This is the song I've been signing in my head!

I could wile away the hours Conferrin' with the flowers
Consultin' with the rain
And my head I'd be scratchin' While my thoughts were busy hatchin'
If I only had a brain
I'd unravel any riddle
For any individ'le
In trouble or in pain
Oh, I would tell you why
The ocean's near the shore
I could think of things I never thunk before
And then I'd sit and think some more
I would not be just a nuffin'
My head all full of stuffin'
My heart all full of pain
I would dance and be merry
Life would be a ding-a-derry
If I only had a brain!!!!

More Zoo Stuff

This is a video I took of a baby sting ray. All the sting rays flocked to us and kept circling around and coming by. I couldn't figure out why they were so friendly until I realize that you could pay money and feed them!

Back in the Day

So what do you do when you have a day off from work? Go to the Zoo of course! And if you are me and my mom you go to the Lowry Park Zoo. I still call it "Larry" park from back in the day when I was knee high to a grasshopper. I can still remember animals in cages with bars. And an orangutan that spit at people. Well the monkeys have it a little better there now. Its actually a pretty cool place! They have a lot of hands on stuff there. For instance I got to pet some sting rays and my mom and I got our picture taken with a llama named "Angie" (seriously I don't make this stuff up! ):) AND I got to relive a piece of my childhood known as the Mold -A-Rama. It's a machine that makes a plastic mold of an animal right in front of you! When I was a tike it only cost a quarter, now it's $2.00. But I didn't let that stop me from bugging my mom till she gave me the money to get one! They have machines all over the park and I chose the manatee one (that's me holding it in the pic). Speaking of manatees, I think I could spend all day watching those guys and the snook and tarpon. I don't put alot of stock in astrology but I do have to admit that I am an aquarius, the water bearing sign. I have always been mesmerized by water in most forms. Oceans, lakes rivers, snow, rain, aquariums are so peaceful to me. When I can't fall asleep I listen to the water sounds on my radio. Works every time! Although I do HATE humidity! Go figure!

Also stopped by to see the wallabies for old times sake too :) Thank goodness these guys didn't hump my leg like the ones in Reno!

Greetings From Orlando!

OK so I am back in Tampa now but I spent a delightful 2 days in Orlando. My church offered a financial workshop for single sisters and I decided to take advantage. It was on a thurs night so I took Friday off and spent a few nights in O-town. I stayed at the quality inn and I would definitely recommend it. Pretty cheap and you get free internet access and free breakfast. I couldn't get anyone to come with me so I went by myself. And that was even more delightful! :) I really am a hermit at heart! It was just nice to be away from everyone and everything and all obligations for a few days! But its good to be home too! So the workshop was all about saving and investing for your future and retirement and I learned alot of useful information. And then the next day I hit the Coach outlet where they were having THE MOST SPECTACULAR SALE EVER! Seriously I had to wait in line to get into the store! I bought a new black leather hobo and a new messenger bag which fits my laptop and will now be my new teacher bag. And no the irony of going to Orlando for a workshop on saving and then spending money on Coach bags is not lost on me! What can I say? I love a good bag! AND a good sale! :)

On a sadder note last week a bunch of us older singles were informed that if you were over 30 you had to start going to the family wards. Our Branch presidency tried to fight it so we could stay but rules are rules. So I had to say goodbye to the singles branch and my super fabulous calling in Relief Society. I was a little bummed but I believe that everything happens for a reason. Went to the family ward today and it was alright. Its kind of a newly wed/nearly dead ward. Mostly the latter, but everyone was nice and welcoming. I'll either adjust or move. Stay tuned for further developments! :)

Crazy World!

So my dad's van broke down Saturday. Its not like he can just take the bus so its kind of a big deal. So they tow it to the shop today and it turns out that the van just ran out of gas! Which means that somebody probably stole gas out of his van! He doesn't have a gas cap with a locking mechanism, plus he works in the hood PLUS they went to the mall in the hood last week. Crazy huh?

On a positive note my talk in church went pretty well AND my sister came! She just came to show her support but it was nice to have her there! We've come a long way baby! :) I asked her what she thought and she said it was alright ACCEPT there were a ton of couples cuddling all around her and that weirded her out!!! How funny is that?!? :)

You talk too much!

Soooo I got a phone call on Wednesday during my pseudo lunch break. It was one of the counselors in the bishopric. They want me to speak in church AGAIN this Sunday! This will be the 3rd time since Christmas that I have spoken in a sacrament meeting. To be perfectly honest I don't mind speaking in public at all, I just wish I had more time to prepare the talk. I will probably recycle an old talk or maybe not. We'll see. You know I hadn't given a talk since 2005 so maybe Heavenly Father wants me to make up for lost time! Say a prayer for me! :)

The Family Tree

So here we are. This is me and my sister. I didn't realize that we still look a little bit alike these days. This picture was taken this weekend at a wedding (my sis is in a bridesmaid dress). We are almost complete polar opposites of each other. She is energetic and driven and fun and extroverted, definitely one of those people who is the life of a party. She is also selfish and irresponsible and slightly narcissistic. Me, I am laid back (some might say lazy), go with the flow and most times would rather read a book than even go to the party! :) I think there are pros and cons to both of our personalities. My sister works very hard to look good and I think she is so beautiful! I LOVE my sisters goofy side. And I love that she can be so fun and outgoing. I'm not saying that I am not fun, but it definitely takes me awhile to warm up to people and you will never catch me doing this in public:

But I am the responsible one, the one people come to when they have a problem or need advice about electronics or just need a sounding board that includes constructive feedback. I don't know.....its been a weird weekend for me I guess. The wedding was fun, I did alot of dancing. It's nice to see some old school friends too. We get together and it's like I am 16 again, accept I'm not 16 anymore and I am kind of happy that I've changed so much since those days. And EVERYBODY knows I don't drink so they were nice and just got me regular cokes. And let's face it there are not too many people who will dance unabashedly and sing along with "Ice Ice Baby" I still know all the words too! :)

I don't make this stuff up!

So we have flamingos in our back yard!  Seriously!  Apparently they escaped from Busch Gardens or the zoo.  They visit our little lake every now and then.   And today I heard the distinct call of a peacock!  I know the sound from my service at the Sierra Safari Zoo during my mission.  (Danica did you know that Hobbs the Liger and Hyme the hyena died?!?) If the alligator comes back I am going to start charging admission!  But really that's not the point of this post! :)

So we got a phone call from the hospital my grandmother is staying at.  I've mentioned before that she likes to use her call button like a butler bell.  Well I guess the nurse was not coming fast enough so she decided to call 911.  That's right my grandmother called 911 from INSIDE the hospital!  And yes that is dang funny!  But all I can think of is that this is my gene pool.  Her crazy selfish genes are a part of me too.  And every once in awhile those genes pop up and I get more than just a little bit crazy.  I worry that some day the crazy genes will take over and I won't even realize it!  (sigh)  Needless to say they took away her phone at the hospital and discharged her the next day.  But until the discharge they came pretty fast every time she pressed the button.  She is so proud of herself too!  Maybe being crazy isn't that bad after all..... she and my sister usually get what they want.  Something to think about anyways.....

Karma

So you all know that I have a crazy italian grandma right? And its not the "ohhh isn't that funny" crazy. Its the "what?!? she really did/said that?!?" kind of crazy. I look at her and I totaly understand the mafia. Anyways its finally come back to bite her in the bum.

So there is some head nurse at the assisted living facility she lives in that she doesn't like. The nurse tried to threaten her with going to a nursing home if she didn't quit using the emergency button in her apt like a butler's bell. Well you don't threaten and old italian crazy grandma! Although I do have to admit that once my grandma had a vendetta she attacked life with a renewed vigor! Well grandma reported the nurse to someone higher up. This is in addition to call her names that I would send my students to the office for and hurling curses that you all couldn't dream up because you are too nice! Bottom line: They hate each other. Please keep in mind the my grandma is almost 90 (she's been telling people she is 97 to get attention! Such a switch from the days when she used to lie and say she was younger!!!) and she might be a pain in the bum but that nurse should still be professional!
Anyways the nurse has just been kind of sabotaging grandma's care trying to actually get her sent to a nursing home. And when she fell down in the middle of the night that nurse had her sent to the hospital with the hopes that she could prevent my grandmother from coming back.
My mom is handling the situation. Which is really lucky for the nurse. My mom is so Christlike and kind. I on the other hand have more than a little of that crazy Italian blood running through my veins. Man I was ready to call a meeting with that nurse and let her have it! I was going to threaten lawsuits, put them on the news all of which I can actually do thanks to my dad's resources. I told my mom that I would handle it and take a meeting with her myself. But my mom just called and put things in a Christlike way and just kind of hinting around about the things we could sue their hiney's off for! I get so mad everytime I think about it! Nobody knows how rude and unkind my grandmother can be better than I do. She and I have been butting heads since I was 6 or 7 years old (seriously we used to fight everytime she babysat us) but she is an old woman and we pay good money to that place! What kind of a crack head picks on a 90 year old woman? Seriously go work some place else! (sigh) I was hoping if I wrote this down it would make me feel better. I guess I am still fired up.

I April Fooled My Class!

Ummm for those of you who have known me for a long time you know that I have a teeny tiny practical joker side to me. (as evidenced by all the cars I have tee-pee'd many on my mission) So when I was reminded driving to work that it was April Fool's Day my mind went into action! So I post their daily schedule as a powerpoint slide that they copy into their planners. Well the April 1st schedule was so mean! It said they were going to write a 2 page essay, take a test, do 5 pages of math review and turn in a bunch of work that was supposed to be due on Friday. THEY TOTALLY FELL FOR IT!!! They looked so pitiful coping down their schedules! One was near tears! After the announcements I told them I had one more power point slide for them to look at and the second slide said "April Fools!" but they still didn't get it so I had to explain to them that their schedule was fake! HA HA HA HA HA! I am so glad I have a job where I don't always have to act like a grown up! :)