No Strings Attached

     I just saw the movie No Strings Attached last night for the first time. For those of you who have seen it you will understand what my post is going to be about but if you haven't I will give you a quick summary.
     Lifelong friends Adam (Ashton Kutcher) and Emma (Natalie Portman) attempt to avoid falling in love after falling into each other's beds in this comedy exploring the complexities and quirks of having friends with benefits. Adam was a typical, hormonal 14-year-old when he first came on to Emma at summer camp -- and got shot down in flames. In the years that followed, however, Adam and Emma continued to cross paths until, eventually, they both caved to their animal instincts. Despite an intense session of earth-shaking sex, however, Emma makes it clear to Adam that the last thing she wants is a committed relationship. At first their casual stance on sex works great for both; Emma can focus on her career instead of allowing her emotions to dictate her decisions, and Adam can play the field without fear of hurting her feelings. Over time, though, Adam begins to develop feelings for Emma that he never had for any of his countless conquests. Before they both know it, love has reared its ugly head and they've gotten too emotionally involved to cut the relationship off cold. But is commitment in the cards for the couple that always swore it would never get serious, or has the time come for them to finally part ways once and for all?
     I really liked the movie and I believe it's a good movie for both sexes. But honestly I think they have who falls in love first all wrong. Then again this is Hollywood and the movies so they portray real life very minimally. In the movie they have Emma as being the one who only wants sex, no commitment, no arguing, and no feelings felt between her and Adam. Now right there, that sounds like a typical guy in his 20s talking, not a successful, beautiful woman. There is not one girl that I know that doesn't want to get married, settle down and start a family. I mean come on since I was 5 I remember playing dress up and pretending to get married and having kids. While the boys were playing with cars, guns and video games. Wow just goes to show you that boys never grow up, they care about their cars, Black Op and the rest of their video games more than real life!
     I'm not a guy hater because I've had some really great guy friends. But I do hate how they act most of the time. I wish girls had the ability to not care like guys. Not care about how we look, not care about our relationships, and just worry about ourselves. But us being women can't do that. We have the false pretense that this guy will be different, that he won't cheat again, that he won't hurt me or break my heart. But then he goes and does everything we hope he wouldn't. And when you break up he moves on so quickly like you never existed! I've said this to plenty of people, I wish when we were born a manual came out with us that said our whole life story. I wouldn't want to look at everything in that book, I'd just turn to the pages about the guys who would hurt me and then the name of my future husband.
     I truly believe that there is someone out there for everyone. That they will  go perfectly together and complement each other perfectly. There is a guy out there that will treat you like a princess, love you more and more everyday, and make you fall in love with him all over everyday. He's out there somewhere, Mr. Right, maybe at this exact moment he's searching for his Mrs. Right. But for now I'll go back to my 5 year old self and look at wedding pictures and imagine myself as the happy bride whose wearing a beautiful dress and has the biggest smile on her face. Because she has finished the search and has found her Mr. Right!

    

                                           

   

     So whoever is reading this please take my advice...DON'T SETTLE FOR ANYTHING LESS THAN THE BEST!! Because we honestly deserve it and if you don't show these guys how a lady should be treated then they will never learn. So think of it this way...the guy you're with might not end up being your husband, but he might be someone's husband someday. So train him well, tell him the right way to treat a girl. Tell him that holding the door open isn't over rated, holding hands is cute, kissing you infront of his friends means so much to us, and that being mean/ ignorant/ rude is NEVER cute and doesn't work out well. If it doesn't work out know that you gave it your all! And remember this: there comes a point in every woman's life when she has to stop listening to her heart and start listening to her head because she knows deep down that this guy isn't worth her pain or tears! So stay strong, demand the best, and know that one day it will all be worth it!

Strong Bonds

     So my last blog was about Valentine's Day and how no man could compare to what a military man does because of the Valentines that my friend got from her military bf. I posted my blog link on her facebook wall so she could see what I wrote. What happened after I did that would make me realize A LOT of things. After I posted it my friend and 2 other people commented on it. My friend and the two other women who commented on my post were facebook friends...but they have never met! Now before you go thinking this is crazy I will explain to you why these three women and many other women like them have the strongest and most understanding friendship in the world. Now how they became facebook friends I am not sure but I believe it was through a facebook group. The facebook groups that I am talking about are for women that have a boyfriend/husband/fiance /brother/father etc. fighting for our country in either the military or other branches. These women are a part of a group that is as numerous as our troops, they are the ones left at home worrying constantly about their loved one and praying that they are ok.


                                                      

     One of the women that commented about my blog said "you learn very quickly not to take anything for granted and appreciate the tiniest things more." This struck me big time. It's amazing we don't realize how lucky we are if we don't have someone in the military. We can call our loved ones whenever we want, see them whenever we want, and spend time with them whenever we want. We get upset when can't see them, yell at them if they get us mad, and ignore them if they did something wrong. When military gfs/wives/fiances/moms etc. long for that 5 minute phone call. Are relieved when they get a letter from their loved one. Never do they get mad if it's been too long until their loved one called because they just want to hear their voice. If they're luck they get to skype and see their loved one who is on the opposite side of the world! Us "normal" people can really learn a lot from these remarkable men and women who sacrifice so much and still love each other from thousands of miles away. They appreciate the time that they get to spend with their love one and never take it for granted. Not only only are our soldiers army strong but so are the people they leave behind!


                                         

3rd Wheel

    Feburary 14th can either be the happiest or the worst day in a girl's life. Happy for those girls who are lucky enough to have a boyfriend, fiance, or husband. And miserable for the single, divorced or widowed girls out there. But me being the most unlucky person from the time of birth until now has a double whammy!! My birthday is Feburary 13th and then Valentine's Day is the next day (both of which I have been single for since I was born!) I'm going to be honest I'm really not into the whole Valentine's Day thing so I really don't get upset being single and stuff, you get used to it after 19 years! The thing that I get upset about really is how this one day people change and become all loving and caring toward their significant other. Guys do romantic things, spend time with their girl, buy her flowers and candy, and they make sure to tell her that they love her. It's all very mushy and false. The next day they go back to their normal lazy, selfish, unconsiderate beings that they are.

                                            

   I must say though there is a certain group of guys that melt my heart on Valentine's Day and that group is our men serving the US either here or over seas. On my floor in my door there is this couple she's a nursing student here and he was just sent to South Korea last month. They try and talk everyday even if it's for 5 minutes. They are adorable and I have made myself the 3rd wheel in their relationship (it's a joke on our floor).  So while normal guys all around the US took their signifacant other out either on Sunday,Valentine's Day or whenever, he military bf made sure flowers and a card arrived at her door on Valentine's Day! Now is that not impressive or what, when she showed our floor the flowers and the card with a HUGE smile on my heart melted! And I know lots of military guys are like that because of facebook groups that they have created. The love that a military guy and his girl has is UNBELIEVABLE. The man is fighting for our coutry, thinking of his loved one, and still tries to make his girl feel special. But I must say too the girl has a hard job too. While her man is away there may be temptations to see another guy or something like that but they resist because they know that it will all be worth the wait for the one kiss and embrace of their military man!

                                   

                                    

                                                              

     Now if only more guys and girls were like that instead of cheating on each other or playing the fields. There's a quote that I really like that pretty much sums up the way I feel about Valentine's Day. It goes like this " I don't need someone to love me, kiss me, hug me, and hold me this Valentine's Day. I need someone who will do that for the rest of the 364 days of the year. Love shouldn't be celebrated on one day, but every day!" Maybe if everyone lived by this quote there would be a lot less broken hearts, divorce rate would go down, and maybe...just maybe this world would become a little less shitty to live in!

Memories

    I find it amazing that by going to a certain place all these memories can just come rushing back to you. Unfortunately the most recent place that I had this happen to me was at a funeral home. In about less than 1 year I have been in the same funeral home for 3 people. The people that died didn't know each other but they all had something in common. They all died from cancer, they were taken from this world way too soon, their parents had to bury them, and they were loved by many! The first funeral was for a remarkable 18 year old who I went to grade school with. The line to see her seemed endless and wrapped around the funeral home. I saw so many people I haven't seen in such a long time there. It's sad that you see old friend in such a sad gathering. But as I got up to the casket with my friend I saw a beautiful young lady laying there, with her family right by her side. The next day was her funeral and it was one of the hardest ones I've ever been at. I was also asked to be give out communion, and I promise you there was not a dry face in that church.
     The next one was a couple months after and was for one of my friend's mom who died of cancer. Again the line was wrapped around the funeral home and when I got up to the casket her family stood there, her husband, her 18 year old, 14 year old, and 6 year old. The funeral the next day was well attended and again there was not a dry face in the church.
     The one I went to on Monday was smaller but still very well attended. It was my 46 year old neighbor that passed away because of cancer. I was very involved with the wake and stayed the whole time helping her mom and dad and just being their for them. At the end when everyone we gathered around her casket and said a prayer and that was one of the most peaceful moments that I've ever had. Her parents decided to have the prayer service at the funeral home and they did some reading. Then they invited people to say a memory or something about her. It was amazing to hear what people had to say and it was a very cool idea!

    I guess the thing that I'm trying to get to is that when something happens in your life, whether it be happy, sad, good, bad, you remember the details and if you ever go back to that place the memories come flooding back to you. The room where the young girl and mom where in was closed but I walked in looked that way and just remembered everything I saw. The human brain is so amazing in that aspect and I am amazed sometimes at what it does.

Have you ever had anything like that happen to you?

Back in the Day

     Tonight at 6:30 I will be stepping back into my grade school gym to play volleyball for the first time in over 5 years! Now this may not seem like a big deal, but the reason I'm going back is. Tonight is a fundraiser for cancer. There was a girl who was a grade above me in grade school who died of cancer last year at the age of 18. Her parents have been continuously working to raise money and awareness about cancer. They have held a blood drive, multiple volleyball fund raisers (their daughter was a phenomenal volleyball player), and much more! And ironically today is World Cancer Day.

                                   

     I find it very sad that in a room full of people, if asked if anyone knew anyone whose fighting or died of cancer, almost everyone would raise a hand. We live in a world where we can put a man on the Moon, create bombs that can kill off a whole country, and have robots complete most tasks; but yet we still can not find a cure for cancer. I hope this changes in my life time though. I would be ecstatic if by the time I graduate I won't have to be a pediatric oncology nurse because cancer is extinct! I would gladly pick a different field of nursing. It's nice to have a dream like that but who knows, I believe in miracles. Maybe the "cure to cancer" miracle is right around the corner.

If you are looking for a great blog to follow http://inspiredbyerin.blogspot.com/ it's a good one. It's written by the mother of the girl who passed away of cancer. She's an amazing writer and her thoughts really make you think.

There's a First for Everything

     Hello all this is my first time ever writing a blog or keeping a dairy for say. I've always wanted to do this but I've never taken the time to try it. I figure I have a lot going on in my life right now so what better way to let go and re examine my day than with a blog. I'm not exactly sure right now how this whole blog thing works so forgive me at first but I promise I'm a fast learner and I will be getting better as the time goes by. I think with this first blog I'll tell you a little about myself. I am a freshman at Lewis University and I am studying to be a nurse. Yes a nurse if you don't know anyone in the field or anything I will let you in on a little secret... IT'S A VERY HARD MAJOR. I'm already finding that out in my freshman year. But I know it will be worth it. I hope to become a pediatric oncology nurse, I would be dealing with children with cancer. When I tell people this everyone's face always looks scared and I get the "ooo that's nice" or "wow that's a sad and hard job" remarks. See I have been dealing with cancer since I was 5. I've lost my Grandma, Grandpa, friends, and my neighbor just passed away today from cancer. I have also had to be watched and monitored because of moles that have come back borderline. I'll go into more detail in a later blog, I'll tell you a little bit more about myself.
      I am an only child but I have a huge extended family, which makes for fun family gatherings. I have been working since the age of 14, first at a Church Rectory and now at Lewis. I'm game staff so I do concession stand work and also scoreboard. I used to have a dog named Butkus but we had to put him down about a year ago(how I got him is a very funny story and I will be sure to share it with you later). I absolutely love sports and have been playing since I could walk. I've played basketball, football (I was the only girl with about 100 boys. Now it was when I was 5, but I have been told I kicked butt!) soccer, softball, golf, track, volleyball, hockey, cheerleading, cross country. Needless to say I'm not a girly girly, but that's just the way I am. Now when it comes to professional sports I am a die hard...WHITE SOX FAN!!!! Yes I am sorry Cubs fans or any of our rivals but they are my favorite team. I try to watch every game and in 2005 I was glued to the TV watching the Championship game. I saw the complete games, the champagne spraying in the locker room, and after they won I ran up and down my street banging on a pot. It was awesome!!!

                 This was last summer at a Sox game. I made that sign...there's a funny story
                                                 that goes along with that sign so stay tuned!

     Now I live in a dorm at Lewis and this snow storm that hit us in Chicago was CRAZY!! My floor mates and I had a lot of fun playing in mounds that were 10+ feet tall. We used card board boxes as sleds and when those broke we resorted to using our butts. We got some dirty looks from people but we didn't care. We are living our life to the fullest and enjoying playing before we get to the hard core nursing classes when we will be locked in our rooms for hours studying.

These are some of the girls from my floor. Just acting like 5 year olds and having fun!