Care-Packages & Cell Phones

I notice that over the last few days I've successfully avoided giving any real detail of my life. When it comes down to it, although my posts tend to be amusing or informative, they are derivative of a very unglamorous life! I guess I wouldn't have it any other way. Recently I've become aware of the sheer amount of personal information about me that there is available via the internet. I had a friend come up to me the other day after class and say, "I just read your blog... all of it" I felt a little self conscious. I asked him what he thought - he said it sounded strenuous. That's apt. I even got an email the other day from my Plato professor encouraging me to "chin up":
"I noticed on your blog that your copy of _Socrates Dissatisfied_ is next to your egg-white omelet. He was, after all, a rotund man. Chin up!"

It's a nice feeling to know people care. Talking about caring, I have more "thanks" to say to people. First I would like to thank Laura for allowing me to sit here wondering why I was so stupid as to think that "Brother Bru Bru's African Hot Pepper Sauce" was going to be the Texas-Pete "pour all over your plate" variety. Brother Bru Bru's is more like the "put a little dot in your corner and dare to have food touch it" kind of hot sauce. As I write this my lips are somewhat swollen from the peppery bliss but I'm having a "be careful what you wish for" moment, and it's a good one. Let me explain. Mid-afternoon I went to my campus P.O. box to answer the email that said I had a package. I thought this was strange since I usually send my supplement orders, etc to my home address and because I hadn't ordered anything new since my prosource.net order (which came, free protein bars included). It was a care-package from Laura and I was absolutely giddy about it. Back at the library for work I scrambled to open it and see what treasures lay inside. It was a goldmine of Antonina-approved diet enhancers! First there was the collection of sugar free gum: Minto Mojito (this is sooo good), Wintermint, Bubblemint, Winterblue, Spearmint and Non-Stop Mint (Laura noted the name was appropriate!). There were two bottles of Metromint ChocolateMint water. I can't believe I didn't think of this before! I've had Metromint before and it's delicious. I guess I never realized there was a chocolate mint flavor. My bottles are chilling in the 'fridge for a special moment when I need one. Also included were two spice-packets of "TastyD's Grub Rub" (who I can apparently email - maybe I will!). She picked these up at the South Kona Green Market in Hawaii. I put some of the "Spicy" blend - yes, that's what it was titled, into my turkey for today. Can't wait to try it!

Did I mention the text I got from her about the Kava place she saw while driving? I think I put it on the twitter, but not on the blog. Anyway, the joke about Kava has continued as she sent me the food label to "Dark Chocolate Mango Mint" Kava bar. IT came from "Hava Kava Hut" in Kona HI you can see their website if you click above.

Aforementioned picture from Laura

There was a pretty branch "stolen from a Rollinia tree" that I am going to use in the domestication of my prison cell... I mean, dorm room. I also got two super pretty smelling Hawaiin lotions (for my "soon-to-be superdark non-Whaplespale tan") and a lip gloss which is lilikoi (passion fruit) scented/flavored. Last but not least - a "Sink the Stink" package for washing smelly things with the caption "hahaha" on it ;)

How sweet is this?! First let me start off by explaining that since I got to a University that is not only in the same town as my family, but is only 1.5 miles away from the house I grew up in, and because my father is a professor at said college (and has been for nearly 19 years), I have never gotten a care package. Sometimes I think life is completely cyclical. I have this thought a lot - that certain things repeat themselves - that there are themes that weave themselves through our lives over and over again. One such theme for me has been the comparison of my freshman year to my senior year. I won't go into depth about this, but my freshman year of college was rough to say the least. I remember being so jealous of student who got unwanted attention from their parents and relatives while I felt that I had gone to the other side of the universe, yet my parents were right down the block. People were always getting little packages for a big test, exam, rough week, etc. I just pushed through it. I feel that it's so appropriate that here near the end of my coursework at Wake I should finally receive a care-package - and not just a care-package. Not the typical care-package either with all those chocolately cookies or brownies that moms bake, or little stuffed toys (although I am a fan), or any of that fluff. This package exuded to me the feeling that I am cared about. All the thought and effort that went into that was so overwhelmingly sweet. As I sat at the ZSR exit desk and watched the tour groups stream in and out of the library, I looked at my package sitting there beside me and wanted to cry because I felt so overcome by the feeling behind it. No one has ever done something like that for me and it truly touches me. Thank you.

Talking about crying, remember when I was at the Verizon store the other day and brokedown? Well, Heather talked me through that situation and explained that I didn't need to buy a new phone or wait months and months to renew my service when I could just use one of her old phone that she wasn't using because of the swank new blackberry her husband bought her. Wait, did you read that right? Someone gave me their phone because I didn't have the means to provide it myself? Where has all this generosity come from? I try to build up good karma (I'm catholic, but I still believe in some sort of karma storage), and I guess my time just came for the universe to give me a break. Not only is the phone super nice (samsung intensity), but the girl who helped me at Verizon this time was really nice to me. She explained to me some simple things about my plan that I didn't know and gave me advice for the future. My sister explained to me later in the day that I should stop buying insurance on the phone because it economically doesn't make sense to. If I've been paying 5 dollars a month for 2 years (do the math) that's enough to just buy a new phone if the old one breaks - instead of deal with their bs. I wish I had thought of that before. It's good to have a smart sister who inherited some of the econ gene from my Dad.


There's been a lot of stuff going on recently, or I'd be posting more often. I have some interesting updates for later!