Thankful Thursday

I am thankful that self-tanning lotion is not permanent. This is what I have done to myself. Oops!

The problem here is that I am right-handed...meaning the left arm looks fine...the right, not so much. It has been determined that I will now be called "toasty arm" because I sprayed a small spot in the shape of a piece of toast. Mmmm...arm toast.

My 30 List

I need to do some things before I turn 30. Some are big tasks, others small - all important to me. Here are 30 things I will do by 30.

1.  Buy a pair of Toms.

2.  Get my second tattoo.

3.  Adopt a pug.

4.  Take a knitting class.

5.  Knit a scarf.

6.  Read at least one book per month.

7.  Expand my music collection.

8.  Continue with school.

9.  See Dave Matthews Band perform live.

10. Find a church.

11.  Volunteer

12.  Go on a hike.

13.  Watch The Lord of the Rings dvds.

14.  Take a guitar lesson.

15.  Visit San Francisco and/or New York City.

16.  Watch all of the Harry Potter dvds.

17.  Do lots of yoga.

18.  Continue my annual trip to the Georgia wineries.

19.  Strive to be a better parent every day.

20.  Go to the beach.

21.  Attend some cool concerts.

22.  Go to an outdoor festival.

23.  Pay off debt.

24.  Spend quality time with friends & family.
25.  Add some funky jewelry to my stash.

26.  Send someone flowers.

27.  Have a family photo shoot.

28.  Go roller skating.

29.  Go to the drive-in.

30.  Participate in the Muddy Buddy race.

"I don't want to get to the end of my my life and find that I lived just the length of it. I want to have lived the width of it, as well." 
-Diane Ackerman

I have haphephobia.

I have just diagnosed myself with haphephobia. I have it...I'm sure of it. See description of diagnosis below.

Haphephobia is an intense, irrational fear of being touched. The person coping with this phobia may also exhibit an overwhelming fear of touching others. Some haphephobic individuals are fearful of their personal space being encroached upon, while others may be fearful of contamination through touch.

I am freakishly frightened by germs. I hate being touched by someone I don't know...it gives me the willies. I am terrified that someone will invade my personal space/time. Crap, maybe this is why I'm single.

Book Review

I spent a portion of my twenties in a bad relationship; a relationship that forced me to give up many things that I love. I have always loved to read and I gave it up because I was consumed by a person that required all of my attention. He is no longer in my life and I am thrilled that I finally have the chance to do things I love again. I have spent a lot of time catching up on my reading this year and that makes me truly happy.

Here is a little review on what I have read so far:

The Distant Land of My Father by Bo Caldwell. Great book about a girl growing up in Shanghai, China and her relationship with her father. I recommend it.

Girl Interrupted by Susanna Kaysen. Story of a girl admitted to a mental institution. Very interesting - definitely makes you think. Maybe we are all crazy?

The Idiot Girls' Action-Adventure Club: True Tales from a Magnificent and Clumsy Life by Lori Notaro. Cute short stories. Maybe a little too crude for me.

Precious by Sapphire. A winner, but hard to read. Deals with the mental/physical/sexual abuse a young girl endures from her parents. I watched the movie over the weekend - the book is better.

I just started a new book - Wanderlust: A History of Walking by Rebecca Solnit. I absolutely love it so far. I can't wait to keep reading!

An Eventful Work-out Session

I went to my new gym yesterday. It was day two and I almost had to quit. I have a peculiar phobia of fans and the new gym has the largest fan I have ever seen in my life. It's like a helicopter propeller. I mean BIG. I don't really know what provoked my fan phobia, but I have always been scared of them. As a child, I would worry that the blades were going to fly off and chop me up in little pieces. To this day, a twirling fan makes me very anxious. Lucky for me, the fan was whirling about in a fairly slow motion. I was okay. If it would have been going any faster, I would have had to quit the gym (or risk being chopped up in little pieces).

I stayed strong and got busy on the treadmill. A couple of machines down, a chunky guy climbed up on a treadmill with a personal trainer by his side. A few minutes later, the chunky man had dropped to his side, arms flailing about, treadmill still going. I'm pretty sure he was making some kind of noise, but I couldn't hear him because my music was so loud. The trainer ran to his side and helped him up. I immediately turned my head, swallowed as hard as I could, and bit my tongue, attempting to control my laughter. Every female in my family has this problem - we laugh when people get hurt. It sounds awful, but it isn't because we think the injury is funny. It's the actions leading up to the injury and the reaction of the injured person that is funny. Either way, chunky guy was fine. And I got a good laugh.

It's Thursday!

It is Thursday, a reminder to reflect on some things I am thankful for.

I am thankful for the gym. I joined yesterday! I am excited to spend my lunch breaks getting myself in better shape. I am also excited to lose the 10 pounds I have gained since Christmas.

I am thankful for Forever21.com. Yesterday, I found the perfect dress for my 10-year high school reunion coming up in May. Check it out...love it!

Finally, I am thankful for American Idol. I appreciate the opportunity to break away from everything else and enjoy watching Casey James rock it out. I think I love him.

A Little Update

There is so much going on here. I missed Thankful Thursday again last week, but I have an excuse, actually a couple of excuses. Work has been crazy. We have acquired an intern from Germany and I have been spending a ridiculous amount of time helping him get situated. I also had a math test and psychology midterm due last Friday. I passed both, so I am feeling much better.

Things are going amazing with One-Hat-Bill. We have been on a few more dates and I am totally into him. I am a little surprised at how much we have to talk about. It feels special to talk to someone for hours and not even realize that time has passed you by....that is good stuff. He has proven to be very kind by the little things he does. I need to write them because I don't want to forget.

• He always tries to help when I am overwhelmed.
• He went with me to take the German intern out to lunch and to get groceries on our second date.
• He took me to church on our third date.
• He usually brings a bottle of wine when he comes over.
• He will not let me pay.
• He played Monopoly with me and Hayley for over an hour.
• He is out of town for the week, but texts and calls often.
• He tipped the pizza delivery man $10.

I am still so excited about One-Hat-Bill!

Even though I am late, I would like to say that I am thankful for my scientific calculator. (And my sister for letting me borrow it because they are expensive). This handy tool helped me pass my test and breeze through my homework tonight.