Well, a lot of them, anyway. All of mine, certainly! I mean, I once saw a rough-looking guy with "FUCK ALL YOUS BITCHES" tattooed on his forearms, in the doctor's office waiting room, of all places! I didn't particularly like that one, although I'm sure there was an... interesting story behind it.
And when it comes to tattoos, I know I'm not alone! Especially people around my age.. we've really grown up seeing them on on actors, musicians, friends, siblings, parents. You know, Pocahontas had one, and so did most of the Spice Girls!
I think to my generation, tattoos are common enough that we don't see the... extremity of them, just their individuality, their creativity. To me, they are just another form of expression, a way of showing the world something is important to us. The saying "Wearing my heart on my sleeve" has now become "Wearing my love in my skin." Well, mostly! The guy in the doctor's office was obviously going in a different direction.
But I also know some people don't really like tattoos at all. And that's okay, too. Absolutely! I know a lot of my family members would fall into this category. Sometimes I just wish I could show you tattoos through my eyes! They are a way to celebrate, to mourn, to love, to learn, to change. And I don't bring this up so that you want to go out and get tattoos, of course not! I just wish I could explain it so you might understand why it is I love them, and love getting them.
This totally surprises me, but at 24, I already have moments when I think, "Those kids today! They do the weirdest things!" even though I'm only a few years ahead of them. These kiddo's fascination with Justin Bieber, I will never get. Or shaving off half their eyebrows. Or eating "McNasties" at McDonalds. I can only figure this is what some older generations think about tattoos. Or dyeing our hair or piercing our bodies in odd places.
I am very family-oriented, and I HATE disappointing my family and making them mad at me. Getting tattoos shouldn't make them angry, but I worry that it will... I just hope they know that me getting tattooed is never to hurt them, but to feel better about myself.
And I have devised a plan! A creative, effective plan! As I have written previously, I am working on my first book. I originally gave myself a deadline of Christmas this year to finish writing, but then I went and got blood clots in my lungs and, later, had to change some of my meds around. Excuses, excuses, I know! Well, I decided that only after completing the book will I allow myself to get any more tattoos. It's been about 6 years since my last one! And what strange things will I someday be tattooing? you ask. Strange things like my Otis' pawprint, of course! :) And different sayings and symbol that are important to me. Nothing crazy, or in crazy places. Just things I can look at and smile.
Like my crazy hair, my tattoos are just another way I feel unique and individual and attractive.
As we all know, last night was the final televised Presidential Debate. I will admit, I have never before watched one in it's entirety. But last night, I DVR'd it, and watched it afterwards. I paused and jumped back a couple times, mostly in "Did they just say what I think they said?" incredulity.
But I am glad I watched it! It didn't change my mind, it just made me feel even more strongly about certain issues... and people. Ohhhh, I have strong feelings about some people! But last night made me totally and completely realize, while I certainly prefer one candidate over the other, I'm still not a huge fan of either! But what can we do, right? We're kind of stuck, right?
WRONG!
I would like to introduce you to the newest, brightest, bestest presidential candidate of our time... OTIS!
Otis is a United States citizen, born here in the great state of New Mexico (yes, it's a state, not a country). She was born in 2004, making her meet (in dog years) the age qualification. She is a powerful, passionate member of the Canine party. She was born into absolute poverty, but she overcame it! She once took a DNA test, and the results came up as incredibly varied... a rich cultural history, which is what this country is founded upon!
Some other presidential qualities...
Otis is fluent in English and Dog-Speak, not to mention the bits of Spanish, Elvish and Dothraki she has picked up living with me.
She is undeniably smart and capable, no doubt partly due to her superior brain AND when she was a baby, she occasionally got fed human baby formula, when the store was out of puppy milk.
In response to health and fitness, Otis is an avid fan of walks, and encourages outdoor play, particularly with tennis balls and swimming pools. In fact, that is her presidential slogan:
LET'S GO FOR A WALK!
Otis has chosen for her vice president a long time family friend, colleague, and roommate, Amy! Amy is a cat, which speaks volumes about Otis' tolerance of other cultures.
Otis has done extensive traveling, and enjoys meeting new people and getting to sniff around new places. When traveling by car, she enjoys sitting in the front seat instead of relaxing in the backseat: she is very hands (paws) on!
Otis is absolutely and unequivocally a LEADER, not a follower. While she takes other's feelings into account, she is very headstrong and does not fold under pressure. For example, when told to "sit", she instead tosses her head at the idiocy of the person giving the command.
As mentioned above, Otis had a rough start in life, abandoned as an hours-old infant. But her tenacity and unwillingness to ever, ever give up has made her a stronger dog.
She has a tendency to rescue those in need, and all she asks in return is: food including hot dogs, a soft and warm bed to sleep in, a yard to explore, a clean bowl of water, WALKS, her daily arthritis pill, chew sticks, squeaky toys, tennis balls, plastic swimming pools in summer, heat sources in winter, a good occasional brushing, car rides, help hopping on top of things, lots of attention, and Chester, the incredible blue lobster toy. See? Not demanding at all.
Otis is an incredibly fast learner! ...when she wants to be. Old dogs can learn new tricks, they just have to make the decision.
Are you not totally and completely convinced? I know I am! So on November 8th, go out there and vote! Write Otis' name on the ballot.
LET'S GO FOR A WALK WITH OTIS!!
Hahaha
Sarah
P.S. Thanks Emmy and Dad for your help brainstorming
I had an appointment up in Pueblo today! I puttered around the mall a little (they've got a Halloween store open!), and I had to walk through Barnes & Noble, of course. But the most exciting thing was... I went to a movie by myself! Sound stupid? Maybe. But it felt like an accomplishment. I've never in my life gone to a movie theater by myself. I went to see... (drum-roll!)
SUICIDE SQUAD!! For the 4th time! What can I say.. I love it! And I found out that it won't be released on DVD until December sometime and I didn't want to wait that long before I saw it again. It originally came out over two months ago, and today in the theater, it was just me and some weird girl who went to the very back of the movie theater and slept the whole time.
After that, I drove back to Trinidad and met my sister and dad for Chinese food. Delicious!
I tell you all of this because I'm trying to sound like I have a super busy, crazy life and simply don't have the time to come up with good blog ideas. Ahem. Seeing as I didn't have ONE good creative blog idea, I decided to go back through my Facebook posts and share some of the funnier and more interesting ones, particularly the anecdotal ones. I shared one (see below!) the other day about a customer and his dog and a lot of people liked it. Stories of people are fun. Throwback Thursday!
October 12th, 2016
This afternoon I had an older man come in to buy some parts for a chainsaw. When he came up to the front counter to pay, he dug deep in his pockets and pulled out a handful of crumpled ones and fives, along with some loose change that clattered across the counter, and one thing more. You know the folders and binders that are really popular in grade school, the ones with the pictures of kittens and puppies in fields of flowers or fast asleep on the couch? Well, this man pulled out a similar little notepad with a fat fluffy puppy on the cover. I saw it and smiled.. who doesn't like puppies??? He followed my line of sight to the notepad and gave a quiet chuckle. He nudged it gently with his thumb and told me, "This is exactly what my dog looked like as a puppy. Mix of a German Shepherd and a Lab... smartest dog I ever met. He could spell! I'd tell him, 'Want some M-I-L-K?' and he would run over to the fridge. I'd say, 'Shh! Here comes a C-A-T!' and he would growl." He was quiet for a second, while internally I was awwwwww-ing like crazy. "Had him for 17 years," the man said. "I still miss him everyday."
So I just got home and hugged Otis for about five minutes, and kissed her nose, and told her she could never ever leave me. And then I gave her a H-O-T-D-O-G.
July 8th, 2016
If anyone ever needs proof that I'm a good person, tell them that today, at SuperSave, I pushed not only my own shopping cart, but also my father's shopping cart, and then some lazy stranger's shopping cart all the way to the cart return across the wet, soggy parking lot. You're welcome, world.
May 10th, 2016
Can I just admit something, please? I LIKE TO SING IN THE SHOWER. I am an awwwwwwful singer, but with no one around to mock me, I enjoy it. I have a rather... eclectic taste in music, so I have quite a variety of material to sing-- anywhere from Backstreet Boys' "The Call" to Lamb of God's "Omerta" (although that one is not so sing-y.) But every so often, I really feel like challenging myself...
May 4th, 2016
So I was just in Kmart getting some necessities, and a young woman approached me as I was digging through the $5.00 movie bin. "Do you work here??" she demanded, looking peeved.
"Um, no," I answered. Bewildered, I looked down at my clothes. I was wearing blue jeans, a black Star Wars T-shirt, and purple Crocs. I wasn't even wearing my ACE apron, which might throw people off.
"Oh, sorry," she said, turning pink. "I was gonna yell at you about your printer ink." She ducked her head sheepishly and turned away.
"No...problem," I managed.
I bent down to pick up the basket at my feet.
"Excuse me!" an older woman called. "Do you work here??"
"WTF!!" my subconscious squawked.
My brow furrowed. "No, sorry, I don't."
"Oh, okay," she said, looking embarrassed.
The man she was shopping with shook his head as they walked away. "No!! She works at ACE, remember?"
I texted my sister, dumbfounded. Her theory is that people recognize me from ACE, and, without thinking, assume I work there. My theory is that I just exude an air of authority.
Thoughts?
March 14th, 2016
Hi, Facebook people! I'm sorry I haven't posted much or been really active online lately... I've had a crazy few weeks! To make a long story short, I was sent to the ER where they found blood clots in my lungs and right leg, I was flown by helicopter to a hospital in Albuquerque, and I stayed there a few days while they did tests and started me on blood thinners. I am so happy to report that I am feeling fine and I am back home! I'll just be on blood thinners a while, plus I have to be on oxygen 24/7. I probably won't be online much for a while, but at the very least, when I feel up to it, I have plenty to blog about!! :) Thanks to everyone who has given support, visited me and checked up on me!
January 22nd, 2016
So! This is THE PRESENT! For my sister's birthday, I took a cheap Barbie doll and hand-made clothes to make her look like Pam Beesly from The Office. Easier said than done! I am no sewing master... I used a hot-glue gun! So I took handkerchief-size pieces of fabric, cut them into weird shapes, and glued them together. I cut and styled the Barbie's hair to look more like Pam's. I went to KMart and bought a little tiny pack of accessories to find shoes that look like Pam's white ones. Finally, because Pam is kind of pale, I white-washed the Barbie's skin with water and acrylic paint because the Barbie was a "beach" Barbie and was much too tan. Kind of dumb, but I am proud of the result!
January 9th, 2016
Question: what is it about humans vomiting that cats find so fascinating? Every time I puke I have a captivated audience
January 7th, 2016
I keep having bad dreams about showing up to Middle School Band rehearsals and having no knowledge of the music we are playing and no reeds for my clarinet. Note to subconscious: Mid School Band was TEN YEARS ago! Calm down!
December 25th, 2015
I think I hear Santa on my roof!! Either that or my festive neighbors with bad timing are setting off a bunch of fireworks...
December 7th, 2015
So for the third consecutive work day, I got totally busted jamming to the radio.. singing softly (and poorly), bopping around in a version of a dance. Black Sabbath, Taylor Swift, and "Feliz Navidad". What can I say? I have eclectic musical tastes
December 4th, 2015
What is it about homemade Christmas presents that has me spray painting outside at 10:00 at night, in 33 degree weather? I swear this happened to me last year, too...
November 22nd, 2015
Today I cleaned out my refrigerator. On the bottom shelf, towards the back, I found a burnable CD. I'm rather... puzzled
September 8th, 2015
If, like me, you ever lose track of your cats, all you have to do is:
A. Put out an empty cardboard box or
B. Try to make your bed up neatly.
I guarantee they will pop up out of nowhere
September 5th, 2015
Just saw the year's first Christmas ad on TV. September 5th... kudos, Kmart!
June 12th, 2015
Damn it, InGen! When will you learn you cannot successfully make a dinosaur-based theme park?!
May 27th, 2015
Gotta love family trips to the liquor store...
April 29th, 2015
One of the coolest scenes from one of the best movies ever! Made even cooler since Children of Bodom used parts of this requiem in their song "Red Light in My Eyes, Part 2!" I need to watch this movie again!
April 17th, 2015
Just now I was outside with Otis, throwing her tennis ball. She started digging in the soft, damp earth and I scolded her, "Don't dig up the yard! You're not a gopher." As soon as I uttered the word "gopher", she stopped mid-dig and stared at me with rapt attention. Bewildered by her odd reaction, I tried the word again. "Gopher...?" She tossed her head excitedly and ran across the yard to look me in the eyes. It took me a solid 5 minutes to figure out that when I say "gopher", like the burrowing rodent, she hears "go for", as in "go for a ride" or "go for a walk." I need to work on my enunciation...
April 1st, 2015
Just now I was outside throwing a tennis ball for Otis and a small white feather, carried by a light breeze, circled slowly in the air before gently landing next to me. I had the strong urge to tuck it into an old copy of Curious George! I don't have one here, but surely another good book will do! After all, this may be the start of my story :)
March 25th, 2015
I made this for Elizabeth Record :) It's a riddle! Haha! A very easy riddle...
March 7th, 2015
Last night I was getting ready for bed and I put Otis outside while I brushed my teeth. I took a big swig of mouthwash and swished it around while I let Otis back inside. That was when I hit my heel hard on the metal doorframe, scraping off skin and drawing blood. Normally I would have shouted and cursed because it hurt! But my mouth was full of Listerine, so, instead I collapsed onto my knees, letting out this nasal bellow like an injured cow! It's times like these that I'm glad I live alone..
March 1st, 2015
In my opinion, if you don't feel at least a little bit like a mad scientist when dyeing your hair, you're doing it wrong
February 27th, 2015
Aww, snap!
February 26th, 2015
Over the past 12 hours or so I watched Game of Thrones, Season 4 in its entirety- 10 episodes, about an hour apiece, plus breaks to let the dog out and time to re-watch certain scenes over and over because I couldn't believe they actually happened. My mind is in a dumb-struck jumble! On the bright side, I don't even remember the last time I was up this early! It just probably doesn't count because I haven't gone to bed yet...
February 1st, 2015
So I know everyone's been all pumped about the damn Super Bowl, and the scores and statistics that go along with it. But now I have a much more urgent and pressing question of chances and statistics: WILL THE GROUNDHOG SEE HIS SHADOW?
January 29th, 2015
After I got out of the shower last night, I couldn't find Otis anywhere! I looked all around the new house for her, puzzled and a little worried. Finally I found my sweet old dog, curled up in the back of my closet, sound asleep. Moving really takes it out of you!
January 27th, 2015
Today I officially moved into my new house! Earlier in the day we moved some bigger stuff over like my bed, etc, and this evening I brought over some smaller things like clothes, shampoo, and... PETS! Otis, I was not worried about: she's been riding in cars her whole life. Now the cats... sigh. I will spare you the insignificant details of our journey and just give the highlights: 20 minutes of stuffing cats into carriers, the miserable yowling of 3 pissed off cats in the car, running into a police blockade, Amy escaping from her carrier (loose in the car!), driving like a bat out of hell to end the misery, grabbing Amy and dashing into the house while she thrashed around like a fish. I am glad to be HOME!!
January 22nd, 2015
I will soon be moving across town and I've been packing like crazy and I've had to arrange for my internet and TV to be moved to the new house. Last night I called to transfer the TV and I have to say, the woman I spoke to was probably THE CHATTIEST customer service rep ever. She told me to make sure and rest a lot because she'd "heard a lot of people in New Mexico have colds" and our conversation ended with her approving of my constant reading because it "helps build vocabulary". I'm not quite that chatty, but it was still nice
January 14th, 2015
My cat Sheldon just made his great escape. I had the door open for Otis to come back inside and quick as, well, a cat, he darted past my feet, through my outstretched arms, amidst my cries of "Dammit, Sheldon, no!" outside into the cold night. He took a few bounds, skidded on the icy sidewalk, and turned tail and ran back into the warm house, meowing madly. Jeeeeeeez. What a weenie. I was expecting more of an adventure...
January 12th, 2015
My dad is so awesome. He recently got a new phone and every so often he has problems texting. I got a mysterious text from him with weird letters and characters, then a minute later he explained he couldn't get rid of the damn text, so he just sent it. Problem solving!!
January 7th, 2016
I was just watching the People's Choice Awards with my dad and sister and the last award was given by Rainn Wilson (Dwight Schrute from The Office!) to "The Best TV Show", which included Game of Thrones, The Big Bang Theory, and NCIS. I just about died.
January 4th, 2015
So, thanks to Elizabeth Record and David Henry I've been obsessed with the show Game of Thrones for months and months now. Today my dad, David and I helped my sister move her things down to Abq, where she will be going to school. On the way home my dad and I stopped in Santa Fe and I purchased the first GOT book, because its high time I read the series and become even more obsessed. WELL on the back cover it gave some info on the author, George R. R. Martin. Where does he live? SANTA FE!! Where does he also like to hang out? ALBUQUERQUE! WHAT is this MADNESS!! I think I'm gonna be spending lotsa time with my sister in Abq
December 22nd, 2014
So, one thing is for sure... before tonight I had never spray painted something black outside. At night. With only a flashlight. In windy, 40 degree weather. I'm not very confident in the paint job, but hey Christmas is 3 days away! Remind me to start earlier next year...
November 4th, 2014
So I was watching The Office and I realized I totally have a crush on Jim Halpert. Unfortunately it would probably not work out because I'm like a female version of Dwight Schrute...
October 25th, 2014
I was just watching Napoleon Dynamite and it made me realize... I kinda want a love like Kip and LaFawnduh's
Two whole years worth of interesting tidbits! This is what most people use Twitter for. Alas! And this is nowhere NEAR all the things I post on FB of pictures and blog notices and whatnot. These are just a select few.
I PROMISE to have a better blog next week!! Either that or better excuses ;)
You know how they say, "A picture is worth a thousand words..."? Well, dammit, it's Thursday night and I'm at a loss for good blogging material. So! I perused my Facebook for some of the more... interesting photos I have on there.. just to tell you the odd/funny/weird stories behind them!
We'll start out with a classic: Alexi Laiho!!
If you're unfamiliar with him, Alexi is the lead-guitarist and and lead singer for the band Children of Bodom! They remain my favorite band, but I used to be flat-out CRAY-SEE for them. So imagine my (and my friends and bandmates) delight to learn that CoB was doing a meet-and-greet in Albuquerque before performing a concert at the Sunshine Theater! A bit of background before I continue: I had a huge crush on Alexi Laiho and everybody knew and teased me about it. They said I liked him so much I was beginning to look like him!... and they kind of had a point. Short in stature, long stringy brownish hair, and an affinity for black t-shirts and guitars! ANYWAY! Knowing I would be seeing him face to face, I decided to dress exactly as he did! I wore my special Children of Bodom shirt FROM FINLAND and WRITTEN IN FINNISH, camo pants with chains, and drawn on tattoos to match his. I gotta say, there was a lot of preparation for what turned out to be a 20 second conversation, but it was so incredibly worth it. You see, on the back of my Finnish CoB t-shirt was a few Finnish words that even hours searching the web could not decipher. So, while the band was signing a t-shirt for me, I gathered my nerve and asked, just what did the back of my shirt mean? And the band kinda got quiet and all looked at each other. Finally Alexi and Janne (the keyboardist) said together, "It's just a saying..." Years and years later, I finally found out it actually meant "Dumbasses Ahead," or something to that effect. Anyway, after exiting the Hot Topic meet and greet location, my friends and I ran screaming from one end of the mall to the other! Finally, we headed back to the store to find my dad. He had not joined us in line, so he had just waited patiently by the door. Turns out, when the band passed him going in, he SHOOK ALEXI'S HAND! I pressed him for details- what did he say What was it like!! All he could come up with was, "He's a tiny little dude, isn't he?"
So! The above pics are a drawing of Alexi, me dressed up as Alexi, and finally Alexi himself!
"Seize the Day," Avenged Sevenfold
Okay! Below I have the link to see the actual video, which I whole-heartedly recommend watching. But just in case you haven't seen the "Seize the Day" music video, and have no desire to, I will summarize it for you. A group of rapscallions (the band) decide they will rob a liquor store despite the band's lead singer's (who shall now be referred to as M. Shadows) pregnant girlfriend's protests. They go. They rob. M. Shadows gets caught. He goes to prison. More happens after that but its irrelevant to this story because all of the scenes in which the band is seen playing are filmed in the prison with the band behind a chain link fence (like this one!) and in one particularly emotional part of the song M. Shadows comes and throttles the fence violently. That was my friends and my favorite part so we decided to re-create it at a nearby park. This song will forever be (for me personally) one of the annoyingest, nasally-sung song ever, and I LOVE it! Click HERE to see the Real Deal
And WHILE we're on the subject of recreating music videos:
"The Truth About Heaven"
As I said, it was another excellent scene to recreate! I must say, both of the original music videos were pretty serious, but somehow parts were still really funny.
Winning the 50/50 raffle!
On one fateful Friday night, I went with my sister to a Raton Tiger's football game. As is customary, we each invested a few bucks in the raffle.. but we were laughing amongst ourselves because earlier in the day, we had eaten Chinese, and my sister's fortune cookie predicted that she would soon come into a great fortune! Well, what do you know!! She won the raffle! This pic is from a little later in the car.. I told her to fan out her cash like you always seen gangsters do on television... not quite as impressive with ones and fives, but still!
"Head Shots"
A couple years ago now, there was a little casting call held at the Shuler. Anyone interested could bring in a head-shot and an information sheet- apparently they were casting extras for some different movies that would be filmed in the area. Well, we thought: why not!! And that night, my sister and I tried our hand at professional photos. Obviously the bottom shot is what we were going for, but I had wayyyy more pics like the top one.
Red River Bike Festival
One year I went with my sister to Red River while the bike rally was in full swing. It was really cool! Bikes and leather and beer all OVER the place!! There was tent after tent of motorcycle merchandise and clothes and bandannas and jewelry. There was even a makeshift stripper pole in the middle of the street! Then, wayyyy off to the side was this little tent. Freaking adorable. And so nice! They gave us a bunch of free stickers!
MIDDLE EARTH... the cake version
Two things about me: I like decorating cakes and I LOOOOOOOOOOVE me some Lord of the Rings!! And to you picky people out there, yeah, yeah, I know it is technically inaccurate but I had to make it work for the cake! And I must say it was delicious... chocolatey, Tolkein-y goodness. The NEBULIZER
A few years back, I got an awful, awful cold and it realllllllly beat up my lungs! So, for what seemed to be a very, very, very long time, I had to use the above nebulizer to pump albuterol into my lungs several times daily. And right in the middle of this, I went with my dad, uncle, and sister on an ACE trip, and I had to take the whole apparatus with me! Of course, now that I got to live with 24/7 oxygen tanks, the nebulizer was certainly not that bad.
You know, after working at this a while, I realized I have more "weird" pictures than normal ones!
