Tacky Christmas

First off let me say that I know it's been like 12 years since I've posted anything, but I'VE BEEN BUSY. I know, I know. I'm really doing this post for Sistah cause I know how much she has been missing reading my posts. (ha) love you, sistah.

Secondly, the above picture really has to be the worst picture I've ever taken. We all went to a tacky Christmas sweater party last night and everybody was wearing some horrible holiday clothing, Of course I had to take 103 pictures. I'm not really sure what happened in this particular picture, but the camera captured Ruth at the .... perfect? no, that's not the word I want.... at the opportune moment. I swear... Ruth morphed into some alien fat being here. I can't look at it for more than 3 seconds or my eyes start to bleed.

Anyway, here is a picture of Jeremy and I dressed in lovely sweaters. (gag) We look perfectly tacky and straight from 1993. Also you should know that we both made our sweaters. Heck yes, we have awesome puffy paint skillz.

Google Ads Gone Wild

RUTH????!!!!

What in the world have you been blogging about?

Ruth has signed up for Google AdSense or whatever that thing is called where it posts ads related to whatever you have blogged. It's a really clever idea for google... I'm sure they make tons of money by their little deal.

Anyway I was browsing through Ruth's blog the other day and I look over at the ad glaring me in the face. WHAT? What kind of ad is this on my baby sister's blog. Holy crap!!!

She claims that she hasn't written anything out of the ordinary. I guess Google decided to go a little wild and crazy for the day.

"Geez, Ruth... you should censor your stuff more... kids could be reading your blog!!!"

Mr. Sandman, Bring me a dream...

Since Ruth decided to share her horrific dream she had about me the other night on her blog, I decided that I needed to share my dream about her. We must have some weird sister brain connection cause we had these dreams on the same night.

Here is my dream about her:

Ruth and I were in this huge hotel .... I have no idea why... and Ruth thought it would be a great idea to try heroin. She said that being pregnant made her have this huge craving for heroin and she just had to try it. So she orders some from room service and they brought it up to her. I begged and pleaded with her do not do it. "please, please don't do that heroin, Ruth. It's bad for the babies. You have to think about them over your cravings." But she wouldn't listen to me.. she just had to try it. So I left Ruth and the twins with the heroin.

The rest of my dream consisted of my car being stolen from the parking deck of the hotel. I was devastated cause my Mac was in the car.

So that's it. That's my story about my dream.

I am a cannibal and Ruth likes heroin.

FNP-BC

The past few weeks I've been getting all my paperwork together to renew my nurse practitioners certification. I have to renew every 5 years in order to keep my board certification status. The part that kills me about it... it's time for me to renew. 

I have been a nurse practitioner for 5 years now.

That's really hard for me to believe. It feels like I just finished my undergrad. But oh no!!!... that was 7 years ago. 

When about things like that... about how fast time is going... it makes me realize how short life is. Yeah, I get all sentimental and reflective. I like to look back on my life thus far and evaluate how things have gone. 

I'm not really sure what the point of this entry is... just some thoughts I've had floating in my head today. 

IDENTICAL Twinsies

yeah... so Ruth thought her twins were fraternal...

PSYCH. 

They have been indeed confirmed as identical. 

So many cool surprises over the past 12 weeks....

hehehehe.

check out Ruth's page for the details and ultrasound video.

New Job New Job

Blast... this is only the second blog entry for the month of June. hmmm... i  have 5 days to smash some in here.....

which brings me to talk about my new job. Yes, I have a new part-time job. I still work at my old job of the past five years, faithful employee at Grayson & Assoc, but I have cut that back to three days a week. Which leaves me with two extra days.... 

I'm not exactly sure what my title is: Medical Home Assessment Nurse Practitioner? or maybe something like..... Random Nurse Who Comes to Your House to Ask You 200034 Random Questions. That one sounds better. 

Let me give you the run down of what I do. We've all been hearing/reading about new plans for healthcare right? Well, I would like to think that I am of the chosen few who are putting those plans into action in a tiny form in our neck of the woods here in Bama. I am employed by VivaHealth which happens to be a cutout (another form) of Medicare. Oh blessed Medicare. Much medical research has shown that 12% of all medical spending in the US goes towards diabetic care. 12 freaking %... that's alot just for one medical problem. So it's probably a good idea to figure out how we can crack down on medical costs for one of the big spenders... diabetes.. and most people with diabetes are on Medicare. So we have this glorious plan with diabetic Medicare patients......

MY JOB in the grand scheme of things is to go to each individual patient's home and assess them: how they are doing, is their blood work up to date, do they check their sugars. Actually I'm more like an auditor.. I get to review the primary physician's orders and such and then compare it to how I think the patient is currently doing. If I don't think they are doing so well and need further testing or the MD needs to check up on certain things, then I get to make suggestions about what they need to do. I send all this info back to Medicare and they in turn send my "suggestions" to the MD. Isn't that so nice? Just another check and balance in our lovely world. 

Alabama is one of 7 states piloting this new program... and Jefferson County is the only area in AL. There are 4 of us NPs traveling around Jeff Co.... I believe there are around 1300 people JUST in Jeff Co who are in this program (told ya there are lots of diabetics in the country). 

So far the new job is going great... I'm getting the hang of everything. The only down side that I have seen so far is the heat. Tuesday I saw 7 patients... 2 of the 7 had AC in their house. FOR REAL. I was sweating the entire day. Not perspiring, but gushing sweat. It was disgusting. I don't know how those old people do it. 

I"m off again tomorrow to see more patients .... hopefully this new plan will bring some change to our sick country. At least to the diabetics. 

Ruth is having TWINSIES

Crazy news that smacks you upside the head. 

My little tiny baby sister is PREGGO.. with TWINS.

Yeah, I know it's been awhile since I've posted but life has been too busy lately. But I have some newsworthy news that just absolutely has to be posted. 

Memorial Day weekend Ruth exploded with the news that she was pregnant. Yeah!!! Little did we know that more news would be coming. 

Ruth had her first ultrasound last Friday... and that's when they realized that Baby Charleston has some company... Baby Bermuda. 

Needless to say we are all crazy with excitement and thrilled over the twins. 

Head over to Ruth's page for all the hilarious details and more ultrasound pics. 

And yes, I plan on spoiling the little twinkies ROTTEN. Rotten, I say. They will run around my house naked like two little hooligans and throw mud on each other and eat all the chocolate in the world. 

B.E.R.M.U.D.A

WOW

OMG

There really isn't enough space on my blog to explain in detail the fabulousness of Bermuda. No way. And no way can I fit all the pics on here. For my friends on facebook... you have full access to all pictures. I think there were around 1749 in total. Something like that anyway. Since I have no idea how to write out everything I'm just gonna be straightforward and do it calendar style.

Saturday: Arrive in Charleston and sail away on the NCL Majesty.

Sunday: Day at Sea

Monday: Arrive in BERMUDA, Cave Exploring with a special swim in a cave lagoon (the coldest water I've ever been in)

Tuesday: Tour of the Dockyard Keep and Fort, shopping for Glassworks and Rum cakes

Wednesday: Horseshoe Bay Day rained out, but replaced with complete personal tour of island

Thursday: Shopping in St. George, sail away from the glorious island (boo hoo)

Friday: Day at Sea

Saturday: Back to the Ham *sigh

I've posted a few of the pictures... enjoy... and be jealous.

Playing around at the Unfinished Church in St. George

At the Dockyards

Coming into St. George, Bermuda via the CUT. Yes our huge boat went through that tiny little cut in the island

Home...NCL Majesty

Formal night

St. George

S.A.N.E.

I'm now officially a Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner for the Birmingham Crisis Center!!!! 

After three days of training and supervised performance, I have passed the requirements to work as a SANE. 

In case you don't know what exactly what that means... here's a little explanation: 

As a SANE, I will be responsible for gathering evidence from a sexual assault victim that could be used in court for conviction. 

Yeah, I feel a little bit SVUish. 

It a tough job, but I'm so glad that I can use my education and skills as a nurse to help my community. 

If you would like more information or would be interested in volunteering at the Crisis Center, then check it out HERE

Cinco de Mayo

ok...

so let's get something straight about this so called Mexican holiday that Americans LOVE to celebrate. 

It's NOT a holiday in Mexico. Most of my friends in Mexico do absolutely nothing on this day. No partying, no tequila... NADA. 

So what is the 5th of May? Why the big deal? 

Well, honestly, I think us Americans like to use any excuse we can to get a party going .... 

And that's all well and good, but let's get our facts straight. 

Most people think that May 5 is Independence Day for Mexico. WRONG... actually it's September 15. Write that down. 

This is what happened on May 5, 1862: 4,000 Mexican soldiers smashed the French and traitor Mexican army of 8,000 soldiers at Puebla, Mexico.  The Mexicans had won a great victory that kept Napoleon III from supplying the confederate rebels for another year, allowing the United States to build the greatest army the world had ever seen. This grand army smashed the Confederates at Gettysburg just 14 months after the battle of Puebla, essentially ending the Civil War.

That's the short little story on Cinco de Mayo. 

SHOUT out to all my amigos in México. Te quiero mucho!!

Kayaking the Coosa

Yesterday I had the opportunity to kayak down the Coosa River in Wetumpka. 

FABULOUS. 

We put in around 10 or so and traveled down the river for about 3 hours and went through a series of rapids. Not quite like the Ocoee but enough to get your heart pounding. 

I definitely did not put on enough sun screen but that's just one of the hazards of the river, I guess. Nothing I can't live through. 

I've posted a few pictures... all the pictures are on my Facebook so if you're dying to see more... head on over to my facebook. 

Look closely and you'll see that this guy has his DOG with him, yes his dog. The dog was wearing a life vest that was strapped to the kayak. Absolutely crazy. Apparently the dog is an adrenaline junkie and likes to shoot the rapids. Pretty crazy, I tell you.

Russ and I hanging out at the Gap. 

Our kayak

Streptococcal pharyngitis

blllahhhh.....

Tuesday morning I wake up and I feel like someone has removed my tonsils with a spork. (you know what a spork is right? The utensil that is a spoon and fork combined.)

I had no warning... no precursors. 

This wasn't your normal "oh my throat feels scratchy.. cough cough." No this was true pain that made my eyes water. 

I knew... I knew that it was strep throat. And the dread swept over me.... 

But then I started to consider the pros of the situation:

1. I was contagious so work was out of the picture. SCORE

2. I knew that medication would knock it out in a few short days.. so I wouldn't have to go through the cough/cold symptoms of a normal sore throat.

3. I would receive pity from friends and family... poor poor me. 

So even though my throat was on fire for about two days, it hasn't been that bad. 

I've been compliant in taking my Zpak and it has successfully knocked out the bacteria. 

Also another pro: I was able to sleep for 12 hours last night.. it was fabulous. 

bye bye, strep throat. 

Better strep throat than swine flu. 

Evil Little Sister

Ruth recounts a story from my past that I have tried so desperately to bury in the depths of my mind. This was a very hard day for me... 

and it was all Ruth's fault. 

Read about it here.

Bought Air

I'm so cheap. 

For those of you around the B'ham area, I'm sure you've noticed in the increase in temperature the past week or so. You know, the average being around 82-84. 

It's hard to know what to do when the temp is hovering around in that area. Do you turn on the AC or just keep the windows/doors open all day?? 

For most, there's an obvious answer: just open the windows and let the breeze come in for awhile.. no problem... you never even have to touch the AC. 

Well, in my cozy little apartment here in Southside I don't have that option. I don't think the windows have been opened since 1964. There's probably 26 coats of paint over the window. No way on earth am I getting those bad boys open. 

So what am I supposed to do? My inner being aches to have the windows open... but NO. The only option that is left for me: turn on the AC. 

If I don't then I will be laying in bed, no covers, sweating. 

And the whole time I'll be thinking... I'm spending money on stupid cool air when there's plenty of nice chill air right outside my window. But oh wait!! I can't open my windows. 

Yes, I have been stewing about this for awhile today. 

I REFUSE to turn on the AC. I'm not gonna do it. 

..........................

*sigh ... i'm starting to sweat. 

Read. It. Now.

Just so you know...

this is the funniest blog on the face of the planet so I strongly recommend  that you read it... everyday. 

If you don't - then you're a loser. 

www.hermajestyblue.blogspot.com

Grrrr... LOST

All day I have been looking forward to watching LOST tonight. Every since dinner I have been sitting here waiting in expectation for the show to start. 

And what do I get? 

A freaking LOST recap thingy or whatever. 

My heart broke into a thousand pieces...

Even Clem is sad. 

*sigh

At least I'm wearing my Five Fingers right now.. that makes the pain a little better. 

I guess I'll just go to bed.... 

Five Fingers

What? 

What is that? 

I don't understand....

How do they work?

What are they for? 

It's so weird!!!!

All of these are common responses when one first lays eyes on the Vibram Five Fingers shoes. Don't feel bad if you had that response. It happens to everyone. 

So what exactly are Five Fingers? That's a great question.

A few weeks ago, Ruth and I were in the car and she brought up the shoes... saying that Malinda had told her about them and they look really weird, but kinda cool.. blah blah blah.

So I decided to have a gander at them... see what all the commotion was about. And BAM, my world was changed when I saw the website. 

It's like being barefoot but with your foot protected. Ah! I love it. Life doesn't get any better than that. I have always LOVED being barefoot. During the winter months, I try to wear the least amount of footwear that I can get away with. 

It was a little weird when I first put them on my feet. It took me awhile to get each toe placed correctly. Once fitted properly... it's like your feet can breathe. The feel FREE. 

So now I wear them every chance I get. Come home from work: 5 Fingers on. And they stay on till it's time for bed. You can run, hike, climb, flip, jump, EVERYTHING in them. I wish I could take them to work, but that might be a little weird. 

Go check out the website.  www.vibramfivefingers.com 

Order a pair. 

Guys can wear them too. 

You'll be the coolest person on your block - I promise. 

Shout out to Ruth, Mom, and Amy. Our 5 Fingers are awesome.

 

Oh my darlin', Clementine

I have a new addition to my little family here in Birmingham. 

Her name is Clementine.

And she is the best dog on the face of the planet. 

I adopted Clemmie this past Friday from a local foster home here in town. She has been in foster care for about four years now. Let me tell you her story: 

Clementine was found in downtown Birmingham underneath a BFI container with her puppies. She was only about 6 months old at the time and had sustained injuries to her right eye. The foster care owner found Clemmie in this junk yard right after a man had stabbed her in the eye while she was trying to protect her puppies. The owner took Clemmie to the vet immediately but they were unable to completely save her eye so she is now partially blind. 

She has been in foster care since that time. 

I had gone to the home in hopes of adopting another dog that I saw online, but it wasn't such a good match. Then out came Clementine and she just hopped in my car and that was it. 

I swear, she is the best behaved dog I have ever seen. She obeys everything and is so calm. Actually, she is pretty lazy but loves to be outside and explore.

All in all, she is fabulous and we are so glad that she is here.  

She is still a little bit shy so she won't come into my room completely. She likes to sit and watch at a distance. In this pic, you can tell that her right eye doesn't work at 100%

The chair is one of her favorite spots to sleep. 

Once again, her being lazy.

The foster care owner had named her Millie but I wasn't particularly fond of that name so I renamed her Clementine. I like the old school, redneck names for dogs. I know everyone is familiar with the song about Clementine... at least the chorus part. I googled the song the other day and actually it's a sad song, but kinda funny. Here are the lyrics:

In a cavern, in a canyon excavating for a mine,

Dwelt a miner, forty niner and his daughter Clementine.

Oh my darling, oh my darling, oh my darling Clementine.

Thou are lost and gone forever, dreadful sorry, Clementine

Light she was and like a fairy, and her shoes were number nine,

Herring boxes without topses sandals were for Clementine

Drove she ducklings to the water every morning just at nine,

Hit her foot against a splinter, fell into the foaming brine.

Ruby lips above the water, But alas I was no swimmer, so I lost my Clementine

In my dreams she still doth haunt me, robbed in garments soaked in brine.

Though in life I used to hug her, Now's she dead I draw the line.

Blue Angels = OMG

Yesterday, I went to Tuscaloosa with a group friends to see the Blue Angels. 

OMG OMG

I've watching a few air shows on the TV, but have never seen one in person. It was incredible. There wasn't much fun in getting up early on a Saturday, but it was totally worth it. 

The show started around 1030 with some paratroopers and ended at 4pm with the Blue Angels. My nose is definitely feeling the affects from the sun (Yes, Mom, I put on sunscreen. Twice. 30 SPF) So those of you who have to look at me with a peeling nose, I apologize. 

We had an awesome set up all day. A friend of a friends who works in T-town was able to reserve a parking lot of us that was right near the airport.... I could see the air strip from where I was sitting. So we brought a grill that had never ending food... we had chairs to lounge up in. It was wonderful. 

A perfect Saturday, if you will. (That sounded cheesy)

It was so bright outside I couldn't see anything. That's Clementine in the background.

Part of the pre-show

BLUE ANGELS. If you look closely, you 'll notice that two planes are flying upside down. 

Yes, they are flying inches apart.

Right Brain?

Every day I check my blog to see if anyone's commented on a post or if some of my favs have been updated. You know, the normal web surfing around junk. 

And almost every day I get kinda bummed cause I realize that my blog is totally not creative. I definitely do not have the gift of writing. I have a lot of things that sound really funny and entertaining in my head, but then not so much when I write it out. 

I understand that I am mostly left brained.... I get that about me and I completely accept that. It's okay to be like me. But I've got to do something to spice up my blog. 

Ha. 

I go throughout my day seeing different things, experiencing certain moments and wonder "hmm... could I blog about that? or what about this? would this be cool to write?" 

Usually those thoughts fizzle out into nothing before I can get to my blogspot to record the magnificent event. 

ohhhh well. I'll leave all the cool blogging up to ya'll right-brained folks. 

I'll just be sitting here on my couch with Clementine (I'll introduce her soon enough) watching some flicks. 

Good ole Friday night with my left-brain.

Peace out.

Reality TV ???

AKA Trash TV

Yeah, we all watch it in some form or another. 

This afternoon I turned on the TV and the only thing on was reality TV. I got stuck on VH1 which seems to be the worse channel on Sundays for reality TV. 

I couldn't stop laughing about how stupid these shows have become. It is so ridiculous. Look at these titles:

(For the Love of Ray J, I Love Money, Tool Academy, Rock of Love Bus, Tough Love, Flavor of Love, Double Shot at Love... and so on and so on)

And of course there are the shows like "The City, The Hills (which I love), From G's to Gents" And also the original reality show which is still airing: The Real World

My question is... "do these people really think they look good?" "do they honestly think they look intelligent or attractive?" 

It cracks me up that people would actually apply to be on a shows like these, go to CA, and spend 6 weeks trying to fall in love with whatever person. Do they really think that doing that would be a good, wise, responsible choice for their future? 

People are STUPID, people are RIDICULOUS, people are MORONIC. 

But then again, I'm pretty stupid to be sitting here watching this crap. 

Geneva

I'm sure most everyone has heard about the fatal shootings in south Alabama. In Kinston, Samson, and Geneva. 

Well, Geneva is my hometown... 

Known for the Festival on the Rivers and the Old Oak Tree.

But now also known for a random shooting spree on March 10. 

I never imagined things like that could happen in my quiet, little hometown of 4,400. 

My thoughts and prayers go out to all the families of the victims and the communities as they work through this tragedy. 

Feelings about LOST

I've been thinking about Wednesday's episode of LOST for the past two days. I'm kinda unsure of my feelings at this point... something just feels a little bit off. I'm trying to think of how to explain, but it's hard. Let me give you an example to describe these feelings and thoughts in my head: 

Think about SUMMER CAMP. 

You go to camp for a week one summer and you have an amazing experience. 7 days of so much excitement and fun and self-discovery. You meet some of the coolest people on the face of the planet and your heart instantly connects with them. You had no idea camp could be so cool!!!! It breaks your heart to have to leave. You never imagined camp could be so fabulous. You leave camp and start planning for next year's summer camp experience. There is this expectation that you will be able to pick right back up where things left off. You spend all year thinking about next summer... of being able to see your friends again and having that same experience. 12 months later... IT's TIME!!! CAMP. You get all ready and excitement is coming from every pore in your body. Finally the day arrives and it's time to return. 

Here comes the hard part... you ride through the gates of the camp, step out of the car, let everything settle for a minute... and then you realize that it is NOT the same. Many things have changed over the year... some of your friends have not returned, the counselors are different, the old cabins have been torn down and replaced with new dormitory thingys. The great things of last summer are gone. And the disappointment sets in.... the crushing disappointment.

I don't know if you've had this experience before... if you've ever been to summer camp, then I hope you know what I'm trying to say here. 

This is how I feel about LOST right now. I feel like everything of the previous seasons is gone. Nothing is the same. The group has been separated for so long that now they are not fighting for the same things anymore. They are almost like strangers to each other. Awkward. It feels like a different show. 

I'm know I'm being all dramatic but I have a lot of time invested into this stupid show that has me wrapped around it's finger. Sigh. 

Stupid LOST. 

Ruth, it's your fault that I got involved. I blame it all on you. 

Snowy Snowerson

yes sir, yes sir

It snowed yesterday in the Ham and we had a glorious time. 

I woke up Sunday morning, jumped out of bed, ripped open the blinds, and my eyes sparkled at the reflection of the sunlight off the many inches of snow (actually it was only about 3 inches, but it felt like 3 feet). 

It was so crazy to see huge, gi-normous snowflakes falling from the sky and alighting on my face. As soon as it touched me it turned to water and made me extremely cold, but that's beside the point. Super, awesome fun. Here are some pictures of the wintery landscape that I experienced yesterday:

looking down Niazuma outside my apartment

a nice little snowman greeter outside California Pizza Kitchen

snowy snow

outside Church of the Highlands

along side I-65

yeah! for the beautiful snow. (But I'm ready for the warmer weather)

Sista

I hope you've noticed my fabulous new page design up at the top there. Yeah, it's pretty cool, I know. You can say it. 

All the credit goes to my little sister, Ruth Tinsley. 

Ruth is a graphic designer here in Birmingham via her very own company, Bogue & Weejer. Ruth can pump out some pretty butt-kickin' designs and this is just one prime example. She probably cranked this particular one out in about 6 minutes 37 seconds. Perfect for my blog. 

So shout out to my little sis.... thanks for making it for me!!!! 

You are the best sista EVA. 

Love you.

oh yeah... she also came up with the name of my blog. But my name really is Mooser.

My South

I saw this posting on my sister's blog today (www.bogueandweejer.blogspot.com) and thought it was pretty darn funny so I wanted to share it with ya'll...



This was written by Robert St. John, executive chef and owner of the Purple Parrot Cafe, Crescent City Grill and Mahogany Bar of Hattiesburg, MS.

Thirty years ago I visited my first cousin in Virginia. While hanging out with his friend, the discussion turned to popular movies of the day. When I offered my two-cents on the authenticity and social relevance of the movie Billy Jack, one of the boys asked, in all seriousness; "Do you guys have movie theaters down there?" To which I replied, "Yep. We wear shoes too."

Just three years ago, my wife and I were attending a food and wine seminar in Aspen, Colo. We were seated with two couples from Las Vegas. One of the Glitter Gulch gals was amused and downright rude when I described our restaurant as a fine-dining restaurant. "Mississippi doesn't have fine-dining restaurants!" she insisted and nudged her companion. I fought back the strong desire to mention that she lived in the land that invented the 99-cent breakfast buffet.

I wanted badly to defend my state, my region, and my restaurant with a 15-minute soliloquy and public relations rant that would surely change her mind. It was at that precise moment that I was hit with a blinding jolt of enlightenment, and in a moment of complete and absolute clarity, it dawned on me -- my South is the best-kept secret in the country. Why would I try to win this woman over? She might move down here.

I am always amused by Hollywood's interpretation of the South. We are still, on occasion, depicted as a collective group of sweaty, stupid, backwards-minded, racist rednecks. The South of movies and TV, the Hollywood South, is not my South.

This is My South:

My South is full of honest, hardworking people. My South is the birthplace of blues and jazz, and rock n' roll. It has banjo pickers and fiddle players, but it also has BB King, Muddy Waters, the Allman Brothers, Emmylou Harris and Elvis.

My South is hot. My South smells of newly mowed grass. My South was kick the can, creek swimming, cane-pole fishing and bird hunting.

In my South, football is king, and the Southeastern Conference is the kingdom.

My South is home to the most beautiful women on the planet.

In my South, soul food and country cooking are the same thing.

My South is full of fig preserves, cornbread, butter beans, fried chicken, grits and catfish.

In my South, we eat foie gras, caviar and truffles. In my South, our transistor radios introduced us to the Beatles and the Rolling Stones at the same time they were introduced to the rest of the country.

In my South, grandmothers cook a big lunch every Sunday, so big that we call it dinner (supper comes later).

In my South, family matters, deeply.

My South is boiled shrimp, blackberry cobbler, peach ice cream, banana pudding and oatmeal cream pies.

In my South, people put peanuts in bottles of Coca-Cola and hot sauce on almost everything.

In my South, the tea is iced and almost as sweet as the women. My South has air-conditioning.

My South is camellias, azaleas, wisteria and hydrangeas.

In my South, the only person that has to sit on the back of the bus is the last person that got on the bus.

In my South, people still say "Yes, ma'am," "No ma'am," "Please" and "Thank you."

In my South, we all wear shoes.... most of the time.

My South is the best-kept secret in the country.

Please continue to keep the secret....it keeps the idiots away.

Lena Dog

This weekend Steve and Lauren are in New Orleans, so I'm hanging out with the fabulous girls, Lena Dog and Sophie Soph. Steve belongs to Lena, and Lauren to Sophie. Both of these girls are fabulous dogs, full of spunk and personality. Always so much fun to be around.  It really doesn't require a lot of energy and focus to take care of them... they easily entertain themselves by playing karate teeth or having nap time. 

Sometimes Lena gets a little anxious when Steve is not around... she's not really sure what to do with herself. During those times, she becomes very vocal. Not with barking or growling... she just likes to talk to you. She wants you to know how she feels about certain issues such as politics or the weather. Today is one of those days. For the past two hours, Lena has been wandering around the house voicing her opinions on several different issues. I tried to catch a video of her, but my camera isn't cooperating with me. 

I found a video from a few months ago when Lena and I were hanging out together. I can't remember what the topic of our conversation was at the time, but I'm sure it's very similar to her conversations of today. 

So here is good ole Lena Dog having a conversation with me.

Mooser?

For my first blog entry I decided that I should better explain my name. It's kinda weird, kinda random... doesn't really make that much sense. Not yet, anyways. 

Everybody in my family has a nickname. I don't care who you are or how you are related to my family, but if you have had any contact with us you will undoubtedly walk away with a nickname. It can be a name that describes your personality, or a name that was a derived from a funny situation involving you, or a name that makes fun of some defect on your body. It could be anything. If you don't have a nickname then that means my family probably doesn't love you. 

So back to Mooser. My middle name is VanNuys..... pronounced "va-nice". It's a family name that has been passed down through the girls of the Pendergrass side of the family. I have no idea what it means. Over the years my middle has morphed into what is now my family nickname. Here's the flow chart of how that happened: 

VanNuys - Vamoose - Moose - Mooser

And that's pretty much it. That's how it happened. Here are the nicknames of my siblings just to give you more examples: Ruth - Soof,  Noah- Hoop,  Peter- Stir. 

hmmm... weird, I just noticed that all my other siblings' names consist of only 4 letters. I guess it's just cause I'm the oldest and I'm the most special (You know it's true, Ruth) 

So that's the story behind "Mooser". Nothing too complicated or indepth. The "long-legged" part is kinda obvious... I'm rather tall so that part just fits. 

Well, I think that's all I have for my first post. Kinda lame, I know, but you'll get over it. I'm a pretty bad typer so I'm sure I left out a bunch of words and misspelled some things, but I'm too lazy to go back and proof read this. I'm sure someone will do it for me and email me with all the typos.