My Happy for the Day: "The Show"

This is one of my new insta-happy songs, "The Show" by Lenka. Happy lyrics? Check. Adorable singer? Check. Smiling tomato puppets and happy bluebird puppets? Check and check. There's something that's just fun about Lenka literally floating and flying through different scenarios, seemingly with girl-next-door superpowers, while singing optimistically about finding her way in life that picks me up whenever I'm feeling down.

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Lyrics:
I'm just a little bit caught in the middle / Life is a maze and love is a riddle / I don't know where to go, can't do it alone / I've tried, and I don't know why...

Slow it down, make it stop / Or else my heart is going to pop / 'Cause it's too much, yeah it's a lot / To be something i'm not / I'm a fool out of love / 'Cause I just can't get enough...

I'm just a little bit caught in the middle / Life is a maze and love is a riddle / I don't know where to go, can't do it alone / I've tried, and I don't know why / I'm just a little girl lost in the moment / I'm so scared but I don't show it / I can't figure it out, it's bringing me down / I know i've got to let it go... / And just enjoy the show

The sun is hot in the sky / Just like a giant spotlight / The people follow the signs / And synchronise in time / It's a joke, nobody knows / They've got a ticket to the show....

(I want my money back, just enjoy the show)

Where Has the Year Gone?

Song Lyric of the Day:

At the sound / Of the first bird singing / I was leaving for home / With the storm / And the night behind me

Uriah Heep / "July Morning"

Holy hell, it's July! Where have the first six months of the year gone? I feel like I've been unbelievably, incredibly busy already this year. And yet there are plenty of other things I want to do before the year is over. So much to do, so little time.

Photoblogging: 3 Kitties in the Sun

Because I'm missing their little brother terribly tonight, I thought I'd post a pic of how Belle, Finn, and Buster (top to bottom) are enjoying the lazy days of summer.

My Best, Most Relaxing Day Ever

Song Lyric of the Day:

Relax don't do it / When you want to go to it

Frankie Goes to Hollywood / "Relax"

For the first time in seven years of participating in the Relay for Life, I took the Monday after the event off. And it was AWESOME.

How did I treat myself after once again pushing my gimpy right hip to its limit? I took the day off from work today and cashed in the Infinity Spa Package gift card to Aveda Natural Alternatives Spa Salon that my fantabulous husband gave me for Christmas. That's right -- I held on to that gift card for six lonnnng months with my eye on the prize: enjoying it after the Relay.

And good gravy, it was totally worth the wait. My spa experience started at 11:30AM with a one-hour massage by the amazing Amber. I would've very happily lapsed into a full-on coma if I hadn't had a manicure and pedicure to look forward to after. That's where the wonderful Michelle took over, giving me my first-ever manicure and first-ever pedicure (I know -- can you believe that?). My pedicure was followed by a wonderful paraffin treatment that left my tootsies as soft as a baby's behind. Three-and-a-half hours after I first arrived, I left the spa floating on air, as relaxed as I'll ever be, with my fingernails and toenails painted in an awesome blood-red shade called Wicked.

I rounded out my day by coming home and napping on the couch for a couple of hours. Once I woke up, I continued my intentional lazy streak by watching some TiVoed shows. All in all, the perfect lazy, relaxing day.

Thanks again to Rich for the perfect gift. I know it's one I look forward to treating myself to again someday.

Scene From a Marriage # 10,513

Whispered conversation while attending worship service in Iowa with the grandparents:

"Are you lip synching?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"Because I don't know Methodist hymns. If they were set to Catholic ones, I could sing along, but they're not, so I'm lip synching."

"Don't you think that's rude?"

"It'd be rude not to."

Downtown Knoxville ACS Relay for Life 2009

Song Lyric of the Day:

'Til the storms fill my eyes / And we touch the last time / I will love you, love you

Fisher / "I Will Love You"

Today’s the big day: the 2009 Downtown Knoxville American Cancer Society Relay for Life! The economy may be bad, but you can help me do some good by joining my team, the Tennessee Purple People Cancer Eaters or by making a donation to help me and my team raise funds to help fight cancer. Here in Knoxville alone, 1,673 people were diagnosed with cancer for the year ending 2006. My mom was one of them a few years ago; I walk in honor or her being a 7 ½ year breast cancer survivor. So please help me make a difference and support our community at the same time. The event starts at 7PM tonight at the World's Fair Park. It's an overnight event, but you're welcome to come by for even a fraction of the evening. The more, the merrier! And don’t let any rain we may get scare you away – most of us will be there for the whole event regardless of the weather.

If you’d like to make a donation to my team, click here. If you’d like to make a donation to my personal page, click here. Times are tough for all of us these days, which is why it's more important than ever to raise funds to help cancer patients receive the treatment and care they need. Together, we can celebrate, remember, and fight back. Thanks for your support -- this isn't just a cause for me, it's now a way of life.

RIP, Michael and Farrah

Song Lyric of the Day:

A willow deeply scarred / Somebody's broken heart / And a washed-out dream / They follow the pattern of / The wind, ya see / Cause they got no place to be

Michael Jackson / "Man in the Mirror"

Two of my childhood icons died today, Farrah Fawcett and Michael Jackson. While I'd hoped for the best in Farrah's battle against cancer, I wasn't surprised to hear she passed away; she fought the good fight but had taken a turn for the worse recently. I'm glad her suffering is over, and I will always admire her strength and courage for the brave face she wore while fighting such a horrible disease. The news of her passing this morning made my heart ache, and I found myself missing my old Charlie's Angels dolls for the first time in decades.

Getting home from work in time to hear Charles Gibson announce that when ABC World News returned they'd be "remembering Michael Jackson" absolutely floored me. I still don't think I've recovered from the shock I felt upon hearing he died from cardiac arrest at the young age of 50. Like many of my friends, I grew up on his music. I still have Thriller on vinyl, one of my seminal childhood albums I will hold on to forever. Much like this old button I also still have, I'll remember the Michael Jackson from my childhood, the talented singer who made music that thrilled all of us, particularly the little girl who lived in the cul-de-sac in that Houston neighborhood. That's how I choose to remember him tonight.