• Monk-Monk
  • stuffed monkey
  • forever eight years old
  • mischievous little rascal
  • has a shirt signed by BCB
• Skeeter M. Rigby
  • hot tempered beta fish
  • changes colors
  • has a song written about him
  • RIP Skeet! We love you!
• Leonard
  • kitchen plant
• Scuba Steve
  • tiny action figure man we found @ Perkins
  • has a theme song
  • is "the man of the house"

I'd like to commend those who live below me, as they have never complained or called the cops. I'm sorry, I'm probably a very bad person to live next to.

• I play my music loudly
  • and will listen to the same artist/song over and over and over again
• I have a lot of parties
• I am not a particularly quiet walker
• I play percussion
• I see fit to write songs and practice at odd hours of the night
• Sometimes K and I fight loudly, for long periods of time
• My alarm clock is sometimes very loud
  • and will go off multiple times
  • early in the morning
• I drop things a lot
• Several of my friends have very loud laug...

• it was 1986
• the population was approx. 4.932 billion
• Ronald Regan was president
  • Vice President: George Bush Sr.
• the year began on a Wednesday
• the year was designated the international year of peace
  • by United Nations
• Martin Luther King Jr. day was introduced
  • the day before I was born
• the US space shuttle Challenger exploded
  • the day after my brother's 3rd birthday
• the Mir space station was launched
• Elie Wiesel won the Nobel Peace Prize
• "We Are the World" won the Grammy for record of the year

• touching Riley's skin for the first time. It was perhaps the purest, most heart stopping moment of my life thus far.
• opening for Ellery at Babb's Coffee House and the evening that followed
• the mornings spent with Chris at Mike's house in Minneapolis
• performing "Man From Milwaukee" at the freshman respect retreat, and the thunderous applause we received after that last note
• receiving the Corrick Center scholarship
• steaming hot nights in Texas, seeing the stars like I'd never seen them before, and probably never will again
• the goofy, giddy night spent at the AmericInn with Karl, drinking wine, eating chocolate and cheese
• laughing to the point of tears and severe stomach pains with Brandon, for no reason at all.

• cinema vs. movie theatre
• pissed vs. drunk
• cross vs. mad
• cheerio vs. goodbye
• tube vs. subway
• mad vs. crazy
• pub vs. bar
• davenport vs. sofa
• telly vs. TV
• wonky vs. weird/crazy
• answerphone vs. answering machine
• arse vs. ass
• car park vs. parking lot
• dodgy vs. unreliable
• fancy vs. like
• fringe vs. bangs
• knickers vs. underwear
• loo vs. bathroom
• letter box vs. mailbox
• snog vs. make out
• petrol vs. gas

• on a ski lift
• in a movie theatre, during a movie
• while showering
  • together or by yourself
• during an eye exam
  • with the eye chart
• while skydiving or snorkeling
  • be extra careful not to drop the ring
• while at the dentist
  • spit "will you marry me?"
• with a billboard
• during bar trivia
  • somehow rigging one of the questions to be the proposal
• while hypnotized

• 14 people, one bathroom: why it's sometimes better to live with your friends
• it's okay to laugh, everyone else did too
• I'm not related to Judy Garland, unless that's the reason you picked up my book
• embracing the life of a gimp
• help I've fallen, but I'll always get up
• when real and imaginary lives collide
• this would have been more interesting had it been written about someone else
• good advice no one will ever take
• unfortunately, yes. I did mean to dress that way

• misplacing things:
  • cell phones
  • keys
  • glasses
    • presents an interesting conundrum: I lose the glasses and then cannot see to look for them
  • iPod
    • inevitably results in a boulder in the gut feeling and a frantic, profanity-laden search
  • whatever it was that was in my hand just a second ago and is now nowhere to be found
• spilling things:
  • my drinks
  • other people's drinks
  • on clothes I just washed

• living in our old house arguing over the wallpaper border in the room we shared.
• booing, cheering and throwing popcorn at the TV while watching "Varsity Blues."
• GRIFFIN!
• putting our cat Booker in our plastic pink buggy and carting him around the house
• bobbing for apples at Sharla's birthday party
• her calling work and telling her boss she had a family emergency so she could fix my hair for my senior prom.
• thumb wrestling while she was in labor with Riley.
• hugging her after K and I sang at her baby shower
• falling asleep on the couch after my choir / m.a.d. performance in eighth grade
• "pea tarties" when we were little
• the time she invited me to a party with all of her friends when I was twelve.

• Adam's Family - TV Theme
• Adrienne - The Calling
• Ah, Mary - Grace Potter & The Nocturnals
• Alice's Restaurant - Arlo Guthrie
• Allison Road - The Gin Blossoms
• Amie - Damien Rice
• Amy Hit the Atmosphere - Counting Crows
• Ana's Song (Open Fire) - Silverchair
• Andy, You're a Star - The Killers
• Angie - Rolling Stones
• Anna - Ellery
• Anna Begins - Counting Crows
• The Ballad of John and Yoko - The Beatles
• Barbara Ann - The Beach Boys
• Believe Me Natalie - The Killers
• Belle's Song - Disney, Beauty & the Beast
• Beverly Hills - Weezer
• Bette Davis Eyes - Rod Stewart
• Billie Jean - Michael Jackson
• Bob Dylan - Nine Days
• Boris the Spider - The Who

• Edwin McCain
• Rob Thomas (matchbox twenty)
• John Mayer
• Damien Rice
• Billy Joel
• Ed Kowalczyk (Live)
• Marc Cohn
• Adam Duritz (Counting Crows)
• Amos Lee
• Isaac Slade (The Fray)
• Justin Timberlake
• Gavin Rossdale (Bush)
• Ken Block (Sister Hazel)
• Darius Rucker (Hootie and the Blowfish)
• Taylor Hanson (Hanson)
• Michael Stipe (REM)

• 4 = siblings I have
• 37 = pairs of socks I received at my "sock party"
• 8 = times I've had surgery
• 2.9 = my weight when I was born
• 40 = sum of the individual numbers in my current telephone number
• 14 = pairs of shoes I own
• 5 = pieces of jewelery I wear daily
• 2,279 = songs on my iTunes
• 26 = teeth in my mouth
• 422 = tagged photos of myself on facebook
• 6 = phone numbers I've used
• 27 = states I've entered
• 21 = birthday
• 19 = letters in my full name
• 2 = instruments I can play
• 0 = times I've left the country
• 1 = tattoos and piercings I have
• 13 = pictures on my living room walls

• MIKEY:
  • We were standing in the field of trees across from my house and he was getting ready to leave. He reached over and picked a little purple flower from a nearby bush and gave it to me. I asked if I could give him something and kissed his cheek.
• MATT:
  • At the end of our first date, he got out of the car with me and we kissed standing behind it so his brother and cousin (who had driven us because we were too young to have licenses) couldn't see us.
• CHRIS:
  • The first time I kissed him we were standing in the foyer of my old house. It was the night of his Junior prom and we had to stop at my house to get my Mom or Dad's...

• tattoo, left wrist
• rhizotomy scar; back
• femoral de-rotation scar; outer left & right thigh
• two freckles; right shoulder
• thin scar; between thumb and pointer finger of right hand
• left leg; shorter than right
• mole; right foot
• pressue scar; back right heel
• crooked tooth; bottom left

Friends

• Kari
  • Patty Griffin - "When it Don't Come Easy"
  • Counting Crows - "Mr. Jones"
  • Edwin McCain - "3AM"
  • Jim Croce - "Lover's Cross"
  • Dixie Chicks "I'll Take Care of You"
  • Grace Potter & The Nocturnals - "Big White Gate"
  • No Doubt - "Spiderwebs"
  • Britney Spears - "Toxic"
  • Ellery - "Pieces"
  • Crash Test Dummies - "MMM MMM MMM"
  • REM - "Shiny Happy People"
• Karl
  • matchbox twenty - "Unwell"
  • Stone Temple Pilots - "Plush"
  • Ben Folds - "Not The Same"

• SEEN
  • Brandi Carlile (X15)
  • Hanson (x7)
  • Dave Matthews Band
  • Ellery (x2)
  • John Mayer (x2)
  • matchbox twenty (x2)
  • Edwin McCain
  • Lifehouse
  • Incubus
  • Nickelback
  • Pearl Jam
  • Nickel Creek
  • Greenwheel
  • Our Lady Peace
  • Default
  • Loudermilk
  • Three Days Grace
  • The Veronicas
  • M2M

songs performed on April 30, 2009:

• Late Morning Lullaby
  • Brandi Carlile; cover
    • newest cover
• Maybe
  • Fancy That; original
    • only the second time performing this
      • newest original; written 04/28/09
• Take Me
  • Edwin McCain; cover
    • first time performing this in years
• How's it Gonna Be
  • Third Eye Blind; cover

fill in the blank: "dude I am so _ right now."

• hammered
• plastered
• blasted
• shit-faced
• wasted
• pissed
• boned
• tipsy
• intoxicated
• smashed
• slammed
• gone
• schwasted
• shloshed
• liquored-up
• schnockered
• blitzed

• love is the movement
  • side: to write love on her arms
• Juno
  • back: Paulie Bleaker is the cheese to my macaroni
• Rock on, be there or like, whatever
• some call me the gangsta of love
• live happily forever and ever
• love our planet
• The Beatles
• everyone loves a fall out boy
• matchbox twenty
• John Mayer
• Pink Floyd
• seeking boyfriend in rock band
  • not exactly cool...but my little brother bought it for me.
• Audrey Hepburn

• intelligent, articulate
• creative, artistic
• funny, engaging
• trustworthy, loyal
• musical
• easygoing, friendly
• feminine, attractive
• compassionate, understanding
• open minded
• talented
• lovable
• classy, accommodating

• anything can be funny, so long as you say it very quickly
• no matter where you get coffee, you will always receive it in the same cup
  • furthermore, coffee is never too hot to drink
• you can eat whatever you want, whenever you want and never gain weight
• every conversation ever had will be heavily littered with obscure pop culture references
• if you are a single mother and run an inn, you will have endless amounts of money
  • you will spend said money on predominantly useless things
• don't worry, it's totally possible to make your hair, makeup and clothing look amazing, lollygag around for breakfast and still be early for work/school
• you don't have to close the door after yo...

What I actually say:

• "he/she is not available at the moment."
• "they're away from the phone right now."
• "they had to step out for a moment."
• "he/she is on the other line right now."
• "they're in a meeting."
• "he/she is assisting another client at the moment."
• "they're out to lunch for the next hour or so."
• "all their lines are in use at the moment."

What I'd like to say:

• "he/she doesn't want to talk to you."
• "there's probably a reason he/she never returns your call."
• "they're too lazy to take their own calls."
• "no, it doesn't matter how many times you call. They never answer their own phones."

• carelessly i kissed your lips.
• and when i did,
• i tasted him
• now all the light
• that's shining in
• illuminates the truth:
• we don't belong here anymore

• matchbox twenty:
  • "Push"
  • "Bent"
• Dave Matthews Band:
  • "The Space Between"
• Ellery:
  • "It's Alright"
  • "December Days"
  • "You Did Everything Right"
• Dan Fogelberg:
  • "Leader of the Band"
• Hanson:
  • "With You in Your Dreams"
• Patty Griffin:
  • "When it Don't Come Easy"

• yes, I am afraid of commitment
  • no, this does not mean I will always be happy in a non-committed relationship
• there will pretty much always be days / nights I would prefer to spend by myself
• I will never love you as much as I love my best friend
• I still talk to my ex-boyfriends
• I do not share a bed well
• sex is not something I will rush into under any circumstance
• upon getting in your car, I will almost immediately assume control of the radio
• my knowledge of any sport is extremely limited
• I love holding hands
• I am not a good dancer
• yes, I do want children someday
• even if I have my own beer, I will steal drinks from yours
• I'm uncomfortable with gratuitous amounts...

• Minnesota
• North Dakota
• South Dakota
• Wisconsin
• Michigan
• Iowa
• Montana
• Nevada
• Utah
• Georgia
  • Super cool moment in my life: We got out of the car and physically hopped the border between Georgia and Florida several times. For a second, I was in two places at once.
• Florida
• Arkansas
• Missouri
• Louisiana
• Ohio

• that it is okay to believe in anything, so long as you do not act on aspects of said belief that could potentially harm someone
• in angels
• that there is a heaven, and it is what you make it
• in some kind of higher power. Exactly what kind, I've not yet figured out.
• that taking time to help others will eventually result in others helping you.
• in a delicate balance between putting yourself first and putting others first. If you cannot take care of yourself you cannot take care of anyone else.
• In the power of decision. If you do not let something take you over, it cannot.
• that listening is sometimes enough
• that family is one of the most important things in life
• that people are never really gone

• Beffie
• Bethy
• Gracie
• Bef
• Snotgurl
• Sexy Bones
• Scar
• BGG
• B
• Befamy
• Bethann
• Weffers
• Little Bethy
• Gimpy
• B-Donk
• B-Gar
• Feffie
• Feff
• Fefferland

A:

• Audrey Hepburn films
• apple blossoms
• acoustic guitars
• antique stores
• argyle

B:

• baby feet
• blue drinks
• books
• bracelets

C:

• concerts
• coffee
• christmas
• clean sheets

• the blue of your eyes
• your ridiculously loud laugh
• your long, rambling stories
• the starchy feeling of your polo shirts
• your big, genuine smile
• your stupid, inappropriate jokes
• getting a birthday card from you
• the wet kisses you'd always plant on my cheeks
• hearing you rant about sports teams (even though I never had any earthly idea what you were talking about.)

• FICTION
  • Grady Tripp (_Wonder Boys_)
  • Hannah Green (_Wonder Boys_)
  • Novalee Nation (_Where The Heart Is_)
  • Charlie (_The Perks of Being a Wallflower_)
  • Nick Naylor (_Thank You For Smoking_)
  • Holden Caulfield (_The Catcher in the Rye_)
  • Noah Calhoun (_The Notebook_)
  • Zooey Glass (_Franny & Zooey_)
  • Aaron Naumann (_Bee Season_)
• TELEVISION
  • Pacey Witter (_Dawson's Creek_)
  • Joey Potter (_Dawson's Creek_)
  • Jack McPhee (_Dawson's Creek_)
  • Lorelai Gilmore (_Gilmore Girls_)
  • Rory Gilmore (_Gilmore Girls_)
  • Jess Mariano (_Gilmore Girls_)

• alright
• aware
• bare
• breeze
• careful
• catalyst
• compassion
• continuum
• conversation
• convoluted
• crutch
• delicate
• description
• desperate
• disingenuous
• downfall
• eclipse
• ember
• eventual
• exaggerate
• exasperated

• 100
• 60 Years On (Elton John)
• A Promise to Keep
• Again Today
• Auld Lang Syne (Traditional)
• Before it Breaks (solo and full band)
• Beginning to Feel The Years
• Blue Eyes Cryin' in the Rain (Willie Nelson)
• Bohemian Rhapsody (Queen)
• Boys of Summer [w/KT Tunstall] (Don Henley)
• Caroline
• Closer to Fine (w/Indigo Girls)
• Closer to You
• Crazy (Patsy Cline)
• Don't Think Twice, It's Alright [w/Indigo Girls] (Bob Dylan)
• Creep (Radiohead)
• Downpour
• Dreams

• Davenport
• Lancaster
• Calloway
• Kerrington
• Abercrombie
• Manchester
• Opgrande
• Crawford
• Deveraux
• Rosenthal
• Dennison
• Carlisle
• Wright
• Kellogg
• Monroe
• Price
  • no pun intended

• most of these are K's, but anyway... *-
  • upon more careful inspection, I found this not to be true. It's pretty equal.
• 3 Starbucks
  • 2 regular sized
  • 1 very large
    • kind of weird since we don't really drink Starbucks at all
• 1 Paris at Las Vegas
• 1 Babb's Coffee House
• 5 polka dot
  • 4 pampered chef series
  • 1 random
• 1 swirly circles
• 1 black and white stripes
• 2 FM Chamber Coral

• looks ravishing in a suit and tie
• has a fantastic sense of humor (and loves to hear me laugh)
• can teach me things, and learn from me too
• also believes that reading is sexy
• has a lovely smile and eyes
• likes to run his fingers through my hair
• lets me buy him clothes (and actually wears what I buy him)
• gets along with my family (no easy feat)
• is good with children and would like one or two someday
• doesn't mind take care of me every once in a while, but still allows me to maintain a level of independence
• looks good with a bit of scruff on his face
• doesn't mind holding my purse
• loves to travel
• takes in interest in my interests

• useless note #321545213: I realize it's entirely pointless to put up a black and white picture of the color wheel, but I couldn't forsake the motif I've got going here. Moving on...
• useless note#321545214: this makes my living room look like it's not put together very well, but it's cute. Everyone thinks so.
• red:
  • dvd cover
  • candle
  • ribbon
  • guitar
• orange:
  • my little pony toy sax (no, I'm not kidding)
• yellow:

• I'm not in the mood
• something is wrong and I don't want to talk about it.
• something is wrong and I do want to talk about it, but not unless you ask me what's wrong first
• I'm angry and have nothing nice to say to you
• I'm in a bad mood in general
• I'd like to be alone
• I'm trying to end this conversation
• I'm bored
• do it your g-damn self, you idiot
• don't touch me, I'm on my period
• everything you're doing is annoying the hell out of me
• I can't think of anything else to say
• I'm too lazy to form an actual opinion
• I'm tired.

• I eat around a sandwich rather than biting into it
• I put pepper on pretty much everything
• sometimes I eat with my right hand, sometimes my left
• I hardly every drink when I'm eating
• I prefer my peanut butter and jelly to have more peanut butter than jelly
  • I always spread the jelly first, then the peanut butter
• I will almost always order a cheeseburger
• I do not like most condiments
• if my vegetable side is green beans, I will eat all of those first before touching another part of my meal
• I love grapefruit juice but do not like to eat grapefruit
• I eat the bottom of the cupcake first
• I do not like to drink water with a straw...

• Aaron (Alias: Big A)
  • vast knowledge of a wide array of music
  • conversations bound to be full of humor/sarcasm
  • very tall
• Adam (Alias: Barone)
  • obsessed with "The Office"
  • King of Baronia
  • has best taste in music next to K
• Angel (Alias: Grace)
  • self-proclaimed master of awkward conversation
  • alias is actually her given name
  • articulate, people watcher
• Eric (Alias: James Bond)
  • often wears tux
  • enjoys being critical, will often hate wh...

• MUSICIAN/ROCK STAR:
  • why i'd be a good one: music is infinitely important to me. I write original songs. The band I'm in is unique and its name is really, really cool.
  • why i'd be a bad one: I often struggle with writers block and am sometimes insecure about my singing ability.
• AUTHOR:
  • why i'd be a good one: I am obsessed with words. I write all kinds of things, all the time: short stories, long stories, poetry, songs etc. I've been writing since I was a kid.
  • why i'd be a bad one: I hardly ever think anything I write is actually worthy of being published and am very shy about showing it to people. Furthermore, I often do not finish the things I start._
• PHOTOGRAPHER:

• INBOX:
  • from Karl:
    • "You staying home or going to Krissy's?"
    • "Ok. Catch you later?"
    • "You too. Get well soon."
  • from Crystal:
    • "a saturday. not sure what time yet. after 5. i'll let u know.
    • "Yes!"
    • Yep u should. anything u want. we r doing drinks & apps. i'm making killer choco cake."
  • from Krista:
    • "U coming in today sweetie?"
    • "Yay! If u bring coffee brig me some hehe"
    • "will you bring me a spoon if up still ho...

• magnetic poetry
  • and its resulting poems
• 30 magnets
  • 7 ladybugs
  • 4 Marilyn Monroe
  • 2 dragon files
  • 2 grand canyon landscapes
  • 1 moon
    • made from those tiny tube shaped things you heat together on wax paper
  • 1 Casablanca
  • 1 Switzerland
    • shaped like a bar of chocolate
  • 2 random flowers
    • they match the pad for grocery lists
  • 1 Rome

1. Every one of us was born on an odd day.

• David, November 13
• Tracy, December 31
• James, August 11
• Noah, January 27
• Laura, July 19
• Beth, January 21
• Brandon, October 17

2. My parents were married on the shortest day of the year.

• Winter Solstice, December 23

3. I am the only sibling who has not had their last name altered from their original birth certificate.

• Austin to Garland (James, Noah, Laura)
• Paul to Garland (Brandon)

(for the record, yes, Kari. Your list did inspire me to make my own.)

• Tasha Golden (Ellery)
• Brandi Carlile
• Sarah McLachlan
• Patty Griffin
• Natalie Merchant
• Alison Krauss
• Chrissie Hynde (The Pretenders)
• Hayley Williams (Paramore)
• Bonnie Raitt
• Mindy Smith
• Ella Fitzgerald
• Nina Simone
• Kelly Clarkson
• Alecia Moore (Pink)
• Regina Spektor

JANUARY 2009:

• 11: Beth is under this national raincloud
• 08: Beth is on a champagne high
• 07: Beth is the one who's afraid of these ghosts
• 06: Beth has the spirit of a hustler and the swagger of a college kid.
• 01: *Beth is coffee black and egg white

DECEMBER 2008:

• 23: Beth survives on the breath you are finished with
• 18: Beth was dreaming when she wrote this.
• 10: Beth may know the word, but not say it.
• 09: Beth would like to bring you back (I miss you Grandpa Bill)
• 01: Beth is beginning to look a lot like Christmas.

• BOYS:
  • Ellery
  • Logan
  • Noah
  • Sebastian
  • River
  • Milo
  • Jude
  • Grady
  • Holden
• GIRLS:
  • Ever
  • Harlow
  • Audrey
  • Lorelai
  • Sophia
  • Elanor
  • Maggie
  • Lydia

• in state:
  • The Fargo Theatre
  • The Fargodome
  • The Aquarium
  • The Avalon
  • The Civic Center
  • The Avalon Events Center
  • The Spirit Room
  • The Venue
  • Playmakers Pavillion (RIP)
  • The Red River Valley Fairgrounds
  • The Ascot Room
  • The Quest Club
  • First Avenue
  • Alltel Center
  • The O'Shagnessy
  • The MN Zoo Amphitheater
  • The Varsity Theatre
  • Bayfront Festival Park
  • XCel Energy Center

you should:

• The Perks of Being a Wallflower
• Wonder Boys
• Thank You for Smoking
• Fight Club
• Catcher in the Rye
• Where the Heart Is
• To Kill a Mockingbird
• Franny & Zooey
• Bee Season
• Choke
• Me Talk Pretty One Day
• The Guardian
• A Model World and Other Stories
• White Oleander
• Don't Sleep With Your Drummer
• The da Vinci Code
• Memoirs of a Geisha
• Les Miserables

i should: