It may seem crazy to be talking about Valentines Day in October, but I want to. Valentines day is a time of the year where you brag about your boyfriend and what he does for you. Post as many pictures of your romantic date online so that EVERY other girl is jealous. Way jealous. That is, if the other girls have time to even look away from the pictures they have most recently posted of their romantic Valentines Day date. Or week. Some go a little over the top. Anyway--in February us innocent bystanders are at least prepared to see all of these posts all over the web. There are even e-cards and jokes (nobody thinks it's funny anymore) that actually refer to Valentine's day as "Singles Awareness MONTH". In October though I feel that my eyes are safe, they will not be infected with the sights of cute couples kissing anytime I look online. WRONG. It's October, the month of Halloween, the NEW Valentines Day, kind of. This was brought to my attention this morning by my extremely observant and Instagrammaholic roommate, Tehya. We both agreed that all we have seen are pictures of couples on Halloween dates! Which is fine, because we do it too.
(I imagine all of the following said in this voice.)
"Let's carve pumpkins!"
"Let's dress up as a couple!"
"Let's dress up as a CELEBRITY couple!"
"Wait, I want to look pretty!"
"Let's go to a haunted house!!"
"I want you to take me to a haunted house because I would act really obnoxiously scared at an unrealistic level so that I can hold your hand! And that would be romantic!!"
"Let's take a picture!"
"Oh that was bad, ANOTHER!!!"
I title this blog post The Final Stretch for two reasons. The first and best is in reference to that final stretch you do before you get out of bed in the morning. Is that not the best? Once that final stretch and loud yawn are given you're forced to get out of bed. The second reason I title this The Final Stretch is because I have reached that dreaded point in the semester. The Final Stretch. It always happens to me right after Fall Break. When the semester began I actually did my assigned reading and sat through every class. Now I am more likely to work on a way to get out of going to class than simply just going. In fact, today I went to school and parked my car, got all of my belongings situated in my backpack and popped open my umbrella. I was ready to walk to class during the first storm of the year. I hopped out the driver's door and didn't even make it around the front of my car and to the passenger's side before I turned around. I didn't want to go to school, and I sure didn't want to walk through the snow. I got back in my car, called my mom, and drove 30 minutes to meet her for lunch at a greasy Mexican restaurant. It was such a good day! Once this weather hits is about when the final stretch kicks in. I feel just the right amount of behind in some of my classes to be a normal student, just getting by by the skin of my teeth. It's just these last few weeks that doing so becomes very difficult. I can always get a good grade out of class if I just go. Assignments are done on time and in class work is completed. Outside studying? Woof. Such a hassle, not happening. I would like to think that before finals week I would dedicate a few nights a week to the library, but I'm not guaranteeing it. Assignments? Those will be done during the lectures. I mean I have a plan, it just needs to end. TWO MORE SEMESTERS, but then I'm graduated. And what do you do for fun once you're graduated? Oh stress.
Why do some adults do what they do to their children? I realize I have two N's on the end of my name but Erinn is pretty normal. Right? I like to come from a normal family, other than the fact that my parents allowed me to play little league football in the 5th grade.
Almost all baby name websites show that the top 10 names of each year are just the classics. Recently it has been popular to go with the old school names though from our grandparents' childhood. That's cute, and I liked it too until the kids that I nanny told me that they each have 2 Jacks, 4 Henrys and 3 Sophias in each of their classes. Now the only way I feel justified in using one of these names if it belongs to a family member.
Even though these classic names are at the top of the charts I know there has to be a list somewhere of the most weirdunique baby names. I just can't find a good one. Some examples though would be:
adding -son to the end of any given word, maybe those popular among the dads? and tagging it to your son's birth certificate.
Uteson
Nikeson
Espnson
Workson
Hudson
Hudson is the only real one, but more exist!
adding McK- to the beginning of your favorite word or -y to the end.
I would post my list of baby names but you know how private those are.
One week ago today was the worst experience I have had, IN MY LIFE. Also since then it has been the topic of conversation with any friends or acquaintances that I run in to. Probably because they saw the below picture online.
I was asleep by 11pm and I heard noises that woke me at 11:30 just outside my window. The window acts as my headboard. I kneeled up on my bed and separated the blinds halfway up to look out and see four people giggle and run away. I thought it was strange but I went back to bed. I few seconds later I though I should go check the front window, I really wanted to know who it was and what they were doing! I got out of bed, looked around and couldn't find anything at all. I got back in bed but a few minutes later I heard noises again. This time I was going to be sneaky. I kneeled on my bed but peeked through the blinds at the BOTTOM of the window so that maybe they wouldn't be able to see me. What was on the other side of the blinds on the window ledge?
A white rat.
I jumped off of my bed quicker than I knew to be possible and ran into the kitchen on my way to Tehya's room. Unfortunately I tripped over a kitchen chair and slammed my head into the glass paned cabinet and shattered it. Pain didn't stop me, I got up and kept running all the way to her room. All the roommates were upstairs now thinking that I had been victim of an attempted kidnapping or something. Thank goodness that wasn't the case, but the real issue was just about as scary. I made it into Tehya's room and stayed in there with my bleeding arm and swollen forehead for about a half an hour while Katherine and Amanda got that little pesky rodent off of my screen window. How did they capture it? Oh just in the cookie jar with an oven mitt. I think they both got thrown away though.
The boys had put the rat through a quarter sized hole in my screen and it climbed down onto the ledge. Although the rat was gone I still wasn't going to get in my bed. It never touched my sheets or anything but I couldn't do it. So I slept with Rachel. But first I went to Walgreens and bought some Clorox wipes to take care of the window sill. I still can't bring myself to touch the blinds though.
The End.
And then I lived happily after but completely on guard.
