And I Dance Dance Dance!

This summer, I have increasedthe amount of dancing I have ever done in my life by roughly 3076.8 %. No really, I have only ever done the High School Sway and the Why ARE These People Grinding Into Me And Knocking Me Over I Don't Even Like Rap? dances. So, I decided to try the weekly Lindy Hop beginners dance lessons while interning at UCF. I am still clumsy, but it seems to be working! I even attended a couple of the intermediate lessons in swiveling my swivellly hips.

*swivels for showing off*
Speaking of swivelling my swivelly hips...this class has been a nice way to chat up about 30 different guys in an hour. This is actually not terrifying for me, and this is new. Most of them are quite nice and fairly good looking. Most. If only I could remember more than one person's name from week to week. Who am I kidding? I didn't get a single name right tonight.

Jacob? Jeremy? Jason? Oh...your name is Steve. That was my next guess.

I almost don't want to talk about the Charleston, because it gave/is giving me fits to learn. I very nearly gave up entirely, and I did give up on the intermediate lessons when they introduced Charleston. But tonight we did just a little bit of it, something they had not shown us before, and I actually almost didn't suck at it entirely. Progress.

Here is where I need to address how my brain works, or rather fails to work properly. I absolutely cannot process information when there is too much "clutter" entering my brains. Put me in a room with more than one conversation going on, and there is no way on Earth I will be able to understand what you are explaining to me. I don't study to music with lyrics, or with people who talk too much (you know who you are), or in the coffee shop on a busy day.

So...(I like ellipses)...if we are in the middle of a dance move, with music playing that you have to raise your voice to be heard, I will not understand the relatively simple concept the instructor trying to get me to implement on the fly. Ever. The man is fighting a losing battle with my brains.

This makes me sad. Will someone show me how to make my brains work right? Please?

*swivels for showing off*

Photos

Hey all my interweb friends, I am relaxing in sunny Orlando. Here is some photographic proof from Kennedy Space Center and The Vine. Click over to flickr for more photos.

YawnWave

Packing is officially done. Phone charger, camera, understuffs, hot dress, crazy tall scary shoes, book to read in the airport...all accounted for.

My house is fairly clean and Rigel is snug in his bed. I feel really bad leaving him for so long, but he will be in Janae's capable care.

I feel a little dumb for booking a flight that leaves so early, and a little afraid I will miss my alarm in the morning. I should go to sleep in the next hour or so.

My dear internet friends, I will let you all know how much awesome fun I'm having in Orlando.

*waves*...*yawns*...*zzzzz*

Random Factiods

- I'm no good at darts, pool, or shooting guns. That doesn't keep any of them from being fun.

- Cookies made with strawberry cake mix, butter, and eggs...come out tasting like the berries in Captain Crunch cereal. Yum.

- No, in fact, I don't know what that brownish yellow puddle is, coming from the wall of my kitchen. At least it doesn't smell. Still gross.

- My upstairs neighbor's are DEFINITELY the ones with the dog, which management is looking for. I never heard it bark, but for the last three days I was worried that there was a rat in my ceiling. The question is not: Am I a tattler? It is How long can I tolerate the creepy scratching/scuttling noises while asleep, and while in the bathroom?

Chilly Willy

If you ever wondered exactly how I got to be....like I am, go ahead to this link and watch the episode titled "Hot and Cold Penguin." I actually had no idea they were that old. I loved these cartoons as a kid. Go ahead and have fun listing all the ways this cartoon imprinted itself on my personality.

Also, my parrot is having a fit over the sounds.

Ok, one more thing:

I'm Chilly Willy the penguin.
I shake until I'm blue.
My head is hot and my feet are cold.
Ha...Hee...Hachoo!
Now what about the crocodiles along the river Nile?
I'll bet they're always warm as toast.
They always seem to smile.
I'm always Chilly Willy.
I'm frozen through and through.
My nose is red and my tale is told.
Ha...Hee...Hachoo!

4 days left in MO

I woke up this morning with a call from my brother's parole officer, saying I needed to come pick him up and bring him back to the parole office. I was confused. So she said I needed to pick him up from the parole office, take him to pack his stuff, and bring him back because he had done too much stuff since he's been on parole. I really thought they meant I had to drop him off at prison. I was freaked out. How on Earth did they expect me to keep him from running off? Don't they have cops or something for this stuff. I was still confused. I picked him up at the McDonald's, because I wasn't sure where the parole office was so he met me there. I was even more confused that they were letting him wander around, and I was a little worried that he had run off already. Turns out they are having him live at the parole house, not prison but he can only leave for 4 hours a day, to find work. It has been a stressful morning. Mom is understandably upset. At this point I'm not exactly tired, just weary and over-aware of why I haven't been home in 2 1/2 years. I love my family, but dealing with how they live their lives is tough. Its tough to know that throwing them every dollar I have will not solve their problems.

And now I've just read a glob from my husband saying he's going to go to Catholic Mass to get inspiration for a story he wants to write. I do NOT have it in me to deal with that, for crying out loud. *giant sigh*

Ok, lets get a bit more upbeat. Yesterday I played mini-golf at Cool Crest with Traci, her kids, Tammy and her man-thing. It was pretty fun. The course looks so much nicer than the last time I played there, of course that's probably been 5 years ago. I took a few pictures, which I'll post when I get home, promise. Then I had dinner at Cheddars with Lydia, Traci, Sarah and her muchkin, Tammy and her man-thing. I have missed Lydia and Sarah sooo much, and it was great to see them again. *big hugs* Then I went out with Traci, Tammy, Brynn, and Amanda, for a couple drinks. We had a good time together, although somehow we stayed on some depressing topics.

Is today Wednesday? I think so. Becky invited me to dinner at her house. Sounds good to me. Tomorrow should be Long Island Night, and Friday we're trying the Japanese steak/sushi place. MMMmm my favorite. Pirates3 on Saturday, leaving Sunday Afternoon. Oh! I need to order books. Can't go to class Tuesday without books. *Argh*

Just remember that it is more fun to be tipsy and act drunk, than it is to actually be drunk.

I just wanted to say hi to the internets. HI!

There was a parade yesterday, so I went with Traci and her mini-people. It was fun, and I only got a little sunburned. Then some of us went bowling last night and got good and sloshy. It took us 3 hours to play 2 games. I won one, and Becky won the other. There will be pictures eventually, but since Dear Hubby took the battery charger for the camera with him to TN, I have to get the bowling pictures from Becky. In fact, she may have put them up on Facebook already. Go, go see! Tell me all about how goofy we look. Just remember that it is more fun to be tipsy and act drunk, than it is to actually be drunk.

Today is the UB reunion picnic, where I may or may not get to see some more people I know. I hope so, I missed them!

Final-ly

I feel like I turned my head to the side and let my brains flow out onto the paper.

I'll be leaving for Traci's on Monday and Michael's leaving for TN on Sunday. We dropped off my car at Tom's Tire World for a checkup. I have no desire at all to be stranded on the side of the road with two small-uns. Hopefully the weather will be calm on the way up.

To Do Before Departing:
Print directions, clean out car.
Order books for the summer term and have them delivered by mail.
Buy new notebooks, pencils, etc.
Tell the office we'll both be gone for 2 weeks, possibly pay June's rent early.
Make sure the Cable bill is paid. It's the only one that isn't automatic. Or is it?
Clean the house. I won't have time when I get back.
Pack as little as possible, due to pending shopping spree!

To Do While Home:
New Hairdoooo!
Wardrobe Therapy
Party, have fun, etc. with family and friends
See Shrek3, Pirates3, 28 Weeks Later (maybe)

To Do back in Texass:
I actually had something to put here, but now I've forgotten...

Originally Posted: 25 March 2007.
**Update: Sarah sent me some more images from the zoo, and I also added a few from Putt-Put Golf that week. Chow!

I took several videos as well, but they somehow disappeared during copy from my camera. Oh well, they weren't that great. I completely missed the moment that duck scared the crap outta Sarah, or the jaguars playing, or the monkey sliding down his straps. The one video I really wish didn't disappear was the jaguars, they walked right up to the glass and played and huffed and yawned and I got it all. Oh well.

They had hyenas, lions, black bears, and other typical zoo animals that I didn't take pictures of. I tried not to take pictures of just animals, but with one of us in the frame. Interactions and reactions are the best (especially Sarah's, haha) and I can get a picture of just a lion anywhere. Anyway, enjoy the slideshow.