Some Monday.

Mondays have almost always been my favorite day of the week - especially after I starting working. Weekends are fun when you're a kid, or if you have one of those fantastic jobs that's Monday-Friday. Mondays, though, are a great day for me. No matter what job I've been working, Monday's are always the slowest, most pleasant, and the customers are nicer than any other time during the week. At least, this has been my experience. Today is a Monday of course. I had to work 1-6 today. It was my first actual on-the-schedule day at this job.

I'm still really enjoying this job and I've been there a little over a week - so I guess that's a pretty good sign, right? I hope so. I like the people I work with - I've known some of them for a few years even.

Today's customers varied in attitude, I guess. For the most part though, they were very friendly. What really made my day was the background music we had looping in the music section. We don't play whole songs - only a little of each song and the whole thing gets repeated all day. One of the "songs" played today was a song by Neko Case. My Dad actually got me started on her music - it always makes me happy to listen to it.

I had to get another associate to take a shift of mine on Thursday. One of the girls I work with was more than happy to take it and I'm very glad. Shane has an appointment at the hospital on Thursday and I have to take him and bring him home and stay home with him afterward. I'm only missing out on a three-hour shift so it's not that big of a loss.

Right now we have a lasagna in the oven and House on the TV - it's going to be a good night.

Getting Bored Again...

So I was doing really well at posting new entries for awhile...but...I think I got tired of not being read so I stopped again. Well, I'm back - for right now, I don't know if I'll really keep up with it.

I finally got a job. It's at an entertainment store - music, movies, books - that sort of thing. I love shopping there and I applied there awhile back. Today was my first day of training. I was supposed to do training on the computer, but instead they had me train on the floor. It was okay - fast-paced; it was Saturday so that figures. I hope I end up really liking it there - it'll help when I really get to know everything that needs to be known.

NHL preseason started about a week ago. The Canucks have played two games so far and have another game tonight - starting in a few minutes. Unfortunately they have lost their first two preseason games - but it doesn't matter at all, since it IS preseason. October 9th is their first regular game - I believe I have the right date.

Shane and I went down to my parents' house this evening for supper. My sister is home for the weekend so I wanted to make sure I saw her. I just found out tonight before supper that my Aunt and Uncle that also live in the same town as my parents just got a new dog! They've had her since Monday, I guess. Okay...here's the whole story:

When I was still a baby - just learning to talk - my Aunt took me to get a puppy. We picked out a small jack-russell terrier. She asked me what I wanted to name her and I said "Dog." She asked if there was something else I wanted to name her and this time I said what sounded like "B B Dog." Let me explain - I had two stuffed dolls when I was that age, one was a dog puppet that sort of looked like a jack-russell terrier that I called Dog and the other a pink and white baby doll that I called Baby. I believe the "B B" was meant to be "Baby." Anyway - the name stuck and for 16ish years the dog's name was B.B. Dog. She was one of those dogs that's really hard to find - really nice, sweet, quiet-ish. Well, she died a few years back. My Uncle's daughter bought them a new jack-russell puppy awhile after. She was named Pepper and she was terrible! She was too active, she barked a lot, and she almost never calmed down! They had to get rid of her - it was just too hard to take care of a dog like that. Well anyway...recently they saw in the paper that in the next town over the cops had found a jack-russell dog and needed a home for it. My Uncle has really been itching for a new dog so they went to go look at her on Monday and ended up bringing her home! She's really sweet. It was like seeing B.B. Dog again - I really almost cried. They named her Lady and that's exactly how she acts - just like a lady. :D

Anyway, I'm glad they have a good dog again. And I'm glad that they only live half hour away so I can go see them and Lady quite a bit.

I guess that's all I have to say right now. If I decide to keep posting I'll probably be keeping you up to date on Canucks games and scores and how my job is going - so if that interests you, keep coming back!

To All: Happy Hockey Season!

A Job Comin' Along...

Well, I got a call today from one of the places that interviewed me for a job. They asked me to come in to get my drug test paperwork. So, that's what I did. I made my appointment and tomorrow I'll go in for the test. I guess that means that if I pass the drug test (which I will) I've got the job. That's really good - 'cause, you know, it's been awhile since I've worked - ha.

Once everything is official you'll know about it, but for now I probably shouldn't say anything more about it.

Finally A Sports Season I Get!

It's finally almost hockey season!

To the right is the first part of the preseason schedule for the Canucks - my team. (I know it's a little hard to see - it got blurry when I made it smaller.)

The Canucks' first game is against the Calgary Flames on September 21st.

Back when I was first "introduced" to the Canucks they had their Dream Team. Naslund, Cloutier, the Sedins, Bertuzzi, Morrison, Linden. The Sedin twins - Henrik and Daniel - are the only ones left on the Canucks. Todd Bertuzzi now plays for the Red Wings. Brendan Morrison played for the Capitals last season. All the others are retired.

I used to keep up with the Red Wings before I started watching the Canucks so to have to go back to the Wings for Todd Bertuzzi won't hurt me too much. And of course, the Canucks will always be my team.

It would be amazing if I could get to a Canucks game this season - but I'm sure it's just not going to happen. It would be a dream to get to go to Vancouver for a game! Especially if Bif Naked was also having a show while we were there - ha.

Anyway, all I have to say is: Happy Hockey Season!

A Lion Among Men.

This is the book I'm currently reading. You should go look for it and the trilogy's first two books - Wicked and Son of a Witch.

I mentioned this series in an earlier post. The first book is the story of the Wicked Witch of the West - Elphaba. It explains why she was green, why she's so angry, and where the heck the flying monkeys came from. The author, Gregory Maguire, also incorporates the well-known story of The Wizard of Oz. It all works up to Dorothy showing up in Munchkinland and the death of the Witch.

The second book, Son of a Witch, is all about Liir - the "supposed" son of Elphaba. All through the book we don't actually find out if Liir is Elphaba's son or not, but we're led through his interesting adventures having a "guardian" like the Witch. We follow him as he meets Dorothy and her crew before she returns to Kansas.

A Lion Among Men has had its ups and downs for me. At one point I'm completely enthralled by the story, but the next minute I could completely lose interest. Maybe it's just me, but I've been having a little trouble staying "in" this book. I am still only a little over half through the book and I started it a couple months ago. I don't want this to deter anyone from reading this book.

In this book Maguire tells the story of the Cowardly Lion. We first meet him in the first book, but only briefly. In the third book we read how he came to be found by Dorothy, but not before we learn his background. You also find that he's really not that cowardly, just a little nervous and shy. As I said, I'm not finished with the book so I really can't say much about it.

If you were like me and had so many unanswered questions after watching The Wizard of Oz, the Wicked series is a great read. Maguire has an amazing talent for taking one of the best-known films and getting us more involved with the lives of the characters. I have not read the original novel, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum, but I wonder if the movie followed the novel very closely or if the writers took a lot of liberties with the story and characters. I also wonder if Baum wrote more of the characters' histories/backgrounds - and, perhaps, that's where Maguire got his inspiration. Either way, I love the series.

The first book of the series, Wicked, was turned into a Broadway play that became very famous. Of course, it's a musical. I have not seen the play but I have the soundtrack and by following the songs it doesn't seem like the play is exactly like the book. But you can only do so much when making a novel into a play, right? I'm excited to, eventually, see the play.

My sister and I had never seen The Wizard of Oz when were younger. When I was in junior high (I think...) our Mom got the part of Glinda in the play - performed by the Minden Community Players. That was the first time I'd seen it, but the story is a classic one and so nothing really came as a surprise to me. However, reading Wicked changed how I looked at the story. The way you see the main characters almost flip-flops from the way you feel about them in the movie. Obviously, everyone knows The Wicked Witch of the West is the "bad guy." She's ugly, green, and dresses in all black. And what's up with those flying monkeys? Glinda is most definitely the Good Witch - all polite, calm, and beautiful. But after reading the first book in the trilogy, you see that The Wicked Witch was justified in everything she did, she wasn't just "evil." And Glinda, well...what can I say? Glinda was kind of a bratty, spoiled, rich girl. I don't know - she's still Good, but she's a little too static a character to stay interesting. Glinda doesn't have a book all about her, now does she?

So, in closing...read these three books. They probably won't change your life, but they will entertain you - of that I am sure.

Ouch.

Here's a story for you - and you have every right to laugh at me.

The other day I was back at my parents' house. Mom was getting some things ready for a garage sale that they're going to have this month. In my old room there was a shoebox full - and I mean FULL - of my sister's and my earrings. Now, I use to "hoard" earring when I was in high school. Really, I bought lots of earring because I had lots of ear piercings. I found a pack of earrings that I use to love wearing - tiny little studs in bright colors. I thought I might try to see if my piercings were still open. I haven't worn all my earrings for years. Currently I have 13 ear piercings, but I've only been wearing 5 for a really long time. Now, I was super excited to find that I could get earrings in ALL the holes. So I went home like that.

Because I hadn't had so much metal in my ear cartilage that they almost instantly felt pretty stiff, but all piercings are like that. Cartilage is pretty temperamental. That was five days ago. I know have two red, swollen and semi-infected ears. I still have in the regular 5 earrings I wear, but the other 8 HAD to come out.

You know who Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer is. Well, I'd like to introduce you to Kaylee the Red-Eared Moron who that she could be cool again and wear all 13 earrings. :( It's a longer name, but it's very fitting.

Chili.

Who doesn't like a nice, warm bowl of chili? A little bit of spice, a little bit of cheese, a couple crackers...yum! And to top it off - cinnamon rolls!

That's what I'm making for tonight's supper. It's just cool enough outside today to make a person want warm soup. I make my chili in the slow-cooker all day. I started it around 9:30 this morning and it's going to be cooking until we eat around 6 this evening. I am so ready for it!

We had homemade chili out at Shane's Grandpa's farm for supper on Saturday. It really got me in the mood for fall and winter-type meals; all-day chili, ham and beans, chicken noodle soup. Oh, yum!

What I Would Do If I Had A Job.

That's a loaded title. I could easily say "Well, I would work." Har har.

I would be happy if I got a job in the near future. I wouldn't be so stressed out when it came to paying the bills every month. I would feel comfortable about Christmas - buying gifts and all that jazz.

I do feel bad that I haven't found a job yet. All the interviews I've had are just making me more and more discouraged. They all seem to go extremely well, "We'll give you a call by such-and-such day. It was really nice to meet you. We're glad you're so flexible with your hours and will take any position we offer."...Do I ever get a call back? I'm pretty sure it's not my cell phone's fault that those are the only calls I'm not getting.

I have an interview this afternoon. I am hoping for the best, but part of me is taking it worth a grain of salt - I've had so many interviews, this is just another one. The interview is a business that I frequent on a regular basis. Shane and I go there all the time, even when we don't need to. It seems like it would be a great place to work - now, just to get the job.

What would I do if I had a job? I would work. And I would enjoy it.

One Side.

This is the latest picture of myself with my husband's side of the family. This was taken outside the barn at Shane's Grandpa's farm. It's beautiful out there! This is the second Labor Day Yetter Photo I've had the chance to be part of. I know a lot of people don't necessarily get along well with their in-laws, but I love my in-laws. They're not even in-laws to me; more like just an extension of the family I already had. Big families are great families.

(From left to right: Josh, Ben, Dad, Mom, Me, Shane.)

Oh, What a Beautiful Day.

...except for the wind...

I had a good weekend. Shane and I went to his Grandpa's farm for a family reunion/labor day get-together. Sunday got really windy, hot, and dusty so I went back to my parents-in-law's house with my mother-in-law. My brother-in-law and his ...friend? (smile)...went back to. We just hung out and watched some TV in the air conditioning and went to bed early. Ben and Elaine went home last night. Today Mom and I just sat around and visiting - it was really nice. After noon Shane, his youngest brother, and his Dad got back to the house and Shane and I headed home. It's nice to be home. I actually unpacked! Shane and I played a little Guitar Hero, too.

Shane goes back to work tomorrow morning. And I'm heading to Wilcox to clean and visit the family. And that's about how things are going. I hope everyone had a great weekend and has a great week ahead of them. :)

Oh Lovely Issues.

I can't go into detail. Normally I would because I believe that if you do something wrong you should be called out. I just don't feel like opening up something I closed. Sure, I'm still upset about what's going on and what we heard last night only added fuel. But you know, this person is going to realize - one day - that what he's doing is wrong and hopefully he'll learn from his mistakes and become a better person. That's all I can hope for at this moment. If he doesn't learn and change then I pray that everybody that comes into his life doesn't get hurt like we have been.

All I want to say is How dare you talk about us like that. I don't even care what you say about me, but you cannot talk about my husband that way. How can you live with yourself when you do what you do?

There. I have vented my frustration and I'm breathing again. Thank you for listening.

Am I The Only One?

Okay, so...am I really the only one that thinks this man is attractive?

I joke around to my mom that this is the man I'm going to marry (ha ha.) Today I showed her a picture of him saying "See? He's cute!" Her reply..."Are you sure?"

All I'm saying is, Matt Bellamy is very attractive. Maybe Kate Hudson and myself are the only ones that think so.

How My Day Is Going...

I...can't...stop...sneezing.

Other than that - it's been good. Went to lunch with my parents and my little sister. Then we went shopping - I got two new pairs of jeans! I can't believe I found pants!! And, the cool thing...one pair I got are called "Kaylee Flare"...and you know, that's my name. I also bought my first pair of skinny jeans - they fit and aren't as uncomfortable as I thought they'd be. After we all hung out they brought me back to our apartment and we sat around a talked for awhile.

After eating a little supper Shane and I watched Date Night (really good movie.) Now he's watching football and I'm typing. After this I'm going to start typing up one of my short stories so it's finally backed up on my computer. I'd rather hand-write everything, but it's easier to add and delete parts when it's on the computer. I'm on the fence. :)

I don't get football. And now that's on the table. Do with it what you will. I'm a hockey girl - always will be.

Style in the Middle of the Night.

Here I sit, 1:30am, watching Style. What's on Style? Oh nothing, just a little show all about cheating celebrity couples. Why am I watching this crap? There's nothing else on. Oh and everytime I lay down to fall asleep my nose plugs back up and I can't breathe. I have to keep sitting - and that's not the most comfortable position for sleeping.

A few minutes ago (yeah this is basically Blogging in Realtime) I was half sitting, half lounging on the couch watching this amazing show with all the lights off in the living room. (Just an extra tidbit of information: I am so lightheaded because of my sinuses right now, it's very ridiculous.) All of a sudden, I thought I saw something out of the corner of my unfocused eye. Usually, when I "see" something, there's nothing there - especially at 1:30 in the morning. I turned my head anyway. And lo, and behold! There was actually something there! Yes! A SPIDER!

The other day there was a huge spider that was threatening me so I've been on edge about spiders lately. I just can't stand them like I used to. When I younger I'd just go ahead and pick it up (despite the size) or killed it with my bare feet. I guess this is like a person's tastebuds changing - only every 7 years I change my fears. Ha. Wow that sounds incredibly sane, right?

Anyway, there goes Kaylee - jumping off the couch to get even further away from the beast on the wall. I turned on all the lights I could and ran to the kitchen for the broom. This next part even surprises me. I, Kaylee, actually swung the broom in the general direction of the spider! I don't do these kinds of things! I must have hit the wall pretty close to the spider because it got flung to the floor and onto the multi-colored rug. I searched and searched and finally decided that the damned creature must have hid under the couch or was just that well camouflaged. When I came back from putting the broom away, very warily, I approached the rug. I shook out the blanket on the couch and peeked behind the pillows - no Mr. Scary. Then, from out of nowhere, he appeared right next to my flip-flop! (This is where I would add suspenseful music if I was making a movie.) Hurriedly, and yet carefully, I grabbed the twin flip-flop and started hitting, not exactly sure I was hitting the spider or just making an ass of myself.

And the beast was stricken to the ground! Yeah, it was basically that epic. You would not have laughed at me at all if you had been here. Nope, I was acting so normal that you would have mistaken me for someone else. Really.

Spider's dead.

Oh and if the title threw you off, let me explain in more detail. I don't actually have any style at any point on any given night. I am anti-style at this time of the night. And the murdering of a spider does not, in any way, create the illusion of style. No, it's exactly the opposite - barbaric, primitive, and oh-so-not-classy.

To all: Happy Spider Killing!

Allergies...

The last two years my allergies have not been too bad. It's been great having a break from itchy eyes, a puffy face, a runny nose, and a tickly throat. But...yes, unfortunately there is a but...this year they came back. I'm still taking the same allergy medication and I really don't go outside much. I don't know what's different - maybe the allergens are just worse here in Kearney than in North Platte. If that's the case - that was the only good think about North Platte ha.

On another note: I still don't have a job. I had a really good interview at Walgreen's the other day and apparently I didn't get that job either. They told me they were really hard up for help and I told them I would really like the job. They liked how flexible I'd be with my schedule, and still nothing. I don't know - I'm getting more and more discouraged after each unsuccessful interview...

Basting.

Yesterday was my Grandma's birthday - we all went out for lunch. It was really nice! :)

I took my quilting stuff down with me so my Aunt could help me with it. I'm very thankful that she knows what she's doing. Ha. We had an amusing time putting it all together - and with hindsight being what it is, I wish I would have had my camera. She and I were both on our hand and knees with our butts up in the air putting safety pins all over the quilt to keep the layers together. (I'm feeling it today.) At the time it was just ridiculous - Mom and Taylor were making fun of us -oh, we were making fun of ourselves.

After the fun safety pin part we flipped the whole thing over to make sure it was all even and flat. Thank goodness that it was - it took forever to get those safety pins in!

Then we started to baste the quilt. If you don't know what that is - it's when you take a noticeable colored thread and just stitch the layers together to keep it all together when you're quilting it. These threads will come out when I'm done - but I'm starting to like the bright orange on top of all the green fabric! My Aunt and I started the basting. Apparently my sister had started making a quilt a long time ago and there is a funny basting story to go along with it!

Aunt Becky eventually had to go home and left me to finish the basting. Somehow, and I honestly don't know how this happened, but I actually got my sister to help me do some of the basting! Having heard her basting story, I figured it was against my better judgment to have her help me - but she did a really good job. Except for overthreading her needle!

So we got the basting done. I rolled it up and brought it home and now I just need to get together with my Aunt again so she can show me how to hand-quilt. I know what I need to do, and what it's supposed to look like in the end, but it's hard to really learn from websites and videos. Having her show me one-on-one will be much better. Then...it's quilting, quilting, and quilting. It's going to take me awhile - it'll make a good winter project.

If you're interesting in knowing exactly what basting is and how to do it click here.

What's So Wrong With Coffee?

I get it, I really do. Coffee is bad. It's just as addictive as cigarettes, alcohol, etc.

Do you know when I started drinking coffee? I was roughly three years old. I only started in with the coffee when I quit smoking. Okay, no? That was a lie. Three years old - drinking coffee. Many people have a few problems with that. 'It stunts your growth,' 'that's probably why you have weight issues,' 'all of that caffeine for that long? My goodness, how's your brain?' Yeah I know...however, I really don't think coffee stunts your growth.

Who do I blame for letting me drink coffee so early in life? Yup, my loving Grandparents. I really can't say if I am really to blame for begging for coffee or if one of them just gave it to me. I could see it happening both ways. With my Grandparents I knew what to do to get what I wanted. Grandpa, however, was the type to get you to try random things just out of the blue. (For example, he had my little sister drive his pickup when she was - what? - eight years old, I think.) Just try it, you'll like it. I can hear him saying that. Now, don't get me wrong. He would never make us try anything that would hurt us. There was never any trying of alcohol (it was never around) or smoking of cigarettes, or anything else. It really was almost always just with food - trying to get us to eat something new or something old with something weird on top of it. Ha. He had his ways.

Okay, back to Coffee. It's a nice beverage. I'm the person that makes a whole pot of coffee (about 5 coffee mugs worth) for myself every morning. I like it black most of the time. I do keep creamer in the house though in case one morning I've got a wild hair to have a sugary breakfast. My husband doesn't drink coffee. For awhile, when we were still in North Platte, he would have a cup in the morning with me, but he put tons of Coffee Mate in it. So much, in fact, there was no trace of coffee taste left! I'll admit those Coffee Mate flavored creamers are delicious, but I'd rather taste the coffee.

My Mom doesn't drink coffee. She hates coffee, actually. When it comes to having the family over for holidays she doesn't even know how to use the coffee pot! My Dad drinks coffee, but not at home. He usually has a travel-mug of decaf with him during work. Now, a lot of people either swear by decaf or by regular coffee. For those people it's the caffeine, or lack of, they want. For me, it doesn't matter if it's regular or not. I want coffee for the taste. Does anyone actually like the taste of coffee? It's like cigarettes - though, I have never tried them - there's no way that smoke actually tastes good, it's just the mind telling you it's good because your body is addicted to the chemicals. Chronic caffeine-drinkers are the same. They crave the caffeine boost so badly they'll drink anything. I mean, come on, bean water? Coffee is bean water, people. Even I tremble at the thought of that. Ha.

I think I'm straying from the initial point of this post - which I don't remember anymore. So to summarize: Coffee good. Blame Grandparents. Bean water. That is all.

To all: Happy Coffee Drinking!

Catching Up.

I feel really good right now. Tonight I had supper with my long-time best friend, Courtney. We've been friends since preschool. Like all ships our friendship has had its ups and downs but we've lasted. A nineteen year friendship - a lot of people can't compare.

After high school we decided to be roomies at college. She wasn't around the dorm much so that was really when we started to drift apart. And not necessarily in a bad way - we just made our own groups of friends. In time we moved away from Kearney - she to the Omaha area, I to North Platte, both in different directions.

We've been talking more often lately. She is getting married next summer and I am involved in the wedding so there's plenty to talk about. This weekend she was back at her parents' house in our old hometown so we were able to get together for a girls' night out. Supper at Applebee's, a quick trip through Target, and a nice talk while driving around town. Just like old times. Tonight our conversations seemed to pick up where they left off back in high school. We talked about boys, families, and people we mutually dislike. Only the addition of wedding talk brought us back to the present.

I am very glad to have these times with old friends - to get to catch up and have fun like we used to. These visits are too few and far between, but maybe this was the first stepping stone to take to getting our friendship back to where it was. Love you, Courtney!

Maybe Strange.

Has this ever happened to you? Something happens, or somebody does something and you can't help thinking it has everything to do with you? That you take something so personally that it eats at you, but you don't want to confront the other people because you don't want to sound like the world revolves around you? Yeah, so that's happening to me - currently. Now, it could be just a simple glitch in a website, maybe it was purely accident. However, I still can't help but think that it has something to do personally with me. Uhg. Maybe I'm just thinking way too much. I need to stop that.

A Child's Saturday.

Remember when Saturdays were the only day we looked forward to? When our only worries were waking up in time to watch Saturday morning cartoons? I wish it was still like that. Adults everywhere should reserve their Saturday mornings strictly for cartoons and a bowl of sugary cereal. Maybe I just solved all the world's problems - instead of waking up super early on a Saturday to rush to work for a working weekend just sit back and relax and enjoy being a kid for a couple hours.

Just A Monday.

I did almost nothing today. Woke up, had coffee, made the bed, worked on my cross-stitch project pretty much all day, and had some dinner - just a little bit of leftovers from yesterday.

I really wanted to go on a walk this evening when Shane got off of work, but he didn't want to. It's just really nice to have someone to walk with - not to mention, it's safer. So we stayed in and watched some Buffy the Vampire Slayer (which is good.) Tomorrow I should be able to go on a nice long walk with my sister.

My cross-stitch thing is almost done. I have one small section to finish and then outline the words.

I'm a little disappointed, I just realized, that we didn't go for a walk tonight. I'm the kind of person that needs a support system when it comes to sticking with dieting and/or exercise and I was really depending on my husband.

Well, gee - that's a downer.

Vacations and Bad Moods.

Early Friday morning I left for Omaha with my parents and little sister. The four of us haven't been on a family vacation for a really long time so it was so nice to get out of town with them. On Friday we spent the day at the zoo and Saturday we went to two malls and did more walking around.

On the diet note: I splurged a little this weekend while on vacation. Last night I had a piece of pie at Perkins after Shane, Ben, and I got done playing pool at the Big Apple. Today, Shane and I didn't wake up until right before noon so we only had one meal - nachos (homemade - so not as bad as fast food nachos.) I also had coffee and two mini cinnamon bagels. I really need to get back on a healthy eating kick. This weekend I did get a lot of exercising walking around the zoo and the malls for two days. My legs feel sore, but in a good way - like they're actually going to get toned.

The last few days I haven't been feeling well. I've been getting headaches again, but they're different than normal. They're more "blurry" feeling instead of just a pain in the head. I've been super moody, too. I know, I know - I'm moody on a normal day. But this is different. And this isn't "that time of the month" stuff either. I know what I'm like during those times and this is definitely not the same. For a while I was just thinking that I was coming down with something and it just made me feel crappy. Now I don't know what to think because I've never felt exactly like this before.

Well, that's about it. Fun weekend, headaches, and emotions.

Operation: Healthy.

Well, I tried to eat a little healthier today. With my morning coffee I had two mini-cinnamon bagels - dry. For lunch I had a bowl of cereal. And for dinner we had steak, cucumbers, and a potato salad. Of course, that potato salad wasn't super healthy. But for now it's mostly about portion control and no junk food.

This weekend, being on a little mini-vacation, it will be easier not to just sit around and eat junk. We'll also be walking around the zoo all day Friday so that'll be great exercise.

Today when my husband got off of work he and I went for a nice long walk. It was hot out but I really felt like going anyway. I'm glad I did.

I think I might actually be able to stick with it this time.

This Has To Work.

Alright - this is what needs to happen: Kaylee needs to lose mucho weight. I didn't realize how bad it really was until I stepped on the scale a couple minutes ago. My goal is to lose 40 pounds, but I don't know if I can do it. I think I need to go back on a low-carb diet, but that's so hard when we really only have enough money to pay bills and buy inexpensive groceries.

So here's what I'm thinking...try to get back on a "healthier" diet to begin with. Once I can get myself a job and we have a little more income we'll be able to afford to buy more proteins and fresh vegetables for a low-carb diet. Then, I'll finally be able to get back on the only diet that ever really worked for me.

Along with the diet, I'll need to make sure I start exercising again. I need to get on the bike, at least... or take long walks in the evenings when the sun isn't so angry. I really need to do this.

I've known for awhile that I've been steadily gaining weight and, with the weight gain, I don't feel as healthy as I thought I was. Okay, and also, next summer is my friend, Courtney's wedding. I don't want to look like how I feel in the dress I'll be wearing. This will give me a deadline, and that's really what I need. I hope this works!

If you read this blog - please pray for me. I will need all the help and support I can get.

(And, whenever I put up a new post I'm going to include my eating habits so I can keep track of my eating and exercising.)

Cheater!

A couple Christmases ago my husband bought me a Nintendo DS. I only have three games for it and I don't play them very often. Today I decided to dig it out so I could take it with me on our family vacation this weekend. I wanted to run down the battery so I could fully charge for the car-ride so I played some games. The Clubhouse Games pack was already loaded so I just turned that on. I usually just play billiards, darts, solitaire, or capture. The game "ludo" (or Sorry, in board-game form) is on the game pack. I rarely play it because it takes forever. And as I discovered today it's a big cheating jerk!

If you know how the game is played you know that you have to roll a "6" to get out of your holding area. On the DS the only way to play is by playing the computer. The computer is always the first to get a 6. It's also the computer that gets 2 of the 4 game pieces into the safe-zone before you get even 1 piece out of the holding area! I played twice today and both times I lost miserably. I've decided that the DS is a cheater at Ludo and I will not give it the satisfaction of winning against me ever again.

Lesson For the Day: Beware of cheating game systems!

Almost Midnight.

This is just one of my many doodles.

I'm still awake - I want to go to bed but I can't sleep. Once I lay down I start thinking about everything and then I can't just concentrate on sleeping.

Then I end up sleeping later than I'd like the next day and my schedule just keeps getting more and more unaligned.

It's frustrating.
I like looking at my doodle though. It's pretty.

Thank You.

Okay, so I signed in to find that I had a comment on my blog! It sounds so pathetic, but I got so excited! It's been a long time since I've had a comment on any of my posts.

So this is just to say Thank You to Sarena for commenting on my post! I love you dear!

Thinking Aloud.

Sometimes my thinking aloud gets me in trouble. At other times it helps me figure out what I need to do.

Yesterday I thought aloud - to my husband. I told him what was bothering me - and a lot does.

Quick disclaimer: this post might seem like a pity-party; it's not my goal to complain - only to explain. Here we go.

One problem I'm having is my weight. I wish I could find a good weight-losing support system. My husband is wanting to lose weight too, but we have the same problem with that - we both get burned out on portion-control, and work outs, and anything else. We're both so lazy sometimes. I sometimes wish I had married a health freak, an exercise mogul, a diet tyrant. (That's not to say I wish I hadn't married Shane, ha.) I love to eat...too much. While I'm eating one thing I'm craving the next thing. You could say I'm one of those people that has a bottomless stomach - but I can stop. I can't stand being hungry - I get cranky and shaky. Everyone wants a quick fix to weight-loss and that doesn't exclude me. But I know there will never be a quick way to lose weight and remain healthy. I need help.

Lately, I've been very discouraged about not being able to get a job. I don't need to go into detail about how the economy sucks and how hard it is out there to land any sort of income. So I'll move on to the next thing.

Someday I'd like to be someone's go-to friend. I know that sounds petty and high-schooly. I know I have friends out there, but I never seem to be able to hang out with them. All of my friends have their own group of friends that they go out with more often. I believe part of my problem is that I lived hours away for a few years and now some people don't think I want to hang out with them. I do, though.

So this is me thinking out loud. I guess it doesn't help sometimes.

Quilts.

Very recently I have started trying my hand at quilting. I thought to myself one day, "why not give this a try." Long story short, I tried.

My Great-Grandma Russell made quilts. They ranged from queen-sized to little doll blankets for my sister and I. I remember going down to Kansas to visit her and find her sitting on her couch with a shoebox full of fabric squares, stitching them all together. My little quilt she made me is still at my parents' house - I really should bring that back up here.

When I was younger - I can't remember the exact age - my Aunt and I started a project just because we were bored one day. We started a yo-yo quilt. To begin with it was really fun cutting out all the circle pieces needed for the yo-yos. Then I started actually making the yo-yos. Not too long after we started it I got bored with it - being the young kid I was - and she finished it. It's a really fun quilt. She used to have it in her guest room on the bed for a long time.

Last summer I went to a quilt show with the ladies in my family. Seeing all those beautiful and intricate quilts made me want to make something just as beautiful. Soon after that weekend I bought some fabric, stitching needles, pins, and all the other stuff I'd need to make a quilt. I chose five different patterned fabrics. They're all a different green - it's my favorite color. I got right to work stenciling and cutting out the squares - 140 of them. I decided to use bigger squares for my first quilt; I thought they'd be easier to work with. As it turned out, it seemed almost too easy.

After cutting out all the squares I started hand-stitching ten squares together for each row. I don't remember why now but I ended up putting it away in a closet after the second row was complete. I burn out easily with projects that I start - even though I do always finish what I started eventually. In April my husband and I moved to Kearney and the shoebox of quilt squares came along with all my yarn and cross-stitching projects.

A couple of days ago my hands got bored while I was watching a movie so I pulled out my unfinished quilt. Earlier today I finished stitching all the squares into rows. I had fourteen rows total. I pulled out my sewing machine and set it up in the living room so I could watch TV while working. A few hours later the rows were all sewn together! It seemed to go too fast.

So now I have the quilt top done and it looks really good - maybe even a little better than a first quilt should. All I have left to do is head to the store one of these days and get a backing material and sew it on to the topper. I think I'm going to use a flannel so we can use it in the winter. Also, I've decided I'm not going to use batting inside the quilt just so we can use the quilt when it's not freezing.

Though I have given it plenty of thought, I still don't know how I'm going to do the actual quilting. I could just use the sewing machine, but I'm still pretty inexperienced with it. Then I considered hand-quilting it. That's going to take much more time, but it might be worth it. Also, I need to figure out a pattern for the stitching. Uhg, so many decisions! Maybe I'll ask my Aunt for suggestions since she's so much better than I.

When I get the backing sewn on I'll put up a picture or two so keeping coming back!

Writing and Thoughts.

I wish I could get back into the writing groove. There really isn't much more I can say about it. It used to be so easy for me to just sit down and write a poem, some lyrics, or at least ideas for a short story - anything! Now, it just seems like I have to force myself to even consider opening a notebook. When I think about writing all that comes to mind is me sitting with a pen in my hand and a notebook on my lap for hours not being able to think of anything to write. In turn, I get discouraged and the poor notebook stays in the drawer.

***

Last night my sister and I learned something about someone. It's not a big deal, really. But...it is. I don't know - I don't want it all over the internet so there's so many details I can't disclose. It was just a big shocker and we didn't really know how to take it. I guess I can't say much else...

***

On to something else, now. I pulled out my collection of Sharpie markers tonight and doodled for awhile. The smell of the ink is stuck in my nose and I think I can almost taste it. I hope another dose of mouthwash will help that.

The highway south of town has too much construction going on. Yesterday when I was heading out of town I had to sit and wait for the pilot vehicle for about 10 minutes - at the time it felt like an hour. Oh, but today coming home I had to wait over half an hour to get going. I really wouldn't have been too frustrated - but I noticed when the pilot car got back to our end there were only five cars following him! Five! I just couldn't believe they spent half and hour waiting for five cars. Oh well, I wasn't in a hurry so I really shouldn't complain.

Tomorrow I should clean the apartment. I think it's bedtime, kiddies.

Good night and to all: A very happy Thursday!

Court Shows.

I like to torture myself. Every morning I reach for the remote and flip over to Fox and watch court shows until after noon. I hate these shows so there is no way for me to explain why I can't just turn the channel. All of these cases are so ridiculous. If I knew any of these people I could easily solve their problems with three simple words - Stop Being Stupid.

Okay, so I know small-claim courts are vital to actual real life people who are collecting from bills, or rent, or stolen items. Obviously, when you put anything on day-time tv it'll get blown way out of the water and all of a sudden a simple "He didn't pay his rent" turns into "He cheated on me and my cousin with our best friend and he's all of our baby daddy and he's on drugs and he brings girls over when I'm home...oh, yeah, and he didn't pay rent last month." (I apologize for that terrible run-on, but at least I didn't spell everything like they actually say it.)

Now, I watch all of these court shows. From Judge Mathis clear down to People's Court at 2:30. At one point I told myself I was watching these shows to feel better about myself, but who am I kidding? At the end of the day I just feel awful that these people are so ridiculously ignorant and I can't do anything about it!

There are two judges that I really like. First is Judge Alex Ferrer (and not just because his last name is similar to my maiden name ha.) He's actually a good judge. If the case starts getting out of hand or doesn't make sense he won't even deal with it. Secondly, I like Judge Lynn Toler from Divorce Court. With all of my heart I hate listening to the ex-couple ranting and arguing. I just think Judge Toler is very fair.

So, now you know that I'm a court show junkie. I'm so embarrassed.

Art.

Some of you may know that I used to do a lot of art projects in my free time. The three pieces that are now on my Blog are all mine. I just thought I would share a few of my pieces while personalizing my page. They are three of my favorite pieces that I've done. I hope you enjoy them as much as I.

Taking high school art classes and doing my own painting at home I've found that I really love painting with water colors. There's so much you can do with water colors. They're easier to blend and move and it always looks abstract. Maybe one of these days I'll dig my water colors and paint brushes out again and see what I can come up with.

My latest form of "doodle" art (ha) is with Sharpies. I work a lot with lines and geometric shapes. Almost everything I do in Sharpie is accented with dashes or dots or paisley-type shapes. Most of what I do I just consider doodling. I don't expect to make a fortune off of something I drew on the back cardboard of a notebook in silver Sharpie. However, I would love to eventually frame and hang some of my favorites. When it comes to my Sharpie doodles I usually use black or silver so they really go together.

Pencil and ball point pen are both fun to draw with. They're finer so you can get more intricate with whatever you're making.

I was never really a fan of acrylic paints unless I was painting an object - like clay. Maybe if I gave it another shot I'd end up liking it. Who knows, huh?

Well, I'm off to continue A Lion Among Men. I'm trying to finish it so I can let you know how it is.

One Hundred Fifty Books.

Hooray! I made it to Post No. 150!!!! And as I promised here are a few books...

(Well we better just get down to work here - it's going to take me a while.)


1. Spring Came On Forever - Bess Streeter Aldrich
2. The Holy Bible
3. A Clockwork Orange - Anthony Burgess
4. In Cold Blood - Truman Capote
5. The Abyss - Orson Scott Card
6. Behind The Attic Wall - Sylvia Cassedy
7. I Heard That Song Before - Mary Higgins Clark
8. Loves Music, Loves To Dance - Mary Higgins Clark
9. Two Little Girls in Blue - Marry Higgins Clark
10. The Andromeda Strain - Michael Crichton
11. The Muse Asylum - David Czuchlewski
12. House of Leaves - Mark Z. Danielewski
13. The Body Artist - Don DeLillo
14. The Stolen Child - Keith Donohue
15. House of Sand and Fog - Andre Dubus III
16. The Memory Keepers Daughter - Kim Edwards
17. The Last Promise - Richard Paul Evans
18. Alas, Babylon - Pat Frank
19. Lord of the Flies - William Golding
20. Grimm's Fairy Tales - The Brothers Grimm
21. Water For Elephants - Sara Gruen
22. Snow Falling On Cedars - David Guterson
23. Five Quarters of the Orange - Joanne Harris
24. Gentlemen & Players - Joanne Harris
25. The House of the Seven Gables - Nathaniel Hawthorne
26. The King's Evil - Will Heinrich
27. Lost Horizon - James Hilton
28. At Risk - Alice Hoffman
29. Blue Diary - Alice Hoffman
30. Fortune's Daughter - Alice Hoffman
31. Here on Earth - Alice Hoffman
32. The Ice Queen - Alice Hoffman
33. Incantation - Alice Hoffman
34. Practical Magic - Alice Hoffman
35. The River King - Alice Hoffman
36. Skylight Confessions - Alice Hoffman
37. The Third Angel - Alice Hoffman
38. Turtle Moon - Alice Hoffman
39. Titanic - Diane Hoh
40. Remember the Titanic - Diane Hoh
41. Redwall - Brian Jacques
42. The Love Dare - Stephen & Alex Kendrick
43. Devil May Cry - Sherrilyn Kenyon
44. Bag of Bones - Stephen King
45. Cell - Stephen King
46. Everything's Eventual - Stephen King
47. The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon - Stephen King
48. The Two Dead Girls - Stephen King
49. The Mouse on the Mile - Stephen King
50. Hearts in Atlantis - Stephen King
51. Just After Sunset - Stephen King
52. It - Stephen King
53. Under The Dome - Stephen King
54. Winning Words - Allen Klein
55. The Book of Bright Ideas - Sandra Kring
56. Left Behind - Tim LaHaye, Jerry B. Jenkins
57. Tribulation Force - Tim LaHaye, Jerry B. Jenkins
58. Nicolae - Tim LaHaye, Jerry B. Jenkins
59. Soul Harvest - Tim LaHaye, Jerry B. Jenkins
60. Apollyon - Tim LaHaye, Jerry B. Jenkins
61. Assassins - Tim LaHaye, Jerry B. Jenkins
62. The Indwelling - Tim LaHaye, Jerry B. Jenkins
63. The Mark - Tim LaHaye, Jerry B. Jenkins
64. Desecration - Tim LaHaye, Jerry B. Jenkins
65. The Remnant - Tim LaHaye, Jerry B. Jenkins
66. Armageddon - Tim LaHaye, Jerry B. Jenkins
67. She's Come Undone - Wally Lamb
68. The Haunted Mesa - Louis L'amour
69. Last of the Breed - Louis L'amour
70. Here in the World - Victoria Lancelotta
71. Crow Lake - Mary Lawson
72. Indian Captive - Lois Lenski
73. The Chronicles of Narnia - C. S. Lewis
74. Darkly Dreaming Dexter - Jeff Lindsay
75. Dearly Devoted Dexter - Jeff Lindsay
76. Dexter in the Dark - Jeff Lindsay
77. Dexter By Design - Jeff Lindsay
78. The Giver - Lois Lowry
79. Little Farm in the Ozarks - Roger Lea MacBride
80. Son of a Witch - Gregory Maguire
81. A Lion Among Men - Gregory Maguire
82. Hilda and Pearl - Alice Hattison
83. Everything in This Country Must - Colum McCann
84. Blood Promise - Richelle Mead
85. Moby Dick - Herman Melville
86. The Hose - Stephenie Meyer
87. Twilight - Stephenie Meyer
88. New Moon - Stephenie Meyer
89. Eclipse - Stephenie Meyer
90. Breaking Dawn - Stephenie Meyer
91. Paradise Lost - John Milton
92. Anne of Green Gables - L. M. Montgomery
93. Anne of Avonlea - L. M. Montgomery
94. Anne of The Island - L. M. Montgomery
95. Anne of Windy Poplars - L. M. Montgomery
96. Anne's House of Dreams - L. M. Montgomery
97. Anne of Ingleside - L. M. Montgomery
98. Rainbow Valley - L. M. Montgomery
99. 1984 - George Orwell
100. Animal Farm - George Orwell
101. The Poe Reader - Edgar Allan Poe
102. Complete Tales & Poems - Edgar Allan Poe
103. Contemporary American Poetry - Ed. A. Poulin, Jr. & Michael Waters
104. The Best American Poetry - Ed. Rita Dove & David Lehman
105. Four Centuries of Great Love Poems - compiled. Debra Starr
106. Carillon: 2006 - UNK student contributors
107. Carillon: 2007 - UNK student contributors
108. Vampires - Ed. Alan Ryan
109. Franny and Zooey - J. D. Salinger
110. Nine Stories - J. D. Salinger
111. And Eye For An Eye: The Doll - John Saul
112. Twist of Fate: The Locket - John Saul
113. Ashes To Ashes: The Dragon's Flame - John Saul
114. In The Shadow of Evil: The Handkerchief - John Saul
115. Day of Reckoning: The Stereoscope - John Saul
116. Asylum - John Saul
117. The Reader - Bernhard Schlink
118. The Lovely Bones - Alice Sebold
119. An Equal Music - Vikram Seth
120. Black Beauty - Anna Sewell
121. Othello - William Shakespeare
122. Three Romantic Tragdies - William Shakespeare
123. The Sonnets and Other Love Poems - William Shakespeare
124. Frankenstein - Mary Shelley
125. The Theban Plays - Sophocles
126. The Notebook - Nicholas Sparks
127. The Pearl - John Steinbeck
128. Dracula - Bram Stoker
129. 2012 - Whitley Strieber
130. Warday - Whitley Strieber & James Kunetka
131. Amy and Isabelle - Elizabeth Strout
132. The Hobbit - J.R.R. Tolkien
133. The Fellowship of the Ring - J.R.R. Tolkien
134. The Two Towers - J.R.R. Tolkien
135. The Return of the King - J.R.R. Tolkien
136. Slow Waltz in Cedar Bend - Robert James Waller
137. The Island of Dr. Moreau
138. Until They Bring The Streetcars Back - Stanley Gordon West
139. The Picture of Dorian Gray - Oscar Wilde
140. The Shack - Paul Young
141. Level 26 - Anthony E. Zuiker
142. The Metamorphosis - Franz Kafka
143. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer - Mark Twain
144. Adventures of Huckleberry Finn - Mark Twain
145. One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish - Dr. Seuss
146. Go, Dog, Go - Dr. Seuss
147. Put Me In The Zoo - Dr. Seuss
148. I Wish That I Had Duck Feet - Dr. Seuss
149. If I Ran The Zoo - Dr. Seuss

And now...(drumroll)...my 150th and most favorite book ever...

150. Frog and Toad Together - Arnold Lobel

Oh, that took awhile! I thank you if you took the time to read this post. Are there any books in my list that you've read, want to read, or want to discuss? I love discussing books with people that have also read that book.

Note: I have not yet read every book on this list. I have this problem. See, everytime I go to a used bookstore I buy more than one book at a time. Those books end up on my bookshelf while I'm reading all the other books I haven't read yet. I know I really should not buy anymore books until I get all of these read and then maybe only buy one book at a time. Oh, I just love books so much!

I'm going to leave you with a quote, now, that describes all too well my feeling toward books.

"My books are friends that will never fail me." -Unknown.

Good day and good reading.

I Have Decided.

After a long 20 minutes of distracted thinking I have finally come to a decision regarding my plans for my 150th post!

I am going to list 150 of the books in my possession and their authors right here on Sunglasses On A Desk. Some said it could never be done, many said it could obviously be done, I say, "Let's do it anyway."

So, tune in next time when I shall reveal 150 of my books to - most likely - no one. (I'm really not positive if anyone reads this anymore...) It's sure to dazzle and excite! Come one, come all! (Apparently I'm a circus now.) Be awed. Be amazed. Be a maze. Be...unable to contain yourselves as you read from 1 to 150!

And here we go...

...to bed for now.

Buffy and Books.

Hello there all my Readers. If you are still reading.

(This is now my 148th post and I still have not decided what I'm going to do for my 150th! Any suggestions?)

This weekend was really fun. Shane and I drove up to Sutherland Friday evening to spend the weekend with his family. His Dad had to work most of the weekend so we didn't see much of him, unfortunately. We did a ridiculous amount of visiting - which is great! - and watched a couple of movies. On Saturday Shane's Mom made her wonderful cabbage pockets for lunch and Shane made some kind of bread/cinnamon/brown sugar dessert. We played Scrabble that afternoon - I didn't win, like usual. Ha. I watched Shane and his youngest brother play some video games. They were mostly zombie games so they were pretty interesting to watch. In the evening we were all in the mood for a scary movie but we couldn't really think of any. We ended up watching the new Friday the 13th. Too much sex and nudity and not enough actual scaring going on. Later on that night we watched Child's Play 2. Now, that's a good movie. Hm, yesterday we also did some karaoke-ing (verb? ha) and, you know, that's always fun.

Now we're back in Kearney. We continued our Buffy-thon after we made a supper of nachos and onion rings (Shane and I get the strangest cravings.) We're on Season 2 of Buffy now. A couple years ago we watched all 7 seasons together. I had seen most of the episodes a couple years before that. I guess you can say I like the show, huh?

Shane's in bed now - he's got to go to work tomorrow. I just put down A Lion Among Men for a few minutes to type this. The story is a little on the slow side right now. I really hope it picks up so it can, at least, match the other two books.

Oh, books. I love having books on my bookshelf. We have a large 5-shelf bookshelf and we're in desperate need of another one. All five shelves are full and we've started to lay our new books on top of the standing ones. Oh, and Shane and I have three books off the shelf - so...I'd say it's time for a new one.

At one time I was thinking about looking into getting an Amazon Kindle. Both Shane and my Mom were considering one for a present for me, too. They know me too well, though. They know I like to hear the pages being turned, smell the new - or old - smell of the books, and even alphabetize and rearrange them everytime I get a new book. Sure, a Kindle or another product like it would be great. For someone else. For me, I'm going to stick with books. However, I will say this - if I would ever have to travel somewhere and have to lug a bunch of heavy books with me I might deeply consider getting a Kindle. But when it comes to my own personal reading I'll take the paper version.

I am going to leave you with a quote from Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

"To read makes our speaking English good." - Xander (referring to why he is in the library)

Goodnight All - and happy reading.

Post No. 147.

I just realized that I'm almost to my 150th Post! I want to do something special - something involving 150 somethings. I'll think of...erm...something.

This afternoon Shane and I are heading up to Sutherland to spend the weekend with his family. I don't think we have anything special planned. It's always fun just to hang out and play it by ear.

Today was really nothing outside of the box. I woke up, picked up the apartment, did an unusually large amount of dishes, ate lunch, and packed for the weekend.

Three short paragraphs,
This blog is getting boring.
*Exciting Haiku!*

I read all of my posts on this blog last night and realized I completely got away from Poetry! I don't read or write poetry anymore, but you can never go wrong with a haiku!

I guess I better go and get ready to leave for the weekend.

Another Year...

What is with me only posting once a year? I need to get better at this.

Okay - quick summary:

In April of this year Shane and I moved back to Kearney after living in North Platte for just over two years. It's a relief to be back here. In May my baby sister graduated from high school. In a little less than a month she'll be moving into her dorm at CCC. Shane and I finally got to go on a "honeymoon" last weekend. We didn't go very far but it was a great vacation.

We drove up to Omaha/Council Bluffs for the weekend. On Friday we spent almost the full day at the Henry Dorley Zoo and then had dinner at Harrah's casino before passing out in the hotel that night. On Saturday we got to the IMAX in Council Bluffs at around 8am to wait to get into Inception. It was worth paying a little extra to see it on the IMAX screen. After the movie we drove into Omaha to hang out down at Old Market. We had lunch at Spaghetti Works (great place) and went into a couple of shops. It was so hot and we weren't really finding anything to do so we spent about an hour walking around a park that had weird artwork and fountains (it probably has a name, I just don't know it.) We were lucky to find that the Bodies exhibition was still in town and just around the corner from the park! It was very cool - freaky, but interesting. I'm glad we got to go. We spent the evening watching a movie in our hotel room. We left for home on Sunday morning. On the way we ate breakfast at a CrackerBarrel - delicious!

In two weekends I will be going up to Omaha again with my parents and sister. We're going to the zoo, as well. My sister wants to do some shopping - I'll probably just want to sit down. Ha.

I have unfortunately been jobless since we moved back down here to Kearney. I've been applying and applying and interviewing and applying to more places, but I just can't seem to bag a job. I'm hoping something comes through for me eventually. Anyone want to pay me to write this blog? Yeah, didn't think so. Worth a shot.

Currently, it's thundering and lightning outside. It sounds amazing. There's nothing better than a little stormy weather at midnight, am I right? I know I am.

I had kind of a...different...day today. A little out of the ordinary for me, at least. Usually, my day consists of making the bed, doing necessary laundry and picking up, washing dishes, and Facebooking. (It's a verb whether you like it or not.) Today, however, I had a strange urge to go rifling through a few Rubbermaid totes full of things - junk? - I haven't gone through in a while. I came across a folder I've been cramming songs and poems into since high school. On discovering a couple half-way decent songs I'd written and attempted to accompany on guitar I dug out ol' Antonio (the Ibanez) and re-blistered my fingertips trying to remember how to play that damned instrument. Needless to say, I'm not good - I never was - and I'm not fooling myself. I really just should stick to singing.

On another musical note (see what I did there?), close to a month ago my Mom bought me my very own flute! I was beside myself with excitement when she texted me and told me she found one. I'd been looking for one for years. In fifth grade when we started band in school she handed down her high school flute to me - the old Bundy. It still is the best flute I've ever played. When my sister started band and I was still using the Bundy, Mom found a second flute at a garage sale for her. When I graduated and didn't need the flute anymore the Bundy went to my sister. Since then I'd wanted to get my own, and now I have one. It's great. I've been playing a little here and there, trying to get to the level I was in high school.

Wasn't this supposed to be a quick summary?

I wish I had more interesting things to blog about. Books, tv shows, movies, music? That's easy: Read the Wicked series; Watch Lie To Me and The Good Guys; Enjoy Inception and Toy Story 3; and Listen to Muse. Done.

Elaborate? Why sure!

I'm currently reading A Lion Among Men: Volume Three in the Wicked Years by Gregory Maguire. My sister got me started on the series. It starts with Wicked; the story of the Wicked Witch of the West (you know the one; from Wizard of Oz!) The second book, Son of a Witch, tells the story of Liir, the Witch's son. The third and final book of the series, A Lion Among Men, explains why the Cowardly Lion was so cowardly in the first place. I am only a third into the book, but already so much has happened and you really see the Lion in a completely different light.

Both shows, Lie To Me and The Good Guys, show on Fox. Lie To Me is in its second season and airs Mondays at 7pm/c. Leading the cast is Tim Roth (Reservoir Dogs, The Incredible Hulk) as Dr. Cal Lightman. The show is based on the science of reading a person's facial movements and body language to discover whether they are telling the truth or lying. Dr. Lightman is basically a living lie-detector. The episodes are funny and thrilling and superbly enhanced by actual science. The Good Guys follows Lie To Me on Mondays at 8pm/c. It's hilarious comedy and fast action all rolled into an hour per week. Starring Bradley Whitford (The West Wing) and Colin Hanks (The House Bunny, Orange County) this show really has everything. Whitford and Hanks play Dallas cops Dan Stark and Jack Bailey. Jack is the by-the-book type of cop who gets partnered with the by-the-gut type of cop, Dan. Comedy, action, drama, and even a little suspenseful developing relationship between Jack and his ex-girlfriend A.D.A. Liz Traynor (Jenny Wade.) Mondays are the best for watching Fox.

I am not going to elaborate too much on the movies to watch. I feel like it'll give too much away. Inception was amazing. I loved the entire cast with the exception of Leo DiCaprio - he's just not on my list of top male actors. However, he is a great actor and his character is believable. Joseph Gordon Levitt, Cillian Murphy, Michael Caine, and Ellen Page -- what a cast! If I was to rate this movie - 1 to 5. It would easily be a 4.9. I can't honestly give any movie a perfect rating but this is as close as they come. Toy Story 3 was absolutely amazing. I didn't have the chance to see it in 3D, but as I've said before: 3D sometimes gets you distracted from the story - at least that happens to me. There was so much going on that it really took a lot of concentration to catch everything the movie had to offer. I went to the movie with my Aunt and my sister, Taylor. Out of the three of us I was the only one to actually cry; but if you know me you're probably not surprised. It was an emotional movie, especially to a big kid like myself. After watching Toy Story 3 I felt it was necessary to hug all the stuffed animals I still have - just so they knew I still cared about them. (Now it's up to you to decide whether I actually did that or not.)

On to Music. Muse. Great band, people; c'mon - listen to Muse! If you're familiar with the Twilight Saga soundtracks you'll know that each soundtrack has a Muse song on it. Those songs are good, but if you really want to feel the music, go out and buy one of their CDs. You won't regret it. Currently I'm absolutely hooked on their latest album The Resistance. You might have even heard their song Uprising on a popular music station while in your car. Apart from not being able to eject that CD from my stereo, I have been leaping occasionally over to their album Origin of Symmetry to listen to my newest favorite-song-ever. You may know the song Feeling Good - it was originally written for a musical in the 60s and since has been covered by many artists. By far, Muse's rendition of Feeling Good is the best. I turn it on in my car while I'm out driving, turn the volume up so loud I almost can't stand it and let Matt Bellamy serenade me until I get to where I'm going. Sound crazy? Good. It is. But try it, you'll get what I'm saying. On an interesting note - Muse singer/composer Matt Bellamy is now currently dating actress Kate Hudson. I think it's neat. When you finish reading this you should Wiki Matt Bellamy and read about him - he's done so much and he's just brilliant.

So...I got that covered. Maybe I should try and get some sleep now. My husband has been in bed since 9:30. I was there for awhile but once I realized trying to fall asleep with a storm brewing outside wasn't going to work I got up, read a couple chapters in A Lion Among Men and figured I'd ramble on to you fine people...that is, if you're still reading.

I'll call it a night now. If you think about it remind me to post again soon. Have a great night!