a man's perspective.....

i love this..... and hope it's true..... have a wonderful weekend!!

Jake is a real, live single guy dating in New York City.

I'm not sure men ever fully grasp the pressures women endure about their looks. You feel like you have to maintain your youth; guys are told we get better with age. You count calories; we count the number of Double Stuf Oreos we can fit into our mouths at once. You run laps; we go on beer runs. Ladies, you look amazing -- and heaven knows we appreciate the upkeep (especially whatever it is that makes your hair smell that way), but the whole beauty rigmarole sometimes seems too exhausting. Here's a list of things you can drop from your routine. We won't notice, I promise, and we'd much rather have the extra time in bed with you in the morning.
Anti-aging "cures"
The other day I ran across a current picture of my first crush, a certain pop star. When I was a teenager, I thought she was the sexiest thing I'd ever seen, but the years have not been kind. Actually, the years have been fine; she has not been kind. After subjecting herself to plastic surgeons and other needle wielders, my first love looks out of this world. As in, like an alien.
Celebrities aren't the only ones who are fighting aging like it's Osama bin Laden. An ex of mine used to spend half her paycheck on creams and lotions for her laugh lines. Funny enough, I thought those little creases that showed up right before a big guffaw were the sexiest thing about her. They were a total turn-on -- especially if I was the reason she was so happy.
Padded bras
Sure, men stare at big breasts, but pay close attention and you'll notice we ogle every size. We're just fans. As my friend whom I'll call Sam says, "I've dated women with everything from an A-cup to a D, and I can tell you they all rock." In fact, the only thing that qualifies as a letdown is removing a woman's bra and not getting what was advertised. Thing is, men imagine what being with you might be like based on what we see (we have entire scenarios in our head, and smaller breasts play just as wonderful a role as large ones), so pulling a bait and switch kind of throws off our fantasy. And don't even get me started on those "chicken cutlet" things. They're like orthotics for breasts -- and why are they always that creepy beige?
Living in heels
Wearing painful stilettos to appear taller wins no points with guys, because hardly any of us notice height. If you asked me how tall any one of the women I've dated in my life was, all I could tell you with certainty is that she was "lady height." Want my best guess? I'd say between five and six feet. But, seriously, I have no idea.
Spanx and other girdle thingies I'm not sure men ever fully grasp the pressures women endure about their looks. You feel like you have to maintain your youth; guys are told we get better with age. You count calories; we count the number of Double Stuf Oreos we can fit into our mouths at once. You run laps; we go on beer runs. Ladies, you look amazing -- and heaven knows we appreciate the upkeep (especially whatever it is that makes your hair smell that way), but the whole beauty rigmarole sometimes seems too exhausting. Here's a list of things you can drop from your routine. We won't notice, I promise, and we'd much rather have the extra time in bed with you in the morning.
Anti-aging "cures"
Sure, men stare at big breasts, but pay close attention and you'll notice we ogle every size. We're just fans. As my friend whom I'll call Sam says, "I've dated women with everything from an A-cup to a D, and I can tell you they all rock." In fact, the only thing that qualifies as a letdown is removing a woman's bra and not getting what was advertised. Thing is, men imagine what being with you might be like based on what we see (we have entire scenarios in our head, and smaller breasts play just as wonderful a role as large ones), so pulling a bait and switch kind of throws off our fantasy. And don't even get me started on those "chicken cutlet" things. They're like orthotics for breasts -- and why are they always that creepy beige?
Living in heels
Wearing painful stilettos to appear taller wins no points with guys, because hardly any of us notice height. If you asked me how tall any one of the women I've dated in my life was, all I could tell you with certainty is that she was "lady height." Want my best guess? I'd say between five and six feet. But, seriously, I have no idea.
Spanx and other girdle thingies
Once, at the end of a great night, I met my sexual nemesis: the contraption my date was wearing under her dress. After attempting to figure out where the air-locked panties began, I concluded they were a guard against male advancement and retreated with a muttered "Let's not rush things...." So what if you look 10 ounces skinnier in those cobralike grips? It ain't worth it.
Obsessive leg shaving
When you consider all the places where guys can sprout hair, the last thing you should worry about is a little shin stubble. Men are aware that unless you're on round-the-clock guard, leg hair will return. It's OK, we can handle it.
Wake-up makeup
Your lip gloss is long gone, your hair is a nest, your eyes are puffy? Sweet. Seeing you that way reminds us we did something last night that mussed your perfect look. Something we liked. Something, in fact, we're hoping we can do again....
Jake is a real, live single guy dating in New York City.

Once, at the end of a great night, I met my sexual nemesis: the contraption my date was wearing under her dress. After attempting to figure out where the air-locked panties began, I concluded they were a guard against male advancement and retreated with a muttered "Let's not rush things...." So what if you look 10 ounces skinnier in those cobralike grips? It ain't worth it.
Obsessive leg shaving
When you consider all the places where guys can sprout hair, the last thing you should worry about is a little shin stubble. Men are aware that unless you're on round-the-clock guard, leg hair will return. It's OK, we can handle it.
Wake-up makeup
Your lip gloss is long gone, your hair is a nest, your eyes are puffy? Sweet. Seeing you that way reminds us we did something last night that mussed your perfect look. Something we liked. Something, in fact, we're hoping we can do again....

on my ride to work today...

it was raining really hard - the kind of rain that make you wish you didn’t get out from under the covers. the kind that makes you think deep thoughts. my thoughts were drifting off to a conversation i had this past week with a friend.
my friend that was in a really long term marriage that ended - i want you to know…. thoughts will haunt you sometimes but i have learned that if you must leave a place that you have lived and loved where all your yesterdays are buried deep it’s not easy, when you return to visit temporarily things will remind you of good days gone and it might make you sad.. but don’t turn back, never believe that an hour you remember is a better hour because it’s dead. it sometimes looks different from afar - passed years are safe ones but future years are unknown and maybe they will be amazing. remember any given moment can change your life – you just have to be there. every lost dream leads you to where you are today. it reminds me of a quote I saw "you are standing on the edge of two eternities the past and the future - which is precisely the present"…. keep your eye on the ball.

do these earrings look cheesey????

omg are you kidding? anything you do or wear is ok... here take my coat it looks better on you anyway.

tonight was a night out with my girls the "pinky club" as in loser club etc...(explaination in previous post) same group of friends forever - the ones you tell your deepest secrets to...the ones that are living life in the best possible way-the ones fighting cancer, staying true after 40 years, pondering the future, planning ahead, forgiving each other, taking chances - we know first hand life is filled with surprises. soooooo.. don't miss a beat.

some bits from tonight -


76 days.. are you kidding? i can't wait 76 days... anticipation

i have my sites set on you...

i am in control - i don't think so...

do you know him?????

omg it's sooo boring...

i am going to australia for 2 months... oh and i am going to tahiti for a vacation in between...


over looking diamond bay????

it's all good... don't worry...

people are crazy...

i am trying to be a good wife...

he knows my plans...

oh no she didn't - oh yes she did...

i need to do something bad... we are waiting...

she let you in to her heart....

nothing like that ever came out of my closet...

short cut to love...

it's exciting...

we will have one more wine....

this man and me were at the bar and we.....

i've been married and divorced we knew that...

please sir -one cosmo, one wine, one pear martini, one sparkling water...

started out as a formal letter turned into a sexy email...

text text text....

pondered life and death....

she's got dreams to big for this town...

futures and present...

you have never been happier...

she's gotta do what she's gotta do...

one sunny day ... i woke up and knew that ..... there had to be more....


we laugh at eachother and at ourselves. we have eachother's back and promised to be there when we fall..... and you can only hope you are lucky enough in this life to find people like this to share everything with.... i love you guys ...

be still my heart....

i love this guy he has such charisma. i have missed you. i am so happy to have you back on my t.v screen having coffee with you in the morning. you bring an incredible passion for news, journalistic integrity and a connection with local viewers to the morning news.....

light and summery....

for all you pasta lovers.... i wanted to share the latest recipe i found that is perfect for you...


Baked Lemon Pasta
1 pound thin spaghetti
1/2 stick (4 tablespoons) butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
Juice of 1 lemon
Zest of 1 lemon
2 cups sour cream
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, more to taste if desired
Plenty of grated Parmesan cheese
Flat leaf parsley, chopped
Extra lemon juice
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Cook spaghetti until al dente.
In a skillet, melt butter with olive oil over LOW HEAT.
When butter is melted, add minced garlic.
Squeeze lemon juice into the pan. Turn off heat.
Add sour cream and stir mixture together. Add lemon zest and salt. Taste, then add more salt if necessary.
Pour mixture over drained spaghetti and stir together, then pour spaghetti into an oven safe dish.
Bake, covered, for 15 minutes. Then remove foil and bake for an additional 7 to 10 minutes. (Don’t bake too long or the pasta will dry out.)
When you remove it from the oven, squeeze a little more lemon juice over the top.
Top generously with Parmesan cheese, then chopped parsley.
Give it a final squeeze of lemon juice at the end.
Serve with crusty French bread and a simple green salad.

sweet...

oh how i love you .... summer love. i came across this sentiment and thought ......



check them out at love notes





about how sweet summer love is - there is a feeling of promise in the air intermingling with dolce gabbana.

oh how i love you.

happy friday.

what are my plans??

plans? other than changing diapers, bathing children, reading stories, working, cooking dinner, laundry, i umm have no plans. first i think i have stephen to thank for part of this - after all it was his christening that started this story.
it was a dark time - well it doesn’t seem that way now but it sure was then. i was a single mom with two very small boys, a job, a house, a standard car i just learned to drive, i was drowning in responsibility - alone. this life wasn’t rolling out as i had planned. while i was skipping along i fell into a pothole of misery - i had laid there for a while but there is always something worth getting up for. especially if two children are expecting you to.
so on that sunny september day i met this guy - he was
nice enough, quiet, i laughed a little - he was funny. i remember not having laughed for a while - at the end of the evening he helped me carry out my empty dishes from some delicious food that i had made (his words not mine) i found out much later that he ran my license plate that evening to see where i lived. (he liked me) he must have thought i was hot with that cool baby bag and that low maintenance mom hairdo. a few weeks later at another gala event – a grammar school reunion – one that i had not wanted to attend - i ran into that nice guy again. i knew he attended my catholic grammar school but he was older than me and dutifully he would not be talking in the school yard to girls - especially ones that bent rules. even during band practice he never looked away from his clarinet. he, after all was a rule abiding citizen even then. at the very end of the day he asked if i would like to attend the policeman’s ball. it was called a ball but in reality it was more like a christmas party that was free. (as the years have past i learned how much this guy likes free things) i agreed to go - what else was i doing with my exciting life? that night was filled with enough entertainment for a post in itself. but i do remember one thing - i laughed again that day. laughing seems silly but i gotta tell you it has gotten me through some tricky times. time moved on and i realized no one would be better suited to helping me raise these kids. he could make me laugh when frankly they did some things that weren’t that funny. i.e. rolling the car out of the driveway and almost running over a neighbor. so a few years later on new years eve he had something up his sleeve and a ring in his pocket. suddenly he and I had turned into we + two. something whispered in my head – remember shared joy is double joy, shared laughter is double laughter. so on this day 20 years later i have to say thanks – thanks for helping me raise those incredible little kids who are now men and adding a little beauty queen to the mix. thanks for taking a chance on me, you still make me laugh every day.

happy anniversary. i love you.

Anniversary \an•ni•ver•sa•ry\ n, pl -ries 1. a date that is observed on an annual basis because it is the same date as an important event in a past year, often the date of somebody's wedding 2. a celebration or other commemorative ritual marking the date of an important event, often a wedding