2005-07-14
Nostalgic Summer
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Gemini Horoscope for week of July 14, 2005
Pablo Picasso is the patron saint of getting paid for doing what you love to do. Over 200 of his paintings sold for more than a million dollars apiece, and he didn't have to wait until he was dead to get a lot of that money. He's your role model in the coming weeks, Gemini. It will be an excellent time for you not only to follow your bliss, but also to profit from following your bliss. Turn your thoughts to Picasso whenever you need a boost. Imagine that like him, you can find a way to be secure about money as you do what makes you feel at home in the world.
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Thanks Misty for having that link on your diary . . . I love it!! It's funny because for the past month or so I've been heavily engrossed into figuring out exactly what it is I'm cut out for in life, like what my talents are, and what it is I'm supposed to do for a living. Not something I can just make money doing, but what my purpose is, at least professionally. I've actually been quite obsessed with this. Yesterday James and I visited the new Barnes and Noble down the street from us, and I purchased The 12 Secrets of Highly Creative Women: A Portable Mentor, which claims to help you unleash the power of your own creativity. I was very pleased with myself for getting that book instead of the Ray Bradbury novel I started to buy. I mean, I love love love Ray Bradbury, but I don't think he's going to help me figure out what I want to do with my life. I know it's something probably not very conventional, and has to do with inspiration and creating things, but I don't know WHAT. As it is, I'm planning on going to school in the spring (I'm going to apply for the HOPE scholarship now that I finally have my year residency for GA) . . . to become a film promoter, because it seems like it would be fun. I'm positive there's something else I'm supposed to be doing with my life, but I can't figure out what. I really want to see a kind of guidance counselor for adults (not a psychiatrist, but someone who helps you figure out what you're cut out for), but I'm not quite sure how to go about doing this. Any ideas? Just let me know. You have no idea just how thankful I would be to get some feedback, no kidding.
Wanna hear some great news? I'm finally getting a car! My uncle bought a 1989 Hyundai (don't know which model yet) from a guy, and sold it to my grandfather for me. The engine runs well, and is clean, but so far I don't know the other need-to-know basics; how many miles, etcetera. I'm really, really, really happy about it though. That means I'll be able to do what I want to do, when I want to do it (ex: go to library when I want to), providing I have the gas to do so. The idea of other people having even less control over me thrills me. I'm trying to not get my hopes up too high though, in case something disastrous with the car happens.
I've been on a very low-carb diet for the past month, and I've lost ten pounds, but that's it. I'm supposed to have ONLY meat, eggs, and cheese for the first two weeks, but I cheated a little bit and had sugar free things I wasn't supposed to, which is probably why I haven't lost more weight. I also haven't been exercising, which would also help. At any rate, I'm 5'0" and weigh 120 pounds. It's not bad, but it's not wonderful, either. I'm just proud that I've stuck to the diet for the most part, instead of deciding to completely go off the deep end and give up like I've done in the past. Discipline girl, discipline! I will admit that it's been pretty easy to stay on the diet since James <333 bought us a grill and we have grilled meat every night. He's an awesome griller. Tonight he took marinated pork chops and stuffed them with cheese and some other meats and then grilled them. It was restaurant-quality delicious, I kid you not! So good, so good!
Yesterday I got my eyebrows (and my upper lip) threaded. It'd been a while since I'd had my eyebrows done, and they really, really needed it, but I didn't want to get them waxed because my skin is so sensitive, and every time I get them waxed, I break out in a million little whiteheads. I actually found something at Kiehl's that helps prevent that, but it's so expensive! At any rate, I heard that threading is much better for your skin, since it doesn't rip off a layer (of skin), and since it's natural, it's going to be better for you anyway. So yesterday I went to a spa that specializes in threading, and got not just my eyebrows done, but my upper lip as well (Leyla, the threader, asked me if I wanted to, which made me think I obviously needed to, so I did). MISTAKE!!! I liked it, but it hurt pretty badly. At least with waxing, it hurts and then it's over. With threading, it hurts . . . and it hurts . . . and it hurts some more. Of course, it probably wasn't the brightest idea ever to get this done while I was on my period, since I'm already swollen, but I didn't think of that. All I thought of was how great my eyebrows were going to look . . . for a change. My eyebrows do look great. I'm very pleased with them for once. However, where I used to have a trivial amount of lightly colored upper lip hair, I now have a swollen moustache of a million tiny whiteheads caused by the irritation of having my facial hair threaded. I'm a little broken out around my eyebrows, but nothing too serious, and certainly not nearly as bad as it gets when I get them waxed. However, my upper lip is absolutely embarassing AND painful. Never again, I say. I hate my over-sensitive skin. I look like a freakazoid, even with makeup. Twenty- four hours plus later, and my skin is STILL swollen and red. Gahhh!
Thankfully my hair turned out a lot better than the threading; last night my friend Chanelle and I bleached parts of each other's hair. She did most of hers, and because her hair is so dark, the part I did didn't even show up. :( She touched up the blonde streaks I got done in March (my word it's been a long time!) and added a few more. It looks great.
As for work, when I picked up my paycheck last week, I told the managers that if I didn't get some more hours immediately, I was going to have to quit or at the very least get an additional job. I've worked three extra shifts since then, and have a whole lot more coming. Today I worked a double, which wasn't bad at all (probably because it was so slow and I got to go home for a while and rest), and will be doing so again on Sunday. I'm also picking up an extra shift Saturday morning (hooray for people going out of town!) and Tuesday evening (which will be another double since I work Tuesday morning). I'm really excited about all the hours I'm getting. I'm not even as tired as I thought I would be, which makes me really happy. Plus, we desperately need the money right now. When I was growing up, summers were always a tight financial time for my family because my mom is a teacher, and didn't get paid in the summer (since school was out). I thought when I got older things would be different, but it would seem that the summer curse has followed. Maybe I'm wrong. I shouldn't speak so negatively, but that's how it feels right now; like I just can't win, no matter what. Back to what I was saying, I'm super happy about all these extra shifts I'm getting to pick up, not to mention the extra tip money I'll be getting.
This summer has made me very nostalgic about summers growing up, in particular the last summer I was innocent, the summer before I dated Jason Greathouse. It was the summer before my junior year, and though I was obviously mature and no angel, I still did a lot of childish things, and had little to no shame about it. For starters, that last summer I was absolutely obsessed with Banjo-Kazooie, a video game for N64. It's really a great game, and though I never completely beat it (I couldn't beat the ultimate boss; the witch), I absolutely loved it. I also used to play Star Wars Podracers on my N64. Come to think of it, perhaps the summer I'm remembering was not before my junior year, but before my sophomore year. When we were in ninth grade, Elliott and I were (just) friends and rode the bus together. He let me borrow Podracers before school got out for the summer, but I didn't get to give it back to him. The next year he went off to ASMS, Alabama School of Math and Science (in Mobile), and I didn't see him for a while again. He came back to Enterprise for our senior year of high school, but we didn't really talk much . . and you know the rest of that story.
At any rate, this summer I became obsessed with Star Wars Episode 3 and missed playing Podracers. When I went home earlier this month, I asked my family if they'd mind me taking the N64 home with me and playing Podracers and Banjo-Kazooie, but they did in fact mind, so I didn't. Apparently my little sister uses the N64, who knew. I kept getting really nostalgic about the summer where all I pretty much did was play video games all day (which is a great way to waste your days if you don't have any money to go out and do anything, for the record), and I finally caved in and bought a used N64, as well as Banjo-Kazooie and (you guessed it!) Podracing. I have since spent most of my free time ('free' as in not feeling obligated to clean or do something productive, that is) playing the game, or at least thinking about it. In the game there's this key that is plainly an object you have to do something special to get, but you never find out how to get it or what it's for. For years this has tortured my brother and me trying to figure it out. Finally, last night my brother found the answer here. You cannot even imagine how happy and excited that made us both. At any rate, that's a perfect example of what I've been up to lately.
I've been talking to my family a lot more lately, and I really like it. They all miss me a lot, which is nice. My brother and I even email each other back and forth ever day, which I'm quite happy about.
It's finally the time for our lease to be up (for real this time!), and we've been searching for a one bedroom in our price range, preferably with a yard and lots of windows. I called Promove today and was happy that I finally got on the ball about it . . . then I found out that because we have a German shepard, no professionally owned apartment complex will allow us to move in. Bastards. I guess we'll rent a house after all! Oh, shucks! Teehee, teehee. Boy, am I excited about the prospect of living in a house.
I've been doing a lot of reading this summer, primarily Chuck Palahniuk novels (I've read all of them except for Fight Club and Haunted, his newest). I've been so engrossed in them that I completely forgot to re-read Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire and Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix because Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince is coming out Saturday, and I needed to refresh my memory on everything that's happened. I'm quite irritated with myself, and am scurrying to find the books on CDs so I can listen to the stories while I'm doing laundry and whatnot and be refreshed and ready to read book 6! My plans Saturday night? The Midnight Magic Party at Borders!!! James reserved a copy of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince months ago for me, and I'm super excited about it (even if I didn't re-read books 4 and 5). I can't wait!! That's right, I have no shame about it.
Well, it's 3AM and time for me to go to bed. I'm off tomorrow, so I better go to bed so I can get up in time to actually enjoy the time that I'm off. Wow, that was a mouthful. At any rate, bon soir. I'll update again this week.
aigre-douce at 1:21 a.m.