Planes, Politics & Wedgies

Planes:
Ian and I booked our tickets home for Christmas. I couldn't be more excited about this. After 13 months, I will once again be back at home, see my cute nephew and play with my dog! We will be home from December 23 - January 9. I am looking forward to some time with friends and family, shopping, snowboarding, eating some great food and more!

Politics:
Sarah Palin. This woman has just changed the face of politics. Not just politics, but the face of the country. Hillary took our country to a certain extreme and now Sarah has carried the torch on. They have both shown us that women are capable of everything men are in our country. They have shown us it is acceptable to be a working mom (in case you didn't know Sarah's youngest is 4 1/2 months old). They have shown us that a woman's opinion is valued. Sarah may be young and inexperienced in politics, but so is Obama. She brings some much needed life to the Republican ticket. She is young, a mother, a believer in pro-life and more. I look forward to seeing and hearing more about Sarah Palin in the future.

Wedgies:
I was at the gym today and watched this lady pick her wedgie in the middle of the gym! She didn't even look around to see if anyone was watching, she just dug in. This got me thinking, is this woman tacky or just doesn't care what anyone else thinks? The obvious choice would be tacky, but maybe she is so secure in herself that she can pick a wedgie in public and not care what others would think. I do think I admire her for this, but I still believe this is a very tacky act and you won't see me picking a wedgie in public anytime soon!

Sometimes Growing Up Sucks

I look around at all the responsibility and problems that are now mine in life and have to wonder...when did I grow up? And, did anyone ask me if I really wanted to? I remember being 15 and thinking that I couldn't wait until I was 18 so I could do whatever I wanted and make all my own decisions. Well, with those decisions come a lot more responsibility. There is the financial freedom, which is really the privilege of being able to pay for everything yourself! Last week, there was a plumbing leak in our house in Pasadena which caused a 3x5 foot section of the roof in the garage to fall down. All the sudden, the freedom wasn't looking so nice! I am not supposed to be dealing with problems like this, I am just a kid! No longer can me and my friends hang out together all summer, we have work. Then, when we are sick, it is so much harder to call in sick to work than it ever was to school! There are people counting on me showing up and if I don't, someone else has to pick up my slack. Of course, now I can stay out as late as I want and do really whatever I want. That isn't so cool anymore. I can't sleep all day...there is laundry to be done, errands to run and more. Though I must admit, that doesn't mean I don't take advantage of this from time to time! Especially now during the festival; it seems like every weekend this month, Ian and I aren't getting home until at least 2am. But back to the grown up problems. No longer can I talk to my friends whenever I want. Work, kids and more get in the way. Plus, I don't think Chandra would answer the phone anymore if I called at 3am! Seriously, I remember calling her on a fairly frequent basis in the middle of the night. That was the life, the life before responsibility. But, I look around today, the sun is shining, I have a delicious dinner cooking, the laundry is almost done and I realize, life is still good, I just have more to think about!

When It's Raining Outside

Generally I am an antsy person. I like to be out of the house and feeling like I am doing something with my day. I like to get out, go on walks, ride my bike, go shopping, hang out with friends and more. It is amazing how much that changes when it is constantly raining outside and I have to wait for the bus in the rain if I want to go anywhere. All the sudden, I only will leave if it is extremely necessary. I find so many more things to do around the house...even the cleaning that I usually try to avoid. When I look outside and it is raining buckets, suddenly going for walks and anything that involves being outdoors isn't as appealing. Obviously, if I stayed inside every day, I would go insane. And there are those necessary things that do get me out of the house on most days. But I must say, today my house is looking very clean and all the laundry is done!

The Yuck Factor

There are certain things that I run into from time to time that really just gross me out. This first one, I run into at the gym all the time. This is guys spitting loogies in the drinking fountain. They just sit there on the drain for everyone to stare at...grossness! I don't understand how anyone can find this acceptable. Speaking of spitting, I have even seen people spit on the floor of the bus! People can really lack manners sometimes!

Another yuck factor is when using a public toilet, seeing people leave without washing their hands! Not only are you in public, so you should do it to not gross others out, but also, since you are using a public toilet, there are many more germs you are coming into contact with. Why NOT wash your hands?

Lastly, and this is an odd one, on Saturday a lady at my work took her beverage, which was in a mug, into the bathroom. She ended up spilling it and I had to clean it up. But, my question is, why would you ever take your drink into the bathroom with you?!? Especially at my work...the bathrooms are about 3 feet wide. You can barely move in them and the only place to set the cup would be on the back of the toilet or on the floor. Grossness!

Every single one of us needs to think about our daily actions. We need to think of the yuck factor we are causing. And, if there is a yuck factor in there, it should be stopped! Or at least, only allow your nasty habits out in the comfort of your own home!

Military Tattoo

Yesterday, Ian and I had the opportunity of going to the Edinburgh Military Tattoo show. This takes place at the Edinburgh Castle. They set up a grandstand for people to sit in. We got in this huge line to get into the stadium. Standing in the line, it seemed that it would be virtually impossible for all these people to get into the stadium. Well, they did it! There was literally NO wiggle room in the stadium. We were sitting shoulder to shoulder, knee to back. It was crazy. BUT, this packing really helped when it started pouring rain on us. All the people acted as a protective barrier against the rain!

The show itself was great. Many different bands from around the world performed. Even a band from Missouri performed, though I must say, they were probably the low point of the evening (which does sort of reflect bad on the homeland). The high points were a marching group of girls from New Zealand, some people that skied (yes, skied) through the stadium holding huge flames and a group of guys performing with bayonets...they were awesome. One odd thing was toward the end of the night, all the bands came out and performed the national anthem. The national anthem is the song that goes like this...My country tis of thee; sweet land of liberty...well, thanks to google, I found out that song (known as "America") is written to the tune of the British national anthem, God Save the Queen. Kind of funny. In my opinion, this is the funniest way ever to get back at Britain...go America!

By the end of the show, the skies had opened up and it became a downpour. And, since it took about a half an hour to exit the stadium, we were sufficiently soaked by the time we got out. And of course, as luck would have it, no taxis were available. But, we made it safely home via the night bus. Even though we were in a bad storm, I would go see the show again...next time though, I would bring something to cover my lap!

The Month of the Festival

August is an interesting month for Edinburgh. It is a month where the population of the city more than doubles as hundreds of thousands of people flock into the city to take part in the festival. In reality, there are many a festivals going on simultaneously. There is the Fringe Festival (comedy), Edinburgh International Festival (theatre/arts), Tattoo (military), and I am sure more that I am failing to mention. The chaos that makes up the city right now reminds me of Pasadena leading up to and during the Rose Parade. Things become overcrowded, litter is everywhere, alcohol is free-flowing (you can wonder the streets drinking here), street performers are a dime a dozen and the entertainment is nonstop!

On Friday night, Ian and I took advantage of the festival and went to a comedy show. It was quite funny. And I have to admit, the best part was when the guy was making fun of Americans; though Ian says it was so funny because we are American, but whatever! Then on Saturday, we wondered around in the chaos that is known as the Royal Mile. You can barely walk, the crowd is so thick. Then, every two feet people are thrusting papers in your face advertising a show. And you gotta look down every once in a while to make sure the people with strollers don't ram you! Though I was a little disgusted with the amount of litter everywhere, I was entertained by the crazily dressed people and tourists galore. It is going to be an interesting month for us here in Edinburgh!