The End of the Year.... *sigh*

I was visiting Cinn's blog, and she took this idea from Raven, who took it from Majito... So I'm going to do this too, because it was a nice way to tell you guys about all of the things that I didn't. So here it goes:

YEAR IN REVIEW

1. What did you do in 2004 that you’d never done before? Became a little more sociable, which was important. And also, I started this whole "internet life" that my family is totally out of the loop from.

2. Did you keep your new years’ resolutions, and will you make more for next year? Um.. I'm thinking no, because I don't even remember which they were. But I am making new ones. For example: I'm going to finish loosing weight and I'm going to quit smoking..... for what seems like the 10th time in my life (for both).

3. Did anyone close to you give birth? Not that I can remember. So I'm guessing no.... but I do think there was a pregnancy scare.

4. Did anyone close to you die? No... everyone is accounted for. I did a head count.

5. What countries did you visit? Costa Rica and El Salvador. And I visited San Antonio, Houston, Dallas, College Station in Texas; Miami, Orlando and Lakeland in Florida; And the ever beautiful New York City DURING FLEET WEEK... there is just something about a man in uniform....

6. What would you like to have in 2005 that you lacked in 2004? A love life... and a better job.

7. What dates from 2004 will remain etched upon your memory, and why? Um.. I don't remember the dates, but the first time that I ran into V (my former boyfriend) and my stomach didn't flip. The day that we gave my mom her keys to her new "car". I know that there are probably more, but I don't remember them at the moment. Oh! Of course!! THE DAY I GRADUATED COLLEGE!!!

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year? Graduating College!

9. What was your biggest failure? Not getting accepted to an internship in Brazil, because I failed the exam.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury? I sprained my ankle and broke two fingers... for the second year in a row (on both accounts)

11. What was the best thing you bought? My books.

12. Whose behavior merited celebration? My cousin graduated high school.

13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed? Two of my friends that didn't make it to my graduation; one of them went to the beach, and the other one didn't consider it an obligation.

14. Where did most of your money go? Barnes and Noble and Borders.... and probably Nine West, which might come to a close second.

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about? Belonging to the Trory Thread. I've made some great friends that I'll try to keep forever.

16. What song will always remind you of 2004? Pretty much anything by Ryan Cabrera or The Distillers.

17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
a) happier or sadder? sadder
b) thinner or fatter? Fatter
c) richer or poorer? slightly richer....very, very, very slightly.

18. What do you wish you’d done more of? Dancing and having fun... I spent a really big part of this year trying to get over a depression.

19. What do you wish you’d done less of? In this case, probably I would have loved to worry less about what people thought I should or shouldn't do with my life, considering it's my life.

20. How will you be spending Christmas? I spent it with a migraine, my brother and father fighting.

21. Did you fall in love in 2004? Does in lust count, because if it does, then that's what I did..... ah, youth! (Cinn would know what this means)

22. How many one-night stands? None for me....

23. What was your favorite TV program? Gilmore Girls and CSI, there is just something about Gil Grissom that makes me stay glued to the TV. It probably has something to do with that green-eyed babe that's in the show.

24. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year? Yeap.... the girl that Bebo is dating.

25. What was the best book you read? The Outlander series... probably Voyager being my favorite of all of the ones I've read.

26. What was your greatest musical discovery? Bebo introduced me to several bands... but it was probably more of the ones that I already knew about.

27. What did you want and get? Go to New York as a Graduation present.

28. What did you want and not get? A boyfriend...

29. What was your favorite film of this year? Probably Troy.... and if I could narrow it to one scene the one were the girl tries to kill Achilles with the knife and.... well....

30. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you? Work, and went out for dinner and partying with my friends. I turned 25. Not as great as I thought it was going to be,

31. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying? A better job, something that had to do more with what I spent 5 years of my life studying for. And a boyfriend or love interest...... closer to my age.

32. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2004? Sporty....and lots of black.

33. What kept you sane? My brother... and having everyone that I've met online to be able to talk to when things got to overwhelming.

34. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most? Chad Michael Murray and Brad Pitt. And James Alexander Malcolm MacKenzie Frasier... but he belongs to the world of books.

35. What political issue stirred you the most? The Guatemalan Presidential Elections.

36. Who did you miss? It's going to sound self-centered, but I missed the old me. The one that was able to have fun and not care... it's a good thing that she's making a comeback.

37. Who was the best new person you met? I would have to separate it into two categories. On my internet life, it's a close draw with Iris and Cinn and Raven and Surya. In my non-internet life it would have to be my friend Francis, who just brings out the best in people when you are around him.

38. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2004: Quality time is a must.
Life is too short to worry about everything you do. Some things are worth doing without thinking a lot about them. Just for fun sake,

39. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year:
Think of all the fun I've missed
Think of all the fellas that I haven't kissed
Next year I could be oh so good


That was fun.... I'll keep you posted every month if I stuck to my NY Resolutions. Quit Smoking and Loosing Weight.

To everyone, I hope you have the best New Years, and that the next year is full of good things for all of you and your families. A big hug for everyone.

See you next year,
Mary

Bebo is the greatest!!!!

Have I ever told you guys how my brother is the greatest brother in the world? Because he is. Some days I'm more convinced than others, but today is a day of conviction. Do you know what he got me? The LiveStrong Wristband. I had been looking for that wristband for so long!! After a couple of trips to the US and asking every person I saw wearing it, I finally got my very own provided by my amazing brother.

Now, I don't mean to put a damper in my story but I do have to explain this. My grandmother on my father's side, and my great-grandfather on my mother's side, they both died of cancer. Grandpa died last year, and grandma died several years ago. But it was very important to me to support this cause because of it. Maybe that $1 (which is totally nothing at all, considering what they are going to do with it) could save the life of a person, and their families won't have to go throught what I went through. It's silly, maybe, but it was important for me.

He didn't tell me how he got it... maybe he had to perform sexual favors to someone in order to get it for me (lol), but I'm very grateful to him for worrying enough to look for it for me.... and he got one for himself also. So that was great!

Also, in case you are interested in helping Cancer causes, the Breast Cancer Site has this little button, that everytime you press it, you are helping them fund mammograms, so maybe, once in a while, you can to the page and press the little button. Someone will be grateful that you did.

This is it for me now, I'm kind of tired now. But take into account what I asked for you. Maybe you can tell your friends; that would be awesome!

Oh, Happy Christmas Day!!

My friend Raven left me a message where she said she hoped that I got that sitcom ending to my holiday... I don't know how sitcom-y it was, but it's shareable.... It all started like this:

In Latin America we celebrate Christmas Eve, there's a dinner around ten, preceded and followed by drinks (oh the wonders of everyone being over 21.... or 18, as the case is here), and we open our presents at midnight.

Not in my house!!! Nooooo, we are to curious to actually wait until midnight to open our presents. So finally the guy that works for my dad, called us and told us that my father and brother had borded the plane an hour before and were arriving around 1pm. My mom was extremely happy!! She was moping around the house, saying things like "I think that we are going to spend our Christmas alone" or "We should have gone with them" or "Maybe we could get on a plain and tell them to wait for us... do you think we would make it on time?"... that was not even an option.

So after Oscar called, we got ready (again), got a present that my mom wanted to drop by to our priest at church, and were on our way to pick up Bebo and my dad. I couldn't tell my mom this, because it would have brought her down, but I honestly thought that we were going to spend our very first Christmas on our own. I was just as sad as she was.

But they made it on time. By the time we arrived at the hangar, my dad and Bebo were already there. I was so excited to see them, and they had only been gone for three days.... you would've thought they had been gone for over a month.

Then we came back home... ok, so maybe this part was sitcom-y.... we arrived home, and when we go into the kitchen there was a weird smell. Mom had prepared Lasagna for lunch, and we thought that my mom left it oversauced (which it was the case) so, as is started to boil it started to jump into the oven...and it started to burn... and the aluminum foil (don't ask, because I don't understand why it was needed and why it moved) moved, making half of the lasagna seemed burnt. But it only seemed burnt...cause it wasn't really. It tasted good... not great like it usually tasstes, but good.

With the hectic morning that we had had, wondering "would they make it? or not" everyone was exhausted. Bebo and my dad had been up since like five in the morning, and after two failed attempts of trying to come back home and failing.. by the third time they were all exhausted. And so were we.

But still, we still had time to exchange and open presents... at 3 in the afternoon. Which was great, I got a bunch of books and book certificates, and I don't remember what else.. so by 5 I was curled up on my bed with one of my brand new books and resting for the Christmas celebrations. Bebo went out to visit his friends and mom and dad went to take a nap.

By 7 I was changing and doing my make up. Bebo came in a few minutes later after I went downstairs. Our maid had prepared something resembling food fingers that I don't really remember what they were. My dad was in front of the computer.. which just there you can know that it wasn't good. He got himself and Ipod, the one with 60GB and photos and all that......but he's a PC user. And apparently Itunes was not compatible with his PC and it made the program crash over and over. I was preparing some drinks for everyone. Dad and Bebo got vodkas and mom got white wine, I got a sweet martini, but instead of using gin I used vodka.. and it wasn't as sweet so I added a bunch of maraschino cherries..... and maraschino cherry juice... so we were talking and, in a way, discussing what had been going on on their trip... until dad got really upset with the configuration of his computer, Bebo got up and tried to help (he's really good with computers) and then something led to another, Bebo and my dad got into a fight because of the computer and the Itunes and the Ipod. And then, my migraines started. Yes! I got migraines for Christmas... as I'm typing this I'm almost kicking myself for having them, and wishing that I should have asked Santa for one of those heads that don't get migraines... maybe for next year.

We had dinner by 9:30 because I refused to go to bed without at least sharing dinner with them. My mom was worried. Bebo was pissed. My dad was pissed. And I wanted to crawl in my bed with the started bottle of Grey Goose and forget Christmas and make the head aches go away. Now I know that Grey Goose is not really the best way to get rid of my head aches or make Bebo and dad not be mad at each other, but it would have provided enough solace for that little while.

By 12, everyone in the city were happy outside with firecrackers and everything that it entitles... and I was in my bed, feeling as if everything was going on inside my head.

But the good thing was that Bebo and Daddy got home OK, even if it was to fight, and up until the point when daddy and his PC parted terms, it wasn't all that bad. I could have done without the migraines, though.

Maybe if we don't have drama in our lives then we're not really in the holiday season, huh? I don't know, but what I do know is that I might skip Christmas next year.

And now, after the Christmas drama I find my elf regreting the fact that I turned down an invitation from this really great guy to spend New Year's with him and the rest of his friends at the beach. I should have said yes. Darn!! Maybe if he calls and asks again, I will. Who knows?

Happy Holidays!!!

I'm just dropping a little line to wish everyone the best of holidays. I've been dropping around the blogs of people I know leaving little messages of good wishes...but I know there is a slight chance that I forgot to visit someone, so I'm here to wish everyone the best of holidays, and that the New Year is full of really good things for you and your families. Enjoy, be safe, and I'll see you around next year.

I'm going to go and wait for my dad and my brother.. hopefully they arrive today. My mom is so sad because she thinks that they won't make it home on time for, well, anything. They were supposed to arrive yesterday, so cross your fingers for them to arrive home today.

Love to everyone,
Mary

I absolutely dislike that bitch!!

I've come to the safety of my blog to rant.... I'm sorry to burden you with this, but I have nowhere else to do it.

Ugh!! Bebo's birthday was an event alright. Apparently he's dating the most rude, annoying, hypocritical, stuck up skank in his whole school! He is, he is dating the nasty girl I mentioned on my previous post (a few posts ago). Now I know this is going to sound like a jealous sister rant, but I promise it's nothing like that (completely, at least). You may know that I consider my brother to be the best thing to happen to the world since sliced bread and Coca Cola, but sometimes he has THE most appaling taste in women.

First there was this girl that got him into trouble with the OTHER guy she was seeing. And the stupid guy went to look for my brother at the Karate Gym Bebo used to attend. I mean, who in his right mind would go looking for a guy who practices karate, because he is surrounded by his friends. My brother is a notch below a black belt, and most of his friends there are black belts. My brother was training for a demonstrationt that was going to take place a few days later. So the guy comes into the gym, screams my brother's name and when he notices who he was (btw, my brother is 6'2") the guy told my brother to leave the girl alone, that she was his girlfriend and when they threatened my brother with "bodily harm" he was ready to kick their asses surrounded by the rest of his black belt buddies. The guy and his friends left the place. They broke up. That was girl number one.

Girl number 2 had as many insecurities as she had hair on her head. She was older than he was; almost 4 months younger than I am. I'm three and a half years older than him. But she was nice. She always had a smile on her face and was sweet to him. But he's not into sweet. He felt trapped. The girl was trying to convert him into her religion for when they married...... they had been dating for less than a month. So of course, my brother being the guy that he is got spooked and they broke up. It turned out that she wasn't as sweet as I had thought and she started saying stuff about him. And I thought it served him right for not confronting his problems and running away from them. I love him, but I'm also realistic.

There have been some girls in between, but none to important to mention.

But then there's THE Bitch!! Now my issues with her go way back... even before she knew I was my brother's sister. So during the party, everyone is outside dancing, eating and drinking; when all of sudden no one knew where he was. One of his friends asked me if I had seen her, but I already had 6 Coronas on me and had a hard time focusing. So, as I went upstairs to my bathroom I walked pass Bebo's bedroom, and guess who I found? Bebo and the Bitch. I really, really didn't like that thing. Now, I'm not a square and I wouldn't really care if he was upthere with a girl, but I did mind that it was her. So I came in and asked what they were doing, and the stupid-ass girl told me that *insert high-pitched voice here* "It's just that when we talk on the phone at night, he's always playing with his XBox and i just wanted him to show me what he played". I didn't know she was there since she was plastered to my brother's side, until I came in completely into his room. So I told him that he had a party going downstairs and that his guests were there to celebrate with him, not me.

After that, they came downstairs. And then they dissapeared into the kitchen. She left at 2:30 in the morning and they went into the kitchen like around 1. What did they do? I don't really want to know.

I know this is not probably grounds to hate anyone. And I know that it is selfish of me not wanting my brother to date someone that I don't approve of. I have never been that kind of sister, but it's just that my dislike for her goes so deep that there is no way that I would want my brother to hang with her. Or whatever it is that they do, but I will say hang.

The worst part is that Bebo knows that I don't like her, so we don't talk as often now because most of the things we would normally talk about, we don't anymore because she's involved in them.

Seth Cohen would say "Embrace the Friend", but he definitely hasn't met this girl.

Bebo's Birthday

Today's my baby brother's birthday.. Bebo is just a variation of baby brother (don't ask, it's a whole "How did they get Rory out of Lorelai? thing"). Now, he's not a baby anymore, he's actually turning 22.

He's the greatest thing that ever happened to me. I can honestly tell you that he is my closest friend. He's a great kid. A little on the cocky side sometimes, but he is the greatest. He's the one person that I can go up to and tell him pretty much everything, except of course Gilmore Girls related.

For today, we started off going to breakfast, then we all had to go to work. After that we met for lunch. And now, we are preparing his pizza and beer party. He even got me Coronas. Most of his friends are coming, so that is definitely going to be fun, except for the girls. Now, I'm not really the jealous sister type, but.. there are some girls there that were the stuck up kind and used to be really rude... but after they found out that my brother was my brother, they were all kinds of sweet. Ugh!! Of course, they know that if they don't get along with me, their chances with my brother. Wouldn't you dislike them too?

So we are trying to get ready, and the kid is upstairs watching The OC. The maid is running around, my mom is stressing over everything. I just got back with the shopping and food preparations, and my dad was getting rid of all of his office stuff so he could be here for the party. Luckily, we all got through with our errands before rush hour!

So, I'll tell you how this turned out tomorrow... make that later on on the week, just in case I don't have time to blog extensively.

And I know that my brother won't ever get to read this, but:
Bebo, es el mejor hermano que cualquiera pueda tener. I love you so much!! I hope you have the greatest year, because 22 is a blast. Happy Birthday Kid!!!

Xmas and Parties

The holiday season is here, which is great. My mom had the house with Christmas decorations since before Thanksgiving. But I have to tell you that we don't celebrate Thanksgiving here. It's now starting to "catch on", because apparently people here think it's fashionable to have a Thanksgiving celebration. What did I do for my Thanksgiving break? Nothing. I had the day off because of it, though. I went to the gym and spent the whole day at home.

But now we have Christmas. I started my holiday shopping a few weeks ago. You'll have to know that I hate shopping! Shopping for me is one of the worst punishments. But, it has to be done. So I started doing my Christmas shopping little by little. But you would say, well since you already started you'll probably close to being done, right? Nope. Not even close. I still haven't decided what I'm getting my parents or my brother (who also has a birthday coming up). This always gets me worried.

I'm a simple person to shop, on the other hand. The perfect gift for me? A gift certificate for a bookstore. That always makes me happy. My friends are starting to catch on, so I don't longer buy books in December because I get them after Christmas with the gift certificates all my thoughtful friends and family give me. Cool, huh? I'm suck a geek, I know. But it really doesn't matter to me, lol.

But of course we all know that with the Christmas season there are also different parties to attend. I start that tomorrow. We are going to celebrate with the kids at work that they are almost out for winter break. And on Thursday, my friends from work and I are going to celebrate that WE are out for winter break. What are we going to do? We are going to go out without a real plan, so I'll have to tell you about that later. Maybe on Saturday.

So, I guess that I pretty much is all I have to say. I was pretty sure that I came to blog about something but I don't remember what it was. Maybe I'll remember later and edit this out.