good grief! #$%*!@@@!!!!!!!!

my car is being held hostage. i took it in to the dealer today, saying that it needed it's regular service (oil change) and that it was making some strange noises. to make a VERY long story short, matt and i have to get a ride home from work today because the dealer says that i have to have my transmission replaced (and they couldn't forsee this when i've been taking it to the same place for 2 years?!) which my dad says is b.s. so he's taking care of all the details. matt and i have one car for the weekend...oh well. practice for california!

on the road again...

today i went to ellensburg for a baby shower. i think i was the only person there who wasn't a mother (or mother-to-be). it was great to see j.g. since i hadn't seen her in a couple of years or met her daughter (who bit two of the other kids at the shower and left nice red marks, but who otherwise was very cute - we hit it off). p.b. came with me over the mountains and it was so great to have her along. we can chat about anything, and we listened to music, and chatted some more. she is one of my dearest friends and i will miss her companionship terribly!

saturday matt and i went to a wedding out in pacific. i think it was the shortest ceremony (5 mintues, if that) and longest reception (started at one, we left at 4:30) we'd ever been to! it was at a christmas tree farm and the groom wore shorts and a t-shirt while the bride was in a white sundress. it was beautifully simple. no fuss, no muss. just a great gathering.

b.m. and s.p.'s wedding is next! matt and i are both in the wedding and i know it will be beautiful too. completely personal and simple too. i know, i know. i'm known as the sensitive bridesmaid. i probably will start sobbing as i walk down the aisle. b.m. - make sure we both have kleenex in clasped with our bouquets!

central air conditioning

i found out it's not paid for. you know what? i don't give a crap - at least i can cool off. and in a one bedroom apartment, it won't be that bad. plus, with fans and open windows, it won't be TOO bad. just on days that are 90+ in the summer....oy....

new look

don't worry, i just changed the template. your eyes haven't gone kooky or anything (at least not yet)! i just thought this one was a little easier on the eyes! :)

getting together

so i have to say that it's really sweet of everyone to want to see us before we go, and we want to see you too. please understand that we have a few weddings to go to before the end, fourth of july holiday, and family gatherings to attend to, all the while trying to get the apartment getting ready and attempting to keep the cats mildly sane. i now apologize for any confusion, hurt feelings, frustration, and our distracted minds. things get crazier every day...it's getting harder and harder to keep track of dates. our apolgies, family and friends! know that we love you all and thank you for your understanding!

Ireland Adventures with Sweetiebear

My friend J.M. and her sweetiebear are in Ireland and having a darn good time! :)

Growing Older but not Up

party-hardy

my uncle threw matt and i a good-bye party yesterday. i think we arrived at the house around 2. everyone started arriving around 3 or 4, and then we stayed until 10! we had a great time and it was a super get together. now i'm really having a hard time with leaving. even though it's time, even though there's this huge adventure looming up before us, i didn't realize or think about how hard it's going to be...leaving all of this behind.

new home!

we got the apartment! :) we're going to move in mid-July. our last day at our old place is July 15. i figure we'll spend a few nights at the folks' house before heading out on our adventure. and it looks like katie, my little sis, will be joining us on the excursion. she will be the kitty wrangler. :)

the "not-so-fun" side of graduate school

the loan process. need i say more?

home again

well, my home for now. as i flew in to washington last night i suddenly realized how beautiful the puget sound is, and how in less than two months i'd be looking at desert brown hills with puffs of green for beauty. yeesh! well, i'll get used to it. exciting news: i'm typing this from matt's brand new laptop! n.v. bought one for him and one for his sister. i love this thing! :)

today's goals are to start packing up the kitchen, send in the application for the apartment in l.a. and set up a budget plan. we got the financial aid letter from the government and while it's not as much as we were hoping for, it's at least something. now onto banks for private loans...ugh...any suggestions?

catchy!

i just got back with k.m. and her brother from a funky indie rock concert. the first band was so funny simply because the lead singer was totally into his music and looked like he was having a seizure - he didn't seem to be able to control his limbs! the second band kicked serious ass aaaannndd they are from seattle! wohoo! :) http://www.thecatchmusic.com/ they are playing at the crocodile in seattle on friday night. it's their homecoming concert and cd release party. it should be fun...anyone wanna go with me?

possible new home!

oh, i fell in love with it when i walked into the lobby. downfalls: limited closet space, wacky 70's style kitchen, no deck/patio, no pool. upsides: beautiful decorated lobby, orignal elevator, built in 1928, lots of character, 3 blocks from AFI, cable ready, water trash parking and gas are paid for, central a/c, and we can paint the rooms! here's the website: http://www.cpmusa.com/Franklin.htm

my first day

so here i am in west hollywood at rian's apartment. he's got a view of the hollywood sign...it's so weird i'm actually here. he's just a 10 minute walk from the mall and the farmer's markent and whole foods. he hardly ever drives to the store! we also drove all around hollywood/beverly hills/los feliz to see the different areas and i'm actually considering west hollywood because it's more of what i had in mind as far as where i'd like to live. saw sunset strip, weather was awesome, and kari is here too. it's so good to see her...this is going to be a great trip! the only thing is that i still can't believe matt and i are going to live here. it just seems so surreal...

In Addition

Mom is doing okay. She had a bone marrow test today to see if the cancer has spread to her bones, so she's quite sore. We don't talk about the illness much, but I know she's having a tougher time. She'll be at work tomorrow and Wednesday she has an appointment with her surgeon. So far, it's in her skin in her chest cavity and in her lymph nodes.

I will certainly keep you posted as we find out more information. Thank you for all your prayers and thoughts!

Clarification

Okay, just to clarify why Matt and I called it "Revenge of the Suck"... (this one is for you, j.m.!)

Now that Matt's going into film school, we're starting to pick apart movies more and more. I have to say the dialogue was TERRIBLE. Get on with the show, folks! I don't need to hear how much Annikan and Padme love each other...for 2 minutes! Sheesh. The tech aspects of the movie were incredible, and it was fun to see Yoda fight again. I really enjoyed Ian McDarmond (the chancellor) and Christopher Lee (Count Duku). I just wish the script was less painful. Matt said that 30-45 minutes of dialogue could have been cut from the movie. I'll go with him on that one.

Frankly, I was really disappointed with "Revenge of the Sith". Many of my friends said that they loved it (to each his/her own) and so I had high hopes. Perhaps my disappointment is reflected in my review. :)

Whirlwhind

Phew! What a week! Okay, here's what I've been up to:

5/24 - went over to mom and dad's cooked dinner hung out had fun.
5/27 - inventory at work left at 1pm after we were done and saw "revenge of the suck" need i say more friend j.g. came over for a few hours and went out for drinks had my first ever long island iced tea got really sleepy
5/28 - spent the day cleaning out most of our closets and donated a shitload of stuff to good will had 5 trash bags to donate to the trash bin outside our apartment took a 2 hour nap saw friend p.b. in shakespeare play with friend a.j-g. next to me in the audience
5/29 - saw matt's folks for brunch spent the rest of the day cleaning up after what looked like a tornado ran through our apartment friends t.m. j.m. and n.m. came over stayed the night
5/30 - spent morning with my parents spent rest of day downtown seattle and went to mariners game had fun
5/31 - legs are tired

Results...

...come in tomorrow. I'll let you know what the doc says. If it's bad news, it'll take me a day or two to post...if not, well, check back tomorrow evening and see what happens...

Thanks for keeping my family in your prayers. :)

Dad

He's so good. He has mom double booked for both scans at 2 different hospitals, and I think the appointments are next week. What a guy! :)

It's back.

My mom's cancer is back. It's in her skin. She's due to have a CAT scan and a bone scan June 1 to see if it's spred any further. Right now my dad is on the phone trying to get an earlier appointment. We don't have much more information but I'll post something as soon as I know.

We've made it through this thing once. We'll get through it again.

And she was doing so well...training for a triathlon and everything...

More Comic Relief...

My dear friend S.B. pointed out another great comedian...Eddie Izzard. He is very funny, and I enjoy his stuff tremendously. It's a different type of humor, more intelligent and he's also british so he's got that going for him! :)

I'm sending in my resume/cover letter for the AFI job today...wish me luck!