Reunion

Today might have started off good, but boy did kick my butt later to make up for it.

Some biscuits and gravy, stuffed french toast...finish it off with a little Arrested Development.

All in all a very successful 9-11 am. The tornado sirens went off. Nothing exciting. The rain was pretty torrential.

The bad stuff begins the second I set foot in my car. I immediately notice the lake that has formed in the passenger side foot well. My car is leaking from the roof, the light at the front of the car and from lower down (it looks likes it's coming from the glove compartment). Wet, wet and wetter. This does not bode well. I start driving, angry that my car is wet. I am also afraid for my windshield wipers due to their spotty performance lately.

Everything is okay as I drive home to pick up a few things. Its as I head out to meet Ben and Jenni for Lunch that things become a problem. First, my wipers get tangled. Of course. They untangle quickly but they are a little bent and there is no guarantee that they wont do it again. So I put them on low which is a problem because it is raining so hard and I am now on the interstate. This is when things get a little foggy. Literally. My windshield and all my windows fog up and no amount of defrost seems to help. I try everything. Nothing works. Eventually I have to resort to using an old t-shirt to wipe the moisture off the inside of the windshield.

So here I am, ineffectual defrost blasting, windshield wipers doing little to nothing for my visibility. One hand in on the steering wheel, the other is doing a constant circular motion trying to keep the moisture at bay. My arm is tired, I can barely see and I am going 45-50 mph on the highway. I think to myself the on thing that you NEVER think when things are bad : "how can this get any worse?"

It does. There is a crack in my windshield, right? This crack is such that there is splintered glass protruding from the top left corner of the windshield. Guess what happens? I cut my finger on it. I admit that I screamed in frustration. I'm not usually vocal in my anger but I could not help it.

Somehow I managed to get off 70 at the stadium exit and into the mall parking lot without dying. And I stayed there. Ben was ale to pick me up. It was the most frustrating and horrible driving experience I have ever had. I never cried, but I got pretty close.

The shorter story is that I had a lot of fun with Ben and Jenni. The trio reunited. Man we had some good times. As much fun as it is to get everyone together, it's mice for it to be just the three of us sometimes. We went to El Maguay...always delicious. We chatted. We laughed. Jenni made Ben feel horrible for never calling any of us or keeping in touch. I gave them their presents.

Then we went to go see The Spirit. Ben and Jenni thought it was ridiculous and stupid. They laughed the whole time but not in a good way. Ben said the only reason he didn't walk out was because it looked like I was enjoying myself. And I was. IF you have ever read a comic book or a graphic novel, you know that they are formatted in a very over the top, in your face way. It could even be called cheesy. That is exactly what this movie was like. And it was amazing. The cinematography was fantastic, the line delivery was great. Samuel L. Jackson was fantastic. It was really well done. And I KNEW that the guy who played Denny Colt was the guy from that show The Others. That was a great show. I'm sad it didn't last.

Anywho, I now have to throw down a bunch of money to fix my car. And that makes me sad.

Moral of the story? Dont put off car repairs until you almost die. The Spirit is a good movie. You shold see it. Never let go of your best friends.

The after

Yes. I am horrible at updates...(tee-hee, and I'm listening to Dr. Horrible. Horrible. Get it?)

I am striving to be more consistent. If it makes you feel better, I hate long stretches of nothing more than any of you. It makes me feel like I have to catch up.

So, whats new?

A couple things. FINALS ARE OVER! The results are in. I got an A my Ecosystem Management final and a B on both my Limnology and Botany finals. My grades are as follows...

Limnology-C+
Botany-A
Ecosystem Management-B+
Communications-A
Colloquium-Satisfactory

My GPA was a 3.4. Overall I am pretty pleased.

Thank goodness that semester is over. I only have one year left. I will be done by fall of 2009. WOO HOO!

Bob Evans has asked me to train one of the Hostesses, Amanda, to be a server. In a nutshell, Danielle the night trainer is not available to do it. Spencer the night trainer doesn't like Amanada and doesn't want to train her. He kept telling them he would and then he would push the time back. When Shawn approached Steve about it, Steve suggested that he ask me.

To be a "certified" trainer at Bobs you have to go through a process and take a few tests. I am not certified. This made Spencer very unhappy. He couldn't stomach the fact that an uncertified server was taking his job. So according to Shawn, he turned in his training badge. I felt a little guilty but in all honesty, he was throwing a temper tantrum and Shawn was not going to take it.

So, even though I am getting none of the trainer beneits, I am training this hostess. I said yes because it is good experience, more hours and it will look good on my resume. It's going okay do far. I just hope I'm doing it right and she turns out to be a good server. I dont want to let the managers down. It's flattering to be told that you are responsible enough to mold another person into a server. I think I would be very embarrassed if Amanda turned out to be horrible even thought it would onyl be 1.2 my fault.

I cant say that much else is exciting.

It's boxing day. I had a nice photo shoot with Emily, Elise and Juli. I'm pretty sure that my favorite about the holidays is being together with family. It makes me a little sad that as we get older and build our own families that we will be parted for longer periods of time.

I really wish I could post more but my brain is turning into a sleepy mush. I will be more detailed and consistent in the future, I promise....

And guess what? I just updated my other blog. Do you want to read it? It may not make any sense, but I have re-vamped it yet again. Feel free to read the description if you wish to understand.

Snow (Hey Oh)

These are so much fun! Thanks Kirsti!


1. Put your iTunes on shuffle.
2. For each question, press the next button to get your answer.
3. YOU MUST WRITE THAT SONG NAME DOWN NO MATTER HOW SILLY IT SOUNDS!

1.IF SOMEONE SAYS "IS THIS OKAY" YOU SAY?
Good Day

2.WHAT WOULD BEST DESCRIBE YOUR PERSONALITY?
Erin Shore

3.WHAT DO YOU LIKE IN A GUY/GIRL?
Can't Complain

4.HOW DO YOU FEEL TODAY?
Carry On Wayward Son

5.WHAT IS YOUR LIFE'S PURPOSE?
My Eyes

6.WHAT IS YOUR MOTTO?
Trogdor

7.WHAT DO YOUR FRIENDS THINK OF YOU?
Run-Around

8.WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT VERY OFTEN?
The Ultimate Showdown of Ultimate Destiny

9.WHAT IS 2+2?
Hate to Say I Told You So

10.WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR BEST FRIEND?
The Unforgiven (aw, sad...)

11.WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THE PERSON YOU LIKE?
Cheap and Cheerful

12.WHAT IS YOUR LIFE STORY?
Lovestoned/I Think She Knows(Interlude)

13.WHAT DO YOU WANT TO BE WHEN YOU GROW UP?
Dead Wrong

14.WHAT DO YOU THINK WHEN YOU SEE THE PERSON YOU LIKE?
Stay With Me

15.WHAT DO YOUR PARENTS THINK OF YOU?
A Strange Education

16.WHAT WILL THEY PLAY AT YOUR WEDDING?
When in Rome

17.WHAT WILL THEY PLAY AT YOUR FUNERAL?
I'm Sticking With You (um...creepy)

18.WHAT IS YOUR HOBBY/INTEREST?
Paralyzer

19.WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR FRIENDS?
Nessun Dorma!

20.WHAT'S THE WORST THING THAT COULD HAPPEN?
Death is the Road to Awe

21.HOW WILL YOU DIE?
Scotch and Chocolate (Nice)

22.WHAT IS THE ONE THING YOU REGRET?
Why I'm Here

23.WHAT MAKES YOU LAUGH?
More Than A Little Scared

24.WHAT MAKES YOU CRY?
My Last Breath

25.WILL YOU EVER GET MARRIED?
Upside Down (Like a monkey!)

26.WHAT SCARES YOU THE MOST?
Ruled By Secrecy

27.DOES ANYONE LIKE YOU?
Easier Not to Love

28.IF YOU COULD GO BACK IN TIME, WHAT WOULD YOU CHANGE?
Penny's Song

29.WHAT HURTS RIGHT NOW?
I Don't Wanna Be In Love

30.WHERE WILL YOU TRAVEL TO?
Crazy

31.WHAT IS THE BEST THING THAT COULD HAPPEN?
Slipping

32.WHAT DO YOU OFTEN FIND YOURSELF WANTING TO YELL AT PEOPLE?
Walk Away

33.WHAT DO YOU CALL YOURSELF?
Horrible Credits

34. WHAT DOES THE PERSON YOU LIKE THINK OF YOU?
Cryptonite

35. WHAT WILL YOU POST THIS AS?
Snow(Hey oh)


And Here's Another one!!!

25 Random Questions

Grab the book nearest to you, turn to page 18, and find line 4.
"...and as if muffled by a rush of wind or water: agitation, uncertainty, and..."-Jane Eyre

Stretch your left arm out as far as you can. What do you reach?
Air


What is the last thing you watched on TV?
Supernatural-two months ago


Without looking, guess what time it is:
11:45


Now look at the clock. What is the actual time?
11:45-I am so good at that

With the exception of the computer, what can you hear?
Carry On Wayward Son-Kansas


When did you last step outside? What were you doing?
Last night-Getting out of my car after work


Before you started this survey, what did you look at?
Facebook-Scribblings


What are you wearing?
Jeans, Long Sleeve T under a T-thirt, underwear etc.


Did you dream last night?
I had to write a memoir in the computer lab at school and Jim Halpert was distracting me.


When did you last laugh?
10:15 am


What are on the walls of the room you are in?
Posters, a bulletin board, various pictures, a calendar, necklaces, a Hawaiian mask


Seen anything weird lately?
My manager head butting my last night


What do you think of this quiz?
Meh...


What is the last film you saw?
Twilight...I think it killed my brain


If you became a multi-millionaire overnight, what would you buy?
pay off all my debt, a laptop, a nice camera, a new phone, a new iPod...I could go on...


Tell me something about you that I don't know about.
I beat the easy level of Guitar Hero III last night. I was up till 1:30am


If you could change one thing about the world, regardless of guilt or politics, what would you do?
Get rid of money. We would all live like they do in Star Trek...I'm such a nerd


Do you like to dance?
not at all


Do you like cartoons?
Who doesn't, seriously

Imagine your first child is a girl, what do you call her?
Elizabeth


Imagine your first is a boy, what do you call him?
Phineas...Not really, but it's always been a dream


Would you ever consider living abroad?
Absolutley! I'm considering it right now...New Zealand


What do you want God to say to you when you reach the pearly gates?
Welcome Home

It says to tag six people. I'm not going to. Do this survey if you want to, but dont feel pressured.

Off to class!

Twi-phert

For those of you who have no interest whatsoever in Twilight you may want to skip over this entry right now. I wont be offended. It is exclusively a review of the movie and the series in general.

On the other hand, if you have read Stephenie Meyers vampiric tale and want to hear what I thought of the movie, read on.

Many of you who have read the books and talked to me about them know just how much 'dislike' I hold for the novels which now sit gathering (hopefully) centuries of dust on my shelf. I use the term 'dislike' because 'hate' is no where near a strong enough word and I want to remain civil. Stephenie Meyer is a human being and I do respect her for being an LDS mom cranking out novels that make it on the best seller list.

If you are here to read an objective review that leaves all my personal feeling aside, you should leave now and remind yourself what kind of person I am. If you share my feelings concerning these books and want to hear yet another rant about how they couldn't be worse, stick around. You wont be disappointed. I warn you though, this ones a doozey.

So it begins.

I admit that I went into this film fully expecting to hate myself afterwords thinking that I would come out actually liking it to some extent. But I profess myself pleasantly let down by the movies lack of quality. It's a strange feeling.

However, lets start off on a positive note shall we?

THE GOOD:
1. From the very start, you here Bellas voice quoting the starting lines of the book. That in itself is enough to make me cringe and want to run from the theater and go see Quantum of Solace. But the beginning scene was very well done. You see a deer peacefully drinking from a stream. It is suddenly startled by some unseen hunter. A chase begins. You can here that the deer is being followed but its not until the very end that you see it's humans. The cinematography was striking and effective. Thankfully this held true for most of the movie. The blips of scenes that involved nothing but camera artistry were nice reprieves. The fight scene at the end was pretty good. The best scene overall in the film was the 'baseball' scene but I could be biased because they played Supermassive Black Hole by Muse.

2. The high school students-they were all played pretty well. Again, it was nice to get away from Edward and Bella every once in a while. I'll explain why later. The acting wasn't perfect, but it wasn't forced. It was amusing and fun. 'Jessica' and 'Mike' did particularly good jobs (I'm not going to list actor and actress names).

3. Charlie Swan-By far the best character in the movie. Billy Burke did and excellent job playing his part of the awkward single dad who doesn't know how to look after a teenage daughter. (Note that Charlie Swan is also Gary Matheson from season 2 of 24..a scary man who beats his wife and young daughter). Chief of police Swan is also very good looking in an older man kind of way. A better older man way than Edward anyway.

4. In a voice mail, Juli asked me if this movie was like Eragon and The Seeker, both of which had trouble following the book. My answer to this is no. It followed the book down to almost every detail. Even the exact same lines. This isn't necessarily a good thing since I'm not a huge fan of the book anyway. I do have to say that out of the quartet, Twilight is the one I am most likely to read again. Well, maybe New moon as well. I don't know. Knowing how they end, I am so torn.

5. The music was also okay. It kind of sounded like the music from The Fountain (which you all know I LOVE!). Bellas lullaby may have been a little too simplistic for my taste (I know that sounds petty but I picture Edward being a musical genius and this song did not portray that). There was a Muse song and that's always a major point winner. The other songs chosen were pretty good as well. Meyer really needs to get into Keane if she hasn't already. They would have been perfect.

6. Hmmm...what else was good? I got nothin'. I'd have to watch it again and I don't know if I could stand it. Maybe only if I were watching it with someone who also disliked the books.

THE BAD...which sadly outweighs the good.

1. And the number one worst thing in the movie was? (drum roll...........) THE ACTING! It's hard enough acting out a book with sketchy plot in the first place. Throw in the fact that both the lead roles are practically novices (I guess a handful of films each is not enough practice) and you have...blah. I couldn't even come up with a good descriptive word. This will probably be my longest rant so bear with me. I'm even going to start a new paragraph for your sake.

So many things go under the bad acting category that we are going to letter them.

a).The acting was too forced-Kirsti mentioned that seemingly 'bad acting', the kind you might find in independent films, is popular right now. She is right. It seemed that this is what they were going for except it wasn't consistent and it was horribly fake 'bad acting'. If they werent trying to 'act badly' on purpose then that's all the worse. Or maybe its better to be horrible at something rather than being horrible at trying to be horrible. Dr. Horrible? Sorry. It was like having to watch and hear two people shlucking grapes for two hours (sorry Elise). Hard to take.

b). Along with the whole forced thing, Edward often said lines that made him seem mentally challenged. I don't just mean incoherent. I mean it sounded like he was, for lack of a better word (forgive me) slow. I wish I could remember the exact line. I'm sure he was going for incoherent with rage (as in the restaurant scene after he saves Bella from a 'rapist') or desire (as in the scenes where he is close to Bella and trying to keep his distance). But it never comes off that way. In one scene, Bella says that sometimes when he talks it's like he's from another time. Maybe she meant the time of neanderthals.

c). Often, Bella seemed too scared. This is just me being picky. Bella is supposed to be unafraid of Edward and the Cullens. Even when she discovers that they are vampires. She is intimidated but never afraid. She even says this in the film and yet there are times she looks like she could pee her pants. I don't blame her. Wetting yourself over vampires is the normal reaction. Maybe if she had, Edward would have been like, "Ew." and told her it would never worked. Then we could have been spared.

d). Many of the scenes between Bella and Edward were WAY too awkward. I don't mean that they were too sensual (this happened only once and it is equally awkward in the book). I mean they seem so uncomfortable talking to each other. Especially at first which is somewhat acceptable. Most people are a little weird at first meetings. But this never changes as the movie goes on. Most of the problem stems from too much stuttering. Like they forgot their lines. stuttering is a normal human thing. So it's okay for Bella (except that because she cant act it comes out painfully forced). But for Edward, stuttering was never a problem. They sound like skipping records. Skipping records of people shlucking grapes...or chewing with their mouths open. *shudder*.

There was also too much random sighing. Like the doors in Hitchikers Guide to the Galaxy only not contented.

e). Delivery was all off. Flow and timing in the lines was just weird. Sometimes it was like the actors were counting in their heads the seconds before it was time to deliver their lines ("okay, he just said his line. One Mississippi, two Mississippi, three Mississippi...crap what was my line? I should stutter to cover myself..."). Added to this was the really weird unnatural facial expressions. They never seemed to match the situation. There were a few times that Edwards smile was well placed. But that was the only facial expression besides his bored sort of arrogance at the beginning that worked with the timing. Edward, in general, looked constantly in pain. I know that Bellas scent is supposed to awake an indescribable hunger inside him. But once he gets used to it I'd think that he could look less like he bad menstrual cramps. Okay, bad comparison. Sorry.

f). Kristin Stewart just cant act.

I think that's all I got on the acting front. Sadly the majority of the poor acting credit is given to Edward and Bella. Though Jasper seemed to have only one facial expression...Sick. Like he's trying really hard not to vomit at the bad acting. Poor guy.

2. Marty Hook once said that the whole world is tension and release (I'm sure he got that from somewhere). I would have to agree with this statement. We all know that the key to a good love story (maybe not real love in life but books and movies) is properly planned tension and release. Meyer has a pretty good handle on this in her books (though Breaking Dawn ends like a deflating balloon. Not the POP! You want it to be. Not even the scattered flying around with the funny flatulent noises. It was a quick annoying squeaky passing of tension. This kind where you pinch the opening of the balloon. She built up all this tension and then...nothing. But not just any nothing. A really annoying nothing.). The movie does a horrible job at timing the tension and release properly. The kiss scene is a little too drawn out. You know how you can build the tension by holding the distance between the two peoples lips for a little while? That hesitation can be very effective. But Edward takes approximately 5 minutes to close the gap. Maybe he was counting again...("15 Mississippi, 16 Mississippi, 17 Mississippi...oh, wait! I was supposed to kiss her 7 seconds ago! Oh well, better start over again to be safe. One Mississippi..."). After that it gets a tad racy. But not too bad. Anyway long story short, the tension and release police officer (i.e. the director) was on a coffee break during those scenes eating a doughnut-filled with 'lets-not-tell-the-kids-they-cant-act' flavored jelly.

3. Not enough Cullens-this is just me being petty again. I love Emmit and we get far too little of him in this movie. Not enough Alice as well. And not enough screen time for papa Cullen who is by far the most beautiful of the bunch.

4. I know I said earlier that having a Muse song earned the movie points. Half of the points are taken away because of the one they chose. I love Supermassive Black Hole. It's on my top 10 list of favorite songs. But there are so many other songs that would fit better and could be better placed. I'm not sure who was in charge of that decision, but I don't like it. Call me critical. You all know I am way too judgmental of other peoples work. At least I admit it.

5. The 'drinking Bellas blood to save her from vampire venom' scene-I cant really explain why this bothered me so much. I think Kirsti put it a good way. It lacked finesse. I always pictured is more...elegant, not ravenous. I suppose the way it's done in the film makes some sense. Edward is drawn to Bellas blood in frightening ways. And it is a thirst that he longs to quench. So maybe it should look like a man dying of thirst in a desert guzzling water and not wanting to stop...It just seemed off. And it kind of grossed me out...hmm that makes sense too. He is drinking blood. I don't know. This is another scene I would have to make myself sit through to understand better.

(okay, I had to go to work and come back to finish thins entry...so I am trying hard to remember all the things that bothered me. They are slipping away like the remnants of a dream...or more like a nightmare. I think most of it was just the usual 'there are so many things wrong with this story' complaints that I feel about the books.)

Um, lets see...Oh! I figured out at the end who played Bellas mom. It's non other than 24's longest lasting super-evil villain! No, not Sherry...Nina Meyers! Man, just think if Jack Bauer was Bellas dad. That would have made the movie a whole lot better. Anyway, I just thought it was interesting that we have two 24 alumni in this movie.

I should probably mention James. I forgot to in the Good section. He did a good job at being creepy. He delivered his lines well and had perfect facial expressions. He kind of looked like a younger version of Sabertooth from X-men.

Just a few other things about the books in general that were emphasized by the movie.

1. Edward says that he wanted to kill Bella the first time he saw her. Yeah. Thats a good start to the relationship. That definitely means you should be together.

2. The line 'your my personal brand of heroin'-the line was poorly delivered in the first place. Again with the bad timing. But more importantly...does that sound like a healthy relationship to you? People who have a love affair with their drug addictions never end up happy.

3. Edward sneaking into Bellas room to watch her sleep (and especially the way he describes it) it just creepy. Stalkerish. Also not healthy. Obsession is NEVER the answer.

4. Bella wanting to choose immortality-This is something I can finally agree with Edward on. Being immortal is not natural. You are supposed to get old and die. That is why I love Tuck Everlasting. In the end, the girl realizes this and gives up being with the boy she loves. Why wont Bella be smart and see that? Oh yeah, the whole 'thinking' thing. I'd think that Meyer, being a member of the LDS church, would favor living a mortal life. It's part of Gods plan. She doesn't have to put that in the book but I thought she would make that her theme in the end. Nope.

5. In the movie, the way Bella acts with Jacob is more natural. Theres no weird stuttering and sighing and she doesn't look scared. She looks content and happy around him. At one point (in the books) Jacob says "I was the natural course you life would have taken" or something like that. The key word here is "NATURAL". *Random, ill placed sigh of melancholy* Jacob is natural and real. If you want I have a whole rant on Jacob being the right choice. Call me and ask me about it. Even if you've heard it before, I love talking about it. Especially if you agree. There is no such thing as being Switzerland in this case people.

Alright, this post is far too long already. I hope it didn't bore you. And I do apologize if most of my comments seem petty. I'm just overly critical. Twilight fans (or former Twilight fans) go see the movie. I wont say that its worth your time and money. I am overly critical. I'm sure most of the world loves it. Maybe if I was team Edward and loved the books I would like the movie more. Who knows.

It's late and I need to get to bed. It's THANKSGIVIG BREAK!!! I am very excited. But now I feel like I need to see a good movie to make up for this one...Elise, I would love to see Quantum of Solace with you. Transporter 3 or Australia anyone?

Weird.

I'm at home (the duplex) right now typing a paper for my Limnology class. It's on The effects of light competition and growth form...oh whatever. I'll stop trying to sound like I know what I am talking about.

I was flipping through my last paper for the class to refresh myself on the formatting and I was hit with a massive wave of Deja vu. Everyone gets it in their lives. Every once in a while it so intense that it almost scares me. I KNOW that a while ago, when I was still living with mom and dad, I had this dream that I was working on a paper in a room that was not my own at the time. But it was somewhere I felt comfortable. IN my dream I was flipping through papers and scouring e-mails to find some sort of information.

5 minutes ago, before I started this entry, thats what I was doing. It started with a feeling that I had done this before. And of course I have. I did almost the exact same thing for a dfferent class two days ago. But then I remembered the dream. The only reason the dream stuck out to me more than my other random dreams was because after I woke up I remember thinking it was weird that I was dreaming of typing a paper in a completly fopreign yet comfrptable place. Like I lived there (but at the time I didnt).

Anyway, thats all really. I just had to share that weird experience. And take a break from typing. I have heard dads theory several times that Deja vu may just be evidence that we are taking the corret course. I dont know.

Even if you dont want it, I promise to post a Coldplay post. I'm sure Kirsti will do one also. Complete with pictures. Mine wont be as cool. But I need to document the event somehow.

Goodnight all. I have at least 400-600 more words to type.

Posting from my ROOM!!

I now have internet!!!

I am so excited. Over the weekend, I went to Best Buy and finally spent my Biggest Loser money. I bought new speakers and a USB wireless plug-in. I set it up and I am now in business! It has a tendency to stop working every once in a while. But that's usually an easy fix. Now I can waste time at home as well as on campus. In fact, that's what I'm doing right now.

Me and Kirsti are going to see Coldplay in Kansas City on Thursday. Don't get me wrong, I am REALLY EXCITED!! The thing is I have a lot of stuff to do before I spend all night on the states western boarder and then drive the two hours home only to go to class at 8:00 in the morning. I have paper due that morning. I have a paper due Thursday afternoon and yet another paper due Monday morning. Three papers. The only good thing is that each of them only has to be two plus pages. The real kicker is I still have A LOT to read up on these topics before I can write anything.

Anyway, it feels like I have to swin through a sea of knives to get through to the joy that will be Thursday.

I should relly get to that.

By the way, did you know that Jack Shepherd is not only our favorite doctor on a dissappearing island, he is also the bad cop killig nurses in Frequency?

Oy. I have to stay up and do a bunch of reading so I can get those papers done. I wish I could just skip work for the next two days.

Okay, thats all.

TIme to say goodnight.

Bedshaped...

...Thanks to my second favorite band for writing one of my favorite songs

It's a perfect fall day (it could be a little cooler) and I'm sad that I have to spend it cooped up in classes. This semester is draining me of everything.

I was thinking about this song the other day. I know that everyone thinks it makes no sense and overall I would have to agree. But when you listen to it, certain phrases make all the sense in the world. Maybe I was just really sleepy when I was listening to it (it was that night I was up at a Halloween party.)

There are so may things I want in my life. But right now I am content enough knowing that my second limnology exam is over with and I don't have a paper due until next week. I do have to record a 3 minute podcast on Wednesday. We'll see how that goes. Maybe I can get that posted. I don't think it will actually be on iTunes.

I had full intentions of posting my Halloween costume pictures, but obviously that didn't happen. Next time hopefully.

I forgot to pack a lunch in my flurry of studying for my exam. So now I have to go to my least favorite class in the world on an empty stomach. Maybe she will make up some more words to entertain me today (replentish...that how it was written on the PowerPoint. Way to spell check yourself.)

Oops...I'm going to be late for said class.

Sorry for the brief random post. I never promised to be consistent.

Life should be as easy as a survey sometimes.

Or not because it took me forever to get this done...


Ten Things I Wish I Could Say to Ten Different People Right Now:

1. I wish you understood how much I miss you. Do you miss me too?
2. I think you're a wonderful person and I want to get to know you better.
3. I'm sorry I was the 3rd or 4th person to hurt you. It was not my intent. I really want to be your friend.
4. Your class is lame. Teach better.
5. Get over yourself, stop lying and trying to be right all the time. Do these things and maybe, just maybe, people will stop hating you.
6. How are you? I'm a horrible friend for not keeping in touch.
7. I can take care of myself so stop treating me like I'm a child. I older than you for petes sake!
9. Did you ever feel anything for me in all that time or was it really all one sided? The answer to that would help me a whole lot.
10. I want to do better but I can't unless you try as well. So get it together!

Nine Things About Myself:
1. I like to start short stories and never EVER finish them.
2. I have procrastination down to an art form.
3. I used to have a nice phone and I lost it in a mud hole. I don't think anyone knows just how much I miss it. In other words, I am more materialistic than you might think.
4. I'm often sad that I don't have enough time to do the things I really love.
5. I love things that most people find gross...i.e. bugs, rodents, getting dirty, etc.
6. I used to love every movie I ever saw, but as I have gotten older I've become far too critical.
7. Beautiful music makes me cry
8. My favorite food is chips and salsa
9. I used to love N'SYNC

Eight Ways to Win My Heart:
1. Listen. Being the selfish person I am, I don't always want a solution, just an audience.
2. Suggest a good book.
3. Sing along to musicals with me. (Kirsti, remember when we would sing Moulin Rouge while riding bikes?)
4. Give me a big Hershey almond chocolate bar.
5. Introduce me to something new.
6. Be in love with Muse.
7. Agree with my philosophy on Rome and Juliet...or at least concede that it's not romantic (and neither is twilight).
8. Watch a ridiculous movie with me.

Seven Things That Cross My Mind a Lot:
1. I have this, this, this and this still to do.
2. Will I have enough money for everything?
3. Why cant I stop?
4. "Laundry day. See you there. Under things tumbling." or "Now the nightmares real..." and especially "Thank you hammer man! I don't think I can..."
5. Song lyrics in general.
6. I'm tired.
7. Random ideas for the short stories that I never finish.

Six Things I Do Before I Fall Asleep:
1. Think about writing in my journal and don't
2. Fluff my pillows
3. Cover my birds
4. Watch a little bit of whatever movie I am on
5. Read a little it
6. Roll on my right side (the position I always start sleep in) and think some more about those stories

Five People Who Mean a Lot:
1. Erin
2. Marcia
3. Famliy-more than one person but what are you going to do.
4. Ben
5. Trissie: shes not a person, but she means the world to me. She is the love of my life at the moment...awkward since shes a dog and a girl...

Four Things I'm Wearing Right Now:
1. Bat earrings
2. "Nature Fights!" t-shirt
3. my favorite jeans
4. underwear

Three Songs I Listen to a Lot: [at the moment]
1. My freeze Ray-Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along blog
2. Brand New Day-Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog
3. Everything You Ever-Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog

Two Things I Want to Do Before I Die:
1. Write and publish at least a short story
2. Go to New Zealand

One Confession:
1. I want to get married and start a family, but really the thought scares me right now. Married? Me? I wont ever be mature enough...

Darkshines

Courtesy of Muse

A good song for today. Cloudy for the most part. And WARM. Thats what brings me down the most.

I already hate Mondays, but if it were a Monday with some of the Autumn chill I could survive it. No such luck I suppose.

Some good news is that my Ecosystem Management professor realized just how crazy he is having us write 6-8 pages single spaced. Our learning objectives are now to be 1-2 pages doubles spaced and our case reports are to be 5-6 pages double spaced. Thank goodness he saw reason.

My dependency on familiarity fascinates me. I alsmot always take the same way to a location even if there may be a shorter way. I sit in the same seat in classes and in the same area in church. I feel uncomfortable if I dont have a person in class that I can talk to. So I form these 'classroom' relationships with them that never extend past the 50 minute incraments we spend in the same area. At the end of the semester I never talk to them again with the exception of a few...and thats only because we consistently have classes together. It's a very superficial practice. And I need it to feel comfrotable.

I realized many things about myself this weekend. Some of them I already knew. Others were revealed to me by my little sis. These are the 10 bigger ones.

1.I am a martyr in the worst way.
2.I am greatly affected by the emothions of those around me.
3.Because of #2 I have tendancy to try to make everyone happy...which makes me #1.
4.I am hippocritical...but arent we all just a little bit?
5.I cant let some people go, no matter how many times I tell myself that I have. (this one has nothing to do with the last 4...it's just an annoying fact. I wonder if you can guess who I'm talking about?)
6.I like to talk things out, not let the words unspoken stew and fester.
7.I dont like to be in the dark when it comes to how people are feeling.
8.I do have a tendancy to get deffensive.
9.I really hate to feel stupid. I get most deffensive and hurt when someone implies that I did something dumb or embarassing.
10.Though it may not appear that way, I am entirely too vain and materialistic.

It's painful to realize these things about myself. On the other hand, it gives me a chance to work on them and become a better person.

Monday(classes, work, end of weekend)+warm cloudy day=Sarah in a little bit of a funk.

One of those days where I wonder...

Who are my real friends? (My family, undoubtably. Thanks for that guys)
Am I trying hard enough?
Where is my second half and why is he being so elusive?
How can things ever be good again, the way the world is going?

Then I remember...

Just becase I am not the center of the social niverse doen not mean that I am friendless. Some friends come and go, others will be there forever. This is the way of life.

Maybe I dont try hard enough, but that just leaves room for lots of improvement. I;m not lost yet.

Someday I will find that man who completes me, who I will love and laugh with. I cant know when that is. And even though my heart aches for it now, I know that when I we are together it will be worth the wait.

The world is not a perfect place. It's falling deeper into dispair. But there are good things and there is hope. The world has to fall deepre before it can finally reach the glory that it will. And when that day comes, I will be ready.

The Alphabet of Sarah

Attached or Single?-Very much an emphasis on the latter.

Best Friend?-It's not fair to ask a girl that. So I wont pick one. Marcia, Erin, Ben, Jenni...Matt I suppose. And then, of course, my family.

Cake or Pie?-Pie all the way...unless it is chocolate ice cream cake.

Day of Choice?-Sunday. Day of rest, church, no work, family time, yummy free dinner...etc.

Essential Item?-Something to write in/on...Blog, journal, notebook, napkin, whatever.

Favorite Color?-Greens

Gummy Bears or Worms?-I'm not sure who would take a worm over a gummy bear. Thats pretty gross. But seriously? Absolutely bears.

Hometown?-I like CoBoCoMo...makes me think of the beach boys. (Columbia, Boone County, Missouri)

Indulgence?-Chocolate and Supernatural

January or July?-I tend to like the winter months better, but by January I am done. July is hot which is blah. But it has fireworks. So I might have to say July.

Kids?-Are great. I love working with them and I can't wait to have some of my own.

Life is not complete without?-My family, friends, the gospel...go ahead and phert.

Marriage Date?-Sometime in the future...

Number of Brothers and Sisters?-5 Sisters and 1 brother...poor bloke.

Oranges or Apples?-Apple juice rather than orange juice. But I prefer eating oranges.

Phobias?-Hmm...the dark in open places (the woods, a parking lot and empty street, etc), People popping up in dark car windows.

Quotes?-"Seek freedom and become captive of your desires. Seek discipline and find your liberty." -Frank Herbert. "Reality is merely and illusion, albeit a very persistent one"
-Albert Einstein. I have many, many more.

Reasons to Smile?-Trissie, my funny family, kids(especially Noah), fall days, good music, watching movies from my bed.

Season of Choice?-Definitely Autumn. No contest.

Tag Some Peeps!-First of all I do not call anyone 'peeps'. And here they are. Juli, Dad, Mom(not having a blog is no excuse) and any other random person who decides to visit this entry who does not usually visit my blog.

Unknown fact about me?-Gosh...I really cant think of any. I'm a pretty uninteresting person. I suppose I could say that I once made up a mean ex-boyfriend to make another guy jealous....That more of an awkward admittance than an unknown fact.

Vegetable?-Any and all. Except beets, radishes and peppers.

Worst Habits?-being too judgmental, making assumptions, being a martyr, whining and biting my nails.

X-Ray or Ultrasound?-Are you asking whether I have had either of both or if I prefer one or the other? Couldn't think of a better X-question? I'm going to make my own. Xylophone or Xenophobia?-I love playing the Xylophone...So I'll have to choose that one.

Your Favorite Food?-right now? Mac & cheese with spaghetti sauce and a hot dog with some bread and butter.

Zodiac Sign?-Taurus

20 Posts!

My creative blog...peepholeintochaos.blogspot.com...just reached it's 20th entry mark. Took long enough.

I've decided that I need to just write more. I wrote all the time in Jr. High and High School. Why not now? I could say that I have no time. But there are all those little times where I can get in a paragraph or two.

I will try to do this more and stop worrying about how good or not good it is. Practice makes perfect as they say.

Thats all. Two in a week! How exciting.

Please, please, please let me get what I want...

I have to agree with Kirsti. I hate the fact that Stephanie Meyer somehow has access to all of these Muse singles that I can't seem to find anywhere. The title to my post happens to be one of these.

Curse her!!

Plus it fits just a little bit...the feelings that I have had lately. Mostly I am just sitting here waiting for my purpose to make itself known.

But that's my problem. I'm waiting. Sitting. Inactive. I have all these dreams and I am too lazy? afraid? timid? yo make them a reality.

I'm not a generally selfish person. At least I don't see myself in that way. (We all perceive ourselves in our own version of reality. I could be the most selfish person in the world and not see myself that way.) The point is, every once in a while I just wish that things wold happen they way I want them to without any effort.

It's a good things that's not how life works. We are here to learn. To experience. What kind of life would we all have if we got everything we wanted without effort? That's why I am so grateful to my parents for their efforts to make me independent and self sufficient.

I have the temptation to say that today is perfect. And that would be close to the truth so far. One class. It got out early. I walked outside to the realization that I would need a jacket. YES! My favorite time of year. Jacket season. I enjoyed the drive to campus. Class wasn't even as boring as usual. I wondered where Tim was...feel free not to ask about who he is. Now I'm in the computer lab, blogging (my favorite past time. I am so glad to get a longer blog in this week) and listening to Coldplay's Viva La Vida. I'm also reading what exists of Midnight Sun by Stephanie Meyer. The woman I am silently loathing...Hmmm. that word is too harsh. I don't loath her. I don't hate or despise her as a person. I was only severly dissappointed by her attempts at a wonderful close to her slowly sinking Twilight series. Like the Titanic. Only not as epic. reading midnight sun is only a little more bearable because Edwards mind is much more intelligent than Bellas. Getting inside Bella Swans mind is much like getting into the mind of Shakerpeares Juliet. Not worth the time and possibly damaging to the person doind the delving.

Since I'm on the topic of Twilight, I'm going to make one more comment before I get into a real rant. When edward first sees Bella, his reaction is that she is a normal human girl. Just like everyone else. Nothing special. She doesn't particularly attract him. The only reason he first finds her interesting is because of the fact that he cannot read her mind. It's not until he smells her that he first becomes obsessed. A chemical reaction. Nothing more. It's similar to a physical lustful attraction. Not healthy. Nothing about the relationship between Edward and Bella is healthy. It's Romio and Juliet all over agian. Only this time Meyer is not writing to create adversion to that type of love. She ultimatly condones it. Blah!

I can go on. But why ruin this wonderful day?

There is a blemish on what would otherwise be a nice reprive from horrible Monday. My two hour shift at Bob Evans. Lately there has been very little business on Tueadsy afternoons. Guess what that means for yours truely? I waste gas and two hours of my day for maybe 8-12 dollars. Hardly worth the time. I'm trying to get the shift changed from 2-4 to 2-4, break, 5-cut. We'll see how that goes.

Another good note...I get to take Trissie on a walk this afternoon. That's always a wonderful thing. I miss getting to see her every day.

On the topic of pets, I am starting to adapt to my two new additions. Eunice and Howard, the zebra finches are now fairly close to their full size. Howard is sufficiently handsome in his 'look at me!' plumage. Eunice is drab in comparison. Not only do Howards feathers say 'I am awesome and you want me', his vocalizations imply something to the same effect. He is a little noisy while Eunice perches by, quietly most of the time. They could almost serve as my alarm clock. They awake at almost the same time every morning. 7:30-ish. Their beeps wake me up. But I'm accustomed enough to them now that I can just roll over and go back to sleep. They are darling little things.

I was reading some old enlgish papers and such from high school. I was surprised at how well written and insightful some of them were. What happened? I know that writing comes easrier to me than it does to some. I am greatful for that. But I am sadly out of practice. I miss writing. I wish I had more time to really put effort into it. My other blog is a sad collection of 19 entries. I want to be plugging away at the stories that swirl in my mind throughout the day. Some of them have real potential. But I just dont have room for their plots and complexities this semester. My brain is filled with massive papers, presentations, limnology facts I dont understand, boring botany and of course, work.

Not to mention my new calling!

I am now the ward enrichment leader. I was surprised when bishop posed the question to me. Would I accept the call? Of course. I just find it interesing that this is where Father wants me to be. I'm really going to miss being a Sunday School teacher. but maybe I've had my chance to grow from the experience and now it's another persons turn. I'll find my place in my new calling. I just hope I can perform my best at it. It seems like one of those callings that requires a lot of planning and no procrastination. We all know thats not the way I work. And thats probably why I was called.

Well, this post made me happy. I feel a lot better than I did in my last post. So I will close with what started my last post.

I am so greatful for the family I have. I am constantly reminded that there are peoplein the world who dread seeing their flesh and blood. I can't WAIT for Beckie to come home. I love the holiday season when we all get a chance to some together. I'm going to miss that when we eventually all start going our own ways and spend time with our own growing families. I am do gereatful for the relationship I share with everyone of my siblings. Especially for the bond that is growing between me and Kirsti. Not to single her out (too late) but for the longest time we had the typical big sister, little sister thing going on. We fought over every little thing. We hardly got along. It was stressful for us both. But I find it easy and fun now to spend time with her.

I'm glad that our whole family has matured enough that we realize how much fun we can have together. I'm glad we aren't bickering over what book belongs to who anymore. I'm glad to have the constant support of everyone in my family. And I am eternally greatful for such wonderful parents from whom I have learned so much.

Okay, enough of that. It's about time for lunch.

I am glad for everyone who comes and visits me here on my blog and I love your comments. Especially the ones that pop in every once in a while (thanks for your comments Genny!)

So I will close this post in good humor and anticipating a pretty good day.

Lucky

Once again I am taking a little time to put off typing this paper. I'm somewhat nearly there. I think that I have at least 1.5 pages left to write. Then I need to work on the formatting because my teacher keeps changing his mind as to how he wants it and is very vague as to what we will be graded on. I hate this.

Anyway, I just need to pause and say something.

I love my family. I know I don't say it enough. So I'm saying it now. I was in an interview with Bishop Creed and he said something along the lines of how lucky I am to come from such a good family. "Good Stock" I think was phrase he used. And lately I have realized just how true this is.

I cant imagine how life would be without every single one of them (this includes you Tamara and Joe and Noah of course!).

(Good feelings gone (name that Disney movie) The computer just crapped on my face. Not literally. But its this stupid new format of word. I just lost 1/2 an hour of work!!!!!! AHHHHHHHHHHHH! I want to shoot myself. Why cant I just be done with this?

Today sucks.

I hate life.

I think I'm Bipolar. No. Just easily aggravated by technology that was fine and then people decided to update it. I am fully aware of the fact that the sentence before this one is not worded properly. It does not make sense. Who cares?

UGH!!!!

I was doing fine! I was writing about how happy my family makes me. Now I'm ranting and I don't want to finish my paper. I don't want to go to work. I hate that stupid hallway cleaner that is making so much distracting noise! I just want to go home and cry on my bed.

Sorry everyone. I'm going to have to write about family and happy things later. I'm not in the mood anymore.

Whoever has the gold makes the rules...

What Disney movie has this quote in it?

I wish I had time to do a real post. I just wanted to say that I am still alive.

I love blogging and wish I had more time to do it. My brain really needs it. I don't even have time to write in my journal. I am so behind in it. I have so much to report that it is a bit overwhelming.

A small note. I had a dream last night. I think that I was with Naomi LaFond in a car. We were driving through this marshy, wet landscape just talking. Suddenly the road is gone and were are actually in the marsh. we go over what should be a shallow puddle but as we hit it, we are immediately sinking into its depths. Down and down. I'm shocked and silent as this happens, wondering how to get out of the death trap car. Then all I can hear it Naomis watery screams beside me. This is what wakes me up.

I couldn't move. My heart was racing. I didn't even open my eyes. I just lay there in immense relief and waited for the fear to leave so I could roll over and go back to sleep. It's been a long time since I was startled awake.

Theres no doubt in my mind as to why this dream occured. Naomi being in it was a manifestation of me wondering how to get in touch with her. My brains scattered thoughts. But the drowning. The fear and hopelessness. I'm pretty sure it's a manifest of the stress and frustration I am having at trying to get this (to me) massive paper done.

5-6 pgs single spaced. I haven't had to write close to that much in my college career. That last time I wrote that much it was my Junior year at Hickman. It was the big research paper we had to write for Honors English. Blah, that was horrid. Anyway, this paper makes me want to throw up every time I think about it.

Which reminds me, this post is already too long. I need to be working.

Bye all.

BUTTERFLIES!!!

Butterflies...10 awesome points if you can name what order of insect they are.

These beautiful insects may be a delight to see in the real world. It's when your about to give a 12 minute presentation on bird banding that they become a problem.

I've given presentations before. I've had to teach a class for nearly an hour. I am doing basically the same thing here. So I am used to the churning that comes with that. What I am really nervous about is getting through the presentation and passing of the birds without them getting loose. I know the class would get a kick out of it. But it would waste time and my T.A. would not be pleased about that. And no matter how funny it is to other people, I would still be very embarrassed. I kept thinking last night that there had to be something I could slip into the birds water to make the lethargic this morning. Isn't that horrible?

Ug.

This is not a good feeling. I'm not excited. I just want to get it over with. Get through it without making a fool of myself. I'll let you all know how it goes later.

In the mean time I have Supernatural to look forward to tonight!! I can not tell you how excited I am. And that makes me a little sad. I don't like to admit that one of my very favorite shows is on the CW. Sigh. Oh well. I have to record it because I wont be there to watch it. Stupid One Voice.

Then there is the Lord of the Rings concert tomorrow night! That's exciting.

Man I am such a NERD! I'm not embarrassed by it. It just hits me sometimes.

So the homework pile is coming pretty close to crushing me this semester. And it's only in one class. I have things to worry about in others, but nothing compared to Ecosystem Management. This class really was engineered to prepare you for the professional world. I have to read at least 6-7 papers, two of which are 25 pages and over. One of them is 45 pages. Then I have to type 5- 8 pages single spaced on what I learned from these papers. There is no lack of content to work with. It's just getting it to all sound good together and not become repetitive. Oy. I don't think I've ever had to write that many pager single spaced.

This week has been weird. Work has been slow and that means money has been scarce. I found out on Monday that I am not getting the $500 I thought from financial aid. They still have aid to apply. So I'm just sitting here waiting for money that I should have coming to me. Problem is, I need it now! I'm $50 down this week form what I want to be at. I think I'll still be okay. I just hate money.

Then there was Tuesday. Spending money on bird food, groceries, gas, etc. Watching the cash disappear from my pocket.

Wednesday brought on other feelings. Ones that I am famlilar with but can't effectively describe. It was an empty...no HOLLOW feeling. Not in my stomach. It was more in my rib cage. Closer to my heart. A dull ache. Not heart break. Thats more of a stabbing sensation accompanied by the urge to cry until you run dry. No, this was just a kind of "I don't want to do aything because whats the point" sort of feeling. Thoughts cam up...

1. What am I doing with my life?
2. Where am I going?
3. Do I have any goals?
4. If I do, am I doing anything to achieve them?
5. Am I trying hard enough?

This mood inevitabley leads to these thoughts.

1.Will anyone ever love me? (not as depressing as it sounds. I love my family and friends and know that they love me back. This is the love that is shared between eternal companions)
2.Everyone else is getting together and getting married...not me.
3. What am I doing about that? Nothing.
4. Why is it so easy for everyone else in the ward?(it's probably not, but is sure seems that way.)

Then I wonder to myself, do I really want to get married at this point in my life? Do I really think that my eternal companion is going to be in the Columbia Missouri University Ward?

I was sitting in church last Sunday and I happened to look at Carla. She seems happy, but a little frazzled with all the wedding planning going on. Only a couple months to go. I let my mind wander and I had this picture of me standing in a nondescript area with a faceless man on one knee before me proposing marriage. And then I tried to imagine me planning my wedding. The dress, flowers, colors, food, etc. I felt terrified.

No...not terrified. Thats a very strong word. It's just really hard for me to imagine getting married. Maybe that because I have never gone on more than one date with someone before. I have never been in a relationship serious enough for thoughts of weddings to cross my mind. I know I want to get married. I can't wait. And I am so excited to have my own children. I know that Father plans for me to be a mother. But when? I can't see any of the men in the University ward making plans to get to know me better. I see them getting together with the other girls in the ward. And I realize...I need to be trying harder. I can't stand passivly by and wait for someone to come to me. I need to have a more active role in my personal life.

Mom, I know that you've been waiting years for me to admit that. So now I am. There you go. But the thing is, *************************************. (Note to readers. The next two sentences have been stricken from the original post because they were angry words that I didn't really mean and portrayed my thoughts unclearly.) There aren't many guys in the ward and of those guys there are only a few I could ever see being more than just friends. Ug. Part of me wishes I was graduated and moved to some other area doing research or something and then I cold meet some new people. And don't tell me that I need to be attending more dances or YSA conferences. It's not my scene. And I firmly believe that I will not be finding my eternal companion at a church dance.

Alright. I'm done ranting. I tend to ramble when it's been more than a week since my last post.

Time to prepare for this presentation. Spend some time with my birds. Maybe let them tire themselves out a little before I bring them before the class. I'M SO NERVOUS!!!

By the time most of you read this, I will probably be done. But wish me luck if you read this before 12:30pm today.


AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

Here Comes the Rain Again

It's September 11th, 2008. I remember exactly where I was on that fateful day 7 years ago today. I was in my 9th grade honors Chem/Phys class with Mrs. Tyson. I walked in and class started as usual. A little into her lecture the phone rang. She answered. I can't remember if she said anything. But she went to turn on the television. There is was on the news. everything was wrong. Chaos. Distress. And then they showed the previous footage of the first plane crashing. I could only stare. Not sure why this was happening. They kept showing that plane and then switching over to live video of all the smoke and damage. Suddenly it happened. In came the second plane and it smashed through the other tower. More screams and distress. By now everyone knew there was something terribly wrong. This was no systems malfunction. This is when I began to be afraid. My chest felt constricted and my hands trembled. We all sat in front of the TV,watching the event unfold. Feeling pity for those there. Grateful that we were safe here. Afraid that there might be more.

Throughout the rest of the day, we sat in class waiting to hear more about what was happening. We heard about the pentagon, we heard about the flight that was headed to DC and crashed in Pennsylvania. The truth of it all coming to light. That there were organized terrorist attacks.

Terrorism. A word that, until then, was completely unknown to me. What did I know of terrorists being so young in times before when the word was heard around the world. I recently watched a video of a family taping the events as they unfolded from their home several blocks away. I can't imagine how they felt. Their fear so much more acute than mine. The smoke from the second tower collapsing rolled against their windows. How horrible, to know that someone you loved was in those towers. Working as normal. Then gone.

Never had the feeling that the last days are approaching been so acute. I still feel it to this day. The barrage of hurricanes, earthquakes, storms and other natural disasters are too frequent to ignore. Even more impossible to turn a blind eye to are the wars and rumors of wars, the rise of Gadianton robbers and the increasing wickedness of the world. The time draws nearer. It was the 11th hour 7 years ago. Where are we now? We can't know. But it's coming and we need to be strong when it does. Hold tight to each other as members of the curch. As family. Strengthen out relationship with our father in heaven. Cleave to him more than ever. Put our complete faith in Christ. Times are only going to get harder. We have been promised that. If we do not strengthen ourselves now, how will we fare in the physical and spiritual wars to come?

Permit me to relay a common phrase. It's going to get much worse before it gets better.

Am I ready? Why have I procrastinated this long? Why is it only now that I set my path straight? And why do I pass so many on my way and ignore them rather than grasp their hand to take them with me? The idea of a mission has never been far from my mind. It's always been a possibility. I've just never been sure if it was right for me. Maybe it is, maybe it isn't. But it's something that I should fighure out.

Anyway, sorry for the serious entry. You need those every once in a while. And days like this, where we remember so many lost and a time that brought about so much sorrow and fear, it's hard to to be a little sober of mind.

A few little things about my life.

Work last night wasn't too busy but there were some times that I snapped at people when I should have been patient. I was rude to bill. I snapped at Crystal. I think it's because out of all the people that I work with, they tend to get on my nerves the most. In fact they seem to be the only people that get on my nerves. And last night was a nerve night. Crystal was mad because she wasn't first cut. So she took it out on everyone else. She was sour all night. Then as she was doing her outs she was completly unhelpful. She was standing right nest to the grill line window when my food came up. I was trying to run other food and get some salads and drinks out. I did this. When I came back she was still standing there emptying her salt and pepper shakers. I looked over at her and said in a little snappish tone..."Hey there's hot food in the window. You know what would be great? If someone could run it for me while I run this other tray." She just stood there. I have to admit that her inaction steamed me a little. I don't want to go into Bills stupidity suffice to say that he was paying for his pwn decision to let someone go early and the taking it out on everyone else when ti came back to bite him in to rear.

It's nice to see Emily and Noah. He's gotten so big! Too bad they are both coming down with colds.

Um...It's supposed to rain all this weekend starting tonight. Great. Good thing I had no plans.

"No really I mean that! Sorry if it sounded sarcastic..."

Name that quote.

I want classes to be over for the day!!! I want to go to one voice quartet rehersal! I want to go out for ice cream then curl in bed and watch a movie all nice and warm. I say that mostly because I am cold right now. Once I step outside I'll want and ice cold beverage and a fan.

Bye.

I was a demented child...

When I was little, I always thought it would be cool to have the firemen come down our block. They did once at the duplexes. I think some old lady fell down the stairs or something. The whole time I was thinking, "this is cool". Now I realize how horrible that is. I see a firetruck and I hope it's going nowhere near me.

I had no such luck this morning. It all started...
Um, I'm not going to start my story that way. Try again.

Once upon a time...
No, no, NO! Don't even think about it! Anything but that!

It was the best of times it was...

Taken, though not a bad start. C'mon! You can do this! Something original and not lame!

Okay, okay. Sorry. Let me try again. Lets try this...



Sleep still clung to every crag in my brain. A thin mist that was now being punctured by sharp stabs to my sound receptors.

That's better. Go with that. See where it takes you.

**(Sorry everyone. My creative side has been working itself into a frenzy since I haven't taken the time to give it an outlet. Continuing with my tale of the mornings events)**

What was it? This persistent beeping that sounded as if it were coming from under water? I rolled over, trying to block it out and get back to sleeping. After two minutes of fruitless attempts I decided to give up. I needed to be awake anyway and get ready for class. Still, what was this noise? It sounded like a smoke alarm. In my drowsiness, my logic finally came through and I realized I should probably check the house. I listened and sniffed my way around my room. No funny smells and the sound got weaker as I moved away from the wall connecting my room to our neighbors. Hm...

I pressed my ear to the shared wall and there it was. The beeping coming from next door. Great. What do I do now?

I stepped out of my room just as Gloria was stepping out of hers. We were both in our p.j.'s. Me in boxers and a t-shirt Gloria in something similar. We looked at each other and bot shrugged.

"I think it's the smoke alarm," I offered.

We made our way down the stairs and outside. Gloria went to the neighbors door and knocked. No answer. she rang the doorbell. Still no answer. Beautiful. Their alarm was going off and they weren't home. There was no smoke and no heat coming from the front door. No visible sign of fire. We decided the best thing at the time was to call Chad, our landlord.

I didn't have his number. Did Holly? Nope. Did Gloria? Guess not. So we had to go wake up Jenna. She rolled out of her cocoon and gave us the number which I dialed from Glorias phone.

Voice mail. Sighing, I left a brief message giving my our address, the neighbors address and a brief description of the situation. And that was that. I decided to start getting ready for class. I needed to be gone by 8:30 and it was now 5 till. I went up the stairs. When I reached to top, there as Jenna in her pajamas clutching her chest and looking distressed. She called down to Holly.

"Can you take me to the doctor? I'm really hurting..."

Wonderful. Apparently Jenna has some sort of condition that causes her to have bad chest pains at times.

This was how the morning started and it was about to get better.

I began to smell smoke. Crap! Smoke meant fire and fire is never a good thing in a home. I was halfway undressed to shower. A little alarmed now, I went back to my room, hastily dressed and out my unwasher hair in a ponytail. I met Gloria at the bottom of the stairs. She plugged her nose in a gesture indicating that she smelled the smoke as well. We both went to the neighbors door then. There was still no visible flame. But there was no doubt that there was something going on inside that was not supposed to be. So, fir the first time in my life I called 911.

They answered with the typical "911 emergency" then proceeded to ask what my address was. I gave it to them along with my number and name. Then I told them "the nature of the emergency". Alarms were going off, we could smell smoke, no one was home and there was no visible flame. They assured me that the fire department was on it's way.

Good.

So we waited. 5 minuted later, the tenants of the duplex arrived. Somehow notified that their alarms were going off. They went in...something that probably wasn't the smartest thing and opened the garage and windows. Smoke poured out of the openings. By now, the smoke had also made it's way into our air conditioning and all over our apartment. Who DOESN'T love the smell of fire smoke in your living space? We all exited the duplex, by now wide awake and a little annoyed that this was happening. Soon we heard the sirens and not one, but two fire trucks made their way down our street.

To make a long story short (cue Mr. Green) they found a small fire in the bathroom that didn't do too much damage. They brought out the hose and put it out. They fanned out the place to get rid of all the smoke (not our place...I guess there wasn't enough.) Then packed up and left. The fire marshal stayed behind to survey the damage, take pictures and ask questions. He came over to our place and asked if I was the one who had called, got my name and number and thanked me for my call. It was all the thanks I got because our neighbors certainly weren't dishing it out.

So that was my heroic moment of the day. Our duplex no longer smells like smoke. We have no idea what started the fire though me and my roomies think it was either a careless cigarette or a curling iron.

Well, that wasn't that exciting but it made for an interesting Monday morning. I missed my first class because of it. Oh well. The professor understood.

Well folks, lets hope that survive my year at Bodie drive. Not that I fear for my life (though mom does).

Happy day after Monday!

Overkill

Is overkill one word? Is it two? Is it hyphenated? Who knows.

So, two in two days. Why not? The truth is, I'm just a little bored.

I have some exciting news that no one will care about but me. My TA in Plant Systematics last semester is my TA for Botany this semester!! I'm so glad it's not the crazy hippie lady. you should have seen the notes she took on the board yesterday. I wasn't sure if I should laugh or cry in embarrassment. She's trying so hard to be cool. Writing word's like "crap" and "Funx"(abreviation for fiunction I guess...). Anyway, I love Alicia. She is easy going and hilarious. Our lab was the greatest lab of them all in my opinion and a lot of that was due to Alicia. I walk into lab a little late (this seems to ba a trend for me this semester). She looks at me in surprise and in her mock dramatic way she says, "Sarah? Sarah Lambson?". I was shocked and delighted to see her. The presence of someone I know added with the fact that I have a good handle on all this plant stuff made lab great. I wasn't in my usual shell. I was talking, laughing, interacting, etc. It was great. The content was pretty much as dull and tedious as I predicted, but the atmosphere was light. The girl across from me, Taylor, was nice. She's also in collquium. I may try to pick her out today. It's Dr. Nylon. I had him for Renewable Resource management. He sweats a lot. He's gonna give his lecture on urban wildlife management.

I am having so much fun in my major...for the most part. I am so excited for my potential career. But also a little bit scared becuase I'm not sure exactly what I will be doing. I really need to get in tough with the Fish and Wlidlife people here in Columbia and look into volunteering. My only worry is my lack of time. I have a few hours between classes and work sometimes. We'll have to see. Anyway, I also can't wait for next summer. I am already in the process of looking into internships out west.

Thats my short little entry for the day.

It's wet, I'm cold, I have classes all day...the only things I have to look forward to are not working tonight (shich STINKS (mom) because of the whole no money thing. Also I am getting FINCHES today and then there One Voice.

I would still love some suggestion for my pair of finches.

Hope everyone is staying dry.

What is there to say?

Now that I am back to my hum drum student life I have nothing to report. My journal entries are boring and I feel like a blog update is pointless.

But I cant stay away.

School is now in full swing. I have some homework, but the load is light so far. Just wait until all the projects pile up.

My iPod is on shaky legs. It was nonfunctional all summer-playing three songs and then dying. So far I am up to 8 and still have a little over half the battery. This is still not up to par, but better than nothing.

I am unpacked! And it only took me a little over a week! I just need to get all the boxes I don't need out and then the computer I am acquiring from Bro-hah in. I have a tv in my room that I am borrowing from Beckie. What's better than watching movies from your bed? I'm still not hooked up to the cable. But thats a good thing.

Work is trukin' on by. I now have cash in my money jar. That makes me feel better. Even though I am not rich, visible money is always nice. I even treated myself to Movie Gallery. I have coupons (said the way you pronounce poupon as in "grey poupon" because it's spelled the same way folks. Also-ORANGE is TWO syllables. Or-ange. Ketchup, ketchup, KETCHUP!!!).

Sorry.

I've missed the fun timey atmosphere of Bob Evans. I've missed all those good happy tables. I do not miss the weirldy slow nights or the angry tables full of people who have no idea what it's like to be human. I'm glad to be back. Though I do miss working days and having nights off.

Still waiting on the results for our famillies version of the biggest loser. Who knows now who will win though I can say with certanity that it is between team SARAH/KIRSTI and team BECKIE/KYLE. May the biggest loser win.

I'm getting a pair of finches. I called sister Moegling and she told me she was wanting to sell a pair plus a cage and starter care kit all for $35. Who could pass that up? I'm excited. I want to get to know then better before I name them, but I am open to suggestions. The only idea I have so far is to name them after the bird nerd duo from Rhode Island-Courtney and Evan. We'll see.

I still have not managed to get my excercise plan into action. I'm still trying to get everything else in order. It will happen. Though I would like to look into ways to excercise my arms without having to go to the gym. I wish I had a Kayak or a canoe plus a recreational lake or pond nearby so that I could go on the water evey morning. That became one of my favorite things over the summer. I miss that.

Even though parts of the fourth Twilight book are good, I am still overall dissapointed. I am almost finished and am waiting for something to make the book worth reading again. Sorry Stephanie Meyer (did I even spell that right?). I am very upset that she decided the Romeo and Juliet approach was better than what is right. It's better to stay addicted to the drug. UGH!!!!!! So dissapointed. Anyway, were going to move past that.

I have discovered that me, Holly and Jenna have very different tastes. They both like all those vomitous reality shows like "The Hills" and such. I can give them a little credit for liking food network shows. But thats all I can give them. They watch all those laughable Lifetime movies. Sad. At least they agree that Soaps are abominations. In talking movies I have also discovered that Jenna hates some of my favotires (so far, The Lake House and Stranger Than Fiction are on the list. There are pleanty others I am sure. She's one of those people who can't stand strangeness in the real world. It's impossible that in todays real world a man hears a woman narrorating his life or that two people can be communicating from another time. Like mom I love these things).

Um, actually don't have much more to report. I need to head to class so I get a good seat in that huge lecture hall. I DO NOT miss the days of being a freshman and having to go to those huge classes with over 100 people. I love the 30-40 people classes.

Till another time. Maybe my next entry will be from home and not from campus!

Home again. (once again from campus)

Whew! There is just no time to breathe!

I was just in Rhode Island two days ago. Now all my stuff is in my New place and I experiencing the first day of classes. I haven't even had time to think about how I feel about being home, about leaving, about classes or about getting back to work at Bob Evans.

I know one thing. I saw a jar full of cash in Kirsti's room and I thought to myself..."I miss all that money". I now realize that I will miss all that money for the rest of my life. I foresee being forever poor. Oh well.

I still wish that I could call everyone and talk about the last few weeks. I still really miss my phone. I also miss my iPod which has been dead since the beginning of the summer. Today as soon as I get home I will spend most of the day unpacking all my things and trying to get them arranged in my new room. Sigh. I wish I had a week to JUST RELAX!

So they moved the Memorial Union computing site once again. It's a yearly thing I suppose. It's now in the Scott Joplin room down the hall. And the computers are all nice and brand new updated models. So much better than the ancient piece of poo that I was on most of the time in Rhode Island.

I've been to my first two classes. I have high expectation for each of them. My only worry is that Ecosystem Management is Writing intensive. And he MEANS writing intensive. None of this light mumbo jumbo which was the case with my last WI corse. I know I can do it and thanks to good genes, an awesome high school teacher and a general love for writing I should pass okay. It's just going to be hard. But I like my professors so far and I can't wait to get in the full swing of learning.

I just feel like I've had no to relax. Friday was a good day with dad. His flight came in at 12:30 on Friday morning. Thursday night I met up with Sarah and Kristi from church and went to Providence. We went to Thaer street. It's the equivalent of Delmar in St. Louis though not as long. We at an Indian food restaurant. I can't remember what it was called. The food was great. Then we got gelato which was also great. We walked around. All that took me to about 10:30. I spent the rest of the evening waiting on Dad at the airport.

(oop. had to stop and go to class. Now its Wednesday. No time to log anymore it seems. I will have to designate a day for it as usual).

Back to what I was talking about. The Airport in Warwick is quite small. The smallest I've ever been to. 4 baggage claims, one large room with an upstairs and a downstairs. Two sets of escalators and one Starbucks. I managed to get in a half an hour snooze before dads flight got in. Then it was a convoluted drive back to the trailers. I missed my turn off in the dark in light of my sleepiness and we took back roads all the way home. It would have been a nice detour if it hadn't been dark.

The next day was full of activity. We began with a breakfast of blueberry pancakes and scrambled eggs provided by me. Delicious. It was a beautiful morning. Then, we went right next door to Trustom Pond and walked one of the shorter trails so dad could get a taste of the beauty. That took us to about 10:30. We headed to Kettle Pond to drop off my keys and dad took a gander at the exhibits and things. We got a few things at the gift shop. Next it was my favorite drive to Newport. I love crossing two bridges over the ocean and seeing all the boats. I also love driving through downtown Newport. I only saw a little bit of providence but I think that I Like Newport a lot better. Anyway, we then went to Sacuest to walk the trails. About three miles of walking to be precise. I showed dad all the invasive plants in the area and all the beautiful views from the coast. We saw hordes of swallows. Wa watched the butterfiles. We skipped rocks in the waves. It was great fun. Then it was time to eat. I had never been to a restaurant in Newport but I had heard good things about The Red Parrot. We ate in the upstairs dining room at a table with a window. We both got different kinds of Mahi Mahi. Hawaiin for very mild fish that goes good with anything. At least thats what I think. I got coconut Mahi Mahi with mashed potatoes and asparagus. It was quite delightful. I loved every bite. Dad got sweet potato fries. The best things in the world. It was a great lunch. To work off lunch, we went along part of the Newport cliff walk. Nice views of the ocean. Then it was back into the car to drive along the ocean road that shows you some of the most spectacular mansions that you will ever see. Then home. We rested. Boy did I need it. I was exhausted! I'm not sure if I've mentioned it, but the best place ever for pizza is Mews. And thats where we went for a late dinner. It was insanely busy being a Saturday night. We had to wait 40 minutes. We whiled away the time walking up and back down the street in Downtown Wakefield eyeing the shops that were all closed. We chatted and it was nice. The pizza was fantastic as usual. We got one with broccoli, artichoke hearts, onion, pepper, pepperoni, sausage...I think that was it. It was mouth watering. And, because I promised myself that I would get it before I left Rhode Island, I got the peanut butter pie. Heaven in a thin cheesecake sized slice of peanutbuttery and chocolately goodness. Dad helped me finish it. Mmmmm. The perfect close to a great day.

For the sake of time I will not go into great detail concerning the drive back. Not that much happened. We stopped at a bakery 5 minutes for my trailer and got yummy baked things for breakfast. Also two chocolate chip cookies the size of your face. Then we were on our way. Moments worth noting are really only one and it was not pleasant. we missed the I-70 exit on the toll road through Pennsylvania because their signage is non-existant. That meant that when we finally got to the toll booth (40 minutes out of our way still on the toll road) we owed an poutragous amount of $12.50. Cash or check only. Neither of which I had enough of. I was about $1.50 short. So we had to pull into the office next to the toll booths and fill out this form asying that we will send a check to them with a little extra tacked on. So now I have to worry about that. This contrasts greatly with the toll man at the bridge on the way to Newport. I had lost the only token I had left and had pulled over into the small parking area of the bridge office. This man in an ornage vest came over. I told him I was looking for my token when with a simple "here you go" he handed us a token. What a wonderful addition to the world, this kind charitable man. I wont go so far as to say that I hate PA as much as I hate NE. But I will try never to drive through there if I can help it.

Blah. So we got to Elises, slept, ate breakfast and then went straight home because we missed sacrament meeting at Julis ward (SORRY JULI!! We both feel horrible bor not stopping in Crawfordsville). Made it home with no other incidents.

I have to go to class again. I think that I will just have to do an installment 2 of my first days back home. Tune in next time for the adventures of the Kung Pow Buckaroo Cafe...

Nearly There

Nearly where? Home of course. To the end of me internship in Rhode Island also. But where am I as a person here in the very last hours of my time here in a new place? Have I grown? Have I shrunk? Have I stayed the same?



I think the answer is no to those last two. I'd like to think that I've grown at least a little bit while being here.



I've definitely gained a lot of experince in the field I hope to go into in a year or two. I've had the chance to explore various different aspecte of conservation. I now knowwhich things I love most and which I like the least.



I love working with kids and with wildlife



I hate vegetation transects and getting rid of invasives.



And I just saw Courtney for the last time probably for the rest of my life! I'm here at Kettle Pond for the last Wildlife Wednesday. Courtney is leaving to go home for the rest of the week. She stoped by to say goodbye. We hugged and said that we would keep in touch. And that was it. She walked out of my life forever. No crying. It makes me laugh that at girls camp after seeing girls for a week I would cry at the end. The funniest part is that I would most likely see them again. Oh the emotional times of youth. I am sad. Don't get me wrong. Out of all the interns I will miss Courtney the most. I have never met anyone like that girl and I'm pretty sure that I never will. It's going to be weird being all alone tonight. No one else there. It's been like that one a couple weekends, but it's different this time. More empty because there isn't even a hint that the people are there.

So a few things about my last week. Perhaps I should have waited until I got home. But I feel like I will ahve no time for blogging for the nixt several days. TOmorrow is work, come home and clean, go to the Umbrella Factory and then I am meeting church friends in Providence. I feel like I should see that place before I leave. So I'll be there until I have to go pick up Dad from the airport in Warwick. Or is it Wickford? One of those 'W' names that make me think of 'Willow'. I hope that it's fun. I'm not sure what we will be doing. Though if they decide that they want to eat somewhere, I think I will have to split an appetizer. I'm so poor. I will try to direct their plans away from expensive food.

This week has been pretty hot and sweaty. The last thing I am helping with before I leave is getting things ready for the fall bird banding project. This entails determining where the ne lanes will be in the woods and thckets, then clearing the lanes of all vegetation so we can put the nets there. Lots of weed wacking and lopping branches. The bad part about all of this is that there is a lot and I mean A LOT of poison ivy and misquitos. The two worst things in the world. So I'm doused in bug spray the whole day which feels gross and I'm constantly paraniod that I am going to get a horrible case of poison ivy right before I leave. I bathe myself in technu every evening. But I fee like there is so much of it, it can get anywhere and I am constantly spreading it to places I forget about and it festers there,waiting to infect me.

All of this is tking place at Ninigret. Out of all the refuges, this one is my least favorite. If you ever go to rhde island feel no obligation to go to Ninigret.

Hopefully we will be finished with this tomorrow. The worst part of it is I wont be reaping the benefits of all this work. While Lisa, Rhonda and Courtney get to catch and band all the birds that come through, I'll be back in MO and in classes. Sigh.

I saw The Dark Knight again on Monday. Corey had a $7.50 off you ticket cupon that he couldn't use where he goes to school. So I used it. I paid $1.00 for my ticket. How awesome is that? It was even better the second time around. Not only because I noticed more but because this time the music wasn't too loud. It was fantactic. I am so glad that I got to see it again!

Tuesday I went to Happy Hour at Mews Tevern for the last time. SO sad. I will miss that delicious free pizza. The best pizza I have ever tasted.

Today was AMAZING...but only in terms of the weather. I had to use my big heavy quilt last night because it got so cold. Courtney yelled at me from her room insisting that it was too cold to get up and that we should take the morning off (only partly joking. It took her forever to get out of bed). I worked from 7:00-11:00. Went home and spent the afternon getting everything that I could paked. All I have left out are the clothes that I need, my bed things, my bathrom stuff and a few other random things like food I will be eathing and such.

I am getting ready to go. It's almost time. It's so weird saying goodbye. Tuesday I went with Tom Tetzners photography class for the last time. There is this little boy, Ben, who has come with his mom every week. Her is the cutest little boy. He and his mom made me a little card and got a very nice picture of the class and me developed. I also got some candy from them. It was a sweet little package. And as we prepared to part, the mom Jenn gave me a hug goodbye. I felt bad because I was sweaty. And it was a little weird because I had seen this woman 4 times, but every time we got to talking about life and such. I felt like I got to know her better than some of the people I've seen every day at work.

Along those lines there are those people that I see all the time and hardly know ad feel weird saying goodbye to becase I hardly even said hello. Specifically some people at work and people at church. I feel sad saying goodbye to the people I worked with the most. Rhonda, Erin, Courtney etc. I dont feel weird saying goodbye to Suzanne because I hardly saw her. Out of all my supervisors I will miss Janis the most. She has been so nice and supportive to me. And she's so sweet. I'm trying to get together with her before I leave. But that may not happen...and then I will never see her again unless i come back here sometime years in the future.

Anyway, the Wildlife Wednesday is ending and I have to close up. This will almost definitly be my last post from Rhode Island.

It's been quite a trip. I hope everyone is having a good week.

See you on the other side.

Last Days

Okay folks, were getting to the point where I can almost count my last days on two hands. Already it's my last weekend here!



I cannot begin to even fathom just how fast this summer has gone by. And yet, as I look back, events as recent as last weekend seem months away. It's blowing my mind!



It's been quite a busy week. It was Corey and Evans last. So Suzanne was working everyone extra hard to make sure as much as possible got done before we lost two more people. I spent the whole week working with Corey on all the projects that needed doing. Mostly this involved checking minnow traps every day in the morning. I have discovered muscles in my forearms that I didn't know existed. This also involved more phrag transects. Oh joy. This time I wore hip waders to keep my legs dry. The trick was not to fall over in the mid-thigh deep water. We also worked on measuring plants in the deer exclosures. This was both informative and tedious. Informative because I learned to identify many plants. Tedious because of the nature of this study bein done.



Dotted in the woods at Trustom Pond Wildlife Refuge are these circular wire exclosures. About 30 feet across and 10 feet high. Next to these are plots of a similar size marked by neon pink flags. The whole point is to compare the vegetation between the exclosure and the open plot next to it. The assumption is that deer may be frequenting the area and cannot get into the fenced area. So you see what kind of damage they are doing to the vegetation growth in the area. It is an interesting study. But gathering the data is not. You ahve to measure the three tallest plants of each species you find as well as estimate percent coverage of each species and rate their age. It's not too bad. Your in the shade the whole time and the woods are beautiful. But there is a lot of poison ivy. Plus, no matter how hard we looked Corey and I could not find one of the exclosures. They aren't that hard to see, as you can imagine. But there is one missing. Either it was moved, we were misinformed about it's location, they took it down without remembering they did so, or a group of mischevious gnomes came in the night and stole it. As of right now, the last possibility seem the most likely.



I went out with Tom Tetzners Photography class again on Tuesday. It was fun. I found out that Tom wants me to write a short little article about what were doing to either be put in the paper or a newsletter somewhere or something. I wasn't very clear on where it's being published or even if it will. As falttering as it is to get to write it, it's like having homework. I finally got a rough draft down and you can see it on my creative blog if you feel like popping on over there. Tom's wife is going to give it a rundown and I will fix it later. She's an english major. If any of my english major sisters feel like giving it a once over as well and giving me their thoughts feel free. I will not, however, discourage other comments from you non- english majors.



Wednesday I went on a kayak for the first time ever in my life! I think that I caught on pretty quick. We had to kayak over to some of the frag transects that weren't accesable by foot due to shrub coverage. It was fun and give you a good arm workout. I wish I knew someone with a canoe or kayak and that lived near a lake or pond that was close to me. More simply put, I sich I could canoe or kayak often.



I also went to the beach again on Tuesday with Courtney. We were in the water for a grand total of maybe 15 minuted before Courtney was scared out by jellyfish. I know that the last time I swam in the Atlantic ocean I too was scared of seaweed and jellyfish. But c'mon. You know the tiny ones aren't going to hurt you. And seaweed is just a plant. We're adults now. At least I know Courtneys sadult fear. We sat on the beach, tried to luer gulls over because courtney wanted to catch one. And I made a sand turtle. We left after an hour.



Thursday, us 4 interns tried to go minigolfing. But due to bad planning and some risky weather consisting rain, thunder and lightening, that plan was squashed flat. So we did what anyone else would do. We checked all the shops in the small shopping center nearby. Ths shopping center is much like the one in Columbia by the Conely super Wal-Mart. Theres a pet store, a neat toy shop, a salon, a pizza cheap pizza place, and even a dollar tree. Theres also a blockbuster and a game store. It's all located to the Stop N Shop that has been my grocery store for the last three months. So we went to the pet store, the toy store and dollar tree before we decided that we were too tired and hungry to continue. Oh, what an evening. Theres really nothing more to do in Rhode Island unless you want to drive 1/2 an hour to Westerly or 1 hour to Newport or Providence.

Anyway, moving on.

Friday was a day of goodbyes. This past week was Corey and Evans last week. Friday was really like ther other days of the week. We finished deer exclosures and still couldn't find the lost one. We almost got really stuck driving the Gator over a too narrow and wet bridge. We checked and pulled up all the minnow traps. Then we got a call from Suzanne. As a treat she was taking everyone out to Mews for lunch. YAY!!! It was lots of fun. And the best part was, on Wednesday as we were leaving happy hour, we passed this table area for big parties that was in this little alcove with those old fashoned saloon doors for privacy. I said, as we passed it, that before I left here I as going to eat at that table even if it meant reserving it for me and Dad when we eat there. Guess where they sat all of us on Friday? Yep. I was pretty excited. It was a nice lunch. I got a stromboli witha side salad. It was delicious and I got my favorite part out of it. LEFTOVERS!!! We shared a few fun memories and laughed. I got a few pictures. And then we all went back to the traliers to have the rest of the afternoon off so Corey and Evan could finish packing and get out of there.

Funny thing about their packing. Their tralier looked worse than mine and Cortneys does right now with the exception of a few bags that were actually packed. There was stuff all over the floor. All their food was still everywhere. It seemed they hadn't done dishes since they got there. They were both scrambling to get gone and their tralier was a mess. So, being the nice person that I am, I agreed to wash their dishes. This proved to be a gross idea. Many of their dishes had been there long enough to start growing things. One bowl contained what can only be described as something you'd find at the bottom of a smelly pond. It looked like some maphibian laid it's eggs in it. Pretty foul. I finished the dishes. The because I was on a roll and I was afraid that if I didn't do it, no one would, I cleaned the kitchen sink and the stove. By the time I was done, they were ready to leave.

Hugs were exchanged between all. Evan Hugs made sense. He's a nice kind of guy you want to hug. Corey hugs were a little more akward and more out of a feeling of obligation than anything else. Don't worry, there were no tears. It was weird the think that I couldn't really say "see you later" because I most likely wont. Oh well. There is always facebook. Corey is now in New York performing his R.A. duties and Evan is in Mass. helping with a migratory birding crew there. And me and Courtney are still here. The only ones left in the trailer park. FREE AT LAST!!!


Actually it's kind of weird. It hadn't really hit me that I'm actually leaving until today at church. I said goodbye to people that I barely got to know. The relief society president, the sunday school teacher who had finally remembered my name. The bishop who I had talked to maybe three times, John my beach friend. A gentleman, Bro. Smith, who had rescently been called to the bishopbric introduced himself to me for the first time. We had never oficially met as was the case with many members of the ward. I shoo his hand and let him know that it was my last Sunday. I felt bad that I didn't get to know more people. One of the sisters in the relief society overheard that I am majoring in Fisheries and Wildlife and she told me that she was originally from Alaska. I then told her that I was looking into an internship there maybe next summer. She gave me her e-mail because two of her kids work with fish and game in that state and she might be able to connect me. That would be amazing.

Anyway, me and the two girls I did get to know are going to Prividence Thursday night. I'll stay there and wait for dads flight to some in. Actually the airport is 15 minutes away from Providence but it's still close enough. So I'll get to see those girls one more time.

I'm not exactly what this coming week holds. I know I have to finish two phrag transects and one deer exclosure(the one we couldn't find). Thats if I can figure out how to use the GPS and find these things. Plus, now that Corey is gone I am sort of in charge of these things. I hope I can remember all the plants that I need to know.

So thats my week. I may or may not have the time to post once more before I leave. We'll see. I cant believe that I have less than a week here. I can't believe that I am actually leaving soon. I can't believe that I havn't started packing yet!!!!!!!



Love you all. I really miss talking to many of you over the phone. I can't wait to see many of you soon. Have a great week.