i'm leavin' on a jet plane

That song's been in my head all day, so as cheesy as it is to have that as the title that's what it is.

But the day finally came!
In a few hours I'm gonna be off to the airport, then off to Atlanta for 5 hours, then off to NYC, then off to Camp Pontiac.
I'm scared.
Way more than I should be.
I'm Miss Paranoid so I keep getting scared that all of my luggage will be lost & I'll have to go 2 months without anything clean underwear or toothpaste or shampoo, or that I'm forgetting something major, or that I won't know how to get to the hotel we're all meeting at.
I'm also worried that none of the kids will like me since I'm not cool enough (because I'm poor & they'll most likely be rich. I don't know rich talk) or that I'll have a horrible partner counselor.
I know I shouldn't worry. It'll all be ok. But I fear the unknown.
There's excitement buried in these emotions somewhere & every now & then it sticks its little head out, but most of the time it likes to stay hidden.
I'm hoping that once I'm actually at the camp it'll come out again.
I don't think I'll be posting while I'm there, but if I can I will.
So until next time.
Adios.

so I have this theory...

The high gas prices are a conspiracy by the "Go Green" and alternative fuel people. Think about it, for many many years companies have been working on alternative fuels and have found some that have the ability to work, but we're still using crude oil because it's convenient and we don't like change. They've tried to push their new methods by starting off with hybrids and doing the Go Green campaign, but we're still filling our cars up with gas. Figuring that the only way to get people to switch to alternative fuel is to force them to, they struck a deal with the oil people and made them raise all of the prices. Of course it wasn't as easy as I make it sound, but they're smart people so they made it happen somehow. I don't know the details of it all. But they knew that if they could make gas go up to $8 a gallon that people would stop buying huge cars and start buying hybrids or more efficient cars. They didn't care about the rest of the economy. Or the fact that some people now have to ride the bus in places like Arizona where they have to wait half an hour in 125 degree heat with sweaty people who smell like smoke (not me, just some people). They sit back and smile knowing that their evil little plan is working and we can't stop it. Anyway, sounds like a pretty good theory to me. Wow, maybe I should be a conspiracy theorist more often. It's pretty fun.

By the way, I have done zero research on the subject so don't ask questions about the greater details of this theory. I won't answer.

fun times

Some days when I start to get sad thinking about leaving my family and friends for 8 weeks, I just drive past the nearest gas station and all of my sad thoughts seem to just disappear. More accurately, they get buried beneath the elation of knowing I won't have to even think about $4 dollar gas while I'm gone. That has to be, by far, what I'm most looking forward to.

Another thing that makes me happy thinking about this whole set up is knowing that I have been able to enjoy a month of no school or work because of it. Had I decided to stay home all summer, I would have been working full-time. Financially that would have been better, but I've had one of the best months in a long time. I've been able to go lots of places that I wouldn't have been able to otherwise, accomplish a lot around the house, and spend time with Melanie for the week that she was here. It's been amazing, and this past week was so much fun. Melanie came in last Wednesday, and while she was here we went to my sister's apartment in Peoria for a BBQ and swimming, went on errands for baby stuff, made cute little cupcakes for her baby shower , went to her baby shower, watched a movie and ate pizza, went to church together, played games, went to Sunsplash with Cassie, had a cupcake decorating contest (we were very sunburnt from Sunsplash), plus many more fun little moments in between. I was pretty sad when I had to take her to the airport this morning, but if life was always this fun then it'd be too easy! But I'm grateful she was able to come visit. My sister Cassie also left for Girl's Camp this morning, so it was kinda weird going from two sisters to hang out with to just me by myself all day while my mom was at work. It'll be good for me though because I need time to just get ready for camp and get some cleaning and organizing done. I only have 1 week left! I can't believe it.

I guess I should get off the computer now and finish my laundry. I got my motivation back so I have to take advantage of it while it lasts!

Adios.

randomness about basically nothing

I've been feeling extremely lackluster lately. That's not even a word I use but it felt very fitting. In fact, I just looked up the definition for it (because I often do that for words I don't normally use to make sure that I'm using it right) and it says:

lack-lus-ter (lak-luhs-ter) - lacking liveliness, vitality, spirit, or enthusiasm; dull.

Yep. That sounds about right.

Ever since I got back from the river (yes, I blame it on that) I have had zero motivation to get anything done. It takes everything in me to do something that took 5 minutes before the stupid river trip. Also, I've been completely lacking in the exercise department. Not to mention the healthy eating one! I was doing soooo well, but now I'm non-stop hungry and all of my self-control is out the window. One day I was eating so much that I stopped & realized that I probably looked like a pothead with the munchies. It's bad. And it's really bad timing because I've recently been able to start eating normally again. At least before if I wanted to go on an eating spree I had my gaping holes to stop me. And I've been sleeping way too late. Sleeping in until 10 used to seem disgusting to me but it's been about 3 days in a row now where I've slept in past 10. I'll wake up at my usual time, which is about 7:30 or 8, but instead of feeling ready to get up I'll have a really great dream that I want to finish or I'm still too tired. I don't know how to shake it. Any suggestions? I know going to sleep earlier would definitely help, but that's a work in progress.

Ok, so onto my next discussion. See this hideousness?

Ya, those are my roots. I can't believe I'm about to say this, but I think I might be naturally brunette now *very sad, crying frowny face*. Ever since I started Jr. High my hair has slowly been getting darker, but I never thought it got past dirty blonde. I've always been able to let my hair grow out a lot before it was noticeable enough to have to re-highlight it, but as you can see those days are gone. This presents a problem, because I'm literally broke. Before, broke meant "Oh shoot, I only have $50 in my checking account. No matter that I have $1500 in savings. That doesn't count". Now broke means "Crap. I hope I'll still be able to pay for gas by next week." It's pretty depressing. I don't have a safety net anymore. I don't even know how it happened. Wait, I do. It was the glasses, plane ticket, contacts, Dr. visits, car payments, and other life expenses. Thank goodness I have a mom that let me earn enough money to equal what I would've earned, if I had a job. Otherwise you'd see me on the freeway begging for money. Wow, I don't know how "Nasty Roots" turned into "Let's see how broke Amy really is". Sorry. The point is, if anyone knows of a good-hearted soul who does hair and would like to give me a nice discount (say, $25 for a highlight?) I'll mail you a postcard from camp. I'll even dedicate a post to you AND your friend with the good-hearted soul. I really don't want to look like trailor trash in all of my pictures. I mean come on, I'm gonna be keeping those forever.

Ok, next subject matter. Feast your eyes on this:

Yep. Those are MY nails. Not ones from a store. Don't judge the french tip job, just look at the beautiful length. Ahhhhh. I'm going to venture out & say that this is the longest they've ever been. Usually I either bite them off or chew them until they're weak enough to break. Typing that just made me realize how gross that is. Anyway, this time I kinda just forgot about them and one day I realized they were long. So ever since then I've been taking care of them like never before. I constantly make sure they're covered with a coat of nail polish and I clean them thoroughly everyday. Today's the first day that I've tried the whole french tip thing, and I'm very pleased. I can' t stop staring at them. They make me happy. I hope you love them as much as I do.

That's all for today's randomness. Join me next time for more pointless tales of nothingness. Goodnight, and good luck*.

*Yes, I ripped that line off. I'm not original enough and I'm too tired to think of something just as catchy. Sue me.

yay!

My sister Melanie comes to visit from Chicago tomorrow!

It'll be the first time that I'll be able to see her all pregnant looking in person. I can't wait.

Another thing I can't wait for is her Baby Shower this Saturday! It'll be the first one I've ever gone to (that I can remember) and I'm so happy that it's hers!

This will be a pretty fun week with her visiting. I'm happy!