Seriously ?!

It's not often that I feel my job is all that rewarding. However, there are occasions. Last week was one of them.

A lady, her husband, and his uncle and aunt from Turkey came through about an hour before closing. It creeped me out at 1st b/c I swear this lady looked a lot like Terry Irwin (ya know, the crocodile hunter's wife). She was excited about everything I had to say. Since it was slow, I went ahead and followed them in the caribbean tunnel area and was talking about different things w/ the fish, sharks and the sea turtle. This lady (who I later found out her name was Bridget), got so into what I was telling her that I swear her eyes were permanently glued open. They kept asking questions and ended up talking w/ me for over an hour. They were extremely thankful for all the information that I shared that they wanted to take a picture w/ me. I said, sure ok, so somewhere out there is a picture of me w/ a couple of guests in the shark tunnel. *snickers*

This was one of the 1st times I can honestly say I felt my job was rewarding. Most of the time I feel like I'm just there to guard the touch tanks, and that never makes me feel like my day of work was worth anything ya know ?

Financial aide can kiss my you know what !

So, most of you know that I don't really make that much money and am very dependent upon my financial aid refunds. It really puts a damper on things when that doesn't come through, which is the case for me this semester. I had gotten an email stating that if I had direct deposit set up (which I do) I would get my refund by the 11th. So, the 11th came and went, and still no money. I began to panic, b/c that's how I pay rent during the school year. So, I mosey my way down there to have a little chat w/ the department.

The 1st time I talked to them, they told me it was just that they hadn't rolled over everybody's accounts yet. Uh, why not ? Isn't that important ? So, fine, whatever, I'll wait another couple of days and see what happens. Still, nothing. I go back down there on friday and say, hey look, I really need to know what's going on w/ my refund. The lady looks up my account and tells me she sees the problem. I have to get extra money from a private student loan, but when they send the money directly to the school, the system labels it as a "personal check." Uh, wth ? It's directly from Wells Fargo (and if they're not good for it, sth is wrong b/c after all, they are taking over the world). So I tell her that that can't be it b/c last semester I got my refund before school even started. She looks it up and says, ok, well, the reason you got it last semester is b/c that loan posted 1st, and this semester posted last. So b/c their system labels it in a dumb way, I can't get my money back until the 20th class day (which is sometime in Feb). I was too pissed to even say anything after that so I just walked away. Good thing I paid an extra month on my rent huh ?

Moral of the story: financial aide sucks ... big time.

Did you know ...

That sea urchins can go bald ? It's a trait passed down from the mother's side ... (kidding, b/c sea urchins are actually hermaphroditic)


But back to my point, sea urchins can actually go bald. A bacteria infects the sea urchin, and causes the spines to fall out, causing a lighter "bald spot." Unfortunetly, I couldn't find a picture for you, so you'll just have to use your imagination. *snickers*

Learn something new every day eh !

R.I.P. Nobelist


The other day, I was unfortunately woken up to a disturbing call. Janel out at the barn had called to tell me that Nobelist died on New Year's day. She didn't have the heart until just a couple of days ago to call and tell me about it. Needless to say, I was crushed.

Nobelist was one of the horses I worked w/ the most, and the closest w/. I saw him go from a lazy, stubborn, lights-on-nobody-home horse, to an extremely talented, willing to work and happy horse. He was doing so good, and was in the prime of his life, still young. There was no doubt that one day he would take nationals. Then, out of nowhere, he got sick and even after he was rushed to Omaha, and put under for emergency surgery, he didn't make it. His stomach burst, for reasons unknown, and they couldn't get him in time.

Even though he was not my horse, it still broke my heart. Knowing that the next time I go out to the barn, he won't be there. He had quite the personality, and I'll never forget all the time I spent working w/ him at the barn and horse shows. Whether it be his happy knicker when he knew it was feeding time, or the retarded tongue sticking out of his mouth thing he used to do. He shall be missed.

Welcome 2008 !

In lieu of the new year, I have decided to resurrect my blog. Whoa, wait, rewind, and replay. Yes, that's right, I am going to start blogging again. I have many unofficial new year's resolutions, and keeping in touch and being more open happen to be a couple of them. Blogging will allow everybody to know what's going on w/o having to wait for me to magically appear and promptly disappear online before you get the chance to even say hi. (Yes, I'm bad at that lately, I know) Also, working at Moody and going to school at A&M always happen to be some good conversation starters w/ all the stuff I see in a day. There is never a dull moment in my life, and I figure I shouldn't hide that from you guys. It'll give you all more reasons to laugh at me. (As if there wasn't enough reason already, ha !)

So, in conclusion, let the year of blogging begin ! Woo !