"New Moon"

"You are my life now." -Edward Cullen (Twilight)

Oh no... it's happened.

The "New Moon" trailer has hit the web and I keep hittin' the replay button!

Oh, and just for the record, werewolves are so much sexier to me than vampires. (But I love Edward!) Isn't it fun to be completely infatuated with a mythical, non-existing species? I sure think so.

Somebody better pinch me... I'm going nuts waiting for it to hit theaters this November!

"The Lost Commandment"

(Image copyright inkycircus.com)

"I am tired, Beloved, of chafing my heart against the want of you, of squeezing it into little inkdrops and posting it." -Amy Lowell (The Letter)

This was the opening of my latest letter to Bryn:

"And it came to pass that the commandment of old was brought again to the knowledge of the son of Reed: thou shalt write thy mother once a week, and thy girlfriend thou shalt write once a week if thou havest time to spare.

And if thou shouldst disobey this command, thou shouldst cease to disobey this command, lest thy family shouldst dwell in confusion and longing for thy lack of comforting words about thy state of being. Amen." -1 Ashley 7:3-4

If this doesn't get him to write, I don't know what will!

"Thank Heavens for Neighbors"

"Life is adventure, not predicament." -James Broughton

...Because we all love spending Memorial Day shop-vacuuming the carpet. I woke Monday morning and went to my laundry room to put a washcloth in the hamper. Sploosh! (What the?!) I ran for my glasses, came back, and found out why my pajama bottom's cuff was wet: There were about two centimeters of water on the floor.

I was home alone, everyone else having gone to the mountains for the long weekend, and I had no idea what to do. I grabbed a bunch of towels, texted my landlord, and left for a movie with my papa.

When I came home, the water had spread. The carpet was soaked to my apartment doorway and all the way to the bathroom. The storage room was drenched (not to mention the laundry room!) I phoned my landlord this time, and he directed me to the window where I saw about a foot of water in the window-well. Cripes.

I grabbed a bowl from upstairs, rolled up my pants, and got to work. After a couple of minutes, I realized I wasn't getting anywhere. So, barefoot, I pitter-pattered across the sun-baked road and knocked on the bishop's door. He and his sons were quick to help, and eventually the neighborhood joined in. Men vacuumed, women gathered sopping towels and took them home to wash n' dry. I just sat like a useless lump on the couch and thanked as many people as I could.

(These pictures were taken after everyone had left, so the water is only a couple of inches high in the window-well and mostly removed from the floors.)

Afterward, my friends and I bought firewood at Wally World and had a roast outside. Corn, hot dogs, cookies and fruit. Mmm! A perfect way to end such an excitement-brimmed Memorial Day.

"I'm A Big Girl Now!"

(Image copyright T-Mobile)

"I'm not here, but if you'll leave your name, birthday, social security number, and bank account, I'll get back to you as soon as possible. Thanks!" -Logan Barnes

I got a new phone! Ain't it perdy? Jeanelle got this phone a couple of days ago, and I liked it so much, I wanted one to play with as well! Plus, I also wanted the new responsibility of paying for my own phone bill. Baby steps... I'll try for a car next. A really, really inexpensive car.

Also, Bryn hasn't contacted any of us for a long time. We waited a couple of weeks before Mother's Day, and have been waiting ever since... That's a long time to go with neither e-mail nor letter! Forgive me for whining, but it's hard not to pine when the man you love drops off the face of the planet.

Speaking of planets, I saw Star Trek the other day, and it was fantastic! I tried very hard to understand everything, but only half of what was on the screen actually computed in my non-Trekkie brain. One thing I remember, though: Spok rocks.

"Moved In!"

"Time doth softly, sweetly glide, when there's love at home. ...Oh, there's One who smiles on high, when there's love at home." -John Hugh McNaughton ("Love At Home")

After a couple of weeks, I've finally organized everything properly (including shoving boxes of "shelf items" [i.e. stuffed animals, trophies, etc.] in storage) and am officially MOVED IN!

Please excuse the bad photo quality. I just lifted up my computer and shot away, regardless of the basement-esque lighting.

My little bed. It's really cozy, actually. The walls are bare, but I'm in the process of collecting pretty photos and motivational plaques.

My electronic stand, keyboard, and wonderful DVD/bookcase.

I love my bathroom. :) This photo doesn't do it justice. And yes, that is a fishbowl.

Very lovely kitchen. Sam n' Co. did an excellent job with the design and construction of this house. (I helped... by gluing the POOM!)

The End. Hurray!

"Midnight E.R. Adventure"

"Given the choice between pain and nothing, I would choose pain." -William Faulkner

On May 8th, at approximately 12:30 a.m., I phoned my father to complain about some rather pressing pains in my torso section. He, being the selfless daddy he is, drove to my apartment and sat at my bedside. After looking up possible reasons why I was hurting (using my laptop,) we finally left for the hospital. What happened next was quite the experience...

The Pineapple Lady

• The receptionist who checked me in and gave me my hospital bracelet.
  
• She related to my stomachache with a story of when she got sick eating too much pineapple. She was very sweet (just like pineapple! Har har...)

The Pink Lady

• The woman who gave me an IV in my hand. She was very understanding of my fear of needles and soothed me as best she could. (She wore pink scrubs, hence my name for her.)
  
• I went into a panic attack when she punctured the skin, jerked to the side (pulling out the IV) and threw up in a little pink basin my dad was holding for me.
  
• Redid the IV in my wrist.

The M.D.

• A kindly gentleman who used his fingers to press down on my tummy and locate the main concentration of the pain (ouch.)

The CAT Man

• A middle-aged man who told me to raise my arms above my head and listen to the machine's instructions for a CT scan ("take a breath in and hold it"; "you may now breathe normally.")
  
• Administered a second CT scan upon the Radiologist's request. This one included an IV and an enema. He began with the enema first, telling me it would make me feel full, just like a Thanksgiving dinner.
  
• The enema pushed so much fluid into me, it easily became the #1 on my "What Hurt The Worst" list that night. I threw up all over the CT machine.
  
• He got me a fresh blanket (when I threw up, the enema came out and soaked me and the table) and applied the IV.
  
• By this time, I was more ready for the enema (I don't think anyone can ever be fully ready for an enema.) With the IV distracting me (it made my body feel like it was on fire,) the man was able to redo the enema and successfully take the second CT scan.

The Radiologist

• Couldn't read the first CT scan, and gave the "go" for a second one.
  
• I never actually got to meet him.

The Stats Lady

• The woman who came in my room in between tests and filed the rest of my information on the computer. (Dad had to answer her questions, as I was a little swollen and pretty "out of commission" by then.)

The Youngin'

• The girl who gave me an ultrasound.
• Dad said her name was Maegan and that she looked around my age. All I remember about her is her brown hair and glasses, and that she asked me about my AIDA shirt, which was then covered in enema fluid and ultrasound jelly.

Steve

• My favorite person at the hospital (though everybody was very sweet to me.) He had braces and was lightly sarcastic, continually joking and never taking anything too seriously. (When I was being discharged, I asked him to take out my IV, and he said he had to leave it in for 5-6 days. I didn't realize he was kidding at first.)
• He was the nurse who administered my IV medicine (something for nausea, and 12 mg [3 doses] of morphine for pain.)

We left undiagnosed with a packet of Lortab and a few sheets of paper explaining what the conditions should be if I needed to return. Since then, I've slept in my folks' cozy bed, thrown up only a few more times, and am now making my way back to a full 100%. A thousand apologies to my mother for waiting until she was out of town before getting so sick, and a million "thank you's" to my father for giving up his sleep and taking care of me, telling me jokes to take my mind off the pain, and letting me squeeze his hand when it was all just too much.

"An Analyzation"

(Image copyright Allison Vanderveen)

"Now, as ridiculous as some things may sound, there comes a time of desperation, when no one's looking, that you WILL give the ridiculous a try." -Bill Cosby

This was originally going to be a "check up" post about how my health plan is coming along. I'm feeling a little low, however, as I have been sick for a few days now.

..Current Stats..

HEALTH: Declining.

WEIGHT: Stubborn.

HAIR: Stringy.

EYES: Watery.

SKIN: Dry.

SANITY: Absent.

Well... That's not too promising. I shall pray this head-cold nips itself in the bud and dies. Yesterday. :)