Kelly's Most Original Live Journal

It's been a couple of months and a LOT has been going on...work has gone rapidly down hill, I've had a wisdom tooth removed due to giant pain, we got a bunny (which I may have told you already) but I think the BIGGEST thing that's new is this:

www.CopesCrafts.etsy.com

That's right, I've started an etsy shop to feature and sell my crafty goods...I've got cards, cornermarks, jewelry and some of my photography. I'm REALLY excited about this new venture and am working pretty hard to market myself and to promote everywhere I can. So I would love it if you would check it out and buy something! Let me know what you think, if there's anything you'd like to see or buy, and if there's anything you'd change.

CopesCrafts--low prices, but HIGH quality! :)

Thanks for reading!

Not too much to say (until I Get started, I'm sure) so I'm gonna do the bullet thing:

*Work is going well. Lots of MAJOR changes, probably not all for the good, but workable and I think everything will be fine.

*Bad news for Jason today...his employer has stopped matching his retirement and is cutting pay for everyone they employ, him included, of course. Argh.

*Because of that and the current state of the market and economy, we've decided not to pursue selling our house and moving this year. We think we'd be wiser to save some money instead. I'm a little sad about that, but understand the logic behind it. We're going to continue to clean, repair, and pack and whatnot with a goal of selling next year, if the market/economy is back on track.

*I don't remember if I mentioned it in my last update, but I adopted a soldier through www.soldiersangels.org and you should too! It's a non-profit organization whose goal is to make sure that soldiers get to hear their name called at mail time and know that they're not forgotten. Believe it or not, some soldiers don't have families and friends or they're unable to support them through post...I think that's sad! I love getting mail, and even though this isn't a "pen pal" thing at all, it's nice to know that someone far away from home is getting some mail and feeling like someone cares. I've also been sending out letters to other soldiers who need a little "TLC." It's also an excuse to use up the stationery/cards/stickers that I've packratted away since I was a kid. And, silly as it may sound, it's also a form of therapy...because we don't want to send any sort of negative news, it forces me to think about the positive aspects of my life and work and day and that reminds me how lucky I am.

*My husband is making dinner and it smells sooooooo goooooooood. I'm hungry!

Good enough for now I reckon...again, please consider adopting a soldier...it's not hard, expensive, or too time consuming. If you don't want to commit but still would like to DO something or contribute to a care package, let me know and I'll let you send something to mine. :)

Thanks for reading!

Apparently it's been 15 weeks since I last updated my LJ. I apologize to the two of you that read it. ;) Since then we've had Howl-O-Scream, and election, Thanksgiving, a trip to Walt Disney World, Christmas, New Years, a job interview, house cleaning and plans to sell, etc. I can't possibly catch up on all of that stuff. But I did want to take a couple of minutes to jot down my thoughts on the the Inauguration of the new President of the United States, Barack Obama.

I voted for Barack Obama...the first time I've voted for a democrat and differed strongly from my parents. I was glad when he won and I hope that he doesn't let all of us down. I was able to watch his swearing in during lunch with my friend Allison at Emerald Thai in Williamsburg and we both agreed that we had a prime viewing spot. I was amazed at the number of people that attended the event in person, estimated 2 million. That's crazy! Before I get rambly, I'll switch to bullet points:

* I feel bad for President Bush, because it would stink to leave a job with such low approval ratings and knowing that, even though you think you did your best, lots of people really don't like you. That would be rough. I think it would be difficult to bow out gracefully, and you have to commend him for that.

* I think it's too bad that they messed up his oath. That would annoy me, personally, although he handled it very well. His speech was very good and I like having the feeling that he writes his own material. That's so much nicer than knowing the words you're hearing aren't necessarily the real thoughts of the President. And, even with all my self-confidence, I would have a REALLY hard time delivering a speech to 2 million people. Golly Day!

*I think it's a very nice idea, although highly impractical, to have a marching band from each of the 50 states in the parade. It started at 2:30 and it's still going on, 4 hours later. I feel sorry for the bands that are playing now too, because the first bands got a full Presidential Observation Deck and the last bands get like 3 people. Bummer for them.

* I feel bad that the new President and his wife have to go through a really long, rough day. They've been up since early this morning and have had to be "on" the entire time. They'll be attending balls until 2:30 in the morning. And then he has to go right to work tomorrow. Yikes! I do not envy him that at all!

I'm pretty sure I had some other thoughts, of which some were profound, but now I can't think of them. Pulling off an event of that magnitude is quite impressive, from the 2 million in attendance, the huge number of security/law enforcement agents, to the amount of planning...amazing! Historic!

So I'm watching the VP debate and it's odd to me...maybe I'm just really tired....but it seems like Palin is really good at stringing a lot of words together and making them sound smart, but they don't really make any sense.

But then I just can't pay attention to Biden at all. blah blah blah I hear.

Bummer because I need to write a paper about them and I just can't focus.

Yeah, I have enough info for a real update but I'm tired and it's bedtime. But I DO have to share this fun quote from Mark Twain:

"The reason I dread writing letters is because I am so apt to get to slinging wisdom & forget to let up. Thus much precious time is lost.
- Letter to James Redpath, 6/15/1871


And that's what I think about writing letters. ;)

Thanks for reading!

In regards to...

The new Knight Rider: Completely unbelievable. Really. Acting, bad. Effects, cheesy. Kit, stupider than he should be about things that are obvious. Me, Disappointed.

Evista Commercials: Please stop showing me half naked post-menopausal women who are being treated for osteoporosis. Please market through the doctors, and not through the airwaves. It's creepy.

The Current Economic Status: Hmm. Seems like we're teetering on the edge of an economic crisis and the president has a brilliant idea to fix it. I feel that this plan is merely a way for him to attempt to go out on top, with something other than the war in Iraq hanging over his head. I look forward to my politics class tomorrow night to discuss it.

Free Leadership Training: Brilliant. I'm lucky to have access to a leadership training program that I get paid to attend. I wish everyone realized how great that really is, regardless of the timing, etc.

Paranychia: Obnoxious finger infection. Went to the doctor and got some antibiotics so it's on the mend. Then bashed my head into the vice that WAS mounted on my workbench. THEN managed to step on a shard of glass in my own home and puncture my foot. None of these occurrences are dire, merely annoying. And all in one day. And it's not even PMS time (which is when I'm usually hyper-clumsy.)

Facebook: I know it's going to sound petty but I love seeing pictures of highschool classmates that were condescending to me (for whatever reason) who are now less successful than me, single, and look at least 10 years older than their 30. Like I said, I know it's petty, but it's nice to have reassurance that I'm doing well when I have doubts.

Race cars: My dad apparently took my advice and actually bought a race car. He and my Granddad raced before I was born and then he gave it up when I came along. The past couple of years he's been saving his pennies and finding good deals on eBay for nascar driving experiences. Couple hundred bucks and a long road trip for 10 minutes of adrenaline. Literally. So I said he should save his pennies and just buy a race car so he could race whenever he wanted. And he did it! I'm actually pretty excited for him because I know it'll be a good extracurricular activity for me and it's fun to be able to say that I have a Dad who's a Pastor, a Single Action Sharp Shooter, a Star Trek fan and now... a Race care driver! Fun. So now you know why I'm a nerd who likes guns and driving fast. lol.

Autumn: The weather was just gorgeous today. I was actually wearing my jacket outside in the middle of the afternoon and it was very nice. I love that it's Autumn for real. On Friday we're going to the State Fair (although they're calling for rain and general nor'easteriness) and I'm really looking forward to it.

Reckon that's a good enough update for now.

Thanks for reading!

Hmm. Yeah, it's been a couple of weeks. Let's suffice to say that I've devoted the last couple of weeks to my workplace. I've done all kinds of things from driving forklifts to using a webshooter gun to "bleeding" all over the place. I lead an interesting life and I love it. I have a fun job, no doubt about it. But I've pulled a lot of hours and I'm glad that phase is over. I'm worn out.

We celebrated Jason's 39th birthday. Went to Outback. He was pleased with his birthday gifts.

I've been playing Spore in my few spare moments to try to keep my brain off of work related stuff.

Today we celebrated our 6th wedding anniversary. Went to The Melting Pot. It was good. :)

Back to work tomorrow.

I'm pretty achy all over from all the manual labor. Have lots of bumps and bruises and an infected finger. Looks like I'll probably have to go to the doctor for that. It hurts a bunch.

Watching the Emmy's now...I'm pretty sure Flight of the Conchords was nominated so I wanna see if they win anything. There are some pretty entertaining moments during this awards show. There are also some strangely awkward ones. Josh Groban singing 30 tv show theme songs was weird.

School's been busy. My politics class is entertaining and interesting. Everything else is pretty good.

And now my finger hurts from typing.

Thanks for reading.

YAy for composite fillings! 1000 times better than your regular silver amalgum. The composite is nice and white and is held in with some nice secure adhesive. Shouldn't lose this one! It was free but I'm still not gonna go back to a Dr. Sam E. English office again. I just don't like having a different dentist everytime I visit...of which 4 out of 5 that I've had were not native English speakers. I'd just prefer to hear "It's nice to meet you" as opposed to "Nice meet you" which is what I got this morning. I don't necessarily doubt their dentistry skills, I just like to be able to communicate and know for a fact that I will be fully understood, and vice versa. So, if you have a good dentist in the Williamsburg area, let me know. Thanks.

I spent the day on a forklift. That's definitely not something I figured I'd be doing a year ago. Weird how life is, eh? It was fun for the first couple of hours. BUt it was bright and sunny out so I got sunburn and a sweaty but. Those seats just aren't very breathable. I was pretty well wiped out by the end of the day. It was nice to come home to a hot shower and a yummy dinner.

Looking forward to bed.

Thanks for reading!

So all week long it's been "Hurricane Hanna is coming! Hurricane Hanna is coming!" Batten down the hatches and tie down anything that could fly away. We tracked the storm frequently and made plans and adjusted plans and plan plan plan for this huge storm. Hanna could be a Category 1 when she hits us! Hanna could be a Tropical Storm when she hits us! Will they cancel work for us? Who knows! They don't even know at 6 pm the previous evening.

Apparently at 2 am they made the official decision (I bet they all wished the had just made the call earlier and gotten a full night's sleep, anyway.) And hoorah! Hurricane Hanna gave me the day off!

And whoo boy, it sure was necessary. The dreaded tropical storm amounted to a day of steady (But not overly heavy) rain and a stiffer than normal (but really not bad) breeze. Yeah, it was pretty much just a rainy day. Which is really good I guess...free day off, never lost power, no damage other than the flattening of my front weeds.

I got some schoolwork done (all but Accounting because I just can't bear it.) Chatted with some folks online. Broke it to my dad that I got a new car. Watched movies. All in all a very nice day.

REckon I'll go into work tomorrow (although I was scheduled to be off) so that I can make up for the lost day today. Think I'll still sleep late and go in at 10ish.

I have a dentist appointment monday morning that will make me late for work too. But at least I can get the annoying cavity filled again. And then I'm not going back to Dr. English again, for real. And I'm giving up on Starbridge dental too and going for the Anthem.

Thanks for reading!

So, needless to say that between work and school I have PRECIOUS little free time these days. I work from roughly 8-6 for 6 out of 7 days. I know it's not as many hours as some, but it IS all available time that dentists are open.

Tuesday I lost a filling. A big filling in a molar. No pain, but still, needed to get it re-filled asap because the hole was giant. So I manage to get a dentist appointment for today (Thursday.) There were no really suitable times for me (couldn't come in late or leave early because there were no appointments available at those times) so I had to leave in the middle of the day and be gone for two hours. Had to drive all the way from Williamsburg back to West Point and back. woot.

Thankfully they did a quick job and I only lost two hours of my work day. Went back to work, followed the directions about eating (which I actually had to ASK for and then I only had a 1/2 hour restriction then all was well...) Went to my politics class and was a little tired and snacky on the way home so I had two bagel chips (just two, and a full 5 hours after the filling) and LO AND BEHOLD...

the darn filling fell slap out. I am furious. I wasted 2 productive hours and the pay thereof, $60 for the filling, and gas...all for nothing. Now I have to magically find time to get BACK out there to have it filled AGAIN. My only day off is Sunday. I am SO not impressed with this dentist (or group of dentists since I have yet to see the same dentist twice.) I want my money back and to go to a different office altogether...but I'd still have to find time to get back there to show them my filling fell out so that I could get the money back. shoot. lose lose.

And to top it off...I keep waking up an hour before the alarm and then can't go back to sleep for all the thoughts racing through my head about what has to be done. And now the hole in my tooth is bigger than it was before the filling (due to grinding and whatnot) and frankly, I think it hurts a bit now.

whine whine moan moan anger gr gr grrr.

Thanks for reading.

So the last month of my life has been wrapped up with work...and another big new thing.

About 4 weeks ago my husband, Jason, sent me an email expressing his interest in purchasing a new car for himself. He has a longer drive to work and his car kept having issues and didn't get the best gas mileage. At first I was a little upset that he had done a lot of research and stuff without cluing me in to his intent but it didn't take me long to agree with him that he could use a new car and that his research was accurate and worthwhile. He had figured out how to afford it and everything so I said ok. He was pretty sure that he wanted a 2008 Honda Fit Sport but wanted to test drive one to make sure that he (all 6'6" of him) would FIT in the Fit.

The more I thought about it and read about them, I decided that *I* wanted a new car too...and would it be cool to get TWO new cars? (Not the *most* responsible, but definitely fun.) So I put in my request for funding and started calling around to Honda dealers to see what they had in stock and when we could get a test drive. We chose Peninsula Honda in Hampton (an hour from our house) because they had both colors that we wanted in stock. Jason chose the Blackberry Pearl and I chose the Vivid Blue Pearl. A few days later we headed down to Hampton and test drove a stick shift for Jason and a manual for me. He DID fit and we decided that we really really liked the Fit Sport. We signed the papers and committed to two cars and then headed home to await our funding checks.

Jason's check came two days or so later and they had said that we could go ahead and pick up both cars. But the morning of the Friday that we were to pick them up, our dealer lady called and said that there had been a little trouble with getting the right color (odd since they were supposed to have it in stock) but that they had the car and there was a little ding on the bumper. Did I want to pick it up for the weekend and then bring it back for them to fix, or have them fix it now and come back and pick it up later. *sigh* "Go ahead and fix it, but we'll still come get Jason's."

On the way down I joked with Jason that "wouldn't it be funny if they were just bluffing about the bumper and everything was ready for us to pick up when we get there?" Thinking that wouldn't be the case. But, lo and behold, we get there and Tina (the dealer lady) announces that the bumper has been repaired and it's all good to go! Hooray! So she leads us past Jason's car to this other car and opens the door and looks very proud of herself but.... "This is the wrong color," I say. "No it's the blue you wanted." She says with a look of concern. "No, this is Tidewater Blue, I wanted Vivid Blue."

"You wanted Vivid Blue?" Her face falls and she still looks confused.
"Yes, Vivid Blue...this is Tidewater Blue...Not the right color." My face falls and I look disappointed.

There's a long awkward pause.

"You wanted the Vivid Blue?" She says as though we're starting to get to the end of a very foggy conversation.

"Yes." I said firmly, knowing full well that that was always the plan and that she had written the correct color on my file in her very own handwriting. I'm starting to grow slightly annoyed.

"But we traded the vivid blue to get this one! And then while it was being transported it was in a crash!"

Of course. Of course it was. She proceeds to show us the totaled car (coincidentally the driver walked away without a scratch, very safe car.) Well, giant bummer and 3 hours later, we drive off in Jason's new cool Blackberry Pearl with a promise that they'll find me the correct color.

A week passes with me calling the dealership regularly to see how they're progressing with finding my car. Tina said there was one in Hagerstown, MD that she was going to go get for me. But they had difficulty getting a return call from THAT dealer. I was the essence of patience. Patient Patient Patient. I called around to see if anyone else had a vivid blue pearl. Turns out that really no one does because it's the end of the car year and the '08 Fit Sports are getting hard to find and I might need to wait and get an '09.

But I WANTED an '08 for several reasons. There were base models available but I WANTED a Sport because they were far superior. More time passed and no one had an automatic vivid blue. So I got Jason to re-teach me how to drive a stick, thinking that would help my chances. I decided I could deal with a stick. I spent another day off calling everywhere within a two hour drive to see if they had anything. They had a silver. yuck. They had black. yuck. They had basics. yuck. They had a USED sport that cost $2000 more than a new sport. what the heck?

I finally get back in touch with Tina (she became not very good at returning phone calls) and told her that I was able to drive a stick. All that she had was a black basic, a vivid blue basic, and a Blaze Orange Metallic Auto Sport.

Blaze Orange. So I gave a lot of thought to whether or not I was a "Blaze Orange" kinda girl. It was hard to determine the actual color from the website...but it was pretty much the last Honda Fit Sport in a three state radius. I decided to drive down to look at it and if I didn't like it, I'd just hold out for 2009 and deal with it. I called Tina and told her I was coming. I got up early on a day that I had PM duty and drove down to Hampton to see the car. I waited 20 minutes for Tina to get there. I tried to tell myself that it was ok to not like the Orange and to not talk myself into it if I really didn't like it. Tina arrived and took me out back, where the car was just coming out of the Car Wash.

The early morning sun was shining and it glinted off of the water droplets on the prettiest color of coppery orange that I'd ever seen....

And I fell in love.

Turns out I AM a Blaze Orange kinda girl. I christened her "Anne Shirley" and she looks great sitting next to Jason's Blackberry Pearl "Bubba P." I drove her off the lot with 6 miles on her. It's a GREAT car and I love it. I do mean LOVE it. I think about just sitting in it. I look forward to driving it. It's great. I've had her for a week and half now. After her first fill up I got 35.8 miles per gallon...and she's not even really broken in yet. I should be getting over 40 soon!

And that's the rather long story of what's been going on in my life....I'll do another post for other stuff because this one is already way long. But there you go...an update.

Thanks for reading!

I hate having those "you know you're getting older when...."

Example. I just saw a preview for a fall television show featuring Christian Slater as his own worst enemy. I used to think that he was super hot...when I was in highschool. And seeing him on that commercial I thought "wow, he's looking old."

And that made ME feel old.

urk.

Old and tired.

Thanks for reading!

Sometimes new commercials are really awkward. Example: Evista. It's the breast cancer/osteoporosis pill that has lots of middle aged and older women wrapped up in towels with serious looks on their faces as the camera pans slowly around them. What an interesting concept for an advertisement. Probably only slightly worse than Sally Field talking about how she's finally found the perfect pill for HER osteoporosis...and it's a miracle that she only has to take it once a month!

I would totally forget a pill if I only took it once a month.

Time for dinner.

Thanks for reading!

Well, in fact, a miracle has occurred....I got a B in Business Law, a B in Accounting I and...

drumroll please.....

AN A IN MARKETING!!!!

That's right boys and girls, I managed to pull out an A in the class that I literally thought I was going to fail. Amazing!

Thank you, thank you very much.

I doubt I still have a perfect 4.0, but that's ok. It won't be as wiped out as it would have been.

Thanks for reading.

So, first I was going to type a "dear Anheuser-Bush" note about my disappointment with the InBev merger.

Then I was going to type a "dear Brangelina" note about my disappointment in them at adding twins to their already large brood and the promising to sell photos of said children for millions of dollars...even if it IS for charity.

But NOW I'm going to do this...

Dear Today Show,

I'm terribly disappointed that you spent 5+ minutes interviewing people in France about the Brangelina babies acting like these marvelous secret children with silly names somehow affected the world.

And then you literally delivered a mere 2 lines about the A-B/InBev Merger...A tragic decision that could have very literal negative ramifications for thousands.

You suck.

--Kelly

Well, it looks like I got my Marketing test issue all squared away. Eventually I talked to the prof on the phone and she agreed to repost the tests so that I could take them, but with a 25 point penalty. Anything's better than a 0 I say! So that's good. Now I won't completely fail. And that's a very good thing because I was pretty displeased with that notion.

So that's good. I'm officially done with my work for Accounting I, Marketing, and Business Law. Yay! Relief!

I do have two weeks of Principles of Supervision left, but I'm really enjoying that class so that's fine by me.

And now I'm off for two days so that's good too.

Things aren't looking so good for the InBev takeover of Anheuser-Busch. Lots of internet rumors floating around. I do look forward to seeing what's going to happen to one of the biggest American owned companies. And other things.

I have such a very real sense of relief being done with these classes! Now I might have a couple of minutes of actual free time. It's so nice.

We just finished watching the Spiderwick Chronicles. Not bad. That kids a pretty good actor and plays twins quite convincingly. It was a little slow getting started but once it got into the action it was a decent movie.

I'm sleepy. and thirsty.

Thanks for reading!

So I'm suddenly very worried about my Marketing grade...I'm concerned because it looks like I may have inadvertently missed two tests...which would mean a zero for both. I'm a little confused about the layout of the class and it seems that I either never saw these tests posted or they actually never were. With one week left to the class I'm VERY worried. :( I posted a message on the message board and emailed the professor but it's the weekend so I don't anticipate a quick reply. And it's also the weekend or I would call her. Phooey.

And I'm bothered about an event that I was really looking forward to that was recently canceled. I'm bothered about HOW MUCH it bothers me. It really shouldn't be that big of a deal but here I am, a day later, and I'm still fairly furious.

Mayhaps I just need to take an extra happy pill and go to bed and sleep late tomorrow.

I AM fairly sleepy, but the SNL is pretty funny.

Thanks for reading (even though I didn't say much that was worthwhile.)

It is absolutely amazing how many people in my area have completely broken the law AND spent ridiculous amounts of money on illegal fireworks. At least 3 people in our immediate area (2 VERY close) are setting off giant fireworks. Thank goodness it rained a little while ago or I'd be sure that half of our neighborhood would be going up in flames. It's ridiculous.

Now, I'm a fan of the fireworks and things that explode and I do enjoy the novelty of fireworks. But I'm also a fan of rules and safety and not putting yourself, your property or those and the property around you in danger.

I'm just saying.

Aw heck...and just because I'm a total loser geek...here's an article excerpt:

"The Consumer Product Safety Commission held its annual demonstrations, as families prepare for their Fourth of July celebrations. Last year, about 10,000 were injured in the U.S. as a result of fireworks and 11 people died, the group said." Sources: Consumer Product Safety Commission, National Council on Fireworks Safety

That said....

HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY!!! And please please please...be safe and use your brain. ;)

Thanks for reading!

Why don't you go buy some of my custom tea blend? It's great!

http://www.adagio.com/promote/signature_blends?userId=161228

Urk. So I had found the most perfect dress for our End of Season Banquet at the thrift store on Friday but it cost $20 and I was just SURE that no one would pay that much for it. Let's just say...it was rather....unique. Well, technically I describe it as hideous but I REALLY wanted it for banquet! It would have been perfect! So fun that I literally planned the theme so that it would work with it. Got the theme approved, moved forward, and stopped by the thrift store on the way home today to pick it up. Mind you, that was only a couple of days ago, right?

Gone.

Someone had the audacity to by my hideous dress!

Argh. So NOW what am I supposed to wear? bummer. It was going to be so perfect and funny.

phooey.

But I made my dinner reservations for my WDW:HPoE trip so life is good. Now time for dessert!

Thanks for reading!