it's late

In a few hours I have to get up and ready for cupcake day with the babies, but I can't turn my head off and go to sleep. I have a lovely and comfortable bed and am exhausted from my week, but sometimes that doesn't add up to equal sleep for some reason.

Hurricane Ike had a significant impact on me this week. Not so much as far as the weather was concerned. It was a strange experience for me though. I grew up with earthquakes. You don't know when they will strike or what the damage will be and how many aftershocks will come. It just happens and then you figure out everything else from there. Being able to watch a hurricane come closer to where you live for a week and hear the predictions and learning about what the different classifications mean is not something I would say is in my comfort zone. It turned a little as it hit the United States which means we got a lot of clouds, some crazy orange lightening that was eerily beautiful, and a snipped of rain that was most assuredly hurricane rain because it smelled like fish and ass. That was about it for most San Antonio residents, I do believe.

However, I work in a hospital. Galveston was completely evacuated and Houston had some serious power and water issues this week. My hospital ended up with over 200 transferred patients from each city and spots in between I'm sure. I got a lot of extra hours which is good for the paycheck but not so good for the feet. The phones were ten times crazier than usual because of family members from all over the state calling to locate their loved ones. It was like being in the middle of the aftermath of a huge earthquake but strange because we were all supposed to be able to have at least a week to prepare for it all. I don't think I could handle living in a spot where tornadoes are a regular occurrence at all!

Sarah Palin as a vice-presidential nominee... Mostly what I think can be summed up by the phrase "holy crap." Jon Stewart asked if she won some sort of contest or something. I definitely fall more on the Democrat side of ideology but do not vote strictly by party. I try to weigh issues and vote for who or what I think is best. I have to say though. Obama and Biden are getting my vote. And if I could vote for them a few more times, I would. I respect McCain and his record but am tired of hearing about him being a POW and am having trouble even entertaining the idea that he would be anything but a continuance of the current Bush administration and I do not think our country can handle four more years down the road we are on without facing even more serious reprecussions than we already have.

In any case, I would like to encourage you to make sure you're registered to vote and to show up and cast your ballot. It's important. We have an amazing system in our country where the people are allowed to voice their opinion and speak their minds through official stating what they want. There will be an exchange of power that will be peaceful and respectful. And hopefully regardless of who the next President is, he will be able to unify our country a little more. I do believe each man is interested in that aspect of the office.

Things with K are so good. I really love him and I revel in the fact he truly loves me as well. We were talking sometime last week and I mentioned that we'll need to figure out where we're headed in a few months just from a practical standpoint. He got this strange look on his face. I told him I didn't mean he had to propose or we had to be married by May, but maybe he could just tell me something like he wanted to marry me but wasn't sure when. He replied with "Melissa. I want to marry you, I just don't know when." This made me really happy because although I have felt that was the case, he hasn't actually said it and I just don't have the best track record with relationships and understanding what the guy really means or where his head is really at with everything. I'm that girl who needs the actual words spoken (or written) because I cannot trust myself to assume correctly. Anyway, when I excitedly told a couple of people about this, they looked at me like I was retarded and asked how I didn't know that because everyone else certainly does. Have you ever felt good and stupid at the same time? Without alcohol involved?

I need some new blogs to read. Any suggestions?

I'm going to try to catch some sleep now. Hopefully I'll be able to do a little picture post of the cupcake extravaganza. My niece AND nephew will be meeting me at my parents' house to make TWO kinds of cupcakes with frosting and lots of sprinkles. I'm really excited. I hope they are too! I figure after we're done with the cupcake making we can do laps around the backyard to get some of the sugar worn off before my brother-in-law comes to pick them up. :)

when my niece has pigtails, she's extra cute

"Okay, let me repeat what I heard you say back to you and you tell me if that's what you're thinking."

"Okay Auntie."

"You want me to come to your house, pick you and your brother up. Then we'll drop your brother off at the movies and you and I will go to my house and make lots and lots of cupcakes. Is that right?"

"Yes. Wait. Maybe someone should stay with my brother."

"Yes, I think that's probably a good idea. He's three."

"Papa? Want to go to the movies?"