sushi

There's sushi on my counter, rice coated little packages of joy shooting me shy glances from across the room. I have to wait for Ben to get home, since he is the responsible adult who brought home the sushi for dinner and then braved the elements (hello snow?!) to go work on his fitness and overall well-being while I finished up the retail-hour workday.


I'll just have a glass of wine to pass the time. I like wine.

But I really like sushi.................


Why do those tasty little nuggets have to sit on the counter in plain sight, taunting me with their perfect bite sized combination of veggies and raw fish or whatever the hell is rolled into the magical concoction that is begging to be tenderly dipped into the warm brown soy sauce...........


Just have more wine, woman. You may have wine. Sushi has to wait.......

Wine. Wine. Wine bottle. Beer bottle. Brewery. Brewery tour. Odd tourists on a brewery tour. Some guy with a goatee wearing a tropical shirt with a collar and the three top buttons undone because he likes to strut his stuff.


Where the heck is Benjamin. Also, how could my wine glass be empty.


I'm going in. Self-restraint is lame.


xoxo, b

ants in my pants

I have some serious ants in my pants.

I'm am in desperate need of an adventure. Which makes me a desperate lady. And desperate ladies do strange and wonderful things, like make a Master Plan on how to leave the area for the weekend:

Master Plan Step One: Finish your bag of discounted Easter candy fun sized Snicker bars in true breakfast of champions style

Master Plan Step Two: Watch a little 30 Rock while eating breakfast of champions to get your creative juices churning

Master Plan Step Three: Find a partner in crime. Getting in the car and heading out by your lonesome is only fun for so long; you need to have at least one other person to create a car air rock band. Besides, solo travel would get you Brit-napped and sold to a shady individual who would cut out your kidney and leave you in a bathtub of ice with jagged stitches which make you think "hey, I doubt he had sufficient medical training to perform such an invasive surgery." And that would be a hard truth to swallow.

Master Plan Step Four: Find a location within traveling distance for a three day weekend. Or a two day weekend. Or an overnight trip. Or a fancy daytrip. In all reality, whatever you can sink your talons into at this point.

Master Plan Step Five: If all else fails, put on the Discovery Travel Channel while you ball up and silently rock back and forth while gentle sobs and glistening tears escape from your body. You can't win them all, kiddo. How terribly depressing.


Luckily, I believe myself to be rather persistent when it comes to matters such as these. There WILL be fun.

xoxo, b

It's Miller Time

Went on the Miller Tour last week or something like that. First off, alright tour, but after going on the Lakefront and Milwaukee Brewery tours....not as awesome. But free beer is free beer.

Ben, Jess and I took the tour, and then wrote out a couple postcards. And by a couple I mean everyone and my mom will be receiving one.

After finishing our literary works of art in postcard form, we tried to extended-borrow the cool tasting glasses. Those employees are right on top of their shhht though, and foiled our plans.

Psshh, whatevs.

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Last Thursday, I finally went to Oak with Sista Branners and her roommates. They've been asking me for weeks. So I made an appearance and we danced and danced and all was right in the world. And I even got some stunning, vivid yellow sunglasses. I will be sporting them to tailgate at a Brewer's game I suppose.

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Went to the Dustin Lynch concert a few days back with a couple of friends. Concert was good. Girls at the concert were horrid. It's taking a solid chunk of self-control (of which I have limited amounts to be using up so early in the day) to not go all mean girl on their lumpy buns. Great concert though!

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It was Ben's turn to make dinner last night. He slapped some chicken boobs in the frying pan and wandered away...but that's not the point....

Paris & Nicole beg like dogs sometimes, so Ben shared some of his dinner. But P&N went into fancy pants mode and didn't want chicken fat off the floor. That's when I heard Ben reprimanding the cats: "Eat your chicken! There are starving kittens in China!!"

It was immediately following this outburst that he requested banana bread...because 'he likes banana bread and when he was little, that's what he always thought his wife would do for him. So I should be a good housewife and do that because I love him, riiiiight?' Based on what I know about housewives from the media, they don't work, drink wine, and are desperate.

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In unrelated news, I have the day off today. I'm rigorously investigating the pros/cons of wearing pants.

And Google-ing how to make banana bread.

xoxo, b

Mother Earth/Martha Stewart

Today, I realized that I'm Mother Earth AND Martha Stewart rolled into one green thumbed, crafty individual.

[100% self-reported results with no additional tests supporting exaggerated tales of glory that follow]

FIRST: I found the dried up and dead plants that were hiding on my windowsill. "How amazing and forward thinking am I that I can showcase these pots with nothing but dried dirt in them?" I thought to myself. Then I decided to try something new; I WATERED those pots who still had plants "growing" in them. I gave them more dirt, some tender plant love, and a few motivational and encouraging words to help them realize their potential. Then I had a serious talk with Nicole to keep those kitty lips off my greenery. Wham bam! One minor mess later, I present to you.... plants.

SECOND: I went Little House on the Prairie up in this joint and made some candles. Home made, glorious smelling, adorable little glass jar candles. Because not only am I Mother Earth today, I am also Martha Stewart. There is such a strong mixed smell of apple jack and blueberry pie (plus the other three candles I strongly felt should be burned at the time) that I feel a slight sense of lightheaded-ness. Or maybe that's just the euphoric feeling of success. I'm going with the latter.

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On a very important note, my birthday is a single week from today. I asked Ben for a birthday tiara. I also asked my mom for one, because a girl needs a backup plan.

I was under the impression that there would be another major quarter life crisis in which I jet off to Vegas.... Or maybe this go 'round I'd get a questionable tattoo or piercing or make some other irrational life decision. However, it dawned on me like a ray of sunshine that Clay Matthews is 26. If he can do 26, I can do 26. It's just one more thing we have in common besides long blonde locks and strategic tackles.


xoxo, b

it's the end of the world as we know it

Apparently today is the last day of civilization according to the Mayan calendar.
Well, I forgot to pencil that little detail in on my calendar and completely forgot about it.
So I will not be celebrating the end of the world today, ancient Indians.
What I will be celebrating is that it's nearly CHRISTMAS!!!!!!!!! Which of course makes me giddy like a schoolgirl

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There was a big old snowstorm yesterday. Up until noon it was a wonderfully depressing steady downpour of rain. Then the depressing rain turned to frozen flakes of fun, and a lot of my favorite-- big, fatty snowflakes.

We closed the jewelry store at 3:30, right when the snow was starting to go bonkers. It will never cease to amaze me that people will bundle up, bundle up the kids who have a snowday, and drive in such weather to have their ring cleaned. Not really the time for errands. Run that shhhht under some tap water instead you maniacs.

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I went back to LM a couple days ago and made cookies with my mom. I also shook every single present under the tree, and partially unwrapped the ones in gift bags. Yes mom, I should know better by now. And yes mom, I realize that you also know better by now since the present in the gift bag wasn't even for me...

fa la la la la

Ben and I watched "Christmas Vacation" last night. Slight correction: I watched it and snort-laughed along with those silly Griswolds. Ben watched it, watched me, and then fell asleep.


xoxo, b

cat with eyeliner

My parents rescued [another] cat. This kitty- RJ- has clinically proven ADHD. He looks like he is wearing emo eyeliner. He stole my peanut butter cookie, and then tried to take another right from my mouth. He's a mental spaz-cake.

He should fit in just fine with my parents.

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Ben's holiday work party was this last Friday. I miraculously had off that same day, so we drove down to IL together bright and freakin' early in the morning. I sang and seat-danced to Christmas music on the hour ride there, and Ben reminded me that I was not invisible while in a car. Exactly sweet cheeks, more like on stage...

I did some solid Christmas shopping, coffee drinking, and time killing while Ben was at work. I even saw the Griswold's family roadster with a dead christmas tree strapped on top of it. I took a blurry picture on my dumb-dumb phone and texted it to numerous contacts to share the joy of what I had just seen. Then I went in the mall and mall Santa waved at me. I texted my sista Branners right away to make her jealous of my amazing good fortune. She replied "he has to be nice to kids and retards... that's what he's paid for." Clever.

Then the holiday work party finally started, and I was able to have my X-Rated mixed drink and fried shrimp and fancy pizza and sliders. And all was pretty much good in the world.

Sidenote pet peeve: If you're going to start giving a grand diagnosis in front of everyone on how I'm so skinny and should eat a sandwhich, then the least you could do is buy me a damn sandwhich Dr. Nobody. Then I'd have a burger to go with your stupid opinion. And make sure it has pickles and extra cheese on it.

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Benjamin has been sick for the last couple of days. I got him pretty filled up with cough drops, NyQuil, orange juice, and even some homemade chicky noodle soup. I was pretty determined not to fall victim to the same monstrosity that made my husband become a whiney lump on the couch.

I woke up this morning with a scratchy throat. Not cool life, not cool.

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As soon as my mom gets her life together and finishes up work, we are going to make Christmas cookies. It will be glorious and sugar-filled.

xoxo, b

hippies on the high seas

The Ellen Show-- my most favoritest show ever and member of my bucket list must do-- was in Milwaukee December 4th. And I was there.

Jessica and I showed up to Walgreens with our ugly Christmas sweaters, Packers tutus, and a couple of footballs for the Toys for Tots campaign. The place was jam packed by the time we got there. HELLOOO.... I left work early to get there & Jess drove in from LM. Dedication.  Since the joint was so packed, we ran inside Walgreens and purchased a big, neon pink sign. Then we wrote "We're over here!" and an arrow pointed towards us. It was beautiful for the time it was used. Then it got even more packed, and everyone in front of us had a sign. But I was not discouraged! Nay! I rolled that poster into a tube and stuck a Santa hat on top of it. Then, to really get the party started, we swapped out the Santa hat for Jessica's Packer cow hat.


See list of video proof below:

News footage... I'm holding up a neon pink sign in the far right. Please observe that I was prancing around before any of the rest of the crowd became so jolly.

The Ellen Show. Right around the 57 second mark, and 1:40 mark. Note the jumping Santa hat on a stick in the far right.

I would also like to add that we had a small Twitter following, urging Ellen to get us onto the show. So why the hat only got on, I will never know.


December 4th was also my mom's birthday. Apparently she's 29....which blows my mind since I've already hit quarter life crisis 25.

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On Black Friday (but really late on Turkey Thursday) I bought Ben's Christmas present.... a television.

Since he was present for the shopping, and happened to be the fine young lad who hauled the television box from Target to the car, from the car to the apartment, and from the general apartment area to being set up in the bedroom, he knew that he was getting a tv from me this holiday time.
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With that pre-story out of the way, one night we happened to Netflix across Whale Wars. This show is all about hippies on the high seas, declaring their love and willingness to die if it saved a single whale. Of course, we were addicted after episode numero uno.

These silly guys and gals are on a ship cruising around the Antarctic. The ship isn't designed to be in icy areas. Most of the crew has never been on a ship or had any experience, except maybe for that one time as a kid when Uncle Greg took them for a spin on the old fishing boat. It's madness, and I plan on continued watching to see what crazy mishaps those happy hippies get themselves into.

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I would really enjoy wrapping some Christmas presents today, but I've run out of gifts. I mentioned that I wanted to go and finish our Christmas shopping while I have off today.... but Benjamin wants to go Christmas shopping with me.

So I suppose I'll wait for him. I've heard from a number of reliable sources that in 5+ years he won't want to do those sort of things.

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The Style Network is doing a reality show on Packers fans. Auditions were held near Lambeau Field on Thursday that I did not know about this until after the fact.

My husband knew about it within plenty of time, yet willfully and knowingly disregarded the notion that such fantastic news should be shared with his better half.

When I approaced him concerning this most distressing news, he said, quote "Ooh shoot, you found out. Yeah, I didn't want to tell you, because I knew you and Jess would get on the show. Then everyone would know what a crazy person I married."

There is a tight, strange feeling in my chest. I believe it to be utter devastation, because I don't fall into the age bracket most commonly associated with heart attacks.

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Off to eat cookies for breakfast... but those cookies have oatmeal in them so it's all good.

xoxo, b

photo bomb like aaron

I saw this little ditty about Aaron Rogers being a photo-bomber.... it's like the man could not get any cooler if he tried. Photobombing is an underappreciated art

Packer win tonight against Detroit. Ugly win, but still a win, so I'll have it please and thank you.

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Ben, Nathan, and I saw the final Twilight movie tonight. Not necessarily a fan, but we felt like we might as well round out the saga by seeing the finale....

Movie Spoiler Alert... some vampire heads get ripped clean off their bodies. And I'm a horrible person who was obviously raised as a boy during my impressionable formative years, because I had a decent chuckle while the tween behind me had a decent emotional breakdown.

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Every so often, when there is a crazy huge orange moon, or some whack-a-do walks into work and says something ridiculous, or I notice some grocery store boy watching me pick out a cucumber... (seriously, they put those things on the bottom shelf and wait for you to come over and pick out a good one. dirty grocers )... cutting to the chase here....the idea that The Truman Show is actually taking place in current real-time as "The Britani Show" seems plausible.

I decided to mention this idea to Ben while we were driving to LM the other night. I think he expects me to think of obnoxious things like that and NOT  keep them to myself, but just word vomit them all over the place like I usually do.

Anywho, Ben was completely unfazed, and apparently, the cats and Ben are all paid actors on "The Britani Show." He should stop enabling me.

But... I'm pretty sure that this absurd thought has crossed someone else's  mind at some point.... right? No? Yeah, me neither.

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xoxo, b

packer roadtrip time

Blue skies! Orange&Red trees! Crisp air! I love fall

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I had to go to Wally World  this morning, & I found the most glorious candy aisle. Ah-mazing, breathtaking, and dangerous....

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I'm going to go to Indy to tailgate at the Packer game this coming weekend. Ben's going, Jessica is coming, and I think Bart too. We will be busting out "The Luxury Tent" and making a weekend of it. I'm pretty pumped for tailgate crashing in enemy territory

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xoxo, b

fall-ing

It's officially fall!! 

I'm excited for the pretty leaves to change along the river in downtown Milwaukee.... that would make my living room view so very wonderful. And the bedroom view too

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How Bad We Need Each Other by Marc Scibilia looooove his voice :)

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I'm pretty much obsessed with "Up" and the love story between Carl & Ellie. It is so sweet!!

And I want that been-together-forever-with-your-best-friend-acting-silly-and-filling-up-the-pages-of-your-adventure-book-grow-old-together-love, minus the dying at the end.








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There comes a time in every girl's life (I would imagine), where she takes a look at where/who/what she is and decides if she's kosher with it.

Who she's with. Her circle of friends. Where she's living. Hobbies. Job....

So, maybe she finds that the day-to-day is generally just dandy, but there's no possibility of going somewhere with it long term. "Where you are is where you are" in some cases. But if you're not growing and changing, then what are  you doing? I'm not okay with being stagnant... it's driving me wild.

So maybe this girl is going to do something about it-- take what she's had and done and realize that even though it's not where she thought she would be, she was there. She learned, she grew, she had an experience.

But maybe it's time for something else.

xoxo, b

 

pumpkin lager

Splendid fall day today! The smell of crisp fall leaves, and the gentle loving embrace of malted barley and specialty craft beer wafting through the air and hugging my senses.....


Living next to a brewery rocks. I love you, Milwaukee.



xoxo, b

24 hours

sooo........ I spent 24 hours in Chicago. OH MY GOSH It was so much fun!!! And I just want to say "THANK YOU" to the guys and girls who made it so amazing! luv ya! Hopefully we can all get together again...... soon!!!

seriously.... too. much. fun. 

I was able to cross off "ride a mechanical bull" from the good ole L.T.D. list.

& only 24 hours! hmm.... maybe we should go somewhere and make a weekend out of it? :)
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Tonight, Ben and I are going up to Winter, WI  to spend the weekend        up nort' with the Tom&Steph combo. Pretty dang pumped... Mama Steph is bringing s'more stuff, games, and steaks. I'm bringing wine. Should be fun! I'm planning on hitting up the brewery tour in Hayward.... are you with me?!

6 hour drive tonight after Ben gets home at 7-ish.....
..... thank goodness we are in our 20's.

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Met up with Jessica today for lunch in "mexico" and some margaritas on the patio. Kinda sucks that summer is drawing to a close and we won't be able to patio-sip here in the near future. HOWEVER, we did have a great brainstorm session, where we decided we will be going to a Packer's game and making a "how to tailgate, Ellen please come and tailgate with us!" video. OOoooh if only.... I LOVE ELLEN! I also got to hear about how jess is going to mexico.... actual mexico.... to film disaster relief footage for the area. so cool :) I hope she doesn't get eaten up by a giant snake or lizard monster

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"springsteen" is still stuck in my head. & on repeat in my vudoo on the way to work and home each night.

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xoxo, b

springsteen

This song has literally been on my mental replay consistently for the last week or so: Springsteen

It makes me feel so happy... and think about the pretty drive Ben & I did from Vegas to Phoenix where this song was on every radio station (which I was absolutely A-okay with)

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I'm doing a solo mission to color my hair this afternoon. Gutsy? Yes. But with big risks come big rewards.... or bigger issues to deal with.... we'll see

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Happiness is kinda a funny little thing.
Here's my personal thoughts on that jazz:

1) you can't always control the situation or the outcome, but you can control your reaction

2) spend more time right now.

3) quality over quantity in your relationships... have a sanity structure (aka family/friends) you could literally melt into a puddle in front of, and they'd help you back to your solid state

4) figure out who you are, and your quirks, and own it. dance to your own symphony.... because marching to the beat of a drum is lame.

5) do what you want. you  know you  best

6) define yourself by your actions, not your income

7) 'fess up when you're wrong, and make it right

8) everything happens for a reason, I'm positive of that.

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Tomorrow I'm going to Chicago for the night with a couple of girl friends. I will be hitting up a hot tub, a club, and any impromptu dance floor I find. Mmmmmmmmmmm yeah!!

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free birthday mug

Ben's 27th birthday was a couple of weeks ago. I got him an adorable tiny little dwarf hamster which he named Forest (run Forest, run!) He also got cupcakes, tshirts, long sleeved lounge shirts, and a sweet volcano for the fishtank that blows bubbles and glows red like lava.

Ben with the look of mischief plastered on his face

the boys tried very strange beer

It was two days of presents and celebration for the Benjamin creature. Day 1 was presents. Day 2 (the actual bday) we went to Rosie's so Ben could get his free bday mug... then to Ben's current most favoritest place: World of Beer on Brady Street. Jessica came with us to Rosie's, and then had to leave. Then we met up with Branners and Weiner for the remainder of the evening

Ben had an enjoyable, drunken night telling everyone that it was his BIRTHDAY!!!!!!!!!! and running down Brady Street pretending he was an airplane. He later whispered to me that his face hurt because he was smiling so much. It can be very entertaining Ben-sitting





**Forest is no longer with us. She was too little for her cage, and while climbing the sides of the wire cage and trying to chew her way out like it was Alcatraz, she decided to wiggle out between the bars. P&N figured this was a bedtime snack, went nuts, tried to help her wiggle out, and knocked the cage over onto her.... killing Forest at approximately 4am. I was and still am extremely upset by this, and have only recently began to talk to P&N again because they are murderers in my book. I want them to have teardrop tattoos by their eyeballs. Ben also is very upset... and wants a look-a-like that will be named Forrest (two R's) that he can love. However, it needs to be a glass cage with barbed wire so the furry black monsters stay back at least 50 feet and the tiny dwarf hamster can't go shimmying out between the wires. Then I can get to pretending that the whole thing never happened.

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We got to see fireworks this Labor Day weekend, since LM's fireworks had been cancelled on the 4th due to the blessed drought. Ben & I were back in the LM, and my mom roped us into helping at the brat stand.... again. 

Ben and my mom, making brats and doggies

The LM Fire Department was there too, with their firetrucks and ladders and such. I asked one of the firefighters if I could climb the giant ladder. He said I have to pass Basic first. Pure disappointment.

It's all good though... because it makes me think of how Ben&I have been roped into it for as long as the non-profit 4th of July fireworks committee has been doing the brat stand.... and how it was after goofing around at the brat stand one year, watching the fireworks, and then going to a little park to watch the stars together that Ben proposed to me. aaaaaaaaaaawwww small town life

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xoxo, b

if I were a fictional character...

If my personality type were to be compared to a fictional character, I would be Willy Wonka. This is so correct, it hurts. Candy, craziness.... wow.

Ben would be Patrick Bateman from American Psycho... a charming, on-the-go, adventurous, woman-wooing individual. Spot on. Minus any creepy.

xoxo, b

taking care of quizzes

while waiting for ben to get home.... i went old school and took online personality quizzes. ya know, what kind of shoe are you? are you girly enough? what is your theme song? well let me tell you....

i live in the present

I sleep on my tummy, which means I get passionate about things, can be selfish and take over the whole bed while stealing the covers, and if I don't get enough sleep I'm in a bad mood. duh. I could have told you I'm a bed ninja who wraps herself in a blanket cocoon nightly, kicks the kitties, and will be in one stale mood if sleep deprived.

and I am bored with this. let's find something else non-productive to do with my time.

xoxo, b