this 'college student'(wouldn't that be nice) loves her canvas

today was a great day...after school. well, for the most part, anyway.

before school, i was walking to my car when i found a debit card on the ground, so i looked around to see if there was anyone outside but i saw no one. grr. that meant i'd have to go out of my way to do the right thing. i hate that.

i went to the chiropractor, and she was a bit shocked when she saw my hair-best compliment ever: YOU LOOK SO YOUNG! YOU ALMOST LOOK LIKE YOU'RE IN COLLEGE! oh dr. bri. you just became my favorite chiropractor ever!

on the way home, i decided i would stop by the whole foods store to see if they had guava paste. i have been craving the burgers i had in miami and st. petersburg; while both were very different, they were equally satisfying! so i looked in every aisle, but to no avail. i found the guava jelly, but it's not quite the same...so then i looked it up on my phone to see if maybe i could make my own with the purchase of some guava...then i saw how much sugar went into it, and i almost had a diabetic seizure right there in the store! nope. that was my cue to exit.

when i got back to the apartment, i realized that i had not stopped by the wells fargo bank, so i stopped by the apt. office to see if anyone had come by looking for their lost debit card. nope. unfortunately it was already 6, so i didn't have time to go to the bank to drop it off. i just told them that if anyone did come in to report it, i was planning to drop it off tomorrow.

when i got upstairs, i was pleasantly surprised to find this little package waiting at the door!

WHAT in the world could it be?!

i had to get a canvas print! i chose this picture because i LOVE the lighting and the colors, but most of all i LOVE THE FLAG! it's a slice of the beach in my living room! all the inspiration i need! i almost feel like i should put the ocean waves cd in the stereo (yes, still got one of those), and play it, blow the fan and pretend i'm there!

canvas print: it's every bit of perfect! (look at chaco, he looks like he just woke up from a nap, all disheveled!) 

the boys said they want to go with me next time...and stay. i told them they might not like it and mentioned fish, and that fish were usually a cat food. chaco smiled and said, "i'm stealth, like a dogfish! i know i'll like it!" bruno almost snorted and said, "more like a clownfish!" that's when chaco walked off and yelled over his shoulder, "whatever! you're like a blowfish!" and i just shook my head...i'll settle for mermaid.

and that's where we left it. hopefully the storms that are moving around don't hit them too hard this season! #missingthebeach

julie

bmayes is not an imaginary friend-we just don't have recent pics, and p.s. my chiropractor thinks i'm funny, so there.

alright...let's see. you are lucky, i flipped a coin and it was between writing letters and writing a post. writing a post won-granted, it was a mental coin and i'm pretty close to up-to-date in the letter-category.

training ended on a good note, and i am certain that everyone was ready for summer! ahem...i'm still working summer school. a resounding sigh echoes through the empty school building...it just sounded good-i'm not at school... next week will be the last of it, then i will stick around for a couple of days so that i can get to the chiropractor again before i'm gone for several weeks.

did i mention that i have an awesome chiropractor? well, it's true. first impressions aren't everything (if you didn't read about the first visit, you can find out more about "bradley" here). seriously, if you are in the dallas area, and thinking about visiting a chiropractor, bri is great! what makes her great, you ask...well, in all honesty, it's mostly that she thinks i'm funny and laughs when i say something humorous-which, let's face it, it happens quite often.

today i wore my vibrams in, and she was like, "cool shoes! you always have cool things!" she was referring to my umbra credit card holder from the last visit...great. now i've upped the expectations.

this past weekend, one of my favorite friends (if i used the word besties, she would fit in that category, but that is not really a word in my vocab-except when i'm being stupid)...so yeah, back to the story, bmayes made an appearance! it was short, but well-timed and much enjoyed! from gloria's, hurt's donuts-hand-delivered, hawaiian ice...ah, good times, good conversation-always! but once again, we failed to get any pics-people are going to begin thinking brittany is an imaginary friend! which would make me feel like anne of green gables...but i digress....TOTALLY real! i found the dreamcatcher that i meant to send as a gag-gift several months ago and i put it up over futon- because everyone should sleep well!

front

back

it HURTS! it's hurts. we actually looked them up and they began in springfield-the original, and that is the facebook page i follow (and have had the opportunity to visit), then friends wanted the owner to start one up in norman (which is the first place i was introduced!) and i believe they have opened a third in wichita! i must make the pilgrimage! #hurtsdonutgroupie

SERIOUSLY! if she weren't real, how did i get to savor THESE GEMS!?!  not sure what the green monster is called, but it had andes mints on it, then moving up to Jesus donut (english J, not the spanish j), german chocolate, and my all time fave-twixted sister!! i'm purring just thinking about them, because if i were a cat, that's how happy they make me!

 not gonna' lie, when i realized that bmayes had left, and left her portion of the donuts behind (as she'd met with a friend for breakfast), i was doing a happy dance.

before she left, we went for hawaiian ice-i originally wanted to go to my favorite little shack, but when we got there, it was closed! with no forwarding address!! which led to some googling to see if we could figure out where they moved...but to no avail, so i decided to swing by a little joint down on beltline that i'd driven by several times to see how they were. guess what-they were great! so from now on, that will be the frequented hot-weather shaved ice haunt.

plus, they have prime seating!

 i had to stop to get an envelope to send bruno's records in to the insurance peeps...i got a call from the vet, and they tried to fax them, but the file was too big, their computer too old...so i said i'd pick them up and send them. i did stop by fed-ex to see how much it would cost to fax-um.. $1.25/page! (70 pages); pretty sure my face said it all as i immediately turned around laughing and went to purchase an envelope!

while i was purchasing said envelope, one of the employees-a gentleman walked up to the cashiers on a cordless phone and asked if either of them (late teens) could give directions to the lady on the phone. the girls laughed, and one of them actually said, "i don't give directions. that's what smart phones are for! everyone has them now!" WOW. so i asked where the lady was coming from and i gave her directions (i even pulled out the actual words, EAST, under the bridge, about 1.5 miles) and she was grateful, but for real...our youth is DOOMED!! the day sci-fy movies come true, they're screwed! how in the world are they going to get out of the zombie-ridden town if all they have is the sky and an old-school compass...and if they're lucky, a printed atlas...oooooohhhhh.

i am so glad that i learned how to use a compass, read maps, know what nnw means, and how to get there! thanks dad and geography classes!!

that time i gave directions because the people who actually worked there couldn't articulate where they were employed. the struggle is real.

 and we met our new principal last night-you never know what someone is like or how they are going to be in a leadership position with your staff until they are actually in place working. that's the make or break moment. it was great to have such a good turn out of teachers to meet him and ask questions. but let's be honest...curiosity mostly! so we did go out to snuffers afterward. i haven't been out with friends from school in way too long. i met up with olivia more than anyone else last year, and she wasn't even on staff! welcome back!!

great ladies-fun, authentic, thoughtful! part of the bilingual crew! we are fortunate.

 and last, but not least, please look at the concrete stairs at my apartment. for how long do you think this will be structurally safe?

alrighty then, did i mention that my chiropractor thinks i'm funny? just making sure you caught that.

'night!
julie

instruments for subluxations, blood-pressure kit and a hanger for the car keys

well, i did it. i went to the chiropractor, and they took x-rays and used some equipment designed by NASA to detect heat spots in my spine-which indicate possible subluxations (pinched or irritated nerves). this particular day, i walked into the office, and there was no one there, except bradley-who, looks kinda' like big boy only with orange-ish hair. i hate to say it, but he kinda' drove me nuts.

main entrance-it's a fairly new practice

  when we were in the room where they pulled out the NASA equipment, it seemed like he was really trying to sell a used car. i said something that made him think of a joke, only it was from a stand-up comedian act, and when he tried to set it up and explain that part, then told the joke prefaced by "it was something like..." i should have known i would have to break out the fake smile and fake laugh. when he started to talk to me like a kid, i was really annoyed. he actually tried a CLOZE sentence with me, where he said something and trailed off at the end, leaning in to let me know i was supposed to fill in the blank. pretty sure he said: "so, if you know that it isn't helping, it's..._______" so i gave him my annoyed look and answered with my 'are you really doing this right now' voice: HARMING?. conversation didn't get better the longer he went on. finally the doctor came in to do the x-rays and she was normal.

what i noticed was that the appliques on the walls were slightly off centered or just 'not-quite straight' enough that a discerning eye would notice. not that i'm judging...but yes, i am kinda' judging. before i left, i was given the appointment card for the follow-up visit:

it's CRUCIAL to bring a spouse or a loved one! (not one of the three of us that showed up had a spouse or loved one with us...)

then i went back in to hear the recommendations and all goes along with that. it took a good 60-90 minutes. there were 3 other new patients, so the doc gave her introduction and like a powerpoint presentation of what chiropractic is, and how she got involved-her story, if you will. and then each person went back for the individual consultation. well...my x-rays showed what my body feels like, so i wasn't totally surprised.

i'd hoped that the back surgery a couple years back would've taken care of everything, but unfortunately during the past school year, my back has been getting progressively worse. 

all sorts of interesting stuff going on in there! anyhoo, she said i was a good candidate and thought they would really be able to help (of course, i am certain they say this to everyone). BUT at this point, i just need my body to agree with me. i think part of the reason i don't get out and do things i really enjoy is because my body has been working against me, and i've just resigned myself to that for too long. i have a pretty high threshold for pain, but it'd gotten to the point where bending over to put on socks or pick something up off the ground hurt- i'm too young for that-

i need to get back to doing the things i love again.

so i started to think about all of the things could have contributed to all of this...

• falling from the top of the tornado slide-kindergarten
• makeshift high jump in our backyard in teguc and i totally over-jumped the mat and landed flat on my back-wind knocked out of me. 
• various roller-blading spills
• 1 major car crash and 2 minor accidents (which messed up the cars)
• falling jumping from an 8 foot retaining wall on a rainy night and falling (first acl tear)
• missing my footing on a jump in a cave and falling on back from about 8-10 ft
• airlines-lifting, stacking heavy suitcases and trunks because no one can travel with bags lighter than the 50 lb limit...apparently
• being independent- getting a futon up to the 3rd floor alone, moving a love-seat down from the 3rd floor-and across the parking lot, rearranging/completely moving everything in the apt two times in two weeks when they did the floors...alone

i'm pretty sure there are other things i am missing, but that's probably a pretty good start. so i will be seeing the chiropractor regularly- it takes 20 minutes to get there, on a good day, and only 5 minutes for them to do their part...so yes, 40 minutes of travel for a 5 minute adjustment. worth it-the drive is relaxing for me.

so, they did the first adjustment the same day. the alternate doc was there, and he did the adjustment. he went in to ask dr. bri where the 'instrument' was. i'm sure this instrument has a name, but they just call it the instrument-i wonder if it just has a weird name, or they cannot pronounce it. i suppose if i were an inventor and could patent a device, i would call it something like the flickinbickenmcklickenspicken device...then people would always refer to it as 'THE DEVICE,' as well. 

so yeah, i did just look it up, and it's called the  impulse adjusting instrument ...anyhoo-hopefully the whole sock and tying the shoe thing gets better with the next few visits! 

new subject-bruno had his acl surgery! poor buddy...his leg looks like frankenstein's monster. he's doing pretty well. the good thing is that he is not a jumpy energetic one, so he's pretty good about lying down and resting, although there have been a couple of times that i've caught him contemplating a jump and stopped him. constant supervision. boys! so if i can't keep an eye on him, i have to cage him up. chaco may be a little jealous. "why can't i have a surgery?" "why can't i wear a cone?" i thought about going out and buying one for him so he doesn't feel so left out. not really, because that would be odd behavior...

tuesday is the final reveal for our secret pals at school-good times. it's been fun-i love doing stuff like this. there is something fun about giving. (only not when it's like giving taxes, or giving money to bruno's doctors)... 

and i decided to try the more minimalistic approach with dressing during the week for school. my own uniform, if you will. going with khaki/tan pants and black shirt. easy. so on monday, i found some pants that i really like the fit of at dress barn. unfortunately they only had one pair and they couldn't order online. so she checked some other stores in the metroplex and found a store with 2 pair, so they ordered them to be delivered. i then got in my car and went to walmart because the target had closed down and i wasn't aware. 

after pulling in, i got out of my car and was walking away and remembered i needed something from the trunk. so i reached for my keys to open the trunk...they weren't there. nope, once again-story of my life-locked them in my car! WHAT IN THE WORLD??! so of course, i had to stay with my car while i waited for the man to come and break into my car. it took him 45 minutes to get there and all of 1 minute and 42 seconds (approx) to unlock my door. boo. so i watched carefully and i think if i got myself a blood pressure kit, i could do the same thing. pump that sucker up, give myself the space to get a hanger in there and pop the lock! no problem-i could TOTALLY do it! they don't call me mcgeyver for nothing.

right there. there they are. just on the other side of that glass. just sittin there. STUPID KEYS!!!!

so i did use my time well-i took loose carts to the corral, and offered to take carts from people who were nearby to pass the time. when i wasn't being useful, i was leaning against the car trying to look cool. new trend-hanging out by your car at walmart-it's "IN." just ask the cool kids. so there was that. i got home much later than i had planned that night. double-boo. 

and i said i was going to try the whole liquid-water color paints- i decided to go with neutral shades...yes i do need to adjust the pics with a level. i was too lazy. like the peeps at the chiropractor office (only i don't have to unpeel these from the wall).

from my favorite song on the GARDEN STATE soundtrack

i made it through field day yesterday. i cannot believe i didn't get any pics! it was brutal. we did hockey shots in the gym. the pre-k kids had never held a stick, so it was a great little motor-skills event for them. i had on my fake smile and enthusiasm all day long... and that was exhausting!! BUT the kids had a blast, and that's what really matters! 

this thursday, it's off to berkeley, ca for our little teamsfest, teaching channel escapade! it should be really good for us- lots of valuable information and ideas for next steps and how to be really successful implementing this more personalized pd next year in a way that really benefits all of our staff. THAT is what i am looking forward to.

alright, enjoy your memorial day weekend, take time to honor those who have served and given their lives for our freedom-heroes.

julie