I almost forgot to post for WINsday!

Well, for starters, I feel like my new layout is pretty fantastic, because I really like polka-dots. :)

But for real, today's win is...

THE PAJAMA-JEAN COMMERCIAL!!




I mean, who wouldn't want these pants? They look just like jeans, only their knit pants, so they probably show your cellulite! Yay!

And if you're so skinny that you don't have cellulite, why not just wear jeggings?!

I will say, the runner up for today's post was:





Style Snaps! For all of your instant-hemming needs!!

Have a great week!

2010 in Rearview

Was the year too fast or too long: This year went by really, really fast.

Major Events: I finally got a job doing what I've always wanted to do; my father passing away

Biggest accomplishment: Getting the j-o-b. I really needed that.

Biggest failure: Sticking to a workout regimine.

Worst memory: I'm not really sure, to be honest.

Most prideful moment: Again, getting the job. I was really proud of myself for finally doing something.

Most embarrassing moment: Nothing huge...I spent about half of the year being unemployed and at home.

Started with a significant other: Nope, I'm married.

Ended with a significant other: Again, no.

Ending the year with more money, or less: Definitely more. That's a perk of getting a job, as well as Travis switching to one that paid significantly more than his previous job.

Best Friends: Travis, Kim, Nick, Kenneth

Biggest Enemy: I don't really have any.

Favorite TV Shows: Grey's Anatomy, LOST (I miss it!), Desperate Housewives, Big Brother, Hoarders

Favorite Movie: The Hangover, The Blindside

Favorite Book: I don't recall reading a book in its entirety this year. Oh wait, I read My Fair Lazy by Jen Lancaster and it was beyond superb.

Favorite Bands/Singers: Still stayin' strong for Sufjan Stevens.

Favorite Purchase: We didn't really make any life-changing purchases this year; but I'm still happy that we were able to buy my brother a D-SLR for Christmas.

Concerts: I'm pretty sure that I was a square and didn't go to a single concert this year.

Places Visited: Again, we were losers...I think we went to Dallas several times and that was about it. Oh, and a trip to Beaumont for graduations.

Best Trip: Probably our anniversary trip because we just really enjoyed ourselves.

Worst Trip: I don't think there were any bad ones.

Looking forward to in 2011: Saving money and the possibility of getting a house; getting a dog.

Dreading in 2011: Nothing, really. I usually approach a new year with a good amount of optimism.

I feel like a shut-in.

I'm watching The Price is Right with Travis. He's feeling sick and I'm just bored and can't seem to sleep past 9am anymore.

There was this girl who went to spin the wheel to be in the Showcase Showdown, and she deciding to bring something with her to the show...a pregnancy test. She felt that The Price is Right was THE place to announce her pregnancy to her family.

But more than anything, to me, I think that Drew Carey must have been disturbed...there she was, flinging that pee-stick around and if I were him, all I would be able to think to myself is, "I really hope that thing is dry" and then I would probably sabatoge her spin on the wheel as a punishment.

But I guess that's why they didn't hire me to be the host after Bob Barker retired.

And now there's someone doing the funky chicken because she is going to the Showcase Showdown. Wow.

In 5th grade, when my friends and I would write notes to each other, we'd always do this to change the subject:

LETS
       DROP
               THAT
                       SUBJECT

Now that my change-of-subject is 5th Grade official, I can move on to telling you all about my Christmas.
Christmas is always a busy time for us, but I love it that way. We went to my grandparent's house on Christmas Eve as we always do, where my cousin gave me a coffee grinder...something I've been wanting and putting off buying for a year. We have an espresso machine we've never used because I didn't have a grinder to grind beans fine enough for espresso. Yay!

On Christmas morning, Travis and I exchanged gifts and he was pretty nice to me. He got me a tripod for my camera, Toy Story Mania for the Wii, (I've been wanting that because I'm a loser)  and a bottle of perfume that I've been needing since I've been using the last of my previous bottle sparingly. After our gift exchange, we began the journey to family members houses and starting opening gifts there which included the 70th Anniversary special collector's edition of The Wizard of OZ on blu-ray, a suitcase I saw at Ross or TJMaxx that I loved, A Christmas Story on blu-ray, Super Mario All-Stars for the Wii, a small (and intentionall inexpensive) iHome for me to use at school that has the radio, the last few pieces of my nativity set from Willow Tree, my first pieces of Scentsy goodies, Pictionary, Guesstures and a few other things I had asked for. It was a good Christmas. :)

I hope that everyone has an enjoyable Christmas and a safe New Year's Eve/Day. I will be relaxing as much as I can because I am ready to go back to work just yet.

The Return of WINsday!

It's been a grillion years since my last WINsday post. I'm going to share something that's been making me laugh for a couple of weeks now:

THE MILEY CYRUS SHOW!!!

Saturday Night Live has won my heart over many times with classic sketches such as "Consumer Probe with Jane Curtin" when Dan Aykroyd was a Halloween Costume salesman, "Down By the River" with Chris Farley and "Debbie Downer: The Happiest Place on Earth," and SNL has done it again.

They do "The Miley Cyrus Show" and it always makes me laugh. A few weeks ago, Anne Hathaway was hosting SNL and was able to portray Katie Holmes in this fantastic skit. It makes me laugh. A lot.

This particular video is from YouTube, and I don't know why the words are backwards, but whatever.

I like, really hope that you like, enjoy this video as much as I do andstufflikethat, and I hope that you like, realize how like, awesome and like, funny and like super like sexy this video is andstufflikethat, and that you like feel like you like, really got to know like, how like cool and like awesome Katie Holmes is andstufflikethat because I think that she's like, pretty cool and stufflikethat and like, getting to watch this clip is like, pretty cool!

Since it's Christmas, and Christmas is the season of generosity, I'm going to let you in on another little bit of awesomeness:

because I always need more things to help me in procrastinating with daily tasks, EA Games as well as Ludia games have their apps for Apple products on sale for $.99. Since it was such a fantastic bargain, I had to indulge.

So now, all I want to do is play them. Some of the games are good, some of them are fair, but whatever, it does it's job of getting me to procrastinate!

So far, I've bought Monopoly, Life, The Price is Right, Press Your Luck, Pictureka!, Clue and that's all...so far. Normally the games are like, $4.99/each and I've always wanted them.

So basically, the moral of the story is if you like these games and are cheap, now is the time to buy!

In other news, I'm almost done wrapping presents as well as buying presents. I can't believe it's almost Christmas.

I credit part of my disbelief to the fact that it's bordering on 'warm' temperatures outside. 66 degrees right now. (Ew!) I want it to be cold. With snow.

I hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas andstufflikethat!

Work, Anniversary, Wisdom Teeth and Christmas

Well, well, well...it's been far too long since my last update. I often think, "Hmmm, I should update my blog" but when I finally get five minutes to do so, I usually opt to catch up on the latest 16 and Pregnant or Hoarders that's recorded on my DVR. Sometimes, life makes you make difficult choices, and updating my blog or watching my catalog of DVR'd television shows is a regular choice I have to make.

Work has been very busy, but very good. It seems like every day I make more progress with my students. They've really adjusted quite well and quickly. I'm learning to choose which battles I fight with them, or how to even approach it when they're having an issue. It's still hard to believe that I'm finally working and doing what I've always wanted to do, because it just feels like a dream sometimes. Although I came in 2 months after all of the other teachers, I could not have been more ready for this holiday break. I have had several of my co-workers tell me that coming in mid-semester for my first year of teaching is going to make it the hardest year; much harder than had I started back in August, because the kids had to have a major change suddenly. Life at work is good. :)

Since my last post, we've hit a major milestone:

Our 1st wedding anniversary was December 12! We decided to take a long weekend in Dallas to go to Six Flags, shop and enjoy ourselves. We decided to go to the Gaylord Texan to eat at their restaurant, The Old Hickory and then see ICE! featuring Peanuts by Charles Schulz. It was really neat, and I would highly recommend it as well as go again. It's an exhibit of outstanding ice-sculptures that are 10-times better than the swan ice-sculpture at your aunt's wedding last year. The whole thing is remarkable. They bring in artisans from China who make massive ice-sculptures every winter and hire them to make this wonderland of awesome at this hotel. Just go. It's amazing. Here are a few pictures that don't even do it justice:

It was a good weekend. Six Flags was kind of a bust due to EVERY high school in the Dallas area (and other parts of Texas, including the school that I work at) decided to bring their extra-curricular groups there that day, but still, a good time was had. I still can't believe it's been a year.

Today, Travis and I decided to start our vacation off right...with DENTAL WORK!! Yay! When I first started working, I was having horrible pain where a wisdom tooth was growing in, so I made an appointment to get it checked out and they said it was time to pull them. So I made the appointment. Then Travis went in about a week later for a check-up, and they said he would most likely need a root canal, so he scheduled the appointment. Coincidentally, the appointments were made for the same day. So, today he got his root canal and I had my wisdom teeth pulled. Thankfully, I only had 3 wisdom teeth, (because I just don't have a 4th one) and that's probably helping my current state of little-to-no pain. It was 2 on top and 1 on bottom, and only the lower part of my mouth is sore, but even then, not very much.

I will say, however, I wish I could eat solid foods, because Wendy's Chicken Nuggets sound heavenly.

I am so glad that Christmas is almost here! The house is decorated, the majority of the gifts are purchased/wrapped and the plans are made for Friday and Saturday. I know you're all dying to see how our home looks, so I give you this wonderful gift:

You're welcome. Really. :) I'm quite pleased with how everything looks, and although most of the gifts under the tree are for us to take to family's houses over the holidays, I like how it looks with all the presents wrapped underneath. 

That's the bulk of our holiday decorations that are out. We don't have many tables/shelves to decorate, so anything left over that I wanted to put out landed in front of the TV.

Now, let me be the Yankee Candle spokesperson for a moment, but first a small back story.

As a child, we had this wonderful Christmas book that was scratch and sniff. There was a page that smelled like gingerbread, one like peppermint, etc. It was a neat little nostalgic book, as it was a book we'd pull out every year. They say that scents and fragrances jog your memory, and for me, it always does. Anyway, there was one page that smelled AMAZING. It was my favorite page, and I can't even begin to describe its fragrance to you, except it almost smells like a Christmas tree, but not.

For years now, every single Christmas I seek out in attempt to find a candle that is similar to this fragrance that I loved as a kid, and every year, I come close, but not close enough for my satisfaction. Until now.

Yankee Candle wins the award of "best holiday scent ever in the world" in my book. The scent is "Holiday Garland." I encourage you to give it a sniff if given the opportunity. I've had it burning all day and it just makes me feel festive. See my lovely little candle?

What's funny to me is that my sister, Sarah, came over recently and picked it up to see what this candle smells like. When she smelled it, she looked straight at me and said, "OMG. It's THE smell."

I didn't know it, but she'd been looking for that wonderful smell for years as well.

If Yankee Candle discontinues this fragrance, I'll sue.

I hope everyone has a phenomenal and safe Christmas holiday! :)

Why, hello there, vacation.

How strange it feels to be happily employed, yet sitting at home doing nothing for an entire week. Not that I dislike it, because believe me, I already was needed a vacation, but it just feels weird.

On Thursday, I had some strange allergy attack and by Saturday I was in tears due to my personal, pathetic misery. On Sunday, I found myself feeling wonderfully better, but made myself stay home all day and continue to rest.

Finally feeling better, I spent some time with friends and went for dinner at the good ol' Cracker Barrel, where I finally purchased one of the greatest things of all time:

The picture is a clicky.

And it was only $4. Friends, let me tell you, a scalp-massager is where it's at. It allegedly helps with tension headaches. I told Travis I should take one to work and when I'm about to lose my mind, I should pull it out and be like, "Class, take 5. I need to reduce my tension."

Go buy one!

Le sigh.

Well, it has been a few weeks since my last post, and I have been so busy. I think I'm finally back into the swing of things with work and all. It's been a long few weeks, but things are getting back to normal.

Let me share a story or two from work:

-In theatre design, when designing a draft for a set, there's a standard handwriting you're supposed to use. It's all capital letters, and you're supposed to keep the letters at the same height and width as the other letters. We're between shows at the moment, so I opted to teach my students a little about drafting and theatre.

The assignment? Write your ABC's and the numbers 0-9 in the correct handwriting. The next assignment? Copy an excerpt of As You Like It. Simple enough, right? I mean, after all, it's COPYING and/or writing down your ABC's and numbers. It's no real thought process needed to complete the assignment.

You would have thought that I asked them to copy the entire dictionary whilst solving algebraic equations.

When I was in high school, if my teacher offered this assignment I would have been all over such a simple assignment.

I had a student tell me that writing in all capital letters would mess up their grammar.

Um, sure?



This one isn't really a story, but it's just a trending occurrence. We just completed a unit on improvisation in my acting classes. Almost every single time I'd have them do a little game to teach a technique, it'd turn into a story about drugs or something. That's special.

This update was really just to let everyone know that I am actually like...aware that I have this blog. I'm just a big neglecter lately. :)

For Anyone That's Curious.

First of all, let me say how much I appreciate all of the kind words from everyone on Facebook and TK. It's touching to know that so many people care.

Many have been asking me about arrangements, and here is what is happening:

1. There will be a memorial service for my dad November 13, though I do not know the time or location as of yet. When I do, I'll be sure to share that info. There will be an obituary before too long to get some of that info out as well.

2. Since November 13 is so far away, we have arranged to have a very casual and informal gathering of my dad's friends and family (as well as anyone that wants to come out and support me or my siblings) for this Tuesday, October 26. Due to the informal nature of this gathering, there will not be an obituary until it's time for the memorial service.

Nobody had the space in their home for it, so we chose to have it at the First Baptist Church in my hometown in the chapel. We chose the church because I could get it quickly and it wouldn't cost us anything.

The time is from 4-8pm so that all of my dad's work friends can come and go as they need to around their shifts.

We just wanted a place to look at pictures, listen to music and share stories about my dad. If you were among those that were asking, this was the best way I could think of to get the info out there.

If you have any questions, you know how to get in touch with me.

Additionally, we're asking that nobody hassle with sending flowers/plants, etc, but we do understand that some people want to give to pay their respects. If you're interested in donating, we ask that you donate to the UTMB Cancer Center. Your donation will go to fund scholarships for medical students seeking a career in oncology. Please ask me for details about making a donation there.


Another place that we would appreciate donations is to the American Heart Association.
Visit donate.americanheart.org for more information.

Again, thank you for all of the kind words from everyone!

Love,

My heart is sad.

Yesterday morning, I got a phone call that my father had passed away. The news is still sinking in. I'm at a loss for words, really.

But I will say that I am fortunate. I called him about a week ago to let him know that I got gotten the job, and the last thing he said to me was, "I'm proud of you."

For me, that's something to treasure. I've always wanted to please my dad...always.

I am also fortunate because I do have many good memories of him.

When I was a senior in high school, he and I did this thing for a while where once a month, I'd make him take me out to dinner, just the two of us, so we could spend time together.

I remember right after my parents separated, we'd go see him on the weekends and he would spend time playing Monopoly with James, Sarah and I at the coffee table of my grandmother's house.

I remember being a kid and calling him at work just to say, "hi" and he never got upset with me for it.

I remember when I was about 11, he took me for a ride on his motorcycle to the Water-Wall in Houston. When we got there we just walked around, talked and ate ice cream from a vendor.

I remember him taking us to the Astros' games at the Astrodome. We would always sit in the highest deck, the one with the rainbow seats. I remember almost every time when we'd be pulling into the parking lot, Sarah would get carsick and he was always really calm about it.

I remember him making the best chocolate milkshakes, complete with chunks of Hershey Bars.

So many good memories.

I love you, Daddy.

Tagged!

The beautiful Shelly tagged me with questions, and I get to add some at the end. Woooooo.

1. Do you like sports or do you want to murder-train them? Which sports are your favorite, if you do like them?

I'm not much of a sports fan. I like to watch basketball in person, I'd rather take a nap than watch the Superbowl and going to a baseball game is a form of socialization and people-watching for me.

2. Which is better, chocolate or vanilla?

Chocolate, hands down. For me, there is seldom "too much" chocolate.
3. What was your favorite vacation you've ever taken?

I've had some great opportunities for travel, and I'm going to have to say my honeymoon, which was a trip to Disneyworld. It was an actual vacation, not a trip that I was "working." I went to Tokyo in 2008 and loved every minute of it, but I was a chaperone (which was still fun) but I did have responsibilities. Our honeymoon required me to have little-to-no responsibilities, and that's okay by me.

4. If you could go the rest of your life without hearing about ONE celebrity or public figure, like if that person ceased to exist, which person would it be?

I'm only allowed to choose one? Probably Charlie Sheen. There's just something about his face that I find obnoxious.

5. Do you enjoy TV watching, and if so, what's your all time favorite show?

I'm a huge TV watcher, and while I love many shows, (Sex and the City, Weeds, LOST, Grey's Anatomy, etc), I am going to have to say that my all-time favorite is Friends, because it STILL makes me laugh, and I've seen every episode a million times.

But LOST is a very, very close second. I'm going to miss that show this spring.
6. What's your favorite kind of music?

I have a variety of music that I listen to. I love music and have a deep appreciation for it, but I always hate this question. I will just tell you my #1 favorite bands:

• Shane and Shane
• Coldplay
• Sufjan Stevens (he doesn't have much of a website, so I linked you to Google.)

7. Who was your first celebrity crush?

Jonathan Taylor Thomas, aka JTT, duh.

8. Tell me about your favorite outfit.

Considering my daily wardrobe consisted of something in the variety of a t-shirt and jeans or random knit pants, I don't have many. However, I did just buy a cute new outfit for work. The shirt is a satin-y tank top that's dark red, that has a slight mock-turtleneck with a pretty bow thing on one side. It sounds a little scary now that it's a written description, but trust me, it's adorable andplusalso it was only $4.97 at JCPenney. I wear it with black slacks and for work, a cardigan over it.

9. Kittens or puppies?
 
Shelly, I know you're a cat person, and I love kittens because their adorable-factor is like, sky high, but I'm still going to go for puppies.
 
Now it's my turn!
 
10. If you could have any job in the world, what would it be?
11. Do you like to cook? If so, what's your favorite thing you've made or make? If not, why not?
12. You're stranded on an island all alone. If you found a magic lamp with a genie who would grant you three wishes, what would the wishes be? (You can't say getting off the island.)
 
Ok...I'm going to tag...Megan, Jeffrey, & Samantha.
 

It's here!

Well, two things are here:

1. My first day of teaching at my new job is tomorrow and I am beyond thrilled!
2. I've had many people say, "Hey, you're not unemployed anymore, change your blog title!"

So I have. :)

Hello, Boys and Girls...

I'm your new teacher.

Ok, well, maybe not your new teacher, but I have been offered the job at the high school. It happened yesterday, and I've pretty much been on cloud nine ever since.

I found out today that my schedule will most likely be consisting of two Theatre Arts I classes, one Advanced Theatre Arts class, one Technical Theatre I class and one Advanced Technical Theatre class. I'm excited about all of it.

I am incredibly nervous, but in a good way. I've wanted to teach since I was 5 years old, and it's just hard to believe that it's finally happening.

Life is good right now. We're still waiting to see if I passed my test, and that's the last piece of the puzzle.

Once everything is finalized, I'll ahve to find a new name for my blog. :)

ZOMG, It's WINsday!

This may or may not be my new favorite video---artist? She's extra-wonderful and spectacular.

Enjoy!



Oh, I know you want more. Don't worry, boo. I've got you covered...

...because really. Who wouldn't want to see your collection of...Snapple bottles and Bret Michael's photos? I know you do. Consider this an early Christmas gift.



-Hugs-

Creepy bear? No thanks.



Exhibit A

 Dear Charmin,

What on earth has provoked your company to use a creepy talking and/or singing bear for your ad campaign?

He isn't cuddly and cute. He's creepy. As we can see here in exhibit A, the bear is stuck in a tree that has toilet paper on it.

I know I don't venture into the woods often, but I can promise you that bears don't hang out in trees trying to convince people to use Charmin. It just doesn't happen.

Why did you choose to do away with the Charmin commercials of yore?

That's right, yore. I may not remember seeing these commercials on my television, but as we can see in Exhibit B, YouTube has tons of your commercials showing that little old guy encouraging people not to squeeze the Charmin.

Exhibit B

You see, squeezing the Charmin is actually a feasible thing for a customer to do in the store. If they're shopping for a new toilet paper, they may squeeze it to see if it's as soft and cushy as promised.

Lose the bear. Go back to your old ways. Please. The newest commercial with the bear singing, "Every time it's so right, feelin' so good" is so very wrong.

Sincerely,

The Interview

It went really, really well.

I interviewed yesterday with one of the current theatre teachers, (the one that's leaving her current position for a new position within the school) and the principal. I saw lots of head nodding and smiles, and even heard a few laughs. I feel like I was myself and that I gave good answers that showed that I am qualified and right for the job.

They said they had 15 applicants, and selected 5 for interviews. Well, obviously, I was in the 5, otherwise I wouldn't have been interviewed yesterday, and they're going to take 2 of the 5 and give them a second interview with the district's fine arts coordinator, and that will happen next week. I've heard that I will be one of the 2, so hopefully that rumor is true!

Today, is my content test, which as I have said previously, is the test every Texas teacher must take to prove that we are 'highly qualified' to teach our subject, according to No Child Left Behind. I've been studying like crazy and I am feeling confident.

Last week, my program gave us the option to go to a review session where they would break us up into our subjects and let someone prep us for the test. I was the only theatre person there, so I was very fortunate and got to have a one-on-one review. My review counselor was very kind and knowledgeable. We actually talked for quite awhile about things that weren't even pertaining to the test, and we were laughing at ourselves for not focusing on what we should have been doing. After chatting for awhile, we went through the test, how they score it, what they're going to ask, etc, and she gave me things to make sure I know, so I have learned as much of that information as I can.

A few weeks ago, I went back to my university to get transcripts and while I was there I decided to visit old professors. One of them asked what I was doing, and when I told her I was taking the theatre content exam, she said, "Oh, wait a second. I have something for you." She proceeded to pull out a copy of a 130-question practice test and told me to go home, take it and learn the material on it. Without studying, I took it and I made a 73, which honestly isn't bad, considering I hadn't done anything theatre-related in over a year. So I started studying and studying. I took the practice test to my review session and asked my review counselor if she felt that it was a good review, and she told me it was an excellent practice test, that it was covering pretty much everything that I would likely see on the real test. So I came home, I decided to use the practice test as a study guide and I feel like I have learned pretty much everything I can. I took the test again the other day, and a 91, only missing 11. I've since learned those the content covered in those final 11, so I can't help but feel confident.

I know that the questions on the real test won't be the same ones as the practice, so I learned what that question was covering. Since I had one question covering the stock characters in Commedia dell'arte, I learned all of the stock characters in Commedia dell'arte.

Anyway, the test is at 2 o'clock. I'm about to run through my flash cards a few times, eat lunch and then get ready to go!

Oh hi, nerves. You're a little tense lately.

I am officially one-step closer to having to having a job...I got an interview! I mentioned here that there was a chance that there was a possible job opening for me to start teaching, and it has happened. Now, I can actually talk a little bit about it.

The job is at my old high school, and it would be teaching theatre, which incidentally, is exactly what I went to school for. The theatre teacher that I had has changed positions within the high school and now I have this outstanding opportunity before me to take her place. The interview is tomorrow, and I have been nervous about it since the moment I found out, which is odd for me, because I'm generally not an overly-nervous person. It's just that I really, really, really want this. While I no longer live in the city limits of my hometown, I do live a whopping twenty-minutes away, which has allowed me to stay active within the community via my church. With the number of things that our church does that I've assisted with over the years, I have been fortunate to know a lot of the students in the high school already, and I feel that that's a good thing, especially since their current teacher is leaving mid-semester.

Overall, I feel like I have the ability to really 'wow' the interviewers tomorrow, but I do feel like I have one strike against me that could definitely be a defining moment as to whether or not I get this job. I'm still not at the point to start my "internship" level of my program, which is the level where I may legally be hired as a full-time teacher. However, in about two weeks, I will be. I take my content-area test this Saturday, and it takes about two-weeks for the results to come in. That's all I have to wait for---the results of the test. As long as I pass it, (which I feel confident that I will) I am legally hirable. Hopefully, the interviewers will be so taken by me that they'll be willing to wait.

Dear God, I hope so. I feel like a little kid crossing their fingers in hopes of getting that pony for Christmas.

I have ashamedly gotten my hopes up for all of this, which frustrates me, but someone told me yesterday that having my hopes up will show how much I want it in the interview, so I guess there's that.

Quick change of topic:

For the people that seem to think that status updates on Facebook = a diary...

Get an online journal. Please. I do not need or want a minute-to-minute play-by-play of the occurences in your life. If I wanted to read every mundane detail of your life, I'd subscribe to your LiveJournal account.

But then again, you'd probably have a Xanga.

There is honestly someone who has posted not 1, not 2, but SIX status updates today, all of which were posted by 10:30am.  It's not even noon. Your day cannot be that exciting before noon. I refuse to believe it.

If you feel like I'm taking about you, I probably am, in which case, it's time for you to get an account with one of the aforementioned online-jounal communities.




Now that I've said that, hopefully I'll know something soon about the job. If you're reading, please do whatever it is that you do when you want to wish someone luck, whether it be praying or carrying around a rabbit's foot. I'd really appreciate it, times eleventy. :)

Happy WINsday!

Thanks to my DVR, I seldom watch commercials anymore because commercials tend to annoy me.

Thanks to Ellen, I did see this commercial today, and I feel like it's a "win" for the week.

This "WIN" is a win for loser-dom. It's not that it's so hilarious, but it's just that it's so ridiculous.



1. If everyone at work bought a Fridge Locker, I'd be annoyed as a co-worker, because about 9 people would be able to use the refrigerator.

2. Due to my aforementioned annoyance, I'd be tempted to take it and toss it.

3. Sure, by taking it and throwing it away, I didn't get to "steal" their food, but I certainaly kept them from eating it and they're out $19.99.

4. If a person was truly hungry enough and had chosen to steal your Fridge Locker because your leftover meatloaf looked so delightful, I'm sure I could find a way to break into it. It's made of plastic, not steel, you know?

I hope that my friend from high school, Matt, makes a parody of it ASAP on his YouTube channel.

Enjoy!

Goodbye Summer, Hello Fall!

What does this make you think of? That's right! The fall!

When I think about the fall, I think about:

-big trees with falling leaves

-sweaters

-hot chocolate

-cappuccinos in big ceramic cups

-being cozy

-the holiday season

-smiling a lot

-pumpkins

My corner of Texas has gotten the first cool-front of the season, and I couldn't be happier. I like to call this weather "windows-open weather" because it's cool, breezy and there is little to no humidity in the air. After what always feels like 360 days of summer, I always embrace this wonderful change in climate.

Today, my friend and I were running errands with the windows down, volume up and listening to a playlist that may or may not have included Justin Bieber and LFO. I can honestly say that I had nothing to do with the song choices, but I cannot promise that I didn't fist pump/sing along.

The best thing about it? I didn't care because the weather was so fantastic and I was in an equally fantastic mood.

Now that I've rambled about the weather, I will say that I am in the home-stretch for taking my TExES Content Exam, which will prove to the state that I am highly-qualified to teach theatre and that I do, in fact, know what I'm talking about. This past Saturday I went to a one-on-one review that my certification program arranged for those taking the test and my review-leader was very encouraging to me and told me that I will do well on the exam. That gives me a nice boost in confidence and hopefully that will help me to do well on the test.

Taking the steps to finally start my certification program has been incredible. The feelings of happiness and accomplishment that I feel are phenomenal after countless months of non-motivated discontentment. From day to day, I didn't realize how much I missed having tasks to achieve on a regular basis, and this change feels great. It makes me happy. Very, very happy. I've noticed that in the last few weeks, I've felt happier than I've felt in a long time, and that makes me content.

I think I'll start something new...WINSday!

It's completely unoriginal, but I don't really care. I'm going to try to remember to post something that I found to be hysterically funny on Wednesday, and label it as the win of the week.



The internet is so glorious, because some people really are just that funny.

This week's win comes from http://www.funnyordie.com/ and to me, is genius. I did share this on Facebook already, but if you haven't seen it yet, you should definitely watch it.

Are you familiar with Latisse? This is FOD's parody of it. If youv'e not heard of it, there's an explanation below the video.


Anyway, onto the WIN for the week!




Latisse is something you can put on your eyelashes to help them grow longer, but it has a horrible list of side effects. (This is copied and pasted from their website, but I did take out a paragraph)

Possible side effects.

The most common side effects after using LATISSE® are an itching sensation in the eyes and/or eye redness, which were reported in approximately 4% of clinical trial patients. LATISSE® solution may cause other less common side effects which typically occur close to where LATISSE® is applied. These include skin darkening, eye irritation, dryness of the eyes and redness of the eyelids.

Special warnings.

LATISSE® solution use may cause darkening of the eyelid skin which may be reversible. Although not seen in the clinical studies, may also cause increased brown iris pigmentation of the colored part of the eye which is likely to be permanent. Increased iris pigmentation has occurred when the same formulation of bimatoprost ophthalmic solution was instilled directly into the eye.

It is possible for hair growth to occur in other areas of your skin that LATISSE® frequently touches. Any excess solution outside the upper eyelid margin should be blotted with a tissue or other absorbent material to reduce the chance of this happening. It is possible for a difference in eyelash length, thickness, fullness, pigmentation (darkness), number of eyelash hairs and/or direction of eyelash growth to occur between eyes (e.g., results may vary for each eye). These differences, should they occur, will usually go away if you stop using LATISSE®.

Yikes. Well, Brooke Shields uses it, so I guess it's okay.