Computer Update!

I got my compouter back from Asus.

now remember... my warranty was expired. So I put off sending it in just because I was being stuborn and grouchie about having to pay for repairs to my computer that still makes me drool...

Asus repaired my computer and covered it under warranty.

They took excellent care of my system, they get high marks on their service. They stayed in contact with me the entire time they had my computer.

I highly recommend their gaming laptops to those that preferr gaming on a laptop as opposed to a desk top.

I will not purchase my next laptop from Best Buy, but if my next machine is a lap top I most definatly will purchase an Asus machine... it rocks!!

My next purchase... (however, I would like to get a couple more years out of this one)

http://usa.asus.com/products.aspx?modelmenu=1&model=2215&l1=5&l2=61&l3=766&l4=0

http://usa.asus.com/products.aspx?modelmenu=2&model=2215&l1=5&l2=61&l3=766&l4=0

Why do I raid?

(2) Flasks per raid – around 100-130 gold
(20) Count of food (minimum) – around 40 gold
(30) Mana pots (minimum) – 60 to 80 gold
(60) Reagents for buffs – around 5 gold
Repairs – Depending on the fight… anywhere from 5 gold to 50… 4 deaths is around 15-20 gold in repairs… and I am a clothie.

If you’re saying to yourself… wow Bubu… that’s a lot of Gold!!

You’re right… it is a lot of gold…

So why do I do it?

Because I didn’t think I could.

I never thought that a day would come that I could say that I healed a boss fight in MH, or SSC, or TK, or BT… but I have done it… from the strength, and skill of our raiders, we have already accomplished so many great things.

When we go into a raid, and I look at the 24 people there with me, and I know what we have accomplished so far as a team. I know, as a team, there is no boss that is unattainable for us.

Our team is just that good.

***************************************************
All it takes is focus, and a desire for a common goal.
***************************************************

I want to see the bosses of BC.

Raiding is expensive. It is also challenging and rewarding. Whether it is gear you are looking for, a sense of accomplishment, or the camaraderie of playing with your fellow guildies, for those that choose to raid it has its own rewards.

Without focus on the task at hand, especially during a boss fight, there are no rewards for anyone.

This bears repeating.

~ Without focus on the task at hand, especially during a boss fight, there are no rewards for anyone.~

There is a time and a place for all things… a time and a place for all conversations.

Distractions.

Be it a conversation not related to the raid or fight at hand…. a TV blaring on TS while the raid leader is trying to give instructions and assignments…

Distractions.

Distractions hurt the focus of the raid.

Distractions, during a boss fight, hurt those that are in the raid with you, trying to achieve your common goals.


BrotherHood Wins


Alar



Anetheron



Hydross



Karathess



Leo



Lurker



Mag



Rage Winterchill



Solarian

They Grow Up So Fast!

Yesterday she was in diapers... toddling around the house...

She may be turning 13 next month... but it sure does seem as if next week she will be off too college... this is going too fast!!

Nervous Much?

So... if you remember a few months ago I posted about my computer "issue"

http://bubuview.blogspot.com/2008/06/puter-poo.html

Well today, I finally sent my computer off to get repaired... I was being stubborn because I was mad that ASUS would not honor my warranty that expired 3 days before it broke...

With WOTLK coming out... I want my smokin puter back!! I miss it so...

This little puter is a life saver... but it is time to get make to the smokin hot greatness that is my gaming laptop... with the pretty pretty graphics card...

mmm.... a real graphics card... /drool

Let there be blog!

Ok so I know I have been totally terribly negligent on my blog... I should be taken out back and beaten...

Just kinda have not been in much of a bloggy kinda mood...

Now that I am finally better, I will make myself a promise to blog more...

Let there be blog!

Pictures to come in the next few days.

Volleyball... funny things I have seen... and more!

Have you Walked the Plank?

So Monday, August 4th, we did a guild event called Walk the Plank... I helped to organise this madness and just had the most fun...

I think the best part was getting to hear everyone's inner pirate. Just too funny.

We all dressed up like pirates for the event and took a group picture.



Who would have thought 23 pirates would be so darn funny? lol

To those that took on the challenge of the Plank... you did a great job!! you guys worked together as a team and really stuck with it...

I was MOST impressed!

Little Lizard

Sigh... my daughter came home last night...

I cannot put into words the joy I felt when that child put her arms around my neck, and said the words, "Momma, I missed you."

She has been staying at my Dad's this summer... With his work schedule, and her school schedule they just never seem to have the meshing of schedules, so they have enjoyed school being out.

Goodness... I have missed my kid.

I think she has grown 4 inches taller, her hair seems longer, she is tanner from all the time she has spent playing in the pool...

Goodness... I have missed my kid.

She came home with braces, so I am learning all about what she can and cannot eat. (I am one of those people that never had to have braces, never had a cavity... yeah I am one of "those"... lol) She is so mature sounding as she explains, "Momma, Doritos are bad for my teeth, and I really should cut back on my sugar intake."

Goodness... I have missed my kid.

This growing up thing is going too fast...I look at my child who is 12 today and I know that tomorrow she will be 20 and in college and I feel like I need to find the remote and take it off fast forward.

I want a pause button

Goodness... I have missed my kid.

NDVH

You know… its funny sometimes how conversations we have with people stem memories that we have buried deep inside…

Terri and I went to lunch today and we got on the topic of my first husband. I really don’t talk about him too terribly much other than my occasional references of him as “Donor” (I think I had worked with Terri for 2 years before she realized that wasn’t his real name… lol)

Anyways, that was probably one of the most horrifying relationships I have ever had and is probably why I don’t think on it very often…

Let’s see… the time line…

October 94 – Started dating
December 94 – Moved in together
February 95 – Pregnant
June 95- Married
July 95 – Hit me for the first time
November 95 – Had the baby
September 96 – Hit me for the second time, I got out.

When I say hit me… that I think under-exaggerate the situation… he beat me to the point where I could only see out of one eye, had cuts and abrasions completely encircling my eyes, smashed lip (inside and out), teeth were bleeding, nose was cracked, left cheek bone was cracked, was bruised on about 70% of my face and neck.

Of course it might not have been quite as bad had I not been a wee bit pissed… I think he might not have been provoked to the point that he was, had I not been picking myself up, getting back up in his face, and accusing him of hitting me like a girl… in fact I think my exact words were something along the lines of, “You fucking pussy, if you’re gonna hit me, hit me like a man you son of a bitch. You hit like a girl you fucking pussy” probably not one of my smarter moves. And I think I officially came to that conclusion when he had me on my back, on the bed, him on top of me, with his hands around my throat screaming, “Die you bitch, die”. If I could have spoken at that point I think I would have said, “Ya know, I think this relationship is not going to work. Maybe we should see other people.”

And all this started because I asked him to take his muddy shoes off before he walked across my freshly bleached floors.

I can laugh about it now, it has been 12 years, and time does heal wounds. My face took about a month and a half to heal. The fear took longer to recover from. About the time that I could cover the bruises with make up, I got mad. I was mad at myself for letting him win with this fear that seemed to control me. Why should I let a wife beating, abusive person control my life? Why should I let fear control me to the point where I socially, and emotionally, withdrew myself from the life I have been given. Life was meant to be lived. It is meant to be a gift. Hiding in a house is not going to prevent someone from trying to take my life. If it is my time to go, it is my time to go. Why should I miss out, waiting for something that may or may not happen? So, I put my foot down. I refused to let anyone have so much control over me. I refused to waste the energy in being scared, when I could use that energy to live my life, to provide a home for my child and raise that beautiful baby. It took time for me to get my feet back under me, but I had a child to care for, and I had the love of my wonderful family to support me.

I think I find comfort in the fact that while it did lay me low for a bit, it made me into a strong woman. A strong woman, who is not afraid to pick up a baseball bat, to even the odds, with a wife beating psychopath. I hope that my daughter will never have to experience what I went thru. I pray that I have instilled the values in her, that she can pick herself up, dust herself off, and live as the strong woman I have tried to raise her to be.

The first time he hit me... He swore he would never do it again... the second time he hit me, he swore the same thing. He was right that time. He never did hit me again, because I got out.

If you are reading this, and you are in an abusive relationship, know that you can get out. Love does not include fists. No one deserves to be struck in anger. If you think that you are not strong enough to leave, know this… The hardest part is opening the door, and taking the first step. We open doors every day. Let the door you open, be the one to your safety, your child’s safety, and the beginning of a life free from abuse. There are so many women’s shelters (and men's) out there to help you. They will help to get you, and your children, out of the situation you are in… Use them. They are there to help you. And if you think no one understands, your wrong, unfortunately too many of us do understand.

Get Help, and Get Out.

Don't become a statistic.

National Domestic Violence Hotline
Break the Silence, Make the Call
1-800-799-SAFE (7233)
http://www.ndvh.org/educate/abuse_in_america.html




Abuse In America

Allstate Foundation National Poll on Domestic Violence 2004

* 3 out of 4 (74%) respondents personally know someone who is or has been a victim of domestic violence.
* 83% percent of respondents strongly agreed that domestic violence affects people in all racial, ethnic, religious, educational, social and economic backgrounds.
* 2 out of 3 (66%) strongly agreed that domestic violence is a serious, widespread social problem in America .
* While 4 out of 10 (43%) ranked fear that the abuser will find the victim as the number one reason a victim would not leave his/her abuser, over a quarter (28%) thought that finding access to money/income to support the victim and/or children was the most important problem.

The Harris Poll 2006

* Approximately 8 in 10 (79%) respondents recall “seeing or hearing something” about domestic violence in the past year. Furthermore, 53 percent say that they have heard of the National Domestic Violence Hotline. This percentage increases substantially among those people who admit that they have been victims of domestic violence (71%).
* A large majority (85%) agrees that “when a person forces his/her partner to have sex, it is an act of domestic violence.”
* An 85% majority also agrees that “a man or woman who abuses his/her partner is more likely to also abuse children.”
* Approximately 33 million1 or 15% of all U.S. adults, admit that they were a victim of domestic violence. Furthermore, 6 in 10 adults claim that they know someone personally who has experienced domestic violence.
* Among all adults, 39% say that they have experienced at least one of the following, with 54% saying that they haven’t experienced any:
Called bad names (31%)
Pushing, slapping, choking or hitting (21%)
Public humiliation (19%)
Keeping away from friends or family (13%)
Threatening your family (10%)
Forcing you to have sexual intercourse without consent (9%)
1. Based on July 2005 U.S. Census estimate released January 2006 (223,000,000 total U.S. adults aged 18 or over).

Liz Claiborne Inc. Teen Relationship Abuse Survey 2006

* 1 in 4 teens (24%) reported feeling pressure to date; 14% said they would do almost anything to keep a boyfriend or girlfriend.
* Fully one-third of 16-18s (33%)—and 31% of teens who have been in a serious relationship—reported that sex is expected.
* Almost half of teens who have been in a relationship (47%)—and 55% of those who describe theirs as serious—have done something that compromised their own values in order to please their partner.
* 3 out of 5 (61%) said that they’ve had a boyfriend or girlfriend who made them feel bad or embarrassed about themselves.
* 30% reported worrying about their personal physical safety in a relationship.
* 20% of those who have been in a serious relationship have been hit, slapped, or pushed by a boyfriend or girlfriend.

The Office on Violence Against Women poll and focus groups 2006

* Nearly 3 out of 4 of the women surveyed said that name calling or put-downs on a regular basis constituted domestic violence and 44% suggested that even occasional harsh words counted as domestic violence.
* 1 in 3 insisted on something akin to a strict liability standard for the perpetrator, saying that put-downs and criticisms that did not hurt the other person’s feelings nonetheless should be considered domestic violence, a sentiment echoed by many women in the focus groups. To these women, verbal battery is a gateway to physical harm and should not be dismissed.
* 3 out of 4 women surveyed agreed that repeated threats to bring harm fit the definition of domestic violence.

CDC Behavioral Risk Factor Surveilance System Survey 2005

* 1 IN 4 WOMEN, 1 IN 9 MEN IN UNITED STATES ARE VICTIMS OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AT SOME POINT IN THEIR LIVES
* In households with incomes under $15,000 per year, 35.5% of women and 20.7% of men suffered violence from an intimate partner.
* 43% of women and 26% of men in multiracial non-Hispanic households suffered partner violence.
* 39% of women and 18.6% of men in American Indian/Alaska Native households suffered partner violence.
* 26.8% of women and 15.5% of men in white non-Hispanic households suffered partner violence.
* 29.2% of women and 23.3% of men in black non-Hispanic households suffered partner violence.
* 20.5% of women and 15.5% of men in Hispanic households suffered partner violence.

CDC Adverse Health Conditions and Health Risk Behaviors Associated with Intimate Partner Violence - United States 2005

* Each year, IPV results in an estimated 1,200 deaths and 2 million injuries among women and nearly 600,000 injuries among men.
* 23.6% of women and 11.5% of men aged 18 years or more have a lifetime history of intimate partner violence victimization.
* Highest percentage for women is adults aged 45-54 (31.2%)
* Highest percentage for men is adults aged 25-34 (21.4%)

General Statistics

* On the average, more than three women are murdered by their husbands or boyfriends every day.1
* 92% of women say that reducing domestic violence and sexual assault should be at the top of any formal efforts taken on behalf of women today.2
* 1 out of 3 women around the world has been beaten, coerced into sex or otherwise abused during her lifetime.3
* 1 in 5 female high school students reports being physically and/or sexually abused by a dating partner. Abused girls are significantly more likely to get involved in other risky behaviors. They are 4 to 6 times more likely to get pregnant and 8 to 9 times more likely to have tried to commit suicide.3
* 1 in 3 teens report knowing a friend or peer who has been hit, punched, slapped, choked or physically hurt by his/her partner.4
* As many as 324,000 women each year experience intimate partner violence during their pregnancy. 5
* Violence against women costs companies $72.8 million annually due to lost productivity.6
* Ninety-four percent of the offenders in murder-suicides were male.7
* Seventy-four percent of all murder-suicides involved an intimate partner(spouse, common-law spouse, ex-spouse, or boyfriend/girlfriend). Of these, 96 percent were females killed by their intimate partners.7
* Most murder-suicides with three or more victims involved a "family annihilator" -- a subcategory of intimate partner murder-suicide.Family annihilators are murderers who kill not only their wives/girlfriends and children, but often other family members as well,before killing themselves.7
* Seventy-five percent of murder-suicides occurred in the home.7

1. Bureau of Justice Statistics Crime Data Brief, Intimate Partner Violence, 1993-2001, February 2003.
2. Progress & Perils: New Agenda for Women, Center for the Advancement of Women. June 2003.
3. Silverman, Jay G., Raj, Anita, and Clements, Karen. “Dating Violence Against Adolescent Girls and Associated Substance Use, Unhealthy Weight Control, Sexual Risk Behavior, Pregnancy, and Suicidality.” Pediatrics, August 2004.
4. Teenage Research Unlimited. Findings from study commissioned by Liz Claiborne Inc. to investigate the level of and attitudes towards dating abuse among American teenagers aged 13 to 18 [online] 2005 Feb [cited 2006 Mar 20]. Available from: URL: www.loveisnotabuse.com/statistics_abuseandteens.htm
5. Gazmararian JA, Petersen R, Spitz AM, Goodwin MM, Saltzman LE, Marks JS. “Violence and reproductive health; current knowledge and future research directions.” Maternal and Child Health Journal 2000; 4(2):79-84.
6. Costs of Intimate Partner Violence Against Women in the United States . 2003. Center for disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Injury Prevention and Control. Atlanta, GA/
7. Violence Policy Center (VPC), American Roulette: Murder-Suicide in the United States , April 2006.

Lake Bound Bubu

Ever wonder why I love the lake so much?

I wake up in the morning and this is the view I am blessed with



Here are my two nieces... Peyton and Katey... and the cutie doggie is Phoebe..



These pics are from yesterday before the fireworks... Kiddos took over the pool...

Dillan



Peyton



Katey

4th of July on the 5th

Or how I spent my Saturday night!

The kids went swimming.... and the grown-ups, blew some stuffs up... weee

Featured here we have Tye, Daniel (Medan), and Kyle... no fear of Da Fire...

Kids, please don't try this at home...

Neki

You know... I think Neki is the coolest pet in the game... hee hee

She is so pretty!

Young Punks

So... We had a big meeting today in the office... all the salesmen from around the northern part of the state all came in for it...

Our top sales guys, he is... oh I don't know... mid 40ish... late 30ish... no clue really... but is one of those guys that went grey very early....

As he was leaving, he was talking to me and the boss man... and he was telling us about a comment one of the young young sales guys had made to him... teasing him about his grey hair...

I was puzzled at first... I mean here is a guy who's sales are off the charts... goes on a cruise every year... paid for by the company... cause he is just that awesome... and he was rather bothered by this kids comments... this kid who should be begging to be taken under his wing and shown the ropes...

I said... You know... I don't know why you didn't lean over to the kid and say this... "You see all these grey hairs? Each one of them is about 500K of business I have sold for this company" (then look really close at his hair and say) "Now... how many grey hairs do YOU have there kiddo?"

LOL... yep... Bubu was in rare form today.... Smirk... Kids... they will eventually learn not to mess with us old people...

Bubu out in the World

So... when I was leveling flower picking in a day... i took time to smell the roses and take a few pics...

Just goes to show how pretty this game really is.

Ok... Pictures... Woot!!

Ok... So I came across another *cough* box of pictures... I still cannot find the picture I want... I will probably find it when I am too old to remember who the heck the people in the picture are in the first place... ehh...

More pictures of Mom...





Me and Mom







My Grandparents



Me and The Roosk



Me and my Grandma



Me and My Sister Melannie... (a normal picture... she cleans up pretty!!)



Cat Nap... what I cannot figure out is how I ended up on the floor and the cats got the couch...



Kevin and My Dad



My daughter Bria

Age 3



Age 5



Age 7 at Daytona Beach



Age 11 with my Dad




Halloween 1995





How I will always think of my Mom

Sigh....

Is there really anything better in the morning, than crawling out of a big fluffy sleep-warmed bed, and curling up in the big comfy chair out on the back porch... a refreshing morning breeze brushing lightly over your skin... the warm scent of your coffee tickling, and delighting, your senses... and a sigh of contentment as daylight creeps over the horizon?

1) When did I, all of a sudden, think my life should be a Folgers coffee commercial?
2) Do people really start their days out like that... in real life?
3) Do these people have children?
4) Do these people have animals?
5) Do these people have 2 more loads of laundry that need to be started before they fight their child for bathroom time in front of a mirror?
6) Do these people sub part time for the Summers Eve commercials?

If my life was a commercial... what it be?
Well I would hope it has really fun background music... because music is always been in my background...

I would hope it has David Boreanaz in it... because Mel and I have always thought he was hot.

*drool*



I would hope it would be funny... because those are the commercials I enjoy watching...

And I would hope that at some point in the commercial, it would flash a biggie screen of this picture of my sister



Over and over again until she agrees to ditch her husband and kid for the night and come play wow with me...



Yes... you have come to the point of this weird post... this is all an elaborate scheme to get my sister to wow with me...

If you come run a dungeon with me... I will remove this picture and replace it with a picture of your choice... until then... muah ha ha ha ha... lol... Love ya!!

Puter Poo

So... I am minding my own business... questing away... and BAM... blue screen... followed by black screen... and fizzle? can it be described as a fizzle?.... so after about an hour of uncontrollable crying... and trying everything I could think of ..... Kevin woke up....

Must have been the sobbing from the living room that woke him from his slumber...

So he worked on it for a couple of hours... and then I was off to the geek squad... convinced the silly thing was still under warranty....

So the geek squad... yeah... I am not so much a fan anymore.... I told him the mumbo jumbo Kevin said was wrong and they said they will have to verify and send it in to Asus to repair... 5-7 days to verify and 2-3 weeks to get it back from Asus...

At which point I said... "uhh... excuse me? 4 weeks? .... 4 WEEKS?!?!?! ... Dude ... I have a raid tonight!!"

So... 4 weeks till I get my smokin puter back... warranty expired on the 28th... Yep 3 days ago... and no they will not honor it... go figure... (thinking they will if I show cleavage... hmmmm food for thought) I am already cringing from the thought of having to use my icky old puter... and the geek squad dude asked if he could call me... I said yes... when you figure out whats wrong and how much this crap is going to cost me... call me and tell me... and he says... uhh... no.. can I... like... call you?

WTF.... I think to myself... ok... I will never leave the house again in such a panic I leave my wedding rings at home... and has this guy lost his mind?? I am in obvious distress, and he wants to call me?? omg... yeah... I cant go back there...

Must have been the "Dude, I have a raid tonight" comment I made... I think that is like their mating call or something....

ARG! lol...

I sure hope this stupid puter can handle a raid...

Fox Hat

My friends... I hope you love me regardless of the fact that I spent 20 minutes straight laughing at this....

TV Greatness

I tell ya... When I first heard this with the hubby... we both cracked up laughing... this people is genious!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2GXskZFXbNY

Mother's Day

This has been a long project. I finally have stopped obsessing over it... and I am just gonna post it... I cannot seem to find all the pictures I had hoped to find... when i do eventually I will post them... so...

Since I cannot buy that perfect gift for my mom… I will dedicate this post to her…

You can tell a lot about a person when you meet their parents… most the time anyways… When I try to figure out what attributes I got from my mother and which ones are from my father… I find I am more of my father’s child… but that does not diminish a child’s love of her mother.

My mom was defiantly an original… and we shared some rough years together… and I really attribute the birth of my daughter as the duct tape that mended our relationship…

I spent so many years angry with her, because I really didn’t understand her… I still don’t completely understand her… I didn’t know at the time, but she really didn’t understand herself… It wasn’t until she passed away and I was trying to pick up the pieces left of her life, that I was learned this… and I wish that she had shared that with me before she passed away…

I will always wonder if I could have helped her figure it all out…

I think it scared her to have a child who practically came out of the womb knowing what she wanted out of life… a child who was emotionally strong… who was not afraid to try something new… and one who was so stubbornly determined once she set her mind on something… those are traits I got from my father… foreign concepts to my mother…

My mother was the most talented artist I have ever met… she painted… made porcelain dolls… she could touch anything and make it beautiful. And her homes were always homes. The feel good kind that had the right touch of elegance, yet still embraced you in warmth and love as you walk in. My mother loved Christmas. She would plan her decor for months… and fiddle with the little details, till you felt like you had walked into a winter wonderland.

Things I will always remember about my mom:
She loved all who knew her, to the best of her ability.
She taught me the love of a good book.
She never let a stray animal go unfed.
She danced naked in her yard during a full moon.
She was horrified when she found a condom in my purse. (I was 20 at the time and had been out of the house for 3 years)
She taught me to listen to my inner voice.
She was the first person I ever smarted off to. (I was 8 or 9… she had made a comment as we were driving down the road that she was so mad at me she couldn’t see straight, and I asked her shouldn’t she pull over if she couldn’t see?)
Her shock the morning after I got my first tattoo… of which she claimed wasn’t real and proceeded to stick her finger in.
She taught me how to read Tarot cards.
She planted a gardenia bush beneath my window, because she knew how much I love the scent of them.
When she would highlight my hair, she would say “oops” to aggravate me.
She would take me to retirement homes to sing for the elderly.
She broke a paddle spanking me, and when I laughed, she got a wooden spoon to finish the job.
She taught me that it is ok to be a little strange sometimes.
She ran (3) barricades at the DFW airport trying to make sure I didn’t miss my flight.
She taught me to look for the good in all things, and all people.
She held me in her arms and whispered how much she loved me, as she wiped the blood and tears from my battered face, the night I left my first husband.
She would watch video after video of me singing at the opry with my grandparents, and take pictures of me “on TV”.
Larry Hagman pinched her on the rear.
She let me hang out with her and her girlfriends when I was little.
She got frisked at the airport in the 70’s, because her mother told security she had a gun.
I got my love of shopping and shoes from her.
She was never without nail polish.
She would brush my wet hair in front of the fire in the winter time.
She loved to travel.
She crashed a movie set in Mexico when she was 19
She understood that sometimes a girl needs to feel sand between her toes.
She loved swimming with dolphins.
She put aside her fear of roller coasters to ride with her granddaughter at Disney World.
She fulfilled her dream of being an artist on the beach before she died.
She called her dad “Roosk” and he called her “Wat”… after I was born… I was called “Little Wat”
She had a real alligator when she was a child that her dog ate.
She knew how to laugh with her whole heart.

Mom… I love you… and I miss you… I pray that your soul has found peace…

Static Alert!

I know it may be shocking to you all… but I am not so much a morning person… the wonderfully cheerful person you all know and love so well, is quiet and distant in the mornings. Is it the desperate cry for more sleep?? Is it the desperate cry for more caffeine?? Ehh something like that… Cheerful Amy doesn’t seem to appear until about an hour after I crawl my sleep deprived body out from under the mounds of covers on my bed… mind you the IV of caffeine and nicotine must be firmly in place as well…

But then I am all good… Happy… Alert… Ready to take on the world!

This morning the world took me on….

I walk out of the house this morning thinking to myself… hmm… I am early this morning… I might actually get 30 mins in the office of quiet time before the phones blow up… hmm… I could actually get some filing done (eww) or I could start my billing early… oh so many wonderful things I can do…

I walked out of the house… sun is shining… birds are chirping… grass is green… was such a bright, bright sunshiny day… I could have broke out in song… I took a deep breath of the fresh clean Texas air… walked out to my car… unlocked it… and went to place my purse on the passenger seat… and that’s when I saw it…

I looked… I was puzzled… very confused… Why are the contents of my glove box all over the seat? Why is my glove box open?

I was really just baffled… I walked back in the house… Woke up Kevin to ask him… did you go thru my car last night? I get a muffled, “No.”… I say, “Huh, well then someone broke into my car, but I don’t think they stole anything.”

I walk back out to the car… start cleaning up the mess all over my seats… Turned on the car, to start the drive into work… and that’s when I hear the static… static… STATIC?!?

I look down… and my heart drops… my IPOD is missing… OMG… MY FREAKING IPOD!!! YOU BASTARDS!! OMG!! *cry* (tearing up right now just thinking about it) MY FREAKING IPOD!! How am I going to survive without my IPOD??! How am I going to annoy my daughter by playing and singing along to “Love Shack” in the car with out my IPOD>?? How am I going to survive the commute to work without my IPOD… those other drivers DEPEND on me to entertain them by singing obnoxiously loud every morning and afternoon to and from the office…. How am I going to be able to WORK without my IPOD playing in the background?? I mean come on!! Take my cell phone… the stupid thing does nothing but ring all the time… but my IPOD? … *sigh* my IPOD… *weep*

So… I know… its not all just about me… I guess I should mention… that my husband’s car was also broken into… and his IPOD was also stolen… those bastards… that was my back up option… Hubby called the police… we were not the only one affected… there were several other reports of break ins in the neighborhood…

So Amy, Find the good in the situation…
1) I get to get a new IPOD
2) Those bastards didn’t steal our cars, or damage the cars in any way.
3) They didn’t try to break into the house. (course I may start carrying my computer to bed with me… if I cannot wow… people will be hurt)

Just FYI to my fellow WOW’ers… you may not see my husband for the next few days… I believe he is going to be going on a recon mission… He was just as fond of his IPOD as I was of mine… So I can pretty much picture him out in the yard… dressed in hunting camouflage … going into sniper mode to guard his truck, house, wife and kid… while I am in the house singing the theme song to Mission Impossible just loud enough for him to hear from his hiding place in the bushes. I will be his IPOD…

Texas Style Reunion

So Sunday we have the hubby’s family reunion out at the horse races... (Yes... the horse races in Texas are a perfectly acceptable family reunion meeting place... provides all the necessary entertainment factors... gambling and booze) So for your entertainment… I am proud to present….

Highlights from the horse track!!

1. Horse track food... not so good... (blah)
2. Horse track sodas come with free refills... (So drink till you pee pure soda)
3. Never turn your back on a 7 year old with a spoon... (What is it with me and children and ice cream lately... OMG)
4. Pick your horses before you ever go inside the track.... (I won big on those)
5. Never bet on a white horse because it looks pretty.... (Cause when the race is over, it will be gray from being behind all the other horses)
6. You’re never too old to get your first tattoo.... (She was 60+ and I have never been more proud!!)
7. Always trust the voice in your head that says to bet big on the horse named Magic Pleasure... (Yeah... I just could not pass betting on the horse just for the humor of it... and boy did he pay off well... hee hee hee)
8. They will auto add 19% to your tab based on the size of your group... no matter how you behave.... (*cough* no comment *cough*)
9. The TVs at your table play things other than the track info and races... make sure your child head is averted when browsing thru the channels... (*cough* no comment *cough*)
10. Statistics really don't mean crap 90% of the time.... (Darts I think would be a more effective horse picking method)
11. Be sure to point out all the sexually explicit horse's name to your spouse while driving to the track... (While this may be a great deal of fun... you will not win the Defensive Driver of the Year Award)
12. Yelling for the horses that were scratched from the race is also a great deal of fun... (Of course people think (a) you are drunk or (b) you were the one on that short bus in the parking lot)
13. Gamblers are typically a loud group of people... (And they like you to be loud too... even when the horses are not running... really...)
14. The people that work the windows where you place bets... do not like being referred to as "Vote Takers"... (And they do get annoyed when you try to place "votes" and not bets... evidently they are two different things)
15. When it is all said and done… you pay $2 to get in the door (for the cheap seats… don’t know what we paid to sit inside in the bar area) and $2 minimum bets… a full days worth of entertainment… You can’t beat it with a stick… (Well I guess the jockeys do huh… lol)

All in all... had a great day!! We ended up with close to 30 in our party... and boy was it a great one!!

Out of the $100 the hubby gave me... I came home with $70... Not too shabby for all day fun in the sun if I do say so myself.... lol... put that little wad of cash in my shoe fund... Woot!!

Me favorite part was cheering (screaming) for the last place horses... poor things... they need someone to cheer for them.... they have to go back to all their horsie friends... try to save face... walk into their “last place” stalls.... while trying to hold their heads up high... endure the whispers of being sent to the glue factory...

*hugs*

Bubu's Surprise!

It was around the 2 o'clock hour today... that I realized... I was way too sober for work today...

So on the way home... I bought the ingredients for the best damn drink this side of the river... (for you Yankees... that river would be the Red one)...

I figured... it is time I shared my wonderful drink with you... my friends...

get you a big ol ice tea glass and fill it up with ice...
Add:
2 shots of Mango flavored rum
2 shots of Strawberry Schnapps
2 shots of Red Bull
2 shots of orange juice

Toss in a straw... and stir... and enjoy...

If your feeling particularly festive add yourself a pretty pink umbrella... (I know you boys love your pink umbrellas hee hee)

You can thank me for my wisdom around the 4th glass... I am now on glass #2
<3 Bubu

The Joys of Parenthood!

Ok... so the teenagers... sigh... I have one... only one thank goodness...

So as a mother you work so hard to bring your child into the world... hold their little hands... teach them right from wrong... teach them not to burn themselves on the stove... bask in the glow of their admiration of you...

Then they hit puberty and you left pondering where you went wrong...

How did I overnight become stupid?

Ice Cream... first thing I should have taught my child is you don't mess with momma's ice cream...

Sunday afternoon - I get the craving... gotta have some... just gotta have it... so I head off to the store and buy ice cream for all of us... hubby eats his... kid eats her's... I eat 1/2 of mine and put the rest in the freezer... seemingly safe move...

Monday - I get home from work...
Kid - "Can I have your ice cream"
Me - "uhh no.."

Monday - After dinner....
Kid - "Are you going to eat your ice cream?"
Me - "Not right now... I will eat it later"
Kid - "So I cannot have it?"
Me - "Uhhh no"

Tuesday - I am late coming home... had to stop at the grocery store on the way home... call the kid from the car to come out and help carry in groceries... pull up... and there is my wonderful daughter... pretty as ever... dutifully waiting on the front porch to help her old ma carry in the bags... with a huge chocolate smear on the right side of her face...

I greet her as normal... carry my load in the house... she goes out to the car to get her bags... I walk to the freezer... hmm... no bowl of ice cream... shocking... I look in the sink... hmm... empty bowl... shocking...

So kid walks in the house... and I ask...
Me - "Did you eat my ice cream?"
Kid - "No"
Me - (while eyeballing the chocolate smear) "Really? You didn't eat my ice cream?"
Kid - "uhh no"
Me - "Ok... so... let me make sure I understand this correctly.... You... didn't eat... MY ice cream? yet it is no longer in the freezer... and the bowl it was in... just magically appeared in the sink?
Kid - "I didn't eat your ice cream!!"
Me - "Ok... so... wait wait wait... hmmm.. YOU didn't eat my ice cream... and its not in the freezer... and the bowl is in the sink... so how did it get there?
Kid - "I thru it out"
Me - "You thru out my ice cream?"
Kid - "Yes"
Me - "You thru out chocolate-brownie-fudge ice cream??"
Kid - "Yes"
Me - (Still eyeballing the smear) "You thru it out... you didn't eat it?"
Kid - "Yes mom... why do you not believe anything I ever say?!?!"
Me - (laughing) "Cause my darling daughter... you want me to believe.. you THRU out Chocolate-brownie-fudge ice cream... and you didn't eat it... and by the way... did you HAPPEN to look in the mirror BEFORE you decided to lie to me?!?"
Kid - (shock and horror at my response)
Me - "Cause.. my child... you have MY ice cream smeared on YOUR face"

Sigh... she will learn...

Monte Carlo?

My hubby is finally home… I am 3 different shades of thrilled… I get him for 3 whole weeks… One of which is our vacation time… then he is off to the wild, wild yonder… errr well north of the Red River anyways….

So our vacation time we have off… are we going on an exotic Caribbean cruise? Or a wild arctic dog sled adventure? Or will we be gambling the nights away in Monte Carlo?

Nope…

The hubby and I have a hot date cleaning out our third bedroom… Right now the room looks somewhat like a nuclear bomb went off, and all that has survived are storage boxes… and *cough* books… old computer parts… *cough* more books… Stuff of my mom’s I couldn’t part with… oh, and did I mention the books? One of the few things I did inherit from my mother is a love of reading… she and I accumulated thousands of books over the years… and I think I still have everyone of them… I made a promise to myself that I will go thru the books… All soft bound that absolutely are not worth keeping (or that Tyrae doesn’t swipe) will find their way to a women’s shelter… along with clothes of mine and my moms… mom would like that… everything else… that will not store in the closet, will be stored on shelves in the garage… and the trash will be thrown away… I warned my hubby that I may not be able to part with as much as he would like for me to part with, but I will make sure that the room is somewhat cleared out so that we can muster some sort of office out of the space… I would also like to put a bed in there for the occasional overnight guest… i.e. my sister…

So the planning begins… I may even be tempted to take photos of this amazing transformation… ehh…

Amber? No… Ember

Ever wonder where people come up with their toon names? I mean it is rather like naming a child… careful thought and consideration should go into this name that will follow you around as long as you are playing said toon… This is why, no mater what game I am playing, I have always been very careful in my name selection.

So… we go back to 1993 when my sister and I started playing online games… I spent a few days really thinking about my name… what name I wanted to give myself… after great thought and consideration… Nightembers made her gaming debut…

Night, cause I was always online at night.

Embers are the glowing, hot coals that remain after a fire. Embers can glow very hot, nearly as hot and sometimes as hot as the fire which created them. They radiate a substantial amount of heat long after the fire has been extinguished, and if not taken care of properly can rekindle a fire that is thought to be completely extinguished and can pose a fire hazard to anyone not careful.

Ehh seemed to fit…

(Thank you Wikipedia for the quote)

Bubu took a bit longer… I had wanted to roll a priest toon for quite some time, but could not settle on a name that seemed to suit me… then one night I had a dream… nothing as brilliant as MLK’s dream… but a dream none the less… In my dream I was running a dungeon with my buddies, and said, to no one in particular, “Aww, he got a boo boo.” It was then that I got that weird “I’m falling” feeling and woke from a somewhat dead sleep… that comment still fresh in my head… I got up… logged in… and Gottabubu was born.

4/6/2008 - How Hick is Hick?

So, Last week... the question came up as to accents... mine being not as southern as one might really think a native Texan should sound...

Which got me to thinking about the great debate my husband and I used to have when we were dating and newly married...

Who's family is more red necked than the other...

Exhibit A... Hubby grew up chasing armadillos with his cousins out on the farm...
Exhibit B... Hubby has a Texas flag tattoo...
Exhibit C... Hubby went with me to my Grandfather's funeral a couple of years ago and met my cousin... who thought it perfectly acceptable to come to the funeral... with a mullet... blue jeans... boots... and a hand-crafted-multi-colored-patched-rabbit-fur vest... and cowboy hat...

Clearly the hubby wins... right??

3/31/2008 - Bubu's Want List 2008

Here is a list of upcoming items that would bring me great great joy... So many pretty things to put on the list I wont bore you with all of them... So I give you my top 4... ehh... I may add to it as time goes on...

1) Is there anything greater than Mario Kart? Oh wait... What was that Nintindo? Your putting it on Wii? Really? Wii? Do you not want me to ever play WOW again?

If you have not already experienced the joy that is Wii... highly advised... I still have fond memories of Kevin's grandmother, at Christmas... the holiday of joy and love of your fellow man and child.... shoving her great-grandchild out of the way so she could get at the controller again... Wii should be in every house across America... It is just too much fun... and now they add the greatness that is Mario Kart... AND... yes there is an AND... you can go on the internet and play up to 12 online... who is up for the challenge... I Bubu... challenge YOU!!



2) the Greatness that is WOW... expands again...



3) Drool... ok... More drool... this is Master Loots people... we are talking the leet beyond the purple... major candy... Hear me now... I will totally ninja these (#3and #4) if they drop in ZA... this is your warning... you will not get another...

Sigh... Coach... It's so pretty!



4) Dolce & Gabbana Peep Toe Platform Slingback $795... or like a gazillion badges...

3/28/2008 - The Greatness That is Monday

Monday now bring the greatest joy... Monday is all about Arena Night... we have a pretty good size team going now... and we are all about the fun... we laugh histerically for 1 hour straight... when we initiated people to the team we do their first run nekkid... lol... makes for a great night of the giggles...






Why does Nekkid Puck have a better tan than Bubu?
What are the other teams thinking when we do this?
Do they know we are probably laughing way more than they are?
Can every night be arena night?

We have a new recruit... Nekkid Gila will be apearing this Monday!! woot!!