Oh, by the way...

In typical Andrea fashion, I maimed myself yesterday. Slipped on gravel on the drive way, and bit it. Hard. Thanks to Sara for helping me pick gravel chunks out of my knee!!! 

There seems to be a trend, both in my life, and in general, that involves injury and illness. Im a klutz, which we all knew, so I get hurt and sick a lot. But I noticed that before I go away for a long period of time, I tend to get hurt or sick right before I go. Evidence:

1. Before Spain trip #1- heinous case of Mono. Thats one month of my life I will NEVER get back!

2. Before Spain trip #2- heinous cold/strep. Another few weeks of my life I will never get back!

3. Before move to Chciago- heinous fall, maiming of the leg. I guess I wont be wearing a skirt on the first day of Math Camp! 

Oh, and on a related note, my sister came up with a list of the all time top 5 most ridiculous injuries I have sustained:

1. While sharing a pair of rollerskates with my new 1st grade buddy, I fell and broke my arm. 

2. Played basketball with no shoes on, and coming down from a jumpshot, I came down on my toe. Big toe nail smashed- had to go to the ER, etc. Lifetime toenail probs after that one!

3. After specifically being told not to, I played bball in PE and hurt my leg to the point where I had to go to the ER and get crutches. It was the day of a big volleyball game, Rosh Hashana, and my birthday. Brilliant!

4. Fell down the steep, curved stair case in the residencia I stayed in during my first trip. Had to go to a doc, get an ankle brace, and still have no feeling in the part of my leg that hit the stairs first. 

5. Yesterdays gravel incident. :) $5 to see the carnage.

So, Andrea's Rule for Life #10- BE CAREFUL!!!! Maiming yourself hurts, and is expensive. While not dying is all fine and good, quality of life while alive should be considered. 

Suitcases, suitcases, everywhere, and not an inch to spare

Its that time again- moving!!! Andrea's favorite thing in the world! It is officially T minus 5.5 days til I leave for Chicago. While LA is often a big joke to people who don't live here, I fell in love with the city the day I got here, and am honestly really glad I got to live here as long as I did. That being said, here are a few of the things I will miss most about LA, in no particular order:

1. The traffic. Many fists were shaken, many accidents avoided and witnessed, and many books on CD listened to. My experience in LA was definitely shaped by the traffic. 

2. The beach. Moving to a land-locked state is going to be painful, even with a lake right down the street. Its no Florida beach, but its still beautiful. 

3. The Grove. Shopping, food, celebs, and fake snow. What more can a girl want!?

4. Stars and Star Sightings. Need I say more!? Even at the gym they are exciting to see!

5. Claremont- particularly the village. So cute and hippy. Wolfes is awesome- shop there! And even though the service sucks ass and the people are idiots, Some Crust still rocks- the baked goods are THAT awesome. 

6. Shopping. I realize that there will be great shopping in Chicago, but LA was the first place Ive ever lived with great shopping. I can't believe I lived that long without it, and I will NEVER go back! 

7. The Weather. Smoggy, dry, and glorious! After Florida, I didn't think I would ever be able to move anywhere outside of Cali because I'm so in love with the weather. Chicago weather will be just delightful, Im sure! hahahaha. 

8. The fabulous people I've met (well, some of them anyway!!) The "family" I have here is made up of some of the best people I have ever known, and I will miss them terribly. 

All I can say is that new song- No one walks in LA- is my theme song, and we know its soo true! Oh, and that packing sucks!!! Make sure I have numbers and addresses and all of that! 

Onward! To Chitown! (Any one know Obama's address!? How great of a star sighting would that be?! )

Suggested new rule for life- Family and "family" is the key to life. :)

A well earned lesson

While I havent been posting much, I HAVE been enduring a lot of family bullshit. Don't get me wrong, I love my family- all of them- in all of their insanity. But too much of a good thing is still too much, and too much of a crazy situation is WAY too much.

Recently, I reached my "Family Bullshit Threshold". When there aren't other stressors in my life this actually takes a while to reach, but I found it and it was ugly. The worst was having it out with my grandma. She is the matriarch of the family, and though she is getting sorta senile, she definitely fights to keep her position. I have been staying with her and busting my butt to help out and make her happy. Lets just say she responded with something less than appreciation and gratitude. I called her out on her appalling behavior, and the battle began. Much like my mother, I have always wanted to please people, particularly my family. I want them to think I'm a helpful, sweet, wonderful person, even if it means some sacrifice. However, I learned that the price I would pay to swallow my anger and allow shitty behavior was way too high just to maintain my "sweet, helpful family member" facade. After years of backhanded compliments, comments about my appearance, a lack of appreciation in general, and watching the whole family getting shit on, I finally stood up for myself. And damn it, it felt good. And right.

Which leads me to Andrea's Rule for Life #9. This is perhaps my favorite one, because while it is not directly related to obvious fatal actions, it is vital to staying alive and healthy in a different way.

Andrea's Rule for Life #9: Always stand up for yourself.
Try your damndest to stand up for others. It might suck at first, but it is the best thing to do in the long run, and eventually you will be respected for it.

So heres to everyone who doesn't take crap, no matter where it comes from!

Obviously I shouldnt have to say this!

So its late and I need to go to bed because- get this- I am taking two 12 year old boys to Six Flags Great America tomorrow, and god knows I'll need some energy. I will make this short and sweet. 

Andrea's Rule for Life #8? : 

Never EVER fuck up your friendships for a guy. EVER. Its simply not ok. Its against the girl code, whatever that is, and its just plain crappy. While the person this refers to will remain nameless, let us all take a lesson from her crap-tastic friendship skills. 

More tomorrow. :)

Mmm...rules

Its cliche, but so true:

Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. If I don't eat a normal, healthy breakfast, my whole day gets messed up- food-wise and more. Im just a better person if I get my Wheaties. So, even though it sounds sorta lame and is clearly not one I made up myself, this is now officially:

Rule 7: Always eat a healthy breakfast. It could be the last healthy thing you have all day! 

Until next time...

The Rules, Explaination

I should say, right from the start, that the 3 original Rules are stolen from my ex-boyfriend and his friend. What can I say, they are just that good. So, thank you for those. Now- here we go:

Andrea's Rules for Life
1. Don't die. (Obvious, and lets face it, the only one that really matters)
2. Avoid diseases and fungi. (Check and check)
3. Don't suck dick for crank. (Less obvious, but equally vital!)
4. Don't try to stick a large marshmallow where it won't fit. (Perhaps not as vital, but have you ever tried cleaning marshmallow from a small space!? Not fun)
5. Bad breath is better than no breath at all (well, depending on who has the bad breath, according to my sister!)
6. When in the Congo, don't touch dead monkeys. (Thank you Sara for that one. Really, doing a project on ebola can really mess with your head!) (Spelling note, I put kies, and it didnt like that)

So, there we are. I am always on the look out for new rules, or ways in which these rules have been used in day to day life. I will post any new rules I learn, and am definitely up for suggested additions!!