Question For The Ages

If Wyle E. Coyote could affort all that shit from ACME - why didn't he just buy dinner.

Just wondering...................

More, more, more moving!

This moving thing is crazy.

So much to do - and in our case, so little time to do it.

I'm thinking of not buying the house I wanted to buy due to the fact that the builder is a lying, cheating piece of shit.

Or at least that's one guys interpretation of it.

And I will admit that my wife told me so. But I do have such a positive outlook on things - so we'll give him another day or so.

But like my wife told me today, "we're gonna be living in a hotel for a week".

So if we do - I'll have a pool party and everyone is invited!!!

Pray for us.

Loudly.

Peace.

I Know I'm sick..........I Can't Help It

Moving, moving, moving

So I mentioned earlier that the Realtor said that it was getting close.

She wasn't kidding.

After offers and counter offers we finally got full price for our house - but the kicker was that we have to be out by March 31. Yea, the day after Easter.

Looks like the bunny is going to be really busy this year! What we need is an energizer bunny.

So the day after we settle down with that news we rush out to find a house. Due to the time constraints it's obvious that we will need new construction as opposed to a house somebody else is living in because we're the only crazy people to sell our house and have to get out in two weeks!

We go an look over our short list and decide on one and make an offer that I thought was very fair and very good for us - and the builder said yes!

I love this market where everyone is so scared they won't sell anything that they say yes to everything!

So in short, we've been running around like chickens with our heads cut off.

And it's been kind of fun.

So, for now, that's all the news that is news and I'll try to keep you posted on what's up - if I can find the time.

Meanwhile, I'll take your prayers for my beautiful wife who worries about things more than I do and I'll of course, take your help with the moving process. We'll also take food and shelter if offered!

Hugs and Kisses.

Tagged

I got tagged by the Coffey to do a six word memoir of my life.

Hummmmmmmmmmmmm

This is too easy.

So here goes!

Boys were born to love girls.

Or to phrase it another way!

Keith was born to love Paige.

Now really, who didn't see that coming.

A Cup of Coffey: Me in Six

Spring Break and the Traffic is FINE!

My lovely wife and I have both been amazed at the difference in our community traffic during this week of spring break.

You can go down Hardy Street in a normal pace without feeling like you're trying to get out of the Titanic after she hit the iceberg.

It's amazing!!!

I get off the interstate and simply merge into traffic as if it was meant to be like that.

I LOVE spring break!

My sweet, sweet little 8 year old bundle of joy has gone off to the beach with her cousins and has give us free reign of the house for 4 days.

Maybe some adult time and naked housework? I'm not telling.

OK, maybe I will later - no promises!

I went to my back doctor yesterday for the 43rd x-rays on my hardware and he pronounced me fixed!

I'm not really sure what that means but he said that he doesn't ever need to see me again unless I have metal rods poking out of my back. So that's all I needed to hear.

I can still feel all that stuff in my back, but at least my back doesn't hurt anymore and that is quite a blessing for me.

I do feel fortunate in that so many people that get "fixed" end up worse than before. And I've got to start climbing back out of this infirmary and get back into shape. But it's so hard. But I'll get it done. I really will.

So yesterday, since I had to go back to town to see the doctor, I took that opportunity to take my beloved to lunch and we went to the new Thai cafe in town and had the most yummy lunch. I love, love, love Thai food and so does my baby.

Then for dinner, we went to some friends house (I can't say who because she told me not to and I'm scared of her) but since we ate Vietnamese food there's not too much guessing involved for those that know us!

Anyway, the dinner was divine and we both felt like tug boats when we got through. That's entirely too much food for one day - but wow, was it good!

The Realtors showed our house 3 times yesterday. Must have been like a revolving door around there! Our Realtor says it's getting close so we'll need to have a plan to move pretty soon.

I think we've narrowed our choices down enough to where that won't be a problem. We'll stick with new construction so we don't have to wait for someone else to move out in order for us to move it.

I took a little time to go over to the house I liked best and spend some time in there making notes to go over with the builder.

So I'm keeping my fingers crossed that all will be well soon.

Moving is stressful - especially on my love - so please pray for us.

It really does help!

Hope all is well with you. I'm going back to work!

Peace.

Rock and Roll

I got the opportunity to watch all 3 1/2 hours of uninterupted coverage of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony last night.

And it was good.

I got to see the crazy drunk/stoned speaches and some very funny and some not so funny stuff.

And the music was very cool.

The Ventures just rocked the house. So did John Mellencamp. And Iggy and the Stooges did a couple of Madona songs that were much more to my taste than her originals were!

But the coolest thing was Tom Hanks inducting the Dave Clark Five. His speech was the absolute best one I have ever heard. He was amazing. Black Preacher-Like in his delivery.

Of course, I would guess that an actor would be able to do an oral presentation better than most singers could - and I would be right!

Lou Reed, as cool as he is, was not so cool inducting Leonard Cohen. Billy Joel was drunk and not at all funny as he inducted Mellencamp. Justin Timberlake was OK inducting Madonna but he seems a little to in love with himself for my taste. Ben Harper was pretty damned cool as he inducted Little Walter and then the musical tribute to him was a rockin' blues fest.

But all in all, it was a good show and I certainly enjoyed it.

I guess I'm starting to get old because I tend to crave the "older" music now. I swore that I would never let that happen because there is so much great "new" music out there. But I guess that music has always been such an integral part of my life that hearing older songs evokes emotions that call up so much stuff that it is just irreplacable in my psyche.

Which would explain why I loved the show last night.

My beautiful, eight year old step daughter always laughs at me because she says I always "watch" music on television. She thinks that is hilarious.

But I can still remember the birth of MTV. Probably the coolest thing I have still ever seen on T.V.

Not so much anymore. You can't even get videos on VHI Classics anymore. It's all shows. But I still love seeing the visual interpretations of the songs that everyone used to do.

Billy Joel joked last night when he asked the crowd if they remembered all the stupid videos that the record companies made them make during the 80's.

Well I certainly remember - and I MISS THEM!

But alas, time marches onward and at least I get to have my Sirius Radio beamed from outer space so I can at least hear music instead of commercials.

So hug your record player today if you still have one. Dig those albums out of the attic and open them up and remember.

But be careful, there still may be some stems and seeds inside of the Zeppelin Houses of the Holy album!

Peace.

Don't Read This If You're Hungry!

Wow, what an amazing weekend!

Truly, the only thing I need for an amazing weekend is my amazing wife. But it never hurts to have other fabulous things to do!

And this one was amazing fabulous.

We left at 4pm on Friday and headed down to New Orleans. We checked into my favorite hotel “The Lafayette” right there on St. Charles and were ushered into an amazing room with 14’ tall ceilings and, well, let’s just say it was very, very nice.

So we quickly dressed for dinner and then the fun began.

We went to Restaurant August, John Besh’s amazing fine dining place.

And was it fine!

Amuse Boucher :
Some kind of Egg white concoction with seafood foam with caviar on top served in the eggshell. OK, this was majorly gross for me and it took a triple shot of absolute to get that taste out of my mouth.

First course:
Salad with organic greens, Maytag blue cheese and pumpkin seed brittle with pumpkin vinaigrette on top.

Main Course:
I had Sweet and Spiced Duck with grits and some kind of strawberry compote stuff that tasted like ambrosia from the Gods. Oh My God! This was absolutely the best duck I have ever eaten in my life. I can’t even describe it because the experience was beyond my palate. But it had an oriental five-spice kind of taste – but not the entire thing. It was sweet and spicy without being hot at all. It was luxurious is the best way to describe it.

My love had a lemon fish crusted in parmesan cheese on top of some kind of root puree – that’s not my gig but by the way she was moaning, well – I think she enjoyed it!

Desert:

Oh yea, I had a piece of banana rum cake with icing and enough white chocolate shaving to make it look like a rose when they put it down in front of me.

My baby chose the Strawberries Three-Way. And like most three-ways, it was amazing!!! It was a strawberry cobbler, a strawberry short cake and a strawberry thing that I’m not sure what it was but again, it was wonderful.

That restaurant was amazing. The service was first class and the menu was exquisite. I had trouble choosing between the duck, the rabbit and the lamb and the waiter expertly steered me towards the duck – but I have no doubt that either of the other two would have been just as good.

The entire experience was magical for me. Of course, I love that kind of stuff. Some boys like to get up early and dress in camo and go in the woods and shoot deer. Some boys like to go to NASCAR races and do whatever it is that happens there. Me, I like to go fine dining!!!

Sure, it costs out the nose, but don’t most things that are wonderful!!!

We’re lucky at home to have the Purple Parrot in Hattiesburg to help my need for this kind of stuff in my life – but John Besh’s place was like the Purple Parrot on steroids. It was so very good.

Our next trip down there is going to be at Emeril’s Delmonico Restaurant. I’m looking forward to sharing a Chateaubriand with my baby!!!

Anyway, back to the weekend…………

We got up early on Saturday morning and checked out of the hotel. It was too cold to walk around so we just drove through the French Quarter to see what was happening.

Not much.

New Orleans still is suffering from a lack of people – but it is getting better. At least this time there was a line to get into the Café du Monde. We were discouraged last time we were there that we just walked right up and got served.

But I decided to take our culinary adventure to the next level and take my love for Breakfast at Brennan’s.

This is a very old New Orleans experience that I haven’t treated myself to in about 15 years. And it was worth the wait!

We started with a Mimosa with hand squeezed OJ. If I ever win the lottery, that will be the way I start each day!!!

Then we had the wonderful coffee. I have no idea why the coffee tastes so good down there. We buy the same exact coffee but it never tastes like it does when they pour it from heavy silver coffee pots.

I started my breakfast feast (and that’s exactly what it is at Brennan’s) with a bowl of turtle soup. My lovely wife had the oyster soup.

Then we progressed to the egg course. I had the Eggs Owen, which was some roast beef hash in a bowl with two poached eggs and hollandaise sauce on top. Major Yummy.

My baby had Eggs Somethingoranother which was a puff pastry with the bottom layered in a tomato chutney stuff which to me tasted like the veggie portion of Grilades with a poached egg with a March De Vin Sauce on top of it. All baked up brown and flaky. It was wonderful. I know because she got two and I got to eat one of them.

Already full beyond capacity, we had the desert course……………….

I had to have the Banana’s Foster, which was invented there. If you’ve never had that – run right out now and go get some! It’s bananas cooked in brown sugar and butter and then flamed with 151 proof rum and served all sticky and gooey over a scoop of ice cream. Truly sinful.

My love had the strawberry crepes, which were filled with cream cheese and sour cream and the warm strawberry goo all over them. Yea, pretty damned good.

All the deserts are prepared tableside with flair and grace, which just adds to the entire experience.

Of course, for the downside, I feel like an idiot paying $150 for breakfast – but once every 15 years? That only breaks down to $10 per year.

How’s that for foodie logic!!!!

Anyway, we drove home in a stupor. But it was a very good stupor!

All in all, another amazing weekend. I have a lifetime of that to look forward to and I am certainly enjoying each and every one.

Like I say all the time: I’m the luckiest boy in the world.

We got back and did more house hunting on Sunday. We are narrowing it down and it’s getting easier. Of course, we still need to sell ours first. But all in good time.

I think we’re not so overwhelmed at the choices now so I think that’s what makes it easier for us.

The thought of getting a place for US is so important to me. I want Paige to have a place that is all OURS and fits all of our needs. I have this very powerful “nesting” syndrome to deal with. I want her life to be exactly how she envisioned it would be. I want her to have each and everything she ever wanted – but more than that, I want her to be happy.

I don’t think anything else in my life has ever been more important to me than that. Her happiness is what makes me happy.

And for those of you that are still paying attention to this long rambling post, THAT IS THE SECRET TO LIFE!!!

If making her happy makes me happy – then who is not happy!!!

See, that should make sense to everyone because it’s so damned simple.

So my prayer is that everyone had meals as wonderful as we did this weekend and that everyone finds the happiness that I have found.

That’s the best blessing I can give you.

Peace.

House Huntin' Blues

Got up early this mornin'
Went out a looking for a new place to live
Took my bab-bay with meeeeeeee
So we could argue about where it will be

OK, so I'm not going to write a song about house huntin' - but I am willing to give tips to the males in the audience.

Tip One - Win Lottery
Tip Two - Go buy a house
Tip Three - Blindfold her and say "Happy Birthday"
Tip Four - Live happily every after!

So yea, that's the easy way.

We had an open house at our house this Sunday so we cleaned and mowed and weeded and all the things to make our house look like the incredibly cute bungalow it is.

Then we went out a lookin' some more.

Found lots.

Maybe agreed on two.

I think we're going to have to sell this one, get forced out on the street, and then a decision will be forthcoming.

It helps lots in this situation to absolutely love and adore your wife. Otherwise, there would be a killin'.

So pray for us.

And send money!!!

Peace.