Spring Happenings

I figured since I can't really talk to people due to oral surgery, I should actually work on a new blog post since it's been over a month since my last one. A lot of things have happened in the past month or so that I've always wanted to do and that have been on my list of things to do for a while. I love checking things off a list. So here goes some checking!

Habitat for Humanity

I have wanted to do Habitat for Humanity for a long time. When I got an email about NCSU Graduate School doing a Habitat for Humanity project, I thought it was perfect, especially since it was a deconstruction project. Who doesn't love deconstructing buildings?!? Aaron was on board as well, so I signed us up. When we got there, all that was left of the house was the floor, the basement, and the chimney. We honestly thought there wasn't much left for us to do. We were wrong. They had people de-nailing boards, ripping up the hardwood floors and subfloors, and eventually taking out all the wires and pipes. Aaron and I opted to work on the hardwood floors. I was doing really well with it until I shoved the crowbar into my thigh full force. It took hitting myself once more before I realized that I should leave that work to the men. At that point, I went into the basement and started cutting down wires and pipes. Overall we had a lot of fun and, even though I turned myself black (not black and blue, just black), I plan to do it again.

Herb Garden

I recently decided that I wanted to start an herb garden. A few weeks ago, Aaron and I went to Lowe's to get the necessary items for said garden. After looking around, I saw that there were lots of different plant choices and different size gardens to choose from. I decided that since it was my first time trying my hand at growing anything, I would start small. I bought two kits with six small pots each and three different types of seeds. Aaron bought four cups to grow sunflowers. They have finally started growing and I'm so excited! I have never actually grown anything before and if this goes well, I might do actual gardening next year. For now, I'm happy with my parsley, basil, oregano, and chives!

Eye of the Tiger

After much demanding on my part, Aaron and I took a day trip on Saturday since we were not able to visit my family in Georgia as originally planned. I had no part in the planning, except for choosing what time we would arrive at our destination, which made the day even more fun for me. Due to my crazy schedule, I have to plan every little detail of my week and to not have to make any decisions on Saturday is like a mini vacation in and of itself.

Aaron picked me up at 11:45 am. He took great care to be on time for this mini-adventure. If you are not familiar with Aaron and his timing, this is a big deal. He even managed to answer all of my wardrobe questions: "What should I wear?" "Outdoorsy like exercising or outdoorsy like casual?" "Flats or tennis shoes?" He even managed to answer them all without giving me any clues (I'm notorious for guessing surprises).

We drove down Highway 64, past Jordan Lake, and into the middle of nowhere. I was navigating the whole time and was still clueless as to where we were going. The last direction read "Drive 0.4 miles and the surprise will be on your right." We turned into a gravel parking lot with an old house. We were at Carolina Tiger Rescue.

I had no idea that this place even existed. Carolina Tiger Rescue is a non-profit located in Pittsboro in Chatham County (west of Cary/Raleigh). They have 55 acres of land and take in tigers, lions, and other wild animals from people that have had them as pets, from roadside shows, and from zoos that have lost funding. When I told my mom about the day, her first question was, "You were in a car, right?" No. We weren't. We walked around the property, following roads and trails from cage to cage. The cages were more like big back yards that were fenced in than the cages you would imagine. In fact, they had an example of a cage that most people keep lions and tigers in as pets. It was significantly smaller than their cages.

We saw 7 different types of animals: caracals, ocelots, tigers, lions, bobcats, binturongs, and seravals. I've posted pictures of all of them below, except for the bobcat. He did not want to come out and play at first, and when he did, he blended in with the fence too much for me to get a decent shot.

This is the caracal. I personally love his awesome ears. His name is Kiniki. These animals are found in Africa. I can't remember if Kiniki was a pet or from a zoo. At the rescue, they put ropes around the the smaller animals' cages because they can reach out and snag you. He looks really cute, though. Kiniki obviously loved the attention; as you can see, he pranced in front of us the whole time.

This cutie is the ocelot. Unfortunately, I don't remember his name. Before this tour, I didn't know that many of these animals even existed or that people even owned them. It's actually legal to own wild and exotic animals in North Carolina. Crazy. I loved how each cage was created specifically for each animal. Those that love to climb had multi-levels and swings, some even had tree houses. It was obvious that it was all about the animals here.

From there we went to see lions, tigers, but no bears (oh my!). From this sign you can see they have lots of different areas and have segregated the animals to keep them with their kind. The first tiger that we met was Rajaji.

Rajaji likes to spray people. And by spray, I mean urinate. We were informed that if you did not make it out of range in time, it was alright; you would simply smell like popcorn. Raja had a Christmas tree in his cage. In order to help the animals retain their animal instincts, the put Christmas trees or phone books in their cages with different smells.

Aaron enjoyed staring contests with Rajaji.

They had three lions. As you can see, they were enjoying the beautiful day. They told us that one of the lions was 500 pounds. They didn't move enough for us to really see them.

Lucky was pretty awesome. He was doing all sorts of tricks for us while his girlfriend Carmelita slept in the shade. This pictures just screams "Pet me!"

This guy stole my heart. He's so cute. Elvis is a serval. They told us the story of Elvis. His owners called Carolina Rescue, asked if they could take him. He'd been living as someone's pet and the owner's could no longer keep him. The center was not able to take him at the time, but said they would help the owners find a new home for Elvis. The next day Elvis was on their doorstep.

They also had a white tiger named Jellybean. Jellybean is actually blind. Fun fact for the day: White tigers are simply a recessive gene. They aren't a different species than a regular tiger. The guide explained to us that people have tried to breed white tigers together to produce more, since their coats are more expensive and more desirable, but that breeding them caused more mutations within the tigers.

Like other animals we saw on the tour, I never knew what a binturong was or that it even existed before Saturday. I can honestly say that I wasn't missing much. He isn't cute like ocelots and servals. I do not want to hug and cuddle him. He isn't pretty or majestic like a tiger. He just kind of...is. The first binturongs that we saw would not even come out of the shelter they were sleeping in. The only reason we even saw Tristan is because he was snoozing in the open.

This was the last tiger that we saw or at least the last tiger that I took pictures of. I don't know his name because we were a little late showing up to his cage. Aaron decided to play with Lucky and bond with our assistant tour guide instead of moving on to the next cage.

When we arrived at the rescue, I honestly was not sure how much I was going to enjoy the tour. It's no secret that I'm not the most outdoorsy of people, but it turned out to be a lot of fun. The day was absolutely gorgeous. Almost all of the animals had their own personalities and awesome stories. I was able to learn a lot about the animals and appreciate them. One thing that I really liked was that they did not show off the animals like a roadside show. It was much more about education and respecting the animals, preserving their dignity. I am now a proud member of Carolina Tiger Rescue (students get a discount). If you are looking for something to do on a beautiful Saturday, I highly recommend this place. I might even tag along since I now get in for free!

Life After Class

While willingly torturing myself on the elliptical last night with my friend Crystal, I mentioned that I should make a list of things to do this summer. I made the decision a while back to take summers off from class simply because there is something magical about summer that should not be shattered by the mundane tasks required by taking a class over the summer. I made the comment jokingly, but the more I thought about it, the more I realized that I needed to make the list. Summer only lasts three months and I have major plans.

1. Take cake decorating classes.
My grandmother was a caterer. I would like to think that I am good in the kitchen, unless it involves quick-cooking oats, but I am not that great when it comes to baking. I want to make roses and frosting and channel my inner Ollie.

2. Read a classic.
Every year for as long as I can remember, I have picked a huge, daunting classic to read over the summer. I started this tradition in high school. I figured that as an English major (future at that point), I should have a working knowledge of famous literary works. In the past I have read Anna Karenina, Lolita, multiple Dickens novels, etc. There are many still that I have never concurred, including Atlas Shrugged, which could be a possible contender.

3. Take full advantage of the beach.
No further explanation needed.

4. Clean up the hutch.
I recently inherited my grandmother's china, or rather, part of it. I also inherited a 6 1/2 foot hutch that is currently taking up residence in my grandfather's basement. It is oak, all the furniture in my apartment in cherry, so a staining is in order. Once that is done, I will haul it up to Cary and proudly display my flowery blue china.

5. See my family.
There are always excuses why we don't see the ones that we love and I have used them all. Life is crazy and busy and there is always something that needs to be completed. If we always do what needs to be completed, when do we get to do what we want? I know I will make it to Georgia this summer, but I would also like to make it to see my family in Virginia. After all, I'm running out of beets and pickles. You can't get those things 'round here.


There are lots of other plans that I have, but I try not to get ahead of myself. I want to find a community group at church. I want to see my friends more. Those are things that I can figure out along the way, though, and do not need a plan for.

I have tried many times to document my life to no avail. I have tried blogging, but if you have looked back through past blogs, you see that it never lasts very long. I have tried Project 365 where you take a picture every day of your life for a year. I think that lasted about three months, if that long. Maybe this time I can keep up with a blog, maybe not. Who knows? I have learned to just go with the flow and roll with the punches, hopefully, my blog can do the same.

My Life in a Book

I finished a book this morning that I randomly picked off Amazon and downloaded onto my Kindle, not thinking anything about it. It was entitled The New York Mormon Regional Singles Halloween Dance. No, I am not Mormon, but I am a huge fan of memoirs, which is what drew me to this book. I am fascinated by other peoples lives. It has always been a pipe dream of mine to write a memoir, but I always think that my life is too boring or I'm too busy. This book gave me hope, though. The book basically details the life of a twenty-something Mormon girl that is single in Manhattan and trying to find her way while questioning her faith and ultimately realizing that it is a part of who she is and it is right. It has been a very long time since a book made me stop and say, "Whoa. That is me," which brings me to my blog today.

I learned so much about me, or rather recognized it, from reading this book that it brought out this insatiable need to write again. I haven't written in a while. Sure, I wrote short stories and my column for Women's View, but I have not sat down and poured my heart and soul onto my laptop screen in over a year. Mostly because writing is not easy, not this type of writing at least. All at once it is freeing, therapeutic, and down right scary. When your thoughts are just in your head, you can ignore them, act like they aren't there. Once they are on paper, it is a very different story. Writing for me, though, is a need. It is not something I can put off. When it hits me, I have to do it. And this book showed me that it is important because my words might hit someone else like these hi me. So here I am, sitting at my computer, not getting ready for church, and writing my blog, because sometimes God speaks to you in other ways that are much more powerful.

When I sat down to write this morning, I didn't realize how long it had been since I had last blogged: October 21, 2009. That realization alone stopped me in my tracks and made me think - how much had happened in that one year and five months? A lot. My mom graduated with her MBA. My grandfather had a "spell" and we spent the next few months determining that it was vascular dementia and it wasn't going to get any better. The next few months we spent trying to figure out what to do. We are still figuring that out today. I started dating a guy, fell in love, only to have my heart shattered into a million pieces and left to pick them up. Nine months later, he came back and we started back at square one. This time, he loves me and I'm scary happy. My heart is still intact and I would like it to stay that way. I applied for grad school, was told to take PBS (post baccalaureate classes), and was then accepted into the program. I am now in my second semester in the program, third total. My best friend got married and moved to Japan. The father of one of my childhood friends died, as did another girl that grew up in the church with me. I can sit here and honestly say that 2010 was one of the best, worst, and most challenging years of my life. I wouldn't change any part of it, but I certainly do not want to relive it.

Thinking the book and this past year, I realize that nothing we do is coincidental. I picked a book because it was a memoir and I am fascinated by other religions. I also picked it because it looked interesting and I wanted "mindless reading" to escape to when I was not reading for class. I had no idea that this book would be like reading the story of my life and that it would provide the proverbial gut punch that I have missed. "Why would anyone miss a gut punch?" you might ask. "Because words are supposed to punch you," is what I would say. Gut punches are the reason that I love books and words so much. They are the most powerful thing that God provided us as humans. The right to think and to speak. The right to question, to research, to find answers, to argue, to demand, to find your way. I have not seen a writer do this in a long time or, rather, I have not found one to do this in a long time.

The last line of the book is something I found myself doing a few years ago.

"Hi God -" I choked on the word.

Growing up in the church is not easy. I can't imagine what it would be like growing up Mormon. Actually, it is not growing up in the church that is not easy, it is finding yourself in the world after you grow up in the church that is not easy. I tripped, I stumbled, I did a few face plants, but I ended up here. Like Elna (and no, I did not forget the 'e' between l and n), I found my way back to where I was supposed to be, with a few changes to my code and beliefs. Between each chapter in the book, there is a page that reads: What I Believe/What I Used to Believe. To complete a page like that each year of your life and go back and review it would be awesome. You can watch yourself grow through the change in your beliefs, just like I can watch myself grow through my blog. I now consider this my page.

As I sit in my chair at my dining room table, drinking my coffee out of a mug that my friend Michaela gave me for Christmas one year, I look at my apartment and know that I need to clean, to grocery shop, and do some homework, among a list of other things. Instead, I sit here and finish this blog because what God has shown me this morning through a book about a Mormon girl, is worth so much more than rushing to get ready and make it to church or cleaning. I have learned that 2010 was worth every tear and every crushing moment, as well as all the awesome ones. I learned who I am, what I believe, and that no matter what gets put in front of me, I will get through it and come out even better on the other side because I have God. I know that I am a Christian. I know what I believe is not what everyone else believes. I know that others will question me and that is okay. I know that God loves me as I am and I strive everyday to be the person he wants me to be. I know that he put the very best people in my life through my friends and my family and I would not trade one of them for someone else. He pushes me. I know it is okay for me to push back. I know that things will get bad, and that's okay. He makes everything okay. After pouring out my heart, I end this blog simply by saying, "Hi, God."

Target Pharmacy, How I Love Thee

After years of dealing with the imbeciles that work at Wal-Mart Pharmacy (both in Fayetteville and Garner), I finally moved to Target Pharmacy mostly because the closest Wal-Mart is about a ten-minute drive. I would now like to thank God for moving me out of the ghetto and into an apartment that is NO WHERE NEAR a Wal-Mart.

Wal-Mart Pharmacies are not people friendly. You can't call in a prescription that day, no no, you must wait another day so they can slap that pack of blister pills in a blue pouch. Hard work right there, I tell ya. I would need a day too. They also make you wait at least fifteen minutes (whether there is a line or not) each time you go to pick it up because they are undoubtedly some fo the slowest cashiers I have ever seen in my life. Target is not like this. You can sign up for automatic refills and it sends you an email when its ready. You don't even have to THINK about it, which for ADD people such as myself, is a miracle. It's like a little bright spot of happiness when you look at your email and go, "Oh! I don't have to remember that! Thanks!" I can also usually get in and out within about five minutes, unless there is a long line.

In short, I love Target and loathe Wal-Mart.

The Joys of Working Downtown...

Sometimes, I swear this stuff only happens to me, yet I'm sure others must experience it also. I just seem to get a lot of it. Anywho, here is the latest "did that really just happen to me?" moment.

I work in downtown Raleigh on Boylan Ave. It's not in the "heart" of downtown, but out on the skirts near housing developments. The company I work for is mostly housed in a large brick building, except for my department, the Planning Department. We are in the tiny old house behind the big brick building. We are across the street from some very shady apartments where people have been arrested and have proven themselves crazy. People love to randomly walk into our building. And since the front office is empty, they normally get pretty far before I can accost them (oh and I do). We've had drunks, people selling memberships to golf clubs, etc. but today, I experienced something new. A non-english speaking Asian lady walked into my building today calling, "hewwo!" and telling me that she drove here from Goldsboro and was trying to find the JC Penney. Did I know where it was? (The nearest JC Penney is in North Hills which takes much more explaining than I care to do). I told her that she needed to go to a gas station to ask, that they would be able to help her more than I. What does she do? She whips out her hand drawn map and shows me where she was supposed to get off the beltline. I should probably mention at this point that she has on a gold head-band, bright purple cami/leotard, and those genie-in-a-bottle pants. It's taken everything to keep a straight face while talking to this woman, but I lose the battle when I tell her she needs to go to gas station she jumps up and says, "No! You know where JC Penney be! Gas station told me wrong! They told me this circle!" She had driven a circle around downtown and ended up at my office.

I Like to Keep it Interesting...

Yesterday was my one year anniversary with the Wooten Company. WOO! (no pun intended). It's officially been a year since I left Fayetteville and moved to Raleigh, on my own, not really knowing anyone. I have gone from living in Lil Harlem/Lil Mexico, situated slightly behind the Wal-Mart in Garner (should have been my first sign) to living in a cute, cozy, and centrally located apartment in Cary. When I say centrally located I mean that I'm less than five minutes from a DSW, Ulta, World Market, Target, Stein Mart, Marshall's, and Borders, and less than two minutes from a Starbucks with a drive-thru. Be jealous!

I have also gone from the very definition of anti-social to having a social calendar that makes me tired just thinking about it. I've had more people over at my new apartment in the three weeks that I have lived there than I did the entire 11 months that I lived in Lil Mexico/Harlem. Now that my life is back to the normal Sarah-level of craziness, I have decided to throw yet one more iron into the oven: grad school!

When I graduated in December 2007, I was convinced I wanted to go to school for publishing. And that pipe dream is still very much alive. I applied to one grad school (there are only four in the country that actually have a publishing program) in Boston, Emerson College. It is very prestigious and well-known for it's publishing program. I pretty much half-assed my application, bombed the math portion of the GRE, and didn't get in (shocker, I know). I wasn't really that surprised, although, I was sad. I decided to try and get a job, work for a year, and figure out what I wanted to do. So, a year and half later, here I am, studying for the GRE and working on yet another grad school application. This time, it's for a Master's in Public Administration, concentration in non-profit organizations, at NC State University. I will be working full-time while going to school at night. If I am accepted, I will start in January 2010. I'm pretty sure that I'll have no life, will be crazy busy (nothing new), but I really think that the non-profit world is where I want to be.

As of today, my GRE test is on Saturday. I'm retaking it to see if I can do any better on the math portion. Applications are due by November 1; I'm hoping to have mine in by the first week in October. I already have one person willing to write a recommendation and hopefully I'll have two more soon. It's all becoming real and it's scaring the crap out of me, but I'm getting really excited at the same time. It will make my life crazy, but like I said, I do like to keep it interesting.

Soles4Souls

While shoe shopping online this morning at work (I know, I know - Bad Sarah!) a link caught my eye at the bottom of the Piperlime webpage for donating your shoes. I have a ton of shoes and I've been contemplating what to do with the ones that I don't wear and haven't worn for years. I'm moving in two months or so and I certainly don't want to have to take them with me, but they're not nice enough (aka - not designer) for me to try and sell them on ebay. So this Soles4Souls deal is perfect for me. You load up the shoes in a box and ship it to them and in 3 weeks they send you a tax deductible receipt for your donation. In short, you can clean out your closet and help people at the same time! Woo!

Websites that you might find useful:

http://www.soles4souls.org/

www.piperlime.com

My newest obsession...Etsy

I love clothes. I love clothes that fit me and don't look like the rest of the world even more. I have finally found the answer to my prayers/quandry/etc: Etsy.

I just discovered Etsy, though I've randomly looked on their site multiple times, I hadn't actually looked at clothing. Then I started following them on Twitter and suddenly, I'm obsessed! They have jewelry that is my style (quirky, eclectic, without being tacky and REAL) for reasonable prices and it's made to fit you. Same with clothing. This dress was one of the things that popped up on my twitter and it's only $60. You send her your measurements, she makes it, and sends it to you. On one of her other items, you can specify the color. I love the idea buying something that is handmade and tailored to fit MY body (which is next to impossible to fit into most dresses anyway). It's so personal. Most stores now aren't personal, everything is picked over, and it all starts to look the same after a while. Etsy is such a breath of fresh air when it comes to shopping for anything.

I am in love. And I highly recommend you follow them on twitter and sign up for their emails. You'll find the coolest stuff!

Little Things...

Wow, it has been a really long time since I have actually blogged! For a while, I had nothing to write about and then, lo and behold, I got a life and now I have no time to write, but for some reason I feel compelled this morning to put my thoughts into words (not feelings, just thoughts).

Two days ago, I received a chain email from the receptionist in the company I work for. Normally, I hate chain emails and delete them before I even read them, but I had the chance to preview this one before I chunked it. It turned out to be exactly what I needed. It was 45 life lessons by a 90-year old woman and every one of them, in some way or another, resonated with my life right now.

It occurred to me this morning that while the past few weeks have been really hard and very trying, God has managed to put little things in my path to make it a lot easier than it would be otherwise. I wouldn't have realized this if I hadn't been going to Bible study, which is the first little thing. I started going to church with a girl from work, then ended up at Bible study, which I have been going to for a little over a month or two now, and from that I have gained an awesome network of friends. I've been able to have a life again, have people to talk to outside of work, and have had support through all this crazy stuff with my family and work.

The second little thing, which was actually huge to me, was to be able to see Sarah Dessen again. She happens to be my favorite author and has been for the past 10 years or so. I saw her when The Truth About Forever came out, but we'd had to drive to Charlotte and I didn't remember it all that well. I knew that she was going to be in Raleigh this Thursday, the 18th, but I have Bible study and for some odd, crazy reason, I decided to volunteer to do dinner (this happens to also be my compressed week, where I work 4 10-hour days). I was pretty sad that I wouldn't be able to go. Yesterday afternoon, I happened to read her tweets on Twitter and she mentioned she had a reading, so I looked it up and she did! It was at The Regulator Bookshop in Durham (which if you ever have a chance to go to, you should. It's such a cute and awesome little shop). I debated going, asked Mom and Michaela, and finally I decided I would kick myself if I didn't go. So I went, left work a lil early, and I had the best time. Grant it, it was me and like 50 squealing middle/high school girls, but whatever. I had been that girl too and completely understood their squealing. I had forgotten how funny she was and how much fun it was to meet her, talk to her, listen to her answer questions, etc. I got my second book signed by her AND a picture. Suffice it to say, I'm glad I went.

There have been other things that have happened within the past 2 weeks, but they're not as significant as these. I would like to end this by saying that Sarah is back. The Sarah that has awesome friends (the new ones and the ones that are still here), still loves reading (and spends most Sundays on her couch doing so), and actually has a life. God, I missed having a life.

Mortally Wounded Pride

If you know me at all, you know just how much of a klutz I am. As I've grown older, it has mostly dissolved itself from my daily life. Today, however, it came back and made up for lost time.

For the past month or two, I've been wearing flats to work because of how much I run around. So flying down the stairs like a mad woman is not such a big deal. Well, today I wore my tall Vera's that I love and completed my outfit perfectly. The color printer is upstairs, so I had had to run up to get an interest letter that I had completed for Steve and was running (my usual speed) back downstairs, when I missed a step, but luckily for me! my heel caught it. I stumbled and with a death grip on the banister, slid down the stairs on my knees in the oh so lovely crucifix position. To make it even worse, Warren was standing at the bottom of the stairs with a horrified, "oh my god is she going to hit me!?!" look. I couldn't even be humiliated in private, no no, I had to have an audience. Quite Bridget Jones-like if you ask me.

So, I've decided that I'm going back to wedges (which I seem to do better with) and flats until they hire someone else and I am no longer running up and down the stairs.

And to answer your question: besides hand hurting from the death grip on the banister, my knees and shins hurting from sliding down five stairs, and my mortally wounded pride, I am okay.

I'm just going to go hide under my desk now.

ADD Strikes Again!!

Yet again, my horoscope has somehow managed to articulate feelings that I couldn't really put a finger on. Here it is for the day:
"You are feeling even more internalized than you usually do around this time of year. With ten out of twelve planets clustered in your subjective 3rd and 4th Houses now, it's challenging for you to take what you know and turn it into anything productive. And who says that you should? Even if your attitude begins to pick up this afternoon and on through tomorrow, it's still okay to take it easy instead of doing work, work and more work."

So there IS a reason my ADD is off the charts and I feel like I can't concentrate on ANYTHING (which is why I'm doing this quick blog before I go answer phones). And I feel like others can sense my craziness and are disappointed. Being an overachiever is not all that its cracked up to be people--it will drive you mad. Heck, you will drive yourself mad. And today, I am there.

I'm just saying...

"Even if your personal history is stranger than fiction, you may be ready to take center stage today and share your story. Oddly, you might want to keep certain bits and pieces of your private life totally to yourself. And as much as this is your prerogative, think about what you leave out, for it can alter someone's perspective of you in ways you don't realize. Be radical and tell the whole truth."

This was my horoscope for the day. Generally, I don't pay much attention to my horoscope, its simply there to take up space on my iGoogle and entertain me when I need a break from the craziness that is my workday. But sometimes, like today, it catches my attention because it eerily parallels my life.

I do tell my story once a month to hundreds of readers in Fayetteville's "Women's View" magazine. It started out about a year ago with me writing a column called "University You." I was the spokesperson for Methodist since I worked there and had the awesome connection that is my mother and, of course, was a writer. When the column first began, it was fairly mundane and boring to me. Then I hit on the subject of lateral entry teaching, which is huge in NC where a lot of graduates can't get jobs out of college, and all of the sudden I had responses and avid readers. For that one article, I received about 20 emails and 10 or so calls. Unfortunately, I had to give up that column once I moved to Raleigh and began my current position. I didn't feel right writing the column when I'm so obviously out of the University scene.

Imagine my surprise when I found out that my readers missed me! They were asking my editor where I had gone, if the article was gone, etc. My mom, prompted by my editor, approached me about writing about "The Big Girl World" as I have so lovingly come to call this new life of mine. She had heard my stories about crazy job interviews, dates, and moving experiences and decided that her readers would love it. I thought it would be fun, but when I started writing it, I was at a total loss for words. Looking back, the interview process had its absolutely hilarious moments, but that's because everything was so ludicrous. I couldn't make it funny because mostly it was depressing. Moving to my own apartment and dealing with fleas was also hilarious, but I wasn't quite ready to jump into that. I'm not a fan of in medias res (ha, english major strikes!) and I felt like I needed to give readers a glimpse of me before I started telling the tale of my life. So I wrote this super perky article that I didn't really like. I wrote it as me, not as someone else. I wish I could take that back, but thankfully, most of the readers are in Fayetteville and not in Raleigh. And it's not like I really hold much back anyway; I'm terrible at keeping my own secrets. But I still worry.

If I tell the world about most of my life, will I be given a chance? Or will they look at me and go, "Spoiled little white girl having to live on her own, oh so sad. Not." Or will they go, I remember that! Or I've been there! I don't mind sharing my story, 0therwise I wouldn't have a blog, but I want people to appreciate it, to want to read it, to miss me if I don't make a deadline once. I know I will censor some of my life, obviously, my mother reads that thing! But I want them to get a real picture too. It's weird how things, like horoscopes, really bring into focus the things that have been lurking in the back of your head.

The Wonderful World of OnLine Dating

I completely blame all my dating mishaps on Katie Culbertson, my lovely best friend who thought that I should get on Match.com.  I paid for a month of it and have now decided that I am going to pay for that month through free lunches and coffee.  At this point, every guy that I have been out with is odd, weird, and has horrible teeth. Oh and they're all clingy.  Whatever happened to the dating game? You know, where they make you sit by the phone and wonder how it went and if they liked you? Yeah, I don't get them.  I get the "hey, it's the end of the date....want to see a movie tonight? how about lunch next week??" dates or my favorite the "let's just give Sarah coffee on her lunch hour because I obviously don't know that by not feeding her, it makes her hate me".  Those are my dating experiences. OH or today, the guy that looked awesome and turned out to be super weird that barely talked, but he loved how easy I was to talk to. Thankfully, this one did not try to hug me.

So now I move on to my next dating site.  Please understand that I am still using my $35 that I paid for one month of Match.com to find more guys to buy me lunch and/or coffee (as long as it is not on my lunch hour).  I don't feel like I'm getting anywhere with them. So, I've moved on to trying OK Cupid, which Sarah suggested. 

Reasons why I like them:

a) They're free

b) They have lots of random questions that you ask and can make your key questions

c) I love their tests

d) They'll show you people that match you as a date, friend, and enemy

e) Did I mention they're free??

I obviously don't mind putting myself out there and there's a part of me that likes going out and doing this whole dating thing because I never really dated. Ryan and I just kinda happened and when from BFFs and acting like we were dating to actually dating. Bryan actually took me on dates, which was nice, but I didn't really have to do any of the work.  Now I do.  Not so sure how I like all this.  It's fun and I like the free food, but I'm getting tired of the wierdos. Plus, I really don't want a relationship right now. I just want some people to hang out with, go out with.  Really, is that so much to ask??

NORMAL! 

Yay for First Dates, Boo for No Food

As you know, yesterday was supposed to be my date with match man, but with the whole windshield incident, it got pushed to today. Not a big deal. I thought it would actually work out pretty good being the middle of the week and all and my other date is on Friday. And since I had to pay for my lunch yesterday, I knew I would appreciate getting free Starbucks! Who doesn't like free Starbucks?

Me when all I get for lunch is coffee. Don't get me wrong, I love me some coffee, especially Starbucks, and I am very grateful that he bought it and it was a nice lunch...I mean coffee break! I was expecting lunch since it was my lunch break and he asked me out for lunch. To me, that means you feed Sarah. And a fed Sarah is a happy Sarah. Rule number 1 in knowing me and keeping the Sasha away. Thankfully, Nat is awesome and got me CharGrill for lunch. She obviously knows the rules of keeping a happy Sarah.

About the date. He was nice, the conversation was good. Bad teeth. Not a good sign. He's going a little bald...but he has a nice car!! The teeth were killing me though. But I have another one on Friday with Mumbles. We'll see how that one goes. It's at a Mexican place, so I will be sure to get food. HA!

Type A Craziness mixed with my bad luck...

So about a month ago, I got hit by a rock and it created this cute little hole in my windshield. I kept doing the "I'll get it fixed....later" routine and never did. But nothing ever happened, so of course, I forgot about it. Imagine my surprise, and horror, when this little lines goes streaking across my windshield on my way to work in rush hour traffic! Here I am in downtown, bumper to bumper traffic, not fully awake because I thought I would attempt to come in earlier in order to shorten my 10-hour day, trying to figure out what the hell is going across my windshield, screaming "Stop! Stop dammit!" at the top of my lungs. I'm sure the people in cars beside me were greatly entertained by this show as I was also swerving a little because my ADD self just HAD to know what was doing it.

When I get to work, I look up AAA auto glass and am suprised to find out that they have no locations in my zip code (but of course). So I ask Mimi what she used when she had to get hers fixed and she said Safelight. I call dad to see if I should bring the insurance into this or if it will make my premiums go up. He says to call Mark, our Allstate insurance guy and family friend. Mark isn't there, so I leave a voicemail for him to call me back, talk to Safelite and get everything worked out. Innocently, I mention to mom that I have to replace my windshield (because it couldn't be smaller than a dollar bill. NOOO it had go half way across the freakin windshield!)

All of the sudden I get a text saying she has called Mark and emailed him about the incident and we should wait and see what he suggests to do. I look at my phone confused. Then, I get the email she sent him. At this point I've told her what I've done and that it is taken care of. I love how I move to a completely different city, handle it on my own...but my mom still thinks that I am clueless. Yes, I know she's doing it out of love. But good lord, I'm a big girl.

The worst part of all this is that I was supposed to get free food and have a lunch date! I even look cute in my new shirt and hot shoes! Now I have to find an equally cute, or cuter, outfit for tomorrow and dammit Friday is laundry day. I have no clean clothes (at least no cute new ones). I had to pay for my own lunch, since I didn't bring one, and on top of everything I managed to get lost (with the navigator cause I hate Hillsborough) getting lunch. So the glass man almost left, but I pulled in when he was leaving. Sighhhh. So much work. So much effort. And it's only 1 PM! I'm here until 6:45 tonight. Sigggghhhh again.

I need to go buy shoes...or wine....or sushi...

Ok, ok, so I finally did it!

I have avoided doing this whole blog thing for quite a while now, despite the demands and wishes of others. But, after finally moving from my hometown with a big girl job and place of my own (and after my friend started HER blog), I figured it was time to give in. So, here I am!!

Now that I have started a blog, it kind of irks me that I am going to actually have to keep up with it. Seeing as how I don't know anyone here, though, and have no life, I don't suspect I'll have much of a problem with that. Hopefully, that $35 I paid to match.com will help me find a life (and a decent guy!) and then I won't have to blog! By then, though, I'll probably be addicted to it. It's how I roll.