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February 18th, 2007
11:51 pm - Our Honeymoon in Hawaii (only about 6 months late...)
This is a LONG post about our honeymoon to Hawaii last August. We have both written parts of this account, so the writing style changes at various points throughout. Since it is such a long entry, we decided that we should place it behind a LJ cut so not to take up everyone's entire friend's page.( More about our trip, including pictures )
If you would like to see more of the pictures that we did not include in this LJ post, please feel free to browse our picasa web albums. You can also go to there to see pictures from our wedding, as well as various other places we have been.
Current Mood: ![[mood icon]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/mood/moonsis/working.gif) accomplished
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August 10th, 2006
10:59 pm
Here are links to some pictures from the wedding. An entry about the wedding, the move, and the honeymoon will be written after we get back from the honeymoon.
Rehearsal and Rehearsal Dinner - http://creighton.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2015489&l=20e96&id=32501166
Pre-Wedding - http://creighton.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2015492&l=103e8&id=32501166
Wedding Ceremony - http://creighton.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2015495&l=100ff&id=32501166
Wedding Reception (many more to come...) - http://creighton.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2015512&l=f1dfc&id=32501166
Current Location: California
Current Mood: ![[mood icon]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/mood/moonsis/happy.gif) happy
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May 21st, 2006
12:50 am - Mac or Dell?
I am looking at getting either a Mac Book Pro or a Dell laptop as a graduation gift from my parents. I just wanted to get feedback from anyone about experiences with either type of laptop. I am a real newbie to laptops as I have had a desktop for all of college. How long does the battery last under normal use for both options? Also, what are you experiences and opinions about both?
Any help you could give me, I would appreciate!
Current Mood: ![[mood icon]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/mood/moonsis/curious.gif) curious
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August 9th, 2005
09:18 pm
I have had a couple requests to see what my ring looks like... so here you go!
Warning... not the best picture, but it's the best my mom and I could do for right now!
Ring
PS. Gaoder, I will try to get to Ames sometime... but I'm not sure when that will be.
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August 7th, 2005
10:20 pm - Chad and I are engaged!
Today, in front of a crowd of family and friends gathered to celebrate his graduation, Chad proposed. He said that he was never really good with long flowery speeches. So he just got down on one knee and asked me to marry him. I of course said yes, but not before bursting into tears because I was so surprised and happy about it. So, more details about that when we figure them out.
Also, this is Chad's entry if you want to send him any comments.
Current Mood: ecstatic
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July 13th, 2005
July 1st, 2005
11:12 pm - Emergency Room Visit...
So tonight my hands got all swollen for unexplained reasons. I had just gotten back from a 2 mile walk with my parents when I looked down at my hands and they were about twice as big as normal. Now this would always cause some alarm... but I had a ring on my right ring finger, and I couldn't get it off. My mom had me soak my hands in ice water (painful), squirt soap on my finger and try to slide the ring off (even more painful) and then finally we decided to try to go to the immediate care place (a step down from an emergency room). Unfortunately, we got there after the place had closed. So then we were trying to find an open pharmacy (it was 9:30 at this point), but we couldn't find one. So we went down to the emergency room. The whole time after we left the house, I had my finger wrapped in an ice pack...and let me tell you, that is really painful after a while.
Anyway, after we got to the emergency room the nurse was looking at my hand and decided that I would have to get my ring cut off. I guess there are other options, but they are more painful and the nurse didn't think that they would work with how swollen my hand was. So they took me back to a room and proceeded to cut off my ring. I was really upset about this, cause it was my grandma's ring... and one of the only things of hers that I have left. Anyway, after the ring was off, the doctor came in and basically said that he didn't know why my hand swelled, that there could be a number of reasons... but he was guessing that the problem was probably either dietary or environmental. So now I have to stay away from salty foods for a while, try to keep my hands elevated, and hope that the swelling doesn't come back.
So that was my trip to the emergency room. I still think it's a little weird that I never had to sign anything or show a current medical card or anything though...
Hope that the swelling keeps going down and that it doesn't come back tomorrow or Sunday on my flights to Chicago and then to Nassau, Bahamas though!!
I'll talk to everyone when I get back on Saturday, July 9th though!
Current Mood: kinda upset and shaken up
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June 13th, 2005
09:05 pm - An eventful weekend.
So, I have decided that I have the worst luck when flying. Of 4 flights I had this weekend, only one was even semi-on schedule. It's a wonder that anyone will fly with me anymore. Anyway,
the first flight from Omaha, NE to Minneapolis, MN was supposed to leave at 1:10 and I had already printed off my boarding pass before I left home (yay to Northwest for that option, it saves so much time) and I was not checking a bag, proceeded directly to the gate. So after an hour wait they started to load the plane. As everyone was coming onto the plane, I was looking out the window and all of a sudden, I noticed that there was some kind of liquid all over the tarmac below the wing and spreading rather quickly. At first it looked like it was soapy water, but then the captain got on the intercom and told us that one of the ground crew didn't know that the fuel gauge was broken and kept pumping gas into the wing after it was already full. So the liquid coming out of the plane was actually gas... and as a result I got to see all of the top guys from Eppley Airfield outside in their suits, the airport fire department, and the airport police.
As we were sitting there longer and longer I started to get concerned that I would miss my flight to La Crosse because I only had an hour layover. Finally, they got the whole spill cleaned up and the gauge fixed and we took off (having been on the plane the whole time they were cleaning up) about an hour late. Luckily, the plane I was supposed to transfer to had also
been delayed, so when I got to Minneapolis, I was able to make my next plane after a quick walk from one gate to the next. Unfortunately, the flight from Minneapolis to La Crosse was overbooked and it took a while to sort everything out and then we ended up sitting on the runway waiting to take off.
The flight was supposed to leave at 3:30 and we finally took off at 4:35 or so. Finally, at about 5:00I landed at the TINY (2 gates!!) La Crosse Airport and met up with Samantha's uncle David. David took me to the church where the rehearsal had just gotten over. I met up with everyone and then we headed over to Samantha's parents' house for the rehearsal dinner. It was good to see everyone that I knew again and to meet some other people I hadn't met before.
One person I met this weekend that I really like is Morgan. She went to school with all of the guys and seemed to have a lot of funny stories about them all. After a while of just standing and sitting around in the yard talking to Jack, Chad, Morgan, and for a little bit, Mike, we all went inside to get some food. We sat in the house eating and talking for a while and we didn't leave until after 10:00. Morgan had been tired earlier than that, so she had taken Jack's car and driven back to the hotel already and Chad had just had a drink of Bailey's Irish Cream, so I drove Jack, Chad and myself to the hotel. When we got to the hotel, I went to check-in since I had made the reservation, only they couldn't find it. After getting out my confirmation number (which I had thankfully printed off!!) the lady behind the desk found out that the reservation was for Saturday and Sunday, not Friday and Saturday. Thankfully there was a non-smoking room left to take and we went to get settled in. After we settled in, we went up to Jack and Morgan's room to see if they wanted to go swimming with us. Morgan declined but Jack ended up joining us. We got in the pool and swam around for a little bit and then got into the hot tub. After talking and relaxing in there for a little bit, we dried off and said goodnight to Jack and went to bed.
Saturday morning, Chad and I got up about 8:00 and after semi-getting ready, went to Target with Jack to get some last minute things for us (tape, wrapping paper, and scissors), and a wedding gift for Jack (a vacuum). After picking up Morgan, we went to Perkins for breakfast. After breakfast Morgan dropped us off so that the guys could get dressed in their tuxes while she went back to Target to get a gift and black socks for the guys. Apparently both Jack and Chad were expecting that there would be socks with the tuxes but there weren't any. While the guys got ready, Morgan and I wrapped the gifts, which she is much better at than I am. Anyway, the guys left about 11:30 for the rehearsal in Jack's car and Morgan and I went in Chad's car a little later. We got the the church a little bit early and saw Chad and Jack for a few minutes before they had to leave. Chad's mom and Megan, Bryan, Jess, Jared, and Jon all got there about the same time, so I introduced everyone around and then it was time to go sit down.
The wedding was really nice. Samantha and Mike both looked really happy and the ceremony went off without a hitch. Even the ring bearer and flower girl were both rather well behaved and didn't distract from anything. After the ceremony was over, we all went through the receiving line and I got hugs from both Samantha and Mike. After everyone went through the receiving line, we all went outside and blew bubbles while Mike and Samantha walked to the limo. However, they had to go back into the church to take more pictures. So, after we relaxed for a while between the wedding and the reception, we headed to the reception. We got confused once we got there, but after finding the right room, we went in and got a table. After a while of sitting and talking, the wedding party got there, and after what seemed like a while, we started to eat. Chad looked really nervous about his toast, but he did a really good job and everyone liked his speech. After a while more talking and mingling the dancing started.
I actually got Chad to dance a lot!! The dancing part of the reception was really nice and a lot of fun. There was a lot of good music and the whole group I was sitting with (Bryan, Jess, Jared, Jon, and Morgan), as well as Chad and Jack was out dancing for most of the dances. They had all the traditional dances, and it was really nice to see the father-daughter and mother-son dances. It was also nice to participate in the dollar dance (even though Mike stepped on my toes at one point). I could tell that Mike was glad we were all there to share in his happiness. I was also happy that Mike and Samantha played two VNV Nation songs. One of the sweetest things that happened during the reception was when Mike and Samantha had Chad and I come out on the dance floor and then had the DJ play Ben Folds-The Luckiest and then left us alone on the dance floor to dance. As The Luckiest is our song, I almost cried when Chad and I were dancing. After the song was over, there was only one more song and then Mike and Samantha left.
After Mike and Samantha left, we all left too, Bryan, Jess, Jared and Jon to drive home, Morgan, Chad and I to go back to the hotel. After we got back to the hotel, I got onto the computer and printed off my boarding passes for my flights back to Omaha and got directions to the airport from the hotel. Then, after packing my stuff, we went to bed since it had been a long day. We got up the next morning to see Morgan and Jack off for their drive back to Cleveland and Connecticut respectively. Then after finishing to pack and check out, we went to get some lunch and then Chad took me to the airport. Unfortunately, my flight was delayed again, but it did take off in enough time that I was able to get to my next flight (thankfully right around the corner) with no problems. That first flight had a lot of turbulence made me sick though, so I ended up sleeping through the last flight. It was nice to be back in Omaha and even with all of the problems with travel, I'm glad that I went to Wisconsin.
I hope that whenever it is that I get married, that my wedding will go as well and that people will have as much fun there as I had at Mike and Samantha's. I wish both Mike and Samantha a lot of love and happiness in their life together. I also hope that they have a good time on their honeymoon in Jamaica!
Current Mood: happy
Current Music: VNV Nation - Chrome
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June 9th, 2005
12:26 pm - Stolen from Ninjy
If anyone feels really bored and wants to answer this, go ahead. If not, that's fine too.
1. What's the first word that comes to mind when you think of me?
2. Go to http://images.google.com/ and search for that word.
3. Reply to this post with one of the pictures on the first page of results (don't tell me the word).
4. Put this in your own blog so that I can do the same.
Current Music: Smashmouth - All Star
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April 11th, 2005
11:03 pm - My Stupidity
So tonight in the middle of my night class, I had to run something to the education department in another building. It was pouring at the time, so I ran across from the building my class is in to the building with the Edu. department. I got over there and was on my way back to the classroom when I slipped/tripped and somehow managed to fall down a flight of stairs, pretty much head first. The details of exactly what happened are still a little fuzzy since it all happened so fast, but I think I braced myself at least a little bit with my hands, and then hit my chin (really hard) and then my knees came down on the stairs. I was able to get right up and was only a little dizzy, so I knew that I would be ok, just really sore for the next couple days. Within about 10 minutes, my chin was already black and blue and swelling and my knees started to bleed a little. So now I look like I was beaten up because my chin is about twice the size of normal and really deep purple and blue, my knees are both scraped (which happened through my jeans O_o), and I have bruises all over the rest of my legs. Oh yeah, and one killer headache. Hopefully I'll feel better soon and not be too sore tomorrow cause I'm supposed to go on a field trip with the special ed class I'm aiding in this semester. Oh yeah, and hopefully makeup will at least partially cover my chin bruises so that I don't look like I have a goatee still.
*Update: Maybe I should take Chad up on his offer to buy me a motorcycle helmet to wear so I stop hurting myself*
Current Mood: ![[mood icon]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/mood/moonsis/sad.gif) sore
Current Music: Omaha - Counting Crows
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November 30th, 2004
February 2nd, 2004
08:37 pm
create your own visited states map
or write about it on the open travel guide
Man, I guess I've been to more states than I thought...
Current Music: Ben Folds Five - Ben Folds Five - Emilia Bright
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November 7th, 2003
12:24 am
Current Mood: ![[mood icon]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/mood/moonsis/energetic.gif) bouncy
Current Music: John Mayer - Your Body is a Wonderland(live)
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September 19th, 2003
01:50 am - A fun but full weekend...
Last weekend, Chad came down to Omaha after his classes on Friday. He got here about 5:00 and we hung out in my room for a while before heading to our student center for dinner. After dinner, Chad wanted to try out the DDR machine in the arcade area, so we went over there to check it out. It turns out that the game is $0.50 for three songs, which really excited Chad, but the music wasn't very loud and the pad wasn't very sensitive. As we were sitting there, the cigarette smoke from the people playing pool across the room really started to bother me, so after Chad played his 2 1/2 songs, I asked to leave. (On a side note, the student center is becoming COMPLETELY smoke-free next month...YAY!!!!) So we went outside and sat on a bench for a couple minutes, relaxing and enjoying the nice weather together.
Then it was time to go see CAKE!! I hadn't really listened to that much of Cake's music before the concert, but the stuff I had heard I really liked, so I was really excited to see them. As we walked into the Kiewit Fitness Center (KFC, ironic, huh?) where the concert was being held, we had to show our tickets, show picture IDs, and then get patted down. That was, I believe, my first time being patted down. Anyway, we were there about 6:30 for the concert which started at 7:00, so we just kinda hung out for a while. I had made the mistake of wearing a skirt, so it was a little hard for me to sit on the floor, but I managed. After a little while, some of my other friends came, so Chad and I hung out with them for a while, but when the concert was about to start we decided to move a little closer to the stage. The first group, The Hackensaw Boys , a seven-piece bluegrass band, started off the concert really well. While I don't always like that kind of music, I really enjoyed them, and when their special guest, Charlie Louvin, a country music hall-of-famer, came up on stage, the music seemed to get even better.
The next band up, The Detroit Cobras, weren't very good, but they thankfully left after about 4 or 5 songs. They were a very loud band that just didn't seem to have any audience at all here on campus.
Finally, as the crowd got more and more dense, and we waited for over 20 minutes and what seemed like 30 sound checks, Cake finally took the stage. Their show was just awesome and I enjoyed ever song. I didn't, however, like the crowd surfing that was going on, because I was getting kinda beat up when people would come near us and fall...and either elbow me, land on me in some way, or make other people do that to me. I had made the mistake of wearing flip-flops, so my feet got stepped on a couple times too. Finally, I got fed up with it, and asked Chad to go further back with me, which he did, even though I could tell that he would rather have stayed where we were. When we were watching Cake I saw a friend of mine, Carl, who is also my "husband" in a program I am involved in this year. Carl and his cousin Darren had decided it would be fun to pretend to be drunk...so they were acting weird and even pretended to fight each other.
The last song Cake played was their cover of "I Will Survive" which, in my opinion was the best song that they played the entire concert. After the concert, Chad and I came back to my room to get my stuff, and then we headed out for Ames. We didn't get in there until about 2 AM though, so we went to bed soon after we got there. The next morning, we got up and started to get ready for the wedding we were going to in Des Moines. After in an eventful morning, including me running to the store to buy Chad shaving cream and a razor, and then teaching him how to use the shaving cream, we were on our way to the wedding. As we got to the church, I realized that I had seen it, at least from the outside, about 4 years previously when I was at a camp at Iowa State. After Chad and I sat down in the pew of the church, I was looking around the church, looking at the decorations and such when I focused on a little boy a row behind us and across the aisle. It only took me a minute to realize that it was my 5-year-old next-door neighbor from back home, which only shows just how small the state of Iowa is sometimes. I had gone to the wedding not expecting to know anyone, and lo and behold, there were my next-door neighbors.
After the wedding was over, everyone gathered outside (in the rain) to blow bubbles at the bride and the groom as they left, and then everyone got into their cars for the ride to the reception. Chad and I, after getting slightly lost in Des Moines, went to a Target to get a wedding card and gift as we hadn't gotten anything yet. We then headed to West Des Moines for the reception. When we got there, we immediately saw Chad's friend Ronald and his girlfriend. After talking to them for a little bit, we went to find seats for dinner. The food Jason and Kimberly had was AWESOME, and I really hope that the food I have at my wedding is just as good. After some really good food, good toasts, and good company, I talked to my neighbors for a couple minutes. They were just about as surprised to see me at the wedding as I was to see them, but I had a good conversation with them. I also got to know Ronald and his girlfriend a little bit during that time as well. After a while, the dancing started, and I even got Chad to dance to some of the songs with me, such as the Chicken Dance, Hokey Pokey, and Shout, as well as some slow songs!!
After the reception, Chad and I drove back up to Ames with his friend Yogy, who seemed really perplexed as to how people learned dances, such as those to the YMCA, Chicken Dance, and Hokey Pokey. He and Chad also talked about programming stuff, so I had the opportunity to just kinda chill and think back on the day. After we got back to Ames, we watched the movie "About a Boy," which is just completely hilarious. Hugh Grant was just perfect in that movie, and I would recommend it to anyone that hasn't seen it.
The next morning, Chad and I just kinda hung around for a while before going out on a walk to enjoy the nice day. It was a beautiful fall day, and although it was a little cool, it still was really nice. After going on our walk, Chad convinced me to try playing racquetball, so I finally said yes and we went to play. I wasn't really as bad as I thought I would be, which Chad kept pointing out, and telling me we should play more often. I guess it is my tennis background coming back to help me after all. I kinda thought that it would hurt me, cause I've heard that from other people before. After racquetball, we went to Great Plains to get "fat pizza" (as my friend Misti calls it). Chad and I got a medium, expecting that we would probably have to take some home with us...but somehow we managed to finish all but about 4 bites of the medium. Somehow I held my own and ate just about all of my half O_o.
After dinner and walking around that area of Ames for a little bit, we went back so I could pack all of my stuff and then headed back to Omaha. It was kinda sad to come back, but we both knew the weekend had to end sometime... So Chad dropped me off and then headed back to Ames after me buying him a drink at our coffee shop to take with him. As he was leaving, I stood on the side of the parking lot waving, and then as he rounded a curve, I ran across the parking lot to wave goodbye one more time, which seemed to make him happy.
Anyway, that was my weekend, and like the subject says, it was a full, but very fun weekend. I wish more of my weekends were like that!!
Update: Also if you want to hear Chad's version of the weekend, his version is at Chad's LiveJournal . :)
Current Mood: ![[mood icon]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/mood/moonsis/amused.gif) amused
Current Music: Cake - Short Skirt/Long Jacket
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September 6th, 2003
12:58 am - Random Thoughts...
Well, as Chad is going to say when he reads this, hell has frozen over. It's amazing to me that I am in a mood to write an entry, but I'm not going to fight the feeling even though I don't have much to write about.
Not much has really been up lately, although I have moved back to school in Omaha since my last entry. I can't believe that it's already my sophomore year. Time just seems to be flying by ever since I started college. This year I am living in the best dorm on campus, and it is so nice to be in a suite rather than in the crappy freshman dorms of last year. This year I am living with three of my closest friends, so I was really excited to get here and see them all after not seeing any of them all summer. My roommate, Suzi, is from Wichita, Kansas, my suite mate, Janel, is from here in Omaha, Nebraska, and her roommate, Misti, is from Gillette, Wyoming.
Hmm...let's see... This year I am involved with the same program I was in last year, which is called FLP (Freshmen Leadership Program) as a mentor, and so far, my mentees seem nice, so I am really looking forward to getting to know them all better this year. FLP Kickoff was an event though, because all of the mentors had to dress up as someone that made a difference in the last 125 years (as it's our 125th "birthday" this year). So my partner, Carl, and I decided to dress up as Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt. So Carl was in a wheelchair and I was in a nice dress, and let me say that running around campus in that, at full speed (after Carl ditched the wheelchair) was really not that fun. I survived, however. I am also going to be a tour guide this year, and I am really looking forward to that too. I had my orientation tonight, and I start work on Monday, so I am going to be just having a trial by fire there, I guess. Once I figure out more about how that will be, maybe I will feel the urge to write more again.
Well, tomorrow I have to be up and ready to go by 7:45 for a retreat with yet another program I am involved with. I'm in the first year of students to be in a program on campus called the Cortina Community, which focuses on Community, Service, Faith, and Justice. I think that this program will probably be the highlight of my year, because not only we are the founding members, but also because I think that I will be forced to look at issues that I haven't had to before, and growing in my faith. I will be involved in a partnership with the Upward Bound Program here in Omaha in their founding year, so we will have a real impact on the direction the Upward Bound Program takes, as well as more about how the community as a whole views Creighton. This is the first year that there are classes which have been classified as service-learning classes, and as I am involved in Creighton, I am in a Philosophy (Ethics) service-learning class.
Anyway, as I have to be up in about 6 hours to get ready and pack for my retreat, I should probably end this entry (before I start babbling too much too, if it's not too late already) and go to bed.
UPDATE: Also, I want to thank Chad for helping me pick out the new colors for my LJ. If anyone has any suggestions on changes to the colors, just leave a comment.
Current Mood: amused
Current Music: Billy Joel - Lullabye (Goodnight, My Angel)
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August 13th, 2003
09:20 pm - An Eventful Weekend...
Wow, I guess it's been a while since I decided to update my journal last...and those of you who know me and my knack of writing novels about single days...well, so you are warned, this is one of those entries.
Anyway, I guess that this past weekend is definitely a reason to update my journal. It started of as possibly the worst couple of minutes of my life...but managed to become one of the best weekends in a long time.
On Saturday morning, I got up about 7:00 to get ready to go see Chad in Ames, and then continue on to Minneapolis with him and his roommate Tas from there. I put on some makeup and my little sister got up to do my hair for me, and then I was on the road by about 8:15. I was making good time on Highway 30 and the drive was pleasant, as the Iowa countryside is just beautiful this time of year. That all changed when I was about 15 miles east of Ames, however. It was then that some idiot coming towards me decided to pass another car. I saw him pull out, and thought that he was kinda close...but I thought it would be ok, because there was still room for him to pass and get back over. However, as he started to get closer and closer....I started to freak out a little, and when it got to the point where I had to decide what to do or get into a head-on collision at 55 mph, I jerked the wheel to the right and braked hard, and ended up fishtailing into the ditch beside the road. The guy that had been passing pulled over to make sure I was ok, as did the guy that had been behind me, but I was too freaked out and in shock at the time to do much of anything. The guy that had been behind me helped to guide me out of the ditch and back to the shoulder of the road, at which time I just sat in my car for a minute, thanking God that I had been able to get out of that situation without getting hurt or wrecking the car. After I thought I was ok, I got back on the road and started to drive towards Ames again. I drove for about 10 minutes before the shock started to wear off a little and I started to cry. At that point, I pulled off the road and parked the car, and then called Chad. He seemed really upset when he heard what happened, but very grateful that I was ok.
After I calmed down enough to drive again, I continued on to Chad's apartment in Ames. When I got there, Chad came down to help me look at the car to make sure that it was still ok from going into the ditch. However, the first thing he did when he saw me was to just wrap his arms around me and hug me tightly. After the hug, we looked at the car and everything looked like it was fine. Then I got to make the call to my parents to tell them what had happened. After repeating myself two different times (so both my parents could hear what happened) about what had happened and how the car appeared to be fine, they finally let me off the phone and we went up to Chad's apartment.
Chad had yet to shower, so he got into the shower and I just hung out in his room, and talked to his roommate Ben. After Chad got out of the shower and got dressed, he hugged me another couple times, and then reheated some macaroni and cheese for us to have for lunch. I decided to have a piece of cinnamon toast for lunch too, so I asked Chad to hand me the cinnamon as I was buttering the toast. When he handed it to me, I thought it looked odd, and they didn't have any sugar to add to it, so I just put a little bit on. As it ends up, that's a good idea, because instead of cinnamon, Chad had handed me paprika, but neither of us realized it until he put it away.
After lunch, Chad and I went down to check out his car and make sure it was ready for the trip to Minneapolis. He checked all of the fluids, the pressure in the tires, and everything to make sure we were ready to go. Then as we were at the car, his roommate Tas got home, so after going back up to the apartment to get all of the stuff we were taking, we headed out.
On the way up to Minneapolis, I was still feeling a little shaky from my near accident earlier, but I was trying to forget about it by talking to Chad and Tas. As we drove towards Minneapolis, we listened to a couple CDs of Tas' and Chad's. The first CD was Apoptygma Berzerk, which was followed by two Ben Folds CDs. Somehow, Chad and I started playing the alphabet game along the way, and let me tell you that northern Iowa/southern Minnesota probably isn't the best place to be finding all of the letters. (For those of you that don't know, you have to find some word that has each letter of the alphabet as the first letter of the word, in order, which is a lot harder than it sounds) Although Chad started before I did, we were pretty much neck in neck until the end, when I pulled ahead with a w word and won.
As we got nearer to Minneapolis, I realized that the directions I had to the Mall of America just didn't make any sense, so I had to figure out how to go based on my atlas (which I had grabbed at the last minute when we were leaving Ames). We got to the Mall of America at about 2:45, and we were supposed to meet some other friends for dinner at 5, so we had a while to walk around the mall. One of the first things we did at the mall was to find something that my boss at work had asked me to get for her when she found out that I was going to the MoA. After that, we just wandered around the mall for a while, going into shops that interested us. We also happened to see a fashion show going on, but Chad and Tas didn't seem to want to stick around to watch it, so I didn't really get to see much.
When it was time to leave the mall to go to Sophia, the restaurant we were meeting Chad's other roommate, Mike, and his girlfriend, Samantha, Tas, and I still had to change into our dressier clothes (Chad put his on right away in the morning). We decided that we would stop at a gas station or something along the way, as we didn't think the people in Nordstrom's would really like us bringing clothes into the store to change into though. It was then that I realized if the directions from MapQuest couldn't get us to the mall (as the Mall of America is NOT north of Minneapolis)...they were probably on crack and probably weren't going to get us to the restaurant from the mall either. At that point, Chad decided that we should call Mike and Samantha, assuming that their directions were probably good, and after I talked to Mike, we figured out how to get to Sophia.
Although we figured out how to get to the restaurant, Tas and I still hadn't had a chance to change into our nice clothes, so we took them into the restaurant and changed in their bathrooms. So after we changed and took our other clothes back out to Chad's car, we sat down with Mike and Samantha to get dinner. After we ordered, we all just sat around talking, and I told Mike and Samantha about what had happened to me earlier in the day. Then the conversation drifted all over the place as we got bread to eat before dinner, and then dinner itself. I ordered linguini with Portobello mushrooms, and Chad had trout. (Tas had fillet mignon, Samantha had a shrimp linguini dish, and Mike had strip steak, I believe.) When the waiter sat Chad's dinner down, however, it really grossed me out, as it was the ENTIRE fish...head, eyes, scales, and all. I made Chad turn the dish around so that I wouldn't have to look at the fish head all dinner, and then I actually got my appetite back. My pasta was really good, and I guess I started to scarf it down, because all of a sudden, I realized that I had swallowed some pasta that was still attached to some in my mouth...and I started to gag a little. Then, a couple minutes later, Samantha started to choke on her pasta too, and the guys seemed to think that was just hilarious.
After dinner (and Tas changing back into his pre-dinner pants), we headed off to Northrop Auditorium on the University of Minnesota campus to see Ben Folds and Tori Amos in concert. As we walked into the auditorium, we heard Ben Folds starting his show, so Tas, Chad and I went in to find our seats and Mike and Samantha made a bathroom stop and then came in. I thought that Ben Folds put on a really good show, which was only slightly marred by the girls behind us singing every song. I didn't hear them as much as Mike, Samantha, and Tas did (as they were sitting right behind Mike and Samantha), but the brief parts of their singing I did hear weren't so on key. For those people who have never seen Ben Folds live, I highly recommend it, because he is just a dynamic performer, and he really draws you into the music. Of course, my favorite song that Ben Folds played was "The Luckiest", as that is "our song" for Chad and I. I started to cry a little during it, just because I was thinking of everything we have already been through together and everything that we have yet to experience together. (And yes, because I am a sap and tend to cry when I am really happy also.)
After Ben Folds was done with his set, there was a long intermission to get the stage set up for Tori Amos, so we all took that opportunity to go to the bathroom. As would be predicted, the line for the women's room was a lot longer, and a lot slower than that for the men's room, so it took about twice as long for me as it did for Chad, even though there were 2 women's rooms as opposed to 1 men's room. When Chad and I finally got back to our seats, we had a couple minutes to talk before Tori came on stage. That was my first time seeing her in concert, and I have to agree with everything I've heard about her from Chad and others, that she is also a very amazing performer. Although the lights were rather blinding at times (which I now find out is because I have infections in not one, but both, of my corneas), I really enjoyed sitting back and just getting into the music that I was hearing. Although I really enjoy being at Ben Folds' concerts because they are fun and have a lot of interaction between the audience and Ben, I think that I got into the music Tori was playing. As Tori's set went on, I got into a really mellow, relaxed mood. After about an hour and 45 minutes of playing, Tori finished her set and ran off stage. The audience at that point got onto their feet clapping, so Tori came back out 2 times for encores, the last of which was a cover of "Purple Rain" (which was then in my head for a couple days).
After the concert was over, we walked back to the parking garage we were parked in and then headed out to Rochester, Minnesota where Mike has been living and working this summer. Chad decided that we were going to follow Mike, which was working ok until some idiot cut in front of us, and we got stuck at a red light that Mike made it through. After that, it was obvious that we weren't really going to keep up with him, so Samantha called my cell phone to give me the directions on how to get to Rochester, and we told them we would catch up or call them in a little bit to see if they wanted to stop and get food somewhere. Once we finally got onto the interstate (via a VERY weird situation with a separate carpool lane that Chad mistakenly took) the traffic thinned out, and as Chad was going about 80 at times, we caught up to Mike within 20 minutes. After we caught up to Mike and Samantha, Samantha called me to ask us if we wanted to stop to get something to eat and we decided to pull of the road at a truck stop that had an Embers and a Subway.
While everyone else went to the bathroom, Chad and I scoped the place out. The Subway seemed like the best option to us, as the Embers didn't really have a table the would fit us, except in the section that was roped off, and the whole place had a kind of shady feel in my opinion. But, ultimately, we ended up eating at Embers, grabbing a table in the section that had been roped off. While we were there, Chad got a skillet and a piece of coffee cake, Mike got eggs, sausage and bacon, Samantha had French toast and a strawberry milkshake (that looked *REALLY* good), Tas had a bacon cheese burger, and I had hot tea and toast. The thing about that meal is that all of the meat was extremely overcooked. Tas's hamburger was basically charcoal tasting substance (according to what I heard), Mike's and Tas's bacon looked to be about 40 years old and shattered when it touched the plate, and Mike's sausage patty was so burnt that it looked like a charcoal brick for a grill. All in all, the meal was fun, although we were all tired.
After we left Embers, I don't remember much more of the drive, because I fell asleep pretty fast, I think. After we got to Rochester (which is when I woke up again), we followed Mike to his apartment and then unpacked all of our crap and went into Mike's place. While Mike's place was a little small for 5 people, I'm sure that it has been good for him by himself. When we got in there, I was really exhausted (as it was then 2 AM and I had been up since 7 the morning before) so I was all for just going to bed, as was everyone else. So we all just changed and got ready for bed, Mike and Samantha in Mike's bed (which we later found out was actually Samantha's, but he's been using it this summer), Chad and I on Mike's futon, and Tas on a couple blankets on the floor. Although Mike turned on the air conditioner and a fan, the apartment got very hot during the night, and I remember waking up a couple times being very hot. All in all, I got a good night's sleep though, until about 9 when Tas got up (I guess he couldn't sleep any longer) and slowly, the rest of us got up too.
Mike got up and made us all pancakes, which in hindsight, must have been laced with some kind of mild sedative as we were all exhausted the rest of the day. None of us was really functioning well that morning, so we all kinda just sat there and talked for a while. After a while, Chad and Mike decided to play Soul Calibur, at which time, Tas said to Samantha and I, "Don't worry girls, you still have me." We all just burst out laughing when he said that, because it was just such a perfect comment at the time. Anyway, after a couple games of Soul Calibur, we decided it was time to head back to Ames, so after packing up all of our crap and taking Mike's TV (so he won't have to move it back this week when he moves back to Ames) we hit the road. Along the way, Chad and I played the alphabet game again, until we got to the letter x and decided that it wasn't fair that I could look backwards at cars to see if they had an x while Chad couldn't as he was driving. After that, we kinda just gave up on playing and just talked the rest of the way to Ames.
Once we got back to Ames, Chad and I kinda just chilled for a while before I had to get back into the car to drive home. We decided that we were going to try to play racquetball, but when we got there, all the courts were closed because they are being repainted. So then Chad was going to show me a place where he works called the C4, but the doors were locked, so we couldn't get into that building. So instead, he took me to the main place he works, and we played around with a new application that a guy he knows made. Then, unfortunately, it was time for me to head back home. It was hard to say goodbye, but I guess I am glad I left when I did, because the drive took longer than expected. First it was raining, then cars were being psychotic about passing (and there was one car that almost didn't have enough room to pass me because of an oncoming car, but I slammed on my brakes to let him in), then it was POURING so hard that I could barely see, even with my windshield wipers on full speed. Needless to say, I was very glad when I got home that night, as were my parents. My brother, though, was just upset that there were some minute scratches on the car from my trip into the ditch.
Well, if you read this whole thing (especially in one sitting), then I congratulate you on sticking with it. ;)
Hopefully I will feel the urge to update more often...but we'll see.
Current Mood: ![[mood icon]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/mood/moonsis/relaxed.gif) peaceful
Current Music: Ben Folds - The Luckiest
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March 12th, 2003
March 6th, 2003
04:08 pm - Yay for surveys!
Yeah, I'm ripping this off. Fill in the blanks and leave comments, peeps.
I ____Laura.
Laura is ____.
If I were alone in a room with Laura, I would ____.
I think Laura should _____.
Laura needs ______.
I want to ____ Laura.
Someday Laura will ____.
Laura reminds me of ____.
Without Laura ____.
Memories of Laura are ____.
Laura can be ____.
____ is how I describe meeting Laura.
Worst thing about Laura is ____.
Best thing about Laura is ____.
I am ____ with Laura.
Ok, ok, I realize that I haven't posted in a long time...but someday the time will come when I feel like writing a hugely long update...so you will all just have to wait till then.
Current Mood: busy
Current Music: Ben Folds - The Luckiest
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December 14th, 2002
12:13 am - Finals...
Well, having gone through my first set of finals in college...I can truly say that they are horrible, and very stressful. I had finals Monday, Tuesday, 2 on Wednesday and one today (Friday)
Monday: Intro to Politics 1:00
Tuesday: Christianity in Context (theology) 1:00
Wednesday: Karate 10:30
World Literature 1:00
Friday: Psychology 10:00
It wasn't a horrible schedule, but I would have liked to get out earlier in the week. Then again, I guess I should stop complaining, seeing as I am out of school, and a lot of my friends still have finals next week...
Overall, its been a good semester, but there were some rather stressful times. However, it really seems like it hasn't been that long since I moved to Omaha. Its really hard to believe that I am halfway done with my first year of college, but if the rest of my college career goes as well as this semester went (overall), then I think I will have some really good friends, and really good memories from college.
Anyway, hope you all are having a good day, and that everyone has a safe and happy holiday season.
Current Mood: relaxed
Current Music: Ben Folds - The Luckiest
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November 20th, 2002
04:55 pm - AHH!!
I have come to the conclusion that papers SUCK!
I sat down and thought about how many papers I have written this semester, and so far I have written 10, am in the process of writing another one to turn in tomorrow, and still have another 3 to write before December 11th (or about 3 weeks, including my Thanksgiving BREAK over which I will be writing at least one paper....)
Another way to think of it, is that I will have written a minimum of 55 pages of papers by the end of the semester, which is psychotic...but that's why all I ever do is write papers....
Current Mood: ![[mood icon]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/mood/moonsis/stressed.gif) stressed
Current Music: Billy Joel - Only The Good Die Young
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