Teenage Dirtbag

This was a real life conversation I heard between two seniors today....

K: Why do Germans look like Americans if Germany is in Asia..Wouldn't they look Asian?
M: Germany isn't in Asia, stupid, it's in Russia.

Sometimes, I really wonder about the quality of education of our high schools.

Survival

Today marks the end of my FIRST week interning at the high school.
I can't get into it on here, but all I'm hoping to do is survive....with a grade good enough to graduate.
The past three days [during school hours] have been spent reading Water for Elephants. I finished it today during 5th period, so I had 2 periods to go with nothing to do.
I am definitely recommending this book to any and everyone who has the time to read it. I have had it sitting on my book shelf for at least 6 months, but haven't gotten around to it until now. My biggest motivation? The fact that the movie is coming out soon.
As for the book, there was just enough drama to keep me flipping the pages. And just enough sexual content to keep me from getting bored.
The book as a whole was very interesting, maybe because I used to want to be in the circus.
So check it out. It's worth it.
Plus, don't you want to know what happens in the book in case you're too distracted by Robert Pattinson's good looks to actually pay attention to what's happening in the movie?
That's what I thought.

So far, so good.

They finally let me know that I am going to be interning this semester. I still don't know where yet, but I'm just glad that it's happening.

If I can make it through the training (10 hours straight, 3 days in a row), I should be able to make it through the real thing.
We shall see.

In other news...
We finally got our crib and changing table put together.


So, how is YOUR new year coming along so far?

It's a new day...

And with a new day brings a fresh start.
I am not in a depressing mood today, thankfully.
I have, however, kept myself busy.
You know...
Running errands, paying bills, finishing season 3 of Gossip Girl [Chuck better not be dead], painting, cooking, trying to stay out of the heat.
Someone ordered a custom owl pillow from my etsy, and I had enough fabric left over to make another, so.....

Ta-Da!
$10+$2 s&h

Keep your eye out for some new paintings, coming soon.

I could really use a wish right now

I've been neglecting you guys, and I am so sorry.

All I've had time for lately is school, but I did find time every night this week to cook.
Finals will be over next week, and I'll finally be able to breathe again.
I'm interested in seeing what the summer brings, but I really hope it includes:
a job
a new tattoo
a vacation
a lot of art
a vintage swimsuit
a concert or two
a lot of quality time w. my boo & my friends


My new obsession:



Thanks, Matt.

It feels like a Monday..........

Today is summer semester registration at my school.
Seniors get first pick, so we could go register any time between 8 & 10.

I got there at 7:50....mostly because I'm paranoid I won't get in to the class I need, but also because if I'm first in line, I won't have to wait forever and a day.
This is the LAST class I have to take before I can intern. I HAVE to get in.

I was the only student there, so I felt calm and kind of excited that I'd be able to go back home and get back in bed for a while.
Until the secretary told me that I had a 'business hold' on my account.
She said that meant I owed money to the university.

I was immediately pissed, and started trying to think of something that I forgot to pay...but I couldn't come up with anything. She sent me to the business office.
When I got there, the lady was a complete 'B' word.
She told me that the hold on my account was there because I owed them $25.00 for the doctor's visit last week.
She thought she had me...only, I'm smarter than her....
I pulled out my receipt SHOWING clearly that I had paid it, and she told me there was nothing she could do about it and I needed to take it up with the health center.

So, I walk to the health center, and I'm telling the secretary my issue. She pulls up my account and tells me that I indeed paid the fee. EXACTLY!
She calls the secretary at the business office, but that 'B' won't accept it....aka I still had a hold on my account. She had to fax a copy of the receipt THAT I JUST FREAKING SHOWED THE LADY in order to have my hold cleared.

I finally went back to the art dept, thinking I would be able to register for my class. The secretary there told me that my hold was still on. She did me a huge favor and called the business office. Before she could even tell them what she needed to talk to them about, they put her on hold. After about 10 minutes, she hung up and called them again, and asked them why that had not cleared my hold yet....'Because we've been so busy'.
I would believe that....except it was a lie. Because all they do all day is help students, and guess what........there weren't any students in there except for me! [and they sure as heck weren't helping me!]
An hour and a half AFTER I got there, I was finally able to register for my class.
I just don't understand why people have to make things SO difficult for others.

"real talk"

If you:
are a teacher
have ever been a teacher
are going to school to be a teacher
have ever subbed
have kids in school
or just attended a public school
you should totally appreciate this video.
And yes, this really happened.

p.s. Happy Easter!!

The Mean Reds

One of my all time favorite movies is Breakfast at Tiffany's.
When I have a bad day, this scene always seems to pop into my head:

Holly: You know those days when you get the mean reds?
Paul: The "mean reds?" You mean, like the blues?
Holly: No. The blues are because you're getting fat or it's been raining too long. You're just sad, that's all. The mean reds are horrible. Suddenly you're afraid, and you don't know what you're afraid of. Don't you ever get that feeling?

Today was one of those days.

I was very apprehensive about starting school today. Although I am only taking 12 credit hours, I am taking senior level classes, so they aren't just going to be a breeze.
I tried to stay as positive as possible all last night & in to today.
Since I will [hopefully] have a little more free time, I decided to try to get a job.
I heard the local dry cleaners was hiring, so I psyched myself up all weekend about getting up early this morning, getting dressed nicely, and going to apply for the job.
Except, when I got there, they told me they didn't have applications, and they were just having people write their names and numbers down on a sheet of paper, and they would call them later.
UMMM...SERIOUSLY?!

Who does that?
I was immediately let down.
I decided to go home and take a nap.....
only to have Aaron call me [from school] and tell me that he lost his car keys & I needed to come pick him up/bring the spare.
Great.

My first [and only] class today was on the complete other side of campus from where I had to park. I usually wouldn't be too upset by this, except for the fact that my University loves to inconvenience it's students, and has decided to do construction in the CENTER of campus, causing the construction company to put fences up alllll through the middle. Instead of just walking across campus to get from my car to said building, I had to walk COMPLETELY around. I know, I should just shut up. I couldn't help it though. I was already in a terrible mood, and this made it worse.

I thought 'at least when I get home, I'll get some peace.'
Only to find Aaron on the phone with the VA [veterans affairs].
I've mentioned this before, but for you new comers, I'll touch on it again.

Aaron is in the National Guard. He is also enrolled in ROTC through the University.
Because of this, he not only gets paid each month when he goes to drill, but he also gets his tuition, books, and he's supposed to get a stipend every month.
Well, the University 'forgot' to send in his paperwork to the VA last semester. We found this out in October, after he was supposed to be getting paid starting in August. They told him it would take 6-8 weeks to process those papers once the school finally sent them to the VA. Which meant that Aaron wouldn't get paid until December.
When he hadn't heard anything by the second week of December, he began calling them several times a day, only to be put on hold for 30+ minutes. He never got to speak to a representative. After a few days of this, they went on Christmas Holiday.
So, why am I bringing this up now?
Because today, he finally got ahold of them.
And guess what.........
His paperwork was still sitting on someone's desk....UNPROCESSED.
They told him it would take two weeks for them to process it, and then he should be getting paid.
As happy as I am that we finally know he is going to be getting paid [aka we can finally pay off the credit card].....that is money he should have been getting for FIVE months, money that if we WERE getting, we wouldn't have had to use the credit card.]
Isn't that ridiculous? I'm so glad he has a second job, because we would NOT have made it [financially] if we left it up to the school and the VA to do their job.

Here's to hoping that tomorrow is a better day.

I will not bend, I will not break.

After going back and forth for months, I finally gave in.

I blame it on Matt.

You can find me here, now.

I don't really understand it yet, you guys may have to help me out.

Anyways. Today was dead day on campus. Yet I still had a meeting at 8:30 in the morning. How does that make sense?

It doesn't.

Not only was I kind of pissy for having to be there that early...IN THE POURING RAIN...but I also found out, that unless a miracle occurs in the next month, I won't be able to intern in the Fall, like I was supposed to.

I swear on everything that I own that the administration at my school is completely "f'ed" up. I am so tired of getting the run around when I ask questions, and finding things out LAST minute, what I should have known about 3 semesters ago. Oh well. Guess I'll just have to take a semester off.

Oh, and to add to my wonderful day...we got an email today saying that the shoes Aaron ordered last week for the wedding are out of stock. Lovely, huh?

My brain is absolutely fried. I feel like I can't even THINK straight.
So, tonight, we are having a girl's night dinner at my house, and I am cooking.
It should be a good relaxing night.

Scratch that. Should be a relaxing few hours. After the girls leave I still have to finish my lesson plans and create a purchase requisition for my final tomorrow morning.

Hope you all are having a happy hump day, despite all my complaints.

What was I thinking?

Just found out that over eating may be connected to a gene linked with alcoholism.

Thanks, Dad.

Anyways, Yesterday was the last day for student teaching for this semester,
and Today was my LAST day of classes for the semester. YA!
A small rock has been removed from my shoulders.
Now, all I have to do is....finish my curriculum document by Thursday,
finish my portfolio by Friday,
and finish my sculpture by Monday.

And then I'll be able to breathe...barely.

With only 11 days until the wedding, 10 til the rehearsal dinner, I feel like I am running around like a chicken with it's head cut off.

At this point, I'd like to think that everything has been done. But it hasn't.
We still have to:
go apply for a marriage license,
pay for the cake & photography,
pick up the tuxes,
decorate,
confirm the catering,
and prayyyyyyy for a beautiful day.

so. much. stress.

Had a bad day again........

I won't go into details, but today was not the greatest.

I am, however, done with my painting.

Just thought I would share with you all some progress pictures. Please excuse the image quality..I took them with my phone.




& just for the record...I absolutely hate 'copying' the great masters just to learn techniques.

no one is as lucky as us

Does anyone else hate group projects as much as I do?

For some reason, my teacher decided that since there are only 5 people in our methods class, that we should create a lesson plan as a group.

Well, that part was easy, I mean, way easier than everyone having to come up with one from scratch.

Except now we have to teach it.........
TOMORROW.

Only three of us, though, since there are only 3 teachers willing to let us come.

Obviously I was one of the ones chosen, or I wouldn't be freaking out right now.

Since we did sections of the lesson plan on our own, not everyone has everything. Do you see where I am going with this?
The only thing I'm missing.......the most crucial item for the teaching part, is the PowerPoint.
I want to go over and over it in my head and out loud in preparation for tomorrow....BUT
the girl who did the powerpoint said she won't be able to send it out until late tonight.
WHAT!?

We [me & one of the other girls] are freaking out. We feel totally unprepared. And our teacher is going to be sitting in MY classroom, watching ME teach, ME interact with the students, ME discipline. The other two girls will be observed by peers.

So you can see why I'm freaking out, right?

Not to mention the fact that ESPN is at my campus right now, getting ready to film a conference game...the only game I really wanted to go to. And now I can't.
Because I feel like it will cause me to fail tomorrow.

*sigh* I need a soda.

We're Back!

Aaron and I left for King's Bay, Georgia on Friday.

It took us around 6 [long, very long] hours to get there, but it was well worth it.
But at least the weather was beautiful.
Aaron bought me some cotton candy to keep me occupied.
Saturday we went to the Cheese Cake Factory. It was so delicious. We went shopping at some ritzy shopping center in Jacksonville, and then decided to head back to Cassie's.
Sunday we decided to check out the local Catfish Festival. It was pretty interesting, to say the least, but it was very hot outside!
We tried Gator on a stick [whhhat?!] and fried pickles. They were...different.
The heat wore us all out, so we headed back home to relax.
So today, we had to drive back to Troy. It didn't seem to take as long as the trip down, but it was the same amount [obviously]. I dreaded coming back to reality. But that is life. The weekends always seem to pass by all too quickly. And here we are, at the start of another week, and it's almost time for the season finale of Secret Life HA!

I hope you all have a great one.

Why does being in charge have to be so difficult?

Seriously. My school can be so retarded, at times.

Who do you go to for the answers to your questions in education? How about the people in charge of the program. So, what do you do when the PEOPLE IN CHARGE don't know?

Ya. I feel completely lost here.

Tell me how it makes sense that an education major has to wait until a year before expected internship to take the praxis, yet, applications for internship are due a year before expected internship, yet, you can't be accepted to internship until you have a passing score on the praxis??

OR, how when I got in to TEP [Teacher Education Program] I was told that I only have to obtain 150 observation hours before internship [that is a lot!!] yet this year, MY SENIOR YEAR, they are raising the amount of hours needed to be earned, and saying I may or may not have to abide by the new 'rules'. [But no one can tell me for sure.]

And, how does it make sense, that when I actually go to sign up for said observation hours, the secretary makes me leave her office because 'she has an important phone call to make' and when I go back to turn in my form, she has locked the door?

Thanks, People. You are really leaving a bad taste in my mouth!

Since it's the weekend, I decided to have a little drink. Aaron and I went to the class six [the military liquor store] while we were on post the other day and got a few things.

He got Sam Adam's Octoberfest, and I got these little ditties.
I'm not a big drinker, so when I saw these, I couldn't resist. I love margaritas, and they had all kinds of flavors. Of course, I played it safe, buying only the original flavor, and one mixed with pomegranate. But they are sooooooo good.

I encourage those of you who like margaritas to try them if you ever see them. They taste fresh, and it's cheaper than you having to buy the mix, buy the alcohol, and try to make it yourself. [They are only a little over a dollar per]

Plus, the makers of this product really had American's in mind when they made it....being that we're always on the go....HAHA
I seriously laughed out loud when I read the back of the bottle.

I wake up this morning to a message on myspace from a complete idiot ex-boyfriend saying:

Ummm, seriously? I don't have enough room on this page, or enough time in the day to sit down and tell you all the reasons why this is completely ignorant, and i would never, ever agree to this. He must have lost his mind.


Anyways, Aaron is up in Auburn hanging out with some friends that he hasn't seen since before he left for basic, and I got left behind because on the first week of school I was loaded down with way too much homework. My day will consist of lesson plans, research, and drawings of hands [lame]. But I will find time for a movie or two.

Hope you all are having a great weekend!!

A not-so wordless Wednesday

I was tagged by Mommy of Many Faces to do this picture post! It looked fun, so I thought I’d try it out.

The directions said to go to your pictures and open up the first folder, to the 10^th photo, and post it, then tell a story about it.

Here is my picture…

It’s Matt and I circa 2004. I swear I didn't have a black eye. Anyways, we were sophomores in high school, and we were at the band banquet. This was before we declared ourselves ‘best f*ing friends forever’, but we were well on our way. He just happened to be dating my ‘best friend’ at the time, they broke up, and eventually our [the girl's & mine ( i don't know if that is grammatically correct, sorry)] friendship kind of decayed. It’s funny how some friends come and go, isn’t it? But Matt and I are still bfff’s; so that’s all that matters.

I'm not going to tag anyone for this picture post, but I welcome anyone to do it!

Today was the first day of classes, and by 2 pm I already had my mind made up that I was dropping a class. Did I mention that I am taking 18 hours? Yea, and by two o’clock I was already assigned to do three lesson plans, and two time consuming projects [due by monday]. It’s the first day of school, people, and I still have 4 classes that I haven’t even been to yet, and I’m sure the teachers are sitting patiently waiting for me [& everyone else] to arrive so they can throw their load at me us, too! Well, 15 hours is enough for me, so one has got to go. Plus, I already looked at my check sheet [the thing that tells me how many classes I have left before internship] and according to that, I only have 12 hours next semester, if I keep my 18 this semester. So why not drop one this semester, and add it to next semester, so I will have an even load of 15 each time. Right? Doesn’t that make a little more sense? You all should know by now how stressed out I get. I need this :) My mind is already made up, I just have to get it approved by my adviser.

*sigh* enough complaining to you all!

Now for the good stuff. Since I burdened you with my sob story yesterday about not being able to get a new car, I am pleased to announce that we did get a new used car. And that issue will have it’s very own little post for you all to hear about, possibly tomorrow. Until then, I’ll leave you with a word of gratitude, and a doodle, [that perhaps only Matt will understand] *I just want to thank all of you who read the blog and sent nice words my way. I really believe that it helped [along with all of the praying/pleading I did with God yesterday]. *