can i just say...

how much of a pain in the ass registering my car in Virginia has been? Good golly.

Also, tomorrow starts Project: Get My Act Together, where I try to use the time in month of August to plan out at least 75% of my 10th and 11th grade classes. I have even more motivation now that I have six classes instead of five.

Alsoalso (kind of like P.P.S.), David quits smoking on August 12th/13th. Wish him (us?) luck and also tell him you're proud of him.

pictures galore!

We went to a Harry Potter party at B&N

Meg got a tattoo. It has Harry's face in it.

We both got sorted into Ravenclaw. Helllllzzzz yeaaaah!

When David showed up, we convinced him to be sorted, too. He was Hufflepuff, poor boy. Haha.

There were sooo many people.
The 7th book was good, except the epilogue was... um, strange. Too perfect? I don't know. Let's pretend it never happened.

Then we went to Busch Gardens.

This is the Griffon's first drop. 205 ft up. 90 degree drop straight down. Freaking. Crazy.

They dangle the people at the top, leaning over the edge for almost 10 seconds (I think, I didn't count it. It has to be between 5 and 10 seconds that they're stuck in this position, though). Uhh.. yeah.

Megan went on her first rollercoaster. It was incredibly fast, but very fun. We got soaked on a ride calld Roman Rapids. I jinxed us by saying "I really don't want to get caught under the waterfalls". We hit all three of them! haha. I had fun watching people come around the corner for the first drop on the Griffon and be waving their hands, all excited and then they clutch on for dear life once it releases. Next time, I'm going to ride the Alpengeist. I couldn't quite convince Meg to get on that ride. It's a really nice park, though, I was really impressed.

I went to College Park/D.C. area with Kristie yesterday, to pack up Maurice's stuff and see David. We walked around Georgetown between rain drops. I dropped into an Urban Outfitters for the first time since we moved down here and found these cute little things:

We'd been looking for a coat rack or something similar for a while, these were perfect.
David surprised me with this:

He picked it out allllll by himself. Well done, boy! (it's a fake/imitation, btw. haha. I love it.)

Here's a cute cat to cheer up your day:


And, finally, something for you to read.

attn: co-workers of my father

Today was my dad's 57th birthday.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DAD!

Scotty and Traci: I debated calling you guys to make sure you let everyone know, but we went to Busch Gardens instead. :)

children and healthcare

David was talking about this at breakfast this morning and then feministe wrote about it today.

whirlwind

(on the way to South Haven. Too bad it was only in the 70s that day.)
I am lazy, so I'm going to direct you to my flickr site. Link in the sidebar, look for the square with the pictures in it. There are pictures of mostly Chris, Cherie and their time in Kzoo, but there are also pictures of the surprise guest (!!) Joey, my new favorite drink (amaretto sour, which at first sounded disgusting), Mr. Ryan Dinkgrave, who was kind enough to visit and go out to dinner (and patient enough while we drove around kzoo trying to find somewhere open!) with Chris, Cherie, Joey and I, stuff we saw in D.C., etc. etc.
I had a blast in Kzoo. I was so happy to see Chris and Cherie there, I've missed being around them a lot. It was really awesome to get to see Ryan and Joey and for them to travel across the state to hang out for a few hours. Ryan gave me a CD with a few different albums on it, all of which are amazing (and the MP3 CD works in my car's CD player--wooo).
I got to hang out and catch with some of my favorite Kzoo (although some not for long) and Michigan people: Katy, Erin M, Kim, Bill, Emily, Dan, Petro, Brian, Jen, Kate, DJ, Clay, Josh F, Mike, Scotty and Traci! Amazing! I think that's everyone. I was lucky enough to get to see just about everyone I wanted to and luckily ran into a few people. I finally got to see the new Harvey's, revisited the Green Top, eat at Shawarma King, Saffron, and Crow's Nest, laugh a lot, and hug everyone I've missed so much. Erin, Chris, Cherie and I got to relive (sort of) horror movie night with Slumber Party Massacre and Tom Collinses! I hung out at Rocket Star a lot. Katy and I got Culver's, went to the cottage and wondered if the pontoon was moving. I got the best voicemail ever from Chris and Cherie (Doritos! A whole bag of Doritos!). Chris and Cherie helped my family have the best grilled meal ever. We went to South Haven and walked around, unfortunately on the only day that was in the 70s! I finally got to try Summer Thyme Cafe (delicous!!) and catch up with Jen and Kate. I also got to see the midnight showing of Harry Potter OotP with Megan, Mike, Scott, Chris, Cherie and Katy (the tradition lived on!). It was pretty awesome.
This is such a mess of thoughts! BUT I loved seeing everyone's faces and no longer just hearing your voices or reading your letters/emails. I hope that I convinced a few people to move down to Virginia or at least visit. haha.

Okay, so, our trip back deserves a story. We hop on a train from Kzoo to Chicago. Eat in Chicago. Get on a train leaving at 7:05 PM, supposed to get into D.C. at 1:05 PM. We sleep really bad because the lights are kinda bright in the train and there is a baby in front of us that will. not. stop. crying. (mostly because the mother and grandmother with the baby weren't choosing very effective methods to quiet a baby down. "Stop that" and "quiet now" are probably not going to fix whatever that child needs) We end up being SIX HOURS LATE. Yes, SIX! Frieght traffic, signal problems, brake problems, you name it-- we had it. We ran out of food on the train. People missed trains. We were certain that we'd miss our 5:50 train to Williamsburg because we were schedule to come into D.C. at 6:10 (this was changed about 5 times while David was waiting at the D.C. train station for our train to Williamsburg. It went from 5:15 to 5:35 and so on... ugh) We talk to the attendant as we're all waiting to pull into the station and I ask him if there's another train to the southeast part of VA. He tells us that that train to Williamsburg/Newport News can't leave until the conductor on our train gets on there. WHAT?!! Holy crap! How lucky! So, we ended up on the same train that David was on and we all headed to Williamsburg. Meg and I were exhausted. What an adventure.

David tagged me to do this thing:

Five (5) things about me you may not know:
1. I get really nervous and anxious going out to a public place, party, get together, etc. unless I'm with people I know really well. Like I'm talking jumpy, sweaty, etc. (I know this happens to most of you, too)
2. When I was little, I thought that I was safe from ghosts and goblins if I had a cat with me or if I made some sort of music (singing, whistling, humming, etc.)
3. Alternate dream careers: Radio show on NPR, singing in a band, photographer, owner of a coffeeshop (who didn't see that one coming?! but seriously, since I was a teenager, I always wanted to own a cafe)
4. I am really paranoid and scared of losing memories.
5. I get really annoyed when people hold back because they are absolutely petrified of what someone else will think of them. I hate seeing people hold themselves back from something that could be an amazing memory, moment, adventure, or fun! One life to live, people! (this is probably because I was like this all through middle and most of high school and I still get a little like this.)

Tag, you're it:
1. Miss Fancy Pants
2. Natalie
3. Emily H
4. Jen

delayed

I will post pictures and the happenings of the rest of my Kzoo trip later on.
Today/yesterday we celebrated the first year anniversary. Nothing too spectacular because I was extremely tired (and still am) from the trip, especially the train ride home. Nothing good ever happens while traveling (or attempting to travel) to D.C. The place is cursed. Anyway. Yesterday I got a Sidekick ID (loooove it!), so I can now text message and email (alipants@tmail.com) back and forth. We also checked out the adorable beach in Yorktown. Yorktown itself seems pretty freaking cute and less crowded than WBG (also, I think they have a tattoo shop there that we should look into).
We also decided that I will be getting rid of the eMac and getting a laptop in the fall. I think what convinced David was that we can get him a free iPod nano. What convinced me is that my Safari crashed half the time and, other times, takes 5 minuts to load something.

I leave you with some interesting reading and viewing:
(mostly stolen from Feministing and Feministe, but that doesn't mean that you "I'm not a feminist and I don't like them Feminazis" people can't enjoy them as well. haha.
About a networking site called Late Night Shots and what all those priviledged, golf-loving, country club members, ivy league school dudes do with their free time. Creeptastic.
"Fewer high school students are having sex these days, and more are using condoms. The teen birth rate has hit a record low"
"Love is Revolutionary (The Threat of Friendship)" Long-ish, but really good. David and I were discussing this a lot this weekend: the lack of empathy in people.
Two things for you to check out:
Cure This. From their "About" section (I couldn't say it any better): For two and a half years, "Cure This" was a pipe dream shared by just a handful of us. We envisioned a grand goal: to create an online space to discuss health in its broadest sense, share personal stories, creatively make positive change, and build an online community along the way — connecting us locally, nationally, and perhaps internationally. We envisioned a humble beginning: here and now.
Cure This has now transformed into a reality, and we’re excited beyond words. We welcome it into this world with a loving, gentle nudge and an encouraging whisper in its ear. Let the beautiful journey begin.
Health08 Election news, analysis and events

"Guys and Dolls". About men who use and have relationships with "Real Dolls".

I don't know if I should be creeped out or feel really bad for these guys.

back in the midwest

Whew! We're in Kzoo, after three different trains and my first experience with motion sickness. The train was very nice, a lot more comfortable than I was expecting. It's really amazing to take the train, because you can really appreciate the landscape you go through.
Last night, we went to dinner after getting into Kzoo (and a shower! after 20 hours on a train, it felt amazing!). As I was eating, I felt like I was still swaying. Then I started to feel like I was going to puke. I was meeting Scotty and Traci and once they showed up, I felt out of it and sick to my stomach. It got better for a while and I tried to keep talking and not focus on it. I left around 8, because they ordered food and I knew that the sight of food would not help the tummy. I hope to see them again before I go, this time with no stomach issues. I think the combination of anxiety and excitement of traveling with the feeling of still swaying left my body very confused.
I went home, laid down, took some medicine, drank some Vernors (yayyy Vernors!), and felt better after resting a while. I went to hang out with Katy at her house and enjoyed slouching on her couch and catching up with her, Emmy, Mike, and a few other friends of Katy's that I've met and chatted with a few times. Three of them left after a while and I stayed for a while longer to chat with her. We'll be going to the midnight showing of Harry Potter on the 10th, as well as going to the cottage on Sunday.
Today is a beautiful day and I had no plans. The family already went out to the cottage to spend the night, so I headed to Rocket Star. I chatted for a while with Tim and Clay, but it probably came out as a bunch of rambling because I drank too much coffee this morning. Brian came in and we sat and talked for quite a while, then most everyone I know in Kzoo went to Mike and April's reception. Since I was not invited, I told Clay to tell them congrats and headed over to New Addiction to catch up with DJ and talk about getting a tattoo later on.
Now I'm at home, sipping Vernors and resting up so I can head out tonight for some fun (hopefully). I called Krista to make sure I'd see her while I'm here and dropped off Meghan and Alex's wedding card at their apartment. A pretty productive day today, so far.
Happy birthday to Cherie (who probably won't even see this until she's already here in Kzoo!). I can't wait to see Chris and Cherie in Kzoo. There's even a chance Ryan will drop into Kzoo tomorrow. So far, so good.