Ben's Thoughs on 9021-Fail

I had a fabulous dinner with some girlfriends last night and when I left the restaurant I called Ben to tell him I was on my way home. We started talking about the evening and he was like "I tried to comment on your blog, but it got too long, its a 2 page word document". I laughed. But then I got home and read his thoughts and thought he had a pretty hilarious take on the show so I figure I'll share them with yall. I didn't edit his words at all. If you're not a 90210 fan, sorry. I promise to find something else entertaining to blog about next time.

Keeping up with all the storylines is an absolute nightmare right now. Each prominent cast member has about 37 things hovering over or around them right now. It's ridiculous. I THINK they are juniors this year. They are 28 year old juniors. Pretty much this entire episode is on the group of people most affected by the end of season 1 prom night debacle of epic proportions.

NewDylan was barely seen. Also got nothing last night from Kelly and Teacherdudewhobangedbrenda.

No Drama Adrianna’s hair grew like 8 inches over the summer. Cause that’s possible.

I think 9-0 has finally broken its own record of oldest dude to play a high school student on TV. I give you .... Teddy. This dude looks 35. He looks like he has the potential to be aw- ful/esome.

Things we know about OldTeddy: tennis star, son of world famous movie star, went to summer camp with Adrianna back in the day and was her first romp in the sack, good dancer. Oh and he’s now enrolled at West Beverly.

Good segue to the choreographed dance part. I don’t know about you, but I can’t remember ever just busting out in a dance with e’rbody at the parties back in 94 in the boro. Can you imagine just hanging out then and Coolio’s “Fantastic Voyage” just creeps on over the speakers at the party and next thing you know there’s like 25 of us just killin it like we were the dance team at a pep rally. “Slide, slide, slippity slide, hittin switches on the block in a ’65”.

So anyway, that part was awesome.

Poor Navid. Everybody in the entire cast has had tons of ass by junior year and he can’t even get any from No Drama Adrianna who apparently signed the prom promise after she boned so many dudes she had a baby. Big ups on the sex jams CD he made though. And now he’s got OldTeddy the deflowerer to deal with.. The deck is stacked against Navid I’m afraid.

There are some episodes where I love Naomi. And there are some episodes where I want to punch her in the throat. NewDylan has got her all messed up and turned her into turboslut. She was even illegal turboslut mistress until she put her foot down about her values…she is not a disgusting cheater.

Bipolar Erin Silver is batshit crazy.

I think it's about to be Bad News Bears for Annie. Let me see if I can get straight what has happened with her since the end of the school year and over the summer:

-she didn't sleep with NewDylan but Naomi is convinced she did so she embarrassed Annie pretty awfully at the prom party and set the tone for the battle royale

-Annie calls cops on prom party and busts EVERYONE there for underage drinking, thus making them all hit summer school and of course all hate Annie

-On the way home from prom party Annie possibly hits some dude with her car and then leaves him for dead. Dude possibly suffers, falls into coma, eventually dies. Also there was a car behind her that saw everything or something.

Pretty sure the car shown ends up being the car OldTeddy drove to school on the first day of school in the fall. I fully expect some sort of haunting / blackmail for Annie.

-Annie's family moves out of Grandmas enormous mansion into a more humble abode. Nobody in her family can have a civilized conversation with annie without getting some horrible acting thrown at them.

-Annie finds out dude she hit dies and tries to confide in Dixon who doesn't even listen to her and instead flips out on her and abandons her at a beach party where everybody hates her. (It's worth noting that Dixon has turned into a complete douchebag this season.)

-Annie gets approached by a senior while sitting on the beach as an outkast. She drinks his flask, makes out with him, ends up in cabana with him, may or may not have done the nasty but definitely got nudie pics of her taken unknowingly. Bad news.

-Naomi goes 1-up in battle of who can ruin who's life faster as she obtains said pic of Annie. I think it's safe to say when this gets out Annie could potentially go Carrie on west beverly.

Sounds not awesome for Annie.

All this before junior year even gets rockin. And we all know teenage girls handle their emotions very well. I think with the addition of the Beverly Hills Beach Club, OldTeddy, and Annie starting to turn towards the darkside, I am going to call this show - TERRIBLE: Saved by the 9021 OC.

Two things I’m waiting on:

NewDylan to tell Naomi he banged her slutbag older sister and not Annie.

OldTeddy’s part in the post prom hit and run.

Everybody else could get the clap for all I care.

The show is real real bad. It might be can’t turn away bad.

Topping Out

I spent the day yesterday in Athens at Ben's topping out party for the church his company is building. The church happens to be the home of CMR, so I was really hoping he would be there at this topper party (as I call it), but he had prior engagements so he couldn't be there. Really though, I was looking forward to seeing the project that Ben has spent the last year or so working on. I got there right before lunch was served, and was able to meet a few of the people that Ben works with each day. I had met some of them before, but in many cases it was nice to be able to put a face with a name. We enjoyed an excellent barbecue lunch, and then learned a bit about the church from the building committee and the pastor.

After lunch it was back to work for everyone but I still wanted a tour of the building, so I had to put on a hard hat. I made Ben take this picture to show you just how much I looked like a fish out of water!


I wasn't going to wear heels but that morning when I was getting dressed, Ben decided that I looked too short and requested that I put on heels. I obliged his request, and only looked semi-ridiculous at his construction site!


The building is ginormous, and really is shaping up to be a beautiful church. I can't wait to see the finished product. I really enjoyed the day, and seeing Ben in his work environment -- he spends a lot of time telling me stories about the people he works with (all good ones, I swear) and about his actual job so it was a really fun experience for me. I also learned that his boss has a nickname for me .... "Evil Oil Lady". Ha!! Awesome.

Ben

Ben. There is so much that can be said about him, and unfortunately my words cannot possibly do him justice. I think this selection of pictures provides some insight into his wonderful personality though. Ben is honest, hardworking, generous, kind, loving, funny, supportive, smart, and there are probably a million other adjectives that I am forgetting so for that I'm sorry. He is a loving and devoted husband and I am so thankful to call him MY husband! I am blessed beyond words to have him in my life.

Happy 31st Birthday! I love you very much!!

Cajun Spicy Shrimp

I really meant to post this last week, but sometimes a whoooole buncha blog ideas hit me all at once. Soooo this got a little delayed, sorry Ben!
I usually cook dinner for Ben and I each night that we eat at home. Its really something that I enjoy doing and kindof an escape for me at the end of a long day. So anyways. The other night Ben came home and asked what we were having for dinner. I told him we were going to have grilled shrimp and corn on the cobb. (I'm not a fancy cook) He was fine with that, but once he realized that I didn't have a new and exciting recipe for the shrimp he wanted to whomp something up.

I was totally fine with that. I figured I could just take a little break from cooking that night and he could make whatever he wanted to. I think he had an idea of how he wanted the shrimp to be cooked and spent about 30 minutes looking through recipes online. He carefully read and analyzed them and went through the ingredient lists to make sure we had everything. Finally he found one that he was happy with and went into the kitchen to get it ready. It was hilarious watching him measure out the spices exxxactly with measuring spoons but he really did a good job. It was sorta a cajun recipe that utilized lots of cayenne and crushed red pepper with garlic and a bunch of herbs with a butter and Worcestershire base. (We didn't think to take a picture until after we were finished eating, but there were some leftovers in the pan so here is that picture)

So, this brings me to a point of contention that I have with Ben. I cook pretty much every (week) night. Usually the stuff that I make turns out pretty good, but I have had more disasters than I can count on two hands. And Ben? He doesn't cook much at all. Maybe, MAYBE once a month. But usually when he does, he finds a random recipe and executes it perfectly. Why is this? I'm a more experienced cook, yet he one-ups me anytime he cooks. Its BS.

Maybe he needs to be charged with making dinner every night?

Also, I should point out that not only did he cook, but he also cleaned up the whole kitchen by himself! Without complaint. 10 points for him.

The Prom Pose

Ben and I have this serious problem when we take pictures together. I love having pictures to document everything we do and to help us remember but it seems like we know no other pose besides this one.

Wouldn't everyone agree that this is the typical prom pose? We complain about it each time we take a picture, but neither of us are really sure what would be a better pose. We don't exactly want to become Heidi and Spencer with a bunch of stupid, cheesy, staged-but-supposed-to-look-natural photos like this one below:

So do you see my quandary? Or am I completely off-base here? Is this not something that many people struggle with? Maybe its just me, I don't know but something's gotta give here.

Time for Change

I will get in so much trouble for posting this. Hope yall enjoy it because I'll certainly pay for it later!

With Spring approaching and the nice weather we have had recently, Ben has been spending much more time on golf -- practicing, playing, watching, talking about, etc. Golf is literally one of Ben's favorite things in the world and I totally get it. He is competitive and loves to challenge himself (and others) on the golf course as much as he possibly can. In order to be a decent golfer he has to practice and play frequently. I have always been supportive of this and frankly, I always will be. However. I do think it is time to draw a line in the sand.

I never take issue with Ben playing on the weekends. During the spring and summer, he typically plays at least once each weekend and sometimes two or even three times. This doesn't bother me too much (unless I want him to be at the lake with me) I also don't have a problem with him going on his loooong escapades to the PGA Superstore. That is his time and it is probably equivalent to my Target trips. I don't watch every tournament with him but I also don't try to dissuade him from watching. I really am pretty damn supportive.

The problem of late is that Ben has been going to the driving range after work at nights. That probably sounds a bit harsh, so allow me to explain myself. I cook dinner pretty much every night. When we first got married we agreed that dinner should be family time. At the table. This is the way I grew up and is a tradition I wish to continue when we have children. I don't mind eating late sometimes, but typically I like to have our dinner ready around 7 or 7:30. That is reasonable, right?

This isn't ever a problem unless Ben goes to the driving range. This spring is the first time I've noticed this happening with any regularity but I think it needs to stop. He comes home from work around 6:30 and changes to head to the driving range. He is there at least an hour but lately it has been more like 1.5 hours. This basically means he is getting home after 8:00 PM these days. I can't wait that late to eat dinner so I end up eating alone with a book or my laptop. And his sits in the microwave until he gets home.

I've instituted a new rule as of last night. Its fine if he wants to go to the driving range after work. No problem whatsoever. He just needs to go directly from work and be home by 7:30 so that we can spend some time together.

Is that too harsh? Or am I being fair?

Ben v. Spaghetti

As you may or may not know, I absolutely love to cook. I watch food network often (well, not so much anymore) and am constantly on the lookout for new and different things to try. I wouldn't say that I'm an adventurous eater but I do like to try new things. Ben puts up with this to a point. I think there have only been two times that he has deemed something inedible. Once was because it was inedible and the other time because it contained 2 ingredients that he hates.

With all that said, I do try to cook some of our favorite dishes at least a couple times a week. I've found that Ben handles a new recipe much better when he knows that one of his favorites are in the queue. Lately though, one of our mutual favorites has come under some serious criticism. Spaghetti.

That's right. Spaghetti. I make my own sauce sometimes, but often I just use the jarred sauce and I'll usually throw in some peppers, onions, and herbs to punch up the flavor a bit. So a few months ago I bought a different brand of jarred sauce and it was awful. Neither one of us liked it, and I promised him that I would go back to the old kind. And I did. However, the very next time I made spaghetti he decided to tell me that his mother's was better.

OUCH!! I mean no offense at all to Ben's mother, but just OUCH. I mean, it is completely fine and natural to think that. You just don't say it to your wife!!!

Every time since then, he has requested that I make his mother's sauce. I haven't only because I don't have her recipe. He has to think to ask her in advance of when I go grocery shopping and I'll be happy to give it a whirl.

I think I have an alternate solution though, Ben. Just BUY ME THIS COOKBOOK for Christmas. I want it, need it, have to have it. I know your mother makes great spaghetti, but a a Rao's cookbook contains real Italian recipes. That would at least give her a run for her money!!

A Few Things

I've got a lot of random thoughts that I would like to blog about tonight. Mostly, I've realized that this blog has become "life with Katie" and not so much "life with the Longmires". I'll really try to do a better job about blogging about Longmire life and not just life in my bubble. So, now lets get down to business.

1) Ben has his Halloween costume all schemed out. He has really put a lot of thought into it (as he always does) and done lots of research on how to best convey the person he is dressing as. Now you need to understand something -- when Ben gets mind set on a costume he goes to all lengths to get the essential pieces. (Usually about 3 days prior to Halloween, but that is neither here nor there). So anyways. He finds a wig and a few other accesories that he needs from some girl on Craigslist. All week, he has been planning to meet up with this girl to pay her and get his accessories. So he talks to her this afternoon and they decide to meet tonight.

The girl sets up the meeting spot at a bar (Ben is a man, so he doesn't see through this scheme). Ben arrives at the bar at the planned time and this girl shows up with her friend! So Ben is a nice guy (and loves meeting and talking to people) so he is polite and stays to talk to them for a few minutes. He then left and met me at Mellow Mushroom for dinner. About 10 minutes after he sits down, he gets the following text message from this girl:
" Hey Ben, my friend was wondering if you're single?"

Of course he tells me about this text. I laughed. He of course responded to the girl and told her that he was married. I think she felt like a jerk because she responds with the following:
"Oh I'm so sorry!! I apologize for the text, have fun with the costume"

And I laughed of course. I'm not the jealous type. And I also happen to trust my husband (if I didn't, I couldn't have married him). But this is funny. And I think its good -- I think it is nice for him to be flattered from time to time by someone other than his wife.

2) I need some help in settling an argument. Twice recently I have bought a cupcake for Ben. (From Sweet Pockets, when I was there to buy some for myself). So then I came home and told Ben that one of the cupcakes was for him. I then ate my cupcakes. Both times, my cupcakes are gone after a day and his is still in the box. What is a cupcake lover with no self-discipline to do?
Of course I ate his.

And here is the hell of it, HE GETS ONTO ME ABOUT EATING HIS FOOD!!!!

So this begs the question : If I buy him a cupcake and he doesn't eat it within a 24 hour period, isn't it rightfully mine?

3) To the jerk who got out of his car 2 whole seconds before Ben and I tonight, rushed to the elevator, and didn't hold it for us: YOU ARE A HUGE GARY. And you're rude. Have some common courtsey dude -- if someone is walking right behind you and you know they are headed for the elevator, HOLD the damn elevator for 2 seconds and be polite to your neighbor. To put it in Ben's words "thanks for sucking"!

Run Forrest Run

After talking to a friend this afternoon and having my endurance called into question, I was inspired. I was bound and determined to actually RUN on my afternoon run. (As opposed to the walking that I normally do). I visualized my run all afternoon. I really had myself psyched up to run about a mile. Believe me, this would be quite the accomplishment.

So what was the outcome you ask?

Seriously. Be honest with yourself. OF COURSE I couldn't run a whole mile. I think I ran about 0.3 miles. Don't laugh. This is a huge accomplishment (for me). After that 3/10 of a mile I continued on my path and ran in spurts. As a follow-up to one of my previous posts (thank you everyone for your musical suggestions) here are a few songs that helped me out today:

Desperatley Wanting -- Better than Ezra

Like a Prayer -- Madonna

Scarlett Begonias -- Grateful Dead

Laugh at me if you want. Clearly the person who said that I have no endurance has a point. Whatever. Its a work in progress.

Oh. One more thing. I'm in the middle of cooking dinner. Hawaiian chicken, green beans, couscous (for me) and a baked potato (for Ben). What are the odds Ben eats what I'm cooking without complaint?

Listening Skills Are Mucho Importante

Last Sunday, Ben and I were enjoying a ground beef and pepperoni pizza at Mellow Mushroom. It was a nice night -- great weather meant we were enjoying beer, pizza, and conversation on the patio at “Mr. Mushroom”. Since it this is football season, our normal conversation usually winds its way to fantasy football and I asked Ben several questions to which he thought I should already have an answer. This leads him to make the following statement:

“You never listen to the things I tell you”

“Ummm … YES, actually I do listen to you. I just don’t always remember every single detail”

“NO, you don’t listen. This is fantasy football. Something that is important to me – you should absolutely know the basics of the AFS league”

“Whatever. I do listen. And I’ll prove it to you. Give me a quiz at the end of this week over things we have discussed.”

So, that was that. We agreed that we would give each other a quiz on Thursday night just to see who listens to who more. Me being the good student that I am, I really did listen to the things we talked about. I even took notes and ‘studied’ before quiz time!

When Thursday came around, we both made up a quiz that consisted of 5 questions and one bonus question. So before the test was administered, we decided upon a wager – winner earns the rights to the main TV all week long (until Thursday). Loser is also required to spend at least one hour each night watching winner’s chosen show or game.

These were the questions I was asked along with my corresponding answers:

1.) How many people are in the House of Representatives? 430 -- I realize the correct answer is 435, BUT when we discussed this he told me 430. I argued for this one and our mediators agreed that I should get credit for this question.

2.) What was my presentation on (my part) on Tuesday in Athens? Glazing, and Sheetrock. (This counted … even though I didn’t use the proper names – Drywall and Acoustical, Storefront, Glass, and Glazing.)

3.) What does CCR stand for? Credence Clearwater Revival (He did have to give me some context that this was a band)
a.) BONUS: What is my favorite song by them? Up on Cripple Creek (Actual answer was Green River. CCR doesn’t even sing Cripple Creek)

4.) Name 5 MLB playoff teams? Dodgers, Cubs, Phillies, Red Sox (I guessed at the 5th team and said Yankees. This was wrong)

5.) How do you make the AFS playoffs? Win your division or earn the wildcard spot. (This wasn’t so eloquently stated by me but I did get the answer correct)

He had 5 questions and only missed one. Since we were technically tied and I did not answer his bonus question correctly, I lost. No fun TV shows for me this week!

Just So You Know ...

He is TOTALLY winning. And I don't like it.(in his mind he is not competing with me because he just likes to write). Don't yall worry though ... DONKEY FREAKIN KONG, people ... DONKEY KONG. Either I will win, or I will remove myself from the competition (because it is unfair, duh).

Anyways. I'll update you on our evening. It has been allsome. Allsome just like me :)

If you have ever heard me say that Ben is a picky eater, it is absolutley the truth. He is. When I say he loves steak and potatoes, it isn't an exaggeration. That is probably his most favorite meal. Admitedly, it is mine too!!

SO, tonight we had steak, potatoes, and asparagus**. Along with a bottle of red wine that our friends gave us a LONG time ago. (Heitz Cellars .. yum -- thanks BeckDun). Ben can really cook a good steak!!!! He makes his own marinade (secret recipe, don't even bother to ask). So we grilled our steaks and made mashed potatoes and roasted asparagus to go along with it. YUMMM!!

It was a great night -- we had one of those long, drawn out dinners where you just talk and catch up on the week. Fantastic. We did just that and it couldn't have been better!!

** I must give credit to Meg on this asparagus -- broil at about 350 for 5-7 minutes, remove from oven, sprinkle parmesan (pref. Boar's Head parmigano-reggiano) over top and bake for 1 more minute. Remove and serve immediatley. D-FREAKIN-LICIOUS

Now, we are catching up on some Wii. We tried to play Mario Galaxy, but after a bottle and a half of wine we just SUUUUUCCCCK!! So, we are now playing Guitar Hero. Our band name is
'Muggin'.

We are in a crazy fight with the Devil right now on Guitar Hero. GOTTA JET

Let's Make a Deal

My most loyal (only) reader pointed out that my blog hasn’t really been about “life with the Longmires” so far. Therefore, I have decided to let you in on a little snippet from my evening with Ben.

I went to visit my friend Meg and her beautiful new baby Sloane today. I had made her one of my favorite casseroles, poppy seed chicken. Since I was making a big ole’ batch of it for her, I made a small one for myself and figured Ben and I would have it for dinner too.

Now, it is no secret that Ben is a PICKY eater so I knew that I would have a little resistance from Ben once I served him dinner. (He will kill me once he reads this post) Sure enough he called on his way home asking what was for dinner. I told him and he kinda grumbled a little bit.

I had a few minutes to prepare my game plan before he came home so I quickly thought of a way I could convince Ben to eat the casserole. Feeding him can seriously be worse than feeding a five year old child at times.

The conversation went a little something like this:

“Hey! Dinner is almost ready”

“Hm. Okay”

“So how about this? – you go into dinner with an open mind. You don’t have to like it, but you do have to eat it. If you do that then I’ll watch anything on TV tonight that you want. With an open mind …. I’ll get involved.”

“That isn’t a very good deal”

Sigh. “So that’s a no, huh?”

He really never did answer that question, but he did eat a good portion of what I put on his plate. We are now watching ESPN. And I’m taking an active interest in the Ryder Cup coverage.