Lesson Learned At Work

As you all know I work at a law firm.  Specifically, I work in the real estate department at the law firm.  Yes, occasionally there are some juicy and entertaining cases in real estate...but not typically.  Most of the time we just buy, sell and refinance residential and commercial real estate.   There are eight people on my hallway.  Six of us work in real estate.  Two work in family law (mostly divorce).  And yesterday I learned the BIGGEST lesson probably of my whole time as working adult.  DO NOT EVER send a picture of yourself topless, naked or suggestive...because one day that picture could end up in a divorce case and four or more women will be huddled around the file of your "sweetie" laughing at you.

Sad truth, this girl thinks the guy is single and maybe she thought she was safe sending him a picture of herself and that only his eyes would get to see her goodies.  WELL, SHE WAS WRONG!  And now she's evidence in a divorce case...and we ALL got to see her goodies.

Note to self: DO NOT EVER take topless, naked or suggestive pictures of yourself.  You never know where they will end up!  Thanks for the laugh skank.

Obsessed & Drive

UGH!  We watched Drive last night.  If you happen to have that in your movie queue I would totally recommend deleting it.  I could tell the style/type of movie they were going for but they totally missed in my opinion...on everything.  Ryan Gosling is not a BadA$$.  Just not.  Go back to The Notebook (of which I have never watched. Stupid Nicholas Sparks crap).  There were only minor moments of violence but the violence was so gruesome I almost couldn't finish my Nutella Rice Krispie Treat.  And I literally sat in the chair with my eyes covered asking, "Is it over yet?"  It was not "COOL" Pulp Fiction violence it was gratuitous violence that was not worth the time and cinematography.  UGH!  (Spoiler Alert!) He literally stomped a guys head flat.  I've never watched American History X or whatever the movie is where the guy gets curbed...but I imagine this being worse than that.  If you're curbed you still have a face... Two thumbs way down!  


On the flip side...I am OBSESSED with The Lucky One!  OBSESSED.  If I could find someone to go watch it with I'd go every single night (if I didn't think Jeff would flip about me spending $9.00 every night to go watch that movie over and over again).  I think I have watched the movie trailer for The Lucky One at least three times a day.  That is now my new fantasy.  What girl doesn't want to hear some (smoking hot) guy say, "You should be kissed every day, every hour, every minute."  Yeah, I think this movie is going to run dating for single guys and gals for YEARS!  Every girl will be looking for her personal Logan.  Sorry guys.  Someone needs to get Nic Sparks to stop writing all these books!  


Side note - Personally I have hated Nic Sparks for YEARS because the first book I read was The Guardian.  I bought it because everyone was buzzing about the author and there was a Great Dane in the story.  The dog got killed.  I've been on a boycott of his ever since.  How can you kill a dog?  Even if it is in a book?  Anyway, I haven't read anything of his ever since.  I've never watched The Notebook mainly because it came out right at the same time my grandfather died of Alzheimer's so...no, I haven't seen it.  The most recent movie I watched was The Last Song and I could probably win the award for the loudest cry in the theater because the dad dies of cancer and my father-in-law died of cancer.  I just wasn't expecting that.  So, again I was wary of anything related to Sparks but he has TOTALLY redeemed himself with The Lucky One.  I'm in love. I'm obsessed.  


And can I just say...I now have a growing list of my top sex/kiss movies and The Lucky One is now # 2.  Forever there was never a list because there was only one movie that guaranteed an evening ending in the bedroom...that was The Departed.  (Don't judge).  When Leo goes to Vera's apartment and is so sexy and vulnerable...have mercy.  That scene does it for me every time.  What girl doesn't want a hot, brooding, moody guy (a la Mr. Darcy) to open up to them and for her to be the only one that was able to break through that hard outer shell to the softness inside.  Yeah, that was it for YEARS.  Until October.  Back in October we skipped Halloween (see previous post about that) and went to watch The Rum Diary with Johnny Depp.  In that movie he has a great scene with his leading lady.  That movie went to # 1 and bumped Leo & Vera to # 2.  Until Monday night.  Now Johnny is still at # 1 (best on screen kiss I've ever seen) and Zac Efron is now at #2 and Leo has fallen to # 3.  The whole scene with Zac & Taylor and the outdoor shower...have mercy!  If you ever come over to my house and there is now an outdoor shower on our patio for no reason why (no beach or pool at our house) then you'll know it's because of this movie!  I'm still thinking about it 3 days later.  Last night was my only free night at home and we watched our Netflix movie (Drive - BLAH!) and some DVR'd shows but I totally could have gone to see The Lucky One again.  


Friends...if you want to go see The Lucky One please let me know.  I will go with you!  

I Am That Girl and I Blame Jenny Lawson!

I did something today that I have never done before.  I went to the eye doctor.  Shocking, I know.  Well, I'm  -- years old and I've never had any eye problems so I've never had a reason to go.  My husband, who has terrible vision, thought it was the strangest thing that I'd never been before and decided it was time I started going.  Okay, fine.  So, this morning is my first ever eye exam and I've never met these people before in my life...but they know Jeff (nerdy, uptight, banker, mother f---er - quote from $5 Yo about bankers and Jeff in general - Ah-hahahaha!).  So, I guess if you know him you wouldn't expect him to be with "Mouth of the South Tori"...but he is.

And let me interject here that I LOVE Jenny Lawson.  She brightens my days and makes me laugh and entertains be beyond any other blogger and writer, to date.  Her first novel came out on Tuesday and I received my copy of her book yesterday.  Well, I didn't get to read much yesterday because we went to a Jackson Generals baseball game last night and got home late.  Well, I thought sitting in a waiting room and exam room would be the PERFECT time to start reading her book!  Well, the thing about Jenny is that she LOVES cuss words (yes, in the south they are cuss not curse words).

And back to today's eye exam.  So, I've read the Introduction and the first chapter and I'm plowing through the second chapter when the nurse comes in to do the "work up". I put my book in my purse and I'm all business.  I have great vision and I'm ready to amaze these ladies with my ability to read the fine print...and boy, do I!

She tells me to hold that little cup, wand thing of my left eye and read the smallest print I'm able to read and then she told me to hold it over my right eye and read the smallest print I'm able to read.  We went through about 4 or 5 screens of letters before we hit "that one".

Interjection # 2.  Have you ever seen that e-mail that has all the words with all the letters in the incorrect order but you can still read it?  And it says that the brain is able to figure out the word because the first and last letter are in the correct spot?  Well, think of that e-mail as I continue.

And back to the story...so, she hits the button and the next screen pops up and there are 6 letters across the bottom.  I've had 100% success rate so far so why would this slide be any different?  Well...it was.  And I blame Jenny Lawson.  The first two letters were random and don't really matter but for the sake of having something we'll say it was A and D.  Then the letter F...then the letter U...then the letter C...then the letter K.  Yes, I spelled out F-U-C-K to the nurse!  And she DIED laughing because...I was wrong!  It was F-U-O-K!  Again, I blame Jenny Lawson for making me see the word FUCK because I had just read it a million times in the first chapter and a half of her book.

So, now I'm "that" girl at the eye doctor.  I'm sure they can't wait for next year so they can see what other words I "see" on their magic screens.

In case you're wondering I have wonderfully healthy eyes.  My left eye is 20/20 and my right eye is better than 20/20.  And the only random thing in the whole experience is that I learned I have a freckle in my left eye!  So, maybe it's true I have freckles everywhere...or almost everywhere.

Can't wait for work to be over so I can get back to reading Jenny's filthily hilarious book!

Chicken & Wild Rice Casserole

Ingredients:

2 slices bacon, chopped

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 1/2 pounds chicken thighs, boneless & skinless

1/2 cup diced celery

1/2 cup diced onion

2 tablespoons worcestershire sauce

3/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

1/2 teaspoon dried sage

1 cup converted long-grain white rice

1 package (4 ounces) wild rice

6 ounces brown mushrooms, * wiped clean & quartered

3 cups hot chicken broth, or enough to cover chicken

salt and pepper to taste

2 tablespoons chopped parsley, for garnish

* Use "baby bellas" or crimini mushrooms. Or, you may substitute white button mushrooms.

Directions:

Microwave bacon on HIGH (100% Power) 1 minute. Transfer to crockpot. Add olive oil and spread evenly on bottom. Place chicken in crockpot. Add remaining ingredients in order given, except parsley. Cover; cook on LOW 3 to 4 hours, or until rice is tender. Uncover and let stand 15 minutes. Add salt and pepper, if desired. Garnish with chopped parsley.

WE LOVED IT!!

Yum & YUM!

So, this weekend I had a poor, sickly hubby so we had a long, lazy weekend. Being the good southern girl that I am I cooked all day on Sunday. I made three casseroles, 2 batches of cookies and a crockpot meal. No, that is not typical and that's not normal for me but it's what good, southern women do when friends are in need. The crockpot meal and one casserole were for us. The cookies and the other two casseroles were for friends that are having a hard time.

So, I made Chicken and Wild Rice Casserole in the crockpot and it is really good! I'll post the recipe next! That is my first yum!

My second YUM is saved for the one and only Matthew McConaughey! Last night after my cooking extravaganza we watched The Lincoln Lawyer. LOVED IT! I was talking to one of the attorneys I work with and I told him I was game to start practicing that kind of law with him. He agreed that law is "much sexier" than real estate. We laughed, but it's true. Real Estate law is needed but it sure isn't ""sexy". I don't desire to work in criminal defense but there are times where some excitement in the work place would be fun, especially if Matthew McConaughey was my boss...and none of my attorneys are Matthew. If you're looking for a good movie and/or your a fan of Michael Connelly then definitely watch this movie!

THIS, TOO, WILL PASS

I can not begin to tell you how many times I've heard my mother and Suzanne McCurdy (another of my mothers) say, 'This, too, shall pass." One of my favorite movies is Hope Floats. All through that movie that strong, southern, Christian mama kept telling Birdie (Sandra Bullock) that, "This, too, shall pass."

When you're feeling low, weird, wired, or just not yourself it seems like a flippant answer or a cheesy platitude. I can remember being in high school and my mom saying "This, too, shall pass" and thinking, "Whatever lady" but you know what? She's right. They all are and I found a poem in a book that says exactly that. Thought I might share for anyone needing a little bit of hope...because according to the movie, it floats (wha-wha - super cheesy but whatever!).

This, too, will pass. O heart, say it over and over,

Out of your deepest sorrow, out of your grief,

No hurt can last forever - perhaps tomorrow

Will bring relief.

This, too, will pass. It will spend itself - its fury

Will die as the wind dies down with the setting sun;

Assuaged and calm, you will rest again, forgetting

A thing that is done.

Repeat it again and again, O heart, for your comfort;

This, too, will pass, as surely as passed before

The old forgotten pain, and the other sorrows

That once you bore.

As certain as stars at night, or dawn after darkness,

Inherent as the lift of blowing grass,

Whatever your despair or your frustration

This, too, will pass.

Grace Noll Crowell

Being Like Aibileen

Have you watched or read The Help? One of the main characters is Aibileen Clark. Aibileen doesn't think of herself a strong person or as a game changer but she becomes both of those things. Well, one of my favorite things about Aibileen is that she writes her prayers every night. Last night I decided that if that worked for Aibileen then maybe it would work for me. I had to go to Kroger to buy yet another prescription (more on that in a sec) and I decided to see if they had any notebooks. Well, wouldn't know you that Kroger has a very cute variety of notebooks and journals. I found a small notebook with HOPE on the front of it and knew instantly it was mine. Last night Jeff and I watched a movie and after the movie I went in the bedroom to read and I took my notebook and decided to give it a try.

HAVE MERCY FOLKS! Have you ever tried to write your prayers? I think I could have stayed up all night long thinking of people and things to pray for. And a side note, when I wrote my prayers it was a VERY different feeling than trying to say prayers! Writing is very specific. What I am praying for exactly for these people in my life? Wow, that was definitely a lesson for me. I think so many times a person, name, situation would pop in my head and I would give it an "Oh Lord, please" and kind of fade off. Writing prayers is VERY different. And...it felt good! It felt really good. I dated last night's entry and hopefully this is a good habit I can keep up and it will be very interesting to go back and read what I prayed for, who I prayed for and how my writing and my prayers will change over time. I'm pretty pumped about this. I would highly recommend giving it a try. And above all I really do feel like I gave a lot of my worries and troubles over to God to carry for me and I don't the weight of them with me today. I hope that's a feeling I can continue, too.

As for the medicine I was really at Kroger to buy...I've got acid reflux. No biggie, right? WRONG! It's been tough. At first I was gagging every morning when I woke up and at every meal and I was barely able to eat anything (If you ever want "fab abs" I can tell you how to get them!) after two trips to the doctor so far we've decided it's acid reflux that may or may not have been brought on by...anxiety! That's a new feeling for me, too! I am happy to say that today I am feeling myself and I've been on a upswing since Sunday night and I hope it continues. In no particular order I know that faith, determination, hard work, and support will really go a long way towards helping me deal with anxiety. I won't bore you with details but I will say that I know I'm not alone in dealing with anxiety and I hope you know you're not alone either and as my mom always told me, "This too shall pass."

Hope that wasn't too cheesy for you. I'll try to get back to "regular" stuff soon!