phew.

i'm exhausted.  in the last few weeks i have done the following:

1. gone on vacation.  although this was rather fantastic, the days leading up to it were incredibly hectic, since my boss in her infinite wisdom decided to have 4 new people start the week i go on vacation, when i am the main trainer.  good times.  coming back from vacation, equally as exhausting.

2. moved out of my house.  roommate kayla is getting married on july 5th, and they are staying in the house we were sharing.  i could have technically stayed for june, but i wanted to save having to pay a month's rent, and i also did not want to be moving out the weekend before kayla got married and have both her and me be stressed out.

3. i am now living with my parents.  sigh.  now, this is much better than it sounds, as i am living in their basement suite, which means i have a spacious bedroom, livingroom, mini-kitchen, bathroom and spare bedroom all to myself.  no rent, no utilities, no nothing.  but it still is living with the parents.

4. i told my boss i am going part-time in the fall or i have to quit.  and that i will be quitting officially next fall, if i go part-time.  this is mainly why i am living with my parents currently.  my boss took it very well, and i should know in two weeks if i will be able to work very part-time in the fall.  i hope so.

5. i am now a junior in school.  i am at university of colorado, and have to go to real classes on the campus now.  the next year is nearly all english classes, then student teaching and education classes for my senior year.  my loans only pay part of my tuition, and i don't qualify for any scholarships.  this should be fun.

6. the boy is moving here.  he's been trying to sell his business, but has decided that if he doesn't have a buyer by labor day, he's shutting it down and moving here shortly thereafter.  for anyone who has done any kind of distance thing, you will know how fantastic that is.

so, that has taken much of my time over the last month or so, and i've been a somewhat large ball of stress, which i just can't have because it's SUMMER.  geesh.

pina coladas, anyone?

" I'm in Los Angeles today...
It smells like an airport runway..."

Mike: What the fuck are you carrying a gun for? What, in case somebody steps to you, Snoop Dogg?
Sue: Hey man, you're not from here, alright. You don't know how it is. I grew up in L.A.
Trent: Anaheim.
Sue: Whatever, man. It's different out here. It's not like New York, Mikey.

although i am glad to be on vacation, i can say that vacation is very different when you are with a 13 year old girl who has never been out of colorado or the adjoining 3 states to colorado.  on one hand, the bigger hand, it's fun going around with someone who has only seen the airport on television, and gets really excited when the plane takes off; or someone who can't believe how sunny california is because she has never seen a PALM TREE OH MY GOSH LOOK AT THAT TREE HOLY COW!  on the other hand, the smaller selfish hand, i am bombarded with constant words, and i'm running out of responses.  it feels at times a little parent-y, and it makes me wonder if i will ever be good at this.  they say it's different when they are your own, and i believe it.  but still.  it means dragging your sorry butt down to the pool when they want to go swimming for the 2nd time in a 4 hour period because you can't let them go by themselves, but also being somewhat interested in what they are doing.  it's responding to them in conversation, even at 8:30am in the morning when i never talk to anyone, just because they start talking immediately.

my nerves are fraying at the ends, the residue from a few long weeks of school finals, being sick, and working 12 hour days.   i hear salty air is the cure.  i hope so.