A Four Letter Word

Yup, diet.... a word many hate, some dread and others flat out refuse to mutter. It's that nasty of a word.

I am one of those who despises this word, and let me tell you how well not liking diets works post baby.... it doesn't-- especially with swimsuit season right around the corner and a bridesmaid dress to fit in.

I am so sick of feeling blah about my body, yet I have this addiction to another four letter work: food.

There we have it, there is my problem. How am I going to get rid of what I see as my problem areas if I can't bring myself to stick to one particular diet.?

Some days I feel A-OK with my reluctance to diet, per se, because I don't necessarily think diets are always the best answer. Besides, I love the gym and have no problem getting myself to the gym and oftentimes, when the weather is nice, I'll also walk around the neighborhood later in the day.

But then there are days like today. Days where if I didn't know better, I'd sweat I were pregnant again. All I want is a little bit of this, a little bit of that, maybe a taste of those and, well, OK, a smidge of these. Get the picture?

I am not sure this battle will ever be over, but I feel like if I get this out here for all of the world to see then I will hold myself more accountable. But for now, I am going to strive to not snack so much. I am not even going to mutter that d work, because let's be honest, they never pan out as planned.

So, let's raise our glass to me telling my sweet beloved snacking goodbye and welcoming in a new healthier diet.

If that doesn't work, maybe I'll just invest in a shake weight, those things are bound to deliver the results promised....

There's rivalry and then there's this....

For those of you who haven't heard, tonight the Auburn family lost a very beloved friend-- the trees at Toomer's Corner. While it may seem strange to call some trees friends, it's more what they stood for. These Oaks were 130 years old and were home to one of the oldest traditions in college sports. It was a place of fellowship and camaraderie.

One of the saddest parts of how these trees were lost was how it was done-- by an Alabama fan.

Alabama and Auburn are fierce rivals. It is argued by many that there is no other rivalry fiercer than these two in-state rivals, and, as my friend Zach pointed out, after this heinous crime I am pretty sure any who were unsure if this was the fiercest rivalry is now convinced it most certainly is.

An Alabama fan allegedly poured mass amounts of a herbicide/pesticide over the trees a week after our comeback victory in Tuscaloosa at Thanksgiving time.  He called in to The Paul Finebaum show, a nationally syndicated radio talkshow in January to report what he had done, more or less in retaliation for Auburn students rolling Toomer's after the death of Paul "Bear" Bryant, nearly 30 years ago (a story that even Finebaum assured the caller was not true-- no matter how heated a rivalry, no one celebrates a death and this holds true for Auburn fans).

After the call, Finebaum reported it to the University, and long story short, soil samples were taken, the story checked out and our beloved trees are dying. It is reported that 65 times the lethal dose was found in some of the samples and the chances of the trees pulling through are slim to none.

Now it is very hard for me to sit here and blog on this matter and not get emotional or blast Alabama. Believe me I have had thoughts cross my mind, but I am not about to lower my standards to the acts of  one classless man.

Many are saying you can't cast a stereotype over an entire group over the acts of one man. This is true, however, it is going to be made. This news is making national headlines and people outside of Alabama, and especially the South, are hearing this and thinking what the heck is up with these Southern rednecks.

I don't know what will become of this. I have a feeling the rivalry will only get more heated. I am hopeful that Auburn will keep its class, one thing that I feel most fans here always maintain, and rise above this.

As our university president, Dr. Jay Gogue, said, let us maintain our creed and stand together as a family, and not let such heinous crimes hinder our spirit.

Still, the question remains, in sport rivalries how far is too far and what can be done to dampen the fierce hatred. I am not sure anything will ever cool these fires for good, but for now I will remain a little spiteful toward Alabama and this man and the tradition they not only took from today's fans, but from future Auburn fans like sweet Caleb.

Caleb with his toilet paper ready to roll Toomer's

War Eagle!

Inch by Inch

Well, I honestly can't believe tomorrow will already be Valentine's Day. To me, it seems like this year just started, and yet I know that I am going to blink and the summer is going to be here and all that it brings with first birthdays, graduations and more.

Anyway, there still isn't too much going on in our neck of the woods. But there are a few things I guess that may be blogworthy-- things that are coming together slowly, or inch by inch-- there you have the title folks, if you watch "Family Guy" like Daniel, and thus I, do then you can reference Peter here and his love of titles being thrown into dialogue.

First of all, our little guy is so close to crawling. He is constantly putting himself up on his knees and rocking back and forth until he just decides, the heck with it, I am good army crawling everywhere or whining until some sorry sucker (me) picks him up and carries him away. So, inch by inch, and slowly, but surely, I know he will get there soon.

Secondly, my internship search, is coming to a close, fingers crossed at least. On Friday, I interviewed at the Alumni Center with the Director of Marketing and Membership. The job sounds like my dream job and is such a perfect fit with where I see my career path heading, however, it is completely public relations based. I am, as you know, a journalism major, begrudgingly, and that is where the hang up comes in. I was offered the position on the spot (the lady I interviewed with was a founding charter member of my sorority, and I may have happened to mention that I was a member when I saw all of her stuff-- hey, network where you can people).

Sure, it all sounds wonderful, but the problem is convincing my advisor that I should be allowed to do a p.r. internship instead of a journalism one. So, I am inching closer to closing the internship gate, but it's not quite there yet.

And finally, Daniel's inch by inch news is the work on his preliminary dissertation. He was originally supposed to present his prelim in March, but due to some catch ups his advisor had, he has had to postpone his presentation until April. I think he is OK with this, but we are both just eager for it to be over with and his research and work to be one step closer to getting his hood and becoming Dr. Daniel Horn.

So, in a world where so much is made of going the distance and reaching far, I am perfectly happy with our inch by inch happenings, if you will, of the week.

Mission Impossible

OK, maybe not impossible, but seeing as I haven't posted in so long and have started, yet obviously not finished, four different blog posts, I am hoping to start and finish this post. It's not that life has been much more crazier than usual, but I guess I have just been focusing my attention elsewhere.

There's not too much to report from our little corner of the world. We bought a new car to replace my poor, wrongly attacked Freida.... haha, that is my way of saying from the wreck that totaled my 4 Runner.

December also included a trip to Memphis for some pre-Christmas Christmas-ing with my family. It is so neat to watch Annabelle and Caleb interact. It definitely excites me for future children-- but no time soon people, no time soon.

New Year's Eve was rather uneventful. Katie came in town and we had a fire in the backyard and just hung out.

What really capped off the holiday season was the BCS national title game on January 10. Auburn won the BCS title. Ya'll, let's just be honest, it was thing of beauty. I even went as far as to awaken sweet Caleb so he could say he witnessed the win. With two seconds left in the game, and Wes Byrum running onto the field to make the game winning field goal, Caleb was up and confused. After the game we all journeyed to Toomer's Corner with thousands of our fellow Auburn family members to celebrate. It is something I will always remember.

The rest of January was quick and rather quiet. School resumed, Daniel had soccer tryouts for his team, oh yes, and Daniel also celebrated his 26th birthday.

I am now in full internship mode, looking here, there and everywhere for the perfect internship to cap off a great college ride. My parents may beg to differ, thinking this ride has gone astray for a few detours, but hey it's not how you get there, it's just getting there, right?

I have my first interview next Friday and I ask that if you think of it that you say a little prayer. It is with the Alumni Center. I feel it would be a good match. Another avenue I wouldn't mind venturing down is the non-profit sector, so I am keeping my options open and trusting God that He knows the right place for me to be.

Well, I guess that is enough for now. We are having terrible storms and my Internet is being rather finicky.  I cannot upload photos at the moment, but will come back in and edit this later to add some photots and bring in little color to this drab mess!