We have a third dog...made only of hair.

My husband surprised me with a trip to Omaha this weekend. It was a 6-month wedding anniversary/graduation/just because he loves me trip. It was so much fun to get away together. We spent most of Saturday at the Omaha Zoo. I had never been there before and it was a lot of fun. Plus we had gorgeous weather!! We also went to a 3-D Imax movie at the zoo which was sooooooo cool!! We finished off the night by going to Cheesecake Factory for dinner and then walked around the mall, where we discovered an arcade. We spent just $2 and scored 220 tickets!! We stayed at a beautiful Marriott both nights, where we got the friends and family rate, making it even better!!

I feel so lucky and loved!!

Aaron and I in front of the elephants.

This is what Aaron and I would look like as Gorillas.

With our cool Imax 3-D glasses on.

Frozen Thin Mints

Wow!! A week from right now, I will be done with school. FOREVER!! I'll still have the graduation ceremony to go through, but all of my finals will be done, I won't have any more classes to go to, any more homework to do. I will be completely done!!

Wow!! I can hardly wait. There have been so many times when Aaron and I have wanted to do something, but have been held back, because I have had to study or had an assignment due the next day.

Wow!! It feels like this will be such a turning point for us. After graduation, I can get a full-time job (hopefully!!). If I'm working full-time, then Aaron and I will be able to buy a bigger house. If we can buy a bigger house, then we can start thinking about having babies.

Wow!!

Homemade French Silk Pie for Breakfast

This is how I almost died yesterday. I have an artist's rendering of the situation, to help everyone understand.
There I was (marked Blakely T1) waiting patiently at the crosswalk. It always annoys me when I'm driving around campus and students walk right out in front of me, so I always try to pay attention to traffic and cross the street in a marked crosswalk. So traffic stopped just short of the crosswalk (marked Car T1 and Motorcycle T1) and with no traffic coming from the other direction, it was my sign that I could cross. I start my way across the street when (at Blakely T2, Motorcycle T2, Car T2) I almost get hit by the motorcycle!! In a split second, I manage to scurry out of its way and avoid getting hit by about 6 inches. "What in the world just happened?!?" I wonder. "Oh, it was behind the car, but decided it was better than me and whipped around the car instead of waiting." I finish making my way across the street when I look back at the motorcycle (Blakely T3, Motorcycle T3 and Car T3). The motorcyclist has the nerve to shoot me a look like I was in the wrong here!! In the heat of the moment, I did shout some choice words at him. But I doubt it made any difference. He was on a motorcycle, which means he's untouchable. At least that's what I'm assuming he thinks, since he was riding around with no helmet and all... As a result, to ensure my own safety, I think I might wear a helmet around my last few weeks on campus!!

No Silly Title Needed

The Virginia Tech tragedy makes me angry. I understand that the situation is much more complicated than I will probably ever know, but it seems like it was at least partially preventable. I can't understand how the university failed to notify students of the first shooting until more than 2 hours after the fact. It seems like, especially in a post-9/11 era, that the university should have taken a more proactive approach. (I'm thinking of how they failed to evacuate the second tower after the first one had been hit, because they didn't think they were in any danger...) I understand that they thought the first shooting was an isolated incident, but without knowing for sure, why would they just go about business as usual?!?

During a discussion about the incident in one of my classes, someone said it made sense that they wouldn't have announced it to the whole campus, for fear of creating chaos. Instead over 30 people died. I have read statements from students at Virginia Tech who say that the university has a campus-wide PA system, which they could have used to make an announcement about classes being cancelled for the day, without giving a reason. From my own experiences, most students wouldn't question why classes were cancelled, they would just head home.

The president of Virginia Tech also said that it was difficult to notify students, because many of them were commuting onto campus at the time. Now, I don't know how their campus is set up, but at Iowa State, there is a commuter parking lot that thousands of students park in every day, and then catch a bus to campus. Many also take CyRide from their homes. It seems to me, like if the situation had been taken more seriously, that many students could have been stopped from arriving on campus by spreading the word through the use of public transportation workers.

I know I'll never understand what was going through the heads of the officials at Virginia Tech, but it still makes me angry that the officials seemed to take the situation so lightly. I can't imagine how the families of the victims must feel...

Most of the stories I've read have focused on the shooter, which is obviously the most salient aspect of the situation, but I found this story to be very touching.

No coconut bra for me

I wrote a while back about how nice it was to be reminded of how good the world is. Today I was reminded of how "cruel" it can be as well.

I was waiting to go through the drive-thru at the bank. I wasn't sure which car ahead of me would be done first, so I was just waiting back a while so that I could pull into whichever opened up first. A car pulled up behind me and started honking. I thought maybe I was blocking his way to the ATM, so I pulled up just a little bit so he could get through. He whipped around me and almost ran into the front of my car as he basically butted ahead of me in line. So I pulled up behind the other stall and was waiting, a little upset over how rude this guy had been.

Then I hear this guy start calling me all sorts of names (I had my window down because it was nice). He called me a spoiled f-ing "witch." I responded by saying "I was just waiting in line." He responded with a few more swear words and called me a few more names, all because I hadn't picked a specific line to wait in, which apparently to him, was about the worst thing someone could do. Of course, the vehicle in front of the rude guy pulled out first, leaving me upset waiting even longer.

To top it off, I read this news story later today. At 114 years old, this woman says the biggest change of the last century is that people have become less friendly. How sad is that?!?

96% in Microsoft Word

Who is your person?? If you watch Grey's Anatomy, you know what I'm talking about. Meredith is Christina's person, and vice versa. For those of you who don't watch the show (although I can't understand why you wouldn't watch...), maybe an example will help. When Christina got engaged, she wanted to tell Meredith before she told anyone else, because Meredith is her person. However, Meredith had almost drowned and was on the brink of death, so Christina couldn't tell her. So Christina wouldn't tell anyone, because she had to tell her person first. Some people might equate your "person" to a "best friend," but I just don't think the terms are equitable. Similar though...

I think everyone wants to have a person. Someone who just understands them, without words, without question. Your person is the one you run to when you have great news or when you have bad news or when you have no news, just need someone. Now to qualify, although I think my husband meets these qualities, I don't think your person can be your spouse/significant other. That's just my take on it though.

Do you have a person??

Popcorn!!

Normal* couples-
Wife: I really like this dress.
Husband: How much does it cost?
Wife: I said I like it. Why should it matter how much it costs?
Husband: How much does it cost?
Wife: It costs $X.
Husband: $X is too much. You can't get the dress.

Aaron and I-
B: I really like this dress.
A: You should get it.
B: I don't know. It costs $X. That's kind of a lot.
A: That's not really very much. If you like it, you should get it.
B: I don't know... It is cute and I do like it, but I don't know.
A: You look hot in it and you deserve it!! Get it!!
B: Nah, that's okay.

Normal should read "stereotypical."

Arg matey!!

While in class a few weeks ago, I discovered a website that is very good at passing the time. www.addictinggames.com (A few others in class were using this website.) I became especially fond of a game called "Speedy Bubbles." So fond, that someone might even consider me slightly addicted. I took a screenshot of my highest score so far, and might I say, I think I did quite well. I finally had to give up the game, because I was playing it all the time, leaving the browser open, with the game on pause, and the internet was getting pretty slow. We had a good run Speedy Bubbles. A good run...

Muddy Paw Prints

I was whining and moaning last week because I still have 6 weeks before I graduate. Over the weekend, I decided that I should try to be more optimistic. Now I'm thinking about how I only have 5 weeks left. Today provided many experiences that made me smile and helped me remain optimistic.

After working in the lab this morning, I was on my way to my math class when it started sprinkling. There was a bus behind me, so I started walking faster, then doing a little jog/walk to try to catch it (I'm sure I looked just beautiful...) but just as I was getting close, they closed the doors. I was feeling defeated, but then a guy sitting on the bench next to the bus stop saw me, jumped up, knocked on the bus door and told them that there was someone running up. So I was able to catch the bus and stay out of the rain!

The instructor in my math class offered everyone in attendance extra credit today, which is always nice to get. It's one of the two classes that I'm taking for a grade this semester (as opposed to pass/fail) so my grade is really important. Then as I was walking out of the building after math, a guy that was obviously in a hurry, stopped to hold the door for me. How nice!!

This was all before I got to work... AT work, my husband surprised me with lunch, because I'm not a fan of much on the employee menu this month. After I got into the office, I had flowers delivered to me. Flowers 'just because.' As if that wasn't enough, when I got out to the car, there was a sweet card, a bag of Reese's Peanut Butter Eggs and a sweet song all ready to play in the CD player.

On my drive home, I listened to my voicemail, where I had a message asking me if I'd like to set up an interview for a job I applied for!! I might actually have a job 5 weeks from now!!

Sometimes it's nice to be reminded of how good life is!!

Mexican Chili

Last Sunday, Gateway had a booth at a Bridal Fair. They wanted some pictures of a wedding from Gateway so that they could showcase what they can do. Aaron and I were the obvious choice, since we have the rights to all of our pictures, and of course since we both work there!! These are the pictures they chose. All but 2 are from our wedding (upper right). I think it looks pretty good, but I may be bias :-D

Then on Wednesday of this week, the Iowa State Daily ran their monthly Unions section. They had contacted me for an interview about life after marriage, so the interview and a couple of our wedding pictures were in the paper. Our wedding is famous!! At least in Ames, Iowa...