Memed!!

So about a month ago I was tagged for a meme by my Jasmine. Now I have no idea why it's called a meme, since memes are mind viruses, but eh, what do I know?

The meme is simple, list 5 things I miss about childhood.

1. I miss being able to make-believe without my adult tendencies holding me back. When I was little I used to be able to dive into a pool, slip under the water and transform into a mermaid. The pool wasn't just a pool, it was my private underwater cove, where dolphins would swim with me and endless wonders waited.

2. I miss having time. Do you remember when you had a party or something to do, but it didn't start until such and such a time, and between waking up and that time it felt like a hundred endless lifetimes had passed? I miss that. The years didn't blip by at lightening speed, they crept along at a comfortable pace.

3. I miss the security. My world didn't extend further than my own backyard, and there I could be protected from anything or anyone by my daddy. There wasn't war to worry about, there wasn't money to save or lose or covet, there wasn't weight to watch or bills to pay or heartburn or migraines. There were tummy aches and booboos and owies, all of which could be cured by a little kiss or a hug.

4. I miss tag. I miss swings. I miss slides. I miss being so caught up in a game that nothing else mattered. I miss freeze tag and heads up 7-up, I miss hula-hoops and 4 square, I miss blowing bubbles and skipping rope, I miss drawing on the street with chalk, playing princesses and witches, spinning round and round until I'm so dizzy that the whole world is a carnival ride, I miss being able to play.

5. I miss summer vacation.

So there are my 5 things. Now here's the rules:

Below is a list of 5 blogs, including mine. If I tag you remove the top blog and add yours to the bottom, then tag other people to do the meme.

Fistful of Fortnights
Feisty Repartee
Lollygaggin
Round the Fire
It's Just a Part of Life

So there are the blogs, now who do I tag?

My Junior Knit Wit
Kirk
and....
Kari

Get writing!!

Reading Slump

My reading schedule is becoming rather dangerous. You see... I'm only 5 chapters or so into Oliver Twist and if I don't get to reading soon I won't be done with the book before the next Harry Potter comes out, which is the next book on my list to read.

The problem is that I've already read, I think, up to chapter 10, but that was last summer so I'm restarting in case I forgot anything. But rereading something is never as exciting as reading it for the first time. I just have to stick it out for a few more chapers, until everything is fresh and new and exciting.

So here's my plan for tackling the book:
Thursday: Read for 2 hours, do something else (probably knit) for 2 hours. Lather, rinse, repeat.
Sunday/Monday: Same as above. Possibly read at the pool.

I WILL have it done by July 16th. I HAVE to have it done by then.

Actually the #1 reason I'm a Scorpio is because I'm just that damn good! 

Books, Bills and Boredom

I reciently posted how excited I was about being able to read Oliver Twist and you would think, like most sensible people, that I had started it. But no, I've been lazy and idle and just stared at the idiot box rather than reading or doing anything productive.

I would also like to add that tetanus shots hurt like hell!!! My arm is so sore, you can't even imagine. Hurts worse than the sore on my hand does.

I want so badly to just be.... a lump tomorrow. But, alas, I cannot. I have to go deposit money in my bank account, then immediatly get rid of it by paying some bills. Damn bills, they just don't go away. There they are, every month, stealing my hard earned money. I'll probably put it all off until later in the afternoon, see if my sister wants to tag along and go to Hobby Lobby.

I'm getting nervous, I have my placement tests at UIC on Saturday. I have to be there by 8am, and I still haven't figured out how in the hell I'm getting there. If I take the train then I have to drive to O'Hare airport or Rosemont to get to the EL station. I can't take the Metra, because it doesn't let off close enough to the school. Either way I'm looking at a 5am wakeup call. Which means early to bed for Kelly on Friday!!

"Caffeine... need caffeine..." 

Another Dull Day

Some of you, and here I flatter myself in assuming that people actually read my little blog, may have noticed that one of my other blogs, Retail is Hell, is gone. The reasoning is this:

I never updated it, when I did it only annoyed me to have to remember all the crap that went on at work that day, and August 13th is my last day at Osco. So there isn't a reason for the blog anymore.

Having said that I would like to brag a bit. Yay for me! I actually stood my ground and did what I'd set out to do. I finished reading Treasure Island, and it was a fine, fun book to read. But, strangely enough, not at all like Muppet Treasure Island. Who knew? :) At 237 pages, I recommend this book to anyone who would like to learn a little pirate lingo and read a fun little adventure. If you need some encouragement, try watching Pirates of the Caribbean.

So here's my revised reading schedule, as I've added a few more books.

Treasure Island* DONE!!!
Oliver Twist *
Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince
Middlemarch *
It
Lady Audley's Secret *
Wizard's First Rule (A book suggested by my brother Kirk.)
Emma *
Mary Barton *
Tess of the D'Urbervilles *
Pride and Prejudice *

I also picked up the first two of the seven Chronicles of Narnia books, The Magician's Nephew and The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. But, as each of the books are only 221 and 206 pages respectively, I won't add these to the master list. They're more.... idle reading books. If I like the story I'll buy the other five, but for now we'll see what I think of these two.

Next I'll read a book that I've been positively DYING to read. Oliver Twist is the touching story of an orphan struggling to find his place among London society. Everyone knows that famous line "Please sir, I want some more."

There are a great many movies based on the book, and a musical, Oliver! It's... decient enough. As tempting as it is to start reading tonight, I read almost half of Treasure Island today and if I risk reading much more I could end up with a nasty headache as punishment. My neck is already sore from staring down at the book for so long. If only I had the day off tomorrow, I would concentrate on reading. But noooo, stupid Eva has to ask me to work. There's always before and after work.

Alone, but not lonely

My parents and my sister were out of town this weekend, down state at ISU for the Illinois State Special Olympics, and I had the house all to myself. It was.... wonderful.

Friday night my brother and his fiancee came over and we watched some ghost investigation DVDs that I have. Sarah, my future sister-in-law, is a big wimp and kept saying it was too scary and she wanted to go home. So, of course, when they finally did head home around midnight I listened at the intercom for the door to open, then yelled out "Yah!" Both of them screamed, it was great.

Today, Saturday, I had to work until 4, then I headed home for a nice, relaxing night alone. I pulled out my knitting, put my feet up and watched 2 movies. She Creature and Pirates of the Caribbean, both good movies. I baked a cake on a whim, then cleaned up the kitchen and living room so that I don't have to do it tomorrow in a rush before my parents get home.

The only thing I don't like about being home alone is sleeping alone. I don't like feeling so exposed. But, luckily for me, I have two brave puppies to protect me all night long. And they do a very good job of patrolling the house while I'm sleeping.

Tomorrow the plan is as follows:
Sleep in
Finish Treasure Island
Hang with Anna
Knit
Laundry?

The rest of the week:
Mon: Work 10-6
Tues: Off??
Wed: Work 2-10
Thurs: Off
Fri: Work 10-2
Sat: Placement tests at UIC
Sun: Off

Looks like it'll be a bit quieter than last week, which is good. I'm looking forward to having some good quiet reading time. Kari starts her job Monday, so it'll be nice and quiet between 8 and 12ish. I'll have to take advantage of it. No more sleeping until 10 or later.

Lazy summer days my ass!!

I miss being young, when summer was this endless time of playing, laughing and otherwise having fun. Where every day was endless and every hour was like a day in itself. I miss having time. I feel like there's never enough time in the day to get done what I need.

Take this week for example:
Sunday: Got suckered into working from 7-3, then laid in bed with crippling cramps.

Monday: Went to Gram and Gramp's house to visit and help around the house. Stayed overnight.

Tuesday: Spent majority of day with Gram and Gramps (time very well spent I might add), got home a little before 7:30, brother called and invited me to dinner, went right back out to meet him. Ended up at the book store to pick up two books I had on order, then drove him home and stayed to talk for a while. Didn't get home until 11ish.

Wednesday: Slept in, went to see Batman Begins with my brother (It's quite good, by the way), then had to sprint to work. Worked 3-11, got home and organized knitting patterns then worked on my blogs.

Thursday plans: Call financial aid office at UIC about cost of school. Look into getting a body wave (it's a sort of perm), return books and movies to the library, try to find some time to read... maybe during the perm. 5ish- go to Beth's house to watch movies (Jekyll and Hyde the musical and maybe something else) and knit.

Friday plans: Work 11-7, come home to an empty house. Reading time?

Saturday plans: Work 8-4, maybe have Anna over for Buffy/knitting day?

Sunday plans: Finish Treasure Island. No excuses. Do laundry.

See what I mean? There isn't a spare 5 minutes in the day. And at the end of every day off I feel like I got absolutely nothing done because I spend half of it dwelling on the endless pile of things I have to do. The worst of it is that my evil boss Eva keeps getting me to surrender one of my days off and go in to work. This week it was Sunday, next week it's Monday. But after that I'm done, no more extra days for Kelly. No thank you.

I haven't seen my parents since... Sunday. And I won't see them until Monday because they're going out of town on Friday and I'll be out tomorrow evening with Beth. It's pretty weird, being in the same house with people you don't see.

And right now my bed is overrun with kittens. Every night it's a battle for foot and head space, between Tigger and Sammy. Sammy likes to sleep on my pillow, which I don't mind when I'm not using it. I dunno... maybe I'm just being whiny tonight.

Kari (my sister) starts work Monday, but she's only working til 12 each day. But still, if I stop staying awake until 1 and 2 am I might actually get up at a decient hour and be able to get some quiet reading done while she's out of the house.

Goal for this week: Finish Treasure Island and start Oliver Twist

Summer Reading

Well, for those of you who are steady readers of my blog, and I think there are maybe... 2 or 3 of you out there, you already know that I'm a Victorian Literature major. So it only makes sense that summer is my time to get all of my long neglected reading done. So here's my reading list for this summer, in order of how I plan to read them:

Treasure Island *
Oliver Twist *
Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince
Middlemarch *
It
Lady Audley's Secret *
Emma *
Mary Barton *
Tess of the D'Urbervilles *
Pride and Prejudice *

* Book is from Victorian Era

I'm already more than halfway through Treasure Island, though I haven't been reading it regularly. I need to get into the habit of reading a bit, knitting a bit, exercising a bit, and otherwise balancing my day. As it is I've only been knitting and exercising, without any time for reading.

If you're interested in seeing what's so exciting about Victorian Literature, or just looking for some good books to read by the pool, I suggest:
The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
Frankenstein
The Picture of Dorian Gray
Jane Eyre
Great Expectations

I've listed them in order of ease of reading. Dorian Gray can be a little long winded in parts, but the story makes up for in tenfold. Jane Eyre is lower on the list because it is long, but it is a wonderfully entertaining read.

A Father, a Dad or a Daddy?

There are three levels of paternal titling. A man can be a father, he can be a dad, or he can be a daddy.

A father is a standoffish figure. He is there, but not for emotional support. This is a man that you would hug with hesitation, because as his child you really know very little about him. He may seem only a figure that only provides financial support to the family, not much emotional support.

Think of Darth Vader. “Luke, I am your father.” Not “Luke, I am your daddy.”

A dad is a chum, a buddy. A dad is the guy who will cart you around and take you to your different sports, who will teach you to pitch so that you can join softball. He’s usually good for $5 or $10 when you’re short on cash. Emotional support is available, but really only for positive emotions. He is ill adept at helping his upset child. A dad will introduce you to beer when you were little, because he knows you’ll hate the taste and it’ll scare you off until you’re at least sixteen or seventeen.

A daddy… well that’s the highest level of paternal titling. A daddy is almost always reserved for daughters. A daddy is a man who can do anything and would do anything for his child. While he may be a tiny bit reluctant to hand out free money whenever you ask, there is no doubt that if your life takes a bad turn your daddy will help you with a stern look and a “well I just hope you’ll think twice before this happens again.” A daddy also has an uncanny ability to see the bad in your boyfriend or girlfriend, but is patient enough to wait several months after the breakup to say ‘I told you so.’ A daddy is priceless and rare, unlike any other treasure in the world. When he sees his little girl with tears in her eyes he will do everything in the world to make it better. The true sign of a daddy is when you bounce into the room and he’s glum and you give him a cheerful “Hi Daddy!” he gets a subtly pained look on his face, but when you look back at him a few moments later he’s got a little smile.

To find out exactly why my daddy is a daddy, click here