Loathed Expectations

Would you believe I've never made a New Year's resolution? Ever?

I've had goals before, but none of this proclaiming them on New Year's Eve type stuff. It's just not my style. I'm not really sure why, exactly.

Oh, wait. Sure I do. I loathe expectations.

That's right. LOATHE. So much more effective than just disliking, don't you think? I believe that comes from an unwillingness to live with disappointment. And by that, I mean disappointing others. Can't. Handle. It.

It's really awful, too. I really can't stand to know someone is disappointed in me, so I never want to agree to do something for someone, because then I know they're going to expect it. What if I fail?!

This is usually art related, so I take the "what if my arms fall off, like that lady in that story that slept all funky, smooshing her fingers all night, and the lack of blood made them turn black and fall off?!" route. It's not good.

Well, maybe I embellished a little bit, but you get the gist of what goes through my head. Some unforeseen event will stop me from fulfilling my end of the bargain, and disappointment will inevitably be my fate.

And it gets worse! On top of all that mental instability are the tiny people pleaser and the tiny rebel that live inside of me. The tiny people pleaser yearns to keep everyone placated by shouting, "Sure!" to absolutely everything, while the disgruntled rebel refuses to be bridled by expectations and sounds a little something like this: "You want me to do what? Ohhhh, okaaaaay! Hang on just a sec while I go do THE EXACT OPPOSITE!" It's really worse than not good.

Now that you're all quite certain that I'm battling with schizophrenia, I would like to announce that the husband person and I have decided to make New Year's Resolutions this year! O.0

I've been blabbing all about this children's book I want to write & illustrate, right? Well, 2010 is as good a year as any, wouldn't you say? I would. So, that's my New Year's resolution. It's something I've wanted to do since I was a little girl, and I'm going to do it. I want to help shape kid's imaginations, make them feel important/ like they belong, and this is how I'm going to do it.

Todd, whom I now enjoy referring to as Mr. T, would simply like to beat me arm wrestling (he's really never beat me), and lift the Christmas tree with one hand (read: without collapsing with a hernia). He actually said he wants to get in shape, and be healthier, but I like the funny version better. Don't you? I'm so mean.

So...what are your pesky resolutions?

Shoot The Moon

With the help of some highlighters here at my office, I've been spending my lunch break schnazzin' up one of those old doodles I've mentioned. I'm thinking this little guy is going to make it into one of those infamous children's books I keep talking about, but never seem to get written/illustrated. Not exactly sure how, though.

What say you? What do you think his story is?

Communication Is A Many Splendored Thing

My reader is bustin' at the seams, and I'm going through blog withdrawals! I'm not to the twitchy phase...yet. If I don't get caught up soon, it's not going to be pretty.

My husband finds my obligation to read and comment on blogs amusing. He also adores mocking me for having "internet friends". It's like you're all make believe people, and I have an imaginary friend disorder. T_T

Didn't the man have a pen pal growing up? What the heck?! Communication is a many splendored thing. So what if I've not met you in person?! You still matter. Sheesh!

Anyhow, I haven't forgotten about you guys. I squeeze in a few posts here or there, but with friends visiting for the holidays I just haven't the time. Catching up on reading is in my very near future.

Speaking of holidays, how about a few pics of recent get togethers/shenanigans, and maybe a critter or two?

My Handsome Kitty (Kimchi)

Chica Boo (my onliest niece)
Me (w/attempted straight hair), Husband Person & Twin Nephews

They try very hard to be completely different, but if they don't it's hard to tell them apart.

Pseudo Little Sister (Kayla) & I
Love. This. Kid.
The lighting makes us look like we have a self tanning problem.

Soul Mate & I
Can't tell that's her little sister up above, can you?
So...how was your Christmas? Filled with friends and family, I hope.

Brandy's Hot Awesome Dude

Hi there, bloggers! I survived the holidays...thus far. Great, right?! Yes. Yes. Well, more important than my yammering on about late nights, family, friends and gifts (though I did make my husband a clock out of a hubcap [from his first car] & he LOVED it) is the well-being of our loved ones. That's why this post is dedicated to Brandy and her lovely, selfless man...

My name is Brandy. And I have a blog.

And a plea.

I use my blog to showcase the crazy I meet everyday, share the stories of the kids I teach and document my love for tequila, dairy products and the abdominal muscles of Ryan Reynolds. Rarely do I talk about personal issues on my blog- as personal as the dude that I adore (who I actually met through my blog- single ladies, let that be a very good reason to blog, the possibility of meeting someone as wonderful as my man), but I need your help. And it involves my dude.

He’s a guy who made math comics for my class, so they would love learning about addition. He’s the kinda guy who sends my friends gift cards when they are having hard times, who remembers every story I ever told him, who was the first person I celebrated with when I got a teaching job. He’s the guy who sent flowers to me at school- dozens of my favorite pink roses just because he loves me. He’s a guy who has spent a year patiently explaining (and re-explaining) everything there is to know about football during the important games when silence is preferred. He’s made me word puzzles and comics and stayed up late playing Scrabble with me (even though I beat him almost every time). He’s listened to me cry about school and family and jobs. He is everything I never knew I needed and everything I always knew I wanted.

The holidays have hit us hard. He’s recently been told he may have something called multiple myeloma- an incurable cancer, that gives a person an average of five years of continued life. Though this news has came as a shock, he continues to be exactly who has always been- spending his time worrying about me, rather than worrying about himself. He’s the most selfless individual I know- (he stayed late on Christmas Eve to work, so his co-workers could leave early) and a post like this would never be something that he would promote or encourage but when I’m overwhelmed and feeling helpless, the blogging community has always given me tremendous support and comfort, two things I desperately need at this time.

As I write this, the future is uncertain and we aren’t sure what’s happening. He’ll need to see an oncologist soon, to verify what’s going on in his body. My hope is that everyone who reads this think positive thoughts and if you are a person who prays, could you add him to your list? (You can refer to him as ‘brandy’s hot awesome dude’). If you don’t pray, please keep him in your heart.This cancer is only a possibility and I believe that the prayers and positive thoughts of people can make sure it never becomes a reality.

I want to give a big thank you to the blog owner who scraped their original blog plans and graciously put this up. My goal is to get as many people as possible to see and read this post. If you are reading this and want to help, copy and paste my plea into your blog or send a link through twitter, so more people can keep him in their thoughts. I would be so very grateful (even more grateful than I am to my friend who first showed me the picture of Ryan Reynolds on the cover of Entertainment Weekly. If you haven’t seen it, google it. You. Are. Welcome).

I realize this all sounds dramatic, a Lifetime movie in the making- but this is life. Right now. And I’m throwing away any hint of ego and am humbly asking for you to pray or think kind thoughts. If you are able to pass this on, thank you and if you know anything regarding MM- please email me (my email is on my blog). This isn’t a call for sympathy or a plea for pity. It’s just one girl hoping you can think positive thoughts for the person she adores. If my current heartache provides you with anything, let it be with the reminder that life is short, love is unbending and no one knows what could happen next. Maybe it is silly, but I really do believe that positive thoughts can make a huge difference. Thank you for reading this and if you haven’t already? Please tell someone you love them today.

I did.

Alright, folks? Any prayers out there? Add this wonderful man to your prayer lists, and pray for him whenever you think of it. Once, twice, ten times a day. Doesn't have to be an extensive prayer. I believe the Creator of the universe knows what's going on, all our needs & exactly who Brandy's Hot Awesome Dude is, so short and sweet works. Pray for him whenever you think of him.

Holiday Hoopla

Well, it's officially a week until Christmas. I have yet to make my Christmas cards, finish the handmade gifts I started over a month ago, wrapped presents, or even finished shopping. Tis the season, right?

It just feels like I've been moving in slow motion. I guess that's partially because I've been having back trouble again. The whole degenerative disc thing has been behaving itself lately, so that's nice. My lower back, on the other hand, has been making it quite difficult to get around. I went and got my bones cracked yesterday, and am incredibly sore today. My little Canadian chiropractor is a miracle worker, so I have high hopes of being back to my old self again in a couple days. Until then, I'm stiff and overly cautious.

I have managed to hobble around my kitchen to make a powdery mountain of homemade hot cocoa, though. I have one or two more batches to make tonight, and all my mason jars will be full and ready to gift. Some folks are going to have a very warm and toasty Christmas and New Year, thanks to that yummy concoction. Hooray for simple recipes!

Now, I just have to finish everything else! What have you got left to do? Misery loves company, bloggers. Don't be telling me how you've been finished since November. I might have a massive coronary.

P.S. I've come to realize that I can't listen to music and type. Well, I can. I just type to the tempo of the music, and it's really funny. I'm currently typing to The Decemberists' The Tain. I. Can't. Help. Myself.

That'll Do, Blog. That'll Do.

Alright, bloggers. I can now sleep peacefully.

I'd say I'm pretty content with the ol' layout.

Well, minus the fact that:

- My videos STILL get chopped off.

- I have a visually unhappy follower. Jay, I'm sorry. I just can't make it white with black text. It's against everything I stand for. I tried, though. Really.

- I lost the photo's of my husband person and critters I'd uploaded waaaaaaay back when.

I'm just sucking it up, and calling it a done deal. I've tried other layouts, but they're just not neat and tidy like this one. I'm a creature of habit. What can I say?

Mimsy is back in business.

It Blew Up

Well, I've gone and destroyed my pretty little blog. :(

I had to keep messing with it, and then it freaked out on me! I am currently hatin' on blogger. Hopefully I can get things straightened out after dinner tonight. For now, I have to walk away.

For any of you that haven't read one of the many posts about my O.C.D tendencies, then you may not know how difficult this is for me. It's bad. I want nothing more than to fix it NOW, but it'll just have to wait.

Just...don't look.

We're All Mad Here II

I know I've raved about this before, but I simply must to do it again. With the newest trailer.

Feast your eyes, folks.

Burton never ceases to amaze me. Ever. I just love his brain! Amidst all the dark and twisted, there always lies simple truth and beauty. A purity. A resilience. At least I think so.

Whether it be my paintings of children and animals, doodles of creeptastic creatures, haikus or other poems and stories, that's always been something I've striven to convey. Ever since I was a kid. Resiliency, which I believe is synonymous with hope, is a good thing. Maybe the best of things.

I guess that's why I adore the work of people like Tim Burton, Johnny Depp, Stephen King, Wes Anderson, and Roald Dahl. I think I can really relate to how they see the world, or how I perceive that they see the world. I guess it's more that I see things that I believe in their work, whether they intended it that way or not.

We are all silly creatures, living lives of nonsense, when there is truth to be had. And I believe the things we hold so dear are bits and pieces of that truth.

Ahem...can't wait for this movie to come out!

Time Management Issues

Blogging is pretty. I like it. ^_^

Keep Calm & Oh, Never Mind

Well, bloggers...I had planned on posting about something really interesting, but I lost it. My mother would say, "Must've been a lie." Such a trusting, supportive thing to say, don't you think? Fact is, I just can't remember. For the life of me. That ever happen to you? Hmph. Maybe I'll think of it tomorrow.

In the meantime, look at what I fell in love with over at TypeTees. Look, I say!

Twitter Does Not Like YOU

I try to be a nice person. Really, I do. Verbally bashing people on the old blog just isn't my thing. Normally. But there are always exceptions. I'm just going to get right down to it, okay?

I don't like John Mayer.

There! I said it. I don't like him, you hear me?! Jesus loves him, but I think he's creepy. Now, I know a lot of you ladies are going right now to delete my blog from your Readers, but I can't live the lie. I've been keeping it quiet for far too long, and I just can't stand it any longer. Hear me out.

I really tried to like him. When I first heard him, I thought he was a nice boy from Connecticut. He played the guitar, wrote semi-intelligent lyrics and had a decent voice, but something was amiss. I just couldn't put my finger on it.

Time passed, and I sort of forgot about him. Then he did it. He guided my finger right to what was bugging me about him.

In 2001 John Mayer came out with "Your Body Is A Wonderland," and I gagged a little. Well, a lot actually. Yeah. Yeah. It's smooth, catchy, going for sexy. I get it, and it might have been alright...IF it weren't for that dreaded line: One pair of candy lips, and your bubblegum tongue.

Now, who here thinks the idea of chewing on someone's tongue is attractive? Wait. Don't tell me. Please.

My point is, I decided the guy was gross. His pouty lips got on my nerves. His "I'm so cool" shaggy rocker hair got on my nerves. The way he whisper-crooned GOT ON MY NERVES. The guy just bugged me. All I could do was picture him gnawing on some poor girl's tongue, which lead to my justified dislike of all things Mayer.

Well, imagine my surprise the other day when I see a picture of this guy.
Where the heck does he get off being attractive?! Tattoos? Some sexy-man facial hair? I mean, did he model himself after a picture of Johnny Depp/Jack Johnson? A good plan for almost any man, but not someone I've resigned myself to thinking is a schmuck. No sir.

And who looks better with a buzz cut?! I'm telling you, bloggers, the man is not normal.

Dear John Mayer,

If you're going to start out completely annoying, you need to just stay that way. Don't change somewhere in the middle, so I look like a moron for griping about your stupid lips and hair. All I'm asking for is some consistency here.

P.S. Twitter does not like you.

Paranoia Paranoia

Let's see a show of hands on this. Who's afraid electronic devices may be slowly poisoning them with low grade radiation? Anyone? Anyone? Bueller?

I realize I can be a bit paranoid at times. I mean, I always worry. Like, a lot. As a child I was afraid Big Bird was secretly evil, and going to hurt the other muppets. He's a six foot canary, people. Don't you find that just a little bit creepy? Anyhow, I worry about these things.

What about our extended exposure to cell phones? Hm? I've only had one...since I was 17! That's ten years! And my best friend's littlest sister keeps her cell phone in the back pocket of her jeans/under her pillow/glued to her face 24/7. She's fourteen. This is to be expected, but how about what we don't expect? I'm thinking she's going to suffer severe butt rot some day, or something equally as unexpected/tragic. She'll be walking down the hall at school, and *plop* her left butt cheek will hit the floor. What then, I ask you?

And what about wireless? This is a new development in my home. Convenient? Yes. Neat blinky lights on top of my book case? Neato! The paranoia of impending brain tumors? Not so great. My cat will be the first to go, I just know it. He's home all day with that thing! It has to have some sort of long term effect. He already pukes all the time. What if it's not just a sensitive tummy?

Mark my words, bloggers. Butts are going to be falling off left and right. And what's worse? Our house pets, and stay at home Mom's/Dad's, are going to be the ones to pay most dearly.

I don't even want to think about it. Dudes, get that cell phone off your hips. Girls, don't keep it between your legs while driving. Kayla, I'm telling you...BUTT ROT. Get it out of your back pocket NOW. And, Kimchi, stay out of the living room.

Butt Rot Survivor Sporting New Innovative
Cell Phone Radiation Protective Carrying Case
(No, I'm not serious.)

Vader Approves

Who here knew that you could win something via signing up for and completing NaBloPoMo? Why did no one tell me this?! That's awesome!

Luckily, I'm O.C.D. enough to complete 30 posts in 30 days without that incentive. All I need is Darth Vader giving me a thumbs up. Did you see that badge over there?! On the right. Adorable.

I'm going to go look at him now, as a matter of fact. It was a heck of a work day (Beginning of the month nonprofit shenanigans! Augh!) I didn't win a prize, and I need the moral support. *sniff*