New Fang

Linus and I have something in common: a security blanket.
Granted, his might be an ACTUAL blanket, but now really isn't the time to debate technicalities. ;p



My security blanket actually happens to come in the form of a backpack. I'm definitely a social being and I'm always on the move. Most of the time I'm headed out to hang with friends or to the nearest caffeination station. My handy dandy backpack totes around all the things I might need if I ever got stranded in some random neighborhood for an evening. My laptop, wallet, books, magazines, Clif Bars, toothbrush & toothpaste, pens & Sharpies, phone charger, and other things I keep handy just in case I need to pretend to MacGuyver my way out of a situation.

My current backpack is an OGIO "Transit." I've had this bag for the past 7 years and it's been a faithful companion—until last night when I noticed it finally had a tear in it. *holding back tears* Yes it's true, all good things must come to an end. Last night as I was packing up my stuff in my backpack, I noticed the tear and decided it was big enough that it might do some damage if it ripped any further from wear and tear, and so I should call up OGIO and let them know I needed to order a new one.

You see that orange peeking through?
It's the inside built-in laptop protector sleeve.

The good thing is that I have a Lifetime Warranty for my OGIO bag, so when my original one I'd gotten 10 years ago broke 3 years later, I called OGIO. They said that my particular model of bag had been discontinued but I could choose another from the site. So I chose the Transit bag. It came in the mail the next week . . . free of charge :)

I looked on the site this morning and apparently they don't carry the Transit anymore. So I think I'm gonna go with the "Hip Hop." I would LOVE to replace it with another sling backpack, because I don't like double strap backpacks, but they don't have that I like on the site.


I really like bags with only one strap and kinda miss my messenger bag phase. So I guess it's time to revisit that season. I hope my new bag is here by the time I get back from my trip and I hope my old bag holds up until then!

The Hardest Button To Button

Yes. That is exactly what you think that is. That is a giant pile of clean clothes waiting to be folded, sorted, and either hung up or packed away for my trip to the east coast . . . which is tomorrow. I'm not ready to admit defeat just yet, but one of my major problems is that right before any big events, I get all panicky and I get this weird "anxious baby" syndrome!

I quickly become this little baby that doesn't want to wind down or go to sleep because my mind is racing a mile a minute. It's wondering, "What if I forget this? What if I miss this? Did I pack that? Man I'm hungry. Focus! Okay . . . Wait, what was I going to make sure to pack? I know I wrote it down . . . where IS that piece of paper I wrote it down on? Oh I should do ____ right now instead. Hey that sounds fun! Let's go!"

Yeah. No lie.

I started packing yesterday . . . and by started I mean I washed my clothes and threw them on my bed. My floor is STILL a mess by the way . . . and I still need to clean before I go to bed because the thought of coming home to a dirty room makes me sad. Last night I told myself I would clean, and I ended up not cleaning, but procrastinating like it was my job.

You know what I've done since I got off of work today? Let's see . . . I went to Cupcake Royale. I got home and made dinner. I sat and talked to my housemate. Made chocolate covered-strawberries. I dyed my hair. Blogged this post to avert my attention away from the giant pile of clothes on my bed. I'm about to go wash my hair. And after that, I'm turning off my wifi on my computer because if I leave it on, I'll hop on iChat and talk to friends for HOURS and not get anything accomplished. And what's more is that it's TOTALLY not their fault, it's ALL MY FAULT because when it comes time to pack and get things ready for big events or big trips . . . I can't FOCUS for the life of me.

Okay. Going now.

No. really.

Okay now.

*stares at clothing pile. glances over to PS2. glances over to electric guitar. glances over to pile of clothes. glances over to bookshelf.*

Okay going. Now. Really. Gone.

Now. . .

Maybe.

Ugh. Going.

Reflection

After my last post about being on the Westside softball team, I am pleased to say that I was able to walk away from the tournament on Saturday with a FULL heart, happy and excited that I got to be part of such an awesome team!

I went in with a positive attitude and walked away with an even more positive outcome. All season I'd been overwhelmed with the fact that I could never seem to hit the ball past the infield, which increased my odds of an out at first base. But on Saturday, I got some pretty awesome hits—including two past the infield! So I actually got a chance to run around the bases!


AND as a bonus plus, I even got to cross HOME PLATE! And THAT was such a winning feeling! We played our hearts out and made it to the championship game! And even though we came in 2nd in the tournament, I walked away with a 1st place smile! It was seriously such a great day! The fact that I got a nice tan during the games and got to go to a pizza party afterward wasn't too bad either. And I KNOW I got a really good workout too because even as I type this, my leg and arm muscles are still feeling the burn. I got to rest up yesterday and I'm ready for another great week!

Stay Just A Little

Hey everyone! Meet Puff!! Puff belongs to my co-worker Katie. He kept me company this morning in the office. He's such a sweet little bird!

Today was another FAST paced day. It came down to the wire, but we made it (like we always do) ;p

I will say though, that with the panic of the day, came some sweet treats throughout it. First of all, one of my co-workers brought me a copy of She & Him for me to add to my iTunes playlist and relieve some of the tension with some smooth tunes. And THAT helped a bunch!

As the to-do list was dwindling down, it seemed that more and more things just kept getting tacked on. I'd gotten a large chunk of it done, when I got a call on my intercom. It was my boss calling me down because one of our volunteers made fresh homemade Pico De Gallo for the whole office! It was such a needed break and a GREAT treat!


I finally got the journal done and sent off to press and tied up some loose ends and then I got a text from my dad that said: DINNER IS ON US TONIGHT! GO CRAZY! WE LOVE YOU!

And at first I texted him back and was like, "Are you serious?" Cause it just totally caught me by surprise. But he confirmed that I could in fact go out for dinner and have whatever I wanted—and that was AMAZING! I decided to go to Red Mill Burgers, since I had heard rave reviews about it but had never actually been. I had the chicken sandwich and a lemon chiffon shake and it was DELICIOUS!


And then I went to my comfort spot: Cupcake Royale and had one of the Toasted Cocounut Lime cupcakes and some coffee.

The funny thing is, even though he said to "Go crazy," I only ended up spending a total of $20 bucks . . . but it went a looooong way! After going in to the office around 7 a.m. the past few days and working late, I decided it was a nice night for a treat. I'm just glad I had help along the way. And the best news of all . . . tomorrow is Friday and I'm not going in early and . . .

7 more days until I fly to the east coast!

Under Control

I've been working since 7 a.m. and I'll probably be working LATE tonight to get deadlines met, which have been moved up by 2 days! Let me just say that working on 3 journals simultaneously with 2 of them having major deadlines before I fly to the east coast in 9 days is INSANITY! But I agreed to do it and I can see the end of the deadlines drawing near and I CAN DO IT! I may not get much sleep in the meantime, but the way I see it, I can sleep on the plane right? Let's just hope I don't sleep through my connecting flights ;)

I'm in need of some humor today, so I'll just leave this here:

PS: this is only the beginning of the ridiculous that is sleep deprivation . . .

Still Be Here

The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands
in moments of comfort and convenience,
but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.
- Martin Luther King Jr.

This is one of those quotes I lean on a lot. On Saturday, we played our last non-tournament softball game, and I discovered a lot about myself. I've mentioned before that my family is BIG into sports. I mean, we grew up playing baseball, football, kickball, etc. Well, I didn't personally play all those sports, but I was always surrounded by it. There have been many times I've mentioned in conversation that I am not very competitive, but on Saturday I got a better grasp on that statement. I should change it to:

I am pretty competitive deep down inside,
but I don't like being competitive.
It brings out the worst in me.

Now many could argue that a spirit of friendly competition is good because it teaches you to fight to be better than someone else and someone HAS to come out on top the winner, right? Maybe. But I'm not so sure that perspective works best for me. Because that friendly competition for me is never actually very friendly. I realize that deep inside I can become extremely competitive, but when I am, I'm not entirely proud of the things that run through my mind or come out of my mouth. I say hurtful things about others in my mind and I get really angry and determined to make someone else pay for my losses or struggles. This just leaves me a loser in either case.

And what's worse is that no matter what comes out of my mouth or what I repeat over and over in my head, the opponent doesn't receive the full effect of the pain. I do. I cannot tell you how discouraging it is to try to make it to first base without getting out—you hope deep down inside that the short stop will drop the ball or some elf will come snatch it out of his hand and throw it to the outfield . . . I mean really, where ARE my angels in the outfield?? ;P But the damage comes when I walk back to the dugout, upset that I didn't "make the cut." Upset that I wasn't "good enough." I talk myself down and I adopt the theory that I'll never make it. This is just how my mind naturally works. I mean, there are things that I love and things I KNOW I can do well . . . sports . . . just aren't anywhere near the top of the list. Sometimes I really do just accept in my mind that I'll never beat my weakness.

But after the game on Saturday, I took a few moments to sit and think and meditate on where I've come from and I was able to note the different difficulties I've been able to overcome. I realized that it was when I stopped allowing those negative words to become absolute truth that I was able to get headway and work towards overcoming them. It was when I allowed faith to overtake my human perspective that I was able to do something that I'd never been able to do before. For instance, the fact that I actually make contact and hit the ball, as opposed to just standing there, not swinging like I did when I played as a 5th grader . . . which . . . was the last time I'd played before joining the softball team last year. Also, seeing the vast improvements I've made this year as opposed to where I was last year is encouraging.

I realized that somewhere along the way, I made the games about my personal success as it pertained to points and a win, as opposed to being a team player and focusing on the fun moments with the people that mattered. When I focus on the right things, the difficulties become less about the technicalities and measuring sticks, and more about the here and now learning experiences that build strength and a worthwhile season of my life. And amazingly, when I focus on the right things, I get better at clearing the hurdles.*

I'm really looking forward to the tournament this upcoming weekend! And I'm not just saying that to soften the blow because we're not the #1 team—I mean, we're still in the top 3 as of now—but because it'll be the last hurrah for this season. The last chance to make the lives of others more full and more fun. I'll give my best and I'll try with all my might to end every inning with a positive, hopeful thought and do my best to focus on the people that make our team amazing. Some would call that a cop-out, I call that making the most of life's opportunities. If I play defeated, it won't matter what the score is, I'll still be defeated and I don't want to live like that.


*totally mixing up my sports there ;)

I'm Your Daddy

Today as I sit here thinking about my dad and what he's meant to me through the years, I've come up with something new and fun to pay tribute to the man who helped teach me some pretty important things in life:

Funny. I definitely get my sense of humor from my dad. We can go back and forth with jokes and he has some great one-liners. Along with joking in general, he's helped me learn to not take the trivial things in life so seriously, and encourages me to do spontaneously fun things too!

Appreciation for simpler things. Growing up with parents who were divorced, we didn't always get the opportunity to live with lavish accommodations or get to go to more upscale eateries and such. But what made up for it was my dad teaching me to appreciate every moment as it comes as if it is your last. He taught me to value simple things and to take everything else as just an added blessing.

Trustworthy. I love having a father that I know I can go to and share everything with. From my biggest fears to my happiest moments, I've had the honor of being able to trust my father enough to share it all, knowing that he doesn't see me as less of a person. In fact, I remember once, telling my father about something I did when I was a kid and saying, "Dad, just so you know, when I was younger, I did this _________," and seeing him smile as he said, "Oh I knew. People told me you did. But I knew you were safe and that it was something you would grow and learn from." I love knowing that he isn't afraid to let me "fly" because he was always ready to catch me in case I fell.

Honesty. I remember once when I was younger and I had a super huge crush on a guy, and I told my dad about this amazing boy that was just everything wonderful on the planet. And he looks at me, smiles, and says, "Oh don't worry. You'll get over it." And the funny part is that as I got to know the boy more, he did & said some things that REALLY turned me off and I TOTALLY did get over him. My dad's ability to level with me and state honest opinions with me is truly something I appreciate.

Extra Mile. A lot of people make remarks about how they notice that I have a developed habit of giving and serving others, but truth be told, if my dad had not set that example for me at a young age, I probably wouldn't be as apt to do it now. Even when I was little, my fondest memories of my dad was him giving food to people on the street—when we BARELY had any food for ourselves. And when people needed help, he was the first to raise his hand to volunteer. He truly goes the extra mile and has instilled that value in my own heart.

Rad. Look guys, my dad is just plain cool, okay? When I was home for Christmas, I talked my dad into letting me teach him the Single Ladies dance . . . and if you could imagine an older guy in a living room watching a YouTube tutorial and doing the Single Ladies dance just to humor me, you'd understand my dad's level of AWESOME! ;) I have had SO many amazing moments of random fun with my dad, and the fact that he joins in the fun and isn't afraid to do things that are unconventional just makes me EVEN more thankful that God gave me a father I can be proud to call my DAD.

I love you daddy!


Happy Father's Day!

Tell Me Something Good

Okay so these past couple of days have been filled with so many verbal highlights!

Here are a few I will share with you.

1. Apparently, my accent is confusing. Let me first state that I don't think I have a "typical" Texas accent (whatever that even means). Also, I've been surrounded by friends from all over, and my vocabular has an incredible ability to adopt different phrases and intonations. This wouldn't seem so weird if most of my friends were from a specific region, but as it stands, they're seriously from all over—Baltimore, Atlanta, East Texas, Louisiana, California, etc. So as I was on the phone with my best friend, Sarah, who I'm going to be flying out to see in 2 weeks, I said something and she just starts laughing. And I was like, "Dude! Are you laughing at me?" and she goes, "Yeah. How close ARE you to Canada? Earlier you said something and you were like, 'I should, eh?' and just now you said, 'I think I'll probably fly in to BWI, yeah?"" Needless to say, I did it subconsciously and we both laughed so much after that.

2. Let this be a warning to you all. So I went out to dinner with some of my small group friends, and we ate dinner at Saffron Grill before heading out to go see a movie. And I gotta admit, I may have had one too many cups of chai. The jokes were seriously just pouring out of my mouth and there were a few moments I was laughing so much that I switched into silent laugh mode! Then towards the end of the meal, my friend Stephanie said something along the lines of, "Amanda, I think our other small group was safer for you. We didn't go out in public as much." This, of course, only made me laugh more . . . cause it's SO true! People, you gotta realize—when you take me out in public with you, you're taking a pretty big risk for a multitude of shenanigans to ensue.

3. Movie watching is a commentator sport where I'm concerned. After dinner, we went to The Crest to go see CLASH OF THE TITANS (which I will forever lovingly refer to as "Clash of the Titians") And me and Laura McGreggor just kept making ALLLLLL sorts of commentary throughout the movie. Okay to be honest, it wasn't great, so it warranted some Mystery Science Theater interruptions. But I think I realized just how prevalent it was during a scene where Perseus is sent a Pegasus down from Mount Olympus as a gift, and I couldn't restrain myself as I belted out loud, "Wait! How come he gets a pony?!? For crying out loud! I want a pony!"

I realize that my little quirks may dwindle down my relationship pool, but let it be known, that no matter what happens or where I go in life, I will never cease to be entertained. And I'm okay with that.

Don't Speak

One of the things you hear the most as a kid is, "Don't talk to strangers." Now, most kids listen and understand at a young age. I apparently still have a lot to learn.

I've been riding the bus in Seattle since I moved here and I can honestly say that I have felt completely confident and safe up until an incident this morning.

This morning as I was waiting for the Aurora Village Express bus, I was approached by a man who clearly had some crippling mental condition. He hobbled along as he clutched his cane and smiled at me with a face marked by muscle deficiency. Growing up, I had experienced life with friends and family members who were handicapped and had not always been treated with kind regards. So when I saw him, my heart melted and I happily engaged in small talk with him. He began by asking me if I knew who the recipients of a basketball championship from years ago was. I then explained to him that if I couldn't answer a sports question if my life depended on it.

We continued small talk and niceties up until he asked the red flag question, "SO, HOW OLD ARE YOU?" I politely told him my age and he then asked where I lived. I pointed the opposite direction as panic began to creep in. "Over there." After assuring him that I lived with a bunch of housemates, and not alone as he'd inquired about, he changed the subject and I was mildly relieved.

He then focused the conversation back onto our ages. He said, "I'm 43. I'll be, 44 in August." I wished him a Happy early Birthday and said that I hoped it would be a good one. He responded creepily, "Well it will be if YOU'RE my Birthday present!"

A quick wave of fear came over me as I awkwardly laughed and looked down the road to see if the bus was coming any time soon to whisk me away to safety. Luckily it was about 2 minutes away and I changed the subject to the bus' proximity to our stop. I got on the bus and sat next to a girl up front close to the driver as he made his way to the back. I was safe at last.

After recounting the story to my friend John, I asked him why I always get hit on or propositioned by 40 year old creepos. His response was, "Because you keep talking to them."

Slowly but surely folks, I am learning my lesson.

Light Outside

A new video blog for you to enjoy!

song: Light Outside by Wakey!Wakey!

One Small Step

Hey-yo!

So did I tell you that I had dinner with the Pope last night? Cause I TOTALLY did!!

See . . .

It was good times!

There's really nothing exciting to report today, except I'm really happy that this morning I got a slew of Media Messages from my buddy Sean, showing me the package he's shipping me in the mail! And what pray tell is in said package?

Oh I dunno, maybe a replacement iPod Shuffle!!!

I feel like it's been forever since I accidentally sent my previous Shuffle (R.I.P.) to a briny death in Davey Jones' Washing Machine.

A moment of silence please . . .

But luckily, I have awesome friends like Sean who are willing to ship me their iPod Shuffle as a free-placement!* So when it gets here, I'm gonna load it up with some new stuff I've been listening to on my phone.

So I figured I'd take some time to share more music with you guys, since I haven't in a while. I hope you enjoy these!

1. LIGHT OF THE MORNING by Band of Skulls

Okay so last night I was watching TV with the housemates and this song came on a Mazda commercial. After fumbling for my phone to SHAZZAAM it and failing, I quickly typed in the lyrics I remembered and me and Gina both anxiously waited for the results to show up—we loved it! So then I found out it was this song by Band of Skulls. Much like tunes from BRMC, this song just makes me feel like a rock star. So I celebrated by playing air guitar and air drums this morning while listening to it!



2. LET'S GO by Madi Diaz

My friend Jessica gave me a link to Madi Diaz's Myspace and after listening to Let's Go and Heavy Heart, I quickly added them to my iTunes! I really want to learn to play this song on my guitar!



3. LAST OCTOBER by Green River Ordianance

One of my friends on Twitter recently introduced me to Green River Ordinance and I bought their album in one of the sale deals going on at Amazon.com. I'm really glad I did. I recently had this song on repeat when I was doing some screenwriting—I love when great music inspires me to write! Apparently, someone likes to listen to it while they watch WALK THE LINE, cause this is the only clear version I could find online ;)




4. LIGHT UP THE SKY by The Afters

My friend Esther's brother is in The Afters and I love their sound! This song is a comfort to me on a daily basis!



5. THE WAY WE WERE by The Season

The Season is a new band, and they don't have a video out that I can embed here, but if you click the link, you can listen. I'm going to see them play live here in Seattle in a couple of weeks and I'm SO excited!

The Way We Were by The Season (COLORADO SPRINGS TONIGHT!)


6. NOT EVERYONE LEAVES by Camera Can't Lie
I will say, listening to Camera Can't Lie is what led me to listening to The Season. The lead singer for Camera Can't Lie, Eric Arjes, helped produce that record for The Season. Recently, Camera Can't Lie released their EP called NOT EVERYONE LEAVES, and this is the title track, which I just LOVE!



*see what I did there? ;p

La La Lie

Last night I got the chance to watch the latest episode of LIE TO ME, which is by far one of my favorite shows to watch! It now comes on Monday nights, but I didn't get a chance to see it due to other plans, so I got to watch it last night. It's been on hiatus for a bit and just began with new episodes for the summer, which is GREAT since Glee and Bones are done until the fall, and LOST is forever resting in pieces :(

. . . hang on folks, just give me a minute while I cry in a corner . . .

Okay. Moment's over. Anyway, as I was saying . . .

My summer viewing has been resurrected by the re-appearance of LIE TO ME. I always wanted to go to study psychology, and I think it's actually quite fitting that the place I work at outsources counseling resources. But this show, is like the cherry on top. I seriously wish that I would have taken some college courses in studying in-depth psychology and micro-expressions. I mean, I remember taking Psychology in High School and just feeling like a kid in a candy shop! I love it!

But LIE TO ME is a favorite show because excels in maintaining a healthy balance of character development, with a focused field of study, and a good amount of snarky/witty writing that doesn't detract from the bigger goal.* The direction, character arcs, and scenarios are just a great balance for what I enjoy in a TV show.

I would be lying** if I said that this show doesn't compel me to pay more attention to people's micro-expressions more. I do. I just do. And it fascinates me. I also love how they incorporate real life photos/video footage of leaders, pop icons, and other familiar faces to serve as examples. So many things about this show inspire me as a writer, as a creative, and as a viewer in general.

So if you also find yourself intrigued by psychology, good drama, and lots of snark, you should check it out (Monday nights on FOX). The good news is, you can still watch a few of the past episodes on HULU! ;p

Here are some things for your consideration:

* plus, the guy that plays Eli Loker is pretty foxy. Just sayin'
**see what I did there?? ;P

You're So Vain

So originally I was going to write a post about my new haircut that I'm absolutely in love with! However, last night was filled with all sorts of Twitter shenanigans and I'd feel like I was cheating everyone from truly enjoying all the best parts of my life if I didn't feature it today.

So I'll just let you know that last night I got my haircut at VAIN here in Seattle (for $15!!) and I'm in love with my hair!



And now we'll get on to the real highlight—cause let's be honest, my hair will be cut again, but the conversation you're about to peek-in on won't be repeated. I mean, maybe it could, but that would just be silly. In any event, enjoy these shenanigans!

I've been lucky enough to make some awesome friends on Twitter. So much so, that I have a tentative meet-up planned as soon as my travel dates for my Baltimore/NY trip is confirmed. :D Two of my newer friends are @Pandabear2442 and @parachutefancom! They are both fellow fans of Parachute and one of them runs one of my favorite sites ever: PARACHUTEFAN.COM! So, Parachutefancom asked me this question on my Formspring yesterday:

(click image to enlarge)

I then tweeted about it (via Twitter—for those not familiar with the lingo) and then the shenanigans ensued!

(click image to enlarge)

And that link leads to this>

And so we carry on . . .

Then all of a sudden, my web browser crashed!

And for the record, I really DID submit this form just as you see it here

Jenny's link>

Jenny knows the perfect way to cap off the night!

And what's better than a funny Twitter conversation? Enjoying it the next morning!

Who knew indeed? ;p

Osmosis Land

Wow. I just realized I haven't blogged since Wednesday. Life just seems to have picked up at ridiculous speeds. So I figure the best way to catch everyone up on my latest shenanigans is to do a little recap post.

It's kind of like when you watch a TV Show and they say,
"PREVIOUSLY ON _____"

Well, here you go . . . PREVIOUSLY IN AMANDA'S LIFE:

Thursday:


I got to hang out with Alisa and her kiddos! After eating dinner and running around the house, we got to go have ice cream at one of my new favorite places: PEAK'S FROZEN CUSTARD. It's a frozen custard shop that also has awesome coffee and free wi-fi. I mean, really, what's NOT to love about all that? The kids loved it and Sophia was introduced to her first Troll doll. Man, I hadn't seen one of those in years, but the toy shelf at Peak's had a bunch of them all lined up. It was great. I got to have some great conversation and just chill time with Alisa, who is one of the most amazing women I know. I think back to the short amount of time I've known Alisa and I just smile because being her friend is just one huge gift!

Friday:


I spent the evening with Cindy J. and her kiddos! Well, mostly with her and Juliana, but it was still wonderful! I had my first ever Bruin Burger, which is a fried burger, found mainly at fairs. It was something new and fun! We also ate some brownies with fresh strawberries and whipped cream. Afterwards, we went to KENYA NIGHT at Westside. One thing I absolutely LOVE about my home church is their involvement with a church/organization in Kenya that is dedicated to feeding children and providing micro-financing resources for women to be able to make money necessary to feed their families, as well as providing help and hope for those living with AIDS. We got to see some pictures and hear stories from one of the teams that recently got back from Kenya and got to learn more about the ministry going on over there. It was hopeful, inspiring, and gave me a greater passion for people. I will say though, the highlight of my night was when Cindy dropped me off at home and the kids requested that I have THEM all over to my house for a playday! Gotta make that happen!

Saturday:

Saturday was by far my busiest day, but it was just as fun as it was busy!

The first thing I did was enjoy a wonderful brunch with Amanda Stubbert and her daughters. I can't even understand why her kiddos love me so much, but I'm incredibly honored by it. I feel that I'm especially close to Hannah. Every Sunday morning she runs up to me and gives me the biggest hug and doesn't want to leave my side. It really blesses me.

In fact, side story: One Sunday morning, I was INCREDIBLY tired and had gotten to the church early, so I decided to catch a nap downstairs in the Kingdom Kids room. Hannah decided to join me:


So it's always a highlight to hang out with Hannah. But I rarely get to actually hang out with Amanda, so it was really a TREAT to enjoy her homemade Dutch Apple Pancakes and great conversation as Simon & Garfunkel played in the background.


After brunch, I headed home to get ready for my softball game.


Great news: WE WON!! It was a good game, but it was tough cause we were down a player, so we had to take an automatic out. But it was still nice to come out on top!

THEN, I capped off the night at Karli's performance with her A Capella crew at the University of Washington: UNLEASHED! A CAPELLA. They did sooooo good! My favorites that they sang were "Killing Me Softly," "I'm Yours," and "Proud Mary."


Afterwards, I got to join them for dinner at The Ram in U Village. We enjoyed burgers, fun conversations, and a rousing rendition of The Proclaimer's 500 MILES song as we all sang along to the overhead speakers.

Sunday:


Westside celebrated it's 12th birthday as a church by having a fun picnic. Originally it was supposed to be at Salmon Park, but in true Seattle form, it rained and we moved it to inside the church. And I dunno about you, but a bounce house inside a church sanctuary is pretty awesome! I even got to jump in the bounce house!! It was good food, good hangs, and just a fabulous day!

Now I'm primed to watch the MTV Movie Awards and call it a night!

Not Ready To Make Nice

So I've officially reached Rip VanWinkle status. I went to bed earlier last night but still woke up late. Well, relatively late anyway. I'm definitely still going to make it to work on time, I just don't like the feeling of oversleeping when I don't have the next day off.

Anyway. So not only did I subconsciously turn off both my computer alarm and my cell phone alarm, but even Kelley's life-saving efforts were thwarted.

I had apparently left my iChat on overnight and she noticed at a certain time this morning that my status went from AWAY to my "current iTunes song," which was for my alarm, Eye Of The Tiger.

I had been talking to Kel about my oversleeping issue and she had a pretty genius idea. You see, I have my Twitter set up to text message alert me only when someone sends me a Twitter Direct Message. So she did. This would have worked out PERFECTLY were it not for the fact that I, apparently, subconsciously hid my phone under my pillow . . . which I had never done before. So not only did I freak out when I finally DID wake up and see the time displayed on my laptop, but I freaked out even more when I couldn't find my phone.

Moral of the story: I'm going to start going to bed at noon and hope my boss understands. ;p jk. But I am going to strategize to beat my body's overbearing need to require ridiculous amounts of oversleep.

Oh irreverent sleep patterns . . . You won this round but I will come back, guns blazing!