Fratelli's Ristorante
1330 Wirt Rd
Houston, TX 77055
First of all, this was a spur of the moment Groupon Now. We decided to buy two Groupons for the brunch on Sunday.
We are not usually inclined to leave the comfort of our home neighborhood in Montrose but we figured we could branch out for a lazy Sunday brunch.
The View: Run of the mill shopping center with a few tables outside. The interior was the expected murals of someplace far away, and table linens of an odd orange color. It had a very storefront feel to it.
The Service: We were seated immediately and our drinks came out quickly. My mimosa was acceptable, although a little strange to me that it was served in a red wine glass and not a champagne flute. The coffee was ok, nothing to write home about, I guess I just assumed since it was an Italian restaurant the coffee would be wonderful.
The Food: Italian brunch....yes, lot's of pasta. But it was the real thing. The alfredo was creamy and the penne was flavorful and the mushroom crepes were delicious! My omlette was perfect and the chef was accommodating. There were no muffins or croissants or sweet yummy things. Just a few dishes that would have been seen at a lunch buffet. Not spectacular but at least filling.
The Dissappointment: We were looking forward to some kind of yummy Italian pastry. It wasn't until we were out the door and looking behind us when we see the beautiful dessert/croissant table. To the left of the front door. The door we entered and were directed to the right to be seated. Never was it pointed out or even in view. Yes, you would think we would have noticed it on the way in but I only thought it was the 'preview' table some restaurants have upon arriving.
The Judgement: We won't go back. Not because of any one thing. Restaurants in neighborhoods outside of the city proper (the loop) have more churches than dining establishments and don't have enough competition to drive them to be Great, they can get by just fine being OK. The local Spring Branch folk are missing out on Great brunch.
Sunday, June 26, 2011
Saturday, June 11, 2011
Thursday, June 2, 2011
New Place: The Blue Fish
The Blue Fish Sushi ; Houston
550 Texas Str, Houston, TX 77002 - (713) 225-3474
The Story: Today is my day off and after we combined our car insurance policies and went to the gym we were pooped! The Fiancé was staaaarving since he hadn't eat a thing all day. We could have gotten something quick but hey, a day off is a rare thing and I wanted to get something goooo-oooood! It was his idea to look for someplace with a good sushi happy hour. I personally have never been to a sushi happy hour and thought it would be perfect. Basically, we had dinner at the same time as most retirees on their way to Luby's. I can guarantee we ate a lot better than those folks! I looked up "best sushi happy hour in houston" while he was in the shower. This is the review I found...
"Where do I begin?? I love sushi happy hour, and The Blue Fish is number one on my list.
I'm not writing this review about the perfect service we received or that the ambiance is fitting for a romantic dinner or a group setting... but what I want to expound on is how the food AND prices were wonderful."
This was exactly what we were looking for. We are not so concerned with romantic since we can make romantic at home, we were looking for quality AND quantity!
The View: Located in the heart of Bayou Place, The Blue Fish has a beautiful view. When you walk by you see elegant outdoor seating, complete with white table cloths, candles and flowers. Outside of the entrance are comfortable looking couches and coffee tables. Indoors the usual Japanese sushi restaurant decor; small hanging LED lights, very IKEA mixed with nightclub colors. Hues of blue, gray and green. Easy on the eyes, serene and calm. As a side note, the bathroom was beautiful, very much
glass and steel decor, very clean and calm. With more of the blue and greens.
The Service: We sat at the bar in order to experience the Happy Hour specials. Our server/bartender was extremely knowledgeable. Perfect salesman technique, found out what we liked by asking the right questions and the recommended items that would fit what we were looking for. He answered every question posed to him, including weather the fish was frozen or not. Evidently their fish is never frozen. That seemed to be something they were very proud out. On a poster marquee on the pation there was an advert for the restaurant that said, "Friends don't let friends eat frozen fish". He gave us the prices for beers, sake and wine up front. We didn't have to ask for a thing, he seemed to know exactly what he was doing. The manager came by and greeted us, shaking our hands and getting our names. We had about 3 people helping us, AT
THE BAR! It was terrific to feel like our serer actually enjoyed his job!
The Fare: The food. The Food. THE Food! Was AMAZING! We had an item that was recommended both on Yelp and by the server. It was called a "Mini Me" Ahi Tower. It was a layered item in a shot glass. It's hard to describe....let me go to the interwebs and find some help.
...
Ok, I cheated a little bit. I couldn't find a description but I found a picture (you have no idea what I had to do to get this!). This little tower is served in a shot glass with a tiny spoon under it all. I believe it consists of salmon tartar, crab, avocado, rice and small amount of caviar with a wasabi mayo. It's a blend of both textures and flavors, temperatures and color. Splendid little thing. You get 2 for $3. Yeah, seriously, good price.
I had fried calamari with two types of dips. A spicy chipotle mayo and a ginger honey. About $4 it was the perfect amount. Similar in size and shape to about 8 large onion rings.
The sashimi, oh goodness the sashimi was so wonderful it should have been illegal. I've never in my life had tuna that truly melted in my mouth. My teeth felt like they were going to lose their jobs. And at $4 for 3 large pieces it was worth it.
The rolls I chose I were the avocado and eel and the yellowtail and scallions. The ratio of rice to filling was 1:3. There was considerable more filling than rice. Which I believe is important. The rice is simply a transportation device for the delectables inside. The eel and avocado were of such similar texture I didn't know what my tongue was swirling through, avocado or eel? It was enough to drive my mouth crazy!
The Fiance and I shared a little bit of everything except when we ordered seconds. He got spicy tuna rolls that (he said) were spicier than most places (he likes spiiiiiiicy!). I ordered DESSERT for the first time in forever! On the Happy Hour menu they had "Chocolate Spring Rolls". They were the perfect dessert in keeping with the sushi theme. Also, one of the lightest desserts I've seen on a menu. Almost more an amuse bouche. One side of the plate was a small mound of vanilla ice cream with chocolate sauce and strawberry slices. The other side had four petite spring rolls with a strawberry puree as decor and added flavor. How to describe this decadent blend of east and west? Imagine taking a piece of a Hershey bar (the ones that snap of to share) and rolling it in rice paper, frying it and putting it on a plate. The chocolate was melty but not gooey, it didn't have the texture of fudge or frosting. It was most certainly a melted piece of chocolate. *sigh* I kind of miss those little guys right now.
The chocolate spring rolls went quite well with my Sipporo ($2 pint). I had finished a large bottle of saki ($2) and wanted something cold.
The Bill: We did go a little crazy with the food. The Fiance hadn't eaten all day and we even ordered seconds and dessert. With our drinks and everything our tab was about $57. Don't let that scare you. I could have very very very easily eaten and drank for $13 by myself (and that includes sake!)
The End: We both left happy and couldn't stop talking about the meal, the place, the service and the price. There is not question in my mind that this will be a regular sushi place for us.
Sunday, May 29, 2011
New Place: Chelsea Grill
Chelsea Grill 4621 Montrose Boulevard, Houston, TX 77006-6132(713) 942-9857
Saturday, May 28, 2011
New Place: Jackson's Watering Hole
Jackson's Watering Hole
1205 Richmond
Houston, TX 77006
Neighborhood: Museum District
(713) 528-2988
The Service: We had to go to the bar a total of twice. Once to open a tab and get our first beers (The Fiancé had Abita Green Gator and I had something similar) and the the second time to close our tabs. The bartender gladly poured samples for me when I wasn't sure what I wanted. After our first beer the waitress found us outside on the porch, asked if we wanted another, offered me something called a Bootlegger Porter (or something like that, it's what I drank the rest of the night, yummo!) and then promptly returned with the beers. It was like that the whole evening.
Houston, TX 77006
Neighborhood: Museum District
(713) 528-2988
The View: I really enjoyed myself here. Parking was very easy, kind of a gravel type place where you make your own space. The bar itself looks like an old ice house/ storage warehouse. The patio is obviously recently built and well done at that. Lots of nice picnic tables, I'd say about 10 of them, not to mention smaller tables.
The Inside: The interior of the bar is open, the music is the PERFECT level to be able to hear the people you're with speaking. A good variety of old country and popular music from the 90's. Made us 30 somethings feel right at home. No pool tables but they have two nice dart boards. Lots of bar stools and tables. No one was standing around because they couldn't find a seat.
The Service: We had to go to the bar a total of twice. Once to open a tab and get our first beers (The Fiancé had Abita Green Gator and I had something similar) and the the second time to close our tabs. The bartender gladly poured samples for me when I wasn't sure what I wanted. After our first beer the waitress found us outside on the porch, asked if we wanted another, offered me something called a Bootlegger Porter (or something like that, it's what I drank the rest of the night, yummo!) and then promptly returned with the beers. It was like that the whole evening.
The Price: After tip for 7 beers we had spent about $40. A bit pricey but we were drinking small brewery, yummy beers, not Busch or Lone Star. The bartender remembered The Fiancé's name after introducing himself once! It was worth it. I look forward to going there again, next time with a group of friends.
The Downside: One toilet for girls, one for guys. Somehow it all worked out and I didn't have to wait to go pee once.
The End: It was a great Date Night place, a great groupout place, or even a great out alone maybe to meet new people place. I liked it and will be keeping it in my rotation of favorite places to go. We were also informed walking out the door that they do Karaoke on Saturday nights.
5 Smiley Faces!
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Review anyone?
So my favorite blog ever, Subliminal Hits, reviews movies on occasion. I enjoy reading them and most of the time I find that we agree on the same things.
I go out and try new places here in Houston all the time with The Fiancé. Some are good experiences and some are a little bit of a let down. People only write reviews on Yelp etc. when they are unhappy with the service. I'm going to try to start writing reviews of the new places I visit so that you'll want to visit them too!
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Fun Filled Day!
Woke up this morning and did not want to go to work.
Moved ourselves to the Next Door Bar.
Went anyway. Got free pizza. Yum!
Got off work. Had good chat with the best friend Heater. Bought the fiance the wrong size shirt but that's ok cause I still have the receipt.
Ran to the gym. The Fiance is a great personal trainer. Texted me what I needed to work on.
Got home and did some kitchen cleaning. Followed with grocery shopping. I bought yummy healthy food. I do this from time to time. Lately the fridge has been full of bad for me foods.
Then on to the organization of the closet. That worked out well. Fiance came home early and we spent some time chatting in bed.
Moved ourselves to the Next Door Bar.
Met up with Aspen and had a nice chat about her and Jack Jack's Dad. Good times. I feel like she is a lot like Heater. Need to develop this friendship. I think she needs a Me.
Time for bed. Bear and Fer will be tomorrow. Fiance has to drive Fer to the airport.
I'm a happy camper. More later.
-camping happily
Sunday, May 22, 2011
Friends and Fighting
I'm off work. Yay! Just grabbing some peace and quiet before the fiance's friends get here and the fiance gets home from work.
He sent me a text. He was sad this morning. We've been bickering and not loving each other as hard. Couples do this. We get tired from working too much and just get fussy. That's what we do. And then we get over it. We are the kind of couples that pick at each other for a week and then get over it. We don't have the big blow out screaming matches. We just aren't built that way.
I miss him. He's here in front of me most of the time but our free time, my weekend off and my time off lately has been filled with graduation celebrations and friends visiting from out of town.
I'm ok with it. I'm just exhausted by it. I miss the nights on the couch, legs on him, having a glass of wine and a bit of tv.
And then I realize. It's summer time. This happened last year. His friends are out of school and coming to visit. Our free time is spent with friends. His friends are great people but man, I've had my fill. I want my regularly scheduled programming back. How I Met Your Mother isn't on at noon anymore. The reruns are someplace else.
I feel like I'm just constantly running here and there for other people. Everything will get back to normal in about a week. Then I can be me again and I can spend quiet time again.
A lot of it has to do with working almost 8 days in a row and him working almost 10 days in a row. The one or two days off in two weeks are spent being social. My inner little kid is just yelling, "I don't wanna!" I feel like I'm getting a peek into motherhood, where my life is preplanned for someone else.
We'll get past it. We are survivors like that. I just miss us, the me and him us, not the group us. It's a dude thing, they just have more friends than us gals and they like spending time together. Women have friends to fill the empty moments without our men. We fit our lady friends into the small free spaces. We don't really go so far as to create free spaces for our friends. Don't get me wrong, I love my Gnat and Heater but the times we spend together are mostly the times that our guys have planned to spend with each other and we get to come along and have someone to chat with.
Thankfully, the fiance's friends have cool girlfriends that I've become close to and enjoy spending time with. I'm lucky as all hell in those regards.
I think I'm just the tired kid in the back seat. I'll get a nap and a cookie and I'll be a lot better!
-whiny lady
He sent me a text. He was sad this morning. We've been bickering and not loving each other as hard. Couples do this. We get tired from working too much and just get fussy. That's what we do. And then we get over it. We are the kind of couples that pick at each other for a week and then get over it. We don't have the big blow out screaming matches. We just aren't built that way.
I miss him. He's here in front of me most of the time but our free time, my weekend off and my time off lately has been filled with graduation celebrations and friends visiting from out of town.
I'm ok with it. I'm just exhausted by it. I miss the nights on the couch, legs on him, having a glass of wine and a bit of tv.
And then I realize. It's summer time. This happened last year. His friends are out of school and coming to visit. Our free time is spent with friends. His friends are great people but man, I've had my fill. I want my regularly scheduled programming back. How I Met Your Mother isn't on at noon anymore. The reruns are someplace else.
I feel like I'm just constantly running here and there for other people. Everything will get back to normal in about a week. Then I can be me again and I can spend quiet time again.
A lot of it has to do with working almost 8 days in a row and him working almost 10 days in a row. The one or two days off in two weeks are spent being social. My inner little kid is just yelling, "I don't wanna!" I feel like I'm getting a peek into motherhood, where my life is preplanned for someone else.
We'll get past it. We are survivors like that. I just miss us, the me and him us, not the group us. It's a dude thing, they just have more friends than us gals and they like spending time together. Women have friends to fill the empty moments without our men. We fit our lady friends into the small free spaces. We don't really go so far as to create free spaces for our friends. Don't get me wrong, I love my Gnat and Heater but the times we spend together are mostly the times that our guys have planned to spend with each other and we get to come along and have someone to chat with.
Thankfully, the fiance's friends have cool girlfriends that I've become close to and enjoy spending time with. I'm lucky as all hell in those regards.
I think I'm just the tired kid in the back seat. I'll get a nap and a cookie and I'll be a lot better!
-whiny lady
I Love Potato Salad
I'm at work. On a Sunday. It's a beautiful day in Houston Texas people. I hope you got to go out and see the Art Car Parade for me. I've still never been.
I'm learning to love Houston like never before.
The fiance has decided to go ahead and stay in Houston. Stay here, get an internship or a job and build up his skill set and experience before hoofing it to Austin to start the rest of our life with all the weirdos.
I'm happy about that. It means I can finally find a new job. Get the hell out of here. I hate this place. There are random moments of happy, granted, but they are few and far between and relatively small and sad, like we soggy cereal, glad to have been poured in the bowl but ultimately will never make it to the other bowl. Ha. I'm funny!
So yes. On to bigger and better things. Or maybe just over to the same and similar things, just in a different location.
And all this brings me back to potato salad. I love potato salad. It's my all around happy comfort food. I can have a container in the fridge and when things get a little stressful I have a bite. Yeah, just one bite. It's like a Hershey's Kiss for those of us who prefer smooth mustardy potatoy goodness.
So I brought a container of it to work with me. It's been in the fridge singing me soothing songs of love and joy and happy times. It sounds like this:
doo doo dooo
doo doooo
doooooooooooo
I Love You! I love
potato
salad!
Yes. That is my little potato salad song. It makes me happy and keeps my crazy in check while I sit alone in the office for four freaking hours in the middle of a Sunday. Yeah, 1pm to 5pm on Sunday.
How much more could you torture people? Seriously? I would gladly work 9-1 on a Sunday and have a quazi day off. But no, throw a short amount of work into the middle of an otherwise wonderful day.
Ah but it is now 4:57. I will be able to clock out soon.
Guess what I did for four hours here at work all alone, while eating and singing to my potato salad? You guessed it. Uploaded my resume and started applying for jobs. All over the great city of Montrose *cough* I mean Houston.
4:59..... the countdown begins!
I feel like I haven't been posting enough and it makes me sad. However, I know me and guilt is a major motivator to get me to work harder.
So yes. I will! I can! I am going to post more often! Because I love the sound of my own ..................
5:00!!!!
I'm officially running around crazy flailing the arms in the air!
Out.
I'm learning to love Houston like never before.
The fiance has decided to go ahead and stay in Houston. Stay here, get an internship or a job and build up his skill set and experience before hoofing it to Austin to start the rest of our life with all the weirdos.
I'm happy about that. It means I can finally find a new job. Get the hell out of here. I hate this place. There are random moments of happy, granted, but they are few and far between and relatively small and sad, like we soggy cereal, glad to have been poured in the bowl but ultimately will never make it to the other bowl. Ha. I'm funny!
So yes. On to bigger and better things. Or maybe just over to the same and similar things, just in a different location.
And all this brings me back to potato salad. I love potato salad. It's my all around happy comfort food. I can have a container in the fridge and when things get a little stressful I have a bite. Yeah, just one bite. It's like a Hershey's Kiss for those of us who prefer smooth mustardy potatoy goodness.
So I brought a container of it to work with me. It's been in the fridge singing me soothing songs of love and joy and happy times. It sounds like this:
doo doo dooo
doo doooo
doooooooooooo
I Love You! I love
potato
salad!
Yes. That is my little potato salad song. It makes me happy and keeps my crazy in check while I sit alone in the office for four freaking hours in the middle of a Sunday. Yeah, 1pm to 5pm on Sunday.
How much more could you torture people? Seriously? I would gladly work 9-1 on a Sunday and have a quazi day off. But no, throw a short amount of work into the middle of an otherwise wonderful day.
Ah but it is now 4:57. I will be able to clock out soon.
Guess what I did for four hours here at work all alone, while eating and singing to my potato salad? You guessed it. Uploaded my resume and started applying for jobs. All over the great city of Montrose *cough* I mean Houston.
4:59..... the countdown begins!
I feel like I haven't been posting enough and it makes me sad. However, I know me and guilt is a major motivator to get me to work harder.
So yes. I will! I can! I am going to post more often! Because I love the sound of my own ..................
5:00!!!!
I'm officially running around crazy flailing the arms in the air!
Out.
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
Stop and smell the roses
Gnat and Long Hair are going to come over tonight and we are going to have a spectacular fabulous wedding flower decorating bonaza!
This wedding has certainly shown us who our friends are. When we ask someone for help or ideas they jump right in. Its wonderful. It makes me think there might be a distinct correlation between how awesome we are together and how happy our friends are tha we are getting married.
Ah flowers. Z really wants roses and so roses he shall have!
We've been doing a great emotional balancing act. I freaked out about guest list and tents and chairs and Z calms me down. Recently, HE freaked out that the space wouldn't be big enough or that the rental would be too much. He was worrying about there being 75 people. I had to give him the same speech he had given me only a week ago. We are having 50 people. After parents, step parents, aunts, uncles, brothers, sisters, their husbands, we are only left with 20 seats. Well, that can quickly be filled with friends and significant others. People will be left out but everyone will understand when we explain it's not just a small wedding, it's TINY.
He calmed down when we started planning the honeymoon. Come to think of it, so did I!
This wedding has certainly shown us who our friends are. When we ask someone for help or ideas they jump right in. Its wonderful. It makes me think there might be a distinct correlation between how awesome we are together and how happy our friends are tha we are getting married.
Ah flowers. Z really wants roses and so roses he shall have!
We've been doing a great emotional balancing act. I freaked out about guest list and tents and chairs and Z calms me down. Recently, HE freaked out that the space wouldn't be big enough or that the rental would be too much. He was worrying about there being 75 people. I had to give him the same speech he had given me only a week ago. We are having 50 people. After parents, step parents, aunts, uncles, brothers, sisters, their husbands, we are only left with 20 seats. Well, that can quickly be filled with friends and significant others. People will be left out but everyone will understand when we explain it's not just a small wedding, it's TINY.
He calmed down when we started planning the honeymoon. Come to think of it, so did I!
Monday, April 18, 2011
Honeymoon
We went from stressing about the seating to the honeymoon. And now my honey is happy. He's thinking about white sand beaches and all the fun to be had and no longer worrying about the schematics of the tent location and the table arrangements. Good times!
Wedding Planning
Ah, the way we work together. It's awesome. We became engaged on April 2, 2011. Here we are only 16 days later and we've had a complete role reversal. Last week I was freaking out about guest list and people and who's and where's and what's and how much. Today it's different. He's the one freaking out. The space we have might be too small, the table might not fit. It might rain. I might cost too much. And then I step in and just simply repeat all that he's told me in the past few weeks about my minor freak outs. Note to readers, I might be using this blog for the next few months to chronicle the wedding planning and thoughts and trials and tribulations. I'm the hopeless romantic who keeps pictures and postcards and notes from high school. I'd like to keep my thoughts and ideas and the things that we've been going through together here in an open forum. It's going to be a long and bumpy ride folks!
Saturday, April 9, 2011
Fiancé's first night off in a while
He's not had time off in so long. 2 rita's and he's out like a light!
Saturday, April 2, 2011
Engaged!
He proposed! I'm so happy and so excited! It was in a group of friends at my birthday party! Lovely. So happy!
Thursday, March 10, 2011
Monday, February 14, 2011
Learning to Draw!
I bought a new toy this weekend. It's a Wacom Bamboo tablet. It's like having a huge laptop track pad for my computer. Yum. yum yum.....it's like nerd ice cream for my brain!
And I drew this:
It's a cow. It makes me happy. Very happy!
I hope this makes you happy too!
Sunday, February 13, 2011
Preventing the Rage
Men really are like children.
I don't mean this in a condescending, women are superior kind of way. Certainly not.
But really, they are. Men are prone to fits or tantrums just like most children. The trigger is different for every guy and it's up to us gals to be able to see it and jump in to prevent it.
Boyfriend gets the 'rage' when he's cooking. He love's to cook. When he's making dinner it's like a 5 star restaurant complete with sous chef. All 5 of those people have crammed themselves into his body. He's moving and shaking. He's twisting and turning. Our cramped galley style kitchen is not big enough for more than one person so he's grabbing something from here and twisting to put it on the stove over there. It's a lot of fun to watch. Until....
There comes the inevitable moment when he must retrieve a baking sheet/cuttingboard/pan from the overstuffed microscopic cabinet where we keep such things. I see it in slow motion from the kitchen table where I'm offering moral support and conversation.
He bends down to open the door, as the door to the cabinet is opening I can hear his blood pumping through his veins, I can hear his heart palpitating. He reaches his hand into the cabinet - And that is when I jump up and run over to him and say, "Honey, what do you need?" He stands up and immediately calms down. His response, "The round casserole dish." I then move a few steps to the right and get the casserole dish out of the proper cabinet on the other side of the sink. Imagine what would have happened if I hadn't jumped in? There would have been banging and crashing and all kinds of chaos.
I'm not the only woman who has learned to prevent the impending rage from our manchildren. Gnats was explaining to me the crackers she has to now keep in her purse at all times in order to keep the beast at bay.
We learn these things because we love them, maybe this is how nature teaches us women how to deal with unruly children. I'm trying to learn as much as I can!
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
Sisters
Boyfriend and I were discussing having children recently. He said you can't have just one, like they are potato chips or something. But I think he may have point.
I've always been given over to the selfish thoughts of "well if I didn't have a sister then..."
But as I get older I realize that having a little sister taught me a lot.
I don't really feel like expounding on the lessons I've learned, everything from sharing to how to depend on someone else. I'd rather share the fun stories.
Biner (it's pronounced "beener" )and I would fight. But if someone else said one wrong thing about her I would kill them. Still to this day. I know she would do the same.
I had someone with whom the Parents were a common enemy, someone who would cover for me and I them.
And as I get older, I have someone I can talk to about those rare rare things that can't be given to Boyfriend, Best Friend or friend. They can only be shared with Sister. I have many Sisters. I have Older Sister, Little Sister and Baby Sister. And each of them shares a different part of that which is Me. I'm...not sure which one I am. I am Middle Sister but I really don't deserve that honor. That goes to Biner. She's the one who was truly raised as the Middle Sister. I'm the black sheep. Maybe because I made myself that way or maybe because that is who I am.
But I digress.
Biner, Middle Sister, Little Sister has always been the one who stands up For me, who stands up To me and stands up With me. She's like no other person in my life and I am eternally grateful for her place in my existance.
She's not always the most affectionate person but she has always been there to help me out. Be it when I'm thinking about ending a 6 year relationship or when I'm struggling keeping on track with a diet. I'll always remember the strange paper and string note delivery system we designed for the hallway growing up and the time when I vacuumed her hair. Oh, and that scar on her forehead that no one can really remember how it got there...did I push her or did she fall?
Yeah, my Little Sister is awesome.
Crap, I think he just proved his point without even having to be involved with the conversation.
Here's to You, all you Big, Older, Middle, Little, Baby Sisters, you make life worth living!
-big, older, middle sister
I've always been given over to the selfish thoughts of "well if I didn't have a sister then..."
But as I get older I realize that having a little sister taught me a lot.
I don't really feel like expounding on the lessons I've learned, everything from sharing to how to depend on someone else. I'd rather share the fun stories.
Biner (it's pronounced "beener" )and I would fight. But if someone else said one wrong thing about her I would kill them. Still to this day. I know she would do the same.
I had someone with whom the Parents were a common enemy, someone who would cover for me and I them.
And as I get older, I have someone I can talk to about those rare rare things that can't be given to Boyfriend, Best Friend or friend. They can only be shared with Sister. I have many Sisters. I have Older Sister, Little Sister and Baby Sister. And each of them shares a different part of that which is Me. I'm...not sure which one I am. I am Middle Sister but I really don't deserve that honor. That goes to Biner. She's the one who was truly raised as the Middle Sister. I'm the black sheep. Maybe because I made myself that way or maybe because that is who I am.
But I digress.
Biner, Middle Sister, Little Sister has always been the one who stands up For me, who stands up To me and stands up With me. She's like no other person in my life and I am eternally grateful for her place in my existance.
She's not always the most affectionate person but she has always been there to help me out. Be it when I'm thinking about ending a 6 year relationship or when I'm struggling keeping on track with a diet. I'll always remember the strange paper and string note delivery system we designed for the hallway growing up and the time when I vacuumed her hair. Oh, and that scar on her forehead that no one can really remember how it got there...did I push her or did she fall?
Yeah, my Little Sister is awesome.
Crap, I think he just proved his point without even having to be involved with the conversation.
Here's to You, all you Big, Older, Middle, Little, Baby Sisters, you make life worth living!
-big, older, middle sister
Phone From Car
I like to take photos of funny things that I see. But sometimes I just don't have a camera, so I use my eyes and MS Paint. I have a favorite blog called Hyperbole and a Half. It's pretty much all in MS Paint and super funny. I want to preface this by saying that I am inspired by her blog a great deal and thought it would be a fun avenue for my stortelling. That being said....
Boyfriend is going to the local university for Communications. This means that he makes pretty pictures with the computer and makes videos with people and computers. I was allowed to visit the set of a the class's final project.
Now, to get to Boyfriend's college I have to drive through one of the worst, poorest, most dangerous neighborhoods in my city.
I came to a stop sign and finally understood how people make calls while 'on the road' when they don't have cell phones.
You see, a person drives up to the Phone From Car and inserts small round metal pieces into a plastic box. He then pushes in numbers on a keypad, like on the keyboard on your computer. He listens while the phone rings alerting the person with the cell phone that a Phone From Car is calling. Once the person on the other line answers he then speaks and conveys the messages that he has. Now, since he only has round metal pieces to use to make the call and not a Family Network Super Global Never Run Out Of Minutes plan he has to make his communications brief.
At the end of the call he then hangs the plastic handle/mouthpiece/earphone back onto the plastic box with the keys and the money holes. He can then drive around the corner to pick up his favorite malt beverage of choice, knowing that he is also a member of the 21st century by Phoneing From Car.
-Celling from car
Boyfriend is going to the local university for Communications. This means that he makes pretty pictures with the computer and makes videos with people and computers. I was allowed to visit the set of a the class's final project.
Now, to get to Boyfriend's college I have to drive through one of the worst, poorest, most dangerous neighborhoods in my city.
I came to a stop sign and finally understood how people make calls while 'on the road' when they don't have cell phones.
You see, a person drives up to the Phone From Car and inserts small round metal pieces into a plastic box. He then pushes in numbers on a keypad, like on the keyboard on your computer. He listens while the phone rings alerting the person with the cell phone that a Phone From Car is calling. Once the person on the other line answers he then speaks and conveys the messages that he has. Now, since he only has round metal pieces to use to make the call and not a Family Network Super Global Never Run Out Of Minutes plan he has to make his communications brief.At the end of the call he then hangs the plastic handle/mouthpiece/earphone back onto the plastic box with the keys and the money holes. He can then drive around the corner to pick up his favorite malt beverage of choice, knowing that he is also a member of the 21st century by Phoneing From Car.
-Celling from car
The Sex Alarm
My friend, Gnats, recently posed the question of mistimed libidos. She has gotten to the comfortable stage in her relationship where the sex part has become optional. Not like when they first started dating where it was a necessity. Only, it's not her hormones that have slowed things down, it's him.
Don't get me wrong, he's a great guy, he treats her right and takes care of the house and loves her dog and make yummy dinner. But the sex hasn't been as forthcoming as she would like.
It's about timing.
She gets up for work, get ready and is about to leave when he says, 'Hey baby, wanna snuggle for a second?" Now, she explained to me that this is the secret phrase for sexy time. Sadly, she has to leave the house unfulfilled because she has that darned thing called work that she must go to. When she gets home, his sails have deflated from the long day and sex is the furthest thing from him mind.
I once had this same issue. I wanted it in the morning before I went to work, you know, start your day off right, but he had to leave too early. So I used a sex alarm.
It's nothing fancy, you have all the tools at hand that you will need. An alarm clock and the willingness to get up a little early for that which you want.
I explained that she just needed to set her alarm clock 30 minutes to allow for the early morning workout. It might take a few false starts to get him into the routine but eventually it will become a lovely habit.
I just thought I would share my advice with the ether since it seemed to help her so much. Even if she doesn't use the sex alarm it got her thinking in different directions and taking control of what she wanted and just find a way to get it.
-not a morning person
Don't get me wrong, he's a great guy, he treats her right and takes care of the house and loves her dog and make yummy dinner. But the sex hasn't been as forthcoming as she would like.
It's about timing.
She gets up for work, get ready and is about to leave when he says, 'Hey baby, wanna snuggle for a second?" Now, she explained to me that this is the secret phrase for sexy time. Sadly, she has to leave the house unfulfilled because she has that darned thing called work that she must go to. When she gets home, his sails have deflated from the long day and sex is the furthest thing from him mind.
I once had this same issue. I wanted it in the morning before I went to work, you know, start your day off right, but he had to leave too early. So I used a sex alarm.
It's nothing fancy, you have all the tools at hand that you will need. An alarm clock and the willingness to get up a little early for that which you want.
I explained that she just needed to set her alarm clock 30 minutes to allow for the early morning workout. It might take a few false starts to get him into the routine but eventually it will become a lovely habit.
I just thought I would share my advice with the ether since it seemed to help her so much. Even if she doesn't use the sex alarm it got her thinking in different directions and taking control of what she wanted and just find a way to get it.
-not a morning person
Sunday, February 6, 2011
Friendly Girls and Girly Friends
This past week has really shown me that women need friends.
At some point in our lives, we women are single. We find our selves comfortable with our singleness. We build strong relationships with our best friends and the other women in our lives.
And then, we meet Him. No, not the religious God version, mind you. He is the guy that becomes the single most important thing in our life. For the first few months of the relationship we slowly lose touch with both ourselves and the relationships we have built with the women in our lives.
Then one day we wake up. We wake up and see that our guy has friends, hobbies, school or work and we have Him. Hmmm. We temporarily lost ourselves but the strong relationships we built haven't weakened, they've only been in stasis for a time.
We pick up where we left off.
This last week two of my friends confided in me that they realized that they needed more of what we refer to as Girl Time. It might be something as simple as a Pilates class followed by a glass of wine, or just an hour watching trashy tv and talking about clothes and shoes and the best place to find cheap designer jeans.
Mind you, we're aren't the shallow women who's lives are all about shopping shopping shopping and E entertainment channel. We are the gals who spend time at work, school, with our guys and trying to better our lives. All that responsibility blended with the day to day life causes the fun girly stuff to sit in the shoe box at the top of our closets, getting dusty.
But unlike the jeans that we put on the top shelf, we don't grow out of the fun.
So yeah, I'm looking forward to my two evenings this week with my lovely gal pals.
-wine and watching
At some point in our lives, we women are single. We find our selves comfortable with our singleness. We build strong relationships with our best friends and the other women in our lives.
And then, we meet Him. No, not the religious God version, mind you. He is the guy that becomes the single most important thing in our life. For the first few months of the relationship we slowly lose touch with both ourselves and the relationships we have built with the women in our lives.
Then one day we wake up. We wake up and see that our guy has friends, hobbies, school or work and we have Him. Hmmm. We temporarily lost ourselves but the strong relationships we built haven't weakened, they've only been in stasis for a time.
We pick up where we left off.
This last week two of my friends confided in me that they realized that they needed more of what we refer to as Girl Time. It might be something as simple as a Pilates class followed by a glass of wine, or just an hour watching trashy tv and talking about clothes and shoes and the best place to find cheap designer jeans.
Mind you, we're aren't the shallow women who's lives are all about shopping shopping shopping and E entertainment channel. We are the gals who spend time at work, school, with our guys and trying to better our lives. All that responsibility blended with the day to day life causes the fun girly stuff to sit in the shoe box at the top of our closets, getting dusty.
But unlike the jeans that we put on the top shelf, we don't grow out of the fun.
So yeah, I'm looking forward to my two evenings this week with my lovely gal pals.
-wine and watching
Saturday, February 5, 2011
Rainy Day
[It was the rainy day background but I've changed it...I love change....]
I chose this layout for a reason. A good reason. Don't laugh or I'll send at least 5 roaches to lick your dishes. (ewwwwwwww..... that's really grossss!)
I love rain.
My best friend Heater, loves rain.
We decided together that rain means good things coming. We have a paper journal where 'it is written' that rain means good things are coming.
All the crazy good things that have happened in our lives have stemmed from rain storms.
That one time we laid down in our panties and nothing else in the giant puddle in the front yard... that was a good time, it was our 'baptism as sisters in freshwater'. It means and meant a lot to me.
That other time we took home two sad depressed young men from the bar and danced with them nakedish in the front yard in the rain...that was amazing (his fiance had cheated on him and the other's girlfriend had dumped him, this is when we started thinking of ourselves as 'vacation girls').
Heater asked me "where's the bag Lisa?!" for a while because we couldn't find the bag that had glasses, beers and cell phones in it, I had hidden it in the bedroom closet because I didn't want
her to find it and drink more and get ( more drunk and sad....")
Or, the rainfall that happened the night my father has his emergency brain surgery to release the swelling that had accumulated when he had his car accident....
Long story short:
dad had car accident - refused MRI..
got headaches.....
took aspirin.....
had thinning blood on brain...
fell off of ladder 2 months later....
thought he was having a stroke....
NO! It was the hemorrhage he had been having for two months finally deciding to make an appearance!
It was a horrible sad sweet time in the Neurological ICU with my Mother who was trying to make herself pretty for her husband when he came out of surgery. I love my mom. She's the typical 1950's housewife and I hope my dad appreciates her. I know I do.
Yes. So my dad almost died. He had a terrible brain surgery that sent my family to the hospital, sisters, brothers, aunts, uncles, etc. in the middle of downtown, in the middle of a dreanching downpour to make me realize that the rain really does make everything ok.
Yeah, it was hard to explain to my mom and sisters why I was so calm but I think the fact that I was so calm helped them.
My dad survived. He's got some stories though. He was the only one to hear, "You're being released...." out of the 6 people in his pod. 1 out of 6. Those where his stats. Scary.
And the whole time, my mom was concerned that she would be pretty when my dad came out of surgery. I would be too. You want the one YOU care about most to see a beautiful angel in the light of your foggy mind when you step away from the brink of death.
I hope my dad sees that beautiful angel everytimes he wakes up in the morning. Because he deserves it and so does she.
-hoping the raindrops keep falling
I chose this layout for a reason. A good reason. Don't laugh or I'll send at least 5 roaches to lick your dishes. (ewwwwwwww..... that's really grossss!)
I love rain.
My best friend Heater, loves rain.
We decided together that rain means good things coming. We have a paper journal where 'it is written' that rain means good things are coming.
All the crazy good things that have happened in our lives have stemmed from rain storms.
That one time we laid down in our panties and nothing else in the giant puddle in the front yard... that was a good time, it was our 'baptism as sisters in freshwater'. It means and meant a lot to me.
That other time we took home two sad depressed young men from the bar and danced with them nakedish in the front yard in the rain...that was amazing (his fiance had cheated on him and the other's girlfriend had dumped him, this is when we started thinking of ourselves as 'vacation girls').
Heater asked me "where's the bag Lisa?!" for a while because we couldn't find the bag that had glasses, beers and cell phones in it, I had hidden it in the bedroom closet because I didn't want
her to find it and drink more and get ( more drunk and sad....")
Or, the rainfall that happened the night my father has his emergency brain surgery to release the swelling that had accumulated when he had his car accident....
Long story short:
dad had car accident - refused MRI..
got headaches.....
took aspirin.....
had thinning blood on brain...
fell off of ladder 2 months later....
thought he was having a stroke....
NO! It was the hemorrhage he had been having for two months finally deciding to make an appearance!
It was a horrible sad sweet time in the Neurological ICU with my Mother who was trying to make herself pretty for her husband when he came out of surgery. I love my mom. She's the typical 1950's housewife and I hope my dad appreciates her. I know I do.
Yes. So my dad almost died. He had a terrible brain surgery that sent my family to the hospital, sisters, brothers, aunts, uncles, etc. in the middle of downtown, in the middle of a dreanching downpour to make me realize that the rain really does make everything ok.
Yeah, it was hard to explain to my mom and sisters why I was so calm but I think the fact that I was so calm helped them.
My dad survived. He's got some stories though. He was the only one to hear, "You're being released...." out of the 6 people in his pod. 1 out of 6. Those where his stats. Scary.
And the whole time, my mom was concerned that she would be pretty when my dad came out of surgery. I would be too. You want the one YOU care about most to see a beautiful angel in the light of your foggy mind when you step away from the brink of death.
I hope my dad sees that beautiful angel everytimes he wakes up in the morning. Because he deserves it and so does she.
-hoping the raindrops keep falling
Friday, February 4, 2011
Inspiration
I'm an inspired girl. It's partially the lack of snow and the fact that I'm stuck inside with nothing to do but write. I love to write. I have things to say. They may be wise, they may be drunk, they may ingorant but I have words in my head that want to see the world.
[i'm reminded by a music video by Death Cab For Cutie... the music notes traveling the country, some dying, some making it to the destination]
Go on a trip with me (that's what Heater and I always say when we are trying to show a point, most people call it a 'parable' or something, we just call it a trip...)
ab-er-rant adjective
1. Departing from an accepting standard
2. Diverging from the normal type
Once upon a time I had to create a username for AOL (my very first account as an adult, long story) this being circa 2003. AOL stated that you should not use the dictionary to create your usename. I never understood this but I went against the norm and did it. I found the word aberrant. I liked what it meant. So I created a nickname, a femanized, basterdized, nickname from that word and I liked it's description because it was ME. Abberatia was born. Let's just pretend it was April, 5, 2003. (Yes, my birthday is April 5, 1979)
I've had a blog on Livejournal since 2003 but I've always used it as more or less my outlet. My place to have a diary that wouldn't get wet, or burned, or full, or read by anyone I didn't give permission. My father always told me that if I didn't want someone to know something I should never write it down.
It bit me in the ass because there was a lot about my life I never wrote because I was scared about who would read it. There were times that were quite tumultuous in my life that I never mentioned because it wasn't exaclty OK with everyone around me. Regardless, I would write my little heart out. I would say what was on my mind when I felt it was ok. I would write the optomistic sweet sincere genuine posts that would never hurt anyone's feelings but would get the point accross. I did it for the "Future Me". I wrote them so the Me that I am now would understand the Me I was then.
Those days are slowly passing. I'm getting to the point in my life where I need more organization. I'm getting to the points where all my "ducks" are in a row. I'm in a great relationship, my 8 year old (or so) dog has finally learned to roll over, I have a fun job and I really like the new over the door shoe rack I just bought from the Container Store.
I'm old enough to not care who reads it, mainly because, you never know, there may be some kid out there who just hit 26 and really could use a laugh, or some advice or maybe just a distraction. I would absolutely love to be that distraction!
So, here I am. A 31 year old female, sitting on the couch with a laptop watching my boyfriend and my dog, Mr. Stanton and his best friend Bear hanging out talking about life while we go to the bar. Toby, Aka Tobes, Tobykins, etc. just sits on the couch with Boyfriend and takes it.
Yeah, there is a lot in my life involved with the dog and the boyfriend and the friends of the boyfriend, and even the friends of the dog.
Prepare yourself. There will be deep thoughts. There will photos. There will be drawings. There will insights into my life and insights into the lives of my best firends. I've made a lot of "best friends" along the way, some of them are frends of my dog, some are friends of my job, and some of them are friends of Boyfriend.
Yeah, I'm a lucky gal. And I have a lucky life.
-happy in this place
[i'm reminded by a music video by Death Cab For Cutie... the music notes traveling the country, some dying, some making it to the destination]
Go on a trip with me (that's what Heater and I always say when we are trying to show a point, most people call it a 'parable' or something, we just call it a trip...)
ab-er-rant adjective
1. Departing from an accepting standard
2. Diverging from the normal type
Once upon a time I had to create a username for AOL (my very first account as an adult, long story) this being circa 2003. AOL stated that you should not use the dictionary to create your usename. I never understood this but I went against the norm and did it. I found the word aberrant. I liked what it meant. So I created a nickname, a femanized, basterdized, nickname from that word and I liked it's description because it was ME. Abberatia was born. Let's just pretend it was April, 5, 2003. (Yes, my birthday is April 5, 1979)
I've had a blog on Livejournal since 2003 but I've always used it as more or less my outlet. My place to have a diary that wouldn't get wet, or burned, or full, or read by anyone I didn't give permission. My father always told me that if I didn't want someone to know something I should never write it down.
It bit me in the ass because there was a lot about my life I never wrote because I was scared about who would read it. There were times that were quite tumultuous in my life that I never mentioned because it wasn't exaclty OK with everyone around me. Regardless, I would write my little heart out. I would say what was on my mind when I felt it was ok. I would write the optomistic sweet sincere genuine posts that would never hurt anyone's feelings but would get the point accross. I did it for the "Future Me". I wrote them so the Me that I am now would understand the Me I was then.
Those days are slowly passing. I'm getting to the point in my life where I need more organization. I'm getting to the points where all my "ducks" are in a row. I'm in a great relationship, my 8 year old (or so) dog has finally learned to roll over, I have a fun job and I really like the new over the door shoe rack I just bought from the Container Store.
I'm old enough to not care who reads it, mainly because, you never know, there may be some kid out there who just hit 26 and really could use a laugh, or some advice or maybe just a distraction. I would absolutely love to be that distraction!
So, here I am. A 31 year old female, sitting on the couch with a laptop watching my boyfriend and my dog, Mr. Stanton and his best friend Bear hanging out talking about life while we go to the bar. Toby, Aka Tobes, Tobykins, etc. just sits on the couch with Boyfriend and takes it.
Yeah, there is a lot in my life involved with the dog and the boyfriend and the friends of the boyfriend, and even the friends of the dog.
Prepare yourself. There will be deep thoughts. There will photos. There will be drawings. There will insights into my life and insights into the lives of my best firends. I've made a lot of "best friends" along the way, some of them are frends of my dog, some are friends of my job, and some of them are friends of Boyfriend.
Yeah, I'm a lucky gal. And I have a lucky life.
-happy in this place
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)