Changes

This summer I will be...

Moving out of my awesome down-town apartment into a maybe-semi-awesome condo which I will be (fingers crossed) purchasing soon.

Switching school districts, moving from my middle-school position that I love most days to an elementary position further north that I also hope to love most days.

Gaining a nephew.

Enrolling in some enrichment type courses at a local college.

Getting a summer job.

Visiting my friends in Utah because I can hardly stand how much I miss them!

I'm in love

I'm in love with Brett Dennen. His new CD has been on repeat in my car since Saturday. I use the term CD loosely because I actually bought his new album on iTunes and downloaded it onto my iPod and plugged my iPod into my car... but you get the idea... it's 2008.

I'm Not Sorry

Dear Madam,

I'm not sorry. I'm not sorry for anything. OK, that's a lie. I'm sorry. I'm sorry that I pretended like everything was okay when I ran into you in the parking lot. I gave you a hug and made small talk and smiled. I went home with a sick feeling in my stomach. I couldn't keep anything down for hours. I'm sorry about that. But my apology doesn't go to you... it goes to me. I'm sorry to me that I still find it so necessary for everybody to like me that I let people treat me poorly and then go out of my way to make sure they don't feel any discomfort in my presence. I should have made you feel uncomfortable the way you made me feel uncomfortable. Because I'm not the one that did anything wrong. In fact, I went out of my way to give you every opportunity to make it right. You purposely and pointedly hurt my feelings for trying to do something nice for somebody else, even making me cry and then coldly telling my I was going against the family's wishes... a family I had spent lots of time (hours upon hours) with just recently (did I see you there?... no.) and talked to them and asked them how to help. You spread rumors about me (yes... I hear things too). And then, I sent you an email. A disgusting email where I complimented you, gave you details, confided. And you ignored it. You ignored me. You purposely avoided me at the funeral then again at the shower. Well... guess what? I've been avoiding you for years! Ever since that day at La Fuentes when my other young friends and I invited you along with us during a break. We were all on our way there and remembered the last time we were there with you and how fun you were. We called you up and you came to meet us. Remember? We ate and laughed and had a great time... until the check came. As we all reached for our wallets, you reached for yours too and said, "I suppose this is the reason you invited me... so I could pay!" And slammed down your plastic as the waiter took it away. We sat stunned. Maybe you thought it was guilt, but it was anger. We didn't know what to say so none of us said anything... until you left. We all knew why we had invited you and it hadn't included money. We ate there regularly and knew how to pay a bill. But we all decided we couldn't invite you anywhere any more because we knew you'd always assume we wanted you to pay. We didn't want your money, we just wanted our friend. But being in your presence reminded us that you thought so little of us. We were your girls... how could you think so little of us? We still wonder about it when we get together. Where we went wrong, what we did to make you think that. But now I don't have to wonder any more. Because I didn't do anything wrong. You did. You changed. Maybe money is such a huge part of your own self-worth that you put it on other people. Maybe money is so important to you that you think it's important to everybody. But still I tried. I wanted you to like me still. I wanted your approval. But I don't care any more. I don't need a friend that thinks so little of me, makes me cry and offers no apology, avoids me and treats me bad. I don't need you any more. And I'm not sorry.

Sincerely not yours,

Emily

I have allergies

And Claritin is an expensive friend.

Fried Worms

Last Friday, I got some bad news. A family friend had been murdered the night before. That was sad. And disturbing. On the same night I learned that my mom was having a particular complication as well. A litigation has been sparked. That makes me nervous. Later that same night, one of the security guards that patrols the docks where I live hit on me. And not in a smooth, cute way. In a creepy-now-I'm-scared-to-walk-the-dock kind of way. On Tuesday during lunch, I learned that my friend died in his sleep. I thought I would be okay. I wasn't. They made me go home and I drove to Renton. That night Taquito woke me up at 4:30 am puking. That was gross. On Wednesday after work while walking my dogs and scooping up the doodie, what was left of Taquito's flu made me dry heave as I bagged it and then Chalupa's doodie was wriggling. I hung up with my mom and called the vet which warranted yet another drive up to Renton. $145 later Chalupa was tapeworm free. And I just had to laugh because why wouldn't my dog's poop move on a week like this?

Also, I have two cavities.

The Big Surprise

My sister is pregnant!

Yay!!

I'm going to by an Auntie!!

Yippee!!

Baby will be arriving mid-September.

This makes me so very happy because my sister has been struggling. She's had two miscarriages and she was beginning to think it wasn't going to happen for her. But yesterday she went in for yet another ultrasound and the baby looks healthy and she's past that first scary trimester. Now I can finally admit to her that I have practically bought out the whole baby section of a half dozen stores...

A Long Time Gone

So... it's been a while since I've posted. I'm not too busy to post. I have great internet connection. And things do happen to me that might be worth posting about. But I'm lazy and I always want to post pictures with my posts and I can't right now because I lost my connection cord during Christmas break. I need to buy a new one because I got a new puppy that's really cute. I guess she's not really a puppy. The vet guessed her to be about a year and a half old... older than Taquito... but I consider them both puppies because they're young and small and cute. Chalupa is awesome. And Taquito graduated from his Advanced Class at Petsmart so he's a total genius. Also, a lot of crazy things have happened at work that I could write about if I changed a bunch of names and details so I wouldn't get fired by a random googler. I also have another announcement to share but I'm sworn to secrecy for another week or two so watch for that. I also got a Magic Bullet as a surprise from my mother for my birthday. I finally started using it a couple of weeks ago and have fallen in love with making my own Jamba Juices. It makes me happy.

Football Nightmare

I had a nightmare last night that I missed the Seahawks vs Packers game (the first scary thing) because I was shopping with my sister and brother-in-law. When I realized the time and that I had missed the game, my brother-in-law told me that the Seahawks lost 14-17. In the last 5 min of the game, Hasselbeck had thrown an interception and Green Bay ran it in for a touchdown.

I realize that dreaming about football makes me a true fan... which is strange to say the least. Especially since I woke up from this nightmare sweating and checking my calendar praying it wasn't so. And it wasn't.

And it won't be.

Witness

Tonight was Taquito's graduation from the Intermediate Class. My dog's a genius. I got there a bit early so I could walk him around a bit and hopefully get him to chill before class began. I was about to make a right turn right in front of the store to score a good spot when I saw a van approaching. I was annoyed because they had basically cut me off to turn in front of me (my blinker was going but most people don't care about that) and they were going pretty fast and then they suddenly stopped so I couldn't get by and just stayed in the middle of the aisle for a few seconds. Then I thought they were doing a Chinese Fire Drill. Tons of teens scrambled out of the van and started running around. But then I noticed the panic in their movements and realized they either thought there really was a fire in a Chinese Fire Drill or something was seriously wrong. Something was seriously wrong. They had hit a pedestrian and the poor woman was lodged under the van. I squeezed my tiny car around the van (I love my tiny car!) and parked in the nearest spot. I rushed out to see plenty of blood, plenty of panic and part of a woman that wasn't moving. I asked three of the teens running around if they had called 911. Two of them said yes. One man was on the phone and I asked him again, "Did you call 911?" He said he had, that help was on the way and not to worry because he was a cop. One of the girls that was reaching her hand under the van told me not to worry because she was a nurse. They both looked like they were twelve. I started to walk to a quieter place so I could make a phone call of my own when I heard the "nurse" say, "Oh gosh, you guys! There's a lot of blood and I don't feel a pulse!" I called 911, fought with some Petsmart employees who wouldn't verify their address to the 911 dispatcher because "they didn't know" and "couldn't give out that information" so I yelled at her and told her to get her manager because something like an address should be available and because you don't tell a 911 dispatcher that you won't give out your address. Eventually I got the address out of the manager, verified my personal information to the dispatcher and watched two fire engines, an ambulance and and eight or nine police cars show up. When my class was over about an hour later there were still police officers there. The parking lot had turned into a full out crime scene with tape and everything and the van still in the same location. I told the officers that I had seen the accident, they asked me some questions, took down my personal information and let me know that the woman would be okay. She had a hospital stay in front of her and she was hurt "real bad" but that she'd be okay. Thank goodness! I still feel like I need to throw up.

Chocolate A-No-Go

So... Taquito ate chocolate. Kind of a lot. They were Cadbury candies. I had been eating out of an 11 oz bag for days. A little less than half the bag was left when I told Taquito firmly to be a good boy and then went to take a shower. I had secured the bag well... twisted it and hid it behind R2Delicious. When I walked back into the room Taquito tried to hide himself in the corner of the couch. I immediately knew he had not followed orders. When I saw the red, white, green and brown mess all over my sofa and carpet I gasped and immediately began cleaning up the mess. But within moments I realized just how much he had eaten. I felt the bag over and over, trying to remember how much had been in there before. I called the vet in a panic. After I told her how much my dog weighed, about how many ounces of chocolate he ate and exactly what kind of chocolate it was she told me that he should be fine but... to be on the safe side... because he's a small dog... I should make him throw up. To do this she told me to force feed him 1 tsp of Hydrogen Peroxide. I didn't have a medicine syringe or anything so I had to use a 1/2 tsp measuring spoon to do the job. It wasn't easy and I wore more of the stuff than he actually swallowed. The vet said it would work pretty quickly so she advised I do it outside or in a bathroom where it would be easy to clean up. So after I wrestled a bit of it down his throat I tossed him in the bathtub and waited... and waited. The vet had told me that if he didn't spew within 15 minutes to call the emergency line. I called the emergency line and went through the whole spiel again. She told me to give him another tsp of Hydrogen Peroxide, wait 15 minutes and if he's still puke free to give him another 1/2 tsp. If, in another 15 minutes, he's still puke free to just let him be... he should be fine. "Even with all the chocolate in his belly along with the 2.5 tsp sof poison I just gave him?" "Sure." So I hung up the phone and waited. I ended up giving him the whole 2.5 tsps. I waited some more... another 20 minutes... stroking his little head and waiting for the show... but it never happened. Eventually I decided that he must have a stomach of steel and let him out of the tub. He followed me around like he always does and then eventually settled into his doggie bed.

Phew... all's right in the world of me. I started to get ready for the Christmas party.

Suddenly, he jumped up and ran to his red blanket that he had earlier dragged to the middle of the room. And on it... and my carpet... he puked. A lot. Now, it's been a long time since Taquito's had an accident on my carpet. So, I hadn't realized that I was out of Resolve... a pet owner's best friend. I tossed the poor puppy in his crate and ran to Walgreens to get some more. Landlords tend to frown on brown and green puke stains on their carpets...

Resolve did its job and once again saved my deposit. I washed the red blanket for the second time in as many days and called the folks to let them know I wouldn't be making it to the party.

I ended up doing four more loads of laundry, each time dumping then folding them on my bed. I'd put them all away once the last load was finished.

But then... tragedy.

Silly me to think Taquito was done puking.

I had left to get another load out of the dryer and when I came back in Taquito ran to hide in a corner. I thought maybe I'd caught him chewing on my mitt again and moved it to my closet but something smelled fishy... or at least really bad. Then I noticed it. Doggie puke streaming down a pile of carefully folded laundry, then onto my comforter and my sheets like a disgusting volcano taking vengeance on a small village. It was everywhere! I have no idea how such a tiny dog could produce so much nastiness!

So... I'm rewashing a load now... with an additional load of bed clothes waiting for the honor next to the machine.

Taquito's really lucky he's cute right now...

Search and Give

Microsoft is offering a way for you to donate money without having to really do anything at all. By going to www.searchandgive.com and doing your every day web searches you can aid an organization of your choice. Personally, I would love it if you would choose the school I work at (email me or post a comment if you're interested and I'll send you the name and zip code) but there are plenty of other organizations to choose from as well. Microsoft will donate up to ten cents a day (one cent a search for up to ten searches) which will really add up!

Also, you can use your same login (you can use your Hotmail account or create a new one) to play games at http://club.live.com/home.aspx which will allow you to use the points you earn on prizes such as free movie tickets, music, frequent flier miles, Microsoft software, Zune, etc or you can donate your points to the charity you have chosen. Each point is a penny and most games give you about 20 points a game.

It only takes a second to sign up, the games are actually really fun and we do searches on the web every day anyway. I'd love it if you'd choose my school as we're in desperate need of some new technology.

Chalupa?

I had a dream last night. I came across a Chihuahua puppy that looked
a lot like Taquito but had shorter legs and a shorter nose. She was
on sale in a pet store and I wanted her but I didn't like the idea of
buying from a pet store... puppy mills, you know? So I went home. I
came back to the store a few weeks later and she still wasn't sold. I
asked her if she was Chalupa and she jumped up and wagged her tail so
I bought her and took her home. When I got home I put her in
Taquito's crate because I didn't want her around him yet because I
knew that she might have mites or worms or something... puppy mills,
you know? So I called the vet and made an appointment and called mom
and dad and told them I was coming up and then I woke up.

Think it's a sign??

Did I mention that I woke up because Taquito woke me up? At 4am?
Because he refused to go to the bathroom at 10pm when I took him out?
So he had to go then? And he had the world's longest pee? And I had
a hard time getting back to sleep? So I'm exhausted?

Think it's a sign??

Sports Fan

I like being a sports fan. I wore my Seahawks jersey today and was greeted by all of these people who were instantly misconceived to believe that I a) knew the names of the players, b) had any idea what their jargon meant and c) could make an educated prediction for this evening's game. But it was fun. Really fun! I'd walk into a store and be greeted by 1 to 5 strangers as if I were an old friend. I even got high-fived! I got to pretend just for a second that I wasn't in a huge city where nobody knew my name but was instead in a small community that shared a common interest. And that felt kind of nice. Also, the Seahawks totally killed the 49ers! Woohoo!

The Sound of Slumber

I've been having a hard time sleeping again. It might be because I've started work again. So I'm up to my chin (I'm short) in paperwork and face FORTY SEVEN sixth, seventh and eigth graders every day. Or it might be because trains travel right outside my window 24 hours a night. Or because I live next to a freeway. Or it could be because Taquito sleeps all day in his crate while I work and is then full of energy at night and keeps me up. Or it could be because I have a herniated stomach which means that laying down equals heartburn. Or maybe I'm not sleeping because I'm staying up way past my bedtime playing Scrabulous on Facebook. I don't know. Maybe it's none of the above.

But in any case, I've discovered that some medium-volumed background noise can be just the key to a good night's sleep. And after trying several different radio stations, CDs, music genres and talk radio... it turns out that one CD gets the job done better than any other. The soundtrack to "The Sound of Music" gets the job done every time. I don't think I'm bored enough to fall asleep. I like "The Sound of Music." No, there's just something soothing about a woman singing about sometime in her youth or childhood she must have done something good. Because... there he is, standing there, loving her...

Vote for Taquito

http://www.competico.com/come-vote-for-me/1c6b61e0666c9948e8b9ff89916dfbcf

I entered a little contest that should be no contest because Taquito is obviously the cutest!

Kids

So... I picked three children up Sunday evening and I'll have them until Saturday evening. They are two boys and a girl ages 9, 6 and 4 respectively. They're all staying in my tiny one bedroom apartment. We've been to a couple of parks to play on toys, learned how to take care of Taquito (who loves having kids around) and went to Northwest Trek. Tomorrow we're going to the zoo, Friday is our day for swimming and I'm pretty sure that Saturday will hold all the wonders of Chuck E. Cheese. I have to admit that I was a little bit nervous last week. When you're in a single's ward (or are avoiding a single's ward) and live alone one might forget how delightful kids can be. I almost forgot how much I loved them. Some might think that being a middle school teacher would be a constant reminder of how much I love kids. They would be wrong. But... I do. I do love kids. A lot! A lot, a lot actually! Really... real.

Finally!

I'm so happy!! Disney has finally released on DVD the original Winnie the Pooh movie. You know the one... Winnie the Pooh gets stuck in Rabbit's door, Pooh pretends to be a little black rain cloud to get honey, Piglet gets swept away in a flood, Tigger bounces so high he gets stuck in a tree, etc. It's the BEST! I watched the tape so many times as a kid that I wore it out. I bought it today and I'm watching it right now. And it's just as good as I remember it! Genius.

Not Much Better

There's not much that can beat summer break. It's sunny outside. My responsibilities are at a low. I have a cute puppy to play with. I don't have to pack a lunch. I'm not worried about any pending deadlines. I'm just so... happy.

School's Out for Summer... almost.

School's out for summer in just a day and a half and I couldn't be happier. Really. I'm ecstatic! And nervous. Extremely nervous. Because I have a ton of paperwork that's due before I leave at noon on Friday. And I have to pack up my whole room and get it ready to be moved to a portable. And the staff and family party that's happening after work on Friday is at my house. And I'm not ready. And because my summer job fell through. But even with all of that stress, I still feel okay because by Friday afternoon it'll all be over. Over! I love summer!

El Nino is Spanish for... Taquito

I accidentally left my dog in the bathroom for almost 12 hours today. I know... I know... I feel like a horrible person but it really was a mistake. If I knew I was going to be gone that long I would have asked my dad to come down and let him out... but I didn't know. Either way, I got what was coming to me. My bathroom doesn't usually look like that...

...also, I promise that this is my last post about Taquito for a little while. I understand that not everybody is quite as obsessed with him as I am.