Belated

I realized I forgot my Thankful Thursday post again this week, so here's a belated one.

Today, Rich took me to the gym on base for the first time. I could have gone before now, but a) I've been busy and b) I want to prolong putting a parking sticker on my car, and they'll make me do it if I take my car on base. At any rate, we went, and afterwards as we got into the car, it occurred to me how good we have it right now (really, we have it good always, but right now it's especially good).

I have a free indoor pool and fitness center within walking distance of my house. I also have a free gym with free aerobics classes that's also within walking or biking distance (the one we went to today). Free, free, free. And these are nice facilities too. I commented to Rich how nice the locker room was inside the gym. Real showers with shower curtains and clean toilets!

The only downside was that the guy who got us our gym ID cards was a meathead named Chaz. For real. But he gave me something to write about here and he was nice, so I'm still thankful.

Too many things I want to do

Damn it.

Yesterday, my teacher was talking to a few of us who arrived a little early to class. She was saying that with the knowledge we'll have by the end of the class (in about 3 weeks), if we spent just one month in a Spanish-speaking country, we'd have a pretty good handle on the language. I'm not saying we'd be fluent, but we would be able put everything we learned into practice and actually understand other people and be understood by them.

It really got me thinking. I mean, what else do I have to do? I don't know if I want to work or what I intend to do for work, so what if I could find a way to spend a month in another country? Is that so crazy? The craziest thing about it is that I have no idea where to start. I don't know where to look for volunteer work (I'm assuming volunteering is going to be my only option) and what I would really be getting myself into. Which companies can I trust? Where should I go? This is definitely something I would have done without question 10 years ago had I been in a financial position to do so, but now I have to deal with all this--you know--logic. It's just a month. Hell, I could probably vacation there for that long. It's certainly appealing to think that I would be more language-efficient, plus I would have the volunteer experience. This couldn't hurt my job prospects, and it's just for one month.

While I was busy thinking about this, I was also thinking about Teach for America. I've known about this organization for a while now, but it was never an option for me either because of time constraints (you have to give 2 years) or because of location (they only place teachers in certain regions of the country). It suddenly occurred to me that maybe--just maybe--I was finally in the right place at the right time. Of course, that was just wishful thinking. There's a 5-week training that all the teachers must attend (not to mention that I would have to apply and be accepted first) during the summer, and I've already missed it. That means, I can't start in the fall, which means that the 2-year commitment is a problem again. Blah.

This, of course, is on top of all my thoughts of volunteering around here and finding ways of using my Spanish and mad teaching skills. Oh, and I think I need to get back into the aerobics-instructor thing, too. There's a certification workshop in September. Hah!

So, dearest readers, if you have any helpful websites/personal experiences regarding any of the topics above, please feel free to send them my way, so I can have more things to think about. Thanks!

TMI Tuesday and other stuff

Warning: I'm about to discuss women's troubles in the next paragraph. 

You want to know the best way to make your period arrive? Take a pregnancy test. I should know; I've taken a crapload of them. Or is it a "pee-load?" The other way to entice your monthly visitor is to wear a skirt and not have any supplies with you. That's how my day went.

Moving on! This past weekend was a little crazy. I feel like I'm packing a lot into 2.5 days lately. Rich's brother Paul arrived Friday night with his 22-year-old girlfriend and they stayed both nights and left Sunday. Another couple Rich is friends with also stayed with us Saturday night with their two little girls (a baby and a toddler). I thought I was going to have a bit of a nervous breakdown, but everything was fine. It's very "us" for Rich to be completely nonchalant with all these grandiose plans for people being in our house with me freaking out about the details. 

It was good to have Paul here because there's some family drama going on (as always with this family!), he's in the thick of it. It was good to hear his perspective and just to clear the air about a lot of things. 

With my weekends tied up with madness and my weekdays tied up with school, I don't know where the time is going. Remember when I used to knit? That's a distant memory now. 

And speaking of distant memories, I'm starting to get nostalgic for teaching again. I really thought I wanted a break, and I think it's still a good idea, but I'm finding that I'm picturing myself in the classroom again. I guess the grass is always greener on the other side.

'The Hills' of Monterey

After seeing a movie this evening, Rich and I went to a restaurant at the mall next to the movie theater. A table with about four 20-something women was across the aisle. Apparently, the clinically-retarded-California-chick cliché has made its way this far north. 

Pregnant, straight-haired woman: "Yeah, I was thinking of converting to, like, Buddhism. But that's not even a real religion."

(Later)

Pregnant woman again: "She almost passed out yesterday! She's on this new diet..."

Mind you, she looked like she was 7 months pregnant, but still wearing tiny little jeans and a fitted sweater and perfectly straightened hair and makeup. Everyone at the table did that thing where every sentence sounded like a question too. It would have been funny if it hadn't been so annoying. And to think, pretty soon there's going to be another little copy of that one running around! I definitely need to have kids to balance things out.

Thankful Thursday

You guys haven't been reminding me to do Thankful Thursday. Tisk, tisk. 

Today I'm thankful for the passionate people in my life. Passion is something I lack; sure, I have opinions, but mostly I keep them to myself or at most to my blog. This morning as I got ready for the day, I thought about my former boss at the writing center and how you could pretty much sum her up in that one word, "Passionate." If someone's rights were being slighted, she was all over it. Because of this, she could sniff out an ulterior motive like a bloodhound, whereas I tend to trust people and take things at face value. Also, last night, I finished watching Diarios de Motocicleta (Motorcycle Diaries), which is a movie about Che Guevara pre-revolution. I'm pretty sure Che was a passionate person too. The CIA doesn't usually kill people who are passive and docile.

Not to get into a discussion about Che Guevara, but the point is that there are people who have a great deal of passion, and they inspire me. I want to have this kind of conviction about something. I want to be so dedicated that I'm not afraid to go on a tirade about it if it comes up among people I don't even know very well. I think I'm approaching this state with a few issues (namely, recycling and so forth), but mostly I feel inadequately educated about most issues. The "genius" kids at school have far more passion than I have at my ripe age, and I think it's mostly due to their vast knowledge about--well--everything. I think they must sit at home and watch CSPAN all day. At any rate, I suppose it's a lesson for me to learn: I need to know more. 

For now, though, until I can fill my head with more knowledge, I can at least appreciate those around me who are devoted to causes and who aren't afraid to show it. If you're one of these people, just know that you inspire me and make me want to better myself.

Moving right along

My Monterey to-do list is rapidly getting smaller. I've completed or am in progress with 3 of the items, thanks to the past couple weeks. I went to the church, which I told you about already; I'm learning Spanish, which I think I've mentioned once or twice on here; and lastly, I went to a free salsa dancing class last night. 

This class taught me a few things: 1. Rich really can't dance, and I think I dance only slightly better than he does. 2. The salsa that they teach in these ballroom dancing classes is not "real" salsa according to my Cuban Spanish teacher, who also happened to be there. 3. To best learn, you really need a partner who already knows what they're doing. Otherwise, it's just the blind leading the blind (see: Rich and me dancing together). 

It was, however, unexpectedly crowded, and not really beginner-beginner. Still it was fun, and since it was free, I have no complaints.

I also did something new today, which was to go to the post office on foot. I mean, it sounds silly probably, but I've never run an errand without my car waiting for me in the parking lot. I walked to school with some packages in my backpack, and I stopped at the post office after my class to mail them out. Then I walked home. Deciding to go by foot does take some planning, but it's quite liberating and it forces me to take notice of things I would ordinarily just pass by. 

*Sigh*

Sighing for many reasons tonight...

One: I got back this afternoon from visiting the in-laws over the weekend. We packed a lot into three days, I tell you. Friday, we drove down to LA and stayed with Rich's aunt and uncle. This was after my class of course. It took just under 6 hours, which, if my math is correct, means that Rich was driving approximately 200 mph. Or, at least it felt like it anyway. You know, I think I'm coming to the conclusion that I'm prone to motion sickness. It's not all the time, but in some cars (with certain drivers...ahem) or in other circumstances like airplanes (which make me sick for various reasons), trains, buses, etc., I just don't feel well. Is adult-onset motion sickness a real thing or do you suppose I've always had it? 

Anyway, where was I? Oh yes, the weekend. Friday night, I practiced my Spanish with Rich's aunt, and she was very impressed--naturally. Saturday, we spent the morning hours with the aunt and uncle we were staying with, and then in the afternoon we visited another aunt who was in the hospital. Then, we were off to yet another aunt and uncle's house where we had the traditional BBQ and all that. Plus they had a pool. We even saw some illegal fireworks that the neighbors were letting off, so it was all good. I spoke some Spanish with Rich's grandmother, and because I was making such a good effort to learn the language, she gave us a book that she wrote in Spanish t

hat she had actually given or planned to give to Rich's mom. She was just holding onto it, but she said that she wanted us to have it now.

That day also, I got the best text message in the world: one of my best friends in the whole world just got engaged. I wish I could truly convey to you all how happy I am for her, but you'll just have to imagine it because I'm running out of creative steam tonight. 

This morning, we got up and headed to LAX where Rich's dad works. Rich's dad is a captain for the LA city fire department, and he's now working at the airport. So, if you're at LAX and you have a heart attack, his crew will come save you. We managed to time it just right so that we got a quick tour of the station and--AND--he and one of the other guys drove us around the airport in a real fire engine. I don't know about you, but I'd never been in a real fire engine/truck before, so it was pretty sweet.

That's me trying my best to get inside gracefully. It wasn't easy. That is not, however, my chubby arm :(  Rich got to work the pedals in the front that control the siren and the horn. It was awesome. 

Then we drove home and it took forever. Then we stopped at In-n-Out, and that took forever too. Then we got home. Then I finished my take-home test (yep, we got a take-home test on 4th of July weekend!). Then I did this next thing. 

Two: I'm a total retard. Remember when I said I feel like I keep saying the wrong things? Well, now I'm doing stupid things too. Tonight, I tried to book our flights to see my family in a few weeks. I've had it in my head that we were traveling on the 17th. I've thought this ever since my family started making plans. I booked our flights and a rental car. Of course, there was no reason for me to have thought it was the 17th because it's actually the next week. How awesome is that? It takes all the courage I can muster to even book a flight (because that means I actually have to fly) and then I had to call India--excuse me, "Yahoo Travel"--to fix it. Oh yeah, and Rich had already put in a leave request for that wrong weekend. Thankfully, all it took was a slightly long phone call, but all is well with that for tonight anyway. 

I also called my parents at like 11:00 at night their time when I'm pretty sure their bedtime is still 10:00 (sorry Mom & Dad). Why can't everyone just be on PST to make my life easier?? 

Ready for bed now.