Tuesday, October 14, 2008 | 31 responses | Filed Under: Photabulous & Why I Love Demerol
Testing…
One… Two… Three.
Can you guys hear me alright out there in the cheap seats? Great. Then let's get this party started, shall we?
Welcome to my first official post from Alabama. Madison, Alabama to be exact. It's a very nice little place just outside of Huntsville whose points of interest include a movie theater that serves both alcohol and sushi, a friendly neighborhood Starbucks barista who insists on giving me free coffee (yippee), and a babysitter in guise of a sister.
A babysitter.
Now, let me be perfectly clear here:
Shoe shopping without any spending money is depressing.
However, shoe shopping without any spending money while you're sipping on your free venti no-whip mocha with an extra shot while your children are happily spending a few hours with someone else is orgasmic.
Alabama is also home to a bit of family— particularly my mother, two sisters (One fairly normal. The other often referred to as the "cracked egg"), and my niece. Therefore, there has been an inhumane amount of screaming, fit-pitching, name-calling, and all out insanity over the last few weeks… Just like the good ol' days.
By the by, did you know that "Ring Around the Rosie" is actually about the bubonic plague???
It seems that one of the early signs of the plague was a rosie red rash with a dark ring around it… And since the common belief was that the illness was brought on by bad smells, people carried around poseys and other small bushels of flowers to serve as a counteraction.
That "ashes, ashes" part actually refers to what was left after the mass cremations, of course.
Humph.
I guess it just goes to show that a little tune and a clever verse or two can make any kind of situation (even the plague) a little more joyful.
Now if only I could figure out something that rhymes with "How in the hell did I forget that my family is totally insane? Isn't that why I've been living so far away from them for so long? Is free Starbucks really worth all of this? And where did I put that bottle of vodka…"
October 14, 2008
wow! welcome back to the world of the living!! i mean, the internet.
missed you, darlin'. what's new? ;-)
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October 16th, 2008
Thanks, hon! And new??? Nothing. And Everything. LOL
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October 14, 2008
Well lookie what we have here! Glad you are settled. That is incredibly creepy about that verse.
Hope you find your bottle!
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October 16th, 2008
I found it… Unfortunately, it was empty. But then again, that makes perfect sense!
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October 14, 2008
Welcome back! Whew… you have been sorely missed! I knew that about the rhyme… kinda gives me an 'eewww' feeling when I hear it now.
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October 16th, 2008
Thank you!! And, yes, "ewwww" about covers it, I think…
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October 14, 2008
bwah-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha! I just MOVED away from my crazy family and I LOVE IT.
so I guess what I'm really saying is neiner neiner neiner.
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October 16th, 2008
There's bound to be a virtual way of sticking your tongue out at someone… As soon as I figure out how, I'll be back. :)
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October 14, 2008
HOLY CRAP! She is ALIVE! ALIVE I TELL YOU! I was waiting to find out funeral dates for Pete's sake. So glad your all settled in. Don't take another year to report in again!
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October 16th, 2008
Sorry, hon. (But you remember how crazy my mother is, right????)
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October 14, 2008
So nice to read your voice again. For all the craziness a family embodies, there's something to be said for how completely we seem to belong together. I'd like to have seen my siblings more often… at least once a year ;-}
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October 16th, 2008
In the case of my family, we either completely belong together or it's written somewhere in the stars that we're supposed to kill one another. Guess we'll see soon enough, eh? :)
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October 14, 2008
Glad your back!
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October 16th, 2008
Thank you!!!
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October 14, 2008
Well, I'm glad to find out that you don't have the plague! I was a little worried what with that headline and all… :) Glad you're moved in and comfy. Family, even when crazy-making, is always good. I hope you are having a great time. Enjoy the free coffees. And fill us in on the details of the new place soon. Hugs!
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October 16th, 2008
Thanks honey!
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October 15, 2008
Honestly, it's about time you showed up…LOL
As far as the rhyme, yes I did know that but ya gotta love such an upbeat take on the black plague, makes it seem almost bearable….not unlike free Starbucks and dealing with family….
Call me when you can!
Love ya…. ya "Pyscho"
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October 15th, 2008
Dude!! I spelled "Psycho" wrong….how funny is that? LMAO
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October 16th, 2008
*Snicker* *Snicker*
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October 15, 2008
La Court has returned to the blogosphere…
Whaaahoooooo…..
Crazy family or no, at least you have a babysitter… Just lookin' on the bright side, y'know!
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October 16th, 2008
The bright side… Yeah, that's what I keep telling myself.
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October 15, 2008
Hey stranger.
I knew that about Ring around the Roses :-) I'm drugged on nyquil so I have no clever comments here.
Glad you're back and that he's still hooking you up with the free coffee.
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October 16th, 2008
And here I thought my best comments happened when I'm drugged… Take more, honey. :) (Hope you're feeling better though!)
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October 15, 2008
Here you are!
Now send me your address and the vodka is on it's way! (I found a really good potato vodka from the lovely and talented Martha Stewart. Yum!)
In fact I may go have some myself, the debate is tonight and I don't think I can make it through without a little drinking game. (Although I won't be choosing McCain's "My Friends". That one did me in last time.)
Are you watching tonight?
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October 16th, 2008
I watched… but I stopped drinking during the debates after the VP one. "Maverick" almost had me dancing on the tabletop without my shirt.
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October 15, 2008
Oh, how jealous I am of you. I would so very much love to live near my family. *sigh*
Welcome back. :)
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October 16th, 2008
…And I'm jealous of the fact that you have a family that you want to be near. Sigh. (And thanks!)
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October 16, 2008
The history major in me just had to respond to the ring around the rosie thing. (Incidentally, I hope you enjoy Alabama.) The interpretation I know claims that the "ashes, ashes," is a corruption of "Ah-choo," as in, a sneeze, which was one of the first symptoms of plague and other illnesses. Hence the tradition to this day of God-blessing people when they sneeze. Medieval Christians would have believed in the resurrection of the body and so cremation was not, I think, much practiced. Mass burial, yes.
People did carry posies to ward off poisonous smells. The ring-around-the-rosie refers to blood blisters under the skin, another symptom. "We all fall down" means just what it says — we all die.
Thanks for letting me vent on my special subject. And hey guess what! It's October 16th. Anniversary of the execution of Marie Antoinette. I could go on….
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October 16th, 2008
After reading this comment, I've decided that you and I should be the bestest of friends. Seriously. :)
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October 16th, 2008
Awesome! I could always use more of those.
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October 17, 2008
Hey Chicky…great to have you back! I know nothing a about Alabama, but I hope you're move went well:)
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