Overheard....

I wish I could make this stuff up.....

GIRL 1: You've been here, haven't you?
GIRL 2: Wait, where?
G1: You know, that one place with the faces... in the big rock?
G2: What?
G1: Here... this... (holds up picture on magazine)
G2: Oh... nope.
G1: I thought you went to that state?
G2: Montana? No.
ME: That's South Dakota.
G2: Oh... haha... I've never been there either!

The One Place with the Faces in the Big Rock:

Story Time.

Yesterday I probably did the worst thing I've ever done in my life:

I STOLE AN ICY DRINK

I've had a pretty boring life, I know. Steve said it's not actually stealing because I didn't mean to do it, but still... I took it without paying!!

I took my wedding dress to the seamstress that my mom wants me to use... who is about an hour away. My mom called as I was headed back. Right before I got on the interstate, I stopped at the gas station. I walked in, poured myself a nice icy drink, got back in my car and drove away. One hour away. I stopped at Target on my way home. As I was walking around, I thought to myself, "I'm really thirsty! But I have got to stop spending so much $$ on icy drinks when I have tons of DC at home" (Thanks to Giant Eagle... 3 for $9 this week) Then I thought about it and realized I didn't even pay for the one that I just finished!! I was walking around with a stolen drink!! I felt terrible, but there's no way I'm going to drive 2 hours out of my way to pay $1.39, so I quickly texted Google to get the phone number. (What did I ever do without Google?) I called the gas station and asked if they could take a credit card over the phone. The man was not happy with me and told me that he could not. He then said "are you here often?" and I said "I try not to be..." and he said, "will you be back soon?" and I said "possibly next week, but I don't know for sure." So then he said, "just pay for it next time you're here." and I said "Thank you! I'm so sorry!" and he hung up the phone.

Oops. I really hope they don't have my picture hanging in there.

SSSS

Let me start by saying that I am all about security at the airport. I believe that if you have nothing to hide, it shouldn't be a big deal. I have nothing to hide... and ordinarily it's not a big deal... but for my last 4 flights, my boarding pass has had the dreaded "SSSS" at the bottom (see example above). I mean... we're talking about me, here. I don't mind taking turns, but I feel as if I'm getting more than my fair share of turns these days. I don't want to deprive the others of the joys of being frisked. Steve said to the guy: "So is this random?" and he responded with "Umm... somewhat..." and I don't even know what that means. Did I offend someone?

Super Duper!

Dear GPS Lady,

I appreciate all that you do. I really do. We've had some good times. You've really helped me out of some stressful situations. You always get me from Point A to Point B (eventually).

See, the problem we're having lately is the route that you suggest. I am new to town and still trying to figure out where I can go and where I should avoid. I would appreciate it if you would stop driving me through bad parts of town. If ever I need a liquor store, pawn shop, or bail bondsman, thanks to you, I now know where to go. It is unlikely that I will ever need these services. Today you took me to the "Super Duper Market" next to a pawn shop and some other interesting business establishments. I would appreciate it if we took routes that avoid these types of neighborhoods. Thanks!!

XOXO,
Kathleen

I'm Bossy!

The other day I drove to school behind the coolest vanity plate ever:

P BOSSY

I automatically wanted to be friends with this lady.

Just This Once.

Dear Mr. American Airlines,

Had I known that you were going to make me pay $40 to check my luggage, I would have never purchased a ticket from you out of principle (even if my ticket only cost $140). There is not much I can do about this now, but I can promise you that after this flight, you will never see me again.

XOXO,

Kathleen

Gratitude

First off, I want to thank those of you who participated in yesterday's interactive post! It's always fun to learn new stuff about my friends and I hope you enjoyed it as well! Second, I am disappointed in those of you who visited my blog but did not play along. I had 8 separate visitors (yes, Erin... I adjusted for the fact that you visited 5 times..) and only 4 comments. Perhaps I did not make the rules clear. I'll keep that in mind for next time. Anyway, it was lots of fun and look for more interactivity in the future!

With Independence Day just around the corner, I've been reflecting on how grateful I am to be an American. When I was in Ireland, I had the opportunity to visit the site of my great-great grandmother's childhood home. Very little of the house still exists, but the road leading to it has been kept intact. The picture above is the road that she and her family walked to the nearby town. It is also the road that she walked down with her brothers and sisters on her way to America. Only her parents and one brother stayed behind. She never again returned to Ireland and from what is known, she didn't attempt to keep in touch. While we were there I was overcome with gratitude for her courage. I could not imagine leaving my parents to go to a new country knowing that I could never return. It must have been so difficult for her and I am so grateful that she was brave enough to do so. She is one of the many whose brave decisions made it possible for me to have been born in America. Wow, family history is actually kind of cool when you have stories to combine with names and dates, huh?

Just a Suggestion...

Last night I was on a rather late cross-country flight. About a half hour into the flight, I quickly realized that there were no less than a million small children on the plane. Well, they were all young... they weren't all small. I sat 3 seats away from the largest 4 year old in the history of the world! And I'm not sure about the ages of kid-things, but I'm pretty sure 4 year olds shouldn't be wearing diapers and drinking from a bottle.

So anyway, it was a 5 hour scream-fest. Those little brats were like a tag-team! They slept in rotation so that there were always about 2 of them screaming at any given second. I love kids... I really do, but I was so aggravated that I came up with some ideas on how to eradicate this problem:

1. Not allow children under 5 on planes. (This is obviously not practical, but it sounds good, huh?)
2. Limit the number of small children allowed on any one flight.
3. Not allow small children on flights that depart late at night.
4. Make a special compartment for kids. Make it sound-proof and smell-proof. Maybe pad the walls so they can't hurt themselves. (Probably not legal...)

So, airlines... just a few suggestions for making the flight more comfortable.

Oh, and after the flight, I ran into that same 4 year old and his half-retarded mom in the bathroom. I was washing my hands and happened to look over to see the giant 4 year old puking in the sink! As if the toilets weren't 3 feet away! After we got our bags, we went to find the shuttle... where we also ran into the stupid fat kid! Like hell was I going to ride in the same shuttle as them! We ran the other way!