It's That Time Again, Kids!

time to buy the celebratory birthday shoe! and before anyone scoffs, i give you this disclaimer: look, i don't expect much for my birthday, because they usually kinda suck. birthday plans? yeah, those usually go right in the toilet. major illnesses/injuries seem happen on or around the day, so that i can't do something if i actually had something to do. so i have scaled back my expectations for my birthday. i get to buy myself a fabulous pair of shoes to wear on the day, and i get to eat at benihana. that's all i ask to make me happy.  so, back to the shoes...  i have some front-runners from a trip to off-broadway shoes the other day (and the cutest bag... i really adore it), but haven't yet scoped out dsw. maybe tomorrow night or saturday. ok, on with the parade of possibilities. and remember, comments and suggestions are welcomed, as always. 

the first two have a similar vibe, both d'orsay with stone embelishment...

yes, yes, these are ridiculous, but they were so sparkly i had to try them on. (shut up, here's my girl card...)

these are the ones i like best, but with 4 and 1/2 inch heels - let's just say i'm not exactly 23 anymore, and neither are the joints.  i noticed i really swish when walking, hips all over the place.... but they're just so darned cute!

i think, though, that it'll come down to the purple shoe. somehow, by some error of judgement, i do not have a pair of purple shoes. this must be remedied. now, the first pair are sweet and fairly practical - i can easily wear those again, no problem.  the second pair is a bit more... froofy and over the top and fun...

you know, i think it's the rock-n-roll back zipper that is then covered demurely with an ultra-femme bow.  just sayin...

ok, thoughts, comments, likes, dislikes, etc.?

What, No YouTube Page Yet?

there's a church just down the street from jon's apartment complex. i noticed as we passed by that the notice board in front read, "follow us on twitter! sunday service 10:00". i remarked that this seemed odd to me - jon hadn't noticed the sign, though, so we didn't explore the topic. however, after taking me to the airport, he did see the sign and the following text conversation (which spanned a couple days, in between other discussions) took place:

j: what if we were at this church down the road, and the priest says, "let's bow our heads. let us pray." and he pulls out his cell phone and says as he types, "weeeee aaaaaarre praaaaaayyiiiiiing."

k: i was wondering how that works. i mean, do they put up all the important parts of the sermon, or just things like, "bingo on wednesday"?

j: "taaaaakinnnng up offffferrrrrring platesssssss"

k: lol. "paaarrrrishioneerrrrs cheeeapskaaaaaates this weeeeeeeek"

j: haha. "baaaaptiismmm waaas a suuccessss."

k: "fiiiiivve peeeeeople laaaaaate. dooooooonnn't lettt this be yooooouuu nexxxxxt weeeeek"

j: "baaabiieeeeess suuuckkk duuuuuring serrrrrmon. loooove, faaaaaaather jooooones."

k: hilarious!

j: have we worn this out?

k: probably, but it's still making me giggle....

j: "pleeeeeeaaaase doooo not maaaaake chaaaaange in the offerrrrring plate. thanks broootherrr phiillll."

k: too funny! "iiiit's caaaaalled a crrrryyyy rooooom for a reeaaason - thaaaat's where the cryyyyying braaats goooo..."

j: (whispers as he types) pleeeeaase god, heeeelp usssss. this orrrrganissst is the reason baaaaabiiiies cryyyyyy!"

ok, so maybe that was all way more entertaining to us than to anyone else, but it's totally a good point - apparently my aunt's church is on facebook... why, exactly? don't you have a bulletin for that? it just seems kinds odd...

Quote of (Quite Probably) the Month

text from john last week:

"a lesson that only needs to be learned once: never make a hot pepper sandwich and then scratch your balls."

*don't worry - john and both his balls have fully recovered.

Just Let Me Have My Delusions, Please

actual text conversation between me and john mario last friday night:

me: this is a new experience - watching old people dance the electric slide to "mustang sally." at the american legion. that's right - i'm living up my friday night!

john: wow, not quite like teh friday nights we had 10 years ago, huh?

me: right? and i'm having fun. oi. please don't mention this to anyone. i don't want to sound as sad as i've apparently become... :)

john: dear, i'm off this weekend. right this moment i am removing bits of adhesive from my living room wall. party on.

me: excellent. we are sad together.

john: and apparently sad apart as well.

john: the only possible thing more sad than what i am doing right now is that an hour ago, at work, i was looking forward to it.

me: yeah... let's not share this with anyone... we have reps to uphold.

john: i hate to tell you this, dear, but these ARE our reps.

me: yeah... i just wanted to hold onto the illusion...

*sigh* it's so sad being old...

It's The Little Things

i just spent the most amazing week with jon in alabama (yes, kids, i know - but it's not like the deliverance-type images you're conjuring in your heads). seriously amazing. we didn't do anything special really, just spent the week doing every-day-life stuff: driving around, visiting with friends, wandering around the beach for a bit, renting movies, and the like. and i wouldn't have changed a minute of it. everything was so... easy. like we've lived together for ages and already developed routines, and just fell back into them. so obviously, we work really well together - we have similar interests and spiritual beliefs, we both believe family is important, we are very compatible physically (and not just that, gutter-dwellers, but also things like kissing, hand-holding, lounging on the couch together - don't get me wrong, though, there are no complaints in any area...). but sometimes it's the little things that assure me that this will work. like the following conversation, which took place on the walk back to the car after lunch at a beach-side restaurant.

j: orange beach is celebrating their 25th anniversary, so there are lots of activities and things going on this week.

k: very cool.

j: and every place is celebrating. you know when we went to my store and i ran in to get my check? they had cupcakes and drinks and stuff out for the customers for the anniversary.

k: nice!

(pause)

k: wait, there were cupcakes and you didn't bring me one?

j: well, i didn't know you'd want one.

k: um, i pretty much always want cake. just for future reference.

j: duly noted. cake good.

k: unless it's chocolate cake.

j: it WAS chocolate.

(pause)

j: you don't like chocolate?? what's wrong with you?

k: no - i just don't like chocolate-flavored stuff. ice cream and cake and things. it doesn't taste like chocolate to me.

j: (nods) it's like watermelon candy.

k: what?

j: watermelon candy. if i gave you a piece of candy, you could put it in your mouth and immediately say, "hey, that's watermelon!" but if you then took a bite of an actual watermelon, they taste nothing alike.

k: you're so right! why do we call it watermelon flavor then? grape flavoring's sorta the same thing.

j: and grape-scented stuff...

see? i realize a lifetime of conversations like these doesn't sound like the stuff dreams are made of, but really? i can't wait. :o)

Officially Counting Down...

yes, i know i'm a big fat dork. please shut up. it's just that i'm crazy excited, and clearly this excitement has robbed me of my senses temporarily. hopefully, i will be able to return you to your regularly scheduled karen shortly...

Apparently, the Hedgehogs Take Their Cues From Humans - Or Vice Versa

the camp i'm working at this week is in a nature center. so to keep the kids quiet, they show them nature videos at lunch. today's selection was on nocturnal animals. this is from the part about hedgehogs:

"the male makes a curiously jerky approach to the female, accompanied by snorting and snuffling.  occasionally, to encourage her, he gives her a shove."

yeah, that sounds about right... especially around the teenage years.  :o) also, this is clearly a definition of "encourage" i am not familiar with...

From The Small Obnoxious Girl Today:

"yo, yo, yo! my name is jo*, i gots a 'fro**, i wear my pants down low. wooooooooooooorrrd!"

*incidentally, her name in not "jo"

** nor does she have a "fro"; she is korean, so she has the standard "long, black, shiny" 'do.

Why I Heart Edward Monkton

(and, sidebar: wow, have *i* been slacking... i haven't written a blog in over 2 months! and i know i've had internal monologues to share in that time. ah, well...)

I Have a Little Student... She Is Small and Very Funny

if you've never seen the kids show "charlie and lola", well, you should.  it's supercute and clever and funny - the kind of show parents actually like watching with their parents. (or the kind jen and i watch even if gray isn't in the room...) anyway, one of my kindergartners reminds me so much of lola that i've actually started calling her that, which is ok by her since she "loves that movie".  (actually, when i called her that yesterday, she said - hands on hips - "actually i can't be lola.  i don't have butterflies in my hair!") she doesn't have the british accent, but because she lived in the u.k. and went to pre-school there, there's an english formality to her phrasing and cadence. she's pretty awesome, and she entertains me daily.  and for those of you not in the know, here's a little glimpse of the kind of shenanigans i get to witness daily...