I used OxiClean in memory of Billy Mays today.

Although Kobe has yet to shit in the bathtub, he has already landed fat ones on both of my mom's laundry room rugs. Bastard.

After the wedding last night, I got a text message from the one guy I dated semi-seriously in high school. We texted back & forth for a bit, and he invited me out to have a couple of beers at his friend's house. It wasn't too far from my parent's house, so I headed over there and had a few beers. I'm glad I was drinking: ex-boyfriend=biggest douche of all ex-boyfriends. Details to be shared privately (ask & you shall receive).

The victory of the night is that I managed to drink at the wedding & at the gathering of douches and managed not to smoke one cigarette! Not a puff, even! It took a large amount of willpower & it probably really helped that I worked out yesterday. I did have cigarette-smoking dreams last night, though, a real raw throat included. Overcoming addiction is just as difficult as everyone says it is. I'm positive I'm in the right mindset to put this past me though, for good.

I'm headed up to Denton tomorrow for the Continuity Day with NSTWP, and I'm looking for a place to crash after our get-together. I'll be in town through Tuesday, early.

Go ahead, pass this on to anyone in need of douchebag affirmation:

Down in B-Town

Fair enough, here's what's going down in B-town:

A) My cats are adjusting well; in fact, they're thriving. My parents LOVE them, and I think they like not having a dog around to chase them. Layla has no interest in going outside, currently, which I think is surprising. I took them both to the vet today; they each have a clean bill of health, all of their shots, and some de-fleaing, heart-worm preventative meds. I have two very happy kitties.

B) Mom donated a two-week free pass to a gym in Harker Heights to me which was very nice of her. It's alright-- it's small, and I liked being a lost soul in the UNT gym because I knew no one had any idea what I was doing. I felt like a doofus today, studying some of their machinery, because I'm not used to some of it. Fortunately, a one-hour training session also comes with the pass, so I'm hoping to learn something about their machines-- and maybe free weights? I'd like to learn enough to work out on my own. Also notable, the BHS Natatorium is open for public swims, so I think I'm going to hit up some lap swims this week there. I won't sit around & get fat!

C) I've been reading quite a bit. I finished Skinny Bitch which pissed me off despite its few good points. I also read Three Cups of Tea, but it was the kids version (Mom had it on hand). I have the gist of the story, but I know I'm missing out on the good details of the trials in Greg Mortenson's Pakistani-Afghani venture. He's really pretty amazing, and I'd like to read the real deal. Also picked up The Art of Making Money today at Barnes & Noble because I listened to an interview with the author, Jason Kersten, on NPR on my way to Belton. Incredibly captivating-- it's about a master counterfeiter, Art Williams, and how he dodged the law and eventually was caught. The writing is amazing (Jason Kersten works for The Rolling Stone), and the story is incredulous. So far, so good. Still looking for Lamb, and seeing as my sports bras & jewelry showed up today, I'm sure it's next! I really want to finish that dang book! My daytime reading is about to be Civil Disobedience, but I have yet to embark on that literature-- need a good coffee break.

Anyway-- I'm disappointed I'm missing Trebuchet tonight and JP & Shannon's wedding tomorrow, but I am attending my cousin's half-brother's wedding tomorrow evening which will surely be a (drunken) blast. Still on the lookout for a cheap winner of a bike and some extra cashflow.

Love ya kids!

MJ!

Today, unfortunately, was a sad day; the day the world lost the King of Pop. It's bizarre-- Michael Jackson... dead? No more "Wacko Jacko" stories? No more Blanket stories? No more masks? The music already seemed gone, but the world is certainly a little less weird today.

Unfortunately, can't embed MJ videos from YouTube, so I'm just going to encourage you to visit the Michael Jackson channel on YouTube. Beat It.

Back in Belton

So, today was the day I left Denton. It still doesn't quite feel right, knowing I am no longer a resident of the Little D. A strange feeling has sat in my stomach today, I'm incapable of describing it; I only know it is a product of my emotions.

I'm trying to be positive about spending a month here with my parents and my brothers. I'm glad I have a unique opportunity to reconnect with my family here before I leave them for another state. I also figure I should get to know Temple/Belton a little better, since I have been away for 6 years and tend to find myself a little puzzled about where things are. After a frustration on 57th street in Temple today, followed by a frustrated exit from Target (the Temple city planners might be smoking crack-- you can't easily get from Target to the Loop!), I started to plan a list of things I should do here. Here's the start of the list.

Before I leave Central Texas I will:
-Find a recycling center and implement a recycling program at my parents' house
-Visit the train museum
-Eat a burger at Crow's
-Listen to some free music
-Go to the lake!
-Find a good non-Starbucks coffee shop to read/write in
-Spend a day at a park
-Make myself sick on Mexican food so I don't miss it too much in Pennsylvania
-See some movies I haven't seen (recommendations welcome-- Jason works at the video store! I can catch up on all of this movie watching I haven't done!)
-Figure out that mess on the Loop that I don't understand


Fair list. I promise to write about my adventures and post pictures/videos as often as possible!