Little Things

I think I need a new job or a vacation or something. Lately I feel like everything is annoying me. I am no longer a duck who lets everything slide off their back. I am like syrup, where everything sticks.

Take yesterday for example. Tuesday night at 4:54 someone sent an e-mail request to me. (I usually leave around 4:30ish) Wednesday Morning at 8:39 someone wanted to know when it would be completed. Come on. It was not an urgent matter. I wrote a mean e-mail back, but I was good and did not send it.

I disagreed with someone over whether you use this id number or that id number. I got annoyed at someone for picking my stuff off the printer for me, but stopping to talk along the way. When I went to get my stuff, it wasn't there. I reprinted, then she brings it to me. I know it wasn't intentional. I don't know why this stuff is bothering me so much. I know it shouldn't.

I think it is related to the fact that we have a new person. In trying to teach her things, I say to do it one way, when another person tells her different. Neither is really wrong, but sometimes our methods conflict. Things that we didn't notice before are now becoming mini-issues. Its strange. We like our new team member. She is nice and socially she fits, but I just don't like this tension.

Chicago

Our trip was so much fun. We got up early and I ended up driving the whole way there. We hit Portillos for lunch where Levi got to have is first Italian Combo Sandwich. He liked it. I think he's hooked.

Then we headed downtown to the Museum of Science and Industry. It was pretty interesting. I liked it. Levi really liked the U-505. I think he could have spent a couple more hours there. I thought that was pretty cool, too. They built the whole room, just for the submarine.

We grabbed some dinner then went to my Aunts house. She has a fish tank full of Nemo fish. I saw a Dory and a Marlin and a Flo and a Its been a while since I last saw the movie.

Sunday we experienced the River walk. It's a really nice park. No wonder the town is rated the best place to live in the US. We went to a Pirate-themed Birthday Party for my baby cousin. He was so cute! He happily wore his pirate hat the whole time. On our way home I felt like making all the rude drivers walk the plank.

Chicago is nice, but I realized on this trip its no longer home. I don't think I would ever move back. I like it better here, we have a free zoo, free museums, free parking many places downtown. $12 to park your car for 4 hours? No thanks. You don't have to pay beyond what is collected in taxes to drive on a road. You can get through the city in a reasonable amount of time. Its just a little less crowded here.

Turn up Your Stereo-o

"Can you feel it? It makes you feel so good."
--Apples In Stereo

So in preparation for out long voyage of many hours to the Windy City. We decided it was time to get a new music player for Jet Black ~the mystery car~. This decision was made after dinner at about 7:30 on Friday night. We got out the tools and started taking things apart.

We finally got the old one out, went to the store and bought a new cd player. This one is even better than my old one was, because it has a jack for my mp3 player. Woot! Fortunately it wasn't to hard to do the installation. When I bought the car, I had my cd player put in, so all the pieces were already there, it was just a matter of switching the old and new.

I have radio! I can play cds! I can play MP3s! Now I can sing, in my car, at the top of my lungs, and no one can hear! :D

Going to the Windy City

Tomorrow we are traveling to the city of my birth. The place where you can find neighborhoods where you don't have to speak English. The place where you can say "you guys" to a group of girls and no one gets offended. The place where you can find Italian Beefs. Its also where hotdogs dressed as a cave man and a women are completely normal.

I'm looking forward to it. I lived there when I was young, so of course every school field trip was downtown. Shedd's Aquarium, the Planetarium, the Field Museum, Sears Tower, Art Museum. When I was little my mom would even take me to these places for fun. She's a good Mom like that.

Now that we have moved away, we only go back every so often to visit family. We never hit the touristy spots anymore. So this weekend, that is what we are going to do. We're going to the museum and whatever else happens to strike our fancy. Plus, we get to go see family. Hurray for 1st Birthday Parties.

If you know of any must hit spots, comment please. Later guys.

Autumn Times

The season of pretty leave colors is going to be a bust this year. Instead of 20 shades of rust, brown, auburn, and sage, the trees outside my window are turning old brown. Icky brown. I'm so disappointed. I like the leaves.
At my parents house I used to like raking the yard, I'd make a huge pile. It was perfect for throwing my sisters into or even jumping myself. Good times. Well mostly. There was the time my little sister decided to take my car keys with her into the leaf pile. That wasn't so fun.

Once when I was a kid, we were in the Smokey Mountains during autumn on a family vacation. I made a friendship bracelet with all the colors on the mountains. It was more than just icky brown. I think I used 20 different colors. Maybe I should wear it to show the trees what they are supposed to be doing.

I saw a picture of one of my childhood friends who lives in Utah. She took her kids to a pumpkin patch, where they had something that looked like a corn maze. It wasn't corn though, it was a sunflower field, post sunflowers. Isn't that neat? I really need to get out west one day.

Spying

Last night my husband and I were in our bedroom when we heard a lot of loud talking outside. We looked into the courtyard area, but didn't see anyone. Since it is one of our dreams to star in a spy movie, we quickly turned off the bedroom light. We raised the blinds just a little and every so slowly opened the window. It sounded so loud in our quiet house, but the people below were too involved to notice us.

Our window opening was well worth it. It was our mystery neighbor. This is the same neighbor that if the daughter arrives home the same time as us, will risk carbon monoxide poisoning by closing the garage before she turns off her car, rather than letting actually meet her. All we know is that an alleged father lives there with his alleged daughter.

We listened and Father didn't want to go home, he wouldn't tell random blond lady which house was his. Eventually she convinced him. Daughter opened the door and they spend the next 10 minutes convincing Father to walk in. Finally he went, a little while later a paramedic came and took him to the hospital. Father walked to the gurney and climbed on. I hope he's okay. We never did figure out exactly what his problem was, but my suspicions make me think he spent too much time at the neighborhood bar. Its really sad, we prayed for him.

During this confrontation, Levi and I stood in the shadows peering out the window on the second floor looking down on the action. At one point random blond looked up at the window, but I don't think she caught us. We became masters of staying in the shadow. We spied from the bedroom window, we spied from the living room window. Levi convinced me I need to let him get night vision, in case it happened again.

A Broken Car

We have awesome friends. We were at church Sunday night when Levi's car died. It wouldn't turn on, instead it made this choking sound. So after trying unsuccessfully to revive the car via cables. We did the only other thing we could thing of. We went to Dairy Queen and got some Ice Cream.

Our friends were so cool, they even volunteered to let us use their car for the day, until we could fix ours. Instead we both took the day off work. Let me tell you the weather was so perfect, I was almost glad it broke (note: almost does not mean I was truly glad, I just like to be outside). So after some flying wrenches, grunting, and angry remarks about car engineers. (One bolt is 15mm and the next is a 1/2 inch. Why can't they just use one system? Its not a hard concept.) Levi managed to fix the car. He went to school, I went to go see my family. It was so nice to get the break from the cube world.

Other Blogs

I am a big fan of blogs. I like to hear other people's stories. I like to get a taste of life in the south, or catch up on 80s pop culture. I think it is interesting to get a glimpse into a Mom's life. Its a good way to keep up with whats going on in my friend's lives. I wanted to share these with you. If i put yours and you don't want me to, e-mail me and Ill take it off. On the flip side, if I didn't link yours and you tell good stores let me know.
Bricks Explode - The best place to learn about the pop culture of the 80s and 90s.
Waiting for my Real Life to Begin - How could a girl who calls herself Swishy be boring? She always makes me laugh, by stalking people in coffee shops and taking their pictures on the sly.
True Story - Ashley has the most adventurous stories of "what I did this weekend". Plus, you get the NYC or SC drama.
Old Skool - Jill reminds me of myself a little bit. Plus, I've chatted with her a couple times and she's really sweet.
Steve's Camera Journey - The photographer for our wedding and a friend of my husbands.
Lisa Hessel Photography - A girl I went to college with. She's now the Mama in the boys dorm and I love her pictures.
BSC Headquarters - This is a once a week blog. The girl will read a Baby Sitters club book each week and give you a cynical report about it. Saves you all the effort of actually rereading a childhood favorite.
MaNiC MoMMY - I started reading her blog as Swish mentions her regularly. I like it. Bra Nazi, he he.
The Coffee Shop - This was another one I found through Swishy. I love the design of it and Trish's stories are pretty good, too. I like how she refers to her kids (Son18) without using real names, she's made it easy to follow.
Of course there is also Pop Candy, but she gets paid to write, so its not quite in the same category. I also read my friend JB's blog, but since she blogs on Myspace, I'll not link it.

Thoughts on Heroes Season 2

My theories for this season and comments about last night's episode.

The blood from the eyes is related to a Lizard. Hence the title of the episode "Lizards", I think it applies to more than Claire being able to regenerate. When horned lizards are scared they secrete a blood substance from their eyes that will repulse their predators. Its seems like Maya does the same thing. I don't think its a coincidence. Her twin brother is the only one to calm her. I think he absorbs her fear, which is how their friend was healed, but I do not think he is a healer like Linderman.

As for Peter not using his abilities to steal the box, it seems like he only uses his powers as an instinct rather than intentionally, which would be why he couldn't just take it. He doesn't remember how to control or use them.

I really want to know what Mama Petrelli's power is (assuming that she has one, since both of her children do). My guess is to know people's dreams or perhaps to plant ideas in someone's mind. Something in Season 1 gave me that impression, but I don't remember the exact situation.

What if "The Boogeyman" was 'created' by the older generation - Hiro's Father, Linderman, Mama Petrelli? When the company would kidnap people they could have taken some kind of blood sample and transfered it to an individual creating a super person, who then turns against them? It seems like it could be a comic book theme. What if that person was the child of Mama Petrelli and Hiro's father? That could have explained the surprise when he saw the person who pushed him over the edge.

Of course this is all speculation on my part.