doo-be-doo-be-doo-be-bop-be-loo

& in other unrelated news....
I watched a certain show (that sounds like okra) that had Diana Ross on Friday.

Needless to say, I had "I'm coming out!.....I'm Com..eh..en....OUT!" stuck in my head for hours :)



Oh, and another stirring song as of Wednesday......... (from my Ella Fitzgerald tribute cd):


Whew-ee! That girl can sang!

Little known fact: I took a jazz class last summer for school to meet my music/literature requirement (hello- I was NOT going to read novels/do any more major papers! hence, the music class). While taking it, I got really into Big Band (even more so- darn right! my parents raised me on Lawrence Welk), r&b, jazz, & modern versions of each genre of jazz!

New Francesca!

I heard this song on the radio a few months ago & decided that I liked it.

I liked it because it used simple ideas, trendy ukulele, and it was a new song from a singer-songwriter I like a lot...Francesca Battistelli!

I heard it again on Wednesday and it spoke to me on a different level.
I've been feeling really broken the past month or so and it seemed to speak to that feeling in my heart.
God had me listen to Air1 just for the chorus- I'm sure of it :)



I lost my keys in the great unknown
And call me please 'Cuz I can't find my phone

This is the stuff that drives me crazy
This is the stuff that's getting to me lately
In the middle of my little mess
I forget how big I'm blessed
This is the stuff that gets under my skin
But I gotta trust You know exactly what You're doing
It might not be what I would choose
But this is the stuff You use

45 in a 35
Sirens and fines while I'm running behind
Whoa

This is the stuff that drives me crazy
This is the stuff that's getting to me lately
In the middle of my little mess
I forget how big I'm blessed
This is the stuff that gets under my skin
But I gotta trust You know exactly what You're doing
It might not be what I would choose
But this is the stuff You use

So break me of impatience
Conquer my frustrations
I've got a new appreciation
It's not the end of the world
Oh Oh Oh

This is the stuff that drives me crazy
This is the stuff
Someone save me
In the middle of my little mess
I forget how big I'm blessed
This is the stuff that gets under my skin
And I've gotta trust You know exactly what You're doing
It might not be what I would choose
But this is the stuff You use

Oh Oh Oh Oh
This is the stuff You use

the end of the trio

For context, read these posts about blogging and commenting first.

After all the madness that actually commenting on my favorite/newfound blogs brought, I decided to actually enter some giveaways.

Because, well.....Why wouldn't  random.org pick me?!

And you know what??

It did!

And my name + comment(s) were mentioned in a post on the blogs! eep!
see here  and   here

I was very thankful of the bloggers see sparkle power! and our humble abowed.
And also of the gifters. Here and here.

And since they weren't things I specifically requested to have -but were instead purely fun things to win, I immediately thought of gifting my new giveaway prizes to friends & family.

The little hat is going to this friend, the booties will be saved for a future baby shower, and the magnets are going to reside on my yellow-loving sis & I's fridge.


And
Here's a follow up on my commenting shpiel:
Here's an awesome post about the true nature of blogging and what it should be fostering in women : Don't let insecurities be your drive for writing/reading blogs. Instead, Be encouragers!

Favorite lines from said post:
"...a woman's insecurities only get amplified in the blogging world. we have great imaginations...so we fill in the blanks between people's snapshots and stories they choose to put on the "intranet" that day."

"so ya, in not-so-many words, secret stalkers don't make friends. come out of the bushes and say hi."

please do as she says, and come say hi.

As I said before, it feels awesome to discover a comment.
Either from new or old friends.
Proof from the Girl Scouts: "Make new friends and keep the old, one is silver and the other gold."
and no, I wasn't a GS- just a satisfied cookie customer :)



And that, my dear is the end of this trio of posting.
Beep.

Apparently, I'm a slow learner

Here is the first part of this little trio of posts.
The third part will pop up in a little while.

Also, awhile back, I finally started commenting.

Just here.

And there.

Slowly, I was letting people know that I was actually reading about their lives/passions/talents.

And you know what??

People, like, commented back!   (ugh. I am Not that valley girl in real life. Just a literary device that shows I'm human.)

It was weird.And fun.And cool.And AWESOME!

And not the same weird that I felt when my Dad told me his friend read my blog last year.
That was strange.

Kinda like letting the air out of my balloon.

What?? People (read: Strangers .....you know, the people you DON'T TAKE CANDY FROM)
actually read the stuff I write on this here blogger.com thing?
People other than me choose to read it?
People other than the four people I told about it read it?
Those same People who don't even know me have thoughts on what I say?            okay, enough questions

Big anticlimactic answer: Yes.
People write. People care. People have many of the same motivations I have for writing&reading blogs that I do.
Go figure that they would then respond after I reach out to them.  (even in my teeny, tiny gesture)
I know.
DUH, right? :)                 Yes, I'll admit, I'm a slow learner sometimes.

Another thing I should note:
I feel particularly giddy when I receive comments.
As I told my friend the other day, I feel all yummy inside. Like after I have really awesome ice cream. Or mashed potatoes. (my other true love :)
Ha- this is what I said to my friend: "Man, it's weird being in this place in life! Having friends getting engaged every other weekend, meeting friends-of-friends, and getting involved in blogs & actually getting feedback (read: comments -they're like a big "brown paper packages tied up with string" super yummy feeling) from all the nice girls I read about."


And let's leave this post at that.

How would you describe how you feel after receiving comments?

unquotable movie lines

I have this thing with my sister where we like to quote random lines from movies with each other.

We like to incorporate them into everyday situations.

It's not really intentional, it's just so much of a habit that we now do it all.the.time.

And it kind of drives our family bonkers.

Anyways,
I realized the other day, that there are some lines from movies & tv shows that you just can't quote in everyday situations.

For instance, I woke up last Saturday at my parents house, went out to the family room and thought of a line from Friends. I suddenly felt the urge to say, "Hello. My babiees." Like Phoebe does when she has her sultry sick voice.
But that wouldn't exactly work. Firstly, my parents don't watch that show. Secondly, since they don't like it, the reference wouldn't be taken in the right way. Thirdly, they...uhh...weren't babies. :)

Another unquotable line from P.S. I Love You:
"Let's have a baby! La la la!"

Yep. It just doesn't make sense in ordinary conversations.
But for some reason I love saying it. Try it- it rolls of the tongue nicely.
Just like: "Francisco. Fran...cisco!" does from Elf.
Also, I love saying it to my sister. Uh, we can't exactly have a baby.
So yeah, double unquotable.

Last one:  Baby Mama is super quotable.  But, this one doesn't quite work out of context.
"Uh....so pregnant!"

And neither does this line:
"If I wasn't pregnant I would be mackin on all of this."

Yeah. Taken out of context, they just don't make sense.
Especially because I am definitely not pregnant. nor will I be -for quite a few years.

However, quite a few are definitely quotable in everyday conversation.
Yesterday, while talking with a friend, she told me something I didn't know so I replied: "That is brand new information!" a la Phoebe from Friends.

Also, "Blue-berr-ies!" from Duplex (super annoying movie) works well, followed by a "Oh! I lost me count!"
ugh. that crazy manipulative old lady.

And, "being single is not an alternative lifestyle" from Baby Mama is quite fitting for me and many of my friends right now :)

And who can forget, "B! I don't know your life!" Yes, I censored that. Hate that it has that word because I think of this quote so often :)

And from Maid of Honor, "What in the name of the wee man?"
It works. Plain and simple. Such a great expression ;)

For the longest time, my sister and I would quote things from It Takes Two, a movie we literally memorized around the age of 9. "Big gooey messy burger!"

And then there was the equally popular, "Black tie, white gown, the whole enchilada!" and "Hello pet! You may call me, aunt Vicky." blegh. from the newer Parent Trap.

Or "together, yeah, yeah, yeah!" from the older & more beloved version.

Oh, and who could forget a holiday classic? "If you want, there's sandwiches in ...the..uh.. clubcar."  Name that movie. Go!



What about you?
Any unquotable/quotable lines you love using in everyday conversation?

Last Chance Blogging

*I wanted to write about commenting, blogging, and giveaways a few weeks ago.
Instead, I wrote a quick note and left it sit in my draft folder for a long time.Here's what I've come up with followed by a related post from an awesome chica.
To spare you time, I'll break this up over a few posts.*

Since I recently came upon having a ton of free time, I've taken blogging to the.Next.LEVEL! a la Last Chance Workout style via: Last Chance Blogging.
Here's a weird little tale, beginning with the cycle........

I go through phases when it comes to blogging.

I read a ton,

then write a ton,

and then find tons of new blogs that I stalk uh... visit quite obsessively for awhile.


It's kind of a vicious cycle.
As in, I have no balance.

I either go blog-reading-crazy or blog-writing-crazy.

And then I joined up on bloglovin and this cycle became crazy-slanted towards the reading-other-blogs-obsessively side.
Like when you put a huge load of laundry in the washing machine and it gets super lopsided and makes crashing-whopping-faLUMPing! sounds when it gets off-kilter.

In my efforts to keep up with an insane amount of blogs, and then new blogs on top of my old blogs, while forgetting about oldies-but-goodies, I became a little overwhelmed and stopped enjoying reading for my original pleasures.
I wasn't reading blogs simply because they spoke to me about faith, being a woman, family, creating, or writing.
I was just reading out of pure insanity. Trying to stay on top. (Like I could.)


So, I started to calm things down.

I slowed down.

Frankly, I ran out of time, wasn't enjoying it as much, and felt overwhelmed by all. the. posts!


And since those things happened,
I tried (for reals this time,) to evaluate this frustrating cycle so I could stop the madness!

I realized, that I need to spend my time (if any), only reading things that are honest, uplift, teach, or encourage.

And that, my dear, rules out a lot of things.

For me, blogs can take on those various roles in different ways.

.Sharing a diy tutorial is an uplifting, teaching, and encouraging thing for me.
.Sharing the mundane details/facts of the day is honest and can easily be uplifting.
.Sharing daily outfits (if even of dirty hair or sweats) is an honest and encouraging thing.
.Sharing verses, passages, books, and inspirations is very encouraging, teaching, and uplifting.
.Sharing real. life. stories. is an incredibly honest and encouraging thing.
.Sharing when the hm-hm hits the fan is honest and encourages me to do the same.
.Sharing joys, fears, happiness, sadness, mistakes, success, grief, guilt, remorse, depression, and worries is very honest and also encourages me to do the same.

Doing all of those things basically encourages me to do the same.

Also, I realized that I really only want to post those types of things.
In the end, I want to spend my time now to help remember truly meaningful things in the future.
If I experience something worth remembering two years from now, I'll share it here. If not, it's just a waste of my time here, in the present.

Therefore, I'm going to purge.

I'm going to stop reading things that do not meet my ideas of a good blog & I'll 'unfollow' them if I need to.

No hard feelings.

I just want to take my life back again- in the best way possible :)


But wait, there's more! Check out these for thoughts on commenting and giveaways.

Random tidbits

Here are some pretty unconnected thoughts/experiences I've had in the past week.

I went to the grocery store with my Dad on Saturday night.
We mostly had produce items on our list.
But, every time we would get one.thing. into the cart, he would then race ahead of me. As in, practically out of the entire produce section.
And then he would have to come all.the.way. back with the cart.
Where was he even going?
Sheesh it was frustrating.
Back on topic.
We were shopping in the produce section (albeit a little bit frustrated at this point,) and a song by Owl City started playing.
My dad then turned to me and said, "Isn't this the guy who sings Fireflies?"

I was completely blown away.

How did he even know that song?
He is definitely not up on pop culture, into 'secular' music, or into current trends what.so.ever. (i.e. music a la Owl City)   :)

It was soo strange people.


I kind of went on an rampage of entering blog giveaways but I don't remember half of the ones I entered now.
Which makes it kind of hard to see if I won.
oops :)


At the grocery store on Sunday, I wondered aloud to my sister, "Beef liver. Who actually buys that stuff??"

And a follow up question:
What about gizzards & other obscure body parts from poultry & etc.
Who buys those things??
Why would they?
And what do they actually cook with those things?             So strange.



Also, my laptop keyboard is missing the '/?' key.
It's rather frustrating sometimes.
It was the result of a rather silly mistake & had a tragic ending.

A few years ago I hung up new curtain rods in a rather un-stable way on the window next to my desk (i.e. thumbtacks pushed into soft plaster).
The curtain rod crashed down one day and ended up falling onto my open laptop on the desk.
Sadly, the silly little button bit the dust, and I soon discovered how keys are connected to a keyboard.
A vital piece was cracked in two when the curtain rod crash occurred, and I couldn't find an easy way to repair it.
Hence, my pinky finger hurts every now and then because it jams into a itty-bitty metal piece that should be underneath a key.

Seriously.

Every single time I type a forward slash (/) or question mark (?) my pinky hurts a little.
twice in one sentence = ouch.

Poor, poor pinky.
Is it sad that I started to want a new computer just so I could have a functioning   /ow?ow  key? ow :)


Lastly, my sister made rice krispy treats 'for her students' on Monday.
The reason for the air quotes is because I knew what she was really up to. Who was she kidding?
She just wanted some for herself! :)

I was doing something in the other room so she brought me one when she was finally done.
And it was oh, so tasty.
And high-fructose-corn-syrup-y  oh.so.sweet!

And then when I asked her for some more, she may or may not have said, "I just ate my weight in rice krispy treats so you should probably just go get your own."

Ha! I knew it! I knew she had been in the kitchen a little too long 'making' them.
Geez. That girl makes me smile.

The end.