The July Fourth Fire.

So I've been moping lately, mostly out of boredom. And here I was, moping, trying to think of something to do when I realized that I hadn't blogged in a long time. Also, I hadn't ever written out the story of the July Fourth fire, which is even more important since my blog was originally used to tell stories of ridiculous situations in which I found myself.

So this July Fourth, Mike and I invited over our friends, Leah, Daniel, and Kate, and Leah and Daniel brought their friends, Nelisa and Nelisa's boyfriend whose name I do not remember.  Anyways, we spent alot of time sitting in the living room socializing. To make socializing time better, we had locked the cat in the bedroom since he is really annoying and I think someone was probably allergic to him (wish it was me.)

Anyways, Mike went back to use the bathroom or something, maybe just to check on Max since Mike worries about things like that. The rest of us are sitting there when suddenly this awful, ear piercing electronic shriek starts piercing the air. My first guess was that the security system that we had unplugged (because it made, loud, annoying shrieks) had started up. In the few seconds it took us to look at each other confused with our hands over our ears, Mike comes running down the hallway at top speed.

Now, before I continue, flashback to two hours prior, when I had candles in very tall jars around the house to make it smell less like cat and more like mangoes. I decided to leave one lit in the bedroom, thinking nothing bad could happen while we were still home. While doing some last minute cleaning, I put a stack of towels on the dresser next to the candle.

Back to Mike barreling down the hallway. He yells something. "WHAT?!?" we all reply. Mike's response was something along the lines of  "THERE'S A FIRE!" (though it may have involved some words that I don't feel comfortable writing in this blog.) Mike then ran to the kitchen and began looking through the cabinets.

Me, always keeping a calm head in the face of disaster, yelled at everyone to get outside (I think this is what I did, I honestly probably did no such thing and they were smart enough to go outside on their own.) Assuming Mike was looking for the fire extinguisher (I found out later he was looking for a large-ish glass to fill with water, since he doesn't keep his head in the face of danger,) I ran to help. And went straight for it under the sink. Then Mike, Kate, and I ran to the bedroom. The fire was fairly small and situated on top of the big dresser. Our lovely cat knocked the pile of towels in such a way that they fell into the candle jar and ignited. If it weren't so small, I probably would have run away. As it was, it was large enough that I forgot to take a picture with my iPhone, a detail that pains me to this day.

Because the smoke detector is ridiculously loud, I know there was alot of yelling at the top of our lungs. I'm not sure what Kate and Mike were saying, but I know I was saying, "I CAN'T GET THE PIN OUT OF THE FIRE EXTINGUISHER!" Kate poured some water on the fire, and I think Mike was just yelling at the fire. Anyways, about ten seconds later, I got the pin out of the fire extinguisher and covered everything within a ten foot radius in a pile of thick yellowish powder. (I always thought they blew out a gas that extinguished the fire. Wrong. It is a messy, messy powder.)

Unfortunately, extinguishing the fire didn't help, since the fire alarm was still making our ears bleed, so I had to remove the battery. Mike found Max (hiding under the bed) and we all went outside to find everyone else, none of whom had called 911 (thankfully.) I collapsed on the ground and let out a noise between laughing and crazy from the adrenaline still coursing through my system.

And that is the story of the July Fourth Fire.

My first ever letter to an editor.

I don't think I mention what town I'm from on my blog alot in fear of internet creepers. The time is past. I grew up in Deland, Florida. Anyways, recently, Dustin showed me an article that UF wrote about Deland:

http://www.alligator.org/sports/article_5b555186-039f-11e2-a896-001a4bcf887a.html

Please read it. Or at least the first half. I was a bit annoyed. I wrote a letter that explained my point and also voiced my annoyance quite clearly. Dustin proofread my letter, removed the annoyance, rewrote and added a few key passage. Below is our defense of our hometown.

In response to Friday’s article about Mike Gillislee running with purpose, I would first like to say that it’s good to see Mike acknowledged for his hard work. However, I am a bit offended by the portrayal of my hometown, DeLand, as inescapable and marked by dangers and daily perils. I realize that the negative representation came largely from another’s words, so I would like to take a moment and share some of mine.

I was sent this article by my brother, a UF alumnus. Both of us grew up in DeLand, attended DeLand High School, and went on to get college degrees. Our parents still live in DeLand, and my husband and I are planning on moving there one day. While there is a rougher part of town, it should not serve as a symbol of DeLand as a whole. The view that “everyone around the city does drugs” is far from the truth, and the idea that DeLand is inescapable only applies to those who don’t have the motivation to get up and leave.

For those who choose to stay, DeLand offers high school graduates the opportunity to attend a well-regarded university. Stetson University, founded in 1883, is located in downtown DeLand, and the campus is classified as a national historic district. Many of my friends attended Stetson, and some of them even chose to stay in DeLand to begin their careers, in spite of the “people around here that sell dope and shoot. It’s not the right place for anybody.” How unfortunate for them!

DeLand High School has an engineering academy and an International Baccalaureate Program, offering many opportunities for students to excel. Those who aren’t “A+ students” can attend Daytona State College, the local community college, and receive their AA degree before moving on to a university, as I’m sure many UF students do.

Being a Florida State University graduate, I am used to trash talk from University of Florida students. I have been hearing it since I first attended FSU in 2007. While I can at least understand why UF students like to poke fun at my choice of colleges, I am hurt to see my beautiful, friendly, quaint hometown misrepresented based on the words of one person whose part-time job at Captain D’s isn’t enough to get him out of the town to which I’m hoping to return.

I commend Mike Gillislee for making something of himself, and I am proud to say that I am from a town where people are given a shot at something greater, regardless of their circumstances.

Sincerely,

Andrea Kanis

I know Deland isn't perfect. But I am proud of my hometown. 


UPDATE:

I would also like you to read a letter written by my friend Kailey:

Dear Mr. Pincus,

DeLand. Seriously? Home of the historic liberal arts college, Stetson University? Sky-diving capital of the world? Proud film-set of The Waterboy??

Maybe you've just watched one too many episodes of The Wire (which is understandable, great show), or maybe you're just going off hearsay (which is less understandable, when interviewing NCAA athletes/cousins), but DeLand was probably not the town to pick for sensationalist depictions of "perils and dangers." 

Don't get me wrong, I'm glad Mike "found his way to Gainesville." 

I also found my way to Gainesville, where someone was shot in a student living apartment complex last year. Gainesville has a 2010 crime record of 6,325, including 4 manslaughters, 86 forcible rapes, and 617 aggravated assaults. Still, I count my blessings. I'm no longer in a town where people only, "sell dope and shoot."  Mike's cousin was articulate enough to get the message out about that. Preach it!

Don't get my wrong - I have no hard feelings here, Adam. I make fun of DeLand all the time for it's small-town quirks and awkward mesh of intellectuals and rednecks. But please. Take it from someone who grew up there: DeLand High's football practice field is next to a shop called "Buttercup Bakery."

Anyways, gotta run. Back to saving up enough money to get my helpless parents and younger sister out of that struggling hell-hole! 

Best Regards,

Kailey Moffatt

 

Why I run and count calories.

Well, obviously I do it to keep in shape and whatnot. But alot of times people give me crap if I say I'm worried about my weight. "But you're thin, you don't need to worry about weight!" "Oh, you're fine, stop thinking about it." Other things like that which frustrate me. Well, I currently am thin, but that's a product of me being careful about food and working out.

When I was home this weekend, I went through all my school pictures. I tell people quite frequently that I was a chubby kid, and they either don't believe me or tell me everyone went through an awkward phase. Thus, I have posted below a small collection of photos of me throughout my life. Not as many as I had, but enough to give you a good idea. Keep in mind that I took pictures of a print with my iPhone.

Three years old. I think I'm all that.

Second grade. No front teeth. So many freckles.

Fourth grade. My first pair of glasses. I loved them.

Fifth grade.

Somewhere between fifth and sixth. This picture makes me laugh.

Sixth.... Glases, braces, side part hair (which wasn't cool in 1999.) Just before my growth spurt.

 I skipped 7th and 8th because the pics weren't readily accessible. Seventh is a slightly thinner version of above. In eighth, I got bangs. I didn't get contacts and braces off until ninth:

Freshman year of high school. Decided not to take my retainer out for the picture.

Sophomore year of high school. Black eyeliner is cool. I had such a circle face...

I also liked black shirts alot. And didn't believe in any sort of skin makeup.

Senior Portrait!

High School graduation. My face shape there is actually the same as now.

 And there you have it. Me throughout the years. There was a pretty awkward phase there, which I'm sure we all have. More than anything, I just wanted to post a bunch of pictures of me online somewhere that wasn't facebook.

Updates.

Life has been calm lately. Calm and normal, which I like.

Running has become a normal sort of thing that I look forward to. This morning, I ran four miles. It is a monumental first for me. It took 52 minutes, which I think isn't too bad, but I'm not really sure. Dustin would say it's terrible, my nice friends would probably say it's awesome. Whatever, I think it's fun.

I might try to go vegetarian for a week. I always used to say I never could, but lately, I've been having full vegetarian days without even realizing it, mostly just because I've been trying to eat leftovers or didn't have any meat readily available. Black beans are one of my new favorite foods. Black beans and rice, black bean soup, black bean chili, etc. Oh, and sweet potatoes. It'd be interesting, maybe.

I visited Jacksonville last week. It was alot of fun.

I'll be in Deland again soon.

There's just not alot going on lately.

Running.

I have disappeared for awhile. It's been a busy few months, and what with it being Leah's last few weeks in Tallahassee, I tried to spend extra time with her. She is now in Virginia with Daniel. I could write an entire blog post about how depressed I am because of this, but that would not correspond to the title of this blog, so I won't dwell on my sadness.

I got burnt out from the Couch to 5k plan for a bit, mostly because it was just too hot in the afternoon to run. Then, I finally decided to start getting up early and working out before work. Before the wedding, I would go to the apartment complex gym before work every morning. I hated it. I realize now why: 1) It was way too dark at 6:30 am in the winter. 2) The walk was freezing. 3) I hate working out indoors (which I never knew till I started running.)

I've always been a morning person. I appreciate getting up with the sun and seeing the day before the world wakes up, while the sky is still getting lighter, the birds are chirping, everything is covered with dew and the world feels fresh and new. (Except for that one foggy morning, when the humidity was 100% and everything was stifling and still and it felt like 90 degrees at 6:45 am. That morning was somewhat less pleasant.) Running in the mornings is invigorating (mostly.) It gives me a chance to appreciate my favorite time of day in the outside world and helps me wake up. I start the day feeling more alive and more grateful for the beauty of nature after having spent a good half hour in it first thing after I wake up. I would try to recommend to everyone to get up earlier than usual, even if it's just 5 minutes, and go stand outside on your front porch or outside your front door. Appreciate the world in the morning--it's beautiful. You won't regret it.

Anyways, my workouts have improved. I also signed up for my first 5k on September 5th, which has been motivating me. Also, I want to tell you about my workout this morning.

Let me preface with this. I was never an athletic person my entire life. Some people can just up and run a mile whenever they feel like it. In 2011, I could maybe barely run a mile, involving alot of gasping and pain. In my entire life, I have never run two consecutive miles, and have in the past few months been able to run two miles with walking breaks only. Well, friends, this morning, just to see if I could since I've been improving: I ran 3.1 miles. That is correct, I ran a 5k with no walking breaks. I'm so darn proud of myself!

Now, to humble myself appropriately: it took 41 minutes. I was running between a 13 and 14 minute mile average, which is not a super impressive time, according to runners and whatnot. But, it's still a good starting place.

I'll probably start blogging more again, especially now that Leah is gone and Kate is gone and there is nobody left in Tallahassee. Woe is me.