YES! HAZZAH! CELEBRATION!!!
I've completed the outline for my book!
Finally, after stressing about it for a week and a half, I sat down last night and poured into 3 1/2 pages the outcome of my beloved tale. Elation! I've sent it off to some entrusted colleagues for critique, and as soon as they get back to me I'm free to start writing.
OMG I can't wait.
AND...
MY BREAKDANCING DVDS COME IN TODAY!!! DOUBLE YAY!
I'll be advancing in BGirl status in no time. This monday I went to the hip hop class at the Meridian. OMG, can I say FUN? And- excruciatingly embarrasing. I looked like Chris Farley on stage at a Justin Timberlake concert... all the people around me (including the illustrious teacher) had been backup dancers in music videos before, and had the moves and physique to proove it. I can't even do the 2-step. But I had a great time :)
BTW, if anybody is interested in stopping global warming, look at this. I'm not trying to toot my own horn or anything, but if you're not gonna at least TRY it for the animals or yourself- try it for the future of human kind. It's a small thing to ask.
I kinda disagree with what the article is saying though. If you really want to make a difference, vegan- not vegetarian- is really the only way to go. Vegetarians still eat eggs, cheese, and milk products, which means that the farms will still continue to exist. Erase the demand, erase the problem.
OH HAPPY DAY!
P.S. I completely agree Angel. Gameday. Hellz yeah! Oh- and I don't think it was the cat that got the milk spit at her... it was the little girl. Hehe.
Wednesday, January 24, 2007
Friday, January 19, 2007
You Know Who You Are
You.
I see you.
Don't act like you can't hear me.
I adore you. I worship you. I love you.
This is the thanks I get?
Don't walk away from me while I'm talking to you.
I spend endless hours at work making money for you.
When I come home, I make dinner for you.
I shower you with affection, even if I'm tired, drained, distraught.
I sleep on the far side of the bed! FOR YOU!
I never ask for anything in return.
I don't ask for appreciation.
I don't DARE ask for love...
but dammit, I'd hoped at least our relationship was beyond That.
Poop INSIDE the litter box you %&#*@$ CAT!
AAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
How pathetic. You couldn't even look at the camera for our family picture. I despise you.
I see you.
Don't act like you can't hear me.
I adore you. I worship you. I love you.
This is the thanks I get?
Don't walk away from me while I'm talking to you.
I spend endless hours at work making money for you.
When I come home, I make dinner for you.
I shower you with affection, even if I'm tired, drained, distraught.
I sleep on the far side of the bed! FOR YOU!
I never ask for anything in return.
I don't ask for appreciation.
I don't DARE ask for love...
but dammit, I'd hoped at least our relationship was beyond That.
Poop INSIDE the litter box you %&#*@$ CAT!
AAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
How pathetic. You couldn't even look at the camera for our family picture. I despise you.
Thursday, January 18, 2007
MY HERO!!
Her name is Sofia Boutella. She breakdances.
Girl crush.
I'm so in awe. I wanna be her. Breakdancing has always been something I was interested in... kids in school used to breakdance during lunch and I would watch from afar, staring wonderously at these magical beasts of motion. Juan used to do it in college, too, and I would gasp and stare and be jealous of all the things he could do that I was too afraid to try. Then I saw Sofia's video on youtube last week and I realised- I can do that! So I started to.
For the last couple days I've been practicing... standing on my hands and building upper body strength is mainly where my concentration has been so far. It would be so cool to start on the floor moves after that- I can't wait! I netflixed videos (because I'm poor and cant afford classes) on breakdancing, and those should be coming in *gasp* tomorrow. How awesome. My body tingles with anticipation.
I wanna be a BGirl!
On Random News:
THIS is awesome.
So is THIS update on the UCLA taser "incident."
And THIS is just, well, damn interesting.
Life Notes: Bad in the beginning, but good in the end.
- I fell out of love today. It was quick, but not painless. Actually- it was quite the opposite. It hurt. A lot. I've only really been in love twice... I know I say I'm in love a lot, but I'm an expert exaggerater and usually when I say I'm in love I'm only infatuated. A few weeks later I've forgotten my infatuation because, most likely, it's been replaced by a new one.
This one was different. This one was LOVE.
When I got up in the morning I would think of him. I would dress carefully, and dress well (even comb my hair and put on makeup!), so that I could be the type of woman he would be attracted to. I started hobbies and gained more knowledge, so as to be an interesting person to be around. I HAD A LIFE, so that mine seemed more whole and appealing.
I made myself a better person. For him.
Every second of my day was lived for him. My future was worth planning- for him. I even *gasp* started seriously thinking about family and marriage. For him.
And then the bubble burst.
I can tell you when. I can probably even tell you how. What I can't tell you is why. It just happened. One minute I was in love, and the next minute there was a dark inside me that grew and grew until I could no longer breathe. My life before that moment suddenly became worthless, and my dreams for my life after were without warning violently erased.
I was left, gasping on the floor, with nothing to hold on to but my own empty shell.
to make matters worse:
- I had forgotten myself. Peter and I spent the night tonight discussing many things, most of which centered around religion. His girlfriend is extremely religious, and up until now he hasn't been too knowledgeable about anything of that field. To help him learn more she bought him a Bible for his birthday, and he brought it out to read me some proverbs that he found interesting... and hearing him read them made me very sad.
I remember when I used to care about being good.
When I was little I read all the time. If I didn't have a new book (which was often) I would re-read the books in my house. One of my favorite things to read was a big old brown book of stories for children dealing with morals and how to be a good person. The stories inside were fairytale-ish, so it didn't seem like preaching to me, but they always ended with a moral or lesson of some sort. Kind of like Aesop's Fables, where messages saying "One Good Thing Deserves Another" appeared at the end of each tale. I remember sitting on my bed, my lamp burning a hole in the dark, and thinking "I need to work harder on being truthful" or "I need to make sure I'm nicer to everyone." I was genuinely affected by this and would make an effort the next day to BE GOOD. Not be good at writing. Not be good at math. Be good AS A PERSON.
I had forgotten that. In my efforts to be cool, worldly, or "more adult" in college (and even now) I hid away something that was very important to me. My heros became rough necks with guns or loners who could kick ass. I confused my admiration for their self confidence (of which I had none myself) as an admiration for their character traits- i.e. she's cool because she says "Son of a bitch!" and carries a big stick. I despised being called innocent and naive and thought cursing and toughness would cure me of my 'illness'.
What I was really doing was disguising what made me me because I thought "Me" wasn't cutting it.
I was wrong. I have been too concerned about the wrong things. The outside things. My success as a person isn't measured by how many films I've done- it's measured by how many people I've helped. By how understanding I am towards someone who is having a bad day, or how honest I can be with the people around me.
I listened to Peter and I was sad. I used to be good, but now I have a long way to go.
*sigh*
Depressing, right? Weird, because today wasn't an all around bad day... actually it was very good. I was sick so I got to stay home, and I spent some quality time with my roomies. I also continued writing the children's book I've been working on.
Oh- BTW- I'm working on a children's book. I didn't tell you before because I thought being excited about it would jinx the whole thing and I would stop working on it after a week, but I've been pretty good. I've been writing almost every day. My self-imposed due date is the end of Jan/early Feb, and the illustrations will be done in June. I'm shooting for Christmas/early 2008 release.
You know- now that I think about it I'm actually pretty happy. Don't get me wrong- I ran to the store and ate a whole carton of soy ice cream after the 'out of love' thing (and will probably be silently depressed for quite some time), but as a whole I think I'm pretty ok.
I guess I'm so happy about writing that even a broken heart can't completely destroy my joy. Random. I can see why guys find girl emotions so confusing.
This one was different. This one was LOVE.
When I got up in the morning I would think of him. I would dress carefully, and dress well (even comb my hair and put on makeup!), so that I could be the type of woman he would be attracted to. I started hobbies and gained more knowledge, so as to be an interesting person to be around. I HAD A LIFE, so that mine seemed more whole and appealing.
I made myself a better person. For him.
Every second of my day was lived for him. My future was worth planning- for him. I even *gasp* started seriously thinking about family and marriage. For him.
And then the bubble burst.
I can tell you when. I can probably even tell you how. What I can't tell you is why. It just happened. One minute I was in love, and the next minute there was a dark inside me that grew and grew until I could no longer breathe. My life before that moment suddenly became worthless, and my dreams for my life after were without warning violently erased.
I was left, gasping on the floor, with nothing to hold on to but my own empty shell.
to make matters worse:
- I had forgotten myself. Peter and I spent the night tonight discussing many things, most of which centered around religion. His girlfriend is extremely religious, and up until now he hasn't been too knowledgeable about anything of that field. To help him learn more she bought him a Bible for his birthday, and he brought it out to read me some proverbs that he found interesting... and hearing him read them made me very sad.
I remember when I used to care about being good.
When I was little I read all the time. If I didn't have a new book (which was often) I would re-read the books in my house. One of my favorite things to read was a big old brown book of stories for children dealing with morals and how to be a good person. The stories inside were fairytale-ish, so it didn't seem like preaching to me, but they always ended with a moral or lesson of some sort. Kind of like Aesop's Fables, where messages saying "One Good Thing Deserves Another" appeared at the end of each tale. I remember sitting on my bed, my lamp burning a hole in the dark, and thinking "I need to work harder on being truthful" or "I need to make sure I'm nicer to everyone." I was genuinely affected by this and would make an effort the next day to BE GOOD. Not be good at writing. Not be good at math. Be good AS A PERSON.
I had forgotten that. In my efforts to be cool, worldly, or "more adult" in college (and even now) I hid away something that was very important to me. My heros became rough necks with guns or loners who could kick ass. I confused my admiration for their self confidence (of which I had none myself) as an admiration for their character traits- i.e. she's cool because she says "Son of a bitch!" and carries a big stick. I despised being called innocent and naive and thought cursing and toughness would cure me of my 'illness'.
What I was really doing was disguising what made me me because I thought "Me" wasn't cutting it.
I was wrong. I have been too concerned about the wrong things. The outside things. My success as a person isn't measured by how many films I've done- it's measured by how many people I've helped. By how understanding I am towards someone who is having a bad day, or how honest I can be with the people around me.
I listened to Peter and I was sad. I used to be good, but now I have a long way to go.
*sigh*
Depressing, right? Weird, because today wasn't an all around bad day... actually it was very good. I was sick so I got to stay home, and I spent some quality time with my roomies. I also continued writing the children's book I've been working on.
Oh- BTW- I'm working on a children's book. I didn't tell you before because I thought being excited about it would jinx the whole thing and I would stop working on it after a week, but I've been pretty good. I've been writing almost every day. My self-imposed due date is the end of Jan/early Feb, and the illustrations will be done in June. I'm shooting for Christmas/early 2008 release.
You know- now that I think about it I'm actually pretty happy. Don't get me wrong- I ran to the store and ate a whole carton of soy ice cream after the 'out of love' thing (and will probably be silently depressed for quite some time), but as a whole I think I'm pretty ok.
I guess I'm so happy about writing that even a broken heart can't completely destroy my joy. Random. I can see why guys find girl emotions so confusing.
Monday, January 15, 2007
Powers of Assumption
I was very awkward growing up, and any kind of public embarrasment would instill itself so solidly in my mind that even now- even though I'm a little more confident, a little more self assured- they still resonate through my life.
Take the case of Mrs. _____'s high school "distance learning" class. Sam Houston High School, being as it were very much ghetto, did get props for having access to high technology. I got to try my hand at 3D animation while I was there, as well as some semblance of neanderthalic film cameras.
I even got to be in their first ever Distance Learning experiment.
Distance Learning is, in all sense of the word, that. 2 classes from 2 different locations (for us, 2 classes at 2 different schools in the same school district) would share lessons via satellite by using strategically placed cameras & microphones at the head of each student's desk, wired to big screen TVs at the front of the classroom. A single teacher would then switch, spending a week at each school and transfering over the next week.
So any kind of public embarrasment to be had was- because fate is always funny- doubled.
I remember walking into class the second week of school. We had our first paper due and, being a thorough student, I had gone all out and put complete headings on mine, considering that every teacher that semester swore allegence to the 'headings' way of life. Mrs. ______ called roll and with each person's name we had to turn in our paper. My last name starts with a B, so I was ready when she called me first.
"What is this?" she asked, looking down at my masterpiece.
"It's my assignment." I said.
"This heading is all wrong. I need a cover page."
Floored, but for only a split second, I shrugged "whatever, ok", sounded an apology, and sat down. My thinking: So I made a mistake... her curriculum in no way stated "Essay Format Rules", but I'll do better next time. Oops.
Somewhere in my heart I like to fantasize that when Mrs. ______ was very little she was terrorized at night by the "Whatever Man." I have hopes that he hid in her closet and shocked her at all hours of the night with horrific images of post-pubescence shrugging off her every word. It is the only logical explanation to the look of disgust she proceeded to form on her face.
"Everyone take note of Ms. Berdin's attitude today." She said, making sure to frame the main classroom camera into a close up of my shocked face. "Don't think that you can turn in work however you want and I'll just be happy to get it."
Fury.
"What are you talking about?" I said.
"You did the assignment wrong, Ms. Berdin." A sea of faces, all familiar, turned towards me. A wave of new ones repeated the action on the big screen.
"How did I do it wrong? Because I didn't put a cover page? Every other teacher in this school
has format instructions for HEADINGS in their curriculum, and since you didn't I only assumed-"
Her hand went up. I stopped, and she strutted over to the magnetic board with the motion censor camera following her every move. In big letters, she jotted:
to ASSUME
makes an
ASS out of U and ME
And so goes my American high school education.
I am reminded of that episode because I spent some time watching the LA filipino channel today. I'm an idiot, and don't speak tagalog, but it was nice hearing the words so I kept the volume up real loud and pretended to understand. After a while I started to, and on one of their shows a roundtable discussion began about whether or not American-raised filipino kids were ruder than their homeland counterparts.
And a statement jumped out at me.
"In the Philippines, children are raised to assume. If a mother asks her son to take the clothes out of the dryer, it is assumed that the son will fold them and put them away. If a father is bringing groceries out of the car, it is assumed (by both parties) that the child will help.
In America, though, children are raised to be instructed. If a mother asks her son to take out the clothes, she must then instruct her son to fold them or he will not know he needs to do it. If the father does not ask for his child's help with the groceries, the child will not see a need to do so.
The conflict comes when Filipinos from the homeland bring values that their children are not exposed to here. A mother will think her son is rude for not folding the clothes, while the son will think his requested work is done and merely not understand why the mother is angry."
Validation.
I am not saying an American upbringing is wrong- I am American, and I at times fit into both molds from the examples above. I am very proud of the American in me (as much as I am of the Filipino), and idiotic sayings from ignorant teachers such as Mrs. _____ will not make me believe that all of America lacks the talent of assumption. But in MY upbringing I was raised to not need guidance when it comes to my work. My bosses have always praised me on the fact that I can pick up on problem areas at the office and start motions to getting them corrected- all without needing to be told- while others will wait for their instruction. It's an obvious thing to me where in others it might be alien, and apparently it's because of the culture that raised me.
And so the power that I hold, the power of assumption that got me public ridicule in Mrs. _____'s Distance Learning class all those years ago, is the same power that gives me praise and credibility in all the projects that I undertake now.
And now I don't look at that ridicule as a failure made by me, but as a triumph. I'm no longer embarrased.
I can't tell you anymore stories about our beloved Mrs. _____, because halfway through the semester I got fed up and dropped out of her class. Actually, I dropped out of school entirely, opting for my GED instead. It wasn't because of her- I don't want to flatter her in thinking my life was ruled by her snide remarks- but many other things put together (and THAT subject, analyzing the public school phenomena, wont be brought up here). Later, on my final visit to the school counselor to sign over my independence, in a last ditch effort to keep me afloat she dropped a folder in my lap.
"It's an invitation to meet the President of the United States. Only 2 students were picked out of our school to go this year, out of only 5 students in our district. You were one of them."
I said no thanks.
I was through with it, done with it all. I reasoned that sometime in my life I would be offered to meet more important people, and those could make up for the one I had to miss then. But, out of curiosity, I opened the folder. Inside were testimonials of my hard work, community efforts, and social respectability from teachers I knew and- surprisingly- teachers I had never met. A required 20 testimonials were needed for application submission to meet the President, and I had 32. Personally, I only knew 10 of the people whose letters lay in my hand. Everyone else had written with blind faith.
How's that for assumption?
Take the case of Mrs. _____'s high school "distance learning" class. Sam Houston High School, being as it were very much ghetto, did get props for having access to high technology. I got to try my hand at 3D animation while I was there, as well as some semblance of neanderthalic film cameras.
I even got to be in their first ever Distance Learning experiment.
Distance Learning is, in all sense of the word, that. 2 classes from 2 different locations (for us, 2 classes at 2 different schools in the same school district) would share lessons via satellite by using strategically placed cameras & microphones at the head of each student's desk, wired to big screen TVs at the front of the classroom. A single teacher would then switch, spending a week at each school and transfering over the next week.
So any kind of public embarrasment to be had was- because fate is always funny- doubled.
I remember walking into class the second week of school. We had our first paper due and, being a thorough student, I had gone all out and put complete headings on mine, considering that every teacher that semester swore allegence to the 'headings' way of life. Mrs. ______ called roll and with each person's name we had to turn in our paper. My last name starts with a B, so I was ready when she called me first.
"What is this?" she asked, looking down at my masterpiece.
"It's my assignment." I said.
"This heading is all wrong. I need a cover page."
Floored, but for only a split second, I shrugged "whatever, ok", sounded an apology, and sat down. My thinking: So I made a mistake... her curriculum in no way stated "Essay Format Rules", but I'll do better next time. Oops.
Somewhere in my heart I like to fantasize that when Mrs. ______ was very little she was terrorized at night by the "Whatever Man." I have hopes that he hid in her closet and shocked her at all hours of the night with horrific images of post-pubescence shrugging off her every word. It is the only logical explanation to the look of disgust she proceeded to form on her face.
"Everyone take note of Ms. Berdin's attitude today." She said, making sure to frame the main classroom camera into a close up of my shocked face. "Don't think that you can turn in work however you want and I'll just be happy to get it."
Fury.
"What are you talking about?" I said.
"You did the assignment wrong, Ms. Berdin." A sea of faces, all familiar, turned towards me. A wave of new ones repeated the action on the big screen.
"How did I do it wrong? Because I didn't put a cover page? Every other teacher in this school
has format instructions for HEADINGS in their curriculum, and since you didn't I only assumed-"
Her hand went up. I stopped, and she strutted over to the magnetic board with the motion censor camera following her every move. In big letters, she jotted:
to ASSUME
makes an
ASS out of U and ME
And so goes my American high school education.
I am reminded of that episode because I spent some time watching the LA filipino channel today. I'm an idiot, and don't speak tagalog, but it was nice hearing the words so I kept the volume up real loud and pretended to understand. After a while I started to, and on one of their shows a roundtable discussion began about whether or not American-raised filipino kids were ruder than their homeland counterparts.
And a statement jumped out at me.
"In the Philippines, children are raised to assume. If a mother asks her son to take the clothes out of the dryer, it is assumed that the son will fold them and put them away. If a father is bringing groceries out of the car, it is assumed (by both parties) that the child will help.
In America, though, children are raised to be instructed. If a mother asks her son to take out the clothes, she must then instruct her son to fold them or he will not know he needs to do it. If the father does not ask for his child's help with the groceries, the child will not see a need to do so.
The conflict comes when Filipinos from the homeland bring values that their children are not exposed to here. A mother will think her son is rude for not folding the clothes, while the son will think his requested work is done and merely not understand why the mother is angry."
Validation.
I am not saying an American upbringing is wrong- I am American, and I at times fit into both molds from the examples above. I am very proud of the American in me (as much as I am of the Filipino), and idiotic sayings from ignorant teachers such as Mrs. _____ will not make me believe that all of America lacks the talent of assumption. But in MY upbringing I was raised to not need guidance when it comes to my work. My bosses have always praised me on the fact that I can pick up on problem areas at the office and start motions to getting them corrected- all without needing to be told- while others will wait for their instruction. It's an obvious thing to me where in others it might be alien, and apparently it's because of the culture that raised me.
And so the power that I hold, the power of assumption that got me public ridicule in Mrs. _____'s Distance Learning class all those years ago, is the same power that gives me praise and credibility in all the projects that I undertake now.
And now I don't look at that ridicule as a failure made by me, but as a triumph. I'm no longer embarrased.
I can't tell you anymore stories about our beloved Mrs. _____, because halfway through the semester I got fed up and dropped out of her class. Actually, I dropped out of school entirely, opting for my GED instead. It wasn't because of her- I don't want to flatter her in thinking my life was ruled by her snide remarks- but many other things put together (and THAT subject, analyzing the public school phenomena, wont be brought up here). Later, on my final visit to the school counselor to sign over my independence, in a last ditch effort to keep me afloat she dropped a folder in my lap.
"It's an invitation to meet the President of the United States. Only 2 students were picked out of our school to go this year, out of only 5 students in our district. You were one of them."
I said no thanks.
I was through with it, done with it all. I reasoned that sometime in my life I would be offered to meet more important people, and those could make up for the one I had to miss then. But, out of curiosity, I opened the folder. Inside were testimonials of my hard work, community efforts, and social respectability from teachers I knew and- surprisingly- teachers I had never met. A required 20 testimonials were needed for application submission to meet the President, and I had 32. Personally, I only knew 10 of the people whose letters lay in my hand. Everyone else had written with blind faith.
How's that for assumption?
Thursday, January 11, 2007
Please God, Not another one
Sunday, January 07, 2007
Thursday, January 04, 2007
But you can dip your feet, every once and a little while
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!!
I've been typing, and subsequently erasing what I've typed, for the last 30 minutes. I want to find an eloquent way of describing how amazing my week at home was for the holidays, but there really is only one way I can put it.
I didn't want to leave.
It wasn't so much being in Texas (god love me if I insult Texas, but it's no LA), nor was it some amazing, unique adventure; or an exciting, exhilarating ride... it was just...
*sigh*
I dunno... how can I explain this where you'd understand?...
There's that moment- that split second- after you've fallen, or been punched, or sneezed too hard; that silent second in life when you are suddenly surrounded by brilliant bubbles of light. You "see stars". They swim through your vision in flickering flashes, and the more your try to focus on individual pieces the more the whole bunch allude your grasp.
And when you finally come to everything has disappeared and what is left is a little less of what you thought it was, because it can never be what you just saw.
... does that make any sense?
haha sorry :) I'll get to the pictures now...
THE UNVIELING!
Finally, people the world over get to experience the exquisite beauty that is Cameron Addison Byrd. Look at her folks... isn't she lovely? Actually... aren't ALL of my nieces lovely? I have a faint suspicion that they are the reason songs get sung.
And of course... they wouldn't be so great if it weren't for THE GREATEST FAMILY IN THE WHOLE UNIVERSE. (Thanks Juan for the brilliant photography):
My family is amazing. I don't know if I ever mentioned before, but I was terrified of coming home because of how hard it would be to say no to all of the Filipino food I couldn't eat. But I didn't have to! My parents ROCK. They had tofu, and chicken and ham substitutes, and vegan takeout, and edible snacks- I probably ate more in that week then I have in a whole year. And it was nice being around them... I forgot how much I missed seeing them in front of me. I love you guys!
I think about 98.9% of my time was spent with my neices. No, I'm wrong... more like 99.9999999% (I forgot to include the EVERY WAKING MOMENT stuff in my last calculation.) I mostly spent it with Keianna, painting her room, building her trampoline, and being guardian extraordinare at Six Flags. I could complain (and I did) but I'd be lying if I said it wasn't some of the most fun I've ever had.
BTW, if my own Dad weren't already the Greatest Dad In Life I would say that Keianna had him. BK spent his whole Tuesday making that trampoline (in of itself a feat that should be included in Herculean definition). And get this: he did it while listening to Keianna's latest Disney pop CD on REPEAT.
Repeat, folks. THATS Herculean.
Side note: RIP Super NoHoVas. My beloved black and blue striped shoes got muddy during the building and Keianna and I placed them in the washing machine for a cleaning... only to find 6 miniature shoe parts after the first cycle was done.
A Moment of Silence.
Anywhoo... I realized lately that my poor camera hasn't been getting any play. I didn't take half as many pictures as I should have this year, but I guess that just proves how great a time I had. For instance, I had a blast during unwrapping time, but the only photos I took were after the fact, when my parents were inspecting theirs:
Daddy got a new digital camera (I expect to see more pictures now for you at home!) and Mommy got a foot massager (which she promptly returned the next day... hehe sorry Mommy).
My Christmas present? I got to spend some time with old (dear) friends. Christmas morning I went to the Meals on Wheels thingy I mentioned before- and guess who accompanied me? Juan!
Poor Juan... ignoring his advice, on one of our last deliveries I decided Mommy's minivan could handle the mud, and instead I expertly got stuck in it. Juan's so lovely, he got out to try and push, but the van didn't budge. Luckily our current Meals and Wheels recipient just happened to be a (?)retired(?) tow truck driver, and he helped us out of the hole.
I had so much fun during Meals on Wheels: I advise anyone interested to venture into that territory (especially if you have such an awesome friend with you). We were given two coolers (one with warm meals, another with milk and snacks) and a big box of gifts to hand out. Then they handed us a list of places to go and sent us on our way. It was great- and pretty heartwarming, since most of the people we delivered food to werent actually spending their Christmas alone.
Some were, though. :( And one lady asked us to come visit her later... I wish I remember where she lived...
Our last lady (Gloria?) was probably one of our first, but she didn't answer the door when we originally came so we went back. The tow truck guy took the last gift bag, milk & cookies (apparently we were short), so we stopped by a gas station and bought her a flower and some cookies. She was sweet too.
Juan spent Christmas day with us (his family celebrates it the night before). It was cool... after all the presents and stuff we went bowling/gaming at Main Event, and TRIED to play Ryan's Atari (we kept dying hehe).
I got to finally hang out with Chau, too... and she's one that I haven't seen in ages. Lucas, Chau and babies (can you believe that she has TWO?!) came up all the way from Austin to say hello. I had to stop myself from going back down with them. God. I remember meeting Chau in first grade (we bonded because we were the only people in class that read books for fun). She hasn't changed at all- she's still the same happy girl I've always loved (though no longer little, and no longer a girl).
I got to hang out with Bran and Dominic too... but I'm so dumb- I forgot to take pictures! Brandi has a new apartment in Lewisville that she shares with Kevin and Jared (I finally got to meet Jared), and it's really cute. Her dog- well, not so much... but that's ok :) Of all my friends from my Arlington life Brandi is the one I am closest with, and it showed the night I visited her. We didn't really do anything- we didn't have to. It was just nice being near each other again.
I'm coming back in July, for a month. I promise. I will be there for your wedding.
I also hung out with Dominic (albeit for only a couple hours). haha- good ol' Dominic. He's finishing college, and is gonna try for a master's degree in buisness. (He also says "Hi Angel & Bim!").
New Years was a blast too... Juan was nice enough to let me tag along with he and his sister (and her jolly good fellow boyfriend Matt- who is the most lovely "corpulent" man I've ever met hehe {not at all}). And I finally got to meet The Nephew! We'd heard about it all during college, and he's delicious! He reminds me of Lance and Cef when they were little and we would play Ninja Turtles on the stairs.
I miss hanging out with Juan. I miss hanging out with all of them: the brave few who came into my life and became my friends. Christmas and New Years made me realize that more than anything. I secluded myself a little too much last year... let's not do it again this time around.
...
Well... that's the bare bones of it. I'm reading it now and it's nothing like it was- what I wrote is just the skeletal remains of it. But that's ok- It's mine to have and bringing it out will only kill it more.
Resolutions:
Just one. Finish something.
I hope everyone had as great a time as I did. If you had half as much fun then that means you had the world.
I've been typing, and subsequently erasing what I've typed, for the last 30 minutes. I want to find an eloquent way of describing how amazing my week at home was for the holidays, but there really is only one way I can put it.
I didn't want to leave.
It wasn't so much being in Texas (god love me if I insult Texas, but it's no LA), nor was it some amazing, unique adventure; or an exciting, exhilarating ride... it was just...
*sigh*
I dunno... how can I explain this where you'd understand?...
There's that moment- that split second- after you've fallen, or been punched, or sneezed too hard; that silent second in life when you are suddenly surrounded by brilliant bubbles of light. You "see stars". They swim through your vision in flickering flashes, and the more your try to focus on individual pieces the more the whole bunch allude your grasp.
And when you finally come to everything has disappeared and what is left is a little less of what you thought it was, because it can never be what you just saw.
... does that make any sense?
haha sorry :) I'll get to the pictures now...
THE UNVIELING!
Finally, people the world over get to experience the exquisite beauty that is Cameron Addison Byrd. Look at her folks... isn't she lovely? Actually... aren't ALL of my nieces lovely? I have a faint suspicion that they are the reason songs get sung.
And of course... they wouldn't be so great if it weren't for THE GREATEST FAMILY IN THE WHOLE UNIVERSE. (Thanks Juan for the brilliant photography):
My family is amazing. I don't know if I ever mentioned before, but I was terrified of coming home because of how hard it would be to say no to all of the Filipino food I couldn't eat. But I didn't have to! My parents ROCK. They had tofu, and chicken and ham substitutes, and vegan takeout, and edible snacks- I probably ate more in that week then I have in a whole year. And it was nice being around them... I forgot how much I missed seeing them in front of me. I love you guys!
I think about 98.9% of my time was spent with my neices. No, I'm wrong... more like 99.9999999% (I forgot to include the EVERY WAKING MOMENT stuff in my last calculation.) I mostly spent it with Keianna, painting her room, building her trampoline, and being guardian extraordinare at Six Flags. I could complain (and I did) but I'd be lying if I said it wasn't some of the most fun I've ever had.
BTW, if my own Dad weren't already the Greatest Dad In Life I would say that Keianna had him. BK spent his whole Tuesday making that trampoline (in of itself a feat that should be included in Herculean definition). And get this: he did it while listening to Keianna's latest Disney pop CD on REPEAT.
Repeat, folks. THATS Herculean.
Side note: RIP Super NoHoVas. My beloved black and blue striped shoes got muddy during the building and Keianna and I placed them in the washing machine for a cleaning... only to find 6 miniature shoe parts after the first cycle was done.
A Moment of Silence.
Anywhoo... I realized lately that my poor camera hasn't been getting any play. I didn't take half as many pictures as I should have this year, but I guess that just proves how great a time I had. For instance, I had a blast during unwrapping time, but the only photos I took were after the fact, when my parents were inspecting theirs:
Daddy got a new digital camera (I expect to see more pictures now for you at home!) and Mommy got a foot massager (which she promptly returned the next day... hehe sorry Mommy).
My Christmas present? I got to spend some time with old (dear) friends. Christmas morning I went to the Meals on Wheels thingy I mentioned before- and guess who accompanied me? Juan!
Poor Juan... ignoring his advice, on one of our last deliveries I decided Mommy's minivan could handle the mud, and instead I expertly got stuck in it. Juan's so lovely, he got out to try and push, but the van didn't budge. Luckily our current Meals and Wheels recipient just happened to be a (?)retired(?) tow truck driver, and he helped us out of the hole.
I had so much fun during Meals on Wheels: I advise anyone interested to venture into that territory (especially if you have such an awesome friend with you). We were given two coolers (one with warm meals, another with milk and snacks) and a big box of gifts to hand out. Then they handed us a list of places to go and sent us on our way. It was great- and pretty heartwarming, since most of the people we delivered food to werent actually spending their Christmas alone.
Some were, though. :( And one lady asked us to come visit her later... I wish I remember where she lived...
Our last lady (Gloria?) was probably one of our first, but she didn't answer the door when we originally came so we went back. The tow truck guy took the last gift bag, milk & cookies (apparently we were short), so we stopped by a gas station and bought her a flower and some cookies. She was sweet too.
Juan spent Christmas day with us (his family celebrates it the night before). It was cool... after all the presents and stuff we went bowling/gaming at Main Event, and TRIED to play Ryan's Atari (we kept dying hehe).
I got to finally hang out with Chau, too... and she's one that I haven't seen in ages. Lucas, Chau and babies (can you believe that she has TWO?!) came up all the way from Austin to say hello. I had to stop myself from going back down with them. God. I remember meeting Chau in first grade (we bonded because we were the only people in class that read books for fun). She hasn't changed at all- she's still the same happy girl I've always loved (though no longer little, and no longer a girl).
I got to hang out with Bran and Dominic too... but I'm so dumb- I forgot to take pictures! Brandi has a new apartment in Lewisville that she shares with Kevin and Jared (I finally got to meet Jared), and it's really cute. Her dog- well, not so much... but that's ok :) Of all my friends from my Arlington life Brandi is the one I am closest with, and it showed the night I visited her. We didn't really do anything- we didn't have to. It was just nice being near each other again.
I'm coming back in July, for a month. I promise. I will be there for your wedding.
I also hung out with Dominic (albeit for only a couple hours). haha- good ol' Dominic. He's finishing college, and is gonna try for a master's degree in buisness. (He also says "Hi Angel & Bim!").
New Years was a blast too... Juan was nice enough to let me tag along with he and his sister (and her jolly good fellow boyfriend Matt- who is the most lovely "corpulent" man I've ever met hehe {not at all}). And I finally got to meet The Nephew! We'd heard about it all during college, and he's delicious! He reminds me of Lance and Cef when they were little and we would play Ninja Turtles on the stairs.
I miss hanging out with Juan. I miss hanging out with all of them: the brave few who came into my life and became my friends. Christmas and New Years made me realize that more than anything. I secluded myself a little too much last year... let's not do it again this time around.
...
Well... that's the bare bones of it. I'm reading it now and it's nothing like it was- what I wrote is just the skeletal remains of it. But that's ok- It's mine to have and bringing it out will only kill it more.
Resolutions:
Just one. Finish something.
I hope everyone had as great a time as I did. If you had half as much fun then that means you had the world.
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