birthdays and bachelorettes

Argo, Kelly, Camper Anne, Steph, & AJ



a great color combination if I do say so myself!

















This weekend was just what the doctor ordered. Who needs guys when you can have amazingly fun times with your girls?

I drove up to Lexington Thursday as soon as I got off work to celebrate former Sugar Shack roommate Stephanie's birthday. I hadn't been up to LexVegas since this past October (McCarthy's and Keeneland anyone?) so I was long

Freshman Friends

overdue for a visit. The drive was oddly comforting as I reminisced on my former college days, and thought about the countless times I had made this drive over the years. Even still, I have not yet managed to snap a picture of the Used Cows For Sale sign on 1-65 close to Sonora, KY that has been posted ever since I made my first college visit to UK back in 1998! I guess someone is buying used cows for that sign to still be necessary! It was late when I finally rolled into Wildcat Country, but Steph had to wait up for another friend who was also driving in town that night, so to pass the time we visited Pazzo's, a local campus favorite. The place was fairly empty, but I didn't think twice when a guy asked to see my ID upon walking towards the bar. It was Stephanie who realized he didn't have a Pazzo's shirt on, and was just a guy at the bar, asking to see our IDs! I am pretty much oblivious when it comes to things like this! As it turned out, one of the other guys who was friends with the wannabe-bouncer was a kid I had a conducting class with in college. Joe-the-trumpet-player and I caught up, and as it would happen, he has goofed around and Still hasn't finished his undergraduate degree- so it could be worse than having a useless degree, Mom & Dad- I could still be going on 7 years to complete it! Joe, Brandon-the-wannabe-bouncer, and quiet friend #3 invited us to sit up at the bar with them to talk, and Steph and I had a good laugh at the situation in between barroom chitchat with the 3 Stooges.

Friday was spent lounging by the pool during the day and then Steph's birthday celebration that night. 9 girls piled into a limo and rode around town, then headed to Buddy's for dinner, followed by champagne and cupcakes in the limo, and finally ending up at the Blue Moon in their VIP room. We danced the night away, high heels and all- what can I say? I'm a slave for fashion!

Saturday I waved goodbye to Lexington and got back in Nashville just in time to take a 30 minute nap and get ready to go out again, this time for Karen's bachelorette party!

This was Karen's last weekend in Nashville, and last weekend to be single. She had never been out on the town in Music City, so we gussied up and showed Karen Nashville's trendy side. We started out at Layl'a Rul, had dinner at the Bound'ry, then went to Virago, Red Door Saloon, and back to Layl'a Rul, where we started the night. Karen had a blast, as did the rest of us. I recommend the White Grape martini at Layl'a and the Keylime tartini at Virago- both were unique and yummy.









This girls weekend was Just what the doctor ordered!

Pretty Boy or Funny Man?

So I got into a lengthy discussion with several of my male coworkers at the end of the day today. I honestly can't even tell you how it began, but we were debating over which person you would rather be stranded on a desert island with- Brad Pitt or Vince Vaughn. I think some how Jennifer Anniston came up in conversation and we were discussing which actor she chose and why. Both are attractive men, both have fame and power, but it comes down to that age-old question of whether you would rather have a pretty face or someone who makes you laugh.


Time and time again I find myself always choosing the guy who makes me laugh over the pretty boy. To this day my friends Ben and Jon have a running joke about which one of them I "picked" the night I met them both (New Year's Eve, 1996). Both were nice-looking guys. Jon was extremely cute, but Ben was hilarious. Ben and I dated on and off for a while and I'm still good friends with both of them, but the fact remains that given the choice between the two, I chose the one for companionship that kept me entertained.

But those are real, everyday guys. When presented with the hypothetical choice of getting to pick between dating/having/marrying/whatevering Brad Pitt, my lifelong celebrity crush, or Vince vaughn, the hilarious new It-guy on the Hollywood scene, could I really say then that I would choose Vince over Brad? Could you?

Now before you answer too quickly, Joel saw this very Desert Island debate on a tv show and one of these guys edged out the other 51% to 49%- apparently I wasn't the only one who had trouble deciding which studmuffin to be stranded with either! Curious to know which guy won out? Post your responses and then I'll let you know who America picked.

a purdy good weekend

This past weekend was one that was highly anticipated, even though I had just had an amazing previous Memorial day weekend and a four-day work week. Friday was Beth's birthday so she and I partook in a ritualistic Friday Starbucks run on our morning break (Really?? I mean REALLY?!) where I discovered my new favorite drink- a tall fat-free Coconut Latte- it tastes exactly like an Almond Joy (or is it a Mounds?). Then we had a girls lunch at Calypso Cafe- Beth's choice- before finally heading out that night with a bunch of people to celebrate her big 2-5 in style at Saffire in Franklin. I'll admit I was most psyched about this dinner party because I had an awesome new dress to wear. It's one that Beth "made" me buy when we were at TJ Maxx after convincing me that despite the fact that I couldn't wear it to work or to church that I could wear it to her birthday party that her husband Daniel was planning for her. Deal, I said, and I promptly purchased the dress.

Saturday was pretty uneventful although I did meet MA, Em, and Lana at a Sounds baseball game. The Sounds ended up winning, and we got to see some amazing "Reworks" after the game (they really need to get those lights on the scoreboard working!).

Today after church I spent the day helping my parents around the house. Since they're getting ready to put the house on the market we painted the laundry room and their bedroom. It was actually kind of fun- I got to learn how to put on a dryer hose and connect that to the wall, and I was able to utilize my painting skills that ironically enough, I attribute to my New York mission trip last summer. It's kind of funny because you always think about God teaching you things in your day-to-day life that will help you out on a mission trip, and not the other way around, but I certainly didn't know anything about painting techniques before working in that NYC middle school last summer, and that experience certainly came in handy today. Dad nicknamed me "Spongey" because in his opinion I was using up the paint unusually fast.

We had one of what I love to call Blogworthy Moments when mom volunteered to go to Home Depot to buy another gallon of paint while dad and I continued working. Besides the paint, dad told her to get a pack of Purdy rollers also. Without looking up from what I was doing, I knew what was about to follow and I began to laugh in anticipation. "Pretty rollers," she said? "What are those?" As a girl in-the-know (again, drawing from that Kairos mission trip where all I did was paint for an entire week solid) I laughed and said "Purdy. P-U-R-D-Y- it's a brand name, Mom."

The other amusing thing that made the painting more enjoyable was the whistling and singing in tandem by dad and myself to the Christmas song, Sleigh Ride. Random? Absolutely. This went for about 15 minutes or so before I finally asked dad what in the world made him start to sing that song. Apparently when I bumped into a wind chime hanging above the laundry room window it reminded him of the sound of Jingle Bells, and thus, the Christmas caroling began.

Now it's close to beddy-bye time and everything on me hurts. No matter that my softball game got rained out today- I definitely still got my work-out for the day!

the not-so terrible twos

Where, oh where has the time (and my little dog) (blog?) gone? On May 25th, 2006 the Divadomain in all her glory turned 2 years old! 2 years of venting about work, 2 years of telling hilarious real-life stories about my friends and family, 2 years of posting random musings of the goings-on in the world. It has even been suggested to me by some that I have my own little Carrie Bradshaw, Sex & the City Thing going on here- to which I replied, well since I don't know much about sex, my column/blog would be more aptly named "And the City!"
I feel like a bad blogger, considering I missed my own pride-and-joy's birthday, so show her some love in the form of a comment, and let the author know that she isn't the only one reading this!

spring break '06

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8 girls. 2 rental cars. No drama. Unbelieveable, yes?

We're back and bronzer than ever thanks to that quick jaunt to the beach. I'll have to do a quick recap sans-pictures because I relied heavily on our master photographer Lisa to capture most of the Kodak moments.

Friday afternoon Emily, Sarah, Mary Anna, Rhonda, Mandy, Lana, Lisa, and myself departed from Brentwood Baptist Church at approximately 4:15 pm. Rocky Toppys in-hand (that's Lana-speak for walkie-talkies) we synchronized our cd players and started the Florida 06 mix that Emily created at the same time as we headed south on I-65. My car (in the lead) was instantly nicknamed the Little Corolla that Could as it lurched forward whenever I put my foot on the accelerator. nu=3268>244>:7:>WSNRCG=32337966794;9nu0mrj">

Friday night was spent in Birmingham where we invaded Em's friend Ann Wade's house. her roommate was such a good sport at having 8 unknown, loud, giggley girls as guests for a night. After a lengthy dinner at Chili's, we headed back to the house and probably laughed off every calorie that we ate. A few funny moments from Friday night:
* I enjoyed a nice big slice of humble pie- Amanda
* All the drinks here look like they're exploding- Sarah
* Amanda, are you done with that?- Lana
* Lana's hair-mayonnaise- fried chicken story
* Awkward Will
* Ok, I'll tell one on myself- Ann Wade's roommate Sarah told me she went to Samford with Ann Wade but she was originally from Ar-Kansas. I said totally deadpan, where is that? At first everyone thought I was kidding, then they died laughing when they realized I was not. Of course she meant Arkansas, but I was thinking like Florala or Texarkana- like maybe it was a town that bordered between Kansas and Arkansas.

Saturday we hit the road at 6:15 am and after 5 stops in 5 hours we finally pulled into our condo and ravenously devoured our sandwiches that we had purchased just minutes earlier from a nearby overpriced deli. We were on the beach by 12:30 that day, and spent the rest of the day soaking up the sun. That night we got all gussied up and waited an hour and a half to eat at the famous local dive, the Red Bar. I have to say, the food was amazing and well worth the wait. Amongst our group we tried almost all of the 7 menu choices, and left there completely stuffed and exhausted. The idea had been of course to have dinner and then go out dancing or someplace fun, but we unanimously agreed that we were all too tired to go anywhere else! So much for us old fogies, huh?nu=3268>244>:7:>WSNRCG=323379667;969nu0mrj">


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Sunday morning I awoke chompin at the bit to get on the beach- and yes, I detest that phrase, but I can't describe my insatiable anticipation in any other way! I hit the beach by 9:15, the other girls joined me a little after 11. We spent a glorious day in the sun and sand, taking walks, gabbing from our circle of towels, and playing in the ocean. Lisa, our unofficial trip photographer, got zoolander face poses and individual shots of each of us on the beach, and convinced several passer-byers to take group shots for us, none of which had ever seemed to have operated a digital camera before.
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After showers, some frozen margaritas made by yours truly, and a dance party in the kitchen, we headed to Publix for a few more groceries, and across the street then this kitschy seafood house where we stuffed ourselves with hush puppies, fried shrimp (minus me & Lisa, the non-seafood-eaters), and french fries. Another night had come and gone- all ideas of making brownies and watching movies were dashed as we all ending up falling into bed before 11 o'clock that night. Must have been all that heavy fried food... yeah... that's it. nu=3268>244>:7:>WSNRCG=3233796696373nu0mrj">

Monday- Memorial day- most everyone hit the shops at Seaside, while Lana and I made one last visit to the beach before we rolled out of Seagrove Beach at 11 am. We stopped at the first place we came to to grab some lunch, along with every other departing vacationer, at the most shady Subway and Hardee's that we had ever seen. In fact, every single place we stopped on Monday was sketchy, nasty, and run-down, but with 8 girls on a road trip, you're bound to have to make some stops, and can't always be picky about when and where those stops occur! nu=3268>244>:7:>WSNRCG=3233796684;6

I will leave you with my own personal favorite anecdote from the weekend, as I'm sure Em and MA will grace us with their own recollections as well:

I asked Lana if she would put sunscreen on my back, that I would return the favor and put sunscreen on her back. She said in her purposely-funny voice, well, I don't know- you put sunscreen on Mary Anna's back yesterday and um, well, she burned.
What?! I exclaimed? That is totally sadistic of you! I screamed while laughing. There is no way I did that on purpose.
Yes, well, it's just that you don't apply the sunscreen very liberally, she said.

And apparently several of them had already had this discussion before I was around, to which Emily replied- yeah, that's about the Only thing that Amanda's not liberal with!!

I hope to add pictures soon, but at least the trip in review is now complete! Snap back to reality, oh, there goes gravity...

Beach or Bust

T-minus 2 hours till Spring Break '06!

My, oh my, how the trips have grown. My first year out of college Rhonda and I took our first annual beach trip which we dubbed Spring Break '04. She and I met her mom & Sam down in Watercolor, FL and stayed in this multi-million dollar beach condo for free. I met my Navy boy Blake, and Rhonda "drank a watermelon."

Last year's trip grew to 5- ha- 5 in 05. Me, Rhonda, Mary Anna, Emily, and Lana went to Blue Mountain Beach & Ft. Walton. It was at our overnight stay with Aunt Peggy in Birmingham that Lana made her famous quote from the trip, "I need to start collecting something." We met and photographed the Rhinestone Cowboy for TAR, and also met our ideal man in Wild-At-Heart Brad at The Back Porch (who we STILL talk about!!)

This year the spring-breakers have grown to an astounding 8 girls. At 4pm today myself, Rhonda, Lana, Emily, Mary Anna, Mandy, Sarah, & Lisa will depart from our rendevous point at BBC and head to Seagrove Beach. What will this year's infamous quote be? What funny stories and inside jokes will ensue? What Beach Boy will catch our eye? Who will come back bronzed and who will come back burned?

Stay tuned for all this and more in our vacay re-cap next week, and have a happy and relaxing Memorial Day weekend!

Soul Patrol or McPheever?

It's about that time- who will be crowned the next American Idol? If it had been up to Simon, Taylor Hicks would never have even made it to Hollywood! Honestly when I began watching the show a few months ago I could never have predicted that he would have made it to the Finals (Chris Daughtry, we miss you!). On the flip-side, I pinpointed Katherine as a really good singer from the first episode I saw.

This show is addicting and will take up 2 of your weeknights all tv season once you start watching. Thank goodness for TiVo since I'm never home when the show is actually on!

I must say that by the Finale (which is tonight- get with it, people!) most viewers already know who they want to vote for. I doubt there were many who waited to hear all 3 performances last night before finally deciding whether to cast their votes for Kat or Taylor. The next step of course is actually getting through to vote. I tried several times within that 4-hour block and never could get through on the phone. I also happen to be one of the fortunate Cingular customers who have the luxury of voting via text message. Even that was an impossibility last night it seemed. Out of the 10-20 text messages of "VOTE" that I sent, I only received one reply confirmation that my vote was received. So I'm wondering if only one of mine counted, and all that other hassle was for naught.

Most of the time I actually agree with Simon Cowell, though I can't say that I would be quite so blunt in my commentary. Awful jacket, Taylor- yes, I agree. Amazing Somewhere over the rainbow, Katherine? Yes- agreed. And his opinion that the rounds looked like this:

round one: Taylor
round two: Kat
round three: Taylor

was right on the money. I was surprised however that Simon didn't criticize the original songs more, though I guess he has been warned not to offend the song writers. Even still, Katherine butchered hers more than Taylor did. BUT, as a singer even I could see that Katherine was unfairly dealt the more difficult song, with a melody that jumped all over God's creation and was written in a terrible range for her. As bad as she sounded, I actually felt sorry for her since she didn't have a say in the song choice.

My pick is Taylor. Let's see what the rest of America decides.

Anita Returns

Can I rant and vent for a moment? It is a Friday. Our slowest work day of the week. Lots of our customers work for churches and Fridays are their days off. So I expect it to be slow- but this is just ridiculous. I have Zero orders for the day. Meaning that my daily sales goal of a few thousand dollars? Yeah, I have None of it. No orders. And while yes, my mind has wandered and I don't have as many calls out as it might be possible to have, I do have as many as I have had in an entire before, and I still have 2 hours to go. What gives?!

And on top of that, a bookstore called me "Anita." After Beth and I were Just joking about being called Steph and Anita- and it hasn't happened to me in a long time. But do they order any music? No of course not. But they did call me Anita. My day is now complete.

PS, I realize the total irony of venting on here when I could be calling out, trying to drum up some sales. but in my defense I am typing very quickly and this post took about the total of 3 minutes to write.

things that make you go hmm

"Well I realize that falling isn't graceful
But I thank the Lord that falling is full of grace"

from The Chasing Song by Andrew Peterson

RENT: not just a favorite Broadway musical- it's also a reason to gather on a dreary afternoon!

Why are things always funnier when 2 or more or gathered? Or even more accurately, why are things always funnier whenever Lana is around?

Our Memorial Day beach trip is coming up soon (aka Spring Break 06) (shut up. We can still pretend we're in college and get a spring break. I AM 21 you know!) After MUCH deliberation, we decided to rent 2 cars to tote the 8 of us to our tropical destination. However, due to the youth that plagues (blesses?) half of our vacationers, only 4 of us are 25 and are of-age to drive the rental vehicles without incurring extra charges. Fine. Not such a big deal. 2 cars, 4 drivers. We'll split the trip into 2 halves for the drivers, of which I am one. The other Grandmas of the group include Lana, MA, and Rhondonkulous.

MA and I each rented a car in our names, but the 4 drivers met up today at the Enterprise office to take care of the paperwork and get the other 2 drivers' information on file with the rental car company. Hurdle number 1 to overcome: we cannot find the place. It's located in "No Man's Land" as Rhonda put it, on Mallory Lane in Brentwood, but on the other side of Moores Lane (away from Target). This side of Mallory is really short, so I didn't figure that finding a rental car place, its sign, and a parking lot full of rental cars would be that difficult to spot. Of course I was wrong in my thinking. MA was the first of us to spot the tiny sign so she directed us via cell phone- in our defense it wasn't marked from the road, and there was no sign of a parking lot full of rental cars anywhere- they must drive them over from another location- but whatever.

Flustered from driving up and down the street a few times, I get out of my car at the same time as Rhonda, and we realize that we are dressed like twinkies. Brown long-sleeved shirts, tan striped pants, and brown heels. Great. So now we walk into Enterprise dressed like tweedle-dee and tweedle-dum. MA comes in the door seconds later. We are giggling and are easily the loudest people in the small rental office. (Imagine that!) A few minutes later Lana shows up. We crack up b/c Lana has parked in the owner's vacated-but-clearly-marked reserved space. But Rhonda and I couldn't really say much, b/c we both parked in the only other open spots that were marked for the adjoining collision center. As Rhonda and I are modeling our matching outfits for Lana, Rhonda and I bump heads which sends us in to fits of more giggling. We discover that the 4 of us are all in brown actually. I'm sure the employees in there feared for their cars, thinking, what ditzes! We are renting cars to Them?! The 4 of us awkwardly stand at the front of the office while no less than 4 female employees go about their business, ignoring us completely- and we were being pretty hard to ignore!

Finally a cute & single (we know this b/c MA checked his wedding band finger) guy asked us if we had been helped yet. Actually no, we haven't been helped yet, we tell him. He proceeds to playfully scold the female associates, and we muddle our way through misunderstanding after misunderstanding to get all of our rental stuff taken care of. It actually was a surprisingly uncomplicated process, but focusing on the task at hand was difficult to do. Yes, we clarified, we've already rented the cars online. No, we don't already have the cars in our possession. Then Lana couldn't find her license (You'd better have it I said, otherwise, why are we here?), then the guy did a double-take at Rhonda's license b/c she looks so different now from her picture. Really, we made such a scene in there that I'm wondering if they were all second-guessing their decision to allow us to rent cars from their company, and I was wondering what kind of option they would have to retract our rental contract and declare us unfit drivers!

Maybe this was one of those Tadd YHTBT moments, but I walked out of that place thinking, why do things like this always happen to us? It's never that simple as we think it ought to be!

pink hitting

Yet another reason I like baseball! For Mother's Day yesterday Louisville Slugger had pink bats made for the players in honor of a kickoff for the Susan G Komen breast cancer awareness week. Players also wore pink ribbons, wristbands and the lineups were even written on pink paper.

the McWeekend in review

It occurred to me today that I haven't posted any random blogs lately about things that have no conjuncture with my own personal life, so I promise to scrounge up something good in the next few days. For now you'll have to settle for my usual weekend update. This one was a good one- full of stories and laughter and new inside jokes from all those involved. (You who witnessed the Roadhouse Tea debacle, you know who you are, and that's all I'm sayin')

Friday started out with a bang. We were culminating the birthday celebration for Maury by heading downtown to Robert's on Broadway for what was dubbed "Hats and Boots Night." But a girl's gotta eat right? So Beth, her husband Daniel, Maury, and myself met at Logan's for dinner since Laura was working that night. She's always in the bar area on Friday nights which means the tables are first-come-first-serve, so I got there a few minutes early to try and stake our claim on one of Laura's tables so the others wouldn't have to wait as long once they arrived.

The timing worked out perfectly- Maury arrived, and a few minutes later this one table paid their check and Laura informed me they'd be getting up soon and to watch for them to leave. The second they started to leave, Maury and I walked a few feet towards the table, allowing the bus boys to clean the table off first when this lady with awful hair slid into the booth in front of my very eyes!!! I was in utter disbelief! Where the heck did she come from? I had no idea, but I was about to find out. The lady kind of glared at me triumphantly as I stood there and picked up my jaw from the floor, and I stated to her very matter of factly,
"Ma'am, I was waiting for this table."
And she replied, "sorry, it's first come first serve."
"Yes, I'm aware of that," I said, "but my sister is the server and I have been standing over here (I gestured) for 20 minutes waiting for this particular table to get up."
Mind you, the lady could have sat at any other table in the bar area, whereas Laura only has certain tables in her section that she's responsible for, so I had to wait for another of her tables to open up. I could feel the heat rising in my neck and face and had Maury not been there to pull me aside I probably would have sat down at the table across from her and beaten her to a pulp- or else attacked her with vicious rhetoric (name that movie!!). So back I went to my spot where I had been standing in the bar before to wait for the next of Laura's tables to open up.

By this time Beth & Daniel arrived, so fuming, I tell them what just happened. What really burned me up was that 2 seconds after I relinquished the table against my will another table in the bar emptied, but by that time it was too late. Not too much longer after this, Laura's next table opened up which happened to be next to the awful woman with unfortunate hair, so I said loudly to anyone who would listen, and I hope this woman and her husband were,
"Thanks Laura, this is the best table in the entire restaurant!!"
I know. It was a cheap shot, and I should have let it go, but come on!!! What decent person wouldn't be a little more understanding??? I mean, it was my sister's table, and the table-snatcher had to have seen me walking towards that table before she got to it- it's not my fault she was rude and slid into the booth while I was trying to be considerate of the bus boys to try and let them do their job! What do I get for being considerate I ask you? A rising blood pressure, and a desire to drink.
The Roadhouse Teas happen to be excellent at Logan's, but let me warn you that one is sufficient. Two is too many, especially if one does not eat their dinner. I learned that the hard way Friday night and provided entertainment for all with my antics. Maury and I headed to Robert's where we donned our hats and danced the night away. The place was extremely packed- I guess our guys are not the only ones in Nashville who are fans of the house band, the Brazilbillies.

Saturday a bunch of us went to Thompson Station Church to see Maury D and the Shanks (aka Maury, Adam & John) play at this craft fair the church was hosting outdoors. It was a gorgeous day here in Middle Tennessee (I had many a sungasm this day) so after the music was over and I perused the craft booths a little bit, I headed home to help out with yardwork. We sang out annual "Mulcho Man" song while we weeded and mulched, and had an amazing dinner that night after a hard day of work of grilled hamburgers, baked beans, coleslaw and french fries outdoors on the deck. This was the first outdoor meal of the season- the first I hope of many.

Saturday night Em & I watched a few episodes of Grey's Anatomy on dvd (season one) and then we all got together tonight for part one of the season finale at the Penthouse. Commercial breaks were spent talking about how hot McDreamy, Denny, and were. Also we discussed the implications of Izzie's actions, and who we think needs to be together on the show. Yes, I realize they are not real people but when you're watching this show and all 5 of us let out audible screams as the episode ends ("the scream heard 'round the world"), you start to realize it's not just a show! You actually care about these people- erm- I mean- characters.

We concluded our Mother's day by standing around the Penthouse kitchen enjoying some birthday cake for Karen's birthday. Rhonda bought it and it was a small sheet cake. Of course this led to countless sheety jokes. Such as being full of sheet, the cake was brown sheet, us talking sheet, and my personal fav, holy sheet (since it was a Sunday). I am exhausted now. And I'm sure that if you made it to the end of this blog too that you're exhausted from reading. Cheers and good night!

Cirque du Snore'

Last night I took Mom to see Cirque du Soleil Delirium as a birthday present. Rhonda and Em also went, so I'm curious to hear their take on the show. I'll admit, I was interested to see what all they hype was about with these multimedia performances, but I didn't know much about it. I knew there would be music, lights, and acrobatics, along with over-the-top costumes. I could not have predicted however how new-agey it would really be, and how the droning drum beats and unitelligable lyrics would put me straight to sleep! I'd nod off to a blue screen with a bright blue orb hovering over the stage and wake up to have people floating in white fabric and twirling around. Then I'd go back to sleep and awaken to find a woman spinning multiple hoola hoops around her. The 4 guys doing the acrobatics and gymnastics that I awoke in the middle of was pretty amazing but my eyelids were so heavy by that point in the show that it was pointless to try and act like I was paying attention so I just closed my eyes again! I bet that was seriously the single most expensive nap I have ever taken!
The opening act was enough to set the scene that I shoudl have realized what I was going to be in for that evening- a European singer/songwriter by the name of Nitza- as in- we are the Knights who say Niiiiitza!!! She gyrated and bellydanced while she yodeled to her mohawkwed percussionists and Citar player's music. I think I payed enough attention to give you a quick recap and impression of her performance:

"Thank you. Thank you. You are so kind (only because I know you are not leaving because you payed good money to see the main act...) My next song is called, this sounds like every other song I have performed so far."

At least after seeing this show I can answer the burning question that everyone has been wanting to know- what happened to Scary and Baby Spice? They or their Bizaro-twins are apparently touring with this Cirque production!

Team Kairos

Team Kairos won by default yesterday with a forfeit from the other team- I guess that puts us at 2-1 for the season. BBC friend Photo Joe came to the game and took several shots of our team and the other BBC team in action. Check out his page to see more of his work. Here's yours truly, Pinky McPinkerson in my trademark pink Kentucky hat. Yes, that's me chasing the ball to make a play at home. Actually, the runner stayed on 3rd, so I didn't have to tag anyone out. Good thing for that runner cause I would have gotten them O-U-T- Out!





Here's a shot of our fan section- they braved the cool weather to cheer us on in what ended up being a scrimmage against the other team plus a few of our own BBC players, which was amusing except for the ones who took themselves and their game a little too seriously. Come on people. This aint the majors. We're playing church softball.



We pray after every game. Check out that hot number 5 and her stocky white legs! EEK! Guess we'll have to take care of that pastiness in a few weeks when we head to the beach!

the Ladies Senor

So yesth. Bathically I am hyper becauth it ith Cinco de Mayo and I just got back from a yummy lunch at Blue Coast Burrito. Follow my train of thought from the Ladies Man movie quote, "Heyyyy baby, can I buy you a fisth sandwich or something?" and replace it with the mexican version- "heyyyy seniorita, can I buy you a fisth taco or somethin?" (Blue Coast Burrito is known for their famous fish tacos. I'm not one to be partial to seafood so you'll have to take Beth or Cody's word for it that these are indeed delectable)

We laughed our way through lunch, and I am getting geared up for a night with the girls eating mexican food, drinking margaritas and watching season one of Grey's Anatomy on dvd. This sounded like a better option to the masses rather than salsa dancing, which is what we had originally planned on doing.

The extra fun bonus for the day was that I uploaded a ton of new music on my itunes this morning at work, so how can one be in a bad mood when you've got Beyonce to dance to in your cubicle?

How Kaavya got her signing bonus taken back

Poor girl. She had it all. A two-book deal. A fledgling Harvard education. A knack for plagiarism. whoops. Guess now there won't be a follow up to Kaavya Viswanathan's "How Opal Mehta Got Kissed, Got Wild, and Got a Life" (which PS, ranks up there with "How Stella Got Her Groove Back" for worst titles ever) Apparently the Harvard sophomore had more than just an admiration for books such as Sophie Kinsella's "Can You Keep a Secret?" Or maybe she just figured that imitation was the highest form of flattery and the best way to make some mad cash while she attended her prestigious university. Whatever the case, it makes me laugh at her expense, and reminds me of the time that Heather got caught (unintentionally of course) (cough, cough) plagiarism the story of Sam and his argyle socks, only to have the story read by the author of the aforementioned book at a writing competition in the 8th grade. Oh how we laughed! Well at least I did. I think Heather is able to laugh about it now.

Birthday Shout Out

Happy 22nd birthday to my adorable little sister! It seems like it was just yesterday that I was playing baby doll with you and yelling at you to lie still while I covered you up with a blanket, only for you to kick it right back off!!!

Who's ready to open some fun presents and eat yummy Italian food??? Love you, Lulu

Let's give em somethin to blog about

It can be funny or sad- depending on your point of view- when you're out to eat with your friends on a rainy Sunday afternoon (no sungasms here) and one of your friends says, "I have so much to blog about" and you nod enthusiastically and agree- and then, say you are the one in the group who is notorious for making bad jokes- so you say, "let's give em somethin to blog about." And then you sing a bad Bonnie Rait impression. And laughter erupts. Of course they are probably laughing at you and not with you.

But it could be worse- you could be talking about crop circles over lunch. oh wait...

good day sunshine

Finally! The rain and clouds are gone today! The sun is shining here in Fabulous Nashvegas (although it is quite a bit cooler than it was last week). Admittedly though, this DIVA woke up on the wrong side of the pink bedding the past few mornings. And I blame the rainy, cloudy weather. I can't help it! I love the sunshine and it affects my mood and level of energy when it's absent.

Conversely, on gorgeous sunny days I wake up feeling more alert, and have more energy. (These are also the days where you can catch me "flying" more often next to people's cubicles while they're on the phone!) And my favorite moments of the day are those when I step outside- one, because I'm not at work, and two, I love the sun! There is nothing like that feeling of walking outside after being stuck indoors, feeling the warmth of the sun shining down, and it be pleasantly necessary to don sunglasses. It is in these moments that I have come to have, as I have termed, a SunGasm. (I believe I coined the phrase- I've never heard anyone else use the word before, however, stop me if you've heard this one...)

A Sungasm as I define it, is what happens in that moment of bliss when one first steps outdoors, and sighs blissfully. One is so overwhelmingly happy to be outdoors, to be blinded by the sun, and to be warmed by the sun's rays that one can't help but express this enthusiasm in the form of a sigh, an exclamation, or simply a smile and throwing ones hands to the sky in adoration to the celestial orb.

Maybe it's just my own version of a Lana-ism ("aren't you just happy when you eat?") but really, aren't you just happy when it's sunny?

The Weekend in Pictures

This weekend my aunt Lisa, uncle Jerry, and cousin Ryan were in town along with 6 of their golfing buddies from Cannelton. The guys had a golfing extravaganza hitting 3 different courses here in Music City, while Mom, Lisa, and I filled our weekend with lots of shopping. Of course, being from small town, Indiana, the guys wanted to go out downtown so I took them to Dan McGuiness and On the Rocks on Thursday night, Friday night they hit Bar Nashville and Tootsies, and Saturday we took up residency at the Tin Roof.

I figured pictures would do this weekend more justice than the usual long winded stories. Enjoy!

Here is Jimmy (the owner and bartender of the Infamous Cannelton watering hole, The Pumper) hitting on some locals, wooing them with his orange rubber ducky that he bought at Hooters




This is a guy we passed on I-65 on Friday that had little furry spotted dalmation ears attatched to his motorcycle helmet. We enjoyed a good laugh and I snapped a picture of the guy- he was even nice and waved as he rode past!



Me and my favorite boys from work- Maury and Maaaaark Box at one of my favorite bars in Nashville- Tootsies. The place was packed, so we enjoyed the music outside on the patio. Liser and I made up motions to go along with Fishin' in the Dark. Good times.




The Super-Finger. (Thanks Dane Cook!)










Shenannigan's!!! Uncle Jerry, Mom, and my aunt Lisa at the table at the Tin Roof Saturday night. Every time we toasted throughout the evening we raised our glasses and shouted "Shennanigan's!!!" It's apparently from the movie "Waiting." PS- the Tin Roof has awesome food! I highly recommend the buffalo chicken strips, and their chips & salsa were really good as well. We went early to get a table and lucked out getting the huge one in the front of the place so that our entire group (which ended up being 17 people) could sit together.
The return of the Super-Finger. Ari demonstrates as Mom & Lisa struggle to imitate the gesture










Me and Maury pose for a picture before heading out to the dancefloor to enjoy the music of Henry & the Seahawks- it was indeed a Tennesseahawk Saturday night!






Me, Ang, Ari, & Bart

It was seriously a really fun weekend- of course taking a vacation day on Friday to go shopping with mom and Lisa certainly helped start things out right! The family and friends had fun, and even Momma and Daddy B enjoyed themselves at the Tin Roof. And here's a weird thought I'll leave you with: I left the Roof before my mom did last night- what gives???

Practicing American Idolatry

So I had a watershed moment on Tuesday night. I finally caved in and voted for American idol. Slowly but surely I have been sucked into this addicting show this season because I would come into work every day when it first started and people would talk about it with great enthusiasm and strong opinions. Well I am highly opinionated, I thought. I like music. So why shouldn't I be watching this TV show? Plus Mary Anna showed us a video on YouTube of Ace singing father Figure and I knew I was hooked.

(Sidenote: Ace unfortunately peaked at Father Figure and has continually gone down hill ever since... from the cheesy gesturing to his scar during one performance, the predictable come-hither stare at the end of every song, and the bodyguard-gone-wrong get-up complete with a nasty slicked-back bun he donned on Tuesday night, our pretty boy has finally made his grand exeunt.)

So up until now I have remained a quiet spectator, and like many of you (especially the Nashvillians) I was outraged when Mandisa went home a few weeks ago (Come ON! You can't tell me that Bucky was a better performer!), so I worked up the courage to actually let my voice be heard and take the time to vote. Now I know that my piddley 5 or so votes may not have been enough to help out my favorite contestant, but at least I feel justified now in complaining when he was in the bottom 3.

Reality TV is anything BUT because there is no way that Chris should have been in the bottom 2. He has an incredible voice and I know that many others agree. Yet somehow I am still sucked into this show, even though I know they are toying with my mind and setting up the scenes for added shock value, forcing me to continue watching... will Elliot redeem himself after a good but somewhat lackluster performance? Will Kellie say something stupid and airhead-ish? (no need to watch for this answer) Will Chris go home next week or won't he? Guess we'll just have to stay tuned!

I Won!!!

Any of you who live in the Cool Springs, TN area MUST have one of these handy In Cool Springs cards! They give you discounts to local businesses here- my favorite is the ongoing buy-one-get-one-free at Cold Stone Creamery- mmmm- and every once in a while, the card also entitles you to fun giveaways.

Like many of my fellow Cool Springs frequenters, I got an email from the In Cool Springs people yesterday morning, but without checking to see if i had won anything, I deleted the email. Lucky for me, several friends and coworkers of mine are not so skeptical, and they checked the website and passed on the lucky news to me that I had won! Won what? You might ask, which is exactly what I said. "That's awesome! I actually won something- I never win anything... what did I win?"

10 dollars worth of free gas at Mapco Express, that's what! And wouldn't you know it- I just filled up on Monday afternoon, so instead the spoils will belong to Momma B, who's going to get the free gas for Mikey the Beetlebug. Here in Cool Springs we like to keep things all in the family :o)

divas descending deep in the heart of texas

They say the friends you make in college are the friends you keep forever.

So far that's been true for me, as is evident by the latest installment of the DIVA 06 convention. Thursday night Ari and I flew down to Houston (that's pronounced yoo-ston if you're going to be one of those uppity people who drop their H's to sound intelligent. Don't ask me. Somehow these people exist, and presume to be more intellectual by Not pronouncing existing consonants). We went to visit Conley on our long Easter weekend and attend her Masters voice recital on Saturday evening.
We did the fun girly thing; me, Conley, Ari, & Danielle all went and got pedicures. I was also able to get my Chuy's fix- this awesome Tex-Mex restaurant the Houstonians introduced us to the last time we were down there a year ago.
Conley's family was also in town from Kentucky, so pretty much the only thing you can do with 7 or 8 people is to eat-so needless to say, we ate A LOT. The day's activities were planned around where we were eating and when! A quirky place we went on Saturday was called the Hobbit Cafe, where the menu items are named after Tolkien characters, and we ate outdoors under the partial shade of huge trees overhanging the eating area. I say only partial shade because Ariana's shoulders are a lovely rose-colored hue now after this lengthy dining experience. I did also manage to get a TAR moment while waiting to be seated- Ari gets full marks for spotting it and alerting me to pull out the camera, and I get full marks for literally running through the parking lot to chase him down and snap his picture to document the unfortunate incident for all the world to see.
Conley of course sang beautifully and looked every bit the part of the DIVA that she is. I made sure to get a picture afterwards with all the fellow UK grads who have taken over Rice University and I just so happened to be standing next to Norman Rheinhart- a grad student that was at UK when I was, who I just happened to have the hugest crush on. So yes, I wanted this picture for posterity's sake, but for selfish reasons also I made sure I was next to Norman in this picture so that later on if I "happened" to get a hold of any photo editing tools and just "happened" to crop out everyone else in the picture that I might have a glimpse of what it might be like for Norman to know that I am alive and highly dateable.
Of course I am only halfway kidding :o) (Trust me, if you heard his gorgeous tenor voice you'd probably be saying the same thing and I'd be fighting you over him!)
So the recital went beautifully, we did what we do best afterwards- ate- and then us gals got to bed around midnight only to be woken up by our alarms at 4am. Conley and Danielle had 3 church services a piece to sing in for Easter Sunday and Ari and I had an early flight to catch. It was a wonderful visit although they are never long enough it seems. I am just glad we have still been able to remain so close and pick up right where we left off the last time.

My Way on the Highway

So I know you're all in suspense- my Sunday brunch story- or rather what happened After Sunday brunch- (aren't brunches so chic and swanky?)

Sunday was Momma B's birthday- she's now 53 years old which is finally accurate because she's been telling people for months that she was 53 because she couldn't remember how old she was. That's what happens when you get older I guess- except that I forgot how old I was a few months ago too and told someone I was 24! (I guess like Mother, like daughter). We celebrated the day by going to church as a family and then dining at Copeland's for brunch since I had a softball game at 1:30.

On our way home, Mom was driving Mikey, her Beetlebug, with all of us in tow. The sun was shining- it was a beautiful day, and we were on Devens Drive in my neighborhood as we approached 2 people walking on the other side of the road, and a grey car coming directly at us In Our Lane!!! The grey car honks at us, and the lady who is driving the grey car passes the people walking on her side of the street, rolls down her window as she pulls up next to us and exclaims haughtily, "are you KIDDING me?!" and then speeds off- As if WE are at fault for her crossing over onto our side of the street to avoid the pedestrians- how dare we not slow down to accommodate her swerve! How rude of us to follow the rules of the road!! Um, okay, what just happened here?

Maybe I'm taking Crazy Pills, but ExCUSE me- if you have to swerve to avoid anything on a road, it is not your God-given right to do so in front oncoming traffic! If you must venture out of your driving lane, you do so when the coast is clear as to not interfere with traffic and cause a potential accident among drivers and pedestrians alike.

Here's what should have happened- tell me if you agree:

On our way home, Mom was driving Mikey, her Beetlebug, with all of us in tow. The sun was shining- it was a beautiful day, and we were on Devens Drive in my neighborhood as we approached 2 people walking on the other side of the road, and a grey car coming towards us. To avoid the pedestrians, the grey car slowed down, waited for us to pass, the female driver of the grey car gave us a neighborly wave, and then slowly went around the walkers, driving off on her merry way at approximately 30 mph.

But that's not the way it went. We most definitely had some choice words to utter about the Self-righteous Wench as she drove off, but I just had to vent my frustrations with you the readers.

a day fit for a queen (mab)

I know- I'm a blogging slacker. But did you see the That-Aint-Right I posted the other day?? Now THAT is funny stuff. I also have a great story to write about that happened while driving in our neighborhood on our way home from brunch on Sunday- but that will have to be saved for another time.

Right now my sole objective is to give a huge Birthday Shout Out to one of my favorite people in the world. This amazing woman of God came into my life in October of 2004. She looks spectacular in pink and in green, is always quick to offer practical wisdom, shares my obsession for Sephora, and owns the most beautiful cat that I have grown to love (and you know me- I am NOT a cat person, but I heart Jack-Jack!). She stays hip on her reads, her pop culture, and her fashion, but she is still down to earth and is the epitome of encouragement to all who know her. On the Divadomain you might see her referred to as MA, Queen MAB, or Tooty McTooterson but to all who know and love her, she is Mary Anna "way-too-special-to-be-just-a-Mary" Brown. Happy 25th Birthday to you, dear friend. Is it lunchtime yet??!!

another fun one to try with the names

Sloganize your name! Click here, insert your name, and let the fun begin! (MA- you should have an easier time with this one!) Here's a few that my name generated:

*Just what the Amanda Ordered
*Look Ma, No Amanda!
*Aint no party like an Amanda party (can I get an Amen??!!)

church: it does a body good

What will they think of next??? A new study shows that people who attend weekly church services statistically live longer lives. So if filling a void in your life, or worshipping a savior isn't enough to motivate you to go every week, maybe this will? Seriously, if there is a person who reads this study and starts attending church purely for health reasons I would like to meet them. It just goes to show you can find a study to "prove" anything. And in the meantime I will enjoy the days God has blessed me to live, be it longer than the average person or not, and continue to attend church for my non-health-related reasons!

Amanda looks like

Something fun for a rainy afternoon! Go to Google and put "[your first name] looks like" and see all of the funny descriptions that pop up. Here are a few of mine:

*Amanda looks like Hilary Duff
*Amanda looks like a train wreck
*Amanda looks like she will blow away in the wind
*Amanda looks like any nerd in school
*Amanda looks like she is looking at me thinking, you b*tch (ha ha)
*Amanda looks like an alien from Mars Attacks!
*Amanda looks like a streetwalker
*Amanda looks like she is enjoying being centre stage (Heck YES!)

Feel free to post your results in the comments box so the rest of us can have a good chuckle at your expense :o)

T for Two Thumbs Up

Ari & I had a DIVA night and spent a few hours after work talking wedding stuff and laughing before going to see a really cool movie. I used to do movie reviews on here all the time but I quit going to see them so often and the reviews fell by the wayside. However, V for Vendetta was one that made me think and kept me excited and interested the entire time, and one Bradley & Bryant would definitely recommend. Walking up to the ticket window at the theater I said, 2 T for tickets for V for Vendetta. The girl didn't even crack a smile!!! I was amused anyways.

I knew this was going to be one of those weird, futuristic comic book movies that I usually don't go for, but I am huge fan of Natalie Portman, so I wanted to see this film. The directors are the same guys that did The Matrix, and the main guy in the movie (the man behind the mask) is the bad guy from the Matrix/Elf king in LOTR. What I liked so much about the film was it's paralells with one of my favorite books, The Count of Monte Cristo, the allusion to current political and social issues, and even moreso, the symbolism that runs rampant through the movie. The number 5 (the roman numeral V) and the letter V are everywhere. One of the first speeches given by the masked character aptly named "V" has 55 words that start with the letter V, and at one point in the film, Beethoven's 5th symphony begins to play. At this I jumped with glee that the directors thought so much about minute details. It's a movie I'm sure yoou could watch over and over and discover new symbolism and new political references.

I guess I enjoyed it so much because it made me really think about current government issues and it was a game for me to discover as much symbolism as I could. If any of you locals want to go see it, I'd see it again with you.

Back in Bucktown

We hadn't been up to see my grandfather since Christmas, so the four of us piled into Mikey, Mom's blue beetlebug and drove up on Saturday morning to make a quick visit. Cannelton, IN also known as Bucktown- though no one can tell you why- is home to most of my mom's side of the family, and is where mom & dad both went to high school.

Also in town for the night were my uncle Michael & aunt Missy, their 2 boys Braedon and Garrick, and the newest edition to the family, a puggle (cross between a Beagle & a Pug) named Ginger. She's only 9 weeks and took turns sleeping in all of our laps this weekend!

Mom cooked for everyone on Saturday. These are the times that I miss my grandma the most because she was always in the kitchen whenever we came to visit- either sitting at the table peeling potatoes or covered in flour standing at the stove. Of course Mom's round steak was delicious ("you can cut it with a fork"- a joke from my Grandma that has been passed on to mom!), and I had 2 huge plates. I also had a "you know you're getting old moment" at dinner- I volunteered to sit at the kids table! For years and years I was relegated to sitting at the card table while all of the adults got to sit at the big long table. Then I crossed over to adulthood and had finally earned my place at the big table. Now it seems I may have passed on to the next phase of my adult life where I take the role of the adult cousin sitting with the "little kids." I watch Nicole and Braedon running around the house and it reminds me so much of what me and Ryan used to do! (I still maintain that if those potatoes had stuck to the ceiling that it would have been the coolest thing ever!!)

Here's a pic of all the present grandkids and in Nicole & Natalee's case, great-grandkids:
back to front, L to R: Chris, Laura, Papa, Eric, Nicole, Garrick, Braedon, Natalee, Me, Megan, & Kelli
And then one of my mom, her brother, sisters, & dad (Can you see the family resemblence??!!) Michael, Mom, Papa, Kristina, & Lisa

And of course what trip to Cannelton would be complete without a trip to the Divadomain-made-infamous bar, The Pumper?! Tonight was Kareoke night, and a normally-shy me got up there about 10 times during the night! I'm sure people were sick of me singing, but I was having a ball not caring who heard me belt out Keith Urban, Faith Hill, Baby Got Back, and of course, Family Tradition!!! Even the dj commented that half the bar got up to perform this song together!! You can't see me in this pic but I am behind my uncle's brother who is pointing.

Finally, here is one of me, Laura, & dad singing "O Brother Where Art Thou"

Boo Hoo for the Devils in Blue

Ask any True-Blue Kentucky fan- what's almost as good as Kentucky winning? And they'll tell you: Duke Losing.

The SEC dominated the ACC last night as Glen "Big Baby" Davis and his LSU Tigers triumphed over the duke bluedevils to move on to the Elite 8. No need for the Big Baby to cry- Sheldon and JJ did enough of that for everyone!



My phone rang off the hook after the game was over and likewise I speed-dialed (sped-dialed?) many fellow Wildcats to revel in the rival's losing! Sorry to be such a sore loser, but after Kentucky's early departure from the tournament (which seems to be happening more and more often these days, a girl's gotta have something to cheer for throughout the Madness!

a spiritual Springtime

It's a sunny-but-chilly morning here in Brentwood- and I have woken up a new woman this a.m. If I can be completely transparent with you- something I am not good at being, so bear with me- I was talking to God this morning as I got ready for work and it hit me- I am woman of God- I am worth being pursued and am worth not settling for anything less than God's best for me. As a woman I sometimes rely so heavily on my emotions when I know logic is telling me otherwise. I intentionally sin and worry about the consequences later, because "it's not a big deal."

Simply put, I have no excuses for myself- I have an amazing group of girlfriends to support me, and keep me busy- I have plenty of other activities to keep my hours full without having to add in whatever sorry excuse for a substitute-boyfriend I can squeeze in. I do not need male attention to prove my self-worth, and if God wants me to be single in this season of my life then I have an obligation to follow Him wholeheartedly and not doubt his sovreignty, my worthiness, and His ultimate plan for my life.

"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Jeremiah 29:11

"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." Romans 8:28

"But I have raised you up for this very purpose, that I might show you my power and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth." Exodus 9:16

I must not become bitter and pragmatic- who finds THAT attractive? Certainly not me! So I am turning over a new leaf. I am wonderfully and fearfully made. I am made in the image of God, and it is through Him only that I can find any self-worth.

Spring is here. Time for new life & growth to appear everywhere, and I feel like maybe now will be a springtime for my life as well.

"I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full." John 10:10

is it Monday yet?

You know how some weekends are spectacularly fun, and it makes Monday morning such a drag? Well this weekend has been the total opposite! Not be a real downer or anything, cause nothing terrible happened- well- Kentucky lost today- so that always depresses me and forces me to pull out the Radiohead and Coldplay so I can wallow in my own state of melancholy- but the cold weather and cloudy skies did a number on my motivation for the weekend!

Let's see- Sephora is now open in Nashville, which on any other sunny day would be worth a blog post in it of itself, but today it seems like old news! I love my new makeup. Buyer's remorse has set in slightly, but everything I bought was what I felt like to be good purchases, and I have actually had several compliments on my makeup the past few days- yes, without me having to pull them out of anyone- they were all freely given- so that makes me feel better about my girly obsession with cosmetics. Before too long I may have to devote another entire dresser drawer for the overflow of makeup that won't fit into all my neat compartments in the one drawer I have now!

Lunch at Jackson's gave me the punniest opportunity of a lifetime, so I have to brag because I actually am quite proud of myself! The 6 of us- Mandy, MA, Em, Lana, Scottie, and myself split 2 deserts after devouring our lunches, and one of the deserts came with a shaker filled with chilled milk. As Lana poured herself some from the shaker into the top, some milk dripped through the wrought-iron patio table and onto her jeans. And as the story goes, Lana let out a loud exasperated whine, to which I immediately retorted, "well don't cry over it." :o)

St. Patty's Day plans fell through- the ecclectic group of people where not everyone knew everyone did little to make the night as much fun as I had built it up to be- we ended up not able to go to the Greenhouse- long story- so we bar hopped from Jackson's to Cabana (and I sang the barry manilow song all day yesterday because of it) to On the Rocks to the Tin Roof. Biggest bummer of the night- none of these places had Green Beer. I'm thinking about having a party soon and we'll make our own green beer with food coloring- who's in? Here is the one picture I have of the entire evening- me, Amy, Mary Anna, Mandy, & Rhonda Lu in our green.



Getting very little sleep that night- thanks to late night trips to the Brentwood Waff and long talks with friends, I was a total slug yesterday and carrying over to today! It's this darned weather I tell you! I had planned to go over to the BBC game night thing at 4 oclock but after Kentucky losing and my class at church at 6, it's not even worth getting out anymore I don't think.

I do love March madness though, and have filled up my weekend with nothing but basketball. My brackets aren't as accurate as I'd like them to be, but luckily for me, I think all of the teams I chose to make it to the final four are still in it so far. I am just ready for a new week- a new beginning, and for this funky anti-social mood I'm in to pass quickly!

the word of the day!

My co-workers and I have begun to play this little game we fondly call the Word of the Day. It's just what you might think it is- the winner from the day before gets to pick the word of the day, and everyone tries to use this magic word on the phone with a customer. It makes the work day go by more quickly, and it encourages us to call out more.

The Rules:
1. play begins officially at 2pm every afternoon
2. emails to customers do not count
3. however, phone messages do count
4. only once useage of the word will count per call
5. the winner at the end of the day takes posession of a small gold coin
(the "trophey") and takes responsibility for coming up with tomorrow's WOTD

You have no idea how funny it is to be at your desk and hear a male co-worker say, "we have some fantastic new choral music" or "have a delightful afternoon!" As a girl, I feel like I can get away with more of the affirming words without having to defend my sexuality the way some of the guys might.

Today's word happens to be, and I am not kidding- people have actually worked this into conversations: supercalafragilisticexpialidocious
No, I have not used it yet. I am fighting TN allergy season and am having a hard enough time speaking clearly on the phone through my stuffiness. So that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it. I can handle not winning today, and giggle whenever somebody else says it!

Feeling a little Blue

Keep your friends close...
















And your enemies closer!














My friend Ellen is making her debut here on the Divadomain. She was my luck-of-the-draw freshman college roommate, and yes, she has lived to tell the tale!! Our weekend was full of basketball- the madness has officially begun. In reference to my fantatic following of the basketball tournament scores, a co-worker said to me the other day, "are you going to be like this for the entire month of March?" "Yes," I said. "Yes I am."

Ellen & I started our Saturday with breakfast at the Puffy Muffin where we spotted Tina Tuner and Shaka Kahn look-alikes. Ellen got to meet Mary Anna, Emmy Sue, and Rhonda Lu, and we amazed her with our smattering of movie quotes and hip-hip lyrics thrown into our speech. These references sometimes morph into new jokes and quotes, as happened this morning. Mary Anna looked longingly at a family and whined, "I want a family unit" which of course prompted a 50-cent inspired, "G-Unit," and then became "F-unit," which quickly turned into a PG-13 insult: "Ef Unit!"

Fellow UK fan Shawn met Ellen and me downtown after the girls' breakfast and we 3 bought tickets on the street to watch Kentucky take on South Carolina today in the SEC tournament (held at the Gaylord Focker Entertainment Center- yet another joke that has morphed over time!) I was super excited because we only paid face-value for the tickets, got to see 2 SEC tournament games, AND this was the first game I've gotten to see my beloved Wildcats play this entiire season in person. I wish I could say I had happy news and a victory to brag about, but I've learned to hold my tongue this season and not talk any trash, lest it come back to bite me in the rear. At least we UK alums had a good time- the entire arena was blue, and we were surrounded by UK fans.

After a low-key game night, it is time to drift off to sleep, but never fear for March Madness is here.

Congrats are in order!

We have one more DIVA dropping off the planet of Singledom! In case you havent heard, Miss Ariana Bryant has recently become engaged to Mr. Richard Bartolomea. ("So can I call you Mrs. Bart when you're married?" I asked her!)
Bart popped the question during their recent trip to Chicago celebrating their one-year anniversary- that's a pretty good way to celebrate, if you ask me!
Of course Ari said yes, and so now I'm lobbying hard for hot pink bridesmaid dresses! Seriously though- I am just so happy for her, and it keeps hitting me at random times- "wow, Ari is engaged!" I am so, so excited for her and Bart, and can't wait to celebrate the big day with them. And yes, that is a pic of her actual ring- ("The Sparkwing Diamond!")

Yee-haw!

Saturday was one of those perfect days- the sun was shining, I had a fabulous day of shopping with Mary Anna- I even learned a little bit about bling-bling, since I am jewelry illiterate (I still maintain that jewelry is a necessary fashion evil. Like high heels). Saturday night a group of us met up at the Penthouse for a pizza-making party, then we killed some time looking at Stewart and American Idol clips on YouTube before heading downtown.

PS- I can't wait to see the guys sing tonight- after watching Ace's "Father Figure" I am ready to see him sing again and hopefully be wooed into maybe voting for him!


We hadn't been downtown in a while and I had my new pink hat to wear so I was all about me some Toosie's and The Stage! My funny story for the night- a girl at Tootsie's got my attention and wanted to know where my cowboy hat came from- Cracker Barrel, I told her. She gives me this blank stare and says, what is that? Is that a store around here? My jaw nearly hit the floor. My immediate
response, over the loud music, mind you, was "Cracker Barrel?? It's a resteraunt!" And then I turned around to my girls and started to laugh. How do you explain to an out-of-towner that there are Cracker Barrells every 10 exits on any southern interstate? That it's some some specialized tourist store on 2nd ave?

We gals had a good time, and I've decided that wearing a cowboy hat is a Great way to get people to talk to you! Even the singer at Tootsies tipped his hat to me as we made eye contact while he was singing. The question is, will this work if I wear one all the time or is it just a novelty item? :o)

I'm Just sayin (an Oscar commentary)

Wow. What. An Oscar ceremony.

Was it me or were this year's awards like taking a trip to Dullsville? With the exception of Jennifer Garner tripping while on her way to the podium to present an award, and Lilly Tomlin & Meryl Streep's slap-stick commedy intro, the show was uneventful and just went from video montage to montage. Even Jon Stewart commented on the over-abundance of the clips. And I'm still waiting on his crack on JG's near-spill.

Here are my other observations on the 78th anual Academy Awards:
* the year for the ugly dress. Take your pick between Charlize Theron, Michelle Williams, Naomi Watts, & many more

* the year for the homosexual. With TransAmerica, Capote, and Brokeback Mountain all up for major awards, it seems Hollywood is reminding us just How liberal they are.

* the year for the boring songs- who was up for this? Who really cares? In the words of Jon Stewart, Just for the record, Martin Scorcese: Zero Oscars. Three-Six Mafia: One.

* The year for the films that nobody saw. Even myself, an avid film fan saw very few of the frontrunning films up for awards. Meanwhile the films that the general public really enjoyed and talked about were nowhere to be found. I guess this is why the show has been so boring to watch tonight. And yet here I sit, still glued to the tv just so I can throw up my hands in exasperation when Brokeback Mountain finally wins.

Hmm.... I stand corrected. Crash wins. Not my favorite of the year, but I think the general public will be appeased by this choice over the hyped BBM.

And finally, there's always a Nashville connection: Congrats to native Nashvillian Reese Witherspoon on her best actress Oscar!

(PS- hers was one of the few dresses that I loved. She looked absolutely gorgeous.) (As did Uma Thurman and Jennifer Anniston. I'm Just sayin.)

Choco-Not

Mardi Gras has came and went, and now the season of Lent is upon us. Lent never meant a whole lot to me growing up, except that my mom's side of the family is Catholic so they observed the whole, no meat on Friday thing. (What's the scriptual background of this anyways?) Also, my Papa used to always say he was giving up watermelon and golf for Lent- neither of which he liked, so it continues to be a running family joke.

Then I got to college and started to mature in my faith. Through Campus Crusade I started to see Christianity as a daily thing that impacted every decision I made; that it wasn't just about going to church on Sunday mornings. One of the things I started to do was give up something for Lent. It was a tangible way for me to sacrifice something small in my habital life to remind me of the greatest sacrifce that Christ made for me by dying on a cross.

This year mom and I are observing Lent together and have decided to give up chocolate. For the chocoholics that we are, Her moreso than me, it's going to be difficult. I would ask that you who know me neither offer me anything chocolate nor ask me to watch the movie Chocolat with you, as I must politely decline. The 6 weeks of no chocolate has begun.