Toto We're Not in Texas Anymore!

Or at least it feels like it. What the heck is up with this weather? It has snowed twice in 2010 so far. That's right, snowed.

In Houston.

And the first time was real snow. The kind that gives snowmen job security for at least a day. So last night we had just a few flurries, but it was unmistakably snow. Normally, snow for us is "Oh, if you focus your eyes on that black car over there you might see it!"

As much as I'm liking the whole snow anomaly thing, I'm ready for spring to get here. I'm more of an "in-between" seasons kind of a person and enjoy spring and fall but not so much the extremes. We should well be on our way by now into some spring-like weather and here we are having snow storms.

I like cold weather for a short period of time and only because it makes certain things possible; like scarves, coats, a lit fireplace, hot chocolate and snuggling (see previous post). I'm not the girl who wears her Uggs when it hits a degree below 70, but you get the picture. (By the way, I think I might be the only girl who doesn't have a pair of Uggs) If I had known that we were going to have a true Winter, I would have expanded my winter wardrobe a little.

So, come on Spring! I know you can do it! I'm running out of clothes to wear! Get some gumption (fun word)! Just push Old Man Winter out of the way! This may be how they do it up North, but has he ever heard of 'when in Rome'? We're in Texas for goodness' sake!

Scarves, coats, and hot chocolate aside, to everything there is a season, turn, turn...now. Please.

Are You A Snuggleupagus?

Are you a snuggler? Do you have a propensity to snuggle?

Do you gravitate toward body heat?

If you're in bed do you tend to roll to the middle toward your spouse or a pillow?

If given the choice, would you rather share a couch or have one to yourself?

If you answered each of these questions in a positive fashion toward snuggling, you are most likely a Snuggleupagus. Snuggleupaguses or Snuggleupagi, take advantage of any opportunity to snuggle, cuddle, or be close to loved ones. Personal space between spouses, in the physical sense, would be virtually non-existent if left up to a Snuggleupagus.

This is not just heresay, this is coming directly from a Snuggleupagus: me. All of the aforementioned traits fit me to a tee. Ok, so it's not surprising since I came up with the Snuggleupagus Testing Standards, but I'm just saying I'm guilty.

There are three camps that are reading this blog:

1. Fellow Snuggleupaguses that can relate
2. Snuggleupagus cynics
3. Those that cringe just thinking about their personal space being invaded

Regarding the last two, please refer to the FAQ below:

Snuggleupagus FAQ

Have you always been a Snuggleupagus? No, before I met Joey this was too ooey gooey for me. I was a cynic and laughed at people like me.

What led you to becoming a Snuggleupagus? Falling in love.

Is Snuggleupagusing the same as being clingy? No. One needs it the other just likes it.

Do many people know you're a Snuggleupagus? No, only Joey and my family know this about me. I'm not even the type that greets with a hug.

Does your Snuggleupagusness invade others' personal space? First, my snuggle tendencies only apply to Joey and immediate family. Secondly, I know my limits.

Does Snuggleupagusness ever become a problem? Well, at the beginning of our marriage Joey and I had to get our sleeping styles down. Apparently some people can't sleep with others glued to them. I can't imagine why this is a problem. I just gravitate to body heat, what can I say? Joey's a snuggler too but not while he sleeps because he wakes up too easy and I'm kind of a wiggle worm. Also, I tend to have unreasonably high body heat so he gets hot. So umm, yes I guess it has caused problems but they were small and are now resolved.

Does being a Snuggleupagus ever get old? Apparently when I'm dead asleep. Lately, Joey has asked me in the middle of the night if I want to come closer to him because he knows I love to snuggle and I just flat out tell him "No." I am not responsible for the things I do in my sleep. As I've said and done some pretty weird stuff in my sleep, he's trying not to take the rejection too seriously. A Snuggleupagus never turns down snuggling in her right mind.

What is a Snuggleupagus' love language? Touch, of course.

Playing Froger

My husband has a personal vendetta against a store we'll just refer to in this post as "Froger". The seed of his intense dislike goes all the way back to Hurricane Ike.

Oh yes, Hurricane Ike did more than just wreck our wedding - it left Joey cursing Froger in Scarlett O'Hara fashion. "With God as my witness, if I have lie, steal, cheat or kill - I will NOT buy anything from Froger!"

Ok, maybe that's a little dramatic and Scarlett's probably not someone Joey would like to be compared with; so instead, please replace the hoop-skirted Scarlett image in your mind with Rhett and insert the "Frankly my dear" part in its place. There. All better. An aside, can you tell that Gone with the Wind is one of my favorites?

Back to the thought behind this post...

See, right after Ike things were a little crazy. People were a little crazy. You would hear stuff like "Well, at the Shell on the corner of Street 1 and Street 2, they have gas-o-line!" "I heard So-and-So is having their power lines worked on today. Might have 'lectricity in couple of days." Rumors of gas and electricity spread like wildfire and companies that could meet the demand would take full advantage of the hysteria.

It was at this point in the Ike Aftermath that Joey ventured out to Froger to get "supplies". He picked up several items including what would become the notorious 12 Pack of Water. The Deal Breaker.

At checkout the cashier asked if Joey had a Froger card. Nope, wasn't one of the Froger card-carrying elite. We had just bought our house in this area of town, so we hadn't formed grocery alliances yet. Anyway, he was in a hurry and didn't get the Froger card.

When he got home he realized that they had overcharged him about $10 for water. Joey went back to alert them to the error. Froger's response: you didn't have a Froger card. The price listed was if you had a Froger card. If you didn't, Froger was going to make you pay and even better, if you didn't look at your receipt - you wouldn't even know. Majorly taking advantage of Ike-Panicked People sans Froger Cards.

Joey hates the idea of getting a Froger card to pay a price that is still more expensive than "R-EB". He also had one other issue there and I can't remember what exactly happened, but bottomline: Froger messed with the wrong guy.

Joey, the Champion of Consumers, has developed a plan to get back at Froger. I became aware of the plan when I noticed a pile of Froger cards on the kitchen counter. A pile.

As I shop at R-EB and knew Joey had a problem with Froger, this just didn't make sense. So I asked the Champion of Consumers. He said that whenever we needed something that he had to get quickly (Froger is SUPER close to us) he would go to Froger and get a new Froger card every time.

I can just imagine the scene 50 years from now: One day, a Froger executive is lamenting on the downfall of Froger. "What happened?" he asks his team of accountants. "Well sir, looks like there was an overabundance of Froger cards being given out at the Froger in Katy, Texas."

I'm not sure how this is going to play out, but slowly the Champion of Consumers will continue to tick away at Froger, one ten cent Froger card at a time.

Until then, shhh - I got a Froger card.

Let's Get LOST

Today I am sick. I think it's food poisoning. I even left work early. This is a big deal in my world: to be sick. The last time I remember truly being sick was when I had my wisdom teeth pulled three years ago and that was of course, expected. So needless to say, I'm spoiled with good health and when I get sick, even the slightest bit of sick - it rocks my world. Anyway, enough of my whining and on to what I was wanting to tell you.

First, Joey and I have signed up for Blockbuster's Netflix. I know, I know...those are two separate things, but I'm not sure what the program is called, monthly autoship program for DVDs? Who knows. We signed up for Blockbuster's version of Netflix. After comparing the two, I think it's the best choice for us and there's no extra charge for Blu-Ray. I am super excited. I tend to like old movies and things that aren't at our local Blockbuster so it's nice that I can just order it online.

I am pumped. Our first two DVDs came in the mail: Season 1 of Lost. I watched Lost when it first started and was really into it. Then I moved into another apartment and never hooked up the TV. Like all good relationships that cease communication, my relationship with Lost was well, lost. Sorry for the pun, you know it had to come up sometime.

During the holidays my parents rented the DVDs and were I think, on Season 3. I caught a few with them and got sucked right back in. I have been trying since that time to convince Joey that we need to watch Lost. You'll love it, I tell him. And he says, it looks weird - I know I wouldn't like it. Ugghh! I KNOW you would LOVE it! Everyone loves it! "But I hate sci-fi." Which in my opinion is pretty much saying you hate imagination - at least to make a blanket statement like that. (and no, I am not into Battlestar Gallactica or anything like that - probably even got the name wrong, but I have been known to down a few Harry Potter books and Lord of the Rings) Anyhow, I get that - I really do. This is the same guy who has never seen Star Wars. I know - can you believe it? He has no interest in STAR WARS? Alas, my Wookie jokes are lost on him. Oh well, they're not very good anyway. So back to Lost: I tried and tried to convince to him to watch but to no avail.

Until yesterday. Lost came in the mail and let me tell you, he has been sucked in. As I have said, I'm sick and reduced to spending time on the couch, so tonight's the perfect night for continuing to feed what I am just so positive will become Joey's addiction. That was one of the first things he said when he brought me 7Up and crackers, that since I was sick maybe we could just lay on the couch and watch Lost.

Hmm...time for a little imagination building.

Update:

By the way, as I speak...Joey just sat down to eat a sandwich and we came to the end of Disc 1. I told him the second disc is probably in our mailbox. I can't believe it. He has put down his sandwich and gone out in the pouring rain to get the second DVD. If that's not hooked, I don't know what is. A man rarely walks away from his sandwich.

He just walked in with the DVD, but has to dry off first. I'm really tickled at this.

My First Valentine

Valentine's Day makes me reminiscent. I celebrated Single Awareness Day for 25 years of my life and have only embraced true Valentine's Day for the past three years. That's right, Joey was my very first Valentine. Well, except for my Dad.

Not a super outwardly affectionate guy, my Dad has always been really good at Valentine's Day. Call him St. Valentine - it's his holiday to shine. Since I was a little girl, Dad has always gotten Mom, my sister and I flowers, chocolate and a card. The card has a theme: cats. Cats holding Valentines, real cats, cartoon cats, cats saying 'I love you'. Cats. It's been Dad's theme for at least the 20 years I remember. I guess nothing says I love you like a Valentine's Day Cat Card. These cards followed me into college and came to my house with strange return addresses such as "Merlin B. Snickleman Esquire" or something equally bizarre. That was my Dad's calling card - weird, impossible-to-be-real names.

I may not have ever gotten flowers from anyone else, but Dad always came through to make me feel special and loved. I really appreciate that now.

See, I was a Valentine's Day Cynic. I had two choices: I could pine away on the idea of not having anyone to share the holiday with OR I could try to detest Valentine's Day to the nth degree. Always the mature one, I chose the latter. Oh yes, I dreaded Valentine's Day. All the sappy cards, commercials, etc. I was the ultimate Valentine's Day Hater.

Despite my cynicism, I always looked forward to Valentines from my Dad. There is something foundational about a little girl knowing that she is loved by her father. Something that makes her feel secure. It sticks with her through broken relationships or in the absence of them. It's never been a void left to fill and I have Dad to thank for that. Dad wasn't just giving a Valentine, he was giving me stability and a sense of security.

The day that I realized how much I loved getting Valentine's flowers from my Dad was the day they stopped coming. That was last year, mine and Joey's first Valentine's Day as a married couple. I guess Dad figured that he had passed the baton and now it was my husband's chance to step in.

I absolutely LOVE Joey and love that I get to share these moments with him now. But, I do have to say that he has some pretty big Valentine shoes to fill. After all, how can you top Valentine's Cat Cards?

An American in Paris

Did you watch the Super Bowl? Were you cool with the outcome? I am happy the Saints won because they're the Underdogs. I always go for the Underdogs unless the Cowboys or Texans are playing. I love Petyon Manning, but he's the guy who always wins this sort of thing. So Saints it was for me last night.

But I have to say, I felt pretty bad for Peyton. Especially when he threw the game-sealing interception. I asked Joey, "Don't you feel bad for Peyton Manning? One bad pass after a zillion successful ones and it's over." His answer: "No, he shouldn't have made that pass. That's sports." Well, humph. What is it with boys, empathy and sports? It's non-existent.

Anyway, on to one of my favorite things about the Super Bowl. The half-time show and the commercials. Don't get me wrong, I love football but it wasn't like I had been following these teams all season.

The Who. Joey and I almost had a Who's On First moment when I told him Who was playing the half-time show especially when I said that sometimes I get confused between The Who and The Guess Who. If you're a classic rock fan this will make sense, if not - just gloss over this paragraph. My thoughts on their performance: not too bad musically for men in their late sixties and too much tummy from one of them. Reminiscent of a wardrobe malfunction, but I think it was intentional. Might have been ok when you were 20, but at sixty-something - just button up.

My absolute favorite commercial was Google's Parisian Love. Brilliantly creative all the while telling a story. My favorite combination. Let's relive it:



Don't you just love it? Maybe it's just me, but I get a little teary-eyed after watching it. I have an active imagination and I can see it playing out in reel life, but geez it's good. I told Joey as much right after we watched it. I knew it would be my favorite.

Dress Dreaming

Meet my latest crushes:




Don't they just make you want to jump into spring? They remind me of the dress that Liesl wore in the scene I Am Sixteen Going on Seventeen from the Sound of Music. I always wanted to be Liesl when I was little because she was so beautiful and grown up. Now I want to be her because she was beautiful and so young! Ah, perspective!

These will remain pure crushes unless noted otherwise - meaning, a massive sale at Anthropologie. I will continue to stalk just in case.

The Truth Will Set You Pesticide Free... & Buying Organic

I'm weird. Have I told you this before? It's been a process, but the further I get into this health stuff, the more strange I become. Ok, if you've known me for a while maybe you've always thought I was a bit off. Whatever. I'm just telling you it has progressed further.

I am that person that buys mostly organic, lip-bitingly analyzes food and cosmetics labels for toxins and worst of all, offers health advice when you haven't asked for it. Pour Splenda around me and expect to get a lecture. I can't help it. I try to bite my tongue but, it has become a reflex. If I do this, you know that it is because you are loved by me. I just want to make sure you know, then you can decide for yourself.

This is what happens when you work in the world of alternative health care. Four years ago, when I would hear people say "Don't eat that - it causes cancer.", I was always the cynic that would say under my breath "Yeah, yeah, everything causes cancer." But now I see it. Every day, in fact. Because it's part of my job, I see the news, the studies, the science and I can't ignore it anymore. The Me of four years ago would have thought the Me of today is REALLY strange.

At first, I became paranoid. I felt like I couldn't win. Too much to change requiring WAY too much effort. Where do I start? Should I begin growing my own food? Hmm...on second thought, with my reverse green thumb I would probably starve. Amish. I can become Amish! I can't cook, sew, garden, and look really bad in a kerchief so that's out. So I gave up for a while. Can I please go back to a simpler time before I knew about all this stuff? But over time I began to slowly make a few changes.

The result is mostly organic, little packaged food, natural cleaning products, natural cosmetics, shampoo, soap, etc. What I discovered is that it's all about having the knowledge to make informed decisions. Am I always going to choose the right one? Heck no. Recovering sugar addicts don't change over night. It gives me the power to say, yeah I know that this Twinkie is loaded with sugar, high fructose corn syrup but I'm going to enjoy it! Ok, so I don't like Twinkies - that's why I used the example, but you get the point.

I recently saw "Me" if I continue in this same direction over the next few years. She was in the shopping line ahead of me. You know you can tell a lot about folks by what they buy at the grocery store. I surveyed the goods. It was all organic : the cleaning products, foods, deodorant (I haven't gone there yet) etc. She had "weird" items like apple cider vinegar and Amy's organic products. Oh a kindred spirit! Then I looked at her and my enthusiasm waned. She was wearing what looked like all natural clothing, shoes made out of grass and her hair was in dreads. Whoa.

And that's my line. I'm not going there. Actually, I'll probably be a few lines up from that. I'm just letting you know. Unfortunately, my vanity keeps me in check on that one.

What I have learned is it's true that ignorance is bliss, but knowledge is power. My mindset has changed a little at a time. An organic apple here and vitamin there and before you know it here I am: a full-fledged weirdo. One of those people. I just thought it was about time let you know.