AHHHHHHHH and AAAAUUUGHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!

This is going to be a short one because I'm freaking out! I'm cleaning my apartment so Cory and Lee can come over and hang out (because I'm one of those insecure people that literally can't have guests over if there's ANY mess) and I hear crickets. Now, their numbers have increased in the last few weeks and we've been fighting them diligently. The chirping was so loud I thought the little bugger was inside (and under my bed again) so I got on all fours to try and scare it out from under there. Well he wasn't there and I realized that the sound was coming from my window. I pulled up the blinds hoping that the duct tape hadn't come off (reference an earlier blog entry {Crickets and Crime Scenes} for explanation of WHY I had to duct tape my window) and found this...

So now that they can't get IN the window they have taken residence ON the window.

There were a lot more than this... my screams scared some of them away...

I seriously don't know what I'm going to do...

In Memory of Chris

While I am not a huge fan of child development theorists, I am a firm believer in the concept of Nurture and Nature. There have been arguments of whether or not our genetics or our experiences determine our choices later in life and I have always thought it was both. That’s why you see people born to be great that fall into ruin, and people born into darkness that rise above it. I think my Christianity plays a key role in my beliefs. I know that “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” {Phillipians 4:13} and I know that he doesn’t promise that it will be an easy journey.

It is with great sadness that I write these words. Today was the funeral of a man, whom I am sad to say I did not know very well. He was not a close friend of mine. He was not a huge influence in my life. Truthfully, there are so many things that could have been minutely different in either one of our lives and we would have never met. For about a year now I have babysat his two daughters, Taylor and Victoria. And let me say that while I did not know Chris, I do know his babies and there is a lot you can tell about the parents from the way their children act.

I know that Chris was funny. Taylor has his smile and cracks the most hilarious jokes. I know that he was stubborn. More than once I’ve seen sweet little Victoria get into fights with him when she wanted her way (which always ended in ‘I love you’). I’ve saw the way he treated his wife, or should I say his queen? I could tell that when he asked me how I was doing that he really wanted to know. I could see that he was passionate. Many times I would come over to watch the girls while he went out to play soccer with his team. He had a full time job, a wife and two kids and in his downtime he didn’t sleep or rest or sit or read or talk- he played and had fellowship with friends that truly cared about him.

I saw many of those friends today. The church was full of people and the picture montage on the screen showed evidence of a life well lived. Chris worked hard and played hard. He loved his family and is leaving behind a wife and two wonderful girls that will be forever changed by the lifestyle he set in motion.

I don’t know why God took him now. There is not an answer for that because the only things I can see are the present and the past. God holds all the strings in his hand. He knew a year ago when they moved all the way from New Orleans that I would need this family in my life. He new to introduce them to my sunday school teacher, who then called me (out of all of the other girls that could have done the job) when they needed a new babysitter. God knew that I would be late for my interview with them. God knew that I would instantly love their little girls. God knew that I would have one of the best experiences of my babysitting career in their house, so how can I speculate now that he doesn’t know what he’s doing.

God knows. He cares. He was in that service today touching each person there with His quiet comforting hand. He understands our pain and He can heal us.

Chris is gone for now, but I have no doubt that one day we will see him again. I will see him reunited with Taylor and Victoria. I will see his wife, Sarah getting to tell him about how strong she will become in the next few years. Taylor will crack a joke and Victoria will show him some new dance moves.

Nurture and Nature play a big part in our lives. Taylor and Victoria have two of the best parents, so nature is taken care of. The nurturing part of the equation should be covered too. Sarah is a brave woman, who is wise and kind. I know that she will carry on and stay strong for her girls. Chris may be gone, but he won’t be forgotten. From the outpouring of love I saw in the guests at his funeral today I know that Taylor and Victoria will have no shortage of good stories to remember their father’s legacy by.

             Christopher P.

         July 14, 1971-September 22, 2012

      The Lord is the everlasting God,

    the Creator of the ends of the earth.

He will not grow tired or weary,

    and his understanding no one can fathom.

He gives strength to the weary

    and increases the power of the weak.

Even youths grow tired and weary,

    and young men stumble and fall;

but those who hope in the Lord

    will renew their strength.

They will soar on wings like eagles;

    they will run and not grow weary,

    they will walk and not be faint.

{Isaiah 40: 28-31}

Naps and Nuggets

So today is Sunday so that means church and yummy food with Cory and Shelbey! I woke up really excited, although I only had five hours of sleep.
I threw on my go-to church clothes. Nice jeans and a decent shirt, slipped on a pair a sandals, grabbed my bible and purse, left, ran back inside because I forgot makeup, ran back out and finally made it to Cory's place.
Valley Grove Baptist Church is one of the few churches that I've been in that just feels good to be in. No one is judging. No one is paying attention. No one is scrutinizingly watching, reporting back to my parents about my every move. I don't have to be the angel. I don't have to volunteer. I don't even have to act like I'm okay. I can cry and sing and heal. I can just enjoy God and worship in this wonderful place, without fear of others talking about me behind my back... because I don't know anyone there.
The message was really wonderful this morning and exactly what I needed to hear. We are currently in the process of finding a new pastor so we have guest speakers each week. This week was Glen Schmucker who talked about "God helps those who..."
At first he said that he had once believed that the sentence was finished with"...help themselves", but he now realizes that God helps those who "cannot help themselves". Thank you God for getting me up this  morning to hear that. You know exactly what to say when I'm at my lowest.
After church Cory and I went to H.E.B. (I love love love love love that store!) and bought chicken for lunch. We were going to make wings, but decided that our combined talent in cooking wasn't quite at that level yet. I do know how to make fried chicken, however and we decided to stay with that safe, yet delicious alternative.
We also went to Chicken Express and got about 30 packets of Serendipity... and that's all. I was afraid they would look at us strangely, but the guy just handed it over like it was no big deal. I guess he's used to seeing addicts like Cory come in. (I tried Serendipity for the first time today and am hooked).
It was either all the cayenne pepper we used in the batter or the smoke from the oil, but my eyes were killing me. They felt like raisins. Like sunburned raisins.
After the chicken was cooled and all of our homemade sauces completed we sat down to eat. It was so delicious! Definitely one for the cookbook :)

After that we just sat on the couch, feeling super full and really pleased in our new chef statuses.
I took Cory home around 3:45 and came back to the apartment ready for an afternoon of essay writing so that I could just hang out in the evening without being all stressed out. I laid down (my most comfortable position for writing because I can't focus when sitting up #ADHDkidproblems) and promptly fell asleep on my book.
I woke up about four hours later. My room was dark and there was drool all over my face and the library book that is due in a couple days. My life is like a movie now!? ggggrrrreeeaaaattttt....

Anyway I got up, starving and went and made dinner. I laid back down, started writing and didn't stop for about 45 minutes. The minimum was two pages and I wrote just over three. Oh yeah...
After happy dancing around my room and posting an excited message on facebook I finished editing it and sent it to my email for printing tomorrow morning.

Just a couple more short essays and I am done!!! WOOT WOOT!!

Parking and Optimus Prime

This happened last week, but a lot has happened and I forgot to post it: 

Today was an interesting, yet unorthodox day. I wouldn’t say that I learned much, other than the fact that 20 minutes is not enough time to get to class.

I woke up before my alarm went off to the loud buzzing of a text message arriving. I keep my phone on my headboard so it shakes the whole bed frame when it vibrates (Note to self: Find a new place for cell phone at night). My boss, Nichole was asking if anyone could come to work this morning because, at the daycare, they were out of ratio for children to teachers. They needed one more person in Nursery 2.

Now, I don’t have class till 11, but I needed to go to the library to find an article. Feeling guilty I thought through my options. I could go to work and skip homework (Yeah Mom, I know. The homework that I should have done on my three day weekend...) or tell Nichole that I was busy and get my stuff done.

Well, I decided to try and do both. I had thought of an idea for an article when I was going to bed last night and quickly hopped out of my warm sheets and pulled out my magazines. As an avid day care teacher and babysitter I always keep a large stack of Parent Life magazines laying around. Thank God I do because in one of them was an article that I could use for my class. Hallelujah praise the LORD!

I told Nichole that I could work till 10:30 which gave me 20 minutes to get to class. Pulling on the nearest tshirt and slashing mascara on my still groggy eyes I dashed out the door.

I went to work and it was pretty uneventful. I played with a few kids and then put them down for nap. That’s what I love about working at a daycare- the naps. While it is sometime’s hard to get kids to lay down, or calm down for that matter, I just love watching them sleep. Kids are completely different beings asleep and awake, and I love how one frustrating kiddo can turn into such a serene baby if they can get their eyes closed.

Anyway I realized that 10:30 was quickly approaching, and feeling nervous I excused myself, clocked out and ran to my car. I drove to school, praying that there would be a parking spot. I hadn’t ever gotten there that late and I knew that I might have to hike from the back parking lot.

When I got to school I felt my stomach drop. Not only were there no spots available in ANY of the commuter parking lots, but there were at least 20 cars winding in and out of the rows of all four. If you do the math that’s me against about 80 other frustrated people trying to park in spaces that DON’T EXIST.

I wrote a letter:

{Dear Tarleton,

If you would like record breaking attendance I would suggest you first make sure you have room for those students. Not only was I “invited” to “move off campus” but now I can’t even go to class because there is nowhere to park. I drove around with a CARAVAN of cars today, looking for parking spots. If someone did pull out of their spot, someone further up the line would take their place, leaving me red faced and clutching the steering wheel like it was a lifeline.

Here’s an idea- instead of paying people to sit on their butts and pick weeds why don’t you hire someone to build a parking garage. I don’t care if the campus looks pretty when I’m RUNNING TO CLASS!

If you don’t fix the parking lot (or lack thereof) you might not have record breaking attendance next semester, because all of us commuters might be inclined to go to a different school, that at least pretends to want us there.

Yours Truly,

Every commuter that was late for class}

Yeah... I’m a bit upset with the situation. And I don’t think I’m the only one. I’ve heard numerous people saying that there’s not enough room. 

If this continues I will find a way to fuse myself into a transformer. That way when I roll up to school I can just convert into a robot and walk into class without having to find a spot to park. 

Bikers and Buttheads

So I decided to ride my bike to school today. Not during the day, mind you, but tonight when it was late and no one was on the road. It took me 12 minutes to get there and 15 minutes to get back, but let me tell you folks- it was the most horrifying 27 minutes of my entire life.

There are a lot of things that can happen in 27 minutes. You can unwrap every gift under the Christmas tree, you can draw a picture, chase and armadillo, put on a skit, bake a pie or kick a can down a very long road, but in these last 27 minutes I did none of those enjoyable things.

Instead I pedaled up a very long hill, had to stop to catch my breath because I’ve misplaced my inhaler (again), fly down that very big hill (panicking all the way) and deal with very unsavory people.

What were these nincompoops doing? Well let’s just say they were acting like orifices that push out the excrement of donkeys. The first trucker (and when I say that I really do mean a very large truck that I presume was being driven by a male) came towards me and honked. 

It’s nighttime. Stephenville is dark because it’s a country town with not many street lights. I’m a wuss. And the only thing from keeping me becoming a complete organ donor is my helmet. So let’s just say that I jumped... a little...

Okay actually I jumped so hard that I had trouble keeping my bike on the road. At that point I choked it up to bad timing and cautious drivers. But by the third time it happened I realized that these jerks were just doing it to do it.

It finally got to the point where a couple cars swerved at me. I’m sorry but what part of me riding by the side of the road at night makes it okay to drive closer to me? This is Stephenville, people! You don’t have to remind me how bumpy the grass is! It’s been plowed on for generations! So don’t run me off the road- it’s not funny.

Yes, I can see your big truck. Yes, I know you’re overcompensating for something. You don’t need to be a bully to substantiate your manliness.

I can ride with no hands on my handlebars. It’s something that I’ve trained myself to do. I have even read a book while riding my bike, and if these disgustingly moronic guys (I would put money on the fact that they are plowboys) I will buy a gun and I will carry it in one hand when I ride my bike. If they come too close to me again I will go all Princess Merida on them and shoot out their tires while they’re driving. 

Autarchy and Amputees

So I feel like I'm being a complete control freak. I'm trying this crazy new "diet" which really isn't a diet but a complete and utter change in lifestyle. It's working pretty good, but with so many changes going on in my life I don't know how long I can keep it up.
Anyway, I feel like my new food choices have also affected the way that I am keeping my apartment. It's not a bad thing- it's just that I'm freaking out over every little thing that's out of place. My roommate probably hates me but I've labeled all the cabinets and divided up our space meticulously. It may be that  I'm just desperately trying to stay on track with the food stuff and if I have a messy kitchen I won't feel like cooking, so I am being a neat freak right now.
Oh well...
Also I would like to point out that I have seen more amputees this week than I have ever seen in my life. I don't know if we just have a whole lot of soldiers on our campus or what, but I would like to tip my hat to them... that is if I was wearing a hat. They'll just have to be happy with me flipping my bangs for now.

Janitors and Juice Breaks

Yum... juice. I was really thirsty so I bought some from STARBUCKS in the library :) This will probably be my only Starbucks this semester because I'm really stingy when it comes to stuff like that.

Anywho I'm sitting here drinking this wonderful blend of fruit flavored goodness when this janitor lady  passes by. I can hear her cleaning the bathroom for a few minutes when someone radio's her on her walkie talkie. I can't hear what they said but it must have been important because she yells "10-4!" and takes off running...

Oh man guys... we've got a janitorial emergency on Campus today! There's no more toilet paper on the first floor common area! AHHHHHH!!!

(P.S. Just to avoid anyone thinking that I'm demeaning her job- please remember that I was a janitor this summer and hold every right to be sarcastic when it comes to this matter. That is all).