That damn pile of rocks

Shortly after we moved here, I noticed a smelly old pile of rocks at the top of our road. I took note of them and went about my business. However, for whatever reason, the rocks soon got the best of me and I had to stop and take a closer look. Here is what I saw.

Exhibit A:

So again, I went on about my life, minding my own bees waxes. Eventually though, these damn rocks got the best of me and I had to, just had to kick them over!!! Why did I feel the need to kick them over? Who knows?!?! I'm weird and I do what I want. However, to my surprise, about two weeks ago I noticed the damn pile was back!!!

Exhibit B

 Screw you, stupid person building the rock pile back. Grrrr......AGH! What was I to do??? Knock it over again, naturally.

 

Exhibit C

I thought for sure this would get my message across, but no. No such luck. The scumbag built the rock pile back up, yet again.

Exhibit D

I've had enough of this maniacal rock pile. This is my answer for this stupid ol', smelly ol', crusty ol' pile of rocks that haunts me.

Exhibit E

Instead of kicking over the rock pile, I decided I would leave the builder with a little message of "NO." Maybe THIS will get my point across!!!!

Old Man Moses

Our little old man Moses wasn't doing so well all weekend. He had a few ups, but mostly it was all down. He stopped eating and drinking, was really weak, and seemed confused about what he was doing, even for simple things like going outside to potty. This morning we woke up and things hadn't improved. We made the decision that we would NOT allow him to suffer. So, our Stoney boy took his last breath around 9:15 this morning. It was a very bittersweet moment.Stone was the most gentle & calm dog you could every meet. He just had a way of burrowing into your soul and stealing your heart.  Rest in peace, old man. We love you.

Cacti

One of the downsides of moving to California is that I had to get rid of ALL of my houseplants. Total bummer, because I had quite a few of them. However, all that no plant having crap came to an end this week. I found a great seller to buy plants from at the Thursday Night Market in Chico. This week I came home with not one, not two, not three, but FOUR cacti!!! I don't know why in the hell I picked them, I've never been able to care for them properly. If you've never tried to care for a cactus, it's pretty tough. Don't judge or be all hateful until you try it. They're really delicate and are super picky about their pH.

Today, we went down to Chico to do some shopping and I was determined to find new pots for my new prickly friends. It took us going to S E V E N, that's right SEVEN different stores to find pots that were awesome enough for me. Whew, glad that's over! I brought the new pots home and here are the final results...

A view from the top, never to be seen again...since they now live in a giant bay window that's about SEVEN feet taller than I am.

I bought a few different varieties, for color and wishful thinking.

Yay for having plants again!!!

13 things, idiosyncracies, and such

13 things you never knew (and possibly didn't want to know, but now you are stuck reading) about me.

1. I'm a total foodie, but I LOVE ramen noodles. They are so salty and delicious and simple.In fact, I just ate some. YUM.
2. Moving out of Indiana was one of the most stressful, happy, scary, exciting, fear-inducing, awesome things I've ever done. (And I'm happy I did it, would do it again in a heartbeat).
3. I love tap water. In a pilsner glass with ice.
   
4. I can rarely stay awake for a movie if I'm watching it at home. They bore me to death.
5. I cry easily, especially over weddings and births.
   
6. My average length in any career field is ten years.
   
7. I'd rather have the windows open than deal with air conditioning in my truck, no matter what the temperature is.
   
8. Hair freaks me out and makes me want to scream. It's so gross.
   
9. I curl my eyelashes and refuse to EVER put makeup on my face.
   
10. I always set my alarm clock to an odd number (i.e. 7:27am).
11. It's difficult to keep my attention, yet not difficult to tell you've completely lost me.
    
12. I'd rather swim in a lake or creek than a swimming pool.
    
13. I love Desperate Housewives and am super sad this is the final season.
    

Poison wha?????

Poison oak is our new friend. And by friend, I mean the kind you NEVER want to see, you dread their visit, and basically....wait. Not friend. Not even close to a friend.

ENEMY!!!!!

Yeah, that's what I mean. Poison oak is our new enemy, and it is MISERABLE. Exhibit one:


That's the lower portion of my left leg. This patch is BY FAR the worst that I have. I'm thankful it's on my leg, cause anywhere above my hips and I start to have a SERIOUS melt down. Once, I was completely covered from my feet to my ears (and everywhere in between) with poison ivy and thought I would commit suicide before it went away. Two rounds of steroids, an oral prescription for atarax, two topical ointments and almost four weeks later it all went away. Thank Jebus.

Anyhow, I digress. So, now I have "the enemy" on both of my legs, my stomach, my right wrist, and two places on my back. Lindsay however, is having a hell of a time with it. She had to hike down into the canyon the other day to save one of our dogs who had wondered off, and she is slowly but surely showing new spots everyday. Her newest discovery was this morning, under her boob. YIKES!!!!

Movin' on up!

Well, it's been six months since I blogged. WHAT?!?!?! I've been busy!!!! So since it would be impossible for me to catch anyone up (like the three people that read this don't already know about my life!!!!), I will aspire to do better.

In the meantime, you should all know that we moved! I'd like to say it went off without a hitch, but I cannot do that. It was an effing disaster and I don't ever want to drive across the country again. EVER. Especially not with three spazzy-ass dogs.

Anywhoodles, here Lindsay and I are today...finding out first geocache in the Chico area!

A note on returning the favor

Dear Spanish Professor,

I know it's only been two days since we started this new class, but I wanted to share a little something with you. Now, keep in mind this may not be true for all of your students, however it is very true for me. I really just have one question for you...so here goes.

Why do you think it's acceptable to ask me to fill out a ridiculous form at the beginning of the semester telling you random tidbits about myself (i.e. my job, how many years I've taken Spanish, what I plan to do with my life, etc) and then not do the same in return???

I find you very interesting. You ran for U.S. Senate and have already talked in depth about your world travels (including Africa, Europe, and Latin America), yet when I asked you what you do you simply replied "soy un professor" (I am a professor).

I find it a little ridiculous that you get to know about me, but I don't get to know about you. Yea, yea...I know what you're thinking "I'm the professor and can do what I want." I don't disagree with that. I just think it's only fair to return the favor to your students and let them know a little bit about yourself.

Keep in mind that if you didn't require me to fill out your questionnaire, you certainly would not be reading this right now.

Whatever, I'll just google you, Mr. I-Ran-For-US-Senate-Man.


Signed,

Su estudiante

Spring 2011

Today is the last day of winter break. It's bittersweet, as it usually tends to be. This has been a great break. I've been surrounded by both my and Lindsay's families. We've had a lot of good times, eaten way too much food, and relaxed way too much. Now, back to reality.

I'm happy to start the semester. My brain feels like it turns to a big bowl of oatmeal when it isn't being engaged and when my ideals and thoughts aren't being challenged one a daily basis. As always, the beginning of the semester always makes me feel inspired, excited to learn, and proud to be a college student who can bring a new twist to pretty much any topic.

Here's the lineup for this semester and a few thoughts about them individually:

• Introduction to Women's Studies-This is a no brainer. I love women, especially one's that stand up for themselves. As an added bonus, Mercy (one of the docs I work for) will be presenting to my class. I know celebrities. Duh.
  

• Introduction to Religious Studies-I don't know jack shit about religion, so I figured this would be a good way to dabble in the many different world religions.
  

• Intensive Spanish 2-I love learning Spanish. Spanish kicks ass. The first semester of this class was pretty easy, and I'm told the second half is more difficult. I say bring it.

In my blood

Music just seems to be one thing I am always current with. I'm not a movie person (at all) and until recently (a year-ish) I didn't read much either. However, music is something I am always exploring. It inspires, motivates, and moves me.

There really isn't any genre I despise, but I'm not big on country, head-banging metal/screamer rock, or anything that is completely foul-mouthed (some cursing is fine, but every other word is ridiculous).

My favorite genres: pretty much anything that was not mentioned above. No, really. Gimme a good beat I'm ready to rock/sway/dance/hold up my lighter and sing. ;)


I wanted to share a few of my favorite artist/groups and a few new discoveries I have made. First and foremost, my favorites, ones I consider classic to me:

1. Girlyman: best music discovery of the 21st century. These guys opened for The Indigo Girls at a show I went to in Bloomington in 2003. I immediately fell in love with them and have introduced many other fortunate souls since. #Alltimefavorite#
   
2. Ray Lamontagne: give him to me solo or with The Pariah Dogs, IDC. #smoothsound#
   
3. Tori Amos: my friend Joanie introduced me to Tori when I was 12. Her lyrics are sometimes dangerous, her piano skills amazing, and her voice is chilling. Love her. Big thanks to Joanie for that. #realbigtalent#
   
4. Indigo Girls: another introduction complimentary of Joanie. Seriously some kick ass tunes. #feelgoodmusic#
   
5. Scissor Sisters: raunchy, dancey, and electronic. #YUM#
6. Led Zeppelin: I don't even have to say anything else. #Classicrock#
   
7. Train: some of the best beats and lyrics I've ever heard. #favoritemalegroup#
8. Janet Jackson: a great artist with so much diversity in her music. Hello, Velvet Rope?!?! #rocksmyfaceoff#
9. Coldplay: captured me with "Yellow" in 2000. Loved them since. #foralloccassions#
10. Madonna: the queen. Edgy. Daring. Hot. #shesthebeesknees#

Artists that I have recently discovered that I adore:

1. Awolnation: a weird mix of electronics and rock. Sounds great to me.
2. Elisa: thanks to SYTYCD I found her a couple years ago.
   
3. Muse: always a good beat. Easy to listen to.
   
4. Eric Hutchinson: reminds me of Train and Coldplay, except solo.
   
5. Imogen Heap: a crazy mix of vocals and electronics to keep me interested.
6. The Avett Brothers: mellow sounds.
7. Tiesto: electronic inspiration.
8. Matt Natanson: unmistakable voice that I love.
9. Kings of Leon: who doesn't like these guys? Srsly.
10. Florence+The Machine: this lady can sing like whoa!

Last, but certainly not least, I feel that pop, R&B, and rap deserve their own category. I do love a lot of this music, but ultimately as you can see my favorites are the mellow, folky, and electronic types. However, I didn't want to contaminate my other favs with this nonsense, so they get their own little piece of my bloggy-blog-blog:

1. Lady GaGa
2. T.I.
   
3. Drake
4. Akon
5. Nicki Minaj
6. Sean Kingston
7. Eminem
8. Ludacris
9. Jamie Foxx
10. Katy Perry
11. Waka Flocka Fame
12. Iyaz
13. Taio Cruz
14. Rihanna
15. Beyonce
16. Trey Songz
17. P!nk
18. Nelly
19. Septemeber
20. Cascada

Alright, so basically if you ever ride in my truck with me, expect to hear a wide variety of music!!