Three Years, Three Days

This Monday was Jared and my 3 year anniversary. We didn't do much for the actual day. Jared came home with a bouquet of daisies. We went to Java and ate at the dinner buffet. Then, I passed out. (I rolled my ankle over the weekend and was totally wiped out from walking around at work. That's actually why I'm updating in the middle of the day today. I needed a day off to myself.)

This year was our first year of living together as well as our first year out of school. We worked full-time jobs for the first six-months working opposite shifts Monday through Friday. I was sick for a number of months and out of work for a number more. Jared continued to work his job in various locations for Swiss Valley. It was trying to work opposite shifts and only see each other on weekends. It was also trying to live together with a lot less solitary time than we are used to.

In May, we moved to Minneapolis together to our first shared apartment. In July we adopted a dog together. I look forward to what will happen next in our fourth year.

The day we signed our lease.

Gizmo's Best Week Ever

It is Wednesday, and already Gizmo is having the best week ever. Monday night, I gave Gizmo a bath. I used three times the amount of soap I thought I would. The bath water looked like chicken bullion when he was completely rinsed. It was disgusting. The first time I washed him over a month ago, the bathtub was filled with hair. I didn't wash him as well as I could have, because we didn't know each other, and I was unsure how he would react. This time around, there were maybe five hairs in the whole tub. I'm thinking that he hasn't been groomed very often. He was awesome in the bath. Just stood there and took it like a champ. When I got him out of the tub he was so excited! He ran around wildly and kept shaking off while I tried to dry him off. He was looking at me and running full steam, and hit a mirror. It was all pretty funny.

On Tuesday, Jared and I went to Savers and Target when he got home for work. When we returned, we found an empty container of Chips Ahoy on the floor in the living room. That little jerk jumped up on an end table and brought down the box! Luckily, it only had half a sleeve of cookies. Otherwise, who knows what kind of reaction he could have had.

Today, Jared went looking for the pie he bought himself on Sunday. Where was the pie? Well, the tin and box was where Jared left it --- on the floor next to the arm chair. But the pie had teleported into Gizmo's bowels. I had been noticing throughout the day that Gizmo looked fat. He looked bloated. He seemed twice the dog he once was. I found excuses for his girth. I said his clean, fluffy coat made him look bigger. I thought, perhaps, the cookies from the day before were still in effect. I also noticed he has been panting and hyper all day. Once again, I blamed the cookies. But, apparently bloated, panting and hyper is just his pie face.

Jared will never trust the dog again. He has developed a nickname for him, "rat bastard." I think it's all pretty funny, because how can you blame a dog for eating what you leave on the floor. My cookies, though? Not cool.

Irish Fest '11 and the Balls Off Bonanza

We had a jam packed weekend. It's mid-August, so it's Irish Fest! Irish Fest is the closest thing I have to a holiday tradition.


We drove down to Madison on Friday and introduced Gizmo to Wally (Jared's family's dog). At first Gizmo was trying to dominate Wally. Then, he decided to just mark territory around the house while we were out with Gram. At Gram's house, she pinned some blazers and pants for me. We went to dinner at a Laotian restaurant next to the Barrymore. Dinner went well, and was very tasty.

On Saturday, we dropped Gizmo off at the Spay Me! Clinic in Sun Prairie. He happily went with the vet tech... we'll see if that ever happens again. Spay Me! is a nonprofit that neuters animals at a low-cost rate. Neutering, green tattoo, nail trim, rabies shot, and distemper with a fashionable plastic cone all for $75.00. After dropping off Giz, we drove up to Milwaukee and straight over to the festival grounds.


Irish Fest was great! (As it is every year!) After perusing the shops and deciding I wasn't wanting anything outside of festival gear, I came in way under budget. So, we ate a lot of festival food! I especially enjoyed the lamb sandwich, blue cotton candy and Hawaiian Shave Ice on which I gorged. Jared and I also had Chicago Style Hot Dogs... which always disappoint me. I just can't find a good dog outside of Chicago... We caught some world music concerts, the parade and a bagpipe performance. All in all, a good day.

Sunday, we came home around one in the morning to the most pitiful dog in the world. Jared's dad picked him up earlier from Spay Me! Apparently, he spent several hours standing around frozen in place. He'd walk a little forward and then stand frozen in place again. We took his cone off, and he walked around a little. He'd whine some times. He must have been in a lot of pain. We slept in the living room with him for a while before putting the cone back on him. When we woke up later that morning, Gizmo was outside in the backyard still coned.... standing frozen in place. We took the cone off, and suddenly he's walking around no problem. We left in the afternoon. The dog slept most of the way back on the blanket Gram gave him. When we got home, it was already time for bed. This time, when we put the cone on him, he bounded around the apartment running head first into everything. I laughed so hard when he ran straight into the mirrored closet door.

I found out that my camera phone has a panorama setting... so here are a bunch of illustrative panoramas. Most of these pictures are being photobombed by Jared.

Gizmo the Corgi

My dog has a Phlog

I'm Prime; It's My Birthday

23 years ago on August 1st, my mother went into labor around 1 pm, and I popped out August 2nd. I suppose I needed to marinate a little longer. I wanted to give an update on what has happened/will happen birthday-wise since I posted my birthday list in July.

Meaningful, Bill Paying Employment

I was contacted by Kelly Mitchell via Monster Jobs concerning a position with a corporation headquartered in Minneapolis. I went in for an interview on Friday and received a call on Monday offering me a job. I"ll be answering customer service emails and doing some light incoming-call customer service. It's 40 hours a week with over-time. It's a temporary position, but I'm hoping it leads to a permanent position within the company. The women at Kelly Mitchell were very professional and welcoming. I start in September, and the position is scheduled to end in January. During the five month period, I will make more than I did all of last year.

The women at Kelly Mitchell also asked me for referrals, so I offered up my good friend Jenni and my new friend Carissa. This should be great, right?

Reliable Collapsible Transportation

Soon after posting the birthday list, I purchased a folding bicycle off of Craigslist. It's a two year-old Tokyo that's silver. It's about 30 lbs, but can become less unwieldy, because it compacts. I purchased the bicycle for $80.00. 

Also pictured: A huge vase.

Very Irish Weekend

We have plans to be in Madison/Milwaukee/Sun Prairie the weekend of the 19th of August! I'll get to spend the day with Jared and as many people as I can talk into joining me. Gram sent me a check for $100.00 for my birthday that I will use for spending money. I'm very excited! There will be many photos, and we're going for the whole day!

Loyal, Dwarfed Dog

On Friday, the 29th of July, Jared and I met a nice woman in a parking lot about adopting her corgi, Gizmo. We took him home that afternoon. He's been great so far! I started a phlog of him which you can visit at the following link: Gizmo the Corgi. He's a 3 year-old tri-colored dude with stumpy little legs. Over the weekend I taught him to lay down on command. He already knew sit and kennel. While I'm busy doing nothing from the 5th to the 5th, I plan on getting him well versed on tricks.

More Effective Means of Time Travel

I have not gotten a camera. Actually, the more I think about it, the more I want an iPod. We'll see. 

Additional:

Comedy Club

I'm going out with some friends to see a comedy show at Acme Comedy. It's free, because I'm a birthday girl! I would like to wear a crown.

Free Treats From Starbucks

I wasn't hungry today by the time Jared came home, so instead we took the dog on a walk and stopped at Starbucks. I was talking to the woman behind the counter about volunteering at Jabbok over the fall and gave her the information for that. I asked if Starbucks does birthday specials, and she gave me my coffee and treats for free. She was very nice and thought Gizmo was a looker.  

Dinner with Gram

When we go to Madison, we'll be stopping by Gram's and heading to a birthday dinner (my favorite tradition). I'm not 100% sure where yet, but I'm like to try some place new and tasty.

It's really strange now, because I come home from volunteering and have nothing to search for on the internet. I have the bike, dog and job I wanted. Overall, it's been a great couple of weeks. Everything's coming up Holley.

San Francisco II

China Town was great. I got a lot of little knick-knacks and wore out Aunt Leigh. When we got home she fell asleep sitting up in front of the television. I got to haggle in the shops and did a pretty good job. We went to a poorly lit but super busy local restaurant. I ate the Combination Seafood Noodle Soup (seaweed, cuttlefish, shrimp, scallops, beef balls oh my). I'll post photos of all my awesome souvenirs once I settle back in in Minneapolis.

Thursday, Aunt Leigh, Tomoko and I took a drive to Muir Woods and walked through the redwood groves. I loved it. The trees touched high in the sky like a big canopy. The whole park was damp and wet. It was a beautiful day out! Tomoko cooked tofu wrapped rice, potato balls and these Japanese rice crackers. We ate dim sum and cookies. Yum yum. We stopped by the Golden Gate Bridge on the way to Muir Woods. It was a sight! It was such a clear, sunny day you could see all of San Francisco. I tired out on the car ride back (although I did get to see the Pacific Ocean briefly). I rested when we got back to the apartment. We had potstickers, steamed vegetables and rhubarb cake for dinner.

Today, we decided to sleep in. Oh my, I am exhausted. We walked around the arboretum for a few hours which gave me a slew of ideas for house plants. We picked up Tomoko and headed for Japantown. I couldn't get enough of Japantown! I got two little Domo-kun items and a bunch of little things. We went to Ichiban Kan. I went nuts! Everything was so cheap and so cute! It was great. Aunt Leigh said that if Jared and I moved to San Francisco, I would fill our apartment so thick with stuff from Japantown there would be no room for Jared. (I certainly would have a gigantic Domo-kun.) We then took our seats at Isobune Sushi. Little plates of sushi come by on small boats, and you take what you want to eat. I have had a lot of different sushi before. I did try raw oysters for the first time. I'm not sure how I feel about those. The sushi was great. Aunt Leigh and I kept asking Tomoko what everything was. Once Tomoko replied, "It's... raw fish."

All my bags are packed for my flight back tomorrow. I was sure that I could fit everything in my 21" upright, and I did. Good for me.

See you mañana, Central Time. Be prepared for a break down of nifty souvenirs and photos ala Aunt Leigh and Tomoko. (I didn't bring my camera with me places.)

San Francisco

I'm writing to you from foggy, lukewarm, beautiful San Francisco. It's day 2.5 of my visit, and my feet are barking at me. Man, sight seeing and shopping with my incredibly wonderful Aunt wears me out.

The plane ride was uneventful; I wasn't red flagged as a terrorist, and I didn't have to go through the nudy-machine. I found my gate and hopped on the plane which was only slightly delayed. I sat next to a Swedish au pair on her way to her new host family. I watched the in flight movie and read the paper. Then, we talked about current events and her time in America. I like having short, informative friendships like these. I met Aunt Leigh in the airport, and we headed off for her apartment. We ate at a noodle shop in her neighborhood for dinner. Then we spent the rest of the night talking and watching television.

The next day we went down one side of her neighborhood grocery shopping. Aunt Leigh lives in a mostly Asian neighborhood with mostly Asian markets. The markets near her house were interesting. They were open air with all new shapes, smells and tastes. I ate a dried scallop, fish balls, and a green tea cake with red beans. The produce and fish were extremely cheap. Most produce was under a dollar per pound. We then walked through the park and through the neighborhood on the other side of her apartment. We cooked a dinner of shrimp and vegetables over pesto and turned in for the night.

Monday, (incredibly wonderful) Aunt Leigh and I met up with her friend Georgette for lunch and a self-guided tour of the Museum of Modern Art. I learned about stereography (one of Georgette's specialties) and got to see a lot of Marcel Duchamp's work up close. We had coffee at the shop atop the museum and lunch at an Italian deli. Georgette was great and filled with intriguing information. We all competed for talking time. We were pushed out of the museum at closing time and took the bus back to Auntie Leigh's apartment.

Today (which is still Tuesday in San Francisco), we went to Haight Street and went shopping. We ate at a Mediterranean restaurant and split two plates. We walked up Haight Street from Masonic to Stanyan stopping in every clothing and trinket store along the way. That took the majority of the afternoon. Our last stop was Amoeba Records where I picked up a few replacement CDs as well as a few albums I hadn't owned previously. My incredibly wonderful Aunt Leigh is standing over my shoulder right now reminding me to mention how incredibly wonderful she is.

Tomorrow we are going to China Town!

Headlines and Snippets

For whatever reason, I cannot organize my thoughts coherently enough to form a journal entry in the usual way. So, instead I'm doing headlines and snippets.

Things I want to talk about:
Having My First Period in a Year and Thinking I Was Dying

This is a pretty obvious title. But here is the story: In March 2010, I had an Implanon implanted in my arm. This is a great little device the size of a matchstick that guarantees no babies for three years. Which is awesome. The bonus was that it stopped my Aunt Flo from visiting monthly. I haven't menstruated in a full year, but last Monday I woke up one morning bleeding like the best of us. Of course, I jumped to the conclusion that I'm dying. It took me two mood swings and side cramps to figure out what was going on. The good news was that I hadn't yet given away my tampons (though I offered). I hope this is just an annual thing.

My Decision to (Radically) Avoid Contact With My Mother

I asked my mom to come down to Platteville April 4th and pick up her photo albums that I have. She was supposed to arrive at 10:00 am. She called at 12:43 pm to tell me that she wasn't coming because it was hailing like crazy. It did not hail here, and I have spent the last two weeks telling Jared we can't walk to the store/drive some place because of "The hail! the hail!" This Thursday (10 days later) I called my mother again to ask when she'll be down. She told me that the car doesn't have insurance and that the hail broke the windshield. I told her she should have informed me sooner, so that I could make arrangements. She told me that she had just found out "this morning." The whole time she kept reminding me that her phone was dying, so eventually I said fine we can hang up. She blared into the phone "Wait! Wait!" with increasing urgency. "What?" I grimaced. "Call your father! He doesn't have much time left! He's only 120 lbs!" At this point I couldn't restrain myself. I harped back that she shouldn't pity him or feel guilt or shame. He put himself into this position. Half an hour later she called back. Jared yelled down the stairs, "It's your mother." To which I replied, "If you want to talk to her, you can answer." She left a message telling me to call her back. She wants to see me, and she doesn't have "$80.00 for gas."

Now, that's the backstory. Some where between my call to my mother and her call back I had a little break down from the stress she puts me under. Also, when I thought they were going to visit on the 4th, I couldn't sleep and called my friend Brittany in a panic, because I didn't want to be alone with them. It was a good thing I called her and told her not to come too... they didn't even show up. So, here is my stance as of late Thursday night: I am done. I am through trying to talk my mother into being someone she isn't. I have given up on her. And, more importantly, I am now avoiding her. No more calls, no visits, nothing. I don't need the extra stress in my life. This seems selfish, because it is. I am the child. She is the parent. And, although as a young child I looked up to my mother as a woman who could take care of herself, she has now become a helpless, hopeless individual. I wish her the best and hope she can find the courage to seek the help she needs.

Stressing Out About Jared (Not) Packing

This week I was becoming increasingly tense about our move. My biggest issue was that, for the most part, I have been packed up for weeks; however, Jared had a closet full of god-knows-what and stuff scattered everywhere. I couldn't help him pack for two reasons: I have no clue what he wants to keep, and he won't be able to find a thing if I pack for him. Unfortunately, this led to a lot of me saying "I have no earthly idea" when asked if this or that box was important. I don't enjoy how helpless I feel sometimes when living with another person.

Moving and How Great Jared's Parents Are

How grateful I am towards Jared's parents for helping us move cannot be put into words. Jared's dad arrived right on time in a big, white, unmarked van. It became quickly apparent that he had a plan. That was a man of action. He knew exactly what went in the van first and what next. We fit a full sized mattress with box spring, two dressers, a desk, a kitchen table, three end tables, a coffee table, two kitchen chairs, the flatscreen and a whole slew of boxes into the pedo-van. We placed our orange chair, the black rolling chair, two endtables and two rugs into the mini-van. Really, this could have been a one van move. We decided that since we had the room we could bring both dressers and the rugs at the last minute. It was a regular clown-car of furniture. This van is what I would imagine Mary Poppins would drive if she liked little kids ... too much.

And, the drive up was interesting and energetic. I was in the big van with Jared's dad. We told stories and talked the whole time. I learned a lot about Jared and his family. I told Jared's dad that I was very worried about him and Jared's mom meeting my parents and that reflecting poorly on me. He told me not to worry about that. Oh! And I finally feel comfortable calling Jared's parents by their first names. (This is an issue with me and parents. What do you call them?)

Unloading with four people was very easy. Jared and his dad took up the heavy stuff. I was pretty weak from still being sick. Jared's mom was hauling stuff up stairs too. She's also very courteous with door holding. Jared and his dad went to the landlords' and picked up a loveseat out of their basement. I put together the furniture that needed to be put together and made the bed.

The only thing I'm not too thrilled about is the living room arrangement. That will need some work. I also need to put together some creative storage in the kitchen. (I'm thinkin' Ikea.) The bedroom looks great just the way it is, so that's a good thing. I want to have a good number of plants in the apartment, too. It's all very exciting.

An Intense Storm

Some weeks of my life are slow moving, boring and uninformative unlike the colossal shit-storm that is this week. Here is my week in review.

We leased an apartment.

This is a positive outcome from a very stressful experience. I'm proud of myself for researching and finding a nice place to live in a nice city. However, moving can be very stressful when time is a factor. And, seeing that we move in 24 days, time is a nemesis.

Jared's parents aren't pleased.

Moving is made even more stressful knowing that we do not have the full support of Jared's family. My parents could care less where I'm living. I haven't needed their approval in my life since the day I left home, a month after my 18th birthday. Jared, however, isn't like that. He's blessed with a family that is an active part of his life. His mother definitely does not approve of our move, because we do not have jobs lined up waiting for us in Minneapolis. She isn't comforted by our savings. I don't know what she expected us to do after the house sold, but I get the feeling it involved moving into an apartment in Platteville so that Jared could continue his low paying, no room for promotion, intellectually unsatisfying job. Perhaps in this economy it's better to stick with a job you hate than be unemployed and living off savings. I've read otherwise. This disapproval makes me feel like a villain. It is hard to stay excited about something when someone is there to point out all the risks.

My dad might have cancer.

I haven't wanted to speak to my father in a very long time. I actively would avoid his calls. I don't enjoy being drunk dialed at noon. On Friday, I received a Facebook message from my Aunt Cathy, his sister, stating that Dad had cancer. I called my Aunt Leigh, also his sister, to get details. That night, at about 4 AM, I called Dad to hear the news first hand. He told me he might have cancer in a way that someone might announce getting a haircut. He has to have surgery to find out if the mass is benign or malignant. I'm calling him Wednesday to hear how the surgery went. I don't know how I feel about the possibility of my father having cancer. He has told my aunts and myself that he wants to die. He might not seek treatment.

I'm still sick.

I'm on week three of The Illness. My throat is still swollen; I'm out of breath; And, my joints ache. Viruses are a menace.

One of my best friends is getting a divorce.

The people I've grown to know over the years are very important to me. Even when we're hours or hundreds of miles apart, I don't stop caring about these people. My heart breaks for my friend who is going through the beginning motions of a divorce. I do not worry about her future. She can accomplish anything she puts her mind to. Right now life is hard for her. All of my thoughts and hopes are with her.

I struggle internally with my own disgust.

I purposely excluded part of our weekend in Minneapolis, because right now I'm not at my best when I try to provide an honest viewpoint. I've decided to share this seeing that I don't believe I'm going to be impartial about this particular nuisance for years. Jared returned a call from his best friend, Michael, on our way back to Platteville. During the call, Michael called Minneapolis a "shit hole." When this was told to me, I felt a rush of hatred. This feeling of such a strong dislike for another human being was alarming. I don't really believe that life should be filled with such strong, negative emotion. I understand that Jared will never purposely remove Michael as a part of his life. At the same time, I do not know how to tackle my own emotions. I'm disgusted by my own hatred.

It takes all my strength to keep smiling as the wind blows against me. The struggle is worth it though. Struggling to let the haters hate while the world does its worse is far better than giving into my own overwhelming sadness. I've been called "spineless" before by a simple minded person who perceived stoicism for weakness. I keep my head held high, just above the water and rely on the knowledge that I know how to swim. Or, at least I can float by until a sunny day. But, that's enough of a nautical storm analogy for one entry.

Girl of Your Dreams

My cousin Rachel had a dream about me and posted it in her blog.
HYPERLINKED

Christmas: The Light at the End of the Tunnel

Hello, December 26th! I have been waiting for you.

Now that Christmas is 365 days away, my job will be a little more clear cut. I've been waiting for this since early November. All I can say is, "hatchachacha!"

Now, onto Christmas past. This year Jared and I attended dinner at the Koehn's Friday night and lunch at my aunt and uncle's Saturday. Both events went over well, but I preferred Jared's gathering to mine. Not because I am choosing favorites, but because there are twice as many adults at my family's celebrations, and I become anxious in groups. I attribute this to basic paranoia multiplied in intensity from close familial proximity. Meaning, generally groups don't bother me, because I don't care what strangers nor acquaintances think; however, because I'm tied to these particular people and will be seeing them year after year, I care. I'm not afraid of making a bad impression. Instead, I get the sense that I already have and am currently in the process of living that down. And, no I have no idea what event/reputation I'm speaking about. It wouldn't be paranoia if it had grounds.

The other problem I have is not meant to insult my mother. I want to have that on record, because this isn't a problem with her it's a problem with me. My mother is a character. She displays herself with gusto using wide hand gestures and colorful language. She strains her face to contort to whatever mood she is trying to project. She is also loud. Personally, I see this as her way of dealing with the above paranoia that we both suffer from. Unfortunately, my way of dealing involves turning myself inward, buttoning my lip and waiting for time to move. Which means my mother attracting large amounts of attention to herself... makes me cringe inside. It's not that I'm embarrassed of my mother, because my mother is awesome. I just hate. hate. attention --- especially when I'm as anxious as large family gatherings make me.

The cliched truth that I'm digging at is that holidays are stressful. I have decided that hosting a large gathering is too much trouble, and I will forever be a guest in other people's celebrations.

http://www.timbergrowers.com/

Sometimes You Don't Need a Roller-coaster

Last Monday my work began a program called "Get Yourself Moving" or G.Y.M. this program really inspired me to well... get myself moving! I started the program at 2 AM that morning. I figured I was awake anyways so I might as well! Plus, I was so far into my second wind that I couldn't get to sleep. First, I tried my usual work out to Hip Hop Abs. This workout just plain kills my feet and knees. I did a little online research, and despite the generous endorsement by Ellen Degeneres, Hip Hop Abs barely squeaks out three out of a possible five star rating on Amazon.com. Oh no, no, this will not do. After a half hour of digging and reading through reviews, I stumbled across a workout by Jillian Michaels called "30 Day Shred." The tape claims to help you shed 20 lbs in a month. I don't know about that, but it defines my goal in weight loss. Being 130 lbs again would be a-mazing.

Today is day six of the workout. (I took a day off on Friday after a brutal get-the-house-clean-in-two-hours workout via Jared's Mom coming to town.) I can make it through the workout now without a break. This workout is much much easier on my joints, but I still can't finish it wearing my new insoles. So, I push through it barefoot. The only real problem I have is with the lunges; my Achilles tightens up, and I have to shake out my back leg half way through the combination move. Either way, these are my results: My measurements before beginning the regimen were hips 41" and waist 32". Right now, seven days into level one of the 30 Day Shred, are ... drum roll please... hips 39.5" and 30.5". I haven't kept track of legs, arms and chest. (If I drop a bra size, I will be p-oed.) Waist and hips alone I've lost 3" in seven days. Freak. Out.

Otherwise, my parents might be moving back to Wisconsin. Which blows my mind. I don't understand how two people on no income can make such expensive decisions with little preparation. Although, I do understand that with a lack of preparation, people can be forced to make rash decisions. Either way, I'm keeping my head out of it. They are adults and haven't been in my life for years. I sometimes see them at holidays, and I send birthday cards. But, I also send birthday cards to my best friend from middle school... and I actually talk to her more often. I know my mom reads this, but whatever. This is going to make some awkward dinner conversation, so what. I thought moving to Wisconsin was a ridiculous, unnecessarily costly and untimely move. This is not hind sight; I told them this when I was 16. I thought moving to Colorado was a ridiculous, unnecessarily costly attempt to run from their bruised pride. This is not hind sight. I think moving back to Wisconsin is a pretty rash attempt for a do over, but it too will go bad, and Mom will end up regretting it. She hates the cold. This is a fact. You cannot ignore fact. My idea to move to Alabama to move near her family is brushed aside like I'm too young to understand whatever blahblah. I do understand that blood is thicker than water, and time heals all wounds, and that cliches become cliches because they're truth. In conclusion to this rant, Mama, move near someone you share DNA with. They'll always feel obligated to take care of you. No matter how much you piss them off and vice-versa. And, please don't misunderstand this as a plea to have you move around with me as I stake out my life. When I was growing up, I was your obligation, and you did what you could to make it seem like a choice to continue to take care of me. But, we both know that when you and Dad split, having a 4-year-old kind of sucked.

On a lighter note (not really, actually this is more pressing and more depressing), my Grammy is in the hospital. I'm really worried about her. I haven't seen her in a very long time, and I wonder if she has good memories of me like I have of her. I put together some photos of myself (and Ciera and Jared) over the last year. I even bought a card. Please, send a shout out to whatever god you believe in to give my Grammy strength to make it through this. Me, I'm just going to hope. Hope is a powerful thing.

Old Photo

My Aunt Leigh just posted this on Facebook. It's one of the best photos of me... ever.

About Me

I was born and raised in the deep south of Destin, Florida. (Florida is actually south of the south, which I will call the deep south.) My parents decided after hurricane Ivan that Florida might not be the best place to own a home if you want to keep your roof more than a year. We made the trip up to Wisconsin in 2005. They couldn't take the long winters and moved to Colorado, but I'm still here, learning to layer and keeping the heat.

My mother would testify that I have been artist my entire life and I was born eating crayons and making masterpieces in finger paint. I'd be more apt to say I've been interested and actively experimenting in art for the past five years. I have been awarded a wonderful bachelor's degree from the University of Wisconsin in Platteville in Fine Arts. I graduated Magna Cum Laude while starting and running a club for people interested in hands-on art.

I've worked in customer service on the front line of retail as well as a call representative. I've held a medley of off the books jobs as a record store clerk, wedding photograph editor, childcare provider and impromptu yes woman. Painting, drawing, talking, networking and typing are my most developed skills but I've dabbled in photo editing, ceramics, computer graphics, and writing.

I am unfailing passionate about positive representation and keeping a optimistic attitude especially in the work environment. I try my best to be understanding towards people's struggles which affect their performance, but at the end of the day everyone is struggling. I feel that all people are sharing the same reality and having different experience. There is no excuse for blatant, unprovoked rudeness.

Over the next four months, my boyfriend and I are working opposite shifts, five days a week to save towards moving to Minneapolis. This journal is being manually put imported from my vox, because they are closing and typepad is nonsense.

Being a G.R.I.T. (Girl Raised In the South) I could not possibly give up Sweet Tea. Not only is it addictive, but it's delicious.

I'm a rationalist. I'm an optimist. I'm your girl next door.