This afternoon I finally called the insurance company to get some renter's insurance. Yes, I konw, I've been living in the apartment for 15 weeks now, but it's better to be late than never. I mentioned this to Chris over the phone this evening, and his reaction caught me off gaurd. "Renter's insurance," he said, "We don't need that." He then said something about how he was surprised that I bought insurance without asking him first, because he was certain that if he had bought something "substantial" without consulting me first, I would get mad at him. Thinking in my head that this is related to his desire to buy a Play Station 3 because he will "need it" when he moves out here, I tried to justify myself by explaining that insurance is somewhat of a necessity, and that it costs less than $20 a month. He just responded by saying that he was okay with what I had done, but he warned me that he now had the go ahead to go out and buy something that "costs $1,500." He said all of this in his sarcastic tone, so I figured he was just giving me a hard time. We continued talking about some wedding details, but in the back of my head I was thinking about the insurance and how now that I'm practically married, maybe I should have run this by him first. Was this my first lesson in learning to make joint decisions? As I mentioned something about the quote that I received from the florist today (don't even get me started on that), Chris casually responded, "Well, now I don't feel so guilty about buying a new transmission." What? A new transmission? I couldn't help but start laughing. I suddenly understood his reaction about the insurance - he was just getting me ready for what he had done. We had discussed getting him a new transmission, but never anything too serious, so I thought. Of course he denied that the insurance reaction had anything to do with the fact that he had yet to tell me about the new transmission he bought yesterday, but I'm not completely convinced. I guess this just proves that we both have something to learn about making joint decisions.
Not even married yet and already adjusting to "married life." Ha! Bring it on because I'm ready!
Wednesday, December 5, 2007
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
How to Find a Pawn Shop
When you're driving around some place you don't know so well and you think to yourself, "boy, I could really use a pawn shop right now, but I don't know where one is located," here's a fail proof plan of action (fail proof based on one personal experience):
1) As you approach a red light examine the cars stopped in the lane next to you
2) Pass-up the SUV filled with women and the fancy old-man car driven by a well-dressed man.
3) Ah! Stop next to the dirty, beat-up turquoise Ford Escort driven by a man who doesn't seem to comb his hair or shave on a daily basis.
4) Roll down your window and make a motion at the Ford Escort (Bonus if the man has to move his arm in a circular motion to roll down his window once you have his attention)
5) Say, "Hey man, do you know where I can find a pawn shop around here?"
6) Watch his eyes light up as he says, "Yea, there's one on the otherside of the freeway, not far from here."
It works.
1) As you approach a red light examine the cars stopped in the lane next to you
2) Pass-up the SUV filled with women and the fancy old-man car driven by a well-dressed man.
3) Ah! Stop next to the dirty, beat-up turquoise Ford Escort driven by a man who doesn't seem to comb his hair or shave on a daily basis.
4) Roll down your window and make a motion at the Ford Escort (Bonus if the man has to move his arm in a circular motion to roll down his window once you have his attention)
5) Say, "Hey man, do you know where I can find a pawn shop around here?"
6) Watch his eyes light up as he says, "Yea, there's one on the otherside of the freeway, not far from here."
It works.
Sunday, November 25, 2007
Target
Due to an unfortunate nationwide malfunction with the Target wedding registry, Chris and I received quite a few duplicates at my wedding shower a few weeks ago. Knowing that I didn't have gift receipts for all of the duplicates and that Target requires a receipt for returns, I knew that convincing the local Lubbock Target to correct for the nationwide mistake could require some forcefulness on my part. Preparing for a fight, Chris and I emptied the trunk of my car and made our way to the customer service counter. As it turned out, the deficient returns were the least of our problems. The problem was our lovely toaster oven, meticulously selected for its unique proportions, exquisite color, and modest size. Upon unpacking the toaster oven, we realized the little baking tray that fits perfectly inside it was bent to the point of uselessness. So we loaded it in the trunk with our extra shower curtain, two mixers, two sets of Pyrex bake ware and two sequence games.
The lady who got in line just behind us at that Target customer service counter instantly became inpatient upon hearing me explain that we did not have receipts for our huge cart of returns. She began gripping at the man working the customer service and continued to complain to other customers in a loud and offensive tone the whole time we were there. Luckily, the man behind the counter knew exactly how to do our returns, and after crediting us for the duplicate merchandise, we began to ask the man what we could do about the toaster oven and the bent tray. The grumpy lady behind us commenced to complain more as he explained our options. In an effort to streamline the process, we told the man behind the counter to just return the toaster oven and we would use the money to buy a replacement from the shelves. The whole transaction, from start to finish, took no more than five minutes. The lady behind us was just a grouch.
Leaving the customer service counter, we were glad to get away from that grouchy lady. We were not glad; however, to discover that our good taste in toaster oven preference is shared by others. The only toaster oven like the one we wanted was the display model. Not wanting to purchase the display model, we removed the tray and returned to the customer service counter. Thankfully, the grouchy lady had moved-on, presumably to complain to other people about insignificant annoyances. Not so thankfully, our friendly, competent, helpful customer service man had gone home. We explained to the new guy that we had just returned the toaster oven behind him and that we wanted to take it home with the tray from the display model. He replied by telling us that the display model was not for sale. "No," we said, "We don't want to buy the display model; we just want to take the little tray out of it." He said the display wasn't real and that we could not have it. Again, we explained that we did not want the display model; we only wanted the little tray. He said we could not have the little tray because it was not real. At this point Chris held up the tray and waved it around and said, "Yes, it is real, see, here it is." But the tangible proof was not good enough; the tray was not real, therefore we could not have it. As we returned the "fake" tray to the display model, Chris decided that we were going to go home with our toaster oven and a good baking tray. He went back to the customer service counter and told the guy that we wanted our toaster back since there was no replacement. After a serious complication about how to do this since we didn't have a receipt, which involved frustrating the new manager on duty and attempting to call the man who had helped us, we finally got our toaster oven back. Then, as I walked over to the checkout lines to pay for the rest of our stuff, Chris took our bent tray to trade it out for the "fake" one in the display model. As Chris pushed the cart out the doors with our toaster oven on top, and the new baking tray thrown haphazardly inside it, the little baking tray slid out of the box and onto the floor, as if to say, "don't take me..." Chris was determined though; he grabbed the tray and quickly exited the store not looking back.
And now that we have our toaster oven and a good tray, I'm sure the tray will work fine, even though it's "not real."
The lady who got in line just behind us at that Target customer service counter instantly became inpatient upon hearing me explain that we did not have receipts for our huge cart of returns. She began gripping at the man working the customer service and continued to complain to other customers in a loud and offensive tone the whole time we were there. Luckily, the man behind the counter knew exactly how to do our returns, and after crediting us for the duplicate merchandise, we began to ask the man what we could do about the toaster oven and the bent tray. The grumpy lady behind us commenced to complain more as he explained our options. In an effort to streamline the process, we told the man behind the counter to just return the toaster oven and we would use the money to buy a replacement from the shelves. The whole transaction, from start to finish, took no more than five minutes. The lady behind us was just a grouch.
Leaving the customer service counter, we were glad to get away from that grouchy lady. We were not glad; however, to discover that our good taste in toaster oven preference is shared by others. The only toaster oven like the one we wanted was the display model. Not wanting to purchase the display model, we removed the tray and returned to the customer service counter. Thankfully, the grouchy lady had moved-on, presumably to complain to other people about insignificant annoyances. Not so thankfully, our friendly, competent, helpful customer service man had gone home. We explained to the new guy that we had just returned the toaster oven behind him and that we wanted to take it home with the tray from the display model. He replied by telling us that the display model was not for sale. "No," we said, "We don't want to buy the display model; we just want to take the little tray out of it." He said the display wasn't real and that we could not have it. Again, we explained that we did not want the display model; we only wanted the little tray. He said we could not have the little tray because it was not real. At this point Chris held up the tray and waved it around and said, "Yes, it is real, see, here it is." But the tangible proof was not good enough; the tray was not real, therefore we could not have it. As we returned the "fake" tray to the display model, Chris decided that we were going to go home with our toaster oven and a good baking tray. He went back to the customer service counter and told the guy that we wanted our toaster back since there was no replacement. After a serious complication about how to do this since we didn't have a receipt, which involved frustrating the new manager on duty and attempting to call the man who had helped us, we finally got our toaster oven back. Then, as I walked over to the checkout lines to pay for the rest of our stuff, Chris took our bent tray to trade it out for the "fake" one in the display model. As Chris pushed the cart out the doors with our toaster oven on top, and the new baking tray thrown haphazardly inside it, the little baking tray slid out of the box and onto the floor, as if to say, "don't take me..." Chris was determined though; he grabbed the tray and quickly exited the store not looking back.
And now that we have our toaster oven and a good tray, I'm sure the tray will work fine, even though it's "not real."
Monday, September 24, 2007
Vacation from being a student
This weekend was fantabulous. I worked like a machine last week so that, come Friday, I could close my books for the weekend and hang out with Chris, who came in for a weekend visit. By Friday afternoon I was restless with anticipation; it was torture waiting for him to knock on the apartment door. Once he was here, time seemed to go by too fast. We went to a movie; I showed him around the law school; I impressed him with my ability to get around Lubbock; and I sent him home with a stomach full of home cooked meals. I can't wait until I'm married...
Tuesday, August 21, 2007
The Texas Tech 40
For those of you who don't know and those of you who don't remember, I am now a proud student at Texas Tech University in Lubbock. Now that I'm settled in and classes are in full swing, I'm finally making time to blog about daily life in Lubbock...
Today I learned first hand just what it means to attend a University notable for having the largest campus nationwide in terms of acreage; over 1,800 acres to be more precise. All of my classes are in a building that is located in the southwest corner of the campus. This afternoon I decided to walk to the student union building, which is located on the opposite corner of the campus. As I set out I was naive about the distance. I estimated ten minutes or less however after I had walked through two over-sized parking lots, crossed a major intersection and wasn't even half way there, I realized I had underestimated just how far I had to go. Upon entering the student union building, I realized I would need energy to make it back. I bought some water and a snack in preparation for the return trip. All in all, it took 40 minutes walking at a quick pace to get to the student Union building and back. This wouldn't have been so bad had it not been the middle of august, 4 o'clock in the afternoon and had I worn something other than a black t-shirt. Next time I think I'll just drive. For now though, I'm thankful that the school uses real air conditioners and not those wanna-be swamp coolers because after my journey, I was sweating just as much as my bottle of water.
Today I learned first hand just what it means to attend a University notable for having the largest campus nationwide in terms of acreage; over 1,800 acres to be more precise. All of my classes are in a building that is located in the southwest corner of the campus. This afternoon I decided to walk to the student union building, which is located on the opposite corner of the campus. As I set out I was naive about the distance. I estimated ten minutes or less however after I had walked through two over-sized parking lots, crossed a major intersection and wasn't even half way there, I realized I had underestimated just how far I had to go. Upon entering the student union building, I realized I would need energy to make it back. I bought some water and a snack in preparation for the return trip. All in all, it took 40 minutes walking at a quick pace to get to the student Union building and back. This wouldn't have been so bad had it not been the middle of august, 4 o'clock in the afternoon and had I worn something other than a black t-shirt. Next time I think I'll just drive. For now though, I'm thankful that the school uses real air conditioners and not those wanna-be swamp coolers because after my journey, I was sweating just as much as my bottle of water.
Saturday, June 30, 2007
He's not so sneaky
This past week Chris and I went on a little road trip. On the way home we stopped at a gas station to use the bathroom and get a snack - Chris specifically requested donuts. While I was "taking forever" in the bathroom, Chris' impatience got the best of him. He bought a package of those little, white, sugar coated donuts and ate half the package while he was still waiting for me. Upon seeing that only three donuts were left, he decided to eat the last three really fast before I came out. As I walked out to the car he looked at me coolly, as if to say, "I've just been waiting for you and I certainly have not been eating donuts." Unfortunately he forgot how messy those little white donuts can be. His white, sugar coated grin gave it all away. I couldn't help but laugh as I said, "so, did you have some donuts?"
Nice try Chris.
Nice try Chris.
Monday, June 18, 2007
Proposals and Such
This is such a monumental occasion in one's life that I am for once at a loss for words, or rather there are so many words that I don't know where to start. Let me just say that as I type this blog I frequently find myself glancing down at my hand in excitement. No, I'm not excited about that nasty curling iron burn that finally healed. I'm excited about what Chris gave me this past Saturday night.
After our flight from Puerto Vallarta landed, Chris, Heather and I headed over to Enterprise rental to get a car. Chris wanted to cash in on his free luxury car rental. As he took the keys for the fancy old-man Volvo from the rental worker, I couldn't help but be a little disappointed that he passed up the powder blue, convertible bug. Chris however had other plans in mind that I was completely unaware of. As it turned out, the weekend was pretty rainy so the convertible would have gone to waste in the end. Saturday morning we went to church in Arlington to support Heather as she preached about women's ordination in the Seventh-Day Adventist Church. It was a good sermon and it was looking like an ordinary Sabbath. That afternoon we hung out at Chris's house, looking at our pictures from Mexico. We had no plans for the evening. As we sat and debated what to do, Chris's brother came in the room to tell us he was leaving. Upon asking him where he was going, he said that he was going to hang out with some friends. I asked him who and he just said, "oh, some friends." I immediately thought of the empty house he was house sitting and his absent girl friend but didn't say anything. Left to ourselves, Chris suggested that we take the fancy old-man car for a drive, just to enjoy having a 40K dollar car for the evening. As we got ready to go, he was so busy deciding what to wear and getting some music that he forgot to gel his hair. As we backed out the driveway I looked at his puffy head and said, "You're not going to gel your hair," at which point he exclaimed, "Oh, I forgot!" FYI - Chris is more particular about his hair than some women I know. Once the gel is set, no one is to touch it for fear it might get puffy. And in the three and a half years we've been dating I can't recall a single instance in which he left the house without gel or a hat. So as he exclaimed, "Oh, I forgot," I couldn't help but udder something about his mind being preoccupied. As we drove toward Fort Worth and then toward Arlington, Chris kept reading new text messages and sending what looked like responses, all the while saying nothing about their content. He did however comment on how nice the evening turned out and how happy he was that it stopped raining. After ignoring his preoccupation with his phone as long as I could, I finally asked him who kept sending him messages. He calmly replied that George was sending him some dirty jokes. They must not have been very funny jokes, because not one of them made him laugh, smile or want to share it with me. And then we pulled up to a very familiar place - a place of significance for the two of us. As Chris turned off the car in the parking lot by Lake Arlington, I tried to act cool and unsuspecting, however my emotions got the best of me as we approached an empty blanket with some cushions, roses, lit candles and rose petals scattered about. As I turned away to keep myself from crying, I caught a quick a glance at the open ring box in the middle. And the rest is between Chris and I. All you need to know is that as I sat on one of the cushions he knelt before me and asked the monumental question, and of course I said yes. It all made sense - Jesse's secretiveness about his Saturday night activities, the lack of hair gel, the tex messages and even Chris' insistance on getting his free fancy car rental for this particular weekend. An hour later as we gathered everything together to leave, I couldn't help but jokingly thank him for not proposing earlier that morning at the Filipino church.
After our flight from Puerto Vallarta landed, Chris, Heather and I headed over to Enterprise rental to get a car. Chris wanted to cash in on his free luxury car rental. As he took the keys for the fancy old-man Volvo from the rental worker, I couldn't help but be a little disappointed that he passed up the powder blue, convertible bug. Chris however had other plans in mind that I was completely unaware of. As it turned out, the weekend was pretty rainy so the convertible would have gone to waste in the end. Saturday morning we went to church in Arlington to support Heather as she preached about women's ordination in the Seventh-Day Adventist Church. It was a good sermon and it was looking like an ordinary Sabbath. That afternoon we hung out at Chris's house, looking at our pictures from Mexico. We had no plans for the evening. As we sat and debated what to do, Chris's brother came in the room to tell us he was leaving. Upon asking him where he was going, he said that he was going to hang out with some friends. I asked him who and he just said, "oh, some friends." I immediately thought of the empty house he was house sitting and his absent girl friend but didn't say anything. Left to ourselves, Chris suggested that we take the fancy old-man car for a drive, just to enjoy having a 40K dollar car for the evening. As we got ready to go, he was so busy deciding what to wear and getting some music that he forgot to gel his hair. As we backed out the driveway I looked at his puffy head and said, "You're not going to gel your hair," at which point he exclaimed, "Oh, I forgot!" FYI - Chris is more particular about his hair than some women I know. Once the gel is set, no one is to touch it for fear it might get puffy. And in the three and a half years we've been dating I can't recall a single instance in which he left the house without gel or a hat. So as he exclaimed, "Oh, I forgot," I couldn't help but udder something about his mind being preoccupied. As we drove toward Fort Worth and then toward Arlington, Chris kept reading new text messages and sending what looked like responses, all the while saying nothing about their content. He did however comment on how nice the evening turned out and how happy he was that it stopped raining. After ignoring his preoccupation with his phone as long as I could, I finally asked him who kept sending him messages. He calmly replied that George was sending him some dirty jokes. They must not have been very funny jokes, because not one of them made him laugh, smile or want to share it with me. And then we pulled up to a very familiar place - a place of significance for the two of us. As Chris turned off the car in the parking lot by Lake Arlington, I tried to act cool and unsuspecting, however my emotions got the best of me as we approached an empty blanket with some cushions, roses, lit candles and rose petals scattered about. As I turned away to keep myself from crying, I caught a quick a glance at the open ring box in the middle. And the rest is between Chris and I. All you need to know is that as I sat on one of the cushions he knelt before me and asked the monumental question, and of course I said yes. It all made sense - Jesse's secretiveness about his Saturday night activities, the lack of hair gel, the tex messages and even Chris' insistance on getting his free fancy car rental for this particular weekend. An hour later as we gathered everything together to leave, I couldn't help but jokingly thank him for not proposing earlier that morning at the Filipino church.
Friday, June 15, 2007
.JPG)
.JPG)
Puerto Vallarta
The past few days have been full of activity. I left for Puerto Vallarta on Monday, June 11 for Ashley & Freddie's wedding. After sitting in traffic, standing in a long check-in line at the airport and rushing through security, we made it to the plane minutes before the scheduled departure time, only to see that the Ashley and her family were lagging behind us. As we sat there anxiously watching the front of the plane for the bride to round the corner, I thought to myself, "what a story we would have if everyone but the bride made it to the wedding." But alas, Ashley and her family made it with a couple of minutes to spare. And we were off to Mexico for a week of vacation!
In total there were over twenty people in the wedding group. We had a lot of fun crossing paths at the resort and eating dinner together every night. The ocean temperature was perfect and the resort was beautiful. The wedding was picture perfect. We spent plenty of time on the beach, swimming and playing in the sand. One day we went into town and explored a little bit of "real" Puerto Vallarta, complete with a roller-coaster bus ride through the narrow and winding city streets. We also took a small excursion up into the Sierra Madre Mountains to enjoy the scenery of the port below via zip lines. What a rush that was - a sweaty, bug filled, fun and exciting rush. I celebrated my 25th birthday at a Brazilian restaurant. As I'm not a huge fan of meat in large quantities, my favorite part had to be the fire show and of course, my surprise birthday cake and birthday song. The night before the wedding all the girls and ladies gathered in Ashley's room to do our nails and such - and of course there was some giggling and silly antics. It was the perfect way to spend the evening. It was a great vacation and as I packed my bag Thursday night, I couldn't help but wish we had a couple more days to enjoy each other. Of course, I didn't know what was waiting for me at home...had I known I may have been more eager to board the plane for Texas Friday afternoon....
In total there were over twenty people in the wedding group. We had a lot of fun crossing paths at the resort and eating dinner together every night. The ocean temperature was perfect and the resort was beautiful. The wedding was picture perfect. We spent plenty of time on the beach, swimming and playing in the sand. One day we went into town and explored a little bit of "real" Puerto Vallarta, complete with a roller-coaster bus ride through the narrow and winding city streets. We also took a small excursion up into the Sierra Madre Mountains to enjoy the scenery of the port below via zip lines. What a rush that was - a sweaty, bug filled, fun and exciting rush. I celebrated my 25th birthday at a Brazilian restaurant. As I'm not a huge fan of meat in large quantities, my favorite part had to be the fire show and of course, my surprise birthday cake and birthday song. The night before the wedding all the girls and ladies gathered in Ashley's room to do our nails and such - and of course there was some giggling and silly antics. It was the perfect way to spend the evening. It was a great vacation and as I packed my bag Thursday night, I couldn't help but wish we had a couple more days to enjoy each other. Of course, I didn't know what was waiting for me at home...had I known I may have been more eager to board the plane for Texas Friday afternoon....
Monday, May 14, 2007
Wednesday, May 9, 2007
Sand and Sun
This past weekend was absolutely lovely. Late Friday afternoon Chris and I decided we would drive down to Surfside to meet up with some friends who were already down there. It was nice to escape the usual circus of errands and places to be that usually fills the weekend.
The plan was to camp on the beach; however it was just too windy and too sandy for our comfort. Being that we're no longer the spring chickens we used to be, our bodies were tired from the 5 hour drive to the coast followed by another 5 hours spent splashing around on the beach. The thought of going to bed without a shower on the hard ground inside a sandy sleeping bag was not appealing. As soon as we made the decision to go a hotel for the night, I began to fantasize about the warm shower and the clean sheets awaiting me. I was anxiously looking forward to a blissful night of peaceful slumber. The high school kids in Surfside were not however, looking forward to a blissful night of peaceful slumber. We saw them earlier that night running around in their gowns and tuxedos at the local civic center. It was prom night in Surfside and the after-prom festivities began around 1:37 am. I know this exact time because this is when I was wakened from my blissful slumber to the sound of laughter, doors slamming and walls rattling. After two calls to the front desk, a quick visit from a police officer and 40 minutes of lying in bed trying to get back to sleep it looked like they were going to party all night. I could hear them on the balcony and I couldn't just lie in bed and take it anymore. I jumped out of my bed, exclaiming to Chris that they were "on the balcony." I walked over to the window and pulled the curtain back just far enough to see the cluster of people outside. Without any hesitation I began knocking on the glass as hard as I could. It was a frustrated attempt to get their attention. One guy slowly turned around and I can only laugh as I imagine what he saw. There I was – half awake, half asleep, with puffy eyes and crazy hair that had dried as I slept on it. Most of my body was hidden by the darkness of the room but my face was illuminated by the lights that shone in on me from the balcony outside. As I made unflinching eye contact with this kid I gave him "the look;" the look I give in moments of extreme agitation and anger; the one that Chris swears by. Then I swiftly rose by right hand and made a swiping motion across my neck, as if to say, "Cut it out now." The whole time I didn't move my lips nor did I dart my eyes away from his. I imagine I looked as crazy as I was feeling. Thankfully it was quiet about 10 minutes later and we slept blissfully and peacefully the rest of the night.
Upon arriving home late Sunday night I learned that my mom thought Chris and I had run away to get married. I guess she felt the need to confess this to me after seeing that I had come home alone and spouseless. Hmmm….I didn't really know what to say to her except that she's crazy. I guess I come by it honestly.
The plan was to camp on the beach; however it was just too windy and too sandy for our comfort. Being that we're no longer the spring chickens we used to be, our bodies were tired from the 5 hour drive to the coast followed by another 5 hours spent splashing around on the beach. The thought of going to bed without a shower on the hard ground inside a sandy sleeping bag was not appealing. As soon as we made the decision to go a hotel for the night, I began to fantasize about the warm shower and the clean sheets awaiting me. I was anxiously looking forward to a blissful night of peaceful slumber. The high school kids in Surfside were not however, looking forward to a blissful night of peaceful slumber. We saw them earlier that night running around in their gowns and tuxedos at the local civic center. It was prom night in Surfside and the after-prom festivities began around 1:37 am. I know this exact time because this is when I was wakened from my blissful slumber to the sound of laughter, doors slamming and walls rattling. After two calls to the front desk, a quick visit from a police officer and 40 minutes of lying in bed trying to get back to sleep it looked like they were going to party all night. I could hear them on the balcony and I couldn't just lie in bed and take it anymore. I jumped out of my bed, exclaiming to Chris that they were "on the balcony." I walked over to the window and pulled the curtain back just far enough to see the cluster of people outside. Without any hesitation I began knocking on the glass as hard as I could. It was a frustrated attempt to get their attention. One guy slowly turned around and I can only laugh as I imagine what he saw. There I was – half awake, half asleep, with puffy eyes and crazy hair that had dried as I slept on it. Most of my body was hidden by the darkness of the room but my face was illuminated by the lights that shone in on me from the balcony outside. As I made unflinching eye contact with this kid I gave him "the look;" the look I give in moments of extreme agitation and anger; the one that Chris swears by. Then I swiftly rose by right hand and made a swiping motion across my neck, as if to say, "Cut it out now." The whole time I didn't move my lips nor did I dart my eyes away from his. I imagine I looked as crazy as I was feeling. Thankfully it was quiet about 10 minutes later and we slept blissfully and peacefully the rest of the night.
Upon arriving home late Sunday night I learned that my mom thought Chris and I had run away to get married. I guess she felt the need to confess this to me after seeing that I had come home alone and spouseless. Hmmm….I didn't really know what to say to her except that she's crazy. I guess I come by it honestly.
Monday, April 9, 2007
Lay Activities
Yesterday afternoon I took a delicious nap. I slept for almost two hours and when I woke up I felt great, until I realized I had been sleeping on one of the Butterfinger eggs that the Easter Bunny gave me. Body heat plus chocolate equals a big giant mess. Who knew that those little eggs could spread out so much when melted....yuck!
Sunday, March 18, 2007
He asked and I said, "What?"
You know how sometimes girls jump to conclusions even though it may not be the most logical conclusion considering the circumstances? I had one of those moments this weekend.
Yesterday I went to a small church in Arlington. A friend was preaching and a few of my friends went to support him. The church was real small. The room where they were holding the church service was set up so that the main entrance was at the front of the room, just to the left of the main stage area. About half way through the sermon I realized that I was going to need a bathroom soon. Not wanting to distract attention by using the poorly placed entrance, I tried to "hold it." After "holding it" as long as I could I finally gave in and I tried to sneak out as quietly as possible. When I came back I planned to sneak in as inconspicuously as I had exited however as soon as I opened the door I was greeted by my friend who was preaching, who immediately said to me, "Chris has something he wants to give you." As I walked around the small partition between the door and the main stage area, I saw Chris standing on the other side of the room with his hands behind his back, intently looking in my direction. Hmm....this is the moment where I jumped to a conclusion that really made no sense considering the circumstances. Let's review the facts: 1) we were at church, 2) the church service was obviously still in progress, and 3) we were visitors who knew few people there. Despite all of these circumstances, I thought that this was my moment that all girls dream about, or so they say, and all I could think was, "this is not the appropriate place for this," and "this is not the proposal story I want to tell everyone for the next six months." As I stood there looking utterly confused and I suppose somewhat terrified, I heard one of my friends shout out something about how this was part of the sermon. I guess my face betrayed what I was trying to hide inside. Still bewildered I walked toward Chris and accepted his gift - a dead rose. Even more confused than before all I could say was, "What, a dead rose?" As it turned out, the giving of a dead rose was part of an illustration in the sermon and I just happened to go to the bathroom at just the right moment. Chris was oblivious to everything and didn't even realize what all the girls had picked-up on until after the sermon was over, although he now knows that a proposal made during the middle of church in front of a bunch of strangers is not a good idea. As it turned out, he knew that already and was surprised to find out that I would even think that he would put that little thought into it. Oh, what fun it is to date and go through those awkward little moments where your innermost hopes are uncomfortably displayed for a small group of friends and a bunch of strangers. I must admit however, that I have never seen a prettier dead rose.
Yesterday I went to a small church in Arlington. A friend was preaching and a few of my friends went to support him. The church was real small. The room where they were holding the church service was set up so that the main entrance was at the front of the room, just to the left of the main stage area. About half way through the sermon I realized that I was going to need a bathroom soon. Not wanting to distract attention by using the poorly placed entrance, I tried to "hold it." After "holding it" as long as I could I finally gave in and I tried to sneak out as quietly as possible. When I came back I planned to sneak in as inconspicuously as I had exited however as soon as I opened the door I was greeted by my friend who was preaching, who immediately said to me, "Chris has something he wants to give you." As I walked around the small partition between the door and the main stage area, I saw Chris standing on the other side of the room with his hands behind his back, intently looking in my direction. Hmm....this is the moment where I jumped to a conclusion that really made no sense considering the circumstances. Let's review the facts: 1) we were at church, 2) the church service was obviously still in progress, and 3) we were visitors who knew few people there. Despite all of these circumstances, I thought that this was my moment that all girls dream about, or so they say, and all I could think was, "this is not the appropriate place for this," and "this is not the proposal story I want to tell everyone for the next six months." As I stood there looking utterly confused and I suppose somewhat terrified, I heard one of my friends shout out something about how this was part of the sermon. I guess my face betrayed what I was trying to hide inside. Still bewildered I walked toward Chris and accepted his gift - a dead rose. Even more confused than before all I could say was, "What, a dead rose?" As it turned out, the giving of a dead rose was part of an illustration in the sermon and I just happened to go to the bathroom at just the right moment. Chris was oblivious to everything and didn't even realize what all the girls had picked-up on until after the sermon was over, although he now knows that a proposal made during the middle of church in front of a bunch of strangers is not a good idea. As it turned out, he knew that already and was surprised to find out that I would even think that he would put that little thought into it. Oh, what fun it is to date and go through those awkward little moments where your innermost hopes are uncomfortably displayed for a small group of friends and a bunch of strangers. I must admit however, that I have never seen a prettier dead rose.
Friday, January 26, 2007
Wal-Mart
Yesterday I went to Wal-Mart to buy gas and had another one of those experiences that made me feel like I'm living in the future. It was kind of like the feeling I got the first time I saw one of those billboards in the mall that periodically changes advertisements. I know I saw that in a futuristic movie 15 years ago, only the movie version was much more impressive than the mall version, which is nothing more than a continuous roll of poster paper attached to rollers and a motor. Only slightly more impressive are people movers. A couple of summers ago I discovered these flat escalators that effortlessly move people along long corridors in airports or subway stations. People movers totally look like something from an outdated futuristic movie. Ironically, the mechanics of these people movers are strikingly kin to the futuristic changing billboard…
But back to my trip to Wal-Mart. This was not the first time I had a strange futuristic feeling while at America's big-box store. I can recall one occasion that I was actually reminded of the book 1984 as I stood in line to check-out. My extreme frugality however keeps me coming back despite this unflattering comparison. Last night I learned that my local Wal-Mart gas station has officially moved into the new millennium. Gone are the boring gas pumps designed for the sole purpose of pumping gas. Those outdate models have been upgraded to an attention grabbing entertainment center. The pump was plastered in advertisements. There was even an advertisement attached to the rubber hose that connects the nozzle to the pump. Attached to the left side of the pump was a small electronic vending machine. The tiny screen displayed different gasoline upgrade options that could be purchased by simply pushing one of the colorful buttons to left. I was so distracted by all of the busy ads placed conveniently at eye level that I almost missed the T.V. above the pump. Wal-Mart may be accused of skimping out on employee benefits but they cannot be accused of skimping out when it comes to entertaining their customers while pumping gas. As I stood there watching the local news I couldn't help but think that the only thing that would complete this experience was a news story about the high price of gas, or maybe an advertisement for a fuel efficient car. Now that I think of it, maybe the T.V. was a blessing in disguise. For a split second, as I watched a boy fall off a diving board during an advertisement for the next episode of America's Funniest Home Videos, I forgot that the gas pump in front of me was eating away at what little money I have in my bank account.
But back to my trip to Wal-Mart. This was not the first time I had a strange futuristic feeling while at America's big-box store. I can recall one occasion that I was actually reminded of the book 1984 as I stood in line to check-out. My extreme frugality however keeps me coming back despite this unflattering comparison. Last night I learned that my local Wal-Mart gas station has officially moved into the new millennium. Gone are the boring gas pumps designed for the sole purpose of pumping gas. Those outdate models have been upgraded to an attention grabbing entertainment center. The pump was plastered in advertisements. There was even an advertisement attached to the rubber hose that connects the nozzle to the pump. Attached to the left side of the pump was a small electronic vending machine. The tiny screen displayed different gasoline upgrade options that could be purchased by simply pushing one of the colorful buttons to left. I was so distracted by all of the busy ads placed conveniently at eye level that I almost missed the T.V. above the pump. Wal-Mart may be accused of skimping out on employee benefits but they cannot be accused of skimping out when it comes to entertaining their customers while pumping gas. As I stood there watching the local news I couldn't help but think that the only thing that would complete this experience was a news story about the high price of gas, or maybe an advertisement for a fuel efficient car. Now that I think of it, maybe the T.V. was a blessing in disguise. For a split second, as I watched a boy fall off a diving board during an advertisement for the next episode of America's Funniest Home Videos, I forgot that the gas pump in front of me was eating away at what little money I have in my bank account.
Tuesday, January 16, 2007
Night at the Moview
A couple of weeks ago I went to see Night at the Museum. As I sat in the theater waiting for the movie to start I gave into the tempting advertisements for the concession stand. The concession stand line was really long and I almost went back to my seat, not willing to stand in such a long line, but my craving for Raisenettes was too much to ignore. I got in line behind a man with 7 kids; 5 girls and 2 boys. The five girls looked like they were 8 or 9 years old and the two boys didn't look much younger. The man was asking each of the kids what kind of Icee they wanted and trying to keep a mental tab of how many "brown" Icees and how many "red" icees he needed in all. Each time he finished asking however, he always had more or less than seven total. I observed the problem right away. The kids kept moving around and changing places so that by the time he got to the end of the group, he had either missed someone or counted someone twice. The situation was further aggravated by the boy at the end who never knew what he wanted, and kept asking for nachos instead, which apparently was not an option. At one point the man tried to make the kids stand in a line, however the girls were distracted when another group of girls about the same age walked by dressed like those trashy looking Bratz Dolls. The five girls in front of me quickly broke out of the line and formed a huddle where they commenced to say things like, "Did you see what they were wearing?" or "Can you believe they get to wear that much make-up?" Noticing the natrual male-female separation, the man decided to take two seperate talleys. He appionted one girl to figure out what all the other girls wanted. It took the girls a while to decide, mainly because they were still gossiping about the other slutty looking girls (and they did look slutty). The man kept having to redirect their attention to the Icees. As this was going on, one of the little boys was running around the man asking him if he could be in charge of what the boys wanted. Finally the girls decided on 2 red icees and three brown icees and boys gave their order, just in time for the man's turn at the counter. Clearly proud of his accomplishment, he stepped up to the counter and proceeded to ask for 3 brown icees and 4 red icees, however before he could even finish his sentence the guy behind the counter cut him off, telling him taht the Icee machine was broken. The man didn't say anything. He turned and walked away with all the kids trailing behind him asking why they didn't get any icees. I couldn't help but laugh. I hope that man learned that next time he takes 7 kids to the movies he should just get them all the same thing and forget about asking each one what they want.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)