Is the Earth really round?

Today is International Skeptics Day. Or is it? At least one website claims this, but it could just be some 13 year old kid trying to pull a fast one on us. A skeptic is a person who questions or doubts facts or theories, or is it really a giraffe that can't lick it's ear? A skeptic doesn't accept the 'given' ~ like gravity. I don't know if that is real. If so, how could planes, birds, and teradactyls fly? Maybe they are aliens that are messing with our heads. If there is a big man in the sky (God) maybe one of his children up there got board and is having fun playing 'earth.' 
You should go out today and question lots. Without questions we wouldn't bother to figure stuff out. Questions are what it's all about...or is it?

30 Days

30 days. 30 days left until November. 30 days left to get ahead on school work. 30 days left to do those big projects due in November and early December. 30 days. 30 days left until National Novel Writing Month. 30 days until all hell breaks loose and once again the participants go crazy. That's not long.

Wet and Miserable

Friday the 21st of September is when this week got wet. Literally. I ate lunch and was doing some homework when the landlord sent 'his guy' over to turn on the heat/make sure it works. This was around 3.20ish (I remember because it was after my apple time which is at 3). I heard him up in the attic doing something then came in here (we are on the second floor, no one is in the attic) and turns out he needed  batteries so he asked if we could wait until Monday and I said no problem. 

I was doing something in the kitchen when I hear this noise in the attic but I was pretty sure Ryan ('his guy') left already. I put on some flats and went up to check. Turned out that water was water fountaining out of an air valve or something like that in the ceiling. I quickly called the landlord to see if Ryan could come back but no answer. Oh crap I think. I call dad (my superhero) and thankfully he answered while I was seeing if one of the guys below us could help (no one home. I was home alone, that sucked). Dad had me run down to the basement to instruct me how to turn off the water so no more water could come. I ran back up the stairs to the attic and it was still water fountaining up. I ran back to our apartment and realize that my computer was in the living room, right below the water fountain in the attic as water was already coming down from the ceiling. I unplug it and bring it to Christina's room praying that it would be ok. I go to my room and put on rain boots, it was 'raining' that much and pick up the phone again with dad still on the line and he tells me to go back down stairs. After 7 or 8 pictures sent to him later, I manage to turn our (upstairs) water off. I run back upstairs to see if the water fountaining stopped and it didn't. Back down to the basement I ran and went to the guys' water. After 7 or 8 more pictures sent to him (thankfully we both got smart phone a month or so ago), dad manages to tell me how to turn off their water and I run back up stairs after a quick stop in the apartment to move Kirby (roommate Amanda's guinea pig that was getting scared in his cage, so I grab him and put him in his carrying cage and put him in my room so he'd stay dry). 

The water finally stopped. 

I hang up with dad and call Christina as it was after 4 which is when she works until. She 'claims' that she had to work late and didn't believe how much water actually came down and that it was kind of an emergency. Turns out that she went drinking and eating and dancing on a date. If I was out with Mason or Amanda was out with her boyfriend and your roommate, let alone sister, called telling you this, I'm sure the guy would understand and take you home and maybe even help. I called Amanda who actually was at work and explained the situation. Christina called Mason and he came over to help (thankfully) towel up the water (we don't have a mop) and then -finally- the landlord comes and as soon as he walked in the door, all he could say was 'oh fuck.' 

I threw a towel of the TV to help it from getting any more wet and the rest of the night, needless to say, I was not that happy. Landlord brought over cleaning people and they helped mop up everything. He brought an industrial size fan and was trying to dry everything and we were just praying that my computer (which I shut down to dry off) and the TV were all ok as the other stuff in the living and dining room weren't electronic. After Amanda came home and cleaning people left, we made dinner and had a 'date' actually getting to know each other instead of the 'how was your day' type of thing. We played with Kirby then went to bed at 11 or so with the living room stuff shoved in the dining room and fans blowing everything dry.

Saturday was better. The living room stuff was in the dinning room and everything in those two rooms were still drying. I made oatmeal in the morning and was scarred to turn on my computer in fear of it frying. Mom and dad came over in the afternoon and looked around. I finally turned on my computer and it works (YAY!) and Ryan and landlord were here looking at what was wrong and fixing it so it won't (hopefully, knock on wood) happen again. Parents left, Christina went to get her hair cut, Amanda went to work and I was reading a book for school (although i couldn't do the assigned reading yet because that book was still drying from the water because it was sitting on the coffee table in the living room when the water came). 

Somewhere in here after Ryan and the landlord left, the front door knob went missing (both the inside and outside and the door was open which really confused me. I texted the landlord about that and that the water was sputtering. He came and was just as confused about the door knob (luckily there was still a lock and we have a back door) and played with the water getting it to run again, yet not full strength in the kitchen. 

That was my wet and miserable weekend which I would have much rather read and done homework for class instead of 'playing' with water. 

Hope everyone else's weekend was better!

Always Remember

It was a normal day 11 years ago today. I got up, ate breakfast and went on the bus to my grade school. I was in the 6th grade. I talked with my friends Laura and Ashley before class and then the school bell rang and we headed in to our seats. I was in English class with Mrs. Wagner. She was a short women with violently curly hair that was salt and peppered over with age but was as spunky as ever. She helped make learning fun. She was teaching us some grammar and we were all practicing on our worksheets. Then we heard the news. Mrs. Wagner, a calm, helping person, freaked out. Her daughter was an flight attendant on American Airlines. As she, Mrs. Wagner's daughter flew a lot, Mrs. Wagner never kept track of what flights she was on. Two of the planes that were high jacked were American Airline planes. Quickly after the first tower, the North Tower, was struck, a TV was rolled into my class room. We all gathered round the TV and watched as smoke was billowing from the tower. Shortly after we watched in horror as another plane came into picture and struck the South Tower. Fire and smoke came out as lives were instantly lost. At this time Mrs. Wagner was at her desk frantically dialing her daughter's number. The line continued to ring. She called her son-in-law and he told her what flight she was on. Her flight wasn't one that hit the World Trade Centers, but there were two more flights that would soon be involved. As we were watching around the TV, the other 6th grade classes came into the room, sitting on desks and the floor, anywhere they could fit. We watched awestruck as people on the upper levels waved frantically for help out their windows, trying to get a breath of fresh air. We watched as people jumped out the window to their death. We watched as firefighters tried their best with the worst situation they've probably seen. We watched as horns and people were going crazy in the streets. We watched as the South Tower collapsed and people were screaming. The room was silent as we watched. We watched as more smoke and ashes came billowing up. We watched as the North Tower collapsed. We watched as by standers on the ground yelled and ran away, covering their mouths as not to breath in the soot. We watched. We witnessed. We watched Mrs. Wagner sigh in relief that her daughter was not on any of the flights high jacked. I will always remember this horrific event. I will always remember where I was. I will always remember Mrs. Wagner shed a silent tear as her daughter was safe, and another for all the lives that were lost. I will always remember. 

Dirty Girls (pictures!)

Last year in December I challenged my mom. I challenged her to do Tough Mudder (http://toughmudder.com/), a 10 to 12 mile challenge course with over 20 obstacles. To get ready for Tough Mudder, which helps to Wounded Warrior Project (http://www.woundedwarriorproject.org/), we decided to do the Dirty Girl Mud Run (http://www.woundedwarriorproject.org/), a 3 mile challenge course with 11 obstacles which is only for women and helps the National Breast Cancer Foundation (http://www.nationalbreastcancer.org/). 

We arrived and were all clean and ready for the fun to begin. 

We first had to climb over several stacks of hay called the Barn Burner which was a piece of cake, then up and over this bouncy castle type of thing.

And the laughter then began.

Into the Utopian Tubes we went and then for a little walk to our next obstacle with a cool water break on the way.

Over the triangles that got progressively bigger after the 20+ foot  Cargo Net that we had to climb up and over (so proud of my mommy!)

Into one of the several mud pits called PMS or Pretty Muddy Stuff.

And then the Jail Break, which we had to go over...

...then under.

After some more triangles...

...then the Hangover, hanging tires with tires below.

We gave each other mud baths...good for the skin :)

and then got in some more mud.

Through the Spider's Web

and over the wall

Some suspicious looking hand prints.

and ended it all with another mud bath.

WE DID IT!

Then the boys had way too much fun spraying us off at home...next time we are showering there.

PUBLISHED!

The smile on my face could not get bigger right now! Let me explain.

Each year for the past three years I take part in what is called National Novel Writing Month or NaNoWriMo for short. NaNoWriMo is a competition, as much with others as it is with yourself as participants are challenged to write a 50,000 word novel between November 1st and the 30th. That's roughly 1,667 words a day. For the past three years, I took part in NaNoWriMo. The first year I barely finished, staying up late on the 30th and finished just short of midnight ~ the cut off. I didn't really like my story and haven't looked back at it since. The second year I finished during the day of the 30th but didn't really like my story again. 

The third year I was determined. I finished the 50,000 words on the 29th but still had to finish the story. With exams around the corner, I decided to do some editing during winter break. I gave it a look over and it wasn't half bad, actually, it was pretty good if I may say so. I tried to get my sister to help me edit but that didn't work. With the spring semester starting it was buried under books and homework. Summer came and the books went away, which is when I started to edit again. I knew it would be better to have someone else look over it to make sure my message was being conveyed and not that I just understood what I wrote several months before. That is when I enlisted Mason, my boyfriend, to help. He read it over giving notes and suggestions where he saw fit. I read them over and made changes and he read it again, catching things neither of us caught before. It was good. It was better than good. It was ready. I went to CreateSpace, a free self-publishing website, set up an account and published my book. That was a few days ago. On the 11th my book was on Kindle through Amazon. Today I just checked and my book is on Amazon. I'm on Amazon! (http://www.amazon.com/Keys-Sonja-Bauer/dp/1478367466/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1344967175&sr=8-2&keywords=keys+sonja+bauer if interested). How crazy is this? I am on amazon!?! I couldn't be happier right now!

Dammit

On Thursday morning dad opened the garage door as we keep Dammit (our new kitten) still in there for the night and when we go away for a while so she/he is protected. Dammit was just as energetic as ever. When it was time for us to leave for several hours, we were calling her name (it is fun to go around the yard yelling DAMMIT!), she didn't return. Typical for the day time so we put some extra water out, closed the garage door and were off. When we came home later that day, we went around calling for her again and much to our dismay, she didn't turn up. Friday we didn't see her either so we are pretty sure one of two things happened. One, a hawk got her (living in the country and her still being small that could happen) or two, a car on the road saw a kitten without a collar (we never put collars on our cats), opened the door and she climbed in, having the people think that they were rescuing the poor little animal. 
I'm hoping someone thought they were doing good and 'rescued' her (even though she didn't need rescuing), but either way, you will be missed.