Update

Man, what a crazy summer it is starting to be.

I just got back from San Diego. That was a great trip, inspiring and interesting conference. I meet a lot of new friends, did some insane networking and got a ton of new ideas for the office. I love going to conferences like this one. Not only do you get to travel somewhere, meet new people but the most important, at least to me, is the refreshment of your love for the business. Being around all these smart people, efficient companies, and hearing about new and exciting things, just makes me get pumped up, excited to keep up the hard work, and to try for new levels of success. Hearing praise about our systems, processes, and methods of handing different situations, hearing about how other companies do the same things we do, or are experiences the same difficulties, just makes you feel better about your current situation. It was a blast.

I didn't really feel very good on the way home. The plane was super small, and I don't think air conditioning was invented when they built this plane because it was so hot. Not to mention the screaming kid. The poor mother was doing everything she could to comfort and calm the kid, but he didn't want any part of it. I tried really hard not to get mad, it wasn't her fault by any means, but a human can only take so much. Oh well.

I have started my last and final quarter of school. I am taking five on-line courses and two in-class courses. I am super busy and trying to find a way to successfully finish out my education while still fulfilling my duties at work. For example-this morning I drove out to the shop at 6am and was able to enter time cards before I had to leave for my first class. I'm using my break between classes to document a couple S.O.P.'s, email off some documents to contacts at the conference, update the website, review an essay for an online course, and do some homework for an in-class course. Then after my second class, I will head back to Lynden to finish out payroll and prep for the safety meeting tomorrow. Then it is back to Bham to meet up with Julie, and hopefully Chris and Jackie, to see Wally in theaters, then home to clean up from the weekend, clean the bunny cage, get some laundry done, and some homework. Maybe I can squeeze in some work hours. We will see...

So that is about all I am up to. Planing a camping trip with friends... Joel's parents are going to meet my parent's on July 5th... yikes... and who knows what else will come up.

Maya Anglou, the great

A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE by MAYA ANGLOU

A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE...
enough money within her control to move out
and rent a place of her own,
even if she never wants to or needs to...

A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE ...
something perfect to wear if the employer,
or date of her dreams wants to see her in an hour...

A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE ...
a youth she's content to leave behind...

A WOMAN SHOULD HA VE ...
a past juicy enough that she's looking forward to
retelling it in her old age...

A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE ...
a set of screwdrivers, a cordless drill,
and a black lace bra...

A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE ...
one friend who always makes her laugh...
and one who lets her cry...

A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE ...
a good piece of furniture not previously owned
by anyone else in her> family...

A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE ...
eight matching plates, wine glasses with stems,
and a recipe for a meal,
that will make her guests feel honored...

A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE ...
a feeling of control over her destiny...

EVERY WOM AN SHOULD KNOW...
how to fall in love
without losing herself...

EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...
how to quit a job,
break up with a lover,
and confront a friend without; ruining the friendship...

EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...
when to try harder...
and WHEN TO WALK AWAY...

EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...
that she can't change the length of her calves,
the width of her hips, or the nature of her parents...

EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...
that her childhood may not have been perfect...
but it's over...

EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...
what she would and wouldn't do for love or more...

EVERY WOMAN SH OULD KNOW...
how to live alone...
even if she doesn't like it...

EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...
whom she can trust,
whom she can't,
and why she shouldn't take it personally...

EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...
where to go...
be it to her best friend's kitchen table...
or a charming inn in the woods...
when her soul needs soothing...

EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...
what she can and can't accomplish in a day...
a month...
and a year...

Flight of the Conchords- Business Time

Who Am I Kidding?

Goodness, I was in a foul mood. I have a ton of friends. And they just so happened to all be in Bellingham last weekend and they all wanted to out on Saturday night. That was quite the night. Here is a breakdown...

1. Work on car with boys, chase a wild rabbit, and buy fuel injector cleaner
2. Hit up El Gitano for some beans and chips, some Cau, Sara, Aleks, Sato, Joel, and Jess time, and of course food
3. Race home to clean up, shower up, pre-funk it up with Joel, Mark, Jenn, and Nichole
4. Walk down to the Royal for some girl time with Jenn and Nichole
5. Sneak over to the Beav to see what the boys are doing, and of course use a bathroom with no line
6. Some how end up in the basement of the Royal, try to make Nichole pee in the sink down there, get caught, make up a story, and head back to the dance floor
7. The Royal gets crashed by Jacob, Bob, Joey, and Shelly... DRAMA! ( I don't miss those days, I cope by drinking more)
8. Back the house, find Bob and Jacob in an alley
9. Punch out my living room window
10. Crash into my bed and call it a night
11. Breakfast at Denny's with three orders of hash browns and Moons over my Hammies
12. Best part of all - Re-living it all at breakfast with the boys

I honestly think that is the best part of having a night out on the town, or a wild night of drinking. Sitting around, half hung over, with your partners in crime the next morning, eating breakfast and laughing over what took place only hours before. Figuring out what really happened, who did what, who said what, who was where, and all the shenanigans of being 23.

I still can't believe I punched out my own window. I didn't want to have to tell my parents, but I did. They just laughed at me. I was figuring that I was going to have to tell my landlord, cash in my renter's insurance and have the entire window replaced (which would have included extensive exterior and interior work... which I would have had to hide my rabbits for, since they are not supposed to be in existence). But really I just had to take the window pane out, take it down to Lyndale Glass, order up a new one which should be here tomorrow. Problem solved. No one knows. And life goes on.

I will just add this story to my growing list of stories. Anna and Robert were talking one day, and they were surprised to find their best friends are so similar. Both Travis and I are good story tellers, great friends, wild and carefree, spontaneous, and the life of the party. Travis and I have decided that since we will most likely end up being the Maid of Honor and the Best Man at the Birch Wedding, we aren't going to toast Anna and Robert, no we are going to roast them. How fun is that!! I am already gathering my material.

Life is good right now. Life is really good right now.

Left Behind

I was laying in bed last night trying to fall asleep when I realised a very embarrassing fact. I have very few friends left in Bellingham. Really. The only reason my cell phone rings during the week is from Joel or from my parents (which is usually the result of something work related). There are people I could call. There is Nichole, living in Lynden with her two boys (but she is usually busy with her boys), there is Angela (but she is busy between school and her husband), there is Beach (but we usually see each other on girls night), and that is about it really.

How sad am I? I started to wonder if this was the result of making up my mind to move to Redmond next spring. Did I cut my ties with Bellingham too early? I thought I was an outgoing person, but am I really just an introvert who would prefer to be home alone? I am tired at the end of a day of work, and just really want to lay on the couch and then go to bed. But come on, I am 23, and don't want the life of a fifty year old. I feel so boring. When did I become such a homebody? Is that I just don't want to hang out, or is it that no one wants to hang out with me?

I do save money as I am not eating out, don't really go to the bars anymore (unless someone is in town), hardly go shopping, no coffee get-together, no fun. But I spend the money somewhere else since I don't really have much savings. So what is the deal? I am a nice, easy going, friendly 23 year old and I don't have any friends. Jack and Katie don't count I have decided.

Oh well. I guess I am not motivated enough to get out there and make some friends. I will be leaving next spring. I hate goodbyes. I hate the false promises of coming back to visit. I hate to leave people. I am excited to move. I feel like I will be catching up to people who have already started their new lives. I feel so behind. Maybe that is why I don't have friends in Bellingham, I don't want to make anyone else feel left behind. It sucks.

Music

something stirs and awakens, an itch in fingers to dance, to express mysteries. nothing brings me more into a moment. enhancement of sounds, brightening of sights, awareness of details, eternity-like moments. travel outside the skin, out of my earthly ties and a freeing release of pent up angst. scenes begin to play out, adventures to be had, stories to tell, lives to live. nothing is limited, everything is possible, all at once. distractions become the focus, interior conflicts become exterior, confinements released. connections made to lost causes. belonging no where, belonging to on one. ready to run, to sit, to spin. the itch grows. the spirit sighs and body relaxes. lips part and emotions find voice. questions turn to answers, and fears to trust. need to express. need to express. need to express. scratch the itch.