The Sand Dollar

I have a special necklace.

It has a sand dollar charm, and I get asked about it all the time. Carlee gave me this necklace last Christmas, along with one for Ashley that is supposed to represent the eternal bond between best friends - at least that is my interpretation. I get asked about this necklace all the time, because I have yet to take it off since the day I put it on. It is one of my most cherished possessions and I know I will keep it forever. It means so much to me, because Carlee, along with the rest of my friends, mean so much to me.

Carlee recently lost her Grandpa Bill to a battle with cancer, and watching her strength, faith and love through the whole process has been inspiring, and has helped me to re-evaluate the relationships I have in my own life. I don't think I always recognize how blessed I am to have the friends and family that I do, and hearing how Carlee's family rallied together to support each other during this time of need reminds me how important it is to let your loved ones know how much you appreciate them. Grandpa Bill's funeral was today, and from what I hear, it was amazing - as was he. It breaks my heart that I couldn't be by Carlee's side today, but I want her to know, that I wear that sand dollar necklace everyday, and think of her and the amazing friend she has been to me. Carlee has been such a great influence in my life, and been with me through everything - a large part of who I am today (the good part) is because of her. I know that Carlee is a friend that I will grow old with, and we will continue to share our life and experiences together, and I couldn't be more grateful.

I'm thinking of you today, sweet C-Rod, and of your family - I appreciate you more than you know!

Well this is interesting....

Energy drinks - safe or not? This drew my attention because this image is not far off from what you might see if you look in my fridge. This article, discussing whether or not the additives in energy drinks are good for you or not, was on MSN.com today, and I couldn't help but laugh when I read it. Who drinks energy drinks for health benefits? Still, it brought up a good point. How safe are they? And do they even work? I personally think that they do, and the jolt of caffeine (2 cups of coffee in a typical energy drink), really brightens my day. I have struggled with this, because I consider myself to be somewhat health-conscious, but this is my one true vice. Are they hurting me? I don't think so, but the fact that I get excited to drink one, can't be good. I don't think that it is an addiction, because I've been known to stop cold-turkey because I just forget to buy them after a while....but still, I love them...and until they take them off the market (I will pray that they don't), I will continue to be least 1 billion of the 4.2 billion dollars spent a year on these drinks. Thoughts?

i want to be tina fey.

I have started wearing my glasses around a lot more, because I want to be Tina Fey. She may be the funniest person I've ever seen. I'm not posting this because I'm a anti-republican/democrat, but I just can't get enough of the debate skits they do. I've posted a video on my sidebar, but if that doesn't work, click on this link:

SNL Debate skit

I've started watching 30 Rock, and that show is equally as funny. Just wanted to give a shout-out to my girl, Tina. Well done.

My View of The View

I'm just going to put it out there. I hate "The View". I'm bound to upset some people who love this show, but its got to be said. I have never really had the opportunity to watch it before - (until I became a full-time grad student, and the need to ever get ready for anything is a thought long forgotten). The last couple mornings, I have caught glimpses of their "hot topics" and conversations, but mostly have been annoyed at the women who host this day-time talk show. Elizabeth Hasselbeck is a bit of an uptight show-off who is on the verge of tears anytime someone disagrees with her, and the others are petty and a little miserable while attempting to act charming and the epitome of the "real woman". Isn't that the point of the show? Getting down to the "real" issues? What "real" women are talking about? This is an insult. 

Anyway, while listening to Elizabeth H. tell us how in love she is with the Republican party, McCain, Palin, etc etc, I started to get really curious about how she would act if a Democrat came on the show. No doubt she would be professional, but I was curious none-the-less. I started 'googling' and came across an episode where Michelle Obama was co-hosting. 

Michelle Obama has some great style. She has been compared to Jacqueline Kennedy and I believe to be somewhat of a role model. I have a lot of respect for these political women in the spotlight. As entertaining as it is to watch them made fun of on SNL, I can't help but admire them for their "I can do it all" attitude.  She is a mother of two, a lawyer, and also the wife of our potentially first African-American President. What a great opportunity for 'The View' - she obviously has a lot of interesting things to say. What do these women chose to talk to her about? 

Pantyhose.

A nice pantyhose-or-no-pantyhose debate with the potential first lady. I understand that 'The View' caters to a certain demographic...but come on. I appreciate a nice 'girly' conversation as much as the next young woman, but when you have someone that influential on your show, instead of trying to get her to show her "softer" side, let her be the smart, intelligent and educated person she is - no doubt we are going to be needing that side of her when she is in the White House (maybe :)). 

The end of an era, the beginning of something else

After weeks of agonizing over what to do with the "Laura and Ashley" blog, Ashley and I have come to the mutual decision to "retire" it. It was a hard decision. Tears were involved, we said some things we didn't mean, but mostly, if Ashley has the opportunity to create her own blog, than maybe, just maybe, she'll write on it. Now that we painfully live apart from each other, I need to hear about her life just as much as the rest of you. So, long story short - we've split up the blog, she has hers (click for Ashley's blog here), and I have mine. So here it is. 

I've decided to take a new approach the the blogging world - I'm going to start taking advantage of the fact that we can all learn about the newest events in each others lives with the click of a mouse. In a way, I have a whole new life. The memories of Arizona and my non-lesbian eternal love for Ashley will always be remembered, but I'm onto something new. I am living in Marina Del Rey, California and going to graduate school. This blog will be dedicated to what is happening in my life, my musings, my rants, and my life goals and dreams - hopefully I can say something worthwhile and intelligent long enough to keep your attention and visiting my blog for more than a week. 

So here we go.....