I Love it When the Only Drama in My Life Is on TV!
I know this isn't a post for everyone, but for those that have read the blog before, you know I LOVE the Bachelor! Not the person, but the show... of course.
So things are progressing and women are dropping off. And naturally the drama builds, especially between certain individuals. In my original post, I thought the awful "devilish" one was Monica, well she's GONE as of tonight! But ironically, she's not by any means the one I detest the most. She had actually kind of backed off her craziness, and now the "EVIL" one is Courtney!
Now there's always the possibility that those that edit these shows can portray some individuals negatively and others in a warm and fuzzy light, but there are too many clips of her saying the most petty shit! Like "WINNING."
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PSnMpXYL82Y&w=560&h=315]
I guess maybe that is the mentality you must have when you're competing for one guy, but for those that really have feelings, it's not about the other girls and winning, it's about the Bachelor and having awesome moments and finding love.
So this past episode Ben let a girl go on a group date, and that was a little odd, but I don't even know who it was he let go, so I guess she must not have been that important anyway (not to be mean, but she must not have gotten much face time). Anyway, two of my favorites (to make it into the top three) are still there!
First we have Jennifer, and she is a given. She is not only beautiful, but she is also super smart, independent, has character, and according to Ben she's a good kisser (gotta have that chemistry)! It's nice cause when you see her little clips all she is talking about is Ben and how much she enjoys spending time with him and how much she likes him. That's what it's about! I hope Ben keeps her around.
Now Emily seems to be walking a fine line with Ben and her issues with Courtney, but I totally feel her pain. I think in these kind of circumstances it's hard to differentiate between a girl being intimidated by a "Model" (i.e. Courtney - the Evil One) and truly caring about a guy and the fact that he's totally being duped by the pretty girl. I've liked Emily from the beginning, I think she is another independent, intelligent woman who isn't afraid to jeopardize her own opportunity with a guy to make him aware of her concerns and hopefully make him see past facades! She definitely has Ben's best interest in mind and not "WINNING"... Emily, whether or not you ended up with Ben, I commend you for speaking out!
It's what all of us girl's at home are screaming at the TV. And to be in a house with people who may be frowning upon you for saying something they may be afraid to say themselves isn't easy! I'm glad that Ben gave Emily a rose, and hope he keeps her around.
And of course since Brittney left a couple weeks ago, I need a new girl for my top three and my third choice is Kacie B. I've actually liked her since the second episode, she's down to earth, sweet and totally in it for Ben. She will definitely be in it til the end!
So here is the current standings and of course hearts around my favorites!! I hope Ben makes the right decision... looking forward to what happens next week! hehehe
Korean Aquarius Throw-down!
This past weekend was both Paul's Birthday (HAPPY BIRTHDAY PAUL!!!) and Chinese New Year! Our friend Trapper planned a get together for the Chinese New Year and we naturally thought it would be a great opportunity to bring our friends together to celebrate Paul's Birthday as well.
So our evening started at Tofu Village Korean BBQ in Marietta, GA. Yes, we celebrated the Chinese New Year with some Korean BBQ! Paul and I have had Korean BBQ before, but it was a new experience for a lot of our friends, and we are definitely glad that so many were open-minded to the experience!
There was options to order entrees or to order BBQ where they cook the food on a grill in front of you. They also have an array of unique veggie and meat options like Kimchee (love it!) and cow tongue (never tried that...). Paul even had some rice wine (Gluten free!!!)!
After dinner, we headed over to Melody Karaoke, where we had a private room for our group to cut loose and sing! It was the first time Paul and I had done the private karaoke room, and it was awesome! Definitely an evening of experiences! The music was Korean-esc, with reverb microphone effects and an Asian twist. There were flat screens around the room that displayed anything from Asian Music Videos, to floral scenery and more...
It was surprising how many music options they had, and with the bar just outside the door, the beer and Saki were flowing! Some of the crowd started to trickle out and we then decided to move the party somewhere where everyone could dance! Luckily there was a bar called "The Place" in the same strip mall, and we decided to check it out!
It was actually a great option, as they had plenty of dancing and obviously plenty of drinks to go around! The party just kept going, and everyone was dancing and having a blast. I was surprised it was so easy to find a good option so close by! "The Place" it totally was "The Place!" haha (see the site and you'll understand why...)
Our crowd slowly fizzled out and we decided it was time to soak up some of the alcohol with Waffle House! While this didn't get everyone sober, it totally hit the spot. After the awesome service and food, we took some time to get our friends home safely and then headed home ourselves to crash.
It was an awesome evening, thank you to everyone that came out to experience the Chinese New Year and Paul's Birthday at Tofu Village, Melody Karaoke, and "The Place." It was a blast to see everyone and celebrate!
Good Times with Good Friends: Skate Night and Wild Wing Cafe
This past weekend we went back to our childhood with some old school fun! We went to one of the local Skating Rinks for a fun night of skating with good friends! It's been about two years or so since Paul and I have been skating, and probably closer to 10 or more for some of our friends.
We went to Slapshot Family Skate Center in Cumming, GA. It had all those old school things you remember from your childhood skating rink...
It's definitely different then when we were kids. I guess as you get older you tend to have more fear, and a lot less balance! But thankfully once you get out there it's kind of like riding a bike again and you actually start to get into it! While I think we were all a little unsure about it at first, we ended up very happy with our decision to go skating, and I'm pretty certain everyone that went would be willing to go back again.
After we wore ourselves out skating we decided to head over to Wild Wing Cafe for some good eating and live music! The food is of course always great, but we were pleasantly surprised with how awesome the band was! It was the first time Roshambeaux had played at Wild Wing, and I am totally hoping they will come back cause they were amazing!
They played a mixture of everything from Collective Soul, a remixed (alternative style) of the Cupid Shuffle, The Beatles, Pink Floyd, John Cash, and their own stuff. Their style of music had a very bluesy feel, with various improvised moments from each member from guitar, bass and drum solos. We were thoroughly impressed and will definitely keep an eye on how they progress.
In any event, the evening was awesome. We had a great time with all our friends and I hope that we can plan an evening like this again soon!
The Bachelor is Back... and the Drama Begins!
I watched the Bachelorette with Ashley Hebert and have been watching the Bachelor and Bachelorette on and off for years! It's one of my meaningless pleasures. I don't watch too much reality TV, but this I do partake in!
So when Ashley didn't choose Ben I was definitely disappointed because while he seems to be like a best friend, he seem to be the kind of guy a girl should marry! I think in more cases than not, friendship should be the true bond of a relationship and everything else is a perk. Don't get me wrong, I do believe in sexual attraction and passion, but I think that only grows more over time with a true friend and will fade with someone that truly isn't a friend!
Anyway, I was very excited when Ben was going to be the next Bachelor! I think he is a good guy, and he seems down to earth and respectable, but this first episode left me wondering what the show will be about. It started out with a lot of drama! Which is to be expected, but I honestly feel like Ben has slim pickins when it comes to a quality lifelong love!
I will definitely be interested to see how things unfold and hope that it isn't a women's bitch fest while Ben is clueless in the background. I think that is how the sneak previews portray him. But I could be wrong which is of course why I will continue to watch it! Reality TV truly does have a way of making you think things are much more dramatic than they may be...
So these girls... making interesting impressions from the start. I just have one person to say bad things about... although I'm sure I could say more about others. I would rather make this about my favorites and hopefuls to be Ben's match!
So first we have Monica, I'm disappointed in this selection. She seems to be there to push people's buttons and to increase ratings. And I'm sure she will. But she does piss me off, I mean she is giving my name a bad name here! I think she is a little devil and she is just trying to play the game of screwing with people... not a fan. Now don't get me wrong, my friend Ashley and I (in college) thought it would be hilarious to be on a show like this just to cause trouble, cause who would ever really want to fight for one man among 25 other catty women! Not to mention knowing he is kissing and God knows what else with each of them. It's really kind of sad... but it's nice to dream that you can win the heart of someone... and it is certainly upsetting to know someone like this girl Monica is just there to screw with you and others! Not Cool! So hopefully Ben will figure this out and boot her!
Ok now onto my hopefuls! There aren't many because like I said I wasn't very excited about the options for him this time around! But here it goes...
My third runner up is: Brittney! She seems really sweet. Now it was a little odd that her Grandmother came with her, but in any case she still seems very sweet. So if she moves along I won't be upset!
Second runner up! Emily! I liked her cause she seems really down to earth and she totally rapped for him! And it wasn't just some rap, it was like this long elaborate rap and she totally pieced it together and had cool movement and everything! I really think she will add a little character and humor to the show and possibly Ben's life... here's hoping Ben will keep Emily around!
And my first choice......... drum roll please!? It is Jennifer! I don't know why, she seems cool and I just thought she is a likely choice for him. She didn't seem to be involved in drama, laying low but made a good impression! She would be my first choice if I was betting on who will be there in the end!
Well that was a lot of talk about a silly show, but I enjoy it so much... and hope these ladies make it to the end! I may continue to post about the show and what's going on as things progress... who knows... but consider this me placing my bet for these ladies!
I hope at least one of them makes it to the final three... we shall see!
Happy New Year!!! 2012 Is Already Looking to be a GREAT Year!
We celebrated New Year's Eve and New Years Day 2012 with some great friends this year at Sheer Atlanta's NYE 2012 Celebration at Shout in Midtown Atlanta. Thanks to our good friend Matthew Levine, we got hooked up with a great party and Paul and Matt were able to "WOW" Jonathan Sheer and his guests with some awesome photos!
For a good part of the evening Paul and Matt were all over the place snapping shots, from the red carpet entrance to the party inside. Luckily I wasn't alone while they worked! We had a lot of great friends join us for the evening.
We rode down to Shout with our friends, Stephen, Frank and FUN Ron! Met up with Ashley Cash and her 30th Birthday Entourage (Shane, Susan, Kendra, Kendra's Husband, and Kim) and I was also joined by some new friends Gina and Kristy! What a fun party!
The evening started off with some red carpet shots... I missed out on this part... but it's all good, we got plenty of other photos elsewhere. I think I may have been chowing down on my New Years Eve dinner (Sushi Sushi Sushi! I love Sushi!).
As people started to file in, the party just continued to get better and better! This is by far one of my favorite New Year's Parties yet! Here we have the Birthday Girl and her hubby Shane, and the rest of us getting warmed up by beverages on the outside veranda!
Things just get better and better as everyone gets their drink on! Ashley's group chipped in on a cabana inside, and luckily it wasn't half the price they quoted her in advance. It was honestly pretty reasonable split among their group! Ashley definitely had what I would consider to be a great 30th birthday!
I was surprised how quickly midnight rolled around and I had to find Paul for our midnight kiss! Gina accompanied me downstairs to find him with no luck! I totally thought it was possible that I wouldn't get my New Year's kiss, but luckily Kristy found me and brought me to my man and we started our New Year off just right!
I got my New Years Kiss! YEAH!
We ended up closing down the bar... I was chilling by all the equipment when I heard the announcement for last call. I couldn't believe we were there ALL night!
After the guys packed everything up, we headed out and couldn't end the evening without the customary morning drunk meal so we stopped at the Georgia Dinner in Duluth, GA where I got Challah Bread French Toast with Crispy Bacon!!! It was amazing... YUMMMM!
We all had such an awesome time! Thank you to all our friends that celebrated with us, we are looking forward to an AWESOME 2012! Hope you all had a great NYE Celebration!!! Oh and Thank You Matthew for driving, that made the entire evening that much better!
HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!
What Are You Doing New Years Eve??
Came across this and had to share! We love Zooey Deschanel, and Joe Gordon-Levitt is pretty cool too!
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aSq1cez_flQ]
What are you doing New Years Eve??
Christmas Breakfast Went Off Without a Hitch!
Paul and I have been celebrating the Christmas Holiday with our friends and family for three years now, and this year was by far the biggest! We had more people and more food than ever before (over 30 mouths to feed)!
I'm honestly not sure how the Christmas Breakfast tradition got started, I think it may have started as a friend gift exchange where we decided to include breakfast and then slowly but surely it grew bigger and better each year! I remember the first year we did it, the stove only had one eye that was working and we were miracle workers getting everything knocked out.
This year we had a mix of new and old friends as well as family! And it certainly went off without a hitch! Check out some pics from the festivities!
We had a total of 10 different breakfast casseroles! A mix of different egg casseroles, a couple hashbrown casseroles and a couple Apple Cinnamon French Toast Casseroles, not to mention all the other great fixing like bacon, sausage, biscuits and gravy, corn-beef hash, our favorite cheesy grits, fruit, and mimosa for everyone!
We all enjoyed the great food and the happy Christmas cheer and atmosphere. And of course the Christmas Breakfast wasn't complete without the White Elephant game! Luckily this year people were nice and didn't steal too much, and everyone seemingly left satisfied!
What a fun day we had! All of our friends and family got to take home some homemade ornaments, compliments of Desi, Elaine and myself! Everyone was excited about that!
After everyone left, Paul and I totally crashed! But all the work that went into this Christmas Breakfast was well worth it! Thank you to all of those who came and we look forward to another gathering next year! Merry Christmas EVERYONE!
Loving My Pinterest!
So I've had an invite to Pinterest for some time now, but hadn't taken the leap cause I knew it would be another thing that I would truly become addicted to and I was right. But with the constant stream of COOL stuff that I find EVERYWHERE, I need a resource to hold all these cool things I would love to have, try, and do, so I'm in it and collecting and adding new things daily to my boards!
I imagine my account will be huge not too long from now, and it will be a great resource for any and all ideas I've got for our life! Not only that, but I imagine it could be a very good "hint" resource for Paul when it comes to knowing all things I'm into and loving right now! Couldn't hurt!
I've found several ideas I am ready to implement soon. I think my first project will be this one...
But another very cool one that both Paul and I are loving is this! I image this one will be further down the line as we don't really have a bar area for bar stools YET, but it will happen, and these puppies will be in the picture of our bar/living space.
But this isn't just a resource for home decor ideas, it's about anything and everything you can imagine! Whether it's a frame of mind, a frame to put on the wall, a frame you make, or a place to go so you can put it in a frame... you can pin it!
It's like the new "there's an app for that", but now it's "pin it!"
And to top all of the fun decor stuff we will be implementing hopefully soon, I'm also in absolute DIY mode, and Pinterest has totally been feeding my "to do" list of things I KNOW I can make, and they WILL be so cool you'll want to pin them. I think I may start with the Christmas ornaments... It is that time after all.
Either way check it out!
An EPIC Experience - GNR at Phillips Arena, Atlanta
So finally Guns n Roses came to Atlanta and you best believe I had my ticket as soon as they went on sale.
Guns n Roses is one of the most epic bands formed in the mid 80s out of Hollywood Los Angeles California. Axl Rose is the man behind what today holds the name GNR.
An american singer songwriter and musician and only remaining original member of the band Guns N' Roses, with whom he enjoyed great success and recognition in the late 1980s and early 1990s, before disappearing from the public eye for several years. In 2001, he resurfaced with a new line-up of Guns N' Roses at Rock in Rio 3, and subsequently played periodic concert tours, before releasing the long-delayed album Chinese Democracy in 2008. Axl has been named one of the greatest singers of all time by various media outlets, including Rolling Stone and NME.
I could not believe that I was finally going to see GNR in concert. GNR has not played in Atlanta since 1987. I had attempted to This was not going to be just another concert but a once in a life time opportunity to see one of the greatest bands that ever lived. I had to make this experience one we would never forget.
I booked my good buddy James Garland of www.LimoJoy.com. I have been using James for several years now and he is an awesome guy as well as an amazing limo driver. It was our plan to dress up like Axl Rose and have James drop us off at the venue. Well we did not dress up but did bring a very recognizable bandana to add that essence of Axl to the accoutrement.
James outfitted us with Champaign and we brought our own various mixed beverages and classic american beers (Coors and Blue Moon). We were ready for this event and by God we were going to get right, before wading though the massive crowd of followers GNR would bring. I was joined by two of my best friends who asked to remain anonymous due to having corporate jobs and for some reason this always getting back to the wrong people. The other two friends who I should not even mention because they did not go, but am anyway because they, like me have a crazy love for the band. I was so pissed at them for not getting a ticket to potentially the one time opportunity to see this epic band.
If you know anything about GNR, they disappeared for several years and the last time they went on tour in the US, it
just so happened they canceled that tour just before we were supposed to see them. We were not sure that opportunity would ever present itself again. Well it did and I was not about to let anyone or anything stand in my way of being front and center stage with Axl Rose screaming his ass off.
James pulled the limo up to Phillips Arena where we jumped out and proceeded inside the venue. We were early because we did not want to miss a second of the show. We grabbed some beers and a slice of pizza and proceeded to talk about what they would open and close the night out with. It was our thoughts that "Welcome to the Jungle" would be the first song and then perhaps "Paradise City" for a closure. My "mystery friend" had looked at the previous song sets from other tours for GNR and these songs sounded like a safe bet. Either way I did not care because I knew whatever song they played, I would not have a voice the next day because I would be singing along to every word.
The only problem I foresaw was that "mystery friend" had purchased seats and we were not able to access the ground floor where you could genuinely get front and center. We had time though to plot our invasion and it was not long before we had accomplished said invasion, gained entry and blended into the ground floor crowd. There were 2 older black men guarding the access point and we had to time our entry with exact precision. We waited until both men were talking to other patrons of the event and simply walked with purpose right by them. Wow that was easy I thought and we were onto the next challenge of wading though thousands of people to make our way to that front and center stage where you could literally see the pattern on Axl's head bandana and DJ Ashba's swift finger guitar mastery.
When it comes to Guns N' Roses guitarists, Slash's iconic top hat and black curly hair will always be the first image that comes to mind. But in a Guns N' Roses lineup that has revolved around Axl Rose and a rotating cast of other musicians since the late '90s, that position has since been filled by such luminary axe men as Nine Inch Nails' Robin Finck, Buckethead and Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal. The most recent Guns' guitarist is DJ Ashba, whose previous credits include the BulletBoys, Beautiful Creatures and Sixx: A.M. with Nikki Sixx of Motley Crue (Click here for more about DJ Ashba). Most likely though if you are reading this, you already know a good bit about GNR. I just feel its necessary to fill you in on a bit of the details just in case.
After what seemed like an eternity (10 minutes or so) the lights dropped out and we knew Phillips Arena was about to explode with one of the finest bands to ever hit the stage. Axl Rose came in with a thunder that rocked the crowd like I had never seen. The music enveloped through my body and I felt as if I had no control over the direction I looked or the words that came out of my mouth. I was in a GNR trance. Suddenly everyone around me was like my best friend, all singing to the greatest written songs of our time. We would exchange nods of just pure mind blowing music mayhem. Axl Rose and DJ Ashba had everyone in their grasps and they did not let go for a second. We were in the jungle baby! Here is a few clips I was able to get on my phone. Sorry they suck but its all I have. The music was so loud, I am not sure any phone could process the amount of awesomeness that was emitting from the speakers
The show was a great one and not only that but they played for about 3 hours straight, over 30 songs! It was an incredible experience that I am not capable of describing to you in words because I literally do not have the vocabulary to break down verbally what had taken place that night. It was by far the best experience I have ever had.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eTBMDj_TdQ0&w=732&h=600]
My favorite song of the evening and of all time was November Rain. Not only was this song one I held dear to heart ever since I had purchased the album back in 1993 but it was also what my groomsmen and I entered to at the ceremony of my wedding. I literally could not hold back the emotion when the combination of my love for the greatest band of all time coupled with the love for my wife and that incredible moment we shared tying the knot. The song sounded better then I have ever heard it and I just could not hold back a few tears of joy.
I really have to say that if you are reading this and were not at this concert, you will never know what you missed out on. I personally feel sorry for those who did not get to experience this event. I would have to say if you wanted a religious experience you will never get from any church or miraculous event, this was that event and you missed it! Thank God I was there and it was better than anything I ever imagined it could be. Sorry bout your luck but there is no going back or undoing what is done. Its over now and I hate that you missed it.
I will forever remember this experience and when I am 80 years old and my grand kids are asking me about my life and what I did with it, you better believe this old man will tell them about getting to see Guns and Roses in concert and its nothing like that flim flam garbage music that they are listening to today. Its real music, music with heart, soul, and as Axl would put it, "the best fucking rock band that ever walked the earth"!
The Annual Perdue Halloween Party Returns... hehehe
Since I've known Paul, he's prided himself on throwing fun filled Halloween Parties. Last year we missed it as we had a lot going on and were actually traveling, but the Annual Halloween Party has been re-instated and I think it was a hit! There were a lot of awesome costumes, from Cleopatra, to Quagmire to Sponge Bob!
This was Paul and my first Halloween as a married couple, so we decided to do something fun! We were Barney and Betty Rubble from the Flintsone's! All of our friends had wanted us to do this costume for years, and we finally gave in. And we even were about to find something that suited Chunk - He was our little Chunkasaurous!
Check out some of our fun pics! This is just the tip of the iceberg, and there are more at the gallery link below... Next time you should consider coming out!
Check out the full gallery here!