leftovers

2013 has been a weird year for me.  It's been a dry year, meaning I haven't drank any alcohol, which is, in and of itself, very different from most any other year in recent memories.  Did I gain a sense of clarity, or a sense of detoxification?  Not really, I just realized that there have definitely been times where I have drank too much when I didn't need to.  But that's beside the point, as the point is the top 10 songs of the year!  In the absence of many new releases from my old favorites, there are a lot of new artists represented in this year's list. First - Honorable mentions: "Back Together" - Annie; "Broken Record" - Little Boots; "For Once in My Life" - Mel B (although it was a huge bummer when we went to see her promoting this new single by simply 'appearing' at a nightclub without actually performing or doing a meet-and-greet or anything else that would have made standing around waiting for hours seem worth it); ...

Hays Has It. It's Happening in Hays. Those were slogans for the city of Hays, Kansas, that I remember from my childhood.  We used to make fun of them a lot, but when I was really young, I did think that Hays had "it," whatever it was.  I think the first thing I remember about Hays is that once upon a time I actually couldn't distinguish it from Russell, Kansas.  Both were cities off of I-70, where my parents used to take us to shop or run errands, and I just knew they both were what I considered "big towns" but I couldn't tell them apart.  That must have been when I was 4 or so, because soon I realized many of the differences between the two.  Hays was much larger, had a college, a mall, a Wal-Mart - basically all the exciting things I grew to love throughout my childhood. My earliest memories of Hays were of being impressed by the size of it.  I spent most of my time on our farm, and when I was lucky enough to "go to town," it was...

I've never been a big "car person."  Some people LOVE cars, love driving them, fixing them, learning about them, talking about them, etc... not me.  Growing up in the place and time that I did, cars have been an important part of our culture, but for the most part I've never given too much thought to what I was driving, as long as it got me from point A to point B.  However, I do appreciate a nice car and at times in my life I've been pretty happy with my wheels.  I recently made a major purchase and bought a new (to me) car, a bright red Kia Soul +!  It got me thinking about all my past cars and what they have meant to me.  I want to say right off the bat that I am grateful that I can even say I've been able to drive and own a car since I was in high school, which truly is a blessing.  And thank you to my parents, who have gone WAY above and beyond in helping me with the costs of the vehicles over the years.  Without further ado, here are the car...

At my brother's suggestion, I've decided to write a blog about "Out in the Sandpile," which was a game (of sorts) that my siblings and I would play out in the yard east of our house on the farm.  It was sort of like a 3D version of "Monopoly" with army guys, barbie dolls, houses, cars, and "money."  Apparently, I was somewhat of a dictator and often threatened my siblings with physical violence if they did not play for a long enough period of time.  Suffice to say, I was very into this game! THE EARLY YEARS In the beginning, the game started in our actual sandpile, hence the name.  My dad had made us a small sandbox, probably about 6'x6', with four big wooden planks set out in a square, filled about 6" deep with sand.  The first two "characters" were Kitty Kiffeneigh (my guy), and John Chesney (Brandon's guy).  We had toy horse trailers that we flipped upside down for our "houses."  Aside from the fact tha...

The title of this blog entry is borrowed from the band Swing Out Sister, it was the title of their album which contained their biggest hit, "Break Out."  I often think of that title because it is so true.  It is so much better to travel! With that in mind I wanted to mention that I just got back from a trip to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.  I had never been before, and I love going to new places!  I will blog about that trip, but for now, I wanted to post this map highlighting all my travels.  Unfortunately it doesn't seem to let you enter every city you've been to, but maybe I just need to explore the site some more.

Since the beginning of the new year, I've been doing a great job taking care of myself and making my health, both physical and mental, a priority.  To this effect, I haven't drank any alcohol, I've abstained from fast food and "junk food," and I've been working out almost every day, whether that be running or doing a "boot camp" style work out to a record.  On the weekends, Dylan has joined me for some hikes. This Sunday, our day was wide open, so I decided to surprise Dylan by taking him to Culver City park for a little hike.  It turned out to be quite serendipitous, because in addition to the regular park, there was now a whole new section of trails open adjoining the main park, with a huge staircase leading up to the Baldwin Hills Scenic Overlook. We had a great hike and enjoyed the beautiful view all the way from the ocean up to the mountains. But what hit me the most was my own memories of 12 years ago, when I worked down the street from the ...

Check out my 2012 in Review over on my other blog, It's Never the Way You Imagine It.

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