You do not appreciate me!

It was a sad day. I have done nothing but be nice to my car--I change the oil as required, I do all of the recommended maintenance, take it in as soon as the check engine light comes on, put premium gas in it as required by the turbo dealy, and yet it treats me like this...

I was all packed up and headed to the lake, when the engine temperature gauge went crazy, and the little floating buoy light started flashing. It all happened quickly, but I think there was also some dinging.

Long story short, it was towed to the mechanic. And it kind of feels like an abusive relationship. I treat it well, and all I get is crap in return, but I keep it around, and keep coming back. I hate my car, but we'll see if we can work it out.

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

I am still laughing about this...

And this.

Reading to my Goddaughter

McDonald's Doesn't Quite Understand Turn-Taking

When you take a look at conversation and language, you see that turn-taking is an important concept. Generally, one person speaks at a time, and we try to avoid silence. Violating these norms creates some kind of dissonance in a conversation. Pretty easy, right?

Well, that darn automated voice at McDonald's messes it all up. I've been to the drive through a couple of times in the past few months, and both times my experience was the same. I drove up, and the automated voice asked me if I wanted something...the days's special, or a certain value meal or whatever. I said "No, thank you."

And then there was silence. In a normal conversation, after I spoke, the other person should speak. I'm guessing McD's designed it to work that way, but for whatever reason, the person inside the restaurant working the drive-thru did not say anything. And so I sat there, both times, wondering if I should speak, or wait for them to ask me to order. Awkward.

So listen up, McDonalds. You need to fix this. Either get rid of the weird automated offers, or train your people to take the customer's order.

For Real

It's been a long time since I've written for real. Partly because there have been some hard things, partly because I want to avoid that private/public line where when people read something, they cringe because you just shouldn't have shared.

So yeah, some tough times with a friend. That's about all I'm willing to say about it. It's not mine to share, but it definitely kept me from writing for a while.

Other than that, I've been trying to work out consistently and get healthier. I've been hesitant to write about it, but at some point it's just like hey, you can all see it anyway, so why not acknowledge it. The kicker was some pictures I saw of myself which made my jaw fall to the floor...seriously, how did I not know I looked like that?

Anyway, the process of getting healthier has been interesting. I've done weight watchers before, but didn't really see that as a way to live for a long period of time. So instead I rejoined the gym, and have been trying to make better food choices. Not perfect, but better than before. When I rejoined the gym one of the trainers showed me how to use the weight machines, which was new to me, so that's been cool. It feels awesome to walk up to one of them, and not stare at it like an idiot. And surprisingly, it's not weird at all that they're in front of all the cardio. machines. In fact, I can't see anyone behind me, so it's kind of like they disappear.

I'm not planning any sort of before/after pictures, or updates much, unless it comes up in something else I feel like writing about. But yeah, it's been a big deal for me lately, so it's here.

Which reminds me, I went to a "matfusion" class tonight, which was supposed to be a blend of pilates and yoga. I hate yoga, love pilates. Well, the class was weighted more to the latter, and the room was ridiculously warm. And it wasn't the hot kind of yoga either, just too darn humid in the midwest. And I was pissed. Two years ago I did yoga with a couple of friends, and I had no problem holding downward dog, or any of the other poses...tonight, bah. I had to stop a few times and modify the pose, or just wait it out. It made me mad. Usually getting pissed about stuff like that doesn't really motivate me, but somehow it did tonight. I finished the class, but swore to not go back until I'm stronger.

I've also been hanging out with people from my new church quite a bit. When I was in San Jose this past weekend, I sat in my old chuch, and just had this overwhelming moment of feeling blessed. Blessed to have all of my people in CA, but also to have people to come home to. At one point a few years ago I watched the series Six Feet Under, and saw an episode about a woman who died alone, and no one found her for a seriously long time. It made me think, and I realized then that there were definitely people who would find me. This weekend I realized I now have that in Sioux Falls too. It's a strange way of measuring things, I know, but it works for me. If I were to die, I know someone would come and find my body before I was too badly decomposed.

So that's really what's going on.

For the random fun of it, here's a picture of the clouds in town tonight. Magnificent.

Baby Shower Surprise!

I love adding the word "surprise" at the end of anything. It just makes it more exciting. Like tuna casserole surprise, or mango mojito surprise! This weekend was a baby shower surprise. I flew out to San Jose on Saturday, to surprise Jen and Brian (and everyone else) for their baby shower on Sunday. For those of you not on Facebook, here are some pics.

Jen and Brian opening gifts.

Donna and Annabelle.

Me and Annabelle.

I will actually blog again sometime soon, probably. Until then, here's a picture of me and my new baby niece. She's a lucky girl, as she had the cord wrapped around her neck, and still got out safely.