10 Days In/DC Mardi Gras

So it's been ten days now that I've been on my own. Well, I use "on my own" loosely. I've pretty much spent every waking minute with someone as I doggy sat this weekend in Old Town. So I had a chat today with my life coach aka Leslie Stein and made up some goals for myself so that my efforts to improve and focus on me don't turn into leaving no time for me because I've got a free schedule crammed with happy hours, type of thing. I'll keep you posted on how that goes.

One of the never at home things I did yesterday was go to Mardi Gras, DC-style at Lin's new apartment. She made homemade shrimp jambalaya and had king cake too. YUMMY. Although the king cake was blue, green and gold, it was pretty good. No Haydel's though.


Blue, Green and Gold!


Lin's HOMEMADE Jambalaya!

But now that Fat Tuesday has passed (and it always make me so reminscent of home!) and Lent has set in, I turn my thoughts to 40 days of self improvement and fixings! First and foremost, I announce to my blogging world, I QUIT SMOKING. I haven't been much a smoker since James left, about one pack a week, but still. I told Momma I'd give up for Lent and I'm giving it a go. So keep me in your thoughts. I've smoked on and off for years, so it's going to be a challenge. But as my uncle always says, ANYTHING is possible with God!

Hoping you have a peaceful Lenten season....

To My Love

Although he rarely reads my blog, I wanted to dedicate a post to my love, James Gordon Durrett. I dropped him off at 830 AM this morning at National Airport. He didn't see my tears as I drove away, and that's for the best. I know that this next chapter is only a new beginning for us both, and I'm trying not to remain in the past. But I want to thank you for three and half years. Three and half years of experiences I never though I'd have, love I never though I'd feel, emotions I never thought were possible. You are my best friend and I am going to miss you terribly. But I know this is for the best and that God has a plan for both of us. I love you forever my heart. I am blessed in so many ways to know you.

New Chapter

So I have literally two days left with James before he moves back to Indiana. As I've mentioned before we've decided to stay together but no one can deny that there will be 900 miles between us, so I ask you all for your prayers and thoughts that we make it through this time. I know he feels a bit like he's starting over, new apartment, new job, new life, which can be a bit overwhelming. I'm trying to see it as an opportunity, an opportunity to better myself physically (no more excuses that I just eat what James eats...HELLO he's like 2 feet taller than me!), mentally and spiritually. One of the opportunities I am most excited (and nervous) about is learning how to be alone. Since I was literally 2 hours old, I needed to be held nonstop. Lin would cry until somebody put her down, I would cry until somebody picked me up. I get bored by myself in like 3 minutes. Now I knew that one day, in the far far distant future, I was going to have to make nice with myself, but I didn't expect it to be so soon! So that's what I'm going to do. Learn to be alone with myself. And like it. Without being on the computer, phone and watching TV at the same time as a distraction. Without accepting (and this is sure to come) Katy's offer of coming to stay for a weekend since I'm heartbroken. Love you Katherine, but I've got to do this. Or just spending every waking moment with my Mom and sister. Sigh. Solving world peace may be an easier thing for me to accomplish.

Oh well. I will be able to fall in love again with photography, which is always a mistress (mister? what's the male equivalent?) thrown to the wayside as soon as I get otherwise distracted. To jump start this new frame of mind, I'll post a few oldies but goodies. Maybe soon I'll have more newbies but goodies!

The Latest Facebook Craze

So everyone on facebook keeps posting 25 Random Facts about Me. See number 12, but I've just got to post it here too. Damn Ego!

1. I have a strong fear of being trapped under ice, dive meets and boxing movies.
2. My dogs' teefs are prettier than your dogs' teefs. Bet you $50.
3. If I were on a desert island, I would want to have triscuits, my mom's hummus (which is sabre but i'm usually two cheap to buy it), Martika and Diet Doctor Thunder. And my dogs. And crap magazines. I don't think i'd be any good on a desert island.
4. I still hold up my hands to see what hand is left (it spells an "L".)
5. I have benefactor who has taken me across the world on extravagant trips.
6. I do everything my sister does.
7. I am way too dependent on my mother.
8. I pray all the time to have curly hair and be able to sing. I discovered the curly, more like wavy, hair at 30, so who knows?
9. I love Mariah's All I Want for Christmas, I despise all of her other songs.
10. I have seen Glitter. And Crossroads, for that matter. Multiple times.
11. I feel a special kinship with Britney because her hometown produced the bottled water I use to drink in Louisiana.
12. Although I am immensely enjoying myself creating this list, I know it's because it only strokes the ego, something I'm trying to get rid of after reading Eckhart Tolle's A New Earth.
13. I did some pretty turdy things in high school and am glad that YouTube was not prevalent then.
14. I have a facebook friend that I have known since i was 4. I keep in touch with pretty much everyone I've ever met.
15. I cry at commercials. And at least once a day.
16. I like stars. Both on ceilings and bottoms.
17. I have done some really dumb things for a $10 bill. But I guess its the price you pay for having a Benefactor. She has spent her adult life trying to make up for how she treated me in college. :)
18. My southern accent only comes out when i'm drunk or with my momma. Or drunk with my momma.
19. My boyfriend has that thing on the back of diet coke cans. Phyllalanine. Or something like that. Before meeting him, I always wanted to date someone that was because I thought it sounded so interesting.
20. I share a birthday with Tori Spelling, Janet Jackson and Tracy Gold. I kept a calendar for a year of celebrity birthdays taken from Entertainment Tonight (before internet) to find out Emilio Estevez's birthday.
21. I wore a necklace of him around my neck for my entire 7th grade year. I was a bit of a dramatic kid.
22. I think God has a plan for us all and I'm being led by him everyday.
23. I was supposed to go to Turkmenistan for the Peace Corps but decided not to because of a boy and my mother's claim that if I went i'd take 15 years off her life. It still is my biggest dream.
24. I send out at least 80 postcards on every trip I take over 4 days.
25. I wanted to be a National Geographic photographer since i was 7. I still love photo and have a photo business, see2photography.com, with my sister.
26. EXTRA BONUS. My sister will do one of these once i tag her and hers will be the most profound and funny one you've ever read. I try but this stuff in her DNA.

And since I haven't included a photo in a couple of posts, here is proof that turtlenecks flatter EVERYONE.

I can see you Mister!!

I know that nasty old man with the newspaper-filled office (I swear he must have newspapers dating from the 60s in there!) that sits directly to the right of my window doesn't read my blog. I'm sure of it. But I believe in the power of intention and if my loyal readers send out their karmic vibes that mister nasty across the way (did I mention he is addicted to watching boody-holes on his computer, UP CLOSE, if you get my drift) will realize that other people see him and give me some relief. It's very hard to work knowing what's staring at the back of your head.

YUCK!

What God Does in His Spare Time

So it's my last day in Las Vegas. Things slowed down at like 1 pm, so I decided before Molly and I went to get our mani/pedis, and before I take my $20 and turn them into nickels for a night of high rolling, I'd take a drive through Red Rocks, which is literally 5 minutes from Molly's house. OH. MY. GOD. It is so beautiful, and so incredible, it's one of those things that you're like, well durh, OF COURSE THERE IS A GOD. I swear that anyone that has driven through Red Rocks most likely leaves feeling super humble and completely in awe. So here's a few pics, none of which do the place justice.

My Pass with Death. Or a REALLY Good Time.

Riding the Coaster: New York, New York