We only get once around, right?

Maybe just a liiittle more fun than I bargained for...

So I get to the WD about 10:30 p.m. People are paying for parking everywhere, but I find my usual spot behind the dumpster out back with no problemos.

I partied my ass off til about 1:15 a.m. with my boys from TJ. So I'm the ONLY one there besides ONE other girl in costume. What the hell?!?!?! There were tons of people in costume tonight on the streets of bricktown. But none of them ventured down to the WD. So needless to say, all eyes were on me. Getting free drinks rocks, by the way :)

Ok, and for the record, you try jumping off stage in 4 inch heels and let me know how you fare. The bruise on my left knee says not very well.

So 1:30 a.m. rolls around. Last call. Daisy-Girl in all her glory tabs out. A mere $11.00. Heads to the car. Tries to back out. Weird grinding sound. What could that be?? Ah hah! A note on the windshield... "You failed to pay the $5.00 parking fee, a boot has been placed on your car... call this number..." blah blah blah.

Color me pissed. There was no one taking money when I f-ing pulled in! There were no orange cones! So kiss my ass!

I called the number no less than 19 times. It was a cell phone. No one answered. I left them a lovely message. I called 911. They sent an officer right over (which was very brave of me, by the way, given my mental state...but I'm a great actor, you should know this). He says, there's nothing I can do. You're going to have to get a ride home tonight and call them in the morning. And yeah, you're right, it sucks. Well, thanks a whole hell of alot officer.

So here we are 2:30 a.m. I go back inside because Big Cody is the equivalent of my connection with the underground OKC mafia. He says the same thing though. You'll have to call them tomorrow.

What's a girl to do. TJ is packing up....

Shannon: Ahhh! I just want to kiss them!!

I know. :)

Shane: Try to call them again.

Ok...

Mark: No big deal, we can give you a ride home. You only live like 3 miles from here right?

You guys are awesome, thanks.

Poncho: (Just waking up from being passed out on stage...) Fuck that! A boot? Please.

He proceeds to kick the HELL out of the contraption constricting my front driver's side tire for about 1.5 minutes. And I'll be damned if he didn't kick that thing right off.

There ya go!

Ok, thanks guys! Poncho saved the day! I'm going home! You guys be careful going home!

So the night was a success. I didn't steal the damn boot and I left it exactly where they put it in the first place, and the wonderful OKC PD has record I tried to reach all of the parties invovled, as did they. (The officer was kind enough to call for me, as well.) Plus I left them umpteen messages and they weren't returning my call. They obviously weren't planning on a girl having Poncho Cochran on her side. Well F them anyway.

Yay! Happy Halloween!!

(P.S. Ragan, I'm supposed to tell you they want that picture on their webisite-- and they were sad you weren't there :) )

Bedlam

Gotta say I'm happy we came out on the top side this time. However, I don't really think many sooner fans can be totally satisfied with that game. Yeah we get another tally in the W category, but wow. That was waaaay too close. OSU is a great team. Add that to the fourteen points that we actually picked up the ball and ran into the endzone for them, and you'll have a football game like no other. I doubt any of us has any fingernails left after that one. And to tell you the truth, I felt sorry for the kid who had to kick the last field goal for OSU. Man, I just wanted to go up and hug him and tell him he didn't lose that game for them. I'm sorry for all my cowboy fan friends, and I'm sure as hell glad we finally got our act together enough to beat them, but I wouldn't call it a well deserved victory or a clean sweep or anything like that. The chips just barely fell in our direction this time. And they've got a red shirt Freshman quarterback who's gonna rock alotta people's worlds in the next few years.

Next weekend's gonna be even worse, I have a feeling. I'll be sitting in the student section at Kyle field in my OU gear. We'll just see if we can hang on to that one...

Tonight's drink special... Ashly's Pre-Halloween Screamer:

Vodka (any kind you like, preferrably the cheapest you can find)

Rumpleminz (suck it up, don't whine, you'll only use a little... and if you don't have any you can borrow some of mine)

Creme de Cacoa (yay chocolate!)

Skim milk

Coke (Coca cola, duh. Or pepsi. Haven't tried Dr. Pepper but that could be good too.)

Alright now mix it all together however you'd like. NO rules. It's the no rules mint chocolate bulldog martini. Less vodka and rumple is better. They'll knock you on your caboose. More milk and coke is better. Trust me you'll love it. Very smooth. Even if you're not so inclined usually, it'll make you wanna scream.

Just for the good little boys and girls...

And in honor of the 6th largest grossing holiday in the US, I'll give you a preview of Daisy Goth.

Check her out. :)

A last minute costume idea:

ABCnews.com reports:

Sex and politics mix more easily on Halloween. At a costume party at Villanova University, student Joseph Breslin sported a Ralph Nader mask while his date wore a "Vote" T-shirt and hung on his arm, carrying a bottle of wine. Together, they were a wasted vote.

Lovely. :)

And check out Bobo's comics. I love them. They are a must have on a daily basis :)

So after rolling my eyes and changing the channel no less than fifty times in the past month to avoid the ridiculously hateful campaign adds of Coburn & Carson, I decided to at least try to stomach watching some of their debate last night... if nothing else, to gain a little more clarity on where each one stood since their position on the issues has not been terribly clear throughout their campaigns. Unfortunately, about ten minutes into the thing I started to get nauseous and decided there was no right choice. Coburn came off as a pompous ass and Carson came off as very ambiguous and flustered. I don't really like either of them. I'm tempted to just do what my mom says she's doing out of protest for both campaigns and just not vote for either of them. Then Jeff reminded me the outcome of the vote is still going to effect the majority in congress. Even though I don't think the election cycle this year will change it much... but we'll see.

Thank God it's Thursday. And thank him even more that tomorrow's Friday. At 9 p.m. tonight I'm footloose and fancy free to party party party until 11 a.m. Monday morning.

CNN.com - Genetically modified cats for sale - Oct 27, 2004. What's next? I hope they don't turn out to be horrible mutants, and besides that, who's going to pay $3,500 for a cat they're not allergic to? It's like Gattica in real life. I think I'll stay with my degenerate Tucker.

What a horrible typhoon of a day. But if I must say so, my hair looks fabulous. And I'm wearing my favorite shoes. So it's still a good day. And and and! I got the last of the cabinet doors painted last night. That was quite a feat. I already feel better about it. There's just something about getting stuff done that you've been putting off forever.

I wish I had some crackers. I wish I had some grated cheese. I wish it wasn't raining so I could go to the grocery store. I want to have soup tonight but I have nothing at home to go with it. Josh says I have a bachelor fridge. And yeah, I guess he's right. I have half a gallon of milk (that expired yesterday), some spaghetti sauce, 6 slices of cheese, some butter, salad dressing, old leftovers from last week, and half a bottle of Rumpleminz. But I can't very well stock the fridge. I mean, it's just me. All that stuff would go bad. But I'm feeling very cuisine-y. Need to cook. Maybe the sun'll come out and I'll make a grocery store run. We'll see.

Who could ask for a more perfect night? Jamie Cullum in the CD player, windows open, warm full moon breeze blowing in, and painting.

Life is good.

My two new favorite songs: Blame it on my Youth, someone I used to know... and But for Now, someone I hope to know... :)

Take my advice, if you're going to drink cheap vodka... alone... or in the presence of your cat and a few random phone calls, be prepared for what follows.

I think Dave is mad at me because I wouldn't have phone sex with him the last time he called. I love you dear, but even as much as you want me to be, I'm not that kinda girl. Most of the time.

I'm dancing in my living room tonight with just my cat in my t-shirt and socks. The blinds are closed. I wish I had the nerve to open them.

Whitney and I had a conversation this blessed eve on the computer that we should have had over hand-painted daisy wine glasses filled with Tvarscki and orange juice. We're so worried about being young, fabulous, beautiful, and successful. How can we make it stop? I make it stop by dancing in my PJ's to jazz late at night and painting old cabinet doors in the intermission. I just don't want to wake up and be 40 and wonder what happened to my life. I don't think I will. I know too many people who have. And their whining gets on my nerves.

I think that's about all I have to say about that. Did anyone else notice the full moon? FYI, Jeff has a fabulous deck, fully equipped with dysfunctional Christmas lights that is absolutely perfect for nights like this. I'd give anything for a back porch or anything resembling that. Ok, not anything, but I'd like to have one.

I keep getting SPAM emails saying "My boyfriend isn't in pain anymore,"... "Help your girlfriend in pain,"... etc. etc. It's really starting to get on my LAST nerve. Gotta figure out how to block that stuff. I don't have a girlfriend. Or a boyfriend. And if I did, they sure as hell wouldn't be in pain. Hahaha.

Anyway, Tvarscki over and out. :)

Just gonna have to break down and do it...

[Ever the peacemaker, please know the following is simply my opinion. And I have wonderful friends who are staunch republicans, however misguided they may be. Haha. That was a joke.]

Why a mid-western, Baptist preacher's daughter is voting for John Kerry:

I call them common sense reasons, but you don't have to agree:

1) Call me crazy but I feel like the leader of the free world should present himself as intelligent, thoughtful, and have all the outward skills necessary for the job. People say to me, "So you're worried about appearances." When someone is representing me and my country to the rest of the word, absolutely, yes. I feel like the president of the United States should be a package deal. I don't want to have to make an either/or choice between steadfastness and determination or an intelligent presentation, or a great orator who lacks depth and intellect. If you're going to have the highest position of power in the world, it should be expected that you have it all. To quote a Fox news commentator, "I don't think people expect George Bush to be the best defender of his policies." Excuse me, if they're his policies, I absolutely expect him to be their best defender.

2) You've heard the saying, "No man is an island." Well, the US is very obviously an island at this point. Common sense in life in general says isolation is dangerous. Personally, think about situations where you could be stranded or isolated, totally alone. They're never good. I feel the same goes for our country. Going it on our own without restraint or checks and balances is arrogant at best, deadly at worst. I don't usually quote Bill Maher, but I think he's right about this, when he calls the war in Iraq, "Operation Gettaload of Us." I don't think we need permission to defend our country. However, I haven't seen any evidence, nor has the 9/11 commission, that the defense of our country had anything to do with the war in Iraq.

3) I'll carefully approach the subject of right-wing, conservative faith... This applies to the presidency as well as many other view points on the war and terrorism. I cannot for the life of me understand how people who say "God" has told them to do something, whether it's run for president (which GW said), condemn minorities and homosexuals (Mr. Falwell), etc. etc. etc., do not realize they are no different than the terrorists who flew the planes into the twin towers, the pentagon, and into the ground killing thousands of Americans. "God" was the motivation for the whole thing. We tread on very dangerous and presumptuous ground when we begin to use "God" as motivation for everything. God gave us fully functioning brains for a reason. I believe He wanted us to use them. I don't see a whole lot of that going on with the current administration.

4) Gay marriage: In some states the divorce rate for heterosexual marriages is upwards of 80%. The "Defense of Marriage Act?" Defense from what? I doubt homosexuals have inspired even a miniscule rate of those divorces. The thing that angers me the most is the fact that this administration puts a moral face on the issue, and people of faith all over the country swallow it down like Mary Poppin's spoon full of sugar. This is not about morality. Like everything else in this country, it's about money. Cold, hard cash. It's about health insurance and the cost of medical care. It's about big insurance companies who back the administration losing money on premiums on joint health coverage. I would like to pose one interesting thought to you: Up until the 1960's, segregation and prejudice were promoted and legal for moral and religious reasons. I wonder how many other issues we will be able to look back on years from now and think... how did we ever think it was ok to do that?

5) The war in Iraq: No doubt Saddam was a terrible man. He killed thousands of his own people. Action should have been taken long before 2003. Call me an idealist, but I don't think expecting flawless intelligence is too much to ask. I don't know who to blame... the intelligence gatherers, or the administration for not checking it out more thoroughly or all of the above. The premise for war was faulty at best. The American people were misled. GW's "weapons of mass destruction" were the equivalent, if not much worse than Clinton's, "I did not have sexual relations with that woman." At least Clinton was just lying about a blow job. GW's misleading little tidbit cost American soldiers their lives. Even if you throw the whole premise for war out the window... common sense says you can NOT change thousands and thousands of years of deeply ingrained, religious culture by overthrowing a dictator. We want to bring them freedom. We want to bring them democracy. People, they are an Islamic culture. The fundamentals of Islam are not based on freedom and democracy. It would be like some random country invading the US and telling us we were going to be a dictatorship and that we would like it. It would never work because our country was not founded on those principles. Get the idea? It's a losing battle.

And this is just the beginning. Contrary to how most heated political arguments end up, I don't have a problem with GW personally. He seems like he'd be a pretty cool guy to hang out with. I think his wife, Laura, is gorgeous and one of the most graceful women to inhabit the White House. I will never envy presidential children. They didn't ask for this life, and yet they have to deal with all the repercussions of it. My main #1 reason for not voting for GW is the fact that, I'll just say it, I'm scared to death. I plan to raise children in this country within the next 20 years. I want them to live in an intelligent society that has a prevalent and respected place in the world. I want them to be able to go overseas without being jeered. But most of all, I want them to be able to live and raise their own children without having to fear that another great hate crime inspired by American arrogance is just around the corner.

Two months, ten days, and about thirty feet...

once upon a time that's all that separated us. We told every person we met that we were born in the same town, in the same hospital, delivered by the same doctor, two months, ten days, and thirty feet apart from each other. That was our claim to fame. We were a team. Same babysitter, same school, same friends, same parties. Her older brother Jack was the one who told us about sex when we were 5 years old. We couldn't conceive of it and called him gross. Then we perfumed all of his GI Joe gear. Then got swats. Then went home and told our parents Jack told us where babies came from. Then he got swats. We got caught teaching each other how to kiss behind her house when we were eight. Somebody's gotta teach you, why not your best friend? We were constantly separated by our parents for talking too much during church. And I was grounded on more than one occasion for dragging her alongside me to ask mom if she could spend the night... I knew the chances were better that way. Mom couldn't say no to her face.

She always had more barbies than me. And she had the Barbie Ferrari too. When you're young, the Barbie Ferrari is everything. And her mom bought her four pairs of Jelly's. I only had one. And I had to throw a temper tantrum to get those. We got to play in her mom's makeup constantly. I just had to make sure all of it was off by the time my parents came to pick me up. Jack was constantly pissed off because we locked him out of the bathroom. I talked her into making some phone calls while our moms were having a garage sale. Asking people if their refrigerators were running was the funniest thing in the world. We laughed for hours. Until we got caught.

I got an email tonight. She's getting married in December. She found a boy at Bible college, just finishing his Master's in theology, just got accepted to the PhD program for theological studies. She's in grad school, studying to be a missionary. Hopes to be in the Czech Republic with him starting churches a year from now. Her main praise of him is that he does Bible studies and prays with her. He's a great musician she says. He sounds alot like her dad. She has two little sisters I barely even know. After she and Jack reached high school, their parents started all over again and had two baby girls. And I wouldn't recognize Angey on the street if I saw her. Or maybe I would. It's crazy how much things change.

Two people set out on the exact same path in the same environment with the same advantages. One picks what is set before her. The other chooses the path with the unclear destination. Our parents, who basically grew up together themselves, haven't spoken in years. Time changes things. Petty things become important and eventually the fire dies and we can't remember the color of the blanket that put it out. Once in a while it crosses our minds, but we don't even know where to start. Maybe an email. Maybe a wedding invitation. And it makes me wish that we were only two months, ten days, and thirty feet apart again.

Never was there more exquisitely perfect bubble bath music as Mr. Jamie Cullum. I downloaded his CD this afternoon and it hasn't come out of the CD player yet. He's the new, young Harry Connick Jr. Just makes you wanna be in love. Throw caution to the wind and say, "Maybe I'll fall in love, that'll solve it all," while walking through the park, snapping my fingers on a blustery autumn day, daydreaming about meeting some mysterious stranger on a crowded sidewalk in New York and spending the whole day doing nothing but drinking mochas and holding hands and saying, "Later on I'll need to know you much more, but for now I'll just say I love you."

Oh God. Must take it out of the CD player. OK, I will, but not until after I light the vanilla tea lights, soak in the bubbles for a while, and have a few quiet moments of wonderful introspection.

Monday is over. :)

I've got a super bad case of the deletes. I think it's been 3 posts in 2 days that didn't make it to the front page.

I think over-think things.

Ah hah! If you would have been paying attention you could have seen a top secret post going on the top secret blog. That's the disadvantage of BlogThis! Sometimes you post things on Daisy-Girl.net for the world to see, that don't really belong there. Luckily I caught it in time. You gotta be fast to catch this one :)

Another blanket apology

Good LORD. First off I'd like to say I'm sorry to the randomly selected individuals that I woke up Sunday morning around 2 a.m. Blame WD Jeff. I was just sitting there minding my business and kept feeling a tap tap tap on my shoulder. I would turn around to find a shot of rumpleminz in front of me on the bar and Mr. King grinning from ear to ear.

Grrrrreat show. Roger Clyne. Pure hotness. I was up front for a little while, til I kept having to pee and got tired of fighting the crowd all the way back to the stage. So I settled in with Robert, Andy & Jeff at the bar. Good times. I spent alot of Sunday sending messages apologizing for an overwhelming case of the drunk dials. One of them got me back this morning, bright and early at 6:30 a.m. I deserved it. Gotta love my friends.

Anyway, gotta lot to do today. Debating on whether or not to go to class tonight. I know I should, but I just kinda don't wanna. We'll see.

That's Mistress Stewart to you!

So, being awake (and alone) at 4 a.m. has it's perks. I got this fabulous idea to make my Halloween skirt. And oh boy. So this morning I made a special trip to Hancocks. When I made it up to the front counter and laid the shiny black vinyl and metal studs on the counter top, the lady looked at me and quipped, "What exactly are you making?"

A skirt.

She promptly lowered her reading glasses, looked straight down the tip of her nose, and in her best church lady voice said, "O Kaaay."

Please lady, you have no idea.

An afternoon and two great football games later, I have a 13 inch shiny black vinyl skirt with 7 inch slits up both sides lined with metal studs. (I'm wearing a table cloth.) But I'll be damned if it's not a dead sexy S&M table cloth.

One pair of come-hither knee high boots and I'll be ready to go.

Dancing on the Dark Side...

1 fabulous black satin corset. Check.
1 pair of equally fabulous thigh high fishnets. Check.

Now for the rest of the outfit... that will be my Friday. I'm obviously very excited about Halloween this year. Why you ask? Because I get to celebrate it two days in a row. The official outing is Saturday night to the WD where my boyfriends will croon with the best of the 80's and flat out rock and freakin roll
all
night
long.

Then Sunday it's off to Tulsa for another rock n roll Halloween party. Let me just say this about dressing up. I love it. You get to be someone totally different and you can blame it on the costume. So for two nights next weekend, all bets are off. Consider yourself warned.

So Daisy Girl will be just a little less daisy those nights in her tight, perfectly fitting, black, satin corset, which by the way was just a smidge hard to find because of the fact that, let's just face it, corsets are meant to make your boobs look bigger. And... ahem... no problems in that department here. And as for the fishnets, I let the lady talk me into thigh highs because as she says, "Even if no one sees them, you'll know you're wearing thigh high fishnets. And that's all that matters."

I'm thinking mini skirt, knee high boots, matching spiked choker and bracelet and we'll be good to go. Except for the hair. Where might one come across a reasonably priced black wig? Ideas?

P.S. I'm going to need someone to lace me up... any volunteers?

Ok so the boredness from work has lowered me to searching the www for some more interesting bloggers. I swear to cheese and rice people, there are so many political blogs out there. ENOUGH already!! It's not like we all don't have cable and aren't addicted to CNN already! This only proves my theory that I need to talk about sex more in my blog. I think sex is basically the only thing that can offset politics. At least for me anyway :)

But I did find this delightful little blog,The Happy Freaking Ray of Goddamn Sunshine. I dig his comics. And his posts. Just another reason I've gotta get to NYC ASAP.

So I looked online for last minute ordering options for a Halloween costume and no dice. Man the sexy school girl costumes are EVERYWHERE. Unfortunately, I have no desire to replicate the whole Britney Spears nightmare so I'll have to opt for something else. Looks like tomorrow's going to be spent hunting down these items:

1 black corset
1 black mini skirt (with metal accents, preferably safety pins or chains)
1 pair of fabulous fishnet stockings
1 pair of knee high black boots
1 kick ass black wig (unless I get a wild hair to go ebony semi-permanently)

Finally, I get to fulfill my dream of being a goth girl. This is going to be a great Halloween.

Daisy Girl is not feeling too ontop of her game this morning. I woke up at the very last possible second and decided that a ponytail was the way to go. And besides that, my tummy hurts... and I can't really figure out why except for maybe it might have something to do with the minimal food I ate yesterday and the maximal intake of wine last night :) But it's all good, nonetheless.

Eshopping for a Halloween costume for a big party in Tulsa next Sunday with Miss Maroline. Flesh will abound. She's going as the dark and sexy Black Diamond girl from the KISS song. Watch out... Maroline and Daisy Girl are coming back with a vengeance... the last time this happened, the boys paid dearly...

Check it out yo.

Just because I graduated from college I get 20% off at IHOP on Classen. Wooo hooo!! And I got a handy dandy magnet and an official alumi sticker for my car. I AM the embodiment of OCU pride. And for my intellectual contribution to their fine educational establishment, I also get many other assorted discounts including free drinks, oil changes, and hair cuts.

Everybody should graduate from OCU.

So it seems Oklahoma is in some pretty bad shape. I'm doing research for a $600,000 grant that is going to be turned in on November 1st. And guess what, Oklahoma is well over the national average on reported cases of all STD's except HIV/AIDS. And try this on for size... 39% of the entire population of the state either lives below the poverty line or is considered "low income." And the majority of that 39% is caucasian. So really bad numbers for the state=really good numbers for me. It's like guaranteed grant money.

And apparently people are feeling the situation around these parts because a large majority of the people I know have plans to leave the state in the next 1-3 years. You know, the grass is always greener...or at least less itchy.

OK that was bad, sorry.

So this is what happens when you get married.

Now I get it. I've just recently started noticing how things change in relationships. I know they say love is blind, and I think to a certain degree that's true. It's funny to think back to a time when you felt like you were in love and think about certain situations and how amazing they were. And now when you're in those same situations you're just like, Ugh, you're getting on my nerves. How bad is that? How do you keep that from happening? Or is it inevitable?

And I also think it's hilarious how guys can go for years, literally, without even one second of emotional expression but still think they love you. And for most girls I know, if we haven't told you we love you lately, you're probably SOL. Sorry. I'm beginning to think we're more different than I thought.

The nature of the beast: Man, this job gets emotional sometimes. But I suppose this is why I'm here... for the tough times.

I had a girl lose one of her preemie twins this week. It doesn't matter how prepared you are... the right words are never there, so I've just decided it's better to listen.

So apparently, if you're a kid in Russia and your parent's beat you because you're flunking out of school, it's ok to, oh... let's say...shoot them in the head. It's cool, cuz you're a minor. I mean, really... you can't just have parents walking around beating their kids for flunking out of school. You know what I say, too much Vodka... those damn Ruski's.

Ok, so sorry for the boring geek speak, but I'm trying to figure out how to transfer all my files to the new laptop... it doesn't have a 3 1/2 drive and the desktop doesn't have a cd burner.... HELP!

Other than that, my day is just one big ball of stress and putting out fires. Seems like everybody's got someting traumatic going on lately. Except me... at least for now ;)

Happy Tuesday!

And the iTunes addiction begins...

Something old, something new, something borrowed, something... STFU!!!

What an interesting weekend I had. Finally, the guest room got put to use. And I've come to the conclusion that I like it when someone else is sleeping in my house with me. It just feels better. But I hate having a roommate... so this is a quandary. Oh well.

"So, are you seeing anybody?"

I answered this question asked by nosey church people no less than ten times this weekend. Is this something that is exclusive to girls, or do guys have to deal with this as well? I had a million sarcastic quips fired up and ready to go, but I went with my better judgment and didn't let em rip. I wanted to say:

"Yes, as a matter of fact I am seeing someone. He's gorgeous, fabulous, and rich. We're in love and we're going to be together forever... but man, his wife is such a bitch!"

Or...

"Yes, and I've gotta get home because I'm pretty sure he's sitting on my couch smokin all my weed."

Or...

"Yes, and she's the most incredible lover I've ever had."

But I didn't. I resigned myself to freaking outlining my whole game plan for my life over the next five years. This really bothers me because I felt like I had to make up for the fact that I'm not in the process of securing a ring on my finger at this point. Maybe I should just take mom's advice and say, "How rude of you to ask such a personal question. That's none of your business." (I love my mom.)

So anyway, changing subjects... you early morning working people will be glad to know that I've decided I have it really good not having to be at work til 10ish every morning (except Fridays when I don't have to be there period). So I've decided even getting up at 8 is sleeping in for some people, so I'm going to start waking up at 8, working out at OCU til 9 (cuz it's indoors, and it's free, and they have fabulous elliptical trainers), and then making it to work around 10. I did it this morning and I already feel better. It's amazing what a little sweat can do :) So no more sleeping in. It's making me lazy.

There's nothing like a little girl time...

Pinky called me up about 10:30 p.m. to vent about a certain situation that had occurred during the course of her day. And after about fifteen minutes on the phone we decided a night on the town was in order. We hit the Belle Isle Brewery first. And it's funny all the things you can use cocktail napkins for. I discovered this morning that I had a whole stack of them folded in my purse with the most entertaining things written on them... things most guys who know us would pay cold, hard cash to see. So they're going to have to be destroyed for sure. So after our "last drink" we headed to the car and she says, "Let's call Kevin!" So we did. And of course, he wasn't sitting at home saving money :) So we head to the Dog where I was pleasantly surprised to see Stoney was playing. (I haven't been keeping up with the calendar lately.) And low and behold Mr. Jones was there as well. Good times all around. So after "one more" drink, it was closing time. Kevin and Chad headed off to the Dorman hacienda, Whit and I headed back to my house where Ryin and his roommate were going to meet us after a pitstop at IHOP. Well about 2:30 Whitney passed out in the chair and I sent Ryin a message saying that we were going to bed. So I get a message back saying that some stripper's husband had pulled a gun on someone at IHOP and they were stuck and couldn't get out. Drama drama drama. You pretty much can't win with IHOP's after midnight. The one on Meridian is usually full of drunk south side trash and the one on Classen is hip hop ghetto central come 2a.m. But fortunately both Ryin and his roommate seem to have escaped the situation unscathed. It just goes to show you that you never know what can happen on a seemingly unsuspecting night in OKC.

And now I have a headache that won't go away.

Everybody have a fabulous Monday.

Lazy lazy Saturday... almost.

Except I had to wake up at 7:45 this morning to meet a youth group at work... it was sweet. They brought us a bunch of baby clothes and diapers and sorted through the stuff and put it away in the back where we keep everything. I forgot how much fun junior high kids are. Their leader introduced me, then I said, "If you have any questions about where to put stuff, I'm your woman." And this curly headed fourteen year old boy in true Austin Powers form, winked his eye, cocked his head, pointed his finger at me and said, "Yes you are." Everybody got a good laugh outta that one.

But other than that I've done nothing but take a nap and watch movies. Finally watched Godsend. Good flick. We'll see what the night holds. I'm feelin kinda frisky. :)

I wasn't planning on doing anything tonight... but it's such a pretty day, I might be changing my mind... hmmm...

Ok. I have something to admit. For some reason I always have epiphanies on the long drive home from school.

Another thing I realized last night is that I have become a bit of a snob in at least one area of my life. You see, in my Thursday night class, there are a group of 4 girls who sit in front of me. They always come dressed to the hilt, with matching heels and bags, and in full makeup. They're the kind of girls that have smiles plastered on their faces no matter what, all the time, 24 hours a day, but won't necessarily talk to you if you're not willing to talk about the job they have at their Fortune 500 Corporation.

I sit between a girl who is a trainer in the athletic department and in school for sports medicine who does the most recent issue of the crossword puzzle for the duration of class, and a girl who who has spent most of her secondary and post secondary education being an advocate for battered women and children. I love them both and all three of us seem to get along famously. I seem to spend most of the class looking at those girls with the huge rocks on their fingers, their designer bags and shoes and think 2 things: 1) You're selling your soul to the cubicle god with every day that passes and you don't even care, and 2) why are you here? Because on a nightly basis we are discussing social problems and the pitfalls of every aspect of the welfare and child protection system. Sure, we need their help in these areas just as much as anyone's, but they don't strike me as the type who would be willing to even for a minute get their hands dirty.

And then part of me thinks, well, they're here for a reason, it must be to learn. I shouldn't be so presumptuous of people. But I'm just being honest. I hope I'll give them a chance in the future to demonstrate that they're not just filling seats or joining in discussions to check off a good deed for the day.

Enjoy getting there as much as being there. -Sabrina Ward Harrison

So tonight was really the first cold night I've experienced this fall. This time of the year always makes me sentimental and sometimes a little sad, I guess because some of the best memories from my "formative years" happened around this time of year. I've just recently, as in about an hour ago, acknowledged the fact that I don't deal well with change. This came as kind of a shock to me as I've always prided myself on being pretty flexible. But I realized tonight I always (in my mind at least) come back to the same thing... every time.

And I suppose this is part of growing up... recognizing these things and seeing them for what they are... 100% pure fear.

You move past it. You step out just a little and gets easier with every step after that. It always does. And what boggles my mind is that I know this. And I go through the same thing every time. Will I ever learn? Just don't sweat it. Let it be. So I'm going through the process again. And maybe someday I won't have to do this anymore.

So. The time has come to start yet another anonymous blog. I've deleted my journal from the face of the earth. That's the great thing about blogs. When they get too cumbersome or too painfully traumatic/dramatic to go back and read, you just gotta click the delete button.

Out with the old, in with the new.

So a new blog is in order. Everybody should do it. Just start one and tell all the sensationally slutty stories you can muster up. You may gain a following but you'll never know it. At least I won't. And only my deepest darkest will be out there.

So if you happen to stumble onto a confessional blog that starts to sound a little familiar... it's not me. You wouldn't recognize it from a mile away. :)

Where's my girl Pinky when I need her. Girl talk has become invaluable to me as of late. And no one does it better than she.

Speaking of girl talk, I got to spend some QT with my mom on the phone last night. She's so cute. I swear she's reverted to being 13 again. She's met this guy and they talk for 3 or 4 hours every night on the phone. How does she have time for this? Well, I'm just glad she seems happy. I thought that ordeal she went through a few months ago was going to be the death of her. Literally. But as they say, you always have to remember things change. If they're bad right now, just wait around a little bit, it'll change. And vice versa. I suppose it's hard to see that right in the middle of something crappy though.

Anyway, family ties. Alex P. Keaton. I miss my lil sis. I asked her when she's coming home. She said Never. But I think never means Thanksgiving.

Anyway, I guess that's all I have to say today. I feel like I'm sleepwalking. I don't know how I'm going to make it til 9p.m. fully functional. But I'll give it my best.

I just generally feel like crap today.

I knew today was gonna be this way when I woke up about 4 a.m. this morning and remembered I have a volunteer who's birthday is today and I forgot to pick her up a present and a card. Gotta leave the house early and do that before work. So I settle on a Panera gift card because it's close to my house. I was in Panera for 20 minutes. They couldn't get the gift card activated and apparently it was the middle of the breakfast rush. I'm glad to know I'm not the only person who eats breakfast between 9 and 10 a.m.

Not to mention I woke up this morning with a sore throat and the back of my neck hurting. **not good** This better NOT be the flu. So I've spent most of the day complaining about how everything sounds like it's underwater. Wha wha wha. Don't you feel sorry for me??!!??

Then I got a call from a volunteer who wants to spend the day going over some things for a grant tomorrow. Love her to death but she sucks the life right out of me...

Sometimes I think people get involved with this organization to get a break from their 3 year olds at home... and it ends up taking up most of my day.

Damn Ashly. You are in an EXCELLENT mood today! AND I gotta go to some missions fair at church tonight. And miss penny beer. And the last debate.

The weekend CAN'T get here fast enough.

Ok, this is funny.

My personal favorite is an answer to #4: "Fear of murder by a missionary."

Oh to be young again...

for some really weird reason this boy named Paul popped into my head the other day. The last time I saw him I was in seventh grade. He used to follow me around at church. It was kinda creepy. I remember being in rehearsals for a musical and he would peek in the window in the door and then when I looked up he would run off. It was very strange. One day he even called my house and hung up on me. I wouldn't have even known it was him except one of his friends called me back and said it was. I told him I didn't like him. He cried. I remember that. That was probably mean of me, huh. But I couldn't help it. I was in love with a red headed boy named Trent. But he was just a rebound from my fifth and sixth grade true love of all times named James, who I swear today is the spittin' image of Ben Affleck. Damn.

Chris, Cody, Josh, and Josh #2 (and a whole host of crushes like Kevin, Joe, and Toney) all followed suit. Poor Paul.

Rock My Big Blue World

I'm feeling conflicted this morning... I've got to order Christmas party invites and when I know people in the industry I always feel guilty when I contribute to the competition's cause. Case & point, I let my subscription to Relevant run out because I felt like I was personally affecting Ryin's income. :) So Pinky, if you have any suggestions and you can get them to me before noon, we'll be in business. As it stands, I'm leaning toward Paper Style.

So flipping through the channels last night trying to wind down before bed about midnight, I ran across a documentary about the Vote for Change concert tour on the Sundance channel. It was like 5 hours long so I didn't watch all of it, but they've got some huge names out there. It's people like Bruce Springsteen, Michael Stipe, Dave Matthews, John Mellencamp, Jack Johnson, and about a zillion more. And this is a little different from the MTV push for people to just generically vote. These guys (and girls) are being very vocal about their stance on American politics. It was kind of cool to see... even if you don't totally agree with what they're saying. It's almost a throw back to the sixties, the revolution, and the Summer of Love. So before those of you who are hard edged republicans run to your ipods and erase all of these artists songs, think about the fact that after years and years of complacency and complete apathy, at least people are beginning to feel some sense of personal social responsibility. And isn't that what being American is about?

Raise your hand if... you've ever had some so good it makes your tummy feel funny just thinking about it...

So Ragan and I have been talking about boys and the inherent awkward nature of first dates. It's an interesting topic. (Not that Ragan's ever had a first date with a boy, but he's a good sounding board nonetheless.)

He says that boys in their own element do much better than in just some random place like a restaurant or movie theater. Otherwise they just get nervous and keep thinking they hope they say the right things and don't screw things up too badly. So my question is, why all the stress?

I suppose there are several answers to that question. We all want to be liked. So we want to put our best foot forward, especially with a new person. But I think most guys should know, women aren't that complicated, at least at first glance. We can tell within the first two or three minutes whether or not it's going to be a short evening... So basically if you don't make a massive screw up in the first couple of minutes, you're home free. And what would a massive screw up be? Ummm maybe telling her your mom wants you home by midnight... or.... telling her she reminds you of your ex girlfriend who got a VPO against you... things of that nature.

The only horror story I have of a really bad first date was about six years ago when I agreed to meet a friend of a friend for lunch one day. He sounded nice enough. I showed up and it was like Eminem reincarnated. He was this cute little blond boy who prided himself on his massive amounts of "bling" and was an avid hip hop fan. There's nothing wrong with that, mind you, but it's not my game. So at the end of lunch he discovers he's left his wallet at home. Uhhh, ok. So I covered lunch. And never talked to him again.

So I guess my thing is just try to appear normal and act interested in her. If you want to score major points right off the bat, just be considerate and thoughtful, holding doors, buying drinks, etc. Deep down every girl wants to know that you can take care of her, even if she doesn't come out and say it. So if you do those things, don't worry about massively screwing things up, because even if for some unforeseen reason you do botch things, she'll probably forgive you :)

Today is a good day...

I get a new PC and my new SWH book is on the way!

And the Oscar for Best Drama goes to...

What a freakin' weekend. Where do I even begin... let's start Thursday evening about 9 p.m. The fundraising totals were in, my heels were off, and life was good. Whitney Ann and I met at Flips for a glass of wine, or two, or a couple of martinis... ok all of them. And we had some stimulating conversation, as always.

Friday I spent a couple of hours at the office tieing up loose ends from the previous evening and about 9 p.m. I headed to the Dog for Texas Jack and Vince Neil. Much to my chagrin, when I entered the door promptly at 9 p.m. Texas Jack was already playing. I didn't think they'd start til 10:30 or so, so I'm glad I showed up early. They played an incredible set full of eighties rock and a few kick ass originals. I love those guys. At 10:45 Vince took the stage and we rocked out with our respective parts out for about an hour and fifteen minutes and the party was over by midnight. Interesting conversations ensued during the course of the evening. It was a great time... but I hope they learned a lesson about the turn out when charging $25 for tickets. That place should have been sold out... and it was such a party, I wish more of my friends could have been there.

Saturday afternoon brought a whole lot of sleep and football. I was happy to see both Oklahoma teams won, ensuring the city would be in a party mood in the night to come. About 8 p.m. there's a knock at my door. Who could it be? A very very VERY drunk ex boyfriend! Who else?! He was decked out in his sooner gear, hadn't eaten in 48 hours and had been drinking for about the past 24 pretty solid. Honestly, I don't know how he was driving. But it ended up being the same experience as always, we chit chat about nothing for about 5 minutes, then he picks a fight with me, then he starts yelling and telling me how much he loves me and how we're going to be together someday yada yada yada (think Jake Gyllenhall's character in "The Good Girl"). Very melodramatic. I can't help but laugh. And that just makes it even worse, of course. But finally I ushered him out the door and crossed my fingers he'd be safe on the way home.

Then it was off to Pearl's to meet Jeff for seafood and drinks. We had very interesting conversation then headed to the Hi Lo Club to meet some of his friends. And I can literally hear the comments now. But seriously, if you've never been, you've gotta go. There's just something about a gay bar/bar with a large gay patronage that is inherently fun. And the whole speakeasy history of the place is fascinating. The night ended up with more drunken conversations about politics and poetry, namely my problems with TS Eliot. And I have to apologize because sometimes the liquor starts talking and things tend to come out wrong and I maybe, possibly, tend to blow things out of proportion. So just to put a blanket disclaimer out there... even if I don't like your favorite author, it's still possible I think you could be an incredible person :) Regardless of what I say after about 7 glasses of wine.

So Sunday has been nothing but rain and sleeping. And now it's bathtub and more of the same. Monday promises to be good... and I have to return to school this week... after a week off I'm starting to question this whole grad school thing...

Not really.

Close freakin call.

"The storm" f'd up my cable box and apparently I'm one out of hundreds that can only be fixed by the cable guy actually coming out here to fix it...on Sunday. Luckily the guy said I could bypass the box and go straight into the TV from the wall and still get all the lower channels. It's a good thing because he would have gotten himself a major ass chewing if I had to bring up the fact that not only would I miss the 2nd round of the presidential debates this evening BUT also the mecca of college football that begins around 11 tomorrow morning.

It took a minute to figure out how to program my TV since the remote only works the cable box, but luckily I fixed it and I think this time it turned out better than the wire crossing experiment with my stereo.

Par-Tay tonight. Debauchery abounds.

Well it's over. And it was a success. We raised more money in one night than in any other night in the 15 year history of the organization.

The 3 inch heels were massively sassy but now I feel like one of those chinese women who've had their feet surgically altered to make them smaller. And it's not a comfortable feeling. I guess that's the price you pay to be cute.

So I have to do a little work tomorrow on my usual day off. Oh well. It's worth it, because tomorrow night... the party's ON. It's the official birthday celebration and my good friend Vince was kind enough to say he'd join in the festivities along with my boy's Texas Jack. You should come out for the party. Everybody else is doing it.

Peace out homie G.

So I'm thinking 3 inch snappy black heels won't be too over the top... yeah, I'll be 6' tall but I chalk it up to having a commanding presence. And that's what it's all about, right?

Stress does not do a body good.

The sneezing and sniffling has commenced once again. This is a problem seeing as how I have to be ontop of my game for approximately 36 more hours. So bring on the vitamin C.

And I'm taking half the day off to get some stuff done that I can't get done at the office. Sometimes you just need quiet. And sometimes you just need to go shopping. So that's my day.

Bring on the weekend!!!

Ok. So. Last night I was laughing and telling Whitney about how I found myself sounding strangely like Bob Barker when I was filling out the silent auction sheets for the fundraiser Thursday night... they were beginning to sound like... Your perfect night out begins with a limo ride from millennium limousines which will pick you up at your home and take you to spend yooouuurrr.... $50 in gift certificates to your favorite Hal Smith restaurant!! But I hope you packed a bag because after dinner you will be whisked away for an enchanted evening at.... the Montford Inn Bed & Breakfast!!!

It was quite amusing. I was just looking for the opportunity to say, "It's a brand new car!" Whitney says just for laughs I should get one of those tall skinny microphones with the long cord and do my Bob Barker bit on stage. Uh no. Ashly is not a comedian. So I spent most of the day making a rather humorous powerpoint show with the price is right theme promoting all of our silent auctions, complete with pictures of Bob, Rod, & the girls, and a very nice 1974 orange background. I figure if I'm gonna make them cry during my program with sob stories of things that happen at work, I should make them laugh during dinner. Then they better whip out the checkbooks baby. Momma needs $$ to pay for a vacation.

Anyway, that's my Tuesday. The birthday festivities continue this evening and I'll be damned if I don't stop and get a bottle of wine on the way home.

Ok so it's way late on a Monday night and given my circumstances and my stress level this week I should definitely be in bed. But alas, the fairy princess of all things vodka and orange juice landed on my door step and we had a fabulous evening of creativity and brainstorming. It was a perfect way to end the fabulous day that was my birthday. By the end of the day, all the important people had emailed, called, or let me know in some other manner that they remembered it was my birthday. So I'd say it was a success.

It's been said that lately my blog has leaned more toward the surface details of the illustrious Daisy Girl existence and away from the usual deep thoughts and quandaries. My first response is that my deep thoughts (or maybe just revealing them) went out the door with a boy I loved who, sadly, and as happens sometimes, could not love me back. So give me a few and I'll bounce back. That's what Daisies do. :) And fall is always my spring so no worries!

My poor kitty is licking the bottom of his empty bowl and eating crumbs off the floor. He's starving. That makes me sad. And then I realize he's all of a good 18 pounds. He'll be ok.

Onward through the fog!

What a crazy day. I had a feeling it would be this way though. I stole 2 minutes alone to write this blog. It seems like there are 10 people asking me for things all at the same time at a pretty constant pace...

The phone's ringing off the hook. This is a good thing though. Lot's of well wisher's. :) And I awoke this morning to birthday emails from two of my best girls from way back. It makes me happy that no matter how much time and distance separates you, some things never change. It makes me wanna have a slumber party this weekend to celebrate and order pizza and watch movies and prank call the boys. But maybe I'll just settle for Vince Neil on Friday night and the Copa on Saturday night! Yes, that's right... The Copa, Copa Cabana... sing along! Holler! I missed the opportunity to celebrate with my girls...um, yeah girls... Kindra and Jamie this weekend so we're going to celebrate the passage of many years from childhood to adulthood, mine today, Kindra's Wednesday, this weekend with a ritualistic ceremony involving many lights, much dancing, and strange beverages, surrounded by butch boys in leather chaps and dog collars.

Woooo hooooOOO! Just like old times.

Everybody have a great Ashly's Birthday. :)

Year #24

I'm craving sunlight today. I slept in the bat cave until 2 p.m. today. (It was kind of a late night.) I got lost in Guthrie on the way home last night. Apparently I don't follow directions very well. I was on all kinds of dark, gravel roads.... and after driving past that creepy abandoned children's hospital, I was having all kinds of Texas Chainsaw Massacre-ish visions. But I finally found a sign that said "35" and I was home free.

So I need sunlight today. Today is my last official day on earth to be twenty-four years old. I think that's cause for reflection. The girl who cut my hair yesterday asked me how old I was going to be. I told her twenty-five. She said, "Oh. Are you ok with that?" (She's twenty, mind you.) And I said, " Are you kidding? Twenty-five sounds great. I guess some people have a hard time with it, but I think twenty-five still feels young and inexperienced to me. So it just feels like a step in the right direction for me."

And that's the truth. I have learned so much in my 24th year. And I probably say that every year and it's so cliche, but it's accurate. I think 23 was a huge year of movement and discovery for me. And 24 was learning that those things aren't permanent to learning to try to transition gracefully. It didn't always happen, but I did make an effort. When I think of 24 I think of lots of losing and letting go. It sounds kind of sad but I think that's a good summarization of my year, at least partially. I had to let go of some really important relationships in my life and hold onto the good things they gave me and realize I'm better for those things. I had to learn how to make the best of uncomfortable situations and learn that even though things may appear outwardly changed and a bit more distant, history and past can never be erased. And I'm still my dad's first daughter, no matter what.

Some great things happened too. Exactly one year ago, I celebrated turning 24 at the WD. That was just about 2 weeks after I met some of you reading this blog right now :) It was a good night. Tequila was abundant. (As you can see.) I've met some incredible people... people who will always be a part of the stories I tell the grandkids about grandma's party days. So just know you'll never be forgotten.

This year was also an incredible year of opportunity and of new beginnings. There is a certain point in time where you start to feel like you're "growing up." And by that I mean that you feel like you're starting to do things you always wanted to do when you "grew up." The doors start opening and you finally have the courage to walk through them. I hope that twenty-five will be more of the same. I know one thing I'm going to have to work on for sure: pinning my self-worth on the outcomes of things I have no control over. But at the same time, I can step back and look at my life and where I feel like I am, and I'm totally amazed and feel like I can't take credit for it because I don't really know how it happened. Either way, it will be a learning experience.

So for all of you who walked through 24 with me, and you know who you are, thank you. There was much craziness but you stuck it out none the less. Maybe in 25 I can give more back to you for what you've given me. And I love you all.

Live well and be happy.

And come out and party with me this weekend!!

Hahahhahahahhahaha!!

I just got a letter from OBU asking me to come back and play in the 2004 alumni basketball game. Yeah, that was 6 years and 40 pounds ago... before I quit running miles and miles every day and before I got a nice cushy sit down job. I couldn't run down a court to save my life right now.

But thanks for the thought...

So I'm just up inbetween naps right now. I stayed up til 4 a.m. fighting with Dave and listening to Tall Josh's 3 hour long story about the psycho chick he pressed assault and battery charges on and got a VPO against. Man, some girls just don't know when to stop. That gets kinda scary. I told him he better check his closets before he goes to bed just in case.

Today is my total couch potato day. For the last three days I've felt like I was on speed running around so fast and stressed out I could barely finish one thing before going to the next. So today is nappy time and appreciating my very last weekend being 24. :)

I figure I'll just put this out there...

I need a web designer who wouldn't mind getting a pretty hefty tax write off this year, and who wouldn't mind designing a small, informative website for a non-profit....

[I feel like the maid on Mary Poppins: The position has been filled. :)]