ReVerb13 - Challenges

What challenges lie ahead in 2014? How might you meet them boldly?

One of my biggest challenges for 2014 is to remain active and STAY injury free!  I have only been really healthy for about four months this year.  Between my knee healing and then having the slipped disk and pinched nerve in my back has made it just about impossible to be active at all this year.  I taught Zumba maybe once and just "ran" my first 5K since August 2012.  I have all the tools and know how to stay injury free and I definitely plan to use them.

This year I want to eliminate my credit card debt and use my credit card the way I originally used it.  Gas for my car, maybe some groceries, some music on iTunes, etc.  Then pay it off when it posts to my bill.  With my GI Bill covering my classes AND putting a little extra in my pocket, I am able to continue to put $200 - $300 towards my balance from my paychecks AND an additional $400 - $500 with my GI Bill.  That is coming close to $1000 a month.  I already payed $500 this month and once my bills for the second half of this month process then it will possibly be another $400!  That means I will finally owe less than $3000!  I have not seen my balance that low in a couple years.

I have already made it over six months without smoking so I guess it is safe to say that I have officially quit so there is something off my New Year's Resolution list that I can finally scrub out forever.  I might have to take a look at that list from last year to see what I still need to address!  I have crossed out what I have accomplished!

• Make my lunch to take to work
• Quit smoking for good
• Run in five 5K runs with my mom (I will save the Rock 'N Roll Half Marathon for a year that I do not have horrible knee pain)
• Complete the Zumbatomic training
• Eliminate half of my credit card debt (it would be nice to eliminate all but I will settle with half)
• Move out on my own
• Re-enroll in school and take at least three classes
• Continue to find myself and better myself to make me happy (this one is an ongoing)
• Share my feelings more and not shut people out so much

From that list, this is what I still want to accomplish:

• Make my lunch to take to work
• Run in THREE 5K runs (it would be nice to do them with my mom but if I can do them with a friend of BF then I am happy!)
• Participate in a ZJ session, Pro Skills or a "Boost"
• Complete Zumba Kids & Kids Jr (formerly known as Zumbatomic) or Zumba Step
• Eliminate my credit card debt
• Get a raise and two days off per week

Until next time!

Reverb 13 - Shifting Gears

Living life on auto-pilot can feel disorienting and dull. How did you cultivate a life worth loving during 2013?

How can you turn off your auto-pilot button in 2014?

I found that I was stuck in a rut.  I was living each day waking up, going to work, going home, sleeping and repeating.  It was no way to live.  When I started dating BF, I got my social life back.  It was something that I had seriously been lacking and that I desperately needed!

I have taken on a lot of new tasks and responsibility at work that I believe will earn me a significant pay increase and if it doesn't then it might be time to start looking for something else.  I can't live with my mother forever and it is driving me nuts that I have no idea what I own anymore because it is all boxed up and in storage.

I have become pro-active.  I have gone back to school.  I have completed two courses (one not so successfully) but I have kind of gotten out of my mundane routine.  I start teaching Zumba again in a couple of weeks and I cannot wait!  I have signed up for one 5K and will be signing up for another one shortly.  I want to make my life better and I think I am on the right track!

Until next time!

Reverb13 - Time For Inspiration

Who inspired you in 2013? And why?

What gifts did they give you? And how will you carry these forward in to 2014?

It is hard for me to think of who inspired me.  The only one I can honestly think of (and I know it is gonna sound cheesy) is my BF.  He came into my life at a time when I needed someone.  He has done nothing but support me and encourage me.  Because of him I looked into getting back into school and have started pursuing my degree.  I am slated to graduate November 2015!  I can't believe that I am 20 classes away from graduating with my BA in Behavioral Science.

I am kind of at a lose for what to write here so I am gonna leave it at that and I will probably come back to it at some point and add to it.

Reverb13 - No One Likes A Quitter

What went right in 2013?  Maybe you didn't quit smoking or lose those pounds or go to Paris, but something did work, did happen, and/or was realized. What was it?

Besides my awesome BF (whom I have mentioned in several of my last posts), I actually DID quit smoking.  It has been almost seven months since I smoked my last cigarette and I have not given in once.  I am super proud of myself.  The only other thing that could be as equally as awesome is if I can get a raise before the end of the year.

Reverb13 - The Dreaded Selfie

I admit it.  I am guilty of taking a selfie here and there but I rarely post them.  I send them to BF from time to time because most of them actually involve a pouty face because I'm not with him (vomit worthy right?!).  So after careful consideration, I think this is one of my favorites from this year (and I only went back to April when I got my iPhone).

I took this picture of BF and me shortly after he moved here.  We were just starting to hang out and get to know each other.  Now it has been five amazing months!  I love him so much!

Until next time!

#Reverb 13 - Precious Memories

Today is day 6 of Reverb13.  Here is today's prompt:

“True wisdom lies in gathering the precious things out of each day as it goes by.”— E.S. Bouton

There are so many “precious things” that are presented to us each day; discoveries and treasures found in simple moments, memories we wish to store in our hearts and keep with us forever.  What precious things have you gathered in 2013?  Which memories from this year do you wish to keep with you always?

I received a picture message today from BF's roommate (I really need a good nickname for him...Catman...yeah...we'll go with that for now...he loves cats and has two).  It is a picture from BF's birthday weekend when we saw Daniel Tosh at the Paramount in downtown Seattle.  Besides feeling like the luckiest woman in the world for having such an amazing man in my life, this is one of my precious memories from this year and I hope to keep it with me for as long as he will keep me around (which he said he wants to be forever)!

Onward to Tosh!

We started dating in July and Sunday will be our five month anniversary...and I do not have to work!  I am so excited.  These last five months have been amazing.  Just being with him is special.  Like right now.  We both were doing school work.  We both have either headphones or ear buds in listening to our own music (btw if you have not heard Britney Spears' latest album "Britney Jean" then go listen now...for free on Spotify if you don't want to purchase it but shame on you if you don't!).  Now he's playing a computer game and I'm cleaning out my inbox for my email.  We aren't actively talking to each other but just being near him makes me happy!  I love him so much!

Well I think I am going to continue to clean out my inbox...gotta go to sleep soon so I can get up for work in the morning.  It is going to be a long day tomorrow.  Really long and cold!  Until next time!

#Reverb13 - Risk Taker

I am a little late on the start up of this whole #Reverb13 thing but it is better late than never to start.

Today is day 5 for #Reverb13.  The prompt:

What was the greatest risk you took in 2013?  What was the outcome?

I am not much of a risk taker and anyone who knows me knows that (but skydiving might be my answer if this question comes up next year!).  I guess that the biggest risk that I took was in my personal life.  I found an incredibly wonderful man and I have opened my heart to him.  We have been together for five months now.  This is the first real and serious relationship since my divorce.  Sure I dated that guy after my ex husband kicked me out of the house but it was mainly out of the need of a roof over my head.

I would say that the outcome has been wonderful.  I cannot imagine my life without him.  I love every minute I get to spend with him and I hate every second that we are apart.  He is absolutely perfect for me.  I know that I have written about BF before.  How he allows me to embrace my nerdy side.  He loves me.  He makes me feel wonderful.  I sleep better when I am next to him and I love waking up next to him!

I might play catch up and hit the other four days later today.  One of my friend's is the one who told me about this thing and has done it the last couple of years.  I might check out her blog and copy the prompts.  Depends on what I do tonight!

Until next time!

Black Friday Shopping 2013

I cannot believe that I didn't write about my very first ever Black Friday shopping experience last year.  Not a true Black Friday as the sales start on Thursday night instead of the lower ass crack of dawn on Friday morning.   Last year I went with my mom and we hit up Toys R Us and Target.  I was able to get in and out of Toys R Us last year in about an hour.  I got my nephews Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Robots and Toss Across.  They loved them!  Then we hit Target where I proceeded to get more things for myself than for anyone else.  I mean I got a sweet single cup coffee maker for $8...and it came with a mug!  I got gifts for my family as well but it was mainly a means of getting myself things that I wanted for cheap!

This year the ads were not so fantastic.  Toys R Us didn't have anything that I thought the boys might enjoy.  I mean one is just in love with Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (thank goodness!) but he has just about everything TMNT.  The other will be easy.  He has found a love for Legos!  A trip to the Lego Store may be needed!

I perused the Target ad and didn't see anything jumping out at me that either I needed or wanted or that I might want to get for anyone in my family.  I did however notice that they had a table top electric griddle for $20.  I have one but BF doesn't.  He managed to snag this one (at least I think it was this one)!

We left my mom's house a little after 6pm on Thursday night.  The doors didn't open until 8pm.  This year it was my mom, both of my sisters, my sister's boyfriend, BF and myself.  We stopped and got coffee...well I think they got coffee...I had to work Friday morning...and I got a caramel apple cider.  It was so damn cold but with all of us laughing and joking around it made it go by pretty fast.

It took minutes to get into the store once the doors opened.  We immediately made our way to the electronics.  They had all of the video game cases open so you could find any video game that you want without having to track down one of the extremely busy employees to unlock it and get it for you.  BF found a couple of games and I found some Looney Tunes DVDs and was in heaven!  We were back in the car before 10pm and home shortly after.

I have decided that I am going to possibly shorten my list of people that I am giving gifts to.  I am only giving them to my immediate family (and BF).  That right there is still a lot of people.  I have my mom, my dad, two sisters and two nephews.  Both of my parents, one of my sisters and my boyfriend are done.  If I continue to buy for everything that means I have to buy for my dad's girlfriend, my step dad, my step brother and my step sister.

That is four extra people that I have no idea what to get them and really cannot honestly afford to do it.  I have been trying to pay down my debt and I believe that within the week I think I will finally have my credit card debt below $3000 for the first time in the over a year.  I have a plan to hopefully have my debt eliminated by the spring or summer!

Did you go Black Friday shopping?  Where did you go?  Did you finish up all of your shopping or will you be utilizing Cyber Monday to finish up?  Let me know!

Until next time!

Wasabi Bay - Mill Creek Food Review

**NOTE:  This review is about the consumption of raw fish.  Consuming raw or undercooked meat, poultry, seafood, shellfish and eggs may increase the risk of food borne related illness.**

Since I moved back home two years ago, my mom and I have tried only a couple of sushi restaurants in the South Everett/Snohomish/Bothell/Mill Creek area.  When it comes to consuming raw fish, you must be very picky.  You want clean dishes, glasses and silverware waiting at the table (if the restaurant has pre-set tables).  While some types of fish have a more fishy TASTE it should not have a fishy SMELL.  There should NEVER be a fishy smell.  This is an indication that the fish is old and bad.  Do not consume and send back immediately.  Sushi chef's are not just chef's specializing in raw fish and California Rolls, they are artists.  That is why the best sushi joints are going to be a little pricey.  Knowing that I am going to spend a decent amount of money, I want a cozy and comfortable atmosphere.  Friendly staff is also a must.

Of the few places that we have been to, the only place that has had our very repeated business is Wasabi Bay in Mill Creek, WA.  The first time we went, we were blown away.  Their miso soup is always amazing.  I have said it at least a hundred times but I could and would bathe in that soup!  It is truly the greatest miso soup I have ever tasted and I have had it at sushi restaurants all over the country and I stand by my comment!

We started out with the foods that we knew we liked.  Their Spicy Tuna roll is a must...and if we don't get that one then we usually get the Firehouse roll.  It's basically a churched up Spicy Tuna roll with a bunch of extra spicy stuff and OMG it is amazing!  We would try at least one new roll each time we went and keep either one or two of our usual rolls.

Now a couple of months ago, the restaurant came under new management.  You know how these things can go, right?  Well, while they replaced the sushi chefs and all but two of the wait staff (keeping our two favorite waitresses), this place is BETTER THAN EVER!  We got a free appetizer of this delicious octopus salad.  The chef was explaining textures and tastes and the new changes to their menu.  Their tempura batter is made using spinach juice that they make in house and use it in place of water so it is healthier.  Their sushi rice has a slight pink tint to it because they juice red cabbage.  They have completely revamped their menu.  They have taken away some of the rolls that they used to have but they have been replaced with some truly amazing rolls!

The atmosphere is still warm and comforting and the staff is as friendly as ever.  The place is spacious and with the floor to ceiling windows it is bright and open.  The only down side is that the bathroom is a little bit of a hike.  I have not actually made the trek.

I really wanted to post pictures of their food but I discovered that I have three on my phone and do not want to post random pics from Google because I cannot give the appropriate credit.  I will, however, be going back and soon and will take plenty of pictures!

THE BIGGEST NEWS is that they are now open 7 DAYS A WEEK!!!  We can enjoy great sushi any day that we want!  They used to be closed on Mondays but not anymore.  So if you ever find yourself north of Seattle with a craving for sushi, try Wasabi Bay.  Tell Mina that I sent you!

Until next time!

Welcome Fall

The last week or so has absolutely defined my favorite part of the Fall season.  The leaves on the trees are more red, orange and yellow then they are green.  We have also had fog that has stuck around for either the majority of the day or (like yesterday and today) the fog just did not lift except for maybe 100 or 200 feet.  Lately we have also been experiencing the cooler weather...and have deceptively beautiful but cold days.

I have been waiting for our "Indian Summer".  The last two years I have lived here we have gotten about two weeks in mid- to late October.  Last week, a couple of the days, the fog lifted mid afternoon to blue sky and warm weather.  Only a few of the days though.  Could that have been our slight "Indian Summer"?  I hope not but it probably was.

The cooler temps and the fog just make me feel a little sleepy, like all I want to do is curl up with a fire, next to my man and read a good book.  Maybe with some peppermint hot chocolate or caramel apple cider...or an amazing cup of coffee!

While I really truly miss my job on the line, I have to admit that I will take the pain of wearing heels, dress pants and having to wake up and spend an hour straightening my hair and putting on make up over freezing my ass off in the rain or snow.  Now come summer time, I will definitely be singing a different tune.  Maybe this kind of "promotion" that I have been given will keep me from getting as sick as I did last year.  That was horrible!

Until next time!

Things That Scare Me Sh*tless

Clowns are fucking scary.  I mean anything with a painted on smile is just plain creepy!

  

I mean HELLO!!!

The person decided that a clown would make for a suitable profession should have been strung up high in the streets!

Eight years ago I was rear-ended by a semi truck...twice.  Every since then I have this fear of being anywhere near semi trucks.  Rush hour traffic sucks the worse!  I have actually been stuck next to a semi and had tears form in my eyes.  I may seriously need to be medicated when I drive.

Now if you were to combine the two, I would freak the fuck out!  However, driving to BF's house on Wednesday night, I drove passed an SUV hauling a trailer and had out of state plates.  I automatically wondered if they were military or something.  As I drive pass them I look in my rear view mirror and I see that the driver and passenger are both wearing this mask!

Scared me half out of my mind!  I wanted to get away from them as fast as I possibly could...ya know...without getting like a reckless driving ticket.  I got off the freeway as soon as I saw the perfect opportunity.  You also better believe that I kept that vehicle in my sight the whole time I was trying to get away!

As soon as I got to my destination, I had some time to kill before BF got home so I started googling if it was against the law to wear a mask while driving.  Apparently it is in some states but not Washington.  I actually couldn't find the answer but my mom's cousin is a cop so I sent her a Facebook message.  Someone can be pulled over and cited if a cop feels that the mask is obstructing their view.

There are also other things that scare the crap out of me...

I will sacrifice YOUR body to get away from a snake!

Spiders can suck it too!

Until next time!

Fall Is In The Air and School Is Around The Corner

Fall has now unofficially/officially begun!  I know that technically the first day of fall is what, Saturday or something like that but for me it starts with the first Pumpkin Spice Latte!  To top it all off, it was my free drink!  Can you say "Hello Venti Pumpkin Spice Latte with an extra shot!  Do I want whip cream...why yes I do!!!"

Now every other day that I actually have to pay for my coffee I am pretty cheap and boring.  As the air gets cool and crisp, I tend to go with my staple of a Grande Skinny Vanilla Latte extra hot.  It's cheap and VERY low on calories!  If you have never tried the Pike Roast at Starbucks (hi, I'm from Seattle and Starbucks is pretty much the ONLY place I will get coffee from) then you are missing out!

Sometimes I switch it up and get the Blonde Roast.  Either way, leave a little room for "cream" but I use non-fat milk and a little bit of sugar...not nearly enough as I would normally so I could actually taste it but enough that it takes the slight bitter taste away from black coffee.

During the summer, I am all about the Trenta Black Tea Lemonade.  I am so thankful for the Trenta and can totally understand why it is only available for iced/non-coffee drinks...that would be a whole mess of caffeine that no one person should every consume in one beverage.

After every 12th drink and I see that I have that free drink, you better believe I am not caring about calories or anything and I am getting the most expensive drink that I never get otherwise and that is usually a Venti (are you seeing the "free" trend here...) White Chocolate Raspberry Mocha with an extra shot and whip cream.  Now if only they carried Cherry syrup...then it would be a Cherry Mocha...but they don't.

With the start of fall comes the start of the new school year.  My oldest nephew started kindergarten this year (lord have mercy where HAS the time gone).  My youngest sister started on her Master's program.  I have wanted to get back into taking classes but I just can't afford it and then I found Ashford University.  There are so many perks there being prior service that made it impossible to turn down.  I have been talking with a counselor who is totally awesome and yesterday he walked me through the application process and I applied.  Should have my official acceptance tomorrow and then he is going to help me fill out all of my financial paperwork and help me apply for the Pell Grant.

I start my first class on October 1st and I can't wait!  Each class is 5 weeks long and you only take one class at a time.  The best part is that no money has to come out of my pocket!  Tuition is deferred for 60 days while the VA plays catch up to get everyone their money and he is even going to help me figure out how to do all the VA stuff!  It's all so different from my previous school but I have a really good feeling about this program.  PLUS when I graduate, I will have a Bachelor's degree in the original field that I wanted anyway!  I will have a BA in Applied Behavioral Science.  I can't wait!

With all that has happened in the last few days, I have also decided to take the crazy woman who owns the dance studio that I used to teach at who owes me money to collections!  I will hopefully be able to set up a meeting either today or tomorrow with them to get this going because even with them taking their 20%, it would leave me with well over what she originally owed me and saves me from having to drive back down to the court house and turning my case into a civil suit.

Well I guess that is everything for now!  Until next time!

Believe/Hope/Pray

I originally started to write tonight about something completely different tonight but I came to a pausing point where I didn't really know where to go so I saved it as a draft and was going to come back to it.  I diddled around on Facebook for a little bit and then decided to take a look at Pinterest since I'm actually using my mom's laptop.  I came across this picture and it reminded me of a conversation.

A few weeks ago, I wrote about someone and referred to him affectionately as "Asshole".  He isn't an asshole but I was angry and hurt and it is how I felt at the time.  I was absolutely in love with him for years!  Last year I fell for him all over again and then he disappeared on me.

I remember a conversation I had with a friend of mine.  He wanted to know WHY I was waiting for this guy.  What was holding me back from going to him?  He was throwing out all sorts of questions like that and I couldn't answer a single one of them.  I was putting my life on hold waiting for him.

I couldn't wait forever for him and I am glad that I didn't wait because I found an amazing man.  My BF is the greatest man.  I couldn't be happier.  I am the luckiest woman in the world.  He opens doors/car doors for me.  He makes me feel loved and wanted.  He respects me.  He comforts me.  He helps me embrace my inner nerd and enhance it!  He listens to me.  He encourages me.  He loves me.  He falls asleep holding me.  I wake up happier when I wake up next to him.  We cook together.  We love to just be with each other.  I can spend the whole day with him not really doing anything and still have a great day!

For example, Sunday we went out for breakfast (at lunch time because we slept really late and totally needed it), came home, cleaned, he tried to teach me to play Magic...I tried to understand it and I think I started to get it but I'm not entirely too sure.  I told him that he needed to have patience with me because I have never played card games like that before and I didn't understand and that it would take some time.

He held me when I had an anxiety/panic attack last night.  My chest hurt, my heart was pounding, I couldn't breathe, I felt sick and I was dizzy.  I don't know what happen except that I was crying and he was holding me.  He said that he was scared but the bits I remember he seemed very calm.  I am so glad he was there for me.  He did tell me today that he didn't mean to break me...lol!  I'm not broken silly man!  I am absolutely in love with this man!  I can't even begin to imagine what I would do without him.

It is his birthday this weekend and it is going to be amazing!  I'll make sure that my camera is fully charged and that I take lots of pics!  I won't post what we're doing just in case he reads this (which he will at some point) but he is going to have a blast!  I hope he realizes that he truly is an amazing man and that he is extremely special to me!  To everyone!  If not then I have failed as his girlfriend but I think in addition to all the reasons he says I the best, I hope to achieve super awesome girlfriend status this weekend...or at least pretty damn close to!

I might post some pics of the awesome weekend we have next week...and maybe some video if I can get some!

Until next time!

24 Day Challenge - Days 1, 2, and 3

Do you want to make a change in your life?  Let me help you!

I swear I have tried to write but on Day 1, the computer at work kept freezing on me!  After like the third time of having to restart the computer, I gave up and decided that I would try and write that night...oh who was I kidding...like I was going to write while I was with the BF...right!?

DAY 1 - Hello AdvoCare 24 Day Challenge

My mom and I started our respective challenges on Saturday (see the pic above...mine is the top pic...Mom's is the bottom left...and the bottom right is just some extra goodies that we wanted).  I know several people who have done the challenges and not a single person EVER mentioned the fiber drink.  Okay so I take that back...but not really...one of my friend's mentioned to me the night before I started my challenge that it might trigger my gag reflex.  I figured that it was going to be like the Spark energy drink but with like bits of fiber stuff floating around.

OH NO!!!

The second the water makes contact with the powder and I shake it in my mom's shaker that I jacked...and it turns into this almost gel-like consistency...no it's like the consistency of freakin applesauce!  It totally threw me off!  I swear I have to choke it down because it's just not how I imagined it.  It doesn't taste bad honest!  It actually tastes pretty good.  If I had known what it was going to look like and that the longer it sits the thicker it gets I could have been better prepared right!

I managed to kick my ass out of bed and did some yoga, went to work, did really well at taking the stuff as I was supposed to, ate pretty well, drank like 70 oz of water and peed like a dozen times in two hours, helped moved a box spring and a mattress...definitely got my workout on!

DAY 2 - Sucky Day

The day started really well.  BF made breakfast and we spent all day walking around Seattle (that was my exercise...btw).  It was shortly after 2pm that I suddenly got dizzy and light headed and nauseous and realized that I needed to eat and I almost passed out in the middle of Pike Place Market.  I also realized that I hadn't consumed NEARLY enough water on Sunday either...yeah and I had pizza for dinner...really great right?!

DAY 3 - What Workout?

I followed the plan...drank all the water I was supposed to...the only thing I did not do today was workout.  I couldn't get my butt out of bed this morning when I got home...I crashed again!  On the plus side, I am done with that fiber drink for four more days!  I don't touch it again until Day 7!

I shouted to my mom this morning that I wish I had the good eating habits I had when I was in high school.  Damn being an adult!  I swear that was the end of my good eating habits!  I used to pick fruit or veggies over chips...and I moved to San Francisco as an adult and I start eating all the crap food that is horrible for me because my mom wasn't there anymore to tell me NO don't eat that!

I am not totally sure if I even made a point here but I will try for a better post tomorrow!

Until next time.

Working Towards Improvement

I wish I could say that I am about to grab life by the balls and run but I am a giant wuss and anyone who knows me knows that when faced with confrontation, I do one of two things:

A - I run...and I run far, far away!

B - I keep my mouth shut and say nothing.

Both of those things I truly am trying to address and work on and in some aspects of my life, I have applied myself and have not ran or have stood up for myself.  Now I am faced with an extremely difficult situation...

I love my job!  I really do!  I love the people that I work for/with.  Outside of work I consider my boss my friend and he has been there for me when I have had some rough times and I do genuinely feel like I can talk to him about anything that I need to...except this one little thing...

I have reached "manager" status yet I am not being paid as such.  I have a ton of responsibility and am relied on in so many different aspects yet I am making not much more than minimum wage.  I barely make enough to pay my bills with a little left over to make an extra (not very substantial) payment on my credit card let alone trying to save money so I can move out and live on my own/with roommate(s).  I just can't seem to muster up the nerves to sit him down and say something like

Listen, I love my job but I need to be paid more otherwise I will have to get a different job...

And ain't nobody got time for that!

So I probably won't throw in that last line but you get the idea.  I am in a tight spot here.  I live with my mom and step dad (which I know I have mentioned at least once or twice in the last couple years...insert note of sarcasm and bitterness).  My youngest sister just graduated from college and starts her Masters program here in a month or so and I have just recently been informed that I am losing my bedroom to her and will be sharing a room every other weekend with my step brother and step sister when they come to visit...heaven help me when it comes to Christmas when they are here for a week (because I know I won't be able to be out on my own by then).  I'm gonna try and talk to my boss on Saturday...I hope that I can.

Second part of this improvement process is getting back in shape.  I am almost ready to start working out again.  I have my core strengthening exercises and have had my last physical therapy appointment and hopefully in the next month or so I can get back in the gym since I have been paying monthly and not going.  I want to get back into running (slowly of course) and also get back to teaching Zumba at some point.  So my mom has finally broken down and decided that she wants to do AdvoCare 24 Day Challenge and I am doing it with her.  I am going to try and track my progress through my blog and see if I can somehow figure out how to add my Lose It! profile on here!

Wish us luck!  Order has been placed and it should be here by the 22nd and Momma and I will be on our way to better versions of us!  Stay tuned!

Until next time!

Let's Catch Up

The original title of this post was going to be "Nobody's Perfect..." which would lead to an opening with a video clip from MTV's Girl Code where Nicole says "...except Beyonce..."

Unfortunately I lost my patience while sifting through videos on YouTube trying to find it (btw...you can catch full episodes of Girl Code on YouTube...super fun fact that I might indulge in tomorrow...my second day off this week) and gave up and decided to make this into a little bit of a rant session.  Maybe I'll throw in a couple feel good moments!  We shall see!!

Where to start...ah...remember this post?  Something that I sometimes wish I could forget...why?  Because some guys just suck...and if I were still single (which I'm not...insert blushing moment and super cheesy ass smile) I would have said "because all guys suck ass"...which would lead me to explain that the douche bag I wrote that post about decided to build up my love for him and then just *poof* disappear.  Wanna know my response to that dick move?

This is you @Emperor_of_Beer a coward!!! pic.twitter.com/OCnaciElw0
— Myranda (@Myranda84) July 3, 2013

(and you should totally follow me on Twitter if you're not already...because I have finally found my inner awesomeness and I am sharing it with the world!)

Woman scorned...1...douche bag dick head...0!  Fuck yeah!

Now if you scroll to the comments of that very same post you will find a comment from "Anonymous" professing his love to me.  I know who this man is.  I gave him my heart a long time ago and (this is where it gets a little too girlie for me) he still has a little piece of it.  He will always be important to me and special to me but he told me that he loved me and made me fall in love with him all over again only to shut me out and then not hear anything from him for months...and I text him on his birthday and get a thank you (which totally shocked me) but was followed up by "who is this" a couple days later...asshole party of one?!

Oh and it gets better!  While hanging out with my boyfriend and his roommate this last weekend, I'm checking out my Pinterest app only to see the directly above mentioned asshole has left me a comment on one of my pins that says to call him.

I JUST ABOUT SAW RED!!!  What did I do instead...I stewed on it for a couple of days.  I thought about texting him...calling him never once crossed my mind...so I sent him an email...it was short and sweet and to the point of you suck and you hurt me and I don't know if I can talk to you.  After several revisions that is pretty much the gist of what was sent.  Strangely enough I feel better!

On to the fun stuff!  I am about to totally rock the blogging world with all the cool and awesome shit that I get to do with my boyfriend and his roommate and their friends (that apparently really like me and might become my friends too...because who doesn't want to be my friend...I rock!).

Here is a fun little adventure that we had this last weekend.  If I had pictures I would say be prepared to have your mind blown like the guy at the end of the AT&T commercial with the girl who says "What about infinity TIMES infinity?"...yeah you know which one I'm talking about!

I have to come up with something to abbreviate roommate with because I can shorten "my boyfriend" to "my bf" but "his roommate" to what?  Can you insert hashtags into a blog?  Does that make you a douche?  If not then...Can't figure out how to abbreviate roommate #FirstWorldProblems...if it is a douche move...then ignore what was previously written!

While I mull over that, here is what went down!

BF and I went to my great grandmother's 96th birthday breakfast (which I repeatedly gave him the option to get out of but he went and suffered and survived the crazy and damn it I love it!).  After telling my dad and my grandmother that BF got called in to work and we had to leave, we hit the mall...Game Stop and Barnes & Nobel...I got myself three new books!  On our way home, I texted ROOMIE (eh...not diggin it yet but we'll see if I can come up with anything clever as we go).  BF said that RM (not so much) had really wanted to take his raft out to the lake but he (being BF) was always busy or tired or just plain didn't want to go (his words) but we had a beautiful sunny day, hardly a cloud in the sky, a slight breeze, not too hot but not chilly, so we decided to go out on the lake!

I trust these guys to know what they're doing...I mean BUD (getting close I think) has this raft that easily fit the three of us comfortably...could possibly toss in a fourth person but there wouldn't be a whole lot of room to really move or get comfortable.  The raft had two paddles (I will get to the "had" part in a second) and I was with two dudes so guess who didn't have to paddle!

We ended up floating around for a while and then realized that we were about in the center of the lake...we decided to maybe start trying to head back to where we started which was all the way across the lake now because we didn't want to walk over a mile back to the car...and then BF broke one of the paddles.

We tried to ghetto rig the paddle by using a piece of line to tie the paddle to the oar and BF's flip flop...did I mention that these are plastic oars...and if we would have had some duct tape that shit would have been MONEY!

It worked for about five minutes before coming apart...and as HOMIE (I'm totally not diggin Bud anymore) is trying to MacGyver the paddle, we find ourselves floating dangerously close to the swimming area...which we are then told via jerk face with a megaphone...in a row boat...inside the swimming area...that we are too close to the swimming area and need to keep our "craft" 40 feet away.

With the use of one paddle, we get ourselves more than 40 feet way and at this point we determine that we will never make it back to where we started with only one paddle so we make for the nearest part of shore.  I take the broken paddle and help a little with the rowing...BF said that I helped but I don't know if I really did except to maybe help us stay going straight...which counts for something.

We make it to shore and get out of the water and deflate the raft and make our mile long trek back to the car which took less time to walk back then the amount of time we spent in the raft trying to decide (pre-broken paddle) if we should make it to the car or the nearest dock.

Talk about a fun day!

I'm going to continue to think about what to call Mr. Roommate (since I do not use names...every...although I was tempted to plaster douche bag's name but if you search for @Emperor_of_beer on Twitter, you'll totally find his name.  I will also keep a better record of all the cool and awesome stuff that I do now that I am not single anymore (three weeks and 37 hours, what).

Until next time!

Real Women Vs. Bitches

Pardon my French but women can be crazy bitches!

I know that isn't like a NEWSFLASH or anything but the older I get and the more I talk to my male friends, it just becomes more and more evident that women are psycho!  Let me point out in a ratio of female : male friends, I would have to say mine is probably about 1 : 10...easily.  I do not have very many female friends because I do not like the drama that comes with them...plus (as I stated above) they are crazy!

Case and point from my own experience:

Let me take you back to 8th grade (school year 1997 - 1998).  My best friend was (and still is to this day) a guy.  He was my neighbor and my first "boyfriend" when we were 12.  After he spent all of 7th grade torturing me, I still considered him my best friend.  By torture I mean he did everything from shaving men's deodorant up my locker grates to trying to shut my locker on my head to trying to drop his desk on my head (such violence, right).  Stupid boys and their freaking phases!

Anyway, I became friends with a girl in 8th grade who eventually said that she really liked my best friend and asked if I could get them together.  Being the super awesome friend that I am, I did.  I talked her up to him and he asked her out and they were together for the rest of the year.  The crazy bitch didn't reveal her true colors until Freshman year.

My best friend dumped her over the summer.  She cried to me asking me to find out why he did it and how she could get back together with him.  It was not my place to pry and I told her that I was not going to grill him with questions about their relationship and that if he wanted to tell me why he broke up with her then it would be on his terms and whatever he revealed to me would stay between us.  I would never break his trust.

She didn't like that answer.

We ended up in the same gym class.  They sat us in alphabetical order which put me next to one of my greatest friends (my last name being McCa and her's being McCo) but landed CRAZY right in front of me.  One day while talking to my girl before the teachers showed up, CRAZY kept turning around and either giving me the evil eye or telling me to shut up and stop talking.  My response was "I am not talking to you.  Turn around and ignore me just like I will continue to do to you from now on."  I then proceeded to continue my conversation.  CRAZY continued to tell me that if I did not shut up that she was going to (insert physical violent activity here).  I easily ignored her until all of a sudden CRAZY turned into CRAZY BITCH and was latched onto my arm!

You read that correctly!  She was biting my right forearm.  I think if I look carefully I can make out some teeth marks still.  It didn't even hurt but she left some railroad tracks (from her braces) and teeth marks.  There was a split second when she finally let go that it stung but before I could blink, the feeling had passed.  I sat there stunned and shocked that I was wiping her spit off my arm onto my shorts while everyone around us was sitting there with their jaws on the floor.  It all happened so fast that no one had time to process what was happening and stop her before she let go.

End of that WOMEN BE CRAZY life story.

If you didn't read my last post (check it out here if you want) then you don't know that I recently became unavailable!  Only ten days so far as his girlfriend but this has been the best like 25+ days (that's about how long he has actually been in town) of my life so far...at least that's how it feels anyway and I will totally take it.

I won't share any details of his life and his story except that when he tells me about the way he has been treated in the passed by his ex during their relationship it makes me sad.  It actually makes my heart hurt for him.  He is one of the nicest, sweetest, most wonderful guys I have every met.  He truly is a rare find!  Back off ladies...he is mine and I will take you down if you even think about trying to take him from me...you have been warned!

But it is something that I am hearing more and more lately.  These amazing men are being taken advantage of.  Talk about the tables being turned.  Not to say that we women don't still get used.  A guy makes a girl think that she is special and that she means the world to him and then once he gets what he wants (like sex, for example, or in my case my heart) then he just disappears without a trace leaving her to wonder what she did wrong or how she couldn't see it coming or how stupid she feels for having allowed herself to be played.  But these guys are confessing that they changed to be exactly who their girlfriend/wife wanted them to be and it still wasn't good enough.  She essentially gives her man a list of things that she doesn't like about him or things that he does that she hates and he does a complete 180 and starts acting the way she wants and stops doing the things she hates and she still doesn't care.  She makes zero effort while he has completely changed himself.  It makes me sad.

I want to share something I posted on Facebook the other day (my profile is set to private so I can maintain my privacy to an extent).

"I seriously have the greatest boyfriend ever!  After a really craptastic day, he came up to have dinner and just hang out and watch Netflix with me.  How did I get so lucky?! - feeling lucky"

Here's the response I want to address next:

"If I did that I'd get called lazy...all you did is make dinner and sit on your ass and watch netflix...you can't even take me out..."

That made me so mad and sad at the same time.  I responded to this male friend with:

"All I've ever craved is time and attention.  If my guy makes me dinner or just watches a movie with me then I am happy!  I don't need to go out or have him spend money on me.  All I want is time!"

That is true.  Sure, it's nice to go out and do something BUT  there are so many things to do that do not cost money.  I really only crave his time and attention.  Any moment spent apart makes the moments together that much  more special.  How can anyone put a price tag on time?

Do I like to go out and have fun?  Yeah, who doesn't!

Does going out mean having to go to some fancy restaurant or bar and have my guy drop a ton of money on me?  Absolutely not!

Do I like getting all dressed up to be shown off?  Sure but it takes so long to get ready that I prefer it be for special occasions and not an all the time kind of thing.

Do I want him to hug me and kiss me and hold my hand in public?  YES but I don't need a full on make out or dry humping session in public.

Am I girlie?  Not unless the occasion calls for it.

Do I like girlie things like getting flowers every once in awhile?  Yes...

Do I need to hear that I am needed and wanted and cared about?  Hell yeah!

Does he have to feel like the only way I appreciate him is when he pays for everything?  Not at all...let me pay sometimes...please!

Come on now ladies!  Man up and quit being a bitch.  Let your man know that you appreciate him for everything that he does!  The good guys are hard to come by so if you find one, you better hold on tight before someone else does.  As much as we need to feel needed and wanted, they need to hear it and feel it too.  No matter how macho they try to be.  You have to treat others the way you want to be treated and that is what separates the real women from the bitches!

Until next time!

Did I Get Lucky Or What?!

I have been absent for entirely too long and I know I have said it before but I really do want to write more and not go so freaking long in between posts!  With that said, onward to today's post!

A little over a month ago or so I received a request on Facebook along with a message from a guy that I had met a few times about eight and a half years ago.  He is, like, best friends with one of my really good friends from my time in the Coast Guard.  He tells me in this message who he is (and I vaguely remembered him) and that our mutual friend suggested that he look me up.  He is active duty and received orders to Seattle.  Our friend told him to look me up since I live up here.

We exchanged phone numbers and started texting.  The day after he got here, he came up and had lunch with me.  The second I saw him I remembered him.  He has not changed much in the last eight years.  I mean we have all gotten a little older but the second I saw him standing at his car in the parking lot, I remembered him.  How could I have forgotten his face?

I enjoyed spending my short hour long lunch with him.  The more we texted, the more I found it easier to just be me.  I was able to say anything to him and could just tell that no matter what I said, he would never judge me.  I do not have to censor myself around him.  It is absolutely amazing!

So his first week here I had tickets to a Mariner's game (because they were playing my Cubs).  One of my friends from high school was supposed to go with me so I asked him if he wanted to go.  I also told him that I had a fourth ticket if his roommate wanted to go.  I was all set for a night out when my friend from high school ended up having to back out.  That left over ticket went to my dad.  I was a little skeptic to bring him and his roommate (whom I had never met) around my dad since I do not have the greatest relationship with my dad.  We had a ton of fun and got to watch the first ever fireworks display at Safeco!

I have spent every weekend with him.  I work every Saturday but I get off around 6pm and I have stayed with him.  The first night that I stayed there I had entirely too much vodka and passed out.  He was so sweet and gave me a blanket.  We spent all night playing this card game and while sitting next to him, I stole a glance at him while he was laughing.  He seriously has the most beautiful blue eyes and the way they light up when he laughs.

Last week we went to a Sounders game.  It was my first major league soccer game.  I was so excited!  I actually do not know if I was more excited to be going to the game or that I got spend over 105 minutes with him!  I leaned my head on his shoulder during the game.  Any chance that I could I had to touch him...his arm...his hand...his leg with mine.

Later that night we stopped at grabbed a bite to eat and we were talking.  He was telling me about his family and I can hardly put into words the way he looked.  I was just mesmerized by him.  I could see the pain and the happiness and the sadness and the loneliness.

I already knew that I wanted to know more about him but I did not expect to find that I was developing feelings for this guy.  A man that I hardly know but I am totally and completely drawn to.  I cannot wait to see him again and again.  Every time I get butterflies in my stomach and he just makes me feel good about myself.  He makes it just so easy to be me!

Now for the first time in two years, I am proud to say that I am ready!  I have not been in any place in my life where I wanted to be in a relationship or could be in a relationship but I have finally allowed myself to grow and as of 11pm on Monday, July 8th, I became his girlfriend!!!

I cannot stop smiling.  He makes me blush.  I feel so much happier since he got here.  He has even passed the family test...well part of it!  He has met my dad...my mom, grandma, and youngest sister...and they all like him and think he is so nice.  He had dinner with us last night (well I guess I should say Thursday night since it is technically Saturday now) and stayed and hung out with me for a little while.

I told one of my girl friends about him and she asked me if I thought it was just a fling or something long-term.  I definitely do not see this ending in the foreseeable future!  I love spending every moment with him as I can!  We are hanging out tomorrow night and then maybe possibly going to Ikea on Sunday...YEAH!!!

I know that there will be a whole lot more posts in the future regarding my boyfriend and I smile to myself just typing that word "boyfriend"...because he is mine!  He is MY boyfriend and I could not have gotten luckier than to have such an amazing man be mine!

Until next time!

I Will Call Him George!

I thought about this classic Looney Tunes video this morning while I was getting ready for work.  This is why...

MEET GEORGE!

This Daddy Long leg was just hanging around in the corner of the ceiling in the bathroom when I was getting ready for work this morning.  I obviously don't know if this thing is a male or female but I just instantly wanted to call him George...

I just took this picture about five minutes ago...and he is just hanging out...about an inch from the ceiling and maybe two inches from the wall...my youngest sister would be totally peeing her pants right now and refuse to go into the bathroom until "Someone kill the spidey!"  (She is almost 22 years old and that is almost an exact quote from another time and a different 'spidey')

The way I see it, he is not bothering me as long as he doesn't drop onto my head or any part of my body.  I keep my tooth brush in a drawer...and he will die if I find him on it.  I kind of hope that he sticks around in the bathroom until Thursday...because I think my sister and going to stay here Thursday night and I totally want her to freak out!  I know it is evil and wrong but come on...I'm almost 29 years old...I don't get to really DO anything to freak my sisters out anymore.

***FUNNY/TRUE STORY***

Sitting in the kitchen at the house our mom was renting before she bought her house, I was telling B about how I have thought I saw someone walk down the hallway when I'm home alone at night...and once I walked out of the bathroom towards my room and thought I saw a little kid in the spare bedroom (a.k.a. her bedroom when she was home from school).  I took a couple steps back, looked in the room and turned on the light and saw nothing...duh!

Well, I freaked her out (too easy right).  She all of a sudden thinks that she just saw something walk into her room...and we're getting ready to crash for the night.  So I walk down the hallway real slow like.  She is about five feet behind me.  I get to her door and turn to walk in...

...and I GASP and shake and stumble back...look at her as she screams and I start laughing hysterically!!!  She runs passed me into the bathroom because I just literally almost scared the piss out of her!  Boy was she mad at me...and that made it all the more funny!

***THE END***

In the last week or so, I have either gone to take a shower and discovered a spider or am just in the bathroom and discover a spider...in the bath tub.  It has seriously taken all that I have to not take pictures and send them to my sister...I have very little that brings joy into my life like freaking B out!  Instead, I stash my phone by the window or on the sink so it won't somehow drop into water and get destroyed (and that would totally be my luck) but George is different!

Until next time!

Kris Kross Will Make Ya...

"JUMP JUMP" by Kris Kross

The last few days on my way to work or home from work I have been listening to my iPod plugged into the USB port of my stereo.  I have absolutely no control over what plays.  I cannot select a playlist or anything...it just shuffles all on it's own...including the podcasts...which I am not happy about.  Anyway, there have been a lot songs that bring back a lot of memories...here are some of the songs that I have heard and some that I just love!

"Genie In A Bottle" by Christina Aguilera

"It's So Hard To Say Goodbye" by Boyz II Men

"Ice Ice Baby" by Vanilla Ice

"You've Got It (The Right Stuff)" by New Kids on the Block

"Bohemian Rhapsody" by Queen

If I can make this a regular "Throw Back Thursday" kind of thing, maybe I'll come up with like a theme...

Classic Rock (Queen, Kiss, White Snake, Aerosmith)

Bubble Gum Pop (Britney, Christina, N'Sync, Backstreet Boys, 98 Degrees)

Rap (Eminem, Biggy, 2 Pac, Dr. Dre, Snoop)

Country (Brad, Kenny, Tim, Toby, Faith, Martina, I could go on forever)

You get the idea!

Until next time!

Why Blog

I was taking a picture of a package that I got from PopSugar and my mom and step dad started making fun of me.

Oh you are taking a picture of that to blog about?

No...

You are going to upload it to Facebook or Twitter or whatever?

No...

I like how anything that I might be interested in gets completely mocked (btw...I did NOT share the photo...not even to Instagram alone).

My mom proceeded to mention that she does not understand the purpose behind blogging.  Well, I do believe that I already wrote about why I blog...and you can check that out here...I wrote that post almost a year ago but I still stand by why I blog.

In a nutshell (not that the post is that long), I blog because it is an outlet for me.  It is not just like an online journal with posts like:

Couldn't sleep last night...

Woke up late for work...

Work sucked...

I came home and wanted to drown my sorrows in ice cream with my best friend Jose Cuervo...

I try and write about stupid things that happen to me or around me...

If I can write about an experience that can help someone shed some light on a similar experience that they have had then I am satisfied.

I give tips when I can...with a dash of humor that I am finding to be getting easier the more I find that I don't care what others think or say.

WITHOUT BLOGS...

I would have never discovered Brittany and all of her awesomeness...I swear I cannot read her posts at work anymore because my boss just looks at me like I have lost my damn mind!  She just oozes with confidence and blows up boundaries that women should never touch and does not give two shits!  I mean check out this Brittany quote from one of her more recent posts:

But the skirt was like $90, and that is not in my Taco Bell budget.

Brittany doesn't pay 90 Burrito Supremes for clothes.

(read the whole post here)

You can't not read that and keep your chuckling to yourself.  She has also just started this Google+ Series called "Last Call" and it is mother effin ridiculous!  Because of that, I am discovering more blogs to follow that are hilarious and I hope to quote them and link them to my blog as much as I do Brittany...but she has totally set the bar for what I expect from bloggers and I have a feeling that these women are right up there with her!

Holy crap I posted twice in one day!!!

Until next time!

What Do You Strive For?

We should all have some sort of goal in life right?

Something that we seriously want to achieve...not just the dream of something like

I will spend three whole months back packing around Europe even though I have no money for a passport let alone money to fly there AND back...unless I can stow away on a container ship...and if I get caught, I have long hair and big boobs and can totally flirt with those dingy sailors right?!

But I am talking about an actual DREAM-TO-POTENTIAL-REALITY here people!  This does not have to necessarily pertain to your job/career/whatever you do that makes you happy and not living on the streets...unless that makes you happy then good for you and I will happily give you a biscuit for your dog!

While my dream job is to be a profiler for the FBI (I mean who would not want a bad ass job of locking up sickos for the sake of all mankind and do it all sexy like on Criminal Minds...because that is totally how crime fighting is in real life...right?) my ultimate goal as far as my job/career goes is to be a shrink.

Believe it or not, that does not shock anyone to hear that I want to be in the Psychology field.  I want to be a therapist.  Everyone totally gets it.  I mean, I am a great listener.  I can totally detach myself from the person (like if it is a friend or family member coming to me).  I joked in high school about charging my friends by the minute for our "sessions" during the five or ten minute passing time between classes.

Was I shocked when I found out that my baby sister was going to be a Pre-Med student when she left for college...absolutely not...was I stunned when she wanted to be a triple major...no way (such an over achiever I have for a youngest sibling)...did I just about fall over when she finally decided to be a Psychology major...DUH!

After I took my Intro to Psych class, I knew that I had picked the right field...however it was that same class that made my sister change her mind...and has her graduating in less than a month with her BS in Psychology...and I could not be more proud and pissed at her (for finishing her degree before me of course).

Got a little off the subject for a moment.  Back to it!

My life goal is not just to be happy.

It is not to look back and regret doing/not doing certain things.

I want my life to have meaning.

I want to have stories that I can share about my experiences that will help others.

I want to have a family...live in a huge house that I can run my own practice out of.  I want to see my future patients evolve and change into who they want to be.  I want to help them rid themselves of their fears.  I do not want to fix people...because we are not machines.  When machines break, mechanics come and fix them and make them work.  When people "break" they still function...and no amount of therapy will get them back to how they used to be because your experiences through your rough patches change who you are even if you refuse to see it.

For all the horrible things that have happened to me and around me, I would not change a single bit of it because it has given me those life experiences and stories that I can share with others and has made me who I am today!  Without my weight struggles, emotional/physical abuse, Mother Nature being a super bitch (Hurricane Katrina), I would not have the strength that I got from being in those situations.

I may have gone off on a different tangent than what I originally intended this post to be but you know what...life happens and when you start to just write and let your thoughts flow...that is when you are being genuine and true to yourself.

Well, I think I have possibly just enough time to finish folding some laundry before my Face-Time date with one of my friends that I have not seen in almost two years since I left Oregon...so...

Until Next Time!

Unplanned and Unexpected

I AM NOT PREGNANT!

It was not until I reread my title that I figure that it could totally be misconstrued and I wanted to make it clear...I am far from being in a place in my life where I can settle down let alone think about having children...not that the thought is ever too far off to be honest.

This post is completely unplanned and unexpected.  I just spent the last hour or so catching up on Brittany's blog.  I was a few weeks behind so I really needed to play catch up.  Most of the time when I read her blog, I am at work.  Work computer does not have speakers...therefore...no sound...and she posts some hilarious freaking videos...seriously...check her out...to use one of Giuliana Rancic's favorite words...

BRITTANY GIBBONS IS "AMAZEBALLS"!!!

I had zero intentions of writing tonight...and I am not sure when I last wrote but I know it was not long before the start of April which was supposed to start my second 30 Day Blog Challenge which I did not know I had to sign up for AGAIN...I am kind of over it.  I think I am going to ask to be removed from their email lists and delete all their emails.  I will find my own way to keep myself motivated enough to write.  I can be cleaver sometimes damn it...

In all seriousness, I really need to give my blog a "face lift".  I have read several articles that blogs that tailor to a specific theme/topic tend to get the most traffic...apparently writing about the stupid craziness that is my life will not generate the traffic that I am looking for.  I am just looking for ANYONE to read...that keeps me motivated to continue to share my life experiences with the world.

Let me give you a "For Instance"...

My netbook sucks.  I mean seriously sucks!  I have not been able to access the Internet from it for weeks because it says I need to reset the modem...yet no one else in the house seems to be having any problems with accessing the Internet from their laptops.  Well, I just recently got to upgrade my cell phone from that stupid P.O.S. Droid 2 to an iPhone 5.  Before you start calling me "money bags" it seriously cost me just over $300 including the insurance package and the case...and I got to split the payments up...so I only paid $150 and pay the other $150 in May...but I might just take care of it with this paycheck since it is way bigger than I was expecting!

So anyway, because my Netbook has very little space, I do not have iTunes loaded...plus I am apparently at the maximum capacity of allowable computers...which I find odd since I have only had my desktop and my laptop (that the desktop replaced when it died a tragic death).  How those two add up to five is beyond me. iTunes is only on my desktop and I needed to back it up and all that jazz.  Well when we moved in September, I had to get rid of my desk because there is not any room for it...which I was originally told there would be.

No desk means no desktop computer.

But I am starting classes...I need my computer in order to do my work!

Oh you can use my laptop...that is fine.

And I will be allowed to take it with me to work and be on it constantly?

No...I have to use it for work but you can use it when I am not.

I ended up dropping the class mainly because I could not understand the reading but needless to say it felt like it was going to be an inconvenience for me to try to finish my degree.  So my HP Desktop was unplugged, all cables wound up and put into a grocery bag with my mouse, web cam and NetGear wireless card thing that allows me to pick up a wifi signal so the modem does not have to be plugged directly into my computer.  I made a nice little home for my tower, 15" monitor, keyboard and grocery bag of cables in the back corner of my closet.

In order to back up my phone, I needed to dust off the trusty desktop and turn it on for the first time in over seven months.  Let me tell you what...there were like almost 100 updates that it had to do...but I allowed it to do its thing and I waited kinda patiently.  I did finally get it backed up and got a little bit of music on it as well.  Like the essential Zumba Playlist!

Where on earth did I set up my computer if I have no desk and there is no room for it?

Now what you see here is my tower set up just to the side of my dresser (not pictured) with my monitor on top of it.  My keyboard is resting either on my lap (like in the picture) or on the floor, which is where it is now.  To the right you see a box with a pink stripe half of my mouse...I lost my mouse pad...or boxed it up with something else...or threw it out...I honestly could not even tell you what the damn thing looked like now.  So I have to improvise.  I find that magazines do not work as a good mouse pad...cursor flies all over the damn screen...this box is definitely coming in handy...I also found that one of my CD carriers worked really well too.

**END OF "FOR INSTANCE"**

I mean really...who does not want to read about the fact that my computer is on the floor...you know that you chuckled when you looked at the picture...do not pretend like you did not...because I know I did.

As for the face lift that I am going to work on...I guess I will try some themes...here are a few I have been tinkering with:

MONDAY MADNESS

I mean Monday's just suck in general...

TUESDAY MEMORIES

Take short walks down memory lane...

WTF WEDNESDAY

That random thought or something that just makes you want to scream the actual words out...

THROWBACK THURSDAY

I know...not original but instead of just pictures like on Twitter and Instagram I will throw in some nostalgia...

FITNESS FRIDAY

Maybe throw out some tips...attach some great fitness articles that I find...

SASSY SATURDAY

Something to do with fashion...trust me...I will not be giving any advice...I promise...

SUCCULENT SUNDAY

Some of my favorite recipes...some healthy and some not so much...

None of these are set in stone...especially not the titles of the days...I want to throw in something about healthy living...not that I follow that like I should and I am really going to try but I am human.  I have learned a lot on my journey of weight loss and maintaining and not regaining...I want to share what I have learned...I also love to read on my Nook Color and I want to try and fit in book reviews and just reviews in general.  The amount of hits I got from my review of "Vs. Reality" by Blake Northcott and for my favorite radio station 100.7 The Wolf was seriously the greatest ever!  I want to review books, music, movies...see if I am any good at it...maybe start reading some professional reviews so that way I can learn what to say and what to leave out so I can get a reader interested but not give anything away...I will keep working on these and maybe sometime soon, a new and improved Until Next Time will be revealed!

Until next time y'all!