Birdies

Outside my apartment there are a lot of trees and they are home to a lot of birds. The other day while walking to my car, I came apon a dead baby bird on the sidewalk. It was not like within a broken egg shell but about two inches long and no feathers. I was saddened, but had to move on.

I took two steps and there was another baby bird. A little smaller but exactly the same in every other respect. I looked further, and there was another one and it was even smaller.

I did not see a fallen nest around and I find myself struck by this mystery. I do not know much about baby birds, except for that whole regurgitated food thing, so I keep wondering what happened. Did they try to fly, but were too young. Was there nest broken by some meddling boy, or what?

It reminds me of a story that my friend from high school, Melissa told me(who I can't find on myspace, damn her!). I'm not sure if I remember it correctly, but it is about her when she was younger and saw a little bird on the sidewalk and ended up accidentaly stepping on it. That would have seriously scarred me if I had stepped on one of those plump little bodies.

The Age of Missing Information

This is from Slate magazine. It scares the crap out of me.

http://www.slate.com/Default.aspx?id=2114963&

Good Times, Great Memories

In Colorado there is a chain of fast food stores called Good Times. That is a great names on so many levels, but I kept calling it Good Burger. Now, I was a very big fan of All That. I like Amanda Bynes, and I remember Kel's character of the French Guy in the Bathtub. I am very happy he is on SNL, but I have to say, I have never seen Good Burger. Is it good? Any comments, should I rush it to the top of my queue?

Posessed by Harry Potter

I stayed up way to late (2 am) re-reading the 5th Harry Potter book. I then had a dream about it where I was the one having visions of what Voldemort was doing. I woke myself up though when I threw up in my mouth a little and woke up choking and unable to breath for a few seconds. It felt like when you get the wind knocked out of you and it is almost like you forgot how to breath. I had to drink a whole glass of water to get the burning in my throat to stop.
I hate having a dream about the Harry Potter world, because it just makes me more depressed that I cannot live in their world and be a witch. Oh, to be Ginny Weasley!

Silent All These Years

There are certain songs that remind me of my parents. With my dad is it pretty much all oldies with an emphasis on Elvis. With my Mom it is Bonnie Raitt, Amy Grant, Shawn Mullins, and in particular Little Earthquakes by Tori Amos.

Any time I hear that CD, I vividly remember the time when she lived in these very ghetto apartments on Cambell and 8th Ave. in Phoenix. I was in 7th grade and out of school for the summer. The apartment pool was filled in with dirt and we were pretty much the only white family there. I would get a Payaso (the best popsicles ever) from the guy with his cart, listen to her Tori Amos tape and read Foxfire by Joyce Carol Oates.

Now here is an example of my seriously fast though process:

I was driving to my Mom's house yesterday and I heard a song from Little Earthquakes on the radio. I thought about another thing I learned that summer, that my grandfather had repeatedly physically abused my mom when she was a kid.

Then I thought about his funeral and if she had ever forgiven him.

Then I thought about how both my Mom's parents were dead.

Then I started crying because I don't want my parents to die.

This was all withing the first thirty seconds of the song. So I was driving down Camelback singing along to the song and crying because my parents are going to die. I think that is one reason I can be very happy and yet have no idea where I will be in a year. I still do not know where my life is going but I am very lucky and have a tremendous amount of support from my family. Although I am making it on my own, I know that if I were to not have a job or a place to live, I would have somewhere to go. And that must be the scariest thing in the world, having nowhere to go and no one who loves you unconditionally.

Mile High

If I hear that phrase again, I might puke. In Denver it has been attached to everything, from radio stations to tattoo shops.

first, before I forget: If you like baby stuff (Amber), go here now http://www.mahardrygoods.com/index.php If you don't know yet, if I ever have a little boy, I plan on decorating his room with vintage robot/ sci-fi stuff, and there is the coolest robot blanket on there. There is also a blanket with gnomes, that is very cute. It makes my ovaries quiver with excitement.

Ok, back to Denver. It was pretty fun. Other than the weather (mid 70's), it was not much different that Phoenix, same urban sprawl, but with differenent cookie cutter houses. Instead of stucco, they all had basements and blue or beige siding. We drove for less than an hour and were in the Rockies. The temp was only about 50 but there was still snow on the ground. I will get my pics in flikr tonight.

The coolest thing was that we went to see Body Worlds II http://www.bodyworlds.com/en/pages/koerperspende.asp at the Denver Science Museum. I had never heard of it, but it is an exhibit with actual human bodies that have been plastified. It was really interesting and kinda creepy. I know this is really juvenile but the thing I couldn't stop staring at were the balls and penii (or penises, whichever you prefer) on all the bodies. Thankfully I held in the giggling, but there was a lot of staring.

Also we ate at the Hard Rock Cafe and did some shopping. Why is it when we visit another city, we do things we could do in our own city. I almost went shopping at Old Navy, but I held myself back.

I found a new drink while in Denver: Coca Cola Blak. It is coffee mixed with coke, and yes it is good. Before I left I had never seen or heard of it, but now that I am back people are telling me they have seen it. This also happened to me when I was 18 and went to Minnesota. I thought I would be the first person in Arizona to ever drink Pepsi with Lemon. But by the time I got back, it was everywhere. It's weird.

Rocky Mountain High

I am leaving tonight for Colorado for five days. Brad and I are going to visit and stay with his Mom and Step-dad. Everyone asks me, "Oh, is this the first time you are going to meet her?" Thankfully no, it is not. That would make me very anxious. But I have met his mom many times when she comes down here to visit.

I still do feel weird about sleeping in the same room as Brad around his parents, because I know my Dad would be weird about it. Brad's mom is definitely cool with it though.

Story Time

Brad and I are readers. We get excited talking about the office/library we will one day have. There are many books that I want Brad to read and vice versa. He has caved in and read the The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe, but has yet to complete the series. I had yet to read Catch 22.

But what Brad hasn't (won't) read is Harry Potter. I know, gah.

I have now found a way around it, I am reading them to him. I'm only like one chapter into the first book, but it's going good.

At bed time I just keep reading until he drifts off to sleep, then I tuck him in and warn him about bed bugs. They bite you know!

Lists

I like lists. But that may have developed out of my hate for transition sentences.

A few things:

Does anyone else take their fruit snacks and line them up in the color they are going to eat them? I always save the red for last.

My work finally went and made Myspace FORBIDDEN, so now I am going through withdrawls.

Almost everynight I think, "what would I do if someone broke in? Where is the cell phone?" Then I tell myself to remind myself that tomorrow night, I will bring the phone in the room, just in case. But I never do.

I really, really like it when my Sims Woo Hoo.

I definitely got una buena nota on my examen final en Espanol (an A). I am very good at studying for 30 minutes before an exam and remembering it for just enough time to spit it back out on paper. Some of it sticks, but not much. I will never forget the verb for vacuuming: pasar la aspiradora, because I think, pass the sucker.

So hilarious

Superdickery is awesome, it shows actual covers from past comics and how much of a dick Superman is.

This blog is where I got the link.

Mama

I just realized that I am the age that my mother was when she first got pregnant with me.

Yeah. But she was a college grad and married.

I am neither of those things......yet


p.s. I am still paranoid about talking about marriage or babies in front of Brad. Even though he contributes to the conversation, and swears it doesn't scare him. I am still partly brainwashed that talking about marriage is BAD!!!!

Finals

My apartment is directly across the street from a neighborhood bar. Last night we could hear cheers until 11 at night. I could only guess that there was a sporting event on. Then I get to work this morning and people are talking about the Suns vs. Lakers game. So I guess that was what kept me up. I really couldn't care less about sports. I think if high schools had to choose between theater/art program and sports, it should be no question. What school, who are supposed to be educating children, would choose sports? A plenty, that's who. It really disgusts me.

I have finals next week, so after that I will be posting more. Sorry!

Death by Dr. Pepper

This is a fun link

Death by Caffeine Enter your weight and it will tell you how much of a certain kind of soda you would have to drink for it to kill you

link via Mrs. Kennedy

Dreams

I have a wisp of a memory of my dream last night, but I can't grasp onto it. I won't remember it until when I lay down again tonight. It always works that way for me.

I love my dreams, they are usually very coherant and colorful. I always wonder after waking up from a sex dream, did my body just make me have an orgasm, or was I sleep masturbating? Because that would be embarrasing at a sleep over.

Barnes & Noble

I have always wanted to work at Barnes & Noble. When I was in high school, my mother had a part time job there and she said during the interview process they ask you for your ten favorite authors or ten you would like to have dinner with or whatever. Here is my list. I have decided to write it out and carry it with me at all times, just in case they see me browsing and I get an impromptu interview, because they know I would be the best addition.

EDIT:
Jeffrey Brown
Jodi Piccoult
Al Franken
Charles Bukowski
David Sedaris
J.K. Rowling
Francesca Lia Block
Audrey Niffenegger
Laurie Notaro
Shel Silverstein

Alternates: Noam Chomsky, Christopher Pike, Ann M. Martin, V.C. Andrews.

Havalinas

On the drive home from San Francisco a few weeks ago, I found a cool new station on my sirius radio. It is old time radio shows. Brad and I totally lucked out that when we tuned in we got to hear an episode of The Twilight Zone! It was the "The Obsolete Man", which is a great one.

Then we heard a show starring Douglas Fairbanks where he had just gotten out of prison but then saw the man who he had been convicted of killing. Much hijinks ensued. That was pretty good too.What they were great at though, was keeping me awake.

p.s. I am going to Sedona for the night. Brad's Mom is up there and we get to stay in one of the rooms of her two room suite. I hope to have much fun. I think on the drive up, I will make Brad play The Pixies, Havalinas just so I can sing: old Sedona.....A-reee-zooonaa!

p.p.s. Isn't the weather just great today (and yesterday)?

Dear Oprah

Now that I have dvr, I have been watching Oprah every day. I realize that all she does is make me cry. Every. Episode.

Yesterday was pretty bad (I think it was Wednesday's ep.). She talked about Africa and all the genocide going on in Sudan, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and in Uganda. There were pictures of dead people and the talks of rape and cooking people alive and feeding them to other people.

In Uganda the children must walk like 5 miles every night to be locked in overnight or else they could be kidnapped by the Rebels and forced to kill people and be raped. Then they walk home 5 miles every morning. They do this every day. They are called the Night Walkers.

Tear :*(
It made me so depressed because all I knew nothing about this stuff and there is not much I can do except give money. And it makes me angry because our media is for SHIT!

Baby Names

Let me precede this by stating, I am not pregnant. But I have been searching for good baby names since early high school. I was looking at a popular baby name site and i am dissapointed that some names I like are on the Top 100 for 2005. I want my baby to have an underused name. I hated being Shannon B. because there were other Shannon's in my classes. Here are some names that I like, but will probably not use.

Girls:
Sophie
Olivia
Sydney
Lily (sorry Amber, it's # 26 on the most popular list)
Reagan
Kennedy
Lucy

Boys:
Noah
Robert
Patrick

I seriously will probably use Robert sometime, because that is my dad's, grandpa's and great-grandpa's first name. I also like Dean, but only as a middle name, it was my maternal grandpa's middle name.
I'm glad Claire or Wendy was not on that list, because I love those names. I'm sure this will all change more in the next couple years before I plan to have a baby.

That one candy with the sweetness?

The other day, I could not remember the name of a certain childhood candy. I kept giving Brad memory cues, but he was no help.
Me: It came in a tube of clear cellophane.

Brad: I don't know

Me: They were all different flavors and pastel colors.

Brad: I don't know

Me: They are like hardened pixie stixs.

Brad: Silence

Me: Nevermind.

Well I still didn't remember until I read it right now on someone else's blog: Smarties. Duh.

p.s. In 6th grade on the bus, my friend and I crushed them up and snorted them. There was no high, but much sneezing. That relates to the time my sister and I rolled up grass that we tore out of the yard in notebook paper and tried to smoke it. What? That's what "grass" means, doesn't it? No?

Adulthood

I made one of my first major purchases as an adult last night...... a vacuum. Not just like the other vacuums I've had, which all cost under $50, this baby cost $200. It is amazing. I vacuumed last night and it has this light that turns from Red (dirty) to Green (clean) to tell you when you can stop vacuuming that spot. Lets just say that i did so much vacuuming on my little patch of apartment carpet that I am actually sore today. But that could just be because I am out of shape.

Maybe this will help with the weird smell that seems to be in my apartment no matter how much I clean, it was probably due to the ancient crumbs that set up camp in the depths of my carpet.

p.s. Brad's mom is in town and he hung out with her last night. I know this will sound lazy and spoiled (i am) but doing things by yourself is hard. I bought the vacuum and went grocery shopping and then had to carry everything up the stairs. Yet another reason for my soreness.