Happy Sunday Photos...and...Who Reads My Blog.

I need to go to the fabric store, BUT it doesn't open until noon, so I'm doing a little blog post before I go. Before I get to the Happy Photos, I would like to ask... Who is peeking at this blog? Are you? Please consider leaving a comment, inasmuch as it would make me very happy. Leave suggestions, comments, questions...whatever! P.S.Thank you to those of you who have already left comments. They give me glee! Without further ado, here are some things that make me redonkulously happy:
This vintage hair comb that I got for FOUR DOLLARS at the antique mall. I'm dying to wear it, but I'm having trouble deciding what to wear it with, or how to do my hair. Any suggestions would be welcome. FYI, the jewelry box is also from the same antique mall. I love that stupid place.
A little project book I started last night. A skoach emo, but I like the style - it's very random and slapped together, and that's kind of what I'm into right now.
My ghetto typewriter that I got FREE off of Freecycle. I had it hidden under my bed, but I've started using it a lot more, so I had to set it up in my bedroom. I'd really like to find a typewriter like one I had when I was little, but I don't think they make ribbons for them anymore. I'll be lucky if I can find a replacement after this one runs out. I'm trying not to think about it.

OK. I have to run. I need to pack up the computer, head to the fabric store, maybe buy some stuff, drive to Odessa, pick up a drink, and head to Michelle's house to work on this paperwork sequence training manual that I basically volunteered myself for. I'm not even a probation officer. How did this happen?

Oh, very quickly. Remember the other day when I was like, all obsessing over trying to EDIT THE HTML in my blog post to make my pictures bigger than the default selection choices in Blogger? Um, DUH, all you have to do is click on the picture and adjust it by dragging the outline. JUST LIKE YOU WOULD IN MICROSOFT PAINT. Ugh. Editing html. What the hell was I thinking?

Speaking of blogger, over the next week, particularly if I happen to have time to sit around in the hotel, I hope to add some third party stuff onto my blog - maybe like a music player or something....just some spice for my peeps.

OLE.

These Make Me Happy.

Lattes from McDonalds. I don't drink them often, because they're loaded with, yes calories, but more importantly, milk, which is something that I simply cannot tolerate in large amounts, and I CERTAINLY shouldn't be drinking it, but these are so GOOD....it's worth the pain. Sometimes.

....Sweet Mail Art from Eileen. SHE DREW HAPPY CAGE FREE EGGS FOR ME. There were lots of little kawaii stickers and pencils....vintage stationery....I almost passed out with glee. I need to mail her back. I am a little panicked that sendsomething.net is down, and has been down all day.... But, moving on.
My new pretty rug in the living room. I have begun project LIVING ROOM OVERHAUL, and this is my first purchase. I was about to kill myself on the other rug I had, which had this permanent crease that I kept tripping over. I think I am going to the fabric store tomorrow, since the decorator fabrics are half off. We'll see. Next...
My sewing machine. I am sewing impaired, so I have to write reminders on it with Sharpie. Do not laugh.

It's 11:30...I probably need to go lie down. This is just further proof of my inevitable and unbearably rapid decline in the spry-ness of youth, but whatever.

Sleep tight.....

OMG. Do. Not. Enter.

Really. I worked all day today. I KNOW that this is what everyone else does and I need to stop whining, but PLEASE, WITH THE SEX OFFENDING. My job really doesn't get to me very often, but I will be very, very glad for the break this coming week. Maybe a week holed up in a hotel room is just what I need. I'm kind of looking forward to it. I thought this week would NEVER end. Polygraphs were relatively successful today. I also got to meet and work with the court interpreter, and she's very cool. I wish my Spanish was that good, but that is NEVER going to happen.

I'm not feeling great. I can't shake off this sleepiness, and naps are not helping. I never take naps, but now that I am officially OLD, I end up taking like, a two hour nap on Thursdays after group, and I also fell asleep today, like some kind of narcoleptic. I MEANT to sit and watch Aqua Teen for a little bit, and I passed out until 7:45. SIGH.

I need to clean the house in a major way. Ugh.

I got new watercolors. I've never worked with Koi brand colors, but I liked them just fine - here's a test run:
Not my best work, but I was trying to figure out how to make pink. I believe I have already expressed on this blog that I suck at painting anything besides little cartoon characters, and watercolors are certainly no exception. I wish I could take a class, but I do not want to pay 300 dollars and end up painting twenty still lifes of green peppers and assorted fruits.

I got something funny in the mail from my bank:
You just never expect for Bank of America to send you a letter with "Hello Kitty" on it. I found it humorous.

Ok. I got some fantabulous mail from Eileen O. Today - will feature a picture of it on tomorrow's blog.

For now, I'm going to listen to Quick DJ on my Zune software, clear off my dining room table, MAYBE do dishes, and we'll see where I'm at after that.

Hug the stars!

Turning in early.

I just got back from Andrews not too long ago. I've had dinner, and I'm going to get ready for bed. I realize that this sounds positively geriatric, but I don't care. I am sleepy, and the alarm has gone off in the middle of a REM cycle three days in a row, MAYBE I will do something crafty. Really, I just want to rest. BUT FIRST:

Randoms: I took the above photo on my way home from New York.
Blogger still sucks at understanding that I only want Trebuchet font.
I have groups all day tomorrow.
I have a sore on my ear (gross) because I wore cheap earrings the other day and had an allergic reaction to the nickel.
I bought new watercolors today
I have not prepared at all for my trip to Dallas.
I love that it is getting cold at night now.
I love Escape the Fate's old music.
I am wearing my favorite t-shirt right now.
I love the word "rapscallion"
I am allergic to bananas, and that sucks.

Good noches.

Feeling A *Skoach* Better About Crash Love, and,,,Tuesday Mail Art.

I got a great little postcard in the mail today from Jenno over at sendsomething.net. She is a self-proclaimed geek, so I made her a little geek mail art. In case you are wondering, that little chain there is an illustration of amino acids spelling the word "geek". I also love the vintage picture (taken from an old elementary school reader). I read the little story before I tore the page out (something I have an almost obsessive compulsion to do everytime I use an old book for collage) and all the characters were oohing over how "small" the computer you see in the illustration was. I also like that the monitor appears to be displaying some 1-bit 4-pixel version of Galaga. WHO REMEMBERS GALAGA!??!??!?!? Anyway, Jenno sent my a very nice card, about roller coasters (which I love) and our Zunes (which I also love).
IN OTHER NEWS:

So I have decided that Yes, I might just be a little bit more than okay with Crash Love. Maybe I just need to give it some time. I mean, I bought Decemberunderground when it came out and I hated it until three years later and now I love it. Except for 37mm. I never got around to liking that song. ANYWAY, I can't say that the same won't happen for this new little album....my little AFI dark horse.

Other randoms:

• Blogger, why in the HELL is it SO HARD to understand that i DO NOT WANT TIMES NEW ROMAN, and I DO NOT WANT TO HAVE TO SELECT TREBUCHET EVERYTIME I START A NEW PARAGRAPH. HAVE YOU EVER HEARD OF DEFAULT OPTIONS? AAAGH
• Why am I so thirsty today? I've had like, four bottles of water tonight.
  
• Escape the Fate really really really needs Ronnie Radke. That other guy just doesn't cut it.
  
• I might have been too hard on Saosin. Their new album isn't too bad.
• I'm getting sleepy now.

Sparkles!

Sigh. I Have To Say It.

SIGH. I wanted to love it. I wanted to say, "Wow, this is so good, I'm never listening to Sing The Sorrow ever, ever, ever, ever again!"

....Alas, this was not meant to be. I love AFI, and so I will still buy the album...I will still go the concert in Austin in November in the hopes that they will play Miss Murder, or The Leaving Song Pt II. or God Called in Sick Today. WHY DON'T I LOVE THIS ALBUM? Why isn't Davey screaming? Where is all the despair? I'm not even sure how I feel after listening to these songs. Am I happy? Am I confused? I will say this....from the interviews, it seems as though the songs in this album all fall into a theme that the band wanted to express...themes of ephemeral, temporary, intense rushes of emotion... I think they were very successful thematically. As far as why I fell in love with them in the first place....brooding music, screams, great breakdowns and bridges, lots of dramatics, and a more classical-sound overall, most of that is missing from this album. I am on track 6 and noone has screamed so far. There has been NO bridge where they slow down the BPM's. Alack and alas. I like tracks 1 6-8 so far. I do not like track 2 in any way.

For those of you who are even mildly interested in what I am whining about, visit HERE.

I'll be back later, after I'm done crying, and after I've listened to Sing the Sorrow, Black Sails in The Sunset, and Decemberunderground to make me feel better. Oh, AFI. Please help me love you.

Wanna See What I Do For A Living?

Well, this is just a part of what I do....but I just wanted to show that I do, indeed, use math occasionally, even though it is usually the bane of my existence. You might be asking, "What in the world would a psychotherapist need to do with Fractions of K ?" The answer is: Plenty.

Shall I delight you with the tale of how my morning went? First of all, I was thrilled that I was going to be able to sleep in. I usually don't work on Fridays, but this Friday we are running polygraphs at the office, and I have to be there, so my boss told me it would be ok if I didn't come in today. So, I turn my alarm off and am in the middle of a VERY deep REM cycle when the phone rings at approximately 8:15am. It is my colleague, asking me if I would like to reschedule one of my patients, because, evidently I scheduled him to come in on MONDAY AT 9 and HE IS ALREADY EN ROUTE. I debate this for only a few seconds, because I quickly concede that the damage has been done and I am already awake, and extremely unlikely to fall back asleep. I thank my colleague for giving me the heads up, get dressed in a stupor, and make it across town to work. At this point, I am probably still in my REM cycle, but I try to hide it. I see my patient and decide to just stay at work until lunch. Now that I'm reading back over this, that is not an incredibly entertaining story, but oh well.

On a more interesting note, I got some Mail Art today:

Woot! A crab! Anyway, I was thrilled, so I will once again be headed to the mailbox tomorrow.

I would love to stay and chat, but my Zune software (i HATE it when they update and my stuff gets screwed up) is no longer recognizing my player, so I have to restart, and see if that fixes it.

More Mail Art I Forgot To Post.

I just love the way these turn out....not because of any kind of artistic value, but simply because it makes me happy to match junk with other junk. These are going out to Kentucky and Australia tomorrow along with Linsey's box. Enjoy. Not done with laundry yet. Hope Jim Parsons wins the primetime Emmy, or I am never ever watcing the Emmy's again. Ever.

Trying to Hack Blogger, and some other stuff.

So basically I have been trying to find blogger hacks so that I can post bigger photos than the post editing wizard will allow me to have. This would be cool, except for the fact that I do not know how to edit html, so I'm thinking that this looks a little distorted and I'm going to have to mess around with it until I get it right.

Anyhoo, this is the box that I'm sending out to Linsey tomorrow. I had a lot of fun putting it together. The weekend has been thankfully quiet. I've enjoyed just burrowing in my little house, cleaning and organizing, and then making a mess all over again. OH P.S., look at this ridiculous vintage cat I bought at the antique store yesterday:

Is that the greatest thing, or what? A green kitty.
So...I have lots to do today - I have about five loads of THIS:
plus I'd still like to make a few more postcards to go out before I make a trip to the post office tomorrow.

OH, and I'd like to give a shoutout to my BROTHER. HAPPY BIRTHDAY, SNAKELIPS!

MAIL LOVE <3 <3 <3

I intended, when I came back from dinner tonight, to post this slightly emo email that I'd sent to a dear friend this afternoon about helping other people and needing a break, and what I might need from another human being....blah blah blah...and THEN I GOT MAIL. Good mail. Mail from Linsey who is now on my Top Awesomest People Ever List. Tonight, in all my temporary emo-ness, I wondered if it was too much to ask that someone just be there for me. Just for tonight. And Linsey was it.

You want to know something interesting?

You want to know how I know Linsey?

I don't.

Never seen or spoken to her before in my life.

Yet here is a little package, decorated, with my little name on it, filled with things she loves. And I love them too.

If you haven't picked up the book "Good Mail Day"yet, you should.

It is, very simply, a means of connecting with others - using a method that our "modern" lifestyle has deemed archaic and outmoded.

Yet here I sit....

Ecstatic.

Big thanks going out to Linsey right now. Expect something soon.

I shall save the emo post for another night. :)

P.S., has anyone listened to the new AFI album track leaks? I like them!!!

Night.

Random House Shots and Then I Have to Go Read

I've already started the new Dan Brown novel - what is with the penchant for severed and/or eviscerated body parts? And mutilation? Anyway, it's fantastic, and I'm ready for tomorrow to be over so I can read some more. Actually, it won't be that simple, because after work tomorrow, I have a private client coming in for an eval, and then I have to go shopping for something to wear for the game, and THEN I can read. At some point this weekend, I have GOT to clean up around here, because I have mum stuff all over the place, and mail art stuff, and i need to take out the garbage and wash dishes, and.....all that.

SOOO, I am going to try to squeeze in a few chapters before bed. Photo #1 is the side of the fridge, where i PURPOSEFULLY juxtaposed the F that S card and the Have a Great Day magnet. The second one is an old card file I thrifted. This is where I keep my ATC's, and, apparently, random computer software.

Pleasant dreams, friends.

Oh Emm Gee.

I am EXHAUSTED. I am exhausted because homecoming (for Monahans and for Midland Lee) is this weekend. I had one friend say, "Hey, my daughter's going to be in a parade on Thursday, can you make me a mum?" So I say, "Sure"....no big deal...make a little money, put together a little something - a ten minute trip to the store, tops. THEN, my SISTER, whom I ALREADY MADE A MUM FOR, texts me while I am at the BOOKSTORE, TRYING to have a RELAXING evening, and says, "Hey can you make an awesome (note: not just a garter, but an AWESOME garter) for Little Peep (my nephew, who is THIRTEEN and would DIE if we ever called him that in public)?" There are a number of problems with this:

1. I ALREADY ASKED YOU IF YOU WANTED ME TO MAKE HIM A GARTER AND YOU SAID NO.
2. Monahans is closer to Odessa....not Midland. ERGO, in order to get Monahans colored stuff, I have to drive TWENTY MINUTES one way to get stuff.
3. YOU ARE TEXTING ME THE WEEK OF HOMECOMING WITH AN ORDER I COULD HAVE FINISHED TWO WEEKS AGO.

...but enough yelling. I got home, my plan to eat dinner and be lazy and read The Lost Symbol now aborted, and I started the mum. Now that I have made a few, the process is easier. Finished that one in about an hour and a half. Then I went straight into the garter, which was a little more complicated, because I basically had to PUT THE MUM I HAD MADE FOR MYSELF UP FOR A COMPLETE SACRIFICE in order to get the garter done. If this is what it means to have children, I am sticking with my hamster. Anyway, long story short, I get them both done by 10, get in the shower, and now I am making this entry so I can flop on my stomach in bed, read a little bit, and go to sleep, because I'm exhausted, and my stamp-carving back injury has been irritated.

This is what I WANTED to do:

I actually went to work LATE today, because Barnes & Noble doesn't open until 9, and I wanted to buy the book before I went into the office. I'm only ten pages in or so, but it's riveting. I didn't read The DaVinci Code, but I did read Angels and Demons a few years ago and I loved it. I really enjoyed the movie too. I'm excited to see how this one plays out. I might finish it tomorrow, unless my hamster texts me and decides she wants to go to homecoming too.

OH - more mail art....just one weird postcard, but I was sorry to let this one go. I liked it, but I can't tell you why:



For this one, I used a vintage map of Los Angeles, an old encyclopedia, text from Teen Vogue (no, I do not want to explain why I have a copy of Teen Vogue), office dots, text from a couple of other magazines, and a piece of a menu from a Thai restaurant in Queens. I think I liked this one because of what it ended up saying...that we're only at the halfway place.

Before I go, if I'm going to be fully accountable, I have to say that my day would not have been as hectic if I hadn't gone shopping for silly clothes and shoes prior to all the homecoming crap.

I did buy a military jacket, though.....YAY.

P.S. I tend to walk on the outsides of my feet....I can't remember if that's pronate/supinate/whatever, but ANYWAY, the outside edge of my left foot is kind of sore. I want it to feel better. Is there a podiatrist, or some sort of bone doctor reading my blog? I will take any free medical advice, thank you. I am asking because I don't want to know what kind of results I will have to sift through if I search for "OUTER EDGE FOOT PAIN" on Google.

I am delirious with sleepiness.

YAWN, Cool Things, and a Poem.

Cool things that happened today:

• I managed to finish ALL of my paperwork and only have progress reports to do tomorrow.
• I got invited to a little ceramics shop and painted a gnome, squirrel, and mushroom house on a little box. On the lid, I wrote a line from an e.e. cummings poem.
  
• I came to the realization that it is almost impossible to keep drawings of mushrooms from looking like .....other things.
• My boss added the upstairs copy machine onto my work laptop.
• Found my earrings that I thought I'd LOST.
• Found the coolest coat at Old Navy.
• Got a friend request from one of my BFF's from Southwestern on Facebook.

Yay! The photo above is of the foot of my bed. The bed is an antique - I think it was my grandmother's. I strung those letters across it one day when I was bored. The PURPOSE of the photo is to imply (or not imply, since I'm about to state it) that I am going to bed early, because I was pooped when I got home but never got around to kicking back, since I went to the aforementioned ceramics store. Speaking of that, I should get the piece back in a week or so, and will certainly post it on here when I pick it up.

In closing, I'd like to share a poem by Shelley:

THE FOREST AT EVENING

In silence then they took the way
Beneath the fores's solitude.
It was a vast and antique wood,
Thro' which they took their way;
And the gray shades of evening
O'er that green wilderness did fling
Still deeper solitude.
Pursuing still the path that wound
The vast and knotted trees around
Thro' which slow shades were wandering,
To a deep lawny dell they came,
To a stone seat beside a spring,
O'er which the columned wood did frame
A roofless temple, like the fane
Where, ere new creeds could faith obtain,
Man's early race once knelt bemeath
The overhanding diety.
O'er this fair fountain hung the sky,
Now spangled with rare stars. The snake,
The pale snake, that with eager breath
Creeps here his noontide thirst to slake,
Is beaming with many a mingled hue,
shed from yon dome's eternal blue,
When he floats on that dark and lucid flood
In the light of his own loveliness;
And the birds that in the fountain dip
Their plumes, with fearless fellowship
Above and round him wheel and hover.
The fitful wind is heard to stir
One solitary leaf on high;
The chirping of the grasshopper
Fills every pause. There is emotion
In all that dewlls at noontide here:
Then, thro' the intricate wild wook,
A maze of life and light and motion
Is woven. But there is a stillness now:
Gloom, and the trance of Nature now:
The snake is in his cave alseep;
the birds are on the branches dreaming:
Only the shadows creep:
Only the glow-worm is gleaming:
Only the owls and the nightingales
Wake in this dell when daylight fails,
And gray shades gather in the woods:
And the owls have all fled far away
In a merrier glen to hoot and play,
For the moon is veiled and sleeping now.
The accustomed nightingale still broods
On her accustomed bough,
But she is mute; for her false mate
Has fled and left her desolate.

Good Thing I'm Not a Surgeon

Because carving these ridiculous stamps was damn near impossible. Well, really it was easy, I just need practice, I think. Yeah, they look cute now, but up close, you can see how the lines are all jagged and I wasn't able to follow the curves very well...not to mention I was sort of hunched over while I was doing it, now I probably need back surgery. Awesome! Maybe I can look up a few more tutorials online and see what I'm doing wrong. It was fun, though, and now I can stamp cotton candy with a face on a piece of paper! Believe it or not, this does bring me joy.

Mail art was successful. This little package is on it's way to Oregon (Eileen!!). The card is from an old library catalogue, of course, and I made a tiny journal with excerpts from my written journal. I think the entry I copied had something to do with internet piracy, being allergic to fruit salad, and my hamster escaping from her tank. The little piece of cloth I embroidered while I was watching Aqua Teen. I don't know how much more productive a person can get than that.

I'm sending off my first package and two little mail art postcards today. If anyone is interested in trading mail art/swaps, etc., leave me a message!

And now, before I go find some dinner, is a mystery for you:
WHERE DID ALL THE STYROFOAM CUPS COME FROM???? THERE IS ONLY ONE OF ME!!! Please nevermind my messy cabinet.

Ugh. I am hungry. Is Jumburrito open on Sundays? I shall go see. If it is, I will take a picture of my burrito and post it here.

Not even a GLANCE over my shoulder for Summer....

Finally. I know, in three days, it will be humid and 115 degrees, but yesterday, it was cool. Today, it is cool. I can't even see the sun. I don't care. I have had enough sun to last me a lifetime. This reinforces my secret dream, which is to throw some stuff in a bag and go live in the woods in Washington or Oregon somewhere in a little cabin. I really can't think of anything I like about summer. I'm not even crazy about traveling during that time. It's hot here, but it's arid, so anytime I go even four or five hours outside of West Texas, it gets unbearably humid and I feel like I'm in the Congo. No sun, lots of clouds, and the smell of fireplaces burning...(because West Texans use any excuse to light the fireplace)...it's my kind of day.
...there are certain details about my house that I really love, because they illustrate who I am. This little mug, for example, was purchased at Anthropologie in Philadelphia in the dead of Winter. I love the shape and the lines - it's unconventional, but only because it's not modern-looking. The monogram also echoes a Victorian/days-gone-by design that I find charming. Finally, you will notice two little tubes poking out of it - this is the mug which hangs on my bench/coat rack where I keep my oboe reeds. I still play after all this time, even though I have somewhat lost my touch, I love playing, and I still remember some of my solos from Solo & Ensemble competitions I had in high school.

.....and now, I will turn back to my mail art, and my lino cutting (just got a new Speedball lino cutter today) and see if I can make some cool stamps.

Cheers! Wear a jacket!

Mail Art...also feat. My Apartment

Well, I uploaded the photos in the wrong order, and I'm too lazy to go back and change it, so I suppose the title of this post should be "My Apartment...also feat. Mail Art." Anyway, above, we have a picture of a tiny corner in my kitchen...a bowl (in my favorite color) holding bag clips from IKEA, and a Cookie Monster cereal bowl that was mine when I was little. There is also a
little ticket dispenser I found the other day that I thought was cute. Moving on....
A wall, also in my kitchen. I collect vintage kitchen linens, aprons, and toy dishes, some of which I have on a little shelf. They're cute and useless, but I like them.
THIS is the mail art I was talking about. The other day, I picked up a book at B&N called "Good Mail Day", which was this awesome feature on Mail Art, which is basically any kind of art, particularly art that uses recycled materials and old junk mail to create NEW mail, which you then send off and when someone GETS your art, they mail you some of THEIR art back, and it's kind of like a pen/art pal thing. The picture above is the backside, and the one below is the front.
Some stuff was vintage - an old science book, school supply packaging, a French science primer, and retired post office rubber stamps. I think the rest of it is just out of a magazine, some random office supplies I had lying around, and a Chinese newspaper I picked up at the market the last time I was in Austin. I was excited because that little post card took me about sixty seconds to make and I'm already working on more. It's surprising that random collage seems to be the medium that I enjoy the most. Just because you're creative doesn't mean you can paint. I can draw, but I'm awful at painting....now, I know I am even better at junk collage. Here are the steps:

1. Throw a bunch of random paper junk into a basket.
2. Find a 4.5x6 card, or make one.
3. Close your eyes and grab something out of the basket.
4. Get a glue stick and smear glue on the back (screw gel medium).
5. Stick the junk on the card.
6. Repeat until card is full or you feel relatively satisfied.
7. Take vintage (or new or whatever) rubber stamps and stamp randomly on the card
8. Draw a little bit, like a funny monster or something, on the card.
9. Place address labels and write addresses legibly.
10. Adhere postage.
11. Easy Peasy.
    

And here is my smirky face, happy that I have made art out of junk, and knowing that this means I now have a perfectly legitimate excuse to 1. keep junk, 2. go through other people's junk.

Life rules. :)

MUMS or... A Ridiculous Tradition I Love

When I started Junior High, my mom started making my mums, primarily because I liked hers better than the ones that were in the flower shops. Back then, there were no limits, and the gaudier and bigger it was, the better it was. I remember starting out with the 2 flower mum, then 3....one year I had one that had five or six flowers and actually hooked over my shoulder. It was ridiculous and I loved it. I also had one that had a teddy bear in the middle, dressed in the FLAG UNIFORMS we had that year, and it was holding a little replica of a flag we were using in our halftime show. Wow.

Anyway, I enjoy making them too, and over the last few years I've taken to making mums for friends who are having babies...and for homecoming, I make little corsages or garters or shorter mums....the pictures above are from my table this evening. I actually broke all the West Texas High School Football Rivalry rules and make a little mum for my friend Michelle's daughter. Michelle is from Pecos (Buuhhhhh...); she and I graduated the same year. This year, my team, The Loboes, are playing her team, The Eagles, for homecoming, and so Michelle and her Pecos family are going to wear their own ugly school colors and sit on our side of the stadium. As a peace offering, I made her daughter a little hybrid mum. If she doesn't wear it, I am going to shoe polish their car. GREEN. I think I'm going to make myself a black and green one this year.

In other news, I found out yesterday that my mom has thyroid cancer. She's already had one tumor and lobe removed, and next week, they'll take the other lobe out. Luckily, she has follicular carcinoma, so the prognosis is relatively good. This particular cancer does not metastisize very quickly, nor does it tend to spread into the vascular system if it is detected and removed. It's strange to think that if that drunk driver hadn't hit her two months ago, she never would have gone to the doctor for an x-ray, and they never would have found the tumor. We're thankful that we know what we're up against and that she has a treatable form of cancer. If you believe in prayers, or good thoughts, karma, whatever....please send some her way. Her name is Margie and she has done everything for me.

I went to bed at two this morning, so I think I'm going to wrap things up and get ready to go that way a little earlier tonight.

Other randoms from today:

• I accidentally (of course) dropped my SEVEN HUNDRED DOLLAR CAMERA. It is ok I think.
• Glitter letters are stupidly expensive. I cannot believe that it costs that much money to manufacture them. Luckily, I am resourceful and don't need them.
• Europe is one of the best bands ever and I had NO idea they were not American. I should have known. I mean, "EUROPE". Duh.

Night. :)