Friends coming in

Our friends Katy, Chance, and their little boy Dash will be coming to see us next weekend (Labor Day weekend) And, I am off Monday and Tony is off all weekend! woo hooooo I can't wait!

Now if I can just find some things to do this weekend to keep myself from pure BOREDOM, we will be ok! (Tony works all weekend)

Is this for real?

Frustration of the day ( I know this is becoming a recurring theme of my blog, but good lord I just get frustrated with some things)

http://www.kltv.com/global/story.asp?s=10933571

This is a story about how all Texas public schools will now be required to teach the Bible. I haven't done enough thorough research to see if this is truly accurate but I will take this story at face value.

My reaction : Are you freaking kidding me? Will they be teaching Judaism? Buddhism? Islam? Hinduism? Or any of the other major religions practiced in the U.S., and in Texas for that matter?

No, just Christianity. I do not see this as something that should be tought in PUBLIC schools. Ugh

Article...

If you are at all interested in the healthcare debate, read this:

http://www.slate.com/id/2224938/pagenum/all/#p2

It is my opinion, that regardless of whether you agree with the Obama Admin's views on healthcare reform or not, it is useless and barbaric for mediagogs, on either extreme, to put out rumors and horrible things that are NOT true. I believe that people should make informed decisions based on facts and decide for themselves what they think is right, but no, our country is made up of people who want someone else to decide for them. So, they turn to the cracked out neo cons on Fox News, or even worse, Rush, and they believe every word. That would be like me listening to Left talk on Sirius for ALL my news and developing my opinions based solely on whatever they say. Ridiculous, yes? YES.

Ok, I am rambling, but this is what I abhor about politics in the U.S today. Noone wants to do some research, like ohhh I dont know, read the freaking proposed bills yourself instead of listening to some talking head tell you what MIGHT be on it. If you are going to accuse the president of being a socialist, or an effing Nazi for crying out loud, why don't you do some research on what those terms MEAN before you take it and run with it. mmmmk?

More good news...

I got a raise this week! Totally didn't expect it - I haven't even been there a year yet... but I certainly did not turn it down!

A slight change in the wind..

So, not many people really know this, because I don't tell every detail of my life to even my closest friends... I guess I am kind of a private person. But anyways, the last few months, since December actually have been pretty rough. Tony's work has been on a downhill slope. It just kept getting worse and worse.... After all was said and done, Tony and his boss had to lay off 17 guys, some of which were close friends. Tony's salary was cut by 5 %, then 5 % again, and his commision was cut by 20 %, and then a month later, another 20 %. THEN they cut 401k matching and some other crap too. You know, recession. That's how it goes. Well, we always say Tony's dad must be watching out for us because we always come through things, and I guess this is no different. A year ago when we moved here Tony was making a very good amount of money. More than we ever thought. I am SO glad we did not see that raise in income, move up here and buy a 300,000 dollar house or something and just go CRAZY. For some reason we kept our heads on straight, not forseeing the recession or anything that was to come.

Thank GOD. Well, we have made it through all the paycuts, the budgeting and the thinking OMG there is NOTHING in savings anymore... Time to ignore that and just pay the bills! But we are still ok, we can still pay all our bills and eat and have a little tiny bit left over. So it really hasn't been that bad, but it's just frustrating when you move somewhere for something that is supposed to be SO great and it just slaps you in the face.

Ok, to the point. We got word yesterday that Tony's company, Newpark, picked up 9 more rigs. This is REALLY good news. Not only does that mean more work and more commision for Tony, but he gets to hire back 2 of the really hard working guys that they let go a couple of months ago, who STILL had not found work yet. This also means we can breathe a sigh of relief and not spend every waking second worrying about saving, spending, BLAH BLAH. (Ok, so the worrying is more me than Tony, he has no idea about the money or budget lol)

I will say that I am very grateful for this past year. It has taught us how to be practical with our money, and we were SHOCKED at how much we couuld do with what we thought was so little. I had to remind Tony several times of the small amount of money we made it on when we were first married lol. Somehow you always forget those things.... and it is easy to get caught up in it all, to want the new cars and the stupid crap that piles up in your house for God knows what reason. It just becomes a bunch of bullshit, and it is easy to do that.

I am glad we didn't get there. I am glad we are finally at a place where we have our heads on straight as far as our finances go, and that Tony's work situation is looking up again. He certainly deserves it, he has worked his butt off since the day we were married. I am so proud of him.
And that is the end of that rambling mess ,lol.
Now, time to celebrate!! Too bad all of our friends up here have little kids and can't go out.... ;)

Update on the car situation.....

So, there is apparently nothing wrong with the car.

Acura ran a full check and sent us all the paperwork that had ever been filed on the car, and there was NO sign of ANYthing. We also had our friend who has worked in used cars in Tyler for years run the VIN and he found nothing. Then, we took it to the other Acura dealership in DFW and they ran every diagnostic imaginable and found nothing, again.

Tony tried to call the mechanic that originally called us and the phone was off... And the guy never even said his NAME. I mean its all a bit shady... but I have a 100,000 mile warranty so I guess if anything ever does happen they will have to cover it!

I wonder if the guy just had it out for the Acura dealership.... whatever, I'm just glad it's over.

I hate buying cars....

So, here's the story. About 3 weeks ago, we traded in my old car and got me an Acura. Used, a couple of years old but NICE. Nicest car I've ever even thought about owning. Only had 28,000 miles on it, still had 100,000 mile warranty, certified used, leather, sunroof, bluetooth,you know, all that. I love it.

SOooooooo then last week on Thursday a guy calls my work and asks for me. I was out meeting a volunteer so she took a message and he said that he was a mechanic at the Acura dealership and that he no longer works there, but he has some information about my car that the dealership withheld and he wants me to know. So I get back to the office and they tell me this , and I am like what the hell? How random is that? I had Tony call him because I didn't want to deal with it. The guy said the manager of the dealership was pushing cars through that had been bought at auction, wanting the mechanics to certify them as "Certified Used" even when they had problems. He said my car has possibly been wrecked, and he was certain it had been flooded, and he wanted us to know because if a car has been flooded all kinds of things can go wrong because of the computer system that basically controls the car. He said it could be dangerous to drive. We were like OH GREAT.

Attempting to make a long story short.... Tony called Acura (not the dealership, the company itself) and they directed him to the dealership compaint department, where they filed a claim. They finally called Tony back today and faxed him all the documents that had ever been filed on the car. It was originally bought new in Florida, then purchashed at auction and transferred to Texas, where it was leased to a company for a year. They tracked down all the documentation, auction disclosure documents and everything, and there was nothing that stood out. They faxed all the information to us.

We are hesitantly breathing a sigh of relief, but we are taking the car to another Acura dealership in DFW tomorrow and telling them to run certain tests that the guy from Acura told us to run so that we can see if the car might have been flooded.... sooooooo we will MAYBE know for sure tomorrow. Acura said that if the other dealership finds something that they will take away their dealers licence to certify, and proceed further with the claim, whatever that means. They said they have not had any complaints of this kind for that dealership though, and we are starting to think this guy might just have it out for the dealership or something. I really hope he was lying because I do NOT want to deal with all this. IF it does turn out, however, that something is wrong with the car Acura better pay up, and if they do not I will seek representation.

SOOOOO that is the latest saga of the Patterson household lol!! Who does this happen to? Good Lawd!

Going to Tyler.... again

...and again. ...and again. Why? Wellllll.....Tony's little sister Sherri got engaged last weekend (on her bday) and they are ready to get married! The wedding date is Friday July 24th and I am a bridesmaid. Good lord do we have some plannin to do!! Thats only 8 weeks! She already has a lot taken care of, which is good... but it looks like I will be in Tyler a LOT over the next 8 weeks. Which is all ok and I am very happy for her, but I like to keep my Tyler trips to like once a month... or less! lol. At least it is summer and I can spend a lot of time at the lake, woo hoo!

In other news I am back on my eating plan. I dont call it a diet because eating right is a lifestyle and I really need to STICK to it. I tried on the bridesmaid dress Monday and looked like a WHALE in it... so needless to say I ave some work to do. Specifically my arms have gotten super flabby. We are looking into buying a bowflex ( I HATE gyms) so maybe I can get into a daily routine. blah blah blah I know thats boring but I am trying to stick to this, and I feel like the more times I say "I'm going to be healthy", the less I will forget and, ohhh I dont know, eat nachos, or cookies... etc.

Ok, I am ready to get to the lake this weekend!! Now lets see how many weekends I stay excited about that.... lol

I hate....

Drama. Absolutely despise it. That is one reason why I was so glad to leave Tyler. Too much drama, too many people with too little to do but make things up so they could place some excitement into their otherwise mundane lives. I will not get into details, but several people over the past week have introduced major drama into our lives and I am sick of it. Makes you rethink who you trust, who you hang out with, etc. If I have to cut off communication in order to avoid unnecessary heartache, worry and anger I will. Sorry if that makes no sense.... Just frustrated. It'll be otay though!

In other news, I am having a terrible,no good, very bad work day. Really bad. But, I am not letting it get me down because I cannot live my life that way. I am looking forward. Never back. Screw 'em all! lol

I love....

Tony.

Today, he went with me to an arts/ crafts fair. We walked around, and around, and he never complained. We bought stuff for both my mom and his for mothers day. THEN, we drove around a neighborhood I hadn't seen before and dreamed about living there in a few years ( little cottage-y homes, sidewalks, in walking distance to EVERYthing, TREES, yet pretty expensive)

THEN

We pull up into a parking lot of the Flying Fish which I have been wanting to try and we get fried fish and margaritas. Little did I know that he suggested that I have a margarita because he was about to take me shopping to several different boutique stores I had mentioned while driving by in the past. I mean, we left the restaurant and all of a sudden we are in a parking lot for the cutest little resale shop. So, I went in and shopped around and bought a shirt. I thought, well that was very nice, now we will go get groceries. NOPE, on to the next. Now, you have to understand me to get the significance of this: I. HATE. SHOPPING. I like clothes, but I hate shopping. Tony however loves shopping. So after all was said and done, I got a new ruffly dress (teal green) a black linen top with lace detail and a empire waist top with funky paisley print to wear out.

Such a good day. So thankful for him. ;)

Earth Day

Just saw a link to this, and I think it is awesome. Why can't all food come in packaging like this???? I mean, really? http://www.sunchips.com/healthier_planet.shtml?s=content_compostable_packaging

Happy Earth Day!

Let me take a moment to bask in the glory of my new flowerbeds. Yes, beds, there are TWO. Now they may not be that big or impressive, but this took me ALL day yesterday to make. The ground out here is so hard. I'm not kidding, there is rock about 5-6 inches down, so it is really hard to till up the dirt and create something that resembles soil. Anyway, I did it and I am soooo happy that I finally have SOMEthing to call a flowerbed in this yard of weeds. I will eventually add two cedar bushes for some height, but I stopped here for now. Pshew! Time for a nap. ;)

Cheese Graters are not good....

...when you grate off a little piece of your THUMB. ick.

I wish there had been a camera in the house so I could show you the ridiculousness of myself almost passing out at the sight of my own blood. This always heppens to me; I cannot STAND seeing my own flesh/ blood. Anyone else and I am fine, but when it is me I have to lay down and chill out for a minute or I will seriously pass out. I have done it before.

Ok, so I am cooking ground turkey for taco meat and while it's cooking I am grating cheese. All of a sudden I grate off like a centimeter of my thumb and then I look at it and see my flesh. Not kidding, it is surprisingly deep. I'm trying to find a bandaid, and the blood just starts to flow. I feel myself fading fast so i plop down on the couch and yell out " TONY i grated my thumb! Stir the turkey!" lol.... he was like oh lawd. I had to lay there for like 10 minutes before I felt like I could get up and finish making dinner.

Here's the catch line: I didn't find the piece of my thumb. We probably ate it somehow. HAHAHAHAHA

The Office

So if you watch The Office, you will totally laugh at this.

The other night, I was in the other room and could hear the TV, and Tony was watching Wheel of Fortune. I heard a girl solve the puzzle. She said "Rising to the Occasion" and all of a sudden Tony yells out "THAT'S WHAT SHE SAID!" and then he burst into a serious of giggles. He was so proud of himself. hilarious.

That's all for today, I gotta head out.

.....That's what she said. ;)

I admit it...

I miss pine trees. Really, any tall trees. Don't get me wrong, it's pretty out by our house... you can see hills in the distance and the sunset is gorgeous like every night, but there is something about tall trees... Maybe I am just missing my family's land out at the lake:

These were obviously taken in the fall. At thanksgiving actually. We haven't been out there since then. I know that's not a long time, but I have spent like have of my life on this land. Not kidding. Maybe I am just pouting because all the trees here look all sad and bare in the winter, while the pine trees in East Texas are always green. Plus it doesn't make it any better that we only have 4 little baby mesquite trees in our backyard and NO trees in our front yard. Oh, and those little measly trees have THORNS. What the hell is up with that? I will be planting a live oak in the spring. Damn straight. Oh, and if you live in the pineywoods of East Texas and think it's nothing special, drive out a little west of Fort Worth and you'll see what I mean.

By the way, yes that is a bench in the middle of the woods. My mom likes to put benches and swings in random places in the woods. You'll be walking down a trail mindin your business and there's a swing hanging from a tree in the middle of NOwhere. Pretty hilarious.

That's all!

Tony and his boss are laying off two guys right now. Today.

They have to; there is no choice in the matter. And, it looks like they will be laying off two or three more in a month or two. The price of natural gas is so low that drilling companies are stopping drilling and laying rigs down left and right, and it hurts everyone involved. He is so worried that it will get so bad he will lose his job... we are for sure looking at a pay cut within the next few months. Time to stick to a budget and start saving everything we can.... This is crazy. I just hate it because he has worked SO hard for this position, and now it looks like he will have to go back to the position he was in before because of the economy, or possibly lose his job if it gets that bad. We will be ok, I mean we don't have a ton of bills and we didn't go crazy when he got his big raise and promotion. But, the only bills we can pay with my measly pay are mortgage (including taxes and insurance) and home utilities. That's IT. And we all know what the job market is like right now.
There are a ton of people out there in much worse situations than ours, I realize this. That's why I am grateful that we have some time (who knows how much) to prepare.

Trying not to stress.....

Inauguration...

My thoughts about the inauguration in list form, mainly because I will get all gushy if I try to elaborate, and I am not good at gushy. Or mushy.



1. wow. just wow.

2. I was impressed with the humility of the speech. I think it showed a sense of serious urgency that we need, and not simply soaring oratory that everyone wanted to hear.

3. Michelle is intelligent, beautiful, and passionate. Plus she looked amazing both at the inauguration and at the ball.

4. Sasha and Malia are gorgeous.

5. As much as I hate many of the things that his administration has done, I felt a little sorry for Bush. He's so goofy, you just can't fault him somehow, lol.

6.Cheney however, is evil. And Cheney in a wheelchair = hilarious.

7. I am so hopeful that this will mean real change.

Long Weekend!

Wow. It has been over a month since I posted. Not that anyone is counting lol. Lets see.... what has happened since then....

Christmas palooza - we went to the Pattersons in Millsap, Tony's mom's in Midlothian, then my parents in Tyler and then Tonys other grandparents in Chandler. pshew! It was a little crazy, but fun.
Hmm... what else.... well we saw friends in Tyler and then friends came to see us, and then we hung out with some NEW friends here in Fort Worth, and then we had a New Years party and invited old and new friends, which was fun. We had a bonfire and fireworks and I realized that maybe it's not so bad living in the sticks ;)
Also, Duke, and my mom and dad helped us build a fence, which is almost done! I am so happy to be able to let the dogs outside to run free and play without having to worry. Very nice.

Oh yeah, and our 4 year anniversary was on the 8th, which is kinda crazy to me. Doesn't seem that long. At all.... Nothing ever gets boring with Tony lol

So, I guess that about sums up the lapse; needless to say we have been busy. This weekend is a long weekend for me, and Katy, Chance and Dashiell (their baby boy) are coming to see us! Yay! They are great friends who live in Tyler and we really miss them. Plus Dash is like the cutest baby ever.

WOO HOO for long weekends!

On another subject, I am starting to enjoy my job more. I wasn't really sure about it at first because it is SO different from my last job, but yeah. And Tony's job is good too, and I am finally getting the house in order to where it actually feels like home now. The fence helps with that ;) Ok that's all.. boring, yes, but there you have it!