Simply Me

TAKEN FROM particle_mann

"The Big Read reckons that the average adult has only read 6 of the top 100 books they've printed."

1) Look at the list and bold those you have read. [I'm adding: For series of books, I'm bolding only half if I've read half]
2) Italicize those you intend to read.
3) Underline the books you LOVE. [I'm also adding: strikethrough the ones you HATED]
4) Reprint this list in your own LJ so we can try and track down these people who've read 6 and force books upon them ;-)

1 Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen
2 The Lord of the Rings - JRR Tolkien
3 Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte
4 Harry Potter series - JK Rowling (I'm vacillating on this one. I mean Neil Gaiman did say it was ok...
5 To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee
6 The Bible
7 Wuthering Heights - Emily Bronte
8 Nineteen Eighty Four - George Orwell
9 His Dark Materials - Philip Pullman
10 Great Expectations - Charles Dickens
11 Little Women - Louisa M Alcott
12 Tess of the D'Urbervilles - Thomas Hardy
13 Catch 22 - Joseph Heller
14 Complete Works of Shakespeare (Sonnets, Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet, Macbeth, Julius Caesar, The Taming Of The Shrew)
15 Rebecca - Daphne Du Maurier
16 The Hobbit - JRR Tolkien
17 Birdsong - Sebastian Faulks
18 Catcher in the Rye - JD Salinger
19 The Time Traveller's Wife - Audrey Niffenegger
20 Middlemarch - George Eliot
21 Gone With The Wind - Margaret Mitchell
22 The Great Gatsby - F Scott Fitzgerald
23 Bleak House - Charles Dickens
24 War and Peace - Leo Tolstoy
25 The Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams
26 Brideshead Revisited - Evelyn Waugh
27 Crime and Punishment - Fyodor Dostoyevsky
28 Grapes of Wrath - John Steinbeck
29 Alice in Wonderland - Lewis Carroll
30 The Wind in the Willows - Kenneth Grahame
31 Anna Karenina - Leo Tolstoy
32 David Copperfield - Charles Dickens
33 Chronicles of Narnia - CS Lewis
34 Emma - Jane Austen
35 Persuasion - Jane Austen
36 The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe - CS Lewis
37 The Kite Runner - Khaled Hosseini
38 Captain Corelli's Mandolin - Louis De Bernieres
39 Memoirs of a Geisha - Arthur Golden
40 Winnie the Pooh - AA Milne
41 Animal Farm - George Orwell
42 The Da Vinci Code - Dan Brown
43 One Hundred Years of Solitude - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
44 A Prayer for Owen Meaney - John Irving
45 The Woman in White - Wilkie Collins
46 Anne of Green Gables - LM Montgomery
47 Far From The Madding Crowd - Thomas Hardy
48 The Handmaid's Tale - Margaret Atwood
49 Lord of the Flies - William Golding
50 Atonement - Ian McEwan
51 Life of Pi - Yann Martel
52 Dune - Frank Herbert
53 Cold Comfort Farm - Stella Gibbons
54 Sense and Sensibility - Jane Austen
55 A Suitable Boy - Vikram Seth
56 The Shadow of the Wind - Carlos Ruiz Zafon
57 A Tale Of Two Cities - Charles Dickens
58 Brave New World - Aldous Huxley
59 The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time - Mark Haddon
60 Love In The Time Of Cholera - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
61 Of Mice and Men - John Steinbeck
62 Lolita - Vladimir Nabokov
63 The Secret History - Donna Tartt
64 The Lovely Bones - Alice Sebold
65 Count of Monte Cristo - Alexandre Dumas
66 On The Road - Jack Kerouac
67 Jude the Obscure - Thomas Hardy
68 Bridget Jones's Diary - Helen Fielding
69 Midnight's Children - Salman Rushdie
70 Moby Dick - Herman Melville
71 Oliver Twist - Charles Dickens
72 Dracula - Bram Stoker
73 The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson Burnett
74 Notes From A Small Island - Bill Bryson
75 Ulysses - James Joyce
76 The Bell Jar - Sylvia Plath
77 Swallows and Amazons - Arthur Ransome
78 Germinal - Emile Zola
79 Vanity Fair - William Makepeace Thackeray
80 Possession - AS Byatt
81 A Christmas Carol - Charles Dickens
82 Cloud Atlas - David Mitchell
83 The Color Purple - Alice Walker
84 The Remains of the Day - Kazuo Ishiguro
85 Madame Bovary - Gustave Flaubert
86 A Fine Balance - Rohinton Mistry
87 Charlotte's Web - EB White
88 The Five People You Meet In Heaven - Mitch Albom
89 Adventures of Sherlock Holmes - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
90 The Faraway Tree Collection - Enid Blyton
91 Heart of Darkness - Joseph Conrad
92 The Little Prince - Antoine De Saint-Exupery
93 The Wasp Factory - Iain Banks
94 Watership Down - Richard Adams
95 A Confederacy of Dunces - John Kennedy Toole
96 A Town Like Alice - Nevil Shute
97 The Three Musketeers - Alexandre Dumas
98 Hamlet - William Shakespeare
99 Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - Roald Dahl
100 Les Miserables - Victor Hugo

I finished packing up my room today with Jeff's help.  He's amazing.  He does anything and everything to make me happy.  I honestly think that no other man would spend days in my classroom taking down posters, packing boxes, and being super sweet about it.

I had a pretty great week.  It was finals, so I had to say good-bye to all my students.  It was amazing when at the end of class they all lined up for a hug.  I felt special.  Oh yeah and get this, like five kids come in after class the other day with a poster.  It says on the front, "There is no A.B. without Miller."  (The school's name is A. B. Miller High School.) I was like, "Wow that is so cool.  Thanks guys!"  And then I see Ashley kinda playing with the corner of the poster, and it looks like it opens up.  I'm thinking, hold on.. what is this?  So I take it, open it up, and it turns out it's not a poster but a huge card with tons of little messages and signatures from my students.  I was so surprised and flattered... I started crying.  The students thought that was pretty funny.  They threw me a party after school on Tuesday too.  The students brought in jello mold-cake thingy that says, "We'll miss you!"  And tons of other food like tamales and cupcakes.  That was a blast.  Then Wednesday my student Rudy comes in with a chocolate cake he made himself that says, "We R Gonna Miss You!"  He was very emotional saying that he considered me the only teacher he could actually talk to about things.  I came by my classroom later that day to see another poster on my door with more messages and signatures: "From your softball girls.  We will miss you!" 

It's so sad that I have to leave A.B. and the students that I have come to know as not only students but as good people and friends.  I wish I could be a bigger part of the school career, but I'll have to settle with seeing them when they graduate in two years.  I hope also that the Kaiser cats are going to be as cool.  I know the school is great...  I've heard it's better than A. B. in CAHSEE scores.  But, I'm not sure about the quality of the students.  But I've been assured that if I go in there with the same attitude I had with my A. B. kids, then it'll be alright.

The faculty at A. B. has been amazing too.  I actually felt these past two years that I didn't really have any friends there, or that no one really cared.  But I realize now how much of an impact I have had.  So many people, even teachers I never really knew, came up to me this and last week thanking me for my hard work.  They said they had heard how I actually teach the students, and that I am such a positive influence in the school.  We had a party Wednesday after school for all the young, hot teachers.  (It's really for my closest group of friends from student teaching.)  I called it the, "End of an Era" party.  Eh, it's not really the end; it's only the beginning of lasting friendships that will survive beyond the confines of the school campus.

Well, now summer has officially started, and I'm worried I will be bored.  I thought about getting a summer job somewhere, but I only have about 5-6 weeks before school starts up again.  I'm thinking I might just take advantage of the time off.  I don't know.  We'll see. 

Update:
It's a "no" on the Sacramento job that I wanted really bad.  Turns out since she didn't have an English position open, and I said I couldn't officially take the job unless I could get one there, she went with a walk-on coach that was okay not having a teaching job.  UGH

Also, this always happens... just when I think things are going right with someone, it falls apart.  He is still too attached to his parents and can't move out.  Why does this happen?  Doesn't he know that that is not okay?  Weren't his parents fine without him before he was born?  Is he that dependent on them?  What is the deal?

I'm so tired of getting excited or happy about my love life.  I'd just rather be alone sometimes and not have the worry about people fulfilling my expectations.

So, some things going on in my life that I should SHARE.

1st, I am really pumped because I had a phone interview with the high school I really want to teach at.  The interview went really well, only there is one problem.  It was for the head cheer coach position, and not the teaching English position.  The principal said she has not had the go ahead to interview for the English position just yet.  So even if I do get the job, I'll need to get hired a second time in the English department.

2nd, Jeff and I went to Prom last weekend.  It was really special.  I'm feeling very close to him now.  We fit together pretty well, and he makes me feel very loved.  I am very lucky to have a guy who likes me so much.  I'm wondering and worrying about what will happen this summer if I have to move away.  I want him to come with me, but we'll see.

3rd, I'm working on a movie/film for my sophomores.  I gave them an assignment to explore their identity through a monologue, song, and film.  I wanted to make one too to show on the day of the final when we see all the projects.  It's sounding pretty good so far.  I recorded my monologue with Audacity to "Truman Sleeps" by Phillip Glass.  I'll post a link on here when it's all finished.  But give me a couple weeks.  I'm still trying to think of what to do visually to represent what I'm talking about in my monologue.  It's very somber, but in a trying-to-be-motivational somber way.

4th, Jeff is starting to move in it seems.  He has left a couple polos in my closet and has taken over one of my bathroom drawers for his toiletries.  I wonder if he is doing this because he thinks I want it, or because he wants it.  One of the reasons it didn't work out before was because he couldn't move out from his parents' place.  But it's not like he's making a big scene out of it trying to make me happy.  He just started leaving things, little-by-little.... carving his little spot in my life.  I am happy with this, but a little nervous too because it means we are more serious at a time when I might leave. 

5th, That's basically it except for the fact that the Dept. of Defense has not called me for a phone interview.  I heard a rumor that there are 50 spots open and about 50,000 applicants.  If this is true, I'm not going anywhere.

 That's the latest.

Sitting here, I wasn't meant; to wallow so, in discontent
To watch the chance of dating disappear.
I found a girl who's fun and sparky, always cute and sometimes snarky
A shame the drama always has to interfere.

But why should I remain within my rut, present myself as a manslut
And go to find a girl or three or four?
When I did perchance to meet, a girl who knocked me off my feet
A lass who represented chance, and so much more?

Her sights set high, her standards low, as we bicker to and fro
Yet somehow we just always seem to mesh
We wanted fun, we wanted fate, we wanted life served on a plate
(I want to ship her bloody cat to Bangladesh...)

--J March 2008

Do you really care so much,
is this real?
Things are not so clear.
Will you treat me well?

Will you be my girlfriend?

In the middle of the night will you be there,
be by my side when I cry,
My friends aren't sure.
And I can't tell what it is that I feel.

You make my heart smile...

If I'm meant to be your girlfriend,
nothing in my life would be the same.
Things are not so clear.
And I can't tell what it is I feel.

In honor of over 3 years on OK Cupid, I've searched through all the emails I've received and complied this assortment of the most ridiculous ones.  They are in no particular order.  Enjoy!

• So, according to your profile you're seeing someone. But, who is that teacher sitting next to you on the roller coaster? She's gorgeous. --Mykal

• how are you

• Hello I am shopon from Austria.may be we can try to make friendship,lets hope so & start. waiting for your nice reply. best wishes shopon

• according to national geographic, 909 girls put out...

• so what's what you teachers do on those call days teachers meeting. HAHA

• you sound to good to be true, wana talk?

• can i be your boy friend -=) PLEASE i ill pay ..... 5$ A DAY=   + the cost of food

• hello how r u. my name is amit. i live in fontana. i m almost 23. i saw ur profile its cool. u do have very pretty smile and eyes. i would love to talk tou and get to know each other.by the way i want tell u first about me. i m from INDIA. i m Hindu. i will US citizen next year. i m i living in USA for almost 5 years

• How is it going. I liked your profile. You wanna chat? I know I don't meet your 70% cut off, however I am very cute =).Cheers...

• Hello there! I happened across your profile and well, you seem very curious but in such a way that I feel very much inclined to know you. Perhaps you would care for some correspondence?

• Hi there,  I like your profile, and wanted to say hi. My match percentage with you is 74, and according to your profile you said you'd write a guy back if he had more than 70=) So you gotta write me back. Anyway, hope to hear from ya, see ya.

• dose love exeist . Not for me just yet but i feel that i long for it. Hi my name is jesse and reading your profile shot me right through the heart. I live in highland and im a workoholic most of the time. I also find myself wishing on friday nights . the oppertunity is there just sometimes not the drive for it. I like doing a varity of things. write back maybe we have some chemistry. Then you can teach me!! just kidding have a good day jesse

• Hello..... I am on a quest for LOVE..... Are you part of my journey?

• hi there u look so much like a girl i use to date she was from Washington

• hi, how r u and howz the life going on....Iam from india...i wanna make frnd ship wht u ...u can send email to adil_shaik2003@yahoo.co.uk  waiting for fruther reply from u .....  bye for now....reply soon...  my number is +91 – 9884531768

• god i love you

 

I'm sure you've all had this experience with your kitty... minus the baseball bat of course.

Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B10JuhMCukY

Her gentle hand suspended the loaf of wheat bread as she sheared thick slices from it for her ham sandwich.  She finished cutting the loaf, wrapped it in plastic cellophane, and replaced it in the refrigerator.  She picked a cold diet soda from the cluttered shelves, and then sat down at the kitchen table.  Sunlight gleamed through the French doors and glistened on her engagement ring.  Brandon proposed a month ago; they were enjoying a pleasant walk through the nearby park.  They walk Wednesday evenings and have had that routine throughout the six months they’ve dated.  He asked her if she was thirsty, she nodded, and she skipped over to the water-fountain under a big elm tree.  She bent over to take a sip and noticed a small grey box resting in the silver bowl.

She took a bite from her sandwich and opened up the Saturday newspaper, another murder, another car jacking, another burglary, more deaths, and more marriages.  He interrupted her afternoon reading with a hug from behind.  His arms wrapped around her shoulders, and he gave her a kiss on her head.  She turned to her right to meet him as he leaned for a kiss.

“Anything good on TV?”

“It’s a commercial.  I missed you,” he said.  She smiled as he sat down on the wooden chair next to her.  Looking into his eyes, she could see the sparkle.  It’s the sparkle they talk about in the movies and on TV; he still has it.

“I thought we could go do something this afternoon,” she said.

“Hmm, like what?”  He put his hand on her hand covering the still glistening diamonds.  His hand was soft, and he had seemingly manicured nails; although she was very sure that he didn’t manicure them.  The short blond hairs that swept neatly across the back of his hand seemed arduously combed, but she knew that they weren’t.  Why would he comb the hair on his hands?  She shook her head, trying to impede the inane thoughts from coming to some kind of conclusion.

"Jon is coming over around two.  I thought we all could lounge around here, or maybe go to the park for a game of Frisbee.” She remembered that it wasn’t wise to spring these plans upon him without his consent.  Jon was, in fact, Brandon's friend, not hers.  She cringed in preparation for the predicted response.

“Oh, I didn’t know that was the plan.  You called him?”  He had an innocent look in his eyes, an almost hurt look.  But why would he look hurt?  There’s nothing wrong with her talking and planning a day with Jon.  He had no reason to suspect or question her motive.

“He called this morning for you when you were sleeping.  I told him to drop by, so we could do something.”  She saw the release of tension from his forehead as his eyes lowered.  “Anyway, do you not want him to come over?”

“No, it’s fine.  I was hoping for some quality time with you today though,” he said.  Why did he always have to say things like that?  She loved him, but sometimes she wondered if it wasn’t enough, if he loved her more than she loved him.  Is there a problem with that, she asked herself.  He wasn’t exactly the man she thought she’d marry, but again, who knows the person they are going to marry?  She thought of what their married life would be like.  Yeah, she thought, he’s good for me, he’d always be there, and he’ll treat me right.  Though, could it be better than that?  Is it possible to find the perfect love?  She had to stop herself again.

“He’s coming over, unless you call him up.  I don’t think there is anything wrong with waiting until tonight for our quality time,” she said with a wink.  She was a little worried that he was thinking about her talking too much to Jon behind his back, so she wanted to get his mind off that subject and onto another.

“Oh yeah, that’s cool.  Alright babe, I’ll be in the other room.”  He walked across the hard wood flooring and into the TV room where his favorite show was blaring.  A police car seemed to be chasing a run away bandit or something.  She re-opened the newspaper and started reading an article on the completion of the Human Genome Project. 

Although her eyes followed the words on the page, her mind drifted.  Her thoughts convened to form a memory of last week.  The scene played like a movie.  The living room was bright, her new lamp shone in the corner, and the sunlight bounced off the white walls.  Brandon sat comfortably in the purple recliner she had insisted on buying.  She walked into the room as the smell of baking chicken drifted in the air.  He caught her eye. 

"What?" she had jumped.  He didn’t smile but gazed into her soul.  He held the gaze with her for what seemed like minutes.  She had felt he was reading her. 

Trying to focus back onto the newspaper she was holding in between her sweaty fingers, she assured herself he wasn't reading her.   He didn't know that she was uncertain about the love she had for him.  Her arms lowered onto her lap as her eyes traveled from the newspaper to the white, snow covered mountain range that appeared out the French doors.  “I’m happy,” she whispered under her breath.  “I think, I’m happy.”

It is official. They found a replacement for me next year, so I don't have to be the cheerleading advisor again. This is a huge relief because I felt obligated to stay at A.B. Miller because of those girls. I will miss them. In the end, being the advisor just wasn't in me long term. I am happy.

The past couple of months have been a crazy time for me. If I were eating Chinese food nightly, I'd have a bunch of "lucky in love" fortunes as well as "head for safety" ones. I think I'm finally nearing the end of this love roller coaster, and it's a freeing feeling.

There were three guys in my life. At one point they were all interested in me. I was torn in three different directions, and I had no idea what path I wanted to choose. I could go in honor of security, in a man I had been in a relationship with before. But the issues that caused our initial breakup would eventually resurface.

I could waste my time on someone who is in a relationship with another women. He doesn't call her his girlfriend, but they have been together for 5 months. What a crazy situation to choose there.

Or I can be with the guy who begged me, and who seemed fun and interesting at the time. Eventually, I did choose him. This turned into an unpredictable outcome that included a Dear John text and a nasty comeback email.

Time heals all wounds. Time also tends to answer the riddles that life throws out. I'm back in a position in which I feel healthy and free. I've since sewed up the loose ends of my love life. And although there might be issues ahead, I am content with my life now.

I am a better person when I am single. Nothing pulls me in any direction away from what my own needs and personal obligations tell me. I don't feign interest in anything that I don't truly care about.

In a perfect world, I would be single and happy forever. But as we all know in reality there are desires to be fulfilled and loneliness to be healed. Until next time...

You'll be loved
Like you never have known
The memories of me
Will seem more like bad dreams
Just a series of blurs
Like I never occurred
Someday you will be loved

You may feel alone when you're falling asleep
And everytime tears roll down your cheeks
But I know your heart belongs to someone you've yet to meet
Someday you will be loved

The chilled wind blew the faint chatter across the backyard as it seeped from the sliding glass door. Smells of barbecued hot dogs and hamburgers drifted in among the guests standing in idle groups among the living room and kitchen. The house has a very warm feeling but not because of the temperature and ironic because of a lack of decor. A house being lived in, gave it this feeling. Guests mingled in this corner and that, sitting at the dinette near the back door, on the couch in the living room, and standing around the island in the kitchen.

"I like this party," Sam said turning towards her best friend. "It's nice because the people here aren't all 20 years old trying to get drunk."

Her friend looked around the room at the visitors in the house. "Yeah, I suppose. I think it's kinda boring."

Sam took another look around and conceded that maybe her friend was right. "But I like it. It's not pretentious, either." She walked over to the dinette where the garlic cheese dip sat surrounded by crackers. She smiled thinking of how she brought it, and it was already half eaten. "I should have brought more," she thought taking a cracker and spreading it with the white dip. Looking up around the table she saw some of the guests she had been chatting with earlier.

The older lady who came with her daughter and grandchildren smiled back at her from eating her hot dog covered in salsa. Sam remembered that the woman worked at Glendora School District but couldn't remember what she said her title was there. Something with data management.

She walked back to her friend standing next to the kitchen island holding a coca-cola in a can. “Okay, so do you want to go?”

He friend replied, “Do you miss him?”

“Oh, wow that was random. I thought you were bored. Don’t you want to go?” Sam stuttered before taking a sip from the single malt Scotch the host had made for her.

“Well, yea, but you look distant. I thought it might have been because of Justin. You know, you probably hurt him pretty bad.” Sam looked across the kitchen to the front door and back at her friend. She knew she had hurt him, but reminded herself that he hurt her first.

“I don’t know what I want anymore. It’s not so easy, you know. I can’t just call him up and say forget everything; let’s start over. He has issues. I’m not sure I can deal with that, but yea, I miss him. So what?”

It had been over a week since they broke up, and she made that realization just now. “I miss him,” she thought again. Her mind flashed an image of him sitting across from her at that Italian restaurant she loves, “I’m yours.” She remembered him mouthing those words to her and how she recoiled. She took another sip of the Scotch. The warm, spicy amber sat in her mouth for a second then traveled down her throat. She was looking into the glass with one more sip left in it then closed her eyes and thought, “I can’t very well say just forget him, but isn’t that my only option?” She looked back up and into the eyes of her best friend.

Her friend said, “I’ll drive, and I'm sure you’ll feel better in the morning.”

-Tiffany Miller January 19, 2008

I tried my own cell number! It's scary how far we've come.

Just click on the link, enter someone's cell phone number, & the
satellite map will show you where they are. It's called 'mobile phone
tracker' & was first put to use to aid 911 responders. Using a satellite
map, track any connected mobile phone with coverage anywhere in the
world. To give it a try, log on to:



http://www.satellite-gps-locator.com

Here I go again, starting up a new relationship. I am more unsure of myself now than I ever was. To be desired is a new feeling as of the past year, and I don't know how to deal with it.

The past couple weeks have been a turbulent time for me. I've been confused about his motivations, and ultimately, my own have surprised me as well. This one is different than any other guy I've ever dated. He is strong minded, sometimes so strong he is stubborn. He knows what he wants, and he gets it. He went after me and I, at first, rejected him. Over and over, I rejected him and his constant assertions that we would be together.

Never have I been with a man who is ruled by his emotions. It's refreshing in a way because I've always been embarrassed about my emotions. I've felt that emotions were things to be hid away, not to be discussed, and that they are made of vulnerability.

Though now, I am forced to think about my emotions more seriously when he is around. What do I really feel for him? Is what he feels for me, real? or just a crush? I feel I have been put in the driver's seat and forced to take responsibility for all those times I rushed things with men. Now, I'm the one who says, "Slow down, let's think logically about this."

We need to get to know each other better. There is so much I don't know about him. His past seems so mysterious, and he doesn't like to talk about it. I want to know everything I can. I want to absorb all that is him, then I can make these decisions. I don't like uncertainty or questions.

I just want to know the truth, no matter what it turns out to be.

- all drinks are served in wine glasses even water and soda.

- taxis do not adhere to the white lines and drive in the middle of two lanes filled with cars regularly.

- fruit is grown without use of pesticides which help create a strong flavor and sweetness.

- water and soda are delivered to your table in glass bottles that are sent back to the factory, cleaned, and used again.

- a bottle of the finest wines purchased in restaurants costs about 30 pesos or ten US dollars. And in the grocery store, the same premium wine costs three to five US dollars. This is because Argentina has a huge valley full of vineyards similar to Napa Valley, but they don't mark up the price.

- local pizza is made without tomato sauce in deep dish style that is more similar to a large quiche than a real pizza.

- all food is made to order in the mall food court and most restaurants. The Chinese food is made as you order it, and does not sit in metal bins under heat lamps.

- most commercial vehicles like taxis run on compressed gas not gasoline.

- gas stations are run by women whose job is to pump your gas. You aren't allowed to do it yourself.

- McDonald's has what they call McCafe which would be the Starbucks of Buenos Aires. And no, there are zero Starbucks here.

- no one is overweight in Buenos Aires, and in most stores there is only one size available, small.

I keep thinking that I've covered them all, but there still might be more!

Found this on a guy's okcupid page... so dreamy. If a guy would think this way about me, I just might die.

"I love meeting new and interesting people, so if I'm not one of those two to you by now, I'm probably wasting your time. To be perfectly honest, I am looking forward to making some cool, sick, and facinating friends with this, but even more so, I'm in it for that girl. You know the one. The girl I've already fallen in love with, but just haven't met yet. Someone who enriches my life and I hers. A woman who will be my partner, my buddy, and my best friend. A girl who watches out for me as I will for her. I’m seeking out chemistry, chills, silliness and thrills. Someone who I can spend ridiculous amounts of money on. Believe it or not, while I’m skipping down the path of lighthearted fun, I’m hoping to trip and fall into a deeply affectionate and meaningful relationship. Last, but not least, I need you to believe that you deserve all this as well. Is that cheesy enough 4 ya. "

The best of the best Iguazu Falls, Argentina pictures:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=79905&l=6f3d1&id=877450413



So far the trip in Buenos Aires, Argentina pictures:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=79922&l=0bc2a&id=877450413



La Boca and Puerto Madera, Argentina pictures:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=80173&l=1b483&id=877450413

- there are no pepper shakers in any restaurant nor do they sell it in markets. Don't expect mashed potatoes to have butter, sour cream, pepper, garlic, or any spices. Argentinians do not like any spices in their food.

- you'll have to order your water or soda with ice or you won't get any in your drink.

- don't be surprised when your waiter asks if you would like agua con gas o sin gas. That means do you want regular water or water with carbonation. Women really love it here so all restaurants expect you to order it.

- ATMs will give you bills in the domination of $100 only, but stores and taxis do not take them as there is shortage of money and no one has change for a bill that high. It would be like recieving only $50s from the ATM in the states. It's just too much money.

- restaurants are open for breakfast until 11, close for an hour, open for lunch at 12, close at 3, open for Tea time at 4, close at 6, and open for dinner at 8.

What I have noticed about Buenos Aires in my short stay so far:

- guaranteed there will be at least 4 variations of jamon y queso on the menu of any given restaurant. It is also the snack served on the airplane to and from the city and the sandwich you'll see served by street vendors.

- the most popular genre of cafe is the Irish Pub, don't ask me why.

- in all shops' windows there is a display of Argentinian fashion that Argentinians do not wear. Leather, fur, and cashmere sweaters being the most popular pieces in the shops. However, it is summer here and no one is wearing any leather, fur, or sweaters.

- banks don't open until 10 and close at 3.

- a popular tourist and date spot is a cemetery in Recoleta (a aristocrat borough) known for the architecture of its massive tombs of the rich and famous. It's a disgusting show of wealth.

- restaurants don't get busy until 9 or 10pm and are open until 6am.

Ultimately, it is upside down here in a lot of ways, but hey... that's what traveling is for, getting to know different perspectives.