Glad I don't do this every weekend

How do those who drink every weekend keep it up? I have a glass of wine or two every once in awhile, but I don't go all-out drinking .... um, ever. Even when I get a little tipsy, it's not all-out. And I've never had a hangover.I know you want to kill me now. :)

But Friday night we went over a friend's house for poker. We brought Spencer too so he could mingle for a little bit and slept in his playpen in the computer room (side note: he was awesome sleeping at someone else's house. I had faith that he would fall asleep eventually, but he never even cried. He was perfect. I love my amazing son.).

I had such a good time! We played Texas Hold 'Em (blah, but people have a strange fascination with that game), and Bullshit (which made me laugh so hard my face hurt) and then some drinking-related card game that I don't know what it was called (maybe ring of death?) but helped get me even more trashed. I started pouring other people's drinks into my glass when I ran out. Thank god I'm not an obnoxious drunk (as far as I know ...)

Saturday morning was a little rough. I felt fine when I got up; I drank a couple glasses of Crystal Light to keep myself hydrated and cooked up some eggs for breakfast. Halfway through the cooking I started feeling ... bad. Seriously bad. I powered through the rest of the cooking and then collapsed on the couch for two hours of Psych and Monk while Christen took over the rest of the, um, moving. He made me some coffee, and two cups later I was feeling closer to myself. Thank God I don't do that all the time.

A Lack of Political Humor (ramble, please disregard)

Warning for ahead: I'm diplomatic about my politics and my religion, possibly to a fault. There's a reason I rarely post on such things. I'm leaving my comments on, but please save the rants against either side and please post thought-provoking instead of riot-inciting comments only ... thanks in advance).

I have a friend who is a die-hard Conservative. He's far more polarized than I'm generally comfortable (I've always said that people that are too far left or right scare me; I'm a true moderate. Otherwise I'm known as a fiscal conservative (with some exceptions) and a social liberal (with some exceptions)). However, he's an old, good friend and I do respect his opinion. My problem is this: He is so bitter about Obama that he complains about every step he makes. Daily complaints. I might be naive (I'm not counting it out) but I don't remember the complaints about Bush every step during the first months of office. I know that there was debate on whether he actually deserved it because of the craziness that happened at the time of the election, and I know that there was certainly bitterness at the start of his second term but I don't believe that there were complaints two months in about how he was ruining the country. Maybe I'm wrong.

A few months ago a flame war erupted on another friend's Facebook page because he had mentioned his allegiance to the President, and other friends of his had started a bitter (sorry I'm out of adjectives) fight over whether he was one Republican's president or not "he's not my president, blah blah blah" etc. I am likely the eternal optimist here; I think it will be hard but I believe that the steps being taken at this time are for the good of the country. I have to believe that this spiral has an end, and that we as a country will climb out of the hole that we have dug for ourselves. It will surely not be without sacrifice.

I think the point of my rambling here, is stop complaining if you aren't doing anything. Try giving him a chance. As Bush himself said (from Jack Tapper:

“I'm not going to spend my time criticising him. There's plenty of critics in the arena. I think it's time for the ex-president to tap dance off the stage and let the current president have a go at solving the world's problems,” the former president said in remarks to business executives. “He deserves my silence. And if he wants my help, he can pick up the phone.”

...The speech today was Bush's first since leaving office in January. The event was organized by the Calgary Chamber of Commerce and his remarks to business executives were closed to the press and the tickets were invitation only.

The former president said he wants President Obama to succeed. “I love my country a lot more than I love politics. I think it is essential that he be helped in the office.”

I think it's a very noble position to take, and although I've never cared for him politically, I respect former President Bush much more personally given his obvious graciousness. It's possible that he only takes the high road because he has other more outspoken allies already railing against Obama, but either way, I'm impressed.

Entitlement

My dogs are not allowed on the furniture. This is a constant; they have never been allowed on any of the furniture. However, for the past few months (at least since Jazzy came to live with us, but possibly since we moved in June), Lola sleeps on the couch at night. I haven't figured out how to break her of this because she does it when she knows she can't be caught, and gets off when my alarm goes off so I can't catch her when I get up. The only way I know is because she leaves a wet drool mark on my light tan micro fiber couch which usually leaves a watermark. It's infuriating! Does anyone have any ideas of how to break her of this habit?

In another, slightly related need for information, does anyone know of a good way to reliably clean micro fiber??

Sushi me this

I love sushi. I adore it. I could stuff myself full of those delicious little rolls and roll myself out of there every single solitary day.

This being said, I'm having a hard time bringing myself to go to any other sushi places now that I have found the one. I know there are other very good sushi places in Tampa. Heck, I'm usually the one to spot a new one and insist on trying it out (although seriously, if you are either out of salmon or don't use cream cheese, pack up and go, please). (side note: I know I'm not a connoisseur. I don't generally do sashimi, I don't do the slurpy soups usually, and I don't do wasabi. I know what I like. And other sushi eaters usually like what I like (with the exception of eel, which I adore and others, not so much) and that's that). Okay, back. So my favorite sushi place is Origami Sushi, on Hillsborough Ave. Oh. My. God. Seriously awesome. Spicy crunchy tuna. Awesome. Bagel rolls. Awesome. Mexican roll. Awesome. Tampa roll. Awesome. But the pièce de résistance is the Crazy Horse. What's in it? Tempura shrimp. Cream cheese. Avacado. Roe. Spicy Mayo. Tempura chips. Probably crack. It's awesome. If you live in Tampa, try it now.

That is all; over and out. :)

Up all night

Ever since I realized they opened a new library branch five minutes from my house, I've been there a couple times a month loading up on books. I've generally been on a chick-lit guilty pleasure kick, reading anything easy and cute and doesn't require my brain. The only book I'll mention from that set of books as surprisingly worth reading was Marion Keyes' Rachel's Holiday. This was decidedly not chick-lit fodder, but instead the story of a young woman who is put in a drug rehab center in Ireland and her journey through sobriety. It was very good.

I also read about half of Joyce Carol Oates' The Falls, a very gothic, dreary book about a woman whose first husband commits suicide in Niagara Falls, and so on and so forth. I can't really say why I stopped reading; it was generally well written and interesting. It was just so dreary!

The last novel I read was The Other Boleyn Girl, at the insistence of NPR Junky (who disabled her blog so I can't link), and also recommended by my friend Autumn who is a literary assistant in NYC (although she recommended the book-on-CD because the writing wasn't great but the story was). I .... well, I liked it very much, oddly. I'm not into period/epic stories/movies/etc, ever really. I try to read them or watch movies and it just grates on my nerves. So I got through the whole thing, which is a good sign. Also, I thought it was due back at the library today so I stayed up until after midnight last night to finish it. Also a good sign. I think my only qualm with it is actually what probably made me enjoy it. It felt like chick-lit fodder. I know that there is a historical story (although not true to history) and that some or all of the drama may or may not have happened, but it just felt like another summer read, with no real meat. So, if that is your general reading material, you should pick it up. I thought I should feel more satisfied with it, like it should have been more of a meal but instead was like those passed-appetizers of mini beef Wellington. Tasty but unsubstantial. Am I carrying the analogy too far?

Do you have any book suggestions?

Success with iBert and Ernie

iBert is a big hit. We've gone bike riding every day this week except once when Christen worked late and I was sick and annoyed. It's been really great, actually. Christen and I talk more, and Spencer gets to look at the water and the cars (and Daddy on the bike next to him). It's a great activity for us as a family and so cheap and healthy! We live right off the trailhead for the Upper Tampa Bay Trail, so we usually take that up through Westchase and back again. Monday I needed a couple extra things for dinner, so Spencer and I rode up to Publix and back. Tonight we rode 10 miles. I'm excited for what the weekends hold for us on our bikes!

I'm a believer (maybe)

I've been having back pain for two years. It's not every day, it's not always seriously painful, and it doesn't go anywhere. It doesn't hurt when I walk, or exercise, or lay down. It doesn't bother me when I sleep, or stretch, or anything. The only time it ever hurts is when I sit for long periods of time. At that point it aches, and when I try to get up, I get sharp pains in my very low back. These pains can be pretty severe so that I try to roll off my couch rather than stand straight away.

I was afraid there was something seriously wrong. Of course, this means that I don't go to a doctor because I'm scared of what he'll tell me. Being in the business that I am (and I know you don't know exactly what that is), I see a lot of records from a lot of quack doctors. There are some good ones, sure, but a lot of them are too busy lining their pockets instead of helping their patients. I don't exactly hold chiropractors in high regard. I mean, come on. They aren't really doctors; they don't go to medical school. My dad's best friend is a retired chiropractor. He's actually very well respected in the field. Same with the father of a good friend of mine. He's retired and now owns a vineyard a couple counties north. But since they're both retired, I was unsure of who to turn to.

Enter my new chiropractor. I've only had two sessions and my back is so much better! I'm hoping that by next week I should be able to finish treatment and only go back on a prn basis. Hallelujah! It really is amazing. It doesn't appear that there was anything wrong with my back, it just needed to be realligned. :) Yay for no pain! Let's hope it lasts!