Toomer's Corner

Unless you a part of a the Auburn family, the few minutes spent reading this will probably mean absolutely nothing to you. You should know that when I'm a fan..I fan hard, whether it be Supernatural or my Auburn family.

One of the trees before they were poisoned

Today is the day that the Live Oaks that adorn Toomer's Corner in Auburn, Alabama will be removed from the earth. These trees have been a part of Auburn's tradition for decades and their landscape even longer.

Earlier this year

To you they're probably just pitiful looking trees. Maybe you heard about the *insert choice expletive here* Alabama "fan" who poisoned 133 year old Oaks because that team he hates won the Iron Bowl AND the National Championship over the 2010 season.

After the 2010 National Championship

After every Auburn win I would go with my husband and friends to celebrate by visiting Toomer's Corner. The tradition of rolling the trees began many years ago and quickly became one of my favorite Auburn traditions (second only to our eagles Nova or Spirit flying around the stadium before a game). To see something so beautiful and held so dear to so many taken away from us because ONE person wanted to "get back" at Auburn just breaks my heart.

Yes, they are just trees to some, but to me, they're a symbol of not just tradition but one of family. From one person's hate comes something even more beautiful and lovely. This act of hatred brought so many members of the Auburn family together this past Saturday for a reunion and a celebration of all things Auburn. It was a bittersweet goodbye to our beloved trees. We were there on that corner to say goodbye to something that meant so much to all of us and will be forever rooted in our memories but it was also a day of joy spent with friends and reveling in the beauty of those toilet papered trees.

April 20, 2013 for the final roll of Toomer's Corner as well all knew it

Check out this AUsome video that was posted.

Happy New Year!!

We all know that with each new year, the majority of people will make resolutions and by the second week of January all those people will basically be yelling "JUST KIDDING!"

So I'm not so much resolving to do anything but setting goals for myself. For some reason, having a goal just sounds more flexible and not all end of the world like. Like a lot of bloggers, I'm going to share my goals for 2013 in the hopes that since they are out there for the world to see, that maybe I'll achieve them.

1. Write more. This is my main goal for the year. I want 2013 to be the year that I finish a draft and start revisions on it. If I want to be a serious writer (which I do), I need to kick myself in the arse and get in gear. It's not easy and I know my shortcomings but I WILL write at least a little each day. Whether that word count is 20 or 2k, something is better than nothing.

2. Move. Ok, so this is like the obligatory one. I'm not setting a goal of losing weight because while that is the ultimate goal, I don't want to focus on the numbers. So instead of saying I want to exercise and eat healthy all the time, I just want to move more. I'm going to do the same thing I did with the caffeine thing (BTW - I've officially quit drinking caffeine for a year. WOOP!) and just do it week by week and start slow. This month, I'm going to try to do Yoga or Pilates a couple of times a week and again, I'm not setting a certain amount of days a week or anything. I've found that if I miss a day of something then I'm all "welp, that's a fail" and quit. Not this time.

3. Go on a writing retreat. My friend Natalie and I have been talking about doing this for a while and I really want it to happen. Now that Kelsey has it on her 30 by 30 list? I'm making sure it happens this year.

4. Travel. I love to travel and visit friends and nothing makes me happier than visiting new places. It doesn't matter whether it's Kansas City or Paris, I just want to visit a place I've never been before. When the hubs and I first got married, we decided that we'd visit at least one new place a year, whether it was new to one or both of us, and so far we've succeeded in doing that.

I'm sure there are other things I'll add to my list but for now, these are the main ones.

Are any of my goals ones you have set for yourself? What's the biggest thing you want to accomplish in 2013?

I also want to say that the winners have been chosen for my giveaway and the winners were Jill W. and Angel M. Thanks to everyone who entered! Congratulations ladies!