This officially makes one month of blogging every day. So that's one month of NaBloPoMo down. Five more to go.
Today was pretty good (for a Monday). Work went by quickly and I only heard a few slightly weird things from my coworkers. The team spent most of today talking about the size of braids they preferred to wear. There are some really, really (really) strange names for braids. I don't even want to talk about it. And the girl who sits in front of me spent 5 minutes explaining in vivid detail a rash to what I can only hope was a medical professional on the other end. My skin itched for the rest of the day just thinking about it. And yes, this is the kind of stuff that passes for slightly weird with my new team.

The rest of the evening was really kind of awesome. I had Starbucks and watched Antiques Roadshow. I love that show. It's so fun to watch people's faces. And I really enjoy hearing about the history behind each object. I tried to watch another antiques related show - American Pickers. Its about 2 guys that travel the country and buy antiques from people and then take it back to their shop where they sell. Sounds interesting enough. Until I realized that they'd talk people down and then go back and sell it for 3 or 4 times the price. I know it's just business but it seems pretty shady to me. If you're going to sell a bike for $5000, you can give the guy who found it more than $1000. This probably shows why I could never run a business. I prefer Antiques Roadshow where they give you an honest assessment, and don't downplay what it's worth just to buy it from you and turn around and sell it for 400% profit.
It's admittedly a pretty naïve outlook, but I'm okay with that.

Today was a very relaxing day. I went to church (arrived on time, thank you very much) and really enjoyed every part of it. The worship team leader was out of town, and instead of having one person take over as leader, each of the team members led songs, and prayed before the songs. It was great. It's always nice to be reminded how talented your friends are. The sermon was great as well. Very thought provoking. I liked the question Pastor Scott put forth that though we say we trust God, can we say that He trusts us? (that is, trusts us to care for people as He cares for them, and work to carry out His word)

And then I napped! I love Sunday afternoon naps. Then dinner while watching The Closer with my mom. I love that show. We are working our way through all the seasons. It's so much more enjoyable when you have someone to watch the shows with.

Back to work tomorrow, on a new schedule. I start an hour earlier this month, while still working the late shift on Saturdays. That gives me one more hour before the reset of my team comes in, so hopefully I'll be able to get more studying done while it's quiet. That is, if we're all back at our assigned desks instead of crowded on the second floor.

I'm really kind of glad this day is over. I work the late shift on Saturdays, so I showed up at work just in time to walk in on the end of a fire drill. And by walk in, I mean literally walk in. I went in the side entrance I normally used and all the fire alarms were going off. Um, why wasn't that entrance blocked? Hopefully if it had been a real emergency someone would think to cover all the entrances. Then I found that the entire first floor was shut down, so everyone would be sitting on the second floor. I had to try 3 different desks before I found one that would work. And it was covered in dust (and hair) so I had to clean it first. And it was covered in little statues bearing things like The Lord's Prayer and different scriptures. Located right in front of that were 2 books with titles like The B**** Is Back.  I have to admit I looked through them. My eye is still twitching. I'm so confused, and I think she was too.

First week of a new team, and I am feeling distinctly out of place. On my old team I felt like just that - a member of a team. We didn't always get along, but it was comfortable to sit with them for 8 hours (or more) a day. But on my new team I haven't found my groove yet. I don't have a lot in common with any of my team members, and I'm kind of isolated because of where my desk is positioned. It doesn't help that my manager has decided that since I'm quiet I must be "the good one." So now they think I'm really dedicated to my work, or something. And that is just laughable. Sure I want to do a good job, but mostly because it makes my life easier if I'm not always having to have "job performance discussions." My manager also mentioned that she would be on vacation for the first week of March, and after everyone started joking about slacking off she said "Amanda will tell me what y'all did." Um. What? I'm just trying to mind my own business, not anyoneelse's. I will go all Sergeant Schultz in a heartbeat.

The good news is I get a lot of reading done for school. And soon when I start studying for the GRE and PRAXIS II, I'll be able to concentrate without trying to be sociable.

For those unsure about the Sergeant Schultz reference:

Not going to write much tonight so I can go to bed early. Woot! I'm exhausted today and not sure why. I'm getting the same amount of sleep on average, but some days I'm more tired than others. Part of it is probably because since I've switched to diet drinks I drink less soda, and therefore less caffeine.

It's also time for my weekly check-in on Weight Watchers. Today makes 2 weeks. I lost one pound this week. Which doesn't sound like much, but after losing 6 last week I was prepared not to lose as much this week. According to the program, a healthy rate is 5 pounds every 2 weeks. So I'm doing well, I'd say. And all this before I've added regular exercise.

I'm also excited because things are starting to come together for graduate school. I had to do a whole lot of waiting and now everything feels like it's happening at once. Or at least between now and May. If I get everything settled with admissions before the end of May I can relax all summer, aside from work anyway. But let's face it, if you know you'll be leaving a job soon you don't exactly have to horde vacation time and sick days anymore.

Spent my day doing some more painting at the Food Pantry. This time it was a nice pale yellow shade. The ceiling needed to be painted in this area so I soon had splatters of paint everywhere. I felt fine at the time, but of course now all those under-used muscle groups have decided to show their displeasure. It was a really good upper body workout, but now my arms are feeling a little noodle-y. And I just hurt myself sneezing because the muscles in my neck and chest are so sore.

Being covered in splatters of yellow paint didn't stop me from going through the Starbucks drive-through. The girl working the window guessed paint-balling, which would've been a better story. Though I'd probably be in way more pain now.

I've decided to count all the painting and stuff as #27 on The List, which is Find a cause I believe in and actively participate. (donate time and money)I think all the painting counts as active participation. And I know I'll be helping set it up and occasionally helping when it opens. When your mom and step-dad run it, it's pretty much a given that you'll be involved. (at least in this family) Also, the company I work for encourages it's employees to give to the United Way. They have it set up where they will take money from your check and give it directly to the United Way. And then the United Way allows you to choose where your money goes if you have a preference. I chose the Northwest Louisiana Food Bank, which is where the church's Food Pantry gets stock. I think that should count as giving money to a cause I believe in.
 See? I did have point with all that rambling.

Also, speaking of The List, I can count #25 as done. I have attempted to donate blood 6 times in a row. I had to add the attempted because I was often turned down because of low iron levels. In this case I think it's the thought that counts.

Okay. Let me just start by asking do you have any idea how many things a knee can bump into or even just brush up against during a day? Lots, okay? Lots of things. Beginning and ending with pants legs. I learned this first hand today. The bruise has turned a lovely shade of purple, somewhere in the eggplant family. I'd post a picture but they don't really do it justice. And my legs are pasty white a lovely alabaster.

I'm feeling really tired and beat up, not only because I'm still sore from falling but also because I donated blood today. I like to give blood because it's an easy, quick way to feel like I'm helping. But there was a new girl. Which should really say it all, but you miss out on some funny jokes that way. So, she's new. And she's nervous. And she's trying to take my blood pressure, but has the cuff practically on my shoulder blade. My arms aren't exactly rail thin here, so you're not helping anyone if you try to wrap that thing around the biggest part. So she attempts to take my blood pressure 4 times (that's 2 on each arm for those following along at home) and still can't do it. Meanwhile, I'm seeing spots and my fingers are tingling because the cuff gets so tight. There's also tiny little red dots on the insides of my elbows. And this is all before the needles come out. Finally she asks for help and a new person comes and repositions the cuff on the correct place on my arm and gets a reading the first time. Amazing. At least they didn't have the new girl sticking people.

The girl who did actually puncture me was very nice but used 2 swabs of that iodine stuff on the inside of my elbow. It was dripping down the side of my arm. Lovely. Then I guess she had a little trouble keeping her eye on the vein because she flipped the cylindrical swab stick around and pressed down on my arm until there was a tiny circular indention (in my skin!) to "mark her place." I almost walked out. But after the whole blood pressure thing, and then my iron actually being high enough to donate I felt obligated to stay. Plus they had me in that reclining chair thing and those things are really quite comfy.

Then, because apparently the lite rock power ballad playing on the radio reminded her of it somehow, she showed us her vacation pictures. Well, just the one, really. That she was very proud of. She was lying on the beach in a deck chair and took a picture of the beach from that point of view. So you see her legs stretched out and her feet. It really was kind of neat, but she showed it to every single person on the bus and kept saying, "doesn't it look like a corona commercial?" I'm pretty sure it's against the rules to strap someone to a chair, stick a needle in them and then show them your vacation pictures on top of everything.

Add in the fact there was a burst pipe or something at work and the downstairs offices (where I've just relocated) were starting to flood and my day was awesome.

How was yours?

Finally got to see The King's Speech. Now I understand all the Oscar buzz. I loved it. I was really impressed with Colin Firth. But we all know that I am generally impressed with Colin Firth. But this time it is completely unbiased. Turns out it is possible to make Colin Firth more adorable - just add a stutter. And Helena Bonham Carter and Geoffrey Rush were great as well. I like that Helena Bonham Carter brings a little quirkiness to every role. And Winston Churchill! Love him, and how great the portrayal was of him in this movie. I also really like the incorporation of actual newsreel footage. I hope I haven't given anything away here. I'm pretty sure I didn't reveal anything.

Watching this film really made want to go read up on the history of the current royal family. I'm fairly sure that Helen Bonham Carter's character is who they called the Queen Mother. I think she died only a few years ago. It's always interesting to me to realize how it wasn't that long ago that it all happened. I read about World War II and it seems so long ago, but it really was only a few years ago. I always forget that.

Also of note this evening: I managed to fall up the stairs. Up. The Stairs. Because I'm talented. I was going up to my seat and my foot didn't quite clear the edge of the stair. And down I went. There's now a lovely purple bruise on my knee, and it's doing this slightly worrying swelling thing. I've got ice on it now, so hopefully that will help. I was most unhappy about the fact that the popcorn literally went flying and I spilled most of it. I even found some in my purse as we were leaving. So Mama and I were left with half a bag between us. It turned out to be plenty, but it's the principle of the thing! Gravity, pick on me if you must, just leave popcorn out of it.

I also sat at my new desk today. It was - let's call it interesting. I just need to get used to new people. I spent 2 years seeing the same people over and over again. I got used to all their quirks - at least to the point that I could usually either ignore them or mock them (lovingly, of course) on the internet. But now I just need to get used to a whole new group of people. Luckily my direct neighbors seem willing to just sit quietly and not share their life story with me. I guess we'll see what tomorrow brings.

And now in honor of The King's Speech and Winston Churchill, who was a small but memorable part in the movie, I leave you with a quote from Churchill himself:
Success is going from failure to failure without a loss of enthusiam.

So. Tax refunds are kind of awesome, aren't they? I just found out how much mine will be this year. I'm still smiling. Hopefully it'll all add up to mean I can take some time off before graduate school in September.

Anyway, I have been working on my classes all weekend. Online classes are (in my opinion) even more effort than actual classes. So many discussion board posts! Luckily, I am particularly qualified in making up entire paragraphs that sound passably intelligent but don't actually mean anything. I was an English major, after all.

Tomorrow starts my new team. I hope to have more stories for everyone. How many times can I talk about the guy who wouldn't shut up? He constantly talked about how awesome he was in comparison to the rest of us. And seemed convinced that he was really very charming.
Or the guy who lied constantly, each lie more outlandish than the next? Build racecars on the weekend, do you? Design rollercoasters in Texas? Yeah, I totally bought all of those stories.

I will NOT be missing those particular coworkers.

I'm afraid this post is going to be very short. I had to work the late shift today, and I've just gotten home. I'm trying not to stay up any later than I have to, so I avoid sleeping the day away. Sunday afternoon naps always ruin my sleep on Monday. It's a vicious cycle.

So I'm off to try and force myself to sleep. I just hope I don't dream of taking calls. I don't even want to take calls while I'm at work.

I'm on the verge of a moderately big change at work. I came back on Thursday after my day off to discover that the new Associate Director of the center had come in and decided to "shake things up." Her way of shaking things up was to randomly reassign people to knew teams. Insanity. I'm really very bummed about leaving my team. I don't think it's possible to spend 40 hours a week with people for 2 years and not get a little attached. Plus, it's very comfortable. I know what to expect. In fact, we're all so stuck in a rut sometimes I can listen to the people around me and predict what they'll say before they say it. Even though our calls aren't scripted, everyone seems to come up with a script on their own. Maybe the shake up isn't such a bad thing. Most of the people that are moving raised a huge fuss about the whole thing. I guess they're, like, invested in this job or something. I'm just basically trying to make it through this semester so I can go to Graduate School full time in the fall. As long as they pay me so I can pay tuition, I don't care where I sit. I am very blessed though, that my new manager is really very nice. She's very outgoing and I'm pretty sure as long as I do my job and don't insult the Saints I should be good. So, I spent my day (okay, not the whole day. I had to actually work during most of it) packing up my desk. A lot of crap can accumulate in 2 and half years. I ended up throwing most of it away - I had notebooks full of stuff from my training class that I never even looked at after it was over. It feels almost like I'm starting a new job. Even though my responsibilities are the same everything else has changed: my location, my coworkers, my manager. I'm surprising myself by really looking forward to a fresh start.

I'm less surprised to find that I'm looking forward to moving away from a few of my overly-talkative coworkers.

Okay, today is one week of weight watchers for me. I haven't said anything before because I've had some false starts with Weight Watchers and other "programs." You know how it goes, Monday morning you're all excited and determined and then by Thurday you're back in the front row of Carbapalooza. ...is that just me? I had a false start last week - I'd intended to start on Monday of last week. But then came the ice and it's hard to start watching what you eat when you're stuck in the house with nothing but fries and cheese and sour cream and a creative way to combine them.
So, Lesson 1 of Weight Watchers (or any eating plan. ...Or any life change, really): Prepare ahead of time. You can't wing it.
Anyway, now I'm prepared with appropriate food and everything I bought recently has it's points marked on it. Also, there's an app for it. (Of course) Anyway, once I was Prepared, I started on last Thursday. It's been easier than I thought it would be so far. I debated on saying anything, I usually like to keep these sorts of things private, but I've decided to use this as a form of accountability.
Besides, we're all friends here.

Oh, and I lost 6 pounds in five days. (how was that for nonchalence? I've been practicing since I burst into Mama's room and declared it yesterday morning.)

Man, I am exhausted. But at least today it's not lack of sleep or an overall tired feeling, it's because I did a lot of physical work. I helped my mom paint walls at what will one day soon be the home of the Food Pantry at Life Church. The old building where it was housed (known as The Blue House) was torn down to make way for the Annex. And now the Food Pantry is moving to what once was the Youth House. Most of the colors on the wall are great, but there was one major wall that was painted black. So we're repainting. Thankfully someone already primed it with white paint, so we just had to go in with the new color.
Now this may sound odd, but I really love painting walls. I find it very relaxing. Seriously. And it's a great workout, what with all the reaching and the stretching and bending. Got a wall to paint? I'm your girl. Except for taping off the floor and ceiling. I hate that part. Very tedious work.
We did the first coat today and will be finishing it up soon.

Have some pictures!

Close up of sign my mom made.

It's nice to end the day feeling like you accomplished something.

Well. I had very good intentions about going to bed early. But then I didn't get home until nearly 9 tonight and time just seems to get away from me. I have to give myself a certain amount of time between work and going to sleep, otherwise I dream about taking calls. And then I wake up even less rested and more stressed out than usual. Also, I get angry because the last thing I want to do away from work is think about work. Or talk on the phone, even if it is in my dreams. I'd rather be dreaming about having tea with Colin Firth. ...or you know, something less specific. Whatever.

Speaking of Colin Firth, I really want to see The King's Speech. This doesn't have anything to do with anything else I've been talking about - except Colin Firth. And really, isn't any sentence improved with a little Colin Firth? (I've said Colin Firth a whole bunch of times in this one little paragraph. Colin Firth)

Also! Turns out my car is okay! We though I might need a new battery (good call, Court!) but Bobby cleaned the cable thingys off and now apparently it's running. Yay!

the problem with taking a nap Sunday afternoon to make up for not being able to sleep on Saturday night is that I can't sleep on Sunday night! Having to work late on only one night a week is really throwing off my sleep schedule. So now I'm going to try to go to bed extra early tonight, in an attempt to make up for the hours (HOURS!!) I just lay in bed staring at the ceiling. Let's face it, even with the a ceiling fan there's a limit to the entertainment value here.
I've also severely limited my caffiene intake today. Which meant I was yawning all through work, but hopefully I won't be up all night tonight.
Let's see, shall we?
Look at me, I'm super excited about going to bed early. It's kind of sad, really.

Well. My car won't start. I should have known something like this would happen, because I recently got a bonus at work and my savings account is looking pretty good. Though it could be worse - I could not have the money to pay for it. For those who are wondering - when I try to start my car it is silent while I'm turning the key, then after the ignition is on it makes this crazy clicking sound. And then the lights on the dashboard come on and start blinking like they're at a rave. ...I guess. I don't really know what goes on at a rave. But I'm assuming there are lots of flashing lights. Look, not all similes can be perfect.

More Introductory post fun! The same art teacher that asked about pets has now asked "What is your favorite and least favorite word." I made something up because I didn't want to sound like I was making something up. My favorite word (right now) is onomatopoeia, because it's super fun to say. And it's a long complicated word for a seriously simple concept. But unless you know me it sounds like I just picked a word out of the dictionary. So because I'd just finished watching the end of Pride and Prejudice (the Keira Knightley one) I chose incandescent. Also fun to say. And for some reason it makes me think of candles in mason jars.

I also couldn't say my actual least favorite word because it's not fit for polite company, though most people don't realize it. Let's just say it's a commonly used slang for breast. And starts with a T. I just hate the word. I hate the way it sounds and it has always seemed somehow slightly derogatory. Like it's shameful. I don't know, okay, it's a thing for me.
Anyway. Can't put that in a classroom discussion board. So, I choose the word squelch. Because, c'mon. It sounds gross. Nothing good ever squelches.

So I posted these words and slightly toned down reasons why I liked them. And what do my classmates choose? Hate because "no one should every use that word" and taxes. And the favorites? Love and freedom. Clearly I overthought this.

I almost forgot to blog! The horror! I've been really busy with school stuff. The semester started today and I'm taking classes online at BPCC. I need to raise my GPA just a smidge so I can get unconditional acceptance to the Master of Education program at Tech. And the easiest (cheapest) way to do that is to take classes at BPCC. So I loaded up on classes that sounded like they might be interesting, and not involve serious amounts of effort. Or math, which requires serious amounts of effort and calls to Colorado. So now I am officially enrolled in Louisiana History, which I'm looking forward to a) because I love history and b) I think it'll be the easiest to do well in. I'm also taking Anthropology, which sounds interesting. At least the very little I know about it. Anyway, isn't Bones some sort of anthropologist? Can't be all bad then, can it? Then there's Art History, which I've already taken once at LSUS, but once again, seemed like it wouldn't require me to learn new things. Also, it contains the word history. So, fingers crossed. The last class I'm enrolled in is Humanities. I have no idea what it entails. Seriously, no idea. But it was available online and didn't involved words like fractions, square root, periodic table, or physical activity. Also, I'm a human. I'm already ahead of the game. (ba dum bum. I'm here all week, folks)
So far my first assignment in every class has been to post an Introduction Post on the message boards. It should come as no surprise to anyone that I worked a little copy and paste magic there. C'mon. It's not like my life story changed as I was clicking on the different classes. Everytime I'm tempted to make stuff up. "My name is Amanda. I was born in Yugoslavia. I have no sense of smell." At least it would liven things up a bit.
One girl posted about her pets and said "I have 4 goldfish that I raised from a baby." ...I just find that sentence fascinating. How long is a goldfish a baby? How can you tell if it's a baby? I'll be honest with you, I'm picturing late night feedings one night and a bar mitzvah the next.

At least these discussions will give me something to write about on this thing.

UGH. So I got like 4 hours of sleep last night. I just lay in bed trying convince myself I was sleepy. Turns out staring at the ceiling going, "sleeeeeeeep. sleeeeeeeeeeeeeeep. sleeeeeeEEEEEEeeeeEEEEp" is not at all effective. The sleep I actually did get was punctuated tossing and turning. This = very cranky Amanda. Not great when one works in customer service.

And now I am sitting here listening to He's Just Not That Into You playing in the kitchen, thinking about how often relationships turn both men and women into gibbering morons. Of course, this is fictional so it's probably not cool to make generalizations based on this movie, but I am.
So there ya go. Also, I just really like pretty much the entire cast. Except Scarlett Johansson. Something about her rubs me the wrong way.

I've been sitting her for 20 minutes trying to think of something to write.

I got nothing.
No wait. Yeah, still nothing.
Here, have a picture of a funny cat:

The following Unsent Letter is dedicated to a special coworker. It's entitled:
GO HOME PHLEGMY!

Seriously, I'm sorry you're feeling bad. But I really don't need you germing up the office. These windows don't open. We're sharing the same recycled air here. And I do NOT want to breathe in whatever mutant germ has caused you to make that sound. It sounds like one of those cars in the old Disney cartoons is at the desk beside me, coughing and sputtering. Not to mention the insessant sniffling. Blow your nose, dude. BUT NOT IN HERE, GROSS.
And now comes the spitting. That's right, the spitting. Into a doubled up Walmart bag sitting on the floor. That's not sanitary. Two WalMart bags is not a sufficient buffer between your mucus and the rest of the world. Seriously. Biological warfare is prohibited by the Geneva Convention, so you and your bag'o'mucus should be at home. Where you can keep your germs close by.

GO HOME. GOHOMEGOHOMEGOHOOOOOME.
Oh, and Feel better!
amanda

Okay. Had to fix the previous post - those pictures just weren't lining up like they were supposed to. It made very little sense. I had an unofficial self-designated snow day today. I planned to go to work but my doors were frozen shut and I had nothing to scrap the ice off my windshield with so I gave up. And called in. Last year I fought my way through snow and ice and showed up to work only to find out that 90% of the employees (including my manager) had called in. Lesson learned.

But now it's back to work as usual tomorrow. I should probably do some laundry or something instead of just sitting here watching Veronica Mars on Netflix.

Today has been a very laid back day for me. I basically just lounged around in my pajamas eating 4-layer bean dip. I know, I know I missing three layers. But I don't like olives. Or guacamole. ...what's the other layer? Something unappetizing, clearly, or I would be eating it right now.

I have been trying to work on The List, doing little things that can be done at my desk. Like memorizing the Presidents in order. So far I can name the first 10. Tomorrow I'll work my way to 20. I made myself flashcards, because I'm seriously nerdy sometimes.

Also! It snowed! ...sorta. For about 20 minutes. But I'm hoping that's enough to get me out of work tomorrow. I sent Courtney a picture of the snow cause I was all excited. It looked like this:

She sent one back that said: Snowing here too. It looked like this:






Now that's a snow day. Here, anyway. Probably just a Sunday there. By the way, the large expanse of white beyond the tree? Yeah, that's a lake. Bet she still has to go to work tomorrow, though. Those mountain states have to work hard for their snow days.

Okay! I blogged for the day. Now I can go back to watching Revenge of the Bridesmaids on Netflix. Love that Raven-Symone!

Y'all. I'm so tired. Always, always tired. I think I need vitamins. Or possibly a coffee fairy. Is it weird that in my head the next logical step after vitamins is a fairy that provides coffee on demand? Seems about right to me.

I'm both hoping for a snow day and trying not to get my hopes up, all at same time. Once again, I think that logic only works in my head.

Okay, I have no more thoughts. Time to sleep.

Look, I'm posting daily, they can't all be winners.

Okay. I don't want to alarm anyone, but I think my life turned into a musical when I wasn't looking. People keep bursting into song around me. Like, everywhere. There are people are work that sing at random intervals throughout the day. Usually, it's songs but today one girl kept repeating what peole said in song. (yes, it was just about as annoying as it sounds. No, wait. It was even more annoying than it sounds.) But people sing at work all the time, so while it's confusing it wasn't usual. But then! At the store there was someone singing loudly as they walked down the aisle. And then a few minutes later, I walked past a woman who started singing under her breath.
But wait! There's more. And these I have a witness to. While eating at Cracker Barrell the man at the table behind me started singing along to a Garth Brooks song (which made me sing along, because c'mon, it's Friends in Low Places. It's like a biological imperative to sing along to that song) AND THEN a waitress walked by about 10 minutes later singing along to another song.
Remember that part in Enchanted when every starts singing and McDreamy is totally confused. That's me. Only there's no dancing (so far) and no one has actually been able to carry a tune like the crowd in Enchanted.
So all in all it's been a very surreal day. So if you happen to see me and feel the need to burst into song, feel free. Chances are you won't be the first.

I spent my day be stalked by a song. How was your day?

Seriously, the song Billionaire followed me around today. A seemingly innocent tweet made me think of it. And of course, it immediately got stuck in my head. So, I did what any reasonable person would do - I shared it. Why should I be the only one randomly humming lyrics I only kind of know?
Just when I'd finally gotten it out of my head when it came back to haunt me again. Someone had left their cellphone on in the office and it chose that exact moment to go off - their ringtone? You guessed it - Billionaire. So of course it gets stuck in my head again. But this time I wasn't the only one - the entire right side of the office kept breaking into song off and on for the rest of the day. Sometimes more than one person would start singing, and we'd all join in. (It was a slow day, as I'm sure you've guessed) Once again proving that misery loves company, I thoughtfully tweeted about it, thus shoving it into the brain of everyone who follows me. You're welcome, guys.

Funny sidenote: my brain sings the edited version of the song. So while it was annoying, I wasn't randomly humming profanity. Always a plus.

Instead of a post today we'll be having a new Unsent Letter. You can find the rest here: Letters to An Unsuspecting Public It's been a while since I updated. It's hard to be inspired at work. Most of my letters are: Dear Customers, STOP CALLING ME AND ASKING STUPID QUESTIONS. Hopefully I'll have more soon.

Dear Local Companies,

I know you are proud of your kids. And you think that they are just the cutest thing ever and are destined for fame and fortune. I'm not going to argue with you. I know a losing battle when I see one. This is my point: in spite of Junior's obvious talent, there is no need to put him in the commercial for your business. Seriously, these kids are everywhere. Some are in suits, some are rapping, I really think that one commericial is just a kid crying run through that AutoTune app. See, as cute as the Little Darlings are, I DON'T WANT TO BUY STUFF FROM THEM. Especially not big ticket items like cars and washing machines.
Maybe that's just me.

Don't Even Get Me Started on those LaRue's commercials,
amanda


For those of you not familiar with the LaRue's commercial, you can seem them in all their glory here:

OVERHEARD AT WORK TODAY: "Yeah, that's where the super mutants were hanging out. Too bad I only had my machete."

I sincerely hope they were talking about a video game. What with the birds falling out of the sky and the dead fish, supermutants sounds like the next step. ...well, maybe you'd have to skip a few steps but it's definitely down the line!

...anyway.

Time to talk about another part of the list that I've accomplished! I have to admit this one has been my favorite so far - #67 Visit Washington DC. In September Courtney and I met up in Maryland and spent 2 full days in Washington, DC. It was so much fun. Seriously, it was just so awesome. I don't think I've walked that much in such a short time before. There were so many things to see - everything was so much bigger in person. And, of course, because it was me and Courtney we spent most of the time laughing.
...except for that last day when I got a little cranky. (sorry, Court)

First came the ride on the Metro, where we sat across from a homeless guy taking a nap. I felt very grownup. :) I loved the Metro, it was remarkably clean. I think if it was in Shreveport, it would have been kind of disgusting. I definitely liked it better than driving everywhere. Riding the Metro counts as #84: riding public transportation.
Also being checked off the public transportation: a bus! Not just any bus - a double decker bus. We sat on the top level, of course. We made friends with other passengers and danced to the music from the cars on the road.

Best part about the top level? You can take pictures of the all the cool stuff without actually getting off the bus.

This is a picture of an awesome statue thingy right outside Union Station where we caught the bus. In the background you can see a bus similar to the one we were on at the time.

First stop was the Library of Congress. (otherwise knows as The Mothership)
.

We didn't get to actually see any books up close, but we peered through the window - like hungry orphans looking in a restaurant in a Dickens novel. ...not that we were hungry. Or orphans. Or that ever happened in a Dickens novel. We did get a great picture through the glass



Okay, I have loads more pictures. That's just the first stop, after all. But I'm very tired. And I have 27 more days to fill this month.

Day 3! And it's technically before midnight! Go me. I have been busy writing letters to penpals all day. It's really fun. I have a penpal in New Zealand (Hi Justine!) and one in the Phillipines (Hi Louise!) plus one in New York (Hi Kerry!) and a new penpal in Budapest (Hi Edit!) I found them all through PostCrossing.com, which was part of The List (of course, what isn't on that thing?) It's so fun to hear about everyday life in other countries. Plus I get something to keep my mind off the repetitiveness of work. Now I just have to remember to actually send the letters. You'd think that'd be the easy part, since I could mail them from the office, but no.
The main point of PostCrossing.com is not to find penpals, it's to exchange post cards. It goes like this: you sign up with your name and address and are assigned a random name and address from the site. Then when you send your post card, your name is given to a random member of the site. So far I've received postcards from Thailand, England, Italy, Scandinavia - just to name a few! And each postcard has a little note saying hello. It's a great way to brighten your day. I've even found new friends online - like my new twitter friend @VABookworm87.

So. To sum up: PostCrossing.com = awesome.
And you should give it a try.

Quote of the Day: ‎"Don't be afraid to scrape the paint off and try again" Bob Ross (yeah, that painter with 'fro and the happy trees)

Okay, well. I almost failed that NaBloPoMo thing on the second day. But I'm posting before I sleep, so I'm calling this a win.

Today I've been thinking about this quote:
We spend January 1 walking through our lives, room by room, drawing up a list of work to be done, cracks to be patched. Maybe this year, to balance the list, we ought to walk through the rooms of our lives... not looking for flaws, but for potential. (Ellen Goodman)
Which was posted on facebook by Rikki Gee, and then part of a video shown at church today. The sermon today also really makes me think about not focusing on the what hasn't gone the way I thought it would, and instead focusing on the potential that I have to shape my own life.

It's such a timely message, because at this time of year I have the tendancy to look around and think "Wow, this is not where I thought I'd be 5 years after graduating." But instead I'm choosing to focus on what can and will be, instead of what might have been.

Also, I really, really hate pinky rings. Slightly off subject, I know, but that's just something I need to get out there. It's totally irrational, but I just am totally irked by them. If I see someone wearing a pinky ring in a movie or TV show it will just totally take me out of the movie because I'm busy thinking "why a pinky ring? of all the fingers to wear a ring, why the pinky?" And then I miss crucial plot points.

Okay! First post of 2011! I seem to just update this thing every 6 months. But now because of The List, I'll be posting every day for 6 months. Number 19 is participate in National Blog Post Month (NaBloPoMo) for 6 months. And since I've only got 10 months left before the deadline of The List, that means I'll have to shoot for 6 months in a row. The official site says that NaBloPoMo is "Essentially, it's a group of people who have committed to updating their blogs once a day for an entire month." So. There you have it. Six months of daily updates. Probably won't be too interesting, but it'll be done.

I guess I should update on The List. I was able to get a lot of things done but not as many as I'd have liked. I'm pretty much resigned to not doing everything on The List, but that'll give me something to put on the next version. Somethings I've just given up on. Actually, just one thing is definitely not going to get down - #18 which was participate in National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo). That just wasn't going to happen. 50,000 words in 30 days? Of fiction? Seriously? I think not. This blog posting thing is much more my style. At least, I hope it is.

Okay. I'm all blogged out for the night. And even though it's technically after midnight I'm counting this as January 1st. One done, 179 to go.