...if my house stays clean while I'm am on vacation over Christmas. I'm thinking that it won't but I can hope right?
I am going to visit my mom in The U.P. over the holiday and I would like to come home to a clean house. Is that to much to ask for? With my roommates it just might be. Today I cleaned the bathrooms. While in the process of cleaning the bathrooms both of my roommates came home from work and I got weird looks from both. And one of them was on the phone and mentioned to who ever she was talking to that I was deep cleaning. And the bathrooms had gotten pretty nasty so it was kind of a deep clean. But when I lived with my mom that was how the bathroom got cleaned every week.
Tomorrow and through out the rest of the week I am going to try and get the rest of the house clean, even if I end up doing it by myself, because then when I get back next week the house will at least have been cleaned somewhat recently. The only room that I see being a problem is the kitchen. Do you want to know why? No? Well I'm gonna tell you anyways.
Neither of them no how to rinse a dish and put it in the dishwasher. If the dishwasher is full or clean the will just put the dish in the sink and the dishes will just pile up and start to STINK. You know what else the don't do? Empty the clean dishwasher or start the full dishwasher. Or wash a pan they used. Or wipe up something they spilled on the counter. Or throw a box that doesn't fit in the trashcan in the dumpster. Or empty old leftovers out of the fridge. Or empty the trashcan when it is full.
Do you wanna know some other things that bug me. Neither of them vacuum. Ever. Or do any sort of cleaning at all. They hoard dishes in their rooms so even if the dish washer isn't full we are still out of dishes. The roommate that has the dog rarely lets him out. She will leave in the morning and not let the dog out. Just leave him in his kennel to whine and wake me up. This dog is a year old and still not house trained. He poops in the house at least once a day and often pees in the house too. And this roommate with the dog will go out drinking on the weekends and not come home. And not let me know. So I am not only taking care of my dog I am taking care of her dog too.
Last weekend she got off of work on Friday night came home changed and left. The next time I saw her was Monday morning. If I hadn't texted her about something else she probably wouldn't have even told me she wouldn't have let me know she wasn't coming home. What if I had plans too and wasn't going to be around? Who would have taken care of her dog then? I doubt our other roommate would have done it. Maybe he would have. He does let them out occasionally when neither of us are home. Mostly though he just hides out in his room.
End of rant. Let's hope I can make it six more months until the lease is up because I don't want to be paying rent somewhere I am not living if they can't find someone else to live here. I do have plans for when the lease is up but not everybody in my real life knows so we just aren't going to discuss this right now.
Monday, December 19, 2011
Saturday, December 3, 2011
Cancer Followup
I wrote this post about a month and a half ago. I didn't go into very much detail because I didn't know very much. Over the long Thanksgiving weekend I had a chance to see him. He filled us all in a little more on how everything went down.
He found the lump in July or August. He went to the doctor right away but it took them a month or two (depending on which month he found it) to get him in for a biopsy. It took a while to get the biopsy results back also (I am not sure on the timing of everything.) The results said cancer. I'm not sure of the type of cancer but it is one that spreads fast. In the time from when he found the lump in his testicle to the time the doctors got everything figured out the cancer had spread to his lungs. It moved that quickly. He has one round of chemo left.
At the time that he found the lump he was stationed elsewhere. He just got reassigned to Offutt AFB a couple of weeks ago so we were lucky to all get to see him again. He is in as good of spirits as he seemed. He knows that it is a good thing he went in as soon as he found the lump and that he probably will get some kind of cancer again when he is older. He is pretty much the same kid I graduated with just more muscular and less hairy (that's what the Air Force and then chemo will do for ya.) Still one of the funniest people I know.
He found the lump in July or August. He went to the doctor right away but it took them a month or two (depending on which month he found it) to get him in for a biopsy. It took a while to get the biopsy results back also (I am not sure on the timing of everything.) The results said cancer. I'm not sure of the type of cancer but it is one that spreads fast. In the time from when he found the lump in his testicle to the time the doctors got everything figured out the cancer had spread to his lungs. It moved that quickly. He has one round of chemo left.
At the time that he found the lump he was stationed elsewhere. He just got reassigned to Offutt AFB a couple of weeks ago so we were lucky to all get to see him again. He is in as good of spirits as he seemed. He knows that it is a good thing he went in as soon as he found the lump and that he probably will get some kind of cancer again when he is older. He is pretty much the same kid I graduated with just more muscular and less hairy (that's what the Air Force and then chemo will do for ya.) Still one of the funniest people I know.
Thursday, December 1, 2011
WTF, YouToube?
It all started out innocently watching the newest CTFxC vlog. I noticed one of the top comments asking if anyone has figured out how to delete videos from their subscription boxes. I thought somebody was being stupid and the reason it was a top comment was because people thought the stupidity was funny.
I click back to my home page and the joke is on me. Its different. Not just a little. It doesn't look like it did right before I started watching the video. And you can't remove a video from your subscription box. And there are bunches of videos I have already watched now in my subscription box again. Sad face. Those videos I have already watched reappearing in my subscription box? The only way I remember that I watched them is because I did so in the last day or two. Otherwise I would have no clue because the little box that says watched next to a video in you subscription box after you have watched the video is gone.
Most of these changes that the internet take on don't bother me. Facebook changes so often now its hard to keep up. But YouTube I would have liked some explanations. The link that is supposed to show you how to use the new YouTube was utterly useless. Does anybody know how to work the new YouTube?
I click back to my home page and the joke is on me. Its different. Not just a little. It doesn't look like it did right before I started watching the video. And you can't remove a video from your subscription box. And there are bunches of videos I have already watched now in my subscription box again. Sad face. Those videos I have already watched reappearing in my subscription box? The only way I remember that I watched them is because I did so in the last day or two. Otherwise I would have no clue because the little box that says watched next to a video in you subscription box after you have watched the video is gone.
Most of these changes that the internet take on don't bother me. Facebook changes so often now its hard to keep up. But YouTube I would have liked some explanations. The link that is supposed to show you how to use the new YouTube was utterly useless. Does anybody know how to work the new YouTube?
Wednesday, November 23, 2011
Thankful...
for my mom. Even though she moved away and I miss her so much she is still there for me. She is seriously one of my best friends.
for my dad because he helped me pay my rent for a couple months while I was looking for a job. And he is currently paying my cell phone and car insurance because I barley make enough money to pay rent and utilities.
for my grandparents because they would let me live with them if I needed to.
for the rest of my family. I love them even though they sure can be crazy sometimes.
for my roommates because they are like a second family.
for my job. I love spending time with the kids no matter how crazy they can be. Hearing 4 year olds you have only known for 3 months tell you they love you melts your heart every time. And the random hugs they give you.
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
Boo, Cancer
Cancer sucks. This has been on my mind for a few days now. A couple weeks ago one of my classmates announced on Facebook that he has cancer. We graduated in 2008. We are only 21. Its just too young. My mom was asking me about his prognosis and it got me thinking.
In our high school the last three graduating classes (09, 10 and 11) have all lost somebody. Our high school is only just over 500 students. It just shouldn't be like that.
Back to my classmate. I'm not sure what his prognosis is. He may have mentioned it and he may not have. He started chemo yesterday. From everything he is posting on Facebook he seems in really good spirits. He has always been such a joker though so its hard to tell if maybe he is just putting on a good face for all of us. I sure hope he really is in good spirits.
We need to pray for him. He is just a happy person it sucks to think about what could happen.
In our high school the last three graduating classes (09, 10 and 11) have all lost somebody. Our high school is only just over 500 students. It just shouldn't be like that.
Back to my classmate. I'm not sure what his prognosis is. He may have mentioned it and he may not have. He started chemo yesterday. From everything he is posting on Facebook he seems in really good spirits. He has always been such a joker though so its hard to tell if maybe he is just putting on a good face for all of us. I sure hope he really is in good spirits.
We need to pray for him. He is just a happy person it sucks to think about what could happen.
Sunday, September 25, 2011
Undefeated!
All of "my teams" won this weekend! Last night was Husker football and volleyball. They were playing at the same time. :( But it was ok because of picture in picture. It seemed like every time I looked at the volleyball game Lauren Cook was serving. After we lost the second set the girls must have gotten a good talking to because they dominated the third and fourth sets to win the game! the volleyball record is 9-1, 2-0. Their one loss was to Colorado State.
It was fun to watch the football game. Since Wyoming is right next door a lot of people from western Nebraska, and probably eastern too, were at the game. I looked it up on Google Maps the other day and all you had to do to get to Laramie was hop on I-80. On the new a couple days before the game they said they expected the crowd to be about half Husker fans. I think they were right! I saw an awful lot of red in the crowd. The football team won and are now 4-0!! Next week we start conference play and travel to Madison. I am worried. Wisconsin is ranked higher than we are (they are #7 and we are #8) and its the first game I have been worried about. We need to start play in the Big 10 with a win.
Today the Packers pulled out a win extending their record to 3-0!! I have to be honest and say even though we had the game on I didn't do a very good job of paying attention. As much as I hate to cheer for the Lions I am excited for them too. The only reason I cheer for them is because of my man Suh. When was the last time the Lions were even undefeated?? I think the commentators said it has been 31 years since the started their season 3-0. Hopefully next weekend is just as good.
It was fun to watch the football game. Since Wyoming is right next door a lot of people from western Nebraska, and probably eastern too, were at the game. I looked it up on Google Maps the other day and all you had to do to get to Laramie was hop on I-80. On the new a couple days before the game they said they expected the crowd to be about half Husker fans. I think they were right! I saw an awful lot of red in the crowd. The football team won and are now 4-0!! Next week we start conference play and travel to Madison. I am worried. Wisconsin is ranked higher than we are (they are #7 and we are #8) and its the first game I have been worried about. We need to start play in the Big 10 with a win.
Today the Packers pulled out a win extending their record to 3-0!! I have to be honest and say even though we had the game on I didn't do a very good job of paying attention. As much as I hate to cheer for the Lions I am excited for them too. The only reason I cheer for them is because of my man Suh. When was the last time the Lions were even undefeated?? I think the commentators said it has been 31 years since the started their season 3-0. Hopefully next weekend is just as good.
Saturday, September 24, 2011
Why???
Why can't I keep up with this blog?
I wish I could figure it out.
I really would like to.
Maybe what needs to be done
is to write about my day everyday
no matter how boring
or uninteresting I think it is.
I have stories
that I think are funny.
Would other people think
they are funny too?
Like a day at work
last week
FIVE kids
had accidents at nap.
Or a couple weeks ago
When a drink
or two
were spilled
EVERY SINGLE DAY.
I love my job
I really do.
That's where I think
I will start
just writing about my day
or maybe my week.
Sometimes the story
sounds better that way.
I wish I could figure it out.
I really would like to.
Maybe what needs to be done
is to write about my day everyday
no matter how boring
or uninteresting I think it is.
I have stories
that I think are funny.
Would other people think
they are funny too?
Like a day at work
last week
FIVE kids
had accidents at nap.
Or a couple weeks ago
When a drink
or two
were spilled
EVERY SINGLE DAY.
I love my job
I really do.
That's where I think
I will start
just writing about my day
or maybe my week.
Sometimes the story
sounds better that way.
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
I have a job!!
I know I kind of disappeared for awhile but I am back now. When I left you I thought I was going to be going on vacation. First with my dad to New Mexico and then with my mom to Lower Michigan. I had an interview about a week before I was supposed to leave and they would let me know in one or two weeks. Since I didn't know what was going to happen I was still planning on going on vacation.
Well I got a call only a few days later that I was hired!!! Yay! Except I haven't seen my parents in a while so I was kind of disappointed I couldn't go on vacation. My job is at a daycare which is what I wanted. I started only a couple days after I got the call. I think I have been there for three weeks now and I am mostly loving it. I work afternoons in the 4 year old room.
Last week we had somebody spill their drink at snack 4 out of 5 days. And twice on Friday!!! These kids are crazy. So far we haven't had any spills this week. Knock on wood.
Since I am only working part time I am probably going to need to get another part time job. I would love another job where I don't work weekends but I don't know if that is possible. We will see.
Well I got a call only a few days later that I was hired!!! Yay! Except I haven't seen my parents in a while so I was kind of disappointed I couldn't go on vacation. My job is at a daycare which is what I wanted. I started only a couple days after I got the call. I think I have been there for three weeks now and I am mostly loving it. I work afternoons in the 4 year old room.
Last week we had somebody spill their drink at snack 4 out of 5 days. And twice on Friday!!! These kids are crazy. So far we haven't had any spills this week. Knock on wood.
Since I am only working part time I am probably going to need to get another part time job. I would love another job where I don't work weekends but I don't know if that is possible. We will see.
Monday, August 29, 2011
Husker Game Day
Football season starts on Saturday. On my way home from work everyday I drive by a park where a bunch of little guys practice. They started practicing a couple weeks ago and it has made me really excited for Husker football to be here.
Last week marked the beginning of high school football. On my way home from work on Friday a woman called in to request a song. She requested "Boys of Fall" for her son. It was his birthday and he had a game in South Sioux City. Plattsmouth played in South Sioux last week. It was kinda cool to hear someone from my hometown on the radio even if good ole' P-town did get totally demolished. It was pretty sad. Apparently the word on the street is that none of the fall sports are going to have very successful seasons.
Back to the point of this post. Nebraska kicks of their first season in the Big 10 on Saturday and I GET TO GO TO THE GAME!!!! I am super excited (if you can't tell.) The only game I had a chance to go to last year I had already agreed to babysit for a couple going to the game and then my bff invited me :( Since I thought I might have more opportunity to work for them I didn't want to back out.
Anyway, my roommate/bff's grandma has season tickets and usually her uncle uses them. But his family always goes camping over labor day weekend and they make the reservations a year in advance. Since they couldn't go her grandma was going to sell the tickets. But since my roommate and I both have Saturday off we wanted to go.
I have been seeing a lot of these "inspiration boards" from polyvore.com so I decided to make one. Since the game is in the afternoon I don't know if I will be wearing a sweatshirt but I have one similar from last springs university collection. And the rose earrings that I almost never take out of my ears aren't glittery. And I don't have a pair of black flats (but I really want some.) You can be sure I will be in my red and white. I'm so PUMPED!!! Yeah!!
essie nail color, over the edge
$8 - macys.com
I'm hoping to get back into blogging. I haven't felt very inspired lately but I think I might have some interesting stories to tell.
$8 - macys.com
I'm hoping to get back into blogging. I haven't felt very inspired lately but I think I might have some interesting stories to tell.
Sunday, July 31, 2011
Update
So the song challenge was pretty much a fail. Only two days. I honestly thought I would do better than that. No, I didn't think I would last the full thirty days but I thought I would last longer than two. I'm not going to try and finish it or catch up. The reason I only lasted two days was because I could NOT for the life of me think of songs to use.
In other news it looks like I will be doing some traveling in the next couple weeks. First I will be spending about a week visiting with my dad's mom in New Mexico. After a few days of recuperation I am off to see my mom at her fiance's brother's lake house in Lower Michigan. Hopefully I remember to take lots of pictures. Last time we were in NM our hotel room had an awesome view of the mountains and we saw Lady Gaga's tour bus.
I also had a job interview the other day but they won't know for a week or two. It is at a daycare and they are waiting to see if their enrollment is going to pick up for the fall and if they will need more staff or not. So I could be out of town when they hopefully call me back. I'm only kind of holding my breath though because way back in the beginning of June I filled out an app. and interviewed at a daycare the same day. I got the feeling that they were going to hire me. Then I never heard from them. I called them a few weeks later and they said they still had my app. but they wouldn't know until the beginning of July because they were moving kids around but they would let me know. And now its the last day of July and I still haven't heard from them. Right now I'm just waiting to see how this new possibility plays out. We will see.
In other news it looks like I will be doing some traveling in the next couple weeks. First I will be spending about a week visiting with my dad's mom in New Mexico. After a few days of recuperation I am off to see my mom at her fiance's brother's lake house in Lower Michigan. Hopefully I remember to take lots of pictures. Last time we were in NM our hotel room had an awesome view of the mountains and we saw Lady Gaga's tour bus.
I also had a job interview the other day but they won't know for a week or two. It is at a daycare and they are waiting to see if their enrollment is going to pick up for the fall and if they will need more staff or not. So I could be out of town when they hopefully call me back. I'm only kind of holding my breath though because way back in the beginning of June I filled out an app. and interviewed at a daycare the same day. I got the feeling that they were going to hire me. Then I never heard from them. I called them a few weeks later and they said they still had my app. but they wouldn't know until the beginning of July because they were moving kids around but they would let me know. And now its the last day of July and I still haven't heard from them. Right now I'm just waiting to see how this new possibility plays out. We will see.
Sunday, July 24, 2011
Day 2: Your Least Favorite Song
This one was not so hard to come up with. It truly irritates me. Most every song by these guys irritates me to tell you the truth. I hate when I catch myself singing along. The song is....
All I Want To Do by Sugarland
What is your least favorite song?
All I Want To Do by Sugarland
What is your least favorite song?
Saturday, July 23, 2011
30 Day Song Challenge: Day 1
I noticed some of my friends on Facebook doing the 30 Day Song Challenge and I thought it would be fun to do on here. So, you know, I should be doing 1 post everyday for the next 30 days (at least in theory.) We will see how it goes. Check out the rules on Facebook.
Day 1 is your favorite song. I had a really hard time coming up with one for this because I don't have just one favorite. Since country music is my favorite genre I am going to choose This Is Country Music by Brad Paisley. The song just talks about everything I love about country music.
Day 1 is your favorite song. I had a really hard time coming up with one for this because I don't have just one favorite. Since country music is my favorite genre I am going to choose This Is Country Music by Brad Paisley. The song just talks about everything I love about country music.
So what is your favorite song?
Friday, July 22, 2011
Lady Gaga in the House!
I actually don't like her music, I'm more of a country girl, but I thought it was still a good blog post. Lady Gaga is in Nebraska and its not her first visit. She had a concert at the Qwest Center in March and she was also here sometime over the 2010 holidays.
When she was here over the holidays she was with her boyfriends visiting his family. He is from Springfield. I'm a little fuzzy on the details because it was six months ago but, I think other than visiting his family she was also spotted in the Old Market and some other places around the Metro. Don't quote me though because I don't remember and I really don't feel like looking it up at the moment. Ok, I just looked up an article on omaha.com it does confirm.
This time she is back in Springfield reportedly shooting a video. Well I guess it is not really Springfield so much as rural Sarpy County. Platteview High School has apparently opened up to feed the crew and provide some ac. You know because its been like 100 degrees for the last week. And they were reportedly shooting outside and in a barn. If you don't know barns can often be hotter than outside because they get about zero circulation.
So I guess if we see a Lady Gaga video with cornfields and a barn we will know she shot it in Nebraska.
When she was here over the holidays she was with her boyfriends visiting his family. He is from Springfield. I'm a little fuzzy on the details because it was six months ago but, I think other than visiting his family she was also spotted in the Old Market and some other places around the Metro. Don't quote me though because I don't remember and I really don't feel like looking it up at the moment. Ok, I just looked up an article on omaha.com it does confirm.
This time she is back in Springfield reportedly shooting a video. Well I guess it is not really Springfield so much as rural Sarpy County. Platteview High School has apparently opened up to feed the crew and provide some ac. You know because its been like 100 degrees for the last week. And they were reportedly shooting outside and in a barn. If you don't know barns can often be hotter than outside because they get about zero circulation.
So I guess if we see a Lady Gaga video with cornfields and a barn we will know she shot it in Nebraska.
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Quote of the Week
In an effort to blog more often I have decided to start doing a quote of the week.
I came across this quote when my best friends dad read it to us from the book he was reading and then asked us who we thought said it. I sure didn't have a clue. I really like this quote, I think it is something that everyone should live by. Most especially bloggers and most other people who take the heat from people for the things they say and do. So here is the quote:
I came across this quote when my best friends dad read it to us from the book he was reading and then asked us who we thought said it. I sure didn't have a clue. I really like this quote, I think it is something that everyone should live by. Most especially bloggers and most other people who take the heat from people for the things they say and do. So here is the quote:
"Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter, and those who matter don't mind." -Dr. Seuss
Monday, July 18, 2011
Weekend Wrap Up
I had a busy weekend this past weekend. My mom flew in from Michigan. Yea! I missed her so much.
On Saturday we cleaned the house to make it presentable. My mom hadn't seen it yet and it was pretty messy. Dishes in the sink, stuff piled on the table and my room had clothes everywhere. If they had hit the road at noon like they said they were going to I don't think we would have gotten everything done.
When my mom finally got here I showed her the house and then we just hung out for a while. Too long of a while in my opinion because by the time we got to the movie theater the showing of Harry Potter we were hopping to see was sold out. The next showing was in 3D. I am not a huge fan of 3D. Its too much work for my brain, especially in the heat we have been dealing with. The movie was good though. A lot of things I didn't remember from the book but, that is to be expected when you haven't read the book since it came out.
After the movie we headed back to Plattsmouth for the night. First order of business was a trip to Bellevue for Chinese food. Yum! I haven't had Chinese since we first moved in and it was awful. Back to my grandparents after that and then back to my moms to pack up some pictures for my grandparents to bring to her when they go visit.
Up way to early on Sunday. My grandparents don't know how to be quiet. I probably could have slept longer but Max woke me up because he had to go see them. Grandma made omelets for breakfast, they were delicious. Church after that. Everyone was happy to see all of us. Then back to the grandparents after that for family time. Too soon it came time for me to take my mom to the airport. I miss her so much already.
Back home after taking my mom to the airport. My roommate had friends over for a barbecue. We played an exciting game of phase 10 twist. The game was taking to long though so we started skipping the twists and repeat phases. After they left we watched Cyberbully. My thoughts on that are a whole separate post though. Amsale Girls after that and then it was off too bed.
On Saturday we cleaned the house to make it presentable. My mom hadn't seen it yet and it was pretty messy. Dishes in the sink, stuff piled on the table and my room had clothes everywhere. If they had hit the road at noon like they said they were going to I don't think we would have gotten everything done.
When my mom finally got here I showed her the house and then we just hung out for a while. Too long of a while in my opinion because by the time we got to the movie theater the showing of Harry Potter we were hopping to see was sold out. The next showing was in 3D. I am not a huge fan of 3D. Its too much work for my brain, especially in the heat we have been dealing with. The movie was good though. A lot of things I didn't remember from the book but, that is to be expected when you haven't read the book since it came out.
After the movie we headed back to Plattsmouth for the night. First order of business was a trip to Bellevue for Chinese food. Yum! I haven't had Chinese since we first moved in and it was awful. Back to my grandparents after that and then back to my moms to pack up some pictures for my grandparents to bring to her when they go visit.
Up way to early on Sunday. My grandparents don't know how to be quiet. I probably could have slept longer but Max woke me up because he had to go see them. Grandma made omelets for breakfast, they were delicious. Church after that. Everyone was happy to see all of us. Then back to the grandparents after that for family time. Too soon it came time for me to take my mom to the airport. I miss her so much already.
Back home after taking my mom to the airport. My roommate had friends over for a barbecue. We played an exciting game of phase 10 twist. The game was taking to long though so we started skipping the twists and repeat phases. After they left we watched Cyberbully. My thoughts on that are a whole separate post though. Amsale Girls after that and then it was off too bed.
Friday, July 15, 2011
Harry Potter: The Ending of an Era
Yes. I am a Harry Potter fan. A huge fan in fact. Not to the point of dressing up and going to the midnight showing, but still a big fan.
I was only seven when the first book came out. Too young probably to read it. That didn't really matter though because the book didn't even cross my radar at that point. I think I became aware of the books sometime during the third grade ('97-'98) but still wasn't interested. Then in the fourth grade my teacher read the books out loud to us. I became hooked. I got my whole family hooked. Only the first 2 books were out at that point.
The books had become so popular that we read them every year in school for a couple of years. I think the first book we pre ordered so we had it right away was "The Goblet of Fire." As the books came out the Harry, Ron and Hermione were a couple of years older than me.
In the movies though the characters started out at the same age I was. So in the sense of the movies I grew up right along with the characters. Obviously I'm not 17 now like the characters are but as long as there has been another movie to wait on I have clung to a part of my childhood. Now that this last movie is out and I'm sure that after I watch it tomorrow that last little part of my childhood is over.
I'm a little sad that it is all over. When the last book came out I wasn't nearly as sad because I still had the movies to look forward too. The only think to look forward to know is Potter More. The new site JK Rowling has created to give us more insight into the wizarding world. As far as I can tell there won't be any knew stories with the next generation of Potter's/Weasley's/Granger's. So this new chapter coming up doesn't feel the same as waiting for a new book or movie.
My point is that it is hitting me that the Harry Potter era is coming to an end and with it the last little piece of my childhood is going away.
I was only seven when the first book came out. Too young probably to read it. That didn't really matter though because the book didn't even cross my radar at that point. I think I became aware of the books sometime during the third grade ('97-'98) but still wasn't interested. Then in the fourth grade my teacher read the books out loud to us. I became hooked. I got my whole family hooked. Only the first 2 books were out at that point.
The books had become so popular that we read them every year in school for a couple of years. I think the first book we pre ordered so we had it right away was "The Goblet of Fire." As the books came out the Harry, Ron and Hermione were a couple of years older than me.
In the movies though the characters started out at the same age I was. So in the sense of the movies I grew up right along with the characters. Obviously I'm not 17 now like the characters are but as long as there has been another movie to wait on I have clung to a part of my childhood. Now that this last movie is out and I'm sure that after I watch it tomorrow that last little part of my childhood is over.
I'm a little sad that it is all over. When the last book came out I wasn't nearly as sad because I still had the movies to look forward too. The only think to look forward to know is Potter More. The new site JK Rowling has created to give us more insight into the wizarding world. As far as I can tell there won't be any knew stories with the next generation of Potter's/Weasley's/Granger's. So this new chapter coming up doesn't feel the same as waiting for a new book or movie.
My point is that it is hitting me that the Harry Potter era is coming to an end and with it the last little piece of my childhood is going away.
Monday, July 11, 2011
O. M. G. The. Heat.
My grandma's twin brother was in town this weekend with his wife, son, and son's girlfriend. Ok, not in my town but in my hometown. So of course I went home for the family barbecue. The high today was 93. With 77% humidity and a 110 heat index. The drive home is about an hour. I don't have air conditioning in my car. Have I mentioned that before?
My brain is so fried right now that I have already forgotten what this post was about. Oh yes, the heat. The drive with no AC wasn't so bad because I got a breeze from having the windows down. And even though the kids were in and out of my grandparents house that wasn't so bad either. It was later when we went over to Iowa to fill up my gas tank. Thanks Grandma and Grandpa.
Even though I was back last weekend for the 4th the only trip we made into town was to get fireworks (my roomies parents live south of town and in the country) so I hadn't seen the flooding yet. When we crossed the Platte River I noticed that you could see the moisture in the air. It wasn't foggy necessarily but there was definitely moisture in the air. And yes, I live in Nebraska it is humid all the time but this was a new one for me. The dew point was 82. Crazy Business, I tell ya.
And the flooding, the water is actually starting to go down. but it is still crazy. Even though I knew they were there it was weird to see the sandbags along the highway. And there were pumps everywhere to attempt to keep the water under control.
I feel like this post is all over the place and I didn't really update on the flooding. And I forgot my camera so I couldn't take any pictures. Boo. But yeah, it was really hot and EXTREMELY humid and my poor poor Max. I had to give him a cold water bath when we got home because he was so hot. Ok guys, random post over. Sorry about all the ands in this last paragraph. My brain is seriously mush right now.
Thursday, June 23, 2011
On the Missouri River flooding
Up until a couple of weeks ago I lived in Plattsmouth. Before I moved the river was high (I think already above flood level) but it hadn't yer crested the banks. We definitely knew it was coming.
This is the river today. The river flooded last year too. I am almost positive it was not this bad but it was definitely close. Actually I'm sure it wasn't this bad last year. Because they didn't sandbag anything. I do believe if the river hadn't flooded last summer as well it wouldn't be quite this bad this year. But what do I know.
Here is what the river normally looks like. When I went back on Sunday for Father's Day I did not stop on Main Street to see for myself what the river looks like. I can tell you though that I sure am glad that I'm not living in Plattsmouth anymore, even though both of my parents houses aren't in danger of becoming flooded. I am just happy I don't have to deal with that at all. Of worrying if I'm going to be able to get to Bellevue or Omaha to go shopping. Or to do pretty much anything.
My Aunt's house is in danger of flooding though. I know she has packed up some of her stuff but not everything because she is still living there. I believe the police/firemen told her that if the levee breaks (I'm not sure which one?) her house will definitely flood. Some of the farm fields that flooded last summer never lost all of the water they had gained. So I imagine it is pretty bad. For awhile the police were only letting people who lived back there to drive back there (they still might be again I'm not sure.) And that was/is probably for the best.
Ed: I just read on Facebook that the city workers who work at the water treatment plant are working 24/7 to keep the plant safe. And since the door is sandbagged shut they are climbing through a window to get in and out. They are also taking a boat to the plant and back. I think they have been taking the boat for a while, maybe a couple of weeks. This new information comes from one of my friends moms. His dad is a city water plant worker.
Also if you go here you can see a live view of East Main Street. The camera is mounted on the court house facing East towards the river. The picture above is just a screen capture I did earlier from the live feed.
This is the river today. The river flooded last year too. I am almost positive it was not this bad but it was definitely close. Actually I'm sure it wasn't this bad last year. Because they didn't sandbag anything. I do believe if the river hadn't flooded last summer as well it wouldn't be quite this bad this year. But what do I know.
Here is what the river normally looks like. When I went back on Sunday for Father's Day I did not stop on Main Street to see for myself what the river looks like. I can tell you though that I sure am glad that I'm not living in Plattsmouth anymore, even though both of my parents houses aren't in danger of becoming flooded. I am just happy I don't have to deal with that at all. Of worrying if I'm going to be able to get to Bellevue or Omaha to go shopping. Or to do pretty much anything.
My Aunt's house is in danger of flooding though. I know she has packed up some of her stuff but not everything because she is still living there. I believe the police/firemen told her that if the levee breaks (I'm not sure which one?) her house will definitely flood. Some of the farm fields that flooded last summer never lost all of the water they had gained. So I imagine it is pretty bad. For awhile the police were only letting people who lived back there to drive back there (they still might be again I'm not sure.) And that was/is probably for the best.
Ed: I just read on Facebook that the city workers who work at the water treatment plant are working 24/7 to keep the plant safe. And since the door is sandbagged shut they are climbing through a window to get in and out. They are also taking a boat to the plant and back. I think they have been taking the boat for a while, maybe a couple of weeks. This new information comes from one of my friends moms. His dad is a city water plant worker.
Also if you go here you can see a live view of East Main Street. The camera is mounted on the court house facing East towards the river. The picture above is just a screen capture I did earlier from the live feed.
Monday, June 6, 2011
States I Have Been To...
and not just driving through. Or, being in the airport.
1. Nebraska. Duh, I live here!
2. Michigan. I used to live there until I was 5.
3. South Dakota
4. Wisconsin
5. Minnesota
6. Iowa
7. Kansas
8. Texas
9. New Mexico
10.New York
11.Florida
12.Colorado
13.Missouri
1. Nebraska. Duh, I live here!
2. Michigan. I used to live there until I was 5.
3. South Dakota
4. Wisconsin
5. Minnesota
6. Iowa
7. Kansas
8. Texas
9. New Mexico
10.New York
11.Florida
12.Colorado
13.Missouri
Saturday, May 21, 2011
Bucket List
As I was looking at other peoples bucket lists to get ideas for my own I realized (and kind of already knew) how lucky I am to have experienced some of the things I have experienced. Things as basic a sleeping under the stars. Or the not so simple like climbing the Sydney Harbour Bridge or snorkeling in the Great Barrier Reef. Anyways here is my bucket list:
- Visit Ireland.
- See a Cirque du Soleil show.
- Travel to all 50 states. 13 so far.
- Go to Greece.
- Get married.
- Have children. 3 is the number that seems to be stuck in my head.
- Take more pictures. And get better at it.
- Go back to Australia.
- Go to the Olympics. Summer and Winter.
- Take my children to Disney World.
- Be in the audience of Oprah. I know her show is over but I think there will still be other opportunities.
- Pay off my student loans.
- Get a penpal. Using actual mail.
Thats all for now. I'm sure I will add more. I definitely think this is something that is always evolving.
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
So Unfortunate...
Last Saturday, May 14 two boys from my high school were killed in a car accident. Just 6 days after graduating from high school. They were both just 18 years old. I am not sure of the circumstances surrounding the accident. What I know is that one of the boys didn't grow up here, he was a recent transplant from another part of the state. Him and the other boy were back to his hometown. I am thinking they were going to the graduation parties of some of his friends. While crossing an intersection of two highways they were hit. Neither were wearing seatbelts. One boys funeral was yesterday and the others was today.
Because they were only freshman when I was a senior I didn't know them. Well, I guess I didn't know the one boy who was living here at the time. The boy who was here while I was still in school was in my art class for 1 semester. I am not even sure which semester it was.
These are the third and fourth teen deaths our town has had to deal with in the last 18 months. The first was a suicide in November 2009. I was away at school when this one occurred but because of Facebook I knew how much everyone was affected. The second, also a suicide, happened in February 2010. I was still away at school for this one but he was a classmate of my brothers. I had a summer job with this boy. This one hit me a little harder.
On Saturday night I was out to the movies with some friends. When we got out of the movie the girl had texts from some of her friends saying they were there for her. She didn't know what they were even talking about. It didn't take her long to figure it out. She was really close with at least one of the boys. I wished that I could have done something to comfort her. All I could do was say I was sorry.
All four of these boys were so loved. And now everyone has to mourn yet another loss. I just hope that we don't have to go through this again for a long time.
Saturday, May 14, 2011
Five!
Today is my baby's birthday. Max is 5 today. I love the munchkin to pieces.
He was my 16th birthday present. Why a dog and not a car? I wasn't really interested in driving yet so why by a car that wasn't going to be used? Yes I had my license. In fact I had taken drivers ed nearly 2 years earlier the summer after my freshman year of high school. But that's really a whole different story.
I knew I wanted a dog instead. A small dog. We started out by looking at the humane society. There was one dog there a terrier mix. She had the coloring of a yorkie but she was bigger. I decided that she was the dog I wanted. Since we had another dog at home we had to bring her into the humane society to make sure the dogs got along.
When we got to the humane society Nikki was so excited by all the other dogs she barked a lot. The other dog, poor baby, was terrified of Nikki's barking. We tried bringing them outside so Nikki would calm down and that didn't work. So we couldn't get the dog from the humane society. So much for trying to do the right thing.
My mom knew that one of her customers at the bank bred yorkies so that was our next stop. Both of her females gave birth to their litters on the same day, May 14th. It was mothers day that year. We originally went thinking we were going to get the runt of one of the litters for cheaper. It turned out that she (or he I don't remember) was going to be more expensive. The way we ended up with Max is because the boys were slightly cheaper. We brought him home 8 or so weeks later.
He gets along fine with Nikki and with the 2 cats we also had. I think that Nikki and the humane society dog would have gotten along just fine but I wouldn't give Max back either so I think everything worked out the way it was supposed to. Even though hes a dog I can't imagine not having him. Even though he drives me absolutely crazy sometimes I really do love the little bugger.
I mean how can anyone resist this face? I sure can't.
He was my 16th birthday present. Why a dog and not a car? I wasn't really interested in driving yet so why by a car that wasn't going to be used? Yes I had my license. In fact I had taken drivers ed nearly 2 years earlier the summer after my freshman year of high school. But that's really a whole different story.
I knew I wanted a dog instead. A small dog. We started out by looking at the humane society. There was one dog there a terrier mix. She had the coloring of a yorkie but she was bigger. I decided that she was the dog I wanted. Since we had another dog at home we had to bring her into the humane society to make sure the dogs got along.
When we got to the humane society Nikki was so excited by all the other dogs she barked a lot. The other dog, poor baby, was terrified of Nikki's barking. We tried bringing them outside so Nikki would calm down and that didn't work. So we couldn't get the dog from the humane society. So much for trying to do the right thing.
My mom knew that one of her customers at the bank bred yorkies so that was our next stop. Both of her females gave birth to their litters on the same day, May 14th. It was mothers day that year. We originally went thinking we were going to get the runt of one of the litters for cheaper. It turned out that she (or he I don't remember) was going to be more expensive. The way we ended up with Max is because the boys were slightly cheaper. We brought him home 8 or so weeks later.
He gets along fine with Nikki and with the 2 cats we also had. I think that Nikki and the humane society dog would have gotten along just fine but I wouldn't give Max back either so I think everything worked out the way it was supposed to. Even though hes a dog I can't imagine not having him. Even though he drives me absolutely crazy sometimes I really do love the little bugger.
I mean how can anyone resist this face? I sure can't.
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
Traffic!?
When the weather starts to get warmer everyone seems to get super excited! I sure am glad winter is FINALLY over. You would think driving would improve with no snow on the ground but so far that doesn't seem to be the case.
Other things start to cause problems. Like the rising sun during the morning commute. It really likes to mess my drive up. Last week on a particularly bright morning there were tons of accidents. Traffic was horrible. The highway was backed up for miles. Traffic wasn't slowed it was stopped. The alternate route was becoming congested and slow. Thank God for GPS on phones because otherwise we would have been late for school. I wouldn't have known to go the way the GPS brought us. The path I would have taken would have been extra long and probably involved a fair amount of backtracking.
Then again this morning traffic was horrible. It seriously took me 30minutes to drive 3 miles. 3 miles in THIRTY minutes. It normally takes three. No there was no accident. Just road work that is going to last until June. One lane of high was for 3 months. I'm hoping that as people get used to this one lane instead of two things will pick back up.
Today it caused us to be late to school. Luckily we weren't the only ones who had a tough drive in. Apparently nearly half the class did. But still it is hard for me to deal with not moving. On. The. Highway. I have no patience and a slight speeding problem.
I should add that I am not used to driving in traffic so I haven't built a tolerance to it. My morning commute used to take about 7 or 8 minutes! Now getting to work takes about 2 minutes!!!
Other things start to cause problems. Like the rising sun during the morning commute. It really likes to mess my drive up. Last week on a particularly bright morning there were tons of accidents. Traffic was horrible. The highway was backed up for miles. Traffic wasn't slowed it was stopped. The alternate route was becoming congested and slow. Thank God for GPS on phones because otherwise we would have been late for school. I wouldn't have known to go the way the GPS brought us. The path I would have taken would have been extra long and probably involved a fair amount of backtracking.
Then again this morning traffic was horrible. It seriously took me 30minutes to drive 3 miles. 3 miles in THIRTY minutes. It normally takes three. No there was no accident. Just road work that is going to last until June. One lane of high was for 3 months. I'm hoping that as people get used to this one lane instead of two things will pick back up.
Today it caused us to be late to school. Luckily we weren't the only ones who had a tough drive in. Apparently nearly half the class did. But still it is hard for me to deal with not moving. On. The. Highway. I have no patience and a slight speeding problem.
I should add that I am not used to driving in traffic so I haven't built a tolerance to it. My morning commute used to take about 7 or 8 minutes! Now getting to work takes about 2 minutes!!!
Friday, April 8, 2011
Finally Feeling Like Spring!
This past week the weather has been pretty great. Blue skies and sunshine! I am really liking this!
The other thing that comes with spring in the mid west though is severe weather. So far we haven't had much rain or severe weather but it is unavoidable. The skies change, the air cools and it even smells different. You can feel the rain coming. And seriously as I am typing this I just heard thunder. Or maybe it was just a loud car outside. It could be either.
Back to the weather. It changes quickly and it can get pretty scary.
Last spring/summer we got lots and lots of rain. Which caused flooding like I have never seen before.
I have lived in this same area of Nebraska for 16 years in July and I don't ever remember flooding like this. Maybe some higher than normal water levels but never flooding.
Right now while the weather is nice, before it gets unbearable, I am going to enjoy it. And be grateful that it is not so hot that I can still drive with my windows down since my air conditioning doesn't seem to be working.
The other thing that comes with spring in the mid west though is severe weather. So far we haven't had much rain or severe weather but it is unavoidable. The skies change, the air cools and it even smells different. You can feel the rain coming. And seriously as I am typing this I just heard thunder. Or maybe it was just a loud car outside. It could be either.
Back to the weather. It changes quickly and it can get pretty scary.
 |
| This storm came in very quickly. We were out shopping and on the way to the stores the thermometer in the car said it was 100. Then it cooled way down and started pouring rain. The wind was also very strong. |
 |
| This is the sunset after the storm. Pretty spectacular. |
Last spring/summer we got lots and lots of rain. Which caused flooding like I have never seen before.
 |
| You can usually see sandbars in this river! It was so high that peoples basements were flooded. Some people even lost access to the road so they had to use a boat to get to the road. |
I have lived in this same area of Nebraska for 16 years in July and I don't ever remember flooding like this. Maybe some higher than normal water levels but never flooding.
Right now while the weather is nice, before it gets unbearable, I am going to enjoy it. And be grateful that it is not so hot that I can still drive with my windows down since my air conditioning doesn't seem to be working.
Saturday, March 26, 2011
Spring in Nebraska
Last week it was 76 degrees outside.
Today its snowing. I am SO over the snow. I know I live in Nebraska and the weather can and often does change quickly but I just want it to be spring all ready. I miss the warm weather and the past few weeks seem like a nasty tease.
Ok, lets be honest. I am over the snow before it even starts. I like pretty much everything about living in Nebraska except the snow. I do like winter sports. But we don't get enough snow here to do much of anything. Mostly the snow just makes driving a pain. Since we had the warm weather the snow isn't sticking to the roads but I still don't like it.
Ok, lets be honest. I am over the snow before it even starts. I like pretty much everything about living in Nebraska except the snow. I do like winter sports. But we don't get enough snow here to do much of anything. Mostly the snow just makes driving a pain. Since we had the warm weather the snow isn't sticking to the roads but I still don't like it.
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