My love affair with TV...

As I’m sitting here on my big comfy chair bawling my eyes out over the death of two TV characters (and let’s make this clear, just the characters, not the actors who actually play the characters), I’m struck by how invested I get in TV shows. It doesn’t matter if it’s the series premiere of a show I’ve never seen, the season finale of a show I’ve watched religiously for years, or an episode of a random show that I’ve seen 12 times already, I simply love TV. Some might even say I’m addicted, which is why I’ll refrain from listing the number of shows I watch… let’s just say, I know my way around the TV guide. I love spending years learning about the characters and watching them grow as the series goes on. I love watching the story unfold and screaming with joy when a good twist happens. I love talking about what has happened and what will happen with my friends. I love how I can learn about myself and how to improve myself by watching TV.

I’ve never really sat down and considered why I enjoy it so much, though. The most obvious answer is that I love a good story, especially when someone is telling it to me in picture form (though I have a love/hate relationship with the suspense of waiting all week to see how so-and-so will get out of whatever problem he’s found himself in). I don’t care how unrealistic the storyline is (obviously people can’t grow a tree out of there heart, but that doesn’t stop me from viewing!) If a show has a captivating storyline, you can be fairly certain I’ve seen at least one episode. But even more than that, I crave the lessons I learn from my various shows.  Sometimes it takes Susan Lewis reminiscing about love lost to remind me that I need to tell the important people in my life that I love them and appreciate everything they do for me. Other times I need to see Leslie Knope falling into the pit to remind me that it’s important to laugh at myself. And sometimes I just need to see Morgan and Prentiss putting the bad guy behind bars to remember that good can beat evil. Television gives me the chance to encounter situations I’d never get into in real life, which broadens my horizons and gets to me use that lump that’s three feet above my @$$ (thank you, Jimmy Dugan). How could you not love TV??

Don’t get me wrong; I’m not always looking for the hidden (or blatantly obvious) message in my 23 minute sitcom or 44 minute drama. There are times I’m “watching” TV while also playing a game on my phone or updating my Facebook status or I’m just watching for pure entertainment. I never really thought much about it before. Or if it did cross my mind, I let it slip away before I had to spend too much time analyzing it. But lately I’ve been spending more time trying to think about things, and since I watch so much TV, I figured it would be a good subject to tackle. I mean, if I’m going to cry when my characters die or rejoice with them when something good happens to them, I might as well take something away from it. (The proper response may be to watch less TV, but let’s be serious, I don’t see that happening anytime soon…so on to the next best thing!) And that’s why tonight, I’m sending some love to my friends. Thank you for the reminder, primetime TV :) 

What a weekend

It turns out that if you wait a couple day between posts, you're likely to have more funny things happen to you (or at least there's an increased chance that you'll actually remember humorous events occurring). Who woulda thunk it?  Here goes!

1. Before mass started yesterday, a mom was trying to get her son to go up and be an altar server but he didn't want to. First she tried bribing him. Then when that didn't work, she tried telling him that she'd make church last 2 hours instead of just 1 (I wonder how she got the power to do that). Unfortunately for her, that didn't work either (he was probably just as skeptical as I was). Finally she made a last ditch effort and went with the guilt trip "well if you won't do it for me, then do it for God." Whoa! Bringing out the big guns. But alas, the boy didn't want to do it for The Big Guy either. (Though something must have tugged at his little ol' heartstrings because 30 seconds before Mass started, he walked up to the altar and performed his duties). 
2. I went to the fridge for some milk the other morning. I only found it after I moved a pitcher of sangria, a bottle of Baileys, and a box of Franzia. We've got our priorities straight here.
3.  After telling my mom that I was giving up coffee for a couple months, she asked me why I wasn't giving up something like chips. Or peanut butter M&Ms. Well thanks for the support, mom, but what are you trying to say...?
4. While discussing the intricacies of "Here Comes Honey Boo Boo" and other quality TV shows, my sister asks my aunt if she watches any of the competition-like reality shows. She said no because she "prefers her reality tv to be talentless."
5. I got a graduation card from a good friend in the mail today. The first thing I noticed was that she had crossed out "Happy Birthday" and written "CONGRATULATIONS!!!" Best.Card.Ever.
6. As you may have noticed (and it's kind of hard to miss), I really like making lists. 

I really thought I'd have more to say...better luck next time I suppose. 

7 Quick Takes

I decided to jump on the bandwagon over at Conversion Diary and try my hand at quick takes Friday.

1. As I was sitting in Barnes and Noble, I heard the 50-something year old gentleman next to me turn to the group of college kids next to him and say "I heard you guys talking about zombies earlier. There's a great book about them on that table over there that I think you'd really like." Halloween really is around the corner...

2. I love music (and really generic statements). This one and this one have been on repeat a lot lately. And now that I've realized all my current music is on the sad side, I've made a resolution to find a happy song for next week!

3. I don't like shows with laugh tracks. Except for Friends (and sometimes How I Met Your Mother). I feel like they're questioning my intelligence by telling me when I should laugh, and my intelligence is questioned enough during my two hour a week stint with first graders.

4. I wish Glee would stop being inappropriate so that I could watch it...They've got some new cast members with a lot of talent, but I guess I'll just have to stick with listening to the tunes after the show.

5. My younger sister got her first big girl job today! Hooray for her!

6. Unlike some companies that tell you how much you did save on your receipt, Starbucks tells you how much you would have saved if you were a member. For me, it was a whole 32 cents. I may need to look into this membership thing.

7. I've lived in the same town for 17 years (minus the 5 years I spent in college) and never knew it was a dry town until today. Guess it shouldn't be surprising since it's also a gas-free, grocery-free, anything-you-could-possibly-need-free town. Somehow they found room for three Episcopalian churches in a two block radius though. How curious.

You're Gonna Have One Like Her Soon

Today was a GREAT day! And what better way to tell you about it than with a pictured list :)

0. Within the last couple of days, I decided that I should start training myself to wake up for work. I figured I should have it down by the time I actually start my internship. In January. The only problem? I don't know what time I'm going to be starting work. 10am sounds about right, ay? Good. Oh wait, there's another problem. Waking up earlier means I have extra hours in my day to spend eating. Now if I had any willpower concerning food whatsoever, this wouldn't be a problem. But I don't, so it is. Good thing fruit seems to be doing the trick for now! (I added this one after my whole list was already done and I didn't feel like redoing all the numbers so I'm adding a 0. Don't ask me why I didn't use the "numbered list" button. I don't want to talk about it).

1. I put some stuff on eBay and sold something 15 minutes later! Hooray for people prowling the internet at all hours for Tonka trucks. Who knew...

2. I had made time to read a chapter of this amazing book. I don't know why I'm always pushing it off to the side or finding other things to do besides read it because there are so many great messages in it. Like one of my favorites from today, "It is a duty for you to spread this sweet and joyful peace around you, but, as little Thérèse so knowingly remarked, 'not like judges of peace, but like angels of peace.'" Plus, in the immortal words of one of my good friends, St. Thérèse is a baller.

3. There's always fruit in my house now! Why? Because my mom (and me?) is (are?) on weight watchers. Although can you really say you're doing it if you're not counting points yourself but you're eating the same things as someone who is counting? Well since I'm the one saying it, I guess I can say whatever I want. (I wonder what else I can do with the newfound power this blog gives me).  Now instead of my lunches being crackers and cheese or chips and salsa, they're watermelon and apples or peaches and cuties. I don't think this point deserves a picture, mostly because I think you both know what fruit looks like and I don't want to do one of those before and after pictures after a week. I won't even step on the scale again after the havoc it wreaked on me last time.

4. I got to know the girl I'll be teaching with before class today and she seems great! We didn't get much time to chat but she seems awesome! She used to go to U of I, she's close to my age, and she knows some of my friends! So many things in common. Can't wait to get to know her more. (Again, sorry for the lack of picture but I think it goes against social etiquette to take a picture with someone within the first 2 minutes of meeting each other and then putting it up on your blog. Maybe next week.)

5. Caution--I'm about to get nerdy up in here. When I was in the gym waiting for all my kiddos to arrive, I had the chance to talk to one of them about Pokemon. I'm not ashamed to say that I can hold my own in a Pokemon conversation. I had the cards. I had the Gameboy games. I had the "help" (aka cheat) books that showed you where everything was so you could beat the game better. I. Liked. Pokemon. Maybe that's why the kids liked me ;)

6. At one point while the parents were still slowly loosening their children's velcro-tight grips from their arms, one of my boy's little sisters walked up. She looked to be about three. Out of nowhere, the little boy goes "you'll have one like her in a couple years." Wait what!?! Does he know something I don't??

Yes...that's his drool on my leg. If he wasn't such a handsome little devil, I may have had more of a problem with it.

7. The little guy I'm in charge of is a total doll! After his mom introduced him to me, he gave me a huge hug. Then he gave me two more. Then he proceeded to interrupt all my attempts at talking to the other kids by telling me his answer to the question I asked them. After another couple of hugs and 7 or 8 circles around my body, he asked me the name of our other teacher, ran up to her, gave her 2 hugs, and then came back and grabbed my hand. Well how could I not fall in love with him?? Now if only I had as much energy as him...we probably spent more time out of the classroom taking breaks than we did actually listening to the lesson for the day. Gotta work on that for next week!

I. Love. Hugs.

8. During one of our 25 breaks over the course of an hour, I decided to try a little hallway lesson, since it's hard to take part in class when you're not actually in the classroom and I still haven't mastered the ability to be in two places at once. And it worked! The other teacher had given me a quick overview of what we'd be doing all night, and I happened to remember the five finger prayer she was going to do (pray for someone close to you, someone far away, a leader, someone sick, and all your classmates). Once the little guy and I had walked down all the hallways and decided that the stairs looked like they were leading somewhere scary, we sat down on a bench. Then I asked him to think of someone in each of the aforementioned categories AND HE DID IT! It was so cute to hear him asking Jesus to help each person he named.

OH. MY. GOSH. Couldn't resist putting this little guy in even if I don't know him...hahaha

9. We happened to finish one of our breaks just as the other kids were in the middle of naming people to pray for. They were on leaders, and our teacher decided we were going to pray for the president. One of the little girls raised her hand and said, "but I really wanted to pray for you. You're like a leader because you're our teacher." I was sitting behind her trying to keep my little guy in one place and she leaned back and said "and you too." Say hello to my melted heart.

St. Nicholas, pray for us!

10. I got to talk to a beautiful friend when I got home, and no matter what kind of day I'm having, that A-L-W-A-Y-S boosts my mood at least a googol-fold. (Hahaha one of my kids told me that I just missed him counting to 1000 by fives. I told him how impressed I was because that's a really big number. The kid sitting next to him goes "not as big as a googol." How does he even know that's a number!?) Anyway, it was so great getting to catch up with my friend. She's wonderful :)

Everyone else thinks she's great, too.

11. This was on TV when I got back from my walk. I don't think it needs any words, except it really makes me want some sketti.

Weeellllll I think that's all for tonight. I hope your day was as great as mine!

Childhood Dream Realized

I don't know what it is about adults asking kids what they want to be when they grow up, but I'm pretty sure that question has been around since the beginning of time. I wonder if Adam and Eve's kids fantasized about being snake charmers (too soon?) or if Noah's son dreamed of being of vet. Throughout my whole life, I don't think I've ever expressed more than 2 or 3 answers to that questions. Unlike most kids who change their answer between morning snack and brunch, I stuck to my guns. I was sure I knew what I wanted to do. Or at least I was sure I knew what everyone told me I wanted to do. I wanted to be a teacher (real original, right?). I'm not sure what fascinated me so much about the teaching profession. Oh wait, yes I do--Summers. Off. What kid wouldn't be attracted by that tantalizing offer??

Then I grew up and realized teaching combines two of my worst fears--having all the attention on me and speaking in public--and quickly changed career paths. (More on that later, but my second choice wasn't a much better fit for me... )Anyway, back to teaching. I REALLY dislike speaking in public. It doesn't matter how big my audience is or how old they are. I would rather give up ice cream for the rest of my life than speak in public. Okay, maybe that's a teensy bit drastic, especially considering I'd rather lose my left pinky than give up ice cream for life, but it's a close third. Every time I go to speak in front of people, I experience the classic symptoms of anxiety--my heart starts beating like it's trying to set some Olympic record I'm not aware of, I sweat more than the people doing BWW blazin' wings challenge, words cease to enter my mind, and my face decides to have a contest with the nonexistent lobster in the room to see who can become redder. I'm always surprised anyone actually understands anything I said when I finally get done. Or maybe they don't and they're just too polite to say anything to the girl who looks like she just got done climbing Mount Everest after giving a 3-5 minute speech about herself.

But then something very strange happens. As soon as I finish presenting whatever information I was forced to convey to a room full of people who probably couldn't care less, I forget the entire ordeal. It's like it never even happened. I don't mean I just put it behind me and pretend I gave a performance that rivaled the likes of this guy. I mean I literally forget the entire experience. I can't tell you if I covered all my points or if my transitions made sense or if anyone was actually listening to me. It's like my mind represses the memory before I even have the chance to decide if it needs to be repressed or not as I'm sure this well known girl wishes she could do.

At this point, I'm sure you're all thinking "that's great, Jordan. So don't take a job where you have to speak in front of large groups of people. Doesn't seem that hard. Why are you rambling on about this?" Well my faithful reader(s?), I'm glad you asked (but I'm more glad that I asked for you because I like being able to answer my own questions. I take after Dwight in this. Remember in season 7, episode 23 after he shoots the gun off in the office and has this conversation with Jo? Dwight: Okay. Did I make a mistake? Yes. Do I regret the decision that I made? Yes. Jo: Oh, stop asking yourself easy questions so you can look like a genius.) And now that I've successfully lost everyone who doesn't watch The Office and am starting to lose even those of you who have, HERE'S THE PURPOSE OF THE WHOLE POST! Thanks for hanging in there, but I did promise more rambling ;)

Tomorrow my childhood dream will be realized, despite not going to college for teaching and not conquering my fear of sharing my thoughts with a room full of people. But none of that really matters because I've been given the opportunity to help out in a religious education class every Wednesday night! That's right. This little convert (revert? baptized-as-a-baby-but-didn't-receive-first-communion-or-confirmation-for-22-more years-er?) is going to be helping out in the 1st grade classroom at a nearby parish. Apparently God thought it was time for me to conquer a fear or two, so please pray for the souls of the little first graders who are stuck blessed with my presence all year ;) Lucky for me, I don't think the kids will care too much if I say 'um' every other word or don't stare into each of their eyes the whole time. Plus I think it's going to be a ton of fun! I'll be sure to let you know all about it.

And now for some pictures so that I can attempt to live up to my self-named blog

This sweet drawing was in the bar we went to for my uncle's birthday. So many questions raised...

Mom wanted to make sure the twins made it home safely.

 That's all for tonight, friends. Thank you for your support.

Baby Blogger

How to write your first blog post if you're me:
Step 1--Make an account! (I checked that step off over a year ago. Sometimes I procrastinate, but at least I'm not alone. See!
Step 2--Figure out who's likely to read your blog (in my case, probably 3 people so I need to set the bar pretty high).
Step 3--Read your friends' blogs to see how they started out (proceed to spend the next 2 hours reading blogs...)
Step 4--Smile to yourself as you think about how great your friends are.
Step 5--Stop smiling to yourself because you're not the only one in the room and people begin to wonder about you after awhile.
Step 6--Find your way back to your own blank post.
Step 7--Overanalyze each and every idea you're considering because it's likely that your blog will make it all the way to the Queen's eyes and you wouldn't want to disappoint.
Step 8--If you're having trouble with step 7, google "how to write first blog post" because Google knows all.
Step 9--Get serious about this whole writing thing. After all, you probably don't have 5 hours each day to spend on your blog. (Unless you're jobless like me, in which case you actually do).
Step 10--Decide on the "direction" of your blog. I chose south because I don't think I'd enjoy weather that's much colder than Illinois.
Step 11--Stop thinking and start writing!

So there it is, my first blog post. I'm not quite sure it accomplished anything so here are some funny pictures...

Every single time I go to the bathroom, these appear under the door.

Me and my shadow ;)  (not sure why the grass is two different colors. Blame it on the lack of rain)

Fields as far as the eye can see.

What more could a girl ask for?

Inspiring messages a la Lincoln Park Zoo

Cirque Shanghai stunts!

 What you can look forward to in future posts:

• More lists
• More ramblings
• More links
• More pictures
• More direction

I can't promise an update every day (mostly because I'd probably bore you with the lack of news), but I'm hoping to check in pretty often. Here's hoping for interesting events!

-J