Quarter Century Club

It's been a week today since I turned 25 and it's still a little unbelieveable to me that I've made it to this marker. As I've said before, it feels like I should still be sitting at around 19, enjoying college and everything that comes with it. Yet here I am- 25, playing house with my boyfriend, getting ready to celebrate my 3 year anniversary at work, my 3 year anniversary of not living at home, 7 year anniversary of having graduated high school and 3 years of having graduated college. It just doesn't seem possible.



My 25th year has definitely started out on a good note. My birthday was a busy one here at the office, as it always is. They make up for it by throwing me a big party on the 15th though, so it's all good :) A friend of mine suggested that I either find a new job or a new birthday but I really wouldn't want to leave either one behind. I like being a diamond baby and I can't imagine there'd be too many other small firms like this one that I'd feel as comfortable in.



It is funny to go back and think about the things I had planned to happen around this time in my life though. My vision at 18 was to have been married for a few years at this point and being ready to start a family. More than likely living close to my hometown and in turn, my family. I wasn't set on a specific career at that point though, so I had no idea about what job I would be working. And although all that would have been well and good, I'm perfectly happy with the way things have gone instead. Some odd years with relationships that just weren't what I was looking for in the overall that lead me to Justin. A lucked upon interview with an accounting firm that I'll probably be with for years to come. No marriage in the extreme near future (nor children for that matter), but content to know that it'll come along when the time is right. An hour drive from home, but able to make the trip every other weekend to see the family. A slightly different outcome from what was expected but one that I imagine I am much happier with than what could have been.



So here's to the coming months and what they may bring. Happiness, laughter, philosophical conversations, maybe a few disagreements, good food, good friends/family and love. All the things that make my world go round.


*and you can find that rockin' hat at zazzle.com

No Words Needed

Trace Adkins' performance on the ACM awards this past weekend. All proceeds from downloads of this performance will go to the Wounded Warrior Project. God Bless our Soldiers!

Kitty That Goes Mew

Isn't it just the cutest thing you've ever seen? As I remind Justin every time (and that's no exaggeration) we see a tiger, cheetah, lion, lynx, wildcat, enter any other catlike animal type here, they're all just cute kitties that go mew. Of course he tries to tell me that they're really not cuddly and would nom my face off in about two seconds, but I swear people- these animals would love me.

For some reason, I've always had one of those silly daydreams where one day I'd be gifted with an adorable little Tiger cub and would get to raise it in my home and be its "mom". I'd get to bottle feed it at first, and as it got bigger wrestle with it in the living room floor like you would a puppy. I'm pretty sure it would quickly outgrow being able to sleep in the bed with me (if Justin wanted to sleep in the same bed anyway), but it'd make a great foot warmer in the winter while watching tv. Plus, it'd purr. A lot. My tiger would be the best behaved and most loveable tiger ever. EVER.

Of course, everytime I see this video I get a little choked up inside. Partly because I'm an animal lover (they're a part of the family) and partly because they proved the naysayers wrong (And although it's a great song by itself, please don't let the cheesiness of the song with the video ruin things).




Sigh. Well, you know, it is almost my birthday. Maybe there's still time to hint around at what I really want...

Rev It Up!

I want a fast car. Not that this is a new revelation, just one that usually sits on the back burner until I've either a) spent the day at the track with Justin and friends or b) watched The Fast and the Furious for the thousandth time. Yesterday I happened to do both. Thus my overwhelming yearning for a hot, fast, six-speed car. In any color but white or yellow.

I really don't know much about cars. I ask Justin questions all the time but there are so many parts and such involved in the answers that they make sense as I'm listening but I couldn't repeat back any of the information and it sound relatively sane. Off the top of my head, I can say these few things though- I know when a car has NOS, I know when it's got a turbo and I definitely know what the sound of a broken rear end and/or drive shaft is. I also know that the low rumble of a beast of a car makes me smile. And want to drive it. Quickly. Preferably without running into any cops.

As we were walking around the track yesterday, I told Brittany that one day I'd have a car to bring to race. She asked jokingly if I wanted to take the Rav down a time or two and I laughed. I told her that being the kind of person I am, I'd have to have a car just as good, if not better than the boys. Cause I would not be that girl. The "oh, you're just a girl" girl. Blame it on my tomboy-ishness, blame it on my sheer stubborness, but I've never been one to take the implications of "you're just a girl" well. Yes, I appreciate doors being opened for me, and yes I appreciate when someone gets something off the high shelf for me, but I'll be damned if you think I have to depend on you for things. I am and have never been ashamed to climb shelves and scoot heavy things with my feet just to prove the point that I can do it my own self. *Breath* But I digress.

I told Justin after we'd been home for a while that after I'd built him his nice working garage, I wanted said fast car. And although I wouldn't be the first choice at being put to work as a mechanic, any modifications that were done to it I wanted to be involved in. Even though most of them would be a "put the wrench there and turn". Of course his response was pretty much "I'm not gonna tell you no". Cause for him, it's one more toy to play with :)

Time of My Life

For the past year, I've felt like life finally fell into place. Between me being happy with myself, happy in my relationships, and happy in my workplace, I knew that it was that point where all my nights of worry about this, that and the other were over. I also knew, however, that my nights of staying up late and hanging with the roomies was going by the wayside as well. And at that point I wasn't aware of just how much I was gonna miss it.

Last Friday I attended a concert here in town with my Meggie, Michael and a few of their friends. Halfway through singing my heart out to Papa Roach, I turned to Meg and said "I miss living in the apartment with you guys." She immediately responded "Me too! I found a 3 bedroom house in Gtown and told Michael that me and him, you and Justin and Dre and Cedric could all live together and it'd be great." It made my heart hurt and be happy at the same time that she too felt my sentiments.

I started staying at Justin's pretty much full time by the end of April of last year. I didn't officially move out of the apartment though until August, which was when our lease was up. Depsite the fact that I wasn't there very often in the end, it was still my apartment and my little family. They didn't call me Mom for nothing. The thoughts of missing the apartment/roommate life didn't really hit me hard until a few weeks ago when I twittered "I think I need to make my bedtime 1030. Go back to my apt days when I was in bed by 10 and back up at 1 asking the roomies to be quiet." Who would have ever thought I'd miss Meg saying "All she needs is a little love!" while I was angrily staring them down. But some of my fondest memories come from the random conversations that happened amongst the three (actually five) of us who lived in that apartment. Even the shadiness we all shared at some point or another, lol. There's just nothing like it in the world.

One day I hope that I live somewhere where my neighbors are my friends, our kids can play together, and we all sit around and laugh about the sordid affairs of yesteryear while grilling hamburgers, watching tv or just hanging out for the hell of it. But for now, I just want the good times to keep a rollin'.