Black Friday Thoughts

1 - Getting up at 3:00 am to be at Kohl's by 4:00 am for Black Friday shopping is crazy, but I decided to do it this year. I could not believe how many people were out and how many people were lined up to shop. When I left Kohl's by about 4:20, the parking lot was completely full and people were following me and asking for my cart. Cars were parked on the little grassy islands for lack of parking spaces. I could barely get out of the parking lot. It was a little freaky.

2 - I then watched the sun come up while in line in the parking lot of Target. Again, very surreal--and very cold. (Note to self, wear 2 pairs of socks when standing on freezing cold concrete for an hour and a half.) However, I did get my husband the electric drill he wanted, among other things.

3 - My husband (who also started at 4:00 this morning and shopped JCPenney, Best Buy, Circuit City and another Target this morning before returning home) went out and bought the Guitar Hero game for our PlayStation II.

I thought this would mainly be a game for my husband. However, I am shocked to discover that I love this game! I love that my husband and I can stand side by side (me, with no musical experience whatsoever and he, who has actually played guitar for the last 30 years) and have a blast with this game (he still wins, but it's fun anyway). It's completely addictive. I played until my fingers ached today. Truly the best purchase of Black Friday.

Even better than my new polka dot pajamas from Kohl's--and that's saying a lot.

P.S.--I imagine this is a little what he and I look like while playing...

Circus Punks and Knock Down Dolls

I'm not sure exactly how it started. I'm sure it has something to do with my love affair with fairs and amusement parks. Within the last year, I discovered my love of circus punks.

What is a circus punk you ask? A circus punk (or knock down doll) are those dolls you used to throw baseballs at and knock down (hence the name) for a prize at fairs, carnivals and amusement parks. (Click on this link for a little more history if you are interested.)

You can find vintage ones on Ebay. There are companies who make new ones too--you can get just about any design you can imagine.

You can even purchase a blank one if you want to decorate your own.

I began to realize just how cool they are--and how much I desperately wanted one.

I photographed these when I saw them at Universal Studios last month:

Less than a week ago, I had a birthday. I also have a spouse who really understands me in all of my uniqueness. Without it even being on my wish list, he purchased a circus punk for me.

Meet Cheeky Cheetah. She is my first official circus punk.

She is totally going on my desk at work.

I'm No Tree Hugger but I Do Love Some Leaves

This weekend, we took a road trip into the mountains of Georgia to vacation with my sister, her husband and my parents.

The four hour drive from Nashville was so incredible, it just flew by. The leaves were just exploding in all different shades of red, orange, yellow and everything in between. I am sure my husband is used to me after 11 years, but I kept hearing myself saying things like, "Oh look at the leaves on that one." or "Can you believe how red those leaves are?" or "That tree is like four different colors at the same time!". I am sure he thinks I'm crazy sometimes, but he just humored me and nodded along while we drove.

My brother-in-law met us at the bottom of the mountain on his four wheeler and led us up the gravel roads to the cabin. (I still don't think I could find my way up there if my life depended on it.) The unpaved roads are so steep at some points, it felt like my poor little Corolla was going to flip over.

We spent hours admiring the leaves. The leaves were so vibrant and the sky was so blue--I just couldn't get enough. You could count the layers of hills as far as the eye could see. In one direction, you could count nine different layers of mountains.

We played with my sister's dogs.

We played games.

We hiked the trails in the woods (and actually saw some wild turkey on Wild Turkey Trail).

We ate squashed cupcakes.

My Dad rediscovered his love of Little Debbie Nutty Bars.

We admired more leaves.

We watched the sun set in the evening and there were no bright lights to distract from the stars in the sky. I had forgotten how many stars you can see when you are away from town.

Now, let me be clear, as much as I like the outdoors, I really have no desire to actually sleep in a tent or camp. This is where I have to hand it to my sister. Her "cabin" (it's more of a mountain home, really) has wireless internet, satellite TV, multiple televisions, DVD players and all the creature comforts anyone could ever need. There was even cell phone service up there!

Even though I spent most of my weekend looking at nothing but trees and leaves, I couldn't get enough. I sat out on the deck for a while with my book and the view was so beautiful it actually distracted me and I had to put down the book and stare for a while longer.

It's amazing--after almost 37 years on this earth, the autumn leaves just never get old to me. I hope they never do.