Not sleepy

It's midnight. On a Sunday. I should have been asleep a while ago. BUT, I slept from 4:30 to 7:30 today, so I guess I'm just wired.

I was so tired because I just got back from an AMAZING weekend in Birmingham!! Jason and I played this show in a loft in the Phoenix Building on 2nd Ave N, and it was soooooooo much fun. Coffee was served by the lovely folks at Urban Standard, the wine flowed, and the cupcakes...oh, the cupcakes. Have you ever had REAL red velvet? It has something to do with the cocoa, and whatever it is, it tastes so good. I wish I could eat red velvet steaks followed by red velvet cakes served on red velvet plates as it snowed red velvet flakes seen through red velvet drapes. Just, you know, if I had my druthers.

There are some fun pics posted at A Bryan Photography's blog, which can be found here: www.abryanphoto.com/blog These guys are AMAZING artists, and such nice nice people. Not to mention the fact that Caleb was homeschooled and then went to a Classical school, and is now not weird to talk to, so you've gotta give him extra props for that.

Jason and I then went to see my dad, who had open heart surgery last week!!! It was wild - he had not had a heart attack, but could have had one at any moment since he had blockages in the 3 main arteries to his heart. The docs just happened to catch it in the nick of time - and now his heart is in better shape than it ever was. It's so weird...I heard the words open heart surgery and froze, but then after researching found that there is like a 96-97% success rate. Not having any medical skillz, that just seems so weird to me - that hundreds of thousands of people each year lay on a hospital bed with their sternum sawed open and veins from their legs or wherever replace the ones that send blood to the heart, and they live really healthy lives after that. AMAZING! Anywhoo, he is doing well - just sore.

Things at work are progressing nicely - if anyone has any blank media needs - you know who you should call??? TapeOnline! Need some new tapes for that MiniDV cam? Visit our website! www.tapeonline.com! Are you having trouble tracking down that analog audio tape you've been jonesing? TapeOnline can help!

Speaking of work, I should get myself to bed.

I hope that everything is just coming up roses for ya -

emily

Merry Maids

Do you think they are truly merry? Jason and I have spent the whole day trying to clean the house. It's not fun. At all. Markedly less fun since I felt like the whole place was spotless last weekend.

I always thought that I would be an awesome housewife since I enjoy domestic things, but I love them less now since I have no choice. I would much rather pay someone to merrily whistle while they wipe the baseboards. So the whole awesome housewife thing is out the window - and I am totally ok with that.

I started my new job on Monday - it is awesome!! Everyone is SO nice, and they communicate with each other, and everyone enjoys really good food. It's going to be awesome, I can feel it. I also learned how to ship packages. That was fun, as I have not had much hands on time in a warehouse before. I was dirty, and most likely burned some calories.

Musically speaking, this year I am going to play writers nights. It has been a long time since I have just played the ole acoutic on an eve with some other peeps doing the same. It has also been a long time since I have completed a song that I feel is worthly of being titled. Related? We shall see. We shall see. Jason and I had a good time with our friends, the Manns (or Men, as we call them), last night. Mandy is an awesome singer/songwriter, and it seems that whenever I am feeling down about the whole music thing, she is there to remind me that I have no cause. She was like, "you know, I just realized at some point, that being a musician is part of who I am. I may not be doing it as a career, but I will always do it. I will always pick up my guitar and just start playing because I like it, and singing because I like it. It is part of who I am." I loved that.

That being said, I am off to try to make this whole housemaid thing a little merrier. Be well!!

emily

Long time, no blog.

happy holidays!

i love christmas. jason and i were at old time pottery today buying a million picture frames and they had soooo many christmas decorations and they smell so good. i bought some cinnamon pinecones and it's getting me in the spirit.

also getting me in the spirit was the andrew peterson christmas concert at the ryman thursday night. that show was really fun, and so many friends were there! i loved that evening - alison osenga took me as her date, and i felt like a rock star. people kept staring at her, and i realized at that moment that i have famous friends. which is even more fun, because i never think about it until we are in public places and they are being visually stalked. ohhhh nashville.

SO. i am really excited because beginning january 7, 2008, i will be employed by a company called tapeonline.com. this will be my 2nd real job. I can't believe it. i have worked for the same company, goldleaf technologies, for the past 3 years...and that is soon coming to an end. it's sad! but it was time for me to move on. i'm feeling good things on the horizon.

right now, jason is watching transformers, and this movie is TERRIBLE. it's so so bad. I think i realized it when i heard a transformer asking shia leboeuf "are you screenname LadiesMan25513? are you screenname LadiesMan25513?!" and i guess i can see the similarities between transformers and terrorism, but i am getting a little weary of every movie being a political statement about our current situation overseas. it's transformers, ya know? however, they ARE more than meets the eye, so maybe i just don't get it.

for christmas this year, we are going to jason's family's house in tx. i am excited - i love christmas, but it will be my first christmas away from home...and i'm kind of scared. jason's mom doesn't really drink coffee, which is totally fine, but i am a mess without it in the morning. and i feel so high maintenance bringing my own bag of coffee to prepare, so she has to pull the coffeemaker out of hiding just for lil ole me...but i don't know how to explain that it's definitely better to pull it out than to deal with the mess that i become. i think she's ok with it, i just feel bad. always.

we are getting ready to go to a christmas party. did i mention that i really love christmas? i want to wear this sequin cocktail dress that i have, but i would look really silly since everyone else is probably going to wear jeans. i just don't know when i am ever going to get to wear that sequin cocktail dress. ohh...i should call my famous friends...they might have an event to attend that requires a guest adorned in a little shine.

i shall be seeing you -

emily

my mom

is a hoot

I'm so not believing this, but...

My CDs are actually here!!




I am trying to figure out how to set up online ordering, etc...but in the meantime, get pumped for my Nashville CD release...July 6, 2007!!

My A/C is broken.

and i am poor. gotta CALLL somebody.

greetings. i hope you are well tonight. i hope the fact that it was supposed to rain, but didn't, is good. i was glad. except for the way my skin gets all greasy. you'd think grease would make me look like i was kind of glowing, but it really just looks like i need a shower.

I am so lame. I was going to go to a totally awesome midnight show tonight, but now that it's 10:30, my body is like, "hey remember...this is the time you go to bed. every night. because your life is so predictable that you go to bed at the same time every night. remember when your nickname was grandma deloach in college? it was because your bedtime is now. and the butt pockets on your jeans were halfway up your back."

but anyways. I COULD wash the grease off my face and go to Starbucks and kick it all night. Should i? Yes. So I can see the Dave Rawlings machine in all his cuteness.


But how much do you wanna bet that I go to bed instead? I bet myself ONE...dollar.

As of this moment, I am announcing a blogspot redesign. THAT'S RIGHT. The pink cityscene just isn't going to cut it anymore. I think when i picked that I was low on estrogen, and needed a little affirmation that YES, i am female...even though i have occasional whiskers that i have to pluck out of my chin, and sometimes the side of my face. ewww. sorry - gross, yet no less true. I wish instead of feeling like a man, I would feel like a cat. they have whiskers, yet still maintain an alluring mystery. But then I would make myself sneeze and the sense of self-loathing would probably be more than I could handle. Sorry if you are a cat person, but those things are useless.

Well, this blog had no point. I just kind of felt like typing about stuff. Also, my air conditioner seems to be blowing cooler air now.

I will leave you with this:

If you were a bridesmaid on a budget of $100 or less, and you needed a loverly dress in burnt orange, where would YOU shop?

Thank you, and goodnight.

I've got a room at the top of the world tonight.

I'M ENGAGED!

I tried several clever intros, but none worked out ;)

Yes - I am so excited! Last Sunday, April 1, my boo, Jason Feller, took me to a pile of dirt and asked me to be his lady for all times, an offer I gladly accepted.

Here's the story:

We had been in Austin, TX for a few days - playing a show on the campus of UT (a story in itself), and visiting with his friends and fam. We had a great time - his friends are so fun and hilarious. It had rained a lot, but our last day, Saturday, the weather was awesome - we had a little barbecue, etc. ANYWAYS, we left Austin at 7:20 on Sunday morning, feeling really good, because it's only supposed to be a 12-13 hour drive. But that was before Jason got pulled over for speeding....before we even got to Dallas. Oopsie. Jason really does not like police officers. Wait...Jason really does not like to be caught by police officers. He shared a few choice words with the uniformed gentleman (SCARY!) and we were on our way. We then pulled into Dallas and got stuck in traffic for an hour and a half. It actually went by pretty fast, because Jason brought some crossword puzzles, but at this point, we had 10 hours to go, and it was 12:30. We stopped at Taco Cabana, arguably the best fast-food restaurant ever, grabbed some tacos and queso, and moved on.

Previously in the week, Jason had asked if I wanted to stop by a state park on the drive back. We always try to break up the neverending trip with little stops off the interstate, and this was one we had not done before. Fun! When we got into Arkansas around 3:30, he found the exit that he had scouted out, and headed out on our little adventure. 15 minutes later, we were still on our way. 15 more minutes...still on our way. This park, called "Crater of Diamonds", was 45 minutes off the interstate. Not exactly the kind of place we usually look for to "break up the trip". Anyway, if there is anything to be said for Arkansas, it is that it is BEAUTIFUL. Every part of "The Natural State" that I have seen, I would have to describe as "backwoods", but we were truly on dirt roads trying to get to this park. Two lovely ladies on a robust four-wheeler gave us directions at one point.

One of the features of "Crater of Diamonds" state park is that it is one of the only natural diamond mines in the US. There is volcanic activity under the ground, and as it does it's thing, it pushes all these minerals up to the surface of the earth, which for choice people, includes diamonds! We didn't really realize what we were getting into at this place (Take note: if you ever travel to Crater of Diamonds, gauchos and crocs are not going to fare well in terms of appropriate attire. You will get dirty.) Mini shovel in hand, we just dug right in. The prospect of finding something of value in this field was really exciting for about 5 minutes. After that, you survey your fellow miners and realize that in order to find something, you should probably move to Arkansas, lose a few teeth, (along with the ability to complete sentences), acquire some heavy duty sifting machinery, and scour this mud field on a daily basis. We continued "digging" for another 20 minutes or so, but mostly, Jason just cracked jokes and I poked the dirt. We were ready to go at this point, but Jason had this really strong feeling about a particular part of this field, back behind a shaded tree, in a large dirt hole. We went there, with the understanding that if we found nothing here, we were heading back to TN. We jumped in the hole, and started digging (poking) a little more, and lo and behold, Jason called to me that he had found one! It was April Fool's Day, so I assumed he was making it up. Now, I don't know how often this happens, or what the probability is, but would you believe that he found a DIAMOND RING...ALREADY IN THE SETTING...in that hole of dirt?!?!? He then said some very beautiful things that made me cry a little bit, and asked me to marry him! I gave him a big fat YES. And told him if this was his idea of an April Fool's joke, he was in serious trouble.

We then got lost for 2 hours in Arkansas, no cell phone service. No nothing really...which ended up being good. I was so shocked by the recent happenings (did NOT see it coming), that we had some time to talk it out, let it sink in. I was glad to be surprised, though - 100% recommended. I mean, we knew we wanted to marry each other (I DO recommend discussing that part first...). But knowing we did, when the moment actually came, it was so natural. Not frantic or rushed. I felt this sense of relief that I can't really explain. Not like the sigh of relief you feel once you get all your emails answered, but a settling down deep inside, in a place I hadn't even acknowledged was restless.

We finally made it back to Nashville around 2:30 AM, but it was definitely the fastest 8 hours I have ever spent. This week has just been a rush of fun, exhaustion, and activity, and I can't wait to see what else is in store.

Wouldn't It Be Nice?

I had a dream last night that my dad had a birthday in Colorado (which is weird, because Jason's dad lives in CO), and the Beach Boys made him 2 birthday cupcakes. Somehow, that didn't strike me as oddly as the Colorado thing. Have the Beach Boys started some kind of culinary venture?

Loving people...

...is really hard. I wish I was better at it.

Greetings.

Well, It's been a long time since I've done a real blog. Like a "here's what's going on" kind of thing.

For those of you who may not know, I work full time in the accounting department of a company called Goldleaf Technologies. www.goldleaf.com. Goldleaf designs ACH Software and Websites for banks, as well as Remote Deposit. That's really the coolest thing (in my humble opinion). Basically, in October 2004, Check 21 Legislation passed that allowed the image of a check to serve the same function as a check, which means that if you have an electronic copy of a check, you can make a deposit from anywhere! Well, anywhere that has a scanner, and some sort of Remote Deposit product. Goldleaf's is basically the best, so boo-yah. It is such a small world - my stepdad in Birmingham banks with Red Mountain Bank, who uses Goldleaf's Remote Deposit software, so he has a little scanner in his office that came from someone at my company - and it was totally random. Isn't that something?

Anyways, as you can see, I spend way too much time with my thoughts in the world of community banking. If you had asked me at any point throughout my life if I thought I would be here, I would have given you a rousing "heck no!", although I did always imagine that I would probably marry an accountant. Huh. The plans that foil.

I just got back from Jordan's movie night. We watched "Strictly Ballroom". Not as amusing as I was hoping, although I had a great time. I love my friends. And meeting new people, which I got to do both of tonight. The other day, I was thinking of how fun it would be to work for eharmony.com - like matching up the profiles and stuff? That would be awesome - bringing people together has always been a dream of mine, though my matchmaking skills are awful. Truly terrible. I have yet to even imagine a successful match. But if they tell me what to look for at eharmony, I think I could do the job. No, I KNOW I could do the job.

Oh, a biological update - I have had no further uncontrollable bladder accidents. I don't know what the deal was, but it seems to have passed. Just in case you were wondering ;)

Wanna see my dogs? Meet Henry and Neighbor.

They are so stinking cute, really. It has been one of the joys of settling down to have these pups. Not all of the settling has been joyful, but they are definitely a highlight. And they're both smart and sweet. Henry's a little less sweet, but still overall sweet.

I am currently working on a saving-money plan. In my life, it has turned out that the more I make, the more I spend, so I don't seem to be saving the money that I should be able to save. I am on a 6-month debt removal plan. Into my 2nd month, I paid off my first debt. I did the smallest one first. But really, I just have one more relatively small one, and then my car. Does anyone want to buy an awesome car for an awesome deal? Just let me know - 2002 Mercury Mountaineer - it's awesome, but the gas mileage is not. Anyways, I really want to save. I have learned that I don't really love money like I thought I did. I really did (and still do) think that if I could just earn another $5k a year, I would be so set, but as soon as I get it, I just take out a loan for something else that I don't need. Although this plan does work, and can get you certain cool objects, I have discovered that I'm not as interested in those objects as I thought I would be. Who knew? I would rather be making nothing and hanging out with people - (just sometimes, I actually DO enjoy working) - than sitting behind a desk working on ASAP projects for people that make more than I can ever imagine. For something that I don't care about, and don't see how I personally am impacting the world in any great way through. But I guess we all do some of that. Part of the curse, eh? I'm still going to pay off my loans and see what happens :)

Well, it is entirely past my bedtime. Thanks for the ears and eyes.

I peed in my pants yesterday. Twice.

Incident #1: I can tell this because it was so surreal, and fortunately none of my clothes were ruined. The story goes: I was getting out my car, felt the urge, and then peed in my pants. This was all over a span of 6 seconds. All I know is, the muscles that typically contract in that situation to help you hold on until you get to the place that you need to be..were not working. So that was once. It was very strange, and I was walking down my sidewalk into my house, so it was allright - I could take care of things inside.

Incident #2: Jason and I played an acoustic show last night, right across the street from a park, and right above a gourmet popsicle place. Since the weather was so beautiful, we got a popsicle, and went for a walk in the park before sound check. We were trying to throw crab apples and bust them open against a stone wall, then started the very short trek back, when I thought, "ohh...i need to pee. wait. i'm peeing in my pants again." Jason didn't believe me, so I had to point him to the evidence on my leg. It was unbelievable - and kind of scary. Once, I could classify as a freakish, "who saw THAT coming?" kind of deal. But twice?

We went to Clay and Sarah's later, and Sarah pulled out her nursing encyclopedia and gave me some exercises to do. This morning, so far - so good. Thanks Sarah.

Well, my dog is barking his head off. I'd better go get him before the neighbors do.

Peace -