Writing just 'cuz I can!

I taught Ray the "I/Me" rule of grammar yesterday. I don't know if he quite got it, my explanation might not have been clear. It was just getting hard to listen to him say "I" when he should have said "Me" and I finally just corrected him. Ray really is a good friend, he's put up with me correcting his grammar for a long time now.

I've decided not to spend money for a month. I've got until May 15th and it seems to be taking a very long time. I, of course, will buy essentials, such as fuel, food and other odds and ends, such as contact lenses, that I need. I won't buy frivolous things like shoes (that I don't need, especially since all the ones I own now don't fit in my closet) clothes (likewise, don't all fit in my dresser) music (will fit in my ipod, but it isn't really necessary since I have 1,047 songs in it currently) or other junk. I'm mostly doing it to prove to myself that I can. I will not go on a spending spree immediately afterward, though. That would ruin the whole thing, what would be the point?

I love Elliot Yamin on American Idol. Seriously, I love the man. In the way that I love a person whom I see on TV and will never, ever meet. You know what I mean. He's my favorite contestant on any American Idol season (and I was a rabid Clay fan, not that I said "was"). I also love Taylor Hicks, but he sang rather badly tonight. Poor song choice, methinks.

Till next I write! (I nearly typed "nest")

Your Five Factor Personality Profile

Extroversion: You have low extroversion. You are quiet and reserved in most social situations. A low key, laid back lifestyle is important to you. You tend to bond slowly, over time, with one or two people. Conscientiousness: You have high conscientiousness. Intelligent and reliable, you tend to succeed in life. Most things in your life are organized and planned well. But you borderline on being a total perfectionist. Agreeableness: You have medium agreeableness. You're generally a friendly and trusting person. But you also have a healthy dose of cynicism. You get along well with others, as long as they play fair. Neuroticism: You have medium neuroticism. You're generally cool and collected, but sometimes you do panic. Little worries or problems can consume you, draining your energy. Your life is pretty smooth, but there's a few emotional bumps you'd like to get rid of. Openness to experience: Your openness to new experiences is low. You're a pretty conservative person, and you favor what's socially acceptable. You think that change for novelty's sake is a very bad idea. While some may see this as boring, many see you as dependable and wise.

The Five Factor Personality Test

Growing past a fad

I used to love wide-leg jeans. I used to think the only jeans that were worth looking at were wide-leg jeans. I was never seen in denim if it weren't a pair of wide-leg jeans. I thought the trend change to bootleg and flare jeans were a sign of the madness and depravity of humanity, or at least the fashion world.

I have since changed my mind.

This was due mainly to the fact that you can no longer find wide-leg jeans anywhere. Believe me, I tried searching high and low for them. I clung to my last few dieing pairs as though they were the most beloved friends I'd ever had. But, alas, all fabric must wear eventually, and fade, and, gasp, tear. And so, one day I gave in. I bought a pair of bootleg jeans. I drove home from the store expecting to suffer through wearing them. Were bootlegs not the enemy? Had society not used them to replace my favorites? This was a surrender that I would only just endure.

I will now only be seen in public in bootleg jeans. I still have one old pair of wides, well worn and so comfy for at home wear, but the majority of my jeans drawer is bootlegs. I had a new fad.

This little experience was not unique. I go through this all the time, really. For example, I grew up utterly assured that pink was evil. Pink was society's way of getting girls to be brain-dead clones who only cared about whether or not their makeup was perfect, the cute boy was single, or the Gap was having a sale. Pink had no identity of it's own, if you liked or wore pink you were just like everyone else. This, while never articulated into words at that tender young age, was why I said my favorite color was red in kindergarten. I didn't care 2 figs about the color red. I didn't have a favorite color in kindergarten. I suspect when I answered that question I just looked up and saw something red, and since most of the other little girls had said their favorite was pink, I surely wasn't going to say that.

Just by looking at the main color scheme of my blog you can see that I have changed my mind about pink. I've decided I love pink. It however, isn't my favorite color. Blue is my favorite color. I decided that long ago, and shall stick with it. But I like pink very, very much. I know it's a phase I will go through. I will one day not wear anything pink and not think the outfit is missing something. I won't care either way about it.

I think that a large part of my reason for going against pink and bootleg jeans is that I despise being like everyone else. I'm over that now. At least, a little bit. I used to want to so badly to be an individual that I didn't care if that individual were me or not. I've learned better now. I am starting to realize that if I like something that is popular, it doesn't make me a mindless drone following the orders of someone else. It's ok to like something popular.

I'm not sure how much any of this would apply to anyone besides me, but it definitely helps me to realize this.

Till next I write.

The longest 15 minutes

I think that the longest fifteen minutes in the day is from 2:30 to 2:45 pm. Everyday, it feels like the clock slows down. I know that the clock isn't to blame, it's an atomic clock, it's never wrong.

By contrast, the shortest fifteen minutes in the day is 2:45 to 3:00 pm. That, my friends, is my afternoon break time. Life speeds up like someone is watching a video tape and that happens to be the commercial break, and what do most normal people do during a taped commercial break? They fast-forward.

I've often wondered why this phenomenon doesn't occur in the morning. Why doesn't the half-hour involving my pre-morning break and morning break go through the same dramatic change? I believe it is because I don't actually wake up until noon. I don't wake up until I've eaten lunch. Oh, I'm awake, I assure you, I simply am not really awake mentally. I don't care about the clock until 12:15. Wait, you say, you said you wake up at noon! Yes, my astute readers. I wake up at noon, but I don't care about the clock. From noon to 12:15, I am only concerned with eating. I don't eat breakfast, you see. No need to tell me that it's the most important meal of the day, I already know that. I don't like breakfast. I don't like breakfast food, I don't like taking more time in the morning to eat. I simply do not like breakfast. The only breakfast I like is waffles, and only the kind my mom makes, not the toaster kind. Not even the restaraunt kind. I'm picky that way.

I suppose another reason that morning break doesn't fly by is because I usually don't talk to co-workers then. I don't talk much in the morning. No, really, I talk less in the a.m. if you believe that possible. I do talk a little on afternoon break. I do more listening than talking, but still conversation makes time go faster. There are more people in the breakroom in the afternoon, which makes for a noisier environment, another time-speeder.

And so, for me, 2:30 until 3:00 is the stangest, and most changeable half-hour of the day.

Till next I write!