Saturday, September 25, 2010

"License and registration please"

So I haven't gotten the chance to rant about this yet. I thought I was over it and then I saw my bank statement and it got me all fired up again.

A few weeks ago, I was pulled over for speeding. Here's what happened. I was going 75, the speed limit was 65. Then, I entered a work zone. I slowed down to 65 since I thought....eh ten over, that should be okay. It's not even an active work zone so I'll be alright. Then, I saw the speed limit sign. The speed limit was 50. I slowed down again and noticed a cop behind me. I  pulled over so he could go around me and lo and behold, he pulled over too and got out! And I was like: Are you serious? He's pulling ME over?? I had no idea what I even did.

So when he came up to the car I asked him and he said he clocked me at 67mph in a work zone where the speed limit was 50. I was apparantly going 17 over the speed limit. I explained that I just saw the sign and was slowing down just before he pulled me over. It didn't matter. What mattered was that for 3 seconds (he timed me) I was going 17 mph over the speed limit. If I had a guess, I'd say he clocked me WAY at the beginning of the work zone right when the speed limit changed. HOW IS THAT FAIR?

Luckily he didn't give me a ticket. I think he believed me when I said I had no idea that I was that much over, I thought the speed limit was 55. He DID give me a "citation." With it being a work zone, he couldn't just let me off with a warning. The difference being that a citation doesn't show up on your record and doesn't put points on your license. Just pay it and then forget it happened. So I paid it and much to my chagrine....the fine was over $100!! WTF?!?! First of all, the fine itself was $25, but they doubled it for it being a work zone...I can handle that. But then, I paid a fee for the car that pulled me over. I paid a small fee to the police company itself AND I paid the EMS...THEY WEREN'T EVEN THERE!!

Now, I know I was in the wrong. But seriously, the punishment should fit the crime. I wasn't going 30 or 40 over...I wasn't cutting people off....I wasn't endangering anyone's life...I wasn't tailgating anyone...I was going 15 over!!! The fine should be $15...double it for the work zone if you like, but I was going 15 over so I should pay $15. And if you want me to pay an extra fee for the car or the police department that's fine...but don't tack on all these dumb fees that have nothing to do with what I was pulled over for. I didn't need a freakin' ambulance so I shouldn't be paying the EMS!! I should be paying at most $50 for that fine. That's it! Save the big fines for the big crimes. When I'm endangering people's lives THEN you can tack on all those dumb fees.

All those times I go 80 or more on the turnpike and I was pulled over for doing freaking 67mph!!! What a joke!

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Bunny Update

So yeah this bunny thing was so much harder than I thought it would be.

Like I said: I found a rabbit I'm sort of interested in. She's very cute. But the animal shelter that has her is an hour and a half away from where I live. When I emailed them for more information about other places to find mini lops they said: You shouldn't choose a rabbit by its breed, you should choose a rabbit by it's personality and how it blends with your household. Are you serious?! Basically I need to meet the rabbit before I can adopt it. So I need to travel an hour and a half away TWICE. Once to meet the damn thing and once to pick it up to take it home. And it'll take two weeks to be approved and process the paperwork. It'll probably be a month before I actually get a rabbit. HOWEVER....I pay $75 for the rabbit, a membership to the House Rabbit Society of America and a book about caring for rabbits AND it's already spayed/neutered. Good deal. But it's so far away.

So I've been furiously searching for breeders just so I can compare pricing information. I found one that has the kind of rabbit I want BUT they won't sell to me because they don't sell rabbits as pets. In order to buy from them I have to be intending to either show or breed my rabbit. They won't even give me any info or anything so I don't know where they are located. If I knew that then maybe I'd just tell them I was gonna show it. What are they gonna do if I don't? Take it back from me? They can't repossess a rabbit, right?

The other breeder I found seems like a nice lady. I have no idea what she has because her site is not updated. She was not really specific about where she is located, but from what I do know I know she is about two hours away. So I'll pay less for the rabbit, travel about the same ammount, I'll probably only have to go there once though BUT I'll have to pay to have it nuetered/spayed. Not sure about the quality of the breeder though because her website is one of those geo-shities sites which suggests it may not be the most reputable.

That's it. Two breeders. The petco by me doesn't sell abbits. There was a pet store by me that had rabbits...not the kind I wanted though....but I wouldn't buy animals from it...I don't think it's very reputable (for those of you who know the area...Q Mart is all I'm saying). The little ma and pop pet store by me doesn't advocate buying from breeders so they won't give me any breeder information. The animal shelter, obviously, doesn't advocate buying from breeders either so they won't give me any information either. They say it's because breeders cause over population. I really wanted to ask: Where would you get your rabbits if all the breeders shut down? There'd be no pets to abandon and it'd put you out of business. Real smart.

So.....maybe I'll need to just get another guinea pig....though I think my quest for a guinea pig would be just as trying unless I buy it from a pet store but people always say don't do that.....so I have no idea where to go from here....

Tuesday, September 21, 2010

Long Distance Sucks

Ugh.....this long distance thing is terrible.

Some days I can handle it better than others. I mean, I know that this is the best situation right now for both of us. I would love to be with Mike every moment of every day, but right now, he needs to focus on finishing up his school work. He needs to get himself a job and make some money so that he can come back home when he's done and find somewhere for himself (or both of us) to live. And I need to be at home getting my foot in the door of the teaching world, making an impression on schools so that next year they'll hire me as a full time teacher. I tell myself that we just need to make it until the summer. Then, we'll be together again every day. But secretly I wish a school in ****** would call me and hire me...even if it was just as a teacher's assistant for a year, I'd take the job in a minute to be closer to Mike. But beggers can't be choosers. I have to take what I can get.

Of course, there are other days....like yesterday and today....when I just can't handle this. I am two hundred miles away from the most amazing man on earth. I can't be there for him to help him study like I could last year....I can't be there for him to celebrate a new job with him...I can't be there to fence with him....Take yesterday, I texted him at 3:30 in the afternoon, didn't get a response and then I texted him at 6, and then again at 8, and then again at 8:30. I started to worry when I didn't hear back by 9 so I called him and he didn't answer. I called his roommate who had no idea where he was and I called another friend of his who had no idea where he was. So I texted a friend and asked him to run over and knock on Mike's door to make sure he was okay. If I had been up there too, I could have run over and seen for myself and made sure he was okay. I know it was a little silly to think so, but I was picturing Mike in a ditch somewhere bleeding to death! He just got a new car...a stick shift...that he only sort of knows how to drive. He could have taken it somewhere and then gotten himself into an accident or something like that. I almost called the police to have them go check on him too!! But I mean, anybody would have been worried after not hearing from someone for almost SEVEN hours that they normally hear from within minutes of sending a text. I mean, I know he's taking classes and can't always text right away....but seven hours without hearing from him was a bit uncharacteristic. After all that time and all that worrying, he ended up being okay, just left his phone in the other room while he was playing on XBOX. Such a man. :-P

So yeah....this long distance thing is definitely a bit unnerving at times. I sometimes day dream that he'll find this amazing internship and they'll want him for a year after he graduates. So, when he graduates, I would move up there for the summer and get a summer job and then a job as a teacher and we'd live in his little apartment for a year. Of course, I don't really care where he ends up working....cuz I'd do anything for that little house that I want....it's a dump but it's so cute! We'd have so much fun fixing it up together! Oh my god...I'm such a girl....

Monday, September 20, 2010

Decisions....decisions....

I am in the process of getting myself a rabbit. I have been researching furiously for days now and the more research I do, the more excited I get. At the moment, though, I have quite a dilemma about this.

First of all, I have no idea where I will put it. Rabbits, from what I read, seem to be extremely shy, anxious, and withdrawn. The best way to help them adjust better to your home is to let them have their own space (i.e. "cage") somewhere in a central location in the house that gets a lot of traffic. This will help them adjust better to you and your family and will help them to be more outgoing. So I guess the best place would be in the dinning room or living room or even the kitchen. I just am worried about putting it in the dinning room where the backyard animals (such as the hawk we have in the back) can see her. She wouldn't understand that there is glass between her and the hawk (or other predator). I don't want her to be frightened by a hawk or escaped dog running up to the sliding glass door to investigate. Rabbits can get so frightened that they could have a heart attack and die!!

I also have a dilemma about where I should get one. I am dying for a black and white mini lop. They are absolutely adorable. But I found this really cute bunny up for adoption. Her name is Piccolo and she IS a mini lop, but she's not black and white, she's tan. So, should I compromise what I've always wanted and do a good deed by adopting or buy a black and white mini lop from a breeder? The good thing about adopting, aside from doing a good deed, is that the animals are already spayed and neutered so I won't have to worry about getting that done. But Piccolo is two years old already and I've missed watching her grow up! But I have no idea where to find breeders that sell rabbits...not that I have any better idea where this animal shelter is that has Piccolo. *sigh* Guess I have some more thinking to do.....

This is Piccolo: 

Friday, September 17, 2010

On a Happier Note....

Anyway, so that my blog isn't so depressing, I just thought I'd publish some happier news.

Today is my betta fish, Benjamin's, birthday. I mean, of course, he's a fish so I actually have no idea when his birthday is, but today is the anniversary of the day that I brought him and his friend Walter home from Walmart. At the time, I was going through a horrible break up and to fill the void left by my idiot exboyfriend, I bought myself some fish. It actually helped.

I was surprised at how much I ended up liking my betta fish. I had never had betta fish before. But they are really neat fish. I had always had gold fish or tropical fish as a kid. But bettas are different. I feel like they might be smarter than other fish. They react to people when they walk into the room. It almost seems like Benjamin "greets" me when I come home from a long day. He swims right up to the corner of the tank and puts his nose against it like he's saying hi!! It's cute.

Benjamin is the blue one. Walter is the red one.
But bettas are also very lazy. Once in a while he'll just stop swimming and take a nap. No seriously. He just floats there at the bottom of the tank or in his favorite corner. And I'll seriously walk up to the tank and go, "NO! You can't be dead!" So I'll shake his tank and he'll swim around and flare his gills at me for waking him up! I can't tell you how many times I thought he was dead.

But a dead betta isn't hard to miss. They grow white bacteria all over them just hours after they die. Walter only lived until December. I found him one morning like that. It was sad. I put him in the toilet and waited like fifteen minutes hoping he'd move. I do not deal with death very well. Also, that same bacteria grows on bettas if their tank is too dirty and then it kills them. Twice now, that's happened to Benjamin, but I cleaned his tank and he was all better!! He is a gorgeous blue color and you can tell when he's healthy and happy because his scales are very dark blue and he blows bubbles at the top of the water.  :-D

Anyway, here's to our happy year together, Benjamin and here's hoping for more! <3

R.I.P.

I just had to post this. Earlier this morning, George N. Parks, the band director of the University of Massachusetts, passed away from an apparent heart attack. It was totally unexpected. He was only 57 years old. It has touched me deeply and I just had to post this in his memory.

I never went to U Mass, but I was the drum major of my high school band. The band director sent his drum majors to training every year to learn how to be drum majors. George Parks was the guy responsible for running the Drum Major Academy (DMA). It was so much fun! He broke us up into little groups so we could practice teaching each other how to march. He called the groups "pods" and referred to them as our "family." He understood how intimidated some of us were (especially those of us who were sent as Freshmen such as myself). He taught us all how to be effective leaders, teachers, and role models and more importantly, how to overcome the fears of a new situation and be all that we can be in all that we do.

George Parks was one of the most important influences in my life. I remember what he says every day. After drum majoring in high school, I went on to teach fencing to college students. I remembered what he said about PSP (Praise Suggestion Praise) every time I taught. Now, I am a substitute teacher still remembering all he taught at DMA. I kept all of my notes and packed them up with my other teaching resources. Even though I will probably never use them to teach marching again, I will use his lessons every day as a teacher. The stories he told at DMA were so inspirational to me especially the one he told about his blind student. Blind or not, this particular student marched as well or better than the students who could see! It taught me that there is nothing a person can't do if he or she puts his or her mind to it.

Last thought: While at a collegiate band festival, a bunch of friends and I sat around until the very end just to see Mr. Parks. All day it was cloudy and on and off rain. But then, the U Mass band came out and blew us all away. But the most memorable part of the performance: As soon as George Parks got onto the stand, the sun came up out of the clouds! The mere presence of George Parks brought out the best in everyone....even the weather!!

Rest In Peace, George Parks.

http://www.masslive.com/news/index.ssf/2010/09/george_n_parks_umass_band_dire/865/comments-2.html

Wednesday, September 15, 2010

A new beginning

So, I haven't done this blogging thing since Xanga and Live Journal was big...a million years ago. But I thought I'd try again. I'm not really going to be all shaken up if no one reads it, this is really just a personal thing I am doing for my benefit. But if you are reading it feel free to let me know you're here.

Just a bit about me: I am 23 and just graduated college and returned home to live with my parents for a year. I am secretly saving up for a house that I am hoping the township does not tear down before I have enough money for it. I graduated with a degree in teaching and Spanish. I also am a fencer. I've been fencing for about five years and I recently took up archery and dart throwing as well (I have no idea why I love playing darts).

I have an amazing boyfriend who at the current moment is studying computer science at the place I graduated from. We have been dating for eight months (as of yesterday). He is very sweet and caring. I have dated several guys in my life, but this is the first time I feel honestly and passionately loved. Right now we are working through a long distance thing for the first time since we started dating, but we are doing our best to make it through. 

Something a bit more personal: I have an anxiety disorder. So I find some things hard to deal with. For example, I do not deal with stress well and I am often very critical of my actions. I also tend to have vivid and very disturbing nightmares. Writing helps me clear my head of things when I am frustrated and helps me deal with feelings that are otherwise too difficult to deal with. This is the first September in three years that I am dealing with this on my own without my counselor. I want to do this alone, I don't want to find another counselor. So I am doing this blog thing to track my progress and sort through my thoughts until I make it to Christmas.

Anyway, last bit about me: My favorite flowers are roses. So in honor of my favorite flower and the new beginning I am hoping to make for myself, I have titled my blog: Black Rose. Black Roses do not always mean death, instead they symbolize a new beginning of things...a major change or upheaval. Or it can mean death...the death of old habits and the beginning of a new era. Black roses inspire confidence, hope and joy. So this is the end...the end of my fears and negative feelings....and the beginning of a new me.

So what does this year have in store for me? I am on a list of substitute teachers for a few different school districts in my area and I will be running an after school reading program as well. At night, I am a receptionist at a local nursing home and I will be acting in "It's a Wonderful Life" that my adult drama group and I will put on in November. I hope to start dancing one night a week, but I haven't quite figured out where I am going to squeeze that in and I also fence with a local fencing school.

After that....we'll see where the year takes me....