There ought to be a law that...

... prohibits famous people in Hollywood from getting married. I was actually rooting for these two.

The couple's rep released a statement to TMZ Monday morning that says "We are saddened to announce that Reese & Ryan have decided to formally separate. They remain committed to their family and we ask that you please respect their privacy and the safety of their children at this time."

Once was enough

I lost my virginity this weekend. Not in the sense you’re probably most familiar with. No. I lost that a while ago.

This weekend, I attended a male strip club for the very first time. And, I still feel quite icky.

Don’t get me wrong, the experience was actually more fun (funny) than not. We were there for a good friend’s bachelorette party. It was EXACTLY how I thought it would be.

Here’s my beef, though. I just don’t understand how a dude stripping down to a skimpy, neon banana-hammock is considered at all sexy. For the first 20 minutes, I actually had a cramp from laughing so hard.

For those of you who have yet to experience a male review, here’s how it went. We got there and had about four men in their barely-there skivvies serving us some much-needed spirits. (One was actually in cut-offs that looked more like a short little jean skirt…) About a half-hour later, the show started with a cowboy striptease. (My friend was actually taken up on stage for this one!) Given that the cowboy was probably the only hot guy in the whole place, I rather enjoyed the show at that point – minus the fact that he thought he had to mouth the words of the song while stripping. (So cheesy!)

Anyway, two more guys came out shortly after to do their thang – meanwhile getting progressively more icky. (Seriously, I think the other two girls pulled up on stage could have filed a police report for molestation.)

After the “show” was over, the talent and about five other men just kept dancing around the room, hopping on laps hoping to secure just one more dollar. (Pretty sad.)

I left with many questions. For instance, how do men get away with charging women for such a thing? What do they tell their families they do for a living? How often do they “hook-up” with customers? Are they stuffing those g-strings? Eew.

Bottom line: Nothing beats new experiences, but sometimes once is certainly enough.

Blogging break

I'm taking a break for a few days. Need to gather my thoughts and emotions. Check back soon!

Too much plastic surgery?

Has anyone watched "The View" lately? If so, is it me or does Barbara's face not move AT ALL anymore when she talks? It's almost painful to watch.

Her speech has always been a bit slurred but, in the past, you could make things out by watching her speak. Now, it's like those sketches on "The Daily Show" and Leno that use a photo of someone (usually of great importance) and have them say random, ridiculous crap using someone else's mouth.

Overly obedient motorist

Seriously? I know these things are great and all but, come on, you still need to actually be aware of your surroundings.

BERLIN (Reuters) - A German motorist followed the command "Turn right now!" from his navigation system and crashed into a small toilet hut by the side of the road -- about 30 yards before the crossing he was meant to take.

The overly obedient 53-year-old from Freiburg drove his sport utility vehicle off the road onto into a building site, up a stairway and into the small toilet shack, police in the eastern town of Rudolstadt said Sunday.

It caused 2,000 euros ($2,500) worth of damage to the stairway, 100 euros damage to his car, and he was also fined 35 euros.

I dislike trains

They always come at the worst times. Then, they stop and go backwards.

Er. It's enough to drive a person bonkers.

Priceless life moments

My bro-in-law’s surprise 30th karaoke birthday extravaganza was a hit! It was so great to see him walk in. Confusion. Shock. Happiness. It was great. Made me think back to when my friends and family threw me a surprise party for my 16th birthday. Definitely one of my most favorite moments.

Other favorite life moments (in no particular order):
• Seeing my BP at the altar on our wedding day.
• Sitting in the waiting room during my dad’s brain surgery to find that his “tumor” was actually an abscess.
• Seeing my bro walk for the first time after his bout with Guillain Barré.
• Holding my nephew for the first time.
• First vacation with A to Boston. (“Bloody Redcoats!)
• Seeing a sea of close family and friends at our wedding. (The wedding in general!)
• Holding up a first-place trophy at Volleygrass. (Year eight, I believe… Go Aim and Hammer!)
• Sitting in the Herald office until the wee hours with my pals.
• Parasailing in Key West with H.
• Driving home with a tiny, recently purchased Cooper on my lap.
• Serving 15 in a row in an AAU tournament. (We skunked ‘em!)
• Karaoke at Cruchy’s with buckets of beer.
• Round the world party with the PC gang (circa 2004).

There are so many more. These are just the one I can think of at the moment… They make me happy.

One down!

... Three more to go!

Gooooo Tigers!

* Let's hope there's no more controversy. Let's play clean boys. Let's play clean.

I'd rather be...

...already up in Maybury for the weekend.
...at home under the covers.
...visiting my bro in San Fran.
...painting my nails.
...playing fetch with C.
...shopping.
...carving pumpkins with A.
...anywhere but here. :)

I'm so glad it's Friday!

It's a boy!

Congratulations Aunt H and Uncle J! Can't wait to meet Gregory Alexander!

Congratulations Jeffrey!

I was quite happy with "Project Runway's" finale last night. A bit surprised. But happy. I was rooting for either Uli or Jeffrey after I saw all of the collections. (Laura's was beautiful, but a bit boring and predictable. I thought she'd at least go for some color here and there. Michael. Oh Michael. I really didn't like much of anything he put on the runway.)

Anyway, my BP was quite pleased. He picked Jeffrey from the beginning.

This show kicks butt.

Pupoween

Scarlett's debut

I was really surprised to find that I actually enjoyed listening to Scarlett Johansen's first attempt into the world of song. I think I feared that she would try going all "pop" on us just like so many other young starletts out there.

She sounds exactly how you'd expect. "Summertime" was a great choice.

Listen here.

The old standby's

Don’t you just love those great cds that you can put in and listen to over and over again? Billy Joel’s Greatest Hits double-disc album has kept me from nodding off at work on many occasions.

Other favorite classic albums include:
Counting Crows (“August and Everything After”)
Dave Matthews (“Crash”)
Dirty Dancing soundtrack
Dixie Chicks (“Fly”)
Garth Brooks (“The Hits”)
Oasis (What’s the Story) Morning Glory?

What are some of your favorites?

Are you talking to me?

These things kill me.

Don't get me wrong, I actually think they're incredibly genius. You can talk all you want and still have your hands free at all times.

My favorite, though, is when some student is walking around campus with one of these babies on their ear. You can never tell if 1) they're talking on the phone, 2) they're talking to you, or 3) they're just crazy.

I just had such a run-in. It left me very confused.

Poor little feet

I could use some golashes today. My poor little feet are probably shriveled from all the puddles.

What a dreary, stay-at-home under the covers kind of day.

Congrats (?)

Woke up this morning to Matt Laurer and Meredith Viera reporting that the U.S.'s population has officially reached 300 million and is growing.

I have no idea why I found this worrisome. It's not like someone went "poof" and now we're going to be that much more crowded everywhere we go.

Perhaps my worries stem from the fact that humans are so materialistic and destructive. If we just keep multiplying, I can't imagine what we'll eventually do to the environment. (Maybe it's time I pick up Al Gore's new book...)

Read the full story here.

What a show!

Seriously, if ya'll aren't watching "Heroes" yet, perhaps it's time you tune in. I haven't been excited for a show like this since the first season of "Desperate Housewives."

I can't wait for them to all team up.

Goooo Tigers!!!

What an amazing game yesterday! M, I even got teary when Ordonez hit that last one out of the park. Underdog stories are the best!

Goooo D-town!

I just don't believe it

As an avid lover of Autumn, I must express my absolute dismay at the snowflakes currently falling outside my window.

ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!

I really don't remember the last time it snowed this early. At this rate, we're going to have to shovel paths for trick-or-treaters this Halloween.

Happy Birthday!

I think Hugh Jackman is just super. He's so talented. I mean, seriously. There aren't many leading actors who could pull off a cocky, iron-fisted hero in "X-Men" and then turn around and pull off hosting the Tony Awards by singing, dancing and entertaining the industry's finest. And, he's incredibly good looking to boot.

Also, does anyone else still love Kirk Cameron? Mike Seaver was definitely my cup of tea back in the day. I wonder if he'll ever get back into the industry...

Happy Birthday Hugh and Kirk!

*P.S. After viewing a variety of Hugh photos online, I am officially announcing the addition of Hugh to my Top 5. Matthew McConaughey has been replaced.

Opinions please

Is The Neck guilty or innocent of receiving help to create his collection?

Shout out to my pop

Thought I'd give a shout out to my good 'ol dad. He's currently a bit under the weather and a patient at PHH.

Nothing too serious at this point (hopefully). Just feeling the wrath of a horrible bloody nose and non-agreeable meds. After that whole brain scare, they're inclined to run more tests and take extra precautions.

Love you dad. Hope you feel better soon!

A possible love connection?

Word on the street is that Brandi and Michael Knight (of "Project Runway" fame) are becoming a hot new item. Any thoughts?

P.S. I can't wait for the finale of "Project Runway." I want Michael to win (like most people out there I think) but I don't think it's going to happen. He's gotten too much hype and has too many followers at this point. I bet the title is going to go to a dark horse.

A necessary boycott

I was just watching "Access Hollywood." They had a feature story about Star Jones wearing a bikini. No story. No news. Just Star Jones in a bikini.

I think I'm going to boycott celebrity news shows for a while.

It's all about respect

Had a phone conversation with my good friend, B, yesterday. It had been like five months since we had talked – not cool since we used to be almost inseparable back in our carefree college days. Anyway, we got talking about our relationships. He asked how mine was going. I asked about his.

Since B's culture differs from mine, I find that I often have a difficult time understanding him when it comes to relationships. When I asked him if he was happy with his new gal, he said, "Yup. She listens well and minds her own business." Not exactly the response I was expecting for some reason.

Now, if you know me at all, I often have a difficult time with these types of answers and tend to spawn off into my holier than though tirades of how men should want women who have a voice and who act as teammates in a relationship. Of course, I did just that.

Only after I hung up did I realize that I should have just shut up.

Whether I agree with B or not doesn't matter. It never has. And, while it has continued to provide friendly banter on such issues as arranged marriages and such, perhaps it's time that I just be quiet and respect his thoughts on the matter.

Next time, I'll just keep quiet, enjoy the conversation and respect my great friend for his many beliefs, culture and customs.

Halloween's a comin'!

I know I just posted a bunch of cute pup pics, but I can't help myself. These just crack me right up!

More cute pics available at www.cuteoverload.com.

Random thought

I'm really into headbands and scarves right now.

Thick or thin, they seem to add a certain something to an outfit.

(And, my hubby seems to absolutely adore them!)

Just call me Emeril

I made banana bread yesterday and, I must say, it's darn good.

I realize this probably isn't such a huge accomplishment for most people. For me, though, anytime I even attempt to heat up the oven, I'm tempted to sound an alarm and cheer.

It was very easy. I think I'll do it again.

I love this day

I had one of those really clarifying moments today.

I was in the midst of raking leaves when my neighbor (from afar) said something about a parade coming down the street.

My first reaction was, "Huh?"

My second was to go to the front of the house to check things out.

Sure enough, I saw three cop cars blocking off the street and heard a drum cadence in the near distance.

I grabbed my pup at that point and sat on my tiny little porch in T-Town to watch a local high school's homecoming parade.

It had everything. A band. Cheerleaders. Homecoming queen and king. Even all the foreign language clubs had vehicles from which they were screaming and chanting.

I don't know what it was about that parade, but I was completely in a state of euphoric bliss. It was one of those great moments, in the midst of a seemingly long drought of good fortune, that made me tear up time and time again for absolutely no apparent reason.

I've never been a huge fan of parades before. Now, though, I think they'll always take me back to this day. To this feeling. Of utter happiness and unwavering hope.

Would you do this?

I have really great friends.

I'm not sure if I'd ever casually just hold their hands while taking a leisurely stroll, though. (The exception being when one or both persons involved is heavily intoxicated and needs the extra hand to maintain balance.)

I find it a little odd.

Whatever happened to Bill Nye?

I thought I’d do a quick refresher course on leaves today, seeing as A and I will be busy all day Saturday raking. So, why do leaves turn color in autumn? I’ll tell you. (OK, so I actually stole the information from www.kidzone.com…)

Inside a leaf there are millions of little packages of color in green, yellow and orange. The green packages are called chlorophyll. The yellow packages are called xanthophylls. The orange packages are called carotene.

The green packages in the leaves catch sunlight and, using it for energy, they change water from the ground and a special gas from the air ("carbon dioxide") into sugar ("glucose"). This sugar is the food for the tree.

All summer long, the green chlorophyll produces food for the trees. Because the green chlorophyll is so busy, the green color covers up all of the other colors in the packages.

The green packages of chlorophyll in the leaves need the water from the ground to do their job. The water is soaked up by the trees roots, travels up the trunk and enters the leaves through tiny tubes in the leaf's stem.

As fall approaches, the weather grows colder and the tree realizes that winter is near. A thin layer of cells grows over the water tubes in the leaves and closes them up in preparation for the winter. No more water can get into the leaf!

Without the water, the green chlorophyll starts to disappear and the other colors in the leaf – the yellow xanthophyll packages and the orange carotene packages – can finally be seen.

The leaves don't really "turn" a certain color - they just lose their green.

Happy raking!

This just in

"The first fall freshman series to get a full season pickup - Heroes on NBC. The network has ordered the back nine, giving the full complement of 22 episodes. While that's going on, NBC's series Kidnapped has been banished to Saturdays, as of October 21. And yes, production will end after the initial 13 episodes are in the can. Filling the Wednesday 10pm time period? Nothing official yet - but guesses go to Dateline NBC, Medium or Crossing Jordan."

Woohoo! Go "Heroes!"

Thanks for the info A:)

Quick pick-me-up

Nothing like cute pups to help you smile.

I'll cry if I want to

I’m trying not to have too large a pity party.

It’s difficult.

I give my best but it’s never enough.

What am I doing wrong?

Most of you visiting my blog probably know me.

Any advice?

In the words of my good friend, M:

“I think I’ll just give it all up and start decorating cakes.”

A little help?

Of all the new shows this Fall, I gotta say, "Heroes" is definitely my favorite. I don't know what it is about the concept of superheroes, but I LOVE it.

I have one question for those other fans out there, though. What the heck is the deal with Ali Larter's character? What is her power and how is it going to help in the long run? Any thoughts or theories are certainly welcomed.

("Heroes" is on Monday nights at 9 p.m. on NBC.)

Simply scrumptious

I think cupcakes cones have to be one of my all-time favorite desserts.

If I'm ever a parent, I'm going to make sure that my children get to take in these scrumptious treats for their class birthday parties. (Those kids were always so cool.)

Pretty sure I'll have to buy at least one at the bake sale today.

Mmmm. Is it lunchtime yet?

Get a grip

Somewhere in Georgia, there's mother of four who is trying to ban Harry Potter books saying that that "the popular fiction series is an 'evil' attempt to indoctrinate children in the Wicca religion."

Seriously?

There's a reason some books are called fiction. It's not real. It's makebelieve.

The Harry Potter series has inspired so many people – who might otherwise opt for less educational forms of entertainment – to read. It has captured the hearts of adults and children alike through its captivating tales and oh-so-loveable characters.

If you don't want your children to read certain books, that's fine. But what right do you have to take that experience away from others? Get a grip.

Read the full story here.

I respect teachers

Today was the day.

Today was the day that I could no longer take the increasingly pungent cologne donned by our here today/gone tomorrow office mate.

(It makes me absolutely nauseous.)

My parents are teachers. They have always talked about those awkward situations in which they are given the task of telling a student their scent is disrupting class. Whether it’s too much cologne, not enough time spent bathing or too little deodorant, they still have to break the news.

I’ve never had so much respect for what they do.

For those of you that know me, you know that I often have a difficult time confronting people. This was no exception.

I kept telling myself to be firm, yet pleasant. Not to attack but to maintain my ground.

The outcome? Well, I’m pretty sure I really offended him. And, instead of addressing the fact that he seems to bath in cologne, he instead rationalized that he would stop wearing that particular cologne while at the office (woohoo!) and instead wear (i.e. immerse himself in) a variety of different colognes from now on (crap).

I’m thinking that he didn’t really get the idea.

For all those out there who work in a confined space or know someone working in a confined space, please. Spread the word. Just because you appreciate a certain smell doesn’t mean your co-workers do.

Be courteous. Be aware.

Confrontations regarding stankiness suck.

Disgusting

This is so repulsive to me. Is it really worth getting your name in a book? How would you even function?

An undated handout photograph released on September 27, 2006 shows Lee Redmond of the U.S. who has won entry into the latest edition of Guinness World Records September 28, 2006 with the world's longest fingernails. REUTERS/Drew Gardner/GWR/Handout