Thursday, August 21, 2008

One hundred

One hundred. It’s a pretty big number. And for those who started reading my blog at its inception, pat yourselves on the back. You’ve endured ninety-nine posts so far. Today is the big one-oh-oh.

To commemorate, I decided to list 100 things I love. I’m not listing the obvious—such as God, country and my family. Instead, this is a quirky compilation of things or people or items in pop culture I enjoy, find amusing, or absolutely love.

Here goes, in no particular order:

1. the first page of a book
2. s’mores
3. down pillows
4. a freshly pressed white shirt
5. babies
6. old blue jeans
7. dancing
8. thunderstorms
9. my critique partners
10. British comedies
11. mint
12. music by Jack Johnson
13. salad
14. the beach
15. writing
16. lightly sweetened tea
17. antiques
18. DVR
19. homemade bread
20. chick flicks
21. email
22. grilled salmon
23. smocked dresses on little girls
24. Moonlight Path body lotion from Bath & Body
25. singing in the car
26. soccer
27. uninterrupted sleep
28. the South
29. corn-on-the-cob
30. bare feet
31. happy endings
32. a massage
33. starlit nights
34. teenagers
35. jigsaw puzzles
36. cookie dough
37. music by John Mayer
38. black and white photos
39. motorcycles
40. acoustic guitars
41. cotton T-shirts
42. patience
43. acknowledgements in books
44. firemen
45. Coke from Sonic
46. caller i.d.
47. kissing
48. quiet
49. tire swings
50. steam-in-the bag microwave veggies
51. manners
52. a full tank of gas
53. laughter
54. a moment to myself
55. iTunes
56. Autumn
57. professional football
58. traveling
59. handwritten thank you notes
60. watermelon
61. music by Jason Mraz
62. bracelets
63. embroidered handkerchiefs
64. Tyler candle “Intense”
65. used-book stores
66. local morning drive-time radio shows
67. smiles
68. flea markets
69. 70 MPH speed limits
70. sandals
71. money in the mail
72. hammocks
73. old houses
74. a great joke
75. the color blue
76. Netflix
77. scrapbooks
78. waiters
79. office supplies
80. bonfires
81. online banking
82. tulips
83. girls’ weekends away
84. my laptop
85. photography
86. MINI Coopers
87. farmers’ markets
88. journals
89. an organized closet
90. clean sheets
91. a great haircut
92. sincere compliments
93. hot water
94. antique roses
95. the last page of a book
96. fishing
97. weekends
98. Golden Retrievers
99. linen skirts
100. shade trees

Sunday, August 10, 2008

My decorating consultant should be fired

I’ve gone through a few decorating trends in my day. A very brief brush with everything wallpaper about 20 years ago. And the mauve era that thankfully went away. Now I like anything that reminds me of the beach—blue and white, sea shells, life guards. Yeah, I know. Who decorates with life guards? That’s just my imagination working overtime. I keep the beach-look minimalist since we live in Texas, but I do love the clean colors.

My daughter is often my shopping companion, and she likes to help me choose things for the house. She assisted with a recent fabric purchase when I made new curtains for the den. And now she’s campaigning for a redo of her bedroom. I’m not sure why. She’s rarely in there. She spent last night sleeping on a pallet on the floor next to my bed.

She wants me to paint her room pink. Right now it’s a lovely combination of periwinkle blue (my favorite color) and white. I stalled her with, “You keep your room clean, and we’ll paint it.” Seemed like a fair trade. Two months later…it’s still blue and white.

I really can’t trust her decorating judgment due to a recent discovery in my bathroom. I asked her, “What’s up with the naked Barbies on my doorknobs?” She giggled. She couldn’t come up with a good reason, other than she thought they were funny. Me too. But I doubt Martha would share the laugh with us.

Tuesday, August 5, 2008

Thank you, John Mayer

Last Friday, my husband and I along with our two sons attended a John Mayer concert in Dallas. The last concert we’d been to was 1990 BC when we saw Hall and Oates in Huntsville, Alabama. After having children, our concerts were limited to those presented by children during holidays or at the end of the school year. No one held up lighters and you almost never smelled marijuana, although having someone vomit on you was a distinct possibility. But it wouldn’t be from someone who’d consumed too much beer—rather a baby with a sour stomach.

Now our boys are teenagers and big fans of music we also like by artists such as John Mayer, Jack Johnson, Jason Mraz and others. When I saw that John Mayer was coming to town, I bought tickets the day they went on sale. The concert became a summer highlight we looked forward to for weeks.

The outdoor venue was sold out and the temperature hovered around 100 degrees when the concert began. Colbie Callet warmed up the crowd and then out came John sans shirt. Thank you, Texas heatwave! Even though we didn’t have front row seats, I could appreciate the man’s dedication to his workout routine. For two hours, we moved and grooved to his extremely entertaining set. (Click on his name above to open the link to his website, then click on the fourth "official photo.")

The only dark cloud was the pair of 20-somethings standing behind me who talked incessantly. I turned and glared, hoping the girls would get the hint, but they didn’t. Who pays $60 for a seat at a concert and then doesn’t listen to the music? I tolerated it through the first song or two and then I couldn’t take it. I turned around and said, very nicely through my clenched teeth, “Would you please stop talking?” One of them said to me, “Sorr-rry!” not a bit sorry. I have kids. I know sarcasm. So I turned back around to them and said, “I’m trying to hear the concert and all I hear is you. Talking!” As I turned back to face the stage, I heard a backup comment from her boyfriend. “You are talking too much,” he said. Thankfully, they stopped. I kept waiting for her to pour her beer down my back, but at $6 a cup, she thought better of it.

So, I made two enemies whom I’ll never see again, but at least they quit talking and we were able to enjoy the concert. We’ll see what excitement awaits us at the Jason Mraz concert in October. Wonder if he’ll wear a shirt…