Cat behavior

Buffy has begun something new and very entertaining. She has started to play fetch. She will bring a ball to my feet and meow until I throw it. We sometimes play this for 15 minutes at a time. I think it's just as much fun for me as it is for her. We bought a package of four water splash balls for use in the pool, but she has adopted them as her toys. Unfortunately, during one of her "soccer" matches, one of them was kicked off the balcony. I suspect that the others will follow eventually. These cats are so much fun.

Matt is gone again for three weeks. He is then home for a week, then gone again for a month. I'm starting to get used to it. I'm playing EQ2 a lot now and loving it more than ever. I start my new classes on Monday and I'm looking forward to one of them - critical thinking. I hope it's as interesting as it sounds. Otherwise, not a whole lot is new.

Evolution of a relationship

I have never made it past the point in a relationship that Matt and I are coming upon right now. Things are starting to "normalize" a bit, and we are becoming comfortable with our daily routines. This is the point where things start to get a little...routine. The newness is fading. I see what I want in the end result - I want to be like my parents. I want to be thoroughly happy with my partner thirty years from now and still be able to just sit around the kitchen table and talk. I want that person to be Matt.

How we make it through this next phase is what I am unsure of, since I've never been able to do it before. This is Matt's first real relationship, so he really doesn't know any better. I have the advantage of seeing things that went wrong for me in my previous relationships, and I can use that to prevent doing them again. I want this more than I've wanted anything, so that helps as well. I don't want to give the wrong impression, things are not bad between us, just changing a bit. We talk our way through it a lot, and we're heading into this together.

Another thing that plays to our advantage, although we don't like it, is the fact that we are forced to be apart sometimes. It really makes us appreciate the time that we have together.

It's a sad day

Today I had to put to rest something that I've had since 8th grade. That's 14 years. That's way longer than I've known any of my friends. My brother was only 2 when I got this black Milwaukee Brewers shirt. I've donated a lot of my clothes to Goodwill, but I am always really hesitant to get rid of my Brewers shirts. In fact, I think I still have over 20 of them. I had to toss it because it was really thin, had a couple small holes, and the print was starting to peel. I think I still have a couple of shirts that I've had since middle school.

I am thinking about rearranging the living room today. I don't like the way we have it set right now. Fortunately, Matt is supposed to get home today so he can help. We also need to go grocery shopping before he goes out to sea again for a few weeks. I have a ton of pictures to upload to the site, and I have a new section or two that I'd like to add. I got my new books for school, and next semester looks a little more interesting. I think I'm going into my last week now.

Aaaaaaaaargh

I've been sucked into VH1 and I can't get out. It's happened several times this week, and it's happening again right now. They have these shows that I just can't stop watching for some reason. What is it about these 'I Love the ' shows that fascinates people so much? Right now it's 'I Love 1992' and they're making fun of American Gladiators right now. There are some other shows that suck me in too like the Surreal Life or celebrety dating shows. Help!!!

I got an email from my brother today and spoke with my mother to confirm - he and my parents might be coming to visit me for their 30th wedding anniversary. I hope it works out because I would love to have them visit. Now there's only one more person (besides my sisters) that a need to get out to visit /hint hint.

The Mighty Mo

Today we went on a full tour of the USS Missouri, otherwise known as the Mighty Mo, a battleship that was the site of the Japanese surrender, thus ending WWII. It was very interesting to hear all of the amazing facts about the ship as well as seeing how large it was. Ironically enough, our tour guide was from Neenah, WI and born in Madison. Small world. I took a bunch of pictures and hope to have them and a bunch others added to my web site soon. Matt was the only member of the military, active or ex, in our group (including the two tour guides). They would often look to him for the answers to questions. It once again reminded me of how proud I am for all of his knowledge and the fact that he is in the military.

Today we also started to research schools for him after he's done with the Navy. He wants to get his degree, do ROTC, and then join the Air Force as an officer. We looked into the electrical engineering programs at UW, the University of Hawaii, and the University of Colorado. Hopefully any school he applies to will waive the out of state tuition costs, but if not, we will seriously have to think of his options. UW, for example, is 4 times for expensive ($20,000 per year) if you are an out of state student as it is if you are a resident of Wisconsin. Matt looked into the GI bill, which will pay him $1,000 per month for three years while he attends school. That will make life much more manageable for us when he's done.

My back is still really bothering me, so today we went to KMart to get some back pain stuff. When arriving in the pharmacy section, I found this tidbit of information extremely funny - the back pain stuff was on the very bottom shelf. Think about that for a minute and you'll see why I find that amusing. :P

Wisconsinism

For about two hours last night, I thought I was back in Wisconsin. Last night we went bowling. It started as we walked up to the building and I saw the 70's colors - brown, yellow, and orange. We went into the building, and I ordered a Malibu and coke. I received it in a big Bud Light plastic cup. Yeah, it was starting to feel like home. We got there just as a league was finishing up. I saw all the same mannerisms of typical bowlers, only they were Hawaiians. People were wearing the same types of clothing, wrist guards, shoes, etc that I am used to back home. There were kids literally running through your legs, weaving around the adults with mothers yelling at them. There was really only one thing missing - AC/DC and Meatloaf. I don't know why, but there seems to be something about bowling and those two musicians. In fact, there was no jukebox at all.

We bowled and had a great time. Matt was much better than he let on, and actually broke 100 for both games. My back is killing me today, but it was worth it. Now I know that if I'm ever homesick, I can just go into that cool building that is some sort of a universal bowling phenomenon and feel a little more at home.

$30 well spent

I would like to take today as a chance to discuss what I feel is one of the better inventions of my lifetime - the Pur water filtration pitcher. The water in Hawaii isn't the most horrible I've had, but growing up on well water certainly spoiled me. The chlorine is a bit too strong, you can smell it while you are drinking it and I really don't like that. Neither do the cats. When I first brought them here, they would not drink any water and I could not figure out why. I thought maybe it was a behavior thing, but I decided I would try bottled water and see if that worked. Sure enough, they drank that up right away.

So I spent $30 and bought a Pur water filter pitcher. It's really nifty - you fill it up, it filters your water, and it has a tap-like spout so you don't have to mess around with pouring it. We don't buy soda anymore, we don't make kool-aid, we just drink water. It's probably healthier for us, anyway.

Not much else is new. My sleep schedule is all messed up again, I seem to be opposite normal time. I figure I'll return to normal in a couple of days. My first term of school is nearing a close. That's about it.

Movie review - White Noise

I am beginning to think of myself as somewhat of a horror flick buff. This afternoon, amidst an afternoon of shopping, Matt and I stopped at the movie theater and decided to see White Noise. On a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being the highest, I give this movie a 3.5. It certainly had its creepy spots, and it made me jump several times. There was just something missing from this movie, however. I don't want to ruin the movie for any of you planning on seeing it. By the way, the only movie to ever get a 5.0 (it deserves more than that) on my horror flick scale is Blair Witch Project.

Otherwise we were fairly busy today. We didn't get up until around noon, cleaned the apartment a bit, did laundry, went out shopping, went out to eat, went to the movie, got some ice cream, and then came home. I picked up the second season of Quantum Leap on DVD and I can't wait to watch it. We also got Sixteen Candles because Matt has never seen it.

When we got home around 6:30, I started on my homework and just now got finished. The rough draft of my persuasive essay was due today, and it was really really a rough draft. I'm still about 400 words short of what the requirements are. I'll get it shaped up for the final draft, however. That's what I get for waiting until the last minute.

Life without health insurance

I know some of you that read this either have been or are in the same position. It amazes me how much I'll put up with because I don't have health insurance. My back is really getting to be a pain (no pun intended.) It wakes me up at night when I try to roll over. I want to go to a doctor just to get pain killers, but at the same time I just can't get myself to spend the money out of my pocket. It's not that I can't afford it, it's more of a principle. When I was home in October, I had an appointment with my psychiatrist to get my prescription refilled. It was a 15 minute appointment, and cost me $189 plus the cost of the medication. I'm going to school for the wrong thing.

Happy birthday, Dad!

I can't believe it's already been a year since, me, Jess, Tracy, Mom and Matt were sitting in the kitchen discussing whether or not we should throw you a 50th birthday party. Time sure flies. Anyway, I hope you had a good day and stuff. I miss you and love you. I hope I'll see you all sooner than later. :)

New year, new....nothing

It's a new year, and nothing's new. I have been keeping my resolution of walking every other day. That's right, I went for one walk. lol. My back has been very bothersome the last week or so, so I haven't been doing much other than nothing. I have become addicted to a new show, though, Law and Order: SVU. I also watch Law and Order: Criminal Intent. I feel like a regular old detective now, and if nothing else, I'm sure that I could commit a murder and not get caught :P

That was a joke. Matt is working right now and if he turns up murdered I swear it's just a strange coincidence :P School is going well, I'm maintaining straight A's. It's getting a bit boring, though. Fortunately, the classes end in a few weeks and I start two new ones. My next two are Critical Thinking and Utilizing Information in College Writing. Oh boy, don't those sound exciting. I'm sure I'll wish I was back in these easy courses once things get tougher down the road.

Matt will be out to sea quite a bit over the next few months, so I am probably going to be making an appearance in the greater Madison area. I will just have to break down and board the cats for a few weeks. I hate to do that to them, but I really have no other choice. I don't think I will be letting anyone know when I am arriving, I will simply call someone once I arrive and ask for a ride. :P

Now that was impressive

There has been a strange haze hanging over the city of Honolulu today. I have been lying on the couch during the majority of today. My back is being difficult again. Since the sun set earlier this evening, I have seen random specks of colorful light littering the sky. When the clock struck midnight, the sound of distant pops drowned out the traffic. Every direction I looked, there were fireworks being set off. Being 22 floors above the city definitely has its advantages. I'm guessing that I could see fireworks up to 10 or more miles away. It certainly was quite a sight to see, and they are just beginning to taper off now.

Happy new year's everybody, and here are my resolutions:

1. Take a walk every other day (becoming more active, baby steps)
2. Volunteer at least once every month