Busy last week

For someone who rarely has any sort of a social life, I had quite a busy week last week.

Monday: The "week o fun" started out with a "passion party" at the neighbor's house. What is a passion party, you ask? Why, it's all about sex...and toys and props and stuff. It was the first time I had ever been invited to one, and it was a hoot! Three hours and a significant credit card charge later, I was walking home. I'm not sure I've laughed that hard in a long time. It was super fun.
Tuesday: While not planned, we had a horrible hail storm in the evening. The hail at my house was quarter to golf ball size. I haven't really been able to tell if I have roof or siding damage, but it knocked tiny little twigs off my trees out front, making a mess of my sidewalk and lawn. Guess it's a good thing I hadn't done my Spring raking yet. Also, it was scary as hell. It sounded like every window in the house was breaking. The tornado from a few years ago was less scary.
Wednesday: Some of you know the struggles I'm having with actually taking real life vacations this year and what that means for Lucky. I've spent a lot of time and energy stressing over finding a kennel that is affordable, close to my house, and decent. I've toured a few the past few weeks, and the last tour on my list was Wednesday. I loved this facility and the couple that runs it SO VERY MUCH. So, he is booked in Bangor for my trip to Florida in June.
Thursday: Certainly not exciting, but quite time consuming was making a batch of dog food so the pooch didn't starve come Saturday. I had the whole evening planned out, and I figured how much time I'd have left when I got done, and then my mother showed up at my house unexpected and unannounced. (sigh) Mom and I aren't really seeing eye to eye these days, and she just stood there and criticized while I prepped food. So I lost a lot of time trying to entertain her.

Weather: Have I mentioned that the weather here sucked last week and is on par to suck again this week? It's making it impossible to get a start on any sort of outdoor project (or the indoor one that will require me to also spend some time on a ladder outside). Although it is supposed to be sunny and in the 50s today, raking seems futile since we have more snow in the forecast at the end of the week. (sigh) My tulips are already halfway up and ready to bloom, so I NEED SPRING!

Books: With as crappy as the weather was last week, and as bored as I was at work last week, I got through a few books.

• Effortless by S.C. Stephens. This is book 2 in this series. It was quite good, and Kellan Kyle is my #2 book boyfriend of all time. For realz. There is a book 3 in this series (Reckless) that just came out in the last 4-8 weeks. The first chapter was included at the end of Effortless, but I'm not sure if I'm going to give Reckless a chance. All the reviews in the first week Reckless came out were that it was long and not necessary. Most readers thought the author would have done better by just writing a short epilogue to the characters' story. Effortless had a really great ending, and I might be OK just thinking that's how Kellan and Kiera's story ends.
• Fight or Flight by Jamie Canosa: This was a fairly short book, as I read it in just a few hours on Friday. It was a good story, but extremely emotional. It had a "happy" ending, but not in a traditional sense. The angst and drama and storyline were real, and that's what I liked about it.
• Saving Wishes by G.J. Walker-Smith: This is the first book in the series (not sure how many there will be total). This story takes place in Tasmania, and the main female character is 17. Again, this genre is sorta what I've been reading lately, but the story seemed very different from the "romance" I have been reading of late. The book is long, but the story is good. (The book could use some editing, though.) I enjoyed this book and opted to spend the $2.99 to get book 2 rather than wait for next month and use my lending library pick on it.
• Second Hearts by G.J. Walker-Smith: This is book 2 in the series to the book I mentioned above. I'm only about 1/3 of the way through it, and it's good so far. If it ended now, the story would have a cheesy happy ending. Since there is still 2/3 left to go, and I don't know if there will be more books, I'm guessing that there is drama and angst and maybe no happy ending. TBD.

Latest weekly book update

Another week has begun, and I am bored at work yet again. This is REALLY starting to get old. I have a busy week ahead of me (including a very exciting passion party at the neighbor's), but I think that maybe next week I have to start thinking about making a career/job change.

Until then...here's an update on what I've been reading lately.

1. Walking Disaster by Jamie McGuire: Seriously? I'm not even sure I need to give this a review. Holy hell...Travis Maddox can be my book boyfriend...FOREVER. For those that aren't familiar, this is the Travis POV version of Jamie's Beautiful Disaster. So, the story was basically the same, but there were a lot of little interesting tidbits when told from Travis's POV. I will have to re-read this one eventually because I kept forgetting that "I" meant Travis and not Abby in this book. I've said it before, and I'll say it again: READ THESE BOOKS! I cannot wait for the movie to get cast. They better not F*#@ it up!
2. Light in the Shadows by  A. Meredith Walters: This was book 2 in the Clay and Maggie series. Some may remember my Facebook post a month or two ago after I read the first book about it basically being the life story of my senior year of high school. This book was an amazing ending to the story. I cried numerous times, but it was so good and so real. Unless the author writes an epilogue or a book about a sub-character, there should only be the two books in this series. I highly recommend this series as well.
3. Battlescars by Sophie Monroe: I picked this one up as my April Kindle Lending Library read because it was supposed to be a rock star book. This books was so pukey HEA and had very little rock star drama or angst. If you want to know what I thought of it, read only the 1-star reviews of it on Amazon. It pretty much sums up how I felt about it. Please do not waste your time or money. 

As this week at work looks grim yet again, I see a lot of reading in my near future. I expect to start Effortless by S.C. Stephens (book 2 in the series) later today. After that, I think I'm going to start some darker reads that I've been accumulating. All the HEA books are, again, making me sick.

Have a great week, and happy reading!

Long week...and it's only Thursday

What an insane week!

• The plumbing backed up (Easter) Sunday morning - into the living area of the basement nonetheless - and I couldn't get it fixed until almost 4pm on Monday.
• Had to take a day off on Monday to deal with it. Had a 32-hour panic attack while I went to the neighbor's every time I needed to go to the bathroom. Had an anxious, barking dog for the 6 hours there was a plumber in the house. Ugh.
• As I sit here and type this at work (because I'm bored), I have accumulated 6.15 hours of work in three business days. I am making quite a dent in Walking Disaster, though.
• I am forced to say good-bye to a friend and co-worker tomorrow as her life takes her on a new journey. 
• Did I mention I'm so bored at work???
• I was able to do wheel pose in yoga again yesterday. This is a pretty big accomplishment. However, my arms, legs, back, and knees screamed at me when I attempted to do yoga today.
• The stress from the first part of the week has taken its toll on me, and I'm just exhausted...even after getting close to 8 hours of sleep each night.

The good news is that we are celebrating new journeys and birthdays at work tomorrow, and there will be a never-ending supply of food. Also, it's freaking Friday!

Next week, I get one of my fave friends and co-workers back from maternity leave. I have missed her immensely.

Here's to hoping for a gluttonous day tomorrow and a weekend full of recently added Bond movies on Netflix.

Shinedown, 3DG, P.O.D.

March 29, 2013
La Crosse Center
La Crosse, WI

Can I just say thanks to the La Crosse area for coming out and supporting rock music in this area?

According to 95.7's Facebook page, there were 6000 people at the P.O.D./Three Days Grace/Shinedown show last night. It was reportedly the biggest crowd since Motley Crue in 2006. (I don't know if that's for any concert or any rock concert. Regardless, the turnout was fucking amazing!) I knew we were in for a good turnout when I arrived 5 minutes after the doors opened and couldn't sit anywhere near where we wanted.

So, this is what I saw when I walked in. The background music while waiting for the show was the Beastie Boys. Hell yeah!
P.O.D. started the night out. Personally, I neither love nor hate P.O.D., and I really only know the songs I hear on the radio. I knew probably 75% of the stuff they did. However, I really wasn't impressed. Not sure why. I did find their guitarist hilarious. He was a short, stocky fellow who basically just screamed into the mic throughout various songs. He totally didn't scream "rock god."

Next up was Three Days Grace. Now, quick history lesson for folks who don't follow this kind of music. About 2 days after I bought these tickets, the band announced that the lead singer (Adam) was leaving the band. Then, a few days later, it was announced that the lead singer of My Darkest Days (Matt) would be filling in for this tour. Drama ensued. I like My Darkest Days (MDD), but Matt's voice is nothing like Adam's. The internet lit up for weeks with complaints and suggestions for a better replacement. I was mostly worried that the La Crosse area wouldn't come out to support this show because you really didn't know what you were going to get. However...

Picture "borrowed" from the La Crosse Center's Facebook page.

Three Days Grace (3DG) was awesome! Matt did a really great job. There was a mic set up center stage that had some kind of effect on it that I felt he went too way too often and ruined parts of songs for me. One of my co-workers thought he did a great job but expressed concern for his excessive use of gestures. I can attest this was a bit annoying. Overall, though, they rocked it. I feel better now that I know I'll be seeing them again at RockFest in July.


The best part of the whole night, though, was probably when 3DG performed Limp Bizkit's "Break Stuff." Seriously...there aren't words. Our local radio station has a compiled video of some of the show on YouTube. A part of this performance is on there, and I would encourage you to go watch.

Shinedown was up next. Once of my favorite parts of going to concerts is the "in between" music. Beastie Boys greeted me when I walked into the venue; a little Rage Against the Machine while waiting for 3DG; then...a mixture that included Journey and House of Pain while we waited for Shinedown. It made no sense, but it was funny as hell as the place was singing out loud to all of it.

All of a sudden the lights went down and all eyes turned to the stage. There were spotlights on the bassist and the drummer, but there was a moment of "wait...isn't there something missing?" All of a sudden I turn to look directly in front of me...

Yep, they had completely set up two risers in the sound/light area without me ever realizing it. Oh, and security moved the guys in without me every seeing it, too. (The video I linked to earlier has their "secret"entrance and about 2 minutes of them singing the opening song, "Enemies.")

Sorta like P.O.D., I neither love nor hate Shinedown. Thanks to a co-worker sharing some music with me, I have a fair amount of it in my library, and satellite radio plays a fair amount of it. However, I know nothing about the band. Like, I was shocked they all came out in some sort of suit attire. They stayed in those outfits until they came back out for the encore. Weird, but pretty cool.

The circle thing is where the videos played.

They had a video playing behind them on stage almost the entire time. (It reminded me of Rob Zombie.) I guess I never really paid attention to the meanings of their lyrics. This is a pretty emotional, issues-oriented band.

They were phenomenal live. No joke. The music was spot on, the performance was great, the lights weren't overboard (like 3DG's were), and the videos were pertinent and moving.

So, aside from people standing in front of us, blocking our view, and a random drunk whose ass I thought I might have to kick, it was a great show. I really hope Mr. Fahey paid attention to the attendance last night. Mr. Fahey: La Crosse can support a rock show!

An "aha!" moment

So, no shit, I had the most amazing "aha" moment last night. I was having trouble falling asleep - which NEVER happens - and my mind was wandering.

<digress> For some that were following my book reviews on Facebook, you might remember one I read maybe 4-6 weeks ago that I thought could be my high school life story. The amazing thing I took away from that story was how much of that part of my life I had repressed. I think after reading that book, it unlocked a door in my mind. </digress>

There's a question I ask myself every single day, sometimes multiple times a day. That question is: "When was the last time I was happy?" Well...AHA...it came to me last night!

I don't remember exactly what age/grade I was. I'm guessing it was somewhere in the 16-19 year-old age range. Here's what I do remember. I remember a time when I was part of a large group of friends...mostly guys. (Let's face it...always was and always will be a tomboy.) I remember hanging out at Mark's house with him and Thad and Wobs...and probably tons of other people I'm forgetting. I remember feeling like these guys were my family. They were my brothers, BFFs, and boyfriends all wrapped up into one. I remember telling these guys I loved them every day and not thinking anything of it. Because it was true. Then I remember an entirely different set of friends that I had a similar relationship with. Matt and Bryan were my choir/theater brothers/BFFs/boyfriends. I had the same relationship with these two (and I'm sure there are others I'm forgetting) that I had with the other group.

What's the common denominator in all of this? I MISS MY BOYS!!!

How many times do I hear something like "aren't you lonely?" or "don't you want a man in your life?" or "would you like me to set you up?"? I always have a hard time answering these questions because I am lonely; I do want a guy in my life; and I DON'T want to be set up. I miss having guy friends. The drama is so much less, and I have way more in common with guys.

The last guy friend I remember having was Mike. Here's what I remember about one of our last conversations. "So, [new girlfriend] doesn't understand why I have to be friends with you." WTF? I would like to think that if this situation were reversed that I would NOT be like this. Mike and I "dated" for maybe 4-6 weeks. And I put "dated" in quotes not because it's code for "did the nasty" or "friends with benefits" but because it was obvious early on that we had NO physical attraction for each other. It was kinda like kissing my brother. YUCK. So, that said, I don't know why [new girlfriend] would be concerned or jealous.

So I guess maybe that's why I'm struggling. How many 40-year-old guys are there that are "allowed" to be friends with a girl? I've been in touch with a couple of really good guy friends that I've known for...well...ever, and I always feel better when we talk/text.

So if you know of any guy in my age range that is allowed to have a girl for a friend, please, send him my way.

Latest weekly book update

So, I managed to get through 4 books last week. I'm pretty much all over the place when it comes to subject matter these days. In an attempt to eliminate my HEA (happily ever after) romance book phase - which is driving me insane - I attempted to branch out.

1. Touched by AJ Aalto: This was full on paranormal with vampires, witches, magic, etc. I think this would have been a good story except that all the main characters were introduced in, like, the first chapter without any back story or explanation. I had a hard time keeping up. And while most everyone is still alive (or undead) at the end, it wasn't a super happy ending. I won't read it again, and I probably wouldn't recommend it...unless you can find it for free.
2. Reign of Blood by Alexia Purdy: Undead apocalypse but with vampires and not zombies. I was all for this based on the summary, but it was sorta a weak story line. I felt like it could have gone in so many different, and better, directions. However, I found the basic theme interesting considering I just finished Season 2 of The Walking Dead. In my opinion, the "aha" moment of Season 2 is sorta what this book is about...just swap zombies for vampires.
3. Collide by Gail McHugh: This was a really good book. I finished this one in a day (thank you Kaplan for giving me NO work to do so I could read). This was a romance with a HUGE cliffhanger ending. I didn't realize this was a series when I started; I might not have chosen this to read until after the next book comes out if I had known ahead of time. My biggest issue with this book is that the female lead is weak...and I HATE that! So, we'll see what the next book brings.
4. True Love Story by Willow Aster: As I woke up Saturday morning and scrolled through my Kindle looking for a non-romance to start, I realized the book I borrowed with the Kindle lending library for March was still sitting there unread. So, I had to put my jones for a paranormal book on hold for another romance. This book was really good...and sad and emotional in parts. Some will categorize this as a "rock star romance" because the male lead is a guitarist, but other than him being on tour and that causing the main couple to spend time apart, his music career isn't really a thing. I cried during parts of this, I'll admit it. Maybe it was because for once, the guy screws up and has to BEG to be forgiven. And when she doesn't acknowledge his presence on Earth, he faces reality and backs off and stops trying. Say whatever you want, but a gorgeous rock star who pours out emotions in poems, letters, and songs is HOT! This one I recommend.

So, this week will bring my re-read of Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire in preparation for Walking Disaster to come out next week. I always knew I would re-read this one, and this is the perfect opportunity. :-) 

Almost Spring, my a$$

As I prepare to officially and indefinitely suspend my Facebook activity on Friday, I have decided that I will instead try to blog more often. This, perhaps, will not be a problem as I seem to have ample time available at work these days to at least start a post (as I am doing now)

So, things are pretty stressful. It would seem that winter is going to be around FOREVER here in Wisconsin, and my seasonal affective disorder (SAD) is at a level I’ve never felt before. I’ve added good ole Vitamin D to my diet (in place of real sunshine), but it apparently interacts with my anxiety meds. So now I’ve taken to feeling drunk every morning and needing some 5-Hour Energy just to stay awake. It’s neat.

Between being mentally and physically ill from the SAD and my lackluster career, I’ve started to think again about moving. A quick web search of where people with SAD would benefit living from turned up Albuquerque, NM and Charlotte, NC, just to name a few. I have a friend who used to live in or near both, and he voted for Albuquerque. In 2007, Tempur-Pedic opened a huge mattress factory in Albuquerque, so perhaps I found my new career.

I continue to read quite a bit. I finished a book this morning that was not fantastic, so I’ll refrain from any sort of recommendation/review. I am taking a short break from HEA (happily ever after) romances and trying to focus more on the paranormal. I believe the next book in line for me to read is about a vampire apocalypse. (Don’t fret…there are zombie books waiting right after this one!)