A weekend in review

I got my first real six string, bought at the Five and Dime… played it til my fingers bled. It was the summer of ’69.

Okay, so I didn’t buy it at the Five and Dime. It was a Christmas present and I think it came from Guitar Gallery in Birmingham. And my fingers didn’t bleed, but they are sore… and I guess we’ve come a long way since ’69, and it’s actually winter.

BUT… I did get a guitar this weekend!! And while I’ve already exhausted the one song I can play, I will hopefully be learning more soon. (And by “the one song I can play,” don’t think I mean that I play it well. I mean it’s recognizable and that’s about it.)

My weekend, as a whole, was pretty fantastic.

Friday night we did the duel birthday dinner for me and my step-dad. I was very pleased when I learned that the waiters at the restaurant weren’t allowed to sing or make a big deal out your birthday. We did get free dessert though. And I think it was easier to enjoy without the off-key shouting and clapping that I’ve come to expect.

After dinner, I went down to Red Bones – the one bar in the Montevallo area. One of my best friends works there and she wanted to celebrate my birthday with me. The bar happened to be closed for repair, so it wound up being the two of us, the owner and about 10 other people having a VIP party, small-town style. (Basically just sitting around, goofing off and dancing to really bad juke-box songs.) It wound up being a lot of fun. I stayed out WAY too late, but it was definitely worth it.

Saturday, Mama and I went shopping and I got some more work clothes that were badly needed. I even got a dress! I’m SO not the dress type, but I guess I should have at least one in my closet. So now I do. I might just wear it grocery shopping later because it’s so pretty.

I also made a trip to Books-A-Million to spend my birthday gift cards (people know I’m a nerd, so I’m easy to shop for!) I spent about $95 on six new books. I’m pretty stoked. I picked up The Host by Stephanie Meyer (author of the Twilight books), The City of Falling Angels by John Berendt, The Book of Air and Shadows by Michael Gruber, and the three Chuck Palahniuk books that I haven’t read: Invisible Monsters, Lullaby and Rant: The Oral Biography of Buster Casey. I can’t wait to get started. The hard part is figuring out which one to read first.

THEN, it was off to the MOST amazing Christmas concert EVER. Trans-Siberian Orchestra. One word: Amazing. No… that doesn’t do it justice. Even though this was the fifth time I’ve seen them, they never get old. They went bigger and better than ever with the pyrotechnics and lasers this year. And the snow. OH MY GOSH… they blew so much snow over the civic center floor. (For those of you who live in areas where it actually snows, SHUT UP. I know you’re thinking, “Ooooh, snow. Who cares?” But for a girl in south Alabama, it was magic!)

Yesterday was Chase’s birthday party at the bowling alley. I can’t believe he’s 11!! When did that happen? He’s almost as tall as me. (I know… it doesn’t take much.) He and his friends had a great time. I wish I had their energy!! If you’ve never seen a group of 11 year old boys hopped up on sweet tea and birthday cake, you don’t know what you’re missing.

After the party, I hit the road and headed back to my new home-town for a couple days of work. My new Mitch Hedberg CD, Do You Believe in Gosh, really made the ride home enjoyable. I laughed until my face hurt.

Kevin came by for a quick dinner and some football (my Alma Mater, Troy, lost in over time to Southern Miss. Booooo.)

Then it was off to bed to rest up for the week ahead.

So there you have it – my busy, yet super-fun weekend.

What about y’all? Did you do anything fun this weekend? I’d love to hear about it! (Especially since I made you suffer through a play-by-play of mine!)

Countdown to Christmas

I saw a “Countdown to Christmas” sign yesterday that informed me there were exactly 11 days left until the 25th. Really? I mean I guess I knew that – but seeing it in big green and red font with flashing colors really made it official.

I guess it’s hard to feel Christmasy when the temps are expected to reach the high 70s this week. I could be wrong, but I don’t think the elves wear t-shirts and flip-flops while they’re making toys. Isn’t it supposed to be cold by now? Technically, I guess it’s summer for some folks, depending on where they live and all, but here, in the U.S., isn’t it supposed to be cold?

I did do some traditional Christmas things this weekend that should have really put me in the spirit. Saturday night I went to see the Nutcracker. For a small town, I was pleasantly surprised at the size of the production. Who knew so many people would turn up for a ballet? The senior company was really good and they brought in a few dancers from Montgomery and New York. It was a nice change from the bon fires and dirt roads that make up a normal Andalusian Saturday night. (Just sayin’.)

Yesterday, Kevin and I went to Destin to finish some Christmas shopping and celebrate our birthdays. We ate entirely too much at McGuire’s, then he treated me to a couple of grown-up work outfits. He was so sweet and patient walking around the stores. And I had no idea he was so fashion forward. He was picking out outfits, y’all. He went all Clinton Kelly on me, matching things up. I was kind of shocked.

While it was a lot of fun, shopping is still a little frustrating. I know all you short folks who read this can identify. Why do they make pants for women who are so dang tall? And shirts… don’t get me started on shirts. If you have any chest at all, finding a good fit up top almost certainly means it won’t fit around the waist. It will hang there all baggy, looking like a potato sack. I’m going to start designing clothes for women shaped like me. Everyone who’s not can shop somewhere else. It’s going to be called “Short and curvy” or something catchier when I’m feeling more creative. Anyone want in? There have to be more people built like me out there than there are stick-thin giants. Right? I think so.

Anyway, enough of that. I’m off my soap box.

For now.