New Site

New Blog Site for everyone to look at. I’m sure I wont be doing both of these from now on.

www.tomandmegan.net

ENJOY!

That’s Enough for Now

Tom & I just experienced one of the longest weekends of the year so far.  I, obviously, wasn’t up for the task as I failed in making it through the whole thing without breaking down into tears.  

I tend to deal with stressful situations like a 5 year old; breaking down and crying to the first person who even looks at me.  Yesterday was no different.  As we were getting ready to walk into the church, and the boys were putting the casket on the carrier, I felt a huge surge of emotion hit me…than the eyes to welled up.  The thought of being in the presence of the person in the casket for the last time always seems to be a tough thing for me to grasp, even though I know that person really isn’t in there.  Death just doesn’t really make sense to me.  Don’t read me wrong here, I know death must happen, but I’ve been unable to explain that to my heart thus far.  

On top of the rough weekend, I was dealing with a sick father this past week – something I wasn’t prepared to do until further in life.  Dad’s been battling a few things recently, and it has been tough for us all to deal with at times. Long story short, I’m tapped out right now. 

I’m ready for a nice few weeks in preparation to Ireland and Mardi Gras.

Quick One

I promise not to do this too often.

1. Did you date someone from your school? yes

2. Did you marry someone from your high school? no

3. Did you car pool to school? Yes, I drove many people to school through out the 3 years of driving

4. What kind of car did you have? Some year of a Ford Taurus…it was red

5. What kind of car do you have now? Saturn Ion – also Red

6. It’s Friday night then…where were you? At a basketball game/softball game/baseball or some other sporting event…then probably just hanging out.

7. It is Friday night now…where are you? Either having a drink w/ friends or home battling Tom & Fitz in Wii Mario Kart.

8. What kind of job did you have in high school? Worked at a bagel place…I THINK that’s it.

9. What kind of job do you do now? Marketing Coordinator

10. Were you a party animal? HAHA, no.  Not in high school.

11. Were you considered a flirt? I highly doubt it.  If someone thought that, I would be very surprised.

12. Were you in band, orchestra, or choir? Choir…and Im not sure why.

13. Were you a nerd? According to who? Probably…and I still am

14. Did you get suspended or expelled? I got in trouble once because I was on my cell phone talking ot my brother because my grandpa just got sick.  Needless to say, I got out of it.

15. Can you sing the fight song? Yes I can.

16. Who was/were your favorite teacher(s)?Mr Rush, Mr Sanders, Mr Rogers…there are more.

17. Where did you sit during lunch? In the lunch room, but at different places each semester.

18. What was you school’s full name? Lutheran High School South

19. When did you graduate? 2000

20.What was you school mascot? Lancers

21. If you could go back and do it again, would you? Oh yeah.  I loved high school sports SO much, and I would certainly have been a little more social if I could do it over again…and less of a bitch.

22. Did you have fun at Prom? Yes, it was fun.  I think we just ended up going home after it though, and didn’t go to a party.

23. Do you still talk to the person you went to Prom with? at times

24. Are you planning on going to your next reunion?  Haha, no.

25. Do you still talk to people from school? Some of them.

Expecting……….A Puppy

Tom and I are officially on the waiting list to recieve a new member to our family.  It’s still in preliminary stages, but we are both very excited.  If everything works out, we will be getting a little chocolate lab girl puppy in December of ’09.  I couldn’t be more excited.

February 7th

February 7th has proven to be a tough day the past 2 years.  Last year, on this day, Connie Karr was taken from us in an unfair act of violence along with several other people who’s family’s are mourning at this hour, on this day.  

This year, on this day, Tom’s grandmother passed away.  She went peacefully, which is a way that I can only hope for all of my elders and parents.  No pain, no worries.  She is now resting with her husband up in heaven, which is a thought that keeps my heart from bursting for his family.  

Death can be so tricky.  The only death that I’ve been a huge part of was my Grandpa Gates.  He was diagnosed with cancer when I was a senior in high school.  At that time, we were told we only had months left with him.  The stubborn old man lived to be another 2 years, which I am eternally grateful for.  I got to see the loving, caring side of Grandpa which has burnt wonderful memories into my brain that I can live off of for the rest of my life.  Losing him was really tough for me, and our family.  I think most of my emotions came for watching my father struggle so much.  It’s not easy watching your father cry, and doubly painful to watch your older brother cry.  

With all of the struggle of Grandpa, hearing that Connie has passed was disturbing to me on a whole new level.  Maybe it was the way she was taken, or maybe it was the fact that I never got to say goodbye.  Either way, I struggled for weeks trying to figure out how to deal with her death.  I can only imagine how her daughter and husband felt.  After all, Lauren is only in high school and, from what Connie told me, they were VERY close.   On this day, for the rest of my life, I will take time to remember how wonderful she was.  I try to forget the way in which she was taken, as that can’t be changed now.  The best way to honor her is to remember those great memories of her, and forget about all of the pain that her death has caused.  

I assume the Hughes/Mulvihill family will do the same on this day.  Unfortunately, I never got to know Tom’s grandma that well as she was pretty sick by the time we started dating.  I’ve heard so many wonderful stories, and Tom has explained to me that his mother much closely resembles her in many ways.  So, for that reason alone, I have no choice but to think that she must have been amazing.  

That being said, I will get back to my day of remembering and spending time with my friends.

Welcome to February

It’s no secret.  I hate February.  The reasons being vast and unable to explain here without really tearing into myself.  So, in order to keep it light & positive today (and contradictory) , I am going to list a few reasons why February isn’t so bad.

1) My mom.

She was born on the first of this lovely month.  She’s a wonderful woman, with wonderful grace.  PLUS, she gave me life so I am forever thankful for that.  BUT she also gave life to my brother…haha just kidding.  I love him too, which I will explain later in this blog session.

2) We’ve made it through January.

Did you know more suicides happen in the month of January than ANY OTHER MONTH.  Yeah, weird statistic, but true.  (Or maybe I am just making it up, but you will have to google it to know for sure) January is a boring, cold month.  Good for visiting warmer places or staying in and starting a fire in the fireplace.

3) New Years Resolutions

February is still a positive month for New Years resolutions.  I am still holding on strong to mine, and doing well.  I know a few other friends who’ve shown the same positive thoughts as I do.

4) MARDI GRAS

Even though I am not a big drinker anymore, I still enjoy Mardi Gras.  The people watching you can do from walking up and down those streets is unlike anything else St. Louis has to offer, thus making it one of my fav. events.  If you go early, have a few Hurricane’s, and get home at a reasonable time, it doesn’t seem to effect you like the late night drinking does.  You still have plenty of time to sober up and hydrate before bed time.

5) March Madness

Gearing up for the excitement of March Madness is like getting ready for Christmas…except I dont have to purchase any presents for anyone else.

Now, as most know, I’m not a HUUUUUGE college basketball fan, but I do LOVE this time of the year for two main reasons.

A. I’m most likely spending a lot of time with Tom, watching him yell at the TV for calls that were legit.  This also means that I get to see the Mulvihill family in action as well.  A sight that I don’t see enough anymore

B. The table discussions and family rivalry with the CUBE Classic & other betting pools.  Around this time of year, the Becker/Gates family all gets into one pool and tries to show each other up.  Of course, I have yet to enter for fear of getting dominated…but my mother seems to have the pool all figured out.  THIS YEAR IS MY YEAR FOLKS.

6) More Time with Friends & Family

Since so many of my fam was born is this crazy month, it means I get to see them more often.  I am ALL KINDS of about that   Plus, this means my friends start coming out of the coma that January induces.

7) My Brother

He’s my buddy & born on Feb 20th.  I love him dearly and can’t thank God enough that I have a sibling that I love and trust.  Plus, he is the oldest, so mom and dad got all of their bad parenting out on him….making me PERFECT.  (dad is laughing somewhere right now)

8 ) My Step Dad

Oh that’s right, another family member born in Feb.  He is the love of my mother’s life, and has made her happier than I’ve ever seen her.  Trust me, if you know Jerry, you love him.  He’s my Jer-Bear, and I also thank God for him every day.

9) My grandparents

While my grandparents weren’t born in February, I found the need to honor them in my posting for a few reasons.

1) Without all 4 of them, I would not be here today.

2) My grandma & grandpa Becker use to take LOOOONG vacations to Florida around this time of year, occasionally missing my birthday festivities.  (For some reason, not having them in town seemed like a tragedy for me.)  They no longer do this, which I am eternally grateful for.

10)  My birthday is this month, but what I am most happy for is the fact that I’ve shared it with so many wonderful people.  I was reminded of a birthday celebration a while back (grade school days) with Katie Funk.  We had a bowling party together and it was so much fun.  I felt so special that day.  On top of that, there is Trisha Tolentino who was a floor mate of mine from college.  I will never forget her barging in my room, while i was trying to write a paper, singing a Ludacris song.

Adding onto that list are Michelle Mulvihill, Jessie Kuryla & Jessica Riggs.  Michelle is Tom’s sister-in-law and a soon-to-be mommy.  We are all VERY excited about the new addition to the Mulvihill family.  Jessie Kuryla (sounds like Gorilla, but with a K) was an old room mate of mine from college to just recent.  She is 10 times more intense about her bday than I am, but also made me realize how special that day should be for each of us.  Last, but not least, is Jess Riggs.  She’s my bro’s gf, and mother to my sweet nephew Cooper (he’s a puppy dog everyone).  We all love her very much.

So there you have it.  My top ten reason to stay positive during this month.  I’m feeling pretty good about it now.

P.S. Alisha Johnson was not born this month, but does INDEED need to be mentioned in this note due to her therapy  skills this past month.  Thanks Alisha, your kindness is dually noted.

Today Sucks…

Enough said…

LaMartina Home Improvements

I took pictures for a home improvement web site.  They are up and running.  Check them out.

www.lamartinagroup.com

Feel free to comment on my blog about what you see.  Criticism is very welcome.

It’s Now My Reality

I swore that I would never get involved with reality TV.  I remember thinking that it was the biggest waste of time you could ever spend, short of watching your hair dry.  But then I sat on the couch one lonely afternoon and discovered a show that would forever change my perspective on the subject.

Enter Laguna Beach.

This show was my turning point for reality shows.  I am going to skip ahead a few years and move onto what I REALLY want to talk about here…THE CHARM SCHOOL REUNION FIGHT!

HOW AWESOME WAS THAT?  I feel very strongly that Megan should have her ovaries removed and never be able to reproduce.  What a terrible life ambition – to be a trophie wife and do nothing with yourself besides display your naked body around town.  What happens when your body heads south and plastic surgery can’t fix the wrinkles and lines that pop up.  There are only so many times you can get botox people.

I’m super happy that the two finalist were who they were.  Unfortunately, I did not want Heather to win.  I think she’s a little too far ahead of herself with this “A” list deal.  You don’t get to A-list status by being a stripper, and you CERTAINLY don’t get there by being on a reality show.  It takes talent and a lot more brains that Heather has shown at this point.  That being said, she certainly has potential, and I really did like her through most of the season.

Most of the girls on that show really have a lot more to learn than what Sharon could teach them in a few weeks.  Unfortunately, they don’t make money off of learning everyday lessons.  As long as people still pay them to take their clothes off, they will continue to do so.  It’s a sad use of a woman’s body.

The Worst Music Review EVER!

I have to admit, I am a stranger to music’s actual reach in the world.  That being said, I feel as if I have a few good musical influences who bring in the new and keep with the old, if ya know what I mean.

2008 has been a semi-medium music listening year for me.  I’ve gone to more concerts this year than ever, but they were not new bands in my portfolio…they were old listeners.  HOWEVER, I have been put in touch with Pandora.com which happens to be the best way to sneak new musical stylings into my ears.  I have nothing but amazing things to say about Pandora Radio.  It’s almost as if they know EXACTLY what I want to hear, WHEN I want to hear it.  HOW DO THEY DO THAT?

Below are the albums that straight up move me.  Granted, they are CD’s I’VE listened too, which means everyone else listened to them last year or 10 years ago. I’m slow to the up-take.

Death Cab for Cutie – Plans

I was introduced to this album through the song “I will follow you into the dark,” which was probably one of the worst songs to start off on, but I made it through.  The lyrics start off with “Love of mine, someday you will die…” and my first thoughts were “WHAT THE HELL IS THIS CRAP?!?!?”

I remember the exact moment like it was yesterday.  I was at Butler, in Tom’s car, riding to Broadripple on Saturday to get something to eat.  We were turning left, just past the football field and this song came on.  I remember giving Tom the weirdest look as he turned up the volume and asked me to be patient and listen on.  That’s exactly what I did…and after listening carefully I realized that I loved everything about that song…it’s lyrics, it’s melody…everything.  From then on, I overplayed that song like a bad Britney Spears song on z-1077.  After I moved past Follow You, realized there were other songs on the CD, I fell in love with every song.  Most of them caught me with their lyrics, but a good handful caught me with the melody and background piano.  I feel so mellow when listening to this CD, and it brings back a lot of good memories from Butler and also driving around St. Louis…blasting Death Cab (yeah I’m cool)

I still reference that CD for a good pull quote to match my mood(s).  I highley recommend this one.

Foo Fighters – In Your Honor

My love for Foo Fighters came from one of their acoustic songs played on a TV show many years ago.  From there, I started listening just a little more until it got to this album.  In Your Honor is a double CD that plays to two different audiences (both me).  The first CD closely matches their current and old style of rock, diving into songs like Best of You or In Your Honor.  (Best of You is the reason I purchased the album in the first place)

Once you think you’ve heard enough hard rock for one day, you go and put in their 2nd CD and find that it has a much softer, acoustic feel for the Foo than usual.  My HANDS DOWN fav on this CD was Another Round.  This song encases some of the main emotions that I felt at the time and puts them into words that express me even better than I could ever hope to through a song.  This whole CD let’s me kind of slip away for a while, which is something I look for in an artist.

Incubus – Morning View

I can’t remember my first experience with Incubus, but I can remember one of my most memorable times with this CD and a family member.  In the winter of 2002, I was at the hospital with my brother and Grandpa Gates.  Greg and I were keeping him company in his room while he slept.  Grandpa was on his last leg of a battle with cancer and we were all trying to spend as much time with him as possible.

I was sitting in the window of the room, with my headphones on, doing a little homework and Just a Phase came on.  At that time I can remember looking up at grandpa and my brother (who was sitting right next to him) and thinking about the harshness of the moment.  We were, in all honesty, sitting in a room watching my grandfather pass away.  But the thought didn’t get to me like I thought it would.  Don’t get me wrong, I was really upset by the death of my grandpa, but being in the room with him & my brother made me feel so safe.  It was the strangest feeling that I thought I could have at that time, but one I can’t forget.

The song Just a Phase has very little to do with the actual feelings of this memory, but it certainly links me back to them every time I think of or hear this song.  It helps me remember one of the last moments with Grandpa Gates which is something I will never forget.

That being said, I listened to this album so much more after this moment and loved everything about it.  It’s one of the only ones I can stick into my CD player and play every song on the CD without hitting the “next” button.  And, it links me to one of the most challenging times in my life, which just reminds me of how strong I am.

I know there are more.  Give me time to think, and I will be back at you.