"I've discovered that my own little postage stamp of native soil was worth writing about and that I would never live long enough to exhaust it."
- William Faulkner




Wednesday, July 25, 2007

fab five

I just saw this article on CNN.com, and I think it's really thought-provoking (even if it did come from Oprah, Kell). We all have friends we immediately clicked with, some it took a little "getting to know" and even still some that we look at and think "how are we friends?". The Five Friends Every Woman Should Have is a funny look at how we get along with others and how we need different dispositions and personalities to "complete" us. (Of course, it is not to be confused with the Sweet Potato Queens' Five Men Every Woman Should Have.)

The Five Friends:

1. The Uplifter is your biggest supporter - no matter what.
2. The Travel Buddy is flexible and knows exactly when to be crazy and when to be calm.
3. The Truth Teller loves you enough to shoot you straight.
4. The Girl Who Just Wants to Have Fun is...pretty self-explanatory.
5. The Unlikely Friend maybe be twice your age or perhaps of a completely different background.

Variety is the spice of life!

la vida lohan

Ok. Now I’m really worried. I, like most people, really hoped Lindsay Lohan would take the valuable time afforded to her in rehab and try to make a positive change in her life. Evidently, the over six weeks spent in the facility and the thousands of dollars spent there were a total waste.

What is it going to take? Daniel Baldwin is finally making progress after his ninth stint in rehab. That’s right – NINE. Lindsay completed her first before she was legal and spent her 21st birthday at a separate facility. And now, less than 2 weeks fresh out, she’s been arrested again. This time not only for DUI and suspended license, but for felony cocaine possession, which requires mandatory jail time in some states. And now she is in total denial, sending out an email stating that she’s innocent and the drugs weren’t hers.

I understand LiLo is now a legal adult and capable of making her own decisions. No one forced the alcohol down her throat, and the coke IS hers. Her dad is in jail now for assault and other colorful charges after battling addiction, and instead of her mother taking every opportunity possible to help Lindsay break the cycle, Dina has remained content to live vicariously through her daughter and not just turn a blind eye to her partying, but participate with her. Seriously, Dina, you are NO mother. Since you like partying with your daughter so much, maybe you should join her in rehab. For once in your life, set a good example for your troubled daughter instead of using her for your own gain. Hey, and how ‘bout you keep an eye on your two other YOUNGER kids? Wait, maybe you’ll screw them up, too. Stay away.

Clearly, LL needs to cut ties with everyone she’s affiliated with up to this point (including her number one accomplice, er, mom) and get some real help. Try a real rehab, not these that ignore the drugs passing in their doors and allow their residents to float in and out during the day, all the while creating this false sense of recovery. Maybe substantial jail time is just what she needs. If Paris can survive it, Lindsay can pass with flying colors.

Fox News pointed out Lindsay’s young Hollywood addiction struggles are just one of many – River Phoenix (who died at 23 from a lethal drug combo), Macaulay Culkin and Danny Bonaduce (TOTAL train wreck), just to name a few. Let’s hope Linds will follow in the footsteps of Drew Barrymore and will be able to rise above it.

I’m not giving up yet.

Friday, July 20, 2007

a little off the top, please

In the dead heat of summer, people aren't the only ones that get hot. Kell and I took the twins for their first "summer cuts" yesterday, and even though it cost about as much as when I get my mane cut, I think we got our money's worth (compare with the last post).

They kind of look like little Chihuahuas, but I was able to convince Olive that her new style is very slimming.

Charlie looks like a long distance runner.


Olive is pleased with how long her legs look now.

Sunday, July 15, 2007

dawg fans

Everyone needs game day attire.

With Mississippi State's football season fastly approaching, Kell made the decision that the entire Smith family should be in support of the Bulldogs. And what better way to do that than wear support on your sleeve (or back)?

(Yes, Olive's shirt says, "I Eat Rebels.")


(Charlie wants to be a lineman. Kell's trying to teach him his game face.)


(Olive eats Rebels. Among other things.)


Thanks, Mom!

Thursday, July 12, 2007

goodbye to a steel magnolia

I’m sure you are all aware that former First Lady of Mississippi Pat Fordice died this morning at home with her family. No woman was a more authentic Steel Magnolia than Ms. Fordice. Even after her divorce from former husband Gov. Kirk Fordice in 2000, she remained a pillar of strength through Gov. Fordice’s final days, taking great care of him while suffering from leukemia until his death in 2004 and displayed touching, gentile emotion at his memorial.

She recently worked under Jackson Mayor Frank Melton as the head of the city’s Human and Cultural Services Department overseeing youth and senior services as well as art and cultural programs. The Southern Belle continued to strike a chord with Mississippians through the “I’m Not Your Mama” campaign for a litter-free Mississippi. Ms. Fordice will always stand as a true example of what it means to be a lady.

Wednesday, July 11, 2007

looks like fun to me

For those of you out there that are computer-savvy and blog-designing experts (I am neither and wish every day I had PhotoShop and a Mac), I found a couple of cool sites today that you might like (Jenny, Katie and Heather, I thought of you ladies first!). I may not be telling you anything new, but for those who are not familiar with them, the sites are fun to check out.

The Shabby Shoppe has great digital scrapbooking stuff – not being a scrapper myself, I had no idea there was such a thing as digital scrapping. Either way, this stuff looks like so much fun to me.

Yaya and Claire know how much I love great computer fonts. Fontologie is another great site that enables you to create your OWN font! Just create it yourself, and they do all the cleaning up and turn your scanned letters into a real font. There’s also a contest right now where you can win cash and have your font computerized or whatever AND featured on their site as the Free Font of the Month. I think I might give it a try.

I hope I'm not giving away any blogging secrets...

Monday, July 9, 2007

congrats, strats!

A round of applause for Strat!

My dad is being inducted into the Mississippi Athletic Trainers Hall of Fame today. He spent nearly 30 years on the field taking care of every athlete on the campuses of Georgia Southern and Mississippi State University during the time of his reign as athletic trainer.

In 1973 after graduation from Georgia Southern, the pursuit of his masters degree brought him to Starkville and MSU, where he met my mom and, after a few years, was named Associate Athletic Director of Sports Medicine where he cultivated innumerable friendships that still mean the world to him today. 20 years following his first days in Starkville, he moved from Shira Field House to the Bryan Building, where he is still the Associate A.D. for Athletic Development. I think about him every time I see a trainer on any field or court, and I know he remembers those days with the fondest of memories.


Here’s to you, Dad!


Thursday, July 5, 2007

paul and hugh, where were you?

Happy (late) Independence Day to you all.

No doubt all 3 or so of my readers have been waiting on pins and needles to hear about my recent trip across the pond. Well, the suspense ends here. I was gone for several days, so I’m kind of embarrassed by how long this post is. You might want to read it in phases if you are easily fatigued. And, believe it or not, I’ve actually cut back.

Day 1 (the beginning and ending of this day are a little hazy, so bear with me)

After the 8-hour flight to Manchester, we landed at 9 a.m. and checked into our hotel. There is quite a time difference (6 hours), so to us, we had to fight to stay awake until a decent hour of UK time. And as anyone will tell you, the best way to do that is to shop. Bearing in mind that the British pound to the American dollar is not the best exchange rate, “shopping” actually consisted of a Starbucks frappuccino and some window shopping (Laura Mc, we DID go to Lush – it was awesome). I of course left my eyeliner at home and wanted a calling card, so we stopped by one of many Boots stores in the UK. Boots is essentially a drug store with high-end makeup counters – imagine a Walgreens plus Chanel and Dior. After an anti-war rally in the streets of Manchester spoiled our fun, we returned to the hotel and met up with some friends from other Deep South states and had dinner and tried to keep each other from falling asleep. I don’t really remember anything after that, except that I was so drunk from the medication that I evidently said some strange things and threw something up. (Those who know me well understand what a benefit it was that I was drunk during this vomit episode.) My boss was so worried about me that she slept in my room that night. Kell thought I was being a drama queen.

Day 2 (somewhat)

Due to the Ambien debacle the night before, I was unable to walk straight until about 2 that afternoon. Fortunately, I didn’t have to check out that morning, and I only missed a lunch of corn-fed chicken and a round of small talk. I’m over it already. We hopped on the Gibson guitar bus and headed into downtown Manchester where we did our first round of selling the Deep South. Each guest got some made-in-Lousiana Zapp’s chips (or crisps) and made-in-Georgia Coke and was forced to listen to a sales pitch and watch a few videos on our states while captive. After we’d had enough of that, we visited the Trafford Center, a huge mall in Manchester for dinner and some shopping at stores like TopShop, Next, Zara, H&M and Marks & Spencer. I bought a quirky British-esque article of clothing, and we ate at a Spanish tapas bar. No Ambien this night.



Day 3

We left our little home away from home and drove into downtown, where we held a few training seminars. Sounds boring, yes, but we did hand out made-in-Tennessee Southern Comfort in the end. Free liquor has the same effect in every country. After getting lost on the drive from Manchester to Birmingham, we had only 20 minutes for lunch and had to eat at a roadside trailer. I probably don’t have to illustrate for you my crippling fear of food poisoning, but needless to say, I spent the next few hours steeped in worry over the hot dog I had just wolfed down. Yikes.


(Here's Buckingham Palace. You can barely see the flag, but the Queen was home!)

After that, we headed into London (painfully passing signs for Liverpool all along the way) to check into our next hotel. I feel it necessary to inject here my very first observation of London - the US is so young. Looking around at the buildings, streets and parks, I was overwhelmed by how much history and culture other parts of the world have. 1776 seems like a long time ago, but we’ve got nothing on their thousands of years of past. We wandered around downtown and had dinner at an Italian restaurant (carefully avoiding roadside trailers and authentic British food). No sign of Paul McCartney, who was in Vegas for the one-year anniversary of Love, the Cirque du Soleil show based on the music of The Beatles. Hugh Laurie was nowhere to be found either. Still no Ambien.

Day 4

I was glad for the opportunity to sleep late today, although “late” is relative considering that I was making my first attempt to wear my hair curly. I also stayed pretty glued to SkyNews (UK sister network to FoxNews) watching the changeover from former Prime Minister Blair to current Prime Minister Brown. I am fiercely proud to be an American, but it’s impossible not to appreciate the Brits’ devotion to tradition. Anyway, a little while later, we were off to The Ivy, the world-famous restaurant and favorite of the late Princess Diana and other celebrities. After lunch and some small talk with travel people, we wandered around Oxford Circus and visited a beautiful old English department store, Liberty.


After hours of waiting for a cab and finally taking the tube to Victoria Station, we went to see Wicked, the musical based on the background of the witches of Oz. If you ever have a chance to see it, you MUST. Amazing. You guessed it – no Ambien.

Day 5

Another work day. My group of partners and I met to ride the Gatwick Express to our next meeting, where I felt very professional and important. Handing out business cards does that to me. A few meetings, presentations and shameless sales pitches later, we ended up at our final sales call – a good friend in Knightsbridge. There were no conference rooms available, so what’s a girl to do? How about have your meeting at Harrods, complete with scone with clotted cream? Of course, they had a Wimbledon special of strawberries and crème, too. Conveniently, I was able to spend the hours between our meeting and dinner wandering through Harrods. If you’ve ever been, you know what a tourist attraction it is in and of itself. The biggest surprise, however, was a Krispy Kreme counter in the Food Hall. What’s good enough for Harrods is good enough for me.




Day 6

Affectionately known as “go home day.” Up at 4 a.m., gone by 5, we boarded the plane none the wiser of the terror plots that took place right where we spent Wednesday afternoon. Ignorance is bliss – certainly in this case. I got my passport stamped and made it back on American soil all in one piece. I got so used to the impeccable grammar of the Brits, entering the Atlanta airport was a stark reminder that we had arrived home. My husband met me in Jackson, and the twins were ready and waiting to greet me. Kell of course felt it necessary to remind me about how spoiled I am with my job.

It feels good to be back to the blogging world.
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