Smokers

I have a problem with smokers, besides the fact that it's a smelly, disgusting habit.

First: they drive slow. I don't know if the nicotine makes feel so relaxed that they are in no rush to get anywhere. I have to say that their merge and acceleration skills seem to fail them when they take a drag.

Second: they fling their cigarettes out the window. We live in a desert. In the summer the roads are lined with dry grass, otherwise known as tinder. When they aren't starting fires, it's still gross litter. And it really ticks me off when it hits my car.

Just a side note; ever notice how many people waiting for the bus are smoking. Well maybe they could buy a car with the money they saved by not buying cigarettes. Or a house. (Both sets of renters that lived next door smoked; the new owner, non-smoker.) Just a stereotypical thought.

My Boys

Dylan woke up a little early this morning, so I brought him into our bed to hang out for a while. But he fell back asleep with his daddy.

Where Have All the Cowboys Gone?

I played a game the other week that pointed out that I'm a city-livin' hick. Some of my favorite things are corn-on-the-cob, rodeos, state fairs, etc. Next week I'm even in a cow cutting competition...but I digress. This really just made me think about cowboys and country music. PS-if you don't care about country music, you can stop reading. This is a long rant that I've been saving up in my head for a while.

I listen to my fair share of country music and I think I'd like to start by calling out the posers. Tim McGraw would be at the top of my list. I would believe it if the only horse he ever rode was the one he stole from a cop in NYC when he got drunk after a concert. I think at this point he's just stuck in the genre. He doesn't sing about being a cowboy, and his soldier song came just a little too late to believe that he means it. It's just about selling records. He's sings a song about how there's "pop in his country", well his wife is the queen of that. Have you ever heard someone say, "I don't like country, but I like Faith Hill."? Well, I have more than once. I can pretty much guarantee that they aren't so familiar with anything she put out before Breathe. Has anyone ever heard of a Caribbean cowboy? One that wears pooka shells? I mean Kenny Chesney are you kidding me. That's about as far from the concept of country music as you get. If you believe that Rascal Flatts were the first to sing "Life is a Highway", you'd be wrong. A true cowboy sang it before them, and even then I don't think he was the first. No one should put out 2 albums in one year. It makes them so over played, and I'm always astonished when I hear people request their songs. I used to like them when the first came out, but now they're like the embodiment of country music which is a sore misrepresentation.

When you're not a poser, you're a sappy "I love my family" singer. Part of what I like about country is occasionally they have values. But all the "renegades, rebels and rogues", are now singing about how special being a parent is instead of getting drunk and raising hell over the county line in your crappy old pickup. Anyway, those songs are good to hear once. I cry. But 5x/day makes me want to scream. Honestly, as a married woman (I feel really old to phrase it like that) you married the family guy, you don't need to hear it sung about. You want to hear the song about the adventure you wish you were having.

When I first started listening to country in jr. high, I couldn't stand the super whiny stuff. Now I embrace it. I want to hear about how you lost your job, and your wife left and took your dog, now you're going to the honky tonk. Better yet why not take a page out of Chris Ledoux's book and sing about a rodeo. He was a real cowboy who won buckles riding bulls and died of liver replacement failure at a young age because of drinking and chewing tobacco. A theory to why George Strait has over 50 #1 hits, he's a real cowboy. While Garth Brooks is not a real cowboy, he's a pretty great songwriter and entertainer. So are we lacking good country music because he's in semi retirement. There's not any good competition.

Also, could we get some DJ's around here who have ever listened to country music?! Bringing up Garth Brooks brought up another thought. He has recently put out a new album, and released a single. The 1st time I heard it on the radio the DJ said "that's a totally different sound for him...unlike anything he's made before." Load of crap. I recognized it was him singing straight off because it sounds like all the rest of his songs. If she had ever heard one of his songs before she would have known that and not made a stupid comment in an effort to sound profound.

Phew, I think I got it all out. Sorry to anyone that read all of that.

Why Guys Have to Play Video Games

I came up with a theory today while mowing the lawn (which I enjoy doing, and so that I can tease Wes about losing his Man-Card). I think that the reason why guys are so lost in their video games hearkens back to tribal times. Back then all men served for the protection of the village, save it be the very young or very old. This is what men were made for. When they weren't actively hunting or building or somehow providing for their family, they were strategizing protecting for them. Video games are now filling that void. They have moved their excess strategy and aggression needs to video games. Really most of them that play VG are bored and uninspired by their jobs where they are fulfilling the roll of providing for thier families. S currently I can't think of a game that doesn't provide some outlet for pent up aggression, strategy and competition.

I Just Can't Help Myself

I was told by a friend yesterday that I needed to be more of a mom and less of a physical therapist. I don't know how 3 years of graduate school and 1 1/2 years of work can make fixing people such a reflex. But I see Dylan and his lack of motor control and I think "Let's work on this." I know you're thinking, "He's 3 months old, for heaven's sake." But I don't really have a lot to do most days so I take joy in the simple things, like when his hand actually hits its target. I know I'm not the only one, because my friend Dureece, a fellow PT, said she put her baby on the exercise ball to strengthen her core.Look he's sitting up in his boppy. When he falls back he's using his abs to pull him back up, and when he falls forward he's weight bearing through his arms. It's a great exercise. And he's working the hand eye coordination to play with his toys. I'm so proud.

How Do You Do It?

I have heard several people mention relaxing in a bath lately. How is that relaxing? I hate cleaning the shower more than the toilets. But I do so often, just because it gets so gross. I have to clean the shower before I can sit in a bath; hence, negating any relaxing qualities. The shower is where all the dirt and yuckiness is washed away, and you know it's sticking to the bottom of your tub. Can you seriously sit in that and feel relaxed? Or even remotely clean at the end of it?

The only peace I've ever really felt in the tub was at the end of my pregnancy when I was itching like crazy. I would sit in a tub full of oatmeal and baking soda and it marginally helped with the insanity. But that was super gross and I felt like I was making cookies out of myself. It's all a disgusting concept, try not to dwell on it.

I think I'll just stick with snuggling in bed with a book. And those bottles of bubble bath I've had for years, will just have to last a few years longer.

What's The Point?

Why do baby jeans have pockets? For the most part the zippers are fake so they just look normal, but aren't. What would a baby put in a coin pocket anyway? My man-hands can't even get a couple of fingers in there. A pacifier wouldn't fit. The baby isn't going to put their hands in there to keep them warm. So why not just sew fake ones so they only look normal? They don't need to be functional. Some things in this commercial world are just silly and wasteful. Maybe baby pockets are an April Fools joke played on consumer driven parents, or in our case grandparents. The world may never know.