TGB Digital Diary

I can't believe the hloidays are through!

2006-01-04T11:03:00.000-05:00

I have been so consumed with other things that I haven’t written in my diary for a while now. I’m sure I will leave some things out in here but I won’t forget them in my mind.

Christmas and New Year’s was excellent. I got me a tool belt, a police scanner, gold hoop earrings, DVD’s, and all sorts of other things. Brea got a diamond and gold bracelet, DVD’s, shirts, sleep pants, and again, all sorts of stuff. Carrie drove down to N.C. with us the day after Christmas and my dad gave her a Gibson, double neck guitar! The girl was afraid to touch it when she opened it and cried her eyes out! It was a great gift for her and a very nice thing for my dad to do. The trip was fun itself, and we played with the twins and with Maddy, they are getting so big and precious. Carrie, Brea and I went into some old worn down country houses for fun and we found an old record player that still works. No telling how old it is. It needs some cleaning up.

I have a new project I’m working on, as of today when I’m through typing in my diary, but it has nothing to do with the band, I’m going to write another book that will hopefully get published. With the idea that I have, I will be able to have volume after volume and who knows what will come of it. I’m still working on the project for the band that’s been in the air for a year and a half now, still haven’t given up on it. I also have another show idea I’m going to put together in my spare time. It has to do with the band, but focuses more so on something else that a lot of people have interest in.

It’s been nice not playing out as much as we were used to. It’s spoiling me a little bit. I’ll never let the band go, but there is nothing wrong with taking breaks. No need to kill ourselves unless we need to, right? And we are getting OLDER!

Brea’s first day back to work was yesterday. I hated to see her leave, that spoiled me too. I love having her around, all the time!

It's a major award, and it's fragile...

2005-12-19T13:53:00.000-05:00

This past week and weekend has been really good. I was slam busy on Friday. I got up with Brea and went out to finish up all my Christmas shopping. I had just enough time to get back here and wrap them and then I had to head out to get the U-Haul for Carrie’s Christmas party that night. We had to be there early, the show was to get started at 8pm but we waited a little bit so more folks could show up. The show went over really well. It was a party, but nothing like Brea’s. Carrie got a little sh*t faced but the rest of us didn’t do much but drink a few beers.

Brea finished up her shopping on Saturday and brought home something I’ve been dying to have since I was a little girl… the leg lamp, from the movie A Christmas Story! It’s a miniature leg lamp! I love it! I can’t believe I have one of my own now! While she did her shopping I gave Stevie a haircut and a bath to get her ready for the holidays.

On Sunday we opened a gift each, again. We can’t help it; it’s something we do! I got the best thing ever, a police scanner! I can pick up all sorts of stuff, you wouldn’t believe it. I still have to learn how to use it correctly. There’s a lot of programming and stuff involved. I gave her the best gift too. Something she’s been wanting for a long time, a classic PS2 game that has Pac-man, Galaxa, Pole Position, Dig-dug and a bunch of other old 80’s video games all in one. I couldn’t keep her off it yesterday! It made me feel good, that I got her something she wanted.

Today we are going to take Stevie to Petsmart when Brea gets home from work. We have to get the kids some things and Stevie has wanted to go and hang out with her friends. She also has a few presents of her own to buy for her closest buddies. I love strolling her around in her stroller, especially in stores. And Stevie thinks she is something else when she’s in it. It’s the cutest thing!

We made a ginger bread house!

2005-12-14T10:51:00.000-05:00

Brea had a rough day at work yesterday. It seems everyone was having a bad day. I told her to just smile and know that in a few days she will begin her vacation and that right now a lot of people are stressed out because of the holidays.

Carrie said her girlfriend was really sick, with bronchitus and such. Carrie isn't feeling that well either. I hope they both get plenty of rest and start feeling better before this weekend. It's their company Christmas party Friday night and I'd hate the thought of them being there, miserable. I pray for all to be healthy and to feel good on Christmas day!

Last night Brea and I stepped out to pick up a few things. One of the thigs we got was a ginger bread house kit. My woman wanted a ginger bread house and has never had one before, so when we got home I started to make it and she helped me decorate and finish it off. It is so cute and has the whole house smelling just right for Christmas. I didn't expect it to be able to smell it as much as you do, but we love it! We also bought Billy Blanks new workout DVD's and will be starting those today. From what we've seen so far we are going to be worn slam out when we're done! It'll be fun though.

We have some stress on us, not much and it's all beacuse of other people!

Hangovers from hell!

2005-12-13T11:49:00.000-05:00

The remote this past Thursday was really fun. Lisa, the girl I always hang out with, brought her mother along. She even won something the radio station was giving away which made it cool since it was her first time coming out. I think she’ll be back this Thursday as well. We had a few men hitting on all of us, and they were cute too. I can admire beautiful men and women, but that doesn’t mean that I want to be with a man or cheat on my woman either. It doesn’t matter who’s flirting with ya, as long as they’re flirting. We’ll worry when it stops but for now we eat it up, as women should do.

Friday night Brea and I exchanged one gift each. We couldn’t wait, as usual. We go through this sort of thing every year. She gave me this beautiful chalk portrait of Marilyn Monroe in a matted frame and I gave her a pair of diamond earrings set in white gold. We were both very happy with our gifts. But we had one problem. Brea has more than one piercing in her ears and you could tell the difference between the real diamonds and the cubic zirconium ones. So Saturday morning we got up and went back to J.B.R.’s at the mall and I bought her another pair. They look good! We had to get out of the house anyways to do some shopping and while we were there we ate some lunch, it was fun.

Well, we get ready for the show at a friend’s condo that is right beside the crab house where Brea’s company party was being held. All I know is everyone had a real good time. Christie Michael got up on the microphone with us, as did a few other d.j.’s and people Brea works with. It was truly a Christmas party, that’s all I can say. I had been to a few of these parties in the past with Brea and I have to say they were nothing like this one. People were drinking and laughing and dancing and really letting loose, including ourselves. I was sick in the bathroom along with other girls, and guys were taking their clothes off and girls were all over each other on the dance floor… all in all, a pretty normal night for THAT GIRL BAND! haha My baby, oh, my poor baby… was wasted. This was at the end of the night so she didn’t make a fool of herself in front of anyone. I had to physically carry her down the stairs, and we almost went tumbling down the stairs and this is when I though I was going to have my first heart attack! It scared me so bad! And I carried her outside, and had to hold her against the railing, then drag her to the van… it was a mess. The worse was when we got home and I finally got her settled in bed. I had this projectile puke thing going on and couldn’t make it to the bathroom because I was in the middle of undressing and my pants were around my ankles, so I ended up puking on my side of the bedroom on the floor, so then I was stuck cleaning that up and I was falling all over the place. It was a mess, literally.

Sunday, the whole day, was terrible. My woman couldn’t move, not even an inch, without getting nauseous and puking. She couldn’t keep anything down and finally stopped puking around 9 that night. I took care of her the best I could. I was in the same boat as her, I was able to keep things down though. She needed the sleep and the rest anyway. She had started, ya know, and she had been working so much, she had just done a commercial for charity, a remote, worked all day, and on top of it all sick, and not to mention we only had lunch the day before. She was still feeling bad yesterday, now the cold symptoms were rearing its evil head again. So I got up and escorted her to and from work so I wouldn’t worry about her being on the road, she was still a little dizzy and sick feeling. While she was at work I got busy with the house cleaning. I mopped, dusted, did the laundry, gave Stevie a bath, washed out the downstairs bathroom, cleaned the rugs and all the rest of the stuff I normally do. By the time I was done it was time to go and pick Brea up from work. She was feeling much better, thank God. I hated her being so sick, and there was really nothing I could do for her but cater to her needs. She bought me a card to thank me for taking care of her which I thought was so sweet. She is the most thoughtful woman I know, and I have her, and she’s mine, and I love her! She told me that everyone at all the stations had a wonderful time and that it was the best Christmas party the company has ever had and that that’s all their talking about, still. That makes me feel good, we all had a great time that’s for sure!

Brea got up this morning with no problems. She was coughing a whole lot trying to get the congestion out of her chest. I’m going to get her some good medicine today that will hopefully knock it out of her. To be perfectly honest with you I still haven’t really eaten since Saturday. I have puked so much from drinking in this band that I have messed something up. My esophagus and the top of my mouth and the back of my throat hurt so bad when I try to chew or swallow anything, and that includes some liquids as well. A few bites here and there, I’ve starving. I’ve had this happen several times in the past but it would only last a day at the most. This is Tuesday and it still hasn’t gone away. I know what it’s from, all the acids in my stomach coming back up is not good for me, especially if you think about how much drinking and puking I’ve done these past few years.

I’m going to do some more work on this puter then do some exercises, to get my muscles and joints moving, and then take a hot shower to get ready for my woman when she gets home.

Keep the germs to yourself!

2005-12-08T14:44:00.000-05:00

It really seems like everyone is sick these days, and I’m thanking my lucky stars I haven’t caught anything yet, knock on wood. Brea was really feeling under the weather yesterday along with Carrie and Henry. I hope they all can just make it through the next two weekends because of the Christmas parties. It’ll all work out, we’ve played under worse conditions before.

We had practice last night and Brea’s friend Katie came over to rehearse a couple of songs we play so at Brea’s party this weekend she’s going to get up on stage with us and sing. She is a really nice and pretty girl, with a wonderful personality. We all were up there laughing and joking around, all the while practicing the songs we’re going to be doing but haven’t performed in over three years. She stuck around after practice for a few minutes to hang out and to get to know each other a bit more. She’s a good friend of, get this, one of the N-Sync guys, I forgot which one but she’s in constant contact with him and his family.

Today had been a draggy day for me. I think it’s almost that time of the month, I can just feel it. I hate it! I hope it comes and goes by the time Christmas gets here. We’re going to Brea’s remote tonight at the same old country place, Saddle Ridge. I believe Katie and some others girls are going to meet us out there to have a few drinks, and of course I know I’m going to run into my bar buddy, Lisa, whom I haven’t seen in two weeks. So I know we have a lot of catching up to do. It should be fun.

Tomorrow morning I have to get out of the house pretty early to pick up some of Brea’s presents and I also have some grocery shopping to do. I’m wondering if it’s too early to go ahead and buy Christmas dinner too. We’ll see… I can’t wait for Christmas and for Brea’s Christmas vacation to start. The 23rd is her last day for almost two weeks! Yeah for our kids and me!!!

I am beginning to get agitated with Mitty’s. We played there two weeks ago and still haven’t gotten paid for it yet. I don’t like the idea of people owing us money out there, and it’s a pretty big chunk too. This has been the longest we’ve gone waiting to get paid from a gig, even from out of town gigs, and I’m not digging it too much. Carrie and Henry really depend on their pay from the band to help them with their living expenses so it’s not cool.

Will be back soon!

I'm keeping warm... & staying at home!

2005-12-06T12:03:00.000-05:00

I meant to write in here yesterday, but I was overwhelmed with house things and had to go out into the cold. I took Stevie with me to keep me company and to get her out of the house some. She is very heat sensitive and gets hot pretty fast so the winter is the best time of the year for her, she loves it while walking around with her little t-shirt and scarf on. Lisa made her a TGB scarf last year and we always break it out in the winter to keep her sweet little neck warm. I think Lisa is going to try and make Stitch a little something to wear along to match Stevie. That’ll be real cute. Plus, I was a little stressed out which Brea took care of when she got home. I didn’t even want to talk about it until she asked me over and over again and sure enough I felt a bit better after I talked to her, she always makes me feel good but sometimes I hate the idea of bothering her with things that really don’t even have anything to do with us, but the close people to us.

It was cold at the beach over the weekend but I wore my fur coat so I didn’t feel too much of anything. I have a feeling I’m going to be wearing that a lot this year. Sekshun 8 was a fun band to play with and we had a great time with them. We are already planning to do another show with them. Maybe we’ll have another band with us, hopefully not and if we do it ain’t going to be another girl band. That’s all I will say about that!

Sunday Brea took her mom to get her hair done and out to eat. I stayed back to allow them some alone time together. They don’t get to spend that much time together by themselves like my mom and I do. While she was out she picked me up a few presents and some wrapping paper. I’m dying to know what I’ve gotten so far. This weekend some time I must get to my _________ to pick up two of her special gifts. (I have to leave it blank in case she reads this)

Lisa stopped by for a few minutes yesterday and so did Carrie. Lisa dropped off some candy and Christmas cards and Carrie needed to pick up some music that we’re going to be working on. I decided that it would be no better time to break out the Soco and Eggnog so we all had a glass to toast to the holidays.

I spoke to my brother this morning. Things are great in N.C. I heard my Aunt Caroline went back to her husband that she separated from a few months ago. That bothers me a little bit and I hope everything is going alright for her. She has yet to call and tell me about it and she supposedly went back to him last weekend. I’m waiting…

This weekend is Brea’s company Christmas party, once again, down at the oceanfront. I know she’s anxious to show off for everybody but I just want to get it over with. I know she has put a lot of time into this one show and will continue to do so until we play that night. I just hope she relaxes and remembers that we do this all the time and everything is going to work out fine. I have to call and reserve that d*mn U-haul van. God, that sucks! The past few gigs we’ve been able to use our van and I was getting back used to it.

Practice tonight, and tomorrow.

Remote night for BOB.FM!

2005-12-01T11:34:00.000-05:00

The band had practice last night and we came to discover we will be doing some songs that Brea, Carrie and I used to do when we first started in this band. It was pretty funny; Carrie and I remembered our parts like clockwork! The two of us had the other three laughing their tails off! It’ll be fun doing these songs again, since we haven’t done them in so long and all these songs have been requested for the Christmas parties we’ll soon be doing.

I spoke to our personal belly dancer yesterday and she told me that she will be getting on stage with us this Saturday night at our show. She’s really good and I’m looking forward to it. She told me she is going to be down at the beach pretty much all day because she is also on a float that is going to be in the lights parade show the city is having only a couple of hours away from our show. Traffic is going to be awful so I’m glad she gave me the heads up on everything, we’re going to have to leave really early that evening.

Tonight we have a remote at the same country bar we’ve been going to, Saddle Ridge. I get to meet up with all my friends on that side and catch up on things that have happened the past week or so. I’m making a big pot of spaghetti for dinner. I’m actually going to cook it early so when Brea gets home we can squeeze our exercises in, heat up our dinner and eat it all up and then get ready to go to the bar. I think Debb, Brea’s sister, is going along with us tonight. She mentioned it going on Thanksgiving and then again when we went over to Brea’s mom’s house for her party.

Going for now, will be back soon!

My woman is the best!

2005-11-30T12:41:00.000-05:00

Thanksgiving was a blast! The night before we had practice and what turned out to be a little get together which included my brother and his wife, Lisa, Carrie, Heather and eventually her girlfriend, and Brea and me. There was a little drama involved, but nothing to do with Brea and me. Tommy and Jenny were getting a kick out of it all and were setting back watching and laughing like they were watching a movie! They love coming over here to witness first hand all the things we try to tell them. I had them laughing their butts off all night long by telling them different stories that’s happened, like the puppy I just rescued and Brea’s wiener commercial. The night didn’t end until 3am Thanksgiving morning when we were so pooped we were about to pass out. I’m sure the beer and liquor had nothing to do with it either!

We woke up on Thanksgiving and finished cooking our dishes that we were to carry to our parents’ house. Then we spent some time at Brea’s parent’s eating and talking to her brothers and sisters. Brea’s sister Debbie, the one that used to be in our band, makes me laugh so hard when I’m around her, she’s a mess. After that we met my family at my mom’s house and ate some more. I got the chance to visit with my cousin Diane from Florida and reminisced about the old days, when my mom and dad were married and we lived in North Carolina and she and my other cousin Dawn used to come and spend every summer with us. We had a pool and everything else kids and teenagers could get into.

Our show at Mitty’s went really well! The place was packed and the crowd seemed to really love us. We were getting compliments left and right and people were up dancing and drinking! Everything you can ask for while playing in a band at a new place. We’ll be going back soon. We had a room at the hotel that’s connected to the club but everyone decided to come on home after the show, plus Jizz had to be at work the next morning.

As for the rest of the weekend, we just laid around the house, ate, played video games and watched movies. We did go our a few times though. Once for Brea’s mom’s little birthday party Brea’s dad was giving her. We’re also taking her on Friday to get her hair done and to treat her to lunch. One of Brea’s sister’s is selling her 4-bedroom trailer for a really good price so we went and looked at it too. It’s just too small for us. We have a pretty big place now as it is and we already feel a little cramped, so we couldn’t imagine trying to buy something smaller. We always said if we could see ourselves retiring there we would probably buy it, whatever it may be.

Yesterday was a busy day for me. It was more like my Mondays’ usually are, laundry, cleaning and such. The funniest thing happened to me. I don’t know what’s going on with me and my housekeeping skills but I’ve been slipping. Lisa was here with me visiting and I decided to boil some eggs to keep in the fridge for lunch and snacks, as I normally do because I work out a lot, and I’m getting older, and need the protein. Anyway, we got to talking and I totally forgot about the water boiling and before you knew it my favorite noodle pot, the one I eat out of that’s different from our nice set, was almost on fire! Lisa and I were running around trying to figure out what the smell was and then we figured it out! I was so upset! It’s not the first time something like this has happened to me! But this was my favorite pot, like my bowl cause I eat out of it! I set it outside and waited for Brea to get home so we could give it a proper disposel. I had laughed about it over the phone with her before she got off from work and my sweetie pants stopped by two different thrift stores on her way home to get me a new one. That was one of the sweetest and most thoughtful things anyone has ever done for me! It was like Christmas to me. It’s a new pot but old like my old one! The new pot is perfect and looks almost like my old one and I should be able to cook and twirl my noodles and hot sauce in it just fine. I’ll find out soon enough. Been trying to get everything ready for the holidays. I even filled out my Christmas cards last night so Brea could mail them out today.

Lots to do today for the band, including practice. I also have a few things I need to get straightened out with our beach house too. They’re trying to over charge me… I’m not having it.

Gobble, Gobble, Gobble...

2005-11-23T15:21:00.000-05:00

I was feeling a bit under the weather yesterday, feeling drowsy most of the day. I managed to go to the grocery store to pick up a few more things for Thanksgiving. I talked and chatted with the old folks as I usually do and heard some pretty funny stories.
I also tried to put up my outside Christmas lights but half of them were blown out so I ended up throwing them away, it kind-a p*ssed me off. Oh well, I’ll have to get some more.

We had practice last night, without Henry. Carrie walked in the house with a box of beer and I almost died laughing. That girl gets me some times. It was just us girls going over our music. It was mainly Carrie showing Heather the guitar parts she will soon be playing with us. She left here with the tabs to seven new songs and says she’ll be ready to play them. I think she will, she is a quick learner and actually listens to us when we say or suggest something. She doesn’t seem to mind criticism or trying to learn new things, and that’s a good thing. We have practice again tonight, hopefully to get Heather ready to play with us Friday night at Mitty’s. It’s going to be a short and sweet show. We will play from 9-10pm and then again from 11-12am. I love these kinds of shows.

Brea went to work today in a great mood. This was her last day until Tuesday! I am so excited to have her around the house all to myself, and the kids too. We are going to have a wonderful and relaxing weekend together and I am so looking forward to it. I am happy for her, she works so hard and this little vacation will do her justice, she deserves it. I want to hug her right now, but she’s not home from work yet.

Today I made two pasta salads and boiled a dozen eggs for Brea so she can make deviled eggs to carry to her mother’s house tomorrow. I still have to make a broccoli and cheese rice casserole but I’m going to do that in the morning. I spoke to my cousin Diane today who is in town from Florida for the holiday. It was nice talking to her, I was worried about her a couple of months ago, she was having some medical problems. We’ll be meeting up with her and her family and my brother, Tommy, and his family at my mother’s house tomorrow evening after we visit with Brea’s parents and eat a little something over there first. Tommy and Jenny said something about maybe coming over here to hang out with Brea and me this evening after our practice. Tomorrow is going to be fun, I hope!

I have a lot to be thankful for… My health, my home, my lifestyle, my friends, my mom and dad, my brother and his family and all my other relatives. I also look at my package (my family, my three girls) and I’m proud to say they’re all mine, and for that, I’m thankful.
Happy Thanksgiving!

Good, good, good, good.

2005-11-21T14:48:00.000-05:00

We all got through the weekend just fine, as I knew we would. On my way to get the U-Haul van on Friday I took an extra long route just to make sure that I got my exercise in, which I normally do anyway. As I’m get closer to the main road to get to the building I see this cute little terrier strolling along side me in people’s yards, sniffing around and marking his territory. I’m thinking he’s probably a lot like my kid, lives close by and is just using the bathroom, until he prances over towards me in the street and no one comes out of their house to correct him. I looked at his little collar and notice that the street address on his collar was not the same street we were on. I couldn’t just leave him; my conscience wouldn’t allow that to happen. So I pick him up and ask a neighbor if they had seen him before or if they knew where he lived. They had no clue so I walked back towards the house with him in my arms to place him somewhere until I could get the van and get back to him to take him home safely. It almost killed me, the little thing weighed about 15 pounds and I walked about 10 blocks with him. He was really well behaved though and just a little cutie pie. So that’s what I did, I got the van, went back to pick him up, looked up his address on the internet and took him home. His parents weren’t there so I tied him up really good on the front porch. He knew he was at home; his little kitty sister came out from behind the bushes to greet him. I slept well all weekend knowing he was back home with his family.

Friday night’s show went really well. We had a pretty decent crowd there, people were laughing and dancing and having a great time. The new songs we learned sounded good too, except we messed up at the end of one of the songs. Heather did really well too. You could tell she was a little nervous but once she warmed up she started to really get into it with us. We have some tweaking to do with the guitar sounds but that comes with practice. Heather’s girlfriend even got up on stage with us to sing a song. I think it could work out between all of us. They seem to be nice girls and seem to be genuinely good people. I told them the other night that I was still waiting for one of them to say or do something crazy, and they laughed at me. Heather will warm up to the stage the more she’s up there with us too. That also comes with practice and playing out a lot. I also told her that that’s what the crowd wants, for you to make those crazy faces and expressions and to give them not only something to listen to but something to look at as well.

Brea, Jizz and I got absolutely no sleep. We had to once again return the van at 9am and Brea had a remote in Franklin and Jizz had to be at work at 7am. We had to come back here to the house when we were done to unload the van and by the time we were finished with everything we had just enough time to just lay down to take a load off our feet. Thank God the day went by pretty fast. Before you knew it we were getting ready for our show with Jimmie’s Chicken Shack. I was so relieved that we were only going to be playing for an hour and that’s what got me through the night. It was a fun show. Everyone seemed to really dig us, even the other bands. They complimented us and gave us props when we got off stage and it really made me feel good. I impressed them with my playing skills and they acknowledged that, on stage, that’s pretty cool and it gives me the big head! We would have stuck around to listen some more but the cops were outside giving me a fit about moving our van out of the trolley lane. We were able to take our own van because we only had to take our instruments with us, and all that stuff fits in the van.

We put up our Christmas tree yesterday. It looks so beautiful! We had to put it up early because we normally put it up on Thanksgiving day but we won’t be here, going back and forth to our family’s houses. It took us all day to do but we look at it like it’s an art or something. We put everything we have into our Christmas tree. It was fun and relaxing all at the same time. Stitch, our infant, wants to climb the thing and get all into the decorations. I’m still trying to figure out how I’m going to do playtime. I’ll probably start having it upstairs or in our bedroom. It’s only temporary anyway.

Today has been my normal Monday… housecleaning, laundry and all that jazz. My brother finally sent me pictures of Maddy and the twins on Halloween. I spoke to him this morning on the phone for quite some time. His family will be here this week. I found out a few moments ago that my woman has a remote at Mattress Discounters today from 5-7pm. That cuts right into our dinnertime. They also wanted her to do it tomorrow but then we wouldn’t be able to have practice and we need to practice.

I also have to get on the ball again pertaining to our long awaited project. I’ve put it off the past two weeks so I have to get a move on. I need to email my producer right now as I’m typing in this, so that’s what I’m going to do.

We may have a new band member.

2005-11-16T11:33:00.000-05:00

The show this past weekend went alright. The band sounded and performed really well. I just don’t particularly care for the place, personally. I don’t think we’ll be going back there, especially after they tried to charge us for sodas and water!

Oh, I’ve been busy around the house and doing things for the band. On Monday night Brea and I went to the grocery store and acted like we were on a rampage! We bought nearly everything in sight and had a fun time doing it. She never really gets to go shopping with me and wanted to go so we went! I love grocery shopping!

Yesterday I went to the hardware store and basically did the same thing. I even almost bought a blower for the yard! After I walked through the entire store gathering the items I originally went there for, I walked back through to make sure I didn’t forget anything because I didn’t want to leave! It’s amazing what you can find in the hardware store. I told Brea I wanted and needed a tool belt. She laughed, especially when I told her I wanted one big enough to make me walk sideways through doors.

Last night we had band practice, as scheduled, and had a new girl join in. Her name is Heather, and she plays the guitar and is also a part of another local band here in the area. She and her girlfriend come out to our shows quite a bit and have been for a long time. Brea’s always wanted to add another guitar to get herself off of it. We know she’s a great player, we’ve seen her play a couple of times. I just hope she doesn’t plan on bringing drama to the group, she’s a fast learner, and she’s motivated. It’s important for the entire band to mesh really well together and I think we do. I think she can pull it off; we’ll just have to see.

This morning has been a busy morning. I had a dentist appointment at 9am to finish up my root canals. I wasn’t expecting what happened to happen. I got in the chair, and he began numbing my mouth and I was like, Oh my God! What is going on…? So what he did was, drilled out the temporary fillings he put in on my last visit, cleaned out the teeth some more, and then filled them with permanent fillings. Before it looked like I had putty thrown on the back of my teeth, now it looks like I’ve had nothing done to them. Whatever he used this go around to numb my mouth worked really good and it was really strong. I’ve been to the dentist a few times and this was the first time I walked out pronouncing my p’s like f’s, it was different. I made an appointment again for next month to have a cavity filled, d*mn it! But like I’ve said before, I will never neglect my teeth again!

Today Brea and I are going to buy new a new Christmas tree and decorations. I am so excited and can’t wait for her to get home today. We’ve been talking about this for a few days now. We wanted to get new stuff last year but we decided to wait for this year. We’re going to squeeze in some exercises today as well. I wanted to do them this morning but my woman asked me to wait to do them with her. Of course I will! We have fun doing it together! Haha Practice tonight and that includes Heather. It’s going to be a busy few days coming up.

Another night at the beach...

2005-11-11T11:57:00.000-05:00

We’ve had practice this week and have begun to learn some new and different songs. We are also going to learn some Christmas songs too, for all the Christmas parties we’ll be playing at. It’s going pretty well.

Yesterday I had to get up and out of the house early to take care of a few things, which included going to my mom’s house. I wish I could have stayed and visited longer but traffic was horrible and I had to work my way back to downtown Norfolk. Brea had her remote last night, which I normally go to, but last night I opted to stay home because Carrie and I had planned to put up the new survalience camera system so we can finally move the traler that we use for the band to the side of the house. Now I have eyes watching and recording our home and surroundings from every angle. I can also record up to like a month as well, which is really cool. It’s like we have this industrial like VCR that even has a battery enclosed if power goes out! Yeah, we like it. I felt bad not being able to go with Brea and she felt bad because she wanted to stay here with us. Angie, Carrie’s girlfriend, and Jizz were here with us. We all had a fun time putting it up and drinking a few beers and laughing! It got real cold out there too! We all stared at the monitor like we were in a trance after we hooked it up. We couldn’t believe how good it looked and how well we installed it. It didn’t take much time at all, we probably would have had it up sooner than we did if we didn’t stop to fart around, but what fun would that be?

Today I will be walking my *ss up to the U-Haul store to pick up our lovely truck! I have to have it back by 9am on Saturday. It sucks because I’m usually so tired from the show the night before, but I can do it! We unload from our traler, load into the U-Haul, unload it at the bar, set it all up, play all night, tear it back down, load it back into the U-Haul, drive home, transfer it all back to our trailer, then we’re done… I think. It’s quite exhausting even before we get a chance to get on stage. We’ll be laying our heads on our pillows around 5am or 6am. Our show tonight is at the beach and I’m not particularly looking forward to it. We didn’t have that much of a good experience the last time we played, hopefully this time will be different.

Tomorrow night Brea has a remote at a resturant which she and I will be dining at. Now that one I’m looking forward to. I love to eat! I think it’s called Keagan’s, in Norfolk. We’ve never eaten there before so I’m looking forward to what they have on the menu.

Sunday we’ll set around the house and I plan on frying up some oysters and baking some shrimp. Hopefully there will be some good stuff on the tube, if not we’re going to go and buy some movies!

Alright, I’ve written in this and had playtime and talked to my mom this morning, so let me get started with my day…

What a beautiful weekend!

2005-11-07T13:28:00.000-05:00

Thursday was a good day. I felt so much better with my mouth and I felt like my old self again. My mom came over around dinnertime to go to the remote with Brea and me. She brought her little doggy, Fancy, to play here and keep Stevie company since they’re friends. We had just as good of a time as we did last week when we went, except this time we did a little more dancing. Mom wanted to drive back home but we insisted that she stay here with us, plus it’s nice having her here when I wake up. It reminds me of when I was a teenager. Fancy slept in the bed with us and you couldn’t even tell she was in the bed, she’s so little. She’s a good little sleeping buddy, but I already knew that.

Mom stayed pretty much all day with me on Friday. I even got her to do a few exercises with me after breakfast. Brea came home that evening and we chilled here at the house watching TV and cuddling together. Saturday turned out to be a beautiful day. Brea and I went to the store, watched our UFC championships marathon, baked a cake for a friend she works with, played with the kids and enjoyed the weather. She had a remote Sunday at the crab house and when it was over with we walked over to a friend’s condo and peeked at everyone from his balcony with binoculars. It was funny to watch people and the things they do when they think no one is around. We didn’t stay too long because we wanted to get back here at the house so we could have play time with the girls, plus Brea needed to get her things in order for work the following day.

I will be putting up our new surveillance camera system this week. It’s a really nice system with four cameras, I can’t wait to hook it up. It’s something my dad bought a long time ago and never used, it’s brand new. He saw the system we had so and knew we liked stuff like that so he gave it to us a few weeks ago. It also came with a 72-hour recorder.

I will also be doing some other things pertaining to project I’ve been working on. I’ve given some things a lot of thought and I think I might have a new way to approach things, I need to talk it over with my boys in N.Y. Either way I’m still going to do what I feel I need to do. I’ve kind-a slacked off of it some, but I haven’t given up nor will I ever.

I have to learn some new bass lines and do a few other things. Be back soon.

Wasn't as bad as I thought.

2005-11-03T13:05:00.000-05:00

We had practice on Tuesday night and it went pretty well. No one had too much to say, and I was drugged up on all my pain medication. So we got practice done and over with and retired early for the evening.

Woke up early yesterday morning and went to the dentist. The experience wasn’t as bad as I thought and it took about an hour and a half to complete, and I still have to go back in two weeks to have him clean up the teeth and finish up the process. The doctor spoke to me a lot and that helped make me feel comfortable. I was in lots of pain when left the dentist so I stopped by the pharmacy to have my pain prescription filled and came home and went right into the bedroom to lay down for a while. It was a different kind of pain, but pain nonetheless. Brea came home and took good care of me and we ordered out for dinner, which was nice and gentle on my teeth. The doctor even called to check on me and to see if I was feeling alright. While I as being worked on at the dentist my mom’s husband, Roy, was also having surgery on his hand and arm, because of an injury he incurred at work a couple of weeks ago. He was in lots of pain when I spoke to them last night.

Had a really good morning today. Did a few exercises and cleaned the house up. Called my dad to bless him and to thank him once more for paying for my small operation. Brea has a remote tonight and I think I’m feeling just fine enough to go and hang out with her and my friends up there. It feels like it’s been so long since I’ve been able to smile and talk without being in pain. Now I think I can get back into the swing of things. If only my lower back would straighten up and stop acting up on me, if it isn’t one thing it’s another! But my back pain has been with me for a couple of weeks now. Might want to learn how to live with it.

O.K. ...

2005-11-01T13:19:00.000-05:00

Wednesday night Carrie came over again for practice and the three of us did the same thing we did the night before. After practice we came downstairs and laughed and drank a few more beers. It’s nice when the three of us just get together and bond and stuff, it’s cool.

Thursday night my mom went with Brea and I to her remote at the country bar. We sat and had a few drinks and talked and laughed about all kinds of stuff. I have a bar buddy that I drink with at Brea’s remotes and she’s a real cool girl, a hairdresser named Lisa. We all left pretty lit and Brea was also pissed at one of the bouncers at the place. He ended up getting fired and she ended up getting a few different apologies, which corrected the situation. On the way home we all stopped at a fast food joint to pick up a bite to eat and something to wet our whistle. First Brea drops her whole soda on the floor and then my mother turns around and follows in suit! I would’ve probably been upset about something like that but I thought it was the funniest and most ironic thing, and it also proves that the two main girls in my life are quite a bit alike. Mom crashed here at the house when we got home, which was still early. It made us feel better not having to worry about her trying to drive back home.

Friday morning I got up and drove Brea to work. I stopped at the store on my way home to pick up a biscuit and a soda for my mom when she woke up. We sat in the spare room and talked about the night before while she ate her breakfast. Not too long after that she headed on back home. I made it very clear that she needs to do this more often with us, just going out with the girls to raise some hell, to get out of the house some. I started to get all our stuff together to take to the beach house and doing pretty much everything and anything I could do to take my mind off the awful toothache that I had and wasn’t going to let ruin my weekend. But now my mouth had been aching for a couple of days. I finally told Brea and she was mad that I didn’t tell her sooner, but sometimes I feel I’m more of a bother to her than anything else. But the pain was so bad I didn’t even want to talk to anyone and I knew where it was coming from which made it worse. It was my front bottom tooth, the same tooth the dentist told me almost a year ago that I needed a root canal on, so that really had me worrying.

Our weekend was wonderful at the beach house, except for the excruciating pain I was in constantly! A lot of alcohol and video games and movies took care of that for me. I felt so bad I couldn’t even drive back home, which is one of my favorite things to do. I knew I had to get to the dentist first thing Monday morning cause the pain was not subsiding or going away any time soon and by now it feels like my whole face is infected and it’s itching like crazy, from my ears to my throat. I was also blowing a lot of blood and blood clots out of my nose too. That’s been causing my eyes to be puffy and my ears thumping inside and I can’t breathe at night… just in bad shape all around.

Monday morning I called my dentist and even though they were slammed packed they squeezed me in as soon as I could get there. I walked in knowing I was going to be handed some prescriptions for infection like antibiotics, which I needed desperately, and I would also be making that appointment to have the root canal done on or around the 15th of November, for fund reasons. But after talking to the assistant and my doctor and after looking at the x-rays it was a different story all together. Because I waited, the infection had spread over to the tooth beside the tooth that already needed the root canal, so now I have to have two root canals done, side by side, and it gets worse, I was told that if I did wait until the 15th I would definitely have to have three, and so on. I have to have this done immediately because I was also a second away from having an abscess! So on top of all the tooth and gum pain I have all this bad news to chew up. I cried and I didn’t want to tell Brea the news, especially the total cost. I’ll put it to you like this… it costs $500.00 for one root canal… can you figure it out?! I did it to myself though, I deserve it. I could have avoided all this pain and saved lots of money if I would have taken care of it when I was supposed to. Believe me when I say I’ll never make this same mistake twice. I filled my prescriptions and took the medicine immediately, came home and called my mom to cry on her shoulder, and then I called my dad, my brother and my dad’s girlfriend but could only get through to her, and thank God I did! She’s a big help when you’re not at your best… and then Brea called me… I had to tell her, I knew she was going to be disappointed and worried about me in the same breath. My dad’s girlfriend, Diane, talked to my dad and told him everything, and then they set me up really nice. They called the dentist and have already pre-paid the dentist for my procedure! I spoke to my dad on the phone and he said that’s what daddy’s are supposed to do for their little girl. He said he knows exactly what I’m going through because he’s had to have 8 root canals done. Gives me something to look forward to, huh?! (Same thing I was thinking!) I love my family and they love me, can’t ya tell?! I don’t have to do anything tomorrow but walk in and have it done and leave to come home and get some rest, I’ll have a completely clear head. I promised Brea I would never hide anything like that from her again, and I won’t either!

I finally spoke to my brother yesterday evening. He told me he was getting the kids ready to go out trick or treating. Maddy was a cheerleader, Mallory was a ladybug and little Tommy was a dragon. I told him he better send me some good pictures!

My mom and her husband, Roy, came over for dinner last night. She was mainly coming over to try to help with things around the house, cause she knows I’ve been down and not doing as much as I’d like to, I know how she is. But everything was done, including the laundry so we ate some delicious meatloaf that Brea cooked along with some mashed potatoes and green beans. It was some good eating! Afterwards we hooked up the play station 2 to the TV. in the living room and played a racing game, Need For Speed 2. It’s a fun game and it really gets ya going, mom had us all cracking up trying to drive the racecar. Believe it or not she did better when she had to change gears! Time flew by pretty fast and before you knew it the time was 10pm, and Roy had to be up early for work today. We’re going to do it again soon, maybe next time at their house.

There are so many things I need to be doing, or could be doing but I was told to get some rest, and if I don’t my woman will yell at me and I don’t feel like being yelled at. I’ve really had a rough couple of weeks. I’m going to do a few things and save the rest for another day. I also think Carrie is coming over for practice tonight. I guess I should take advantage of this time while I can. I just wish I didn’t have to be in pain to get it. My appointment is at 9am tomorrow morning. I am anticipating not being in pain anymore, but not looking forward to what I’m going to have to go through to accomplish that. I’m nervous…

It went smoothly!

2005-10-25T12:25:00.000-04:00

Friday was a busy day, as I knew it would be. The day went along without any stress and we timed everything so that we wouldn’t be rushing and wouldn’t feel pressured. I went earlier that day to pick up the U-Haul van and the rest of the band came over later in the day to help unload from the trailer to the van. I had to take it easy because of my stupid back.

We got to the place, and it started out with a pretty good crowd. A lot of the people that Carrie works with showed up and so did a few friends of ours. Then it seemed like we cleared the place out or something, like we scared them all away, it was really weird. And the staff was just as strange, like pulling teeth to get them to talk... It usually is when we play in Va. Beach. I wasn’t sure if I was going to make it through the whole night because of my pain but I hung in there. That's enough on that subject, I've probably already said too much.

After the show we all had to come back to the house and unload the stuff from the van back into the trailer. We all came inside and watched a little television to unwind but Jizz, Brea, and I were dreading the next few hours, because Jizz had to be at work at 6am and I had to carry the U-Haul van back by 7am and Brea also had to get ready for a remote that she had that morning. We made it though.

We skipped Brea’s brother’s birthday get together and decided to just stay at home to catch up on some sleep, which we did with ease. Jizz and his girl came over that evening to chat with us and to hang out for a few minutes. We decided to reschedule our dinner plans for another evening since we were all pretty beat.

Sunday was the first day my baby had off in a long time. We sat around the house all day, watched some movies and played some video games. It was a very nice and relaxing day. We’re going to the beach house this weekend and I’m looking forward to doing it all over again while we’re there.

I got up early with the kids yesterday, Monday morning. I went over to my mother’s house so we could have lunch together. She wanted to take me to a place her and her husband Roy have started to go to eat and also wanted to show me some new places to park the beach house, since Brea and I want to move it away from tides cause we almost got flooded out and I also want more shade trees around it. I had a wonderful time with her and she even tried to pay for our lunch but I never let her do that, I don’t like her buying my food when I feel it’s my chance to return a lot of the things she’s done for me all these years. When we got back to her place I gave her and Roy a crash course on computers and digital cameras. They’re getting it, slowly but surely. Once they get the hang of it it’ll be smooth sailing, I remember what it was like to set down in front of a computer for the first time. I just wish I could get over there more to help them.

Had a really bad dream last night, a nightmare. I dreamed Brea had left me for like a 16 year old girl and the d*mn dream wouldn't end. It just kept going and going and I could feel the heartache as if it were really happening. Most of the time my dreams jump from scene to scene, but this one didn't and just kept going and getting worse. It's bothered me and I can't stop thinking about it. I told Brea as soon as I woke up this morning and she assured me that it was ONLY a dream and everything was going to be alright. I want her here with me now to say the same things over to me again, but she's working at the station for her girls, her family, her package. I just want her to hold me some, and love on me and the kids, it makes all my worries disappear and makes me feel safe. I miss her...

We have practice today, we’ll see how it goes. I have to now go upstairs and try to learn some of the songs we’re going to be doing so I can be ahead of the game a little bit.

The weekend is here...

2005-10-21T12:52:00.000-04:00

Wednesday rolls around and I am finally starting to get around without my back spasming out of control. I even went to the grocery store and picked up a few things we needed around the house. Brea came home in loads of pain from period cramps. She was doubled over in pain and eventually began to throw up and really couldn’t leave the toilet seat. I told her that I would run to the store to pick up some cramp medicine but she didn’t want me to leave her side. She called Carrie and asked her to pick it up when she was on her way over. So I cooked for her and tried to hold her head for her and tried rubbing her down but nothing worked. Carrie came over and we loaded Brea up on all sorts of muscle relaxers and cramp pills and it starts to pay off, and Brea’s cramps begin to fade away. We sat around and went through some new music we're going to be adding. My mom and her husband came over to pick up some things. Roy is out of work because he smashed his hand between a trailer and a forklift and had to get some stitches in his palm. It looked awful and made me weak when I looked at it, I thought I was going to pass out. Stuff like that didn’t use to get to me when I was younger but as I’ve gotten older I start to feel faint.

Thursday was a good day. I went to Brea’s remote with her and hung out with the girls while Brea did her thing. We were being silly in the store when we left the bar, it was funny. Before we left to go to the remote we noticed some sewage in the bathtub and the toilet wasn’t flushing properly so we called our property manager to leave a message for her to call the plumber and have him come out to service it.

Woke up this Friday morning with Brea and talked on the phone to my brother while she was getting ready. Had playtime with the kids and walked on over to the U-Haul store to pick up the van for tonight. The sucky part is that we have to have it back at 7am tomorrow morning! The toilet situation has gotten worse so the city just left to make sure it wasn’t anything wrong on their end and now I’m waiting for Roto-Rooter. Hope they come quick, can’t stand knowing something is wrong with my facilities.

It's going to be a busy weekend for us so I'm going to get some rest and watch some t.v. perhaps until I HAVE to get up and get to work. We have a show tonight, Brea has a remote first thing in the morning, we have to go to Brea's older brother's birthday party Saturday afternoon, and Saturday night Brea, Jizz, his girl and I are going to dinner. So far it looks like Sunday is going to be the day I spend with my woman and the kids, all alone and with no where to go or nothing to do. I hope so, we'll see what happens...

Man, I'm hurting!

2005-10-18T13:03:00.000-04:00

Thursday night I went with Brea to her remote at the country bar. We had a good time with the people up there. I called around on this day to find us a u-haul to rent for the weekend and could only find a cargo van, which I pick up on Friday. I also carried the monitors upstairs for me to look at and repair, they have been cutting out on us the past two shows so I need to figure out why. Friday is going to be a very busy day for us.

Friday morning comes around and I get up to finish fixing the monitors. I walk to the u-haul place which is only about a mile away from the house and get the van at the scheduled 2 oclock pick up time. I come back here and load the van from the trailer all by myself, except for the amps cause they’re too heavy to lift alone. I also discovered that Henry’s drum mics were broken and he had no intention on telling me they were broke, so I had to resauder the wires on his mics and also fix his drum mic clamps that hold them.

We get to the place we were playing with Jizz and Henry riding in the back with the equipment and my mom is there to greet us and to help us out with the unloading. The show went great and I have the monitors and mics working wonderfully. People were dancing and grooving to our music... At the end of the night I was about to loose my mind because I was sooo tired and couldn't find the key to the van, come to find out it was in my back pocket. By this time my back is killing me and we came home and went straight to bed.

Saturday was a rough day, I could barely bend any which way without my back hurting, I pulled something pretty bad. Jizz and I pulled out the equipment we didn’t need that night for the place we were playing at, which were the speakers and our amps. Brea went to the store and bought Henry a birthday cake and some new drum sticks to give to him that night at the show. I was miserable with my back and din’t feel like doing a damn thing. I had to stop playing after the frist set, I couldn’t even bend down to get my water when I needed it. Brea was drunk and so was I. It was funny and at the end of the night we are missing the key once more, only this time to find it in Brea’s pocket as she’s passed out in the front seat of the van.

Sunday morning was kicking my *ss and Brea had to get ready for her two remotes. While she was gone to one I had to empty out the van and return it back to the store we got it from. Brea came home long enough to eat something and had to turn right around and go out again. We went to bed early this night.

Monday was even worse for me. It hurts to wipe my *ss, to move around and I keep spasming my *ss off! I managed to still clean the house up and to do the laundry. Brea said her niece, Sabrina, was going to come over to do our hair for us, which is a good thing cause we need to have it done. She did a great job on our hair. She’s going to start doing it for us from now on as far far as I’m concerned. We’re both very happy.

Been rearranging things...

2005-10-13T10:34:00.000-04:00

The day before yesterday was a pretty good day. Brea and I started doing Taibo again and both our butts are still sore. I went to the grocery store and to a few other places to pick up some things for around the house and such. I also rearranged a few things downstairs in the kitchen and living room. Changed some pictures around and moved a few things. It looks a lot better.

Brea had told me last week that this past Tuesday night was the night her gay friend from work was going to the gay bar to celebrate and wanted us to go, so we did. I was even surprised they let us in the bar. It was 10 cent shrimp which brings out a lot of black women, Brea’s friend is black and this is usually what she did on Tuesday nights. Her friend had heard about us being “trouble” and the story has gone from, the truth which is, our acting manager the last time we played there paid a band bar tab when it was in our contract for us to receive free drinks and Brea got upset and threatened to break everything in the joint unless they gave her her money back, which we DID get back... to... we skipped out on a bar tab…. I don’t know where that came from, but we laughed it off. It took me twenty minutes while in the place to realize that we were in a gay bar and we weren’t at a remote or playing for the band and that I could show Brea public affection without being scrutinized or harassed. We had a good time and danced and drank a little. Brea’s friend was pretty drunk and was causing a lot of drama with her own crowd. We even ran into a girl Brea and I talked to a long time ago and she was impressed we were still together and said we were the only couple still together that she knows. That made us feel good and we love those comments. We cut out a little early cause Brea had to work the next day.

Yesterday Carrie came over to drop off some paper and to pick up some flyers. We all talked and I showed her some new things I had done around the house. We also made her try my homemade crab spread and spinach spread on some french toast. Mmmmmmmm, it was so good! It turned out great! Then Brea and I went to a couple of different stores to pick up all different shapes and size frames so I can do some things upstairs with our band pictures, to redecorate a little better. We both got to work on our crafts as soon as we got home and kept at it until 11 at night. It was fun and the pictures look really good. She bought some picture box kits to put her Prince stuff in like records and important stuff.

My mom found out she has to have surgery on her knee coming up at the end of the month and she’s a little scared about having it done. I told her it’s nothing to worry about and people have these kinds of things done all the time. I’m a little worried but I can’t let that on to her.

I have to now get ready to reserve a U-Haul truck for the weekend and I'm also getting ready to go on E-Bay to see if maybe I can sell my autograghed picture of J-Lo... maybe we'll get rich! I've had it a long time and I really don't need it any more. There's a die hard fan out there who would love to have it, I'm sure. I took J-Lo's picture out of the frame and hung my huge Anna Nicole Guess add in it's place. I love it, it's so beautiful!!! I also have to go upstairs and figure out how I'm going to hang my pictures... and I have to take two of our monitors apart to see why they're not working properly... then I have to cook dinner, (lamb with candied yams tonight, baby)... then I have to get ready to go to my woman's remote with her at the country bar! Yee-Haw!
Gonna be a busy day for me, not to mention Aunt Flow's in town f*cking with me!

Ketchup time!...get it?!

2005-10-10T15:29:00.000-04:00

Things are going really well for everyone. Henry no longer lives with us so it’s been real nice having our privacy back. Jizz has a day job putting up privacy fences and Carrie is still doing her thing.

My brother Tommy and his woman, Jenny, came to a show a couple of weeks ago and stayed the night. We had a good time until I started showing my butt with Brea. Nothing too bad, more irritating than anything but they thought it was funny. My woman on the other hand, didn’t. They’re going to do it again except next time I don’t want us to be playing out, I want us all to go to dinner and stuff.

The last two shows we’ve had we’ve used the BOB FM truck from Brea’s work to haul our equipment around with. We can no longer use the van we have because all the weight keeps tearing up our transmission. We’ve added a lot of new things to our system this past year. We’ll figure something out soon but for now we may end up having to rent U-Haul trucks.

Went down to North Carolina twice within this past week and weekend. Once was with my mom and we went there to take Maddy to the fair and to eat lunch with her at her school and the other was with Brea going to the beach house and back to my brother’s to spend time with him, Jenny, the twins, Maddy, my dad and his girlfriend and also my Aunt Caroline, who I hadn’t seen for about five or six years until last weekend when they surprised me last weekend at our show at Dirty Dick’s Crab House. It’s nice having her around. I had a great time both times. I savor every moment with my mother, I don’t get to see her enough and it’s important for her to spend time with me, vice-versa. The picture above is of my niece, Maddy’s, kindergarten class. She’s the cute one in the front row in the little blue jean dress. This was taken the day we went to her school after lunch and donuts.

Stevie had to go to the vet for an emergency visit about 10 days ago. She woke up crying in pain because she had broken out in hives, having an allergic reaction to something, we’re still not too sure. Her doctor gave her a couple of shots and a prescription that she’s almost done with. She’s a lot better now.

I’m still working on the same big project I’ve been working on for a year now. I can’t believe it’s already been that long. We have another partner on board who can possibly make this happen. I’m not giving up on it and neither are my boys from N.Y. I’ve got too much into it to quit now, and I know someone’s going to pick it up. I feel better when I hear things like it took the networks two years to pick up the Gilligan’s Island show, and you see how well that one turned out. I can’t let everybody down, all their hopes and dreams, I feel, are centered around me and I will make it all work out.

Been looking and making the preparations to buy a house but the market these days is outrageous! Not sure what we’re going to do yet besides being patient. I want a house so bad though! I am already fixing up whatever we get inside my head. We deserve our own house and when I look at the way some of these people who do OWN THEIR OWN HOME take care of them it pisses me off!

Brea is doing really good at the radio station. She is one of the best jockeys in the area! She has also started taking more remotes and has slacked off on booking the band every weekend, until things start to take off (you know what I mean) there is no need to kill ourselves. So I just go along with her to help and to support her any way she needs me to. Plus its really good money, especially not to have to worry about loading and unloading equipment and playing all night as well! It makes sense for us to do what we’ve been doing, financially and physically!

I promise to keep this updated… if not for anybody else for myself, and for my nieces and nephew to read when they get older. I’ve left out a lot of stuff but this is the jist of it all…

I know, shame on me...

2005-10-04T14:40:00.000-04:00

It's been a month since I've written in here and a lot of people have been asking me about it and wondering what's been going on with us. I have a lot to tell, vehicles breaking down, still trying to get our project up and running, stories about playing out, going in and out of town, visiting with family which includes my Aunt Caroline, who I haven't seen in over 4 years and have idolized since I can remember, she's so cool....

I promise to get you all up to speed on things just give me a few moments to work some things out and then I can go into more details. Right now I have to go in the kitchen and peel the boiled eggs I made for my family... we like to snack on them, they're good for you!

The little vacation is almost over!

2005-08-25T10:50:00.000-04:00

Things have been crazy around here, trying to everything we wanted to do before we get back into the schedule and all. My mom went down and picked up Maddy, my niece, to spend a few days with her before she started school. Then my poor mommy gets sick and cries for me to go and pick her up to take her to the doctor. She’s had a few medical issues that we really need to keep our eyes on so I didn’t hesitate to get there as fast as I could. Everything was alright; she has to go back in for another check-up with another doctor this week. Thank God for Brianna, she pretty much stayed over at moms with Maddy so they would each have someone to play with and helped mom around the house. She is a little angel, my Aunt Linda would be so proud of her; I know she’s watching though.

Brea and I went back to the beach house this past weekend. We wanted to make sure everything was put away and ready just in case a hurricane was to come, cause you never know. We had a great time as usual; I made myself sick thinking about having to come back down to earth and back to working. The van started acting up again and that didn’t make things any better. I was planning on driving back to N.C. to spend a few days with my family there but I had to rearrange everything so I could take the van in the shop, which really pissed me off. If it ain’t one thing it’s another.

Well, I have also been gone spending time with my family in North Carolina. I went there with my mother on Monday and we drove back Tuesday night. It also gave me a chance to spend some more time with my mom too I originally planned on staying until Wednesday but I had to put the damn van back in the shop because of transmission problems, I have a thing with cars and transmissions. I was happy to be there and happy to spend some time with my dad and his girlfriend, my brother, my sister-in-law, the twins, who have gotten so big and Maddy, who is starting school this year. I had the pleasure of getting everyone gathered for a family picture, it’s been years since I’ve had a picture of my family all together and smiling, but I finally got a couple. I went with my Tommy and Jenny to Maddy’s school orientation while I was there. I got to see her little school and I met her teachers. She’s only going to have about 24 kids in her class, and the school is so little and cute, I couldn’t believe it. I totally forgot what elementary school was all about. My poor brother had a few tears come down his face… it was cute, his little girl is growing up. I had to get after Maddy while I was there for the first time ever, and it broke my heart. I’ll never forget her big eyes looking at me apologizing, it melts my heart, but I had to do it. I think it’s something I’ll remember forever. Diane, My dad’s girlfriend, went out of her way to but me a belated birthday card, a cake and a cast iron skillet that I’ve been wanting forever but never went out to buy. It was very unexpected and I greatly appreciate it, it was a very nice thing to do. The twins are so cute and smart! I can’t believe they are already a year old! I had fun playing with them, I think they love me!

Oh, but I missed my woman and our kids, that’s for sure! I didn’t sleep at all while I was there and wanted to be in Brea’s arms so bad! When I got home she was having playtime with the kids. You would have thought we were without each other for weeks, that’s what it felt like. It’s good to be home…

I also found out that my 37-year-old cousin in Florida had a heart attack due to stress. That worries me a little bit and as far as I know she is alright now, taking tests and everything she has to do to get better. I’ll be calling later this evening to check in with her and to let her know that I’m thinking about her. While I was in N.C. I found out that my childhood boyfriend that I had all the way through elementary school had committed suicide. I haven’t seen him in over 17 years or more. I always think about the kids I grew up with, thinking they are all living happy, healthy and productive lives like the way I feel I do. It blew my mind a little bit and I haven’t stopped thinking about it. Supposedly he married his high school sweetheart and was making really good money, then she began cheating on him and was taking him for all he was worth, so he shot himself. I didn’t know him as a man, but I remember him as a cute and happy little boy and if he was anything like he was when he was a kid he was a good man. I feel for his family…

Got a lot to do, so I’ll get back in here tomorrow.

Here I am...

2005-08-17T11:43:00.000-04:00

I really didn't feel like getting into my diary yesterday, so here I am today.

The last two days have been going alright. We had practice last night for the first time in a long time, and it went pretty well. We're going to be adding a bunch of new songs. Been getting calls and e-mails for bookings, so that's a good thing too.

Talked to my boy from New York today, we had a three way with Brea on the phone, he needed to update us on a few things and let us know what's going on with our project. Things are going good, just not fast enough, like I've said many times before. So you know what we do, we have to keep sitting and waiting. I think I'm going to start working on some other projects I have in mind as well, some that have absolutely nothing to do with the band but with show business. Can't put all our eggs in one basket, ya know and I'm increasingly becoming more and more impatient. I just don't wnat to let everyone down and I want to make them proud, it's GOT to happen and it's GOING to happen!

Carrie isn't feeling too well right now. She is scheduled for out-patient surgery on Monday to have some of her plumbing worked on, if ya know what I mean. She also quit smoking due to her medical condition and I wish her the best of luck with that one. I have faith in her and think she'll do just fine. She's a tough one...

And Henry, oh Henry... isn't that a candy bar?! Man, he heated up some old #ss seafood yestersday and it stunk up the whole house, and when I say it stunk, it STUNK like dirty, rotten crotch! haha You know what I mean! And he ate it! Brea was asking the minute she walked in the door what the stink was, and that was after I took the trash out ( he put some shrimp shells in the trash) and sprayed with Febreeze air freshener! I love seafood, but I don't think I'll be eating it any time soon because of that! Boy oh Boy...

Stevie hasn't been feeling well these past two days. She just wants to sleep and wants me to carry her everywhere and wants me to bring her her food and water while she lays on the couch... Poor baby, that's the least I can do for her after everything she's done for me the last, going on, 13 years! But sometimes I do wonder, is she really not feeling well or taking advantage of the situation, cause she's like that! Regardless, I don't wanna take the chance.

Brea was a little upset and depressed when she came home yesterady. She sometimes lets everything get to her at once and is under a lot of pressure with her job and especially with the band, she's getting a little discouraged, which is normal and I can totally relate. I think I helped her along and made her feel better. I know she made me feel pretty good this morning in bed before she went to work, that's for sure! She repaid the favor! haha I hate to see her little face upset and frustrated and will do anything I can to take it away.

I have spoken to my mother a total of 3 hours on the phone over the past two days. We've been talking about everything, recipes, cooking, cleaning, all the things we have always had in common. She's taking a trip to my brother's to pick up Maddy, my oldest niece, to come here and spend a few days before she starts school. Then on Monday my mom and I are going to drive her back down there and stay a day or two, and I can visit my brother and his family and my father.

Going for now, probably said too much as it is. Sometimes I can get in this thing and just keep going and going and... you get the idea. Last night I made a wonderful baked pork chop and candied yam dish along with some fried green tomatoes. It was some good eating, let me tell ya! It all blended really well together. Tonight is going to be a little simple, sloppy-joes with some mashed potatoes and corn.

We're back!

2005-08-15T10:40:00.000-04:00

My infant, the weezel, is being a cutie pie this morning! She is being so loving and vocal and playful, following me around attacking my ankles! She makes me want to squeeze the mess out of her! I think both our kids are glad to be home today. They like the beach house a lot, but they love their home even more.

Our weekend was wonderful and so very relaxing! I caught up on so much sleep and rest and so did Brea! We didn't even bother going fishing or anything, just laid out in the sun a little bit. We put down the grass killer and had the toilet repaired, cause it was in need of being fixed. Brea enjoyed killing the wasps and hornets that were trying to make their home around ours. She had the whole park laughing at her and cheering her on, it was pretty funny! We also had to prepare for... ( let me pause for a moment, I'm talking to my mom on the phone and then I have to feed the kids breakfast) ...any bad wheather that might come up, it is hurricane season. I wish we could go there more often, as much as we pay for the place. I mean, it's not much at all but I want want to make sure we get our money out of it! We now have new curtains, new fixtures, new rugs... it looks so good! I have to thank my mother for all that stuff, it was part of my birthday, I don't know what I'd do without her sometimes.

I HAVE to make time to see my brother's family or they are going to kill me. Our vacation time is almost up, but now Brea's talking about practicing twice a week again, starting this week and then we start back playing the weekend after this one coming up. We did want to go out of town once more before it all started back up again... I'll work something out. But I hate feeling forced to be in a thousand different places at once.

It's a normal Monday for me though, playtime with the kids, housecleaning, laundry... Mom said something about coming over for a little bit later on. I must get busy, feels like this day is flying by and I have some things to do.

And we're outa here!

2005-08-11T09:59:00.000-04:00

Yesterday was a really good day. I had spoken to Carrie on the phone about some business matters and I could tell she was having a bad day. I asked her if everything was alright and she proceeded to confide in me and discuss with me everything that had been bothering and stressing her out for a couple of months now. I think I helped her out, she was feeling much better when we hung up the phone and when she stopped by later in the evening to pick up some tickets. I felt bad that she had been walking around holding all these different things inside of her. I expressed to her that she KNOWS she can talk to me about anything, anytime... and we're all women here and we sometimes go through the same things and are able to relate to one another, cause Carrie doesn't really have a mother or sister in her life that she can share personal issues with... and that's what we're here for!

My mom and my step-dad stopped by for a little while last night. They were dropping off a few things Brea and I need for the trip. We talked and laughed, I love my MUMMY! She's the greatest woman in all the world to me, besides MY woman of course.

I took Brea to work this morning and stopped by the car wash to clean the inside and outside of the van, I've always done this before trips, I get it from my momma, she does the same thing and always has since I can remember. Now I just have to clean up the house, take a shower and load the van with our luggage, kids and fishing rods! Cause I'm going fishing baby and I'm catching a big one! Yeah, that's right! haha Me and my girls are going to have some good quality time together! And my woman deserves it and it's my birth month.

I was told this morning that Henry's car needs a whole new engine. We told him when he got it not to let people drive it take it all over the place. Then he lets a girl take it, and wreck it. That car is NEVER going to be the same now, oh well...

Well, gotta go and get ready for trip! We'll be on the road by 3pm, and it's fun in the sun until Sunday night!