Spring Break Weekend

I've technically been on spring break for the past week.  It's not nearly as exciting when you're still working full time, but them's the breaks.  

Anywhoozles, we did have ourselves a tropical night on Friday so I could pretend I was somewhere far away and warm.  We had surf and turf kabobs (made on our George Foreman grill), our normal tropical salad with homemade pineapple vinaigrette dressing, and some tropical style drinks.  Our tropical movie selection for the night was Joe Versus the Volcano, which is a fantastic little movie, if not all that tropical (they're only on the island for a bit toward the end of the movie, but oh well).  All in all, a good night was had. 

Our original plans for Saturday were to go exploring around Cedarburg for the afternoon, since it was a recent feature in the paper's "Weekend Getaway" part of the Travel section.  But, we woke up to find that the weather wasn't being so cooperative.  22-28 mph winds, some rain, many clouds...  Boo.  

Instead, we went to IHOP for breakfast and then went to Menards to shop for a bit.  Not exactly a romantic day together, but still fun.  I had the Nutella crepes at IHOP, with the bananas and strawberries and whipped cream... OMG, so good.  I also go a side order of turkey bacon, which I LOVE.  We also had our favorite waiter there (not that we're regulars; we just happened to have him the last time we were there, which was probably January).  This guy is awesome.  Seriously!  He has a positive attitude about everything, and his memory must be phenomenal.  He took our orders (didn't write them down) and then went to chat with the table behind us for a bit, and I kept thinking, shit, something is going to get fucked up.  Either Hubby's eggs will be wrong or I won't get my turkey bacon or something.  But I should've remembered just how awesome he is, because he came out later with our order just as perfect as could be.  At the end of the meal, he handed me the check and said, "You're married; I know who has the money here!  I'm married and have 4 kids - I don't get to see any money!"  We joked about how he doesn't get asked about his day when he gets home, just how much money he made for the day.  The thing is, maybe I'm completely naive, but I really just think he's trying to have fun with his customers, not trying to get sympathy or extra tips.  He really just seems like a good guy who's making the best out of life.  It's inspiring to me, and so that's how I choose to see it.  

Menards was...  Menards.  You have to understand that I hated...  No...  I loathed Menards growing up.  It was the most boring place on Earth.  No contest.  The only things there that kept me from going insane were the doorbell section (I loved the different noises they all made) and the door section (where I would open and close doors, wandering through them like it was some kind of maze for me to get through).  When I got a little older, I would just bring my Walkman in with me and listen to my cassette tapes while we wandering through the store.  My parents (or, more specifically, my father) were always looking at the most boring things, and music kept me entertained.  These days, I actually don't mind Menards, but I still hold some of that resentment.  I mean, I was clearly old enough at some points to have stayed home by myself for an hour or two, but instead my parents dragged me along to Hell.  Maybe they thought the torture was character-building.  Who knows.  

Anywhoozles, we ended up watching most of the Band of Brothers marathon on Spike last night while we cuddled on the couch and ate our dinner.  Hubby got the grill out last night for our steaks.  The first grill of the season was definitely a success.  Man, I love a good rib-eye on the grill!  Droooooooool.  

Today, the hubs is off to help his dad get some things done, so it's just me and the pooch.  I'm sure I'll end up doing fascinating things like laundry or homework or sleeping.  No matter what, I had a great weekend. :-)  

Money, Money, Money

I'm pretty sure most of us dream about being rich from time to time.  I mean, I don't think I can count how many times I've asked my hubby, "Can we just win the lottery?"  (Problem with that being one cannot win the lottery if one doesn't buy lottery tickets...)

What would you do if you had unlimited funds?  Or won a shit ton of money?  I'm really lame, but my first move would be to pay off our loans, mortgage, etc.  Being out from that debt would be magnificent.  I think after that I'd pay for my tuition up front, as well.  No more student loans for this lady!  (HA!)  Then I think we would buy a house with more space (particularly outside) so we could adopt a bunch of dogs and have plenty of room for them to run and play*.  

It would also seem necessary to blow some of the money on something ridiculous and fun and crazy and whatever else.  I'm sure a car or two (or six) would be part of that.  Maybe a hovercraft.  (Who doesn't want a hovercraft?)  Possibly a live-in chef.  Oh!  And all the camera equipment a girl could ever need.  :-)

The possibilities are seemingly limitless, and everyone has their own ideas.  In case you need some more ideas, here are some songs that might be able to help!

Travie McCoy (featuring Bruno Mars) - "Billionaire"  Mr. Gym Class Heroes has quite the list of things he'd do with all his money, including playing basketball with the president, having his own talk show, and giving away cars at random.  Some of the things are clearly self-motivated (being on Forbes, for example), but a lot of it is actually kind of sweet.  Bruno Mars lends his beautiful voice to serenade us between verses, which makes it totally worth listening to.  Even if you can't stand this song, you have to admit that he has some interesting ideas here... 

Ingrid Michaelson - "You And I"  A bit on the sappy side, this sweet song still has some unique ideas for your new-found fortune, like providing people with sweaters and dancing lessons.  Especially adorable if you and your S.O. have your own dreams of getting rich together.     

Barenaked Ladies - "If I Had A Million Dollars"  Quite possibly my favorite song on the list, this song is more about buying things for someone else, rather than yourself.  From buying a house and furniture to animals and Kraft dinners to a fur coat and a green dress (but not a real green dress; that's cruel), this song covers it all. 

"If I Were A Rich Man" from Fiddler On The Roof  There are a handful of musicals that everyone must see at some point in their lives.  Fiddler is near the top of that list.  If you haven't seen it, shame on you.  Go get it.  Now!  Anywhoozles, this song is all about the things the main character would do and have if he were rich (as he says, "...it's no shame to be poor.  But it's no great honor, either.")  This song really puts some things into perspective, particularly compared to some of the ridiculous things from the other songs. 

Abba - "Money, Money, Money"  This one's not as much about what one would do with their money, but more about lamenting that it must be nice to be rich.  I'm sure most of us can relate.  Not that we're all whining about not being rich, but most of us have likely uttered, "Must be nice..." a few times.

A few that I didn't put on the list, but (at least loosely) fit the theme as well:

Gwen Stefani - "If I Were A Rich Girl"  Yes, this is a complete rip off of "If I Were A Rich Man" but it's still catchy. 

The Beatles - "Money (That's What I Want)"  This song has been redone to death, but The Beatles just make me smile.  

"Money, Money" from Cabaret  Another great (if not a bit odd) song from a wonderful musical.

Got any to share?  Leave a comment! :-)

Here's to a great Friday and a wonderful weekend!  Enjoy!

*See, Hubby and I have this dream of running a kind of haven for older dogs.  Older dogs are the last to get adopted (if they get adopted at all), which just breaks our hearts.  So we want to be able to adopt them, and give them a good home for the rest of their lives, whether that be a few weeks, months, or years.  Yes, I realize that this would be a bit heart-breaking, but we both really feel that all dogs deserve a good home and to spend their days happy and loved.  We're big saps like that.