The gift that keeps on giving

God, I hate Mondays.

I swear, Mondays should be banned.  BANNED.  I know at least Garfield sympathizes with me.

My loan gets rejected because apparently I applied for the wrong one.  Only a certain amount of money is allowed to be "borrowed" by the federal government if you are studying overseas.  SUPER.

My IRA gets rejected because evidently I filled out the wrong option and cannot transfer my 403(b) into a IRA in kind.  Evidently, you much LIQUIDATE all assets, not transfer in kind.  GLORIOUS!

I keep seeing more and more money LEAVE my checking account and less and less money ENTER into my account.  This is probably the first time since I was about 20 to see this happening.  I am not liking it one bit!  As much as I would love to have a part time telecommute job (which I almost had through google) no one will hire me if I am overseas.  

Unless I can perhaps get a job working over there, when my work visa clears...hmmm.

Anyways, it's been a bad day.  I am poor and I'm surrounded by poor people, LOL.  I think it is getting to me today.

/end rant (for now)

The Dash

Beautiful.  How can you not feel inspired reading something like this?  Cherish yourself and others.

I read of a man who stood to speak
at the funeral of a friend.
He referred to the dates on her tombstone
from the beginning to the end.

-
He noted that first came the date of her birth
and spoke of the following date with tears,
but he said what mattered most of all
was the dash between those years.

-
For that dash represents all the time
that she spent alive on earth
and now only those who loved her
know what that little line is worth.

-
For it matters not, how much we own,
the cars, the house, the cash,
What matters is how we live and love
and how we spend our dash.

-
So think about this long and hard;
are there things you'd like to change?
For you never know how much time is left
that can still be rearranged. 

-
If we could just slow down enough
to consider what's true and real,
and always try to understand
the way other people feel.

-
And be less quick to anger,
and show appreciation more
and love the people in our lives
like we've never loved before.

-
If we treat each other with respect,
and more often wear a smile,
remembering that this special dash
might only last a little while.

-
So, when your eulogy's being read
with your life's actions to rehash
Would you be proud of the things they say
About how you spend your dash?

-
Author Linda Ellis copyright 1996

The Dash

Take the pill & choose a loser! Insert witty sarcasm here!

Evidently, according to MSNBC.com, research studies have proven that women who ingest birth control pills are MORE LIKELY to pick bad lifemates.  Wow.  So not only do women have to hear things like: you will pick a man who will be like your father - and if he's an alcoholic druggie you're screwed! - now "studies" have proven when we seek to defend our bodies and not get pregnant we are still choosing crappy males.  AWESOME!

The article explains the evolutionary tactics for this wonderful finding.  The pill masks or changes a women's odor finding preference.  Subconsciously, women can smell out genetic deficiencies in males making them appear less attractive to pass our chromosomes to.  When women take the pill they are in a false pregnancy and thus, "When women are pregnant there's no selection pressure, evolutionarily speaking, for having a preference for genetically dissimilar odors," Roberts said. "And if there is any pressure at all it would be towards relatives, who would be more genetically similar, because the relatives would help those individuals rear the baby."

Does anyone at all think all this towards women is very biased?  Why does it always come back to the women?  I understand partially it is because women have control over bringing life into the world.  But why not this: perhaps men are substantially weaker nowadays than before.  Maybe the selection process just well ... sucks!  

Yeah!

Anyways, that's my beef for today.  

Here's the link for the article.  Comments are mucho appreciated.

Love her, Hate her

Despite how many people feel about her, Hilary Clinton is one hell of a speaker.  I found her speech to be eloquent, hard-hitting, and strongly unifying for the democratic party.  I was equally impressed with how Chelsea has grown into a beautiful young woman - and I love that she is my age! - and supported her mother.  I am sure many Republicans will bash her, as they did with Michelle Obama, but I really have to hand it to her - the lady can really, truly, hold her own up on stage.

This election will be extremely exciting!

Shampoo, rinse, repeat

Every single week day - around 11:30 am to be exact - the lady next door plays the piano.  At first I laughed a little bit at her.  This lady, like clockwork, always starts playing at 11:30.  She always plays "New York, New York" excessively, repeating over, and over, and over again.  There are certain variations she enjoys playing, but for the most part she will always go back to the original.  Then it dawned on me today:  

I myself have also repeating my schedule every single day for the last month.

My old schedule in Sacramento consisted of getting up, going to work, going to school, taking a nap, eating at some point, reading, then repeating.  NOW I get up between 9-10am, brush my teeth, pop on the internet, read the San Francisco Chronicle (everything except Sports), eat my breakfast of eggs, turkey bacon, and oatmeal, ponder about a new blog, clean, then repeat.  

So I have to wonder about this lady that still, right now, at this very moment is playing "New York, New York" for the millionth time.  Am I really so different than her?  Does she have a pattern of events every single day?  Does her life revolve around playing the piano from 11:30-1:00pm every day?  Does it keep her mind active and young?  Or does this lady have OCD and she feels that she MUST repeat her pattern?  

Really, what makes ME so different?  If anything, we are alike in character our lives somewhat parallel but just on different paths.

Well.  At least in 3 weeks I'll be on a plane to Wales.  Whew. 

Remember to Breathe...

Every time I get mad or upset I have to remind myself to breathe.  Seriously.  I hold my breath in and can feel the blood rise to my face when I am getting upset.  I have to keep telling myself just to breathe.

The lady at the financial aid office cannot possibly have been more rude today.  She is aware that I am leaving the country in 4 weeks and have been trying to get a student loan for the last some odd weeks.  She is curt, short tempered, and rude.  The epitome of the type of person I cannot stand to speak with.  Instead of getting upset and well-deservedly YELLING into the phone strangling her with my voice, I had to tell myself just to breathe.

We often forget to breathe deep.  In fact most of the time we are shallow breathers.  Breathing deep releases more oxygen into the bloodstream and brain and, I believe, also increases our dopamine levels too.  Perhaps Marcel can explain this to me a little bit better.

Regardless, I  got through it.  When it comes to money (and mainly other people controlling it) I am incredibly sensitive.  I am glad those yoga classes I took finally paid off.

Breathe deep.

How did I miss out on this?

I love San Francisco.  The best part of the city is being able to wear fall clothes pretty much most of the year.  Scarves and gloves are my favorite.

But seriously, how did no one teach me how to tie one?!!

Today I saw this sharp dressed couple walking and this lady had a beautiful long scarf draped around her neck and tied very fashionably.  Normally I just throw mine around my neck and it looks decent.  But hers looked fabulous!  When I came home I googled "how to tie a scarf" (side note, GOD I love google!) and I got this fantastic guide!  

I love how they explain every different tie and show pictures - nothing more annoying than not seeing pics - and go through it step by step.  

I'll be bringing all my scarves with me to Wales.  So I think I'll get loads of practice with these different knots!

How to website:  Scarf Guide

Grapevine Comics

In my youth I was a closet dork.  Yes, I'll admit it.  I would check out graphic novels from my local library (am I the only one who misses that library smell?), scurry to my room, and thoroughly devour the novels from cover to cover.  When I moved from Fresno to Stockton (I was roughly 13-14 at the time) I discovered the world of comics.

My first experience wasn't too bad.  I grabbed the phone book and promptly looked up "Comic Books" and there were quite a few listed.  The first one I went to - Al's Comics - was located on Miracle Mile in Stockton.  It was small, more so long than wide, felt like a cave inside, and had a creepy looking guy at the front counter.  Happily, after digging through a few dusty boxes, I scored a few older Elfquest comics to add to my collection. 

But it just didn't have that "I will come here everyday" feel to it.  Obviously.

On top of that my mom wasn't too thrilled about driving to Miracle Mile all the time too, so she asked me to find something closer.  Now, this was actually a SKILL to find places close by; in the time before internet, before mapquest, before handheld GPS - I had to use a good old fashioned real city MAP.  Indeed!  So I looked up all the comic books stores within a 5 mile radius using my city map and found a place less than 3 miles away.

Grapevine Comics.  ::insert heavenly music sound here::

The first time I stepped into Grapevine Comics I felt goose bumps.  The owner, Ruth, besides being a complete sweetheart, was tickled pink that I, another female, enjoyed reading comic books.  They had Elfquest comics, X-men, a cornucopia of titles.  I remember seeing a lot of candy, arcade games, and even the room felt spacious and airy with big windows letting in a lot of sunlight.  Even better, I could ride my bike from my house to Grapevine in under 15 minutes flat.  I probably went at least 4 times a week.

Within a year (I had to be at least 15) Ruth asked if I wanted to work part-time.  I remember feeling so elated that I was asked. Not my friends, she asked ME!  That was my first real job.  I think I spent the majority of my paychecks on comics and candy, but at least it fed my comic book habit and I didn't spent all my allowance on it instead.

Eventually i had to quit my job, because I wanted to concentrate on school, but I still went into Grapevine all the time.  It wasn't until I moved after high school that I stopped going.  I never developed another partnership with a different comic book store like I did with Grapevine.  It just never felt right.

I remember hearing various things from friends who remained in Stockton and still visited Grapevine.  Ruth ended up going back into nursing and sold the shop.  The next owner turned the place into more of a cave (dark, covered the windows, got rid of most comics) which practically mirrored Al's comics.  It changed; typically as most things do over the years.

In my mind, Grapevine will always remain that bright spot in my childhood.  The only difference NOW is I am no longer a closet dork.  I am very proud to be a huge dork!  I still go to comic book stores now and then.  

Maybe one day when I retire I'll open my own shop.  That is, if people are still using books to read in the future.  Hmmm... 

Have you had your cup o' tea today?

So okay, most people know that drinking tea has numerous health benefits.  I acquired a taste for tea during my teenager years and have been obsessed with collecting, tasting, and discussing tea ever since.  But what are the magical properties of tea?  Sure, we know it is healthy but HOW much so?

According to Miracle News Today, "Green tea is the best food source of a group called catechins. In test tubes, catechins are more powerful than vitamins C and E in halting oxidative damage to cells and appear to have other disease-fighting properties. Studies have found an association between consuming green tea and a reduced risk for several cancers, including, skin, breast, lung, colon, esophageal, and bladder."

How wonderful is this?  The best part is the variety of different teas to try all over the world.  In India there is Chai, the East has green, jasmine, and different root and flower teas, in Britain there are stronger brewed english teas that can be served with milk or lemon slices.  There are so many varieties, rituals, and brewing methods depending on the time of day and culture.

So next time you are thirsty and water is not good enough, try some nice brewed tea.  My favorite way is using a tea kettle and then brewing loose leaf for 3-5 minutes.  That way all the nutrients will be soaked into the water with a delectable taste of flavor.

There can be a few disadvantages of tea.  For instance, tea laden with heavy cream and sugar probably will not provide much benefit.  Also, tea may impede the absorption of iron.  Miracle News Today remarks that, "adding lemon or milk or drinking tea between meals will counteract this problem."

Here is the news article for more information and my citings.

I wonder who visits my page...