I've been trudging along under the swealtering sun for hours now and yet I don't even have a sun burn, but somehow I managed to aquire about a million bug bites, most of which are on my legs. How is that even possible? I'm wearing denim PANTS! Did they buzz up my legs just to mess with me? I don't even. It is kind of funny though. Actually, correction, I /did/ get burned. It's just underneath my shirt... which didn't even come in contact with the sun. UV rays, you confuse me.
As of nine am this morning I was officiall signed up for classes. I didn't get to take Spanish because it was full (well, all except the 7pm class which I can't take if I want to work /anywhere/). So here it is, my schedumal:
Monday, Wednesday, and Friday:
English 201 [Brittish Literature to 1800] --- 11:00 am - 11:50 am
History 116 [History of Asia since 1600] --- 12:00 pm - 12:50 pm
History 115 [Serpents, Demons, and Divas in Western Civilization] --- 1:00 pm - 1:50 pm
Tuesday and Thursday:
English 207 [Survey of American Literature to the Present] --- 10:50 am - 12:05 am
I ended up taking two histories because the Biology would have been in a weird spot and I need to take the math placement test in order to take any of those. I could still change it to a math, which I might end up doing that (changing Eng. 207 to it), but we'll see.
Also, I figured it all out on a sheet of paper, and if I take 15 credit hours for 3 semesters, and take one math class next summer, I can graduate in 2013 like I was originally supposed to (only 44 of my credits transfered so I'm technically a "sophmore" this semester). That also means that I can't get in enough Spanish to fulfill a minor, but I can always either do that over the summer as well, or go back for an extra semester. It wasn't in the original plan, but I really would like it, so I'll have to see how everything plays out.
ALSO ALSO! This is the best news of the day! I went to Financial Aid to discuss why I hadn't been awarded anything if my account said I'd satisfied all the cirteria. The guy said it didn't make any sense, and he was confused as to why I hadn't been awarded anything, so he went to go ask someone. About 10 minutes later, he returns and tells me I've been awarded everything I was supposed to be, and that I could now accept it. I ran to a computer lab and accepted all the grants, looking forlornly at the loans. I REALLY didn't want to accept any of those. BUT! After everything was said and done, the grants total up to be enough! They pay for a full year's tuition with enough left over to buy some used books!
That is a huge weight off my chest. I've been worried recently about it, and I was scared that if I didn't get awarded anything soon I just wouldn't be going to college this semester, but thank the lord, I am. I'm so excited now!
Only thing left to do is get my ID (which I was going to get earlier, but the line was way to long, so I'm waiting in the library for a bit), and my books, which I can't pick up till around August 15.
Everything's working out fine.
What I've learned from this is there's no need to worry. If you keep a straight face and you check into things, they usually tend to sort theirselves out, and if everything's going to be okay regardless, why worry? I'm going to try my best to remain positive. It's going to make me feel better.
Also, also, aslo, I've been talking to an old friend of mine. It's nice. There's always this edge of not knowing if things are really alright or not though, so it's a bit weird for me.
But yeah, so that's how today went, and now I'm off to obtain that card.
~chiao
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Friday, June 17, 2011
I'm Trying
That's all anyone can ask of me.
That's all I can ask of myself.
I can.
I will.
Life's pretty good.
:3
That's all I can ask of myself.
I can.
I will.
Life's pretty good.
:3
What I did
100 wall push ups
20 lat pulls
20 Behind the head... uh, weight things
20 backwards weight things (hard to describe)
100 Crunches
20 leg lefts (from the floor till I was flat while laying on bed. Really works the lower abs)
a 5 minute butt blasting video (basically just worked the upper thigh area and the bum. Makes them feel all nice and tingly)
30 Bridge lifts
10 Eiffel Towers (there's probably a scientific name for this but I don't know what it is)
20 lunges (both legs)
10 minutes of stretching
I was going to do cardio but my legs didn't want to work with me after all that ^
My legs are shaky, and my arms are as well. I think I could do more ab work outs though. I might just go do that.
20 lat pulls
20 Behind the head... uh, weight things
20 backwards weight things (hard to describe)
100 Crunches
20 leg lefts (from the floor till I was flat while laying on bed. Really works the lower abs)
a 5 minute butt blasting video (basically just worked the upper thigh area and the bum. Makes them feel all nice and tingly)
30 Bridge lifts
10 Eiffel Towers (there's probably a scientific name for this but I don't know what it is)
20 lunges (both legs)
10 minutes of stretching
I was going to do cardio but my legs didn't want to work with me after all that ^
My legs are shaky, and my arms are as well. I think I could do more ab work outs though. I might just go do that.
Thursday, June 16, 2011
On Being a Sore Loser
Among the things in this world that are annoying, sore losers have got to be among the top candidates for such an award. They pout when they lose a turn, cry when they don't get their way, and become infuriated when their "master plans" are foiled. On the other hand, they get rather cocky when things seem to be going their way, a fact which spurns even the most level headed of gamers and make them want to knock the little gloater down a few notches.
I'm sure we've all had the pleasure of participating in a scenario such as this: The game starts out fun and everything seems to be going great. All the pieces are accounted for, everyone is taking their turns in an efficient amount of time, and hey you're even winning. But then disaster strikes! Things take a turn for the worse when you realize that you're friend of five years isn't as even tempered as you'd like to think. Suddenly, they become a raving banshee bent on destroying your battleships in anyway necessary. They'll even cry if they have to; big fat sloppy tears that always seem to disappear when your friend begins to win again.
It makes playing games with them torture if you're not of the trolling variety (in which case it's just plain fun). You can't exactly tell them that. They'll find reason to take offense, and then you'll have an even bigger problem on your hand. No, you'll suffer through the thirty minutes of pure unadulterated agony. After the game is over you'll politely refuse playing any further games with that particular friend.
All that to say, sore losers jeopardize the enjoyment of any situation.
Why do I bring this up?
It has come to my attention that I, Shannon Lanier, am a big fat sore loser. It's frustrating becasue I used to never get upset about losing anything. In fact, I was always the one who counseled other people in ways NOT to be a sore loser. Oh wait, that's right, back then I hardly ever lost. I would always play with my younger cousins, and you can imagine what kind of a challenge they were. Even if I played with people my own age I generally made first or second place; rarely ever resting my feet on that lowly third place pedestal. If I sound arrogant, that's because I secretly am.
Now that I'm older, and I'm playing games with people who are either on the same skill level as me or above it, I seem to be losing a lot. Unlike in video games, I can't simply restart the match until I win. It doesn't work like that. There are no redo's.
How do I fight my inner urge to pout and get angry every time I lose? That's a good question. I'm not entirely sure what the answer is yet, but I know I've made a step in the right direction by acknowledging I have a problem.
A few things to remember:
I remember my first experience was when I was pretty young. I was playing a tennis game on some person's dream cast with my cousin. I'd never played a sports game before in my LIFE, but I was somehow winning almost every single match. My cousin grew progressively more and more frustrated with me until he go to the point that he was literally crying. I had to stop playing the game and explain to him that it wasn't fun anymore, and if he couldn't change his attitude I wasn't going to play with him at all (I was a mature little 8 year old). He realized he was being a cry baby and stopped. He even shook my hand and said good game when we decided we were finished (even though I could see the contempt in his eyes).
I'm sure we've all had the pleasure of participating in a scenario such as this: The game starts out fun and everything seems to be going great. All the pieces are accounted for, everyone is taking their turns in an efficient amount of time, and hey you're even winning. But then disaster strikes! Things take a turn for the worse when you realize that you're friend of five years isn't as even tempered as you'd like to think. Suddenly, they become a raving banshee bent on destroying your battleships in anyway necessary. They'll even cry if they have to; big fat sloppy tears that always seem to disappear when your friend begins to win again.
It makes playing games with them torture if you're not of the trolling variety (in which case it's just plain fun). You can't exactly tell them that. They'll find reason to take offense, and then you'll have an even bigger problem on your hand. No, you'll suffer through the thirty minutes of pure unadulterated agony. After the game is over you'll politely refuse playing any further games with that particular friend.
All that to say, sore losers jeopardize the enjoyment of any situation.
Why do I bring this up?
It has come to my attention that I, Shannon Lanier, am a big fat sore loser. It's frustrating becasue I used to never get upset about losing anything. In fact, I was always the one who counseled other people in ways NOT to be a sore loser. Oh wait, that's right, back then I hardly ever lost. I would always play with my younger cousins, and you can imagine what kind of a challenge they were. Even if I played with people my own age I generally made first or second place; rarely ever resting my feet on that lowly third place pedestal. If I sound arrogant, that's because I secretly am.
Now that I'm older, and I'm playing games with people who are either on the same skill level as me or above it, I seem to be losing a lot. Unlike in video games, I can't simply restart the match until I win. It doesn't work like that. There are no redo's.
How do I fight my inner urge to pout and get angry every time I lose? That's a good question. I'm not entirely sure what the answer is yet, but I know I've made a step in the right direction by acknowledging I have a problem.
A few things to remember:
- Games are games, they're made to have FUN
- Games cease being fun when someone makes it into something necessarily serious
- No one avidly enjoys playing anything with a sore loser
- Friends will avoid playing games with you if you are one
- Games can be replayed, you'll have plenty of chances to win
- Unless the winner gets a million dollars, it's honestly nothing to get upset about
***************************
What are your experiences with sore losers?
I remember my first experience was when I was pretty young. I was playing a tennis game on some person's dream cast with my cousin. I'd never played a sports game before in my LIFE, but I was somehow winning almost every single match. My cousin grew progressively more and more frustrated with me until he go to the point that he was literally crying. I had to stop playing the game and explain to him that it wasn't fun anymore, and if he couldn't change his attitude I wasn't going to play with him at all (I was a mature little 8 year old). He realized he was being a cry baby and stopped. He even shook my hand and said good game when we decided we were finished (even though I could see the contempt in his eyes).
Realizing that I do the same thing now really makes me sad. I don't ever want anyone to have to put up with such rude and inexcusable behavior. I'm going to work on it, I promise guys.
Versatile Blogger Award
I forgot about this, and then I remembered it again. I'm not really sure what it means, but I assume it means I'm doing okay. Well, as far as Tales from a Mother is concerned. Thanks so much Amanda, even if you're the only person I know who reads my blog on a semi-regular basis, it means a lot to me knowing someone cares enough to take some time out of their busy schedule (and what a schedule it is with Zoey and Eli running around the house).
Seven things about myself.
1. I generally blog how I would talk
2. My goal is to lose 64 pounds before next summer
3. I secretly grade my friend's emails for grammar, punctuation, capitalization, and flow. It's how I knew I wanted to be either a teacher or an editor.
4. My favorite desert is banana pudding, closely followed by cherry yum yum
5. If someone can make me laugh, I pretty much love them (it's not very hard)
Seven things about myself.
1. I generally blog how I would talk
2. My goal is to lose 64 pounds before next summer
3. I secretly grade my friend's emails for grammar, punctuation, capitalization, and flow. It's how I knew I wanted to be either a teacher or an editor.
4. My favorite desert is banana pudding, closely followed by cherry yum yum
5. If someone can make me laugh, I pretty much love them (it's not very hard)
6. Every single one of my all time favorite teachers has been an English teacher
7. I used to have a thing for math. Then it divorced me, took the kids, the house, the pets, and didn't pay me alimony.
I don't know any new bloggers unfortunately. I don't surf around the blogger community enough to find any, which is truly sad. There are tons of wonderfully creative minds out there that I can partake in, and I'm letting that opportunity go to waste. I'll have to search around tomorrow and see what I can find.
My blog's gotten a lot of new traffic thanks to Amada. O.o
The guidelines I was following:
1. Thank the person who gave you the award by linking back to them in your post.
2. Tell us 7 things about yourself.
3. Award 15 or 16 recently discovered bloggers.
4. Contact those bloggers and let them in on the exciting news!
7. I used to have a thing for math. Then it divorced me, took the kids, the house, the pets, and didn't pay me alimony.
I don't know any new bloggers unfortunately. I don't surf around the blogger community enough to find any, which is truly sad. There are tons of wonderfully creative minds out there that I can partake in, and I'm letting that opportunity go to waste. I'll have to search around tomorrow and see what I can find.
My blog's gotten a lot of new traffic thanks to Amada. O.o
The guidelines I was following:
1. Thank the person who gave you the award by linking back to them in your post.
2. Tell us 7 things about yourself.
3. Award 15 or 16 recently discovered bloggers.
4. Contact those bloggers and let them in on the exciting news!
**********************************
Have you ever gotten any unexpected, but very welcome awards?
Wednesday, June 8, 2011
"I've decided to be happy"
You know how sometimes you hear a song that really touches you? Well, this song does just that.
From the first line I could tell that this song would mean a lot to me. "I've decided to be happy" they sang in perfect harmony, striking something deep within me. I remembered a conversation I've had on multiple occasions, that happiness is a choice. I'm always the first to spout that truth, hoping someone will gain some sort of self awareness from it, but I seem to have completely forgotten about it myself. I've been out of it lately, but the truth is I haven't actually tried as hard as I possibly can to be happy.
So, thank you Copper Wimmin for making me realize this very important fact yet again. Thank you for reminding me that happiness is a choice, and thank you for reminding me just how much I want to be happy. Words cannot describe.
Lyrics:
I've decided to be happy
I've decided to be glad
I've decided to be grateful
For all I ever had
I've decided to let go
Of all this pain tonight
I've decided to let go
Of all these demons inside
I know...I am blessed
I know...all I ever wanted was this
I know...I don't need more
I've got... what I came for
I've decided to be open
For that little voice inside
Telling me I'm beautiful
It's okay to be alive
I've decided to be kinder
To myself when I am sad
I've decided to be grateful
For all I ever had
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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