Mountain Dew Girl

Mountain Dew Girl is a quirky individual whom I often refer to throughout my blog entries. As her name suggests, she's a Mountain Dew addict, and is often found playing mindless online games, eating Fruit By the Foot (the right way), and drinking a cold can of Mountain Dew.

Just how much of an addict is she? Well, for the longest time she had a 300 can+ Mountain Dew tower sitting on our dresser. (Yes, this was the perfect place for it. There were many a night when I crept over to the dresser to grab a pair of pajamas only to have tower come crashing down around me, with the sound of hundreds of aluminum cans filling the silent house.) She has since retired these cans into their boxes, and has a Mountain Dew Jenga Tower that almost touches the ceiling.

You think I'm kidding?


Told you!

In addition to her Mountain Dew addiction, she has an affinity for online games. (Tetris, mainly.) She is the owner of all 13 Purple Moshi Plums (two of whom have been covered in The Stuffed Animal Biographies.) She currently keeps several at school with her, and the rest at home in a net.

And lastly, although the Mountain Dew Girl is a single girl, she has made clear two very specific notions regarding her future husband:

1.) He must not be Italian.
2.) He must not buy an engagement ring from Jared's.

Why these two things? Well, she absolutely hates pasta, and she hates the Jared's ring commercials!

Maybe the Ocean Needed to Sea?

Last month, Random Knowledge Boy and I took a weekend vacation to the beach to visit some of his relatives. During the visit, of coruse, we went to the beach. Our first beach outing was tons of fun, and included walking along the beach (which was a mere 5 minute walk from his relatives' house!), collecting pieces of sand dollars (we think we collected about $3.50 worth) and swimming around in the wonderfully refreshing ocean water. (Fortunately no sharks got us!)

The next day, we decided to go to the beach again. Since we had been out and about that day, we decided to go to the public beach that was closer to where we were at the time. Now, the public beach was a little more crowded, a little more dirty, and oddly enough, the ocean was a little more rough. But Random Knowledge Boy and I didn't mind! It was the beach, after all. And a little bit of rough waves never hurt anyone, right?

Wrong!

After I was knocked completely over by a couple waves, and Random Knowledge Boy's swim trunks were momentarily pulled down by a rough wave, we moved a little further out in hopes that we could avoid the rough waves and just wade around a bit. This was fine for all of five minutes, after which a humongous wave crashed down on top of us, taking Random Knowledge Boy's glasses right off!

And in that split second that we were not able to locate the glasses in the water below us, the ocean sucked the tide back out and then hit us with another wave. We both quickly tried to get out of the water (I fell quite a few times trying to get my balance!), and then climbed back onto the beach.

We sat in our little beach chairs, covered in gravel and sand from being knocked down so many times, staring back at the ocean. What was there to say? The ocean had just confiscated a pair of expensive, essential eyewear. Needless to say, that put a damper on the overall mood. (Fortunately, Random Knowledge Boy had packed a pair of contact lenses. There's no telling how dampened the mood would have gotten if I were going to have to drive all the way back to our home city.)

After a few minutes of silence, staring at the ocean, Random Knowledge Boy spoke up.

"I guess the ocean said yes."*

"Yes, it did. Even though we said no!"

*Referencing YuGiOh! The Abridged Series. :) Pretty funny stuff!

The Life of a College Student

This was a post I'd written up sometime in the middle of last semester. I'm not sure why I didn't post it at the time, but I figured it's still as relevant (and probably more amusing now that I'm out of those classes) now as it was then.

My Day

8:45AM - Alarm goes off. Hit the snooze button.

9:10AM - I wake up, throw my clothes on, and go to Communication class.

9:30AM - I get a 60 on a pop quiz. (And lament the fact that I changed one of my answers from the correct one to an incorrect one.)

9:40-10:45AM - Play Super Mario 64 DS. (And listen to communications lecture.)

10:50AM - Stand in line for Chick-Fil-A.

11:00AM - Talk to group project member who has not finished his part of the project that is due at 3:30PM.

11:10AM - Ignore chicken sandwhich and instead start trying to do the part of the project that is not done, and put together the final version of the whole project.

12:30PM - Skip database class to work on project.

1:30PM - Group member finishes his part of the project, so now we have two versions of the same thing.

1:35PM - Finally remember I can register for classes, and hurry to do so.

2:00PM - Skip Japanese class since I'd spent the time I should have been studying kanji working on a group project.

3:10PM - Go stand in line at the financial aid office.

3:40PM - Get to class late. Half of my group (including the procrastinator member) do not show up.

3:50-4:45PM - Play Super Mario 64 DS. (And listen to lecture.)

5:00PM - Drive home to get my mail.

5:30PM - Try to find my mail under the rest of my parents, grandparents, and who knows who else's mail on the dining room table.

6:00PM - Pick up Mountain Dew Girl and head to Random Knowledge Boy's place.

7:00PM - After establishing that Random Knowledge Boy's apartment is an "old people" apartment, we head off to Wendy's. Random Knowledge Boy is hopped up on generic brand Vicodin for his broken rib. (That's a story for another post!)

7:55PM - Go to the movie theater to see Watchmen.

11:30PM - Drop off Random Knowledge Boy, and head back to campus.

12:20PM - Drop off Mountain Dew Girl, and go back to my apartment. Set my alarm, crash in bed, and fall asleep.

Kids, Kids, Kids.

So I do apologize for my lack of entries over the summer.

It wasn't for lack of ideas so much as it was lack of motivation, and lack of time. Over the summer I occupied myself with work, Tae Kwon Do, and selling Pokemon toys on the Internet. Good times, good times.

Also, I still find myself at a bit of a loss as to who the intended audience is for my blog. I tell stories that involve my friends, and while their names are changed, if they were to read through it would be quite obvious to them who is who. But because these are stories that I would tell any other friend of mine with the anonymous, "Oh, my friend so-and-so once did this or that," I feel that they are okay to write about. That said, my friends and people I know aren't the target audience. I really feel that the blog's anonymous nature lends itself well to being read by strangers on the Internet. Random readers and commentors, who might get a chuckle out of the sometimes interesting, sometimes not, events in the lives of myself and my friends.

That being said, I don't have a built-in audience, which makes finding these readers somewhat challenging.

But in any event, Little Scarf Girl has returned to tell her [hopefully] witty tales and inspire some smiles.

Kids Say the Funniest Things

On Relationships

Kid: Do you have a boyfriend?
Me: Yes...
Kid: Does Mountain Dew Girl have a boyfriend?
Me: No, she doesn't.
Kid: Well that's good! Cause what if you both had boyfriends, and they both wanted to move in with you?
Me: ....what?

Popcorn List

I have seen a movie a week since the start of May! I figured I should give some sort of review for four of the bigger films that have been released so far this summer. Spoiler-free!

X-men Origins: Wolverine: Let me start off by saying I am a huge X-men fan. The first two movies are among my favorites, and X-men: Evolution remains one of my favorite cartoon shows. You all know the story behind the third X-men movie, but even given the fond memory of its viewing, I will never watch that movie again. I dearly hoped that Wolverine would be a chance for the series to redeem itself, and while it wasn't a bad movie, I can't really say that it did much for me. Really, my overall feeling was, "I didn't mind it." I really had no strong feelings one way or another. It was just "okay," and for being such a big fan of the first two movies, that was a bit of a disappointment. If you like Wolverine, Sabertooth, or flashy fight scenes, then by all means, check it out. If not, I think it's only really worth one viewing, even for fans, and not necessarily in the theaters. (And this is coming from someone who has watched the first two movies more times than she can remember!)

Star Trek: My Trek knowledge is limited to exposure to a handful of Next Generation and Enterprise episodes, and one movie. Therefore, having no knowledge of the original series, I watched the movie as a standalone. It was a very fun sci-fi action movie. I had Random Knowledge Boy whispering to me explaining the in-jokes, so I'm sure there were plenty of goodies for the fans, as well as the newbies. I recommend it if you like adventure movies or sci-fi movies of any sort. Similar to a super hero movie, but without super powers. (Although there are some slick fighting sequences.)

Terminator Salvation: I'm not the world's biggest Terminator fan. In fact, the only reason I watched Terminator and T2 is because Guitar Player Boy forced me to. I have only seen parts of T3. Therefore, what drew me to this movie was the fact that it did not look like a typical Terminator flick. And it isn't. It plays out a lot more like a action movie taking place in a futuristic war zone. The underlying Terminator theme is there, but it isn't so much about one super powerful machine trying to kill one person as it is about the war as a whole. I recommend it for any Terminator fans, or anyone who likes gritty action films. There's next to no humor, but the fight scenes are cool, and the robots are creepy.

Up: It's a Disney/Pixar film, and there's a talking dog who is distracted by squirrels. That's enough to go see it right there, but really, it's a great film. It made me laugh, it made me cry. (But I laughed a lot more than I cried, I promise!) It made me go "Aww!" In short, it was wonderful. I recommend it for anyone, but it carries a tissue warning!

Why it's Important to Keep Tissues in Your Purse

I am a sensitive person. That's not a stretch by any means: certain things can make me cry like no other. Usually things associated with death and eternity are the real zingers. I remember crying when I was a little kid at an episode of Two Stupid Dogs because the dogs thought they were going to have their heads stuck in a hole in the fence forever. (No need to mention the fact that they really weren't stuck, but anyway...)

Random Knowledge Boy and I went to go see the new Disney/Pixar movie Up. I love Pixar movies. I feel like they always bring a really good mix of story, heart, humor, and good animation to the theater that you rarely see in other animated flicks. (Honestly, try to compare movies like Wall-E and The Incredibles to movies like Home on the Range and Shark Tale. It can't be done.) But this particular movie, I was a little wary of. The movie premise is simple: grouchy old man ties thousands of balloons to his house so he can fly to South America, and an 8-year old boyscout accidentally is taken along.

I had read a sneak-peak of the plot a long time ago, involving a sequence in the beginning of the movie detailing the old man's life from childhood, marrying his sweetheart, their life together, the fact that they were unable to have kids, their dream to save up for a trip to South America, and how she dies just before they were able to achieve their dream.

I almost cried right there. Sure, I was only reading a summary on a computer screen, but somewhere in that summary of life and the pursuit of dreams hit me right where I feel the most vulnerable. And the fact that I almost got choked up reading the summary made me certain that I was going to be a mess when I actually saw the movie.

And sure enough, 3D-glasses and all, I was sitting in the movie only 10 minutes in with tears streaming down my face.

The rest of the movie was very cute and funny. The talking dog Dug had some of the cutest, funniest lines ever, and the bird Kevin was hilarious in her gestures and sounds. The little boy Russell was the cutest little thing when he was whining and complaining about being too tired to go on, and flopping down in the dirt only to be dragged along behind the old man.

But then the movie hit me again with a second montage in which the old man looks through his wife's adventure book. And he realizes that to her, everyday life with him was the adventure. And her little note at the end, "Thanks for the adventure! Now go have a new one," reduced me to tears once again.

But why?

It's because it hits so close to where we all are in life. Wading through life, keeping our dreams close to us. In the end, what is the real destination? Heaven, of course. So our lives on Earth really are about the journey together. And when you realize that everyday life is enjoyable and fun, and full of excitement, it is so much easier to be happy.

But the movie was also a reminder of how easily things that we love can be taken away. Life is so fragile that nothing should be taken for granted. And you just hope that you'll be able to look back on your life one day as an old person and think, "I had a great time."

I hope I'll be able to accomplish all of my dreams in my life. To live and enjoy life, to travel, to be published, to raise a family, to enjoy all the little ins and outs of life that only happen once.

I was still tearing up on my way out of the movie. Random Knowledge Boy handed me his hankerchief that he'd brought along just in case (for me, of course!) which I promptly used to dry my eyes.

And then, in the most comforting way possible, he said, "Don't worry: I promise that if we're going to take a trip to South America, we'll do it before you have a heart attack and die."

The Wheels on the Bus Go Round and Round...

My phone decided to take a trip two weeks ago. It has yet to return.

I usually keep my phone in my jacket pocket. It's less obtrusive than keeping it in my pants pocket, but still readily accessible if I need to check the time. I remembered pulling my phone out of my pocket just before boarding the bus to go downtown for work. I stuffed it back in, and got on the bus. Just minutes after exiting the bus and watching it drive off down the street uptown, I felt my pocket and realized with great dismay that it was empty.

Given that information, it would seem that I had left my phone on the bus.

You don't realize how entirely dependent you are on your cell phone until you lose it. During the time I was without a phone, I had no idea what time it was, almost got lost and had no way to call someone for directions, and had to rely on the house phone for any calls that needed to be made. Since I only know a handful of numbers by heart, this meant my calling base was rather limited.

Immediately after losing it, I tried calling my cell a few times to see if perhaps it would get someone's attention, but I realized that I had left it on silent mode since I had been going to work that morning. No luck there. By the evening, calling my phone would simply transfer me to voicemail, meaning that someone had most-likely found and turned off the phone.

I decided I would try the transportation center downtown the next day to see if my phone had been turned into the lost and found. The first visit down to the bus hub provided me with nothing; the woman behind the glass window simply told me she had never seen a phone like mine, without evening bothering to check, and that I should come back later in the day. I walked all the way back to my building empty-handed. Around 4:45 that afternoon, I went back. This time the woman at the desk actually looked through the drawer of phones, but my wayward little phone was still MIA.

At this point, I had given up on actually finding my phone. Most probably someone found it and kept it. (Not that it would do them any good, since we blocked my number at the time.) With a heavy heart and an aching wallet, I went out to Best Buy to pick out a replacement for my trust phone. After browsing the not-so-appetizing selection of phones, it seemed there was no way out of forking over $200 for a new phone.

I still had a brand new SIM card from my phone upgrade, so I didn't need to worry about getting a new one of those. This handy little fact came in very useful when I was pointed to a selection of "pay as you go" phones that ran as cheap as $29. Apparently by using your SIM card, you could put one of those phones on your plan and use it just as you always had. Success! I ended up getting a $59 phone, and paid out the $10 for insurance. (Seeing as how this was my second phone mishap in a year, I figured I may as well go for it.) And since I've only had the little guy for a week and I've already dropped him in a mud puddle, I think the insurance may pay for itself.

So now I have a shiny little blue phone to replace my shiny little purple phone. Where my old phone is, we will never know. One thing for certain has been learned from this experience: never let your cell phone ride without you.

Also, be very wary of buses. Somehow one of my umbrellas has disappeared between my house and work, and I have a sneaking suspicion that the bus may have been responsible yet again.