Oh my. So, I was going to try to spend all of November blogging each day about one thing that I am thankful for, from something superficial to things that are very deep. I'd get it if I started on the first of November and fell behind, but I didn't even get that far! Goodness.
But I am a very blessed person and I try my best not to take anything for granted, any time of the year. I just want to take time to share with the Internet some things that I have to be thankful for. I am going to start with 11 things and HOPE that I am good enough to return each day with another thing to add to the list. Otherwise, I know I'll be back on Thanksgiving.
In no particular order, 11 things I am thankful to have for.
1. I have to bundle this up in one big package and just say FAMILY. It would take up more than my list if I tried to narrow it down to my mom, my grampa, my brothers, my husband, individual cousins, my in-laws and on and on...
This has been a very painful year with the passing of my very special grampa, but he left me with so many memories and so many life lessons that I feel him with me every single day and plan to live with his life lessons in my mind. His passing also brought me closer to some incredibly special relatives when I needed them the most. And this year wasn't just about losing him, but also about my cousin's wedding, which was so, very special. That was another time when I felt extra close to family. I got to spend a week with that cousin and her family and felt more like a sister than just a cousin. My cousin is incredibly blessed with her sweet-hearted husband, which makes *me* feel blessed and I'm so happy that he is a part of our family!
In a quick summary, I always know that I have a beautiful family. But this year, something extremely sad happened and something very happy happened. During those two extremes, I learned just how very special my family is. I am very blessed.
2. The roof over my head. In this time when the economy is rough, people are losing their homes or having trouble making rent or paying their mortgages. My husband and I still own a house AND rent, but we're able to do it. We have trustworthy renters for the house and an affordable apartment that is comfortable and in a good neighborhood. I absolutely do not want to take this situation for granted, when so many people are facing tough times. I'm very lucky to have a safe, cozy home that we know we can afford.
3. Which leads me to our jobs. I bet everyone either has or knows someone who has been laid off. My husband works in a field that is safe from lay-offs and my job won't be going anywhere. How very lucky we are right now!!
4. And THAT leads me to food. I'm sitting here snacking on Chex Mix, something that was a luxury when I was in college and lived off canned veggies and soup! I pass a lot of jobless people when I go to work. I don't know their stories, but I know that they're not in good shape. I'm glad that we can support ourselves and afford this tasty food. Even the naughty Chex Mix!
5. My puppy. Sure, he belongs in the "family" category, I suppose. But he's so much more! He makes me laugh when times are hard, he snuggles when I'm just relaxing, and he just makes me feel good! All of that from a little furry critter who doesn't realize what he's doing. He's just living. But he brings me so much joy!!
6. My clothes. I'm a cheap shopper. I don't like to spend a lot of money on clothing. But I do like to have fun with what I buy. Some people don't have that luxury. People come in to my job all the time wearing the same outfit for weeks, or wearing clothes that don't fit because they had to accept hand-me-downs. I'm a blessed girl.
7. My friends. I have met so many great people in my life. I'm usually drawn to them by their sense of humor, then what I learn about them keeps me hanging around. All of my friends are intelligent, kind people who inspire me because they are so wonderful. Yay for funny, fun friends!
8. Iowa City. You heard me. This whole area is awesome and full of opportunities to seize. You wanna go out? There are a variety of things to do. You wanna volunteer? Pick your cause, there are tons of organizations here. You wanna build up your resume? There are places everywhere that need your help and in return, you just might be led to an awesome job opportunity. You just have to poke around a bit. PLUS, I like this area because people generally seem to leave their judgements at the city limits. Unless you're a Cyclone fan.
9. Music. Usually, I love music because I love to hum along and dance to it. Sometimes I like it because I'm in a low mood and the lyrics can make me feel completely validated. Others understand. No matter how I'm feeling, music gets me. :)
10. High heels. It's funny, but I really don't think I'm that short until I meet someone new and they point out how very short I am, at 5'1. But when I wear high heels and stand at 5'4, the world looks totally different and I feel even more confident... and usually the shoes look super cute. Something so small can make me feel so good.
11. Short people. Very rarely, I will find myself standing behind a man who is shorter than me. Probably 5 feet tall. I get so excited that I will stand just inches behind him and straighten up my posture so I can see what it feels like to other adults to stand in a crowd of adults. It's really satisfying. Probably creepy on my part and I don't really notice that I'm doing it until after the fact, but... it makes me feel good about myself. =-D
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Saturday, October 10, 2009
The ones who entertain & the ones who observe...
Okay, lame, I know. The title of this blog is the second part of a verse in Britney's Circus song... "There are two types of people in this world..." and then the title. The whole verse was too long to be my title.
Anyway, despite my disposition in certain settings that often leads people in party settings to ask if I'm drunk (no) because they're so used to seeing me in my quiet demeanor, I really do like being the center of attention. REALLY like it. For instance, when I karaoked in Memphis, I was scared at first, because I knew my voice wasn't going to be good. But when I got up there and sang and people cheered me on, I didn't want to leave. So I sang again. And if we didn't have to meet our hotel van at a specific time, I honestly think I would have spent the whole night singing, because no one else was that eager. It would have been Meghan's Night at Wet Willie's. That was also the night I was dancing while we had dinner at BB King's Bar and the blues band noticed and called me up to the stage. I felt hesitant at first, but Kevin encouraged me and once I was up there, I drank in the attention. And because these two things happened that same night, when Kevin and I walked down that street to find our hotel van, we were stopped three times. Twice by people who remembered me from karaoke and one by a guy in the blues band who wanted to thank me for being cool about dancing with them.
Honestly, my natural tendency on a day-to-day basis is to be a homebody. Nothing speaks to me like pajamas and my super-cozy blanket, writing or reading or something quiet. But I loved being narcissitic and feeling like that night was all about me.
And that's what I did last night. My job gave us the opportunity to be a part of a huge parade for the university I attended. A Big 10 school that every college sports fan knows the details about, and I was raised to be a fan, though I've backed off since I went to school there. But I wanted to get into the spirit for homecoming. I'm proud of being an alumna, AND my Grampa absolutely LOVED this school and their sports. I wanted to do this for him and knew I'd have a great time.
Seeing as how I work at a library, they chose to make our theme "Read Banned Books" and celebrate the fact that we do have the freedom in our country to read books, like Dr. Seuss's The Lorax or Where's Waldo or 1984 or James and the Giant Peach (the list of surprising titles goes on and on), that certain schools or organizations may try to ban. This meant we got to dress as characters from books that have been banned. I chose to dress as Little Red Riding Hood, which was banned because in one edition, Little Red Riding hood was taking alcohol to her sick grandmother. We also had Where's Waldo, Tom Sawyer, Harry Potter, a witch, and other characters that I'm already forgetting. There were 14 of us, I think.
Being in this parade was such an amazing experience. Even my hometown's biggest parades aren't as big as this. I got to our meeting spot an hour and a half before the parade. We warmed up by eating pizza and stealing candy from our neighbors. Actually, I attempted, with a coworker, to ask for candy, and I just froze when we got to the group. We stood there and stared at them. My coworker tried to say their name, but no one paid attention, so after 3 minutes of awkwardly standing, we ran full speed back to our spot. Everyone threw their hands open, expecting us to have something for them and we explained what happened. Two friends went back and returned with candy. They said that the folks saw us standing there awkwardly and didn't know what our deal was. Embarassing? Yes.
After a while, we practiced our moves for the parade. Ten of us had book carts and are big move was to maneuver around in a single line, like a big snake. It sounded great, but during the first try, my shoe fell off and I screamed the whole time. I was swung every which way and was terrified of the possibilities during the parade. The second maneuver was a mess. We were supposed to criss-cross, but we didn't have the talent for it. Instead, our leader, Where's Waldo, changed it to Freestyle and we would just go crazy and then return to our spots.
Finally, after eating, dancing, having chanting wars with our neighbors, and screaming through the practice of "The Snake," it was time to walk into the parade. I noticed that I was doing my "catwalk." I realized this was probably not the look that Little Red went for. So I changed it to a friendly smile and we were engulfed by hundreds of people. I couldn't hold myself back. My "All About Me" side just had to look into the crowd and point, smile, wave and say "Yeah, hi!" and nod and turn to the other side and do it again. I did this a few times and then found a girl who actually was waving at us and waved and screamed, "HELLO!!" So she would feel cool. Or maybe so I would feel cool.
We did the snake several times and my shoe stayed put. Cameras were everywhere, so I made sure to pose while we snaked JUST in case they wanted to use THIS face in the paper, which I don't think anyone did. I only screamed once during a snake when I felt like one of my arms was going to have to fall out in order for the sequence to work.
Kids would yell, "WE WANT THE CANDY." My coworker cleverly responded, "We've got free books ABOUT candy!" I couldn't think of anything clever to yell... so I kept walking and smiling, sometimes yelling, "Read!" or "Life's a book!" I don't really know what I meant. So I stopped yelling and pretended those hundreds of people showed up just to see me. Me!
When we were done, I still had a high from the attention. Besides the angry kids who wanted candy, we did get claps for our Snake and people shouting, "The Library!!" I would "Woo!" right back to encourage more.
I like being in the middle of it all. Even if I'm dressed in a ridiculous costume and pigtails. It was a fun night.
I wonder what else I can do and, in my head, make it all about me.
Guess I'll go google myself.
Anyway, despite my disposition in certain settings that often leads people in party settings to ask if I'm drunk (no) because they're so used to seeing me in my quiet demeanor, I really do like being the center of attention. REALLY like it. For instance, when I karaoked in Memphis, I was scared at first, because I knew my voice wasn't going to be good. But when I got up there and sang and people cheered me on, I didn't want to leave. So I sang again. And if we didn't have to meet our hotel van at a specific time, I honestly think I would have spent the whole night singing, because no one else was that eager. It would have been Meghan's Night at Wet Willie's. That was also the night I was dancing while we had dinner at BB King's Bar and the blues band noticed and called me up to the stage. I felt hesitant at first, but Kevin encouraged me and once I was up there, I drank in the attention. And because these two things happened that same night, when Kevin and I walked down that street to find our hotel van, we were stopped three times. Twice by people who remembered me from karaoke and one by a guy in the blues band who wanted to thank me for being cool about dancing with them.
Honestly, my natural tendency on a day-to-day basis is to be a homebody. Nothing speaks to me like pajamas and my super-cozy blanket, writing or reading or something quiet. But I loved being narcissitic and feeling like that night was all about me.
And that's what I did last night. My job gave us the opportunity to be a part of a huge parade for the university I attended. A Big 10 school that every college sports fan knows the details about, and I was raised to be a fan, though I've backed off since I went to school there. But I wanted to get into the spirit for homecoming. I'm proud of being an alumna, AND my Grampa absolutely LOVED this school and their sports. I wanted to do this for him and knew I'd have a great time.
Seeing as how I work at a library, they chose to make our theme "Read Banned Books" and celebrate the fact that we do have the freedom in our country to read books, like Dr. Seuss's The Lorax or Where's Waldo or 1984 or James and the Giant Peach (the list of surprising titles goes on and on), that certain schools or organizations may try to ban. This meant we got to dress as characters from books that have been banned. I chose to dress as Little Red Riding Hood, which was banned because in one edition, Little Red Riding hood was taking alcohol to her sick grandmother. We also had Where's Waldo, Tom Sawyer, Harry Potter, a witch, and other characters that I'm already forgetting. There were 14 of us, I think.
Being in this parade was such an amazing experience. Even my hometown's biggest parades aren't as big as this. I got to our meeting spot an hour and a half before the parade. We warmed up by eating pizza and stealing candy from our neighbors. Actually, I attempted, with a coworker, to ask for candy, and I just froze when we got to the group. We stood there and stared at them. My coworker tried to say their name, but no one paid attention, so after 3 minutes of awkwardly standing, we ran full speed back to our spot. Everyone threw their hands open, expecting us to have something for them and we explained what happened. Two friends went back and returned with candy. They said that the folks saw us standing there awkwardly and didn't know what our deal was. Embarassing? Yes.
After a while, we practiced our moves for the parade. Ten of us had book carts and are big move was to maneuver around in a single line, like a big snake. It sounded great, but during the first try, my shoe fell off and I screamed the whole time. I was swung every which way and was terrified of the possibilities during the parade. The second maneuver was a mess. We were supposed to criss-cross, but we didn't have the talent for it. Instead, our leader, Where's Waldo, changed it to Freestyle and we would just go crazy and then return to our spots.
Finally, after eating, dancing, having chanting wars with our neighbors, and screaming through the practice of "The Snake," it was time to walk into the parade. I noticed that I was doing my "catwalk." I realized this was probably not the look that Little Red went for. So I changed it to a friendly smile and we were engulfed by hundreds of people. I couldn't hold myself back. My "All About Me" side just had to look into the crowd and point, smile, wave and say "Yeah, hi!" and nod and turn to the other side and do it again. I did this a few times and then found a girl who actually was waving at us and waved and screamed, "HELLO!!" So she would feel cool. Or maybe so I would feel cool.
We did the snake several times and my shoe stayed put. Cameras were everywhere, so I made sure to pose while we snaked JUST in case they wanted to use THIS face in the paper, which I don't think anyone did. I only screamed once during a snake when I felt like one of my arms was going to have to fall out in order for the sequence to work.
Kids would yell, "WE WANT THE CANDY." My coworker cleverly responded, "We've got free books ABOUT candy!" I couldn't think of anything clever to yell... so I kept walking and smiling, sometimes yelling, "Read!" or "Life's a book!" I don't really know what I meant. So I stopped yelling and pretended those hundreds of people showed up just to see me. Me!
When we were done, I still had a high from the attention. Besides the angry kids who wanted candy, we did get claps for our Snake and people shouting, "The Library!!" I would "Woo!" right back to encourage more.
I like being in the middle of it all. Even if I'm dressed in a ridiculous costume and pigtails. It was a fun night.
I wonder what else I can do and, in my head, make it all about me.
Guess I'll go google myself.
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Catching up
I've been busy with a lot of fun things lately.
I turned 27, an age that sounds shockingly high and I'm not sure how I got here so soon, but also an age that I used to think sounded so cool. So I guess I'm okay with being here.
The Husband gave me a surprise birthday dinner with my best friend, her boyfriend and my brother on my birthday. My first surprise party! That was awesome... and a surprise gift, which was tickets to my second most favorite pop singer--Britney Spears. My first favorite is Christina Aguilera. I was so excited I laaaaughed and had tears in my eyes. Silly me.
So we enjoyed that and were in the online edition of the Register because I made a silly homemade shirt. hee
The weekend after that, I went to Kansas City to celebrate The Husband's 29th birthday. I'm more stunned that he's actually 29 than that I'm 27! It's just, I met him when he was 19... right around this time of year. How is it that I can say I've known him for 10 years?? Anyway, we went to KC and stayed at his brother's girlfriends house and had an AMAZING weekend. He and his brother went to a KC football game while the girlfriend and I had coffee and went window shopping. If you have never heard of Anthropologie, it's about time you learn. That store is A-MA-ZING. I could have spent the whole day there. The sold clothes and accessories, home decor, books... the works. They even had THE MOST adorable hardware for your dressers or cabinets or whatever you want! Loved. it. We had a great time.
The weekend after that, we stayed in town and enjoyed a good ol' BBQ with my best friend and her boyfriend. I love that I've known this girl since I was 11. We did middle school, high school AND college together. We even lived together for a year. They say don't live with your best friend, but we didn't have a problem. That year is a blur now, so it surprises me when I can say, "Remember when we lived together and we'd hide the pinata and fake dog poop for the other to find? That was funny."
Aw, inside jokes.
Anyway, it was nice to have a night in with them. We ended up watching a few episodes of Punky Brewster. I remember ADORING Punky Brewster back in the day, but I didn't remember a thing that we saw!! Except how Punky dressed and what she and the foster dad looked like. Back in the day, though, I loved Punky so much that I had Punky Brewster shoes. They were basically tri-colored converses.
Oh, sometime last month and last weekend I got to go to musicals and critique them in my quest to be a freelance writer. Please don't judge my freelance writing skills based on this ol' thing. The musicals were amazing... writing about them was HARD, but fun. I hope this opportunity leads to something in my career at some point. I need to find more opportunities and make myself better known. This is a big town when it comes to the arts. Lots of competition, BUT certainly I can dig up lots of opportunities. Really, I don't feel like opportunities necessarily come to you (although this one did ~thanks Sharon~). I feel like you create your own opportunities.
So now I've summed up September. Next up: I have a brain appointment and no expectations. I have no clue what we're going to discuss. The day after that, I'm going to be in the homecoming parade (yay!!). And that evening, I may find out if I'm going to be a juror next week.
*dramatic music*
I turned 27, an age that sounds shockingly high and I'm not sure how I got here so soon, but also an age that I used to think sounded so cool. So I guess I'm okay with being here.
The Husband gave me a surprise birthday dinner with my best friend, her boyfriend and my brother on my birthday. My first surprise party! That was awesome... and a surprise gift, which was tickets to my second most favorite pop singer--Britney Spears. My first favorite is Christina Aguilera. I was so excited I laaaaughed and had tears in my eyes. Silly me.
So we enjoyed that and were in the online edition of the Register because I made a silly homemade shirt. hee
The weekend after that, I went to Kansas City to celebrate The Husband's 29th birthday. I'm more stunned that he's actually 29 than that I'm 27! It's just, I met him when he was 19... right around this time of year. How is it that I can say I've known him for 10 years?? Anyway, we went to KC and stayed at his brother's girlfriends house and had an AMAZING weekend. He and his brother went to a KC football game while the girlfriend and I had coffee and went window shopping. If you have never heard of Anthropologie, it's about time you learn. That store is A-MA-ZING. I could have spent the whole day there. The sold clothes and accessories, home decor, books... the works. They even had THE MOST adorable hardware for your dressers or cabinets or whatever you want! Loved. it. We had a great time.
The weekend after that, we stayed in town and enjoyed a good ol' BBQ with my best friend and her boyfriend. I love that I've known this girl since I was 11. We did middle school, high school AND college together. We even lived together for a year. They say don't live with your best friend, but we didn't have a problem. That year is a blur now, so it surprises me when I can say, "Remember when we lived together and we'd hide the pinata and fake dog poop for the other to find? That was funny."
Aw, inside jokes.
Anyway, it was nice to have a night in with them. We ended up watching a few episodes of Punky Brewster. I remember ADORING Punky Brewster back in the day, but I didn't remember a thing that we saw!! Except how Punky dressed and what she and the foster dad looked like. Back in the day, though, I loved Punky so much that I had Punky Brewster shoes. They were basically tri-colored converses.
Oh, sometime last month and last weekend I got to go to musicals and critique them in my quest to be a freelance writer. Please don't judge my freelance writing skills based on this ol' thing. The musicals were amazing... writing about them was HARD, but fun. I hope this opportunity leads to something in my career at some point. I need to find more opportunities and make myself better known. This is a big town when it comes to the arts. Lots of competition, BUT certainly I can dig up lots of opportunities. Really, I don't feel like opportunities necessarily come to you (although this one did ~thanks Sharon~). I feel like you create your own opportunities.
So now I've summed up September. Next up: I have a brain appointment and no expectations. I have no clue what we're going to discuss. The day after that, I'm going to be in the homecoming parade (yay!!). And that evening, I may find out if I'm going to be a juror next week.
*dramatic music*
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
If I Could Call Heaven
I think I've discussed on here that I lost my Grampa this year. It has hit me very hard, because he was my number 1 man (shared spot with The Husband). He was my father figure, someone I loved more than I love myself, someone I truly admire and absolutely my hero. It would take a book to describe him, but anyone who has met him was charmed by him. He was graceful, charming, intelligent, and very, VERY funny in ways you didn't always expect. When coworkers would pass around pictures of their adorable children at work, I passed around pictures of my Grampa and Gramma.
This is the first time I have lost somebody very dear to me. I am having trouble accepting it and moving on, so I'm trying to find positive outlets to process this and charge ahead.
The good thing about strong emotions is that they inspire writers to write.
This isn't a particularly fantastic poem or anything, but I liked the idea behind it. I got the idea from a movie I was watching. A mom was buying an old van that had a CB radio and her child asked what the radio was. The salesman gave a quick answer saying that you just grab the walkie-talkie part, hit a button and talk to the heavens and the boy took him literally. He tried talking to the heavens to try to find answers.
It made me think about what I would happen if I could talk to Grampa and I wrote this. Again, not publish-worthy. Just something I wrote a few minutes ago.
If I Could Call Heaven
~Meghan D'Souza
If I could call Heaven
And talk to Grampa again,
I'd squeal with delight,
Ask how he's been.
He'd talk of reuniting
with his daughter and mother.
He'd say he's free of pain,
His legs and feet are not a bother.
He plays golf, still,
With friends, old and new.
He and his family watch us.
He'd say, "Especially you."
I'd hear the twinkle in his eyes
That I miss most of all.
"I love you, you Cute Fixin'," He'd say.
If I could given Heaven a call.
This is the first time I have lost somebody very dear to me. I am having trouble accepting it and moving on, so I'm trying to find positive outlets to process this and charge ahead.
The good thing about strong emotions is that they inspire writers to write.
This isn't a particularly fantastic poem or anything, but I liked the idea behind it. I got the idea from a movie I was watching. A mom was buying an old van that had a CB radio and her child asked what the radio was. The salesman gave a quick answer saying that you just grab the walkie-talkie part, hit a button and talk to the heavens and the boy took him literally. He tried talking to the heavens to try to find answers.
It made me think about what I would happen if I could talk to Grampa and I wrote this. Again, not publish-worthy. Just something I wrote a few minutes ago.
If I Could Call Heaven
~Meghan D'Souza
If I could call Heaven
And talk to Grampa again,
I'd squeal with delight,
Ask how he's been.
He'd talk of reuniting
with his daughter and mother.
He'd say he's free of pain,
His legs and feet are not a bother.
He plays golf, still,
With friends, old and new.
He and his family watch us.
He'd say, "Especially you."
I'd hear the twinkle in his eyes
That I miss most of all.
"I love you, you Cute Fixin'," He'd say.
If I could given Heaven a call.
Monday, August 31, 2009
Where does 10 years go?
I turned 27 this week. I can't figure out where time has gone since I was a senior in high school. I put my shirt on today thinking about how I recently bought it... then I remembered it was the summer before I turned 20.
On my actual birthday, I was thinking about how I swear I was just 17. A nerd in high school, involved in all sorts of activities, worrying about whether it was okay to stay home and go to community college like I really wanted or if I really should start at the university like my dad said... wondering why boys treated me like their sister and certain I would end up a cat lady. Working 35 hours a week, schooling 40 hours a week, sleeping 5, extracurriculars, volunteering and socializing the rest. I was always tired, but it didn't matter. I was always stressed, but my friends felt the same way. Seventeen was tough, but fun. The worst part was worrying about my future and if I was making the right choices and whether I was being judged by my decisions.
I learned quickly that you don't plan life. Life happens. And most importantly, who cares about someone judging. If I'm happy, I'm happy.
Ten years ago, I planned everything I did and it all basically happened. That's sort of how high school works. Once out of high school... life takes over. I got sick and had to work around that. It's hard to let go of the control I thought I had and let life take over. I learned to stop caring what people thought and care about my health. With this in mind, I received my BA, I interned as a journalist, I got married, I got a certificate to work as a medical transcriptionist, I moved to a new town, I worked in the WAY back of television, then I worked in television production, I left television, and now I find myself in the library.
When I was 17, I told myself I was going to study overseas and then work in television and then get married to a Scottish man when I was 17... or be a cat lady, despite my allergies and ill-feelings towards cats.
Turns out, I met my sweetheart right after high school and I prefer writing to television.
Who knows what curveballs life will throw at me in the next 10 years? I only know that 10 years feels like a blink of the eye.
On my actual birthday, I was thinking about how I swear I was just 17. A nerd in high school, involved in all sorts of activities, worrying about whether it was okay to stay home and go to community college like I really wanted or if I really should start at the university like my dad said... wondering why boys treated me like their sister and certain I would end up a cat lady. Working 35 hours a week, schooling 40 hours a week, sleeping 5, extracurriculars, volunteering and socializing the rest. I was always tired, but it didn't matter. I was always stressed, but my friends felt the same way. Seventeen was tough, but fun. The worst part was worrying about my future and if I was making the right choices and whether I was being judged by my decisions.
I learned quickly that you don't plan life. Life happens. And most importantly, who cares about someone judging. If I'm happy, I'm happy.
Ten years ago, I planned everything I did and it all basically happened. That's sort of how high school works. Once out of high school... life takes over. I got sick and had to work around that. It's hard to let go of the control I thought I had and let life take over. I learned to stop caring what people thought and care about my health. With this in mind, I received my BA, I interned as a journalist, I got married, I got a certificate to work as a medical transcriptionist, I moved to a new town, I worked in the WAY back of television, then I worked in television production, I left television, and now I find myself in the library.
When I was 17, I told myself I was going to study overseas and then work in television and then get married to a Scottish man when I was 17... or be a cat lady, despite my allergies and ill-feelings towards cats.
Turns out, I met my sweetheart right after high school and I prefer writing to television.
Who knows what curveballs life will throw at me in the next 10 years? I only know that 10 years feels like a blink of the eye.
Vacation: Summarized
Okay, so... if there isn't someone hovering over me with a deadline, I'm not good at writing my stories.
Here is my summer vacation in a quick summary.... good golly.
*I was brave and used the restroom with The World's Largest Spider watching me. I even stayed to wash my hands in there instead of the kitchen without screaming. I calmly left and told Jessica about the spider. She attacked with spray and handed me a Swiffer to jump on it as back up in case it came at us. When it looked like it was morphing into a something with greater strength, I hugged the Swiffer and ran. She was Batman, but I will never be a good Robin.
* Jessica has a humongous television. It's great because everyone is about my size, so I got up to the TV and "booty danced" with the people, waiting for Jessica to notice from the kitchen. Before she noticed, her fiance (who had only met me twice before this) walked into the room. He asked what I was doing. I told him I meant for Jessica to discover me.
Later, my phone rang, and he did my booty dance to my phone.
*Jessica told me that her weird neighbor was in the yard talking to her fiance. I wanted to know what the neighbor looked like, and I thought only the three of us were home. So I walked on my tip toes with my shoulders scrunched and slowly made my way to the window. Jessica left the room to do her hair. Before I got to the window, the door flew open and Jessica's future brother-in-law caught me being creepy and sneaky... all by myself.
I felt bad that I was all Jessica had to represent the family.
*Jessica had a wonderful rehearsal and rehearsal dinner. The dinner was at an awesome Texas BBQ restaurant, like nothing we'd find in Iowa. The Husband always has debates with Jessica about Pop vs Coke. At dinner, he discovered the waitress was from Michigan, so when she took drink orders, he said, "I'll have a POP and you know what I mean!!!" I couldn't believe him. The waitress thought he was a crack up and delivered his Dr. Pepper, then she turned to a young waitress and said, "Now, you make sure his POP is always filled, okay?? Don't let his POP get low!!" And the poor young waitress was so confused. She was looking all over and asked, "What's a pop?? What is pop???" And I leaned over all embarrassed and said, "It's coke." So she thought her coworker was serious and didn't let Kevin's soda get anywhere near empty.
*Jessica got married. She honestly looked like she came out of a Disney Princess story, she was so beautiful, with her hair down in curls and her make up done just right. Her dad and her groom were sooooooo handsome in their tuxes. The four flower girls were precious in their dresses. And I felt so pretty in the bridesmaid dress she picked out. Everything took place outside by a lake, under a beautifully decorated gazebo. Something I used to dream about, but was too paranoid to try... I was certain if I did that, it would rain. Everyone was hot but me, because it was at least 100 degrees. I must have a high tolerance. My robotic tendencies kicked in and I didn't cry. I just took in the beauty of their love and felt so happy for my cousin to find love and glad that she found someone who appreciates everything about her. There is so much to appreciate!
*The husband of my cousin Nicole tried to tell The Husband how to get into Dallas as part of our trip home. He said there are 8,000 ways in. As Kevin put it, we discovered all of the ways to stay out. We tried for a very long time to get IN to Dallas, but we got frustrated after an embarassing amount of time and decided it was just time to go to Arkansas.
*We intended to camp, but as it always goes, it rained. So we actually accidentally saw Bill Clinton's boyhood home. By "saw" I mean we drove by it quickly and then went to a place called Hot Springs, found a cool hotel suite for $50 and intended to experience the hot springs in the morning.
*We couldn't find any springs the next day. We drove up a mountain, had lunch and went to Memphis.
*In Memphis, I became a star in my own mind. We went to BB King's Club and watched an awesome blues band perform. I got all involved and danced while I ate, so they spotted me and asked me to come up and dance with them. I was like, "Hmm... This is scary... but fun... but...." Kevin told me, "GO!!" So I did. I thought I was a big deal
*I had made a pact with myself that I would karaoke alone this year. We were walking down the major street at found a (quiet) karaoke bar and I decided it was time. To make it feel safe, I sang "Hit Me Baby" in Britney Spears voice. THEN I got all confident and sang "Hopelessly Devoted" from Grease. The few people who were there were just as scared as me and we formed a bond from the singing and fright. It was fun.
*We walked down the street more that time and were stopped three times by people who knew me from karaoke or the dancing. One of the times was from the bassist in the band at BB King's. THEN Kevin and I were like, "We made it! We're a big deal!" ha
*We watched ducks at a hotel who line up every morning and every night in a single line, go to the elevator, ride down it, and waddle to the hotel's pond. It was cute!
*We went to the Civil Rights Museum located where Martin Luther King was assassinated. It was heart wrenching. To know that just in my parents' lifetime, people were treated inappropriately simply because their skin color was different is sickening. Abraham Lincoln's time wasn't the end, it was just the beginning. Segregated schools, separate drinking fountains, segregating the bus. Starting violence during their nonviolent walks for equality. It's upsetting. And actually seeing where MLK sat before he was shot and the spot where he was shot AND the spot were the assasin was.... ah!
On to something happier!!
*We went to Sun Studio, where Elvis started his career... and Johnny Cash recorded.... and even Maroon 5 has recorded!! I just couldn't get over the fact that I stood where Elvis had been. I love that man. love him. love.
*We ended our trip in MO where we spent the day at a water park being children. I was only brave enough for a waterslide once. I hate feeling like I'm going to fall off the slide. So we spent most of the day on the lazy river and the waaaave pooooool!!! I love the wave pool.
And that concludes my summary of the vacation.
Next up... thoughts about my birthday.
Here is my summer vacation in a quick summary.... good golly.
*I was brave and used the restroom with The World's Largest Spider watching me. I even stayed to wash my hands in there instead of the kitchen without screaming. I calmly left and told Jessica about the spider. She attacked with spray and handed me a Swiffer to jump on it as back up in case it came at us. When it looked like it was morphing into a something with greater strength, I hugged the Swiffer and ran. She was Batman, but I will never be a good Robin.
* Jessica has a humongous television. It's great because everyone is about my size, so I got up to the TV and "booty danced" with the people, waiting for Jessica to notice from the kitchen. Before she noticed, her fiance (who had only met me twice before this) walked into the room. He asked what I was doing. I told him I meant for Jessica to discover me.
Later, my phone rang, and he did my booty dance to my phone.
*Jessica told me that her weird neighbor was in the yard talking to her fiance. I wanted to know what the neighbor looked like, and I thought only the three of us were home. So I walked on my tip toes with my shoulders scrunched and slowly made my way to the window. Jessica left the room to do her hair. Before I got to the window, the door flew open and Jessica's future brother-in-law caught me being creepy and sneaky... all by myself.
I felt bad that I was all Jessica had to represent the family.
*Jessica had a wonderful rehearsal and rehearsal dinner. The dinner was at an awesome Texas BBQ restaurant, like nothing we'd find in Iowa. The Husband always has debates with Jessica about Pop vs Coke. At dinner, he discovered the waitress was from Michigan, so when she took drink orders, he said, "I'll have a POP and you know what I mean!!!" I couldn't believe him. The waitress thought he was a crack up and delivered his Dr. Pepper, then she turned to a young waitress and said, "Now, you make sure his POP is always filled, okay?? Don't let his POP get low!!" And the poor young waitress was so confused. She was looking all over and asked, "What's a pop?? What is pop???" And I leaned over all embarrassed and said, "It's coke." So she thought her coworker was serious and didn't let Kevin's soda get anywhere near empty.
*Jessica got married. She honestly looked like she came out of a Disney Princess story, she was so beautiful, with her hair down in curls and her make up done just right. Her dad and her groom were sooooooo handsome in their tuxes. The four flower girls were precious in their dresses. And I felt so pretty in the bridesmaid dress she picked out. Everything took place outside by a lake, under a beautifully decorated gazebo. Something I used to dream about, but was too paranoid to try... I was certain if I did that, it would rain. Everyone was hot but me, because it was at least 100 degrees. I must have a high tolerance. My robotic tendencies kicked in and I didn't cry. I just took in the beauty of their love and felt so happy for my cousin to find love and glad that she found someone who appreciates everything about her. There is so much to appreciate!
*The husband of my cousin Nicole tried to tell The Husband how to get into Dallas as part of our trip home. He said there are 8,000 ways in. As Kevin put it, we discovered all of the ways to stay out. We tried for a very long time to get IN to Dallas, but we got frustrated after an embarassing amount of time and decided it was just time to go to Arkansas.
*We intended to camp, but as it always goes, it rained. So we actually accidentally saw Bill Clinton's boyhood home. By "saw" I mean we drove by it quickly and then went to a place called Hot Springs, found a cool hotel suite for $50 and intended to experience the hot springs in the morning.
*We couldn't find any springs the next day. We drove up a mountain, had lunch and went to Memphis.
*In Memphis, I became a star in my own mind. We went to BB King's Club and watched an awesome blues band perform. I got all involved and danced while I ate, so they spotted me and asked me to come up and dance with them. I was like, "Hmm... This is scary... but fun... but...." Kevin told me, "GO!!" So I did. I thought I was a big deal
*I had made a pact with myself that I would karaoke alone this year. We were walking down the major street at found a (quiet) karaoke bar and I decided it was time. To make it feel safe, I sang "Hit Me Baby" in Britney Spears voice. THEN I got all confident and sang "Hopelessly Devoted" from Grease. The few people who were there were just as scared as me and we formed a bond from the singing and fright. It was fun.
*We walked down the street more that time and were stopped three times by people who knew me from karaoke or the dancing. One of the times was from the bassist in the band at BB King's. THEN Kevin and I were like, "We made it! We're a big deal!" ha
*We watched ducks at a hotel who line up every morning and every night in a single line, go to the elevator, ride down it, and waddle to the hotel's pond. It was cute!
*We went to the Civil Rights Museum located where Martin Luther King was assassinated. It was heart wrenching. To know that just in my parents' lifetime, people were treated inappropriately simply because their skin color was different is sickening. Abraham Lincoln's time wasn't the end, it was just the beginning. Segregated schools, separate drinking fountains, segregating the bus. Starting violence during their nonviolent walks for equality. It's upsetting. And actually seeing where MLK sat before he was shot and the spot where he was shot AND the spot were the assasin was.... ah!
On to something happier!!
*We went to Sun Studio, where Elvis started his career... and Johnny Cash recorded.... and even Maroon 5 has recorded!! I just couldn't get over the fact that I stood where Elvis had been. I love that man. love him. love.
*We ended our trip in MO where we spent the day at a water park being children. I was only brave enough for a waterslide once. I hate feeling like I'm going to fall off the slide. So we spent most of the day on the lazy river and the waaaave pooooool!!! I love the wave pool.
And that concludes my summary of the vacation.
Next up... thoughts about my birthday.
Friday, August 7, 2009
Summer Vacation- Pt 1: Getting to Texas
I need to start spillin' about my summer vacation before I forget what happened!
First of all, you need to know that I flew to Texas to prepare for and be in my cousin Jessica's wedding. My husband K drove down the day before the wedding, enjoyed the wedding, then we had a road trip home. I will get into the details of the road trip as I type about those days.
So my flight itinerary was to leave Iowa at 9:30 am, quick stop in Chicago, quickly stop in Houston and be in Dallas by 5 pm. Sort of a long day of travel, but I was excited to be there in time for dinner, slip on my PJs and laze it up with my cousin. Though we had last minute things to do, I mostly wanted to make sure she got a lot of laziness in... we're pretty good at that when we're together.
In reality, I got from Iowa to Chicago just fine. My flight to Chicago left twenty minutes late... Meaning I just missed my flight to Houston. MAYBE if Houston's airport was the size of downtown Iowa City, I would have been good. But no. I had to do one of those fast walks where your hips sway all fast and your elbows and shoulders move all funny all the way to an escalator that took me to some tunnel that told me to wait for five minutes for a train that took ten minutes to take me to terminals B, C, the Marriot, D and finally terminal E when I started to wonder if we were going to make pit stops and grab lunch. That took me out of the airport so I had to go through security where the guard thought it'd be great to try to flirt with me for five minutes while I basically shouted back at his flirtatious advances, "NO, I'M NOT 22! YES I LOOK YOUNG!! NO, MY TICKET DOESN'T SAY JOHANNESBURG!" until he'd let me leave and by the time I found my gate, the attendants sadly shook their heads and said plane was long gone.
I called Jessica before I even got to my gate, because I knew the plane would be gone and that she'd be on her way to pick me up. I was incredibly grumpy because I had not slept well, but she always makes me smile. So she fixed my mood right up. I easily got a ticket and discovered that I wouldn't be leaving for Dallas until 6:30 and by Jessica's side until 8. I emotionally ate an overpriced sandwich, sat at my gate, grumbled about how my iPod wasn't recieving a wifi signal and shut my eyes by 4 o'clock.
I was just half asleep, sort of dreaming, but aware of my surroundings. I heard a boarding call for a flight to Orange County and kept my eyes closed while I heard people board. After about five calls for boarding, a man lightly touched my arm to ask if I was going to Orange County. I sighed, smiled and said no, but genuinely thanked him for asking. In my half sleep, I was grumpily thinking, "Are these people just going to let me sleep and possibly miss my flight?? Or do I just look that together, like I totally know what I'm doing??"
He felt bad for waking me up, but I genuinely thanked him again, because, seriously, what if it was my flight? And he said that he had slept through his boarding call before and didn't want that to happen. Not me. I just had an unexpected three hours to kill.
I closed my eyes and suddenly a family appeared next to me. It felt like there were hundreds of them. Things multiply and are way exaggerated when you are sleepy and grumpy. These dozens of siblings were speaking a combination of Spanish and English. At first, I thought it was pretty cool. In one sentence they would say, "Do you want a..." and then... "burrito."
Ha, kidding.
No, in one conversation they would say something like, "Tiene perro! Y el perro es so cute and fluffy!" But it got old fast, because I couldn't tell if I was awake or dreaming and they were cramping my sprawling space. So I moved to a quieter space. I had four empty seats around me. I quickly got annoyed, however, because I could feels eyes on me. They were the eyes of a dude sitting with his legs pointing towards me, chomping on food, and talking endlessly on his phone. And by phone, I mean blue tooth. You know, the phone that's hidden in his ear, so it looked like he was talking to himself. Only, in his annoying slang and with his legs pointed towards me, it looked like he was shouting at me for the rest of our stay at the gate.
I was not having fun. I wanted to be with Jessica.
The flight prepared me for my stay in Texas. I sat next to a couple with a very strong accent. My family has a cute little twang. I felt like these folks were planted to sit by me just because I was easily annoyed on this day. The man had to complain about everything and his wife had to whine back.
"Whah, dontchoo caawl yer day-ad?" he'd bark
"Cuz Ah dun feel lahk ee-it." She'd whine in a cartoony voice.
"But I just wanted quiet neighbors so I could sleep," I'd bark in my head.
FINALLY, after half of a can of soda --remember the days when you got two full cans of soda AND a snack??-- we landed in Dallas. I wanted to fall to the ground and kiss it. I was going to see my Jessica in just minutes! Get to her house in an hour, put on our jammies, talk for a while and.... SLEEP!!
Fortunately, despite my problems with the plane, my luggage was fine. I was bursting with excitement, all grumpiness forgotten (until now), as soon as I saw Jessica. We fell into our usually goofy ways as we grabbed my luggage (I nearly left with someone else's... then didn't believe that mine belonged to me even though my name was on the flight sticker, so I opened it, baring my unmentionables to the world) and got to her car.
We happily headed to her house... realizing too late that we were heading an hour out of her way, so we actually got there TWO hours after I landed. But at least we got there. This just gave us an extra hour to jam to New Kids on the Block.
Then I was greeted at the door by her charming now-husband with a hunting gun in his hands.
First of all, you need to know that I flew to Texas to prepare for and be in my cousin Jessica's wedding. My husband K drove down the day before the wedding, enjoyed the wedding, then we had a road trip home. I will get into the details of the road trip as I type about those days.
So my flight itinerary was to leave Iowa at 9:30 am, quick stop in Chicago, quickly stop in Houston and be in Dallas by 5 pm. Sort of a long day of travel, but I was excited to be there in time for dinner, slip on my PJs and laze it up with my cousin. Though we had last minute things to do, I mostly wanted to make sure she got a lot of laziness in... we're pretty good at that when we're together.
In reality, I got from Iowa to Chicago just fine. My flight to Chicago left twenty minutes late... Meaning I just missed my flight to Houston. MAYBE if Houston's airport was the size of downtown Iowa City, I would have been good. But no. I had to do one of those fast walks where your hips sway all fast and your elbows and shoulders move all funny all the way to an escalator that took me to some tunnel that told me to wait for five minutes for a train that took ten minutes to take me to terminals B, C, the Marriot, D and finally terminal E when I started to wonder if we were going to make pit stops and grab lunch. That took me out of the airport so I had to go through security where the guard thought it'd be great to try to flirt with me for five minutes while I basically shouted back at his flirtatious advances, "NO, I'M NOT 22! YES I LOOK YOUNG!! NO, MY TICKET DOESN'T SAY JOHANNESBURG!" until he'd let me leave and by the time I found my gate, the attendants sadly shook their heads and said plane was long gone.
I called Jessica before I even got to my gate, because I knew the plane would be gone and that she'd be on her way to pick me up. I was incredibly grumpy because I had not slept well, but she always makes me smile. So she fixed my mood right up. I easily got a ticket and discovered that I wouldn't be leaving for Dallas until 6:30 and by Jessica's side until 8. I emotionally ate an overpriced sandwich, sat at my gate, grumbled about how my iPod wasn't recieving a wifi signal and shut my eyes by 4 o'clock.
I was just half asleep, sort of dreaming, but aware of my surroundings. I heard a boarding call for a flight to Orange County and kept my eyes closed while I heard people board. After about five calls for boarding, a man lightly touched my arm to ask if I was going to Orange County. I sighed, smiled and said no, but genuinely thanked him for asking. In my half sleep, I was grumpily thinking, "Are these people just going to let me sleep and possibly miss my flight?? Or do I just look that together, like I totally know what I'm doing??"
He felt bad for waking me up, but I genuinely thanked him again, because, seriously, what if it was my flight? And he said that he had slept through his boarding call before and didn't want that to happen. Not me. I just had an unexpected three hours to kill.
I closed my eyes and suddenly a family appeared next to me. It felt like there were hundreds of them. Things multiply and are way exaggerated when you are sleepy and grumpy. These dozens of siblings were speaking a combination of Spanish and English. At first, I thought it was pretty cool. In one sentence they would say, "Do you want a..." and then... "burrito."
Ha, kidding.
No, in one conversation they would say something like, "Tiene perro! Y el perro es so cute and fluffy!" But it got old fast, because I couldn't tell if I was awake or dreaming and they were cramping my sprawling space. So I moved to a quieter space. I had four empty seats around me. I quickly got annoyed, however, because I could feels eyes on me. They were the eyes of a dude sitting with his legs pointing towards me, chomping on food, and talking endlessly on his phone. And by phone, I mean blue tooth. You know, the phone that's hidden in his ear, so it looked like he was talking to himself. Only, in his annoying slang and with his legs pointed towards me, it looked like he was shouting at me for the rest of our stay at the gate.
I was not having fun. I wanted to be with Jessica.
The flight prepared me for my stay in Texas. I sat next to a couple with a very strong accent. My family has a cute little twang. I felt like these folks were planted to sit by me just because I was easily annoyed on this day. The man had to complain about everything and his wife had to whine back.
"Whah, dontchoo caawl yer day-ad?" he'd bark
"Cuz Ah dun feel lahk ee-it." She'd whine in a cartoony voice.
"But I just wanted quiet neighbors so I could sleep," I'd bark in my head.
FINALLY, after half of a can of soda --remember the days when you got two full cans of soda AND a snack??-- we landed in Dallas. I wanted to fall to the ground and kiss it. I was going to see my Jessica in just minutes! Get to her house in an hour, put on our jammies, talk for a while and.... SLEEP!!
Fortunately, despite my problems with the plane, my luggage was fine. I was bursting with excitement, all grumpiness forgotten (until now), as soon as I saw Jessica. We fell into our usually goofy ways as we grabbed my luggage (I nearly left with someone else's... then didn't believe that mine belonged to me even though my name was on the flight sticker, so I opened it, baring my unmentionables to the world) and got to her car.
We happily headed to her house... realizing too late that we were heading an hour out of her way, so we actually got there TWO hours after I landed. But at least we got there. This just gave us an extra hour to jam to New Kids on the Block.
Then I was greeted at the door by her charming now-husband with a hunting gun in his hands.
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