My Sweet Denny

My grandmother, my Denny, passed away at the beginning of August. It was not a shock–we spent the few weeks prior waiting, stuck in that terrible limbo until she finally, thankfully fell asleep–but it was still so hard. Losing both of my grandparents in less than a year and watching my mother, aunts, and uncle lose both of their parents was so hard. It's been a tough couple of years for us.

She was so loved (and so loving), and I wanted to share here the short piece I wrote for her service a few weeks ago.

My last day with Denny was at the end of June. I had been visiting for the weekend and stopped by one last time before heading out of town–but when I walked into her room at Wedgewood (the assisted living facility she spent her last few months in), she wasn't there. I was in the middle of asking the caretakers where exactly my grandmother had gotten to when I heard the faint shuffling of a walker and turned to see Denny's head poking around the corner.

When she saw me, she let out a quiet "oh!" and mumbled something I thought I understood.

"You thought I'd already left?" I asked. She nodded. "Denny, I wouldn't leave without coming to see you! I told you I'd be back today!"

"Oh, I'm so glad," she said, hugging my neck tightly. "I'm so glad."

After Denny's stroke, she had trouble speaking and it was often difficult to understand what she was saying, but there were some things that came out very clearly–like, "I was so mad!" or "I know that!" or "I wish you could stay."

After I found her on that last day, I took her for frozen yogurt. She waited in the car while I was inside trying to determine the perfect Denny-sized amount and knowing that whatever I got would probably be too much. Sure enough–when I handed it to her she said, very clearly, "Oh, this is way too much."

Then she ate all of it.

Denny always made sure that you were okay, that you were never wanting for anything, which is why you could never leave her house empty-handed. You're trying to walk out the door and she's shoving things into your arms–12-packs of soda, boxes of spaghetti mix, rolls of toilet paper, bags of powdered sugar, half a loaf of pound cake. (Of course, you always had to double-check the expiration dates since Denny was a firm believer of "if it's not open, it's still good." Remind me to tell you about the three-year-old grape juice Denny had fermenting in her fridge.)

One Mother's Day, I went over to her house to give her a rose and ended up leaving with five roses she'd cut from her own rosebush. Even on that last day, she handed me a box of animal crackers and a little cup of peanut butter for a snack on my drive back to Austin. She just couldn't help herself. She had so much love to give–and I'm so thankful I was one of the lucky ones that got to be on the receiving end.

I find comfort in the thought that my Denny and D-Dad are together again, that they were only "separated for a season" as the pastor put it. They were married for nearly 63 years and were the cutest. They constantly picked on each other–you know, the way you do when you've been in love with someone for over six decades. They played cards together every single day and Denny would tease D-Dad every time she won (which, despite what either of them might have said, was roughly half the time). Any time Denny got home from being out somewhere (usually TJ Maxx), D-Dad, feigning annoyance, would say, "What took you so long?!"

"Don't you know that's the first thing Art said when she got to Heaven?" Denny's sister Janita (known to us as "Jeter") said before the service. "What took you so long?"

-Maggie

D-Dad Extraordinaire

Today would have been my dear D-Dad's 85th birthday, so in light of that I wanted to share what I wrote for his service at the beginning of October.

If you are here today, you probably knew my grandfather and therefore already know the many wonderful qualities he possessed. I could list them out again–because it could never be said enough what a great man he was–but in lieu of repetition, I would like to share a few fond memories of my D-Dad.

I live in Austin now, but I was lucky enough to live with my grandparents while I attended Texas Tech, and they were the best roommates I've ever had. They helped me through a rough time in my life and loved me when I was particularly unlovable. There was one night (of many nights) that I was up late working on a paper at the kitchen table when D-Dad walked in. It was around 3:30 AM, but rather than scold me for being up so late, he immediately went about making each of us a cup of hot chocolate and sat and talked with me for a little while.

We spent many evenings eating Dairy Queen burgers and watching Wheel of Fortune and seeing who could win between the two of us. I would be ahead throughout the entire game, but on the last puzzle–that would be, like, ten letters long and somehow only have one vowel in it–D-Dad would immediately guess it and he would win. Every single stinking time.

There was another night that we accidentally stayed up until 2 AM watching The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, his favorite movie, and yet another night sitting at the kitchen table talking about what all his kids and grandkids were like when they were younger. It was at the end of that conversation that he said, "You kids don't realize it, but the biggest blessing of all is your grandmother. She is a marvelous woman. I thank God every day for her."

He's not wrong. "Marvelous" is the best word to describe our Denny. But I don't think that D-Dad realized that he was just as wonderful as Denny. You and Denny both are the biggest and best blessings we have ever received. We were so fortunate to love and be loved by you.

I love you, I miss you, and I promise to be careful driving back to Austin.

I wrote that quickly, late the night before the service. I wish that I would've had more time to make it perfect, to list off all of the wonderful and funny things he said and did, but I'd probably still be writing if I'd tried that.

During the service, a pastor at his church spoke about the last time he'd visited D-Dad before he passed. "You would go there to be a blessing and he'd out-bless you," he said, which is my favorite description of D-Dad to date. He was a good man and a great D-Dad.

-Maggie

Lately

● Spring is in full force here in Texas. I can never decide if I like spring or not. On the one hand, there are wildflowers on the sides of the highway, warm breezes, and sundresses. On the other hand, there's a fine layer of yellow covering every outside surface and you haven't stopped sneezing for three weeks.

● I had my first battle with Austin allergies a couple of weeks ago, which morphed into what the doctor at the clinic called a "little bronchitis" that took forever to get rid of.

● The first weekend of April I flew to Lubbock for Denny's surprise 80th birthday party.

● While there, my uncle made me a special cup of tea that was probably mostly whiskey to help me get rid of aforementioned cough. I drank it out of Denny's quilting mug (see above).

● I turned 23 last Thursday and was pleased to find that blink-182 lied to me. People do like you when you're 23.

● I had to work all day on my birthday, but my family had flowers delivered to my work and a coworker gave me her personal copy of one of her favorite books, so it wasn't too bad.

● On Sunday, Melany, Britny, and I went to South Congress Cafe for a belated birthday lunch and really great mojitos. After that, Britny and I spent four hours talking at a coffee shop and getting absolutely no work done.

● Monday night I went to BookPeople to interview for a little part-time job, and was pleasantly surprised to find David Levithan, Ally Carter, and Justine Larbalestier upstairs.

● I got that little part-time job, so now every Thursday and Sunday night will be spent working author events. I am stupidly excited about this.

● Just in the next few weeks, I will meet the winner of the 1979 Nobel Prize in physics, the writer of DCOM Pixel Perfect, and Glenn Close's sister.

How's your life lately?

-Maggie

Looking up

To be honest, I've been feeling a little burnt out. I'm always tired, and the only thing I feel like doing when I'm not at work is sleep. I'm not sure what it is exactly. I think I just need a weekend off. The weekends I haven't had to work, I've either been traveling or entertaining. It's been awhile since I've had a couple days off with no plans, and I'm really, really looking forward to next weekend because of this. Hopefully, I will be able to spend the entirety of it in my pajamas.

Those busy weekends were great though.

One of the weekends between now and the last time I blogged, my family came down for a visit. I took them to some of my very favorite places–Magnolia, the Pedestrian Bridge, South Congress, the Capitol, Pinthouse Pizza, etc. I love showing people Austin, my Austin. I want people to see why I love the city so much (which usually leads to me over-thinking everything and asking, "Are you having fun? Are you really having fun?" about five million times, which is not fun, but I'm working on it). I just want to be the hostess with the mostest, you know?

The two holiday weekends (hooray for bank holidays!) were spent in Lubbock. They were short visits, but I was able to fit a lot in each time. It all felt really normal, like I'd never left. Like I casually slipped into my life of four months ago.

I slept in my old room at Denny and D-Dad's, and one night Julia stayed over too. I played cards, ate at Casa Olé, and made doughnuts. I went to eat with Kiera on her lunch break, and Gabby joined us the second time. I stayed up until two in the morning watching The Treasure of the Sierra Madre with D-Dad. And each time before I left, Denny handed me packages of toilet paper, powdered sugar, cans of soup, cake mix, and more (because she's Denny and that's what she does).

At one point over breakfast, D-Dad pulled out an atlas and showed me every place he'd ever lived, travelled to, and wishes he could travel to. He pointed out a route along the west coast that he'd always wanted to drive, but said that now the trip would be too hard. "I always wanted to, but we made excuses, put it off, and now we can't," he said. "Father Time stops for no one. That's why you should go now. Seize the day. Carpe diem, as they say."

In the end, the busy weekends and tired weekdays are worth it.

-Maggie

2014

A few days ago, I decided that I wouldn't post a recap of 2014, mainly because we are already a week into 2015 and it seemed silly by this point. (2014 was so last year, right?) But after having plans cancelled today on account of freezing rain, I needed a little pick-me-up, and reminiscing on all the good last year brought seemed as good a way as any. Besides, too much happened last year for me to simply let it go without comment. It was a really big year. I think it defies the 365 day boundary that's imposed.

It was a year of change for me–a lot of change. I feel like I should feel a little off-balance, a little dizzy from everything that has happened, but I'm not. I don't know that I've ever felt more here. You know what I mean? I've never felt more aware of my life–everything that has happened, is happening, will happen. There's so much I can do! So many directions my life could take! I'm excited and nervous for all it.

I'm getting ahead of myself though. Let's talk 2014.


In January, I moved into a house with my dear cousin Julia. Our schedules were opposite roughly 92% of the time, but every once in awhile we'd be home at the same time. We'd eat dinner together, vent about our days, or maybe watch a movie. Sometimes we'd make runs to Taco Villa or United in search of the best sugar cookies. It was always fun, and I really wish our time as roommates could have been longer.

The months leading up to my graduation were generally hectic, stressful, and all around exhausting, but it wasn't all bad. I dyed my hair for the first time. On Valentine's Day, Melany, Britny, and I saw Craig Ferguson live and spent the rest of the night dancing at Barbarella. Over spring break, I got to see Mary and meet Whimsy for the first time. Sometime in March, my favorite show ended.

May (finally) rolled around and I graduated with my bachelor's degree. I may have come out bruised and battered (mentally, emotionally, physically) but dammit I did it. It was really difficult for me and I wasn't a star student by any means, but the doing it is reason enough to be proud. I saw it through, toughed it out. I'm very happy I did.

The summer was filled with a lot of trips. Melany and I drove to Arkansas for Shelby and Sam's wedding. After that, I spent a week in Austin as a way to detoxify, to finally rid myself of the stress and anxiety left over from my last few weeks of school. (It was also the week I got my second tattoo.) In July, I drove to Colorado to spend a weekend with Shelby and Dillon, and it was really, really great. In August, I saw Fall Out Boy (again) and Paramore in concert.

All of September and most of October was spent applying for jobs, packing, and saying my goodbyes to Lubbock. (Oh, and I saw Paul freaking McCartney in concert.) Those last two months in Lubbock flew by, and even though I was excited for my move to Austin, everything was going a little too quickly for my liking. It was hard to leave and I miss my friends and family there all the time, but I'm very happy to be in Austin. I love this city, and I have hoped and wished to live here since my eighteenth birthday. Getting to share an apartment with my best friend makes it even better.

After the move, Melany and I went as Wayne and Garth for Halloween. I started my first full-time job, and (thankfully) have really been enjoying it and the people I work with. I was fortunate enough to go home for Thanksgiving and Christmas, and both were wonderful. Then on New Year's Eve I rang in 2015 at 9:00 PM with KaCee and Kyle since they had to work early the next morning, and afterwards Melany and I went to Barbarella for the real thing.

So that's 2014 is a nutshell (a very large nutshell). Overall, it was a great year, and I hope that 2015 follows its lead. Over 300 days of the unknown lay before us. It's pretty daunting, right? We've just got to keep moving forward though. It's not like we really have a choice, but don't be scared! We did the same thing last year.

-Maggie

Casual Thursday

Last Thursday, standing in the back office about an hour into my early morning shift at work, I received a life-changing text from my uncle: Forgot that I have ONE ticket to Paul McCartney tonight at 8. If you or you know anyone in our family who wants to go they can have the ticket.

No big deal. Just an extra ticket to see Paul McCartney for the first time in Lubbock, Texas, a.k.a the birthplace of Buddy Holly and the Crickets, a.k.a. the whole reason The Beatles were even called The Beatles in the first place. But, I mean, it's casual.

I had toyed with the idea of buying a ticket when they originally went on sale, but couldn't justify spending the money when I was supposed to be saving for Austin. Now it was the day of the concert and he was offering to just give me a ticket? Uh, hell yeah, I'll go!

The whole experience was very surreal. There was Beatle, in the flesh, right in front of me. (I mean, all I had to do was jump from the balcony, hurdle some barricades, fight off a couple of security guards, scale the side of the stage, and I could have touched him. Sir Paul!) The man is seventy-two years old, and he sang for nearly three hours without a break. I didn't even see him take a sip of water. He is a machine.

It was really, truly amazing. Let me tell you, hearing "Hey Jude" live with an arena full of people singing along is not something I'll soon forget.

-Maggie

An Apology

Well, it's October. You know what that means. My last day at United is eighteen days away, and I leave for Austin five days after that. Only twenty-three days left in Lubbock.

This is all very surreal. I've been dreaming and talking about moving to Austin for so long, but it somehow still managed to sneak up on me. As excited as I am, there is a part of me that is sad to leave Lubbock. I don't think anyone believes me when I say that, but I really am sad. I don't blame them though because, as you may remember, I complained about living here. A lot.

My first semester at Tech was good as far as school goes, but the three after that were very difficult for me. For some reason, in my head, everything that went wrong during that time was because of Lubbock. I thought, If I wasn't stuck in Lubbock, things would be better. This, of course, was not the case. It had nothing to do with the place, I was just struggling with school. College overall was hard for me as we've discussed, and during that time I didn't make it any easier on myself.

There were a lot of ways that I made myself unhappy. I let myself become a very bitter and cynical person, and that was a person not very many people liked. I isolated myself. It took awhile for me to realize what an idiot I was being, how rude and selfish I'd become. Once I'd come around, I felt properly terrible about my behavior. There are thousands of people that love this little city, that grew up here, and I had spent a lot of energy belittling and mocking their home. What a jerk, right?

I had been disregarding all the good, and there has been a lot of good that has come out of my stay in Lubbock. I lived with my wonderful grandparents. I had all my aunts, uncles, and cousins nearby. I earned a degree in something I love. I had a good job that I enjoyed. I shared a house with my dear cousin–something we never thought we'd actually get to do. I made new friends, great friends. I regret that three semester period that I took all this for granted. I am going to miss all of these things, and am really, truly sad to leave it.

Please consider this my formal apology to the city of Lubbock. You're not so bad, LBK. Also, to anyone who ever had to read or listen to my incessant complaints–thanks for sticking around and loving me through it.

-Maggie

Instagram Recap: Summertime

For me, the end of summer has always come with the end of August. This probably has something to do with being in school for the last seventeen years, but September 1st is Officially Fall in my books. (Even though it's not really Officially Fall until September 23rd, and even then doesn't feel like fall until the end of October, but whatever.)

So to send off the season, I decided to recap by sharing my favorite pictures from the last three months. It's been a pretty good one.

As fun as this way, I am always and forever ready for fall, and I have a feeling this one will be especially great. I hope you had a great summer as well!

-Maggie

Lately

Lately, things have been feeling weird.

My spring break was hectic and, for the most part, terrible. Between work, getting sick, and the four assignments I had due the first day back to school, it was nothing like a break. The good news is Mary took my pictures for my grad announcements/blog, and I finally got to meet her daughter, Whimsy. Other than that, it was an incredibly stressful week, in which I cried, like, four times.

Things have slowed down since then, which is unnerving in a "calm before the storm" kind of way. I only have five weeks of school left, and a slew of papers to write and tests to take in that time. I've been doing relatively well this semester, but I'm terrified something random and awful is going to happen that will again prevent me from graduating. I've been pushing that thought from my mind all semester, but the closer I get to the end, the harder it is to keep out.

I've been missing Austin more than ever recently. I think it's the fact that school–what has been keeping me in Lubbock this whole time–will finally be over. After that, it's just a few months of saving money, and then it will finally be time. I'm so excited.

I hope you're all doing well. To those still in school, like me, we're almost there! Keep on keeping on.

-Maggie

Monthly Mix: March 2014

In Like a Lion from marvelousmaggie on 8tracks Radio.

1. Take Yours, I'll Take Mine – Matthew Mole
2. The End of That – Plants and Animals
3. Song For You – Alexi Murdoch
4. This Is a Country Song – A Great Big Pile of Leaves
5. Tiderays – Volcano Choir
6. The Love Club – Lorde
7. Stay Alive – José González
8. Into the Mystic – Van Morrison
9. Love Like This – Kodaline
10. How Do I Know – Here We Go Magic
11. Changing of the Seasons – Two Door Cinema Club
12. A World Alone – Lorde
13. Naïve – The Kooks
14. Punching In a Dream – The Naked and Famous
15. Fortune – William Fitzsimmons
16. Sufidrop – Sean Hayes
17. Sweet Disposition – The Temper Trap
18. The Modern Leper – Frightened Rabbit
19. Careless – Amos Lee
20. I Will Be Back One Day – Lord Huron

Spring is probably my least favorite time of the year. For some reason, the transition from winter to summer is always worse than from summer to winter. Allergies are going crazy, it's windy all the time–not to mention the "haboobs" that blow through every week. (For those who don't know, a haboob is a massive dust storm. We've had two in less than two weeks. This is what I deal with all the time.)

Regardless of the nasty weather, things have been okay. Summer (and the end of my career as an undergrad) is so close. In the meantime, here's some warm weather music to get you through the windy days of March.

-Maggie

Lately

● We still don't have WiFi, and I feel my grip on reality slowly slipping.

● I'm still not finished unpacking because I still do not have all of my furniture.

● Our neighbor is crazy. She rings our doorbell at eight in the morning just to chat. She walks around the neighborhood in her robe with her chihuahua. She goes back and forth from her house to her car, slamming doors over and over for no apparent reason. She turns her car on, opens all the doors, and blasts gospel and soft rock music in middle of the day and sometimes at two in the morning.

● Naturally, my bedroom is closest to her driveway.

● I was tired of people telling me my hair was brown (even though it most likely had crossed from dark blonde to light brown), so I dyed it very blonde so people could not make that mistake again.

● The next person who makes a blonde joke is getting sucker punched right in the gut.

● No one, including my professor, knows exactly what one does in Senior Seminar. In spite of this, my professor manages to fill the entire three hour block with inane ramblings.

● As far as I have found, English Literature majors are the only ones that have to take a seminar class.

● My Age of Chivalry professor is incredibly handsome. Like Joseph Gordon-Levitt with a beard.

● I'm taking a class on Jane Austen & Ethics, and am thoroughly enjoying it even though the Daisy Buchanan Girl from last semester is taking it as well.

● I suppose I should explain Daisy Buchanan Girl. She speaks very softly. She doesn't mumble, no. She speaks clearly, but just very, very quietly, and I think she does it on purpose. This reminds me of Daisy Buchanan, and it is for this reason that I hate this girl. Is it irrational? Yes. Do I care? No.

● (I refer to this quote: "I've heard it said that Daisy's murmur was only to make people lean toward her...")

● Last week, in less than a twenty-four hour period: The toilet overflowed. I broke one of the wine glasses I bought in Seattle. I dropped a bottle of Pam and broke the nozzle, rendering it completely useless. I forgot I was baking cookies, which resulted in a smoky kitchen.

● When lamenting these misfortunes to my friends, Britny said, "Maybe this means something awesome is going to happen soon." Here's hoping.

-Maggie

Monthly Mix: January 2014

For the Sleepless Nights from marvelousmaggie on 8tracks Radio.

1. Landfill – Daughter
2. Twin Size Mattress – The Front Bottoms
3. On the Roam – Baby Alpaca
4. We Don't Need Our Heads – A Great Big Pile of Leaves
5. Chasing a Ghost – The Head and the Heart
6. Marching Bands of Manhattan – Death Cab for Cutie
7. Until We Get There – Lucius
8. Good To Sea – Pinback
9. Hearts Like Ours – The Naked and Famous
10. Human – Daughter
11. Perth – Bon Iver
12. Days – The Drums
13. Late March, Death March – Frightened Rabbit
14. A Few Screws Loose – A Great Big Pile of Leaves
15. Half About Being a Woman – Caroline Smith
16. Yellow – Coldplay
17. This Must Be the Place (Naive Melody) – The Lumineers
18. Sloom – Of Monsters and Men

I finished this mix back in December. Why am I just now posting this? (I actually have reason this time, guys. I wasn't just procrastinating.) My cousin and I moved into our house. That took considerable time as I packed and moved everything mostly by myself (which was awful and I would not advise it). Then school started, and I also began training for morning books at work, which meant going in at five in the morning. Aside from all that, and worst of all, we still do not have Wi-Fi at our house yet. It's been a struggle. I feel like Laura Ingalls Wilder.

We also don't have our washer and dryer hooked up yet, so I've brought my laundry over to my grandparents' house and am using their Wi-Fi while I wait for my towels to dry. Expect more updates in re our house and school soon.

-Maggie

2013

2013 was a good year. I was optimistic as 2012 ended, and it paid off. I'm so much happier than I was last year. I'm looking forward to the future, but don't see it as an escape anymore, and that is something I'm very thankful for. At the end of last year, I was extremely unhappy with school and Lubbock. While I am still excited to graduate soon/never live in Lubbock again, I'm no longer embittered. Sure, college hasn't been a barrel of laughs and, yeah, Lubbock's not for me, but that's no reason to be a dick about it. C'mon, Past Maggie.

The year started off great with a short trip to Austin and visit from Shelby (a.k.a. the Tina to my Amy). Then school started again, and while I had classes and professors that I enjoyed, it still wasn't the best semester. In February, Fall Out Boy made my life (and everyone else's), KaCee and I drove to Austin for Melany's twenty-first birthday, and I found this awesome spoken word poem (which is definitely worth noting in this recap). March brought Spring Break, and Melany, KaCee, Husmann, and I were reunited for the first time since September for the Mystical Road Trip of Magic and Wonder, Part II. A wonderful trip full of four-wheeler riding, gun shooting, and tequila drinking.

I turned twenty-one in April, which I celebrated with a weeklong trip to Austin. This included seeing Two Door Cinema Club in concert, which was fantastic. Fall Out Boy's Save Rock and Roll also came out in April, and it has my vote for Best Album of 2013. I also made friends in April. By that I mean I hung out with work friends outside of work, and they have definitely made Lubbock a much better place. So thanks to Kiera, Angie, Gabby, Austin, Brannon, and so on for being my bros.

In May, another less than stellar semester ended, but my professor did the coolest thing and I drank several margaritas. The next month, Britny and I got our Harry Potter tattoos. The next day we saw Fall Out Boy in concert and it was easily one of the greatest moments of my life. In July, I got to spend two whole weeks in my favorite place with my very favorite people.

August saw the start of the best semester I've had since I started college. I had wonderful classes and professors that reminded me why I loved school in the first place, and I can only hope my last semester is half as good as this one was. I drove to Austin to celebrate Britny's twenty-first birthday in September, and was reminded of all the silly things I'll miss once I move to Austin. October and November were primarily focused on school, but I did dress up as Kevin from Up for Halloween, and that was fun.

December, always one of my favorite months, did not disappoint. After finishing school, I drove to Austin for another visit which included a Frightened Rabbit show and kayaking. I went home for the week of Christmas and it was wonderful. Originally, my dad was supposed to work on Christmas Day, but his boss texted him late on Christmas Eve and said his shift was covered. Late Christmas night, KaCee, Melany, and I bundled up and went stargazing.

I'm ending this year in a much better mindset than I ended the last. I'm even more optimistic about 2014 than I was about 2013. My cousin Julia and I are moving into a house this weekend. I graduate in May. I'm (finally) moving to Austin in October.

2014 is going to be big, guys.

-Maggie

It had to be you.

My grandparents celebrated their sixtieth anniversary on October 23rd, and this past Saturday we threw a party for them. Denny and D-Dad are the most loving people. We have all been so blessed to have their support, love, and example to follow. We will never be able to repay them for all they've done for us, but the party was pretty fun.

-Maggie

Hard to be soft, tough to be tender

Last week saw the start of school, and as first weeks of school do, it felt as though it stretched over several months. Today is a holiday though, which is nice, and I'm off work today, which is also nice. I plan to spend today cleaning, ordering textbooks, and reading The Sound and the Fury for one of my classes. (Also, will probably end up watching half a season of Psych and starting the sixth Harry Potter book at some point.)

My classes this semester seem promising. Two classes I'm retaking with different professors who have already made the classes more interesting and easier to understand than the previous ones. A good teacher really makes all the difference. (This is not to say that it was entirely the professors fault for my failing the first time around, but they surely hindered more than helped.) I'm also taking a History of Sexuality class for which I am incredibly excited, and a nonfiction creative writing class.

I'm cautiously optimistic about this semester. I'm interested in all of my classes and like all of my professors, and am excited for what I'll learn. I love to learn, really. It's just the grading and the stress that comes with the grading that brings me down so low. Hopefully, this semester will be better. I think that it will be.

I hope everyone else has had a good start of school, and that the semester will not be too detrimental to our mental and physical wellbeing. Cheers.

-Maggie

Quick Update

Well, it is officially July, which means you only have two more weeks of listening to me say, "IT'S ONLY [insert time frame here] UNTIL THE BLOGGER FAMILY COMES." I cannot believe it is already July, honestly. These last few months of planning have flown by. Luckily, after this week, everything will be officially set–hotel rooms booked, t-shirts ordered, plans finalized. Then all I have to worry about is packing (which will be a sight to see, I'm sure, as I'll be gone for two weeks and I always overpack).

My sister was in town last week. One of the nights we went out shopping, to dinner, and saw Monsters University—A+, by the way. It was great to spend time with her. We've become great pals over the past couple of years, and I'm really glad we finally reached that place my mom always talked about (you know, where you actually appreciate your siblings and want to be around them sometimes). It took us a long time to get there (like, a really long time), but we eventually made it.

Lately I have been reading Harry Potter (but that's nothing new), textbooking, and watching ten episodes of Lizzie McGuire in one sitting. It's been nice to have days that I can stay in my room and do those things without having to worry about homework or class.

In other, more depressing news, I was in a wreck a few days ago. Thankfully, no one was hurt, but unfortunately my car took most of the damage. Poor Stinson. We're not sure what will happen with it yet, but in the mean time I've been given the smallest rental car in the world. (I should not complain about this. I should be just thankful that I was not injured and have means of transportation—and I am. But I feel like I'm driving a clown car.)

I hope you all have a great Fourth of July! And to my Blogger Family—see you very soon.

-Maggie

Pancakes, Smoothies, and Pole Vaulting

It has been a good weekend. A great one, in fact.

On Friday night when I got off work, I met Husmann at IHOP for a very late dinner so we could see each other before she left for the weekend. We stayed for a couple of hours, talking and laughing and eating pancakes. It's always a good time at IHOP, especially in the middle of the night because, as everyone knows, that's when breakfast food is the best.

The next day I slept in longer than I would like to admit, but woke up to a text from KaCee saying Marcus was in town for a track meet. She picked me up and we stopped to get ridiculously large smoothies from Smoothie King that made us feel really healthy (even though I'm pretty sure 32oz. of smoothie cancels out the healthy aspect). We eventually found Marcus inside Tech's weird dome track thing and got to talk with him for a little while before he had to start warming up. He only had to vault, like, 13' 3" to make it to Nationals (which sounds pretty high to me, but apparently isn't), so he wasn't actually competing for very long. It was nice to see him though. It makes me happy that he thinks to call us when he's in town. After that KaCee and I called ahead to Texas Roadhouse and went to take pictures of geese while we waited because why not? It's what we do.

And today I went to lunch at Jason's Deli with Denny and D-Dad. While we were waiting for our food, D-Dad looked at me and said, "You look awful pretty today. You know, I would be really surprised if a guy didn't take you to be his girl." He's the sweetest.

Sometimes my grandparents are so cute I can't even stand it. They've been married for nearly sixty years and they still flirt with each other, and it is adorable. That's the goal, guys. Find someone you can see yourself flirting with sixty years later, and you'll be set.

-Maggie

Today

Since I've lived in Lubbock, I've used my camera less and less. It started with me only taking my camera out for big things like holidays and trips, but lately I haven't even used it for those things! This is nothing short of a tragedy, let's be honest.

Today I resolved to take a cue from Everyday Elsie, one of my favorite lifestyle blogs, and take more pictures of everyday life. I love taking pictures and sharing them here, and while Instagram is fun and convenient, it's not the same. So expect to see more random pictures here!

-Maggie