Creative Juices

The Fabric of Our Lives

Well, seems like I hit it right on the money with that webcam pic. Good to know that when given the option of super cute babies and hot (literally) Sabrinas, you go for the Sabrina. I suppose I'll leave it up for the weekend, cause well, now I feel like I cant compete with myself. And also for those losers who dont visit my website regularly. Wouldnt want them to not know what we're talking about.
Meanwhile, I have to admit, I have been quite out of it lately. Lots of blonde moments. Take for instance, my shower routine. Shampoo hair, rinse hair, wash face, shave, condition hair, soap up, rinse hair. Seven easy steps to a fresh and clean Sabrina. Except when I'm so out of it (and for no good reason, its not like I'm tyerd) that I condition before I shampoo. Or, like yesterday, I put face wash in my hair. "Hmm, this doesnt feel right... Oh, it was supposed to go on my face." Meanwhile, my hair was probably screaming "Whyyyyyy are you putting salicylic acid on me? I've been so good to you! Do you not remember the curls? That was for yooooouuuu!" I did feel bad, and conditioned twice to make up for it.
Its not just shower routine problems, though. While stopped at red lights, I space out so much that I miss a green arrow or I look up and oh look at that, wonder how long that's been green, guess I should get moving...
What is up? Something is sucking the smarts out of me.

And I Will Because You've Worn Me Down

Yesterday, in all the hotty hotness I made my way to the hospital to greet brand new baby Callie Faith. My friend Marissa has been carrying her around inside for what seemed like years, but turned out to only be the traditional nine months. Now that Callie has finally entered the world, at a relatively tiny (these days) 6 pounds 4 ounces, I decided a visit from Sabrina was due.
Check out this super cute baby.


And her super duper cute little baby feet.



Don't worry, I didnt stay long enough to catch the baby bug. And even if I did have a bit of it, it quickly went away once I met up with my brother, to be reminded of what all little cute babies turn into, long haired rockers.



I met Donnie at my church, to plug him into the system and give him a taste of what it feels like to play guitar on stage, with loud speakers. In true 13 year old fashion, he claimed he didnt know how to play anything. But after some coaxing, I got to hear the beginning of several songs. I'm hoping next year, he'll be able to play a whole song all the way through. By the end of the evening he said "I didnt realize it'd be so easy to get over the stage fright." And me, being a sister said "The audience was empty, in couldnt be that hard."
Always an encourager, I am.

Tonight For Me Translates To Yesterday For You

My mom flew in on Friday to hang with us for the weekend. While seeing my mom is always wonderful, it also puts me completely on edge. For no real reason, or not for bad reasons. I just, tense up. Well, there is one thing. My brother has been here for two weeks and we've really been having a great time. We get along very well. No argueing, he does what I ask (because I ask nicely) and though we dont spend every moment together (I've been working most days, and he usually spends a large chunk of the evening on the computer) the time we do spend together seems to be quality. My mom and my brother do not have this kind of relationship. All they do is bicker. No fighting, or argueing, no door slamming or bad language. Just plain, simple, incredibly annoying bickering. Lots of "Nuh uh!" "Yeah huh!" "Nuh uh!" "Yeah huh!" ENOUGH!
Luckily, in the midst of that, my weekend got broken up by a visit from Nick and Kelli. We enjoyed a lovely Saturday matinee of the movie I've been dieing to see, March of the Penguins. Oh Penguins. If all fathers could love their children like the Emperor penguin loves his.... After the movie we played some putt putt. I got a couple hole in ones, thats all that matters to me. Then we enjoyed some dinner and conversation at Chili's.
Mom flew back home on Monday and Donnie is hear for another week.
This morning, I went downstairs to make Steve's lunch and Donnie was sitting at the island, eating. Mind you, it was about 6:45am. And in my head, there was a 99% chance that he had yet to go to sleep that night. And I will never understand it. I know I was once 13. And I know I went to bed at a relatively normal hour every night. And even when I had friends sleep over, staying up just past midnight was a big deal. Yet he can manage to stay up till the sun comes up, all while trying to convince himself he's not tyerd. I realize at the ripe age of 26, where very little gets in the way of my 10pm bedtime, its unreasonable for me to even try to comprehend this life. I know lots of night owls, and I dont think its crazy. But staying up till 7am for no good reason? Yeah, dont get it. "What were you doing all night?" I asked. "Mostly I was just on myspace, looking at people's sites." Wow. What a waste of darkness. He said he just wasnt tyerd. Then I went back upstairs to get dressed and ready and when I came back down to leave for work, he was sound asleep on the couch. Ohhh, the insanity of a 13 year old boy. Some things I will never understand.

Rather Waste Some Time With You

Advertising these days has gotten so consumer specific. The ad I came across this morning in my Entertainment Weekly was directed at me, and only me. "Cupcakes Just Got Purplicious." Whats that? Cake? Purple? Purple Cake? Okay, I'm sold. Pull up the Hostess truck, I'll take four billion boxes. Thank you.
Really, though, who else would buy Chocolicious Wonka Cakes (which are really just regular Hostess Black & White Cupcakes, but Sabrinafied)? I'm pretty sure just me, and anyone that wants to buy me something wonderful.

Update: Food Lion had my cupcakes. Yay for Food Lion, home of Cheerwine Swirl and Wonka Cakes. It was super tasty. Yummy yum!
I'd like to state for the record, though, that I'm not insane. My love for purple does span deep and wide, but I know that some things are better off being another color. Take for instance that craziness when Heinz released purple ketchup. Ketchup should be red. Only red. End of story.

Cause I'm Dumb Like That

The other day my brother opened a conversation with "Don't tell anybody, but...." By 'anybody' he means my mom, not you, dont worry.
He then told me that he was going to get a tattoo. Uh-huh. You're right, he's only 13... how's he going to do that? We all know neither of his parents are going to offer parental consent. Turns out his girlfriend, Stevii, knows a girl that does tattoos. Lovely. Luckily, I'm trained enough in 13 year old speak to know that if I said "Dont do that" it would only translate in his brain to "You must do that!" So, I went with a long talk that touched on these points "Be responsible, Be safe, Be sure." I tried to stress as much as possible the importance of sterile needles and a clean environment. Beyond that, I talked about how important it is to have a good artist. Considering that this person is going to put something permanent on your skin, you better be sure she knows how to draw. And just cause she can draw with a pencil doesnt mean she can draw with a needle. I'm sure you're wondering what he wants to get. A heartagram, on the inside of his wrist. First off, ouch! The inside of your wrist! That skin is crazy sensitive! But, considering that I'll never understand boys and pain, I decided to stay away from that topic. No need to insult his (budding) manhood. I've done my research on the heartagram. It was a symbol created by a metal band, HIM. They say its a cross between a heart and a pentagram, and to them it symbolizes the balance between love and hate, or life and death. HIM's big thing is the phrase "Love Metal" and I'd imagine to most of their fans, thats what the heartagram means to them. So, I just told Donnie to be sure that 30 years fom now, he's still going to love metal and the heartagram will still be an important symbol in his life. Of course, its hard for him to see past 15 years old... so I'm sure that didnt help much. Luckily, I have the story you all know of Uncle Jimmy and his Luck of the Irish tattoo. That'll scare anyone into making sure what they get colored on their skin forever and ever is something important and, well, correct.
All in all, I spoke my peace. I'm not against tattoos, but I do think its a very big decision and he should take some time to consider it all. But above all that, please please be safe.
With all that said, I seriously doubt he'd actually go through with getting a tattoo. How many friends did you have in junior high that talked of getting one? Yeah, its a good thing I didnt get the NKOTB tattoo I wanted so badly....

I've got you, under my skin. I've got you, deep in the heart of me. You're so deep in my heart that you're really a part of me. And I've got you under my skin. I've tried so not to give in, you know I said to myself this affair ain't gonna go so well. But why should I try to resist when, baby, I know so well, that I got you way under my skin. I would sacrifice anything come what might for the sake of having near, in spite of a warning voice that comes in the night and repeats in my ear. 'Dont you know, you fool, you never can win. Use your mentality, step up to reality.' But each time I do, just the thought of you makes me stop before I begin. Cause I've got you, you're under my skin!

Best. Night. Of. My. Life.
I guess you want details. Why, Sabrina? Why was this the best night of your life? What about all those other important nights (sorry, Dear).
Lets see, we got there extremely early. I was early picking up Beth Ann and I definitely did not abide by many traffic laws on the way to Greensboro. We waited around till the doors opened. We examined the swag (my brother bought an autographed CD for my mom). We took some pictures.


Me and my handsome brother (now taller than me, yes) before the show.


Me and Beth Ann, before the show.

Then the theater doors opened and we went up to our seats. They were very good seats, 2nd row mezzanine. I had opted for those because I wanted a clear view of the stage and didnt want to worry about some very tall person sitting in front of me and blocking my view. Later, you'll learn why I kicked myself.
The lights dimmed and we all clapped.
Someone, not Michael, came on stage. In a few seconds we realized he was a comedian. Beth Ann, my fount of all knowledge prior to my birth, leaned over and said "Sinatra always had a comedian open for his shows." Well, well. How nice.
It took me a few minutes to be okay with the fact that he was delaying Michael Buble' from being on stage, but he did tell some very very funny jokes. He was Canadian as well. A few of his funniest bits included a story about his best friend, and how terrible it is when you decide to play a joke on your friend and realize how stupid they actually are. He went on to talk about a time when he was out, walking by a lake in Toronto. The lake was frozen over and his friend goes "Hey, where are all the ducks?" and he says, jokingly "They're under the water." "Really?" "Yeah, sure." By this point he's thinking, is he for real? "You mean, hibernatin' and stuff?" "Yeaaaah, hibernatin." Oh God! I've made some major life decisions based on advice from this friend and he thinks the ducks are under the water?!! Funny guy. He also talked about a french song that he learned as a child (I learned it too)... " Alouette, gentille Alouette. Alouette je te plumerai. Alouette, gentille Alouette. Alouette je te plumerai. Je te plumerai la tête. .Je te plumerai la tête. Et la tête, et la tête. Alouette, Alouette. O-o-o-o-oh. Alouette, gentille Alouette. Alouette je te plumerai." He went on to explain to us what the song means... which I knew too. But it was still funny. Eventually he gets around to translating the song completely, which means " Lark, nice Lark. Lark, I am going to pluck you. I am going to pluck your head, I am going to pluck your head, And the head, and the head, O-o-o-o-oh.Lark, nice Lark. Lark, I am going to pluck you." Heh.
He finally finished and out came Michael. He opened with "Feelin' Good", which is the first track on his current CD. The band was freakin' awesome, let me just say that up front. I've never had a chance to see a big band play live before, and the auditorium we were in was great for the sound. More than any other genre' of music, this would definitely be my favorite to see live. It was very powerful.
After that he sang "Sway." and then he took a break to talk to us. He said something like "It's so great to be around friends tonight. Because, I gotta tell you, my best friend, well, he's a dick. No other way to say it. You see, he made me believe that the ducks were hibernating under the frozen lake..." Haha. Then he thanked all the men in the audience that didnt want to be there tonight. And said "Now, we're just here to do a job. And that job is to put a little air in the tires. And if we do our job right, you'll get to ride it all night long." Heh.
He sang a few more songs.
Then he stopped again. To say " Now, I know it says on the tickets and programs and stuff, no photography-" One woman in the very front row flashed her camera. "Haha! But you dont give a shit, do ya? No, you guys payed a lot of money for these tickets, and if you want to take pictures, please do." Thousands of flashes. Including me!



Then he goes "Wait, wait! If you're going to take that many pictures, let me pose!" So he runs over to the brass section. "1, 2, 3!" And they all pose.



A couple more songs and then he asked for house lights. (apologizing to the light guy for driving him crazy). He said he felt bad for all those in the back of the auditorium that could barely see him. So, he asked the band to play him some music while he hopped off the stage and walked allllll the way through the Orchestra section. And that's when I kicked myself. Cause even though we had a great view, better than those in the back of the Orchestra, well, they got to hug him. Eventually he climbed back on stage.
Plenty more songs followed after that. At some point, the beginning of "Fever" started, with him snapping (what an amazing snap of the fingers he has!). But when he started singing, he sung "Alouette, gentille Alouette" We all laughed.



About half way through the show, he says "You know what, I gotta tell ya. I hate jazz. I hate it! Standards just bore me!" (Which is his genre, in case you dont know). And then he proceeded to sing a few different songs from others, he tried a little opera, Josh Groban style. A little Mariah Carey ("minus the breasts"), a full redition of "This Love" by Maroon Five and ending with some "Billy Jean."
Then he admitted that standards are still his very favorite and sang a few more.


This one was taken through Beth Ann's binoculars.

He did an encore and ended the show with "How Sweet it Is."



After the show, we walked around back and stood on the sidewalk. There were three tour busses and a limo, so it was pretty obvious. Lots more people joined us, but they all gathered around a gate surrounding the tour buses. We noticed band members starting to come out the side door, so we kept our spot on the sidewalk, away from the crowd and close to the door. We complimented every band member as they walked to the bus. Then. Then it happened. My brother said "Thats him, that's him!" And I spotted him, between two guards. My radar was locked and I walked straight up to him and handed him the sheet of paper I was signed. I fumbled with my sharpie, but he already had one in his hand and quickly signed. I GOT HIS AUTOGRAPH! Then, he walked by me and I put my hand on the back of his shoulder and said "You were awesome tonight." Well, I honestly dont know what I said. I hope I said something like that. It really could have come out like "Mmmmmmmmmmmm. Mmmmmm. Mmmmmm. Blaaaah. Mmmm." But apparently I was so in the zone that I didnt hear one of his bodyguards say "Ma'm, please step away." Beth Ann and Donnie told me that later. So, its possible he thought I was a little crazy. But I'm okay with that. Cause I got his autograph.

I'd sacrifice anything come what might for the sake of having you near, in spite of a warning voice that comes in the night and repeats, how it yells in these ears. 'Dont you know, you fool, no chance to win. Why not se your mentality, wake up, step up to reality.' But each time I do, just the thought of you makes me stop just before I begin, because I've got you, under my skin. Heh. And I love you, under my skin.

Girl At The Rock Show

Well, my brother has been here for five days. So far, I've taught him how to cook a Taco Ring and Chicken Pot Pie. He's taught me how to strum a G and an E cord on the guitar. Well, maybe taught isnt the best word, not like I could remember where my fingers go now...
We've been to The Gardens, Paint the Earth, Southpoint (twice). Tonight we'll be seeing Fantastic Four (hope it's good). And TOMORROW! We're going to see my dear sweet Michael Buble' (which will definitely be good).

This Mood Of Yours Is Temporary

So, we all know The Girls have gotten me interested in birds. Last summer, I saw my first hummingbird and spent many an evening at The Mulder's house, watching their feeder. Then, I decided to buy my own feeder and put it up on our back porch.
All through spring the feeder sat there, mostly with disgusting water in it, moldy from the combination of rain water and sugar water. Gross, I know. Then, Monday evening, I spotted a hummingbird fly by the feeder. I knew he was disgusted, so I ran outside and cleaned the feeder. Gave it fresh new sugar water and prayed that he would return. The next night, he did. Or she, Kyra would know.
Last night, I got pictures. They (more than one) hung out by the feeder for quite awhile. Fluttering around, having a good time, enjoying Sabrina's Special Sugar Water.

And I Can't Catch You

I've been, uh, tagged. In other words, I have to answer a set of questions from Christin's blog. But, the game stops here, I'm much too old for tag.

(1) Imagine it’s 2015. You are visiting the library at a major research university. You go over to a computer terminal (or whatever it is they use in 2015) that gives you immediate access to any book or journal article on any topic you want. What do you look up? In other words, what do you hope somebody will have written in the meantime? That's only ten years away, so my biography wont be published yet.

(2) What is the strangest thing you’ve ever heard or seen at a conference? No names, please. Refer to “Professor X” or “Ms. Y” if you must. Double credit if you were directly affected. Triple if you then said or did something equally weird. One year at Liberty, in Ministry Chapel, some guy went on and on about how evil kids cartoons were. He insulted every cartoon I ever watched as a child, from Smurfs to Captain Planet. I think its the only "sermon" from Ministry Chapel that I remember.

(3) Name a writer, scholar, or otherwise worthy person you admire so much that meeting him or her would probably reduce you to awestruck silence. Really, all I can think about is Michael Buble'. What if we make eye contact? What if I get a chance to get his autograph? Will I be able to even thank him?

(4) What are two or three blogs or other Web sites you often read that don’t seem to be on many people’s radar? I'm a big fan of Entertainment Weekly, they have this blog, full of mostly useless information.

I Can Breathe for the First Time

Sucessful wedding! Yay! Lots of pictures, more yay!
Here are some highlights, but you can go here for the rest.


Here are all the girls, just before the ceremony.


JJ and Angela, sharing their vows.


JJ and Angela, cutting the cake. (Mad Hatter's cake, that is)


Me & Steve

All Dressed in White

Tomorrow, these two lovelies tie the proverbial knot.



I am honored to be a part of their wedding. Wait I better not waste too much mushy stuff here, I still have a toast to write! (and hopefully they're much too busy the day before the wedding to be reading this... I will write the toast!)
This may be my last maid of honorship, unless I hurry up and make some more single friends. Or, unless I take this show on the road and become a professional MOH.

Paper Faces on Parade

Can you say "busy"? I cant, I dont have time. Work has been insane this week, and life hasnt been any less than insane too. But, I know you're dieing to know how I spent my 4th of July weekend, and I need to tell you before the fun and games that is THIS weekend happen.
My 4th couldnt have been anymore American. Or suburbian, for that matter.

On Friday we went with some friends to a Baseball game. It was hella hot out, but the game went super fast (and we won, I think... people clapped at the end). The fireworks were over by 9:30.
Monday night we went across the street to BBQ with a few of our neighbors and friends. That was very nice. Having neighbors to BBQ with.

Tomorrow starts the JJ & Angela Wedding Festivities with a lovely pedicure in the afternoon. Then rehearsal and super yummy dinner at Maggianno's. Mmmm. Saturday will be full of weddingness. Sunday, after church and a baby shower, my brother arrives for 3 weeks of "How to live with a 13 year old." Stay tuned.