Tuesday, July 31, 2012

We don't admit it but we've never seen eye to eye

This sums up my recent 11 day trip to my hometown. My niece got married and I helped with the coordination during the wedding and details leading up to it. I had a blast hanging out with my sister and getting to really know my niece, her new husband and nephew as adults. Lots of champagne, super fun.

Less fun was 11 days at my mom's house. My mom is a wonderful woman and we have nothing in common (except that we realized that pretzels make both of us queasy). After a few days, it starts to really get me down/make me insane. I pride myself on being strong and independent, savvy and smart, while my mom is very reserved, completely milquetoast, and prefers to fade into the background. She's very set in her ways, very skittish, very insecure (yet somehow she managed to be the first in her family to go to college, get a professional career and move overseas for several years. Alone.) But now she won't drive across town or decide where to get lunch for fear of offending someone, being wrong or causing a fuss. It makes me sad. I think she does it at great personal expense but she won't talk about it.

Which explains why I sometimes over-assert myself, defiantly stand up for myself, and like to know what's where/what's new/where to go, and why I studied conflict resolution. I can only change myself, and that's okay.

My hometown bonus: seeing old friends and getting to play Barbies with the coolest six year old around. That and getting to dance to "You're the one that I want" with my sister.

The Wombats are proving to be a fantastic summer soundtrack, can't wait to see them next month at Red Rocks! We're liking "Our Perfect Disease" a lot. Everything's better with a soundtrack.

Tuesday, July 10, 2012

"We are listening and we're not blind"

One of the highlights of Birthday Continuum (really, there was no low point, besides fatigue) was seeing Snow Patrol in Denver. I've seen them a few times before but A hadn't, and she loves them. Mostly, she loves Gary Lightbody. At the show, I was equally concerned for his safety and that she might pass out. Whenever we've talked about the new album, or any songs, we've always said that there are dances. And 'Called Out in the Dark' has always had a dance - you may be sitting, but there's a thing with the arms that gets bigger and ends up over the head. We know it's a bad day when 'Called Out in the Dark' can't make it better (for me, it's a really bad day when all my other songs tagged here can't help. See also: Matt Nathanson, Rhett Miller, Scars on 45).  Gary Lightbody's voice is like a warm bath, everything else melts away.




Tuesday, July 3, 2012

"I only miss you when I'm with you"

Here's something new from Rhett Miller, Out of Love. He's awesome. So good live and as nice as he is pretty (okay, maybe he's a touch prettier.  He's very pretty).  Definitely worth seeing him and the Old 97's, I see them every chance I get, it's very cool that they're revisiting Too Far to Care, it's a great album and will make for a fun tour. Get his new album. Or one of the earlier onesh. All of them.


Monday, July 2, 2012

"I think that means you are one married man and two standard deviations from overthinking foreplay."

Please don't read this insanely funny collection of totally awesome, completely practical, not at all creepy sex tips from women's and men's magazines while you're at work.  There's no way to explain the laughter and even if your boss is cool, you probably don't want to read them out loud.  Or maybe you do, I won't judge.


Highlights:
Second opinion: make the mistake of being too gentle. At least until you ask.
First, do women like their breasts to be "volleyed" like tennis balls? Also: stop hitting me.
Here's a second take on that one: don't try facial intercourse.
Just don't tell Mother. She's still cross about the time she caught you rimming the good china.


http://jezebel.com/5919206/cosmos-44-most-ridiculous-sex-tips

http://jezebel.com/5922893/36-terrible-sex-tips-for-men

Sunday, July 1, 2012

Poison frog!

One thing you should know is that we watch a lot of Investigation Discovery and Snapped. So sometimes there are conversations that start, "so if he'd just dropped the barbell on her throat instead of holding it there, he would have gotten away with it." And then there's a whole conversation because we've both seen the episode and know instantly what we're talking about.

We were out for breakfast and a friend (C) stops by. He drinks half my coffee, eats off our plates and shows some pictures from a trip to Atlanta.  Including some poison frogs at the Atlanta Aquarium.  About 10 seconds later, A exclaims, "Poison frog!" C looks at me like, "what the hell is she saying?" and I respond, "oh, she thinks she could kill someone with a poison frog and get away with it." He wonders who she might want to kill and I muse, "oh, whoever. Haven't decided." Later, the more I thought about "poison frog!" the funnier it was.

So poison frog became an expression. Boys are stupid? Poison frog. Someone annoying you?  Poison frog.  And we'd found our new mascot.  Vladimir Trad, the poison dart frog.  Why do we need a mascot, because. He gets to go on dates, trips, concerts, etc. with us to supervise.

We also have stickers and plastic frogs just in case someone deserves a poison frog, because we are secretly 14 years old.

Vlad, enjoying his first trip to  Texas.  He and his terrarium went through security just fine.
It should be noted that Vlad is only a beanbag sand frog, no poison there.  But maybe someday...