full moons and dance floors

I have forever been fascinated with the moon, the man in the moon and the magic that surrounds full moons.  In fact, during a full moon I can often be found laying on the ground staring at the moon - and if someone joins me, giggling about what our future holds.

 

It would be no wonder that when there is a full moon I often have the desire to dance, shake my groove thing.  And this is where "Trixie" comes into play...

 

When the moon is right, the DJ listens to my bossy requests and my buddy vodka joins the party, one might be lucky enough to meet my overly-confident alter-ego: Trixie.  She likes to dance to no beat in her own space - smack in the middle of the dance floor - flirt shamelessly with any male around, request songs the DJ begrudgingly plays (that bring everyone to the dance floor) and often leaves the overjoyed and kissing everyone on the lips a flirty goodbye.

 

This sparkly, fun girl that is full of life is why dear friends, we blame it on the sequins.

 

No one ever knows when Trixie is going to show up, but her giggle is infectious, her dance moves contagious and when planning any holiday party I would suggest checking if it is a full moon!

of ryan reynolds and garden eels

It doesn't happen very often but occasionally, after a martini or two, I blame myself for the d-i-v-o-r-c-e of Ryan Reynolds and Scarlett Johansson...

 

The time, place and why are not relevant here.  Two weeks after he was named "world's sexiest person alive" I met Ryan Reynolds.  He was tall, he made me weak in the knees, he was polite (take note Vince Vaughn, he even knew how to say "thank you"), he made me blush, he really was the sexiest man alive.

 

I would be wise to advise that our interaction took place after I had been at work for 8-hours and was working late, like 6-hours late....

  

Around 3-hours after he first said hello and made me blush like a giddy little girl, we found ourselves in front on a garden eel exhibit.  Glancing over his shoulder he smiled at me and asked while all the eels were looking one direction.   We had chatted throughout the evening, but here was my chance.  In a moment of delirium I replied "because they have been staring at me for 5-years and now you are here" in a sarcastically witty tone.

 

And that is when Ryan Reynolds looked at me and laughed.   A laugh straight from the gods to his perfect lips.

 

Seeing our interaction someone in his pose responded "well yeah, he IS the sexiest man alive..."  To which Ryan eloquently replied with an adorable eye-roll "that was so two weeks ago, I like her answer" - and I swear his teeth sparkled when he smiled.

 

Two weeks later, as I waited in the grocery line, I read a tabloid that screamed "Ryan and Scarlett divorce". 

 

I never did read the article - it is much more fun after a few martinis to think my spinster-self maybe contributed to the tabloid headline.

festival season

It is my favorite time of year - festival season!  This time of year is perfect for the single ladies as the men walk around in the latest GQ style, the booze is flowing and evening porch sitting is almost expected.

It is also a time for budding romances and bad decisions...

The season kicked off last weekend and looks like it will be going strong for a while.  This year started with a bang as we scored VIP tickets - meaning cheap beer, sort skirts, sunshine and late night pizza. 

As with every spring love is in the air.  Everywhere you look everyone is in love to the point where it is almost gross - people walking around holding hands, kissing mid-conversation, giggling, and Barry White all play a big part of spring.  As the weather warms up this love either grows into something or people realize they made some bad porch-drinking decisions.

The truth is - I am in love with love.  I can't get enough of it...

I love the butterflies and hand-holding and over-the-top mush found in the movies.  I love the giddiness that comes with those first few weeks of dating (and I miss the note passing "Do you like me? Check YES or NO" of loves from long ago.

That is why festival season is so great - you get to venture out and enjoy being in love with everything, every weekend for weeks on end!  You get to fall in love with your city, watch new love budding in the air, eat corn dogs (who doesn't love that?!) and fall in love with love, over and over! 

So, here's to festival season.  May it be filled with endless laughter, hand-holding, flowing dresses, first kisses, and bad decisions that we don't regret the next day.  Here's to being in love with spring. 

crawfish and my future husband

This weekend I was invited to a good ol' fashioned crawfish boil.  Unsure of what to expect I packed by cooler with vodka-lemonade (which in reality was just a big ol' bag of vodka, water and some crystal light), called my best friend and prepped for what was to be a fabulous evening with strangers.

It should be noted that I called by best friend at 2PM, I was showered, pretty and had the dog walked by 2:30PM and was out on the porch waiting from him by 2:35PM.  When I called to say I was ready he wasn't even dressed yet.

As luck would have it I had a chair, a bag of vodka and a cup, so I justified a 2:35PM cocktail by telling myself someone had to sample the vodka before the party...

One cocktail later my friend showed up and we went on our way.  Traffic was horrid and we finally arrived at the party, vodka in-hand, around 4PM.  There was already tons of crawfish piled on a table, with all sorts of veggies, a cooler of beer and a delightful strawberry-basil-lemonade for my wonderful bag of vodka.

Having never attempted to eat a crawfish I naturally dove right in.  Snapping tails, peeling shell and ending up with the tiniest piece of protein I have ever seen.  I am pretty convinced you burn more calories getting the suckers open than you do actually consuming them.  After a dozen or-so I grew bored of the creatures and ventured to sit in the sun with a cocktail in hand.

And then a southern gentlemen sat at the table of crawfish and taught me the art of eating a freshly boiled crawfish.

Who knew shellfish could be a turn-on?!  He never peeled the shells, he simply snapped the tiny lobster-like crustaceans and sucked.  Tail, brains and even claws.  Someone noticed me staring and asked what was so interesting - I giggled and pointed out the man, his pile of shells and told her to just watch.  Soon all of us were mesmerized.  We must have watched him for three cocktails as we giggled and blushed over his crawfish skills.

And that, dear friends, is how I decided my future husband must be able to properly eat a crawfish.  (Thinking about it still makes me blush)

of number eighty eight

He was a football player and when they named his position they sure got it right - tight end.  I was a sophomore in college, hanging out with our football team's center and he was fully aware of my crush.  I can still remember what I wore that night - a white tank top that showed off my toned shoulders, cropped jeans from Ambercrombie, black rocket dogs and my hair was in perfect Miami curls.  The center and I had ventured out with my roommates and were at the local hot spots.

The night was full of giggling and flirting. 

The center and I danced, joked about life and what we would be when we were old.  We might have even solved some of the world's problems that night.  As we went to leave from one location I was sparkling and enjoying the Miami heat and great company.

And then I met the tight end.

He was tall, blonde, perfect blue eyes and overall scrumptious.  As he walked towards us I am pretty sure I felt my knees go weak (and being in sandals it couldn't have been me being wobbly on high heels, it had to be love).  The center said he had someone he wanted me to meet and as I smiled and went to shake his hand my alter-ego took over.

And then I bit him...

That's right folks - this "man of my dreams" first interaction with me was me nibbling on his hand - I am sure he just looked so scrumptious it was inevitable...  I remember giggling like a school-girl and saying "yep, that just happened" but I have no other explanation for my actions that night.  A silly friendship grew out of that bite, my crush continued, the football team continued to win and I had a wonderfully embarrassing story to laugh at for the rest of my life.

And then he went pro, got tattoos, is now married and I am single, sparking and sharing my silly story with the world.

While the girl with the school-girl crush was a little devastated to learn of his recent nuptials, I am sure it is for the best - he would have grown tired of my sparkle and I would have grown tired of his foul mouth and bachelor ways.

star gazing

By far my favorite star is the sun - it makes me happy, colors my hair a perfect blonde, tans my skin and makes the day a better place.  This past Friday I forgot about the office and just went out to enjoy the day - that giant sequin in the sky seems to make every little worry melt.

Tonight I went out with the dog, my sunglasses and my iPod - this iPod is by far the coolest gift I have ever received, it is loaded with found playlists to narrate my life, and let me tell you every song is spot-on.  We ran hard for a mile or-so, stopped for water, ran for another mile, each step motivated by a fun song from the 80's.  When we made it up the huge hill where I normally stop for a celebratory dance party I looked at the dog and plopped down in the sweet (itchy grass) to watch the sun set. 

A I lay on the ground in "snow angel" pose, probably looking like I was dying to everyone walking by, I couldn't help but giggle.  A year ago we rescued my dog - since then I have been dumped, I have broken up with people, I have fought with my family, I have struggled to make it as the adult I want to be, and even just last week I was un-friended on Facebook because I liked a guy's post about brunch (more on that later).  Now, I am laying in the grass, without a care in the world.

As I type this I realize that perhaps I was star gazing at the sun for too long - but glad that a giant sequin can make me giggle just like it did when I was little.