Island Law

One of the doctors that I used to work with warned me before we moved down here that the police target white people. DWW (driving while white) was a pretty common offense. She has an uncle that lives on a nearby island that had experienced this quite a bit. The paler you are, the more likely you were to be a target.

I can verify that this is true on this island. Only it isn't just white people that they target. They are specifically targeting white students. If you look like a tourist, you'll get away with more crap. Since the police here are pretty useless and unbelievably lazy, they are mostly looking for traffic related offensives.

It's not like the US where the police pull you over either. Down here, they set up road blocks. They are looking for expired tags, broken/damaged license plates, expired insurance, and current driver's licenses. These are set up on the main road (i.e. the only road) so it's not like you can just take side streets to get around it. You have no option but to go through it. So you better have everything up to date.

Now, I know that it doesn't sound like they are targeting students based on the fact that they stop everyone. The thing is, they set up these road blocks near the school. The traffic that is going towards the school is stopped but the traffic that is going the other way is free to drive by. Sounds a little suspicious doesn't it?

Last week we received an email from someone at the school (a high ranking school official) after a student was thrown in jail for driving an uninsured car. Wasn't even his car, but he got to go to jail. And he'll have a huge fine. The email explained to us that it wasn't a rumor that the police were targeting students. It was a fact.

The police will find any reason to fine students. A friend of ours was recently in a car accident. She was stopped behind two taxis (driven by locals). One of the waved her around them (they were picking people up) and she went. Then as she was going around them, one of the taxis pulled out rather quickly and hit her. Her car rolled. Yep, she was hit hard enough to roll her car. It landed upside down. She was wearing her seat belt and was just hanging there. No one got out to help. There were two taxis full of people and no one got out to help her. These taxis are 15 passenger vans. 30 people and not one even walked up to her car despite her screams for help. At some point, 2 people who were driving by got her out of the car and brought her to the hospital.

The fault doesn't belong to any one person. They are both at fault. However, our friend was charged with a hit and run. Because she went to the hospital. Her car was upside down. She was injured (arm looked like hamburger). A hit and run. Unbelievable.

Sadly, over the weekend a student died in a car accident. We weren't that close to him, but we knew him from football and he had been down here just as long as us. It's very possible that he had been drinking prior to driving but what we've heard is that someone came into his lane to pass a car, while approaching a hill, and hit him head on as he came over the hill. He was not wearing a seatbelt and was thrown from the car.

The police have not released any information just yet but no one is expecting it to be an accurate account of what happened. It is incredibly unfair to his family. They have a right to know what really happened. He will be blamed for this. Sure, he shouldn't have been drinking. But it is so very, very stupid to pass a car when approaching a hill. You just can't see if anyone is coming. The road is narrow, only one lane in each direction. There was no where for either one of them to go.

The police here should be focusing on the real problems on this island. Who cares if a license plate is cracked? How about going after the murderers? Or the gang of locals that are robbing local businesses? Or maybe they could look for the bastards that break into homes? I guess real criminals are just too hard to go after.

100 Things About Me

So in my last post I mentioned that it is tradition in the blogosphere to do a "100 Things About Me" post when you reach your 100th post. It's a right of passage that I feel obligated to participate in. Not sure why. Maybe because they are usually fun to read. So in no particular order here are 100 things you may or may not have known.

1. I am almost 30
   
2. That scares the crap out of me, but I'm not sure why
   
3. I don't feel like I'm almost 30
   
4. I've been dating Itchy for 5 years
5. We were friends/coworkers for 2 years prior to our first date
   
6. I was his boss when we started dating
   
7. We are now the proud parents of 2 cats
8. I live on a Caribbean island
9. It's not what I expected, but if I had the opportunity to do it again, I would
10. I hope that some day I will get to travel
    
11. I love the smell of coffee
12. But I think it tastes awful
13. I was very addicted to Mountain Dew, but I quit cold turkey on December 29th 2004
14. I quit after hearing an addiction meeting on the radio (call-in show, they had much more serious addictions, like cocaine and meth). I freaked out that I could identify with so many of them (planning my day around it, did I have enough for the next day or should I get more tonight, etc)
    
15. I love chocolate
16. But I don't like chocolate frosting or chocolate cake
17. I love to read, doesn't matter what, I just crave reading (which explains my love of the internet)
    
18. I worry too much (it runs in the family, thanks Mom)
19. It doesn't take much to annoy me, but it takes a whole hell of a lot to actually make me angry. Once you've made me angry, good luck getting back on my good side. I don't forget the things that make me angry.
    
20. I like dogs but I do not want one of my own. Yet.
    
21. I do not like puppy breath
    
22. I have framed pictures of my cats hanging on my living room walls
23. I also have a paw imprint of each cat framed and hanging on the wall
    
24. Someday I want to foster momma cats and their kittens
    
25. I love The Simpsons, Homer still cracks me up even after all these years
    
26. I watch too much tv (The Office, Gilmore Girls reruns, My Boys, etc)
27. I have nearly every line from "Tommy Boy" memorized
28. I don't wear makeup. Ever.
    
29. "Doing my hair" consists of pulling it into a ponytail
30. My favorite shoes are flip flops
    
31. But I prefer to be barefoot
    
32. Favorite color is blue (almost always has been, went through a brief yellow phase though)
33. Autumn is my favorite season (the colors, the brisk clean air, the apples)
34. I'm a bit of a germaphobe, the thought of sharing a glass with someone grosses me out
35. I check my email at least 5 times a day
36. I love sleeping in and I am really good at it
37. I'm afraid of koalas
    
38. And snakes in cages
    
39. I never really had a nickname as a kid, Itchy has remedied that and rarely calls me by my given name
40. I love the idea of having fresh flowers in my house
41. But since the cats would just eat them or knock them over, I won't buy them
42. I love a good bargain. Sometimes I want to buy things just because I can get a good deal. It's a sickness, I need medication.
    
43. My dream car is pretty boring (Lexus ES in Black Sapphire Pearl with a black interior)
44. My first car was a white Malibu
    
45. Oddly, my first rental car was also a white Malibu
46. I like the idea of bubble baths, but I find baths to be kind of gross. I prefer showers.
    
47. I'm very sensitive to the chlorine in pools and often get really, really sick just from being near a pool
48. I am nearly blind without glasses/contacts
49. I need a fan/air conditioner running for me to sleep (totally Itchy's fault)
50. I must have at least one blanket, not just a sheet, on me when I sleep
51. I can NOT have the sheets/blankets tucked in at the foot of the bed
    
52. The starting of every sentence with "I" is bugging me
53. I played the clarinet in elementary/middle school, but I always wanted to play the drums
54. I have no ear for other languages, can't really understand people that speak with a heavy accent, and despite years of Spanish class, I speak no Spanish
55. You know those surveys that pop up on some websites, I take them every single time they pop up for me
56. I also enter myself in numerous online contests, but never win
    
57. Which explains why I also saved the "Turkey Points" from every package of Jeannie O Turkey that Itchy and I bought (we received a t-shirt, beach blanket, Frisbee, and cookbook)
58. I am the baby of the family
59. The typical profile for the botf (lazy, absent minded, self centered, etc) doesn't really fit me
    
60. I had braces for 4 years
61. Thanks to my wisdom teeth, my teeth are no longer straight
62. Speaking of wisdom teeth, all 4 of mine are impacted
63. I performed in a talent show as a child, I did a magic show (it did not go well)
    
64. Unless countless hours of babysitting counts, my first job was in a soil testing lab
65. My sister got me that job (easiest job ever)
66. Although stupid people annoy me, I find them amusing
67. Speaking of the stupid, I once corrected 2 fellow college students that sign language was not, in fact, used by the blind. I still find this story hilarious.
    
68. I have very little tolerance for inconsiderate people
69. I feared being called on in class (even if I knew the answer)
70. My eyes change color (ranging from gray, bright blue, and green)
71. I like to go fishing and am perfectly content to catch nothing
    
72. I do not like to eat fish
    
73. I do eat and enjoy other seafood (mmm, lobster)
    
74. I'd like to have children soon
75. Even though Itchy has not proposed, we have theoretically chosen the date
76. I also have a potential location, color, and flower picked out
77. But I wouldn't mind eloping in Vegas (big, fancy weddings aren't my thing)
    
78. While in Vegas, I want to see Wayne Newton (he's an icon!)
    
79. I have big feet (size 11)
80. I trip over them constantly
81. I've never had a manicure or pedicure
82. My ears and my nose are pierced (ears hurt way more)
83. I often think about piercing my tongue but chicken out and now I feel too old to do it
    
84. I once drew a picture of a stick person, next to a lake, with a giant smiley faced sun as an answer on a final. In college. They did not give me credit. I can not blame them. It looked a little like this:
    
    
85. Favorite food has always been, currently is, and shall always be pizza (toppings may change, but I love me some pizza)
86. I have tried sushi, I wanted to like it, but I just don't
87. I'm all too aware that many of these things are about food, it's no wonder I am overweight
    
88. I once dropped my mom's (was her grandma's) kitchen aid mixer on my foot. It sliced my big toe and I still have a scar (the mixer was fine though it lived for many more years). I didn't tell my mom that it happened even though it probably should have had stitches.
    
89. I don't put ketchup on my burger, I put it on the plate and then dip my burger into it
90. I was accused of breaking my arm, on purpose, to get out of playing volleyball by my gym teacher (I didn't, I was pushed)
91. I've seen a dolphin give birth
    
92. I've bottled-fed at least 15 different animal species (moose, red panda, pronghorn, rabbit, hare, red squirrel, gray squirrel, raccoon, white tail deer, beaver, dog, cat, gray fox, red fox, opossum, mice, etc)
93. The last concert I went to was Modest Mouse (Camper Van Beethoven opened for them)
    
94. What now? was a phrase I often used. Not in the harsh, what do you want now kind of way, but in the sorry, I wasn't paying attention, what did you say just now variety. I like to pretend that I am a better listener now.
95. I've yelled at a complete stranger
96. But I try to be polite and kind (karma and all that)
97. The first real musical (you know, not a high school production) I went to was Rent
98. I was born in the year of the Monkey, which is odd because I collected them (stuffed, figurines, etc) as a child/teen. I had hundreds of them. I gave almost all of them away.
99. I wanted to be Jane Goodall/Diane Fosey
100. I don't really know what I want to be now

I struggled with parts of this list. You can probably see that. Once I was nearing the end, I thought of at least a dozen things that I should add. I didn't add them. It would have ruined the integrity of the list. The things listed are in the order in which I thought of them.

ETA: The combo of #1 and #100 scare me more than a little.

Holy Birthday Batman!

We had a birthday weekend extravaganza this past weekend. We went to our friend Mohawk's surprise birthday party on Friday night. We felt pretty old. We're 4 years older than him and 8 years older than his girlfriend (who really couldn't be any nicer). Yikes. But it was a fun night. Not sure if it actually surprised him, but if it wasn't at least he pretended.

Then on Saturday, our Other friends were throwing a party for Itchy and J. Her birthday was on Friday (I think) and Itchy's birthday was on Sunday. So a combined party was had. I was still a little tired from the night before, but it was a pretty relaxing night anyway. It was at Shots' house and she just got a new puppy. He is too freaking cute.

Sunday we had football. It was Itchy's birthday and all he wanted was a win. Not only did they win, but Itchy got a touchdown! Yay! I made Itchy a delicious birthday omelet after the game. He didn't want cake or anything so that's all we did. He had a test on Monday morning so we couldn't really do anything anyway. On a rather sad note, Itchy's own mother did not remember his birthday. She called last week to remind Itchy to call his dad on Sunday and when he said that it was HIS day and they should call him, she did not know why. He told her it was his birthday. On the other hand, MY mom not only remembered but sent a card.

We went to the beach on Monday after Itchy's test. More fun was had by all. I love the beach. It was hot out and the water was really, really warm. Almost creepy warm. The biggest surprise was that I didn't get sunburned! What can I say, wearing a hat and a t-shirt will help with that.

After the beach, Itchy and I went out to dinner for his birthday. It was difficult to choose a restaurant because none of them are really that good. Eventually, we chose one. Of course, it was also the busiest (probably) restaurant on the island. It took forever to get the food. And when we did get our food, I was pretty disappointed. I wanted steak. So I ordered steak. Itchy ordered a steak and onion sandwich. I got this dinky little steak and a little mound of mashed potatoes. Itchy's plate was overflowing with food. Giant sandwich and a huge pile of fries. For half the price. I was pretty hungry so I was regretting my choice a little. I mean, he may not have the best cut of steak, but it was still steak.

It the end though, my steak was really freaking amazing. Totally what I wanted. I'm not just saying that either. It was really, really good.

The only downside to the whole weekend was that Itchy lost his cell phone. Not a huge surprise since he loses things often. But he lost it twice this weekend. Once at a gas station on Friday night (a local kid flagged us down and gave it back) and then again on Monday. For a guy that loses stuff as often as he does, he gave up on finding his cell phone pretty quickly. By the time we got back from the beach on Monday he had already decided it was gone forever.

So today we went to buy him a new phone. Nothing fancy, but certainly nicer than the ones that we got when we got down here in August 2006. Itchy was busy doing homework so I was playing with it. I'll admit I was a little jealous that Itchy got a new phone and I didn't. Itchy must have realized that because he gave me the new phone and he took my old one. So now I have a fun new phone (same phone numbers for both of us though)!

As some of you may have noticed, this is my 99th post. It is tradition to do a "100 things about me" post as your 100th post. Something for all of you to look forward to. It'll probably be up by the end of the week.

ETA: I totally called the NBA finals! I told Itchy weeks ago that the Boston Celtics (and my beloved Kevin Garnett) would win the Finals in Game 6, with KG getting a triple double. He may not have gotten a triple double, but he still had a great game that resulted in a ring.

Research

I'm moving. Not yet, but soon. See the ticker at the bottom of my blog. April 2009 and we are out of here.

Problem is that we don't know where. We won't know until sometime in January 2009 (maybe even February). We've been pretending that we'll have some say in it, but it's beginning to look like it's pretty random and not up to us at all.

Itchy's school requires students to complete their 4th year in a stateside school. There are 28 vet schools in the US. Only about 20 of them will accept students from Itchy's school. Itchy will get to submit his top three choices and (this is where the pretending comes into play) hopefully he will be sent to one of them.

He will submit his choices this fall so we have been thinking about this a lot. We saw the list of options and immediately eliminated over half of them. Just based on geography. There are places that we just don't want to live. I've been researching our remaining 7 choices. Plus one school that seems to take a lot of students.

Places that seemed like an obvious choice are now at the bottom of the list. One place is off the list completely. The school that takes a lot of students makes me want to cry. It sounds just awful. The school itself is fine, but the location is terrible. The research has given us a pretty good idea of where we want to go. We have some hypothetical lists set up. Again, pretending that we have some say in this.

Realistically, certain schools are guaranteed a certain number of students. Itchy's school is obligated to send them. Other schools will only take a few people. This is why it's so random. If 20 people all pick the same school, but that school only takes 3 people, how do they choose? It doesn't seem like it based completely on grades. Only a couple of schools do interviews, so it's not based on that. So what is it? Extracurriculars? Do they talk to Professors? Or is it random? It just seems so unfair. If Itchy studies all the time and then gets good grades, shouldn't that matter?

Not knowing where we are going doesn't really bother me. Sure, there are options that would really suck but I'm pretending that we won't go there.

A Bug's Life

No, not the movie. The bugs that are trying to live in my house. In the last week or so we've seen a noticeable increase in bug traffic.

We live in the tropics so it's understood that we will have an occasional bug. Usually a large bug. Doesn't mean that I like it, but I get it. We've been pretty lucky, as we haven't had THAT many bugs. Rumor has it that some apartments get centipedes on a very regular basis.

However, we've definitely seen an increase in bugs. I'm not talking flies here people. Cockroaches. Centipedes. Ants. Disgusting.

The centipedes are the hardest to kill. They drink Raid like it's a fine wine. They bench press the heavy books we throw on them. Only a combo of Raid, Miller's Anatomy of the Dog (a nearly 7 lb book), a good beating with a heavy shoe, and sometimes a special slashing with a dedicated centipede knife will kill the bastards. Did I mention that they bite? They also run at you. Most sane bugs run away from you. Not these crazy fucks, they run right at you.

The one that Cuddles alerted us to the other night was probably only 7 inches long. Once I realized what he was looking at I flew over there to 1.)get him away from it and 2.) kill it. I have no mercy for them. If they are in my house, looking at my cat, and touching my stuff, well then they are going to die. They want to live, then stay outside.

Just about an hour ago, Itchy was caught off guard by a cockroach. He screamed like a little girl. I went in to his cave to kill it with Raid but it had gone under the bed. Patches, being the champion bug hunter that she is, ran after it. I don't like to spray POISON by my cats so I grabbed her and got her out of the way. Itchy moved the dresser and then Patches ran under the bed again. She forced it out from under there. Once it was out in the open it was easy to kill.

Those are just 2 of the bugs we've had recently. I'm tired of them. They creep me out. What if they are climbing on me when I sleep? I jokingly told people that I was going to live in a huge bubble while we were down here. Now I wonder if it would be possible. Maybe just for around the bed. At least I'd be protected while I sleep. Hmm, something like this might work.

Crazy cat lady?

I readily admit that I am a crazy cat lady in training. These days, I'm wondering if the training isn't complete. I wonder if I will get a certificate? Granted, I only have two cats and I don't live alone (I swear, Itchy is a real person) so I don't know if I can ever truly be a crazy cat lady.

I have provided my cats with an Office Complex (I'm not sure what they do, but I know it involves typing and filing), a high rise Condo, a very nice Hobo Condo, a Cat Clubhouse, a tent (in case they would like to go camping and 'get away from it all'), a screened patio conveniently located to home and work (to watch birds, lizard and other cats), more toys than they could ever want, and of course, all of the furniture essentially belongs to them as well.

Think I'm joking? Here's the proof:

So, if the Society of Crazy Cat Ladies think I have completed my training, I would like my certificate now. I know just where to hang it.

ETA: This is not ALL of their stuff. I also have a 2 kitchen cabinets filled with their stuff (extra food, toothbrushes, 5 different hair brushes, new toys, treats, etc), there is a cat bed on my dresser, they have a feeding station, a drinking station, and a bathroom of their own.

Horribly depressing

Last night Itchy and I were talking about my upcoming trip. With the price of gas, I would really have to limit how much driving I was going to do, which limits the things that I will be doing (I'm pretty much going to be sitting in a hotel hoping that people come to me). I'm debating with myself at the moment about whether or not I actually need a rental car. I also need to rethink the whole flying vs driving from Big City to Small City. I'm thinking flying might actually be about the same price and a hell of a lot more convenient for everyone involved. It's not like people were going to be making that trip just for fun, they were doing it because of me. Guilt is telling me to just book a flight.

Then Itchy tells me that he's actually worried about the future. Now, I know that this is not unusual, as everyone is worried. The economy sucks. But Itchy doesn't worry about many things. He believes that everything will just work out. I'm the worrier. It drove me nuts when we were moving down here and he wasn't worried about anything. I had a list about a mile long of things I was worried about. So Itchy telling me that he was worried, made me worry. A lot.

The profession that he is going into isn't going to be stable. People can't afford to feed their kids, they sure as hell can not afford to get the dog's teeth cleaned. Pets are a luxury. Pets are expensive. People are going to be forced to give them up. If they do decide to keep them, they're going to cut back on their medical costs. Does he really need blood work done? Can't we just wait it out?

This is going to affect Itchy's potential income. If no one can afford to take their pets to the vet, that means no paycheck. Ironically, there was an article in Yahoo news about this very thing topic today. My degree isn't going to help either. They've already cut those jobs. The jobs they haven't cut yet pay crap (as in, you might as well just volunteer). How the hell are we going to pay our bills? Hyperventilating here.

It's not like the economy is suddenly going to get better. Gas prices aren't going down. Jobs aren't being created. The whole situation is just horribly depressing.

Hiccups

Yep, I have them. Again. Second time today. So annoying. Itchy thinks it's funny. I do not. Nothing seems to help them go away. What do you do to get rid of them? I needs new ideas.

So in the spirit of distracting myself (the hiccups really are driving me crazy) we are going to play a game. A good old Google game. It's easy to play. Today's phrase will be "_____ wants". Just go to Google.com, type in your name followed by wants. Put the results in the comments section. It can be amusing. It's like a magic 8 ball. I'll go first.

Lori wants

• to return home
  
• to get out of prison
• clients to accompany her on shopping trips
• to go with Declan and attend the Monster Mash together
• to do a presentation on Braille for her school's competition
• to go professional into her barrel racing and go on the Wrangler Tour
• to do more
• a naked cat
• a passport
• to ditch the project
  

Ok, the Monster Mash with Declan? Love it. A presentation on Braille would come in handy (I was just telling Itchy that we need to get the football schedule in Braille). Barrel racing? Wrangler tour? I'm not even sure what barrel racing is. Will I need to get cowboy boots and a hat? The naked cat thing is weird, but I another cat would always be welcome.

Your turn. Post it in the comments. You don't even have to post your name, just the results.

ETA: Still have the hiccups, it's going on 45 minutes.