Cat's In The Cradle

Merry Christmas to everyone!  I hope everyone had an excellent day :)

Nicky had the best Christmas ever, in his exact words.  He was especially excited about Mario Kart for his DSi and his Night at the Museum 2 DVD.  Night at the Museum 1 and 2 are two of his favorite movies, and so we watched the second one tonight.  He also got a few traditional little kid board games, Cootie (who hasn't played Cootie as a little one?), Ants in My Pants, and Monopoly Jr.  He is pretty good at Monopoly Jr., he beat me on his first try.  He even got confident enough to give me advice during the game on not using all my money to buy all the properties, haha.  That advice naturally turned into a six year old's version of gloating once I announced that I was out of money and he won.

I'm not exactly sure when Nicky grew up so much, but I really like being able to actually hang out with my son and understand him and get to know his personality and what he's like.  He's actually pretty funny and awesome...a lot like his mama :)

Rave On

My birthday was this past Saturday.  I am officially 26...and looking at what I just wrote, who the hell in their right mind would want to be unofficially 26?  Perhaps a crazy person...yes, only a crazy person would want to go from 25 (which we all know is a whole 'nother ballgame) and pretend to be 26.  The only way I would do it is if there was a large monetary compensation, or something equally awesome.

Like, I don't know, maybe this badass pegasus.

I'd consider it then.

But seriously, I'm 26.  Four more years to 30.  Ouch.  I suppose 26 is a grand achievement.  If I lived in the 1600s, like in Jamestown or whatever, I'd have like ten years left in my life before I died a horrible death from cholera or smallpox.  I'd have 54516561 kids by now, all named after virtues and kings and whatever, married to a guy named James Blacksmitherson and living in a leaky shack shittily constructed out of logs and mud and no windows.  I'd be all about sewing and hanging out with my equally fabulous friends, Rebecca and Prudence.  We'd have the best gray bonnets in the entire village.  The bitches would be jealous.

Oh yes.  They would be jealous.

But anyway.  Christmas is coming.  Tres exciting, no?  I am proud to announce that I finished my shopping for Nicky an entire week ahead of schedule.  I usually am rushing around on the 23rd, hating myself for waiting until the last minute.  This year, I finished on the 16th.  I think that warrants a high five...so I totally just gave myself one.  (I usually do this so that I am not left hanging, by well, myself.  Denying someone a high five is such an asshole move, and I am not an asshole.)  Perhaps this early shoppage is a part of turning 26?  Perhaps.

Or I just remembered to do it early this year. 

A Falling Through

This makes me sad.

The state of Georgia executed a man tonight who most likely was innocent of the crime he was convicted, yet the biggest topic on my Facebook news feed is the new layout.  In my opinion Troy Davis outweighs Facebook's new layout any day.

There was so much outrage on the social network when Casey Anthony was acquitted of murdering her two year old daughter based solely on reasonable doubt, yet we all knew she was guilty.  Anyone familiar with the basics of Davis' case knows that his entire case was riddled with reasonable doubt, much like Anthony's--no murder weapon was ever found, seven of the nine witnesses who testified against Davis recanted or changed parts or all of their testimony and claimed that they were coerced under duress, it is believed that another one of the witnesses was the actual murderer...and yet, Davis was found guilty of murder, and ultimately executed at 10:53 pm.  Where is the outrage now?  Where is the anger over the judicial system now?

It appears that any anger on my Facebook news feed is directed at the new layout, which seems to have pissed off plenty of people, excluding yours truly.  I don't have any issues with it.  I can still do what I go on to the site to do, and if I couldn't, well...I'd figure it out, like the last time Mark Zuckerberg changed things up.  Change happens.  Updates occur.  Big deal. You adapt and move on...because you know in a few months or a year, Facebook will change things up again.

But Troy Davis will never take another breath.  Troy Davis will never get to prove his innocence.  Troy Davis may have been wrongly executed while the real killer, believed to be Sylvester "Redd" Coles, spends the rest of his life a free man because the state of Georgia will never investigate that trail and openly admit that they may have killed the wrong person.  And the MacPhail family may never really know who killed Mark MacPhail that night at Burger King in 1989.  We may never know if Troy Davis was the one who pulled the trigger.

And that, to me at least, is more frustrating than the way my news feed shows up when I log in on Facebook.

Honey Bee

Another wonderful moment with Nicky (taken at the zoo, edited by Instagram):

White Daisy Passing

I somehow unexpectedly wound up on a two month hiatus. To all my loyal readers and friends, I am so sorry.

It's like they say: When it rains, it pours. And it was getting to be where I needed to carry a metaphorical umbrella at all times :\

One of my co-workers fell from a moving vehicle and shattered the back of his skull in the end of July and roughly two weeks or so later a good friend of mine fell off his ATV and had it flip over onto him and crush his mid-section. Thankfully and very miraculously they are both recovering. My friend even found out he will be a first-time father in April of 2012. Needless to say my mind has been preoccupied with those tragedies and with getting Nicky ready for school (he started first grade nearly a month ago). I also started class again, I'm taking a physical anthropology class online through my local community college, and I'm also trying to mentally prepare myself for my best friend's spontaneously unexpected move halfway across the country to Colorado Springs in about three weeks. I've had a lot to deal with in the past month and a half and juggle with the already hectic craziness of my everyday life. I'm getting back into the swing of blogging things and am going to try to post at least once or twice a week. My sporadic posts are not fair to you all, and I apologize from the bottom of my heart.

If I go this long without posting again, feel free to email me (lala1217@yahoo.com) and encourage me to post something :)

<3 you guys,
Lashawn

Ooh La La

I.
Am.
Melting.

Ugh, it is so hot. Like ridiculously muggy and sticky and the kind of hot where sweat pools in the crevices of your skin and you can just feel the sweat dripping down the small of your back kind of hot. July and August are two of my least favorite months of the year. I'm not exactly a fan of the heat, especially with the added delight that my dad won't get AC because "he grew up before they had invented it and he was fine". Well...that was 1940s-50s Tennessee. This is 2011. Blah.

I am actually looking forward to December and January when it is cold and snowy and I can walk around without feeling like I am gonna pass out from the heat. It'd also be pretty wonderful to wear my hair down without it being a soggy, frizzy 'fro. I'd also like to wear makeup without it melting or have my skin break out from the heat. I'm not big on summer. I never have. Give me the other seasons, preferably spring and fall, and I'll be content.

We are supposed to have four more 90+ degree days this week (we got to 90 today and set a new record high temperature), and then it's supposed to be in the low 80s until it inevitably gets disgustingly hot again.

Come on, late September...

Tinker Toys

Real life conversation that just happened:

(Quick backstory: Nicky is telling me how old his cousins are and how he doesn't want to grow up.)

Me: Nicky, how old are you?
Nicky: I'm six.
Me: And how old am I?
Nicky: Um, probably around a thousand.
Me: What?!?!?
Nicky: Oh, I mean twenty-five.

I hope you all had a great Fourth of July!!!

Battery Kinzie

Ugh. I have a summer cold.

I've been a bit of a blogging slacker. My laptop battery is on the fritz, so I can only be on it for like ten to fifteen minutes before it loses its charge and craps out on me--and my charger is cheap and lame, so when it gets overheated it shuts off so that my house doesn't go down in flames. I thought I was being economical and wise when I ordered it from Amazon. My laptop is a HP of dreams, but the stupid charger died after six months of usage--when I went to the HP site to scope out a replacement, I saw most people bitched about the lifespans of their awesome computers' shitty chargers, and decided that I couldn't justify spending like eighty bucks on a shitastic charger every six to eight months or so. So I wandered down the information superhighway down to Amazon and perused the aisles of technological goods until I found a pretty kickass generic charger for twenty-five bucks. It does the job, but the little box on the charger gets hot and then it cuts off so that it doesn't overheat and melt. All was well until my laptop battery decided to retire after a little over a year...after the factory's one year warranty is up.

Damn you technology.

I ordered a new battery and am currently waiting on the right one to come in, seeing as I accidentally ordered one with the wrong parameters. I can write little crap entries off my phone but I don't want to use up all of my data plan. AT&T is awesome, but my iPhone makes my phone bill pretty scary.

I'll post more later, this is just a I'm-still-alive kind of post. I'll go more into depth later...

Friends, Lovers or Nothing

she sits--
amidst the rumpled bedclothes--
she sits
and waits

her hair a jumbled brown tangle
roughed up from the friction--
from the sheets and his skin and his hands--
her cheeks slightly rosy,
complexion dewy, that perfect blend of porcelain and flush

she sits--
her pale hands nervous,
her delicate fingers with the nails painted plum--picking anxiously,
anxiously at the sheets,
twisting themselves in the 600 count cotton--
she sits
and waits

the door creaks--
she bites her lips,
her pulse thudding loudly in her ears,
she strains for a reassuring glimpse of his shadow--
and sees it in the doorway
she breathes a sigh of relief

he enters the room,
and as always, she is amazed--
how could someone, so perfect, so beautiful,
how could someone as marvelous as him
see something so marvelous in someone like her--
she marvels in the absurdity

tall, strong, masculine, blonde
she allows herself one hedonistic moment
one selfish moment to just stare shamelessly and drink him in--
her turquoise eyes meet his, and she feels a splash of warmth across her cheeks
the smoldering intensity behind those ocean eyes makes her heart race

this isn't love--it can't be,
she insists
purely lust, unrestrained and running wild and free
and yet, what else could it be?
how else could she even begin to explain how he seemed to occupy so much of her mind?

she sits--
amidst the rumpled bedclothes,
aching, yearning,
she sits
and chides herself as nothing more than a fool
she sits, and she waits--

he sits then, on the edge of the bed,
flashes her one of his trademarked smiles--
crooked and boyish
playful, yet purely seductive
maddening yet utterly heart stuttering--
leans towards her, and envelops her in a crushing hug
she closes her eyes, and much like an addict, breathes him in

he lets go, without the words she longs to hear
reaching down to the floor to pick up his jeans
and he puts them on, making some joke about something trivial, insignificant--
and she laughs, though her heart falls to the floor

she quickly dresses, folding up her feelings deep inside herself
while he steps outside to have a smoke
and as the door closes, she lets her head fall into her hands
and allows herself one controlled moment to break into a trillion jagged little pieces--
before he comes back and she has to exude cool indifference

she sits--
on the edge of his king sized bed,
her legs tangled in the tumult of sheets,
she sits, she waits,
but for what...in that briefest flicker of moments,
she isn't quite sure--

--"friends with benefits", 05/25/2011.

Dickhead

So I really think Blogger is fucking with me.  I could have sworn I had a new comment (and follower) when I was on here yesterday, and now the comment and follower is gone.  What the hell, Blogger.

It's 1:52 am Friday night.  I am currently laying in bed composing this entry on my iPhone and wishing I was asleep, seeing as I have to get up in about five hours for my ten-hour workday tomorrow.  Why am I up?  The people who live upstairs in the duplex next door got a brand new puppy I think today and they have it on their front porch and it has been crying for the past hour.  It is this loud, high pitched yipping that will go on for ten to fifteen minutes straight, stop just long enough for me to start nodding off, and then start back up.

Is it wrong for me to want to throw something at said puppy?  It added howling into the repertoire, and I'm exhausted.  I want to go next door and punch the stupid wannabe gangsta chick that lives there in the face.  It's bad enough she'll roll in from the bar at like three-thirty in the morning with the bass blasting and Gucci Mane personally waking me up with his latest little ditty about money, cash, and hoes (high fives to anyone who caught the Jay-Z reference).  Ugh ugh ugh.  I wish I didn't have a job so that I could fill all my time with being a badass bitch.  Really, it must be nice.

Well, Señor Puppy must have cried himself to sleep because I haven't heard him in five minutes.  I'm going to try to go to sleep now, darlings.  Good night.

Meet You There

So...X Factor was a bust, but whatever.  I got to go to Chicago and have a blast!  I'll share the sordid details later, but for now I'll share my trip in pictures:

In the Escape before hitting the road!

Rain rain rain in Cleveland :(

Fuck you Mobil Gas!

Freezing in Indiana.

Yay, Chicago at last!!!

Looking fabulous in line for X Factor registration.

All registered and ready to hit the city :)

Sharing a good laugh with Bob Newhart.

A tender moment with the sculpted children of Chicago.

She totally started it.  You didn't see what she did to get this kick.

The obligatory self-portrait in the reflection of the Bean.

Cloud Gate, aka The Bean.  A stop in our exploration of Millennium Park.

A really good shot of the skyline in Downtown Chicago.

All dolled up for the auditions!  I looked good before the 2.5 hour wait in the cold rain :(

Patiently waiting.

Some of the line on audition day.

Float On

I like making lists, it's a good way to summarize the thoughts in my head without writing an entire novel in one blog post.  So...

*I woke up this morning with a headache.  I think it's from falling asleep with my super heavy and super thick hair pulled tightly up at the top of my head.  I popped two Excedrin and took my hair down...

*BUT...I realized that the argan oil that I put in my hair could very well be causing the nasty outbreak of acne I've been getting along my jawline and my lower cheeks and hairline.  So I pulled my hair back.

*However, the argan oil makes my stupid hair behave, so I'm trying to find a brand that I could use that won't break me out.  I heard Josie Maran makes a good oil.  For now I'm just putting the oil at the ends and hopefully I won't break out anymore.

*The Floridian Flasher struck again last night.  I was kind of like "wow, why would you send me a picture of your junk two months after the last picture you sent of your junk...especially after I completely ignored you and blocked you on Facebook?"  I guess that's some serious desperation, hahaha.

*Happy Easter, if Christianity is your cup of tea.  I drink from the mug of Catholicism--it tastes kinda like some really strong espresso, with quite a kick.

*I leave for Chicago in about 22 hours.  I audition for X Factor in less than four days.  Very excited.  Starting to get nervous.  There's something pretty intimidating about Simon Cowell.

*I was suspended three days this week from work.  I can't really go into it since I'm still working there, but I'll tell you that I didn't do anything wrong.  Perhaps I can go into it soon.  Just cross your fingers for me and perhaps I'll have an entirely new chapter to tell.

Closing Time

Hey darlings, it's time for Thirsty Thursday over at For The Love Of Blogs, so I will share a delicious drink recipe with y'all...Enjoy!!!



A Piece of Ass (taken from drinksmixer.com)

1 shot almond amaretto liqueur
1 shot Southern Comfort peach liqueur
Sweet and sour mix

Pour liqueurs over ice in a glass.  Fill with sweet and sour mix and serve.


I'd like to thank all of you that stopped by from FTLOB!  Hugs and kisses to you lovelies, and please feel free to check out my other posts.  If you like, comment, and if you lurrrrve, please follow!  Also feel free to "like" my Facebook page...And if you show me love, I'll gladly return the favor.

People Watching

I am kind of cheating, so I'll give you a full entry later on today.  I was going through my videos on my computer a few minutes ago, and I found this delightful little gem that I'll share with you guys at the end of this post.  I think Nicky was about four or so, he might have been five already, this is from around this time last year.  I think it's pretty cute, so enjoy my adorable little bunny:

Sunsets & Car Crashes

Ah...Today calls for a good old fashioned playlist.  Take a listen to the playlist, and I'm always open to new music, so feel free to post a song or band/artist you think I should check out in the comments section below! 

The Thank Goodness It's April (And Friday) Playlist:

1. "Pretty Bird", Jenny Lewis, (Acid Tongue)
2. "Assassin", John Mayer, (Battle Studies)
3. "The High Road", Broken Bells, (Broken Bells)
4. "Blue Blood Blues", The Dead Weather, (Sea of Cowards)
5. "Hard To Explain", The Strokes, (Is This It)
6. "1901", Phoenix, (Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix)
7. "On The Radio", Regina Spektor, (Begin to Hope)
8. "Mouthwash", Kate Nash, (Made of Bricks)
9. "Come Round Soon", Sara Bareilles, (Little Voice)
10. "22", Lily Allen, (It's Not Me, It's You)

Know Your Onion!

So I stumbled upon a delightful new blog, thanks to my Yahoo homepage.  It's called Bent Objects, and it's the hilarious and pretty imaginative art of this photographer/artist named Terry Border.  I'll share a few of his funny photos with you guys, and you should totally check out his blog!

(Some Gentlemen Prefer Blondes...Others Prefer Cupcakes, hahaha.)

(What a Jerk!!!  He kinda looks like Justin Guarini from Season One of American Idol, hahaha!!)

(Personality and Confidence Can Only Get You So Far, haha!!!)

(Damn It, Well There Goes The Neighborhood!)

Un-thinkable (I'm Ready)

So...oh my God.  Mon friggin' Dieu. 

My friend Steph signed me up for the X Factor auditions in Chicago at the end of April.  I'm excited.  And nervous.  And excited.  But mostly nervous.  I get stage fright, and I haven't really sang in front of a large group since high school, which was seven years ago (...fuck!  Hahaha.).  I do, however, don't feel too bad about the stage fright thing, because I once read that Sheryl Crow gets stage fright, and I love Sheryl Crow.  It's good to know that huge superstars get nervous too.

I think I'm going to go with "Low Road" by Grace Potter & The Nocturnals as my initial audition song.  I love it, and it shows off my voice very well.  I'm gonna have to play around with it in the upcoming weeks to make it my own and to really make the judges (especially if I make it to Simon...eeeee!!!) be like "Who is this girl and why isn't she a star?"  I'm not gonna lie, this has been a lifelong dream of mine, and life always gets in the way.  I'm putting my foot down this time and I'm going to make this dream a reality. 

Wish me luck, and I'll keep you all posted!



Call Me When You're Sober

It's Thirsty Thursday at For The Love Of Blogs, and I've decided to share a yummy-sounding recipe that I think I'm going to request on my next girls night out.  It's an adult twist on the standard kid's fare, peanut butter and jelly.  What's it called?  Peanut Butter and Jelly.  Credit goes to the amazing website, Drinks Mixer!

Peanut Butter and Jelly Shot

1 oz. Frangelico hazelnut liqueur

1 oz. black raspberry liqueur

Pour ingredients into a stainless steel shaker over ice, and shake until completely cold. Strain into an old-fashioned glass, and serve.

Business Time

(Gratuitous Plug of the Month)

My wonderful best friend DeLaina has started her own craft business, Oh Crafts!  Bows & More, and you should definitely check it out if you are A.) a girl, B.) know a girl, C.) have a daughter/stepdaughter/niece/goddaughter, or D.) like wearing bows (hey, whatever makes you happy, haha).  The stuff is cute and the prices are reasonable.  D also makes stuff upon request, and she is more than willing to personalize her wares for you or any of the little girls in your life!

Here's pictures of the awesome flower bow (she calls it the "Here Comes The Sun" flower bow) she made for adults, modelled by her beautiful and fabulous sister Destinie:

She also makes adorable little bows and flowers for little ones, and she's expanding to headbands and perhaps earrings and key chains.  Stop on by her Facebook page, and if you want, Like it...And if you really like it, buy some of the awesomeness she has for sale!!!

You Don't Have To Be A Prostitute

Hahahaha...Love Flight of the Conchords.

In other news, I'm battling my Girl Scout cookie habit.  It's an addiction.  I bought six boxes of Tagalongs from Mac the service manager's granddaughters, and I received the tiny crunchy medallions of chocolatey peanut buttery goodness on Saturday.  I already ate two boxes, and opened another tonight.  I will most likely eat the rest of the third box tonight while watching The Nanny.  I will most likely hit rock bottom when I run out...which will most likely be some time next week.  Hahaha.