Oh Yeah....Now I Remember.

Have you ever had the conversation with someone that goes something like this:

"Well, what do you want to do tonight?"
"I don't know. What do you want to do?"
"Oh, I don't know. I really hadn't come up with a plan."

Really?!? No plan? Even after I told you on the phone to come up with a plan before you got here? Ugh.

Well, I have to say that my pessimistic premonitions of tonight were mostly correct. This guy was sweet, nice enough, I guess. But I can't say I was overly impressed. There are just a few rules you should probably follow when attempting to date me (men, you maybe want to pay attention to this part):

1) Show up with a plan. If I don't like your plan, I will voice my opinion. But that opinion is nothing compared to the one you'll here if you come with no plan.

2) Hold a door or two. This one is not mandatory, but use some common sense. Walking three to ten feet in front of me is not an option...and neither is leaving the passenger door locked when you get in your side of the car. Come on. It won't kill you.

3) The "F" word is not a turn on, so turn it off. If I hear it, even once, I've pretty much already checked out for the night. Two or three times, and I have the deep desire to wash your mouth out with soap.

Is that so hard? I mean, three little rules, and one is more like a guideline than a rule anyway.

Are arranged marriages legal in this country? The prospect of that rather than another first date is seeming better and better all the time. Mom, Dad, I'll maybe even let you pick him out.

Dating...ugh.

Why Do I Hate First Dates?!?

Can someone tell me why I hate first dates so much? They aren't really all that bad I guess, but for some reason they are ultimate torture for me. No one is really themselves on first dates. They are a little more suave (or at least make the attempt), a little more chatty (or maybe less chatty)...just different. I just want to be myself, you know? Where are the best friend-type guys that I've been myself around for the past few years then fall in love with? Oh, well, um...I guess I never really had many of those. Kind of wishing now that I did. Stupid romance movies that set unrealistic expectations in my head of how love should just fall together.

I hate first dates.

Even Universities Have Bullies

Today I was badgered by a higher administration bully, who will remain nameless. This person will from hence forth be known as "Big Wig" for this story's purposes.

So Big calls our office looking for some fast facts...and she wants them, well, fast. She first badgers Marcia a while with questions Marcia doesn't know the answer to. Marcia puts her on hold and sends her call to me. I was then badgered and mentally flogged for a few minutes with questions that I didn't have any answers to...followed by a dramatic story of her own ingenuity and creativity. Feeling better all the time...Big was also not afraid to let me sit in silence on the end of the phone line, squirming like a worm on a hook. Since my quick-thinking skills didn't seem to be engaged for the morning and Big was willing to wait for them to kick in, I told her I'd call her back in ten. Ten later, I did call, and she seemed strangely surprised...weird. But overall, the bully was impressed with my answers, or at least didn't protest them publicly. And I could restart my non-beating heart knowing I had past the test. Whew.

Bullies...

Oh yeah, I have a bike...and a guiltar!

So, I moved into my apartment back in May, and now July is almost over. There have been a few things that have not moved since they were moved in to their new home. As you can probably guess, those would be my bike and my guitar.

So today, it was such a beautiful day (actually, this whole week has been pretty darn amazing) so I decided to drag that untouched bike outside and find a place to ride. And, as it turns out, Belmont has a pretty nice gravel ATV trail that goes about a million miles in either direction. Ok, so I really have no idea how far it goes...I only went a few miles one way. Turns out that I'm pretty out of shape due to the extreme lack of bike riding that has taken place lately. Darn paradigm of physical activity. Anyway, I had a very nice bike ride with only the occasional interruption of the passing ATVs.

Well, the guitar doesn't need much explaining. I finally pulled it out of its corner, dusted off the case, and tuned it up. Lack of playing made me pretty rusty, but I didn't really mind.

On a completely unrelated note, please pray for my friend Julie. Wednesday she's having back surgery to fix two herniated disks in her back. For the next six weeks she won't be able to pick up either of her beautiful babies. It'll be tough for the whole family to get through, and they'll need extra prayers.

On yet another unrelated note, New Student Registration is over! I'm excited to have made it though. And I love my Peer Advisors. They did so great! But I'm also pretty sad. Now what am I going to do at the office? I fear it will get pretty boring working on computer stuff or analyzing data related to our mailings. Whoo yeah. Should be a thrill ride from here on out. Good thing I have Julie's family to keep me company.

Most Memorable Learning Experience

A while back, the question was raised: What was your most memorable learning experience. It was on a silly little personal profile for school, and I may have gotten a little carried away with it. But after I posted it, I decided that I liked my answer, and I wanted to share it with you. So, here it is, my most memorable learning experience (so far):

The task of choosing one specific moment in my life that I could consider the most memorable learning experience seems a little daunting to me. How can I choose just one? All of life, every moment really, is a series of learning experiences for me.

Looking back over life, there were lessons of falling down and getting back up again- running, first solo bike ride, roller blades…Tears and fears are pushed aside in a moment of growth and persistence. There were lessons of life, love, and loss- first crushes, goldfish lifespans, a family member passing away…And although I would never discredit the power of these life-altering lessons, these are not necessarily the lessons I remember the most.

The moments that show that limits aren't really limits, that persistence can pay off, that the heart is far stronger than you think it ever could be, these leave feelings that are always with you, bringing on a set of emotions that you never want to forget.

I once stood atop a towering waterfall looking over the edge to the deep cool waters below. Petrified of heights, my heart raced, and I wanted nothing more than to retreat to the safety of solid ground. A friend suggested we take the plunge which sounded more than crazy to me. I would never…I could never. But something urged me back to the ledge, a change was taking place, one I could not keep at bay. A wild grin came across my face as I leaned out a little farther. In a flash I was flying, soaring through the air. With a thunderous splash into icy cold water, it was over. "I could never," became "I can," became "I did!" And now, I know without a doubt that I can fly.