Cancer Sucks, Deaf Fest Doesn't

Today was more than usually productive! Go me!  Also, because I am dizzy and unable to drive or walk around unaided, Go BoyKid! And Go Rinny! Because they really helped.

The morning started with a baby shower for our friend Katie.  She is a "Chum" as in she is in a group of friends (Megan, Gina, and Katie) that were The Chums.  I LO

VE the Chums.  They all, every one of them, rock.  I associate them with knitting/crocheting, harmonicas, Muppets and all good things.  It is weird because now the Chums are doing things like, well, getting married, having kids, moving to other countries.  But I still love and admire them.

Katie's mother, Sue is also a really good friend of ours.  She is awesome.  She also has cancer.  This just breaks my heart. It seems like all the really awesome people are dealing with terrible things.  My former bishop's wife has Lou Gehrig's. My Uncle Ken has cancer. So does my Aunt Cheryl.

And that kind of crap is just a suck fest.

But what isn't a suck fest is seeing old friends. Plus also, they had good food... CREPES. Mmmmm... So it was great seeing a preggy Kate, her mom, Sue, and a few other people from the old 'hood (Gina's mom for one!)!  But NOT Mali, though that IS that 'hood, since she is still off being British. ;)  I went with Mom and we both did so with the balancing arm help of Rinny. Mom is always a little unbalanced due to the stroke. And I am wobbly as can be on the new med.  Bleh.  So Rinny was on double duty.

So after that I went home to count out ONE HUNDRED Madagascar Hissing Cockroaches to a guy who was buying them. Because it was such a big order I agreed to meet him part way, in Sugar House.  Only, like I've said... I can't DRIVE right now.  So BoyKid to the rescue!

He drove me to Sugar House.  And the roach guy? TOTAL hippie.  Like 2 foot long dirty blonde dreds and alluded to the fact that they are into that garbage picking food movement type hippie.  And his hippie chick and baby.  SUPER nice, mind you, and they were very excited to get the roaches (which they directly deposited into their shoulder bag and rode off on their bike), but definitely interesting characters.

Then we had 2 other goals while in SLC... Deaf Fest and Guitar Store.

Deaf Fest. A bunch of booths, a LOT of signing, and free ice cream!  Eavesdropping, I could understand a lot of what was going on... but I was pretty pathetic talking to people.  Obviously, I am going to need some review classes... and a lot of practice at home (watching stories at home, talking to myself in the mirror, and maybe signing up for an ASL MeetUp group).

But it was interesting!  I also got to tell BoyKid a lot of Deaf culture facts (to keep him from doing things like walking right between 2 signers, talking to interpreters instead of the Deaf, etc.) so it was good I at least remembered etiquette.  And they gave out free ice cream so he had fun, too. (He's easy to please!)

Then for him, we went to the Guitar Store.  He played with some guitars, looked at kay-poes (I am sure that's not how they are spelled. They are a guitar thing.) Then we headed home.

OH AND I quilled some cards for church... birthdays, 1 funeral... and one for Katie.

I think it's working! I think... scratch that.

The good news is that the new meds I am on really are lessening the headaches! The bad news is that they so far make me too dizzy to drive or read very well, so that better fade or it won't work.  I need to get rid of the pain... but I need to be able to drive and read, too.

A day later, I feel like I may have spoken too soon. MAJOR migraine PLUS dizziness today. Bleh.  No motivation, either and I have a ton of work to do.  A bunch of lessons to write, need to talk to an academic adviser about school, need to make cards for church... sigh.

Yarrrrrgh! Hamsters!!!!

It be International Talk Like a Pirate Day, me hearties! And I would be true to this day celebratin' the buccaneer, but me head be swimmin' like sharks and my stomach is churning like the waves of the briney blue.  So I am to belay this silliness and talk like a landlubber!

I have been SOOOOO SICK today.  I have been dreading work tomorrow (when I even think about it... mostly I just don't think. I just sit around in a stupor.  I drink Gatorade, eat saltine crackers, and watch DVRed Psychs. But I do not do a whole lot of prep work for story time.).  I finally drew some Brachiosaurus heads, made a sample, too.  The other thing I am not doing that I should be doing is writing an Examiner article.  Right now I am writing something about hamsters.  I am also trying to talk my fam into letting me have a friend's (well, a friend/coworker's daughter's) little male Robo.

Though what I want more, and what I am in major negotiations for is a hedgehog.  Dad says I can have one... IF I get rid of my tortoise, Bratanik.  I tell him, No, I love Bratanik. He says, he's boring, etc. I tell him, he's not supposed to be exciting. He's a tortoise. And I love him. I love to watch him eat (he reminds me of a dinosaur). I love that I rescued him and made him healthy. I love to teach kids the difference between a turtle and tortoise and let them touch them.  I know that Bratanik doesn't love me. He is a TORTOISE. But I love HIM.

But I am trying to talk him into, if he is so intent on "trading," trading my tank of hermit crabs.*








*and maybe sort of secretly keeping the crabs but keeping them in a small 10 gallon in my room because like he'd even notice anyway. Shhhh....  ;)

Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious Week!

The last couple days have been pretty interesting. Here is a recap filled with thrill! chills! pills!

(Last) Thursday BoyKid tried out for Divine Comedy! We got to watch. Try outs were SO funny to watch.  There were a few people that were not very good at all, but most were VERY funny.  It was stiff competition.  He didn't even make it, and can say with all honesty, BoyKid's song was excellent.  If I can ever convince him to YouTube it, I will post it here.  Better luck next time!

Friday, I had an appointment with Dr. Bones, the specialist at the U of U.  My headaches are still super bad, so he is trying me on a new med, which is so far making me dizzy, nauseous... and feel slightly as if I am having an out of body experience.  This disjointed, out of it experience is very disturbing. Hoping it is one of those side effects that starts bad, but then dwindles after awhile. Because UGH.

Then I did a Critters party. A cute group. The adults were as interested in my presentation as the adults. They asked a million questions. They owned a chinchilla themselves and wanted me to check him out after the party, asked for tips on taming him (they could barely pet him and certainly couldn't hold him like I do Baby Fable), wanted to make sure they had the right set up for him (

they did), and asked about getting him fixed and getting him a friend. 

Saturday I did some quilling for church ladies.  Pretty good ones, I think.

(by the way, Ehu, that one with the quote about being "beautifully made?" The quote is Ola, MyNigerian. Is it any wonder I am still in love with him?)

Sunday was 9/11.That was hard. I think of Brady a lot, but it is hard to have everything rehashed all day on TV and on the internet.  Anyway, I posted about that a bit already.

Monday I sold some roaches to a boy, probably around 13, and his dad. They were really excited. I was pretty excited too because I recently finished The Cockroach Club part of my site!  But the most exciting thing about the day was THE ARRIVAL OF THE MANTIS NYMPHS!!!! 11 teensy tiny mantis babies! They are so so cute!!!

So, all week, Padre has been talking about this "Super Secret Surprise" at 5:00. 1st though, I had story time at the museum.  We read Zack’s Alligator Goes to School by Shirley Mozelle and made clothespin alligators. 

THEN I had a dentist appointment. Bleh.

So, then 5 rolled around and we are headed to Salt Lake!  Then Padre starts singing "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious" and we pretty much figured out we were going to Mary Poppins the Broadway musical.  It was really fun.  Before we went to the show we went to dinner at Olive Garden. The Gnocchi soup was very good.  When we were done we had left overs, but Rinny had brought a cooler.  So we were walking back to the car with our food and there was a homeless guy.  I knew my dad would NEVER let us give him money because he might buy drugs or alcohol with it, but I asked if we could give him our left overs. At first he said no, then I said "just a bag of bread sticks?"  He said okay and proceeded to take OUT 2  breadsticks of the bag leaving 3. *rolls eyes* REAL generous, Dad. But whatever, better than nothing. BoyKid and I ran back and gave it to the man.  When I asked if he wanted some bread, he smiled so big and said "Sure!"  Really motivated me to get working on those "Blessing Bags" like I've seen on Pinterest.


My dad is not really selfish.  It's just that he feels strongly about HOW he should be generous.  Like when he is donating to the poor, he feels like he should ONLY do so through the Church. I think that is a good thing, MOST of the time, but sometimes you should go elsewhere, too.  He also believes in taking care of your family first. I agree with that, too, but I think he still acts like we have money... going to expensive plays and out to dinner... when we don't. We are in debt.


ANYWAY, before the show there was this art instillation next to the theater with these weird wobbly things that apparently represented grass.  But to me it felt like we were fleas on a dog.  I LOVED IT!  I took a million pictures.

Finally we actually went in.  The play was much better than I thought!  They did a lot of very tricky things... very magical.  Though that new song about being nice to your toys? SUPER CREEPY!!!  One bad thing is that my new pill from Bones is STILL making me really sick and basically feel out of my body, so I had to leave for a bit and miss a song.  But over all it was still fun!  Very different than the movie though. (Also different from the Simpson's "Sherry Bobbins" which is what BoyKid and I kept remembering instead! Ha!)

 So then today for Tales for Tots we had the author and illustrator of "Invasion of the Grumpies" to come read their book.  It was fun.  The book is cute, though a bit wordy for the age group we cater to (though obviously a self-published deal) but clever writing.  And they were both really interesting guys.  I plan on having them come back again and we bought a copy of their book for the education department.  They took a LOT of pictures (you can see them here) They also had the kids draw their own Grumpies to put on the Facebook page.  Again, our group was a little young for that, so it was mostly MOMS drawing and then kids scribbling, but we teachers decided to participate. Mine is the one reading the red book. Rinny's is red (It's angry)


Several mantises have not made it, I think we are down to 4 or 5. :(  They are so cute, though.  I hope SOME of them thrive!


Anyway, that's the news!

Brady, I miss you, but today more than most.

Brady Howell was my cousin and my friend.  He was funny, let us follow him around when we were little calling him "Brady Bunch" but he was also a great man.  He was someone who could be looked up to and deserved it.  He was a hero.

This is a good audio interview with Uncle Ken and Aunt Kay, Brady's parents.

This article is about my cousin, Camille, Brady's sister.

And then this, well, it's just cool, too.


And that is all I am going to say about it all today.  Because other than recognizing how blessed I am to have the family I do, have the gospel in my life, and to live in this country, today just makes me feel sad.

Migraine of All Migraines!

It is so hot in here right now. Ugh. So tomorrow, if my head can stand it, we are trying out our new Pass of All Passes at 7 Peaks.  BoyKid was the instigator.  He got one to go with friends, mostly to the Trafalga that used to be Liberty Land. They have laser tag there and mini-bowling. Then he convinced me, Rinny, and Padre to buy in.  It is good for NEXT summer, too, but tomorrow is the last day to go to 7 Peaks this year.  So we are going tomorrow morning.  But I should seriously go to bed to even have a chance.
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So much for THAT. Had a horrid night.  Leg cramps and very little sleeping. So when the boys were ready to go to the water slides, I pretty much felt like crap on a cracker. So no, I did NOT go. 


Major headache, major Fibro pain.  Drank some of that cramp drink... I can't remember the name of it, but it is supposed to help with spasms.  I hate it. It tastes kind of mediciney. But I think it might help. I HOPE.

So, yesterday I got a new assignment with my calling (for those of you who don't go to my church, "callings" are like jobs in church you are asked to do. You don't get paid (not even the Bishop (kinda like a pastor)).  It's sort of a volunteer thing, except that they pick you. Of course, you can accept or not.).  I am currently sort of "Publicity" for Relief Society (women's organization). I make all the posters for our activities. Also, now I am making the birthday cards for all the women.  The presidency writes them, I decorate the front.  With quilling.  Because I love quilling. :OD

Next big news, BoyKid is AUDITIONING FOR DIVINE COMEDY!  Not Dante's. BYU's.  They are seriou

sly hilarious.  I love their shows. I love their songs!  Firebolt. Single Ladies.  FUNNY FUNNY FUNNY. I think my very funny little brother is a SHOE IN.  The audition is free to watch, Thursday 8-10 at TNRB (Turner Building? Maybe?) 151.  WOOT!!!


Aaaaaaand a few hours later, I finally put on my big girl panties and left the d**n HOUSE.  Headache or not, I went with the family to Pirates 4.  It was fun. Not great, but pretty cool.  Then I bawled the whole way home about how much of a suckfest my life is with this headache.  I just... ugh.

butterflies and books

Thank you, Pinterest.

But it doesn't make the decision to switch from vet tech to ASL easy.  However, my family is very happy with the idea.  My recent plan, well, we can't afford it.  Hence trying to find SOME help for paying with it.  But becoming even more buried in debt is NOT a way to start to become more responsible. 

So I just finished an amazing book. Hattie Big Sky.  I felt so sad when it ended, just because it was ENDING!  I wanted it to continue. I wanted more chapters. I wanted a sequel.  I got neither.  But I will read it again.  I recommend it, strongly. It is a beautiful book.  

I love to read.  I am almost always reading 3 or 4 books at once, as any who are friends with me on Goodreads can attest.  I am reading something in the bathroom, listening to an audiobook in bed, reading something in my purse, and reading the scriptures (either the Bible or the Book of Mormon) when I am being good. I admit that reading scriptures is something I SHOULD do, whereas a good novel, is like something I NEED for myself.

"Books have to be heavy because the whole world's inside them" - Cornelia Funke

SIGH.  I. Love. Books.

But I do like movies, too.  And right now I am watching Rio with Mom.  It's cute.  And it is about exotic pets, so I will probably review it for my column.  And maybe not surprisingly it makes me miss my roomie, Lark, and her parrots Buddy and McKenzie and the parakeets, Thomas and Critter,too. (She also has canaries, Igor and Celestra, but I wasn't that attatched to them. I am not a bird person, per say.).


But maybe a LITTLE surprisingly, it is also making me think about the BrazilianVampire. Rio recreates some pretty realistic, and beautiful, Brazilian landscapes. And Carnival may beEd still writes me all the time.  I write to him only occasionally.  Because I don't need to complication. Ed likes me. And, unlike other distant boys, he actually plans to move HERE.  However, he's also really wrong for me.  He also will never hold as big a piece of my brutally chopped up heart as MyNigerian, despite the fact that I believe Ola really does need to go back to Nigeria and create amazing social change and be a pioneer for the church... even though it means the end of US.  I admit occasionally, even though I really love Ola, and think there is a chance that I may not ever meet someone else... I sometimes let Ed flirt with me for my d**n self-esteem. Dangerous? Not too. Dumb? Yes. Painful? A little.  


I need to get a life. I need to get a boyfriend. One that lives in the freaking country.


No, I am not really that girl.  I have a LOT of things in my life right now (school, animals, family, work) I don't even know that I have TIME for a boy. But it would be nice.

Speaking of animals (I did! Remember, my last parenthetical comment?!), my USDA papers got REJECTED for Critters 2 Go.  I don't know why.  They lady said she would go over them and help me RE-apply (Oh the red tape!!!) once I get back the papers.  I get them back, with a letter, and call her for further explanation. SIGH.  And I WILL apply again.  I want to do Critters. I want to be SUCCESSFUL at it.  I have PLANS for it. New plans for the website, like a kids' section with games and activities and a Cockroach Club with info about Madagascar Hissing Cockroaches for those that buy them from me.  I have other animals, too, like if my mantis egg sack would ever hatch.  I plan to release most of them but keep a pair or so. I love mantids.  Of course, my dream is an Orchid Mantis, but the Chinese Mantises we have around here (that I can therefore hatch and release will be fun, too.