So you’ve heard me gush about Lizzie and Isaiah. Now it’s time for you to help me give them something back…and gain a little something of your own!
Click here, to read details on how to help them pick a new name for their blog. Choose their new name and you’ll win some lovely prizes. Prizes that I actually want, so try and not make your entries better than mine, okay? Okay.
Why are you still here?? Go!!
I know I’m alone in this, but I’m still pretty much in awe of my new blog design by Lizzie and Isaiah of Love Your Way. (It’s more than likely gauche to say so, but since when has that stopped me?) There wasn’t anything wrong with my previous design, but it wasn’t exactly right either. Lizzie had offered before to help me with my design, but seeing her stuff made me wary…this wasn’t someone who dabbled in graphics and could help…this was a PROFESSIONAL. Did my goofy blog deserve her hard work? I mean, have you SEEN her and Isaiah’s work? Gorgeous. The most popular posts on Kind of a Mess are about boob cakes or me getting stuck in scandalous skivvies. (Seriously. I get more hits a month due to searches for boob cake than I do from anything else.) Not really of the same caliber… Read More
Twice now, TWICE this week, I’ve had blog posts eaten by WordPress as I was typing them. I could go on a rampage about the uselessness of the new full-screen page and how auto-save apparently means “save when I damn well FEEL LIKE IT”, but no one wants that. Not on what is about to be a long weekend for most of us. (My condolences to those who are working on Monday. If it makes you feel better, I’ll be in Oklahoma all weekend but will probably spend the majority of it doing homework.)
SO! Let’s have some discussion of new additions to my blogroll and ignore the fact that WordPress IS A BIG FAT JERK.* Read More
Please, baby baby, please… There’s something wonderful about a song that just lays it all out there and just flat-out says, “OH LORD JESUS, PLEASE LOVE ME!!!!” That feeling is never fun while you’re in it, but a good Sad Bastard song that begs helps shoulder some of your heart’s burden.
Plus, they make for kick-ass karaoke songs.
Since I Fell for You – Lenny Welch
This is my drunk in a hotel tell bar jam.
I’ve never been drunk in a hotel bar, but I plan on being so one day and when I am, I will march over the local lounge singer, commandeer the mic and I will wail this out while lying across the piano and possibly showing my panties until they call security.
It will happen.
Cry for You – Jodeci
I had this on tape. TAPE. I’m old.
Layla – Derek and the Dominos
I’m gonna put a bold statement out there, and I might lose some people over it, but here goes:
This is the ONLY version of Layla that matters.
No…NO. I don’t wanna hear about the acoustic version that clogged the VH1 airwaves when they still played music (instead of shows about sad has-beens trying to get laid as much as possible under the pretense of finding love.)
THIS, ladies and the two gentlemen who read this, is the real version of Layla. The one full of passion and love and heartache and all that CANNOT be contained in an acoustic song. And anyone who thinks otherwise is wrong, wrong, WRONG…JETHRO.
(He also said that the guitar solo was better in Peter Frampton’s Do You Feel Like We Do. We might need counseling.)
At This Moment – Billy Vera and the Beaters
Despite the unfortunate band name, this has always been one of my favorites. Mostly because I had a wicked crush on Michael J. Fox in Family Ties and this was the love song for him and his girlfriend. Alex P. Keaton still remains the only Republican I’d marry.
Cry Baby – Janis Joplin
Do I even really need to say anything about this one?
Tired of Being Alone – Al Green
And I’ll leave you with King Al. He’s so tired of being alone. Why won’t you help him, girl, just as soon as you caaaaaaannnnn?
Anyone who denies a plea like that is just a cold-hearted woman.
Sarah is a cool lady. Not only does is she known as craftosaurus (Dinosaurs AND crafting, two of the best things EVAR? If there was a candy reference, I’d swoon…) she has volunteered to help me with my future knitting questions. She also is smart enough to remind me that “IZ BROKE! FIX!!!” is not a question, thereby warding off any panicked emails with crappy iPhone pictures. She’s crafty, that one. (HA! See what I did there?)
Fun fact about Sarah that you (and she) did not know: She says that she does not have a favorite words, but I have it on good authority that her top ten includes, “dither,” “scruple,” “shilly-shally,” and “vacillate.”
How has your life turned out differently than you planned it to be when you were younger?
I’m trying to remember what I actually had planned for myself when I was little, and I’m not coming up with all that much. I mean, when I was four, I was determined to become a waitress (because I learned that my favorite aunt had been one, natch). Other than that, though, the future was always sort of nebulous, at least career-wise. For about three months following high school graduation and while heading off to college, I was “planning” to become a high school band director, but that was more because I didn’t know what else I wanted to be when I grew up (hey, being in marching band was fun, so why not, right?), and — surprise — I hated it, went undeclared, and graduated with a liberal arts degree. Clearly “not knowing what else I wanted to be when I grew up” continued to be a theme in my life (see also, “law school”). I did the attorney thing for a little while, but I’m not practicing anymore; even when I was in law school, I wasn’t necessarily planning to be one. More like dreading, actually. So to loop back around to the actual question: I have a job that I (mostly) enjoy, that I’m really good at, and that is an almost perfect fit for my personality. I didn’t plan for this particular job, though, because I couldn’t picture it.
Oh wait, this wasn’t just a career question. I remember assuming (though that might be different from planning?) that I would meet my husband in college. Not high school. Not after college. In college. Annnd, nope. I was off by about seven years. Thank gawd. Also, my husband and I have a dog; I was terrified of them until several years ago so I definitely would NOT have planned that.
Tell me about a time when you surprised yourself.
A couple years ago when I was running pretty regularly — I had a couple 5ks under my belt, at about 35 minutes or so each — I got on the treadmill one morning and decided to start out running faster than normal. I was taking a “what the hell” approach, figuring that I’d sprint for a bit, then slow down, then toggle back and forth between comfortable and I-might-die pace so as to combat boredom. After half a mile I was still going just a shade under I-might-die. After 10 minutes? Yep, still going. I ran my 3 miles in 30 minutes! I honestly hadn’t thought I would ever be capable of that (and it hasn’t happened again — thanks, knees!), but I did it and I wanted to jump off the back of the treadmill, punching my fist into the air a la Chandler in that Friends episode where he’s had a zillion espressos and ends up leaping off the back of the couch yelling “I hit ‘er in the eye!”
What? I always think of that scene when I feel like really exclaiming something. Just me?
Where do you blog from most often? And if it is home, are you in your pajamas?
From my phone, actually. I don’t use the “big computer” at home more than a couple times a week. If a post starts with a picture that’s left-justified, it’s of phone origin. If it’s picture-free and not overly wordy, it’s quite possibly of phone origin.
Do you call it “pop,” “soda” or coke?
“Soda.” Or “vehicle for whiskey.”
What is your biggest pet peeve that makes you want to rip someone’s face off?
Getting a question from someone who should have been able to find the answer him or herself, had he or she simply read the comprehensive instructions/explanation/materials I recently provided.
What is your favorite time of day?
Dinner time: if I’m home from work early enough, my husband and I cook something together, which is really fun and reminds me of some of my favorite early dates with him, especially if we’re sipping on drinks and stuff instead of rushing. Even if just one of us has done the cooking, we sit together to eat at our little table — it’s actually not that small but the clutter takes up a fair amount of real estate — and talk about what happened to each of us earlier in the day. Plus, I really like food.
What’s your secret ninja skill?
Reading, understanding, and meticulously quoting complex regulatory materials. Think “the tax code,” or other similar materials with lots of subparagraphs in outline form. [Lord Jesus. That’s impressive. – Alyssa]
What is your guiltiest pleasure?
It’s a toss up…. no, wait: watching bad reality television while eating a serving of ice cream the size of my head.
What is the best thing you’ve ever won?
When I was in fifth grade, I went to a math meet (oh yes: marching band AND math team were part of my illustrious educational career) and won the award for getting the highest individual score. I got a little trophy in the shape of a genie’s lamp. Because nothing says “math” like genies.
My mom picked me up from school and we drove about an hour to where my dad worked at the time, so I could show him. He was a retail store manager, and I remember that my mom went up to the service desk and asked the woman behind the counter to page my dad under the pretense of having to deal with an irate customer. I distinctly remember learning what “irate” meant from that conversation.
So yeah, being the smartest at math was pretty cool. I think I remember it as the best thing I’ve ever won because of the let’s-surprise-dad adventure, though. [AWW! I love this so much. -Alyssa]
If you could ask me (Alyssa) anything, what would it be?
Of all the things you do in your life, what makes you the most profoundly happy, both in that moment and in general?
In general, Jethro. And when he’s being a dick, Maggie the Wonder Dog.
But in the moment? When I’m writing something solely for myself. I don’t have to think about what others will think and I’m the only judge at first so it’s really and truly mine.
Our ladies Savychacha and Life She Wrote have contributed to our book recommendations! Check them out, and email me with your own picks. This list is constantly updated, so every time you find a new book that you HAVE to share, send it in to alyssa.kindofamess@gmail.com!
1. When someone else is in the car when one of my jams comes on. Sometimes you need to yell out the lyrics “Shoop” and the only other people you want around you are Salt and Pepa.
2. When I go to a public bathroom and don’t realize until I’m done that some one else was in there. Not because of anything either one of us might have been doing in there, (have we learned nothing?
3. Debates over tipping. LOOK. If someone is classified as a tipped worker, by most wage laws, employers don’t have to pay them minimum wage, so that 3 bucks you failed to tip on your Moons Over My Hammy could have been more than they make an hour. Stop being cheap and always tip 20%. If you can’t afford the extra money for a tip, go somewhere where you don’t have to. If someone doesn’t do a good job, shorting them will do nothing but make them more surly for the next people because they’re even more worried about paying rent. Talk to a manager if they’re that bad, but don’t be a cheap bastard.
4. Dirtgirlworld. It scares the bejeezus out of me. I like the green vegan message for kids, but the eyes….OH DEAR GOD, THE EYES…
5. People who say they don’t read. What? You don’t…how do you not….WHAT??
I was putting together this list and I randomly discovered that all but one of the artists were classified as “blue-eyed soul.” (Which is just another way of saying white folks singing black folks music.*) So I moved poor Anthony Hamilton to another list, named this one “Blue-Eyed Soul,” felt bad for a moment about segregating my playlist, let laziness win over racial harmony and moved on with my life.
Enjoy.
(ALSO? Enjoy the fact that I finally figured out how to work the damned Grooveshark player AND the fact that we are debuting one of many of the brand-spankin’ new banners Lizzie and Isaiah have designed for us. And it’s not even your birthday….)
It Hurt So Bad – Susan Tedeschi
Sweet baby Jesus, y’all don’t wanna know how many times I played this on repeat in my room and hollered out the lyrics. You know that scene in Bridget Jones’s Diary where she’s all drunk and belting out “All By Myself”? Yeah…that might have happened with this song. Except I was probably drunk off Seven & 7’s…actually I most definitely was drunk off of Seven & 7’s. 2006 was a weird year…
Love is a Losing Game – Amy Winehouse
I can’t even make a joke about this one. Despite her place as a punchline for so many years, I really and truly believed that Amy Winehouse would pull out of her downward spiral and become amazing again. It still pains me that she didn’t…
Let Me Leave – Marc Broussard
I have no idea how I got Marc Broussard’s album, “Carencro,” but it’s one of my desert island albums. It’s also one of the few albums that Jethro and I agree on, so it makes for good driving music so there are less road trips conversations like this:
“God, really, Jethro? The Wall again?”
“I need something to counteract all your booty music.”
“It is SMOOTH R&B…how ’bout you put in some more Nickel Creek, that’ll put me to sleep and you don’t have to hear me bitch.”
“Or I can put in some more of your moaning and wailing girl music, like that damn Dixie Chicks “Let him fly” song you always have on repeat…”
“That is a PATTY GRIFFIN song, the Dixie Chicks COVERED IT!!”
“Whatever, it’s still crap.”
“YOU SHUT YOUR WHORE MOUTH, BLASPHEMER!”
We don’t travel often.
Can’t Make You Love Me – Bonnie Raitt
As much as I love Tank and Boyz II Men, their cover versions of this do not hold a candle to Bonnie. And anyone who says otherwise will need to meet me outside, after school, by the bike racks.
Someone to Love – Jon B.
I HAD to throw this one in. Oh, 90’s R&B, I love you to bits. Jon B was not particularly handsome or spectacularly talented, but he sounded like Babyface and that was enough for me.
Let It Be Me – Ray Lamontagne
This is another one of the artists Jethro and I agree on. His music is like Tom Waits music for me; when I hear it I automatically get in a certain frame of mind. But whereas Tom makes me feel like I should be on a bar stool, poking at my ice with a little red straw and wondering what the hell I did with my life; Ray makes me feel like I should be driving in the rain, pulling over on the side of the road for no reason and just staring out the window, watching as the fat drops fall.
Or something. I might be getting too maudlin here and should say something vaguely funny.
Balls.
*One day we might have a conversation about racial terms, commonly accepted norms and self-identifying. Today is not that day.
If you’ll look up top in the menu bar, you’ll notice a new page called “Book Recs.” This post proved that y’all love some books, just as much as I do. SO! I’ve compiled everyone’s recommendations into on handy dandy page, complete with links. (Yes, they are Amazon Affiliate links. I would have linked them even if they weren’t. I HATE when something is referenced in a post and then I have to, horror of horrors, GOOGLE IT MY DAMN SELF. How rude, right?) Read More
Aside from a brief moment of panic when I realized I had no idea where my class was (my iPhone can do all sorts of amazing things except access the ONE site where I can look up class info…) class was great! It’s a class on creativity throughout the ages and since it’s being taught by a playwright/poet who is a photographer and painter, I think we’re in good hands.
I’m still making tiny updates to the blog, but I wanted to point out one you may not have noticed. The cute little icon next to the title? Now don’t click it now because-
…you clicked it didn’t you.
*sigh*
As I was saying, don’t click it now because I’m still categorizing the posts. However, eventually those icons will link to other post formats that are similar to the post you’re reading; i.e. video, quotes, status, blah blah blah. Tags and categories still work, but this is a fun extra. And we like fun.
And now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m off to go have a fight with a scanner at work that seems to want to jam every ten seconds.
I mean, this thing has one job to do, ONE; and it just decides that it doesn’t feel like doing it and needs to keep me from doing MY job?? Really? REALLY?? EAT THE PAPER, YOU STUPID MACHINE!!!
Kind of a Mess 