Monday, July 19, 2010

Quarter of a Century...

So...yeah. I am going to be 25 in a mere two weeks. It's crazy to type! :)And although after this year I'm prone to more "mature" things such as

- comfortable shoes, which means they have a 2 inch rubber sole and medicated in-step...but the beads on top are really cute. Not an excuse.

- stupid "national best friends week" forwards. Although I don't think you start sending those til 30+.

- Pleated pants...ugghh...I think those only come after babies.

- circling a new age group on church visitor's cards. Goodbye 18-24!!

I will try to maintain some youthful-ness. Unfortunately, my wish lists equal that of a 75 year old already. I've always been practical. socks...duck tape...a water filter. Give me things I can use. Not a precious moments figurine. Really? I've been told this makes it difficult to buy gifts for me. So I've compiled the following list for guidance. :)

(In no particular order)
1. Quarters. Since moving to my new complex, I use their laundry room. There have been some moments of desperation where I trade co-workers my 2 dimes and a nickel. EVERY QUARTER MATTERS.

2. An electric toothbrush.

3. Pretty Rain Boots. They are cute and I live on the (oil-tainted) gulf. And hurricane season started last month.

4. Flowers at work...ok. This is not the most practical, but it is the COOLEST thing to get called down to reception for flowers. And it's one of those dreams every girl wants but feels weird asking  for. Prideful? Maybe. Worth it? Yes.

5. Clue. Yes, the board game. I already own the brilliant movie. I ask for this EVERY year. It is literally 15 dollars at Wal Mart. I want the original but I will also (obviously) accept The Office version.

6. A massage. Writing 3 grants, driving an hour to church to deal with church people as a worship leader, my apartment flooding, my boyfriend being miles and miles away, these are all valid reasons for a massage.

7. That new Trip Lee fire. OR Hillsong's Faith+Hope+Love. You can't really call Hillsong "fire". And if you don't know ebonics, none of this will make sense.

8. Anything home-made. It takes effort. One of the most priceless gifts.

9. Gift Certificates to: Hobby Lobby, Target, Pier 1 or Chick Fil A.

10. Stuff Christians Like by Jonathan Acuff. I am a HUGE fan of his blog and can't wait to read the book. Although I have waited this long so...I guess that's not completely true. I am capable of waiting. I just don't want to anymore.

Hopefully this is helpful. If not, I will post bad gift ideas later on in the week.

Friday, July 9, 2010

Words of Affirmation...

If you've taken the 5 love languages quiz...or if you struggle with insecurity...or if you've ever had a small child. You know the value of words of affirmation. To some of us it isn't just enough to know we're pretty, loved, a good cook, a great provider, a hard worker...we need to hear it. and YES there is a difference. I am not like anyone else I know. Seriously. The friends i have don't love me because I'm just like them, but they value me because I am who I am (at least I'd like to think so - insecurity talking). So being affirmed or validated is very important to me. Otherwise I would think I was completely crazy versus partly crazy. So in an effort to soothe myself, and maybe some of you. Here are some quirks I have that at least one other person has agreed to owning as well.

1. Not buying used furniture with porous fabric. (A lot of my quirks are related to cleanliness). But you just don't know what soaks into peoples couches...

2. Thinking LL Cool J is ridiculous. First of all, his rapping sucks. Second he's not that good of an actor - licking your lips between lines doesn't upgrade your talent. Thirdly, who has the gull to name themselves "Ladies Love Cool J"??? Boo!

3. Enjoying fries in a frosty. Maybe it's a girl thing. Mother nature makes us crave sweet & salty combos. But I enjoy it all the time.

4. Being repulsed by phone sweat! NOTHING is worse than when someone borrows (aka violates) your phone and leaves, sweat, make-up, or something unidentified on the screen. I clean my phone with a Lysol wipe periodically. I advise it.

5. Thinking pastors shouldn't preach with their cell phones on their hips. Unless your wife is expecting, or Jesus is going to text you before the rapture...let it go. It just makes it OK for teens to do it. And yes I understand that many people have their bibles on their phones now, but lets be honest, do you ignore a text? Or fight the temptation to check FB during offering? Give God his time people.

6. Enjoying walking in the rain. I can't explain it. I just love it.

7. Changing the channel during the "talking snot" mucinex commercials. Who came up with that? Or the talking wart? Really?

8. Liking the smell of paint...I'm going to have to give this one up if I ever have kids but...mmmm! I love me some fresh paint.

OK, so all that I have listed above at least ONE other person has agreed with me on. Do any of these apply to you? Do you have any quirks that have been recently validated and you sleep better because of it?

Wednesday, June 23, 2010

Chuck Can Sing!

Check out Zachary Levi (The main Character from NBC's Chuck) singing "Terrified" with Katharine McPhee! I am addicted to this song!

Monday, June 7, 2010

Word Bash #6

Hello my friends. This Word Bash stands alone. It has gotten under my skin so badly that I left myself a memo on my crackberry so I wouldn't forget to post.



It's tricky because English is hard. We have all of these rules and exceptions to the rules. BUT it is our language and deserves to be well-learned. I will soon be posting about the absurdity of the people protesting the National Spelling Bee...because the English language rules are too challenging. More on that later...



So down to the matter. I researched and there is no such word as "nother". In fact as I'm typing, spell check tells me it is wrong. So can we PLEASE agree to stop saying "that's a whole nother issue" or "it is a whole nother thing"? I am a fan of the current Bachelorette but she used this phrase on last week's episode and I cringed. And don't get me wrong there is something about that phrasing that makes sense in our brains. I've been tempted to use it myself, but alas "nother" doesn't exist.

Who were you having a conversation with the first time you heard it being used?

Wednesday, May 26, 2010

Congratulations c/o 2010!

This past weekend was pretty awesome. My younger sister graduated from high school as a cheerleader, track runner, multi-club participant, skating-rink master, and only 2 classes shy of her AA degree. She is 7 times the senior I was and 7 years younger. I couldn't be more proud! Not only that but she had some ballin shoes to wear with her dress. They are Steve Madden Leopard round toe sling backs! Beautiful...but this is where our craziness begins:

3:47 - Me, Mom, Carissa & Britt try to find parking near the Ocean Center...there are 650 graduates...it starts at 4. :/
3:58 - Court calls mom. "Mom, I need black shoes. They won't let me walk the stage unless my shoes are black."
4:00 - The 4 of us in the car cruise the Daytona Beach strip looking for a place to buy black shoes. The only one in the car who is wearing black shoes is Carissa...size 9. Courtney wears a size 7 1/2.
4:02 - Court calls back "what am I going to do?" Mom says "we're bringing you Carissa's shoes."
4:07 - Through CRAZY traffic we circle behind the ocean center. Carissa & Tiffane jump out of the car. Brittany takes the driver's seat. They leave to park, we leave to find Courtney.
4:09 - MOVE people can't you see we're running down the street with 4 inch, size 9 stilettos?
4:13 - Carissa: "excuse me sir I know you work here. We need to get these shoes to one of the graduates, do you know how we can do that?"
4:13:30 - Man: "you can try but they're not going to let you in there"
4:13:40 - Tiffane(in thought): "say I won't...that's my sister!"
4:15 - Carissa suggests that I ask a different staff person while she tries to spot court on the ground floor and get her attention.
4:17 - The second (more optimistic) staff person tells us to go to the ground floor and ask to speak with a faculty member.
4:18 - Tiffane (crying): "Hi I'm Courtney Raulerson's sister and we were told that if she doesn't change into these black shoes she can't walk the stage. Is there anyway you can get them to her"
4:19 - DHS Faculty Member: "Let me see if I can locate her, hand me the shoes". The faculty member walks amongst 600+ students, and finds my sister on the end...Praise Jesus. She comes back with the Steve Maddens in hand.
4:21 - Carissa & I hustle back to our spots just in time to hear the Obama wanna-be
valedictorian talk about Lady Gaga...not joking!
4:22 - Deep Sigh of relief.
It was crazy but so awesome. Thank you Carissa for lending your heels and wearing flip flops with that amazing dress you had on. Thank you unidentified faculty member. Thank you Jesus for working things out!

Courtney and Carissa at the house before the craziness started...



Courtney & Wendell at the house




Courtney & Daniel outside at graduation


The cousins! :)


Court, Mom & Me



The whole family...talking to 50 different people as we often do! :)







Friday, May 21, 2010

7 years and counting

So my little sister graduates from High School tomorrow and I am excited and proud and freaked out. I am old. She and I are 7 years apart so that means it has been 7 years since I graduated from High School. Whew! Where does the time go?

It made me think though...I'm really proud of what I've done since then. The Mentalist was on last night (the rerun not the season finale) and it was about a 15 year class reunion. Patrick Jane (who is hot and intuitive soooo...super hot!)made the observation that the majority of people were trying to be someone they weren't. Fake hair, boobs, stories, etc. But I don't think I would feel compelled to be that way. I have stayed close to my family, my good friends, I have a wonderful job, an amazing boyfriend, my relationship with Jesus is better than ever, I have a car that has a working glove box (woop woop, Kristen), I've done mission work every summer since graduation. I finally got out of GCCCCCC lol. My life isn't perfect and I've also done some things that I am NOT PROUD of, but overall I am proud of who I am now. I must say that it is 100% because I've tried to follow God's plan for my life and not my own. My plan didn't involve Chipley or leaving Musical Theatre or living apart from my family - it involved a priest, a soldier and musician. And no that's not a joke setup, it was a VERY flawed plan. But I've gotten so much more and so much better than my plan. That is the awesomeness of Jesus.

So no matter how long it's been, what is something you've done since High School graduation that you're most proud of?

Friday, May 7, 2010

Happy Mother's Day

It's old, but still hillarious. :)

Wednesday, April 28, 2010

Updates

Just a collection of thoughts for today. I couldn't decide on one post topic. So I went with 20. :)

1. I love Jesus. He has been rescuing me from all kinds of craziness lately. If you don't know Him, you should.
2. I become more like my mother everyday.
3. Sometimes when I'm at work I think "do these people know how crazy I am"? I play tetris on my break...not read the Journal of American Medicine! But I like my job and I'm glad I'm here.
4. My sister graduates from HS in less than a month...I am OLD!
5. Kate got kicked off DWTS last week. Praise the Lord!
6. Wheat thins and cream cheese...a revelation!
7. My road rage is getting better.
8. I am completely in love with my boyfriend
9. I have reached level 13 in Tetris...pretty amazing.
10. I may or may not have listened to "Backstreet Boys greatest hits" all day yesterday.
11. Kenneth and I were discussing the absurdity of the KFC Double Down...seriously a "sandwich" made of two chicken breasts, cheese and bacon?
12.Today has been quite emotional for me, so during lunch I availed myself to a specific type of therapy involving Target and Chik Fil A. It is very effective.
13.Apparently there is a newspaper in Alabama (surprise surprise) that has an "ebony" section...they changed from "colored" to "ebony" after the election. :)Progress!
14. Not doing mission work in Jamaica this summer for the first time in 4 years. :(
15. I am addicted to brick breaker on my phone.
16. I am less a fan of facebook now than ever. And I'm kind of over being pressured into it. Sorry peeps but I just don't care enough.
17. It is BEAUTIFUL outside today! Clear, sunny, high of 78.
18. I wish I could bottle up Justin Timberlake's voice and pour it all over me like chocolate sauce. LOL
19. I officially have 6 weddings to participate in this summer.
20. None of the bridesmaids dresses are teal...the color of gangrene. :)

Friday, April 16, 2010

Evidence

Hey everyone. Again, nothing against Kate personally. But it's a DANCE competition. See for yourself.

Wednesday, April 14, 2010

BOYCOTT


How is it that in America, Ellen, who is funny and famous but cannot sing, can judge American Idol? How is it that a psycho reality star who literally WALKS during her routine...not dances...did not get kicked off last night?

I know Kate Gosselin has been through a lot of stuff this past year and I hate it for her...but that is NO reason for her to still be on Dancing With the Stars. I can't play basketball. And I wouldn't ask America to watch me on TV and vote to see me keep doing it just because I had a rough patch in my personal life.

The most unfortunate part is that there is no way to vote her off. I can only vote to keep others on. So I am PLEADING with you all...STOP VOTING FOR KATE. I will post a video later.

Is this mean? Sorry. But I just have too much respect for the performing arts. You should too, America.

Friday, March 19, 2010

Tiff Wonders Why II...

...People who take your order through a drive through act as if you're inconveniencing them. In my first couple of weeks here in Tallahassee, I frequented Zaxby's & Chik-Fil-A. I am a firm believer in home-cooked meals, but I only had half of my kitchen stuff in place. Anyhoo...I repeatedly noticed that "Susie" would take my order, I would drive around, roll down the window and begin to find my cash or card or whatever...and she would have her hand flopped out as if to say " could you move any slower!" My question is...what did Susie think I was doing between ordering at the speaker and parking at the window? I was driving. And I'm sorry that I'm not talented enough to count out 46 cents while driving.

Next meet Leroy! Now I'm taking a stab in the dark here, but I'd say that Leroy has irritable bowel syndrome because his pants are half way down BUT his shirt is tucked in them which leaves me to conclude that he needs to be able to get his bare bottom to a toilet with a quickness. Not only that, but Leroy is upset because I am interrupting his text conversation with Bukwanza to ask him for a straw which he forgot to put in the bag in the first place.

Finally, here's a sweet girl names Rose. Rose is 15 and in love with her perfect boyfriend who is in line at any given restaurant. But he isn't there to order, no! He's simply there for her to look at...while she's taking my order. This particular incident resulted in me getting a chicken salad sandwich instead of a grilled chicken sandwich.

Now I'm not a complainer, I'm a solution finder. I would gladly offer a class for teen fast food workers. We would cover everything from saving money, to enunciating during a drive through conversation, to the REAL purpose of a belt. :) So, I'm asking for other suggestions on topics to be taught in this class...Your thoughts!

Thursday, March 11, 2010

What I've Been Up To...

I have been working for the state Department of Health since September and my job basically consists of whatever I'm told to do. :) We're a two-man office so this is truly the case. But I wanted to share an accomplishment I'm most proud of. Through a company called WAHI media, our office has developed an online resource called TeenTruth.org and it rocks! It is basically an interactive drama, online, that addresses youth issues from underage drinking to drugs to parent/child communication. And there is something for everyone. Youth, Parents & concerned adults! Please check it out and let me know what you think!!

Monday, February 22, 2010

Worth Listening to...

I discovered Eric Hutchinson about a year ago, but I just found this video and thought it was worth sharing. Enjoy!

Tuesday, February 2, 2010

Routines

Happy New Year everyone...now that it is February.

Steph, L & I have discussed this before, but you can tell a lot about a person by the way they load the dishwasher. All 3 of us do it differently, conincidentally. Since I drive approximately 3 hours a day, I have thought about other routines that say a lot about a person.

I would love for you all to share your dishwashing method, but its kind of difficult. So I've thought of another question that deals with methodology. Which body part do you wash first in the shower (bear in mind this is a family-friendly blog)?

I technically wash my hair first, but body part would be right shoulder & arm.