29 Days

I recently celebrated my 33rd birthday month. Yes, month. Why celebrate one day when you can celebrate for an entire month? A bit narcissistic? Maybe. I use it more as an excuse to spend money on myself. I want a new pair of shoes? Wait, it's my birthday month! They can be a present and I don't have to feel guilty about spending that money! It works for me... and my birthday is at the end of the month so I get 29 days of me. My friend Sue doesn't think it's fair, but mainly because her birthday is on the 1st.

During this birthday month I was able to mark something off of my list. I was able to go to Nashville and see Keith Urban play at the Grand Ol' Opry. 

A couple of my girlfriends joined me on Friday morning to begin our trip. After breakfast and a detour for some outlet shopping we finally made it to Nashville.

The concert was that evening so we needed to get ready, but first things first... we needed boots. If you are ever in Nashville and want to fulfill your inner cowgirl's(cowboy) need for boots go to Boot Country. Everyday they have a special, buy 1 get 2 free. If you can convince two other people that they too should fill that cowboy boot void in their lives you get away with an awesome deal and a pair of real cowboy boots.

It is no surprise to any that know me that I would make a trip any where to see Keith Urban play his music. I adore him. The Opry needed to be marked off my list and Keith Urban just happened to be playing in my birthday month so it was clearly meant to be.  We didn't run into him like I had hoped, but I have a few more years before that becomes a failed goal.


We were also able to get into the Bluebird Cafe, a legendary spot in Nashville where songwriters showcase their music. Many country artists scored recording contracts after playing there, including Garth Brooks, Kenny Chesney and Taylor Swift. Small and intimate, the line to get in started forming more than an hour before they were set to open the doors. We were nearly turned away because they were already at capacity, but they put a few extra stools out for us to sit on and we got to enjoy the show.

Our last adventure was to the Wildhorse Saloon, a 3 story country bar with a huge dance floor and lots of pool tables. They were giving free line dancing lessons at the top of every hour, so we were able to take one. That has since sparked my desire to bring back line dancing. It's fun and people leave smiling like they've had a good time.  

All in all it was a great birthday month and I am looking forward to fulfilling my new mission in life.

The girls

Karen and I ready for KU!




Keith Urban singing with a little girl from the audience. Adorable?



Little Jimmy Dickens

Mel Tillis












waiting at the Blue Bird Cafe

Inside the Blue Bird Cafe

Wild horses at the Wildhorse Saloon



an astronaut on a bench

My list - revised

I posted my list, but left off a few important ones... like the Kentucky Derby, my favorite sporting day of the year. These are all written down... somewhere. Now they will be forever on the web.

Things to do... before 40

1. Learn how to fly fish
2. Visit the torch at the Statue of Liberty (made it as far as the crown... the torch is off limits)
3. Attend the Kentucky Derby (and if possible all three races in the Triple Crown)
4. Visit Mt. Rushmore
5. Attend a taping of the Bachelor/Bachelorette "After the Final Rose"
6. Learn how to shoot a gun
7. Conquer my fear of horses (attempted this... have a LONG way to go)
8. Ride in a hot air balloon
9. Meet Keith Urban (when he is aware of our encounter)
10. Attend a PGA Tournament
11. Attend an NFL Game
12. Visit the Grand Canyon
13. Swim with sharks
14. Swim with dolphins
15. Help with a Habitat for Humanity build
16. See the Aurora Borealis
17. Ride MARTA
18. Go to the Grand Ole Opry
19. Go on an African Safari
20. Visit Hawaii

The Old and the Homeless

You never know when you are going to meet someone special. For me, it happens all the time. Sometimes on the street or at the gas pump or in the automotive section at Walmart. I especially attract the old and the homeless. I like to think I have an old soul and that is why the old men like me, but I'm pretty sure it's much less complicated than that. My southern upbringing makes it difficult for me to ignore them, I don't want to be rude, and my sense of humor is warped enough to find it entertaining.

Sometimes it crosses the line. Like the old married man, who started stalking me and thought I would find it sweet to receive one card every day, for 5 days. Sadly, the post office wasn't on his schedule so they delivered them all at the same time.... oops. Or the homeless man who sat on a bench beside me one sunny afternoon, staring at my feet. He told me my feet looked good enough to eat. I seriously wondered if maybe he was some sort of starving homeless cannibal until he started talking about the art of pleasing a woman. You see, he was a masseuse back in the day and said most men don't know how to properly please a woman, but if they would read a simple book about massage they would learn. He then asked me for $6 so he could go down to the mission and take a shower. 

 

 

There was one Saturday morning when I had thrown on what is not my norm, a not-cute t-shirt and jeans. The t-shirt was from the FBI Academy so it had a little bit of a redeeming quality. I went to Walmart to have the oil changed in my car and while I was waiting I was approached by a man. He was probably in his early 60's, wearing sweat pants with a t-shirt tucked in and white tennis shoes which he had cut the toes out of. He weighed close to 400 pounds and his feet needed room to spill out. I was vigilantly texting, knowing if I was distracted by my phone I would be less of a target, but he walked up behind me and whispered in my ear, "Are you undercover?" I had to smile. Although the FBI Acedemy insigna was a small patch, it was on my chest so I couldn't be too surprised that he tried to read it. I told him yes, I was in fact undecover, I thought the t-shirt would throw people off. He then thanked me for not walking away, that a lot of women do that (the homeless man said the SAME thing) and then said, "Do you know whats great about you?"  and I reply with a no so he started to stumble on his words as he says, "Your smile. I mean your teeth. Um, your mouth... you have a pretty mouth." My car was ready at this point so I gathered my things and swore never to have my oil changed at Walmart again.

A few more things

The day before my 30th birthday I was able to mark the final thing off my list of 30 things to do. With a little tutoring before hand and maybe a few tips during my time at the tables, I played Black Jack in Vegas. I actually walked away with some winnings so I bought myself a birthday present from Tiffany's, the perfect end to a great birthday weekend. I knew though, I couldn't just stop there. I needed another list of goals to try to meet before I turned 40. Ten more things to add to the list that has become 40 things to do by 40.

I have already done a couple of things. I saw the once great Tiger Woods play golf at the PGA Championship and watched the Falcons play a preseason game. I went to the Grand Canyon. I touched Keith Urban, twice. I have a few more years to work on the rest of my list though. I hope to do the following:

1. Learn how to fly fish
2. Visit the torch at the Statue of Liberty (made it as far as the crown... the torch is off limits)
3. Visit Mt. Rushmore
4. Attend a taping of the Bachelor/Bachelorette "After the Final Rose"
5. Conquer my fear of horses
6. Ride in a hot air balloon
7. Meet Keith Urban (when he is aware of our encounter)
8. Attend a PGA Tournament
9. Attend an NFL Game
10. Visit the Grand Canyon
11. Swim with sharks
12. Swim with dolphins
13. Help with a Habitat for Humanity build

There are more written down somewhere, but these will do for now. I need more than 10, just in case something doesn't happen in time.

I'm trying not to notice the fact that the more I mark off this list the closer I get to 40.

Live From the Heart

As another year comes to a close, I am once again amazed at how fast time flies. I'm not one for making New Year resolutions. It's great to want to start eating healthier or exercising, but if I haven't done it for the past 365 days I can pretty much guarantee it won't happen on day 366. I do, however, find myself looking over the past 365 days and reviewing the good, the bad and the ugly.


2011 was a vast improvement from 2010. It was filled with good and very little bad or ugly. I actually got to use my vacation time for vacations instead of random or mysterious medical issues. I went to the beach for the first time in a few years. Sunshine and sand are good for my soul. I visited a far away land known as Montana where I reconnected with some college friends and made a few new ones as well. I found the perfect red wine. I adopted my precious Bonnie Blue. I was able to mark a few things off of my list of things to do before I turn 40, like attend an NFL game (GO FALCONS) and a PGA tournament or touch Keith Urban (twice.... and like many psycho fans before me I swore I would never wash my hands again... and yes that's plural, there may have been a little groping).


I realize that it is all about perspective. In 2010 it seemed my life was so overwhelmed by the bad and the ugly that I didn't pay enough attention to the good. In 2011 I paid more attention to the good and in turn have a hard time remembering the bad.


Oprah encouraged her audience during her final show to "live from the heart." My hope for the new year is that I can hold true to that. I want to be able to recognize the gifts of the moment I am in. Remembering the good, learning from the bad, and appreciating those who are on the journey with me. 


Happy New Year! 

The Evil Eye

It seems that after finding a quarter, heads side up, and hoping that maybe it would actually help my luck, the tides seem to be turning in my favor. I don't want to jinx myself, but it seems I am shunning that evil eye that seemed to follow me around, with tears of misfortune.

Since finding that quarter, I won a nice chunk of change at my office holiday party and my name was drawn first in the coveted "Compressed Schedule Lottery" (my name has been drawn last a few times in a row and almost always near the end).

In Middle Eastern cultures, the evil eye is viewed as a way people wish misfortune on you. By simply casting an evil glance they are putting the curse on you to bring you down. I have a Jewish friend who actually gave me a necklace to ward off the evil eye. I am not sure if it actually worked since after I received it I ended up needing a new car... hmmm perhaps she inadvertently made the eye more powerful? She recently took a class on Judaism though and the Rabbi spoke about the Jewish superstition of the evil eye. He said that it is all about attitude. Putting out positive energy into the universe will in turn bring positive energy and vice versa. So, I am now focusing on the positive... instead of the humor I find in the negative.

We will see how it goes... for now it seems to be working. I just hope I am not speaking too soon!

Class vs. Klass

I think the world is slowly trying to redefine the word class. Once upon a time class was used to refer to people or things of high quality and style, like Tiffany's jewelry or a man in a tuxedo. There was a certain air of dignity surrounding people of class. It spoke of timeless elegance and grace In the south there was a bit of charm associated with it.

When did it become acceptable to literally roll out of bed and leave the house? What happened to the days of Carey Grant or Audrey Hepburn? When people seemed to care about how they looked in public and they carried themselves with grace and dignity? When you could actually understand what a person was saying because they weren't using some slang term they heard on the street?

If I didn't love my trash tv and modern technology so much I would say I was born in the wrong time period, but as it is I live in the present day. I think class is slowly and painfully being snubbed out by klass. The Real Housewives of Atlanta ooze klass. Baby shower brawls and a "Ridickulous" stripper at a klassy birthday party. Fighting about who did what to whom before they cashed a Trump Check and are now rich. The inability to properly pronounce the designer labels they spend a fortune to wear. All of this is Klassy to me.  Another lesson on klass: pulling a wig off of someones head would be considered klassy, but throwing a punch while cameras are rolling would not.

I think the Countess said it best when she said Money Can't Buy You Class. What she failed to mention is that it can buy you klass.