Season's Greetings

Ok. So everyone thinks of Christmas, but the truth is, we're coming up on a new season. So here are some thoughts as we head into spring:
-As you probably have noticed, the weather is BEAUTIFUL!!!! I'm not sure if it will stay like this, I mean, only two weeks ago I had a snow day. No matter what though, I am loving this weather.
-As much as I usually hate movie sequels, I am looking forward to the final chapter of the spiderman trilogy coming out in May. I love action trilogys. Other movies over-do it when it comes to making more and more of them. I mean loook at The Land Before Time series, Beethoven's (insert number1- a billion here), Home Alone, and does anyone else get tired of the "I'm 17 and just found out i have a twin sister, but I'm really one actress!" bit????
-It is taking me forever to type this because our computer is so slow
-I think that it's safe to say that I am addicted to text messaging. I know I am, because I've started talking as if I were writing a text message.
-It's also safe to say that I have by far the worst smelling feet of anyone I know, and I need to fix that as flip-flop season draws nearer.
-I know that it's were the theator makes it's money, but prices of pop and popcorn is RIDICULOUS!!!! Almost as bad as theme parks.
I can't type anymore, and I don't even know if you'll be able to read this, because my computer just kicked me offline. Again.

I love it when we're cruisin' together.... or not....

Ever since I can remember, this has been the one event that I looked forward to. Watching my life flash before my eyes with Dan, getting aquainted with music being played at insane levels with Dirk, having to say no to people because I "didn't have a ride", bumming rides off people, countint down days until my sweet 16, this is it. This is what I've been waiting for. I can legally drive now (with someone over the age of 21 in the passenger seat.)

But I can't do this. It feels horrible, because all of my life, I've been at the top of my class in school.... but I can't drive. I get so nervous. Every day this week I've come home crying because my mom freaked out over the littlest things. My behind the wheel teacher made me so nervous that I stopped at a green light. Tuesday, I even hit a parked car (I just bumped it. No big deal right????....)

Another thing. My mom has a language of her own when we're driving. How am I supposed to know that, "BEKAH BEKAH BEKAH!!!!" means, "STOP"? How am I supposed to be able to tell that her flapping her hand like crazy means, "Change lanes?" How am I supposed to pay attentiong to her slamming her foot on the floor as a sign to slow down???? I signed up for drivers ed. Not a foreign language.

And right now, I love to drive, but I'm so afraid of doing something wrong. I don't know what to do.

Conversation Hearts

Valentines Day is always the same. Boys and girls obsess over what to get each other, commercialism is almost as annoying as around Christmas time, and the prices of flowers quadruple. And there--amidst the chocalate--is the staple to all of Valentines Day.

Conversation Hearts.

You know. The little colored hearts made of pure sugar with messages like, "I love you", or "Call me"-- things along those lines.

Truth is, I've never actually met anyone that actually likes these things. I know I don't. Not only do they taste bad, but I get all the rejection messages like, "Go home," or "No chance." Things like that. On Sunday, we were all sharing a bag, and that's all I got. Don't get me wrong, it was funny, but I was beginning to think that Valentines Day was out to get me.

Well, enjoy your day of love-- Happy Valentines Day. May the candy hearts be on your side.

Christmas Perspectives

I love Christmas. I love Christmas songs, listening to Linus tell the Christmas story, our candles in the window, the talking Darth Vader ornament, singing "silent night" to candle light, sleeping in every day....

But Christmas is over, and since we haven't put our decorations up yet, I feel like Christmas has sorta.... thrown up all over our house.

Another thing is that ever since I got my phone, things seem different. I feel naked without it. Every time I give my number out, I ask the person to call me, like I have no life or something. Not many people have my number, but no matter if I like the person I ask to call me or not, I just like to hear my phone ring. My phone. That's so much fun to say.

Christmas Break

I'm supposed to be at basketball right now, but they called me 30 minutes ago and told me that it's canceled. I was really pissed of so I bought myself a song off of itunes. It was after I hit the button confirming my purchase that I realized that it was going to take 30 minutes to download on our dinosaur of an internet connection so I decided to tell you all what's been happening over Chrismas break.

First of all, as some of you might know, I am a horrible shopper. So Dirk and I went on December 23rd-- the last possible date that we could-- to get my mom's gift-- an under the cabinet C.D. player for the kitchen so she can listen to what she wants when she's cooking. She is the hardest person to shop for, so I was pretty psyched about this one. We were even going to stay up late on Christmas Eve to intall it for her.

So we start out at Best Buy. We spent a little time deciding which one had the best sound quality and picked one out. It was then that we realized that there were no boxes around. So we asked. They just kinda laughed at us and told us they've been sold out for a while.

So we advance to Target where they had this advertised in one of their ads so we thought we had a better shot at it. The lady checked and they didn't have any, but the Target in Iowa had ONE left. They couldn't put it on hold though, because it was in the ad.

So over the river and through the woods to the magical land of Davenport. We get in the store and finally ask the guy (he didn't really seem to know what he was doing), but he checked and said that they had just sold the last one.

Next door to Iowa's Best Buy. We had a horrendous time getting into the parking lot. They're right next door, so Dirk kept trying to cheat the system thinking that their lots would be connected. They're not. So 10 minutes later, he decided to just drop me off at the door while he finds a parking spot.

I was so anxious about getting the gift because of our past failures that I got out of the van while it was still moving. In this process I landed wrong on my bad ankle (which was pretty much healed) and twisted it. I was in so much pain, but I just limped into the store hoping to get the gift.

I walked it off and headed to the section of the store where they were. No boxes. So I asked the man. He informed me that they were backordered until February. Great.

So 3 and a half hours later, I gave up and got her a DVD.

But in other news, I got a cell phone for Christmas. I'm pretty excited about this, because I didn't think I'd get one until I turned 16. So except for the C.D. player fiasco, all is well on the home front. Hope you had a wonderful Christmas.

How to complicate the ABCs (it is possible)

To build up mobility in my sprained ankle (please see previous post), my coach told me to do some stretches in a bucket of ice water. One of these stretches was to spell out the ABCs with my toes, kinda like writing it in the air, to encourage complete mobility in all directions. Well, I go to do that stretch, and this question comes to mind:

Am I supposed to do them in capital or small letters????

I was telling this to someone the other night on the phone, and she added the fact that it could also be done in cursive. This would also go with the same question: small or capital cursive letters? So now I have at least four ways to do a basic stretch that requires the "oh-so-complex" task of writing my ABCs.... with my toes.

Good Grief.

First Snowfall of the Season.... (and I spent it on the couch)

For those of you that don't know, I sprained my ankle in Tuesday night's basketball game. I'm on cruthes, and I'll be on them for at least a week. It's been awful to have to sit and watch everything. Like yesterday at bball practice, I had to watch every one play while I just sat there. Then today, when we had a perfectally good snow day with inventations from friends to sled, build snowmen, and bake cookies, I spent it iceing my ankle on the couch. I hate this. I hate sitting around and having everyone else wait on me. If I try to get up, everyone yells at me and swarms around me trying to get all my stuff. I am soooo thankful for my friend Chris who has taken my bag and books to each room. That's the one thing that I know that I can't do by myself. I'm also overdosing on advil, but I made it through the night without pain, so I'm happy. My goal is to play in Tuesday's game, but my parents and coach tell me that it will be a couple weeks. I hope it heals faster than that, but until the swelling goes down a bit, I don't know.

But I hate sitting around all day when there's so many wonderful things to be done. I can't even enjoy the beautiful snow that we had today. (something about cold weather warms my heart.) But if I'm going to heal, I'll have to start being less independent.

I'm also very sore from the crutches, but I'm becoming quite talented on them. It kinda scares my mom though when I go backwards or too fast, or try to open the door with them.