Cause High School Is All About Me

First off I want to welcome all of you who found me today from Helene's blog!  I really hope you stay and read a while.  Just a few things you should know about So Much Sunshine if this is the first time you stumbled here: 

1. I live in Southern California and it will be 80 degrees today 

2. I work as a teacher and a college counselor for crazy teenagers. 

3. Pray for me they are applying for college this month and if they ask me one more time if I wrote their recommendation letter I might just write a letter full of quotes from Mean Girls. 

4. I just bought the cutest dog in the world.  I am a little afraid some big guy with tattoos will steal her one day.  

5.  I love a few things a lot.  They include Music, the Ducks hockey, travel, and finding joy in all that I do.

Last week at my school was spirit week which was meant to lead up to the Homecoming football game.  Unfortunately we didn't have a game so we just had spirit.  Every year we have silly dress up days and sports day is always one of them.  If you look at #5 in my list above you will see that I like hockey.  I was very sad this year because they canceled sports day and replaced it with superhero day.  I would much rather wear a jersey than a Batman t-shirt, but maybe that is just me.

When I heard this sad news I immediately thought of how I could rebel against this new regime of tyranny that was surrounding me.  Being the grown up that I am my solution was to wear hockey attire everyday that I could.  Really This week is all about me and my ability to wear a hockey jersey one day a year to work and have it count as professional attire. 

Crazy hat day/ pajama day/ superhero day.

I am pretty sure I rocked it.  Next time you decide to let children do what they want I will find a way to make it all about me and my wants (kidding..... kind of).

I blame my grandfather for my rebellious nature.  That man was a true rebel.  He was mad once that it was snowing while he was driving.  Instead of pulling over and waiting out the storm he kept driving 80 mph while wearing sunglasses.  True story.  My mother never went in the car with him again. 

I also thought it would have been a great idea to use my new puppy Penny as my gold accessory for Blue and Gold day.  But she tends to poop where she isn't supposed to so I left her at home.

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Today over at Helene's blog I am involved in a little giveaway for some cash money!  Follow along with the info from Helene's blog or just do yourself a favor and go there yourself, cause she rocks. 

Today some of the coolest cats I know are giving away $115 Paypal cash. What does this mean?! Well if you happen to be celebrating the holidays: Thanksgiving, Christmas, Kwanza, Hanukkah then we're gonna give you some extra cash in your pocket! 

Nicole- Not Before My Tea// Katie-The Style Dunce// Gwen- Confessions of A Gila Monster

Amanda- Living in Another Language// Erica- So Much Sunshine// Chelsea- Lost in Travels// Sevi- Ware is The Vodka

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McDonald's Gave Me PTSD

So yesterday I had a very traumatic experience happen to me.  I actually might have PTSD.  You see I was very sleepy yesterday and my one cup of coffee wasn't cutting it.  I drove through McDonald's on my way back to work after a meeting. and got myself a coffee.

I then went back to work and let it cool off a bit.  I sat down at my desk to take a sip and my lip was brushed with something hairy.  I immediately spit out my drink in the garbage and fished out what I thought would be a hair.  I was wrong it was many hairs clumped together. 

I calmly placed it on my drink and went around the office freaking out to anyone who wanted to hear my story.  Everyone who looked at it freaked out and maybe almost threw up.  It was gross.

There was a former student visiting that morning so I took him with me to McDonald's prepared to make a major fuss.  When I walked in I thought about screaming, "The food is tainted!  Don't eat it!" and throwing trays of food on the floor.  But then I remembered my life is not a movie so I patiently waited in line.

I politely gave them my drink and showed them my discovery.  The lady at the window seemed to know that it was there when she gave it to me, but I might be reading into the situation a little too much. 

They offered me anything I wanted on the menu for free, but I told them I was never going to eat there again.  Actually that was my favorite part.  Hey we gave you coffee that was disgusting, can we offer you something else to totally gross you out?

They gave me my money back and now I am telling you, STAY AWAY FROM MCDONALD"S!

If you want to know which one it was I will tell you, if you are not in Southern California don't fret. 

I will give you a disclaimer and say I only ever went to McDonald's for drinks, diet coke and coffee.  Now it is totally dead to me!

Stop It!

I have a great friend that will always say "Stop it!" whenever you say somehitng playful.  For example when I told him that I need the whole country of China to lose my email address, his response was "stop it!"

Today I only have a little montage of photos of Penny in her various sleeping positions from the weekend.  This impulse purchase is the one that has caused me to loose the most sleep in my life, but dang it if I don't adore that little sleepy head. 

You are so cute!  Stop it!

The small photos from top to bottom: The first time she met rawhide, taking her for a walk usually results in me carrying her around the neighborhood as she sleeps, drinking water is so hard.  The large pictures are just of her being so cute. 

I hope you have a lovely day and find a puppy to hug! 

A ZBB Weekend!

Welcome back from your weekend fun.  I realized I fell of the face of the blog earth last week.  I have no excuse, except my cute puppy that wakes me up twice a night and makes me too sleep to think.  Oh and the fact that I am a crazy person and I decided to write a book in the month of November.  Any free writing time or creativity has gone toward that goal.

I know that the month of November will continue to be nuts like butts and I do not want to beat myself up over the fact that I am not posting award winning material for a month.  I want to continue posting and sharing.  My goal is a photo and a short recap each day.  I am pretty sure I can handle this.

Thanks so much for sticking with me as I take some time and write this book.  It honestly has been a dream of mine since forever so I feel like it is time to crack down and write.

The big event this weekend was going to see Zac Brown Band at the Hollywood Bowl.

I saw them at Stagecoach last year and I fell in love.  They are an incredible talented band and I am just in awe of their amazingness.

I will say I enjoyed them so much more at Stagecoach than at the Bowl.  They played most of their hits, but they also did 8 covers. 8!  It was weird.

We also had the strangest people sitting around us.  To my left we had Smokey Joe and the gang who had the crappy smelling pot on the planet.  Behind us was man with gun like clapping.  To the right was boy who thought we were hot and girlfriend who wanted to kill us for NOT talking to her jerk boy. It was weird.

Because of all the weirdos we were afraid to ask anyone to take our picture at the concert.  So here our our selfies in the parking lot and on the shuttle to Pasadena.

Parking Lot Party!

Shuttle Bus Party!

The Hollywood Bow =l is a pretty location even from a million miles away.

Oh yeah they came out in these outfits and played The Devil Went Down to Georgia.  It was both amazing and strange.  I am still recovering.

I have decided this song is about me because it says "she has legs that go to heaven"  Hello!  Totally me!  Also when I get engaged I would be OK with my man playing this song for me.  He literally needs to play this song on a guitar and sing the sweet melodies himself.  I don't think that is asking too much right?

Whatever It Is by Zac Brown Band on Grooveshark

Your Puppy Questions Answered

So buying a puppy makes you 13099713% more popular. My friends and family come over all the time now and text me to get more pictures.  As it is now day four with puppy I have received many questions from her fans and I thought it was time to answer them. 

1.  What is her name?Well her name, as of right now is Penny.  When she is misbehaving I call her Penelope Anne because every dog needs a middle name. 
2. Do you love The Big Bang Theory?Why the heck would you ask me that? 3. There is a character on that show named Penny.  Isn't that why you named her Penny?Oh There is? I had no idea.4.  Well then why choose Penny?Oh just a few reasons, The Beatles, Almost Famous, LOST, Happy Endings, my fake Starbucks name to name a few. 5. How much did she cost?A pretty penny. 6. How old is she?2 months exactly.7. Where did you get her?A pet shop. Please stop judging me for not getting a pound puppy.  Oh man remember Pound Puppies.
8.  Is she house trained?Well I have had her 4 days so clearly yes I have a magic dog who already only poohs outside. 9. What does she do when you are at work?I am not sure I am at work. I imagine she has sweet dreams of little dog Thor's and football fields full of grass to play in and eat. 10.  Can I have her?Yep.  I bought a dog so you can have her.  Happy Birthday!

Puppy

To start this wonderful Monday I want to thank you if you are coming by from Helene's blog!  I hope you like what you see and decide to stay awhile! If you haven't heard of Helene please go over and check out her writing.  She is a wonderful writing with a ton of joy and positivity in each post.

I have no awesome transition so let's just dive on in.  Welp, I did it.   I took the plunge and I own a puppy.  I wasn't planning on getting a puppy this weekend.  In fact I wasn't planning on getting a puppy this year.  I have wanted one for a long time but I figured I needed to wait until the summer to buy one when I was on vacation from work.

Saturday started with me going to a nearby university to find out about a doctoral program in education. By the way it appears I still can pass for a high school student.  When I tried to find out where my information session was they directed me to the undergrad session.  I tried to explain that I actually am looking into getting my doctorate and they did not believe me.  My look young secret: drink lots of water.

After that I went to brunch with my mom.  After brunch I asked her to walk down to the puppy store with me.  Whenever I am in downtown Glendora I visit the puppy store.  It is usually torture because I want to buy them all and I can not.  This time was different.

While we were there I looked in and saw the cutest little puppy.  She was just chilling eating paper.  I went inside and my mom asked me if I wanted to hold her.  Of course I did!  Then I held her and the rest of the day was spent buying puppy stuff and and trying to pick out a name for this little girl!

She is a mix of a Cavalier Charles Spaniel and a Miniature Poodle, otherwise known as a Cavapoo.  How cute is that.  She is already so friendly and easy going.  I have only heard her bark once and her temperament is ideal.  She will play for awhile, run around with her butt bobbing up and down like a bunny, and then crash for an hour.

Last night she slept from 10-4 with out waking me up.  After she went potty outside she went back to sleep until 6.  We woke up then and I took this picture.  How can you be mad at that face?

She is by far the most friendly puppy I have ever seen.  There has been a flood of people over at my house all weekend just to play with her and she has loved it.  Below are photos of her meeting some very important people.

Bonding time with auntie Justina.

She loves her auntie Lauren Graham.... I mean Laura.

The text I sent to May to get her out of bed this morning.

May, Puppy, and Gatsby

Even my mom loves her.

It has been non stop crazy here this weekend.  I cannot think of a weekend where more people came over just to hang out.

This little girl is by far the most photographed dog in America right now with hundreds of photos on everyone's phone.  I am still looking for a name for this little one. Please leave your suggesting in the comments below.

Best of the Best

Welcome readers from The Daily Tay!  I am so glad you came over for today after reading what I wrote for her blog.  I truly appreciate your visit and I hope you stay awhile and send me a comment, tweet, or email and let me know what you think.  Also, if you are debating blogs to sponser I can tell you Taylor makes the process easy and fun.  I would highly recommend her blog to you, it is filled with sassy humor and gorgeous photos of Chicago and her dog Harlow. 

I love putting together playlists for my weekend.  It is by far one of the things I look forward to the most each week.  

I went to a Ducks hockey game last night (for those not from Southern California Yes the Ducks were based on the Mighty Ducks movies.  Yes I love them both.  No, they are not the Mighty Ducks anymore).   Whenever there is a break in play the sound person plays some music to get the players/ crowd pumped.  Last night they played some Journey and I had so much fun!  

From the game last night.  Going classic with black and white for some classic jams today.

One of my favorite albums is my Journey Greatest Hits album.  I could listen to that thing all the time, and I do. 
I realized that for today's playlist I wanted to go through my Greatest Hits or Best of Albums and share with you some of my favorites of my favorites.  As I made this playlist I realized I listen to old music, which is awesome.  I actually kind of refuse to buy a greatest hits record until the artist has been around for at least 10 years.  This will explain why most of the artists and bands on this list are from previous decades. 
Tiny Dancer and Philadelphia Freedom- Elton JohnI just love Elton!  It is actually one of my goals to get to see him in Vegas soon.  I pretty much love all the songs on his greatest hits album.  How can you go wrong with Tiny Dancer though?  I always think of that scene from Almost Famous when I hear this song too. P. Freedom is actually my fav Elton John song.  I defy you to be grumpy when you sing along to this song. 
Take It Easy - The EaglesThe Eagles are just amazing.  Really their CD is one of my favorites and I could have picked any song here.  Don't Stop Believing and Anyway You Want It  - JourneyThe first here needs no explanation.  Anyway you want it was actually the song that set this playlist in motion so I reckoned it earned its place on the playlist. 
America - Simon and GarfunkelBy far my all time favorite band is Simon and Garfunkel.  America is a beautiful song and again reminds me of Almost Famous. 
Fire and Rain - James TaylorCome on, who doesn't automatically picture Gary Bertier getting hit by that car in Remember The Titans when you hear this song?Free Fallin' and American Girl - Tom Petty  I choose two songs for Tom because I genuinely love Free Fallin' but I didn't want to be too cliche so I threw American Girl in there too. 
Heavenly Day - Patty GriffinThe first lady on the list.  I love this song and I love that she wrote it for her dog.  You've Got a Friend - Carol KingIf you need to relax and clear your mind Carol's Living Room tour Album is the one for you. Where the Green Grass Grows and Something Like That - Tim McGrawI only have two country artists on this list.  I think that is because I only like a few people's entire body of work.  Tim is classic and always a go to. 
She Thinks My Tractor's Sexy - Kenny ChesneyEven if you hate country, tractors, or sexy men this song will put a smile on your good looking face. 
Man In The Mirror - Michael JacksonI LOVE THIS SONG!  I sing it so dramatically and with such feeling people stop what they are doing to stare at me.  Sing it MJ.  Sing. It. 

Best Of Best Of by Erica Thompson on Grooveshark
Well there you have my old lady Best of the Best music selections.  I am clearly in some need of some fresh artists in my best of collection.  I am sure in 10 years this post would look different and Single Ladies would be my top choice.

Friday Favs!

Welcome to another round of Friday Favs! This week I am actually sitting on my couch enjoying some weekday morning TV.  It was just time for a day off.  So here's to vacation days where you do very little. 

 Over here in California we have been told countless times that "The Big One" is coming.  This is just supposed to mean that a huge earthquake is due to shake the state, maybe even send us into the ocean for good.  In order to help us prepare for this catastrophic event the whole state, maybe other parts of the nation participate in The Great American Shakeout.  We have a whole school earth quake drill.  We hang out on the field, some teachers and students "die" it is all just delightful.  I enjoy the day because I get to wear jeans to work on a Thursday and chill with my favorite friends on towels in the sunshine.

My teacher friends and I providing much needed help at the earthquake drill.

I will say that i hope to Jesus I am not at work if a natural disaster ever befalls the grand state of California.  We are by no means ready for an actual emergency.  Say a little prayer for us and our safety issues if you feel so inclined!

Next up on my list are The Anaheim Ducks!  I am heading over to The Honda Center to see them take on the Phoenix Coyotes (wow that word is not spelled how it sounds).  Being from Arizona you might think I love Coyotes, but I actually thought it was dumb Arizona had a hockey team.  I am pretty sure most folks in that grand state enjoy weather that never dips below 70 degrees.  Granted I am in So Cal now and the same could be said here, but it does get cold sometimes.  I mean i have a pair of Uggs that I will be wearing tonight.

If the Ducks win tonight it will be their 6th straight win in a row.  Such a great start to the season!  I will admit I miss Bobby Ryan, but the guys they got have really stepped it up.  Perhaps next week I will give you my list of hottest Duck players.

Hey look at that I talked about sports on Friday!  Looks like I can finally link it up with Sarah!

Last up I just finished a book by Lauren Graham.  That's right Lorelei Gilmore wrote a book.  I actually only read Someday Someday Maybe because she wrote the book.  I will say that there were some charming moments in the book.  Some moments made me laugh out loud.  I also felt like I got to know more about her start in show business.  Although the book is not about her presay I can tell she used her life as the backdrop for the story and character. It is an easy fun read.  If you are a fan of Lauren Graham or actors, give it a whirl.

I am also announcing now that I will be joining the National Novel Writing Month.   Essentially I will write a 50,000 word book in one month that NO ONE will ever read.  I have always said I wanted to write a book and this might be the way to get me towards that goal.  I will let you know how it goes as we get going, but I am super excited and nervous at the same time.

Hope you have a wonderful weekend and do something you love!

What's That CIA, You Want To Give Me A Job?

I am so excited that I can finally share this post with you because the information is no longer under warps.  This Saturday two of my best friends got engaged!  Since none of you know them (well Meg knows them) it would be silly for me to share their story with you.  Instead I am going to share how I was involved in these two finally getting engaged.  
 

As you looked at their little photo montage of their engagement announcement I am pretty sure the first thing you thought was something along the lines of "Wow!  That girl's nails look so nice!"  OK maybe not, but now I hope you look at her nails and think they look nice because that was my one and only contribution to this fine couple getting engaged.
 
Here's how it all went down. Her boyfriend, now fiancee, called a few weeks ago and asked for my help with something super top secret.  I knew why he was calling as soon as I saw his name on my phone.  He is a texter and a real live phone call meant this was important. 
 
He said that one of Laura's dreams when getting engaged was to have her nails done already so all the photos of her hand with her new bling would look nice.  He asked me to take her to get a manicure without giving away the proposal latter that night.  I said sure and I would plan something fantastic.
 
If you ever need to get your friend a fake free manicure without her thinking it is for an upcoming proposal I advise you follow these simple steps. 
 
1. Ask friend if she is free 2 days in advance for a manicure. 
 
2. Tell friend you bought a Groupon for buy one get on free manicures and it is expiring that weekend. 
 
3.  Tell your friend that you need to use it and they need to help you.  Really it is a huge favor for you. 
 
4. Go to the nail shop before you meet your friend and pay for your manicures and give a nice tip. 
 
5.  Tell the manicure ladies not to tell your friend that you paid cash money for their services. 
 
6. Meet your friend for breakfast and talk like you do every day.  Topics to avoid: rings, the boyfriend, the future. dying alone. 
 
7.  Take friend to shop and criticize her choice of nail polish color.  I mean this is not the time to pick a fun color.  You need a classic color that you can live with for forever.  
 
8.  Apologize to your friend and tell her that she is the only one who needs to think that color is pretty, even if you think they are making a big mistake. 
 
9.  Smile and be cool when your friend says "Groupon is amazing!  I should really use it more often!"
 
10.  Give your friend a hug and don't say anything that might give away the upcoming event like, "I hope tonight is the best!"
 
11. Smile and toot your own horn.  You did not ruin a darn thing and your friend had camera ready nails. 
 
After the CIA reads about my clever lies I am sure they will be giving me a call with a job offer.  Deception like this needs to be put to good use. 

On Moving On

I am currently sitting in the teachers lounge in a pink snuggie writing this post and waiting for basketball practice to end so I can go to Rubio's and eat some fish tacos!  As I sit here and catch up on all things blog I have been thinking about what I would do if I did not live in Southern California anymore.  

California has a lot to offer and more often than not I love it here.  Some of my favorite things about Cali are that the weather is usually wonderful, the beach is about a 45 minute drive away, the mountains are an hour away, there is great entertainment in concerts and theater, the sports teams are good (Hello Ducks!) and my family is all here. . 

Despite my general appreciation for The Golden State I often get the itch to leave.  There is a lot about my life here that I am pretty sure I can live without such as the insane traffic, overcrowding, the shallow, vapid people, the pace of life, the smog.  I could go on and on, but I am not looking to be negative.  It will suffice to say that if I had a good reason and the potential for some good friendships I would up and move.

I was reminded of my desire to get out of dodge when I read Helene's post about the Texas State Fair.  I grew up going to the Arizona State Fair, because I grew up in Arizona, and it was always fun. I am a small town girl at heart and there are times where I want to get out of this fast paced life. I told Helene that I was jealous of her state fair going ways and she told me to move to Texas.  It was funny because I actually have thought of moving to Texas and a few other places.  I decided it was time to share my list of places I would relocate to if the circumstances were right.

Austin, Texas 

 

I have heard that Austin is really great for people my age.  It is smaller than Dallas and Houston, but larger than the small towns that the southwest is known for (am I allowed to call Texas the Southwest?)  It know there is huge music culture there, which I would love.  I also know that the University of Texas Austin is amazing.  I have actually thought about applying for school to get my doctorate there. 

 Washington DC 

My uncle is so cool.  He took this while visiting my cousin last year.

Maybe it is all the episodes of The West Wing I have watched, great memories from my high school trip, or my uncle's beautiful photographs, but I could totally picture myself living in our nation's capitol. 

 Nashville, Tennessee 

 

I will be dead honest and say that a huge draw to Nashville is the possibility of falling in love with an up in coming country music star.  I mean, really how amazing would that be?  

 Chicago, Illinois 

I realized I have a thing for pretty cities and bodies of water.

I have always heard Chicago is amazing.  My niece is studying at the University of Chicago and she just loves that city.  I also want to pack up and move whenever I read Tay's posts about this city. 
 

So what cities have I missed in my search for my next place to live in?  Also if you know of any awesome opportunities in any of these cities let me know, seriously.

  

He Died: A New Dating Philosophy

Well we made it through another Monday.  I don't know why, but I have been really excited for life on Mondays this month. I think it is because there is such promise at the beginning of a new week. I have hope that everything that was terrible on Friday might have worked itself out over the weekend and I can start fresh.

I actually just may be alright with this particular Monday because I had a movie day after school with my psychology students.  I offer extra credit once a quarter if my student stay after school and watch a movie that relates to the curriculum.  It is usually a great movie that I just do not have time to show them during class.  Right now we are learning about different states of consciousness and one of the main points is on drugs: why people use them, the effects, and how to get sober if you are an addict.  We watched Walk The Line today and the kids were so cute.  They stood up and cheered at the end and were really into it.  I was a little worried because Walk The LIne because it is about a time period in America they did not really know much about and it was country music, but dang it, they gave it a chance and I think they learned a little something too. 

I will now be totally changing topics, brace yourself.This weekend I had a couple conversations with some great friends that were pretty much about the same thing: Why do guys seem interested for two weeks and then fall off the face of the earth, never to be heard from again. I am sure most of you ladies at some point in your life have had some sort of experience like this, at least most of my girlfriends have.  Here is the situation as I see it.  You think a guy is maybe great and you are excited to spend more time with him.  You are pretty sure he is into you too, mostly because he said he was, and then two dates in he is gone.  He doesn't call.  He doesn't text.  He doesn't smoke signal.  If you are like me you spend a couple of days waiting for the call, text, smoke signal.  When it doesn't come you spend a little time rethinking how the dates actually went, think he might have dropped his phone in a puddle of water and then realize it hasn't rained for like a month.  Sometimes I look through some old text conversations, realize I text to much, and resolve to not text him too much when he finally gets in touch with me again.  Somewhere around day 5 a revelations comes to me.Random date guy died.  I mean it is the only possible explanation for what happened.  I can smart, funny, tall like Heidi Klum, and I am appropriate in social situations.  His death is the only thing that explains why I suddenly quit hearing from him.  

Can we please be proud of my first GIF?  Hey Oh Taylor. I think she would totally benefit from my "He's Dead Philosophy of Dating."

Thinking of random date guy as dead really helps with the bitter aftermath.  If I get frustrated that he fell off the face of the earth I remind myself, that he might have actually fallen off the face of the earth.  I will think something like "That poor guy he was so young, he probably had so many great dates planed for us," instead of "What a jerk!  I can't believe I bought a new dress for this!"  I share this extremely valuable information with you because I know am not alone.  Next time you go out with a guy that disappears after a few dates just remember, he probably died tragically.  It might help you cut him a little slack as you delete his number from your phone. 

Fall Family Fun

This weekend was full of all the great things that make me love fall: pumpkins, Friday night lights, sweaters, and boots.

This weekend May invited some friends over to the house to carve pumpkins.  All of the kids are international students from China and had never participated in this tradition.  Clearly we needed to get some pumpkins and go to town on these bad boys.

Below are a lot of pictures from the day because those can be more fun than a long post of words.

I love getting messy!

May's pumpkin.

This kid is so skinny, but eats like a fatty.  Love it!

Crazy girl, crazy pumpkin.

Karen!

May's first pumpkin

E for Erica.  May had to draw it on there so I could cut it. I am NOT artistic at all.

Brother/ Sister combo team.

The whole gang.

I also felt the need to share May's outfit with you.  She really wanted to look like the baby on her shirt I am pretty sure she succeeded.

I also went to the schools football murder game.  Our boys try hard, but football and Asian students do not usually go together.  At halftime they were down 64 to 8.  They tried, but man those Friday Night Lights were a little dim this week