in which I feel stupid

So this is what happened. Last night. We practiced soccer. Then we went to have a little bubble drinkage. In initial attendance were Jada, Mark, and I. Mark drove us to the bubble drink location. Jose showed up a little later. We had a good time talking about traveling to Paris. We even had a pleasant conversation in Spanish about the comparative size of a triangle and a rectangle. Very interesting.

Fast forward to leaving bubble drink place. Jada and I are riding with Jose and Mark is going straight home. While we are still in the parking lot, Mark pulls up beside us and shows us a small something. It is Jada's keys. She had left them in his car. He says, "Now, that would have been bad!" We are all in hearty agreement. Then he says, "Do we need to take a second for everybody to make sure that they have everything out of my car???" We decline the offer. I am laughing because I think, "Ha, ha! Jada left her keys! She's so forgetful! I never do anything like that! I always know where my stuff is! Ha!" I even say to Jada, "I think that he was referring to you when he said that." And she says, "Yeah. Probably." As we drive off, I feel all the confidence of a person who has it together.

Fast forward to when we are in the parking lot of our apartments. I am getting my stuff out of Jada's car (which I was riding in earlier) and I say, "Fiddlesticks! I left my purse in Mark's car."

That, my friends, is what you call getting your just deserts. My arrogance has brought me low.

We had to go all the way to Mark's house and pick up my purse.

Next time, I'm checking the car for my stuff. And no more making fun of people who forget their keys.

Lesson learned.

Fave Website Showcase: Homestarrunner.com

[Props to Aubony, this is one of her favorite websites and she told me how awesome it is!]


Ok y'all, do any of you remember those nerdy guys in high school that had the most random sense of humor, but at the same time, were so extremely, exaggeratedly funny? Well, those guys have grown up and made a cartoon, and it's name is homestarrunner.com.

It's a collection of Flash cartoons, etc. involving Homestar Runner and his cohorts, and I have to say, it is so very entertaining. And cute. It's supposed to be for kids, but to heck with that, Homestar rocks! I love the way he talks. (He don't wear no socks! His favorite food is lox!)

First, make sure you click on the little circle that says "first time here?" and watch the short introduction. Then check the "Strong Bad email," in which Strong Bad answers actual emails. You can even write him if you want. And then, of course, watch the cartoons.

Ok, now that you have your itinerary, get going!

V. v. v. busy

Give me a little break, Jose! and Thad! I have been busy all week. It was my birthday week and, let me tell you, it was WILD! and CRAZY! I'll post about it later, but right now I will say that last night I went to Barnes and Noble because I got a gift card and I wanted to make use of it. Here are two titles that I came across in the World History section whilst seeking a book on Turkish history (which I did not find):

The Not So Little Book of Dung

Cod: A Biography of the Fish that Changed the World

Yes, these are real titles. And, I might add, there were multiple copies of each. I'm not just talking about two, either. I mean there were like a dozen each. Oh, and while I was browsing in the European History section, I came across The Basque History of the World: The Story of a Nation, which doesn't have a weird title or subject, the only point of interest being that it was written by the same guy who wrote Cod and there was a line on the back cover proclaiming, "Like his celebrated Cod..."

I guess that a biography of the fish that changed the world must be a real gem. I mean, it was celebrated.

It sounds pretty boring to me, but if you like that, check out Salt: A World History, same author.

That dung book had better be good too, but I don't know how it could top the History of Farts.

30 is the new 10

Today is my birthday! Yes, today I turn 30 years old.

If 40 is the new 20, then I guess 30 is the new 10. Oh, yeah.

U-tube Funny

Okay. So I went beta. I went beta on Blogger. I thought it would be a good thing and for the most part, it has been. However, I wanted to post a video from a couple of youtuber guys that are so freaking hilarious.

But I can't because I went beta. So to alleviate my woes, I'll post some linkarooneys in a minute.

I guess I should now let you in on a little secret about myself. I'm actually a little bit of a youtube junky. Believe me, there are probably (literally) a million more people out there who are a lot worse off than me, but I do like to follow a few of the youtube crazies.

There's the drama of lonelygirl15. Is it real? Is it fake? For a little while it was a big Internet mystery. I even liked her so much that I put a video of hers on my blog. Well, now we know people. They have been exposed of as complete fakes. Now, watching the latest video is just a big let down. When you know that they are acting, it's just so bad. As in, the acting is bad. I'm still going to watch to find out what happens, though.

Then there's thewinekone, he's preeeetty funny. And he's real.

Then there's paytotheorderofofof, she's a little boring and long winded, but I still watch her videos.

Lastly, there is BaratsAndBereta. These guys are so funny! They do skits and jokes.

So go to youtube. Live a little. Laugh a little. Love a little (or just gag me with a spoon).

Pieces of eight!

Today (ok, yesterday. it's late) is talk like a pirate day. In honor of this day I am posting a picture of me as a pirate and a few other piratey friends. I must say, I make a great pirate! I made the same scowl in all the pictures. Check it out:




I just finished listening to Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson from Librivox. It was awesome. All the readers really get into the piratey dialogue.

Shiver my timbers! Davy Jones' locker! Avast, there!

This is who I am

This is how Tim Stewart (known alternatively on this blog as "Thad") of timstewartsblog.blogspot.com describes our other blogging friends' blogs:

David's blog — Hope Chapel's arts pastor David Taylor blogs profoundly on all things Christian and aesthetic
Jada's blog — Jada possesses the rare (and coveted) writerly ability to write so you feel as though you're reading her mind
Jennifer's blog — Jennifer examines a variety of topics with intelligence and verve, and she posts lots of photos too
Melanie's blog — Melanie draws back the curtains of her heart and shares (bares?) her soul

Here is how he describes my blog:

Sara's blog — Sara ponders the why of what is and regularly photographs her feet and her cat, Olive

Man, that's all I get? "She posts pictures of her feet"?

Not "she's funny"? Not "she's insightful"? Not "she's poignant"? Do I need take some writing classes or something?

It's a good thing that I like my own blog*.

*See words under title of blog for accurate description.

Critics...what can you do with them?

Kick 'em in the rear end, that's what.

So, I've gotten a little criticism from my friends and fellow collaborators on ideas for mixed drinks. They said that I came home last night and blogged too fast about the Liger. Someone, even said I was "moblogging".

I don't know what that means.

Okay, so maybe I did get home and write a post really fast. I just live down the street. I got home in 5 minutes and I was excited. What can I say?

Next time we make up a fictional drink called the Tigon or the Mule or the Hinny, one of you people can post about it, ok? Now does that make you guys feel better? Hug? Hug?

I'm going to go and look at my feet now.

Ok, a real liger picture

Straight off the Internet.

The Liger

At my small group Bible study tonight, we thought up a new mixed drink. We think that it will be a great success.

It contains ginger ale, rum (maybe coconut rum, we don't know yet), and a splash of half 'n half, over ice, in a low ball glass.

We call it The Liger.

Yes, that is one of the special things we do at a serious Bible study. We study the Bible and think up mixed drinks. Well, maybe not so much thinking up of mixed drinks. That's the first one that we've ever collaborated on.

We haven't tried it yet. I'll get back to you on how it actually tastes. I know, we're dorks. It rubs off on me from Tim and Jada.

I'm actually totally cool.

P.S. How about this liger???

Strange Encounters III

Here is my last post about bathroom encounters. Jose said that when he came here to the US he was surprised at the ease of which men in the public restrooms do their noisy bidness. He said that it sometimes gets extremely loud in the restroom. He said that in Spain this kind of thing just doesn't happen (never mind the one time that he walked into the public restroom at the mall and a guy was in the middle of exposing and touching himself in a vigorous manner. That only happened once, and that guy was definitely crazy).

However, he told me that the other day he was in the bathroom at his job and when he had finished, he was leaving the restroom and, looking to his left, there was a guy sitting on the toilet with the stall door open, just out there for the world to see. He didn't care.

That's really gross. Don't you people have any sense of privacy?

Strange Encounters II: The Private Bathroom

Now, I'm not one to talk about the office too much because of what happened to dooce. She got fired because of her blog (as if you didn't know that already). Anyway, I am keeping things VERY generic around here, plus I don't like to say mean things about anyone (please forgive me, you know who you are, for saying that you were metrosexual just because you use anti-aging cream...that was mean of me).

That said, I am continuing my investigative report.

In addition to the regular public restrooms, at my office we have what is known as (or more specifically, what I call) the "private bathroom." You know, just one toilet and sink. There is one for gentlemen and one for ladies. I guess the architect felt that the awkwardness of public restrooms in those special times necessitated a place where people can go to have a little moment to themselves.

The only problem with that is that everyone else also knows why someone visits the private bathroom. Therefore, no one wants anyone to see them go in.

So this is the standard approach procedure...in a flow chart:





This has been my report. In depth and informative.

Strange Encounters I

I have two words for you: Public. Restrooms. Especially the ones at work. Does anyone else think that they make for the weirdest experiences? I mean, it's one thing to pee (and whatever else...) in a public restroom at the mall or Target, where you will never see those people again, but it's a whole other thing when you're in the restroom at work and you're doing it within earshot of people that you see everyday. Particularly those people who you don't really know that well. You may or may not know each other's names, but there you are, day in and day out, hearing each other's intimate moments.

I don't know about guys (my husband tells me that they [meaning American men, because in Spain this kind of thing just doesn't happen...]) have no qualms about making any untoward sounds in public, but we women hate to have anyone hear any kind of noise other than the name of the purple teletubbie, if you know what I mean.

Let me tell you a story. One day I was in said public restroom. As I was washing my hands, I was having a little conversation with my friend and co-worker. One stall was occupied, but otherwise we were alone. As I washed my hands, my friend was talking away, really into what she was saying. Now, I can't remember what it was that she was saying. That's because right when she was in the thick of an important point, the person in the stall (I don't know who) let out a really loud fart. It was very long and staccato-y. My friend tried to continue speaking right through the loudness, but we were both distracted from what she was saying and, at the same time, trying to ignore the fart. I could tell that my friend was distracted because she kept pausing and shifting her eyes. My lips were pinched shut and quivering. I was trying as hard as I could not to let out a loud guffaw. I didn't want to be rude to the farter by laughing. (Plus, I didn't want my co-worker to know that I think farts are funny.) By the time I was drying my hands, my friend had gotten it together and was continuing her important point. We walked out of the restroom together, leaving the farting lady to herself. It was all very awkward.

And now, all I have to say in conclusion is that the very same thing happened to me in the same restroom (long before above incident). The only exceptions being that there was just one other person there to hear my loudness, and that I know exactly who she is and she knows exactly who I am. Every time I see her in the halls I wonder if she thinks of me as the loud-farting girl from the bathroom.

Now THAT is awkward.

Tower photos

The tower from below

The observation deck is right below the clocks.

Some of the many bullet holes filled in with plaster

The staircase to infinity

Theoretically, you can see all the way down to the first floor. It makes me dizzy just thinking about it.

Amber and Jose enjoy the view

Looking South towards downtown Austin

Isamu Taniguchi Oriental Garden

Since I'm retarded and I can't figure out why I can't upload more than 5 pictures per post, here are the pics from the Zilker Botanical Gardens.

The HUGE koi.

HUGE koi: The Sequel

The UT Tower (re)visited and the other stuff that I did on Saturday...

...without Jadita. I was sad that she went out of town. I missed her so. She could have come with us and done all the amazing and wonderful things that we did. I love her post, though.

What did I do this weekend, you ask? Well, this weekend I went with my sister-in-law, Amber, and Jose to do some fun things around the great town of Austin. First, we went to the Cactus and Succulent Plant Show at the Zilker Botanical Garden.

There were plants on display...

...and for sale.

This one has a teensy little flower.

I bought my own "Lithops." A.k.a the living stone. Mine is Lithops bromfieldii. I didn't buy one of the pots pictured, I got a little bitty one. It was cheaper. Oh yeah, the Lithops plant is from Namibia. I feel so close to Brad and Angelina now.

Notice the enormity of these two cacti. That's a chair to the left of them.

After about 30 minutes of staring at various and sundry cacti and succulent plants, we went out to the "Oriental Garden." It is a very pretty garden there and it had the biggest koi that I have ever seen. They were HUGE!


The coolest thing that we did was that we went up to the observation deck of the UT Tower. About a month ago I wrote about Charles Whitman and how he went up there and was shooting people. Well, it does have a great view, but it's also pretty eerie to have read about what happened there and then basically walk in Whitman's footsteps. We went down the same hall, up the same elevator, then up the same 3 flights of stairs. We saw the bulletholes left by the people who were shooting at him from the ground. They were plastered over, but you can still see them clearly. We saw the waterspouts that he used as turrets. We saw the view of the drag (Guadalupe St.) where many of his victims were out shopping and enjoying the day. It was all more than just a little surreal. Freaky is more like it. Apparently, the tour guide director was a witness. She has instructed the guides not to talk about the incident in their official schpiel, but they can talk about it if asked. While we were up there, both of the tour guides were asked about it and were in two different corners of the deck telling the story to 2 groups of tourists. There were a lot of foreigners in our group. The place will always be marked by tragedy.