A Midnight Conversation

In a previous post about my dog, I mentioned how Sydney likes to sleep in our bed at night...with us in it. Never mind the fact that I bought her a nice and cozy bed online from Drs. Foster and Smith. We've tried different methods of trying to get her to sleep in her own bed at night, but no avail. Usually Sydney starts out in our bed and then I move her to her bed on the floor when I get into bed (she usually tries to occupy my side on the bed). If only that were the end of the story.

Me: Goodnight honey. I hope you sleep okay.
Husband: Goodnight sweetie. Sleep good too. Where's Sydney?
Me: Oh, I think she's in the other room. No, she's in her bed!
Husband: Good girl, Sydney!
Me: Good girl! You're such a good girl!

Several peaceful hours of sleep later...

Thump! Sniff, sniff! Lick! Wag, wag!

Me: Yawn....Sydddnnney...what are you doing?
Sydney: sniff
Me: Sydney, please don't lay on my head.
Sydney: sniff
Me: OK, let's go. Get back in your bed.

Sydney back in bed, asleep. Husband and me, back asleep.

An hour later....

Thump! Sniff, sniff! Lick! Wag, wag! Shake, shake!

Me: Sydney....please go lay in your bed.
Sydney: shake, shake
Me: Sydney, please don't...ow! Don't claw my back!
Sydney: stretch....strreeeeettttcccchhhh....
Me: OK, let's go. Get back in your bed.

Sydney back in bed, asleep. Husband and me, somewhat back asleep.

Twenty minutes before alarm goes off...

Thump! Sniff, sniff! Wag, wag! Shake, shake, shake! Lick! Lick! Lick! Lick!

Me: Sydney! Yik...My face is all wet!
Sydney: lick! lick!
Me: Huuuuuhhh...sigh....
Sydney: Yaaawwn....
Me: Sigh...I give up. Goodnight Sydney. I hope you sleep okay.
Sydney: sniff!

BRRRIINNG! BRRRIINNG! BRRRIINNG!

Me: Stupid alarm.
Sydney: sniff!

Seriously...Seriously!

I am a HUGE fan of Grey's Anatomy. Tonight is the season premiere. Thus, I am one happy camper. I just love how realistic the story line is and watching an accurate portrayal of how real-life surgeons and surgical interns perform their job.

Yeah, right.

Grey's Anatomy is tantamount to a sophisticated soap opera. Granted the acting is extremely good, the writing is wonderful, the story lines are fascinating, so in that regard, it is nothing at all like a soap opera. However, it has the interpersonal drama of the soap opera that gives house wives and nursing home patients an addiction spanning decades.

And yes, I am addicted to Grey's Anatomy.

I don't watch soaps. They are cheezy! But I do admit to LOVING Grey's Anatomy, The O.C., Sex in the City and Felicity (that's right, I wrote Felicity. What?). I love dramas. I love watching the characters interact with each other and the mess the usually end up getting in. The human drama - I love it. I love the story lines, the romantic drama, who will end up with who. It's a great escape! But I am sad that Dr. Burke will no longer be on the show. Man, Isiah Washington got the shaft but that is another post for another day.


And I'm not afraid to admit that I would kick ass on this board game. That's right...and take names too.

A Girl and Her Dog

This is my dog Sydney. She is a 15 month old lab-boxer mix that we adopted from the Franklin County Humane Society. Family members will remember when we first adopted Sydney about a year ago this month. She was a mere sixteen pounds and barley stood as high as my knees. Now some 64 pounds later, she is almost fully grown but still has the heart and mind of a puppy (that would be the lab influence in her).

As you can plainly see from the picture, Sydney also has an extremely long tongue. I'm not sure if this is boxer or lab, but in any case, I receive comments on it almost every time we take a walk. I imagine her tong rolling up in her mouth like one of those old window shades that snap and roll up to the top when you pull the bottom. Honestly, I don't know where she puts it all - it's a really long tongue.

Sydney loves to walk. She would probably be most happy if we walked twice a day, but alas her momma doesn't have the time or energy to do two walks in a single day. We do however try to get outside at least 3-4 times per week. This summer has been brutally hot, so we've taken up to walking in the morning before work. I'm still amazed at how she can go from dead asleep, snoring in my ear (don't get me started on how we can't get her out of our bed) to full on wide awake, tail wagging and ready to hit the sidewalk. Meanwhile, her blurry-eyed momma is stumbling to the bathroom to put on whatever T-shirt and shorts she can find and scrape her hair back into a ponytail. If I had a tail, it would certainly not be wagging at 6:15 in the morning.

This morning we had a great walk. It was actually pretty cool outside and that made Sydney and me very happy. When it finally starts to cool down here in North Carolina (today's high is suppose to be around 90 degrees), we'll switch to walking after work. At either time of day, Sydney is still very excited to get out an walk, tongue flapping in the breeze and tail wagging all the way.

Putting The Smack Down

By now, most of you know about yesterday's visit to Columbia University by President Ahmadinejad. Amid tens of thousands of protesters, Ahmadinejad was given a platform by the University to speak about current events in Iran, and not so current events such as the Holocaust (or, in his mind, the "theory" of the Holocaust). While I am thoroughly disgusted that an American university gave this man a platform and a podium, I couldn't help but smile a little when Columbia University Lee Bollinger put the smack down on Ahmadinejad by launching personal attacks his way. Bollinger called him a petty man, and a dictator. He questioned Ahmadinejad's statements on wiping Israel off the map and about the Holocaust. While I don't agree with Columbia's decision to bring this man onto US soil, it really shouldn't surprise me that they did. After all, Columbia invited one of Hitler's top men to come speak back in the 1930's.

Columbia wasn't President Ahmadinejad's only stop in America. Earlier on Monday he spoke to the National Press Club via satellite from New York.

Between Columbia University (housing the top journalism school in the country) and the National Press Club, is it any wonder why our media is so left focused? Hello?

Even if you are the most liberal journalist out there, even if you are the biggest Bush hater among them all, why in the world would a journalist want to listen to a man who's country has EXECUTED journalists. I know the very nature of journalism is to seek out the truth and report the facts, to get both sides of the story, but sadly traditional journalism has fallen to the wayside of grossly opinionated op-ed pieces and stories so skewed with liberal bias that is hard to know what the truth is anymore.

But I digress.

After speaking to the National Press Club and Columbia University yesterday, President Ahmadinejad is speaking to the UN General Assembly today. President Bush is slated to speak some two hours before Ahmadinejad takes the podium. Will Bush lay some smack down on Ahmadinejad? Let's hope so.

When the day is done, I hope that Ahmadinejad will swiftly find his way back to Iran. Columbia and the National Press Club may have welcomed you to America, but I certainly did not, and neither did thousands and thousands of others.

Is This Really News?

Most mornings I flip on The Today Show to get a brief update of what is going on in the world today. This morning I had the fortunate timing to tune in right as they began yet another story about Britney and K-Fed (or Fed-Ex, personally my favorite moniker). This time, Meredith Vieira had an exclusive interview with Federline's divorce attorney Mark Vincent Kaplan.

As I watched this interview (with the graphic "Exclusive Interview" up at the top of the screen), I couldn't help but ask myself outloud, "Is this really news?" The interview focused on the heated custody battle between Brit and Fed-Ex and which parent (and I use the term parent very loosly) would have primary custody of the two boys. There was a recent court order that stated that Brit had to have eight hours of parental counseling per week, could not use drugs or alcohol at least 12 hour prior to a visit with the kids, and Brit was subject to random drug testing.

Are you freakin' kidding me?

The fact that the court had to order that Brit take classes on how to be a parent and to not use drugs before being with her kids is proof that Brit doesn't need to be around her kids at all. Is it really hard to decide for yourself that one lay off the crack pipe before you watch your own children? Come on!

Kaplan went on to say that Federline was seeking primary custody and was concerned about the welfare of his two young children. Riiiiigghhht.....Fed-Ex is obviously the best choice in this scenario. Again, are you freakin' kidding me? Why not take the children away? We've all seen their track record played out on national television. What a sad, sad world we live in.

What most people fail to realize is the root of all these problems goes back to parenting and personal responsibility. I'll say it again to make myself clear:

Parenting and personal responsibility

No one gets those two concepts anymore. And I'm not just talking about celebrities. Everyday people in the communities we live in are plagued with bad parenting skills and a sense of entitlement. That's right - if more parents actually disciplined their children, I serious doubt our society would be plagued with the problems that we are facing today. Take responsibility for your children, and your own life. No one owes you anything. Take personal responsibility for your actions. No one owes me a driver's license. I earned that by passing an eye exam, passing a written test, paying the fees and not getting DUIs or accumulating speeding tickets. I earned my driver's license.

Now, I am not a parent. I hope to be one someday, and when I am, I can guarantee you that my children are going to understand the concept of personal responsibility. And I can guarantee you that my husband and I will lay down the firm hand of discipline whenever necessary. I can also say with fair certainity that I will be screening everything they watch on television, including the so-called "news."

The Wonder Pets!

When life gets you down, I would suggest tuning into Nick Jr. and watching The Wonder Pets! I promise you will feel much better afterwards.

Ace of Cakes

No, you haven't stumbled upon the Food Network's Web site - this cake is from the kitchen de la Bostic. For several days I've had the urge to make a cake. Why you ask? Yeah, I have no idea. I just wanted to make one. I didn't even really want to eat it. I just wanted to make it.

Right...sure you just wanted to "make" one and not dig into it the minute it was frosted with a large spatula and a glass of milk in hand...

It's true! I just had the need to bake! Actually, I must confess that I did have a modest piece of cake to taste my skills. Not too bad. I've made a few cakes in my day, and a few from scratch. I really prefer to bake from scratch - cakes, brownies, cookies. Mixes are great, and easy, and predictable. But the "old fashion" way is the best.

What's up with the blue dots?

They're not blue dots. They are cobalt blue polka dots, and I find it makes my cake fun with a touch of whimsy. Retro meets edgy. Blue meets white. Oh, who am I kidding. I had leftover blue icing from a cake I made a couple months ago. At least I am a resouceful cake baker!