that there is nothing free in this world.   I do see that people need help and do believe in a hand up but not a hand out.  That being said, our country is in a financial mess.   The big disagreement today is how much to tax the top 2% of earning Americans.  That's not me.  But in the throw out the baby with the bathwater mentality of both partisan parties, a disagreement on something like the top 2% stops progress on the other 98% too.  These guys are willing to take more $$ out of my pocket (and I make less than $30,000 a year) to protect the Oprah's and the Waltons.  And the other thing that seems to be hanging it up is Dems want more spending cuts that the Repubs.  They can't start with some cuts and then add.  Again, the all or nothing crap.

In my humble and not worth much obviously opinion, what we need is a house cleaning.  We need some common sense elected.  What we need is my mom doing their budget.  She managed to take a cowboy's salary and manage a house, be the best stay at home mom ever and send 4 kids to college.  The country would be tough to budget but she could add a few more amazing moms and take care of it.

I heard President Obama speak on this today and he was talking about where some of the cuts had to come from and one that caught my attention was Head Start.  We have a Pre K/Head Start class at school and that entire system is interesting.  While we have a great playground that services the school, built less than 2 years ago, Pre-K is getting their own, fenced playground that only they can play in.  The will ride their tricycles that Head Start $$ bought, then have Head Start paid for snacks, while their teacher and her assistant use the Pre-K Ipads.   They had to spend the $$ provided to them by the program on stuff they did not need or they would lose the money.  How about saving some for a rainy day?  Not the government way.  Meanshile, the rest of the school was provided Smart Boards (the best teaching tool since phonics) via a bond package  but school administration has to struggle inside their budget to replace very expensive Smart Board bulbs which were apparently a surprise.  So Pre-K has money to waste while the other 6 grades in our school struggle budget wise.   It's just a rant.   So saying "cutting Head Start" is fiscally smart does not mean I think cutting the entire program is smart.   Great program, typical government irresponsibility in funding it.

Since my sweet mom is no longer with us my only suggestion won't really work.  I do remember 'Dave'  the movie where his accountant looked at the budget and asked  (paraphrasing) "Who does their books?  I'd be bankrupt if I ran my business this way."   Since mom's not available, maybe a few smart accountants could help.

2012: A pretty good year for me

2012 is ending differently that it started. Better.  At the beginning of the year I was still an ACES teaching assistant and we were slammed and I was really questioning if I was going to stay.  The delinquents were getting to me badly.  But I hung on and got the job as the first ever Wright attendance clerk starting in September.  A big change in job responsibilities, inside the building and many fewer delinquents.  It's fun to hang with the normal kids.  I don't do much attendance but I'm pretty busy all day.  And I make more money.

Over spring break, I got a new Honda Civic.  I heart my car

I still like the 10 weeks off in the summertime.  It's my favorite part of this school thing.  In July I went to Dallas to Uncle T's birthday party.  It was a huge surprise for him with Uncle D coming from Iowa and cousins from Florida and North Carolina that I had not seen in about 40 years.  And I discovered a few family things that are interesting.  Dinner was made by a private chef and was amazing.  I've never had a meal like that before in my life.  Uncle T had a great time and talks about the party to this day.

After I left Dallas, I drove to my cousins Glynneth and Mike's house in New Braunfels.   I was there 5 days and we shopped til we dropped and ate until we almost exploded.  It was a great time and then it was great to be home.

In late August I started the new job and I have an office!!   It's pretty cool.

The Rangers and the Red Raiders both broke my heart this year but 2013 is bringing big changes to both teams so I am ever hopeful.

We had snow on Christmas and it's raining now.  Moisture is good.

I have another week of Christmas break.  A really good thing.

I'm looking forward to 2013.

Les Miserables

Apparently my Christmas break has jump started my thinking process which has obviously been dormant for awhile.

I had been looking forward to Les Miz for months.  I've seen the touring stage play 2 times and really loved and when the trailers started, I found myself looking forward to Christmas so I could see a movie.  Yep, not much of a life.  You got it.  Anyhoo, we finally went the day after Christmas.  Hugh Jackman, a very talented man, stars as Jean Valjean.  Russell Crowe as Javert, Anne Hatheway as Fantine and a bunch of other people whose work I am not familiar with.  I expected to be blown away.  Anne Hatheway is rumored to be on the Academy Award track for her performance.   I was not overwhelmed.  AH is ok but is onscreen for maybe 20 minutes and sings 2 songs.  Hardly what I'd vote for if I had an Academy vote.  She was good but
her 20 minutes was not Schindler's List.  And poor Russell Crowe was clearly the weakest voice in the entire cast and sadly miscast.  There are a couple of scenes where strong Valjean and Javert need to play off each other vocally and RC cannot keep up.  Worse, and I think this is why I'm lukewarm about the show, worse is that HJ has to scale it back so he does not blow away RC.  The truth is that I was actually more disappointed with HJ's performance than RC's.  HJ is the musical star and I'm not sure that was shown here.
The rest of the cast, the younger actors that played Eponine, Marius and grown up Cosette were fantastic.  Great voices.  Samantha Barks plays Eponine on Broadway from what I read and it showed.  She was the standout and is a tiny little thing!!   I read she was cast over Taylor Swift.   Uh, thank you casting God.  Can you imagine TS screeching out 'On My Own' ?  Oy.

If have not seen the play where Javert is as strong a voice as Valjean you might enjoy without question.

Texas Tech wins their bowl game!! And I've figured out why I hated Tommy Tuberville

Well, Tech did it again.  Came from behind in the final minute and upset U of Minnesota again.  This one was pretty exciting but in 2006, down by something like 30 at halftime, Tech & Graham Harrell came back to tie it and win in OT 34-31.   It was the biggest comeback in bowl history and it was beautiful.  I remember being down about it and setting the recorder and going to bed.  The next morning, I watched the end of the game many times.   Last night we weren't behind by that much...31-24 with less than 5 minutes and a great drive, an interception and a field goal later we won...34-31.  I'm sure the Minnesota fans were thinking WTH?  Deja vu all over again!!  

Local radio personality Aaron Dickens tweeted: #TexasTech  Ripping the hearts out of Minnesota fans in the postseason since 2006

While former Head Coach Spike Dykes, as only Spike can put it, tweeted: Uglier than buzzard puke, but a win is a win.

It was a great win to end an horrible era in Texas Tech football.  Face it, all of Texas Tech sports right now. But we're talking football.  You see, we always had ok teams and went to bowl games.  Normally the bottom tier games, like the Meineke Car Care Bowl like we just won.  We weren't up with the big dogs--
Texas, Texas A&M, even SMU (pre-death penalty days)--but we were not in the bottom either.  4th of 8 in the SWC, 4th or 5th in Big 12.   But then Mike Leach happened.  His strange little mind pictured a different way to play football and the league and other coaches made fun of his plan and him.  But then Klif Kingsbury, BJ Symons, Sonny Cumbie, Cody Hodges and Graham Harrel happened.  All were QB's that got the plan and shined.  Sure it was a system but it was a good system and Tech started to win.  Other programs in the league made fun of it but everyone would have taken Mike Leach in a heartbeat because they weren't just wins, they were big wins.  They were exciting wins and darn fun to watch.  Who else had ever put 70 points on Nebraska?  And there were times we were behind but never out.  Reference previous bowl game.  It made us say, so what if we are 30 points behind...we still have 5 minutes!!   And we saw that win happen over and over and we started to believe.  We had hope.

Then the crap with Mike Leach went down.  I'm not going to rehash it but will say Gerald Myers was an asshole and Kent Hance's puppet.  So they fired him and went after Gerald's old friend Tommy Tuberville.  He'd been at Ole Miss and Auburn...SEC schools where defense is king.  They actually play for the lowest score in the SEC I think.  It works in golf but Tech fans wanted none of that.  We'd seen the excitement and did not want to go back to be the team on our faces in the end zone with the winning play 6 inches away.

TT said in an interview last night that Tech was not a good fit.  You got that right...A 20-17 record over 3 years is not a good fit.  Not anymore.  Leaving recruits at a table while you accept another job?  Never a good fit.  A low class move.  Blindsiding your AD and accepting another job and leaving town withing 24 hours?  Not cool.  I read he said he was not offered the job til Saturday afternoon but we were in a Lubbock restaurant at noon and everyone was talking about it so that is not truthful.  So yeah, a losing coach  with no class and a faulty memory is not a good fit.  But worse than that, Tuberville took the excitement out of our team, took their confidence in themselves, took my confidence in them.  I had resigned myself to mediocrity again and I hate that.  I went to bed last night when Tech was losing but again set the recorder.  You see, I didn't believe anymore.  Tuberville had sucked the life out of our team and I felt like his stench was still on them.  I was pleasantly surprised and very proud of our team as they came back to win the game. And I'm sad that I doubted.  Sorry team.  It won't happen again.

Now we have a new, young coach in his first coaching job.  Remember Klif Kingsbury?  He's the man who was the QB coach for this year's Heisman winner.  He brought Mike Leach's system to life.  He loves this University.  He wants to be here.  And he will bring the excitement of the game again.

Tommy Tuberville, I hope you fail at Cincinnati.  Miserably.

Tumblr

Ok, I'm potentially being unfaithful again.  I've read some about how Tumblr is the new thing and I signed up for an account.  I'm going to investigate it.  Again, the grass is normally only green for complicated reasons beyond my computer savvy.  We'll see.   I'll let you know.

A tumbleweed or 90

This was our school courtyard last week after the icky windstorm.  My friend Sam took this picture.

I'd heard tale of people actually buying tumbleweeds and I went to Ebay and sure enough, there are a few for sale.  One is listed with this description:

Utah Tumbleweeds-Romance of Old West-Authentic-Cowboy Ranch-Western Decor

I lived on a ranch with a cowboy for a large part of my life and don't know a soul that sees tumbleweeds as "western decor".    I'm not making fun of the seller...good for him!  I'm just making fun of the greenhorn that falls for it!  I did look and found no sales on Ebay.  But I did find a website called Curious Country Creations and they sell tumbleweeds and have reviews!!   We might have an rarely tapped market here!!

I have neighbors from New York who always have something to say about the difference in our Texas ways.  Basically, they have been here for years and have chosen to complain instead of embrace.  One of them was telling me about paying something like $200 for a cat in NY.  Here, all you have to do is look in the paper.  There are free kittens everywhere!!   I might be a hick, but I wouldn't buy a cat.  Or a tumbleweed.

Christmas morning 2012

I woke up to some Merry Christmas texts from people I love.

 And our first snow of the season!!

I'm dreaming of a white Christmas!!

I made my dessert for Christmas dinner and although it's not perfect looking I'm pleased with it.  It's the first time I made it and it will get even prettier with practice.   Thanks Paula Deen.

Not Yo'Mama's Banana Pudding

Ingredients

• 2 bags Pepperidge Farm Chessmen cookies
• 6 to 8 bananas, sliced
• 2 cups milk
• 1 (5-ounce) box instant French vanilla pudding
• 1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
• 1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
• 1 (12-ounce) container frozen whipped topping thawed, or equal amount sweetened whipped cream

Directions

Line the bottom of a 13 by 9 by 2-inch dish with 1 bag of cookies and layer bananas on top.

In a bowl, combine the milk and pudding mix and blend well using a handheld electric mixer. Using another bowl, combine the cream cheese and condensed milk together and mix until smooth. Fold the whipped topping into the cream cheese mixture. Add the cream cheese mixture to the pudding mixture and stir until well blended. Pour the mixture over the cookies and bananas and cover with the remaining cookies. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

I had already decided to use just one bag of cookies because of :

1. the calories  

2.  the cookies are expensive 

3. the store only had 1 bag.

And my Cool Whip is sugar free.  And I use almond milk regularly.  The bowl and spoons I licked tasted yummy.

The name is actually correct.  My mom was a great cook and the most instinctive natural cook I have ever been around but she made really good, simple things.  Frying, gravy, homemade desserts.  Good southern cooking.  But she never used cream cheese or eagle brand or expensive cookies with Christmas shapes.  Her pudding was good without it.  I'd trade the fancy pudding for her here making the un-fancy pudding.

And here is my Christmas present to myself, using a coupon and Kohl's cash.  I used it for the first time today and what was I waiting for??????   Love it!!

My new Kitchenaid beater with scraper!!!

Christmas Eve 2012

It's been a year since my last Scrooge-y Christmas rant and I have to say I am not as Scrooge-y as normal.

Part of it is a break from school, one that I really needed.  Two weeks off perks me right up every time.

And I bought my few Christmas presents before the crowd and have managed to avoid most of it.

I am invited to Sarjim & Rick's for Christmas dinner tomorrow and am taking a salad and a banana pudding and am really looking forward to that.

I made 'Reindeer Noses' for everyone at school and some little candy pretzel things and everyone was appreciative.  I found them both on Pinterest and showed pictures of my done products already.  And I was overwhelmed by small gifts from Secret Santa, other teachers, my principal and my neighbor Benny who made me brownies and peanut brittle.  Not a lot of $$ spent or needed...but a lot of heart.  Overwhelmed.

I have gift cards from Olive Garden & Cracker Barrel & from 2 movie theaters.  Wow.

But it's Christmas Eve and the loneliness is still here.  I did talk to Steve and he had Christmas with Gray yesterday and will be alone tomorrow.  I invited him here but he wants to eat and watch football so I guess we'll both be ok.  I still miss it feeling like Christmas Eve though.  I should have gone to church but truly did not think about it until right this minute.

'It's a Wonderful Life' is on so maybe I'll watch that, or another movie.  And I have probably made myself sick on caramel corn which was delish!!   And Les Miz opens tomorrow so going to watch it on Wednesday.  And I can sleep late for 2 weeks straight.  And tomorrow I get Paula Deen's banana pudding.

Dang, I'm sounding practically joyful!!

Cops--Ho Ho Ho!!

I'm watching Cops right now and they are doing hooker stings in Las Vegas.  Wow.  I always felt sorry for the girls that had to wear some of the casino uniforms to get a job--Picture a 50 year old woman in fish nets and crack panties and ample cleavage at the Orleans, serving drinks.   But tonight they showed a 55 year old hooker.  55 years old.  I'm 55 !!   Wow.  Again.   And of course some 19 year olds, already going to jail.  And some reverse stings where policewomen are posing at as working girls...getting offered $30.  How insulting!!

I have to say I'm pretty naive.   I've been to Vegas more than a dozen times and I cannot say I have ever knows if I've seen a prostitute.  Probably just not in my orbit.  Next time, I'm watching.

Well, bugger

I was on Pinterest and saw a book that looked interesting, so I clicked on it.  It had a review on the Oprah website and they had a sweepstakes and I filled it out and submitted and now, poof, I am subscribed to O magazine.  And all of the customer service links require and account number to contact them!!   What a racket!!    So I'll just cancel when I get a bill I guess.  

I have nothing against Oprah, although she is a little touchy feely for me.  I do find it egotistical for a person to put their own picture on their own magazine every month.   But I guess those are the perks of the rich.
I actually had a subscription once and they fulfilled their year's promise by starting with 2 back issues as part of my year long subscription so we did not start off on a good foot.  So the shady "thanks for subscribing while entering a sweepstakes Surprise!! and you can't contact us to cancel it"  scam really does not surprise me.  It's probably the only way they can get rid of the issues in the warehouse.  Grrrr

Soft Caramel Corn

Recipe:

1 C Brown Sugar
1/2 C Butter
1 C light Karo Syrup
1 Can Eagle Brand

2 Bags Microwave Popcorn

Put sugar, butter, syrup, milk in small sauce pan. Cook until boiling, lower heat and cook 2 minutes, stirring constantly.  Pour over popcorn, cool on wax paper.  Start snacking!!

I used Splenda Brown Sugar so only 1/2 cup and added a couple of handfuls of pecans.  It's pretty yummy stuff!!

Sunday...so far

I've had a semi-eventful Sunday so far...

Wanted to hit the grocery early since the rest of today and tomorrow will be crazy with Christmas cooks everywhere.  I got out for about $80.  I had not been to the grocery store in a while because I have a ton of food from before.  The spirit of my Mom inhabits me when it comes to food.  She always bought too much--because, I think, of being hungry as a child--and it is a habit that I took from her.  And I have decided to eat my way through my kitchen and then not buy so much so I'll have less stored.  So my $80 bought basics--bread, milk, eggs--and somethings for lunches--hot dogs, lunch meat, spaghetti, tortillas--and stuff to make my Christmas dinner salad and dessert.  And my bananas are green enough to be just right in 2 days!  My 2013 goal is less stored clutter and that includes the kitchen.

The older man--probably about 70--taking me to the car discussed his a trip he took with his "ex" which surprised me.  It just seems like a young people's term.

An older lady delightfully stunned me as I closed my trunk...she was holding out her keys saying it was time to exchange cars.  She wanted the car with the groceries already bought!!  It took me a minute to figure out what she was talking about.  Funny.

Then I went to Starbucks where I had a a Light Peppermint Mocha which cost me more $$ and calories that I want to admit.  But it was quite yummy.

Then I looked at email and got a nice surprise on my cell phone bill.  It showed the bill to be my regular amount but the amount due $41 dollars less.  So I called 611 and was told that I received a credit from a number change in Nov 2009 which I'm not sure I am entitled to but the woman on the phone said it was a done deal, so Merry Christmas to me!!

And this did not happen today but on Friday I received a call about some DVD's that I put on Craig's List about a month ago and I got rid of 6 DVD sets and made $30.  Then yesterday I went to Home Depot to get a new toilet seat as the hinge on my old one was broken so basically for the $30 I got a new toilet seat and a Starbucks coffee.  Nice and balanced.

My house is a disaster with partially put up groceries and laundry going and bed unmade and filing undone but all will be cleared up today.  Got clean jammies on and plan on being in all day!!   Woohoo!!

I think I have chosen a color to paint my laundry room.  Maybe.  Possibly.  Spring Break project.

Cops marathon on all day.  It's a good thing.

Probably more blogging later.

Cinnamon Sprinkle Muffins

First, these are really good.  The recipe I used called them French Toast Muffins but I'm not sure why the name...they don't taste like french toast to me.  So I decided to change the name.

Cinnamon Sprinkle Muffins

Muffin
1/3 Cup melted butter
1/2 Cup sugar
1 egg
1/2 Cup of milk
1 1/2 Cups flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/3 tsp nutmeg

Topping
1/2 Cup butter
1/2 Cup sugar
1 tsp cinnamon

Mix melted butter, sugar, egg & milk.  Mix all dry ingredients, fold into butter mixture.  Batter will be lumpy but don't over mix. Pour into Pam sprayed muffin tin.  Bake 350 for 20-25 minutes.  For topping, dip warm muffin in melted butter, then in sugar cinnamon mix.

My recipe made 9 and I probably could have gotten 12 out of them if I could make them more even.  And I had some cinnamon/sugar already mixed that I have had forever from one of those Sam's tall spice things so I used that.  I basically dipped and then sprinkled.  I also could have baked a couple of minutes less as mine were a little dry but not too much.  They were pretty yummy.   And they are not too sweet.

Here is my puzzle...

It depicts old men (and a dog) sitting around a country store, reading about D-Day.  This era fascinates me, I guess because Daddy was in this war.    This was fun too trying to match the pieces to all of the store goods in the background!

I was in a panic because a piece was missing but I finally found it.  I was about to be unhappy!! I hate doing all of the work only to find one piece gone.

Weekend

I have had a productively unproductive weekend and I cannot believe it's over already!!

I was out just a bit yesterday for lunch then was home the rest of the day and did get some things accomplished but I can't tell you what exactly.  I bought a jigsaw puzzle and worked on it for a while, did laundry and cleaning and watched a little TV.  Then today I went to Ralls and picked up Steve & Grayson and we went to Spur to put flowers out on the graves.  We put roses.  I was going to get poinsettias but the ones at Hobby Lobby looked like they had been in the bottom of the box since last Christmas.  We had lunch at the Spur DQ, exchanged Christmas gifts and now I'm home and tired!!    So, I did get things done but it does not appear that I got MUCH done.  Still going to have to scramble a little to get ready for my week.  I have 3 full days and 2 half days and then 2 weeks off.  I just need to make it til Friday about noon
without going insane.

I forgot my camera but Steve took this picture of Grayson.  We handed him the flowers and he put them in the holders for us.  This is my Aunt Dorothy's grave.  I love that boy and Aunt Dorothy would have too.

Merry Christmas Mom, Daddy, Cathy, Jo, Granny, Uncle Raymond, Aunt Dorothy, Uncle Tommy, Aunt Allene, Uncle Harold, Jimmy, Timothy and Daddy's friend Snooks' wife Hazel!  We miss you all.

**I have to edit to say I love both of those boys**

Our New Coach

I can appreciate a smart, sexy man of any age.  Kliff, I do have my guns up!!

Kliff Kingsbury. It's Official. I am thrilled.

Today, Texas Tech named former Red Raider QB and recent Texas A&M QB coach as our new head coach, replacing Tommy Tuberville.  I'm thrilled.  It was time for a Red Raider to lead this team.   He's young but was a great QB, understands the type of football that put our Red Raiders on the map and he wants to be here.  He will be welcomed with open arms.

He is young.  And it's his first head coaching job.  And Tubb left him some good recruits.  But he's left with the stink of the Tubb era that began with the Leach debacle, had the crap of the losing football and stupid coaching decisions in the middle and the lack of class of his departure.  I read online he left recruits sitting at a table in a restaurant and never came back!!  Wow...really?   I have to say, sorry Cincinnati.  You think you won a prize but it's only an asshat.  But, I do think if the Red Raider nation can heal, KK can lead the charge.  And he'll be given some room to make some mistakes but loving our University and wanting to be here, having played for a winning team and having a fan base that loves him will lead him to greatness.

Welcome home, Coach !!

Long, long day...

I left for school about 710 this morning and I got home at 802.  Tonight was the Christmas music program for our 3rd, 4th & 5th graders.  The entire thing was only about half an hour long but we had set up and take down and cookies and punch and parents to get rid of and kids to pick up.  And I took my friend JB home and now I'm tired.

They have to do secular music only (we would not want to offend anyone mentioning CHRIST !) and not the normal, familiar songs so I did not recognize any of the songs (except for the fact that they've been singing them since Halloween) but the kids did a great job.  Three girls sang together at the beginning of one song and they sounded good and the 4th graders played bells too.  I would like to say if we have to go secular, my favorite is 'Silver Bells' and if we could mention the reason for the season, I'd have to go with 'O Come All Ye Faithful'  but in spite of the fact that they sang neither, I thoroughly enjoyed the concert.

But I am glad to be home.  One more obligation, on Thursday, at the Principal's house and then having to wait til noon on Friday Dec 21 and I'm home free for a couple of weeks.

Pretzel Bites

Ok, the entire world knows I'm not really a Christmas person anymore and I have not done any goodies in a while but we already saw the Reindeer Noses...and I've done another!!    Check out my pretzel bites.  Not perfect, but not bad.  Square pretzels, Kisses and M&M's.

Hmm...red face up, green face down!!

The taste pretty good too!!

Reindeer Noses

Today I made Reindeer Noses for my school people.   Eight brown noses (malted milk balls) and 1 red nose (cherry chewies).   Aren't they cute?

Thank God and Greyhound!! Or Denali. Or BMW. Or however he's leaving.

Bye bye Tommy Tuberville!!   It's a good day for Lubbock and Texas Tech.  The person responsible for the decline of Texas Tech football (Yep, I know it's a team effort but his name was on the door and he called the shots) is outta here!!

One of the names being thrown around is Kliff Kingsbury, a former Tech QB and current QB coach at Texas A&M.  I'd support him 100%.  And if it's not KK, I'll support the next head coach 100%.  Tommy Tupperware never had a chance...not in Lubbock, not in my heart.  What the University did to Mike Leach was stupid and no one coming immediately after that stupidity ever had a prayer, especially a has been in love with SEC football.  Yawn.   After the Leach years of air attacks and the possibility of winning every game, a 3-3 tie ain't gonna cut it.  Yawn.

It's funny that at lunch Deb overheard part of a conversation about Tech FB but I thought it was just Neal Brown going wherever...all the talk this week.  We never dreamed it could be this good.  And it's really good.

Cincinnati, we're not taking him back.  He's all yours.

Duck Dynasty

Tonight I watched my first ever Duck Dynasty.  I'd heard of it but had never seen it before and everyone in my office loves it and recommended it so I DVR'd it.   I know a little about the show, that these guys made a ton of money making duck calls or something like that but the redneck runs deep deep deep!  

Tonight was their Christmas show.  One of the wives talked her Duck husband into being the church Santa and his uncle into being an elf and the results were interesting.  After the elf told all the kids that the sleigh crashed after losing one of the reindeer, he told them it was ok...they had eaten on it for 3 days.  And then for gifts, he handed out office supplies.  Needless to say, the kids went home with a lot of questions.

Meanwhile, at Mom's house, the rest of the boys were putting Christmas lights on everything that was not currently moving while Mom was putting Christmas crap on every available surface and making a perduckin which I understood to be a duck stuffed inside a chicken stuffed inside a turkey stuffed inside a pig and several sweet potato pies to bribe the lighting crew outside.   And  most of the lights worked...OY of JOY on the roof and all over the storage shed, the house, the barn and the owner's truck.   And they ended by singing 'Silent Night' and 'Oy to the World'

If they are truly a nutter family and they are making even more money on reality TV, then more power to them.  If it's all staged, they have a southern writer with a keen eye for redneck.  It was pretty good although I have probably seen enough of them.

Now I need to find an episode of Honey Boo Boo to record.

Faux Blog

Ok, I wrote a couple of places earlier about changing my blog to another carrier.  Mostly, I liked the look but I think I probably just need to work on this one more.  Then my new blog was suspended out of the blue for "terms of service violation"...whatever that meant.  I emailed the link on the blog when it first happened, on November 18 and never received a response.  Until yesterday.   I received an email that I am now "successfully registered in our support center".   Big whoo.  So I sent a response asking, basically, why now?
I pointed out they had suspended my blog without explanation, without notification and that they had ignored my inquiry from November 18.   I also told them I'd moved on and so should they.  And now...today...
the response was:  "Your blog was unfortunately marked as spam by mistake by our anti-spam system.  We are truly sorry for the inconvenience and we are working everyday on improving the efficiency of the anti-spam analysis to provide a better experience.  Your blog has been restored and you can use it again.".  Blah, blah, blah.  And then, they sent me a service survey!!

Big surprise.  No dice.  I think I'll stay put.  I moved a couple of posts over.  And I deleted the rest on the old blog.  And, again, the grass is not greener.

Last night, Robbie & Kyle and I went to dinner at the Arrogant Texan, a restaurant on University Av that serves BBQ.  Technically, I’d never been there to eat although they catered a luncheon at work one day and I went there to pick it up.  The boys had not been there.  It’s a nice little restaurant and bar that has a really cute, Texas-y decor with wood and lone stars and a lot of wood.  The place was clean and they were playing Johnny Cash music.  The BBQ and potato salad were good.  And around the wall is an old fashioned candy and ice cream shoppe.  If you want wax lips, Cherry mashes and candy necklaces, this is your place!!  The 3 of us shared a sundae.

After dinner, we went to the Allen Theater on the Tech Campus to see Marc Cohn, a somewhat off the beaten path singer and songwriter whose biggest hit is ‘Walking in Memphis’, a great song that reminds me of my time walking in Memphis and made famous by the country group Lonestar.  And I really loved Marc’s version and his story behind the song.   I have to admit that while I knew of that song, I had never really heard anything else he’d ever done.  But the price was right and it was a chance for a night out with the boys so we all went for it.  And I have to say I’m glad!    I had called earlier in the week to see if we could get tickets at the door (cheap me, to save the $3 per ticket Select-A-Seat charge) and it was a good thing we did!!   All 3 of us were given tickets for free!!   Seating was not reserved but there were many good seats available.  He had a several fans there who knew the songs and some of us who were there for new music and none of us left disappointed.   His backup band consisted of a really talented guitarist and keyboardist.  Marc played piano and guitar also.    The acoustics in the theater are not great and sometimes the music overwhelmed the singing but not too badly.  And after the show, he had a CD signing but Barnes & Noble did not bring many CD’s so there were none.  He did sign programs and take pictures though

Which brings us to the bad picture and chicken neck.  I cannot, for the life of me, take a good picture.  I have never been the pretty girl but what happens is that I am always caught with a goofy look on my face to add to it. I am actually more open to pictures now that although I am still a chunky I am way less than before.  Mark Cohn, however, probably never takes a bad picture.  So, in the spirit of laughter, here is our picture.  Check out the chicken neck!! 

This getting old thing is getting old!!

~~Originally posted faux blog on Nov 11, 2012~~

Three Dog Night

This is the official Three Dog Night photo.

Well, it’s fair week in Lubbock and last night was the 98 Kool “free” concert.  The ticket was free and I truly do appreciate it but the parking was $5 and the gate $8.  But we got our oldie band, Three Dog Night.  They were here a few years ago at the music festival but I was working and did not get a chance to see much so I was really looking forward to seeing one of my favorite bands from my teenage years.  And according to those I talked to after the show and the review in the paper today, they did not disappoint.   Unfortunately, a drunk 52 year old, self proclaimed world’s biggest Three Dog Night fan chose to come in late to our section and began screaming immediately through every song and then while the band was talking she was talking to either her equally drunk date or on her cell phone.  By the end, she was screaming at everyone in our section that we were fogies who were not true fans and did not know how to have a good time.  Oh, and I know she was 52 because she was screaming that too.  Why do drunks think they are charming?  Trust me they are not  And a drunk woman is disgusting.  Just saying.

Sadly (for us) the place was packed so we could not move and security was non existant.  So, as much as I was looking forward to the concert, I guess I’ll have to wait for another time to actually hear Three Dog Night.  I guess I can load up on Itunes.

~~Originally posted on faux blog on Sept 23, transferred here.

Carol of Lights 2012

With Drew, Carol of Lights December 1, 2012

My best friend Donna's son Drew came through Lubbock with his girlfriend Lindsay and we had dinner at Orlando's and then went to Carol of Lights on the Texas Tech Campus.  I had not met Lindsay before and I really liked her a lot.  She's crazy about Drew and that tells me enough.  I like her because she loves him.

I had not been to Carol of Lights in a lot of years.  It wasn't as cold as I remember.  The lights were gorgeous.  The Masked Rider was lit up on a substitute horse and Raider Red was dressed as Santa.  It was a nice night.