32 feet and rising

How high is the water mama? 32 feet and rising....



Okay, you're going to have to read on to the end, because I'm giving stuffs away so pay attention....


Today, I'm 32 years young. Whew. I'm in that really odd phase where I know I'm young but I'm totally starting to feel that whole departure from youth. Well, it's been happening gradually for the last 5 or so years but I don't get Justin Bieber, MTV, or an abundance of other things....I never thought I'd live to see styles that were in when I was a teenager come back into style. Being a hippy voluptuous gal, I was never so glad to see skinny jeans fade into past, only to reappear when I totally don't have the body to sport them, not that I've ever been graced with a waifish frame. I never thought I would hear Nirvana called classic or old school.

And I am totally aggravated when I see kids thinking they are all angst-filled and original, sporting neon chuck taylors with the tops folded down and I want to grab them by their spiky emo hair and yell at them:

DO YOU KNOW we had to paint ours our damn selves because they didn't make so many cool colors back then???? DO YOU?

BUT, I digress.....

Ahh, the fadings of youth....But it's all good, I don't mind. I like being an adult, actually.

Anyhow, for my 32nd I thought I would give you a mish-mash of 32 things that you may or may not know about me:

1} I have an impetuous tattoo on my lower right back. It is a celtic moon. My great-grandmother on my mother's side was Scottish, she is my namesake. It is in honor of her.

2} It the first and last tattoo I will ever get. It hurt like a b*tch. also see number 3....

3} There are few things that scare me. Chief among them are bees, needles*, and large gatherings of people I don't know. (please don't invite me to a party where I have never met anyone)

*fear of needles is why I will never get another tattoo. I didn't realize there was a needle involved until it actually started. I was in love with the idea, not the process.

4} I live for the beach and the water. Which explains my earth sign(s)....

5} I was born on October 23, which makes me a Libra/Scorpio cusp....an interesting combo. Google it if you're interested....and then don't tell me your opinion because I'm completely aware I'm complicated...mmmmkay?

6} I love bread. more than life. I know when they invent that all-bread diet, I will be the skinniest thing ever. wait. that won't work. ever. ugh.

7} I fantasize everyday about being a vegetarian. I really want to do it. But I really like meat. There is another whole blog thing here, but we'll just leave it here for now.

8} I LOVE FOOD.

9} which is why I will never be thin.

10} In my other life, or my next life, or my last life, I would've been a chef. I enjoy everything about cooking. I love recipes, food, good food, bad food, analyzing the difference, healthy food, healthy ingredients, learning about the whole process...love it.

11} I don't have a TV.

12} I don't have cable TV.

13} but I'm addicted to cooking shows and reality cooking shows, i.e. Top Chef, Hell's Kitchen....thanks to HULU.....

14} I've spent the better part of my working life in retail grocery management. I could write a memoir (and probably will) and I loved and hated every minute of it. It challenged me in ways I never thought possible. It brought me some of the most fun and most bleak times in my life. I miss it everyday.

15} I'm an aunt, for the first time in my life. It's a wonderful gift. My nephew is adopted and much anticipated and loved and cherished. I can't wait to see him every day. He is the most beautiful creature I have ever seen.

16} I love the sun. I don't believe it is bad. I try not to get sunburned, because too much of anything is bad. *another blog post here.

17} I went to school for painting. I still consider myself a painter.

18} I hate my feet.

my ugly bird feet.

19} I love my eyes. I got them from my mama. All three of my siblings have the most beautiful blue eyes. My mom always wanted a brown eyed baby like my dad....but she got three amazing children with the prettiest blue eyes....

the eyes I was blessed with....


20} My dad passed away when I was 16. from cancer. he was 52. I miss him everyday. I am a lot like him and not at all. In all the best and worst ways.

21} I wish I had a green thumb. It's in there somewhere. I'm still looking for it.

22} I am grateful for my siblings. I have the best older sister and brother I could ever ask for. They are the perfect match for me. They are both very different from me and yet we are all the same.

23} My mother is my hero. She is supportive and loving and everything every mom should be. I wish everyone had a mom like mine.

24} I hate my own artwork.

25} I am a complete perfectionist. to a fault. but my life is less-than-perfect and that's starting to be perfect the older I get....

26} I LOVE GRAVY. good GOD, I love it. Good Gravy, Especially. Bad Gravy, in a pinch. Sausage gravy, turkey gravy, fresh beef gravy....yep...I'm not ashamed. I LOVE GRAVY.

27} reiterating... my love of gravy and food is why I will never be less than a size 8....and the 8 is my total-starving-anorexic-non-gravy state....which, for the record, I'm nowhere near...although the pants are in my closet....

28} at one time, I was a size 4, but all I did was get divorced, drink diet mountain dew, work 70 hours/week, and probably smoke a lot of cigarettes and drink copious amounts of alcohol to consume my calories ....thus, I will never get back there...they call that "the divorce diet"....I've given all that up and gone back to gravy and bread....

29} I'm in love. and it is good. I love this man.

30} 32 is shaping up to be the best year ever.

31} I don't mind aging. at all.

32} I want to have beautiful gray hair as I age. I really thought by this time in my life, I would have more gray hair. It is a family trait. Both my mom and my sister have had tons of gray by the age I am now. And I favor their coloring as opposed to my dad, who had black hair. I haven't found any, except for a little stray hair here and there. I am also blessed with very thick hair. I would wish that, as I age, and if my hair decides to be gray, that I will have long beautiful gray hair. I wish above all things,

TO AGE WITH GRACE.



SO...you read all this 'cause you like me, right? But I have a gift, an imperfect gift. I have 2 sets of ugly imperfect owls to give away. They are cute, but not up to my usual snuff, since I was experimenting with fancy clay. But, if you would like a set of 2, I will be giving away 2 sets of 2 to the people who leave me the most intriguing comments. That's all I'm going to say. It's my birthday and I'm not doing any stupid random number generator.

ugly, imperfect owls.

PEOPLE.....

Freaking Inspire Me.....leave me an awesome comment that will make me want to give you owls....

So, I'll pick two people on the 27th from the folks who leave me rad comments. period.