Amongst Other Things

Hacienda played a day show at the Mohawk this weekend.

I intended to go.

I really wanted to go.

I did NOT go.

I know, it's pretty shocking seeing how Dale and I both really like this band and usually make most of their Austin shows.

My weekend turned out to be one of those that had many things to offer, many commitments to fulfill, and not enough time to do it all.

I'm bummed that I had to let the Hacienda show slip through the cracks. Hula hooping in my living room while listening to side one of Big Red and Barbacoa helped a little.

*Ok, this is an older pic of me hooping. You can tell by the short hair.

Needless to say, I'm sure they put on a great show and I hope to see them the next time they come around.


So, what did I do with my weekend you may ask?
Well, I went to a Hatch Green Chile themed BBQ and tried to decipher the picture puzzles on the back of Lonstar Beer Bottle caps:


Dale was there as well:



The buns for those hot dogs were hatch green chile buns. Mmmmm.



The weather was BEAUTIFUL. Perfect for a game of washers:

*All of the BBQ photos were taken by the lovely and talented Tirzah. I love it when she uses my camera.

We also dogsat Bee's dog, Blossom. Dale did pushups all day while I watched the dogs.

Haha!

Blossom is an easy dog to watch. She is the dog that convinced me to get a dachshund. Before meeting Blossom, I was sure I would own big dog. Here she is:



Chillin' with my dog, Cooper:


We also went swimming with my parents (and nieces) at Landa Park's natural springs pool in New Braunfels. It was a really nice pool. The bees and ants thought so as well.

My friends Amy and Will came in and stayed with us for one night. Will spoke at some fancy medical conference or something. He gave a speech about the History of Texas and even shaved his beard into handle bar mustache for added effect.

Juan came over and talked smack. Gotta love the Juan. We are going to go see Machete in a few weeks. He also agreed to go with me to see Those Darlins with me Next month. I got some tickets to their ACL after show. I did NOT get tickets to the after show for The Black Keys. I tried, but that bitch sold out fast!

I am ready for some Fall weather.
That is all.

Get In My Belly!

The service was a little slow at Baby A's.

What's a hungry girl to do?



Snack on a baby's brains?

NO Ma'am! You do not participate in cannibalism! You simply snack on the chips and salsa. Sheesh!


*No babies were harmed in the making of this blog.....yet.

Adventures in Textiles

At the beginning of the summer, I decided I wanted drapes for a window in my big living room. Choosing the drapes was a big deal because the design and color of the drapes would help determine the rest of the future furnishings that will eventually make their way into that room. I looked at the typical stores (Bed Bath and Beyond, Peer One, Crate and Barrel) but could not find anything I really wanted. I looked on anthropologie's website and found that I loved almost every single thing they offered in the curtains category. I did not like their prices. A couple of panels could run me more than $500. Seriously!

We own a dang ol' sewing machine, folks, and I know how to use it. Well, I know how to sew very basic things. Pillows, tablecloths, etc. I figured drapes couldn't be so difficult.

I found this amazing fabric at Fanny's fabric store on South Lamar. BEST FABRIC STORE EVER! I needed 5.5 yards of this particular fabric and they had to order it - and it was on back order - and I had to wait. When it finally arrived, I bought some beautiful lining material, some sheer curtains to compliment the heavy drapes, and some corded tie backs.
Here is the end result:


The fabric itself is very heavy. The background is almost black, but not quite. The floral design is embroidered in many beautiful colors. *sigh* I loves it.


Sheer curtains are inexpensive, so I went ahead and bought those. I may go back and hem these (the sheers), but I may not because I like the billowing look that is happening at the bottom.


The sewing process did not take as long as I thought. I had to make sure I planned it out correctly. That took the most time. The prep work took a few hours all together. This was mostly just ironing and pinning the hems.

Any-hoo, I am proud of myself. Now If only I knew how to reupholster furniture.....

"You're my boy, Blue!"

I went to shop-shopping, shopping at Ross today. I thought I might find a cheap wastebasket for a spare bedroom. I did not find a wastebasket but I did find these:

HD VISION BABY!

HAHAHAHAH!
These remind me of the Blueblocker shades my dad has been wearing since,like, forever.

Short story- when I was a teenager, my dad was driving me and a friend of mine home from youth group or something. I doubt it was youth group because I only lasted about 2 weeks in youth group. I just can't remember why we were at the church.

He had to run into the rec building to talk to somebody, leaving my friend and myself alone in the car. She decided to get behind the wheel and do some donuts in the parking lot. During one of the steep turns, my dads' blue blockers flew off the dash and onto the floor. I accidentally stepped on them when I was trying to stabilize myself, braking the frame beyond repair.

My dad came back to the car none the wiser about our dare-devil donuts. He did notice his broken blues. I remember him picking them up and saying "Damnit girls! These glasses aren't free!" I think they were around $5.00 at the time. He continued to lecture us about respecting other people's property. I started to feel bad about breaking his glasses (and letting my friend drive the car like a maniac) and apologized. In a classic pimp move, he then reached across the seat, opened the glove box, and pulled out his reserve pair. My friend and I laughed and laughed all the way home.


Now I can see in high definition. Jealous?

In other news:
I bought some fabric to make drapes for the big room.

I hope it turns out good.

Back to my HD Vision glasses-
I was playing with the levels of this picture and look what happened-


Ok, gotta go. Buffalo steaks are on the grill. Mmm...

The Laundry Game

Notice something funny about the following picture of a pile of laundry?




Ever since Cooper was a young pup, we played the laundry game. The laundry game basically consists of Cooper sitting in the hallway by the dryer and me tossing socks and towels (fresh from the dryer) on and around him. He loves being completely covered up by the warm, soft, clothing.


Cooper will stay in the pile of laundry until I pull him out.

And then, I got our other dog Charlie. He does not know how to play the laundry game.

Charlie only knows how to play one game....king of the mountain.

I suggest you play the laundry game with your dog. It makes them even more warm and cuddly...and they will smell like fabric softener.


**IN OTHER NEWS**
The cervical epidural injection went off without a hitch. However, I was not prepared for how bad the injection area would hurt post procedure. Ouch-ie-mama! I will know in a day or so if the procedure worked. I think it will provide me some relief. My next adventure involving my back will involve pilates class. My buddy Tirzah told me that pilates has really helped her sister who has similar back/neck pain issues.

I ate popcorn for dinner. Popcorn. Somebody needs to go to the grocery store.

Went to San Antonio today and was reunited with my 13 year old niece. I think she was 2 years old the last time I saw her. She is smart, funny, and beautiful. She looks a lot like my brother (her father). It's awesome. I am glad to have her back in my life.
Here we are:


Here she is with her father:

Neither one of them smile for the camera. Like father, like daughter. Ha!

You're a Real Pain in the Neck!

Not really. You are a nice person with a good hair cut. That's right, I noticed. Looking good, bub! I just posted that title because I am having really bad neck/back pain and that was the first phrase to come to mind.

On Thursday morning, bright and early, I will be undergoing a procedure called a "cervical epidural injection" which will deliver anti-inflammatory medicine to my owie. This is something I have been trying to avoid for a few years, because it is probably only a temporary fix and because it is not really that great for you, but I have got to try something else to deal with this pain. There is a small chance that this might help me out BIG TIME for a LONG TIME. That is what I am hoping for. However, I'll take it even if it only helps for a little while.

Here's what happens:
*The patient lies flat on his/her abdomen on an x-ray table.
*The skin is numbed with lidocaine.
*Using fluoroscopy (live x-ray) for guidance, the physician directs a needle toward the epidural space. Fluoroscopy is considered important so that the physician can more easily determine if the needle is in the right place.
*The steroid solution is injected (you may feel heaviness and/or numbness in your legs caused by the anesthetic). This generally lasts only a few hours.
*An epidural steroid injection usually takes between 15 and 30 minutes.



Will this hurt? Maybe. I don't know and I don't want to know until it actually happens.

I'll be staying with my friends Amy and Will because I am having the procedure done in Denton. Crazy, I know. It's a long story. I don't really feel like telling it right now. Ugh. Basically, my in-laws told me about this back clinic in Dallas that has helped some of their friends. I decided to visit this clinic to see if they could give me a more definitive diagnosis of what is going on with my neck/back. After an MRI and a very thorough examination, they told me I had a small bulging disc in my cervical spine that may be irritating a nerve. I still feel like something else may be going on. The Dr. (who was really nice) said that I should have this injection. If it helps, wonderful. If it doesn't it may be an indicator that I am a candidate for a small surgical procedure. Oh boy.

Could I get a cervical epidural injection by my orthopedic doctor in Austin? Yes, but the guys in Denton seem to be giving me a few more answers than my current doctor so I am going to see what they can do.

Back to Amy and Will....
let me say this- I love them. Amy has been a friend of mine since the 7th grade. Amy rarely backs down from a dare, has probably read more books than you have, and sends me letters on a regular basis. She is funny, kind, strong, smart, and trustworthy beyond belief. She married Will and I could not be happier with her choice. He loves to listen and sing along to music. He will dance if the music calls for movement. He will dance alone if
the room is empty except for himself. Will is also very funny, kind, strong, smart and trustworthy beyond belief.

Here we all are:

Amy and I purchased those shirts from Target on the day this picture was taken. She loves diet coke. I don't love coke, but thought it would be funny if we wore those shirts out and about in Dallas. Ok, maybe it was only funny to us...but funny none the less.


Ahh, Will. To know him is to love him. The last time I was visiting Amy and Will, Will had a birthday. He celebrated at a bar in Lewisville and let me tell you, the people showed up to celebrate Will. I was not surprised.
He is good people.

I'll give you a full report on how the procedure went once I get back to Austin.

One more:

Lady GaGa: The Review

We arrived at the American Airlines stadium, stood in line with a shocked young couple from Alabama ("We've never seen anything like this before!"), walked through the costumed heathens, and made our way to the merch table so that Clint could buy a few souvenirs. After that, we went up-up-up to our seats. Amy, Clint and I sat down and had approximately one minute to enjoy the view before a woman came up to us and said, "excuse me, I work for American Airlines stadium. Would you like better seats?" With out question, we followed her down-down-down to a section that was located at the side of the stage. Our original seats were good, but these were great!


Amy took most of the photos with her point and shoot digital camera.

We missed the opening act and were only in our seats for about 10 minutes before the show started.

Lady Gaga's concert is more broadway show/rock opera than it is pop show. That is what I am assuming because I have never really been to a big pop-concert. I have been to more than a few broadway plays, however, and her show reminded me of those.




big screen


Though her music does not match up with what I typically listen to, I knew a handful of her songs from watching her videos and various television performances. I will admit, I am a sucker for her schtick. What I mean is that her costumes, bizarre hair and make-up, and theatrical use of fake blood pull me in. If that Lady is on the boob-tube, I will usually take a moment to watch. Of course, she is not the first to pull such moves. There was Bowie, and Alice and Iggy (though I think his blood was real), Manson, and Madonna (minus the blood). She is the first of her generation to be noticed (on such a public level) for using these strange tricks of the trade.


After hearing her live, I can say that she is a very talented singer and she knows her way around a piano. Her voice was always on point, even when she was screaming which happened almost every time she addressed the crowd. It would go something like, "I just want you to know how MUCH YOU FUCKING MEAN TO ME, DALLAAAAAAAAAAAS!"
In the above photo, she was using that giant light stick to look into the crowd and talk to her "little monsters" on a more personal level. There was a toddler in the audience dressed like a little Gaga in the red lace outfit she wore to last year's video music awards (google it). Big Gaga noticed the tot and said "you are going to give your daddy lots of trouble when you grow up."


She had a nice message for her fans. She said that Jesus loved everybody, both gay and straight people. She said gay people were born that way. She said, "Rah Rah ah-ah-ah, roma ro-ma-ma, GaGa oh la-la, want your bad romance!"

And she wore this dress that moved!


well, the headpiece moved. It was pretty cool.

Massive Crowd


Watching the show


Naughty bits o' fire


Did you know that GaGa fans have their own hand signal? It's called "the monster paw."


Here, I'll show you:




Amy and Sarah:



Though I did dance along to the encore performance of Bad Romance (hey, when in Rome...right?), I could not stand during the entire show. It's the dang bulging disc in my neck. That shizz hurts, people!

Clint, the reason for going to the concert in the first place, LOVED it.


And that alone made it worthwhile for both Amy and myself.