Hello again!

Yeah, it's been a while. I get sidetracked so easily, and feel like I never really have much to write about, plus I got tired of writing daily since hardly anyone paid attention to those posts. I wish I could write a travel blog, but I don't travel enough since I don't have the funds to do so. How awesome would it be to get paid to travel? Seriously. That is all I want to do. I don't want to be here. I don't want to be working. I just want to see the world.Don't get me wrong, I love massage, but that's not what I want to do for the rest of my life. I have an opportunity to follow a dream and go on an archeological dig in Israel, but I'm afraid to ask for all that time off, even though I'm technically self employed. It really shouldn't be an issue, but I feel like it will be for some reason. I want to go for the full three weeks, but I don't think the owner would be too happy with that. Maybe I'll just do two weeks, but I feel that's not enough time to spend in a country AT ALL. I'll keep you updated on my trip status. At this point, I have every intention of going. I'm saving the money, I just need the time off, and my doctor's permission. Please pray with me that everything will work out smoothly!


P.s. Please take some time to check this out if you care about our freedoms at all: http://vimeo.com/31100268

Day 30

If you could choose to believe in Science or religion, which would you choose and why?

I choose God, always, and it's not just because I've grown up in church. There is just too much evidence of his existence. Many scientists now are even supportive of the "intelligent design" theory for the beginning of the universe, of course many will never admit it's God, but I really see it. In my own life too. I don't see Him as just some guy who sits up there watching things play out, he has a hand in everything. He has blessed me and my family so greatly, and give me so many opportunities, like my trip to Japan fer example. I was not supposed to go on the trip, I didn't get the scholarship at first, but we had been praying for God to provide a way for me to go if it was His will, and a few days later we got a call saying someone dropped out last minute, and the scholarship was mine! And other things like that, that are so obviously God things and never would have happened without Him. He has protected me so many times where I could have gotten hurt, or even killed. If I didn't have my faith, I would have nothing. God is so intensely real though, and so awesome.

Day 29

Sorry I haven't been writing. It's not like I have a ton of readers anyway. I haven't had a bunch of time lately. I spend a lot of time at work now, but not working as much as I'd like. It's a slow build to get a steady clientele. I'm really hoping it'll pick up more and more.

 Anyways though, here's question 29:

Do you believe the end of the world will come to pass during your lifetime?

Honestly, it is very possible. I don't think it'll happen soon, but it definitely could happen later in my life. The signs are there, and things are slowly getting worse. God promised He would return, so I guess I just have to be ready when that time comes, if it does come in my life time.

Day 28

Sorry it's been so long since I've written. My computer was out of service, but now I have a new one. :) Yays!!! Here's a quick blog for you to read. :)


Describe a time in your life when you were lost (figuratively or not)


I don't think I've ever been physically lost. I've always have the ability to call my father and get directions if I couldn't find my way around an area. I guess I can say I've been lost in other way though. Lost in what I should do in my life, lost in the sense that I was not a Christian, lost in math anything. I am still lost in math, but everything else has fallen in to place since I gave my life to the Lord five years ago. I'm not saying things have been perfect, because they haven't, but I've had a guide in my life, that never lets me go. :)

Day 27

Name something you’ve always wanted that you will never ever have.

Superman. He's a person however, not a thing, but I am completely serious. I love Superman. I even have the tattoo to prove it. I actually wrote a note on Facebook a couple years back about how much I loved Superman and why, and I printed it out and gave it to my parents to convince them that it was a good idea for me to get the tattoo. Here it is:

"Over the years I am sure many of you have wondered why Superman is so important to me. What is the big deal about Superman? Well.... I'll tell you. Ever since I was a little girl I have known about Superman. I used to watch the Adventures of Lois and Clark and that is when my love began. Superman embodies all that is good. He embodies near perfection. And that is what I want in a guy. A guy who is perfect to me. Superman is also a reminder to me not to settle for anything less than what Ive wanted all my life. That is why I am always like "I love Superman soooo much". When I do call someone superman It means that I am truly deeply in love, and that is a scary feeling. I have only called one guy Superman.... ever. And he was far from perfect, but I was so in love that I found him perfect. Over the years I slowly became more aware that he was more like Bizarro than Superman (excuse the comic book lingo). And so my search for my Superman continues. I may already know the guy, I may not have even met him yet, but I know God has my Superman prepared for me, and I certainly can not wait to know who it is. In the meantime though I plan on working on my relationship with God so that I can be ready to truly be Lois Lane.

Im a geek, I know, but this is something important in my life that I want people to understand. When I say I want a Superman tattoo I say that because I want a permanent reminder to NEVER settle for anything less than the man I can truly call my Superman."

Yeah. I'm pretty dorky. :)

Drawing by Michael Turner (may he rest in peace)

Day 26

I have been so bad about writing lately, but it's hard with my computer the way it is. I really need to get it taken care of. Anyway, here we go:

Have you ever wanted to trade places with someone else for a day, week, or a lifetime?  If so, who was it and why?

I've always thought it would be interesting to trade places with a celebrity, or someone else who we think would "have it easy" because of their wealth. It's be interesting to see how their life is, and if it really is as simple as we think it is. I wouldn't want that for life though, that life style doesn't appeal to me. I would be happier just being able to afford what I need then I would be with more money than I knew what to do with. It seems like the more money people get, the bigger their problems seem to become. It's like, with me, how did I afford thing when I had a job that I worked at just on the weekends making only minimum wage? And now, when I have a better job, it seems like I can't afford anything at all. Granted, now I'm paying off student loans, but before I was paying for school, so it seems that things should be better. Maybe that's just me though.

Day 25 (a day late)

If you could start your life over from birth, what is the one thing you would change about yourself?

Really, there's not much about myself I would change. All of my experiences have created my personality, and I wouldn't change who I am now. I have a great family, so I wouldn't change any of that. If I were to change anything, I would be a natural red head. I should have been a ginger. Red hair runs in my family. I have the skin tone for it, and my hair has tons of red highlights, but it's not completely red. It should be! Some people may wonder why anyone would WANT to be a ginger, but I really love red hair. And, it looks natural on me :) .

See? Totally natural :)

Day 24

I don't like the topic for day 24, so instead I'm going to give you an update on my life! I started an even newer job this week and had a great first day, but things have slowed to a stop ever since. I really need to build a clientele at the spa I'm now working at. I have a small core clientele, but they're outside of the spa, and that's an issue. So my new project is building clientele at work. Yay! Until that happens though, it kinda sucks because I'm not busy, and I'm not making money. Boo!

Speaking of money, I have to spend some soon because I have having some major computer issues. My charger input (jack, whatever you want to call it) on my laptop is broken, and it has become increasingly more difficult to get my laptop to charge, and that is really bad. My laptop basically holds my life: photography and music. So my two options are to either spend a couple hundred to get the issue fixed, or buy a new computer. It wasn't an expensive machine in the first place, and I have a few other issues with it, so I think I will go with the second option. So, I have been computer browsing the last few days. I got it pretty narrowed down, now it's just a matter of affording it.

Sometimes it really sucks to be an adult. With more age comes more responsibility. Bleh. I'm only 20, couldn't responsibility have waited a few more years? I need to marry someone rich....

Day 23

What Lo-Fi or non-electronic / old-school things from the past do you still enjoy?

I love to read. It happens to be one of my favorite pastimes. I will forever be loyal to paper versions of books. There is something about the smell and feel of a book in your hand, especially old books. I don't know if I would ever be happy reading off a Kindle or something of the sort, it's just not the same. Yes, those things are very convenient, but I love owning hard copies of books. Books are something I collect too. I hate letting people borrow books because I'm insanely careful about keeping books in excellent condition. I have two copies of almost every Harry Potter book for that very reason, I read them so much that I don't want my special copies to get too much wear and tear. I'm a little bit crazy, shh.
I have been reading since I was about five years old, and I mean real reading. I was already reading easy books before then. My reading level has always been higher than average. In elementary school I was reading five levels above everyone else (a perk of being home-schooled in my early years). I have conquered books in a single day that most people would take weeks to read (Pride and Prejudice, for example). I truly adore literature. I do, however, get burned out sometimes and will go months, or sometimes over a year, without picking up a novel. It is more likely to happen after just finishing another re-read of the HP series, because after those books, it's hard to find much else immediately appealing.

Can you tell I love me some HP???

BOOOOOOK

Day 22

What was the most intimate or personal question you have ever asked someone, or have been asked of you?

Well, due the nature of it having been a deeply personal question, I actually don't even want to share it, lol. Especially since I have no idea who reads this, and I'm just not that open with people I don't know, and most people I do know. It is something to think about though. 

Day 21

Is there anything you, ‘just know’ and have no explainable or rational way to explain how you know it?

This is honestly a very tough question for me to answer. I have very good reasons behind everything I believe. Many people might say that my faith in God is irrational, but it is most definitely explainable, so that can't count as the answer to this question. However, I guess there is something I could use as the answer: I have a weird way of predicting how a situation will play out. I don't know how, but so often things will happen that I knew were going to, and they happen very similar to how I thought they would. It's not really a gift of foresight, but more of just intuition. I'm wrong fairly often too, so don't think that I'm trying to say that I can predict the future! I just get feelings about things, and it's a bit crazy, but they really will play out.

Day 20

What things do you enjoy most in your life?

I enjoy a good many things in life. It should be more of a question of what DON'T I enjoy, but it's not. I suppose for the sake of my "project" I will answer the question :).

Honestly, I would have to say music is the thing I enjoy most of all. I love singing and being involved in music groups. Nothing brings me more joy than singing an intensely beautiful song, especially if I'm singing it to God. Even just listening to music is an intense experience for me. Certain music makes me incredibly emotional, while other music makes me happy or calms me down. Some music even makes me cry form how beautiful it is (Eample of my cry music). I would have to say music is something I could never be without. I would rather lose my eyesight than my hearing any day.

I have been involved in music since as long as I could be. I started learning piano at five, and have been singing... I don't even know how long. FOREVER. I currently play the cello, and piano if I have to (I don't enjoy playing piano), and I am also involved in an adult choir and small women's choir.

I LOVE MUSIC!

Me as a baby!

Orchestra in high school (next to my bff!)

 

Video of me and my bff singing for an ITS charity performance, but my mic isn't working :(

Day 19

Who in your life has been the best positive influence on your life?

I talk about my sister a lot, and it's for a good reason. She has really been a huge influence on me. Yes, my parents raised me, and they are fantastic parents whom I love dearly, but sometimes it takes someone other than a parent to influence you in a way that doesn't seem as parent like. My entire family has been a positive influence on me; I have the best family anyone could ever ask for. They are supportive, loving, understanding: everything a family should be. My sister, however, has been the person I could go to when I felt I couldn't confront my parents. She has understood my struggles better than I think many people could have, because even though we are different, we are also very similar. A five year age difference hasn't impeded our relationship, on the contrary, I think it made it stronger (later on anyway). Five years is a good amount of space: I could still look up to her, but be her friend at the same time.

At our Japanese sister's wedding

Day 18

How would you classify your ideal living or working situation?


If travel is not in my future, I would like to move out of state, preferably to Chicago. I have loved Chicago for a long time and have always wanted to live in a city. Probably not forever, but for a few years at least. A small apartment or flat would suit me perfectly. I would like to live in a good area, and not too far away from wherever I would be working (a fancy spa, of course :) ). After that I'll move to a smaller town after marring a wonderful guy and we'll live happily ever after with out 2.5 kids, 2 cats, and a dog. :)


None of that is probably ever going to happen. Maybe the marriage thing. We'll see I suppose. I'm certainly no where remotely close to that happening soon though. 

Day 17

What is the worst event in history to have ever taken place, in your opinion?  Could something like this possibly happen again?

I've never been much of a history buff, unless it's ancient history, so I don't have many things from what I have learned to choose from. However, I think it is pretty widely accepted that the Holocaust was the most awful treatment of human beings... ever. And I fully agree with that. That this is the worst event to have ever taken place in history, may be up for debate, but it's a pretty hard thing to argue against. The selection and attempted extermination of a people group is never okay. It's still going on to a certain extent in some countries. There are many places where they kill people for any religious belief other than one approved by the government. There may not be massive holding (well, killing) grounds for people like there were during the Holocaust, but people are being put to death every day around the world for being different. A mass extermination attempt could definitely be in the world's future. It's a bit scary to think about.

Day 16

Do you have a daily or weekly routine that you follow?

I am a very routine oriented person. I like plans. I like knowing what I'm going to do and when I'm going to do it. Nothing bothers me more than when people make plans and then change them suddenly; it throws off my whole day. My days are all pretty similar, as are me weeks. In general people are "people of habit", but I feel I this pretty clearly defines me. I'm terrible at accepting change, and have bad anxiety when things do change, unless it was something I had planned to change. This is not a good thing, and I realize it. I truly need to be more flexible. That's part of the reason I got let go from my last job: I didn't like all the changes they kept making to my job description, and I made my opinion known. Actually, I'm pretty sure that was the entire reason, other than that I found out a few weeks later that the office manager was pushing for her friend to get my job. Suspicious?.... yes. ANYWAY, the moral to this story is that I really need to be a more flexible person, and accept more things that come my way. :) 

I live by these

Day 15

What is your favorite chess piece?

I don't really play chess at all. I'm terrible at it. I used to play it on the computer when I was little because we had this chess game (Battle Chess) where the pieces would come to "life" and fight one another (kind of like "Wizard's Chess"). It was pretty cool. My favorite piece then was always the queen. The queen can do whatever she wants, basically. In the game when you used the queen to fight another piece she electrocuted them, I think. She was like the Emperor! Who wouldn't like her and her sweet lightning powers? For all their faults, the Sith use the force in pretty sweet ways. That is off topic. How cool would it be if they made a Star Wars version of Battle Chess? Ohhh, that would be so legit.

Screen shot of Battle Chess

Day 14

How long have you been able to live off the grid?  No e-mail, Internet, electricity, running water, etc.

Honestly.... I have never do that. I'm not much of an outdoorsy person, so I don't go on hikes or things like that, and when I go camping I still have my cell and most of the comforts of home. While I was in Scotland I didn't use my computer much, and couldn't use my cell phone, so the most I've been without either of those was just a few days. I am very much attached to my electronics and home comforts. It would be nice to get away from them sometimes, but I never have much of a reason to.

Day 13- Lucky Number

What is your lucky number, and why is it so lucky?

I don't really take lucky numbers seriously, or luck/bad luck for that matter. I'm not a superstitious person at all. I will walk under ladders, hug black cats that happen to cross my path, and have opened many an umbrella in the house. I chose 13 as my "lucky number" back in elementary school since it was supposed to be unlucky. I actually get placed with the number 13 often though, it's kinda funny. I've ended it up with that jersey number, music folder number, all sorts of random things. It always makes me smile. The number 13 has never brought me anything bad. It hasn't brought me anything especially good either. It's just a number. I also like the numbers 7 and 9. I like them for awfully silly reasons though; they are associated with two separate, yet fantastic, works of literary genius. Any guesses as to which ones? ;)

Day 12- Wanderlust

What is your biggest ambition in life?

I have mention a few times that I love to travel, and that I want to visit as many countries as possible. This is my biggest ambition as well as one of my interests. Some people want to change the world, some people want to save a life; I want to see the world. There is a reason I call my blog "Wanderlust": it's my favorite word, and one of my strongest emotions. As I've mentioned before though, I don't want to just go on vacations, I want to stay for extended periods of time. A few months at least (that's as long as you can stay without a visa). I don't know if I'll ever be able to afford to do this, but I certainly hope I can.

In the Dominican Republic

Japan!

Scotland

Day 11- That's what sisters are for...

How long was your longest inter-personal relationship?  Was it friendship, family, romantic, or something else?

I'd say anyone's longest relationship of any sort is with their family. Some people may not be super close to their family members, but for me that is not the case. I am very close with my elder sister (who I've mentioned a few times). She has been my friend for approximately 18 years, since before the age of two I probably wasn't much of a conversationalist. We became closest though after she came home from college and we ended up having to share a room, and bed, for about two months. My grandma had moved in with us after spring break of my freshman year in high school, and since we hadn't yet sold our house (we decided later just to add-on to it), she got my room. Also at the time we had our Japanese exchange student (whom we love dearly!), and she was in my sister's room. So, we ended up sharing the guest bedroom and the queen sized bed in it.

My poor sister.

I am a VERY restless sleeper. I'm surprised she didn't end up with bruises from the amount of kicking she endured. We both survived, though. Amazingly. We are still close even though she's married and has a son now. I do my best to help her endure the job of being a mommy.... by showing up at her house, eating her food, and watching her movies. :) That's what sisters are for, right?

Day 10

What musical medium did you grow up with; vinyl records, CD’s, or MP3′s?

I'm a 90's baby, which means I grew up when people still used tapes, made the big switch to CDs, and saw the growth of MP3s. I have owned, and used, all three mediums. My favorite, by far, is MP3's. My iTunes music collection is expansive. If I had hard copies of all that music, I would suffocate under the weight of all the CDs. I am the proud owner of an iPhone, so I can cart my favorites with me easily. No heavy boombox on my shoulders!

Those of you who actually read my blog, feel free to share your answer to the above question also! Or any of my posts for that matter. :)

Day 9 (or: three minutes away from Day 10)

Detail the greatest prank you have ever pulled off successfully.

To be honest, I've never really been a prankster. I haven't tried a lot, and anything I did do was just something silly or just plain stupid. The only prank I think I can say was truly successful, is one that a lot of people do. If you have, or had, a kitchen sink with a spray hose, you've pulled this prank. Yes, the one where you tape the spray hose with clear tape so that whoever turns the sink faucet on gets soaked. The reason I feel this prank was so successful, was that it not only got the person it was aimed at (my mom), but my sister and I as well (the pranksters). Note: When you try to pull off this prank, don't forget the kitchen sink is rigged!!! Go to the bathroom to wash your hands.

Karma. Sometimes it'll get you before you even do what you had planned.

Day 8

Describe a moment in your life you laughed so hard you cried, had a drink come out your nose, or peed in your pants.

Oh gosh, I have had drinks come out of my nose so often from laughing, it's actually a fairly normal occurrence. That, and spitting my drink all over. I think the one story that still stands out to me as one of the funniest things I have ever witnessed, though, is my mothers attempt to mow the lawn.

My dad was out of town (or at work, I can't remember), so my mom thought it would be nice to surprise him when he got home by having the lawn all mowed. So she got out the little red push mower we had at the time, and after starting it with great difficulty, she put it in gear... ON THE FASTEST SETTING POSSIBLE. She was running behind the mower, barely holding on to the handle. My sister and I were laughing so hard we couldn't even get a breath to tell her the blade wasn't down, and she was not mowing the lawn at all. It got worse when she started going around a tree...and around... and around... Finally she realized that her mowing wasn't doing any good at all.

I can't remember if she finished the lawn or not, but to this day my sister and I still laugh about this incident, and it's still just as funny.

Day 7

Can a book really be judged by its cover?  Explain in as much detail as possible why or why not.

Absolutely not. I have attempted to read many a book that had an interesting cover, but they were so boring that I couldn't get into them. Some of my favorite books, i.e. anything by Jane Austen, have rather plain covers. A cover doesn't really show the true content of the book (like all the Twilight books, what do the covers ever have to do with anything in the story?). They try to make book covers exciting so that they catch your eye as you peruse the bookshelves at your favorite bookstore or library. Authors can't always rely on word of mouth or past success to get people to read their books. It is much more important, in my opinion, to read the little description instead of just staring at the cover. Even with the description, you're not always going to get what you thought you would. That's part of the appeal of reading things for yourself. :)

Day 6

Describe an odd or unusual writing habit or ritual you or someone you know has.

I love writing, I really do. I will often start writing stories that I think could be amazing, and after about ten pages I stop. I come back to it later and read what I've written, decide it's not original enough, tear it our of whatever notebook it happened to be in,  and throw it away. If I happened to have typed it, well... I guess we'll get to that. Until recently I had never typed my stories. I currently have one sitting in creative purgatory that I started writing after a particularly vivid dream that I thought was so awesome it needed to be built upon. It is currently only 3 pages long. I may return to it, I may leave it in purgatory forever, or it may get deleted. It's a fantasy story about a teenage girl who gets chosen by a powerful wizard outlaw to be trained as a member of an elite team of warriors. Yeah. I have those kinds of dreams.

Should I write that story? Feel free to share your opinions!

Day 5

Write about a time in your life when things weren’t the way you or others thought they should be.

There was a period spanning a few years of my life that was certainly not the best for me. I made some bad decisions, had some terrible relationships, and ignored God way too much. I don't like to get into details because it was a time of my life that I feel is better left to myself and God. I share it on occasion, but it's deeply personal, so I only share it with people I can be open with, and I have a very difficult time being open with people. 

Day 4 (Story time with Katie-- and pictures!)

Growing up, what career goals or dreams of accomplishments did you have?  Did any of them come to be, how many did you abandon or revise along the way?

I can't even tell you how many times I've changed my mind about what I've wanted to do in life. As a child I wanted to be many things: a scientist, a veterinarian, a famous singer, a teacher. You name it, I probably wanted to do it at some point. I got a but more realistic in high school: a singer, a fashion designer, a massage therapist, a music teacher. Heh, only two of those were reasonable choices. I did seriously look into Parsons School of Design in NYC for a while though, even had my ACT results sent there. By the end of my senior year though, it was time to make a decision. I had an important presentation to put together all about my goals and what I was going to study. "So," I thought to myself. "What do I want to do with my life?"

Me as a senior, thinking to my self.

"Well self," I said. "I think music sounds like an excellent choice." So, music it was. Half way through my senior year I decided that it was my dearest ambition to teach screaming children how to sing. Oh how wrong I was.

Blissfully unaware that I did NOT want to teach music.

So off I went to Alma College, home of the Scots. I loved Alma. I took it fairly easy my first semester, only 16 credit hours. I did well in music theory, despised aural skills, and discovered for the first time that I had a learning disability. I had an excuse for sucking at math (it's called dyscalculia, look it up). After one day of math class I called my dad crying because I had no idea what was going on. After several visits to counselors and appointments in the registrar's office and a visit to a psychologist, I got out of taking math. Yay! My problems didn't stop there, though. I discovered half way through the first semester that my learning disability also affected my music abilities.
For as long as I've been in music I'd always known I had troubles reading music, so I relied mostly on learning things by ear. However, being able to read music well is key in being able to teach music. I decided I would try to power through my problems, though, so second semester began... with 19 credit hours (a decision I promised myself I would never repeat again... until my second year of college anyway, when I took 20 credit hours). Nothing kills your social life and morale more than taking 19 credit hours consisting of music theory, two choirs, orchestra, German, aural skills, an English course, and voice lessons. Combine that with having a difficult time reading music, and you get someone who just wants to quit.
I resolved to not return to Alma unless I made it into the advanced choir that was reserved for mostly Juniors and Seniors. Well, I made it in, so when Sophomore year rolled around, I was faced with a new decision, what should I change my major to?
I had always enjoyed writing, and several people told me I was very good at it. My grades reflected this, so English became my new major. I packed my first semester full of as many classes as possible in order to catch up. Biology, Psychology, Literature Analysis, Early American Literature, Choir, Voice Lessons, and labs for both bio and psych. The best grade I got that semester was in Psychology. I was apparently terrible at analyzing literature, and I was so tired for my American Lit class, that half the time I fell asleep. All those classes on top of having joined a sorority (Gamma Phi Beta) made me so sick that I got tonsillitis three times in two months.

The only reason I survived my sophomore year.

My second semester began with the much wiser decision to take only 13 credit hours, which was an absolute breeze. I had a lot of fun second semester. I moved into my sorority house, had no early classes at all, and had the most amazing sorority momma EVER. And she was also my roommate.

My sexy momma and I.

Near the end of my second semester, I hit another bump in the road, I suddenly realized the only reason I had to return to Alma the following year was Gamma Phi. With a lot of tears and some hard goodbyes, I left Alma for good after a spring semester trip to Scotland with the choir.

I left Alma after this???

 I decide to attend community college for an associates in photography while also pursuing my old dream of becoming a massage therapist. After getting robbed at gun point while out taking photos and not being able to enter "true" Flint without having an anxiety attack, I decided not to return to college the following semester. I continued my schooling in massage therapy, finished top of my class, and got a job even before I graduated. And here I am now: Self employed massage therapist (after being liberated from that job) and a hobby photographer.

Yup.

Day 3

Name one thing in your life you hope you never have to see or encounter.

I have encountered the one thing in life I dreaded most, and I hope to never encounter it again. In October of last year I had a gun put to my head and was robbed of my camera equipment. Nothing puts life in perspective like looking down the barrel of a gun, but to be honest, even if the trigger had been pulled I would have died with no regrets. I have loved those around me, I have laughed, I have lived, and above all... I have loved God. I have no fear of death, but I have an immense fear of torture. So I suppose that is what I never want to encounter. I never want to encounter a person whose only goal is to cause me, or anyone else, pain. Part of the reason I have never watched a horror movie/slasher is because of how much torture terrifies me. It makes me want to puke.

Those boys that robbed me that day I'm sure had no intentions of that sort, they wanted something they could get money off of. They'll never know that after that day I had an anxiety attack almost every time I went to school because I hated Flint so much after that, or that I had to start taking sleeping pills, or that I had nightmares for months because of them. If anything more had happened, I would hate to think how I would be now. God brought me through that small incident though, so I'm sure he would have brought me through anything more.

Day 2

What is the most valuable item or largest sum of money you have ever found?

Honestly, I've never found anything too valuable. In Jr. High I found $20 sitting on a sink in the bathroom. In High School I found a Hollister hoodie and a pair of back heels, both of which I still wear to this day. Probably the most expensive of the three was the Hollister hoodie! That's a good $50 right there. When I was really little my sister and I found a silver baby spoon in our back yard while digging, so that is probably more valuable than all of the above.

What I wish I could say is that I've found something incredibly interesting, but probably the most interesting thing I have ever found was a kitten. I named him Charlie, after my favorite character from "Lost". He was pretty much the coolest cat in the world. He thought he was a dog. He played fetch, came when his name was called, and begged for food. A friend and I tried to take him for a walk once... it didn't turn out so well. He FREAKED out.

Charlie was around for a little while, but he went missing that winter. We searched the street and the ditch for him, but never found him. It is my hope that someone took him in permanently, but I guess we'll never know.

As promised... (Day 1)

So, last night I promised that I would be writing more. To do so, since I often lack inspiration, I'm going to use this web page to help me along for the next 50 days. :)So:

Day 1: Name one thing that has always fascinated you.
Travel. If you haven't figured it our already, I have a very intense wanderlust. I want to be able to experience as many cultures as possible and see just as many countries. And I'm not talking about just taking short vacations. I want to go for months at a time so that I can live with the locals and see how life truly is there.

I blame my mother for my desire to travel. I was home-schooled as a young girl, and one of our weekly projects was to read a book about a different country and do some of the things we learned about. We would make food having to do with the country, I would have art projects based on the stories, and all week long we would study that country. Pretty much the best social studies class ever.

One story that stands out most to me was the one on Japan. I can't remember the name of the book, but it was about a little girl who would predict the weather by flipping her sandal up into the air, and depending on how it landed, that was to be the weather for the next day. So, for a week I had to try to predict the weather with my sandal. I'm not sure if sandal flinging was an actual way that the Japanese used to predict weather, but I never saw anyone doing it while I was in Japan. Of course, there is radar now.


LATER:
 I found the book! It is here:  A Pair of Red Clogs. My memories of the story aren't exactly clear, since I happened to be around five years old, but it's a fond memory none the less. :)

Life

I have decided that I am an absolutely terrible blogger. Once upon a time I used to write a lot, but that was back when my life was much more interesting... or maybe I just had more things I wanted to say. My life, as of now, is pretty bland. I wake up in the morning, I work (sometimes), I play games on my computer, I read, I go back to bed. Somewhere during the day I eat too. As far as work goes, I did just pick up a second job, so I'll be getting busier. Yay! I promise I will try to write more, not that I have many readers, but those of you who DO happen to read whatever is on my mind, be prepared for more entertainment.... or not. :)

I lack ambition...

I have lacked ambition to write lately, which is really too bad, but anything I did have to write about was entirely too boring, or something I probably shouldn't write about... like the company I worked for. I say worked, because I was let go today. This is the first time this has ever happened to me, and to be honest, I'm not entirely sure what I did wrong. The explanation I received after being let go with no real warning was that I seemed to have a bad attitude toward the company. Ok.... lot's of people who worked there did, but I guess since I voiced my problems (which is what we were asked to do) my disappointment was clearer. I guess they didn't want to hear the opinions I had.
I currently lack ambition to sleep, yes. I am entirely too tired to want to actually sleep. What is wrong with me? I feel it is very possible my insomnia and  headaches are going to return.

The End of the World, Pirates, and Tanning

Unless you live on another planet, you probably were aware that a man was trying to warn our wold of supposed impending doom.... that did not happen this weekend. As disappointed as I'm sure Mr. Camping(s?) is that his calculations were, once again, not correct, it is good to know that the Bible still rings true in every thing (Matthew 24:36-44). The fact that this man, who fooled himself into thinking he knew more than Jesus himself, made the rapture a bit of a joke this weekend is sad to me, however. It is no less serious on nay given day than it should have been this weekend if he had happened to be correct.
On a lighter note, I spent May 21 enjoying time with friends, and watching Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides. It was, in fact, and excellent movie (though a bit ironic to watch on the day I chose to see it, if you know what I mean). Much better than At Worlds End, the third installment of the saga. The latest installment can pretty much stand alone if you haven't seen the previous three.
And finally, tanning. I happen to be pasty white. I should have been a ginger, in fact. I have a wedding coming up, and the bride (my sister) informed me that I'm too white, so I'm attempting to tan. I tried a spray tan, it was... a failure. Now I'm trying to actually tan. It'll be interesting to see if anything happens. In the past I haven't had much luck with tanning. I went today for seven minutes, and I'm slightly pink, but I don't think I'm burned. :)

Smallville

It's over. Ten years. Sure, there were some bad episodes along the way, but oh what an excellent ten years it was. Smallville, as stupid as it may seem to say, has been a pretty big part of my life. I joined in at the end of season three and have watching it religiously since then. I've always loved Superman, nothing say's that more than the tattoo on my back, but this show seemed to make him more real than he ever was before. Yes, I am an absolute dork. I can't believe Smallville had it's final run. Yes, I actually cried.

Been feeling British...

As of Tuesday I decided it was time to read the Harry Potter books again. For the 5th time. I have oodles of free time at work when I'm not massaging, so it's quite the excellent opportunity to read, especially since I was recently informed I am not longer allowed to web surf on our work network. Lame, but understandable. I need that iPhone right about now. Anyways, in my reading of Harry Potter I've suddenly switched from drinking coffee, to drinking tea... the "British way", aka: with cream and sugar. While in Scotland that's how I was taught to drink my tea. It's pretty good! So, my periods of nothing are now filled with Harry Potter and tea. I feel that it's the best way to enjoy the book ;).

Speaking of Scotland, it's now been a year since the beginning of our trip. It was a fabulous trip. How I wish I could go back. I actually visited the cafe in Edinburgh that was the "birthplace" of the Harry Potter series. It's called the Elephant House, and it had amazing coffee, and a BEAUTIFUL view of Edinburgh castle. Maybe I even sat at the same table Rowling did. GASP! Haha.

My excellent coffee and elephant cookie. Ignore my gum in the corner.

Due to a Lack of Inspiration...

I haven't had much to talk about lately. I get a lot of headaches, and then I just get tired, so I don't write. Here I am though, writing. Not sure about what yet. Osama Bin Laden is dead. There's something note worthy. As much as I feel less patriotic not celebrating his death, I just can't bring myself to do so. Osama may be dead, but that doesn't mean terrorism is. He had a lot of followers. I have a feeling that something is brewing. Something big. I don't mean to be a doom-sayer, but this world is in turmoil. It becomes more and more apparent to me with each passing day. It's coming. Not sure when, nor how, but it's coming. The end, that is....

It's a List Kind of Day

1. It's sad when you find yourself getting excited that gas only costs $3.91. ONLY. Bah. Good thing I just got a better paying job :)

2. Easter weekend was pretty good. Didn't really get to relax like I hoped, but it's all good. Church was awesome, that's what really matters

3. Work has been fairly busy today. Had 3 massages in a row. All of them were pretty hard work ones too. Got worn out. Resting right now. I love having my laptop at work.

4. Saturday was fun. Got all ready to go to my last day at American Eagle, but then got called of work. I got to spend time with one of my favorite people instead. Always excellent. Also, I got coffee and a bagel from my favorite hometown haunts. They always make my day.

5. My "New Year Resolution" already failed. I was going to try to read one book per week, but I just got too busy :/ .

6. It's only Monday and I'm already so ready for the weekend. I'll finally be able to relax!

Breaking Up With Friends

Now, I realize friends don't usually "break up", that is usually reserved for relationships, but this week  I've experienced my first friend break up. It could possibly be considered the stupidest fight I have ever had. Ever. It all started two weeks ago:

We decided to go out on a "friend date" to dinner an a movie. Dinner went fine. but then he started feeling kind of sick because of how spicy the food was (we got Thai). So we went and got some tums from the drugstore for him then headed to the theater. That's when the fighting began. We hadn't decided yet which movie we wanted to see, and neither of us really wanted to make the decision, and I wasn't THAT interested in any of the current movies. He got even more upset at that point, so I suggested we go back to my house and watch a movie. He didn't want to do that because he thought being around my parents was awkward since we had dated a few years back. So he suggested we go to his house. I asked if his parents were going to be there, and when he told me no I said I didn't feel that it was right for us to be alone. Then he got ANGRY.

The conversation that followed went something like this:
Him: Why don't you think it's right for us to be alone?
Me: Because I just feel that it's inappropriate. I would do the same in any situation with a guy friend.
Him: How is it inappropriate?
Me: Well for one, my parents would definitely not approve, and I just feel that being alone in a house with a guy isn't right. That's all.
Him: You're 20 years old, you don;t need to listen to your parents.
Me: Yes I do, I live under their roof. As long as I'm living at home I have to abide by their rules.
Him: You're acting like you think I'm gonna try something.
Me: No, I would do the same in any similar situation. It's not just you.
Him: I can't believe you don't trust me.
Me: It's not that I don't trust you, it's just what I believe.
Him: Well it's disrespectful of me.

Yeah, something like that. It went on longer with him asking me over and over how it was inappropriate, then he just decided to take me home. The ride home was completely silent.

TWO DAYS LATER:
I get a text on my phone: So, are you gonna apologize?

What do I have to apologize for? He was the one telling me my beliefs we're stupid, and he expects me to appologize to HIM? So I told him I had nothing to apologize for and that if anyone needed to apologize it was him. He was mad of course, and told me he couldn't believe I didn't value his friendship.

YESTERDAY:
Another text. This one said he thought we should end our associations since I seemed fine without him anyway.

I am fine without someone who is going to berate my morals. How could he expect me to apologize for doing nothing wrong? Opinions????

Monday...

I had a pretty good weekend. Didn't come up with anything interesting to write about, though. Don't really have anything that interesting to write about even now. I'm at work right now and recently finished my second massage of the day. Both were just concentrated massages, but they were a lot of deep work. There's nothing so rewarding as taking people out of pain. One of the ladies was so excited about how much better she felt. It was really awesome. It's amazing how much you can do for someone by just giving them a massage.That is one of the reasons I know this was the right job for me. :)

I'm A Big Kid Now

Today has been... interesting. That's the best word I can come up with at this moment. Trying to get paperwork done at my new job is like pulling teeth.I finally got the paperwork for everything today. By Monday my job will be official!! It's exciting to be getting my first "big girl job". I now work full time as a massage therapist at a physical therapy clinic. I like it. It's slow right now, but it'll get better.

Speaking of massage therapy, I am absolutely certain it was the right choice. The jobs are out there, you just have to find them. Massage therapy was always something I wanted to do, but because society places so much importance on getting a college education I jumped on that horse right away without really wanting to. I spent two and a half years and thousands of dollars on the "oh so important college education", and now look where I am. I withdrew from college, spent only $6,500 on massage school, and now have a job without even being completely finished with school yet. How's THAT for a career path? :)

I Should Have Been Born Asian

Yes. That is what I said. Now, this statement is based solely on the face that I loooooove Asian cuisine. In fact, if I could, I would eat it every day. I may be the world's biggest fan of Asian food (maybe not, but lets say so for the sake of my story). When I was younger I spent three months in Japan as a short term exchange student. The thing I miss most, other than my host family, is the food. I love rice, I love noodles, I love sea food (even raw), I love tea, etc. It's not just Japanese food that I love though, it's Thai and Korean as well. Chinese I leave out of this because I have never had REAL Chinese food, just the Americanized version... and it always makes me sick. If I believed in reincarnation I think I would certainly have been Asian in my past life, besides the fact I can't do math ;). Also, I'm really good with chopsticks, haha. Mmmmm... now I'm craving sushi.

 See! I'd make a great Asian!

[enter nostalgic title here]

I suppose we all have pretty unreasonable dreams, and some not so unreasonable. I like to believe my dreams are tangible and most certainly achievable. It is, however, very possible that I have too many dreams, and therefore I'm often weighed down by what others would call their (my dreams, that is) "loftiness". I wrote this poem a year ago:

Globe Trotter

If home is where the heart is

I have a hundred homes.

My homes are spread across the globe

Each housing a portion of my soul.

Others claim I need solidity,

But a house cannot be built

On wishes and lofty dreams.

If I were a turtle I could carry it

Wherever I go.

But I am not a turtle.

Shall I make my home a sail boat then,

And let the wind make up my mind?

No.

I am not the sailor,

I am the wind.

I will not be bridled.

You see, my biggest dream is to travel the world and see as much as I can possibly see. So far I've only been to three countries outside of the U.S. (other than Canada, cuz it doesn't count). So yeah. At this point I'm not entirely sure of the direction I want to take with this blog. Mostly it will be, like the title says, pointless tidbits that happen to cross my mind. If I bore you, I'm sorry. You chose to read this though. :)