I never thought I would really have to do this...

I can't count the number of times throughout my growing up years I have gone through the exercise of "What would you grab if there was a fire and you had to get out of your house in 10 minutes." But, I guess I never really thought that it would actually hit so close to home.

I don't have tv at my house (we can't afford cable and there is no reception) so the first and only thing I had heard on Friday about any fires was that there was a lot of damage done up in Santa Barbara. Then on Saturday my dad called and he asked me if there was a lot of smoke up near me. There was nothing but blue skies! Little did I know that fires were raging in Orange County.

Because of my proximity to some very dry hills and mountains my dad suggested that I pack up anything that I would want to take with me. At first I didn't think I would do it, but as I was driving home the wind was picking up and helicopters were hovering over the mountains behind my house. I thought maybe a little preparation might be a good idea.

I walked into my room and thought about what I would take. First thing I packed...my hard drive for my computer and all my papers from grad school...they are irreplacable! Second set of things...all my journals (so many memories). At that point I looked around my room and tried to remember which of the pictures I have all over my room are ones I have taken and have saved to my computer and which ones I have gotten from other people and probably can't replace...i grabbed a few that I knew I would never be able to get again. And then began to think...what else? What other pieces of my life are replacable? I almost grabbed my oldest pair of Rainbows (that have traveled the world with me) but decided against it. The last thing I grabbed was my little stuffed lamb that I have had since I was a little girl...that could never be replaced.

At that point I realized how much I had that I really wasn't as attached too as I thought. I can live without 12 pairs of shoes, books, cds, dvds, and furniture. The stuff that matters is the memories....the pieces of the places I have been and the people I love.

Thankfully, as of right now Azusa Canyon remains fireless (and I pray it remains so), but I think I have a little bit of a new perspective on life...the things that matter and the things that really don't.

My prayers are with all the families that have lost their homes, their possions, and some of their priceless memories!

My name is not Katie!!

Alright, so I haven't given up drinking coffee yet! And maybe if I had I wouldn't be writing this little blog right here!

This morning I ditched church to go to a great little coffee shop to work on an assignment that is due tomorrow night. (I am just waiting for all the comments about me ditching church!! LOL!!...just FYI it is not something I do very often). Anyway, I walk in to this place (where I go fairly often) and one of my favortie baristas is working. I have no idea what her name is, but since moving up here her and I always have conversations when she is making my coffee. About a week ago, I stopped by to do some homework. I ordered my coffee and she (my favorite barista) was making my coffee. While we were talking I thought she called me Katie, but I wasn't too sure so I ignored it (the typical Erin response when she isn't sure what someone said...just nod and pretend like you know what is going on...this gets me in a lot of trouble!!). So back to today...I walk in and the first words out of her mouth are..."Hey, Katie! How are you?" I respond with, "I'm good, how are you?" But my mind is racing with thoughts about what I should do. Do I correct her? Do I just let it go? If I let it go, I think of the very awkward situation that will happen at some point where she finds out she has been calling me Katie and my name is Erin. Ummm...what should I do? In typical Erin fashion I continued the conversation as if my name was Katie.

I honestly think she just got me and my friend Katie's name mixed up. (Katie and I tend to go there together quite often). But, anyway...this isn't the first time that this has happened. In fact, my neighbor thought my name was Ashley until one of my roommates corrected her about 2 weeks ago. I guess I just don't look like an Erin!

You know your addicted when...

Ok, so I don't know if any of you have ever felt this way but here it goes... So all my life I have had this fear (fear is not the right word, but I can't think of the right one) of being seen in the same restaurant or coffee shop or grocery store on two consecutive days or sometimes even in the same week, the worst would be on the same day! I know I have gone somewhere earlier in the day and then had friends suggest that we go hang out there later that same evening and I will do all I can to avoid the return visit. I don't want people to think I can't cook for myself, or that I am lazy, or just I don't know...even that I eat out alot (which I really don't) but anyway to the point of the story.

This morning I went into the Starbucks down the street from my house (just fyi I usually switch off Starbucks each time I go for the reasons/fear stated above) and there is a huge line. I am usually not in a rush so the lines don't bother me and this morning I was already late to work so I figured that a few extra minutes wouldn't kill me. So one of the employees notices that the line is getting really long and comes over to a register to help out (I think the girl at the register was fairly new and/or hadn't had any coffee yet because she was moving fairly slow!!) anyway...the girl who had just walked over asks the two people in front of me what they would like and she writes it on the Christmas cups (hello it is not even Thanksgiving yet...we shouldn't be drinking out of christmas cups!) and then turns to me and says...Do you want your usual, venti iced skinny vanilla latte? I sort of looked at her with a bewildered look like "are you talking to me?" and then realized that was exactly what I was going to order! It sort of weirded me out. I mean I have been so careful to never go to the same Starbucks at the same time of day...but it didn't work...the girl knew my order!!

So all that to say that today's incident proved my suspicion that I am addicted to coffee! I don't really now what I am going to do about it...probably wake up tomorrow morning and go get another venti skinny vanilla latte...heck I can even go to the same Starbucks without fear...I've already conquered my fear!

When the little things go wrong...Part Two!

So I really should be working on a paper that is due in a few hours, but instead I am checking my Facebook and writing another blog about my dull life and the things that are just plain funny to me sometimes! So this week continued the trend of little things going wrong...here they are in no particular order!

So a little insight into this week before I get started....It was Global Vision Week at APU! Which is an incredible week of over 30 events that is put on for the students. I am on the planning committee, so this is a big deal for me and my office. Let's just say I usually only work abou 15 hours a week (I know I know that is nothing!!), but last week I clocked about 40 hours (and that doesn't include some stuff I attended and didn't count as work)...anyway that is an intro to the week!

Things that just didn't go right...

1. An event that I was suppossed to take care of reservations for (place, chairs, tech equipment, etc.) just didn't get planned! Ahhhh!! I didn't even know that the reservations hadn't gone through until about 30 minutes before the event, thanks to one of my amazing co-workers who calmly approached me and told me the exciting news! Thankfully everything came together in a matter of minutes and no one else on the committee knew about it (until they read my blog of course). I just can't believe I let it slip through...seriously I need to get more organized!

2. Waited to the last minute to finish my final for my Counseling class (not unusual!)...go to finish it and my computer starts being weird! Great! I attempted to save the file to a memory card I had and ran into my work to use a computer there. The file I save to the memory card was not there by the time I got to work and I was so scared at this point...I already had 21 pages done! Well, thanfully I have gotten in the habit of emailing myself stuff in addition to saving it to my computer...well I had a recent copy of my paper! Soooo greatful!! So I sat at work and finished my paper. I then proceeded to call my dad and tell him my computer woes! All I can say is that I now have an amazingly new laptop! (the only thing that isn't so great about it is the pricetag...but I think I can deal with that!) The one funny thing about this whole thing is that I took the old computer home and my dad was checking it out...it has worked perfectly ever since! Go figure!

3. On Friday morning I was trying to quickly get from East campus to West campus so I could attend chapel. I was walking to my car and making a phone call to my mom just to say hi and as she picks up I round the car parked in front of mine and notice an large blotch of white paint smeared across the corner of the front bumper of car! The first words out my mouth were...mom do you know anywhere I can get bodywork done on my car. There was no note on my car, so I just got in my car and drove to West campus. I couldn't even be mad, seriously of all the things that could bother me in life I was not going to let this be one of them.

Hmmm...none of that seems bad now. In fact most of it is funny! Ahhh my life!

Alright back to my paper that I can now work on because I have an amazing computer that works!

When the little things go wrong...

Over the last couple of weeks I have noticed how all the little things have been off. I don't know what it is- maybe I am growing and I am going through a clumsy stage- but whatever it is I have almost come to expect it. Here are just a few of the weird, funny, and plain stupid things that have happened in the last few weeks.

1. Forgot about a meeting that I needed to go to for work. I have known about this meeting for weeks and even had it on my planner at work, but somehow I sat around doing nothing while this important meeting was taking place. About 45 minutes into it my friend (who made it to the meeting with no problem) texted me to see if I was coming...by that point I was on my way to another meeting and it was pointless to stop by for 5 minutes. Luckily, the lady who is in charge of the committee is super merciful and told me she was just thankful I hadn't gotten "sucked into a black hole" which at that point I felt I already had with all the stuff I am doing at work. Anyway, missing a meeting is not me...so it was werid!

2. This morning I was trying to put away a box of cereal after I had finished pouring myself a bowl. I was holding onto it with two hands and everything and the next thing I know the box was upside down and all the cereal was on the floor. Now comes the question of what did I do with an entire box of cereal that is now on the floor...well (I really can't believe I am admitting this!!!) but I scooped it up with my bare hands and dumped it back into the box. Ahhhh I really hope our floor was somewhat clean! But seriously...cereal is soooo expensive, I can't even imagine throwing away an entire box of cereal just because it spent a few seconds on the floor. So if I don't offer you cereal the next few times you come over it is not because I am being rude it is just because I don't want to offer you the dirt off my floor for breakfast!

3. My roommates and I carved pumpkins...not odd or strange...but the fact that all of our pumpkins shriveled up into little orange balls of grossness and mold is beyond me. They didn't even make it to Halloween! Seriously, I don't get it! If the pumpkin is drying up, why would it grow mold. Usually mold only grows where there is moisture...not where there is dryness. Anyway, we had to throw them away because there were all kinds of bugs on them and they were pretty unrecognizable as pumpkins.

4. The internet at my house is working....but my computer won't pick it up! This is just frustrating! However, I think it makes me very very aware of how addicted to checking my facebook and email...maybe this is a good time for me to break that habit. I just feel like I am missing out on the world! I'll get over it!

5. The other day I was wearing my super cute pink shoes and I was walking on a tile floor in one of the cafe's at APU and I slipped and slid about 2 feet (luckly I didn't fall...God only knows how that happened) but about 20 students were standing there and saw the whole thing. I even chuckled a little bit when it happened...but talk about embarassing moment.

Those are only a couple of the things I can think of right now...but everyday something happens and I am like...really?? could I be any more clutsy or uncordinated?? But that is why all of you love me right...because I always have a good story about something that happened.

Alright, I have to head home from the coffee shop to my apartment that won't let me have internet so I can actually finish my papers for school!