Not like the movies by Katy Perry...love love love this song
He put it on me, I put it on
Like there was nothing wrong
It didn't fit, it wasn't right
wasn't just the size
They say you know
when you know
I don't know.
I didn't feel
the fairy tale ending, no
Am I a stupid girl
for even dreaming that I could
If it's not like the movies
That's how it should be
When he's the one,
I'll come undone,
and my word will stop spinning
that is just the beginning
Snow white said when I was young
"One day my prince will come"
So i'll wait for that date.
They say it's hard to meet your match
to find your better half
So we make perfect shapes
If stars don't align
if it doesn't stop time
if you can't see the sign
wait for it
one hundred percent
with every penny spent
he'll be the one that
finishes your sentences
if it's not like the movies
That's how it should be
if he's the one
I'll come undone
and my world will stop spinning
and that's just the beginning
Cause I know you're out there
and you're, you're looking for me
It's a crazy idea that you were made
perfectly for me you'll see
just like the movies
Thats how it will be
cinematic and dramatic with the perfect ending
it's not like the movies
but that's how it should be
When he's the one
you'll come undone
and you're world will stop spinning
and it's just the beginning
Sunday, December 4, 2011
Saturday, November 26, 2011
HELP!!
Okay, I am still trying to decide on where I want my new tattoo.
This is what I am getting:
"To know even one life has breathed easier because I have lived, this is to have succeeded."
These are the options that I like...
Input very much welcome!!
This is what I am getting:
"To know even one life has breathed easier because I have lived, this is to have succeeded."
These are the options that I like...
Input very much welcome!!
Sunday, November 6, 2011
Betty J Emmert (July 30, 1923-November 6, 2011)
I read of a man who stood to speak
at the funeral of a friend.
He referred to the dates on her tombstone
from the beginning to the end
he noted he first came to her date of birth
and spoke the following date with tears,
but he said what mattered most of all
was the dash between those years.
For that dash represents all the time
that she spent alive on this earth.
Now only those who loved her
know what that little line is worth.
For it matters not, how much we own:
The cars…the house…the cash,
what matters is how we live and love
and how we spend our dash.
So think about this long and hard.
Are there things you’d like to change?
For you never know how much time is left
that can still be rearranged.
If we could just slow down enough
to consider what’s true and real,
and always try to understand
the way other people feel.
Be less quick to anger
and show appreciation more
and love the people in our lives
like we’ve never loved before.
If we treat each other with respect,
and more often wear a smile….
Remembering that this special dash
might only last a little while.
So when your eulogy’s being read
with your life’s actions to rehash
would you be proud of the things they say
about how you spent your dash?
-Linda Ellis
Betty Emmert, born on July 30, 1923 passed away this morning November 6, 2011. The 88 year dash that she spent with us was truly amazing. In my 24 years with her I have so many memories of one of my wonderful grandmothers whom my family and I call “Nanny”.
Nanny was always so vibrant and happy. Every time that we would go to see her she would swoop down upon us with hugs and kisses. We loved to visit her house, she, like most people from an older generation, had the coolest things. We loved to play with the rotary phone that hung on the wall. We would dial as many numbers as we could before we were scolded and had to leave it. Spinning the dial to call another phone, how is that even possible? We would go running from the back end of the hallway, down the green carpet that covered half of the hall, and slide as far as we could to the other end. The slippery tile mixed with our socks and the speed of a small child sent us hurling past the bathroom and hall closet where we would come to an abrupt stop, the remaining momentum would either send us into the kitchen or flying into the main entry. Either way we could do that for-ev-er, or at least until we were told to stop. We liked to play in the back rooms of the house either the TV room or the back bedroom. There were various toys in the front closet that we would take to the back where we would spend hours imagining and many times we would just play with the jars of buttons that she had. There were buttons everywhere. We would sort them from big to small, by colors, by shape, design, anything we could think of. I don’t know why but those buttons were quite the time waster.
One of my favorite things to do in the whole world was go over to Nanny’s house and spend the night. Often she would take me to Pizza hut and we would each get a personal pan pizza and eat until we couldn’t eat any more. When we got back to her house I would sit and watch cartoons while she sat at her sewing machine and worked on one of her many projects. I would take breaks to watch her and she would teach me a new sewing trick then I would return to watching TV or to practice whatever it was I had just learned. While in there I snuck butterscotch caramels from the jar on the shelf she would pretend like she didn’t notice, then she would step out and return with grapes, the giant kind, or some other treat that she knew would fill me up. We would both munch on snacks while we chatted about whatever random things that may have been going on in my life. She would tell stories about my dad when he was little or reminisce about what she was doing when she was my age. Then we would sit and watch cartoons together. I would curl up in the rocking chair, her sewing chair, or on her lap and try so desperately to stay awake for as late as I could. When I couldn’t stay awake any longer she would drag me to bed. Her side of the bed was closest to the door and mine next to the window. I would lie there and watch the light from the passing cars on the street while listening to the distant train that used to run through town and talk to her until I fell asleep.
I could fill so much space with the memories that I have of Nanny both from years ago and from recent years. I like to remember the time that I got to spend with her before she moved to the nursing home, where she spent the last years of her life. Not that I don’t have many happy memories of her while she was in the nursing home, just that she was so much happier prior to that. I will miss getting to visit her every Sunday where I would sit with her and read, chat, or many times just watch her sleep. I know that she liked to have the company there while she rested I think that it made her sleep better. I will miss the many jokes that she told; I believe that she is the one from whom we inherited our sarcasm. I will miss a lot of things about her.
I know that in the end she was tired. She asked me almost every time that I visited to take her home or to take her from there because she just wanted to be home where she could rest. We both knew that I couldn’t do that but it didn’t keep her from asking even as her very last words that she spoke to me before she stopped speaking and only gazed at you out of weary eyes. I know that she is where she can rest now. She can spend her days now with her son that she loved so much and often spoke about when she was having trouble remaining with me in the present. She will get to visit us now as our angel. To watch over us and keep us safe just like she did when she was here. While her body has left us her dash has imprinted us all to last an eternity. I know that one day I will get to see her again where she and my papaw and grandpa and loved ones past will get to fill me in on the miracles that are heaven. I hope that they have butterscotch caramels.
at the funeral of a friend.
He referred to the dates on her tombstone
from the beginning to the end
he noted he first came to her date of birth
and spoke the following date with tears,
but he said what mattered most of all
was the dash between those years.
For that dash represents all the time
that she spent alive on this earth.
Now only those who loved her
know what that little line is worth.
For it matters not, how much we own:
The cars…the house…the cash,
what matters is how we live and love
and how we spend our dash.
So think about this long and hard.
Are there things you’d like to change?
For you never know how much time is left
that can still be rearranged.
If we could just slow down enough
to consider what’s true and real,
and always try to understand
the way other people feel.
Be less quick to anger
and show appreciation more
and love the people in our lives
like we’ve never loved before.
If we treat each other with respect,
and more often wear a smile….
Remembering that this special dash
might only last a little while.
So when your eulogy’s being read
with your life’s actions to rehash
would you be proud of the things they say
about how you spent your dash?
-Linda Ellis
Betty Emmert, born on July 30, 1923 passed away this morning November 6, 2011. The 88 year dash that she spent with us was truly amazing. In my 24 years with her I have so many memories of one of my wonderful grandmothers whom my family and I call “Nanny”.
Nanny was always so vibrant and happy. Every time that we would go to see her she would swoop down upon us with hugs and kisses. We loved to visit her house, she, like most people from an older generation, had the coolest things. We loved to play with the rotary phone that hung on the wall. We would dial as many numbers as we could before we were scolded and had to leave it. Spinning the dial to call another phone, how is that even possible? We would go running from the back end of the hallway, down the green carpet that covered half of the hall, and slide as far as we could to the other end. The slippery tile mixed with our socks and the speed of a small child sent us hurling past the bathroom and hall closet where we would come to an abrupt stop, the remaining momentum would either send us into the kitchen or flying into the main entry. Either way we could do that for-ev-er, or at least until we were told to stop. We liked to play in the back rooms of the house either the TV room or the back bedroom. There were various toys in the front closet that we would take to the back where we would spend hours imagining and many times we would just play with the jars of buttons that she had. There were buttons everywhere. We would sort them from big to small, by colors, by shape, design, anything we could think of. I don’t know why but those buttons were quite the time waster.
One of my favorite things to do in the whole world was go over to Nanny’s house and spend the night. Often she would take me to Pizza hut and we would each get a personal pan pizza and eat until we couldn’t eat any more. When we got back to her house I would sit and watch cartoons while she sat at her sewing machine and worked on one of her many projects. I would take breaks to watch her and she would teach me a new sewing trick then I would return to watching TV or to practice whatever it was I had just learned. While in there I snuck butterscotch caramels from the jar on the shelf she would pretend like she didn’t notice, then she would step out and return with grapes, the giant kind, or some other treat that she knew would fill me up. We would both munch on snacks while we chatted about whatever random things that may have been going on in my life. She would tell stories about my dad when he was little or reminisce about what she was doing when she was my age. Then we would sit and watch cartoons together. I would curl up in the rocking chair, her sewing chair, or on her lap and try so desperately to stay awake for as late as I could. When I couldn’t stay awake any longer she would drag me to bed. Her side of the bed was closest to the door and mine next to the window. I would lie there and watch the light from the passing cars on the street while listening to the distant train that used to run through town and talk to her until I fell asleep.
I could fill so much space with the memories that I have of Nanny both from years ago and from recent years. I like to remember the time that I got to spend with her before she moved to the nursing home, where she spent the last years of her life. Not that I don’t have many happy memories of her while she was in the nursing home, just that she was so much happier prior to that. I will miss getting to visit her every Sunday where I would sit with her and read, chat, or many times just watch her sleep. I know that she liked to have the company there while she rested I think that it made her sleep better. I will miss the many jokes that she told; I believe that she is the one from whom we inherited our sarcasm. I will miss a lot of things about her.
I know that in the end she was tired. She asked me almost every time that I visited to take her home or to take her from there because she just wanted to be home where she could rest. We both knew that I couldn’t do that but it didn’t keep her from asking even as her very last words that she spoke to me before she stopped speaking and only gazed at you out of weary eyes. I know that she is where she can rest now. She can spend her days now with her son that she loved so much and often spoke about when she was having trouble remaining with me in the present. She will get to visit us now as our angel. To watch over us and keep us safe just like she did when she was here. While her body has left us her dash has imprinted us all to last an eternity. I know that one day I will get to see her again where she and my papaw and grandpa and loved ones past will get to fill me in on the miracles that are heaven. I hope that they have butterscotch caramels.
Sunday, October 23, 2011
14 years was not enough...
One Christmas morning, almost 14 years ago, I awoke to my brother whispering in my ear at 3:00 in the morning, "Whitney. Psssst Whitney, wake up. I hear something in the bathroom. Whitney, come on!" As I shook away my sleep, I quickly realized that it was Christmas morning. He must be hearing Santa! In the bathroom? Whatever, IT'S CHRISTMAS! I bounded from my bed and my brother and I scurried quickly to the other side of the house, peered into the laundry room and pressed our ears to the silence. I heard it! I looked at my brother, we had just heard the noise at the same time, with smiles on our faces we tip-toed to the bathroom. The light seeped out from under the sliding door. What could it be? We both laid on our bellies and tried to peer through the crack. Nothing. There was another noise. A small squeak. Too small to come from someone of Santa's size but too big to be a mouse. You know the story, maybe the mouse in ours had been stirring while we all dreamt of sugarplums.
What could it be? We laid on our bellies with our ears as close to the crack as we could get them and waited for the noise to come again. It did. "It's a bird!" loudly whispered my brother. "No way", I replied, "It doesn't sound like a bird at all". Our whispering disturbed whatever was behind the door as it came to the crack and blocked out the light. "Birds don't have paws", I thought to myself. "Mew" came from the little black shadow on the other side of the door, "Mew". "It's a KITTEN!!", I yelled. "A kitten, a kitten, A KITTEN!!!!". I jumped around and danced in a circle. I had been wanting a kitten for so long and my parents told me no. There is no way that this could be happening!
Since it was close to 4 in the morning by now surely our parents would be okay with waking up and letting me see what it was in the bathroom, just to be certain. We tip-toed at full speed to my parents room and stood in their faces silently staring at them to wake up. My brother on my dad's side and I by my mother's. How creepy small children can be. They both woke up with a gasp as if we had just blared an airhorn in the room to wake them at the same time. We didn't but apparently the feeling of being stared at is enough to wake a person up and then upon the realization that you are in fact being stared at is enough to make a person gasp and jump. "It's Christmas" I whispered after taking a step back from my mother's nose, "There is a kitten in the bathroom and I want it out".
"There is no kitten in the bathroom", my father said, "go back to bed"
"There is. I heard it.", I was hopping and flapping excitedly now, "I heard it, I heard it".
"There is nothing in the bathroom. I don't know what you are talking about. What time is it?"
When we told him the time we were both promptly instructed to return to our beds and we could open the presents at 6 in the morning. And to stay away from the "nothing" in the bathroom. Ugh 2 more hours. Of course, we didn't go to bed. My brother went to count presents for the next two hours and I went to lay on my belly next to the bathroom door and listen to "nothing" squeak and pitter patter around.
At one minute to 6 my brother came to get me and we both high-tailed it to our parents bedroom. This time we were holding nothing back as we woke them up as a normal child would on christmas morning. We then dragged the remainder of our siblings from their sleep and frolicked to our respective places in the family room in front of the tree, hopping up and down in our seats as if we were on some sort of spring.
My mother came out smiling groggily in her house coat and my dad followed, also smiling but mostly laughing at how overly excited we were. On a normal day you couldn't get us out of bed with a fork lift but today we were hopping around like bunnies after being up for 3 hours already. The present unwrapping began. I tore off paper and hurled my gifts to the side, the faster I got done with these presents the faster I could see that "nothing". The last of the paper came off and I looked around. Done. My dad smiled and said something but my excited brain wouldn't allow me to hear him. He walked into the laundry room and then back out. the small nothing in his arms was a teeny tiny black kitten.
"A CAT!" I screamed and lept from my spring loaded spot. He put her in my arms and I squeezed her and gave her kisses and nuzzled her face. She was terrified. That little kitten was everything I had wanted. I decided to name her "Zip" after the black beanie baby cat, it was my favorite.
That was almost 14 years ago. Zip was such a great cat. As the years went by there were many things that she did that would qualify her as the best cat in the world. When she was itty bitty she used to hide in the holes under the cabinets. She would sit under there and put her little paws out or maybe just her nose and watch as we all moved about the house trying to find out where she was. Or when she would jump up into the holes that were under the high cabinets and drop just her tail down while she sat on the ledge that was inside. Sometimes she would hide under the bed and swat at our toes as we stood nearby. If there was a closed door and she wanted inside, she would stick her paws under the door and swat and meow until she was let through. She loved to be outside and would attempt to escape if there was ever a door open for more than 5 seconds, only to lay in the grass. She loved to sleep in the bed with us and her favorite spot, until she was too big, was right on top of someone's neck so that she could stay nice and warm. She would always sit by the stairs when she was hungry to alert us to the fact that she was in need of food. She loved to snuggle and would climb up onto me while I was sitting and nuzzle her nose into my neck to keep her little nose toasty. She purred any time that someone would hold her (until she got older, then she only liked the family). She was always there to give love, even when we didn't realize that we wanted or even needed it. She was the sweetest cat you could ever meet.
Today I had to say goodbye to my precious baby Zip. I will miss seeing her when I go to visit my momma. And I will miss her stretching her paws up my leg so that I would pick her up. I will miss her little meow asking to go sit on the porch for hours and enjoy the fresh air. I will miss everything about her. I know that she isn't in pain anymore and that she will be much happier now. She has all of the mice and bugs that she could ever imagine chasing up where she is now. I know that she will always watch over us. she has left her mark on our hearts and she will be forever loved.
Rest in peace now my pretty little girl. Mommy and your family love you!
"ZIP" November 1997-October 23, 2011
What could it be? We laid on our bellies with our ears as close to the crack as we could get them and waited for the noise to come again. It did. "It's a bird!" loudly whispered my brother. "No way", I replied, "It doesn't sound like a bird at all". Our whispering disturbed whatever was behind the door as it came to the crack and blocked out the light. "Birds don't have paws", I thought to myself. "Mew" came from the little black shadow on the other side of the door, "Mew". "It's a KITTEN!!", I yelled. "A kitten, a kitten, A KITTEN!!!!". I jumped around and danced in a circle. I had been wanting a kitten for so long and my parents told me no. There is no way that this could be happening!
Since it was close to 4 in the morning by now surely our parents would be okay with waking up and letting me see what it was in the bathroom, just to be certain. We tip-toed at full speed to my parents room and stood in their faces silently staring at them to wake up. My brother on my dad's side and I by my mother's. How creepy small children can be. They both woke up with a gasp as if we had just blared an airhorn in the room to wake them at the same time. We didn't but apparently the feeling of being stared at is enough to wake a person up and then upon the realization that you are in fact being stared at is enough to make a person gasp and jump. "It's Christmas" I whispered after taking a step back from my mother's nose, "There is a kitten in the bathroom and I want it out".
"There is no kitten in the bathroom", my father said, "go back to bed"
"There is. I heard it.", I was hopping and flapping excitedly now, "I heard it, I heard it".
"There is nothing in the bathroom. I don't know what you are talking about. What time is it?"
When we told him the time we were both promptly instructed to return to our beds and we could open the presents at 6 in the morning. And to stay away from the "nothing" in the bathroom. Ugh 2 more hours. Of course, we didn't go to bed. My brother went to count presents for the next two hours and I went to lay on my belly next to the bathroom door and listen to "nothing" squeak and pitter patter around.
At one minute to 6 my brother came to get me and we both high-tailed it to our parents bedroom. This time we were holding nothing back as we woke them up as a normal child would on christmas morning. We then dragged the remainder of our siblings from their sleep and frolicked to our respective places in the family room in front of the tree, hopping up and down in our seats as if we were on some sort of spring.
My mother came out smiling groggily in her house coat and my dad followed, also smiling but mostly laughing at how overly excited we were. On a normal day you couldn't get us out of bed with a fork lift but today we were hopping around like bunnies after being up for 3 hours already. The present unwrapping began. I tore off paper and hurled my gifts to the side, the faster I got done with these presents the faster I could see that "nothing". The last of the paper came off and I looked around. Done. My dad smiled and said something but my excited brain wouldn't allow me to hear him. He walked into the laundry room and then back out. the small nothing in his arms was a teeny tiny black kitten.
"A CAT!" I screamed and lept from my spring loaded spot. He put her in my arms and I squeezed her and gave her kisses and nuzzled her face. She was terrified. That little kitten was everything I had wanted. I decided to name her "Zip" after the black beanie baby cat, it was my favorite.
That was almost 14 years ago. Zip was such a great cat. As the years went by there were many things that she did that would qualify her as the best cat in the world. When she was itty bitty she used to hide in the holes under the cabinets. She would sit under there and put her little paws out or maybe just her nose and watch as we all moved about the house trying to find out where she was. Or when she would jump up into the holes that were under the high cabinets and drop just her tail down while she sat on the ledge that was inside. Sometimes she would hide under the bed and swat at our toes as we stood nearby. If there was a closed door and she wanted inside, she would stick her paws under the door and swat and meow until she was let through. She loved to be outside and would attempt to escape if there was ever a door open for more than 5 seconds, only to lay in the grass. She loved to sleep in the bed with us and her favorite spot, until she was too big, was right on top of someone's neck so that she could stay nice and warm. She would always sit by the stairs when she was hungry to alert us to the fact that she was in need of food. She loved to snuggle and would climb up onto me while I was sitting and nuzzle her nose into my neck to keep her little nose toasty. She purred any time that someone would hold her (until she got older, then she only liked the family). She was always there to give love, even when we didn't realize that we wanted or even needed it. She was the sweetest cat you could ever meet.
Today I had to say goodbye to my precious baby Zip. I will miss seeing her when I go to visit my momma. And I will miss her stretching her paws up my leg so that I would pick her up. I will miss her little meow asking to go sit on the porch for hours and enjoy the fresh air. I will miss everything about her. I know that she isn't in pain anymore and that she will be much happier now. She has all of the mice and bugs that she could ever imagine chasing up where she is now. I know that she will always watch over us. she has left her mark on our hearts and she will be forever loved.
Rest in peace now my pretty little girl. Mommy and your family love you!
"ZIP" November 1997-October 23, 2011
Thursday, September 29, 2011
Dear 17 year old me,
I wandered through the car lot the other day, bright eyed and bushy tailed, eager to find the car that I would call my own. As I skipped through the shiny vehicles the reality of the monetary world slowly edged itself into my thoughts. Aggressively I pushed it out of my head by driving said shiny vehicles and trying out all of their buttons with my mom and sister. The slick, lovely smelling, car salesman didn't make it easier while he gently persuaded the three of us to "check out a few more. You are more than welcome to drive any one that you want! I'll go get them if you'd like". "Yes, please. I'll try that one", was my repeated reply. When I hopped into the gorgeous black, Chevrolet Equinox my heart skipped a beat. The chair hugged my back perfectly and the steering wheel felt like silk in my hands. It drove like a dream, smoothly taking the curves, gracefully coming to a stop, it even had a child lock button on the drive panel, A BUTTON! My comment to dear Jeffy the salesman upon our return consisted of three simple words, "I'm in love".
The following ten minutes were some of the most depressing I have had in quite some time. A blur of pages flew by my face engulfed in a swirl of numbers that were too large to be accepted in the common world from which I hail. I sullenly looked at the now less slick but still as lovely smelling salesman as the realization hit us both at the same time, this was a deal that would not take place. Sadly we all stood, shook hands, and left the lot without the car that I fell in love with so quickly.
Reflecting on my recent heartbreak I pondered ways that I could repair the empty hole in my thumper. Clearly the answer is a brand new car. Forget the rest of the hullabaloo that constantly harasses my brain. My other bills and extreme amounts of student loan debts that still needed paid meant nothing to me. UGH, if only I could just skip them and buy a car! My next thought was more realistic, time travel. Obviously I just needed to write a letter to my 17 year old self to explain to her the situation and then travel it back to her. Excellent.
The letter is as follows:
Dear 17 year old Whitney,
Wake UP! This is your 24 year old future self writing, listen carefully. Your future happiness rests on you comprehending this letter.
First, I am going to need you to get back into the habit of not wearing pajamas everywhere, including to school. Yes, it's comfy. Yes, school is early and you still want to sleep. However, you have a hard time kicking the habit later in life.
Now, your job. The cleaners is a lovely place to work, if you would work more hours. Stop giving your shifts away! Who cares if you have to open? Nobody comes in until 10 anyway, you know you can sleep in the back until then. At least until Dawn gets a camera installed but that isn't for a while. Better yet, get another job. What better things do you have to do? You are in high school you don't need to sit in Starbucks on a daily basis and talk about the same thing that you did the day before.
SAVE YOUR FLIPPING MONEY! This will help you when you become me. As luck would have it, your poor spending and saving habits carried over and turned into mine. At 24 you will have tens of thousands of dollars in school debt and still no savings. If you start I will have to continue.
On a similar note, this ridiculous college money thing. Try convincing your parents to divorce before your sophomore year in college. Oh yeah, the rents get divorced. You know you have seen it coming. If you can get them to do this it will do two things. 1) hopefully keep them from despising the thought of each other in the future and 2) mom claims you, so the government will pay for college. Thus, avoiding the loan money you have to pay back afterward. You will be a step ahead of the game that I am in now.
Oh yea, college, instead of going through the shenanigans of picking a major and then changing your major I will just tell you what to study. At 24 you work at an ABA center in carmel. You love it. Study it. DO IT! It will save some wasted time.
Now, for the reason I traveled back in time to give this to you. The Chevrolet Equinox. You will love this car. When it comes time for a new car in the fall of 2011 this is the one that you want. Following all of the guidelines that I have given you will get you this car. Understood?
The rest of my advice? Enjoy high school but remember it is just high school. Nobody gives a flying rat's patootie about it later in life. I know it's hard to comprehend but it's true. Go to the Friday night football games like you are though, those are the best. In college, really enjoy it. It goes by waaaaay too fast. You blink and you are old. People actually do care about their friend's they had in college after they graduate soooo you are free to actually care while you are there.
Much Love,
Whitney/you/me/......well you know.
P.S. Chevy Equinox. That is all.
The following ten minutes were some of the most depressing I have had in quite some time. A blur of pages flew by my face engulfed in a swirl of numbers that were too large to be accepted in the common world from which I hail. I sullenly looked at the now less slick but still as lovely smelling salesman as the realization hit us both at the same time, this was a deal that would not take place. Sadly we all stood, shook hands, and left the lot without the car that I fell in love with so quickly.
Reflecting on my recent heartbreak I pondered ways that I could repair the empty hole in my thumper. Clearly the answer is a brand new car. Forget the rest of the hullabaloo that constantly harasses my brain. My other bills and extreme amounts of student loan debts that still needed paid meant nothing to me. UGH, if only I could just skip them and buy a car! My next thought was more realistic, time travel. Obviously I just needed to write a letter to my 17 year old self to explain to her the situation and then travel it back to her. Excellent.
The letter is as follows:
Dear 17 year old Whitney,
Wake UP! This is your 24 year old future self writing, listen carefully. Your future happiness rests on you comprehending this letter.
First, I am going to need you to get back into the habit of not wearing pajamas everywhere, including to school. Yes, it's comfy. Yes, school is early and you still want to sleep. However, you have a hard time kicking the habit later in life.
Now, your job. The cleaners is a lovely place to work, if you would work more hours. Stop giving your shifts away! Who cares if you have to open? Nobody comes in until 10 anyway, you know you can sleep in the back until then. At least until Dawn gets a camera installed but that isn't for a while. Better yet, get another job. What better things do you have to do? You are in high school you don't need to sit in Starbucks on a daily basis and talk about the same thing that you did the day before.
SAVE YOUR FLIPPING MONEY! This will help you when you become me. As luck would have it, your poor spending and saving habits carried over and turned into mine. At 24 you will have tens of thousands of dollars in school debt and still no savings. If you start I will have to continue.
On a similar note, this ridiculous college money thing. Try convincing your parents to divorce before your sophomore year in college. Oh yeah, the rents get divorced. You know you have seen it coming. If you can get them to do this it will do two things. 1) hopefully keep them from despising the thought of each other in the future and 2) mom claims you, so the government will pay for college. Thus, avoiding the loan money you have to pay back afterward. You will be a step ahead of the game that I am in now.
Oh yea, college, instead of going through the shenanigans of picking a major and then changing your major I will just tell you what to study. At 24 you work at an ABA center in carmel. You love it. Study it. DO IT! It will save some wasted time.
Now, for the reason I traveled back in time to give this to you. The Chevrolet Equinox. You will love this car. When it comes time for a new car in the fall of 2011 this is the one that you want. Following all of the guidelines that I have given you will get you this car. Understood?
The rest of my advice? Enjoy high school but remember it is just high school. Nobody gives a flying rat's patootie about it later in life. I know it's hard to comprehend but it's true. Go to the Friday night football games like you are though, those are the best. In college, really enjoy it. It goes by waaaaay too fast. You blink and you are old. People actually do care about their friend's they had in college after they graduate soooo you are free to actually care while you are there.
Much Love,
Whitney/you/me/......well you know.
P.S. Chevy Equinox. That is all.
Friday, September 9, 2011
Picking pics...
The license plates from left to right are: Indiana '32, California '87 (for my birth year :D), Iowa '75, Missouri '78, and Indiana '54....we still need a '90 (for Shelby's Birth year), one from the 60's, 40's, 20's, and the 1900's. So if anyone catches any let me know!
Above the cali plate is a pair of 1914 black men's rollerskates made by Chicago Rollerskate Company Ware Bros. The CRCWB was founded in 1905 by Walter Ware and became the world's leading rollerskate manufacturer. This particular style was patented in 1914 however as to the exact year of this pair I am not completely sure.
In the middle of the ledge are a birdcage, a motorcycle, a boot, an Eiffel tower replica, another birdcage, and a fire hat.
The Fire helmet is a 1960's Bullard Helmet. Founded in 1898 the Bullard Company produced personal protective equipment. They produced the first "hard-boiled" hat in 1919 for miners. For this hat they took the image of the WWI army helmet and modified it to the needs of the mining community. The company produced it's first fire helmet in 1930 following their development of the first hard hat. "In 1947 they created the first fiberglass helmet, the first NFPA-approved helmet in 1983, and the first ratchet headband used in 1987." I think that this hat is a 1960's version but there is a good chance that I am wrong. The patented 3 ribbed dome was created in 1940s out of fiberglass and changed to thermoplastics in the 50's and 60's. I have no idea the difference between the two materials so I may have dated it incorrectly!
Here is my 1955 World Book encyclopedia set. Pretty much speaks for itself but here is some history if you like. The first edition of World Book was published in 1917 and contained 8 volumes. New editions have appeared every year except 1920, 1924, and 1932. In 1961, World Book published a braille edition wich consisted of 145 volumes totaling 40,000 pages. 1964 it published a large print edition, in 1990 it published the first electronic edition, the first international version was published in 1992, and beginning in 1998 World Book has produced an online version containing articles and contents of every world book that has been published since 1922.
Lastly, is a "Drink Coca-cola delicious and refreshing" tray from 1912. Brief run-down of coca-cola: first sold in 1886 it went through a lot of legal hullabaloo until 1914. Records of the legal background of the company were burned on purpose by the owner Asa Griggs Chandler in 1910 to ensure that it would remain in his possession. This action made more sense when 1914 rolled around and the original owners came forward with the statement that their signatures had been forged on the bill of sale. Coke changed its formula to "New Coke" in April 1985 and after much backlash returned to a variation of its old formula in July 1985 calling it "Coca-cola Classic". By 2011 "Classic" had been removed from all coke products since there was no longer a need to differentiate between the classic formula and the now nonexistent "New Coke".
Phew, that was a lot of information!
Sunday, August 28, 2011
Picking
If I could do one thing in life and make a living from it I would choose "picking". Oh my word how much fun. My only problem would be that I would keep all of it instead of reselling it. I went antiquing today with my sister and I wish I had the money to buy everything I saw. We are decorating our apartment and the theme is old and new with randomness all over. I love it. Today we bought 3 license plates (+1 purchased earlier=4), a full 1955 world book encyclopedia, and a 1960s Bullard fire helmet.
what I wanted:
a 20th century Stereoscope with pictures
a set of books from 1880
a 1930s catchers mit and baseball jersey
a 1930s/40s football
wwII Naval uniform
early 20th century children's lace up shoes
and just about everything else in the shop....
I have a lot of saving to do!
what I wanted:
a 20th century Stereoscope with pictures
a set of books from 1880
a 1930s catchers mit and baseball jersey
a 1930s/40s football
wwII Naval uniform
early 20th century children's lace up shoes
and just about everything else in the shop....
I have a lot of saving to do!
Saturday, August 20, 2011
Happy Living!
Being a History major from Purdue, I love just about everything old. Old pictures, old decorations, old clothing, the smell of old books. A while back I bought a few old books from a thrift store, "The Fun Encyclopedia" (no date but I am guessing 60's), "The Green Years" by AJ Cronin 1945, and "Happy Living! A Guidebook for Brides" by Evelyn Enright 1965. Now, while waiting for my dogs to finish eating so we can go paint furniture I cracked open the happy living book. According to this, I am not living very happily.
The book is arranged by different aspects of the "good homemaker" ideal of the 50's and 60's. How to color coordinate (these pictures of the color schemes are fantastic by the way), how to cook, how to be a good hostess, how to clean, how to make sure that your man is happy all the time and yadda yadda yadda. I am not even going to lie, I am so very entertained. Come to find out the book says I have beginner's dilemma, therefore, if I don't fix it I have no hope for a domestic future! Curses.
I didn't even realize that my breakfast needs to be able to "please a hearty male appetite" and get me to the office at the same time! What have I been doing with my life? I have been curious as to why my life isn't gratifying enough at the moment. I thought that it had to do with the fact that I have so many bills to pay and still would like to attend grad school. Nope! It is because my "career" of "creating and maintaining a livable home" with my "instinct for domesticity" hasn't been honed yet. Aha! I knew something was missing. That has got to be it.
Something tells me that I would not have done well back in the day. Not as well as I would like to think I would have done anyway.
Off to refinish furniture. I guess I have to change my color scheme to teal, mustard yellow, cream, and green....
The book is arranged by different aspects of the "good homemaker" ideal of the 50's and 60's. How to color coordinate (these pictures of the color schemes are fantastic by the way), how to cook, how to be a good hostess, how to clean, how to make sure that your man is happy all the time and yadda yadda yadda. I am not even going to lie, I am so very entertained. Come to find out the book says I have beginner's dilemma, therefore, if I don't fix it I have no hope for a domestic future! Curses.
I didn't even realize that my breakfast needs to be able to "please a hearty male appetite" and get me to the office at the same time! What have I been doing with my life? I have been curious as to why my life isn't gratifying enough at the moment. I thought that it had to do with the fact that I have so many bills to pay and still would like to attend grad school. Nope! It is because my "career" of "creating and maintaining a livable home" with my "instinct for domesticity" hasn't been honed yet. Aha! I knew something was missing. That has got to be it.
Something tells me that I would not have done well back in the day. Not as well as I would like to think I would have done anyway.
Off to refinish furniture. I guess I have to change my color scheme to teal, mustard yellow, cream, and green....
Monday, August 15, 2011
oh my kiddos...
Some of my favorite quotes from kiddos at my old job...
17.
Me: "How hot do you think the sun is?"
Student: "I think it is a million flaming cheetos hot"
16.
"Yes, he can hold his breath underwater forever-(pause thinking)-just like a kitty cat!"
15.
"I'm drawing tough guys with pants on."
14.
"Ms Whitney, can I flip off the lights?"
-he waits a moment for an answer and then flips his middle finger to the lights
"Look! see! I'm flipping off the lights!"
13.
"'Hot' means you're a piece of meat."
12.
Student overhears talk on the walkie
Student: "Did someone say beating?"
Me: "No. Meeting."
Student: "Teachers are beating other teachers?"
Me: "No. MEETING."
Student: "Somebody is bleeding?!?!"
11.
Student 1: "You're a mouse in a rat maze"
Student 2: "Well you're a turd in a shit maze"
10.
"HAHA, I farted when I did that"
9.
Student 1: "I'm rubber, you're glue. Whatever you say to me bounces off me and sticks to you!"
Student 2: "Oh yeah? I'm rubber. You're an idiot"
8.
Reader : "Name the triangle"
Student: "Steve"
7.
"Ms Whitney, my penis itches."
6.
"Oh the pain! The deep fried pain!"
5.
"Dancing is the Devil's hell"
4.
Student: "This is our epic battle, Ms Whitney. You see, this is me in the red cape, like
superman. This is you."
Me: "Where?"
Student: "Right there. I drew you as the wicked witch of the west."
3.
"When I am in charge I am going to turn this whole place into antarctica. Then I am going to feed you to a polar bear."
2.
"Off with your head!"
1..........
"Bye, I hope you die tonight!"
Oh there are many more, but that is all I can think of right now :D
17.
Me: "How hot do you think the sun is?"
Student: "I think it is a million flaming cheetos hot"
16.
"Yes, he can hold his breath underwater forever-(pause thinking)-just like a kitty cat!"
15.
"I'm drawing tough guys with pants on."
14.
"Ms Whitney, can I flip off the lights?"
-he waits a moment for an answer and then flips his middle finger to the lights
"Look! see! I'm flipping off the lights!"
13.
"'Hot' means you're a piece of meat."
12.
Student overhears talk on the walkie
Student: "Did someone say beating?"
Me: "No. Meeting."
Student: "Teachers are beating other teachers?"
Me: "No. MEETING."
Student: "Somebody is bleeding?!?!"
11.
Student 1: "You're a mouse in a rat maze"
Student 2: "Well you're a turd in a shit maze"
10.
"HAHA, I farted when I did that"
9.
Student 1: "I'm rubber, you're glue. Whatever you say to me bounces off me and sticks to you!"
Student 2: "Oh yeah? I'm rubber. You're an idiot"
8.
Reader : "Name the triangle"
Student: "Steve"
7.
"Ms Whitney, my penis itches."
6.
"Oh the pain! The deep fried pain!"
5.
"Dancing is the Devil's hell"
4.
Student: "This is our epic battle, Ms Whitney. You see, this is me in the red cape, like
superman. This is you."
Me: "Where?"
Student: "Right there. I drew you as the wicked witch of the west."
3.
"When I am in charge I am going to turn this whole place into antarctica. Then I am going to feed you to a polar bear."
2.
"Off with your head!"
1..........
"Bye, I hope you die tonight!"
Oh there are many more, but that is all I can think of right now :D
Thursday, August 11, 2011
Mini Superhero
Blonde haired, blue eyed, tornado on two feet
smartest, quickest, loudest boy you ever will meet
He'd charm you with his smile
That made him look oh so sweet
But little did you know, he would knock you to your knees
He sang, "There's two, there's four, there's six, there's eight."
played superman and watched his trains.
As Fireman Sam that boy stood so tall
A mini superhero for us all.
Give him an audience and he would preach.
When he grows up he says he wants to teach.
With fire in his eyes and rockets on his feet
He charms his way in to the hearts of all he meets.
He flaps, he spins, he jumps, he leaps
without his shoes upon his feet
dressed up years beyond his age
"81! I AM!", he would always say.
To my side he would rush all 60 of his pounds
At 12 years old he would never back down
The path ahead appears so rough
undaunted with that sight he runs.
Forward only never back
A mini superhero who helped forge my path.
Without these two the world would appear so dim.
Two treasures given by the greatest HIM
blessed with a gift the rest of us will lack
to move forward always without looking back.
For their future is ours as they run and play
linking us for always, each life they have saved
looking through their eyes you could clearly see
that superheroes, even ones so small
do not need capes to save us all.
I wrote this with two of my many "mini superheroes" in mind. If I didn't have them I would still be trudging through a muddy life with no clear path and no end in sight.
smartest, quickest, loudest boy you ever will meet
He'd charm you with his smile
That made him look oh so sweet
But little did you know, he would knock you to your knees
He sang, "There's two, there's four, there's six, there's eight."
played superman and watched his trains.
As Fireman Sam that boy stood so tall
A mini superhero for us all.
Give him an audience and he would preach.
When he grows up he says he wants to teach.
With fire in his eyes and rockets on his feet
He charms his way in to the hearts of all he meets.
He flaps, he spins, he jumps, he leaps
without his shoes upon his feet
dressed up years beyond his age
"81! I AM!", he would always say.
To my side he would rush all 60 of his pounds
At 12 years old he would never back down
The path ahead appears so rough
undaunted with that sight he runs.
Forward only never back
A mini superhero who helped forge my path.
Without these two the world would appear so dim.
Two treasures given by the greatest HIM
blessed with a gift the rest of us will lack
to move forward always without looking back.
For their future is ours as they run and play
linking us for always, each life they have saved
looking through their eyes you could clearly see
that superheroes, even ones so small
do not need capes to save us all.
I wrote this with two of my many "mini superheroes" in mind. If I didn't have them I would still be trudging through a muddy life with no clear path and no end in sight.
One Day
What better place than here to put my feelings? Let's not take things too seriously now...
One Day
When will this feeling disappear?
I hate my life
I miss old friends
I wish my past didn't end
Now the path is all anew.
Looking back I wish I knew
Where all these journeys came to play
that got me where I am today.
Without the sight of here and now
I wouldn't regret the life I've found.
Relationships that flew astray
a future now has blown away.
Where to turn, where do I go?
an ocean full of ebb and flow.
one step forward, two steps back
I turn around and stumble.
Circles I've gone, dead ends I've hit.
Could all of this really be it?
What is living without a smile
Mine, I've lost for quite a while.
Each year that passes I turn around
and look behind me as the new bares down.
I hold on tight and dig in my heels
If only I had foreseen how this would feel.
My choices would have differed
my feet would not have faltered
I might be where I planned before
now I float far from that shore.
Onward now to face this road.
along it lie the things untold.
without it I would float away
if only I could. If only. One day.
One Day
When will this feeling disappear?
I hate my life
I miss old friends
I wish my past didn't end
Now the path is all anew.
Looking back I wish I knew
Where all these journeys came to play
that got me where I am today.
Without the sight of here and now
I wouldn't regret the life I've found.
Relationships that flew astray
a future now has blown away.
Where to turn, where do I go?
an ocean full of ebb and flow.
one step forward, two steps back
I turn around and stumble.
Circles I've gone, dead ends I've hit.
Could all of this really be it?
What is living without a smile
Mine, I've lost for quite a while.
Each year that passes I turn around
and look behind me as the new bares down.
I hold on tight and dig in my heels
If only I had foreseen how this would feel.
My choices would have differed
my feet would not have faltered
I might be where I planned before
now I float far from that shore.
Onward now to face this road.
along it lie the things untold.
without it I would float away
if only I could. If only. One day.
Sunday, May 1, 2011
Bye, I hope you die tonight
One afternoon, at my old job with an alternative school, I was walking a student to the bus. He was so mad, because another teacher would not agree that he was better than everyone in the entire world (no joke), that he stomped his way out the door with me at his side. I hopped, spun, frolicked and skipped, trying everything I could to cheer him up before putting him onto the bus. Nothing worked.
We finally get to his bus, the last in the row, and he was still grumbling. I stood on the sidewalk while he stepped up the stairs. I saw a look in his eye and a flap in his hands that told me he was going to say something unkind in a very loud manner to the bus driver. So, in an effort to prevent yet another outburst on the bus I yelled to him in an overly cheery tone, "Bye, I hope you have a great night!". From the second step he stopped and turned to me; with a half smirk half glare he yelled back, "Bye, I hope you die tonight!". He turned back and boarded the bus. Quietly. I buckled in laughter as this one phrase perfectly described how outrageously fantastic this student was, how much he brightened my heart and taught me how to laugh at almost everything.
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