30 June 2008

bye bye june

I realized that I have written a lot this month. Yay for no school, minimal work and lotsss of free time. My last summer of freedom, probably for ever, haha. So I'm bumming it up.

I don't feel well AT ALL today. Both my head and my stomach. I even took my temperature to see if I had one. Slight fever! Wow, it's been a while since I've had a confirmed fever. Like since I was a kid. I feel crappy enough to do nothing but sit with a heating pad on my middle, but not so bad that I want to sleep. I hate that. And daytime TV sucks.

I'm still crossing things off my list. For example: the photo challenge at photochallenge.net this week was passion. I think this subject is more "obsession" but I suppose they could go hand in hand. He was so engrossed that he didn't even see me standing there.

28 June 2008

my night

Today's breakfast: Brown rice crepes with fresh sweet strawberries & coffee [sans creamer again, I really like it this way]

I went and worked out and I feel pretty gooood. Cept this morning I broke one of the wine glasses the man got me for Christmas. Boo.

But: for the real story here. Last night was interesting!!

I went to visit Jen at her new apt and drove around for 20 minutes looking for a parking spot. At first I tried to parallel park between two cars, but I can't parallel park for shit. Then I accidentally parked in a handicapped spot that didn't have the sign up, but when I got out I saw it painted on the concrete. More driving around. Then I saw a spot on the next block. A few cars were parked there and I saw no "no parking" signs. I looked.

Fast forward about 30 minutes later, as we all head out to go to Agora. We're walking up and I see lights. I think I muttered, "that doesn't look good," then realized they were towing my car, and a lot of others near me. I started running and got all up in front of the tow truck as he was driving, lol poor guy. Apparently there was a sign at the end of the block that was facing the cross street that said no parking. We sat there and argued for a bit and there was no way that he was going to let me off. It was going to cost 140 bucks, cash, for him to let me go. I don't carry cash, much less that much, and I was really touched to see my friends immediately dig in their bags to see how much they had. <3 He said I could pay with a credit card once they towed my car to the lot, but it would be 190 bucks. Joy.

Anyway he tows my car and we head to Agora. Ash and Sue come by and we go to the GHET-TO to the towing lot. We get there with no major problems, but then the guy who speaks NO ENGLISH tells me that I can't pay with a credit card and I have to pay cash, exact change, 191.39. I'm annoyed... but I know there's an ATM near campus, a few blocks away.

We head towards campus on Scott St, encountering many crackies and bums in the middle of the street [I HATE driving through there at night] and we even saw a crackie/bum BBQ party on the corner, at 1am!

We get the cash, 200 bucks in 20s, at the ATM, but we need to go get change. There's a REALLY ghetto gas station that no one goes to right across the street, and I wanted to go somewhere else but Ash said she'd go in. I made her take my pepper spray, lol. I've gotten SO harrassed there before.

We pull up to this cracked out white guy blaring Miley Cyrus from his truck and Ash runs in to get change. She comes back, after a few people hanging out at the door ask her for money and hit on her, and the Miley Cyrus guy starts harrassing her for money, some story about needing gas. Like a dorkus she talks to him! I'm like, "Say no and let's get the hell outta here!" He's got his face all up in the window and stuff as we're trying to pull out. Yayy for 5th ward!

Then we go back to the towing lot and the guy's yapping on the phone for a little while and a very unhappy guy is in line behind us. Eventually I get into my car and I'm driving home. I notice something flapping under my windshield and realize that it's probably my ticket. Thankfully it doesn't blow off and I get home and look at it. $65 for parking in a "tow zone." I swear, next time I need to park, I'm just going to double-park. That ticket is only $30.

27 June 2008

strange

Sitting here.
Drinking my coffee.

Woke up with a headache, then got dressed for the gym.
Realized my headache would probably worsen if I worked out.
Sat down, undressed, took a shower.
Shaved my legs.
Made some coffee.
Ate some couple day old biscuits with honey.
Looking forward to this weekend!

I'm sure it was stemming from my obsessive pantry moth hunt, but I had a dream that my bosses had them and didn't want me to kill them. One day I went in there with the intention of making a mixture of 1 part boric acid, 3 parts cornmeal as a trap for them. Well, I had the boric acid but not the cornmeal so I used orange juice instead because they were similar colors.

Well, turns out my bosses found out I did it and decided to fire me. But before I left, I had to meet with this "exit interviewer" and do their dishes.

Really strange.

26 June 2008

summertimeee

I have decided that I like my coffee without creamer.

I have also decided that I need to get some serious hobby-doing. I haven't been working a lot and I'm not complaining about that, except that I get kinda bored.

What I really want to do is lay out by the pool, but we do not have one because my mom doesn't like water. It's not like we use our back yard anyway, but that idea has been vetoed from the start. When I grow up, I am having a pool. With those foam noodles.

I've started going to the library again, so if anyone has any suggestions, I will gladly take them. I pretty much read anything.

25 June 2008

whats happenin

I love it when my mom says the F-word. It cracks me up.

Yesterday the boyfriend's truck got broken into and they stole about $5K worth of racing equipment and various other things. The theives broke into at least 3 other cars in that apartment complex, and 15 cars at the complex across the street. They were pros, too. They popped the lock clean and barely left a mark. So. Beware if you live around Rice Village, and if you see anyone trying to sell old dirty racing suits or custom helmets, kick his/her ass for me.

Looking forward to Sex n the City tnite. I've been wanting to see it!

The apple pie that I got from Whole Foods smells wonderful and I can't wait for it to heat up so I can eat it. Maybe I'll just cut a bit out and microwave it, haha.

And even though I eat like a pig, I always feel skinny when I'm on the rag. Strange.

Time for apple pie.

23 June 2008

drama... again??

oh my gosh.
drama makes me tired. and headache-y.

it's always so unexpected and intense.

i think i did some good today, though, by explaining my previous circumstances to someone who could benefit.

i need to sit down and do some explaining that i have been wanting to do for a long time but haven't found the right time. well, this situation pertains exactly to it, so i guess it's time to get it all out.

the thing is, i'm not so ashamed anymore. it's not ruining my life; quite the contrary. i've accepted it a long time ago and am stronger because of it. not that i'm glad that the other party is suffering. i just feel pity.

i can't wait to get it all out and never have to think about it again.

22 June 2008

waste

I hate throwing food away. Especially the expensive flours and stuff I JUST bought.

Moths in the pantry and the fridge went out. Good thing I have the mini-fridge from the dorms as a backup. And who has MOTHS in the pantry??

Garrrr.

You think the sour cream is ok? I mean, it's sour already... and I haven't opened it yet...

And it turns out the Smart Balance butter I have is vegan, so non-dairy butter won't go bad, right?

Maybe I should just go the "when in doubt throw it out" route.

lazy

Today I feel like this:

21 June 2008

happy girl

I am a happy girl. You want to know why?

I'm eating the first sandwich on real bread since since last November. And it's indescribably delicious. The only sandwich I've ever really craved is the turkey from Schlotsky's, and this tastes JUST like it. Oh, heaven does exist.

That and I'm about to try out a red velvet cake recipe, and I'm always content when I bake.

That, and the sun is shining and I'm going to go play mini golf tonight.

The only thing that would make my mood better is if the man weren't out of town.

Even still, I'm totally in a great mood today.

Life totally rocks sometimes.

19 June 2008

on looking young

SCENE: Me at the library with a pile of books in my hand. I walk up to the counter.

Me: I need to get a library card.

Cute old asian guy at counter: You need to have a parent with you.

Me: What?

Guy: You need to have a parent with you if you're under 18.

Me: [stunned] I'm 23...

Guy: [looking at me really hard and handing me a piece of paper] Okay, fill this out and I'll need your driver's license.

Haha what the hell? I know I look young and stuff like this happens kind of a lot, but 18?! Usually it's being carded for being "under 21."

Yeah, yeah, I know I'll be thankful when I'm older...

17 June 2008

dads n stuff

Why is it that the orange juice falls out of the fridge and spills onto the floor ONLY on days when you're running late? Sheesh.

My boss is having his surgery tomorrow, which I wrote about a while back. If you're the praying type, throw a shout-out for him. It sucks to see such good people go through rough times.

The Chronicle interviewed my dad, brother, uncle & cousin after the Astros vs Yankees game Sunday. Go to: www.chron.com/sports and there will be a little video player on the left-hand side, about halfway down. The link is Astros Fans or something like that. Pretty neat.

And I got to thinking Sunday, with it being Father's Day and all. The dad that I usually refer to as "dad" means the dad that lives here in Texas, my "step father." The dad that lives in California is "CA dad."

Although he is technically my step father, I don't see it that way. I mean, he raised me. He's treated my like his own since as long as I can remember. He's my dad, plain and simple. Most people don't even know that we don't share the same last name.

I don't think me and Ash would be the same people that we are now if CA dad had raised us. He's a good person, and I know he loves us. We get along and talk about once a month or so, but he's just not one of those guys who has those natural father abilities.

When we were kids one Christmas he nailed the tree to the ceiling along with all the gifts, so when we came over we freaked out. I remember when he took us on Sundays, we'd go fly kites in the park or bury each other in the sand at the beach, or something fun. One time when we were at the park Ashley was trying to slide down the slide, but she peed her pants and was sticking to it and we had to go home. Haha sorry Ash. We've gone camping in the desert at the mud caves, been to countless water parks, Disney Land and up and down the coast. I've been up in a hot air balloon with him, and for a couple 4th of Julys we sold those glow necklaces during the fireworks. There are good memories there. Even now that we're adults he sends cash when we're broke and flies us out to see him when we have the time. Like I said, he has been a pretty decent dad.

The thing is, though, being so far away he can't be there all the time. And when you're growing up, that's what matters. Every single time, ever, "dad" has put us first. When we were really poor he'd work 7 days a week just to feed us. He's the one who built our bunk beds and would tuck us in so good that we couldn't move. He was the one who gave rides to school when we missed the bus, and who threatened to beat up that boyfriend who tried to feel me up under the tabe at IHOP at Homecoming. I've never seen anyone look so scared, LOL!
He's driven us to the emergency room. He's grounded us for mouthing off (something that took me a LONG time to learn NOT to do). He taught me how to play basketball and put up a hoop in the driveway.
Dad was the one who teared up a little during my first dance solo and made sure the curtains were opened and closed at my senior spring show. He made sure to write directions for my first time driving to the beach and stick them on my cooler before I left. He checks the air in my tires and fills up my tank every once in a while. After my car accident, he hauled ass and was there to make sure I was ok.
Yeah he's your typical dad, griping when you leave the door open, "we're not air-conditioning the entire world!" and likes to crash on the couch while watching TV. His feet are ticklish, and if you walk by and tickle them when he's sleeping it's SO FUNNY. He likes mint chocolate chip ice cream and gets a kick out of the cats, even though he won't admit it.
The bottom line is, any thing we've ever wanted, he's wanted to make happen. Of course you can't make every thing come true, but just the fact that he cares enough to want that for us is the thing that matters. And he's done SO much, and I don't think he realizes that yeah, we do appreciate it and we do see it.

Ok, tribute to the padre is done :o)

15 June 2008

<3 fruit

On my top 10 list of reasons why I love summer:

Fresh Fruit. I guess I'd put it immediately after No Classes and The Beach.
















I can easily make a meal out of fruit. I am a fruit whore. Any time my mom goes to the store and asks if she can pick me up something, my response is always, "fruit!"

And, I don't really cook with fruit. I just eat it as-is or cut it up into a yummy fruit salad. Maybe add a dash of cinnamon or some nuts, but not much else.

In the summertime there's always more of it and it's cheaper, so I can eat it more and THAT makes me a happy girl.

movie

I saw that Zohan movie Friday night. First of all: $18.50 for two tickets. WTF?? Not even getting into it, but that's messed up. This is why I do not go to movies anymore. I rent them for 5 bucks after they're on DVD and watch them with 30 cent popcorn in my undies. Forget $11 for a drink and a bag of popcorn, which is what it actually cost.

The movie was pretty dumb, with a few laughs here and there. I think if I was more aware of the cultures I would have gotten a lot more of the jokes. Besides that, though, it was funny. I even found myself chuckling about some of the scenes later that night.

The best part, though, was the soundtrack. It was full of old-school dance songs that if I download my sister would make fun of me for downloading... but would then add them to her mix cd and totally jam in the privacy of her car.

More to say, but gotta head to sleep.

13 June 2008

OY-ness!

K so I was intrigued by drewann's comment about "oy." So, I went through and did a quick search using ctrl F for "Oy" and I found out I say it (or blog about it) a lot. That, and apparently a lot of things annOY me. I cracked up a little bit.

12 June 2008

slurp

I just finished ghetto-rigging the driver's side mirror on my car. The mirror is intact, but it's not sitting on the motor and it's just hanging off. It got hit just enough to jar it off. So, dad Gorilla-glued it and I've taped it to the right position, hoping it will dry right. Oy.

Sucking down this glass of wine. It's been a long day. Not bad, just long and tiring. I'm actually proud of myself. I wrote the content for a web site today. At first I was confused and it took quite a bit of coaching from Lee, but I finally figured it out. In the end I realized it is not very different from writing a paper. I'll get the hang of it and the next one will go much quicker. Thank goodness my bosses are patient and have faith in me, LOL.

In other news, guess who got official business cards today??? Me! I'm excited. I've never had business cards before. They have my name on them... :o)

Speaking of work, I hope my ass gets paid soon. I'm berrr-roke. I had to creatively transfer money from different accounts to get enough to pay the car note this month. It's my own fault because I'm lazy and don't want to get an additional job and work all the time. Life's too short to work your ass off and never get down time. I will be working full time very soon for the rest of my life, so I don't feel too bad about it. I can be poor for a while.

Speaking of money, I got a substantially larger amount of federal grants for school next semester, which totally rocks. And it's done so early, too. Usually I don't get the info until right before school starts and I'm all stressed out. I'm not fooled, though. Nothing in financial aid is easy. Something will have me in tears before the end of summer.

But for now, let's put something else besides wine in my stomach.

11 June 2008

sleep? nah...

The very nice glass of wine I drank before bed to make me tired has now morphed into a very nice case of heartburn at this very sleepy hour. I awoke with my cat curled under my armpit and her furry face smashed against mine. Ash, maybe you were right about it being very cold in here... as Pumpkin does not usually snuggle so vigorously.

I spent the late evening organizing the scrapbook mess in the two boxes under my bed, in the hopes that maybe if I sort it all out and make it easier to see what I have, I will actually DO some. I came across some neat stuff that I had saved to scrapbook, and a lot of stuff that I really don't remember where it's from. Also, since most of my photos are now digital and I've been meaning to save them somewhere that is not subject to crash unexpectedly, I think I'll really start saving them onto CD and placing the cd in a pocket within the scrapbook, or something like that.

Yesterday was a fun day at work. Jackie took me out with her while she did sales calls, and I think I can do it no problem. She got me mexican food for lunch and we had a couple of very good conversations throughout the day. I was telling my friend Bob earlier in the week, how this has just been the best job because the people are so laid back and they actually give a crap about you instead of just throwing work at you and checking in when it's due. That, and they have cats that I can play with when I've been staring at a computer for 4 hours and need a break. But that's just a bonus, haha. Seriously, though. They're always offering to feed me, asking how I am, how my family is, etc. Like I've said before, they're good people.

I have just noticed that I have a cut on my finger. How the hell did that get there??

Another thing: I've gotta really pay attention to my diet. It sucks. I've been living on microwave popcorn, cereal, apples and an occasional various baked good that I've whipped up. Oh yeah, that and chick-fil-a french fries. No joke, either. It's that bad. Time to mix in a salad here and there.

Working out needs to commence again as well. It's been hard waking my butt up to go before work this week and I don't really like going in the evenings. Gotta quit bitching and just get up, I guess.

Well, I guess now I'm tired enough to get some sleep, and the meds have kicked in.
nite (morning) ya'll.

08 June 2008

things

I am intrigued by these "photo challenge" websites I've come across. Might start participating in some. Since, you know, one of my summer goals was to take more pictures, and I have.

Sometimes when I'm bored I surf craigslist and look under the "volunteer" tab for surveys to take for research studies. I took one about eating habits while eating a bag of doritos and a klondike bar, and washing it down with wine. Sounds nasty, I know. But it was gooood. The thing is, I always follow my cravings, no matter what it's for (with the exception of the obvious wheat-laden items). I figure if my body is craving it, I better listen.

Oyyy I have to work tomorrow. I let my aunt and cousin take my room, and I haven't gotten very great sleep at all these past few days on the couch. Turns out it's not very comfortable for extended periods of sleep. That, and the first person up in the morning would wake me up. The combination did not make for very restful sleep. So I've been tired and grouchy and not very ambitious. I get to sleep in a fresh clean bed tonight so hopefully I will awake tomorrow refreshed.

Here's a photo I snapped on the ferry from Galveston to Bolivar last weekend (I think).


07 June 2008

and then we flew kites

Yes, the boyfriend and I saw kites in Walgreens and decided that it was windy enough to fly them. What fun! I haven't flown a kite since I was a kid.



Got family in town for Frank-o's graduation tonight, so it's good to see them.

Stomach has been upset pretty much constantly lately. It's probably time to go get tested for additional food allergies. If only the insurance company would pay for it...

05 June 2008

check and check

I cheaped out again and didn't buy the ice cream maker I've been wanting at Wal Mart. I went originally to buy a new litter box with higher sides. My retardo cat will sit in the box but somehow manage to pee right off the side of it. I would get one of the massive covered ones but my bathroom is very small. Besides, she only pees in it when she's locked in and can't go outside.

Anyway I've wanted an ice cream maker for SO long and I keep waiting for it to go on sale or something. I'm cheap.

I crossed another couple of projects off my list. I re-stuffed and re-covered the cushion on a chair I've had for a while, so now you can sit on it again. Yay for being able to sit on chairs.

I cleaned out the junk cabinet and now it's all organized. I did laundry, which my cat is now laying on getting all full of fur, and I also cleaned out my other cabinets and threw out a lot of food I knew I wasn't going to eat or had gotten stale and old. I converted my old dorm fridge into a makeshift pantry and bought canisters to keep some of my flours in so that there weren't twenty bags of flour all over the place. That part was fun. I had a couple but I only bought three new ones. I want more!






I was talking with Missy the other night about all my projects I want to do this summer, but of course now I've forgotten them all. She's supposed to email me and remind me, haha.

I know cake decorating classes and learning some Polish are on the list. So is cleaning off my bookcase and organizing my files that are all shoved in a file cabinet with no rhyme or reason. There's also some fun stuff, like getting a group to go mini golfing and rock climbing, and there will probably be another bonfire.

I don't want to put it all off thinking that I'll have plenty of time to do it, because before I know it summer will be over. So, let's make this summer productive. This one is already moreso than the last, and it's only June!

04 June 2008

fun with drama

Somebody tried to insult me yesterday, like really tried. And I just laughed. I seriously felt absolutely no offense and felt the entire conversation was ridiculous.

Ashley, you'll appreciate this drama recap :o)

So a few weeks ago Robert made a comment on Ashley's myspace. No big deal, really, but then he got too chummy with the "How's a member of my extended family doing?" comment and that kinda pissed me off. What arrogance. See, he won't remain friends with me but will be buddies with my family? So I childishly made a comment on Ash's space about how annoying it was. Whatever. It was satisfying.

About a week ago I get a message from him but I was just going to ignore it.

But, I mentioned it to Chris and he suggested I read it. So I did. And I got even more annoyed. He basically defended himself and failed to acknowledge why I was annoyed, so I replied telling him why I was so annoyed and that he was no longer part of the family. Duh.

Then I get a big long email from him that I read, but don't remember what it said. I didn't reply because I was so fed up with his crap at this point and didn't want to argue back and forth with him.

Fast forward to the next evening. I get a text message. At this point, it's redundant. I was not wanting to extend this conversation any more and did not want to talk to him. But I read it. The message: something along the lines of "I'll delete your family from my myspace if you say that we're cool."

Pause for a moment. I see his motives now. He wants to remain friendly and not have me pissed at him. Not be the bad guy. Well, I'm ready to burn a bridge and don't really want to give him that comfortable satisfaction of being "okay."

So I reply saying that I don't care what he does. It's whatever.

He replies with some french shit and I ask what he meant and he replies with "we're ok then."

Um, no. I tell him we're not okay and agree with him that we should not talk anymore. I mean, if we're not talking, we're not "okay." Another Duh.

I get a couple more messages that I don't read and just delete.

Then I get a text message from him calling me a cracker bitch. (Wtf? LOL) Telling me to have fun drawing blood and being in debt all my life. Then, and this cracked me up: he goes, "oh, and I can eat wheat."

Now, I'm sure he thought long and hard about how to best insult me, and that's what he came up with?? I actually sat there and giggled at the absurdity of it all. Especially the last part. It might be slightly insulting if my sisters didn't tease me about it all the time, and if I hadn't actually realized that yeah, normal people CAN eat wheat. Derr.

I replied with: "The best part is, you know I am happier than you will ever be."

And that finally shut him up.

Anyway the whole thing was ridiculous and made me thank my lucky stars that I was smart enough to get away from him. Like seriously I think about how lucky I am now and how miserable I'd be if I was still stuck with him.

And not just because he annoys me, or because he's an egotistical mama's boy. And not because he dared to lay a hand on me in anger. Because he was a catalyst for the largest turning point in my life. But that's a story for another day.

02 June 2008

gorge

I love how I just got done working out so I come home and eat half a pan of rice krispy treats.

It doesn't count. Kuz I just worked out... haha