And she is back to blogging.........

I know, you've missed me! Believe me, I have missed me too! I've been so busy fitting into perfectville, living the hectic life of wife, mom, employee and the official 'doer of everything' (just ask my husband) that I nearly lost me in the chaos.
However, I was recently reminded of the real me Sunday night in the funniest of ways, more to come on that, but first a little background..............

Depending in which of my lifetimes you've known me, you may or may not know that I am a huge music fan. I've always believed music to be my very first (and always dependable) love!!!! It has seen me through some of the toughest years of my life, given me strength, inspiration, and plenty of excellent dance moves.

Feeling God clearly understood the meaning of music in my life, he blessed me with the coveted part-time job every 16 year old in Snellville applied for, cashier at Turtle's Records and Tapes. Come to think of it, God either blessed me with this ever so coveted job or he blessed me with a middle aged pervy boss who liked my legs and gave me the job??? And so began my increased love affair with music through the gift of the live show.

I know I am dating myself, but does anyone remember actually having to 'camp out' for tickets to see your favorite bands???? What you may not have realized is if you were the first 'camper' in line and needed only 2 tickets, the ever so resourceful Turtle's employees would pull an additional 8 tickets for themselves totalling the maximum of 10 tickets we could pull at one time. This scenario went on and on until we had enough tickets for ourselves to attend our favorite concerts, with the best of seats. I continue to blame my loud talking and lack of hearing on being front row too often with a speaker next to my ears blaring out Ratt, Poison, Billy Idol, The Scorpions, Motley Crue, Guns and Roses, Pink Floyd, REM The Smiths, The Cure and by far my favorite show of all time, David Bowie. Oh those were indeed the days. Did I mention, I was a heavy metal, hard rock groupie (or groupie wannabe)

Now back to the present.....

Sunday night, The Cult played at the Tabernacle in Atlanta. Did I mention they are one of my all time favorite rock bands??? If not, I will.

It was their 'Love Tour' or as I like to call it.... the I have pissed away all of my money on booze, drugs, and women, am almost 50, and need to do one last tour, playiny songs from our best selling albumn, Love, tour.
As you can imagine The Cult wanted to shorten the name of the tour for marketing purposes.

It was an excellent EXPERIENCE. And as much as I would love to say it was amazing because The Cult still has it, I cannot. Instead I was faced with the many faces of me at the show, and some of them were not too pretty. I emailed a friend with a review of the show, who responded that my review sounded more like a blog post, and hence I am back here posting. My review of the show went a little something like this...............

Cult Review (not that you care to hear all the details, but here they are)

The concert was an amazing experience. Hearing their music live has always been like a religious experience for me. And I am happy to report that Billy Duffy (the guitarist) is still a rock god. He did not miss a beat, was absolutely fantastic. He's taken good care of himself over the years and his guitar riffs were as good as they ever were.
On the other hand, Ian Astbury (lead singer) may be back on the sauce of some sort(drugs, alcohol, cheeseburgers??). After being sober and HOT, he traded all of that in to be a Jim Morrison look alike. And not the good looking Jim Morrison. The I've had a dew too many cheeseburgers and cocktails Jim Morrison.
And if being overweight and stoned were not enough, he traded in his rock god status and look for attire that looked more like Delta lost his bags, so he grabbed random pieces of clothing from his band mates and roadies. What a huge waste for me, Did I mention he used to be hot???

I was impressed with their sound in the beginning of the show. They still had it, they were spot on until about mid point. Much like the fans in attendance, you could see and hear the strain of the years in the last few songs Ian sang. And Ian's moves were less then stellar. After 20 + years of playing one instrument (the tamborine) you'd think Ian would have the kick the tabomrine from the floor to his hand down pat, but after the second try, he sadly gave up. I was left wondering if his larger belly or the extra drinks or simply his age that were slowing him down? Although Duffy remains the man as far as his riffs are concerned, the disconnect between he and Ian was palpable. They never stood near one another or made any eye contact. It was as if they were playing at two seperate venues.

On a more positive note though, the people watching was great! Everyone at the show was our age(30 + 10 and up). The only youngsters were with their parents who were clearly there for the cult.

You could tell which were frat boys grown up, rock fans who became responsible adults, rock fans who continued to grow their hair and their bellies, groupies and redneck ladies who remained groupies and rednecks ladies (I am using the term broadly), and moms like me who although were big groupies in the day, grew up too!

We had a loud mouth redneck 'lady' sitting behind us screaming about pretty much everything, but my overall favorite quote of the evening was when she shouted to her hubby 'you ain't in no danger of getting a dui tonight, because the beers were 10 bucks a pop. Who the hell can get drunk when beers are 10 bucks a pop'.

Given the fact that we arrived at 7:30 pm, and the show began at 9:15, my tolerance for drunk redneck 'ladies' was growing thin so I talked an usher into letting my friend and me move into the reserved section, second row, much better seating and company.

And did I mention the fight in the pit. I swear it was like reliving my old rock days. Two men protectin' their little ladies and the ladies tryin' to hold their big men back from fightin' each other.... Priceless!!!!

Toward the end of the evening, I realized I was very aware of my surroundings. I was no longer lost in the music of The Cult, but rather lost in my thoughts about them and the people sharing this moment. I realized this experience was more than a show for me, but rather a reflection of me.......... And in this reflection I saw the me

who believed in Rock Gods
who is still moved by music
who was a groupie
who at times has been the loud mouthed drunk 'lady'
who held back my man from a fight
who at times thinks of herself as younger then her years
who is getting older, the strain of the years showing
who may or may not have had her fair share of cheeseburgers and cocktails
And finally, who realizes how pricesless it is to be a compliation of all of these past me's, the present me, a classic.

Toying around with new blog

I think I am going to split up my blog. For those who like to read about my adventures in perfectville, stay tuned to this blog and for those of you who enjoy the average woman's perspective on american politics, look out for postings on my new blog, politics made real clear and simple. I'll be blogging today!

Have I made it in Perfectville, My first invitation to a Perfectville Christmas Party

When I received an evite from a Perfectville Mom in November, my assumption was that it was another invitation to spend money at a stay at home mom's new venture into selling jewelry or handbags. Opening the evite only to decline and get it out of my inbox with 286 unread messages, imagine my surprise when it was our first invitation to a Perfectville Christmas Party. I let out a loud whew hew, and tripped over my heels on my way to grab my blackberry to email my husband the great news. (note: email is the only way I can get a response from my husband during the work day. He does not answer his work line when he sees my number nor turns on his newly purchased in 2009 first cell phone, but I digress......)
He was equally excited about the invitation as we had both been working hard making new friends in Perfectville. For those of you who do not know, Perfectville is made up of tens of thousands of wonderful men, women and children who were raised here, went to various colleges in state and out, and then returned to either live in the same home where they were raised or purchased another home a couple of blocks away from their parents and siblings. (read: close knit community, of fantastic people who have no need to make any additional friends)
Being the unorganized working mom that I am, I enter the date of the Christmas party with glee in my lotus notes calendar, GREAT I think, nothing else scheduled that Saturday night. So imagine my disappointment when my mom calls the following week to change the time of our family holiday party from 2 to 5 pm on the very day we are to attend our first Perfectville party. The Pville Party begins at 7, oh no, what to do?
No worries, I promptly email the hostess that my husband and I will attend but will be arrive an hour or so late.
On the day of the party, we are dressed and ready to go. We leave Perfectville at 4pm for our family Christmas as it is at least an hour to the nearest relatives home. Our plan, get there by 5pm, spend two wonderful hours with family while daydreaming of meeting our new BFF's from Pville!
Party and time with family wonderful, check
Kids spending the night with grandparents, check (and did I mention AWESOME)
Gas tank filled for the hour drive back to perfectville, check
time to grab a drink prior to party entry, check
We are on our way..........We are in! FINALLY!!!!
A little nervous and anxious we arrive for our entry into our first Perfectville Christmas party. The host and hostes greet us at the door. They are two of the most 'normal' people we've met since moving here and find out later this is because they too are new to the Perfectville life. While my husband and I are true newbies to the area ( a little over a year) the host/hostess have been here for a little over three, an eternity, I think, in Perfectville time.
They are gracious and busy and attending to all of their guests. Thank goodness my husband and I actually like each other, because the only time we are approached by another party goer is when a woman spent 5 minutes trying to figure out my maiden name because she swore she knew me from grade school. When I finally spilled the beans that I was not who she thought me to be as I did not grow up in Perfectville, she promptly exited our conversation. And I thought I was on my best game, guess not!
So how long are we required to stay at the party of the only couple we've met recently who we consider 'normal'? My husband and I agree an hour but end up staying longer because we had beer to finish and great music to groove to.
When we had finally had had enough of each other's company we decided to leave the party with no additional friends! Feeling a little defeated we started for the door, and although defeated on the 'new friend front we decided it was a good night for none the less.
On our way out I am trapped in a conversation with the woman who thought she knew me and two of her friends because my oh so sweet and talkative hubby is engaged with the men in the group. And then it happened, our eyes met from across the room, we both had the same look, the look of longing for something new, something that familiar and yet so comforting look, the longing of something new...............
Before I knew it, I was swept away with the feeling that I had finally found the one I was looking for...................Could it be I just met my new BFF in Perfectville??????????????
More to come........................................................................................................................................................

Bizarre-O World Continues....My Hope for Change

Bizzare-o world continues…………………………………………
For those of you who tune into my blog for the trials and tribulations of being a working mom in perfectville, my apologies for the political rants, but this one I cannot avoid. My promises to get back to my stories of finally making it in perfectville with my invitation to a Christmas party, and a ball, oh my and making a new BFF who is a stay at home mom! Can you believe it? Me neither, but it is true. And now on to my rant

In November, after the election of BO to office, I decided to be a bigger person and try this whole hope thing. I decided to hope for the best in the Obama administration, after all the entire country seems to want this guy to succeed, so I decided to grab a cup of kool aid and hope for a change of heart, my own.
So rather than assuming BO would push this country into socialism, I hoped he would be the centrist he ran as and not push through a radical agenda. I hoped he would use his political capital (popularity) to make tough decisions, many of which his party may disagree, in order to manage the country through this economic crisis. I hoped he would be the change he promised to be. I continued in earnest to hope for my change of heart to no avail for two reasons:

1.) I love this country and believe in its promise to all people and want her to succeed no matter what political party is in the white house, in control of the house or senate.
2.) The historic nature of BO’s election. The people of our country want political discourse to end, and they want this man to succeed more than any other . The election of our first African American President is historic and I too would like to see his success.

Trying to change my heart and hope for the best I knew would be difficult at best, I have never trusted BO, his agenda and his rapid rise to fame, but I could not put a finger on why I distrusted him so.
There was something so disturbing about the way in which he was basically an unknown in 2002, has little or no experience that prepares him to lead the US, and his unprecedented popularity. I thought President Clinton had people snowed, but this guy, he has people worshiping him. But still I hoped for his success and his ability to show good judgment on behalf of all Americans.
Soon after BO’s election I came to the realization there was not enough collective hope in the world that would provide me the change of heart I so desperately wanted. This became abundantly clear to me when I finally figured out what it was about BO that bothered me so, bothered me so much that I longed for another Clinton Presidency. And this realization was again brought so starkly to my attention today, so I sat down to write about it.……….Regardless of BO’s agenda or unprecedented and unquestioned popularity, his lack of respect for the office of the President of The United States is the one thing that bothers me most, and the one thing I cannot get over. Take the following few examples:
1.) It is a longstanding tradition that each outgoing president have a private conversation with the incoming president. A conversation in which only the two people (up until this point, the two men) sit together to have an off the record and private conversation regarding the unique position/responsibilities the new president is about to take on. This tradition is so honored by those who hold office because there are so few people who have had this honor and responsibility. Think about this, BO is only the 44th man to hold this office, 44 that is it. Only 43 other men have had this awesome responsibility prior, so this conversation is a unique opportunity. BO showing such a lack of regard for the office, and hence (in my opinion) the lack of judgment required to be the president, leaks the details of this conversation to someone who leaks the details to the press. Nice. Had this been his only misstep, I’d say keep hope alive, but it wasn’t. Consider the next example.
2.) In another traditional gesture the Bush White House held a luncheon with all living presidents and a brief press conference/photo op took place in the Oval office. President Bush waived off the press indicating the event was over, at which time President elect Obama summoned them back for his own press conference. Again, an utter lack of respect for the sitting president. Whether you agree or not with this man and his policies, show him the respect he deserves simply by holding the office. Do you think W found it easy being in the same room with two men, (BO and Carter) who have done nothing but trash his administration over and over again, and yet W showed respect to the former and elect president. Again these situations are ones many would consider extremely minor incidents had they not been capped of today, and finally ending my hope for change……………….
3.) In another traditional gesture, when a foreign leader meets with a new sitting President of the US, gifts are exchanged. This is the first official meeting of two world leaders, in this case, Britain’s Gordon Brown. Clearly Mr. Brown took much time in choosing a gift that would signify the importance of the relationship between our two countries and he chose the following for President Obama:
a. An ornamental pen holder made from the timbers of the Victorian anti-slave ship the HMS Gannett which by the way is the sister ship of the HMS Resolute. The significance is that the HMS Resolute's timbers were carved to make the President’s oval office desk. WOW, What thought aput into the gift to be presented as the European leader chosen to meet with BO first. So now it is time for our President’s gift to Mr. Brown. Wait for it……………a box set of 25 classic American movies. Are you kidding me???? This is an appropriate traditional symbolic gift for a world leader. I guess in BO’s mind it is. Again it may seem small to most, but for me it signifies two important things I cannot seem to get over, his lack of respect for the office of our President and the traditions it holds as well as his lack of judgment. Did he run this gift past anyone prior to presenting it? And if he did, what kind of judgment do those around him have? (and no I do not believe he or Michele went out to purchase the gift)
b. And if all of this weren’t enough to snub our most loyal ally, he returns a bust of Winston Churchill given to President Bush as a gift to AMERICA after the 9/11 attacks. It was not a gift to Bush, it was a gift to us and he returns it. Again great judgment BO!!!! What’s next, insulting our other most loyal ally, Israel, oh I forgot, he’s already working on approving almost $90M to help Hamas! Yikes, bizarre-o world continues.
And even more bizarre is the lack of media coverage on this guy. Have you seen the most recent ‘investigative report’ by the NY Times:
Is Obama going Gray (already stressed or no longer dyeing his hair)?
How can you get the same sculpted arms as Michelle Obama?
What is the administrations drink of choice? Coke or Pepsi
Oh my, I cannot wait to find out the answer to these and other pertinent questions given the state of our economy!!!! Instead of continuing to hope for my change of heart I will instead hope for a change of leadership in the House and Senate so Bizarre-o world will at least move out of over drive.

I feel like I am living in Bizzare O world

Here are some of the world's latest headlines:

Obama Says USA will rebuild and emerge stronger...(I agree with this one, but not through government)
Obama vows fiscal responsibility...(AFTER spending almost $1Trillion dollars, and promising even more spending....see below)
Obama vows to increase number of soldiers...(In Darfur?????)
Obama vows to seek cure for cancer 'in our time'...(Not surprising that his administration would be able to find a cure, he is considered the Mesiah and all)
Obama says bank bailout may cost more than expected...(REALLY????)
Obama promises universal EDUCATION THROUGH COLLEGE...(Awesome!!!! I will stop saving for my kids college immediately!!!!)
Obama promises universal health care... (Again, AWESOME!!!!!, oh wait don't we currently have free health care for all??? Does Universal give us something else, is it better than free healthcare for all??? Where do I sign u

Let me reiterate AGAIN, BO is promising all of the above while just YESTERDAY promising fiscal responsibility. Like I said, Bizzare O World.

But DO NOT FEAR, you are not alone. 2 out of 3 Americans are with you! ....we have no idea how you increase spending in all of the areas above while decreasing the Federal deficit by half. AGAIN, DO NOT PANIC, the same 2 out of 3 Americans were educated by the public school system, we are not supposed to understand basic math!!!!!

This is a test, this is only a test..........