On the up side, it's Friday.

The good news: I don't have the flu.

The bad news: That's the only thing my neighborhood drugstore clinic is treating for.

More bad news: I waited an hour and a half to find that out.

The good news: It's Friday.

Last night, my choir director mentioned an incident that occurred when he was a waiter at Chili's. It involved veggies, a lap and a very angry lady.

That reminded me of my time as a waitress - three of the longest months of my life! I was not a good waitress, and I didn't enjoy it one bit. Honestly, I don't remember a whole lot about that job, but I do remember one night in particular.

The night I dumped a whole tray of drinks, splashing a huge (HUGE!) glass of tea onto a man's lap. He was kind and gracious and forgiving, but still. Embarrassing!!!

Cheer me up today. Tell me a horror story from one of your early jobs. (Or recent jobs, if that provides better material!)

Heading for the highway...looking for my gas tank?

We bought my car, an Oldsmobile Alero, six years ago. It has been clear to us that it's not the best car ever made in these 50 states for about five years. Mark has hated it for approximately five years. We paid it off just over one year ago.

Despite the rattling and whirring that occasionally popped up and the windshield wipers that only worked when they felt like it and the signal indicator that made its ticking noise even when the blasted blinker wasn't on, it was a decent car.

And by "decent," I mean that it got me from Point A to Point B. Every single time.

Until Saturday, that is. When a piece of metal lay (lie? laid? I don't know.) in wait on the highway, jumping up to attack our gas tank at the most inopportune time.

Or opportune, depending on how you look at it. Because, after what seems like weeks but has only been a few days of dealing with insurance agents, rental car guys, insurance adjusters, used car salesmen and - worst of all - cranky spouses, Mark and I are now the proud owners of a new car.

The very car that we had looked at a month ago but decided we couldn't afford. That's our new car. Well, a new used car. A new-to-us car. A crossover, or as others might call it, an SUV-wannabe. Or, as my dad called it, a station wagon. No matter. It's shiny and it's big and it's ours.

And I think it's going to get better gas mileage than my sad, old Olds.

Here it is. Except, not. Because this isn't the exact car we bought. I mean, it is. But ours doesn't live in the mountains. It lives in the middle of the country. In a suburb. With all the other SUVs and crossovers.

I'm just getting to know it, but so far, I love my new (used) car. I'm thankful that, despite my hopes and dreams for my old car lasting just one more year, God provided for us and moved up our car-buying schedule.

I will try to be just as thankful when the first payment is due in December.

What are you loving today? For more things to love, visit The Diaper Diaries.

Half full or half empty

Photo by Jenny Downing

When I was in high school, I sang a duet at our spring concert. The song was called "Heart Half Empty," and it has been stuck in my head since I started writing this post.

Anyway.

Sometimes I hear people say things that are just annoying. Things like, “I don’t have time to watch TV.” Or, “Oh, I can’t eat fast food anymore. It upsets my stomach.” Or perhaps, “I just can’t go a day without exercising. I get cranky!”

Now, don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying that these things are bad or even untrue. No, they’re annoying statements because, sure, I’d love develop an aversion to fast food and television and spend more time working out. But that’s just not real life. At least, it’s not my real life.

And so I get annoyed.

But you know what I found myself thinking the other day when a co-worker mentioned that she doesn’t like water? “Really? Wow. Sometimes I crave water. I can’t get enough. I like water.”

I almost became one of those people with my annoying, self-righteous, good-habited statements.

But, just like those folks who hate fast food and love to exercise (and somehow don’t make TV watching a priority), I meant it. It’s the truth. I drink a lot of water. And I like it.

Does that make me weird? Maybe. But it's my one good habit, and besides, we all know the benefits of drinking more water: weight loss, better skin, live to 100. (Just kidding on that last one.) So perhaps I can offer some helpful hints on getting more water in your day. (More, as in six to eight cups, of course!)

• If you’re a fan of bottled water (because, yes, I realize some of you probably are not in favor of disposable plastic bottles), buy a 24-pack and keep it in your car. Then you can drink a bottle on your way to work, while running errands or on the way to drop off the kids at school.
• If you are opposed to those landfill-filling bottles, then get a good thermos. That way, you can keep your “car water” cold. And save the earth. (Serious side note: I’m all for non-disposable things. But in the interests of full disclosure, I often drink water from plastic bottles.)
• If you work at a desk – or in the kitchen or in a classroom or, you get the point – keep a cup for water there. That’s what I do – I keep a giant plastic cup at my desk at all times, refilling it a few times a day.
• If you can’t stand the flavor of water (really?), use the sugar-free mix-ins. I know Crystal Light makes lots of flavors; so does Great Value at Walmart.
• Drink with a straw. If you need to, a colorful, twisty one. I can’t promise this will make your water taste like Diet Coke, but it might making drinking it a little more fun.
• Add ice. Personally, I like cold water with no ice. But my co-worker swears that drinking water with ice speeds up your metabolism. Or at least makes the water colder.

Okay, how about you? Do you drink water? I know I have more trouble getting my water in over the weekend, when I’m on the go – or at least not at a desk all day. When do you find it harder to drink your six to eight?

Drinking water works for me. For more tips, visit We Are THAT Family.

New tunes on a Tuesday

WINNER ANNOUNCEMENT! Random.org picked Jessie from Vanderbilt Wife to win this CD! Congratulations, Jessie!!

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I have a confession. Even though I consider myself a music person, I’m not one of those cool music people. I don’t wear black, I can’t improvise and - here's the real kicker - I listen to the radio.

Given that my music-listening hours are occupied by the same 10 songs my favorite stations play, I don’t often stumble onto songs and musicians outside the mainstream. Or, even just new ones.

(Unless you count the new music battles that some stations play, where they pit the latest songs by two already-popular artists against each other. And I’m guessing that does not count.)

So when One2One Network gave me the opportunity to review and give away Brandi Carlile’s new album, Give Up the Ghost, I didn’t hesitate. Of course I signed up!

As I mentioned in my official disclosure last week, I will never tell you I like something if I don’t. That means you can take this at face value: I love this CD!

After I listened to it a few times, I started doing a little research. You can learn about Carlile on her web site, but you may already be familiar from her if you’re a Grey’s fan. The show has apparently featured several of her songs, which explains why her sound was somewhat familiar to me.

Carlile reminds me of K.T. Tunstall, and my new Brandi Carlile station on Pandora also plays Norah Jones, Adele and someone named Missy Higgins. Then again, it also played Coldplay, so this is only so helpful.

I really enjoy acoustic music, and Carlile’s real, sometimes raw voice is complemented beautifully by her guitar. My favorite songs on Give Up on Ghost are Dreams and That Year, but honestly, I love the whole CD.

And now it’s your turn to listen to some new tunes. Win a copy of Brandi Carlile’s Give Up on Ghost by leaving a comment. Tell me your latest music find or current favorite song. I’ll randomly draw a winner after midnight on Wednesday, October 21.

I guess the time was right for us to say…

Extra credit to anyone who can name that song (in the title).

Do you make plans? I do. I’m a big planner. I like making plans. But sometimes – as in, right now in this very moment – I’m really not sure why I bother.

Let me start with the good parts of my weekend. Because despite that Debbie Downer statement, there were some.

Annalyn spent Friday night with my parents, because I had an awards dinner to go to for my job. On my way home from work, I found my car driving itself to the mall and parking in front of Macy’s. An interesting choice on the car’s part, really, because I didn’t have time to shop.

I also didn’t have anything to wear, really. I mean, what is cocktail attire, anyway? No, that’s not a good question. I know what cocktail attire is, and it’s lovely. I just don’t really have anything that fits the criteria. Anything that fits, at least. (Boo.)

So, my car took me to Macy’s, and I decided that I could just run in for a minute. Twenty minutes, to be exact. That’s how much time I gave myself to make a quick pass through the dress department.

First I had to find it. Why do all the dresses – regardless of size – need to be grouped together? In the opposite end of the mall than the rest of the clothes in my size? I don’t understand.

I mean, I get it when Target puts the diapers in the back of the store, with hopes that I’ll be tempted by 90s love song CDs, Halloween candy and drugstore makeup. But Macy’s? What am I going to be tempted by? Teeny bopper clothes in the juniors section that wouldn’t have even fit me when I was a junior?

Uh, no.

Well, despite this irritation and the ticking clock, I actually found a dress. It was beautiful, it fit well enough, and it was on clearance. The magic word! I’m happy to tell you that my lovely $110 dress cost me less than $30.

So, that was good. And the event was fun. My company went home with four awards from our local public relations organization, and I got a free dinner. The kind with the fancy green beans – you know, the ones Mark won’t touch. Mmmmm.

And, most importantly to me, I got to hang out with friends from my agency days afterwards. That was fun. I miss those guys!

On Saturday morning, my alarm failed me. And so I failed my friend and college roommate, Lisa, who was in town. We’d tentatively planned on meeting for breakfast that morning – after she ran a marathon and I got out of bed. Unfortunately, though she did, in fact, run a marathon, I did not get out of bed. In time, that is.

Sleeping in was nice, though. When Annalyn normally wakes me up at 7 a.m. or earlier on the weekends, opening my eyes to read 10:03 felt like a miracle.

Running over a piece of metal on the highway, which punctured our gas tank, did not feel like a miracle, however.

Yep, that’s right. On our way to pick Annalyn up from my parents’ house, we went and broke our car. Our paid off car. Our not-great-but-gets-me-to-work-and-back car. Our car that we can’t afford to replace for another year car. That one.

Needless to say (although I’m saying it anyway), our Saturday plans of getting Annalyn’s pictures taken and cleaning out the garage went by the wayside.

We’re still in the process of figuring out what we can do – and what we should do. If our insurance covers the problem, then everything will be fine. If it doesn’t, though, we’ll have to trade our broken, leaking car for a new one.

That was not in the budget.

The good news is we think we’ve figured out how to avoid renting a car for at least a couple days. We can definitely make do – even with our crazy schedules – with one vehicle. And based on what I’ve read about comprehensive insurance, I think (?) it will cover the damage. We’ll see.

Sunday was better than Saturday in so many ways. Our church is holding our annual missions conference this week, so choir sang a fun song about hearing the call of the kingdom. And then Annalyn attended her first birthday party that wasn’t for a relative. It was fun – although Evel Knievel was determined to join the big kids on the giant bounce house instead of staying in the toddler area.

And now I’m getting ready to watch this season’s episodes of NCIS with Mark. And eat some chicken. And mashed potatoes. Because I love them. (potatoes and NCIS and Mark)

Oh, and the title? The first line of “Love of a Lifetime” by Firehouse. Cheering me up immensely this weekend, despite the pesky car troubles, was the fact that I heard not one, but two, songs by Firehouse on the radio. (You are quite welcome for that link. How about that hair, huh?)

Because, we know our dreams can all come true with love that we can share. Yep.

First comes Homecoming, then comes marriage...

Fifteen years ago today (or yesterday by the time most of you read this), I went on my first date. And it just happened to be with my husband.

Thankfully, my mother was handy with the camera that night. For posterity. And the torture of teenage girls.

Despite the look of great annoyance on my face, I had a good time on that first date. Mark took me to dinner and our school's Homecoming dance. He talked constantly and then later told me that he was afraid I was too quiet. (If only he'd known...!) We danced together twice - to Seal's Kissed by a Rose and an embarrassing Boyz II Men song that was popular at the time.

After the dance, we went to my friend Jammie's house to hang out with several of my friends. If I remember correctly, we were the only ones who had actually gone to the dance, so I stood out in my skirt and - I know - pantyhose. (It didn't help that Mark's version of dance-appropriate attire was jeans and a button-up. Don't even get my mom started on how annoyed she was that we spent hours - HOURS! - shopping for a perfect outfit, and he showed up in jeans.) Luckily my friend had some sweats and a t-shirt I could change into. So fashionable, I was.

We played pool and ate junk food and hung out. I'm not sure what "hanging out" really entailed. Mostly just feeling awkward having my first date guy there with all my friends, including one guy who insisted on making fun of me the entire night. (Thank you, high school guy friend who surely doesn't remember this night like I do. You made an awkward evening even more awkward.)

After the dinner, the dance and the party, Mark drove me home. After all, my 6-foot-tall mother had made sure to intimidate him into a concrete commitment to my midnight curfew.

He pulled into my driveway. I think I said something about having a nice time or thank you for dinner or something. I distinctly remember gripping the door handle. And then, woof!

All of a sudden, his face was in my face. Yes, he kissed me. On the first date. Apparently, I'm that kind of girl. (But only with Mark!)

So, there it is. My first date story. Nothing terribly exciting, but it's mine. Now I want to hear yours. Tell us about your first date in the comments - or link up a post on your blog below!

You should cut me.

I was real ambitious with my TV-watching schedule. But in reality, life often gets in the way of the best couch potato intentions.

Which is why a small part of me is happy when a show doesn't live up to my expectations and can move from the must-see column to the watch-it-online-when-I-get-around-to-it column.

NCIS: Los Angeles is definitely on its way to that column. And much as I am loving Community and Modern Family, I can watch their 22 minutes anytime. No need to stick to a spreadsheet or schedule.

I thought I was going to add Grey's Anatomy to this list. I really thought I could quit Grey's this time. I watched half of the deliciously ridiculously emotional season premier and then skipped the next week's ep. But I found myself home during the show last week, and I got sucked back in.

I blame Cristina Yang.

Callie's speech to the Chief in the season opener was a little over the top, but enjoyable. "When people want the best, they page me. I've basically been running Dr. Chang's department all year. This is cr--. You're gonna regret this. No! I am excellent. And any other hospital would be thrilled to have me. I'm a superstar!"

I liked that. Yes, the superstar may have been a little bit much. But still - haven't you wanted to make that speech to someone, sometime?

Still. I could have resisted even after that scene. But then I went and watched episode four. You might think that the touching scenes between Meredith and Lexie/Lexie and Thatcher/Thatcher and Meredith are what drew me in.

But, no. It was Cristina's speech to the Chief. (The Chief's having a rough fall, huh?) After being shoved aside, ignored and assigned to grunt work all day (week? month? episode?), she'd had enough. And she let the Chief know.

I have good hands. They're fast, they're dexterous, they were made to throw ties and do complex procedures. These hands were made for surgery. Today they should've been deep inside a heart saving a life. Instead they removed a tick and pumped a p*n*s.

My point? You know what? You should cut me. From the program. You have to make more cuts, and I should go. 'Cause if you can't give me a brilliant cardiothoracic attending who's willing to teach me, then I can't get what I need from this hospital.

Everyone is scared of losing their job, and so am I. But if I can't learn, if I can't use my gift, then I guess that scares me more.

That's my point, sir.

I'm no surgeon. Actually, I have to watch Grey's (and Bones and NCIS and the spy movies I love so much) through my hands, covering up the icky parts of the screen. But I can certainly identify with Cristina. If I can't learn, if I can't use my gift, then I guess that scares me more. Yes, ma'am.

And that is why I can't quit Grey's Anatomy.

Have you been disappointed or pleasantly surprised by any TV shows this fall?

This post will be linked to Things I Love Thursday. Sadly, this isn't even the first time I've linked a TV post to that carnival. *sigh*

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WHAT did you just say?

I'm sure you'd never guess that this innocent little girl could make a sailor blush. If you guessed that she doesn't do it on purpose, you'd be right. But the words that accidentally pop out of her toddler mouth? Well, they definitely make her mama blush!

What kind of crazy things does Annalyn say? Oh, let me tell you.

• Remember britches - said without an "r"?
• And then there's truck and frog - which both somehow end up starting with "f" and rhyming with duck.
• Oh yes, don't forget purse, which is a bag carried over the shoulder, not a bodily function like it sounds.
• The first naughty-but-not word she said was fridge. And so adamantly, shoving her sippy cup of milk toward me, strongly suggesting I put it in the refrigerator. Which would be fine (minus the requisite "please"), except that somehow fridge sounded very similar to britches without an "r."
• And last but most certainly not least is Annalyn's latest word: chilly. And in case you're not fluent in toddler distortion of clean language, imagine Annalyn saying it over and over at the grocery store, making the innocent word rhyme with itty bitty.

Yep. My sweet little girl has quite a mouth. Crazy, right?

My friend Hillary is having a parade of crazy over at her blog, The Other Mama, today. If you'd like to share something crazy - old outfits, things that you found in your car, advice you've tried or meals you've cooked with strange ingredients found in the back of your pantry - link on up! Or, just head over there to read a little bit of crazy. Who doesn't need some of that on a Wednesday?

That's what I call a pizza craving!

I don't like watching the news. I do realize that, as a public relations professional, I should be interested in the news. And I am. When it involves my company or our industry.

But the local news? Not my favorite.

However, I didn't turn the TV off fast enough when Castle was over, and I caught the first story on the nightly news.

Apparently, a Pizza Hut delivery man was carjacked and kidnapped Monday night.

What? Have you ever wanted pizza that bad? I mean, wow. I love pizza. And I'm sure I've craved it at times. But those are some pretty extreme measures. (Yes, I realize it's possible that there's more to this story than the delivery of a large one-topping. But just go with it, will you?)

Thanks to this brave delivery man and the fact that his story was the most newsworthy thing going on tonight, I now have a blog topic. That's right. Here are my top ten favorite pizzas.

• Pizza Hut pepperoni stuffed crust (I know. Okay? I know.)
  
• Pizza Hut hamburger hand-tossed crust (Boring? Maybe. Or delicious? Oh, yeahhhh.)
  
• Papa John's supreme when eaten with our friends, Zac and Mandy
• Totino's Combination Party Pizza (This one's a throwback to college...when have I even eaten one of these? I mean, half of one. Nope. One.)
  
• Jack's frozen pepperoni pizza (with extra mozzarella, just to up the health factor)
• Homemade pizza, with hamburger, onion and green pepper
• Minsky's combo pizza without sausage
• Godfather's humble pie, substitute beef for sausage (What can I say, we don't do sausage!)
• Shakespeare's pizza with beef, pepperoni, onion, green pepper and mushroom
• Waldo Pizza - everything I've ever eaten there.

N0w I'd like to know: What's your favorite pizza?

For more Top 10 lists, visit Oh Amanda's Top Ten Tuesday.