Can't Get It Outta My Head: Temper Trap

Heard this on Sirius Altnation and forgot about it for a while. Now, I can't stop listening to it. I love how the lyrics and the melody give me an uncanny burst of happiness. Enjoy:

Sweet Disposition by Temper Trap

Instant Insanity: Digital Cleanse

I recently ran into an old friend at a graduation party and we discussed a few things. We caught up on our lives, he told me about a good florist my friend could use in her upcoming nuptials, and he also related some gossip to me he had heard first-hand. The party went on and then we parted ways.

I haven't had any opportunities to see him since, but I did send him a facebook message about the florist. No reply. I sent him a text. I left a voicemail. After all of that, a week later, I feel like I did something wrong. I agonized over whether it got back to him that I related the "gossip" to another friend, if he was mad for another reason, or simply ignoring me.

Finally, through all the confusion, another mutual friend tells me I'm insane, and everything is fine. After removing the oxygen mask, I sat down and thought about it.

With my Blackberry I get every message almost instantaneously from my multiple emails, Facebook, and Twitter. I get voice mails, track missed calls, and admittedly, can ignore all of these alerts by claiming the battery died, or the ringer was off, or the technology failed in some way.

But this system of instant gratification--instant messaging and discussion--is it really a good thing? I drove myself crazy because I didn't get an instant response from my friend. At what point is patience no longer virtuous but endangered? Is our society losing its patience, one social networking site at a time?

I don't want to be caught up in the digital, fast-paced world in which we live. I want to slow down and enjoy the ride. A while ago, John Mayer had a similar revelation, on his blog with his One Week Digital Cleanse:

Hard drive fragmentation is a great metaphor for - if not a literal manifestation of - what’s happened to our brains over years and years of processing small bursts of information. 2009 took fragmentation to a whole new level given the rise of Twitter and the social acceptance of texting people as a substitute to making phone calls. That’s where the one week digital cleanse comes in. I’ll be defragmenting my mental and psychological hard drive...

He lays out a few simple, easy to follow guidelines:

*email only from laptop or desktop computers
*cell phones can only be used to make calls, and no text messages or e-mails are allowed - if you receive a text, you must reply in voice over the phone. E-mails must be returned from a laptop or desktop computer.
*no use of Twitter or any other social networking site - this includes reading as well as posting.
*no visiting of any entertainment or gossip sites. (No need to detail which ones -
you know what they are.)

While I will have no problem with the gossip sites, Facebook and texting will be difficult. But,
I pledge, Friday, June 11, at 9 a.m., I will start a one week digital cleanse.

Blogging is not against the rules, so, hopefully with a clear mind and free hands, I will be able to blog more. Expect great things.

Margaret & Clint's Wedding

May 29th, 2010

After days of overcast, cool temps, and even rain, the sun peeked out and warmed up McArthur for the big day. With the fabulous rehearsal dinner the
night before [Margaret's family cooking some delicious Chinese food], I was looking forward to the late afternoon ceremony and reception. Knowing my cousin, I was interested to see what he and Margaret had planned. By the time 4 o'clock rolled
around, people were still arriving and we [my family] were sitting in the front row with the sun beating down on us. My Aunt Lisa had a bottle of sunscreen and was thinking about offering it to others while she fought for the seat next to me with her daughter, Mary Kate [10 years old]. "Why don't you go sell your sunscreen?" M.K. whined. My Uncle and cousins were the valet parkers, as the wedding was up on a hill of the Albaugh Ranch. When the wedding finally commenced, I was disappointed with the lack of a wedding dance [c'mon, it would be pretty fantastic to witness one!], but loved the elegant entrance of Clint, my Aunt Elena, Uncle Steve, and the rest of the wedding party [including my cousin Trina, getting married in August in the same place]. Margaret's entrance was pretty awesome though, riding up in a vintage La Salle [pictured below], and being led down the altar by her wonderful mother, Gene.

The ceremony was presided over by Margaret's high school basketball coach and was classic [minus any religious affiliation] to the dot. Their vows were what I would expect from them; personal, humorous, and full of love and respect for each other.

Their first kiss as a married couple. *cue "Love Story" by Taylor Swift*. Because my cousin is pilot in the Air Force, he got an Arch of Sabers:

Traditionally the bride and groom walk through the arch of swords. That passage
is meant to ensure the couple's safe transition into their new life together.

The guys on the end threw their swords down and demanded a kiss for them to pass. It took not one, or two, but three kisses for them to let Margaret and Clint down the aisle.

While the 300 or so guests hit up the receiving line, I discovered the sangria and the photobooth! There were two booths and a table of costumes and props for the guests to take pictures and put some in the wedding guest book. It spit out a page with 3 pictures on each side and "Margaret and Clint Albaugh [line] 5.29.10". Mary Kate and I visited the photobooth many times.

The guestbook turned out so cute. One of the more memorable messages [and the writer will remain anonymous, you know who you are]: "Costumes can come in handy".

When the dinner had been eaten, the toasts had been made, it was time for the first dance. After that came...well, what do you get when you mix a well stocked D.J., a dozen or so military men, a beautiful woman, and a keg truck of beer?

This:

which is of course a nod to this:

Overall, the wedding was beautiful, went off without a hitch (to my knowledge) and allowed me to see a lot of my friends and family that I hadn't seen in a while. It was really just part one, since Trina is getting married in August, same place, only bigger! I'm a bridesmaid in that wedding, and I can't wait to celebrate my cousin's big day, on her birthday!

My Bucket List

My Bucket List -- an idea I got from Sarah Smith. In fact, we have some of the same goals. This is just to start, Lord knows it will need some changes and additions.


1. Climb Half-Dome
2. have a lengthy stay in Ireland
3. Write a novel and have it published
4. Go to Oktoberfest in München, Deutschland
5. Kiss someone in the rain
6. Go to the Louvre and see the Mona Lisa (among others)
7. see every one of Shakespeare’s plays live (All’s Well That Ends Well, As You Like It, Comedy of Errors, Love’s Labour’s Lost, Measure for Measure, Merchant of Venice, Merry Wives of Windsor, Midsummer Night’s Dream, Much Ado About Nothing, Taming of the Shrew, The Tempest, Twelfth Night, Two Gentlemen of Verona, Winter’s Tale, Cumbeline, Henry IV Part I, Henry the IV Part II, Henry V, Henry VI Part I, Henry VI Part II, Henry VI Part III, Henry VIII, King John, Pericles, Richard II, Richard III, Antony and Cleopatra, Coriolanus, Hamlet, Julius Caesar, King Lear, Macbeth, Othello, Romeo and Juliet, Timon of Athens, Titus Andronicus, Troilus and Cressida).
8. ride a tandem bicycle
9. visit every region of Italy (Abruzzo, Valle d’Aosta, Puglia, Basilicata, Calabria, Campania, Emilia-Romagna, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Lazio, Liguria, Lombardia, Marche, Molise, Piemonte, Sardegna, Sicilia, Toscana, Trentino-Alto Adige, Umbria, Veneto)
10. Kiss the Blarney Stone in Blarney, Ireland.
11. Go to a Billy Joel and/or Elton John concert.
12. Gamble in Vegas
13. Drink a margarita in Mexico
14. travel the streets of London in a red, double-decker bus
15. be caught under the mistletoe
16. Walk in Memphis, with my feet ten feet off of Beale
17. go to a movie premiere
18. go scuba diving off the coast of Australia
19. walk the Great Wall in China
20. attend the Black and White Ball in San Francisco
21. see the Pyramids
22. Visit every state in the Union (not counting airports and times I can’t remember: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, ,California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New York, New Hampshire, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wyoming, Wisconsin.
23. pray in Jerusalem
24. eat sushi in Tokyo
25. learn the Romance languages (French, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Romanian)
26. work for a winning presidential campaign from the beginning
27. plant a flower and vegetable garden
28. stand in front of the Himalayas (no need to climb!)
29. cook a Thanksgiving meal for my family
30. go skiing in Vail

Weddings, Weddings, Oh My!

This summer I will be (literally) on the move most of my days. While not exploring the rich history of the Western United States, I will be doing crafty things (a list is on its way) and attending the many weddings of my friends and family:

May 31st -- Clint & Margaret

My cousin Clint: an Air Force pilot living in England, he flies refuelers and gets to take weekend vacations across most of Europe. He and Margaret have a truly romantic story, an almost "love at first site", and are going to have a beautiful, elegant wedding in McArthur, on the family farm. I definitely owe Margaret a great deal of thanks for introducing me to the delicious vegan "Black Bean Brownies", that are both addictive and a perfect match for a coffee addict like me.

June 26th -- Shannon & Greg

My best friend Shannon: one of my oldest friends, Shannon grabbed me behind the curtain at our freshman musical, On the Town, and danced with me during the overture. Since then, we have been doing a lot of dancing! Whether it's to Cher's "Believe" (which is actually banned from car rides...) or some awesome OK Go! or MSI, we dance and have a good time! Shannon met Greg while working at the movie theater (we all worked there) and moved to Arizona to go to school with him. I am really excited to see one my best friends start a new chapter of her life, probably to a song by the Beatles, and to quote Grey's, "We're adults now..when did that happen?!"

August 14th -- Trina & Ethan

My cousin Trina: Clint's older sister, Trina is like an older sister to me, and is just finishing her master's degree this spring, and getting married on her Birthday! I am really excited for her, she who has done so much; traveled all over the world and had so many great experiences, and now is getting married. I am honored that she asked me to be a bridesmaid, and I have to say I'm excited to be wearing our favorite color: PURPLE. Ethan has been finishing helicopter training for the National Guard down in Alabama, and has been able to commiserate with me from a few states away, regarding Southern Humidity and weather. Though I can't say I can commiserate with him about Montana winters!

I am so happy for all of my loved ones, and can't wait to celebrate their special days!

History on the Move Intro

For those of you readers that don't know, I am going on a three week travel history class. My mom kinda forced me into it, just like a lot of things, that I always inevitably enjoy. We all remember my 6-week stay in Italia?

The first meeting with all the students was this week and I am pretty sure my excitement level can't get much higher. We have one week of class in late June and then we leave July 3rd to explore the American West! Yellowstone and the parks of Montana are the highlights on my list, but the whole trip is going to be awesome. It starts in Louisiana, goes to Oklahoma, Kansas (I know, I know, big "Ugh" about Kansas, but it *is* a state and *does* have a history...unfortunately...), Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, Washington, and ends in Seattle.

So expect to see some pictures, blog posts and historical tidbits (it is a 6-unit History course, after all!) in the coming months!

(also visit the class blog http://historyonthemove.blogspot.com)

April Fool's Day

Okay, a day late, I suppose. My version of the April fool.

I seriously do not understand the appeal of this day. I am a naturally gullible person. I take it as a compliment, not an insult, to be judged for having a certain optimistic naiveté. So what bothers me so much are people who think it's funny to take advantage of that for amusement. In the past, I have had some people I called "Friends" do some pretty questionable things to me on the "April Fool's" Day.

There are enough problems in the world, why make people feel bad for trusting others? It's not like I can't take a joke, just ask any one of my friends, I am the source of a lot of laughter. Fooling someone is not a joke, and it's not helpful. You want to be funny? Do or say something witty, do not use trickery and deceit, because that is SO 1990's.