OK people, I am moving again!!! You can now read my blog here: www.metalmommy.onsugar.com See you there!!!

Here I go again….this was a short-lived stay here at WordPress, now I’m making my way over to OnSugar! See you over there….here’s the link: www.metalmommy@onsugar.com

Check out this new look!  I guess I’m still experimenting with my new apartment here.  I’m not even sure this will be a permanent move, I’m checking out Stephanie’s new blog and thinking that’s pretty darn cool.  I may have to be a copy-cat and follow her over there.  hmmmm.  Guess I’ll play around a bit more and see.  

I’m sitting here typing in my new kick-A Frye boots.  I’ve never owned a pair in my life and I have to say, I think me likee.  I’ve been on The Perfect Boot search for a while now…those of you who know me, it’s always something.  But I was having the hardest time finding a pair of boots that are in between dressy and casual, not too high and look good on my short little legs.  I originally wanted brown but of course when I finally found the style that I think will work, they only had black left.  Ah well, nothing wrong with rock and roll black, of course!  I’m wearing them around the house to see if they really will move in and not get sent back to the store like the other pair that came along.  I’m sure you’re all quite thrilled to know that I may have finally found my Perfect Boot.  It’s good to be a working girl!  

And speaking of rock and roll, who emailed me the other day but my old guitar player Rand from The Charm School Dropouts!!!!!  This was the band that I put together after I left Warbride, back in the L.A. days.  After dealing with girls and their catiness (sorry Lori, but I know you would agree that back then we were not on our best behavior!) I was more than ready to front some dudes for a change.  Naive me put an ad in the local Hollywood rag along with a big photo of me….and then wondered why I was getting creepy responses, one from a notorious guy who wanted to give band girls foot rubs. eeeu.  Luckily Rand answered that ad—and he didn’t have a foot fetish—and I pretty much knew as soon as we met that he was the guy I wanted in my band.  We were immediately like brother and sister, we definitely shared the same sick sense of humor.  (and in case any of you are wondering, NO, it never went beyond that!)  Rand and I lived in a few different places together, we even had a studio apartment that we shared, our mattresses on the floor across the room from each other.  Crazy times, to say the least.  It has been great fun to be back in touch, catching up and learning what’s been going on in his life for all of these years.  I have to admit I’m glad to hear he’s not only still alive (!) but doing very well.  Never underestimate the feel-good power of reconnecting with a dear old friend.  (sorry Rand, did I just call you OLD?! )

This morning I went over to Vivian’s FACS class to help out.  FACS (Family and Consumer Sciences) is the new term for Home Ec.  It sounds much more sophisticated, doesn’t it??  hilarious.  My job was to iron the seams on the pillowcases that the kids were working on.  All I can say is, CUTE!  It was such a blast to be a part of 7th grade again for a while.  (and not have to REALLY be a part of 7th grade, mind you!)  Since we are new to the community I really didn’t recognize any of these kids.  I was amazed to see how polite and quiet they all were in class, wow.  Of course Vivian would be totally embarrassed with me whenever I’d try to strike up a conversation with anyone, which of course was often.  heh heh.  What fun would there be in life if you couldn’t embarrass your kid???  It was pretty funny to have me iron, I have to say, since I barely ever get mine out.  That’s the most ironing I’ll do all year.  I remember when Vivian was little and in her ECFE class.  They had the room all set up with different activities, one corner all set up like a play-house.  In that area was a kid-sized ironing board and an iron.  I totally remember Vivian picking up the iron with this dazed and confused look on her face…she had never seen one before in her life, since her Mommy never ironed!!  That GOD I didn’t have to actually sew on a machine or give any advice about using one.  It’s pretty darn cute to see a 7th grade boy work away on a sewing machine.

Another busy week coming with work, a cleaning at the dentist, a meet-and-greet with some lovely-sounding ladies that I’m doing a holiday boutique show with, with my Silpada jewelry.  Before we know it it will be Thanksgiving and we’ll be driving back down from Park Rapids with our Christmas tree!!!!  Total craziness.  Are you ready for the holidays??

Wow, what a week.  Needless to say I am THRILLED with the choice our country has made in Barack Obama.  It was quite the emotional roller coaster, I tell you.  

I started out my election day saying goodbye to the kids as they got onto their school buses but instead of heading right over to my voting place like I wanted to, I made my way over to the Kare 11 studio to shoot a TV commercial!  I’ve been involved in this cool web site for moms called MomsLikeMe.com, as a paid moderator.  

My job is to bring up four topics a week and answer four…the way I love to get my two cents in, this is no problem for me.  (it’s still hard for me to believe I actually get paid to give people my opinion.  nice.)  One day Cindy, the woman in charge of the site, called me up and asked me if I’d like to be in the commercial they are making to promote the site and a contest they are running.  We didn’t know at first if I was going to be what they had in mind…I mean, they could have set their sights on a blonde.  (and in the words of William Shatner I say, but why?!)  Luckily a brunette would do so I made the cut.  

It was a fun and frightening experience, I have to say.  There was a very long sentence that was going to be shot in one take so I had to memorize it.  The main thing I worried about tho, was the muffin top.  How to hide the muffin top?!  I had no idea what I was going to wear.  Luckily in the last moment they told me to wear my ‘MomsLikeMe’ fleece jacket that Cindy had sent me, so that totally saved me there. Nobody looks good in one of those, so I was off the hook. After doing something like that I totally have a new appreciation for the normal Joe (or, Jolene?) that does those commercials. It is quite an art to talk as fast as you can whilst annunciating and at the same time sounding–and looking!– natural. Don’t know if I quite pulled it off, but hopefully it was good enough! It was quite fun to be at the studio, I could definitely get used to that. I still have my talk show dream, you know…maybe Moms Like Me can become one some day???

From there I finally got to go cast my vote. I waited in line for 45 minutes but didn’t care one whit. That was the mood I got from everyone, actually…there was a general feeling of excitement in the air and it was so cool! Of course the waiting was made nicer by the 60+ degree weather we were having, so being outside was a pleasure. And like everyone that night we were all planted in front of the TV, watching history be made. Like so many others, I was completely moved by the whole experience. I cried big-time when Obama made his speech. I think what touched me most of all was seeing that crowd of people around him–every  color, every religion, even celebrities–they were all One. For two hours, we really were all  created equal. Nobody cared that Oprah was in the audience, and she herself leaned on a  completely unknown guy–to us or to her!–as she listened and cried. For the first time in my life, I care about the president of the United States. He is someone I would actually want to meet, and I feel like we can start being proud of our country again. I am ecstatic and relieved. whew.

Are you going trick-or-treating tonight??  I am.  Okay, technically I’m not, but I’m going with Sullivan so to me that counts!  Plus I’ll get to have all of the things he doesn’t like (bring on the Almond Joys and Mounds bars!!) and the sticky stuff that Vivian can’t have because of her braces.  Good thing I recently bought a shaper from Hot Mama, good grief.  The muffin top is going to be out of CONTROL.

So yesterday I’m at Macy’s and stopped by Estee Lauder to take a whiff of this perfume I read about in my favorite perfume blog, Now Smell This.  I had tried the new David Yurman at Nordstrom and was reading about it on the blog, where author Robin mentioned that she thought Estee Lauder’s was similar. (and cheaper. of course I really liked the David Yurman scent and of course it was $120 a bottle.  It even smells expensive–which is probably why I like it.)  Before the woman leaves to get me a sample she hands me this tube of something-or-other and tells me to twist the cap.  ??  I do, and it starts vibrating!!!! (and I put it in my pocket.  just kidding….;-))  Just as I’m about to start looking for the massage oil she then explains it’s a vibrating mascara.  Excuse me?!  What will they think of next?!  Supposedly this is to separate your lashes, making them more defined.  All I know is that I won’t spend $30 on a mascara, especially not one that I’ll also be buying batteries for.  Ridiculous!

Last night we were playing a family game of Scattergories—one of my all-time favorites. If any of you haven’t played it before, you must! (I know Stephanie and Kim are cringing right now…they are not game players and I’m sure playing Which Witch with me on my 40th birthday was enough to last them for a while…)  

For those of you who don’t know the game, allow me to explain.  Basically you have a list of categories and after rolling a crazy 15-or-so sided die with different letters on it, you have to come up with a word fitting the category that starts with the letter.  For instance if your first category is ‘fruit’ and you roll a ‘B’, you might pick banana.  (heck, that’s probably the ONLY fruit you’d pick. ha!  pick fruit!  I just made a pun…) I think you have about 12 categories or so and you are timed to get the list done.  When the timer goes off you all name what you wrote—and if two (or more!) of you have the same word, you cancel each other out and don’t get credit for it.  It’s a pretty simple context and really quite fun!

Sullivan likes to play the game, even though at seven years old it is a bit of a challenge for him.  He may not be able to fill in many of the blanks, but not surprisingly, the few words he does manage to come up with are pretty amazing.  Last night we rolled the letter ‘O’, which of course is always a challenge for everyone.  The first category word was ‘Heroes’.  I honestly don’t think I could think of any hero that started with the letter O, but when it came to Sullivan he proudly stated “Barack Obama!”  Oh, how I love my little democrat!!!!  The rest of us cheered. 

Sully is pretty opinionated in politics at the ripe age of seven.  We were doing some Mad Libs and when it came to naming a celebrity, again—Barack Obama.  When the time came in the same story to name yet another celebrity Sullivan put his finger up and said, “I refuse to say John McCain.”  hilarious!!!  Do ya think we’ve had some influence on the boy??  nah.

I have to share a touching story I read in the news yesterday—or watched on video, I should say.  I was going through my beloved CNN site and saw how a woman who had been forced to foreclose on her house attended the auction of it to say goodbye.  Needless to say she just sat in the hallway in tears, it was heartbreaking.  Another woman at the auction saw her, bid on the house and won it–only to give it right back to the owner.  Talk about a random act of kindness–and definitely someone who fits into my hero category.  It totally made me cry, I LOVE stories like that—especially in times like these.  Nice to know there are still people out there like that.  I wonder if her name starts with the letter ‘O’?

Is there anything better than sharing a good meal with friends?  Not much my friends, not much.  I’m very lucky to have friends in my life that are amazing cooks and are nice enough to share their talents with me!  Steph invited us over to her house to ‘break the fast’ for Yom Kipper…not that we were fasting, mind you, or necessarily really celebrating Yom Kippur…but any holiday is a good excuse to get together!!  As always it was amazing food and wonderful company.  Not a bad way to spend an evening.

Then my gourmet dinner group got together last Saturday at Nancy and Tim’s. Nancy always comes up with some fun group idea whether it be playing a game, doing pottery that she later fires in her kiln (how cool is that?!) or having a bake-off.  We arrived to be shown right to the kitchen and were told that it was girls against the guys, making a cake from scratch with no recipe to see who’s came out the best.  Well, let’s face it—I immediately thought us women had it in the bag.  Don’t get me wrong, our men are very capable in many ways—but they don’t spend a lot of time in the kitchen!  At least us ladies have baked a cake or two in our lives and could probably fudge it along a bit.  (no pun intended!) Grand Master Baker Rosemarie was not allowed to participate with us, and both groups were only allowed to ask her 2 questions.  Both cakes came out looking quite different—ours being a bit bumpy on the top, the guys’ looking extremely smooth, more like a torte.  (impressive!) We then proceeded to blindfold Greg and Dawn for a taste-test…Greg liked the women’s best and Dawn liked the men’s!  We all agreed that both of them were a bit dry, especially ours.  But ours had a little better flavor.  Then Nancy took them both, layered them together, slathered them with frosting and we gobbled them up.  Anything tastes good with frosting!  I wouldn’t say either group would have won any baking contests, but it was fun and I think we all did very well considering!!!

No big dinners tonight, but I will have company—the peeps are coming over for a podcast!!  Woo hoo, it has been WAY too long since our last show.  A lot of the reason for the delay is schedule—trying to get us all free on any given night can be tricky–and honestly a big part of it was also the fact that the last podcast we did ended up being a big ol’ hijunx.  For some reason we had technical difficulties and the whole show came out sounding garbled—you couldn’t understand a word.  What was really bad about that is that Stu the Wine Genius was with us as our guest that night for a wine-tasting podcast, and it was probably the first podcast in our two-or-so year history that we actually did a show that was about something.  There was definitely good information to be shared by Stu, and we had the most AMAZING wine–as you can imagine.  Alas, all we have now is the memory… Hopefully tonight will go off without a hitch!

 The final debate, tonight…are you gonna watch?  We will, although for  me it’s like watching a train wreck.  I get so worried that ‘that other  one’ will actually say something eloquent and give me more cause for  fretting.  I have a couple of friends who are convinced it’s a shoe-in for  Obama–I wish I could be that positive.  I just know it’s not over until  it’s over.  I  really want our country to look like it can make an  educated choice for  a change!  Even Sullivan agrees.

 Check out the fluer de lis—-is that METAL or what?!  Thanks to those of you who took the journey from Blogger over here to my new blog home at WordPress.  As I am thankful to Blogger for the years of service, there were many a time where I found myself cursing the thing.  Coreman suggested starting a new blog here, and what the heck?  Like a new hair-do, I’m always up for a new look.  I think this actually makes me a bit more techie, too…look out!  I do like the way this is laid out and the many options it has…so there it is.  I’ve arranged the furniture, painted the walls and have made it my own–and you’re invited!  I have yet to figure out how to hang pictures here yet…but they will be up soon.  Welcome! A Heavy Metal Salute to you, my friends!

It’s Kim’s birthday! I love what Stephanie says– “That’s so Maven!” (she is the Maven of Mischief, after all…) And Oh, the Mischief. I honestly don’t know what I’d do without the magic of my Kim in my life. Unfortunately because of schedules and overall life, I don’t get to see her nearly enough–but a good dose of Kim is definitely what’s needed more often than not. For her birthday I thought I’d give you a nice photo album tour of my silly friend…

This may be my all-time favorite shot. It brings back an evening where I laughed so hard I thought I would pass out! The story is a bit long to re-live here but let’s just say it involved a tuft of hair that Stephanie pulled surprisingly from her head after a bout with a power tool. (again, long story!) We had just finished a Feminine Hijinx episode and were already giggly…this just put us over the edge. This wad of hair ended up everywhere…and I mean EVERYWHERE. Good times my friends, good times.

Speaking of the podcast, starting that thing up eventually led to Kim and I’s stint on FM107’s Undiscovered Divas contest. Alas, we didn’t win…but we did make it to the finals and had a one hour live show. It was both scary and exciting. Alas again, there could be only 2 of us on the show so one of the Hijinx Minxes had to stay home…both Kim and Stephanie were arguing over who WOULDN’T have to do it with me! Kim ended up being the more willing one, so there she was. She did an awesome job and I dare say we had a blast. It’s fun to say we did it, anyway!

Ahh, the Which Witch party. Kim had remembered me mentioning how much I used to love this game as a kid and how excited I was when I finally remembered what it was called! She surprised me with the game that she had found on ebay for my 40th birthday. She and Stephanie had quite the ruse going, making me believe we were heading out for a night on the town and instead ended up at Kim’s for a game night. Woo hoo! Yummy comfort/game food prepared by Steph, decorations, and two not-so-willing but very generous friends playing not one but two games with me. Now THAT’S friendship.

And this is what happens after a night of games and drink and Kim. Come to think of it, this was another bit of hair that ended up EVERYWHERE. huh.

After an afternoon or evening tipping back a few beers or glasses of wine, you can expect Kim to start up on her dirty dancing. No one puts this Baby in the corner!!

I will leave you with this image of Kim and I walking the streets of New York City (the most fabulous and memorable trip with she and Stephanie!) with our hands on each other’s tushies. Just some more of the Maven’s mischief–there is never a dull moment when she’s around!

So Happy, Happy Birthday to Kim! May the Mischief be with you!!!