The Best Laid Plans

It's officially the new year and we're almost a month into it. What am I going to do with my year, this fresh new thing that's just beginning.

Honestly, I probably won't do a whole lot. I've never been one of those people who has a "to do" list for certain ages. I've never assigned ages to any of my goals. Which may be why I still haven't manged to meet them. Something to think about I suppose.

I've got a few irons in the fire and a few things I'd like to get done, improvements I'd like to make. I'll be 25 in just 2 months, that's a big number, an important number.

So here are a few of the things that, if I don't do this year I may never to do.

I want to travel overseas. My sister is in Europe right now living the high life with a bunch of French guys. I'm super fucking jealous/proud. She's taking chances and really experiencing life. I want to visit her and take a trip to Ireland.

I want to get re-involved with my community. My move here (almost) three years ago has killed my drive, my desire to help. I'd like to get it back and now is as good a time as any.

Cut my hair at some point this year. Seriously, I haven't been to a hairdresser since, like August. My hair is getting out of control.

Happy New Year (2 Weeks Late)

So we leave Nashville and begin another 7 hour trip to our final destination, a cabin on the Smokey Mountains. CG continues to drive, I feel a little bad, but not bad enough to volunteer for the position. Meg plays more college rock, Myme and I play more Pokemon (I forgot how addictive that game is and I'm only a little ashamed of how much I enjoy it).

We get there and it's really just beautiful, the cabin is big and everything that could be made of wood was. There's a hot tub and a Foosball table, a lake and a gorgeous view. Honestly, I spend half of trip sick in bed, getting up occasionally to play pinochle or rummy or cuddle next to CG feeling sorry for myself. The other half was spent reading, playing more pinochle and rummy, and then going to a cave our last day there.

I know, I know, I was in the mountains I should have hiked, explored, seen the sites. You're right of course, but two things prevented that - 1. There were snow storms in the surrounding areas that closed pretty much everything and 2. I'm lazy and like to lay around doing nothing on my vacation. Don't judge me.

On the 30th some of Mom's friends from Alabama came over with REALLY good Mexican beer and nachos. I like Mom's friends a lot.

New Years Eve a few of us went out to dig up fireworks since FES is from Germany and they always do fireworks for the new year. They managed to find some and came home. That night Dad and Meg set them off, but they were nothing in comparison to our next door neighbors. These guys were drunk and had explosives the size that a small town would buy for the 4th of July. They were nicely drunk and still managed to get a few aimed right and when that happened the display was beautiful. However, I'd say at least 40% ended up hitting their deck, our deck, our house, other houses, or a person. The next day we found our vacation agreement with the people we rented the house from, it explicitly said no fireworks - woops.

So that last full day at the cabin CG, Dad, Grandpa, Meg, and I squeeze into a car, and head down the mountain to a cavern, one of the few things that remained open and snow free. I adore caves, seriously, I'll drive hours to walk around in one. First glance this thing looked shady and we weren't sure it would be worth it. We went anyway, and it was totally worth it.

The caverns were beautiful and our tour guide was epic. He was the most useless human being I've ever met in my life, he ruined the endings to 3 movies, talked about his girlfriend's 25 pound 16 month baby, showed us parts of the cave that looked like sexual organs (Grandpa was RIGHT THERE), and was just generally the negative southern stereo type that I know to be false for the bulk of the population. He provided wonderful conversation for the ride home until Dad was pulled over and given a speeding ticket by a county mounty. Then we talked about that.

Our trip home was much the same, CG driving, Meg and her music, Myme and I reading Dean Koontz and Laurel Hamilton respectively (don't judge us, it's vacation we can read trash if we want).

After Christmas Special

So the day after Christmas we left for our big trip to Tennesse and the beautiful Smokey Mountains. We took two cars down, with 8 people, we kind of had to. My parents, grandpa, FES, CG, and my sisters and I fill up a car pretty fast, and that's without suitcases.

CG managed to get stuck with driving my car. Since the man is 6'6 on a short day and shaped like a capital T, it was really an act of mercy, he would have been very unhappy in the back with his chin on his knees and his shoulders shoved into the person next to him. Meg got the passenger seat as she's a very vomit-y type of girl. Me and Myme took the back. That left Dad to drive the other car, with FES riding shotgun since she gets sick on car trips as well, and Mom and Granddad in the back.

We definitely had the cool car, our 7 hour trip consisted mostly of Meg playing angry college music and Myme and I playing Pokemon on my Gameboy Color (with Pikachu emblazoned on the front screen) and SP respectively - shout out to the old school homies.

We headed to Nashville first to stay at the Opry Hotel, which is super-duper fabulous. It's an indoor botanical garden of awesome. We had good pizza, got a little grumpy, and went back to our rooms where I watched a show about some very cute beavers (get your mind out of the gutter, these were for-real beavers) and wanted to watch a show about an exploding wale in Japan but couldn't because my sisters wanted to sleep (jerks).

Mea Culpa

So, I went back to the family farm for Christmas like I do every year. It was super fantastic, no fights, very little yelling, and lots of great watery smiles. We went to my Dad's family Christmas on Christmas Eve where we got to see my aunt's new boobs for the first time. They were very nice looking, although I couldn't look at them straight on, staring at a family member's boobs is like looking at an eclipse, they should never be viewed full on.

A fabby time was had by all, although I have to admit I was a little sad that we didn't make it to the Christmas light display in the city this year. We did, however, find a ridiculously decorated house a few blocks from church after Christmas Eve services.

To derail wildly from the original topic: I'm not a huge fan of my parents church, just a lot of personal issues: the new pastor is kind of an ass. He decided that the church needed one of those swinging incense thingies that Catholics have (my family is Missouri-Synod Lutheran). The first time he used it he accidentally smoked the entire congregation - none of them were very forgiving and when he overloaded it a bit the next service you could feel the eye rolling going on. A guy I've spoken to maybe twice since he started coming tapped me on the shoulder and told me loudly during the sermon how ridiculous it was. Lutherans DO NOT talk or make noise during service (which is why I was always a terrible member).

This is probably not amusing to anyone else, but I giggle a bit every time I think of that 20 something pompous wind-bag choking on his own incense. I'm obviously a terrible person.

Okay, back on track: Christmas day was great, lots of good fun that is funny and all that. I got Dad an MP3 player already loaded with songs, however, once it was plugged into my sisters laptop to play on speakers it automatically downloaded her songs and deleted mine. So now Dad has the Spice Girls and other pop music phenoms from the 90's. He's a little less than thrilled about that.

Our big gift was the trip to the mountains that we left for the following day.

WTH!?!

I got an award! *shocked face*

Here are the rules that came with the award:

1) Thank the person who nominated me for this award.
2) Copy the award & place it on my blog.
3) Link to the person who nominated me for this award.
4) Tell us 7 interesting things about yourself.
5) Nominate 7 bloggers.
6) Post links to the 7 blogs I nominate.

My Blog was nominated by a wonderfully talented woman who I have a total girl-crush on: Shannon of SVH and Gilmore Girls blog fame. If you don't already have her favorited please immediately do so.

Interesting things about me:

1. My mother and grandmother used to make all of my clothes, doll clothes, and barbie clothes. We were all extremely well dressed and 80's-erific
2. I am the oldest of three girls, the youngest just started college. I love them both more than life.
3. I'm AWESOME at hula-hooping with my neck.
4. I hate anything that has to do with wrists, being dirty, or feet. I get physically ill when thinking about any of those things.
5. I love video games and think of myself as a gamer, but I know I'm not really dedicated enough to hold that title.
6. I play Brain Age on my DS every night before bed and I still have the brain age of a 60 year old.
7. I run hot and cold in almost all aspects of my life. The things I love can quickly turn into things I barely tolerate.

The Seven Bloggers I nominate are:

1.Call Me Freckles - She has great taste, a wonderful way with words and her recaps of the Vampire Diaries, which though I've never watched (I don't have television) sounds awesomely trashy.

2.Not That Kind of Girl - I'm completely addicted to her writing style and her blog concept. I haven't worked up the nerve to comment on her blog yet because I'm totally in awe of her, this is as good an excuse as any.

3.The Art of Being Blunt - She's a very good friend of mine and too funny, talented, and beautiful for words, please check her out, she's just getting started.

4.Get a Pencil and Your Case Book - I've been a fan of Sadako since I started reading blogs. She's got a gift for snark, a gift that she uses wisely.

5.30 is the new 13 - I know she's already gotten this award, but I want to link her blog anyway. She blogs about stories that she and others have written from their childhood. As a former childhood writer myself I can appreciate how ridiculous and funny the whole thing is.

6.KateC Says - Another good friend of mine. She writes a wonderful advice blog and is open, honest, and full of wisdom. She's also got a way with words and an astonishing ability to hear the most outlandish, embarrassing story and make you feel totally normal and accepted.

7. . . . in the Attic - I'm also nominating her in hopes of a future post soon. I wasn't allowed to read V.C. Andrews as a kid (I know, how prudish of my mother!) her recaps have helped me to realize why.

I think that's it, I guess.

Oh also, I'm back from my trip, and hope to have some decent posts up soon.