Dah, dah, dah... ...

This will be a r.a.n.d.o.m. post.

First on the list: I like country music. This morning I heard a song by Brad Paisley called "I'm Still a Guy." (Apparently it's an old song, but I don't care.) Too funny and totally cute! I think that's why I like about country music. Songs can be funny, sad, goofy, sappy, heart felt... anything! Here are the lyrics:

When you see a deer you see Bambi
And I see antlers up on the wall
When you see a lake you think picnic
And I see a large mouth up under that log

You're probably thinking that you're going to change me
In some ways well maybe you might
Scrub me down, dress me up but no matter what
I'm still a guy

When you see a priceless French painting
I see a drunk, naked girl
You think that riding a wild bull sounds crazy
And I'd like to give it a whirl

Well love makes a man do some things he ain't proud of
And in a weak moment I might
Walk your sissy dog, hold your purse at the mall
But remember, I'm still a guy

I'll pour out my heart
Hold your hand in the car
Write a love song that makes you cry
Then turn right around knock some jerk to the ground
'Cause he copped a feel as you walked by

I can hear you now talking to your friends
Saying, "Yeah girls he's come a long way"
From dragging his knuckles and carrying a club
And building a fire in a cave

But when you say a back rub means only a back rub
Then you swat my hand when I try
Well, what can I say at the end of the day
Honey, I'm still a guy

I'll pour out my heart
Hold your hand in the car
Write a love song that makes you cry
Then turn right around knock some jerk to the ground
'Cause he copped a feel as you walked by

These days there's dudes getting facials
Manicured, waxed and botoxed
With deep spray-on tans and creamy lotiony hands
You can't grip a tackle box

With all of these men lining up to get neutered
It's hip now to be feminized
I don't highlight my hair
I've still got a pair
Yeah honey, I'm still a guy

Oh my eyebrows ain't plucked
There's a gun in my truck
Oh thank God, I'm still a guy

Continued from my like of country music, has anyone else listened to the new Rascal Flatts album. It's awesome. I'm a HUGE Rascal Flatts fan, and I especially love this song. It's sad, but it hits home. It's called Why:

It must a been a place so dark, couldn't feel the light
Reachin' for you through that stormy cloud
Now here we are gathered in our little home town
This can't be the way you meant to draw a crowd

Oh why that's what I keep askin'
Was there anything I could have said or done
Oh I, had no clue you were masking, a troubled soul, God only knows
What went wrong, and why you'd leave the stage in the middle of a song

Now in my mind I keep you frozen as a seventeen year old
Rounding third to score the winning run
You always played with passion, no matter what the game
When you took the stage you shined just like the sun

Oh why that's what I keep askin'
Was there anything I could have said or done
Oh I, had no clue you were masking, a troubled soul, oh God only knows
What went wrong, and why you'd leave the stage in the middle of a song

Now the oak trees are swayin' in the early autumn breeze
The golden sun is shining on my face
The tangled thoughts I hear a mockingbird sing
This old world really ain't that bad a place

Oh why, there's no comprehending
And who am I to try to judge or explain
Oh but I, do have one burning question
Who told you life, wasn't worth the fight
They were wrong
They lied
Now you're gone
And we cried

Cause it's not like you, to walk away, in the middle of a song

Your beautiful song
Your absolutely beautiful song

Secondly, does anyone else out there believe in pheromones? I'll tell you, G seems more attracted to me, and I tend to get more compliments from males during my days of ovulation. It's weird!

Next, I have noticed that when I wear heels, I walk so much slower! Is this because the step is shorter because of the heel being elevated? It's SO frustrating!

Another random - I LOVE Ann Taylor Loft's clothes. Someone please gift me a gift cert. so I can stop my brains out at the store... pretty please?!

Oh! G and I planted some items in our garden last night! We planted strawberries, cherry tomatoes, big tomatoes, red peppers, green peppers, oregano, chives, mint, and red onions. We're still debating what else we'd like to put there. We have quite a bit of space for a garden... so we have quite a few options. Some other things we're considering are cucumbers, blackberries, and some more herbs! I also think we're going to put a (small) lime plant out on the front porch by the door, as well as a couple hanging baskets with some geraniums. We're also going to put some bulbed flowers (Lilys, Tulips, and Daffodils) in the planter boxes. I love it!

I have to add how impressed I am with G. He is such a handy person! He has fixed our (old) washer AND dryer (he replaced the belt and the heating element). He took off the old exhaust system on his car and installed the new one. He has fixed multiple things on my beater Jeep. He can fix any computer problem. He can wire anything. And now, he's good at working in the yard. His skills are impressive! There really isn't anything he can't do and I'm glad to say that unless our toilet explodes all over the bathroom, we won't ever have to call for outside help! :) I'm lucky.

Well, that's all the randomness I have for now.... maybe I'll think of something to add later!

We finally have a picture together in front of our house!

If I'm 5'7", how tall is G?

What will it change if we're engaged or married?

G knows that I'm ready to be engaged, to be married, and to be a mommy. He also knows that it's important to me. Regardless of the fact that he knows it's important to me, he begs the question "What will being engaged/married change?"

The simple answer is, nothing. Being engaged to be married or being married is not going to change our relationship, our relations with one another, or the dynamics of our relationship. The real question is, "What does it mean to one another?"

For me, being engaged and married are both extremely important parts of a long-term relationship to me. I've expressed to G that I would be happy eloping, but I'd much rather be engaged for a period of time before actually getting married. As a woman, I would like to enjoy that time of "being engaged." I won't say that is what all women want, but that is what I want, and that's what's important to me. I want to be his special someone with a ring on my finger to show the world "I have a fiance and I GET to marry him!"

As far as marriage goes, that is important to me as well. While I'm not obsessively religious, I would like to say that I'm "Christian." I believe in God. I believe in Heaven and Hell. And I know that I'm a sinner! HELLO WORLD, I AM A SINNER. In my beliefs, as corny as it sounds, I want G to make an honest woman of me. It is important to me to not continue to live my life in sin. It's important to me to make those vows before my family and more importantly, before God. Secondly, being married is an important commitment to me that I would make to G. Marriage means coming together, as husband and wife, and supporting one another in life's endeavors. It means support, commitment, understanding, forgiveness, sympathy, empathy, and LOVE! It's committing to sharing your lives with one another, the good and the bad. It's being one another's family. It's a life-long commitment to love and respect one another. It's helping one another grow. It's helping one another learn. It's SO many things to me, I can't continue to write them here without sounding like a complete freak!

My dad highlighted this in my bible years ago. Many people know this passage, but it's something that I want to honor and live by.

1 Corinthians 13:4-7
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. ⁵It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. ⁶Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. ⁷It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

I may be repeating myself, but what will change when G and I are engaged and married? It will mean that although being engaged and married may not mean the same things to him as they do to me, it will show me that I am important enough and my feelings are important enough for him to want the same things as well.

Mmmm... Sush!

Pre-all-you-can-eat-sushi

@ Yaki Maki in Boulder.

Like it's my fault...

Did you know that I'm in control of the weather AND my employer's decisions?

Bet you didn't and I bet no one else did, because I certainly didn't until a couple minutes ago.

Apparently, G did though, because he's giving me a hard time about having to pick me up.

Due to this:

my employer has requested that I take a half day and leave early (since I took the bus), to ensure that I have a way home since 1) I opted to not take them up on their offer for a hotel room to stay downtown tonight and 2) because this weather is not suppose to let up for quite some time.

Unfortunately, because I choose to take the bus to save money on gas and parking, the bus that I normally take only runs in the morning and in the afternoon.

Therefore, I have to take another bus to another park-n-Ride that my car is NOT parked at. Therefore, G has to pick me up (and have it interfere with his day), take me to get my car (another couple miles down the road) and is making a major stink about it.

I didn't do this on purpose. I'm not trying to ruin his day off. This was not my choice. I'm doing what I'm told.

Gah, what is it called when guys have their version of PMS. I think it's called "someone shit in my cereal this morning."

And I'm glad to report that I'm lost almost ten pounds. Hmmmpf!

Ex-nay on Valentine's Day

G and I don't celebrate Valentine's Day on February 14th.

Why?

Because every day is special to us and we don't feel the need to support a "corporate holiday," on behalf of Hallmark.

We understand that there is history behind Valentine's Day, but to us, today, it just means there's another reason to waste money on needless things.

The holiday probably derives from the ancient Roman feast of Lupercalis (February 15), also called the Lupercalia. In an annual rite of fertility, eligible young men and women would be paired as couples through a town lottery. Briefly clad or naked men would then run through the town carrying the skins of newly sacrificed goats dipped in blood. The women of the town would present themselves to be gently slapped by the strips and marked by the blood to improve their chances of conceiving in the coming year.

As Christianity came to dominance in Europe, pagan holidays such as Lupercalia were frequently renamed for early Christian martyrs. In 496 Pope Gelasius officially declared February 14 to be the feast day of two Roman martyrs, both named Saint Valentine, who lived in the 3rd century. Neither Saint Valentine seems to have an obvious connection to courtship or lovers.

Despite attempts by the Christian church to sanctify the holiday, the association of Valentine’s Day with romance and courtship continued through the Middle Ages. In medieval France and England it was believed that birds mated on February 14, and the image of birds as the symbol of lovers began to appear in poems dedicated to the day. By the 18th century it was common for friends and lovers to exchange handwritten notes on Valentine’s Day. Printed cards had largely replaced written sentiments by the 19th century. In 1840 Esther Howland of Worcester, Massachusetts, created the first line of mass-produced Valentines for sale. Today, Valentine’s Day is second only to Christmas as the most popular card-sending holiday.

I'm proud to be a woman that doesn't feel the need to be doted upon on a corporate holiday. I am always more pleasantly surprised on any given day to receive flowers, than I would be if I received them on Valentine's Day. I don't even like roses that much! I like Lilys and Alstroemerias! I like to be doted upon on our anniversary and on my birthday. Even my birthday isn't a big deal to me, but it's still "my day."

Last year, G spent Valentine's Day in Seattle visiting E. I was okay with that and still am.

Don't get me wrong. I think Valentine's Day is great fun for kids in elementary school. My problem arises when junior high and high school rolls around. This "holiday" becomes a time for girls to put pressure on guys to dote on them, and for those girls to expect to have a freakin' Valentine! It's stupid. I just don't get the "holiday." Would anyone like to shed some light on this? Do you feel differently?

Le sigh, I'm stuck inside today.

It's currently around 70 degrees outside right now and I couldn't tell you what I would give to be able to be outside today, hiking with G and the doggins!

70 degree weather in Denver, mid-January, is unheard of. We're suppose to set a record today that was last set in 1950. I don't get it; South Carolina got snow yesterday and we've got the warm sun. Granted, Colorado does get a TON of sun. The state averages 300 days per year of glorious sunshine. To think, when I told people in Charleston that I was moving to Denver, the assumption was that it was snowing, freezing, and cloudy all-the-time. No offense to anyone, but I'm so glad I don't live in the south anymore!

On another note, next week (in eight days), I will be 27. Ick. I don't want to get older. I know 27 is not old, in fact it's still young. That's just one year older though that I don't want to be. It's hard to believe I was 22 when I met G! I want to be that age again so badly. I loved 22 and 23! I was 22 and G was 25. Wow. He will be 30 in May!

Right now we're trying to plan a trip to Cozumel for his big 3-0. Hopefully everything works out and he will have a rockin' birthday!

Day 1572.

This evening G and I are headed up to Breckenridge for the weekend with his friend B.

If I could have my way, I wouldn't be going. It's not because I don't want to spend time with G, but more because 1) I don't want to hang out with B. I understand he's single, but when you blow your friends off to hang out with Colorado's "Most Eligible Bachelor," and his douche-bag roommates, it doesn't fly. I like to think that the people you associate yourself with are an example of who you are and your character. The first time I met "Colorado's Most Eligible Bachelor," he was hanging out with a married woman and his douche-bag roommate justified what he was doing telling me that it wasn't on his roommate, that it was on this married woman and that I didn't know what she was going through, so I shouldn't judge her either. I'm sorry, but if you have a ring on your finger, you shouldn't be, literally, hanging on another man. Keep your clam burger closed honey. So B continues to spend time with this douche bags. Maybe he thinks hanging out with a bunch of single guys will help his game. Hello, do the math here B. More single guys just means that whatever women are out, have more of a choice to pick over. Smooth move Ex-Lax. Now to 2) We had friends visiting for a week and the whole time it was "go-go-go."They just left of Tuesday and I've had a busy week working some O.T. after my regular hours. To be quite honest, I would enjoy a nice quiet weekend at home, not spending $30 in gas to drive up there for a night. 3) I have a sinus infection. I can't even begin to remember the last time I had one, but I feel like poop. Having the Mucinex booger stuck up in your head doesn't make for feeling top-notch. 4) Lastly, I'd just like G to want to spend time with me and not have to "do" something all the time. I want him to relax and be content spending time at home, cooking dinner and watching a movie.

No matter what I want or how I feel physically, or how I feel emotionally about going, we'll still go because it's what G wants. He always gets what he wants and I if were to tell him to go on his own and hang out with B, he'd turn it around on me telling me that I would be being selfish and that if I don't go, he won't go. And it's not that he wants to go up to Breck to spend time with me, it's because he wants to hang out with B and go boarding. So seriously, why in the heck does it even matter if I go? Fact is, it doesn't.

Gah. I didn't start the morning off right anyway, and not wanting to waste my time this weekend isn't making me feel any better.

Did I mention that because G couldn't sleep this morning, he made comments and poked me until I acknowledged him? What the hell?! My alarm went off and I wanted to snooze a bit longer, so I tried to. The next thing I know, G is whispering comments and poking me. He'd wait for a reaction, and when I didn't do anything, he'd make another comment and poke me again! What the hell x2. So I annoyingly asked him "What?!" and why he was bugging me. "I can't sleep," he says. Well thanks for poking me for a reaction because you couldn't sleep. Sheesh. So I shat on the idea of snoozing for 10 more minutes and just got up. Grrr.