Where I've been

During the past 1 week+, I have:
1)Been in a morgue. It's cold in there. All I could see were body bags on cold metal slabs. There's been talk in the news about the Terry Schiavo case. It brought up a lot of issues about the "right to die." People are split left and right about who gets to make the decisions: parents or spouse? pull the plug or pray for a miracle? This argument, like Roe v. Wade, will never be fully resolved. Most of us think about what will happen next. I officially don't believe in hell: I don't believe in the Judeo-Christian (Islam?) hell where sinners will burn for eternity. I don't believe that the soul of a dead person floats around, giving words of wisdom. I believe there are times we hear a person's voice in our head telling us something. We all want to believe that we'll get another chance, so reincarnation is appealing. I don't know if I believe in that. Just imagine that it does happen; so that creepy Science teacher who would hit on girls half his age could come back as a fly or a cockroach--swat! smash! out!

2) Seen a traditional Chinese medicine doctor. I passed by one of those random screenings and decided to stop by--I believe in the holistic approach to wellness and use of Eastern and kienyeji Kenyan herbs. Some of us grew up being forced to eat vegetables and drink various concotions made from various leaves and herbs in our yard--but the stuff works! I admire the quality of being "calm" and most people from that part of the world possess it. I want to learn new methods for stress relief. She was great--encouraged me to try acupuncture. One of my buddies tried it for allergies and she swears it worked. One of these days...

3) Attended a designer trunk show. My first. No big Italian names. A few local designers. Very original work. I saw handbags, jewelry, hats.shirts, handwarmers, underwear--I did a double take on these, they looked comfortable (no thongs!). Maybe someone should make a suggestion to Home Science teachers about changing sewing projects to items that we could actually wear (underwear!) without worrying whether it matches anything else. I fancied myself a designer the first 11 years of my life--making doll's clothes was quite a task! My last year of high school, I stated that my dream was "to become a fashion designer..." Yeah, right. I'm not even close--priorities have changed. I lack the originality and creativity to do it but I still find it fascinating. There was a live performance from a violinist, veggiez & dip, bread & cheese, and Sangria! I enjoyed a cool glass. One of my ex-roomies makes the best Sangria. My only purchase: chocolate truffles.

4) Won a Monopoly match! I am such a nerd--I enjoy playing board games (can't play chess yet). I know it's just a game, but I get very competetive. I had the satisfaction of beating a know-it-all guy from Wisconsin. It was a fun evening: games, pizza, beer, and an interesting mix of people.

5) Hang out with a lesbian couple. Who are planning to get married. Soon. No church ceremony for obvious reasons. Within minutes of meeting them, my gaydar was sending signals about the Latina girl. I wasn't too sure about her friend, an attractive tatooed brunette with a pony-tail and bangs, wearing librarian glasses and punk-rock attire. Unlikely combo that looked hot. The Latina girl was talking about how guys would hit on her girlfriend and she'd be like "She's with me, as in she's my girlfriend. It's definitely a point of pride for them, but I think it must get tiring to continuously defend the relationship. It can also happen with straight couples when you just can't put some people together and you're thinking, "what? they're together?"

6) Been in the same room as 2 full-grown male chinchillas. FYI, they're rodents. They have beautiful soft grey fur and beady eyes, but they're rodents! Apparently one was trying to get with the other one...they're supposed to be monogamous. According to Wikipedia, "This peculiar rodent is also studied by linguists due to its aural range of perception. It is considered the closest to that of a human's." Fascinating fact. I like animals in general, but I will not willingly live with any kind of rodent!


7) Met a couple of WWII veterans. It's amazing to meet people that have lived history and been a part of it. It's scary to imagine living when Hitler was a real threat. Time magazine featured his face with a big X over it in 1945. One of my grandfather's fought with the British in Northern Africa during this war. He would show us pictures and tell us about it when we were kids. Courageous blood flows through my veins. I give respect to those who've survived to tell the story.

8) Skipped class more than once. I used to be the model student. But things like sleep, work, and, yes, laziness, happen. I will stop being judgemental about those students who don't show up to class, or leave early (gotta get to work). You'd never know by looking at some people what their situation is. I still get pissed when people ask, "ya got any kids?" Hell no. There's a young-lookin' white girl @ school who has a 3yr-old kid and she's always hassled, gets late dropping her off, trying to arrange pick-up times, calling her peroz, the baby-daddy is in jail,...so much drama. You never know...I'd better get some sleep if I don't want to miss my morning class. But hey, shit happens!