November Blog Series: Day 12

Good morning! Welcome to day twelve. It’s a beautiful Friday. There’s air in my lungs, a smile on my face, a new car in my driveway, party tonight, football and fun tomorrow…wow! What a great way to kick off the weekend!

Since my night will undoubtedly be busy laughing, mingling, eating fajitas and dancing, I am posting early today. Don’t worry, though. I have a few ideas for some interesting topics next week.

So, last night after the majority of the crowd left my parents’ house, there were six of us sitting in the living room, talking and watching “Grey’s Anatomy”. The DVR interrupted football, but my dad was a good sport about it. Daddy sat in his recliner, Jackie sat in the other recliner, Blake stretched out on the loveseat (feet hanging off because he’s so tall) and Aunt Phyllis sat in the rocking chair. I was curled up at the opposite end of the couch from Mom, and was glued to my laptop getting ready to post my blog.

I will try to reiterate the following conversation as accurately as possible…

Daddy (referring to me): “What are you on over there?”
Jackie (jokingly): “Drugs?”
**a round of laughter from everyone**
Me: “Working on posting my blog.”
Daddy: “What is a blog?”
Me: “It’s kind of like a short story, or daily account of life and events. For fun. You know, I just write and tell.”
**Daddy gets a puzzled look on his face**
Daddy: “Well, who are you tellin’?”
**Blake about falls off the loveseat from laughing so hard**
Me (laughing, too): “Whoever reads it. My public.”
**discussion about the invention of blogging ensues**
Blake: “Are you on Twitter?”
Me: “Yes, but really only for my business.”
Daddy: “What is a Twitter?”
Mom: “A brief version of a blog.”
**Daddy looks confused, and mildly amused**
Blake: “Do you tweet about blogging?”
Me: “Sometimes.”
**discussion about the different venues of social media begins**
Me (again): “You ‘blurb’ on Twitter. Kind of like Facebook.”
Daddy: “Wouldn’t you call that a ‘twit’?”
Mom (to my dad): “Not a twit, dear, a ‘tweet’.”
**Daddy shakes his head, smiling**

I can’t recall the rest of the conversation. It was hard to concentrate while laughing so hard. Of course, for the remainder of the evening all of us made wisecracks about the new terms my dad had learned. Like, when a “suggestive” scene began to take place, someone would interject, “Uh oh, looks like someone’s gonna start ‘blogging’.” Or, when a cute commercial would come on, someone would say, “Awww, isn’t that ‘tweet’?”

My dad has only recently become accustomed to the internet. He, Google and eBay have become the Three Amigos. I’ve loaded iTunes on his computer for him, along with lots and lots of songs for his entertainment, but I still think he feels overwhelmed. Slowly, he is learning about the vast outreaches of cyberspace. It’s made for some interesting topics of conversation. Ya just gotta love my dad, though. If I have anything to do with it, I will eventually get him on Facebook. The world might cease to turn, but mark my words – it will happen.

That is all for today, friends. Have fun with all of the blurbing, blogging tweeting and posting!

Until next time…

November Blog Series: Day 11

Day eleven. Second day into the double digits.

As I’m sitting here typing this, I am listening to the pitch of the laughter and rambunctiousness swirling around the living room and kitchen. It has been a wonderfully chaotic day, and even with all of the crowded noise, I wouldn’t trade it for the world. My heart feels full.

And so does my belly. Mercy! Earlier this evening, there were 20 people in the house, including four very lively children (all under the age of four). Between the two giant briskets my dad cooked today, the five racks of ribs (uncle), potato salad, cole slaw, ranch potatoes (for those that don’t like potato salad), baked beans, homemade rolls, apple crisp and banana pudding…wait…did I miss anything?...nope…we are all sufficiently, blissfully and miserably stuffed sick. Although, my cousins Jared and Blake, stole the show with how much food they consumed. I feel like ralphing just thinking about it. Not surprising though. Both of them are about the size of two NFL linebackers, so it makes sense that they need a substantial amount of food for their bodies to function. I think they have extra hidden compartments in their legs, and when they stand up from the table they just give their bodies a good shimmy and shake and then, poof, more room.

After dinner, the men folk retreated to watch football, while the women folk bathed the children. How does stuff always manage to end up encrusted in the hair? But, forty-five minutes later, we ended up with four clean kids snug in their jammies, five towels, half a dozen bath toys in various places of the bathroom and hallway, and one very soaked bathroom floor. Smiles.

I am also the proud owner of a new car! At least, it’s new to me. It’s a dark silver Volkswagen Passat. It’s cool. And I love the turbo-charged engine. Boy, does it zing! Wheeeeeeeee! Lots of fun around the curves. What? I had to test out its maneuverability and steering capabilities. For safety reasons. Wanted to make sure I was buying a car that was fun…um…I mean, safe, to drive and easy to handle.

And, oh my word! I had no idea car insurance was so expensive! Granted, I haven’t owned a car in three years (don’t ask how I managed – it was next to impossible), but between yesterday and today, I have a big chunk of money missing from my savings. It’s totally worth it! There’s just something about having your own vehicle that adds to your independence. More smiles.

Tomorrow evening is my parents’ party. We still have to finish the wine bottles and the music playlist. And my cousin Jackie and I are still conspiring to sneak in some Poison and Beyoncé. We will prevail…when most of the “riper aged crowd” begins to matriculate out the door.

Gotta go for the evening. Lots to get done before I get to check my eyelids for light leaks. My ears might be ringing from the constant buzz of noise today, but that buzzing will graduate to a very large chainsaw once I hit my pillow.

Nighty night, friends. May your life be blessed enough to fall asleep and wake up every day with a smile.