Epilogue

Now that I've reached the end of this semester, I'm meeting it with mixed emotions. On one hand, I'm excited to start this new chapter of my life. On the other hand, I'm really nervous. It's tough to shift gears when I've been here at Camden County for four years. I mean, it's always scary when the status quo changes, right?

Still, I'm just barely a teenager now. I'll be 20 in less than a year, hardly the child I was when I started here. But, am I an adult yet? Absolutely not. I am by no means wise enough to warrant that title.

This blog has been a pretty neat experience. I'm glad I did it, but honestly, I probably won't do it anymore. It's just so awkward, really.

Anyway, I said at the beginning of this that the first post was the first step of my journey. That journey is now over. It's time to start the next one.

Cliché enough for ya? ;) I hope you enjoyed reading my posts more than I enjoyed writing them.

Goodbye, and God bless ya! :)

Gas Station Generosity

I ran by Wawa to get some gas the other day. First of all, being from Pennsylvania originally, I love having people to pump your gas for you. It hasn't gotten to be normal yet for me. But it's pretty awesome.

So, after I gave the guy my card, I got out and started cleaning the windows on my car. This guy walks up and asks me if I wanted help, and promptly takes the squeegie-thingy and starts cleaning my windows.

My first thought was, 'Oh, this guy clearly wants money,' but I had no cash on me. So I said, "Thanks, but I don't really have anything to give you." He just smiled at me and said, "No problem. Just here to help."

With it being so hot out, it was greatly appreciated. I felt so bad that I literally had no money on me. I really would have given him something, but I couldn't. Plus, I'm not entirely sure he would have wanted it. Once he finished up, he just smiled and walked inside.

Random acts of kindness are the best. :)

Roadkill

So, today we woke up, went on our back deck, and saw a lovely dead rabbit in our backyard. I have no idea how it got there. All I told my mom is that I didn't want it there. I mean, I felt so bad. It made me really upset. So, my mom calls Animal Control and asks them if they'll pick up dead animals. Apparently... they don't.

BUT, they picked up two dead starlings on our property last summer, but apparently they can't be bothered to get rid of a dead rabbit in our yard. I'm sorry, I am NOT about to go and get rid of it myself. I have an unnatural fear of anything dead, whether it be a bug or a rabbit. The guy we talked to could barely be bothered to even listen to us. He made it painfully clear that he didn't really care what we had to say.

So yeah, I have a dead rabbit in my backyard, and no one seems to be able to get rid of it. =/

We All Scream for Ice Cream

We went to our local ice cream joint not too long ago. It's awesome. I used to be a die-hard Dairy Queen fan. Like, NOTHING could beat DQ. Until I found this place. We've lived here for nine years, and every summer we go there at least 4 times a week. Wow, that makes us sound like pigs or something. ;)

Anyway, I went over with my sister, and the owner was there. She recognizes us (I'd hope so after 9 years), and we were chatting. I've been trying to get a job there for three summers now, but she rehires everyone she had last summer, so it's almost impossible to get in. :( Anyways.

I ordered some chocolate soft serve to bring back for my mom. Unfortunately, not because I'm so awesome that I thought of her. I mean, I did... but she asked me to bring some back. But just because she likes us, the owner gave me a large instead of a regular, and only charged me for the regular. I love that. Makes me feel like she really cares.

Now I want some ice cream. I may have to run out and get some. :)

Hits Close to Home

So, I've come to expect that people aren't always going to be polite. At times they'll be rude, condescending, or just obnoxious. But I didn't expect it to come from a friend.

So basically, I recently became friends with a very interesting group of people. It's pretty cool. We've got people from all walks of life, and it makes for a pretty good time. However, some of the people have an issue with being slightly overly-sensitive.

One of my friends has this issue... whenever she gets offended by something, she just doesn't say anything about it, and then it builds up and builds up until it becomes this huge deal. The entire thing could be avoided if she would just tell me if I offended her. Because I'm a bit clueless about these sorts of things. I'm used to the idea that I'm going to offend people, especially if we get onto topics like religion or politics.

But, that doesn't change the fact that it's a bit ridiculous to not tell me what offends her, and then suddenly make this huge drama about it. I mean, that's not fair to me. I'm no psychic or mindreader. I can't tell if I've offended her, because she doesn't mention it! It's not fair in the slightest, because then I'm constantly walking on eggshells around her, afraid to say anything for fear of upsetting her.

The reason I'm posting this is because I'm kind of in the middle of one of these situations right now. I have absolutely no idea how I offended her, but I haven't seen her or spoken to her in a couple months. And eventually we'll start talking again, until something else comes up and starts a whole different problem.

It's getting on my last nerve. I don't even know what to do anymore. I'd like to be her friend, but if I can't be myself around her, I'm not sure I should. Any advice?

Update: AC Moore Redemption

So I took another trip to AC Moore, and it restored my faith in the store hiring amiable people. I was still working on an art project for my Visual Arts class, (my asymmetrical, free-spinning mobile). So, after spending all afternoon researching how to make a mobile free-spinning and asymmetrical, and studying Alexander Calder's work, I packed up, grabbed my sketch, and headed off to AC Moore. This was my second trip there for this mobile, but this time, it went much better.

Once I got there, I flagged down an associate (albeit slightly dubiously), and asked him if he had any ideas on what I could put on a mobile to make it interesting. He immediately brought me over to the wood section, with all the little wood models. He started pulling out a couple and suggesting different themes for a mobile. Eventually, I settled on summer, and he then walked me around and pulled out a bunch of wood pieces, helping me decide on a fence, lawn chair, birdhouse, and picnic basket.

Then I asked him if he knew where I could get little decorations for the pieces. He brought me over to the section and we spent 10 minutes pulling out little plastic decorations to glue onto the pieces. Finally, after 45 minutes, I had all my stuff ready, and had had a great time.

This has completely restored my faith in AC Moore. :)

Here's a picture of my completed mobile:

I love it, and so did my teacher. I got an A in that class. =D

More Makeup and Fun

DISCLAIMER AGAIN: This post is also full of makeup and fun, girly stuff.

The other day, my mom, sister and I went to Ulta again. This time, it was for my sister. Her foundation is just all wrong for her. I mean, all wrong. It kinda turns orange on her skin, and she says it makes her look like an Oompa Loompa. So we went to visit my friend Lex who works there.

She was amazing.

First thing she did was sit my sister down and ask her what kind of stuff she wants for her makeup, and then proceeded to get the perfect shade for her. My sister went from looking like an Oompa Loompa to having perfectly even skin tone. I'm jealous. lol

But the coolest part was that she gave us a free gift that we'd have to spend $35 dollars to get. She said it was because we're always so good about getting stuff from her company (StudioGear) that we earned it. We only spent about $20 that day, but we still got a great makeup bag that my sister can now use. :)

I love that girl. She's so much fun.

Not Lost, Just an Adventure

Over spring break, I went to a high school production of "Jekyll and Hyde" the musical. Although it was a great time, and I thoroughly enjoyed it, it was the trip there that got on this blog. :)

I live in Berlin, which is in Winslow township. The school I was going to was Pitman High school, which is pretty far from my house. I checked it out on Google Maps, punched it into my GPS, and set off with my sister to go see a play.

45 minutes later, I'm frantically looking at my printout maps, yelling at my GPS because it keeps "Recalculating," and staring hopelessly around for a sign for the high school. I mean, it's the high school, there's gotta be a sign... right?

Wrong.

Apparently, the town is so small (no offense to anyone from Pitman, this is what my Pitman-resident friends say), that no one can find anything. I must have driven up and down the same road five or six times. The people were probably getting dizzy watching us drive back and forth. I finally pulled into a Produce Junction and went in to ask for directions to the school.

The cashier had no idea where the school was. Figures that the one person I ask isn't even from the town. However, an elderly gentleman standing over by the potatoes overheard my question. He responded with his own question, "Wait, Pitman has a high school?" He cracked a grin and came over. After chuckling at his own joke, he ambled over and told me exactly where to turn to get to the school. I thanked him profusely and hurried out to the car. I followed the directions, and found the school! Thank goodness. I was so grateful for that old gentleman, otherwise I never would have made it for the play. I got to see my friend in it, and had a great time.

I actually made it to the play 10 minutes early. Phew, talk about cutting it close! :)

Applebee's is Awesome at Midnight

Last weekend my mom, sister, and I went to Applebee's at midnight after hanging out at my friend's house all night. We met up with some more friends there for a midnight snack. It was so weird being the only people in the restaurant. I mean, does no one like to go out to restaurants at midnight? ;)

Anyway, while we were there, we started chatting about different types of music. One of the Black Eyed Peas songs came on and we started trying to list off the names of the members. For the life of us, we could not remember all four names. This went on for a good ten minutes, long after the song ended. Finally, we asked our waitress if she happened to know the name of all the Black Eyed Peas. She said she didn't, but she could find out for us. She went and got her cellphone (WITH Internet--I'm so jealous), and looked it up for us. Then, since there was no reason for her to keep going around serving people, we ended up chatting with her about her favorite types of music, too.

We got there at 11:30 PM and didn't leave until 12:50 AM. We had meant to just be there for half an hour at the most, but we had so much fun talking with our waitress that time just kind of slipped away. It was a great deal of fun, and I definitely need to go back to Applebee's this late at night. :)

Yo Quiero Taco Bell

Today I went to Taco Bell for lunch today. Very rarely that I do this, but I was really feeling tacos. So, I swung by on my way out to run some errands. The lady behind the register recognizes me, because I used to go there a lot last semester. Anyway. So, I was there, and she recognized me. We chatted a bit and then I ordered.

The really nice thing was, though, that she gave me my drink for free. Just because I'm friendly and I like chatting with people I see often? It was really nice, though, and totally made my day. :)

Adventures at the Honda Dealer

I went to the car dealership to get my AC fixed, as I already said. I decided I was going to be all hip and cool and bring my netbook along and get some work done in my online class. So, I dropped the car off, turned my netbook on... and nothing. I couldn't get the Internet. AT. ALL. The little card I got to sign up for their network thing... yeah, not working at all. So I flagged down an employee and asked him what was wrong with the Internet. He, in turn, flagged down the resident "technical" guy, who had absolutely no idea what was wrong.

We must have spent, like, half an hour on this. The main reason we had issues was because this netbook has Windows 7 on it, which I am completely unfamiliar with. Unfortunately, so was the "technical" guy. Finally, after 40 minutes, we exhausted every other option, so he reset the router. Twice. After that, the Internet finally began working. He apologized profusely, saying that the router being way in the back under a counter was the main reason. Apparently, they have to reset the router three times a day. Wow.

I was just so appreciative of the guy taking time out of his day to help me out. It really made my day. :)

More Grumps at AC Moore

I think that AC Moore might just go out of their way to hire the grumpiest people they can find. This is the second time in a relatively short period of time that I've met seriously grumpy employees at AC Moore. I was in there a week or so ago to pick up some supplies for an art project, and I got to the register. The cashier didn't look at me, didn't respond me when I said hello, and refused to acknowledge me any more than the barest minimum. I was rather annoyed. It's not like I was mean to her or anything. What is it with depressed people at AC Moore? I don't know. Guess there isn't much to say about this anymore.

I Just Get Lucky at Coffee Shops

So, I was on my way to the car dealer to get the AC on my truck fixed. Let me tell you, it was NOT fun having no air conditioning when it got really hot a couple weeks ago. So, I stopped by Starbucks to get a coffee, because I'm a caffeine addict... maybe I shouldn't admit that. :) Anyway. I ordered just a regular tall coffee. When I got my coffee, I realized it was a venti instead of a tall. So I mentioned it to the barrista, and he said, "Oh, I did that on purpose." And then he smiled at me.

I was a little surprised, but grateful. It's like, every time I go to a coffee shop, I get free stuff. I swear, I'm not begging for it! What's up with that?? I almost feel like I should be refusing. =/

Still, it was pretty nice. :)

Grumpy Arts & Crafts

It never ceases to amaze me how straight-out grumpy people in retail get. I mean, I can understand and relate, since I've held a job in retail before over a summer. However, even when I was having the worst of days, I always tried my best to appear bright, cheerful and happy to be there. Let me tell you, it was a struggle, and most the time I didn't feel like bothering. But, it all paid off. When I left that job, I was second-highest in the department in customer service, and I had only been there a month and a half.

On Saturday, I ran out to AC Moore to pick up some pieces for an art project. We just got a new teacher in our art class--our old teacher had an emergency C-Section and was required to leave the class. I'm still not sure how I feel about our new teacher, but I'm going to reserve judgment for now. Our new teacher is having us make a mobile, which to be quite honest, I have no idea how to make. Undeterred, I ran over to the store to pick up some pieces. While I was there, I found a great sale on a candle-wick snipper. We are notorious for burning candles in our house--one of these days we'll probably start a fire--and all our candles always have too-long wicks, so I picked it up and went to the register with my crafty pieces.

The cashier didn't smile, mumbled the entire time, and when I cautiously asked her what she had said, she looked at me like I was wasting her time. Hmph. I decided I wasn't going to seem irritated and put on a cheerful exterior, though inside I was indignant. I've noticed I get offended very easily, which may be most of the reason that these sorts of situations happen to me. If I didn't let them bother me, maybe I wouldn't notice them as much.

Anyway, she rang up the items I wanted, and when she came to the candle-wick clipper, it rang up at full price. I was surprised, so I asked her exactly how much that thing cost. $7? Was she serious? It was on sale for $3.99! I politely explained that there was a sale sign on the display, and she insisted it was not on sale. I even went over, picked the sign off the display and brought it back and showed her. Her response was to call a manager and begin insisting that the item wasn't on sale, regardless of the sign.

One thing I had determined was not to get nasty about anything and to remain very polite and cheerful. I chatted nonchalantly with the manager, every so often throwing in an, "That's so strange--I really thought it was on sale." I was actually trying a piece of advice my mother always said. Whenever she was in a situation like this, she says the best thing to do is, "Either blab their ears off so they finally just give it to you to get rid of you, or you stay very quiet and let them handle it." Since I had been chatting before the manager came over, I didn't think I should stop now.

Finally the manager burst out, "Just give it to her for $4!" And hurried away. I have to admit, that wasn't exactly polite either, but I wasn't going to complain. I'd gotten what I wanted. I paid for the items and left.

I hate having to say this. My 19-yr-old brain doesn't want to comprehend this, but...

Mom was right.

A Friend In Need

DISCLAIMER: This is a rather girly post dealing with makeup and a salon. If this stuff scares you, read on at your own risk! ;)

Today I got a chance to go out and enjoy the beginning of what is going to be a spectacular weekend. We went to the local ice cream joint that just opened for the season. Definitely excited for warmer weather!

We also went to Ulta today so my sister could get her eyebrows waxed (ouch!). While I was there, I saw my friend who works there. She's such a sweetheart. Instead of scheduling a proper appointment and charging us $50 a person to get our makeup done, she does it for free for prom and the Halloween masquerade ball we attend. She's a dear. And today she proved it again.

I bought this StudioGear foundation the other day, and it's almost perfect. It's got nice, even coverage that helps even my skin out without giving me that flat look of a made-up face. I love it. The only problem is that I have very oily skin. This foundation does NOT help at all. In fact, it makes my skin more oily.

So, I was talking to her about it, and I mentioned the issue I was having. Immediately, she said, "Oh, just exchange it." I told her I couldn't, because I'd already opened it. She grinned at me and said, "Listen, I'll be in tomorrow. If you text me before you come by, I'll work it out so you can exchange it." She even put one of the proper ones aside for me, because it's their most popular kind.

She's so awesome. :) It's great to have a friend like that. So, yay! I'm getting my proper foundation tomorrow.

The Anonymity of the Internet

A lot of people love the idea of anonymity.

I'll be the first to admit that I like being anonymous on the Internet. I personally don't want people knowing everything I'm doing. No privacy whatsoever. However, what I don't like is when people take that anonymity and abuse it.

It happens everywhere. Forums, social networking sites, blogs, comment sections--any place that allows you to create a user name completely unrelated to your name is a prime situation for flaming.

I started noticing it more on online articles in the past weeks. I typically check on the results of 'Dancing With The Stars' on Wednesday, having typically watched 'American Idol' the night before instead of the DWTS results. The amount of hateful speech that flies around in those comments is shocking. With Kate Gosselin on the show, every other post is demeaning and cruel. I can understand if someone doesn't like her (I'm not a big fan myself), but the amount of... just straight out meanness on those articles is ridiculous. Are we all such petty individuals that we feel the need to spew that negativity onto the Internet about a REALITY SHOW, which isn't even REAL??

And forget the articles, on the social networking sites, it's even worse. I've had similar experiences on Facebook where people have been so hurtful that it's actually brought me to tears. And worse yet, it came at the hands of a friend.

To make a long story short, I posted a Bible verse on a Christian-themed fan page. I'm a Christian myself, and my faith means everything to me. It's also a very sensitive subject for me. So, I thought, 'well, if I can post this verse anywhere, it's gonna be on this page.' So I posted it and thought nothing more of it. What I hadn't expected was a response to my post.

A person posted a response that was not only filled with vulgar language, but scattered with incredibly hurtful comments that had me literally crying at my computer. I had no idea who the person was, as their name was "Anonymous Jane" or something like that. So, I deleted my post and stayed away from Facebook for a bit.

When I returned about two weeks later, I noticed a conversation going on between two of my friends. One of my friends had posted a link to an article where a man claiming to be a Christian was ranting about killing gays, lesbians, Muslims, etc. Everything that I believe in--this man was saying the exact opposite. But what got me even more upset was what my friends were saying about Christians. My one friend, whom I had always trusted to accept my ideals and beliefs without judgment, was saying word for word what that anonymous user had posted on my post.

Perhaps it was only coincidence. Maybe it wasn't really her. Either way, it really upset me that she had always pretended to be fine with my faith, but in the relative "safety" of a conversation between friends, she revealed how much she hated what I believed in.

So, just remember what our mothers always used to tell us. "If you don't have something nice to say, don't say it at all." You never know who your comments may hurt.

Movie Magic

Over the weekend, I went to see 'Alice in Wonderland' in 3D at the Loew's theatre in Cherry Hill. I went with my sister, my mom and her friend, and two of my friends, and we all met up at the theatre for the midnight showing. My mom and I waited in line to purchase the tickets. My mom bought three tickets for the IMAX 3D showing and paid, using a coupon she had from our Entertainment book (btw, I love this thing--saves us SO much money!). As she finished paying, I realized something...

We had only bought three tickets.

I, my mom, my sister, and my best friend all needed tickets.

Three tickets. Four people.

And a 20-minute line behind us...

I told my mom she had forgotten a ticket, which of course got her very flustered (she's not used to going out with four people). She asked the guy at the counter if she could quick buy another ticket, which he agreed to. As she's going to pay, she suddenly blurts out,

"Oh, but now I used my coupon already!"

I'm not sure how many people know this (I would assume quite a few since it was on the news), but they just raised the prices of 3D movies by about $4, I believe. The coupon was for $4 off. So, it makes a difference.

Now would you believe it, the guy behind the counter grinned and punched in the code for the coupon again. "Don't tell anyone." He said, winking as he run up the ticket with the coupon price. It definitely made my night. That, and the amazing movie. :)

I love the Loew's theatre. Definitely going back to see another 3D movie.

Surprise at Starbucks

So, last Tuesday, I went to Starbucks as part of my morning run. I normally would hit Wawa on the way, but I was craving a latte something fierce. So, I was waiting in line at Starbucks, and this woman ahead of me had a print-out coupon. So, out of curiosity, I asked her what it was. She explained that it was Free Pastry day, if you had a coupon. I asked her how long it was going, and she said until 10:30 AM. I nodded and then went back to deciding on my latte.

As she walked away and I approached the counter, she suddenly turned to me and handed me a coupon. I made to politely refuse, but she explained that she had printed out an extra coupon in case anyone wanted one. She then handed it to me and walked away.

I just thought that was really nice, to go out of your way like that for somebody. It made my day. :)

Shopping Cart Shocker

I've come to notice that everyone has a distinct style of pushing a shopping cart.

First, there are the normal people who push their carts normally and try to be aware of everyone else. They're not factoring into this discussion, however. So, continuing:

There are the zoners. You know, they slowly push the cart down the aisle with their elbows as they stare aimlessly off into empty space. It's annoying because it's almost impossible to get their attention so you can get around them. I would compare them to the rush-hour driver--the one that is so drained from work that they just choose a lane and sit there the entire time.

Then, there are the zoomers (these are terribly mature names, right?). These are the ones who run with their carts down the aisles, come to a skidding halt, grab their stuff, and take off again. Sometimes they jump on the cart and coast along. Not only are they annoying, but that can be dangerous too. Just last week I was part of a terrible 3-cart pileup in ShopRite. The kid didn't stop his cart in time, and plowed straight into mine, which sent mine careening into an old man's cart next to me. These are the speed-demon drivers that feel the need to burn half their wheels off as they zoom off from a stoplight, and weave in and out of traffic like a stuntman.

And finally, there are the swervers. These are the ones that slide back and forth across the aisle and effectively prevent you from getting past them. They're the jerk drivers who feel the need to cut you off and then go nice and slow (like 15-20 mph below the speed limit).

I ran into (not literally) one of these guys today. He kept weaving his cart back and forth, and every time I tried to squeeze past him, he would move his cart to block me. And all while maintaining a snail's pace. When I tried to slip past into the aisle I wanted, he jerked his cart, hit mine and turned into the aisle ahead of me. Then, nonchalantly, he turned around and pushed his cart away. I couldn't believe it.

I don't know what I should have said, so I didn't say anything at all. I'm noticing a trend. When people are rude, it shocks me, and I end up saying nothing. Am I letting them all just push me around? Should I try to be tougher? But this guy was at least twice my age. I was raised to respect my elders. Ugh. Now I'm just giving myself a headache.

On that note, I think I'll sign off for now. Till later, dears. :)

A Not-So-Good Eating in the Neighborhood

So, I went to Applebee's today. Now, I'm not hating on Applebee's. I love the restaurant. Unfortunately, even the best food can be ruined by lousy service. We were seated nice and quick, and our waitress came to give us our menus. After we ordered our food, we proceeded to wait.

And wait.

And wait.

And wait!

About an hour later, we got our food. Completely cold. And our waitress proceeded to vanish. I didn't see her for another twenty minutes or so until she walked by again. By that time, we had finished eating and our empty plates were sitting in front of us. She walked right by and began chatting with the girl behind the bar. Thinking she might not have known we were done, I put my napkin on my plate. 15 minutes later, she finally came up and asked us if we were done with our food. Yeah, I was done all right.

We still ended up tipping her 15%. I don't know, should we have complained to the manager? Maybe tipped her less? Either way, a waitress ignoring us like that is ridiculous. I'm just not sure what I should have done. Any suggestions?

A Shocking Display of Indifference

So, I went to an arcade with my friends last weekend. It was one of those arcades where you get the card with the points, and each card holds a different number of points, and each card costs different. Having never been to this particular arcade before, I was staring at the list in complete confusion. My purse was jingling with quarters I had brought with me, assuming it would be the typical arcade with the quarters. So, while I was trying to reason out the point system, my friends went and bought their own cards.

However, as soon as my friends had purchased their cards, the woman behind the counter turned and walked away. For several seconds, I stood there and watched her depart before hurrying after her and apologetically explaining that I needed to buy a card, too. However, I was shocked when she curtly replied she was on break now, and I would have to be patient until someone could come and take care of me. I asked her when someone might be along to help me and she sighed exasperatedly.

"How should I know?" She snapped and walked away.

I still can't believe that someone would act this way to a customer. I mean, I understand having a bad day, and I understand that working in a service position is very taxing, and the break is a bright speck in a very dark and difficult day, but to act with such indifference and incivility is just...

I mean, how would she feel if our positions were flipped? Would she feel I was justified in my actions? Or would she, like me, feel wronged and angered?

I've noticed that situations like this seem to happen to me a lot. Am I the problem? Am I just being overly sensitive? I don't know. What do you typically do when something like that happens? I didn't really know how to respond, so I just sort of stood around like a moron. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

I'm out. Good night. :)

Who Says Chivalry Is Dead?

This morning, on the way to class, I was dead tired. Like, a-la Night of the Living Dead kind of tired. I've gone most of this week with minimal sleep, and it started really taking its toll. I'm normally pretty tired without caffeine, but today it seemed like nothing would wake me up. Until I got out of the car. One zap of that cold, snowy wind and I was awake. That, and a slip in the slush that landed me on my butt. I had just enough time to register the uncomfortable sensation of my jeans getting colder by the second, when I felt a hand grab my arm and lift me back to my feet. I looked up and saw this very tall, rather large man looking at me with concern.

"Are you all right?" He asked, picking up my purse and handing it back to me.

When I assured him that I was fine, he held the door for me as I went into Wawa. I was slightly shaken up. I'm a clumsy person normally, but add slush and ice, and I'm hopeless. Last semester, during a torrential rain storm, I fell down a flight of stairs in the CIM building with my back hitting each step. For a couple seconds, I couldn't feel or move at all, and ever since then, I've had a fear of falling.

But anyway, to top it all off, he saw me in line to pay, and waited around so he could get the door for me again on my way out. Now, if that isn't the nicest thing a stranger has done for me, I don't know what is.

I've never been able to understand those women who complain when a man holds the door for them, or pulls a chair out for them. I mean, doesn't that just make it more convenient for us? Not every man means it as a slight against us. Some just genuinely want to help. And yet, I listen to my friends who can't believe that a man had the nerve to let them go first into Wawa. Really?


If we keep this up, won't we end up deterring all men from wanting to go out of their way for us? Or am I just being gloom-and-doom over here? Maybe. Doesn't mean I'm wrong, though. ;)

Either way, it was a very kind thing for him to do for me. To go out of his way and stand in the cold and wind to help a sleep-deprived college student? That's a kindness of spirit that you don't see all that often anymore.

Anyway, I'm off to catch up on some of that sleep. Good night, and talk to you soon. :)

It Didn't Take Long

I am incredibly irritated right now. I just got back from bowling with my sister's friends, and we actually had a great time. However, I just don't understand how some people can be so incredibly inconsiderate.

I am not referring to my sister's friends, just to get that out there. I am actually referring to a family at the alley where we bowled. I was standing in line to get my shoes (slightly to the side so I could get a better look at the arcade behind the station) when a large family pushed past me and planted themselves in line in front of me. I thought that maybe they didn't realize that I was in line, so, in my politest manner, I asked them if they knew that the line was behind me, to which the mother replied, "Well, you can wait now." And promptly turned her back and ignored me.

Once at the counter, she made a scene when her coupon wasn't going to count for all 5 of the games the family played. She refused to listen when the poor girl said that it counted on a maximum of three games. I had to bite my tongue the entire time to keep from saying something equally rude myself. I worked in retail over the summer, and had dealt with my fair share of rudeness, so I was very much on the side of the employee. Finally, the manager sorted the entire situation out, and I got my shoes. The poor girl looked so frazzled from her previous customer that she gave me the wrong size shoes. I don't know if people like that woman realize their affect on others. And why on God's green earth would someone be so downright cruel to someone who is doing them a service by taking care of them? My personal philosophy is that everyone should work in retail for minimum of one season. They will never be cruel or nasty to them again.

However, I am happy to report sightings of some humanity as well. I went to a coffee shop not too long ago to hang out with some friends. When my sister and I got there, we were the only people in the entire shop. It was kind of neat. We sat down to wait, and the manager began talking to us a bit. Just casual conversation, but it passed the time until my friends arrived. Later, when I went to go buy my drink, he gave me a 10% discount.

"What for?" I asked, very surprised.

"Oh, just because you were talking earlier and didn't get weirded out by me talking to you."

And a little bit later, he brought tortilla chips, salsa and sour cream for the entire table for free. And, he also offered us the remaining muffins from the day. "They may not be very fresh, but you can have them if you want." That's the kind of thing that can just turn a day around for me. I will certainly continue visiting this shop in the future.

So, I guess it didn't take too long to find some instances of the extremes in our behaviors. Until next time. :)

Prologue

As I sit here, hesitantly typing a few words here and there, I'm getting progressively more anxious. It's rather surprising. I expected to be able to throw up long, intelligent posts with minimal effort. I've been posting online for many years, and it's as second-nature as talking. I didn't realize this whole "blogging" idea would be so intimidating. But, as the saying goes, "the journey of a thousand steps begins with the first step." So, this is my first step.

Have any of you had one of those days? One of those days when everything just seems to go wrong? By the time you get on the road to go home, you're so frustrated that you just feel like screaming? Maybe this only happens to me, but I find that after a particularly rough day, it seems like the entire world is out to get you. You get stuck behind the one driver on the road who will drive 15 mph below the speed limit, which is already an agonizing 35 mph. The route home has a five car pileup that lengthens your commute by an hour. And when you finally get to the supermarket, they're completely out of milk and eggs. Yeah, I mean one of those days.

And has it ever happened that, when your irritation is bubbling just beneath the surface, a random stranger goes out of their way to do something nice for you? Maybe they let you ahead of them in the already crowded checkout line. Maybe they give you an extra coupon they're not using. Just a little gesture that shows you that there are people in the world who are caring enough... to care.

Of course, there's the other extreme. The people who seem to live for nothing but to get ahead, and they don't care how many people they tramProxy-Connection: keep-alive
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e on in their climb to the top.

Maybe you run into one of them in the supermarket, where they jam their cart into yours to cut ahead into the checkout line. Unfortunately, life is not one big happy fairytale, where everyone lives in the Valley of Contentment in the Land of Kindness. Sometimes, people are really kind. And sometimes, they're jerks.

This blog will be serving as my place to offer encouraging examples of the humanity of the populace, as well as the inconsideration of those jerks out there, hopefully spun in a humorous manner.

So, I invite you along with me as I chronicle the ups and downs of the people in the world. It might be a fun ride! :-)