Coretta Jean's blog

What Makes Me Happy ((Shake Your Boo-tay))... What Makes Me Sad ((Medocrity))...

"PaPa I'm a millionaire... But Saks Fifth Ave Don't Sell Affection" 

This has been a crazy week. I know I keep saying this, but it's so true((And if you're wondering where the pictures are- Silence Yourself... Just be glad they're aren't any... I for one am wondering where those Shake Your Booty Kareoke Pictures Are...EK!!!)) Maybe this is the way the rest of my life is going to be... It's exciting and exhausting all at the same time. I miss those afternoons when I could relax on the couch and watch Oprah and fall asleep and drewl all over one of my suede pillows. Those were the days...

Last week I said I was going to do all these good things for myself... Instead I've ended up doing the exact opposite. It's funny how when you say something out loud, most of the time the results reveal the same thing you were searching to escape. What can I say... I am a creature of habit, and sometimes it's harder than you may think to break a particular bad bad screeeeeeechingly bad bad bad habit. Against better judgment... Friends shaking their disapproving finger in your face... Looking in the mirror and feeling disappointed with yourself... And then suddenly... strangely happy. It doesn't make sense AT ALL!

Such is life... If I wasn't tired to the bones, monetarily, financially, and physically drained, I suppose I would be doing something wrong. That just means, that I'm using every advantage to the fullest. Which is excellent :)

And like I have said many times in the past... I can be a little too forth coming when involved in a bitchfest. I need a lesson in discretion every once in a while... Recently my tongue has been wagging a little too much, not to mention singing kareoke a little too often, imbibing too much alcohol, chomping one too many crunchy tacos from TB, and perhaps a little too lip locked with a certain individual ((Even when that person is really hot))... Sometimes things that feel so good, can be extremely magnanimously monumentally detrimentally outstandingly massively bad for many parts of your life, self, psyche, and self-respect. Ha ha. Funny how that is. There has been a few points in the last couple weeks when I have felt disgusted with myself. I guess that's normal, lol.

C-Unit's putting on the breaks.

I can't separate the two things... I just can't. It's nature... It's who I am, and I don't want to be any different. So with that being said... I am going to head out to my internship, finish my tuna fish sandwich, find somebody to help hang my tv sometime this week, run that mile in my head and call it a day on the deep thoughts. lol.

Have a super day my loves <3

Temporary Solution To A Permanant Problem...

"What comes up must come down." - Proverb

There a lot of things I have been noticing falling apart because of this "duct tape" sort of quick fixes that have been applied with great generosity.

It's been a trying week.

I started my internship @ 7 News this week!!! And I'm also working full time, so I'm a little spent. Before this week started I was pulling my hair out with stress & frustration (((And there may have been a mini-breakdown.))) But... What's new right?!? Ha ha. No really had a friend pass away this week in addition to life's usual stresses... Started my internship (of which I was terrified)... It all turned out well. Life's stresses have definitely been getting the better of me as of late - So I've decided to do something nice for myself.

Nice Thing# 1: Get this... This morning I took a shower!

Puzzled???? I've been so busy/exhausted I've been missing out on life's necessities... So Mr. Shower and I had a very intimate moment this morning- While scrubbing furiously. He cleansed me like the rivers Jordan!

Oh... I'm also on this new diet called "busy." It's where I never eat because I have no time to. And so far I've been most successful at it, lol. It makes me plan more frequently... Think about what I'm eating. So It's been a lot of whole wheat bread, shredded wheat, and oatmeal... Taco Bell has finally taken a backseat to my ever so speedy hypertension.

Nice Thing# 2: Last night I took myself out for some drinks at the candlelight... And boy they were tasty. I also have a plan to feed the ducks sometime this week... That is definitely one of my favorite past times about living in the Tri-Cities. Now that I live less than a block from City Park, I really want to take advantage of it. Everyday on my way home I see the geese out in the park with their new babies, and I have an urge to pull over and chase them... So instead I will just buy some bread and give them a treat soon.

Nice Thing# 3: I'm going to clean my car out finally... Since I moved a couple weeks ago, I have the most random things packed into my trunk... A Zebra Shower curtain, A shelf, Cleaning Supplies, Scrapbooking Material, Love Letters, Journals, Dirt from a spilled plant, and God knows what else... Also this week, I spilt enchilada sauce all over my front seat, so it's wayyyyyy over due for a cleaning.

Nice Thing# 4: After I go out on Saturday (I have a baby shower and than I plan on having a few too many drinks with whoever wants to par-tay) I plan on sleeping a rediculous amount of hours until Sunday Funday festivities commence on Sunday.

More updates on the internship will proceed :)

Lifestyles of the Rich & Famous: Intern C-Unit

So far my internship experience has been very positive. If nothing else it has kept my mind off other thrivless things of unimportant value and weight. I for one can say I am learning.

First lesson I've learned is that when you're an intern you are a minion.... I mean I knew this when I went into it, but I totally didn't even think about what that means in the newsroom. It's not bad at all... Really... But I do constantly get that feeling like I'm in someone's way, I've done something wrong, or someone wishes I wasn't there. ha ha.
In fact.... One woman refers to me and others as "INTERN." I just nod my head and accept the title, even though it comes with much shame and hazing.

Ultimately I know at the end of it I will come out of this experience with knowledge and experience that I need to be able to thrive in my market.

So far I've been working in the newsroom at the assignment desk. It's very stressful and everyone kind of has that demeanor of high priority, fast paced, competitiveness........ It's exciting......... And also very frightening. I attend the news meeting at 2:30 and get to hear reporters and producers news ideas and the way the show will be lined up that evening. I haven't had any ideas as of yet, but I think in a few weeks or sooner I may have enough courage to raise my hand before the big wigs.

I also got to go out with a photographer on Monday... It started off as going to chase weather near the airport, but we ended up at this meeting in Greenwood Village about Coyotes. It was very exciting, and I even got to ask questions on camera to a few people we interviewed for the segment.

I know I have a LOT more to learn and my experience at 7News has just started, so hopefully it will continue into the future. My dad has informed me that I should always have fresh breathe at work.. So I am taking that into consideration (Note to self: Brush teeth more often). Lol.

Stress Free Days Are None Over

"A Winner knows when the price of winning comes too high; A Loser is overly eager to win what he cannot handle or keep."     -   Sydney J. Harris, Winners & Losers

I finished the semester. Once again I have managed to topple that mountain of homework, stress, and laziness to breeze by into summer. I got a 3.5… Which isn’t bad, but it feels a lot less rewarding this semester given the circumstances.
I know I haven’t been writing. Well… I have been, but not for public consumption. There have been many changes this semester… And learning to cope, as I always do, was another challenge that I felt that I conquered and failed at. They say that “life is tough, but I am tougher”… I wonder how much long I will hold on to that sentiment, ha ha. I picked up a few bruises, a softball injury, 2 new male roommates, an internship, new friends, a new found romance, and silence that I never thought I’d be able to understand. I for one am very surprised by the outcome of this year so far… It’s been a slow moving one, but a good one none the less. I have found that I am thankful for the many outcry’s in my life… Which I find strange. Not everyone is fortunate enough to let their negative experiences rock their world… I have a sharp hint that I’m about to hit another bump in the road… But, it’s only temporary.

But one thing I have learned in the last couple of months is that I can change someone’s life… even if that means making a pit stop and packing up my bags and leaving quite abruptly. Some people need this kind of offering, I know I do.

Shopping @ Walmart Is Always a Friggin' Disaster...

So yesterday I was made aware of "Walmart Bingo"...
As a general rule I usually try to stay away from Hellmart at all times, but it never fails that at least 3 times a year, I force myself to venture down that trailer trash road to freedom (also known as 1-70 & Quebec). I had been planning my trip to hell in my head for a couple weeks now... A friend (who will remain anonymous) and I were gonna head down that way to buy our annual spring time plants. I was supposed to do this last weekend, but I was too busy being drunk and taking naps to be bothered with buying plants :) So anyway... She suggested we go Monday afternoon since I bailed on her this weekend, but once the afternoon progressed she made other plans to take a napsie... I on the other hand had to make it down that way, because unfortunately my DVD player has been manfunctioning as of late, and well... What the hell is the point of having a 37" flat screen HDTV if you can't watch your favorite pornographic movies on it (har har har).

Walmart Bingo

Unfortunately every time I go to Walmart there are one too many crying babies, half clothed children, and people oblivious to you that they are obstructing your way. This time was no exception. The worst part was the fact that I was all alone, so as I walked the isles by my lonesome I was on guard preparing for a skeezer to nudge me while standing next to his wife (who looks like she may belong to a gang). Without fail as I was walking in some guy whistled at me as I crossed through the crosswalk, from his full on purple molester van "Where you going baby?" ... Not only did I give him the stink eye, but I also may have said "Ew..." ha ha. Needless to say, "Mr.T" and I did not exchange phone numbers.

The worst part about the whole experience was that they were out of the DVD player I had previously inquired about... Which shouldn't have surprised me. But I refused to walk out of the store empty handed... I didn't suffer through all that for nothing! I just bought the more expensive one and called it a day.

Alas the day was going to end peacefully when I decided to meet one of my friends downtown to meet a friend he had in from out of town. But I made the wise decision of riding the light rail downtown (to avoid the meter)... My problem was that I was smart enough to wear a bite sized dress and 4.5 inch heels, so every move that I made down the street I was being cat called and verbally assaulted with lines like "I think we've met before... In my dreams."  

Another Project

I finished another project for my bedroom... 

I sold my bedroom furniture including my dresser and bed with all the drawers underneath. It was probably for the best because I was using all the extra space underneath to hide random stuff that didn't belong there. lol. I hit up Goodwill at least 3 or 4 times a year to drop off a massive amount of stuff I find underneath my bed. I'm stubborn to let go of things I don't bother to wear, and I don't know why?!? ha ha.

Instead of refinishing an old bed, I opted just to buy a new one :) It was well worth it, I love it. 

More pictures to come once I get my bedroom put back together again 

Yesterday I bought a box spring for my new bed and dragged it in all on my own... Unfortunately in the process I knocked my wine rack off the wall and a bottle of wine shattered and splashed on my brand new box spring, ha ha. Funny how things fall together, lol.

I'm Crafty Like A Handyman

Most of you know I made the trek home last week to Pasco, Washington by car. I'm the kind of girl who enjoys a good old fashioned road trip. It's good to have company along the way, but the time I spent alone in my car was golden. I love to jam out in my car and sing loudly and off key, so it's probably for the better that I opted to do the trip solo. 

Anywayz.... My dad just finished remodeling the house so he and his new wife Laura bought all new furniture and or swapped the old stuff out. My grandmother had this curio cabinet corner hutch that stand about 7 feet tall that I always loved, and it was just chillin' in the barn (yes I said barn) for God know's how long. So my dad helped me stuff it in my car and I drove back to Denver to fix it up.

Most people don't know that I'm actually pretty crafty. Besides the usual scrapbooks, picture albums, and collages you can see in my apartment, I love to refinish old furniture. Living where I do, doesn't leave much room for these projects, but I was fortunate enough to be able to finish this one. It's sad these days... I really admire my dad, because he always knew how to fix things with his hands, but these days it's rare that you can find a man who can fix a leaky faucet, install hardwood floors, or simply a man who owns tools. 

But anyway... I fixed up the cabinet and it's in excellent condition now. It was originally pretty banged up and a light oak color, but I sanded it down, primed & painted, and buffed and now it's awesome!!! I'm really happy with my results :)

Hutch

Christmas Music!!!

X-Mas

Saying that I'm obsessed with Christmas Music and picking out my Christmas cards is putting it mildly....

I already tortured my best friend Chris with the dilemma of whether to buy cards at Papyrus ( like I always do, and over spend by about $75 each time)... or to create them on snapfish... Needless to say... No one really cares except me, ha ha.

But!!!

I get a little too excited when people ask me to make them a Christmas cd... And well... way way too many people asked me this year.

You wanna see my "O" face... then ask me to make you a cd. Make my day.

I love the traditional... You should never overlook the conventional Burt Ives, Bing Crosby, Elvis, Harry Connick Jr., Disney, and Sinatra.... But the need for newly updated versions is very important too. I personally have a soft spot for any biblical Christmas music...my favorite!!! It always manages to bring a tear to my eye. lol. 

But anyway... I would list all of the music I have, but it's over 250 songs long... Here are some of my favorite songs to listen to during the holiday season (or in July if need be)...

1. White Christmas by Otis Redding (My all time favorite Christmas song)
2. Blue Christmas by Sheryl Crow
3. Maybe This Christmas by Ron Sexsmith
4. Run Run Rudolph by Chuck Berry
5. It Came Upon A Midnight Clear by Sixpence None The Richer
6. Peace by Norah Jones
7. Christmas In Hollis by Run DMC
8. Baby It's Cold Outside by Dean Martin
9. Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas by Diana Krall
10. What Child Is This by Vanessa Williams
11. The Holy Baby by Mahalia Jackson
12. Greensleeves by Vanessa Carlton
13. Wonderful Christmastime by Paul McCartney (Wings)
14. O' Holy Night by Avril Lavigne (even though she's off key most of the songs... it's got a triumph end)
15. Frosty The Snowman by Jimmy Durate
16. This Christmas by Donny Hathoway
17. It's The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year by Andy Williams
18. I Heard The Bells On Christmas  Day by Pedro The Lion.
19. Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree by Brenda Lee.
20. And even though this is not a Christmas song, it always reminds me of Christmas... In A Sentimental Mood by John Coltrane.

Letter's: Part 3 {My Year In Review 2008}

 

AB 87

"Only the wisest and stupidest of men never change." - Confucius

I don't know how 2009 could possibly touch 2008.

I have travelled 24 years from birth...  24 amazing years.

In 2008 my life was engulfed by change, by sight and sound, experience and solitude, set backs and monumental leaps forward. I learned more about myself this year than perhaps I have accumulatively. I made so many friends, and I can't thank God enough for that. I bought a car... danced in the crowds at Carnival... I met Joe Biden... I climbed the Great Wall of China... I walked the steps of the Taj Mahal... I went parasailing in Malaysia... I embarked on a journey that took me across 12 countries, 4 continents, 3 oceans, and countless seas. I fell in love (and then out of love, ha ha)... I ate tons of sushi... drank gallons and gallons of wine... I moved my 300 pound piano with my pants around my ankles... I found the courage to confront my demons and I became a self-sufficient, responsible, happy, intelligent, educated, beautiful self-supporting machine that is what I believe is the shining example of exactly where I am supposed to be right now in my life.

 

Jaipur 81

And through frustrations and tears and complaints and suffereing and adversity and challenges I have become myself. I learned more this year about living my life better and without regret, than I ever imagined I'd learn in a lifetime. I know I still have a lot of things to learn, but glad to have gotten at least a few out of the way in the meantime.

I've learned that patience, is a much harder task than it ever used to be.

I've learned that money is a lousy way of keeping score or measuring success.

((Again)) I've learned that my stomach doesn't particularily care for Indian food... despite the fact that I have not yet stopped to listen to it, as it is grinding and seizing throughout the night.

I've learned that poverty is a curse and I'd be better off disappearing from this earth than turning a blind eye to someone else's suffering.

I've learned that it's not my job to understand men as a whole... Just the few that deserve and warrant my recognition.

I've learned that my love and need for certain people who continue to disappoint me may have run its course.

I've learned that there is a lot of good in this world.

I've learned that self love is the hardest lesson I'll ever learn.

I've learned that I don't always make the right decisions, but I don't have to suffer in my indifference.

I've learned that Denver is my home afterall...

I-70 A Deathtrap?!?

1-70

<<<<Wintertime Frisco News Update>>>> 

Sunday afternoon the roads took a turn for the worst and 1-70 East was closed ((This is a picture of the inbound traffic... 1 hour and 15 minute wait to get to top of Eisenhower tunnel!!! In the middle of the intersection about to die.. thanks Yoder)).

We decided to stay and wait it out, considering we had no other options, lol. It actually was a lot of fun because of the large amount of people that were stock piled into that condo; which included my favorite silverback cougar hunting Kent, lol.

Eventually the roads opened up and I decided to head back around 11pm (finals week at school)... Tuning out the possiblity of death on either side of me (ie on coming traffic to my left and the plunge of black abysmal death to my right). I turned up Zero 7 and attempted to relax, even though I was driving back all by my lonesome at a whopping 35 miles an hour.

I gotta say... The Saab is really starting to impress me. I enjoy the simple things in life like wheels & and an axle, windows that roll down, and doors of course... But the Saab is doing quite better I must admit. The heated leather seats do me pretty good on a cold winter's night... And apparently I have fog lights, light wipers, the "good" tires, and 4-Wheel drive (sorta)... That's an upgrade from the Hyundai. lol. 

I managed to get back to Denver in one piece, which is all I can ask for.

I'm glad to come back to my super plush pillowtop mattress minus Quincy & Krista (no offense guys I'm just tired of the snoring). The log cabin 4 post bed is nice once you hit it after 4 glasses of wine, but not so much with 5 people in the same spot. lol. Goodbye Frisco, be back soon I promise.