Picture this...

Hello, gloomy, doomy, Monday Internet! What great sleeping weather we had this morning, huh. Well, how was the weekend for everyone out there in Bubbleland?

On my end, Friday was dinner with The Husband's Mom for her birthday, as well as his brother and sister-in-law. It was lovely! (Note: Fresh Slices has a yummy buffalo chicken sammie.) Followed later with the traditional garage darts with Horace and Miss H. It was Girls vs Fellas in a death-match of wills and trash talking. And perhaps a hair, just a hair, of sulking? I mention no names... Husband. (Which is not his name and technically, therefore, does not count.)

Saturday, The Husband went on an overnight man-trip to Nashville so it was just us ladies – some more hairy than others – at the house. I declared it a Day of Me. And was at Hobby Lobby's door when they opened at 9am. I got a big huge canvas and went home to make myself a bell pepper/onion/turkey sausage/egg & cheese scramble. (Which is really, truly how every day should start.) Then it was time for the process to begin. All of the elements were in place. Wings Season 3 was in the DVD. Snacks were in the cupboard. And the space above the couch was crying out for decoration.

That's right. I decided the Day of Me would be spent painting something to go over the couch. I've been looking for something for that space for forever, it feels like. Cooper-Young Festival, random internet sights... Nothing. (Don't take it personally, Internet. You can only do so much.) So Saturday, I got to painting. And I loooved it and thought it was perfection of what I wanted. (And what I wanted being a fairly decent stab at a Gerhard Richter knock-off.)

Smeardy, splattery good times, right there

But I took in the living room and it looked AWFUL. It was much too bright and the peachy background clashed horribly with the tan of the rug. So I sorta started over to mute it down. A dinner break...

Still stovetop grill OBSESSED

Chicken, grilled veggies, and rice for one

later and I was putting the finishing touches on the final Painting #2...

Mucho more muted

Off-center closeup

So I like it and feel like it was a Satur-Day Of Me well spent. If nothing else, it'll hold the space until we meet the "perfect" piece. (Which, anyone on match.com will tell you, can be quite the wait.) That and I reorganized the pantry during the canvas drying downtime. So all in all, a pretty good day.

Yesterday, was not quite as nice though. On the way to meet Lady B at church, I locked myself out of the house. Internet, you're in my house right now. You know how easy it can be. But I was still SO mad at myself. Well, Lady B very kindly came and sat with me on the front porch as I waited for Pop-A-Lock to show up. (They were earlier than projected BTW. In Memphis heat, nothing is more appreciated.) The day looked up from then on. We watched Funny Girl and then went to our Book Club brunch at The Majestic downtown. (Which, brunch was great. But call if with a reservation if you have a large'ish group. Apparently, everyone should know that and, if not, you deserve a rude "welcoming".)

I'm pretty excited about our August book. We'll be reading The Book of Joe by Jonathan Tropper. Synopsis, if you're interested –

After vilifying his hometown and its residents in his thinly veiled first novel, Joe Goffman got rich. The book was a hit, as was the movie that followed, but his new Mercedes and swank New York digs can't save him from having to go home again. After his father suffers a stroke, Joe returns to Bush Falls, Connecticut--and to the adolescence he's never really outgrown. With his father comatose, his childhood best friend dying of AIDS, the great love of his life intent on ignoring him, and the entire town furious at him for slandering them in his novel, Joe's got plenty to deal with. But in spite of his hero's serious problems, Tropper keeps Joe's narration self-deprecatingly funny throughout. And as Joe struggles to reconcile himself to his past, the novel proves surprisingly poignant, even tender. A first-rate tale of a thirtysomething's belated coming-of-age.

Looks to be a fun ride. I ordered it off my happy place today, Amazon, and am going to start on The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest in the meanwhile. YESSS. I've been waiting for this moment.

A little hairy lady follow-up – The cat/dog transition continues to appear to go well. The cat has taken to not only drinking the dog's water...

Looks like thirst is respected by the dog community

But this morning, Claudette ate some of Sugarbear's food too. Ha! Kitty payback. Anyhoo, they're pretty cute. They just stand next to each other sometimes looking confused-like, like "I don't know how to play with you.."

Somebody say something back there?

So I'd say that's better than some of the options. Being mangled furry bits around the house. Gross? Well, life is gross sometimes, Internet! Deal with it.

Alright, have a great week out there, Internet. And if you see any canvases on sale, let me know. I think the painting bug is back. And I don't need no antibiotic!!

Yup, going out on bad grammar. Your welcome.