Tale Untold

The following tale is fiction, and any names, characteristics or actions of the characters that resemble real people and events are purely coincidental.  We have struggled with whether to share this story, but, for some inexplicable reason, feel led to do so.
--Management

Once upon a time, there was a young woman.
For the sake of the story, we'll call this woman... Autumn.
Autumn spent her days fulfilling mindless tasks at work and broadening her mind in the world of higher education.  She had supportive friends and family and a plethora of hobbies to fill her time; she laughed often and had a vivid imagination.
Autumn loved her life, but something, or perhaps someone, was missing. 
Late one night, Autumn grew tired of being patient and decided to take matters into her own hands.
Autumn probably should have left well enough alone.
It had come to Autumn's attention that there were people who made their livings attempting to bring romantic harmony into the lives of frustrated singles (for a small fee, of course).  These people asked a plethora of questions and delivered possible suitors right to your inbox.  Autumn thought it all sounded too good to be true, but was intrigued, nonetheless.
"I think I shall try it," Autumn thought.  "It will be a kind of experiment.  It is possible I will wholly regret it or feel like an utter fool, but how bad could it be?"
So, Autumn logged on and set to work answering question after question.  She selected her favorite photo and completed her profile.  Autumn didn't want to admit it, but, in the back of her mind, she was the tiniest bit hopeful.  On the other hand, however, she feared what people would think of her if they knew what she was doing.
However, she thought maybe it really was "okay to look?"
Autumn probably should have left well enough alone.
For the first few days, Autumn was a bit maniacal, checking her inbox embarrassingly frequently.  However, the initial luster soon wore off and Autumn began to suspect herself hoodwinked.
Duped.  Ripped off.  Taken for a ride.
You see, Autumn was quickly underwhelmed with the "harmonious" findings that were presented to her.  She believed that perhaps this method of matchmaking might work for others, but, for her, it simply wasn't right.  Autumn just thought the whole thing would go differently.  From her standpoint, this equation just wasn't adding up.  The whole thing just seemed unnatural. 
Autumn thought it might have been best to leave well enough alone.
Autumn began to check back more infrequently, but she vowed to honor her 3-month contract and complete her "experiment."  She told only one person what she was doing, however, because her humiliation was growing stronger by the day.
That brings us to today, when Autumn has completed her 3-month experiment and has ended her contract.  She feels that there is probably something she has learned from this experience, but right now she's not sure what it is.
Oh, wait...  yes she does.  Autumn should have left well enough alone.
What was Autumn thinking with this ridiculous experiment of hers?
She is, admittedly, embarrassed, but felt (for some reason) led to share her story.  Perhaps it will cuase laughter or make your own plight seem bearable...
Autumn simply asks that, the next time you see her, you refrain from pointing, laughing, making jokes at her expense, or cocking your head to the side in pity. 
Oh, wait... that's right.
You don't actually know her.  She's fictional.
Yeah...
So...
The End.

Under Pressure

Y'all, I am freaking out.
It's the point in the semester where I have a whole helluva lot seemingly insurmountable mountain of schoolwork to finish and only two-and-a-half short weeks to do it in.
Yikes... bikes.
I have papers to write, presentations to prepare, books to read, interviews to conduct, research to do, and proposals to compile.  Not to mention my regularly scheduled assigned readings and quizzes added to working and going to class.  All you people who are still in school kinow what I'm saying, right?  It's multi-tasking and time management to the max, sacrificing sleep and running around like a madwoman.  It's ugly, I tell you.  Ugly.
Yep, this is the point where I officially start to lose it. 
(Yet, here I sit spinning my wheels blogging like I've got all the time in the world.  Shocker, right?)
(Not to mention that it's made worse because all I want to do is lay on my couch and watch Christmas movies, taking breaks only to belt out listen to Christmas music.) 
On the flip side, however, two-and-a-half more weeks and the semester will be over!  Let me just pause for a minute and let that marinate.
Two. and. a. half. weeks.
Thank. the. Lord.
I don't know why, but this semester has been pure torture since week one.  I hate saying that, but it's true.  My classes have been brutal and not some of my favorites, and it's just seemed to be a tough few months.  The weekends have been some of my greatest, but, in looking back, my moods have been on a roller coaster ride since August.  And not a tame, Rock'n'Roller coaster-type coaster, either.  This has been one wild ride.
I know the next few weeks are going to be miserable insane, but I'm looking forward to docking this rollercoaster and having some true life chill time.
In the meantime, keep me in your thoughts and prayers, and give the students in your lives a break.  They'll probably be ill-tempered, unshowered, sleep-deprived, impatient, emotional, eating everything in sight, selfish and getting worse as December looms nearer (or maybe that's just me?).  Know that it will soon pass and they'll be back to their merry, showered, well-rested selves before you can say bah-humbug.  For all my fellow monsters students out there, know that we're all embarking on this the miserable journey known as finals together.
It probably won't be pretty, but we'll make it through.  I'm sure of it.
Meanwhile, I'll leave you with a few pics from another fun weekend.  Even though the action on the field was rather embarrassing, a good time was, as always, had by all.

Time of the Season

Top 10 Reasons Why (If You Ask Me) Christmastime is Officially... HERE
10.  Christmas commercials have started to pop up all over the TV.  My early favorites:  the classic Wal-Mart Carol of the Bells commercial and the new Hallmark ornament commercial.
9.  Starting tomorrow, ABC Family will be showing a Christmas movie for what I understand to be almost every day until, well, Christmas.
8.  I went to Wal-Mart yesterday the "2009 Official Toy Guide" was thrust into my face before I could even get in the door.
7.  The mall sign is advertising when Santa will be arriving.
6.  Stores are playing Christmas music.
5.  I went to the holiday open houses in Columbus this weekend, which is always one of my favorite activities to kick off the holiday season.
4.  Only now does sipping on hot chocolate start to feel right.
3.  My house is totally decorated for Christmas (and has been since last Monday), and the first thing I do every day when I get home is twinkle light this place up.  I also went to see A Christmas Carol yesterday, and it was a straight shot into the Christmas season if I've ever seen one.
2.  The weather is just pleading for sweaters and scarves and all sorts of cool-weather attire.
1.  Even my iPod knows it's Christmas, for it is shuffling far more holiday tunes my way than it did before last week.  See, even the machines know, and you know you can't fight the machines.
So, what are you thinking?  Is it Christmastime in  your life, or do you think I'm a holiday-crazed freak totally jumping the gun??

Beauty of the Sea

Bdbdbdbdbdbdbdbdbdbdbdbdbdbdbdbdbdbdb.........(drumroll. duh.)

Here they are...

Beach pictures.

If you can't tell by the week-long hype, I'm pretty proud of these.  To tell the truth, I'm just glad to have concrete proof of how beatiful my time at the beach was.  I've been to the beach more times than I can count in my life, this same beach, in fact.

Never have I ever seen it look like this.

While this is a chunk of pictures, the majority are on Facebook, so please check them out there.  In the meantime, sit back and relax... smell the salt in the breeze and hear the waves crash on the sand.

It's gooby, I know... but just go with it.

Point of View

Do you ever wonder what it would be like to look at life from somebody else's perspective?  Walk in someone else's shoes?  Each day dawns differently for each person, and sometimes I get curious about other people's point of view. 
It seems to me that, every day, each one of us is fighting our own battles.  Some of us are dying to fit in, while others are just looking for a chance to stand out.  Some of us would do anything to find a person to share every second with, while others are desperate for a moment alone.  Some of us would give our last dollar and our every breath to have a child to call our own, while others destroy the ones they have before they're even given the chance to live--or by slowly chipping away at every fiber of their being.
Some of us twirl brown hair around our fingers, willing it to be blonde when we look in the mirror.  We wish we were taller, shorter, smarter, thinner, richer, curvier, prettier, more well-endowed.  We wish we could just be a part of the crowd and blend in, but we're unsatisfied if we're never in the spotlight.  We would do anything to be invited, but sometimes we find ourselves longing for a quiet night at home, wishing we could skip out on the party.
Some of us are scared to death of what tomorrow may bring, but we're unbelievably hasty in wishing away today.
Anyway, I don't know what all of that (or any of it, actually) means.  Maybe nothing.  I don't have a moral of this little diatribe or something I've recently learned from my own life.  I was just thinking about all of this and wondered if all these differences make us, ultimately, the same?
Yikes... sameness.  How utterly ordinary.
Or possibly somewhat comfortable and cozy...
I don't know.  I'm clearly rambling.  Perhaps you have some insight?
In other news, the beach was beyond amazing.  The food, the weather, the company--all stellar.  I'm working on paring down and editing my hundreds of pics, so hopefully I'll have those all up in the next few days.  In the meantime, however, I'll leave you with this little tease, one of my early favorites:

Hope everyone had a wonderful Halloween and November is off to a great start!

November... wow.  Can y'all believe that?!  Where did 2009 go??

La La La

I am so Daria sometimes.  Do y'all remember Daria?  I wasn't really allowed to watch this show when it came on MTV, but, being the "rebellious" high schooler that I was, I would sneakily watch Daria and totally obviously nonchalantly flip the channel when my mom would pop into the room.

Even then I knew I had some definite Daria-isms in me.  In college, I pitched this persona to my friends, and the few who had a clue what I was talking about totally saw the resemblance.  In fact, I was Daria for Halloween a few years ago, but most people just thought I was wearing some bizarro ensemble instead of an actual costume.  Thinking back, the irony in that situation is so Daria.

"People call me a feminist whenever I express sentiments that differentiate me from a doormat or a prostitute."

Anyway, Tuesday was a definite Daria day.  I woke up late; I got scolded at work and sat at my desk with my jaw clenched while tears rolled down my face; it was freezing cold outside and looked like the middle of January; I was on campus from before 8 AM until after 9 PM; I had to miss So You Think You Can Dance (only my favorite show) because of stupid class; I had a hole in my sock and water in my shoe.

That, however, was Tuesday, and yesterday was a whole different story, for yesterday looked something like this:

Green with envy yet?  Sorry, sorry don't mean to rub it in.

Just know that, until Sunday when I have to leave beautiful Destin, Florida, I'll be living the good life and wishing you were all here to share it with me.  Today was about 80 degrees, gorgeous sun, great breeze blowing--in other words, perfection.

I've already taken about six hundred so many pictures, so you'll feel like you were right here with me, don't you worry about that.  I hope everyone's getting excited about a fun Halloween weekend.  I know it will be a different kind of holiday here on the shore, but I couldn't imagine being anywhere better.

Daria days?  Not in Destin, that's for sure.