It's gonna be one of those nights.

Do you ever have one of those days...or I guess in this case, one of those nights, where there isn't really anything wrong. Everything is calm, everything is for the most part as it should be. But for some reason you have the overwhelming need to just sit in a hot shower, or bury your head under your pillow and cry your guts out?

My therapist says it's like an emotional spring cleaning. That sometimes you have all of these thoughts or issues or niggly little doubts that you build up. Things that you set aside or shove in a random corner when it comes up so you can go about your day as normally as possible. After a while it backs up in your head or in your heart and you just have to clear it out. Analyze each piece and put it in it's proper place. Some people cry, some people run or work out till they're so tired they can't see straight, others take care of it in their own way. I guess I'm one of those people who cry.

I'm pretty sure I know what triggered this most recent cleaning jag, just as I know that I'll be fine once all my little thoughts are put away where they should be.

"I was never one to patiently pick up broken fragments and glue them together again and tell myself that the mended whole was as good as new. What is broken is broken -- and I'd rather remember it as it was at its best than mend it and see the broken places as long as I lived."
--Margaret Mitchell

I'm Going For It!!!!!!

...my Masters Degree. In Secondary Education. YES!!!! Who knows? It might eventually lead to that Doctorate I've been pining for. But *stop*...one step at a time. I don't want to jinx myself. Especially since I've just started registering for all the prereq tests and lining up favors from friends to write me letters of recomendation.

Hottie High School Science teacher?? I think that's achievable, hehehe.

It took me what? 3 years to figure out that no matter how much I love it, I DO NOT want to spend the rest of my life hunched over a microscope in a sterile room talking to bacteria and viruses. No sir! I'd rather inspire others during the most impressionable time in their lives to spend the rest of THEIR lives hunched over a microscope in a sterile room talking to whatever happened to grow in their petri dish. ;)

Wish me luck?

It was a very Guns and Ammo kind of day...

Remember a few posts ago when I said I had a checklist of stuff I wanted to do before I died? Well, consider this item checked off! It was my first time ever shooting a gun and I guess it was "go big or go home"! I started off with a huge M4 and finished off with a slightly less huge but a lot heavier AK47. Basically my coworker John has been talking about taking me to shoot some guns because according to him Im too girly. And it just so happens that one of my best friends Amanda is an avid shooter. I mean she's got those paper targets hung up in her apartment and I really wanted to try it out but I have just been too busy. Well, John got a new job and will be leaving for a 6 month contract on a cruise ship (to the bahamas the lucky b*st*rd) on Sunday so it was now or never. Just so happens I had a short day today so he picked me up and we drove up to Snoqualmie to an abandoned rock quarry and we shot some guns. I even loaded my own magazines! :) the pics and vids are either on my MySpace and Facebook. I didnt realize how heavy and awkward those things were untill I tried to 1) hold them upright, which I couldn't...2) cock the guns and/or push the bolt release on the M4 which I also couldn't...3) aim it without dropping it or kicking back so hard I ended up on my butt. I ended up taking a knee on almost all my shots. But it was definitely an experience and Im glad I did it, despite the nasty bruise developing on my shoulder as I type.

After we finished off the rounds, we stopped at North Bend to eat dinner and then went home.

A great day over all even though it was kinda overcast and cold up in the mountains. Definitely something Id like to try again. Maybe with a smaller gun next time, I nice little pistol or a pea shooter maybe hahaha.

Something to be said about stepping out of your comfort zone...

~Adventure isn’t hanging on a rope off the side of a mountain. Adventure is an attitude that we must apply to the day to day obstacles of life -- facing new challenges, seizing new opportunities, testing our resources against the unknown and in the process, discovering our own unique potential ~ --John Amatt

What started off as a fairly uneventful day definitely ended on a high note. I made plans to meet with a friend of mine to try out his motorcycle after work yesterday and due to one or more unforseen circumstances we ended up meeting an hour later than planned. But everything worked out since the timing made it possible to avoid the worst of the traffic.

We met up at Starbucks and then rode his Hayabusa across the water into the Lake Union area to see his friend who lived on a houseboat. Side note: R1's are nice but Hayabusa's are better. More comfortable if you're a passenger. Anyway we met his friend and borrowed his zodiac ( I call it a liferaft with a motor...but technically its a small boat) to ride around on the water. For those of you who have known me for a while you know I said Id never get into a boat where I can lean over the side and touch the water. Oh well, he convinced me to get in and it was actually really fun. We didnt go very fast and it was nice looking at all the mutli million dollar houseboats along the coast (including the Sleepless in Seattle house). Wind in my hair, sun in my face, good conversation. FUN :)

After we dropped the boat off and after I got a very nice crash course on how boats worked (torque and jet propulsion and weight ratios) we hopped back on the bike and had dinner at Eastlake Bar and Grill. After dinner, it was getting pretty dark and cold (the crosswind going back over the floating bridge was INTENSE) and his face shield was tinted so we rode up to his apartment in M.I. and grabbed his car ("JP" if you're reading this, you have a very nice collection of motor vehicles hahaha) Then he took me home.

Today I got off work earlier than expected so I decided to take advantage of the sun. Since I was just gonna be in my backyard anyway, I put on this black bikini I haven't worn since I was in college...and holy crap IT FIT!!! I remember telling myself: See?? this is why you run!!! LOL . Then I figured since its getting pretty late and it didnt seem too hot and since I saw a bunch of white people in boats yesterday DARKER than me...Id really take advantage of the sun and get tanned. I should have known better than to slather myself with baby oil and sit out for an hour and a half...45 minutes each side...I broiled like bacon :( No I'm not burned but I'm kinda pink around the edges and itchy. Oh well, after it itches some more it should turn into a really nice tan. :)

So...countdown of new stuff:
-be a passenger on a bike 300cc's bigger than Im used to? CHECK
-experience a houseboat neighborhood? CHECK
-ride a "boat" where I can touch the water without barely even leaning over the side? CHECK
-getting into a bikini I havent been able to fit into for almost 3 years? CHECK

Next up:
-going faster than 6mph in the said "boat"
-learning how to snowboard...maybe

Bring it on!

Sunshine and an Iced Mocha makes an interesting day...

~Unfamiliarity is the initial step in the long process of creating a relationship. It is somebody you never knew that at long last through the process of knowing each other that becomes a friend~

Did anyone else notice the gorgeous sunshine today? I know I did! Im glad summer has finally FINALLY decided to grace us with it's prescence...I was starting to grow mold! The only thing that annoyed me all day were the random people I saw at work complaining at how hot it was. *sigh* Ten to one in another few months those same people will be complaining at how gray and rainy Seattle is. Oh well, forget them!

I met up with a new friend today for coffee at my not so local Starbucks. Never did I think I'd see the day when I become one of those people who schedule coffee dates LOL. Anyway, this person found me on Facebook a couple weeks ago (I still have yet to ask him how) and we got to e-mailing a few times. He wanted to meet up for drinks but since I didnt know this person from Adam I told him that Ill just meet him for coffee. It's a good out right? It's not dinner, not a date...and if it turns out that the person is a weird psycho stalker guy from one of those horror stories you read about meeting people online, you just have to smile and nod for an hour and chug your coffee (in the daytime) and that's that. Plus I did it on my lunch break from work so I really did only have an hour to spare. Guilt free and not lying :) And "S" if you're reading this...now ya know! :)

Turned out he was a pretty cool guy. Fairly normal, just enough quirks to be interesting. AND he feels the same way I do about camping!!! Brownie Points! So congratulations E for stepping out of your comfort zone. Courage for an unfamiliar situation + a lovely iced mocha on an equally lovely sunny day = interesting conversation and maybe a new friend!