Its been awhile

Work can not be any crazier...finals are next week...among other things have caused a delay in posting in awhile! I am so excite though because we have taken a giant leap forward in our household yesterday and we now have HIGH SPEED INTERNET. No more AOL or dialing up to get online! I cannot express how happy I am. I also got DVR on my TV in my room but I have been trying to catch up on everything on the internet that I have been missing out on that my other soon-to-be addiction has taken a back seat.
I wanted to add a second act to my play in this blog. It happened this morning and if only I had a camera. Here goes nothing:

Scene 2
The office is just opening up. Elizabeth beats Janet* into the office and is grabbing her keys when Janet speaks.

Janet: "I will unlock everything and you do everything eles." (quick note: I am not making this part up or anything else that goes on. These words actually came out of her mouth).
Elizabeth turns around and throws keys back in bag. She starts signing into a computer and gathering varies papers. Janet has still not unlocked door Elizabeth needs to get in to.

Elizabeth: "Is it okay if I unlock this door?" said in a sarcastic tone that is meant to be heard.

Janet: "Oh yeah."

Elizabeth returns to her bag to retrieve her keys. Janet continues to take her time unlocking the 8 cabinets that she needs to. Elizabeth starts all the workstations up, records the header for the VCR tape, supplies the workstations with pencils, counts out the needed supply of scratch paper, and prepares the daily rosters. Before she is about done, Janet speaks.

Janet: "Do you want to unlock the rest of the doors since you have your keys out?"

Elizabeth's inner voice speaks

"Oh, you mean do what I was going to do in the first place when I actually had my keys out for the FIRST time. And now that I have the office pretty much opened you can take a seat and think of how else you are going to annoy me today."

It was a great start to the day.

My life so far today...

Wanted to share a quick quote, from my favorite person in the world (the spawn of Satan):

"Unlike you, I don't have the time to do that."

I cant make this stuff up!

I also wanted to make note of a story I just read on CNN about an ape in Iowa. It was in the Offbeat news but this was my favorite part:

Savage-Rumbaugh said she explained the danger of such mischief and Panbanisha promised not to do it again.

Panbanisha is the name of the ape. I know apes are probably the next step down from humans (right before Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes off-spring) but can you imagine telling an ape..."no..no...we dont touch the fire alarms. bad Panbanisha...you are grounded!" Just a thought!

The queen of procrastination

(Editors Note: I finished this over two days and I think I was on a sugar high for the first half. I am over the situation and taking the energy to fix it is not on the agenda today! Happy Friday!)
Working full-time and going to school should never happen at the same time. But in my case, they do happen at the same time and I am learning to deal with that...building another bridge and I am moving on! Since I have been leaving all my school work until the "day of" I have had to become creative in making sure I get the assignment(s) done. Its been somewhat tricky since it is a creative writing class and a lot of stuff requires printing out and so forth ("what, we arent supposed to use the office printer for personal use...my bad!"). Our last assignment was somewhat difficult. We had to read an essay...I know, I have it really bad. The hard part was the fact that the essay was a-billion pages (okay 30) and I shutter whenever I am forced to read instead of by choice. If the assignment was to pick any Harry Potter book and read it. I would have that done in like no time!
To get back to my point...I didnt get my reading done on schedule as I had planned. I thought I could finish it over lunch but my brother dropped by and I guess I just had to take him out to lunch. I was then left with about an hour after work. I wouldnt normally care but there was a hint that he might have a quiz and we were supposed to REALLY read the essay and understand every word. I even bought a small dictionary so I could look up the words. Well I thought I would run through the Jimmy Johns drive-through and grab some dinner and I would have time to read while I was in line because the Omaha location takes FOREVER. So there I was reading and I came across some words I didnt know so I pulled out my dictionary and slowly pulled up to the window. The employee didnt come to the window right away so I continued to read and I guess I didnt hear him open the window because the next thing I hear is:
"Reading a Webster, huh?" He totally caught me looking at the dictionary and totally thought I was reading it. I couldnt stop laughing.

Cant....handle...anymore...news!!

I can't believe the amount of 'breaking news' that has been taking place over the past couple days. Here is my breakdown:

1. Pete Rickets did not win.
2. Pete Rickets did not win. (okay I will stop..it just feels so good to say that!)
3. The election results were better than I excepted. I am glad that a fresh set of faces is making its way to Washington and maybe some positive changes will start to happen. I think how the election results are coming out, one can tell that a vast majority of people are not happy! I don't want to get too political but I think its going to be interesting to watch the upcoming months.
4. Rumsfeld stepping down today was a shock! I don't think we have seen the last of those kind of changes!
5. Something not political: BRITNEY is filed for divorce. Im sure everyone saw that coming up with everything else that has been going on...I haven't been keeping up my celebrity gossip.

Not much else to report ( I don't think I can top number #5!). Work has been uber crazy plus school and trying to finish the mess I started in the bathroom at home is enough to drive anyone mad!

NOOOOOOOOOOOO!!

One of my goals was to be on this show before he retires...I guess I better hurry!!!

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20061031/ap_en_tv/tv_bob_barker_retires

A Play

"Something that could have been brought to my attention yesterday"
A Play by: Elizabeth
Starring:

Elizabeth- As Herself

Janet - The evil one (you know who!)

Setting: Two females in an office setting. Janet being aged by bitterness appears to be loud and bossy. Elizabeth avoids all eye contact in fear that Satan might actually look back at her)

Janet: I'm going to let you go through the boxes since you opened them. (whispers to audience: So I can print off puzzles and pretend to be busy, with a sinister laugh)
Elizabeth: (Enters the room to find two boxes full of tests to count out. Great effort is shown removing all the sealed exams. Counts all books. Soft swear words are used. Then TIGHTLY seals up both boxes with large amounts of tape. Strains still recovering knee and back putting the boxes in their secure locations.) Janet, do I open the answer packets to check?
Janet: Yes. You should also check the number on the answer sheet with the number on the book, to make sure they match.
Elizabeth: (A blank expression, lost for words) Oh...
Janet: Did you already seal the boxes (does not give time for Elizabeth to answer) OH I can see you did. Wow you really sealed those up. You have to check the numbers because they have been known to give up the wrong keys.
Elizabeth: I didn't realize...
(Janet cuts Elizabeth off again)
Janet: Dont you usually do that?
Elizabeth: I have never opened this particular test before and counted everything. I wish someone would have told me.
Janet: You are going to have to open the box and check.
(If possible, see if fumes can appear to becoming out of Elizabeth's head. Time passes.)
(Janet re-enters)
Janet: You only need to put a small piece of tape across the answers envelope....Oh i can see you already put a lot on there. But I guess that is okay.
(Elizabeth speaks to audience only) Again, something that you could have told me yesterday...(Fumes should still be coming out of her head.)

The End

The not-so happy couple

So I was looking through the journalstar.com's Celebration section, you know for inspiration and came across this happy couple. (Please dont hate me if this is someone you know!)

I dont want to be mean, but do you seriously think that this was the best choice for the paper. I just see it as a glimpse into the future. Just a thought!

Arthur family conversations over dinner

Me: I am already worried about my next doctors appointment. He said that I need to have x-rays taken again and its going to be a hassle. Im worried about what I am going to wear because you cant wear anything metal...and I am coming from work.

My Dad: Well, maybe you should wear something see-through.

Only in my family...

Didnt think I could beat the "Table incident" did you? well I did....

I finally feel that I have an actual good reason to quit my job. I have once again embarrassed myself but have gone beyond what I think I can handle. Refresh yourself with the "Table Incident" if you have forgotten.
So I had to take the placement exams down to the basement this morning to have them scanned and stopped at the restroom on the way, in the basement. I got up to the counter and waited while all the exams were counted. I kind of felt like my skirt wasn't adjusted right and I played with it for a minute and felt I fixed the problem. I then walked down two long hallways, up the elevator and across the lobby of the Administration building and was like 5 ft from my office when another secretary yelled from her office...Mam, Mam. I turned around and she told me that my shirt was caught in my underwear. I think my face drained all the color out of it and I could pull it out fast enough while trying to run away in shame. I thanked her really fast and hobbled back to my office as fast as my gimpy knee could move.
Now the problem is leaving the office again. Im not sure how many people SAW me but i dont really want to know. I wish I had a brown paper bag to wear over my head. I would have much rather had the table incident again! Please tell me someone else has done this and has lived through the shame? Im also not sure what to say/give the secretary that told me. I see her anytime I leave the office so avoiding her is out. What do you give a person who has done that for you?!!?

get this...

The leg drama continues...dum dum dummmm

So the foot of my injured leg has been swollen lately and finally I guess I got concerned. So I went to Webmd and checked out the prescription that I am on and was reading the warnings. Yeah...all my symptoms were listed under "RED FLAG, RED FLAG!" So I called the doctor and went back and forth all day and I got to okay to stop taking my medication and see what happens. Well, I got another call. I guess the nurse was telling my doctor again and he missed "only one of her feet is swollen" part and now hes concerned. So guess what elizabeth gets to do now...yeah thats right...go to the hospital and have a scan done to check for a blood clot. FOR THE LOVE! I knew it would have been cheaper and a lot easier if they would have just taken the leg off. My parents were very excited about the prospect of me getting a peg leg. They even thought of nicknames for my and "the peg."
So I have to take more time off of work and go and have another scan to see if I'm dying. I loved how the nurse told me about my results. "If they let you go right away, theres probably nothing wrong. If they make you stay, then theres probably a problem." Try explaining that one to your boss. Lets just hope its nothing!!

one crutch at a time

So i am down to one crutch and can walk short distances all by myself. I think I will be able to make it down the isle on Saturday but that will be good enough for me! I finally got my new brace and it has helped so much...i can actually bend my knee which might be important.

Lets see what else do i know...humm. Well, we finally got the tiles laid in the kitchen meaning we have COUNTERTOPS!! its the small victories. Things are coming along in the house and i think Thanksgiving is our goal. Next will be painting and new floors...exciting.

Was paralyzed with fear on Sunday because I was sitting in my bed and something caught my eye on the floor and oh yeah it was a baby mouse. I was frozen with fear!! I called jasmine and i guess she is not a mouse hunter because she kept walking over it and I finally scared her enough with my screaming that she left me alone to die with the mouse. Since it was a baby, it was really slow and stupid. I tried to chase it around the house on my one crutch..trying to gather the courage to put a container on top of it and leave it for my mom. Well it got away and long story short, my mom caught it and my dad set it free that night. I did however go out to my car the following morning, in the dark, and saw the container sitting on my car. I have evil parents.

Counting down the days until theresa wedding!! Its going to be so much fun!

okay that is THREE signs!!

It has been kind of embarrassing telling people HOW i dislocated my knee. Some people will leave it at "I just fell and it dislocated somehow". Others will want to know more like "where, how...". I tell some people the truth and of course they laugh but I am wondering if there is a serious issue unfolding. Seriously...how many moth related accidents go untold each year. Counting my accident, I have three documented cases of moth related accidents.
1. Of course mine. I was attacked by a moth who disagreed that he would be sentenced to death by lysol. The little monster was SERIOUSLY darting at me and i could hear his/her hiss and might have saw some teeth!
2. On one of my many recent sick days I had the pleasure of catching a Jeopardy episode. Alex was doing his thing where he talks to the contests about weird things that have happened to them that they think everyone will want to know about. Well...one of the contestants was recalling an experience she had where a moth had flown into her EAR and she had to go the hospital and they have to REMOVE it! GROSS!! At least with my trauma, i dont think the moth touched me.
3. I cant thank Lora enough (and her mom) for sending me an article from a local news station. This situation is very tragic but for some reason I could not help to laugh! Click HERE to read.

I think I have proved my point and I am going to look more into this. Let me know if there is anyone out there with a traumatic moth experience...i might need to bring this up to my congressmen.

the results are in

I got a call on Saturday from my doctors office that I was not expecting. The results from my MRI were in. I guess I messed up the mechanisms that keeps the knee cap in place. I thought for sure that I would have to have surgery. What I time I picked to have this done! So that gave me something to worry about for the rest of the weekend.
I already had an appointment to see a knee doctor on Monday and prepared myself for the worst. Well, it turns i dont need surgery!! I am getting a new brace which I could not be happier with!! I can start putting weight on it and try to bend my knee as it will let me. I have a pretty good chance that I can dislocate it again but Im going to try my hardest not to let it happen.
Then I got to thinking last night, what if I really did need surgery? It just seems crazy that I probably did a lot of damage and i can just start walking around again....we shall see. I want to get rid of these as fast as i can! I hoping I will be able to do without them by Theresa's wedding. Thats my goal. I dont think I should be trusted to walk down the isle with crutches while holding a flame. I will not burn down the church on Theresa's big day! I just cant!
Awesome side note of the day: So I have been just eating my lunches upstairs in the staff lounge to save energy. Well I headed over to the elevator to return to work and it wouldnt respond when I pressed the down button. The button would not light up and no sound came from it. So I stood there for awhile and nothing. I really didnt know what I was going to do. I knew I couldnt stand up there all day so I went back through the lounge and headed down the back stairs. Yeah that was so much NOT FUN! I seriously almost fell head first because I didnt get my crutch planted right on one step. I was just praying no one would want to come up or go down the stairs because I was going to be there for awhile. I guess it might have been a good workout for my knee to get it back to into shape but seriously. What if i was in a wheelchair? one can only imagine the end of that story!!

another boring update...

Had an MRI yesterday and it went pretty well...ok it sucked. After I got myself situated on the table they came to the conclusion that I would have to do an open MRI because my knee didnt fit right into the holder thingie (medical term). So I had to get out of the first machine and was moved to another. It wasnt too bad except my back hurt the entire time and all I wanted to do was better situate myself but was told not to move from the waist down. 45 minutes later I was done and I went to sit up and I had the sharpest pain hit my back. Of course it was enough to bring tears to my eyes and I fell back onto the table. I had to sit there for a moment and finally was able to get off the table but barely able to walk. Let me enjoy my drama queen moment! I ended up not going into work and tried everything to find a position to sit/lay down in to relieve the back trama. My grandma came over and had dinner with me. She brought a can a chicken noodle soup and promised it was magic soup. Im thinking of pouring it over my knee and see what happens.
Today was my first full day of work this week and its getting tough as the hours go on. There is no comfortable way to sit in my chair...grrr. I am excited that I got a handicap spot for on-campus use. But I pretty much have to get to work 1/2 early to get a spot behind the building (that will be another blog!) I have to wait until Monday to see the knee Doctor...I will be doing some extra hoping that I dont have to have surgery!!
Last but not least...I cant tell you how excited I am that The Office starts again tonight! I was bad and bought the first and second season and I think its the only reason I have made it this far with my knee. I keep falling asleep (due to pain medicine...NOT out of boredom) before seeing some of the shows so I still need to catch up. So in other words...watch The Office tonight!

no good news

Had a rough weekend on the crutches but was anxious about my doctors visit today because I thought there would be some good news or something. Well all he did was pretty much manhandle my leg, bending it in ways I never could BEFORE i hurt it. Then after that, he pressed on it as hard as he could. That was also a treat. Then he said what I was dreading...that I would need an MRI and to see another Doctor. I cant even think of how much this is going to cost me. So I am stuck on the stupid crutches and I feel I should go to work because I should save up my sick time as much as I can. I also have been having a reaction to the pain medication they put me on. It just makes me really nervous, tired and/or sad all of a sudden. I went to work afterwards and what a donkey show. I think being able to find a parking spot and trying to "walk" into work is what is causing me to get so upset.
I got to work and I dont think my boss is too happy about what I did. I just dont get a feeling of support from her. Yeah, I had the worst timing in the world but I guess she wasn't too happy how we handled things while I was gone the one day! I know that she has an office to run and when we are short staffed it puts a strain on her and everyone but sometimes you cant help it. Thats why i feel so guilty taking a day off because i know she thinks less of me. If I could just suck it up with this knee problem I would but I really cant. Hopefully shes in a better mood tomorrow. Hope all goes well with the MRI.
thanks for listening while I vent!

how it happened is funny

This morning I was getting ready and trying to hurry as usual. I was in the bathroom when I felt something on my arm. I looked over and there was a angry moth freaking out flying around the bathroom. He/she would fly around for a minute and then charge at me. I think moths are one of the grossest flying objects and I was trying to get away from it. I grabbed the lysol bottle, my weapon of choice, and started trying to spray him down and maybe calm him down a bit. Well it was making him more mad, I would be too, but he continued to fly at me. Right when he was going to do it again, I started to step backwards trying to get out of the bathroom. Somehow I stepped wrong or tripped on something and twisted me knee causing it to dislocate and fall to the floor. Of course my first reaction was to scream because my leg bone was out on the side of my knee. I got it back in place and cant not begin to describe the pain. I then tried to move and it slipped out again. I got it back in and decided this is how i would die. I had to lie there for a good amount of time before I could figure how to get up again. I decided to go to the ER because I didnt know what I had done to my knee. When I feel, I heard a pop, and seriously thought I had broke my leg. Got to the hospital and had x-rays taken and no broken bones were found but they think i stretched the crap out of all the stuff around my knee. It was kind of embarrassing telling everyone how it happened..."yeah, I was running away from a moth." So now I have probably a $500.00 knee brace and crutches. Getting to work tomorrow should be fun. Good lesson learned and im thinking of starting a campaign to address of the issue of dangerous moths and how they effect everyday society. They may seem innocent but dont be so sure!

How much can I accomplish in one hour....

Its been a very interesting day! My car has been over heating for some time now and I guess filling up my coolant every other day started to get to me so I took it into the shop. Of course he didnt get to it yesterday so I got to drive my grandpa's truck into work today. It was great service. My mom took me over to my grandparents and he walked out and opened the door for me and had his truck all warmed up...A+ service!! anywhoo...I was going to run over to the car shop over lunch, since its close, and check in on my car. I thought I would go thru McDonalds real quick on the way and kill two birds with one stone. Well I am in the drive thru and my brother calls to tell his car broke down and he thinks he just ran out of gas and if i would come and save the day. Like a good driver I carry a gas can in my car, just for this very reason. Of course, the day that I need it I dont have my car. of course. So i had to run over to the car shop, stop and fill the gas can, and drive to where my brother was stranded all during my lunch break. I saved the day and his car started right up. But as luck would have it, I was almost late returning for lunch...and to top it off, I dropped my over priced chicken sandwich on the floor and it was in no state for human consumption. So basically, my lunch cost me close to $10 and I didnt get anything...
In other news....the UNO chancellor resigned yesterday(long story) and there were cameras everywhere! They were all staked out in front of the building I also work in waiting for her to come out. Of course, at first, i didnt notice them and Im sitting there easting twizzlers rocking out to my radio. Then I trip walking back into the building. If anyone saw me on the news...let me know...i doubt it...but I just want to know if I should change my hair color. Then today I was walking back into the building after break and I see a couple of people loading all this crap into the chancellors car. I wanted to get a closer look to see what she was taking home with her. that would have been interesting.

Conflicting reports

Not that I really care that Paris Hilton was arrested last night, I just cant help but read all the stories about it. Maybe its the fact that I am bored out of my mind or the evil co-worker is on another roll and I need to stop myself from throwing my Kleenex box at her.
I was reading people.com and found something interesting. Here are the two paragraphs as they appear on the site ( i put the interesting information in RED)

On Thursday morning, Hilton called in to Ryan Seacrest's radio show on L.A.'s 102.7 KIIS FM to explain the incident.
"You know what, it was nothing," she said. "I'd been shooting my music video for my new song, 'Nothing in this World.' Â… I got off last night at about 10 p.m. then I went and had dinner with my sister and all my girlfriends, and then we went to this charity event Dave Navarro threw for brain tumors.
"And um, I had one margarita, starving 'cause I had not ate all day, on my way to In-n-Out which is probably three blocks away, and I'm in my (Mercedes) SLR, which is a little fast, so maybe I was speeding a little bit" – she giggled – "and I got pulled over."
1. I just love how she phrased the charity event she was at "for brain tumors"...just really funny to me.
2. Then she first said that she went and had dinner with all her "friends" and then later she said that she had not ate all day....riiiighhttt.

Okay...i think I investigated that a little too much and you are now free to go....sorry for wasting your time!

have to add...

1. Hope you like the new layout..should be interesting.
2. Okay...what is up with Facebook!! Those of you who dont have it or havent seen it yet they have added this "feed" feature and it pretty much shows what you have done while on Facebook, like:

• Elizabeth just wrote on Billy's wall
• Elizabeth just joined I Heart Justin Timberlake group
• Elizabeth just took a crap
• Elizabeth is stalking people through facebook
• Elizabeth is searching for new friends

You get the idea. It has become a breeding ground for stalkers and shows everyone and their mom what you have been doing...just thought I would vent/share!

home again

Had a fabulous time this weekend in Colorado! My dad, brother and I set out on Saturday, really early, with hesitation of leaving Jasmine. I packed her a pretty good bag to take to the kennel that included a couple of toys and a bag of puppy treats. I still havent got to see her because we didnt get home until like 10:30 last night and plus it was a holiday and the kennel was not open. She is going to go CRAZY when my grandpa picks her up this afternoon and drops her off at an empty house. Anyway...enough about Jasmine.... After a very long drive we arrived in CO and the weather was fanastic. It was like probably 60 degrees with NO HUMIDITY! Sunday we had the wedding and the reception was at this gorgeous country club right next to Red Rocks. I was so mad that my camera died like 10 minutes after we were there and so I missed out on a lot of great shots. I got to see a lot my old friends that all lived on the same block as me growing up so it was really fun. Got to see my grandma on Sunday and she cooked a fabulous breakfast for a bunch of family, who I had also not seen in forever! My brother and I had to drive back yesterday and I was dreading it all morning. We got kind of a late start because we had to stop at target and jamba juice. Then we were taking the Toll Road out of Denver and we missed our exit and hit another Toll stop. I asked the worker if we had missed our stop and she was like "umm yeah...you have to drive to the next exit two miles away and turn around there and heres the directions." So we had to pay at that stop, turn around and pay at the other sides stop as well. $20 later, we were able to get on the right road. I drove through the greater part of NE and it wasnt too bad. My brother kept yelling at me for watching the DVD player while I was watching. I can totally multi-task!!

Happy belated Labor Day to everyone and hope you got to relax a little!!

its not like the red hat ladies!

I have decided to join Eastern Star and I am kind of looking forward to the experience. I was involved in Jobs Daughters throughout high school and I can say that I actually enjoyed the experience. I have always had regrets of not ever being elected Honored Queen but I was still able to have a positive experience.
I have been preparing myself because its going to be an interesting experience. You could say that a vast majority of the members are senior citizens. I like this about the organization. I think its important to involve yourself with persons of all different stages of life, you never know what you might learn. Another thing I have been a little frightened about is the dresses. If you are an officer, everyone wears a matching dress. It might look something like this:

Be jealous!

Long story even longer, I had to have a meeting yesterday with a couple of members (maybe to make sure I didnt have horns and a tail) and we were talking about installation (the ceremony when you actually become a member). Then reality quickly sank in all of a sudden:

"Now, the other gentleman that will be going through installation with you has somewhat of a knee, shoulder, and pretty much every other joint problem. He will not be able to kneel with you doing certain parts of the ceremony, so we were wondering if you would be embarrassed to sit in a chair instead of kneeling so he doesnt feel awkward?"

I just thought it was funny because I guess there is going to be a very large age range in this group and I cant wait to chat with the ladies about double coupon days and which denture cream works the best!

had to note...

Proud moment in the Arthur Household! I was reading the Fremont Paper website and you have to wait until after 1pm for todays news but anyway the big story was about the Microsoft settlement and how the leftover money was starting to be dispersed to schools in NE. Well, Mama Arthur (my mom) was a part of the lawsuit and helped as a representative in the case. I am proud of her because this money is really going to help where its needed most.

SNAPS to Mama Arthur!!

Attorney nets funds for students
By Beverly J. Lydick/Tribune StaffFremont Public Schools received more than $53,000 in vouchers last week, its second payment from the $22.6 million settlement of a consumer class action suit against the Microsoft Corporation.The lawsuit, filed by the Fremont firm of Yost, Schafersman, Lamme, Hillis, Mitchell and Schultz on behalf of Nebraska schools in Dodge County District Court, alleged that Microsoft violated Nebraska’s antitrust and unfair competition laws. In the settlement, Microsoft agreed to issue up to $22.6 million in vouchers to Nebraska business officials and residents who bought certain Microsoft products between Feb. 28, 1997, and Dec. 31, 2002.FPS business director Mark Shepard said, based on Microsoft products purchased in the specified time frame, the district originally received $18,000 in vouchers to be used toward the purchase of any computer hardware and/or software it chose.As all individuals and/or businesses who bought products did not file for vouchers, the unclaimed money was then dispersed among Nebraska public schools with at least half their students eligible to receive free- or reduced-price meals through the National School Lunch Program.While the FPS district, overall, does not fall into that category, it does have centers with 50 percent or more of the students receiving free or reduced-price lunches.Shepard said the latest vouchers will be used as needed, throughout the district, for computer-related products.
“The school district especially appreciates (attorney) Bob Hillis’s effort … in looking out for local school districts,” he said.

The perfect sick day

I woke up with sore throat on Sunday and it continued to get worse as the day went on. I sucked it up on Monday and went to work. Have you ever swallowed razor blades for fun? Well, if you have, then you know what my throat felt like. If you havent, just imagine swallowing a razor blade and then repeating 100+ times. The student worker had all the same symptoms as me so we were able to swap symptoms to see who was worst off. I managed to make it through the day but then faced a 5 hour drawing class. When we finally reached our break time, I knew I had enough and thought I would just go home. I really didnt care about the loss of a few attendance points. I told my teacher what was going on and I would probably not return to class after break. She laid on the good ole guilt trip and started naming off treatments I should try from Wild Oats. I went home and didnt look back.
I woke up yesterday morning with an even worse sore throat and knew a sick day was in order. The thought of answering the phone and taking to people made my throat somehow hurt more. I called in and then thought I would take one of my pain bills from my leg infection doctors visit and was able to fall asleep in no time. I woke up in time to watch Matlock, an episode of Saved by the Bell and the Nanny. I couldnt have asked for a better sick day. I did have to go to class at night though since I missed day, i dont think my professor would have forgave me for missing class again. The class was actually fun but I had to read one of my stories aloud...no fun. Of course I got a case of the Studdering Stanley's. One girl read her piece (quick note: the assignment was to write about a true account and then take that same story and change something in it to make it not true and then the one you read in class, the class had to discuss and pick if it was true or not) about her shift she was working at the 20's dance club (yeah...its a strip club) and knowing that she would find her future husband. Of course she was wasted and the guy came in and she fell in love with him. The best part was when she said he set that she choose to do was to the song "Like a Virgin" by Madonna. I thought of course this was false and no one would pick to read this story outloud...but nope...it was true! I had the worst time of not laughing outloud!! it was great!

eager to learn or something like that

First off...my heart goes out to Pluto who was just demoted and is no longer considered a planet. I just wish saved by the bell was still around so screech could teach zach a new way to remember the planets in order. If you know what I am taking about...consider yourself cool!

Its the first week of classes and I have already missed a class...doh! On Tuesday, I hurried over to starbucks to feed my addiction of purchasing overpriced products and was back in time to run to the restroom and find my class. I stood outside the dark classroom waiting because I was still a little early. I continued to wait and wait and it was like 5 till 6pm and i knew something was wrong. I ran into someone I knew and she said she thought she saw a sign on first floor that creative writing was in another room. I went all the way down and read the sign and hiked back up to the 2nd floor only to find that the sign must have been for another class. Of course I have to start panicking...and figured I had gotten the building/room wrong. I called my brother and he was able to look it up for and said I had the right information. Since I have a phobia of walking into a class after it has started I thought I would just email the professor in the morning and find out what happened.
The next morning, I wanted to check just one more time that I had the correct information before freaking out on my professor. All of a sudden my hair turned blonde again. The class started at 6:30...not 6:00....grrrrr! And since no one is usually 30 minutes early for their class, I knew thats why i didnt see anybody. Now I have to explain this to my professor. I thought about starting the email like...
"I dont want this mistake to reflect my intelligence in anyway, but...."
Of course I didnt hear back from him and i finally called him later. I guess it will be okay but I hate missing the first day. Im so lost about the first assignment but maybe it will be a good thing because it will show that I was punctual and excited to learn! righhht....

four girls in a 4-door honda civic

I have just returned from a fabulous weekend in Kansas City, MO. I went with some friends, Susie, Trudy, and Gina, and I dont think I have laughed so much in my life! We did start off the trip in Lincoln on Friday night with dinner and the good ole Tack Room. I think we have been banned forever due to our performance of "Crazy" by Aerosmith...which in my opinion is like one of the hardest songs to do Kareoke. The next day we headed out and stopped at the Isle of Capri Casino outside of Kansas City. I had a slight wallet drama, thought I left it at the last gas station we were at which was about 1 hr. 30 min away...that would have sucked! I then enforced the "check to make sure Elizabeth has her wallet" at every stop. I found it and we were able to go gamblin! Missouri has weird gambling laws and we had to register before we could pay anything. We started getting hungry and found a cute mexican restaurant. I got susie to go in with me on a large pitcher of margarita (stupid waitress tricking me!) and I think we took it like a champ. Of course susie and i got a case of the giggles while shopping. But seriously...the bathroom hand soap smelled like ass! it was gross. I then saved the day by picking up some ladies keys and cell phone and finding her in the store. We did some more shopping and headed to the hotel.
We decided to go swimming and made up so pretty awesome games. I swear anyone watching up from the hotel probably had a good laugh. If you ever have one of those big bouncy balls...see how long you can "ride" it without letting go in a pool. I think the best time was 20 seconds...its way too much fun! We had a cheap dinner at California Pizza Kitchen and then headed to west port for some fun! Met some good people there and had some good laughs. The best part was that each of us made up fake names to use for the night. we had a few slips but I dont think they caught on. I think we broke some hearts to but it was all in good fun! We pretty much just got up the next day and had some breakfast and headed home. My stomach does still hurt from laughing so much. I highly recommend taking one of these trips! Im sad i didnt take more pictures but maybe thats a good thing because...what happens in Kansas City stays in Kansas City.

Good way to start the day....

We are back on regular hours at work (8-5pm) and the first week is always the hardest. Since it technically allows me to leave later and sleep in an extra five minutes I have to adjust my departure time a little more to allow for heavier traffic. I had a little pants drama this morning..lets just say booo to zippers...so I had to totally bust out the ironing board and trying to salvage a pair of pants. I decided to throw caution to the wind and not stop for gas and my daily fill-my-flat-tire routine. I was making good time and then all of a sudden traffic just stopped. I right past 144th and Dodge (work is 60th in dodge) and I had 20 minutes to get to work. I thought I would try not to have a panic attack but then looked at my temperature gage and noticed my car was slowly overheating...another task I decided to do this morning, fill-the-car-with-coolant routine. I quickly dodged three lanes of traffic and got off at boys town. I had no idea if I would be able to get out but thought it was a better alternative. Long story short...I made my way out and pulled into a gas station to fill up with coolant. This requires a ice scraper (hood does not stay up on its own) and splashing around chemicals.
I took a different route and had to turn off my car a couple times, i think it takes awhile before my coolant refill kicks in for some reason. It turns out the alternate road was not much better and I began cursing whatever happened on dodge to cause this undesired stress. I was only about 5 minutes late to work...which the evil co-worker loves because she gets to point out that she had already done everything and Im just worthless. Then to feel even better, I was reading the local news channel website and I found out what the delay on dodge was...yeah I totally feel awesome now....
http://www.wowt.com/home/headlines/3571457.html

Im just going to start sleeping in the parking garage!

grades are in!

I finally got my final grade for my art survey class yesterday...A-!! Not bad for getting back into classes.

Just thought I would share!

How to get rid of myspace stalkers

I've had this guy continue to send me messages and repeated requests to be "friends". I got another message today while a work study was in the office and she dared me to write back something mean. I thought I would try a different approach and see what happens. This is what I typed:

Im sorry but the only man involved in my life right now is God and he gets mad when I talk to other guys.

I think that will do it.

i have a confession

I have a confession and I have a feeling that I might lose some friends on this one but its gotta come out:

I HEART the new Paris Hilton song.

You heard me. I cant get enough of it. I thought the world was ending when I heard that she had actually recorded a song and it was pretty popular. It came on the radio on day and I actually liked it. So far I have not found anyone else who enjoys it as much as I do...but I know there is someone out there.

It was nice knowing some of you. when calls are not returned, i will know that some of you have not accepted my new fondness of cheezy pop songs.

End of a long month

Its been a very long month! The evil co-worker has been gone on medical leave and I cant tell how nice it has been. The work load kind of sucked, but I was actually really busy everyday, which i love. Its going to be interesting to have her back tomorrow...I just hope it doesnt turn into a nightmare. Here are some other highlights from the month:
1. I only have two more days of class, one of those days being the final. It was really interesting to take a summer class, since I have never taken one before. I loved leaving for work about 6:30am and getting back home around 10pm. Oh well...its good practice for this fall. I am going to be taking two classes during the week and then an online class. Its going to be crazy but if I dont get as many as possible I will be in school forever!
2. Our house is coming along. The kitchen was just painted and all the appliances are back in and most of the cabinets. The next big thing will be the countertops and back splash. I need to start working on a slideshow to document the process. Its going to be cool to go back and see where it all started and the end result!
3. Its kind of exciting for me as a commuter but others might not care. The new westbound Dodge expressway opened on Thursday. I thought I was going to throw up because it is actually really high up and all the time it has been being built I watched and grew more nervous. Im sure its all in my head but I was glad to get off. I think it will save some time in the end...we shall see.
4. I got my results back from my leg and it was actually negative so they dont have any idea what it was...i feel better (grrr). I did get a statement or letter from my insurance noting the claims that were made by my doctors office. I guess when my doctor took a blade and made a cut about 1/2 inch long (if that) it was documented as SURGERY! That swipe of her hand costs about 250.00. I could have gone to Wal-green and bought a razor blade for 1.99 and did it myself. The total charges were about 400.00 something for less than 15 minutes in the doctors office. Not to mention the 60.00 at the pharmacy...I hate being a grown up. Cant wait for that bill.
Nothing too exciting has been missed. Im going to try not to dwell too much about the return on the evil co-worker tomorrow and hopefully she will be nice...only if I wake up to leprechauns dancing in my front lawn with unicorns.

No spider babies!

Doctors visit plus lab fee: $99.00

Three perscriptions: $56.21

New bandaids: $2.99

Finding out you just have a goog 'ole staph infection instead of baby spiders growing in your leg: priceless

What I do in class...

Since I have undiagnosed "cant pay attention in class" syndrome, I must find other ways to stay awake for THREE hours. This is the text message I sent to Lora last night in class (true story):

Hows ur day going? I broke my zipper on the way

to work and had no way to fix it all day.

So I walked around all day with my zipper down.

Yeah...Im awesome!

No meat please

Nebraksa. Also known as "Worship the Beef Industry" state. How I have survived this long is beyond me. About two weeks ago, I decided to not eat any animal that had four legs. That means cows and pigs are pretty much off limits. I couldnt give up the turkey or chicken...but that day might come as well. It really hasnt been that hard, because I dont really eat a lot of meat anyway. It has its advantages as well because going to McDonalds has become a little more healthier. There are challenges to face as well. My mom and I were invited to a resturant that should be called "We cook anything WITH four legs." I went along knowing that it probably wasnt going to be a awesome dinner, but who could turn down a trip to Waterloo...not me! The only thing that sounded remotely good and followed the rules (or so I thought) was chicken fried steak. I would get it without gravy and take some home. Well before the waitress could write my order down, I was quickly informed that it contained beef or maybe something eles. Son of a! I dont think you should be able to put CHICKEN in the title of something just because "its fried like chicken." I should have been smart and asked for a childrens menu.
Today was another challenge. It seems the only other place I am having trouble with is Taco Bell. I like their Steak Border bowls and thought it would be just as good without the steak (if you could call it steak). My mom found out first that asking for a steak border bowl without steak is like asking them if they served chinese food. How hard is it to pull your hand away from the bucket o' "steak" and just put a lid on the bowl. I thought I would try my luck again tonight and it wasnt more than I expected. First off, I sat next to the menu board for like 5 minutes after placing my "special" order. I knew they were all taking through their stupid headsets on how to punch in the compuer "HOLD THE COW." After pointing and laughing at me, she repeated my order and I was on my way to a face on face meeting. First words that come out of her mouth were "You people surely make things difficult!" Nothing like a side of guilt to go with dinner. If I had the power to confront people, I would have asked her "What is so bad about someone not wanting MEAT!" But a Lougie-burrito just didnt sound good tonight. I guess its going to be an uphill battle but I can save one cow in my lifetime, its all worth it!

We meet again!

Not sure where to begin because it has been oh so long! Im sure I have lost some people because they were tired of checking a site that never changed.

I recently was able to take some much needed vacation time and Im not sure I would have made it without it. The one who spews evil is leaving soon for sick leave...if only it was retirement....and is on a roll. Not that I am counting but I only have 2 more working days with her! I made it up to Lincoln for a day, cant go wrong there. Started some projects at home but I still need to finish them.

(NOTE: I might break out in random Jobs Daughter language so you will have to bear with me if you dont know what I am talking about!) I did help out with Jobs Daughter's on Sunday and it was a unique experience. I was asked to do the installing recorder part and was not aware of the amount of reading. It wasnt that bad but sometime I get a case of the stuttering stanleys in a large group and it doesnt help I had a mic to make my mistakes even louder. Also, I was the only one helping who had not been an honored Queen before. So all the other girls were wearing their tiera's and all I had were my glasses...sadness! The best part was that while rehearsal, I kept snagging my foot on the carpet and could not figure it out. Finally, right as we were all lined up to do the actual ceremony, I looked at my shoe and had discovered the problem. My sole had become separated from my shoe! Oh yeah..and it was on both shoes! So I had to march around the room, in front of everyone, with shoes that looked like they were talking. Go me! Luckily, I got to sit behind a desk the whole time. Only me!

Hopefully work will start slowing down so I can actually write more! Until next embarrassing moment....

American Idol is over...tear

Watched the finale last night of American Idol and it was actually really good. I thought it started at 8 but I couldn't find my remote, because my room is an actual black hole, so I thought I would manually turn the channel so by the time I got the right channel it would be just starting. Im glad I turned it on early because it started at 7pm and they were actually doing funny stuff. I was trying to imagine what they could do for TWO hours.
My favorite part was when they let that guy who compared himself to Clay Aiken sing and then Clay came out and sang a duet with him. I was almost crying I was laughing so hard. Nice new haircut Clay...by the way!
Im so GLAD Taylor won....Chris should have been the real winner but Taylor is better than McDumb! Im kind of sad the season is over. This was my favorite by far. I guess I should start gearing up for next year! Now I have to find something else so I live out my goal of not having a life.

Fremont Picture Dictionary Vol. 1

Here are some entries Im working on for the FREMONT PICTURE DICTIONARY:

Broom and Dust pan...


Air conditioner-


Trash can or a house-


A water fountain-

Call me Lucky Luckerson

Before I start my story of the miracle that took place this morning, I need to vent about American Idol. Lets just say that I am not happy about McDumb not being sent home. SHE MUST BE STOPPED. I hope Elliot goes on to bigger and better things and steps on her on the way up!

MY PARENTS SHOULD STOP READING NOW! ITS A HAPPY ENDING BUT ITS BETTER IF YOU DO NOT READ ANY FURTHER!
Okay, so Im driving to work this morning and I started to realize that I am running later than usual and need to step it up. My drive into work is probably 80% in construction zones and 40% of its down to one lane. To make up for that, there are certain areas I can speed up a bit and not worry too much. I am usually pretty good about being aware of my surroundings and can usually spot cops before its too late. Well not this morning. All of a sudden I look in the rearview mirror and see a state trooper. I pull over knowing that I am basically screwed and must take whats just about to be thrown at me. Here are the list of offenses I knew I was violating:
1. Speeding (duh)
2. Speeding in a construction zone with double fines
3. Not wearing my seat belt
4. Wondering if I put my updated insurance cards in my car

He comes up to the window and asks " So are you heading to work this morning?" I reply with "Yes, and Im being stupid doing so." He takes my things and lets me sit and worry. It was funny how I had accepted so fast that this was not going to be a good ending because:
1. The ticket was probably going to be over $300 (at my estimate)
2. More would be added or it might include the fine for no seat belt
3. I would never be allowed to drive again

I saw him get out of the car and prepared myself for the worst.
"So do you know how fast you were going?"
"Not really. I don't have any idea."
"(He tells me but I will leave that between me and the officer!)"
"Really! That fast. I really have no excuse other than I was running late for work and I should have known better."
"Well, Im going to give you just a warning."
Deer in headlights expression comes to my face as I sit there in disbelief. "Thank you! I totally needed this as a wake-up call. Thank you!!"
"Have a nice day and put your seat belt on."

I just sat there thinking that did not just happen! My next thought was if it would be appropriate to send him a thank you card or something. Im sure the other officers would make fun of him so that might not be good. Even with the pulling over time, I still made it to work on time. Very good lesson learned: Its not worth it to speed and I'm sure I will never be that lucky again!

The Great American Idol Tragedy

I started a blog last week about the Great American Idol tragedy that happened last week, but I couldn't bring myself to finish. I never really watched an entire season of American Idol and of course the first time I do....tragedy happens. Of course Im talking about Chris being voted off. I might need therapy. I wasnt even going to get into this season but my goal of having no life was more important.
The day after, I couldn't stop myself from reading every article talking about the "American Idol Shock". I was even able to watch a recap of the show again and have to live through it all over again. I made one of the workstudy's stop me from reading any more articles about it because I was slowly slipping into madness.
Well after last week, I swore I wouldn't watch it again and had full intentions on not watching last night. I however, found myself watching last night. I don't feel guilty because I didn't really get to see the entire show. I did however grow even more dislike for Kat-stupid face-McDumb or whatever her name is. I know I will have to watch tonight and I have a feeling that is McDumb gets through to the finale, I might officially be done with the show. Im just glad its almost over and I can find something else to reach my goal of No Life.

"I did it myself"

This is what happens when you cut your on sideburns...
I would like to thank my brother for giving me some material to blog about. Without him this blog would be boring.

SNAPS to direct loan!

To start out, I just want to give some love to the Department of Education. Kind of messed up recently with my loans (oh that's what those letters were!) and got an interesting email. They choose to forgive me and helped me get back on track in a matter of minutes. I got an email shortly after returning from lunch and wasn't able to call them until my afternoon break. So I sat at my desk, for 2.5 hours trying really hard not to freak out! I was then worried I would be on hold the whole time and waste my break, but I gave it a chance and was done with like 5 minutes left on my break. What a relief...and all is good! But they haven't always been that easy.

My fondest memory is the bill collector that pretty much wanted my soul. I don't know how I could forget which company it was but I cant think of it at this moment. I guess I blocked, because yes it was that painful. This guy would call and harass anyone that picked up the phone. I felt so bad for my roommates but they could vouch for me on how psycho this guy would act. He would call at all hours of the day and I don't think he ever went home. He would bring me to tears or put me on the verge of calling him every last naughty word I have ever learned. I feel that his behavior accomplished nothing. I would avoid his phone calls or whoa did that ever make him mad! I remember one morning he called and I didn't look at the caller ID well enough and did I get an ass ripping! If I know someone is trying to help me out and giving me a second chance, I think twice before making the same mistake. But when the "soul crusher" comes around, I know the only way I could ever please them would be to give up my soul or first born child.
I just wanted to give SNAPS to Direct Loans for not making me worry to the point of madness today. There should be more companies like them out there!
OH yeah...I have been forgetting to also get this off my chest. So Wal-Mart officially sucks now. They have started to directly take the money out of your account if you write a check. So that means no more "check kiting" for me. But that's a bad habit to start anyway...but there were MANY MANY times where that saved me from selling my kidney or other organs to make it to payday. Okay...i will stop being a bad example! But they still suck!

Living on the edge

Saturday was Lora's birthday, so I returned to Lincoln, to help her celebrate properly. I was trying to think of a gift to get her the previous week and thought a pedicure would be fun. I have been wanting to get another one for a couple of weeks and its more fun to go with others. Plus its nice to be pampered on your birthday! Well, trying to be aware of my small budget, I found a couple places in the Lincoln mall that werent too bad. Plus they did mostly walk-ins so I didnt have to worry about making an appointment. We got Kristine to go along, making it her first time for a pedicure. Lets just say the whole process was a little sketchy. The part that bothered me about mine was the fact that I must have had a broken nail and instead of clipping it off she took some super glue and glued the snaggle nail back to my foot and painted right over it. I felt bad for Lora, because Im sure it wasnt the greatest experience. I know it was hard for to me relax with the fear of contracting some random foot fungus kept running through my head. We gladly paid, so we could leave as fast as we could only to be stopped by an elderly woman who bent down to roll up all of our jeans so that we wouldnt smuge our toes. Random...but embarrassing all the same.
We then left to grab a snack in the mall and thought we would play our odds more and Kristine and myself purchased sushi. Yes, that is correct. We actually thought susie made or sold out of the mall would be good. I should have known from the start because they spent a good five minutes trying to get my card to scan. I expected to look at my account today and see $400 worth of mall purchased sushi on my statement. Left the mall feeling not so good but knew the night had to get better.
macaroni grill was amazing...as usual! Also got to hang out at Zens and found that 4-tall-double, vodka and mixer can do me in for the night. Kristine was a rocker star and drove home and I just sat in the back amazed on how she was able to drive this big blurry machine. Of course, her not drinking might have helped her....
Must get back to Lincoln more often!

Slipping into madness

These are the current reasons I am slipping slowly into madness (in no particular order):
1. Nothing to do at work and I find myself just going back and forth from myspace and facebook
2. The evil co-worker...nuff said
3. The brother...nuff said
4. The hole that is now our kitchen
5. Payday isnt until Thursday
6. My ear is bleeding right now (just my ear piercing)
7. I have nothing to wear tomorrow

Glad to get those out in the open! Things have been a little crazy but okay. I got a case of the sleepies this weekend and went to bed around 7 pm on Friday night and woke up around 2:30 am when my parents were going to bed (yeah Im cool!) and then had to take another nap on Saturday. Glad that has passed! My mom and I went out to pick out all the new flooring we will be getting. Who knew it could be so complicated! My youngest cousin also had her first communion yesterday. I felt bad because the whole time I was staring at this lamp thing that i really wanted! I, of course, would have to add another couple of stories to my room so it could hang but it would be awesome.
This week will be spent trying to save my plants from dying that I just planted and dodging knives from the evil co-worker. Her aim is getting better!

History Lesson

Last night my brother, mom and I were sitting at the dining room table looking through a book I found while cleaning out the basement. Its a history book of Fremont, and has pictures of how Fremont looked between 1800-1920 (i think?) and its interesting to see how much the town has changed. I came to a page that showed the building of the railroad tracks in town. I made the comment that if I was around then I would have done away with all the railroad tracks because I LOATH trains and would be okay if they all were suddenly gone. Nothing is more frustrating that running late in the morning and hitting a train. Every morning its like I have to dodge two bullets because of the tracks I have to cross. Okay...thats not the point of this blog...just had to get that out!
My mom then asked: "Okay, if you could go back to that time right now, what would you get involved in?"
I quickly replied with real estate and got a high five from my mom. I totally would too. I would buy all the land that now Wal-Marts still on and be a millionaire! Of course I would have never seen that money but my children's-children times 5 would be the first "Hilton" children.
My brother took a minute but then answered: "I would get involved with computers." I almost had another "drink-coming-out-of-my-nose" moment. Might need to get him a history book because I'm pretty sure computers werent around in the 1800's. But if they were, Im sure Bill Gates would not be who he is today because my brother would have developed the Microsoft monopoly first!

Its been awhile since that has happened

Last night I brought home dinner so that we could eat real quick and get back to cleaning out the basement, be jealous! So we were sitting at the table eating and talking about the meat sellers that had came to the house earlier that evening. I guess two younger guys came up to the house while my dad, brother and Jasmine were outside and were trying to sell meat out of their truck. First: gross! Second: I guess as they were leaving they actually tried to hit JASMINE! I freaked! Then I started talking about what I would have done if I was there:

me: I would have pulled my 9 iron out of my purse and popped some caps!
brother: 9 iron? Isnt that a golf club?
me: No its not...it would be my 9 mm gun I carry.
brother: (laughing) A 9 iron is a golf club!
me: No its a 9 mm gun in gangsta talk!

My mom started laughing and then it all clicked for some reason that I had actually said a gold club while trying to be gangsta. Then it happened...the green tea I was drinking started coming out my nose! I know gross but it totally burned and was not fun! I seriously have not done that in awhile and glad I was among family instead of being in public. I would have expected that kind of a think to happen to me at the student center. My nose has since recovered and I will try to study up on my "gangsta" talk before next time I try to be tough!

HAPPY 1-YEAR!!

Yes...it has been one long and tiring year since I started working at my current job. Most of days were filled with pain and discomfort but I am hoping the worst is over. I have this summer to look forward to (aka the evil co-worker will be gone for 6-8 weeks) and the personal self -accomplishment of sticking it out for a full year. Not sure what is next but Im sure it will be fun for everyone.
Just a quick side note: i am still accepting presents and Im registered at Target!

crushed dreams

Had fun with the Tornado warning yesterday. Got to spend 50 minutes in the basement with my least favorite person. Luckily she went and talked to some other people for awhile. The best part was that once we got down there, a employee with IT or something was walking around asking everyone to try and stay quiet because there was an interview taking place in one of the rooms downstairs. I didnt think he was serious! Im sorry the building might be sucked up into the sky at any moment but I will try and keep my screams down. whatever...
I forgot to mention last time that I was recently accepted at UNO. Not as exciting as it sounds. I thought I would just go for it and get graduated! Well I choose the major 'Bachelor of Arts in Studio Arts with K-12 Endorsement' knowing that it might be hard to find art night classes but I was going to go for it anyway. Well with nothing to do this morning I have been looking through the course schedule and hardly any of the classes that I am needing are offered at night. It sucks I have to work around my work schedule. So now I am sad because I shouldn't have wasted my first opportunity to get my education done when it was easier. GRRR I know millions of people probably work full-time and go to school, Im just hoping it will work out for me to.
I complain about my job a lot but I like what I do (just not my co-worker!) and the benefits of working at a University are really good and Im afraid of losing them.
Something will work out and maybe I wont be the evil co-workers sidekick forever!

I've been a bad blogger!

(quick opener: Im not even going to read through this to make sure everything made sense. I will warn you again...this blog has not been edited...No life guard on duty...read at your own risk! And no I have not taken my meds today!)

I was going to open this blog with a rap song about being "back again" but I cant really remember the words so I wont try...instead I will open with

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MY DAD!

He is turning the big 5-1 today! yeah!

Okay, so it has been beyond crazy the last two weeks and I dont feel like blogging for 9 hours so I will try and shorten it into a list...here we go:

1. Snow storm that hit last week...one word SUCK! Long story short, I was left to open the office on Monday only to get to work and have them close the University at 1 pm. Then the next day I wake up at the butt crack before dawn only to find out that we were having a late start. I guess I was lucky that my car was stuck in my driveway and didn't leave before they announced that one. Good timing by the way! GRRRR

2. Hurt my back shoveling the mounds of snow behind my car and was crippled pretty much the entire week. No fun!

3. The evil co-worker was gone all last week (hooray!) but she is back. But it was one of the craziest weeks last week and I never thought it was going to end. Everything and anything happened at work...not cool.

4. Got a raging case of food poisoning or something Sunday night. I seriously thought my stomach had turned inside out. I was really close to somehow transporting myself to the hospital to have my stomach pumped, but Im sure that would have not been fun either. Called out Monday and spent the day in the fetal position.

5. My stomach so far has only allowed jello or plain popsicles to enter since Monday evening, but I am working myself back up to whole foods.

6. Having the worst week with the evil co-worker. I think I made her mad being sick on Monday (like I choose to have my inners turn inside out!) so she has decided to be extra beaver-ish this week. But there is a light at the end of the tunnel...it is looking like her chances of being gone for 6 weeks this summer are increasing. YEAH!

7. We are still working on fixing the house but it is going slow. "Ma says one day we have floors again in ar' ketchin!"

8. Have to make a point again of the beaverness level of the co-worker. So I took down the mail and somehow I missed one and you would think I did it on purpose. "it was there...i know it was there...well I can guess it can go tomorrow." I guess the world will have to stop for a moment...im sorry!

9. To end this sad saga...my one year anniversary is coming up here at work. Only some higher power knows how I have made it this long. I will try and work up a special one year tribute!

So there you have it. My last two weeks in a boring nut shell. Hope all is well with everyone out there!

Pictures

(Editing NOTE! I forgot I made this post and I think I got mad at AOL and gave up. Here are some pictures of the water damage!)

These are a few pictures of our house (aka the wind tunnel). Since AOL and dial-up blows I dont have enough patience to waste 4 hours uploading them all up to the internet. Hopefully, we will be able to shut the fans off soon because they have been going 24-7 since Monday and frankly, they are getting a bit annoying.


This is just one of the many holes in the ceiling downstairs.



This is the floor in the kitchen, now that we have no tile. Dont forget to wear shoes!



Not the best picture, but this is all the CRAP we had to move out of the storage room in a panic. It goes all the way back to the white spot in the upper right corner of the picture.

These are a few of the buckets of water that were able to collect.

One of the holes were water was coming out of. This picture was taken early and by the next morning there was a good size hole there.

For the love...thats all that comes to mind!

So my mom and I were enjoying a quiet night at home on Sunday, watching Desperate Housewives and getting some laundry done. About 35-45 minutes into the show, it went to commercials and my mom decided to make some popcorn and I was going to go switch loads real quick, since I started the washer about 7:30-7:45 ish. My mom came out the kitchen first to find at least 1 or more inches of water in the kitchen. All you could hear was water running down the walls. I ran downstairs to find 4 or 5 holes in the ceiling with water coming out of them. I opened the storage room door, which is directly below the washer/dryer and it was like a waterfall. Of course the room was a total mess to start with and then add a waterfall. My mom and I were hauling stuff out of the room like no other. At one point I did a total face dive on the tile section of the basement. All you could do was laugh at the time but I seriously thought I broke my foot. Then the phone started ringing, and my mom cant answer it because she is stuck under a waterfall and so I somehow stand up and was able to get the phone. We were dumping out trashcans and storage containers to catch all the water...utter madness! I thought I was going to dry, but its like those times where you have an emergency and find the strength to carry a 90 lb box of antiques books out from under a waterfall.
Needless to say...we all stayed home yesterday and tried to clean up some more. Restoration specialist were sent out to try and get stuff mended before it got worse. They had to tear up all the tiles in the kitchen and half of the carpet in our basement. Not to mention the 3 holes they had to make in the ceiling downstairs. Then to make it worse, all the dirty laundry was sitting on the floor in the laundry room when it happened so we had like 5 loads of wet dirty laundry; plus the load of towels in the washer. My mom and I did 11 loads of laundry at the laundry mat yesterday...no fun!
The real fun part is that to dry out the house, they brought in these fans and they are all over. Just the name of the fan says it all...Gale Force! It is so freakin loud in the kitchen and basement and we have to keep them on 24-7. I just cant wait until we start really going through all the boxes that got wet. Im sure some childhood memories will be lost.
I will get some pictures up hopefully tonight! Until then...stay dry!

Welcome to Omaha...

Trying to keep in the running for Favorite Offspring of the Year (you try to beat Prince Billy!) I agreed to pick up my mom at the airport last night. I had dinner with a couple of friends (props to Mattie and Elaine!) and got over to the airport with sometime to kill. I tried to save some money by parking in one of the lots next to Carter Lake but that place is so sketchy that after sitting in the dark, by myself for like 2 minutes I had to leave. After circling the airport a couple of times, I thought I should head inside because I think the airport police were starting to notice! I got up to the waiting area, at the end of the terminals and was tempted to enter the bar but I didn't have an extra $50 on me to have a drink so I opted to play the bar video game machine instead.
I started to notice people were coming up from the terminal and went out to greet my mom. As I walked out I noticed that a woman was changing her toddlers diaper on the floor. Okay, so if you have never been to the Eppley airport, passengers walk up this incline from the terminal to the small waiting space for "visitors". So imagine getting off a long flight and come up to the top of the incline and see this woman changing a diaper in an airport terminal. I understand you have to do what you have to do, but seriously...maybe move off to the side! whatever...
After picking up my mom, dinner was on the agenda next. Three drive-thru's later, I was running out of room to put stuff. I thought we were going to have to open the trunk. Made it home in time to have a fight with my brother (I was RIGHT) and get ready for the next day...just glad today is FRIDAY!
In other news....
1. I got my new glasses today and totally love them. The girl at the glasses shop totally was stealing my thunder because she kept trying on MY glasses before I even got to try them on because she was "so in Love with them." I wanted to tell her to get her own freakin pair! Hooker!
2. We are beyond dead this afternoon and its going to be tough. So what does the evil co-worker do...ask if she can leave early! for the love! Im hoping my boss will say I can go home to, but Im sure thats wishful thinking!
3. CONGRATULATIONS matt on your interview. You will do awesome! GOOD LUCK!
4. For a good laugh...check out these pictures. If only jasmine would sit still for that long!
HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!

I wanted to dedicate today's post to my mom because, its her 50th birthday! Hope you had a good day and we will have a FIESTA when you return! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Opps I did it again...again!

(Okay...quick observation: You really need to be careful when falling asleep while watching HBO. My mom and I were watching Bill Mauhr when we got a case of the sleepies and decided to go to bed. Well after laying in bed and not able to fall asleep I got up and decided to get on the computer. Passing my parents room, I found that she had fallen asleep and the show that is now on is like "Hooker: Life on the streets" and they are following these real life hookers around. It is actually really funny. Plus the best part is, the volume is turned up that I am still able to hear it down the hall. I just hope when my brother's girlfriend leaves, the sounds that I just heard will not be happening again!)

So today felt like the karma gods were taking the day off and forgetting about all the nice stuff I have been doing for others lately. I got to work, somewhat early and got out to put my coat on and once again, let the FREAKIN door shut and locked my keys, purse, and "work" shoes sitting on the inside of my car. I stood there and stood at my door hoping it would just magically pop open but no such luck. This couldn't be happening to me AGAIN. All I could do was walk into work and hope for the best. Flash forward...I thought that I would try and save my dad a trip to Omaha (because I have still not been smart enough to make a spare key to leave at work) and got campus security involved. Of course they send not the brightest crayon in the box. He has me sign a waiver and starts giving me the warnings. "We have been known to do some damage and people get mad, but we are not professionals. We have broke windows, torn out wires and damaged doors. It's mainly pure luck if we get it open." Yeah, this guy should never be in sales. I nervously watched as he basically violated my car in not such a good way. I stopped him after he shoved a larger metal strip into my door, not even watching what he was doing because he was too busy telling me that his next car is "gonna have that satellite thing in there "and "all he's gonna have to do is press a button." Spare me. I had to stop him before he raked the metal thing across my window again, and told him I was just going to have to call someone to bring me a key. So I returned to work, empty handed, an even bigger headache and a crabby co-worker to make the day better. My dad being too nice, brought me a key so I was able to at least change my shoes and oh yeah be able to drive home. The day did go pretty fast and before I knew it my boss was letting us go 15 minutes early. But I found the real cure to be a trip to Old Navy after work and the fact that I couldn't be happier that today is FRIDAY!

I heart Lewis Black!

For the love its been forever! We are starting to get a lot busier at work and I think I am going to have to blog at home...which blows. I have to stop myself from throwing my computer at home over the cliff and into the Platte River when I am on the internet. I loath AOL and dial-up. Maybe someday someone will be cool and make it possible for us to get high-speed internet in our area...but lets not get into that.
So I heart Lewis Black! My parents, brother and I got to go to his show this past Tuesday and it was awesome! We were seated in like the front section and we were dead center. I got a little scared half way through because he started making fun of the law NE is trying to pass involving concealed weapons and the lady that was sitting right next to me was the only one for it. He kept making fun of it and the people are for it so she got quiet and started pouting. I tried to get my dad to switch seats with me but he wouldn't...I didn't want to get shot! Then he started talking about evolution and that was the last straw for her I guess, because she got up and left. I was relieved because I was laughing at everything (imagine that) and it obviously was offending her. Her loss!
As we were leaving, Lewis Black passed right by my mom and went to the front to sign autographs. My brother and I hopped in line and I tried to figure out something to have him sign. I was a little star struck (ask me about Shawn Toovey sometime..tee hee) and was trying to get my mom to take a picture so I didnt have to. I guess she thought this would be a good opportunity for me to face me fears (remind me to thank her later) and she turned the pressure right back on me! I quickly ran up to the table where they were selling stuff and paid $10 for two pictures, so my brother and I could have something for him to sign other than our face. I forced my mom to take a picture of him and my brother because I was only able to handle one confrontation at a time. The picture turned out hilarious and I will have to post it later. It was my turn to have him sign my picture and I forgot my name. He asked me who I would like it made to and I couldn't say my name. Somehow it came out and he signed my picture. It was so awesome! I did not expect AT ALL to be able to meet him! All around it was an awesome night!
I have some more stories to tell but I cant at the moment because someone who reads this blog isnt supposed to know about what I have been up to until after this weekend...tee hee! So stayed tuned and I promise to try harder to get something posted more often.

Eyes of a psycho

About 45 minutes ago, I came into contact with someone who I thought was seriously going to open fire. Let me back up....so about a lot a months ago (can't remember exactly) this guy called asking about how long scores for PPST are kept. I explained how UNO only keeps them for 5 years...blah blah blah. He then goes into how thats illegal and he has done all this research about how they can't destroy scores. He has explained this to people at UNO that are higher up than me and they basically told him the policies were in writing and he would have to take them again. He continued to spew out legal findings to back in up. After what seems like forever later, I finally got him off the phone and the evil co-worker and I were discussing the call. I guess its happened before and its nothing we control...
Flash forward to today. The psycho comes into the OFFICE. He had a real soft voice and just began questioning the "destroy test results" policy. Just the way he looked at me, made me want to run in the secure room and lock myself in. It was just a dead stare followed by awkward silence. The evil co-worker started listening in about the time he started explaining how he is mad at UNL, because they threw his scores in a burn pile, or however they destroy them at UNL, and how its illegal and he thinks someone should sue. I stopped really listening to the guy because I was distracted by all the red flags sticking out of him. But surprise, surprise, the evil co-worker got along with him and actually made him laugh. I wanted to kick her and give her some sign to be rude and let the psycho leave. But after this week, she was on her own. I was trying to think of something I could do to get out of the line of fire.
It was just a creepy feeling. He finally left and really had no purpose for coming into our office other than to scare the ba-je-bus out of me. Note to self: pick up a bullet proof vest on the way home.