so, upon checking the latest news as i woke up this morning, i found that apple is releasing something called an "ipad," a kindle-like device that allows users to read novels among many other functions.

wish i could have time to elaborate, but i'll just say that no matter how advanced technology becomes, i don't think reading anything via plastic screen can match up to the way a hardback feels, how thick ivory paper looks, or what sitting in a bookstore or library means.

on another note, to go to my 9 am psychology class to take my first skip of the semester?  hmm...

Before this post really gets started, I have to wonder: is there anyone who still reads Life in the Smyth Lane besides my dad (who may, in actuality, be our most faithful and devout reader)?  Ever since we aquired our goal of 25 readers by Christmas, there have been few new followers.  Thanks to all of you readers who, like my Daddio, tune in for every episode of Life in the Smyth Lane.  And if you're a secret reader (I know a few of you must exist), we'd love to have you become an official follower!

This semester I am taking a class called Education for the Exceptional Learner, aka, Special Education.  Since I decided the week before exams to minor in Secondary Education, I had to make a few adjustments to the sched.  Hence psychology (ick!) and special ed this semester.  Although it has been my only class in the education department so far, I have really enjoyed special education.  My teacher, Dr. G* (I didn't put her real name because I thought that would be mean and fear that she will google her own name, stumble over Life in the Smyth Lane, and fail me for the semester) is very organized, has a passion for people, and loves to chat.

Dr. G went to PC in the seventies and has lived and taught around Clinton for most of her life since (whoa!!).  She is single, an adjuct professor at PC, and also works part time for a center in Clinton that provides mentally-handicapped adults with jobs.  She is awesome at what she does and incredibly patient with the adults with whom she works.  She hands back every paper or assignment within the next class period.  She is training us to be teachers who are attentive to each student's learning needs.

I can only think of wonderful things to say about Dr. G, but today I realized that a huge fear of mine is that I will become a woman like her!  Incredibly passionate about her job, able to impact her community, and overall satisfied without a family or husband.  Take what I know of Dr. G's life, throw in a few cats, maybe a book club or two and I find myself already cringing at the chance that this image could very well be my future!

I am learning to be content in every situation...wherever God has me.  And I don't have to worry about the future yet.  He who provides enough grace for me to dwell with him today will be faithful til tomorrow.

hugs

i LOVE hugs. they are one of my favorite things. i thoroughly enjoy greeting with (or being greeted by) a hug. and when i say hug, i don't mean one of those half-hearted, lame, limp side hugs. i mean a full-frontal, tight-squeeze, you-won't-soon-forget-it hug.

however, i haven't always loved hugs. you can ask my mom if you don't believe me. there was a stretch of my life where i didn't want anyone to touch me - ever, at all. but i am a much more loving person than i used to be.

these days, i feel like i have to make up for lost time by hugging as much as possible. oh, and i like to make as big of a production as possible out of hugging. i think that's why people like my hugs so much... they're just more than you're used to.

here's the real point of this post: tonight, i discovered something about my hugs that i didn't know. my friend kathleen informed me that i make a little noise, a squeal if you will, every time i hug someone. and guess what? she's right! after her observation, i noticed myself squealing each time i hugged someone the rest of the night.

i guess you could say i'm a little weird. (and you'd have a valid point.) but i think the bottom-line is that i just want people to know how much i care about them. and for me, nothing in this world - not time, or gifts, or service, or words - can express love better than a well-executed hug. : )

plan c

interesting fact about me: i am allergic to wheat, tomatoes, and msg.

because of my allergies, i have a somewhat non-traditional doctor - an applied kinesiologist. what is an applied kinesiologist? well, friends, that explanation needs a post all to itself, and since it isn't really the point of this story, i'm going to leave it a mystery for now. : )

today, while at my check-up with dr. parnell, he and i had the following conversation:

dr. p: so, do you have post-grad plans yet?
me: well, i'd like to live in greenville, and my parents still have some connections there, so i'm hoping to get a job writing for a newspaper or in event planning.
dr. p: hmm...have you thought about grad school?
me: uh, no way. grad school is not an option. plan a is event planning. plan b is a newspaper. it'll be fine. everything will work out.
dr. p: what's plan c? get married?
me: uh....... i guess so.
dr. p: i think you should go with plan c. maybe bump it up to plan a.

thanks, doc. just what i wanted to hear.

??

i have been informed by the authorities (aka my roomie ashton) that it is my turn to blog.  here's a little update on my semester, friends!

• my classes are interesting, albeit boring.  a personal fav is special education.  why, you ask?  the professor is organized, loves teaching, and told all of us on the first day of class that we'd get an A.  also gotta love linguistics.  i enjoy grammar because i had great teachers in middle school who really stressed learning how to diagram and analyze sentence structure.  linguistics is supposed to be a difficult class, but it's starting off slowly for me so far.  we'll see how that goes!
• god is really teaching me a lot about resting!  and i am learning how to rest in so many ways.  a lot of times when i think about resting i just want to take a nap, but i am exploring new methods of relaxation.  for example, yesterday lindsay mayo and i explored antique stores in downtown clinton.  expecting to find a great bargain, we left with only a memorable experience (but all of our $$ intact too!).  i have just really felt convicted lately that god deserves me when i am at my best, not when i'm exhausted and my eyelids are drooping!  it is more important for me to love him and know him better than it is for me to make good grades, hangout with people, or try to save the world.
• community always feels different to me second semester.  the lord is using other people in my life to encourage me and lead me to knowing more of him.  the BJC met last night (holla!!) and we watched both bridgette jones movies, consumed oodles of peanut butter m&ms, sour gummy worms, and sparkling grape juice.  i am constantly reminded of a beautiful verse i memorized last week..."what shall i render to the lord for all his benefits to me?  i will lift up the cup of salvation and call on the lord."  i am really loving where he has me right now!

i am trying to dig through the crevices of my mind to reveal some exciting, silly, or fun story right now to no avail.  but they'll be on the way soon.  love yall!

breaking news: part 2

my brother, ward, is a senior in high school this year, and he also happens to be the student body president. today, his principal approached him about his class schedule for this semester and said, "ward, i really think you ought to be setting an example for the students and taking more classes and challenging yourself more."

apparently being a joke is hereditary.

breaking news

in case you didn't know, amanda and i both work as tutors in the writing center on campus.

yesterday, upon hearing my class schedule for this semester, my boss tilted her head to the side, gazed intently at me with a look of pure astonishment, and said, "ashton, i just can't understand why you aren't taking more serious courses."

yep, that's right: i'm a joke. you heard it here first.

SparkTests

As if text summaries weren't enough, here's another reason why Sparknotes is the greatest resource ever.  Recently laughed my way through an online quiz...here are a few of the funniest Qs:


14 Which statement most closely resembles your philosophy on dating?

 There's more fish in the sea

 There are more fish in the sea

 The sea is polluted

 I hate the smell of fish

23 Have you ever faked a British accent?

 Yes

 Nay, you codswalloping stinker!

these are so HILARIOUS.  i am STILL laughing OUT LOUD!

pre-function craziness

for those of you who don't know, amanda is a member of zeta tau alpha, one of pc's three sororities. tonight was zeta's semi-formal. any sorority function always involves a little pre-event drama, but tonight was especially hectic. the following is the saga that enfolded this afternoon:

1:30pm - mo comes over to our room for a visit and informs amanda and i that she, alicia, brittni, and mel (and their dates) are going out to dinner with the zetas before the function. note: none of them are zetas.

mel and brittni both have boyfriends, so obviously, they don't have date issues. however, alicia and mo both have to find dates. apparently, alicia's date search is easy. mo's, on the other hand, is quite eventful. first, mo asks brinck. he gladly agrees, but later informs her that he forgot about a prior commitment and can no longer go. in his place, he offers clay, and mo agrees.

2:00pm - amanda's zeta little sister, christy, calls to say that her date canceled on her the night before, and she doesn't know what to do. we offer to find her a date because we have so many wonderful guy friends. as mo, amanda, and i discuss who should go with christy, it hits us that clay would be the perfect date. mo decides that christy needs a date more than she does, so we text clay to find out if he's down with the change of plans. with no hesitation, clay agrees. we help him decide what to wear, and then we move to tackling the new problem: mo's date.

2:30pm - mo and amanda decide that i should be mo's date. although i am not so sure about this plan, they make me try on one of amanda's dresses. unfortunately, friends, i just wasn't into the idea. amanda and i debate back and forth for about ten minutes, but it is finally decided that i won't go. mo prepares to text spencer to ask him to be her date, but uh-oh i have a realization. what if clay thinks mo passed him off on christy because she didn't want him to be her date? we can't have that, so we decide mo can't ask anyone else and has to go alone.

3:15pm - mo heads back to her room since everyone is supposed to be ready in an hour.

3:45pm - i check my phone and see that i have a missed call from sam (who also happens to be brittni's boyfriend). unsure why sam has called me, i return his call. here is the conversation that ensued:
s - hello?
a - hey sam. did you call me?
s - oh yeah, but i didn't mean to. that's why i hung up really quick.
a - oh, well that explains why i didn't hear my phone ring.
s - so.... what's up?
a - uh... just sitting in my room helping amanda get ready.
s - oh cool. yeah, clay's freaking out about what to wear.
a - why? we told him what to wear.
s - yeah, but he says he doesn't have any of those clothes. but it's okay because james is letting him borrow some clothes.
a - oh, well, that's good.
s - hey... so... what is mo doing? wasn't clay supposed to be her date?
a - okay, sam, here's the truth. we decided that clay would be the perfect date for christy, so mo was going to ask someone else. but then we thought it might hurt clay's feelings because it might look like mo didn't want to go with him. so we told her she has to go by herself.
s - oh... well, we can fix that. james is moping around because he wants to go and no one asked him.
a - tell james to call mo! that would be great!
s - okay... hey, well since we're telling the truth... i did call you, but then i thought that since you aren't going, it might hurt your feelings to talk about it, so i hung up really fast.
a - (as i'm laughing hysterically) oh, it's totally okay, i don't want to go. just tell james to call mo.
s - glad this is funny to you... okay, i'll tell james.
a - (still laughing hysterically) great. bye sam.
s - see ya.

4:00pm - james texts mo to say that he would be glad to go with her if she wants. mo is busy getting ready and forgets to text him back.

4:15pm - amanda's date arrives to pick her up. she isn't quite ready yet so that provides a bit of awkwardness. once she's ready, she and her date decide that he might be a bit under dressed, also providing a bit of awkwardness. the two of them hurry to his room to pick out a new outfit.

4:20pm - sam has to call james and tell him that he is supposed to go with mo. james gets ready super fast and picks mo up.

4:30pm - everyone finally meets up with their dates and heads to the restaurant.

6:00pm - i get to tell the story to ally, ellen, rachel, emily, and natalie. they love it!

although the pre-party drama may have been a bit stressful for all those involved, i am sure dinner and dancing will be so fun and so worth it.

and regardless, i got a TON of laughs out of the day, so... yep, definitely worth it.

slap chop

tonight, as my brother, my dad, and i watched our beloved unc tarheels lose to the college of charleston, i realized something: infomercials are constantly solving problems i didn't know i had. here are a few examples:

www.getsnuggie.com
never before the invention of the snuggie was i aware that i could ever be cold enough to need a blanket with sleeves. won't a sweatshirt suffice?

www.perfectbrownie.com
who knew that using a knife to cut brownies after baking them was so imperfect and inconvenient? i had no idea i needed someone to invent a better way to make brownies.

www.thetower200.com
until i watched this infomercial about the newest workout system from body by jake, i thought i was in decent shape. then i saw the extraordinary ripped-ness of the man modeling the 11 minute workout program. guess i need to work out more, huh?

www.slapchop.com
according to the slap chop salesman, not only will i save money at the ice cream store, save time in the morning before work, and spice up my salads, but i will also no longer have a boring life if i start using the slap chop instead of a regular knife.

talk about solving all my problems with only a few small payments of $19.95.