July's 12 of 12

Woooo! We're in the homestretch of posting a full year of 12 of 12! New to 12 of 12? Visit Chad Darnell for all the info. Play with us. It's fun!

On July 12th, I was at my parent's house outside of Dallas and spent the day loading up furniture then driving back to Spicewood. Here's what happened:



1:30pm- Heading out of my parents house. I forgot to take a picture as I left the driveway, so you'll have to be satisfied with a shot of the lovely country roads that take me home.



1:45pm- Cruising the speedtrap known as Crandall, Texas. And if you'll look out the left side of the truck, you will see the World Famous Crandall Cotton Gin Restaurant and Club. I recommend the chicken fried chicken.



2:20pm- My Ghingaw's house. We're here to pick up her dining room furniture that I am 'inheriting'. The house is now on the market... it's so weird to see that For Sale sign in the front yard when she's just a few miles across the highway in assisted living. It's the end of an era... when I walk in the front door, I can still smell the meatloaf and okra gumbo cooking.



2:50pm- Got the dining room table and buffet loaded into the back of my truck, and I'm off to Austin! Pretty cool view of downtown Dallas coming around the 'Fair Park curve' on I-30. You can just see how insanely hot it was!



2:55pm- And of course, as soon as I get into the 'canyon' part of downtown, we come to a screeching halt. On a Sunday. Seriously, people??



3:45pm- Look! It's the Monolithic Dome Institute! You can rent a cabin for $80. I'm so tempted to do this sometime, just to see what it's really like.



4:30pm- I 35. The highway that never freakin' ends.



5:00pm- Those poor people on the northbound side! This accident had the highway completely closed down and traffic was just parked over there. Ugh.



5:05pm- These poor suckers are at about mile 1 of an approximately 5-mile backup. I swear, this has got to be the worst highway ever. I see this crap almost every time I drive it, and sometimes I'm in that damn 5-mile backup!



6:30pm- Finally made it to Austin! YAY! I love this town... it's just the greatest.



7:20pm- Ahhh... home. It's such a great feeling. I love this drive up to my place. I so lucked out with this condo! Notice, my building is the only 3-story building for at least 5 miles!



9:00pm- The first installment of furniture is in place! This is my grandmother's dining room table, buffet, and some of her chairs. The other chairs and her secretary will be riding down with my parents tomorrow. So excited!


Bonus Pic!

I just had to throw this one in... this is the moon rising on my balcony one night last week. The long exposure made it look pretty cool, so I just wanted to share!

June 12 of 12

Okay, so I'm a little late, but here is my 12 of 12 for June. Halfway through the year... I swear I will finish!!


9am- Driving past the lovely Domain shopping area in Austin on my way to my morning meeting. I left my camera at home, so all of my pictures this month will be junky phone pics.


9:15am- Quick stop at the bank to cash my birthday check from my Ghingaw!


12:30pm- Lunch at The Hub! First time I've been here, and it was pretty damn good. A little pricey, but the beer was cold and the burgers were hot!


2:15pm- And I'm off! Starting out the trip up to Dallas to visit my family this weekend.


2:15pm- And approximately 2 seconds later I went from 60mph to 15mph. Austin traffic on Friday afternoons is just the greatest ever.


3:10pm- Got rolling pretty good, running around 70mph, then we hit Temple. For 30ish minutes we slogged through this damn town, and there wasn't even an accident! Seriously, can Temple possibly have a rush hour? At 3pm?


3:20pm- Alex chilling in the back seat. Since I was going about 5mph, I took plenty of pics.


3:25pm- Including this one of the lovely bridges. I figured I might as well document this, since I-35 was under construction because of these bridges for SO freakin long.


3:30pm- Not sure if you can really tell, but there is a Budweiser billboard in the distance. After 20 minutes in this traffic, a Bud was sounding reaaaallllyyyy good!


3:35pm- No, traffic was not so bad that I actually thought Taco Bell sounded good... I just love this billboard. You cant really see it, but that is a 3D sauce packet that says "Smaller packets available inside".


4:15pm- The I-35 Statuary! Anyone who has made this drive knows this place. They have all kinds of concrete statues, from small gnomes to life-size hippos! My favorite is the gorilla painted to look like he is wearing a beanie and a union suit.


6:00pm- Finally made it to my parents' house. Ahhhhh... home. My room looks pretty much like it did when I graduated high school, so it really is like coming home.


Bonus Pic! This is from the 11th, when I spent my birthday at Cub Scout Day Camp. So scary... these kiddos are just out of 1st grade, and they were learning archery!

May 12 of 12

Hello and welcome once more to 12 of 12! Don't know about 12 of 12? It's a cool idea dreamed up by Chad Darnell. Visit his blog for more info and to see what went on all over the world on May 12, 2009!!

This month I actually remembered that it was the 12th before noon (Yay!), but then forgot about it being the 12th and doing my assignment sometime in the middle of the afternoon (Boo!). This should be good.


9:00am
One-half of my Chia Herb Garden in the morning sun! Pictured are my dill and basil plants. The cilantro and chives are still on top of the refrigerator, needing a bit more germination before they get direct sun. I'm trying to follow the directions to the letter so I don't kill anything else green.


9:30am
The best part of having a party? With my group of friends, the clean-up is super fast, and a few days later, I still have a clean and orderly house! I got everything straightened out and unpacked for my housewarming shindig last Friday, so now I get to enjoy the fruits of my labor.


9:35am
Speaking of benefits of having a party, here is the lovely bouquet I bought for said party. The colors were a bit more vibrant on Friday (the purple is noticeably leaching into the water), but they are still very pretty. I just thought the bunches of green and purple flowers were too cool looking.


12:00pm
My new gig to earn extra cash on the side... Secret Shopper! My first assignment was at this dealership. I had to pretend to be interested in making a major purchase and then review how the salesman did his job. It was super fun! The picture would have been better, but I thought they might get suspicious if they caught me taking pictures of the place from the parking lot. Hence, the drive-by photo on the other side of I-35 you see here.


1:00pm
All that shopping made me hungry. Time to run through my favorite tex-fast-mex-food place EVER! It's more BUENO!!


1:30pm
Meanwhile, back at the Batcave... I mean, Scout Service Center- Stopping in for one of my few visits to the home office.


1:35pm
Time for tacos! This picture just does not do this food justice. Bueno is the greatest ever. A couple of tacos were exactly what I needed to make my day wonderful!


5:15pm
Here we are at one of my favorite haunts- Vino100! I met up with a few of my nearest and dearest for a spot of wine. It was wine club night, so there was also some yummy soup! I suppose I really ought to join the wine club, rather than just mooch off of all of my friends' memberships. Got a call and had to cut out early to go take something to one of my volunteers, so I missed our council popcorn kickoff meeting and forgot to take pictures for a while!



10:00pm
Home again, home again, jiggity-jog. Alex putting on a display. I need to look back at the end of this year and see just how many 12 of 12 pictures are of Alex sleeping in various places.


10:05pm
Catching up on some of my DVRed goodness. This was a go-cart scene from '18 Kids and Counting'. Why am I in love with this show?? Same story with 'Jon & Kate Plus 8'. I think it's because I have zero kids and will probably remain in that state, so I'm fascinated with these fecund folkses.


10:30pm
Time for some Twitterpation while watching a few episodes of Will & Grace. There are so many outlets for my voice now (Twitter, Facebook, this blog, MySpace) that I have trouble coming up with something to say for myself. I suppose I could always post the same stuff on each vehicle, but I have a lot of the same 'followers' in each place, so I hate to bore them!


11:00pm
Yet another benefit of having a housewarming party (and having kick-ass friends)... leftover Rice Krispies treats! This was an awesome house with hedges and everything, but after being picked over, it now resembles a scary smiley brick. Still tastes yummy, though!

Thanks for showing up yet again... almost halfway through the year and I'm still maintaining... sweet!!

April 2009 12 of 12

Here we are once more, for the 12 of 12 for April 2009! New to 12 of 12? Please stop by Chad Darnell's site for all the info.

Here we go!!

Easter morning!


11:20am- Apparently, he golfs religiously! Here's another golfer getting ready to tee off on the 1st hole. Love my view!


It certainly is a gorgeous Easter morning! After an early-morning rain, the day was absolutely lovely.


1:35pm- Jaime spent the night and helped me put up my new jewelry armoire. It took some drilling and heaving, but we got it up on the wall. That lovely mirror opens to a green velvet lined jewelry case with space for all of my necklaces, bracelets, etc. Perfect!!


2:00pm- The day hasn't even gotten going, and already Alex is worn out. Sleeping all day really tires one out!


4:00pm- After our home improvement adventure, Jaime and I went to my old boss's house for Easter celebrations. There was a 7 year-old, a new puppy, and 4 cameras out in the front yard. I spent plenty of time convincing the 7 year-old that he should save the rest of his confetti eggs for Daddy. Success!


4:15pm- The new puppy, Jazz, was not so successful at avoiding the confetti eggs! She enjoyed licking the pink dye off of the eggshells, though, so I don't think she minded the confetti in her hair too much.


4:45pm- Again, a gorgeous day and a gorgeous view. Too bad the lake is so low right now!


I miss working at this house! The view is to-die-for, but I really did enjoy working for him, too. Here's hoping they tap me for some house-sitting sometime soon!


8:00pm- After a long afternoon of stuffing myself with yummy food and drinking lots of beer, the bottles of wine purchased yesterday will NOT be opened this evening. These are from Stone House Vineyard, which is about a mile from my door. I even joined the wine club over there!


8:15pm- Now that I've been here for about 3 weeks and actually got a weekend to stay home and unpack, I can take some pictures of my place. I love my huge living room!


My lovely fireplace, and proof that I haven't totally finished unpacking. I mostly have decorations left, so that's not too bad!


I've even gotten my bathroom in order. I just love my new place!

March 12 of 12

So welcome back to 12 of 12. New to 12 of 12? Visit Chad Darnell for all the info. Join us! It's ever so much fun to see what's going on all over the world on a single day.

This month may look a lot like last month... but when the 12th happens on the 2nd Thursday of the month twice in a row, well, it just happens.


11:30- Excitement in a small town! I went to pick up my dress at the cleaners, and there had been a 'disturbance' at the tax-prep office next door. There were 2 cruisers out front with rollers going and officers questioning some guy. I had to sneak back around by the gas station to get a shot without being seen!


1:15- We've been having rain for the past few days after a tremendously long drought. The city has taken advantage of the moisture to burn brush. Since the burn ban has lifted, people all over the county have been burning their brush and the whole area smells like wood smoke.


4:15- I'm driving around looking at places for rent. This little gem is only $550 a month, but it's kinda junky. Wish it were more like the places directly across the street, but these go for $950 a month!!



4:30- Another house for rent in the same area. This one is more expensive, but slightly nicer. I still just can't find exactly what I want! Not so sure about this green.


4:45- Just down the street from the green thing is this adorable redwood. It doesn't look like much from the picture, but it's a cool 3/2. One side of it has 2 stories, and it has great decks all around. Unfortunately, it's also $800 a month. Next.


5:30- On the road again... heading down 71 into Austin for happy hour. Such a gloomy, cloudy, dreary kinda day. This calls for a beer!


6:30- Dammit!! So close to a burger and a beer, yet so far away. Austin traffic is just awful, but rainy days make it even worse. If I were a little more "rose-colored glasses" I'd think these twinkling tail lights were pretty.


7:00- YAY!! I finally made it to Sam's Boat!! Time for the fun to begin!


7:15- Yum yum yum! A freshly cooked Black n Bleu burger! It tastes even better than it looks. And it is perfectly paired with an ice-cold draft beer. Life is good!


7:45- A meeting of the minds at the end of the table. Dale, Helen, and Michael discussing something extremely important, I'm sure.


10:30- Alex is all tucked in for the night... and that's where I'm headed too!!

BONUS PICTURES!!!



This is the condo I think I'm actually going to move into next weekend! I'm headed out Saturday afternoon to look at the inside. Can't wait!!!

February 12 of 12

Oh boy, I'm on a roll! Two months in a row! New to 12 of 12? Visit Chad Darnell for all the info.

Let's get started!

10:15am
Took a lovely trip to Sprawl-mart to pick up a tape adapter for my newly replaced iPod. It IS possible to get in and out in less than 10 minutes, but you have to be willing to shove a few old ladies out of the way.



10:30am
There goes my gym... I should really be stopping off there... I know they miss me.



10:40am
Yet another stop on my list of errands-- the library. This is the view from the parking lot. I love living in a place with scenery like this.



1:00pm
Just finished up my Rotary meeting and decided to get this shot. We meet in a room right on the lake, so the view is great and I've always meant to take a picture of it!



1:45pm
Driving into Austin enjoying my iPod. Yes, my truck is always this full of crap. I tend to pack up my life and move into Austin 3 days at a time each week.



2:00pm
Yep, construction on 71. Big shocker. This time it sucks really hard, though. The speed limit is 45!!



5:30pm
After a long slow drive down 71 and 2 stops in an effort to find a dress for a friend's wedding, I arrive at Parrothead Happy Hour! The 2nd Thursday of every month we meet and have a great time. This is the new t-shirt, modeled by our lovely Head Phruitcake, Robin!



6:00pm
The crawfish are in!! The excitement was palpable among the tables... we devoured several pounds of crawfish over the night. I can smell it right now. Yum!!



6:30pm
Not everyone chowed down on mudbugs Thursday night. Ric opted for a big ol' cheeseburger. Love this shot of him cramming in a bite!



Much later...
Ric also opted for a new delivery method for his beer. Totally not my idea. And besides, Emily started it!!



Even later...
There was a good reason for the extreme debauchery and the late night. Dennis came home from Afghanistan!!



I think this was still the 12th...
The final shot of the evening. Dennis and our favorite waitress Jennifer. She does such a good job of taking care of us! One waitress and sometimes upwards of 20 Parrotheads at a time... she's good!

January 12 of 12

Okay, so I did it once last year. I'm going to attempt to actually do this every month for 2009! Here goes:



Spent part of the morning catching up on DVRed shows while answering emails.



Alex busy doing what he does best.



Mmmm... lunch! Or at least part of it. Here's some black bean tortilla soup from Nutrisystem, to be followed by a salad.



My stack of stuff that was going to get dropped off at Goodwill. I just found out that a friend lost a lot of stuff in an apartment fire, so I'll have to hold off on getting rid of this until I find out what all she needs.



My office/junk room in the throes of being cleaned out. I'm also starting to pack up boxes of things I don't think I'll use between now and the end of Feb. If I know I won't use it in 6-7 weeks, does that mean I should just go ahead and get rid of it?? Naaaah.



Another trip to the gym, another great workout! Note that my gym is in the same building as a Mexican food restaurant. Argh. At least it's not like when I worked at Curves... you could actually smell the fajitas cooking in the stretching room there!



A rare sight indeed... Alex actually using the backyard for its intended purpose!



A lovely sunset over Granite Shoals.



My yummy Nutrisystem dinner! Spinach and cheese ravioli in meat sauce, asparagus, and cherries. I don't know why people think this food isn't wonderful!



My lovely room, all cleaned up and straightened out!



As long as I've got the camera out and the room clean, I'll take a couple of angles to send to my landlord so she can advertise before I move out. Ain't I nice?



And to round out my 12, a shot of the gorgeous full moon. It just doesn't translate to my lil digital camera the way my eyes see it!