Important landmark study.

Some of you may have seen this study already.

A study conducted by UCLA's Department of Psychiatry has revealed that the kind of face a woman finds attractive on a man can differ depending on where she is in her menstrual cycle.

For example: If she is ovulating, she is attracted to men with rugged and masculine features.

However, if she is menstruating or menopausal, she tends to be more attracted to a man with scissors lodged in his temple and tape over his mouth while he is on fire.

No further studies are expected.

Because of You.

I was never a HUGE Kelly Clarkson fan but she's been growing on me....and damn if I don't love this song.

I will not make
The same mistakes that you did
I will not let myself
Cause my heart so much misery
I will not break
The way you did, you fell so hard
I’ve learned the hard way
To never let it get that far

[Chorus]
Because of you
I never stray too far from the sidewalk
Because of you
I learned to play on the safe side so I don’t get hurt
Because of you
I find it hard to trust not only me, but everyone around me
Because of you I am afraid

I lose my way
And it’s not too long before you point it out
I cannot cry
Because I know that’s weakness in your eyes
I’m forced to fake
A smile, a laugh, every day of my life
My heart can’t possibly break
When it wasn’t even whole to start with

[Chorus]
Because of you
I never stray too far from the sidewalk
Because of you
I learned to play on the safe side so I don’t get hurt
Because of you
I find it hard to trust not only me, but everyone around me
Because of you I am afraid

I watched you die
I heard you cry every night in your sleep
I was so young
You should have known better than to lean on me
You never thought of anyone else
You just saw your pain
And now I cry in the middle of the night
For the same damn thing

[Chorus}
Because of you
I never stray too far from the sidewalk
Because of you
I learned to play on the safe side so I don’t get hurt
Because of you
I find it hard to trust not only me, but everyone around me
Because of you I am afraid

Because of you
Because of you
Because of you I am afraid

Because of you I never stray too far from the sidewalk
Because of you I learned to play on the safe side so I don’t get hurt

Because of you I try my hardest just to forget everything
Because of you
I don’t know how to let anyone else in
Because of you
I’m ashamed of my life because it’s empty
Because of you I am afraid

Because of you

My friend, the author.

I'm proud to announce that Lori, my best Angel friend, is now a published author. If you have any preteen or young teen book lovers on your Christmas list, I highly suggest checking out Gettysburg Adventure: Ghost on the Battlefield by Lori Bakewell (see below for the plot summary). You can get it online at amazon.com and barnesandnoble.com (and both sites usually have free shipping on orders over $25--so buy two!).

This brilliant and engaging story is a great way to get kids interested in and learning about history. As one reviewer noted, "Ghost on the Battlefield blends adventure with history in such a way that children will not even know they're learning about their country's past."

Here is the official plot summary from www.loribakewell.com:

"Kat Rogers is not enthusiastic about leaving her friends and missing ninth grade to be homeschooled on a year-long road trip with her family. She is also not happy about spending time in a confined RV with her younger brother, Brian. History is dull and battlefields are boring, until she sees a figure at the Gettysburg battlefield who captures her attention. He could be a young man dressed up to entertain visitors, except that she can see through him. Once Kat realizes that this Confederate soldier needs her help, she discovers that history isn’t dull and battlefields can be interesting places. With the assistance of Brian and an eccentric lady from town, Kat works to resolve unanswered questions and free the ghostly Will from his very earthly concerns. Along the way she realizes that touring the country with her family might just be an exciting adventure."

Please keep Lori and her book in mind this holiday season! And CONGRATULATIONS, LORI!! I'm very proud of you.

A very JC Penny's Christmas.

Well, I got the Penny's job. They actually hired me immediately and I even worked for 4 hours right after my interview. (I sold TWO PAIRS of shoes. It was quite fun, actually.) I'll be rotating between women's, men's and shoes, depending on where I'm needed that day. Although the money is only slightly above "sweatshop," my 20% employee discount takes effect immediately. (Holla!) So, if I work the sales right and then add my discount, I should be able to get some good Christmas shopping done.

I'm scheduled for about 40 hours next week (my first full week), which is great--and I was even able to squeeze 26 out of her for the rest of this week. Best of all: I was able to schedule an earlier shift on Saturday so that I can still attend Cookiepalooza.

So, all in all, things are not going too badly. I've been in town 4 days and I have a new (albeit temporary) job and a wonderful young man who (he was quick to point out) did NOT stare at my boobs to hang out with. ;) Not to mention, of course, the upcoming reunion with my high school byatches, Kacey and Kishelle. (Lord, the three of us back together again...I'm not sure West Michigan is ready.)

I had a date.

I met Bill, a 29-year-old engineer, for a late dinner at Applebee's last night. It went well, I guess. Sounds like he wants to see me again.

I'll keep you informed. ;)

It's my very best dream coming true!

I just got a call for an interview at Bath and Body Works, the Happiest Place on Earth. (I applied on Saturday for a holiday job, to get me through until I can start subbing in January.) I'm going in to talk to them at 2:30....oh, I'm just DELIRIOUS at the thought of working at the Mecca of Happiness. It's like they're calling me home.

(On a side note, RIGHT after they called, Penny's called, as well, which is the other place I applied to on Saturday; however, I'm going to wait and see what happens with BBW before I call them back.)

The End of an Era

The decade of Jen in the Detroit-Metro area has come to an end. She came a small town girl and left a woman of the world. While here she got a couple of college educations. She conquered several career worlds including non-profits, business marketing, adult toys and teaching. She fell in and out of love with a variety of idiots. She made fabulous friends and had all sorts of new experiences. She had a good run.

A memorial service was held last week at the local bar, Bumpers, where many friends gathered to drink and party in her honor.

She will be missed. Jen is survived in Detroit by several ex-boyfriends, a couple of ex-cats and shall be missed by her devoted companion, Anna, and her bunches of grieving friends.

A story that needs to be told.

In honor of SPC Tommy Byrd's service and sacrifice, I hope you all take a moment to pause and reflect on this young man's amazing life. No matter what your feelings are regarding this war (and I know we all have different views), Tommy's a hero, as is each and every serviceman and woman over there.

To date, over 2,000 heroes have died in the Iraq war (2,077 as of this posting). This is Tommy's story.

http://www.somesoldiersmom.blogspot.com/

This sounds like something I would do.

"But he's not ALWAYS an asshole..."

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10065038/

Reasons why it sucks to leave Detroit.

In the next couple of days, I have to say goodbye to:

1) Anna, my very bestest Detroit friend for the last few years
2) My students
3) My "kids" (the S's)
4) Jeff (which actually makes me sad, even though I know it's for the best and I'm not in love with him anymore. Even so, I had such HIGH hopes when I moved in here, and we HAVE been really close the last year and a half, even after we broke up)

Worst of all,

5) I have to live WITH MY PARENTS. More specifically, MY MOTHER.

Reasons why I'm getting excited to go back to Holland.

1) I get to hang out with my sisters
2) More time with my nieces and nephews (I've missed a LOT living out here)
3) Kacey and Kishelle--I'll be able to renew my friendship with my best high school friends

Three posts in 15 minutes...

can you tell that I suddenly have a lot of time on my hands?

Your Personality Profile

You are dependable, popular, and observant. Deep and thoughtful, you are prone to moodiness. In fact, your emotions tend to influence everything you do. You are unique, creative, and expressive. You don't mind waving your freak flag every once in a while. And lucky for you, most people find your weird ways charming!

The World's Shortest Personality Test

Well NOW what?

Student teaching ended about 8 hours ago, and I already feel...adrift. For the last three months, I've put my heart and soul into that school, that placement, those kids....every night and weekend I've had papers to grade and lessons to plan...and now, just like that, I'm all done. It's like...having a huge New Year's Eve party--and then suddenly, half an hour after midnight, you realize that everyone has gone home and you're standing alone in a living room full of empty glasses and confetti.

I do have a COUPLE of "requirements" left. I have my last seminar on Wednesday, at which time I'll turn in the application for my teaching license (!!!!), my remaining assignments, etc. On Thursday, I go back to "my school" to meet with my university supervisor and cooperating teacher one last time. This is my final review, when I'll receive my grade for student teaching (which basically becomes my grade for the entire 10-credit semester. And for the record, any class that requires you to put in 40 hours of class time plus another 10-20 hours of "prep time" every week should be worth WAY more than 10 credits). I'll get to see my kids one last time that day, which is probably why, miracle of miracles, I didn't cry today, my last real day of student teaching.

So now I'm just sitting here....no essays to read, no spelling tests to correct, no lesson plans to create. And I'm not sure what to do with myself, actually.

I guess I finish packing.

Who said that America's teachers are unqualified?

You Passed 8th Grade Math

Congratulations, you got 10/10 correct!

Could You Pass 8th Grade Math?

(Thanks to pseudo-intellectual lunatic for the link.)

I ran today!

And I wasn't chasing an ice cream truck or a hottie at the end of the street or ANYTHING.

It was only for a minute or so at a time, but I did it TWICE. (I'll tell you what, though: those seemed like some long-ass minutes.)

I'm doing dishes.

Yes, WHILE packing and grading papers, I am SIMULTANEOUSLY doing the dishes. "How is that possible?" you may wonder. Well, I am employing the Jeff Method of washing dishes. The JM involves filling the sink with water and soap, piling in the dishes--and then walking away. Indefinitely. It's not uncommon for him to "do the dishes" over an entire weekend.

So, since I'm already doing laundry (the real way, which requires me to navigate the miles of underground tunnels to the laundry room--which, based on the length of the walk, is somewhere near Lansing) and going to 5 different stores to beg for boxes and packing and renewing licenses and going to the bank and doing school stuff and a MYRIAD of other activities--I am reverting to the JM style of dish-washing.

AND, might I add, I am doing all of this with a Debilitating Injury (I sliced the knuckle of my thumb last night on Jeff's Contraption of Death, otherwise known as his beard trimmer).

Rosa Parks' funeral.

As she lived, died and is being buried here in Detroit, her funeral is obviously being televised. (I've been watching since 10 am and, as of almost noon, we're still waiting for the actual program to start...and now I have to leave for my student teaching seminar, so I'm pretty bummed.) Anyway, my question is: my mom told me that they're televising it in West Michigan. Are any other stations across the country broadcasting the funeral proceedings? Is this a national thing or just a regional event?

We discussed Rosa Parks in my language arts class yesterday morning. One student said, "So people were treated bad just 'cuz of their color? That's stupid, Miss K."

I couldn't agree more.

Rosa Parks: "she stood up by sitting down."

Halloween revisited.

I forgot to ask, what did everyone do for Halloween? I went trick-or-treating with my "other" family, the S's. It was a lot of fun, actually. A local park (the same park I took the kids to just about every day in the spring and summer) hosts trick-or-treating there, so we went to check it out. (Mr. S., Mrs. S., three kids and their former nanny--just one big happy family.)

Madison (6, almost 7) was an angel; Noah (now 5) was Dracula and Luc (now 3) was Darth Vader. Mrs. S took pictures on a digital camera, so I hope to get some emailed to me and posted on the blog in the near future.

As always, it was great to see them. They seemed pretty happy to see me, too. At the end of the night, they asked if I would "come over and play every day" like I used to. And of course, the day wouldn't be complete without Luc proclaiming, "Supernanny, you FUNNY."