ronni

Bleck

Between the Nyquil that is still wearing off, the fact that I had to pee every 45 minutes, and Aidan wetting the bed this morning, I didn’t get a lot of sleep.

I feel lousy.

But getting a hug and kiss from Aidan is a big help. :)

So is rereading a really good Erma Bombeck book.

(Originally published at Anywhere Is…)

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Ivy’s Sweet Meme/Survey Thing

I got this from swankivy. It’s pretty raw and honest, so read at your own risk.

…beware…

Read this and find out what really makes me tick!

If you want to give me the best compliment ever, you might try talking about . . . the six-figure book publishing contract you just offered me.

If you really want to impress me . . . talk to me about something other than yourself all the time. Don’t get me wrong, I like to hear about my friends, but I don’t want to hear about nothing BUT them all the time, and then have them turn a deaf ear when I want to update them about me or talk about something other than either of us. Talk to me about world events, books, movies, and don’t treat me like I’m stupid if my opinions don’t match yours. Respect me.

You will probably be really impressed that I can . . .stare at proofs for eight hours every day, looking for and correcting mistakes and errors. People have told me they’d rather stick a pencil in their eye than do something like that, but I enjoy it.

One thing I dislike that everyone else seems to like is . . . SUVs.

One thing I like that everyone else seems to dislike is . . . Trix or Fruity Pebbles with Kool-Aid. It’s good, I’m telling you!

The person I’ve learned the most from in my life is . . . there is no one person, and I am still learning a lot.

One way to really piss me off is to . . . treat me like I’m something for you to control, disregarding my feelings and thoughts, etc. Or to make premature assumptions about me, my family, my friends, and/or my life and come at any of them in an attacking and accusatory way.

One way to really delight me is to . . . make me feel special and appreciated.

If you want to have a discussion with me about something unpleasant, you should know that I . . . will probably get defensive, especially if it’s about me.

The gifts I like best are . . . from people who pay attention and get me something that fits my taste or that I’ll use. (Keeping Ivy’s answer because it fits!)

If you’re my friend or loved one, you can expect to receive gifts from me that are . . . at the moment, non-existent. When I get in a better place financially, then the gifts will be well thought out and will hopefully invoke good memories of me and our times together.

If you’re my friend, the best suggestion for how we should spend an evening is . . . to eat spaghetti, watch one or two DVDs, and have a good conversation.

If you’re my romantic partner/significant other or want to be, the best suggestion for how we should spend an evening is . . . to eat spaghetti, watch DVDs, talk, cuddle, and make out.

If you have dinner at my house, you can expect me to fix . . . spaghetti, and Kool-Aid to drink. Bwah.

If you come to dinner at my house, I would love you to bring . . . dessert. Lemony or chocolately works well for me.

Even though it’s kinda dumb, I get really excited about . . . paper, pens, journals, and other office supplies.

The way I feel about my childhood is that it was . . . okay until I got to junior high school. Then things started taking a turn for the ugly.

The way I feel about my high school years is that they were . . . 98% negative.

One thing the people I choose as friends all have in common is that they . . . are fun to hang out with.

One way you can really show me you care about me is to . . . listen to me without interrupting, especially to interrupt with something about YOURSELF. Or, just show me you’re thinking of me. Random text messages, or something like that.

If I’m sad, the best thing to do for me is to . . . ask me what’s wrong, but don’t push me if I’m not ready to talk about it just yet. I might simply need a hug. No advice unless I ask for it.

For my birthday, I would really appreciate it if my loved ones would . . . remember it. They usually do.

One time that I did something for someone that was EXACTLY what they needed was when I . . . oooh, oooh. I didn’t even realize I was doing it, to be honest, but I was at a Youth 2000 retreat years ago, back when I was Catholic. These girls had tried to steal some of the sacramental wine, gotten caught, and were getting in trouble. I don’t remember what I said, but I do remember one girl saying to me “you are awesome, you know.” I love talking to and hanging out with teenage girls.

One thing I feel guilty about is . . . when people help me out in certain ways.

One thing I regret is . . . no comment.

A recurring dream I have goes like this . . . I’m being chased by tornadoes. These dreams come every March!

One thing you should never say to me is . . . “get over yourself,” or “you’re a terrible mother,” or “God doesn’t like what you’re doing” or “You’re a liar.” Especially that last one.

One thing you should try to say to me more often is . . . “How was your day?” or “How are you?” and mean it. Not use it as a jumping point to talk about yourself. Or “Get your ass in that chair and start writing again” Hahaha.

One word or phrase I wish people wouldn’t say is . . . “that’s so gay” or the n-word, either form.

I think “kids today” are . . . Not sure. Depends on what you mean by “kids.” I do think that some of them are being given a much too large sense of entitlement, which is contributing to our declining sense of just plain politeness in this society. As a rule, most Americans are self-centered, rude, materialistic, greedy, unkind, and uncaring. And I say this as an American. It’s not to say that there aren’t good people out there–of course there are. But too many people have a “sense of entitlement” and when that takes over, compassion goes right out the window.

The way I feel about the “state of the world” today as opposed to ten years ago is that it is . . . see above. Things aren’t ever going to get better, either. So I also feel pessimistic.

I will be more likely to vote for a political candidate if he/she . . . isn’t a Republican, is more interested in helping those that need help instead of giving tax breaks to those who don’t need it, is interested in doing something about our health care and education system, and is willing to uphold the values of the country, not turn it into the facist regime it’s heading toward.

The last time I talked on the phone for more than three hours straight was . . . when I told my mommy about my engagement.

Something I hate doing that I nevertheless have to do all the time is . . . peeing.

Something I love doing that I nevertheless don’t get to do often at all is . . . spending time with Adam.

I tend to look weird in photographs when I . . . slouch, smile too big. I’m slouching now. D’oh.

The way I feel about religion is . . . to each his own, but don’t come shoving your principles down my throat unless I specifically ask for prayer or guidance.

A dream I’ve always had but probably never will achieve is . . . being an A-List Hollywood actress. Part of the reason is that I’m not pursuing it, and the big picture is that even if I did pursue it, I’d never have a snowball’s chance in hell of actually making it.

I wish there was a stricter punishment for those who . . . scam and cheat innocents out of what they worked hard for.

I wish people would leave me alone about . . . how hard it’s going to be to leave Aidan when I move to Chicago. Don’t you think I know?

I’m better than everyone I know at . . . dancing.

I’m always the worst in the group at . . . singing.

Something I spend a lot of time on that other people don’t “get” is . . . reading, maybe? I read a LOT more than the average person, I’m guessing. I think I’m up to 166 or so new books for the year.

Something I’ll probably never be good at is . . . singing. Not freaking out. Not being so sensitive or taking everything personally.

Something I can brag about is . . . Aidan. 🙂

My job makes me feel . . . skilled, but not special because there are 4867395695798 other good copy editors out there as well.

I miss being able to . . . eat at restaurants.

I’m glad I no longer have to . . . drive all the way to Pataskala twice a week. My wallet is thankful for that. Now I fill up gas every other week instead of every week or twice a week.

I feel uncomfortable if a friend asks me to . . . no one ever asks me to do anything. HA.

I’m kind of touchy when asked to talk about . . . how I handle my (non-existent) money, how I feel about leaving Aidan, my father

You should know that I want your help on . . . not feeling guilty about every single bloody thing. Getting by every day, especially emotionally.

You should know to let me do it myself if I . . .

I would say it’s “my way or the highway” in matters of . . . how I raise Aidan, what I do to my body

I’m willing to compromise on . . . a few of my wedding plans (not that there are many to begin with)

When they say “don’t sweat the small stuff,” the “small stuff” for me is . . . what to have for dinner, how my hair looks in the morning, whether to shower the night before or the morning of, etc. etc.

. . . And the “big stuff” is . . . money, money, money.

I can listen or talk for hours on the subject of . . . writing and reading and books, Rent, Aidan, Adam

I will get really bored if you want to drone on about . . . stuff I don’t know anything about and/or stuff I couldn’t care less about, like football.

I think I’m misunderstood often because of . . . the fact that I don’t tell every single thing that’s going on with me, but I’m pretty open, so there are people who think they know everything. Those are usually the people who think they can can tell me what to do and how to live my life based off of what they know.

Something I do every day or often that other people rarely or never do is . . . read

Something other people do every day that I rarely or never do is . . . exercise

Something I deserve that I don’t seem to be getting is . . . a publishing contract! HA.

Something I have that I probably don’t deserve is . . . Adam.

I worry too much about . . . money.

I probably don’t worry enough about . . . exercising/physical fitness

Most of my friends probably became my friends because . . . I am open and loyal, and Rosa (meimeigui) says she enjoys my company, and I like to feed them.

I can guarantee that you’ll stay my friend if you . . . are loyal to me, but know how to give me space without taking it personally, if you don’t try to control me or make me feel obligated to you for whatever reason, and if you’re fun to be around and not draining.

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Talking Marriage

Today, I stumbled across an article titled Ten Things to Consider Before Getting Married. Lots of food for thought.

I forwarded the article to Adam and it opened up a nice dialogue of some of our expectations, habits, compromises we’ll have to make, etc. It was good. We found that we’re pretty much in alignment with everything.

If I haven’t learned anything else from before, I did learn that communication is SO very important. Sure, people say that all the time, but it’s really true. The thing is, I’m very non-confrontational. If someone does something and I get upset by it, I find it hard to go to the person and say “Hey, it really bugged me when you did blah blah blah.” But I’ve found that when I suck it up and say something, a few things happen.

1. He gets a chance to explain what he meant or why he said it or whatever.
2. I get to realize that it probably wasn’t as bad as I thought it was.
3. The air is cleared.

I’m not carrying around this hidden resentment and bitterness, everything is cleared up, and we can move on. In the past, I used to hold stuff in, let it fester, and then something small would push me over the edge and I would shut down. I am terrible with The Silent Treatment. It is so much easier (at least, right away) to shut down and stew. But these days, I force myself out of my comfort zone and actually TALK about whatever is bothering me. It’s so much better for both of us this way. And in the long run, a lot easier than letting stuff build up.

The article talks about “plans,” and he outlines the basics for starting a conversation about 1-, 3-, 6-, and 9-year plans. Those things cover meatier topics, but I think we can manage it. 🙂 I *LIKE* to talk about relationship-related stuff. And wedding stuff. And romantic stuff.

‘Til next time!

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Just Stuff

Well now. What a week it’s been! I had an awesome time in Chicago, what with getting engaged and all. I know, I’m a dork. I can’t stop grinning like a grinning thing when I think about it. And it comes over me at the most random times, like when I’m at Marc’s in the soap aisle.

Thanks to everyone who commented/emailed/wrote on our Facebook walls with their sincere congratulations! ♥ They really mean a lot to both of us.

Wedding planning is underway. Both moms are excited and on board. Now, we’re scoping for reasonably-priced Chicago-land venues. THAT is not an easy feat, let me tell you. We’ve also set an official date: November 01, 2008. We want to keep it very small, and it’ll be autumn-themed. I’ve also discovered The Knot. Holy cow. That site will cause me to lose a lot of sleep over the next 400 days. There is SO MUCH to see and read and look at and OMG.

Anyway, there is now wedding blog up where we both post: http://booknerdsinlove.blogspot.com
I’ll post most of the wedding craziness there. Feel free to bookmark and comment there.

In a few months, it’ll be December 20th. My birthday. I know it’s going to be on a Thursday because September’s days always line up with December’s days. And now that the days are lining up, I know it’s time to start thinking about Christmas. In an abstract sort of way, of course. I want to get Aidan a digital camera, and tons of little things. I love to watch him open presents. He’s soooo freaking cute. My mom’s already planning a boatload of stuff for him. I haven’t had to buy clothes for Aidan in about 18 months because my mom buys him so many outfits.

Speaking of Aidan, that little booger started preschool Monday! He’d started going to a small school in Pataskala in the summer, but Chris (zenosidal) got a job in Westerville, so he moved Aidan to a school that is closer (and frankly, nicer). He’s going to a Goddard school, and yesterday he told me all about it. He told me what his dad packs in his Spiderman lunchbox (the lunchbox that matches the backpack my mom got him), the kinds of activities he did, and about his new friend Dylan. He also told me that he’s a very good boy in school, which I believe. His progress sheet is so cute! It outlines all the things they did during the day. For example, yesterday, they played restaurant, they painted a picture with lollipops, and listened to a story about lollipops. They’re doing the five senses now, and Aidan told me he tasted something salty and something sweet. He wouldn’t try the lemon. I cannot wait to see what else he learns at this school! They’re teaching them so much, and he said he likes the way the teachers talk to him. They have nice voices, he says. Awwwww. I’m glad he’s enjoying school.

I’m very tired. Getting to bed before midnight has not been happening lately. I think I should get off the computer at about 9pm and take a bath in lavender, then read myself to sleep. That way, I can be asleep by 10:30pm at the latest. Because I am SO TIRED during the day and that’s not good. My body definitely prefers the night to the day.

Big Brother 8 has ended and Evel Dick has won. There was a lot of talk about the game being rigged so the Donatos would go to the final 2. Hmm. Strange things. My loyalties switched throughout the season, as they always do, but I would have loved to see Jameka take home the $500,000. Some episodes were crazy, I mean, what was UP with ED burning Jen? Then again, she was pretty dumb to keep trying to grab a lit cigarette from a man who didn’t like her. And the endurance part of the last HOH competition. Standing under FREEZING water for hours. Nice. I don’t think I’d have lasted ten minutes, but then again, I guess being fueled by the thought of $500,000 is a good motivator. I don’t know, this was one of the weirdest seasons. I missed a few seasons (I didn’t watch 1, 4, 5, or 6), but out of the ones I watched, this one had the weirdest set of people. My favorite all time player though, will always be Dr. Will. He was just sooo entertaining to watch. I’d love if they put BB2 on DVD.

When Big Brother 9 starts, I’ll either be living in Chicago, or getting ready to move there!

That’s all for now. ‘Til next time.

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