$,$$$

I planned carefully so that I would have plenty of money to get me through the summer. I actually planned so well that I could have continued paying extra on my car, and had some money left over.

Now it looks like, due to medical type expenses that I didn't quite expect, I will NOT be paying on my car (at all) for the next three months. I'm 4 months ahead, so technically this is okay, but I wanted to continue paying ahead.

And I may still be short money. Borrow from boyfriend or brother? Neither sound like fun.

I really hope I'm wrong in my calculations somehow...

Edited: I may be okay if I do the Bad Thing, which is not paying my rent, credit card, and car payment that are due like Sept. 31st/Oct. 1st until I get paid on Sept. 30th. With that paycheck. Which is living paycheck to paycheck which suuuuucks and I have been able to avoid for a while. I do actually have 6 month's living expenses saved like they say to, but I can't get at it until the end of October.

Steve and I are in SLO right now for his friend's wedding. I just caught my third bouquet. (Hmmm... something tells me that myth ain't true..."

Oh, and I'm going to be a bridesmaid for the third time soon (probably in fall)... I told the apartment complex manager the "three times a bridesmaid, never a bride" saying, and she was shocked. Evidently in Vietnam, the saying is "Three times a bridesmaid, your turn to be bride." She didn't like the American version very much.

Sunday school songs

Hm. I cannot read this. I must SING it!

Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified: do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go. (Joshua 1:9)

Lets not get started with Father Abraham and his many sons. Or how much Jesus loves the little children.

And today, my friends, it was 108 degrees.

That is one degree off from the all time hottest temperature it has EVER been in San Jose. Ever. Since 1893 it has been hotter than this one time.

Last night it was so hot I had to sleep on the floor in the living room with the A/C on.

Ohhhh my goodness. It is 104 degrees right now in San Jose, and the entire town is apparently sold out of fans. I wouldn't need a fan except that I broke mine while simultaneously hurting my finger at 2 am this morning. (When it was 79 degrees.....) It just doesn't GET this hot here normally! In fact, I was able to ascertain that it hasn't been this hot in July since 1988. Steve tried to fix the fan blade my finger got in the way of, but it just won't superglue back on. I'm not having a good day, and there are way bigger reasons than this heat.

Edited: It is now 106 degrees.

Stupid me...

So, I very much do not reccomend picking the membranes out of jalapenos at the thai restaurant and then going home and touching your eye.

From a mad-libs type thing on the PBS website:

"...When all of a sudden, from behind a tree came a sound like cupcakes bouncing! It was the llama that lived under Jenna 's porch eating its rice!"

Ahem. Another post.

They are playing an episode of "What Not to Wear" with a girl who is my height (6'1"ish) and skinny. Actually, she is as skinny as I was back when I was skinny with an exclamation mark. Like, I'm sure that she weighs about 120 pounds.

Unfortunately it didn't help me with any of the clothing issues I have (finding longer lengths, not looking so darn silly with the expanses of fabric) but they DID have her in a lot of heels. Like 2 inch heels.

I don't wear heels very often because I feel like no one wants a 6'3" teacher running around. Heels just make me feel like I am flaunting my height in a way that is over-the-top and ridiculous. Should I be taller than every man in the room? I went grocery shopping in a cute dress and heels once and felt so funny. I could hardly bend down far enough to get to things on the bottom shelves! (Now, mind you, I was dressed like that because I was on my way home from a lunch date.)

Maybe the heels thing is part of the discomfort with my body that I have only somewhat gotten over. I think that inside your head you are always the way you looked in junior high.

Someone should teach me how to put on eye makeup. I really have no idea.

So much to do!

I'm helping one of my friends set up her new classroom. It is so much fun to shop for school stuff! Posters, no-spill paint cups, fancy erasers for prizes, lesson plan books... Of course, as soon as I go into her room I know I will be insanely jealous. She has two (two!!) large windows that are actually at eye level. Plus, she has skylights! Oh to have natural lighting. I don't have much of it in my classroom, or in my living room at home.

I can't wait to put up bulliten boards with her. I am such a dork.

Lately I've been reading the blogs of women going through some very tough times. Why? I have no idea. I think they're also all possessed of advanced degrees in writing/English. Hm.

I have no idea how I end up following the blogs of seemingly random groups of women. There is a group of others that I have been reading for YEARS, that have something in common with each other that I really don't. Or don't think I do. I'm not even going to say it, because ya'll would think I was wierd or something.

I keep getting these phone calls...

Do I want my aunt's hiking shorts?
Her shell collection from the classroom?
Packages of colored paper and Sharpies?

All her sisters sound so forcefully cheery on the phone as they try to distribute STUFF. There is a pile of my aunt's patterned socks in my bedroom. How long will it take me to be able to look at them without feeling like this?

Summer school starts tomorrow... Ugh.

Here is a random picture Steve took featuring my chest and the cat. You can see how very small Mr. Cat is in relation to... uh... me.

Kitten!

Say hello to Tony! Tony is the first kitten pictured in the post below. He traveled from the rescue place in Morgan Hill to Sunnyvale without even a meow. (I think the cat carrier is one of his favorite hangouts.) Of course.... now that he is installed, he is mewling like crazy, trying to make us think he fell into a well or perhaps is being attacked by spiders.

To show how smart he is, I can tell you that he already found the litter box and used it. Or ... well ... he found it, played in it twice, and then actually used it on the third try. He also invented a game called "That must not be my paw coming around the other side of the chair leg, so I'd better bat at it."

Oh, uh.... you may notice that Tony has a slight case of pirate eye... He and his brothers are fighting off cute little kitty colds. (I swear! He isn't one-eyed!)

Happy Fourth of July!! To celebrate, my boyfriend and I went to Target and bought:

litter pan
litter
wet food
treats
food and water dishes
small pet carrier
small shiny mylar balls
baking soda deodorizer
carpet cleaner
hot dogs
buns

ha HA! Guess what trouble we're getting ourselves into now!

Maybe this kind:


Or perhaps this kind:


However, despite how funny I find this picture, we probably aren't ready for this guy....


Kittens kittens everywhere!! We actually had a stranger offer us some of their kittens yesterday, but we are going to go with the local no-kill shelter/ cat rescue place that has been on our radar the past year or so... MEOW. (I am not a cat person. This should be fun.)

When calling your mother to tell her that your college roomate got engaged this morning and wants you to be her maid of honor, do not start the conversation out with,

"Guess who's getting married??!!"

You'll hear a little pause, into which you should quickly add the name of your friend...