Just Blogging

My Kentucky Vacation (June 2022)

June 17, 2022 — Leave a comment

I spent four days in Kentucky with my best friends this week. They moved up there just over a year ago, and it’s been really hard. I miss them like crazy!

It was nice to get away, if only for a short while. We went out and explored some areas of interest, including the historical community of West Point and a pet cemetery that was on the way to Shepherdsville. But our big adventure was a trip to Bernheim Forest.

If you don’t know about this forest, it is located in Clermont and covers more than 16,000 acres. It is a wildlife sanctuary, an arboretum, a campsite. There are miles and miles of trails to hike and things to see. What Bernheim Forest has become known for, though, is the giants.

Created by Thomas Dambo, the trio of giants are made from local recycled wood and are positioned throughout the area. It was an absolute delight discovering each one, though the map we were given at the entrance left something to be desired – it took us much longer to find the last two giants than it should have. Still, there was plenty to do along the way.

If you’re ever in the area, I would highly recommend a visit to Bernheim Forest. We had a lot of fun, and my friends’ kids loved the giants!

James Young Family Cemetery
A marker showing the water levels of past floods. Check out 1937!
Little Nis, the son
Mama Loumari
Little Elina, the daughter
The view at the end of the Canopy Walk
The Spirit Nest
The memorial for Bernheim

Resting Beach Face

May 30, 2022 — Leave a comment

The level to which I need a beach vacation is getting alarming. I have some time off in June and I was gonna visit my friends in Kentucky, but the palm trees, white sand, and blue water are all calling my name. I might have to drive south…

In the meantime, here are a few pictures that are making my longing for the beach even worse. Clearly I like to torture myself by looking at these. Lol. I really do think I was a mermaid in a past life.

These two are actually from the last time I went to a beach. The others are finds from a Google search.

Today Was My Monday

May 19, 2022 — Leave a comment

And I felt it, starting at 4:15 a.m.

I woke up with my alarm, rolled out of bed, and stepped just beyond my bedroom door, straight onto a hairball. I guess Marceline was leaving me a message, but I have no clue what I did to piss her off. (She’s shedding terribly at the moment, and she tends to pull out hair, so I know the cause of the hairball itself, just not the location.)

Marceline, otherwise known as Queen of the Hair Ball

By the time I cleaned up and got ready, I was running late. I’m responsible for opening and it was a near miss, yet I had everything done on time.

The first half of my shift wasn’t that bad. Then I went on my lunch break and managed to dump half of my five cheese ziti down my front. -face palm- So then I had to clean that up and finish my day with tomato sauce on my shirt, pants, and shoes (yeah, I made a mess).

Luckily, some of my favorite coworkers were there and spared me from an even worse day. I came home, took a short nap, and fixed dinner. Now I have showered and am half-asleep and I get to do it all over again tomorrow…hopefully minus the hair ball and the loss of most of my lunch to the floor. Lol.

On the bright side: I bought tickets to see Ghost, Mastodon, and Spiritbox, so I guess it wasn’t all bad.

I hope this post finds all of you well, and that your Wednesday was just a Wednesday. Oh, and because I know he’d hate to be left out: here is my other baby, Vlad.

He’s a furry jerk, but at least he doesn’t hack up hairballs right outside my door.

Update To My 2022 Goodreads Challenge (5/9/22)

May 9, 2022 — Leave a comment

So you may remember this post about my progress on this year’s reading challenge, the book I was currently reading, and my (ever-growing) to-be-read pile. Well, I’m here for another update because I am determined to complete the challenge this year and I feel that blogging about it might keep me on track.

I have now read 8 books in 2022. My goal is 25. Since that last post, I’ve finished Black Dawn (Rachel Caine), The Thicket (Noelle W. Ihli), and The Invitation (Lucy Foley).

I am still working on Afraid (a collection of three offerings from Lisa Jackson, Alexandra Ivy, and Lisa Childs). And the next two on the TBR list? My Pretties by Jeff Strand and – for real this time – His Final Girl by Brooklyn Ann. I’m also going to finish The Morganville Vampires series this year…hopefully. I just keep sidetracking myself every time I walk into a bookstore. Lol.

What are you guys reading? Any recommendations for me? As you can see, I like the horror/thriller/suspense genres, and slashers are my faves. So if you’ve read anything that you think I would enjoy, I’d love to hear about it!

Shinedown Saturday (5/7/22)

May 7, 2022 — Leave a comment

This post should have been last Saturday since I actually went to see Shinedown that night, but it was a hectic day and I didn’t have time.

The concert was amazing, as always. It was my third Shinedown show and they just get better every time. I want to share the opening of the show with y’all, because oh my God! This got the whole venue fucking pumped. (The video I’m linking wasn’t from Birmingham. I can’t find one taken there, and I myself only recorded three songs.)

No appreciation post would be complete without pictures! These are not from the concert, obviously.

And, yes, I have a crush on Brent Smith. I can’t help it. He’s adorable. Lol.

Stitch Saturday (4/30/22)

April 30, 2022 — Leave a comment

You’ve heard of Tremonti Tuesday (or you have if you follow this blog, lol). Now get ready for Stitch Saturday! Showing some love for my favorite masked marauder in Mushroomhead ❤️

P.S. – I do have pictures of him maskless, but I just adore his masks.

Unsettling Images (#1)

April 29, 2022 — Leave a comment

I started out browsing for pictures of abandoned amusement parks and ended up diving down a rabbit hole of the strange on Pinterest. Some of the uploads were actually creepy, but most of them just gave me an uneasy feeling – especially the ones that are real places/things. There was a whole lotta nope, and locations that, were you in a horror movie, it would all start going wrong there. Haha 😛 Below are a few of my favorites. I’m sure there will be multiple installments of these types of images: I love this stuff.

Three of the Sexiest Dance Scenes in Movie History

April 22, 2022 — Leave a comment

Look, we all know dancing is a means of expressing oneself, right? A lot can be said without a single word being uttered. Dancing can be fun, goofy, romantic, a narrative…but in this case, we’re talking about sex, pure and simple.

You don’t have to bump and grind to get the point across, and these three scenes are proof of that.

1. The ballroom dance in The Labyrinth (1986)

Come up with any detail in these four minutes that isn’t fraught with sexual tension. I’ll wait.

This scene is iconic. I guess you could argue that this is actually supposed to be about romance, but the moment she first spots him from across the room is just…electric. Plus, David Bowie is so swoon-worthy in this role.

2. At the club in Fright Night (1985)

Chris Sarandon is the sexiest, most deliciously evil vampire I’ve ever seen. I’d be drawn to him, too. It was a little strange for me to see Amanda Bearse getting mildly sensual, though, given that I was only familiar with her in “Married With Children” when I first watched this movie. Lol.

3. The wolf dance in Red Riding Hood (2011)

The music – Fever Ray’s “The Wolf” – is really what sells this one. When he looks up at her, knowing she’s jealous, and then the two of them glare daggers at each other throughout the whole dance, it builds a tension that is palpable.

(Feel free to comment with your own additions! These are just the ones that jump out at me, personally.)

Colorado (In Pictures)

April 7, 2022 — Leave a comment

We almost missed our first flight, our second one was delayed (because some genius put us on a plane that wasn’t equipped to fly/land in snowy conditions, despite the fact that we were headed to Colorado Springs), and my mom had a mild case of elevation sickness on our third day there. Other than that, the trip to visit my brother and his wife was an absolute success!!!! I had visited last year, but we didn’t get to do a lot of sightseeing, and this was Mom’s first trip – and first time flying. The whole area is so beautiful. (Raton, New Mexico, wasn’t that impressive, though. Lol.)

We’re both dying to go back already. I’m aiming for some time during the summer so we can get out and explore a little more. Below are pictures I took during our excursions, and one from the plane because I’m that person 🙂

This was captured about 10 minutes from DFW
Driving towards Trinidad
The Raton sign
Scenic overlook coming into Colorado from New Mexico
Their cat, Hanzo, who was sad because we wouldn’t allow him in the guest room