The Hangover - Double vision

I absolutely love the Hangover!


The movie, not an actual hangover itself. I rarely get those, but when I do, it's never fun.


Imagine my surprise when I ran into Zach Galifianakis. And at the grocery store of all places! I suppose everyone needs to eat.

And what's even more amazing is that I saw him twice! I would have taken a picture but I didn't see him, um, them coming until he, er, they were right there.

Although looking back, I really don't think there are 2 Zach Galifianakis-es. Unless I missed the newsflash about his identical twin. What I really saw may have in fact been 2 kids trying to be him. All the way down to the beard. But their beards looked a little funny. They were either really good at trimming beards or one of them is really skilled with a Sharpie.


I might have been to slow to pull out my camera, but I was tempted to stop them and ask for an autograph.


Right before I headed to get some Depends. Pissing on oneself is typically frowned upon, even if you're laughing at something priceless!

Journey to Earth

I'm a bloody genius!

Genius, not British! I've watched too much Monty Python in my lifetime. British things tend to poop out occasionally.


Ni!


Now where was I? Oh, yes, genius. What the hell was I thinking to start another blog right before chaos consumed me?!

In my defense, I thought I was planning better. We get home from taking the husband to work around 8am. That gives me an hour or so to do my thing - blog, Facebook, email, whatever. Then it's off to swimming lessons. After that I have the whole afternoon to myself.

Or so I thought!

Apparently I have to feed some little people around here and then entertain them. That pushes my me-time back. Quite a bit, I might add! As in after it's dark. What the hell is that about?!

So what do I do when I finally have some time to myself? Watch crappy tv, that's what! For example, tonight I started watching a documentary about Heaven's Gate. Just in case you don't know what that is, I'll explain.

It's a cult where 39 of the members committed a mass suicide in the late 90s. What blew me away (other than the whole suicide thing) was the belief system of the head honcho. He believed that Jesus came here 2,000 years ago in a spaceship.

A spaceship?!

What
the
fuck?!

And then Jesus' mind was now inside of him. His lady friend... God's mind was inside her!


I get that everyone has their own set of beliefs. We're all entitled to that. I also think that we should respect everyone's beliefs, but there are boundaries. Again, a spaceship? Really, people fell for this?!


Maybe I should have left Blue's Clues on.



Swim lessons are over this Friday, thank goodness! Regularly scheduled programming shall resume after that.

Your mission. Accept it!

For once I don't have much to say. I think the heat is getting to me already. It's going to be hot as hell for the next 2 days! It's not too bad yet, but it's one of those days where you wake up at 6am and say "Damn! It's going to be a hot one!"





I love the summer and would take it over winter any day, but heat and humidity are not the first thing I want to be greeted with in the morning. Coffee is much better! It's surely not helping with the whole trying to stay cool bit, but if I don't get my caffeine fix, things could get ugly.

I don't like ugly! But that doesn't mean it never makes an appearance here on my little blog. There's some good in there, too, but it's those ugly moments that inspired this blog. I do have another blog. It's more family friendly so sometimes those ugly moments aren't appropriate over there.






Your to-do list:

• Invade my privacy by checking out the rest of my blog
• Leave me a witty comment ~ I check my stats! I know you were here. If you're in my space, the least you could do is let me know!
• Make sure I can find you so I can invade your space

My to-do list:

• Go to the pool
• Hope and pray I don't melt - lack of AC in this house is a bitch!
• Avoid the padded room
  

The padded room thing... I have to do the mom thing and do a birthday party for my son. Thank goodness we only do family parties for him! That will probably change next year because he starts school soon, but if your family is like mine, it can be just as stressful as having a bunch of little rugrats running around. And between what we got him and what my mom bought, I can already say it's going to be a long weekend.

That's what I get

I had a Girl Scout leader meeting Wednesday.

I really need to start adding some Captain to my Pepsi before I go to these things!

Everybody always has these great ideas, but when it comes time to really plan shit out, no one wants to do anything. So yet again I get roped into volunteering at the booth we'll have at Community Day next month. Great! Can I bring my happy drink to that?

I figure I'll use the same plan that day that I did at the meeting - bring my midgets! They start acting up - time to go!

Right about the time they started a sword fight with the pool table equipment during the meeting was my cue to head for the door! And the nig boss was the one to stop them before I could get to them. And I mean big as in she's in charge of all of southwest Pennsylvania. That's a lot of ground to watch over! Where's my patch for that?!


Visions of swimming were the only thing that kept me afloat during my stay in hell that meeting. I was so excited when we finally got down to the pool. However, I was not excited that it wasn't quite as warm once I had my suit on. Dammit!

I swam anyway.


My knees are, well, the be honest, fucked up. Since we've been swimming, my left one has been giving me hell. I think our trip to the Wave Pool really did it. But swimming is good exercise, right? I can play with my boy and get a workout at the same time. Awesome!

What was not awesome was me trying to show off. I ended up cracking my knee of the cement steps in the pool. Holy shit, did that hurt!!! I think my exact words at the moment of impact were

"Holy! Son of a! Mother fff!" - can't be responsible for corrupting other people's kids, right? My own, that's another story (see my other blog for my daughter's new word!).

The lifeguard was giving me odd looks from his chair. Probably because I fell over like a drunk and looked like I was about to cry. He could have got out of his fucking chair to see if I was ok, but no, I'll just hobble my way to our towels. Thanks anyway. Jerk!

I guess that's what I get when I try to multi-task.

Organized Chaos

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder - OCD. It's something I will never fully understand. I cannot comprehend how things like cleaning and counting can control your life, but I can comprehend how such things can be an interference.

I think a lot of people have tendencies to be OCD. I have my own set of quirks, if you will.



Have you ever gone for a walk and had to take an extra step because the number of steps you took wasn't an even number? I have. It may look silly and it may sound silly, but I feel off if the count isn't an even number. I don't count my steps or how many times I tap my fingers every day, all the time, but when I do, when I have to, it drives me nuts.


Cleaning - I am not an obsessive cleaner by any means. You may not want to come over my place if you are. I'm not saying that the house is a mess. What I am saying is that my dishes aren't always done right after dinner or the toys aren't all put away at the end of the day.

But when I do the dishes, usually after the kids go to bed or the next morning, there's a certain way to do them. Certain things need to be washed before others. The dishwasher needs to be loaded or unloaded a certain way. I think that may be why the husband doesn't (un)load the dishwasher anymore. If it's not how I do it than it's wrong. Does that mean my way is better? No. But again, I feel off.


Organizing may not be the perfect word for the placement of things around the house, but it's what I have for now. My apologies.

We have a bookshelf in our dining room. My father-in-law made it and it is just beautiful. And all mine! My books are categorized by author on the shelves. That makes sense, but I also categorize them according to size, unless the book is part of a series. Do you know how much it bothers me that all my Harry Potter books are different sizes?!

On top of my bookshelf are my crystal figures my brother likes to get my for Christmas. Each one has it's own stand and a particular place. Surrounding those are pictures of my kids - all 3. Along with a few of my cousin's babies. Each picture has it's own spot. Each frame has to be a just the right angle. The blue glass booties around my son's hospital picture have to be just so.


I don't know how I managed it, but everyone in the house knows not to move anything on my bookshelf. Or the corner shelf with other nick-nacks I've collected over the years. Yes, they all have their own spot as well. The kids have never broke anything. No one has ever been yelled at for moving something. Maybe they just realize how obsessive I am about where those things go.

I don't know why I'm like this. I've had to deal with some pretty big things in my life, but I wouldn't consider any of those events traumatic enough to trigger anything. Or maybe they did trigger something and I haven't made the connection yet.


These little things I do are not things I deal with every day. I cannot imagine intensifying these thoughts and actions and then trying to live a life on top of that. I cannot comprehend how that would work. But I do understand a fraction.

To tell the truth or not

Hosted this week by...

What's your real name? Evonne


Have you ever fabricated a story or anything on your blog? Nope! Any stories on my blogs are the truth and nothing but the truth? Can you handle the truth?!

I find no reason to lie to try and bring in readers or try to be one of the cool kids. And besides, I was never very good at lying!


When in the car do you listen to the radio/CDs/iPod/etc? I will channel surf through the same pre-programmed stations over and over until I find something good to listen to. And it never fails, something good always comes on right as I'm pulling in to where I need to be!

If it's charged and I remember to grab it, I love listening to my iPod. As for CDs, I only have 1 that I listen to in the car and that's Def Leppard. The only reason it's not on my iPod is that I got the CD after I got my new computer, which doesn't have a CD drive.


Describe the 'sexiest' item of clothing that you own. I guess that depends on your definition of sexy! I have a 2 black dresses, 1 short and 1 long that fit in that category, especially when you pair them with my strappy, break an ankle heels do me shoes. The majority of my summer pajamas would fall in that category, too.


Would you be willing to breastfeed your friend's three year old child? I wouldn't breastfeed anyone's child, but especially a 3 year old. Isn't that a little too old to breastfeed anyway?

TGIF

Those words can't be any truer. It has been one hell of a week! I know it's still early in the day, but I think things are starting to look up.

I am starting to make adjustments to hopefully improve this situation. It's definitely not easy, nor is it fun, but who said life was easy in the first place?!

I am also happy to report that I have not seen anymore rabbits in our yard. I think the cat and I are back on speaking terms.

I also haven't had to clean up after anymore craptastic episodes. I think that may have been a mom fail on my part, but hopefully we all learned from that situation.


If you're here from Friday Follow, you must be thinking that this blog is nothing but a place for me to vent. I promise I'm not negative all the time. Pinky swear! This blog is just my place to get it all out - good and bad. Sometimes I need an escape from the mom role and those things I can't put on my family blog. I'm not always comfortable posting certain things over there. For example, I'm sure my Grandma wouldn't appreciate those F-bombs I drop when I get pissed. Other times my intended post is a subject that certain family members readers can't know about.


If you drop in, let me know so I can stop over. Now if you'll excuse my I think I need to do some laundry. There's little people in this house that are trying to convert it to a nudist colony. I must get clean clothes to prevent that.

The Straw

10:15 my phone rings. It's my brother. Oh, shit!

My brother is on my list of people who I can call after a certain time, or can call me, but he never calls. Anyone. Texting was meant for people like him.

He's calling because he's done with work early and can't get a hold of Mom to pick him up. I tell him to try a few more times and I would try, too. If we can't get her, then I would pick him up. I call her cell. It rings a few times and goes to voice mail.

Now I've always been under the assumption that if your phone is off or you're in a place where you don't get reception, it goes straight to voice mail. I think my assumption may be wrong, but regardless, I am freaking the fuck out!

My brother calls back and I said I would get him. I just needed a few minutes to change out of my jammies (I'm a mom - I'm allowed to use that term!). I send my mom a quick text just in case and get in the car. No sooner do I start the car when I hear a ding. I have a message. It's from my mom. She can pick him up.

That's fine and dandy, but where the fuck has she been for the last half hour?!

She then calls to explain that my brother was scheduled to work until 11 and she thought she had time to go out, no doubt with her "friend". She walked out the door and saw the messages on her phone. She then asks if I left yet. I say no so she asks "Who's closer?". We've both lived in our respective neighborhoods long enough to know that where she was is halfway between my house and my brother's work. Obviously she's closer.

At this point I am fuming! I understand that she wasn't expecting him to get off early and thought she had some time to go out. What really gets under my skin is that her family seems to come second when it comes to her "friend". Her reaction was like "Oh! I guess I should do the mom thing and not pawn that off on someone else."

That reaction is the straw that broke the camel's back.

This is not the first time I have felt used. Or blown off, but that's another story. I know my brother has issues with this topic, too. Even though we're both adults and know she can do what she wants with her life, I think there's some jealousy there. I get that she wants to be selfish and have "her" time. After all, she spent a good part of her life raising us kids. But that doesn't mean we need to feel less important just because someone else came along.

Arm flailing craptastic kind of day - TYVM

I was at a loss for something to blog about. I do have a topic in mind, but I'm not ready to publish that yet.

So I'm linking up with Kmama. I have some people to thank!





~To the 2 stupid drivers who pissed me off that past 2 mornings, I thank you. I'm also glad I could return the favor!

I hate, hate, hate when people tailgate me!!! Yesterday I was behind a car that needed to turn. I switched lanes to go around them and then switched back after I passed them. The bitch behind me thought she could fly around me before I switched back to my original lane. It didn't work.

Insert arm flailing

proceeded by many flip offs

possibly by both parties involved

Then she got her car so close to mine I'm surprised she didn't end up in the backseat. So what do I do? Slow down and do just below the speed limit. She tried to pass me. I speed up just enough so she can't. Ya, don't mess with me!

This morning a woman flies up behind me in the tunnels we drive through on our way home. You can't pass people in these tunnels and she was pissed. She started off riding my ass and then she had the nerve to start honking her horn at me. Again, time to drive just below the speed limit. If you're in that much of a hurry, maybe you need to start setting your alarm just a tad earlier!


~To my son, thank you for the craptastistic morning yesterday. It was a shitty morning, and I mean that in the most literal way. I bought him special wipes so he can finally wipe his own ass instead of screaming at someone to come help him. I'm downstairs doing what I need to do when I hear

"Mom! I went potty and used my wipes. But I need some help!" - never good

I go upstairs to find him covered in shit. Apparently I forgot the lesson where he can use more than 1 wipe if necessary. Straight to the tub he went! At least it was contained to only his body. I wasn't in the mood to clean the bathroom yesterday!


Every morning this week deserves a big thank you. So far so good today. I hope tomorrow starts off just as well, too.

Cat Tales

Yesterday was a typical Monday, meaning it was crap. If I wasn't dropping it, I was breaking it. And this was all before 8:30am!



I needed to step outside and regroup. I went to the side of the house because the kids can't find me there to sit on the step at the edge of the porch. About 10 feet in front of me I see this black pile of I don't know what! Then I remember the night before.

I was sitting on the couch with the husband playing Sudoku on my phone while he watched some show with Stephen Hawking, who by the way really does sound like Kermit the Frog! While I'm playing my game I hear this mousy squeal of distress by the side window. Apparently the cat found the mouse that I suspected was running around under the deck.

That must be what that pile of I don't know what is.





Instead of getting a shovel to clean it up like an intelligent person would do, I walk over empty handed. Nope, not a mouse! It's the insides of some rodent or another. Ew! Whatever appetite I had was now gone. Time to go back in.

Fast forward an hour... I realize that it may get hot today and I should probably clean up the mess soon. I grab my shovel and walk around the house to discover....

A HEADLESS BABY BUNNY!!!!!

And don't you know the mother fucking cat that lives on our back porch has the nerve to rub against my leg with a look of

"Look! I brought you a present!"

Stupid cat!

As I'm standing there with shovel in hand, I hear a sound. The sound of the front door opening. Followed by the patter of feet belonging to a 4 year old. Bare feet mind you!

NOOO!!!!! STOP RIGHT THERE!!!!!

Mid-step, bare foot directly over the bunny guts! Drop shovel, scoop up boy, chuck him in the backdoor. Pick up shovel, scoop up bunny remains, chuck them up on the back hill. If the cat wants her leftovers, she can have them up there!

It then occurs to me that there are still flies buzzing. That must mean there are invisible specks of grossness in the grass still. I remember what the cop told me after he shot the raccoon in our yard last year - pour hot water over the spot to wash everything away. That's a true story! There's probably still a bullet in our yard!

I go in the house, turn the water on as hot as I can get it and fill a pot. I tip the pot to dump the water over the grass when the water hits the ground

IT SPLASHES BACK UP ON MY LEG!!!!


EWWWWWWWWWWWW!!!!!!!

BUNNY GUTS ON MA LEG!!!!!!!!!!!

I think the cat knew I was pissed at her because she avoided me the rest of the day. The dirty looks and curses may have given that away!


Fast forward to returning home from getting the husband from work...

Walking towards the front door I catch the cat out of the corner of my eye sitting on the side of the house. She has a gleam in her eye. A gleam that says

"Look! I brought you a present!"

Son of a bitch! She went up on the hill, retrieved her leftovers, and brought them back down to the house to eat. Dammit!!!

I get everyone in the house and go out the backdoor to get my shovel yet again. I walk around the house only to see another set of bunny insides. Son of a bitch! This is a new rabbit!

If I wake up in the morning and see another damn decapitated bunny on the side of the house, I'm chucking the cat up on the hill with the shovel!

After I find a wetsuit. I don't want to be the one to discover the rabbit flu!

It ain't nothing but a party hey

From the early evening til the break of day

So step this way and let your mind be free
And by the way, welcome to the party


I've got a fistful of whiskey, the bottle just bit me
Oh, that shit makes me bat-shit crazy
We've got no fear, no doubt, all-in, balls out

We're going out tonight to kick out every light
Take anything we want, drink everything in sight
We're going til the world stops turning
While we burn it to the ground tonight

Ok, it's not that kind of party,
but it's still a party none the less.
Its time for...

Before I help kick this party into gear, I want to send out some thank yous to those who left me some love on my last post. I did feel guilty for posting that because the next day life was grand, but I'm back to being all stressed out again.

What better way to forget about those things for a moment than a kick ass party?!

Let me set out some chips 'n' dip and my wicked pasta salad so you have something to munch on while I introduce myself. Do you need a drink, too? Let me know! I'll see what I have!

I'm Evonne, but I refer to myself as Jules on here.

I'm sure there's going to be at least 1 person who comes to visit and thinks "Gee, that name sounds familiar". If that's you, then you may know me from my other blog, All You Need is Love. If that's not a dead giveaway that I'm a Beatles fan, than I don't know what is?!

That blog started as a family blog and it's still mostly what I blog about. But I needed another outlet. One just for me! I guess the best way to explain this would be by answering Brittany's questions.

1.) Why do you blog?
My first blog was created as a way to keep out of town family and friends up to date on me and mine. Slowly little things started to creep up. Things I just didn't feel comfortable blogging about over there. Or topics that 1 family member would flip the fuck out about if I mentioned over there. Other people aren't supposed to know about certain things.

I started Jules Out Loud as a way for me to voice things that aren't always related to family. More personal things, like trying to learn who I am outside of the mom role. Writing, or in this case, typing about my thoughts and feelings helps me to figure things out.

Sometimes there's issues going on in this household that I really don't want my family to know about. Talking about these to strangers may sound crazy, but if you're a blogger, than you understand the sense of community. I've seen bloggers who have never met rally around to pick up a fellow blogger who is going through a rough time.

2.) What do you blog about?
ME!!! :D

Honestly, there's no 1 specific topic I focus on. I do mention my kids and my husband, but mainly I focus on me. Wow does that sound conceited or what?!?

I'm trying to learn more about who I am and I also like to have a place to voice my thoughts and opinions. Sometimes there's a show on tv or a story in the news and it gets me thinking. I can get what I have to say out on here without having to worry about being interrupted or starting an argument.

Don't get me wrong, I do like a good debate, but if someone wants to start bashing, please bite your tongue and click away.

3.) What do you find to be the biggest reward you get from blogging?
The sense of community for one. If I have a funny story I want to share, there's at least 1 person out there who can relate and laugh right along with me. If I'm going through a rough patch, there's someone to offer advice, or at the very least a virtual hug.

I also love that I have a place to say whatever I want. Quite often I have lots of random stuff floating around in my head. Although sometimes it's like a football up there. No I don't have a football shaped head!

My head is sometimes full of nothing but air!

By the way, I'm a h-u-u-u-g-e Steelers and Penguins fan. Once those seasons finally start back up, don't say I didn't warn you!

4.) How long have you been blogging?
Technically I've been blogging for close to a year. I gave birth to this particular blog June 9 of this year.

5.) Let's hear the story behind your blog title! :)

Jules, or some variation of it, like Jude, has been a name I've used online for years. Jules is what John Lennon called his son. When John Lennon was going through a divorce, Paul McCartney wrote a song for the boy. "Hey Jules" just didn't sound quite right to him, so the title was changed to "Hey Jude". You're welcome for that little history lesson! :)

"Out Loud" refers to me blogging about what I have to say. An old friend of mine used to always say "Out loud is better than keeping it in". She was talking about burping, but I think the same thing applies to what I have to say!


So let's see, I introduced myself, I put out snacks, and I put on some music. By the way, I would like to thank Kid Rock and Nickelback for the use of their lyrics. How awesome would it be if they stopped in and became my new BFFs?!? I doubt it, but a girl can dream, right?

If you're stopping in for the party, let me know down there in the comments so I can hop over to your site, too. If you're not participating in the party, what the hell are you waiting for? Make a post and head over to Not Your Average Teen and link up!

I am THAT mom

I am not the mom with the perfect house. Not by any means, that's for sure! I don't dress in the latest attire. Hell, I'm lucky to have my hair brushed some days!

I am that mom, screaming at her kid, who looks like she can't hold anything together.

Unless it's the pool or the park where there's lots of room and it's something they want to do, I dread going anywhere. I'm at the end of my rope and I don't know what to do.


My son is 4, almost 5, and for the longest time, I stood by my son's side and defended him. When comments were made, in his presence I might add, about how he's going to be a handful in school because he's trouble, I defended him. That is my child. How dare you say such things! Not only to me, but to him!

But now things have changed. I still don't consider him a "bad" kid. He can be the sweetest, most loving little boy there is. But when he's not, it's hell! I am constantly telling his sister to be nicer to him. But can you really blame her? Would you be nice to someone who continually hurts you - physically and mentally? Would you be nice to someone who always followed you into your room only to scatter your toys about the room?

I get that this is sibling rivalry. I have a brother. I know all about that, believe me! The misbehaving that my son does is every fucking day! I tell him to leave his sister alone and 10 minutes later he's swinging something else at her head. And yes, there are consequences for his actions. I can't just ask him to stop because that shit just doesn't work! It has to be something that makes me feel guilty as hell. Taking toys, time outs, sometimes a spanking.

The time outs are the worst. I have to physically sit him on the rug in the kitchen and then move everything out of the way. If I don't, there's a good chance the stool will end up across the room, the rug gets thrown, cabinets doors get banged. If he doesn't destroy the kitchen, he will hurt himself! He has done both already.

Every day. Everything is every day! Asking him to do something is just as bad as asking him to NOT do something. There's always an excuse. I want him to clean up his toys. He has to pee. I want him to come inside because it's raining. He has "just one thing" he has to do.


I've tried explaining his behavior to my husband and even our pediatrician. The response I get is always to same. He's a boy. Be patient and be persistent. Well dammit, I am, but still, nothing changes! Nothing! Nobody's here with me all day. Everyone seems to think I am blowing the Dr. Jekyl/Mr. Hyde behavior out of proportion. Boys willl be boys, I agree, but I think that's cop out. You can't dismiss behavior that is causing me to almost rip my hair out every night. Or become an alcoholic.

They can think what they want, but it only pisses me off further. When the hell is someone going to realize that I am at the end of my rope? I want to go out to eat with my family and have a good time. I want to go shopping with my kids and have fun.

I'm tired of being stressed every fucking night over the actions of 1 child.

It Broke

Good morning and happy Friday! I am so glad it's Friday. Not only is it the end of the week, which means I get to sleep in the next 2 days, but it appears we are finally getting a break from the heat. I'm not a fan of things breaking, except when it comes to 95+ degree weather!

We have been pummeled with this hot and humid weather all week! We definitely got our money's worth out of our pool passe this week, but when we weren't in the pool, I was sweating in places no one should. Quite frankly, I'm over it! I'll take summer any day over winter, but damn!!


So now that I've shared possibly a little TMI about my bodily functions, I'd like to welcome any Friday Followers who decide to grace me with their presence.





Jules Out Loud is my personal blog where I don't have to worry about what I say. I do have a family friendly blog, All You Need is Love, but I would feel guilty when I posted things over there that didn't directly relate to my kids. There's also a few subjects I don't feel comfortable talking about over there due to family who sometimes stopped in.

Feel free to have a look-see around here and if you decide to stay, let me know so I can hop over and visit you as well.


Thanks for stopping by!

A Lack of Ruffled Feathers

I will admit, I am a Deadliest Catch fan girl. I have been in love with the show since the beginning, but even more so this season due to all the emotions involved. After each episode for this season, there is a show called After the Catch. This show was filmed after the crab season ended and takes place in a jazz bar located in New Orleans. Last night's episode blew me away!

Not only did the captain's discuss Captain Phil, which is a very emotional story, but they talked about the city of New Orleans itself. As you can imagine, their discussion led to the Gulf Oil Spill.

Last night's episode was filmed during the last week of June. The captain's from the Deadliest Catch vessels were taken around a bayou by a local fisherman. What they saw and what I saw pissed me off!

There were birds on top of poles that were black as night from the oil. There were barriers placed on the edges of marshes to keep the oil out, and the reliability of these things is debatable. One of the captains stuck his hand in the water by a marsh. He described it best by saying his hand looked like it was covered in peanut butter. It was sickening!

Mike Rowe, the host of After the Catch, asked if the Valdez spill effected Alaskan fishing. He didn't think it directly did, but the captains said otherwise. There are bays in Alaska where fishermen get their bait (herring, I think). Some of these bays were hit with the oil from the Valdez and the fish have never returned. It's been 21 years!

21 years since the spill and these areas have yet to recover?! To be perfectly honest, that's fucked up!

At the time, the Valdez was considered one of the worst disasters, and I'm sure we're all aware that the Gulf Oil Spill far surpasses that! 11 million gallons leaked from the Valdez. "If you dig down 1 foot on a beach damaged by the Exxon Valdez, you will still find oil contaminating the shoreline today. In the Gulf, we're dealing with at least six times that amount!" (source here).

I just cannot wrap my mind around how much damage is being done down in the Gulf. "It will be 2030 before we know the true damage BP has caused to the Gulf." (source here). And that's just damage! How many years, possibly decades beyond that before there's a turn around? If that is even possible?!

It pisses me the fuck off that this even happened in the first place. It pisses me off that oil is still leaking. It pisses me off that unemployment in this country is already going through the roof. This situation does anything but help that fact! Instead of fishing to bring home money to support their families, fishermen are instead cleaning oil.

What pisses me off the most is that I do not have the means to do much to help. I can donate few dollars where I can. I know if you buy a bottle of Dawn dish soap and activate your donation, the company will donate to wildlife conservation efforts, but only up to $500,000. I also found that you can text WILDLIFE to 20222 to automatically donate $10 to National Wildlife Federation’s conservation efforts in the Gulf of Mexico.

But is this enough? Yes it helps now, and that help is sorely needed, but what about 20 years from now when we learn the extent of the damage? What then?

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What I Learned This Weekend

These past 3 days have been crazy! Fun, but crazy! We had a street fair, a parade, and a boatload of things around the community for people of all ages.

I learned a lot this weekend...


~ Shut my mouth!
Just because I'm hot and annoyed doesn't mean i need to go off on every dumbass! I'm usually not a mean person, but if I'm hot, tired, and/or hungry, I can be a very tad bitchy. Friday night I was all 3. Telling people they're dumb for not knowing their colors when crossing on a red light... probably not my smartest move. And it was not the first time that night I said that something that surprisingly didn't get me jumped!

~ Plan accordingly!
If its going to be hot for the parade, put the chairs where there will be shade the next morning. If the people who live along the route want a spot in front of their house, they should have had their chairs out already! Quit worrying about their feelings and be selfish!


~ There need to be more support groups.
My husband runs. He enjoys it and I can see that it is good exercise. *wink* But some people... well, I wonder about them. When you're jalking (jogging + walking) and you're about to fall over, it's time to stop and find something new to do, like Runners Anonymous. Oh, and this woman (?) had knee braces on, too!


~ I like muffins, just not yours.
I walked up to the church before the parade to get one. I did not need to come back to my chair and see your muffin from across the street! Pull your damn shirt down!! Your body is not suited for a halter top and no one wants to see that! My eyes, my eyes!!!


~ It's great to have someone else spray the sunscreen on your back.
Just make sure they get it all before you leave the house. We all know that unless you're Gumbi, there's spots on your back that you just can't reach. That's why we ask someone to assist with the sunscreening process. Those are the spots that are now red on my back! Thanks, mom!


~ There's always a loophole!
Apparently holidays make walking around with open containers acceptable. They also make it acceptable to walk around the neighborhood plastered by 1pm. Even though some of these people were FUBARed, I must remember this loophole in the rules for next 4th of July!



Did you learn anything new this past weekend?

Q & A

Because I'm still recovering from the holiday weekend. No, I wasn't drinking, although I wish I did, but I didn't sleep much. I did learn some interesting things over the weekend, and I'll blog about those tomorrow. For now, check out my Monday Minute!





Who of all your blog friends would you like to meet and/or who have you met?

Oh, wow! Where to start?

I met Supah last year and she's awesome! We're trying to get together again, but it's not easy when you have kids! There are so many others I would love to meet! I think the best way to answer this is by saying if your button is scrolling on the side of my blog, then you're on the list of those I want to meet!


What kind of vehicle(s) do you drive?
Red Chevy Cobalt. I love this car! Now if only it would clean itself. And I don't mean the outside, I mean the inside. I swear the kids (husband included) trash the inside faster than they do the house!


What kind of cell phone do you have?
HTC Evo and I am in love with it! If I believed in polygamy, it could very well be my second husband!

For the longest time I said I had no real need for a smart phone - all I do is talk and text. Apparently I was wrong. I never realized my need to play sudoku whenever I want. Or the balloon game!


What's the most annoying thing you wish bloggers would stop doing?
Just like the list of bloggers I would love to meet, this list is not short. No-reply is a biggie. And it really pisses me off when I type out this huge response to your comment only to realize that I can't send it anywhere!

Another one is music. We all have music we love and think others should love it, too, but that's why there are radios, iPods, etc! And to take it one step further, if I cant find where your little music widget is to turn off your music, I'll leave your blog. Sorry, but it's true!


What's the one thing that you still have on your bucket list to do before the year is out?
I would love to take a big family vacation. We haven't done that since before my youngest was born. But that's not my "one thing".

I would love to take a vacation, just me and the husband. It doesn't matter if it's overnight or a long weekend, but we need it. When a wedding is thrown together when you're 8 months pregnant, a honeymoon isn't really included.



Want to answer these questions yourself? Make a post and link up with Ian or his co-host of the week, Brittany.

Welcome!

Hello there fellow Friday Follow blog hoppers!
Glad you stopped in!
I'm Evonne, aka Jules
Welcome to Jules Out Loud

Contrary to what it looks like, I am not a newbie blogger. I have another blog that is more family centered. I've been blogging over there for close to a year now. In the past few months I've realized that I needed another space. One just for me. Since I have family who read that blog, some more than I realized, there are topics that I don't feel comfortable "talking" about over there. I don't cuss like a sailor or anything, but I do try to watch my language over there.

Jules Out Loud is my personal space where I can say whatever the hell I want. I sometimes talk about my kids on here, but I also try to use this space to focus more on who I am outside of that mom role. I also talk about my marriage. I have a great marriage, but sometimes there are things that bother me. Sometimes I just bitch discuss things that intrigue me.

So grab a drink and have a look around. I personally needlike coffee in the mornings, Pepsi in the afternoon, and if it's been a tough day, some Captain and Coke in the evening. But you can grab whatever works for you!

Thanks for stopping by!

I'm going to be crazy busy this weekend, but I will visit your blogs and respond to any comments (assuming you're not a no-reply... that shit drives me bat shit crazy!).

Have a safe and happy holiday!

I Love Guilt Trips, TYVM

I don't normally participate in Kmama's TYVM, which is odd because I always have some sarcastic thank you to throw out to someone!


Since Kmama is on vacay this week, TYVM is being hosted by...

A serious thank you goes out here for 2 reasons.
1. I really have people to "thank"
2. A new blog to check out - yay!


Now onward to TYVM!


First off, thank you very much, Kmama for going on vacation. I thank you for rubbing it in reminding those of us who stalk visit your blog. I hope you're enjoying your trip while I'm stuck here with this 70 degree weather. I can't go swimming when it's in the 70s!!!

I'm going to stop with the weather stuff now. Like I said yesterday, if I keep complaining Mother Nature will give me much more than I ask for.

Seriously Kmama, enjoy your trip!



Girl Scout service area manager, thank you very much for the guilt trip. I truly, truly appreciate it! I respectfully declined to participate in the parade, but you keep emailing me. I don't want to be the mean leader because you're kind of like my boss, but I'm ready to go there. There's not much Irish in me, but for the teeny bit there is, it's feisty!


I guess I should explain what the hell I'm talking about, huh?

Our community has a parade every year for the 4th - one of the biggest in the area. The Service area manager for my town asked all of us leaders to march with our troops. Leader R was in charge of organizing for the parade and we should contact her with RSVPs and what not.

I talked to the other leader of our troop to find out if any of the girls would be marching. She hadn't heard from anyone. She also sent an email around for our parents to contact me since she was going out of town. I haven't heard from anyone either.

I finally caved and sent the head honcho-ess and Leader R an email saying I didn't think anyone from our troop would be able to make it. Leader R emailed me back saying not to worry about it. They usually have girls show at the last minute anyway. Head honcho-ess emails me and brings on the guilt trip.

It would be really nice if you could march and bring a few girls with you. Remind them that they will get a patch and be recognized at the luncheon

Yes, it would be nice, but what does she want me to do, drag each girl to the meeting place by their ears?! NO thank you very much!

As for me, I have my mom and a family friend with her daughter who come every year to watch the parade with us. I really don't think it's fair for them to come here only for me to hit them up with babysitting duty for my son while I walk down the road with my daughter. I just love how the husband conveniently schedules a tennis game during the parade. Every year!

For now, I'm going to ignore that last email and just see what happens from here. There's a good chance when they come marching towards me on Saturday, it will just happen to coincide with me needing to run down the hill to my house for a pee break!

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Who do you have to thank this week? Go write a post and link up with Kmama Oswalk Cuties!


One more thing, voting for the Mommyologist's Mom Sexy Prom Queen is still going on. Would you be so kind as to visit her and place a vote for me? Thanks!