Diamonds and gasoline.

This is my grandmother in her garden, in front of her blooming apple tree. As she ages, seems to look more and more like Betty White by the day. And trust me, she's just as sassy. Grandma's great at dropping knowledge on you, as Grandma's should be. She can be a tad aggressive about it sometimes, but as I told her this past weekend, she's earned her soapbox. And she loves her soapbox. Grandma tells me I need to lose weight and start going to church. She also hates health care reform. This is a pretty typical Grandma position.

So, I spent my first weekend of unemployment hanging out with her, learning all about conservative wisdom. And West Texas. By the time I roll up on day 2 of my typical stays in Pampa, Texas, I'm pretty ready to leave. I mean, come on. It's west Texas. It smells like poop and diesel. But I've come to learn that I actually quite enjoy the bleakness of it all. There's a lot of beauty in being reminded you're so small. I told Chelsey that it takes a tough person to fall in love with the Midwest. As much as I love New Mexico, I've come to realize and embrace that Texas, that godforsaken state to the right (and now, to my left), is in my blood. I might not be that tough, but I'm genetically inclined for it.

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Also, I've got a major case of playoff fever.

And the only cure is more Broingtons.

An Oklahoma City team will be participating in its first professional playoff event next week and I'm quite excited. I'll be logging onto ticketmaster on Friday at 10:00 on the dot to try and get tickets, along with the rest of the state. No one seems to be giving the Thunder any kind of chance at winning against the Lakers, but I say don't count them out just yet. Oklahoma's never had a problem being an underdog.

Monopoly banking.

(The first thing I've ever wanted to steal from my grandma.)
My grandmother is seriously the queen of all that is a grandmother. She batters me with conservative wisdom, she pesters me to get married and find a good job. But she also makes me hot cocoa and keeps her comments about my sleeping in to a minimum. A minimum. I sprung out of Pampa. But overall, taking grandma to the Nutcracker ballet in Amarillo, Texas was a bearable experience. It's important to note that the production of the Nutcracker was in the Amarillo Civic Center. And right down the hall, at the exact same time, there was a Gun and Knife Show.

America.

And now, I'm back in Norman, Oklahoma. Tomorrow, I'm going for a merit test and my alcohol server's permit. Mattlahoma moved and is now living with 3 other boys. I don't need to describe conditions (or the bathroom), you already know. I'm sure of it. With my frequent trips to Norman, the spare bedroom in Matt's parents house had come to be known at Cat's Room. I certainly miss that comfort. And Matt's mom. That lady rules.

Even though you wouldn't believe me if I told you, there are good people here with tremendously large hearts. And I am grateful to all of them.

It's been super cold here. And I did not pack accordingly (thanks, weather.com). And there's a chance of a small scale ice storm on Thursday, the day I was planning on leaving. I guess it's only fair. I did manage to drive all the way to Canada in the dead of winter with almost no weather issues. Can't help but feel like I'm still owed a few snow-free travel days, though. It okay Momma Nature, I know you don't operate on a barter system.

I know that I have this awesome D80 and I love it with all my heart. But, sometimes, I don't feel like lugging my D80 and its ultra protective case with me everywhere I go. I miss being able to capture those amazing spur of the moment photograph opportunities. I feel like the D80 makes all of my pictures sort of planned out. Hence, I'm still considering investing in another point and shoot. Is this bad?

I feel like if I could only take a few steps forward, my full-fledged adult life would be right in my grasp. But those steps are through the most disgusting mud I've ever seen. So, I'd much rather totter on the edge, regardless of how unbalanced it makes me feel. If only I knew how to jump.