I like Chihuahuas. They are always very cute. I was buddy- buddy with Matt's brother's Chihuahua Cujo over the weekend, and that was fun. Despite the paranoia of squishing him in some way.
Then of course there's Paris Hilton, who still carries fiesty Tinkerbell around.
As I'm listening to Britney Spears new album Circus, I'm wondering what happened to Bit Bit? Did he die in all the drama? Did K- Fed eat him?
The chill air has finally arrived in Phoenix!
There's something about it that carries and enriches smells. It prickles your skin and makes you wrap whatever you have on around your chest. You can wear your fur lined jacket and your chocolate brown Uggs.
Then there is the factor of your water heater breaking and you freezing through the shower and being late to your internship. (On a side note, the heater in my car does make a good blow dryer.)
The brisk air also seems to rush people along. Maybe to keep warm, but always to stress out. Over Christmas. Over the end of your last semester. over finding that job that you constantly complain about needing, but never finishing your resume. (Should have done that awhile ago.) My bad. And I did finish my resume today-- ready to go out tomorrow!. (Pretty darn good, if you ask me!)
It's programmed into me- when the air nips at my ears and nose-- I am filled with Christmas cheer and pre- finals anxiety. It will all be over in a month and a half. One month and I will hopefully be graduated from college, have had a wonderful Christmas and rung in 2009 with glee. Then I will celebrate my 23rd birthday, and by the beginning of February, be holding that first paycheck in my hand, and know that everything will definitely be okay.
Water Snakes
I never knew what they were called! I would always play with them and know they were awesome!
Everybody wants something.
Material goods. Happier love life. Fewer problems.
It's ingrained into human nature to project a better future for themselves. Whether that future happens is up to the person, and the situations they are in.
It's easy to say- I want a Coke in 5 minutes...and then taking a break from work and getting one.
It's harder for other things.
I'm at a particularly difficult part of my life for wanting things.
My boyfriend always gets to the heart of things. Last night we were having a casual conversation about happiness. I found myself listing what would make me happy.
And it was the things that would put me at ease.
1. graduating (hopefully I'll pass that communication class)
2. not owing anyone money
3. getting a good job
Reality has hit me. Hard. And I'm worried. What am I going to do? I'm tired of not having money. Having holes in my shirts and knowing I can't go get new ones. Tired of being tired every day because I'm too ambitious for my own good.
On the bright side, I'm on track to having financial peace of mind
1. I'm graduating no matter what. I'll meet with my teacher soon.
2. I can pay the minimum on my credit card
3. I can still work at the Christmas store!
Is happiness peace of mind? What will I want if I don't have to worry about money and school anymore? Will I continue to want things? Will I put pressure on my friends and family?
If now is the time for working on anything, it's time to work on being happy with what I have (or don't have), and do the best I can.
Working on it...hard.
So if you see me and I look happy and carefree on the outside--
Just remember
I'm worried on the inside...and trying not to be.
I looked forward to it all year.
The Little Gym Halloween Party!
My bf and his sister work for The Little Gym. Last year he asked me to volunteer at their annual Halloween party. I spent most of the night at the fishing game. (Throw the string over the curtain- get a prize!). Having not been around kids a lot since a started college, I ate up every moment I was with them.
Not to mention I got to see my line- backer- sized boyfriend do summersaults and play with kids.
So I volunteered myself to go to the party this year. Borrowed a geisha costume from bf's sister (complete with white foundation- whoa!), and jumped into the fun! I played mini basketball and bowling.
And I can't find a picture, but there were babies dressed up like dragons!
I hope I can go again next year!
I've come to accept that I'm falling apart. And not slowly.
Yes my friends, age is catching up with me. (Or I just took on waaay too much this semester).
I usually love getting ready for the day. I love washing my face and brushing my teeth. I love doing my hair and makeup and coordinating earrings to wear. This is how I get ready for weekend nights. And how I used to get ready in the morning.
However, all of that has changed.
I'm lucky if I pull myself out of bed in time to snap on a bra and throw my disheveled hair into a super- messy bun. Then I wear...whatever is on the top of the pile of clothes and run out the door. Wallet, phone, keys. All I need...I guess.
I feel so unprepared. And I definitely don't fit in with all the beautiful people here at ASU.
I must look like I got caught in a mouse trap.
I'll pull it together though, I'm sure. Right now all I can think about is going back to sleep....
New Flava= Herbal Tea
Jen gave me some tea months and moths ago when i had a cold. Tazo Zen. I didn't use them (I slept through the rest of the cold), but I found them in a cup last week, and figured I'd try it. I'm usually reallly jittery before bed, and this stuff calmed me down.
And warmed me all the way to my toes.
And since winter is coming, I need my toes to be warm. Everyone seems to think Arionza is boiling hot year- round. Right now it's cooled to a simmer and I've started wearing sweatshirts. How did I ever survive in San Francisco? (jk- I love you SF!). It really does get cold out here though. My Uggs are waiting impatiently in their box.
Back to the tea...
My roommate noticed the tea boxes stacking up on the counter and asked me if it was my "new thing". You could say that. I like it because I don't crave it. It soothes me and it's a pre- bedtime snack with zero calories. Not to mention it doesn't cost much.
Yesterday at work I found the tea drawer in the break room. Lemon. Vanilla. Green. Loved the green. It has anto oxidants. D' Rick made fun of me- said if I wanted to drink grass derivatives, green tea was great. I guess I like grass. I could even to that cold in the summer. I hated vanilla though.
So many left to try!
In a moment of confusion with my boyfriend, I blurted "Dude, you're not getting this!"
Awkward silence.
"Kate, don't call me dude. I'm not a dude to you. I'm your boyfriend."
I laughed, and then over- analyzed the conversation.
I figured that saying dude must come from my California roots or something. Whatever happened, I was raised saying "dude" all the time without thinking about it. When Jess and I get into our groove, we say "dude" every other sentence.
So what's the big deal about "dude"?
I could see that someone might seem stupid in some situations if they said dude.
Guys call each other dude all the time.
And I figured it out. Used in context, most of the time "dude" is used as a mode of emphasis. For example, you could say "I really like Kate's blog", or you could say "Dude, I really like Kate's blog". Which one should more exciting.
So I called him dude again. He got even more mad, and gave me the same speech (gotta love him for being consistent). He didn't buy my explanation. I think it's perfectly legit.
The previous post outlines my busy busy life. It doesn't say much...because I didn't talk about my favorite blogs!
1. Clever Girl Goes Blog (www.clevergirlgoesblog.com)- this chick is awesome! She lives a normal life and writes it so...excitingly! To Clever Girl- I hope I can blog as good as you someday! I look forward to your blog every day!
Google Blogs actually had her as a blog of note a few weeks ago!
2. Cake Wrecks- super awesome (www.cakewreck.blogspot.com)- made by a cake chef about cakes gone disastrously. Most of them are pretty funny. She also puts up the most amazing cakes. I loved the cookie monster cupcake cake and the 4 tiered Mario Brother cake.
3. Entertainment Weekly- provides great updates in many forms about the media- a must- have for me.
4. My style blogs- found most of them on elle.com and the Vogue website. I love Fabsugar!
5. and of course- my sister- in- law's blog. (sigh) I am not the best sister or sister- in- law or aunt. In fact, I've been a terrible family member and friend lately, but I hope to get better at it. In the meantime, I always love seeing pictures of my brother's family up in Utah, and my two super- cute nephews!
I have been on Blogger every day for the past three weeks. I love it! I love how you can subscribe to other people's blogs and follow them. I love that everyone has blogs nowadays. (My boyfriend says they are online diaries, but I think they are so much more!!!)
And I've been paying so much attention to other blogs that I have forgotten to write my own.
Life remains busy. I wake up in the morning and I want to go back to sleep. Then I look forward to sleeping all day and when 10pm rolls around...I stall..I'm like a little kid...I just don't want to go to sleep.
I go to school and work at ASU and the Christmas Store. At home I read and watch Boston Legal on my computer...
That's it!
More updates later!
How terribly do I wish i took my camera?
Saturday night.
Free concert.
Mesa Amphitheater
Brooke White!
In June, my roommate and I had just signed our lease and were celebrating at Sonic. As I sipped my strawberry limeade she asked if I wanted to go to the American Idols Love! tour. I hadn't watched the show, thinking it would be a repeat of past seasons. I quickly familiarized myself with scruffy Cook and Kid- Goes- Adorable Archuleta. As I walked up to the arena for the show, I had no idea what I would see.
My camera ran out of batteries. I recorded everything. One of my favorites was Brooke White, from Mesa, Arizona. She played the piano and sang with her raspy voice. Her versions of "Let it Be" and "Every Step You Take" seemed like new songs. I loved them!
And after 51 more shows, Brooke came back to Mesa for her welcome back concert. Saturday September 27, 2008 was declared "Brooke White Day". She sang "You're So Vain", and "Let it Be" again. I loved it!
Perhaps it was the fact that the opening band was on-stage for 40 mins and sucked the entire time that she was better than ever. (The band announced they had been asked to do one more song before Brooke came on. In unison, the audience groaned.)
She said to look for her CD within the year...I'm buying it.
My internship has inspired me to continue blogging. One of the many things we can do is go to literary events and write about them on the Hayden's Ferry Review blog. (check it out because it's a whole lot better than mine). So if you go to an event, it's credit for the internship.
So I figured....maybe I can get credit for life if I record what's happening....
I realized that my life is pretty eventful. And even on the boring days (and today is one of them), I have a story to tell. So if anything, this blog is here to prove that I have an amazing life.
Tune in later, it's about to get more amazing....
I'm one for cheesy movies. I love inspiring movies, and I bought one yesterday that really makes me feel good. It's "We are Marshall", about how a town, a college, and a football program heal after losing 75 team members, coaches, boosters, and leadership to a terrible airplane crash.
I'm also one who watches the special features of movies I like. One of these was a collection of interviews from famous sports coaches. One of the messages that stuck out to me was that adversity makes you stronger. Each of the coaches interviewed had their own struggles to go through, whether it was losing family members, having hard childhoods and lives, or the challenges of going to the Olympics.
I really believe this: that the trials we face in life make us stronger, tougher, wiser, more motivated, BETTER people.
I wonder if people from Australia wear UGG boots. Is it just an American fad? hmm...
I used to think UGGs were the most unsightly boots that ever were. I would see girls wearing them all over campus and tell myself that I would not get sucked into that fad. To me it was a dumb status symbol. A way to be like everyone else. That's why I never bleached my hair or bought Flojos or joined a sorority. I like being myself, and I HATE it when someone wears the same clothing as me. I never judged people for wearing UGGs, just didn't want them myself.
Them I was home in December and my best friend made me try hers on. Up in San Francisco, I am always cold. I pulled on the long chocolate brown boot and my toes warmed up like rolls in the oven. I saw that UGGs were more than a status symbol. They were comfortable and kept my feet warm!
And I just received some chocolate brown ones for my birthday. I don't plan on wearing them over my jeans, just underneath. I plan on being warm for the rest of the winter, thanks to my boots!
For the first time in my life, I have lost my voice completely. I sound pretty funny. My friends have saved my increasingly squeaky voice on their voicemails, and one of them wants to make it a ringtone. It's all in good fun. I can laugh it myself.
The problem I have is that this all could have been prevented in the first place. I went to ASU's Health Center on Friday to see if I had strep, and the doctor looked at me weird, like I was some kind of hypochondriac. I hated it. If I'm going to go into that disgusting place, I'm going to be feeling pretty nasty. He didn't even want to do a culture to make sure. he said he was 95% sure that I didn't have strep. Sooo....what about the other 5%?
So i went back today and squeaked out my problem to another doctor and she prescribed me some tame pills to take. I'm not sying I need pills to help me feel better, but holy geez! I thought doctors were supposed to improve quality of life, not look at you weird. What's all this about putting prevention beforereaction or whatever? Ugh!
But one thing is for sure...I'm a talker...so I miss my voice and I want it back!
I wish I had pictures, but Matt's birthday is today and we celerated this past weekend. His friends threw a party for him at their house. The guys played video games on his new TV and made steak. Then there was a family party on Sunday with dinner and cake. i made him a fleece blanket with football helmets on one side and black on the other side. Matt's probably having fun with his TV today
I'm glad to have the school paper back in print for the semester, not it's not because it gives me a very liberal view of current events. And Emma, if you're reading this, I'm sorry, but it's not because of your articles, although you're the best reporter I know. I get the paper every morning to do the crossword puzzle.
I'm a crossword freak. And I know I'm not the only one. Matt and i went to several stores tonight which sold video games, and I could not find the Nintendo DS New York Times crossword puzzle game at any of them. Geez!
After about three years of doing corsswords, I bought "the Complete Idiot's Duide to crossword Puzzles", just so I could find out more.
I know how my ideal morning would be spent: I would wake up about eight and make myself a bowl of fruit and cereal and sit down to a crossword. They're the best things on earth!
Girls nights don't happen as often as they used to. It was the highlight of my week when my parents would let my best friends stay overnight. This was between the ages of 8 and 17. We wound read magazines and paint our nails and giggle about boys and the mysteries that their genre of people held.
Once college hit sleepovers like that became a thing of the past. I lived with other girls, so every night could potentially be a sleepover. They never got old, I just got busy.
Sleepovers are important parts of girls lives though. They teach girls the value of girls nights. And every so often we bring them out into the light and remember how much they mean to us.
Women don't usually bring out girls nights for the highlight of their week. They usually are post- boyfriend, post- job, post- anything she considered good in her life, or pre- moving away.
Or a boy doesn't have to dump her for her to feel bad and need a girls night. In fact, she could be the one to mess things up, but still need comfort.
I've recently appreciated times with my girls who were there for me. Once Jen found out I wasn't happy she was at my bedroom door with an assortment of movies (depending on if I was in the mood for funny or romantic, or just plain stupid, or ready for deep thought to get my mind off of things), and take out thai food, and a bear.
Aubrey was there to listen to me, as she always is and which I always appreciate. Aubrey and Amy were there to go to the movies and watch a chick flick with me.
MaryAnn was there to calm me down and put things in perspective.
I'm grateful for my girls, and I hope to have many more sleepovers and movie nights and thai food nights. girl nights.
Thanks girls.
This birthday I was...well fed.
My birthday was Sunday the 13th, but it all started on Friday
First: My boss Elaine made strawberry ice cream
THEN: people from work took me to lunch at the Bamboo Club
THEN: on Saturday
My roommates took me to my favorite restaurant right now, the Macaroni Grill! You can write and draw on the paper on the table!
My roommates already know this, but I'm a klutz and I say weird stuff all the time, so I don't embarass easily. The waiter did drop the drinks all over Aubrey, which wasn't fun for her. He asked me how old I was and I told him that you don't ask questions like that. He made everybody sing happy birthday. But that didn't phase me.
Here is everyone!
from left to right: Aubrey, Braden, Jessica, Jessie, Amy, and ME!
THEN: they got me a Coldstone birthday cake (yum cookies and cream). That's become a roommate tradition of ours.
THEN: we looked at all the pics from dinner.
THEN: We went and saw Juno after. It's really good and really funny.
THEN: I was so pumped up from the day that I couldn't go to sleep until 5.
THEN: Aubrey made waffles and Matt made eggs.
THEN: Matt took me on a trip to Jerome and Sedona! We had lunch up there at the Haunted Hamburger and hung around a bit. We hiked around Sedona a little.
THEN: I went home and slept!
Mat wouldn't take a picture with me. He had a cold. I look pretty good. And it's beautiful up there!
The plans weren't final until about 9:30, but we had fun nonetheless! We took BART to San Francisco and then watched thee fireworks from Pier 39.
Here the group of us. (from left: Mat, Emily, Jessica, Shane, Me, Yo, and Justin.)
And I got to hang out with my best friends at the same time!
