This Cracks Me Up!

I'm watching the movie Home Alone. The first one. A classic Christmas movie. And of course I turned it on right at the best part.... right when the crooks find out he's home alone and plan to come back. I think I have this movie memorized, the video worn out, and I still laugh.

OK so you all know I have been trying to, ok I mean, talking about, getting my book published. The one I wrote when I was 17 and haven't read over in 5 years or so at least. OK maybe 3. So i'm just bored and doing a search online about publishing info, and I come across a publishing contest for first time authors for young adult novels. Exactly what I wrote. Well, I came across this... 3 days ago.

The deadline for the manuscripts to be postmarked.... was today.

Well, should I go for it, or wait til next year. What the hell, I'd pull an all nighter and type the whole book and get it out at the latest possible time.... the final copy of my book is HAND PRINTED hahahaha Harry why the hell you dressed like a chicken? HAHAHAH thats my favorite part

OK so anyway I wasnt looking forward to staying awake for 48 hours staring at my computer screen. When I go look in my documents folder, I found that I had apparently typed it up two or three years ago and the document was somehow still saved in my computer. I looked it over and there appeared to be only the last four pages or so left to be typed, so I finished that up and spent nearly 12 hours yesterday going over the entire thing, editing and editing and editing it again. Then changing names to protect the guilty, then trying to figure out how to write a summary and cover letter.

THEN... trying to figure out how to print it. I don't have a printer... and after calling 3 or 4 printing places last night and this morning to discover that none must be open today since none answered their phone (and one machine even said "we're open when the open sign is on....").

He's gonna call the cops! He's not calling the cops.... from a treehouse?! LOL I remember when I was younger and Mom wouldn't let us watch this movie because Kevin said the word "a**" in that part. LOL Love ya, Mom :)

So I checked out Office Depot's website and saw could upload files from your computer and print there and pick them up.... the only thing was they wouldn't allow an order to go through without putting it on a debit or credit card... they couldn't accept the order with the promise of a cash payment upon pickup....

Then my Daddy calls me last night... said he would come up this morning, figure out a way to get this printed, he would pay for it, and get it shipped. At this time my only option I was looking at is going to the library and printing the 200 pages for .10 apiece. So I called Office Depot and asked if they could print from a flash drive, they said they could and should be done in about 15 minutes if we got there this morning. We were out the door in 5 minutes.

Got it printed with no problems.... two copies, off to the post office... pay for a paddy envelope with delivery confirmation... and we were off for a late breakfast. Postmarked an hour before noon today... when the post office closed.

Nothing like waiting til the last minute!

It's Weird How Things Work Out

So this evening when I was waiting for the bus at Wal Mart I was thinking what was going to happen when our lease is up here or if I chose I no longer wanted to live with my current roommate, etc. (her family is driving me insane)

Then I get on the bus and the person who I helped get into the house in Onalaska that I moved out of in July, he was on the bus, and asked if I was interested in moving back into the house, because he's moving out soon and in with his girlfriend and her kids I guess. Or something like that.

Now I really liked this house. It was a decent place for one person or a couple, it had its flaws (as every place does) and I like it. However, rent was within my price range, if I were working full time it still would be... yet its further from school. I could bus to school but would be walking home quite a few miles had I not be able to find a ride, and I'm not sure I want to live in Onalaska again. I didn't like that the heat vents were in the ceiling (heat rises duh!) so didn't think that was efficient and the heat bill killed me last winter.... to the point I'm still paying it off til the end of NEXT month.

Also had to pay the water bill, which was around $100 for 3 months. Yet I did LOVE having a yard and no neighbors to worry about when I cranked my music... I told him if I got a job in the next month or so I would consider it.

Life in the apartment trailer park isnt that bad right now, but I'm so tired of going back and forth... between the parents house and this place and even now I'm living in the building I lived in before when I lived on my own. Yet in otdays world its near impossible to survive on your own without a decent job with near no jobs anywhere. Yeah, yeah, everyone's telling me to go to McDonalds or Burger King but I don't even think they would hire me right now.

I'd rather just get my book published. Thats what I'm going to work on from now on.

The Coolest Icicle I've Ever Seen!

So we got 3 or 4 more inches of snow yesterday, freezing rain on top of it last night, and it was above freezing and melting today. Took these pics of the coolest icicle ever seen hanging outside our apartment door this evening. It has a fork on the bottom.



Heres a pic of the middle where the ridgly parts are neat:



Heres a pic of the whole thing:



And another pic of the cool parts:



And just for kicks and giggles, here's anothr icicle on the other side of the door, that's more than halfway to the ground:

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Guest Post from 20SB

As I'm sure Holly here has already mentioned, (I haven't) we're taking part in the 20sb Blog Swap. Meaning I get to babble on Here on Her blog and she'll be over on One Red Wall today. So don't forget to head over and check out what she has to say. Now since I ramble on enough in my post, I will refrain from rambling in the intro...


The theme this time is Action. Specifically, something I've been putting off a long time that I need to do next year.


GAWD there are so many things. Getting back in shape, getting back to school, paying old debts, making Friends instead of acting all Lone Wolf, all important things. But the first thing that came to mind when I read that?

I need to start saving money to go Bungee Jumping.

I had decided I'd go in 2010 and I just didn't do enough to make it happen. I put it off to the end of the year when my sister could go with us and the company we planned on using Canceled the whole event. Really, I probably wouldn't have been able to afford it even if they didn't since I hadn't bothered to Save for it. It was like I was sabotaging myself. So I failed. And I'm not doing that again. I Am Going in 2011. I Have to.

I know it sounds ... crazy, but I know it'll change my life. Although I know several people who'd be surprised to find out, the truth is that I am a big Chicken. I just fake it. I don't even love Roller Coasters. Yet every time I'm around a roller coaster I go get on the Biggest Scariest one there First thing. I will have a mini-freak out in my head all the way up the first hill and as I start the first drop. But then we start the next climb.

That's when I get over the fear. That's when I start to love it. As long as I take the biggest and scariest first, I'll love all of the ones that follow it. No gradual buildup for me. It's all or nothing. I do that with more than just roller coasters, but I won't bore you with 100 examples.

I know that when it's time to go on that jump, I'll want to go first. And I'll hate it. All the way down I'll probably hold myself pretty stiff and cuss at myself about Why the Fuck did I want to DIE?? And then I'll bounce. And that's what I want. I know that after the Bounce I'll love it. In fact, I'm pretty sure I'll want to go again. I Know me. I really do love doing risky thrilling things, I just let my doubts and my fear get in the way too often.

And that's how I know that bungee jumping will change my life. It's Crazy for someone who doesn't like roller coasters or that Drop ride thing to Yearn to go bungee jumping, but I do. Almost Everyone I've talked to about it thinks I'm Crazy and half of Them say it's too dangerous for me to do since I have kids. Well guess what? I'm more likely to get broadsided while driving my car than die in a bungee jumping accident. And when I conquer that, I know I'll look at other things differently. Maybe that sounds like a lot to put on a bungee jump, but I know it will change how I look at things. Hell, every new thrilling thing does, so why wouldn't bungee jumping do it too?

Technically, it would be easier for me to go skydiving, since there is a skydiving place Right at the edge of town and you can go any day the weather is nice. Maybe I'll do that next. But for now, I'm going to go on the Other side of town and go bungee jumping (did I mention they have a great bridge to jump off of within minutes from my house?). And if they cancel again, I'll just have to bungee jump somewhere further from home. But I Will do it in 2011.

After I go bungee jumping I still have to continue saving. I have a European or Australian vacation to plan for 2012. I've lived in Europe, but I was never able to go Experience it without Parents or School Agendas or something that made my destination and length of stay Not of my choosing. This time, I want to go and Live Life and just take it all in. I'd love to go solo, but I'm a nice wife, so I'll let Husband go on my vacation too if he wants to. He's pretty well traveled and Tired of it so he may choose to stay home.

Of all the thing I know I need to do in 2011, and all the things I know I Will do in 2011... Going bungee jumping and starting the 2012 vacation fund are what I am going to do For Me. I am an older sister, a mom, and a wife, so I have been putting others in front of me for my whole life.

I have bought so many kids toys, and Husband toys... It's about time I took some action and saved money that is only to be used for something for me.


-Kandace

And the Lesson Learned....

It's been a week tomorrow since I've been off house arrest. But it feels like I still am! Maybe thats what was supposed to happen. Spent 90 days of going only to school and downtown almost every morning that now when I come home from school I get right in my pajamas and sit in front of the computer, just like I did while tethered to my house.

I've been out like three times in a week. Part of thats from watching the kid during the day, and going to school, and probably because I've been sick and its been cold and snowy out, but who knows.

They've brainwashed me. The only thing I'm not still doing is waking up before noon and calling that gosh darned number to see if I have to go downtown and blow. Maybe thats what they wanted me to do. Learn how to sit at home and be boring. The only exciting (or not so) was that the morning after I was off last week, the cop showed up at my door asking if one of us called 911. Said they called back 3 times. The phone never rang.