Ink

So I got a new tattoo. I have been pondering what to get for a while. I wanted to get something to honor my Aunt Carole, who passed away two years ago. She was crazy and zany and fun and loved to yell and she always made me chocolate cooked pudding. Then I decided that I didn't want to get something that just represented her, because that would be kind of sad. So I decided to get something in honor of my mom and her two sisters - Aunt Carole and Aunt DeeDee. And I came up with flowers because they all loved them and every year they made an annual trip to the Philadelphia Flower Show. My tattoo is three flowers, the birth month flower for each of them. Violet for Aunt Carole, Daffodil for Aunt DeeDee and Lily of the Valley for my mom.

Here is a "before" pic of my naked foot.

I went the a place in Langhorne called Blue Velvet and my tattoo artist was a guy named Juan. I took him photos of the flowers I wanted and he drew this awesome design for me. This is just the stencil on my foot. No needles yet!

I don't feel like typing a lot right now so I am just going to summarize and put up some pics. Jeff went with me (ok, he nicely drove so I guess I went with him) to provide moral support and take pictures. Juan was totally cool and let us ask a million questions and take a bunch of pictures.

The whole thing took about three hours, probably because Juan kept stopping to talk and answer our questions. But I was glad for the pauses! It hurt more than I expected. Wasn't horrific, but definitely worse than my other two tattoos.

I'm looking forward to it being all healed and pretty!

Happy Birthday, Jeff!

Once upon a time, long, long ago . . . I was a waitress at Chi-Chi's. And I had a busser. But not just any busser. A blue-haired busser. Who would eventually become one of my closest friends. Jeff. And today is his birthday! Out of respect for Jeff I will try not to make this a super mushy post.
I drive Jeff crazy sometimes. Maybe more than sometimes. I'm always accidentally leaving stuff at his house. I don't know how to get anywhere. I ask him a million questions. But he just takes it all in stride. He returns my sweater to me, gives me directions to the Kimmel and tells me with a sigh when Grey's is new and when it is a repeat. My point is that he's always helping me out.

Jeff is hilarious and hands down the funniest person I know. No one makes me laugh more than him. I'm sure you all know that Jeff does stand up comedy. How amazing is that? Seriously, I think it just takes so much guts to go up on stage in front of all those people. It's just him, up there on stage. Doing material that he wrote. There's no safety net. No co-stars, no scenery or costumes or music to distract the audience. It's not just the funniness that I admire. It's the sheer bravery.Ok, in an attempt to avoid the mushy/me yammering on and on forever,the rest is the Cliff notes version:

My super-shy cat loves Jeff. He is so good to his family. He is my favorite person to go to concerts with. He totally has his act together. He is patient and generous. He has an awesome car and is my favorite driver and that is a big deal. He's a great friend to me and I wish him an amazing year.

So Happy Birthday, Spike!!

Happy Birthday, Kathleen!

Sunday was Kathleen's birthday. She was out of town and I am a slacker so this post is late but it doesn't mean its written with any less love. Kathleen turned 30 this year! I'm glad to have company in the third decade group, but it still seems weird. I swear in her old PHS gym uniform she still looks 17. And I mean that in a good way.


I can't tell you the exact day I met Kathleen. Maybe she remembers. It was 9th or 10th grade. That's right, people. About 15 years ago. I totally credit Kathleen for my awesome high school experience. Sure, Comp class and Chemistry were hell. But I had fantastic friends and that made all the difference. Kathleen made a real effort to include me in her group of friends and I will always be grateful to her for that.

Kathleen is the kind of person that makes you want to be what you know you should. She has strong convictions and she stands by them. She walks the walk. She believes in the power and duty of people to do the right thing and she is a living example of that. She inspires me. I think it would be impossible for anyone not to admire her. She's fiercely loyal to her family and friends and I know without a doubt that I can always count on her.
Kathleen loves the Phillies, kayaks, being fabulous, Phillip, her family and friends, being kind to the Earth and tea. I love her for all those reasons and more, but mostly and selfishly because she is such a fantastic friend to me. Happy Birthday, Grady!

Happy Birthday, Mom!

Today is my mom's birthday. Between Mother's Day and her birthday May is the month all about her. Which is fine. Because if anyone deserves a month of celebration, its her.

I wouldn't trade my mom for anything in the world. I think she knows that. I try pretty hard to let her know how great she is. You're probably thinking that I'm biased. Maybe I am, but I am still right. Everyone who knows her agrees that she is a fantastic person. I would find it very difficult to explain everything that makes her so great. But here are 10 things I love about my mom:

1. She taught me to love reading

2. Every year she makes me my favorite meal for my birthday

3. She has more patience than anyone else I know

4. She hums a random tune when she cleans

5. Everytime I go out she tells me to "have fun and be careful"

6. Her favorite outfits always include the color brown

7. She appreciates the concept of "presents just because"

8. She lets me talk for as long as I want

9. She always puts others before herself

10. She has no idea how amazing she is

Happy Birthday, Mommy! Love, WMPA

Happy Mother's Day, Mom

My mom is the best. I'm not exaggerating and I'm not bragging. She just is. She's a total sweetheart. She loves me unconditionally. She doesn't yell or nag. She's totally easy going. And I know she's has always done everything possible for me. Every day I'm grateful and proud that she is my mom. As she would say, I'm "blessed." Lol. Love you, Mom.

Happy Birthday, Penny!

Ok, remember when I said I planned to write a post about each of my special peeps on their birthdays? Well, that includes Penny. My cat. Today is her 4th birthday!!



I'm a big believer that things happen for a reason. On the day I decided I was ready to get a cat I drove towards the local ASPCA. On the way there I passed a house with a sign "Free Kittens." So I stopped and looked at the kittens. And they were cute. But they were all boys. And I wanted a girl. So on I drove, towards the ASPCA. And it started to rain. Like crazy. The wind was blowing. Tree branches were falling, blocking the road and there was so much rain I couldn't see where I was driving. So I turned around and went home. When I got home and told my mom what happened she handed me a tiny slip of paper, with a phone number. She saw a flier at the grocery store for a cat rescue group. I called the number the next day. And that's when I met Penny. She was super tiny, about 6 weeks old and just a little ball of fluff. She was hiding in the corner of a closet, very scared. I took her home and the rest history.



Penny is full of personality. She's a talker. And she's very bossy. She's also a really good snuggler. She is a hooker. Her lips are pink and it looks like she wears lipstick. Around her eyes is a line of white fur and it looks like eyeliner. She is scared of strangers but once she knows you she will remember you and be your friend.

So Happy Birthday, Penny!! And many more!!!

Bamboozle Replay!

You know when you have one of those days that's so awesome you just keep replaying it in your head? Yesterday at Bamboozle was definitely one of those days. Even with the rain.

For those of you that don't know, Bamboozle is a two day, all day, outdoor concert. It was held in the parking lots of the Meadowlands Sport Complex all the way in East Rutherford, NJ. There were about 10 stages and 50 performers. On Sunday alone. Jeff and I went on Sunday because No Doubt was headlining! I think the show started around 10AM but we didn't want to see anyone until almost 4, so we got there around 3. Thanks to Jeff's fantastic driving and navigation we got there with no problems.

The first person we saw was Bo Burnham, he's a comedian and I think he's about 19. I've seen him before and I like him because he sings a lot. He was kind of hard to hear though, what with the super loud bands playing nearby. Then we went and saw Sum 41. I only knew a few of their songs and we stood in the back of the crowd, but it was still fun and a good warm-up for what was to come.

I think The Used came on about 6:30. I like The Used. Yes, they scream in some of their songs, but they also have some amazingly sweet songs (not that they play them in concert) so it's like the best of both worlds. Jeff loves The Used so we got pretty close to the stage. Now, I had been warned about the crazy crowd but I really didn't understand until it started to happen. Here's the band. I don't remember what song they were playing.

So we are up front and squished and to my right a space opens up. I guess Jeff saw me looking at it because he leaned down and screamed in my ear "Don't go over there, it's a pit!" Thank goodness he told me! Sure enough all these kids were running around and slamming into each other and every couple of minutes it felt like the entire crowd got shoved, hard. At that point I latched firmly onto Jeff's arm and did not let got for the rest of the set. Besides the mosh pits there was also crowd surfing. I am not a fan of having people thrown on my shoulders. But the most amazing thing to me what that so many of these kids fell to the ground and then got right back up into the crowd again! Here's a pic of the crazy crowd.

After The Used we had over an hour to kill before No Doubt came on. So we wandered around, looked at merch (and bought nothing) and then went inside the stadium to get a snack and sit down. Me and Jeff. I made him take the picture and my camera has a delay so he is saying "Is it taking the picture?" Lol.

We went to the stage where No Doubt was playing at least a half hour before they came on because we wanted to be close to the stage. And we were and the wait was worth it, but let me tell you I have never been so squished in my whole life! Literally, there were people pressed up against me on every side. But like I said, it was worth it. And finally . . . NO DOUBT!!

They were of course awesome and it was so great to see them together after 5 years. They all looked like they were having such a good time. They sang so many songs I love, Running, Hey Baby, Underneath it All, Bathwater, New, It's My Life and more that I can't remember right now! I love Gwen's smile in this pic.

Ok, so let me pause here for one last story and then I promise the rest of this blog will be mostly pics and few comments. So when ND first came on stage the crowd surged forward and Jeff and I got separated, there were a few people between us. I think by the second song he had grabbed my hand and pulled me over next to him again. Remember, everyone is pressed up against each other and people are dancing and jumping and everything. Maybe the the third song into the set and I realize that Jeff is in front of me and something is going on. So I grab his arm and it feels like he is being pulled away from me, and hard! I grab onto him with both hands and I am still struggling to pull him back next to me. I remember thinking "What the f*ck is happening?!" I literally had both my arms wrapped around him and was pulling for about two minutes before he was finally back next to me, on my left side. And I look over to my right and see some dude with designer eyeglasses (I hate when guys wear glasses with designer labels on them) was staring at us. Jeff and I went back to watching the concert (although now I was latched to his arm again) and I had no idea what had happened. It wasn't until we were leaving that he told me the story.

The story is that there was some little bratty girl in front of him who kept elbowing and shoving him every time the crowd surged. So when there was quiet minute he yelled at her (and I am going to give you the G-rated version of what he said) "You're in the pit, if you don't want to get pushed get out!" So she screams "What?!" and starts to go at him! He, being a good guy, does not retaliate. But I'm pretty sure that he wanted to at least get in her face because I think when I was pulling him back next to me I was actually holding him back. And the dude with the designer eyeglasses that glared at us, well he was the bratty girl's boyfriend. But apparently Jeff glared right back at him and dude could tell that Jeff was pissed and meant business so the dude just let it go and nothing else happened, much to Jeff's dismay!

As promised here are more pics of the show.

I love this one of Gwen, it looks like she's in a bubble!

Tom on the key-tar for Hey Baby!

And because Gwen is still awesome she climbed the scaffolding during Just a Girl!!

For their encore the sang the new song, Stand and Deliver . . .

And one of my fav's Sunday Morning!!!

And that was the end of the show. We drove home and went out to eat and I crawled in bed around 3AM. It was a fantastic day.

Meet Fancy!

I finally got a car! Hooray!! Her name is Fancy. Because she is fancy and I like that song by Reba. The song is about a prostitute. Lol.

Anyway. As you can see Fancy is black. Which I am excited about. And she has a purple pinstripe!! I don't think you can see the color really well in this picture, but its a lilac purple. Love it.

Leather interior, sunroof, 6 disc cd player, Sirus radio, Synch (that thing on the commercial where you talk to the car and it talks back), heated sideview mirrors, alloy wheels . . . see why I named her Fancy?!

She also gets awesome gas mileage. I'm pretty excited about finally having a new car. Thanks to everyone who helped me during the process. Especially Pookie who went test driving with me and helped me research, and Jeff who listened to me countless times when I was debating about which car to get. I owe you guys some cookies or something.

Goodbye, Bag of Rocks!

I'm pretty sure that you all know I was in an accident and my car was totaled. But I thought I would share some pics. And for those of you that don't know the details - I was driving down my street and a guy in an Explorer backed out of his driveway and smacked into my car. $9600 worth of damage to my poor Bag of Rocks.

Luckily I was the only person in the car. My only injuries were some bruising and minor burns from the seatbelt and airbag.

My deflated air bag. Ha.

The impact of the other car hitting me kind of spun me around, so this is the second impact. Super fun.

And since this seemed like a depressing post I am throwing in a picture of Penny,being supercute.

Now I just need to get a new car!