Birthday Present from a Kidnapper

I came home from work on an average Wednesday and noticed this in the corner where my guitar had been sitting.


I have been wanting to learn to play the guitar badly but my finances have gotten in the way. I remembered Uncle Mike had an old guitar and was lucky enough to borrow it. However, the guitar needed new strings, and yet again money gets in the way of fun. Luckily, I have an amazing friend, one who decided I should celebrate my birthday in September.

I received an email the next day telling me we had plans after work. When Jordan picked me up (wearing an Ohio State shirt none the less!) there was a birthday card on the seat. (Really? I already get to celebrate my birthday 3 whole months early? Hmmm I can handle this.) She refused to say where we were going and suspense was killing me. Surprises are the best thing ever, just my opinion.

Jordan treated me to Starbucks (mmmmm) and then pulled in to Guitar Center. Woo hoo! She pulled my guitar and a bag of goodies (aka strings, picks, and a tuner) from her trunk.


Since it was Tune-Up Tuesdays, Trevor (the guitar guy) so kindly strung my guitar while we walked around admiring all the cool and expensive instruments. (I spotted an awesome pink glitter guitar that maybe I can buy once I become a pro). Until then, I get to learn on my newly strung guitar and one of the best birthday presents ever.


Thank you, Jordan, for knowing what I needed and knowing that I needed a pickup before my birthday.

Now if only I knew how to play this thing...

It's the President's Fault

I was late for work today. I was stuck in traffic and realized no one was moving, so I maneuvered my way across a few lanes, did a U-turn (hey it's legal out here) and headed in the opposite direction. I looped around to the road parallel to my previous route smirking to myself. (haha those suckers were waiting for that wreck or whatever to clear up and I was smooth sailing on my way to work....errrr uh oh). There was stopped traffic again...wait a minute, at the same road. And then I realized the helicopters flying above were not from some little fender bender, it was a bigger issue, perhaps that the President's motorcade was about to come through? So I figured I could handle sitting in traffic for a little bit. I mean, I couldn't get in trouble at work because of the President, right? I did use the unexpected time to call my father back. So thank you, Mr. President, for giving me a few extra minutes away from work and for allowing me to return daddy-o's phone call.

Yield

I'm at a point in my life where I see the cross road ahead. I might not be sitting at the 4-way stop deciding which blinker (if any) to turn on, but I can see the red octagonal shape ahead and a mixture of emotions hit me. Excitement at the possibilities, fear of the unknown, and nostalgia and appreciation for the present wash over me. It's funny how one minute you can be driving along with the windows down singing along to to radio loudly (and slightly off key) without a care in the world or a worry about what song you will listen to next and then BAM! You hit something. That figurative little wall you just nicked didn't do any serious damage. No need to call the insurance company, but it jarred you awake, made you pay more attention as you drove off. What about the road ahead? What can you do to be more prepared? And the songs you have been singing along to?... suddenly they are getting a little old. It might just be time for a new CD. That one little nick in the bumper can really make you think. I like thinking, but sometimes I get a little too excited (and ok downright obsessive) about future possibilities. Maybe someone should buy me a guitar so I can get a new hobby and quite dreaming of life changing decisions and moves. Then I can just sing along off key in my apartment and not be out there driving on the road of life trying to figure out where I'm headed next.

Some Things Never Change...And I'm OK With That

This is long over due and now I've forgotten all the witty things I wanted to say about my trip home, but basically it was wonderful. It just felt so great to be back home to the simplicity of the country life, see the green grass, eat good food, enjoy the farm life, and see all my loved ones.

Lists are way easier than paragraphs. They might not convey all my deep emotions regarded to each bullet point, but they are much easier to read and sometimes words just can't describe.

O-H-ighlights:

My mom graduated

hugs from my step-sister

learning to drive manual in a parking lot

"guy's day" with dad and the youngest brother

shooting gunsriding around in a pickup

tall boys

time with the siblings
country roads

conversations and hugs with soul mate friends

fellow "Gingers"(on both sides of the family)

corn on the cob
home made ice cream
dad's waffles
big green tractorsfamily photo shoots

ohio license plates galore

The College of Wooster

Bad Coffee Karma

I'm a believer in Karma. I feel like you have to put good out there in the world in order to get it back. A couple months ago I stopped at Dunkin Donuts on my way to work to treat myself to their yummy iced coffee. I had a free coupon for a donut and decided to switch it up a bit and go inside instead of the drive-thru and let myself indulge in the sweet goodness of those little round treats. The lady couldn't figure out how to ring up the coupon so I politely stepped aside as she asked her manager for advice and then began to ring up the people that had just come in behind me. The other lady at the counter then called out a drink order that was completely backwards of what I ordered and tried to give it to me. I explained that wasn't what I ordered but it was fine, I would take it anyways (I thought maybe God was trying to give me the extra whip cream and extra chocolate with whole milk...), but the lady said she's remake it correctly for me (so maybe God was just testing my willpower?) Anyways, the place suddenly gets busy and no one is seeming to notice me standing there waiting for the simple free donut. I think to myself that I really do not need to consume those horrific calories and bother these people who have a line waiting. So I just grab my drink and the messed up drink (that the lady insisted I take and give to someone else) and head out the door. A few minutes later as I'm chatting to my mom as I near work, I realize that I never actually paid for my coffee. This might be where most people just say "oh well" and chalk it up to a life freebie, but my conscience couldn't possibly let me be one of those people. Oh no, it has to make me feel horrible, like I just ruined Christmas or something. So I turn around (risk being late for work) go through the drive through and tell them that I never paid for my coffee. The lady was so shocked she said she'd just charge me for a small, but since I was doing it, I insisted on paying for what I bought AND I didn't even mention that I never got my donut.

The rest of the day I was feeling pretty good about myself. Since I patron that DD pretty often I just figured I was being a good customer and had earned some Coffee Karma. And I really believed that...Until Today.

My friend Jordan posted on twitter that the DD she went to the other day had an offer for a free bagel with the purchase of a medium coffee until August 25th. Now I was thrilled when I saw this. I immediately told my boss and we both got probably a little too excited about this prospect, but that is our order of choice anyways, so why not get part of it free? So this morning I think to myself, "Heck, it's Monday why not start the week off with a treat and free bagel?" And to that I replied " Ok self, great idea!" And I swung my car into that drive-thru where the following conversation ensued.

Dunkin Lady: Thanks for choosing Dunking Donuts, what can I get you? (or something like that i didn't really have a tape recorder...)

Me: Hi! (I'm really perky to these people bc they give me yummy coffee). Can I please get a medium iced coffee with sugar and cream?

D.L: Sure

Me: And can I get a free bagel with that?

D.L: Um no, but you can add one on your order...

Me: Oh, I thought there was a promotion until August 25th?

D.L: No sorry, not here.

Me: (Defeated) Oh, ok then I'll just get one anyways with extra cream cheese please (because all the sudden they only give you a teeny tiny bit that hardly covers both sides!...and it's reduced fat so it's ok right?)

So I pull around to the window, hand the lady my card and get my iced coffee and a bag with my bagel in it. When I get to work, my boss is sipping on her iced coffee and she asks me excitedly if I got my free bagel. I pout and say no and explain. She looks at me and says, " Oh, well I went there this morning and I got mine for free!" I was so hurt. I mean the lady lied to me. It's like they hate me or something. I try to brush it off and open my bagel bag. As I'm telling my boss that I remembered to ask for extra cream cheese (we've had conversations on their sudden skimpiness) I pull the bagel apart to reveal the tiniest amount of cream cheese I've ever seen. It was bad people. There was a loud gasp as both my boss and I sucked in air at the horror of a plain bagel with a tiny dab of cream cheese covering a 1/4 of one bagel half. And then it was confirmed, they hate me and wanted to ruin my life. My boss tried to get me to go back, but I couldn't do it. I couldn't face those mean people who lie and take my morning joy. Oh no, I wasn't that strong. So I ate my dry bagel that I paid for, sipped the coffee and pouted while wondering what I've done to deserve this Coffee Karma?

I don't know, but I do know that I'm going to Starbucks tomorrow. (That will show them!) Especially because it's free pastry day with a purchase of a medium drink....

Watermelon Cookies

Mom and I used to make these awesome lookin' cookies every summer. I haven't made them in a few years and decided it was time to bring them back. They are almost too cute to eat....almost.

I Get By...

With A Little Help From My Friends!

I've been in a little bit of a rut lately. I'm so blessed to have great friends that are there to pick me up when I'm down. I'm extra lucky to have amazing friends that can read me across the country and can manage to cheer me up thousand miles away. Last week at work I got these lovely flowers from Chevie. The bright and cheery flowers force me to smile and forget about my stupid little worries.