My Mom Sent Me A Picture

4-19-11

This is my new truck. Just thought you might want to see it. I'm thinking up a name right now. :D More later.

-Ashlee

Pictures and What Not

12-24-09

Me. I think the shirt says it all. :P

I always try to take footsteps in the snow pictures. They usually don't come out well. This is the best one so far.

The family's new kitten. You would never know that the parents are all black and all gray. This one looks even a little white! Three weeks old today. Momma wasn't good to them at first, and so this is the only one left. My father bottle fed this kitten. (The stuffed animal is a "littermate," so it doesn't become a biter as it grows.)

Same kitten on its two-week old birthday (last Thursday).

Wintry scenes outside of my parents' apartment

 

Icicles off of my van's running board

Me in my passenger side rearview mirror

Mom and I had been at Wal-Mart shopping for presents yesterday, and we had ice instead of rain or snow, and this is what coated my window (happily I was the passenger).

Looks like lights on water, maybe. But no. This is lights on the iced-over snow, the view from the door of the parents' apartment.

Momma cat (Cinder) and kitten (we're still trying to figure out a name) and Leo the Littermate (she's being a good momma cat now, but yeah, we still watch carefully).

So, that's what I've been doing here. My brother surprised me with Iron Man, my sister with The Princess Bride, and the littlest brother with Ever After (yes, I'm a geeky romantic). I got pots, a CD, headphones, measuring cups, and a spatula from Mom and Dad. People were happy with the presents I got them (which makes me feel great). Yeah, I'm doing all right, even if I'm sleeping on the parents' living room couch.

More later.

SNOW!

12-5-09

I scoffed like many others did at the weather forecast, quite cognizant of the fact that snow rarely, if ever, falls in Tennessee. Still, I secretly wished that it would snow. Why? I can't remember the last time I saw it; it was at least a year and a half ago, for there was no possibility of me seeing snow last year, when the temperatures I enjoyed were between 60 and 95 all the time.

This morning I woke up because Amanda was getting ready for first service, because she and the rest of the Ringtones were playing in it. I was going to go back to sleep when I thought, "Did it snow? I wonder if it snowed." So I rolled out of bed and pulled up the blinds--and lo! there was snow on the branches and the ground and falling from the sky. It made me feel warm and fuzzy on the inside. (Ironic, I know, how snow made me feel warm.)

While walking to church this morning (don't worry, it's only across the street!), I took pictures because I knew I had to document such an occasion in Collegedale history--as well as the excitement for seeing it for the first time in a long time. Granted, there wasn't much--and, now, at 1:20, it's mostly all gone, but it was there this morning, and I took pictures.

 

Spalding's Playground

 

 

 

Spalding's Playground, on my way back to the dorm

This still doesn't mean that I like the cold, nor will I like it when I go up to Indiana in a week and a half for Christmas Break. I like being warm, and thus I'm going to go snuggle into my blankets and take a nap before the Wind Symphony Concert tonight at 8 PM in Iles. (Christmas music and a convocation credit!)

More later.

Midterm Break

10-26-09

We just started back with our classes after a long weekend called "Midterm Break." It began, for me, at 5:00 PM last Wednesday, after work ended and the library closed (since the Writing Center is inside the library). I got myself supper, and then went back to my room. My roommate bid me adieu, since she was headed off to Virginia, and then, I was left to myself.

I did most of my statistics homework (under the logic of that it would be stupid to leave it until Sunday), watched some of The Office, and went to bed. I slept in, got about eight hours of sleep. It was glorious. After waiting for one of the suitemates to show up (because she lives half an hour away, went home for break, but was chilling with me and the other suitemate; plus, her mom was driving us around because she knew where everything was), we went to the Tennessee Aquarium.

One, it's more like Aquariums. Two separate buildings, one labeled "Ocean Journey" and the other labeled "River Journey." Both are FANTASTIC. I had been to River Journey before, but that was like six or so years ago. Anyway, I took lots of pictures of sea creatures and river creatures, including sharks, sea turtles, sea nettles and jellyfish, otters, and penguins. I also splurged on a T-shirt, which I happily wore today to all of my classes. (It has sea turtles on it!)

 

Blue spotted stingray (with no stinger; it was a touch pool)

Shark. There were about five of them in the tank.

Sea horse.

Where is it hiding?

Otters in motion.

Those are just a few of the pictures I took. The otters were playing in the water, and they never quit moving the entire time we watched. After the Aquariums, we ate lunch at a place called the Mellow Mushroom. Retro posters graced the walls, and the wall on the way to the bathroom was an Alice in Wonderland mural. Very interesting. Anyway, I got a drink and a calzone for a tiny bit over twelve dollars. Actually, that was quite a reasonable price, because the glasses were huge (like the length of my forearm), there was free refills, and there was enough calzone that I had dinner later that evening off of it--and I didn't add any of the extra toppings that would have added cost. I had "The House" calzone: mozzarella, spinach, vine-dried tomatoes, and onions (it was supposed to be mushrooms, but I had it substituted). VERY GOOD. I so totally would go back to that restaurant.

After that, we drove to St. Elmo's, and then went up the Incline Railroad. Basically, it goes from the bottom of Lookout Mountain to the top (about a mile), and it's practically a ninety-degree track at the end. It got a little scary, I must admit, when it felt like I'd topple out of my seat and down toward the bottom of the car. Then we walked the two blocks to Pointe Park, to read the history signs (since the Battle of Lookout Mountain took place there), and to check out the awesome views of Chattanooga. My camera battery was being finicky near the end, but I did get some great shots.

 

Wonder what that sign says?

This:

 

"Danger: Keep Back" The picture's of someone falling. It's right on the edge. How'd that get there in the first place without someone falling? Seriously.

Then we raced back to the train station, because the last ride down left in five minutes or so, and because I arrived all breathless, the guy who'd conducted our trip up decided to tell me that it had left. Ha ha, very funny. I was like, "What?" and my brain started scrambling for ways to tell our suitemate's mom that we'd gotten stuck up Lookout Mountain. Then he laughed and said, "No, we haven't left yet." So I laughed instead of being annoyed, because I'm pretty sure that guy spends his entire day going up and down the mountain, and it was sort of funny, situation over.

Finally, we went back to school, where I watched more of The Office and went to bed. Friday I worked on homework a little, walked to the Village Market in a rainstorm (did you know the white strips on the road in crossings are SLIPPERY when it's raining?), watched some movies, and went to bed early. Sabbath I went to church, napped in the afternoon, ate dinner, and went to bed early. On Sunday I did history homework, went to work from 6-9, and wrote a lot on my newest short story. It was exciting.

I enjoyed my midterm break, and I didn't have to spend twelve hours in a vehicle to do so (which is what I would have done, had I gone to visit the family in Indiana). I look forward to future excursions into Chattanooga.

More later.

Some Camp Pictures

My current background picture--of the ceiling of the camp council bowl





The lake and the stairs on the way to campfire