It'll grow back, right?

I got my hair cut the other day. Nothing too drastic with the length. I felt like I needed a bit of a change, though, so I got my 'ol sideswept bangs back.

I would say I enjoy them about two out of ten times I look in the mirror. The other eight I do not.

As a sidenote, I walked into my sister's house last night with my glasses on and my new do, and my nephew proceeded to ask, "Who are you?" about three times.

Here's hoping they start "growing on me" a little more!

Four stars

I really enjoyed Susan Gilman's "Hypocrite in a Pouffy White Dress." It could have been due to her insightful, honest and hilarious accounts of growing up a little disillusioned. Or, it could have been because I was finally able to focus on a book without any distractions.

Either way, I highly recommend.

Next up? "Fair Game: My Life as a Spy, My Betrayal by the White House" by Valerie Plame Wilson.

Not amused

Finally!

A and I are now the proud owners of an ipod nano.

I'm sure we'll go out an get another very soon so we can each have our own...

I'm quite excited.

Til Next Time

Had a wonderful time in Disney. Unfortunately, I have already used my alotted space on flicker for the month of December, so I will post pics in the new year.

Highlights of the trip:
- It's A Small World
- Pirates ride
- Tower of Terror
- Epcot (specifically the countries)
- Cotton candy
- Rockin' Roller Coaster (although a bit on the short side)
- free XM radio on the plane
- Getting a call from M that she and C are engaged(!)
- Fantasmic at MGM
- Being with the fam

Hope you all had a wonderful holiday!!!

Congratulations M and C!

I am so excited for both of you!

Already have my speech 99% completed! :)

I can't wait for your big day!!!

Merry Christmas!

Since I'll be away from home for the next few days, I thought I'd wish my loyal blog readers a very Merry Christmas today. Have a wonderful holiday! Can't wait to see or talk to all of you soon!

Christmas at Disney

I'm not going to lie. I'm super excited to visit the happiest place on earth. Our flight leaves tomorrow morning and we don't get back until Christmas Day.

Things I'm pumped to see/do?
- Ride "It's a Small World." I know it's probably one of the oldest and least exciting rides, but I could never get enough as a little girl. I was all about the dolls.
- Ride "Pirates of the Caribbean." I hear Captain Jack now makes an appearance. I may have to ride this one several times...
- Ride the monorail.
- See Cinderella's Castle.
- Ride Space Mountain.
- Ride the Tower of Terror. We're also visiting MGM.
- Ride the Haunted Mansion ride. It's where I first held hands with my boyfriend back on my inaugural marching band trip to Disney. I know. How cool was I?!
- Ride as many rides as possible with my nephew, B.

Things I'm not looking forward to?
- Seeing a thousand "Chip and Dale" (the Chipmunks, mind you!) characters all around the park. Seriously, can a girl get a Mickey, Minnie, Goofy or Donald every now and then?

Will be sure to post many pictures upon our return!

Pleasure reading

I'm uber-excited. Exams are done. (Woohoo!) And, I purchased this book to read for pure enjoyment. No journal articles. No insanely boring chapters written by holier-than-though academic snobs just trying to impress and one-up their colleagues.

... At least until next semester begins.

My idol

I was walking behind an older woman, perhaps in her 70s, in Target this evening when something struck me as just a touch odd.

I eyeballed her from her gray-white hair down to her black three-inch stiletto heels....

Ah Hah! Mystery solved.

I hope when I'm that age I 1) have the nerve to wear (some) clothing that people say I shouldn't and 2) am healthy enough to do so.

She was definitely my idol of the night.

Wow.

Yup. That's all I can say.

Read the story here.

One down...

... And one to go.

Please excuse the lack of blogging. My tough exam is this evening.

I expect it will be directly followed by a few glasses of wine, rendering me completely and utterly useless for a good day or two.

Whatever floats your boat

I'm not sure if you can make out this photo or not.

It's a mall security cop riding around on a Segway, one of those personal transporter devices you just hop on and ride.

I wonder who would win in a high-speed chase? A Hot-Topic tweener who just stole a Slipknot wristband or this guy on his trusty steed...

Hilarious.

In case you're in need...

A and I stayed at a Sheraton this weekend for N and M's wedding.

One of my most favorite things? The complimentary toiletries display in the bathroom.

I left for the weekend with some Scope, a "tool kit," and even a sewing kit.

I felt the "shoe mitt" could stay in Ann Arbor though.

* We concluded that the shoe mitt was to help shine your shoes... However, we could be wrong.

Congratulations N and M!

Congratulations! Congratulations! Congratulations!

Everything was so beautiful!

Thank you so much for letting us be part of your day!

Woohoo! I smell good!

Holiday must-have

B2K's 2002 masterpiece Santa Hooked Me Up.

Specifically, "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer."

Click here to forever change your life.

You'll thank me later.

* Seriously, why does EVERYone feel like they have a right to record holiday music?

Coworkers, please nudge me occasionally

From the New York Times:

Bosses of a publishing firm are trying to work out why no one noticed that one of their employees had been sitting dead at his desk for five days before anyone asked if he was feeling okay. George Turklebaum, 51, who had been employed as a proof-reader at a New York firm for 30 years, had a heart attack in the open-plan office he shared with 23 other workers.

He quietly passed away on Monday, but nobody noticed until Saturday morning when an office cleaner asked why he was working during the weekend.

His boss said: "George was always the first guy in each morning and the last to leave at night, so no one found it unusual that he was in the same position all that time and didn't say anything. He was always absorbed in his work and kept much to himself."

The moral of the story: Don't work to hard. Nobody notices anyway.

Heaven in a wrapper

I've recently been introduced to JJ's #6, the vegetarian.

It's like a little bit of heaven every time I take a bite.

I never tire of JJ's.

Good news (for me!)

I just found out that ALL three of my MSU master's courses will transfer to WSU.

Can I get a woohoo?!

I will graduate with my master's degree in Dec. 2008! Only one year from now!

I plan to celebrate in the same fashion as the character above.

I enjoy Mel Brook's movies

"Blazing Saddles" was on AMC the other night with all those captions describing what really went on during filming.

I was in enthralled. It was like sensory overload. I couldn't decide whether to read the captions or watch the movie (again).

I hope they feature "Spaceballs" and "Robinhood Men in Tights" soon...

* On a side note, I'm genuinely sad that Madeline Kahn is no longer with us. She might just be my favorite actress of all time.

Man. This blog just keeps getting better.

A new feature has made its way onto Tinyblogspot. Thanks to Two Pretzels, photos now appears in the sidebar to the right compliments of Flickr.

I apologize in advance to those unsuspecting folks who didn't necessarily authorize me to post their picture online. Odds are, though, you're either family or a good friend, so you'll just have to deal.

Perhaps this will inspire me take more photos in the future...

Is it just me?

... Or is Leo looking eerily like a young Jack Nicholson these days?

Weird. When did that happen?

Procrastination

OK. This image may be a bit exaggerated. But I did feel as though I had a ton of weight on my shoulders this weekend. I don't know how many times I cursed myself out for not starting that paper until the weekend before the due date.

20 pages later and I'm spent. Not my proudest masterpiece, but it'll have to do at this point. I feel lighter already.

Can't wait until finals are done!

I'll never understand

Puffy vests make no sense to me. At all.

I appreciate my torso being warm and toasty. I really do.

But, at the same time, I also appreciate being able to feel my arms in the dead of winter.

Ri.Di.Cu.Lous.

I was in Target yesterday perusing the toy section and was absolutely horrified to see some of the dolls that little girls (and perhaps boys) are buying these days.

Exhibit A: "Glam Dolls" (whose legs are skinnier than there arms and are three times longer than actual legs should be...)

Exhibit B: "Bratz Dolls" (whose heads are GIGANTIC on top of their rail-thin, emaciated, anorexic bodies...)

Remember back when good 'ol Barbie was controversial because of her body shape? Now Barbie looks like the pleasantly plump stepchild next to the new generation of femmebots.

No wonder so many girls have body issues.

Digital photo frames

One of A's reps gave him a digital photo frame for the holidays.

I was quite excited.

To me, it's one of those things that is really cool, but that I'd never actually buy.

(By the way, that's totally me in the picture above.)

Who buys this stuff?

With Swarovski® crystal eyes and ears, our silver-plated friend does double duty as a desk adornment and a wireless optical computer mouse. Includes USB port plug-in; uses two AAA batteries (not included). Windows compatible. Ours exclusively. With Swarovski® crystal eyes and ears, our silver-plated friend does double duty as a desk adornment and a wireless optical computer mouse. Includes USB port plug-in; uses two AAA batteries (not included). Windows compatible.

This "friend" sells for $88.

If you're interested in buying, please let me know. I'll pick up a crystal or two at the local craft store and paste them onto your newly painted silver mouse for $10 dolla. (Girl's gotta make a profit...)

T-minus 5 Days

My lit review is due in five days.

I have 35 sources to review and summarize into a paper.

I'm starting to worry a wee bit as I'm lacking focus.

Romantic wedding videos

My heart just melts watching this.

(Thanks Ms. Benz!)

Happy Ninja Day!

Facts brought to you by realultimatepower.net:

1. Ninjas are mammals.
2. Ninjas fight ALL the time.
3. The purpose of the ninja is to flip out and kill people.

(Ninja is one of those words that starts getting crazy lookin' the more you look at it...)

Hallelujah

I've worked for my current employer for nearly a year now. Specifically, 349 days. In that time, I have run into construction on my commute every single day... that is until today.

No cones. No lane ending signs.

Can I get a Hallelujah?!!!

This has made my day.

Wow.

Not that I really knew much about her or liked her before, but my goodness, Kellie Pickler is not smart. I don't even know what else to say.

I can't believe her PR person let her on this show. They should be fired immediately.

The Buzz Game

A picked this little gem up at Best Buy the other day after seeing a few commercials for it on TV.

I would rank it about an 8 out of 10 on the fun-o-meter. It's fast-paced and pretty darn entertaining. And, I'm guessing it'd be even more fun with more people.

My only complaint would be that it doesn't ask quite enough questions that really make you think.

Have you tried it out yet?

Perks of working in the "D"

As I approached my Liberty after work on Friday, I noticed something wasn't quite right. The spare tire that so nicely rests on the back of the vehicle was gone. Nothing. Notta. All that remained were two little bolts on the ground that once held the tire in place.

Someone stole my tire.

It was one of those things, though, that I had to laugh about. They must have really needed it. I was glad they didn't take the whole vehicle.

Dying to attend

Good 'ol Dr. Jack Kevorkian was scheduled to speak on campus today at noon.

I was actually quite interested in attending but neglected to mark my calendar.

Darn it. Maybe there'll be a next time...

* I apologize for the over-the-top cheesy title.

Hmmm... I think I'll keep my coat on.

Ever forget to put on deodorant in the morning?

I would say I forget about once every few months.

Don't know why. Just slips my mind.

Today, I forgot.

It is a weird feeling indeed.

Looking for love?

Wow. There's definitely something for everyone out there on the Internet nowadays.

Have you heard of Purrsonals.com?

I hadn't before this morning. Apparently, it's a site "where cat lovers greet and meet!"

I don't know what else to say about this.

Saving the world one egg at a time

Word on the street is that some insanely wealthy person just purchased a porcelain egg for $18.5 million.

Makes you all warm and toasty inside, doesn't it?

I mean, what better way to show you care about the world...

Happy Birthday C!

Happy Birthday to my wonderful bro, C!

Hope you and the 'rents are having a wonderful time out there in sunny Cali.

Hope this is your best year yet!

(I can't wait to meet Alejandro!)

Love you.

A thick fog

Ever feel like you're living in a big fog?

For whatever reason, it just won't seem to lift.

I feel like I'm on something lately.

(To my knowledge, I am drug-free.)

Seriously. Can a girl get a "fog" day please?

Wonders of Wireless

I'm currently sitting in my class. Online.

This is a whole new educational experience for me. Not once at WMU did I peruse the Internet whilst in class.

As a professor, I'm pretty sure I'd hate the students who bring in laptops. Yup. I'd say only half are actually paying attention and taking notes.

In related Internet news... I'm pretty sure I'm quite addicted to being online. I. Really. Must. Show. More. Restraint....

Yes. This is a master's course.

Behold the tree.

This was a project I did in my "Advanced" Desktop Publishing course.

You could make anything you wanted as long as you used three distinct Photoshop tools.

(I was apparently feeling the holiday spirit... and wanted to leave as soon as possible.)

I cannot express to you how glad I am that I'm not paying for this course.

If I had to spend my hard-earned cash, I'd be quite upset.

I was really hoping to learn a bit.

Making you think...

Have you ever wondered just how old some of the gum is that you pass on the sidewalk? Exactly how long ago did some lazy, disrespectful joe spit it out of his mouth and onto the general walking path?

Six months? A year? Longer? Ew.

Thanks to my coworker, F, I will now always ponder this question.

Sibling love

C, I don't know how often you read this 'ol blog of mine, but I just wanted to send a big thank you.

I REALLY appreciate being able to talk to you.

Love you so much and can't wait to see you for Christmas!

Has this happened to you?

There I was. Peacefully working out in our quaint little gym at our apartment complex. Alone. Watching a chick flick on the USA Network when all of a sudden some dude comes in, completely out of nowhere, and says, "Hey, can I change the channel?"

In my head I was thinking "Are you kidding? I was here first! I know it may not be what you want to watch, but aren't there rules to this whole situation?!"

My mouth said, "Sure. No problem."

For the last half of my once blissful workout session I had to watch ESPN. Er.

Did you partake?

Did you partake in Black Friday shopping?

We passed a Best Buy around 6 p.m. on Thanksgiving evening and there were already a number of folks in line, in tents. I found this to be absolutely ridiculous. No TV, computer or any other electronic apparatus is worth that much to me.

We went to the mall for dinner. (Classy, eh?) But, I did not do any holiday shopping.

Understanding

I'm so blessed to still have three of my four grandparents in my life. At 27 years old, I know it's quite rare. I love them all so much and get a kick out of seeing them whenever I hit Mayberry.

My Grandma T., though, continues to get more senile everytime I see her. On Thanksgiving, it seemed even worse. From not hearing a word that was said to making up her own versions of stories to going on racist tirades, I found it very difficult to remain in my seat.

Frankly, it scared me. Both in the way that she's changing every day and in the way that I couldn't be more understanding. I don't want to remember feeling this way around her. She deserves more from me.

She is, after all, Granny Goodrich. :)

* She ALWAYS has lifesavers in her purse for us. ALWAYS.

Feel free to call me Martha

Although I haven't yet made it, I can tell you right now that my green bean casserole is going to be the hit of the day.

Why wouldn't it be? I plan on following the recipe on the onion can.

I know. You're jealous of my amazingly awesome culinary skills. I get that a lot.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone.

Thank Goodness for Insurance

A got in a fender bender last week with my Jeep. He was one of eight cars involved after one driver forgot to brake in heavy traffic.

Fortunately, we have car insurance. The whole rear hatch had to be replaced along with a variety of other things. The grand total for new parts and repairs came in just below $4,000.

Life lesson learned.

* As a side note, I would just like to say that I'm going to miss the little red rental car I was driving last week. I really enjoyed it.

Happy Birthday Jo!

Happy Happy Birthday Jo!

Hope your day is everything you'd hoped it to be!
I'm so pumped that you're back in Ann Arbor!
Can't wait to see you soon! (Hopefully over Christmas?)

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy (early) Thanksgiving to all of my devoted blog readers.

I am so thankful for you, my friends and family, and feel so lucky to have you in my life.


Have a wonderful day celebrating all things that make you thankful.