Better Than A Radio Station T-shirt

Yesterday was just an average day, just like any other day in the life of KM & D until we arrived home and D went to get the mail. He came in the house and said, "Who is Lastname from Somecity, MN?" To be honest, I wasn't quite sure, but then I turned around and saw that he had a package for me. "That's my prize from my blogger friend!" (Thirty before 30)

A huge eye roll followed.

D: Why did you get a prize?

KM: I won her Tuesday Tunes contest.

After a short explanation of blogs and the contest...

D: But you suck at that.

KM: Well, yes. But I named the song and someone else named the artist so we both got something "Real Nice".

But D is right; knowing artists names is not my strong suit. For the first 4 years that I listened to country I didn't know that Garth Brooks sang more than half of my favorite songs. I knew I liked Garth Brooks, but I didn't know how much I liked him until D gave me the box set of all of his albums. Apparently he knew how much I liked Garth Brooks. Coincidentally, Garth Brooks has a new album out called Ultimate Hits--it hits shelves today.

Anyway, I did win the contest. (I won! I won! I really, really won!) and Thirty sent me a great package full of prizes (pictured above). I do have a crush on Jim from "The Office" so I really appreciate the I Heart Jim notepad. And who wouldn't love hot chocolate and Lip Smackers? Thank you, Thirty! I love my prize(s) and I will continue to play; but now you know that it was a complete fluke that I won!

How I Will One Day Embarrass My Hypothetical Future Children

When I was 14 my family packed into the minivan to travel from MN to Jackson Hole, WY. We were on our way to a family reunion. It can't get more exciting than that, people. This was a gathering of my mom's family and more specifically, of my mom's mom's family. (I could just of easily have said "My maternal grandmother" but I always chuckle when people go through the relationship tree: my dad's sister's crazy daughter's husband vs. my cousin's husband.) And let me tell you, while my mom's sisters (I did it again just for you) are crazier than she is, she is definitely less inhibited and more likely to make a complete fool of herself.

On with the story: One afternoon we (me, my mom, and a few of my aunts) were walking through a grocery store and saw a crate full of fruit with a sign reading: MANGOES. My mother loudly and enthusiastically exclaimed, "Ooh, mangoes! I hate mangoes." On the same shopping 'adventure' she wondered off on her own down an aisle of boxed foods and began to clipitty-clop in her cowboy boots. She then ran around to find us in the next aisle over and excitedly asked, "Did I sound like a horse? Did I? Did I?" Did I mention I was 14? OH MY GOD; I was mortified. So, that is the story of My Mom, the Grocery Store and the Cowboy Boots.

It's A Bird. It's A Plane.

Yes, I spent the entire day in a bowling center. Again. I swear there is a world where people think this is cool, though. Or at least not completely lame. Anyway, there was a big local tournament this weekend and both my dad and my brother did well enough on Saturday to make it to Sunday. Whoo hoo! I started my morning with yet another Grande Nonfat Chai and later had to supplement my caffeine intake with a Diet Dr. Pepper. (While I do love bowling and like to watch it, I'll admit that it does get a little slow.) My brother finished 8th. That is quite a good showing. My dad, however, has become some crazy good bowler (again) in the last few years and decided to make me stay at the bowling center for a total of 8.5 hours yesterday. A handful of people stayed to watch the final matches and when it was all said and done my dad was probably the underdog going in to the final match. While my dad is quite good, and called Superman on occasion by his peers, his opponent is still in his prime--my dad is on the senior circuit. In order to win, my dad would need to beat the hot younger player twice. He did it. He won. It was awesome. My dad rocks.

***I wrote this at about 6:00 pm on Sunday. My poor Internet connection at home would not let me post as it always timed out. I tried to publish a few more times, but eventually I needed to go to bed. So, I kept the time stamp from the last time I saved it. I hate to have the appearance of cheating so early in NaBloPoMo, but I tried, and tried, and tried.***

Good Shots

Yes, I spend pretty much every weekend in the bowling alley regardless if I'm bowling or not. And yes, I still say 'bowling alley' most of the time even though I know I am supposed to say 'bowling center.' I'm working on it.

Today both my dad and my brother were bowling in a big tournament and I enjoyed watching, pseudo-coaching and cheering them on. I basically grew up in a bowling center, so I know most of the guys there, and it was fun to chat with everyone and see my friends do well. My dad and my brother both bowled well enough to make the cut, so they get to bowl tomorrow. I was reminded of the start time and that I even get an extra hour of sleep tonight (Remember, it's Day Light Savings--set your clocks back!) so that there is no excuse for me not to show up on time.

Lest you think I'm a social loser, I do have plans tonight with friends and we will not be bowling. I do expect that food and laughter will be involved though, and maybe even some shopping. Perhaps I'll find a few of the accessories I so desperately need.

Mystery To Me

Supposedly a little mystery is good for a marriage, but I often thought of that as meaning the beauty secrets of women and not the mind boggling actions of men. D is wonderful, but here are a few things that I don't understand and some of them just drive me crazy.

1. Unloading the dishwasher: D is very helpful in the kitchen in general. He doesn't even mind unloading the dishwasher, which is something I hate to do. He puts away the glasses, bowls, plates, and even the Tupperware-esque pieces in their proper places--but then he leaves the silverware in the dishwasher and begins to load the dirty dishes! I can't tell you how many times we've had cupboards full of dishes but no silverware.
2. Vacuuming and scrubbing: D loves our Dyson. He vacuums all the time. He will even use the carpet cleaner on occasion without being asked. D also likes to scrub out the sink and wipe down the counters. This is wonderful. The only thing I don't understand is why he will not move the paper and clutter to a reasonable place before his surface cleaning begins. No, he doesn't clean around it, he just puts everything in a bag or box and puts it somewhere.
3. Adding to the grocery list: I grocery shop every two weeks, more frequently on occasion. Starting a few days before I go, I ask D what he would like me to buy. He can never answer because he 'isn't hungry.' Ummm, what does that have to do with the next two weeks? So he always gets the same things (I keep a list of random things he likes and requests) and then I try to update the list every month or so.
4. Things don't get low, they are all of a sudden GONE: As part of my inquiry before shopping trips, I ask if he needs any body wash, shaving cream, etc (we have our own bathrooms) and he never needs any of the above. A few days after I have gone grocery shopping, however, he is out of every hygiene product imaginable. There must be a metro sexual gremlin in his bathroom.
5. The tan that lasts forever: D golfs a lot in the summer and he gets quite tan from that and the yard work. I understand that. What I don't understand is that he is still tan until March. MARCH! And then he starts to golf again in April or early May, so we have the same skin tone for all of 5 weeks. It's not fair. I hope our hypothetical future children get his complexion instead of my pasty white skin.

How D Plans Ahead For Potlucks

Tuesday night, 10:46 pm (I just checked my cell phone log), D calls.

D, in a slight panic: What do I need to make broccoli salad?

KM: Broccoli florets, apples; I don't know, a whole bunch of stuff. Why?

D: I need to bring a dish to work tomorrow and I signed up for salad.

KM, tired and a little annoyed: Why don't you just bring an easy salad then?

D: I promised everyone I would bring your salad because they really liked it last time.

KM, flattered and no longer annoyed (Good job, D!), rattled off the ingredients stating the ones that were in the refrigerator at home.

D comes home to find the recipe on the kitchen counter with the large Tupperware bowl rinsed and ready for use. Instead of following the directions on how to make the salad, he yells for KM to help. KM is not pleased but chops two apples anyway, and pulls the rest of the ingredients from the cupboards. She returns to bed. It is now almost midnight. D doubles the recipe for the salad and goes to bed.

KM awakes in the morning to find a mess in the kitchen. She is not a clean freak, but a messy kitchen she does not like.

D brings the salad to work.

D calls KM after lunch asking for the recipe to give to his coworkers. KM smiles that she has a recipe that people like.

KM’s Broccoli Salad

Dressing

• 1 cup Miracle Whip (or mayo if that’s your preference)
• ½ cup & 2 tbsp sugar
• 2 tbsp red wine vinegar

Salad Base

• ~5 cups broccoli florets (I used one 16oz bag of precut broccoli florets and chop them into more bite size pieces)
• 1 small/medium apple, chopped
• ½ cup Craisins
• ¼ cup chopped walnuts
• ¼ cup slivered almonds

Preparation

• Mix all dressing ingredients together
• Mix dressing with salad base
• Chill
• Serve

Jumping On The Bandwagon

OK, so I just joined NaBloPoMo as a way to keep me on track with the whole blog thing. This will indeed be a challenge for me as I've been known to go weeks without updating and have never successfully updated everyday in a work week.

I have developed a plan to help me be successful over the next month. I have several small goals I would like to reach or at least work on before December 1st, so I will post on my progress as it relates to these projects and goals. Exciting, isn't it? I realize that this might get boring for you all to read, so maybe on a few slow days at work, or days where the inspiration just keeps coming, I will have additional posts. So, here are the things I hope to blog about:

• Fashion: I'm working on the whole accessory thing. Maybe I'll post pictures of...something. (Way to start of with something exciting!)
• Working out: I go through cycles on my commitment to work out and get in shape. Usually I come within 3lbs of my goal and then all of my dedication goes out the window and I binge on caramel corn and frou frou lattes. I'm hoping to hit my goal weight by December 1st and stay committed to the Healthy Eating Plan and weight training/yoga/cardio schedule.
• Recipes: I would like to start making more meals at home and I have several great recipes that are tried and true and a few more that I would like to experiment with.

This is just titillating, isn't it? I hope I don't bore you all to death.