Mrs. Peacock, get away from me with that shoe!

I had a thought...

And I think it would be an excellent prank to play on someone, to switch their Clue pieces with their Monopoly pieces when they aren't looking. So that the next time they play, it's Colonel Mustard in the billiard room with the THIMBLE! And in Monopoly, everyone is fighting over who gets to be the lead pipe. No? I thought it was funny...

At any rate - much self-discovery has been happening this last week. It's amazing what one situation can bring to the surface. And to think that it was a random house-party out in Wentzville that did it for me... Haha! It's good though. It needed to happen, for me and everyone involved. It's about life. It's about growing, and learning, and experiencing. Not about staying in one place or space for the rest of your life. But letting your experiences and encounters help shape you and mold you into something new.

Right now, I feel like a caterpillar that just escaped from her cocoon, and I'm still learning how to fly. I'm free, and out there - but I just don't know quite what to do with myself yet. (Jennifer, queen of metaphors, I thought you'd like that one! Almost as much as I liked your fish in a fishbowl one from years ago...)

My life in May will be radically different than it is now. I'm just trying to prepare myself and get ready for that change. Doing everything I can NOW to make myself the best person I can be in 4 months. : ]

"And this old world is a new world / and a bold world / for me"

Holy cow! Remember how I was gonna update this regularly and everything. HAHAHA I really think I have some issues with commitment or something. Yeesh! Well, it's a new year, right? I'll try again. :]

But yes, it's a new year. I couldn't be more excited either. It got off to a rocky start, but everything's falling into place. Epic things will be happening this year. I turn 22 on 2/2, and I graduate from college exactly 3 months after that. Meaning...I'm going to be an official adult in just a few short months, and having to make important decisions about my future. I'm really looking forward to it though. I've been in school for 17 years now, and I'm ready for something new and different. I don't know QUITE what that will be at this point, but I have a few months to still figure it out. :P

I do know that I'll probably be staying in St. Louis for a few years. And I'll probably be getting a job in some type of Interior Design firm, ideally building scaled architectural models, but I'll consider other options, too. My plan for the next few years is just to establish myself in this world. HAHA I want to have a steady income that I can manage. I want to save money, pay off my credit card, organize my life into something I'm proud of, and still have a lot of fun. I'm not worried about long-term plans just yet. I want to enjoy my early-20s for now and worry about the rest later. Ultimately, after I've built up some funds, I hope to do some leisurely travel. It'd be brief, but I really want to just do some exploring and experience some culture-shock before moving on. And at that point, I hope to go to grad school for Archaeology or Art Preservation.

I've decided not to let the fact that I hate Interior Design deter me from what I really want out of life. I'm getting this Bachelors of Fine Arts in Interior Design in May, and for a long time I've been pretty upset that I'm still in this field. But I've come to terms with it, and I think it will still pan out okay and get me where I want to be. It IS a BFA after all, so I'm at least in the right field for my ultimate goals. For so long, though, I didn't see the bigger picture and thought I was destined to be a hoity-toity Interior Design guru for the rest of my life. But now, I realize that this is just a stepping-stone on my journey, and I can take it for what it's worth and apply it to my aspirations advantageously.

Other than that, I've been enjoying the single-life as of mid-September, expanding my network of friends, trying to branch out and meet people I would never otherwise come across. Most come and go, some stick around. And that's fine with me. Just meeting people from different walks of life really makes me happy. It gives me a more well-rounded approach to the world, being constantly reminded that everyone comes from a different background and has different ways of doing things and seeing things. And I like that. Looks like I have a pretty serious prospect to end my singleton-streak, though. Which is entirely exciting, as he (Ryan) is an outstanding guy and able to make me very happy. We will just have to see what ensues... :]

My cats are still mostly amazing. Doug is probably one of my favorite things to ever exist. He's so chill, all the time. And is constantly in a state of CUTE. Conrad's been a bit of a douche lately. Peeing on shit. I had the vet check him out and he's going for a check-up in 2 days. I thought he was all better, too, after they prescribed him special, really-expensive food! But I awoke this morning to him scratching at my legs, "covering up" the puddle of piss he just left on my down comforter. ARGH! It really is like having children. I have to feed them all the time, give them attention, consider them into my daily activities (like, being at a friend's house and deciding whether to spend the night or not, I ususally end up going home "because I need to tend to the kitties"). But I wouldn't trade them for anything. They entertain me way too much. HAHA Who needs cable when you have cute cats?

Let's see...over Winter Break this year I made a really big detour in driving to Colorado in order to visit a few friends in Texas (turned a normally 900-mile trip into a 2,200-mile one instead). My good friend Anthony recently moved to Austin (a place I had never been before) and he seemed like he could use a pick-me-up and just some good ole friend-time. Plus, my friend Josiah was willing to drive from Houston to Austin to hang out for a bit too. So I drove, with the cats in tow, to Austin, TX. Stayed there a few days, enjoyed the city and all it had to offer in the middle of December, and then drove to Albuquerque to visit Shelby. On the way, I was able to help a small family whose car had broken down on the side of the road. I was 3 hours from Shelby's, and they were needing to get back to Albuquerque but had no money for a tow truck or motel or anything. So I was able to fit them into my stuffed car and take them home for the holidays. It was a very moving experience for me, for some reason. And I felt so right about it - I really hope they're doing ok... But after Albuquerque, I drove to Fort Collins for Christmas. It was awesome to see the family and spend time with everyone. I really miss my brothers. They crack me up, all the time, and I wish I could be around them more often. :\

Well, I think that's it for today. We'll see what else I can come up with in the next few days and see if I can get this blog back on track for 2009. I'm slightly determined at this point...

And so it begins...

Well, school has started. And, for the most part, I already don't like it. HAHA - that was fast! I'll be fine, though. I just have to get my mind in the right place. And Marcus is leaving for a month starting next week - so I will have a lot more time to focus on homework if I'm not trying to constantly see him.

My Studio class is bearable. We're doing a project that's part of a competition and the location of the space happens to be in St. Louis (however, students from all over the U.S. and world are competing in this thing). And the funny part is, the space is in this building called the South Side Tower, which happens to be designed by The Lawrence Group (the firm I worked for for 10 months). And the even funnier thing is, when I worked there, they had me re-do the display boards for one of the apartment units and I had to go pick them up there, so I've been INSIDE the place during construction and know what the units look like. I just find it funny because our teacher is begging us not to do a site-visit, since that would be an unfair advantage over everyone else competing in this thing. Little does she know... :P

I have a History class that covers U.S. History from 1877-present. I think it's going to be my favorite class this semester. I really enjoy the reading and think everything is really interesting. In addition to the text book, we're reading The Flivver King right now, which is by Upton Sinclair and discusses Henry Ford and all that good stuff. I read it in bed last night while Marcus read a different novel, and I really liked it!

I also have a Music class. It's a 100 level class, full of people who've never learned anything about music EVER. Now see here...I was a first-chair saxophone player for 3 years, and played in the jazz band with solos and stuff. I KNOW how to read music. And so far, that's all we've learned how to do. HA - it's a nice refresher, though. And the teacher is this cute little old man. So that class will be a breeze for me, which will be nice.

My other 2 classes, however, make me want to shoot myself. One is called Interior Detailing right now. And we're working on drawing sketches, TO SCALE & IN METRIC, of this stupid little bedside table. We have to do plan views, and elevations, and sections. All measured and dimensioned and shit. It SUCKS. And our teacher is really particular about everything. And it's the same teacher who teaches my Business Practice and Ethics course, which is also going to SUCK - mostly because I could care less about starting a business and it's all really complicated.

I'll make it, though. I really think having Marcus be gone for a hefty chunk of time will be good for me. Because I'll have nothing to do BUT schoolwork. :]

Anyway - I gotta go play with the kitties and read for History. Peace!

Finally!

Yay, an update! I got back from vacation (3 days on a float trip with Marcus' family, and then 5 days going home to Colorado to visit) and have been working ever since. But I finally have a day off, so here's your update you've been dying for...

The float trip was really fun. I've never done anything like that before. There were about 30 people there (siblings, cousins, their kids, their kids' friends, etc.) and all of them but Marcus and I stayed in trailers or cabins. We opted for a small tent that was remarkably easy to set up. We spent two days on the Current River in Montauk State Park here in Missouri and had a lot of fun. There were different stopping points along the way that were traditions, like the 15 foot cliff you jump off, the spring you ride down (with freezing water!), the cave you jump in (with freezing water!), and the 40 foot cliff you jump off. I did all of them but the spring, it was just TOO cold. There were also some rope swings along the way, and different places where we just got out to swim. There were also a lot of younger kids on the trip, and probably about 15 Super Soakers total, distributed among the boats. So there was some friendly competition going on with that. And as Robinson Family float trip initiation, Darin tipped our canoe over.

Marcus, driving Stu to the campsite.

In the canoe...

The day after I got back from that, I drove 13 hours out to Colorado to see everyone before the summer ended. I mostly sat at home relaxing and catching up on TV, but I occasionally hung out with Kayla or the Sam & Jack, which was nice. And I only snagged a few pictures, and they're all of Jack with Huxley.

And then I got my OWN cats!!! They were "buy one get one free" at the Humane Society so I opted for two, that way they'd have company whenever I was at work or school. They are SO cute...they're names are Doug and Conrad. Doug is real feisty, likes to play with everything, and lick your face raw. He definitely plays more than he sleeps and gets into trouble a lot. Conrad is much more mellow and likes to sit back more and watch what's going on. He loves to sleep in my lap and I'd consider him a "momma's boy."

Doug.

He likes to play with shoes.

I went grocery shopping today and left some bags laying around. When I went to go and pick them up, I saw this.

Marcus, playing with them. (We found out AFTER I got them that he's allergic, but hopefully the Claritin he bought will solve that...)

And there you have it. I start school in less than 2 weeks and I am less than excited. However, I'm going to try really hard to be more passionate about Interior Design this year. I just have to focus on whatever it is about it that I USED to love so much, and forget about the things I have found to dislike. :]

My humble home.

Well - a blessing in disguise, I guess. I got really sick yesterday and today and had to call into work. But I was able to clean my apartment and take pictures of it instead! I keep coughing and sneezing up mucus and phlegm and my nose is literally draining itself of my brains or something. So I've just been resting all day by watching TV (by TV, I mean the whole 5 channels I get with my shitty antenna), and cleaning on commercial breaks. Drum roll please................

The view of the "hallway" from the far corner of my bedroom.

My teeny bathroom.

The view of the living room and entry from the "hallway".

The view of the living room, standing at the kitchen sink.

The view of the bedroom from the "hallway".

The bedroom (and closet door) from the head of the bed.

Looking into the kitchen from the "dining room".

The living room from the "dining room".

The living room from the "hallway".

The kitchen from the living room.

The kitchen and "dining room" from the living room. The entry is that little blip of linoleum on the right.

The entry and "dining room".

So that's my home sweet home. I love it and it's finally coming together. I just need a chair to put next to the sofa in the living room, and I'll be set. Maybe an area rug, too. But other than that, I'm pretty happy with it. And if you'll notice, anything and everything hanging on the walls is either 1.) created by myself, 2.) an antique from my grandparents, 3.) given to me by family. And I'm going to keep all my artwork in my future houses like that from now on. I think it's neat.

Calvin's first day.

So that day where I had off and was going to hang out by myself and what not? Didn't happen.

Ended up hanging out with Jill and her new puppy, Calvin, all day. We went to The Boathouse and took him on a boat ride, ate lunch, then drove to the winery in New Town where my buddy Anthony works and drank three bottles of wine until 10 in the evening. HAHA - it was quite productive. And, like I promised, I took pictures. :]

Calvin!


Jill with Calvin at lunch.


Anthony treated us well. :]


The man himself, Anthony!


Jill and I with our wine...


We wore him out!

It was a good day - to say the least. I haven't done a whole lot since then, just been working. Marcus and I BBQed yesterday. We made burgers and hot dogs, had potato salad and chips, and later on...cookies! We also took a walk because his condo was burning up and it was beautiful outside!

I took a few pictures of my apartment, but I need some new batteries before I can get the whole tour. Plus, the place is so small that I need to figure out some better angles to get everything in one shot! :P

Until then.

Another new blog...

Another new blog, I know... But this one I'm really going to try at. I really like the idea of starting over every now and again, though. Either that, or I just can't commit to anything... :P My new goal this summer, though, is to take more pictures, do more things, have more fun - and then document it. So the plan for this blog is for it to be updated frequently and be more interesting, with pictures and such.

So far this summer has been pretty awesome. I've been working a lot at The Boathouse, which is stressful, but at the same time, I get to spend my days outside, in Forest Park, right on a lake. And I can't complain too much about that. They're trying to make me a server soon (or so they tell me), but right now there aren't enough hosts that they can't afford to lose me as one. So hopefully they'll bring on more staff soon here so I can start serving. (I'm getting ready to tell them that if they don't make me a server in 2 weeks, this IS my 2 weeks...) But all in all, I love the people I work with, I love the setting, I love the managers, and I get to work with my boyfriend - so it's pretty much perfect. Now I just need to make more money...

Marcus and I both had the day off yesterday and went to a baby shower for his friends Matt and Sarah. We played croquet and washers and ate lots of food. Then we went and got on Marcus' motorcycle and rode to Forest Park so we could experience the Beer Garden at The Boathouse while NOT working. We went for a walk, and then Matt let us take a boat out. So we rode out to the middle of the lake, turned around, and listened to the band play from out there. We could also barely make out all of our coworkers, so we played this game trying to guess who everyone was. I snagged these pictures while we were out there:

The Boathouse at night, viewed from a paddleboat.

Marcus and I on the paddleboat (and no, we never look normal in pictures)

I have the day off again, today, which is really odd. So I'm going to clean my place up a little bit, go rent a free movie or 2 from McDonald's, and just hang out by my self. My friend Jill is getting a new dog today, too, so I might go over and play with him or go for a walk or something. We'll see. The plan is to relax.

Well - let's see if I can keep this thing updated better. I should have pictures of my new apartment soon (I think I'm getting a sofa this week!), so I'll put those up as soon as I can.