Victorious!

We had a makeup softball game yesterday against the number one, undefeated team in the league, and WE WON!!!!! 10-8!!! One of the other teams who beat us actually cheered for us when we were walking off the field, and slapped us high fives. It was friggin awesome. And, I actually hit the ball and scored. Fantastic. Yay fun!

4th of July

I finally gathered up the gumption to get my first motorcycle ride on the 4th, with my friend Calvo's Dad. We drove through Winslow and Waterville, and it was absolutely awesome!!


Calvo & I enjoying our beverages on a lovely tour of Messalonskee Lake! We crammed that party boat full of people and beer, and had a blast! Plus I got the fabulous sun burn out there that I've been after all summer!


The two proud Captains. Captain Morgans I mean. (Calvo's boyfriend Chris and his nephew Teddy)


What a beautiful day.

Family

Last week, my cousin Ryan was up from Tennessee, which was a total wonderful surprise! Ryan is in the Army and has served in Afghanistan and Iraq for three tours already...he is returning in the spring. He is a medic, and he is my hero! Here are some pictures of all of us at my grandparents:



The garage sale gang!

Me, the cousins, my sister & my Dad

Me, the cousins, the sister, and my Grandma


Me, Ryan, Lisa & Aunt Helen

Ryan and my Dad enjoying some wingies.

The family who takes shots together stays together.

Still kickin'

Ch-ch-ch-changes

Do do do.

Some things have changed since I was last on here. Firstly, there will be no more posts of me and Matt having a grand old time, because we're not. So! It's okay though. I truthfully feel quite relieved and less stressed being out of the relationship.

Work's going really well. Maybe it's the nice weather, but it's fun with my coworkers, things on my caseload are going on without a hitch...it's quite pleasant.

I have reached a major milestone - I owe less than $2 grand on my Saab! Woo hoo!

I bought a new lap top yesterday at Best Buy. It's a Gateway, it's wireless, it's fabulous. It's so much faster than my 2002 Compaq piece or crap, it's amazing. I was blaming time warner, and should have been blaming the machine for that wicked slowness. Im amused that my meez on myspace actually moves freely without freezing now. Yes, its the important things, like my meez, that makes this $800 purchase worth while.

We've missed the last couple softball games - holiday and weather. Looking forward to Monday's game. Am enjoying things, and again, the bonding with coworkers is really quite nice.

As for like...fun trips or whatever...not really. Though I am scheduled to go to Hot-Lanta in a couple weeks for work, and when down there will meet up with my cousin JR and it should be a really good time. Havent seen him in several years. Also, am plotting a trip to VEGAS BABY in October. Actually tagging along with a friend. Who cares man. Opportunity knocks. Am taking 4th of July week off, and will be the first vacation since Christmas! I am in desperate need for this one. No plans, and I like it that way.

School goes well. It's brutal actually. There's tons of work involved, projects, etc. Its sort of a pain in the ass. But, hey. Im learning some new things and only going into half as much debt as I did for undergrad. So. Thats good I think.

Enough of this babbling. Especially since I think Im the only one who reads these. And I already have a good idea of what's going on in my life. ;)

Oops.

So its been a while since Ive posted. I suck at this, truely. But here's some recent photos to keep you entertained:

Here's me go-karting, kicking major ass:


Here's a sweet one of little Eleanor:



Here's a lovely shot of us doing Irish Car Bombs on St. Patty's Day at Grittys:



A lovely one of Matt and his family and Me (parents, brother, sister in law, neices) at his Change of Command promotion Ceremony in Bangor at the ARMY reserve base:



Good times in the snowbank:



Matt's neices Zoe and Melinda, and his nephew Buddy :)

SO Smaht

I got into graduate school, everyone. *clap clap* hehe.

Good times!

I feel validated, I have to admit. I know lots of people out there get into grad school no problemo, but I actually know a lot of people who dont get into USM for some programs because theyre so small and selective. Yay for me.

I did unfortunately learn that to be vested in Maine State Retirement for 100% health care benefits, you only have to work 10 years where I work already...and once I am done with school, I will have vested 9 YEARS. So...Im thinking I mis-stepped a bit. But...I can always work another year before venturing out into guidance counselor land.

Then again, 3-4 years from now...I could have like...a kid or be poppin one, and live in a house with a white picket fence and change all my plans??? Holy crap.

Im getting old!

:D

update!

Hey all!

It's been a long time since I updated this thang, so here it is, the scary details of the past 9 weeks:

-I had my USM grad school interview last week. It was very brief! Frighteningly so. I did a little writing sample too. I find out at the end of this month. If I get in, it will help determine a couple of things:
-where more specifically, to look for a house with Matt
-if I should transfer to the Portland office

-There have been a couple of upper management changes around the office, so I'm awaiting how that will affect me. My unit is startilingly stable, which I love..and my boss is awesome. So I dont anticipate major troubles, but who knows. My caseload continues to increase. :(

-Got the dogs groomed again, and I hadn't done so since November! (Coincidentally, this was the last time I got my hair cut!!). They were looking so scroungy. Ive decided to do it every other month...just have to remember to plan ahead because this lady is booked solid.

-Me and Matt joined my family for some sledding and snow shoeing this weekend. It was just me and Matt that did the snow shoeing, across my parents' lake. Turns out it was very slushy! We thought we might fall in, which was scary in light of all of the fatalities with lakes this winter!

-My sister's birthday is today, and for those of you who don't know, she is the Heather on my myspace! She has finally joined that fabulous community. Her page is coming along nicely. :)

-My parents 27th anniversary was Wednesday!

-My friend Kelly found out she, too, is having a baby boy (too as in, like Barbie, not like as in I am !!!!) and she is excited.

-I had the flu on Tuesday this week, and it was the first time Ive vomited from a non-alcohol reason since childhood. It was miserable!!! I actually threw up in the Saab!!!!! I had to go to work that morning for court, and I barely made it out of the court parking lot before hurling onto my dash. *sigh* That was gross.

-I have not been keeping up with any reality tv, but have been deeply engrossed in some recent "True Life"s on MTV. Ive become a fan of the silly design shows on Bravo as well.

-Things are pretty good...moving along...I'm happy. So, there's the big update!!

The Creeping Crud!

Last night was one of those nights when I remember why I do the job that I do. And I am proud.

We took in 5 siblings under the age of 3, because of severe neglect. I helped play with them, distract them, and most of all hug and hold them, because they were desperate for affection. They were infested with head lice and impetigo, and one of them peed on my leg, BUT...I was smiling the entire time. True, I said a lot of "ew!" like when being peed on, or when the little triplets were picking their noses and waving boogers at me, but they weren't real ews. Well, the pee was kind of gross actually.

And, when I got home I stripped bare on the porch, marched directly into a hot shower, and gave myself a lice treatment.

But I have a home. I have a safe home. And I am proud to do what I do. (Remind me when I develop impetigo after the 2 week incubation period).

Bah Habah!

Matt and I spent a lovely mini-vacation in Bar Harbor last week. We stayed in this really cute B & B, and climbed a small mountain at Acadia National Park. The only problem ... it was 14 degrees and windy!! Here are some nice pictures:

Christmas

Christmas this year was very busy for me. I was invited to be part of Matt's family Christmas, and of course to my own family's...unfortunately his family lives in NH, and mine lives in the woods of Maine. I had some driving to do!

On Christmas Eve-Eve, Matt and I headed down to NH for a nice dinner and Angela present fest with Matt's parents and aunt and uncle. After some serious drinking, we convinced everyone to a pool tournament, which...unfortunately through some serious repeat bad luck (8 ball style)...Matt and I lost to his Dad and Uncle Pete. Here's me taking a shot at Chuck and Pete, after they beat us the third time (well, technically after we let them win):

I headed back to Maine the morning of Christmas Eve, with a strong headache going on. I furiously did my best to cook baked macaroni and cheese (harder than you would think), and also to make chocolate chip cookies. I burned both batches of cookies, and ended up scraping them into the sink in disgust. The macaroni seemed good, and I left around 2:30 to head to Oxford to my Aunt's house.

Christmas Eve at Aunt Judy's was very nice. I got to meet 6 brand new bulldog puppies (6 days old!), and spend time with relatives I had not seen in a while. I got some good compliments on the mac & cheese too!

Here are some pictures of the little ones. This is my cousin Kendra's daughter Zoe, she is almost 3:
And this is my cousin Buddy's son, David, who just turned 1:

And here is one of my nephew Tyler and his Dad, Jon: After we had Santa greetings in Oxford, my sister, Jon, Tyler and I headed over to my Grampie's house in Minot, and spent some time with him which was very nice. After that, we headed to my house to grab the dogs and head to my parents' house.

I spent time at Heather and Jon's wrapping some final gifts, and did some laundry. I was finally in bed at my parents' around 12:30am. By this time, I was grouchy and tired, and not looking forward to getting only 6 hours of sleep!

I slept soundly, and woke up for the traditional Christmas Morning thing with my immediate family. Tyler was bombarded by gifts, most noteably this very cute hand-built barn that my parents made for him. He loves animals, and was very excited about it!

Also, I got my new iPod shuffle, which was a complete and happy surprise! More importantly, I got my AAA-Plus membership renewed, woo hoo! We had a nice Christmas, and Tyler actually got so tired of opening gifts he left like 5 of them wrapped under the tree!

I left at 10:00am to head down to NH, to join Matt's family for their afternoon gathering. I got there slightly late, around 1:15pm. We had a nice time, and some tasty rum punch! We did a Yankee Swap and only two people ended up swapping! Very quick! ha ha. It was nice spending time with and getting to know more of Matt's extended family.

I zonked out that night at 6:30pm!!! I slept for a beautiful 13 hours...ahhh, the holidays.

Groomed!

I finally set my priorities straight and had the moops groomed last week - check out these cuties!

I highly recommend Lynne's Dog Grooming in Auburn on South Main Street! $25 a dog for a really nice job, including: nails, ears, bath, haircut!!!

SAAB Heart Attack, Part 763

So, last week I paid $175 to replace my second front wheel bearing (replaced the other 2 months ago)...I went in today to Portland Saab to get my winter tires put back on, and to get an alignment (yes believe it or not, same price as indy guy/non-Saab guy), and get this news- I need $1500 worth of work done on my suspension!! Goodie! All of my bushings are shot, and my rear shocks need to be replaced. The Saab mechanic tells me about my driver side rear shocks: Ive never seen shocks this bad. You can actually pull on my wheel and it moves around. SO. Am currently at home in state of...disbelief/shock? waiting for car to be finished. Am going to take out a LOAN to pay for car repair, on a car I have a loan on still.

This is technically a regular maintenence issue...expected on a car with 163,500 on it...but FAAAAHHHHCKKK!!!!

Yet again am missing work for this piece of crap, but to tell you the truth, taking 8 sick hours is not so bad on a Friday...

The best, and only good part, of today is I am driving an '06 Saab 9-3 which is totally sweet:

Trippin'

Today I drove home from Springfield Massachusetts, and check out the gas mileage I was sporting!!!!!!!!!!

How excellent is that? It took me going roughly 69 (yeah!) MPH for a rough total of 7.5 hours, but still. So, I was all hyped about how sweet my car was being (SVEEET I mean), but was so kindly reminded of her "eccentricities" with this the entire way home:

Beggars can't be choosers - this baby got me to Springfield and back in one piece in a mechanically sound fashion. I thank the lord I wasn't stranded in that skeevy place any longer than I had to be!!!!

Gorgeous Portland

A couple weekends ago, Matt and I went down to the Old Port to hang out...it was SUCH a gorgeous day, I was really glad to have the camera. It was a little chilly, especially on top of the hill, but once we got closer to the water, it warmed up. :) This is on the Eastern Prom...

Me and the Terminator

Here's one that sort of reminds me of the tropics!

This is a nice one Matt took of one of the thousand butterflies hanging out on these little white flowers. I felt like I was in a movie or something..it was so neat.

2Kewl4Skewl

I registered for a graduate class today at USM that begins in 3 weeks! I'm going to check out their master's program in School Psychology.

Think of it - in 87 years when I have completed my graduate degree, (because I am attending on a part time basis), I could be a school psychologist in a podunk school in Maine somewhere, and get my summers off! Hallelujia! Wish I dove in sooner. Oh well - it's the right time now so I'm doin it.

Wish me luck, and don't mind me pathologizing you come the fall - my first class is about child and adolescent psychopathology. Yes, you're adults, but still.

Twenty-Seven

So, I'm officially in my late twenties. So far it's pretty great - er, about the same as 26. On my birthday, Holly and I went to Funtown (our tradition now for several years!) and to Splashtown! I have to admit, I got an instant headache from the rides, and fear my Funtown adventures may be coming to a close as I age :P BUT Splashtown was awesome! Here are some pictures of the day:

God I love this one. Absolute joy - something not often caught on my face!

Why has no one told me I look absolutely super nerdy in my glammy Coach sunglasses?

Holly, rockin' it on the super swing - such a trooper, never kicks my ass for kicking her seat the entire time we're swingin' around...

Another joyous pose - yay for birthdays and friends!!!! and rides!

Holly is awesome for doing the Sea Dragon with me - she said this was the worst one for her, but it ended up that it was a much harder time for me - boo!

After all of that, I came home and Matt took me to dinner at Espo's - we hit up Schemengees where he kicked my ass 3 games to 1 (while listening to some SWEET tunes on the 'ole juke - you know what I'm talkin' about!!!), and then we ended with a birthday cake shot and a cape codder at Gritty's. Martinis - Beer - then more liquor? You know what that equals? Ang waking up at 5am in desperate need of a bucket! Damn! That, folks, would be the second time in one month that the Ang has fallen to the vomit gods. Someone find me an AA meeting - quick!

Otherwise, a truely fabulous birthday. :)

Fun Times

Weekend before last, I enjoyed the northern Maine woods in Monson/Greenville. Took a tour of Moosehead Lake, got absolutely hammered and ended up yacking like I was back in college. Met some good people though, and had a fab time. This past weekend, more fun was had but was a lot more low key. Here are some pictures:

A gorgeous place in the middle of the woods - absolutely peaceful.


Moosehead Lake...


A wicked cute picture of me and Matt on the lake tour!


A memory of the hottest day of the year so far!

Why don't they call it hardball?

So, I have to share a picture of my softball injury from Monday night's game. I played second base, and thought Id stop some huge guy's hit with my shin, I guess. And ankle. We had another game tonight against the Goose, and we lost 20-5!! Ouch! At least it's fun. :)


PS in case I get any crap, no I do not have a tan yet even though it's almost August. I am rather fond of my extreme whiteness. It's easier to find me in a crowd. Plus, a purple leg is way cooler, dont you think??

A Rainy Revolution

Hello again! So I spent this past weekend in New Hampshire, and had a lot of fun. Friday night Matt and I hit Portsmouth - I think possibly every bar in existance - no, not really, but quite a few. It was a lot of fun. Also, if you want fabulous amazingly perfect PIZZA, check out the Portsmouth Gaslight downtown!

The next day, it was raining like a banshee all day, but we still hit up the Exeter American Independence festival...some revolutionary war thing. It was actually quite fun. I have some pictures to share:

Here is a picture of me trying to trick a goat into making out with me.


And here is one of Matt making friends with a llama!


This is one of Matt, me, and a guy dressed up as a Revolutionary War veteran. He had crazy eyes, but he was nice. :)


And here is a picture of Matt's parents' dog Bugsy. He's a Boston Terrier, and he snorts a lot. Very cute.

Good times had by all. =)