Just keep swimming...

 It's a funny thing, life.  Some days you're on top of the world and other days you feel like the lowest of the low.  I'm finding more and more that my potential spending power affects my mood.  For example, when 95% of a paycheck is ear marked for bills, it stresses me out!!  Stupid inflation has me buggin'!  Even my older sister texted me the other day wondering what happened to Wendy's $0.99 nuggets!  Apparently they are $2.49 now.  Gas prices seem to be trending in the right direction, so I am thankful for that.  Saw them at $3.64 today and did a seated happy dance in my car.  Speaking of the car, it needs an oil change... sigh.  Always something, isn't it?  I'm thinking of all my purchases in terms of tanks of gas.  My groceries yesterday were 1/2 a tank of gas... if I get (insert cute clothes here) from Torrid that's a full tank of gas... an oil change will be 2 tanks of gas... I guess that's just gonna be how it is for a while.  Good news is that working only 4 days a week has cut my gas consumption down (yay for tracking spreadsheets), so that's something

I did have a fantastic time at the Fort Worth aquarium.  It's in a mall and it's called Sea Quest.  My friend and I went kinda early so as to avoid a massive amount of children, which was a good plan since there were about 5 groups lined up to get in as we were coming out.  It's a super interactive aquarium where you can feed the fishies and touch them as well.  We didn't pay any extra for food or 'tokens' to play with the animals, but we still had a good time.  After the aquarium we went to Bath and Body Works to smell all the good Halloween-y smells (yep, they are out already), and we also got jalapeno pretzels.  I must have got the MEAN jalapeno because my mouth was on FIRE.  The rest of the weekend was spent staying in watching Jaws (all 4), Piranha, Event Horizon, and other crazy movies that I mostly hadn't seen.  Event Horizon is good if totally screwed up... I feel like Sam Neill always has a good time playing a bad guy.  Of course, now I want to watch Daybreakers.  Forget Christmas in July, how about Halloween in July?

Wallaby

Such happy rays

Felt a little slimy tho, not gonna lie.

SHARKIE

Big sharkie

Small sharkies

Funny fish

Lotsa tiger fish - no clue if that's their name, but that's what I'm calling em.

Hold on tight, buddy, you can do it!!

Big tortoise wanted to bring him home for Mom, but no dice.  Also he's from Egypt and that's... slightly different climate from WY.

Fun green guy.

BIG SNAKE

We played with a millipede... it's the centipede that hurts when it bites you, apparently this one will kill you if you bite it.

More sharkies!

Om nom nom

Black tip sharks... like Gordon!

The side eye is strong with the capyburra.

OTTERS

Too fast to photograph

Stop for expected treats

Bengal cat... also a critter I wanted to take home to Mom.

Another unimpressed fish

Pretty tho

Want a shrimpie?

Nemo in his goth phase.

EEL

Swim fishies, SWIM

Iguanas chillin on their tree

With the turtles underneath

Excuse me, are you going to feed us?

We'd really appreciate it if you'd feed us.

This weekend is shaping up to be FABULOUS.  My bestie is coming up from San An and we are going to go have margaritas and Mexican food at our FAVORITE place.  Then we need to go thrift shopping for her (one thing about losing weight, you gotta go clothes shopping), and then it's a M&J lazy weekend.  Food, drink, and movies shall happen, along with plenty of friend therapy because Mandi is STRESSED.  Mostly I'm able to not think about the stress, but then it messes with my stomach and I'm fighting nausea which makes me even MORE stressed and then it snowballs and then I'm not really pleasant to be around.  It was pretty bad on Monday, but I didn't have much contact with people so at least I didn't inflict myself upon too many unsuspecting innocents.  I think I'm learning the down side of working 4 days a week.  After a long weekend of wonderful laziness and doing what I want to do, I really, REALLY don't want to come in to work.  Which is nuts, it's only 4 days!  But that first day back is a DOOZY.  I know I'm also a little hormonal, so that doesn't help things, and the continuing fire means that my bosses haven't really been around, so I feel a little directionless at work.  I'm also waiting on people to get back to me so that I can finish some projects, and you KNOW how patient I am... NOT.  LOL