Proud Mom, Beautiful Daughter


2 incredibly handsome men (yes, Mark is slouching to make Jeremy look taller!)

Trae, Amanda & Jeremy....all very lovely!!


Well, down to the last week in the cracker box apartment. Got some of the big stuff out over the weekend, when Mark had his dad's truck. But, still more to go. Amanda, Trae & Jeremy all seemed to have a great time at prom last Saturday, and they all looked wonderful. Amanda looked like a princess. Steven is going to try staying with Tom for a while...maybe a teenage boy needs to get to know his dad. So, over all, things are going extraordinarily well.....


That's what something that happened yesterday has me a little confused. Actually, it started Saturday. After Mark & I dropped the kids off for their ride in the mondo-truck-limo for prom, we went to get something to eat. On the way back, we passed....someone I haven't seen in several months. I know you have read my blog before, so if you are reading, you know who you are. Anyway, I was a little weirded out, but waved. I explained to Mark what was going on as the little green car turned behind us.

So, that was just a little.....odd. Not unexpected in a town this size, but odd nonetheless. On to yesterday...Mark & Jeremy had unloaded some big stuff, Mark & I had unloaded some shelves, and were unloading some boxes to take into the house. Mark had just taken a box in the house, and I was getting one out of the van when the same green car goes past. Again, not that unusual you might say...except that my new home is about 10 minutes out of town, on the county line road, in an extremely rural community. For him/you to be out there, right then, was either an extremely bizarre coincidence, or ... you were looking for me.

For anyone reading this, just so you know.....I am marrying Mark. Being dumped was the greatest thing that has ever happened to me, because it freed me to find what was right before my eyes the whole time. The fact that Mark still wants me after I left him to go back all those years ago is mind-boggling. I have never been so happy, or known so absolutely what I want or where I belong. Being with him is ... being home. So, checking up will change nothing. What we thought we had was never really as real as we imagined. THIS is real.

So, anywho, thanks for reading....and save July 25 on your calendars, because that will be the happiest day of my life!

Quite often, y'all know I steal completely from my friends in the on-line world....here, I'm gonna steal a little, and write a little of my own....

Last week, this world lost a beautiful soul.... a woman I had never met, but yet know with every fiber of my being that I would have enjoyed hanging out with, talking about obnoxious movies, books, TV, etc. Like me, she was not a "girly girl" but a tomboy...a zombie killer, a fighter in ways I cannot even imagine. Her name was Amanda Amos, but most of us in cyber-space knew her as Alabama Pink.

She was a frequent commenter on my favorite addiction, Pajiba. She also had her own blog, Whoa! Camel. A year or so ago, she was diagnosed with leukemia. Instead of hiding her pain from the world, she blogged about it. She was amazingly open about it...the pain, the fear, the hope, the treatments, the loneliness. She talked about her husband and young son. She talked about her parents. She talked about EVERYTHING. And that drew us all in. She was so eloquent in her ravings that we all fell in love with her. We listened, we talked to her, we sent her gifts, we sent money, we laughed, we cried, and mostly, we prayed.

But, last week, all that came to naught. Valiant though she was, the disease got the upper hand and Amanda's fight was over. Pajiba posted a wonderful picture of Patricia Arquette as Alabama in "True Romance" on their banner stating, "In Loving Memory, Alabama Pink" and ran what amounted to a sort of obit column. It was one of the most heartfelt things I have ever read. Then, following that column, the readers of Pajiba took over.....hundreds of us....ordinary schmucks who had never actually met this woman.....told stories about how she had touched us and how we would miss her. It was, to quote Tom Cruise in "Taps" ...."Beautiful, man, BEAUTIFUL!!!""

Several other columns followed, as did many other blogs. It's funny how one person, in the day and age of the internet, can touch so many people's hearts and lives. I am going to copy Pajiba's article from today, because there is some important information in it. But, before I do, I just want to say...Alabama....you were so cool.......

This site has been around for five years in June, and we’ve never been so proud to be a part of it as we were last Thursday. It was the worst of circumstances, but we were completely overwhelmed and touched by what transpired. The outpouring of grief and tears and affection and … fuck it … *love* that you all displayed after hearing about the passing of AlabamaPink — a woman none of you have ever met — was nothing short of magical. It was as though we were witness to a virtual, worldwide slow clap that built and built over the course of the day (and night) celebrating the wonderful life of Amanda Amos. It was the classiest thing we’ve ever seen on the Internet or otherwise. And it wasn’t just on the pages of Pajiba — there were tributes to AlabamaPink on blogs too countless to link, and all over Facebook; Skitz’s AlabamaPink seal began popping up in lots of profile pages. We were so moved by it all, we were tempted to change the site’s tagline to Scathing Reviews, Spectacular People.
We’ve all had a few days now to process Amanda’s passing, and if you haven’t read them yet, I’d like to point you to her husband’s most recent posts: The Last 24 Hours of Amanda’s life and Adrian’s own thoughts about the passing of Amanda. I’ll warn you: They may crush you. They are heartbreaking, and we can’t thank Adrian enough for sharing his thoughts so openly. It takes a lot of strength and courage to open your life up to thousands of friends and strangers. We can’t possibly put into words the amount of respect and admiration we have for Adrian. Really, they are just an amazing, wonderful family.
Over the last few days, we’ve also received a lot of suggestions. There are a lot of you out there who want to do something for Amanda’s family, to channel your sadness into something positive. Something tangible. We weighed a lot of the ideas, and what we’d really like to do is focus it in one place. Their church is putting together a Scholarship Fund for Amanda’s son, Alastair. And if you have anything to spare — $5, $10, $20 — it’d mean a lot to making a lasting contribution to her son’s future. Checks can be made out to the United Christian Church. Write “Alastair Amos” in the memo line. Those checks can be sent to P.O. Box 70759, Richmond, VA 23255.
We can’t thank you enough.
If you’re not in a position to contribute financially, we encourage you all to donate blood to the American Red Cross or put yourself on a bone marrow list. Hopefully, somebody out there can help prevent this happening to someone else. We think that would’ve meant a lot to Amanda.
Amanda’s New Orleans style service will take place this Sunday. There is a remote possibility that Adrian can get it webcast, but in any respect, please do send all your good vibes to Richmond this Sunday.
And finally, Adrian sent us the picture below of Amanda, writing: “The background swallows up the ginormity of her hand-cannon, but here’s Amanda in her 2006 Halloween costume. I was Ash that year, and together we kicked some zombie butt. Unfortunately the movies get it wrong: Zombie apocalypses always end in the total destruction of the human race. But we never lost heart, and I stood by her with my boomstick to the bitter end.”
Like we said: Amazing family.

The lovely Amanda....

Like, it’s TOTALLY an 80’s show!

Director Chante Wells, and Producer Bonnie Locchetta are pleased to announce auditions for Rush County Players long-awaited 80’s musicale, “Video Killed the Radio Star!” Auditions will be held at the Playhouse, 201 N. Morgan Rushville, on Monday, March 16, Tuesday, March 17, and Wednesday, March 18, from 6:30 pm to 8:30 pm. Music and scripts will be provided for those auditioning.

“Video Killed the Radio Star!” is a scripted musicale, celebrating the hits of the MTV generation. Artists from Duran Duran to Tina Turner will be represented as the Montridge High Class of 1989 hold their final prom of the ‘80’s. Roles include students attending the prom, as well as teachers acting as chaperones! Those auditioning must be at least high school age. Thirty roles have been scripted, but “extras” may be needed to attend the prom as well! And, yes, there will be some dancing, but it’s 80’s dancing! How hard can that be?

Rehearsals will begin on Monday March 30, and will be held on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays at the Playhouse, also from 6:30-8:30 pm. This production will be held in a more “dance” oriented venue---the Rushville Elks Ballroom. The performances will be “in-the-round”, to put the audience closer to the show. And, audience members will be chaperones for the “dance” as well! Show-dates are May 1 at 8:00 pm, May 2 at 8:00 pm, and May 3 at 2:00 pm..

If you want to be totally rad and cool, come and revisit the years when MTV actually showed music videos! For more information, call 938-1711, or visit www.rushcountyplayers.org. And, like, it’ll be EXCELLENT!

We waited.....in anticipation.....of the GREATEST CINEMATIC TRIUMPH OF THE 21ST CENTURY!!! Was this it? Was it worth the hype, the money, the wait.......ummm, sorta, kinda....not really.

Yeah, we've been waiting for months upon months for "Watchmen" to finally open. I don't know a lot about the source material (GOTTA read it now) but it looked awesome, and any time there are copious amounts of violence and gore, and super-hero-y-ness thrown in, I'm good to go. So, the kids and head out Saturday afternoon, ready for an exciting afternoon.

We get to the theatre before the doors are even open, and for the first time in my life, we are the FIRST people in to buy our tickets!!! It's a whole 1/2 hour before the show starts, but thats ok. More time to get snacks, snag our fave seats (middle of the back row, baby!) and make fun of the ads before the previews. Get our 5 gallon drums of pop and head up to the seats. People filter in, but not as many as I expected. Of course, it was a beautiful, 70-some degree Saturday afternoon, so many people are out and about. I do notice, however, that someone way down front has what appears to be at least one small child (definitely under 10). Hmmm, dunno if this is a real small kid friendly movie.....yet.

Trailers....."Wolverine" looks good (the world needs more shirtless Hugh Jackman, I say!! And Ryan Reynolds is pretty), "Observe and Report" looks funny, a funny take on "Paul Blart". Is it wrong that I'm a little in love with Seth Rogan? Anywho, on to the show.....

It opens with a bang, that's for sure....then, into the opening credits which were FANTASTIC!!! Brilliantly staged, lit, everything. Beautiful.....and.......wtf???? All this anticipation, and ....meh. It was ...ok. I wondered, when you first got a GOOD look, after thinking, "Did I really just see that? No, I couldn't have..." of Dr. Manhattan's blue wang, if the folks with the little kiddies started to regret their decision.

Yeah, I wasn't prepared for almost 3 hours of azure weiner. As I said, I'm not that familiar with the source material, so, umm, didn't know there was gonna be a naked blue guy in most of the movie. I also didn't know there was gonna be some fairly graphic sex, for an R-rated action movie. The violence?? LOTS of it, with LOTS of blood, and bones popping thru the skin, and hanging bones and meat....but I LOVE that kinda stuff. But, having a scene where it looked like the Blue Man Group was gettin' it on with Laurie Jupiter? Kinda...wrong.

Overall? AWESOME effects, truly awesome. Lots of pretty colors. LOTS of violence, and sex. Jackie Earl Haley as Rorschach was out of this world, and Jeffrey Dean Morgan (who my kids and I thought was the bigger, meaner, slightly less attractive RDJ) did a great job. The other actors? You could pretty much replace them with cardboard cut-outs.....even my beloved Matt Frewer was wasted. Seriously, my absolute favorite part of the movie was the opening credits, with the live-action photos showing the history of the "Watchmen." Had the whole movie been more like that, it might have been a little better.

Don't get me wrong...I didn't hate it. It was good. It just.....wasn't what I expected. I assume that true, loyal fans of the comic are beside themselves. I'll get it on dvd, but ..... I guess "Iron Man" and "The Dark Knight" just set the bar a little too high......

Yeah, playing with templates. Whaddya think?

I.........ain't seeing it.

So, here I go stealing from Jeremy at Notes on Bar Napkins again....

Actually, I think I filled this out already, or something very similar, but I liked it, so here ya go. Please feel free to go ahead and do your own version in comments....like, really, please. So I know someone other than my good friend Mr. C is reading this!!!

Did you date someone from your school?
Oh, yes. Never dated anyone from another school. Dave, Jim, Greg, Bobby....and some one or 2 night stands we won't discuss here, including more than one member of a couple different families. ( I know, slut, right?)

Did you marry someone from your high school?
The first one, yeah. JEEZUS on a soda cracker, was THAT a bad idea!!!!

Did you car pool to school?
Nope, walked when we lived in town, then drove either the giant '70 Buick LeSabre (indestructible, that car....it is probably still alive out there, somewhere....like Christine) or the even more bitchin' BLUE BUG!!!

What kind of car did you have?
the aforementioned Urban Assault Buick or Bug of Fame

What kind of car do you have now?
A White Dodge Caravan Mom-van

Its Friday night...where are you now?
Hanging out with Mark and/or the kids

It is Friday night...where were you then?
Cruising Main, parking at PK or Marsh, drinking liquor stolen from my dad and hidden in small bottles in my purse out of Just Rite cups (ask for a cup of ice only, get an X on the cup!)

What kind of job did you have in high school?
Couple different ones.....Clancy's fast food, Durbin Dolly, receptionist/collator for Custom Printers

What kind of job do you do now?
Clerical Assistant 2 for the Dept. of Env. Mgmt

Were you a party animal?
Only secretly. My good friends knew, but most everyone else thought I was a quiet, good little girl. I specifically remember a party during Senior Week when I joined some friends in a car to, umm, partake of some slightly illegals substances, and about 1/2 the people in the car were SHOCKED, I tells ya, SHOCKED!!!

Were you considered a flirt?
Oh, no, I was everybody's buddy.

Were you in band, orchestra or choir?
Choir, Theatre and Speech, baby!!!

Were you a nerd?
If by nerd, this means smart, then, kinda.

Did you get suspended or expelled?
Never. Dodged a giant bullet Senior year through my awesome bullshit skills and rep as a good girl!

Can you sing the fight song?
I can, but I will only sing the Speech Team version, reprinted here for your pleasure:

RTT, we love you RTT
Here's to the dear old Red and Black,
Here's to our spirit, team fight back!
Oral truth, it's better than John Wilkes Booth.
Here's to early morning rides,
Aching heads and sore behinds,
RTT!

Who was/were your favorite teacher(s)?
I had several....Mr. & Mrs. Blair, Mr. Hufford, Mr. Hodge, Mr. McDaniel---subversives all

Where did you sit during lunch?
Hmmm, on my butt?

What was your school mascot?
A lion...whoopee

If you could go back and do it again, would you?
Only if I knew what I know now. Then I would lay WASTE to SOOOOO many people!!!

Did you have fun at prom?
Hmm, Jr. year I went with my boyfriend...so, it was ok. Sr. year I went with one of my best friends...and I think I had more fun with him!

Do you still talk to the person you went to Prom with?
Not the Jr. year ex-boyfriend, just because I haven't seen him. I'd LOOOVE to talk to my Sr. date, but I rarely see him.

Are you planning on going to your next reunion?
Probably. I have only missed a few....its always great to see how fat & bald the hot guys have become and how FAT the popular bitches have gotten!! Plus, next time will I have a man to show off!!!!

Do you still talk to people from school?
Yeah, actually I still have a lot of good friends I went to school with.

Just in case anyone sees anything on the news....apparently there was a fire at the Ronald McDonald House during the night last night. Brittany called and it was NOT where they are, and everyone is ok.

Update on Xavier.....he is up to 5 pounds!!! Still on oxygen (he was off temporarily, but he still needs a little help) and is taking bottles of breast milk. He is doing very well.

Big brother Jayden is staying at the Ronald McDonald House for a couple of days with Mom and Dad, too, just so they can all be together.

Thanks to everyone for your kind wishes, thoughts and prayers. He will still most likely stay till the end of March, but he is improving every day.

Oh, and let me say something else....I know some of you (well, that's assuming SOMEONE reads this!!!) may look back and think, wow, wasn't that long ago that I was suicidally lamenting the loss of a relationship. And, you're right. But, as they say, hindsight is 20/20. I was stubborn, really thought I was in love, and completely unwilling to see what wasn't working there....probably because I was scared. I had been told for years how different we were, asked why I didn't leave, and so on and so on.

All valid....I was scared, as I said. I was stubborn. That was a relationship that I had so much invested in, I was too close to see the cracks. I had to gain some distance and perspective to see we could not make it together.

I hope you are happy. I hope you are well. I hope your family is, too. I will always care about you all. But, I know now that we couldn't have continued on the way we were going, and that it is better for us that we are no longer together. You did what I could not. I hated you at the time for it, but now I realize that you freed us both to find our destinies. I hope you have, or you will soon. I know I have.

Just want to be really sappy for a minute. I am SO HAPPY right now.

I never really understood the whole thing about "if something is meant to be....." and all that "if you love something set it free...." crap before.....but now I do.

After several years and much pain on both of our parts, our friendship remained. Then, when my life came apart, he was there. Somehow, he knew. I haven't asked him, so I don't know if he felt it or what....but he sent me a little message to let me know he was thinking about me. He didn't even know what had happened.

We started to talk again then, and he was amazingly helpful to the kids and I in getting us moved and such. Finally, I went to see him play music....and I have to say I am proud of myself for making the first move. We both know we carry a lot of baggage, and it won't be easy, but neither of us can imagine life without the other one.

I really found the right one. He makes me laugh, he loves my kids and they love him, he sings to me.....we can talk about anything or nothing. He doesn't make me feel inadequate or small or dumb or....anything but wonderful. He puts his head in my lap and dozes...and it is the most wonderful feeling in the world.

Thank you for still being there, Mark. Thank you for wanting to take a chance on me. Thank you for not letting my decision many years ago stand between us forever. I was afraid it would.

So, I guess when something really IS meant to be, it will be. And, I cannot wait to be with you everyday, forever.

Just so you can see how he is doing....

Just watched a very short bootleg trailer Tarantino's newest, "Inglorious Basterds" (thanks, Pajiba!) Tarantino is very up and down.....you love him, or hate him. I think we're gonna LOVE this one! Go to Pajiba to check it out before it disappears!!!

Xavier is in Riley Hospital in Indianapolis, probably until late March. He is down to 4 lbs 4 oz, and is under the bili-lite, but is stable. They were going to attempt to start feeding him milk thru the tube in his umbilical cord yesterday, and may try to remove the vent today.

Brittany is staying at the Ronald McDonald House near Riley, so she can be close to him. Thank you for your thoughts, prayers, and concerns. Please continue them! There is a lot going on besides Xavier's health and Brittany's for that matter.

Love to you all, and I will keep you updated as I can.

Update on baby X.....he is doing well. Still at Riley, and probably will be until the end of March. He is now under the bili lite, still on the vent, and being fed thru a tube in his umbilical cord. Brittany is now staying at the Ronald McDonald House so that she can be close to him. I will keep you all updated. Thank you for all your thoughts and prayers.

Got quite a shock yesterday. Brittany, my 21 year old daughter, was taken in for an emergency C-section, to deliver her baby (Xavier Allen) 6 weeks early. His heart rate was low due to her placenta failing, probably due to a car accident she had about a month ago.

He was taken to Riley last nite via helicopter, and is being treated for Hyland's membrane disease (?) which means the air sacs in his lungs have not yet fully developed. It is completely normal in preemies, and completely treatable.

Will keep you all updated. Please spread the word.

I just totally stole these pictures from my new addiction, Notes on Bar Napkins. Jeremy, you rock! I, too, DETEST these 8 legged buggers, but damn if this little guy isn't the cutest little sucker I've seen in a long time. Enjoy some hairy, spidery, smiley goodness....


All Bow Before the Smiley Spider

I don't consider myself a movie snob, but there are just some movies that I DO NOT want to see....Any Sex in the City movie, for example. Or the "dance" type movies, like Step Up or Off or whatever the hell they are, and torture porn, AKA the Saw movies, or Captivity or crap like that.

This weekend, we decided to watch "Burn After Reading." We both wanted to see it--great cast, written and directed by the Coen Brothers....we had high hopes. Oh, to have those hopes dashed, and the beauty of Brad Pitt and George Clooney go to waste. We were, to put it mildly, disappointed. It was like they couldn't make up their minds about the storyline. Is it a comedy? Is it a thriller? Usually the Coens are tops at combining these elements, but, at least in our estimation, this effort fell very, very short of the goal.

So, as a filler before BAR started, we watched part of a movie I had zero interest in seeing, and that I actually ended up thinking was pretty damn funny..... Disaster Movie. I usually hate these "movie movies" but honestly,this had some damn funny parts. Anytime Hannah Montana gets killed by an asteroid, Kim Kardashian bites it, and someone shows the SitC girls for the aging whoooores they are, I'm in. Yes, it was stupid, yes, some parts sucked, but for the most part, if you just turn your brain off and let yourself enjoy it, it is pretty fun. For us, the best part was Nicole Parker, who I have never seen in anything else (I guess she's on MAdTV, but I never watch that). She was GREAT!!!! Her "Enchanted" princess is very funny....

So, now that I have admitted my fondness for a movie a lot of people consider to be a giant turd floating in the Hollywood bowl, here's a question for the one or two of you who actually read this drivel:

What movie or TV show have you ended up watching and really enjoying, that you had no interest in, or thought was gonna suck?

I was reminded recently of this movie....I always liked it, but in a lot of ways, I am living it now....

Hope Floats

Birdee Calvert-Pruitt is back in her hometown of Smithville, Texas after discovering that her husband is having an affair with her best friend, Connie. The entire town knows what happened to flawless beauty Birdee since Connie let her know about the affair on a national talk show. Back in town, she's dealing with catty old friends and acquaintances from high school who can't help rubbing it in her face that she isn't as perfect as she thought while still trying to get back on her feet with her daughter, Bernice. Deeply depressed, she runs into an old friend, Justin Matisse, who tries to help her through, but is still in love with her. Birdee must make a new life for her and her daughter, but will Justin be able to be part of it?

Yeah, yeah, it's a chick flick and normally, I DO NOT do chick flicks. But I really liked this one. In a way, I have become Birdee.....and I found my Justin.

Thanks for taking this beat-down, sad, broken girl and giving her more than she thought she ever deserved. I know, I know....I'm being all sappy and happy lately....so shoot me.