Piercings, Tattoos, and My Mobi

Example #86 of how my mom is cooler, more laid-back, and generally more hip than I am: she recently got an eyebrow ring. I can't remember if I've blogged about this before (and don't care to look at my archives), but for those who don't know, my mom, Tracy, has three tattoos (to which she is always thinking of adding), and now, an eyebrow ring. I have no tattoos, and my piercings are confined to the ears. It IS strange, but has always been the case that my mom is more daring and...less reserved than I am. All of my friends adore my mom. They say she really is the coolest mom they know, and I have to admit that it is true. As a teenager, I rarely took advantage of this situation, probably to my father's great relief (though even he would have liked to have seen me date more...they were kinda worried about me for a while). In truth, I am much more like my dad. I will say that I fully supported and even suggested my mom's eyebrow piercing. She was thinking about getting a piercing done, but she wasn't sure where (her ear or somewhere different), and I suggested her eyebrow. Michael and I have a friend named Kara who had an eyebrow ring, and it had to be one of the coolest things I had ever seen. She wore it well. If I ever got a piercing anywhere other than my ear, it would be an eyebrow piercing.

All this reflection on how much my behavior contrasts with my mother's HAS had a nifty effect: I have finally figured out exactly what tattoo I would get, were I ever to get one. Any time I thought of getting a tattoo, one major reason I knew I shouldn't get one was that I didn't know what I would get. I had one thing recur to me over and over, and I couldn't figure out why that one symbol was always so attractive: a very simple, tiny anchor. You may ask, "Why an anchor?" It's not like I am a sailor, or in the navy, or that I hang around the sea or docks all the time. I don't even know how to sail. But I like the idea of a tiny little anchor (though I still don't know where I would get it), and I think I've figured out why. I like the idea of an anchor because I'M SUCH A DRAG! I'm steady, I stay in place, and I tend to valiantly try to tether other people around me in place as well. I'm resistant (though not completely) to being swayed. Thus, a tiny little anchor is an entirely appropriate tattoo for me.

Even so, I have not resolved to get a tattoo, but it is nice to know exactly what I would get. A new toy I DO have is a Mobiblu Cube MP3 player. I call it my Mobi. I LOVE it. I've wanted one for a long time now, and finally caved into my desire. It holds 1G and is so tiny and cute! I listen to it as I walk around campus to my classes and it feels like I have a soundtrack to my life. I think that was in some commercial for an mp3 player....anyway, it is like that, sometimes, and I'm really enjoying the experience.

Pictures galore!

I have made some new albums on the site I use to host my pictures, so you can can click on the title of this entry to go to that site and see them. I have albums posted for Halloween 2005 (very late, I know, but I've been busy), my wedding, and my honeymoon. Since the honeymoon is most recent, and there are now some pics up for it, I will say a little about how that went.

Michael and I honeymooned at T.H. Stone Memorial St. Joseph Peninsula State Park. We reserved a campsite, and camped there for four nights. It was a beautiful park, and we had a great time. The beach was a short walk away, and there were several trails on which we hiked with our dog, Goose.

We went to the beach every day, at least twice. During the hottest part of the day, we would get in the car with Goose in the air conditioning and drive around to some of the local shops to pick up ice for our cooler and to get any other items we needed. Goose wasn't allowed on the beach, so it was good that he was able to stay cool during those hot and shadeless hours of the day. Michael and I spent a lot of time exploring the park, reading books, and playing games. Our campsite was electric, so we took my laptop and watched DVDs at night. It was very relaxing, and a complete pleasure-trip. It was nice to have a trip where we weren't obligated to do anything or visit family members (not that those aren't nice, but....this was nicer).

We have never been so close to so many different types of wildlife. Michael was swimming and dolphins swam within yards of him (I, of course, never got in water past my ankles, because I have an irrational fear of being attacked by sharks). There were crabs of differing sizes everywhere along the beach. We saw deer at least three different times. Once, we were on a trail with Goose and spotted one, and it didn't even run away. It just stood there, not fifty feet from us and we watched as it calmly walked away, about three minutes after we stared at each other. Another time, Michael and I were walking along the beach, and five or so deer came down from the dunes and walked near the water. Beach Deer! Crazy. I guess they like looking out at the water too. We also saw a grass snake, and some very cute and fat rats. The most comical event involved a raccoon. Michael was getting something out of a cooler we used as a pantry one night, and he walked to my car and opened the trunk to get something else out, and when he looked back, a raccoon was inside the cooler, and it grabbed our bag of marshmallows and took off. Michael threw my car keys at it to get it to drop the bag, and he retrieved the marshmallows. It was pretty funny: a raccoon with a sweet tooth.

Well, I've droned on long enough, but as you can see, the trip was great, and we had a wonderful time.

I survived!

Okay, so...I survived the horrendous ethics exam I spoke of in the last post. I am not sure how, or how well I survived, but I did. I was pleased with all my grades this last semester.

I also survived my week of camping, on the belated honeymoon that Michael and I took. I will talk more about it when I make a post with a link to a photo album with the pictures I took while we were there. I didn't take very many because we were so busy actually enjoying the vacation that we would often forget the camera, and...well, I really can't regret that. I know some people love to catalogue every memory, and a lot of times they have these massive and wonderful albums, but I find I am happy enough just doing these things, and talking to others involved in those same events to jog my memory. I imagine I will feel differently when I'm older, as it seems that has been the case with many things, the older I get.

Speaking of being older, I figured out today that I am most fit for retirement. Michael and I were driving along the Florida coast, away from our campground on St. Joseph's peninsula, and I began to talk about the pros and cons of living on a beach. I have a picture in my mind of various scenes of myself living out my last years, and I feel an overwhelming peace. Though so many think that's one of the worst times in their lives, I think it will be one of the most peaceful and happy. In my retirement musings, I can easily imagine myself in a small cottage somewhere in Derbyshire, England (where most Jane Austen movie adaptations are set), with a small patio shaded by trees looking out over the rolling green hills peppered with jutting rocks. I will have a lovely garden, because that will be one of my main hobbies, and I will grow flowers and herbs. My little cottage will have two bedrooms (one for Michael and me, and one for guests) and a study with built-in bookshelves on three of the four walls, with the wall facing the most scenic view lined with large windows, and a long desk underneath them. I will spend my time reading lots of great literature and philosophy, gardening, and hand-writing letters, because hardly anyone writes letters anymore. I'll go on long walks in my straw hats or headscarves, and everyone will know me as the funny little American lady.

It's only fitting I'm dreaming of retirement, and that I think it will be a nice time in my life, considering I've always had a rather old personality. I'm not really vivacious, and I've never really had a wild streak. Michael used to worry that I would suddenly go wild one day and do all sorts of crazy things that I never did in college, but he's recently confessed that he no longer thinks that will happen. Occasionally, I loosen up a little, but for the most part, I'm responsible and ....well, most would classify me as rather boring. I've just never fit into whatever age I've been, and so..I think the age I'm really fit for just hasn't come up yet. Maybe twenty-four will be it? I'll know in June. Anyway, I'll post more interesting things next time, with links to albums with pictures of both (hopefully) the wedding and the honeymoon. Until then........