Hot Dawg!

I love hot dogs.

I don't care what people say about nitrates and ass and feet and whatever else may be included in those neat little tubes of salty-tastiness. Really, I've read Upton Sinclair. I know what happens in hot dog factories. I'm sure even today it's probably closer to what he described in 1906 than any of us care to admit. However, I love hot dogs. Yum.

Down here in near-eastern NC, where we like our barbecue with vinegar and collards (also with vinegar...we just really like vinegar), we like our hot dogs one way: mustard, chili, and onions (slaw is accepted but optional). Most people in the area I live in also prefer the ubiquitous "red" hot dog, which I can tolerate at an occasional softball field church gathering, but generally think is kind of gross. There is one rule when it comes to hot dogs in NC: DO NOT PUT KETCHUP ON A HOT DOG. EVER. (There are more than a few local grills in Raleigh that will not serve ketchup. One has a tiny bottle on a shelf behind the cash register that you can purchase for $99. I'm not even kidding, and neither is the Roast Grill.)

Another place with this lovely rule? Chicago, home of my second favorite hot dog: the Chicago Dog. I love a good Chicago Dog. The more crap you can throw onto a juicy, sizzling case of meat, the better. I never knew the joy of a "sport pepper" or weird fake-green relish until I had my first Chicago Dog, and I was hooked. And thanks to KLZ at Taming Insanity and Liz at a belle, a bean & a chicago dog, I am now shouting HOT DAWG!!!

Because my post about my husband and his vocabularity limitations not only earned me Nerd Mafia Made Man status, but they liked my word "pedantic" so much that they are using it as the next Word Up, Yo! word of the week.

You know what I deserve for all of this recognition? MORE RECOGNITION! If you agree, please click that little white picket fence linky. Pretty please? Oh, and join Word Up, Yo! this week. It's fun, y'all.

Almost as fun as eating a hot dog!

A Post That I May Get Into Trouble For.

My husband is a smart, smart man.

When it comes to math.

We always joke that when our children need homework help, he will be responsible for making sure our kids can do algebra and chemistry (okay, anything past the multiplication tables, essentially) and I can do the English thing with them. I'm pretty sure he hasn't read a whole book since maybe the tenth grade. I've seen him start a few non-fiction books, and by start I mean he gets about a half a page in before he looks up at me and says "explain again how this is supposed to be enjoyable?" He likes to pull me out of my book at the beach...I'm the type that could spent an entire vacation reading despite the 45 minutes or so it takes to eat each day. Drives him nuts.

Now, despite this hate-affair with the English language, hubby is quite impressive with his grammar and sentence structure. We have a game where he sends me emails of "people he knows" that have written something along the lines of:

"Dear employees,

Do not forget Apprceiation day on friday. We will be having hamburgers and there is a sign up sheet. Posted on the wall of the breakroom.

Thanks you, _______"

And this is actually better written than most of the emails that we deem laugh-worthy.

However, hubs has a slight failing when it comes to large words. Specifically, what they mean and how to use them. In the middle of a disagreement about my level of reality-TV obsession, we have had this conversation:

"You're eclectic," he sneers.
"Um, what do you mean?"
"Well, you're just very firm in what you want to watch and you don't really waver."
"I don't think you know what that word means."
"What word?"
"Eclectic."
"Sure I do."
"Well, you aren't really using it correctly, there," I sigh.
"Sure. It means you're weird for wanting to watch this crap."
"Not really. You might mean eccentric instead"
"Well, whatever. You're...pedantic."

That one, he may have gotten right without meaning to.

This post brought to you by Word Up, Yo!

I'm Doubling Down...

Am I crazy or just insane? I am attempting to accomplish a feat in one post that has NEVER BEEN ATTEMPTED successfully in blogdom before. Okay, maybe that is a wee bit of an exaggeration, because I see people link to two blog hops at once All the Fa-reaking Time. But I've never tried it.

Also, this is my first week attempting Word Up, Yo, despite me feverishly stalking everyone's posts for over a month now. If you'd like to attempt the fun that is Word Up, Yo, then link up fast: today is the last day for Vegas Week, Babay.

As you can see, I am also linking up to my new favorite Friday blog hop, Fill in the Blank Friday over at the little things we do. So, let me roll up my sleeves and get ready to roll the dice.

1) My last haircut was... not so long ago, actually. About 6 weeks. I'm usually an every 6-monther, so this is a good thing. I changed office locations in May and I am 2.5 miles from the local mall and a decent Mitchell's. Lunch time pampering? Jackpot, baby!

2) My most daring hair moment was... when I took a gamble in my early twenties and let a new stylist cut off about 6 inches and dye me red. I mean, deep maroon luscious red. It was chin-length, wavy, layered, and RED. But if you can't take a hair gamble in your early twenties, when can you?

3) A hairstyle I'd never be brave enough to try is... the exotic, trendy, Bettie Page/Katy Perry long black bob with fringe bangs. With my pale skin and freckles, I would probably look like a pit boss' weird, nerdy assistant. The one that had to clean up after...you know.

4) I've always dreamt of being a (blonde, brunette, redhead, etc.)... deep chestnut brunette. As someone who has ranged from towheaded kid to dishwater blonde to mousy light brown to trendy caramel, I would be willing to play roulette with a box of Nice 'N Easy in a sultry, rich brown shade.

5) My go-to hair is... a bun. Ugh, I know. I don't like hair in my face, I don't like wet hair hanging down, I don't like oily hair on Day 2 even though I know it's helping it be healthy. So, 5 days out of 7, the "bun" that my husband hates so much ends up being winner, winner, chicken dinner.

6) My biggest hair disaster was... in the third grade. "Hold On" was banking big ka-ching! for Wilson Phillips and my mom was convinced that I was a doll-size version of Chyna herself. She managed to talk me into what should have been a pixie cut. I did not rock that look. I looked like Peter Pan, and I don't mean like a girl playing Peter Pan in a musical.

7) A hairstyle I am dying to try is... hmmm. I really am not sure. I'm pretty open to trying most anything, but I'm old enough now to know what I can and can't work with this mop. I would love long layers like Blake Lively, but stylists have let me know in the past it probably won't work with my hair type. And I'm okay with that.

8) My best hair day was... my wedding day. I wish I could show pictures, but I can't while working. It was long, blonde, and glorious, slightly curled with the top half pulled back elegantly. It took longer to remove all the bobby pins than to um, consummate the marriage that evening.

9) The worst hairstyle I've ever had was... see number 6!

10) My hair is... THICK. I mean, I probably have twice as much hair as most other women. I doubt I will ever have to worry about thinning hair, as I could lose half of it and still have a pretty decent head of locks. At my old salon, when an assistant got to blow dry me, she was like "Jackpot!" Because she knew she was going to get an arm workout and a pretty decent tip.

If you enjoyed my Vegas-themed hair ramblings today, you can thank the Nerd Mafia of Word Up, Yo as well as Laura at the little things we do. I owe all of my inspiration to them. You could also vote for me on Picket Fences, it's not asking much, just a little clicky on the linky. I would so love to move up from my current ranking of number 66. At least I'm the top 100, right? Have a great weekend, and check out the other posts...I LOVE reading both of these hops.