Dear Mr. Joshua Shank, Sir.

I felt it was a good post title for getting your attention.
So, i totally JUST got your blog comment from, you know, August.
Please know that i was NOT ignoring you. i WILL make excuses, so bear with it. heading to college, moving, Gypsy, i'm sleepy, work, it was the gnomes, and oh, yeah, i haven't been on here in months.
although, i'm sure you already knew that i wasn't ignoring you, since i'm your stalker. ;D
anyway, if you still need Spring, i have it. i need to send the file, though, and it won't upload to this. i'm so technologically illiterate. -sigh-

My frantic search for it included such phrases as "OHMYSTARS, WHY DO I ALWAYS PUT THINGS I WANT TO KEEP SAFE SO I CAN FIND THEM AGAIN IN PLACES I CAN NEVER FIND AGAIN?!" and "Gypsy, i'm so sorry i hit you with a piano stand, i didn't mean to!" and "WHY DO I HAVE A BUNCH OF DISKS THAT ARE NOT LABELED?" and "Where... where did that come from? uhm... Right..." and "I'm never moving again." (which is a total lie.)

to everyone else, i totally just remembered that i had just dyed my hair for this(back when i dyed my hair. it's a normal person color now...)... and it's RED! hehehe. it's like, blond, brunette, blond, blond, OMGRED! and it makes me laugh.

Slim-Fast Shakes Are Actually Pretty Delicious...

as well as easy to throw in my purse when i'm off to work. Shazaam!
hehe. i like the word Shazaam. it's fun to say.
go ahead.
say it.
shazaam.
yeah, don't lie. you enjoyed that.
anywho, i'm at work. of all my jobs, this one is the most... different.
i'm at, uhm... General Devices. i have no idea what they do. except something about manufacturing, i'm assuming, general devices.
but anyway, i'm actually at the corporate offices. the little girl, this grey-eyed cute as a button little girl, has her own nursery thing right by her parents' offices.
it's really cool.
but she takes a two hour nap, or there abouts, so i was like, what to do with my free time...
i started playing solitaire. i hate solitaire.
i didn't use to, but i sure as heck do now.
and then i was like, "Hey... i could blog while i drink my delicious Rich Chocolate Royale shake thing! SHAZAAM!"
-giggle-
anyway...
i was going to mess around on Facebook, maybe stalk Joelle, but...
Facebook is blocked.
BUMMER.
oh well.
(i'm still stalking you, Joelle. i might as well be up front about it.)
Picture texting is awesome. i don't know why i didn't think it was worth it before. IT TOTALLY IS! i can send pictures of stuff RIGHT AWAY! in fact, i'm going to text Tom Rothrock a picture of... MY SLIM-FAST!
after all, he and i were supposed to go have Chinese food today, and we DIDN'T because i'm WORKING. -super. sad. face.-
so instead of delicious Chinese food, i get...
Slim-Fast.
not even a delicious shake can make up for that. i'm sad.
OOH!
i know what can make me better.
i think i'll make Cole go get Indian food with me.
i LOVE Indian food. it's THE BEST.
hmmm... Indian food and then a hockey game would be a wonderful evening. -memo to self- must make Ray go get Indian food and then go to a hockey game.
Ray gets annoyed if i go get Indian food with Cole.
no, not because he thinks we're doing anything, but rather because he loves Indian food, too, and especially this one dessert (which is SUPER SUPER SWEET) at my favorite restaurant, so it annoys him when he can't go.
last time, i felt bad, so i smuggled him out some of the dessert.
hehehehehe.
i am evil. :D
can you tell i'm in a talkative mood? i am.
ooh, good news. Gypsy didn't wake me up ONCE last night. it was AWESOME.
she actually slept in the small of my back, and then on the pillow next to my pillow. (I spoil my kitty. she has her own pillow.)
i'm crossing my fingers that Kaitlyn, that's the little girl i'm babysitting, takes a long nap again today. yesterday she took a two and a half hour nap, and it was great. i just chilled. but i forgot my book today. but now that i'm blogging, i'm okay with her sleeping until 2. :D
she slept until 2:30 yesterday, it was crazy. we had to wake her up to give her lunch, which made her not happy.
So, want to hear my latest "I'm an idiot" story?
well, you get no choice. i mean, i guess you could skip over this part, but that would be boring.
so, i'd had a SUPER long day. i was at General Devices from 8:30 until 5:00, and Kaitlyn was feeling sick and screamed at me the whole time. (It's not that she doesn't like me, she really does. she's just sick. she screamed at her momma, too.) anyway, i was exhausted, and then i had to drive 45+ minutes to church. my car overheated, traffic was awful, i was sleepy and feeling whiny, and i still had to stay up and watch Daniel, Rachel, JJ, Ava, Isabelle, Dylan, and Alayna all by myself for Awana, because my mom was sick. none of them can read, by the way, so i had to have them say their verses and then work on some verses, and of course none of them were on the same verse. anyway, i got to Awana, expecting a hard time, and i got out of my car, heard the lock click behind me...
and realized my keys were still in the car.
-facepalm-
so i call my mom. i'm like, "Momma, i locked my keys in the car."
Momma: "Don't worry, i'll have Ben bring the extra keys for your car. he hasn't left the house yet."
and i'm like, YAY!
so i go in, and i'm doing Mom's job and my job, and i haven't eaten, and then Ben gets there. he hands me...
my mother's spare keys.
"She said you wanted the spare, since you're taking her car after this." (because of the overheating.)
-facepalm-
"and i locked my keys in the car, brother."
"Oh, yeah. i forgot those."
fortunately, as i was freaking out, my boyfriend went and my keys.
i felt like such an idiot.
WHO LOCKS THEIR KEYS IN THEIR CAR? WHO?
me.
=[
oh well. :D
Anyway, that was my day. today, i think i'll take a nap. aaaaaaah... nap.... :D
also, i'd be delighted if you texted me pictures. (Except Joelle, who's phone is broken. bummer. i know this because i'm STALKING YOU! just kidding. but no, really. :D)

Hey, Ya'll... What's Up?

HAPPY NEW YEAR!
long time no see. not even going to bother laying blame. There you go. =]
So... new things...
Cassandra Clare MIGHT be inching her way up to, -gasp- my favorite author.
Garth Nix, step it up and get a new book out and we can still be friends. Sabriel can only go SO FAR.
but Miss Cassandra Clare and i are getting much closer. i love her easygoing style, her voice, her awesome characters... so far she seems to REALLY like female leads (but Garth Nix kind of does too...), but i don't mind. her guys are awesome. her ideas are spectacular. her Downworlders are fabulous. her Nephilim rock my socks. I CAN GO ON!
I lied. she's not inching up.
she is my favorite author.
-sigh- i feel like a traitor. it's like telling one of your children, "Sorry, you're awesome, but your sister is SO FREAKING MUCH COOLER!"
but Clary... Clary is... Clary is just plain awesome. Jace is tight. i'm already in love with Jem, from Clockwork Angel. (He better be the love interest. he's super sweet and cute and sickly, and Will is kind of like Jace, except all cocky and no super sweet center. RABBIT Hehe. cocky. sorry.)
Miss Maria V. Snyder has a chance. i just got Sea Glass and Spy Glass, which might be totally awesome. but i really miss Valek, and Opal isn't as awesome as Yelena.
Joelle, i'm pretty sure you're the only person who understood anything in that. Thanks.

So! interesting and exciting news.
remember how i told you i was moving into an apartment?
i did.
it's awesome.
and remember how i said i was getting a cat? (even though it's... illegal. in my apartment.)
i lied.
i got three cats.
-cringe-
now, i'll talk about that in a minute.
i'd show you my room, but there's two problems.
1) it's messy. i got home from work and just crashed. laundry not put away, cat played with stuff, all that jazz.
2) it's SO BARE. i hate it! i have four posters on my wall. i'd give anything for more posters. (Think they have a poster of Josh Shank? KIDDING! i'm not THAT much of a stalker. maybe. NO REALLY. hehe. seriously, though. (you don't have any idea what i mean now, do you? HAHA!)) but seriously. no posters. well, 4. an Avatar poster, from Cole. ie, i stole it from Cole. 2 Alice in Wonderland posters, one of Alice standing in the Keyhole, and another of the Cheshire Cat. (love him!) and a Hawk Nelson poster. then my door is so far partially covered with stuff from Godspell and Jesus Christ Superstar. i'd love more posters. or artwork! i would love artwork. the stuff i have is too heavy to hang up with tape. i've toyed with the idea of hanging up what i politely refer to as my embarrassing Joshua Shank autograph, but... i don't know. i don't want to put tape on it. haha. :D it holds good memories. who knew you could embarrass yourself THAT MUCH in only one weekend? Only me, kids. only me. :D
next. my cat.

Come on, who couldn't love that?
Her name is Gypsy. notice her cute purple collar. :D
So, a little while after we moved in, Paige went out and brought back two cats. Their names are Oryx and Pandora. she adopted them from a shelter. Oryx is grey with white feet and green eyes, and Pandora is... i don't know. She's fat. HAHAHA, no but seriously. they're both kittens. they were malnourished, but Pandora was big anyway, so Paige knew she would be fat.
i like them okay.
no, but seriously, i realized i'm REALLY a dog person. blech, cats, and all that.
but then, one day, i looked down as i carried in groceries to find this little calico meowing pitifully at me from the ground.
i melted.
she was beautiful.
she was sassy.
i loved her.
her ribs stuck out, her fur was in dire straits.
i wanted her.
Paige said, "We'll see if she's here tomorrow."
she wasn't.
i missed her, desperately.
which was weird. because, again, i'm a dog person.
but three weeks later, (October 28th), i got home to see a beautiful little calico pawing around in my front yard.
i did what any normal, sane person would do. i lured her inside, fed her, petted her, and refused to let Paige send her away.
it worked.
and now Gypsy is mine.
she is a MEGA BRAT. she is sassy and rude and full of personality. sometimes she jumps up on my lap and snuggles with me, other times she growls and snaps.
she's perfect.
she sleeps with me, she scratches her ears like her dog, she purrs like a motorboat, she wakes me up to play, she tries to steal my phone, or turn it off when she wants to sleep. that one is really cute. if the light comes on, she turns it over, or if i'm texting, she pushes it down so that you can't see it.
she's the best.
You may meet her, if you want. i'll trade her for artwork.
KIDDING.
i love my kitty.
and i recently got picture texting! so you might get cute pictures of my kitty cat.
did i mention she's cute?
sorry.
no i'm not. :D
other things... i love school. i work as a professional babysitter, and i LOVE that, too.
the most important thing--Ray. he's wonderful. he didn't freak over the cat, who i love. and he hates cats. he got me a diamond penguin necklace for Christmas. we went to a hockey game (WOOOO ICE! LOVE LOVE LOVE! SOMEBODY PUNCH SOMEBODY!) for New Years with my family, and i wore a giraffe coat and he STILL LOVES ME.
hehe.
he's the perfect boyfriend.
-sighs happily-
anyway, that's what's up. what's up with you?

Wow, Long Time No See...

hi guys. i'd like to begin this post by laying blame. there's a darn good reason as to why i've been mysteriously absent. (oh the horror!)
First, i'd like to blame Jesus Christ Superstar. it went so well, guys. really. i was so proud. for those of you that saw it, or were in it, you know what i'm talking about, yo. due to my costume, our poor mic guy had a hard time finding a place for my mic and, more importantly, a place that didn't make weird noises every time i moved. (i have hips, ladies and gentleman, and unfortunately they hit my mic antenna, which was suspended upside down from my waist.) but David, who is the techie god of Brownsburg, no lies, managed to fix it, and the last night i had absolutely no static! (night two i had static every time i moved for the entire first act. David was really, really upset, poor guy, but there was nothing he could have done. and he fixed the whole thing, proving once and for all that he is the coolest guy i know.) on the last day, one of the Roman guards stepped on my skirt and then pushed me away from Jesus during the flogging scene. Unfortunate. my skirt slid down, but i was wearing a slip and, fortunately, a shawl, which i immediately wrapped around my body. i don't think people really noticed. Joey didn't mean to or anything, it just happened. Joey, by the way, was freaking amazing. he scared the crap out of me the whole time he was a soldier. it was all epic glares and slightly sadistic things, and i was frightened. (he shoved me. i was scared. he's amazing. =]) anyway, if you didn't see it, you're a big loser, sucks to be you. just teasing. i still love you. but it is a bummer, because we were amazing. (i miss everyone. D:)
secondly, i'd like to blame Kansas. no, not the band, the state. my best friend in the whole wide world, that's Joelle for those of you who missed it, she invited me to go with her and her mommy to see her aunt Jodi in St. George, that's right outside Manhattan, Kansas, and then to Wichita to see her cousin, Jodi's daughter, and then to Tulsa, Oklahoma to see Alison's other sister. it was super fun! lots of driving. they drove back, a ten hour trip, in one day so that i could see my family on my birthday. they're really, really amazing, huh? it was so nice of them. we went out to eat and played with adorable children, and i had so much fun. i love them. although... this conversation happened. Joelle doesn't remember it at all. now, keep in mind that she is THE LEAST racist person i have ever met. that's why this is hilarious. we were almost asleep, and she was like...
Jo: Taitie...
Me: Yeah, Dodo?
Jo: Taitie, don't ever get an afro.
Me: Uhm... kay... i can do that.
Jo: But i'd still love you if you were black. -rolls over-
Me: Good to know, Jo.
Jo: -rolls back over, intensely serious look- but not if you were Asian.
Me: O_O
i laughed. a lot. a whole lot. and then i told everyone.
(Side note. she calls me Taitie and i call her Dodo because that's what small children call us. small children like to ignore the C in my name, and Joelle made the unfortunate mistake of telling children they can call her Jojo. oh boy. but Joelle and Caitlin are hard to say, so i understand why.)

lastly, i would like to blame my apartment. Yes, my apartment. I'M MOVING OUT, GUYS! Paige Marie and i are getting a cat, moving into an apartment near Marion College, and spending our first year at college, at least, in a cute little two bedroom townhouse. with a cat. YAY CAT! i've never had a cat, guys! anyway, i've been ignoring my computer in favor of packing. unless i'm playing Frogger 2: Swampy's Revenge or watching Bones with Ray. or Buffy. i'm recently on a Buffy kick. (love Angel.)

so yeah. that's about caught up. i got a car. a cute little purple '01 PT Cruiser (Limited Edition!) it's great. that was my birthday present. then Joelle gave me fake flowers that match the colors Paige and i chose for our living room, and fake flowers that match my room colors. i got a pillow that says "Someone At Purdue Loves Me" from David. it's going on my bed. =] and flowers from my wonderful boyfriend. (And chocolate!) he's pretty awesome. =] and then, today, with my birthday money from my grandparents, i bought books. (YAY BOOKS!) and Slumdog Millionaire. super exciting. going to the movies today, pretty pumped to see Despicable Me. yay! later, gators! gotta go find food.

Jesus Christ Superstar

is amazing amazing amazing. we're doing so well.
A certain alto decided to sing tenor and threw the rest of us, me and two band kids who are AMAZING, but quiet, and a middle school girl who is adorable and knows all the notes but is also super quiet, under a bus. (just saying. -mildly irritated-)
anyway.
JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR TICKETS ARE NOW ON SAAAAAAAAAAAAAALE! YAAAAAAAAAY!
buy them. come see me. do it.
please?
i'm really excited.
really
really
really
really
really
really
really
really
really excited!
we sound really good, guys. we really, really do.
we're all working really hard.
Bryce is amazing.
the soul girls... mm, girl, have they got soul. -realizes she's been spending too much time with Alison, who is also working her tail off.
Logan... i just... he's just... GAAAAAAAAAAAAH!
anyway. tickets are $7. and you know you want one. i'll have them at church this Sunday, or you can give me the money and i'll get you one, or you can get it through Calvary. JUST COME!

Me
(P.S. today, Micah told me that i should respect him because he is bigger than me and could hurt me. thinking immediately of what Ray, Dad, Josh, and Joelle would do if the boy so much as laid a finger on me, i laughed in his face. he pushed me into a wall, but it was totally. worth. it. i kind of almost hope he does hit me. i don't think he'd ever recover from the beating he'd get, but he would never threaten me again. =])

Do You Always Have To Critique Me?

I'm in a rather bad mood today. and it's... 8:33 in the morning.
Gah, i hate that.
But Mom does this thing where she constantly critiques me. CONSTANTLY. and it's driving me crazy.
she hates my hair, she hates the way i stand, she hates the way i look, the way i eat, does she like anything at all about me?
i'm sorry i'm not a model.
but it's really, really, really hard to even try to have good self esteem when the person in my life who should be the most proud of me, the most supportive, the one who should tell me i'm beautiful and all that instead tells me i look fat, or she hates the color i have to dye my hair, or i shouldn't slouch because it makes me look fat, or i shouldn't roll my shoulders forward, or i shouldn't dress like that because i'm showing too much skin. (You guys have met me. you know how i dress. do i look like a whore to you?)
anyway, i'm really rather upset. i'm not even really mad, i'm just... upset. it makes me feel sick to my stomach when she does this all the time. and then, if i look in the mirror, i immediately start judging myself too.
"You're not even good enough for your own mother."
that's all i hear when she starts in like that.
and it really, really hurts my feelings.
especially since i felt pretty today.
well, so much for that.
sorry this is depressing. but, seriously, if i don't talk about it, i'll explode. no, i won't. but i will cry, or tell someone who will tell mom. (I know you guys won't.)
well, i'm late to VBS. later, kids. i'll blog something happy tonight. i just really, really needed to get this off my chest, because i finally feel like i'm not going to burst into tears. (even if you guys aren't really listening. =])
later, gators.

Me

Busy To The Extreme

Want to know what i've been up to lately?
i'll give you a hint.
it starts with Jesus, and ends with Christ Superstar.
If you said Jesus Christ Superstar, or thought it, i don't know how many of you talk back to me, then you're RIGHT ON THE MONEY! (good for you!)
yeah. i've either been at JCS practice, or listening to the music, or looking at the music, or something (talking about it, thinking about it, that stuff.).
it's. consuming. my. life.
(i love it. =])
interesting things lately.
Logan went to London. do you know how freaking jealous i am? REALLY FREAKING JEALOUS. yeah. i wish i could go to London. but, before he left, we went and bought those... silly bands? i don't know. they're, like, rubber bands, but... shaped like animals? yeah, you totally know what i'm talking about. anyway, i've made lots of friends with them. granted, all these friends are under the age of nine, but i've immediately gone up in coolness points in the eyes of Mike and Max. (i babysit for them and their little sister, Macie, and they're my favorite kids. we have lightsaber fights and play football and baseball and video games and eat chicken nuggets and soon we're GOING TO THE ZOO OMG THE ZOO I FREAKING LOVE THE ZOOOOOO! i'm calm.) also, he took a journal, and he's been writing in it. (that's important to me! i can't wait to read it!)
he's coming back late tonight, so i'll get to see him tomorrow. also coming back are two of my altos for JCS. which is good.
see, currently there are four of us. (and one of them is singing the part of Simon. so she constantly decides that she'd rather go sing with the tenors. P.S. her boyfriend is in the tenor section. so every time she goes to sing with the tenors, really she's sitting by her boyfriend. but, just saying, WE NEED HER! i'm the loudest alto. it's not that the other altos are bad, they're wonderful! they're just quiet. so we NEED ALTOS. and there are lots of tenors. and ONE OF THEM IS JUDAS! AND ONE OF THEM IS HEROD! (he played Jesus last year, too, so he's OBVIOUSLY good (and loud)!) so we need her. end tangent. =])
other things that are up.
uhm....
hanging out with Ray a lot.
started watching Bones.
VBS this week.
DID I MENTION THAT I'M GOING TO THE ZOO? yeah, i am.
Cleaning lots of stuff.
you know, the usual.
writing. things like that.

and with all the happy stuff out of the way...
Primrose died yesterday. she'd been sick for a while, so i expected it. but i'm still sad. and Cat is sad too. you can tell with animals. and she's sad, and that makes me sad, too. my room is depressing now.

so yeah. now i feel like i should say something humorous, because now my blog is depressing! stars, my blog can't be depressing!
oh, i'll think of something.
OH SNAP! i watched The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, and it was so freaking awesome. i love Heath Ledger. (WHY?! WHY DID YOU DO IT? it's not fair. Totally horrible. i miss you. -cries-(BTW, Ray has decided that -cries- is not strong enough. he apparently prefers -has a conniption fit- i just think he doesn't understand how AMAZING Heath Ledger was. -sobs-)) Cole and Danielle watched it before we did, and they were all like, "OMG WE DON'T UNDERSTAAAAAAAAAAAAND" and apparently hated it. and Ray and i watched it, and we were like "OMG THAT'S SO AAAAAAAAAAWESOME!"
it's pretty intense. a mi me gusta. =]

well, later, gators. go watch The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus. and if you don't like it, i understand. (just don't ever speak to me again.) KIDDING! i'll still love you. (but you'll be dead.) just teasing. later, kids.
wish me luck at VBS. (8 kids tomorrow, under the age of two. one is a tiny, tiny infant who still takes a bottle and needs her head supported. two. workers. (OH STARS!))