#15: Visit Family in Oklahoma; #16: Make Disney World Change Jars; #17: Learn to Drive Stick Shift

I've been home from traveling for a few weeks now, and thought I should give a quick update on things I've completed/what I've been up to.

I got a job a couple weeks ago at a grocery store, working in the deli. Working has been such an adjustment for me. Before, my schedule was very open and nothing was planned out. I honestly spent most of my time on my computer/watching Netflix, which is fun at first, but gets old quickly. Having more structure in my day will take some getting used to, but ultimately I think it's for the best.


#15: Visit Family in Oklahoma

After my week-long escapade in Florida, my brother and I took off for Oklahoma. My mom grew up on a farm in western Oklahoma, and it's been a frequent Summer 'vacation' spot (I use quotations because there is literally nothing to do besides watch TV and become overly dehydrated).

While we were there we had a Fourth of July party for my Grandparents 60th (!!!) wedding anniversary. Fun only until I got sick (woo).


#16: Make Disney World Change Jars

While in Oklahoma, my cousin/best friend Shannon and I 'tried' to complete a summer bucket list we had written a few months before (again, I use quotations because we didn't try very hard). One of the few things we did manage to complete was make Disney Change Jars.

What's a Disney Change Jar, you may ask? Let me enlighten you.

I'll start off by saying that I'm dying to go to Disney World with my cousin. Dying. We went to Disneyland for a couple days right before Christmas, and on that trip we decided we would visit every Disney travel destination in existence over the course of our lives. We are going to take a Disney Cruise after we are both either married or engaged, go to Disneyland Paris after we've both had babies (as an I'm-tired-of-this-and-need-a-break-here-Honey-watch-the-child-while-I-go-to-Europe vacation), and Disney World while we're in college.

Disappointingly, Disney World isn't cheap. Because it will take so long to accumulate the money we need (I'm estimating that we will each have to save about $2,000 (ugh) to cover flights, food, tickets, and the hotel. Maybe extra if we want souvenirs), I want to start saving right away. I had seen Disney Change Jars on Pinterest, and thought it'd be a cutsey way to collect money.

This was what I was aiming for:

And this…

…is what we got.

I think they turned out okay! We really just winged it when we started them, but I think they turned out cute.


#17: Learn to Drive Stick Shift

This actually happened in Florida, but I forgot to write about it while I was there. My aunt has an 80s Fiat, which is a manual, and taught me to drive it. Obviously I don't have much experience and I'm not going to be driving on the freeways or anything, but at least I can say I've learned how to do it.

#14: Graduate High School

Just realized I never wrote a post about this. 

I hated every minute of school, and because of that I didn't want to participate in a graduation ceremony. So I didn't. I finished my last class (which was a college class) at the end of May and didn't go back, even though school was technically still in session. 

This entire school year I was kicking myself for not having graduated in the spring of 2013. I could have, because I was so ahead on my required credits, but I decided to stay enrolled in high school to take advantage of free concurrent college classes at the community college. Not the best choice. The problem with community colleges is that literally anyone can go there. I was uncomfortable 95% of the time. 

Oh, well. I'm done with it, I guess.

Florida

This past week I was in Florida with my mom and my brother. I was not at all up to going, but my mom said I'd have to pay her back for the plane tickets so I decided to go anyway.

Our first full day was spent at Disney World (#12). Again, similar to my "Go Abroad" listing, spending a single day at Disney was not at all what I had in mind when I wrote my 101 in 1001 list. I'm dying to do another big vacation, where I go to one park each day. It honestly didn't even feel like I was at Disney, but I've complained enough to my family so I'll just shut up.

We also went to the Titanic museum in Orlando while we were still there.

The rest of the week was spent in Daytona Beach, where my 'aunt' lives. I say 'aunt' because she's really my mom's cousin, but there's no word for that. I went zip lining here (#13).

I'm depressed and I don't want to write anymore so that's it. Too sad to be funny (because I'm just hilarious right). Excuse me while I eat my 13th cookie of the day.

#11: Adopt a Kitten

I'll just be blunt and start off this post by saying that my house can have a rat/mouse problem. It's not like we live in a sketchy area or anything (in fact our neighborhood is one of the more desirable places to live), but all the little creeks and rivers running through the neighborhood seem to attract them.

With that said, my parents like to have a cat around to catch the rats. We got our first cat in August of 2011.

His collar said Shadow, but we really only ever called him Kitty. He had an amazing personality, and all the neighbors loved him. Oftentimes he would plop down in the middle of the street, which was cute only until he was hit and killed by a car (that escalated quickly, huh?). He actually died the first week of school this past Fall, officially making it the second worst first week of school I've ever experienced.

Anyway, we knew that the warmer weather would bring more mice and rats, so we decided to get a new cat. After some debating we decided to not get one, but two! We found an ad on KSL for free kittens and picked up the last two.

Meet Remy and Zeus (named after two of my favorite things: Disney movies and Greek mythology)! They were born late April to a farm cat, who herself hunted mice. Right now we're just getting them accustomed to our house, our yard, and our dog. Because they're still babies and they explore and run around a lot, we're a bit hesitant to give them much outside time (it'd be hard to catch them if they sprinted), but we still try.

I'm really glad we decided to get two; they keep each other entertained, and they're so fun to watch.

Thanks for reading, no one!

#7.3: Try 10 New Restaurants; #10.1 - #10.4: Try 10 New Foods

Last night my family and I went out to dinner to celebrate a couple of graduations. I graduated high school, while my brother "graduated" elementary school. I say "graduated" because, come on, he just moved up a grade level.

Now, I didn't take any pictures, only because I was super uncomfortable (there are certain people I really do not get along well with) and I forgot.

BUT…

Don't think I'm going to leave you without photos. With the description of each thing I will include the very first image that Google pulls up. Enjoy.

I'm in the process of losing weight, so I wanted a cuisine that could accommodate that. Japanese came up as one of the healthiest cuisines in the world, and, as I had never had it before, I thought it would be a good choice. My brother approved, as he loves everything about Japanese culture (kind of like how I love everything about French culture). Kyoto is very close to our house. We've drive by it hundreds of times, so now seemed like a perfect time to finally try it.

I tried so many new foods, the first being sushi. The whole raw-fish thing always scared me, so I went with a safe vegetarian option. It was really good and I really enjoyed it. My only issue was the whole thing broke once I took a bite out of it.

I ordered chicken sukiyaki for my entree. For those of you who don't know, sukiyaki is basically a type of stew. Our waitress described the taste as a 'milder teriyaki'. It consisted of rice noodles, chicken, tofu, and onions. It was tough eating this with chopsticks, but overall I really enjoyed it.

My brother ordered this giant bowl of soup filled with different kinds of seafood (I forget the name), and kept pestering me to try everything in it. I broke down and agreed to try some crab, only because I hear it's what rich people eat. It was okay. I'm not much of a fish person (although I will eat salmon all day every day), but this didn't have a bad fishy taste.

The last thing I tried was kamaboko, which was also in my brother's soup of surprises (our cute little nickname for it as every spoonful he ate of it had a different kind of fish). Kamaboko is basically pureed fish molded into a loaf shape, and then sliced. It didn't really have a noticeable taste, but the texture of it turned me off (it was squishy, I'll just leave it at that). I might try it again if it was in a cute shape or something.

Thanks for reading, no one!

A Few Things Checked Off

I was reading over my 101 in 1001 list for the umpteenth time, and realized that I've actually completed a few things without knowing. Yay for unintentional progress!

#7.1, #7.2: Try 10 New Restaurants

While in Washington DC over Spring Break, I had the opportunity to try a couple of new restaurants. The first I tried was Chipotle (I know, I'm a little late to the Chipotle train). It was amazing. So amazing, in fact, that my brother and I had it again at the airport on the way home. I had a salad with chicken and black beans the first time, and a burrito bowl with chicken, black beans, and rice at the airport.

The second restaurant was called The Protein Bar. This place was right up my alley. The entire menu is full of natural, clean, high protein meals that were delicious. We also visited this place twice, only because we had no idea when we'd be able to come back. They have locations in DC, Colorado, and Chicago. Our first visit I had a black bean quinoa bowl, and the second time I had a Memphis Salad.

#8: Go to a Museum

Coincidentally, this also occurred during my Washington DC trip. I honestly don't know why I didn't think of checking this off while I was writing my post. The entire city really is one big museum.

#9: Go Abroad

A little over a week ago, my cousin, mom, and I went on a short cruise to Mexico. When I had originally wrote my 101 in 1001 list, I listed "Go Abroad" with the intention of going to Europe. It didn't even really feel like I went abroad (we were in Ensenada for a few hours, but that was our only international port), but I guess it still counts!

Thanks for reading, no one!

Autumn

#4.5: Read 25 New Books – Code Name Verity

Surprise, I read another book! A couple months ago I read Rose Under Fire, and when I realized it had a companion novel, I knew I had to read it.

"When 'Verity' is arrested by the Gestapo, she's sure she doesn't stand a chance. As a secret agent captured in enemy territory, she's living a spy's worst nightmare. Her Nazi interrogators give her a simple choice: reveal her mission or face a grisly execution. They'll get the truth out of her, but it won't be what they expect.

As she intricately weaves her confession, Verity uncovers her past, how she became friends with the pilot Maddie, and why she left Maddie in the wrecked fuselage of their plane. On each new scrap of paper, Verity battles for her life, confronting her views on courage, failure, and her desperate hope to make it home. But will trading her secrets be enough to save her from a merciless and ruthless enemy?

Harrowing and beautifully written, Code Name Verity is a visceral read of danger, resolve, and survival that reveals just how far true friends will go to save each other. The bondage of war will never be as strong as the bonds forged by the unforgettable friendship in this extraordinary tale of fortitude in the face of the ultimate evil"

Although it took me a while to get into this book, I really enjoyed it. The plot twist towards the end is so unexpected, and it broke my heart. I couldn't finish it fast enough, and I really recommend it. I really liked that I was able to delve a bit more into the world of Rose Under Fire. Two thumbs up, for sure.