It's raining and thundering and lightning-ing

I think that our neighbors must wonder about our sanity. Weather rolls in, and me, my husband and my kid all make our way outside to stand in the driveway and watch the lightning, listen to the thunder, and feel the rain on our faces. We spend a good several minutes remarking on how nifty the weather is, how bright the lightning can get, and how cooling even the slightest breezes can be. We make all kinds of amazed noises when there is a particularly loud thunder crash, or when super bright lightning flashes across the sky.
As long as I can remember, Brian and I have always enjoyed going outside and experiencing the weather. Be it a blizzard in Boston, monsoon in Arizona, or the bits and pieces of a hurricane in Houston, we always make our way outside to "ooh" and "aah" over what's going on. It's fun for us, and we enjoy it. And I love, love, love that somehow we have managed to instill our love of the weather in our kiddo, who stands out there as long as we do, being all wow about it, too.
But the rest of the people here seem to have no appreciation for what goes on outside their walls. I am sure that the old couple next door must wonder about where we could possibly be from when we are so vocally amazed by the storms that roll through the desert.
Tonight, we had the coolest lightning storm, and some super long thunder rolls. but did any of them enjoy it? Perhaps, from inside. But can you really appreciate what you're seeing from behind a window? Anyway, they probably think we're crazy.

You guys, she still loves dinosaurs

You know how your kid can be totally into something, and then after a long time, their enthusiasm can seem to wane a bit, and you get all nervous? Like how you may have a bedroom full up of dinosaurs, but then your kid gets into Minecraft and doesn't ever want to play with their dinosaurs anymore? And then you wonder if you'll have to start filtering all those dinosaurs out? But then, you have a day when their love of the first thing becomes a priority again.
I've been getting concerned over Sydney's apparent lack of interest in dinosaurs. She's all Minecraft, all the time lately. My fault, I know. But I've been implementing new ways of doing things, and Minecraft has been put on restriction, of sorts.
Anyway, the other night, after Technology Turn-off Time, Sydney closed herself into her room for an hour or so. When I checked on her, I was delighted ... DELIGHTED ... to see that she'd spread out her dinosaurs all over her floor, and was constructing environments for them. She had been sorting through them, and though she'd decided she didn't want her Dinosaur Train figures anymore, she was still into the "real" dinosaur figures. Some of those dinosaur toys have remained on her bedroom floor for the last few days, ready to be played with when needed.
Yesterday, at Target, she found two Jurassic World dinosaur toys that she really, really wants for her birthday. She was sure to give me the super sales pitch, so they're definitely on the list of potential (and probable) birthday presents.
And then today, while we wandered through Michaels, we came across a Jurassic World poster with all the movie's dinosaurs on it. She went crazy for it, and in discussing where the poster would go, she was quick to dismiss the lavender kitten poster on her closet door as not as cool as the dinosaur one, and that it could certainly be moved. I won't lie, this made me happy.
I get so much enjoyment out of her love of dinosaurs, which is why I've encouraged her adoration of them all her life. I love that everything revolved around dinosaurs, so when the dinos are no longer the top priority, it makes me a little nervous. (Of course, if dinosaurs do get relegated to "when she was a kiddo," I'll deal with it, but it'll still make me sad.) But over the last couple days, she's reaffirmed her obsession with them, and I'm a happy mom because of it.

The beat is in the street, I guess

Brian and I had quite different childhoods. In our youths, we were influenced by many, many different things. For example, I had never seen the movie Beat Street (circa 1984) before. He had watched it several times. So, when Beat Street landed on our movie channel last night, we, of course, had to watch it. He was awash in nostalgia for a movie he hadn't seen in so many years. I was fascinated by the movie itself, primarily the clothing. It was gloriously 80s, with big hair, big outfits, and big amazingness. The story: a group of young New York city kids trying to make it big. One is an aspiring club DJ (the main plot); one is a graffiti "artist," who paints subway trains (secondary plot). They all have their issues, their mountains to climb, and their lives to get in order.
In all honesty, we only watched the last hour of the film, but I saw enough to know what the main conflict was and all that. But really, my attention was drawn to the outfits. They were awesome. But the graffiti artist character was intriguing to me because: he painted appliances onto the walls of a crappy apartment so his girlfriend and her baby would feel comfortable enough to move in with him; and he got all indignant because his dad wouldn't ever come with him to see his "art," because wouldn't that just mean standing on a subway platform all day? At any rate, this guy is in a graffiti war with another painter who goes by the name of Spit. Really, the entire plot line is gold.
But there was all kinds of early-80s hip hop and rap, and the acting wasn't good, and the whole thing was super cheesy. But Brian remembered a whole lot of it, and this is one of the few times I enjoyed his commentary on a movie we're watching. I'll never sit and watch it again, but just that hour has left an impression, for good or for bad I'm not sure.

I don't like the word "clenching"

I've realized lately that I've turned into a clencher. Not, a butt clencher, as most of you who know me well enough would suppose, but a teeth and jaw clencher. I find that several times a day I need to tell myself to relax my jaw, and when I do, I can feel the pressure release from my teeth. I can feel that I'm not squeezing them together anymore.
Why the clenching all of a sudden? Good question, and while stress is certainly a contributing factor, I refuse to believe that my behavior can be influenced in such a manner. It's like, I'm bored, so I clench my jaw. I'm watching television, so I clench my jaw. I'm not eating anything, so I clench my jaw. Occasionally, it'll give me a headache.
So, did I ask the dentist I sleep with about it? I did, but not really. I kinda mentioned it in passing, and didn't really tell him that I was super concerned about it. So, in typical husband fashion, he's forgotten about it. But while I sit here right now, feeling how my jaw is relaxing and aching just the littlest bit from the lack of pressure, I really should talk to him about it at more length tomorrow.

The year the music ... started

For some reason, during the fourth grade in this school district, it is mandatory for the children to select some kind of musical concentration for the year. They can choose from choir, strings, general music, horns, and maybe some other option I can't remember. My daughter, of course, chose strings. And her first choice among the strings instruments: violin. Lucky us, she was granted her choice.
So we rented her violin last week, and she's had it for a few classes already. She hasn't been able to put bow to violin yet, but she's super eager. Currently, she and her classmates are learning how to hold the violin properly, where their fingers should go, and what notes sound like what. She's practicing with the violin whenever she can, plucking and plucking away at the strings.
I fear for when the bow is introduced. I'm hoping it won't be too bad, but who knows. She's eager to get going on it. We had to visit a music shop today to buy rosin, which I learned is hardened tree sap. It's used to dust up the bow so it can slide along the strings. It also has a tendency to leave dustings on the instrument itself, so we'll have to keep that cleaned up.
She's still learning all the basics for and of the violin, and she's excited to get started. I pushed for the cello, so you know. I've always wanted to learn how to play the cello. It seems like such a cool and relaxing instrument to play. All bass and low tones come across as super zen to me.
Alas, the violin shall be in the house's musical background for the school year. "But what if I want to keep playing after this year? Will I have to stop?" "No, baby. If you want to keep playing, we'll find you one of your own." And with that, I may have sealed my fate forever. I'll either be buying earplugs, or sending out videos to various symphonies.

Two hours is a lot of interviewing

The interview lasted for two hours this morning. I was there a couple minutes before 10, and walked out the door at 11:58. This is an extremely long time to be in a job interview. Typically, they should last about an hour, with any random time adjustment or addition clocked after that (similar to a soccer game). Like the writing exercise I had to do. But no, I got talked to and grilled for two full hours, by both the human resources department and the editorial coordinator. I was exhausted when I left there. Seriously, it took every ounce of my energy. And, I had to pee. I mean, I kinda sorta had to pee when I walked into the place, but I figured that it wouldn't be too long, and I could pee shortly thereafter. But then, it's all ... taking two hours. So by the time I left, I was pretty insistent on needing a bathroom. I didn't use theirs, because that would be weird. So, I rushed to the closest fast food place I could find, and peed there. My bladder is capable of being quite bothersome.
But on the whole, I'm really having confidence issues about whether I would be able to handle all the responsibility of a full-time editorial gig again. I mean, I know I'll be able to get into the swing of it, but the diving into the deep end of the pool, after having been hanging out on a frickin' chaise alongside the water, is a bit overwhelming. It'll be good, though.
The ultimate decision will be made in the next couple weeks, so here begins the waiting game.

I'd really rather do something different

And yet another classic blunder today. But not to worry. I have learned from it ... again ... and will not repeat the mistake. Or so I say now. Who knows.
Anyway, I have a job interview tomorrow morning. It's for a place that I've had very limited dealings with in my previous editorial job, so that may be helpful. What's not helpful is that I may or may not want to write on this particular topic again. Of course, if given the option, I will take the job and be a "writer." But I'm feeling very meh about the entire enterprise. Which means, of course, that I'll get it. But, having said all that, it would be super awesome to have a paycheck. So, we'll see.
That's really the only news that's fit to print so far this week.

A bunch of haiku for Sunday

Hopefully soon, we can play
and do more fun things,
since life is back to normal.

Also, I'm eating late snacks:
my English muffins
of cinnamon and raisins.

These two things do not mean much,
perhaps to you all,
but they make me more happy.

Just go with it my people,
it's late on Sunday,
I'm eager to fall asleep.

Ollie is snoring downstairs,
Cooper's next to me,
Time to crash with my doggies.

Bring on the pink, pink, pink

I've been slowly transforming my bedroom bit by bit into a room that will have a pink quilt on the bed. I find little things here and there to make the room more pink friendly, and to shift the accessories' focus from purple and green to pink. What I need though, is a trip to Home Goods. It's totally on my list for Monday. Mom tells me that they have Halloween stuff, which may run counter intuitive to the pink theme I'm going for. It's about time to check it out, though. I haven't been there since before school was out in May. There are some things that just can not be done with a kid and/or husband around, and Home Goods is one of them.
Anyway, today I added some flowers to a vase in my room, moved some other flowers to another place, added a new plant, moved a plant, rearranged some picture frames. I think I'm about ready for the new quilt. Just gotta get it.

Dinosaur shoes, and Ariel shoes, please

ITEM!: I finished a book last night, ACID, by Emma Pass. It was okay, though not terribly wonderful. In fact, I actually skimmed through the last few chapters and pages way before I should have been to be sure that the story would end with this book. Because I was not interested in reading a series about this particular character. In seeing that the story did end at the conclusion of this book, I finished it. I was super okay with ditching it if it went on for books and books and books.
ITEM!: Much to my dismay, I ended up watching the last several episodes of Breaking Bad with Brian. Though I was still fine with missing chunks of episodes here and there, I was invested in the ending of the series. But now we're done. Thank goodness.
ITEM!: Someone explain to me why Toms would send me a catalog in the mail that has a photo of dinosaur shoes, and then not have those shoes in my paleontologist's size. We checked out the catalog together, and she was very excited about getting a new pair of dinosaur Toms. But now she can't. Because Toms seems to think that only little, tiny kids would want dinosaur shoes. This can't be farther than the truth, Toms. Fix this. Like, now.
ITEM!: Also bothering me, regarding shoes, is the awesome Ariel Vans sneakers that are out of stock everywhere on the planet. They have plenty of them in kids' sizes, which is why Sydney has a pair, but I am lacking my own fabulous pair. Because so many other girls found them before me! This is what happens when I don't get to shop regularly! I miss out on fantastic shoes! I've been stalking the Vans and Nordstrom web sites. I signed up for an inventory alert with another online store when the shoes are restocked there. I swear to the shoe gods, I will have a pair of these adorable Vans.
ITEM!: I have a new outdoor plant project to fix tomorrow. I'm pretty excited about it. The picture above, with the asparagus fern on an outdoor table is super similar to my plan. I love having outdoor plant projects. I wish it was cooler out so these projects wouldn't be so uncomfortable to finish.

I chose Julie Newmar to illustrate

Sydney has an assignment due on Friday, wherein she needs to write a paragraph about if she could be a certain person for a day, what would she do. Sounds awesome and creative, right? I would be an astronaut in space, because that's my dream, and I think that would be an amazing experience.
My daughter? She would like to be Catwoman, so she can be fast and steal stuff.
Yes. Given all the people in the world, my child would prefer to be the femme fatale of Batman's universe (not even a Marvel character? Ugh!), who is super cool and kicks ass, but also, who ultimately is a thief. A thief with a heart of gold, kinda, but a thief nonetheless.
I am interested to see how this idea progresses as she writes out the assignment. She needs eight to 12 sentences in the paragraph, so there is obviously room for more information and clarity. This paragraph, once completed, will be golden, I'm sure.

"Breaking Bad" is not for me. Don't judge

My complete and utter apathy towards Breaking Bad is driving my husband crazy.
He's decided to sit and watch the series again, starting at the beginning, and is currently deep into season two. I've never been interested in the show. Not for lack of trying, or circumstance. Or peer pressure. Oh, I know, "It's such a great show." So I've been told more times than I can count.
But I just don't feel that. Sure, it's compelling. The episodes I've seen are done incredibly well. But I've got no love for it, as other fans do. As Brian does. He swears I don't like the show just because he loves it so much. Totally not the case.
At any rate, I did watch a couple episodes with him today, but was completely okay with walking away from it tonight to watch nothing else, and hang out in my room with my computer. He is/was baffled by my ability to do this. "How can you just walk away?"
Sure, it's good, but not all that good. It's not, like, Buffy the Vampire Slayer good or anything.

Cheese dip would've been better

ITEM!: My lack of compelling reading material finally motivated me to dig in to Netflix's original television series, Daredevil. Sure, it's been on the site for months and months. But while I've been super intrigued to watch it, I was watching other things, but then reading, too. Also, I kinda wanted Brian to watch it with me. He's been very uninterested though, and I finally sat down to check it out yesterday. So far? It's pretty good. I'm only two episodes in, but I'm intrigued to find out what happens next, which is my barometer for any entertainment.
ITEM!: My daughter had a Pajama Day every day this weekend. I don't know about her, but I am bored out of my mind. I could push and prod and make her do stuff with me, but I don't really have anything of import to do, so why bother keeping her from what she enjoys.
ITEM!: We made onion dip this afternoon, and it was delicious. But even though I've brushed my teeth since then, I can still taste the ghost of the dip in my mouth. I hate that. I've even had dinner, and then brushed my teeth, but I still taste chips and onion dip. Ugh. I can say that I'll probably not have anymore because of this feeling, but we all really know better. It's a delicious snack, and I'm not known to stay too far away from those, am I?

No kidding; they're, like, all the same

I've decided to stop reading Brad Thor's books, for much the same reason why I stopped reading Danielle Steel's books years and years ago, because they are entirely too similar in plot and style. Thor's hero, Scot Harvath, is a special ops super dude who foils terrorist plots and travels the world following dangerous people into dangerous locales, and then kills them. He always gets beat up a lot, but always manages to find that extra bit of strength/motivation/patriotism to stand up again and chase down the bad guy. And this last book I was reading, The First Commandment, was looking to be more of the same. Probably when one reads the books with the usual year or so in between publishings, one doesn't notice how ridiculously on task the plots and motivations are to Harvath's world. But having read five of the Harvath series in the last several weeks, it became painfully clear that Commandment was going to be more of the same. So I stopped reading it. And returned it to the library. And declined to add anymore Thor books to my reading queue.
Also, I'm finding it hard to get into The Secret Life of Bees. I'm about 75 pages in, and I'm not liking it a whole lot. Granted, all I'm doing is waiting for Sarah Maas' Queen of Shadows, but I'm having an issue with what I feel like reading for now. I've added some more books to my queue though, and they're at the library already, so that's for Monday. Thank goodness my Vanity Fair arrived in the mail today.

Celeana is an epic badass

I'm obsessed with these Throne of Glass novels. I just finished the third one, Crown of Midnight, and am eager and excited for the next installment of the story. But, I've caught up to all the books in the library. The newest one will be released on September 1.
First Time I Lost Faith in My Library: I can't reserve a book before it's released, or in the system. There's no "Coming Soon" section to be parsed through and picked at.
So, as much as I'd like to be first in line for the new book, I'll probably have to wait a while. Unless I decide to buy it on my Nook and read it digitally.
But I've really been enjoying the hardcover editions of the stories. I can't imagine reading the next bit of the saga on a tablet screen. So I guess I'll be stalking the library web site (more than I already do), and hoping that I'll see it online and get my request in there before anyone else, or at least with a minimal wait.
These books are totally awesome, you guys. I may have to buy the paperback editions for my bookshelf, just so I always have them to read and read again.

The blog is a personality island

When I was out in California last month, and visiting with a friend, the blog came up in conversation. She said, "Oh? You're still doing that?"
As I come up on my 10-year anniversary of writing this blog, I find myself wondering when and if I will ever stop. At this point, it's a delicious diary into everything going on in my head, and I couldn't imagine stopping it. But then I wonder if all my creativity is going into the blog, and that's why I can't, for the life of me, come up with a decent idea for a book. Nor do I have the motivation and discipline to sit down and try to write a book.
But here I am, every night, sitting with my computer in front of me, sometimes struggling to come up with a topic and any semblance of words for my blog. But I do it, more times than not. And that makes me wonder if my reserve of writing creatively is instead completely focused on my awesome blog.
This is okay. Don't misunderstand; I'm not looking to stop blogging any time soon.
But it startled me for a moment to think about stopping the blog. I know I like to take a break here and there, but to consider walking away from it entirely? No way. That would be ... weird. To not write it every night, or even to not stare at a blank composition page every night, would be bizarre, and feel like I'm missing something.
I still find myself intrigued with the moment that Sydney discovers it and starts to read it. Will she be interested? Will it bore her? Will she love having a window into my mind that I would not likely show her otherwise? Maybe in another 10 years I'll have an answer ... if I'm still writing here.
I ate a really good sandwich for lunch today.

Time to turn off your technology!

Lisa told Sydney and I about this new rule she's instituted in her house, Technology Turn-Off Time. There have been plenty of articles about the dangers of kids and adults spending the minutes leading up until bed on their phones and/or computers. It's best to turn them off and ignore them for some time before laying down. Lisa told Sydney all about it, and Syd was totally into it. Even going so far as to tell her friend, Lydia, all about it.
Last night, Technology Turn-Off Time was accepted with no issues.
Tonight, not so much. There was pouting, negotiations, sighing, bargaining, and my favorite, "Wait. Let me tell you how changing this will be better for you." Still, I stuck to my guns, and child was pissy at me most of the remainder of the night.
It's time to write out the after-school and evening schedule again. She's forgotten the way things are done.
And on school nights, Technology Turn-Off Time will be enforced vigorously. Because even though she doesn't think it's that good of an idea anymore, I am still a super fan.
But will I ever implement it for myself? Oh ... probably not.

Liked the movie, not the guy in it

I very much enjoyed Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation today. In spite of Tom Cruise being the movie, I thought it was good. I've never been a huge fan of his, and probably only see his Mission Impossible flicks, since they're action-packed. So, I saw this movie today, despite the star of it.
You know what I enjoyed the most about the movie? The female protagonist. She was awesome. She kicked butt, had a good and complex story, and was integral to the movie's plot. And she killed guys awesomely.
And not once was she "rescued" by anyone but herself. That's not something that happens very often in these big action, guy-focused summer movies. I'm not entirely sure when it'll be appropriate for Sydney to watch this movie, but when she does, I hope she appreciates the girl power on display. Fantastic.

A tiny house. A super tiny house.

Did you know there's a show about people moving out of their regular, normal-sized houses, and moving into tiny houses? Like 275-square-foot houses? The show I watched is called Tiny House Nation, and it's on FYI, whatever random channel that is. Anyway, these people sort through their stuff, figure out what are their most important possessions, and then move into a home that is a fraction of the size of their former houses.
I could not do this. One show had the couple moving into two separate trailers that were connected by an indoor/outdoor patio kind of thing, which was pretty cool. These trailers were reconfigured into the tiny house, and they had a fairly large front deck attached, giving them a bit more moving around and entertainment space. The second episode featured the previously mentioned 275-square-foot house. It was just too tiny.
I have stuff. I love my books, my clothes, my holiday decorations, my collectibles, my pictures, and my furniture. I also love a lot of space. Space is important to me. I like fresh, clean surfaces, and plenty of space to live in.
It got me thinking, though. The house we're in right now is an ideal square footage, but I'd love to rearrange where the space is. Like, I don't need a huge loft for the office. I'd rather add a ton of space to Sydney's bedroom. The guest room could use more area, too, as I'd love to have a queen-size bed in there. And I'd be okay with shrinking my dining room, though I have no idea what I would do with any extra space downstairs. Of course, I'm talking about rearranging square footage rather than decreasing it. I just wouldn't want to be in a smaller house.
But it's an intriguing idea. Duly noted that the couples that were embarking on this tiny house situation didn't have any children. And, in the case of the trailer couple, they had two dogs on a big piece of property, and for the second couple, they have only one small dog, but also a big piece of property. It's important to note that they all intend to spend a lot of time outside their home.
I find myself curious, and also challenged, by how much I could really pare down my stuff. Not that I'll do it, but I've already got space-saving-adjacent ideas moving around in my head.

I didn't sob, but there were tears

I'm sad, you guys.
Just as I thought I would, I avoided the final episode of The Daily Show with Jon Stewart as long as I could. But we watched it, and I got all kinds of sad. But there was happy, too. It was a treat to see all the former correspondents return for the episode, and I just about peed myself when Stephen Colbert showed up. (My goodness, I didn't realize how very much I missed seeing his face on my television until he arrived on set. I can't wait for his The Late Show to start in September.) And that the correspondents' segment lasted for a full 26 minutes was super gravy. I didn't feel like anyone got shafted, though I guess I would have liked a little more Steve Carell.
And then there was his "The More You Know..." segment about identifying bullshit thrown your way, which was good, and also gave us a primer to study until Trevor Noah returns with the show in September. And the cast and crew introductions were done well, too. It's just a shame that I am not a fan of Bruce Springsteen, otherwise the show would have been perfect.
Still, I cried at the end, but only when Stewart couldn't say anything except goodbye. To have him ride off into the New Jersey sunset is a delight. But I'd love to have him around soon in some awesome capacity. Doing stand-up? I already made a Ticketmaster alert for if/when he shows up around Phoenix. Absolutely anything else? I just hope he starts a Twitter account.

I'm so over hot flashes, you know

My pre-menopausal menstrual cycle this month has been particularly brutal on me today. I woke up all crampy this morning. My count topped at two hot flashes before noon, which doesn't sound like a lot for the older ladies out there, but I'm not used to having more than one in a day. I had weird nausea all afternoon though, which sucked right out loud. And the cramps just rolled along all day.
The cinnamon rolls helped, but not a whole lot.
I sit here in a mild fit of a bizarre nausea, and all I can think about it how nice it will be when this devil menstruation is over. Maybe I need another cinnamon roll.

Seriously. It's "almost" technically perfect

I started and finished reading the book, The Night Circus, today. It's pretty awesome. All kinds of good stuff going on between the pages, and I'm sick with envy of the author. What a unique and intriguing voice.
Characters and environments were incredibly well detailed in words, and the interiors of the set pieces and tents were described to perfection. The romance was subtle and engaging, and the longing and pain were a perfect counterbalance.
This book is everything yin and yang, and is a textbook for descriptive writing.
So amazing.

Jon Stewart for president

It's the last week of The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, and I'm a bit despondent about it. I avoided watching tonight's episode as long as Brian would let me, and I got teary during the opening music. Thursday, I know for a fact, will be ridiculous in my house. I remember quite vividly how much I cried the Ugly Cry, and went into a funk when Stephen Colbert's The Colbert Report went off the air last December. I foresee much of the same but probably louder and uglier on Thursday night.
I've heard that the final episode will be an hour or so, and that "maybe" many people will show up to pay homage on the final night. This will make me an emotional mess. Just watching these last couple weeks has made me all melancholy and sad for what was, and what will be, when the show continues on without him. He's just so awesome, you guys, and I can't imagine getting my newsy satire anywhere, or from anyone, else.
It makes me yearn even more for Colbert to return to television on The Late Show in September. It makes me hope against hope that Stewart fires up a personal Twitter account. And if Stewart does go back to stand-up comedy, Brian and I will be getting tickets for his first show in Phoenix.

Last night's sleep was DE.LI.CIOUS.

Can a single Zyrtec knock you out for the night and make most of the following day a cloudy mist of naps, dozing and body aches? Granted, the body aches had more to do with our day at the lake yesterday. But the little bit too much sun I got on my legs yesterday entailed that I take an anti-histamine last night before bed. Anyway, the Zyrtec gave me the deepest sleep I'd had in a while, allowed me to sleep through the plethora of wake-up-mom machinations my children go through each morning, and did keep away the itchies I get when my legs get sunburned. It was lovely. If I thought it would be just as awesome tonight as last night, I'd take one again. But this evening, I'm not as tired, and I've got the old man on the bed, so I need to stay relatively easy to awaken for him. Still, Zyrtec. My friend.

It's the eighth month of the year

I wish I could tell you that I chose this month's avatar because I'm in the midst of some crazy mid-life crisis and I now cruise around on a motorcycle, but no. It was because I like that the word SALOON is in it. I enjoy that this particular group of bikers is at a saloon.
Also, the neon sign thing on the building looks kind of like an outline of a tooth, right?

Don't make a face; they're tasty

Weird things happen when Brian goes into the grocery store by himself.
To put it mildly, his adventurous side comes out, and I end up with snacks and chips that are ridiculous and gross. Witness: these new and experimental Lay's potato chips in Southern Biscuits and Gravy flavor.
They appeared in my car this morning during our stop for beer on the way to the lake. Of course, I was immediately grossed out by them. I refused to taste them simply because I didn't want to have the taste, that I was sure would be disgusting, in my mouth.
But I did, because I'm sometimes a cooperative wife, finally taste them. Now, don't be repulsed by this, but no kidding, these chips are so much better than they have any right to be. I could not stop eating them. Katy says it's the sage in them that makes them so yummy. I can't discern individual flavors in them, I'm just pleased with the whole experience. The response from all the people at the lake who tasted them was incredibly, and overwhelmingly, positive. I'm not lying to you! They're super good!
And now, because this one bag of chips is super delicious, he's going to be impossible to live with.