For a Dear Friend

At age eighteen, she had a son.

At age nineteen, she was threatened at gunpoint by her fiance.

At age twenty, she was homeless.

At age twenty-one, she got fired from her job.

At age twenty-two, she found out she was pregnant again.

At age twenty-three, her infant daughter died.

Soon thereafter, her ex-fiance and ex-boyfriend teamed up and took her five-year-old away from her.

On June 27th she will find out if, after five long months, she can finally have her son back.

In the five years of knowing one of my dearest friends, she has been nothing but a mountain. No matter what is hurled toward her, she remains immovable. She is the strongest person I know, and the best mother I will ever meet.

Please keep her in your thoughts as she continues along the journey of her life, just praying to make it through each day.

My friend, I love you and your son more than you know.

Plenty of Tofu

I just saw an add in my Gmail account that read, "How to catch him and keep him," and I realized that we think of men as fish. Don't ask me why I never realized this before, but we are constantly talking about how we need to "catch" a man and "keep" him, and when we fail to do so we are told, "there are plenty of fish in the sea!"

Wait, what?

So I get that it's a metaphor, but why fish of all things? Do the makers of catch phrases intend on excluding vegans?! I mean, come on. What am I supposed to say? "Oh, don't worry, there is plenty of tofu in the store." That sounds awful.

I vote we implement a new catch phrase that excludes no one based on dietary restrictions.

You want an example? Sorry, I don't make catch phrases...if I did, we wouldn't be in this mess!

Hamsters, Babies, and Zacharies.

Dear Hamsters:

Lucy and Ruth...I don't know what happened to you, and I miss you terribly. I have an idealistic dream that you two escaped from your cage and made your way out of my house, through the terrible downtown neighborhood in which we live, and into a field where you can gleefully frolic for the rest of your short lives. Then I think about the other options...you could be mutant hamsters, murdering small cats in the neighborhood with your alien fangs and tiger claws. Or maybe you're dead in my house somewhere, rotting after starving to death...*puke*...I hope that isn't happening. Nonetheless, I miss the sound of you chewing endlessly on the side of your cage, despite my hot sauce and cat defenses, and I miss the gross layer of hamster crap that lined your cage day after day. May you rest in peace (or eat cats with joy).

Dear Baby Johnson:

I cannot begin to explain how excited I am that the mother of my children is popping out a FOURTH baby! Yeah, that's you, accident and all. You are going to be the most beautiful baby boy in the world and I can't wait to contemplate kidnapping you. I heard all of the current name potentials and, I have to say, I'm really banking on Will. You seem like a Will to me. When you are seventeen and yelling at your mom because she won't let you do whatever stupid teenager thing you want to do, remember how much love for you that all of us feel for you already, before you are born.

Dear Zacharies:

I salute you, guys named Zachary. Zach D., my best friends brother, you are awesome: you fix things, you make fun of me, and you make funny jokes...you are awesome. Zach W., you are awesome: your reasons are, well, secret, but...you are awesome. Zachary Levi, you are awesome: you are adorable, talented, and funny...you are awesome. I salute you, awesomefixeruperteaserfunnysecretiveadorabletalentedguysnamedZachary.

Hide and Seek

Family Photos

I took my siblings to Dawes today and took a bunch of photos! Here are a few of the best (and silliest).

Diane started taking pictures.

We are ninjas.

I should have been a model.

They were having a prison fight.

She's the badass in prison.

Pretty sunset!

Don't tell Ed I took this.

They were singing "We Are the Champions."

Steph and Di.

I adore them.

Ed was holding Diane upside down above the water.

They didn't know I was photographing them.

Racing.

They match! I turned around and they were standing like this...

all on their own. Their feet were even in the same position.

Matt putting his hand in his pocket to be like Ed.

Ed wouldn't hold Diane's hand, but it's close!

Too bad Matt wasn't smiling!

Osama bin Laden

I have resisted writing on the death of bin Laden, but I can't resist anymore.

Honestly, I am disgusted with the way in which the United States has reacted to someone's death. I do not that he was probably not the greatest of people, nor do I deny that he was a threat to our country, but does that really give us the right to celebrate a life ending? Consider this...he was someone's son, brother, husband, father. How would you feel if millions of people got drunk in celebration of your father's death? It's obnoxious, whether he was good or bad.

Not to mention the fact that killing him won't end terrorism. It's not like he was the only one giving orders...think about these things, people. He wasn't an idiot...I'm sure he had a plan for when he died.

Upon hearing the news, Katy Perry "tweeted:"

"I believe in justice... but don't u think that an eye for an eye will make the whole world blind? ☹"

(source)

I have to say, I have a new level of respect for her. She obviously sees the negativity brooding in our country through our offensive nationalism. Of course, I'm happy and proud to be an American citizen, but nationalism, along with other selfish and prideful desires, is what causes war (check your history books).

Click here to see photos of my peers partying on the East Quad of Denison.

I'm sorry if you disagree, but I don't see how getting drunk and screaming "USA! USA! USA!" really provides any glimpse of justice for those who died on 9/11.

Think before you speak. Think before you act.

"Loving the unlovable in others and yourself and realizing its one and the same is a secret to miracles."

Summer...what?

As of 10:33 this morning, I am officially on summer break...I think. Honestly, I'm not too sure what it feels like. I can't comprehend the idea of not being totally stressed all the time. Even when I thought I was relaxed, I think I was still a little stressed out. Going to a private college AND working 35 hours a week or more can certainly put a damper on your mental state. But now, for the next month, I only have to work. Did you read that? ONLY WORK...for an entire month! Then, once summer actually comes around, I will be working about 60 hours per week, which seems like a lot...but it's the ONLY thing I have to do.

This is blowing my mind.

I really don't have anything else to say. Although, I would like to brag about the fact that I wrote 40 pages in less than twenty four hours! I think that's pretty impressive considering that I started writing around 1am Sunday night, worked until 11:30 the next morning (with 1.5 hours of sleep), went to class, worked for a few hours, and then continued writing until midnight Monday.

Oh. Yes. I am most certainly a college student.

Liberal Arts

Here is a poem I wrote at about 6:00 this morning trying to meet the writing requirement for my Creative Writing class. It's called "Liberal Arts"


I have not slept
Yet the sun is rising
As I stare at the screen with contempt

My stomach is churning
My eyes are aching
From hours of summarizing my learning

Papers poems and stories
When I finally finish all 45 pages
Oh the glory

I am sure my professor will hate this poem
But after being awake for 24 hours
This is all I have to show him