Pocket Aces

Fat Tuesday

Thinking about New Orleans today. Yes, because it's Mardi Gras, but also because I've been reading some books on this gorgeous city lately, and have made a few ill-fated attempts at a trip down there.

Did you know that after your Bananas Foster during Breakfast at Brennans, you can go out to their courtyard (everyone in the Quarter has a courtyard. I want a courtyard.) and visit their turtle family?

 

It's possible that their brother was in the turtle soup. Don't tell them. And yes, I am talking about flaming alcohol and fruit (but mostly alcohol) for breakfast. 

 

Wrought iron balconies are everywhere. I want one of those, too.

 

And little cherubs peek out at you from all sorts of places.

It's hard to describe New Orleans. It's such a dirty, beautiful, romantic city. Anything that can capture your imagination can be found there.

 

History. More history than you can wrap your head around.

 

Tiny old bookstores with chairs to get comfy in and tall, tall stacks of books all around you.

 

Food.

   

The unapologetically seedy side. (At a bargain, even!)

 

Liquor.

 

Pirates.

 

And after all that carousing, you'll be pleased to find that New Orleans takes it's religion, and it's churches, very seriously.

Also, of course, music. But I don't have any pictures of that.

Next time we go down, here's what we'll do:

 

Wander around Jackson Square with the people and the music and the pigeons. Look off to the right there, where I might see a piece of art that's perfect for Mason's bedroom.

 

Get ourselves some go cups and become part of the entertainment. That's never been difficult for us.

 

Find a bar and lose focus. Also, eat some really amazing garlic oysters.

Happy Fat Tuesday. Laissez les bon temps rouler!

(Photos from September 2007)

What the 'L'?

Wow. What a terrible title. And you know what? I'm not gonna apologize for it. Live with it.

So it's a meme-y time of year, it seems, and they just go 'round and 'round. I like them, particularly for the kind of day/week/month when I don't have anything topical to ramble about. This one is about listing 10 things you love that start with a particular letter. I grabbed it over at Jambalaya, and the lovely wordnerd assigned me the letter 'L'.

I gotta say, 'L' was hard. I had to get Marc to help me out. I should have had 'B'. 'B' would have been a no-brainer. Here we go, in no particular order:

1. Lilacs. Not my favorite flower, visually - that honor goes to the short-lived peony - but hands down the best smelling.

2. LOST. Oh, come on. Too easy.

3. Licorice. Specifically, red. Specifically, Twizzlers.

4. Lipstick. Clinique, Raspberry Glace. I've worn the same color since high school. I'd think that was a little sad, maybe, except that I can't seem to find another color I've liked as consistently.

5. Louisville and Lafayette, CO. I wasn't born there, and I've lived other places since, but this is my hometown. They are two distinct little towns, with rivalries and everything, but really it's all one place. A certain someone I know who uses a lot of exclamation points will likely jump in the comments to list the differences between them like I don't know them, but I will just say that with time and distance, in my mind they are one now. It's where I grew up.

6. Libraries. What's not to love about a library? Stacks and stacks and STACKS of books. In college, I loved those little study carrels. Like a little private world with your books. Trouble was, then, I wasn't always reading for pleasure. I think I need a study carrel now.

7. Lennon, John. Looking purely at the Beatles years, I'm a Paul girl. But John's solo career, despite (or maybe because of) being tragically shortened, certainly packed more punch.

8. Liquor. Yes, there, I said it. I like this, and this, and sometimes even this. And just to show that I'm an equal opportunity boozer, I drink more than my share of wine and beer too.

9. Literature. Well, duh.

10. LISTS! Of stuff I love! Top 10 lists! Top 100 Songs of Any Year lists! Top 10 list of all the lists I've ever made! Bring 'em on!

For posterity's sake, here are some 'L' items I considered, and discarded: lollipops, limbo, lampshades, Louisiana, love, little things, lemonade, Little Debbie Nutty Bars, laughing, linens, and life. Not that I don't love those things, of course. Life is great and all, just - zzzzz.

Also, Marc lobbied hard for lesbians. When I resisted, because, you know, it's not that I don't love lesbians, it's that I don't LOVE lesbians, he tried to appeal to the wordsmith in me by going for the double word score with lipstick lesbians. I was so tickled, I almost gave it to him. Almost. Besides, I told him, I already talked about lipstick.

Wanna play? Consider yourself tagged. Ask me in the comments, and I'll give you a letter.

All is calm.

 

 Chestnuts? Roasted.

Open fire? Roaring.

Gifts? Wrapped.

Kids? Sleeping.

Stockings? Filled and hung with care.

Cookies left for Santa? Eaten by nobody who is 'fessing up.

Last gift that I scrambled around the house for, assumed was incorrectly wrapped, looked for under all sofas until I finally, randomly decided to check the desk drawer into which I was tossing everything in sight in my mad dash pre-party cleaning Saturday? Found, wrapped and under the tree.

Nyquil? Taken.

Christmas? Merry.

Bed? Yes, please.

(No, I did not really roast chestnuts. Come on, now.)

No longer riding on the merry go round.

Happy Christmas, John Lennon. Thank you for writing one of my favorite Christmas songs. Oh, and for that whole Beatles thing.

System malfunction.

My Command Central is out of order today - technical difficulties, waiting on tech support, may try alcohol soon. Due to these, uh... delays... I am unable to form any cohesive block of words for you to read and be fulfilled for the rest of your days. Best I can manage is to toss you some memos from the only Departments that have bothered checking in around here lately:

From the Dept. of the Sick and the Sad:

• I'm not sure I believe in Hell, literally, so understand that I don't have any clue what I'm talking about when I tell you I'm totally going there because I thought it was the best thing in the whole world when, the other night, Riley was talking about Swiper and referred to him as "that stinky box". I know. Believe me, I know.

• Also, technically under the jurisdiction of this department is the announcement that Mason has been sickity sick all week - like, actually sick, not just mental like me. None of us are sleeping well. Woe has been greatly upon us, but things are looking up.

NEXT!

From the Dept. of Gainful Employment:

• I have a department for this? Hmm. Well, ok. Maybe I'll be forming one soon. Let's just say - Under Construction.

NEXT!

From the Dept. of There Is Something Seriously Wrong With Me:

• Yesterday as I was stringing up some lights I felt a tickle in my ear and since have been certain that a little bug crawled in there. I am now having relentless images of baby spiders streaming out of my ear in nine months (wait, how long is the spider gestation period? Looks like I need a Dept. of Useless R & D) and OMG, just typing that has made me hyperventilate. I have poured peroxide in my ear but so far have recovered no incriminating evidence. I don't want to talk about it anymore. If you are half as grossed out as I am, I am SO, SO sorry.

• I am also bothered, as I get sometimes, by what I see as blatant incorrect word usage. My victim today is Jason Mraz, who sings (and I presume wrote) (again, I need research) that lovely ditty "I'm Yours". Nice song. I sing along freely - even to the Hawaiian guys. And there's ukulele, and who doesn't love some ukulele, am I right? But - BUT! I would like to submit this stanza for your perusal:

"Listen to the music of the moment people, dance and sing
We're just one big family
And it's our God-forsaken right to be loved loved loved loved loved."

Do you know what godforsaken means? Because I know what godforsaken means. And in the famous words of the Dread Pirate Roberts, I do not think it means what Jason Mraz thinks it means. Call me, Jason. We'll work this out over coffee or something.

NEXT!

From the Dept. of So, How's Your Holiday Spirit?:

• Ok, ok. Things have been looking grim around here. Sick baby, lost a week to Thanksgiving (whyyyyyyy was it a week late this year and do you think I'll ever stop whining about it?) and have been scrambling about basically trying to hold my shit together. Well. No more. Mason is ok, and I really, really, REALLY love the holiday season. So, the attitude adjustment starts right.... now. Wait - I have to put on some appropriate music. Ok, now. I have decided that although there is a lot to do, it is all stuff that I genuinely enjoy doing, so I'm going to lose the Grinchiness and just love it. For example - tonight, after all the craziness of the week, I'd love to just curl up tonight and watch a good Christmas movie. But we have our first holiday party of the season, and I will get to see people I love seeing, and so I'm going to put on my red heels and have a good time, dammit.

I mean, come on. Don't those shoes make YOU want to have fun?

This is irrelevant if your name isn't Marc.

My Christmas list:

Love, your lovely wife who makes you dinner and takes care of your drycleaning and occasionally cleans your house and sometimes tries to let you sleep in and ALWAYS scratches your back and, you know, gave you some beautiful kids.

(I can hear you scoffing. At least I'm not asking for this:)

One word only.

Hello. It's a cold, rainy, lazy day over here, and I was a bit rough on myself this weekend, so LAZY is the word of the day. SOCKS would also be a good word, but unfortunately LAZY beat it to the finish line. Sorry, SOCKS.

So, what's a lazy girl to do with her blog when she's got nothing to say? When it's beginning to look like every day is her husband's birthday? When she doesn't even have the energy to write her little thesis on that awesome motor oil fight scene* in The Transporter? She does what she has to. She does a meme.

One word responses only, please. That's what I was told - otherwise the meme police will take your firstborn. But hey - did you know it can be hard to limit oneself to one word? News to me, I tell you. As usual, I will not be tagging. Instead, I tell anyone who wants to play along to do this on your own blog and link it here in the comments. Here we go!

1. Where is your cell phone?    Purse

2. Your significant other?      Marc

3. Your hair?       Hat

4. Your mother?   Fun  

5. Your father?   Smart

6. Your favorite thing?  Laughter

7. Your dream last night?    Hazy

8. Your favorite drink?   Coke

9. Your dream/goal?    Happiness

10. What room you're in?   Basement

11. Your hobby?    Photography

12. Your fear?     Loss

13. Where do you want to be in 6 years?  Here

14. Where were you last night?  Bed

15. Something that you aren't?    Perfect

16. Muffins?   Love

17. Wish list item?    Discipline

18. Where you grew up?   Midwest

19. Last thing you did?    Diaper

20. What are you wearing?   Jeans

21. Your TV?     Nemo

22. Your pets?     Gone

23  Friends?   Lots

24.  Life?   Lucky

25. Your mood?    Lazy

26. Missing someone?  Jessica

27.  VEHICLE?   Explorer

28.  You're not wearing?     Makeup

29. Your favorite store?    Bookstore

30. Favorite Holiday?    Christmas

31. Your favorite time?    Fall

32. Your favorite color?     Red

33. When is the last time you laughed?    Yesterday

34. Last time you cried?    Unknown

35. One place that I go to over and over:   Martins

36. One person who emails me regularly:  Sean

37. My favorite place to eat:      Charleston

38. One place I would like to go right now:    Louisiana

39. One person I think will respond:      You

40. One TV show I watch all the time:    Jeopardy!

 

*What's that? You want to know what motor oil fight scene I'm talking about? Oh, stop. You know you've seen it. You don't have to be so coy - just come out and say you want to see it again. It's ok - say it. Robyn knows. Robyn understands. Robyn gives, because Robyn cares.

 

What's he gonna do with the BIKE?, you wonder. Who knew bicycle foot clip thingies were such multitaskers? Traction for when you find yourself in a pool of oil, AND something hard to kick out your enemy's teeth. AWESOME.

Fried food makes the people come together.

I've always read about the Tuscan tradition of eating squash blossoms, but had never come across any to try. Until, that is, I found a bunch in the pumpkin patch. After checking with the owner (who hadn't heard of fried squash blossoms, and therefore did not know of the wonderful bounty right there in his pumpkin patch), I made off with a bagful.

 

Egg wash, light flour and parmesan cheese batter. A little kosher salt. Lovely.

 

Make sure and save a handful of parmesan for sprinkling. You MUST sprinkle.

 

If this isn't a unifier, I don't know what is. Maybe I'll write it in on the ballot. You know, I can fiercely argue politics and still want to give the person I'm arguing with a hug when I'm done, provided I liked that person to begin with. But if this is too fried, too decadent, too weird for you? Well. I'm not sure we can ever truly understand one another.

Wasn't there something I used to do on Tuesdays?

Oh, right. I remember now. Let's see if I can recall how to put something in a post that isn't a YouTube video...

There it is. And there I am, on the left, with a penguin bottle opener or somesuch in my cleavage. There are no reasons. Don't ask me why. I'm standing with a number of my very bestest friends, all of whom had traveled a long distance to see Marc and I get married.

That's MamaYip next to me. I talked to her on the phone recently, but haven't seen her in 8 years or so, I think. Entirely too long. John/Duke is in the middle there, and he's an occasional commenter here. He looks bored, but don't be phooled - evil plans are lurking in his mind, for certain. Next to him is Greg, whose wedding we attended 2 years ago and is now a babydaddy (as is John) - and I haven't met any of their kids yet. That sucks. Then there's Becky, looking so calm and I don't know what's going on with her these days as we haven't spoken in a long time. More suckage. On the opposite end of me is Dean, who shares a brain with my husband and who I see all the time. So I don't need to go get all verklempt over him.

I really miss these people. The type and amount of fun we had in those days is illegal in many states.

Come back, Phools. Come back.

What's in YOUR wallet?

Because I currently lack good intro and segue skills, we're just gonna dive in to the first of many diverse topics:

1.  Much to the certain chagrin of the two of you who chimed in with opinions, we chose Get Smart over The Incredible Hulk last week. We had already gone off and made our choice before we saw your votes, so it's not like you were deliberately snubbed, so you can come out of your corners now. And - I liked Get Smart. Turns out Steve Carell has the rare ability to make me laugh out loud during a movie. So I'm a fan. And I don't even watch "The Office". Oh, and The Rock (sorry, Dwayne) is always a plus too.

(Don't worry, Hulky. I'll probably catch you on DVD, if only to see Edward Norton.)

2. As I'm exiting Sephora this afternoon, a mom and her 5 or 6 year old son are walking in. The boy shouts, "Ahhhh, this place hurts my eyes!".

3. Speaking of Sephora, I HEART my new Benetint Pocket Pal (not to be confused with a pocket rocket). I've been a longtime fan of plain old Benetint and many other Benefit products, but this makes me so happy that I'm wearing it right now, at 9:30 PM while blogging in my basement.

4. I emptied out and cleaned 6 bags of various size and purpose yesterday. Among the contents I unearthed:

• $102 in cash (woohooooo!)
• estimated between $20-$30 in change (oh, so that's why all my bags are so heavy)
• 4 size 5 diapers
• 2 size 3 diapers
• 6 size 1-2 diapers
• portable toothpicks
• a Crate and Barrel catalog
• my Better Than Ezra "Closer" CD jewel case
• 2 wine corks
• 1 unidentified key
• 2 toothbrushes
• 3 pens (1 good one, 2 crap ones)
• 2 boxes of raisins
• 3 smashed (but still in their packages) granola bars
• 2 old, skeevy pacifiers
• 4 tubes of lipstick/lip gloss/lip stuff
• a Target gift card
• 5 Bandaids
• 16 Hot Wheels cars
• 10 Fisher Price plastic zoo animals
• many, many, MANY Cheerio crumbs

5. Riley doesn't really say "I love you" unless you specifically tell him too. What he does say, as he snuggles on my lap, is "I make you so happy". He still has a bit of trouble with pronouns, but I don't really intend to ever correct this one.

6. Bathroom painting has made excellent progress, but is still ongoing. I'll snap some pictures when it all looks a little nicer.

7. We're leaving for Vero Beach, FL this weekend, so once again I must pack our entire house into 4 bags. I went to Eddie Bauer today and bought a draggable duffel that's the size of my king sized bed. I'm still not sure it will be big enough. I'm also not sure how I'll drag it when it's full. Wait, that's what I have Marc for.

8. Mason's developed a little Southern accent. She says "Haaah" in place of "Hi". Unsurprisingly, I totally adore this.

9. Our main floor AC has been out all week, but it's set to be replaced tomorrow, THANK GOD. Goodbye, $5,000. I'll miss the good times we could have had together.

10. A parting photo, taken about 2 weeks ago when my Uncle Tim came to visit my house for a few hours: