2nd run-in with the Po-Po in a week for Bryan!

So Bryan had a visit from the police today, right after he called them. He was involved in a hit and run accident where his car was the hit, and this stupid other guy was the run. The really bad part is that Bryan works next to the organization, which happens to be run by a prominent Christian evangelist, WHERE THE BAD GUY WORKS! They were both leaving for lunch, Bryan in front, and this guy bumped him as they were stopped at the light. Bryan got out, and this guy waved his arms angrily and veered around him. Bryan memorized the plate (he also recognized it as the same truck from the parking lot his shop and this organization share) and began to follow him. So this guy got all crazy erratic, trying to dodge Bryan. Bryan gave up and went back to the shop to call the Po-Po and they showed up the same time the bad guy came back from lunch. (Bryan also would like to add that the cop was HOT! Which possibly lightened the mood for everyone at the shop...) So anyways, this guy straight up lied to the police despite the damage on the front of his car. WHAT?!?! Im sorry...has this guy heard of "Love your neighbor as yourself"?!?! or "Thou shalt not lie"?!?! Maybe he should ask the boss he works for, who shall remain nameless. Bryan had two choices: File charges and get him arrested for a misdeamonor hit and run, or, go through insurance. Bryan opted for the latter, though I think this guy deserved a lesson. Hopefully insurance will cooperate! And this guy will have the cojones to come over and apologize.

Anyways, it has been a long day! Thanks, Mom, for helping out in my class today! The kids love you and you always help so much! I did want to add, that if anyone reading this lives here locally and you want to go to the Pumpkin patch, I would not reccommend the Roloff farms. Seeing as how they are famous (Little People Big World, TLC Mondays 8pm) their farm is only open three days a week. Bryan and I tried to go after the beach on Sunday, and there was a lineup down the road for at least a mile. So much for making our tv debut! Also, there is a good chance I will not post for about another week, as we will be moving and getting our internet/cable set up at the new apartment! Have a great rest of the week and weekend!

The Week in Review

I am rushed tonight as I had a wonderful weekend away from home with Bryan. I realized when we got home and Bryan planted himself in front of the computer just why our weekend was so nice...no computers! I would say no phones, but that would be a lie, as well as if I said no t.v. But Bryan has currently become involved in websites forums on cars, racing, aftermarket performance parts or whatever. He also really likes looking up parts on Craigslist. Every night he finds the perfect deals on various things. So now it is 9:00 and I am dangerously close to my deadline for being done so I can watch Desperate Housewives with no interruptions so I am just going to list major events in bullet form, with little to no sidebar rantings.

* Trip to the grocery store Monday night with Bryan. So much faster and easier I will never do it alone again.
* Community group on Wednesday night. Great time of fellowship with other Christian friends from church. This also happens to be the night Bryan got pulled over -AGAIN- for having his license plate not attached to his car but in the window. He does not like the legal way because it does not look as cool on his type of car. He totally deserved it but talked his way out of it, and made me angry.
*Thursday was the trip to the pumpkin patch. Despite forecasts for heavy wind and rain, it was beautiful. We rode a train and a boat and everyone got a pumpkin. Not quite as fun as what I remember as a kid but still good...great as a first field trip for me! I will try to post pictures.
* Friday I got a call from my doctor's office saying I have to take yet another lab test, which irritates me because I just paid about $500 for a bunch of tests that conclusively told me NOTHING about why my knee hurts and my legs are swollen. I also found out that I am getting two new kids (twins) on Monday, so I stayed late getting ready for them. Bryan's brothers were over to watch "Transformers".
*Saturday Bryan and I went to the beach. We got a free night after a bad experience with a certain motel so decided to cash it in before the big move to our new apartment this coming weekend, and the wedding in three weeks (Bryan's sister). We did some shopping, ate lunch/dinner/breakfast at three really cute cafes, saw "Good Luck Chuck" , and played at the arcade.
*Got back today (Sunday) and went to one of my student's house so Bryan could look at their truck and then we headed to the gym and Subway for dinner. Since then I have been doing laundry and getting ready for the week. I am still sad on Sunday nights because the transition between freedom and responsibility is killing me right now for some reason! But as my sister says, I am grown up now and will be doing this for the next 40 years. Better get used to it...the sooner the better!

The Macaroni Tambourine

So I am a pretty cool person. Today I got offered a room at one of my students' house because it is so cool to live with your teacher. And then, last night, I made a tambourine for a demonstration by simply stapling two paper plates together with macaroni in between. I told the kids that whoever was the nicest all day long gets to take it home today. Throughout the day, I kept asking "Who wants macaroni for dinner tonight?" to remind them. So at the end of the day, they were all going out of their way to be nice and help others, but mostly to make sure I knew about it. Now I am SOOOOOO tired of tying shoelaces, and it is only mid-October, so usually I direct the poor shoeless victim to another, wiser student who knows the ways to tie a shoe. It was minutes before dismissal when I once again heard "TEACHER, I need help tying my shoes!" So when I asked the entire class if anyone would like to tie this poor boy's shoes, they all shouted "I WILL!" and there was a mass rampage that resulted in 16 other kids trying to tie one shoe so they could all get a silly little prop. It was the funniest thing ever. I could pretty much bring a square of toilet paper from home and hype it up to make it the coolest thing ever and watch them all treat each other like gold. Hmm...maybe I should try that tomorrow.

Bitter...the weekend is over:-(

So, here it is Sunday night. You know the feeling...a very busy, yet productive weekend, gone in a flash. And you sit at your computer on Sunday night, looking at all the things you have to do in the week ahead, on top of what all you still wanted to accomplish over the weekend but did not get around to. And instead of tackling those last minute details, you just have to vent. I didnt go to the gym today, I havent figured out some credit hours yet that I need for my teaching license, I havent done all the research I wanted to do to make myself feel like a better teacher( I have been putting this off since summer), I have not figured out what bills we have to pay and on what day this week, I did not get to my leisure reading etc.
On the other hand, I did do a lot of shopping that needed to be done, and I spent plenty of money. And we still have to go get groceries tomorrow night after work. But I did see my sister, brother in law, and one month old baby along with some friends and neighbors today. And yesterday I got to go to my favorite store in teh whole wide world with my mom: Bed Bath and Beyond. I can't explain the feeling of excitement it gives me. I hated it when we were registering for our wedding but now I get giddy when I plan my next trip and what I will buy. I also got to see a good friend, and we had another friend over last night to watch "Blades Of Glory."
Dont get me wrong, the weekend was wonderful. It started out beautifully...I got home on Friday to dinner already made (okay, so Bryan had ordered pizza) and we cleaned the apt so I would not have to spend my weekend days, and we went to the gym to blow off steam from the week, and went to bed plenty early. The weather was also gorgeous, and everybody I encountered this weekend was just so HAPPY. I just wish it would not end so quickly. And its not as if I can just call in sick tomorrow. It is days like these when I wish I were substituting again. I would just ignore my phone tomorrow and get everything done that I wanted to. Yeah, right!
There was a point in time, recently, when I seriously began to think about other options. It is hard, being so young, to imagine being a teacher the rest of my life. And I am an inquisitive person and a lot of other professions interest me. Not that I do not love teaching. But maybe later, I may do counseling, or be a social worker. I get so inspired by people who are on the giving or recieving end of jobs that truly make a difference. Not that this job does not. But sometimes it feels that just teaching it is not enough. And also, it would be nice for a change of scenery one day. I remember when I was in college, I yearned to be back in Portland. But I would like to know what it is like to live in other cities, in other states. And I even sort of, kind of thought about doing missions in other countries. But that is a far, far fetched idea that I do not intend to pursue. But who knows what God has planned.
One last thing. I was prompted by my sister's blog to think about my age. She is now into her thirties and realized that health concerns become more prominent once you reach a certain age. However, being in my twenties, I am realizing just how ignorant I am about money. Learning has always been somewhat natural to me, though I can easily be frustrated. I am frustrated about money because I do not understand. What the heck should I be doing right now? What the heck is a 401K? How do I make smart investements? Why the h.e.l.l. are there so many acronyms for money? What about life insurance? And there are so many other insurance plans that do not just cover your self and your car anymore. Aghhh! Ignorance sucks, but it seems a lot easier than trying to find the time to figure all this out! Besides, I should still be having fun right? And learning how to cook, and decorate my house, and develop hobbies....

The Mystery Box

My kids crack me up. Each day is something new but tonight I actually remembered. Each week, I fill a shoebox with something that makes a different kind of noise when you shake it and I give them clues so they can guess what is in the mystery box. This week it was coins out of our math manipulatives set. I was running out of clues so I said "All parents have this." One little girl replied, "OOOOOH! I know what it is Mrs. H! Its TAXES!" :-)

PMS and Fuz takes a shower

So I see a trend beginning to develop as the school year continues on. I cannot believe it has been a month already since school started! Sundays are a low-key day where we go to church, I blog or write or read or nap, and we go to the gym. Mondays I come home extremely tired and nap yet again. The rest of the week is an uphill battle until I reach Friday, which is the best day of the week, and then I spend Saturday catching up on the rest of my life outside of school that I have avoided all week. This last week it has been really chilly and breezy and the leaves have rapidly begun to change shades. I love fall...it is my favorite season!

Fall is a cozy season and like winter, fall motivates me to do absolutely nothing but stare out the window. However, I would say that winter is not as much cozy as it is dreary. I do not look forward to winter as much! Fall also reminds me a lot of college and makes me miss those friends who I have lost touch with.. I am realizing how much people continue to change after college, and how quickly your views and your values change out in the real world. I am surprised by how much I feel I have changed in the last year or so, and I guess that is why people grow apart. Even people I met in college who I thought would be my "forever friends" (because in college you are SO much more mature as in high school) have now all moved on in other directions or we have stopped talking for stupid reasons. But I have also had the opportunity to reconnect with old friends from high school, with whom we could pick up right where we left off, because as we grew apart we were growing relationally back together, which I think is a blessing. This last week I have truly felt and believed that God puts people in our lives at certain times and takes them away at other times for His own reasons. In the past, I have struggled with questions like "What is wrong with me?" or "How can I be a better friend?" and though I think these can be valid questions and to some extent we have a choice over who we hang out with, ultimately your friendships are God's choice and are in God's control. I never usually drop my cell phone, but on one particular night I was feeling lonely and had been flipping through my phone book and trying to call a bunch of old friends on my way home from Bible study, and as I got out of my car my phone dropped to the ground and broke into a bunch of pieces. At that moment, God made it very clear to me to leave my cell phone alone and focus on the friendships I am cultivating now, at this point in my life. Okay- what a tangent! So what was my point? Oh yeah- fall makes me think of the "good ol' days" of college though nowlife goes on!

My teacher convention on Thursday and Friday was great! On the whole I really only gained a few more ideas that would be applicable to my classroom, but it was a great bonding time with the staff of my school who are all really fun and nice. There was also a really cool Christian band called Rescue, and now I want all their cds, even though I have never been able to get into Christian music (I have no idea why...even singing worship songs on Sunday can be a stretch!). Rescue is an accapella (spelling?) band so their music is beautiful and upbeat. At one point, I almost started crying...this is when I realized I was first experiencing PMS! Later that day, I almost lost it again at lunch time when a homeless lady walked into the restaurant that my staff and I were eating at. Without a word, I watched the Dean of students next to me get up and go sit with this homeless lady for a few minutes until she got her lunch. It made me want to cry because I had never actually seen a homeless person in a restaurant, eating with people who eat on a regular basis and ignore people like her (myself included!). I thought it was so awesome that another person could quietly and humbly approach this stranger and strike up a conversation, and offering to pay for her lunch, and how stupid it was of me for not thinking of it. But even if I had, I know I would not have made a move like that. So when I rode the train home, alone becuase my last class was cancelled, I made an effort to pray for each person on the MAX, who either had a home or appeared not to. Maybe one day God will give me courage to actually talk to someone and lift their spirits as much as I am sure the Dean did to this lady.

But anyways, I do really dislike PMS. It can sneak up on you anytime, anywhere. One minute you can be so happy, and the next something- anything- can move you to tears. And it could be tears of sadness OR joyfulness. How annoying! Bryan is the number one victim of my PMS, no doubt. For example, I started picking on him today after we got home from church. I started thinking of all the reasons he made me mad just so I could have an excuse to vent. (Don't laugh- everyone can be guilty of this!) And Bryan is also at a disadvantage because I regularily talk to his siblings, who give me more ammo to my gun. For example, Bryan's sister is getting married in November. For her birthday, her fiance took her out to dinner and to the symphony. Her and I were talking about how her poor fiance is "setting the bar" for himself and a life long perpetual need to romance his future wife. This is when it came to my attention that Bryan is not romantic in this way, unless he has a little prompting once in a great while. But this can be my fault too. I don't mind if we go to Taco Bell for dinner and rent a movie. Maybe we just enjoy a more low-key lifestyle and do not really have anything really super special that we enjoy doing together unless it is going to Starbucks and Barnes and Noble. His brother also prides himself on being a gentleman, and I consistently hear that Bryan was raised that way too, though we have gotten to the point in our marriage where the doors don't open unless I do it myself. But Bryan is Bryan, who I fell in love with, and if he can put up with my PMS inspired rantings, than I can give him a break too. But I would enjoy seeing flowers in our home a little more often :-)

Bryan and I can also find lots of fun things to do out of our own imaginations when we are bored at home. Usually it involves teasing and taunting our poor cat and giving him dialogue as we wonder what he is thinking. The other day Bryan brought him into the bathroom as I was taking a shower. When we decided that splashing Fuz with water was not enough, I reached for him and held him at arm's length in the shower long enough for him to get soaked and start really wiggling. He also made the most pitiful noise we had ever heard, which really turned out to be the funniest noise we had ever heard. He was so cute after Bryan wrapped him up in a towel, but it was a long time before Fuz let me hold him again. He got even by giving me a few scratches on the arm. Bryan just wished we had had time to shampoo him up! Out of fairness, Bryan teases Fuz too. Bryan got an airsoft gun from his brother and enjoys shooting pellets off near Fuz to see what he will do. One night, it richoted (spelling?) off the wall and broke one of the blinds on our living room window (How redneck are we?!?) So then, after I chew out Bryan as I am trying not to laugh, he hands me the gun and says "Here, try it." So then I point it at him and it goes off, to both of our surprises and I hit Bryan in the chest, where he now has a nice little mark. Apparently, Bryan thought it had a safety that actually does not exist and so that ended up being pretty funny too. I told his brother that the next time he comes over, he needs to make it disappear. Now, it just stays out in the garage where Bryan uses it to shoot his pet dino that he grew out of an egg in an apple juice container and the neighborhood squirrels.

Okay, now that I have made this blog out to sound like an episode from the Beverly Hillbillies, I think I will end. Have a great week!