The One With Joseph

You know how you always think, "Summer come 'round, I'll have SO much time on my hands. I will be able to update my Blog like none other."

The thing is, that's absolutely true. The flip side of this ironic little coin is that nothing of note fills all of that extra time. I don't have a job yet, so my hours are filled with playing games, watching tv, reading, and a little practicing. Fun, to be sure, be not exactly Blog material. Which is why last week I ran my news mockery. However, THIS week I just felt no motivation. And I will not have much time to Blog either. Would you like to know why?


I AM IN JOSEPH AND THE AMAZING TECHNICOLOR DREAMCOAT!! WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOT! The choir is performing the musical (the best one yet!) and I get to sing in it! I am so excited! Grady needed someone to sing backup who knew the music, so HERE I AM!! We have a new director this year, Bob Hess, and thus far everything looks amazing. In fact, if you would like to come, just let me know!!! C. Emily, I am saving you a ticket. ;-)

Okay, that's it. I just wanted to say hello to everyone out there.

Ahhhhhh...And a special shout out to MAX, PRESTON, LAWRENCE, and BRIAN! Thanks for popping by. You may leave your mean comments here. :-D

The One With the Survey

QUESTIONS TO START THE SUMMER:

1. Are you in a relationship?
I am in LOTS of relationships! But you probably meant romantic relationships...you should be more specific. No.

2. Do you hate more than 3 people?
How sad would that be? You know, I can't think of of anyone that I really HATE. I think of the people I dislike STRONGLY and I know that if they apologized, all would be good, so I don't think that's hate.

3. How many houses have you lived in?
9. Sheesh. I guess that's not technically true. Here's the breakdown. 5 houses, 2 apartments, 2 duplexes.

4. What is your favorite candy bar?
MMMMMMmmmmMMMmMMmmMmmm...Reese's ANYTHING!

5. What are your favorite shoes?
Umm...Weird question. Black Kenneth Cole Reactions? Or those brown shoes from Target?

6. Have you ever tripped someone?
Probably, I am kind of a clutz. I don't remember though. I am kind of absent minded. Emma, Ross wants you. PHOEBE! Why does she keep making that noise?

7. What was your least favorite subject this year?
World Civilization Since 1750!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

8. What was your favorite subject this year?
Piano.

9. Do you own a Britney Spears CD?
NO!!!!! BWA HAHAHAH! I RULE ALL!

10. Have you ever thrown up in public?
Define public. Like, have I ever been on stage and blown chunks on the front row? No. I'm good, I nail at least four rows back. :-) I have thrown up in front of friends though.

11. Name something that's always on your mind.
Nothing. My mind wanders too much to land on one thing.

12. What is your favorite music genre?
Christian. Alternative. Classic Rock. Pop. Crooner. I am not picky. No rap or country though. YUCK!!!

13. What is your sign?
Out of my mind, back in five minutes.

14. What time were you born?
I don't remember, I wasn't paying attention. 2:14, I think?

15. Do you like beer?
NO! Gag a maggot with a spoon!

16. Have you ever made a prank call?
Hahahahaha. Um...three days ago. And two days ago.

17. What is the most embarrassing CD you own?
Backstreet Boys, maybe? But I am not embarrassed about it. They have some great harmonies! I am pretty selective about the CD's I buy. Only the good ones, baby!!

18. Are you sarcastic?
No, NEVER! Whoops, ruined it, didn't I? (I mean, REEEEENED it)

19. What are your favorite colors?
Blue and Green

20. How many watches do you own?
Oh, four or five, but only one that I really wear.

21. Summer or winter?
Winter!! Winterwinterwinterwinter. Who needs summer? Summer is just winter that stinks. Hot and stinky.

22. Spring or fall?
Fall!!! It's like Winter Eve.

23. What is your favorite color to wear?
Blue.

24. Pepsi or Sprite?
Spoon. Maggot.

25. What color is your cell phone?
Silver and Black. What a dumb question.

26. Where is your second home?
I guess I am in my second home now. But Emily wrote the Endlers. So maybe I should say the Saylaks. Or the Sampsons! Or Colorado...that's kinda like a third home.

27. Have you ever slapped someone?
Not that I can recall. I have always wanted to though. And I want to throw a drink in someone's face. Apparently I want to be a woman in a bad 80's flick.

28. Have you ever had a cavity?
*sigh* Yes. First one last summer. Not my fault though! The sealant popped off and I couldn't brush deep enough!!!!! *sigh* *sigh again*

29. How many lamps are in your bedroom?
3 (second home) 2 (other second home) 2 (first home) 2 (third home)

30. How many video games do you own?
Hang on, let me count. 12 on the Xbox. More than I could ever remember on the computer. 8 on the GameGear. Anyone remember those? I SOOOOO still play mine.

31. What was your first pet?
Bennett...a miniature poodle that some chump kicked across the front yard. He died. He didn't like me anyway, I was the new baby in town.

32. Have you ever had braces?
Yeppers.

33. Do looks matter?
No. Pride in how you look does though.

34. Do you use Chapstick?
EVERY DAY!!!! It's my drug of choice.

35. Name 3 teachers from your high school.
Mrs. Hillebrand, Mrs. Merriman, Mrs. Wilcox

36. American Eagle or Abercrombie?
I suppose American Eagle if I had to choose. Although, Wal-Mart or Target ideally.

37. Are you too forgiving?
HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Diana, am I too forgiving? HAHAHAHAHAHAHA

38. How many children do you want?
bunches and bunches! 12!!!

39. Do you own something from Hot Topic?
Not a thing. Yeah, ME!

40. What is your favorite breakfast?
Uh....sleep...

41. Do you own a gun?
No!!

42. Have you ever thought you were in love?
No.

43. When was the last time you cried?
Why do ALL the quizzes ask this question? Two weeks ago when I watched Extreme Makeover: Home Edition.

44. What did you do 3 nights ago?
Slept! Dumb question.

45. When was the last time you went to Olive Garden?
Mmmmmm...about three weeks ago. Had me some Tiramisu.

46. Have you ever called your teacher mom?
No...That sounds SOOOOO Greek Tragedy.

47. Have you ever been in a castle?
Yep, Like FOUR! 'Cuz I'm awesome. What. You didn't know?

48. What are your nicknames?
Um, Jay, Jim Hawkins, Jasonite...that's all currently I think. Except for Bear. He calls me, "That person...who feeds me."

49. Do you know anyone named Bertha?
Hahaha! No, but I wish I did! I am changing Amber's name to Bertha. Congratulations, you are now BERTHA!

50. Have you ever been to Kentucky?
Nope. What's in Kentucky? A bunch of horses running around in circle?

51. Do you own something from Banana Republic?
No. But I own stuff from GAP and Old Navy...same company.

52. Are you thinking about somebody right now?
Nope.

53. Have you ever called someone Boo?
No. And if I do, SHOOT ME!!! And if you do, I WILL SHOOT YOU!

54. Do you smoke?
Only on Saturday nights when I recreate the Burning Man Festival.

55. Do you own a diamond ring?
Yes, from when my husband proposed. Oh wait.....Nooooooooo...

56. Are you happy with your life right now?
I am happy with where it is going, does that count?

57. Do you dye your hair?
No.

58. Does anyone like you?
I am sure that they do, how could they not? I mean, LOOK AT ME! I am such a catch!

60. What were you doing May of 1994?
Celebrating the end of school.

61. Do you own a Backstreet Boys CD?
HAHAHAHAHAHA! No. I own three.

62. McDonald's or Wendy's?
McDonald's!!!!!

63. Do you like yourself?
How could I not?

64. Are you closer to your mother or father?
No.

65. Favorite feature of the opposite sex?
Smile.

66. Are you afraid of the dark?
No....the monsters that taunt me from under my bed in the dark.

67. Have you ever eaten paste?
Who says paste anymore?

68. Do you have a webcam?
Yes. Not plugged in though.


What? That's it? What a horrible way to end a survey. I am changing it.

70. Where did you get this?
From KURTEN EMILY! Yeah!!!! She's most awesomest!! See you in a month, Em!

The One With Lisa

Okay, so I know you have been wondering about the Lisa stuff everywhere. I talked to Lisa Ulrich yesterday and she mentioned that she came by this site once and her name was not on the Inner Circle list so she NEVER CAME BACK AGAIN! Anyway, I told her to check it again today....hence the Lisas everywhere. This is the message she sent to me.


From: lisa
Date: May 24, 2006 2:24 PM
Subject: Hilarious!
Body:
in case the message I left on your blog space didn't show up. I just wanted to tell you that you made me VERY happy today as I read your Blog. You are such a COOL COOL person. In fact you are SO cool I don't even know if I can be your friend. I LOVED the sites on your blog. My fav. was the one about ways to take care of Lisa's lawn - haha and her cats and dogs!!!!! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH I laughed outloud VERY hard. Thanks so much for the smiles and including me in your space 0 even though it was like I played a major role or anything on your space :) hehe.

See? Now why would anyone NOT want to be my friend? :-) I hope all is well with you. I'll update more when my room is not sweltering.

SHINE News at Midnight

*At Work Warning* May cause uncontrolled laughter.

The One With the Moving

Current Mood: Happy
Currently Watching: Firefly

HOOOO WEEEEE...finally all moved in...ish.

No, technically, I am all moved in. Not entirely unpacked, but unpacking is for losers. Life is better when lived from a box. Hee hee hee. So, bright and early on Monday morning, we finished packing (I say bright and early when what I meant is dull and late). So, it's around 9:00 and the problems start.

Problem #1
Called the realtor to pick up the keys only to have him inform me that the owner changed the locks and had not brought him the new keys yet. This later turned out to be false...

Problem #2
Owner had not changed the locks as she agreed on the lease.

Problem #3
Owner had not installed A/C unit in second bedroom as promised.

Problem #4
Owner had not cleaned the house as promised.

Problem #5
The toilet was broken and began spewing water as soon as the water came on. Which brings me to...

Problem #6
Gas company showed up to connect the gas, but left because there was no one there to let them in. Of course, we couldn't let them in because we didn't have the keys.

Problem #7
NOTHING was completely packed when we needed to head out. Fortunately, NOTHING was ready at the new house, so it kindof balanced out.

Problem #8
Cable and electric companies would not be out until Tuesday. Then, then cable guy wouldn't turn everything on because he wanted the modem which got packed in a box for Dallas.

Problem #9
New toilet was broken too, so there were no....hm....facilities until yesterday evening.

Problem #10
The construction workers across the street hit a gas line, so the gas was cut off again yesterday and we had to call and beg them to turn it on....again. Grrrrr.

I could go on, but now I am bored with all this. The point is, moving was DEPLORABLE! But now it is all done. My stuff is mostly still in boxes because I don't care, but at least it's all there. I will have to put up some pictures for you if I get to the point that I don't detest the whole thing.


Anyway, so now I am sitting here in Dallas enjoying my summer. I have such plans of nothingness! That's not true. Hopefully, I'll have a job sometime soon. I have some part-time junk for my dad, but it's just not the same. In the meantime, I have some writing to do and piano practicing and guitar learnin'...Yeah, BABY! And READING!!! I have two Clive Cussler books in progress and a whole stack on my to-do list. Golly, I love summer.

What to write, what to write? Surely I have some pictures around here you haven't seen yet. Let me check...



Say hello to Brianna and Chris, aren't they adorable??? They are Tracy and Bill's kids and they crack me up! Quite the goobers, but fun nonetheless. Hmmm...next picture



This is Jackson and McKenzie. More adorable children! Woo hoo!!!!! They were pretty young when I took these, but weren't they cute?

Oh, phooey, now I am bored with this too. More update to come! Adios!

P.S. About the link: I couldn't help myself. I had to do it. Eat your heart out, C.E.

P.P.S. About the music: Uber props to Rachel for giving me the heads up about Teddy Geiger some time ago. Sadly, I was not impressed at the time. Sorry, Rachel!! His first single is COOL! Me gusta mucho. If you don't know, Teddy is 17 years old and well on his way to being a successful artist. This song has been on the radio of late, but I had to share it anyway on the off chance that you have not heard it. Give it a listen! He is also on a television show called Love Monkey that was recently picked up by VH1 (kiss of death, basically. But they have had James Blunt AND Natasha Bedingfield on....why have I not seen this show????).

Also a song you have probably heard on the radio---->Black Horse and the Cherry Tree. I think I would listen to this song just for the "Woo Hoo's". But the whole thing is good. The lyrics are just artsy enough to be poetic but not so much that it's distraction. Enjoy.

And finally, Strays Don't Sleep. Some of you may recognize it from the second One Tree Hill soundtrack, but that is not where I heard it!! I know, right???? Shocker! It's great, too. Mellow and fun. Check it out!

The One With Brad and Tucker

Just a little something for all the mothers out there. Special thanks goes out to Amber and Seth for bringing this video to my attention. It's hysterical...


*Contains very mild language...funny enough to overlook*

The One Where I am in a Bad Mood

Current Mood: Undecided
Currently Watching:

So, my exams are finally OVER!!!! Woo hoo!!!!



I am not sensing the kind of excitement that I need right now. If you are not jumping up and down, no need to read further, you are not the type of person I want on my site.

OKAY, you can stay, but only because you asked nicely.

I still have two classes that have not put in their grades yet, so I don't have my final score...it's a little frustrating. Thus far, I have 2 A's, 3 B's, and 2 C's. Unfortunately, one of the C's is in a three hour class while both A's and two of the B's are in one hour class. Why is music school out to get me?

Oh well, either way, it's over. So, I just thought I'd share. That part puts me into a good mood.



Now let me vent about the bad mood part of my day.

So, I signed my lease for next year....I am somewhat not happy about it. I am trying to be nice and I know that it will all be okay, but at the moment, I am not happy. See, my sister wants to stay here this summer because she doesn't want to be away from her friends. That's entirely understandable. The thing is, our parents won't pay rent for us if we are not in school...also understandable. So, Jenn had to find a place that she could afford while working part time at Sonic. IN addition, we had to find a place big enough for me to move my stuff into for next year. Therefore, we are left with a dingy, run-down duplex that is honestly the rattiest place I have ever lived. And I've lived in a LOT of places. Up side, it's half the cost of our current house, so my parents get a big break next semester. Down side, it's just not a nice place. I mean, my mom will get on here in the next day or so and say, "When I was at Baylor, I lived in a really ratty place and so did your father." That's great, thanks. Suddenly the duplex has a crystal chandelier.


Arrgggg, I am actually most frustrated at myself for letting this be a big deal. I mean, it's NOT a big deal. I am not even that upset about it, but uber upset for most people is marginally frustrated in my world. What irritates me most of all is the fact that I have to live in this place because my sister is selfish. She has yet to consider the fact that I will be living in a tenement so that she won't have to be away from her friends for two months.

Of course, don't I sound like an angel at the moment? I know, I know. I shouldn't feel like this, but where else am I going to vent? This seemed like the easiest option. So here ya' are...emjoy my ranting. Think happy thoughts about me. And I'll talk to you later.

P.S. I added some new music today, so check it out! The first song is by Jamie Slocum, a Christian artist that I have just run across. His songwriting style definitely has some room to grow, but he shows some potential. That said, I love the message behind "By Your Side." Listen to the words and see what you think. I apologize for the poor quality, the song was not available on iTunes, so I had to borrow it from his site.

The second song is by Saving Jane, another group I haven't seen before. This is one of those groups that formed around shared interest and happenstance. I like groups like that because, chances are, the members really love what they're doing. It shows more than those who have always had aspirations of fame. Anyway, good beat, truthful, if not terribly original lyrics, see what you think. Who hasn't felt like the Girl (or Boy ;-) Next Door?

And finally, we have Kate Havnevik's "Nowhere Warm" which you may have heard on Grey's Anatomy this past Sunday. Or maybe you didn't. Were you to busy laughing at Denny's inappropriate joke? Shame on you! :-) Anyway, I fell in love with the song immediately because of Kate's smooth voice and the killer orchestrals in the background. She is from Norway and I now think that being from Norway automatically gains you 20 cool points. See what you think.


Does anyone actually listen to the music I put up? I try to include stuff that you might not have heard, but rarely does anyone say anything about them? Do you listen? Do you not listen? Can you not get it to work? Just curious. Tell me!!!

And goodnight.

The One With Campus Golf

Current Mood: Ready to be Done
Currently Watching: Alias


So, what did YOU do last night? Me? Oh, well thanks for asking. After I took my religion exam, which went well, I had dinner with some of my friends from church. Let me tell you a little something about my friends. I guess you could say that I have something of a sarcastic wit, right? RIGHT?! :-) Well, one of these guys (Ami, the wife of my religion professor) is worse than I am. So, get togethers are always interesting. Anyway, after a most interesting dinner, we left to play campus golf. Have you ever heard of campus golf? I hadn't either. Here is the general picture. Golf clubs are involved. As are tennis balls. We declare one spot on campus the Tee Box and another one somewhere else the hole. At one point it was a thin red pole next to a fire hydrant. At another, the steps of a dorm. The statue of Judge Baylor. That big tree over there. The guy in the red shirt.


Just Kidding. But it was a fun evening, so I thought I would share a few pictures with you.



This is Lindsay HammondS She is funny. This was Ami's test of my camera flash settings. She wanted to make sure that any pictures she took with my camera would come out correctly. Correctly being a relative term...



This is me teeing off. I am not very good. My final score was 13 over par.....before I stopped counting. At one point I just started thrrowing the ball in the general vicinity of where I wanted it to go. I am rolling my eyes here because Gibby started laughing at me before I even did anything. Not cool. VERY not cool.



Then my mom called. And I had to tell her that I couldn't talk because I was playing golf in the impending thunderstorm. Hitting tennis balls with miniature lightning rods.








This is Ami. She's in a tree. It was her senior citizen picture.















This is Ami assaulting Sara after she made the senior citizen comment.



This is Ami and Sara after Ami tripped and fell into the hedge, bringing Sara down with her.










This is the hole they left in the hedge. It's okay though, we bought them. And we'll buy the replacement.














This is the first of two clubs to feel the brunt of our evening. This one was Joel's. He dropped it. Later on, Ben snapped his in half....violent people!








And this is Ami and Lindsay cuddling up with Judge Baylor. Did I mention that he is sitting on a fifteen foot podium? This took guts. By the way, in case you haven't guessed, Ami had my camera - which is why there are uber pictures of her little band and NONE of the other ten of us.



That is all. If you ever receive an anonymous invitation for some Campus Golf, GO! It's fun.

That is all.

Except for the P.S.

P.S. I LOVE this song! Of course, the music video is a little odd, but still fun. Why haven't I been to Morocco?

The One With the Finals

DUUUUUUUUDEEE...I am now officially half way through with my finals, and I have to say that it is a NICE feeling! Last Thursday, I had the first half of my Musicianship exam (sight singing) and, though it went okay (I think his exact words were, "Well, not your best hearing."), it was not stellar. Then I had my diction final and I am reasonably sure that I did very well on that one. I am somewhat of a diction geek! It was almost fun. Anyway, today I had my theory exam and it went well. There were a few things from earlier this year that I had trouble recalling but overall, I think it was good. We'll see. Then I had my piano jury....um....it was okay. I was insanely nervous, enough that I messed up two out of four scales. The arpeggios were perfect (Yeah!). Then came the harmonization. For you non-major types, that means they give me a simple melody and I have to provide it with chords as I play it. Well, it was perfect!! Only after I finished did one of the faculty tell me that she had very clearly asked me to play the second piece and I had played the first.


So I died.


Right there in the office. Yup, this is coming from beyond the grave! Actually, they were very nice about it beause I was such a nervous wreck. Then I had to transpose that melody to another key and that was perfect as well. Lastly, I played two of my repotoire pieces and they were great as well! Overall, I think I did reasonably well. Finally, I had my voice jury today as well and........


IT WAS SPECTACULAR! I made only one mistake (cut off a word with a breath. But it was a loooong word. Mancarmi'l. Stretched over three measures. But I nailed it the second time through, so that's good. And strangely, I was not nervous during that one. So there we are, halfway through.

Tomorrow, I have my Christian Scriptures exam, Saturday is the second half of the musicianship exam, Monday is my American Constitutional Development final (which will require uber studying) and my history final (which may not go well regardless of how much I study. WORST TEACHER ON THE PLANET!). Then I am done! No More! YEAH!!!!


So, here is what you can do. Ignore the others, pray like MAD that I do not lose steam through my history final (1500 words in three essays, plus twenty matching questions. One of the essays is 50 percent of my final - which translates into 20 percent of my final grade. The problem is that this professor is unbelievably unreliable in his grading. I have no idea what I will make). Wish me luck!