New blog alert

Okay, it's not a "new" blog, but it's new to US...and I am ordering ALL OF YOU (especially women) to go there immediately. Seriously, it's my new favorite blog. Freakin' hysterical. I'd still be reading it right now, except that I REALLY need to get ready for work.

http://thecompanybitch.blogspot.com/

I'll link it once I get home this evening.

Fighting back

Americans who believe that U.S. soldiers killed in combat deserve a dignified funeral and a time for family and friends to mourn in peace, can help make that possible. A Congressman drafted the legislation after attending the funeral of a Michigan soldier who died of combat wounds suffered in Iraq. Protestors attempted to disrupt the funeral by shouting vile and harassing slogans at the family and other mourners. (I've posted about one of these groups before, this insane "church" who believes that American soldiers deserve to die for defending a country with homosexuals, and who carry signs to the funeral with slogans such as "Thank God for IEDs".) The measure bans demonstrations at funerals in national cemeteries 60 minutes before, during, or 60 minutes after the service, and requires that any such protests must stay at least 500 feet from the funeral site.

For more information, visit http://www.mikerogers.house.gov/newsroom.aspx?A=226 .

To sign the petition, please go to www.mikerogers.house.gov/fallenheroes.aspx

Help support rednecks everywhere

No, I'm kidding. It's a good cause. Plus, who DOESN'T want their very own NASCAR pin? It's the perfect accessory for your wifebeater and trucker hat.

www.nascar.com/foundation

My new theme song.

"Something's Gotta Give" - LeAnn Rimes

Jenny's got a job
A cat named Jake
31 candles on her birthday cake
Next year
(Oh, she) thought by now she'd have a man
(With) two car seats in a minivan
(But it still ain't here, hey, alright)

She been lookin' for Mr. Right so long
But all she found is Mr. Wrong
And that's the pits
She's drawn a line that she won't cross
Her and time are facin' off
She says somethin's gotta give

Chorus

(Well,) somethin' gotta give me butterflies
Somethin' gotta make me feel alive
Yeah, somethin' gotta give me dreams at night
Somethin' gotta make me feel alright
I don't know where it is
Yeah, but somethin's gotta give
(Somethin' gotta give)

Friday night she had a date
Cell phone junkie
A half hour late
Yeah, that's the biz, baby

She's ridin' out this twist of fate
She's had all that she can take
She says somethin's gotta give

(Repeat Chorus)

Bridge

I swear
There's got to be a 'meant to be' for me out there
Somewhere, some day
I'm gonna find someone, somehow, some way
Hey, hey yeah, alright, yeah

(Repeat 1st Verse)

Bridge

She says somethin's gotta
Somethin's gotta
Somethin's gotta

I'm moving to Florida- who's coming with me?

Seriously, I'm REALLY thinking about it. I went to a job fair for one of the local districts this morning, and there are just SO many people competing for what amounts to a handful of available positions. There were a few people in line with me (it's like Cedar Point; you wait in line for an hour for a 4-minute ride) who are returning to Michigan after leaving for a year or two to gain experience in other states like Florida, North Carolina, etc. They all verified what I already know; there are a LOT of positions available in other parts of the country, particularly down South and out West.

Sure, I wouldn't know anyone and have any friends. But I could also drown my sorrows on the beaches. In November. Plus, I'd be tan and skinny (because I'd be able to work out outside ALL YEAR ROUND).

As we speak, I'm putting my resume up on teachinflorida.com. Yes, it'd be scary as hell to pack up all of my stuff and start over in a new place without knowing anyone. But I've done it before (college, although that was only 3 hours away). And I've been talking for YEARS about wanting to get out of Michigan for a while and live somewhere else. Somewhere warm. Maybe this is the time for me to actually do it.

Of course, I'd feel a lot better if someone came with me. Missy? Nikki?

March of Dimes walk.

On April 22, Nikki, Missy and I will be participating in the annual Walk America event for the March of Dimes. One of our nephews has cerebral palsy (he was born REALLY premature; not due till March but born in December, if I remember correctly) so we have a personal interest in this particular walk. Anyway, if you'd like to chip in a few dollars (every little bit helps, truly--my goal is over $200 this time), you can visit www.walkamerica.org/jlkrzys. You can also visit that Walk America site to find a walk in your area.

Thanks!

Crash

Mom and Steve got in a car accident today.

In our driveway.

With each other.

That's all I have to say about that.

Back by popular demand

Another edition of "actual phrases that came out of my mouth."

You gotta love being a teacher of little kids.

"Shoes don't go in the microwave."

"I don't want to hear the word 'fart' any more today."

"We don't call our friends 'booty-heads.' "

And lastly...

"Put your pants back on!!" (I got a lot of questions about this one. One of my younger kids made a routine trip to the bathroom and, for some reason, thought it would be hysterical to come out drawer-less. For the record, we have bathrooms right in our classroom, so it's not like he was wandering down the hall half-nekkid.)

Crappity crappity crap.

So Jen met a great guy who makes her happy--and, more importantly, makes her feel SANE AND NORMAL? It must be time for the other shoe to drop, naturally. (And those of you who know me know how rare that whole "sane and normal" part is, LOL. I'm not calling too much, emailing too much, looking ahead to the future too much, getting too clingy or emotional or ANYTHING. I'm just sitting back and enjoying the time we spend together, letting things develop at their own pace while still enjoying MY life and keeping up with MY interests. I don't plan my life around him, I merely fit him INTO it. Seriously, this is the most normal relationship I've ever been in. Which makes this whole next part that much suckier.)

For those of you who don't know, Tyson used to be in the Peace Corp, which means that he is able to go to grad school virtually for free. That federal program only applies to certain schools, however; and the closest one is Western Illinois U., a good six hours away. This past weekend, he drove out there to check it out--to look at the campus and the town and to learn more about this particular program he was interested in. It's something I've known about pretty much since the beginning, but, in New and Improved Jen Fashion, I've been trying not to think about it or worry about it too much till it actually HAPPENED, till I knew if I actually had something to worry about or not. He emailed me on Sunday (he had snuck into the computer lab) to say that so far he wasn't too impressed with the town itself but that he still had his official university tour on Monday. Well, he got back today....and here's the email I sent out (with, of course, my usual blog-related modifications, post-email changes, additonal thoughts, etc...okay, so it's not at ALL like the my original email). ;)

******
He called me tonight. Although he wasn't impressed by the town, he did like the tour of the campus, the people he talked to and the program itself. He still doesn't know if grad school is what he wants, though, or if he just wants to get out of radio in general. So he hasn't made a definite decision on the grad school thing yet. The bad news (for me) is that he hasn't ruled it out yet, either. He's applying, he said, but mostly just to keep his options open at this point in case he DOES decide to do it.

We had our first serious "us" talk tonight, and that part was really good. Basically, it was established that we're both pretty into each other, we aren't dating other people and we don't WANT to. We really enjoy the time we spend together and every date we have ends with us liking each other more. HOWEVER, I dont know what's going to happen if he decides to leave. We talked about that a little, about how LD relationships are incredibly hard even for established couples, let alone one who has been dating a relatively short time.

I told him that if we weren't going to try to carry it on after he left, that *I* wouldnt be able to date him until he DID leave....that I didn't see the point, frankly, in spending all that time with him, growing to like him even more, and then having it flat-out end in June (which is when he'd leave). As far as I was concerned ( I told him calmly and adultly), if we weren't going to carry this on after he left, then *I* wouldnt be able to date him until he DID leave....that I didn't see the point, frankly, in spending all that time with him, growing to like him even more, and then having it flat out end in June (which is when he'd leave). (I know myself well enough to know that I'd get way too emotionally involved and then be that muc more hurt when he left.) My bottom line, I explained rationally and thoughtfully (really, I did damn well) was that I've dated enough to know a good thing when I saw one, and that as far as I was concerned, I'd rather see HIM once a month than some other guy every day. He said that although he pretty much felt that same way about ME, he also knew that LDRs never worked for him in the past and he didn't know if he'd want to even try one again. I told him that I understood, that it would be hard enough to try to make a new, fledgling relationship work long-distance without his added stress of starting graduate school, etc.

Anyway, we left it at this: first things first, he has to decide if he's going to go or not. We're going to keep doing what we've been doing while he tries to sort all this out. I told him he has to decide if it's this particular line of WORK he wants to do (some kind of tourism thing) or if it's just a general CHANGE he's after. And that's what he doesn't know yet....if he's just excited about a change in general or about THIS SPECIFIC CHANGE. Then we hung up cuz he's getting sick and he had to go to bed.

******
I have to say (this is me again, not my email. I orginally had my email italicized but that kept screwing up the formatting of my whole blog for some reason) that I'm really proud with the way I'm approaching this whole thing. As much as I want him to stay, I'm also being as objective as possible when I talk to him about it. I told him that relationship aside, I was also his FRIEND, and I wanted him to reach the decision that was best for HIM. And I really do. I want him to be happy. And if that means grad school in Illinois...then yeah, that would suck, and frankly, I'd be pretty crushed, especially after our talk tonight, when, ironically, I feel closer to him and more "couple" like than ever before. Okay, back to the email.

******
Sooooooo....I dont know, guys. Especially after this conversation, I'd be walking on air normally cuz we both really like each other and this could really be something....which makes me even sadder that he might be leaving and, if he is, it may mean the end of "us". And it sucks that we have to talk about ANY of this after like 6 weeks. The timing is just horrible. He said something about that tonight, how if we hadn't just met, if this relationship wasn't so new, it would be a whole different story (as far as continuing this thing if he DOES end up going).

So we'll see.

******
On a somewhat related note, it's been two weeks today since I quit smoking, and although I've slipped up here and there, I'm choosing to focus on the hundreds (literally) of cigarettes that I HAVEN'T smoked in that time frame as opposed to the 7 or so that I have.

"Smoke-free" sucks.

I know things have been kind of quiet out of Fort Jen lately. I actually quit smoking about a week ago, so I've been laying kind of low because, frankly, it's been pretty hard. I got sick last week and had to make another emergency asthma visit to the doctor; Mom threw out my cigarettes and I was feeling too crappy to even argue with her. That was last Monday night; and here I am, a week later, still smoke-free (although somewhat more tense and a couple of pounds heavier, LOL).

I'm chewing "the gum"--Nicorette. Going cold turkey doesn't work for me, that's for sure. It's hard, because I'm one of those people where it's not even the NICOTINE that's addictive to me. It's the sheer HABIT of it that I have a hard time breaking. Smoking becomes a ritual. First thing in the morning. In the car. After dinner. Certain times of the day, certain events, just trigger this...internal reaction that's really, really hard to overcome. I think that's why nicotine-replacement treatments haven't really worked for me in the past--because it's truly not the nicotine I'm craving (by now, it's out of my system; I'm totally "detoxed"); it's the ritual of it, the routine. Still, the gum can't hurt. (And yes, I've tried a million other things, too--chewing straws, carrot sticks, etc. If you have any other suggestions, though, please let me know.)

I did treat myself to some new jeans at Penney's this past weekend, once I realized that I can actually fit into Juniors jeans again. I figured that the money I saved in a week of not smoking could be put towards some jeans that, quite frankly, make my ass look FABULOUS. And that makes it a little easier to continue with my smoke-free days--knowing that my "cigarette money" has already been spent on something else. (Sure, for some people, the satisfaction of knowing that they're making a healthy decision for themselves and their families, that they're adding years to their lives, renewing their skin, improving their smile, and are no longer smelling like an ash tray--that may be reward enough. Whatever. For me, I need STUFF. I need PRIZES, dammit. And if a weekly "present" to myself gets me through these first few weeks and months, then so be it.) ;)

So that's what's been up on my end.

On a more serious note, I want to give a big shout-out and long-distance hug to our girl Renee, who just lost her grandmother today. I'm thinking of you, and you know I'm here. Hang in there.

What the f*#^?

I'm reading an article about the current movement by certain Christian groups to ban gays and lesbians from adopting. "Now that we've defined what marriage is, we need to take that further and say children deserve to be in that relationship," says Greg Quinlan of Ohio's Pro-Family Network, a conservative Christian group.

No, you dumb f*#^. What children DESERVE is to be in a home, a loving, stable home, whether that's a single-parent or two-parent home, gay or straight. There are SO MANY CHILDREN in foster care right now, especially older (and often minority) kids who CANNOT be placed because some people only want to adopt a Caucasion infant with no problems or challenges, emotional, physical or otherwise. And you're telling me that it's better for those so-called "special needs" kids to live their lives in group homes or being bounced from foster home to foster home rather finding a forever home with a family who loves them?

This is a subject that, for some reason, incenses me to the very core. Maybe it's because children are involved. Maybe it's because it shows everything that I hate--literally, HATE--about some self-professed Christians (the ignorance shown by certain people who claim to be "compassionate" and "God-loving" just astounds me sometimes). But whatever the root of my passion, I'm about to get out there and march with those poor gay and lesbian rights groups.

As I've mentioned before in a couple of posts, I'm also pro-gay marriage, because let's face it, they can't f*#& up the "sacred institution" of marriage any worse than we straight people have with our sky-high divorce rates. But now, to say that gay people can't make fit parents?!?!

(For those counting, I have used the "f" word, albeit censored, 3 times in this post. That means I'm really, REALLY mad. Seriously, although I do swear like a trucker sometimes, I don't think I've EVER used that word so much in one post before.)

The Florida Trip

As much as I was dreading it, we actually had a really good time in Florida. The first three days were spent in Orlando, where we stayed at the Nickelodeon Family Suites Hotel. The rates were incredible, considering all they have to offer-- tons of Nickelodeon characters milling about in costume, a "mall", restaurants, a bar, two HUGE waterparks, basketball courts, an arcade, and all of the rooms are suites, so Brent had his own (SpongeBob) room, we had a small fridge, cupboards and a kitchen sink. All for $142 a night! Granted, this IS the off-season, but the hotel my sister works at in Saugatuck charges more than that for a standard room with just a bed and a shitter :-). It was great!


My cheesy-grinned kid posing in his beloved SpongeBob room, complete with bunkbeds, tv, playstation, radio and a small desk.




Brent's favorite things about the hotel were the waterparks (they're outdoor, but the water is 85º and they don't close the pools unless it gets below 50º) and the Character Breakfast, which the price of made me choke. $50 for three of us to eat a buffet breakfast and take pictures with the Nick characters. Brent was in his glory, though, so I guess it was worth it.


Brent blasting innocent bystanders with water. At least it's 85º water...








This whole contraption is filled with slides, bridges, tubes and tunnels, with water spraying everywhere and huge buckets of water that dump on you when you least expect it. And, thanks to my stellar photography skills, the side of my husband's head in the lower left corner.


These were taken at the Character Breakfast. We also took pictures with Patrick and Squidward (from SpongeBob), and Tommy and Angelica (from the Rugrats), but I won't make you look at EVERY picture I took on vacation...

Whilst in Orlando, we went to Sea World and Universal Studios. Sea World was, by far, my favorite. I would go back each time we're in Florida. We all loved it. We watched a Pirate and seal show and a Shamu show, which kinda sucked cuz halfway through, the whales decided to quit performing. The Pirate show, however, was HILARIOUS.

Universal Studios was much more adult-oriented than I thought it would be, and Brent was so overwhelmed and tired and just downright crabby that day that it wasn't really even worth it to buy the tickets, but you live and learn. Next year we'll reserve a day to hang out at the pool or whatever between park days to rest up :-)

Then on to Sebring to stay with the in-laws. Everything went really well there; my MIL minded her manners, for the most part :-) John and his dad golfed every day we were there, and Brent was beside himself with awe that he got to drive the golf cart around the neighborhood (not by himself, of course).

I celebrated the big 29 while we were there, and on my birthday, a friend of the in-laws took us for a boat ride on the Kissimmee (sp?) river, where we got to see lots of gators, otters and turtles. Oh, and very large birds, which terrify me. Sandhill cranes are not my friends. I cannot put into words how beautiful and peaceful the boat ride was. It was just really nice to see GREEN again.



This little guy was on the golf course. The gator pics from the boat ride aren't close enough to see on here.






Grandmas are always doling out the chocolate chip cookies, aren't they? This is Brent with motorcycle mama great-grandma.





Can't do a post about Florida without some palm tree pics! This is the in-laws' back yard, the canal, and the golf course. What a view each morning!
The weather was like this every day- nary a cloud (yes, I said "nary"), low 70's... it was rough.





And here's what we came home to...

P.S.

Mad props to all you crazy bastards who include pictures in your posts on a regular basis... this took me FOREVER!