A Very Lucky Girl

Christmas is my very favorite time of the year. I love shopping for gifts for the people in my life and decorating trees with those very same people. And this year was the mecca of tree-decorating for me. I participated in not one, not two, but FOUR tree trimmings. In my world it is perfectly acceptable to erect a tree immediately following Halloween. Fuel up on candy corn and march off to the attic to lug down the yearly accoutrement. So I texted Kirsten, one of my housemates, in the beginning of November, asking when we could decorate the tree for the little grey house. I was met with a flurry of texts about "IT'S NOT EVEN THANKSGIVING YET" and "I LOVE CHRISTMAS BUT WE MUST NOT TAINT THANKSGIVING." I personally believe that a Christmas tree only enhances the beauty of the thankful season, but I acquiesced to Kirsten's request to wait until after Thanksgiving.  Lucky for me, Leeanna also conforms to the same Christmas/Thanksgiving meshing together...

back when we were babies 5 months ago I can't even begin to comprehend how to say goodbye to home. Dundee was my savior. My sanity in the midst of confusion. And even though it's ending, I consider Dundee my beginning.  I thought a lot about what makes me feel so connected to Dundee. I feel for this place what I feel for Raleigh, North Carolina, my favorite place I lived growing up. What made these settings special? I think the common denominator is feet.  In Raleigh I was devoted to running cross-country and track. My feet pounded the pavement around the school, around my home, around my neighborhood, and even all of over the state when we traveled to compete in meets.  I've done minimal running in Dundee, but my feet have carried me all over this city and all over the country of Scotland! I've walked to the Union and back countless times, I've trudged to Tesco for groceries and donuts, and I've gone to great lengths to skip the Old Hawkhill hill. Ta...

My time at Sandy Beaches is almost up and it has certainly been an adventure!  Take yesterday for instance.  A customer, I'll call her K, came into the store in tears. I had met her only once before, but I immediately leapt up from my seat, and came around the counter to hug her.  I'm no stranger to tears. And hugs usually don't hurt.  She confided in me that she had found out sad news about many of her friends recently. Her husband is also seriously ill and she feels like everyone around her is dying. She is also seriously worried about her son.  I listened as best I could as other customers came in and out of the store to tan. I had nothing profound to say. I cannot understand her struggle, but I can imagine.  I finally set her up in her tanning bed and on her way out she stopped again to talk to me.  She told me I was a blessing to her. She told me she sees caring and love in my eyes, to the point where my eyelids are white (what?). She told ...

I have not felt terribly inspired to write lately. I am starting to think I am in over my head with school and work and factoring in time for people. I did not get a single nap last week. This was devastating considering naps are one of the Great Loves of my life. They are my Tad Hamilton.  I'll just leave this here... But on Sunday afternoon, I snagged a two hour nap AND was inspired by the greatest onscreen kiss of all time. This kiss was pure poetry and gave me, the viewer, butterflies. I immediately rewound the shot to experience it again.  Tyler and I are halfway through the second season of New Girl. Because we are so far behind, I knew this moment would eventually occur based on present media, but the advanced knowledge was part of the build up to make this kiss so MAGIC. There was a season and a half of tension between these two and to finally watch it manifest itself in Nick's aggressive first move...GAH. Inspiring. Can I just do everything in my life with t...

I realized lately how comfortable Tyler and I are in our relationship. It's honestly amusing. There are several conversations and phrases we say now that would have been taboo on our first date about a year and a half ago. I was feeling sick the other week and demonstrated for him how much phlegm was in my throat by making a truly heinous noise. Instead of dumping me in disgust, he laughed.  We never back away from the double chin snapchat and had a contest at lunch the other day to see who could create the most chins. He won and was proud of his victory.  We confidently yell through the bathroom door mid-pee. The first time he tried to talk to me through the bathroom door I was hesitant: "Wait, you're really doing this? Are we there?" Apparently we were and have been ever since. He found a quarter in his bed one night and asked, "where did this come from?" I promptly responded, "I poop quarters." Mistake. Whenever he needs change now, he c...

Welcome to the week of the show where the men tell all they can contractually reveal. Which usually isn't much. I was thoroughly confused considering Men Tell All is typically sandwiched after fantasy suites and in between the finale. The reunion of Des and her second runner up guy is made 10x awkwarder since they've seen each other naked. Unfortunately, due to extreme drama next week, we didn't get the uncomfortable scenario this season. Harrison introduces himself like I don't know his first and last name and his relationship history like the back of my hand. Want to know a secret? It's probably one of my top five dreams to have Harrison and the Bachelor/ette of the season to crash my watch party. Except instead of houses full of 40+ people, my Monday nights consist of me, my couch, my dog, and my computer. Des might not like witnessing my snarky note-taking.  To prep for the big MTA event, Des sits down with previous bachelorettes (Emily, Ashley, and Ali) to ...

As promised, Tyler took one for the team last night. Boyfriend of the year award. Boyfriend of the CENTURY award. He emailed me his Bachelorette recap last night and so, with some minor revisions, I present his uncensored opinions on Des and her men: At 6:30 I made a quick and necessary trip to Starbucks down Main street to get some espresso in my system for the task I had at hand. I arrived at my house, sat on the floor, opened my Mac, tuned the television to channel 705 (roses HAVE to be in HD), sipped on the mocha, and cranked up the surround sound.  I knew it was going to be a good night. This week’s episode is set in Madeira, a small island off of the Northwestern coast of Portugal. Des’s first comment about the island is “I feel like I’m on the edge of the world.” Apparently she’s a little behind... The earth is round, sweetheart. She and the remaining guys dock in the port and head their separate ways. Des meets up with three former castmates...

This, ladies & gentlemen, is the CliffsNotes version of a Bachelorette recap. I watched on Hulu this morning because when the show aired on my 21st birthday I was just taking my first shot of the night. There were several more. Which means I couldn't focus on this trainwreck of a week in Barcelona, Spain Des is in love with Spain. It is the "perfect place to fall in love." Just like Germany before. And Atlantic City before that. The guys sit at school desks, toasting to hoodies and free plane rides, while Chris Harrison announces the week plan. There will again be no cocktail party so the men are instructed to use their time wisely with Des.  Date Card Number One: Drew His dimples kill me. I could eat icing out of them with a baby spoon. SO PRESH. He starts off the date with their first kiss. Just to get that pesky thing outta the way. Raindrops fall, but never fear, Drew whips out his plaid umbrella to shelter dear Des. They share good conversation and half of...

The guys unwind from their long flight in an abundance of muted toned hoodies on a subway in Munich, Germany. Ben shares one of his many ulterior motive for applying for this show in his confession of never crossing the ocean before. He's checking two boxes off of his bucket list at once: travel, be a  jackass, and wear a womanly tank top. Oh wait, that's three! He's a go-getter.  Chris Harrison welcomes the gang, sharing Des' excitement for her first time in Europe to be with such great guys, and announces the dates for the week. The guys feel their plane food trying to make a second showing as they hear about the dreaded two-on-one date in store this week.  Chris heartlessly plants seeds of false hope by proclaiming, "see you all at the next rose ceremony!" Such a rose tease. At least one man will not be there to witness Des' sparkly dress choice of the week. Date One: "Chris, *insert words in German*..." The couple wanders the streets and...

Love always Protects. The way the protection of real love makes sense to me is to think of an iPhone case. Just your standard otterbox, nothing fancy or overdone. An accessible and affordable option to keep the phone sheathed.  Even with an easy grip case, I drop my phone regularly. At least once a week it hits the floor at a medium to high intensity.  But the case does its job. My phone is crack-free. The vulnerability of the iPhone is countered by the sturdiness and shock absorbency of its blue jacket. In a similar way, loving someone in a real way involves striving to protect their vulnerability from the "falls" of life. It doesn't mean they won't fall, because they will. Everytime I think I've hit rock bottom this summer the bottom suddenly falls out again and I'm back to free-falling. But the love of people like Megan and Mimi and Didi breaks the sudden drop and keeps me from completely shattering. A Very Lucky Girl is scuffed, but love is a migh...

I met Natasha Adler my freshman year at OU. She lived down the hall from me and we were only acquaintances during the first semester. January brought my roommate's birthday and I decided to blow up hundreds of balloons to spice up our room for her day. I enlisted Natasha's help and together we inflated almost 200 balloons, driving her to comment, "All I can taste is latex and it smells like condoms in here!"  From there our friendship blossomed and she was unquestionably there with wine and John Tucker Must Die  when ED crushed me in February 2012.  I went sprinting down the hall to her room when I received the first email from Tyler. Being my least embarrassed friend, she had no qualms about shouting across the French class room asking him for a pencil the very next week. Luckily, he didn't scare easy or I would have had to kill her.  Our schedules sophomore year were always at odds which made spending lots of time together nearly impossible. She also had cats...

Chris Harrison announces to the room of guys that there are 13 men remaining, for those of them who can't count themselves. Decked out in yellow and blue plaid, Harrison proclaims the first stop in the Bachelorette World Tour to be Atlantic City. Although I think Atlantic City was brought to Cali based on the amount of GTL evident this season (Gel, Tan, Long stories). Des arrives in Jersey before her dates and gets hit on by some random PoPo on the boardwalk interspersed with some travel shots of the gentlemen on parade. It's like following a fraternity house on constant camera. After settling into their sweet new pad on floor 43, the guys receive Date Card #1: "Brad, let our love shine through..." *spoiler alert* The light didn't make it. Don't you hate it when your dates don't measure up to your metaphors? As you recall from last week, Brad is the one who may or may not have been convicted of domestic abuse in the past. The couple heads to the Atlanti...

Let me introduce you to my sister, Moriah Jo Cregor. She is my main gurl. My ride or die. The Anne to my Diana. The rat to my weasel. The sane to my crazy. My junior year prom date (I don't take just ANYBODY to dances). My maid of honor if I ever get hitched (we signed contracts in blood. Okay, red pen). A model snapchatter. A model, in general. A senior year nursing student who undertook the topic of Addison's Disease for her final paper. We've been best friends for 6 years. But it never feels that short.  I told you she was a model! Dillard's prom dress shows are the best runways around in Beaumont, TX. Remember that time we got haircuts at the Galleria during our trip to Houston for our Sweet 16? Remember that time we color coordinated for the Valentine's Dance? Remember those times we showered together after pool adventures? Remember that time Numero Ocho was GREAT at softball? Remember that time we spent break time being silly...

I wrote and rewrote this post. But in the end, everything I wanted to say was far too vulnerable for even me to reveal.  "Love does not delight in evil, but rejoices in the truth." In other words, I will not pretend to be in favor of poor decisions that could have been avoided. I do not have a desire to continue a close relationship with someone who unapologetically hurts me.  A Very Broken Girl rejoices in the distraction of work and friends. 

I've spent some wonderful days as the girlfriend of the greatest guy I've ever met in my life. I wouldn't take back a single second of my time with Tyler Aaron McKee. Whether he knows it or not he teaches me what selfless love looks like. And I recognize that I lack it. I don't have the same desire to care for people more than myself that he embodies everyday, but I'm trying to cultivate it.  He is a thousand wonderful things, but I greatly appreciate his thoughtfulness, his honesty, and his selflessness. He isn't so great at the Gladiator playstation move game, but he will dominate in frisbee golf if you dare to challenge him. He has an uncanny sales talent, with both mobile phones and plasma screens. Go visit him at Best Buy! He will unabashedly skip you in Phase 10, but I think I am on a winning streak. If you were unaware, we broke up for 2.5 seconds (okay, 3 incredibly long days) in the middle of April. They were some of the most miserable days of my ...

I left this draft blank for several weeks because I think this is one of the hardest tributes for me to write. One of the most difficult things this year has been seeing the imperfections in my own parents. It was silly of me to hold them so high in my mind, but I think it's a natural instinct for any child. I love my dad a lot. He has disappointed me in 2013. But at the same time I'm very proud of him for facing struggles honestly. I've talked to him as an equal adult more this year than any other and I like to think he's listened to me sometimes.   He's been my storyteller, my coach, and my biggest fan. He's been my enemy, my provider, and my companion. I wouldn't trade him for any other father.  I learned in Sociology of Family last semester that fathers are usually the parent who encourages their kids to take risks. Paul has done that for me. Sometimes without a choice; moving is always a risk and I've done it several times. But with those...

My first memory of Marianne Williams is from 4th grade. I was a new student at St. Timothy's School and she reached out to me. She shared a story about her dog, Mo, with the class. Mo recently passed away, but the story of him jumping out of a moving car window will live on. We were nearly inseparable from then until 9th grade when I moved to Texas. From Williamsburg, to Washington, D.C., Crabtree Mall, and homecoming dances. We giggled in Mr. Bridges' class and passed notes across the room in Mr. Ennis' science lab. When I moved away she put together a DVD slideshow of pictures of us and friends through the years and I probably play it at least once a year to remember the innocence of days long gone by. She is another friend of mine who is pursuing a career in nursing, and is admirably focused on her goal. She's faced some health adversity of her own, causing her to switch universities midway through her college career so I definitely relate to some of her experie...