I still have no idea how to use the new camera.

But hey - Becky washed her cell phone!

Seriously - it was in her Sonic apron, and that thing should be washed hourly, however, when it is, most of us are ready for bed, especially the worker bee herself.

She's got a new one, it's all cool and stuff, but it's not, not really.

Mine's so old it's not for sale at any store anymore.

And speaking of cell phones, every company is lying about its coverage. I just spent four days at NaCoMe, in Pleasantville, Tennessee, near Centerville. I've looked at the directions, I stayed awake the whole bus ride home, but I still don't know where we were.

Nobody got cell service. I think once girl got a call through to her mom on Monday while on the seesaw (at the top, of course), but that was it.

Why go to a place when I don't know where it is?


Frosh Camp!

I went to the first session, which was Monday the 23rd to Thursday the 26th. It was so short, but so long, in a good way.

It was awesome - nobody really fought, despite the cabin rivalries (ours was invaded Tuesday evening - our theme was America, "war were declared").

I don't think we've ever felt that comfortable around strangers - any of us.

I know I haven't.

I can't explain it.

But hey - if your school offers anything like this, do it. It is so worth it.

Ours really was - only 40 bucks, and we got transportation from the university to the camp, food three times a day, and a t-shirt on Thursday morning. There was a canteen open Tuesday and Wednesday during free time, operated by people who worked and lived out there, and the prices weren't too insane, according to those who stood in line.

When I went Wednesday, I didn't see anything I needed, and the line was too long.

However, there was no line in front of a cooler... filled with watermelon slices! Free watermelon on a summer day in Tennessee in July.

So cool.

We had counselors who were our parents and aunts and uncles. "Uncle Dad!" was not unusual. So we had a family. We competed for breakfast on Tuesday and Wednesday, and I only got cold cereal, so the wait never bothered me.

We were dead last Monday night in the dinner competition. Each one involved us singing for food, then yelling while the exec board deliberated. There were 12 cabins. The yelling made no difference.

And we didn't win the family Olympics, the boat race, and our flag... was not there at the judging, because somebody told me it was okay to leave it behind! There was thunder and lightning, hello!

Not that it would have mattered, we lost the thing on the top that would hold the damn thing up, so...

However, a lot of fun all around.

Our counselors all did superlatives Wednesday night. I got "most interesting stories" and when I asked when I told a story, Alexis (one of my moms) told me there was nothing specific, just that I always had something interesting to say, every time I talked.

That's awesome.

The weather refused to cooperate with us.

Tuesday afternoon, around 3pm, swimming was scheduled in the lake for those who wanted to swim in an icky lake. (Me, me, me, me!) Tuesday was the 3rd day of my patch, so I ripped it off before the Olympics and put on my swimsuit (another thing - short shorts, tank tops, bathing suits, no worries about how fat I looked or what others thought - that was amazing), because we could swim after the Olympics.

Which was very good. We were up on this clearing that was a plateau of sorts, and the sun beat down. I wasn't doing any of the games, so I ran for the shade. I had on my black Rolling Stone flip-flops (most of the week, I wore my tennies until lunch on Wednesday, but it was too hot by then, and too uncomfortable) and the soles were as hot as asphalt!

So, we're all hot, and let's swim!

Clouds rolled in. And rolled out.

Then more came. With thunder, lightning, and rain.

So no swimming.

Wednesday afternoon, it happened again. During the boat race! (Cardboard and duct tape - we came in first the first time, and never sank)

And when we got into Memphis around 1pm Thursday, it was raining again.

I have a doctor appointment today, and we're going to cut the dose of the patch. I'm not sure by how much, but it's time.

Except for the pain right now, I don't know where it's from.

Dixie and Mikey got their haircuts. They look awesome. Poor Mikers has a bald spot on his shoulder, the vet says from constant scratching, but hair is growing back on the spot.

A couple days ago, 3 of Becky's guy friends showed up while mom was taking her to work, to bother Becky and play basketball. (They left to go bother Robert within 15 minutes.)

I told Dixie to kill, and she didn't. She never does. She walked up to all 3, wagging her tail, ready to be pet. Even the one I didn't recognize.

Last Wednesday, we got DSL. The DSL guy brought more than new gadgets and whatchamacallits, he brought bad news - we had a virus.

We got the computer fixed at a local business place for one hundred bucks. It was supposed to be back by Friday, but wasn't. It was back Thursday, though, and it's so cool.

Videos load like that!

And nothing crashes, except sometimes yahoo won't respond. Whatever.

Not anymore.

We've got security software and high speed internet, and we are cool.

School starts next month!

I'm nervous as hell of course, I don't know my roommate, she doesn't know me, but sometimes that's better, because as long as she's not a sociopath, she's as worried about offending me as I am her, unlike if we knew each other for years. I plan on saying on the first day (Wednesday the 22nd! Honors students and others move in early) that I have hang ups about this, this, and that, rather than biting her head off when I didn't tell her.

That makes sense, right?

And hey, I'll have friends on campus. I don't feel I made any specific friends, just that I was comfortable and friendly with so many people that will be at school with me next month.

I relaxed enough to leave my purse at the cabin more and more, and to get up at all 3 sessions on Wednesday, and really come out of my shell.

The mixers weren't even bad! We had to go, but I slept through Wednesday night's - dinner really disagreed with me - cold school pizza. Stomach was so upset, I was too much pain, I had to lay down. I woke up just a few minutes before the party ended. I told Alexis what was wrong, and she said she'd tell somebody else (whoever was in charge of her) and I fell asleep.

But the first 2 were a lot of fun. There tables, chairs, games, and balls outside the hall, so those of us that didn't want to dance had a cool alternative. (Seriously - no humidity, few bugs once the sun went down.)

I spent more time inside Tuesday night, dancing as best I could to this (you're in Tennessee, you have to!) and just shouting along with familiar favorites.

There was no AC, just a huge fan and every window open. And some people complained about the heat, but nobody danced outside. And you could definitely hear the music outside, so whatever.

We were told to bring shower shoes, I think my flip-flops count as shower shoes, but I never wore them in the shower. I've never worn shower shoes in any shower at camp or the Y or any pool, and I've never had problems because of it. I got athlete's foot one time, and I don't know how, but it was not because of shared showers.

Plus, my feet would probably put a pedicurist's grandkids through college.

That's it.

High-speed internet rules, Memphis is too damn hot, and cable's pretty cool too.

And the dogs rule. Dixie killed a cockroach last night - I saw one crawling on the hall wall across from the laundry room alcove. She didn't see it, so I knocked it down with a fly swatter. It ran under the dryer.

Mom opened the alcove's doors, and Mikey growled at those.

Then Dixie moved the stool in front of the dryer after trying to fit underneath it.

She gave up on that avenue after pawing at the dryer for a bit. Mikey got a trophy, though, an old-fashioned feather duster. So dumb looking, but it was his dammit!

Naturally, he started destroying it, and he still wants it.

Dixie's cockroach came out later by the vent from the dryer, next to the pantry, and part of the wall that makes up the laundry alcove.

After she killed it, Mikey took it.

And refused to give it up.

I threw it out around 9 this morning.

I wanted to go upstairs and sleep, but I couldn't leave dummy and his kill.

He kept pawing at it and jumping away from it, he's too funny.

I hope to make more posts, but I'd have to have something to talk about, wouldn't I?