Just a lil ranting...

Shocking! I'm writing!

So much has happened in the last two months, my mind is still trying to catch up! Some things for the better, some... not so much. Since I'm one for ending on a good note, let's start with the not so much...

Well, I can't sing. That's the biggest upset of my life at the moment believe it or not. At first it was due to the fact that my home cpu went down. Talk... about... momentous! I've held this cpu together with bubble gum and wishful thinking for almost 8 years now. I've done as many upgrades as possible to her and done everything in my power to keep her going in tip top shape. Then... one fateful day... poof. Blue Screen Of Death!
I cried.
And yelled.
And then cried some more.
I still had my laptop to get school work done and surf n stuff... but no singing?! How was I to survive?! No Snap?!?! OMG!!! SOMEONE PUT ME OUT OF MY MISERY! NAOOOO!!
THANKFULLY... I got her up and going again. It took me almost 2 weeks, but she's purring along like a well fed kitten now. *sigh of r.e.l.i.e.f! *

So why is that not in the good new section then? Cause the day after I got my cpu going, I woke up with the most nasty virus. It seemed that everyone in town had gotten it at the same time. Schools were close to shutting down due to lack of teachers. The virus was kind enough to take my breath and lower my voice an octave or two. To make things worse, after I started feeling better, a frog took up permanent residence in my throat. I went to the dr and he said," Don't worry, your voice should be back to normal for singing in about a month and a half to two months... depending on how much you use your voice. Try not to talk to much."

Does anyone else see the problem with that??

Just as upsetting is the fact that Steph, my niece (or Nani for those that know her through me), isn't getting better. Recap in a nutshell: She started suffering headaches, they found a ....thing... in her brain that they removed and ever since then she can't walk, can't smell or taste, is losing her grip and has somewhat lost her short term memory. They've ruled out Huntington's, damage from the surgery and just about ever movement disorder there is. It kills me every time they poke her or prod her or tell her they don't know what's wrong with her. She's 18!! She's supposed to be healthy! She is brilliant and supposed to be in college wowing her professors and on her way to the Nobel Prize ( I'm not joking or exaggerating, seriously, this girl is brilliant) but instead, she's confined to her bed or a walker and all we can do is wait for the next Dr to raise his eyebrows at her and say" Hmm.. interesting". It's not fair. She deserves better than this.

School is also rather pissing me off. I can't wait till the end of this semester. Seriously, I've had ONE class this semester that I truly enjoyed. For that one class I wish this semester would never end. My Monday night Intro to Educations class has been the single most fantastic class that I have had since I started kindergarten. Yes, it even beats out recess! More about that in the "Likes" section though. Back to it pissin me off.
Now, I've been really well about keeping my temper lately, but three out of the four teachers this semester have been absolute nightmares. One of them is on a complete power trip. Her "My-Way-Or-The-Highway" attitude is almost enough to make me not want to show up for the class. Unfortunately, I need that credit. So I have to suffer through her prissiness EVERY SINGLE DAY! Another teacher can't stop "When I did my masters thesis in Morocco..." ways so much so that I just about screamed the other day. I'm not the only one annoyed by it. I have one friend in that class (someone I had in another class in an earlier semester, he doesn't know anyone else in the class but me) and we sit next to each other. He actually put his hand on my arm that day as if to remind me, "I know it's annoying, but there's only an hour left of class today, it'll be over soon and I'm sure she can't say it many more times." She did. 8 more times. *twitch, twitch* The last teacher, I'll just say one thing. If you have a student who was sick from your class and you tell them that you'll work with them to get things caught up... DO IT...don't just say it and them rip them a new one when they are one day late getting an assignment in. grr....

Ok, before I blow muh top, let's see the bright side of life.

Ahh... My Intro to Ed class! Let's start there! As per the previously mentioned 40 observation hours that were assigned to us, I'm in heaven! Instead of following the art teacher, I've been bouncing from classroom to classroom, ranging from 2nd grade to 4th grade. The 2nd graders are my favorite. They're so helpful, ready to learn, follow directions and are just overall great kids! I'm gonna miss them like crazy when the semester is over.

Another thing I'm gonna miss is having my Monday night Ed class in general. I swear my teacher is the most amazing man ever! I went into this class a little worried that I was wasting my time and money on something I wasn't sure I wanted to do. But he has shown me how wonderful it is to be a teacher. Also, he's easy to learn from, wonderful to talk to, intelligent, cares about his students and loves what he does. Never... ever... had I had a teacher like this. If every teacher I've ever had were like him, I can't even imagine what my life would be like today. He inspires me to want to learn more and to do my best, and for that, I'm eternally thankful to him.

As a surprise, I took my daughter to the Men's Basketball game last night. Now, we've watched games on the Tv and online before and she's enjoyed them, but this was the first time that she's ever seen one live. HAHA! It was awesome! She cheered for the team like she'd been following them for 40 years! She wanted so bad to stick around and see if she could get a picture with a few of the team members, but since it was already late, I insisted that we get going home. She was heartbroken and I felt so bad afterward. Luckily, the before mentioned fantastic teacher also happens to be the guy's asst coach, so I'm thinking of buying a tee shirt and asking him to get the guys to sign it and then give it to her for Christmas. I know she'll love it! I bet she's asked me a dozen times today when the next home game is. I already promised we would go lol.

I only have one other thing to mention before I bring this to a close. Something that doesn't really fit into the dislike or like column. On October 2nd, I lost my Grandpa. This is bad news obviously because he was loved by myself and the family and everyone that met him. He was a National Hero, having served in WWII and was a prisoner of war also. He was also the only grandfather I've had. He's lived a long hard life though, and for that I'm proud of him. He was strong in his faith, loved his family and his life. I'm sure he's in heaven now watching us all with a smile on his face... one that I will never forget. I'll miss him forever.

Ok, homework waits for noone, sadly enough. If anyone knows of where I can get about 6 extra hours into a day, I'd be glad to do a deal with ya!

Love to all!

So.... Where was I again??

Well howdee! I can't believe this! I'm actually blogging around midnight lol

My incessant need to fill these pages has been nagging at me again. Although, now that I'm laying here in bed with my laptop, staring at this tiny screen, words fail me. This is the second night in a row now that the sandman has left me off his delivery route. If I knew the number to his union I would call to complain. So, anyway, forgive my ramblings...

Yanno... I find it incredibly interesting that when life closes...slams... one door in your face how fast it is ready and willing to open another door for you. This conundrum has presented itself to me yet I'm slightly afraid to walk through that door. On one hand, I don't think I'm at all ready to take that next step in my life. To move on from the comfort I've known for a few years now and put the past behind me. On the other hand, I WANT to move forward. I see how happy my life could be and I feel in my core that I need to move forward, closing that door behind me. I can't decide what to do. Comfort in aloneness is familiar to me. No one can hurt me if there's no one there to do the hurting. But then again, It would sure feel nice to wake up in someone's arms again ( someone who isn't 7 and patting you in the head wanting a drink of water at 2 am lol)

ugh, nuff of that...

School is going decently. I've actually started enjoying all my classes! Speech has turned into a one man drama class. We're doing manuscript readings right now. She asked us to choose a children's book to read a bit of in front of the class. We have to tell why we chose it, use the different voices and what not. I've chosen the book The Pokey Lil Puppy! My brother and I used to fight over it all the time as kids. Our original copy had long since vanished and then two years ago while I was out Christmas shopping, I found a first printing of it and gave it to him as a gift. He hee'd and haw'd it, but about an hour later, I saw him in the living room by himself smiling at it as he flipped through the pages. *sigh*, Brothers... :)

Spanish is going great!!! I'm sitting at just 2 points below an A+. Mom's actually doing pretty good in the class too. She's catching on very well now, which is kinda sad, i was enjoying the comedy of listening to her try to tell me that she had to "take the autobus to the sink". Oh well, she seems to be having fun, so I'm happy for her.

Anthropology is even starting to catch my attention more. The teacher seems to be doing a section now that is interesting to her and she's kinda having fun with this one. We're studying early primates and early humans. Coupled with the information that a new discovery about the earliest Homo Erectus was announced today, it should prove the be an interesting discussion come next class period! ( ok, you got me.. i just wanted to say erectus lol )

Last but not least at all is my intro to educations class. I had a meeting with my student adviser the other day and was informed that I was accepted into the UNI/DMACC 2+2 program! Which means, I can get my Liberal Arts degree and my teaching degree all through the school I'm going to now and still get the accreditation certificate from the University of Iowa! FRAWR! Bad news though is that in my Intro to Ed class, we were assigned 40 hours of classroom observations.. which, I enjoy doing!... but i was doing them following an elementary art teacher and I was told that UNI only gives accreditation for math, science and lit. So... I have to spend the rest of my hours in a kindg class and in a 5th grade class. I'm still pretty excited though. The kids are great and I look forward to spending time with them. Oh, she also informed me that my Intro to Ed class wasn't really needed for my degree :/ WHY would that be?! Stupid... But I suppose, at least the teacher is BEYOND good looking!!!, super sweet and awesome to talk to.

Well, I'm sure there's about a million other things I could ramble on about, but I'll spare you. I'm sure half of you reading this now are already pulling your hair out over my typos and my atrocious grammar :D I'm off for now, maybe a nice long soak in the hot tub might relax me enough. pfft... i know, who am I joking? lol

Love to all!

4am... again.

To drug myself or not to drug myself... that it the question.

I can't sleep. Which for an insomniac isn't a surprising thing. But when you consider that for the last.. oh... 6 months, give or take, I've been sleeping like a baby, then this is a bit of a setback. No, better than a baby. I had been sleeping like the last 20 (+) years of insomnia had all been a very bad dream. I was sleeping 8..9.. sometimes 10 hours a night! It was incredible! My doctor and I thought it was just the new meds that I was on. I was feeling stronger, sleeping so well. He even said it was ok to drop two of my pills! I felt like I was on top of the world!!!

But.. as the brilliant Sir Issac Newton said, "What goes up, MUST come down."

Two weeks (ish) ago, is when it all came crashing down. I haven't been able to sleep more than 3 hours a night since then... and some nights not at all. I know what set it off. God laughed at me. Yes, I believe in God now. For without God, there's Devil. Without a Devil, there's no Hell. And for sure, I know that Hell exists. The turrets of tears that flow from my eyes are never enough to quench the fire that burns inside me. The screams, that I recognize as my own, are deafening in my ears, though I cannot open my mouth and let them free. I know there's a Hell... cause I'm there now. I know there is a God. And he can go screw himself. If he doesn't like that, then may he spite me now. Kill me. What do I care? He couldn't send me to a place worse than where I am now.

So I sit here. At 4:30 in the morning. Staring at a little orangeish colored bottle with my name on it. If i take it, I'll enter into a blackened world. My brain is conscious enough to know I'm supposed to be asleep, but my eyes just stare at the back of my eyelids for the next 6 hours. Paralyzed in my own mind. Or I could not take it and be comparable to the living dead tomorrow. Either way, my mind is on one thing and one thing only.

*sigh*

decisions.... decisions....

3 Months??

Really? has it been 3 months since I blogged? I checked my other sites that I blog on and the dates on those were even later! How can that be? What have I been doing?

Oh yeah, I remember...

Well the summer semester didn't go the best for me. I only took two classes because I wanted to spend time with my bf this summer instead of going to school. I took two classes that I thought I could breeze through given my work background: Accounting and Ethics. Well... the Ethics went well.
Accounting? Yeahhhhhhhh... not so much...
>.>
Apparently, you have to actually attend classes and do the homework to get a good grade... whoda thunk it?

With July came classes, more bf time and summer activities. Taking the kids to the park, talks of layoffs at work, attempting to study and a rushed party to celebrate the 4th and my brothers birthday were just the tip of the proverbial iceberg that fulled my days and nights.

August came in too much of a rush. It started off fantastic with talks of babies and trips abroad and then slowly and steadily got worse. My birthday on the 11th signaled the end of an era for me. I honestly thought that the day I turned 30 that I would be depressed and there wouldn't be a single high point in the whole day. I was wrong of course because even though I was feeling old and grouchy, I got to open my present that I'd been waiting for for 2 weeks. When I opened it, it was like the sun was shinning on me from a distant land! It made the day bearable (no pun intended) and I made it through without too many tears of self pity.

The end of August also brought with it the end of a relationship. I'm not going to go into details, but will say that I was absolutely furious with the decisions made and the words that were said and now... a few days after... the sadness and the loneliness are creeping in. I'm not very good on my own but if that's the way it's going to be then so be it. I say this cause I know that no matter if I look and find someone, or someone looks and finds me, I'll never find one like the one I lost. And every man in my life... whether friend or potential suitor... will be compared to "him", and they will NEVER measure up to the way he made me feel during the good days. So, with that said, i'll be single for life.

Thankfully then that the end of August has also brought the beginning of a new semester and the beginning of a new major. I've signed up for 5 classes, all not the easiest on the list, and have decided to bury myself in books and notes to clear my mind. I've also ran into a friend I made a few semesters ago. We're both sharing a class again and I had forgotten how much I enjoyed his conversations. ( as per the above paragraph... he's 10 yrs my Jr, sweet, kind and totally not my type lol )

So all in all, It's been a wonderful last three months with a dark spot to mar it's ending. But things will get better, as they always do, and life goes on....

... whether we hop aboard or not.

Love to all!

25 Things About 25 things

1.I always wanted a big lavish wedding. Flowers (white roses, orange and cherry blossoms) flowing from every single surface and the smell to just envelope you as you walk in. Flowers are the main thing. I don't mind how I look or anything else. I just want the flowers to be PERFECT.

2. I am a complete sugar addict! My favorite are Jellybeans. I could LIVE off of Jellybeans. Not the plain ones that you get at Easter time, I'm talking about the gourmet kind. Strawberry Cheesecake jellybeans are to die for! I think LemonHeads come in a very close second though. I would never have made it through algebra in college without lemonheads.

3. I can't sleep. Ever. It takes me forever to fall asleep because I can't seem to stop thinking about things. When I finally do fall asleep, I wake up at least twice a night. Usually, I average about 3-5 hours of sleep a night. Sometimes it'll take me a day or two to finally wear down enough to fall asleep. The doctors are no help. I am an insomniac. I've grown accustomed to it.

4. I love to sing! I sing in the car, the shower, heck I've been known to burst out singing in the middle of a sentence. My most favorite place to sing is SingSnap.com. It's a wonderful online Karaoke site with the most fantastic people on it. I'm not the best of singers though, but I try and have fun doing it.

5.I'm a pretty laid back person. I used to let things bother me way to much, but I've gotten over it. Making people laugh comes naturally to me. My mom is always telling me " take it on the road Jenna!" which either means she thinks I should be a stand up comic or I should go play in traffic... I'm not sure which.

6. I am the quintessential redhead. When I get mad, I get infuriated. When i get crazy, I get wild. When I get horny, I get..... well, we wont go there. I LOVE being a redhead... most of the time. Which is a good thing, because when I try to color my hair something else, it just comes out a different shade of red. I was once told that everyone should avoid redheads. God made us redheads because red is a sign of danger. I think I have to agree with that lol.

7. My mom is my best friend. She's the one person that will not put up with my crap and will tell me when I'm being stupid. Which I need sometimes. She also happens to be the most caring, loving, patient person I have ever met. She also annoys the piss out of me at times. Some days I don't even want to see her, but after spending 5 minutes with her I don't want her to leave my side.

8. I miss my nana. Some days it hurts so bad that I can't help but cry. She was sooooo funny! Her and my uncle would sit there and fight over the most meaningless things and I couldn't help but laugh. Or she would launch into a story about something that happened with someone 40 years ago and I was supposed to know who she was talking about. And she was the best cook EVER! Even if it was just my family that was over to see her ( 4 of us), she would make enough food to feed a third world country for a year. God, I miss her....

9. My daughter, Erin, is the most beautiful person I know. She is growing up so fast that it makes me dizzy just to think of it. We were talking the other day about how now that she's 9, she's half way to becoming an adult. I was shocked into silence that my little baby girl is halfway through her childhood already. She's so smart too. Top of her class in everything. She's sweet, appreciative of the things in her life, caring towards others and basically the most perfect daughter any mother could ever hope for. Her teachers praise her and cry at the end of the school year to see her moving forward. I'm truly blessed to have her in my life and to have so many others love her and care for her as well.

10. Logan.... oh.my.God... Logan is pure boy. He runs around like a maniac, hates taking baths, loves to play with rocks and bugs, tears the heads off his sisters Barbies, whines when he doesn't get his way, never cleans his room when asked, always wants the same thing for dinner ( spaghetti ), will wait till I'm busy doing something to ask me for a drink... he infuriates me!! But one "Super Logan Hug" is enough to make me forget everything and remind me how much I love that little stinker. His smile is the sweetest smile you will ever see. You can't help but to smile back. He's the most perfect 6 year old little boy I know.

11. I hate going shopping by myself. I don't know why, but I either have to have someone with me or on the phone with someone. If I don't, I just feel.... weird.

12. I'm obsessed with my eyebrows. I dont pluck, comb, tweeze or otherwise mutilate them in anyway, and they still are perfect. I love them lol.

13.I abbr evthing and at timez muh punctuation is crap lol oh and i use lol way too much all n all muh typin leaves somethin to be desired most of the time... but idc :)

14. After 10 years of raising kids and crappy jobs, I've decided to go back to school. I thank my mom for pushing me into going back because I don't think I would have had the strength and the courage to make that decision. After my first semester, I realized something.. I LIKE school! High school was crap... but college is an adventure! I think this is because I waited so long to go. I grew up and realized that an education is so important in todays world. I'm also able to focus more than I did 10 years ago. For the first time in my life, I can actually say, " I'm proud of myself for something I am working hard to accomplish. This achievement is going to be wonderful because I've worked hard and DESERVE it!"

15.I'm horrible at returning phone calls. Or really, answering my phone in general. I have a cell phone that is never outside a 10 foot radius of me, but yet I still never answer it. No offense to those that call me... but I really don't like talking on the phone sometimes!

16.I'm a sarcastic twit. No really. I've been described as someone that can insult a person and make them think I was giving them a complement. It's a natural gift... ok, it comes from watching too much M*A*S*H... but I digress.

17. I adore writing and art. I took every single art class in high school and even a few classes that the teacher made up for me. It's my one true everlasting passion in life. My new found joy though is writing. I accredit this to my Composition teacher last semester. She was so incredibly supportive and taught me not to conform to the standards of writing when I free write. When I learned to just write what I wanted to, I couldn't stop!

18. Speaking of writing, I can't stand when people type "alot" instead of the correct way, "a lot". It's two words people! TWO! A .... LOT!

19.I'm a teen book fanatic. I loved the Twilight series!! I've read it more times than I can count and I've actually had to rebuy the first book cause I'd read it so much that the pages were starting to fall out. I also adore Ann Brashares! I giggled and cried my way through all four of the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants books and have read The Last Summer (of you and I ) about a dozen times. There's something about the innocence of the stories and the subtle hint of passion without the gory details that I really enjoy.

20. I've never met a fruit I didn't like. Wait... that sounds bad....

21.I am in love with a man that makes me smile everyday. He's perfect, even though he doesn't think so. I fall asleep thinking of him, dream of him at night and wake up thinking of him ever morning. My heart skips a beat every time he says I Love You. Even as I write this now I smile. To me... that's true love.

22.I'm the most impatient person in the world. I HATE to wait for things. Especially when I'm driving! It's the pedal on the right people! Use it!

23. My dad and my brother are something else. My dad works too hard and I feel bad because of it. He's always out to teach us kids a lesson, but I know he has our best interests at heart. I adore watching him play with my kids. When I was growing up, he worked so long and so hard that he never had time to play with us. But now I see him playing with Erin and Logan and am so happy he's in our lives. If I could chose my dad in my next life, I would chose him again. I worry all the time about my brother. Although he brings a lot of it upon himself, life has dealt him a pretty crappy hand. He works so hard and gets so little in return. But he's got 4 beautiful daughters that he loves with all his heart so he's happy. And I'm happy for him. But I still worry.

24.I have a billion and one facial expressions. I have a feeling some people talk to me just to see what my next facial expression will be. Kinda creepy...

25.I have a cat. She's a black and white tuxedo cat. She was the runt of the litter so she's so tiny but somehow when she's sleeping on me at 3am, she weighs a ton. There seems to be a new ongoing debate over who named her. It was either my niece where we got her or my daughter. They both blame each other. Either way, one of them has a very sick sense of humor. I have a feeling sooner or later I'm going to have to pay for kitty therapy. Oh... my cats name.... is Mouse.

An Assignment of Observation

Below is my first writing assignment in Sociology. The only instruction we received was to watch people and write a paper about it.

My teacher is still laughing...

*********

This should be entertaining.

I walk into the grocery entrance at the Ames Wal-Mart with my mom lagging behind me, under the heaters of the entrance. Our destination is the corner table in the McDonalds in the front of the store. Mom sets her things at the table and joins me at the counter to get some snacks while we observe the crazy people around us.

The lady that takes our order greets us with way to big of a smile. One that says,” Hello, I hate my job, but I must be nice to you because the guy in the blue shirt behind me is my boss.” I order my food while mom stands there and looks at the menu like she’s never been to a McDonalds before. After an eternity, she orders and turns to walk back to the table. Wait a minute… how did I get stuck with the bill?!

We sit down at our table after I fill our drinks and pull our notebooks out. Mom has situated herself so her back is to the entrance and she’s facing the checkout lanes. I’m guessing her plan is to check out the hot guys that are coming through the lanes. Darn it, I was going to take that spot! I grudgingly place myself opposite her facing the vast produce section and the entrance.

From here I see a surprisingly almost empty section of Wal-Mart. Apples, oranges, limes, lemons and a huge variety of veggies are in sight. Thinking that it might be too empty to do my observations on, I let my eyes wander to the Wal-Mart greeter. He’s a short Asian guy with overly spiky hair, but dressed rather nicely. Not bad looking I suppose. Nice enough to stare at for half an hour I guess. Well, I’m already seated here, might as well stay.

I check my phone for the time. Mom gives me a dirty look, like I was about to make another phone call. I’m way too addicted to this thing. It’s already replaced my watch, IPod, home phone and laptop. But, I digress…

Time: 5:10 pm

I start to write.

5:10 pm

· ....Two women who must know each other stop to talk in the middle of the produce aisle. I hate it when people do this! One taller lady is wearing an incredibly puffy green jacket. I’ve no clue as to her shape underneath it. How unflattering. She’s talking with her hands, waving them around so much I’m half expecting her to take flight.

· ....The greeter stands by the theft detectors watching people as they walk in and out of the store. Um, isn’t he supposed to be talking to them? I thought that was the point of a greeter…

· ....A really tall guy with messed up hair (do people not look at themselves when they leave the house?) picks up an apple from the bin. He holds it to his nose and takes a huge whiff. I wonder what he expects it to smell like? Chicken maybe? Some people…

· ....Glancing back at the two women, I see a guy stops behind them waiting to go around. They totally ignore him. The lady talking with her hands just about smacks him in the face. Ok, that would have been hilarious! I see him mouth the word “Whoa!” and they turn to look at him like he was rude for the interruption. The lady in the middle of the row moves over what I’m guessing was half an inch and the man shoves past.

5:20 pm

· ....The two women are still talking. The other woman, wearing a green jacket, shifts her weight uncomfortably as if she wishes to escape the conversation. I don’t blame her in the least.

· ....A red headed woman stops at the apples. I’ve noticed many people stopping by the bin and realize it’s because they are only $1/pound. Oh! That’s a good price! I might have to stop to buy some before we leave. The redheaded shopper walks over to the limes next. Apple and limes? Memo to self: Don’t eat at her house. She then proceeds to wander around as if she’s lost. Probably trying to find something that goes with apple and lime.

· ....My little greeter friend is still standing there watching people walk by. He’s yet to say anything to anyone. I chuckle as I relate this fact to mom.

5:30 pm

· ....A very well-to-do looking woman dressed to the nines rams her cart into the apple bin in her attempt to get closer to them. In the process, she knocks 4 apples to the floor. She swings her head around fast and bends over to pick them up. She better not… Oh my god, she put them back in the bin! Well, so much for me buying apples before I leave.

· ....An elderly couple starts their shopping by walking past the vegetables. They are currently arguing as the woman waves a bunch of broccoli in front of the man’s face. I’d bet five dollars that he doesn’t want to eat it.

· ....The “greeter” was forced to speak to someone after they asked him a question. He didn’t look enthused about the idea. At this very moment, his back is to me facing the baked goods with one hand in his pocket and the other poking at the top of some cupcakes. I laugh out loud at this as I again relate this detail to mom.

5:35 pm

· ....The produce department is shockingly devoid of people! How surprising!

· ....My eyes wander across the table to mom. She’s wearing my favorite light blue sweater of hers. Her glasses are perched precariously at the tip of her nose. She looks over them at the people in the checkouts, trying ever so discreetly to observe them without drawing their attention. She reminds me of a cute little ninja in a flower patterned outfit I saw in an anime once. I duck my head and write some more as I try to hold in my laughter.

· ....Uh oh. Someone’s in trouble! Here comes the “greeters” boss. He asks the kid to help a customer out with a brand new, rather large, entertainment center. I’m guessing someone got tax money back! The “greeter” looks at the box, looks out the door, looks at his boss and gave him the biggest cheesiest “Oh course!” grin I’ve ever seen. Again, I laugh at the guy.

5:40 pm

· ....A short guy in a Navy Pea coat is picking through the apples now. Um, I wouldn’t take that top one, guy…

· ....A very tired looking woman pushes a cart with a crying baby past the oranges. She turns her back to look through the apples and the baby reaches out of the cart and grabs an orange off the shelf. I wait with bated breath as I see in my head the oranges all tumbling off the shelf. Unfortunately they stay where they are. Mom places the apples in the basket and starts pushing the cart again. I wonder to myself how long it will take her to notice the kid has an orange in her hand.

· ....My “greeter” friend is back inside looking like he’s frozen. He had come back just in time for the alarm to go off. He looks rather annoyed that he had to do two things in a row. Now he’s back to not greeting people, although, I thought I saw him smile at a good looking girl that walked out. Well, at least the cupcakes are safe for the time being.

· ....The two women that were talking in the middle of the aisle…. Are still talking.

· ....I start to tell mom about my observations so far. I look up at her and she’s shoving fries into her mouth. I have the irresistible urge to tell her that the FDA called, there’s no fry shortage today, but since she’s my ride home, I resist.

5:50 pm

· ....Wow! Where did all these people in the produce department come from?

· ....An older woman in a coat that’s so checkered it’s almost painful to my eyes, picks up an apple that was on the floor. I cringe at the thought and hope to myself that she washes her produce before eating it.

· ....I watch as a middle aged woman in a long tan coat walks around a display 4 times. Is she lost too? How do you get lost walking around…. Never mind, I don’t want to know.

· ....A short Chinese lady is digging through the limes in a frenzy. She’s so short, I half expect her to fall into them with her little legs kicking in the air as she tries to get that perfect lime from the way bottom.

· ....My new friend, the Anti-Greeter, has noticed me watching him and is staring back at me with a puzzled look on his face. He starts to look a little nervous as he sees me writing and watching him. He suddenly starts greeting people. Four people in under a minute. I think it’s a personal best for him. He looks back at me, greets someone, looks at me, greets, looks, greets… I chuckle and think about telling him that I was from immigration or something. I should probably tell him what I’m doing before I leave… that would be a whole other paper though.

Mom clears her throat and says she’s had enough of these crazy people. I on the other hand, I’m feeling perfectly content watching the Anti –Greeter. She starts putting her things away and I fold up my notebook. The Anti-Greeter talks to a lady coworker and then turns around and starts walking towards where mom and I are sitting. I utter a tiny gasp as he walks past us with a confused look to me. Oh my, I thought he was going to say something! Well, so much for telling him about the paper. Mom breaks through my thoughts with a single word – Shopping! - and the only thing I want to observe now is my money getting spent.