Time wasting survey FTW

1. What is in the back seat of your car right now?

You know. Fairy dust and the like. I don't have a car.

2. When was the last time you threw up?

I ate something that went down the wrong way a couple of months ago...

3. What’s your favorite word or phrase?

"Seriously?"

4. Name 3 people who made you smile today?

Tony, Angela, and Mona on Who's The Boss (yes, I did just say that)

5. What were you doing at 8 am this morning?

Sleeping, probably

6. What were you doing 30 minutes ago?

Computer

8. Have you ever been to a strip club?

No

9. What is the last thing you said aloud?

"G'night"

10. What is the best ice cream flavor?

Peppermint

11. What was the last thing you had to drink?

Water

12. What are you wearing right now?

PJs and Disneyland hoodie

13. What was the last thing you ate?

Meatloaf and brown rice for dinner

14. Have you bought any new clothing items this week?

I haven't gotten new clothes since like the 40s.

15. When was the last time you ran?

I don't run. Although I did sorta skip to the kitchen yesterday...

16. What’s the last sporting event you watched?

Probably the Super Bowl. *gag* I hate gridiron football.

17. If you could go anywhere in the world, where would you go?

Italy. A friend's house.

19. Ever go camping?

In a manner of speaking.

20. Have you ever lost anything down a toilet?

Heavens no.

22. What is your guilty pleasure?

Sitcoms.

23. Do you use smiley faces on the computer a lot?

I tend to do this one: =)

24. Do you drink your soda from a straw?

If it's a fountain drink, sure.

25. What did your last text message say?

I don't get text messages. Well, I get them but don't send them because my phone hates me.

26. Are you someone’s best friend?

No. Everyone has made that pretty clear.

27. What are you doing tomorrow?

If everything goes according to plan, I'll be reading Nancy Drew and The Ghost of Blackwood Hall.

28. Where is your mom right now?

Sleeping.

29. Look to your left, what do you see?

Doorway.

30. What color is your watch?

Who am I, your father? I don't wear a watch.

31. What do you think of when you think of Australia?

Koalas...

32. Ever ridden on a roller coaster?

Yeah... But I'm not a big fan.

33. Birthstone?

Peridot

34. Do you go in at a fast food place or just hit the drive through?

Drive through usually.

35. Do you have any friends on Facebook that you actually hate?

Hate takes too much energy.

36. Do you have a dog?

I used to. I miss him so, so much. I want another one.

37. Last person you talked to on the phone?

My aunt.

38. Have you met anyone famous?

A couple.

39. Any plans today?

I never have plans.

40. From whom did you get this?

Ronni (lilrongal) on facebook.

41. Are you happy?

Sometimes. Not now.

42. Where are you right now?

Desk.

43. Biggest annoyance in your life right now?

Don't get me started. It's snoring on the freaking couch right now.

44. Last song listened to?

I'm not sure. But earlier I had "In the Mood" by the Glenn Miller Orchestra in my head.

45. Last movie you saw?

Pride and Prejudice

46. Are you allergic to anything?

Penicillin

47. Favorite pair of shoes you wear all the time?

I have these pinstriped black flats that are super comfy. They're kinda trashed now because I wear them so much.

48. Are you jealous of anyone?

Occasionally. Often, actually.

49. Are you married?

I can't even get a guy to take me to the store.

50. Is anyone jealous of you?

I couldn't imagine why anyone would be. And I kinda feel sorry for them if they are.

51. What time is it?

5:43 AM

52. Do any of your friends have children?

Yes.

53. Do you eat healthy?

I try to eat sort of smart. I make some healthy choices, but I should probably work a little harder at it.

54. What do you usually do during the day?

The same thing I do at night.

55. Do you hate anyone right now?

See number 35

56. Do you use the word ‘hello’ daily?

Yes, actually. I didn't use to, but I tend to these days.

57. How many kids do you want when you’re older?

At least 2.

58. How old will you be turning on your next birthday?

23.

59. Have you ever been to Six Flags?

Yes.

60. How did you get one of your scars?

I have a Jonas scar. I got pushed down at a Jonas Brothers concert once. I was wearing a denim skirt, and I cut my leg. It was worth it.

Maladjusted Little Freak

So, back to my emotional problems. YAY...

Okay. So, I'm really emotional all the time these days. Sometimes I feel like I'm going to cry at things like montages on sitcoms or old pictures or cute things my cats do. Sometimes I'm really, really angry. Like I feel like the world is out to get us, and it pisses me off. Everyone seems to suck... but you know, it can't be everyone. It must be me. Sometimes I can't rally the energy to do anything more strenuous than lay in bed next to my cat O'Malley and read a book. Small disappointments feel like roundhouse kicks to the chest. I'm paranoid. I'm lonely. I hate my life sometimes. Most of the time.

I don't know why I feel like this. Some days are pretty okay, and others are horrible. This one isn't exactly horrible, but it's pretty bad.

Am I crazy? Well, I should ask, am I crazier? I've always been sorta off.

The only things that can really make me feel happy and/or enthusiastic are material things and otherwise unimportant things.

I'm starting to feel like writing this all down might help me or at least help me understand myself. Is that possible? Maybe making this public will make me accountable to myself? I can usually feel better when I concentrate on it... perhaps that's what I have to do.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to watch Drake & Josh.

Nancy Drew (long epic post - Pt. 2)

So when we left off, I had found out all about the past Nancy Drew history. And I had chosen not to use my knowledge at all really, except for the fact that I like to know things. (When I feel smart for knowing useless trivia, it's just one more thing to congratulate myself on.)

Anyways, I hadn't purchased any vintage Nancy Drews or reprints or anything. In fact, I had almost completely forgotten about it. And then, one day when I was on my American Girl message board, I saw a little discussion about Molly's mini Nancy Drew book, and that brought her back to my mind.

And the very next time I was looking for Baby-Sitters Club books, I found a seller on eBay with this amazingly extensive selection of children's books. I grabbed a few BSC books, a couple Magic Attic books, a Sweet Valley book, and finally, an Applewood Nancy Drew reprint. In my research, I noticed that for whatever reason, the Applewood reprints can fetch high prices (higher than actual original vintage copies, in some cases!), so when I saw this book for BIN $3, I had to snap it up.

Now, it doesn't have a dust jacket, but I don't mind too much. In fact, when I've got some more ink in my printer, I might DIY it. The book I got is #10, The Password to Larkspur Lane. It's pretty wonderful.

A few days ago, for a laugh, I looked up Nancy Drew on the 'bay again. I found a really good looking, original text copy of #25, The Ghost of Blackwood Hall for $10. It even has the dust jacket. And, so yes, I'm getting that one too. It's on the way now, actually.

And there's a six book set of the first six Applewood reprint mysteries I've got my eye on. Direct from Applewood the set is around $75. Kinda ouch, right? I mean, it's not that much, but I'm poor and I collect dolls. And I, you know, want to eat and feed my cats and that sort of thing. *sigh* So, I've decided to ask for it for my birthday. But you know what? I looked the set up on Amazon... and as you may guess, you can get it there for a deep discount! And my dear mother, who's generally willing to follow me at least part way down any rabbit hole because it's just easier that way, said she's willing to buy it for me next time she has some spare cash! So that's something to look forward to.

So that's the end of the saga for now. And, in case you're worried, I'm not going to start any sort of serious Nancy Drew collecting. There's too much to collect and I get caught up in it easily. Nancy can be a sort of side hobby. For now anyways. =)

Nancy Drew (long epic post - Pt. 1)

I didn't grow up with Nancy Drew. I had a couple of her books as a kid, but that was it. I was more into the Baby-Sitters Club and American Girls. But I fell down this Nancy Drew rabbit hole some time back pretty much by accident. I was at a thrift store looking for books one day and came across a Nancy Drew mystery from the mid 80s. I bought it, enjoyed it for what it was, and commented to myself how that wasn't that Nancy Drew that I remembered. So I went looking for my childhood copies, and I couldn't find the one I most wanted: #1: The Secret of the Old Clock. So I hopped on eBay and looked for a copy (I ended up buying a double volume of #1 and #2, The Hidden Staircase).

While I was looking for that book, I saw any number of really old and expensive Nancy Drews. I didn't think anything of them at the time though. In the meanwhile, the eBay book came... I read it and loved it more than I remembered. I also reread the other Nancys I had left from childhood. That was the end of Nancy for a while.

Then one day, I was at the antique store (which you will recall I love... and would live there if they'd let me). There was a whole stack of vintage Nancy Drew books for $10 a piece. Now, if you're expecting me to say that I bought them all and went home on detective high, you're going to be disappointed. I didn't buy even one. But I wished I had, because the next time I was there *coughcough* two days later *cough*, there were all gone. So the next time I was online, out of curiosity, I did a little sleuthing of my own and looked into the history of Nancy Drew.

And what I didn't know about her could just about fill the Grand freaking Canyon.

I didn't know that there was no such person as Carolyn Keene. It's a pseudonym. I didn't know that there are over 500 Nancy Drew books in various spin off series and that they're still publishing them today. And most importantly, I didn't know that the original 34 Nancy Drew books were revised started in the late '50s. Apparently this was to remove outdated terms and stereotypes etc, but they also shortened the text and changed any number of things. The spunky 18 year old titian haired Nancy I knew was once a feisty 16 year old blonde.

I did a ton of Nancy Drew research. I found out that the original 34 books that were revised have been re-released in their original formats. It was all exciting. I was armed with information... and do you know what I did with it?

I bought Baby-Sitters Club books.

But Nancy would be coming back. And that story will be continued next time...

Social Anxiety

So, there's something that's always on my mind and I've never really told anyone about it. I figure there could be no better place to admit my strangeness than on my blog with a negative amount of readers. =) Although, if you are reading it, don't feel as if you're being invasive and need to leave. I do want to share.

So, I'm pretty sure sure I have like a mild form of social anxiety. I hate leaving my house more than ever. Don't get me wrong... most of the time I hate being here, but leaving makes me feel sorta wobbly, and not in a good way. If I'm leaving my house to go to a friend or relative's house that's no big deal, but anytime I'm going to be in a social setting, I feel anxious. I feel like other people have skills that I don't... like the ability to talk to people you don't really know without wanting to put a plastic bag over you own head. I feel like I'm missing the skills to build proper relationships... and while I point to my boringness for my lack or friends and general appearance for my lack of boyfriend, I can't help but fear that it's the skills (I feel) I'm missing keeping me from branching out to other people. I don't really make friends easily, and meeting new people makes me nervous. I feel like I'll never have anyone new in my life, and I'm probably alienating the people who already are in my life.

Now, I say that I feel this is mild, because the problem doesn't completely disrupt my life. I feel anxious at leaving the house, but the nerves tend to decrease once I'm actually in the situation. I still feel ill at ease, mind you, but I still, you know, function properly and everything. This isn't a crippling problem, per se, but it does bother me.

I wasn't always like this. I didn't use to feel anxious and nervous if someone invited me to a party or an outing or something. Perhaps this is something that has developed in me because of not having school or a job or a social life. I dunno. I guess the point of this post was that it's more or less time that I own it. I figure that I can't begin to build the bridge that will eventually (hopefully) get me over this until I accept and acknowledge that my feelings are probably not completely normal. I don't actually want to become a recluse.