Mad Cow Disease

I am going to write and thank Delta Airlines for charging for in-flight movies, because if they hadn’t, I may never have discovered some delightful Avril Lavigne Mad Girl Music (almost the only thing besides the trivia game that was “free”) on my way back from New York a few weeks ago. I would have watched a movie, fallen asleep, and been none the wiser.

I already knew of Avril Lavigne – I’ve got Complicated and My Happy Ending on my iPod, and she must have been writing about me with her song, I Always Get What I Want . . . “you don’t want to see me when I don’t get what I want; that’s not what you want . . ." Yep. Me. Makes me laugh every time I hear it.

I must admit, I do enjoy a good loud angry song now and then (okay – slightly more frequently than that); but, wow – have you heard, I Can Do Better . . .

I hate you now
So go away from me
You're gone, so long
I can do better, I can do better

Or, Girlfriend . . .
Hey! Hey! You! You!
I don’t like your girlfriend!
No way! No way!
I think you need a new one

(By the way, these are the tame/clean sections of the lyrics.) The music that accompanies these charming sentiments is pretty ideal for enhancing a bad mood, so if you want to be mad – listen to these (but not too closely).

Also, a new favorite is Taylor Swift’s Picture to Burn . . .

State the obvious, I didn't get my perfect fantasy
I realize you love yourself more than you could ever love me
So go and tell your friends that I'm obsessive and crazy
That's fine I'll tell mine you're gay
And by the way...

I hate that stupid old pickup truck
You never let me drive
You're a redneck heartbreak
Who's really bad at lying
So watch me strike a match
On all my wasted time
As far as I'm concerned you're
Just another picture to burn

Brilliant song! I know it’s not very nice, but I actually love this one. I sing it at the top of my lungs when I’m driving to work (late and with curlers in my hair). It’s also great work-out music. Wonder what the people at the gym would think if I started “singing” this out loud.

What is it about rejection that turns us into such crazy mad freaks?

Act IV: Happily Ever After??

You know how sometimes life seems a bit like a Shakespearean tragedy where bad things come in three’s? Act I – your mother marries your uncle, Act II – you accidentally kill your best friend, Act III – you marry your true love but then he dies . . . things just get worse and worse until you want to run screaming from the theater. Well, I’ve been wondering if the play I’ve been walking out of after three disappointing Acts, actually has a happy Act IV instead of the death, destruction and mayhem I am expecting.

What if there is a fourth Act where something really great happens after the "disasters," and it more than makes up for the first three crappy Acts?!!

In real life, it might look like this . . .

In one week, you miss a meeting, lock your keys in the car, and forget an important birthday, but the next week, you remember a piece of trivia that saves your department from making a bad decision and you get a huge promotion.

OR – you get a flat tire, your brakes fail, and your transmission goes out – all in the same month, but the next month, you inherit a nice sum of money and buy a beautiful new car that you like even better than the old one.

Or – you lose three different friendships that mattered to you in one year’s time, but the next year you meet someone whose friendship is the one that makes all the difference.

What do you think? Is there a happily ever after in Act IV?? Sure hope so.

Halloween Apples

From the time I was old enough to go Trick or Treating (yes - that's a long time), my Dad has made reference to the term "Halloween Apples" every Halloween. He served his mission in Canada, and evidently, that is what they call out when they go door to door searching for candy, instead of saying "Trick or Treat!" Interestingly, none of the children who came on Halloween said anything about apples, but they WERE pretty excited about the huge candy bars being handed out at my parents' home.

Here are two of the Trick or Treaters who stopped by to show off their cute costumes - they didn't eat any apples.

(Sorry about the poor quality photos - haven't figured out all the "tricks" to the camera on my phone - like how to adjust the shutter speed when taking pictures of nieces who won't hold still, or how to remember to turn the flash back on when taking pictures of nephews.)

Tiana as a Rams cheerleader

William as a giraffe

I didn't have any apples either - sorry Dad - but I did have some amazing pumpkin cookies with brown sugar frosting. Yum!