Day 3 on the exercise trail. This morning I counted 17 beer cans; 8 of which were Bud Light. Folks around here like that Bud Light. I would pick up the cans while I walked, but that would just distract me from actual forward motion. Plus it’s too much like work. And frankly, I think the fact that I’m getting up and walking should count as plenty pre-coffee work.

Recycling day is tomorrow. When the guys take up our aluminum, they are gonna think we mainlined Bud Light over the last two weeks. But, it wasn’t us…I swear it. The Sierra Nevada and Flying Dog bottles are ours and they come in a distant 2nd to the lads’ Bud Light cans.

Spoke to Grant last night. He’s doing okay in Louisiana. Family seems nice he says and the camp is going fine. He’s going to try to drop by Saturday on his way to Memphis. That would be awesome. Wish Si could be with him. That would be even more awesome.

Speaking of Grant (no Simon, that does not mean he’s my favorite)–Still working on my 80s blog. I’m looking for a couple of old pics of me that truly express the dress and hair of the time. And the shoulder pads. God, we loved our shoulder pads. Hopefully, I’ll find the pics I’m looking for and will then properly humilate myself.

And one last note– I’m on the Harry and David mailing list and today I received an email from them with the best subject line EVER:

Last Call for our Huge, Sweet Cherries

Honestly, how awesome is that? It’s not even Spam!!!

I have a blog started about the 80s…but that has to wait for a moment.

why???

Because Pee Wee’s Playhouse is back on TV!

Yes! You heard me!

I loved Pee Wee’s Playhouse…and yes, I was an “adult” when the show was on…who cares! It’s a great freaking show…and now, my kids get to watch it with me…

Whoohoo!

I have a blog started about the 80s…but that has to wait for a moment.

why???

Because Pee Wee’s Playhouse is back on TV!

Yes! You heard me!

I loved Pee Wee’s Playhouse…and yes, I was an “adult” when the show was on…who cares! It’s a great freaking show…and now, my kids get to watch it with me…

Whoohoo!

Si and I messaged last night after he arrived at his new home in Bentonville, AR. He told me he was “proper knackered”. I asked him if that meant he was tired and he told me to learn Brummie already.

Fine.

I’m proper knackered too, because this is day two of getting off my ass. Yesterday I walked 1.25 miles to the gym, did arms and abs for 40 mins, and walked the long way back home for total of 3 miles.

My arms are sore. It had been a full month since I lifted last and I’m paying for it today. But I drank a ton of water, so I know the pain isn’t nearly as bad as it could’ve been.

This morning, before coffee and damn near before dawn, I walked for 50 mins. And while I was marching my way through the neighborhoods of Oxford, MS, I realized there must’ve been a helluva party in town last night.

I followed a trail of beer cans all the way to the Public Library and back. I began to wonder if the lads had snuck back into town because many of the cans were Bud Light…I also counted 6 cans of Keystone (WHY does anyone drink that?) 2 cans of The Beast (again, WHY?), and several bottles of Miller Lite.

I accomplished quite a bit this weekend, actually. I wrote a chapter for THIEVES (which I was beginning to think would never happen…it had also been a month since I’d really written anything…Gee, in a funk, Mel?) I read and critted my friend Kate’s latest story. Sigh. It’s HOT. I was fanning myself and drinking a lot of water during that read. And I finally started catching up on the crits I owe The Blogless One.

Life is good again.

Si and I messaged last night after he arrived at his new home in Bentonville, AR. He told me he was “proper knackered”. I asked him if that meant he was tired and he told me to learn Brummie already.

Fine.

I’m proper knackered too, because this is day two of getting off my ass. Yesterday I walked 1.25 miles to the gym, did arms and abs for 40 mins, and walked the long way back home for total of 3 miles.

My arms are sore. It had been a full month since I lifted last and I’m paying for it today. But I drank a ton of water, so I know the pain isn’t nearly as bad as it could’ve been.

This morning, before coffee and damn near before dawn, I walked for 50 mins. And while I was marching my way through the neighborhoods of Oxford, MS, I realized there must’ve been a helluva party in town last night.

I followed a trail of beer cans all the way to the Public Library and back. I began to wonder if the lads had snuck back into town because many of the cans were Bud Light…I also counted 6 cans of Keystone (WHY does anyone drink that?) 2 cans of The Beast (again, WHY?), and several bottles of Miller Lite.

I accomplished quite a bit this weekend, actually. I wrote a chapter for THIEVES (which I was beginning to think would never happen…it had also been a month since I’d really written anything…Gee, in a funk, Mel?) I read and critted my friend Kate’s latest story. Sigh. It’s HOT. I was fanning myself and drinking a lot of water during that read. And I finally started catching up on the crits I owe The Blogless One.

Life is good again.

I’ve spent the past month in a very contemplative mode. It’s strange, really. I’m a daydreamer, not a contemplater. Alas, something about this month is different and I’ve spent it in the depths of thought.

Don’t really like the depths of thought that much, but since I seem to be stuck there, what can I do?

I’m going to blame my state on the lack of exercise. Yeah. That’s it. Damned exercise. I hated it, but did it anyway for 6 months straight, took one month off, and started thinking.

Damned if I do, damned if I don’t.

What have I been thinking about? My life. My kids. My writing. My past. Things I love. Things I hate. General shit you start thinking about in middle-age.

Oh yeah. I forgot to mention–Mark told me I’m middle-aged.

AS IF! I’m not even 40!

But boy, that gave me one more thing to think about.

Am I entering my “not-quite-mid-life” crisis? LOL I thought that meant I would buy a convertible and find me a hot, young lover. I didn’t think it meant I would just sit and think…

What have I discovered about myself during my contemplations?

Well, a bunch of stuff…

• I love to wake to the smell of coffee but I’m too lazy to set the coffee pot the night before. Still haven’t figured out why…
• There’s not a better feeling in the world than being needed. I just don’t feel needed enough. Must make myself more necessary.
• My life would not be the same without my kids, yet sometimes I wonder… Okay, I wonder a lot, but only because right now they love to hate each other and it makes me NUTS.
• I don’t deserve my husband.
• I bond for life. In love and in friendship.
• I don’t do betrayal in any shape or form. Loyalty is important to me. As is honesty.
• I believe in love at first sight. In love and in friendship.
• Fate is real. So is karma.
• Karma has sharp teeth. Don’t fuck with her.
• I love the tang of sweat and the musky smell of an athlete.
• Life is for living and loving. People who waste their time in the world of negativity and blackness never really live and never really love.
• When I’m sad or lonely, a quick note or call from a friend works wonders on me.

I suppose I could go on and on about the stuff I’ve been thinking about, but really, it’s a bore. I hear y’all nodding off as you read. LOL

So, wake up! This thinking thing is getting old. Back to daydreaming for me…and in the meantime I’m going to start shopping for a convertible and looking for a hot, young lover*.

*proof that the daydreaming has already started

I’ve spent the past month in a very contemplative mode. It’s strange, really. I’m a daydreamer, not a contemplater. Alas, something about this month is different and I’ve spent it in the depths of thought.

Don’t really like the depths of thought that much, but since I seem to be stuck there, what can I do?

I’m going to blame my state on the lack of exercise. Yeah. That’s it. Damned exercise. I hated it, but did it anyway for 6 months straight, took one month off, and started thinking.

Damned if I do, damned if I don’t.

What have I been thinking about? My life. My kids. My writing. My past. Things I love. Things I hate. General shit you start thinking about in middle-age.

Oh yeah. I forgot to mention–Mark told me I’m middle-aged.

AS IF! I’m not even 40!

But boy, that gave me one more thing to think about.

Am I entering my “not-quite-mid-life” crisis? LOL I thought that meant I would buy a convertible and find me a hot, young lover. I didn’t think it meant I would just sit and think…

What have I discovered about myself during my contemplations?

Well, a bunch of stuff…

• I love to wake to the smell of coffee but I’m too lazy to set the coffee pot the night before. Still haven’t figured out why…
• There’s not a better feeling in the world than being needed. I just don’t feel needed enough. Must make myself more necessary.
• My life would not be the same without my kids, yet sometimes I wonder… Okay, I wonder a lot, but only because right now they love to hate each other and it makes me NUTS.
• I don’t deserve my husband.
• I bond for life. In love and in friendship.
• I don’t do betrayal in any shape or form. Loyalty is important to me. As is honesty.
• I believe in love at first sight. In love and in friendship.
• Fate is real. So is karma.
• Karma has sharp teeth. Don’t fuck with her.
• I love the tang of sweat and the musky smell of an athlete.
• Life is for living and loving. People who waste their time in the world of negativity and blackness never really live and never really love.
• When I’m sad or lonely, a quick note or call from a friend works wonders on me.

I suppose I could go on and on about the stuff I’ve been thinking about, but really, it’s a bore. I hear y’all nodding off as you read. LOL

So, wake up! This thinking thing is getting old. Back to daydreaming for me…and in the meantime I’m going to start shopping for a convertible and looking for a hot, young lover*.

*proof that the daydreaming has already started

My current work in progress is about a British thief. I’ve been working on this story since the last week of February–long before the lads came to stay with me.

As most of you know, one of the lads is from Birmingham. Brummie’s have a very distinct accent. One thing I noticed in particular is that thier long i sounds are “oi”. So, when Simon intorduced himself, it was “Soimon”. “Like” became “loike” and so on.

I decided that my British thief needed to be a Brummie. He’s very polished and speaks with a very clean accent. However, when he drinks a little too much, the Brummie comes out in him.

The best part of all this is, I found a “Brummie Translator” online. You can type in the sentence and it translates it in “Brummie Speak”. (It also translates into several other Dialects, such as Cockney Rhyme, Scottish, Scouse, etc. So, I’ll get to use this for my next book, too!)

For some fun, check it out. The British Dialect Translator

The lads are on their way to Memphis for the night. Tomorrow, Simon heads to (Northern)Arkansas with Nizzy and Bex and Grant has a 7.5 hour drive to Louisiana. Good luck with your new families fellas. Hope they rock.

My current work in progress is about a British thief. I’ve been working on this story since the last week of February–long before the lads came to stay with me.

As most of you know, one of the lads is from Birmingham. Brummie’s have a very distinct accent. One thing I noticed in particular is that thier long i sounds are “oi”. So, when Simon intorduced himself, it was “Soimon”. “Like” became “loike” and so on.

I decided that my British thief needed to be a Brummie. He’s very polished and speaks with a very clean accent. However, when he drinks a little too much, the Brummie comes out in him.

The best part of all this is, I found a “Brummie Translator” online. You can type in the sentence and it translates it in “Brummie Speak”. (It also translates into several other Dialects, such as Cockney Rhyme, Scottish, Scouse, etc. So, I’ll get to use this for my next book, too!)

For some fun, check it out. The British Dialect Translator

The lads are on their way to Memphis for the night. Tomorrow, Simon heads to (Northern)Arkansas with Nizzy and Bex and Grant has a 7.5 hour drive to Louisiana. Good luck with your new families fellas. Hope they rock.

I blogged serious this morning. I talked about the power and passion of words. I quoted Robert Burns. Everyone read my blog and thought, “Wow. Melissa Francis. She’s a serious and dedicated writer.”

But not tonight. Tonight it’s all about the beer. Tonight, everyone will read and think, “Wow. Melissa Francis. She likes beer.”

I didn’t do anything difficult or strenuous today. I just worked. I just did my job. That’s it. But sometimes, doing my job just makes me need a beer. And I’m writing tonight. I write better liquored up, don’t you? LOL

Apparently, I’m not the only one this week who needed a beer. It seems that one of the lads was off his daily allotment of Bud Light. (Yes. Bud Light. I don’t get it either–he’s a Scot for crying out loud!) It seems that the one day he didn’t fill up on his fermented beverage of choice, he got sick. Now personally, I think he got sick because he played soccer that day. I think his ass was tired (partying for 10 + days in a row will do that to ya) and I think he wore his ass out even more huffin’ up and down a soccer field full throttle. (Like he did here) Then as the grand finale to the game, he blew chunks. But he swears it’s because he needed a beer. Yup. He’s a Scot. Of course, I always thought whisky was the water of life…I’ve been proven wrong.

Fishdog and I discovered a new beer this week. We tried a multi-pack of Flying Dog beer. This 12 pack came equipped with the following beers:

• Flying Dog Pale Ale aka Doggie Style
• Old Scratch Amber Lager aka Gold Scratch
• Road Dog Porter
• Tire Bite Golden Ale
• Snake Dog IPA

I can give the thumbs up to Doggie Style (no comments from the peanut gallery necessary), Gold Scratch, Tire Bite and Snake Dog. Haven’t tried the porter yet, but it’s on my to do list.

Of course, the beer would be wasted on the lads. It has too much flavor.