Happy Birthday Kit-Kat

Happy 20th Birthday to "my baby girl". I love you very much. Thank you for letting me be your "Mom". The years that I was part of were,...adventurous.

 I hope that I will be here to see the next 20.

~Mom

Well, well!

Down to just one car, are we?   Has it been a year already?!?! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

Did it just die one day?  Yeah, I fell for that lie myself.

So glad to be rid of THAT drama!

International Day of Happiness

 Today is the International Day of Happiness!

Woo Hoo!

Read more about it HERE.

It happily coincides with the morning after a date with an uber-hottie I will call Gib. 

Gib is a regular at the Super Popular National Chain Wings establishment that Julz works for. He saw me at the Globetrotters game. His parents had taken them all for a family outing, just like us.

Gib is younger than me by almost five years. divorced with two young boys. He is a former football player for Ole Miss, and is everything that implies. Tall, broad shouldered, athletic, with a megawatt smile, and cool, blue eyes.  He was truly too cute to be real.

We chatted over French fries and naked tenders, while March Madness raged on around us.

He had been a lawyer, just like his father, but didn't really like it.  When he relocated to Birmingham from just outside Jackson (yes, Jackson, again) his college roommate suggested he come work with him, just to get the bills paid He loved it and has been in sales ever since.

His marriage of 14 years broke up a year and a half ago after he and his wife grew apart.  Unlike my friend Jody, it was not an amicable break up.

He was sweet, and polite, and engaging.

I hope our next date is somewhere not so loud

In the meantime

Let's Celebrate HAPPINESS!!

The Harlem Globe Trotters

This was a bucket list item for my mom.

 

 

 

 

 

March 7th....

Why does this date seem to stand out in my mind?!  It seems like it should be something important.

Oh Yea!!!

It is the day before we go to see the HARLEM GLOBETROTTERS!!

 I am super excited. Always wanted to see the Harlem Globetrotters since I was a kid.  I realize thing have changed a bit from the days of Meadowlark Lemon and Curly Neal, but I am looking forward to it!

Hopefully I will be able to take pictures and can update everyone tomorrow.

Meanwhile, here is a short clip

 

 

EnJOY your Saturday!!

Here We Go Again :Winter Storm 15 Part Duex

Okay, so a week later, we are faced with the same Winter Storm issue as last week.  Even after being nearly 80 degrees on Wednesday.

 

We were sent home promptly at 11:00 a.m  Thursday to give everyone sufficient time to travel home safely.  It was a good thing too. This 15 car pile up happened on my route home around 3pm and shut down the interstate for hours.  The accident they say was caused by ice.

 

 

(photo courtesy of al.com ...see story HERE )

 

It did begin sleeting around 1-ish and the temperature was steadily dropping, I reclined to watch the court shows and dropped off to sleep, I woke up four hours later to several text from various people.

 

W was in Selma, working on a communications package for the upcoming 50th anniversary of the Selma march.  He was telling me about being buzzed by Marine helicopters that he knew were there for the President and how cool he thought that was, even if he didn't agree with the man's politics.  He asked how bad conditions were and if he would be able to get home.

 

The others were from Jody, telling me he had been "activated" for this storm too. He would be working night shift and that I could hit him up later.  He and I chatted on and off through the night. 

 

This morning, there was a message on our weather line that we were delaying opening until 9:00 a.m. so I thankfully rolled over and snoozed a little longer.

The sun was shining when I finally got up to get into the shower.
I almost broke my neck going to warm the car up because the sleet had left a nifty layer of ice on my porch.

 

 

 

And my car... 

 

I had a little challenge getting in the car.

The doors were frozen shut!

 

I did not encounter any ice until I got to 459 where it clung to the shady spots.

 

Come on Spring

Alabama is ready for you!

More Bittersweet Memories

I have lost another childhood friend this week. I could not believe that he had died from a heart attack because he was so young.  He was only 48.

 

(picture courtesy of another classmate...he signed over his face in mine)

I remember him being in really good shape growing up. He was one of the first guys to really "work out" and develop pecs and abs.  But he wasn't one of those arrogant, "look at my muscles" kind of guys. He was quiet and sort of sheepish, quiet and sometimes shy but I do remember him having a mischievous streak.  He married one of my brother's classmates. I remember thinking that was odd because outside of church, I couldn't think of where they would have met. Together they had three children.

My mother reminded me that he was the about the same age as his dad, when his dad had is first heart attack.

Seems like 48 was really old then.

But now it seems really young.

Please be in prayer for his family: His wife and 3 children. His brother who I didn't even knew existed until a few days ago because he was older.  His sister, who's majorette uniforms I bought when I made the squad. His numerous first cousins, who were also my friends.

Rest in peace friend, you too will be missed

Not Exactly Snowmageddon 2015

This week was uber hectic. It seemed that we spent the entire week under some sort of weather warning.  I also realized that everyone on staff, save one, lived above  the dreaded " I-20 corridor"

 

Every day I carried my "Snow Bag," an awesome, practical Christmas gift from the Chief, after my Snowmageddon 2014 ordeal.

 

 

So the super awesome contents of the Snow Bag contains two blankets, a traditional on and a "space blanket" that holds in heat. I have little snacks (gluten free, of course) water and Gatorade, a flashlight, transistor radio, a first aid kit, an air horn, wet wipes, glow sticks, and hand warmers. I threw in a spare pair of socks and long johns for good measure. Bring on the snow!

When the weather event finally did arrive, we closed my office early.  This time I made it home safely. I laid down for a nap, only to wake to find, no winter wonderland. Not even sleet.   My boss posted pictures of her family frolicking in the eight inches of snow they got at her home. I was bummed.

W texted me to find out if I was okay. I no sooner hit send and my power went out. Great. I sat stunned for a full two minutes when everything powered up around me. I later learned that a tree had fallen at the end of my street. Neighbors there spend the next 24 hours without power.

Another friend in the National Guard, who, for lack of something better, I will just call "Jody" (cause he is cute enough to steal the girl and go) had been activated for the storm. He wanted a break from an online security training video.   We texted back and forth about our "storm."  He sent me a picture from the wet, but not snowy, parking lot of his armory. 

Suddenly my weather radio went off.  It nearly took 10 years of my life. The announcer said that the snow should be starting  for the I-20 corridor within the hour.  A text from Jody then told me the same thing.

I texted him this picture when the snow started. He shot back that he was jealous. He was streaming a movie to his phone and told me he would check on me later.

 

Within the hour the accumulation had progressed to this.

 

W texted me again to ask if I had been snowed in yet. By the time the snow stopped, I had a lovely coverage. I texted this pic to W and Jody.

 

I know that it doesn't compare to the foot that some people got, but I'm not really a fan anyway.

 

The sun the next day made short work of it. 

Saturday was 60 degrees.

 

Winter in Alabama

 

gotta love it