Rockin' Concerts, New Singles, Bob Marley And The Kitchen Sink

I have two very important bits of news this week!!! Important to me, at least. Well three, actually!

October is my favorite month of the year! And it’s here!

I love to rake and crunch in the leaves. The crisp coolness of the air inspires and motivates me. I love sitting on the front porch when it’s warm and by the wood-filled fireplace in the back when the evening is chilly. I love jeans, sweatpants and chili! I get to see my kids a lot. It’s my birth month. What more can you ask for?

Even better…I have my PINK tickets. March 9^th. The United Center. WOO HOO!!!!!

She went and had a baby which delayed her album making and tour but we’ll cut her some slack as we all know how life gets in the way of things we want to do. I don’t have the tickets in hand yet but I should by tomorrow. My M.O. when getting concert tickets is I buy some decent ones immediately so I know I’m going for sure then I start trading up so long as the price goes up. So in February, I’ll start working my magic until I end up on the main floor around 10 rows back. Don’t want to be much closer or you really can’t see well. She is incredible!!!

My guy, Kid Rock, released his new single Let's Ride yesterday (this YouTube clip is from a radio interview and debut of the song). Been waiting for him, too. If there’s one thing that would really get me going, it would be the two of them in concert….TOGETHER. And I think they’d be really great with each other. Both are talented, sexy and smart!

Anyway, his album will be released on my daughter’s birthday, November 19th. What a great gift for me! AND you know what a new album always means…….A tour is coming our way. I know the way these things time out and we should expect Kid to come swinging through Chi-town in the early summer or possible late spring. He puts on a kick ass show and it will be my fourth time spending the night with him, if you know what I mean!!!

I was in a very warm, muggy climate last week and one of the best things about being in Sea Island, Georgia, was biking absolutely everywhere. We rented these awesome beach cruisers with baskets. What can’t be done with a bike and basket? While we has a rented car for airport transport from Jacksonville, it was never used. My goal for October…bike everywhere. To the farmer’s market, CVS, grocery store, library, friends’ homes, you get the picture. I love bike riding and have no idea why I haven’t done this sooner!

A rather big annoyance while dining al fresco at a shrimp shack on St. Simons Island was this woman.

Notice anything hanging out of her mouth? A heater!!!! She plopped herself right down on a bench by our table and lit up. Also, she had a little yapping dog with her. The dog didn’t bother me much. I love dogs. The smoke did.

Oh and this tasty morsel is what remained of my fried Oreo. It didn't stay that way for long. It was incredibly delicious! A truly gooey delight!

Just found last week. A new beverage. And I was quite surprised to find it in the organic aisle. I know Bob Marley was all about organic produce, if you know what I mean, but I didn’t think this energy/coffee drink qualified. It’s called “Marley’s One Drop” and it’s gooooooood!  The tag line on it if you can’t see is “Wake Up & Live”. Will do, Bob! Made with real Jamaican coffee, by the way.

Happy Tuesday! And a big thank you to Stacy Uncorked and Seriously Shawn for allowing random writing and talk to be the norm on a Tuesday.

Ten To-Dos For June: I Can Do It!

This is just perfect! It is exactly what I need right this very minute and I’m not saying that sarcastically either.

I DO need a June To-Do list. I haven’t put together a To-Do list in what seems like foreverrrrrrrr! I realize that some of these might border on personally unrealistic and I’m okay with that because I’d rather be stretching than things coming easily.

On purpose, I am sparing the list and all of you those To-Dos (goals) that have to do with my obsession regarding physical fitness. Yes, I am a bit of a whack job in this regard. I have an entirely different list of those.

So I’d like to give a big shout out to Mama Kat for the kick in the butt. It’s much appreciated.

Ten To-Dos for June:

1.    Survive a crazy L.A. wedding weekend- Not as easy as it may seem considering it’s the same besties who traveled together in the fall for my birthday. All I’ll say is some fun comes with a cost. I’m sure we'll be wrung out by the end of it, completely exhausted.

2.    Spend one full day a week reading- And do hardly anything else that day except eat (this will be challenging). My reading has suffered lately. When something you love is missing in your life, it’s painful. I need to make it a priority again. I have three books going. I need to chose one then finish them all. I usually manage one a week and I’d like to get back to that. (I have 4 others lined up and ready to go) BOOK SUGGESTIONS PLEASE!!!

3.    I will commit to putting all portable phones on their bases so at least one in this household works/rings- The only reason this is even on the list is, at the present moment, three handsets are sitting with me next to the computer, none of them have a charge and the phone keeps ringing. Wonder who left them here and didn’t return them to their charge stands? Thank goodness someone was smart enough to keep landlines around here (not me) so we could actually answer the phone.

4.    Swim, bike or run everyday beginning June 19^th-. Everything tends to fall by the wayside in the summer as I watch myself get chubbier and rounder (it's quite interesting). No way this time. I’ll be signing up, with my daughter and three friends, for the lake’s annual triathlon. We did it last year and it was a blast but it would've been a whole lot easier if I had trained some (swam not one stroke and ran possibly 10 miles total prior to the race, not good). However, there's always a light at the end of the tunnel …the kegger and hot dog party we throw directly after the last of us crosses the finish line. Now that’s what I call motivation!

5.    Lay off the fried food that they do so well in the state of Indiana- I am obsessed with fried green beans and wasabi dip. The breaded pork tenderloins aren’t too shabby either nor are the french fries. Arms are making an “X” which means NO…Stay Away!

6.    Once a week, make/have a date with each of my children, separately. I haven’t seen them much since they returned from school May 4^th except for weekends. Yea!!! for full time jobs but sad that they are living in a different state at the moment. At least they’re together. June 19^th changes that!

7.    Play, walk, throw the ball in the water 20X in a row, and snuggle with Addison every day- Addy is our little dog who is all of 75 lbs. which is not so little but she still looks and acts like a naughty puppy.

8.    Clean out two huge junk closets at the lake- They're filled with 50+ years of crap (to the point where it’s dangerous to open the door) and I will not bitch about it, put it off or ask someone else to do it.

9.    Score fantastic tickets to an awesome concert (TBD) for my friends and I- For whatever reason, it seems the majority of events this summer are country oriented. Not a big fan. Quite possibly, I need to step out of my “music” box and attend something I never have in the past. Different is good!

10.                  Resurrect homemade pasta night- We didn’t do it last summer and I don’t recall why but traditionally (or for about 10 straight years) my daughter and I would pick a weekend night, invite all our summer friends over, and prepare pasta made from scratch. I wish I could find the pictures from the last. They’re hysterical. Imagine bathing suits (only a teenager can do this in a string bikini plus the kitchen is HOT), everything completely covered in flour, gravy on the stove with meatballs AND an audience. So, so fun!

There it is. Some will be very easy and others rather difficult. Happy June!