running out of gas

I can't believe that just three days ago it was over 70 degrees and the past two days we haven't gotten above 55.  We even got some rain yesterday.  I went and met James for lunch, which is something that shouldn't really happen again for a long time.  Last time I hit a deer, this time we found out just how much our gas gauge doesn't work and I ran out of gas and my husband had to come rescue me.  I guess we have fun stories to tell to our kids later on in their lives.  At least while I was waiting I got enjoy some good music and my first red cup of the season.

How's everyone's week going so far?

Any fun stories to share?

newlywed adventures

This weekend was great for many reasons.

Friday we just got to hang out and be lazy all day, plus, we got to eat some North Carolina BBQ which would make any day a good one.

Saturday we got to sleep in and then my husband made me breakfast.  It's really nice when I can sit on the couch and drink my coffee, while he's in the kitchen cooking and singing along with his oldies Pandora station.  It felt cozy and wonderful.

Then we started looking at cars and trucks and finally found one that James wanted to look at...that was 4 hours away.  We were in the car within 20 minutes and thought that it was going to be a long day trip.  Not.  We ended up staying overnight because we found more trucks he wanted to look at in the morning over in Winston Salem.  So a quick Target run and we were set to spend the night.

The next morning, after a glorious extra hour of sleep, the truck was a bust and we needed to regroup over some coffee...and omelets...and biscuits and gravy...and pancakes...boy, do I love me some IHop.

We finally decided that we would actually get the truck we had originally set out to look at.  It's a little blue Ford pickup.  Older, but still in great condition.  He's happy and I'm happy.  

 There was a second yesterday where we felt very gangster and very rich.  

Please don't find me and try to rob us because it's gone. We're poor again. The end.

We ended up getting home well over 24 hours after we had left.

It was unexpected but a lot of fun.  I like being a newlywed and getting to do fun things like this with my best friend.

Hurricane, husband, and horrible luck...

via

This picture cracked me up as soon as I saw it.  We've been weathering a pretty awful storm over here on the East Coast for the last couple of days.  We personally didn't get too much of it other than some really strong wind, clouds, and a little rain.  It's also been down in the 50s and 40s as far as the temp goes and sweaters are out in full force.  Over on the home West Coast they've been dealing with earthquakes and I think I'd rather take some wind and rain.  Hurricane Sandy should be on her way out of our area by tomorrow.  I can now check "Survive Hurricane" off my non-existent bucket list.

My husband is finally home!! It was great to spend the weekend with him and get things accomplished (sort of, see next paragraph).  There was of course a lot of time spent catching up on sleep and cuddling during this stormy weather.  I really love him.  Is it too much to ask for him not to go away again for a very, very, very long time?  Yes, I know, keep dreaming.

The long story short of this whole situation is that we collectively have horrible luck.

Our mission in life this weekend was to find a car.  We need one desperately and thought that it was going to be a piece of cake finding one.  NOT! We fell in love with two different cars this weekend and were ready to buy and they had either been sold an hour before we called or the day before.  Really? It was very discouraging and now I obsessively check Craigslist every couple of minutes so that doesn't happen to us again.  Maybe by next weekend we'll be fully mobile.

 *Crosses fingers and says a prayer*

I hope your weekends were all lovely and if you were over on this coast that you were safe and sound!

Time.

 

Time. Is. Moving. So. Slow.

It's only been four days? It feels like it's been 4 weeks already and the boys should be getting home!

In other news, I sold the Neon! Yay! So now we just need to find another car and things will hopefully start getting back to normal.

When life flings a deer your way....

Literally.

On Friday I had decided to make lunch for James and me and meet him on his break.  After we were done eating, I had planned to run a bunch errands that needed to get done.

That all would have worked out perfectly, if I hadn't ended up being hit by a (very large) deer.

You read right, I was hit by a deer.

I was driving down the highway at about 50 mph, two lights before my turn, and out of nowhere I see this brown blur two seconds before it slammed into my car.  I screamed or at least I must have screamed because my throat was killing me later.  There was the extremely loud sound of breaking glass and I hit the breaks.  Opening my eyes there was just glass everywhere and my windshield, right in front of my face, was caved in way too close for comfort.  I was bleeding from little cuts on my arms and chest and crying like crazy.  Thankfully I snapped into "survival" mode and put on my hazards and pulled my car up onto the grass on the side of the road.  I hysterically called James and told him what happened and where I was and he was on his way in minutes.  Two precious ladies came to see if I was alright and the police and firemen were there super fast.  

This is what I saw when I got out of the car for the first time.

The deer initially hit the windshield and rolled back and took out my driver's side rear window too.

Crazy right?

I'm extremely lucky that God was watching out for me and it wasn't any worse.

I was totally fine the rest of the day and have only had to deal with a sore neck and some sore ribs.

Unfortunately we also have to deal with our one and only car being totaled.

Suffice it to say, our first full week in NC has been crazy and memorable. 

I would really like it if life would just hand me some lemons, instead of flinging a deer my way.

in regards to yesterday..

I said I was frustrated and I wanted to clear it up.

So yesterday I hit a car with my car.

It was really more of a love tap, as in their car was fine and my car didn't have a lot of damage.

Still, stuff like that shakes me up and my neck is killing me tonight.

 Even though it was no where near as bad, it made me think of the last time I was in an accident.

Standing on the side of the 405, right before the Sunset Blvd. exit, freezing my non-existent butt off, and looking at my poor Volvo, which I hated, but really couldn't get around without.

I think I've reached my quota for accidents recently.

The end.

I'm Pleased to Announce

That this...

Is now this...

 

I finally got rid of the car that has caused so much anxiety in the Mann family's life!  Thank goodness!  Now I can just enjoy my new-to-me Dodge Neon and hopefully this one will not start to self destruct on me.  

In other news I started working at LA Fitness.  There's a lot to learn and I've kinda screwed up a couple times but hopefully I'll get the hang of it soon.  

Hope you're having a wonderful weekend!

When it Rains it Pours

For the last few days Long Beach has been hit with a torrential down pore that left streets flooded, my university student union destroyed, and 5 or so inches of water in the drivers side of my car.

Yes, my new car, was flooded. I came to class at 8:50 a.m., parked on the first level of the parking garage, and when I returned at around 1:15 p.m. I found this...

Now this is not the greatest picture ever and it doesn't do the pond beneath my car any justice but I waded almost up to my knees in water to get to the drivers side of my car. This was in a covered parking garage! 

Ah, anyways, I proceeded to buy a wet/dry shopvac, a space heater, and an electrical cord and spent the next hour and a half trying to dry it out.  After being significantly flustered I ran upstairs and had to get somewhat presentable because I had a job interview at 4.  (That will be another story later when I know what's going on.)

Now, a day later, CSULB is shut down tomorrow due to flooding and everyone is battening down the hatches for what's supposed to be an even bigger storm tomorrow.

Let's hope that we all come out OK...just kidding, we'll be fine.

Talk to you later!

Holiday (Mis)Happenings

I've never gotten a speeding ticket. I've never been pulled over for anything more than a bum headlight. Today however I was in a car accident...and it was my fault.

Traffic was stop and go and the car in front of me stopped and I tried and failed miserably. His beast of a van is completely fine, but my Volvo is not. I'm so upset. Most of you might know already but my car is somewhat of a sore spot in my parent's and my lives, but I do really like having a car that works and that looked decent and now it's messed up and I feel so horrible. Thank goodness Corinne's down here too because she came and rescued me and took me in for the night since I'm stranded.

This holiday season has already not been the greatest. I miss home more than I have in few months that I've been down here. It doesn't feel like Christmas at all. I don't get to go to Candy Cane Lane in Monterey, I don't have Christmas movies to watch and I don't have my normal Christmas things around. It's pretty heartbreaking.

So this is my rant for tonight. I'm really sad and stressed and I want my mommy and I don't care who knows it. = (

So far so...good?

I have exactly fifteen minutes to blog.  Why fifteen? Because in fifteen minutes it'll be midnight and I will be turning off my light and going to bed.

I've been living in the sunny Southland for 2 months and 13 days although it really feels a lot longer than that.  My transition from Salinas to here has been one filled with ups and downs.  For example...

• Down: For the first few weeks I thought my address included a house number, that wasn't my house at all.  That address was on my new checks, my textbooks (that were not delivered until three weeks into the semester), my Wall Street Journal subscription, a scholarship check and many other various forms and job applications alike.  Luckily it was just the house next door and my neighbors were cool and put up with my mistake and I was able to switch over everything to my new address quickly.
• Down: I've filled out almost, if not over, 20 job applications in four cities (Cypress, Long Beach, La Palma and Lakewood) and have never received a call back from a single store, restaurant, or babysitting seeker.  
• Up: I was the "new girl" at the Lakewood Hollister for all of about a day.  Now I'm once again being called the best in the store and really love working for my managers there.  I don't really know exactly how to describe it but when I walk into work down here I feel like I'm home.  I've really realized how much I value working and how much I truly do enjoy it.  
• Down: I had a lot of downtime for the first month that I was here.  I didn't know what to do with myself!  I'm not used to being in a house all by myself.  In Salinas my home seems to be always full of people, whether they're related to me or not, and that's what I'm used to.  It was a really big challenge for me.  The television was always on just so I would have some background noise.  
• Down: I watched a lot of TV...ugh.
• Up: I went to a school event with Hannah Elliott and we got free t-shirts and our picture was posted on The Nugget's (a restaurant on campus) website.  We were sipping our "mocktails" and it's really cute.  
• Up: I've been going to Rock Harbor church since I got here.  My roommate Angela has been going there for a few years now and Stephen Paulsen recommended it to be long before I moved.  I love it.  It's very geared towards people my age and their worship is amazing.  

• Major Down: What would my life be like without car trouble?  I can't even begin to tell you because I don't really know.  I drove my car around for two weeks with a major gas leak.  The guy at the repair shop said that I was lucky that my car didn't explode.  I unfortunately couldn't agree with him...I wish the dang thing had exploded.  Two days after I got that fixed Corinne and I were on our way back to Salinas when my radiator cracked on the Grapevine.  We had it towed to the nearest shop, left it there for the weekend, got a ride back to Northridge to get Corinne's car, and by the time we were on the road again heading home it was 7:30 at night and if things had gone right the first time we would have already been home.  That weekend really was not the best for me.  Now my ABS light is on and while I'm driving on smooth, paved roads it feels like my car is going down some unpaved, country road.  I swear this car will be the death of me and my parents.

Well it's now 12:08 a.m. and I need to get some rest.  I have many more stories to share with you and I'm making blogging a priority now.  I need to write.  It feels good to write something that I know I'm not going to be graded on.  Goodnight world.