It's just 2 days until my 23rd birthday, also the day my dad leaves for California for training on one of the new machines he'll be working on in the new hospital. I don't really like birthdays, which might be part of the reason I can never remember how old I am. I have to think "what year is it? is this before or after May?" and it ends up taking about a minute to figure out my age. I don't really see why birthdays are a big deal--so the earth has made another sojourn around the sun. Big fat hairy deal, as Garfield used to say on his TV show.
Anyway, I got a haircut yesterday.....or was it the day before? It doesn't matter. I can never remember in between haircuts why I don't like them, but as soon as I get one, I remember. The sound of the scissors that close to my ears sends a shiver down my spine--not to mention the electric clippers used to clean up at the end.
It hasn't even been a month since finals, and already I miss hanging out with my friends. The next six months seem way too long.
29 May 2009
26 May 2009
Another weekend, another weekend update
Well, another weekend has passed with much to say. Why does everything happen on the weekends?
Anyway, the power went out in my room Sunday night at around 11. I went downstairs and tried to figure out which circuit breaker it was, but the power wouldn't come back. I thought it was another faulty breaker. Yesterday, I told my dad, and he went out and replaced the two breakers we thought it might be. When flipping all of the breakers, nothing got the power back on, and I realized that everything that was off was all plugged in to the same extension cord. It had just come unplugged. I felt stupid for a while after that.
Sunday morning, my dad took me to Valley Church in West Des Moines--he's very supportive of my faith. I saw someone who looked just like Pastor Troy--at least, from a distance--and wondered if that was really him--and why he would be going to Valley Church--but I never caught up with him after the service.
During the worship, my dad surprised me by singing along. I was sure he wasn't a believer, but he sang along. I nearly cried with joy because of it. That may or may not mean anything, but some of the other people around weren't singing, but the worship at Valley Church is very muted compared with Cornerstone. And later, my dad further surprised me by referencing the talk! I didn't even catch it at first, but he pointed it out to me. I feel a little bad that I haven't talked to him about it yet, but when I do, I'm sure he'll keep surprising me.
Anyway, the power went out in my room Sunday night at around 11. I went downstairs and tried to figure out which circuit breaker it was, but the power wouldn't come back. I thought it was another faulty breaker. Yesterday, I told my dad, and he went out and replaced the two breakers we thought it might be. When flipping all of the breakers, nothing got the power back on, and I realized that everything that was off was all plugged in to the same extension cord. It had just come unplugged. I felt stupid for a while after that.
Sunday morning, my dad took me to Valley Church in West Des Moines--he's very supportive of my faith. I saw someone who looked just like Pastor Troy--at least, from a distance--and wondered if that was really him--and why he would be going to Valley Church--but I never caught up with him after the service.
During the worship, my dad surprised me by singing along. I was sure he wasn't a believer, but he sang along. I nearly cried with joy because of it. That may or may not mean anything, but some of the other people around weren't singing, but the worship at Valley Church is very muted compared with Cornerstone. And later, my dad further surprised me by referencing the talk! I didn't even catch it at first, but he pointed it out to me. I feel a little bad that I haven't talked to him about it yet, but when I do, I'm sure he'll keep surprising me.
21 May 2009
God is tricksy sometimes
And I kno-o-ow You gave
The world Your only Son for us.
To kno-o-ow Your name
To live within the Savior's love.
He took my place,
Knowing He'd be crucified
And You loved, You loved
A people undeserving
This little tune was running through my head as I woke up this morning. I don't know the name of it, and these are the only lyrics that I could remember. I don't usually have worship songs running through my head--they have a hard time fighting past the Beatles, James & James, Queen, Weird Al, Aerosmith, and Simon & Garfunkel--so when they do, it usually means something. Today was no exception. I kept singing worship songs--at least, small bits of them--as I got ready for my shower.
While I was showering, I was trying to remember my favorite. The only problem was, I couldn't remember which one was my favorite, but I'd know it when I heard it. Then I thought "Take the Day" and started to sing.
God take the day,
Remove our hearts so we can recover,
Take us away,
Where we won't bow our hearts to another....
And there I broke off singing and froze. For a little while, I've wanted to ask someone out, but she intended to stay single until at least the fall semester, so I was waiting. Toward the end of the semester, all I could think about was being back around her and asking her out.
When my first panic about not coming back in the fall hit, my friend reminded me that God had some plan about it. Now I know what it was--at least, partially. I was already bowing my heart to that woman, and so He took me away. I'm sure that wasn't all He wants to show me through this long break from school, but this was pretty big.
I still can't remember what my favorite song by Anthem is, but I know it's not "Take the Day". That was just the song I needed to think about this morning.
The world Your only Son for us.
To kno-o-ow Your name
To live within the Savior's love.
He took my place,
Knowing He'd be crucified
And You loved, You loved
A people undeserving
This little tune was running through my head as I woke up this morning. I don't know the name of it, and these are the only lyrics that I could remember. I don't usually have worship songs running through my head--they have a hard time fighting past the Beatles, James & James, Queen, Weird Al, Aerosmith, and Simon & Garfunkel--so when they do, it usually means something. Today was no exception. I kept singing worship songs--at least, small bits of them--as I got ready for my shower.
While I was showering, I was trying to remember my favorite. The only problem was, I couldn't remember which one was my favorite, but I'd know it when I heard it. Then I thought "Take the Day" and started to sing.
God take the day,
Remove our hearts so we can recover,
Take us away,
Where we won't bow our hearts to another....
And there I broke off singing and froze. For a little while, I've wanted to ask someone out, but she intended to stay single until at least the fall semester, so I was waiting. Toward the end of the semester, all I could think about was being back around her and asking her out.
When my first panic about not coming back in the fall hit, my friend reminded me that God had some plan about it. Now I know what it was--at least, partially. I was already bowing my heart to that woman, and so He took me away. I'm sure that wasn't all He wants to show me through this long break from school, but this was pretty big.
I still can't remember what my favorite song by Anthem is, but I know it's not "Take the Day". That was just the song I needed to think about this morning.
19 May 2009
Weekend Update
So, I didn't post this weekend. That's to be expected, since I don't like to get online over the weekend, it seems extra slow. Here are the things that would have been in the blog if I had written.
PBS sometimes makes me angry. There. I said it. Like Saturday, I saw an ad--which they claim that they don't have every March, filthy liars--for a new special. It was investigating the claim that a group of Chinese explorers "discovered" America in 1421. One of the things the announcer said was "will we have to rewrite the history books?" The first thing I thought was "Why?! They're still four centuries too late!" For those that don't know what I'm talking about, the Vikings landed in Canada--Newfoundland, to be exact--in the 11th century, over 400 years before that lost Italian sailing under Spanish colors. If we haven't "rewritten the history books" for them, why worry about a group that got there only 71 years before him? And then there's the group that had been there for over 10,000 years. The nomads that crossed the land bridge between Russia and Alaska. Anyway, I ranted about that for a couple hours--over a 30-second commercial. Sad, really.
I realized Saturday (before that big rant) that the scars from the piercing on the left spell out NOT--the nipple is the O, of course. I remember thinking that the scar on one side was kind of a zigzag, and I thought it was a backwards N, and the other side was a little harder to make out. So, since I was thinking about the odd scars, I decided to take a look. I realized that the N wasn't backwards, and the scar on the other side looked like a T that was falling over--away from the O. The N was also leaning slightly in the same direction, so not only do the scars spell NOT, but it's in italics!
The third major thing is that I've started reading again. The problem is, I'm reading a little too fast--I've got a long time before school again, and not enough books to fill it. I've read two books in the past two days, with the shortest being the 536-page thriller, The Green Mile, by Stephen King. I read that yesterday. On Sunday, I read the longer of the two books--by about 90 pages--State of Fear, by Michael Crichton. State of Fear is based around global warming, and there's a good story to go with it. I think it should be read by anyone that wants to know more about global warming. I know some of you are thinking "It's a fiction book. What can I learn from fiction?" Well, when the fiction novel has over one page of bibliography for every 20 pages of story, it shows the author did his research. I've changed how I think about it because of this book. One of my favorite parts of the book is at the end, where he actually gives his views on global warming--and science in general--including the phrase "I am certain there is too much certainty in the world." I'm going to miss being able to read new books by Crichton. I guess I may have to read them all over again. The Green Mile was a good book too--not King's usual style of horror, but still a good book. I had trouble putting either of these books down for long--even staying up an extra two and a half hours to finish State of Fear.
Anyway, busy day ahead of me. I better start getting to it.
PBS sometimes makes me angry. There. I said it. Like Saturday, I saw an ad--which they claim that they don't have every March, filthy liars--for a new special. It was investigating the claim that a group of Chinese explorers "discovered" America in 1421. One of the things the announcer said was "will we have to rewrite the history books?" The first thing I thought was "Why?! They're still four centuries too late!" For those that don't know what I'm talking about, the Vikings landed in Canada--Newfoundland, to be exact--in the 11th century, over 400 years before that lost Italian sailing under Spanish colors. If we haven't "rewritten the history books" for them, why worry about a group that got there only 71 years before him? And then there's the group that had been there for over 10,000 years. The nomads that crossed the land bridge between Russia and Alaska. Anyway, I ranted about that for a couple hours--over a 30-second commercial. Sad, really.
I realized Saturday (before that big rant) that the scars from the piercing on the left spell out NOT--the nipple is the O, of course. I remember thinking that the scar on one side was kind of a zigzag, and I thought it was a backwards N, and the other side was a little harder to make out. So, since I was thinking about the odd scars, I decided to take a look. I realized that the N wasn't backwards, and the scar on the other side looked like a T that was falling over--away from the O. The N was also leaning slightly in the same direction, so not only do the scars spell NOT, but it's in italics!
The third major thing is that I've started reading again. The problem is, I'm reading a little too fast--I've got a long time before school again, and not enough books to fill it. I've read two books in the past two days, with the shortest being the 536-page thriller, The Green Mile, by Stephen King. I read that yesterday. On Sunday, I read the longer of the two books--by about 90 pages--State of Fear, by Michael Crichton. State of Fear is based around global warming, and there's a good story to go with it. I think it should be read by anyone that wants to know more about global warming. I know some of you are thinking "It's a fiction book. What can I learn from fiction?" Well, when the fiction novel has over one page of bibliography for every 20 pages of story, it shows the author did his research. I've changed how I think about it because of this book. One of my favorite parts of the book is at the end, where he actually gives his views on global warming--and science in general--including the phrase "I am certain there is too much certainty in the world." I'm going to miss being able to read new books by Crichton. I guess I may have to read them all over again. The Green Mile was a good book too--not King's usual style of horror, but still a good book. I had trouble putting either of these books down for long--even staying up an extra two and a half hours to finish State of Fear.
Anyway, busy day ahead of me. I better start getting to it.
15 May 2009
I feel tired
It's one full day after I learned that I won't be back for fall, and I've got more questions than answers--when/how to tell my parents; should I come back in the spring, or take a full year off; when I do come back, should I try to return to the dorms, or look for an apartment. Right now, I have no answer to the first one, but I'm leaning toward looking for an apartment, and that will decide if I can return in the spring. All these questions have combined to keep me from sleeping as well as I'd like.
I'm also thinking that once fall rolls around, I should have a vehicle, so I may pop up for the occasional visit.
The power's back on. My dad installed the new circuit breaker yesterday afternoon. Good thing it was just a bad breaker, because if there was a short somewhere, we'd still be going to the bathroom in the dark.
I'm also thinking that once fall rolls around, I should have a vehicle, so I may pop up for the occasional visit.
The power's back on. My dad installed the new circuit breaker yesterday afternoon. Good thing it was just a bad breaker, because if there was a short somewhere, we'd still be going to the bathroom in the dark.
14 May 2009
B-
So close, yet so far. Looks like I won't be back for the fall. I didn't sleep very well last night--kept waking up every hour or so. I feel thin. Sort of stretched, like butter scraped over too much bread. Part of me feels like screaming and throwing things, but part of me just wants to go back to bed and stay there for about a week--and the rational part of me is wondering how (and when) to explain this to the parental units. Of course, there is no one to blame except the person writing this, so that makes me feel even worse.
It has taken me half an hour just to write what little is here. I feel so unmotivated to move or think. I think I'll go for a walk to try and clear my head.
It has taken me half an hour just to write what little is here. I feel so unmotivated to move or think. I think I'll go for a walk to try and clear my head.
13 May 2009
The Panic Rat is Loose
Most of the people reading this will know that I sometimes say or do things that don't make sense to anyone around. These things always make perfect sense to me at the time, just not to anyone that isn't privy to my thought process. Here's the thought process that led to the second post--the one about my piercing experience.
Sometimes, I still face one of my oldest and most dangerous foes. He lives in my mind, often keeping me from being happy with all that God has given me. Psychologists would call it depression. I sometimes call it "the panic rat", a phrase lovingly borrowed from Cell by Stephen King. On Friday night, the panic rat was let loose--I'll tell why later in this post.
When the panic rat is loose, I don't trust myself alone, so I contacted a friend and had him come over to keep me company. He was sitting on my desk, talking while I worked on getting things packed--I asked him not to help because he might ruin my insane system. I don't remember what I put into my filing cabinet, but he said "You've come a long way in a year. Remember what used to be in there?" (Referring to my dirty magazine collection) I said, "Yeah. Now this is all that's in there" and tossed him a small mailing envelope. He asked what was in it, and I replied "Replacement rings for the piercings I used to have."
We talked about that for a little while, and he asked if he could tell people, because it was funny to him that I had nipple rings. Then he suggested I post about it in the blog. I started to say no, but I was writing the introduction in my head.
Anyway, now back to what let out the panic rat. Friday, after leaving Blinks, I was on WebCT checking grades, and realized that my poor study/homework habits may have finally caught up with me. I've been on academic probation this semester, so I need a 2.00 GPA to return in the fall. I know my grades in all of my classes except for Thermodynamics. I need at least a B+ in that to come back for fall semester. However, it looks like my grades on assignments and tests come to about a C-. I didn't want to have to explain this to my parents, and I didn't want to be away from my friends for that extended period of time, so the panic rat escaped and started his dirty work.
I find out tomorrow if I can return for the fall. That's when grades are posted. Just 24 hours until I learn whether I get to see my friends in August or January. I doubt I'll sleep very well tonight. The panic rat is working hard to make sure of that. I'm already feeling that I should just go back to bed and stay there for a while. What I'm thinking for my next post is titling it with the grade I got in Thermo, and what it means. We'll see if that ends up being the way it is.
Sometimes, I still face one of my oldest and most dangerous foes. He lives in my mind, often keeping me from being happy with all that God has given me. Psychologists would call it depression. I sometimes call it "the panic rat", a phrase lovingly borrowed from Cell by Stephen King. On Friday night, the panic rat was let loose--I'll tell why later in this post.
When the panic rat is loose, I don't trust myself alone, so I contacted a friend and had him come over to keep me company. He was sitting on my desk, talking while I worked on getting things packed--I asked him not to help because he might ruin my insane system. I don't remember what I put into my filing cabinet, but he said "You've come a long way in a year. Remember what used to be in there?" (Referring to my dirty magazine collection) I said, "Yeah. Now this is all that's in there" and tossed him a small mailing envelope. He asked what was in it, and I replied "Replacement rings for the piercings I used to have."
We talked about that for a little while, and he asked if he could tell people, because it was funny to him that I had nipple rings. Then he suggested I post about it in the blog. I started to say no, but I was writing the introduction in my head.
Anyway, now back to what let out the panic rat. Friday, after leaving Blinks, I was on WebCT checking grades, and realized that my poor study/homework habits may have finally caught up with me. I've been on academic probation this semester, so I need a 2.00 GPA to return in the fall. I know my grades in all of my classes except for Thermodynamics. I need at least a B+ in that to come back for fall semester. However, it looks like my grades on assignments and tests come to about a C-. I didn't want to have to explain this to my parents, and I didn't want to be away from my friends for that extended period of time, so the panic rat escaped and started his dirty work.
I find out tomorrow if I can return for the fall. That's when grades are posted. Just 24 hours until I learn whether I get to see my friends in August or January. I doubt I'll sleep very well tonight. The panic rat is working hard to make sure of that. I'm already feeling that I should just go back to bed and stay there for a while. What I'm thinking for my next post is titling it with the grade I got in Thermo, and what it means. We'll see if that ends up being the way it is.
12 May 2009
Someone's making me out to be a liar......
......and I think it's me. When I started this, I said I wouldn't be posting very often. Now I've been home for a grand total of two and a half days, and this is my second post from home. Oh well.
Anyway, on to this morning's post. Yesterday, my dad and I went to see Star Trek. Being the nerds we are, we've each seen almost every episode (if not every episode) of all the different series--even the mostly forgotten cartoon series. He's seen all the previous movies, but I haven't even seen one all the way through--a reason for shame on my dad's side of the family. It was a good movie. There were some things that seemed to be put in just to make fans of the old series laugh--like Bones saying he thinks he'll like Spock toward the beginning of the movie.
My dad seemed slightly confused when I looked away during the scene where Kirk was in Uhura's dorm room--with her roommate. This was the only scene where women showed that much skin, which actually makes it slightly cleaner than the original series, where most episodes featured a female character that wore nearly nothing.
There were only about 10-12 people in the theater, but for a 1:20pm showing when there's a 1:50pm showing in the next theater over, that's pretty good. The ones that sat near the center seemed to be about the same nerd level as my dad and me--the kind of people that would notice inconsistencies from the series, but wouldn't start screaming about them and calling for blood. There were inconsistencies, but the writers found a loophole--and that's actually more than I should say about that. I hope there's a sequel.
An update on the lighting situation here. We now have night-lights in the kitchen and bathroom, so you can actually see what's happening. Unfortunately, I still managed to find a thumb tack the hard way. When I tried to pull it out myself, I stopped as soon as I found resistance, so I limped to my mom and had her pull it out. My dad thinks he should be able to replace the breaker by himself, but it may be that there's a short somewhere in the house. We'll see how things go with that. If he does try to replace it himself, I'm likely to be standing about 10 feet away, ready to call 911 just in case and praying that I don't have to--just like the flea bombs when I was 8 or 9.
My stomach is starting to get upset with me now. I should go feed it.
Anyway, on to this morning's post. Yesterday, my dad and I went to see Star Trek. Being the nerds we are, we've each seen almost every episode (if not every episode) of all the different series--even the mostly forgotten cartoon series. He's seen all the previous movies, but I haven't even seen one all the way through--a reason for shame on my dad's side of the family. It was a good movie. There were some things that seemed to be put in just to make fans of the old series laugh--like Bones saying he thinks he'll like Spock toward the beginning of the movie.
My dad seemed slightly confused when I looked away during the scene where Kirk was in Uhura's dorm room--with her roommate. This was the only scene where women showed that much skin, which actually makes it slightly cleaner than the original series, where most episodes featured a female character that wore nearly nothing.
There were only about 10-12 people in the theater, but for a 1:20pm showing when there's a 1:50pm showing in the next theater over, that's pretty good. The ones that sat near the center seemed to be about the same nerd level as my dad and me--the kind of people that would notice inconsistencies from the series, but wouldn't start screaming about them and calling for blood. There were inconsistencies, but the writers found a loophole--and that's actually more than I should say about that. I hope there's a sequel.
An update on the lighting situation here. We now have night-lights in the kitchen and bathroom, so you can actually see what's happening. Unfortunately, I still managed to find a thumb tack the hard way. When I tried to pull it out myself, I stopped as soon as I found resistance, so I limped to my mom and had her pull it out. My dad thinks he should be able to replace the breaker by himself, but it may be that there's a short somewhere in the house. We'll see how things go with that. If he does try to replace it himself, I'm likely to be standing about 10 feet away, ready to call 911 just in case and praying that I don't have to--just like the flea bombs when I was 8 or 9.
My stomach is starting to get upset with me now. I should go feed it.
11 May 2009
First Day (and a half) Home
I've been home for about a day and a half now, and it's already been interesting. One of the first things I noticed was a new toilet. It's so white and clean.....I almost feel bad using it. My dad has a new Eee PC, so he can "take notes" during the various continuing education conferences he goes to. He's heading to California for the first third of June.
About 9pm last night, the lights in the living room started to flicker, then they went out. We were running around, trying to get the circuit breaker back on, but it wouldn't stay on. Apparently, we've got a bad breaker. The bad thing is that this one is where almost every light in the house is connected to. All the overhead lights, the lamps in the living room, and the lamps in the kitchen are on this circuit. It gets dark at night without those. The bathroom is completely on that circuit, so now the only power it has now is from an extension cord running from the kitchen (the only outlet in either of those rooms that still works--the one with the fridge and microwave). The living room has a single lamp, with extension cords running back into the dining room, plugged in to the same outlet as this computer. The only lamps that didn't need extension cords from other rooms to run are the ones in either of the bedrooms or the dining room. My bedroom is almost completely unaffected. Just the overhead light is out.
We went to Grundy Center for Mother's Day, since my grandma's 80th birthday was on Friday. One of my cousins tried to get me to move out of one of the chairs. I can really make it hard to do that when I just go limp. 280 pounds of dead weight is a hard thing to move. The best he could do was drag the chair around--with me still in it. A few times, he tried to push me over the side, so I just grabbed his arms and let my other cousins tickle him--he's kind of the black sheep of the family, so it's easy to gang up on him....plus he tends to start arguments/fights that he can't win. The sad thing is that if he had simply asked me to get up, instead of trying to force me out, I would've gotten up.
The cousin that's married to a former Cy has a new dog, so she was showing off pictures--and a video of the dog taking "mom" for a run.
Well, I'm getting hungry, and I haven't yet read today's paper. I can't believe I've already written three posts.......it's kind of cathartic. Wait, where was I? Oh yeah. FOOOOOOOOOD! Bye for now.
About 9pm last night, the lights in the living room started to flicker, then they went out. We were running around, trying to get the circuit breaker back on, but it wouldn't stay on. Apparently, we've got a bad breaker. The bad thing is that this one is where almost every light in the house is connected to. All the overhead lights, the lamps in the living room, and the lamps in the kitchen are on this circuit. It gets dark at night without those. The bathroom is completely on that circuit, so now the only power it has now is from an extension cord running from the kitchen (the only outlet in either of those rooms that still works--the one with the fridge and microwave). The living room has a single lamp, with extension cords running back into the dining room, plugged in to the same outlet as this computer. The only lamps that didn't need extension cords from other rooms to run are the ones in either of the bedrooms or the dining room. My bedroom is almost completely unaffected. Just the overhead light is out.
We went to Grundy Center for Mother's Day, since my grandma's 80th birthday was on Friday. One of my cousins tried to get me to move out of one of the chairs. I can really make it hard to do that when I just go limp. 280 pounds of dead weight is a hard thing to move. The best he could do was drag the chair around--with me still in it. A few times, he tried to push me over the side, so I just grabbed his arms and let my other cousins tickle him--he's kind of the black sheep of the family, so it's easy to gang up on him....plus he tends to start arguments/fights that he can't win. The sad thing is that if he had simply asked me to get up, instead of trying to force me out, I would've gotten up.
The cousin that's married to a former Cy has a new dog, so she was showing off pictures--and a video of the dog taking "mom" for a run.
Well, I'm getting hungry, and I haven't yet read today's paper. I can't believe I've already written three posts.......it's kind of cathartic. Wait, where was I? Oh yeah. FOOOOOOOOOD! Bye for now.
08 May 2009
The dumbest thing I have ever done
As most of the people who will read this already know, I told my parents that I am a Christian earlier this year. My dad's first reaction was "What's her name?" When I told people this, I sometimes said "I've done some stupid things for a girl, but this isn't one of them." This post is what I was talking about when I said that.
October 1, 2007 I don't think I'll ever forget that date. It's hard to forget the day you nearly passed out from pain because you got your nipples pierced......(for those of you that were taking a drink when you read that, take a bit to clean your monitor/keyboard. I'll wait)
My girlfriend at the time had paid for them, because it was her idea. I was so nervous going into the tattoo/piercing parlor, because I was so sure it would hurt. After circling the block a couple times, I finally went in. I filled out the release form while the only guy working that afternoon finished the tattoo he was working on when I walked in.
When he finished, he asked which one I wanted pierced. Knowing that if I only got one done, I probably wouldn't be coming back, I replied "Both". He did all the prep work, and had me lie on the table. When he stuck the needle through the first one, I gripped the table as hard as I could, so that I wouldn't scream. He finished that one, and moved on to the other. He got the needle in, but he kept dropping the rings. That meant he had to get another one, and another one, and even a fourth one. (I think. I was in a little bit of shock at that point. My memory's fuzzy on the details) Finally he got it in, and closed the ring. I paid him, and proceeded to walk home, being very careful where my backpack straps were.
When I got back to my dorm, I was sweating and feeling lightheaded. I sat down in my recliner and took a short nap. (I'm not sure if I should count that as passing out, because I intended to take a nap)
The girlfriend broke up with me a few months later. (For those that know my God story, this is the one that sent me into the big depression)
I kept the rings in for a while, and had even bought replacement ones online--bought before the girlfriend broke up with me. (The ones that came with the piercing were too ordinary) However, they never healed right, and even started to migrate. Every three or four days, the left one would start to bleed again--the right one, every week or two, and not as much. I was afraid that it would be painful to remove them, so I left them in.
For anyone wondering, yes I have since removed them. I took them out the week before Spring Break of this year using a pair of needle-nose pliers. They healed quickly after taking out the rings, and there are barely any scars--slightly more visible on the left, though. I had them in for almost a year and a half. I had them in when I accepted Christ, I had them when I was baptized, I even had them during the Salt retreat this spring, and no one seemed to notice. That's the funniest part about this whole ordeal to me.
Anyway, my parents are coming to help me move out of the dorms in about 10 hours or so, so I'll leave you to pick your jaws up off the floor while I get some shut-eye and work on getting packed.
October 1, 2007 I don't think I'll ever forget that date. It's hard to forget the day you nearly passed out from pain because you got your nipples pierced......(for those of you that were taking a drink when you read that, take a bit to clean your monitor/keyboard. I'll wait)
My girlfriend at the time had paid for them, because it was her idea. I was so nervous going into the tattoo/piercing parlor, because I was so sure it would hurt. After circling the block a couple times, I finally went in. I filled out the release form while the only guy working that afternoon finished the tattoo he was working on when I walked in.
When he finished, he asked which one I wanted pierced. Knowing that if I only got one done, I probably wouldn't be coming back, I replied "Both". He did all the prep work, and had me lie on the table. When he stuck the needle through the first one, I gripped the table as hard as I could, so that I wouldn't scream. He finished that one, and moved on to the other. He got the needle in, but he kept dropping the rings. That meant he had to get another one, and another one, and even a fourth one. (I think. I was in a little bit of shock at that point. My memory's fuzzy on the details) Finally he got it in, and closed the ring. I paid him, and proceeded to walk home, being very careful where my backpack straps were.
When I got back to my dorm, I was sweating and feeling lightheaded. I sat down in my recliner and took a short nap. (I'm not sure if I should count that as passing out, because I intended to take a nap)
The girlfriend broke up with me a few months later. (For those that know my God story, this is the one that sent me into the big depression)
I kept the rings in for a while, and had even bought replacement ones online--bought before the girlfriend broke up with me. (The ones that came with the piercing were too ordinary) However, they never healed right, and even started to migrate. Every three or four days, the left one would start to bleed again--the right one, every week or two, and not as much. I was afraid that it would be painful to remove them, so I left them in.
For anyone wondering, yes I have since removed them. I took them out the week before Spring Break of this year using a pair of needle-nose pliers. They healed quickly after taking out the rings, and there are barely any scars--slightly more visible on the left, though. I had them in for almost a year and a half. I had them in when I accepted Christ, I had them when I was baptized, I even had them during the Salt retreat this spring, and no one seemed to notice. That's the funniest part about this whole ordeal to me.
Anyway, my parents are coming to help me move out of the dorms in about 10 hours or so, so I'll leave you to pick your jaws up off the floor while I get some shut-eye and work on getting packed.
Caveat Lector
For those of you illiterati (people who don't speak Latin), the title of this post is "Reader Beware". I feel that I should give a few warnings/explanations about this blog.
1. Reason: I'm writing this blog because a friend wanted me to, so I may not be very into it at first.
2. Frequency of Posts: I'm not going to write this like an every day happenings blog. This is just going to be major events, so posts may be infrequent. Along with that, I may not post to the blog for a few days after things happen, since I will be limited to dial-up internet at home, and that frustrates me at times.
3. Language: At times, I like to use arcane words and phrases. This is how I would really talk if I was sure I wouldn't get questions like "How do you know that word?" or "What does that mean?" etc. Therefore, I dumb myself down in conversation with people, and generally avoid those kinds of words. But when writing, I can't be interrupted by questions, so I feel free to write how I would like to talk. It may be quite frequent (relative to the amount of posts), since people reading this will have easy access to wikipedia, google, dictionary.com, and so on to figure out what they just read.
4. Long Rants: As you can see from just this post, I tend to talk about things in roundabout ways, taking forever to get to the point. This is another thing I try to avoid in conversation--thanks to all these punk kids and their short attention spans.
For those of you who are still reading this, if you want to read about my summer, here's where to go. There may not be very many posts, but I don't know how interesting my summer will be. If you want to check back about once a week, you probably won't leave posts waiting unread for long. If you check back every day, you need to get a life.
Anyway, it's after 1am. I want to get some sleep before I work on getting more things packed up.
1. Reason: I'm writing this blog because a friend wanted me to, so I may not be very into it at first.
2. Frequency of Posts: I'm not going to write this like an every day happenings blog. This is just going to be major events, so posts may be infrequent. Along with that, I may not post to the blog for a few days after things happen, since I will be limited to dial-up internet at home, and that frustrates me at times.
3. Language: At times, I like to use arcane words and phrases. This is how I would really talk if I was sure I wouldn't get questions like "How do you know that word?" or "What does that mean?" etc. Therefore, I dumb myself down in conversation with people, and generally avoid those kinds of words. But when writing, I can't be interrupted by questions, so I feel free to write how I would like to talk. It may be quite frequent (relative to the amount of posts), since people reading this will have easy access to wikipedia, google, dictionary.com, and so on to figure out what they just read.
4. Long Rants: As you can see from just this post, I tend to talk about things in roundabout ways, taking forever to get to the point. This is another thing I try to avoid in conversation--thanks to all these punk kids and their short attention spans.
For those of you who are still reading this, if you want to read about my summer, here's where to go. There may not be very many posts, but I don't know how interesting my summer will be. If you want to check back about once a week, you probably won't leave posts waiting unread for long. If you check back every day, you need to get a life.
Anyway, it's after 1am. I want to get some sleep before I work on getting more things packed up.
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