Alone Time

How are you at alone time?  I don't like to be in big crowds for very long; I'm much more of a one-on-one or small group girl.  However, I don't like being alone for very long either.  I don't think that means that I have to be doing something with someone at all times; I just usually like there to be someone else around.  Sometimes it's nice to have some time to myself, and I have found that I have adjusted to practically no social life pretty well (too well, probably), but there's a limit to that, and then I start feeling stir-crazy.  I should probably learn to love the silence a little more, huh?

Being Female

Sometimes it's just not so much fun being female.  One of my former missionary companions put something on Facebook about her pregnant hormones.  I feel like my body's out of whack sometimes, and I am not now, nor have I ever been pregnant.  And it's not just once a month.  I don't know what male hormones are like, but it stinks feeling shaky for seemingly no reason.  Sometimes I wonder if I'm missing some nutrient, and then I try to figure out if there's something I can eat that will help.  Or I suddenly feel super hungry, and I think it's tied to whatever's going on inside me.  It could be much worse, and I like being a girl, don't get me wrong, it just comes with its challenges, that's all.

Thanksgiving

It's almost Thanksgiving!!!  Isn't that great?  Weird that we're already there again, but it's so nice to be there.  I bought a couple of turkeys and a ham for our school Thanksgiving meal - I have never been super involved in the prep for it, so I'm a little nervous and hope that everything comes together.  We don't have as many students who I feel like ought to be involved in the prep as we have in the past, unfortunately, and this is kind of happening last minute.  Hopefully everyone will enjoy it, though, and hopefully we will have plenty of food.

Then there's actual Thanksgiving with some of my family on Thursday.  Hopefully I won't have put on too many pounds by the end of the week.

Dr. Who and Thursdays

I think for many people Friday is Favorite Day, as it is usually the last day of the work week and the beginning of the weekend.  However, do you ever have times in your life where a different day is your favorite?  I don't know if Thursdays are my favorite, but I sure like them, and they are definitely close to it for now.  One roommate says that they are her favorite.  This is because Thursday nights are Dr. Who nights for us.  The Boys (3 friends) and my roommate and I get together and watch a couple of episodes.  It's so fun when I get to thinking about / realizing what day it is on a Thursday.  It brightens everything because I know that after dinner that evening some fun, geeky friends are going to show up, and we're going to watch this silly show (that sometimes scares me pretty good).  So fun.  And we have lots of seasons to go, so the tradition should last for awhile longer.  :)

November

I really like this time of year in my town.  A couple of my roommates and I went to a park and had a picnic today.  We sat on a hill and ate and watched the ducks, people, and kiddie train that drove around the pond.  Then we walked over to the rose garden and meandered through it, pausing to smell many of the different kinds of roses that are there.  I'm glad to live where I do - an acquaintance told me that it was in the 30s in his town.

Anne of Avonlea

(Hope this isn't a spoiler to anyone.)  Don't you just love it when Anne finally realizes that she loves Gilbert, and he doesn't die, and they appear to have a happily ever after in their future?

Tonight

This evening I was at a church meeting.  While there, I observed a husband putting his arm around his wife, who was leaning on his shoulder.  I want that.  Do you ever consciously notice things that you want to be a part of your life?

Opera

Kind of bummed that I've already lost Nablopomo - ugh.  I didn't even think about it last night.  My roommate ended up getting free tickets to a dress rehearsal of the opera "Romeo and Juliet."  I've never been to an opera, so I thought I should go, and I kind of wanted to go.  Roommate and a friend and I went.  It was three hours, but it didn't feel that long.  The music was beautiful.  I have been getting to bed too late all week, though, so I was already tired.  I didn't get to eat before the performance, so I did that after, meaning I got to bed pretty late last night - again - and without a thought to post something on here.  Oh well.  I am now more cultured.  I have to admit, though, that I thought about Bugs Bunny a little bit - he was good prep for the real thing.

Election Day

I'm anxious about what the outcome of today's election will be.  I feel so opposed to Pres. Obama and many things that he has done over the pat four years.  My roommate - who supports him - told me four years ago to just wait four years and see how much better things were going to be, or something like that.  Now, four years later, I feel as though the country and it's path have continued in a direction that is unhealthy and will lead to worse consequences than we are currently seeing.  I love the Constitution and I love the Founding Fathers.  I love the American Dream.  I love our W.A.S.P. / Judeo-Christian heritage.  I want someone in office who loves those things, too.

Tomorrow

Tomorrow a big choice will be made. One thing that is echoed through a writing sample that I had my students complete is the unrealistic demand for "give us tons of service while lowering the cost to me." It's not just my teenagers that feel this way. I feel that we are, unfortunately, too reliant on someone else (like the government) to provide for us while not being willing to understand the cost. I feel like we've lost pride in self-sufficiency, and we refuse to tighten the purse strings when we can't afford everything we want (just look at my finances, for ex). We live in a time where we have been provided so much without having to work for it - so we don't appreciate it. We take it for granted and demand more. We're not totally evil, though. We want everyone else to have everything, too. Unfortunately, we don't have the funds (to the amount of $16 trillion of debt - a number so big that we can't really wrap our minds around it). But, never mind that. We keep getting away with over-consuming, and we don't see the consequences of that, so why should our national over-spending be a problem? We'll keep spending and demanding more, and we'll let the government take care of it and find a small group (say 1%) to be angry at.

Tomorrow feels like a big deal to me because I feel like it will tell me if I am part of a traditional minority living in a too-quickly-approaching post-America society or if there are still those who believe in the American experiment and WASP-ish ideals.

And, by the way, I support Romney.

Raspberries!

Before leaving the hospital this evening, I pulled my niece onto my lap, and she let me hug and kiss her and tell her how special she is.  Then she told me that there would be no raspberries (She likes giving those.).  I wondered if she thought it would hurt her, or something, so I said, "Maybe next time."  Then she explained that it was dark, and that's why.  So silly sometimes.

The plan is for her to go home tomorrow.  I hope that's how it goes and that she's well and happy and healed in no time.

Psychology

Today I got to visit my niece and hang out at the hospital for awhile.  The word yesterday was that she was grouchy and maybe not excited for visitors.  She must have been feelings better today.  When I walked to her room, she looked through the glass, smiled shyly, and sort of melted into her bed a little, which was cute.  I went in and hugged her, and while we talked, I said something about Buckles, her teddy bear that was there with her.  I erroneously referred to the bear as a male, and she corrected me.  She told me that Buckles didn't like it at the hospital.  Buckles wanted to be at her house.  It was interesting from a psychological standpoint to hear her tell me her feelings by attributing them to her stuffed animal. It also pulled at my heart-strings a little.  Something else that tugged at them was seeing her little body in this big hospital bed; she seems too small to be there.  I love that girl and hope her recovery continues and is speedy.

Nablopomo

Happy Nablopomo 2012.  Yes, it's that time of the year again when I try to remember to blog each day.  Hopefully I will remember and actually post all month long, so I can feel like I have accomplished something - completed some goal, regardless how silly or unimportant.  Stay tuned.  :)

Appendicitis

Today I found out that my niece had appendicitis.  My sister knew she wasn't feeling well; my niece didn't even go trick-or-treating last night, so you know it must be serious.  They went to the doctor today, and he thought she had pneumonia.  He sent them to the E.R., and they figured out that it was really what it was.  They operated and found that the appendix had ruptured (which, from what my sister said, is normally the case for children her age who get it), so she gets to spend several days in the hospital.  And I wonder - how do you keep a child who's not even 4 occupied and in okay spirits in a hospital for that long?  I know that there are other children who spend lots of time in the hospital.  :(

When I found out the news earlier today I thought about modern medicine and how grateful I am to live in the time I do.  Otherwise - well, I don't like to think about it.  I'm glad to live in a prosperous country, too, where there's access to help.