My blogging return: Letters for my best friend

Dear KAT,

Thank you for holding up the ol' blogfort for the past several...months... while I've been away. It's not that I don't love our bloggy world so immensely - because I totally do - but I am a lazy schmuck. 

But NOW things are different. NOW you're knocked up and I have to get off of my lazy non-blogging butt and make up for being so lazy while you can rest while you gestate.

Sure, I could be a jerky BFF and blog about the martini parties I went to, or the wine-tasting affairs I've been at -- but frankly, I'd be lying AND a jerk, so that's no good.

I could tell you things like: you're going to be an AMAZING mom, you look beautiful pregnant and I can't wait to see the large-headed little baby that pops out in a few months. Motherhood totally suits you.

In fact, I'll stick with those things, because they are all TRUE.

It's been an awesome experience being an aunt, as you know, so I can only imagine what it's going to be like to be a mom. I'm honestly a bit relieved you're going through this first. You can let me know how that works for you.

But really, don't you think you went a little overboard on ways to get new blog material?

With love, chocolate and kleenex,
SJ

How the PH locked up the Best Husband Award for 2009...

The night before my birthday, the Pretend Husband asked if I was going to stay up until midnight to mark the start of my birthday. I looked at him funny and said, "No. Because I'm not 10 anymore." When I headed to bed, he was staying up to play video games, but said he would wake me at 12. Which I thought was weird, especially because I already had my one birthday gift, a purse I had picked out myself. So I told him he had better not wake me up without at least giving me a card (to which he asked me if we had any blank cards in the house he could write in...)

I fell asleep around 11 and, lo and behold, an hour later, he turned on the lights and the radio in our bedroom and yelled, "Happy birthday!" Then he handed me my Christmas stocking (yeah, I'm not sure of the connection, either...) and told me to open it. Inside was a small, wrapped box. And inside the box was an awesome piece of jewelry. For my birthday. From my husband. The husband who told me I could have either a purse or an electric toothbrush for my birthday, but not both, because we need to cut back.

And the story was the best. He remembered how I had mentioned more than a year prior that I had always wanted a certain piece of jewelry. Then he called my sister to talk about it (thanks for giving him the green light, lil sis. Feel free to do that anytime jewelry is involved!) Then he went to four or five stores until he found the exact right thing. And he got the gift on sale (that scores big points with me).

And the best part? He said he was so excited to give me the gift that that's why he stayed up until midnight and then woke me up. Because he didn't want to wait until the morning to see my reaction. I mean, who needs jewelry when your husband is so awesome? (Although, don't get me wrong, the jewelry is pretty nice, too...)

A Birthday Ode for My Best Friend and Co-Blogger

An Ode to KAT - in honor of her BIRTHDAY!
(sung to the tune of … well. You’ll probably figure it out)

You’re a great one, K-A-T.
You really are a pal.
You're as wonderful as chocolate,
You're better than my ex-boyfriend Sal.
K-A-T…


You're a lovely lady
With medium-length auburn hair!


You're a sweetheart, K-A-T.
But your red sweater has some pills.
Your brain is full of facts,
You've got mad editorial skillz,
K-A-T…


But I still wouldn't hug you, with a
thirty-nine-and-a-half foot pole.

You're amazing, K-A-T...
You have ice cream in your freezer!
You have all the best Wii games
Of a techno ubernerd.
K-A-T…..


Given the choice between you and the PH as a setback partner
I'd know what to do!


You're just awesome, K-A-T.
You're a fun and crazy treat.
Your fridge is full of taco salad
And you make yummy, melty fudge.
K-A-T….


Three words that can describe you,
are, and I quote: "Doesn’t Eat Meat."


You're my bestie, K-A-T.
You're the queen of shenanigans.
You’re always up for plots
But you hate bread with moldy spoots,
K-A-T….


Your soul is an amazing, generous glowing bird
with the most colorful plumage imaginable,
Combined with polka-dot high heel boots.


You make me laugh! K-A-T,
And yes, you do eat chicken and turkey.
But if you could, you’d live on Dairy Queen,
K-A-T.


You're a Chocolate Explosion blizzard,
With a Friendly’s Frend-zee
With extra peanut butter AND chocolate sauce!!

I should not be allowed to make promises before 10 a.m.

The wonderful Mollymoo at Exquisitely Wasted gave us this here award (I think it's because she thinks SJ and I are so demure and quiet about our lives and she just wants to know more about us). Also, I may have promised one of SJ's sisters that I would blog every day this week. I blame the fact that it was early in the morning and I hadn't yet hooked myself up to an IV bag of coffee. I wasn't thinking straight. (And SJ, I will cheat and not post if you do. How about we make it a "something gets posted everyday" week rather than "Kat posts everyday"? Good? Good.)

Oh, and just to make an incredibly long post even longer, I should explain that, although the rules of the award only say to share 10 things about yourself, I-- for some strange reason-- went with a job/career theme.

1. I have no desire to become a real estate agent (I don’t think I’d be great at negotiating deals), but I am positively addicted to real estate in general. I love going online and looking for houses for people (only people who are already looking themselves, I should add—I don’t try to persuade people to move). I may be freaking SJ out because every time she mentions a house she has seen or wants to see, I ask for the address and look it up online. The two of us may or may not have spent almost an hour on the phone recently going room-by-room through the photos of each of the five houses she had seen that day. I’m not admitting to anything.

2. I have never had any desire to be President. Or a nurse. Or have any career that would send me into the corporate world. Or do anything that involved science. Or be a flight attendant (I would not be able to keep a straight face in turbulence).

3. I spent a couple of summers and holiday vacations working as a waitress at a country club. It was a great job, for the most part, and it’s where I learned how to quickly and properly cut a wedding cake– a skill that has not really come into play for me since. The club members were all fairly cordial, but some of their kids were horrific and entitled. They liked to order the staff around as though we were their personal servants. I’m sure more than one of them was served an ice cream sundae that had been spit on (I never did it, but not all the wait staff were as classy as me…)

4. I have secretly considered getting my master’s degree and going into teaching. But not little kids. Perhaps at a college? Maybe someday.

5. I WILL flip a house someday. Although hopefully not one I’m living in at the time since I’ve done that and it’s not as fun as it looks. But how awesome would it be to turn something outdated and run down into a beautiful home? And maybe this time I could actually even turn a profit (the only flaw in the plan the last time around…)

6. My job in middle school and high school was as a soccer referee. I did it for seven years and made mad money. In fact, I worked weekends during the spring and fall and was able to take the summer off. I sometimes wish I had stuck with it (summers off sound nice…) Is it possible to become a professional town league soccer referee?

7. After almost two years of marriage, I still sometimes introduce myself with my maiden name. I blame my weekend job because I use my maiden name on the radio. It’s confusing for me. The other day, I introduced myself to a group of people as Kat Maiden Name…… Married Name. So it sounds like I have a hyphenated name—with a very long hyphen.

8. Although all our babysitters growing up were cool and let us stay up to watch television until the moment my parents pulled into the driveway (and sometimes we even got away with it), when I was old enough to babysit, I was the mean babysitter who made kids go to bed at whatever bedtime their parents gave me. I think I was just really stuck on the concept of following the rules at that age. That, and it was impossible to raid the cabinets if the kids were awake and watching.

9. My worst job was the summer between high school and college, when I worked in the kitchen of a restaurant (I had wanted to be a waitress, but the only position they had open was as the salad bar stocker). I was really ill that summer, but had recovered by my final day of work—the day I was required to peel and chop 20 pounds of carrots and then, as a finale, de-vein 40 pounds of raw scallops. It was the most disgusting job ever and my hands smelled like seafood for days. I swore up and down I would never work in a restaurant kitchen again (it may also have to do with why I don’t cook too often either. Ok, probably not, but I may have to plead “Post Traumatic Disorder” if the PH ever questions it…)

10. I’m living the dream, people. I recently found a cassette tape (and then found something that could actually play it!) that had my young voice playing the part of the DJ in between my favorite 80s hits. Even as a kid, I wanted to be on the radio. Then, as I grew older and worked for newspapers in high school and college, I wanted to be a journalist. Look at that! I’m a journalist on the radio! It’s nice when a plan comes together.

I think I'm supposed to "tag" people but I'm not going to put you on the spot. If you have a blog and want to spend a lot of time coming up with a huge list of things about yourself, go for it. If you don't want to, how about everybody leaves a story about their best or worst job in the comments and we'll call it even? Good? Good.

More love letters from SJ

I know, right? How freaking lazy can I be? I post like once a week, make a mad dash for your blogs, comment and then abandon the blogosphere? In truth, I have not. I'm a little busy lately with stuff, including a number of freelance consulting projects.... and that's the last work word I vow to use in this post.

Instead, I give you:

Dear Mother Nature,

Seriously? What? Have you had a really bad period for the past 3 months and we all should suffer? How else can you explain the Minnesota weather in Connecticut? I understand that it's winter and I live in New England. But cool it with the commuting-time piss poor weather. I drive a Volkswagen, Mom. I don't have the fortitude to crush large snow banks in it.

Thanks!

Love,
sj

***
Dear Manufacturers of my awesome rubber boots,

You, sirs and madams, deserve heaps of praise. I can't believe that I can wear rubber boots with cute little cherries on them in New York and no one points and laughs. It's awesome. You're awesome. You and your pretty patterned boots are all super.

Granted, when I was on the Metro North train from Darien to GCT, I was getting some funny looks from the super trendy girl in the 4 inch stiletto boots. And I was alarmed that she may have snapped my picture to show up on Don't Spotting and therefore stalked that site everyday for fear of public derision. But no. As it turns out, my boots *were* super-cute and totally appropriate for the weather.

So thanks!

Hugs and kisses,
Warmfooted SJ

***
Dear KAT,

It was awesome to hang with you guys on Friday night. I laughed so hard, as I always do when I'm with you -- it was truly good times. And do you like how I pretended I couldn't possibly eat that entire chocolate chip cookie sandwich and then wolfed the entire thing down? Yeah. That was convincing. I thought so too.

You are super fantastic friends and I'm so glad I share a blog with you. I'm glad for other things too -- like how we can go outlet mall shopping together, or go to the casino together and play penny slots while the boys play poker... like maybe next Sunday? What are your thoughts?

Sincerely,
SJ

Happy Birthday, BFF!

Today is a holiday. Did you not know it?

Well. Let me do my part by spreading the word.

Today is the third anniversary of the 29th birthday of our beloved KAT. Yay!

And, as we like to do here on Funnygals, no birthday is complete with out a blog tribute. And since we've been doing this for so long, you'd think it'd be hard to come up with special little memories that we've shared together.

In fact, it is not at all hard. Because we try, even with our busy crazy lives, to spend at least 6 martinis together each month. (That's a little shout out to our dearest Molly who has been too busy to blog, but we still love her oodles. I think being a phone sex operator may be a little wearying. Poor lamb.)

So, without further ado, here is my blog tribute to the lovely and talented KAT. These are my plans for her at 32.

1. We've discussed it, but we haven't done it yet. And I think no time like the present for us to dress up in our wedding finery and head over to Dairy Queen. What's that? DQ is closed? You know, that'd usually be the case, but KAT and I know every one in the state and there is one not far from us that actually stays open year round. Stay tuned for pics.

2. Girls weekend. We haven't had a good one in a *long* time, mostly because of her penchant for working nine jobs. But, this year, we WILL make time to ditch the boys and head off on our own to some lovely beachy retreat to drink martinis, eat chocolate bon bons and enjoy the sunset from our ocean view balcony room that must exist somewhere between Old Saybrook and Cape Cod, hopefully conveniently close to our favorite lobster place.

3. I think she should have a baby. No pressure. But. Just saying. If not, she should at least practice conceiving.

4. Did we ever share the hamburger story? Add to it the Kit Kat story. If we haven't, well. I leave that to KAT's discretion.

5. This is rapidly deteriorating into a things I love about KAT, so what the heck. Let's just go with that.

6. I love that I can call her at 8:15 on her birthday to wish her a happy birthday, and she's been up for two hours. I also love that I can call her at 10 a.m. some days and it's like she just got up. She's all quirky like that.

7. I love that we can order complimentary martinis. We know enough never to order the same ones at the same time. Duh. How else can you get through the martini menu and still remember which ones you liked?

8. I love that she remembers every birthday of every person she ever met. Maybe not, but it seems that way.

9. I love that we can go - at most - two weeks without actually speaking, but be fully informed of what's going on thanks to the blog.

10. We totally talk about you all in real life like we know you all. You are frequently in our conversations when we get together for dinner.

There are, at least, 90 more things I could come up with. But I'm still a little exhausted after a bug, so my brain isn't working that fast. Besides, I have to save the next 10 for 33. And then 34... you get the idea.

So please take a minute, if you will, to wish my dearest KAT a happy birthday, and please share with us what things you love about her. I promise I won't reuse them in the birthday card that I'm making for her. Honest.

Hugs and Kisses,
sj

A riddle wrapped up in a puzzle, wrapped in an enigma...

I’m doing an assignment by Andy at WildARS Chase to share something nobody knows about me. But I’m going to modify it to fit my needs (what? I get points taken off for that, Andy? Oh, c’mon! I will be talking to the dean about how unfair you are about grading!) Since I don’t have a “I was born a man but now live as a woman married to a man who has no idea” kind of secret, I’ll tell you a bunch of little random facts about me. You know, in case you feel like, up to now, I’ve just been oh-so-secretive about myself…

* I used to be a huge dork of the type where I actually have stories that start with “This one time, at band camp…” Yeah, I was in the band. In high school. And in college (but only three of my four years there in case that makes me slightly less nerdy).

* I’ve never been arrested.

* I have been locked into the back seat of a police cruiser, but only for a ride-along I did as a reporter.

* A farmer who owned goats and chickens, a Mormon, a cop, a guy who turned out to be cheating on his girlfriend and a guy 15 years old than me: it sounds like the start of a joke, but sadly, that’s just my dating history (uh, I’m sure this goes without saying, but my entire dating history took place prior to marrying the PH… just so we’re all clear on that).

* I bit my fingernails until I was in college. And then just stopped. I had never been able to break myself of the habit and I have no idea what made me stop suddenly, but I’m glad I did.

* I’ve puked only three times in my life from drinking, but they all come with funny stories (one involved a piece of bread falling out of my shirt, another was the SJ in bed with me with no pants on story that gets told quite often and the third included me ordering “cabernon sauvigner” with a French accent). I plan on stopping this train right here at the third station and (hopefully) not making any more stops because puking your guts out sucks… even when it includes a funny story.

if everyone claps their hands really loudly...

maybe KAT will post!

actually, it's because she has no access to the internet. which is what i forgot when i emailed her yesterday.

so while i pine away for my BFF and ...
OOPS. accidental publish.

and have to resort to using the telephone (so 1990s), let's just go through my favorite five things about KAT:

1) she's super funny. as you all know by now. she's not just electronically funny, either. she's just always funny.
2) she's my go to person when something heart-breaking happens. because she will always try to make me feel better which is so awesome.
3) she doesn't mock me when i wear pig tails. she leaves that to j.
4) she has a huge heart and is always willing to lend a hand to those who need it. really. sometimes, we all tease her for her incredibly packed social calendar, but it's just because she is so loved by so many.
5) she is a fantastic setback partner.

what about you? what do you love about KAT?

current itunes song: "same thing" by the barenaked ladies

I'm an aunt (subtitle: how to make my sister giving birth all about me...)

Edited to add: Photos of my handsome little nephew are now up over at his very own blog!

You know you're related to a journalist when you wait for a slow news day to be born! I was sitting around this morning thinking about how I had nothing to post about and plotting how make SJ break something or show up to work without some piece of clothing in order to have something people will read about (admit it, those are the two main reasons you keep reading, right?). But, luckily, KAT's lil sis stepped up to the plate (the plate being the hospital) and hit one out of the park (i.e. gave birth).

Enough with the football analogies, though. I'm an aunt! Little Peyton Mathew was born this afternoon at a healthy 8 pounds, 8 ounces and what little details I know can be found at his very own blog.

I knew I wasn't going to be able to be in Florida for Peyton's birth, but it was harder than I thought to sit around waiting for his arrival once lil sis called to say she was in labor. I think the Pretend Husband could tell it was difficult because the first thing he said when I called to tell him about lil sis' call was, "Do not go to the airport."

So I didn't fly down for his first few hours, but this aunt promises she will be down within the first few weeks (let's hear it for being laid off! woot! woot!) and will not leave until she makes Peyton laugh.

I did not disappoint! (tales from a klutz)

So, remember how I sort of promised you an embarrassing story from my first day at my new job? Oh yeah, I've got one.

First, let me say that I love the job, I had a very productive day and I even interviewed the state's attorney general without (too much) stuttering. So it's not like this story is going to keep me from going back for Day Two or anything. But, still...

So, one of the women who works there was helping me out after my boss left early. She walked out of the studio I was in and, as I stood up to follow her, the chair slid funny and fell over. I kind of caught it on the way down before it could make a loud noise, but I could not for the life of me get it back up. The wheels kept rolling it in different directions, preventing me from getting it upright, and I kept having to step over it and try to haul it up from another angle.

Basically... I wrestled with a chair for a good 20 seconds or so. I have no idea if the woman wondered where I was or turned around to watch the show I was putting on, but I'm going to pretend she didn't and think I pulled off Wrestlemania '08 without an audience. Or perhaps she's updating her blog, or her friends, right now with the story of the well-dressed, fairly well-spoken woman who couldn't get out of a chair without creating a spectacle.

Hey, if this was SJ telling the story, there would have been broken bones involved... at least in my case no one got hurt!

Just in case you didn't think I was weird enough...

Some people have a rabbit's foot they carry for good luck, others have four leaf clovers. My high school soccer team had a good luck braid. That had once belonged to me.

Growing up, I always had long hair. Like to my waist. Very long hair. That tangled very easily and caused shouting matches between my mom and I whenever she had to comb it out for me. Looking back, it's hard to imagine that I carried that much hair around and I can only guess at how many hours were spent trying to keep it under control.

Anyway, in high school, I wore it in a French braid a lot, especially when playing soccer. My soccer coach, who was also a teacher at the school, would often pick up a pair of scissors, grab my braid and threaten to cut it off. Which hatched a plan...

The day before the first game of my senior year, I went to the hair salon with one of the other team captains and had my hair cut from my waist to above my shoulders. But first we had the hairdresser braid the hair into one long braid and cut it off. We tied ribbons to it, each with the name of someone on the team. Then we wrapped it up.

The day of the game, I kept a sweatshirt hood on until we presented the coach with our gift. Somewhere there is a photo of him holding up the braid and laughing once he realized what it was (imagine being presented with a box of hair... it does take a minute to figure out what it is).

I'm not sure what I expected to happen to the braid, but someone had the idea that we should all touch it before the game for good luck. Then we won and it became the tradition for the season. Seriously... for each game, we brought a bag of soccer balls, a container of water and a box with the braid in it.

When it wasn't called into service on the soccer field, the braid hung in the coach's classroom. I don't know how anyone else felt about it, but I was always weirded out that something that had been on my head was now hanging on the wall. And it was a little strange to touch before the games.

This story popped into my head this morning for no reason at all. Although I do have to admit that over the years, I have wondered what the coach did with the braid. I know he's retired now, so did he throw it out? Donate it to Locks of Love? Take it home and hang it on his wall? I guess some things are best not to think about.

The Truth About KAT

Thanks for playing “Six Lies and True Truths About KAT” (coming soon to a store near you!) And now for the results…

I have never wanted to be a doctor. Ever. Blood grosses me out and I don’t have the brain to learn all that medical jargon. When I was little, I wanted to be on the radio (hey, look at that!) and as I got older, I wanted to be a newspaper reporter. I’m living the dream, kids, living the dream.

The Pretend Husband is my first and only engagement (at least as far as he knows). No, I kid. First AND LAST engagement, I should add.

While I probably did have a bit of a sheltered childhood (the town got its first stoplight when I was in high school), I did have the opportunity to travel in one of those newfangled aero-planes before I was 19. Well before I was 19, in fact. My parents took us to Disney World when I was 12 and a friend and I traveled to California by ourselves when we were 14 or 15. World travelers, I tell ya.

And, as SJ pointed out, my middle name isn’t Agatha. It’s Anna, as in Anna-Banana. And actually, legally speaking, that’s no longer my middle name. I dropped it when I took the PH’s name. That’s kind of sad. And now I’m kind of depressed. Moving on…

It’s true that I no longer eat red meat and while I’ve tried some unusual things in my time, nothing quite as adventurous as what I listed. I’d say the craziest things I’ve tried are escargot and alligator, which, though it sounds like a cliché, tastes like salty chicken.

And we had dogs growing up, although a pet frog would have been kind of cool.

So, the truths are the fact that I only applied to one college and, lucky for me, got in. It was the school both my parents attended and I told my second grade teacher that’s where I was going to go to school. So it would have been a little depressing if I had been rejected. And I really didn’t have a back-up plan. I had grabbed applications from a couple of other schools, but never had to fill them out.

And I had braces for six years. Six.long.years. It stunk, especially because they were put on and nothing much happened to them (other than some very uncomfortable tightening) for about four years. I was one of the last among my classmates to begin losing my teeth and I’d venture to guess that I was among the last to lose my last baby tooth. The plus side was, the tooth fairy take was up to like, five bucks, by then.

And if that isn’t more than you’ve ever wanted to know about me, I don’t know what is.

Six lies and two truths about KAT

Hey kids, put your thinking caps on! We're going to play a little game called "Six Lies and Two Truths About KAT." I got the idea from Isabel at hola, isabel, who not only came up with some pretty creative stuff, but completely stumped me. Leave your guesses in the comments. I haven't decided what the winner will get, but it could be anything from a box of chocolates to my eternal admiration (or perhaps both!)
Oh, and SJ is prohibited from playing because she knows me too well for this to be any fun for her. Good luck!


1. When I was a kid, I really, really wanted to be a doctor. My mom even made me a white coat to hold the stuff from the Fisher Price doctor’s kit. The dream ended in high school biology when I discovered formaldehyde made me ill.

2. I only applied to one college. It was lucky I got in because I didn’t really have a back-up plan.

3. I was engaged once long before I met the Pretend Husband. My first engagement was the stereotypical “we were young and in love and wanted to be together forever” story.

4. My first time on an airplane was when I was 19 going to a basketball tournament out west with my college pep band. Yes, I did have a bit of a sheltered childhood, why do you ask?

5. My middle name is Agatha.

6. I no longer eat red meat, but tried some pretty crazy things before I made the decision. Among the delicacies I’ve tried: frog’s legs, escargot, squirrel (just one bite!) and shark fin soup.

7. I didn’t lose my last baby tooth until I was in high school. I was only supposed to have braces for two years, but not having all my adult teeth for so long caused me to have braces for a grand total of six years.

8. We couldn’t have a cat or dog growing up because of my brother’s allergies, but we did have a pet frog named– creatively enough– “Froggy.”

Happy Birthday, old friend....

and I meant that in the non-age-discriminatory way of expressing that we've been friends for what seems like decades and is in fact, just about 5 years.

i have celebrated 5 years of birthday revelry with KAT and each year i'm amazed at how much has continued to change in our lives. five years ago we were happy go lucky reporters, both single (although j and i were dating when KAT and i met), both fancy-free (mostly because we were rePO'rters) and celebrated with martinis at bar grand openings and whatever other free passes we could get our hands on.

now things are a little different. she's moved on to be an editor, and i've moved into the corporate world. but somehow, we still manage to get into some goofy antics. here are some highlights over the past five years:

Stop and Shop runs late at night. everyone knows we play setback, although, to be fair, we haven't played like we used to in a long time. now we're content to play two games and call it a night. we did, however, used to have some marathon times that required sustenance. so natch, we got in the car, pulled on our winter hats (in the middle of a fairly warm spring, i believe) and purchased our half gallons of ice cream and whipped cream. at like... 11:30 at night. something most people do in college, that we are still happy to do past 30.

Homecoming 1984. Well not really. In fact, it was actually Halloween 2002. Me, KAT and our friend Erin all raided the goodwill store to find suitable Halloween costumes for hitting a bar costume party. Friends of mine who played in an 80s cover band were playing at the bar, so we went as Homecoming 1984, 1986 and 1987 respectively. The only woman to convince me to wear peach lace in public? KAT.

Mystic 2003. I don't quite remember what the big plan was for this night, but KAT and I decided that we would celebrate the end of summer properly: with a trip to Mystic for dinner and revelrie. Except I'm not sure what happened to the revelrie. The bar was a dud, so we decided to make our own fun by getting touristy sweatshirts, do some window shopping and drive to Rhode Island to get gas, and really just to say that we crossed state lines.

The summer of girls weekends 2004. KAT and some of our other friends put together a couple of kick-arse girls weekends to celebrate my nuptials -- including one that included my being abducted at a CVS. Sadly, we couldn't do the same for KAT, as she works 7 days a week now. But I have high hopes that her work schedule will soon accommodate a vacation (perhaps in the spring) or a road trip.

The wake for Maureen. I'm sure we discussed this, so all I will say about this is "This one's for Maureen!" and 7 and 7's don't mix with tequila.

The Wedding. 2007. We spend a lot of time together, but probably never as much and in such tight quarters as the wedding weekend last month. It's funny, because usually, it's just j that i like waking up with, but there's something about sleepovers with the girls that never goes out of style. but i think when the four of us go on vacation together (which strangely enough, has never happened), we probably won't bunk together.

I wish all of you could have the pleasure of spending the past five years in KAT's company as often as I have been lucky to do. I miss our 3 days a week good times, but I take what I can get. When you're lucky enough to have a friend who's passionate about the people around her and is up for anything as long as it's fun (and if it doesn't sound fun, then she just finds ways to make it fun), you celebrate her as often as you can. But today, on her special day, please help me celebrate her by sharing your favorite KATism.

ah wedded bliss.

it's true, KAT. you will make a fine wife. if you didn't already have your heart set on marrying the PH (and if i weren't already married... and if there was a same-sex marraige law), i'd want you for myself.

seriously? you make his lunch?!! i got home yesterday from work at 8:30 and did the dishes before making myself a welsh rarebit for supper (which was fantastic). then i went upstairs where my husband (who's on vacation) grunted a greeting to me.

in his defense, he wasn't feeling well. but he's on VACATION. and surely that beats my 13 hour day.

in celebration of KAT, and in order to do last minute errands (like find some shoes -- yes, yes, i have plenty, but not exactly the right ones for KAT's wedding. not that i need an excuse to shoe shop, but if i have an excuse, i take it. i'm actually hoping to find some silver ones and then sharpee them black -- shave my legs before i have the ability to braid them, and then help KAT as much as i can from thursday at noon until like... friday at midnight...yay!!), I've taken Thursday and Friday off. KAT, you'll have a staff of lady's maids at your bidding. what do you plan to do with us?

i do also have to find a suitable hair style that the hairdress may be able to do that can cover my firecracker red roots and make my dark, dark brown hair look elegantly not in desperate need of a trim. which it is. but i was distracted this weekend by a very funny story that i cannot share until after Friday. and really, the way i look at it is my roots match KAT's skirt and then the rest of my hair matches my dress.

isn't that the height of fashion?