New Beginnings

Tomorrow will bring new beginnings. New beginnings in that I begin my venture into getting a masters; in that working towards getting an actual job, in an actual classroom that is all mine; in that I hope to find someone whom I will love and who will love me back; in that I hope that everything gets better for everyone.

But it will also be a new beginning when it comes to blogging. Although I only recently made my move into the WordPress world, I will be leaving it come tomorrow. This is for at least TWO reasons. The first is because of the lack of cool layouts that I can use in WordPress; second… because of people having access to my blog whom I’d rather not be reading it.

That second reason will prevent me from posting the new address here, but if you e-mail me or comment on this post (and leave your email address) I will let you know of the new address.

With that said, I wish you all a VERY Happy New Year, and I hope that 2009 will bring you the best of everything. If you make resolutions, I hope that you are able to complete them all.

Happy New Year!

2008 In Review

1. What did you do in 2008 that you’d never done before?

I went to Argentina with my dad!

2. Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year?

I don’t remember if I made any, but I’m trying to make some this year.

3. Did anyone close to you give birth?

BSIL had Jonathan. I was there in the room! Woo!

4. Did anyone close to you die?

Fortunately, no.

5. What countries did you visit?

I went to Argentina for 3 weeks, for the 6th time.

6. What would you like to have in 2009 that you lacked in 2008?

A boyfriend. In the singular sense.

7. What dates from 2008 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?

June 21st: The day my nephew was born.

October 1st: My first official day as a substitute.

Umm, that’s it.

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?

Finishing my teaching credential.

9. What was your biggest failure?

Getting a job, rather, not getting one.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?

I got my wisdom teeth pulled and was in pain for weeks.

11. What was the best thing you bought?

A Nintendo DS (lame, I know). Hopefully next year it will be a car.

12. Whose behavior merited celebration?

Obama! and all the people who voted for him!

13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?

Well, Bush – every year. Close to me? TEO, BSIL.

14. Where did most of your money go?

Credit cards, school, getting a job.

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?

The possibility of having a job, then was disappointed.

16. What song will always remind you of 2008?

I’m not sure any will.

17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
a) happier or sadder? same
b) thinner or fatter? fatter
c) richer or poorer? for the first time, richer

18. What do you wish you’d done more of?

More applying of jobs, more dating, more being productive.

19. What do you wish you’d done less of?

Less being lazy.

20. How did you spend Christmas?

With my dad, Sis, Bro, and Mika & Camila (and 2 of their friends)

21. Did you fall in love in 2008?

Sadly, no. Hopefully that’ll change in the new year.

22. What was your favorite TV program?

One Tree Hill, ER

23. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year?

No, I hate the same people – lol.

24. What was the best book you read?

Men Are from Mars….

25. What was your greatest musical discovery?

None. I suck.

26. What did you want and get?

Nintendo DS

27. What did you want and not get?

A car.

28. What was your favorite film of this year?

None. None were memorable enough.

29. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?

I went to work as a substitute for the VERY first time.

30. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?

Having a boyfriend and a new car.

31. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2008?

Being myself.

32. What kept you sane?

Blogging.

33. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?

Will Smith, as always.

34. What political issue stirred you the most?

Sarah Palin.

35. Who did you miss?

My Aunt Gladys.

36. Who was the best new person you met?

Blog world people.

37. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2008.

To give everyone a chance.

Jawness Lock

My mouth opens much wider now, but the dentist told me that if I don’t stretch it and make it open wider it might stick this way. That’s sort of scary. I can only imagine how that will affect my future.

His solution was/is to put two fingers in my mouth like scissors and open them up, stretching my jaw open. Let me tell you – this HURTS. A lot. I’ve been opening my mouth, as wide as possible, but I don’t know if that’ll do it or not. He also suggested warm/hot on the side of my mouth, and yea, I do that – but ya’ll know it’s hard to keep things hot.

So one of my New Year’s Resolution is: OPEN MY JAW NICE AND WIDE!

I mean, what will my future in dating be? ;0

WordPress Help!

This is a CRYING plea for someone who knows WordPress to help me install a free layout/template that I found.

I know I’ll have to pay to be able to do it, but I don’t want to pay before I know how to do it. If that makes sense!

Help!!

Religion & Childhood

Some background: My parents had me many years after (12.5) their other three children. Currently, my siblings are 39, 38, and 36. I am 24. The way they raised them was vastly different from the way they raised me. An easy example has to do with food. My dad forced my siblings to eat vegetables. If they didn’t eat them willingly, from what I’m told, my dad would puree them and force feed them. By the time I came around they realized this was not a smart idea, as none of my siblings (exception of Sis, who sometimes eats them) eat vegetables. I, on the other hand, have no problem eating them and actually LIKE a lot of vegetables.

Another form of the differences in our upbringing has to do with religion. My parents come from two different areas of religious beliefs. My mom was raised Catholic, my dad was raised Methodist (Protestant) – although his dad was also Catholic. My siblings were raised in an area in between. They were all baptized, and I believe they all had communion. I had neither of these things. When I was little my dad did take me to church, sometimes.

There you see me dressed up for a Christmas play at the church I attended with my dad.

I would go to Sunday school – but then I changed teachers, and I didn’t like the new one. I called it quits. I don’t have too good a memory of this, but I think I remember the new teacher telling me that there was no yawning allowed, and I think that’s what made me quit. My parents didn’t force it, although I know my dad was dissapointed that I didn’t keep attending.

As a teenager I started attending church with a neighbor who I babysat for. She went to the local Presbyterian church, and I really did enjoy going. Of course I was a typical teenager, though, and waking up early on Sunday morning to go to church was not my real idea of fun – sleeping in was better, so eventually that died as well (and she moved across the country, too).

A couple of weeks ago my dad started talking about him wanting to start going back to church. I don’t know why now or why he wants to go, but I thought it was a good idea and I told him that I’d love to attend. We’ll be going to a Methodist church near our house. He also mentioned wanting to go on Christmas Eve/Day, but since we were at Sis’s house and she is an antichrist, we figured that we wouldn’t push it and we’d wait out until the new year (since Mika and Camila are here). In that regard, we’ll be going to church, together, on January 11th for the first time in a very long time, and the first time together.

The reason for this post? Here it comes.

We (the three girls, my mom, and I) were in the car coming home from seeing Christmas Lights (Candlelight Lane in Woodland Hills, CA) and I mentioned to my mom that we would start going to church. Mika, from the back seat, spoke up. Basically repeating what her antichrist parents have taughte her: God is dumb, stupid, he doesn’t exist; people who believe in him are stupid and dumb; it’s a fairy tale, etc, etc. Mika was REALLY upset to find out that my parents and I do believe in God. She went on to call us dumb; tell me that she wasn’t my Princess anymore, and that she wanted to go home NOW. I told her that we should just not talk about it; that it was fine if she didn’t believe in God or Jesus, but that it was hurtful towards me that he disregarded my feelings and beliefs the way she did. She went on to tell me that when she got home she’d run to my room , slam the door shut, and lock it. I let her know that she was not going to do that if she wanted to continue having a good time at Nona’s house (because she was NOT going home early).

Fastforward to when we got home, she called her parents, and I think she spoke to her dad (which might be a bit less antichrist that Sis, but I haven’t talked to him enough about religion to know – although I do know that his family is religious). She began to tell them about this and that, that had happened. All I overheard of the conversation was her asking them why they hadn’t told her that we believed in God. Whatever they told her, she came to me later on and apologized for calling God dumb, and for calling me dumb. She went on to ask me if she could sleep with me (since when she started hating me for my beliefs, it was obvious she wouldn’t sleep with me either).

But my issue with it? It’s not against Mika, she only has what her antichrist parents have forced onto her. This is an issue that I have with people who are Jewish. Now, they are free to do what they want, and what not – but I do not agree with how, if you have Jewish parents (for the most part, and from what I have seen), you are raised in that religion and it is more strictly (from my experience) enforced on the children so that if they wish to be something other than Jewish, it is deeply frowned upon. I believe that everyone should be able to believe in whatever it is they want to believe in. Be it God and Jesus, only Jesus, Budha, or whatever other God they’d like. Or, none at all. I believe that children should not have a belief forced upon them.

If as a parent you don’t believe in God, that is fine. Don’t take your kids to church or a temple. But do not force your children to believe in what you believe in. Let them make their OWN decisions when they are old enough to do so. I think that what will end up happening to Mika and Camila, if one day they research religion and begin to belive and follow a religon (whatever it may be), that they will resent their parents for having indoctrinated them that all that is religion is EVIL – also that their own family member sand loved ones are STUPID and DUMB because they have beliefs.

When it comes to my Sister, in particular, her stands against God and religion (and by being atheist, as my brother points out, she is religious: the religion of NOT believing; but my brother is another story) pisses me off. She is the type of person who is better than the rest because she works for human rights endlessly (sometimes at her family’s expense), and recycles, and donates money, and does whatever else that is charitable, and is very much against any type of racism against any body, is against homophobia and what comes with it, etc. BUT when it comes to allowing others to have their own beliefs? They are idiots if they do not believe the same things as she. How hypocritical is that? Because of that I have lost my belief in her and in what she wants people to believe she stands for.

As far as Mika goes? I think part of her issue with how angry she got about my belief in God, is that other than her antichrist parents (and my brother, who is agnostic), the rest of her family believes in God, and I believe she feels left out.

Judging A Blog By Its Color..err.. cover

I have to admit that I judge books by their covers. When I go to the library to look for books, I’ll look for color, pictures, and the like. If it’s not “pretty” it’s unlikely that I will check it out. Sometimes this backfires, but I haven’t had much of a problem with this “system” of mine.

This “system” spills over to the blog world. I go through blogrolls and if the blog isn’t well designed, or messy, or I just don’t like it – then I close it out and move on. It’s pretty sad, because although I don’t feel the same way when it comes to books, I feel that I might be missing out on something by skipping on “ugly” blogs. But I can’t bring myself to adding an unattractive blog to my reader.

In connection with that, I also will not add to my reader a blog that has music streaming on it. My feeling on that: If I want to listen to music, I’ll pop up iTunes and listen from my own playlist. I don’t want to listen to theirs, especially since when I’m reading my reader, I am watching TV or whatnot, which doesn’t involve having time to listen to someone else music.

Now, this isn’t a complete tie in, but it has to do with posting on my blog. Sometimes as I’m typing up a post in which I’m whining or crying about something, that in the end, is very superficial – I really feel bad. I feel bad because I know that I’m well off in comparison to many, many people around the world. At the same time, I know that I have to complain, and whine in order to keep myself sane, as well as make myself feel better – because if I’m feeling crappy all the time? What good does that do me or the people aorund me? None. Still, I feel guilty in complaining about my life when overall it is a good life.

Protected: The BSIL Strikes Again

This post is password protected. To view it please enter your password below:

Password:

Because Of The Nosy

It has come to my attention that some unwanted people have begun reading my blog for their nosy curiosity. Therefore, some of my posts must be password protected for all our sakes.

If you are not a family member, you are welcome to read these password protected posts. I will keep the same password for all of the semi-private posts, so once I get it to you, you’ll be able to use it with all the posts.

All you have to do is e-mail me (elemteacher2be@gmail.com) or just comment on this post and I will give it to you!

And on comes of the private post!

IKEA

IKEA? Rocks. Bottom line.

I only got a lamp for my desk, but I love going there. My first date EVER was spent partly in IKEA. I know, lame. But that’s besides the point.

We decided to take a WHOLE family trip out there (about 20-30 minute drive). Previously we had gone with Mika and she stayed in the play area they have there, for free. This time? ALL three girls stayed there for a good 30-40 minutes. I was amazed – really, we all were. They played nicely, stayed together, and I was not forced to go pick them up before we were ready to.

After picking them up we had lunch there, which is very good as well.

After IKEA we went to the adjacent mall and the girls played in their indoor play area for half an hour. Camila fell asleep on the way home (as well as Jonathan).

So the day? Success. For now.

Tomorrow – I’m off to the dentist early in the morning, then to Target to see what the discount is.

On Wednesday we go to Noah’s Ark at the Skirball Center (a museum in LA), and then? No other plans. I figure maybe I’ll take Mika to see Marley & Me, but I don’t think the other girls will be interested. Besides that? Oh, well – Tuesday is Toddler time. Wednesday was the New Years Party at Borders as well, but we’re doing the Noah’s thing (which we have scheduled tickets for at 1:30). That’s too bad, I wish I would have checked that out. I wonder if I could change the tickets? Hmm. I’ll call them tomorrow and find out, but I somehow doubt it.

Bad Body Care

I’ve basically been doing a crappy job taking care of my body. Really, it goes beyond that. I’ve been on and off the “pill” the past month or so. I stopped taking it right after I got my wisdom teeth out because I read that the pill is a cause (or at least helps) of dry socket, and I really wanted to prevent that.

Then I started taking it.

Then I stopped because I went to my sisters – and, well, I’m horrible at remembering.

So now I have my period yet again. I can’t imagine the damage I’m doing to my body, but after this period is done, then I’ll get back on top of it. I hope.