Wanderlust: Calls from Mexico

As I already have informed you I am a horrible blogger as of late. 

In fact, I have not updated my blog since February. 

By all means, run from me NOW.

   I do however want to tell you where I am currently blogging from. Mexico. Can you believe it? I am sitting in a hotel in the middle of the Yucatan! I have been to at least 8 Mayan ruins 4 different cenotes and 2 beaches. And guess what the best part is... I still have two weeks left!! 

Have you ever been swimming in the Gulf of Mexico? I have several times. Every time I am amazed at the enchanting beauty of the sea and it's cream white beaches.  I get lost in the awe of being able to see the ocean floor even when my feet can no longer touch it. I enjoy the fact that the higher salt content allows me to float when in fresh water I sink like a cannon ball. Even shelling in the shallows seems a little more mystical. I can find whole conch shells instead of just bits and pieces of partially eroded ones.  I am never one for tanning though. Even relaxing on the beach is for the enjoyment of a good book, soft music and the crash of the Mayan blue waves upon the shore. 

But the Gulf has only been a minimal portion of my trip. I have climbed every mountain so to speak. Temple to be exact. I am here to study the Mayan culture. Remember that post about adding to my major? Well, this is where it takes me. Viva La Mexico! I am learning about the past cultures of the meso-americans. Did you know the Mayans (you know 2012) kept a better count on days and years than we could until about 1582 when the Gregorian Calendar was formed by Pope Gregory XIII. Due to Protestant Reform only four countries actually converted. It did not take affect for Britain/ British Empire(USA) until 1752 and the last hold out was Greece not converting until 1923.  They were around since 2000 b.c. the last civilization of Mayans ended with the Conquest of Mexico by the Spanish starting in 1511 by trying to enslave and convert the indigenous. But now I am teaching. 

I am having a blast. I am making new friends. I am improving my limited Spanish.  All with a study abroad program for 6 credit hours. What are you doing with your summer?

Until the Fates Let Us,

Ali

Best Things Are Life Changing

I HATE how horrible I am at updating my blogs.

 I use to update this thing at least monthly, now you Lovely Darlings are lucky to hear from me semi-annually.  It's a good thing I suppose. Being too busy to stop and fill you all in on my time. However I am going to try to change that.  My life has just become a big bunch of everything. I have yet to find something I hate about school. I even have found more things to love.  For now I will tell you about my current Big Desision.

I am Changing My Major.



So it is nothing as drastic as it sounds in fact maybe I should label it as "updating" my Major. I am keeping my current status as an English Major but tacking on one minor detail, an Anthropology Major. Hard as it sounds.  I spent all of last semester ranting and raving to anyone who would listen about how fabulous my Physical Anthropology class was. Did you know this Athropithicus came before Homo Habilis? That kinda thing. I was horrifingly obsessive. Finally after much debate to myself, I decided. I can do both. I love writing, even if it just this blog to you. Nothing will take away my shot at my English Degree. BUT who says I can't have a shot at something else too?  Who knows? Maybe I will make something of myself this way. :)

Oh Wait.

I already I am.

Until the Fates Let Us,

          Ali

My favorite Time of year

It's beginning to become my favorite time of year. Winter. I love the scarves, mittens, and hats. Big warm coats. The smell of wood burning. And most importantly the smell of frost in the air. I LOVE it. The smell of cold and winter is what I live for all year. I currently am preparing for my final days of the semester. I have final projects due, essays to write, speeches to give, and exams to take. My friends have affectionately named the next two weeks "hell week" because they will run over and into each other causing all of us to become zombies from lack of sleep and proper food. I know that if I just step outside and breathe, a few deep breaths, I will be fine. The winter will renew my soul. Now only if it would snow.... oh well, as a southern gal I know there is a slim to none chance of that. I will just bask in the cold air of winter and dream of falling flakes.

I am going to host a contest. I have 25 questions for you all to answer. I will post some everyday from now till Christmas. The person who answers the most questions correctly will get a guest post on the Ali-oop or Music to my Muse. Hey I may even give you a post on both!! So come on have fun. Take a guess!

Here is your first question:

In "A Charlie Brown Christmas", what is Charlie Brown's main complaint about Christmas?

until the fates let us,

Ali

The Odd events of Thankfulness

I am not the type to want to celebrate thanksgiving. I have nothing against being thankful, believe me, I am thankful for something every day of my life. I just have no desire to sit down to a meal and over indulge myself because the Pilgrims finally had a bountiful harvest and defeated those pesky Indians. Now if you were to tell me that Roosevelt just wanted Americans to take a day out of their busy lives to remember what their lives were for then fine, I am down with Thanksgiving. Instead it is a holiday to represent how well our ancestors survived and how we should be thankful for that among all our other things.

So how are you spending your Thanksgiving? Are you really just in it for the turkey and stuffing or some other favorite side dish? Come on, I won't be mad. I personally love a few of those myself. Yet is that really a reason to have a holiday? Thanksgiving can be (despite its deplorable beginnings) something good for all. Take this day to remember why you are happy with your life. Or to find a way to make someone else happy. I am quite sure that you have a lot more to be thankful for than others. So take this time to show why/how you are thankful then by just stuffing your face.

I currently am spending Thanksgiving in the hospital. My father fell down his driveway Sunday night and broke his hip. He had to have an emergency partial hip replacement. So my family and I will be spending "turkey day" eating cafeteria food and laughing at the morphine talking through my Dad.

You know what though? I am perfectly fine with that.

Yeah sure, I would much rather my father not be hurt and in the hospital for thanksgiving. Or for any day on that matter. But my family will be acting like a family. We will not be concerned with if we are having a bigger bash than the Jones. We will not be worried if we miss that last minute ad for the 4 am sale Friday. We will just be thankful that we are all together.

Nothing more, Nothing less.

until the fates let us,

Ali

Settling In

So here I am. Five months since my last post. I bet you got a little worried for me. It's ok. I am fine. I just had to take time to get adjusted and settle in. So here is my new life.

• Monday= Class 10-12 4-6
• Tuesday= Class 12:30-4:30
• Wednesday= Class 10-12 Lab 3-6
• Thursday= Class 12:30-3:15 Work 4:30-10
• Friday= Class 10-12 Work 1:30-10
• Saturday= Work 10-10 (some shift in there)
• Sunday= Work 12-8.

Wow. That sounds awful.

You know what though? I LOVE it. I love the fact that I have to study to get by. I am enthralled with the concept of sitting in the library between classes and going over my notes or writing my next story for creative writing. HELL even just reading my textbook is amazing to me. Here I am back in the saddle again. I haven't actually learned anything in at least three years. Except how to be an excellent sales clerk.

I know the ends and outs of how to run a store. I ran the damn store most of the time. I took inventory properly when others couldn't, I knew how to diffuse a customer, I even knew the best route to ordering things. I fucking ran that store. I was who was called when anyone was sick. I was who was called when something needed to be fixed or built. I opened and closed. I did bank runs. I was everything an assistant manger should be with out the money, benefits, or title. The month before I left I had to train four different people to do my job. FOUR! It took four people to cover what I could do alone. So now I am a month and a half in to my new job and new store. I have missed making my goal for the day once, yesterday. And no one made goal yesterday. I came in to my new job with according to my new manger more experience in the product than anyone here. I am the go to gal for if something is suppose to be that way or not. I do none of the extra jobs I did at my old store. Yet I am getting paid more. If I were to leave my current job tomorrow, they would miss me yes but I am replaceable by just one person. I am good with that. I am not going to leave my job, I love my job. I will get more knowledgeable at it. I got this job because I am capable of doing so many things and holding so much information. So I am happy.

As far as school goes, well I have yet to fail at anything. I have had two exams and passed them both. I have had two speeches and only gotten one grade back but passed that one. I am settling in. I have made a few friends, I have my fellow Labrats. They however deserve their own blog one day. I also am making friends with semi like minds in my creative writing class. We have our own corner. ;) All in all, I am doing well. I have to work on budgeting. But things come and things go. I am proud of my choices and my options. Here comes a whole new world!

until the fates let us,

Ali

Bust the Bubble....The Big Move

A few months ago I posted about stepping out of my safety zone. As drastic as that can be, for me it is a necessary shift in my world. I have taught myself to live in this small bubble. A bubble that does not encompass half the worldly experience I have. I am the product of a Transition Manager. By the time I was 12 I had seen 30 out of the 50 states and 11 countries. My father's job carried him all over the world so we followed whenever we could. Yet here I am, afraid to leave my small protective bubble.

"POP!!!"

....I busted the bubble....

I have been accepted to College. I am once again moving on. Moving up, out, and Forward. In less than three months this blog will be coming from a new venue, with a new lease on life. I am proud of myself. I am terrified. I am all around ready to live life again. As of tomorrow I will have a class schedule, paid my dues, and be completely official.

I will no longer be in a odd sort of limbo, with people walking on eggshells around me like I am Broken Shards of Glass. I will stand strong and walk with confidence. I will shout from the rooftops all the things my safety zone would never let me say. I will no longer have anything to hide. And Have no one to hide from. Maybe just maybe I will gain some confidence in other areas of my life too. ;) Hey, you never know what change can bring, so baby bring it on!

Do you want to know what I find most intriguing about this endeavor? IF I had stayed in college the first time, I would have graduated this past weekend. Along with all of the people I went to High School with. Yet here I am basically starting over. Well I never did follow the crowd.

until the fates let us,

Ali

A Whole New World.... With Health Care!!!

So today was the BIG DAY. Today the House Voted on the New and Improved Healthcare Reform Bill. So as of approximately 10:45 March 21, 2010 the bill PASSED! 219 to 212!!! The requirement was at least 216 to pass.
The next step in the Process is to be looked over and either signed or vetoed by the President. Since this Bill was created at the hands of Obama by Obama people then it should be guaranteed that it gets signed.

Here is the process in which it takes to get a bill passed into law:

So after all of this we are looking at a future of healthcare for all Americans. No matter income or disability. Nothing to prevent you from getting the help you need. There are thousands, No Millions of Americans who are going to benefit from this Bill.

As a country America seems to be selfless, we are the first to help in any given situation. We give more in money to other countries than we do to the poor and homeless of our own. We have no problem showing the world that we are prosperous, even when that prosperity is what is dragging us under. Please don't read what I am saying wrong. I am glad and proud of the fact that as a country we support other countries. This is what we are suppose to do. BUT. We have been lacking in the selflessness towards ourselves. We take what we believe is rightfully ours and leave the others around us to fend for themselves. With this new bill we are going to have to fend for each other. A concept drastically different than what we are use to. As Americans we should be supporting each other and supporting ourselves at the same time. I Understand that I am idealistic, but who doesn't want to live in a better world? This bill, this life altering, debate starting bill, is a step in the right direction don'tcha think?

until the fates let us,

Ali