Writer's blah

You know how some writers sit at their computer or notebook and the words don't come? They read everything and anything and surf the Internet for inspiration while quietly glomming down pizza slices in an effort to break through their writer's block but to no avail. Yeah, that's not me.

I've been suffering from Writer's Blah. I have half written posts and pages in a notepad filled with blog topics but every time I attempted to post something I felt so meh and gave up. It's like when you're wearing your shabbiest undies and least favorite t-shirt and those jeans you spilled nail polish on because you haven't done laundry in a long-ass time so instead you plop down on the couch and play Candy Crush. Because doing laundry is so ugh.

Since I've been absent a lot has happened. My car has been given a bleak prognosis. Sleepy Hollow ended its season, which now leaves Monday nights open and boring. And Spock died. Christ, no wonder I've been laying low around here. No one wants to read depressive schlock.

On that note let's switch gears and talk about some happy, superficial, funny stuff.  Last week while driving around I came upon some cars with really cool bumper/window stickers. I followed one such car and snapped a quick pic with my phone. It's okay, we were both stopped at a traffic light.

We need 1.21 gigawatts and the flux capacitor!

I also saw a sticker on the back of another car that said: Fight the dead, Fear the living. Ya know, there's some truth to that one. Unfortunately I couldn't get a pic because the traffic lights and other drivers wouldn't cooperate.

Here's hoping that March is a better month filled with more snarky posts and less snow for those back East. And Shamrock Shakes for everyone!

The true meaning of Christmas

If you're in search of Christmas magic you should go see what's happening over here . An entire community of people helping those less fortunate provide a nice Christmas for their children. All in the name of a taxidermied boar, named after the 20th President of the U.S. Okay, so you need to be a follower of her blog to understand that last sentence.

It all started on Monday, December 15, with a simple post by The Bloggess: If you need help, or if you want to help. And from there it snowballed.

Some of the comments are heart-breaking. But the offered help and replies are truly humbling and show what Christmas is really about.

Those who have nothing to give are offering words of support and encouragement. Emails and holiday e-cards are being exchanged to those suffering from loneliness and despair. It's awe-inspiring and at the very least has restored many people's faith in humanity.

In addition, donations have been given to specifically named charities that help homeless children and help end world hunger and poverty.

The people (tribe as we are affectionately called) involved at this site have given more warm-fuzzies than the cuddliest of teddy bears. Just reading and watching from afar is like being wrapped in a fleece blanket while sipping hot chocolate. I half expect to hear a chorus of Who's singing Welcome Christmas.

So if you're cynical by nature or feeling Grinchy or Scrooge-like this season, know that there is good in the world. Sometimes you just have to look a little harder to find it. Sometimes it happens without much fanfare and across many miles and behind computer screens. But it's there.

This entire event has made believers out of us all that Santa Claus really does exist. And for the many, many children who will wake up Christmas morning to find presents under their tree when they (and especially their parents) didn't think there would be anything, the magic of Santa can continue.

And so ends NaBloPoMo for November 2014

Okay so I didn't blog for the entire month but 20 posts out of a possible 30 isn't so bad. Right? I think what's important is the effort made. Kind of like, it's the thought that counts.

If this were a school test I would have scored a B-. Or at the very least a C+. I wonder if I write two posts for today I could get some sort of extra credit. Yeah, like that's gonna happen. I couldn't even post every single day during the month so doing 2 posts on the last day would be like a Christmas miracle.

Anyway, it's been fun and I got to read some really great blogs in my reading travels that were written by more disciplined bloggers than me who actually wrote a blog post a day. Yeah some of you people are way awesomer than me.

 

So even though I feel like I'm crawling toward the NaBloPoMo finish line it's nice to know that I went through this with such a wonderful community of bloggers. And I can honestly look back to when I first signed on to do this and say, wtf was I thinking?

Here's a little celebratory Rah! Rah! gif to commemorate the occasion. We did it!

Source:giphy.com

I love this movie, but seriously when I say "We did it!" in my head it's less like Elle Woods and more like Grumpy Cat.

Now tell me, did anyone else blog for less than the whole month? Come on, don't leave me hanging here all alone.

This blog may sound funny but that's just how I tawk

My blog has a voice and it's all me. I write the way I talk.

I probably should have skipped this writing prompt and written about anything else

The first writing prompt for this month's NaBloPoMo is: Write about an amazing imaginary brand or organization you'd love to work with. I was going to skip this and write about something else because I'm not creative enough to think of an imaginary brand/organization. Then it hit me. Not so much hit me like a bus but more like the splat you get when a bird poops on you.

I speak in movie quotes so this seemed like a great idea. I would like to work with an organization dedicated to archiving random quotes from movies and television because let's face it there's a quote for just about every situation in life. We could have a phone number and  live people on hand to research the perfect quote or, a mobile app for instant access to our library database. This could seriously help benefit those with weak comeback responses.


Does something like this exist? It probably does. Which means I'm already screwing up NaBloPoMo. And the month just started!

In all seriousness, if I could work for any imaginary brand I'd like to work for Santa Claus. I could even learn to love all the cold and snow because of the great perks, like an endless supply of cookies from Mrs. C. Yes, I do love Christmas and all that it brings so working at the North Pole would be so much fun. Besides, everyone's always so jolly and happy, it would be better and cheaper than anti-depressants. Now, I'm not talking as an elf making the toys but I wouldn't mind being a journalist on the North Pole Gazette or contributing to their website.

And now that I've added to the full on rush of Christmas by mentioning it this early in November and also possibly traumatized any children reading this, I'm going to end right here and hope that my month and my posts get better. Maybe I should have asked the Great Pumpkin to bring me a list of acceptable topics to write about.

I'm committing myself, again, but to writing for NaBloPoMo not to an institution

I'm taking part in NaBloPoMo, again. NaBloPomo stands for National Blog Posting Month which means I'll be chained to my computer writing a post every day for the month of November or else the NaBloPolice come after me. I'm kidding but only about the police although you are expected to post daily or else why do this? I actively participated in the October 2013 one because I wanted to add unnecessary stress to my life. It wasn't so bad. Given the month and time of year, I had a lot of material to work with which is why my posts centered mainly on Halloween and Halloween-related things. This time around I might actually follow a few of their writing prompts because there's really only so much you can write about Thanksgiving before you lose your audience.

This is also a good way to commit myself to writing on a daily basis and let's face it I have been slacking off big time in that department. So here's to 30 days (give or take) of writing. Cheating by way of posting only gifs or jokes is optional. I made up that last rule, ya know, just in case.



 

How the hell did you find this blog?

Somehow a search term for non horror Halloween movies brought some people to my blog. So, not merely content with this being a cool thing, I went and conducted such a search using those keywords.

As it turns out I couldn't find myself. It figures. I gave up on page twenty-something of my Google search. The reason I kept going was because I wanted to see how far someone would go to find what they were looking for. But then that whole this-is-taking-too-long-I-can't-be-bothered-with-this took over and I gave up.

However, I did come across some interesting sites in relation to my search. Actually, it was more of my interpretation of them that was interesting. And a bit scary.

realmofryan - I read this as real mo fryan. Considering this was a search of non horror movies I thought a site about cooking was odd.
hecklerspray - And my instant reaction was, "Ew."
boombotix - Which I thought said boob o tix. I have no idea what I was thinking here. Perhaps it's time at last to see the eye doctor.
straightdope - Well, alright then.

I'm sure all of these sites are excellent and my reaction and comments are no reflection on them at all, in fact it says more about me and my knack for reading things wrong.

Also, I want to say that the referring sites that lead people to my blog are scary. I mean, We're gonna need a bigger boat, scary.

Up on your feet, somewhere there's music playing

Hey! How's Trix? Tricks?
I love asking that in lieu of "How are you?" even though it's a confusing question with a truckload of answers. Trix, as in the cereal? Good I guess, even though I had a bowl of Cocoa Pebbles this morning. Trix, as in Trixie, Alice Kramden's friend/neighbor on The Honeymooners? She's fine. She and Norton will be over for dinner. Tricks as in turning tricks? Whoa. See what I mean?

I haven't been blogging as much as I should be and not for lack of topics either. I have dozens scribbled away in a notebook and in my brain. Yesterday I stared at the screen for longer than seemed necessary and the words wouldn't come. Oh sure I could have slapped something together but that wouldn't be fair to anyone who comes here looking to be amused.

I've also been in a bit of a funk. Life hasn't been a bowl of cherries (or Trix) lately. It's time to get back to fun. So I have decided to include more Pop Culture references, particularly past faves from when I was younger. You will still get some serious posts and some goofy posts but also the fluff of entertainment thrown in. I promise no celebrity gossip; just lots of nostalgia and a few trips down memory lane.

Now, to start things off and tie this whole post together, I give you "One Day At A Time". Some of you (older) folks might remember this show about a single mom raising two teen-age girls and starring a very young Valerie Bertinelli. I used to watch it and hearing the theme song again made me smile and lifted my spirits. Okay, I sang along, too. I dare you not to; it's very catchy. The lyrics also helped me remember a few things.

This is life, the one you get so go and have a ball.

Busy, but not too busy for sweets

I've been busy. I'm sorry. Here, have a brownie...with powdered sugar on top. No, that isn't a bribe. But, is it working?

Okay, so school started on Monday. And then Tuesday was Chris's birthday. There's been notebooks and pencils and folders to buy. And cake to eat. And parental forms to fill out. And more cake. And homework to help with. But no more cake cause we ate it all.  ::boo boo face::

I've also been on some weird organizing/cleaning kick, which explains the neatnik status of my kid's room and also my closet. Still haven't gotten around to last school year's mess of papers and notebooks but I've concealed it nicely so it looks more like organized chaos and less like a school-nado ran through.

I've also got a touch of the blues, which might have something to do with summer ending. Even though our weather will stay summer-warm through September (Groundhog Summer), I still feel like it's a formal ending since Chris is back at school. So, with that in mind, I haven't felt much like blogging, despite having a notebook full of blogging ideas that practically write themselves, not to mention several drafts that need finishing.

I promise to get my butt in gear and post more. But first, more brownies! mmm good!

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PS: This is an image I borrowed. I did not bake these. Although, now I wish I did.

Hump Day confessions

I confess to the following:

My son starts Middle School on Monday and I'm a little anxious about it.

I've also fallen behind on my blogging which explains why I'm late to the link up today. Last week I had my post all written and published and then realized late in the day that I forgot to link up. Oy.

I caught one of those annoying summer colds that I'm just now getting over which has seriously sucked the fun out of end-of-summer plans.We still plan on getting some swimming in, though.

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 A few days ago my computer had a Windows update and long story short, my computer fizzled and wouldn't start up at reboot. So I uncharacteristically remained calm, consulted some sites via my phone and did a system recovery.  However, when I initially thought that I would have to bring her in to the computer doctor for a fix and what with the unexpected cost and inability to do  everything I do on here, for days, I did have a moment of panic. Now we're all good, thankfully.

Gifs courtesy of .reactiongifs.com

Hump Day Link Up

Hey I'm linking up with Kathy at Vodka and Soda for Hump Day confessions!

I confess in all seriousness that I don't know the hows or the whys but something I wrote was published on The Humor Daily. When (or if) you go to the site, scroll down. I'm 5th below the raccoons but 4 above the Fifty Cent post. I guess this is pretty cool.

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My son woke up with scary high blood sugar yesterday morning. He tried to take care of it by himself but then his insulin pump failed on him and in frustration and feeling sick to his stomach he finally came and got me. So so proud of him. For trying to handle it on his own. For dealing with his diabetes with such grace and bravery.

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When dinner was finished cooking I started eating immediately and despite blowing on it like Jack Frost in Winter, it still burned my tongue. If I wasn't so hungry I would've put it in the refrigerator for 10 minutes to cool down. Then I asked Bill, What's the opposite of a microwave? And he said, Cryogenics? And so I explained that if we have microwaves to instantly heat food there should be something to instantly cool food that's too hot to eat for the starving people. He just looked at me in that you need help way. I still think this is a good idea.

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That's all I got for ya this week. Feel free to share your confessions, antics, pizza. It's all good.

Hump Day Confessions

Hump Day confession time!

I freely admit to writing this post while munching on some peanut M & M's and watching Thor for the 87th time. No shame. None.

I confess that I sometimes choose a trashy novel based on the good-looking guy on the cover. However, when I scan the back cover to see what it's about, if the plot sounds too stoopid I will promptly put it back. I do need some substance, people! Still, check out these covers.

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I make a lot of Pop Culture references here on my blog and I confess that I have no plans to stop any time soon. Perhaps when I re-named my blog last November I should have gone with The Pop Culture Scribe.

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Last weekend I unplugged for a day and a half, meaning I took a break from my computer and the Internet. And while it felt a bit like I was missing an arm I did not regret it. At all. And I even went Old Skool and wrote with an actual pen and paper. 

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Gif source

Feel free to share your confessions, comments or, pizza with me.

Fun dream jobs

I read somewhere once that if you love what you do, you'll never work a day in your life. Or something like that. Makes sense to me because let's say you love make up. Then being a make up artist, or clown for that matter, would seem more like fun than a job.

So I got to thinking, what would I consider to be more fun than actual work? Some on this list of my dream jobs might look unrealistic but I'm sure there are people out there getting paid to do these things.

Mattress Tester
I would love to do this. Imagine getting paid to lay around and take a nap? The Simmons Beauty Sleep is comfy but I'm going to have to try the Serta Perfect Sleeper again. Wake me in 20 minutes. 

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Donut Taste Tester
This might not be the best job in our health conscious society but it sure would be the tastiest. Dunkin Donuts, do you have this position available? Call me.

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Race Car Driver
My love of speed and the lead foot my husband claims I have make me wish I could be a race car driver. Driving fast legally? Yes, please.

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80s Theme Party Consultant
I grew up in this decade so I know a thing or five about it. Music? Got it. Movies? Yep. Clothes? Ashamedly so. Still, I can make your party so, like, totally awesome!

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Right now, though, I'd settle for a work-at-home job that let's me write for a living while sitting on my comfy bed eating donuts. The only fast thing needed would be my internet connection.

Hump Day

So I was wondering, has a Priest ever fallen asleep during confession? Just curious. Forgive me, Father, for I have sinned. Yesterday at the grocery store I sampled a handful of grapes in the Produce Section without paying. I couldn't help it, they were so juicy and sweet! Father? Hello? *Snooooooore* I mean, that would be embarrassing, don't you think? Also, this was a totally made up scenario and not at all based on anything that I might have done. And now let's get to it, Hump Day Confessions of a Fearless Scribe.

There's nothing better than having a Bomb Pop on a hot summer night. Especially when a storm's brewing and lightning is all around. I'm one of those few weirdos who gets all excited for a good thunderstorm.

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Also, Bomb Pop sticks now have riddles on them. I guess this is more for the kids with popsicle juice dripping down their arms and not for the cynical grown up watching the sky light up. In case you can't read it, the riddle asks: What kind of tree would have the best bark? Answer: Dogwood.

Har Har

Been catching up on our movies by watching those we missed in the theaters because we were too busy/broke/undecided. So, thanks to the library (and my *cough* unwavering *cough* patience the last 5 months while waiting for these to become available) we got to see Gravity. I liked it. Bill thought it was okay. We also watched Captain Phillips, which was really good. Of course the guys loved the end with the Seal team. Oh hell, who am I kidding? I loved that part, too. And then of course, there was one night last week where Sixteen Candles and Jaws were on simultaneously. Both are excellent movies so how could I choose? I didn't and watched both.

Lastly, I'd like to send out some love (and Belgian chocolates) to the Humpday Link up lady herself because she's got the blogging blues. Kathy, this one's for you.

*source: reactiongifs.com

More readers from around the world

About six months ago I wrote about the page views I got from people in other countries. I thought I would check in again, and see who from around the world was reading my blog.

So, Hello to everyone (and anyone) in other countries. And thanks for reading!





*Translated hellos in blue are from me and thanks to wikitravel.

Entry	Pageviews
United States	175 Hey People!
Germany	16 Guten Tag!
United Kingdom	13 Hello from across the pond!
Canada	5 Eh!
Russia	3 Здравствуйте!
Turkey	3 Merhaba!
France	2 Merci for reading!
South Korea	2 Mannaseo Bangapseumnida!
Latvia	2 Sveiki!
Ukraine	2 Добрий день!

Hump Day Confessional

Confession time!

Thanks insurance company for making changes regarding my son's diabetic supplies that I only find out when I go to renew one of his prescriptions. One wasted pharmacy visit, 4 phone calls and two hours later...

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Some women buy lotsa shoes. Not me. I like handbags. I have a large one to stash a lot of junk in and a small one for nights on the town when you just need cash and cell phone. And then there are the in-between purses for quick runs to the store and such. I was in the market for a medium one that would be cute enough for those nights out to dinner, yet roomy enough to fit Chris' diabetes supplies. After driving Loss Prevention insane as they (quite possibly) watched me place my current handbag's contents into several of their store's purses, just to see if it would all fit, I finally found one. Score!

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Other than that it's hot as the surface of the sun here. I keep my butt in the a/c but when I do have to venture outdoors. Damn!

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That be all. Have a good week and stay cool.

Hump day confessional

Hump, hump, hump it up!!

So it's that time again. Ya know, that time where I confess all the news that's fit to print. I'll start by saying that I confess I'm still so honored that I was nominated for a Liebster Award. Just in case you didn't hear, see, or read about it earlier in the week on here. Yay! Award! Award! Award! Reminds me of that scene in Hocus Pocus.

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I confess that King Arthur got the royal heave-ho and has since been replaced with The Three Musketeers. As a backup I also took out 2 Calvin & Hobbes books from the library as well. One cannot go wrong with Calvin & Hobbes.

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This past Saturday night we ate at Johnny Rockets and I confess I was dis-a-ppointed. My burger was a little over-cooked, they took out all the individual jukeboxes, and when the counter person who took our order told me the price for just our 3 meals I had to hold on to the counter to keep from falling over. I looked at the husband and wanted to say "Give me money." like Kenickie did to Rizzo in Grease. The husband considered leaving but I was starving and in the end my stomach won out.

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I confess that I didn't link up with Vodka and Soda's Humpday confessional last week. Or the week before either because I was blogstipated.

*blogstipated (blog-stuh-peyt-id)

- adj

1. suffering from blogstipation.
2. subject to restriction or blockage in a flow of productive blogging.

*words and definitions by Sandypedia.

Ok, now it's your turn to 'fess up.

Me? A Liebster Nominee? Whoa.

A really big shout out (and a big batch of brownies) to Meg Evans for nominating The Fearless Scribe for the Liebster Award. The award recognizes new blogs or small blogs trying to grow up into bigger blogs. I appreciate this award and I'm happy to accept. Now for the rules all nominated blogs must follow under penalty of blog death (I'm kidding!):

1. Thank the blogger who gives it to you. (Thanks, Meg!)
2. Answer the eleven questions he/she asks.
3. Nominate eleven bloggers with less than 500 followers.
4. Ask these eleven bloggers eleven questions.
5. Let these eleven bloggers know that they have been nominated.

Here's what Meg asked me:

1 - If you had a time machine, when would you visit?

First, is my time machine a DeLorean? Because that would be so very cool. But to answer the question, I would visit a lot of different time periods like the Old West so I can ride a horse and say things like, "I reckon'" and "Howdy, Partner". I'd also like to go back to the 1920's and 30's and maybe visit a Speakeasy or see my grandparents when they were young. And of course the 1950's and 60's so I could drive a cool muscle car, drink milkshakes at the local soda shop and hang with the Greasers.

2- Do you have stuffed animals, real live pets, both, or neither.

I still have the first teddy bear my mom bought me when I was a baby scribe and I have all the stuffed animals Bill ever gave me because I'm a sentimental mush. The only live pets right now are Christopher's fishies.

3 - How do you most enjoy spending a rainy weekend?

Well, living out here in the desert, rainy weekends are few and far between but when it does rain I like hanging out with my guys, watching Iron Man or whatever action movie is on TV or playing a game.

4 - What's the most interesting wildlife you have seen near your home?

Do geckos and lizards count?

5 - Do you prefer jeans or sweatpants?

Jeans. Sweats make me feel messy and they don't have back pockets for me to shove my cell phone into. At least mine don't.

6 - Ever seen a ghost or had any other paranormal experience?

No, I have never seen a ghost. Any paranormal experience I've had could probably be debunked by the Ghosthunters.

7- What's your favorite outdoor activity?

Sitting outside in the sun. Preferably with a cold drink. And near a pool.

8 - Do you mostly read e-books or paper books?

I'm old-fashioned; I still read paper books. I don't own one of those Kindle or Nook things. Not that there's anything wrong with them it's just...technology and let's face it I just got the hang of using Netflix on my phone so, baby steps.

9 - Most memorable thing you ever did with your hair?

I once had gold highlights in my hair, which looked pretty good except that it made my hair dry and I had to use a crap ton of conditioner for a while to get it healthy again.


10 - What comfort food do you find most comforting?

This is a hard one. I mean seriously, I'm doing the 'my head's about to explode' face my son does when he has to write an essay for school. There's just too many and listing them all would sound like what's being served at one of our casino's all-you-can-eat buffets.

11 - Do you have anything in your house that is completely useless, but you kept it anyway for sentimental reasons?

Is this a trick question? No really, did my husband put you up to this?


I am nominating the following blogs. Please go check them out and send them love. If any of them have already been nominated in the past then, Hurray, you're twice as Liebster-y!

The Dubious Hausfrau 
Sketchy Notions
Downsizing
The Rant
Eternally Wanderlyn
Wilde in the City
rubypearl
The Mad Mommy
Nothing but a Pigeon
Rubber Shoes in Hell
Another Clean Slate


My questions for the nominees are:
 

1. How did you come by your blog's name?
2. If money were no object and you could leave tomorrow, where would you go?
3. What is the best meal you've ever eaten?
4. Name 1 TV show you are currently addicted to that you would growl and bare teeth if someone interrupted you while you were watching?
5. What is your dream car and what do you drive in reality?
6. One thing you can't possibly live without?
7. Coffee or tea?
8. I write because ______________?
9. What is your go-to song when you need cheering up?
10. What is your favorite season?
11. Will you bake me cookies and overnight them? Pretty please?

Thanks again, Meg, and woo-hoo to the nominated bloggers!

Come along on a fearless virtual blog tour

I love when readers leave comments.  It's like when you're out somewhere and someone tells you hey, I like your shoes and you're all thanks and they're so comfy, too and then you smile and feel good because of the compliment.

This is how I felt when I logged on here one day last week and saw this monster comment someone left me. The long and short of it is that the commenter found my blog, gave me some compliments and offered some advice. When I hopped over to her blog I knew I had to feature her on a Fearless Friday post.

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Meet Meg Evans from megevans.com where she writes stories and essays about life. Meg is on a mission to travel the Interwebz on what she calls a Random Kindness Blog Tour. (Rock and Roll! sorry.) Her plan is to visit a different blog (those with a positive focus) every day for a year. I'm honored to be the April 20th stop on her tour.

What makes her fearless is her resolve to find a new, positive blog every single day and then leave a sweet comment for the author. That's a mighty tall order considering many of us (a few of us? okay, just me) can't even post every day in their own blog.

Meg told me her main fear was the commitment and not being able to keep up with it but so far she's been fearlessly on track and has enjoyed making new friends along the way.

Visiting many different blogs and leaving a comment is a fearless act because you never know if what you say to another blogger will be read, let alone received well or, ignored altogether. I, on the other hand, find it easiest to just offer bribes. (Leave a comment, get a cookie!)


Check out her on-going tour here. Leave her some love and maybe do a blog crawl (similar to a pub crawl only with less booze and no hangover) of the blogs she's discovered.

Hump day confessional

It's that time again. What, what?

I confess now that Justified has officially ended it's fifth season I'm at a loss on Tuesday nights. However, I still have season 4 to watch (which I missed because I'm an idiot) so I can still get my Raylan Givens fix.

 Dude's got some serious swagger goin' on. Ignore the gunfire in the background. (I know, what gunfire, right?)


I confess that I read a trashy Lora Leigh novel in a day and a half and am following it up with the latest Lucky Santangelo novel by Jackie Collins. Great way to spend an afternoon.

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I also confess that I'm behind on my blogging and even though I have Friday's fearless post written in my head I have yet to type it up. And by written in my head I mean kinda sorta sketched out in rough format.


I further confess that I've been holding in a pee for the last half hour while I try to finish up this post which has taken some time as I was going through a crap ton of Justified gifs and as soon as this is done I'm making a run for the bathroom. You didn't need to know that but in the interest of a full on confessional I thought I would toss it out there. Plus, I thought it was funny.


Got anything to confess?