12 Things in December

So I intended to start this post on December 1st but...well I am a few days late. The idea though is...the 12th month is here so here are 12 random things about me you might not know.

1. My biggest pet peeve is probably stupidity. Not ignorance - anyone can learn, but straight up stupidity. FOR EXAMPLE, I get so mad every time I hear a stupid commercial for medicine with side effects that says "do not take X if you are allergic to X". Are you kidding me? Who needs to be told not to take something they are allergic to?  UGH. I am getting annoyed just thinking about it.

2. I am a little bit of a conspiracy nut. Well,  I would be but I am too lazy. I don't mean any particular conspiracy and I don't actually do the work of following any but I am enough of a "What If" kind of thinker that when I hear about things I don't totally write them off. Instead I love thinking about them and wondering. For example I am pretty sure Google is trying to take over the world. Also, there is a good reason this is one of my favorite shows...


3. I am VERY geographically challenged. Like, VERY. When I was younger my Mom let me walk to the grocery store for her. Apparently it wasn't very far away. After several hours she went out in the car looking for me. I was wandering the streets crying. I had not ever even found the store yet. I had been walking in circles the entire time. When my parents lived in Arizona - I was in my late  20's or maybe 30's and I would literally call my Mom to ask her how to get to places, in Nashville. It is bad. In fact the only class I ever failed was geography. Only THANK GOD we moved before the semester was over so I never really got a grade in it. At my new school that wasn't a class so...it never appeared on any final report. Being an Army Brat finally pays off! :) These days I am just super grateful for GPS on my phone. I would probably be a hermit without it. Just safer.


4.  I was 2 (or maybe 3, Mom could never remember for sure) when I was first diagnosed with migraines. My Dad suffered from them really badly so my Mom was VERY aware and used to the symptoms of them. So when her daughter started having the same symptoms, she recognized them. The doctors did not believe her at all. Finally, however, I was having a really horrible one so she took me to the hospital during the migraine and made them observe me. They had to agree - I was hiding from lights and sound. I was throwing up. I was holding my head in one spot. I looked...just like someone with a bad migraine. Of course there is not really anything you can do for a 2 year old with a migraine but...it is in my records that I was having them. I have had them ever since.


5. My parents once had a good friend from Dad's work dress up like Santa and come visit my sister and I at home (before Mic was born or possibly when he was a baby). I do not actually remember that night but I have seen pictures and have heard the stories...I was NOT a fan. I seem to have had a big ole fear of a giant man in a bright red suit visiting me in the middle of the night (I mean...come on). So the part of the story that I DO remember is that the following year we were going to Dad's company Christmas party and the very same guy was playing Santa. My sister and I were in line waiting to see him. It was very cool because the Santa had a personalized gift for every child with their name on it. Made it seem very real. As we were waiting my sister informed me that Santa would NOT have a gift for ME because I had been so mean to him the year before. I was soooo upset! So for the second year in a row my meeting with Santa was sad. :( Fortunately she was wrong and he was very sweet to me.

6. I have sung on the Grand Ol Opry Stage - for my high school graduation with my school choir, and at the Ryman Auditorium - for a youth event with a college choir. Both very cool experiences I will never forget.


7. Most people don't like their names but I LOVE mine. I am named for my Great Grandpa Carl. He was an incredible man. Plus my name uses K to have the German spelling. I have always been a little jealous that I am the only child in my family not born in Germany but that somehow makes up for it. My middle name is Jean and that is my favorite part. It is my Mom's middle name too. She was named for her Aunt Jean who died when she was still fairly young. My Mom passed it on to me. I always hoped I would have a baby girl to pass it along to as well. So...my great-grandpa, My Mom, and the German part of my childhood. Pretty awesome :)


8. This is one a lot of you won't like. I am not a registered Republican or Democrat. And many times, I don't vote. I refuse to be a part of a party b/c I don't think that either of them get it right. It seems like so many in our country simply vote for their party regardless of the person who is running and I just cannot get behind that. So I am neither and one of the things I appreciate most about being American is that I have the right to choose neither. Some think that is throwing my vote away - and that is fine. I disagree. I really hate when people say that if you don't vote you have no right to complain though, I totally disagree. A friend said it this way - if someone is hungry and you offer them a crap sandwich and they say they don't want a crap sandwich so you offer them crap soup instead but they say they don't want crap soup either - you don't tell them they are crazy and that they either eat the crap sandwich, the crap soup or stop complaining about being hungry. Ummm no. I am hungry and I don't want crap. I believe if enough of us would stop eating crap, things might actually change. Like I said, I know this is one a lot of people won't like but that is okay.


9. I am an Army Brat, which means I am really "from" anywhere. I grew up all over the world - literally. Some parts of that were really hard, like changing schools every few years and never being able to keep friendships. Some parts of it were amazing though, like literally seeing other parts of the world. One of my favorite parts of my childhood is that when I was in 3rd grade (maybe 4th...can't remember for sure) I lived in Germany and for a whole semester our Gym class once a week was to walk down to an ice skating rink where a professional ice skater taught us all to skate! It was the coolest thing ever! I have always loved ice skating and it was a dream come true. I cannot even put ice skates on these days - it hurts my ankles too much - but there was a time I could skate forwards and backwards, and even do simple turns. It made me feel like a princess! The Cutting Edge is still a favorite :)


10.  When I was a little girl I had four sets of Grandparents plus two full sets of great grandparents and another great grandmother. So that is seven grandmas! It always makes me laugh when people say that they call one side of their family granny and the other something else because it would be confusing to have the same name. Hahhaha. I never got confused. I feel very lucky to have had such an amazing group of grandparents. I never was lucky enough to live close to any of them (except when I was a baby for a short time but I don't actually remember that) but I have always felt close to them all. I only have two grandmothers and one grandpa left and I love with all of my heart.


11. I have the weirdest love/fear thing with animals. They have always been a huge part of my life. My family has had animals for as long as I can remember. There was a time when I was young that we had a dog, a cat, a rabbit, fish, birds and I think a turtle for some reason. There are pictures. Obviously we are animal lovers. And it has always been that way, but I also have always held a strange fear of them too. All of them. They kind of freak me out. I see the wild side in them and it always kind of scares me. Cats might be my favorites but they are also maybe the wildest. I will look into my cats face sometimes and totally see the tiger type cat there. It is hiding behind the kitten. I wonder sometimes if people are like that too. But definitely with animals. It makes it hard for me to relax totally with them.


12. I am ridiculously competitive. I didn't realize this about myself for a long time but it is true. I think I didn't know it b/c I don't like things like sports that people tend to think of when you talk about competition. I never want wanted to do those things bc I don't care about them. I do want to be the best at whatever I am doing though. It is just a severe form of perfectionism maybe. I am not sure. I want be the best worker. I want to read the most books. I want to watch the most episodes. Yep, even crazy things like that. I mean who cares right? But I do. I watched more episodes than you. I found a better deal at the store. I won that board game. It is not big things...but I am so competitive. I am trying to not be so bad about it but if you really know me well you know I am always trying to win. Everything. It makes it hard to ever be satisfied with anything. I don't recommend it.


So there you have it. 12 pointless but possibly interesting facts about me to read this 12th month of 2018. Happy December everyone!

Feeling Crazy

I have always loved animals, but I have never been super obsessed with them. I had pretty much decided not to have any more myself, but when we (Michael and I) moved into the new house a few years ago he wanted a dog SO badly. I wouldn't let him get one unless we could get the yard fenced and I couldn't afford to fence the yard just yet so we were waiting. And then I saw a Facebook post from the Old Hickory neighborhood page advertising free kittens. We decided to go look. When we got there the woman said there were only 2 left unclaimed. Michael knelt on the floor playing with them and told we "HAD" to take them both. They would be so lonely if we didn't. Of course, I gave in. Who could say no to these two? Or to Michael for that matter?

 So much cuteness! They grew quickly! They were crazy...and just got bigger and crazier and more fun. (and more trouble in some ways). I admit it. I fell in love. I became crazy cat lady. I posted pictures constantly. I took even more pictures than I posted. I talked to my cats all the time. I adore them.

So...this year a lot is going on and I moved out of my house. Currently I am living in a house we are attempting to sell. And when it does sell I will be moving in with my parents. My parents do not like cats and even if they did, my mom is really allergic to cats. This didn't used to be a huge issue but for some reason since her surgery last summer her allergies seem to be bothering her more than they used to (1/2 her lung was removed so...) so now it IS kind of a big deal. SO, in order to make the move possible and to achieve the simplicity I am seeking this year I agreed (with my heartbreak) to give my beloved cats away. I searched for over 2 months for a new home for them. I believed I would find a family that would take them in and care for them. I never did. I called animal and cat rescues as well as vets offices. Everyone told me the same thing, it is really hard to find adoptive families for adult cats right now, call the Humane Society. I finally did last week. The temporary home I had found for the girls was no longer working out and I had no more options. With much sadness I took them to the Humane Society and I left them. It was heartbreaking but I thought it was over.

Today they called me. Zoe has feline leukemia. They cannot place her up for adoption and I have to  go back and pick her up tomorrow or they will put her to sleep. This means my girls MUST be separated. Zee is not sick but she could catch it from Zoe if they stay together so I have to pick one of them up but leave her sister there. I have no idea what I am going to do with Zoe. I cannot fathom finding someone to care for a sick animal when I could not find anyone even willing to take a healthy one. I am going to try to work something out with my parents and get her to a vet to find out how sick she really is. I want to make her life as easy for her as possible. I know she is sick and will possibly not live long, but I also know some cats do live with the disease for a very long time. I do not feel it is fair to kill her simply b/c she has the disease somewhere inside her and it is inconvenient to us.

I am so sad to know she is sick. I have an overwhelming desire to just grab both girls and run back to my little house and keep them both there and safe. That is not possible, for many reasons, I know, but it is what I want to do. I feel a little silly being so upset and dramatic about my animals. I realize I have become that obsessive person. They are my babies. I am heartbroken knowing they are sick and scared and not only separated from me but from one another. I feel so helpless and like I have totally failed them. I am out of ideas. I am sad and uncertain and have no idea what to do next. Who knew such a little animal could cause all this.

Just An Animal

If you were an animal, what would you be and why?

Now here is a topic! :) I am not sure I really have a deep philosophical answer though. I mean, I could make one up but it is not something I have actually ever pondered or given much thought to!

I think I would have to go with one of these two though:

Owl...because I definitely prefer to be awake at night and I like to think that intelligence is often associated with me. Also owls are not seen that often, which reflects the introverted side of me. Also they are in Harry Potter so I love them.

Cat...this one might be more accurate as far as fitting my personality I think. My reasoning here is that cats are VERY loving but...not all the time. I love people, very passionately, but I also very much need my alone time, which I think can seem stand-offish to more extroverted people (dog people...). I am also very naturally curious and tend to get into things (some would say things I should stay out of...that is a whole different blog...). I am quite proud of my hair and like to have it played with (pet me, pet me, pet me NOW). I would just assume sleep all day long and then go nuts at night, as cats do. Though I love running around and playing sometimes, happiness for me (and cats...at least mine) generally looks more like curling up with my person and chilling.

So...I guess I must go with cat. Not very original I know. Sorry. However, like my feline friends I don't care if you don't acknowledge how awesome cats are...they still are.