Our Mother's Daughters

I wonder if my sister knows that I would go to the end of the earth for her. I know that I can never replace my mother's presence in her life, but I do know that I can be there for her whenever she needs me. I hope that I am strong enough to be a rock in her life through all the tough patches. I think she might be crying by this line. I hope she knows that she can always count on me and that she can come and live with me anytime she needs to. I hope she knows that I will always do my best to live up to a promise that I made to our mom before she died. I hope she knows that she can call me anytime, for any reason and I will be there.

Crabs!

We went to Chicago last month and visited the Aquarium while we were there. This ended up being my favorite picture. This is actually a spider crab. These things are gigantic in person.

Will I Regret This?

I am wondering whether I will regret not finishing my teaching certificate. It feels great to not be in school right now, but I thought I would have had a job by now. I am only reassured by the fact that my finance degree should help me to get a decent job. The financial advisor that I work for currently is great and I like working there, but they want someone who is willing to committ to working there for a long time and I cannot make that kind of committment. I am just not sure what I want to do yet, but I feel like I am missing out on a good opportunity by leaving a good-paying job. I feel very unsettled right now about not having a full-time job and not knowing what the right thing for my is. I feel like the right thing should be apparent to me, but it isn't. I remeber in taking a test in high school that was supposed to tell you what you should do for a living - my results were mortician or attorney. I think that the fact that my home doesn't feel settled is adding to my stress about things not being in place. I am looking forward to remodeling the room that Barry is living in now. I am hoping that I can get the room finished and things moved back in there and finally begin to feel like things are the way they are supposed to be. Maybe my problem is that I am just sitting around waiting for the answer to bite me on the ass. After all this whinging, I am starting to feel like a spoiled brat since I don't have to worry about finding housing or evacuating because of a hurricane at this point in my life.

I Get Lost

I could spend hours reading on this website...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page

Check it out.

It Happens Every Time

Why is it that most weekends I end up finding a movie that I not only like, but own, on TV and I watch the whole thing? I could watch it anytime, right? ...like last weekend. I was flipping channels on Saturday while I was eating my breakfast and I landed on "You've Got Mail" on TBS. First of all, let me say that I don't care what you all think about my taste in movies - especially my sister. Secondly, this movie makes me happy like no other. Anyway, I found it on TV and I was helpless against its power. I did, however, realize by the first commercial that I could put my copy in and skip ahead to the part I was on and continue to watch it without commercials. For this, I give myself a lot of credit - I usually subject myself to the mindless commercials when the movie is sitting on a shelf 5 feet from me. So I ended up watching the whole movie when I had a million other things I should've been doing. I, of course, tried to justify this by bringing things to do in front of the TV, like folding laundry, etc. I am embarrassed by the power that romantic comedies have over me. I am somewhat relieved by the fact that my mom was the same way. I can remember her finding something like "Play Misty for Me" and being captivated for the rest of the afternoon. She too would end up finding something to do at the table or in the TV room as if she were trying to justify watching a movie when she had a ton of other things to do. I guess that the saying is somewhat true for us. "Like mother..."

Do It While You Can

I have a friend of whom I am proud. She had the courage to leave her family and friends and go live in another country for 3 years. I am proud of her because she did something that I admire very much, but would not have the strength to do myself. I am a big advocate of doing as much of the big things in life that you want to do as early as possible. By that I mean doing things like traveling before you settle down and have a family and have greater responsibilities. I always said that that was the road I would take. I would travel and explore and do lots of different things before I settled in one place. Here I am, 23 years old and I am a married homeowner who hasn't been anywhere notable since high school. I am not sure what I want to do with my life, and I am still in college. I am in no way saying that I have any regrets. I love Sean more than anything and I love my house. I just can't help but feel that I missed out on my dreams of living in other places and being free to do what I want. As I try to sort out the right path for myself, I can't help but feel enviously of the lives of others who have had the strength and determination to do amazing things. So here's to you Liz! I am looking forward to seeing you when you come back from your big adventure!

Not Your Mother's Radio

I just got XM satellite radio and it is great! I am sort of a tech junkie, so new stuff like that appeals to me anyway. This was a little different than trying a new e-mail program because of the high start up cost. It was just under $100 for the equipment to make it work in my car and in my house. It also costs $12.95/month to subscribe. I was pretty sure that I would like it because radio commercials want to make me drive off the road, and the mindless chatter of DJs is enough to make me want to scream - like I care about the club they were at last night! Anyway, I fell in love with my satellite radio this week. I got it last Friday. It was totally easy to set up and it was activated almost immediately. There are NO COMMERCIALS! As if this wasn't good enough, there are also no DJs providing worthless commentary. A voice comes on every 5th song or so and tells you what station you are listing to - that is all. I take it everywhere with me. When I am at work, I log in to the website and listen to their streaming radio over the computer. The only reason I survived so long without it was public radio - which they also have on XM. I have been really impressed; Sean on the other hand has been more skeptical, but when is he not? You might hear more about this radio since I am currently obsessed with it.