Mermaid Dance

new blog

2009-03-28T15:43:00.002-05:00

I decided to change my email address to something more grown up like my name. While I was at it, I made a new blog, my name. Go check it out. I'm going to update that blog instead of this one from now on.

Frustrated!

2009-03-12T12:45:00.002-05:00

My car overheated this morning. It sucks but it's my car karma. Last night I blocked in some asshole parked horizontally in three parking spots.

Plus it is inevitable that I get car problems when Dan is away. It happens every single time.

Luckily I have awesome friends here!! Miranda picked me up and dropped me off for class and Courtney offered her husband to translate car-speak for me. Thanks guys!

Car problems are not making me blow my top. It's my biology class. I am so frustrated. I failed my midterm as well as 98% of the class. From an informal survey the top grade was a 74.

If the teacher gave us the material and we blew it on our own, that would be something different but that's not what's going on here. My teacher is not prepared at all. He repeats the same information in classes and then skips whole sections to catch up on his "time-line".

His notes and lectures are barely indicative to the tests. The point value of tests and quizzes do not reflect his syllabus.

Now, I understand this is a college level course and I understand there is a lot of studying that has to happen outside of the classroom. That is not the problem. I see students making flashcards off the notes in lecture.

The problem is inconsistency. We can't learn or study if we don't have all the material.

He even confessed that he does not make the tests. He uses another teacher's test. He doesn't get the test until a few days before. How are we, as a class, supposed to score well if our teacher doesn't even teach the material on the test because he doesn't write it himself or get it until the last minute?!

A Time-Lapse Photography Project AND Tutorial

2009-03-06T15:26:00.017-05:00

Last weekend instead of tackling my kitchen I was perusing the web and came across this site about 6 creative approaches to photography. I took a look since I haven't been growing as a photographer. It's pretty interesting. I especially loved the time-lapse photography of the baby playing: how adorable! Then I came across this site where a lady used time lapse photography to capture her cleaning the kitchen. What a terrific idea!

Instead of moping around on the Internet, I jumped up to do the same. I did a similar project when I first got my camera but it was about as boring as watching ice melt, which happened to be my subject :P

Here is my video. After the video will follow a tutorial so you can do the same!

This site was greatly helpful to me with putting together my project but I still feel the need to write my own tutorial on how I did it.

1) Figure out your subject matter

Since my husband's been away (Navy) my kitchen has gotten out of control so naturally it was a good subject for me. Pick something where the camera can be stationary and something that changes often but not too frequently so the camera can capture it adequately. Here is a great link for 12 creative examples.

2) Camera Settings

Every camera is different so check your trusty manual. I certainly did! I have a Canon Powershot S3IS (pictured left courtesy of letsgodigital.org)

2a) The Dreaded Math!!!

(I'm not good with numbers so I tried my best and then fudged it and went with that.)
This is where you need to figure out how many pictures you are taking and how long your session will be as well as the "wait time" between exposures. You don't want your camera continually taking photos. Otherwise I'd have 43,200 pictures and my memory card isn't that large!

This site helped a lot with the math but if you'd like more help, here's another one I found.

Total Film Time = 30 minutes (again some fudging)

This means how long will the project take. To clean the kitchen I estimated 30 minutes. (it was pretty messy).

Total (compressed) video time = 30 seconds

The videos here last anywhere from 1 minute to 5 minutes. Use discretion here. I didn't think 5 minutes of watching me clean would be captivating so I kept it short to 30 sec to a minute tops. (more fudging)

For film, it's common knowledge that you get about 24fps, which is frames per second. So that means when you are watching a video, TV or a movie you are seeing 24 (very similar images) for every second. Video is many still images stitched together.

Convert total film time to sec.

30 minutes * 60 sec/min = 900 sec

Convert Total Video Time (in sec) to frames

30 sec * 24fps = 720 frames

Film Time/Video Time

900 sec / 720 frames = 1.25 sec wait between each shot.

(Again I fudged my numbers; it's a good thing I don't take care of the finances in my house.)

It turns out my camera can only shoot through intervals of minutes so I would have to capture an image every minute. This is where I gave up on math and just hoped for the best.

My Camera Settings

1) Power on (make sure it is on a manual setting like P, M, Av, Tv etc.. )
2) Menu
3) Scroll all the way down to Intervalometer and hit SET
4) Set Interval time and No. of Shots. (Mine has an interval range of 1 min to 60 min & No. of Shots 2-100
(Hit set to set or cancel to get out of here)

3) The fun part

When you are ready to start, maker sure your subject is ready and take the first shot. The camera will automatically power down. When the next interval approaches; it powers on, focuses and takes the next photo and will repeat until finished.

After some elbow grease, soap and the help of my camera, my project was finished, NOT. I had to put it together. Okay, great. How do I do that?

4) Turning it into a Video

If you have a Mac this step is easy. Use Quicktime Pro or iMovie. But since my pocketbook is empty I do not own a Mac, yet.

I ended up using Windows Movie Maker. It is free but equally frustrating as using Windows. If you deleted if off your computer, no fear, here is a link to download it for free.

Since I use a laptop with no mouse, I had problems manually adjusting the length of each photo. I wanted them to all show for a sec instead of a full minute for each photo. (That would be incredibly boring!)

I deleted my project (which did not delete my photos in a separate folder) and started over.

I found a program called JPGVideo from here. It's freeware which means a kind computer brainiac created this program and released it to the web for free. Be careful though, some freeware is created with malicious intent. Don't download anything untrustworthy; that's how you get a virus on your computer.

This program puts my pictures into a video with the configuration that would please me.

If you use this program these are the steps:
1) Go to Configure
2) JPEG Directory is where the pictures are. Click on the (...) icon. (This is where you tell the program to find the pictures.)
3) Click Output to find/create a folder to store your new video.
4) Configure the settings :
-Sort the files anyway you would like. I sorted mine alphabetically because my camera names the files alpha-numerically.
-For frames per second I did 2 per sec. It doesn't really matter what settings you choose as long as you keep a copy of the originals. Tweak with the settings until it looks like what you want.
5) After you are done configuring click OK. Then Run. It will put the pictures into a video so just wait a moment.
6) Hit close when you are done and the new video will be ready in your selected folder. You can view it with windows media player.

Now open up Windows Move Maker
Import Video
Import Music, import anything you want.
I played around here and made a few title screens and a credit screen. I wanted to give credit to the person that provided the music for free, yes FREE.

This article is a great resource about free sound.

When finished with the tweaks, save it and you are now a proud producer of your first time-lapse photography.

Give it a try and upload it online. Let me know, I'd love to see it!

A morning startle!

2009-03-04T11:55:00.003-05:00

I woke up this morning around 10. Not a big deal. I don't usually have classes until the afternoon. So this morning I was peacefully allowing myself to wake up when I suddenly realized that I have a Biology lab at 8am.

At this point it didn't even matter if I rushed to school because lab would be over at 11. I am super pissed at myself. Lab only meets once a week and usually very important in learning certain features of biology that I can't learn from a book.

I'm beating myself over it. How can I be so forgetful lately? I missed a Dr's appointment and I almost forgot my biology test on Tuesday. Then I realized I didn't have go to Wednesday classes yet. Because TODAY is Wednesday, not Thursday like I had thought.

Let me tell you what, that adrenaline rush is intense. Now I am sure to NOT miss lab tomorrow.

2009-03-02T15:41:00.002-05:00

I never did get a cute picture of my haircut back in December so I got another haircut.. haha. Well I got a haircut because all I was doing was putting it in another ponytail. My hair is now too short to fit into a ponytail so now I have to style it which is what I was aiming for. Plus since Dan is away I can play with my hair a bit. It'll grow back by the time I see him again.

I had my week of moping around and now it's time to pick myself back up again. While I was browsing the internet, I came across a video of a lady cleaning her kitchen using time lapse photography. I was officially out of bowls and spoons so I had a project on my hands!

After I gathered the photos I put it together in a video with music and I am going to share it at the next photo meetup. I'll post it next week so I don't spoil it.

I think it's time for a nap :P

A conglomeration

2009-02-26T11:23:00.002-05:00

It's been awhile since I've posted a blog. The first part of the year I was pretty busy with school and working on the school newspaper as well organizing stuff for my club too. Then Dan had leave before he left for Rhode Island so I spent every waking moment with him.

Now he is gone and I am coming back down from my high. I silently sulked for a week but now it's time to start all over again.

Dan said one good thing about him leaving is that I'll blog again. Haha! I'm only blogging because he said that. I don't feel like I have anything interesting to blog about anymore. I'm spending my words on the school newspaper so at the end of the day I don't have anything to share online, which is a good thing I suppose.

I'm still around and I still read your blogs and such. I've been twittering more since Dan is using it. He found Dane Cook's twitter so I am now following Dane Cook. He plays Call of Duty! I love him! He's a sexy dork!

In other news since Dan is gone, I cut my hair. He hates short hair and since mine grows like a beast I went ahead and got it chopped off. I feel ambivalent towards it. It'll take me a few days to get used to it i suppose.

In Dan news, he has a major migraine from lack of caffeine. Poor guy. Those are KILLER! I guess I better head to class now. The teacher is always late though and holds us up till the last minute. Bad form. Haha. See ya later!

Red squiggly lines are not allowed!

2009-01-22T20:49:00.003-05:00

The start of the new year jump started my schedule and I've been busy every since.

As President of Roots and Shoots I've been busy organizing several events and making sure communication is happening and all that jazz. In between classes I have also been wearing the hat of Co-Editor for the school newspaper. I only have one semester here but I want to leave behind a good foundation for the next person so it won't be like starting from scratch. It's fun to have people email me their stories and checking up on various assignments. I love being a college student and I love being a college student at Trident Tech.

This evening I am working on writing a submission for an award letter when Microsoft Word decides to start acting funny, you know, in that funny foreign way. Word 2007 started marking red squiggly lines.

Red squiggly lines are not allowed! So I get to work: I hit IGNORE repeatedly but it changes nothing. What's worse is that the suggested words aren't even English words anymore.

I already figure out the culprit. Since they are all French words I figure they came from Mrs. Newman's computer who happens to be a French Teacher as well as my advisor. The document she sent me must have been encoded in French which is fine, I am a smart girl, I can figure this out.

About an hour into this problem after audible grunts and groans, a dying laptop battery, and furrowed brows that will no doubt give me deep wrinkles, my husband ever so patiently and lovingly asks "Is everything okay?"

Although he is a computer genius, I am not a computer moron in comparison. So feeling only slightly annoyed, a sharp disdain of "no" leaks from the corner of my mouth with my eyes transfixed to the computer screen.

To prove I am not a computer moron I perform the same function that Microsoft Help informed me 45 minutes previously in front of his eyes only to befallen all the squiggly lines disappear.

Completely acute to my womenly "charms", my husband slowly shrinks away from my line of view and dares not to say a word instead only offering a warm compassionate smile to my angry grief striken face.

Puff with rage at the irony I turn to look at Dan and instantly melt into a giggle. I have to laugh at the situation. The Universe (or God) sure has a funny sense of humor and methods of humbling me.

Why is it only after I try to prove the fail that I fix the problem? Why is it that Dan only needs to glance at the screen and it instantly fixes the problem? I told you he was a computer genius. No you may have him. Get your own computer genius. Sometimes he works for free food and ice cream.

Suffering from "Insomnia"

2009-01-11T22:29:00.002-05:00

Only tonight though, it hasn't been a problem lately. I will mark it up to medication, shifting to a new sleep cycle and nerves. Good nerves though, not bad ones.

The nerves are due to being excited and nervous about moving. I know what needs to get done, it just now needs to get done. April is going to be a fun month for me.

We scheduled the movers to come the 2nd week of April because I have finals the last week of April. Then I want to fly to see Dan graduate then I have to come back and take finals. Then Dan has to report to Penn State May 2nd but my last exam is May 4th. I'll sleep on the floor for a bit and have to drive up myself unless we want to pay for Dan to fly back here but that would be a ridiculous waste of money.

Good news is that Dan does not have to work overnights again for at least another FOUR years! Woohoo!!

Tomorrow I start classes again which Dan is grateful for. Although he appreciates the extra cleaning I've been doing around the house, I'm sure he'll be glad to not have to fight me for the video games now. Speaking of; I think I'll play a few rounds until I get sleepy eyes.

In-Laws

2008-12-30T16:40:00.003-05:00

There is no more terrifying word that stops spouses in their tracks than "in-laws" other than "in-laws" with "visiting" in the same sentence.

Luckily for me, I love my in-laws. Although Dan and I are our own family, his parents and his brother are an extension of us. I feel absolutely at home and at ease with them.

For Christmas this year Dan and I spent a week with his family and it ranks as one of my favorite Christmas. There was relatively small drama but overall it was comforting and relaxing. It seemed we were busy going and going but I managed several naps somehow.

For gifts I scored a iPod nano and Bare Minerals makeup. They were the only two things I asked for and I got them! Dan's mom got me a few winter accessories for next year. I also scored a few backpacks that were on sale from Kmart. One of the best surprise present was a book light. Dan bought it on a whim but I had wanted one for ever.

The drive back to South Carolina was excruciating! It was the Sunday after Christmas so we were prepared but experiencing it was still tough. Several times we stopped on I95 for about 10 miles because the cars needed to rubberneck. If cars are pulled over to the side of the road, there is NO NEED TO SLOW DOWN. Please KEEP DRIVING.

After an eternity we made it home safely. The luggage is unpacked and groceries purchased. All I have left to do is vacuuming and some space clearing. We have friends staying with us after the first of the year so I'm making room for them.

After that I still have 2 weeks until I go back to school!! In the meantime I will clear out the "office" and get our stuff in order before we move so we can know what goes in storage and what comes with us when we move. We will probably move into a two bedroom apartment so we have to condense A LOT. It's amazing the amount of crap we've accrued since moving here.

We are super excited about moving! It's been four years of living in Charleston so are definitely ready for a new location. We will miss our wonderful friends we've made here but with Myspace and Facebook it'll be easy to keep in touch. The bonus is that we'll be closer to family :D

Slushy Weather

2008-12-23T12:07:00.002-05:00

It's currently 21 degrees in PA. It's not too bad but then again I have socks on and am cozy on the couch with a warm laptop in my lap. The kitty came with us and Dan found him asleep on our futon under the covers.

The sodas are kept in the garage to save refrigerator space. Dan just came back with a Mountain Slush instead of Mountain Dew. Hehehe.

Other than keeping cozy I have nothing on the agenda for today. We're going to take a family portrait later so I should probably try to look decent for that. After dinner Dan and I are meeting a friend. It's so hard to see everyone when we get in town but we are trying.

Cross off number 36

2008-12-22T20:06:00.003-05:00

Everyone has a list. Although I grew up in Florida, skiing is something I've always wanted to try.

Today I can cross it off my list!

With Dan and his stepdad, we hit the slopes. Well I hit the baby slopes. I only fell on my tush once! It was fun, a lot of work but still fun. It is definitely something I would try again.

So far only my shoulders hurt but I'm sure more body parts will hurt tomorrow :P

"normal" Liz

2008-12-08T23:35:00.003-05:00

By the way! Dan and I found out that my brain stops functioning coherently around 6pm. My brains waves can't articulate my thoughts and I forget what I am saying a lot. Before 6pm though, I am GREAT.

I was on the phone with Courtney earlier and she couldn't understand what I was saying. My thoughts were all jumbled and over the place. Haha. It's kinda funny sometimes.

I'll be normal in about a week and I will be back to functioning Liz who can construct actual sentences.

Grade Recaps

2008-12-08T23:28:00.002-05:00

79 on History paper - overall 81 in class not counting Test 4 or final Exam which is tomorrow!

84 on Lab practical - 91 in Lab which is 30% of Biology grade. Take Bio Exam on Monday.

My Intro to Journalism class grade probably dropped to a middle C because I forgot to take the last test! D'Oh! I just took that exam so hopefully I did well enough to bring me back to at least a B.

After my history exam tomorrow I plan on SLEEPING. I miss sleep.

Good news!

2008-12-05T23:23:00.002-05:00

Since the last time I blogged, my husband blogged FOUR times! That's insane! I've been slacking on the blog front but on the Liz front I have been busy.

I quit working at the library. I was having a hard time managing my time and working so much it was affecting my grades. My previous two Bio test grades were both 79. After I quit my next test grade was a 96. Talk about a difference!

At the end of September I turned in an application for Co-Editor of the school newspaper. Since I was a regular writer I applied. I didn't hear back about it so I shrugged it off until last week when I was called for an interview for today.

No more than a half hour later I received a call with an offer. I guess it also helped that I was the only student to actually show up for the interview but I'd like to think I wowed them too :P

Well I have to sleep now. Tomorrow is another study day for me. I have an exam on Monday for my online class. Tuesday is my history Exam. And then the following Monday is my Biology exam which is good because it gives me plenty of time to study for that.

To continue with the good news, Dan got accepted to Penn State! We are super stoked! I will transfer in the Fall whereas he will start Summer Semester. I looked up the foreign languages offered by Penn State and they offer Korean! I am super stoked!!! I haven't even applied to Penn State yet but if I get in, I can learn how to speak Korean! That would be one more thing crossed off the list.

Going back to school has been a lifesaver for me and I am so thankful I came to this decision on my own. I'm in school because I want to be and therefore getting the most out of my education. Okay, I am babbling now, this is why I haven't blogged in forever.. lack of quality material to blog about :P

"The Ottoman Empire: Full of Furniture for some reason"

2008-10-27T20:08:00.005-05:00

I finally found my Ch 12 notes. They ended up being stapled to Ch 11. D'oh!

Since the weather cooled down I threw some chili ingredients into the crockpot. I stole the idea from Courtney, thanks! It was tasty the first night but after being refrigerated it was DELICIOUS reheated. That is just like lasagna and spaghetti. I should create a "lasagna phenomenon" if one doesn't exist already :P

Since Dan is soon to be working overnights I will make some more crockpot meals. I'm going to attempt the "zuppa toscana" from Olive Garden. I only have regular sausage and not a spicy sausage so we shall see how that turns out.

It finally happened today. I took a nap (MUCH NEEDED) and woke up with a sore throat. It is officially cold season. I sipped on some hot tea with honey but my throat still aches.

I just crammed my head full of history. I could tell you all about caesaropopism and the Minoans and the silk roads but if I do, I'll forget it. Heh heh.

After tomorrow's test I have to work on genetics homework. YUCK. Then I have a journalism test this weekend. Then I am taking food downtown for the Clemente program. Then I am passing out candy for Halloween and then heading to the Dive for a FREE show to see Trust Company!! YEAH! Then is Grady's birthday party. Then is the Nine Inch Nails concert and then finally my FOUR DAY WEEKEND! WOOHOO! After that is Election day then Panic At the Disco show!!

Despite all my activities and school I am happy. I have come a tremendous way since this time last year and I am super proud of all my achievements.

I am PISSED and YOU SHOULD BE TOO!

2008-10-25T17:54:00.003-05:00

In general, I listen and read the news with a grain of salt. It's important to keep current with issues affecting our world but I then research the issues and form my own opinion.

Because I don't follow the norm, I keep my opinions to myself unless asked but not today.

When I vote November 4th, I am not only voting for the Presidency but also for the Senate and the House of Representatives and because I know nothing about the candidates in my area I headed to Project Vote Smart to inform myself without any bias so I can form my own opinion.

Just for kicks I clicked on the Presidential nominees. Then I got PISSED.

There is a BLACK FEMALE running for President. WHY HAS THIS NOT BEEN MENTIONED ON TV?

There was so much hoopla over Hillary running and that's been wonderful. There has been so much hoopla over Barack Obama and Sarah Palin which is also fine because of all the firsts. But a minority female is running for President and to blatantly not report this is LYING.

I understand she is an Independent Party but that makes her no less of a candidate than McCain or Barack.

I am LIVID. How many other times has something this significant not made a blip on media?

This is the very reason why I hold media with a grain of salt. Don't believe everything you read and hear. Get the facts and form your opinions.

Project Vote Smart - Presidential Candidates

Javascript must be enabled.

Balancing life

2008-10-22T19:26:00.002-05:00

Lately I have had a hard time managing my social/extra life with my work/school life and my work/school life has been the one to suffer.

During the next two weeks I'm changing the way I balance the two with a more healthy approach. I guess this is why I never heard from my friends who were in college; studying and working consumes about 95% of your time. The other 5% is spent sleeping.

Partied Liz

2008-10-21T10:58:00.003-05:00

Last Thursday Dan and I dragged a few friends to see Nonpoint and 12 Stones live. Nonpoint is amazing live. They started the show with a rendition of "War Pigs" by Black Sabbath. It was the best I have ever heard.

I was too tired to be in the pit this time but at the end when Nonpoint started playing "In the Air" accoustically, I had to jump in. At the end I met the band and told them they were amazing!

Then Sunday Dan and I and a few friends drove to Mrytle Beach to see Rise Against headlining with Alkaline Trio, Thrice and Gaslight Anthem. That was a killer show! I was miffed that Alkaline Trio didn't play the ONE song I wanted to hear but it's okay. Rise Against were just as amazing as I thought they would be!! They really know how to work a crowd! Near the end, I was getting miffed because they hadn't played my song yet but turns out they were waiting to use it as the closing song.

There is another show tonight I want to see with Drowning Pool, Saliva and Tantric but instead I will be drowning in homework. Bad Pun, I know. But seriously, I am way behind on homework and studying. I have a test tomorrow for Bio and then I have a history test Tuesday and I have a Journalism test this weekend.

On top of all of that, I lost my notes for Chapter 12 about the Silk Roads. I'm pretty sure I took the notes but I cannot find them. I just organized my notebook and Ch 12 is missing.

Last Saturday was a baby shower for a friend. This Saturday is a friends kid's 2nd birthday party and then next Saturday is a friends kid's 1st birthday party. I think by November I will be partied out :P

So while I really want to go to the show tonight I think I will do the responsible thing and work on studying for my tests and save my partying for the weekend :D

Opportunities in October

2008-10-15T13:45:00.000-05:00

The Remus household has been waiting for months for October. October was the month when our future was to be decided.

October seemed to have taken forever to get here and when it finally did arrive, there was to be more waiting. And then more waiting.

Dan got accepted into the Officer program. He is going to be a United States Naval Officer!!!

I am so proud of him! He has worked so hard for this moment. Not only as his wife, but as his best friend and life partner, I am extremely proud of Dan. I am proud to call him my husband and have him in my life. Congratulations Dan, you deserve this!

Insert "L"

2008-10-10T06:57:00.003-05:00

Last night I hung out with Hillary catching up on Army Wives. Before we know it, it's 8:30, my bedtime! Ha! I only wish I was kidding.

So I'm driving home jamming out in my car, this time with the windows UP. As I'm driving two dudes in a red car to my left are waving at me and trying to "holla" at me. I ignore them but they keep trying to catch my attention. Then they almost run into the car in front of them that stopped for the red light. I laugh and point at them and then raise my thumb and finger into an "L" shape and put it on my forehead. They soon speed off and leave me alone after that.

Eat the Banana at home

2008-10-09T11:25:00.003-05:00

While commuting in stop and go traffic, eating a banana is not wise. The banana inadvertanly becomes a microphone while you are singing the latest pop song.

NINE INCH NAILS

2008-09-26T08:05:00.005-05:00

I haven't blogged lately mostly because I didn't have anything to blog about. It's been the same; busy busy busy with life.

BUT, I have something worthy to tell you!!! Guess who won tickets to see NINE INCH NAILS in concert?!! That's right, ME!!!! WOOHOO!!

I've been suffering from "music ADD" so lately I listen to the radio in my car. It was "happy hour" on 98x and Potter(My favorite DJ) was giving away free tickets as long as the caller answered the question right; what was the name of Nine Inch Nails first album? Pretty Hate Machine. At this point I had just parked in the driveway and was hollering "OHMYGOD" outside my car.

My neighbor Keith came running out of his house asking me questions but I just gave him a thumbs up as I continued talking to the DJ. Dumbfounded, my neighbor just stood outside for a few minutes. After I got off the phone, his wife Janell, yelled out the window asking if there was an emergency because they heard me screaming "OHMYGOD" and heard sirens too. HAHAHAHA. Oops!

I am so stoked!! I feel so ecstatic that I could do this for Dan. He already purchased tickets for him and a friend so this means I can go now and his wife's friend can go too!! I'm super stoked!!

"Through Fire and Flames"

2008-09-19T10:03:00.006-05:00

In the game Guitar Hero, one of the hardest songs to beat is by Dragonforce called "Through Fire and Flames".

"Through Fire and Flames" couldn't describe the weather here more perfectly.

The weather recently cooled down to an ember but I cannot wait to feel cool wind again.

But Freud says..

2008-09-10T05:50:00.004-05:00

Growing up, as a family, we discussed our dreams. Even if you don't believe in the power of dreams, it's still fun analyzing them and trying to figure out what they mean.

Since this has become a little more than a hobby to me, I read up about it all the time and practice as much as I can.

Lately I've been feeling busy and rushed all the time. It just seems I have no free time to just sit on the couch and space out. I need my space out time but at the same time I'm really enjoying my extra activities. It's very gratifying.

Well since I won't listen to my body, my brain sends me a message in my sleep.

Last night I dreamed several dreams. The first one involved kissing another person other than my husband. And then the second dream involved running away with another man and then pursuing myself as Dan in a mini cooper.

As soon as I woke up I confessed my sins to Dan. I was so upset and distraught.

Freud would say I want to be with another man but that's not true so I'm going to analyze this dream as a metaphor that my life is too stressful and another life just seems rosier so I run away.

So if it seems like I haven't been blogging as much as usual, feel free to smack me.

Hurricane Party

2008-09-04T10:07:00.002-05:00

Hannah is still a Tropical Storm moving at 12mph with winds of 70mph. It's almost a Hurricane cat 1 so South Carolina is under a Hurricane Watch which means conditions are favorable for a hurricane.

I lived in Florida during many hurricanes and luckily I haven't been in a catasptopic one like Andrew or Katrina. I'm not too worried about Hannah. She just needs to make up her mind about what kind of storm she wants to be and then just stay that.

Unfortunately Dan has to man the boat. And he will most likely be there all weekend so that means I will be bored. I will host a kid friendly hurricane party at my house. Someone has to bring a baby gate though, I am fresh out :P

Since I live the most inland of my group of friends I figured my location would be safer plus we have tons of games. I'm super glad we got a new roof this spring :D

If you want to come hang out, just let me know and I'll email you the infomation.

I am Korean, hear me roar!

2008-09-02T10:28:00.003-05:00

For my World History class, we have to write a ten page essay. That is a lot of pages but I love learning so it won't be a big deal.

Since I am Korean I want to write mine about Korean history. That's where we get into the problem. There would be more Korean history if the Japanese and Chinese would stop trying to conquer Korea and then burn all their important documents. What a bunch of jerks. And then the US spilt up Korea so now everyone I talk to wants to know if I am North or South Korean just in case I am a communist. (My husband is more communist than I am. Hahahah!! Just kidding US Navy!!) I want more people to know there is more to Korea's history than the "Korean Conflict" and the communism of North Korea.

I want to know more about my history. That's my people. That's my mothers peoples.

I haven't solidified my topic yet but as of right now it is the Chinese influence of Confusicnism on Korea and it's culture. Boring right? We'll see. I'm exploring other topics like the guy who created the simple Korean alphabet from the very complex Chinese alphabet.

While I was in Korea last year my cousins took me to a very important temple (the name of which I do not remember or cannot pronouce correctly) of a Empress that was very important. I think she created the first schools of Korea or something like that. My feet hurt that day and I was very cranky so I did not pay as much attention as I should have :( I have to do more research.

This here is another reason why I want to be a writer. I want more Korean culture represented. I'm tired of Korea being walked on. Japan bombed us and we have more Japanese culture in the United States than Korean culture. We helped the Koreans fight againgst communism! Why don't we have more Korean culture represented?

3:30am, Are you SERIOUS?

2008-09-02T04:42:00.003-05:00

I got a call this morning from a very nice gentleman who apologized profusely for calling the wrong number. Not a big deal. Until I couldn't go back to sleep.

The call startled me and I became AWAKE.

My brain started writing and it would not shut up so reluctantly I crawled out of bed. For some reason my brain likes to compose my thoughts into possible writing ideas when I am in bed. This happens before I sleep and is very annoying but helpful when I write my blogs later since the rough draft is already in my brain.

Let's turn this thunderstorm of a morning into a silver lining:

I woke up early against my will but now I have a terrific idea for the next issue of the school newspaper.

Score! Now only if I could go back to bed. Looks like today will be a coffee day.

Biology and the evolution of my name

2008-08-28T10:25:00.004-05:00

Last night I had a biology lab. First why does an Associate in Arts major need to take Biology? I certainly wasn't going to take Chemistry or Physics.

Cara informed me that most colleges offer a environmental science to non science majors which piques my interests greatly. SCORE! I looked through the catalogue and sure enough, my school does offer it... except that it won't apply to my degree. Go figure. If I was in horticulture or something then it would apply. So in the meantime I will suffer through biology which I will never use again. *I probably will take Environmental Science later as an elective because I love learning about our planet and different ways we can hold onto it.*

In class I asked the girl next to me if she was any good at biology and she gave a half shrug and said she took high school biology three years ago. I laughed and counted back, then mortified, I replied it was NINE years ago I took high school biology. HOLY MOLY! That made me feel old.

The lab was interesting. I sat next to Qui which is pronounced Wee just like Wii the video game. He is Vietnamese. He works in the library too. Next to him sat his other Asian friend which I think was from India. Next to him sat Kanji who is from the Philippines.

The four of us were the only Asians in the class and we managed to sit together. How did that happen? I thought it was pretty hilarious and announced it to the class. The class didn't seem so amused. Need to bring a gallon of Red Bull next time and wake them up! My new Asian friends got a kick out of it though.

For for the first time in my school history I experienced my name mispronounced. Before I was married I was Elizabeth Bennett. Nice and easy. Now I am a Remus and I love being married to Dan but now my name is called near the end of roll call instead of at the start and one teacher pronounces it Ray-mus. Nope. Just like it's spelled, Ree-mus.

Also for the first time I am allowing teachers to call me Liz. I think I was about 18 when I switched from Elizabeth to Liz. In high school it would infuriate me when teachers would call me Liz. I hated the informality of it. Now it's just easier. People remember it easier than Elizabeth. I guess the extra two syllabus is too much to remember.

Liz Update

2008-08-26T11:16:00.002-05:00

School started yesterday even if I wasn't quite ready for it. Dan's been on the overnight schedule and reluctantly I ended up on it too. I tried to reset myself before Monday but my body defiantly told me NO!

Yesterday I must have turned off my alarm because I get a call from Dan at 6:30am on his way home. Oops! I also didn't buy any bread so I had to eat leftovers for lunch, which was fine because it was a filet mignon from California Dreaming. Mmmhmm. It was tasty tasty tasty!

The rest of the day went pretty well. I dropped in at the medical clinic for something personal and the receptionist told me to have a seat in the lobby. No problem. About an hour later a DR enquires to a patient waiting and asks her how longs she's been waiting. FOUR HOURS! Holy moly! I didn't want to be forgotten too so I piped up. The doctor left to find the receptionist and lo and behold she already left for the day. How convientient.

I did get the care I came for but I was still fumed that the receptionist so kindly handed me off to the lobby without telling anyone what I was there for. On the way home I was still fuming so I tried to think of what I was thankful for. It's annoying to do in the heat of the moment because you want to feel that anger and feel justified but the anger does you no good in the end.

At least I was getting free health care. It may not be the best in the world but it was certainly better than the non-english speaking doctor at the walk-in clinic in downtown Melbourne.

I also got my medicine for free. I could've had to pay a co-fee if I filled it at another pharmacy. Without insurance I would have had to pay at least $50. I remember borrowing money once from Dan (when we were dating) just so I could buy myself some antibiotics.

After that fiasco I had to go grocery shopping, remember no bread? That wasn't too bad but shopping has become such a chore for me lately because I carefully read the labels and if it has corn syrup, high fructose or not, I won't buy it.

I picked up some chinese takeout (full of HFCS I know) and had a nice dinner at home. Dan popped a movie and although it was only 7pm I told myself I had to wait until at least 8pm before passing out. I don't know if I made it or not. I just remember Dan guiding me to bed and tucking me in.

What a day. At the end of the day I felt satisfied. Deeply satisfied. I am living the life that I have always wanted. I feel safe and secure. I am getting an education. I have health care. I have food in my belly and a roof over my head. I am happy.

Stoked, not toked, about good music

2008-08-14T17:54:00.002-05:00

Last night Dan went to Atlanta with a friend from work to see Nine Inch Nails in concert. He originally wanted me to go with him since I am his best friend but I'm not much of a fan of Nine Inch Nails. I can appreciate the music for what it is but I wouldn't jam out to most of it. So I had to decline. I'd rather Dan go to his concert with someone that loves the music as much as he does.

He had a blast. He is super sore but he managed to be in the third row and only got kicked in the head twice. It's been 8 years since he last saw NIN in concert so I'm super stoked for him.

In October Dan and I will be seeing Rise Against. I love these guys!! I've been waiting for them to go on tour and as soon as tickets opened up, we bought them. Tim and Jenn can't go with us because they'll be on their honeymoon so we'll see who ends up coming with us.

My brother Jeremiah is also going to see his band, Smashing Pumpkins. I am super stoked for him too! He's been waiting forever to see these guys in concert.

Who would you be stoked to see in Concert? Have you been to any concert you were stoked about?

"Be ready in ten minute"

2008-08-13T11:16:00.002-05:00

The stir fry turned out awesome! Next time I will make a few changes like adding the squash before the mushrooms. I don't know what I was thinking tossing the mushrooms in so early. They didn't turn out too mushy so it was okay.

Dan finished his plate and said he liked it. He also tells me I don't have a fat ass. Which is fine, he can lie to me about that forever! So to find out his true feelings on meals, I ask him if he would want me to cook it again and he replied YES so it was a genuine success.

I have made interesting dinners before that he has said NO to. I can't recall anything specific though. I do remember a quiche I made once with a jar of artichokes. It was.. different. I think we may have to try artichokes in a different manner next time.

My steamed rice turned out well too and I actually felt asian using my rice cooker. It's been ages since I last made rice. The rice cooker is a small version of my mom's. She bought it for me when I graduated high school I think. I wish I lived closer to her so she can cook all sorts of Korean food for me :P

I will attempt some Korean food soon. It's a part of my heritage and it tastes so damn good too! Ask Courtney! She's been biting at the chomp to return to the Korean Restaurant.

Nutrition and Health

2008-08-11T12:11:00.000-05:00

Have you heard of the “French Paradox”? It’s basically us fat Americans marveling at how the French eat foie gras(fatty duck liver), cheese and wine and other sorts of “bad food” but manage to stay slim and heart disease free.

I’ve been reading a lot of Michael Pollen, author of “The Omnivore’s Dilemma” and “In defense of Food”. I’m about to start reading an earlier work of his, “The Botany of Desire”. It’s awesome working at a library!

Before that I read “The End of Food” and “Closing the food gap: resetting the table in the land of plenty”. Both were excellent in different aspects. If you want more info about them, just ask.

I have never been one of those that fall to food claims. I ate regular Oreos while my dad ate his Snackwell’s Fat Free devil’s food cakes. I drink more water now than anything else but I still drink soda on occasion but I will touch diet soda. It tastes awful.

I am still not “diet” oriented in an attempt to lose weight. I could stand to lose weight but at this moment in my life I am focused on health. I want to only put good things into my body. For me, that is unprocessed food. In this day and age it will be EXTREMLY difficult.

I have never been the type to follow the crowd so I’m not going “vegan” or “raw foods diet” or anything else like that. I’m just trying to incorporate more fruits and veggies into my diet and less processed food.

For breakfast yesterday, feeling inspired by Theredheaddiva, I ate a whole wheat bagel (processed food item) with chive and onion cream cheese(also processed) with alfalfa sprouts and a tomato slice with salt and pepper. It was the most delicious bagel I ever ate. I scarfed down the first and offered Dan* a bite of the second slice.

*Dan does not like to eat new foods or many vegetables so for him to try something new is A MIRACLE.

After the bite, I asked him if he liked it and he nodded yes in approval. I asked him if he wanted to eat the rest of the bagel and I swear I have never seen him eat a vegetable so fast.

Tonight I am going to attempt a stir fry. I bought baby portobellos, green beans, yellow squash, zucchini and water chestnuts (in a can). I am not a fan of mushrooms but when Jenn made this for me in Seattle I ate all the mushrooms I could. Hopefully these baby ones taste better than the regular kind. I also have some chicken that wasn’t fed any antibiotics or hormones. It was EXPENSIVE as HELL so we will eat that sparingly. One breast will contribute to a nearly homemade chicken soup later this week. Yum!

Ripped off in public!

2008-08-08T12:14:00.004-05:00

Today was my last exam and I was done in about 5 minutes and I even reviewed my answers a second time! It was only 40 questions though and it was relatively easy. I know I missed the last two questions. Oh well. You win some and lose some.

Since I was done so early I headed to the new bookstore to sell back some of my books. I was absolutely astonished at how much they ripped me off. The clerk barely gave a flinch when she told me $2 for a book I paid over $100.

I have a few they wouldn't buy so I'll try to sell them via the message boards around campus.

The new bookstore is pretty nice. It should be nice with all the money they rip off of students. It's about the size of a small warehouse with plenty of a/c and room. They had many registers available but only one or two opened at the time. The parking lot is still a dirt field! Ha!

I looked around and picked up some computer paper for home and a nice bag for me. It's a purse but it's big enough for books too. And it has a laptop storage area along with many other pockets. It's awesome. I haven't purchased anything for myself lately so it's about time I did.

So after those two purchases I had enough money leftover for a small lunch and maybe a half of a gas tank.

Secrets to Marital bliss:

2008-08-06T08:49:00.003-05:00

After posting my love fest the other day, I feel the need to follow up.

My husband and I are FAR from perfect. We screw up and we get upset at each other just as much as everyone else. So what's the secret ingredient or technique to staying in love?

1. Communication. Talk to each other as a man or woman. Females tend to want men to read their minds. That is unfair! I’ve so done that and it got me nowhere. Men can’t read minds. You can’t expect them to know what to do or say. So tell him. He won’t be offended. He wants to make you feel better but doesn’t know how.

For example, the other day Dan heard me telling a story to someone on the phone that I didn’t tell him so he felt left out. He criticized me that I was not telling him stuff and that hurt my feelings. I didn’t intentional not tell him the story. I was hurt so I asked him to rephrase it. So dutifully he repeated “You didn’t tell me that story, why don’t you tell me now, I would love to hear it.” Of course he said it while rolling his eyes at me, but just hearing him say it meant so much and made me feel better and I continued with my story.

2. Anger management. Nothing is going to be accomplished when one of you are so angry you only see white heat. It’s just going to get ugly. Say that you need a moment and step into the other room or go for a walk. DO NOT drive. Driving while angry is the equivalent to driving intoxicated. You cannot make sound decisions while angry.

Dan usually goes outside and does yard work or cleans his car. I will walk to the bedroom, close the bathroom door and cry. After I cry, I feel I can focus more on the issue at hand. Maybe Dan cries when he mows the lawn too but I doubt it. Heh heh. That would be a funny scene to see a grown man crying as he’s cutting the lawn.

3. Fight Fair. No name calling. It’s just mean and it doesn’t accomplish anything. Also, no underhanded insults or guilt. It will cause the other person to shut down or fight back. If you can’t do this, go for a walk and calm down. Maybe you are still heated. Talking while heated will not work.

4. Divorce is never an option. This is a personal one that Dan and I stick to. As soon as we made plans to get married, divorce was never an option for us. We made plans to be together all the way till we are old, wrinkled and got the walking farts.

Overall, if you’ve got communication down, I bet you are on your way to a happy relationship.

True Love

2008-08-04T09:49:00.002-05:00

When Dan and I moved into our house his parents presented us a programmable thermostat!! It has been wonderful! Dan programs it to be 80 when we leave the house and to turn back to normal temperature by the time we return. It helps us save a ton on our electric bill.

Dan sets it according to our schedules. Recently I dropped my morning math class so I am leaving later in the morning that I did before. But we never changed the thermostat to reflect these changes so I would usually roast before starting my day.

This morning, I find the thermostat set to 76 for me until 9:30am, the start time of class.

I've got myself the perfect husband and you can't have him! He's all mine!

The sickness

2008-08-01T12:19:00.002-05:00

Dan has been sick for the past few days or so which is strange because I'm the one that gets sick first but I didn't mind being not sick. But being husband and wife, now I am getting sick. My body feels heavy and tired.

So this morning I put a wellness fizz thing in water but I hate drinking them straight so I blended it with not so fresh strawberries, frozen strawberries and yogurt. It was more slurpee than smoothie but I drank it anyways. It's better than drinking that stuff straight! Yuck! Even as a kid I hated taking cough syrups and liquid medicines. I still avoid cough syrup if I can.

Let's hope Dan feels better soon and lets hope I don't get sick at the end of summer semester and before fall semester!

An Update

2008-07-31T11:21:00.002-05:00

I've been busy and hardly have any time to myself but I am loving it. I feel like I am living up my "liz potential". I feel fulfilled.

I just finished a 12 hour self defense course. It was amazing. I learned so much and the other ladies instantly became like family. I had Leslie there on our last night to take pictures so I will use one of those to submit to the school newspaper along with a writeup about the class and my experiences there. I feel so much more confident about being able to defend myself now.

As for Dan and I, we are in love with each other all over again. It's like we are falling back into love and I feel giddy again. I feel so lucky to have him in my life. He is the best person for me and I am really happy.

This is the last week of class and then next week is exam week and I will be free! Until August 25th. Then I will start back full time again. But until then, I have a ton of pictures to upload with a ton of stories!

Right now I am listening to "90's lunch" on the radio. Hell yeah! I love all these songs! Now it's time to work on some English papers. Boo!

How to read my blog

2008-07-11T11:21:00.003-05:00

I haven't blogged in a while. I apologize. I wish I had an excuse but I've just been neglecting my blogs. I'm going to try and write more often now.

I just changed my signature in my emails to a link to my blog so if you are here via my email signature, say HI! :)

Go to comments and leave one. I'd love to know who is reading.

If you decide you want to continue reading you can go the right of my page and subscribe via email. This means if you want to be emailed any time I update, it will send you a copy of the blog right to you!

If you are like me and read many blogs, you can subscribe via your favorite feed reader. I prefer to use Google Reader but you can use any that you like :)

Cruel morning

2008-06-16T14:07:00.002-05:00

An 8:00am math class is just cruel. Whose brain actually functions that early in the morning? I'm doing pretty good if I have matching socks on that early in the morning.

To top it off we had a test today. It actually wasn't too bad taking a test on Monday because I studied on Saturday but I don't agree with the concept of a test on Monday. Let's hope I did better than my last test which was a C. Luckily my teacher is pretty fair and will only take away some points when you make a stupid error instead of all.

The test wasn't too bad except I was dozing off!

"Hello? Liz! This test is worth 1/5 of your grade, WAKE UP!"

I managed to snap out of it and finished my test. I should have combed it a little better for silly mistakes but I forgot. We shall see.

I am sleepy a lot lately because I haven't been getting enough sleep because Dan is on overnights. I know it's no excuse but it's really hard maintaining my own schedule when our lives are so intertwined. Luckily it's just a few more days and we'll be back to normal.

Yesterday while Dan was sleeping I left the house so it would be quiet for him and hung out with Courtney, Angie and Rebecca. It actually wasn't too hot outside and the pool was relatively warm. It was a nice day. Then Courtney fed us and we all chatted for a bit. Then Angie and Rebecca left and Courtney and I talked about everything under the sun. What a bunch of chatty cathys!

Then I came home and woke Dan up. But it turns out he didn't go to sleep until 11am so I felt bad but he stayed awake to be in my company. Aww. How did I return the favor? By taking over the tv and video games! Haha. I haven't played at all last week so it was nice. Dan sat next to me and tinkered on the laptop. Then I finally handed over the controller and he was thankful :D

Sun showers

2008-06-13T12:21:00.000-05:00

Today I got to experience a delightful Florida activity that I have severely missed: a sun shower!

It showered today with the sun still out! This is just amazing to me. I love it when that happens. It's just so delightful and cooling.

I also recieved a B on my philosophy test. Not too bad. I only missed a few questions.

Sunday I am finally going to get some sun! I have been missing the sun since we got back from the cruise. All my color is fading and I am turning casper-ish again.

Traffic Court

2008-06-12T22:14:00.003-05:00

I went to court today for my traffic infracture. I pled guilty even though in my heart I wasn't.

The judge threw away my 4 points and reduced my fine to only $100. This was super appreciated. I even told the judge so; "I appreciate your leniency" and he gave me a bewildered look. He was probably surprised to see someone in North Charleston speak a grammatically correct sentence.

Because I saved money on my ticket, I can buy my plane ticket to see Jason graduate. It was breaking mt heart that I wouldn't be able to go but now I can! I just need to find my credit card. It's hiding somewhere because it was paid off but seeing Jason is really important to me. I want him to know how proud I am of him and that I support him.

Monday Monday

2008-06-09T12:24:00.002-05:00

I really underestimated summer classes. I'm only taking three but it is a lot of work! I have so much reading to do and homework all the time. I love my classes though. The discussions are fantastic and my teachers are great.

I'm still working in the library. It's pretty slow right now so that's nice. I broke the date stamp the other day though. Oops!

Tomorrow I go to hang out with my girls. It feels like it's been forever since I've seen them but it was only a week ago we hung out.

I got a letter in the mail the other day from Jason. He's still in basic training. He's going to graduate soon. I'm so proud. The goof addressed the letter to Elizebeth Bennett. First off, I'm Remus now. Hahaa. He probably couldn't remember what my last name is. And second off, why is Elizabeth spelled wrong? Hahaha. I thought it was hilarious. I love my brother. I love all my siblings. Jeremiah is great and I'm getting to know Cassie better and she is a such a sweetheart.

Well I guess I can't prolong working any longer. Peace!

Because of writer's block

2008-06-07T11:05:00.003-05:00

I had this great ancedote for an article I wanted to write for the school paper so I hammered it out on Word. But after reading it over, it sounds too forced and a bit rantish. I understand that writing takes a lot of editing and drafts but I was stuck. I didn't know how to proceed. I tried writing about the same topic but in a different facet. Now I just had two unrelated pieces. Instead of forcing it, I just wrote something different.

I've been working on a piece about Call of Duty in my head for awhile now and since I am currently addicted, I thought why not. It came out smoothly and turned out to be pretty fantastic, in my opinion.

While I have paused on the other piece, writer's block didn't stop me. Because of writer's block I wrote a delightful other piece that makes me happy.

June Birthdays

2008-06-04T12:00:00.003-05:00

June is very birthday-riffic lately. Especially for people whose names are Mark.

Mark Staples birthday was June 2nd. Today is Mark Terry's birthday and Courtney's husband's birthday who is also named Mark.

Those are the only Marks I know, at the moment.

Apryl, whose name I cannot spell correctly, has a birthday June 9th. Which is funny because for the longest time Dan thought my birthday was the 9th and not the 5th which is actually not funny in reality. Heh heh. His birthday is two weeks after mine so I thought that would make it easy for him. But now we have this running joke of the 5th? or 9th? that he actually remembers when my birthday is. Or this just gives him more time to think of it.

My birthday is Thursday. I'm not really doing anything. Angie offered to cook me dinner so I may have a pity party at her place.. hahah. I'm just not big on birthdays like I used to be. I tend to get too disappointed and depressed so I just put off feeling anything at all.

Luckily I have wonderful friends and Courtney organized a surprise party for me on Monday. I was sick and did not want to go out but she guilted me into it and I was too sick to notice it or call her out on it. It didn't help that Dan was in on it either. Heh heh. He encouraged me to go even though I could've slept the whole night.

It was really nice. I recieved a few gifts and I wasn't expecting that at all so that was really nice. Leslie made me a cake with "Happy Birthday" spelled out in colored licorice. She told me it was totally gay but she knew I would love it and it's so true. I loved it. She also gave me a handmade card made from paper and crayon. It was so heartfelt and hilarious at the same time. I love her to death. I'm really thankful for the friends I have made here in Charleston. I love all of them to pieces. Thanks ladies for the wonderful surprise!

Once a..

2008-05-30T12:13:00.002-05:00

Buying books for college is expensive so I tend to wait until I work out my schedule and talk to my professors first before wasting any money.

Today I just bought my two books. Altogether I spent $120. I think last semester I had to spend nearly $600 on books. I almost paid $40 but I told the cashier that she forgot to ring up the other book. D'oh.

Last night I cleaned the house. Dan pitched in to be sweet and it was much appreciated. We had free tickets to see the Riverdogs game for Military Appreciation night but we decided to veg out. It was relaxing and just what we needed after the stress of my car accident.

Tonight will be more of the same except Dan's grandfather is coming into town. We'll be spending the weekend with him probably doing the typical tourist like activities. Hopefully we can hit up some Piccolo Spoleto events. I love experiencing the culture here.

I'm working on my cruise pictures. I finally uploaded them to the laptop but now I can't find Dan's pictures. Hahah. I'll work on it this weekend and get it all together. But I said the same thing about my Korea pictures too... hmm :P

Onto the Good News Now

2008-05-29T15:51:00.002-05:00

This is where I should say "I just saved a bunch of money on my car insurance". But that's not funny considering my circumstances. Heh heh. Luckily we just renewed our insurance so it won't be until November that we have to deal with that.

A couple of months ago I made a vague reference to something that I was crossing my fingers about. I kept it vague on purpose because I didn't want to jinx it and get my hopes all up. Well no more waiting!

I interviewed a girl a few months back that is in the same club as I am, Roots and Shoots. It's like a humanitarian/environmental group. I did a write up and submitted to the editor of the school newspaper and this month it was published! My story is front page! My name is on the front page!

I'm super excited. I feel like this is a step in the right direction for me.

Bad News first

2008-05-29T15:32:00.002-05:00

On the way home from work and school I got into a car accident. No one was physically hurt so that's good. My car got the most damage, a dented up fender and door and some paint scuffs. Her car has a small dent and a small paint scuff.

So I was in the right lane of a three lane road and I needed to get to the middle lane. I turned on my turn signal, looked in the mirror, looked over my shoulder and turned. But I ended up hitting her car. She was probably going into the middle lane from the left lane and doesn't want to admit it because then she'd "contribute to the collision" as my paperwork states. I got a traffic ticket for "improper lane change" for $232 along with 4 points on my license. My court date is in two weeks.

I was a mess last night. Dan came to me for moral support and because we had dinner plans right there with friends later. I almost made him cry because I was bawling so hard. Then we went to the restaurant and Tim gave me a hug but I was starting to make him cry so I had to pull away before I made him cry too. Hahah. But dinner was really nice and I laughed a lot so I'm really grateful for that.

Lazy but productive day

2008-05-27T15:04:00.002-05:00

While on the cruise, I got a message saying one of my classes was dropped due to not enough enrollment. That's annoying but not too big of a deal. Yesterday was Memorial day so I had a lazy day. Today I slept in and relaxed. School starts tomorrow. No biggie. I hopped online and registered for a different class. Took me no more than 10 minutes. I love technology.

So this semester I am only taking three classes: English 2, Trig, and History of Western Civilization. I also planned it so I only go to school 3 days a week instead of 5 days. That'll help with gas. I also would forgo working but I got a pretty hefty raise (to offset inflation) so I'll still be working at the library.

Hopefully this new schedule will be easier to manage than last semester. Now it's time to lounge about some more. Actually I'm going to play some Call of Duty. I am freakin' addicted to this game.

I am alive!

2008-05-26T13:08:00.002-05:00

Hello Hello! I am home and back again! Our cruise was absolutely fabulous! I managed to get some sun so I am no longer translucent like a ghost.

We ported Saturday morning in Cape Canaveral so Dan and I headed to the Brevard Museum of Art to get a glance at the Post Secret Exhibition. It was wonderful, by the way. I held in so many tears and then lost it in the car. If you have a chance to see this exhibit in your area, do it. Good conversation material too.

Then we swung by and said hello to Mark. We miss him, even if he is growing a mullet!! Get a haircut! Hahaha. We love him to death.

Then we saw my mom. She gave me some purses and a little table and chair for our front patio. Dan also worked on her computer a bit. Then we headed out back to home.

One of our favorite bands, Nonpoint, was playing a show Saturday night so we were really hoping to get to see them. Luckily they had 4 bands open for them so we got there halfway through the 3rd band, Deepfield, who were AMAZING. LOVED them! They did an awesome cover of En Vouge. Next up was The Exies who were pretty good except the lead singer kept talking and was full of himself so that ruined it a little.

Then Nonpoint came out. I was shaking with excitement before they came out. I thought I was going to lose it fangirl style when they came out. They played an amazing set! They totally rocked our faces off. Near the end, I had to sit down because I ran out of voice and my legs wouldn't hold me up any longer. It was my first hardcore show and it was amazing! I loved it. I called my brother Jeremiah up and totally spewed my love of Nonpoint over the phone. It was the perfect ending of a pretty spectacular week. I'm really glad Dan was there to enjoy the show with me too.

Then yesterday we picked up our ball of fur from the kennel. We missed him like crazy! The girls there said that our cat stole food from other cats while he was out of his cage. We have the fat cat! Hahahaha.

We did our stank laundry yesterday, it seriously needed to be done. I hung out with the girls yesterday and caught up with them.

The only plans for today is to see Indiana Jones. Oh, and grocery shopping.

I'm all caught up online. If I missed anything, let me know. Tonight I will try to update my calendar and upload our bazillion pictures.

Back from Seattle!

2008-05-13T00:27:00.000-05:00

I flew home on Saturday feeling pretty gross. Spent most of Sunday sleeping it off. Today I realized I have the flu or something. I see medical tomorrow. They are probably going to give me a band aid and some ibuprofen and tell me to go home. That is their solution for everything.

Dan informed me that I get sick any time I fly anywhere. That would've been useful Friday night instead of after the fact. At least I am lucky enough to have a husband that knows me so well.

As of right now I am taking lots of medicine and eating lots of popsicles because my throat hurts too much to eat much else. Oh so sad and pathetic me.

My mission for today is:
1. play video games (because I missed them)
2. Unpack my suitcase (needs to get done)
3. Scoop the cat box ( also needs to get done)

Number one is checked off and I am just dilly dally-ing on the last two.

In other news, my trip to Seattle was very nice and relaxing. I played tourist about half the time and the other half was spent just goofing off. I missed my people. I have more pictures to upload but who knows when I will get to it. :D

Seattle on Saturday

2008-05-08T12:44:00.005-05:00

Bathing suit shopping!!

2008-04-25T11:12:00.002-05:00

It's been two years since I've been in a bathing suit. But Dan and I are going on a cruise soon so I had to get one.

The ladies know the horror of bathing suit shopping.

First you have to see yourself nearly naked. Second in florescent lighting. Then you have to deal with unflattering cuts. Then you have to deal with numbers and if the first one doesn't fit, the number increases and our self esteem decreases.

Fortunately I am blessed with not caring. I was determined. I even sent a few pictures from my phone to Courtney for her opinion. I picked a black halter one piece that has a flirty skirt attached to it. I feel good in it and confident and in the end that is what matters.

I also have to remember to never piss off Courtney or else she'll make my pictures public! Haha.

Fashion Show 2008

2008-04-23T10:27:00.006-05:00

What feels like 10 years ago, Courtney and I made our way to downtown Charleston for the Fashion Show.

It was fabulous and we had a great time.

I had to use Courtney's camera because my monster of a camera did not fit into my cute little gold purse. *birthday hint* :P

These are some of the models from a lineup that we liked.

This last picture Courtney was trying to talk on her phone in the middle of everything and she was having a hard time hearing so she grabbed my hand to close her ear! Haha. I took the camera and captured the moment. What great friends :D

liz has writer's block?

2008-04-20T20:25:00.002-05:00

I actually have writer's block.

I am usually blessed with a fountain of creativity but I guess since I am working on a paper for school I am blank.

I have about 3 pages full of material but I just can't bring it all together. It's not cohesive. There is no central idea to what I am trying to write. It's a critique of a play I saw and I have the analysis written down but it's not tying together. I'm having a hard time tying everything into the central theme of the play.

I had to stop for the night. It was driving me crazy. I'll work on it some more tomorrow. It's not due until Tuesday night anyhow. I'm sure when I get back to it, I'll have a eureka moment and then slap my forehead in a "why didn't I think of that earlier?" method.

For NaySayers of True Love

2008-04-20T20:24:00.000-05:00

The other day Dan comes home from work and tells me Ian and some other people are going out for Sushi and I should go. Dan hates seafood of any nature so he opted instead to stay home and encouraged me to go since I never get a chance to eat my favorite foods. I refused at first out of guilt that I would be enjoying a nice meal and he'd be getting nothing. He won though and I left for Sushi.

Tim and Jenn bugged out so it was just me, Lauren and Ian. We each tried some new items and had a good time. On the way home I called Dan to ask him what I could pick up for him. I thought about getting him a nice bloody burger somewhere but I couldn't remember which restuarants grind their own meat. Plus he didn't answer. He was probably too busy with video games.

Half way home I realized the perfect thing was a sub from our favorite sub shop, Larry's Giant Subs. I call in an order and make my way over there. It is nearly ready by the time I pay. As I wait for it, flashing headlights turn my head to the parking lot.

It was Dan! We were both busted. I grabbed his sub to meet Dan outside and we collapse into a fit of giggles and hugs.

*He didn't answer his phone because he left it at home while he ran to Sear's to get me a garage door opener for my car. On the way back home he decided a sub is what he wanted only to be met by me holding a sub for him already.

Breakfast of a Liz

2008-04-17T06:10:00.002-05:00

Good morning!!! I have a busy day ahead of me. This is a typical breakfast in the life of a Liz; Special K Strawberry cereal with sliced bananas with a Yoplait yogurt.

*this is actually Publix Brand cereal but it's similiar enough and it was FREE. If I bought the name brand item then I get the Publix brand for FREE. You KNOW I stocked up! Hahah. Those suckers don't know that I eat their brand anyhow, mostly when I feel too cheap to buy the real thing. It doesn't taste the same but it's close enough that I don't care.

Yesterday someone asked me if I lost weight. It's very flattering but my pants feel like they are painted on so that would be a NO. Heh heh.

Good morning!!

Let me count the ways!

2008-04-15T14:04:00.000-05:00

Today I have been in a piss poor mood. I could chalk it up to all sorts of reasons;

1. Hormones. These are always fun to blame but it's the wrong time of month to blame them so today they get off scotch free.
2. Weather. Nope. It is sunshine beautiful outside with a beautiful temperature of 61 degrees.
3. Husband. Nope. He's not here so I can't blame him.

So instead of placing blame, I'll just take it. I'm in a piss poor mood because of me. Either that or my meds aren't working. Hahah.

I saw a kitten at Wal-Mart, some lady brought 3 tiny ones with her for whatever reason. As soon as I saw them, my hate for the world just melted away as I pet the little mewing ball of fur.

No one can stay angry especially with cute little baby kitties around. I resisted and ended up going home with only groceries.

Moral of story: Liz is not having a good day so send me messages of love!

This pretty much sums up my day

2008-04-15T14:00:00.000-05:00

Sinfest Comic Strip

Not part of my duty

2008-04-10T12:35:00.002-05:00

Dan has been addicted to a new game for the XBOX 360 called Call of Duty 4 which replaced last year's favorite, Halo 3.

This first person shooter game, unlike Halo which is more fantasy alien scenario, COD4 is based on modern warfare. The maps look very realistic.

I'm not a big fan of playing shooter based games because usually I can't figure the controls and I end up dying before figuring out how to walk. But I don't mind watching Dan play. It's pretty fun. Upon dying, you immediately "respawn" or come back to life and you get to continue in the match.

I think the real excitement is playing real people online. Sometimes when Dan's friends are online, they join in on the match and play on the same team. Even Dan's brother who lives in PA can join in on the fun. So despite the distance, the two can still be close even if it is through video games.

Dan had to use the restroom so I took the controller and I played a match or three! I was finally able to kill a few guys to the few dozens I got killed but it was still fun. The real fun was putting on the headphones and turning on the mic and letting these "men" know they just got killed by a GIRL. Hahaha.

Will I continue to play in the future? Probably not. It's more fun to just watch Dan play. If the game programmers find a way to have two players play online at the same time then I might play. I refuse to play against Dan. That is just not fair to me. But it's all good if he's on my team because then he can make up for all my deaths by killing a few extra guys for me.

Home Sunshine Home

2008-04-10T09:39:00.003-05:00

Last night I had some ladies over for some snacks and conversation and we had a fun time. They didn't realize just how far away I really do live. Hahah. But it's all good. I don't mind driving to their places most of the time but it was nice to host for a change.

This morning I had a doctor's appointment at the Naval hospital which is located in the middle of North Charleston in the middle of a bad neighborhood. It's a hefty drive but it's where I have to go so I deal with it.

Upon leaving, the bright sunshine from the morning now turned into a hopeless gray day. We quickly drove home to get away from the sadness of a dilapidated and forgotten neglected area. Within 30 minutes we finally arrived home in Summerville. I get out of the car, more tired from the drive than my appointment itself and squint as I enter the house. Then I realize it is sunny here and beautiful.

That got me feeling and thinking about the many different areas that encompass the Charleston area; downtown, West Ashley, Mt. Pleasant, North Charleston, Hanahan, Goose Creek, Ladson, Summerville and etc..

Even though Summerville is a bit of a drive and more secluded that the rest of the area, it is my peace of quiet. It's where I go to at the end of a long tiring day. It's my getaway. It's my bit of sunshine among a city of cloudiness.

Baby Fever

2008-04-08T14:48:00.003-05:00

The other day I had a dream I was on Super Market Sweeps: the game show where you jet around a grocery store to have the highest $ amount at checkout.

First I stopped in the meat section and picked up several baby back ribs. Then I remembered how expensive diapers were so I rush to that aisle and stock up. Then I remember that formula is super expensive so I load up on that.

What is in common? Babies. Someone has the baby fever baaaaad.

*This is me with a friends baby

See you Seattle!!

2008-04-03T12:19:00.002-05:00

For quite a few months now I've been planning a trip to Seattle. And somewhere in the craziness of the past few weeks, I booked my trip! Woohoo!

I'm going to see my BF Sabrina. And Tiff! And Jenn, my redheaddiva!

Dan has put Seattle on his wish list if he doesn't get picked up for Officer. I wanted Hawaii at first but the more I am thinking about it, I think I will enjoy living in Washington.

I will be leaving in a month!! I am super excited!!

Melbourne Complacency

2008-03-30T19:40:00.003-05:00

While I like visiting Melbourne, I find that I can't wait to be "home". Melbourne is no longer home to me. Melbourne is no longer my city.

If Orlando is the party city, then Melbourne is surfer dude personified. The general mood is laid back and easy. But within that comfort comes risk. Since life is good, there is no need to change, no need to get to the next level.

If I still lived in Melbourne I probably would still be the same person I was three years ago. I'd be working the same job that I absolutely hated and would be doing nothing to further myself.

I don't mind visiting Melbourne especially when I see some great friends but I think I passed Melbourne by and it'll never be home to me again.

*This of course does not apply to anyone in Melbourne. This is just a feeling I got while driving around.*

Florida and Family Time

2008-03-29T11:54:00.002-05:00

Well it wasn't too secret. My neighbor Janel knew because she had to feed the cat. Mark and his family knew because he was who we were visiting. I just didn't tell the whole world because this trip to Melbourne was about relaxation.

Jason was originally supposed to go off to boot camp before our trip to Melbourne and that made me sad to not see him before he left but luckily for me, it changed and I did get to see him.

We stayed at our buddy Mark's house and played Guitar Hero and Rock Band. Well I actually just watched while they played. I also hung out with my mom for a bit too and helped her fix Korean XP. That was fun. Haha. I was also able to look up lyrics for her favorite song so she loved that.

Then on Saturday I rounded up my two brothers and drove them almost 4 hours to Fort Meyers, Florida to surprise our Grandmother. She was having a birthday party at the same restaurant as Grandpa did 3 years ago but this time she knew about the birthday party, she just didn't know we were coming. I think she thought I was visiting my in-laws so I played along and told her that if I wasn't a million miles away that I would be there for her party. Heh heh. She was surprised and loved it.

I hardly see my family so it was really nice to see them. Being with Jason and Jeremiah in the car ride was a blast. I forgot how retarded funny these two can get. I heard "butterface" for the first time in like ten years!! Jeremiah was shocked to find out that I am no longer the 15 year self I used to be. I no longer listen to trendy music and I have long forsaken not cursing. Jeremiah kept telling me stories on how I tattled on him for cursing and how I couldn't repeat the actual curse word. I think I finally got cool in his book.

Even the two punked out on me and slept the first half of the ride back, the second half was a blast. The three of us reminisced of older days, of good and the bad times. We were able to fill each other in on what's been happening since the last time we were separated and our version of what life was like when we all were together. It was some nice bonding time. We were really understood each other.

Life is funny. Because of our home life the three of us went our separate ways and now the three of us are back in each others lives. It's like Longwood Blvd was just a blip in our life and now we are moving on and living our life like we were supposed to.

I'm sad that Jason is joining the service but I'm happy that he is doing something positive for his life and I wish him the best and I hope to get to see him and hear about his adventures! I'm also glad Jeremiah and I could be with him one last time before he is no longer a civilian! Cheers Jason!

Flickr

2008-03-28T12:34:00.001-05:00

This is a test post from , a fancy photo sharing thing.

The cat's day! Dan too :)

2008-03-27T20:28:00.002-05:00

In addition to my bad day Dan also had a not so pleasant start to his. What should have only taken a 15 minute drive to the Vet, took Dan an hour and a half due to the humongous accident today. I heard traffic was backed up on 526 from the North Rhett exit all the way to Goose Creek. Poor Dan and poor kitty. Kitty does not handle car rides well.

Good news is that Kitty is healthy and up to date on all shots. Dan also got some information about de-clawing and getting Capt. Jack a little brother or sister. Turns out now would be a perfect time for both. We'll see.

The Vet and the rest of the office was very taken with our kitty. Instead of taking the carrier Dan took the cat on his leash which turned out to be much better than the carrier. The office has never seen a cat on a leash before and ate it up. When a big dog came in, the cat fluffed up and ran into the door :/ but other than that he was fine. The Vet mentioned that he's never seen a better behaved cat and of course I puffed with pride upon hearing this. Dan and I make good kitty parents! Yay!

On the ride home the cat peed on Dan :/ Luckily the cat knew enough to pee on Dan's jeans instead of the carpet or car seat. Also luckily Dan was at a stop light so he was able to whip off his sweatshirt and used that to soak up any residual pee. Since Dan is a good kitty parent, he didn't punish the cat. This is the first time the kitty ever had an accident so we actually felt bad for the kitty. Haha. He's our little furry baby.

As much as I would like to have another cat I don't know if I can do it. I love this cat so much that I don't want to change it. What if he doesn't like his new brother or sister? Or what if I love our kitty less? Hahah. I sound like we're having real kids or something.

civilian nurses in the military

2008-03-27T20:23:00.000-05:00

I had a hell of a day and to top it off I am sick. Please do not mind my mini pity party. I will get over it. My day probably would'nt have been so bad if I was feeling not sick and if civilian nurses didn't work in military health care facilities.

I have never had a problem with any Corp Men so why are the civilian nurses any different? I don't know but what I do know is that I am filling out complaint forms and those nurses are going to be getting shit for treating me like shit.

If this happens a third time I am seriously going to try to get care from a non-military institution. I don't deserve to be treated this horribly in return for healthcare.

Tomorrow is a new day and I'm going to try my best to put today behind me. Tomorrow will be a better day. I may even get home in time before Dan leaves for work.

psycho poetics

2008-03-19T11:51:00.002-05:00

I am in love with "Panic! at the disco". For those of you out of the loop, they are a band.

They haven't released an album for a few years and I've been anxiously waiting. In the meantime, Dan and I have tickets to see them at the end of April! I am pumped! Our good friends Tim and Jenn are coming too. It's going to be fun times.

Someone leached their new album online and of course we downloaded it as soon as possible and plan on buying ten million copies when it goes on sale too. The album is a different style than their first one which initially I was bummed about because I really liked the cabaret style BUT this new album is equally as impressive in terms of lyrics.

Panic!, really puts the lyrical back into lyrics. It's nice to hear poetic music again.

On the other hand, I am just a fan of straight no bullshit lyrics like "Puddle of Mudd"'s Psycho:
Maybe I'm the one
Maybe I'm the one who is the schizophrenic psycho (yeah)
Maybe I'm the one
Maybe I'm the one who is the paranoid Flake-oh

There isn't much depth to that song but it is perfect just the way it is. Sometimes we, as in the people of the world, need to self reflect. Maybe the other person isn't crazy, maybe it's just you.

So this post is dedicated to all the psycho's out there that realize they are the crazy ones and not the other way around. If you aren't a psycho, take a second to reflect anyhow :D

"charming"? You decide.

2008-03-17T14:24:00.002-05:00

After my classes today I head into an bathroom, alone. As soon as I pop a squat, someone comes in. This doesn't bother me. I can do my business anywhere. But this lady starts talking to me. Not talking to herself, but actually talking to me about the state of her stall. Seriously. I had to answer back with "yeah". Then she has trouble flushing and proceeds to tell me about it. I can hear it! I don't need her narrating to me about it. Then as she is walking out, she seriously wishes me a good day and "I'll see you later". She didn't even see me to begin with! I was in a bathroom stall!

I know Charleston is supposed to be "Charming" but this is just too far.

The cat is OUT of the bag!!

2008-03-04T11:42:00.002-05:00

My "secret" spot is not so secret anymore. Hahah.

It turns out after I left, Dan went to his favorite sub shop which just so happened to be right down the street from the coffee shop I was hanging out at. The next day after we made up and talked about it, he asked me how my coffee was. I was flustered and remembered that my bank is fast about debit card transactions so he probably saw it online and I exclaimed "I should've used cash". But he just saw my car driving by. Hahaha.

Cat is out of the bag now. I thought it was pretty funny he found me so we had a good laugh about it. I've gotta learn better hiding techniques for whenever we get a Liz Jr. running around. If we play hide and seek, I don't want her to find me! Hahaha.

Update: Flu, car and school

2008-03-03T17:22:00.003-05:00

After dodging the stomach flu for weeks it took me by surprise last night. All day I felt sick to my stomach and I was convinced it was the OJ I had from McDonalds. It wasn't until I could barely lie still in bed from my achey body that I realized it was the flu. Dan had to work but before leaving, he rubbed my back to make me feel better but I brushed him away because I couldn't handle physical contact and then I jumped up and retched. Poor guy. I hope he doesn't have a complex that he makes me puke. Hahah.

Luckily I have no school today or tomorrow so I can relax and feel better. I'm supposed to go to a book club meeting tonight to discuss "Eat, Pray, Love" by Elizabeth Gilbert. I know I shouldn't go, in case I am contagious but I really loved this book and want to discuss it with other people who have read it.

This Thursday we will be getting a new roof for our house. We are super excited! We are seriously square to get excited about a new roof but oh well.

I finally got my car back yesterday. It is running perfectly now. It turned out that the mechanic put on the timing belt 180 degrees wrong. So essentially, he put it on backwards. That sucks for him since he didn't get paid for the extra work he put on himself. Dan is happy to have his car back and so am I although I did love driving his little car around. It sits up higher than mine and is quite zippy for a 4 cylinder. But my car is completely paid off so there is no way I am trading my car in for another payment every month. No thank you.

I took two tests on Friday and I am anxiously awaiting my grades. I studied my butt off and I want to know how I did. I keep going online to check every hour or so. Haha. There is something else school related I am nervous about but I don't want to jinx myself so I'll write about it later.

So other than my bug, life has been good. The weather is gorgeous here. Dan and I are getting along good. The cat still thinks he's a princess. Life is good and I like that.

Rumple WHO?

2008-02-25T17:19:00.002-05:00

My car is still in Columbia, I am home. Tomorrow we should be able to pick it up after I give up my first born. Well it was either that or pay about $600. Sorry Liz Jr. Hahah. Just kidding. I would never go to Rumplestilkens Auto Repair.

I have two tests this week so I am currently in the library trying to study. But since I've been slacking in HW, I'm having a rough time doing my math review. Bad Liz, Bad liz.

I think I also have a paper due tomorrow. Oh boy! It's an argumentative essay about one of three topics and I chose global warming so it shouldn't be too hard for me.

This weekend I have learned:
1. I am capable of jinxing myself
2. It is okay to cry and be strong at the same time
3. Do my freekin homework when it is assigned.

my car broke

2008-02-24T18:59:00.000-05:00

Well today (sunday) I drove up to Columbia for the day for a rubber stamp thing and my car died while I was just a few miles away from my destination. Go figure.

So it's at Pep Boy's now. They are going to work on it in the morning. They think it's my timing belt so that's fun.

Dan came and picked up me up and I am finally home now sans rubber stamps :/

I'm trying hard to not feel sorry for myself. I was pretty lucky that my car didn't catch on fire or that it wasn't raining or that traffic wasn't too bad so I could pull over safely.

Hopefully it'll be ready by tuesday since that's the day Dan has off and I don't have class until the afternoon.

I already called my job and called out of work but I guess I can go to work now. I originally thought I would have to stay the night in Columbia but then we decided that Dan would pick me up. I have two tests this week so I don't want to miss any class time.

I guess I'll be borrowing Dan's car and he'll catch a ride to work with a friend. It's time to brush up on my stick shift skills! Try saying that ten times fast! :P

"secret" hiding place

2008-02-23T15:35:00.002-05:00

When I lived in Melbourne, I had a "secret" hiding place. Here I would write page after page trying to understand my life. Other times I'd blast my music and cry it out. I never told a soul about this place. I didn't want anyone to find me. This was back before I had my first cell phone so if anyone wanted me, they couldn't get me.

Today Dan and I weren't meshing well and being in the other room was still too close, so one of us had to leave. Since he had to get ready for work, I opted to get out.

This is how I came across my new hiding spot! Miffed that I had to leave my house, I bitterly read my book and got over it. Then I talked to a friend on my cell phone about something unrelated to the situation.

Now I am back at home, alone. Even the cat was hiding from me. Of course the cleaning bug I had earlier hightailed it so now I feel restless. I have some studying that needs to get done, a ton of cleaning and there are a few projects I want to work on for me.

I guess there is only one thing left for me to do: blast my music and sing horribly out of tune!!! :P

Liz without the Dan

2008-02-21T21:55:00.002-05:00

This week I can goof off as much as I want because Dan is on the beloved swing shift, or as known in the civilian world as second shift. Basically he works the afternoon to about 1am. I LOVE LOVE this schedule. If I am off in the morning, then we get to see each other for a bit and then before wanting to choke the other person from seeing them too much, one of us leaves for our various day duties.

When I come home, I can take off my pants, eat cereal for dinner and blast my crappy music to my hearts delight. Oh and sing as much as I like without any tone! It's awesome. On top of that, I get to watch all the crap tv I want! This is a "not so secret" pleasure of mine. Dan despises the TV and I used to also but I can put my hate aside for it for a few entertaining moments it serves me. I try not to watch TV when he's around just out of courtesy.

Next up is Mids and we will probably never see any of each other and then we will start missing each other and then he goes back to day shifts again and we get to get sick of each other all over again! Hahahaha.

In all seriousness though, we love each other and we love our quality time with each other but it is inevitable that we get on each other's nerves. If you want to spend every waking moment with your spouse or SO, get some help and some friends please! Your spouse will thank you. Hahahaha. Seriously. Hahahaha.

Everyone should know who Eddie is

2008-02-21T20:30:00.002-05:00

Anyone ever have a bad teacher? Like a teacher who makes you read every single word of the text and lectures off the text but then the tests are nothing about the text? Or how about the teacher that tells you an assignment is due and refuses to explain how to do it?

Luckily, I have been blessed with mostly good teachers. A few rotten ones slipped in but I forgive them.

At Trident Tech, my teachers have actually been pretty decent.

My math teacher is super math nerdy. He thoroughly teaches the math and explains it even if he does try to crack a few math jokes every now and then.

My tech teacher needs a haircut but he does tie it back for class. I really enjoy his lectures. We are supposed to come to class having already read the text and then he condenses that text into a lecture and then explains certain concepts more in depth. He acts like a real college professor and I appreciate that a lot.

My theater teacher is goofy as all get out. The other day in class he carried chairs on his back to explain a point. He is a bit slow to get to his points but he throughly explains the concepts and eventually ties it into what we are learning. I actually get a lot of history from his lectures. He dresses like a college student so that is a bit strange but his discussions in class are usually fun and interactive.

This leaves me with my english teacher. At the beginning of the term, this class was my favorite but he ended up being somewhat of a flake; not returning emails, skipping class ect.. But he got his act together and the class is getting better. He encourages class discussion and tries to help us become better writers. He will sit there and sit it out until someone answers his question though. So I feel the need to express my opinion constantly just to get over the silence.

But today he redeemed himself. We were discussing various methods for constructing an argumentative essay and he quoted Eddie Izzard! How kick ass!! We were talking about smoking in bars and ect.. so the Eddie (a british stand up comedian) is talking about how smoking is banned in California and he says "Soon there will be no drinking, eating or talking in bars". I about died that my teacher knew who Eddie Izzard was.

The letter C!

2008-02-19T15:35:00.001-05:00

I'm trying something new here. Instead of writing my blog online, I am writing it in Word 2007. This version is actually pretty snazzy. I didn't like it at first because I couldn't find all my usual tools but I've been learning and finding lots of cool stuff. You can apply a quick style or change the color combos. It's very handy.

I went to the grocery store today and bought a ton of food. It's amazing how the healthy food costs more than the junk. But it's worth it to me because if I buy the junk I'll pay for it in my waist. No thank you very much. Dan came home with 6 boxes of Girl Scout cookies. I wanted to strangle him. Luckily they were all cookies that he likes. He is forbidden to buy any more catalogue items from work until all of the junk is gone. We still have stuff from when he bought Boy Scout items and the last round of Girl Scout goodies. I probably wouldn't mind as much if he threw me a box of something I liked. Hahah.

Juggling Liz

2008-02-19T10:54:00.002-05:00

Last night I had a dream that my hair was long and beautiful. Then I woke up and realized my hair is short and in dire need of a trim. Thanks for tricking me, me.

During my waking hours I am juggling school, a job, a marriage and a social life. It's been exhausting. I don't want to cut back on anything because I am having a blast and it's so strange to not have enough hours in the day anymore.

Library work has been going okay. I am way too loud and clumsy for this job but they keep me on. When I restack the books I feel like everyone can hear my thoughts because it so damn quiet in there and then my clumsy hands drop the book I'm trying to shelve. Hahah! Oops!

To yap or not to yap?

2008-02-14T20:47:00.002-05:00

I haven't been online much lately, been too much of a busy body. I'm neglecting my studies so I'm working on fixing that. My blogs have been neglected as well and I am working on this as well.

I didn't think too many people read my blogs but it turns out that people do read but don't comment! My little brother reads my myspace blog! I thought he was ignoring me for the longest time so I was surprised to see that he reads it. My buddy Gino reads too. Hi!! My friend Mary that I met through the Military Families group also reads my blog I found out. I had no idea.

So if you read, please leave me a comment. I would love to know who you are and the comments encourage me to keep blogging. Or if you want me to stop the yapping, tell me too :P

sweeeet teeth

2008-02-06T11:20:00.000-05:00

We are back in town. We arrived a half hour earlier than planned so I was able to shower before heading off to school. My english class got cancelled, AGAIN. This is the third time. I am really annoyed. I want to be there, I wish my teacher would get his act together and be there too.

At least I came home early with enough time to cut dan's hair. It should've been done two weeks ago, it was bad. I did a good job and I think next time Dan will let me go shorter.

We had a good trip but we are glad to be home. This weekend I ate nothing but junk BUT i LOVED it. At a gas stop I had to get ice cream. WTF? who gets ice cream from a gas station? Hahah. Then on the way back at 9am I bought a chocolate bar. It's like I need it or something. But now that I am back home I'm going to try to get back to eating healthy again, I'll just have to hide those brownies.. hahaha.

Complete silence

2008-02-03T14:17:00.001-05:00

Today the boys are off skiing. Lucky! I would've gone too but we'd have to pay for lessons and ect.. so maybe next time.

It's all good though. The house is perfect and quiet since it's just me and Dan's mom. We're each doing out own thing. She's making food for the big game and I've finished updating my address book!

Now I'm about to work on some homework. I need to rework a rough draft, read a story and make a word document. It's not too bad. I better get on it before the boys come home because then the game will turn on and it'll never be this quiet again!

"How I met Dan"

2008-02-03T14:01:00.000-05:00

How did you meet your significant other?
Answer all the questions HONESTLY and repost as " How I met _____"

1. Where did you meet?
Through Jenn, the redhead

2. What was the first thought that went through your head when you met?
wow. Those eyes. This must be the cute guy that they were talking about.

3. Do you remember what he was wearing?
t-shirt with a cream colored Hawaiian shirt

4. Where was the first time you kissed this person?
The next day after the movies. We drove together to Josh and Gabby's and scooped me up and we made out for hours.

5. How did he/she ask you out?
he got my number from Jenn

6. Where did you go for your first date?
I'm not sure if it was a "date" but we went to the movies and saw Kill Bill

7.How long did you know this person before you became a couple?
not long

8. Has this person ever proposed to you?
already has

9. Do you and this person have kids together?
like a million.. hahahaha Well we'll see after one.

10. Have you ever broken the law with this person?
well he speeds :S

11. When was the first time you realized that you liked this person?
When he slyly tried to hold my hand at the movies. It was so orchestrated.

12. Do you get along with any of the ex's of your partner?
Sure do, most of them are his friends! Haha.

13. Do you trust this person?
With my whole life

14. Do you see your partner in your future?
yep! He's not getting rid of me even when I am wrinkly and grey

15. Whats the most expensive thing this person has given you?
my wedding ring, car, house

16. What is one thing he/she does that gets on your nerves?
whistles out of key

17. What is the thing you do that gets on his/her nerves?
I leave the pantry door open

18. Where do you see each other in 15 years from now?
with a couple of kids in suburbia reminiscing when our bratty teenagers used to like us

"your mom goes to college"

2008-02-01T13:09:00.000-05:00

I took two tests on Wednesday, one for Math and the other for Technology. I worked myself up over both and I felt incredibly unprepared so the past week I've been studying my butt off. The tests ended up being relatively mild and short so I worked myself up over nothing. I should get test scores back by Monday since I took mine early. I'm in PA right now visiting family. I missed two quizzes for my night classes and I probably won't be able to make those up, I tried though. Oh well. You win some and lose some.

I started on a rough draft for a paper that is due Tuesday. I will rewrite it probably tomorrow night or maybe during the game. I also have some reading to do but for the most part I don't have too much homework to do.

Today we are going to a couple of thrift stores. I'm excited. I love looking through junk and finding good deals. Last time I found a great pair of black slingbacks for $2. What a deal! I never wear heels anymore though, my feet like wearing sneakers lately.

Nothing else to report. Have a good weekend everybody!

When is a car NOT a car?

2008-01-30T02:06:00.000-05:00

... when it is turning into a driveway.

Hahahah... NOT FUNNY.

You know what else is NOT funny? The fact that I have a stapler but no staples. I DISTINCTLY remember when we lived in the apartment that I used to tease Dan for having staples but no stapler. I looked everywhere for that thing and could never find it. He insisted we had one but was never able to produce one so I did not believe him.

Somehow in the move we managed to find the stapler (yay!) but we also lost the staples. Boo!

I bet you I won't find those staples until we move again.

You are going to be deleted!

2008-01-29T23:10:00.000-05:00

Active sync kept telling me there was a problem and we searched it up and it said it was Outlook's fault. Great. So Dan un-installed all of my Office software to start from scratch. After he re-installed everything, no more sync problems! Woohoo! I guess I messed something up the first time. Who knows.

Now I am trying to sort through my contacts and fill in as much info as I can so I no longer have to store information other than my phone. This is going to be a fun and long project. I guess it's also time for a clean up of my address book. If I haven't talked to you in two years, you will be deleted.

Nerd-ing it up

2008-01-29T14:24:00.000-05:00

Today I am sporting the wrist guard. oh yeah! Last night I spent too much times surfing the net on the laptop and my whole arm hurts now. D'oh. Our laptop is ancient and broke-ass and the wireless card slot is broken so that means it only uses the built in wireless from like 5 years ago which means it is slow compared to wireless speeds now. But I can surf while I am on the couch so it's a double edge sword. But now I am geeking it up with the wrist guard.

Speaking of geeks, my classes are going pretty well. I have two tests this week and I have to take them early since I am going out of town this weekend. I feel crazy unprepared. It's probably just test anxiety since I've been keeping up with my notes and homework but I don't know the material off the top of my head so I'm anxious. I spent 4 hours in the library studying and doing homework. We shall see.

I will probably start work next week which will be nice since I've been incurring extra expenses for extra gas and food. I didn't get gas until I had 346 miles on my tank. Hah! I told Dan and I think he nearly flipped his lid. I kept forgetting to get gas and it just built up quickly. Luckily I don't have an SUV otherwise I would've been walking to the nearest gas station.

In other news, it's been farking freezing at night! I love the word "farking" lately. I love when it's cold since I am hot all the time but when I need to turn on the heat at night, then it's a wee bit chilly outside. Dan sure is thankful though, he can finally unshed his 3 layers of coats and blankets. Hahaha. How did I marry a northerner who is perpetually cold? How did he marry a Floridian that is perpetually hot? We sure do make an odd couple but I sure do love him.

Why do I have to be a sore loser?

2008-01-28T03:00:00.000-05:00

I downloaded and installed the update for my phone so now it has Window's Mobile 6.0 instead of 5.0. It looks the same to me but now I will be able to use a high definition card in it.

Since I read that it can sync my contacts, email, calendar and everything else with Outlook I installed that on my computer too. Supposedly I can use outlook to sync my internet calendars since I use google calendar and 30 boxes.

BUT Microsoft has to make their shit as confusing as possible. I just spent an hour looking through Outlook 2007 trying to figure it all out. I set up my gmail so IMAP will work with it but when I sent an email to it, it didn't download but it downloaded a different new email.

I don't understand how to use it and this frustrates me to hell. I hate giving up too but my hatred for Outlook might win. Maybe I'll try Outlook 2003 or something or another. But then it probably won't sync with my phone anymore.

This phone is supposed to make my life easier but instead I am more frustrated. It looks like a traditional day planner and address book is beating my fancy new smartphone. I am supposed to be smarter than an object or an intangible program. Why do I have to be a sore loser?

Don't blame the computer

2008-01-28T02:51:00.000-05:00

My Tech teacher relates computers and cars together because for "unknown" reasons they don't work at times without an explanation.

I disagree.

Computers and cars are designed to function a certain way and it's not their fault when we want it to do something it can't do or process something that is outside their capabilities.

Say you want to drive 100mph in second gear. What happens? The car will die. Is that the car's fault or the drivers fault for not knowing how to use the computer? Hmm? Something to think about.

In general I take care of my computer like I take care of my car. I refuel it, I wash it, I get the oil changed ect.. The same goes for the computer, you need to delete temporary files, make sure you have an anti-virus software running, defragment, backup files and ect..

If the computer breaks, it's most likely your fault. I know I'm going to get a lot of flack but really, computers are not smart. They are programmed to run a certain way and if you want to drive it 100mph in second gear, don't blame the computer.

Shoe hostage situation

2008-01-24T13:46:00.000-05:00

I hop on myspace to see a comment waiting for me. Yay. I love comments.. only to find this:
I have ur shoe hostage, mahahaaaa

My poor lonely shoe! How it wishes to be reunited with her sister!

How could we resist?

2008-01-22T14:43:00.000-05:00

We did it, we couldn't resist. We bought ourselves phones. We managed to find really good deals so altogether we spent less than $300 for two phones that retail at over $1000 combined. How could we resist at that price? :D

My Treo 750 should arrive tomorrow by 7pm! Dan is getting the At&t Tilt. I was torn between the two but I felt like the Treo was easier to navigate in my hand but the Tilt is still way nice.

Life After People

2008-01-21T16:55:00.000-05:00

Life After People
What would happen to planet earth if the human race were to suddenly disappear forever? Would ecosystems thrive? What remnants of our industrialized world would survive? What would crumble fastest? From the ruins of ancient civilizations to present day cities devastated by natural disasters, history gives us clues to these questions and many more in the visually stunning and thought-provoking new special LIFE AFTER PEOPLE, premiering Monday, January 21st, 2008 at 9:00 p.m. ET/PT on The History Channel®.

I saw a preview of this at the movie theater and I am PUMPED to see this.

I've been reading "The World Without Us" by Alan Weisman. I haven't finished it yet because it's a hard read and the book pisses me off. I get so angered at the human race and how fast we are destroying our precious planet. This book has inspired me to a better human and more conscious of my consumer repercussions.

While this History Channel special is NOT related to this book, I am anxious to finally visualize what I've been imagining while reading this book.

Reference link from Boing Boing

Let me know if you watch this, I'd love to discuss it with someone.

Martin Luther King Jr Day

2008-01-21T16:00:00.000-05:00

Ahh.. another relaxing government sanctioned holiday. Let us not forget why we have this day.

Today we celebrate the life and legacy of a great man who fought for rights for African Americans and in turn spiraled into rights for everyone.

If it wasn't for him, I wouldn't be here today. Interracial marriages were illegal until 1967. Can you believe that two people in love were not allowed to marry based on race? That same issue parallels a current issue today but that's for another day.

Sometimes I forget that I am multi-racial. This is a good thing; it means I am treated (on the whole) like any other person.

I am also thankful that I had no holds on who I wanted to marry. How heartbreaking would it be to fall in love with someone and not be able to marry them?

On top of securing rights for people of various races, MLK also paved the road for women's rights. I'm very thankful that I can legally work, drive a car and vote. I generally make fun of feminists but I do appreciate being an "equal" among men.

Why are you thankful for MLK Jr Day?

Haircut

2008-01-20T16:07:00.000-05:00

Friday I got my haircut, it was getting really long and heavy and I told the lady to thin it out. She went a bit nuts with it so it's a lot shorter than I expected. I didn't like it at first but it's starting to grow on me.

Afterwards I bought myself a nice little outfit. I think I deserve it for all the changes I've been making in my life. It made me feel really good.

Mobile Phone post

2008-01-19T16:00:00.001-05:00

This is a test to see if I can post to my blog using my mobile phone. I can. Test is over. I leave you with cute kitty.

Belated Anniversary

2008-01-17T15:18:00.000-05:00

Yesterday was our second Anniversary. Our first one Dan took me out to dinner at a fancy restaurant downtown. This year we didn't really do much. We are poor first of all and second of all he had to work so it's not like we could plan something. So we sat in our PJ's and ate ice cream together while watching "Stranger than Fiction" which is perhaps one of my favorite movies of all time. We'll celebrate later.

At the grocery store I finally managed to get some gruyere cheese which is for a special homemade alfredo sauce. Last time I used parmesan but the sauce wasn't creamy, it was gritty. Since this is Dan's favorite meal I will prepare this for him on his next day off. He will enjoy it too since it was nearly $15 a pound for this damn cheese. Aye aye aye.

Tomorrow night I also snagged free tickets for a show going on during Comedy Festival this weekend. I am SUPER stoked! I really wanted to see something this year but alas, we are poor. But yet I buy expensive cheese?! I'm such a hypocrite.

I also snagged a job at the library on campus! Woo! It pays $6.00 a hour! Wow! I can't remember the last time I was paid that low. But they are willing to work around my schedule which is super nice and I am guaranteed hours. This job will help with extra expenses and ect.. and go towards paying off my credit cards.

Dan's grandmother's health isn't doing too well. They just found cancer and she goes in for Chemo on Monday. I feel grateful that I already went through this and now I am able to be there for Dan. I miss you Grandpa. I hope you are doing well and thank you for visiting me in my dream the other night.

Jason and I were swimming in a pool and Grandpa was with us, swimming with us. He was actually tickling us and having fun. Grandma was sitting on a pool chair just hanging out and enjoying the sun.

I remember my grandfather as the one sitting out and watching everyone having fun so it was nice to see him in the action. Even though he is gone from our life, I think he is still living, especially in our memories. I love you Grandpa.

Recap of weekend

2008-01-15T21:44:00.000-05:00

Dan and I were quite the butterflies this weekend. And we LIKED it. We're usually home bodies.

Friday night we went to Kristen and Greg's for some video games and conversation. It was a blast. Dan rocked the guitar on Rock Band. Drums is super hard. I seriously have no rhythm.

Saturday night we were supposed to go bowling but it was crowded; thank GOD, since there is smoking and I get migraines from smoke. So we went Putt Putt with our favorite couple Tim and Jenn and a few other people. We had a blast. Jenn killed us at golf, but she kills us with ANY game she plays us. She's just awesome at everything.

We then hit the arcade and I killed at Skee Ball. I must have hit the high score or something because ticket after ticket spewed out for seriously minutes.

Sunday we went out to dinner with some other friends. I had fun making fun of vain people and their Chanel purses. I was a hit with their husbands! Haha. And then I asked who the designated driver was and no one wanted to talk to me after that. Hmm. I doubt we will hang with them again but Dan and I still had fun making fun of people.

And then Monday we went to see Sweeney Todd with Tim and Jenn. That movie was amazing in a very gothic and gory way which is exactly what I expected and I was so ecstatic. You can't go wrong with Tim Burton and Johnny Depp. On the whole I do NOT recommend this movie only because I don't think a majority of people will really understand and appreciate this movie, plus this movie is gothic and gory as hell and will turn a lot of people off. But if you like that sort of thing, SEE THIS MOVIE. I LOVED it and can't get enough of it. Plus Depp sings in it. *swoon*

Tonight was a potluck dinner thing that I wanted to go to but I had night classes so I missed it. I'm sure there will be another one and I'm thinking about hosting my own pot luck dinner/movie night so we shall see.

Nerdy teachers, time management and groceries OH MY

2008-01-15T21:25:00.000-05:00

School is going great. I am having a ball. All my teachers are really awesome, you can tell that they actually like the subject they are teaching and are total nerds in said subject, which is awesome.

I don't have too much homework but the classes do keep me on my toes. I actually have engaging conversations now! It's amazing! I used to yap at Dan before but he didn't give a crap about the books I read or anything like that so it was like talking to a wall. The poor guy no longer has to endure my yaps anymore. Instead he gets to hear about my days now :P

He is absolutely estatic to have the house to himself again. I don't blame him. I try to get out of the house but it ends up being the times that he is at work. Go figure.

At the moment I am currently trying to juggle household chores, homework and time management. I need to find my groove. I currently haphazardly try to get things done all at once or I end up procrastinating etc.. It's a work in progress.

I finally got my financial aide stuff figured out and bought all my books and I also dropped Anthropology and am now taking "Intro to Theater", which is closer in time to my English class. And then my math and technology classes are on the same days so I get to stick to similar subjects which is helpful.

In English we are working on memoirs/biographies and I really want to write about my personal experience with depression but it might be a little too personal. I don't mind though since it consumed my life for the past two years and I know the topic really well. We'll see. I'll explore some other topics as well.

I just came back from grocery shopping. I am tired. I put away all the cold items and I almost want to leave the dry goods for Dan to put away but then he'll end up putting the stuff on the wrong shelves and then I'll get miffed so I need to do it. Silly girls and our need for organization in the pantry.

5 LIKES about school

2008-01-10T08:51:00.000-05:00

1. Having a purpose again. It puts some pep back into my step.

2. Surprisingly "Intro to Computers" is turning out to my favorite class. I thought it would be repetitious and boring but there is a lot I don't know about computers. We are learning Office 2007 which is completely different from the 2003 version. Plus if I take the Office, Access and Excel class (which is covered by the lottery fund) I can get the Microbusiness Certification. Which essentially will free to me. That'll look good on a resume.

3. Being in the sun. Walking around campus gets me a daily dose of sunlight which is always nice.

4. I walk more which exerts more calories! Plus I am more motivated to get to the gym since I am out of the house.

5. Re-experiencing being a student. I like learning and I like being organized with my notes and homework. I bought my book bag yesterday along with a couple of books.

5 dislikes about School

2008-01-10T08:35:00.000-05:00

1. Teachers that try to be funny. If you have to try, just give up. This is not a comedy club, we are there to take notes and learn.

2. Students that talk while the teacher is talking. This is rude! We are not in middle school anymore. Grow up people.

3. People that don't smoke in the designated smoking areas. There are designated smoking areas for a reason. Not everyone smokes so not everyone wants to breathe in your toxic second hand smoke while they are just trying to walk to class. Seriously, can't you find a spot and be courteous to us non-smokers? We understand that you have no self regard for your own health but don't assume that we don't mind breathing in the same shit. I personally get migraines from cigarette smoke. Thank you.

4. Students that don't participate in class. Seriously. I get tired of being one of the three students that participate. I know there are more than three of us in the class. Why not share? The teacher is not going to continue until someone answers his question.

5. Uncomfortable desks.
Why can't the school provide a full desk? Why just a little sliver? I don't mind this too much except you have to lean back in the chair. I don't like to lean back. I like to sit up forward and straight. It's uncomfortable to be leaning back. I'm not lounging, I'm trying to take notes and learn.

Anthropology class

2008-01-08T14:33:00.000-05:00

This was the class I was most looking forward to. I've always had an interest in it and so I took it as my "fun" class.

So far my hopes are looking dim. The teacher is really into anthropology but he's not good at giving lectures or talking in general. He has a speaking tick where he says "alright" after a lot of things and then he starts over.

At the end of class a student behind me told me he counted the teacher saying "alright" about 262 times.

I'm really hoping the class gets better. I took a few notes in class today but other than that I wanted to stab my eyes out. If it doesn't get any better on Thursday then I will see what I can do about switching my class. I want my class to be closer to my english class anyhow. We shall see.