The McStinkersons

2009-11-08T16:09:00.000-08:00

I'm scared. Josie is due in less than a month and the thought of delivery makes me nervous. Jordan flies out to Boston for a few days for a job interview. We don't know where we'll be two months from now. To sum up my feelings, I'm scared...but I've never been so excited in my whole life for what lies ahead. ~~I'm scared.~~ I'm excited.

Cambone

2009-11-04T13:49:00.000-08:00

My little brother Cameron gets home from his mission to Argentina today! I'm stuck in Wyoming so I don't get to see him until the 13th, but I would love to run and jump on him (big pregnant belly and all). Don't worry Cameron, even this stomach won't get in the way of me giving you a philbert.

Cameron is one of the funniest, sweetest kids you'll ever meet. Sorry, did I say kid? I meant big strong man. Way to go Cambone.

(Two years ago.)

What bedside manner?

2009-08-30T16:59:00.000-07:00

Dear Dr. Who-will-remain-unnamed,

Thanks for calling me into your office to let me know my baby may have a heart defect and only giving me a kleenex after snot was dripping down my face and I asked for one. Also, even after we did a second ultrasound and everything appeared fine, thanks for saying "But just because everything looks good on the ultrasound doesn't mean you're going to have a perfectly healthy baby." You're an asshole.

Yours truly,

Your disgruntled patient

Lexi - 1

2009-08-30T16:45:00.000-07:00

Jordan and I had an awesome visit from my favorite little sister a few weeks ago. She decided to make the beautiful trek along I-80 to visit us (For those of you who have never traveled I-80, count yourselves lucky. You're likely to develop a meth addiction if you stop for too long at any of the truck stops.)

We had so much fun with Lexi that week. One of the days Jordan led us on an amazing hike.

(See, Laramie can be beautiful.)

(I think I may be trying to pick Lexi's nose in this one. I felt that it needed to be documented on this blog.)

Thanks for making such a long drive and being such a cool house guest, with the last week of your summer vacation.

Points for visiting me in Laramie:

Lexi - 1

Rest of the family - 0

Lake Powell

2009-08-25T12:40:00.000-07:00

Jordan and I got to spend an amazing week at Lake Powell with some of my favorite people. The Crandalls were gracious enough to put up with a pregnant lady and a pale guy who is allergic to the sun while on their sunny vacation.

(Wait, pregnant women aren't supposed to water ski? I didn't read that in What To Expect When You're Expecting.)

(The sun may have gotten to Jordan one day and he went a little feral.)

Highlights from the trip:

1. Laughing so hard my sides hurt.

2. Eating fancier food while on a houseboat than we eat regularly at home (Thank you Lou! Can anyone say breaded tilapia with an orange glaze? Or spinach and artichoke dip? Or a full pasta bar...)

3. Playing apples to apples (oh, so it's pronounced woe-baggin? My bad, I always thought it was woebegone)

4. Getting to spend time with Jessie and Seth.

5. Writing hit tv shows such as "Papa and Sam: Beach Patrol" and hearing Sam say repeatedly "I hate you guys."

6. But I certainly did not enjoy responsibility island. No fun was had there.

Fancy Pants

2009-08-03T10:36:00.000-07:00

It's official. I look like a pregnant woman.

(5 1/2 months)

I now have to wear those weird pregnancy pants with the built in elastic waist.

It's ok though, because she's kicking like crazy and it makes me smile every time.

Takes me back to the summer of '07, eh Tippy?

2009-08-01T11:20:00.000-07:00

Question: What's better than tubing the Oneida Narrows with some of the coolest people in Utah? It was actually a trick question. There is nothing better than that.

(I don't know how practically every picture of Lexi ended up being a profile shot)

(I miss her...a whole lot)

Dear Lexi, Jessie, Seth, Cassie, Chris, and Tippy:

Thanks for indulging a pregnant lady on an overcast day and

treating her to a incredible float. You guys are the best.

Love,

Preggers

Deep in the heart of Texas...

2009-07-01T17:01:00.000-07:00

Recently Jordan and I made a trek to the land of my birth. Where you say? San Antonio of course. And yes, everything IS bigger in Texas.

Jordan had to present his project at an engineering conference and I got to tag along. As a HUGE bonus I got to meet my mother-in-laws side of the family, which turned out to be my favorite part of the trip. I felt like I had stepped right into a book as we sat sipping cold drinks on the front porch in 95 degree weather. So thank you to:

+ Aunt Nannie for letting us stay with you.

+ James, Richard, Linda, Lana, Lisa, and John for the hours of blackmail stories about Loretta (my mother-in-law). Now when she and Spike tell me not to drive too fast I just have to wink at Loretta and say "Remember Lisa's wedding? Would that Loretta have followed the speed limit?"

+ Wes for driving so many hours to pick us up and take us back.

+ And the whole Eager family for making it a fun trip. We can't wait to come back and see you guys.

(We considered storming the Alamo, until we decided it was too hot and to get snow cones instead. Maybe next time.)

Late Evening Downpour

2009-06-26T09:48:00.000-07:00

Torrential Rain + Ashley jumping in more puddles than Jordan = Ashley splashing Jordan > Than Jordan Splashing Ashley. With the overall conclusion being that Ashley is the superior puddle jumper.

If you need to spew...

2009-06-17T20:08:00.000-07:00

Last night I ate four pieces of pizza at a friend's house. While driving home Jordan made me laugh so hard that I had to come to a complete stop, throw open my door, and puke on the road. He's my soul mate.

Good Work Mr. Sefcovic

2009-05-13T23:00:00.000-07:00

On May 2 J-Pants completed his first triathlon. It was in Denver (two hours from us) and when we got there we realized Jordan had forgotten almost everything: his running shoes, a towel, and his helmet. The guy who laid out his stuff next to Jordan looked like he had brought the entire wal-mart triathlon isle with him and made us feel very ill-prepared. Jordan did so well though and I was quite proud of him. He said his goal time was an hour and six minutes and he finished in 1:06:00. I was amazed. Jordan and I trained for this triathlon together and I was so excited for it. But several weeks before the triathlon, I received a beautiful surprise and found out I am going to have one of these:

(Look! It even has Jordan's eyebrows!)

Those are some scary "ladies"

2009-04-27T12:33:00.000-07:00

On Saturday J-Pants and I went to watch the Naughty Pines Derby Dames battle it out with the Wreckin' Roller Rebels. I've never seen a roller derby match, but when I saw them advertising around town I mostly just wanted to see some ladies get knocked down really hard. Maybe even a bloody nose if I was lucky. It was fun, but it mostly just made me really miss this:

Anyone in Laramie up for a pick-up game of rugby?

If you're going to San Francisco...

2009-03-24T13:49:00.000-07:00

To start with, other than J-Pants getting attacked by a stray colt, we had a great time in San Francisco.

We didn't get to do any swimming thanks to the freezing water...

..but at least J-Pants got to chase some seagulls, so it wasn't a complete loss.

Alcatraz was pretty cool. I thought it was funny that they claim no one ever successfully escaped, even though several men were never found after a breakout.

This homeless guy was my favorite. He would sit behind these branches and then scare unsuspecting people as they walked past. J-Pants and I watched people scream for a good half hour.

One of the days we got to bike over to and across the Golden Gate Bridge, and then into Sausalito for lunch.

The guy behind J-pants kept trying to get out of the picture so I waited until he was looking and then took the picture ha ha.

Between Chinatown, Fisherman's Wharf, small theater plays, sushi, and the de Young museum we had a great time. I didn't leave my heart in San Francisco, but I did leave a well fed homeless person.

P.S. For some strange reason I found the plants in San Francisco so huggable.

Open your Golden Gates

2009-03-12T17:27:00.000-07:00

Jordan and I are headed to San Francisco on Tuesday and neither of us have ever been. Other than eating too much and trying not to get crushed by trolleys, does anyone have any suggestions for what we should do?

Sorry Nascar, I just don't see us being friends

2009-03-09T10:07:00.000-07:00

Every year J-Pants and his parents go to the Nascar race in Vegas. And while I love J-pants and love spending time with him, I also love not having to watch Nascar. So even though I've been learning about the fine competition of automotive racing, I knew that J-Pants would have so much more fun without me scowling and asking when the race would be over.

After cordially backing out, I was able to use that time as an excuse to get my girls together and head to St. George. It was nice to have a whole weekend of warm weather, windless days (after living in Laramie I forgot what those sounded like), Cafe Rio (even though the lady behind the counter called me sir), and trying the entire time not to pee my pants because of my hilarious friends. I give this weekend a perfect 10.

He's a big boy now!

2009-02-25T20:47:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday My Love!

24 today and doesn't look a day over 30.

But seriously, he's more than I ever could have asked for and I'm so lucky to be married to him. (Baker, this is the part where you get to puke.)

I've gotten to spend 3 of his birthdays with him, and here's to at least another 5 or so.

Put on your big girl panties and deal with it

2009-02-18T23:34:00.000-08:00

I'm sitting at work, wishing I was at home in bed with my husband. I've been working overnights since I started in August, despite the fact that they told me when I interviewed that I wouldn't have to. So I've decided to make a list of things that make this job not so bad:
* I get to wear sweatpants to work.
* I was able to watch 4 seasons of The L Word, 1 season of Californication, 1 season of 30 Rock, 2 seasons of Weeds, 1/2 a season of heroes, and a whole list of new releases.
* I actually have a well paying job in this scary economy.
* I get to spend hours reading other peoples blogs and spending time on facebook, and not feel too guilty about wasting time like that because at least I'm getting paid.
* I like the girls I'm supposed to watch (most the time).
* I get to read the celebrity mags I would never ever buy, because the girls leave them laying around. (Did you know that Hayden Panasomething and her boyfriend have broken up? Aren't you so glad you know that now? Thank you Ok! Weekly)
* Nobody is awake to see me when I do embarrassing things i.e. : I was decorating the house with streamers for one of the girl's birthdays, and I ended up falling off the chair and only slightly hurting myself.
* Thanks to the Kindle that my wonderful mother-in-law got me, I get to read and read and read.
* J-Pants got me some art supplies for my birthday, and so at work while everyone is sleeping, no one gets to see my embarrassing and less than artistic attempts.

I'm feeling a little bit better about my job...

P.S. My little brother is serving a mission in Argentina and he says that the people down there will often wear shirts with English on them, but not know what they mean. He met one old lady with a great slogan on her shirt: Put on your big girl panties and deal with it.

My insides feel all jiggly

2009-02-17T09:22:00.000-08:00

J-Pants and I have decided to do a triathlon this May. I'm fine on swimming and biking, but I hate running so that makes me a little nervous.

In 9th grade my friend Jessie and I joined the swimming team. At our very first meet I dove in the water and my goggles fell off. I ended up finishing several minutes behind even the last person. My family was there to cheer me on but it felt humiliating. That was the last time I ever competitively swam. I love swimming but this showed me that maybe I should just stick to wave pools and lazy rivers. Either way, this time I can just go at my own pace and I should be fine, right? Right?!

But I Can't Concentrate Until I've Made You Mine

2009-02-15T18:15:00.000-08:00

J-Pants and I had an honors class together our sophomore year of college. It was one of those classes that you have to go to culturally uplifting events and then talk about the performances afterward. I didn't know anyone but he and I eventually ended up talking and he made me laugh so hard I almost wet my pants. Even though I had my own car, at the next event I had my roommate drop me off so that I would be forced to ask J-Pants for a ride home. We didn't end up dating for another 7 months after that, but it was the best move I ever made.

I love you Jord. H appy Valentines!

Are you there Ashley? It's me, Creeper.

2009-02-11T17:21:00.000-08:00

The other night at work my phone rang. It was 3 a.m. so I thought this was kind of weird. The caller ID said "Restricted" but I picked it up anyway. I said hello and the only response was heavy breathing. It scared the pants off of me and I had to go sit in one of the girls rooms, even though she was asleep. I tried to avoid walking past windows all night.

So Random

2009-02-08T14:25:00.000-08:00

That's right. I jumped on the bandwagon and did the 25 random facts about me.

1. Since I know several other Ashley Wrights and about 50 other Ashley's, I always promised myself I would give my kids cool, unique names. But now that my last name is Sefcovic I don't think I could do that. If I gave my kids the names I wanted than they would sound like terrorists and would be stopped at security any time they flew anywhere. "Mr. Ari Sefcovic, please bend over."
2. I hate snakes but watch every documentary I can DVR on them. I usually curl into a little ball while I watch but I can't look away. They fascinate me.
3. It used to make me feel really tough when I would tell people I played rugby. It was something I was really proud of and would try to slip it into conversations.
4. It embarrasses me when I tell people this, but I love Rock of Love. I've watched every episode of every season and even though I find Brett Michaels disgusting and fake, I can't stop watching.
5. One time in college, a neighbor told me that my kids were going to be diabetic just like me. I slapped him and left the room. One of my biggest fears is that he is right.
6. I could people watch for hours.
7. When I used to date in high school and college, I always felt like the guy in relationships. I hated it when they would cry, or talk about emotions, or call me too much. I once told a boyfriend that he could come over to my house, only if we didn't talk about our emotions at all the whole day.
8. In college my roommate threw a party. My friend Cassie was sitting on the couch so I farted and tried to waive it in her direction. My intention was for only her to smell it, but it was especially potent and ended up clearing out every single person in the room. My roommate was not happy with me.
9. I spend an inordinate amount of time playing solitaire on my ipod.
10. I work with delinquent youth, and while we are supposed to help them be more mature and act like adults, usually the reverse happens and I end up feeling immature and just wanting to goof around with them.
11. My husband often tells me that I remind him of a 12-year-old boy because I love farting and bugs and dirty jokes. Not too long ago I found a salamander in a window well. I didn't want to touch it but I built a wall up around it and prodded it with a stick.
12. I hate blue tooth headsets. They make you look like a douche.
13. Dear Mariah Carey, you're just annoying and not sexy. Your voice hurts my ears.Give it up.
14. I've never been as happy as I have been with Jordan.
15. In high school I loved raiding the costume closet with my friends. I would think up any excuse I could to wear one. I used to call the trunk of my car "The Trunk of Wonders" because it was always stuffed with the most random junk and costumes.
16. One night when we were supposed to sleep at Cassie's house we got locked out. We chose a random persons porch and slept on it. In the morning when the guy who owned the house came out, Cassie demanded breakfast from him.
17. On a road trip with my family, my brother told me I could have the rest of his apple juice. After my first swig, I realized it was his pee.
18. I was having some weird health problems so I went into the doctor only to find out that I have a third testicle.
19. I wish I was friends with Amy Poehler and Will Arnett. We'd have dinner parties together and someday dress our children in the same outfits.
20. Cassie and I gave the class history speech at our high school graduation, which may have gotten a little silly at some points but never inappropriate. This had been a school tradition to deliver for years. I found out that they did away with it because of me and Cassie.
21. I joined the swim team with my friend Jessie in 9th grade. My first swim meet was a disaster and after my goggles fell off I ended up finishing several minutes after the last person who came in. I never competitively swam again.
22. I decided to take my future into my own hands one March night in 2008 and proposed to my now husband.
23. I lived in Vernal Utah as a kid and my mom says she knew it was time to move when we started asking to wear camouflage to school like the other kids.
24. I'm trying as hard as I can to talk my husband into moving out of the country with me.
25. A few months ago the guy who lives above us threw a party at 3am on a Wednesday. I stomped up there in my pajamas, banged on his door, and demanded to know if he was having some sort of ball dropping olympics. I had been woken up in the middle of the night and am still unsure what I meant by it.

2009-02-07T10:35:00.000-08:00

There was another Fat Buster sighting last night. I overheard him talking about D&D.

Is it weird that I'm slightly obsessed with these about town sightings?

Enjoy

2009-02-05T20:15:00.000-08:00

Call it nostalgia, but I couldn't stop laughing at this:

Danny Boy (It's a link, click on it)

The Year of the Mustache

2009-02-05T18:37:00.000-08:00

Jordan finally got fed up with looking 20 years older than he really is and opted to shave The Beard. There were several stops we had to make along the way to clean shaven though.

I give you, the Plantation Master:

The Honky-Tonk:

And lastly, Mr. McGilllicuty, Seller of Women's Tonic:

We actually really liked the handle bar, so this is what is warming Jordan's upper lip now.

Lord, give me the patience to not burn a store down

2009-02-03T16:48:00.001-08:00

I hate Kmart with everything inside of me. I've never met such an incompetent group of people as the ones who are employed by the Laramie Kmart.

The stuff dreams and heart attacks are made of

2009-01-31T13:07:00.001-08:00

J-Pants, The Beard, and I went to breakfast this morning. I would encourage you to get the chocolate chip cookie dough pancakes with chocolate and caramel sauce, with chunks of chocolate chip cookie dough sprinkled on top. My heart hurt a little bit after I was finished, but I'd do it again.

The Beard

2009-01-31T12:53:00.000-08:00

Jordan is having a beard-off with one of his soccer buddies. The part of me that wants him to win is pushing for him to keep growing it. The part of me that dislikes it when I feel like I'm making out with a yeti wants him to shave it. I'm conflicted.

Why are you bugging me?

2009-01-25T18:19:00.000-08:00

J-Pants and I see this guy all over town. If any of you are familiar with the show Arrested Development, he reminds us of a larger Buster. Around Halloween, we thought it would be really fun to go to a Wiccan ceremony they had posted in the paper. We got there only to find this guy wearing a robe and leading the ceremony. He acted really put out that we were in our McPoyle costumes, instead of wearing fairy wings or witch tights like all of the others.

Last night I was at McCallisters and was lucky enough to sit next to him to snap a picture to send to J-Pants. He was playing checkers or some sort of game with his date. I nearly lost it when his waitress asked if she could clear his plate and he snatched it away, put it on the seat next to him, and yelled "I just want to play a game! Why are you guys bugging me?" She started to walk off and he said "Oh, and I'd like a box."

Storm Trooper Ping Pong

2009-01-24T12:16:00.000-08:00

I discovered something this week: My cousin Britney may have the cutest kids ever.

She lives in D.C. with her husband and four sons and we stayed with them on our trip. Since they live so far away I don't see them much, and when I do its usually at chaotic family Christmas parties. So I had no idea how cool these kids were. I'd be more than ok if I had several just like them. And if there was any confusion, Sam (the one on the far left) told me "Hey, I'm awesome. But really, I'm awesome." And I had to agree.

They also had sweet storm trooper helmets that my dad and I played ping pong in.

They may have killed me several times at Mario Kart.

Thank you Matt and Britney for letting us stay with you. You guys are incredible.

Inauguration

2009-01-24T11:15:00.000-08:00

This past week I had the opportunity to attend Obama's inauguration. It was truly incredible to be in a crowd of such enthusiastic people, excited about the future. I won't bore you with all the details, but it was something I'll never forget.

My dad was able to get tickets (possibly because there weren't a whole lot of people from Utah clamoring to go). So my dad, brother, and I were able to get a pretty decent view of the capitol.

I love my dad.

There were snipers on the roof!

The next day we were able to visit the Lincoln memorial. (I kept trying to pull my dads hat down the whole day but it kept creeping back up ha ha)

The closest I'll ever get to a picture with Obama.

So good luck to President Obama in the coming 4 years.

Mean Comments

2009-01-14T08:59:00.000-08:00

Lately I've read a lot of blogs that complain about mean comments being left on their pages. Is it bad that I think mean comments left on people's pages are funny?

I'm afraid that by saying this, people are going to post mean comments on my page to "prove a point".

* And I would just like to say: I've never left a mean comment on another's blog. Thought I'd put that disclaimer on this post.

Lexi is a sucker

2008-12-25T11:56:00.000-08:00

To Mama and Papa Wright

2008-12-25T11:42:00.000-08:00

J-Pants learned something new this Christmas. You know its the real Santa that visited you if there is a quarter in the toe of your stocking. Apparently, impostor Santa's were visiting him all of these years (we suspect they probably stole more than they left).

A Christmas Goose For Everyone!

2008-12-25T10:09:00.000-08:00

I worked overnight Tuesday and ended up sleeping all day Wednesday.

I woke up up around 4:00 to this:

That's right. J-Pants had cooked an entire Christmas dinner, Turkey included.

It was amazingly delicious.

Since we didn't get to go home for Christmas, J-Pants and I got to start our own

Christmas traditions. We were kind of silly about it and would scrutinize every decision. "Do we want cookies or cinnamon rolls Christmas eve? Whatever we choose will be the tradition from now on." (When of course the right answer was both.)

We decided to adopt his tradition of opening presents Christmas eve (which I used to make fun of him for when we were dating).

The xbox wheel he doesn't get to use for 2 more weeks (see previous post)

He just had to pretend instead.

My awesome new coat.

I can't wait to use this! (Thank you Naomi for the inspiration)

And, one of the coolest presents ever, Ma and Pa Sefcovic sent me an Amazon Kindle.

Merry Christmas everyone!

The District sleeps alone...until Jan. 19

2008-12-20T11:22:00.000-08:00

I just booked my flight. I thought waiting for Christmas was bad.

Wow wow wubzy

2008-12-19T21:17:00.000-08:00

I'm speechless.

I just found out that I get to go

to his inauguration:

Hooty. Hoot!

I like twurtles

2008-12-18T18:39:00.000-08:00

Please, someone watch this immediately: turtles.

Oo-da-lolly

2008-12-18T18:28:00.000-08:00

Dear J-Pants,

Thank you for getting the real tree instead of the gross fake one,

because you knew how much it meant to me.

I love love love you,

Your Wife

Poor Jordan

2008-12-18T02:10:00.000-08:00

His xbox360 broke last night and the big Christmas presents I got him were xbox related (don't worry, he already knew. I can never surprise him). I can't help but think that this is God's way of punishing him for leaving the toilet seat up...

And To You And Yours...

2008-12-16T20:14:00.001-08:00

Now That's A Good Saturday

2008-12-16T19:36:00.000-08:00

J-Pants and I got to go snowboarding with our friends the Straka brothers (or Count Strakula as we like to call them).

First of all, Steamboat is an awesome town and I can't wait to go back. I was raised on Utah snow and am a bit of an elitist when it comes to thinking Utah snow is the best. But Steamboat stepped up and showed me that good snow exists outside of Utah.

Last winter I got to take the boys I worked with snowboarding all winter (and I got paid to do it). I forgot how much I love snowboarding. I was sore and tired after, but its not a good day of snowboarding if you don't feel that way after.

On the way home, we hit a pretty bad blizzard. But Matt Straka is a master driver and even though our 2 hour drive turned into 4, he got us home safe.

No no, thank YOU

2008-12-07T21:26:00.000-08:00

My favorite parts of thanksgiving:

-- Getting to spend time with my family.

-- Eating my mom's amazing, beyond-this-world banana cream pie. Most people think I'm exaggerating when I say this, but my mom literally makes over 20 pies every Thanksgiving. And each one is better than the next.

-- Getting to spend time with these people:

...and knowing how lucky I am that I love my in-laws.

-- Playing poker and telling dirty jokes with these people until 2 am:

-- Getting to spend unlimited time with my best friend.

-- But perhaps my favorite Thanksgiving moment was when's Jordan's aunt tried convincing him that Obama is the antichrist.

Hope everyone else had as much fun as I did!

I'm Not Going To Connect Those Dots

2008-11-26T02:13:00.000-08:00

I had an embarassing experience tonight. I went into Hastings to buy a Christmas present for someone (which is amazing considering what a procrastinator I am), and decided on an erotic connect the dots book as an added bonus. I was a little embarassed to even go to the cash register so I carried it under my arm so no one else could see what it was (as if any other people in Hastings on a Tuesday night even care what I'm buying). I get to the cash registers and yippee! I'm the only person in line. I also had a stack of movies to rent so I put the book on top so the cashier would hurry and swipe it and be done with it. But she decides instead to scan all of the movies first so the book just stays there, only for me to realize that a lady I work with has come and stood in line right behind me. "Please don't see it. Please don't see it. I'm not headed home to connect these dots," I kept thinking. I hurried to pay and then did one of those "Oh hey! Yeah, have a good night." I got out of there pretty quickly.
On second thought, I work the overnight and it gets pretty boring. Maybe I won't be giving that away...

It's Snowing!

2008-11-14T02:24:00.000-08:00

Its snowing tonight in Laramie. I love the snow even though I hate to be cold. Right now I really miss Woodland Hills, where over the course of winter the snow drifts would reach to heights over my head. My favorite place is in front of our fire place, where I would fall asleep a lot of nights and wake up at 4 a.m., sweaty and with a dry mouth. J-Pants and I are headed to Utah in the morning when I get home from work, and I can't wait. I haven't seen my family since July, which for me is far too long. I'm excited to hug my mom and eat her amazing home cooked Sunday dinner. I'm excited to see a movie with my dad and hear one of his lectures on current events. I'm excited to make incestual jokes with Justin, which makes J-Pants just a bit uncomfortable. I'm excited to hear Verity's current stories on the weirdos that she meets at dances and instantly fall in love with her. And perhaps above all, I'm excited to wrestle with, punch, and stay up late giggling with her:

We leave for Utah in 5 hours but it feels like an eternity.

Mcpoyle infestation of Laramie

2008-11-10T14:27:00.000-08:00

After (im)patiently waiting for two weeks, my usb cord for my camera finally came and I was able to upload the pictures of our amazing Mcpoyle costumes. There were only a handful of people in Laramie who recognized us as the Mcpoyles but it was still fun. Most people thought J-Pants and Matt were pedophiles.

For those familiar with the show, J-Pants actually got fork stabbed that night. Matt just didn't know his own strength.

How about that uni-brow eh? People who I didn't even know were referring to me as "the uni-brow" by the end of the night. I think a lot of girls were baffled as to why I went as a Mcpoyle instead of a skanky nurse.

And as for that mustache, I'd like to thank mascara for helping me with my superb 'stache.

The Rights of Man

2008-11-06T15:07:00.000-08:00

It's an amazing time to be an American, we are witnessing the dawn of a new era of Racial equality. What would have seemed impossible a mere 50 years ago has become reality, an African American man in the Whitehouse. It's amazing we can come so far, yet still have so much further to go. It seems the racial discrimination of our fore fathers has been replaced by an anti-gay discrimination of our own.

It's amazing that the American people can simultaneous elect an African American President yet deny the rights of the gays all in the same night. Can no one can recognize the similarities between the civil rights movement and the gay rights movement of today? How can we teach our children that All men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain inalienable rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of happiness? It seems apparent that marriage is a subset of both Life and Pursuit of Happiness. It does not matter whether homosexuality is a born characteristic or a choice, everyone deserves to feel love. Furthermore, everyone deserves the legal rights that go along with marriage.

The Diving Bell and the Butterfly

2008-11-05T03:48:00.000-08:00

I watched this at 3 a.m. It was beautiful.

A Grab-Bag of Blog Topics

2008-11-04T23:30:00.000-08:00

I'm sure you've all heard the same thing: never talk about ex-boyfriends or politics on a first date. And seeing as how this is my first blog, I feel that the same rules should apply. So if I remain unaffiliated I think I can get away with talking about my voting experience today.

I had gone in the the county clerks office to vote early a few weeks ago, but when I got there I realized that I didn't recognize most of the names on the ballot. So, deciding to be a good citizen, I decided to research the candidates out and vote on November 4. In the time leading up to November 4 I THOUGHT about looking up the candidates...but didn't. Election day rolls around and I stroll into the polls, undeterred by my lack of knowledge. Still not recognizing most of the names on the ballot, how do I decide to vote? I went with the last names that most amused me. I voted for Hugh McGinley because his name made me think of a crusty drunkard, sobering up just long enough to make it to the hospital district trustees meeting once a week. And of course I circled Nick Carter for the United States senate. Who wouldn't want a backstreet boy representing them?! And because of my vote there may be a school district trustee now named Julie Radosevich, because she sounds czech enough to be related distantly.

Some may say my voting technique is irresponsible, and to those people I say "You are right".

J-Pants humored me last night and watched The Strangers with me. I'm a sucker for scary movies. All in all it scared the pants off of me, and I may have screamed like a little girl several times. The movie must have been a success though, because I was scared to be alone after it was over and had to sit in the bathroom while J-Pants showered.

My only question about the movie was why the two girls got awesome masks while the guy looks like he's wearing a pair of saggy underwear. "Oh, hey Ted. We forgot to get you a mask...so you'll have to make do with these."

I may have found the coolest place in Laramie. Its called Bart's Flea Market and its spectacular. I went there yesterday just looking for a coffee table and ended up spending 2 hours wandering the store, looking through the "treasures". I wanted to wash my hands afterwards, but they have every weird item you could possibly imagine from your childhood. Remember the rollerblading doll that could move by herself (yeah, the one I really wanted but had to play with at a friends house)? They have one in mint condition. They also have all the California Raisin crap you could ever want.
Here's a whole wall of sweet hats. I was finally forced to leave at closing time. But don't you worry Bart's, I'll be back.

Two more things of note, but not worth a whole blog:

I was in line behind this lady the other day and she had the most severe case of "mom butt" I had ever seen. Don't worry, I was very sneaky in taking this picture. Impressed much?

Dear J-Pants,
Thanks for playing barrel of monkies with me, even though you hate games like that.

Love love love, Ash

It's a fine day to be a McPoyle

2008-10-31T10:20:00.000-07:00

If any of you have watched the show It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia than you are familiar with this fine brood of people (and you also have a fantastic sense of humor). These are the McPoyles, and they are horrible, disgusting people. And they also just happen to be what J-Pants, our friend Matt, and myself are going to be for halloween. I can't wait!

I bought some facial hair the other day and will be venturing out onto the town with a slight mustache and a full blown unibrow. It got me thinking though and I realized that I have donned facial hair for the past few halloweens. I did happen to win a costume contest with this one...

...but only after I threatened to rape and pillage the house the party was at if I didn't win.

Either way, I hereby pronounce Halloween the greatest time of year.

A Ray of light

2008-10-28T23:25:00.000-07:00

J-Pants and I attended the Ray Lamontagne concert last night, and that officially completes my list of things I need to do before I die. Its been nice knowing all of you. But in all seriousness, have you ever heard a song that was so beautiful it made your heart hurt? That was what the entire concert was like. (If I heard any of my friends say what is in the green text, I would tell them to stop being such a pussy.) J-Pants and I have been in love with Ray for years now and there are several of his songs that are "our songs", so it truly was magical to see him last night. I was so giddy and may have acted like a child on Christmas Eve.

Whenever I hear about new bands I usually look them up, so if any of you out there are so inclined, make sure you look up the songs Jolene and Trouble. As a disclaimer: The first time I listened to Ray, I hated him. But since a friend who usually nails my musical taste had given me the cd, I gave it another chance for his sake. Cam, I never should have doubted you. So if you don't like it, give it a second chance. And if you still don't like it, you probably like Lil' Wayne and we shouldn't be friends.

Also something you should know, Ray's bassist looked exactly like this muppet and moved like her.

This is Leona Naess. She opened for Ray. And even though she acted like a stoned 7-year-old, I liked her music. She's sounds a bit Feisty. I'll give her the green light onto my ipod.

Dear J-Pants:

All of this around us'll fall over

I tell you what we're gonna do

You will shelter me my love

And I will shelter you

--Ray

2008-10-23T22:41:00.000-07:00

Given the fact that I work overnight at my job, I have WAY too much time on my hands and I end up reading people's blogs all night. So you could say that this blog was the love child of boredom and following the crowd. Because yes, I do whatever everyone else does. No questions asked.
So here's to my family and friends that I hope to keep updated on mine and Jordan's lives. Because lets be honest, most of you don't even know where Laramie is.
Love Love Love Ash