Yes, it's true today is not the 30th and I said I would make my big post on the 30th, but here is why I didn't.
See, we started out by breakfasting here:
and I ate these delicious nutella crepes: Then Adam let me get an adorable yarn holder (and I filled it already) here:and by the time we were done there, it was time to go see this:
Merry Christmas from my bosses! Not only did we see it for free, we saw it for free in 3D! That was definitely worth it.
When the movie was over, we made our way back home, at which point Adam informed me had a surprise for me that he had to go prepare, so I stayed at home cleaning, feeling pathetic for not doing anything surprising for him until it was time to go to grandma's for dinner. After dinner, he decided it was time to see my surprise, so he put the sleeping mask on me and drove around until I was confused (I didn't even make it off University, if you're wondering) until we arrived here:
The funniest thing about the Comfort Inn is that he called a bunch of different hotels here in Little Rock to see who had in-room jacuzzis not booked and Comfort Inn was the only one open that didn't cost as much as our monthly rent! We definitely love the Comfort Inn :)
So, all in all, it was definitely the best anniversary ever! It was the perfect way to end the year and gear up for a long, exciting year ahead of us!
I have to admit I am a complete snob about December weddings. I am totally openly biased about them; I think December weddings are the best thing since sliced bread. I also find it completely funny that we got married in December after Christmas; we got married in 2006, but our first Christmas together was actually 2007.
I can't wait to make tomorrow's post. I love celebrating anniversaries as much as weddings. :)
We had a pretty nice Christmas holiday this year. We got to visit my family and enjoy some good eating in Little Rock and White Hall Christmas Eve, then rip stuff open somewhat early Christmas morning, then go to visit Jax's family in Alma and rip some more stuff open and enjoy some more good times and good eating. So, yeah, we spent a bit of time in the car the past few days, but there is a plus side: we borrowed an interesting audio book from the library entitled "Buyology" which is proving pretty insightful about why we buy stuff. It just happens to be on 6 cds, which is conveniently how many cds the 6-disc cd player in the car can handle. We haven't finished it yet (we're on disc 5), but I have been amazed at some of the things we have learned so far.
Oh, and because we went to Alma to visit Jax's family we were able to have a "White Christmas" this year in addition to the flooded Christmas we had in Little Rock. Hooray!
One year ago today, we brought home our baby, Frances Marie and I still love her as much today as last year. Last night, Adam and I were talking about how AT & T gives us four free tows per year and how we haven't used a single one since bringing Frances home. She is the perfect car. 29-30mpg around town and 32-34 on the highway is perfect for us. I have fallen perfectly, permanently in love with the wagon hatch--I don't think I will ever go back to a sedan ever again. The fact that the seats fold down and we can SLEEP in her makes her BEYOND invaluable. Seriously--we'll never have to sleep in a hotel for track days or summer vacations (for the two of us anyway) for as long as we have her.
I'm really tired, so this post may not sound coherent, but I wanted to put up how much we love our cute little Frances Marie. I am looking forward to many more happy years with her! :)
My cute little widgit is driving me up a WALL! I am NOT from Beebe AR!! There is a reason for this!! But whenever I go to our blog, or anyone else's, it says my location is Beebe and I'm frustrated. I thought I'd found a way to fix it by changing my location, so I didn't think about it again.
I was talking to my friend who was having the exact same problem with hers and she was telling me about thinking it was fixed until she got into Google Chrome, so we talked about that one. She told me it's quite similar to Firefox, so I downloaded it and tried it out by checking out or blog and guess what? I'm from Beebe again. (insert annoyed smilie here)
So, I think I like Google Chrome, but I'm looking for a new site tracker. Anyone have any good recommendations? I love FeedJit's format, just not the fact that I manually have to fix my location each time I open a new browser :(
I'm reviewing notes from my Intro to Interpreting class and we had a guest speaker come to speak to us about multiculturalism and she was absolutely fascinating! In the beginning, she showed us some interesting information which I am now going to share with you! Lucky! :)
If the World were a village of 100 it would look like this:
70 non white 30 white 70 non Christian 30 Christian
89 heterosexual 11 homosexual
6 people would possess 59% of the worlds wealth, all from the US 80 in sub-standard housing 70 unable to read 50 would suffer from malnutrition 1 would be near death, 1 near birth 1 would have a college education 1 would own a computer
I can't believe it's already the last month of the year. I remember sitting in the library exactly this time last year, making a post about the exact same thing :)
I still have to survive tomorrow and next Thursday and then we're good to go. I hate survival mode, but I'm in it.
I love this time of the year though. I wish I had a tree and somewhere to put it. I think December is my favorite month of the year! I don't want to ruin the whole month with finals. We still haven't decided on our Christmas/Anniversary/New Year's plans yet, so that will be exciting when we do. Hope springs eternal anyway!
Sure, everyone always posts something about how they are thankful for their health when Thanksgiving rolls around, but this year I really mean it when I say that I am thankful for it. Apparently I strained a shoulder muscle on Monday at work at job 1.
I woke up on Tuesday morning and my left shoulder was a little sore, but I figured I had slept on it funny or some such. It just sort of stayed the same all day and all night. Usually when I do something dumb at work one day I can tell exactly what I did the next day when do the same aspect of the job, but nothing made my left shoulder flare up Tuesday night at work, so I still have no clue what I did.
Anyway, on Wednesday morning it was still just a bit sore, but as it had already been sore for a day I just ignored it while I was at work at job 2. Since there wasn't any work for me to do on my machine at job 1 that night, I took a vacation day. Later that night, while Jax and I were watching a movie, I noticed my shoulder was starting to hurt worse. A while later we got the birdies out to play with them for a bit. At one point, just as we were getting ready to put them back into their cage, Shadow landed on my right shoulder. I could not reach him with my left arm because it hurt too bad. Since it was about 10:30pm on the day before Thanksgiving we went to the Emergency Room.
After spending over an hour in the waiting room in increasing amounts of pain, I finally got to go see a doctor. After a couple of quick pokes and prods, he decided to get an x-ray of my shoulder, just to make sure there wasn't something fun like a tumor or anything there. When the x-ray came back negative he concluded that I most likely had a strained muscle in my shoulder since the pain was the worst when I moved it myself, but he could move it with a lot less pain, to a point at least.
So after only 3 1/2 hours I got a fancy new prescription for a gentle narcotic with some Tylenol mixed in and a nifty sling to keep my arm in for a couple of days. I also learned that Vicodin apparently has little to no effect on me. It was supposed to make me feel no pain and fall asleep with 15 minutes or something. I pondered that as I was lying in bed an hour and a half later with a sore shoulder... I pondered it some more when I woke up at 6:30 (about 4 hours after we got home) and didn't feel the least bit groggy...
Anyway, I got to spend Thanksgiving day with a sling, explaining to everyone that I didn't know what I had done to my shoulder. Then I got to work at job 2 for a few hours the next day with my nifty sling because there wasn't anyone else available to work most of the hours I had previously agreed to work. Luckily we were slower than any other day I have worked there before, so my injury wasn't as much of a handicap as it could have been.
I am also extremely thankful for Jax. Even though she occasionally worries far more than I think necessary, she did do a lot to help me out over the last couple of days, and generally took good care of me.
So Jax was in another accident this morning on her way to school. She was rear ended yet again by someone following a little too closely and not paying quite enough attention to traffic. Naturally my phone was turned off, so I didn't find out until I turned my phone on as I was walking out the door on my way to work, nearly 45 minutes later.
Everyone was okay when I got there, just a little shaken-up and a bit annoyed that a police officer hadn't arrived yet. The cars weren't too terribly bad off either, though the other car fared worse than ours did. The other driver managed to hit my daggum hitch ball. Again. There was just a teeny scratch on the top of the bumper plastic of our car where it looks like her hood scraped it as her bumper plastic crumpled because the actual bumper itself was just the right height to go underneath our fearsome hitch ball.
We would both like to say a hearty, public "thank you" to Billy Griffin for stopping on his way past to check on Jax. Apparently he recognized the car and wanted to make sure everything was okay. So, thanks, Billy. It really does mean a lot to both of us.
In conclusion, the hitch is turning into the best $100 I have ever spent on any of my vehicles.
In a rare turn of events, Adam is cooking me breakfast this morning. I hope I'm not late for school :-p
Speaking of school, a month from Monday and it's over! Less than a month to go! I can totally handle this! I think my grades are even in decent condition too, which is just a bonus. But, there has been a change of plans. Money is tight and it looks like for us to get ahead, I'm going to have to go back to work full-time, so I think I'm going to take one more semester off. We've finally figured it out. We're selling everything but the kids (the parakeets--I'll tell you about the new one in a minute) so this time it will work.
Okay, for the fun news :)
We've been talking about getting NinjaBird a mate for a while, but just haven't. I knew that her being alone so much was really taking its toll on her, so I convinced Adam we needed a second bird :) (that wasn't terribly hard to do) and then we just waited for a better time. But instead of waiting till Christmas or next year, we went ahead and got him now (he was on sale too!) so we now have TWO birdies! We specifically made sure to get a boy, and instead of another green and yellow bird, we picked a blue and white one this time. He is super cute! He's still plenty terrified, but he's already playing with toys and climbing around the cage. Ninja didn't move and inch (in front of us anway) for almost a month. She wouldn't even EAT in front of us, in the beginning. He is definitely acclimating better than she did; I've even heard them chirp to each other a few times, already! But, they are in separate cages for the first few weeks, to make sure he will still socialize with humans and such (this is the theory; we'll see how it actually works out).
Before this gets any longer, I will leave you with a picture of our new baby, Shadow!
Grandma's big birthday was yesterday & it was celebrated in a typical fashion--we even went grocery shopping. She got her lawn mowed, some nice flowers, calls and cards & a surprise visit from Mom & Dad Pearce.
The big party is Saturday at her house from 4-7 if anyone is interested & available.
I needed to make this post about three weeks ago, so it's not up to date, but it's still important.
Arkansas has had torrential rain what feels like all year long and October has really been on a roll. A few weeks ago, on a Friday, I had to run a few errands and then go hang out with family, and it was--surprise--raining. I was heading down Markham, not really in a hurry, when the light changed from green to yellow. Most of the time I (unfortunately) try to go ahead & race through it so I'm not stuck waiting, but I figured since I wasn't in a hurry, I'd go ahead & stop; I don't like rain driving, so why not be extra safe, right?
Then I heard the crunch & my heart stopped.
Since I stopped at the Hughes street light, I pulled off to the side & proceeded to ball my eyes out--I knew my baby was ruined. I could barely find my insurance papers & I was totally dreading getting out to see how bad it was. After what felt like hours, the man finally came up to me to see if I was alright--I looked (and felt) like a freak show, but I was physically fine. I drug myself out & went back to the back & there was not a single scratch!
He hit the hitch when he hit me!!
I felt like even more of a freak show at that point, but I can't even begin to tell you the relief I felt. I know it's shallow, but I really do not want her to get dented in any way, shape, form or fashion. She is my baby and I want her to stay the way she is now!
The guy drove on his way & probably didn't think much of this (very) minor incident, but my nerves were fried, so I sat on the side street & cried till I felt safe enough to drive to Subway (conveniently close, as a matter of fact) so Adam could look her over.
A few weeks before this even happened, I had been thinking I should make a post about Frances, to let you all know that, even almost a year later, I'm still giddy when I see this car. She's worth every penny & I still feel the same way I did when we brought her home last December. The guy rear-ending me was scary, but gratitude-inducing.
I haven't had time to update anything else, even though there's a ton going on right now. Eventually it will trickle onto here, so stay tuned!
Warning. The first part of this post will be closer to entertaining. The second part will be wildly boring for the vast majority of people. Consider yourself warned. Now, on with the show!
Since acquiring our wee little Nissan a couple of months ago I can't help but notice that a Japanese full size 1995 pickup truck does not really compare in size to a current-generation American full size pickup truck, as seen here:
Granted, the Ford is an F-250, but the Chevy is just the regular-sized behemoth. The only thing I know of about it that is in any way larger than "standard" is that it is the quad-cab, which as we all know means that the guy wanted a truck but someone more clear-headed insisted on a station wagon. I think we can all agree on the inherent supremacy of the station wagon: it can carry just as much stuff inside as the trucks pictured above when it needs to, but it gets small-car gas mileage all the time. You can even add a hitch for those days when you need to get your motorbike to the racetrack (picture coming some day).
One day I happened to need a tailgate on the truck. As I believe I might have mentioned previously Edith did not come with one. It usually isn't a problem, other than the slightly lower gas mileage achieved by trucks without a tailgate. However, when it's time to move, after you have gotten all of the couches, beds, washers, dryers, pianos, tables, and other big stuff out of the old place, eventually you get to the stuff that is just too big for a box but not really big enough that you trust it to stay put while skidding around corners on the way to the new place. So I had to improvise: Why, yes. That is an appropriately-sized corrugated box bungee-corded in where the tailgate is supposed to go. I have even tested it on the interstate a couple of times, just for fun. And yes, I did write "NISSAN" in permanent marker on the box. It seemed inappropriate at the time.
And now for the less-generally-entertaining part.
For Labor Day Jax and I went to Jennings, OK (just outside of Tulsa) for a track weekend at Hallett Motor Racing Circuit, www.hallettracing.com for those of you who care. It had been 2 1/2 years since my last trackday and 3 1/2 years since my last trackday at this particular track. I had a lot of street habits that I spent most of the morning of the first day fighting. However, since I have over 21,000 miles on the current bike, plus probably another 1,000 on the last bike of nothing but street miles, I wasn't terribly surprised by that.
But, I still had a lot of fun. Anyway, one of my friends managed to get some video of me on track so everyone can see how slow I look while I ride around in a big, convoluted circle. Maybe the video will even embed properly so you won't have to go to youtube to find it!
Just in case, here is a link to the video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BUVrhY-5fR4
He catches up to me (fat guy on a blue bike with yellow trim and yellow leather suit) at about the 2:40 mark and follows me for the rest of the video. I think it was nice of him to stay behind me to try and make me look like I'm faster than he is. In reality though, he is significantly faster than me when he wants to be.
Anyway, I guess that's enough rambling for now. You may now resume your regularly scheduled life.
Tonight was stinky. It was just plain and simply stinky all around.
But, instead of traveling down the same path, I remembered this movie and this man and then the night wasn't so bad. A few other images and a great song popped into my head and I remembered everything we've been studying in Culture of the Americas. I didn't make that much progress in the grand scheme of things, but instead of it being the most awful, horrible, miserable night ever (that it was) it was just stinky. I can say that yes, it sucks, but I survived. I duked it out with God in my mind and struggled to accept his Will. He thinks I can handle un montón of things that I don't think I can. I did--I just wasn't happy about it.
It may not be progress, but it sure feels like it.
It's already the last day of the month, and I haven't really posted much this month. I just haven't had anything nice or positive to say and I've been so busy that it didn't matter anyway.
I've been rotating between trying to appreciate each day & just wishing the semester were over with already. It's definitely a tightrope walk. School is kicking my butt, as usual. I'm definitely finding out more about myself and a little about what I do and do not want to do with my life. Unfortunately, I haven't told any one person the entire story, really, and the people that I have mentioned it to have reacted negatively. So, no, I still have no idea what I want to do with my life when I grow up, which is scary and depressing. I have a few ideas, but I'm definitely not there yet.
Maybe October will be better. The end of September was, I think, overall better than the beginning of September, so I hope the trend continues!
It may be a bit late, but I want to thank my super MIL for coming up and keeping my meltdown from getting worse. It's SO nice to have company and I couldn't have gotten any of it done without her!
I just checked, and I can see the photo from Adam's friend's iPhone. Very weird. I know I promised you all photos of him from the other weekend, but I just haven't had any time to put them up. I don't know how excited you'd all be anyway, so it's not the end of the world.
This past weekend, we got half our apartment packed up, so now there are random stacks of boxes everywhere and the place is TOTAL chaos instead of controlled chaos. Bummer. It's really bad timing too. I have at least three projects due this week, which also just happens to be the week my manager decided to give me 10 extra hours. Ugh, it's all been kicking my butt. But I gave away a few of my hours and I'm keeping my head above water. It will work out in the end--whether for good or for bad, who knows.
Also, yesterday my little brother received the Melchizedek priesthood! My Dad has waited for this day for years and he was so excited; WOW, I haven't seen him that excited in a long time. There were about 10 boys Mark's age who all got it at the same time. Mark even got to participate in giving it to one of his friends. That was really cool. He's so grown up now, I just can't believe he's still my "little" brother sometimes!
I put that poll up just for kicks. I've been debating switching my major and minor. I'll give you more details after it ends. I love feedback (this should come as no surprise to any of my readers!)
Anyway, it's been a long and busy day, and tomorrow is going to be even longer and busier!
So we sort of bought a new toy a couple of weeks ago. It is pretty much one of the ugliest vehicles I have ever owned. Those of you who are/were familiar with my 89 Honda Civic may be dubious, but that is only because you haven't seen the new one yet. There are benefits though. The biggest benefit is that it is paid for. Another benefit is that I no longer have to try to borrow someone else's truck to haul stuff. Another benefit is that it is a 5-speed, which everyone knows makes up for a lot of deficiencies. The engine is still plenty strong and is whisper-quiet most of the time. The transmission shifts crisply/smoothly, and the clutch feels great, as opposed to the clutch in the Civic which was slipping the day I bought it.
All this talk of benefits naturally leads us to the downsides. First off, it is ugly. The front end is gray with a silver stripe, everything from the cab back is purple, the hood is rust, and the tailgate is missing. Secondly, it has obviously been in a few accidents in its lifetime. Third, two of the tires are pretty much worn out. Fourth, the other two tires are bald. Fifth, a previous owner got a little creative with some of the wiring. Sixth, the engine sounds like a lawnmower when it is pulling hard, despite being whisper quiet the rest of the time. Seventh, the headlights are so poorly aligned that it's not even funny, and one of them makes light but doesn't actually cast light onto the road, or even your hand when held directly in front of it. At least one blinker is completely missing and another is missing its lens.
Overall we are happy with the truck. Since buying this one we have seen several of a similar vintage (1995) that are listed for far more than we paid. Yeah ours needs work, but it's still a lot cheaper than most we have seen since. Anyway, enjoy a couple of pictures of Edith Violet:
I have a bad habit of disappearing for weeks & then going on a blogging frenzy--here goes again
I did it! I went back to the organic grocery store and bought myself some organic milk, dark chocolate (only 60%), frozen mixed berries, frozen broccoli florets & organic eggs grown right here in Arkansas. A tad expensive, but I won't be buying the chocolate, or this particular brand of milk every time, so I think I can swing it more regularly. Add that to the Farmer's Market, the Reiki class I'm going to check out this weekend & everything else I'm looking at & I'm going to be certifiably crunchy!
It was really yesterday, so I'm a bit late, (that, and they don't even read this) but I wanted to tell my parents Happy Anniversary!
My Dad "proposed" on Wednesday and they were married on Saturday twenty four years ago! My grandparents met my Dad that Friday too! To top it off, it was the day before my grandmother's birthday! What a crazy story!
So, while I'm here, I'll wish my grandmother a Happy Birthday too! I wish she were still fully around--she's 84 this year. I miss her a lot, and I wish I could get up to Batesville to see her more often. Three years ago today, while engaged, my mom gave me my grandmother's original wedding ring set & we turned the main stone into the solitaire I have now. It was really cool to do that on her birthday.
Stay tuned--the month of August was important before it got married--now it's even more so! :)
I didn't mean to forget you all! It's just that not much is happening right now. We're just cruising along.
I really, really dislike my job and some of the things they're trying to make me do, but everyday that I'm still there is one more day and it will all work out in the end. Sigh. I know eventually it will, I'd just prefer sooner than later.
But, even that isn't the end of the world. I checked out a stack of books from the library for Adam about English majors and jobs and stuff. I Don't Know What I Want, But I Know It's Not This is pretty much my favorite title. I think they wrote it with Adam in mind. I got myself a book about cruise vacations, and even though it's probably going to be a few years before we actually go on one, just reading the book has been a mini vacation! :) I love it when that happens!
I'm going back to school full time! We're biting the bullet and getting student loans, but I've got a 3 year map ahead of me (I might be able to shave off a semester, maybe 2, but not more than that) so that will give us more than plenty of time to knock everything else out, so I still feel good about it. Besides, it will be worth having a degree in hand & getting a better paying job to knock them out with! :) So, that's been my big exciting news lately. I was terrified of dealing with it, but now I don't even remember why. The department chair (my new adviser :) mapped it all out for me, both Spanish and Sign Language. Now, I just have to hurry up and wait for the next three years! Hah!
Also, we're going to move soon. Our lease ends in September and we've been thinking about it. I'm definitely excited to move. We know for sure we'd like Hillcrest and/or the Heights. I just don't want to drive in the Heights is all. It's a fantastic neighborhood, albeit a bit expensive. But, we're also considering duplexes or guesthouses or basically anything. The alternative ideas sound really cool right now, but we'll see for sure. It's another hurry up and wait, but it's okay, because I'm still excited. I know it will be worth it when it gets here.
I went to a holistic doctor for the first time too! How exciting! We discussed my disaster of an endocrine system and he gave me some good suggestions and supplements. I've taken the supplements perfectly and I'm slowly inching my way towards the good suggestions (stay away from white foods & eat green foods--as if this is any surprise) But the difference is that I finally made it to the Farmer's Market. I know I can buy green foods fairly cheap there, so I figured it would be a good idea. I also saw an ad for a group called the Raw Foods Resource Group and tried to go to the meeting tonight, but the owner of the place I was told to go didn't know anything about it. I'm bummed actually.I figured a support group like that would make it easier to start eating greens more. I'm only permanently opposed to green beans & even that may change eventually. Even though this Raw Foods group didn't work out, I did find myself a new organic grocery store which I think we'll be frequenting much more from now on :) That was exciting! I also found a couple of other places I'll be checking out soon. I'll tell you more about them later.
So, I guess there's more going on than I thought, but none of it seems terribly newsworthy. Not compared big stuff, like Panama (which by the way, nobody ever commented on my photos. A few people asked--and then nothing. What gives??) We're mainly just existing right now, but that's a good thing! :)
Panama was FABULOUS! I learned, spoke, traveled, played tourist, played native and basked in it all! How exciting! In all my reading, I never could have imagined what the real thing is like! :) I haven't finished adding up my fotos yet, nor have I decided how many to publicize and how. I'm not exactly sure, but it's somewhere in the range about about 1500+ fotos :)
Yesterday, Adam took the day off and it was nice to have it together. We thought we'd be making an impromptu trip to Fayetteville to acquire the newest member of our 2 wheeled family, but the trailer lighting stuff didn't work. Today, he had to go to work, & I took Grandma shopping & vaguely tried to clean and unpack and such.
Sliding back into my routine, even though I don't want to. I had a couple of interesting epiphanies while in Panama (particularly while I was horridly motion sick on some backroad highway in el anterior) but I've kinda forgotten the specifics. I hope they come back :) But, today has been one big epiphany as to why I was so cranky & rotten in the months before this trip. Hopefully, it won't last. If I get back into school full time, that will help, among other things. I wish I could somehow re-create the family I stayed with down there, among other things too. I've been comparing some of the reasons why Panama was so fantastic (outside of palm trees and not having to deal with some people at work) and it's been surprising. Gives me some stuff to work on.
Anyway, I have lots of explaining to do about everything, but for now I'm going to read & get ready for bed! Hasta luego, Diego :-p
For nine months, I wondered what this day would feel like and now it's here. Waaaaay back in November it was a fuzzy dream that didn't seem real & here it is. At first I imagined I'd be fairly happy, and then for the next eight months I imagined it'd be a little bit harder.
Today, we went to the temple. I forgot to tell you all that I'm not in the United States! :) I haven't really told anyone what I've been up to lately while in la Ciudad, but believe me, you've got hundreds of pictures coming your way next week. It's going to take weeks! :)
It's been a busy day, like the all have. I had a rough morning in the school with my other classmate and then we ate and headed off to the temple in excruciating humidity. EXCRUCIATING.
And making this post is the first time I've thought about July 14th, my self-appointed due date. Just think--I sure wouldn't be in Panama right now and I wouldn't trade Panama for the world!
This has been the loneliest 4th of July I have had in 3 years. This morning I rushed Jax and her mom to the airport so they could catch their flight to Dallas and from there go on to Panama. After that I headed over to Pinnacle Mountain for the annual ward Pancake Breakfast, which I arrived at just in time to get something to eat. I stayed to watch the youth play a couple of rounds of Ultimate Frisbee and then to watch some of the toddlers playing on the playground.
After that I went home for a little nap, after which I indulged in one of my masochistic tendencies by going out to see a movie. I had hopes that the newest Transformers movie would be better than the last one in certain ways. Boy was I wrong. Michael Bay should be slapped with a badger for inflicting that on people. Just like the last one I couldn't tell what was going on or which giant robot was ripping the other giant robot into smaller robot pieces, or how everyone somehow magically arrived just in time for the last climactic battle in which the camera never stayed still long enough to allow your mind to figure out who was saying what to whom or why it was supposed to be important. I hate to sound like one of those fanboy freaks who lives in his parents' basement, but dangit they messed up some of my memories. I may be the only one associated with this blog who knows who Jetfire was, but what they did to him was just plain wrong. Also the Matrix of Leadership looked completely different in the 1986 movie which I saw on my birthday in 1986. Not that I'm a nerd or anything... Anyway, as incoherent and insensible as the 1986 movie was when I watched it again a couple of years ago, it was better than the latest one. At least I could tell which robots were on screen at any given moment. Michael Bay, I hereby slap you with a virtual badger.
Anyway, after my masochistic episode I ran up to Conway to eat some hamburgers and blow things up with my Conway family. It was good to see them all again, and to see everyone's health generally getting better. My Conway family has had some pretty big challenges in terms of health over the last couple of years, but things seemed to be getting much better tonight, overall.
I hope everyone has had a happy and safe 4th of July.
Three years ago in a few hours I hiked a mountain with a man. He was a nice man and it was a nice mountain (even though it was hot and I complained about a lack of water). He gave me a nice ring and we had a nice time showing off that ring and watching fireworks.
Wow. Hard to believe it's been that long!
Today, I am leaving that man. But only for a little while! :-p (And don't feel bad for that man, either! He's getting a track day in September, which he will gladly tell you all about!) I'm pretty sure I'll be able to update the blog some while I'm down south, I just don't know how much yet!
I just wanted to tell you all to have a happy 4th of July and that I love you Adam! :)
I suppose Jacalyn wanted to make the first post with this new toy, but she is on my computer right now so I am taking advantage of the situation. Anyway, we splurged on some things today, most of which is for her trip to Panama this weekend. But we also got her a new toy that wasn't strictly a necessity. Her computer has been slowly dying a miserable death for a while now. So today we splurged on one of these so-called netbooks. It is downright small and lightweight which are bonuses for being carried to Panama and on other adventures. However, since I insisted that she get the largest model available (a whopping ten inch screen) the keyboard can still be used by at least some adults, or someone with little girl hands like mine at least. Anyway, she just noticed what I was doing, so I guess I need to hurry up and hit publish before she makes a post.
I've been kind of afraid of what I would type next, after my last post, but honestly, after that post, I physically felt better. Like I just needed to blow the steam and keep going. Of course I'm not giving up--what else is there to do but keep looking for a new job? It probably would have helped if I just had somebody to call, but I couldn't think of anyone at the moment, so I did the next best thing.
Part of it is my upcoming due date. Yeah, I know, I've been holding onto it for that long. As soon as I found out, I put my cute little countdown timer on my iGoogle page, but I never took it down as soon as I got myself unpregnant. Maybe it would have been easier if I had. I never really had much of that short lived, would have been pregnancy, and it didn't kick in until well after the event. I wondered how I would feel when it got to July. I've been pacing myself, with other pregnant women I know due about the time I would have been; even Adam didn't really know this until not too long ago. I keep thinking 'I would be here if...' or 'it would feel like this if...' etc. I keep reminding myself that I'm still relieved it happened, since a pregnancy is the last thing my diseased, overweight body needs right now. I'm not in any hurry to get pregnant again (well, I might think so, but it's like before, I only want to until I really think about it...or until someone says the abominable 'H' word) so now I have the motivation to get myself into shape and whatnot.
Of course my post sent up a red flag and a well meaning email, but I really think I just needed to blow the steam off and keep going. I did talk to a couple of guys at church who I think will help me with the rest, so I'm not that worried about it. Who knows, maybe it was part of the thyroid craziness--I haven't had any medicine in weeks! In my quandary with the endocrinologists vs the holistic MDs, I ended up off everything altogether! Sheesh! I think I know what to do, at least for the next 6 weeks.
Not to mention my big distraction (I told you I had them coming). Exactly 6 days from now, I will be arriving in sunny Ciudad de Panama! :) It's a two week school my mom and I are doing and I couldn't be more thrilled--with both the opportunity to go abroad and the fact that it's right in the middle of July, of all months, so I'll be preoccupied when the 14th comes and goes! It worked out very nicely indeed. Obviously, I won't come back fluent, but it should be long enough to get started for now. Hopefully it leads to going back (and other places) in the future and then I will be fluent! I am quite excited, but kind of scatterbrained at the moment. It doesn't really feel like I will be leaving the country quite soon! I have to go get things figured out--like suitcases and whatnot (I just used that twice now!)
We're infested. Daggum fruit flies have taken over our entire apartment. Not just the kitchen, which you would traditionally associate with fruit and therefor the potential for fruit flies. Not just the dining room, which would also be associated with fruit on a fairly regular basis. The entire apartment has the daggum little bugs flying around making a nuisance of themselves.
Now before you all start jumping to any more conclusions about us being dirty slobs and whatnot, we're not. Could the place be neater and tidier? Certainly. Could we spend more time cleaning and such? Sure. But seriously, the place doesn't stink, it isn't covered in months worth of garbage, and you can even see the floor in every room of the apartment. Yes, every room.
The first time we noticed them we took the appropriate measures: we washed the (few) dirty dishes, washed the dish rags, swept, mopped, and generally tidied up. And the flies didn't go away. In fact, there are more now than ever. I am beginning to think that one of our neighbors went on vacation and left something sitting out on the counter that they shouldn't have left on the counter. Or something.
Anyway, I guess it isn't the most appealing of posts I could possibly imagine, but I've got some fun road rage posts coming down the pipe if anyone is keen.
There's a long intro story I don't really have time for, but over the weekend, we decided to re-vamp the job thing again, only much more seriously this time.
So Monday and today (had to do my stinky schedule yesterday and tomorrow) I used yellowpages.com and started calling places in and around one of our target areas (five counties should be big enough, don't you think? That's the six biggest cities in Arkansas.) Monday I was on fire and excited about it, but today has been discouraging. Right back to where we started! Can't anything go right for five seconds?
So, anyway, I just got off the phone with this guy who I don't think meant to be a jerk, but I just felt desperate all of a sudden and he was just so straightforwardly rejecting that I was in tears by the end of it.
I had a micro-epiphany earlier while Adam was home, but I've forgotten exactly what the subject was on (well, it was on the atonement and the Garden of Eden but I've forgotten exactly how that ties into Adam getting professional job help) and it doesn't even matter anymore. It's right back to square one. It feels like nothing matters. Nothing I do makes any difference. Not when I'm excited about it (aka Monday) or when I'm depressed about it (aka today) or the violent mood swing in between.
I give up. I want someone to be angry with me for giving up so easily. But, I also want us to get some help and we're not getting that either. I've tried to call places--be proactive right? God helps them who help themselves, right? Why can't we get any help?
Instead of being productive today, like I had dreamed, I sat down to check my email for a minute and started googling a topic that is really sensitive right now.
That was at 11:00 and it's now almost 1:00. I found a couple of interesting blogs and even added one. I did lots of thinking. Then, I ended up back on my own blog and for some reason decided to look at where we were a year ago. In June 2008 we only made four posts and they are mirror images to what June 2009 has been so far. Apparently it's a trend. I am not a happy person in June.
I am not really a happy person period though. I have enough reasons to be, but if you've noticed, I've not been pleasant to be around. It explains why I currently have no friends and may possibly never have any. I'm just not willing to give it up yet. I'm bitter about some things and I want some answers. All of the church-y mumbo-jumbo and people solving their problems hasn't helped. At all. I am not at that point yet. I guess I have a long way to go before I'm going to get to that point, so I will probably continue to remain unpleasant. Consider yourselves forwarned. I won't be in the least offended if you choose to stop reading and commenting. I really want to be a hermit and just hide from the world, so I honestly do not want to spread my unhappiness any farther than I already am. I don't have anything else to talk about on here, so that's where I'm stuck.
Of course, after June 2008, it got better, and I'm assuming the same thing will happen again. I still have all the same problems I did last year, it just seems they're first and foremost at this moment. The next six months should have plenty of distractions, but the time doesn't pass fast enough for me.
Until then, this is what you're stuck with. Sorry guys.
But, I'm not telling you what it is yet. I'm sitting on my secret. Well, at least 3 of you know my secret, but one for sure doesn't even read this, so I'm good. The other two (you know who you are) shouldn't say anything either. I've lately regressed a LOT farther than I care to admit and somebody's shadow is constantly hanging over me, reminding me I'm not as good as h/she is. I thought I'd made it past most of this, since I've been such good friends with said person for a little while now. But, a phone call soured me and now I don't trust anybody. That, and I'm not taking my medication either. I'm almost kind of surprised nobody has really noticed. I'm handling it better this time around, which I guess is good. The last time I did this (unwillingly, of course) I was angry all the time. This time (surprisingly, willingly choosing not to take it) I'm just more depressed and weepy and emotional. But I'm always like that anyway so nobody has really noticed a difference!
Amazing! But anyway, I guess I'm surviving. Work is kicking my butt, but I get my first real paycheck on Friday and I have a feeling it's going to feel amazing. I'm going to try and keep this up for a while. I don't want to do this forever, so why not get it out of the way now, while I'm young? My new found escape mechanism won't hold out forever, either. That's going to hurt. I've spent so much of the last year and a half focusing on reality and fixing it that hiding in another world has been so...refreshing. So, if I don't post, don't be surprised. I wonder if Adam will ever post again. A tiny part of me doubts he will, but all I have to do is forcefully remind him :) (that was supposed to be a joke...for the record...)
So, anyway, let's all go back into hiding now, whaddya say?
I found feedjit somehow and put it on our blog just for kicks, and I have to admit, I love it. At least I know that one way or another SOMEBODY is looking at the blog!! Somebody in Wilmar, AR and somebody in Washington, Utah have seen our blog! Of course, nobody comments, which is different, but I don't blame them (you). I blog surf all the time and I never comment (though there have been a few I desperately want to...)
So, anyway, that's my funny! That just made my day. And this is good. Because life is hectic right now. I'll have to tell you about it later tonight, after everyone goes home. Unexpected is cool, but nobody can stay, which is not cool.
We watched March of the Penguins tonight and I bawled my eyes out. Srsly. I couldn't stop after the first baby died. :( This is probably the third or fourth film I've ever cried at. It's a big deal for me. (Or...I'm just really that hormonal...or both)
But I highly recommend it! I loved the film! It was awe inspiring! Wow! I think penguins are right behind chihuahuas now!
I didn't mean to forget you. There's just been nothing exciting to write about lately. We're not very exciting people. All I'm going to tell you about is how Thyroid disease sucks and all Adam will tell you about is the latest tire sale at Cycle Gear. There are so many things I wish I could tell you, but lately, I haven't trusted anybody enough to divulge the really deep stuff. It's been hard too. But, it's not impossible and it hasn't killed me yet, so we're ahead right?
Enough anyway.
So, hopefully I'll be back to a more normal blogging pace soon, but for now I'm trying to stay afloat. We'll see how the next few weeks go. Maybe the end of the world will happen...hey, it'd be exciting right?
That's what my life is. I haven't even gotten around to sorting through that poll stuff (though I loved the comments!) And I haven't got any time to tell you about how this week has been so far (super good, super bad)
It's all on hold. Until Thursday when I have a day off and some time to regroup. Until then...
No, I don't have the money or the candy bar, but my whole "surprise" is that this post makes 100 posts since we started in January of 2008! Wow. I can't believe it took me (us) almost a year and a half to the 100 point, since I know some people blog that much and then some. But, our life isn't really as exciting as some, and that's okay, so I guess we're doing okay.
I wonder where we'll be another 100 posts from now?
It feels like longer since I've blogged than it really has been. But, life has been happening, with the end of school and the change in my job (did I tell you about that one?) This is the last week I'm doing the flow team and it's both the easiest and hardest week ever. Ugh! I am SO glad I'm off this next week!
I'm trying to read El Libro de Mormon in sixty days and I haven't decided if this is awesome or stupid. It took me four months to read it in my native language, and somehow it's going to take me less than two in my target language. Hmmm. That's what I need to be doing right now (did I mention that I always procrastinate the beginning, so I'm already sixty pages behind? Yeah, awesome.)
I'll make a big post in a few days. Hopefully, anyway. It's going to be a little milestone and I want to celebrate (used loosely) so we'll see what happens!
I'm really in a blogging mood. I thought of the 2nd post I was going to make, but I've decided to put it off for a few more days to see how things change. But I'm really in the mood and I've been meaning to post this for a few days now, so here it is!
December 2006:
May 2009: Yeah, that's right. We switched wedding bands! How weird! I know couples where the wife's band fits completely through the husband's band, but we're not one of them. I honestly like it this way better. It's like I got new jewelry, without paying for it :)
Yesterday was my final. I didn't do all that great, but I don't think I totally tanked either. Here's to hoping!
My doctor's appointment was good and bad. I've been debating with myself if I should stop putting up all the details of my doctors appointments and various health ailments up here & create a new blog dedicated to that, or if you're all really interested and want to keep reading. I think I'll put up a poll. I'd like at least 10 votes please! (and no, I'm not going to vote myself to inflate my numbers :-p) We'll see.
I also went to see the HR lady yesterday & talked for a bit about all the problems I've been having and it was fantastic! She told me I could switch to Starbucks or Food Avenue. Hooray! I honestly cannot STAND the smell of coffee, but I'll take gagging on coffee over my back hurting & having to deal with this particular boss any day. Any day. I'll get over the smell eventually.
I thought I had a ton more things that I was going to put in separate posts, but now I can only think of one. Huh. I'm also forgetting at least one other thing for something or another, so it must not have been that important...Oh well!
Tonight is my only final. I'm supposed to be studying right this moment, but all my study material went to Subway when Adam took the car with him for the morning. Here's to hoping I paid enough other attention.
This afternoon is my follow-up appointment with my doctor. I told her last week I wanted to see how my levels are on the Armour before deciding what to do next. I'm super convinced there is a connection between my thyroid & my adrenal glands, but she dismissed that with "Oh that's cortisone, you don't want to go there" so I'm kind of worried about how it's going to go today. I did tell her I want to be able to lose some weight, so she said she would check my dose of met and start me back on that. Maybe if I can get in some shape, it will make up for everything else (I know it can't hurt) so I've got my fingers crossed for the appointment. I've been trying to do some last minute research, but it doesn't feel like enough, so I'm still worried.
Also, I've been meaning to make a couple of other posts, one with some photos, but I'm not in the mood, so get ready for a flood of posts coming up soon! :)
If we didn't already have it built in, we sure found it yesterday!
Friday night, I could NOT sleep. I don't know why, but I just could NOT sleep. So I called in (another post for another day) and we had Saturday together. After lounging in bed (obviously I got to sleep eventually, just not in time for my scheduled shift) and sleeping in, we decided to go out; not really sure where, just go. I wanted to go check out a place that has a now hiring, but it was pouring down rain, so we changed our minds. Adam mentioned going to this place called Playtime Pizza that our bird-friend told us about so we drove over that way, since it's not exactly in the middle of town.
Wow. The place was packed!!! Jam solid packed. It doesn't help that it was pouring down rain and it was 2:00 in the afternoon. So we changed our minds and joked about gloriously reveling in our childless status. We decided to drive around for a bit and we were talking about the place and all the screaming kids and the parents, and well, you know, everything that goes along with that subject. I joked with him that maybe we should go back and get practice being patient with tons of screaming kids and parents who are secretly thinking something like 'Don't you dare make me parent you' and he just thought that was really funny or something, because before you know, we ended up right back there!
It's way overpriced, and yes, there were tons of screaming kids, but the buffet is huge and you can stay and eat all you want for the one price, which works out pretty well. We ate a round of pizza and watched as a group of cheesy tae-kwon-do teachers did a group exercise with a huge group of kids. So, so glad that's not my job. Then we decided to walk around and see what was in this place. And yes, we saw parents who totally believe in the philosophy of 'Don't you dare make me parent you' and it was really frustrating. We saw tons and tons of arcade games; we actually rode only one ride--a ride for two that simulates a roller coaster (which turned out to be loads of fun! That's a big deal for me!). We watched the go-kart track and timed it and figured up the price-per-minute (way too much) and talked about all sorts of things. We started to make our way over towards the blacklight mini golf, but got side tracked by air hockey (we played this on our first mini honeymoon in Memphis.) Then we made our way over to the blacklight mini golf. We both enjoy blacklight mini golf (we also played this in Memphis) but this one was much smaller than the one in Memphis. After the mini golf, we ate more pizza and watched even more people give in to the 'philosophy.' I (only half) joked with Adam that if we actually needed birth control, coming here once or twice a month would be comparable to the ortho-evra we paid for (before it was obvious we didn't even need that).
Seriously people. It honestly must be their trial. John Bytheway talks about trials; poor, rich, super-fertile, infertile, educated, uneducated, patient, impatient etc., etc., and that each person's trial is far more correct for the person than we'd ever guess. That must be what it is, because some of the people there should not have had children. It's really frustrating seeing children who are not being taken care of very well and parents who are stressed and frustrated and not taking very good care of themselves, either.
Before I get on a rant, I will let what I've said suffice. Despite everything above, we had a great time. I sure had a fantastic time just spending time with Adam and I'm pretty sure he thinks the same. The moral of the story? Birth control doesn't just come from the doctor, after all!
Sorry Sylvie--I always feel guilty when whining, because I think of you. Please don't hate me forever.
I'm in a weird mood. Really. I can't explain to you what I was doing earlier. I've had a long week, screwed up medication and a heck of a last minute homework load. Ugh.
1. I freaking wish it would rain. I'm probably going to get killed by every person in the state of Arkansas for this, but I really do. I'll go play out in it.
2. I freaking wish I got some real mail. I also freaking wish I had the money to send real mail off (like last year's Christmas presents to the west coast family...)
3. I freaking wish I had a friend to hang out with. I have friends, but none of them actually see me unless it's something required or something. HS friends and my in-laws are all too far away and I just don't really have anybody else. Makes for a lonely time of it.
4. I freaking wish my phone didn't make weird noises and mysteriously not receive text messages. Annoying. Like almost failed my class annoying.
5. I freaking wish the job situation would resolve itself. Or my health. Or our finances. Or something. I FREAKING WANT SOME CHANGE!!!
6. I freaking wish I could give up the chocolate. I'm formulating some plans involving this, so expect to see more about it. Just don't keel over--it can be done. I am woman. See me get skinny. *
So, while I'm in this weird mood, I think I'm going to go get on my exercise bike until it rains. I'm seriously gonna get skinny.*
*Skinny is not the appropriate word for what I want, but I like saying it. PLEASE don't think I'm going to binge or do any weird diet (seriously, SRSLY look at you're talking to? You think I'D do a diet?) "Skinny" means more along the lines of toned and fit, meaning if I did happen to lose some weight--FANTASTIC! But, what I really want is some endurance and muscle. I know some women are afraid of bulking up, but it's like perfection, I highly doubt I'm going to get there, so why not try anyway? Before I start rambling, I'll just make a whole 'nother post about this later, so you get the full picture, because I'm not done ranting about my body yet.
This daggum weather is just plain frustrating. Annoying, too.
So Monday I had to take a vacation day from the Conway job. It was an old one I had lying around, and it had reached "Use it or lose it" status, so I decided to use it Monday. Someone else had already requested last Friday off, and only one of us on the crew can take a vacation day at a time. Anyway, as the weather prognostications kept involving obscene amounts of liquid sunshine for Monday, I figured I had picked a good day to sit around the apartment and maybe do some cleaning. I even briefly considered going on a motorbike ride, just for the fun of it. Not going to work, not going in for a service, not going to the grocery store with it; just going for a fun, relaxing ride out in the country. However, the previously mentioned prognostics swayed me far far away from that idea.
Then it didn't rain. At all. Not a drop in Little Rock. It rained quite strongly in Conway, but not a drop in Little Rock. Jax and I took Grandma to Conway to use one of her Christmas presents, which was a gift card to a Chinese restaurant. Not long after we got inside it started raining pretty hard. It rained pretty hard the entire time we were eating. On a side note, it turns out that even though the restaurant we went to has the same name as the one on the gift card, they are owned by different people and they don't share gift cards with each other. Oopsy!
For fun, I didn't sleep at all Monday night. Seriously, I got to sleep sometime after 6 am on Tuesday morning. I felt like dookie. I went ahead and went to my morning job, which was pretty busy. But I decided that two hours of sleep probably wasn't enough to safely run a machine that could easily rip my arm off without any trouble, let alone ride home on a motorbike that doesn't offer much protection if I were to fall asleep while riding. So I called in and took an extra day off. I know it will kind of stink when I get my paycheck in two weeks, but I don't get paid enough to risk life and limb...
Anyway, the forecast was something obscene like 70% chance of rain Monday and 80% chance of rain Tuesday. It didn't rain either day in Little Rock. Then today, the day I worked both jobs and had to commute from Little Rock to Conway and back, it rained. A lot. Everywhere along my route, anyway. It could have rained Monday and Tuesday and it wouldn't have bothered me one bit. Instead it rained on the day that I decided to go to work.
As I sit here on my laptop, which still needs to be plugged in, the cottage cheese and the rest of the groceries need to be put away. The bird needs to be put in her big cage. I need to brush my teeth and wash my face. I need to make the bed (it's a mess). I find all of my ASL stuff so I can go to the lab tomorrow bright and early (no work!!!) And I needed to do all this before Adam got home.
Well, Adam got home before I even blogged about all the stuff, let alone did all the stuff. Oh yeah. I'm that kind of cool.
But I had a fabulous time tonight NOT racing home to try and get to sleep as fast as possible! There is life in the late night and I MISS it! I have got to get out of this early morning business. Srsly.
I'll tell you about the rest of it later. I'm going to do all of my undone stuff now.
Is there anyone in the world who is not doing something on May 16 this year? On the plus side, we have plenty of options for things to do.
1. Our ward is taking the primary and youth on a temple trip to Memphis that morning.
2. One of Jax's friends from her home ward is getting hitched in the Oklahoma City temple that morning.
3. Jax's younger brother has his high school graduation that night in Alma.
4. My favorite local motorbike store is having their "Super Saturday Sale" that day in Little Rock, which just happens to include a fabulous price on a set of tires, which I will be about due for in mid-May.
5. One of my motorcycle gangs has been invited to a motorbike rally in Missouri.
There's even more, but I can't remember it all since we already know which things we are going to be able to do and which things we are just going to have to skip. Is this what it's like to have a social life, only every day? Geez!
Life in the Pearce household has been rough lately. I have a lot of problems I haven't been able to share with anyone, but I desperately need help. I think a lot of it has been due to a change in medication, which I thought would help me feel better, but instead made me feel worse than I ever have in my life. Ever. But, after a bit of research (intertubing :) I think I may know which other medication to add to make them it all work!
But, in the meantime, I've been a basket-case, on the verge of going to a new home with white walls and a straight jacket. Adam keeps telling me that it's okay to blame it on the hormones and that I'm not normally like this (like he phrased it--PMS on steroids), but that feels like such a cop-out to me. Like the hormones are my crutch. What on Earth will I ever do if I fix them? (heh, will I ever fix them is more like it. I thought the main problem was just my thyroid, but now I suspect adrenal fatigue has been another major player)
Neither one of us likes our jobs. I am super depressed. My job ruined Easter for us. My job has destroyed our together time. My job is going to destroy my back if I stay. Adam's job hunt is a joke. I've really lost faith that he'll ever get a new job. God must be punishing us for something and I can't tell you how many different ways my counselor has tried to tell me how that's totally irrational. I know it's irrational and that it's not true. He tells me to be happy that God knows what he is doing with our lives, but I am not. Second class Latter-Day Saint I might be, but I am not happy that God is in control. I guess I don't have much choice in the matter, because he is, whether or not I admit it, but I just wish we had some control. I get so annoyed to hear how other people are getting jobs and moving across the country just fine; but in the same breath, I feel a ton of guilt when I find out someone else has lost their job.
Basically you could say I've not been much fun to be around lately. It's probably why I don't have (m)any friends. I really want to change, and maybe it really is just the hormones at work here. Blah. Blah is exactly how I feel. Sorry you had to read it, but I wanted to throw it out there to explain where I've been. I'll try not to do it too much more, at least until I've changed my meds again, (which isn't for a few more weeks) So now you know why I'm hiding. I'll just let Adam run things a bit. He's better at being an optimist than I am. I'll be back soon.
So yesterday (Tuesday) on the way home from work I had the first accident with the new car. Yeah, I'm pretty sure Jax wanted this particular honor, but I felt it was my turn to get some recognition. It's worth mentioning that despite the reputation I have, I don't get into accidents or even speed very often. In fact, my last accident was when I was 17 or so (yeah, 13 years ago), way back in high school, and involved a woman going roughly 50 mph on a residential street with no headlights on a dark, rainy morning. My last speeding ticket was in 2004, and the last one before that was in 2001 or so.
Anyway, I didn't get a ticket for this one either, due to the fact that it was the other driver's fault. Then again, she didn't get a ticket either, mostly because she just barely bumped into the back of the car. Seriously, it was so slight I thought for a moment that my foot had slipped off the brake pedal. Then I looked in the rearview mirror and saw her expression. She looked so upset that I couldn't help but feel sorry for her. Anyway, she backed up a couple of feet and I took a peek and assessed the (lack of) damages, and saw absolutely nothing wrong. She didn't even hit me hard enough to knock any of the dirt off the car, let alone dent or even wrinkle the bumper plastic. So I waved and went on home to get ready for other work.
I guess the title made it sound a lot more exciting than it actually was.
Three years ago today, it was raining and I was looking for a job. I had started spending some more time with this guy I know. He'd been coming to my dorm to watch movies with me and my roommate (our Sunday Night Movie Night was supposed to have been a big deal, but well you know...it was us) and he'd been inviting me over to his house. In the previous weeks, I'd taken a few friends over, but I was bored on this particular day, and I called him while I was driving around Conway. He told me he was cooking spaghetti and I mentioned something to the effect of 'oh yum, that sounds good' and he invited me over. I told him said roommate and I had already rented our movies for SNMN, but he said he wouldn't be able to come that week, so I told him I'd bring them with me and we could eat and watch a movie (I very specifically avoided the 'D' word though)
So I did. We watched the most bizarre movies (what can I say, I had a weird roommate ;-) and it was kind of awkward (I don't care what you say, roommate, they were FROLICKING in a way that grown men should not...) After both movies went off, we sat on his couch and just talked and talked. At one point he started playing with my feet, which I thought was odd, but I didn't say anything. Before I knew it, it was after 11 and I was kind of wondering what was really going on so blurted out (so sweetly) "So, I guess this is official then?" and he said "I guess so."
We got married a little over eight months later...
(As Paul Harvey would say, "...And now you know the rest of the story!)
So, yeah, I still get more junk mail from the AARP and The Scooter Store than my grandparents ever did. But that's not really the point of this post. The point is that, whether I will ever admit it in person or not, I really am starting to feel older. I don't seem to bounce back from injuries like I used to anymore. As an example, a couple of months ago I was running to get to something before too many bad things happened. When I got there, I tried to slide to a stop, but my boots caught traction from nowhere (I have slid to a stop at this place many many times before and since) and I felt and possibly heard my left knee go click! Well, I guess I managed to twist my knee in one of those ways that aren't recommended by your doctor, unless he needs to make a car payment next week. The annoying thing is that I can still feel it at times. It isn't nearly as bad as it was for the first few days after it happened, but I am aware of my knee in ways that I would prefer not to be.
I also can't seem to lose weight nearly as easily as I could in the past. Granted, until a few years after my mission that wasn't really a problem anyway... But back in 2004, when I got my first sporting motorbike, I decided that since my new bike weighed over 100 pounds less than my old one, I should lose some of my extra weight as well, and I managed to lose roughly 40 pounds over the course of a few months. But don't worry; when that bike got stolen, I managed to find all of those pounds again, plus a few of their friends. So once again I have decided that I don't really need the influence of these extra pounds on my life. But it seems to be a lot harder to lose them this time around. I swear I have the same motivation and the same desire. But they must be leaving trails of bread crumbs or something because I just can't seem to get rid of them. I suppose I'll just have to try harder.
I stayed to hang out with Grandma after grocery shopping, and while I was playing Bananagrams by myself (another post for another day) the mail arrived. She went out to get it and sorted ours out (we're so bad, we never officially switched our address at the post office, so she still gets most of our mail!). Then she looked at one of the ads addressed to Adam...from The Scooter Store.
You know the one.
It advertises during The Price is Right.
We both lauged and I told her not to tell him (he got really sensitive last year before he turned 30 when he got spam email from AARP...) and that was that.
Then we were talking about that and other things and she made the comment "You know, I don't even get the junk mail from The Scooter Store..."
and I almost fell out of my chair! That is seriously one of the funniest things I've heard lately! We lauged HARD about that one! There Adam is, barely 30 years old getting spam and junk mail from AARP and The Scooter Store, more than Grandma does, who is almost 80 and has had a hip and knee replacement!
This is the 12th post this month, which officially tops our record of the most posts in one month! Hooray!!
I can't believe how busy it seems, when, while it's happening, it seems more boring than dog snot. I've been reflecting on the deeper meanings of life while at Target at four in the morning (what else do you do when you're awake and on the clock?), but I don't think I could ever type them out here. I wish though.
We got our new phones in last Wednesday and so far, I think I like it. Adam said something about his battery having problems earlier tonight, and mine was buzzing something funny about text messaging that I'll have to figure out later, but overall, it's a much nicer phone than my last one (refer to my angry letter :) Hooray for decently working, cheap phones!
One of my best friends from high school texted me Sunday to tell me her 9 month old baby was at Childrens right here in LR. I knew they'd scheduled an appointment for the 13th, but came early because he was having more problems. I spent a little bit of time with them Sunday evening and a few hours Monday afternoon. They ran neurology tests and cardiology tests to figure out why he sometimes stops breathing for no apparent reason. All the tests came back normal, so they were sent home tonight, with no answers, which means they'll be back on the 13th anyway. I was really happy to see my friend and her adorable baby, but I kept telling them they could just come visit without having to go through the hospital :)
Adam and I made a decision about our monthly budget, and we decided to take a chance on Dave Ramsey's My Total Money Makeover subscription. I think it's the best $10/mo we've ever spent. I haven't even plugged any of our numbers yet, but I've been exploring the site since yesterday and I'm really stinkin' excited to get going on our debt again. We know exactly what we want to do and when we want to do it; the problem is the monthly budget and making it actually happen, and I think this will teach us what we need to get where we want to be. I'll be blogging about it a lot more in the coming weeks and months, but I highly suggest you check it out anyway :)
So anyway, that is what's been happening with us! :)
It's been raining a lot lately, and I've really enjoyed it. I should have taken better advantage of it, but it hasn't worked out that way.
But I got my new phone it. Rather, we both got them, since Adam's phone was dying a long death. I think I really like it. I've forgotten how much I don't like adjusting to new things, especially things like phones, so I've been fumbling around with it all day, but when I have it customized, I think it will be quite nice indeed.
I need to go get ready for bed, but this is getting harder, because it's sunny outside. This is a huge mental block for me, and it's not going away anytime soon :(
I think there was more I was going to say, but I forgot. I'm tired. That's good. Guess it'll wail till tomorrow.
I am really hard on cell phones. It's unfortunate, but I don't know how not to be clumsy, not yet anyway. So, my phone is always dinged and dropped, even though I try to be careful. Most of my phones survive, at least for a length of time longer than 5 months (except for that one that we bought damaged off eBay, but it doesn't count, because I liked it despite its problems).
Until you, un-dear Samsung slider phone. You really stink. I took a chance on you, since I've never had a slider phone and thought it would be "exotic" compared to my flip-phones. You were a free upgrade, with the contract renewal (and thus we see that research is important, b/c we've never done it, so we don't know what's out there that might be better). I thought you would be a nice phone. I got you in bright orange, only because they were out of the bright green I thought I wanted. I wasn't sure though, and maybe that should have been an omen.
You've been trouble from dang near the beginning. Dumb little things that started adding up. Then you started not ringing when people called me. I know I'm hard of hearing, but I'm certifiably not THAT bad! (Know how I know? My otolaryngologist told me so!) Then you started not calling people when I dialed. That's a pain in the bum, un-dear phone.
Then Saturday happened. I was playing with you, randomly texting Adam while we were at work. I sent the message, slid you shut and stuffed you in my pocket, not unlike the thousands of times I've done this since October. I pulled you back out, only to see that my debit card was regrettably stuck between your slider bits. This was bad news bears. I fiddled with you and discovered, to my horror, that your slider bits were broken. Where you used to crisply pop open, you now flopped and wobbled open. What an embarrassment! So I fiddled with you even more, and you took your last revenge. You might think it's cute how you won't come on at all, but I still have the last say.
And in a few days, when I get my new pretty, you'll see. Or you won't, since you still can't come back on. You knew full good and well that we don't have money to spend on phones, yet can't go without them. You knew you were my primary source of contact with the outside world. Darn you crappy phone!!
--your ungrateful, soon to be former owner, Jacalyn
P.S. to the new phone: You've got a lot to live up to. Please be nicer than the recipient of this letter. I'm counting on you.
I meant to do this Sunday afternoon, but Tuesday is close enough, right?
Saturday, we went up to Batesville bright and early. I know you can get your taxes done just about anywhere, but we like to go to the person my parents go to. They started going to her probably back in 1994 or 1995, when we moved to Cave City, but when we left, they decided to still go to her. She helped them with the hardware store. She's just turned into a family friend. In 2007, our first year together, Adam and my parents decided to play pass-the-dependent-around, to see who could get more claiming me (I'm so worthwhile!) and Adam was really impressed, so we decided to keep going to her. Yes, we drive halfway across the state, just to do our taxes. But, it does work out that we can also go see some of my extended family, so it's not just for taxes :) I have a few aunts and uncles still there, and my grandmother is in a nursing home up there, so we try to see her. Six years ago this month, she was diagnosed with the tumor and given six months to live. Funny how things work out. It's really weird to be able to see her and talk to her; to hear her voice and touch her hair, and yet it's still not her. I describe it as her shell. The grandmother from my childhood is still gone, even though she's there. It's really sad. :(
So after a quick visit with my grandmother and (great) aunt, we raced back to LR to get to Subway on time. Some people probably think it's weird working on Saturday nights, voluntarily anyway. But, it really works out. We get to work together! How many people can work with their spouses? We do! And FINALLY!! A slow Saturday night!! Just like they told us it would be the whole time! How exciting! We still didn't sit and just talk, but we weren't running our bums off either, and it was VERY nice! :) A date night that pays!
After we got off work, we went over to our friend's house. We randomly met this guy in Petsmart one night, when he overheard us talking about bird cages. He has a professional aviary and tons of birds, so he introduced himself, and gave us his phone number. We went over there and it's so freaking cool! While we were there one night, he mentioned that he also cuts hair for just 10$, so heck yeah! I've been wanting to get it cut for like a month now, but we really haven't had time when he has, so I just waited. So, Adam talked me into going after Subway, even though I was worried about being late. We had a great time! Adam played with his big birds (an African Grey and a cockatoo--so cute!) while Todd chopped and thinned my hair. Unfortunately, I still can't take any pictures. My phone bit the dust (I'm saving this one for another post) and my memory card is with my ASL II teacher, being homework. :( I hate not having my camera working!
We had a good day today. A trip up to Batesville for taxes and family, a date night that pays us instead of the other way around, and a cute new haircut (even though I can't take any pictures right now :( sorry guys, you'll have to wait)
I will probably post more in detail tomorrow afternoon, but I just wanted to say that I think I had a pretty good day today :)
:( I don't know how today happened, but I'd like to prevent most of it from happening again.
I had a whole free afternoon and I wasted it worrying over what I was missing and what could possibly be wrong because I ended up with all that free time. I'm hormonal--I'm screwed up bad. (Good news on the thyroid front--another post for another day) My leg is cramping, because it rained today, and because it will probably rain again tomorrow.
Then I went to the ear doctor. My ear has been bothering me for well over a month now, but I originally thought it was from when I was sick. Then I got un-sick and noticed my ear didn't change and sure enough. The tube was already non-functional (after six months). He took it out and told me he could put a new one in today if I wished, or we could wait a few months and I would need it again for sure. So that's what I decided to do, because that stuff HURTS! Ouch!! He told me about this ear popper thing might help, and even wrote me a prescription, just in case the insurance will pay for it, and told me this would be a rest-of-my-life problem and to have a good day. Sorta. That's what it feels like anyway.
So, I'm cranky now. I don't really have any friends I can call, so I'm venting it out here. Thanks for listening.
So, I've left you all in suspense, wondering what it is we did and where it is that we went! I suppose I should go ahead and tell you, but I will show you first! :)
Here is the 'what we did part':
And here is the where we went part:
Yes. We totally slept in the Vibe. Adam made a joke about it when we test drove it, then it came up again when we started planning Indy in August. So, I had the brilliant idea that we should test it out in Dallas, especially since his sister and her husband left to go skiing. It worked out so well. It was a bit chilly, but it was so stuffy in the car that the windows still fogged up (okay, somebody, make the joke) so it wasn't a problem! :) And we each had enough room to roll over, which is more than I thought it'd be. The front passenger seat folds down as well, so Adam had extra room to stretch out, so that wasn't a problem! Who'dda thunk it? What kind of crazy people sleep in their car? And then brag about it!? Yeah that's us!
Also, I've never been to Louisiana before. I've lived in Arkansas my whole life and I've been to 43 other states in the country, but never managed Louisiana. I heard my brother say my parents were thinking about adding it over spring break (now) and I knew I had to beat them to it, so we cut across Texas when we left and drove straight into Shreveport, which is a huge deal to me, since I've now been to 44 states! Hooray!! So that's the big deal about the where we went!
and by the time we were done there, it was time to go see this:
