Everything I say is fascinating.

Christmas Time is Here

November we are fighting for about 20 minutes. Where did you go? It seems just yesterday that it was November first and now here we are and it is the 30th! What happened to you November? Are you on strike?  Although I must say that I am so glad that December is here tomorrow!

It has finally gotten cold here in Texas and I couldn't be more happy. Twenty nine degrees tonight people! I even started jamming out to Christmas music starting with Mariah Carey's All I Want for Christmas is You. I'm not ashamed that song is so darn catchy! I love it. Sing it Mariah. Wow I never thought I would say those last three words you can shoot me now.

Possible the best part of this time of year, besides the music, are the Christmas lights that start making their appearance.  Some of them look so nice and then there are others that look like a circus threw up on their front yard. In my parents neighborhood some of the houses get out of control, they hire people to come and do the decorations. I'm not lying when I tell you that in the front lawn of one of our neighbor's house they have mannequins on an ice skating rink twirling around like a winter wonderland. In another part of the neighborhood the bushes in front of the house are in the shape of animals and then decorated with white lights.*  Actually that one is pretty cool.  There is a big competition that the neighborhood puts on to see who gets first prize,  its quite a big deal.

Yesterday I was driving my friend Jenny home from Bible study and we were in her apartment complex and we turned the corner to where her building is located and I couldn't help myself but I burst out laughing. Her neighbor that lives on the first floor has created her own winter wonderland although it looks more like the circus that I talked about earlier. I couldn't believe my eyes they even had a projector shining something up on the side of the apartments. They also had the giant blow up snow globes and a blow up tree and there were lights everywhere.* It was crazy. The lady who decorated it was actually talking to someone on the outside of her balcony and Jenny was hoping it was the management telling her she couldn't take over the entire lawn. Unfortunately the man she was talking to was her husband and they were trying to figure out how to put more Christmas lights on the ground. Awesome.

*I'm going to try and take pictures because I feel like my words aren't given you the right visual that is needed. Seriously.

Is nothing sacred anymore?

I mean if these two can't hold it together who can!

I hate flying part 2394... oh and things I'm thankful for.

I have talked about how I hate flying before specifically here and here. Did I ever blog about the time when I faked vomiting into an air sick bag as passengers were boarding the plane so they wouldn't sit by me? No? Well that is a great story I might tell later, but I digress.

Yesterday was no exception as for most of the day I was traveling for eleven hours. I shudder just thinking about how I will have to make an identical return trip. 

My bad traveling day started out with me running late to the airport. They say you should get there two hours early, if you are traveling around a holiday make it two and half. I chose to laugh in the face of airport guidelines and threw caution to the wind by arriving 45 minutes before my plane departed. Apparently I like to live on the edge.

It seems that the airport gods were with me as I breezed threw security or they just didn't see I was there. Well they finally caught up with me when I got on the plane and my seat was in front of a toddler, a toddler who decided to throw a fit and kick the back of my chair the whole flight. ALL. THREE. HOURS. The screaming, the horrible screaming that seemed like it was in my ear. I really wanted to pull that move like Arnold Schwarzenegger in Kindergarten Cop when the kid is hitting the back of his chair and he whips around and snaps his pencil and says "Hey kid, if you keep on doing that this will be you." Somehow I don't think it would have the same desired effect. Of course you know I love children and all that jazz.* I then had a lay over for about 2 hours and proceed to get on my next flight to which I enter the flight and I immediately think oh my goodness I have entered a geriatric hospital.  The first 5 rows of the plane were older people who I literally thought were not going to make the flight and most of them were in their pajamas; one woman even had a tracheotomy tube. Perhaps the senior citizens were trying to make a brake for it.  I said a prayer for them and then headed for my seat.  I sat down popped in my ipod and hoped for the best... I didn't get it. The person behind me talked nonstop and kept hitting me in the butt with his knee. I came thisclose to turning around and yelling please try to keep your knee out of my ass... but you know I'm a lady and all. Also during this flight this woman on my row smelled like something fierce. She smelled like old vitamins. I almost had to break out my air sickness bag.

Now after all this traveling I had to rent a car and drive three hours to finally get to my thanksgiving destination at 11:30 pm. It really is worth it though when I get here and I get to spend time with my family. I get to see my little cousins (who are the closest thing I have to a niece and nephew) smiling faces and to just relax. There really is no better feeling than that.  I hope you all have a great Thanksgiving because I know I will.

*I have now forever jinxed myself to have horrible unruly children.

The nerd in me...

is so excited about this!

Tears All Over

This past week I have cried everyday, okay maybe not everyday but most of last week. I really feel like I cried EVERY DAY and no it's not that time of the month. Seriously though there have been tears of joy and tears of sadness. I'm such a girl.

Last week started off with my Monday morning at the hospital because my uncle was having surgery on his lungs to see why his lungs are forming scar tissue. I should tell you that my family is a very close one, think my big fat Greek wedding only Mexican. Well after what seemed like forever the doctor finally came out to inform us how things went. He was very nice and told us what he thinks the problem is but he has to wait for the biopsy to be sure and of course he said worst case scenario death. I guess he wanted to cover all his basis. I held it together until I got into the car and then I just started crying on my drive home. I'm sure that was probably not the best condition to drive in considering that mascara was running into my eyes and down my face but I digress.

On Tuesday a very good friend of mine had a baby coincidently in the same hospital that my uncle was in. I went up to see my unlace to say hello and then went down a floor just in time to say hello to the family and then to hear the chime that Baby Kaitlyn Elizabeth was born. I started crying along with the rest of the family because this had been a long and hard pregnancy for my friend and I was just so thankful that everything went all right.

Wednesday actually come to think of it maybe I didn't cry on Wednesday.

On Thursday I went with my dad to the doctor because they had found some blockage in his heart. The test that they were going to do was very extensive and would take several hours. I sat in the waiting room by myself because my mother was out of town and the more time went on the more my imagination ran away with itself. I kept thinking what if while they are doing these test he goes into cardiac arrest, what will I do! So I started crying because I started thinking the worst. Everything came out realitively okay.

Friday I received a phone call from my friend Jenny informing me that she had just gotten engaged. I had a feeling that it was going to happen this weekend since Jenny and her boyfriend were in New York City for the weekend. The phone rang at about 10 pm and I knew before I even said hello. There were tears in my eyes as she shouted into my ear I'm engaged! I was so excited and so happy for her and yet at the same time so sad.

Saturday was my friend Marie's wedding and I cried as she walked down the aisle. She looked beautiful and happy. She couldn't have married a better man. There were actually several times during the night that I cried during the evening but those are minor details.

It seems I'm a basket case in the making.

Fall is upon us

This past weekend I went hiking at Lost Maples in the Texas hill country, and I finally got to see some fall foliage. I fully admit  that I am a high maintenance girl but I do love nature. I love to hike I love to camp I love it all! I would also like to think that I'm hard core because when I go camping for a weekend I don't shower, but I think the real reason is that I am disgusted by public showers. 

We started by taking the east trail  which starts off with a 1.5 mile steep climb.  I wasn't even 5 minutes into the hike literally about .2 miles before I was  thinking where is the canteen!Luckily I was with 2 other people who also felt the pain of that steep climb. I was cracking jokes and my friend Matt ended up yelling at me to shut up because I was making him laugh. His words exactly, "Shut up woman! I need air!" Can I help it that I'm so witty? It's a curse I guess.

Here are some pictures from the day.

For the life of me I can't think of a title for this post

I want to say thank you to everyone who went and voted! I would like to think that it was my INSPIRATIONAL post that drove you to the polls. I mean I'm sure the war had nothing to do with it.

As a reward to myself for voting I went to The Fray concert Tuesday night in Austin and it was amazing! I have been a fan of The Fray for a very long time. In fact I got really pissed off when they hit it big. When I first heard them on the radio I was like a proud mother all, congratulations guys you hit it big time! Then of course the radio played the songs practically back to back and I wanted to gouge my eyes out but that is neither here nor there.

I am still a really big fan and there isn't a song on the CD that I don't like.  I think you should know that  when I go see a concert I get into it. I'm the girl who is dancing and swaying to the music... sometimes with my eyes closed while singing along. Oh yeah I'm that girl.  I went to the concert with a group of my friends and pretty much everyone was paired off except for Jenny and I, except Jenny really doesn't count because her boyfriend lives in another state. It was one of the times where you just feel single. At one point I looked at Jenny and it is like she knew what I was thinking because she said, "Do you want me to stand behind you and put my hands around your waist." It was too funny.

I did my best to take pictures but I am short.  I had to raise my hands to take the pictures so all you are going to get these blurry out of focus one. My apologies.

I tried to warn you that they were bad.

 

I actually took a video when they sang the song look after you (my personal favorite), but you try holding your arms up high above your head for a long period of time while trying to stay still. Not so easy let me tell you! I tried to uploaded it to you tube and then I even tried vimeo but again I was denied because the file is to big. Trust me I'm saving you from seeing it because it looks like the kids from the blair witch project shot it. I don't think I will be going to sundance any time soon.

A Moment of Seriousness

I usually like to keep this blog fluffy with very little seriousness but this I can't let go. I have never written about my political views on this website before and I'm not quite sure why. A little background about me is that I am not registered with any party. I am an independent and I'm proud of that. Most people tell me I need to pick a side blah blah blah but I the truth is I believe in both sides. I grew up in a home where my mother is a hard core Democrat and my father is hard core Republican. Discussions  at the dinner table when it came to politics would get somewhat, for lack of a better word, lively. I can see each of my parents views and I would like to think that I got a better understanding of each party living with parents who have such different view points.

I would consider myself a liberal conservative and while some may say that is an oxymoron there really is no better way to describe it. There are certain things I think are good about both parties and when it comes to voting I vote based on who I have the most in common with, regardless of which party. I think it is a privilege to vote and if I didn't I would be letting down the women who fought for that right. Now don't get me wrong I'm not a super feminist by any means but I do believe that they fought for a reason.   It is one day our your life  and I really don't think it is too much to ask.

I live in a major US city in fact we are the  7th largest city in America and in this city the Hispanic race is dominate.  Being a Hispanic woman I find it very sad that when a family member of mine was voting absentee she noticed that in the hour long line she stood in, not one of the people was Hispanic besides her. That is just sad. Now I know this is not indicative of every place you can vote but still it is shocking to me. Especially when this city was up in arms over the whole immigration issue I would think that those same people who protested months ago, and who can legally vote, would be making a mad dash to the polls. How can you protest if you aren't even voting to get someone in office to hear your voice? Someone that is going to represent what you believe in.

I also get very angry when someone votes on one issue and one issue alone. As a Christian many people believe that I will automatically vote Republican because abortion and that is just not the case. I see to many people vote based on one issue when you need to open your eyes and look at EVERYTHING. Where does the candidate stand for on education? on welfare? on immigration? on gay rights? on the war? again on EVERYTHING? One of my friends who shall remain nameless always votes based on one issue and I always end up getting into arguments with her because she is a college graduate and prides herself on being an educated female, and yet she isn't educating herself on political issues. 

I don't care who you vote for because those are your choices. I am not going to try to sway you to vote the way I am either, but I do urge you to educate yourself and to go vote tomorrow.

Gaydar part 2

WHAT! Again I so didn't see this coming.