Marco...

... Polo! Yes, I am still alive. And yes, I am still (slowly but surely) blogging. Don't give up on me quite yet folks. Sometimes life just gets in the way. Which, speaking of life, in the crazy hecticness of the last week-and-a-half I have acquired a few lessons.

Let's review, week-at-a-glance style:

- When your boxer pup stops in the parking garage to leave a present, pick it up immediately. When another dog later decides to leave one in the same spot and the owner doesn't pick it up, throw a fit. Unfortunately, no one will care about your fit and you will still end up picking it up yourself. Scenarios such as this one are obviously only possible on a Monday.

- Love really does come along at the oddest times in the most bizarre circumstances. Congratulations to my newly-engaged friends Kerri and Kevin! Who would have thought a romance could bloom out of a funeral (seriously). Way to be awesome.

- Whenever you feel like you are in good shape, go to the Body Pump class at Gold's for a quick reality check. Then be humbled when 45 minutes leaves you practically immobile for the next three days.

- Voting for contestants on reality shows is surprisingly fun. Except when it's The Biggest Loser and you later realize that text voting is not free. Daris, if you are reading this, I want you to know you are totally worth my weekly lunch allowance. I didn't need to eat this week anyway.

- Dancing with the Stars does not seem to care about my votes.

- Lots of work does not always equal lots of money. However, it does equal a lot more phone calls to return, a lot less sleep, and a lot more 'tude. Sincere apologies to anyone I have come in contact with over the last ten days.

- Shorts + Motorcycle + Blazing Hot Day = Burnt Bum & Bad Tan Lines. Not recommended.

- Girl's Nights are ridiculously fun. (But not so much for surrounding parties.) Hanging out with an amazing group of loud, fun, laughing women is totally worth a few cross looks.

- When challenging yourself to a 50-Book-Challenge in 2010, perhaps the 2009 result should be taken into account. Especially when the goal was 50 and you read 7. I can't even see the bar anymore because it is set so high.

- Lazy Sunday is sometimes necessary to recover from all of the above.

It's a Mom's Life.

Happy Mother's Day to all the wonderful, patient, loving, beautiful moms out there! (Special shout-out to my own special mama- love you!) This day always makes me think about how crazily amazing women are- especially moms. All the mothering (i.e. the cooking, cleaning, sacrificing, care giving, whine-enduring, multi-tasking, schedule-coordinating, and disciplining)...it just seems so exhausting. Luckily I won't have to worry about any of that for a while. Well, at least the cooking part. The rest is debatable thanks to a boyfriend, roommate, and two pups.

Speaking of exhausting, this week has been one for the books. Wednesday was Cinco de Mayo so a couple of fab ladies at work decided it was margarita time! (Virgin, of course. A marg, even a good one, is not worth a spot in the unemployment line.) While on the topic I would like to point out the hand-crafted (not by me) sombrero that was the centerpiece for our Cinco festivities. I was pretty excited to momentarily relive the olden days when some tin foil and a handful of pipe cleaners somehow got transformed into a masterpiece. (Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.) I actually envy my elementary school teacher friends solely because they get to do arts and crafts on a daily basis. Their job would be much more appealing if it did not involve twenty plus children under the age of ten. Or maybe that is the appeal? Either way, Teacher's Appreciation Day should be a much more popular holiday.

Anyway.

After clocking a ten-hour day at the SH, I turned my metaphorical trucker cap around Over-the-Top style and headed to my other gig at The Shed. Hype Pix got hired on to do our first third-party event for 654-Limo's 7th Anniversary Party. Slam Dunk. The pictures were fantastic thanks to our amazing photographers and even-better subjects. You would be surprised how many people are anxious to look ridiculous (myself included). Then pay money to showcase the evidence in an 8x10. Amazingness.

After a long evening at the party it was up again for another day at the office, followed by a fundraising event for Shelter House.

Followed by another night of less-than-ample sleep.

And another day of work.

Fast-forward to Friday night when I was peeled off the couch and carried to bed. At approximately 9pm. Rock star.

The rest of the weekend involved fun with friends, the first soccer game of the summer season, a Mother's Day movie (Date Night, finally) and lunch at Bonefish (winner by unanimous decision). After enjoying delicious food with Nick, his mom Jodie, her boyfriend Jesse, and their neighbor Caroline it was back to the casa for a little R&R. Except that I decided (unintentionally) that I would spend the remainder of my day doing all things "motherly" instead. The next three hours included lots of laundry, vacuuming, sweeping, and the grooming of my own two furry children. (Which, according to Nick's four-year-old little sister Juju, qualify me for Mother's Day.)

So what did my little family do while I worked tirelessly?



That's right. They all three took a nap.

So to all you wonderful mothers out there... I hope you enjoyed your breakfast in bed, musical greeting cards, flowers, and hand-crafted gifts. Cheers to knowing that you will have to do your own breakfast dishes, cut and water your own roses, and probably pay for your own present. But chances are, you didn't even notice. And that is why you are wonderful.

'What made your butt fall down?"

One of the many things I love about living in Destin is that the people here generally keep a pretty nice physique. (They also all have tattoos, but that is beside the point.) It's easy to be active and stay in good shape when you live on the beach and know that you are going to be in a swimsuit eight to nine months out of the year. Motivation? Check!

I have been pretty good about going to the gym and staying active since I moved here last May- beach jogs, yoga, the gym, and of course kickball (not to be confused with dodgeball) have kept me feeling energetic and overall pretty healthy. That is, until mid-April when I busted out my book of excuses and decided that working out was not only inconvenient, but impossible. BIG mistake. Those LBS catch up quick! The last couple weeks of eating out and skipping the gym have seemed to trump out any work I have done over the last year. [Sigh.] Needless to say, it was back to the gym kicking and screaming yesterday afternoon.

When I lived in Austin, my friend Sara and I used to go run the Hike & Bike Trail around Town Lake. For some reason the only thing I remember about these runs (with the exception of the time I tripped on Lucy's leash and skidded three feet across the gravel while she literally pointed and laughed) is the ceremonious trips to the gas station we would make when we were finished. Odd, I know. But let me just say that gas stations are the BEST for impulse purchases. A soda is always better if you get it from the corner store, as is a candy bar, Icee, or anything else delicious and equally bad for your midsection. Since I haven't been to the gym in like, oh, two weeks, I decided I deserved a ceremonial post-gym Dodge's stop to reward myself for getting back on the work-out wagon. I decided I should probably opt for a "healthy" snack choice, so naturally I bypassed the granola bars and went straight to the trail mix instead. (Life lesson #1: You can never go wrong with anything that involves chocolate.) (Especially milk chocolate m&ms.)

I have since decided that I HATE trail mix. Correction: I LOATHE trail mix. It is way too much work to sift through all the different ingredients to get to the good stuff. (I hate jellybeans for this same reason.) So as I snacked I was overly annoyed that I had to pick all the stupid raisins from the bag. (I come from the school of thought that grapes should only be consumed two ways: straight from the freezer or squeezed into a bottle of Moscato. I don't want them dried-out, shrivelled, and served with peanuts thank-you-very-much.) The upside is that maybe the act of picking out raisins burned a few calories.

So at this point I am feeling alright about my day. Gym? Check. Somewhat healthy eating? Check. Then I run into Nick in the elevator at our condo.

Nick: Why are you touching your butt?

(Apparently I was, in fact, doing this. Awkward.)

Me: Well, it just seems like it was more "up" a couple weeks ago.

Nick: What made your butt fall down?

Me: Um, okay just because it is not "up" does not mean that it is "down."

Nick: But you just said...

Me: Oh just forget it.

Yep. That's right. Apparently not going to the gym makes your butt fall down. So for all of you that were wondering, now you know. Needless to say, tomorrow will be another gym day. I will be the one literally kicking (and screaming) to get those buns back where they belong. And the beat goes on...

"Living the 10W-40 Life"

I wish I could take credit for the title of this post, but the honors goes to one of the many status updates on the FB regarding the oil spill that is ripping through the Gulf of Mexico as we speak. Others include...

Oil. Mind consuming.

This oil spill is not gonna be good for our area. Our beautiful beaches and water will be gross, and a lot of businesses and jobs will suffer as well. I pray that a miracle happens.

This oil spill is coming and we can't do anything about it. Devastating. And this is just the beginning...

Worried worried worried, don't know what's going to happen to our jobs and lives due to this oil spill!

...and of course the ever-so-honest...

I would like to thank BP for ruining my summer.

I have never been savvy with politics and I can't really say that current events are my forte (unless broadcast via E! news) but this oil crisis has really left me with a heavy heart. The majority of our friends here work in either tourism, fishing, or on the water in some capacity. After having them over to watch the fight on Saturday (boooooo Mayweather) I learned first-hand what a crisis like this will do to the Emerald Coast's environment, economy, and livelihood. One word: Devastation.

I've never been one to put up an umbrella before it rains (well, mostly) but things are not looking so good for the Florida Panhandle. Seeing something like this happen to your home can really light a fire under your back side. It really makes you want to get out there and actually DO something for once instead of just chatting about it in your sewing circle. Get out there, get your hands dirty, and actually make a difference! Come on now, who's with me!?! (I feel like I should be holding a picket sign right now.) (Or may maybe a bullhorn?) I digress.

Nick will be attending the FWB City Council meeting tomorrow that will discuss a Citizens Response Team. I am anxious to find out what locals like myself can do to assist with the oil spill cleanup. In the meantime I will be thinking happy thoughts and hoping that my weekly lunches in the sand at SRB will not be interrupted (and that the beaches will stay as beautiful as they were the day I snapped this photo).