O hai, I'm 34 today!

I was surprised when I got up this morning and found the table was decorated all fancy, with a shiny tablecloth and balloons and stuff..nice! Mom also got me a card that says "celebrate like a cat today. Eat. Sleep. Ignore everyone who annoys you." Awesome LOL. We went to Chena's Alaskan Grill for dinner..thankfully they had their regular menu this time, and not the disappointing buffet they did last year, then went home and had cupcakes! Mom also got me a Mac Mini, because the computer at my apartment is super old and needs to be replaced..nice!

At work today Laura, Elias and Lydia stopped in to buy books! I hadn't seen them in quite awhile..seeing Elias always makes me happy lol. Lydia is now walking and running around everywhere lol. Of course we had to get a picture:

Yay! He's six now, wow! I wonder what Mike's doing these days, I'll have to ask Laura next time I see her..

I saw my psychiatrist on Tuesday, and I'm going to try going back on Prozac again, because the Cymbalta isn't helping much and I feel like I'm getting worse again..ugh. It was definitely a miracle drug, especially when I first started taking it. I also finally have an appointment with the sleep doctor on Wednesday to talk about the sleep study results. I barely slept at all that night so I don't know if there's any good data, but I guess I'll find out :P

( june 3-8 )

Yesterday was Jo's birthday, so I went to eat at a restaurant downtown with mom and Ryan and Jo a bunch of their friends..I thought it was going to be just me, mom, Ryan and Jo, so that threw me off my already unsocial-feeling mood lol. It's weird, but I always feel like I don't belong when I'm around their friends. We also got seated in the worst possible place, next to the bar, so it was SUUUPER loud (apparently a bus had just dropped off a bunch of tourists there). When the waiter asked for our drink order, I couldn't find my voice, nor did I really want to speak..no one would have been able to hear me anyway. I finally found my voice when the waiter asked for our orders, and finally told him I wanted lemonade ("oh, so you DO want a drink!" Uh..yes??). He brought everyone else's drinks, but not mine..I looked at him to ask him about my drink but I was like "*strangled voice* umm..I..I..uhh..." and he just walked away. I'm sure he never heard me, but I was looking right at him!! After that, I just decided I wasn't even going to try speaking anymore, and looked on my phone until the food came..I normally don't do that when eating with people, but the noise was so overwhelming I had to do *something* to distract myself so I wouldn't just freak out (a couple of Jo's friends are SUPER extroverted, which added to the OTHER loudness, and I kept trying to not burst into tears). At least the food was good lol. After we were done eating, I could see that Jo was now sitting quietly like me..indeed, when we got to the car, he was like "OMG I'm saturated with stimuli!!" Phew, I'm glad it wasn't just me! When the waiter gave me my bill, he touched my shoulder (*dies more inside*) and was like "sorry, I just realized I forgot your lemonade!" Sigh. To be fair, part of that was my fault for not speaking up again after failing the first time, but I just did NOT want to talk after that. That was one of the most miserable dinners I've ever had. :/ Everyone else was going axe throwing after that, but I was like "NOPE, I'm done," and went home (mom said I was going to miss having cake, but I so didn't care at this point) and THEN had a panic attack and burst into tears haha. I hope Jo at least enjoyed himself! I feel fragile and very tired today..those situations are so hard! Next time I should speak up, and ask if there's a quieter place lol

Today is my parents' and Ryan and Jo's one year anniversary of buying the new house! Wow, that went by fast lol. We all very much enjoy life there, especially having bonfires and watching the duck chicks grow up! (The lake was a big reason they wanted that house.) I wish I could tell who the Armada of Nine is, but they all look the same now! The neighbor's kids love Abby haha. We do miss the seclusion of the other house, but at least our neighbors are nice lol

Next is my 9th grade journal in its entirety! (Not all at once, of course. :P) After this, I'm hoping to find more of that kind of thing when I go to Payson, so I can share those too!)
( beware, i talked about scotland a LOT haha )

23. Where was the farthest you’ve ever traveled from home? Italy

24. Have you ever slammed the door when you were mad? Hmmm..it's possible, but I can't remember lol

25. How old were you when you met your first love? In 9th grade I felt like I "loved" someone, if that counts :P

26. Were your college years the best years of your life? I only took a few classes, it was alright

Today's trivia: The U.S. Air Force introduced Bob Ross to painting. While rising to the rank of Master Sergeant, Ross was also able to take a painting class, and he was inspired by the scenery in Alaska where he was stationed (he was stationed in Alaska?!? No way!)

Every year mom and I go to Chena's Alaskan Grill (which is indeed on the river) for our birthdays, which we did today, and dad, Ryan and Jo came too. They got me a present too! Ryan has definitely changed since meeting Jo..he never would want to go out to eat with us or travel or anything like that, but now he does so willingly (they just got back from Puerto Rico!). He even called when we were in Anchorage to wish me a happy birthday! He NEVER would have done that before..thanks Jo! It's nice to see him not sitting in his room for hours lol. We sat outside, which might have been a mistake, because it was HOT..it must have been in the high 70s! The sun in Alaska is incredibly intense (dad was like "can someone turn down the sun?" haha). It was still nice though :)

When we were coming back from Anchorage on Sunday, we took a flightpath to the airport I'd never seen before (mom said they land against the wind, which was from the south, pretty unusual unless we're having a Chinook), and as we flew over Fred Meyer, I saw "Fred Meyer welcomes you to Fairbanks!" on the roof! Haha awesome, that was amusing :P

At work we've been doing more Facebook advertising, and it's definitely working, because we've been super busy this week! The last two days we did over $500, and it was over $400 when I left today. So awesome, I remember when $300 days were rare and exciting, now we're like "eh" when that happens haha

( pokemon update )

Today's trivia: Until 1796, Tennessee was known as "Franklin"

Yesterday mom and I had a unique dining experience..we went to a place called Beijing Hot Pot, where you order what you want and they bring you a pot of broth and set it on a stove thing built in to the table. You were basically cooking your own food right there. The ingredients were very unique, like taro, lotus roots, and enoki mushrooms. It got somewhat tiring cooking your own food like that after awhile lol, but it was a cool experience. The fortune in my cookie said something like "what you're desiring is coming nearer," and mom looked around and was like "Cherry? Where??" LOL

I don't get as many migraines as I used to since taking Amitriptyline, but when one breaks through..OMG. I was up at 1 AM this morning in so much pain..not even Exedrin took it away. Denise woke up at 5 AM with one and couldn't go back to sleep, so we were both zombies when we got to work this morning LOL. Yesterday it was sunny and it's been raining all day today, so it must have been the pressure change that set it off. Eesh, I'm glad I don't get them often now D:

Today's trivia: The tutara lizard's metabolism is so slow they only have to breathe once an hour

June 18th, Boston's Restaurant and Sports Bar located on the Old Steese Highway will close its doors. Opening in its place around Labor Day will be a new Alaska themed family restaurant and Sports bar.

The "Banks Alehouse" will feature a non-smoking environment along with a new and expanded menu, 40 beer brands including locally and Alaskan made brews, and local sea food and game meat products. The new facility will have a complete outdoor Alaska appearance inside to enhance the rustic look

Ugh, why do my favorite restaurants up here always close?? Especially the ones everyone can agree upon? I'll definitely have to go there again before they close. The new place sounds interesting though..I'll have to try it out

( 28. be deaf and have no legs or be blind with no arms )

Today's trivia: WD-40 stands for Water Displacement, 40th attempt. That's how many tries it took Norm Larsen, a chemist, to concoct a formula that would prevent corrosion by displacing water

Yesterday we got to the campground we're staying at near Vero Beach (thankfully nothing broke this time haha). After we got settled we went over to grandpa's friend's house and talked for awhile and had dinner at Texas Roadhouse. The music was WAY too loud, but at least the food was good :P

Today we had breakfast and met up with more of grandpa's friends (all of them are married). They had 9 motorcycles, an RV, a tractor, a boat, a fancy sports car, a model oldish car and a Model T. WTF..where does one get that kind of money from?? Haha. The lady gave me four books to read from her "extras" shelf haha (she buys her favorite books from a used bookstore to give to people haha. There are customers at my bookstore that do that too :P). I hope I have room in my suitcase for all these books haha. After visiting with them grandpa drove over to his old house (I loved that house, I was sad when he sold it). That must have felt weird to him haha. It didn't really look that familiar to me though (the only thing I recognized in the area was a treasure museum I went to haha). We also checked out the beach for about 20 seconds haha and found a couple caches. Grandpa's friend he was trying to get ahold of finally called him when he was in the bathroom..he was like "I'm in the bathroom, I'll have to call back, you'll never guess what I have in my hand! I have to put stuff away!" OMG HAHAHA. That is HILARIOUS. :P This couple we visited I swear must be superhumans. The guy (Doc) is 96 and the lady (Dolly) is 93. Doc takes no medicine at all and went skydiving on his 80th birthday. They live in an independent living facility and are in excellent health. You would NEVER guess they are in their 90s. They looked at least in their 70s or 80s. They even still drive. Dolly said she usually stays up till 12 or 1 AM!! I have never heard of an elderly person staying up that late haha! Doc is a World War 2 veteran..wow, not many of those left! It was really cool seeing them..I know people younger than them (like 60) who are in way worse health than them..wow. I bet they're gonna live to be 100. After visiting with them we went to dinner at Olive Garden..yayy! Mmm breadsticks and four cheese ziti. *drools* I feel so fat from this trip haha

Tomorrow we go back to Crystal River..good, I really need to do laundry :P

On Wednesday mom and I found our first geocache in Florida. It was less than a mile away, so we just walked to it. So nice to not have to freeze and wade through snow and bundle up to go caching haha

Yesterday we met grandpa's neighbors that live across the street from him. They are very nice. They have four dogs, three horses and a squirrel! It was fun to visit with all the animals hehe. They said to come over anytime and that they might put the horses in the front pasture so I could pet and feed them..aww. After visiting we went to Chili's..yayy! Sooo good. My leftovers today were so delicious haha

Today we went geocaching at this state park near grandpa's house. We wanted to take him since he had never done it before. It was warm and sunny and the trail was nice..a good day for walking. Geocaching in Florida kinda freaks me out since there's alligators, spiders, scorpions, ticks, snakes and whatever else is out there haha. We didn't see any, but we did see an armadillo! We found five caches. The trail was 2.1 miles altogether. Grandpa said he enjoyed it..cool. Now it's relaxation time :P

Today mom and I went into London. We took the train there since it's near grandma's house. Omg so many people. D: They always seem to be in a hurry and bumping into you too. London also smells pretty bad..especially after it rained..eww. I think I'm spoiled by living in Alaska where there's not many people and the air smells fresh. It's so exhausting always dodging people haha. I guess after Alaska I'm more impressed by amazing nature and mountains than hectic cities. Oh well, enough complaining. :P The train let us off near the Thames River and Big Ben and stuff..we had breakfast and walked around by the river. I think we went to the British Museum after that (we took the subway..it still smelled just like I remembered it :P). It was raining, so it was a good time to go to the museum. There were lots of Roman, Greek, Assyrian, Egyptian, etc artifacts (like the Rosetta Stone). It's a nice museum. I don't understand how people walk around London and museums with high heels and other uncomfortable looking shoes. Jeez..my feet hurt just wearing regular shoes. After we were done in the museum we sat outside to figure out what to do next..this pigeon hopped up on the bench next to mom and mom started talking to it and the pigeon was tilting its head like it was listening..then it hopped onto mom's lap!! It fell off but it hopped on her lap again..it kept doing that several times! (It pecked at mom's hand like it was food haha) It was SO funny haha..I think it liked her. ;) I was getting pretty hungry so we walked back to the subway station..but on the way I came across this super awesome antiquarian bookstore! They had a whole bunch of old books in there..I even saw a couple from the 1700s!! They were in great condition for being so old! One was a dictionary..so interesting. I saw one called The White Tower..it stood out to me for some reason. I was thinking of the Tower of London since it there's a building there called the White Tower..but it was actually a mountaineering book!! So awesome! I also found these..drawings or prints or something of places in Switzerland..a couple were of a glacier! I definitely had to buy those and the book haha. What an awesome place to find! There were tons of bookstores in London haha..we went to another used bookstore, but the other one was cooler. I was sooo hungry by now..we took the subway near where Hard Rock Cafe was (for some reason this time we had trouble finding things and kept going the wrong way :P) and walked to the restaurant (it's by Green Park and Hyde Park..after the city craziness, it sounded very appealing to go to the park haha..maybe next time). There was a 45 minute wait (SO. HUNGRY.) so we browsed the store and I got a shirt and pin. Eventually it was our turn (yay!) and ate dinner. The music was SUPER loud..eesh. After that we walked down the street to check out Piccadilly Circus ("circus" meaning "circle"..Piccadilly is an intersection of streets). The neon signs looked cool in the dark. After that I was so done haha..we took the subway back to the train station and took the train back to grandma's house. OMG..West Byfleet was SO quiet and seemed deserted compared to London haha! It's nice to relax now! I need to take a shower, I feel and smell so gross. :P I think I'll post my pics tomorrow..

I am home! (At mom's house anyway haha) Yesterday we went to another museum, the Anchorage Museum of History and Art. It was ok..there were a lot of Native artifacts and stuff there. That stuff just doesn't interest me. There was also a floor with hands on stuff for kids, a temporary aviation exhibit, and the 4th floor was a few pieces of modern art scattered about. So pointless..like there were three kinda crushed water jugs with this furry thing on top with a light shining on the wall. Ooook. After having lunch and browsing the gift shop we drove back to Windy's house. She made us dinner of chicken and rice! Aw nice. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince was on TV and we had fun watching that and eventually we went to bed. She's so nice hehe

This morning we said bye to Windy (she had somewhere to be again), packed up and drove to a restaurant Windy recommended. The guy behind me started smoking! It was SO disgusting..my nose was burning. (I thought they outlawed smoking in restaurants??) We moved to the bar but people were smoking in there too and I could just see the smoke wafting in the sunlight. That was it, I had to leave. Grossss. My hair reeked of smoke and it took awhile before it got out of my nose. Blech. It was an hour till there was another open restaurant, a Subway (at the Talkeetna turn off). It was lunch time by then haha. We ate and continued the drive home. The mountains were so pretty in the sun! For some reason the audiobooks wouldn't work in the car's CD player so I used my laptop. It did make time go by faster. Now to relax and upload pics! I still hate the new Photobucket..it makes my pics giant sized and when I resize them I have to save them and upload them again for it to work. Sorry if they break your computer haha but I really don't want to do that. :P It keeps putting my pics out of order too. Grrr. Looks like I'll have to get used to another LJ profile change too :P

My friend Judy, who used to volunteer at the Literacy Council, invited me with her to go to the animal shelter where she now volunteers to pet the kitties. I couldn't say no to that haha. We went today. The kitties were friendly and purring when they were in the cages..but when you took them out they freaked out and growled and stuff. They were probably scared. Only one purred when we took it out. It was cool though. After that we went to Alaska Coffee Roast and got drinks and food and just talked. It was nice..I hope we can do it again!

Last night I dreamed that my brother and I were walking on a dark snowy path..I was scared of animals so I turned back only to see a moose. It charged me as fast as it could. I tried to hide under the snow but it found me..it sniffed my head and bit it and tore some of my hair out. Wtf haha

( 6. Break Away )

Would you rather if you had to come up with $50,000 in five days to get a sibling out of jail, try to steal it or go to Vegas? Go to Vegas

Today's trivia: The world's oldest crow is estimated to be 118 years old