Writers Block...

Yup... I have it... that is why you haven't seen a post in a while. That and being an adult has all of these time commitments and bills to pay and well, you get the picture.

I promise to have a holiday themed post in the near future. :) stay tuned!

The Trials and Tribulations of Oscar

Oscar is a grumpy, old thing. Sometimes he even exhibits characteristics of his namesake the Sesame Street character. He's a pain so work with, let me just tell you. I have often commented to my co-worker that one day, if she comes by and there is a large hole in the wall across from me, not to worry, she can find Oscar just on the other side of that hole.

Now before you jump to conclusions and call the police and have me arrested for attempting to harm poor Oscar, let me clarify... Oscar is my computer.

Yes, I gave him a name and refer to him as a person. It makes yelling and shaking my fist at it a little more gratifying. Hardly a day passes that I don't feel the need to glare at the screen because once again Oscar is failing to open a Word document. Come on, its like the easiest of tasks, I'm not asking him to run probabilities or generate complicated graphs or whatever it is computers can do these days. It's like getting a 5 year old to take a bath just to get him to wake up in the morning. Talk about grouchy. It will take him 15 minutes just to get me to the home screen and then heaven forbid I ask him to open Outlook so I can check my email. Forgive me Oscar, for wanting to be a productive employee.

Oscar recently had his guts replaced (and by that I mean he got a new hard drive). I thought, " This is it, he is finally going to work at an acceptable speed and I will be able to run more that 2 programs at a time! Hallelujah!"... Well, Oscar sure is some kind of joker. For about a week he was running relatively smooth for is age and was causing me to growl at him constantly throughout the day. However, I don't think he liked being tolerable very much because he went right back to being an insufferable old geezer.

The day I get a computer that was manufactured in this century is going to be one GREAT day. But until then, I'll be putting up with Oscar and his antics (and secretly wishing he will randomly internally catch on fire). Everyone should probably say a little prayer that he does not meet his end flying through the wall across from me.

Ducks Have Bills Too

Thursday of last week was much like any other work day. I drove my nice little commute and was diligently working when a co-worker starts calling my name. Curious (and secretly dreading I'm about to be given a new task), I walked around the corner to our reception area. Before my eyes on the reception desk sat the best mid-work-day surprise ever invented: An Edible Arrangements.

When the holy lights faded and I grasped the fact that this cute, edible treat was mine... I started to think. Who in the world is sending me such a wonderful treat?? My parents are out of the country... and let's face it, they are the only one's I received flowers from in the last, well, we wont talk about how many years that's been. And I certainly don't have any suitors who are sending me presents in the middle of the day for no reason... so, this has got to be a mistake and this yummy goodness is, alas, not for me. But fear not dear friends. The cute duckie filled with fresh fruit is indeed mine! I open the card to read "The Rubber Ducky Rebellion Strikes Again!" love, The Sister. This therefore proves the fact that I have the BEST big sister in the entire world.

This wonderful gesture was to congratulate me on receiving my first, real big-girl job! Yet another step into the real world for this writer. Small steps that are bringing me ever closer to that thing called adulthood (I know scary word... I'm sorry for having to use it here but we must all one day embrace the word and it's meaning).

So basically I have an AWESOME sister that I am truly blessed to have. Thanks big sis for loving me and helping this little duckie find her place in the world. LOVE YOU.

p.s. the picture says it all!

What can you do in an hour...

...?
- watch a television show
- go to the gym
- stalk your friends on Facebook
- eat a meal

... and the list goes on, and on.

One of the perks necessities of my big girl job is driving an hour and fifteen minutes (on a good day) from my parents home, into the metropolis where I work. That's the one-way time. It takes just as long if not longer on my way home in the evening. So, after braving this commute for several weeks now I have found I have plenty to rant about. So... here we go.

First, if you are in your car in rush hour traffic, the driving is completely different. Suburbanites need to learn to put their big kid pants on and drive like they know what they are doing! You are not in the suburbs, you cannot take your time changing lanes... if you need to get over: signal, get over, and move on! DO NOT sit in your lane and signal for 30 seconds then leisurely glide over into my lane and expect me to be all hunky-dory with it. I don't have time for you. If you don't like my take on this... think of it this way... in NASCAR races they don't signal at all- they run you down... so it could be worse (and actually, I think some people on the road really think they are in a NASCAR race- you are not, you are just tailgating me and it is very annoying- but if you would like I will get over into the other lane and you can speed past me and be caught by the police officer that is inevitably waiting for you around the next turn- have fun!).

Next, you (or your car) will not melt if it is raining. Maybe if you are green all over and have an army of flying monkey minions you will... but I haven't seen any green drivers or flying monkeys lately. While I completely agree with being cautious while the heavens are raining down replenishing the earth, there is no need to pretend you are in a 19th century car that doesn't go over 10 mph. Be safe... but also, get on down the road. Then maybe it wont take me 2 hours to get back to my warm, dry house. That being said, there is another side to that spectrum as well. Just because people are going 10 mph (yes it drives me crazy too), there is no need to go cutting people off and spraying water all over their windshields so that they cannot see where they are going... hello genius- that will cause an accident!

So, while commuting in the big city, I would appreciate it if you didn't pretend you were still in the suburbs or act like you are on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. There is a very happy medium to be found and if we would all just accept that and be courteous to the drivers around us, everyone's commute will be a lot more enjoyable bearable.

Now that that rant is taken care of, I hope all of you have a pleasant and safe ride home today!


Just keep swimming...

Roomies for Life!

I have some great roommates right now. In the morning when I go downstairs for breakfast, my early rising roommate has already made a pot of coffee and has my section of the paper laying out for me. When I get home from work, they have either made dinner for us (or know what fine dinning establishment we will be visiting). Our house is wonderfully clean and tidy (with exception of my room- which according to one of my roommates will never be clean), and they hardly make any noise. Oh, of course we have our occasional disagreements as any group of people living under one roof would have. However, it is a little harder for me to win any argument. I mean what child can ever win an argument with their parents? Oh yeah, guess I forgot to mention that... my roommates are actually my parents. And in honor of today yesterday being their Wedding Anniversary- I dedicate this post to them!

Like many a college grad today, I moved home after college. No one involved was, shall we say, pleased with this arrangement as we had all firmly decided that I was not going move back under my parents roof. But alas, when it came down to it I was welcomed with open arms... and questions of my plans to scoot right back out. Luckily, I have been enjoying an internship in the big city close to home so I haven't been completely useless.

Living at home has had its share of ups and downs. While I enjoy the company of my parents, the independence that I learned to live with in college was not easily given up. I overheard my mom grumbling that her house was not a dorm room and I shouldn't be leaving my clothes lying around everywhere... I had done my laundry, and folded it, and accidentally forgot to take it off the couch and up to my room- you'd think I'd left dirty clothes laying on the kitchen table! Goodness- at least I did my own wash.

All-in-all its working out to be a pretty good gig... but not one I will be looking at as a permanent solution to my adulthood. Happy Belated Anniversary Mom and Dad!


remember... just keep swimming!

Soaring with Eagles

My dad always says, "It's hard to soar with the eagles in the morning, if you're running with the dogs at night."

Well... I've never been one to enjoy soaring with the eagles in the early hours of the morning anyway. But alas, with a big girl job and everything I have to drag myself out of bed before the sun has even come up! There is something just wrong about having to wake up before the sun. And then to top it off, in order to get any type of exercise into my day, I have to get out of bed in the dark and go exert myself to stay healthy shred the freshman 15 before I am even really awake! Let's just say I have only made it down to the garage- to a treadmill that is at least 12 years old- once since I discovered the treadmill is actually still a functioning piece of equipment and not just taking up space in my parents garage. Let's just say that the little voice in my head that is telling me "just go back to bed, wake up later, you're too tired to be expected to work out" usually wins the battle with my guilty conscience that tells me to get up and stay up.

Now I know what you're thinking, "Well, listen to your dad! Stop 'running with the dogs' at night". HA! there's where you are mistaken. My days of running with those cute furry creatures of the night are behind me. I go to bed early... and I mean EARLY. I feel like I am 85 and graying on top. In college, midnight was an early bedtime for me and I never had a class that started before 9 (11 my senior year). Now those days are but a fond memory stuck in my head screaming at me to return.

This battle with the early morning hours is definitely going to be an ongoing endeavor. Once again I am forced to realize that growing up is hard and there is no easy way out... Isn't it annoying that those irritating little phrases actually turn out to be true?

and so it begins...

You've all seen them; they're cute, colorful and seem to be singing to you as they float in bubbles looking up at you with big eyes. They do not transform into mega robots prepared to do battle against the evil Decepticons and you can't dress them up in a miniature outfit, complete with matching accessories, so that they are ready for their date with Ken. One has to use their imagination- whoa shocker- to have fun with these little guys... or simply let them float around in your tub... what ever floats your ducky boat.

So what, you may ask, do those delightful rubber duckies have to do with me? Well the Rubber Ducky Rebellion is a metaphor of sorts (I know, I know... someone else creating a metaphor for their life and writing about it. Tired of these escapades? Then I suggest you stop reading now. That's my disclaimer for the day). Rubber Duckies represent my past, my childhood, my coming of age. Well, I'm definitely of age now and you know what? The real world isn't all its cracked up to be people. Who decided that we should grow up and have responsibilities?? While I accept that this is part of the circle of life, that doesn't mean I have to like it all the time right? OK, good.

So the Rubber Ducky Rebellion is a way to express what it is like for me- a young adult fresh out of college- to learn to become a contributing member of society... or in simple terms- and adult. Good or bad, pretty and ugly, jubilant or forlorn; the Rubber Ducky Rebellion is the window into the world of a young woman finding her place, no matter what obstacles lay in her path.