OD
07.31.06 (10:09 pm) [edit]I come simply with a prayer request. A girl in my class, Megan, a really close friend of hers OD'ed on some drug concoction and alcohol this past weekend and she's really torn up about it. She's really a pretty good student, but she could hardly pay attention today in class for asking herself, "To go to the funeral against Daddy's wishes, or not to go to the funeral: that is the question." So keep Megan, the OD'ed kid and the family in your prayers.
Wendy's sexy background music
07.27.06 (10:57 pm) [edit]I felt like being a loner tonight, so I went to Wendy's, grabbed a salad, pulled out my latest summer read and sat in a corner all by myself. I munched on my greens and read a few paragraphs alternativly for a while until the salad was gone. At one point the music spilling from the dust encrusted speakers overhead caught my attention; the smooth piano and sax sounded like something from a "Let's Make Love" mix. I could almost hear some husky male voice slithering through the notes with a "...Yeah, Baby...." Then I began to wonder, "Why am I dining to this music?" Here I am, with about 5 other people devouring overly greasy, sorry excuses for nourishment, and there is a sexy sax with silky piano accompaniment playing as background noise.
After listening for a while and descerning that the entire collection of music from overhead was similiar to the piece that first caught my ear, I wondered if other dining music I had heard was this strange. The local CiCi's--a pizza buffet chain-- likes to play oldies. They play them rather loudly too. (The reason I notice the music at these restaurants is because I often take a book or textbook to read when I need a bite and have no one to go with.) I often find myself breaking a converstation for a moment in CiCi's to belt out my own rendition of "Tooty Fruity" and the like. That music at least somewhat fits the environment-- a family friendly, and often too loud one.
All the culture restaurants-- Itailian, Mexican, etc.-- that have music from their own original environment; an Itailian opera at Fazoli's and the Mexican Hat Dance at Taco Bueno or Bell.
Then there are the more shady places that just have a local radio station coming from a beat up boom box.
So where does Wendy's get sex music?
I got hit on over a wrong number text.
07.25.06 (4:42 pm) [edit]So some stranger has been trying to pick me up over text messages the past day or so. I called his number by accident last night and so ensued the following conversation with this person:
*My initial wrong number call*
Stranger texts: Whos this?
Me: Wrong number
Stranger: Ok its cool
Me:*no reply*
Stranger: Are you a man or woman?
Me: Female (I wonder if this is what I think it is...)
Stranger: You live in *name of my town*? May I ask your name? Mines Leroy
Me: Yes, I live in *name of my town*. Name is Bri (Not giving my name to some stalker.)
Leroy: Are you single?
(OH MY GOSH! I'm being picked up by a complete stranger over a wrong number and text!)
Me: I've got a boyfriend.
Leroy: Oh ok Sorry.
(At this point I think this is incredibly funny and pursue.)
Me: It's ok.
Leroy: You don't have any single homegirls looking for a man?
Me: None looking. (The majority of my gal pals would just punch a guy if he asked her out on a date, and besides that, I would NEVER hook up my pals with a random stranger, especially not one that uses the term "homegirls"...)
Leroy: **** .... ok
(Or curses.)
Me: Sorry
Leroy: Its ok. I've been single for a while now. I'll keep looking. (This guy is so enredibly DESPERATE it makes me sad!)
*End of conversation.
*Hint to the male population out there*-- this is NOT an acceptable way to get a girl unless you're looking for a hoe or want to make yourself look like a complete idiot and have all of the girl's friends laughing at you.
La Dentista and Greg's Trip to Boston: Day 1
07.24.06 (10:37 pm) [edit]I went to the dentist today. Yeah! *sarcasm* It's not that it's terrifying or anything, it just takes 2 HOURS for myself and my sister to get through the scraping-the-enamel-off-y our-teeth process that the hygenist does and for the doctor to say "Open... (2 secs. passes.) All done." Grr. What a gigantic waste of time. The hygenist said that my brushing is great and so is my flossing; I had "very little there." HA! Fooled her! I had flossed this morning and the last time I had flossed before that was probably when she did it last year. *snickers* My teeth feel like they're knockin around in my head now because the hygenist scraped away at least half my gums. But hey, I did get a new tooth brush out of the deal... a $140 tooth brush. Ridiculous. Ah well, physical therapy costs alot too, and I know it's not our fault it does. (Blame it on all the retards that sue the living daylights out of medical facilities so they can make a few bucks.) I'm sure the dentists have a similiar mound of malpractice insurances to pay as well.
Greg has gone on vacation and I feel it my duty to report on his happenings while he's gone, although he hasn't reported anything on his blog in nearly a year. (Hey, someone out there besides me might care.) He reports has read 300 pages of his Stephen King novel which he proclaims to be alright so far. (He's an avid reader much like myself.) He spotted a guy with a horrible rat's tail at lunch, which Greg has decided is below the mullet on the bad hair scale. Mer and Greg both got a good laugh at the expense of a fellow on one of their flights due to the guy's comb over. A Morracan native gave Greg some good conversation on their connector flight from Phily to Boston and offered to play tour guide for them if they couldn't come up with anything to do, since she had lived in Boston for several years now. And finally, at last check, the family's luggage is no where in sight at whatever Boston airport they've landed at. Don't ya love it when luggage gets lost? I suppose it's better to lose your luggage than lose yourself. I've done that. My luggage got on the right flight, but I didn't. Yeah me!
My first algebra test...
07.21.06 (12:25 pm) [edit]My first algebra test ate my lunch to say the least. I spend 2 hours working on the thing and gave an educated guess on most of the problems. I came away from the test hoping to get a 50.
I got the test back yesterday. Lo and behold, I got a 57!! YES!! I did better than I thought. A terrible grade, but in looking at the other grades, I'm still proud; the average was probably a 30-something and the highest was a 70, made by a girl who has already taken algebra, but didn't pass because she never turned in any work.
This isn't looking good for anyone and then the prof announces that she is "not worried" because our comprehensive final can replace one of our low test grades. The whole class starred back at her in horror at that moment and spurted a nervous laugh as one. I would be worried if only one student passed my test.
I would also be worried if half my class went AWOL. The class began full-- about 35-40 people. I counted 17 yesterday.
Surely she'll pass me if I come to every class, pay attention, take notes and try my hardest, right? I'm praying she will, because I've never had a teacher fail me because they themselves deserved the F.
I don't know what I would do if I failed this; I'm running a tight class schedule. If I want to graduate in 4 years, I don't have time to have re-do's. I'm going to be doing summer school the next 5 years as it is, plus at least one maymester and one Christmas-mester that I currently know of. I'm beginning to wonder, is there really a life outside of school?
Dear Lord, I need some help here!
Marriott goes smoke free
07.19.06 (12:47 pm) [edit]I heard on NPR this afternoon that the Marriott hotel chain has decided to convert their hotels to a completely smoke free environment. http://www.marriott.com/news/... Being a non-smoker myself, I rather appreciate this, so that when I come crashing through the door of a Marriott a little on the late side evening side, I won't get stuck with a smoking room. I can't seem to put myself into the minds of the Marriott execs though; what's the positive for them? The article says the demand for non-smoking rooms is on the rise, but I'm sure it hasn't been squelched completely. I guess they're hoping the revenue loss of their smoking customers will be balanced out or even increased with those of the population that are anti-smoke fanatics. I don't see that as being a very good bet; perhaps I'm underestimating the amount of non-smokers. (My underestimation probably would be due to the large amount of the population near my age that grew up with Joe Camel and his oh so cool cigarettes and now their own oh so cool cigarettes and smokers' cough.) That could be where I'm off. Anyone out there have an opinion or rant?
A humbling year.
07.18.06 (1:21 am) [edit]Well, I have an algebra test tomorrow. I've studied a bit for it; not as much as I need to, I'm sure, but it will have to do. Still will need to get up early to finish studying and complete an assignment. Have I mentioned how much I despise math? The reason I don't like it is because math is an exact science: there is only one right answer. In every other subject, answers vary because there are many ways to say the same thing, but no, not in math. Enough of my ranting. Now for some giggles.
This past weekend I umpired a tennis tournament for 21 hours in a 3 day span. It was about 100+ degrees all weekend. Let's just say the $160 I made was hardly worth all the sweat that poured off my body by myself just sitting there... in the shade! I don't mind being sweaty when I work hard, but sweating just sitting there bugs me to no end!
When I'm umpiring, I generally keep my rule book tucked in my belt so that people can see that I know I don't know everything. I forgot to take it out before my bathroom break on Saturday, and so my rule book went tumbling into the toliet. I was a grand site sitting in the restroom pulling apart 230 very delicate pages for 30 minutes. I did myself proud in the end though; every one of those pages are at least decipherable if not completely legiable. Although, the book is about 3 times as thick as it was before it's trip into the toliet; it doesn't exactly fit in my belt anymore.
On Sunday I managed to get the largest glob of gum on the bottom of my good hiking shoes I have ever seen. So I sat and pulled gum off my shoe for about 30 minutes with a stick. I was quite a mess this weekend.
God is still humbling me. I wonder, will I EVER be humble? It's getting to where I just sigh and say something like, "Gee, I don't know or understand a blasted thing," and move on, compared to my former getting flustered. I'm glad I'm changing though; it was quite embarrassing getting so frustrated at little lacks in my perfection. (I'm a recovering perfectionist, if you couldn't tell.) I thought wisdom came with age, but all I've come across in the last year is a lack of wisdom or knowledge or street smarts in me. I'm beginning to wonder if there is ANYTHING in my head at all... or maybe all those silly jokes in middle school were right: I could be just all fully of air. *shrugs* If I am full of air, then I've gotten to the point that I just don't care. You know what else I don't care about? Blogging anymore than I have already. Later!
Wildfire threatens friends and church: an update.
07.16.06 (9:31 pm) [edit]An update on the wild fire: No homes or other large structures have been burned, but a few barns are gone. This according to the 5 o'clock news. The fire is still only 70% contained and hot spots are still creeping up. Your prayers have been helpful and a few more for my friends and the church in the area would be appreciated!
Wildfire threatens friends and church
07.14.06 (6:16 am) [edit]I woud like my limited readership to be praying about a wildfire just south of my town in a mountanous rural area. I went to church down there for a couple years and as a result am quite familiar with many of the people in this area. Last I heard about a dozen structures were being threatened by the flames and some people were being evacuated from their homes. Pray that above all God's will be done, and to keep all the families and firefighters safe.
Algebra class thus far
07.12.06 (4:35 pm) [edit]So I started my algebra class this past Monday, which is why I have yet to blog or do much of anything but algebra that is not necessary to live-- eat, sleep, breath, etc. I spent about 7 hrs. on the homework yesterday. Today so far 3. I am being interrupted by my shift at the tennis shop; darn the luck. Lucky for me, one of the guys in my Sunday school class is the head of the math department at one of the local universities. We are becoming good friends since I have seen him everyday this week, and probably will continue to do so until this class is over. He offered to help, and I am definatly taking him up on it. I blog about this today to whine: out of 33 problems I have successfully completed 10 after trying each at least once. I keep telling myself that I am not stupid, just mathmatically challenged, but I am not convincing myself very well. Say a prayer that I do not beat my brains out before this class ends. Thanks.
On my vacation
07.11.06 (12:06 am) [edit]The vacation I keep mentioning was a blast! The whole trip was planned around a family reunion. I spent 3 fun filled days with my very very extended family (3rd, 4th cousins, great aunts and uncles, lots of cousin-in-laws, etc.) at a lake house. We were served magnificent homecooked southern food and I would imagine I gained at least 5 pounds in those 3 days. Bridget aquired a shadow in our ... 4th cousin, I believe, Ross. He's 3 and kids always love my sister, so naturally they played together alot. He seemed to enjoy my company as well, although not as much as Miss Bridget. I went tubing on the lake. I was going to try to ski too, but the water was too choppy for what I thought would be acceptable for a beginner. My dad skiied though; he still remembers how 40 years later.
On the way to the reunion, we tried to camp out on Pickwick Dam in southern Tennessee I believe, but being that it was July 4th weekend and we got there just as the sun was setting, there were no spots. So we went driving in search of somewhere to stay. I spotted a place not a mile from the dam called Little Andy's. Sounded like one of those run down motels on my hometown's mainstreet, but when you're desperate... Actually, the place was spectacular. It was a sportmen's lodge so the room was very spacious and complete with kitchenette. There was also an area outside where those that spend the day on the lake could park their boats under cover and gut their fish. It was cheap too-- 3 adults and 1 child for about $62. You can't beat that. So if you're ever at Pickwick Dam, I highly recommend Little Andy's if you're not the camping sort.
Post reunion, we camped in a cabin in a camping village near the Smokey Mountan National Park. I enjoyed being up there in the woods, but the roads stunk; everywhere we went was about 30 miles away but it'd take us 2 hours to get there because the roads were so curvy. We learned very quickly what the signs that said "Warning! Switchback curves ahead!" meant. I grew a new appreciation for the flatness of Texas. The first day we went white water rafting on the Pigeon River. That was a lot of fun! The water was only about 40 degrees and when you're used to 80 degree water you get a little cold; Bridget shivered for the whole hour and a half we were on the river. The second day we went to the Tsali Rec Area-- by way of the curvest roads I have ever seen and never care to see again-- to mountain bike. I have new respect for bikers; the trail was about a foot wide with a wall of earth on one side and a cliff down into a lake on the other. If you were lucky enough to fall down the cliff, you might break your back on a few trees on the way down. Due to being afraid to fall, I went rather slowly so every bump I hit threw me off balance making me more scared. I still can't decide if I liked it or not. I think I would have been fine if I had had more confidence in my ability to keep myself upright and just hit the bumps in the road full speed ahead like all the bikers that lapped us twice even though we went on a 4 mile loop while they went on a 12 mile one. Hey, we're amatures, ok?
The rest of the trip was just a bunch of driving. And I sure did drive about 5 total hours during the trip with a trailer tagging along behind for the first time. They made me drive from Dallas/Ft. Worth to home all by myself. :-p That is the most boring stretch of road EVER in case you've never driven in that direction. When I drive long distances, I tend to read road signs to keep myself entertained and awake, but there aren't enough signs on this stretch of interstate to entertain me; I don't have too short of an attention span either. I would have played the dodge-the-bumps-in-the-ro ad game but I had a trailer, so that was totally out. I must have done a lot of self searching during that time. I do remember that I've come to the conclusion that God has sufficiently torn me down and made me eat some wonderfully humble pie. It's been good for me; that's for sure. I think I've finally hit the bottom-- or at least I hope so-- so I'm hoping that we can start the building back up, but building the correct way soon. Yes, that's what I did during that time.
Well, that's about it. Oh, except one thing-- a customer at the local tennis center had a baby last Wednesday, but the baby had some major complications. He had to have open heart surgery yesterday and looks like many more major treatments are in his future. So please say a prayer for this family. Thanks.
*eerie silence*
07.10.06 (8:41 am) [edit]So about that vacation... oh poo! I have class today! *runs away screaming in horror, then calms self and goes to class*
Bria Alert!
07.09.06 (3:39 pm) [edit]I have returned! *bwahahaha* I went on vaca and couldn't say anything about it just in case some theif happened upon my blog and my address, but I'm back now and will post oh so very soon about my trip, probably this evening or tomorrow afternoon. :-D
