An Update

So much has changed since my last post, it feels like I've settled into a completely different way of life. I moved from Grand Forks to my hometown of Thief River Falls and am currently living with my dad until I can find a place of my own. I transferred to the Northland in town and quit working overnights to work part time at Digikey after school. I feel slightly more structured because I can now sleep at night and have plenty to do during the day.

I no longer have my pet rats, they both died shortly after bringing them to my dads house. Marcie died of a stroke and Fiona developed a respiratory infection so she had to be put down. That was so hard on me because they were with me during my loneliest days in Grand Forks. I was in a fog for a week after Fiona died. I felt a little lost, like a part of me was gone.

My dad told me, the night we buried Fiona's body in the yard, that I could get a cat. A week and a half later, my boyfriend and I were at the Humane society in Grand Forks, picking out a kitten. They had quite a bit of cats, they reduced the adoption price to ten dollars for two weeks so they could get rid of strays. This is where I found RC, but we call him Racer.

We had to put a bell on him

He likes turkey above all other treats, and I can't have a glass of milk without him following me around. He prefers twisty ties and cardboard boxes to normal cat toys. He's cuddly in the early mornings and when I get home from work. The rest of the time he likes to pick fights with the dog and hide things underneath the covers of my dad's bed. He's clingy, I sometimes can't go to the bathroom without seeing his paws reaching for me under the door. He's vocal, he'll meow and whine at me until he gets what he wants, but he doesn't always get that. He likes walk all over the keyboard while I'm trying to do homework, and he chatters at the computer cursor on the screen, that's his battle cry.

I feel like I've found something in Racer that I didn't have with the rats. Racer can tell when I'm sad, he runs up to me and sits on me. When I have bad dreams, I wake up to him cuddled at my side, purring contently. I love the sound of purring, I feel like it's comforting. My dad loves Racer compared to the rats, even though Racer gets into more things. We have to close the bathroom doors otherwise he hops in the bathtub and starts drinking the leftover water in the drain. He even broke a standing lamp by jumping into it, but that was kind of funny. Right now, I can look over my right shoulder and see him sound asleep, an innocent version of an otherwise hyperactive kitten.

But it wasn't all good, the day after Thanksgiving, my Auntie Arlene passed away at the Manor in Middle River, Minnesota. It was tough seeing her fade like that, she was such a strong woman. She babysat my younger brother and I when I was nine. We would go to her house after school and mom would pick us up after she got done with work.  I showed her a picture of RC on Thanksgiving day, which was the last day she was able to talk. She said, "Awww for cute!". She loved cats, she had several in her lifetime. The funeral was beautiful, my cousin Amber gave a beautiful tribute to Arlene. After the service, my family gathered around Arlene's casket, holding each other and crying. I watched as Arlene's casket was lifted out the doors of the church and into a hearse, where she was brought to Fargo to be cremated. She's going to be buried alongside her husband and her son in spring. The weeks after that seemed strange, and it still seems strange when I think about it. It's almost surreal that she's not around anymore. I miss her so much.

I can feel myself growing up and moving forward here. I've met so many nice people at work and school, and I'm starting to get my confidence back. I think moving back home was probably one of the smartest decisions I've made, even though I do miss Grand Forks sometimes. I think what I'm trying to say is that I feel a sense of contentment in Thief River Falls, like I have a safety net around me at all times. I'm still trying to find a place of my own in TRF, and it's only a matter of time before I can find one, but until then I'm going to focus on my studies, my work life, and finding time to relax at home.

New Tumblr

Hey all! I've moved my blog to tumblr in an effort to write and post more. My tumbr is rat-momma.tumblr.com! :)

About Blogging

I've wanted to blog for a while, but it wasn't until this class that I actually started. I like it, and I want to continue blogging into the future. For me, blogging is an outlet for my ideas. I can express my ideas to other people in a way that allows them to respond. I'm happy I've had the opportunity to blog about my life and will continue doing so. I plan to keep writing stories and posting them on my blog.

World Belly Dance Day!

I had a blast this weekend with World Belly Dance Day! 12 Houses dancers, as well as many other local dancers, had the opportunity to welcome Saroya of Atlanta to teach workshops last Saturday and Sunday.

Friday night, we had a Hafla, which is a party. We had a costume exchange (I gotta skirt!) and watched dancers do past and current routines. It was fun to see the other dancers show off. There was also a Henna artist who gave me a rat on each hand. It was a fun night.

Saturday was our busy day. In the morning, we flash mobbed a belly dance routine at the CanadInn, which is called "Shimmy Mob" and raises money for CVIC. After that, I had workshops for a few hours with Saroya, Intro to Turkish Style and Zills (finger cymbals). Then, I ended up going to eat with my family before heading home to grab my stuff and get ready for the show.

The show was so much fun, local dancers showed their talents at the Firehall Theater. It was fun to see so many dancers on one stage. The 12 houses dance class, which I am apart of, did the class routine. At the end, we shimmy mobbed again before going home.

Sunday morning was the last workshop, Flashcard choreography  I was sore from doing workshops and tired because I didn't get much sleep, but it was still fun. I said my goodbyes to my dance sisters before going home to rest

I love dance. It's my escape. I meet so many amazing people doing this, I was very happy to see them again this last weekend. I can't wait until the next one! (and Zombiefest!)

Remembered Conversation?

I assume that this post is supposed to be about a conversation that I remembered somewhere, so let's go with that.

I work at a place where I hear hundreds of different conversation snippets every day. I hear arguments, general awkward small talk, and random conversations that sometimes seem inappropriate (we get a lot of teenagers.) I remember one snippet between a coworker and an woman who was irate over the fact that we didn't have "her soup"

Crazy Lady: Well, where is it?

Worker: We don't stock everything everynight...

Crazy Lady: Where the hell is it?!?

I walked away before the shit hit the fan, so I didn't get to hear the rest.

I've run into this kind of customer before. They think that we can magically make all their products appear on the shelves every night when we can't. It makes me sick.

I wonder how people can be so rude for no good reason. I see so many assholes everyday who push their way through the aisles (Canadians...). It's because of Walmart's reputation. You wouldn't see this scene in Target, which does upset me.

I really shouldn't talk about work anymore, I'm not really supposed to anyway.

Story Sketch

I heard on my favorite radio show, The Morning Playhouse with Zero, Rat and Maggie, about a thing called "Missed Connections" on Craigslist.

It's basically a place where people, usually guys, post descriptions of people, usually women, that they saw in public in an attempt to "hook up". It's mostly creepy.

Example at an Arbys;
"You waited on me tonight in drive thru. Things were taking a while. Gave me time to admire how pretty you are! I couldn't help myself, I also noticed you have a really nice butt! I believe the name on your name tag said Karisann...although I may be wrong. I was driving an older blue ford truck. If I were your boyfriend I would want to indulge and kiss every inch of you from head to the tip of your toes as often as I could. With any luck, or call it fate, I will come to know you!"

Ick, but it gave me an idea for a story, a less creepy story anyway. 

A guy named Derek moves into town and moves next door to Sadie, who works at Bary's (see, I changed it!) and hates her job. Everyday for a month, Derek watches Sadie walk from her house and down the street to work and, one day, decides to give her a ride. They talk in the car and soon become close friends. At school, pressure from Derek's friends and pressure from Sadie's friends ultimately leads them to start dating. Then, they are nominated from prom king and queen. Derek's ex, Miranda, becomes jealous of the two and plans on destroying everyone's good time because she's like that. She plans on releasing wild, ravenous rats into the school gymnasium, sealing everyone inside. Just before her plan activates, she is ratted (non-intentional pun) out by her closest friend, Daisy, who is Derek's younger sister. Miranda is hauled off to Juvie (?) while Derek and Miranda become prom royalty. 

I actually spend quite a bit of time looking through the craigslist listings, try it sometime! :) 

The True Story

When I tell people the story of my parents, they don't believe me. Take, for example, in 8th grade when I tried to explain my story to my friends. The class clown (idiot) kept denying everything I said, even though it's truth. My parent's story is incredible, it reminds me of the movie "Forrest Gump" in it's depth. I think, for convenience, I'll start at the beginning.

My father was born in Falkirk, Scotland on June 29th, 1966. My dad's parents moved the family to New Zealand, where my dad grew up until he enlisted in the Army. My dad used to tell me many stories about growing up in New Zealand with his brother, Brian, and his sister, Liz. My favorite story is when my dad and Brian were playing war with metal darts and hiding behind mattresses. One thing led to another, and Brian got a dart right in the side of his neck. That was only one of many hospital trips that my dad had caused while growing up. Another time, when he was learning to drive, he drove my grandpa's car into the ocean off a pier. I never had the chance to see my grandparents before they both died, I wish I had. My dad says that I'm like my grandma, who used to throw playing cards into the fireplace if she didn't win. I guess I'm kind of like that too.

My dad enlisted in the Army when he was nineteen years old. He trained for a few years, going through a brutal boot camp and training in the jungles of New Guinea. He also fought in a conflict in Haiti, but he never talks about that. Eventually, his training brought him to Operation Deep Freeze, which was a mission to help scientists who were freezing seeds at Mc Murdo Station, Antarctica for storage. Basically, my dad went down there to help with supplies and other things. And this, of all places in the world, is where he met my mother.

My mother was born in Thief River Fall, Minnesota. She grew up in the country outside Holt, Minnesota and went to New Folden, School (MCC). She was a nerd, she even admits that to me now. She read a lot of books and didn't participate in any sports in high school, her parents didn't let her. Instead, she was in speech. She had a lot of friends, but moved out of her parents house at 17 to get out. She enlisted in the Navy shortly after she graduated high school, and went to boot camp. She trained for several months before being given a decision, Antarctica or Scotland? Thankfully, she chose Antarctica, because otherwise, I wouldn't exist.She went down there for a four month mission and ended up meeting my father.

Both my mom and my dad have very different views of Antarctica. My dad thought it was  beautiful and interesting place while my mother thought it was the closest thing to hell on earth. I've been told stories of gigantic ice caves with clear glass and Scuas, which are large birds with sharp beaks, as a child. After meeting each other, my parents got married in a ceremony in New Zealand, then did it again in the United States.

My dad had never been to the United States before then, and he was 20 at the time. The first restaurant that he visited in the United States shortly after arriving was Denny's, where he order the "Moon Over My Hammy", and that's still he favorite dish at Denny's to this day. After staying in San Diego, California for several years, they had their first child (me!). Two years later, they had Braydon, then Callahan. These are my two full brothers. When I was 5, my mother decided that we needed to move closer to Minnesota, so we settled on Sioux Falls, SD. We were only there for a few years before moving again to Minnesota.

My mom and dad divorced when I was only nine years old. I remember the spot that my mom decided to unceremoniously tell me that she was separated from my dad, and it was the parking lot at Kmart in Thief River Falls. I cried and cried because I knew what that meant, it meant that life wasn't going to be the same again. At least, not the way it used to be. I would still have two loving parents but, now in two separate homes.

While my mom has since married two different guys, my dad remains unmarried (smart, if you ask me). He does have a girlfriend, but I don't want to go too far in depth with that. My mom married a cop three years after divorcing my dad, and had two children with him, Kayden and Jesse. They are the only good thing to come out of that marriage. The cop ended up cheating on her with a dispatcher, which almost sounds like a movie I saw one time. She then married Greg, who she is married to now. Greg is old, lets just say he qualifies for the senior citizen discount at most restaurants. There's  16 year age difference between him and my mom, which is kind of creepy. Greg is temperamental, but mostly mental.

The events that led to where I am now are extraordinary, and most people don't believe. I believe. Because, without them, I wouldn't exist. I can only hope to do as many amazing things as my parents did, but for now, I'm on my way.