This is an addendum to an earlier post. After I posted, I thought of more :-)
22) I read magazines from the back to the front.
23) I am a sensitive person. And people are surprised by that. And that always surprises me.
24) I cannot dive. I never learned. It seems counterintuitive to jump into the water head first.
25) I only had 3 wisdom teeth, not 4. Now I have none :-)
26) This one could be considered a survival tip: I get very HANGRY (hungry + angry = Hangry) if I am not fed. If I look like I am about to rip your head off, feed me a cookie. In fact, if we spend a lot of time together, you should always have a cookie!
27) I am sarcastic.
28) I want to win the lottery. But I never buy a ticket.
29) I am teaching myself to play the mandolin, but it is a slow process. I am not sure the right side of my brain works :-) (If you aren't sure what I am talking about or you just wanna find out which side of your brain you use - try this site. I had 18 left brained answers and 0 right brained answers. Hmmmm)
30) I cannot sleep if the closet door is open. I don't know... it's a thing.
31) When I have had an alcoholic beverage, two things happen: 1) the honesty quotient goes way up and 2) the Southern accent gets stronger.
32) I am clumsy and usually have at least one bruise on me at all times.
33) My idea of a perfect vacation involves warm temperatures and sun (but me in the shade!), water nearby (pool or ocean or river - doesn't matter) and lots of stuff to read. It should also include sleeping in, coffee and dessert.
34) I don't notice other people. I am in my own head a lot and don't notice who is walking by or driving past. I don't notice when I am being "checked out". I don't even notice sometimes when people have started talking to me.
35) I am a complete introvert (Wanna find out what you are). I get exhausted talking to people and recharge by being alone.
36) . I love dark chocolate.
2/27/11
Awful Night
It was an awful night... well, maybe just the last half hour.
It started out great.
I went to a Kelly's house to celebrate her turning 29 (for the first time). It was a great bunch of ladies gabbing over desserts. Sidenote: All ladies know it is important to feed the sweet tooth and the soul at the same time...that way the calories don't count! We stayed for hours enjoying sweets which I was washing down with copious amounts of water (this factoid will become significant in a moment).
It wasn't until I had dropped my friend Kim back off at her frat house (that makes me laugh!), made it all the way to my apartment and began searching for my house keys that I realized... I took a coat to Kelly's house. That I don't have with me now. And, my house keys were in the pocket. Doh! At this point I also really needed to pee. I began desperately dialing while driving to the Safeway (grocery store)... the nearest place with a bathroom (that did not require my missing keys) and which was still open after midnight.
I called Kelly (the hostess) first. Cell phone off. I called Trina. She answered and was still at Kelly's, but my keys were not! The ladies who were there after me thought my coat belonged to someone else and Katherine had offered to return it so they sent it with her. I didn't have Katherine's number so Trina and Kelly found it. I hopped out of my car at a stop sign and rummaged in the back seat for the only spare pen I keep in the car. I called Katherine. Voicemail. Doh (again)! I leave a message. I am already at the Safeway so I figure I will solve at least one issue and find myself a bathroom. The store is open (until 1am). It is now about 12:30. However, the bathroom is locked after midnight.(Doh!) Then, things look up. Katherine calls me back. She confirms that she has my keys and gives me a house number and a street name so I can come pick them up.
Here's where the confusion begins. You need to know two things: 1) I thought Katherine lived in Philomath, And, 2) I use GPS to get everywhere (except from my house to work in the morning) because I find Oregon a very confusing place to drive. So, I put her address into GPS as a Philomath address. GPS says "Not found". Katherine calls me and gives me directions. Turn right on 35th St and turn past the school. Sounds good. So I begin to head for 35th Street. I just don't know yet I am in the wrong town.
While I am on the phone (illegal in Oregon, by the way), I look up and I am at 19th Street. I missed 35th. (Doh!) So, I make the next turn and circle the block so I can head back the way I came. When I get back to the correct street where I need to turn left, there is a sign "No left turn". So, I turn right and make it to the next light. I make a U-turn and begin looking for 35th Street again.
And this is when the blue lights appeared. Although there was NOT a sign saying you could NOT make a U-Turn, I am informed by handsome cop who has pulled me over that if I "do not have 500 feet of visual clearance, U-turns are not permitted". Who knows that?! Seriously?
He then proceeds to ask all the questions you would of someone driving like an idiot after midnight. What have I been doing this evening? Have I had anything to drink? I proceeded to give him the whole, unadulterated truth (even the part about having to pee so badly that my eyeballs are now floating). But, I do not cry. I refuse to cry to get out of a ticket. If he thinks I deserve a ticket, he should give me one. I am not sure he was buying my crazy story until he saw the GPS on the dash which says "not found" on a big black screen. Then his eyes darted to my list of phone numbers and street numbers hurriedly scribbled on the back of a paper bag. Finally, he listens to Katherine's voicemail. His response went something like "Knollbrook is not in Philomath, it's in Corvallis. That is why GPS wouldn't find it." Doh!
Handsome cop tells me to calm down, drive like I have some sense, and enjoy my night. He also informs me that I was guilty of committing "multiple infractions" but is nice enough to not even issue a warning. In that moment, I didn't so much care because I knew how to find Katherine and get the keys to my house, and more importantly, my bathroom. It is 1:25am now... and all is well.
Someday I will look back at this and laugh. Today is not that day.
It started out great.
I went to a Kelly's house to celebrate her turning 29 (for the first time). It was a great bunch of ladies gabbing over desserts. Sidenote: All ladies know it is important to feed the sweet tooth and the soul at the same time...that way the calories don't count! We stayed for hours enjoying sweets which I was washing down with copious amounts of water (this factoid will become significant in a moment).
It wasn't until I had dropped my friend Kim back off at her frat house (that makes me laugh!), made it all the way to my apartment and began searching for my house keys that I realized... I took a coat to Kelly's house. That I don't have with me now. And, my house keys were in the pocket. Doh! At this point I also really needed to pee. I began desperately dialing while driving to the Safeway (grocery store)... the nearest place with a bathroom (that did not require my missing keys) and which was still open after midnight.
I called Kelly (the hostess) first. Cell phone off. I called Trina. She answered and was still at Kelly's, but my keys were not! The ladies who were there after me thought my coat belonged to someone else and Katherine had offered to return it so they sent it with her. I didn't have Katherine's number so Trina and Kelly found it. I hopped out of my car at a stop sign and rummaged in the back seat for the only spare pen I keep in the car. I called Katherine. Voicemail. Doh (again)! I leave a message. I am already at the Safeway so I figure I will solve at least one issue and find myself a bathroom. The store is open (until 1am). It is now about 12:30. However, the bathroom is locked after midnight.(Doh!) Then, things look up. Katherine calls me back. She confirms that she has my keys and gives me a house number and a street name so I can come pick them up.
Here's where the confusion begins. You need to know two things: 1) I thought Katherine lived in Philomath, And, 2) I use GPS to get everywhere (except from my house to work in the morning) because I find Oregon a very confusing place to drive. So, I put her address into GPS as a Philomath address. GPS says "Not found". Katherine calls me and gives me directions. Turn right on 35th St and turn past the school. Sounds good. So I begin to head for 35th Street. I just don't know yet I am in the wrong town.
While I am on the phone (illegal in Oregon, by the way), I look up and I am at 19th Street. I missed 35th. (Doh!) So, I make the next turn and circle the block so I can head back the way I came. When I get back to the correct street where I need to turn left, there is a sign "No left turn". So, I turn right and make it to the next light. I make a U-turn and begin looking for 35th Street again.
And this is when the blue lights appeared. Although there was NOT a sign saying you could NOT make a U-Turn, I am informed by handsome cop who has pulled me over that if I "do not have 500 feet of visual clearance, U-turns are not permitted". Who knows that?! Seriously?
He then proceeds to ask all the questions you would of someone driving like an idiot after midnight. What have I been doing this evening? Have I had anything to drink? I proceeded to give him the whole, unadulterated truth (even the part about having to pee so badly that my eyeballs are now floating). But, I do not cry. I refuse to cry to get out of a ticket. If he thinks I deserve a ticket, he should give me one. I am not sure he was buying my crazy story until he saw the GPS on the dash which says "not found" on a big black screen. Then his eyes darted to my list of phone numbers and street numbers hurriedly scribbled on the back of a paper bag. Finally, he listens to Katherine's voicemail. His response went something like "Knollbrook is not in Philomath, it's in Corvallis. That is why GPS wouldn't find it." Doh!
Handsome cop tells me to calm down, drive like I have some sense, and enjoy my night. He also informs me that I was guilty of committing "multiple infractions" but is nice enough to not even issue a warning. In that moment, I didn't so much care because I knew how to find Katherine and get the keys to my house, and more importantly, my bathroom. It is 1:25am now... and all is well.
Someday I will look back at this and laugh. Today is not that day.
2/25/11
What a difference a week will make
There is snow on the ground (mostly on North slopes) here. This time next week I will be leaving a conference in Orlando, Florida to see the family in NC. I haven't seen them since New Year's Day and a visit is LONG overdue.
And this little one I have never seen at all since she just arrived last Thursday.
2/24/11
Snow in the Valley...again
The Willamette Valley got snow again this morning. Just a couple of inches but it has made everything pretty.
The view from my patio looking southeast:
The trees right outside my living room window:
Looking South:
If only I didn't have to go out in it! Today I just have to trek a few miles to the office and then across campus to cover class for a colleague (I hope the students show up!). I am also hoping this weather is gone before the weekend ... I have some running around to do to be ready for 10 days on the road. The good news is that it will be 50 degrees on Tuesday as my plane leaves Portland. Here's hoping for delay-free travel.
2/23/11
Happy National FFA Week
So, in honor of this week being National FFA Week, I was attempting to create a "Top 10 List" of my favorite FFA memories. And, wow was it harder than I thought! So, forget specific memories because there are just too many. I will go for big stuff instead.
10 Convention - National FFA Convention was an experience every time I went. But especially the first time. Seeing an entire session of Blue and Gold jackets and feeling the electric atmosphere is something I will never forget.
9 South Rowan FFA Chapter Meetings- And, man, did we put on some good ones. There were fashion shows and Ag Olympics and skits and food. Good times! And, I have photos!
8 Winning - I was a smart, non-athletic kid growing up so the only winning experiences I had involved spelling bees and class ribbons. FFA was the first time I was able to truly "win" in a competitive setting.
7 Traveling - First time to DC. First time on a plane. First time out of the country. First time crossing the Mississippi River. The list goes on and on.
6 Friends - I found a place I belonged through FFA and found friends I still treasure.
5 Family - Some of those friends developed into my "family" - especially when I went off to college.
4 Exposure to Agriculture - Growing up in a housing development in a "bedroom community" of Charlotte, my ag class was my only connection to agriculture. Before getting involved, I had never planted anything or seen livestock (other than at the fair). I had never been on a commercial farm. Afterwards, I worked in commercial greenhouse operations and even had a summer job on a drive-thru ranch in Mooresville. I am thankful every day for American Agriculture.
3 White Lake, NC - Whether as a rec camper using the bathhouse (seriously just got chills thinking about that place. ewww), as a leadership camper, or as a camp staffer (2 summers, baby!). Or just as an advisor sitting in a bouncy chair by the water.. .this place is filled with priceless memories.
2 Getting Elected to State FFA Office - tears. joy. and then the realization that the work wasn't over, it was just beginning. What a year!
1 Finding A Career- I only took an ag class and became an FFA member in 1994 because Mr. Traywick kicked me out of band on the first day of high school. Seriously! I think it had something to do with sharing a last name with an older sister who could strike fear into even the oddest band director. They put me in 4th period "Intro to Ag" and the rest is history. I found leadership experience which lead to scholarships for college which lead to teaching high school ag and being an FFA advisor myself. And, now it has lead to a PhD and the chance to teach the next generation of teachers who can give opportunities to the next "band reject" who walks through their door.
10 Convention - National FFA Convention was an experience every time I went. But especially the first time. Seeing an entire session of Blue and Gold jackets and feeling the electric atmosphere is something I will never forget.
9 South Rowan FFA Chapter Meetings- And, man, did we put on some good ones. There were fashion shows and Ag Olympics and skits and food. Good times! And, I have photos!
8 Winning - I was a smart, non-athletic kid growing up so the only winning experiences I had involved spelling bees and class ribbons. FFA was the first time I was able to truly "win" in a competitive setting.
7 Traveling - First time to DC. First time on a plane. First time out of the country. First time crossing the Mississippi River. The list goes on and on.
6 Friends - I found a place I belonged through FFA and found friends I still treasure.
5 Family - Some of those friends developed into my "family" - especially when I went off to college.
4 Exposure to Agriculture - Growing up in a housing development in a "bedroom community" of Charlotte, my ag class was my only connection to agriculture. Before getting involved, I had never planted anything or seen livestock (other than at the fair). I had never been on a commercial farm. Afterwards, I worked in commercial greenhouse operations and even had a summer job on a drive-thru ranch in Mooresville. I am thankful every day for American Agriculture.
3 White Lake, NC - Whether as a rec camper using the bathhouse (seriously just got chills thinking about that place. ewww), as a leadership camper, or as a camp staffer (2 summers, baby!). Or just as an advisor sitting in a bouncy chair by the water.. .this place is filled with priceless memories.
2 Getting Elected to State FFA Office - tears. joy. and then the realization that the work wasn't over, it was just beginning. What a year!
1 Finding A Career- I only took an ag class and became an FFA member in 1994 because Mr. Traywick kicked me out of band on the first day of high school. Seriously! I think it had something to do with sharing a last name with an older sister who could strike fear into even the oddest band director. They put me in 4th period "Intro to Ag" and the rest is history. I found leadership experience which lead to scholarships for college which lead to teaching high school ag and being an FFA advisor myself. And, now it has lead to a PhD and the chance to teach the next generation of teachers who can give opportunities to the next "band reject" who walks through their door.
Happy National FFA Week!
Wordless Wednesdays
The Lambert girls on 2/19, from left to right: Kinsley (3 days), Katie (~14 months), and Emily (~34 months).
2/22/11
What's My Elevation?
It is looking like snow in the Valley. This is the upcoming forecast:
The interesting part for me is that I have never needed to know my elevation before. See I am from the Piedmont of North Carolina. If we got snow, we all got snow. Then I moved to Missouri where I went to class in shorts and 70 degree weather and, by the time I got out of class, it was 30 degrees and snowing! (And, that seriously happened!) When it snowed, we all got snow.
I have never lived anywhere that the snow forecast included elevations. Looking at the forecast, you would think I was headed for some weather. But, tonight it is going to snow at your house... IF you house is 1000ft above sea level. Tomorrow it is going to snow IF you are 500ft or more above sea level. My house is around 270ft in elevation (Thank you GPS!) so I don't have to worry about the snow, until tomorrow night when all of the Valley should be white. It snowed last week, but only at the higher elevations. This is the way I like it. It made for some scenic views of snow-capped Cascades...while not having to drive in the stuff myself.
**Editor's Note: This post went up last night and this morning there IS snow on the ground at my house. Doh!. I guess Oregon weathermen are as accurate as NC and MO weathermen.
Here's counting down to next week's Orlando trip followed by some time with the family in North Carolina.
About Me
Random thoughts that you may already know... or not. Well, now you do.
1) I do an online jigsaw puzzle pretty much everyday.
2)
3) I bite my nails and cuticles. It's an awful habit. I try quitting. Hasn't happened yet.
4) The longest I have lived in the same place (since I left for college) is 2.5 years. That is particularly odd considering my parents have not moved since 1977. So, the urge to roam is definitely not genetic.
5) I keep books I have read even though I rarely re-read any of them. I just can't part with books.
6) I completed my undergrad degree on a Coca-Cola scholarship so I am now Coke loyal. I go to a restaurant and order Coke and they say "Pepsi okay?" and the answer is "Nope... Bring me Water."
7) I still remember the phone number my parents had before their current number... we changed it in 3rd grade.I also still remember my 6th grade locker combination.
8) I hate talking on the phone - mostly because I am bad at it and I don't like to do things I am bad at doing.
9) I have always thought I would die young. In fact, I never thought I would see 30.
10) I was saved and baptized at 7 years old - yet I still feel like a novice in my faith. I learn something from every Bible study.
11) I still have a hard time figuring out why bad things happen to good people.
12) I have a thing for waterfalls.
13) I am not jealous of my friends who have kids. I am jealous of my friends' kids.. who get to hang out with my old friends.
14) A PhD is not a measure of intelligence... it is a measure of persistence.
15) I am a "change junkie". If things don't stay challenging, I hunt something new (see #4).
16) I am a mediocre athlete and have always been jealous that my sister got all of that talent.
17) I fight procrastination. It's an ongoing battle.
18) I LOVE to sleep in. I have decided I would rather develop incontinence than insomnia as I get older.
19) I am a homebody. I will almost always choose to stay in rather than go out.
20) I have been to 33 US states, plus Canada, Mexico, Germany, Austria, and the Czech Republic.
21) Favorite food is anything that comes with cheese OR peanut butter... except vegetables! Ewww.
2/20/11
A Hat Trick
I saw the Portland Winterhawks beat the Chilliwack Bruins on February 19th at Memorial Coliseum with my Grad and Career friends. For those of you not in the know, I am talking minor league hockey.
I like hockey. If you have only ever watched it on TV, you are probably not a fan. I think it is more fun in person than on TV and, once most people have seen it in person, they are fans. In fact, on the night I went I got to see Niederreiter pull off the hat trick. (If you look closely you can see the ref cleaning hats off the ice in this pic!)
It was complete with all the fun gimmicky/promotional things they do to get people to come to minor league events.
For one, it was "Pink the Rink" night, for breast cancer awareness. There were a number of components to this with the most obvious being that the ice was pink and there were pink ribbons on the shoulders of the team's jerseys. You couldn't really tell the ice was pink until the Zamboni came out.
There was a 7and 8 year old match during the first interval. It was entertaining. They play hockey like I played soccer at that age... all bunched up. The match was refereed by the Winterhawk mascot (Tom-A-Hawk -hehehe).
Then there were the Rosebuds; shiny girls with pompoms. I am not sure if they were technically considered a dance team or cheerleaders, but I found it completely random. Who wants to put on special non-slip shoes to dance on ice while scantily clad? It just seems cold.
I think the most shocking part for me (while researching the team) was that the oldest player on the roster was born in 1990. Dag. I am going to take a nap now.
It was complete with all the fun gimmicky/promotional things they do to get people to come to minor league events.
For one, it was "Pink the Rink" night, for breast cancer awareness. There were a number of components to this with the most obvious being that the ice was pink and there were pink ribbons on the shoulders of the team's jerseys. You couldn't really tell the ice was pink until the Zamboni came out.
There was a 7and 8 year old match during the first interval. It was entertaining. They play hockey like I played soccer at that age... all bunched up. The match was refereed by the Winterhawk mascot (Tom-A-Hawk -hehehe).
Then there were the Rosebuds; shiny girls with pompoms. I am not sure if they were technically considered a dance team or cheerleaders, but I found it completely random. Who wants to put on special non-slip shoes to dance on ice while scantily clad? It just seems cold.
I think the most shocking part for me (while researching the team) was that the oldest player on the roster was born in 1990. Dag. I am going to take a nap now.
A Little Slice of American Pie
I was driving through Corvallis yesterday when Don McLean's American Pie came on the radio. I love this song. I know this song is older than I am (released in 1971), yet it is one of those songs that speaks to my childhood. My dad liked this song. And, we are talking about the days before everyone had their favorites downloaded to mp3 players, loaded into playlists, and at the ready when the mood struck. We would just be surprised that it shuffled on the car radio. And, then you had to wait and see if it was the full 7 minute version or the more "radio friendly" 3 verse version. Pure bliss when you would hear those elusive verses.
And, of course, it always conjures up the trip to the White Lake FFA Center where we played it (on a cassette tape) over and over and over and over. Those were good times!
Think you know all the words to the full length version: Play the game here and test your lyrical knowledge.
Or just enjoy the tune (the long version!):
And, of course, it always conjures up the trip to the White Lake FFA Center where we played it (on a cassette tape) over and over and over and over. Those were good times!
Think you know all the words to the full length version: Play the game here and test your lyrical knowledge.
Or just enjoy the tune (the long version!):
2/18/11
Bluegrass Goes Pop
I love bluegrass music. Seriously, a third of the of my mp3 player is Sara Watkins, Mountain Heart, Cherryholmes, The Del McCoury Band, The Lonesome River Band, IIIrd Time Out, Nickel Creek, Dan Tyminski, and, of course, Alison Krauss. I even have some bluegrass versions of other artists' catalogs (i.e. "Pickin' on John Mayer" or "Pickin' on Coldplay").
The other 2/3rds of my mp3 player is pretty eclectic: Taylor Swift, Johnny Cash, Avett Brothers, Frank Sinatra, Cat Stevens, Brooke Fraser, Cross Canadian Ragweed, Metallica, Eminem, Janis Joplin, Page CXVI, Simon and Garfunkel, Better Than Ezra, Norah Jones and about 10,000 other songs.
For those of you who aren't bluegrass fans, I thought perhaps you would enjoy some bluegrass covers of popular songs. Here are two I highly enjoyed:
The Cleverlys covering the Black Eyed Peas "I Got A Feelin'"
Nickel Creek covering Britney Spears' "Toxic"
(I saw Nickel Creek do this cover live in Chapel Hill back in 2005.It was my second favorite part of the show. My favorite was their cover of "Short People".)
2/17/11
And, I'm done....
They say hindsight is 20/20. There is a lot of truth in that. Looking back I can see all of the attempts God has made at teaching me to be patient. To slow down. To enjoy life... rather than conquer it.
I can also see that I am pretty hard headed. I continue to go all-out, all the time. Now, with multiple back surgeries behind me, it is like God has installed his own little stress barometer. It is like a turkey timer for my life. When I am paying too much attention to work/others and not enough to my own life, it pops. Well, it went off this morning. That's how I know I am done.
I wake up with intense pain in my butt (medically, I believe the term is sciatica, but it just feel like a sharp shooting pain in the butt) and no feeling in my right leg. Yup, it is as terrifying as it sounds! My back isn't injured (anymore than it already was) I don't think. It's just angry with me. That is my little alarm, installed by doctors, but controlled by God.
It means I have let my stress level get too high. (And, it has been a stressful, emotional week.) The only "cure" is to take it easy. That is why I spent until 11am today in bed and the rest of the day on the living room floor. (I have learned that while I like my couch when my back is happy, it is not so great when my back is angry). The floor was my friend today and might be tomorrow at work as well.
My back seems some better by this evening and my foot is full of that "pins and needles" feeling you get when it wakes up after going to sleep. I still won't be running a marathon tomorrow (or ever, for that matter). However, my noon water aerobics does sound particularly appealing.
I can also see that I am pretty hard headed. I continue to go all-out, all the time. Now, with multiple back surgeries behind me, it is like God has installed his own little stress barometer. It is like a turkey timer for my life. When I am paying too much attention to work/others and not enough to my own life, it pops. Well, it went off this morning. That's how I know I am done.I wake up with intense pain in my butt (medically, I believe the term is sciatica, but it just feel like a sharp shooting pain in the butt) and no feeling in my right leg. Yup, it is as terrifying as it sounds! My back isn't injured (anymore than it already was) I don't think. It's just angry with me. That is my little alarm, installed by doctors, but controlled by God.
It means I have let my stress level get too high. (And, it has been a stressful, emotional week.) The only "cure" is to take it easy. That is why I spent until 11am today in bed and the rest of the day on the living room floor. (I have learned that while I like my couch when my back is happy, it is not so great when my back is angry). The floor was my friend today and might be tomorrow at work as well.
My back seems some better by this evening and my foot is full of that "pins and needles" feeling you get when it wakes up after going to sleep. I still won't be running a marathon tomorrow (or ever, for that matter). However, my noon water aerobics does sound particularly appealing.
Kinsley Marie Lambert
Welcome to the world, Kinsley Marie Lambert.
Here are the stats: 6 lbs 15 oz
20 inches long
arrival 1:55pm Eastern Time
February 17, 2011
I will get to meet her in person in 14 days. Until then, yea for Facebook and text messaging and email!
Disclaimer: I think all newborns look like slimy space aliens the same. However, as the proud aunt, I am required by law to post a pic. Hopefully soon they will shine her up with a nice bath and a cute outfit so I can post a picture you can "oooh" and "ahhhh" over.
2/16/11
2/14/11
I Have My Moments!
I know I appear to have it together most of the time. Here's a secret: I have my moments when it all falls apart. So here's the story: I park in a fairly tight parking space... my assigned parking space is between a full-sized pick-up truck and a pole (for the covered parking).
Coming home from work today, I misjudged while parking. That is the only way to explain it: misjudged. I wasn't distracted by the radio or my phone. I was just parking. I was watching what I was doing. And, then I heard it: SCRAPE. Ugh. I knew immediately what I had done yet I sat in the car going "NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO!" Not my beautiful Murano! It has only been mine for 7 months (this week).
So, I did what I do in these situations: I called my mom. She was full of perspective like "it happens to the best of us" and "don't be so hard on yourself". I wasn't mad or hurt. Just annoyed with myself. She also reminded me that she backed into my dad's car in the driveway. I guess it could be genetic?!?
Now comes the fun or figuring out whether to file an insurance claim or just handle the cost of repairs myself.
While we are on the topic of me doing dumb things... I was told I needed to blog the results of my little tumble on campus last Tuesday afternoon. It made for a number of nice, colorful bruises - like this one. No worries. They have already started to heal.
Side note, really difficult to take a picture of your own arm with a camera phone :-)
Coming home from work today, I misjudged while parking. That is the only way to explain it: misjudged. I wasn't distracted by the radio or my phone. I was just parking. I was watching what I was doing. And, then I heard it: SCRAPE. Ugh. I knew immediately what I had done yet I sat in the car going "NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO!" Not my beautiful Murano! It has only been mine for 7 months (this week).
So, I did what I do in these situations: I called my mom. She was full of perspective like "it happens to the best of us" and "don't be so hard on yourself". I wasn't mad or hurt. Just annoyed with myself. She also reminded me that she backed into my dad's car in the driveway. I guess it could be genetic?!?
Now comes the fun or figuring out whether to file an insurance claim or just handle the cost of repairs myself.
While we are on the topic of me doing dumb things... I was told I needed to blog the results of my little tumble on campus last Tuesday afternoon. It made for a number of nice, colorful bruises - like this one. No worries. They have already started to heal.
Side note, really difficult to take a picture of your own arm with a camera phone :-)
Another Stupid Grin
Back in November, I had a stupid smile on my face when flowers showed up at my office just because. And today, these arrived. What can I say: The boy makes me smile :-)
Now, if only he wasn't 3,000 miles away. Happy Valentine's Day, y'all.
Now, if only he wasn't 3,000 miles away. Happy Valentine's Day, y'all.
In honor of Valentine's Day
Despite the fact that I think this is a bogus, commercialized holiday and that it is a sad state of affairs when people need a date on a calendar to let them know they should show love to the ones around them, I thought I would jump on board and share the song in my heart.... My iTunes Genius mix knew to play it today. It is one of my favorites.
2/13/11
Thought I would share
Tomorrow is Valentine's Day. Yippie (said sarcastically). Thought I would share a video that was posted on one of my favorite blogs today: PostSecret
(The author of PostSecret (Frank Warren) is going to be speaking on OSU's campus Wednesday night, but I waited too late to try and get tickets.(Sad face))
Current Feeling: like going to church. I missed Pastor Pete last week and the whole week felt off.
Currently Celebrating: A loss at my WeightWatchers Weigh in yesterday. I woulda swore I gained.
Current Anticipating: Sunday Lunch Out with the NW Hills Grad & Career Group
Currently Reading: Redeeming Love (a retold version of the "love story" between Hosea and Gomer. So far, it's great.)
Currently Watching: Valentine's Day on DVR... I missed it this time last year because of all the dissertating fun so HBO was kind enough to catch me up.
(The author of PostSecret (Frank Warren) is going to be speaking on OSU's campus Wednesday night, but I waited too late to try and get tickets.(Sad face))
Current Feeling: like going to church. I missed Pastor Pete last week and the whole week felt off.
Currently Celebrating: A loss at my WeightWatchers Weigh in yesterday. I woulda swore I gained.
Current Anticipating: Sunday Lunch Out with the NW Hills Grad & Career Group
Currently Reading: Redeeming Love (a retold version of the "love story" between Hosea and Gomer. So far, it's great.)
Currently Watching: Valentine's Day on DVR... I missed it this time last year because of all the dissertating fun so HBO was kind enough to catch me up.
2/10/11
Molly Dog
My Mollydog was MY first real pet. I had pets as a kid, but she was the first pet that was all mine.
I had graduated college and taken a teaching job in coastal North Carolina so I got myself a Carteret County Beagle. She was perfect. She was 2 at the time. When I went to pick her up, she was in a set of 3 cages with one of her brothers on either side. The brotherdog on the left was barking his head off. He was not my dog because I don't do loud. The brotherdog on the right was running as hard as he could from the back of the cage and crashing into the door, then shaking it off, running to the back and doing it all over again. Not my dog because I don't do dumb. Mollydog sat right in the middle, looking at both of them like they were stupid. Quiet. Calm. Judgmental. Annoyed. That was my dog! She was a real scaredy dog. Seriously....it was a good month before she would come out from behind the sofa when I was standing/ walking. Her food only disappeared while I was sleeping. It got better the longer I had her, but she was always a giant chicken dog. It is part of what made Mollydog Molly.
At the time I got Mollydog, I lived on a dead end road in Newport, NC and I planned to teach high school for 30 years. My plans changed and I went back to NCSU to get a master's degree. I lived in an apartment with two other people. Mollydog had to get used to apartment living and I had to get used to leash walking. I was on assistantship with another part time job so she didn't get as much attention. I took a teaching job a year later and Molly came with me to Greensboro. I bought a townhouse and Molly had to learn to navigate steps... lots of steps. She loved the school greenhouses on Saturdays and the fact that she got to go on car rides with me that didn't end at the vet's office. They were good times. Not the way I pictured her doggy life when I got her, but she adapted to whatever was going on in my life.
I moved again to Missouri. She met all of my Missouri friends really quickly because I had back surgery. She got to live with Pete and Zoey Smith for a while. In fact, a lot of my Missouri friends had a chance to sit Molly when I made trips home (this photo was taken when the Lawver clan was watching Molly.. the crown was a Grace addition!). Mollydog was a trooper through it all....and came with to live in a house with my multiple roommates (and one crazy cat she never really made friends with). There is nothing like the silent judgment of a 10 year old Beagle to make you question the logic of an 11pm walk in sub zero Missouri temperatures. Sometimes Mollydog was the only one who understood how crappy and lonely grad school could be. And sometimes Mollydog was the only one within 900 miles who wanted to celebrate my grad school successes.
Summer of 2009 a vet visit revealed Mollydog was in congestive heart failure. She was easily out of breath and lethargic and so we put her on a couple pills a day and she seemed much better. We made one last car rainy trip home to NC together for a long Christmas 2009 break (with Mollydog jumping every time the windshield wipers moved). It was great! She hung out in the backyard and got long rubs from my dad. He loved Mollydog more than I did.... which is saying a lot! He knew it was most likely the end, too, so Mollydog got spoiled even more than usual...a new bed and forget table scraps - dad was "accidentally" dropping whole pieces of meat off the grill.
Early February of last year I was babysitting for one of my professors when Mollydog let me know it was time for her to go. She stopped eating (which was a huge red flag for my fearless eater) and she didn't want to go for walks. She just laid on her bed and looked at me with big sad eyes. We went to the vet and I said goodbye. I couldn't tell the girls I was babysitting (because even if they wouldn't fall apart, I would) so I told them Mollydog had to stay at the vet (which was true) and I loaded up all of her things (bowl, bed, leash, food, etc.) for donating to the Mid-Missouri animal shelter and my friend took care of the donating for me. I just couldn't do it.
It was a Godsend that I was babysitting at my professor's house because that meant I wasn't sleeping in my own bed for those first few nights. You see - Mollydog could be quiet as a church mouse during the day. She didn't bark (maybe 3 times in the 10 years she was around). You hardly knew she was around except that she followed you from room to room so she could be wherever you were. That is, until she went to sleep and then she snored like a freight train. I used to hate it. She slept under my bed. I would call her name to wake her up and then try to race her back to sleep. But, when she was gone, I suddenly missed the snoring.
Honestly, while sleeping without my Mollydog was difficult, the hardest part of whole ordeal was calling my dad to tell him Mollydog was gone. We cried sad tears together and recounted all of the qualities that made Mollydog so great and remembered our favorite Mollydog stories. I couldn't leave her behind in Missouri so I had her cremated and when I went home this summer, my dad and I buried her ashes under the crape myrtle in my parents back yard.
The perfect resting place for the most perfect dog I will ever own.
I had graduated college and taken a teaching job in coastal North Carolina so I got myself a Carteret County Beagle. She was perfect. She was 2 at the time. When I went to pick her up, she was in a set of 3 cages with one of her brothers on either side. The brotherdog on the left was barking his head off. He was not my dog because I don't do loud. The brotherdog on the right was running as hard as he could from the back of the cage and crashing into the door, then shaking it off, running to the back and doing it all over again. Not my dog because I don't do dumb. Mollydog sat right in the middle, looking at both of them like they were stupid. Quiet. Calm. Judgmental. Annoyed. That was my dog! She was a real scaredy dog. Seriously....it was a good month before she would come out from behind the sofa when I was standing/ walking. Her food only disappeared while I was sleeping. It got better the longer I had her, but she was always a giant chicken dog. It is part of what made Mollydog Molly.
At the time I got Mollydog, I lived on a dead end road in Newport, NC and I planned to teach high school for 30 years. My plans changed and I went back to NCSU to get a master's degree. I lived in an apartment with two other people. Mollydog had to get used to apartment living and I had to get used to leash walking. I was on assistantship with another part time job so she didn't get as much attention. I took a teaching job a year later and Molly came with me to Greensboro. I bought a townhouse and Molly had to learn to navigate steps... lots of steps. She loved the school greenhouses on Saturdays and the fact that she got to go on car rides with me that didn't end at the vet's office. They were good times. Not the way I pictured her doggy life when I got her, but she adapted to whatever was going on in my life.
Summer of 2009 a vet visit revealed Mollydog was in congestive heart failure. She was easily out of breath and lethargic and so we put her on a couple pills a day and she seemed much better. We made one last car rainy trip home to NC together for a long Christmas 2009 break (with Mollydog jumping every time the windshield wipers moved). It was great! She hung out in the backyard and got long rubs from my dad. He loved Mollydog more than I did.... which is saying a lot! He knew it was most likely the end, too, so Mollydog got spoiled even more than usual...a new bed and forget table scraps - dad was "accidentally" dropping whole pieces of meat off the grill.
Early February of last year I was babysitting for one of my professors when Mollydog let me know it was time for her to go. She stopped eating (which was a huge red flag for my fearless eater) and she didn't want to go for walks. She just laid on her bed and looked at me with big sad eyes. We went to the vet and I said goodbye. I couldn't tell the girls I was babysitting (because even if they wouldn't fall apart, I would) so I told them Mollydog had to stay at the vet (which was true) and I loaded up all of her things (bowl, bed, leash, food, etc.) for donating to the Mid-Missouri animal shelter and my friend took care of the donating for me. I just couldn't do it.
It was a Godsend that I was babysitting at my professor's house because that meant I wasn't sleeping in my own bed for those first few nights. You see - Mollydog could be quiet as a church mouse during the day. She didn't bark (maybe 3 times in the 10 years she was around). You hardly knew she was around except that she followed you from room to room so she could be wherever you were. That is, until she went to sleep and then she snored like a freight train. I used to hate it. She slept under my bed. I would call her name to wake her up and then try to race her back to sleep. But, when she was gone, I suddenly missed the snoring.
Honestly, while sleeping without my Mollydog was difficult, the hardest part of whole ordeal was calling my dad to tell him Mollydog was gone. We cried sad tears together and recounted all of the qualities that made Mollydog so great and remembered our favorite Mollydog stories. I couldn't leave her behind in Missouri so I had her cremated and when I went home this summer, my dad and I buried her ashes under the crape myrtle in my parents back yard.
The perfect resting place for the most perfect dog I will ever own.
2/9/11
2/8/11
Currently
1). I am currently reeling from reading "Room" by Emma Donoghue. Wow! I am serious when I say it is the most intense story I think I have ever read. I started it Saturday night and read until I couldn't keep my eyes open. I finished it around midnight last night. And... whoa!
2) I am currently attached to my new Merrell trail shoes bought during the Woodburn Outlet run with Betsy on Sunday afternoon. They are FABULOUS!
3) I am currently having a ball with the cow racing game on Wii Play. (I like the fishing and shooting games, too!)
4) I am currently delighting in Sonic Cherry Slushes... I got one yesterday while down around Medford, OR, for a student teacher visit. I didn't realize how much I have missed them. I had some flashbacks to Dr. Torres' 9410 class.
5) I am currently anticipating Sunday Lunch Out at Qdoba with my grad career group. 3 words: Three cheese nachos!
6) I am currently indulging in Harry and David sweets (Again, outlet store!):
- Dark Chocolate Covered Raisins (I can feel my sister cringing from here.. she hates both!)
- Dark Chocolate Moose Munch
- Peanut Butter Mondo Malt Balls (and some Cookie and Cream Mondo Malt balls because they were on sale in pairs).
Note: These will take me a while to eat because (unlike savory/salty foods) I can eat just one sweet thing per day. I have had some Andes Mints and Dark Chocolate squares in the fridge since December... slowly savoring. A bag of chips and salsa doesn't make it through the week.
7) I am currently amused by the use of Northwestern architecture on Wal-Mart.
And, on a non-photo point: I am currently worried I might have really hurt myself today. I tripped over the entryway going in to Milam Hall. I hit my arm across the stairs and my leg took a beating... Seriously!?! Four hours later I have a raging bruise on my arm, a really sore hip, a calf/shin that I can't touch without shooting pain, and a back that is getting angrier and angrier. Ugh! I think I am taking some pain killers and heading to bed early tonight. This does not bode well for me getting old! :-)
2/6/11
Blogs that have me blogging
I love reading people who have more talent than me at this blogging gig.... I thought I would pass along a few of my NEW favorite bloggers by picking just one post.
I recently blogged about being an adult... now someone else blogging about adulthood... this one almost made me pee my pants.
The guy who started PostSecret is coming to OSU's campus on the 16th. I desperately want to go hear him speak.
And a new blog I am following where the author also has a bit of a love affair with the Kindle. Me, too!
And I love that the blogs on that site end like this (so I am going to try it):
Currently Feeling: Somewhat creative
Currently Anticipating: A shopping trip with Betsy this afternoon... instead of the Superbowl?!?
Currently Watching: EVERYTHING on DVR... (who watches live TV anymore?) but especially Sex and the City reruns on E!
I recently blogged about being an adult... now someone else blogging about adulthood... this one almost made me pee my pants.
The guy who started PostSecret is coming to OSU's campus on the 16th. I desperately want to go hear him speak.
And a new blog I am following where the author also has a bit of a love affair with the Kindle. Me, too!
And I love that the blogs on that site end like this (so I am going to try it):
Currently Feeling: Somewhat creative
Currently Anticipating: A shopping trip with Betsy this afternoon... instead of the Superbowl?!?
Currently Watching: EVERYTHING on DVR... (who watches live TV anymore?) but especially Sex and the City reruns on E!
2/5/11
New craft project
I know I just posted about my last crafting project a few weeks ago, but I actually finished it in October and have been needing something new for my creative energy.So, today I went to Jo-Ann's and got myself some fabric to start a little sewing project
I got fabric to make curtains (and a blackout lining so I can sleep in on the weekends!), pillows, and runners for those antique dressers.
My favorite purchase of the day (because it represents the least work and the most immediate reward) was a new box for all my sewing items. Isn't it gorgeous? It has a place for pins/needles and bobbins and scissors and thread. It will make crafting a much prettier experience.
It took me a long time to decide to make this purchase because I already had something that was working... well, just okay. It was an old tool box. Seriously, the handle says popular mechanics! Not the prettiest thing. Don't Worry: It has been "repurposed" for a new task more suiting of its plastic, waterproof (and ugly) aesthetic.
I got started right away with cutting. The first output was the smallest of the projects.. .an accent pillow. Cute!
More "A Million Miles..."
I had tabbed and tagged so many thoughts (for their beautiful phrasing or the thoughts they provoked) while reading Miller's "A Million Miles in a Thousand Years." I feel like I should share a few more. So here goes:
He shares a poem by W. H. Auden which a friend read at a funeral for his beloved wife... I love these words:
"[She] was my North, my South, my East and West
My working week and my Sunday rest,
My noon, my midnight, my talk my song:
I thought that love would last forever: I was wrong."
There is a passage on page 205 when he talks about interviewing Susan Isaacs (who wrote Angry Conversations with God) when he asks her whether she believes there is one true love for every person. Her answer is interesting. Miller paraphrases her response and says "She said he married a guy and he was just a guy. He wasn't going to make all of her problems go away, because he was just a guy. And that freed her to really love him as a guy, not as an ultimate problem solver. And because her husband believed she was just a girl, he was free to really love her, too. Neither needed the other to make everything okay. They were simply content to have good company through life's conflicts."
There is a story of Miller's journey to Machu Picchu. They stop at a small farming village along the way and there is a trail along the river that will get you to Machu Picchu in about six hours. However, the route they are taking is the Inca Trail... a journey of about 4 days and the route that must be taken on a pilgrimage. So, one of the people in the group asks... why would people take the longer route? and the guide answers "Because the emperor knew....the more painful the journey to Machu Picchu, the more the traveler would appreciate the city once he got there."
Finally, there is a passage where Miller is talking to his friend Marcos - a Portland art student. He had spent the year taking a photograph of himself every day and said that though the journey he learned that people are made to change and it is impossible to be stagnant. "People get stuck thinking they are one kind of person, but they aren't.... The human body recreates itself every six months. Nearly every cell of hair and skin and bone dies and another is directed to its former place. You are not who you were..."
He shares a poem by W. H. Auden which a friend read at a funeral for his beloved wife... I love these words:
"[She] was my North, my South, my East and West
My working week and my Sunday rest,
My noon, my midnight, my talk my song:
I thought that love would last forever: I was wrong."
There is a passage on page 205 when he talks about interviewing Susan Isaacs (who wrote Angry Conversations with God) when he asks her whether she believes there is one true love for every person. Her answer is interesting. Miller paraphrases her response and says "She said he married a guy and he was just a guy. He wasn't going to make all of her problems go away, because he was just a guy. And that freed her to really love him as a guy, not as an ultimate problem solver. And because her husband believed she was just a girl, he was free to really love her, too. Neither needed the other to make everything okay. They were simply content to have good company through life's conflicts."
There is a story of Miller's journey to Machu Picchu. They stop at a small farming village along the way and there is a trail along the river that will get you to Machu Picchu in about six hours. However, the route they are taking is the Inca Trail... a journey of about 4 days and the route that must be taken on a pilgrimage. So, one of the people in the group asks... why would people take the longer route? and the guide answers "Because the emperor knew....the more painful the journey to Machu Picchu, the more the traveler would appreciate the city once he got there."
Finally, there is a passage where Miller is talking to his friend Marcos - a Portland art student. He had spent the year taking a photograph of himself every day and said that though the journey he learned that people are made to change and it is impossible to be stagnant. "People get stuck thinking they are one kind of person, but they aren't.... The human body recreates itself every six months. Nearly every cell of hair and skin and bone dies and another is directed to its former place. You are not who you were..."
2/4/11
I created....
I created a new header for the blog page... check it out. If you are using Google Reader, you are going to have to actually go to http://onthewrongcoast.blogspot.com to see my new header. I love it!
How I am filling my "free time"
Santa got me a Wii and a Kindle for Christmas... it's what you do when local friendships are still a work in progress and deep friendships live a Skype-call (or 2000 miles) away. Oh and family is 3000 miles away. In order to not work ALL the time, I need a fun distraction. Wii and Kindle are that distraction. I play MarioKart until my thumb hurts from using the 2button as the gas pedal and Wii fit until I am sweating up a storm. I have actually had a friend over to play the Wii... my first real apartment visitor. I have also read a lot in the last month:
My current "To read" list (also known as the giant pile of books on my desk that I need to read before I buy anything else on the Kindle....)
The Girl Who Played with Fire AND The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets Nest Steig Larsson (I had read the first one before fall term began.)
A Million Miles in 1000 Years by Donald Miller (for book club)
Freedom: A Novel by Jonathan Franzen
My current "To read" list (also known as the giant pile of books on my desk that I need to read before I buy anything else on the Kindle....)
Persuasion by Jane Austen (the next book club book)
Blue Like Jazz (because I don't want to be the only one in my book club not to have read it)
UnChristian
Redeeming Love
Introverts in the Church
Room
Pride and Prejudice
I want to read at least one work by Mary Alice Monroe...maybe more if I like her style. This author came as a recommendation of someone in my water aerobics class. The work is set in the South. I think I am going to like it.
Leadership: Theory and Practice (It's the required text for the course I am teaching spring term..I should probably read it, too.
2/3/11
I love it...
I just love this picture of my niece and had to share.... what a face!
And it seems fitting that the little sister gets some face time, too!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)