A note about the sky...

The sky is endless and I absolutely love to look at it.

I wish I could be that kid again that had both the time and the carefree ability to stare at the sky; to lie down on the grass and just stare.

Nowadays, my thoughts are full of things about LIFE: job, bills, searching for a career, money, needs, and then, just LIFE. Nothing like it used to be when I was a kid and dreaming of all my stories and what I wanted to be when I grew up and other things of that caliber.

The sky in the morning is my favorite picture. Everything is waking up and the hills over by Milpitas are filled with a misty color. I remember I was sitting in the yard at work the other day and staring at those mountain. It made me truly enjoy going to work at 6:30 am for once, which is slightly rare and hard to do.

The sky, though, makes me feel small for sure. Very small in the giant scheme of things.

Maybe that's why I was able to stare at the sky so long as a little kid. I wasn't afraid then, because my world was still so full of possibilities. I wasn't afraid to look at all my worries and work and realize that they would mean nothing when compared to the sky; that, in reality, what I did, what I struggled with, what I aimed for, was so small in comparison to rest of the universe. That it ultimately meant nothing.

Interesting to think about it. Sad, but an oddly nice perspective.

:)

Dreams... dreams... dreams...

I love Netflix. They enable to watch a multiple amount of things that I enjoy... particularly when it comes to watching documentaries. What can I say, I'm an inner geek! I just love learning things, which is a great thing and I wouldn't want it any other way.

The show that I was watching last night asked the question WHAT ARE DREAMS and WHAT IS HAPPENING IN OUR BRAIN when we are dreaming.

Intense, right?

So, I already knew about the stages of sleep that lead up to REM and then how you go through this cycle a couple of times through the night until... well... you actually wake up! But the things I REALLY didn't know were that we dream different in REM sleep and out of REM sleep. In REM sleep is usually when we have are darker dreams and our nightmares while out of REM sleep usually is something positive or something that happened during the day.

Yea, intense right?

Not to mention the crazy idea that mother nature helps us by paralyzing us during REM sleep. There are people out there with a particular disease that makes it so that they DON'T become paralyzed during REM sleep and they usually find themselves walking around and acting out their dreams. I don't know if that's a form of sleepwalking or not... it was never mentioned.

Afterwards, I found that it was hard to sleep last night. I kept waking up and wondering what part of the sleep cycle I was in. Was I just in REM? I kept wondering.

And it also made me think about recent dreams I was having and what they meant. The show had all sorts of scientists trying to explain is dreams actually were interpretations of something or if we should be learning from our dreams or whatever. A variety of stuff, but the one scientist that disturbed me was the ones that either did brain surgery on dogs and cats so that they don't remain paralyzed during REM sleep or the ones that surgically attached cones to little rat's heads.

Science, I understand, may be necessary for learning... but attaching a cone to a little rat's head???? REALLY?

One recent dream that was in my head was one I recently had where I was a member of a science exploration team. We went out and were looking for samples of a rare caterpillar. Funny enough, actor Cillian Murphy joined us. Not QUITE sure what that had to do with anything but whatever... we ended up finding a lot of caterpillars and studying them, finding out that they are cures to fending off evil demons that (and I'm sure this is when I hit REM sleep) were chasing us at some points. Weird, huh? Even weirder was the meaning of dreaming of a caterpillar:

To see a caterpillar in your dream,
signifies a stage in your own personal
growth and development where you are
on your way, but have not yet reached
your goal.

Cool.

Which is true since I'm really trying to grow in my personal life and look at life in new ways. I figure it's about time.

Dog Owners: 1 Cat Owners: 0

How many people will I upset with this post title??? Don't know... prove me wrong.

I like cats, but after watching NOVA's "Dogs Decoded", I have to remember why I love my doggies. I mean, I know I'm only a LITTLE biased, but when I was done watching the program, I got the warm fuzzies inside and just wanted to hug my own little one!

The show is freakishly amazing and talks about all the new research that is being done with dogs. People are starting to ask: "How smart ARE dogs?" The answers they are finding are rather spectacular.

For example, there are some dogs in the world that function on a level that is above the intelligence of a two-year-old human. I know that doesn't SEEM like much, but there was a border collie named Betty who could identify over 100 separate objects AND when you showed her a drawing of a particular object and told her to fetch it, she brought back that exact object. That's fairly clever for an animal, I must say.

Not to mention, the chimpanzee that was outsmarted by a dog. :)

It's mostly about the way a dog PAYS ATTENTION to what people are doing/saying. They read our facial expressions and body expressions better than any creature. It's kind of amazing the way everything is... particularly with the concepts of facial expressions and how the right side of our face shows our true emotions. When tested on dogs, scientists realize that when dogs look at people, their eyes always turn to the right side of our face. Now, how did they figure that out!!!???

Overall, the show was freaking amazing and reminds me of the connection that we have with the canine world... and how they have changed from wild wolves!

Check it out!!!!!

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/nature/dogs-decoded.html

BTW it's on the Instant Watch on Netflix for you Netflix people!!

Hellooooo November

November is starting... that's amazing. If you would have told me a week ago that November was almost here, I would have said something like: "But it's not even Halloween yet!"

Funny, huh, how time really does fly by without you even realizing it? I'm not saying I feel old... and I'm not saying that there aren't times when time seems to be moving so slowly that I want to poke my eyes out. It happens all the time. It's the moments when you look at your calendar and realize that those boring moments were just moments within the week... that's when you realize... "Holy Cripes! The time HAS flown by so very quickly"

And, although I have turned another year older in the past month, I don't really feel much older. I still live my life every day as I always have... wishing for something, or someone, to come and make my life change, going to work, sleeping...

That's when it hit me... I'm ALWAYS waiting for SOMETHING or SOMEONE to make my life happen. Isn't that the weirdest thing to realize? That you really are just living your life day to day in hopes that fate will come in and do its duty when, in reality, you are the one who creates your fate. I'm wondering why it took me this long to realize this. I constantly tell myself that I'm doing something, making things happen... but when I sit down and think about it, everything I do has a tendency to depend on someone else. NOW, this is true for anything... there is always a small part of the action that you do that depends on the actions of someone else, but, I'm talking about seriously acting in the way that makes the other person ALMOST entirely responsible.

I'm not TOTALLY like this... I work hard and put my name out there as much as anyone can... but I find that there is still that part of me that believes that I am a diamond in the rough just waiting to be found...

Ridiculous, huh?

I mean, it's a nice thought, but who, other than Aladdin, is this?

So... I've realized that, like everyone else, I have to remember that I can't just work half-way... in a world like today, you REALLY have to sell yourself, put yourself out there... I'm not just talking about jobs either, I'm talking about everything.

This should be interesting.

On another note, I have a new obsession. Full-Metal Alchemist is on Netflix instant watch... oh my god, I have no life right now. :)

Heehee!!!

Meanwhile, check out Jack and I for Halloween!!! I was a kitty this year, but when I found out that Jack could be a submarine, I was thinking a Beatles theme for next year... who's with me????

A Trip To The Beach

The one thing that I do love about living in the San Francisco bay area is the closeness to the wonderfulness of the beach. To be honest, it is a past time that I hardly ever do. Perhaps I'm taking my closeness for granted. The thing is, I'm not a surfer or anything else that involves a board, I don't collect sea shells and stones, I love to take pictures but it's not something I always do at the beach, and I don't own metal detector or big straw hat to metal detect something in.

The truth is, I'm just a beach fan.

So, when my friend suggested we go last Thursday, I thought about it and decided "Hey, let's take the Jackmeister too!"

It was a relief to actually get out and find the beach again. I actually feel this way about any kind of nature or water substance. If I had decided that I wanted to go for a hike instead, I think it would have cleansed my soul just as much, but, as it were, we chose the beach.

I tend to forget how much I love the outdoors and the green of woods. I forget particularly when my life gets busy and hectic. But it's nice to sometimes have a reminder that we, as humans, were not born in cubicles. Sure, I love a city atmosphere, a concert, a theatre performance, and shopping, but there is something about nature that I simply cannot get from the city.

It's just an attachment that I think people seem to forget in this world. Particularly with the television season starting up again. :)

As someone who is without cable, I feel slightly superior as I read my book. HOWEVER I love my Netflix, so I'm JUST like everyone else. Thus, I think going to the beach was good for me. And for Jack. He slightly got over his fear of water and trotted about the waves with the rest of us. It was adorable. He even still smells like the beach a little.

Not to mention, he found that the entire beach was a huge sand pit to be dug in. It was kind of annoying at first since our blanket seemed to be his target with the excess sand, but eventually, when we saw his enthusiasm, we had to love it too.

Ahhhh, the simplicity of digging a hole.

I hope to "get back to nature" more. Even if that involves some different settings than the beach because I found myself calmer as I came back to work. It was like a breath of fresh air.

It's like I forgot, for a moment, that I was an animal too. We all are.

:)

To be or not to be...

"...poor Ophelia
divided from herself and her fair judgement,
Without the which we are pictures or mere beasts;..."

- Cladius in Hamlet
Act IV, Sc. V

I love this quote. Isn't it true? And it's really so easy for women to be divided within themselves... between sanity and insanity, reality and dreams. It doesn't mean we are the frailer of the species, though. I think it just means we're more connected to another world than men are. Sorry guys.

I love a good quote, actually. I'm such a sucker for them... especially when they're Shakespeare. I got this little tidbit while watching the Royal Shakespeare Company's performance of Hamlet on DVD. I got it through Netflix and I kept it long enough to watch the movie twice. (That's a three hour production! Indeed, I LOVED it!)

There's something about Shakespeare that I just love and, since I like to consider myself an actor of some sort, creative in mind, body, and spirit, there is absolutely nothing about the Bard that I'm afraid of. I would LOVE... repeat that LOVE to do a Shakespeare play or festival or show or whatever!

I'm such a nerd.

But, seriously, for those of you Shakespeare nuts out there, this movie is awesome. I mean, it IS the Royal Shakespeare Company for pete's sakes and it IS both Patrick Stewart and David Tennant. Apparently, Jude Law (who played Hamlet in another production) made some snide comment about David Tennant's Hamlet on a talk show. I don't even think he knew Tennant's NAME. I think, if I would have been in the audience, I would have been like "It's David Tennant you asshole!"

Yea, I love Jude Law, but seriously... don't mess with Doctor Who man. He will mess you up with his sonic screwdriver.

That sounds kinda dirty... not meant to, though.

ANYWAY... I've noticed that a LOT of my blog posts lately have been about things that I love like television shows and words and now quotes. Maybe I should make that something I do on a weekly basis... you know, mention something new that I love. Fun no?

In the meantime, watch Tennant in the clip from Hamlet. Then decided whether or not Jude Law is full of beans... I think he is.

My New Favorite Word

I have a new favorite word. Actually, I've liked this word for awhile. I'm not quite sure why... maybe because it's definition can be applied to a variety of different things. I find it surprising that I like this word, only because it is, essentially, attached to a subject that I most abhor simply because of ALL the mathematical equations that are tied to it. This subject: physics.

Can you guess the word?

Probably not.

It's inertia. I remember the first time that I heard the word. It was, perhaps, 7th grade or 8th grade... actually, I think it WAS 8th grade. Mrs. Medeiros' science class. We were all learning the basics of physics and this, being one of Newton's many physical laws, was important to know.

It didn't hit me as a favorite until my senior year of high school when I was actually taking a physics course. Of course, the word popped up again and that's when the meaning hit me.

Newton's First Law. An object will continue to move the way its is moving unless it is acted on by an outside force. Why? The object's inertia.

And I thought: That could be anything... and anybody.

Think about it for a second and you will realize the beauty that is inertia.

I have to admit that while I hate physics, they pretty much control life, even down to our emotional states. I'm sure I've mentioned this before, but the movie "What the Bleep Do We Know?"... awesome... truly awesome and true.

I mean, the thing about water and emotions? Totally cool.

Besides being totally in love with random words, I'm finding that I'm starting to look at things differently. Perhaps I should say more practically. Maybe. Hopefully.

I'm starting to realize all the things that I need to think about and not trying to freak out about it. Crazy, I know. Which is why I have to think of things like "What the Bleep" and inertia and to continually stay positive about my outlook.

Hehehehe... it can be done!

Aussie Chase

Contrary to what the title may sound like, I'm not chasing Australians... just an Australian shepherd. He stole a sock of mine and proceeded to run around my tiny bedroom. The funny thing was... I really couldn't catch him! How DOES he do that? Is it because he lacks a tail? Something related to physics and wind speed velocity? Or maybe I'm just laughing too hard. Hopefully, that's it, because that dog seriously has no grace :)

So, I haven't written in awhile. It's partly because I've been working on so many other projects and partly because I'm actually finding myself rather busy, and then the last part? Well, you could just blame that on BBC and Doctor Who... I HAD to finish all the episodes TO DATE. Not really interested in seeing the new guy in the season going on right now... I mean, I'm sure he's cool and I'll learn to like him after 3 episodes as is common... BUT, I kinda loved David Tennant's version. Then again, I liked Christopher Eccleston too and thought David Tennant's version was crazy for the first few episodes... so, the cycle will probably just begin again... Matt Smith, I will soon love you too. Don't worry.

By the way... yea, I'm a dork and love geeky television shows. While they have the corniest graphics sometimes, you gotta give it to them for their lovely actors and lovely dialogue. Seriously witty stuff.

Anyway....

I'm determined to give you all:

INTENTIONS FOR AUGUST!!!!!

This month's is actually rather short as I am trying to make it easier on myself. Okay, it's not REALLY that hard BUT I would like to meet ALL of my intentions instead of just MOST of them. Here it goes...

This month I intend to stay positive. I've hit a rather rough patch in my job search/career search and have found myself mad at the world... and rather bored with life. Not exactly sad as much as frustrated. I need to stay positive and to keep reminding myself that there can be a light at the end of the tunnel... as long as I believe there is one.

How's that for positive?

I also want to keep up with this more... even if that means writing an entire post about pickles, cucumbers, sea cucumbers or pickled kittens...
Let's just see where this leads me...

Intention for July

I intend to be like Eve and take a chance... take a bite of that apple and thus entering the unknown depths of my mind and find out more about myself mentally, physically, and spiritually...

This month, I intend to stick to my intention letter decision. I also intend to try to take this more seriously and follow through with my intentions... maybe even write them on my mirror or something... anything to get me to remember. I intend to remember how strong I am and to remember that everything will be fine because I have an amazing support system. I intend to continue the writing that I have started and to continually remember that THAT is what I am, no matter if I am published or not. I intend to continue all my searches in my life and to remember, when I get discouraged, that I can ask for help. Finally, I intend that, now my camera is fixed, to take more pictures. :)

Persistence.... persistence...

In this video, Jack teaches everyone a lesson in persistence... particularly when you REALLY REALLY want something (like, a red rubber Kong ball). I had been cleaning my kitchen and had thrown the ball on top of his kennel thinking it would keep him occupied. I had no idea this would happen and, the moment I saw what he was doing, I grabbed the camera.

BTW

The music you hear is from Jason Mraz.... it kinda fits, no? A nice soundtrack to a thinking puppy?

:)

Worms.....

A few days ago my work had a Spring Fling. I thought I would be festive and made what I called "Mud Pies". Unfortunately, someone pointed out to me that to have an official "Mud Pie" you need chocolate pudding, not chocolate cake. Well, then, I thought, they must then be "Garden Plot" Pies. Besides, I don't even LIKE pudding.

They came out good though, did they not? And I heard they were rather delicious. Yes, that is correct, they were not gluten-free. Thus, they could not be digested by yours truly. Luckily, though, I just made a batch of gluten-free chocolate chip cookies. Yum yum!

Can anyone believe that it is May already??? It's a one-year anniversary for many things including graduation and me getting Jack Jack. Who knows what this next year will bring? Should I consider this my new New Year's? It is the anniversary for me moving out and starting on my own as well. Well, on my own for the MOST part, anyway :)

I believe I have learned quite a bit after a year of being out in the "Real World". First of all, doing three jobs at once may be necessary but it sucks. Second, ALWAYS get ALL of the other driver's information in an accident, especially if it's their fault. And third, a garage is NOT a home.

And that's just the three that come to mind at the moment.... there were MANNNY more. I can't wait to see what this next year will bring... hopefully more fun and happy times to balance out the tougher times.

EARTH DAY!

So while I have no plans to actually plant a tree today, I do have plans to be creative with my new porch. I want to plant stuff!!! I want to have pretty flowers and pots and things and stuff! Yea, I know, my proper English is waning at the moment. I'm not sure why. Perhaps it's my lack of usage at the moment.

Still, I have plans for my porch Mother Earth! I plan to reduce my carbon footprint by planting more plants... on my porch.

I'm going home for about a day so that I can go to the dentist (grrr... dentist) and in that short span of time, I plan to not only do my laundry but also to gather all sorts of planty things like tools and pots and plants. I'm hoping my dad will take me to Lowe's and point out all the things that will be helpful (and will let me borrow some of his gardening tools... I think he still might be mad that I lost his shovel a LOOOONG time ago in high school).

Once my lovely porch is finished I will post a picture on here (I know, I'm a little slow on the pictures of the apartment but the only people that really wanted to see it... saw it firsthand!) It shouldn't be elaborate or anything... just nice. Quaint.

Has anyone ever heard of the movie Paper Heart? If not, it's a cute little movie to watch. It's like a little documentary about Michael Cera's girlfriend Charlyne Yi. Sure, it's a wee bit awkward watching their relationship grow on camera... you know, when you're on a first date and all those awkward pauses? Caught on camera here... but I have to say, the scene in Georgia where she's interviewing the kids on the playground? Priceless!

When the vacuum cometh...

I was vacuuming my bedroom the other day... and Jack decided to hid under the table I put on my bed. I quickly stopped and took a picture, because it looked absolutely hilarious. I think he believes the vacuum will take his soul.

Other than that, life has been going fairly well for the two of us. We are, shall we say, trying to enjoy the simpler things in life. Well, what I mean is Jack has to understand that he can't have as many toys as he would like. Indeed, his most important toys are his chewy nylabones (they last FOREVER), his kongs, and his kong ball (which can NEVER be lost).

Living simply is hard, but I'm getting used to it. It means no random shopping sprees and no television. The only thing I can have is internet which I use constantly. Seriously... thank you Comcast! This will all end, of course, when I get some fantastic job (cross fingers) or a raise (MAYBE likely but no). It sucks, too, when you highly enjoy WHERE you work, but it really doesn't help your living situation. Grrrrrrrrr.....

For now, living simply is my motto. I actually feel better for it slightly. Maybe it will change me entirely and prep me for the real world. (actually it already IS)

Woohoo!

Jack now needs to go for a walk.

Intentions for April

"It's in the contemplation of desire that you create what you want for yourself"

This post is definitely a BIT late in the department of blog posts, seeing as I prepared it around, oooohhhh, April 2 or so, but I figure, what the hell, right? I'll post it now anyway.

I have officially started a journey. A spiritual one, if you will allow me to say, BUT not a RELIGIOUS one. I'm just trying to find out what life, particularly ME, means to me and how I fit in the universe and all that "What the Bleep Do We Know" stuff. (Btw, that's a great movie... if you haven't seen it, you really should)

Any way... I've decided to start "igniting my divine spark". Friends and family, do not be afraid. I have NOT joined a cult and will not start wearing lambskin smocks and drinking hemlock... or poisonous jello... or sport some awesome Nikes.

Instead, I am going to find out more about what I need to do to find out who I am.

Crazy, huh? This does not change me... it makes a better ME!

:)

So, here are my intentions for April... enjoy. It will be the first of many.

(WARNING: If you don't like feel-good crap... stop reading now, hum to yourself and calmly walk away from the computer and think to yourself "The world is a horrible place"... now don't you feel better?)

- I intend to start to know myself more and start discovering who I really am.

- I intend to start expressing myself more creatively and authentically because I believe I have forgotten what it's like to actually BE creative. As part of this, I intend to write more, whether through my blog or my journal.

- I intend to start thinking more positively, even though that phrase sounds SLIGHTLY wrong according to the English language.

- Thus, I intend to stop EDITING myself :)

- I intend to be true to myself and to set aside time every day to be kind to myself in some way.

- I intend to be more honest about the way I feel with myself and with the people around me.

- I intend to intend more.

Haha, y'all. I hope you make an intention letter for yourself. Really, it can make you feel better.

If I were to post on Icanhazcheeseburger...

"Okay guys... check out this new trick I learned..." ~ Jack

DAYS LATER: http://cheezburger.com/View.aspx?aid=3391620096

Cleaning

This is what happens when Jack decides to help me clean the apartment. The result: he actually doesn't help. Instead, he decides that the paper towel roll I just finished is a fun new chew toy and MUST BE DESTROYED.

That and other things. For example, after I mopped the kitchen floor and put down the mat, he picked it up again and ran off with it. THEN when I put the new roll of paper towels down, he stole those too. Seriously, I'm surprised I got any cleaning done at all!

Honestly, I think the best part about this new apartment (at the moment, it's not the size because when Jack saw he had more room to run around with said kitchen mat, he was fairly excited... cheeky boy!!) is that it's CLEAN. A major uplifting thing since my last place was so freaking dirty. Nothing could be done about it.

So, I know it's Sunday night, but technically my week has already begun. My work schedule goes from Saturday through Wednesday. BUT since it is Sunday of a normal week, I must say that I am extremely excited for this week. A lot of stuff will be happening in my life. Monday and Tuesday are extremely busy workdays (10 am - 6 pm shifts. WOOT!) on Wednesday I have an important appointment, work, and then I'm driving home to Modesto with Jack! Yay! We're visiting the parentals for a few days and will take care of some basic things like dental appointments and eye appointments and such. What a life. Then Saturday, it's back to the bay area for my WORK week to begin.

Really, though. This week will be good. I have this overwhelming positive feeling and nothing will bring me down... except for maybe a dog fight or something. As long as it doesn't involve Jack, though, I think it will be okay.

I will check in with you all later in the week and let you know how said positive feeling continued!!

Peace!

It's Patrick

Yes, I've added to my list of "Things That Jack Can Rip Apart"... but it's sooooo CUTE!!!!

Egg-Cellent!!!!

So, I made these cookies the other day for work. Our groomer had been in the hospital and then had taken time off for a few weeks so we kind of had a "Welcome Back" celebration because we all loves hers!!! I made Easter Egg sugar cookies. They look delicious don't they? I had to go with what everyone told me since they weren't, sadly, gluten free. Thus, I could not consume my own creation.

I love the fact that I have an oven and stove now. It's so fantastic. I love baking things for people, not only myself. It was my "thing" in college whenever I had a theatre thing. I would make people muffins if we had an early rehearsal or some sort of treat for strikes and later rehearsals. Really, it was a lot of fun.

Now, I can do it again!!!!

Prepare to be overindulged with brownies, cookies, muffins, and cakes!!!!!!

Recently I've found myself moving into a sort of "groove". It's the whole finding your schedule thing, where you see yourself having a week of work and then a weekend/break. It's like finding a rhythm. It's nice, really. But also kind of annoying. I'm entering the real world, but at the same time reaching the rhythm that I kind of had going in college (without the whole "homework" thing). Instead, I'm finding moments where I can read what I want to read, write what I want to write, and just explore both myself and what I really want to do with my life. Do I want to follow the path of animals? Or something more?

Who knows really?

But it's okay because it keeps me thinking. I haven't really written much lately. Living the way I was without a proper desk kind of turned me off of the whole thing. I couldn't organize myself. But it's starting to come back now. I think I'm going to have to start small, writing little things again like poems.

We shall see.

Has anyone ever reading this ever heard of the six word story? You have to tell a story in six words. I recently found some I wrote for a creative writing class. I shall post one now.

"Open door
Shut door.
Keys?
Fuck."

Hehehehehe.

Sock Stealer!!!

How guilty is this face??? I was working at the computer and thought that the room had become rather quiet... turn around... and this little guy was in my laundry basket stealing socks. Ah ha!!! I got him in the act.

Things are going rather well in the new digs. I hope to add pictures soon, but I've decided I want to get rid of all the excess moving boxes and add a few bookshelves or two. Basically, once it is complete, the pictures will come. For now... look at my thief.

This past weekend was SOOO busy that I'm just now catching up with my sleep. Especially since I lost an hour to begin with. I feel like I've thoroughly explored Disneyland with practically 13 hours on this past Saturday and another 4-5 that Sunday. It was a whole lot of fun, though, although I have to admit I was doped up on motion sickness meds the entire time (yes I'm one of those people and YES it even happens on some of the more major Disney land rides... shut up). Now I'm back. I drove back all the way on Sunday, stopping in Modesto and Belmont along the way. I was even able to complete work on Monday!!! Yay for me!

Now I get to relax.

Actually, I have to admit that I have a rather busy day on my day off tomorrow. I know, it's kind of lame that everything is basically chores like cleaning my new apartment and changing my oil, but still. I'm experiencing the dullness of life, thank you very much.

Seriously... a roommate would be greatly appreciated.

I actually enjoy living alone, though. I don't know what I would do if someone else entered the world that Jack and I seem to have created. It's kind of simple and busy but things happen. I wish it were more exciting, but, hey, it's a life that I have started to create.

That and some more money would be nice too... but I have a feeling that will come as I gain experience with the world and the job market. Who knows...

For now, it's nice. To be honest, I'm not even sure someone would want Jack and I... he DOES have a tendency to steal socks.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Look!! Even Mickey celebrates St. Patrick's Day! He decorates an official Disney "Toothpick Holder"! ;)

Upon Moving....

I’ve finally moved!!! I know… but, you see, I had to save some money before I knew I could move to where I wanted. Besides, after living where I lived for practically ten months (my god! For people who saw the place… yea, ten months… how the hell did I survive without getting some sort of disease) NOW I can officially appreciate how nice my new place is and take care of it. Not that it was ever a problem BUT, now I know what bad is. Hopefully, I will never see it again. Hopefully. Fortunately, I am free!!!

So life will soon continue in better conditions. First things first, a vacation avec some of my FAVORITE people: Shannon and Hayley. This weekend will prove to be one of great importance and fun. It’s determined. Can I truly afford it? No. BUT I really don’t care because it would be SOOO lovely to see these people and to hang out with them again. As my therapist says, you cannot put a true price on that. Expect a few fun pictures from that trip as well. Of course, my camera’s batteries are on the out, the extra one I bought is officially dead, so I may be borrowing the pictures of others. Still, there are many things that I can share, even if they don’t include a photo.

First and foremost, I hope to be writing more often here. I know I’ve said this MANY times, but today it’s official. NOW I have internet 24/7 around me and a computer that will work. Thus, I can guarantee it. I will try for two entries a week at first to get me going. This will include even if I post a picture and a little tidbit about said picture. Or even a funny quote. Either way, I’m hoping the writing will continue and blossom into maybe a few entries a week. Who knows what will occur?

For now, this will do. I will be down south in Lalaland for a few days so don’t expect any words until maybe Sunday night. For sure, Monday. PROMISE.

Jack and I are signing off for the day. He is enjoying a frozen peanut butter Kong at the moment. Only dog/pet people may understand that statement. Just know, he loves it and since it involves food and chewing, it keeps him incredibly occupied.

When it rains it pours....literally

So Jack is officially ready for rainy weather!!!! Isn't he freaking....well... stupid looking?? Okay, okay... I know, he's cute (the thing has a hood too) but I've always been the kind of person that doesn't generally believe in dressing up their dogs in outfits. That's why I bought the fluffiest dog I could deal with! However, when it rains not only does Jack not want to go outside but when he does he, obviously, get his fur wet which then, in turn, smells up the place.

THUS... raincoat!!!

He looks silly and he knows it... look at those eyes... he's practically saying: "Why are you doing this again?"

So, as I said before, Jack is ready for rainy weather. I am not.

Or, at least, my place isn't.

It's been decided that I should move.... this was actually decided ages ago, but now it's necessary. The flippin' door doesn't shut. The door was messed up to began with, but now the rain has warped the wood into such a position that the door won't close all the way.

I make do. The door is now locked with a bike lock (super secret lock combination.... NO ONE will guess) and I sleep with my friend Natalie's knife under my pillow. You know, just in case someone tries to get in and gets past my line of defenses including the bike lock... the wire wrapped around the door knobs... the cot in front of the door... the 30 pound fierce fluffball (he paid me to write fierce)... what can I say?

I'm ready bitches. Bring it on.

Although, really don't.

So, while I would love to find a new place, my problem lies in the fact that I actually do not have a full time job. Sure, I've got three part time jobs, but my most paying part time position ends OFFICIALLY Jan. 29. And everything else working out is completely theoretical.

Well......great.

Chances of returning to Modesto..... high.

Which means I better start planning my exit. Grad school in Ireland anyone???????

The only problem with that is I could only afford a one-way ticket to Ireland, not including the paying for the school... just the ticket to the Emerald Isle.

But, would that really be all that bad?

Until Jack gets stranded in quarantine for being an American puppy.

Errrrrr... I'll have to think this through. I doubt they'll let him in for free... even if he is wearing a little raincoat.

Thus... it's soon to pour.