goodbye, old friend.

as readers of this blog (all 4 of you), you are aware of how much i looked forward to the month of november. now that today marks the end of this blessed month, i'd like to pay homage to it, November, for being so good to me.

i mean, it started off with hanson...i love them so much i will fight you over it.

THEN, my bestie came in town for the weekend to help me celebrate my 24th birthday. this is her cutting the pineapple for our special pinas (we soaked them in coconut rum for 2 days. delish!)
see below...me excited for KH's and my party. yes i wore a onesie and yes i kept walking around saying, "do you think i look like a stripper?" to which the poor cornered person replied, "oh no of course not..." yeah, thanks.
uh...need i say more?
well i will anyway. new moon blew my mind. i was squealing like a piglet right along with all the other tweenie boppers every time taylor OR rob was in a scene. hell, a middle aged crazy woman even stopped me in the bathroom and said, "THAT IS A COOL F*CKING SHIRT." oh how i love getting passionate compliments.


of course, the lovely new mother and bestie-o-mine, dani came for a visit...bringing that precious little bundle, ava :) we all had a fabulous friendsgiving! here's us at cafe brazil, ava's first restaurant experience! don't worry, i tweeted it.

one detail that i have yet to mention/reveal is my birthday gift from my parents....ta-da!

check out that patio set-up! it's so comfortable and there's even enough room to have a camp-out slumber party if i want to! i spent a few (3+) hours reading by candlelight with a glass of red on saturday evening and then got up to do it again in the morning with a cup of chai tea. is this the life, or is this the life? i predict many good times out here with people i love. and check out the fantastic wall-hanging that lizzie gave me - it completes the patio perfectly, i say.

(joshulyn took one look at this photo and says, "girl, that is SEXY." - you are right, my friend).

don't think i forgot about imogen, no no. check out this snippet i caught at the show...



Mm, whatcha say? That you only meant well?
of course you did.
Mm, whatcha say? That it's all for the best?
of course it is.
Mm, whatcha say? That this is just what we need?
you decided this.
Mm, whatcha say? What did you say?

oh heaven on earth, i looooove imogen. she is speaking to me lately. i'll have to throw another track's lyrics up here pretty soon because literally after ever line, i go, "i know, RIGHT?!?" genius.

aaaand Hello, December. I hope you know what you're up against.

love/miss/namaste.

post-thanksgiving report

man oh man, i love thanksgiving. i could go on and tell you all the sentimental reasons why it really is the best holiday...family, love, giving thanks, etc. but that's what you expect from me. well i'm not gonna do it because if you know me well enough, you know that i am a sentimental, emotional person in my heart so put away your tissues, this won't be a sappy post.

i think thanksgiving is a great holiday because you don't have to give people presents or cards. there's no uncomfortable...'well...she gave me a card last year and i don't want to not give something errr, i don't know, frick, i'll just give everyone a pair of sunglasses!!' TG isn't about that, no. the awkwardness is left back at your last card-giving event. you can get by with making a sentimental speech or saying an especially heartfelt prayer at dinner or even afterward while you're all laying around in a glutenous stupor. oh how i love it so.

this year, the dudney family celebrated this blessed holiday with 4 people and 4 canines. that's right, a dog for every person. grandma brought TJ over (her shit-zoo) and since the addition of penny to our family, there's a dog for every human who wants one on their lap.

how cute is my mama with her penny girl? so regal.
at any given time, you will find these two fused together in this very position...whether my mom is cooking, sitting, riding in the car, or even on a "walk".

umm....this is awesome.

can you believe that it's christmastime already? i sure can't. you know how i know that the seasons are a-turnin'? the billboard right outside the turn-in to our condo was changed from the scared-looking powerade dude to santa. coke santa, that is. ho ho ho!

i also wanted to share this tidbit with you. i call it, "the running of the hounds and father". preeetty much every time i visit my folks, my dad says, "shall we run the dogs?" to which we all agree and walk to a small field nearby and let them all off the leash while my dad runs around with barking, frantic dogs nipping at his heels. it's hysterical really. one of my favorite dudney family traditions. you're welcome.


love/miss/namaste.

friendsgiving

the first annual Friendsgiving was this past Sunday. my dear friend liz invented this lovely occasion so that we could share this special holiday with those who are near to our hearts. she did an amazing job planning the whole event, made place settings and even cooked the TURKEY. i just adore her, she's the kind of person that will always be one of your bestest friends. (thanks for a fabulous evening, lizzie!)

we had a crazy-delicious spread. SO. MUCH. FOOD. the lovely LC hosted the gathering for our party of 7 plus 2 baby girls. dani was able to make the trip all the way from new braunfels...ava's first vacation! i had the pleasure of having these two at my condo for a few days. we played house :) and it was lovely.

LC and her precious Liv

mamas and bff babies

love them. how beautiful are these two?

they are besties already, Liv and Ava grabbed each others' hand and held on tight!
no, it wasn't staged.
jk.

me and Liz, the Friendsgiving guru and all-around wonderful lady.

i'm so excited about having 2 Thanksgivings. i'll be going to arlington tonight to spend the day with my parents and grandma tomorrow. we always have a really small Thanksgiving with just the 4 of us. it's not a Thanksgiving like those crazy holiday movies with tons of people and food and noise, but it's ours. the ratio of people to dogs is 1:1 and that's how we like it. i'll be sitting in a big green recliner with dogs piled on me, listening to battle studies (and other mellowness) and reading a book (i went to half price books yesterday and went a bit nuts, i used a giftcard that ivy gave me for my bday. she knows going there is like therapy). my dad and grandma will be on the couch watching the golf channel. mom will be in the other green recliner with other dogs. it's home.

love/miss/namaste.
and thank you.

irrational post.

the only thing i hate more than regret is hindsight.
because sometimes, the two go hand in hand. think about it.

now, i know that everything happens for a reason. i know that God works for the good of those who love Him and are called according to His purpose. i know that i can't control anything, especially the past.

but i like talking about hindsight about as much as i like talking about my last gyno appointment. pesky little frick.

i guess you just have to wait for the HS to kick in and hope it throws you a bone.

LMN.

yep...

i'm that corny/excited to see the midnight showing.
team edward.
jacob is hottt though.

love/miss/namaste.

today is my 24th birthday

i forgot that today is when my driver's license expires too. i really wanted to retake my photo when i got my new one - since i've had this one for the last 6 years. then i started thinking about how sucky going to the DMV is and i decided to just renew it online. sure, i'm 18 year-old kidlaura and wearing my HS hoodie, smiling like i've got the world figured out - but hey, i really really hate going to the DMV.
i also got to thinking about where i was in life during the time my last license was issued. fall of my senior year in high school (cue Vitamin C's Graduation song). i no doubt went to lunch with Andrew (my DBF*) and it was probably to chicken express where i got a kid's meal. we had likely blasted jessica simpson's "with you" and sang at the top of our lungs around 2.5 times by the end of the day (i can let my hair down, i can say anything CRAZY!!)...he always drove my pimped out explorer (sub woofer, what what) because i suck at driving. we also have the same great taste in cheesy pop songs to this day. every time we hear that little party in the USA jingle, we get each other on the horn. anyhow, after school volleyball practice probably made me hella tired (because even though i fake-ran, it was still hard work). i probably had a conversation with Elizabeth (my other best friend) about how scared i was that i wasn't going to get into UT and it was the only college i wanted to go to and wah wah wah...calculus blows...wah wah wah (this signifies tears)..ooo he's got his shirt off...blah blah. she'd always tell me that things would be ok and then we'd eat watermelon laffy taffy (the kind with the seeds that were pretty much just black chunks of sugar*) together in her mustang with the sunroof open watching football practice. then we'd gossip about boys (those being her bf at the time and this dude i had met at church camp that i had a monster giddy-school-girl crush on*). those were the days,

you know, the days before husbands and babies and "real" jobs and rent checks. back when those things were hopes and dreams that were distant enough not to terrify you or leave you crying yourself to sleep in the fetal position on a bed with no sheets while a psycho-chihuahua licks your face raw (i know you know what i'm talkin' about...no? maybe it's just me). i digress. but i guess what i mean is, even then i didn't know how great i had it. the tears i cried then were about stupid crushes that i wanted to be more than they were...and making sure i went to the right university so i could become an adult someday. i had it easy.

but then, aren't the tears that i cry now over the same things? a broken heart and fear of heading in the wrong direction? yup. which should really piss me off right? cause it's like GREAT, i'm still a drama queen who stresses over the same things with slightly different variables. but it also just makes me laugh at myself. i treat "finding the one" like i'm a leprechaun trying to find a coveted pot-o-gold and my future like some sort of cosmic crap-chute. i acknowledge that God is in control but i secretly resent that truth because i think if i could just get that ONE thing that i want...

but one day i'll have the things that i wanted in the previous paragraph just like how now i have the things that i needed the paragraph before (notice, i got what i needed, not exactly what i wanted). there will always be something else to cry about, cause we all know i'll do it. it's just nice to know that even when i do have bad days filled with worries and fears that i'm always surrounded by such happiness. singing in the car with andy, munching on laffy taffy with liz, happy houring with KH, cracking jokes in my cube with CC, watching my best friend walk down the aisle and stand next to her while she says her vows...it's the things that make up your everydays that get you through your life stages gracefully (although sometimes not so much graceful as it is clumsy).

so even though i'm not at all where i thought i'd be or who i thought i'd be by the age of 24, i can still say that i am happy and i love my everydays.

love/miss/namaste.
ps - sorry for the heavy post. might be a quarterlife crisis. or just a stirring in my soul. who knows.

*DBF = dude best friend, we were basically inseparable. we made shirts with our faces on them and everything, we were that cool.
*I had 7 cavities that year. I wish i was kidding.
*I am pretty sure most of our "relationship" was made up in my head, which explains why I'm so neurotic today. I will think twice before letting my kids to go church camp...
jk. sort of.
also, just another example of how USUALLY, the dudes that I LIKE either a) don't live within a 100 mile radius of me, b) don't really give a crap about me, or c) all of the above at the same time. burn.

birthday "week"

it is common among young women (myself included) to engage in week-long birthday activities. i am aware that it only took my mom A day to birth me, but sometimes it takes a birthday lunch, birthday happy hour, birthday dinner, and an all-out shindig for you to feel like you've gotten all that celebrating out of your system.

now being a valentine's baby has its perks and it's drawbacks. it's great because it's right before the holidays and fall is such a lovely time. i also get to share it with lots of people, so there's a ton of action. my roomie's birthday is nov 9 (it was yesterday) and mine is the 12th (thursday) and our big throw-down is this saturday, so we are literally celebrating for a week straight. not to mention a few other friends with b-days (real sad i'm missing whit's MJ party...) and we're pretty much in business. it is kind of sad though, because things get hectic and as soon as you're birthday's here...it's gone again and someone else is blowin' out candles and you're chopped liver.

but hey! no worries, because me and kh's superawesomeparty is happening this saturday and all 3 of you who read this blog are invited! i won't talk it up too much, but i will say that it will involve some stellar dips from costco and pineapples that will blow your mind.

on a completely unrelated note, i had a moment of extreme discomfort, confusion, and even a little anger today at yoga. CC was feeling a little under the weather and KH was down for the count after her b-day happy hour the night before, so i got my namaste on solo after work. i was pretty excited for the class to start, sitting there all "meditating" about it, but then when we start the warm up...the yoga instructor turns on a song that she says is one of her favorites: the celine dion titanic ballad. are you kidding me?? i'm supposed to be clearing my mind of all the crumudgens (direct quote from yoga instructor), and i have to listen to NEAR, FAR, WHEREVER YOU ARE....and picture leo sinking into the cold, dark ocean while winslet lays on a door freezing alive and completely alone?? where is ENYA?!? does she REALIZE my current state? i sure went to crumudgen city after the first verse.

i was proud, though. i pushed through and actually went through an entire class forbidding myself to cut corners (i had to focus like never before) and i really did notice a difference in my body. after over a month of yoga/lifting classes, i am stronger. i am more flexible and i do enjoy it. i am engaging in a steady regaining of my mojo.

love/miss/namaste.

dudes are (and should) be running away from me.

don't get me wrong, i know i'm not smelly or mean or totally skanked out... i am just too neurotic at this time in my life (trust me, i just looked up the definition. #2 is me for sure). let me give you an example:

we just moved into a new condo, it's really swanky and has been compared to melrose place on numerous occasions. there's a guy who lives near us who is undeniably attractive and friendly and has a black lab. he's said hi to me and kristy and her bf a few times and once, he even helped me carry in a large area rug. of course, after he offered, i nervously replied, "oh no, i got it. thanks!" and then awkwardly attempted to lug a 9x12 chunk of carpet in addition to the giant handbag and iphone i always seem to have glued to my right hand. being the adorably attentive neighbor that he is, he just came over and picked up the dragging rug and said, "really...you look like you're having some trouble..." fail, laura...why must you always refuse help from cute strangers? why why. anyhow, that was encounter #1. kristy and luke think i should hook it up...but i'm not so sure. he seems a bit preppy (as in, he wears nice polos tucked into slacks. so he definitely has a good job, knows about the stock market, and probably eats lunch at places i've never heard of). or that's the story i've made up in my head.

the other night, after a grueling workout class, i had to swing by the centennial (nearby liquor store) to pick up a bottle of wine for our boss' "wine of the month" christmas gift. as i was walking in, cute neighbor was walking out with a couple of cases of michelob ultra. i say a quick "hey", and he strikes up the conversation by asking me to remind him of my roommate's and her bf's names (he remembered MINE...does that mean something? is he going to ask me out for coffee...for as long as we both shall live...?). i remind him of their names, he says, "oh yeah, that's right. i saw him after he had just played a soccer game, they seem cool." uh..."yeah, haha they are haha" (what the frick kind of response is that laura? get on your game and stop making yourself look like a stupid teenager who has an inappropriate crush on her dreamy science teacher). but that was it. we turn and walk our separate ways.

when i get home from the centennial, guess who's conveniently taking their black lab out for an evening potty break? none other than CN. i think to myself, "self, he TOTALLY knew you were going to be a few minutes behind him at the store. is it possible that he came out to walk his dog because he knew he'd catch you on your way into the condo? that is a definite possibility. or his dog just had to pee...but i'm gonna go with the former!" so i open my door and begin unloading my bags (for some reason, i had 3 or 4 at the time). black lab comes over to sniff me...was that totally staged? perhaps...and i pet her, then continue loading tote after tote onto my shoulders. CN says, "so are y'all about settled in?" ...."ALMOST!" i semi-shout as i'm facing the inside of my car, reaching for the bottle of christmas gift wine. by the time i turn around, he's already started to walk up the stairs to his place. probably because he got the feeling i didn't want to chat, but in reality, i was merely scrambling to load up so fast so that i could catch him! curses.

i walk in the door and tell KH my sad tale of awkwardness and disappointment.

KH: me and luke think you should TOTALLY date him!
me: i don't know, he seems kind of sophisticated. i'm not sure i can handle that.
KH: come on, Laura, you won't know until you get to know him. invite him to our b-day party next week!
me: great idea! but wait. i think it might be a lost cause. when i saw him at the centennial he was carrying 2 cases of michelob ultra, which could only mean 2 things: he is either a super health nut who works out all the time (in which case relating to a corner-cutter such as myself would be like someone trying to tell me that Hanson isn't that awesome...and we all know that doesn't end well). OR, he has a girlfriend and they drink it together and work out all the time and have perfect lives already. see? i lose again.
KH: wow.

so, in the duration of 30 minutes, i have speculated that 1. this guy is super smart, sophisticated and therefore way out of my league. 2. already thinks i'm one of those people who doesn't want help and is an awkward teenie bopper giggler 3. he has a girlfriend already and she is probably perfect and why would he even give 2 craps about a neurotic girl with a equally neurotic chihuahua?

all i can say is, NO WONDER.

love/miss/namaste.

cut them corners

i recently got a membership to 24 hour fitness. this is a huge step/commitment/undertaking for me because 1. i haven't worked out on a regular basis since i was in high school and in the best shape of my life, 2. when i start something, i rarely see it out to the end...i usually get SUPER into it at first, buy a ton of accessories (crap) to accompany my new obsession, and drop it once i realize that i'm just mediocre at it. and 3. i'm always complaining how busy i am, so fitting in a workout routine into my melodramatic life seems like trying to fit another necklace on my adorable fabric-covered cork board (shameless DiY plug).

plus, i'm a corner cutter when it comes to working out, which has resulted in an abnormally weak core (people are always talking about "strengthening your core"...psh), shotty joints (because i rest on them when i get tired...all. the. time.), and a body that is basically made up of bones with a layer of skin over them and a butt that looks like it's filled to the brim with a substance that can only be described as "fluid". i'm telling you, in HS, i perfected the fake run...which is basically a walking march with flailing shoulders. i once tried to workout with FBF* when he was doing this "belly-off" thing and i barely made it through the warm-up. not endearing. i also have a bad back, which i excuse for my poor form in exercises targeting glutes and quads...but then i think to myself, is my bad back a result of said poor form? chicken or the egg?! i don't know.

so anyway, CC and i have been hitting up the classes at 24 hour. we like the yoga at preston center on tuesdays, the instructor is legit. she has a really calming voice and uses phrases like "heart space" and "push away the negative energy," so we know we're getting our money's worth. on wednesdays we do the 24Lift class at royal, which is a total body "lean muscle building" workout where you use a barbell, dumbells, a step and a mat...purty intense, my friends. this is a tough class for me, which i make visibly obvious throughout the duration of the hour by my strained facial expressions and whispering the syllable "shiiii" after each set (according to CC)...which usually causes both of us to crack up and get a simultaneous ab workout. the step class at the location right by work is out of the question...we spent 30 minutes hopping around like a couple of apes trying to keep up with all the MILFs in bebe workout gear and then gave up.

i'm hoping that by at least sticking with these 2 classes, i'll cut corners less and less. although it will take me longer than the average 23*-year old to get back in shape, i'll get there...sacrificing my lower back and joints in the process. c'est la vie.


you may be asking, "hey, what happened to lyric week?"
well...i'll tell you: posting hanson lyrics, i realize now, makes me look like i'm either trying super hard to show my artistic-ness or that i'm trying to get a boyfriend (because i'm obviously single if i'm posting that nonesense). especially because my next 2 picks were if only and fire on the mountain. i'll let you check those out for yourself...but you probably won't. i just like 'em, especially the former...

love/miss/namaste.

*FBF - former boyfriend.
*i'm going to be 24 in a WEEK, boomshackalacka.

why are people stupid?

i like to read us weekly, i just do. i also love to hate liking it, for reasons like this:

Taylor & Taylor: A SECRET ROMANCE

referring to Taylor Swift and Taylor Lautneywautney (you know, the hottie werewolf who was undateable a mere 4 years ago, but i'd still hit that). my question is, if said relationship is a "secret romance", then why is it on the cover of a GD* magazine? i'm just sayin'.

*gosh darn, or whatever.

what i dressed up as for halloween:

WWIIILLLLMMMAAAAAi was Wilma Flintstone...homemade

heather was a butterfly/ballerina...adorable

penny was a witch :)
also - her surgery went well. we found out that she was actually pregnant...which, in her state was life threatening. she probably got jumped when she was living on the streets (that makes me tear up...poor thing, she's still a puppy!). the vet said that while obviously the puppy (there was only 1) would be half chihuahua, it looked really large and would definitely kill her if we went through with the pregnancy. plus, it was probably all sorts of unhealthy, since when we got penny, she had a tapeworm AND ringworm... it was a very sad situation. my dad picked her up from the vet today and she's doing really well. we're all kind of sad about the whole thing...but we're really glad she's ok now.

bos was my little pumpkin

HANSON
aka. best night ever.

at one point in the night...
Liz: "Zach is HOOOTTTTT"
Zach: "Thanks"
Liz: "he talked to me. did you hear that?"


love/miss/namaste.

I Will Come to You, from Middle of Nowhere (1997)

when you have no light to guide you, and no one to walk beside you
i will come to you, oh i will come to you
when the night is dark and stormy, you won't have to reach out for me
cause i will come to you, oh i will come to you

sometimes when all your dreams may have seen better days
and you don't know how or why, but you've lost your way
have no fear when your tears are falling, i will hear your spirit calling
and i swear that i'll be there, come what may

i'll reach out and take your hand
i will come to you.

(shout out to my homies)...that part's not in the song.

snippets of Get Up and Go, from Underneath (2004)

what could i give when you've got all you need?
and she looks at me and all i want's a little free
every time i look at you it makes me see that it's alright, it's alright
we'll get away, be in love, we can make it better
all we need's a little time for us to get together
happiness is just a step away and it's alright, it's alright

just a girl like you, and maybe just a guy like me
maybe we can take a walk on the wild side
take a look and see, get up and go

seems like love has always found a way
but there's only so many hours in a day
all that i know is that you're here with me and it's alright, it's alright
won't you tell me that you need me so bad
you are everything i've never had, oh
every time i look at you it hurts so bad
and it's alright, it's alright.


(dear God, please send me a boy who says nice things like this to me. thanksiloveyou.)

in the spirit for lyric week.

hi there.
my last post / recent events have given me a great idea: lyric week.

i don't consider myself a connoisseur of anything, but i know what i like and what inspires me. my personal choices may not be your cup of tea, but you may also read and think, "hey, i dig that too. we have something in common." and then we can exchange inspiration sources (which is something i love to do). also, i just went to see my favorite band last night: Hanson. now i will go on a rant, please excuse me.

do i understand that they are a boy band of the 90's who had their biggest (by that i mean, most widely known) hit single before 2 out of 3 of them hit puberty? yes. were they in their awkward phase when they got the most media attention and MTV air time? yes (but lets be honest with each other here, it was the 90's. we all looked like dunces). do they write all their own music? yes. have they come out with albums consistently over the last decade that keep getting better and better, yet all songs remain timeless? yes. do they spend a great deal of their time and energy serving the underprivileged and forgotten children in Africa? yes. are they stand-up dudes who have wives and children and could care less about being famous, only wanting to contribute positivity and hopefulness to the world through their art? yes. are they smoking hot? absolutely.

so i'm sorry if when someone says, HANSON, what are you, 11? or, HANSON, are they STILL around? and i fire back using 4-letter words. if Hanson is not your music taste, that is completely fine and understandable, music is subjective and i get that. but if you have all sorts of "hilarious opinions" of them when the only song you've heard was MMBOP and the last time you listened to it you were wearing ginkos and sitting in the back of a suburban while your mom drove you to the mall, then you are ignorant. just sayin'. i'll get off my high horse now, sorry folks. i have a lot of "Hanson-is-a-really-legit-band-and-i'll-prove-it-to-you" CD compilations to burn this week, so that has me all worked up. the funny thing is that chances are, if you're reading this, you're not one of those people (because you're my friend). i just had to get it off my chest, you know?

that being said, it's laura's lyric week! first up: hanson favorites, of course.

love/miss/namaste.