Emoticons as punctuation

Because you seem interested...

It's 2003- I was about to graduate from High School. I had a job working as a cashier at Maceys grocery store. I had just gotten a cell phone and I was 17 (!). Can you believe that?! 17?! AND I had to buy it with my own money. What kind of a dark age did I grow up in?! I bought the little beauty pictured above. Don't be jealous of my snake-playing days... and check out that background. Pretty sure I had a heart. Menu + * to unlock... those were the days...

Over the next year and a half I could count on one hand how many text messages I had recieved- mostly they were from Cricket telling me about a new promotion they were offering. I had unlimited minutes for $30 a month. Crazy!

I traded that phone in later for a free Motorola flip phone from TMobile. (I can still hear that ringtone "Hello, Moto!") I picked that phone out based on the quality photos it was rumored to take... nothing compared to now.

2005 and I started in the interpreting program at SLCC (one semester and I decided I didn't want to be an interpreter... someone upstairs laughed at that decision and said "Watch THIS" as He made me an interpreter anyway... Good thing I love it now. Story on that later.) Anyway... back to the point: I started getting more texts. That is how the Deaf community communicates long distances and oh how I wanted a Sidekick. It's little black and white, flipped out screen was the phone I wanted to lug around (not kidding pretty sure it weighed like 17 lbs- okay not really but it was big. I had one for about 3 days that I bought off of eBay. Bad news. It didn't get service after that 3 days and it was back to my flip phone.

I was with that flip phone until it died, right before I left on my mission and it died. I went to a cheap Nokia until I left- At that time I literally paid for 400 text messages that I didn't use all of. Not kidding.

I remember going on my mission and not even thinking that texting would be that big... right.

On my mission I not only learned spiritual stuff, but I learned the rules of texting. There were 4 missionaries and we were put in groups of 2. Because we were working in a Deaf Branch of the church, we were connected to each other and the members of the branch by texting and email. We had a few Sidekicks that kept us "in the know". I learned a few things:

1. Always finish your conversations and respond ASAP. If not- people think you died.

2. Sidekicks are not as cool as I thought they were.

3. Emoticons may be used as puncutation. For example: The text "Sure" can be taken as "I guess I can do that, if I have to" or "I'd love to"... by adding a :) It means "I would love to with a smile on my face!"

Returning home, I had already gotten in the habit... I was a texter. I ended up with unlimited texting- but held off on getting email on my phone until I had to for work. I never thought I would rely so much on texting... but I'm really glad it's around. :)

 

Vacation

I decided I need a vacation.

When I was younger, I very much disliked going on vacation for more than 2 days.

I missed my house.

I missed my friends.

and I missed my life.

Now, what I wouldn't do for a free trip to just Idaho or Vegas. The Guide Dog Puppy that we finished raising in December, is currently waiting for his new blind "partner", so we might get a short, mini, drive-up to-Oregon-and-back-in-3-days vacation... but we don't know until about 1 1/2 weeks before.

So...

Next week is spring break. (I know, early, right?)

I need a vacation.

I decided 2 days next week, I'm just not doing anything. And by anything, I mean anything for work.

I'm shutting off my phone... (okay, I lie. I can't shut off my phone. I would be lost.)

I'm not getting dressed until 11 am.

and I'm not thinking about work.

That is my resolve!

(Unless they call me and they really need me and I have the chance to earn extra money because I just had my car fixed and it was really expensive and car places make me angry.)

Nessicary, nescissary. Nesisary.

There's something about a day off that makes me want to conquer the world... But then I remember that I have no motivation for that so I lay in bed until it's necessary that I get up.

Now is not the time to get up, so I am sitting in my bed wasting time. There are no new statuses on Facebook, there's nothing more to read on any news websites, all caught on blog reading... So here is my back-up time waster:

Blogging.

Nothing new and exciting to write about, so here are some old and not so exciting things to write about.

10 things about me that happened a long time ago, that might have been exciting at the time, but now they aren't:

1. I chipped my tooth once in a swimming pool. I just got it fixed like last year.
2. I used to not like avacados, but now I do. Actually I love them.
3. I won 2nd place in the State Geography Bee in 4th grade and all I got was a stinking pass to go skiing. I sold it for $30. (A lot of money for a 10 year old!)
4. I still haven't gone skiing to this day. Probably should have used the pass. (THIRTY DOLLARS!)
5. I decided long ago that I don't like animal movies. If the movie has an animal as a main character it always gets lost/hurt/dies and I can't handle this. Most people are surprised by this fact since they think I'm a "dog fanatic". (Also an untrue statement. Obviously they haven't met a real dog lady.) I still haven't seen "Marley and Me" and never will.
6. I was in a spelling bee and was outed on the word "maybe". I always spell it correctly now but i can't spell "necessary" to save my life. I have to Google it every time or use a different word. (Used it like three times in this post FYI.) 
7. I didn't like when my mom did my bangs like "poodle bangs" (all poofy as was custom in the early 90's) so one time I did my own bangs with the same small curling iron but refused to "poof" them. Don't worry that it was picture day. Those pictures are buried deep in my parents basement. Bad ideas of a 10-year-old...
8. Before I started raising Guide Dogs for the Blind, I wanted a pug. I wanted to name it "Busta" like Chris from *NSYNC. Don't judge me... You liked them too.
9. Growing up, I told people I was going to marry someone rich. That didn't happen... But I still like him. I think I'll keep him.
10. I got my ears pierced when I was 8. The day I was baptized. I wad so worried that when I went in the water my piercings would close up... It's fine. They don't.

Guess is better get up now... Breakfast is calling...

It happens...

My blogging has been neglected...

Not really. I have a several drafts that have been drafted and a few ideas that have been idea...ed? But nothing has really come of it.

So here I am to apologize, to say "I'm sorry" to all those who have high expectations of my once-a-month-blogging self.