25

Today's my birthday. I skipped out on my early morning shift at work because well...who wants to work 10 hours on their birthday? Going in at 3, unless someone picks it up from me...and maybe not then. So now, I'm hangin' out, watchin' some Oprah and witnessing the ingestion of a silk leaf by a small dog.

Maybe is still limping around on 3 legs from her spectacular dive off the couch a couple of days ago, but I'm sure she'll be fine. Perhaps it will even help to strengthen her "little" left leg which is the one she hurt last time. She had been hesitant to put any weight on it, but now, as she has no choice, she's hopping right along. The experiences that I have with Maybe lead me to believe that perhaps I should never be allowed to have children. I mean, what happens when my toddler leaps off the back of the sofa? *shudder*

Every year for my birthday my mom feels that it's vitally important that she call me while I'm sleeping and wish me happy birthday. I don't understand this. If I had been say...born at 3am and tortured her for 45 hours on the day that I was actually born it would be one thing, this would just be 25 years of little revenge. However, I came into the world at 2 in the afternoon during a scheduled C-Section, which I feel was very polite. Oh well, as she is the only one of my parents who ever remembers to say happy birthday on the actual day, I can't gripe too much.


Wedding Update: My storage closet is slowly filling up with 15 huge silk plants. In spite of the fact that it's only getting closer, as each day passes it feels less real. Perhaps it's because I don't have bridesmaids...

Stealing My Thunder

Ok, so this is really weird.

When I hurt my left ankle in March, Maybe suddenly developed pain in her left leg.
We thought, hmm what a weird coincidence.

Tonight I slipped on a strawberry at United and sort of did the splits in the aisle. I've pulled a muscle or stretched something in my right hip/groin.

While we were waiting for dinner to cook tonight, Maybe fell off the back of the couch and her right hip is hurting her. We know it hurts because she screamed like a maniac for 10 minutes and will now not put any weight on it.

She is totally stealing my thunder.

It Will All Be Okay...

So, 2 weeks, 2 days sounds a lot longer than

ONLY 16 DAYS UNTIL THE WEDDING!!

I don't really have that much more to do actually...thanks to the haven that is TheKnot.com I now know how to make my own bouquet saving me at least $50 dollars.

My official portraits are Monday, hope to God the giant pimple on my nose decides to stay undercover for a couple more days.

Justin's best man called last night and has got his tux situation under control, which is good. Justin doesn't talk to his best man as frequently as I would like for him to in order for me to feel like things are in order, but that's his perrogitive. My maid of honor is doubling as my wedding planner so I'm in contact with her well...constantly.

Cake ordered, Photographer hired, Dress altered, undergarments purchased. I still don't have any makeup, but I have two more tanning appointments before the pictures so I'd like to wait to see what color I actually am at that point. I'm hoping for "golden," but I never tan golden, so it will probably be something like "light dirt." *laugh*

Hopefully Justin and I will be able to make a super quick trip to Amarillo this weekend to go to the flea market and shop for hair, I never do my own hair, it's way to easy to buy something quality and cute and attatch it. My hairdresser has agreed to do my color for "a small donation" to ensure that I don't look like an elderly gray haired bride on the big day.

Still don't know what to do about the tattoo situation. For those that don't know I have a rather large (probably 4 inches square) tattoo on my left shoulder. Don't worry it's not like a naked lady or skull and crossbones, it's actually a rather pleasant blue and green tribal inspired design. Completely inoffensive. Except to my mom, who is totally schitzing out about how we're going to cover it. Hello Stage Makeup. However, I probably do not have time to run around looking for quality BenNye over the next 4 days. I think the photography place can probably edit it out. Hello, it's just photo shop, I've done it at home like 12 times.

So...that's about it.

I'm turning 25 on Saturday.

And Now: A Break From Wedding Stuff

Here's what happens to me 20 times a day:


TTY USER: Pls dial xxx-xxx-xxxx

SUSAN: Now dialing...

SUSAN: We're sorry you have reached a number that has been disconnected or is no longer in service. If you feel you have reached this recording in error please check the number and try your call again. (recording)

TTY USER: Leave a message.


brilliant.

WOW

I got sooo much done today!! My aunt and I went to the alterations place this afternoon to get the top part of my dress taken in. We were also planning to go shopping for the appropriate foundation pieces for under my dress, an aisle runner and some other wedding related stuff. The first thing we saw when we walked into the shop is that they had the *exact* corset that I needed for under my dress! We had thought that we'd probably have to order it online LUCK!! So, the dress place marked my alterations, we bought my bra, and they agreed that they would also steam out the wrinkles in my dress before my bridal portraits, which will be Monday. Hurray! Then we went to the bridal/party shop and bought the runner so that my dress doesn't snag on the cement where I have to walk "down the aisle." While we were there we picked up 4 disposable "wedding" cameras for my younger brother and sister to take candid shots during the reception and getting ready times etc...(we have a professional photographer for the real pictures.) After that we went to another bridal shop and found my veil, which was on sale! Then we had dinner, and I set out to spend the birthday money that my mom sent me. (My 25th birthday is Saturday.) I got two shirts, some honeymoon lingere, a string of pearls for my portriats, two foot scrubbers, and a horse-shoe toe ring to wear for the wedding. (Tradition says to carry one for good luck, but who can lug around a real horse-shoe?) Then I went to tan I feel like everything is falling into place...things are much better this week...Yay!

Ok, also I made a grevious error in a comment that I posted to one of my entries last week, I said that the only people that I thought read my blog were Justin, Patrick and Tiffany and I left out Jennifer! (I totally didn't mean to so she gets her name in pretty pink letters!)

I Propose a Toast...

Excuse the Pun. We received our first non gift-card wedding gift yesterday from my mom's cousin Exa. It's a four slice toaster hurray! While I think this is a cool gift, (we did register for it of course) Justin thinks it is a REALLY cool gift. For some reason the prospect of four pieces of toast at once is very....well...we'll say appealing to him. Anyway, it'll make breakfast (which we don't eat) much quicker.

It's Here!!

My wedding dress came yesterday!!!!! It is just absolutely beautiful and I don't look like the staypuff marshmellow man!!! It only needs a few inches taken in in the bust and I'll look like a bride! I just giggle and laugh and giggle.

Also, I found a book that any bride to be or bride has been should read, it's called "A More Perfect Union, How I Survived the Happiest Day of My Life." I found it at Barnes and Noble yesterday and in reading it finally felt like I had found someone who understands all this insanity that has enveloped my life. Hurray for Hana Schank!

Thank God for White Lies

So, my wedding dress isn't here yet. This is especially disturbing, because to ensure that we would get it a reasonable time before the wedding we told them that I was getting Married on May 1st. Thank God we did too! I called today to find out about it, they told me that it was shipped last Tuesday yesterday, and that I should have it yesterday or today....so it didn't come yesterday. I called today to get the tracking number, and then I called UPS. Their records show that it has not been given to them yet. Great. So, I called back and said "don't you see that your records say that I'm getting married in 4 days?? I don't have a dress and UPS doesn't have a dress and what is going on!?!" so the woman is like, "ohh we made a mistake on the tracking number, we are going to overnight it to you, it will be there Friday, call me tomorrow for a new tracking number." OH MY FREAKING GOD!!! What exactly were they looking at when they said that it had already been shipped? A magic 8 ball?? Thank god we told them the wedding was sooner, or else it would be May 17th and I wouldn't have a dress. Don't they know that we need time for alterations and steaming and pictures?? AUUGHH!! It's not like we didn't give them plenty of time either. We ordered the dress on March 15th. They told us then that they had it in stock and that it would be here in 7-10 working days. It's been phone tag ever since. This is insane. Can I sue for the stress of it all??

Blah de blah blah

We got paid today so we are no longer 700 dollars overdrawn. This is very good news. Justin just now noticed Maybe chewing on something and said "bring that to me," and she did, which is also very good news, and pretty surprising. I guess she's gotten out of the rebellious stage of her puppyhood. Bought some strawberries, carrots and lemons at United tonight and felt like a healthy, good food eater until I came home and dipped said strawberries in Nutella. Very good though, perhaps a food option for the wedding. I created a myspace.com account...I think its a very strange thing, anyway, people from all over the place are contacting Justin on his...nobody from my past cares. *sigh* Oh well...today is a better day than the past few, have a new computer chair too, its very fancy...certainly beats squatting on a footstool.

Wedding Shoes

I have wedding shoes. My aunt found them tonight at Academy. They are PERFECT!!


Also, can somebody tell me how the whole name change thing works? Do I do that when we get the marriage license or what? I'm ready to be Mrs. Susan Brinkley aaah!!!

General Update.

Ok, invitations are enveloped, sealed and going to be mailed on Monday. Watch your mail. I did something to my back yesterday and so now standing up for very long is very painful. I'm not going to work today, I don't think that I can sit for that long at the computer without hurting even more. I need a day off anyway, wedding stress is really getting to me....

We have seven thousand fruit flies in our bathroom, anyone with any idea of how to get rid of them please let me know. It makes bathing really unpleasant and Justin is scared of bugs.

We will be honeymooning in Amarillo...exotic, I know...pttth. Anyway, it's free, and we'll get to eat at Bourbon Street.

ONE MONTH

Exactly one month til the wedding:

Dress is not here. (should be here hopefully by next Wednesday.)
No Undergarments. (waiting on cash)
No Shoes.(waiting on cash)
No wedding band for me (waiting on cash)
No veil (waiting on cash)
No marriage license (gonna do that on Monday)
Invitations not mailed. (waiting on cash for postage)
Reception cards not printed. (waiting on guy at the church to return my call)
Cake not ordered. (again, waiting on cash for deposit)
Music not burned to cd. (waiting on Justin)
No idea who will take pictures. (original girl cancelled on us)
Pre-marital counselling not done. (our schedule change messed us all up)
Not tan. (waiting on cash yet again)
Justin's parents still MIA (even though he called his dad on Tuesday to say Happy Birthday)

And I'm sure there are at least 5 more not done things to add to that list that I can't think of right now. I'm basically exactly where I was at the beginning of this, excpet that now my aunt has a bedroom full of tulle, flowers, serving pieces and bubbles. This is a disaster. I am so stressed out that I could just burst into tears at any moment. This wedding is going to be a disaster....a cake and punch with no real food disaster. *sigh*

Getting Things Done

Yesterday, we had Easter Lunch with my family, and then headed out to the lake to check out the place where the wedding will be, and decide for sure how much stuff we're going to need to decorate with. I also managed to get 88 of the 100 invitations printed Hurray! Now on to postage, and I have to print the reception cards...not everybody gets one of those. Justin's parents still aren't speaking to us, but we've kind of gotten used to it, and I feel like we made a big step closer yesterday. I took some pictures to commemorate the occasion: This is us at the lake all hot and sweaty and windblown.


And this, is us doing biore pore strips so that we have lovely blackhead free skin on the big day:


I think it's a really cute picture, I'll probably print it off and frame it he he he...

Near Death Experience

My dad nearly died today. He's fine, but it was very stressful all the same. First of all, for those of you who don't know, my dad is a fireman so he's out doing scary brave things all the time, but except for the time he fell through a roof, I don't think he's been in this much danger, ever. Here's what happened:

The wind was blowing 51 mph today and a transformer or something blew off of a power pole and fell into a field of dry grass. It of course sparked and started a fire which spread rapidly because of the wind. The fire ended up being 2 miles wide and 4 miles long. Anyway, my dad was driving this big water truck through the field trying to find the best place to start watering the fire, and out of the smoke and dirt came a huge ditch, which he ran into, the truck sort of nosedived into it and then tilted and then jumped out, losing it's front bumper in the process. Firemen can't buckle up when they are in the truck because the bunkers take up too much room, so my dad was sort of flung around in the cab, hitting the windshield and the roof and the doors and basically turned into a pinball.

There were two men riding on the back of the truck, who he thought he threw off and killed, but they as it turns out held on and are fine too...anyway now the scary part... My dad jumped out of the truck to check on the other two men, and they were basically looking into a wall of flames, on all sides. They got back into the truck to drive off, and drove about a yard and then it died, I'm assuming because of the wreck. Their radios stopped working because they only had a portable and it for some reason doesn't work more than a couple of miles out of town...but they didn't have any way to really tell anybody where they were anyway because they couldn't see anything because of the fire, so my dad and his friend Rene crawled on top of the truck and started spraying water all around them to try and keep the fire away and the other guy starts trying to get a signal on the radio. They really thought "this is it, this is how firemen die."

So eventually everybody else starts freaking out (there were like 4 departments there because of the size of the fire) and they start looking for them and they can't see anything through the fire and the smoke, until finally somebody sees a little bit of the top of the truck out there surrounded by smoke and fire, and they drive in and rescue them. My dad is really incredibly sore because of the wreck, and he couldn't walk when they got him down and he was all black with smoke and sweat and somehow his hand is burnt...and he was so scared that he was crying, and everybody was crying and they took him to the hospital and he is fine, except they didn't take any x-rays, and I feel pretty sure that he probably has some serious spinal mal-allignment, if not something worse....anyway, he's very traumatized, like anybody would be, and I'm pretty traumatized because my dad nearly died, and it's just been a rough day.

(This picture is not of the actual fire, but I assume its similar)

My step-mother, who is also a firefighter fell or something and hurt her heel/ankle at this fire too, so it was a trying day for that whole household. Anyway, I'm really glad that he is okay and we went to see him tonight, which made me feel better, to see him all in one piece...so yeah scary day.

AAAAAAH!

I have to send invitations out *this weekend.* I cannot believe I am running so late. I also can't believe that I've been up for over half an hour and it is only 8:34. Not sure if I like this new schedule... My wedding dress has still not shipped...I feel like I'm drowning.

The Undomestic Goddess

So, everyone knows that I'm not exactly Betty Crocker, but after 6 months of living on things that can be microwaved, toasted, or that come in a bag, I'm very proud to announce the arrival of our new stove!!! So happy in fact that I took a picture: Yes indeed our kitchen is now almost complete. It was delivered this morning. Also, look how handsome my dad looks in his fancy dress up clothes:

Ta-Da!!

I retiled the floor in our kitchen yesterday, and finished up today. It looks amazing, and I am very proud that I did this all by myself...to fully comprehend the difference, I would have to show you a picture of the old stuff, but unfortunately I forgot to take one in the excitement of ripping it up yesterday...I'll just describe it: The floor was vinyl flooring that had been rolled out sometime in the early 50's, it was yellow with a weird sort of floral pattern. It had huge holes in it, and some of it had been glued down with liquid nails some 20 or 30 years ago...Anyway it was terrible, and this is what it looks like now:
I have never been so proud of anything in my life, I keep looking for reasons to go into the kitchen. My comfort level in this house has increased by like 100 points.

No Turning Back Now

Picked up the invitations today...every day I feel like a major step is taken closer to the wedding...Ordered my bouquet day before yesterday...almost there. No word from Justin's parents. Lovely.

Mean...but Crafty...

We tied a balloon to Maybe's collar a couple of nights ago and she just flipped out, but it made some really cute pictures. Then we took it off because we don't want to traumatize her...



In wedding news, my aunt and I went shopping yesterday
and we got the bubbles, cake servers and guest sign in book.
I made bows for the servers, and I feel very crafty and proud so I'm posting a pic here.





the top...This is highly significant because on my dad's side of the family, when we see a white butterfly, we takeAnd finally, after looking all day long, we found the exact right bubble blowers. They have little white butterflies at it as a sign that my grandmother is with us...Here is a picture of the bubble blowers, sorry, it's blurry I couldn't get close enough I also did the ribbons on these...wow talent. *grin*

Disaster.

So, in an effort to get Justin's mom to talk to us and try to find a good compromise on this whole wedding thing, I sent a letter. The letter was approved as inoffensive and eloquent by both Justin and my Aunt (who specializes in these delicate situations). We all agreed that if they wouldn't talk to us, then it was the only way to make them understand where we were coming from.

So this morning, his parents called infuriated. His mom called me a bitch (or something that sounded very similar to that), and said that the letter was disrespectful. They are still mad about the Catholic thing, they are still mad about the date, and they still feel like paying 1/3 for the cost of the reception (which will be around $200 for their part) is too much, even though my parents are spending waaaaay more on decor and cake and chairs and invitations...etc. So, after a huge fight on the phone, in which one of them hung up on Justin, he called them back and told them that they are no longer invited and that he hopes he never has to see them again. This is a disaster.

I am so angry!! I feel like they are intentionally trying to ruin something that is important to us. For the past 30 years, all Justin's mom has had to do to get her way is to throw a fit and everyone is scared of her so they cave. I refuse to play that game. It is too late to change the date of the wedding, and quite frankly, we dont want to. Justin is worried about what my family will think of him, and of our relationship, if no one from his family comes to the wedding. I don't want my family to have to absorb the extra money from the cost of the reception since they are already paying so much anyway, and we are certainly not having just a cake and punch reception. There has to be food. I watch "A Wedding Story" I know how it's supposed to be in civilized society. I already feel like we are making too many compromises...the wedding, as it stands, is already a much different affair than what I've been dreaming about...

The only other option is to cancel the wedding. Luckily, the dress hasn't shipped yet, so they will issue a refund on that, and if I call tomorrow we can cancel the invitations and get a refund on those as well. We haven't ordered the cake, and everything else I think we can return. This really sucks.

So, wait for further updates, and I'll let everyone know when we have our small private ceremony in the ministers office. *sigh*

Help Please

Ok I want this posted at the top of my blog like where tiffany has hers for bronte, and I cant figure out how to do it Patrick please help!!!



Wedding Countdown!

AAAH!

It's 48 days til our wedding...The dress is ordered, the invitations are ordered, the restaurant and gazebo are reserved, I've ordered my hair, Justin has been measured for his tux, the minister has been chosen and we have registered.

It's 48 days til our wedding...We still need to: Address the invitations, mail the invitations, buy jewelry, flowers and shoes, buy soap bubbles, get chairs for the gazebo, order the cake and download the music.

It's 48 days til our wedding and Justin's mom is still not speaking to us. Ptth.

Weddings are Hard

Yesterday Justin and I ran all over Lubbock putting together our registry. It was a lot of fun, like shopping without the money, but we are very tired. Today I got a call from the minister saying that he would be honored to perform our ceremony and do our premarital counselling so that is good.

We also priced the stuff to make invitations with, and it is dang expensive. Actually, the paper and stamps etc are pretty reasonable but the envelopes are 7 dollars for ten and we are sending out like 70 invitations. Yikes. However, I got a catalog in the mail yesterday and their website has invitations (invelopes included) for around 50 dollars so I think we will probably do that.

Justin's mom has, up until yesterday, been very calm and generally supportive and helpful about this wedding stuff, and then last night she suddenly schitzed out because we aren't having a Catholic wedding. See, the thing is, I'm not Catholic. Neither is Justin, he converted to the same semi-protestant version of Christianity sometime around high school. So yeah, there's a little trouble on that end. Hopefully she will get over it by May. She did say that she would be okay as long as the union was blessed by a priest at some point...do you have to be Catholic for that to happen? (A little help from Jen would be appreciated here...)

Also, I'm getting really tired of my family members acting all weirded out because Justin and I will continue with our living situation, ie: seperate bedrooms, after the wedding. They just can't get it through their heads that we do not have to sleep in the same bed to have a good relationship. The sleeping thing does not affect our level of intimacy, we have a normal, healthy relationship both physically and emotionally. The 8 to 10 hours a day that we are unconcious doesn't have anything to do with it. We just are not compatible sleepers. I want to sleep diagonally on the bed with no one touching me, and Justin wants to sleep in a room where ice develops on the alarm clock at night. Easily solved by sleeping in different places right?

So anyway, that's the drama for now, more as more is available.

On the Ground Again

Ok so about every two years or so I sprain my ankle and end up on the ground in some inconvenient place. Apparently today was the day. I was walking to my Aunts house which is just one block over and one block down from our house, when I got to the corner where Maybe likes to go under a bush to do her puppy duty, I stepped on some uneven ground and down I went, with a terrible, gristly pop and a scream. I felt sure that instead of my usual sprain my ankle had actually broken this time. Naturally my cell phone was not working, and Justin had gone into Lubbock to pick up our paychecks. Brilliant. Luckily the across the street neighbor was pulling into his driveway so I screamed bloody hell until he came and then begged him to let me use his phone. Which he did. I called my dad so that I wouldn't have to go to the hospital in an ambulance. My father arrived on the scene and what does he do? Immediatly he uses his fancy fire department radio to call the ambulance!! Gah!! So they come and talk about how hairy my legs are,(its been winter!) and how high my blood pressure is (hello I'm on the ground in pain!) and then finally they wheel me into the ambulance. At the hospital I get Dr.Tan who is the worst doctor in the history of healthcare, who proceeds to call me fat, tell me my ankle has an ugly sprain, give me an aircast and tell me to eat my vegetables.

Maybe is also refusing to put pressure on her left leg. We cannot find a sticker and aren't entirely sure what is wrong, but hopefully it is just sympathy pain and she will be fine. She was fine when she went in her crate after her walk...We're going to watch her for a couple of days and then take her to the vet if she does not improve.

In wedding news, we called Justin's parents to tell them the new and improved wedding date, and his mom says that his cousin Rachelle is getting married the same day and someone is graduating from high school! Bah!!

Oh, and I've got my wedding dress ordered, and the outfit for the Amarillo Barbeque that will take place a couple of weeks later and serve as our shower. More on that as more is available.

Save The Date

Well we have finally set a fairly certain date for the wedding, and today I am going dress shopping, although, really, I think we'll probably end up with a dress from online. Anyway, we're looking at May 20th. Yes, I know, it has moved up considerably since the Original October 15th date, but the thing is, no one was interested in helping plan or talking about, or even acknowledging the wedding. This came from the fact that Justin and I have lived together for 2 years so our families don't see our wedding as a big deal, which totally sucks. So, I've decided that being married is way more important to me than having a wedding anyway, and that I want to just have something small and simple as soon as reasonably possible. We're going to do it at the gazebo on the courthouse square in Levelland. We're inviting like 30 or 40 people and then we are going to go to the Japanese Steakhouse or Zookinis afterwards for dinner and cake. To be perfectly honest, I'm more excited about it now than I was about the huge fiasco in October anyway. Patrick, Tiffany and Jen, make sure that I have your addresses for an invite!!

Also, I'm thinking of this quote for the invitations, let me know what you think:

When you realize
you want to spend
the rest of your life with somebody,
you want the rest of your life
to start as soon as possible.

(From: When Harry Met Sally)

(and then of course there will be the rest of the "come to our wedding" stuff)

Any opinions?

Maybe a Nap...

Maybe has learned to sleep through the night! I think she has finally stopped missing her siblings and accept Justin and I has her 'parents.' This is good. It's also good that she is the laziest puppy that I have ever ever seen. She's like: walk, nap. Chew toy, nap. Chase the cat, Nap. Yes! A complete stranger told me today that she is a "pretty little dog." Yay!! Ok time for a bath. Mine...not Maybe's

Puppy Love!

We have a new puppy. Her name is Maybe. She is half Miniature Beagle and half Australian Sheperd (we think that this combination was probably increadibly uncomfortable for the mini beagle). I think Justin and I lucked out on this first co-parenting venture. We have had her for less than one day and she is house-broken, leash trained and she knows to go to her crate to sleep. There is a small problem with howling at night...well...all the time really (and its that loud beagle howl, it sounds like screaming children or demons or something), but we're chalking this up to seperation anxiety. She was one of six puppies and we have sort of distrupted her family structure. She also gets along well with the cats, which isn't easy for any of us. Remarkable. Anyway, we think she's the cutest (four legged) thing ever, feel free to judge for yourself.

Yumm

Justin is at work right now, but I had a class today so I'm home, which means that my favorite pizza was just delivered: hamburger, black olive and green pepper from MamaMia's Pizza. Soooo good. It's my reward for dragging myself out of bed at 8am and then walking home from my excruciating class. Ahhh!

Note: This picture is not the actual pizza...my camera's battery is dead again.

Good.

I got a new picture on my profile, taken yesterday, by Justin, who is the only person alive who can take a good picture of me. I'm also posting a good picture of us together that was taken in...May I think. Who knew cheap hotel rooms could provide pretty good light for photos? Anyway, Justin finally received his birthday/Valentines day gifts in the mail today. A PS2 and a couple of games, and the girl from Kay Jewelers just called and I can pick up my newly resized ring today. Yes, things are better than yesterday. Hmm I just realized that I look young and sunburned in that picture...and I have center parted hair...maybe its not such a great pic...but its the only one of us together so deal. :)

Grr.

My profile is now lacking a picture because someone changed it from a picture of me to a picture of some random warcraft character. I do not know who did this, Justin says it wasn't him....but it's really random for it to just happen like that. I'm so fucking tired of people messing with stuff. The instances of people being in our house and leaving lights on has increased. Fuck Fuck Fuck.

Sneaky!

Ok, somebody did my Johari Window and didn't post their name...now, all the people that I know for sure read my blog, (ie: Patrick, Tiffany, Jennifer and Justin) filled in the blank for name so I'm really at a loss here...who are you? Hmmm...

Are you the same person who has a key to our house? Someone came in on Friday night and turned the TV off, turned a light on that we never use, and locked the door when they left. I have interrogated all family members and they say no. This is creepy. Anyone with a key to our house please turn it in at your earliest convenience!!

Oh yeah

And oh yeah, I hate stores that have a website, but you can't buy the product there. How stupid is that???

A Valentine Tradition

Pierced my nose last night. I had taken it out when I worked at that terrible job in Denton...the first terrible job, not the second...anyway. The first time I got it done was Valentine's Day 2 years ago. I can't believe it's taken me so long to have it done again...so anyway, now I have a tiny blue stone in my left nostril. Fun.

Justin and I had a great night last night, we did a little shopping, and took my Valentine gift to Kay Jewelers where it came from to have it sized. I tried to post a link but it has mysteriously dissappeared off the website. In any case, it is a pink sapphire ring, which is just gorgeous. The stones start out dark, really almost red and then get progressivly lighter towards the other side until they are almost clear. Lovely. We also went to Ohanas Japanese Steakhouse and had shrimp and scallops and rice it was great and fun. I like to watch the guy crack the egg with his spatula. I don't know why that's my favorite part but it is.

Anyway, as soon as I charge my camera I 'll post a pic of the nosering and my Valentine.

Very Interesting...

Who do you think I am?

Happy Valentines Day!!

What Gets Me In Trouble

Reds are motivated by POWER, seek productivity, and need to look good to others. Simply stated,REDS want their own way. They like to be in the drivers seat and willingly pay the price to be in a leadership role. REDS value whatever gets them ahead in life, whether it be at work, school, or in their personal relationships. What REDS value, they get done. They are often workaholics. They will,however, resist being forced to do anything that doesnt interest them.

Reds need to appear knowledgeable. They crave approval from others for their intelligence and insight. They want to be respected even more than they want to be loved. They want to be admired for their logical, practical minds. REDS are confident, proactive, visionary, and can be arrogant, selfish, and insensitive. When you deal with a RED, be precise, factual, and direct.



What Color Are You?
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Sex Kitten?

You Are A: Kitten!

Cute as can be, kittens are playful, mischevious, and ever-curious. Like you, kittens hate getting wet. Kittens are often loving, but are known to scratch or bite when annoyed. These adorable animals are the most popular pets in the United States--37% of American households have at least one cat. Whether it is your gentle purr or your disarming appearance, you make a wonderful kitten.

You were almost a: Bear Cub or a Lamb
You are least like a: Groundhog or a SquirrelWhat Cute Animal Are You?

Tax Refund!

We got our tax refunds today. This is very very good news as it means we're able to pay all of our bills off and buy groceries, and since we'll be caught up, a few little fun things for ourselves. Justin's birthday is the 21 of February and he just refuses to settle on what he wants. It will be a combination Valentine's/Birthday gift so I really want it to be good. Anyone with ideas, please let me know. It's raining...very weird, as it never rains. I like it.

We are also kind of at a loss for where to go for Valentine's dinner. There is of course a huge selection of restaraunts in Lubbock but finding one that's nice and affordable, that we both like, that won't be over crowded and takes reservations seems to be a problem. We seem to be asking too much. I really really wish there was a Bourbon Street here. So far it's looking like one of the Japanese steakhouses is our best bet. That's ok, I really like the soup and sushi.

My feathers are also ruffled because the WalMart in Hereford is waaaay better than the one here. Oh well.

More news as and when...

The Mighty Huntress

The cat that I like the least, (because I think she's evil, and she thinks she's Justin's girlfriend), Yumi proved herself useful during the night last night. When we got up this afternoon, there were two dead mice positioned around the house. (one placed strategically outside my bedroom door, we are all very lucky that I didn't step on it.) So, now that she's proved her worth, I suppose I'll have to be more accepting of her presence here.

The girl who used to babysit me as a child, Carolyn, is in town this week for her father's funeral and has asked to see me, and while I hesitate to not go where someone wants me, I'm very apprehensive about going. I don't want to see people who I used to know anymore, because I'm so ashamed about how I look. I've gotten too fat and I can't stand for people who knew me when I was hot to see me. (This is also partialy the reason, that I'm having such a hard time getting to Canyon to see Patrick and Tiffany, even though, I was pretty fat when Patrick knew me. *sigh*) I now work with a guy that I went to high school with, and I'm really really uncomfortable most of the time that he's there. (This is also partially because he's turned into a kind of jerk).

The good news: We'll have our tax refunds in 2 days! Hurray!

I Need a Girl-Friend

Ok, so I love Justin more than anyone else in this world. I enjoy spending time with him, we get along great for the most part, and I can't imagine anyone that I would rather spend the rest of my life with.

However.

I need a girl friend. As good as Justin is, he doesn't like to shop. (Which is to be expected, he is a guy after all, but I distinctly remember that towards the beginning of our relationship, he said "oh yeah, I love to shop." Perhaps this was a beautiful dream.) The thing is, I really like to shop. A lot. I don't even have to be buying anything to be happy walking around the mall. And I enjoy looking at things that I certainly dont really want or need.

Justin doesn't understand this. If I look at a gigantic diamond ring that costs upwards of 20 thousand dollars, he thinks that nothing he can ever get me will be good enough....It's shiny for christsakes! Of course I'm gonna look at it! If it was pink, I'd probably still be looking at it. That doesn't mean I want it. Doesn't mean I need it, doesn't mean I wouldn't be happy with a CrackerJack toy, as long as it came from him.

He does not want to shop for shoes, he does not want to see girly movies, he does not want to get his nails done. He does not want to watch "A Baby Story" on TLC.

I need a girl friend.

Most of my life, I've been okay without the female friendship dynamic. In spite of the fact that I myself am really girly, I've always been more of a guys-girl. I'm not sentimental at all, I don't really gossip, and most of the time I'm just more comfortable around guys. I really am okay shopping alone most of the time, and I'm not sure what's brought on this sudden need for a shopping, movie, talk-about-boys, kind of friend. But I really need one, and I need to find one soon. *sigh*

Better Than Obnoxious Forwarding

Welcome to the 2006 edition of getting to know your friends and
family. Change all the answers so they apply to you, and then send this to a
whole bunch of people including the person who sent it to you. The
theory is that you will learn a lot of little things about your
friends, if you did not know them already.

1. What time did you get up this morning? 7:55 AM a full 5 minutes before the alarm went off. Thanks Dad.

2. Diamonds or pearls? Diamonds are a girls best friend.

3. What was the last film you saw at the cinema? Oh...its been a very long time. I think Phantom of the Opera...or maybe Madagascar. Whichever one of those came out later.
Correction 2/7/06: The Corpse Bride, thanks Justin.

4. What is your favorite TV show? Currently, House, Monk and Scrubs

5. What do you usually have for breakfast? Eww.. Oatmeal lately with splenda and no butter.

6. Favorite cuisine? Right now I'm craving Indian

7. What is your middle name? -lee for all intents and purposes

8. What food do you dislike? My step mother makes this thing called Chicken Noodle Dinner which is really bad.

9. What is your favorite CD at the moment? Oh...I dunno I really want the new Barry Manilow. How embarassing.

10. What kind of car do you drive? a Happy Blue Ford Focus

11. What is your Favorite sandwich? Turkey and baby swiss cheese with cucumbers, bell pepper and olives wrapped in a tortilla

12. What characteristic do you despise? Hypocrisy, People who make me repeat myself

13. Favorite item(s) of clothing? My perfect black pants that give me a nice butt, and my red Indian print halter top

14. If you could go anywhere in the world on vacation, where would you go? Currently Hawaii

15. What color is your bathroom? White and Orange

16. Favorite brand of clothing? Venizia or Seven

17. Where would you retire to? San Francisco or Greece

18. What was your most memorable Birthday? I have a really lousy history with birthdays.

19. Favorite sport to watch? Hockey

20. Furthest place you are sending this? Um...Im not actually sending it anywhere.

21. Who do you least expect to send this back to you? Oh I think Tiffany might steal it that'd be nice.

22. Person you expect to send it back first? Bah.

23. Favorite saying? Gnothi Se Auton

24. When is your birthday? 6 May 1981

25. Are you a morning person or a night person? I'm sort of an early afternoon person

26. Why does everyone notice that this is missing? I never look at the numbers.

27. Pets? They belong to Justin: MGee and Yumi. There's also Lucy, we don't know who she belongs to but she lives here.

28. I'm taking it as a statement against America's public school system that whoever wrote this can't count.

29. What did you want to be when you were little? Miss America

30. How are you today? Currently, very tired

31. What is your favorite candy? Hersheys Kisses

32. What is your favorite flower? Tulips/Tiger Lilies

33. What is a day on the calendar you are looking forward to? Tuesday

Hijacked!

This is Justin... I have hijacked this blog to advertise my own blog... http://www.brinklj.blogspot.com/
I have begun writing on it again... who knows how long it will last but ... there it is

Stolen from Annabel

As seen in a post by Annabel

Four jobs that I have had:
1. Communications Assistant for the Deaf
2. Court Clerk
3. Motor Vehicle Tax Deputy
4. Phone Sex Operator

Four movies that I can watch over and over again:
1. Blow
2. Gypsy
3. Titus
4. Hocus Pocus

Four places I have lived:
1. Levelland Texas
2. Canyon Texas
3. Denton Texas
4. Seattle Washington

Four TV shows I love to watch:
1. Monk
2. CSI Miami
3. House
4. Scrubs

Four websites I read daily
1. Patricks Life Already in Progress
2. Moma and Babycakes
3. Story of My Life
4. Uncouth.Net

Four places I have been on vacation:
1. New York City
2. San Francisco
3. Seattle
4. Most of Southern Europe

Four favorite Foods:
1. Bell Peppers
2. Sushi
3. Vanilla Ice Cream
4. Queso and Tortillas

Four places I'd rather be:
1. Greece
2. Italy
3. In a Jane Austen Novel
4. San Francisco

An Update and A Story

We finally have internet. The guy came at 9 30 this morning and with lots of banging and stapling we are now up to speed with the rest of the world. I started working again this week...well...last week really. It's difficult to have a frame of reference that makes sense because our weekends are Tuesdays and Wednesdays. In any case, yesterday was my one week anniversary of being a productive citizen. I missed working and I really love my job, but in spite of that every day I say in the car on the way over "I don't want to work today," it's becomming rather irritating. My New Years Resolution is to get over that...or at least stop saying it out loud.

In other news...the outside dog that we have somehow managed to adopt, who will be known as Lucy from here on out, has found a way to get under the house...and not just a little bit under like to hide from the rain...she can now easily get under any room in the house. How very nice to be awakened in the middle of the night by something howling mournfully directly under your bed. I'm a little skittish anyway, and even though I don't believe in ghosts (or an afterlife), sometimes I'm a bit nervous in this old house that my crazy aunt inhabited for 70 years or so... The upside of this, is that family legend has it that she used to hide cash in really random places and no one has been up to the attic since she died. There is at least one documented case of someone profiting from this unusual habit of hers...the story:

Aunt Oleta and the Very Lucky Boys

Once upon a time, not too long ago, (maybe the 70s) some young teenage boys asked Aunt Oleta if they could mow her lawn to earn some money for whatever it is that young teenage boys buy. She agreed to pay them something like 10 dollars which was about the going rate at the time, and they set to work. About twenty minutes into their task the lawn mower encountered something hard and round...upon further investigation, and with a little digging, they discovered that it was in fact, a jar full of money. Being honest young teenage boys, they took it to Aunt Oleta and she told them that they could just keep it. No one is really clear about exactly how much money was in the jar. The boys of course didn't take the time to count it then, and never reported back, but I believe its safe to say that it was substantially more than 10 dollars.

The End

So, if anyone would like to volunteer to climb up into our attic and join the treasure hunt, please let me know, as I, personally, am afraid of the attic, and we fear that Justin will fall through the ceiling if he makes the journey himself. Who knows, there may be something to the Legend of Aunt Oleta.

A Long Time Coming

Okay so its been a very long time but I'm home now. We have yet to get an internet connection in our new house, and its been delayed partially because Justin isnt sure where he wants the computer yet....anyway so I'll try to check in occasionally until I have regular access again. While I was out of the loop, my friends Patrick and Tiffany had a new baby, Justin moved us into a new house and my younger brother got a new dog....(they only have like 7 in the house right now...ugh) Anyway, let me know what went on with you while I was away...I hope you had Happy Holidays and heres to the New Year being better than the Old One.

An Epidemic

Justins younger sister is pregnant. That makes hmm...everyone I know. Well...not everyone is pregnant, but if they're not they already have kids. Its an epidemic...in a good way...except...I dont want to catch it. I wonder if theres a vaccine...No posts for awhile.

Too Cute to Resist

adopt your own virtual pet!

Wooh!

Justin and I are departing on an excursion in the next 15 or 20 minutes. We will be driving through the night in order to make it to Denton by 9am tomorrow (today!?) for an appointment. Poor planning you say? We should have left earlier today and spent the night you say? Alas we do know these things to be true, however, I can not miss a day of work between now and November 14 or else I lose the option of being rehired when I come back after Christmas. So, wish us luck. We'll be back hopefully by 6 or 7 in the afternoon. I dont want to miss House.

In other news, while I'm gone Justin will be moving us into our new house...its...well...not lovely, It's been around since the 20s and once belonged to my crazy Aunt Oleta, but it is 4 bedrooms and it has a nice big kitchen, there are also pomegranite bushes and a large back yard with a pear tree. It does have goldenrod colored shag carpet which kind of sucks but weirdly seems to match my living room furniture and decor...Not that I have 70s furniture or anything...just stuff with lots of red yellow blue and green...and the room that will be my bedroom has lovely hardwood floors hidden under the indoor/outdoor carpet that currently resides there. We will be putting down new lineloeum in the kitchen that looks like hardwood for around 70 dollars or so...which Im really excited about...also excited about the prospect of painting the kitchen cabinets a combination of mediterranian blue and medium green and happy yellow. We will also have broadband internet and dish network TV...so while some things are looking down other things are looking up, not least of all the 200 dollar decrease in rent that we'll be paying for the house.

Wooh...okay gotta grab some socks and a blanket so that I can make an attempt at sleep on the way to Denton. Justin took off work today and slept while I was slaving away so he's been elected to drive...well that and the fact that I don't drive anymore.

Wish us luck.

Saturday!

Finally...tomorrow...a day off.

Sexy Punctuation

Semicolon You scored 30% Sociability and 76% Sophistication!

Congratulations! You are the semicolon! You are the highest expression of punctuation; no one has more of a right to be proud. In the hands of a master, you will purr, sneering at commas, dismissing periods as beneath your contempt. You separate and connect at the same time, and no one does it better. The novice will find you difficult to come to terms with, but you need no one. You are secure in your elegance, knowing that you, and only you, have the power to mark the skill or incompetence of the craftsman. You have no natural enemies; all fear you. And never, NEVER let anyone tell you that you cannot appear in dialogue!

My test tracked 2 variables How you compared to other people your age and gender: You scored higher than 10% on Sociability You scored higher than 89% on Sophistication

Link: The Which Punctuation Mark Are You Test written by Gazda on Ok Cupid, home of the 32-Type Dating Test

This Doesn't Look Good.

Stolen from Patrick.
Heres how it works: go to google and type "(your name) needs" pick the five funniest and post them in your blog. Heres mine:

Susan Needs...

1. ...help
2. ...to get over it
3. ...a set of t-shirts graced with silly cliches
4. ...to wear a bra
5. ...all your love and money


Justin asked me to post his here too:

Justin Needs...

1. ...to learn this isn't 500 bc and you can't bang every girl that makes
your slinky go doing-!
2. ... a new bear skin rug to go by the fire
3. ...a happy ending
4. ...to get bitch slapped
5. ...help learning how to be gay

Martha Stewart Look Out.

I used my crock pot for the first time last night/today. Beef Stew...from the bag...but oh well. I did get up extra early to add potatos. And yesterday I made cookies...and not cut and bake ones either. I actually had to add an egg...And I hung a curtain in my room yesterday!! Ah.... fall makes me so domestic. *grin*

Hmm How Telling...

Something else stolen from Annabel...

Rules:

1. Go into your archive.
2. Find your 23rd post (or closest to it).
3. Find the 5th sentence (or closest to it).
4. Post the text of the sentence in your blog along with these instructions.

"And I've had terrible, very real nightmares."

I keep having dreams about hurricanes. A good explanation for this would be that they're all over the news for the past month, however, I haven't been watching the news. They [the hurricanes] just seem to linger heavily in my subconcious. I don't like it, although some of the dreams are kind of fun.

My cat Nicolas is going to live with my step sister D'Liesa. Three is just too many for a small apartment. She wants a grown up cat that knows how to get away from her kids, but one thats laid back enough to not scratch them in the process. I think Nic is perfect for this posistion as A) he's been declawed, and B) he tends to gravitate to tall places where toddlers cannot reach. It's a win win situation I think.

This leaves us with two kitties. M'Gee and Yumi. Both Justins, I don't feel cheated out of my cat or anything really, and to be quite honest if we were only going to keep one it would be Yumi. (She's very smart and fetches like a dog.) But I'm not very fond of M'Gee. He's old and likes to vomit. It's like his hobby or something. Oh well. Justin likes him and sometimes you have to make concessions to peoples attatchments.

We're having dinner with my parents tonight I think, so I should get off...Justins finished with his shower now and we'll be leaving soon...Perhaps I'll have something more interesting to say later...

40 Questions

Borrowed fromAnnabel I love these things!!

1. My uncle once: Was the caretaker of Spade Ranch. Because of this I have a soft soft spot for cowboy folklore. Betcha didn't know that!

2. Never in my life: Have I really yelled at the people in my life who deserve it...for so many reasons.

3. When I was five: I got a little brother and sister.

4. High School was: The last time in my life that I had a group of friends that I could tell anything to.

5. I will never forget: What it feels like to walk down the streets of New York at 3am

6. I once met: Our current excuse for a president.

7. There's this girl I know who: is gonna be Justins best man at our wedding.

8. Once, at a bar: A drag queen groped my left breast.

9. By noon, I'm usually: On my way to work or dead asleep. God I love working in the afternoon/night.

10. Last night: I dreamt that I was swimming in Greece.

11. If I only had: Money. You wouldn't believe how much easier things would be if I had three hundred and fifty dollars.

12. Next time I go to church: oh hmm...I dunno I keep thinking that I'll go and then can't drag myself out of bed.

13. Terry Shiavo: Should have died much longer ago than she did.

14. What worries me most: That I'll look like the Michelin man in my wedding dress.

15. When I turn my head left, I see: The downstairs bathroom door.

16. When I turn my head right, I see: Justin.

17. You know I'm lying when: I'm a very good liar. I always know Justins lying when he tells me 3 minutes later in tears...hehehe

18. What I miss most about the eighties: weighing less than one hundred pounds and my cabbage patch kid.

19. If I was a character in Shakespeare, Ophelia. Crazy and self involved.

20. By this time next year: Oh who knows. Maybe I ll have a new sofa.

21. A better name for me would be: I always wanted my name to be Lily or Rose or Dahlia...something floral. My dad wanted to name me Courtney Michelle. Come on Courtney Michelle Bell...god.

22. I have a hard time understanding: My parents choices.

23. If I ever go back to school: I'll get my masters...although I was kind of thinking I might be interested in Radiology or something else medical...we'll see, I've gotten awfully lazy.

24. You know I like you if: I'm pretty desperate for friends at this point. I only don't like the stupid people.

25. If I ever won an award, the first person I'd thank would be: Depends on the award. If it was an Oscar or a Tony I'd thank Emmalie John.

26. Darwin, Mozart, Slim Pickens & Geraldine Ferraro: Brilliant

27. Take my advice, never: Say that you'll never go back to your hometown.

28. My ideal breakfast is: Breakfast Burrito with Egg, Bacon, Potato and Cheese. Or Hot Chocolate from Town N Country

29. A song I love, but do not have is: The entire soundtrack for Hair

30. If you visit my hometown, I suggest: Eating at Savannahs

31. Tulips, character flaws, microchips & track stars:My favorite, Make us who we are, overrated, should find something better to do.

32. Why won't people:Pay attention to the things they say?

33. If you spend the night at my house: Don't make any extra noise while I'm falling asleep.

34. I'd stop my wedding for: Patrick Stewart....(not really...well....)

35. The world could do without: Another Bush in charge...Ignorance.

36. I'd rather lick the belly of a cockroach than: Spend 48 hours with my stepmother

37. My favorite blonde is:My niece Hannah and my Nephew Hunter

38. Paper clips are more useful than: Socks.

39. If I do anything well, it's: Getting mad. I get mad really well.

40. And by the way: I'm going to bed.

Cable!!

I am out of things to read, however, we do have cable now. Finally a life where I can always find an episode of Law and Order on no matter what time it is! Of course there's also endless hours of terrible reality TV...I wonder when this phase in American entertainment culture will pass? Soon hopefully...except for "So You Think You Can Dance?" I like that one...anyway.

It's weird to have days off on weekdays. I mean, I couldn't tell a difference these past two days because we just sat around the house and bought some groceries and had dinner at my parents, but I suspect that when we once again have a disposable income that it'll be interesting to have the mall all to ourselves and a selection of shops not open on the weekends...hmm. (By the way, how do those shops not open on the weekends stay in business? I mean...who can shop there? Besides me now...)

I'm trying to figure out how to rent a banquet room at South Plains College for the wedding...not that I need it anytime soon, but its good to be informed...in any case their website is fairly useless.


Less than one month until the new Lemony Snicket book comes out!!

Nerves and Frustrations

After three weeks of training, Justin and I are finally having our first real, ten hour, day at work tomorrow. I'm actually kind of nervous. I was by myself on the phones on Friday for two hours, and it wasn't that big of a deal....and I guess the only thing that could go really wrong would be for me to hang up on a 911 call or something, but I'm still nervous. Oh well, it's just one day and then we're off for two more, giving me some time to recoup. We've had a really quiet stay at home weekend. Yesterday we kind of cleaned house and watched TV and read and today we watched a move (Dangerous Beauty) and had more of the same. I had thought for sure that we'd see my parents at some point over the weekend, but aside from a couple of short phone calls that came too late to really go out we haven't heard a word. Weird. My dad thinks he'll get to see us tomorrow before we go to work, but I think that's a little unlikely as we have to be there by one o'clock and we've been lately sleeping til like 3. (Isn't that awful? I can't even justify it, I mean, sure we're working until kind of late, and getting home and getting dinner later, but not *that* late!! My bed's just been too comfortable lately.)

We're having a small problem with Sprint. My bill this month is $88. For one phone. And I have the fair and flexible plan, so even if I went over my 300 minutes, it should have only been $5 for 100 more. They say that last month we used 700 minutes. (Apparently if you go over 500 minutes on my plan it turns into 10 cents a minute) All this is well and good except that there is no way we used that much time. That's more than eleven and a half hours of phone time. I never usually even use all 300 that they give me!! So, I decided to look at the detail on my online bill (I no longer receive a paper bill). Lo and behold, since the SprintNextel merger I can no longer see my bill detail online. I don't really know what to do at this point. The bill is due on Tuesday, and I don't really want to pay so much, since I don't think I owe it...the people on the phone don't seem inclined to give me the details of every call I've made either. Very frustrating. Looks like we may have to switch companies if this keeps up...*sigh* Any suggestions?

Oh yeah, is anybody else having trouble seeing my profile picture? I can only get it to come in about half the time...know how to fix this??

Meep!!

I keep having these dreams with noises in them, and the noises keep waking me up. It's not like regular dreams where some outside noise comes in and fucks with your dreams...like when you think your alarm clock is the terrible muzak in the elevator that you're conveniently trapped in with Johnny Depp. As far as I can tell, the noises come from the dreams themselves..like this morning, I dreamt that I was trying to do pushups on my stairs, and that one of the cats came and sat under my face and went "meeep!!" really loudly. It scared the hell out of me and I woke up with a gasp. Yesterday the noise was the phone ringing, which it wasn't, and the day before it was Justin saying my name in a panic. (Which is an interesting change in that my father is usually the one saying my name in a panic in my dreams...) Anyway, anybody know how I can stop this it's really disturbing...

Tra La La in the Land of Nod

Justin and I don't generally sleep in the same bed...or the same room. This antiquated arrangement came about because Justin's a snorer (sp? actual word?) and I like to sleep diagonally in the bed...you know, just to make sure I'm getting *all* the benefits of my queen size mattress. At some point, we may upgrade to the I Love Lucy/Dick Van Dyke show plan with two beds in the same room. If we find a house with a big enough bedroom. But for now, it's seperate sleeping spaces. Because of this, I'm not always aware of Justin's sleep quirks. However, last night I felt like I wanted a little cuddle time so we decided to try the shared bed arrangement and I got to experience Justin's sleep routine. It seems that as he's drifting off to dreamland he sings a little tune. I don't even know if he knows that he does it...but it's the same one each time. (I know because I woke him up twice...) In any case, eventually we got hot and once again went our seperate ways. *sigh* Is this seperate sleeping going to cause trouble in our relationship? Is it going to traumatize our children the first time they go to a slumber party and see that little Katies parents sleep in the same room...in the same bed*gasp*!? Maybe we'll expose him/her to a lot of I Love Lucy...

A Friend?

Just found out my friend Kate is living in Levelland. This is good news, as I currently don't have anyone but Justin to hang out with. Strangly enough, Kate has lived near me everywhere that I've lived, except for Denton. We'll possibly get together over the weekend. Hurray!!

Also, One week til payday!!

At Last

After one full month we now have internet again. Thank God. This makes everything so much easier. So...we've arrived in Levelland and gotten all moved in and have jobs. (The same job actually, very convenient since we only have one car right now.) We're working at CSD Relay which is a company that contracts through Sprint to provide phone transcription for the deaf. It's lots of fun so far, although, we're still in training right now. Our real schedule starts September 12. Then we'll be working 4 days a week: Monday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday for 10 hrs a day(1pm-12am with a lunch between 6 and 7). I like it kind of spread out like that...plus if we need to we'll only have to take one day off to get a four day weekend hurray!!

Moving Day!

Justin and I are officially packing up the truck and heading west today. Back to Levelland. Ugh. I never thought I'd actually live there again. We've got the apartment all ready, and at about a third of the rent that we pay here, for the same amount of space, I must say, it's quite a bargain. It's also half as much to rent a truck going that direction, than to come here from there. Weird. Anyway, I'm not sure when we'll have internet set up there. Levelland's a stranger to cable internet, so it'll be dial up (horrified scream) or DSL, which I'm somewhat unfamiliar with...in any case, it might be awhile before you hear from me again. (Yes, I know it's been about a month since my last post. Get used to it.)
I'll keep you updated as I can.

Job Search

I hate looking for a job. This is really frustrating and hard and I just want to put my head down and cry.

Fired.

I lost my job rather suddenly on Friday, so now Justin and I are somewhat at a loss as to what to do. We're still in a lease here until October 31. We'd like to pick up and head back to Levelland, where it feels safe, and the cost of living is considerably lower, but it's so expensive to move...My bills at least, are paid until Aug. 3, and I have enough money to cover one more month after that I think, but this is all very stressful. I spend most of my time crying and sleeping. *sigh*

Oooh and Aah....

This is my ring. I swiped the pic from Zales.com, as my new digital camera hasn't gotten here yet. It's 1/2 carat of diamonds (*squeals*) in 14k white gold.

May I suggest, for anyone shopping for diamonds or jewelry of any sort, that you hit the Zales outlet in the GrapevineMills Mall. It was 70% off. Score huh?

In other news, Justin and I want to have our engagement picture taken somewhere, but there's not a Family Photo around here! They're the people I've depended on for pictures since I was like...6 or something. Anyone have any suggestions? Take your time. I'd like to wait til my face kind of clears up...it's turned into a disaster this week for some reason. I'd also kind of like my hair to grow. Damn haircut. I miss feeling like a girly girl. If I ever mention cutting again, someone please remind me of this.

Aren't We All?

Engaged.

Justin asked my dad over the weekend if he could marry me.
My dad said yes.
My little sister said, only if we don't have kids.

My dad's permission makes it real. Like, now I'm going to have to decide what kind of wedding I want, and when and all that stuff. This, more than anything else, makes me a grown up.

And that makes me scared. And excited. And sad. But more than anything, just really really happy.

It's like a small circus in my head.

Answers for Annabel

Everyone Knows The Rules

1. How did you meet Justin, how long have you been dating and are there any plans to get married? (Yes, I cheated with 3 questions in one)I met Justin the same way all great couples throughout history have met. On the internet. We've been together officially for about 18 months, and before that we were sort of together on and off for about a year. Yes, we will be getting married at some point in the relatively near future. As soon as we figure out how we want to do it, and when we can afford it.

2. You were on an exercise/weight loss kick a while back. How's that going? What's the secret to your success? Ptth. I lost about 11 lbs. (and dropped one and a half sizes) I've since gotten bored with my workout, and can no longer convince myself to get out of bed at the necessary 5:30am. Signing up for an evening Yoga/Tai Chi class next week. I *like* the way I look, and so does Justin, but I do enjoy being one of those people who exercises. Bragging rights and all...

3. What do you love and hate the most about living in the DFW area? I like living in this area for a lot of reasons. Denton specifically, because it's a very artsy, liberal, friendly community. There's always something to do, even if we don't always take advantage of that. Also, it's really beautiful. And the weather is nice. It'll be really really hot soon, but that's what ACs are for. Things bloom here.

4. If you could become famous for doing something that you don't currently do, what would it be? *sigh* I want to be a famous director of plays. I'm not *currently* involved in theatre at all, so that isn't cheating...if I had to choose something new, I guess I'd want to become famous for something political. The first female president perhaps.

5. If you could physically transport yoruself to any place in the world at this moment, where would you go? I'd transport myself to October. That way, we'd be past these tight money times, and getting ready for the holidays. Or Greece.

heeYAA!

There are lots of girls of assorted ages flipping and screaming and wielding asian style weapons on ESPN2 right now. It's really really amusing.

Interview Questions For Patrick

The Rules

1. Leave me a comment saying, "Interview me."

2. I will respond by asking you five questions. I get to pick the questions.

3. You will update your blog with the answers to the questions.

4. You will include this explanation and an offer to interview someone else in the same post.

5. When others comment asking to be interviewed, you will ask them five questions.



Here we go:

1. When was the last time you were really, truly afraid?

2. Even though you've only been married for a little while, how do you think it's changed/changing you?

3. How many polar bears do you own, and what made you decide that that's the thing you wanted to collect?

4. Do you plan on staying in the Canyon/Amarillo area forever, or will the call of a real city lure you away?

5. How is your photography coming? I assume the class is over, but are you still taking pictures?

Not Too Shabby

Your IQ Is 125

Your Logical Intelligence is Above Average Your Verbal Intelligence is Genius Your Mathematical Intelligence is Exceptional Your General Knowledge is Genius

A Quick and Dirty IQ Test

Sunburn!!

We went to Hurricane Harbor on Saturday, because, while I really REALLY hate to be wet, it's like Justin's freakin' mecca. (And, I was able to snag discount tickets through my job.) It was a really good time, in spite of, or perhaps because of, nearly drowning in the wave pool on numerous occasions, and screaming my head off on the 'Tornado' which basically drops you down a tube and then flushes you.

However, I am now sunburned. Yes, I know, I subject myself to the evils of tanning beds on occasion (not for two months now...pout), but this is a completely different animal. First of all, there are *tan lines* gross. I haven't started peeling yet, because I'm still in that phase where the burn is really deep into the skin, and feels like a huge burning bruise, but the peeling will start, and soon. If you see me during that phase, make fun at your own risk.

Because I can't wear a shirt yet, (other than my handy dandy tube top) I am off work today.

Interview Questions for Annabel

As the first to request, she gets to have the first questions.

First, so everyone knows: The Rules

1. Leave me a comment saying, "Interview me."


2. I will respond by asking you five questions. I get to pick the questions.


3. You will update your blog with the answers to the questions.


4. You will include this explanation and an offer to interview someone else in the same post.


5. When others comment asking to be interviewed, you will ask them five questions.

So here goes:

1. You obviously have a really smart, talented, well adjusted kid. If you knew that you could get the *exact same kid* if he came about during a different time in your life, would you change your history?

2. I've looked at your incredible Marvin the Martian collection on your personal site. How long have you been collecting, and what first sparked your interest in this particular alien?

3. When do you feel the most beautiful/together/elegant?

4. What first sparked your interest, and what ultimately inspired you to convert to catholocism?

5. If you won an all inclusive vacation to any place in the world, with the stipulation that you could only take one average size suitcase, that you had to stay for at least 6 months, that you wouldn't be able to communicate to anyone in English, would you make the trip, and where would you go?

Enjoy. Interview me when you're through!!

Interview Questions From Patrick, and Answers

Here are the rules:
Leave me a comment saying, "Interview me."
I will respond by asking you five questions. I get to pick the questions.
You will update your blog with the answers to the questions.
You will include this explanation and an offer to interview someone else in the same post.
When others comment asking to be interviewed, you will ask them five questions.

1. What's happened to all the piercings you used to have, and why?
All gone. I now have one earring in each ear. I go through phases of wanting to be a 'cool girl' and wanting to be a 'grown up.' The piercings (nose, navel, tongue, other 5 earrings) all came about during a 'cool girl' phase, and all except the nose came out during a grown up phase shortly after moving to Denton. (well, the navel came out when I got to fat...). The nosering had to go when I had my job at the tax office known as 'Denton's little corner of Hell.'

2. You can have either a photographic memory or boundless grace. Which would it be?
Boundless grace. My memory is already exceptionally good. I remember everything that I *hear*, as opposed to everything I see. This causes problems sometimes. I'd also like to be more specific in my request for grace though. It would be useful to be blessed with physical grace, as I'm often found falling on my face, but I'd much rather be filled with the kind of grace that allows people to be kind and good and forgiving of others. I hold onto way too much hostility.

3. How many degrees do you have, anyway, and do you plan to do anything specific with them? ho hum...I have an associates in theatre, a bachelors in theatre education, and almost enough credits (missing like 3 classes) to make either a second B.A.(this was an accident, I just ended up taking a lot of extra weird classes), or to make a pretty good start on a Masters. Edited to add: oops, I forgot to answer the rest of the question. I don't know. For the time being, I've sort of lost interest in teaching, especially considering that the Texas legislature basically screwed around this session, and didn't decide on a plan for school funding. I could potentially teach several different classes: Theatre, Speech, English, and possibly Government, but I only want to teach Theatre/Speech. My dream would be to direct in a good, well funded private arts school or community theatre. If you hear of any openings, let me know.

4. Where are the drivers worse, where you are or where I am?
They're different and more aggressive where I am. I don't like it. I'd much rather drive where you are.

5. You find yourself inhabiting a Warner Bros. cartoon. Which character do you seek out for comedic hijinks? Pepe Le Pew. I've always been the kind of girl that wants a guy to chase her.

One more for the Road

You entered: 5/6/1981

You were born on a Wednesday
under the astrological sign Taurus.
Your Life path number is 3.

The Julian calendar date of your birth is 2444730.5.
The golden number for 1981 is 6.
The epact number for 1981 is 24.
The year 1981 was not a leap year.

As of 6/6/2005 9:50:36 PM CDT
You are 24 years old.
You are 289 months old.
You are 1,257 weeks old.
You are 8,797 days old.
You are 211,149 hours old.
You are 12,668,990 minutes old.
You are 760,139,436 seconds old.

There are 334 days till your next birthday
on which your cake will have 25 candles on it.

Those 25 candles produce 25 BTU's,
or 6,300 calories of heat (that's only 6.3000 food Calories!) .
You can boil 2.86 US ounces of water with that many candles.

Your birth tree is

Poplar, the Uncertainty

Looks very decorative, no self-confident behaviour, only courageous if necessary, needs goodwill and pleasant surroundings, very choosy, often lonely, great animosity, artistic nature, good organiser, tends to philosophy, reliable in any situation, takes partnership serious.

The moon's phase on the day you were
born was waxing crescent.

The General Update

I have a new car. It's a happy blue Ford Focus ZX3. Pictures coming soon

Beth has moved out, and Justin has moved in. We have a very clean house, and hosted our first dinner party/barbeque last night. It was delicious.

We have new potential friends. Their names are Amanda and Zane. They were guests at the dinner party, and have been together for about the same amount of time as Justin and me. We're seeing "A Chorus Line" with them this weekend at the Campus Theatre.

Justin, his friend John, and I will be travelling to Levelland the weekend of the 17th to pick up some furniture that my very generous grandmother gave to me. We will be in Amarillo the following weekend for his sister, Ashley's wedding reception.

My younger brother and sister graduated from high school the last weekend in May, and turned twenty this past Saturday. I feel very old.

For the first time in a very long time, I'm really really content with everything in my world.

Tagged!

Annabel tagged me, so first things firs. Then a general update!

1. Total number of books I own: A lot. I haven't bothered to count, and some of them went to recycled books kind of recently. I've stopped buying so many since there's a good library here.

2. The last book I bought: A New Lu. To get some perspective. Upon hearing that I want to wait til I'm 30 to have a baby, the girls at work were horrified. The book's about a newly divorced woman who gets pregnant at 50.

3. The last book I read: I'm reading a book called Elegance right now. It's a re-read, about a woman using a self help book to find her inner elegance.

4. Five books that mean a lot to me: A scrap book that my Aunt Eva Pearl made for me of all the things that happened the year I was born. January-December. It's really sweet and give me a lot of insight into what was going on in my family before I got here, and shortly after. It makes me feel loved.

The Giver by Lois Lowry. It's one of my very favorite books. A children's book, but still very moving.

Blackbird House by Alice Hoffman. It's just fiction, almost written like short stories, about the generations of people who live in a house...but it's very powerful and beautifl. Actually, everything by Alice Hoffman is like that.

The Alchemist, by Paulo Coelho. No one picks this book out themselves. It's always recomended to them by someone else. And the reader always loves it. I have the English and Spanish versions. Perhaps I'll learn Spanish from The Alchemist.

The Undomestic Goddess, by Sophie Kinsella. This book isn't available for purchase until July 19. However, I am waiting with bated breath for it, so it's important.

5. I tag Justin, and Tiffany. I think they're the only people who read my blog that haven't been tagged...