Holiday Shmoliday

I realized I have not written a post for a while. Well, Lauren creating a post reminded me. It is quite amusing so go check it out by clicking on her name!     ^^^^

In my realization I remembered that I never posted any pictures from Halloween or Thanksgiving. Here they are:

This is our gang's costume theme for Halloween.

We were characters from Despicable Me. :)

This is right before we stuffed our faces with Thanksgiving food!

My parents, my Gram, Nathan and I.

Nathan and I do not have room for a real xmas tree, 

so we bought this little one for our apartment.

All of our ornaments are too big for it 

so I came up with a way they can still be a part of the action.

These are the ones that hang off the wall behind the tree.

This is one of three little reindeer ornaments my Gram gave me at Thanksgiving.

As you can see he is very happy in his new home.

Also he has a little penguin earring hang off from his antler,

who would not be happy for that? :P

As you can probably tell I like to show my life through pictures. I feel that they can say more than I can in just typing. They say a picture is worth a thousands words and I agree! Pictures also help me to remember important events, big or small, that happen in my life. I wish that I took more pictures because I love doing it, but life is so busy! This has been a busy semester for me and I know it will only be busier next semester. That is why I am looking forward to a month off for xmas vacation! Whooo!

I am hoping I will use my relaxation time wisely by going outside and not staying on the couch the whole time. :P

Speaking of xmas... I am still working on the list of stuff I need to make/buy/decided what to give people. I was going to say "what to get people" but then I thought "That isn't really the point is it?" There is a big difference between "getting" someone something or "giving" someone something. *Caution* This is where I may get deep....

I am now going to break down the difference between "get" and "give". 

get |get|

verb ( gets, getting ; past got |gät|; past participle got or gotten |ˈgätn| )

1 [ with obj. ] come to have or hold (something); receive: I got the impression that she wasn't happy.

• experience, suffer, or be afflicted with (something bad): I got a sudden pain in my left eye.

• receive as a punishment or penalty: I'll get the sack if things go wrong.

• contract (a disease or ailment): I might be getting the flu.

give |giv|

verb ( past gave |gāv|; past participle given |ˈgivən| )

1 [ with two objs. ] freely transfer the possession of (something) to (someone); hand over to: they gave her water to drink | the check given to the jeweler proved worthless | [ with obj. ] : he gave the papers back.

• bestow (love, affection, or other emotional support): his parents gave him the encouragement he needed to succeed | (as adj.giving) : he was very giving and supportive.

I did not include everything that the dictionary said but as you can see "get" just seem purely negative, and while "give" can have some negative components it can be positive as well. Getting someone something implies no thought, while giving someone something requires thought.

I would like to highlight one part of "give" and that is: bestow (love, affection, or other emotional support).

I think this is very important difference to keep in mind this time of year. Especially for me who is no longer a child and naive to all the negative aspects of what the holiday season tries to hide. The part I am most talking about is having to get people things. Why do we feel this way? Why do most of us groan at the thought of this time of year? This is the time where we are suppose to spend time with our family, strive for world peace, and give to those who need most the simple thing just to survive. The reason why we groan at all this is because during the rest of the year we spend time burning the bridges that are suppose to be there to support us and help us through tough times.

So this xmas try to give people you care about things that have meaning. This does not have to be something of physical value. Sentimental is what we should strive for when giving gifts. Experiences that will last a life time. Something that will bring a smile when thought about. I know this may require more thought that just getting something, but isn't that what this time of the year is about? Thinking about people you care for and showing that you really just want them to be happy?

I know this is different from what I usually write about and it is just food for thought. One thing just kind of snowballed into another and so on. I hope you have very happy holidays, and know that I love you. :) Yes you, the person reading this.

Seasons are Changing

Today is a beautiful day and I am enjoying that last of the "Free Coffee Fridays" at Cumberland Farms (free advertising!).

For the past few weeks I have been incredibly busy. I have had projects, tests, and papers up the ying-yang! Even today I still am working on yet another paper! Not to mention I have work on the weekends! I am not sure I would have ever said this, but I like school days better than the weekend. :P I would much rather be here at school, but such is life.

With the changing of the seasons it has gotten a lot colder outside. I just took a walk outside and my hands are freezing. Guess it is time to bring out the mittens! In this part of the state the leaves took longer to fall and now they are pretty much all gone. Along with the coldness and the leaves being gone the sun is rising later and makes getting up in the morning sooooo much harder. Getting up at six in the summer? No problem! Getting up at six now? Grrrrarrrggggg!

One thing that I am excited for is the upcoming holiday season! The time for large amounts of food and sweets consumption is in the air. This is the first year Nathan and I get to spend all of the holidays together! We agreed that we were going to decorate the apartment for them... Still yet to happen... I am really excited to spend more time with my family. School, work, life always seem to get in the way but holidays always bring us together. :)

Now please enjoy this picture of Nathan and I skinning a moose hide...

So I am finally getting around to posting pictures of our apartment! 

I know I said I would post them a long time ago but it never felt decorated enough to do so. 

Since I took these pictures we have added a new poster too! 

Maybe we will never be done decorating...

This is the first room you see when you walk in. It is our livingroom/bedroom.

This is the other side of the room.

This is part of our kitchen decor. 

Below here are a bunch of signatures on our kitchen table. 

If you come to our home you have to sign it!

My dads ^^

The heart is made out of beet juice :P

He likes tea and I like coffee :)

The duck with glasses name is Simon and the other duck does not have a name yet.

And yes, That glass with the Batman symbol is wearing a cape...

This is out plant watering schedule. So we do not over or underwater!

This is Nathan's unhappy catus. Her name is Laya.

This is a fig tree. It is the Tree That Shall Not Be Named.

This is Fred and George. Fred is in the back and George is closer up.

Both are my cati. 

This is an aloe plant and her name is Katniss, because you know...

The Girl on Fire needs some aloe...

This is a... I do not know... But her name is Kaylee!

I also do not know what the plant on the left is,

but the plant on the right is a donkey tail. 

This is V for Vendetta (left) and Spongebob (right).

And this is a Night Blooming Cereus, 

well this is the new growth and not the whole plant, 

but you get the point. 

Her name is Alexandria.

That is pretty much our home. :)

I hope you enjoy and come for a visit! The door is open!

Well, not technically open because then random people might just come waltzing in...

Alright... How about this...

If you knock and we know you we will let you in!

Or if we do not know you and you have cookies we will probably let you in anyways!

Have a wonderful rest of your day!

Tired

Tired. Tired. Tired. Such is college life. I really need some camomile tea and a nice nap, but I unfortunately have a 3 and a half page I paper for philosophy due tomorrow at 10: 30 that I have not started. However I am avoiding that at the moment, because I am.... tired. I have just bought myself a cup of coffee and I am trying to get myself to read Plato. I am trying to let the caffeine kick in so I can get down to working! But first.... my coffee really needs to cool the frog down....

This is a picture of my life as of right now. :p

Well, maybe this is a picture of my life. What is life? What is the meaning of life? Of education?... It looks like the caffeine is kicking in and I have my philosophy pants on. Time to read! Bye Bye :)

Farmington

I probably should not be posting right since I have homework... But I want to take a break from it.

Firstly, Nathan and I are now going to UMF. :)

We love it here!

Everyone is soooo much nicer.

Walking down the street people who you don't even know smile and say hi.

People hold doors open, and say Thank you if you hold it for them!

I see people I know all the time.

I get to see my friends!

Also, the education program here is waaaaay better than UMO's.

I am taking a 100 level class at UMF that is comparable to a 400 level class at UMO... 

That's sad.

.

.

.

I think that's all I have time to say...

Here is a picture of Nathan and I are our first day of school.

Yes, those are Star Wars lunch boxes

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Don't judge...

Long Time, No See

Firstly, let me apoligise for I have been a little absent this summer (no surprise) from my blog. It's not that I have not had anything so say, it's just that I have been really busy with work and the apartment. I still have not taken any pictures of the apartment yet because we still have not put everything in it yet. When school starts back up we should been all settled in and then I will post pictures. Promise.

So, what else have I been doing with my summer? Well, I have been trying to get back into YouTube video making. Just this week Nathan and I made a video for a contest. I do not think we will win but it was fun just to make it. If you want to see it click here (http://www.youtube.com/user/SpazzMuffin22). If you want to see more or have any suggestions please leave a comment.

That has pretty much been my whole summer...

On that note, please enjoy this cool picture of lightning I took:

Thrift Shop

Today I had a couple really good finds at my local thrift shop! :) 

The first thing I found was this: 

Its a plain white hippy dress that I scored for just 2 dollars! :p

Next...

The first two LOTR in VHS! :D

Nathan and I have been wanting them on DVD for a while,

but when I saw them for 50 cents I couldn't help myself!

Also, while I was taking these pictures Luna was watching me,

so...

Peace, Love, and All That Jazz.

First Summer Hike!

Today Nathan, my mom, my dad, and I all went hiking for the first time of the summer! I had a good time and I am now very tired. 

I took some pictures but now a lot. I wanted to take some when we got to the top but it was windy and cold. All I wanted to do was eat and get below the tree line again. Because of that I do not have any pictures from the top. I am sure, however, I will hike there again (hopefully soon) and get some pictures from the top. So here are the ones that I took:

These first two pictures I took before we were even at the mountain  On our way there this moose was just crossing the road. It stopped and looked at us for a few seconds then continued into the woods. We saw two more after that but I did not get any pictures of them. One was just after we started hiking and the other was when we were driving home. Who ever called these creatures "majestic" clearly has never seen one walk. :p None of them looked very pretty either because they are all losing their winter coats.

We encountered this part way up the mountain... Yes that is snow.... And yes this IS May... We saw quite a bit more as we kept climbing. Although, it was nicely packed and so did not cause any problem. It was actually kind of fun sliding on when we were hiking down. :)

Here is Nathan pretending to be Atlas. Well, I say pretending but he really was lifting that huge rock up all by himself...

Oh no! I'm about to be crushed by a rock!

Still be crushed, but Nathan is making a last ditched attempt to save me!

And... I'm crushed... Left for dead... Never to be seen again...

Happy Mother's Day!

     Firstly to any mothers who might read this, Happy Mother's Day! This morning I made breakfast in bed for my mommy like I do every year. :) I also gave her a cute journal that she asked for with Mickey Mouse on the front. She liked it very much. Now she has gone to her mother's for the day. I had to stay behind because of work. (Now I'm gonna do some dishes as a surprise when she comes home tonight)
     While my water is heating I thought I would write a bit because I have not said much lately. I am now finished with my second year of college... Holy cow... Its seem like just yesterday I was graduating from high school and now these little kids are graduating! How is this possible?! I have two more years and then I'll be hunting for the job I will have for years....
     On a different note it is summer! Yay! My first three days of summer have rain and work. I do not might the work because I like where I work but the rain is... raining too much. Tuesday Nathan, my mom, and I are planning on going hiking. We are suppose to have good weather and I hope we do! I think that will be a great way to kick of the summer! Besides work the only things that I have plan to do is a 50K at Pineland Farms, and now my family sas been invited to do a charity marathon. We are doing it for the Penobscot River Restoration project. The same project my dad ran the Boston marathon for. Here is the web site for it: http://www.madmarathon.com/
     This summer of 2013 is going to be a big summer for Nathan and I's relationship. We are going to move in together! As of right now we are on the search for an apartment which is proving harder than we thought. We have found one that we like and think would suit us fine. We are waiting to hear back from the landlord, but incase that does not work out we are still looking. :) Once we find a place and are settled in I will post pictures of our new space.
     I am both excited and nervous about taking this big step but I know that I am ready to do this. I know WE are ready to do this. :)

Peace.

Finals!

I have but one final left, and unfortunately it is chemistry... 

And so since I am cramming as much as I can I do not have much to say,

but I feel that this picture says it all. 

Have a nice day and good luck to those with finals still ahead!

Happiness

This awesome quote is by Margaret Lee Runbeck.

I do not have much to say, but I just really wanted to share this. :)

Blah.

Hmm... It would seem that I woke up with a cold this morning. 

Yesterday I felt this coming so I drank lots of lemon-ginger tea and took a bunch of vitamin C. 

Guess it wasn't enough. 

However, I do feel well enough to go to class... 

(ugh)

 I am a bit tired today so I had a latte to try and 

get me through my 4 to 6:15 class,

 but I feel as though it only woke up my body and not my mind... 

Good news though (and a reason to stay awake)! 

I get my Nathan back today! 

Whooo! Super excited! 

(Random success break dance!)

That is all for today, so not enjoy this picture of a very happy dog. :)

Life

I believe that everyone has a chance to change their life. Wether they take that chance or not is up to them. Wether they take that chance or not says wether they are comfortable or dissatisfied with their life. 

Some people will never change the direction of their life because they are comfortable with it. It may not seem as though they are, but if they do not try to change, then they are not dissatisfied. All they do is complain, and I suppose it is their way of dealing with what they have. You can try to help but in the end they chose what they chose and sometimes it is better to let them be.

Then there are the people who are constantly changing. Sometimes for the worse and sometime for the best. There is just something about them that makes them need a new seen to look at and feel. Sometimes I wish I was one of these people. They are always moving, and sometimes they just travel. I would love to see all the amazing site, however, I am too attached to Maine to every want to leave. These people are always excited about something and can never just sit still.

I tend to be in the middle of all that. I love change but not big change. I like the little things; rearranging rooms,  painting walls, etc. I just like to make things a little different. If something stays the same for too long, it needs to move... Now! I am one of those people who knows what they like and will change it if they do not. Take for instants, two summers ago I had a job (and I won't say where), but I hated it. The pay was terrible, and my boss... Well, when the summer ended and I had to go to school I was so relieved my boss ended my job because "I would not being coming home on the weekends". Now that wasn't a lie because I really did not think I would be coming home. Then the next summer came and I got a different job, one where I was basically my own boss. I worked for my aunt taking care of her lake house property (outside only, I made sure not to clean inside... ugh). I worked the hours I wanted, mowing the lawn and clean up her woods. This made me happy. Although, because I made my own hours I did not work  enough hours to pay for books and such when school came around. So, I now have a job working one or two days on the weekends until the summer. I work at the solon superet, and  I really like everyone I work with, and work for.

I know that all seems like big change, but for me and my big sceme of things they are all temporary. I will continue working for my aunt and at the superet for a few years until I am ready to be a teacher. Once I am a teacher the only thing that will change will be my students and I can not wait for them! I really love that I know what I want to do in my life time, and I am grateful for parents, boyfriend, family, and best friends who understand and support me. 

Now, please enjoy this random picture of a random glass thing:

Hmmm...

Hmmm... So I wonder what my post is going to be about today... Happy Valentines day! So I suppose since I am dating someone this blog, on this day, should be all about them... Well, I guess I might...

However, if you are reading this and you do not have a valentine on this day of love then you might be all "ew, i hate love, i hate people in love, i wanna punch all the couples in the world" (that could possibly be a bit of and over statement). Anyways! Fear not my lonely compadres! If you are young then you have plenty more valentine days ahead of you, and most likely they will not all be this lonesome. If you are not feeling young and feel like there is not enough time in the world to find your soul mate perhaps there is someone else in the world who you still love? Maybe not in the romantic way, but there still must be someone out there whom shares your love. So spend the day with them and be thankful to have such a great person/persons in your life! And if you still do not feel happy or loved listen to this! Since you are reading my blog then have this one on me! I LOVE YOU!!! :D

Now, on to my little world of love...

Well, to start I have no idea what to say because I do not want anything to sound mushy and gushy. Although, considering the special day it is I suppose it is acceptable.

Since our first date I had a hunch (cliché alert!) that I would want to be with you for all time (yeah, that's right ALL time, you have no choice, you are stuck with me! Mwahahahaha!). Could it be that it was on Easter in a wal-mart parking lot? Not sure, but all I know is that it was probably the most fun I had (and ever will have) in a parking lot. Or maybe it was the fact that you invented a game that had nothing but my spare tire and scooter. Probably not that safest game, since, I... well... crashed into my truck... (who knew I get dizzy so easily?) Or maybe it was a combination of everything that happend in that week (parking lot, rain, lost puppy dog, parrot).

Well, what ever the reason is all I know is that I love spending as much time as I can with you because you always know how to make me smile. :D KSAMOL!!!

Pineland Farms Here I Come! (and Nathan too!)

Well last week Nathan and I officially started our training for the Pineland Farms Trail Race! I am very excited to be able to run the race again! This time I am starting two months before I did last year so hopefully I can get a better time and not have knee trouble.

I have decided that this year I am going to run the same race as last year, which would be the 50km. The reason I choose to do this and not up my game and do the 50 miler is because I am not sure that I could get enough training with school.

I also just found a really cool website that is getting me even more excited to train! This website helps to keep track of milage and routes that you do. I already keep track of my workouts but I am a little disorganized and this will help big time! For anyone else who would like to check it out here it is:  http://www.endomondo.com

Might I also add that my parents are the faces of the 50K? Check it out! 

If you go to the Pineland Tail Race website and click on the 50k you will see these two cute faces. :)

http://www.pinelandtrails.com/races/50-km/

Natural Remedies

Just a little bit ago I thought I was going to be very sick. 

I have been hearing a lot about a severe stomach bug going around and 

I do NOT want that by first week of school. 

So I have been obsessively washing my hands and keeping my hands away from my face, etc. 

Even with all that I still felt sick very suddenly... 

Just like that stupid bug. 

Then! Da da da da!!! 

I remembered that I have ginger! 

Ginger is just about the best thing for a sick stomach. 

That is why people say to drink ginger ale.

 Although, 

ginger ale does not have a high enough concentration of ginger to work really fast. 

Thankfully crystalized ginger does! 

You can find it in any heath food store and it really works wonders!

(This is what the bag looks like)

(And this is what the ginger looks like)

As soon as I felt the sickness coming on I took 

two big chunks and within five minutes I felt fine again. 

Normally I only take one chunk but this time I felt like I might need the extra chunk!

Now I have to warn you that it has a very strong flavor and is hard to eat at time, 

but it is worth it. (Trust me I HATE it!)

Fortunately,

most packages like this one have the ginger sugar coated.

I know, I know... sugar. 

But if it helps this good I will eat it!  

Now that you know, go buy some and never be sick again!

Quick One!

In late morning yesterday my mom

 and I went to a ski down on the railroad bed!

 At first I was not too keen on going that early because when we woke up it was -14 F! 

Brrr!

 Once we got going, even though I stopped a lot, we warmed up fast! 

Later in the day, 

due to too much coffee,

I decided I wanted to go snowshoeing.

By then the sun has warmed up so it was about 22 F.

Whoo!

Happy New Year!

Happy 2013!!! :) <3

(I know this is late and I know that I have not posted for a while but late is better than never!)

     I have been thinking about my future a lot lately. I know I am young and I am basically just starting this long journey but YOLO so I want to live it right. I have been hearing YOLO a lot lately and at first  I was really annoyed by it. I thought it was stupid, but I only thought it was stupid because of the way people were acting. Most young people think that it means you should go out get as drunk as you can so you can do stupid stuff and become Legend... wait for it... dary! (sigh) For me I take it and think, woah, I really am only going to live once... Well, I guess that means I need to take care of my body so I can make that "once" a really long time. I take the complete opposite meaning of most people. I like life, I have fun living by being active and taking care of myself.

     A lot of people think I am unobservant, and with small stuff they are completely right. However, I can see the big picture crystal clear. I see what happens to people who do not take care of themselves. The last half of their life they are constantly battling their first half. What I mean by that is when people are in the 45 to 55 age rage they start to "feel" old. They feel old because the first half of their life they abused their body more than it could take. The only reason they did not feel it then is because youth has  a funny way of tricking us into thinking we are not hurting our bodies.

     The reason all of this has to do with my future is because lately I have realized that when I turn 50 I want to still feel 25. I look up to my parents with the highest of respect. They are 54 and 53 and they still setting personal records with running! Its hard to think that almost four years ago MY dad, the exercise and health freak, had a heart attack. It was a wake up call and ever since my dad, mom, and I have been taking care of our bodies. My mother lost her father from a sudden heart attack, my dad had one, and one of my grandmothers has had multiple. So in short I am at high risk already. I can not afford to hurt my body and stress my heart (mind you I already have a premature atrial contraction). So my heart needs a break.

     So to summarize I want to live a full, long, happy, and healthy life. Anyone with me? :)