The Beginning..

"She is the kind of girl, although exceedingly unsuspecting, you might find wearing "Aphrodites Pink Nightie", "Flashbulb Fuschia", or perhaps "Happy Hour" nail color on her dreadfully unkempt nails."




...of the novel I know I was born to write.

Don’t Squat With Your Spurs On

I am now the very proud owner of a pair of cowboy boots. This is my first ever pair of cowboy boots. I remember, growing up, a friend having a hot pink, suede pair with fringe that I coveted for so long. Although I might get a few crazy stares in public, I'm pretty sure I could still rock some pink fringe today. I have, however, [insert a huge sigh of relief from the general public] graduated from those - now kitsch, I'm sure - pink suede's to a more refined, rustic, discreetly embellished look.

They are brown. Not the muddy kind of brown you might find on a pair of K-Mart brand, 'I'm-just-buying-these-to-get-the-job-done' kicks. No, these boots are the rich kind of brown. The kind of brown that could never be described with the adjective 'dirty'. You know what I mean? Brown is just a dirty sort of color in most cases. But in contrast to the 'dirty' brown that conjures mental images of mud, dirt, and waste, this brown, the brown of my boots, is perfect. It is that rich, chocolate brown that conjures images of the perfect chocolate bar, perfect shiny brown eyes. Oh, I have the perfect illustration: imagine walking into a very old house, a house that may be dingy, dusty and cracking, but whose hardwood floors are still perfectly intact, perfectly rustic and aged, perfectly stained, perfectly brown. That is the brown of my cowboy boots. Brown leather. With stitching. In a pattern that says 'I may look sweet, but I'll kick your ass if I have to.' That act may be aided by the pointy toe.

They are molded to my foot, my shape. If anyone else tried to wear them, I'm convinced they wouldn't feel right, and might just be downright uncomfortable. But when I pull them on, they are as comfy as bedroom slippers. The leather envelopes my foot and gives a little slack exactly where I need it. When I put them on I really do feel badass. I walk differently. My strut exudes confidence when I'm wearing my brown leather boots. I like hearing the 'hey cowgirl' and 'yee-haws' when I walk past a stranger.

There is not one article of clothing that hangs in my closet or another pair of shoes for this girl that contends with these boots. They are now one of my most prized possessions; and I am proud of them.

So says the girl in the rich brown, aromatic leather, subtle yet fiercely designed boots.

Thoughts...

1. I've stuck my foot in my mouth a lot lately.
2. I have no motivation, right now, at 4:00 p.m. to do ANYTHING but take a nap.
3. I think I'm developing tennis elbow.
4. I think I would make a good real estate agent.
5. I miss the Athens Bakers.
6. I would really, really like Mark to propose to me sometime this year.

Peace for today

This song came up on my Shane and Shane Pandora station today.
The last verse is so beautiful to me.

Depth of mercy, vast and free
So much deeper than the sea
God of love, you heard my cry
Now into your open arms I fly

Crayons and Beef Squeezins

-WEIGHT WATCHERS SMART ONES PICANTE CHICKEN & PASTA-

The bolded, numbered words correspond to the number comments below...

Ingredients: Cooked Enriched Macaroni Product (Water, Enriched Semolina [Semolina, Niacin, Ferrous Sulfate, Thiamine Mononitrate, Riboflavin, Folic Acid]-1), Cooked White Meat Chicken (White Meat Chicken, Water, Tapioca Starch, Sugar, Salt, Sodium Phosphate, Glazed with Water, Caramel Coloring, Modified Potato Starch), Diced Tomatoes (Tomatoes, Tomato Juice, Salt, Calcium Chloride, Citric Acid), Yellow Bell Peppers, Sauteed Onions (Onions, Soybean Oil), Water, Black Beans, Contains 2% or Less of: Jalepenos (Jalepeno Peppers, Salt, Citric Acid), Sauteed Garlic (Garlic, Soybean Oil), Canola Oil, Ancho Chili Base (Chili Peppers, Dried Onions and Garlic, Yeast Extract, Salt, Spice, Beef Extract-2, Citric Acid), Modified Cornstarch, Cilantro Flavor, Red Pepper, Sour Cream Flavor (Maltodextrin [Corn], Nonfat Dry Milk, Partially Hydrogenated Soybean Oil, Sugar, Lactose, Whey [Milk], Corn Syrup Solids, Sodium Caseinate [Milk], Flavoring, Mono- and Diglycerides, Sodium Citrate, Salt, Dipotassium Phosphate, Modified Cornstarch, Carrageenan-3), Salt, Spices, Corn Oil, Chicken Base (Chicken, Salt, Hydrolyzed Soy Protein, Chicken Fat, Corn Maltodextrin, Sugar, Chicken Broth, Onion Powder, Tumeric, Spice Extractives), Xanthan Gum, Stabilizer (Maltodextrin [Corn], Monoglyceride, Soy Lecithin, Xanthan Gum-4, Guar Gum-4, Methycellulose Gum-4, Citric Acid), Lime Flavor, Chicken Flavor (Autolyzed Yeast Extract, Salt, Maltodextrin [Corn], Gum Arabic, Chicken Fat, Torula Yeast, Natural Flavor, Tumeric), Chili Type-5 Flavor (Maltodextrin [Corn], Sesame Oil, Flavor, Peanut Oil, Smoke Flavor (BHT-6, BHA-6, Propyl Gallate, Citric Acid), Annotto (Color-7).

Mmmm. Yummy. A few thoughts:

1. I love how the ingredients have SUB-ingredients. That's a 'two-fer', right? Like BOGO sales, maybe? I don't know.

2. I feel sorry for the cow that had to be juiced - not milked, JUICED - to get me my beef extract.

3. Ok, really? Sour cream doesn't have that much flavor to begin with. Are all of these ingredients and sub-ingredients really neccessary? I bet if they squeezed hard enough, they could go ahead and squeeze some extra sour cream out of that cow in #2.

4. If I wanted chewing gum with my lunch, I'd get some Watermelon Double Bubble out of the candy jar.

5. Wait, so it's not REAL chili flavor?

6. Why are they being ambiguous? What are these secret BHT and BHA ingredients and what animal needs to be squeezed so we can get them?

7. First of all, what color is Annotto? Even in the Crayola Jumbo Box (you know, with the built in sharpener in the back??? Man, I used to love that thing...) there wasn't a color called 'Annotto'. Second of all, thank you, but my food is already colorful enough. If I wanted to taste the rainbown, again, I would visit the candy jar.

Now don't get me wrong, that lunch was quite tasty. But as I was standing at the microwave waiting for my flash-frozen Annotto colored meal to be zap-cooked in less than 5 minutes, I started reading the ingredients on the box. Taking notice of this has made me want to eat a lot more naturally.

Less beef squeezins, more organic veggies that are colors I am familiar with.

In the words of Lil John and Ludacris: 'Peace Up, A-Town Down'

Ode to Athens

I recently spent the weekend in Athens, Gawguh.
Athens is the home of the scrappy Dawgzuh.
I do not say this to be ugly or mean.
But, come on. A dawg compared to a tiger? A tiger's more keen.
The scoreboard may not always reflect that fact.
And on that note, Dawgs fans - please, do not react.
I'm not here to talk about rivalry.
I'm here to relish the revelry.
A-Town has quite a few new claims on my affection.
A puppy, a blond, a saxophone, and a blood relation.
Jackson 'Jax' Baker is the newest Baker addition.
Not a son or daughter and certainly not the blood relation!
Jackson is the cuddly, hiccupy, playful, puppy.
Now this little fella is extremely happy.
Mom Sally and Dad Brad rescued this pup from the pound.
He could be a lab, could be a pit bull. Who knows, he could be a hound!
One thing I do know is that he fits right in with this group!
But hey, please don't go filtering through his poop.
Who knows what you may find.
A pine cone, a rock, or dirt of some kind!
Speaking of dirt, let's talk about that blond.
No, I didn't bleach my hair. And no, it's not some hot guy named Ron.
It's my dirty blond sister in law Sally!
This sister in law is more than a sister. She's a new best pal-ly!
She's thoughtful to the core and gift-giving is her game.
I'm so happy that Sally BAKER is her new name.
With this marriage, I gained more than a new sister.
I gained a new friend. (Who, I'm sure, is pretty good at playing Twister!)
Twisting his fingers across the keys of that saxophone,
was the soul brother at church, two doors down from the Brad Baker home.
Church was refreshing, to say the least.
All formalities of the church sort were completely deceased.
I raised my hands in worship for the first time in awhile.
God reminded me that He is my Father and I am his child.
He is already impressed by me, the perfect work he created.
But my assignment, as his child, is to be dedicated.
The music, the saxophone, were only enablers to my worship.
It was nice to spend that time in those believers acquaintanceship.
An acquaintance he is not. A brother, he is the best.
No one could ask for better, I'll put you to the test.
You'll find there is not one more admirable, disciplined, or sweet.
Nor one who could cook up such a BBQ treat.
Time spent with him is always fun.
And this sister loves him more than 5 trillion tons.
My time in Athens was not nearly long enough.
And I cannot wait for the next trip, sho nuff.
The time flew by too fast and here I am back home again.
Oh Athens. Athens, Athens, Athens, Athens, Athens.

John 6:27

"But don’t be so concerned about perishable things like food. Spend your energy seeking the eternal life that the Son of Man can give you."

Dang.