25 random memories from my childhood

1. The song "My Sweet Lord" brings me back to being 5 years old and sitting at the Yakima Valley country club pool with my teen age aunts and eating turkey sandwichs, the smell of chlorine and baby oil.

2. Brad Green taught me to tie my shoes when we were 5 or 6.

3.The first day of school of 1st grade was my birthday and I brought cupcakes and Koolaid to share, my mom forgot to pick me up and when she remembered my friend Chrisy Salle and I were halfway home overheated from trying to carry the juice cooler in 90 degree heat.

4. I haven't had long hair since I got a Dorthy Hamil cut when I was 7.

5. As a kid I walked up the street alone to take ballet which I was ill suited for, but I liked the cute pink ballet shoes.

6. The last parade I enjoyed was the Bicentenial parade when I was 8. That year my mother bought me wide legged jeans with a red, white and blue ribbon down the sides, too cool.

7. I loved my 4th grade teacher but only wanted to read in school. I will still read anything put in front of me. I wanted to be a teacher. My favorite outfit was my gaucho pants with clogs.

8. My Aunt Mary and uncle Bill took me to see "Star Wars" which changed my life for a moment when I was almost 10. I wanted to be Princess Lea. I think I tried to grow my hair out so I could wear buns on the side of my head.

9. I began attending Catholic school in 5th grade.

10.I was Snow White in the 5th grade school play. I wanted to be an actress.

11. I was the worst speller in the class. I really never got better.

12. We wrote a report on "The American Flag" where we had to draw all the flags since 1767 and write something about them, I still have my copy somewhere thanks to my mom who saves everything.

13. By 6th grade I was over 5 ft. tall and the boys made fun of my big lips, making me self conscience. I graduated to a skirt instead of a jumper for the uniform. I wore shorts under my skirt, blue kneehighs and famolare loafers.

14. In 7th grade I realized that we kept studying the same history lesson year after year but I loved History. Our English teacher was from Denmark and wasn't even sure how many letters we had in the English alphabet, we were really confindent in her abilities. I wore pocketless flare cords in the winter with my famolares.

15. My parents put a pool in the back yard and laying in the sun by the pool reading became one of my favorite past times.

16. The summer before 8th grade my favorite movie was "Grease". We had an Australian exchage student named Sandy living with us. I wanted to be Australian.

17.Sandy convinced me to take a jazz dancing class with her and a friend. We wore leotards and I was the worst dancer, probably the youngest too, it was an adult class. I pretended that I was 18.

18. The summer I was 13 my parents sent me and our next exchage student from Brazil, Christina, to Connecticut to live with my aunt and uncle and my cousin Molly.

19. I had a crush on a boy who was 17, I think he had a crush on me but when he found out my age he wouldn't talk to me. I attended and drank at my first party thanks to Molly.

20.I attended my first Broadway shows and became addicted to lacoste shirts (collars up) and boat shoes. My favorite books were the "Preppy Handbook" and "Catcher in the Rye". This was the first time I realized I was chubby and I was probably 115 lbs.

21. When I began highschool my mother had to buy me an entire new wardrobe since I only had school uniforms to wear, the ultimate in "back to school" shopping. Esprit was my favorite brand. I wore a 7/8.

22. I was never asked to any school dance by a boy. Highschool sucked of course.

23. I was an exchange student my senior year and had to come back and do my senior year with the class lower, some freshmen girls thought I was an exchange student.

24. Senior year I only wore clothes I found in our basement my mother had worn in the 60's. I began coloring my hair red and had a bob.

25. I attended the UW and pledged AXID. One of the girl's in my pledge class thought my name was Molly because I looked like Molly Ringwald.

skin care

Over the New Years' holiday weekend I watched a lot of TV and kept seeing the informicial about Dr Murad's skin care line. It seems like such a good deal, all that product for $39 and you can just cancel and not get it every month, right. So I went to order it and the internet connection would not let me order it. I took it as a sign, I'm not suposed to be spending money.

But, then I was in Seattle and I need some eye cream, the Oil of Olay stuff just isn't cutting it. So I went to the origins counter looked and then I decided to wander around the mall. Into Bath and Body works...they have the skin care line by another dermatologist Patricia Wexler so I bought it. I'm not sure if my skin look better yet but the one product I think is helping is the one I got as a free sample and is $150 for 3.5oz. Yikes. That is a price I never said I'd pay. Figures. We will see what happens when I use up the sample and if my skin turns red or something.

I went to the Origins counter later and bought my favorite eye cream anyway.

renting

I just signed a lease on a house for $625 a month. An entire 2 bedroom house, with one crappy bathroom, a tiny kitchen, a scary storage basement and an inclosed porch. It's going to be great! I had my sister call her friend who has a friend who was looking in December for aplace to live. She was still looking. We signed the lease together. I figure since I don't yet have a job I shouldn't comit to too much.

Now I need to move. I haven't lived in such a small town in forever, I hope this works out in the long run. I don't see my self here forever. It's sort of scary. I am looking at it as a time to renew my comitment to myself and pay my credit cards down. Now I need a job that pays what I was making before I was laid off and not some $10 an hour position.

decisions

So I decided not to go to Costa Rica and do the yoga course. I was worried about my pasport coming in time, it did...today. I was worried about the expense. I was alarmed by the reaction of my parents...my mother said it was stupid...my father asked why I couldn't get a job. My grandmother and all my aunts thoguth it was a great idea.

So new years resolutions next year I will do this, if not in Costa Rica then somewhere else.

Happy New Year

I woke up this morning and it was 8 degrees out with compact snow and ice on the road.
I got up had some coffee and went to a 2 hour yoga class.
It was awesome, perfect.
My intention this year is to improve in my yoga and be ready to become a yoga instructor.
I want to do a handstand, in the middle of the room, by next year.

I then came home and watched 6 straight hours of Lost season 5 DVD's.