Snow!

We had our first snowfall of the year. More accumulated than I'd imagined. It began to fall a little before 10:30 last night. At one point it turned to sleet, but around 2 this morning, snow was falling again.

The Amarillo area got about 8 inches. The courthouse shut down for the day. Downtown is dead, and I think I'm leaving here in a few minutes.

The drive in to work was unbelievable. I sat at one light for 15 minutes, because the driver of the car at the intersection(for some reason) refused to go on the green arrow. Then, cars were going about 5-8 mph on 19th street. What is normally a 12-15 minute drive turned into an hour, ten minutes.

I can't tell you how terrified I was of the Jeep behind me. EVERYtime the driver applied the breaks, it would begin to fishtail. I don't know if they just had bare tires, or what exactly was going on. I drove in terror that he'd slide into the back of my car, until I could change lanes safely.

The snow's expected to continue on and off for a few more hours. It looks like it's stopped.

I'm hoping for an afternoon at home and then a night out at the Blue Light. I hope Joel can make it down from Amarillo...if not, looks like I'll be changing my plans.

Have a great weekend!

Tom Brady...

The thing I find funniest about this post are the altered lyrics to the song. The ifilm description is also funny..."vaguely homoerotic." What?! Who are you kidding it's blatant...and hilarious.

the wonders of a 20 minute nap...

I crashed at lunchtime, put in some ear drops and headed back to the office. I wouldn't have bothered coming back in, but I'd lined up some appointments this afternoon.

I'm being super-productive right now, listening to the Dan Patrick show. I'm not even really interested in what he's talking about today. Still, I listen. He has got me thinking about getting out to see a hockey game...I have yet to see a Stars game this calendar year. Unthinkable a few years ago.

I feel for those 6 month old babies that are constantly tugging at their ears, due to the pain from ear infections. That's been me all morning. I'm trying to convince myself I feel better...so far, it's working.

If you missed How I Met Your Mother last night, go HERE and check out the episode. Wayne Brady guest-starred as Barney's brother...too funny.

whew...

I am glad this past week's over. Wow. We went out/had people over every night. It will by no means be a slow week coming up, but at least Tues and Wed nights are free.

This year, my sister and I were one of 'those people.' She came by the house at 5:30 to hit Target for an armload of video games and a few toys for the kids in the family. The line to get in the store was obscene. We camped in the car until we saw the tail end of the line, which had been wrapped around the corner of the building. I have no idea what the 'must-have' item was this year. Apparently, it was in the electronics department, because foot traffic was at a standstill. We got out of there in about 20 mins and I went back to bed. I woke just in time for the kickoff of the A&M/Texas game. Happy Holidays to OU fans! I haven't been so engrossed in that game since I was a junior in high school.

I'm trying to remember what took place that night. I know there was some drinking before going out, and we ended up back at our house with a few more people than we started out with. I don't remember every place we hit. My Blue Light was closed for the weekend, so I agreed to venture to other places like Crickets, the Irish Pub, Library and I want to say Cujo's. I do know the night was capped off with a late night run to Wally World and an even later night game of Cranium.

Saturday, my goal was to lay low and watch the OU/OSU and Notre Dame/USC games. Didn't actually happen... I got to see the first quarter of the OU game before being reminded of a family function. You know I was getting text msgs from my OU friends whenever something good/bad took place. I got home just in time to see the last 4 mins of the game. I couldn't bear to watch some of the last plays, when OSU had possession. Five seconds have never ticked by so slowly. The ND/USC game turned into a bust. I really thought Brady Quinn was going to lead them to a win.

The Christmas tree and lights were put up. Christmas ornaments painted, lists made and the funniest rendition of God Bless America I've ever heard. I spent that night with some cousins drinking margaritas and playing games. Lots of fun, and a good way to wrap up the weekend.

I'm looking forward to:
Mon: Charlie Shafter open mic night
Thu: Charlie Shafter Band
Fri: Reckless Kelly
Sat: Ryan Turner Band

I'll get some rest the next week.

Wednesday night laughs...

Last night was a reunion of sorts. For a period of time, Manuel (my roommate), Andrew (my brother-in-law) and Ben (essentially my brother) were inseparable. Ben was home for Thanksgiving break (he's currently in dental school), Andrew and Monica weren't busy, so we decided to have them over to play poker. I haven't laughed so much, for such a long period of time in a LONG time. I forgot how funny Ben is when he's mocking Manuel. I forgot how much of a smart-ass Andrew can be when talking with Ben. I don't think we've all been in the same room since Ben & Tara's wedding. Monica and I laughed the entire night.

At one point in the night, I felt sorry for the other people because we were neglecting them. They don't care what was going on with us six or seven years ago. They don't know what's so funny about Ben's taste in music, our parents or house parties gone wrong. At one point, Andrew said, "I can't believe how stupid we are when we're all in the same room. I can't wait for Ben to move back." HA HA

The chair dancing was superb, as were the drinks and stories...can't wait for Christmas.

MUST DO THIS WEEKEND: Buy tickets for the Nutcracker and the LAW & Friends show.

Happy Thanksgiving...

I hope everyone has a great time over the holiday weekend, whether it be with family, friends or just spending some down-time alone. I'll be going to mom and dad's house later on tonight, and likely staying the weekend. There's no need to, but like the song says, I just like the feel of going home.


I went to see Babel last night. It was heartbreaking. Although it wasn't an uplifting film, I am glad I went to see it. Brad Pitt's pretty amazing in it...you can feel his desperation and empathize with the feeling of being a stranger in a strange land.

Things I'm thankful for: family and friends
Things I'm longing for: seeing said family and friends

I guess Charlie has to go home, sometime...

Just got home from another Monday night at the Blue Light...but no Charlie *sob*. He started his trip home early and will be back in town for next week. I guess I'll get by. We saw Josh Abbott instead, not bad but not Charlie.

Chris is staying at the house for a few days, so I'm sure we'll do something tomorrow night, as well. Good thing I'm only in the office til noon, tomorrow. I'll need sleep after staying out/up too late, tonight.

Thanksgiving may be my favorite holiday. No expectations but to have the entire family around the table at grandma's house. The day after always entails putting out the Christmas decorations and revealing wishes for Christmas.

I'm looking forward to Steamboat more and more as the days pass. I can't wait for a few days away with great friends and music. I would be lying if I said I wasn't looking forward to the Braun Bros Reunion, next August, more. Cody threw out a few possibilities Saturday night. All I can say is wow...should be well worth the trip, again.

*sigh

I am a sucker, kiwi got me. This 3 minute animated thesis might be the best 3 minutes you'll spend this week...

wasted wednesday...

Today was the first in a while that I wasn't running back and forth to the courthouse or holed up in my office doing some research. How did I use my time? Ineffectively. I talked with a few attorneys re: court dates, made a run to the federal courthouse and that's about it. Looks like the rest of the week will be just as quiet. At least we're only open until noon, next Tuesday.

I want to throw a party, Friday. We are wrapping up two of the ugliest divorce cases we've handled. I cannot wait to get the file out of my office and into the closed file cabinet! Here's hoping the parties don't change their mind and back out of the mediated settlements...fingers crossed.

I just found out about "Drew Bledsoe's Blog," today. OMG, that is funny stuff.

The winds were down to 7 mph and now it's eerily quiet outside. Last night, I was sure the house was going to blow over.


I missed the finale of Laguna Beach! This season was pretty boring, but I couldn't stop watching. How would Tessa belittle herself for a guy, this week? Would Cami buy a shirt that covers up her chest? How long before Kyndra and Cami kill each other? "Best friends?" It didn't even seem as if they liked each other. WHAT is every girl's fascination with Cameron? I so didn't get that one...still don't. How did Chase's band get signed with a major record label? That's quite a leap, playing a basement bday party to having the $ of a record label behind you.

Sunday blues...

I'm kinda blue that it's Sunday. My MMC weekend is over.

Thursday night was just what I needed. I love that the Charlie Shafter Band always has fun on stage, no matter what the crowd is like. There was a good turnout and a great setlist. Charlie covered everything from Bob Dylan to Eminem. I learned that my tolerance is at an all-time low that night, as well. This was put to the test again, Saturday night.

Friday - half a day at work and I achieved nothing I'd planned. No Borat, no afternoon nap and no lunch with my sister. I ended up spending some time with my mom and dad, and then set out to find a car. I ended up making an unexpected drive to my aunt and uncle's house to drop off my cousin, Dione. She's such a funny girl. She's a freshman in high school and is having the usual problems with boys/mean girls and her parents. She talked my ear off the entire 1/2 hour ride; I love hearing her stories and seeing the pictures/crafts she's made that week in school.

After stopping in for a while, I came back home and headed for Amarillo to see MMC. First of all, there was about a 25-30 degree difference in temperature from the time Jess and I got in the car to when we pulled into the parking lot. Holy moly, it was freezing...and there was a line to get in. Good for MMC, not so good for us. We waited a few minutes for the line to die down (it didn't). Standing in line, we noticed how many "cowboys" were in attendance...and that MMC had already begun to play! Augh! Every show I've been to there starts at eleven. We missed about 4 songs, I'd say. The show was good, the crowd was lame. It's not good that we got there late and everyone of them smiled and gave a nod when they saw us at the front of the crowd (because there was no one there to begin with). Joseph was gracious enough to give me one of his cds; and we left anticipating the show the following night.

So, Saturday morning began with me buying a new car. I bought the exact same car I was already driving, just the '07 model in a slightly darker color. I love it! Like Joseph said, I found something I like, why change it? hahaha

Started off Saturday night with drinks at the house with Manuel and Jessica. We headed out to the Blue Light, good crowd considering Boland's just down the street. Much better show, a lot of fun. My only complaint: they didn't play long enough (but, really, when do I ever think they have?). Talking with Micky afterwards, he was laughing at me and said that I seemed to be everywhere. For about the tenth time, he asked where I lived. Some random guy came up to him while we were talking and asked, "So, are you coming to my house or what?!" Micky, looking dazed and slightly scared, said, "Probably not." HAHA! Then, the guy said, "You don't even know what I have to offer!" First, is that something one guy says to another...and second, the look on Micky's face was priceless! He was just telling me that they were staying in town and that RK would be rolling through town around 7, Sunday morning. He was hoping to jump on the bus and kick someone out of their bunk. I don't think I'll see them again until Steamboat, and that makes me sad.

I made a stop at Wild West to drop off some toys for the Stragglers' annual toy drive. I had to loiter outside the bus a bit until Jason came outside. Looked like they had quite a turn out, and he said it was a pretty good show. Maybe I'll catch one before year's end.

I believe I'll head out to the Blue Light for Charlie's open mic night, tonight. I hope the week flies by, so I can see the other Braun brothers, Saturday night.

Thank God it's Thursday...

This has been a pretty hectic day. I must have been loopy yesterday, because today I was reviewing some documents I'd drafted and realized there were some things that needed serious editing. There goes the morning...well, it didn't help that Tim posted the damn Beatles tv thing. How many times can one person listen to Hey Jude? Apparently an infinite number, seriously.

This afternoon was crammed with appointments with clients, a little research and clearing some things up with the U.S. District Court as to some recent filings (fun!).

The Blue Light never looked so good.



After some cancellations, it looks like I'll only be in the office for 1/2 a day. Now, I REALLY feel bad for not making the trip to Norman. Obviously, not bad enough to skip the double-header MMC show this weekend. oops. Hopefully, I'll see some of them soon. It's been awhile.

Answers welcome...

I hope everyone got out to vote today! I remember being shocked when I overheard a friend talking about how they'd never voted. For me, to waste the opportunity to vote after everything people have been through to obtain the right to do so is unthinkable. Preachy, preachy...sorry. My parents and political science/history classes shaped that idea in my head and it's something I can't shake.

So, on to other puzzling matters: What makes a person stay in a relationship that is just not good for them? What are they getting out of it that others don't see? I have reached the point where I can't listen to complaints about an unhealthy relationship, when both parties involved know one of them is seeing other people. Ugh, I don't know what to say, but I know what I'd like to say...It's been going on for years (think like 8 years or so)...I've come to the point that I have nothing left to say of any value to them.

Hours until Charlie's show: 53 (and they cannot pass fast enough)

I'm in love with my doubt...

Today, I've been listening to Copeland's new cd: eat, sleep, repeat. You can listen to a few songs at the website. My favorite track is probably "Control Freak." The cd had
been streaming on another website, but I guess that's over now, with the release yesterday. I have so many cds on my to-buy list, it's ridiculous. I'd go directly to itunes, but I still like having the actual cd in my hands.

Another one on the list is the Foo Fighters' Skin & Bones. It's been said before that I have an obsession with Dave Grohl. I am a fan of everything he does. I've never been disappointed or let down by a Foo Fighters cd, and I can't wait to hear this acoustic release and see the DVD.

A few months ago, I had a little mishap in our garage. My car (silver) rubbed against Manuel's pickup (red) and left a nice silver line down the passenger side fender. He'd unsuccessfully tried to buff it out and went to see about painting it today. I am thanking my lucky stars that the guy gave the buffer another try. Total cost: $20. You would never guess that just this morning the scrape was there.

I think this weekend will consist of a few test-drives, the Waiting to Derail cd release party (w/Charlie Shafter Band opening...woo-hoo), maybe a viewing of The Departed and a visit to my mom and dad's house.