Ick.

I didn't think that picture of Cowboy and me would be so HUGE when you click on it. THANK YOU Lupron Depot and Ovral 28 for the acne and the brown spots all over my face!

Ugh.

Chin up, Buttercup, or why one is the loneliest number.

I'm feeling really lonely lately. Usually, I love my alone time, but over the last few weeks I've come to dread it. Last week I invited my friend, we'll call him Cowboy, over for dinner. I've known him for a few years but I hadn't seen him in who knows how long. It's weird, though. No matter how much time passes, it's never uncomfortable with him. He's probably one of the nicest guys I know. The only problem is that he works too hard, and that IS a problem! He's a firefighter in his "real" job, but he works horses and cattle on the side. But "on the side" for him, means pretty much every minute he's not at the fire station.

Dr. Boy is still texting. I haven't seen him in a few weeks, but that's not for lack of him trying.

I've been thinking about how different these two guys are. Take a look:












Strange.

Guess I shoulda updated sooner...

Yes, my A/C is fixed. Has been since last Tuesday at 10:00 am. I really do miss those Texas Belgian waffles, though.

It's strange to me that the comments I received were about the A/C, and not about my mom... Maybe that just goes to show that people "GET" how damn hot it is down here?

La Quinta is Spanish for...

I surrender to my house that is currently without A/C.

So I left town Friday evening for a little trip to College Station. My first trip out of town alone since, well, since I can't even remember when, but it's been MONTHS. I got a call Saturday afternoon that my mother had broken her ankle. There was just no way I could get back home Saturday so my sister ended up coming in from LA to stay with her Saturday night.

I got up first thing Sunday morning to head home so sister could get home and get ready for the week. I cleaned house a bit-it was a mess because my intention all week was to clean when I got back from CoSta, and I took mom to the hair shop to have her hair shampooed while I went to her boat to get her some clothes and essentials (my mom lives aboard her boat, for those of you not in the know, which is why it's necessary for her to stay at my house). We got back to my house and I kept getting hotter and hotter and kept checking the thermostat. I kept asking her if she was hot and she kept saying she was fine. When the thermostat read 84* she wasn't fine anymore. I turned the unit off thinking that maybe it had frozen up (it shouldn't have because I wasn't working it that hard but that's usually the first thing a repair company suggests). Well, it got up to 86* and that's when she told me to find a hotel and we'd sneak the dogs in. Chelsea was not doing very well with the heat so leaving them at the house was not an option. Most La Quinta's are pet friendly, and thank goodness the one around the corner from me is so we moved on over there. I've never been so thankful to have air conditioning in my life!

The repair company can't come out until tomorrow but I gave them the sob story of my crippled mom and geriatric dog and she moved me to the top of the schedule for tomorrow morning. Hopefully it's nothing major, but I do have a home warranty so it shouldn't cost me more than $75.

It's been a rough couple of days and I am exhausted and just want to sleep in my bed!

I should have known.

I did, actually. I just should have gotten nosy sooner. Now I'm sitting here biting back tears, and it's totally ridiculous.

There's this guy, we'll call him Dr. Boy, that I've known for about three years or so. We've never been serious. We've actually been the polar opposite of serious, ifyouknowwhatimean, which is NOT me.

Turns out Dr. Boy is engaged. It's amazing what you can find out on MySpace and Facebook without really trying all that hard. I'm not even sure what made me look. I think I actually just wanted to see if HE was on either. You know, it's not so much that he's engaged, yes, it DOES bother me, but what bothers me even more is that he bold face lied to me about it just a couple of months ago.

The more I think about it, the more I realize that my feelings aren't hurt so much because of what Dr. Boy's done, but what Nick did. He lied to me, betrayed me and manipulated me for months. I'd ask if he was seeing someone else, he'd say no and turn it back on me that I was insecure because I was seeing someone else and that that's why it was in my head. I did have other relationships when Nick and I were "on the outs", but I was NEVER with anyone else, or talked to anyone else when he and I were talking or spending time together, and I was completely honest with him about it.

It's just brought up a lot of feelings I thought I was done with.

Meme?

I was tagged by Sara, who I could kiss on the lips for introducing me to Google Reader! If you haven't checked it out yet, do it. Now. You can kiss me later, and then kiss Sara.


Five Habits Meme

What was I doing 10 years ago?
Jeez... I was 22 and that was quite a year. I left one okay paying job for a GREAT paying job, that didn't last and at the time I was crushed and defeated, but my mom gave me the option of moving back in with her and getting back to school full time. I'd been working for a couple of years and had been out on my own taking night classes at the local junior college. I started that Spring semester (1999) at UHCL and it turned out to be the best decision I could have made.

Five snacks I enjoy in a perfect, non-weight gaining world:
Ice cream
Pringles
Those fried jalapeno string thingies
Peanut M&Ms
French fries


Five snacks I enjoy in the real world:

Fiber One Yogurt
Kashi Go Lean cereal
Peanut butter granola bars
Sugar free pudding
Pretzels with peanut butter

Five things I would do if I were a billionaire:

Travel
Adopt a gaggle of children
Donate ridiculous amounts of money to charities like the ASPCA, Hopeline, and the LAF.
Buy a huge piece of property and rescue dogs
Set my family and myself up in a comfortable lifestyle-nothing too over the top, just comfortable


Five jobs I have had:

Exercise physiologist
Crisis Intervention Specialist at a Women's Shelter
Rehab coordinator
Substitute teacher
Compliance Officer

Five habits: (I'm so unoriginal on these things sometimes.)

First thing every morning, I check Myspace, email and Galleywinter (it all has to be done before the boss gets here)

My shower routine is a lot like Sara's. Wash hair and face, rinse, wash hair and body, rinse, condition hair and shave (or maybe not here lately), rinse.

Google Reader! I think I've said enough. Although, I rarely check it over the weekend... it makes for a very fruitful Monday morning. (It's the best invention EVER. Did I already mention that?)

I start every morning with a glass of Simply Apple juice on ice in the back yard while watching the dogs take care of their business.

While I'm getting ready in the mornings, the TV is tuned to GMA. I watched here and there for the last few years, but I've been addicted since Robin Roberts revealed she was battling breast cancer. It's refreshing to see the "cast" of the show really enjoy each other's company. And if they don't, they do a good job of acting like they do.

Five places I have lived:

Houston
Seabrook
Nacagdoches
La Porte
Lake Charles, LA

Five people I’d like to get to know better:
(Meaning, you're it!)
Christy H-The Second Step
Elise-Life's little ups and downs
Jenn-An intern's insanity
Angie-The Jackson 4
Amalia-A broken heart is the only way to be set free

Even if I didn't put you down here, I still want to know more about you!!

The spark.

We were walking from the main house to my garage apartment after our first date and he put his hand at the "small" of my back (it was certainly smaller then). That's when I felt it. It was like I'd been shocked with static electricity, but I felt it on the inside, not on the surface of my skin the way it usually feels.

And he said, "Did you feel that?"

And that's when I knew he was someone that was going to be very special to me.

God, I miss him.

"But a tan makes me look healthier..."

I can't tell you how many times I've heard that. Hell, I've probably said it myself. But does THIS look healthy? How about THIS?
Please watch this video clip.


I was all about the "savage tan" until a couple of years ago when I heard my friend Julie had melanoma, and when my mom's boyfriend and I had a long talk about skin cancer. He's had several bouts with basal cell carcinoma, and had one melanoma on his ankle. His never metastasized, thank goodness, but Julie's did. And fast.

THIS website contains very useful information on the different types of skin cancer. There are so many that it's pretty overwhelming.

Most of us are so young that we think we're invincible, that "it", whatever it may be, can't happen to us. Well, Julie was 35 when she died, leaving a husband and three young children. Hallie age 7, Jack age 4 and Kendall age 17 months. The second BTHO Melanoma benefit is September 14th and it's going to be weird without her there. The benefit was REALLY successful in raising money for various charities, and to help the Lyons family with travel expenses to Dallas for Julie's treatments. If you have anything you'd like to donate for the silent auction, please let me know, or send Angie an email through the BTHO website.

For you parents out there: Coolibar makes some great sun protective clothing for the kids, and for you, too.

I'll probably be back at some point to add to this post... There's a lot I want to say about the subject!