The Amanda Foundation

so we all know she is the queen diva and will be running for president soon, but did we know she already has her very own non-profit foundation?

now before you *gasp* and say, "how in the world did you find this out? what are you, an internet stalker?" let me just tell you that i was just minding my own business, chilling at home watching one of my fav tv shows, Celebrity Poker Showdown. they did a blurb on each celeb and who they were playing for, and lo and behold, Kevin Nealon was playing for a charity called The Amanda Foundation. yes, i too, was shocked that the Diva has failed to mention this endeavor, but this just goes to prove what a humble diva she really is.

yes, dear friends, we all know her and love her. and one by one (people and animals), she is winning the world over and they love her, too. tennessee, kentucky, and south africa have been graced by her presence. already, her blog popularity is gaining momentum and it seems as if everyone that stops by leaves a comment (how do you do that, girlie?). here's the news bulletin: the pink one is flexing those animal hugging muscles (and evidently has been for years) caring for our favorite furry ones through The Amanda Foundation. the foundation rescues animals from city and county shelters (known to us as the pound). and, as if that plus her full-time job in Franklin weren't enough, she is hobnobbing with the likes of Clint Black, Kevin Nealon, and Tina Sinatra. just check out her foundation's honorary chair people!

so spread the word and come 2008 the buzz will already be up to dull roar capacity about this political newcomer, our favorite gal in pink, from Brentwood,TN. watch out world, here comes the Diva and all her divas in training...

just one question, who's gonna be her running mate???

movieng thoughts

i watched Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind the other night. very interesting movie. Jim Carrey's character decides to get the memories of his girlfirend erased when he finds out she is erasing him. but as she is being erased from his mind, he is taken through the good memories and realizes he doesn't want her erased. so he decides to take her to corners of his mind where she wouldn't normally be so they can't find her, so she won't be erased. but they find her there, in his mind. yet the next day, he finds himself drawn to her, to meet her in their favorite place. and they begin again.

i wonder what my life would be like if i had never known You...

would i still play guitar
like a kid intent on communicating deep desires of the heart
as if i were wishing on a star

would i lie still in the coolness of grass
staring up at the cloud parade
wondering how they were made

when i see a quiet pool
nestled in a bed of rock
would the words so tried and true
of a song made just for you
come wafting through my ears
making sense after all these years

would i be kind and gentle
never meeting a stranger
would i even know the name of a boy
who was born in a manger

would i treasure small joys
like a Pez candy toy
or "you're caller number three!"
would i know such glee

would my cat sense my pain
curl up on top of me again
purring me to sleep
would i give her my soul to keep

would the symbol of a cross mean anything to me
would i know someone died on a hill called Calvary
that it was the baby from the manger
born to die to set me free

would i know His name is Jesus
that He is Your Son
that He would be the only One
to love all of me, each and every part
even the ones i don't want to admit are there
even all the gray hairs
are there any corners of my heart You don't want to share

would my hands be instruments of peace and healing
or would they wage wars without feeling

would there be hope in letting go
would i think of forgiveness when i see snow
could i hear the trees talk
leaves whispering as wind blows

would shade be as cool
would the sun be as bright
would i still be entranced by shadows of moonlight
would there be any comfort
through dark and stormy nights

would a hug still my soul
would ice cream keep you from growing old
if You were erased from my memory
would deep still call to deep inside of me

what would my life be like if i had never known You
though my questions may never be few
and some answers i may never know
like Peter, i say, "Lord, where else would i go?"

Winner!

so i played in yet another poker tournament last night. it's been a once a month thing at Smokes and Brews in Cool Springs. normally, i wouldn't be able to be off early enough to participate in this one, but yesterday i had to pick up my kitty, Sasha, from the vet before they closed, so i had to leave work early. i was originally thinking i would stay home with her to watch her for a bit, because i had her spayed. (yes, none to pleasant of a thing, and yes, she was none to pleased with me) after seeing that she was pretty out of it and GRUMPY from the anesthesia and pain medicine (she was hissing and growling at me, her momma!) and realizing all she wanted at that moment was to sleep and be left alone, i charged my roommate with checking in on her and headed out to check out this poker tourney.

it was $30 to buy in, and part of the proceeds were to go to the Franklin Boys' and Girls' clubs. so if nothing else, some money would go to a good cause. we also got 3 beers and 2 cigars for the tourney [yes, Kevin, i am still saving those stogies for you ;) ] and the promise of some door prizes as well, with 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place prizes TBA. so Krystal and i decided we'd give it a shot and see if we could at least give poker playin gals a good name for once!

we were both a little nervous because initially, it was dealer's choice of 5 card draw or stud, 7 card stud, or Texas Hold'em. once the winner from each table moved to the final table, it would be Hold'em only. neither one of us play much else other than Hold'em. so i called my brother, the poker guru, and had him school me on how to play and bet most effectively in each of the games. after a good 30 minute tutoring session from my personal guru, i felt a little more confident. so i thought if i just played conservatively and made it to the final table, i'd be money fo sho!

fortunately for me, the guys at my table played Hold'em. the whole time! i was lovin it, cause that is my game! and who'd suspect a little ol gal like me to be part card shark, right? and they weren't playing aggressive at all, so of course i slowly jumped in there. chip, chip, chipping away at their stacks. and my oh my were the cards ever coming my way! trips, flushes, straights, pocket Cowboys and all! it was too b-e-a-utiful! so, yep. i made it to the final table. and i was playin oh so conservatively then, especially since i knew that once one of us was knocked out, the other three were gauranteed a prize. about this time, it occurred to me to ask what the prizes were. 1st place - $30 gift certificate to Wines and Spirits (next door) plus a humidor, 2nd place - $30 gift certificate to Criallo's restaurant, 3rd place - $20 gift certificate to Smokes and Brews. now, S & B has just about any kind of beer you could possibly want from around the world (if they don't they'll get it for you) and i'm a HUGE beer aficianado. so, 3rd place prize was sounding awfully yummy to me. eventually one of the other guys at the table got knocked out of the game, leaving one other gal and one guy. honestly, she really didn't know what she was doing and was just getting good cards (dumb beginner's luck i do believe), so i wasn't worried about her. the other guy, however, was probably my best challenge there, really knew how to bet even if he didn't have the cards. we all three just kept trading chips back and forth. i wasn't getting a lot of playable cards. then, i won the last door prize of the night - nice 3 pack of Belgian Beer. at this point, i had two yummy beers in my tummy, 3 to take home with me, 2 lovely cuban cigars complete with cutter and lighter to give as a present to someone (i may have to smoke one of 'em, had one at new year's last year and it was awfully good), and i was getting sleepy and wanting to check on Sasha. 3rd place prize was what i wanted anyway, and i was guaranteed it at this point. my pride was saying "stay here, beat these guys, go home much later with a prize i really don't want" but my tired body was saying "go ALL-IN with the next best hand i get, and if i lose, go home with the prize i really want (money for good expensive beer!), check on my baby, and get some sleep."

went ALL-IN with a K,10 of diamonds (cause they are a girl's best friend, ya know). no cards that came helped. dude won with some crazy low pair, which was all right by me. i figured with all the free stuff i got plus the gift certificate, i had more than won my entry fee back and had a pretty good time playing cards with some yocals and a buddy to boot. not too shabby of a night. i'll stay and win 1st place next time ;)

trickle-down theory

as we hiked saturday at Tom Sauk Mountain, the falls were more like a trickle. a little disappointing, but we were able to hike through the rocks where the falls usually run, which led to spots like the one pictured above. quiet gurgling. cool stillness. the words of an old hymn came to mind, singing themselves through the air, into my brain, reminding my heart:

He hideth my soul in the cleft of the rock
That shadows a dry, thirsty land;
He hideth my life with the depths of His love,
And covers me there with His hand,
And covers me there with His hand.


there, in that place, those words made sense for the first time. the writer had to be a fellow hiker. those words are never quite clear, til you're standing there with your feet on the rocks, planted in crevices, smaller versions of the clefts that can hold us, hide us.

just plain tired!!!

*sigh*

this Bear is just plain tired!!! 

it's a dangerous trend...

i've had an online journal home for a couple of years now, but i guess i've finally caved to the pressure. yes, i am creating a blog. probably so it's easier to leave comments on everyone else's, or maybe i'll actually write something interesting once in a while, or at least i'll take an interesting photo to share.