Enormous Dialect Map of North America

Rich Aschmann, a linguist, created a huge map of North America describing the boundaries and differences between various dialects of the English language. Keep scrolling down at the link, and you can find Aschmann’s extensive listing of audio examples of many of these dialects.

Link

Alas! I have returned!

I know it's been awhile. Life has a way of getting in the way of blogging. It has some nerve. This past weekend we were consumed by our garage sale. 3 days of getting up at 6am to carry heavy stuff to the front of the house in the name of getting a quarter was a complete pain in the ass! However, those quarters add up and we made a decent amount of money...especially considering the crappy weather that we had. I will likely never consult the farmer's almanac again for long term weather forecasting. While some of our patrons had us reaching for something to protect ourselves...just in case, we were able to finally meet some of our neighbors from the neighborhood. They are really good people and I am excited to get to know them all a little better.

I took my second bass lesson today. I am proud to say that I can play mary had a little lamb. Ok it's not pretty or efficient, but it's a beginning. I pretty sure that will become the band's first solid single. You know, once I become a rock star and all.

A couple of weeks ago we took Drew up to Brent's uncles in Cincinnati to go scuba diving. Uncle Scott is an instructor so he got us all the gear and into the dive pool for a private session. We had a really great time! The boys, including Brent, took to it without effort. Me, on the other hand, didn't realize that being claustrophobic would affect scuba diving. I did ok. I just had to go at my own pace to realize I was ok. I'd love to go again and give it a second try.

What else?? I have been working on the marketing materials for Realize Gourmet. I got my new craft boxes this week for my packaging and finished up my flyers. I am now working on the sticker labels that will go on the boxes and the ingredient/directions sheet that will go inside. I feel like I am on the brink of this turning into a legitimate business. I hope.

My running sadly has taken back seat to life this last week. Our weather has sucked and the garage sale ate up every spare minute. Brent and I both ran yesterday though. It went pretty well. Today has been hailing and lightning so I am thinking that today will be a day off. Tomorrow is another day.

Today's Photos....Tattoos

Rock Star kinda couple of weeks...

It has been a good couple of weeks musically to say the least! Knoxville hosted the Big Ears Festival a couple of weekends ago, which brought music to various venues throughout town for 3 days straight. It was pretty great to see people out and about just enjoying the weather and the festival There were two shows in particular that I was excited to see, The XX and Vampire Weekend...the later being one of my FAVORITE bands! Somehow we ended up in the front row for the XX and the second row for Vampire Weekend! They both put on GREAT shows!! We also found that we weren't the only ones milling around enjoying the festival. We ran into both bands seeing other shows. I don't get star struck. I have met some really cool people. Gene Hackman, Brendan Fraser, Andy Dick, Linkin Park, blah blah blah....but when it came to meeting Ezra from Vampire Weekend Brent said I turned into a 13 year old girl. An accusation, I can't deny!



I have also made 2 trips to Atlanta in the last couple of weeks to see shows. Last weekend Brent, Joey and I went to Atlanta to catch a private show by Civil Twilight and The Airborne Toxic Event . Both were no less than amazing! If you aren't familiar with either band, check them out!! We were fortunate enough to hang out with Noah, the bass player from ATE after the show. He was by far one of the nicest people I've met! Such a great night! I can't wait to see what happens next!

Today's Run...

Well I made it 6 miles again...2 walking, 2 running, and another 2 walking. I struggled with it, but managed to shave almost 2 full minutes off of my last time. Somehow I am starting to feel stronger, even if it is just in my head.

On today's run, I saw...

1. 4 Mini Coopers
2. 3 separate banana peels on the sidewalk, in various places along my run
   
3. 3 houses being pressure washed
4. 1 grasshopper
5. A very polite construction worker that actually said, "Excuse me, ma'am"
6. This is the most shocking of them all! Thanks to the purchase of my new running shorts last night, there was not a single instance of picking my shorts out of my ass on today's run! Thank you, Nike!
   

Today's Run...

Today's running schedule was a total of 6 miles. Walk 2, run 2, walk 2. I can proudly say that I didn't stop for one second until I hit mile 5. I didn't stop there, but slowed down for about 15 seconds to catch my breath. I am also proud of the fact that I was bored walking the last half mile so I ran that too. I ran that faster than I think I have ever run any distance. It may not seem fast to many of you out there with long legs, but I kept it between a 9 and 10 minute mile. It felt so great! Yay me!

Things I saw on today's run:

1. A male and female cardinal taking a bath in a mud puddle. It made me smile.
2. 4 punch buggies. 5...if you count my own
3. A man yell out of his car to tell me to keep wearing the shorts I had on. I have to assume he likes red as much as I do! :)
   

5 Things I love Right Now...

1.) I recently discovered a website that I have fallen in love with. www.weheartit.com is filled with images of EVERY genre. Fill the search bar with a topic and you are on your way to clicking through random images. It's GREAT!!!


2.) Gardening. Who knew??? I am so excited to be able to say that the food I am eating I grew myself! It may be a lot of work, but it can't be anymore tasty, organic, or local!


3.) Spring flowers! They are popping up everywhere! I love it. I find myself in happier moods and far more energetic this time of year!


4.) H&M pantie and bra sets! I can't get enough! They are cute, sexy, comfortable and cheap! It's hard to find a bra that really fits and these seem to do the job well!


5.) Banana Nut Cheerios! I haven't eaten Cheerios since I was a kid. We were recently in the cereal aisle with the kids and I noticed how many flavors cheerios now makes. It's crazy! They are all still natural and healthy. Only 9 grams of sugar and super tasty!

Rules to Live By!

Spring has Sprung!!

It seems like overnight our weather has redeemed itself! The flowers are blooming, people are sneezing, I am not freezing, our cars are covered in pollen! It is good to live in the south!

I had such a good weekend this past weekend! It started off with First Friday downtown. The weather was amazing and people were definitely out enjoying it! I met up with friends and we had good times. It was really great to see so many people in Market Square. It was a quick reminder why I love this city so!

Saturday, Erin and I headed down to Atlanta. We partook in Ikea good times and did a little shopping. We went to see The Big Pink at the Masquerade. It was so much fun, even though the show was a bit of a let down. We arrived back home somewhere around 4:30am. Thank goodness for bad 80's and 90's music to keep us singing on our drive home!

Brent and I have been working so hard to get the garden ready. Well to be honest, I have been helping, but he really has been doing the hard stuff. Nick came over the other day and they got the tilling started. That is an incredibly hard job...especially when you realize you are trying to till up a concrete foundation. Fingers crossed, we will have it finished tomorrow...compost and fertilizer and all. Shew!!! We got our potatoes planted today. I can't wait to get everything else planted!

I finished the first week of my running schedule. I ran two complete miles this morning. Tomorrow I start week 2. I should be able to run 3.5 by this time next week. I am not sure what kind of wizardry is going to take place to make that happen, but I am cautiously optimistic!

It seems Realize Gourmet is finally getting off of the ground and running. I am excited and scared to death at the same time! Check out my blog for that www.realizegourmet.blogspot.com Pass it along to anyone you know that eats food! I need them to help me make my first million. :)

Brennan and Drew are back in school this week after spring break and hopefully life will return to as normal as my life gets and I can discipline myself to be a better blogger! I am sure I will find another excuse, but until I do....
-e

I'm not complaining, but I think Summer is stepping on Spring's toes!

Two weeks ago we were wearing winter jackets and complaining about the cold. Today it was in the mid 80's. Who stole spring??

Well I had my first experience with a spray tan and I'm pretty sure it will be my last. I had a coupon for a free spray tan and thought I would take advantage since I apparently will be sporting shorts sooner than expected. When I got home last night, Brent told me that I stunk like bug spray. I couldn't take a shower because I had to let it set in. I stunk, was sticky, and woke up with orange hands. None of these things are positive. My legs do look tan, which usually takes until the end of summer so I guess it wasn't completely terrible.


Today was day 2 in the new fitness regiment. I was supposed to bike for 30-60 minutes. Brett came over and we threw on our sunglasses and were off. Keep in mind this was my first time on a bike since I was a kid. We rode a total of about 8.5 miles. It was very satisfying and my legs are killing me! I do want to know how it's possible that we can send people to the moon, but can't make a comfortable bike seat!! Baffling!

Something cool to check out:

www.cottageinaday.com

'These structures require less in mortgage, maintenance, and waste. The cottage are little gems: very pretty, very tough, very functional, and very green. And yes, they can be put up in a day. 1414S starts at $49,500"

I think I can, I think I can

Well a year ago I ran a half-marathon. I didn't do it fast and I didn't do it gracefully, but I did it! I had such a feeling of accomplishment running across the finish line. Last weekend was the Knoxville Half Marathon. Where was I? In bed! I should have run. I should have trained. I shoulda, woulda, coulda. As our weather turns to sunshine and my excuses diminish, I am determined to be able to do it again. I found a program in a fitness magazine that maps out doing it in eight weeks. While that seems ambitious to me, I am going to give it a go. Today I started (although I was supposed to start yesterday) and I can proudly say that I am still alive and kicking. I walked 2 miles, ran 1 mile, and walked another 2 miles. It was difficult, but I expected that. The weather inspired me to enjoy what I was doing rather than count the paces until I could be back in the luxury of this comfy office chair. Tomorrow, I ride a bike for 30-60 minutes.

The Inmates are Running the Asylum

Brent and I have been diligently trying to teach the kids the importance of fresh, home cooked meals. A couple of weeks ago, they wanted pancakes for breakfast. We didn't have any mix and Brent told them that if they wanted pancakes to figure out how to make them. And that's exactly what they did. They made a few errors and they weren't the greatest pancakes, but they were edible. Doing this they discovered that they like to cook. Last night we had our first dinner, cooked completely by Brennan and Drew. They decided on Chinese Chicken Noodle Soup (This was actually a second choice to Drew's first, Rack of Lamb. This kid dreams big, what can I say?!) Brent and I were there to offer them assistance when needed, but I can proudly say that they did it all themselves. Dinner was delicious and I couldn't be anymore proud of them!! Not to mention that it was nice to have the night off. The boys have decided that they would like to cook dinner once a week! I LOVE IT!!!