Summer Breeze

In nomine Patri. Et Fili. Spiritus Sancti.

2012-01-29T13:05:00.001-06:00

Before I take you into the glorious world of the MacManus twins, I have a dedication. This post goes out to Eileen. She is my shemance (hey, guys get a bromance, so she came up with shemance. She's so clever). She's dripping with awesomesauce. She sent Spike and I a copy of Boondock Saints: All Saints Day when she found out we hadn't seen it. She's just wonderful. I love her and you should too.

I've mentioned many times that The Boondock Saints is my all time favorite movie (yes, I do mean both Boondock Saints & All Saints Day), but I haven't thoroughly explained why I adore the MacManus boys. (This is going to be extra long because I am going over both movies & all the characters. You've been warned!)

It was 2001, I was 16 and dating an Irish boy. He insisted that I watch this movie. I'm not your normal girl. I love Olympic style wrestling, get into SEC football, and I rather watch a guy movie over a chick flick (except for Clueless. That movie is special). I thought "It's an action movie, I'll at least enjoy it." I was not prepared for how amazing this movie is.

The MacManus twins are perfection. Connor (Sean Patrick Flanery) and Murphy (Norman Reedus) work in a meat packing plant in South Boston. These boys pray hard, work hard and play hard. Even though the meat fight scene makes me cringe because all I can think is "Ewww, germs," it's hard not to love their relationship.

These boys are dedicated to God, each other and their friends. They're celebrating Saint Patrick's Day when Russian mobsters come in to hassle the lovable owner of McGinty's bar, Doc (played by Gerard Parkes, who also played Doc on one my my favorite shows Fraggle Rock!).

When the mobsters won't leave, the boys' best friend Rocco (a part written for the amazing David Della Rocco) insults the men, and gets a punch to the face. The MacManus brothers won't let that slide and a fight breaks out leaving one mobster with a busted head and another with a burned ass. The boys head home to sleep it off.

The Russians find out where the boys live and show up to kill Connor for setting fire to one of their asses. Once there, the burned man decides to kill Murphy to retaliate against Connor. Handcuffing Connor to the toilet, the mobsters drag Murphy out behind their building to shoot him. In what can only be described as the most epic use of a toilet as a weapon, Connor saves Murphy, but gets knocked out. After rolling the bodies, they get patched up at the hospital and head to the police station to turn themselves in.

Before the boys have even made it out of the hospital, the FBI sends super agent Paul Maximilian Smecker to discovered who killed these two mobsters in such a personal way. Paired with Detectives Dolly, Duffy and Greenly, no one can get much information on who killed the mobsters other than "they're angels."

After it is discovered to be a case of self defense, the police allow the boys to stay in the station over night to avoid reporters. Here, the boys receive a message from God to destroy all that is evil. From here they go on a killing spree taking out Boston's criminals. Their holy mission soon gains another crusader when Rocco gets fed up with being a package boy for the Italian mafia, after finding out "The Funny Man" had been set up.

Long story short, they go on the most epic of killing sprees, purging the world of filth. These men really should be in every major city. If you watch this movie, you will fall in love with it. Sure, it says "fuck" a lot, but so do I. I have never had someone tell me they didn't like Boondock Saints.

The second one, All Saints Day opens in Ireland. Eight years later, the boys are sheep farmers in their mid-thirties, living with their Da. The boys find out they are being framed for the murder of a priest and decide to kill "every last motherfucker that had anything to do with it." Plus, we get a pretty awesome shower scene. By far the best intro to any movie ever.

Hopping on a cargo ship, they head back to Boston. On that ship they get w little taste of la Raza. Romeo is the most bad ass Mexican since Danny Trejo and was written for the incredible Clifton Collins Jr. My Carmen told me forever before I saw ASD, "You will adore Romeo. He could totally be one of our cousins." Yes, he could. I was skeptical because I completely love Rocco and I never thought another man in his place would make me as happy as Rocco did, but Romeo serves up some "whoop ass fajitas." I've always said Mexicans and Irish had a lot in common (Catholic, hard drinkers, rich culture and they usually end up being pretty fertile!) and this movie just proves that theory.

Before too much longer, things get out of hand and Da, or Pappa M shows up to take care of some old business. Noah MacManus is an original badass. He's so pimp, he makes a butterfly tattoo hot. He's a conflicted man. Guilt ridden and haunted by his past, Noah can be a dangerous man when you are in the wrong. He walks the path of righteousness, but without the good humor his boys share. The stunning Billy Connolly plays Il Duce in a way that has his heart and faith out shinning his past. (Also, I ADORE Connolly as Fido. One of my most favorite zombies ever!)

Once Da gets to Boston, the boys do what they do best, this time aided by a new FBI agent, Special Agent Eunice Bloom, played by the gorgeous Julie Benz. Eunice says it best, "I am so fucking smart I make smart people feel fucking retarded." When we met her at Dragon Con, she said people have told her they hated her accent. Personally, I love it. Eunice wouldn't be Eunice without her drawl.

This is one of the few sequels I have seen that have seen that is actually as good as the original. There has been rumors that Boondock Saint lll could be a tv show or a movie. There's been a lot of buzz that Troy Duffy has said there will be a third movie but no definite details have been released, other than it being named Boondock Saints: In Nomine Patris. Sounds like the boys will be getting out of prison before we know it! (P.S. If anyone affiliated with BDS is reading this, I'm about to graduate from cosmetology school, so if y'all need someone to help out with hair & makeup, I'm your woman!) I am beyond excited about a third Saints movie.

This fandom has actually found me some wonderful friends I'd never know without it. One is Alia. We have so much in common, we joke that we're long lost sisters. She even wrote a fanfic based on if she and I were sisters and ended up breaking the Saints out of prison. Alia has amazing talent and I couldn't be more proud of her for Saints and Sisters.

Alia's story had attracted some fans and has even been the story behind the group that does the Boondock Saints role playing on Twitter. They are pretty respectful with it and don't do the smut since some kids follow the accounts.

I completely love this franchise. I recently got my first Boondock Saints shirts and every time I wear it someone tells me "You look like so skinny." Yeah, I totally call it a magic shirt. Also, Boondock Saints have made my SUV super awesome. (I know my baby is dirty. So, what? I'm lazy.)

I know Boondock Saints fans are everywhere, but no one I know in my daily life has seen the movies, except for my family and people I've made watch it. Want proof fans are everywhere? Check out this picture I took on my tv when I paused a Progressive commercial.

If you made it to the end of this long post, THANK YOU, and feel free to leave comments! If you made it to the end of this post and have not seen these movies… what are you waiting for?!? Go watch them!!!

Disclaimer: No person, thing, book, show, movie or company mentioned in this post in any way, shape, or form, asked me to write this or gave me any compensation to write this. I jacked all images (except for the one from my tv) from Google image search or Twitter and just assumed they fell under the Public Domain Usage thingy. Please don't sue, I'm broke anyways. I just wanted to share my Boondock Saints obsession with Bloggywood! While I was not offered anything to write this, I will be more than happy to receive any swag you may want to send my way.

- Whether you love me or hate me, you know who I am.

The Walking Dead Season 2.5?

2012-01-23T03:10:00.001-06:00

From previous posts, such as Daryl Boom Day and The Dead Walk, you can maybe figure out that I love The Walking Dead.

If you don't love AMC's The Walking Dead, I will convert you. I've done it several times. Most recently, I forced my teacher Mr. Pope. I literally harassed him for like 3 months to watch this show. He finally did over Christmas break. The entire thing, Season One & the first half of Season Two. He is in love with the show. His exact words when he saw me when school started back? "I really tried to not like this show… but it is so good!" You're welcome, Pope. Told you I'm always right! (Now, I'm trying to force him to watch Boondock Saints. Even lent him my copies. I keep telling him that he'll love them.)

If I'm watching grown up tv, it means either Spike is home to watch the kids so I can fold laundry and watch it or the kids are asleep. The Walking Dead comes on Sunday nights right after we lay the kids down for bed. Perfect timing. I am not afraid to say, I refuse to do anything that happens during The Walking Dead. It's like a little at home date for the Hubs & I.

I want to say one thing before I get to the meat of this post. Robert Kirkman, Gale Anne Hurd, all the writers all the actors, and generally anyone involved with this show are insanely talented. Which ever one of these people suggested that they split up the season is a GENIUS! They didn't have to fight holiday programming and got to drive up hype for this show. Well done!

They dragged it out way too long, but the reveal of Sophia as a walker was by far the greatest moment of the first half of season two. Technically, one of my Twitter predictions came true. They did find her on the farm, I just didn't think she would be in the barn! Madison will be missed on the show according to her cast mates. I know I'll miss Sophia, the little blonde girl who I hoped would end up being Carl's first kiss.

The most amazing bit of acting this time, definitely goes to my favorite living actor Norman Reedus and the extraordinary Melissa McBride. Reedus has been quoted as saying "Damaged people gravitate to damaged people" when he is asked about Daryl and Carol. They are beautiful on screen together. Their chemistry is unexplainable. They made me cry, more times than I'm comfortable admitting. I know some people don't want them to get romantic, but I think it would be beautiful and healing. I want to see them slowly develop a deep love for each other and prove, even the end of the world cannot defeat a true love. They need each other. "Amor Vincit Omnia." (my favorite line from the Canterbury Tales)

(Side Note: it was reported that Madison and Norman got to be good friends on the set. She even called him her boyfriend, and he called her "my girlfriend Maddie." That is so sweet it makes me want to cry! I had to put this picture here.)

The Walking Dead does not disappoint on the sexiness factor. I know, ewww zombies, gross. But! Everyone who survives the end are hotties! If the human race does outlast the walkers, it will be gorgeous. You all know I adore Norman Reedus and I am completely in love with Daryl Dixon, but there's more hotness than that on the show. AMC has made sure to pack the show with good looking people and crazy sexual vibes. I say it's because death is an aphrodisiac. You think you can die at any moment, you'd be wanting to get down and dirty too. Glenn is so adorable and his steamy new love with the farmer's daughter Maggie is just too perfect. Pretty early in the first season we got some hot, raw woods sex with Shane and Lori. Then some of Rick and Lori making love. Next they're throwing some very forward, car banging with Shane and Andrea. AMC knows sex sells. Bravo to them for exploiting this in such an interesting way. (And keep showing a shirtless Shane! Jon Bernthal has such a pretty body!)

Before the first half of Season Two premiered, I made a list of predictions. A lot of them came true. Let's see which ones!

• Lori is pregnant.
Thanks to a loud piss sound effect, we know Lori took the test and proved she is intact pregnant, just like the comics. I'm seriously hoping that they never figure out who the father of the baby happens to be.

• Shane attempts to leave the group, but Rick begs him to stay.
Okay, I was a little off here. Sure, Lori basically begged him to stay, so I'm counting it as a half right.

• The survivors from the farm throw up major problems and they really do have the barn full of geeks.
Okay, this one kind of speaks for itself.

• Carl gets shot, but survives and let's every one know how cool he thinks it was.
He totally got shot & totally had a great heart to heart with his dad over it. (Side Note: Carl with the hat and six shooter makes the FanGirl in me giggle, because he looks just like the comics Carl.)

• Daryl finds Merle.
Sure, he found him as a hallucination, but he still found him. I'm calling it a half win.

• Glenn gets laid.
Boom! I was right again! See? I learned a lot from reading the comics!

Now, I am ready to jump for joy over the fact that my favorite show returns to television February 12th, but I'm still going through withdrawals. To bide this time, I have watched the marathon, poured over the comics, gazed over the action figures, obsess over the board game and even kept up with the role play on Twitter. (By the way, the star of the role play, in my opinion was @DixonDaryl. The girl who wrote him was great at staying in character. Sadly, the role play has fizzled due to the same idea being done too many times. It got kind of stale. I'm hoping it can be reborn when the show starts back.)

During this hiatus, I have come up with more predictions. Some are the same from last time since those didn't get to happen yet, but I still think they will happen so I'm adding them to this list.

WARNING CONTAINS SOME COMIC SPOILERS

• We find out Andrea and Dale are lovers or they become lovers.
• Daryl and T Dog form a friendship, because that would piss off Merle.
• A lot more Daryl screen time. Daryl is a personal favorite of Robert Kirkman, and he is, arguably, everyone's favorite character on the show. Some people think he'll die at the end of the season, but I think AMC wants to keep Reedus on the show because he is instant money. He may not be the star of the show, but you do not kill off everyone's favorite if you want to keep the money flowing in. Plus, they're probably scared of rabid FanGirls, too.
• Shane talks about leaving again. (Hold on to the idea of Shane… I'll come back to him.)
• If Hershel doesn't kick them off the farm, they leave on their own free will, and find the prison on the way to Fort Benning
• Hershel catches Maggie and Glenn or Glenn goes to Hershel & asks him for his approval on their relationship, because Glenn loves Maggie
• Daryl finds Merle. Merle stirs up a shit storm and makes Daryl feel guilty about bonding with the other survivors. I want Daryl to cry, because that would totally make me cry. (Yes, this is the same prediction word for word because I WANT ME SOME MO MERLE!)
• Daryl straddles the fence of sanity and insanity, but Carol helps him through it, while trying to not go crazy with depression or killing herself. Shane will completely snap & go super crazy.
•Michonne comes in. I love her, she's easily one of the best characters in the comics. Bitch is hard core!
• A major character dies at the season finale. My money is on Shane. He's already been dead for a long time in the comics. I love Jon Bernthal and I think he's a wonderful actor, but I feel Shane won't be around much longer. I'll miss him. Shane is an amazing, tortured, love sick character. (If they kill off Carol, I'll be pissed. I want her for Daryl, unless they bring in Michonne.)

That's it for this incredibly long rambling about my favorite show. Expect another post once the she comes back. You know I can't go long without getting all wordy about zombies!

Disclaimer: No person, thing, book, show, movie, character or zombie mentioned in this post in any way, shape, or form, asked me to write this or gave me any compensation to write this. I jacked all images from Google image search or Twitter and just assumed they fell under the Public Domain Usage thingy. Please don't sue, I'm broke anyways. I just wanted to share my Walking Dead obsession with Bloggywood! While I was not offered anything to write this, I will be more than happy to receive any swag you may want to send my way.

- Whether you love me or hate me, you know who I am.

Chocolate Bacon Pie

2011-11-24T01:15:00.001-06:00

Thanksgiving has officially started. I have many, many things to be thankful for: my intelligent children who keep me smiling, my husband who understands me completely, my mother and father for both beating health issues, my extended family who accepts me, the roof over my head, my fabulous SUV, a great job with awesome perks, wonderful classmates and super knowledgable teacher who all crack me up, Dixon's Vixens for always lifting my spirits, my perfect health and incredible height (I like being an Amazon). Those are the most important things that I am thankful for.

There is something completely trivial that I am completely thankful for. My awesome cousin Annie introduced me to my newest obsession: Chocolate Bacon Pie. This is the food of the gods. It is sex in dessert form. The perfect combination of salty and sweet. It is a total foodgasm.

Only a few ingredients make pure awesomeness. Annie's friend found the original recipe here. I tweaked it a tiny bit. I am in no way a baker. I just cook for my family when I can and do things my way.

First, I thought I'd make mini pies with the big pie. The mini pies burned horribly, the other pie wasn't as smooth as I had hoped for. The second time (in a week) that I made this, I made two separate full sized pies. The mini pies could have worked if I would have watched them instead of following the directions word for word. This is a burnt mini pie.

Do not "double" this recipe. It makes the pies totally not smooth. Make each one separate unless you have something like a stand up mixer. These measurements are make one pie. Whisking a double batch by hand makes it look like this.

Make sure you have plenty of time to make this. The first time I rushed it & they sucked. Yesterday, I made a box recipe for pumpkin pie bars, and two of these pies. It took me about four and a half hours with a single oven. I make an awesome pie assembly line. Each pie turned out more beautiful than the last.

If you feel brave enough to give this a try, here's what you'll need.

1/2 pack (~ 6 oz) Cooked Bacon
1/4 cup Semi-Sweet Chocolate (finely chopped)

Pie Crust:
6 tbsp Butter
2-4 tbsp Bacon Grease
6 oz All Purpose Flour
1/2 tsp Salt
1/4 cup Ice Water

Pie Filling:
8 tbsp Butter
1 cup Sugar
1/2 cup Semi-Sweet Chocolate, chopped (I used the Nestlé morsels, they melt easily)
4 beaten Eggs
1 tsp Pure Vanilla
1 1/2 tbsp Yellow Cornmeal

You'll also need:
Aluminum Foil
Large Frying Pan
9 inch Pie Pan
Whisk
3 Forks
Spoon
Sauce Pan
2 Large Mixing Bowls
Small Microwave Safe Bowl
Paper Towels
Plate
Wax Paper
Rolling Pin
Dry & Liquid Measuring Cups

Thorough enough for you? You ready to get cooking?

First, the recipe says to bake the bacon in the oven. In Alabama, we throw that the the pan.

I'm going to tell you how my Grandpa taught me to fry up some bacon. It's the only way I can make bacon. You'll want to go ahead and cook the whole package of bacon, because you know you'll want to eat while you bake. You put that big frying pan on the biggest eye of the stove and turn it up about half way. Using two of the forks, pick up one slice of bacon at a time. Let them pop and sizzle a bit and flip each slice using the forks. Let the bacon get crispy, but watch it so it doesn't burn. Save the bacon grease, we call them bacon drippins. I always use a jar that I keep by my stove. In the South, we never throw out bacon drippins. Here's crispy bacon.

Now, make sure you place the bacon on paper towels to soak off the excess grease from the strips. When the bacon is fried, crumble half of it and set aside. Enjoy the rest. We can make the crust.

Next, take the 6 tbsp of butter and melt it down with the 2-4 tbsp of bacon grease, and stick the mixture in the freezer for about 15-20 minutes.

Use a fork to mix the 6 oz of flour and the 1/2 tbsp of salt. Cut the butter and grease from the freezer into the flour and salt. Mix all this until you can roll it in a ball, adding some of the ice water if needed. Wrap the ball in some wax paper and put it in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 325 F.

Put the 1/2 cup of semi-sweet chocolate in the microwave safe bowl. Cook it for 30 seconds. If not melted, add another 10 seconds.

Melt down the 8 tbsp of butter. Put the 1 cup of sugar into a large mixing bowl. Pour the butter over the sugar and mix them thoroughly. Pour in the melted semi-sweet chocolate. Mix evenly. Whisk the 4 beaten eggs into the chocolate mixture. When it is smooth add the 1 tsp of vanilla and 1 1/2 tbsp yellow cornmeal. Once again mix it until it is smooth.

Set that aside and chop up the 1/4 cup of semi-sweet chocolate. Set aside. You will need this for the final step.

By now the crust ball should be done chilling. Place it on a piece of wax paper and place another piece of wax paper over the top. Use the rolling pin to roll it out to just a bit larger than the top of the pie pan. Take off the top sheet, place the pie pan upside down on top of the rolled dough, flip, pull off the wax paper.

Pour the pie filling into the crust. Bake for 45 minutes. It'll rise and develop like a crust on the top. Remove and sprinkle the crumbled bacon over the top and bake for 15 more minutes.

When that 15 minutes is up, remove the pie and sprinkle the chopped chocolate over the top. The chocolate will melt with the heat of the pie and lock the bacon into place.

I prefer the pie cold, so I put it in the fridge. Annie likes it room temperature or warm. Either way tastes great. Give this recipe a try and let me know what you think of it.

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!!!

Disclaimer: No person, brand, website country, and/or holiday mentioned did not in any way, shape, or form, ask me to write this or gave me any compensation to write this. I took all photos with my own iPhone 4. Please don't sue, I'm broke anyways. I just wanted to share my amazing recipe with Bloggywood! While I was not offered anything to write this, I will be more than happy to receive any swag you may want to send my way.

- Whether you love me or hate me, you know who I am.

mo Merle, mo Merle, MO MERLE!!!

2011-10-31T00:56:00.001-05:00

We all know I'm a HUGE Walking Dead Fan and that I'm so very proud to be one of Dixon's Vixens, but there is something that is just bothering me about this new season. WHERE IS MERLE?!?

I want me some mo Merle and I want him BAD! Merle just adds some perfect color to the show. He doesn't just effect himself. Merle throws a wrench in everyone's chain. Daryl has a devotion to Merle, but has bonded with the people Merle hates. That's an insta-conflict there!

Merle is easy to love. A man doesn't become that hard and that angry overnight. Merle had a rough life. Bear with me, I'm going to give you what I think is Merle and Daryl's back story.

In my first Merle centric post, I gave Merle a wife and a kid. I'm going to expand on that. Once again, this is from my own ideas and not from any secret insider info. (If someone reading this can get secret insider info, contact me. We need to be friends!) This is just to show what I think could have lead Merle to be the man that he is.

Daddy Dixon and Momma Dixon fell in love young. Daddy was a Senior in high school, Momma was a Junior. They got married as soon as Daddy graduated and Momma dropped out of school. Soon, Merle was on the way. When Merle was little, Daddy was killed. Maybe it was an accident, maybe it was a murder, but either way, Daddy is gone.

Now, Momma works hard. Long days as a secretary, long nights waitressing. Merle is left to entertain himself after school. He's probably known as the "angry kid" at school. He might have played in the woods by himself or bullied other kids.

(As for the racism? It's common. You sit there and think. I bet you can name at least three people you know who hate another race for no real reason at all. I'm thinking of five people I know right off the top of my head.)

Momma meets a man one night at the diner. The two date for a couple of years, He'd come home late at night, reeking of booze beating Merle for some senseless reason. Suddenly, Daryl is on the way. Daryl's daddy stuck around for a short time. Didn't marry Momma because he said he wanted to "Keep his options open." He soon left momma for another woman. (Later, Daryl got to know his Daddy. Daryl learned his father was a womanizing drunk, leaving him to spend a lot of time being looked after by Merle.)

Momma Dixon got sick. Maybe she had cancer. Merle ended up in juvenile detention. Daryl took care of Momma until Merle got out. (Lot of responsibility for a young kid, and it made Daryl an outcast among his peers. He was very quiet and didn't have any friends because he was so awkward.) Momma ended up dying, leaving a young Daryl in the care of Merle.

Merle and Daryl become close. Daryl idolizes his big brother for working long hours to keep food on the table and Daryl in school. To deal with the stress of working that hard, Merle turns to loose women and hard drugs.

Eventually, Merle went to rehab, met a woman, had a kid. He had a happy little life. Then, one day an accident took away his family. Merle turned back to loose women and hard drugs, until the dead started walking.

I need a Dixon brothers reunion soon. I imagine Merle turning up, with Daryl tearing up when he sees him. The tears are quickly stopped when Daryl and Merle get in a fight because Daryl stops Merle from attacking T Dog or Rick. (My bet is T Dog.)

Daryl is torn between his brother and what he knows is the right thing. Merle is hurt because his brother is defending the very people who locked him on the roof.

I've probably put too much thought into the character of Merle, but since him and Daryl are not in the comics, I am free to think as I wish with them. I know Rick and Lori's back story. Andrea, Amy and Dale, I am familiar with. There's even a explanation on Glenn, and a nice frame up for Carol and Sophia. I've often said that I love Shane and his decent into madness The Dixon boys don't have any history I've seen before, so my mind tends to wander.

I hope you enjoy my theories, because I enjoy them. But instead of just making up my own little stories, I want to know what AMC's The Walking Dead has in store for Merle Dixon. Please, bring us back Merle.

I'm begging you, don't let this be the only Dixon Brother Reunion I get to see!

Disclaimer: Michael Rooker, Norman Reedus, The Walking Dead, AMC, Dixon's Vixens or any person/character mentioned in this post did not in any way, shape, or form, ask me to write this or gave me any compensation to write this. I jacked all images from Google image search, and just assumed they fell under the Public Domain Usage thingy. Please don't sue, I'm broke anyways. I just wanted to share my mo Merle Love with Bloggywood! While I was not offered anything to write this, I will be more than happy to receive any swag you may want to send my way.

- Whether you love me or hate me, you know who I am.

Daryl BOOM Day!

2011-10-09T14:27:00.001-05:00

It's that time of year again, folks!

On my oldest son's fourth birthday, my favorite show comes back. When the kids pass out from the exciting birthday party we're throwing, Mommy gets some special time with her favorite survivors!

From the first time we see Rick and Shane talking about the evil energy draining ways of my sex, to the last moment of driving away from an exploded CDC, I have loved this show. Everything about it is just powerful. It is nothing short of amazing.

My favorite moment of Season One will always be when Amy died and Andrea was basically cuddling her. No moment in television ever has had me as emotional as that one. I was literally screaming at the tv “Why the hell she cuddlin a zombie? Bitch, you gonna get ate! Shoot her in the fuckin head!” My heart was racing, my nerves were jacked and my palms were sweaty until she finally shot her. Then, I cried as hard as if it was my own sister. Such a powerful moment. (BTW, when I entered The Zombie Survival Crew's contest, I had to make that comment PG. Rest assure, when I was watching it, my mouth was as foul as ever. And, yes, I still scream at the tv every time I watch it on DVD.)

I expect more moments like the above from Season Two. What I'm most excited about in S2 is the Daryl Dixon back story/episode. I'm really anxious to see if it's comparable to the many FanFics out there that have all speculated about Daryl and Merle's lives before the outbreak.

In an article for The Los Angeles Times, Norman Reedus had a laugh telling them “I’m trying to play Daryl like he’s a virgin. Like if you try to kiss him, he’s like, ‘Ew.’ He just hasn’t gone there.”

We all know how much I Respect the Reedus (I blogged your faces off about that here and here), but I must disagree with Norman on this point. He may be trying to play Daryl as a virgin, but I don't see it. Daryl has swagger. He's just sexy. Maybe I see it because I've grown up in the Deep South and the country boy is my ideal man. I can promise you, any redneck who looks like that with those amazing provider skills has no chance of making it to his forties and still being a virgin. Unless Daryl has spent his life pushing away women like me, he's gotten some tail!

In the same LA Times article, Norman says, “He’s kind of like a little kid. He’s sort of emotionally damaged. ... He needs a hug, but if you hug him he’ll probably try to stab you. It’s interesting. Daryl is definitely becoming more of an integral part of the group. We see some of Daryl’s back story, which is interesting; you see Daryl form alliances with certain people, get along with certain people that you wouldn’t expect."

I completely agree with Reedus here. From the moment he realized Merle was gone, I've loved Daryl. He has that hurt side that melts even my cynical heart. I may be cold blooded, but Daryl makes me want to cry. I think he lost his parents at a young age. Maybe mom died and dad ran off, leaving Merle to play daddy. He's never been able to trust anyone, so he puts up a huge front. He's spent most of his adult life tending to Merle and making sure that Merle's drug problem didn't kill one of them or even both. I just know that once you get to know him, he's a sweet soul that is screaming for someone to love him. I can see him and T Dog becoming friends because they're now both alone in the world. One missing a brother, the other a mother. We all know misery loves company.

I have to admit, there is one other man in The Walking Dead cast that I have a soft spot for: Shane. My heart hurts for him. Maybe it's because I saw him go crazy in the comic, but seeing it brought to life, draws me in. Shane accidentally fell in love with his best friend's wife, after just trying to do what Rick would have asked him to do. If he could have spoken while in the hospital, I know he would have told Shane to get Lori and Carl and protect them. Rick and Shane have a bromance that I adore, but that also hurts. I know at any moment all the skeletons in the closet will come flying out to an unsuspecting Rick. Seeing Shane lose his grip on sanity shows us that living in the land of the walkers can make even good men snap.

(I hate to bring up Shane's pants, but THANK GOD they got him in to some good fitting pants. Jon Bernthal has a very yummy torso and I'm so upset it was hiding under those pants from the 1940's! Looking good Shane!)

We're just a few days away from the premier of Season 2, so here is what I want to see happen:

WARNING CONTAINS SOME COMIC SPOILERS

• We find out Andrea and Dale are lovers
• Daryl and T Dog form a friendship
• Lori is pregnant, baby is born at the end of the season and we don't know if it's Rick or Shane's
• Shane attempts to leave the group, but Rick begs him to stay. Out of brother like love, he stays.
• The survivors from the farm throw up major problems and they really do have the barn full of geeks.
• Carl gets shot, but survives and let's every one know how cool he thinks it was.
• Daryl finds Merle. Merle stirs up a shit storm and makes Daryl feel guilty about bonding with the other survivors. I want Daryl to cry, because that would totally make me cry.
• Glenn gets laid. I mean straight up sex scene. Make Lori and Shane look like amateurs. (And no, I don't want to see Glenn is in to necrophilia.)

Feel free to leave comments about how this show has made you feel, your favorite scene, what you want to see happen, or even what you thought of my thoughts!

Just to prove how much I think of Daryl and The Walking Dead, I leave you with a photo. We had a family beach trip with Josh's family. I got some alone time to tan on the beach. Instead I sculpted a squirrel and a crossbow in the sand.

Disclaimer: No person, thing, book, show, movie or zombie mentioned in this post in any way, shape, or form, asked me to write this or gave me any compensation to write this. I jacked all images from Google image search, Twitter or myself and just assumed they fell under the Public Domain Usage thingy. Please don't sue, I'm broke anyways. I just wanted to share my Walking Dead obsession with Bloggywood! While I was not offered anything to write this, I will be more than happy to receive any swag you may want to send my way.

- Whether you love me or hate me, you know who I am.

Walking Dead Wednesday

2011-09-07T23:51:00.001-05:00

We all know I'm a huge fan of zombies. From my post on The Zombie Survival Guide, this post about the undead, and yet another post on zombies, to my adoration of professional zombie killers Norman Reedus and Michael Rooker, it's no secret I usually have walkers on the brain. I've written two chapters of a short story combining my love of hair and zombies. I've even had characters from AMC's The Walking Dead invade my dreams. My zombie obsession doesn't end there. I'm also apart of the amazing group Dixon's Vixens that I introduced y'all to here.

It pretty much goes without saying that, The Walking Dead, both the comics and the AMC series, only feed my addiction. In fact, I'm so in love with this show I even had Josh take me to Dragon*Con this year so we could meet the stars of this amazing series. In honor of Walking Dead Wednesday, I'm going to tell y'all about my experience meeting these amazing people.

Josh and I boarded public transportation via MARTA for our first Con. We were really excited and couldn't stop talking about all we thought we would see. Our goal was to cram in as much Walking Dead stuff as we could because we're both huge fans of the show.

While waiting in line for our badges, we saw QuailMan (yes a blurry pic, but the iPhone can only do so much from across the street!). There was also a Klignon, who apparently drives a muscle car, to which his weapon stays attached. (Again, blurry pic, but we were still across the street.)

Finally getting our badges an stopping to watch the parade, we make our way to the Walk of Fame. Quickly spotting Norman Reedus, we jump in his short line and discuss our plan for seeing everyone. We decide since he pretty much started the row for The Walking Dead actors, we'd just work our way down.

We were about sixth in line when, out of nowhere, Sean Patrick Flanery came in. Josh and had pretty much resigned ourselves to the fact that we would not see him, because he wasn't supposed to be there until Sunday. Flanery's line filled up quick. Before we could even blink, it was practically out the door, so we decided to save him for last.

Then the moment of truth came. We were standing face to face with my all time favorite actor, The Reedus. I just knew my old habit of stuttering would rear it's ugly head. Then Norman smiled and shook Josh's hand. My nerves quickly disappeared as I introduced myself as Summer. I told him I was one of Dixon's Vixens, and he replied "I love the Vixens."

Before the giddiness took over, I mentioned that we had chatted on Twitter. Instantly, he smiled again. "Yeah, I recognize you."

Let me just tell you, I thought I would pass out right there. Not only is the man intelligent, talented and good looking, but he REMEMBERS his fans! Sure, it could be because I'm the only chick he's chatted with who has blue hair, or it could be because I tweet ten thousand times a day, but either way, I felt and still feel special. He didn't even have to acknowledge me like that, but because he did, it shows what a true appreciation he has for his fans.

Before asking him for a picture, I presented him with the present I brought him. It was a little pen made to look like a cigarette and a copy of one of the You Might Be A Redneck If… books from Jeff Foxworthy. I figured, if he's going to play one of us Rednecks, he needs to read the official handbook.

Norman flipped through the book, and laughed at a couple of the jokes. After a few minutes, we wrapped up the chat to ask for a picture with him. I'm not going to lie, later, when looking back at the picture, I squealed like a FanGirl. Here's my moment with The Reedus.

Next, we moved on to Laurie Holden. I am still kicking myself for not getting a picture with her. Laurie is very pretty on tv, but the woman is absolutely flawless in real life. She told me she liked my hair and had all kinds of questions about how long the blue lasts and how I did it. I told her if she made it to Birmingham, I'd do it for her since I'm a cosmetologist. We had a nice little laugh about that. Talking with Laurie was like classic girl talk. I completely enjoyed it! After we finished our conversation with her about my hair, and we walked off, I just kept saying to Josh, "She is absolutely gorgeous!"

Jon Bernthal butted in on my and Laurie's conversation about hair in an entirely adorable way. He's such a sweet guy. Honestly, he's the kind of guy I hung out with in college. We really enjoyed talking with him too. I got a picture with him, too. He was all smiles while we were talking, so I don't know where such a serious face came from.

Next was Glenn. I know his real name is Steven Yeun, but he so embodies my vision of Glenn from the comic. He brought the character to life perfectly. Josh asked him how he felt about Glenn getting a girlfriend. You could tell in his face that he was trying to find something to say that wouldn't give us any spoilers. Next to Rick, Glenn is Josh's favorite character, so I let him have the spotlight this time. (Oh, and each one of them loved Josh's shirt.)

We wandered over to Julie Benz and had a chat with her about being the only girl in the Boondock Saints. She was super sweet and told us she'd love to be involved in whatever BDS does from here on out. I couldn't believe when I read on Twitter that someone told her she acted like she was too good to be there. She was so nice and all smiles to us. She doesn't deserve that kind of insult.

We eventually made it around to Sean Patrick Flanery. After posing for a quick picture with me, we ended up rounding up the rest of the Dixon's Vixens officers who were there at the time (we were missing our amazing President Anna!) so we could get a picture with our Sean. He joined Dixon's Vixens after finding out during Dead Dave and Lee Platt interviewing him on Dead Dave's Radio, that Dave and Lee are Mixens (male Vixens). We were so honored that our new Mixen not only posed for a picture with us, but he also did one of his famous "Flanery Photo Bombs" upon request.

(Leigh-Anne couldn't make it for the Sean pictures, but she came around later… just wait.)

We decided to give blood while there and the guy who took my donation was amazing. His name was Ryan and it turned out, he's a Boondock Saint fan born in 1985 too! He then recited the Saint's prayer for me WITH an Irish accent! Best time I ever had giving blood! Loved that guy!

Josh and I then went to the Q&A panel on Saturday where I got more blurry pictures (hey! My phone was dying!). I even got to ask if they were prepared for the massive following the show has built. I must say, I was honored that Laurie took the reigns and answered it. The kids on the show were there too, and each one was charming and mature.

I was most impressed by Chandler Riggs, who plays Carl. He is a sharp young man. When someone asked how the show will deal with the kids aging, he didn't miss a beat. "My dad's going to start me smoking." The whole crowd and the other actors just erupted in laughter. He is such an impressive kid, and I really hope he has a long and prosperous acting career. The guy totally deserves it!

(Meh, it's blurry, but it's a picture of the panel.)

Next, the Vixen officers literally RAN back to the Walk of Fame so we could all get a picture with the youngest Dixon. We even got one with the famous Reedus Salute.

(For those of you wondering, I'm basically like a younger version of Mary Poppins with better taste in bags. That purse held: 2 shirts, goldfish crackers, m&ms, jaw breakers, 2 bottles of water, 2 bottles of hand sanitizer, makeup, deodorant, ibuprofen, smell proof bags, my planner, a pen, note paper, a charger, sunglasses, and I think that's it. I wasn't kidding when I said my purse could help me survive the apocalypse.)

I'll leave it at that. I could tell more about what we talked about or what we did after all the pictures were done, but (to use a common phrase) a lady never kisses and tells.

Disclaimer: No person, thing, book, show, movie, event, convention or zombie mentioned in this post in any way, shape, or form, asked me to write this or gave me any compensation to write this. I jacked all images from myself or the other Vixens. Please don't sue, I'm broke anyways. I just wanted to share my Dragon*Con with Bloggywood! While I was not offered anything to write this, I will be more than happy to receive any swag you may want to send my way.

- Whether you love me or hate me, you know who I am.

The Hubs

2011-07-20T17:38:00.001-05:00

Today is the fourth anniversary of wedding. I figured, what is a better way to tell you this other than to let my loyal readers know the story of me & my husband. This isn't the first time I've posted about my husband, Josh. Y'all met him when I decided to complain about The Biggest Problem In Our Marriage and when he was hit by an 18 wheeler but now it is time you met him on a more personal level.

I refer to him a lot on Twitter as Hubs or Spike. As you can see, he is thin (deceptively strong, but still a bean pole), so years ago I decided he looks like Spike from Cowboy Bebop. See the similarities?

I met Josh when we were 17. I don't understand why it took us that long to meet though. I have a very close friend named Miranda, and I have known since I was 4. She's lived in the same house her whole life. This house happens to be across the street from the boy who would become my husband. Wait… did I mention they're cousins? Yep. I spent many summers swimming in her pool, many nights sleeping at her house, and untold hours just hanging out in her room Yet I did not met the man I would one day fall in love with, until I was 17.

It was high school in 2002. He was a wrestler, I was a Mat Maid. One day at the start of the season, before a wrestling weekend, I saw him. I am a nerd, I will gather all the information I can before I act on anything. So, I ran to my friend and fellow Mat Maid, and you guessed it, that friend was the dear Miranda. I started asking questions. I wanted her to dish all the dirt on the cutie with the brown curls and the cocky attitude. She was so confused. I pointed him out. Like it was yesterday, I remember her saying, "He's not cute. He's my cousin." I decided right then and there I would have him. And she was going to help me.

The next couple of weeks we formulated our plan. At the big Sean Still Tournament December 7th 2002, Miranda would "leave without me" for lunch. I would mention to Josh and a few other wrestlers that I had no ride to get food, and naturally his good Southern raising would force him to offer me a ride. It worked. We went to Subway. We were there alone so we had plenty of time to swap stories. I remember laughing hard at all of his jokes and hoping I was as pretty as I thought I was. I just knew I needed to hook this boy.

He was out for the rest of the night, so we sat on the bleachers and flirted the whole night. I even pretended I didn't know how to keep the score book (I had been a Mat Maid for nearly 5 years), and had him explain it to me. Actually, he had another cousin on the wrestling team (remember, we grew up/live in a VERY small town), who was CONVINCED that I was flirting with him and not Josh. Poor boy actually pulled Josh to the side and told him to leave me alone. Well, that night I "didn't have a ride home" (that was another part of our plan). Josh offered to take me home. We went to a local park and spent the whole night talking. Jimmy Eat World's A Praise Chorus came on the radio at least 1,000 times that night, and we did fall in love.

(Us at 18. January 2004)

I was graduating that next May (2003) and I knew the statistics of how many high school relationships don't survive being separated by college. I was torn inside. I would be moving 75 miles away to be a theatre major. We made all the promises to see each other every weekend. I cried myself to sleep many nights, hurting at the thought of my budding romance ending suddenly. We spent every single day of the summer together. We even danced barefooted on the roof of his van under the stars. We were young and wanted time to stand still. In an effort to stop the world from separating us, Josh purposed to me the week before I left for college. Naturally, I said yes.

It didn't work. We broke up after that first year of being engaged. It hurt to look at my senior yearbook because there was 2 pages dedicated to cute couples, and we were 1/2 a page. I spent a lot of nights out with my sorority sisters drinking hard and relying on a fraternity guy who had became my bodyguard to keep the creepy guys away from me. I had a couple of college flings, but never recaptured those feelings I had with Josh. I felt so lost and convinced I would never have love again.

Well, one of those flings turned out to be someone psychotic (we all have at least one relationship like that right?). He was a trust fund baby who stole credit cards for fun. He used me to make other girls jealous and cheated on me every chance he got. I was so scared of being hurt again, I put up with crap that I knew I didn't deserve because I didn't want to "drive another one away." The scumbag broke up with me after both I and the girl he was cheating with caught him cheating with another girl. He then stalked me. I would see him outside of my apartment when he lived across town. He was unaffiliated but showed up to all the fraternity parties I was at with my sorority sisters (he even cheated on me with a sister). He went so far as to get a job where I worked. I was scared to leave my apartment and ended up failing a bunch of classes.

I spent all day talking to my best friend saying how "Josh would never have treated me like this." To the point of her finally saying "Will you just give Josh a fuckin call, because I bet he misses you as much as you miss him and I'm sick of you going on and on about him." I couldn't come up with an argument, so I had to call him. Turns out he did miss me and we decided to give it another shot.

It was almost like we picked up right where we left off. We eventually moved in together and decided to wait a long time before we brought up marriage again. Well, at the very end of May 2007, we found out I was about 5 months pregnant (Yes, we didn't know. Yes, I still had my period. No, I did not have morning sickness or weight gain or any other symptom. I almost could have been on TLC's I Didn't Know I Was Pregnant). July 16th, 2007 we decided to go ahead and get married. Our wedding was July 20th, 2007, in my aunt's back yard.

Once again, we were young and in love and ready to take on the world together.

Josh and me and baby soon made three. Even though Josh was stressing that he wouldn't be a good father. I was more confident, because if God wouldn't have wanted us to have a child, this baby would not be as perfect as ultra sounds were showing him to be. Our little growing fetus was perfectly healthy and developing normally. 5 months not knowing you're pregnant, gives plenty of time for birth defects to occur. So while Josh stressed, I prayed that what I felt was true. Once we had our baby, all our fears disappeared.

Like all couples going through the first year of marriage with a new born, we fought, we had fun and we made memories that will last forever. I quit working, only to go back once our bundle of joy got a little bigger, and we stayed a whirlwind of activity. A couple of months after our baby's first birthday, we found out we were pregnant again. This time, my body actually let us know.

We were blessed with another happy, healthy baby boy. Two little boys only 22 months apart meant we'll be busy. Our life really couldn't get any better. Since then, when we're not working hard or trying to further our education, we're going on family vacations…

and spending time teaching the rugrats to play fun stuff, like Rock Em, Sock Em Robots…

and we like to rough house…

we also enjoy teaching our kids the finer points of American vehicles…

Halloween is always fun too…

and golf club sword fights are where it's at!

Our story is not over yet. The kids are getting bigger, and we are doing better than ever. We work hard, we play hard and we love hard.

Oh, and for those of you who don't know (or haven't figured it out yet) Josh and I are zombie enthusiasts. We even have a survival plan that involves us going up to his family farm because it has a lake that they've been able to have several generations of bass sustained by, deer frequent the area and there is plenty of farm land for growing crops. We were discussing our survival plan the other day when Josh said, "I've got a scuba suit!" Once my brain restarted I asked him why in the hell he thought a scuba suit was a good defense against the undead. Apparently, he thinks he can use it to keep them from grabbing on to him or something crazy like that. Anyways, I made him put it on so I could make fun of him on Twitter.

Happy anniversary, Josh! I love you! I'm so glad we're growing old together.

- Whether you love me or hate me, you know who I am.

Daryl Dixon Dream

2011-07-19T13:49:00.001-05:00

I've always believed in the dream world. I've also always had very vivid, easy to remember dreams, and my dreams tend to play out in "chapters" over several nights. I've had trouble separating some of them from reality. One dream that I was sure was real until my alarm woke me, is one in which I entered the world of The Walking Dead and met Mr. Daryl Dixon.

Since today is Daryl Dixon Tuesday, I saw a flattened squirrel in the middle of the road and this dream has been reoccurring for several nights now, I decided to put it into story form. This borders on Fanfic, but since it is something my subconscious came up with, I'm not calling it that. I've taken some literary liberties with it in hopes that you can see what I felt in my dream.

And now, my Daryl Dixon Dream

I feel like I've been wandering for days. I was at work at the hospital when all this mess started. Snuck out the back when the military came in shooting. I don't know how I made it to my SUV without getting attacked or shot. I got home, my family was gone. No sign of a struggle, just gone. Tried calling and texting but never got an answer. I hope they are safe. When I think of them being gone, I just want to run into a crowd of those things. I can't remember the way to the family farm since I've only been twice in nine years. I pray they made it there ok. I ran out of gas a week ago, haven't found any cars to siphon more out, so I abandoned my beloved Escape, and have been walking since then. I have no clue where I'm heading. I haven't seen one of those monstrous, decaying people in several days. Either I'm getting out of the infected area, or I'm walking in circles and they haven't found me yet. I want to yell in case people are around, but I refrain because those things could be near. So, I just walk. Spending the nights in trees and moving all day is making me want to lose my grip on reality. I keep pulling out my iPhone, knowing it died long ago, knowing service has been out for months, but I still keep trying to check for messages. I guess it's my way to keep a bit of humanity. I sigh and say out loud, "I just wish I could hear another human's voice." BAM! I hit the ground. I look up to see what looks like a man in a tree. My glasses were knocked askew, so I can't really tell. I hear, "She's not infected! Carry her back to camp!" I hear a man from up above yell. I feel strong arms lift me confidently, as a man with an accent much like my own Southern drawl, say "I got her," through the blur I can make out shaggy brown hair and a manly jaw, but not much else. Then the world is black.

"I feel so bad! I was in the tree looking for eggs when I heard her talk. I thought she was a walker at first, so when she spoke, it shocked me and I dropped my bucket. It cracked her on the head. I hope she's ok!"

I slowly open my eyes and turn to the voice. I forget about my glasses, and all I could see is one blur talking to another.

"She's up! Sweetie, do you know your name?"

As she got closer I could see she has blonde hair and she appears a bit shorter than myself. I have to admit, after being knocked out by one guy and easily carried by another, I feel relief hearing another woman's voice.

"W-w-where are my glasses?" I stammer. I feel like I'm barely functioning inside of a cloud.

"Here, can you remember anything?" the blonde, female blur asks.

I slip on my frames and look around. I'm laying in an RV staring at an older man wearing a bucket hat, sitting next to the blonde blur (who is actually a pretty woman with an intelligent look about her), a thin Asian in a baseball cap looks like he's trying to blend in with the cabinetry behind them. I look to him and say, "You must be the bucket dropping, egg snatcher because I don't see pops here being the kind that likes to climb trees." The other two laugh as the Asian blushes.

"I'm so sorry, I hope you're ok. You scared me when you spoke to yourself." He said while looking at the floor. He feels so bad that he can't even make eye contact. That strikes me as sweet. He probably couldn't hurt a fly.

"Well, you're lucky I came to, wouldn't want to haunt you for the rest of your life on this festering rock." I flash one of what Momma calls my "Pageant Smiles" and he lets a slight grin appear on his face. Everyone laughs again and he blushes more. "My name is Summer," and I recount how I ended up in the woods and end with "Next thing I know I'm in this RV waking up to blurs discussing how I got knocked out."

Right as I finish my story, the RV door opens. "How's the girl?" says a man who I think sounds like the one who carried me. He's got brown hair that is pretty shaggy, but I'm sure it isn't because of the end of the world. He doesn't look like one to frequent salons. Probably went to the same barber his daddy did until dead bodies started walking. He has a concern in his eyes, as I trailed down his face, I notice a mole near the corner of his lips. When I see his sleeveless shirt exposing some of the most delicious arms I've ever seen, I know this is him who carried me. Before the out break, this was type of man that could turn me on. I thought that part of me was long dead until I feel my body grow hot as I realize his piercing blue eyes are looking straight through me.

I struggle to form words, but finally manage to get out, "I think I'm ok. Are you the knight in shining armor that carried me to this castle?"

He smiles (all of a sudden I'm weak again), "More like the hunter in a dirty t-shirt. And this sure as hell ain't no castle. I'm Daryl."

I must be ok, because my next thought is, I'd like you to hunt me and see how dirty we could get. I thought I said it out loud by the way the blonde was looking at me, but I guess she just saw me eye humping him.

There was a round of introductions (Andrea was the blonde, pops is named Dale, Glenn was the one who knocked me out) as I started to sit up. I realized I'm wearing a man's shirt and boxers instead of the clothes I got knocked out in. Seeing the look of panic on my face, Andrea said, "Lori and I dressed you in this because your clothes were filthy and falling apart."

"Lori?" I'm so confused. "There's more people?"

Andrea nodded. "Not many of us but we're becoming a nice little family. Everyone has been praying you'd wake up soon. Here's some more clothes, suit up and come meet everyone."

One by one they file out of the RV. Daryl remains in with me. I'm thinking, I'd love to be nude with him but it's too soon. Before I have a chance to say anything, he steps closer to me until we are less than half a foot apart.

"I'm glad you're ok. I was beginning to worry that we were the only people left. You wandering around by yourself, unarmed gives me hope," he said. Tears started to well in his eyes as he turns and walks out of the RV.

I start to dress as I contemplate what he said. "Unarmed" That means they didn't see the machete I have in my sling pack. I look around the room and see it resting undisturbed by the door. I throw on the jeans and tee that Andrea handed me and start rummaging through my bag. My shears, razors, machete, photos, charger, identification, jar of peanut butter, cereal bars and water bottle are all still there. I wondered why Daryl started tearing up? Is he looking for his family too? I shove the thought from my mind and started out the door.

I shield my eyes from the sun, and try to get a good look around. I notice a handful of people gathered together talking, but Daryl is standing off leaning against a tree. Everyone else is absorbed in the conversation, but he is staring straight at me. We lock eyes and I feel myself start to blush so I look down. I glance back up to see him gathering up his crossbow.

"I'm going to round up more dinner, why don't y'all introduce yourselves," he yells to the group, and then he disappears.

First up is Officer Rick Grimes, his wife Lori and their son Carl. Carol and her daughter Sophia next. Followed by T-Dog, and last Rick's deputy Shane. I really was hoping for a bigger group, but this was more people than I have seen in months.

Right as I learn the fate of the other survivors, Daryl comes up with a few squirrels. Everyone cheers and he does a funny little bow. They really are like a little family.

"I'll have these cleaned in no time, and then we can start the stew," Daryl informs us. Everyone starts to go about their own pre dinner tasks, so I speak up.

"Daryl, do you need any help?" I manage to ask, while Andrea winks at Lori. Do they know something I don't?

"Well, Princess, I'd love to accept the offer, but judging by your appearance, I don't think it'd be something you can handle," Daryl replied with a big smile on his face.

I know he is referring to the blue hair color that was now growing out, my chipped nail polish that you could see elaborate designs on, and my rings, necklace and bracelet. I looked every bit the ghost of fashion past. And the fact he thinks he knows me by that alone, pissed me off.

"Look here Mr. Big Bad Hunter Man," I retorted. That caught everyone's attention. "It can't be any worse than dressing a rabbit, I'm sure I can handle it, or are you just jealous a Princess might make your ass look bad?"

The women of the camp started hootin and hollerin, while the men started a round of "Oooo, you gonna take that Daryl?" I couldn't help the grin that began to spread across my face.

"Well, you got me there, Princess. Come over here and let your knight in shining armor show you how it's done." Maybe I was seeing things, but he has a twinkle in his blue eyes. I think this man likes a challenge.

The rest of the camp goes about their business as Daryl and I start cleaning squirrels. Being his close to him, I'm reminded of all I missed about the opposite sex. That smell a man gets when he's been working outside, the rumble of a man's voice, and the way his muscles move as he handles his knife.

I'm first to break the silence, "Did you really think this was something I couldn't handle?" I ask as I skin a fat little squirrel.

"To tell the truth, yeah, but I hoped I was wrong. But look at you. You don't exactly look like a mistress of the forest," he said as his eyes traced a trail down my body.

Immediately, goosebumps sprang up all over my body. It was nice to be ogled by a man after wandering alone so long. "Well, Sir Daryl, looks can be deceiving. I can promise you, you've never met a woman like me. I can give you a killer haircut, sew up your clothes and change your oil, all without breaking a nail."

He laughed a deep, hearty laugh that sent happy chills down my spine.

"Oh, I bet you can change my oil," he whispered as he flashed me a half smile. I never thought I'd want another man in this world but I wanted him.

Dinner was pretty uneventful. I told stories about myself and what happened to me in the months between the outbreak and meeting them. Daryl sat across the fire pit from me. I could see his eyes never left me. Maybe he wanted me as bad as I wanted him, but it could be wishful thinking. It had been quite a long time since I last saw my husband so maybe my body was just yearning for attention from a man and he was the only one that I would consider my type.

After dinner, Lori and Andrea started cleaning up while Carol went to get the kids ready for bed. They seemed like they had become close friends.

"You ladies need any help?" I ask them. Lori looks relieved and Andrea looks like she has ulterior motives. Andrea tells Lori to go tuck Carl in and asks me to take her spot.

"I've been dying for you to wake up so I could talk to you," Andrea whispers as her eyes dance. I may have just met her, but I can tell this girl had a secret.

"Oh, really? And what is there to talk about? The latest fashion in the walker world?"

She laughs. "You're funny. Not normally a reason to laugh around here. I wanted to talk to you about what you missed the four days you were passed out."

FOUR DAYS?!? I sat there with my mouth open like a caught fish! I was just laying in Dale's RV for four days?

Andrea continued, "I stay in the RV with Dale so it was no problem for me to look after you, but I was surprised by two things. One, you talk in your sleep. Two, you became quite popular while you were sleeping."

"I've always talked in my sleep, since I was a little girl. I've been known to say some crazy things. But popular? I've never been popular day in my life!"

Again she laughs. Am I really funny? Josh always told me that I'm so not funny. (Thinking of him, I said a prayer for him, our boys and our families, that I have said millions of times since I found my inlaws and my parents' houses empty)

"Well, by you talking in your sleep, I learned about your family and how badly you want to find them. But the popularity was a pleasant shock. Of course Glenn came by daily to see if you woke up. He felt so guilty. And the other women in camp came by to see you daily too, because we're grateful to finally have some more estrogen around here. Rick and Shane checked in on you, because that's what cops do. But what surprised me the most was Daryl."

At the sound of his name in this conversation, my heart skips a beat. I can't put my finger on it, but something about that man just got my motor running. "Oh, really? Daryl checked up on me?"

Andrea smiled a toothy smile. "Honey, he didn't just check up on you. If he wasn't off hunting or helping out with other man work, he was in there with me asking about any change in your condition and offering to help me with whatever you needed. It's shocking because he hasn't cared about anything, but his brother, since Merle disappeared from that roof top."

I sat there stunned as she went on and on about how Merle got left. I had already heard it all from Daryl while cleaning squirrels, so I didn't care about all the details of that entire trip for supplies. As Andrea yaps on, I glance across the camp to Daryl's truck where he sat on the tailgate messing with his crossbow. As if on cue, he looks up at me, and smiles. I grin back as I think, that man isn't as tough as he wants everyone to believe. He's a tough sum bitch alright, but he's as not cold blooded as he tries to seem.

We finish cleaning up dinner and I start towards him. He's now got his back to me, so he doesn't see me. Glancing over his shoulder I see him holding an old photograph of a little boy on an older boy's shoulders. As he wipes a singular tear away, I realize that's Merle and him as kids. He really misses his brother. I tap him on the shoulder and he jumps.

And that is where my alarm usually goes off. If I get enough positive reviews on my dream through Twitter or in the comments below, I'll continue on and make a story out of it. Please let me know what y'all think.

Disclaimer: No person, thing, book, show, movie or zombie mentioned in this post in any way, shape, or form, asked me to write this or gave me any compensation to write this. I do not have any rights to or claims on The Walking Dead or its characters. This story is my own creation based off of dreams I had about these characters. I jacked the images from a Twitter post, cropped empty space out of them, and just assumed they fell under the Public Domain Usage thingy. Please don't sue, I'm broke anyways. I just wanted to share my Daryl dream with Bloggywood! While I was not offered anything to write this, I will be more than happy to receive any swag you may want to send my way.

- Whether you love me or hate me, you know who I am.

Happy Birthday to Mommy!

2011-07-16T11:24:00.001-05:00

Today is my mom's birthday.

I've always said she is the person I look up to most in the world. There are many reasons for this. I don't think a few words I type up will be able to convey how awesome she is, but you know I'm going to try. (This is going to be a long one, so get a snack, drink and sit back and enjoy.)

She's not perfect. I call Mom "the dumbest genius I know," because she is just that. My mother can break a computer down piece by piece, put it back together perfectly, and it will run better than ever before. She can figure out how to do any problem you set before her. She's an even bigger nerd than I am (she'll deny it but her being a Harry Potter fan kinda speaks for its self). She knows the answer to nearly everything I have ever asked her. However, common sense eludes this woman. When she got her iPhone, she had it for maybe 2 hours. She called me fuming, "I'm taking this stupid phone back, I can't work this thing." Shocked and confused I told her to calm down and tell me what was wrong. "It won't come on or anything." After talking with her a few minutes, I asked if she had hooked it up to her computer and synced it. "Well no, the AT&T lady said I didn't need to." I told her to sync it and call me back. She called me back like 2 hours later, still pissed. "I don't see why you like this stupid thing, the pictures it takes are horrible. I'm still taking it back." I told her to chill and I would look at it later. Turns out she had the plastic sticker that comes on the phone over the camera. Once I took it off she was impressed with the pictures, and her iPhone is her best friend now. And she's convinced the baseball phrase for doing something well is "batting 100" instead of "batting 1,000" Josh has tried to explain it to her plenty of times, but she doesn't get it. (She has her moments, but even Einstein left the house without pants on because he forgot about them.)

She's actually a gamer. She wore out our Playstation (MediEvil 1 & 2 were her favorites), beat every game I had for my Sega Genesis and Game Gear. She loves The Sims and can kick anyone's ass at Mortal Combat. She has spent endless hours dominating on her Wii. Her prowess is not just limited to video/computer games. She destroys people in board games and her and my dad make up games to play all the time. When she's in a waiting room or just plain bored, she plays on her iPhone like there is no tomorrow. (Told you she's a nerd)

She's stubborn. Don't tell my mom she can't do something. She'll keep at it until she does it. I'm convinced if you told her it is impossible to fly across the country in an hour, she'd go argue with the pilots until they made it happen. She always has to have the last word in any disagreement. I got this trait from her, so you can only guess how much we butt heads.

She's always been there for me. My biological father ran away as soon as he found out she was pregnant. (When I said "my dad" earlier I mean my stepfather. He loves my mom enough to put up with a snot nosed kid who was part of the deal, and has been a better dad than my biological father could ever had been.) This would have broken a lesser woman. She was 20, pregnant and only had her parents, grandparents and siblings in her corner. She worked her ass off for me. Driving to and from work and doctors appointments in a Pinto with no heat in the middle of the winter and a blanket over her ever expanding belly, just so she could give fetal me the best start in life. She has made countless sacrifices for me, and continues to do anything I ask her. Everything from making costumes, helping with class projects that I forgot about until the day before they were due, hauling me all over the Southeast for guard and band stuff, put up with every pageant I wanted to be in, dropping everything at a moment's notice because I needed her and even setting up this blog for me because I am computer stupid. Of course, now I mostly just ask her to watch my little monster men and it's not like I have to twist her arm to do that.

She has beaten Death on more than one occasion. When she was super little, she was hurled through a windshield during a car wreck. My grandma still cries if you ask her to tell the story. She said you just knew Mom wouldn't make it. Mom was riding her bike to the store when she was about 11 and a drunk driver hit her (that's near death experience number two). She almost died from sepsis and insanely high blood pressure going birth to me (there's three). She developed Glomerulonephritis when I was about 14 and needed to have a kidney donated by my aunt (us being half breeds means it's hard to find organ donors outside of family, thank God my aunt was a perfect match. And we're up to four). She almost needed a liver transplant because her medicines almost destroyed it (we'll call that one 4 & 1/2). She was diagnosed with diabetes when she almost slipped into a diabetic coma a few years after that (and that makes five). She's been in good health since all of this. I am convinced God knows I need her around still. He's saved her so many times. Other than my children, Momma is the greatest gift from God I have ever received.

She's as devoted to my children as she is to me. I'm her only child, my little men are her only grandchildren. There isn't a thing she won't do for these rugrats. And they know exactly how to push her buttons. I honestly don't think she's ever told them no. They love her just as much as she loves them (and maybe more than they love me). Just a little bit ago, my big boy came up to me and said, "Mommy, today is Grammy's birthday. Can she come and play with us?" I couldn't help but smile.

Lots of girls dread becoming their mother. I've always thought I would be hugely successful if I developed even just a quarter of the strength this woman has. She is a freakin rock and seems almost too strong to be human. She is fierce and the toughest person I know. There is no way I can ever express how much she means to me, this post was as close as I could get. If any of you want to know more about this real life Super Woman, check out her blog where she explains why It's A Wonderful Life.

I love you, Mom! Happy Birthday!

- Whether you love me or hate me, you know who I am.

40 Things About Me

2011-07-15T01:05:00.001-05:00

40 Things About Me is a list game people are playing on Twitter today, but instead of clogging my followers' feeds, I'm just posting here. Enjoy and tell me what you think about me!

1. My kids are the most amazing people I've ever met. They are incredibly smart, super funny, insanely crafty, mischievous and gorgeous. I am so blessed and they are proof God is real. They give me a reason to live.

2. I was pregnant for 5 months before I had any signs of being pregnant. (That's how my oldest son got here)

3. I have 2 tattoos with plans for at least 6-7 more.

4. I am terrified of clowns, little people & "dirty water" (any water with living things in it)

5. My iPhone is my best friend (behind my husband and cousin)

6. I wanted to be an actress but stopped when I was told I needed to completely lose my Southern accent (even when speaking regularly)

7. I wanted to be a model but stopped when I was told I was "too fat" (I was 135lbs & 5'10, so NOT fat)

8. I am studying to do hair, makeup & nails professionally but I never do my own unless it's a special occasion or I'm working in the salon.

9. I was a part of a 3 time gold medal winning colorguard/winterguard. We set the standard for excellence! Champs, baby! (that's me, front and center!)

10. I'm 5'10. Considered tall on my mom's side of the family, but I'm short compared to my biological dad's side.

11. Sugar skulls are my trademark because I love Dia de los Muertos. I have shirts, shoes, a diaper bag, baby sling (that I'm converting into a purse, and a planner organizer that all have sugar skulls on them.

12. I refuse to drive anything but Fords. I now have a black Ford Escape XLT which is my most favorite possession. (My iPhone is like a person so it doesn't count)

13. Thirteen is my lucky number

14. I married my high school sweetheart. (you'll find out more about him later or you can get a head start and read here or here)

15. I am a huge Norman Reedus fan.

16. I'm a big Michael Rooker fan too. Which brings me to…

17. I'm an administrator for Dixon's Vixens (learn more about us here)

18. I voted for Obama (Send me hate mail if you want, I'll just delete it. I'm an American and it's my God given right to vote for who I think is the least evil man or woman for the job)

19. I am a member of the Alabama chapter of NORML. I strongly believe we should LEGALIZE IT!

20. I spent the majority of my years as a pageant queen. I always wanted to be Ms. Alabama, but now (one day, anyways) I'm either going to go out for Mrs. Alabama or try to be a judge. (me crowning my 10th grade year)

21. I try my damnedest to eat right and exercise but I still give in to my sweet tooth (in moderation)

22. I'm a huge movie junkie. 75% of what I say comes from a movie line.

23. I love to paint, but hardly find the time to.

24. I'm a self proclaimed zombie expert. I KNOW I'll survive!

25. I'm a true Taurus. Every trait I have. I'm so not exaggerating.

26. I'm tri racial. A wonderful mix of Mexican, American Indian, and Caucasian. (That explains why I'm so smokin hot! LOL)

27. I do everything in my power to buy American made. (Sadly, a lot of stuff doesn't come from America any more) (But my kids do! That's my youngest son when he was my "Little Baby")

28. I love to write, but don't do it often enough because I'm scared of rejection.

29. I love Greek mythology. Even compiled my own dictionary when I was 13. I lost it, but I've been thinking of making another.

30. I make a lot of inappropriate jokes. There's not much I consider to be off limits when it comes to laughs. If you cross that like, you get a "Dude! Not cool!" from me.

31. I'm a huge nerd. I love knowledge for the sake of knowledge. I've gathered TONS of useless information all the time, and I am known for spouting it at random.

32. I love to tell stories. I have a tale for everything. And it's hard to shut me up.

33. I'm a conspiracy buff. Notice I did not say nut. I don't believe in all conspiracies, but I feel the need to know all conspiracies. I guess it goes all back to the knowledge for the sake of knowledge thing.

34. I believe in the power of dreams. I keep my dream dictionary in my headboard and another on my phone. I love reading up on meanings to see what my subconscious is saying.

35. I completely believe in the spirit world. If there is a spirit near by, I will know. I can't explain it. I just feel them. I like to think when you die, sure you go to Heaven if you're good, but you can still come back to visit and check up on loved ones. Not too long ago I was driving home fro school and I felt my uncle in the back seat. He died when I was three; he was 17. He just wanted to say "Hi" (This was my uncle. I named my oldest after him.)

36. I love Adult Swim. I've been watching since they called for "All kids out of the pool." I thought I was so cool for watching grown up tv.

37. My papa taught me leather working . I know how to make sheaths for knives, purses and jewelry, but he can make gun belts, any sized saddle (I even have one hanging from my rear view mirror) and just about anything you could want..

38. I have two turtles. Orlando and Touga. Easy pets. I've had Orlando (named after Orlando Bloom, since he looks like hubs) for 7 years, Touga (named after the leatherback sea turtle in Go, Diego, Go! Tortuga is turtle in Spanish) for 4.

39. My mommy set up my blog for me because I am incredibly computer stupid.

40. My mom comes from a big family and we're all really close. Here's us after a Zumba class (me, mom, two of my aunts. Not my grandparents, pictured are another aunt, an uncle and all the assorted spouses, cousins and pets that come with that.

This was possibly the hardest post I have ever written! DAMN! I didn't realize it would be that hard to blab about myself!

Disclaimer: No person, place, thing, organization, company, country, race or group mentioned in this post in any way, shape, or form, ask me to write this or gave me any compensation to write this. I jacked all images from myself. Please don't sue, I'm broke anyways. I just wanted to share something quirky with Bloggywood! While I was not offered anything to write this, I will be more than happy to receive any swag you may want to send my way.

- Whether you love me or hate me, you know who I am.

Garden Grove Penectomy

2011-07-13T01:54:00.001-05:00

Everyone knows I love Sublime.

Not Sublime with Rome. Got to see them live for free, and even though I danced around, had fun and sang along every word, I wasn't impressed. Bradley took something with him. His was a life ended too soon.

Sublime is the most amazing band ever to play music. I was introduced to them when I was 16.

My first boyfriend was 19, played guitar & sung in a band. We worked together at Food World. He drew for me and took me to art museums. I was in love. He played Sublime endlessly. I was overtaken with the beauty of their songs.

Sublime spoke to me in such a deep way. They touched a part of my mind that I had just began to discover. I have such a deep respect for this band. Even to this day I can put on Sublime and be immediately put in a good mood. It's impossible to get me to not sing along the moment the song starts.

Now, that being said, some people may think what I'm about to do is disrespectful. I love to make parody songs. And current events are parodied all the time.

I was influenced by the fact that this story took place in Garden Grove, CA, and I immediately knew I had to do this. If you haven't heard about the woman who chopped off her husband's penis, you can read up here (go ahead and click the link. I'll be here when you get back)

Ok, you back & all caught up? Well, then here is

Garden Grove Penectomy

Cops took this trip to Garden Grove
It smelled like penis along her knife, oh no, oh
This ain't no kinky bedroom party, the cops are at the door
It gets surreal sometimes, who took my cock?
She's got a big ass knife, penis in her sink
I'm in the bedroom tied up to this headboard, oh no, oh
If you only knew all the blood that they found
It's hard to keep my dinner down
You're a fool, you fucked around with my dong
All that it can see is red, I can't feel my manhood
Cause in her sink
Foreskin from my penis, all the blood can be found
Pull over there's a reason why my soul's unsound
It's her
It's that shit stuck on her knife
It's that skin inside the drain
It's my bed sheet covered with blood
Sitting through a penis chop
Getting my blood on her hands
Getting chopped up by that whore
Waking up to crazy bitch,
Sticking big knives in my cock
Poisoned the last meal I had
Feeling her tie me to the bed.
Slicing without making a sound
Picking my dick up out the drain
Living with hellish bride
Hearing yellin from the cop
Saying I'm hurting cause I am
Finding nothing left to save
All these things you do
Means fake dick for me
ma-ma-ma-Modness(madness) ma-ma-Modness

^^^^^Amateur Surgeon^^^^^

Disclaimer: Sublime, Bradley Nowell's family, Bud Gaugh, Eric Wilson, Sublime with Rome, Rome Ramirez, Catherine Kieu Becker, or Catherine Kieu Becker's husband or their families did not in any way, shape, or form, ask me to write this or gave me any compensation to write this. I jacked all images from Google image search and just assumed they fell under the Public Domain Usage thingy. Original lyrics to "Garden Grove" by Sublime. Lyrics about the penectomy are my own intellectual property. Please don't sue, I'm broke anyways. I hope I haven't offended anyone. This was all in fun. I just wanted to share my creative approach to an article in the news with Bloggywood! While I was not offered anything to write this, I will be more than happy to receive any swag you may want to send my way.

- Whether you love me or hate me, you know who I am.

Escaping From The Salon

2011-06-25T10:21:00.001-05:00

***AUTHOR'S NOTE***
Remember my story Hair of the Living Dead? Well, here's the next chapter!

(This is my own story with my own characters and ideas. Any similarities to any other story published in a book, magazine, news paper, or on the Internet is purely a coincidence.)

*******************************************

I looked over at Savannah. Her big brown eyes full of fear. Her lips began to quiver and her breath was becoming irregular.

I remember thinking "Didn't she say she is a horror fan? Why is she so scared?" Then I realized, she may be a fan but she's not a student. Well, good thing I learned from Hitchcock, Romero, and Carpenter. This was as close to a horror movie life could get, hopefully all my hours in front of the tube would pay off.

Before the dead started walking, my work was my life. I'm a failed actress. Spent 2 years at Yale studying drama before I realized I would fall into that category of pretty actresses that were always typecast. I'm a Mexican -American Indian halfbreed who always ended up being a maid, food vendor or nanny. So, rather than let my future end up being a list of one or two episode spots on random tv series, I threw my heart into the hair and makeup world. Honestly, it's the best move I ever made. I felt more at home with a pair of shears or an eyeshadow brush in my hand than I ever did on stage. Put myself through a top notch cosmetology school, got my business license and set up shop. Eventually I managed to buy some acres in the country and own my own little shop/apartment in the city. I lived in my shop Wednesday through Saturday and spent Sunday through Tuesday at my country home. With all my clients, the traveling for work and keeping crazy hours, I spent a lot of my free time alone watching movies. No time for a man or family when you only focus your energy on your business.

I brushed away all the "it was all in vain" thoughts and began to pack up my go bag. I grabbed some extra undies, tank tops and slipped on my boots. I made sure to throw in my huge first aid box. It had everything from band aids to suture equipment to electrolyte tablets. Lots of accidents can go down in salons so I made sure to splurge on a fancy first-aid kit. "Now, I know this could come in handy!" I thought. I also packed up my shears, razor (and blades of course) and a few combs. After all, humanity would need someone to be able to cut hair. Kind of hard to fight zombies when you can't see where you're going!

By the time I broke a leg off my little wooden dining room table (needed a club since Savannah had my bat), a couple of the undead were just sort of standing in front of the glass front of my salon. Savannah stared at them while tears ran down her cheeks. I could tell she really thought the government would handle things. Seeing them fail must have snapped something inside of her. She looked like a little girl who just witnessed her puppy being ran over.

I walked slowly up her and said, "Come on, honey. We need to get to my farm. I've got a huge fence they can't get through. You can try calling your family when we get there." I put my arm around her in a very motherly gesture. Even though I was only six years older than her, I've always been a mother hen, and the apocalypse wasn't going to change that.

"I don't have any one." She slowly turned and gave me the same blank stare she was giving to the undead that were gathering outside.

Shocked, I managed to say, "I thought you said you were home from college visiting your family?"

Savannah then began to shake uncontrollably. She let out a sound that only the truly pained heart could make, wrapped her arms around my neck and started sobbing.

"I came home from school because my grandmother died. Dad abandoned me when I was three, Mom died when I was ten. Grandma raised me all by herself and now she's gone. I have nothing left."

I fought the urge to cry too. I had to be strong for Savannah. So, I said "It's ok, darlin! You can just stay with me. I'll need help making sure everything is zombie proof anyways." She smiled a sweet, sad smile. Looks like I had some responsibility now.

I began to plan my exit strategy. My Ford Escape was parked right by the back door. I figured we could look out the window, see if any geeks were around the SUV, and if not, we could make a run for it.

I remember yelling at Savannah to stay put while I went to look out the back door's peep hole. She gave me a look of fear and stammered, "Y-y-you said you'd s-s-stay with me!"

She ended up going with me to the door. I slowly looked out. YES! My SUV had no undead around or near it. We made a run for it. Locked up safe and sound, we started on the long road to my house. Nothing could have prepared us for the sights along the way.

- Whether you love me or hate me, you know who I am.

Mo Merle is ALWAYS a Good Thing!

2011-06-23T22:56:00.001-05:00

Today has been declared Rooker Reel Thursday by the fabulous Dixon's Vixens. It is a day to honor the amazing Michael Rooker with videos made by Vixens. Well, I am horribly inept when it comes to making Internet videos, so I'm doing what I do best and writing on here!

Michael Rooker is one of those rare celebrities who actually cares about his fans. He makes a little time to tweet or Facebook with his fans. I have tweeted back and forth with him, and he has always been just too sweet. He stopped by for some chatting with the Vixens and had a couple of wonderful conversations with us. He kept thanking us for our Vixen Love (Silly Michael, you don't have to thank us, you earned it!) He's just so humble and you can totally tell he hasn't lost touch with his Southern roots. (That's right people! The Rooker is a Bama boy! He's from Jasper, Alabama. That's not too far from where our land is.)

Everyone has a favorite pre-The Walking Dead Rooker role. Mine is Grant Grant in Slither. He was so wonderfully creepy! Technically, he was infected with the space zombie parasite when he banged Elizabeth Banks, so technically, it was zombie sex. Only one other movie I can think of has zombie sex. That's Fido (which stars Billy Connolly, who was Il Duce in The Boondock Saints movies). When Grant would call Starla's name, my skin would crawl in only the way a good horror movie can make it crawl. Slither is a very underrated movie and Rooker plays the perfect bad guy (but he's use to being the bad guy, he rocked in Henry!)

In addition to today being Rooker Reel Thursday, this is also the week we are pushing for Primetime Emmy nominations for Michael Rooker and Norman Reedus. If you've been on Twitter at all this week, chances are you've seen the #Emmy4Rooker and #Emmy4Reedus being thrown all over the place. Both Dixon boys are being considered for nominations, so we've been tweeting @PrimeTimeEmmys so they know the awesome fan base that wants to see their men have a shot at the Emmys!

When we meet Merle, we find out he is an angry, lecherous, racist redneck with a happy trigger finger. He is obviously the least favorite member amongst the survivors. You can tell they all just hate him. So, who (other than his brother) could possibly like him?ME!

We fall for Merle when we see him suffering from heat stroke, about to die. He's just on the brink of letting go completely, when suddenly he decides to do something about it. I've said here how Merle reminds me of my daddy. Maybe that's because I can see past the Merle of the apocalypse, to the Merle before the undead rose. I've been thinking about Merle's past.

Here's my fantasy on Merle's life. This is something I came up with on my own, just from watching The Walking Dead. Any similarities to other stories is purely coincidental. I'm sure Merle was a family man. With a wife and a son. Even his little brother Daryl lived in the room over the garage. Maybe the boy (probable named Merle Jr) was about 10 before the infection spread. I can see Daddy Merle and Uncle Daryl taking him hunting, fishing and teaching him about cars. Merle was a hard working man. He bust his chops in a local body shop rebuilding cars. He flirted with any pretty young girl who came in and made sure to give her a discount for being "so danged pretty". He would surprise his wife with a hand picked bouquet of flowers he saw growing beside the road. He drank heavily on the weekends. He probably over did it a lot. Just like any other Southern man, he loved to grill for his family.

Maybe he was at the grill one beautiful Saturday afternoon. Merle's wife was relaxing on a lawn chair watching Merle Jr playing in the yard. Daryl was in the garage working on his truck. Merle went back in the house to get more barbecue sauce, on his way back out he hears a blood curling scream. Merle bolts out the door only to see his beloved son lying on the grass with a huge chunk of flesh missing from his neck. As his boy's blood flowed, Mrs. Dixon was trying to fight the man off of her son. The blood covered man then turned on her and took a huge bite out of her arm. As Merle was running off the porch, Daryl came flying out of the garage with a bat in hand. Daryl was closer so began to beat man until he released Merle's wife. Merle scooped up his only child just in time to see the light leaving his eyes. He carried his little boy's body over to where Daryl was trying to stop all Merle's wife's bleeding. Merle got to tell his wife "I love you." one last time before she died. After that, the dead started walking.

If you were Merle, you'd be angry, too.

Disclaimer: Michael Rooker, The Walking Dead, Dixon's Vixens or any movie mentioned in this post did not in any way, shape, or form, ask me to write this or gave me any compensation to write this. I jacked all images from Google image search and Dixon's Vixens and just assumed they fell under the Public Domain Usage thingy. Please don't sue, I'm broke anyways. I just wanted to share my Rooker Love with Bloggywood! While I was not offered anything to write this, I will be more than happy to receive any swag you may want to send my way.

- Whether you love me or hate me, you know who I am.

The Sauciest Group on the Web!

2011-06-21T01:05:00.001-05:00

I know a group of ladies and gentlemen who are just dripping with awesomesauce. They are Certified Rad and just the bomb diggity. Want to know who I'm talking about? Why, it's Dixon's Vixens, of course!

We're a group of crossbow slingin, squirrel huntin, zombie killin, very talented ladies & fellers who just love the Dixon brothers! (For those of you who have been living under a rock, the Dixon brothers refer to Daryl and Merle Dixon from AMC's The Walking Dead)

Now, maybe I'm just partial, but I think the Vixens and Mixens (male members of the group) are the hottest thing since sliced bread! I've been there since the beginning, and I must say, I am BLOWN AWAY by how much we have accomplished!

Dixon's Vixens are more than just a bunch of people tweeting, posting and gushing about a couple of guys on a tv show. We are a close knit family of women and men who get together to discuss our favorite show, favorite actors, support charities, share information, and spread Vixen Love all over the place.

Ok, let's say you really were living under that rock for the last year, and you have no earthly idea who the Dixons are.

Meet Daryl Dixon,

I could fill up post after post explaining why I love this guy, but I already did that. Don't be lazy, go read it here. I'll wait… you back now? Daryl just gets to me! Naturally, we're all huge Norman Reedus fans (you can read what I think about him here.)

Here's his brother Merle:

Merle is classic. He is your average racist, vulgar, hard Southern man. Just rough as sandpaper and mean as a hornet. You can find him in a bar all weekend long and working hard all week. Every Southern family has a Merle. You just know before the apocalypse, he had a family, he drank too much, listened to a lot of Skynyrd, and always had a good time until he got pissed off. Merle actually reminds me of my daddy. He's a total redneck. Plus how can you not love Michael Rooker? He has fans across generations (even my grandma likes him). My favorite roles were Grant Grant in Slither and Henry. Oh, and he's a Bama boy and it's nice to see a fellow Alabamian be so talented!

Vixens stand for respect of The Reedus, The Rooker, each other and others. We follow a code that each member must agree with. We are always having discussions on what we want to do next and voting on special projects. We strive to be ladies and gentlemen, because we don't just represent ourselves, we represent each other.

The Vixens also stand for charity.

June has us campaigning for the Red Cross. All Dixon's Vixens have been tweeting that anyone can text REDCROSS to 90999 to donate $10. It will be added to the texter's cell phone bill. Also if anyone cannot donate money, donating blood is a wonderful substitute.

We also do local events. Vixens have been spotted at the Relay for Life. Three of us attended the cancer awareness walk and even had luminaria bags for Vixen love ones. Here they are all lit up.

Vixens are social creatures.

We love to congregate at conventions. Recently a good many Vixens took over Philadelphia. The pictures were amazing! I couldn't go (boo work, boo school), but all the girls that went tweeted & updated all of us stuck at home. That's Vixen Love right there!!!

(Side Note: There is a slim possibility that I may be going to Chicago Comic Con for the Honeymoon Josh & I never had. It all depends on fundage!)

We have a few really awesome Mixens. These are no mere men. These are the few non Dixon men who have managed to breach our ranks. And we totally love them for it.

First, there's Dead Dave and Lee from Dead Dave's Radio.

If you've never heard a Dead Dave's show, I'm a little offended. They have wonderful interviews and are a perfect venue for the fans to talk to their favorite stars. (Thanks to them, I got to speak to Norman Reedus!) Check out their site ASAP! These guys have been lining up some big interviews. You will not be disappointed! Both Dave and Lee are oh so awesome!

Next, we have Johnny from The Walking Dead TV Podcast

One of my favorite things to do when the kids are asleep, is to watch The Walking Dead on DVD while listening to The Walking Dead TV Podcast. It always makes me giggle especially since Johnny is one of our beloved men. And for the other guys involved in the podcast: Yes, we do stop listening when Daryl comes on screen. Those sleeveless shirts are total arm porn for us. (Please check these guys out too. Once again they have the Summer Seal of Approval and I promise you'll love them!)

Both Dead Dave's Radio and The Walking Dead TV Podcast have been kind enough to throw some Mixen Love back at all us Vixens with shout outs on their shows. I want to thank them with all my heart! I think I speak for all Vixens when I say, that really means a lot to us!

Dixon's Vixens is my little escape. When I'm feeling a little rundown or just stressed, I can pop in to our group and instantly get high on Vixen Love. This is an amazing group of people that have bonded into a family from just a little fan club. It warms my heart to see how we have grown. We went from a few women tweeting to a large group that has spread world wide. I've got Mad Vixen Love for every single Vixen and Mixen!

Disclaimer: Dixon's Vixens, Dead Dave's Radio, The Walking Dead TV Podcast, The Walking Dead, Norman Reedus, Michael Rooker, the Chicago Comic Con and/or the city of Philidelphia did not in any way, shape, or form, ask me to write this or gave me any compensation to write this. I jacked all images from Dixon's Vixens, Dead Dave's Radio or The Walking Dead TV Podcast. Please don't sue, I'm broke anyways. I just wanted to share an absolutely amazing group with Bloggywood! While I was not offered anything to write this, I will be more than happy to receive any swag you may want to send my way.

- Whether you love me or hate me, you know who I am.

Girls' Night Out with Down Stroke

2011-06-12T16:33:00.001-05:00

Last night (6/11) was designated Girls Night Out. I needed it. Once you become a wife and a mom, you're off the hot chick scale. The same guys who would hollar and whistle when you walked by, now step out of the way and say, "Ma'am." So not cool! I'm still hot, right? I'm at a place in my life where I'm confident and I finally have myself figured out. That's what makes up a hottie! GNO was a chance to get back in touch with my inner hot chick who still has no responsibilities. Not that I don't love being a wife and a mother, but every now and again, a woman needs a night out with other like minded women to realize that she's not only a caregiver and problem solver!

When I plan a Girls' Night Out, I usually plan my outfit about a week in advance. This time, I threw my outfit together in just a couple of hours. I dug through every article of clothing I own and cobbled together 3 individual pieces to look as rockin as I could. One red tank, black satin corset and black velvet skirt later, TA-DAH! Pair it with my hot red stilettos (that you can read about here and FYI I carried the red clutch too!) and you've got one rock n roll look for a night of reliving my youth!

Then it was time to call the girls together! That's me, Svetlana and my cousin Annie (my friend Kristen went but left before we took this pic). Annie and I work together and people are always confusing us for each other. I think it's just because we're both Amazons!

Once we had our rolling crew set to go, we headed to the venue. Tonights debauchery was set to happen at Crush so we could see Down Stroke. They're a cover band based in Chattanooga, TN. They cover basically anything you could possibly want to hear. Each member is oozing with personality, and they always get the crowd involved with the show. Oh, plus they're total hotties. Combine fun eye candy with great music that everyone knows and you can't help but have a good time. This is Down Stroke.

(It's worth noting that they stripped down right before they sung my song, Pour Some Sugar On Me)

If you ever get the chance to see these guys perform DO IT! I've been twice and can't wait to see them a third time. Find them on Facebook or follow them on Twitter ( @Down_Stroke ) for information on where they are headed. If you love to rock, have fun, dirty toasts, half nakedness and an all around good time, Down Stroke is the band for you! (Maybe the next time I see them, I'll actually remember to buy one of their shirts with "Stroke Me!" on it!)

We danced, sang along and even assaulted a cop! Ok, well Annie accidentally touched an off duty cop with the hot rock of her cigarette while she was dancing and he said he was cool with it but "assaulted a cop" sounds much more mischievous! There was a group of 30+yo chicks who were trying way too hard to get attention by pushing us out of the way to get closer to the stage (um, hello! 75% of the band are in committed relationships and these girls were UGLY, so it's doubtful they could persuade any of the guys into cheating). They were acting like 20yo groupies who think they own the area in front of the stage. Not cool. But Annie & I are 90 feet tall and pretty intimidating, so they backed off and just stood behind mean muggin & bad mouthing us. (Annie was close enough to hear a couple of insults about our height and dancing, but it was more funny than insulting)

I felt like a sorority girl again. Back to the days when the biggest problem was a wardrobe malfunction. As fun as it was, I could tell my body is no longer cut out for long term partying. In college, Thursday - Sunday would be filled with bands, clubs (sometimes 2 or more in a night), dancing and drinking. Now that I'm an old married woman (sure I'm only 26, but I'm a long way from the 21yo chick I use to be!), I KNOW I can't do that every night any more. Just one night of music, dancing and one club, I am worn out! One thing I found strange though, I had more fun in one night out as an adult, than I ever had in a whole weekend as a college girl. It's like since I don't have the pressure of "meeting a guy" hanging over me, I can really cut loose and have fun. (Just for fun, I decided to add a pic of me at 21. Enjoy!)

Just being able to get in touch with my inner girl was amazing. More fun than you could imagine. But not something I could do more than once a month. (Maybe Down Stroke comes to Birmingham once a month & they could be our regular GNO entertainment! Guess I'll have to watch the calendar!)

I just want all the men to remember, while it's totally not cool to hit on a chick when she's out with her husband and/or kids, don't be ashamed to tell her if you think she's a hottie when she's with her girls, even if she is wearing a wedding band. You'll probably make her smile for a while. I can hear my husband tell me 1,000 times a day how amazing he thinks I look, and I love him for it, but hearing it from someone who isn't required to be nice to me really makes it ring more true. Just because we're taken doesn't mean we don't still like being cat called!

Mad Love!

Disclaimer: Down Stroke did not in any way, shape, or form, ask me to write this or gave me any compensation to write this. I took all photos with my own iPhone 4 (except for me at 21, that was taken by my friend Carmen with my first camera phone). Please don't sue, I'm broke anyways. I just wanted to share my amazing night seeing a wonderful band with Bloggywood! While I was not offered anything to write this, I will be more than happy to receive any swag you may want to send my way.

- Whether you love me or hate me, you know who I am.

Hair of the Living Dead

2011-06-09T02:17:00.001-05:00

***AUTHOR'S NOTE***
To celebrate the zombie inspired color job that I completed for cosmetology school, I decided to expand on the original story I wrote to accompany the design. Here's it is!

*******************************************

That morning started out like any other. I woke up, and went about my day preparing for work at the salon. We live pretty far out in the country so there's never any people around. Just a quiet morning with the sun rising over my lake. Beautiful.

I hooked up my iPod. My favorite play list is always ready to go. I started singing, so I turned the music up loud. Right as I was belting my heart out to the Jackson 5's "ABC" a car swerved off the road, back on & hit another. Both guys driving got out and started shoving and fighting each other. Being a lone lady in a car with nothing more dangerous than a pretty pair of shears and a can of hair spray, I just called & reported it to 911. By the time I got near town, a police cruiser was heading the direction of the wreck, I figured they were ok.

About 20 minutes later I pulled up to my shop. There was a racket a ways down the road but I paid it no mind. This little town always uses 4 squad cars to pull over someone going 10mph over the speed limit. I chalked it up to some bored, overzealous cops trying to spice up their day.

I opened my little salon, proudly staring out the all glass front of my shop, grateful for all the sunlight pouring in. All ready to listen to people tell me about their lives while I made them over. I've always been amazed how doing someone's hair, painting their nails or even just waxing their eyebrows could make them feel better about themselves. I had just gotten some new expensive shears, so I was itching to put some miles on them.

One after one the calls started coming in. My 7:30 canceled. Then my 8:45, 9:30, and 11:00 all folded too. It was only 7:15! Each story was something about being sick. I remember getting worried I wouldn't have a client at all that day. Then she came running in.

"I absolutely have to look like this girl I just saw!" she exclaimed.

I tried to seem as excited as her but I thought "at least she's actually seen someone today." Right then I caught a glimpse of someone shambling past my shop front.

"Her! I've just got to look like her!" my client screamed.

The woman on the other side of the glass looked very undead. Her skin was turning a ghastly shade of green, with huge red gashes and black bruises pooling on her skin. Her hair was once dark, dark brown, "like dirt from a grave," I thought.
Now, you could see a deep cut running through her hair. It opened up all the way to see her skull.

As my client started gushing about wanting that "zombie look," I ran for the steel grate that I rolled down from the ceiling to discourage anyone from breaking in the front at night. I couldn't risk the ghoul breaking through the glass and attacking us. I got the grate down and started rounding up potential weapons. While I was running for the baseball bat I kept in my office, a man wearing camouflage walked up and shot the undead woman in the head. He then yelled at us to stay inside and that the US Armed Forces had it under control. They threw our zombie's corpse up on top of a truck and continued through the town.

"I always knew the government had a plan for the zombie apocalypse! Guess our tax dollars really saved our asses!" I happily said. I figured since it wasn't the end of the world, I should go ahead and make some extra cash. "How about we start on your undead appearance?" I asked my client.

I began working. Her name was Savannah. College student home on break. One more year before she graduated and entered the real world. I was slightly jealous even though I was only 6 years older than her. It seemed like a lifetime. She was a sweet girl obsessed with horror movies. I could totally relate.

When I finished coloring, cutting and styling her hair, I slowly turned her to face the mirror…

She squealed with delight. "OMG! I look so hot! I'm loving this living dead look!"

Right when I was going to tell her how happy I was that she loved it, a few men in camouflage ran screaming past the glass. I slowly walked toward the front. When I got to the grate, my eyes widened with horror. A hoard of about 30 zombies were chasing the Calvary! Basically, we were screwed and the government underestimated the power of hungry zombies.

I slowly said, "You're going to have to grab a few weapons and come with me, Savannah. Looks like we're on our own."

- Whether you love me or hate me, you know who I am.

Reedus's Day

2011-05-24T15:19:00.001-05:00

For Reedus Appreciation Day today, I rewrote the song "Sharkey's Day" by Laurie Anderson to be "Reedus's Day"
I hope y'all enjoy! (if you would like to read an older post about Norman Reedus, click here)

Sun's coming up, like a big bald head
Poking up over Dixon's Vixens
It's Reedus's day, It's Reedus's day today

Reedus wakes up and Reedus says:
There was this man... and he had a crossbow... and if only I could kill all these zombies.
I know they're trying to eat me... sometimes.

oooeee Strange dreams, oh yeah

And Reedus says:
Fire a shot, it's dead.
I turn around, zombies and I run

Oh yeah, strange dreams

And the Dixon's Vixens sing:
oooeee Reedus! He's Mister Dixon

They sing:
oooeee Reedus, yeah yeah, he's Mister Daryl

And Reedus says:
All the Vixens talk to me. I can hear them sending Vixen Love all around me.
Listen! Love is singing in the breeze. It's everywhere now.
Vixens are sending good vibes, Rooker knows it too.
Vixens are all about Dixons. Loving, loving at me.
Boom! Watch out!
Vixens appreciate me. You know?
They'd rather see me on tv. Zombie kills.

And Reedus says:
Turn around Vixens, turn around again and know it's love.
The Vixens know me. The Vixens know my name.

And Reedus says:
All night long I think of those sweet Vixens out there.
Posting their love.
You can't even see it, too strong!
And they're full of Reedus respect. Going strong.

And Reedus says:
You know? Bet Vixens could all happy dance all through the night

And the Dixon's Vixens sing:
oooeee Reedus! He's Mister Dixon.

They sing:
oooeee That Reedus!
He's the sweetest man on the Earth, we know.
He's an artist, bringing us beauty.
He's gone wild!
He's art personified, loving father, talented man, respected performer, we love.

And Reedus says:
Lights, Camera, Action! Vixens!
At the beginning of a Reedus movie, all Vixens take great delight.
Enjoy every moment until credits roll.

And Reedus says:
Turn around Vixens, turn around again and know it's love.
The Vixens know me. The Vixens know my name.

You know?
Happiness abounds from Norman
He causes smiles galore
Dixon's Vixens take great joy.

Reedus says:
All Vixens appreciate Reedus.
Vixens rise up, singing, dancing, drawing, writing in honor of Reedus today.
Vixen Love fills up your house.
It's Life! It's Life!
Turn around Vixens, turn around again and know it's love.
The Vixens know me. The Vixens know my name.

Deep in the heart of Vixens, Reedus love dwells.
Home of Daryl! Ha! Ha! Ha!
You already know all this!
Listen, Vixens' heart beat

And the Dixon's Vixens sing:
oooeee Reedus! He's Mister Dixon
Paging Mr. Reedus
Dixon's Vixens Love all around!

And Reedus says:
Turn around Vixens, turn around again and know it's love.
The Vixens know me. The Vixens know my name.

And Dixon's Vixens sing:
oooeee Reedus! Yeah!
Just wanted to let you know, how it will go,
Appreciating the Reedus is always how Dixon's Vixens roll!!!

Disclaimer: Norman Reedus did not in any way, shape, or form, ask me to write this or gave me any compensation to write this. I jacked all images from Google image search and just assumed they fell under the Public Domain Usage thingy (except for images provided by Dixon's Vixens). Original lyrics to "Sharkey's Day" by Laurie Anderson. Reedus lyrics are my own intellectual property. Please don't sue, I'm broke anyways. I just wanted to share my Reedus obsession with Bloggywood in honor of Reedus Appreciation Day! While I was not offered anything to write this, I will be more than happy to receive any swag you may want to send my way.

Nothing like a Zombie Killing Saint

2011-05-07T00:18:00.001-05:00

I have a confession. There's man who stole my heart and it's not my husband.

It's Norman Reedus. From the first time I saw the Boondock Saints when I was at the tender age of 16, I was drawn to him. I wasn't sure if it was his badassery or his steely gaze, but I was hooked. Each time he shot a gun, Cupid took a shot at me.

We need a Connor & Murphy MacManus in every major city, and we need them like yesterday.

First off, we'll get superficialities out of the way. He's GORGEOUS! Just look at him! Norman Reedus has a beautiful body. He's fit, healthy and takes care of himself (other than his affinity for cigarettes, lol). His face is ruggedly handsome. His eyes burn straight through you. Such a fabulous specimen of man meat. *Sigh*

See? Beautiful!
And he has a Harley. That's just yum!

Ok, here's where we get a little deep:

He's traveled the world. Living, taking pictures, making movies, just genuinely experiencing life. He's big on charitable contributions. Even recently donating all the money from the sell of his DVD 3 Films to Japan relief. (You can bet when my copy comes in, I'm posting about what I thought about it!) He's a celebrity with a heart. Not many of those now days!

Even animals love him. How could you not want to give him a kiss?

He's versatile. While he usually plays bad ass, he can do what ever he wants. Can you name someone else who can be an Irish Bostonian who kills bad guys, a zombie killing redneck, and the Messiah's betrayer? He even looks good in drag.

Special thanks to Dixon's Vixens for posting a clip of the above scene for me for my 26th birthday! Love you ladies! :)

He has fun! I can't stand to see a negative or boring person. From what I can tell from the Internet and people I know who has met him, he's genuine, engaging, sincere and funny. Ask a girl what she wants in a man and she'll list those qualities. Go on, ask someone, I'll wait…

Norman is a family man. Everything he does, he does for his son, Mingus (named after the legendary jazz great Charles Mingus). As a mother, let me tell you, nothing is better than a man who is a good father. As a child who grew up without a father, it makes me really happy to see a man I think is great actually be a man and be there for his kid. He even shows off wallet pictures like the rest of us.

Norman Reedus is no normal man. He's a legend in his own time. He's an artist, actor, photographer, painter, sculptor, writer, video artist, director, producer, biker, and father. He's got legions of dedicated fans, and I am very proud to say I am one of them. I'm one of Dixon's Vixens. Haven't heard of us? That's just because we haven't taken over the world yet.

Hubs and I have always each had a "celebrity lay" picked out. His has changed from Tyra Banks to Rosario Dawson. (Watch her dancing on the Mooby's roof in Clerks 2 and you'll understand!) Mine has always been Norman Reedus.
FYI: UrbanDictionary.com defines "celebrity lay" as "A specific celebrity you and your significant other mutually agreed that it would be okay to have sex with should the two of you ever meet in public and have a one night stand."
Now, I know chances I'll meet him are low, AND chances he'll be attracted to me are slim to none, but it's nice to know hubs says I'm cool to do it. You ever know, pigs could grow wings; evolution, right?

Disclaimer: Norman Reedus did not in any way, shape, or form, asked me to write this or gave me any compensation to write this. I jacked all images from Google image search and just assumed they fell under the Public Domain Usage thingy. Please don't sue, I'm broke anyways. I just wanted to share my Reedus obsession with Bloggywood! While I was not offered anything to write this, I will be more than happy to receive any swag you may want to send my way.

- Whether you love me or hate me, you know who I am.

Marijuana

2011-04-20T12:11:00.001-05:00

First off, let me say HAPPY 420!

If I were 19 years old I'd be spending the day getting high and watching stoner comedies all day long.

But I'm not 19. I'm almost 26. I have 2 kids and we live with my inlaws. Combine all of that and it's impossible to be that irresponsible. (Note: you can get high and be productive. I call this the Functioning Stoner. I'm saying it's irresponsible to spend 24 hours with a joint in your hand watching tv.) Not to mention, having 2 kids, with current marijuana laws, I'd be scared to death to do that even if my kids were with a sitter and I was at a friend's house.

Speaking of current marijuana laws, they make me sick.

I know plenty of people who take a handful of pills (fibromyalgia sufferers, people with cronic lifelong pains, people with depression) to relieve symptoms that they say is relieved by somehow ingesting tiny amount of marijuana. One friend told me for her fibromyalgia the side effects of her pills are worse than the pain, but when she smokes a joint she feels "normal." Now, she has to take all the pills because if she tokes up, she risks losing everything she's ever worked for.

We spend so much money prosecuting something that is actually a gift from God. I seem to remember reading somewhere that he left humans in charge and gave us everything we ever needed on this planet. (However, true to our nature, we wanted more and took the only thing we were told to stay away from.)

This alone could end America's recession. Attach a rolling paper dispenser and they'd have to refill it daily. Put it within walking distance of a college campus and America could be the richest country on earth.

This is what all the fuss is over. Dried up plant matter that once grew at the side of nearly all of America's road ways, naturally. You can make paper, soap, shampoo, conditioner, clothing, countless cosmetics, ropes, shoes, purses, jewelry, home goods, etc with it. It is super easy to grow and maintain. The production cost to make nearly anything out of hemp is insanely low. And remember, the Indians knew how to process and prepare pot before they knew how to make soap.

This is not the enemy. People are going to get high if they want to. Just legalize it, put the same restrictions as alcohol and be done with it. And please hurry, I'd hate to end up having to protest like this.

Just give Granny a bowl.

Disclaimer: No person, thing, organization or plant mentioned in this post in any way, shape, or form, asked me to write this or gave me any compensation to write this. I jacked all images from Google image search and just assumed they fell under the Public Domain Usage thingy. Please don't sue, I'm broke anyways.

- Whether you love me or hate me, you know who I am.

Zombies, Again?!?

2011-04-19T11:00:00.001-05:00

Yes, I know my last post was on the undead and another post was mainly about the Zombie Survival Guide by Max Brooks, but I have not actually covered the true range of my zombie obsession. Since I have been tweeting a lot about zombies recently and have just started following some new zombie related tweeters, I figure might as well dive deeper into the subject.

Scary isn't it?

We go day by day about our lives with the impression that tomorrow will be the same. But with diseases such as swine flu,
pneumonia, tuberculosis, malaria, measles and HIV/AIDS being super contagious, is it really a stretch to believe a single bacteria/virus can bring about the destruction of humanity?

Zombies can be more than just a bacterial or viral disease. Who's to say, if it happens, it isn't the wrath of God? (Please note, I am not being sacrilegious, I am merely providing a theory) Anyone who has read Revelation knows we'll face demons during the trial and tribulations during the end of days. We also know from scripture that the world as we know it will be destroyed by fire. Who's to say I'm wrong when I say that MAYBE when "the dead in Christ rise" only their spirits will continue on to Heaven leaving their bodies here to be controlled by demons as zombies? The world ending by fire could be the governments left standing sending nukes to blast all the zombies, and thus bringing about man kind's destruction. Remember, the Bible was written my Earthly men thousands of years ago, using symbolism that people of that time understood.

Now that we have only two out of the hundreds of "how will it happen" theories out of the way, I'm going to tell you how to spot a zombie. Whether you call them walkers, roamers, undead, living dead, ghouls, biters, infected, zombi, walking dead, zed heads, z's, hoards, or whatever you want to call them, a zombie is a zombie. I'm not talking about the Voodoo zombi, I'm talking about a true, eat you alive, moaning, groaning, uncoordinated, moving, hungry dead body. They can't speak, can't run (despite what newer zombie theorist say) and are fairly stupid. They usually appear somewhat gray and almost always have huge gaping wounds that will not actually bleed. If you come in contact with infected blood, in your eye, mouth, an open cut or any other opening to the skin (via bite or scratch), YOU WILL BE INFECTED. Do not eat zombie flesh even if cooked. It is a sure fire way to die. The only cure is to break the brain's connection with the body. One of the nicest things my hub and I say to each other is, "If you become infected, I'll take you out." (I know weird to some but totally sweet to us.)

On to protection. Do not travel at night, make sure all exits and entrances are secure but have an escape plan in mind. Since these are not widely available:

And we don't have this hanging up anywhere:

And this is only a dream for us:

I'll have to stick to the big hunk of wood that is on our front porch, right by the door:

(Yes, that is my hand holding that up on our front porch. No, it was not placed there just in case of zombies, but at least we're prepared!) Axes, tire irons, broken dining room table legs, sledgehammers, blades, guns, chainsaws, crossbows, bats, golf clubs, cricket bats and pretty much any blunt object will help save your tail!

Just remember, keep an eye out at all times, because if Shaun of the Dead taught us anything, outbreaks can start with no warning while you go through your daily life. That, and we're not Chuck Norris!

Disclaimer: No person, thing, book, show, movie or zombie mentioned in this post in any way, shape, or form, asked me to write this or gave me any compensation to write this. I jacked all images ('cept for the big piece of wood on my porch) from Google image search and just assumed they fell under the Public Domain Usage thingy. Please don't sue, I'm broke anyways. I just wanted to share my zombie obsession with Bloggywood! While I was not offered anything to write this, I will be more than happy to receive any swag you may want to send my way.
Chuck Norris, please don't use your beard fist on me if you were offended. You scare me more than the undead does…

- Whether you love me or hate me, you know who I am.

The Dead Walk!

2011-03-25T04:55:00.001-05:00

My mother claims I'm weird, my cousin saids I'm completely rational, and my husband says I better get really good with an ax or a machete. I say we better prepare, the dead could walk!

Regardless what you think at this point, I KNOW my zombie fear is irrational. My fears of clowns and little people are completely irrational, too, but I'm still absolutely terrified of them.

I know zombies are the least likely thing that ever could happen, but people said a black American president would never happen either (yay Obama!). As I see it, you make something zombie proof and it will withstand ANYTHING!

I've seen countless zombie movies. I've read plenty of books. I have spent time with my husband discussing our zombie survival plan. I'd like to think that if it all goes to hell in a hand basket, I'd survive. I'd bet I could be like Cherry Darling in Planet Terror minus the whole losing a leg (I don't think my husband could make me a machine gun peg leg) and I wouldn't want to lose what she loses (don't want to spoil the flick for ya!). She kicks mega zombie tail and goes on to lead the new world, all while being a total hottie.

All that being said, you still may say, "But Summer, I have no clue what to do about zombies!" This, my friend, will help you:

I could go on and on about how awesome this book is and what it can teach you. However, I did that already ( You Know You Want To Click Here...). (Oh, and FYI, my husband was ok after being hit by the truck. He was back to annoying me after a couple of days. The man is a powerhouse!)

I love pretty much all zombie movies and I've seen most of them countless times. I love George A. Romero's Movies. I actively seek out the goriest reanimated corpse stories that I can find. The funny to the scary, they're all wonderful.

I was ecstatic to see the Nazi zombies of Dead Snow.

I totally hearted the accidental heroes Shaun & Ed of Shaun of the Dead. They brave the undead English world for their family and friends.

And Jenna Jameson and Robert Englung (you read that right, I'm talkin about Freddy frickin Krueger!) totally horrified and titillated me in Zombie Strippers.

But each of these wonderfully fabulous undead sagas are not the inspiration for this incredibly long (and getting longer) post. This is why I am writing this:

Or, if you prefer:

I am completely in love with Robert Kirkman's brain child, The Walking Dead.

The graphic novels (aka comic books) are impossible to put down once you pick them up. I bought the first compendium and read it in 24 hours. It's so addictive!

My favorite person in the novel is Rick Grimes.

Rick is the quintessential alpha male. The series isn't really about the zombies but about how the zombies change the survivors. Rick is the driving force that keeps the books going. He's all about his need to keep his family safe. He battles some deep psychological demons (as do the other members of the rag tag band of survivors) and some real undead demons, but he still manages to keep it together for his son Carl. Rick is a real man in a surreal world. This was easily the best comic I have ever read (remember, I am a nerd so I have read quite a few!)

When AMC announced they were turning it in to a show (after my happy dance and delighted squeals were over) I did everything I could to prepare myself for the fabulousness of flesh eating ghouls.

After quickly falling in love with the show, I found my favorite character of the show. Andrew Lincoln is wonderful as Rick (and the first English person to gain my respect for doing a southern role since Vivien Leigh) but he is not my favorite member of the survival group. My heart belongs to Daryl Dixon.

I don't know if it's because he's a Saint from Boston or because Daryl reminds me of a few men in my family, but Norman Reedus has solidified his place in my heart as my favorite bad ass with this role. With his redneck behavior, ignorant racism and "fuck you" attitude, most people would hate Daryl. Not me. That's the kind of guy I want in my survivor group! He's tough and has no mercy (much like an actual zombie). Look past his rough spots and you'll find a scared man who loves his brother and just wants to keep living. (Well, I'm not gonna lie, I've had a crush on Norman since I the first time I watched him as Murphy MacManus, so I might have been kinda partial on this one. He's just so talented!)

I think the main reason I wrote this was to try to appease my hunger for more episodes of The Walking Dead. It didn't work. Guess I have to reread the first compendium and rewatch season one (for the second time this month). Rumor mill said new episodes start in July. I am beyond excited!!! I recommend that EVERYONE see this series. It's revolutionary!

Any how, don't say I didn't warn you when the dead rise up and decide to have you for a snack!

Disclaimer: No person, thing, book, show, movie or zombie mentioned in this post in any way, shape, or form, asked me to write this or gave me any compensation to write this. I jacked all images from Google image search and just assumed they fell under the Public Domain Usage thingy. Please don't sue, I'm broke anyways. I just wanted to share my zombie obsession with Bloggywood! While I was not offered anything to write this, I will be more than happy to receive any swag you may want to send my way.

- Whether you love me or hate me, you know who I am.

What Clueless Has Taught Me About Life...

2010-08-14T10:43:00.004-05:00

I actually wrote this on July 12, 2008 on MySpace, but I figured it deserves to be reposted here because I love it so much. So, with some tweaking of the original, here ya go!

I may have been 10 years old when it came out but Clueless has taught me many things...

1. Donald Fasion ~ If it wasn't for Clueless I never would have discovered one of my favorite comedic actors. If you don't think he's great then, hello!, Scrubs! He always makes me giggle!

2. Cast systems are not dead. Just like in high school, life works on a cast system. They aren't as cut and dry as in Clueless, but they are there none the less.

3. Gay men make great shopping buddies. Christian is a little over the top but what fabulous gay man isn't?

4. No matter how pretty, fabulous, rich, smart or special you may think you may be, if you don't go with the natural order of life, and try to change it, then shit isn't going to go right (this is also explored in the movie Failure To Launch). As we see with Cher trying to change Tai, trying to force Tai on Elton, trying to keep Tai from Travis, trying to bed Christian, trying to deny her feelings for Josh (yea, I totally didn't realize until 2008 that "Josh" is Paul Rudd, I do LOVE him, but I am slow, too!), and trying to get her way all the time at the wrong time. When she tries to force things they blow up in her face. Life has other plans, so just go with it! How does that prayer go? God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change; the courage to change the things I can; and the wisdom to know the difference.

5. Give the new kid a chance. Don't try to change them, but do make an effort to be friends. Whether it's school, work or a party, everyone is the new kid once in a while, you know how it feels, so be welcoming!

6. Fashion is vital. Nothing more needs to be said.

7. In certain situations, arguing is very important and can get you your way (it works even better if you're hot! Or if the rebuttal comes from Daddy…). Just make sure not to do it all the time.

8. Shopping can make you feel better, or at least clear your head. Well, it always has for Cher and myself anyways...

9. How to flirt. If you're seen the movie, then you know what I'm talking about.

10. Superficiality can get you into trouble and causes you to miss out on the beautiful moments in life. It's fine to be hot, and glad you're hot, but it is not the be all and end all of life.

11. Sometimes the best person for you is closer than you think.

12. It's not hard to be who you want to be. Just make up your mind you're gonna be that person and be them! Cher does it and it works out great for her (as I point out in point 13...)

13. Spreading good karma, sends you good karma. Sure, at first, Cher does the right things for the wrong reasons, but when she starts doing the right things for the right reasons then her life gets totally Karma-licious! She helps people find love, helps people find themselves, and she helps people in need. This all ends with her finally getting the man of her dreams, who also happens to be a total "Baldwin" (no, not the brothers...) and a good person to boot! She becomes the person she always wanted to (and was meant to) be.

So, once again, thank you to Clueless! To this day, when I talk about a pair of shoes with a strap I still wave my hand back and forth (like Travis). Every time I roll through a stop sign (like the ones in my mom's neighborhood) I still say "I totally paused!" even when there's no one in the car to say it to. I still refer to people who are pretty far away and "a big mess" up close as "Monets" and I am not ashamed to admit I often find myself talking very much like Cher ("I'm totally buggin!" and "As If!"... along with other phrases...). Clueless may seem like a stupid movie to most people but to me it was and still is a very important coming of age film for my generation. Every time I see it I can't help but grin ear to ear but now instead of thinking "How great will it be when I'm that age..." I think "How great was it to be that age!" and "How great it was to survive that age!"

Oh, and an intresting side note, (well, intresting to me, anyways) I use to have like 5 copies of the movie poster (my aunt worked at the theatre and came home with a whole box of Clueless stuff for me). The soundtrack was in the box and it was the first cd I ever owned (I even had it before I got a cd player). I STILL have it, it's not scratched and all the songs are loaded on my iPod... even "Fake Plastic Trees" (btw: I HATE that song!)

Thank you Amy Heckerling for bringing your vision to life for me! I'd like to think I have a little bit of Cher deep in my heart!

R.I.P. Brittany Murphy
11/10/1977 to 12/20/2009
You had real talent and you are missed.

- Whether you love me or hate me, you know who I am.

How Wonderful It Is To Be An American!

2010-08-12T05:48:00.001-05:00

Let me start by saying how proud I am to be able to raise my children in the greatest nation on Earth! Clean water, abundant natural resources (and the ablility to recycle and replenish these resources) freedom and guaranteed rights! The greatest gift I've received (after God's love and my children) is the fact that I was born in America!

Now, that being said, I don't understand my fellow Americans! People are all up in arms about the "Mosque at Ground Zero" and I think that's just sad. Lets put aside the fact that it isn't a mosque, but an Islamic Community Center. Let's also ignore the fact that it's not AT ground zero, but two blocks away.

Instead let's focus on the thing that allows it to be built in the first place.

The Constitution of the United States of America.

The only doctrine I love more than the Constitution, is the Bible. This wonderful collection of amendments gives us the fundamental rights that make us American. There is one amendment that I hold most dear.

That's right! The first amendment, número uno! It reads: Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

That means the "Mosque at Ground Zero" has a right to be there! Saying it shouldn't be built is the same as saying the Constitution needs to be thrown out. As I said it's not just a mosque but also an Islamic community center, where people of all religions are free to congregate. It's also two blocks away from where Ground Zero actually is.

It really depresses me that people claim it doesn't need to be there because it's Islamic and "Muslims caused 9/11".
While it is true that radical extremist saying they are acting in the ways of Islam, took down the towers; it is also true that not all Muslims are terrorists! Read this "Memo to the American Muslim" at http://www.islamfortoday.com/khan01.htm and you'll see what I mean. (btw: Thank you to my friend Dev for pointing that site out to me!)

As Americans, the Constitution is our greatest ally and achievement. It promises us many freedoms including the right to worship as we please and the right to speak as we want. (Otherwise I couldn't be writing this now!) That is also why I so strongly defend it! I don't consider myself a republican or a democrat. I've taken to calling myself a "Constitutionalist" because I believe if we actually ran the country by the Constitution, things would be so much better!

So many Americans are hung up on the fact that terrorist are claiming to be Muslims, that they are attacking the rights and freedoms of American Muslims who are just as hurt by 9/11 as your average Christian American. The war on terror is not a war between Christian and Muslims, or even Americans and Muslims. It is between Americans and terrorists. Saying all Muslims are like the terrorists is like saying all Christians are like those horrible Westboro Baptist Church members! (If you've been living under a rock, here's a picture of the WBC members.)

As a Christian, I am APPALLED by their actions. God called us to love thy neighbor, not hurl insults and torture grieving families. God told us "Judge not lest ye be judged." I guess they skipped that part.

They say the first amendment gives them the right to protest soldier's funerals. They give Christianity a bad name. While the first amendment does give Americans the right to protest, it says "peaceably to assemble". Picketing a funeral is not a peaceful assembly. It is tacky and in poor taste.

Furthermore, WBC members hate America. The average Muslim American does not hate America, but yet, the average uneducated American thinks WBC members deserve American rights more than these Muslim Americans. Granted, WBC deserves the right to worship as they please, they just don't deserve the right to torment families that have lost a son or daughter to war.

If we as Americans believed in our Constitution the way we should, we wouldn't be trying to stop an Islamic Community Center. The American military doesn't reject people on basis of race or religion, so why should the American people?

American soldiers can be:
Men

Women

Black

Latino

White

Or even non Christian

These brave men and women are part of the fabric that makes America great! They come from different backgrounds, yet they are all the same. They are Americans.

Next time, you or someone around you spouts something anti Muslim or racist, just think, "What would our fore fathers think?"

- Whether you love me or hate me, you know who I am.

How about I Lose It?

2010-08-11T12:54:00.001-05:00

I was contemplating what to write about, when I decided that the world needs to know about my weight loss journey.

Lose It! Logo

My weight has never been a problem for me before I met my husband. When I was a child, I was called String-Bean, Stick, and Twig because I was impossibly skinny and tall. I was even referred to as Ethiopian because I looked like I was "starving to death". My mom even once commented on how it looked like someone tied knots in my legs to make knees. Up until I was 17 (when I met my husband), I was 135lbs. At 5'10", that's very thin. I was active in colorguard and winterguard, and we had several exercises we did on a daily basis (not to mention "Hell Week" during Christmas vacation that involved 13 hr practices). Needless to say, I could eat what ever I wanted because I was so active. Here's a few winterguard pics to give you an idea of what it's like:

My Senior year (I'm front right)

My first year (sophomore year, I believe) doing my dance solo.

Once high school ended, guard ended too. I also became very involved with my boyfriend (who is now the hubs). I learned the hard way, when you're happy and in a serious relationship (not to mention not exercising) you tend to pack on weight. Momma calls this "nesting". It goes back to our caveman days where when you found your spouse, you put on weight to prepare for having kids, or something like that.
Well, all through college I fluctuated between 140 & 150lbs. I was completely unhappy because I had forever lost my 4 pack that I had earned through guard.

Me with my four pack (bad pic but you get the idea)

Me (on the left) at my biggest in college

Well, once you have kids, it's even harder to lose the weight. I hated my body! I lamented not being thin and even resorted to calling myself names when I looked in the mirror.

Here I am with my "Silly Bear" Ray and the baby weight from him.

Once I popped out my 2nd child (Bruce, or Batman as we sometime call him), I was determined to get back to the body I knew I wanted! I did not want to stay at the 160lbs that my lovely children had left me with. But, it's almost impossible to exercise with two kids under 3, and I refuse to diet. "Diet" is just "Die" with a "t" on the end! Plus I'm not giving up tacos, pasta and my other comfort foods! I believe everything food wise is ok in moderation. I've always heard calorie counting works, but I didn't want to write everything down and do all that math.
While cruising around in the iPhone app store, I found a wonderful app that counts calories for you! You just touch the food you eat and the exercising you do, and the app does all the math! It's called "Lose It!"

This app is super easy to use! Here's some screen shots:

Obviously, it's working because I've gone from 160lbs down to 139lbs! Only 4 more to go and I'm back at my pre-hubs weight! So, yes, I'm tooting my own horn! I'm extremely proud of myself. Who knows? Maybe I can get my 4 pack back one day…
One last picture: here's me, (this year) at zumba with my aunts and my mom.

Disclaimer: Lose It! in no way, shape, or form, asked me to write this or gave me any compensation to write this. I just wanted to share what worked for me with Bloggywood!

- Whether you love me or hate me, you know who I am.

What I hate the most about being a homemaker.

2010-08-09T00:29:00.002-05:00

When I was little, this was who I wanted to be when I grew up:

The happy little homemaker who loved nothing more than taking care of the kids, maintaining the house, and doing the dishes. I always knew I wanted to get married, have babies, and stay home with them.

My mom was a working, single parent, so I wanted to be a stay at home mom. There's absolutely nothing wrong with being a single working mother. My mom has a strength about her that amazes me to this very day. She made it to every PTA meeting, was the sponsor for my cheerleading squad, took me to school every morning, was a chaperone on nearly every class field trip, would come up to the school when I wanted her to eat lunch with me or bring cupcakes for the class for my birthday, made me outfits or Halloween costumes, bought me everything I ever wanted (I had the first computer out of all my friends AND was the first one to get contacts), she signed me up for every class I wanted to take (cheernastics, acting, music, dance, art, etc) she took me on picnics, we went to museums, she was at every color/winterguard performance, and she still worked 40 plus hours a week. My mom is Supermom.

(Mom, I know you're reading this, so I love you and thank you for spoiling me!)

Now, even growing up knowing a mom can do all those things, I still wanted to be a stay at home mom. I'm talking full on Stepford Wife!

Now, that I do have my dream come true about being a stay at home mom, I've learned a thing or two about that whole Stepford Wife ideal, it's pure BULL SHIT! I don't wake up fresh as a daisy an hour before my husband and kids (so they don't have to see me looking anything but my best), put on some nice dress and full make up just so I can do the house work! Hell, I consider it a good day, if I find the time and energy to change out of my pajamas!

Don't get me wrong, I LOVE being a stay at home mom. Being able to spend every waking moment with my children is AMAZING! We have so much fun singing and playing. I love knowing that I can stay at home all day and not have to deal with some asshole getting mad at me because they want to be able to keep an outside plant that needs lots of natural sun, inside with no light what so ever. I get to spend every moment with the people who truly matter to me.

But this is a sight NEVER seen in our home:

In fact, it looks more like this:

What do I hate the most about being a homemaker?
DISHES! I absolutely HATE, with every fiber of my being, washing dishes. Yes, we have a dish washer. Does that lessen my distain for loading and unloading it, pre-rinsing, and only having to wash a few "not dishwasher safe" items? NO!!! I STILL HATE DOING DISHES!!! Dishes are like laundry, no matter how many times you do them, the moment you have an empty sink (or clothes basket), someone else throws more in there!

It doesn't matter if they have been in the sink one day or one month, I will still try to con my hubby into doing the dishes for me. I'll make excuses, whine, pretend to forget; you name it, I've tried it.

God bless him, I have such a good man, that it usually works! Josh works 8 hours a day in the sun at a greenhouse dealing with people who have more money than sense. (I know these people have more money than sense because I use to work there myself, you might say I brought in my own replacement when I got Josh to start working there. The coworkers and the environment are wonderful, but about 40% of the customers are HORRIBLE). After he spends those 8 hours sweating, carrying heavy plants, and dealing with grumpy old money old ladies, he comes home and, if I ask just right, does the dishes. What can I say, I'm spoiled!

Dishes are the pain in my neck, the fly in my ointment, the boil on my ass! There is only one reason that I do them. That reason is: I…

I wish I could say I'd finally be happy when they invent a dishwasher that loads itself, but I'm sure I'll find something else to bitch about!

- Whether you love me or hate me, you know who I am.

Prop 8 Overturned and Red Clutches Are Hard To Find!

2010-08-04T21:59:00.001-05:00

First thing's first...

It doesn't matter if you are gay, straight, bisexual or asexual. The government has no place deciding who can love whom or who can marry whom. Whether or not you agree with someone's sexuality, you have no right condemning someone else for what they feel or believe. God gave us all free will and the Constitution gave us the Bill of Rights. No one person is better than the other. We all deserve the same human rights.

Secondly, a red clutch is the hardest purse ever to find. Well, the hardest ever if you want to spend less than $10.

You see, I have a cousin getting married on the day of the first Alabama game. Since I am a big Bama fan, I decided to wear a houndstooth dress, red tank under it (not classy to show too much cleavage during someone's vows!), red stilettos, and carry a red clutch (after all, I need a place for my camera, phone and lipstick). I know that Alabama's color is crimson and not red, but I wanted red heels so there! Anyways, here's the dress:

Found it on Amazon.com for anyone who is interested! It's the Folter Clothing Houndstooth Dress.

Figured I'd post the heels, too. Here ya go:

I searched all over eBay and found quite a few red clutches, but you never know how long anything from eBay will take to get here. As I said, I'm not paying more than $10 for it because it's not an every day purse. I did find a really cute one at Target.com for $9.99. I pretty much made up my mind that I would get the Target one.

I took a break from clutch research, to run some errands today, including one to pick up the new VeggieTales movie that my mom pre ordered for my boys. (I just had to purchase one for them, too!) Here they are:

My men LOVE VeggieTales! I have to admit, I do too. Started watching when I was 14.

Well, while on the errands, I decided to pop into Target just to see if they had the clutch there. I'd hate to pay the shipping if I can avoid it. I got a double wammy… they did! And it was only $4.99! Go me! Not only did I find the perfect clutch, but it was at a perfect price. It has an optional wrist strap, too. So, since I've posted pictures of everything else, here's a picture of the clutch, with and without the strap.

The hardware looks goldish, but it's silver. I'm so in love with this clutch!

Well, that is all I have for today. Stay tuned for more from me, soon!

- Whether you love me or hate me, you know who I am.

Back in the Bloggywood!

2010-08-03T19:59:00.001-05:00

Well, I vanished for a long time. My baby is almost a year old and my big boy is going to be 3 soon. We moved in with my mom & dad so we can save to get us a house up on the land we inherited. And I missed Bloggywood Land. (Random bit of trivia: The famous "Hollywood" sign originally read "Hollywood Land") So, in short, look for more from me now that I have steady internet service and a couple of extra hands to help wrangle my wild little men...

Merry SITSmas Day!!!!

2009-12-08T11:31:00.007-06:00

Today is Merry SITSmas day over at SITS!

This looks like a really fun event. They are giving away prizes all day!

Not only that but it is also going to be comment love galore!!!

I am so excited!

I thought we would use our Santa pictures for my Merry SITSmas post.

This is my oldest (26 months). He has never been afraid of Santa before but on this particular day he wouldn't have anything to do with him! lol

My baby (3 months). Of course he didn't know what was going on. lol But he was real good about letting Santa hold him.

Join us in the fun today and hop over to SITS and link up!

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you have a great Merry SITSmas!!!

Mad Love!

- Whether you love me or hate me, you know who I am.

"I've Been Hit By A Truck" and One Of My Favorite Books

2009-11-10T14:35:00.004-06:00

Gettin hit by a truck will take it out of you…

Yes, you read right, my husband Josh was HIT BY AN EIGHTEEN WHEELER!!! He was at work at the greenhouse a week ago and suddenly a stupid skank, you know the kind of person with more money than brains, was speeding (these morons usually go 40-50 mph in this PARKING lot, I use to work there and say someone was gonna get hit). They then hit the front end of the 18 wheeler Josh was, at the back of, unloading. And BAM! 18 wheeler's lift gate pinpoints all the force to my husband's torso. Well, Josh has been very sore but nothing is ruptured and he is badly brused. The dr said that if he didn't get the police report faxed to his office he never would have believed Josh got hit by a truck! He said most people wouldn't have walked away. Thank God for LARGE miracles!

Ok, now to the post of the day!
Today's Blog Hop Tuesday is about your favorite book. I chose a very useful book that Josh and I have just devoured and we both consider it a must have in any human's book collection!

You're walking down the street on your way back home from the company softball game. You have your bat resting on your shoulder when suddenly you hear a moan. No, not the kids-are-asleep-so-it's-mommy-daddy-time kind of moan, but the undead-is-very-hungry kind of moan (thanks to Mr. George A. Romero you know that sound). You turn slowly and smile as you realize there's another person walking home tonight too. Your smile fades as the person begins to "raise its arms, drop its jaw, unleash a hellish moan, and stumble directly toward you." It's a ZOMBIE!!!

Do you know what to do?

Well if you had "The Zombie Survival Guide" by Max Brooks not only would you know what to do, but you'd know how to survive the outbreak with your loved ones (or other survivors who become loved ones as you fight for your lives). With myths and legends to debunk, weapon guides, information on how to tell a somnambulist (not a sleepwalker, but the undead) from a person under the influence of voodoo zombie powder, and a list of all recorded zombie attacks from 60,000 B.C. to 2002 A.D. this book is something every zombie nerd needs!

Be sure to check out "World War Z" (also by Max Brooks) for a glimpse on what a post-zombie world is like…

Mad Love!

P.S. If you don't read the Guide, the way to survive in my senario is to use your bat to bash in the zombie's skull and RUN! Keep an eye out for more ghouls and if you see a bicycle then take it! It's the best mode of anti-zombie transportation!

- Whether you love me or hate me, you know who I am.

The Biggest Problem in Our Marriage

2009-11-07T22:28:00.000-06:00

First of all let me say ROLL TIDE ROLL!!!

Second, blogging is like getting a tattoo, you can't just stop at one! You always want another!

Ok, now that I got that out of my system: This is my husband, Josh, and his naturally huge and fluffy Fro (we are looking in to permits for it to have it's own zip code).

Well, I put his picture up because this post is all about him and his condition that is ruining my life and marriage.
My husband (and therefore my family) suffers from a horrible condition. It can ruin lives, crumble marriages, and destroy any object it comes in contact with. This devistating ailment is something I have learned to live with. Until 2006 this condition did not have a name. It's Wandering Ass Syndrome, or WAS for short. WAS is no laughing matter. Anything that gets within a foot of Josh's butt gets destroyed by being knocked about or flung to the ground by his tiny posterior. You see Josh is very skinny (but strangely strong, just like his dad), and I mean like Jim Morrison skinny. With a husband that skinny you can only ask, "How can a hiney that tiny cause so much trouble?" I only wish I could tell you.

It never fails. Josh walks by a table and, CRASH, a full glass of tea hits the ground. Josh walks by a huge frame on our wall and, BAM, it tumbles down the stairs and breaks into several pieces. Josh is standing next to the tv tray that I have all the beads that I use to make jewelry sittin on and, BOOM, I spend the next 4 hours combing seed beads out of our carpet. I have watched a WAS moment happen before my very eyes many times, and there is no warning when WAS will strike. It's not like he falls into something or trips and knocks it. He has wonderful balance. I've rarely seen this man fall and I've known him since we were 17!

How can you tell if your loved one is suffering from Wandering Ass Syndrom? Side effects of this condition are broken plates, cups and bowls (well, generally anything glass), ripped posters, over turned tv trays, carpet stains, scuffs on hardwood floors, dents in any metal, chairs inexplicibly moved mere inches, and, occasionally someone who is WAS inflicted will accidently knock over their loved ones (particularally toddlers, as they are booty high). As of now there is no cure for WAS. Based on private studies, WAS may be hereditary.

I'm worried about my sons. Ray has amazing balance too but he's showing early signs of WAS. Bruce may show them too when he learns to walk. I guess when we build a house, we'll need padded rooms… so their WAS's won't break anything and I'll have nice soft walls for when I'm driven insane by the Wandering Asses in my life.

Mad Love!

- Whether you love me or hate me, you know who I am.

Ok, so I admit it, I'm a hypocrite…

2009-11-06T22:50:00.000-06:00

My mother has had a blog on here forever and she's super obsessed with her blog so I have been making fun of her. Well, I figure I gots a lots to say so why shouldn't I have one?

Mad Love!

Music and HotWheels

2009-11-06T16:21:00.000-06:00

I love music. I use to have an endless depth of knowledge concerning singers, songwriters, bands, and albums. Now, I couldn't tell you the name of a single song or musician (even though most "artists" don't play instraments nowadays so therefore they aren't musicians, but I digress) that was released this year. Now, having said that, the other day I realized that while my intelligence regarding music has diminished, I know EVERY SINGLE WORD OF EVERY SINGLE SONG that is on EVERY SINGLE NICK JR SHOW. Ah, the joys of motherhood! But that is a very small price to pay for the love of my two boys.

I have also discovered an enemy hiding in little boy's toy boxes around the world. That vile, heinous criminal is HotWheels. If you don't know the downlow on these dastardly miscreants, let me enlighten you. Apparently the 160lbs I'm carrying on my 5'10" body and my massive size 9 foot are no match for a 2.5 inch long, inch wide HotWheels die-cast motorcycle. I stepped on it and I went DOWN! The motorcycle, however, is in perfect condition. No bent handlebars, no dented gas tank, no not even a scratch. So, in summary, watch out for these mini metal menaces! They may bring hours of untold joy to your son (just like my 2 year old, Ray), but they lie in wait to strike out at unsuppecting mothers!

Mad Love!