overload

I elected to stay in and study tonight. I won't get much done tomorrow with the moving and all that.
Next week is swamped- my busiest week... ever?

We have on the agenda: 2 exams, 1 literature review, 2 pre-labs, 2 lab write-ups- 1 a formal paper, 1 quiz, and 1 outside-of-class biology experiment to perform. All in four days.

Anyway, I handed out candy tonight. We had some super cute kids. We ran out of candy so I started giving out instant hot chocolate packets and microwave popcorn. I even threw in a Jiffy Pop, haha.

Happy Halloween ya'll.

only thursday??

Hooo maaaan.
What a long effing day.

First of all, I got up at 8 on my day to sleep in a little to go help Chris look for apartments. Long story involving that. I'd go into it but it's not something you put on a public blog.

Anyway. That was super-frustrating at first, but turned out ok. He found place he likes and I like it too, because it's way closer to my house than his last apartment. So, just in the nick of time, he found an apartment. Whew.

So anway, apartment hunting took longer than I thought and at about 6:00 we get back to his place and I head to work. Because I still had to do the work I planned to do today. I stay there until 9, head home, and pour myself this delicious glass of wine. I made one of those instant noodle meals, but it was sub-par.

Tomorrow will consist of making sales calls for work, hopefully finishing that early, and helping Chris pack. Hopefully we will get enough done that I can go part-ay some for halloween.

Saturday I was hoping to go to the Renaissance Festival. We'll see how tomorrow goes!

I haven't drank in a while and this wine is making me sleepy.

voting, school and graham crackers

What a long freaking week . Wait-- it's only Wednesday?? Aye aye aye

I blew off some stress and brain drain by making graham crackers. They smell fantastic.

I voted today. On my way to school I saw one of the early voting places, and I was running early for once so I swung in and voted. It was quick- 5 minutes and I was out of there, making history.

I'm interested to see how this election turns out. A lot of people feel very strongly about their chosen candidate- moreso, it seems, than normal. Like I said, it will be a historical milestone no matter who wins. And then there are those who just don't know. I hope those people go vote anyway.

Well, this chunk of exams/ papers is over, but there is another one waiting just around the weekend. Guess I should get started and save myself from staying up till 2 am like I did last night.

The Moth

Since it has been gorgeously cool here, I've been leaving my door open at night when it gets that extra bite in the air. I know an open door means extra bugs, but it's worth it.

Last night I was working at my computer when I heard the buzzing of large wings. Fearing the worst, I turned around and prepared to run screaming from a flying roach. To my relief, it wasn't a roach, but a rather large moth, bouncing off the overhead light in the kitchen. In an effort to lure it out, I turned all my lights off and turned on the porch light. Of course, it just sat there.

I got a stick and tried to shoo it towards the door, but of course, it flew into the farthest corner away from the door. I called Luke in, for manly backup support, and I tried to shoo it away from the corner. It flew, I ducked and screamed, it hit Luke in the head, and disappeared. We tried to look for it, but gave up and decided it was just going to stay wherever it was.

Fast forward to about 4 o'clock this morning. I hear the buzzing of large wings through my sleepy haze. There is one of those paper globe lamps that hangs directly above my bed, and I heard it bouncing around in there. Terrified it would fall onto my head, I got up and took the lamp down. By that time it had moved on to the bathroom. I could hear it bouncing around in there.

Relieved that no moth would be falling on my head from the lamp, I went back to sleep.

Fast forward to about 5 o'clock. Pumpkin comes in, eats some food, drinks some water, and climbs up on the windowsill to take a bath, like always. I am halfway asleep and vaguely aware when she jumps up to go investigate the noises that have resumed in the bathroom. For about 5 minutes all I hear is beating wings and the klink of pumpkin's rabies tag on her collar. Then, the tumbleweed of noises travels onto the rug next to my bed, where the sound of claws on carpet joins in.

I peek one eye open and she's frantically playing with the thing. Hiding behind a shoe, then pouncing. Munching a bit, then leaving it to lay there.

Well, that's the end of that.

ode to my boss

This week, work was extra fun.
I did little more than stuff envelopes, but the weather was hoodie-friendly and Jackie likes to keep the windows open.

Lee is out of town and Jackie and I bonded. And, does she like to talk! She is the most adorable lady, talking about whatever comes up. Cheerful and yapping away; I love it.

While we work I usually have the radio on. Towards the end of the day Thursday she had put on some oldies music, so I turned mine off and was jammin to "sittin on the dock of the bay" and "can't buy me love."

Yesterday, she ran to the post office and I was starting to wonder where she was after she'd been gone an hour and a half. Well, she comes in with this large -gorgeous- framed oil painting and another framed picture. She'd seen an estate sale and dropped in!

That's one of the things I love about her. She loves decorating and antiquing. She constantly recycles the pieces she has with new ones from craigslist or yard/ estate sales and the salvation army. She really knows how to get a bargain.

They have so many neat pieces in their home. There's this old wooden icebox they have, the kind where you used to put the block of ice in the bottom. Neat old tables and desks, beautiful chests of drawers, all with tons of character. You name it, she's probably had it.

She's from a large family and has had 5 children herself, so we bond over the large family thing. And let me tell you, she does not look like she's had 5 kids! She's kept herself looking pretty darn good. I think Lee has 2 or 3 kids, so all together they've got lots of kids... all grown and out of the house, with a couple in college and 6 grandsons. She just treats me like one of her own.

Anyway, she's the sweetest lady and I'm really glad some random craigslist ad turned into something like this.

dynamics

My attitude is changing.

This is such a drastic change from what it used to be. I wonder what it means.

I'm kinda feeling Missy on this one. Without going into too much detail, since when is it mandatory that we put up with our partner's issues and "be there?" How much is too much and when do we draw the line? As long as it's balanced, and each person is there for each other, it's okay. But when it gets unbalanced... then what?

Not saying that things have been bad in that area lately; they've actually been very good. But it's something that I've thought about when it does get bad.

I find myself feeling relief instead of anxiety when I'm not invited to participate in his problems. It's more, "hey, I'm not going to trouble myself" instead of "why won't he tell me what's wrong?"

I know it has nothing to do with me when he gets overwhelmed by crap going on, and there is often nothing I can do about it. So, all that time I spent worrying and trying to help was pointless, and I feel a lot better when I simply don't worry about it. It feels a little selfish, but it leaves me with a better feeling than any other strategy I've tried.

This relationship has morphed from me wanting so much more than he was willing to give, to getting it tenfold, and recently things have cooled off a little. We are both busy, and haven't spent as much time together.

The thing about it is, though, I don't miss him as much as I used to when we wouldn't see each other often. I don't crave his presence as much.

Is this a bad thing?
Not necessarily.
I kind of like this "non-smothering" relationship. You know, the one where you don't spend all free time with your significant other and get lots of space to do your own thing.

I think that we have a stable enough "foundation" for us to be comfortable like this. This is not to say that we don't see each other at all- just not in the overkill pattern that relationships tend to fall into. I think time spent apart makes you appreciate the other person more.

That intimate connection you get with spending time with someone isn't as strong, and I think that's the way I like it. At least, for this point in my life anyway. I'm not looking or focusing on anything more than that right now.

I think I've found that balance between "too close" and "not close enough."
Not to leave on a bad note, but we all know how easily scales are tipped...

bees

This guy told me a story today about how his dad and uncle pulled down a tree with a beehive in it, blowtorched the bees, and took all the honeycomb. One of the funniest stories I've heard in a long time. Except I was sad they killed the bees. You're not supposed to kill honeybees!

happenin'

So the weekend I'm sick is the weekend the internet and cable goes out. At least I've gotten some homework done. I watched Beauty Shop with Queen Latifa last night. I love Queen Latifa.

Chronicling the sickness, last night the pain subsided, but came back with a vengeance on both sides early this morning. After sucking down more tea and painkillers, it's slowly faded and I'm feeling a little better. My tonsils are still looking pretty nasty though. My sisters looked at them and grossed out, lol.

Last night was Homecoming, and my sister Suzy looked absolutely beautiful. Here is one shot I got of her that I loved. Just gorgeous.


My brother Luke and his friends looked so handsome. They're trying to look cool in this picture by not smiling. What is it with boys and not smiling in pictures?

If you notice their ties, my brother's (on the left) is a piano tie, and the guy in the middle made his out of duct tape. I also heard my brother won a dance-off to Michael Jackson's Thriller. I never would have guessed my brother's got moves.

home remedies and clean digestives

Well, I still feel shitty. I hardly slept last night because every time I tried to swallow I would wince and wake myself up.

Today I was supposed to go shopping w/ Dayna, but I just don't have enough energy.

Since the doctors offices are all closed and I'm trying to avoid that anyway, I looked up some home remedies. Some were pretty bizarre and sounded like old-school magic potions. But some were ok.

-gargling with warm salt water (ickk, but it sorta helps)
-drinking tons of tea with honey
-eating nothing but fruit.

I have been wanting to go on one of those "detox" diets for a while now. I've just felt gross and bogged down and puffy and wanting to do some digestive system cleansing. But, with my schedule I can't go a whole day on nothing but liquids and fruits/ veggies. I would die.

Well, I'm sick, drinking tons of fluids anyway, don't have an appetite, and am doing nothing but laying around, this seems like a good time to try that.

...and bitch some more.

My. Throat. Effing. Hurts.

Lamesauce.

*update*

I know I'm a hypocondriac and paranoid, but I think it's tonsillitis. I did some research and it seems like that's what it is.

This blows.

free time

I accidentally woke up early today. I thought it was an hour later than it really was, and I glanced at my phone and thought: "that's not right." Well, it was. So now I am much more relaxed and have an hour to kill.

Still worrying about applications, but I talked to a couple people and I just gotta take the stress factor down a notch. I mean, it's not like there is much else I can do. I talked to a guy after class yesterday, who is also applying, and he's so chill about the whole thing it calmed me down a little.

Today is also the first day all week that I haven't felt exhausted. This past week I've just been feeling crappy. Not on the surface crappy, but as if I'm about to get sick and my body is fighting it hard. I have a sore throat today, but other than that I feel all right. We'll see how the day pans out.

I have a man-free weekend, but I am so broke again I can't do anything that involves money. If I'm smart I'll stay in and catch up on studying. But I know I'll end up laying around, hanging out and baking way too much.

And did I mention it's cool weather?? Not cool enough for a hoodie, which is how I define cold-weather happiness, but it's a breather.

AAHHH!!

I'm freaking out man.

I deliver my resume, personal statement and transcript to a professor tomorrow along with some forms and stamped envelopes for rec letters.

I emailed another professor who somewhat reluctantly agreed to write one, but he said he'd do it and required electronic copies of everyting. I just emailed him and I'll deliver stamped envelopes next week to his office. I hope he writes a good one.

I am nervous.

It's my own fault for not getting to know professors, but I hardly had time to attend class, much less suck up during office hours. I know I'm not the only college student who worked a lot and never got to know their professors, not to mention how hard it is to do that when you're in a class of over 500 people.

The only people I got to know were my lab TAs, but they're not allowed to write letters because they're only TAs. But, ironically, they're the ones who know exactly how I work in a lab- which is what I'm going to school for in the first place!

I just feel so wierd asking for letters from professors I've never bonded with. What if they email me back and tell me my personal statement and resume aren't good enough to write letters for? What if my GPA isn't high enough? What if... what if I'm not good enough??

I know I can get a good one from my boss, but he's not faculty. Will it count?

What am I going to do if I don't get into Med Tech school? How much of their decision do they base letters of rec on anyway?

Maybe I should focus on the fact that there's a shortage in the workforce and they need med techs right now. But I can't help but worry.

I'll be worrying until they're all sent, then it's out of my hands. And I want to wait until the end of this semester to send them so my GPA will be a little higher.

I'm totally freaking out man.

trendsetter

Oh yeah, just call me a trendsetter. After I got a neti pot, Missy decided to get one, and Chris also just got one. I'm going to try and get Luke to try it because he is the poster boy for allergy-prone. Me? I still love mine.

It's a little odd. When I use it regularly, like every morning, I have noticed a serious decrease in stomach upset. One thing my allergist told me when I went in was that the upset stomach could be caused not by a food allergy, but by an airborn allergen that creates postnasal drip, which causes the upset stomach.

By flushing out the postnasal crap and allergens and all that, I've reduced the potential offender and have been noticing a difference. And the best part? I don't have to take another (expensive!) pill or icky nasal spray every morning.

This is, of course, just a theory. And, as a scientist, I know that correlation does not denote causation, but either way I'm still reaping the benefits.

water water everywhere

This morning I was standing sleepily in front of my bathroom sink brushing my teeth when I noticed the rug was a little damp.

My first thought: Pumpkin peed. I bent down to smell it, and it was not pee. Whoo! Small victory over the day.

My second thought: It is probably still wet from when it rained real hard and the ceiling leaked the other day. (don't even get me started)

So the rug went up on the shower rod and I went on with my morning.

Ten minutes later, I'm washing dishes and my pj pants are suddenly wet. I look down, and there is a puddle on the floor. I know I haven't had my coffee yet, but I didn't spill any water.

I go change, then look in my bathroom, remembering the wet rug. The entire floor is covered in water. A quick check under the sink reveals a nice layer of hot sudsy water as well. Dammit.

I move into the office where dad is sitting with his cute reading glasses. "Daadddyyyyyy. The floor is covered in water."

I hate to tell him this because after the hurricane there was damage to the roof and water pipes that was a pain in his ass, but what else am I supposed to do?

He comes in, looks under the sink and amidst the cleaning supplies and mountains of grocery bags goes, "You jammed too much crap under here and the joint came undone."

Oops.

He screwed it back on (after a small lecture) and I went to cleaning the water from the floors.

The plus side? My bathroom floors are really clean from the hot soapy water, and I have been meaning to clean out under the kitchen sink anyway.

Happy Monday Morning Ya'll.

whine. bitch. repeat.

Dude.
This sucks.

I've been feeling nauseous at some point every day during the last week. I'm pretty darn sure it's not gluten, so what the heck is going on?

Needless to say, pepto bismol pills have been my friend lately.
And today I have a terrible headache which is also contributing to the tummy ishyness.

Oh wait? What's this? I'm going with Chris to some Korean restaurant for his friend's birthday tonight? Horray for unfamiliar food on an upset stomach at a restaurant where I have no idea what I can eat.

Not that I'm bitching about that. I think it will be fun. And, worse case scenario, I can be "that girl" who orders steamed rice with plain steamed vegetables. Which happens to be one of my favorites anyway.

But man, it would be SO NICE to be normal.

funk

The last week and a half have not been fun. School has taken a huge shit of assignments on my desk and I've had to shovel them off, one by one. I've been in a bad mood, stressed, anxious, worried, and all of the above. It's been a little overwhelming. I still can't shake that cocktail of bad feelings, even though the majority of the list is scratched off.

Last week I had my first ever recurring dream that continued where it left off the night before. I've heard people talk about that happening but it's never happened to me. I don't remember the subject of the dream but it made for a restless sleep and an uneasy feeling the next morning. I didn't like it at all and don't care to repeat it.

I dunno. Maybe I'll wake up tomorrow and feel refreshed.

creatures

Now let's talk about something horrifying and disgusting.

I got some water on the floor and some if it went under this baker's rack I have in the corner. I moved the baker's rack and, in the corner, there was a huge pile of turds. Okay, maybe not a huge pile. More like a smattering. But still. TURDS. Mouse, maybe?

So we all know my next reaction. A call to dad. He comes in, looks at them and says, "American Cockroach." Not just a roach. He knows the kind. By looking at its turds. Ugh.

At this point some major skeeves kick in. Roaches??!! Pooping??!! In the place where I live??!!

I haven't seen any roaches. Believe me; if I had, this place would have been poisoned like crazy. So they're either new or stealthy. He said they just moved in, probably after the hurricane. And, judging by the poop size, they were BIG. *shudder* He put some poison out and told me not to worry.

Worry? About what? Giant roaches leaving poop piles in corners? Nooo, neverrr.

I have the major heebie jeebies now.

P.S. I did clean up the turd pile. With copious amounts of lysol and my fancy purple nitrile gloves Chris got for me to wear in my labs.

Nasty.

errrghhh

Mom: Can I use your digital camera to take pictures of this water damage for the insurance?

Me: Sure, it's in my desk drawer.

Mom: Ok, do you have to wind the film or does it advance automatically?

Me: *silence*

This is coming from the same lady that wondered why you could not flip a cd over and listen to the other side, as you could with a record. Ah, this is why we all love her. Never a dull moment.

I have writer's block. I have to write two scientific papers that are due next week, as well as a personal statement so a prof can write a letter of recommendation. Oh, can't forget about the prelabs, out-of-class experiments and chem exam next week. All this, after the week I just had? Damn Ike, I knew this would happen. I am rapidly burning out.

Frankish is back! He came home today and he's here until Tuesday, I think. I was trying to get all my schoolwork done before he came so we could chill, but that's totally not going to happen.

Looking forward to dinner at Scott & Dayna's tonight. I'm bringing apple crisp, which I can't WAIT to start baking.

I am trying really hard not to be bothered by certain things going on that I can't do anything about.

hump day thoughts

- I hope I poop today.

- I am feeling that workout from yesterday and it feels goooood. Might give it another go today. As soon as this taco baby goes away.

- That idea that I had? Yeah, it was absurd for a reason. Won't be taking that route. Back to square one...

- School is nutso. Got one professor to agree to write a rec letter but I haven't had the time to get all the paperwork together yet.

- Still no work. It's been several weeks and I'm kinda getting broke but they've had a lot of chaos over there from the storm so I don't blame them. Rolling several ideas around in my head about that. Contemplating adding in something retail but hate the thought of the hours. Me? Ambitious? More like grab every lazy moment I can. I am not Missy, here. LOL

- Frank flies in Friday for a weekend visit- raise the roof ya'll.

- It's officially October so that means I can get rid of my taped up phone! (I think-- I hope so!)