tonight :)

finally.  it's here.

i've waited so long; so many nights in grad school and in the working world for this.  

my four favorite nyc girls. satc with two of my favorite girls in houston:)

tickets in hand to the 12:01 AM show...i may have a nervous breakdown.

dear yankees...

stop sucking. thanks.

hugs and kisses,

boo

politics smolitics

politics...oh boy.

i tend to shy away from discussing politics in any circumstance because it really is something that doesn't light my fire, if you catch my drift. but, i've heard that there is an election happening this november and it's kind of a big deal. i have been around politics in my family since i was a child and that may be part of the reason why i like to leave the room when the shouting and the arguments begin. 

over the past few months, i have become intrigued at the race for the Democratic nomination. to be honest with you, the media makes it miserable for me. their predictions, their advice, their own "plans" for the nominees to win the presidency is hilarious to me. as many times as i've heard networks boast on their unbiased reporting, it's inevitable for a network's to hide their own motives. 

as for this whole presidential thing, all i'm really looking for is some honesty. I do appreciate the integrity that President Bush has brought to the White House even though I do not agree with some of the choices he has made during his terms. overall, i do consider myself a conservative. i do appreciate the values of the  republican party; on the flip side, i do agree with some of the plans and beliefs of the democratic party as well. i don't necessarily like to label myself as a "republican" or a "democrat." i would like to think that i would vote for an individual for the person they are, the job that they will do, and the values they bring to the table instead of how much money they have raised, how much money they have spent, and which party they are representing. i almost wish that the rest of America would vote with an open-minded mentality. 

i do worry about the future of this country and where we are headed. i also worry about the enemies that the United States has around the world. a majority of those enemies will not stop until they have hurt us in a way that we would never recover. it's scary to think that a country as powerful as us must also rely on other parts of the world for goods. i am definitely looking for our economy to rebound. that is something that i am desperately waiting for. 

the safety and well-being (physical and financial) of this country are at the top of my list. and over the next few months, i am anxious to hear from these so-called "candidates" how they are going to "fix" or "change" our country. should get interesting...

couple of pics VU 2008

here are just a couple of pics from commencement this past weekend.

i was asked to carry the banner at commencement and i'm not sure enormous does justice to how big this banner was. and for those of you who don't know, vanderbilt's campus is full of trees and is considered a national arboretum. so, carrying a huge ass banner through branches is quite a task.  anyways....

hope you guys are having a great week!

VU commencement 5.08

wow. finished. officially.

this is coming to you from the great city of nashville, tennessee and there's no way you can imagine how big the smile one my face is :) i flew into nashville thursday night after a long day at work and landing in a city that actually feels like home was exactly what i needed after a long week. my wonderful parents were there to greet me with the biggest hugs and kisses and noticeable excitement for the upcoming weekend. 

our day started off earlier than we would have liked, but, nonetheless, it is what it is. commencement started at 9AM this morning and there was a lot to be done before making our way to alumni lawn. i was asked by the School of Nursing to be the "banner carrier" and to lead the school of nursing into commencement. and, of course, i said yes...that is just something you can't turn down. since i live in texas, i missed the meeting on wednesday, so they agreed to go over all the instructions and directions with me before the actual ceremony. thus, the early morning.

picked up the good 'ole cap and gown and my academic hooding material and it kind of started to hit me that i actually graduated from Vanderbilt. wow. getting accepted was a thrill ride. doing well in my classes was inspiring. but, receiving a masters degree from Vanderbilt is surreal. the sense of pride that i feel and always will feel can never be taken away from me. my parents made the short trip up from bama and spent the day with me celebrating, spending some time in nashville, and taking in the atmosphere on Vandy's campus today. 

vandy does it right. they know what they're doing when it comes to graduations and commencements. you feel special. you feel like you have just accomplished something BIG. you feel elite; the best of the best. you feel like the education you just received will take you wherever you want to go. and it has. my experiences, education, and diploma from vanderbilt has taken me where i wanted to go and it has brought me so much confidence and pride that i will continue to use everything i learned from here on out. 

i will post pictures soon. until then, i'll be in nashville for the weekend visiting old friends, old familiar watering holes, and re-connecting with a city that i fell in love with. 

g'night.

my safe haven

oh, vandy...i've missed you so much.

there will be more pictures to come post-commencement.  

oh, cashville...i can't wait to see you.

live well. love much. laugh often.

SATC

perfection.

"i'm going to jackson..."

johnny cash is a freaking genius.

this past weekend, went to jackson to visit my fiance's family and to get some wedding stuff done. let me just say in advance that i am marrying into one hell of a family. i'm not quite sure i could have hand-picked my future in-laws much better. not only do i get the best future husband, but i also get another family that i love being around. 

unfortunately, our trip started out with a little bit more stress than i would have liked. it never fails, but we, of course, got stuck in that damn houston traffic on our way to the airport. so, no big deal. we head on to find a place to park and, of course, there is no place to park. so, we are roaming around for a good 20 minutes, all the while our plane is still scheduled to leave at the same time. and, no, the plane will not wait for us. well, finally found a place to park; rushing to make it to the airport and, boom, the line to check in on a friday afternoon in houston, much less any airport, is enormous. our flight is supposed to leave in 40 minutes. we get through the stinking line with 25 minutes left to make the flight and there is no guarantee on our luggage to make it to jackson. great.

get through security after i got stuck behind the geriatric ward and then sprint to the gate. did you hear that? sprint. we made it. but, will our luggage?  we shall see...

get to jackson where it is absolutely gorgeous and i'm dreading heading down to baggage claim to confirm the fact that our luggage is indeed still in houston. well,wait a second, holy God. is that my bag coming towards me? well how about that? maybe there actually is someone looking out for us. 

anyways, had a fantastic weekend; we got the wedding bands picked out and ordered and a bunch of other little knick-knack stuff for the wedding. the countdown has begun for the first shower and i can't wait to see everyone.

they're here!!!!!

friends are like a good glass of wine...it only gets better with age.

the bridesmaid dresses have finally made it! wahooooo! got a call from a few of my bridesmaids today and it completely made my day. it's getting sooooo close. everytime i get a phone call from one of those amazing girls, i can't help but think of one of those girlfriend friendship quotes like the one above. yes, we are all getting older, which is no surprise, and it really makes me appreciate those special girls who have been so clutch in my life. 

as the dresses are being shipped, other things, of course, need to be taken care of for the other parts of the wedding. until my next trip to birmingham (which is coming up soon), i'll be in jackson spending time with The Fiance's family and get our wedding bands :)

better go pack. 

finally...some live music

since moving to houston, i had been searching for a place to listen to some genuine music.

finally found it. met a few people from work at an unbelievably awesome bar here in houston after work and got introduced to one of my new favorite places in houston. moving from nashville, i was spoiled at the amount of live music that was available to me every day. i grew to love some of the amazing bars, live music joints, and restaurants in nashville that had some uncovered artists playing on a nightly basis.  and every once in a while, a famous face would show up and jump on stage and play like they were trying to be discovered for the very first time. 

i think it was the accessibility and the character of the city i grew to love about nashville. i loved walking into a bar and seeing a new, unfamiliar face up on the stage with a guitar and watching them sing like it was their last day on earth. so, finally found one place here in houston i can escape to so that i can hear some real music from real people. 

i'm kind of what you would like to call a music junkie. i crave it, i have to have it everyday. it blows me away how different types of instruments can be played at the exact same time and sound so harmonious. even the most bizarre of instruments can be on the same stage, but some how they please the ear. 

if you ever want to go hear a new artist or visit a new live music place, you just let me know because i won't let you down. 

off to jackson to get some matching jewelry :)