Pistachios

Well, there is a pistachio scare in the news lately. I don't have to worry. I haven't eaten pistachios in more than a decade. I can't look at pistachios without being disgusted. And since I had to be disgusted today, so shall you. :)

When I was little, my parents would buy pistachios very often. It was a splurge that my parents insisted on. We didn't have a whole lot of money, so we didn't have cakes or cookies often, but every time we went grocery shopping, pistachios were bought. My parents love them. I don't think I loved them like my parents do, but I didn't think they were bad and I ate them once in a while right along with them.

Mostly, I just liked to suck the salt off the shells. I would pop one in my mouth and suck on it until the salt was gone and then I'd break open the shell and eat the nut. One one particular occasion, I sucked on the shell and popped it open as I normally did. There was a little bitty worm wriggling around in the center of the shell.

I was absolutely mortified. For those of you that don't know, the pistachios are already partially opened, so I was basically sucking on this worm. I thought I was going to vomit. I don't normally think of worms as horrifying or even that disgusting, but the fact that I wasn't expecting it and the fact that it was in my mouth really shook me.

I couldn't handle it. I haven't eaten a pistachio since then. In fact, every time I see a pistachio or someone mentions pistachios, another wave of nausea passes over me. That worm traumatized me. If it's been this long, I don't think I'll ever get over it. I will probably never have another pistachio in my life. I'm glad that I didn't love them before, or I might be disappointed.

Anyway, for the rest of you, check out this pistachio scare, and beware. Even if you don't get Salmonella, you might still get more than you bargained for.

Role Model?

This is good and do not cheat!!!

WHO IS YOUR ROLE MODEL???

Try it without looking at the answers...please don't look down until you do it, you'll love it I promise!

GET A CALCULATOR (YOUR COMPUTER HAS ONE ON IT)

1) Pick your favorite number between 1 and 9.
2) MULTIPLY that number by 3.
3) Then ADD 3 to that number.
4) Then again, MULTIPLY by 3.
5) Now ADD the digits together and scroll down...














Now with that number see who your ROLE MODEL is from the list below:
1. Einstein
2. Nelson Mandela
3. Abraham Lincoln
4. Helen Keller
5. Bill Gates
6. Gandhi
7. George Clooney
8. Thomas Edison
9. Tara Lyn Ketcham
10. George W. Bush

I know, I just have that effect on people! One day you too can be like me... :) Believe it!

P.S. Stop picking different numbers. I am your idol, just deal with it!!

Pictures from Korea + Vocation

Well, I don't really feel like blogging. I'm not feeling especially great. However, I did get my pictures uploaded to my Picasa account and I wanted to let everyone know that they can go see them at this website: http://picasaweb.google.com/taralyn14. I took over 1,000 pictures and videos while in South Korea. I haven't gone through the pictures or fixed them, so there may be pictures that are fuzzy/blurry or that you may not know what they are. I'm slowly going through them to at least put what they are if it's not clear. I don't know when I'll actually get to fixing them. Like I said, I feel crappy and I've not got a lot of motivation right now.

I've also got a lot on my mind. The trip made me think about a lot of things. Mostly about where my life is headed. One thing is for sure... I will never be going back to South Korea again. I enjoyed hanging out with Jon and Aileen but the country is definitely not for me.

I thought some more about vocation. It upsets me that some people find theirs so easily. Why haven't I been called to do something yet? I don't know what I want to do.

That may not be completely true. Actually, I think I'm starting to hear my calling. I think I may be blocking it out though. It's scary. I used to think that my calling was motherhood. Everyone I knew thought so, too. I loved kids. I loved taking care of people. I love to be needed (I think everyone has that one). I've pushed that away in the past few years. I think mostly because it scares me to death. First of all, childbirth. Horrifying. I could always adopt though. It's something I've thought about a lot.

Secondly, I made a promise to myself that I would put my life on hold if I were ever to have children. I will not work while they're not in school and I plan to homeschool my children for at least a few years (I refuse to let someone else raise my children). Well, right now, it's completely financially unfeasible for me to do this. Joe and I still have 14.5 years left until our house is paid off. That puts me at 38 years old. That is too old for me (personally) to have children.

Thirdly, I'm unmarried and I have no health insurance. The first is not really a deal breaker for me, but I would like to be married before I have children. The second is very important. I need something to help me pay for hospital visits, etc. before I can think about babies.

Fourthly, that is a HUGE responsibility. I'm scared that I wouldn't end up being good at it when it came to my own children. Also, somehow, I've managed to become less patient as the years have gone by. However, my dogs are better behaved than a lot of the children that I've come across recently. I must have done something right there.

Fifthly, Joe. I love him very much, but anyone who has met him knows that he's not the most patient person or the most forgiving. I want to be with Joe. I don't know if he's ready (or if he ever will be) to have children. And on top of that, sometimes taking care of Joe and the dogs and our household is a full time job in itself.

So, for all of these reasons and probably more, I am fighting what I think my vocation may be. I really think that I just want to be a stay at home mom. It's wonderful and horrifying all at the same time. I think I have to stew on it for quite a while longer and see if I still feel this way. And if I do, I guess I'll have to figure out a plan to get me on my way.

Ugh. Horrifying.

Tipping...

I know not everyone can do this, but I know of one surefire way to make yourself happy. Everyone knows that doing for others is good and makes one feel good about one's self and probably the world. Well, leaving an excellent tip is a good way to do this.

It may seem trivial, but believe me, I was a waitress for about a year. If someone leaves more than they're supposed to (15% or so), it can really make your day.

Joe and I are really good tippers. We always leave at least 20% tip. Sometimes we go way above and beyond that. Sunday is a good example.

Joe finally made it back from Miami a day later than planned (long story). We stopped in Gastonia to eat dinner at The Olive Garden. We got the spinach and artichoke dip for an appetizer and we each got the endless soup, salad, and breadsticks (with minestrone as our soup). Our bill came to about $25. Our waitress was very nice and she did a great job. Well, Joe had cash to pay the bill with. He only had large bills ($50 and $100). So, we decided to play a game that we really like. We call the waitress over to our table and then have her pick a hand. The $50 is in one hand and the $100 bill is in the other hand. Minus our bill, she's still looking at at least a 100% tip. Which is awesome.

Well, Rachel, the waitress, came to our table. Joe asked her to pick a hand and she surprised Joe. She laughed and said, "Both!" (She had no idea what he was asking her for.) Well, Joe likes to be surprised. He started to say that she had to pick just one, but then he decided to just give her both. He handed both the $50 and the $100 to her and we got up. She just thanked us and started to clear the table. Then she looked down and actually realized what Joe had handed her. Then she said, "Wait! You need your change." And we told her we didn't need change. She said, "Are you serious?!" And we told her that we were. She looked like she was going to cry. She stood there in shock as we thanked her and walked to the door.

That was probably not what someone would think of as a $150 meal, but it is always so wonderful to see the look on the waitress/waiter's face when they realize how much money they made off of a table of 2. :)

Hopefully she will pass on that good deed. Paying it forward, you know. I hope so.

an email joke... I'm Broke!

When I say I'm Broke, I mean it!!

A little old lady answered a knock on the door one day, only to be confronted by a well-dressed young man carrying a vacuum cleaner.

“Good morning,” said the young man. “If I could take a couple of minutes of your time, I would like to demonstrate the very latest in high-powered vacuum cleaners.”

“Don’t waste your time,” said the old lady, “I'm broke and haven't got any money.” Then she proceeded to close the door. Quick as a flash, the young man wedged his foot in the door and pushed it wide open.

“Don't be too hasty,” he said. “Not until you have at least seen my demonstration.” And with that, he emptied a bucket of horse manure onto her hallway carpet. “If this vacuum cleaner does not remove all traces of this horse manure from your carpet, Ma’am, I will personally eat the remainder.”

The old lady stepped back, smiled, and said, “Well, let me get you a fork, 'cause they cut off my electricity this morning.”