i'm your mind giving you someone to talk to

Cool Contest

2008-11-07T19:09:46Z

visit simplemom.net to enter a nifty contest :)

need opinions

2008-10-14T01:32:35Z

here i am, posting for the first time in over a year. my infrequent blog posts typically happen on myspace, but i want all my friends to have access to this, not just the myspace people.

my longterm goal is to attend Bastyr University and get a BS in Herbal Sciences and then get my ND. unfortunately, it's not feasible for me to do that for at least 4 years. spence and i have decided we need a plan B, primarily to cover us in the event he doesn't find a job out here when it's time for him to get out. if he doesn't, i'll work full time and he'll go to school for something else. nuclear power isn't a career option in the seattle area, after all. plus, it would be nice if i could work sometime during the next 4 years and make more than $10/hour.

now, with the school i have available to me, there are two options that will work best: get my RN, or study programming. they're both yawners to me, to be honest, but either one would give me a decent job should i need or want one before i can go to Bastyr. they both pay decently. i wouldn't be able to really start the nursing program until next fall, but i'd be an LPN in a year and able to make decent money should i work (part time while i complete the next year to my RN). after two years i'd have my RN, and there's also an RN to BSN option in the area that i could continue with. nursing jobs are plentiful everywhere, so it wouldn't be too hard to get a job.

programming: i could start right away and most, if not all, of the classes are online so childcare wouldn't be as much of a concern. it's probably more suited to my personality than nursing is. jobs on this side of the water aren't as plentiful when it comes to programming, but i could possibly find one, or get a job based in seattle where i work from home. the good programming jobs pay more than the good nursing jobs in this area, i think.

either one would be workable should we need to move to the other side of the water in 4 years when spence gets out (and we probably will). for those who aren't in the know, we're currently living in Kitsap County, across the water from Seattle.

so, discuss :) which one do y'all think would be a better idea? i'm especially interested to hear from programmers and nurses who can tell me how much they love/hate their jobs. this is a means to an end, not a calling, but i don't want to hate life either.

edit: also, i could get an associate's in computer science over here, but i could go all the way to a BSN if i do nursing.

edit two: apparently, some find the term 'yawner' offensive, so i want to explain that all i mean by that is that neither nursing or programming is my passion. if the world were perfect, i'd get to pursue my passion. right now i can't, so i'm looking for what i can do that is in the best interest of my family. i will put my all into whatever job i do. spence has been working his ass off at a job he hates for 12 years. i'm doing what i can to allow him to stop as soon as he can, and i can only choose from the options in front of me. i certainly don't intend to offend anyone whose passion is nursing...or programming ;)

help!

2007-08-09T15:10:50Z

we need some serious help with this contest. we keep trading the top spot with another entry. they apparently have the whole mellencamp fan club helping them.

top of the haystack

you have to hit refresh until we come up. it's random and there are around 220 entries, so it can take awhile. vote for amber dyson and heather dyson. you can open up multiple tabs in firefox and refresh them all at once with right click. if you happen to be on the computer, just check them every so often and refresh. every single vote will help us. i'm between semesters and my kids are at school during hte day so i'm dedicating ALL my time to this.

also, if i win, i'm going to donate the money i save on flight/hotel to farm aid, a cause that i'm very passionate about. so please help, and know that you're also helping a great cause :)

(and while you're at it, check out their website, get some info, and support family farmers!)

wow

2007-07-26T20:55:44Z

has it really been almost a year since i last posted an entry?! damn.

well, i'm kicking butt in school. my first semester at UNF i rocked with a 3.95. i just finished calc 2 with a 99% average! i was pretty proud of that. those are really the only updates :) my world is going along smoothly and happily and i have no complaints ;)

i'm actually posting to beg everyone who knows me to go to this site and vote for me, because i really want to win!
top of the haystack

i think you have to vote between pairs until i come up (or just keep hitting "refresh"), but there isn't really all that many people entered at this point, so it shouldn't take TOO long. whatever you can do, i appreciate :) and if you're wondering, the picture on my profile is me with matt 4 years ago, and connor took it :)

i need help from someone in the UK!

2006-09-19T13:11:05Z

so, last year La Redoute had this gorgeous pair of shoes that i didn't see until they were out of stock and i couldn't get them. and they never sold them again. it turns out, the UK store has them, but they don't ship to the US.

does anyone have any UK friends that can help me out? i can pay for the shoes and have them shipped to the UK resident, who i'll then pay to ship them to me. or they can just get the shoes and ship them to me and i'll pay them directly for everything.

i really love these shoes. help!

(edit: the link doesn't work. rats.)

autumnjasper @ 2006-08-29T10:00:00

2006-08-29T14:12:00Z

man, i'm never around anymore. i never even remember to come here and read journals.

i finished my summer semester with a B+ in one class, which i'm filing an academic grievance over because that's utter horseshit. i won't go into all the details why, since everyone would probably be bored by that, but it is. and my GPA has become extremely important because i've decided to go to med school. which is a pretty funny thing to decide when you're almost 29 and almost have your A.S. in math and science. spence and i move to kings bay, GA in october and i'll still be doing online classes at SUNY through december. then i'll start elsewhere (probably Jacksonville). I'd really like to complete a BS in Psychology with premed requirements, since my ultimate goal is Psychiatry.

we get out October of 2008, by which point I hope to have my BS. I'll spend the fall/winter studying and take the MCAT in the spring of 2009, then hopefully enter med school in fall of 2009. this is where it gets challenging. originally, we'd planned for spence to get a job around chattanooga/knoxville. there's no med school there. commuting isn't really feasible since at some point i'll go on call. ETSU is my preference for med school, and is only 3-3.5 hours from connor, but i don't know what kind of job spence can get there, or how much it will pay. i'd like to go to med school without sacrificing our comfort level or proximity to connor, but i don't know if that will be possible. we won't know until 1-1.5 years from now when spence starts looking for jobs and we find out what our options are.

so, yeah, my fall semester just started and i'm taking a couple of PE courses, second class in my bio series, statistics, and elementary french. then i'll have earned my AS in math and science, woohoo :) during the following 2 years i'll need to take 3 more semesters of chemistry (i've had one) and 2 semesters of physics.

i'll be 40 by the time i'm really a professional, but at least i finally found what i believe i will most love to do :)

pictures of me

2006-06-12T16:23:49Z

i'm loving my new hair color. took some pictures yesterday :)

Preserving Net Neutrality

2006-05-05T16:48:15Z

Just in case anyone hasn't seen this yet:

Sign the Petition Here!

this is a REAL petition about REAL legislation to give preference to internet traffic based on who can afford it. If you don't know what net neutrality is or what the issue involving it is, let me know and i'll fill you in :)

vegan sugarfree weightloss!

2006-04-28T01:19:02Z

i'm all excited. i've discovered a weightloss system with vegan sugarfree products! woot! i only just started so i can't tell you how well it works for me, but it's been working great for my mom. we've got the same body type/issues so i have high hopes.

i suppose LOW sugar is more accurate, but it only has fructose and stevia, no sucrose or artificial sweeteners. and no milk or animal products/byproducts. no artificial colors or flavors either :) i'm using the chai tea flavor and it tastes pretty good. a tiny bit chalky but not enough to bother me. i like the after-taste. my mom said the vanilla is a little chalky, too, but the chocolate is great.

Figure 8 weightloss from Arbonne

not everything is sugarfree, though. i'm not using the chews or the fiber shakes because of that. FYI :)

i signed up to get the discount on products. it's a pretty good deal...only $29 to sign up and then a huge discount on products. if you get autoship on the weightloss products you get them all for 50% off. i'm going to see how the first month goes, though. but yeah, i saved over $29 on my first purchase so it was worth it. i want to try the skin products, too. i'm using the anti-flake shampoo and i can't give longterm results yet, but i like what it does for my hair and it smells wonderful. the literature they sent me has some wonderful before/after pictures from their skincare lines.

so if anyone wants to give arbonne a try, buy from me please! what's better than losing weight? losing weight AND making money ;)

nice.

2006-04-11T18:53:10Z

from resk

HA HA HA. i really can't argue with the "yearning for repair" bit.

Baby clothes

2006-03-29T17:57:55Z

Should anyone need some baby clothes, my sister-in-law is starting to sell some on ebay. She's got all boys, just like me :) And she's trying to raise money to go back to school, so please pass this along to anyone who might be interested :)

Ebay auction

She'll be posting more in the future as well.

Calling all parents

2006-03-19T13:12:14Z

I need your help for an assignment. I'm taking a Children's Literature course this semester and my assignment is to find as many children as I can and ask them what their favorite poems are and why. I only know three kids (mine).

So, if any of you have or are close to kids, would you mind asking them what their favorite poems are and why and telling me? I would reeeeeeeally appreciate it! I'm desperate!!

EDIT: For those parents whose children seem to have no familiarity with poetry, try asking them if they have a favorite nursery rhyme, or children's songs (a lot of traditional songs come from poems). Lullabies are another example. Of course, there's Shel Silverstein (my favorite). Riddles or jokes that rhyme count. There's also "playground verse", like the rhymes for skipping rope. So if they have no response to "what's your favorite poem" they might have one to "what's your favorite thing that rhymes" ;)

sign me up!

2006-03-13T21:33:24Z

the funniest flight results i have ever received on a search (note: this is one flight):

Leave Thu, Apr 6

US Airways 2589
operated by US Airways Express - PSA Airlines
US Airways

Depart: 8:30pm Albany, NY (ALB)
Arrive: 9:40pm Philadelphia, PA (PHL)

3 stops

* Economy
* 1hr 10min
* Canadair
* View seats

Change planes. Time between flights: 0hr 50min

US Airways 4497
operated by US Airways Express - Piedmont Airlines
US Airways

Depart: 10:30pm Philadelphia, PA (PHL)
Arrive: 11:44pm Hampton/Newport News/Williamsburg, VA (PHF)

* Economy
* 1hr 14min
* De Havilland Dash 8 Turboprop
* View seats

Change planes. Time between flights: 6hr 1min

US Airways 2745
operated by US Airways Express - Mesa Airlines
US Airways

Depart: 5:45am Hampton/Newport News/Williamsburg, VA (PHF)
Arrive: 7:00am Charlotte, NC (CLT)

* Economy
* 1hr 15min
* Embraer RJ135-145
* View seats

Change planes. Time between flights: 0hr 45min

US Airways 2575
operated by US Airways Express - PSA Airlines
US Airways

Depart: 7:45am Charlotte, NC (CLT)
Arrive: 8:50am Chattanooga, TN (CHA)

* Economy
* 1hr 5min
* Canadair
* View seats

Total duration: 12hr 20min

This is an overnight flight.

Wrong Turn

2006-03-04T19:48:23Z

And I'll wait here a while
Just long enough to be sure
That you didn't make a wrong turn
And I'll wait long enough
Maybe an hour or two
Before I decide it wasn't me, it was you
It wasn't me it was you
And I would like you to know
Although it seems sad to say
This was only the worst hour of my day
The worst hour of my day
How long has it been on your mind?
Do you think about it when we laugh?
I think that it's a big mistake
Because I think that we could make it last
Even if it's just for a while
And I'll wait here for now
Just long enough to be sure
That you really want to go through with this
Because I don't really want to go through with this
Do you really want to go through with this?

-jack johnson

in other words: i'm screwed

2006-03-02T20:19:14Z

How You Are In Love

You fall in love quickly and easily. And very often.

You give and take equally in relationships.

You need your space and privacy. You don't like to be smothered.

You love your partner unconditionally and don't try to make them change.

You stay in love for a long time, even if you aren't loved back. When you fall, you fall hard.

How Are You In Love?

where's the part about how me being in love with someone magically transforms them into a cold and cruel asshole, an effect that will vanish utterly once we break up and only return if we get back together?

in other news...

i think that two-week period worked as a reset button because i started again at a normal time. and all my bloodwork was normal. so, yay for not dying!

HAHAHAHAHA

2006-02-15T06:48:10Z


	Dear Cupid, This year, I've had my ups and downs in the love department.
I woke up with a tattoo of Ozy_y2k’s name on my inner thigh. Mermaidsonora, Theohara and I went skinny dipping in lake Michigan and now we are cold all the time. Girl-about-town was video taping me while I was changing then put it up on the internet and now I’m a huge star.
So as you can see it's been a hectic year. Can you please make No-nevada hook up with me this Valentine's day? Sincerely, autumnjasper

Take this Quiz at QuizUniverse.com
( or, take the 'clean' version at QuizGalaxy.com )

HAHAHAHAHA

2006-02-12T00:21:20Z

i wish...

<td align="center"> amber --
[noun]:

A person who is constantly high

'How will you be defined in the dictionary?' at QuizGalaxy.com</td>

help

2006-02-12T00:11:46Z

i really, really need some advice because this medical issue of mine has me baffled.

ever since i stopped nursing at the end of october, my period has been doing very strange things. it got pretty irregular, and at first i wrote it off to my hormones straightening themselves out since it was the first time in almost 4 years i wasn't pregnant and/or nursing. now i'm not so sure because they're getting closer together and longer. they were starting every 3 weeks (i'd always started every 28-30 days before this) and lasting 7-9 days. my period just ended and the one before that one was 10 days long. then i spent 10 days not bleeding before starting again. i finished that one today after **13 days** of bleeding. if it keeps up like it has, i'll start again in a week. and in another month or two i'll just be bleeding nonstop.

i've never experienced anything like this. i've always been pretty regular and dependable. this is getting scary. 2 weeks of bleeding?! i have no idea what sorts of things can even cause this. so, please, if you've heard of this happening to anyone else (or to you) and what was behind it, or if you know of any helpful links, please direct me.

i'm going to call the doctor on monday but we're leaving on thursday and won't be back until february 27th so i'm not sure how much i'll get figured out before then.

i need to write about the incredibly eventful cruise, but i don't have time because i am completely buried in schoolwork. after the GA/Jamaica trip i might be able to come up for air a little more.

autumnjasper @ 2006-01-24T14:10:00

2006-01-24T19:11:36Z

i am amused by the fact that i go to the gym every day and work out for over an hour, and yet i will refresh the UPS tracking site to see if my package has been dropped off, rather than getting up and looking out the window.

autumnjasper @ 2006-01-24T13:36:00

2006-01-24T18:38:53Z

so i have a history assignment for which i have to read this essay and then write a reaction to it in the online discussion forum (all of my classes are online through the SUNY network). i really hope the prof isn't expecting us to learn something useful and that i don't get in trouble when i post about what a poorly-written, sprawling, narrow-minded essay this is.

if i didn't HAVE to read it for class, i would've stopped in disgust 20% of the way in.

Edit: ok, to be fair, it WAS written in 1893. apparently, that was before decent grammar was invented =p

autumnjasper @ 2006-01-23T22:25:00

2006-01-24T03:26:28Z

sorry i'm never around anymore! school has started.

i'm here to ask for help. i fell in love with this pair of shoes, but they are no longer available :( i've looked for something similar elsewhere with no luck.

if anyone knows where i can get shoes like this, please let me know!

autumnjasper @ 2006-01-08T10:34:00

2006-01-08T15:38:21Z

so how does a southern girl with wanderlust combat being a sahm in NY? with a cruise, of course!

that's right. i'm going.

sorry i've been so absent. mostly i've been sick. also, i've been playing WoW. it has consumed my soul. it is the greatest game ever. it's everything i loved about EQ2 and more, with none of the things that pissed me off and made me frustrated all the time.

but i really was sick! it lasted a month and spanned an entire spectrum from bronchitis to ear infection to weird virus-of-the-vocal-chords thing to flu. it's nice to not be sick anymore. i'd forgotten what it felt like to breathe.

autumnjasper @ 2005-12-03T22:26:00

2005-12-04T03:40:43Z

scuba is teh awesome. i had my first water class tonight and i LOVE it. i had so much fun and did much better than i expected. i was quite proud of myself :) i didn't feel overwhelmed or panicked at any point. not even when i was using an instructor's alternat air source during an exercise and it stopped giving me air. i tried several times to breathe, i couldn't, so i shook my head that it wasn't working and went to the surface so we could discuss it. i could've grabbed one of my two air sources and stayed underwater but i wanted to hear exactly what i had done wrong. nothing, as it turned out. his alternate had malfunctioned. he fixed the problem and we descended. and that was my only hiccup :) didn't have any problems with any of the other exercises.

and man it was fun. it feels so incredible to breathe underwater and to swim suspended there with that sensation of weightlessness. there's a lot to adjust to and i'm still more awkward than i will be with practice (i hope!) but it was still amazing. i'm also proud of myself because i never like learning something new in front of strangers and i did very well.

ok, enough gushing. i've got 2 knowledge classes and 3 pool sessions left, plus 4 open water dives in jamaica before i'm officially certified. mermaidsonora, i can't wait to go diving with you! and if you ever want to try ice diving, they do that here ;) i wouldn't be going along for that ride, though ;)

omg

2005-12-02T16:34:19Z

i really really want this, but somehow i don't think spence would appreciate having his traditional snowy village ousted...

i'm a pretty princess

2005-12-01T20:40:23Z

i got my basic diving equipment today :) and we spent so much money on me that it made me feel like royalty.

check out the loot (although mermaidsonora might be the only one to appreciate this):

my mask. i bought a blue one.

my snorkel...in blue, of course.

my boots.

my fins. what i really like about these is the angle from the foot pocket to the fin...doesn't force your foot flat like using most fins. that was something that bugged me when using a set of typical fins while snorkeling.

the only bad thing is that all this stuff came from a dive shop so it was quite spendy. because i like to torture myself, i found everything online more cheaply. i couldn't have bought this stuff online because i need to use it on saturday, but i think in the future i'll go into the shop and find out what fits me well and then go find it online to purchase ;) because i am cheap.