Cold?

I would just like to say that never once during the winter did I say anything about wanting it to be warm outside, being anxious for summer to get here, or anything else like that.

So I feel that I have no problem saying this:

1. I hate summer.
2. I can not wait until winter.
3. Fall is okay, but the allergens are pretty bad. The cool weather is nice, though.
4. Is it winter yet?
5. How much longer until winter?

Yes, He Knows He's Never Lived in New York.

I went down (this is like the first time I've ever said I went down to someplace and then found out that yes indeed, the direction I was traveling in was down!) to Mount Clemens yesterday to get the marriage license.

For anyone who doesn't know, Aharon was born in Canada. This has caused considerable amounts of, well, crap, throughout the last five years. Canada doesn't like that he calls himself an American citizen but then states his birth place as Sarnia. America doesn't like it, either. Apparently they've never met someone born in another country before because you'd think by the look they give us that we were telling them that he was born to a family of prairie dogs or something! He was born with American citizenship, but his social security number was issued through immigration. That means his first three digits correspond to a New York birth. The problem? There's no record of him ever living in New York, but since he was born with citizenship, nobody seems to understand why it all had to go through immigration, either. It makes sense to me, but apparently I'm the only one.

So back to the original point. Because we get so much drama every time we do anything that involves social security numbers or the government in general, I took every single piece of identifying information I could find with me. We're talking birth certificates, passports, consular's report of birth abroad, Canadian birth certificate, driver's licenses, social security cards, and voter's registration. (Aharon couldn't go with me because his allergies were acting up and I knocked him out with a nice dose of Benadryl. Accidentally, of course. I didn't expect him to fall asleep - just to zone out. But nope. Out cold. For like 2 hours.)

And guess what happens when I arrive?! They only piece of identifying information I need to present them with is MY driver's license. Not even anything for Aharon. He didn't even have to sign the form! Only I did. At one point, the girl asked if Memphis was in Macomb county. I told her that we both lived in the half that was in it, and that I had brought voter registration cards to prove it. But she didn't want to see them!

I was perfectly prepared for any obstacle and I encountered none. And honestly, it kind of made me upset. I was ready, and nobody cared!

Ten Random Thoughts Because I Haven't Posted Lately

1. I want my wedding to be whimsical. That is now officially my goal. I don't care if other people hate it or think I'm crazy. It will be absolutely adorable to me.
   
2. I hate the feel of paper on my fingers. It is ironic that my jobs have always involved paper.
3. It makes my day every single morning that I can wear whatever I want to work.
4. Fish with eyes that protrude from their heads are the second best pets ever.
5. Dogs are the first.
6. An air bubble in a pore strip defeats the purpose.
7. They never work anyway so I guess it doesn't matter.
8. I have to write a paper with a group over the next 6 weeks. The problem is that this group is online and I have no personal interaction with these people.
9. I think my Bonsai tree is dying and I don't know why. Plants - and trees, apparently - just like to die when they are in my care.
   
10. I have less than two months to downsize my stuff and move most of it to an apartment. I sometimes don't know how I will part with things. I also don't know how I will avoid buying new things.
    

The Politics of Emotion

I'm going to see how many posts I can get in 2009 that have a Lostprophets' song title as the entry title. So far I'm 2 for 2!

I am now back to work after my incredibly busy two week layoff. Had I not been laid off from December 20 through January 4th, I may have had to take all that time off anyway, as such is usually the case.

I am also back to school. This was really the part of January that I was dreading. I don't think I have the following traits which are necessary for online schooling:

1. An attention span
2. Discipline
3. Time management skills
4. The ability to do school when I would rather do any of the following:

• Playing video games. Specifically: Animal Crossing City Folk
• Watch TV on DVD.
• Sit on my bed - thinking about what I should be doing for school - and watch Aharon play video games.
• Clean. Yes. I like to clean. It's almost unhealthy how much I like to clean. But only if it's my mess. I don't like cleaning up after others.

I think all of those bullet points as well as item #4 lead me back to item #1.

I really want to make a bunch of lists. For what purpose, I do not know. But I want to.

A New Year Already?

Are we sure that it's really time for a new year? I mean like beyond-all-doubt sure? Because it seems like it was just a few weeks ago when we got a load of snow on New Year's Eve and I had to drive the Jeep over to Aharon's house to get him so we could play Monopoly. And then the next day at work Port Huron got even more snow and I honestly thought I would be snowed in at that horrible place-of-employment forever!

So much has happened this year. Joel graduated high school and went off to MSU with Jerry, leaving me home all alone (which has been kind of nice, actually). I finally was able to quit my job in Port Huron that had caused me ridiculous amounts of stress and start a new job right in town that has been great so far. There were tragic deaths, unexpected pregnancies, legal battles, and nights so fun that you laughed about them the next week, too. Friendships were destroyed in a matter of hours and new ones were created almost effortlessly. We all watched in uncertainty as the economy proved that it answers to no one, and as Americans divided themselves on every possible major issue and the only-slightly-larger majority went on to create a "historic" presidential election that will spend the early part of 2009 trying to convince the other half of America that it wasn't the worst possible decision that could have been made. (I will remain unconvinced, in case you were wondering.)

I'm sure that 2009 will hold many new events for us to experience. I know my life will change in many ways. It will be an awesome and wonderful year filled with once-in-a-lifetime experiences and love and happiness; it will also be a tragic year filled with uncertainty, loss, and doubt.

I have many hopes for the new year. I hope to get married, get closer to actually graduating from college, learn, grown, and serve others. I hope to be an example and a blessing. I hope to get through challenges and doubts by relying on God and not on man. And ultimately, I hope that I'll leave 2009 as a better person in every possible way.

The one concrete certainty for 2009 is that God already knows what's going to happen and how we are going to get through every challenge, obstacle, blessing, or gift.

I just hope I don't let anyone down, because a new year is a fresh start and a chance to erase some past mistakes and try again at being a better person.