Momma Mia, Mea Culpa | Too Lazy to Hide the Crazy

Have you ever been sofa king burnt out that you can’t find the strength to scrape the bottom of the blog idea barrel, or even string together coherent sentences?

Yeah?

Me too.

*Just one more day. Just one more day and both of my writing challenges will be OVER. *

Posted in NaBloPoMo | 40 Comments

NaBloPoMo | Day 28: Seasons Greetings

Posted on November 28, 2012 by Meleah

Um…

You know you spend a LOT of time at the hospital when they start sending you CHRISTMAS CARDS instead of just the usual bills.

I’m not even kidding, y’all. I received a Happy Holidays/Seasons Greetings card from the technician Bob who was in charge of my full body bone scan. And it was signed by all of the people who treated me that day.

My father said, “Maybe after your next stay at the hospital, you’ll get to have your own wing.”

Maybe, daddy.

Maybe.

Posted in Family, Holidays, Humor, NaBloPoMo, Photos, Strong Medicine | 33 Comments

NaBloPoMo | Day 27: Conversations In The Car

Posted on November 27, 2012 by Meleah

While driving my 16 year old son, JCH, to the mall for his new job, the following conversation happened.

Me: “Why is that lady walking her four year old child in the middle street? Especially when there’s a sidewalk right there?”

JCH: “Mom, you’re wearing Hello Kitty Pajamas, you have a cigarette hanging out of your mouth, and you haven’t showered in two days. I don’t really think you’re in a position to be giving advice to anyone.”

Me: “Oh.” *hangs head in shame * “You’re probably right. I’ll shut up now.”

Well played, Whosteen.

Well played.

Posted in Family, Humor, JCH quotes, Links, NaBloPoMo | 27 Comments

NaBloPoMo | Day 26 : Saving Money and Things I Refuse To Skimp On

Posted on November 26, 2012 by Meleah

The other day I was reading my friend June’s blog, just like I do every single day. She was discussing ways to save money and these are some really great tips.

But one of the suggestions, regarding Name Brands really caught my attention and got me to thinking. I am a very loyal Brand Name person. There are some products, I will always use, whether or not they are on sale, and even if they are the most expensive.

Like for instance:

Bounty
Tide
Charmin
Windex

And here’s why.

I’ve used cheaper paper towels in the past. But, I’ve always found that I end up having to use more of them, because they’re just not as absorbent. So, I’m probably not saving any money buying the cheaper ones.
I am crazy OCD about my laundry. And if my clothes don’t smell Tide Fresh I wont trust the level of cleanliness.
Because seriously, if there’s one place you don’t want to have an issue with product failure, it’s when you’re in the bathroom. I’ve had enough problems in the past, and I never want to go through this again!
Again, this is mostly because I am totally OCD about all things being clean, but this is the only product that doesn’t leave streaks all over the mirrors and widows. And anyone who knows me; knows that nothing drives me more bat.shit.crazy. than leaving streaks on something that’s supposed to be freshly cleaned.

So tell me people…

What are some products you refuse to skimp on?

Posted in Life, Links, NaBloPoMo | 36 Comments

NaBloPoMo | Day 25: Thanksgiving 2012 – The Movie Edition

Posted on November 25, 2012 by Meleah

I cannot even begin to tell you how many hours I spent trying to perfect this video last night. Also, I’d like to apologize for the excessive tweets I accidentally sent out, alerting people this movie was live, only to find it had been marked “private” or had been “deleted” altogether. I completely forgot my YouTube account and my Twitter account are linked. My bad.

When YouTube uploads any of my home movies they become really blurry. And it’s drives me absolutely insane. Especially after the extensive work I put into these with editing, and timing, and special effects. Plus, my new camera captured images and footage that are so incredibly clear – I desperately wanted to figure out some new compression methods in order to give me options so I would be able to chose the version that provided the most clarity.

Long story short?

After six hours, a lot of cursing, and several thousand failed attempts, I gave up.
Apparently, my videos on YouTube will never be HALF as clear as the rendition on my computer.

Anyway…

As promised, please enjoy this Holiday Home Movie, from my family to yours.

Clearly, we love to dance.

PS: It’s crunch time over here. I’m close to reaching the word count goal of 50,000 words. But I need to get this done in less than 5 days in order to complete the NaNoWriMo challenge. Basically, I’ve stopped editing entirely. In fact, I’m writing any and every thing that pops into my brain [as long as it pertains to my novel]. I figure, worst case scenario, at least I will be able to use those notes after NaNo is over.

Right?

Posted in Family, Holidays, Love, NaBloPoMo, NaNoWriMo, Videos | 21 Comments

NaBloPoMo | Day 24: Post Turkey Day

Posted on November 24, 2012 by Meleah

I sure hope everyone enjoyed the holiday as much as I did.

This year we spent Thanksgiving with my brother Adam’s girlfriend, Leah’s family.
And it was awesome.

But rather than bore you with the details of the event, I’d rather share it with you, via one of my famous home movies, just like I did last year. And, I am pretty excited about creating this particular video, especially because I took all of the footage and all of the photos with my new Nikon 1 J1. And even though I haven’t totally figured out how to use this camera properly, I believe I was able to capture still shots while simultaneously videotaping. Which means I didn’t miss a single expression.

Booyah.

Sadly, I am still digesting excessive amounts of food and alcohol.
In fact, I might still be drunk.

So you’re just going to have to wait for a few more days.

In the mean time, please tell me about your Thanksgiving.

Did you have it at home?
Or did you travel to another relatives?
Did you cook?
Or did you have it catered?
What was your favorite part of the meal?

Posted in Family, Holidays, Links, NaBloPoMo | 29 Comments

NaBloPoMo | Day 23: Black Friday

Posted on November 23, 2012 by Meleah

I’m sorry y’all.

But you couldn’t PAY me to go shopping today.

I loathe shopping.

Even on a regular day.

And even on a Monday morning when the stores are basically empty.

But good luck to all of you out there who are willing to brave standing in those crazy line and fighting off the other crazies!

Tell me people…

Are you one of those Black Friday shoppers?

And if so – what kind of deals did you score?

And how bad were the lines?

Posted in Holidays, Humor, NaBloPoMo | 28 Comments

NaBloPoMo | Day 22: Happy Thanksgiving

Posted on November 22, 2012 by Meleah

Posted in Holidays, NaBloPoMo | 26 Comments

NaBloPoMo | Day 21: Gratitude

Posted on November 21, 2012 by Meleah

I spend a lot of time reflecting upon the things I have to be grateful for. But, it’s not all that often that I take the time to write those things down. So, in the spirit of Thanksgiving, I’d like to share my gratitude list.

1. My son, Justin, for he is truly the light of my life, even though he drives me nuts.

2. My Parents. Their undying love and support forever amazes me. Thank you both for providing a roof over my head, food in my stomach, and the never-ending supply of toilet paper and laundry detergent. No, seriously. Thank you for that.

3. My whole entire family, on all sides. Mostly all four of my grandparents, Poppa Ernie & Gramma Ev and Manga & Poppa Sye who’ve since passed away. Because without them, my family wouldn’t even be possible. We may be crazy, and slightly dysfunctional, but I’d be nothing without each and every one of you. And we definitely know how to have a great time together. Am I right?

4. My Friends. I don’t know how I got so lucky, but I have the BEST friends, in the whole wide world.

5. The Written Word.

6. My Blog.

7. Your Blogs, because each and every one of you have made me laugh, made me cry, held my hand, inspired me, and taught me so very much.

8. My Computer and my iPhone.

9. The Internet.

10. My Journals.

11. My Camera.

12. Television.

13. Music.

14. Sleeping-In.

15. Coffee.