It's HER fault!

If Twitch gets voted off tonight, this is who you should blame. Sure, she looks innocent in this picture, but don't be deceived! Because while I was distracted by some wine and sugar cookies, she was busy voting for Mark last night on MY phone. True, I did give it to her in the first place, but I thought she'd vote once or twice. Maybe five times.

But not 224!

I'm not even joking - I counted all of them as I walked home from her apartment last night. And I thought obsessive thirteen year-olds were scary!

DANG it!

Southern California gave us our first taste of earthquake today, after hosting us here for almost three years. It was the perfect mix of magnitude (5.4) and lack of deaths or major destruction; hence it was an exciting earthquake, rather than a dangerous one. Or it would have been, if I had only felt it.

That's right. While the rest of our corner of the world, from Los Angeles to Las Vegas, felt the quake, yours truly was driving down the 210 freeway and totally oblivious to the seismic special of the day. Looking back, I do remember a bunch of people slamming on their breaks for no apparent reason, but that's just par for the course in L.A. traffic, so I didn't think much about it. My brother, Mick, called about that time, but I didn't answer because of the new driving law, and I figured he was calling about the package I sent him in the mail.

I pulled into the Sam's Club parking lot a few minutes later and was trying to check my voicemail when it started acting up on me. Right about that time I looked up to see a huge crowd of people in front of the doors at Sam's and I thought, "Great. Just great. I came on a day when they're having some crazy sale and now I'm going to have to wade through a billion people just to get toilet paper." As I got closer, I realized they weren't letting anyone in. I also picked up on a murmur of nervous excitement spreading throughout the crowd. And I noticed everyone was trying to use their cell phones without success. That's when the thought hit me. "Well, this is it. The aliens have finally invaded." Because, clearly, that was the only logical explanation.


Trust me. I was just as surprised by that thought as you probably are. I didn't even know I believed in aliens! And I'm sure not some sci-fi girl. I think I need to take a break from Will Smith movies.

Anyway, as I was standing there, pondering what life would be like under the rule of Mars, one of the Sam's employees ushered everyone away from the building, and I was all, "Why do the aliens care if we stand next to the building?" Finally, someone next to me said, "Boy, that'll wake you up, won't it?!" And when he saw my confused, blank look, he asked, "Didn't you feel it?
Didn't you feel the earthquake?!"


OH! It was an earthquake. Of course! (Thank God!)

And then I got mad that I missed it.


I spent the next forty minutes standing outside of Sam's, chatting it up with my fellow consumers. When people around me realized I didn't feel it and never had experienced an earthquake, they proceeded to tell me every earthquake story they had ever heard. What a way to commiserate, no?

I later found out that by driving to Sam's that day, I was about twenty miles closer to the epicenter of the quake than I would have been in Pasadena. And I still didn't feel it. Do you people even know how much I drive these days? NOT MUCH. Especially during the week. I cannot BELIEVE the quake happened while I was in the car. Boo!

When I finally made it home, I held my breath as I opened the front door, sure I'd find my new shelf on the floor, along with my favorite travel souvenirs. But to my surprise, it was just hanging there on the wall like nothing had happened. Sadly, this was not the case through the rest of the house:

All and all, it was one of the most uneventful eventful days of my life. I'm glad everyone is safe and sound and thankful nothing else got damaged. But honestly, how does a vase shatter when it hits leather?

It must have been an alien.

You smell like a monkey and you look like one, too.

We had a belated birthday party for Ben this past weekend - wiffle ball, cookout, cake, pictionary, and catch phrase. It doesn't get much better than that.

What a difference a year makes - Ben can use his arm again!

Play ball!

Good friends = good times. Ben and Andrew. Sniff, sniff.

Not one, but two cakes!
Makin' a wish!

All is not fair in love and pictionary.

The winning team. But only because the birthday boy was a part of it.

It was such a fun day! Ben is loved by many and is hugely blessed by these friendships. 27 is going to be a good year, even if it does start with a mustache.

Would you know it if your kid was ugly?

That was one of our topics of discussion when I visited Tara in June. I don't know that we ever came up with a definitive answer, but luckily for Tara, she won't have to worry about it:

Spencer is one of the cutest babies I've seen - and I don't really think babies are all that cute, especially the fresh ones.

Congratulations, again!

And then there were three.

Welcome to the world, Spencer Daniel Stewart - we're so glad you're finally here! Congratulations to the new little family.

Ack!

I just found out my good friend, Tara, is getting induced today. She's a week overdue, so this child must be very content where he is! Please keep her in your prayers.

Woo-woo! Go, Tara!

Tara, Tara - she's our girl, if she can't do it, I'm gonna hurl!

Give me a T - T! Give me an A - A! Give me an R - R! Give me an A - A! What's that spell? Super Mom!

Consider yourself cheered for. Praying for you, my friend.

You oughta know...

... last night I added two more celebrity sightings to my list. The one and only George Foreman, and a cute little Canadian singer-songwriter gal. Ironically, you may have heard of her. (I know, Lauren, I know. You can throw up now after the excessive use of puns.)

Ben and I took my brother and his wife to a Jimmy Kimmel show last night, only to get stuck in traffic and make it too late to actually sit in on the taping (I hate you, L.A.). So, we made our way back to the green room (I love your connections, Ben!) and I passed Ms. Morissette walking in. The universe should be very thankful that I managed to resist the temptation to belt out one of her songs. That would not have been pretty. We watched the show from the green room, enjoying the free food and drinks, and old-school arcade games. After the show, Alanis performed an open air concert in the parking lot behind the studio and it was fabulous. She did a great job of mixing in a few classics with her new stuff, so there were moments when I was instantly transported back to the angst of high school. While I didn't cry, like some people have been known to do at Alanis concerts, it was quite the trip down memory lane.

Oh, Alanis. I'm glad you're not so angry at the world anymore. But how very thankful I am that you gave us a piece of your shredded, ripped-out heart. It truly makes for a great workout soundtrack.

One step closer...

...to being a professor. I just got hired on to be an adjunct prof at APU. And you know what's neat? They're going to pay me! What a novel idea. This whole working for free...er...scratch that...this whole paying to work thing...not my favorite. Cheers to teaching again! And to making money again!

I can't WAIT until he gets this phone call in a restaurant.

I'm sitting here on the couch, pretending to work on a paper while I'm secretly watching Gossip Girl, and am vaguely cognizant of the fact that Ben's talking to his brother. Soon he gets off the couch, hands me the phone, and proceeds to do five push-ups. Then he takes his phone back and carries on the conversation for another few minutes.

Because all of this is entirely normal at our house.

Robin: So what's that all about?
Ben: What?
R: Oh, I don't know. Doing push-ups in middle of a conversation, maybe?
B: Oh, that.
R: Yes, that.
B: Mike and I have started to bet on our xbox games. Whoever loses has to do push-ups. At the winner's discretion.
R: And Mike just asked you to do your push-ups.
B: Yep.
R: Blink.
R: Blink.
R: I'm so glad I'm a girl.

Did I just have an awesome Thursday?! YUP!

I know you've all been waiting with bated breath to find out about Terrific Thursday, so without further ado...

Yesterday started boringly enough with me piddling around the house, finding excuse after excuse not to write papers. Then 1:30 rolled around and my good friends, Julia and Emily picked me up and we headed into L.A. TO WATCH A TAPING OF SYTYCD! After waiting in line for almost three hours two weeks ago, only to be turned away because "too many VIP's showed up," we returned with priority tickets to yesterday's show. We waited another few hours (this time in the front of the line!) before we were ushered into the studio. We got placed just behind the front row of people, smack dab in front of the stage. Since the row in front of us was mostly made up of thirteen-year-old's, we had a great view. Truth be told, most of the audience was made up of thirteen-year-old's. Aside from friends and family of the dancers, the audience consisted of three distinct groups: 1) thirteen-year-old girls, 2) their moms, and 3) my friends and me. Yeah. That's how we roll. But do you think that mattered one bit when Twitch and Will were ten feet away from me?! I could almost TOUCH those abs! And Mia Michaels was there - Julia almost peed her pants. (There IS a God!) It was such a thrill to see the group performances and solos - and this was just the results show! I can only imagine what it would be like to see the couples dance...

The sad part of the night was having to see Gev get eliminated. But really, all the guys at this point are so flipping amazing - it would have been sad to see any of them go. I didn't think the girl elimination would be too bad. Clearly, Comfort was on her way out. So, imagine my surprise when Kherington was cut. What were you thinking, America?! If we hadn't already made our way to the back of the crowd, I may have jumped up on stage in protest.

Oh, what's that? You want to know why we were walking away from the stage at such a vital point in the show? Well, I'll tell you. It's because my friends and I are Very Important People and we had another appearance to make that night...and about twenty minutes to get there. So, once the nice security guard let us go, we took off towards the parking garage, about four blocks away. While we were running like the wind, I shouted that I felt like we were in a movie because we were passing all of these film trailers and I secretly was playing the theme song to Rocky in my head. And just to let you in on how cool my friends are, Julia was playing Chariots of Fire and Em had Last of the Mohicans in her head. That's right - we should just walk around with warning signs that we're so cool we're hot. And smart. Right, girls?

Julia geniusly maneuvered us through traffic and we arrived at our destination just in time to...

wait for it...

wait for it...

...slip into a cast and crew screening of Step Brothers! With FREE popcorn and soda! Because we sat down just as the theater darkened, I didn't get a chance to see who all was there (and by that, I mean Will Ferrell or John C. Reilly). The movie had some hysterical one-liners, some of which have been on previews, but not all. And one disgusting scene in particular that I could have done without. Aside from that and the gratuitous use of F-bombs, it was pretty stinking funny. I've never heard an audience laugh so much, but I think it might have been because most of the people there had invested a lot of time and energy into making this film happen - it was their baby. And almost everyone waited until the very last credit rolled by before getting up. I mean, come on - wouldn't you wait to see your name upon the screen? I know I would. And then I would clap for myself. Which some of them did.

I'm sad to report that none of the big stars were there - I think they had just attended the premiere a week earlier. But I did see a few of the actors and actresses who played smaller roles. And I'm sure there were oodles of people there who are a Big Deal, but I didn't know them from Adam.

All in all it was an amazing day. A day in which I could forgive L.A. for all of its faults. Because sometimes, every now and then, I think, "Wow, L.A. You're really something. Did we just become best friends?!" And it answers with an emphatic, "YUP!"

And all of a sudden I'm 9 again...

Break out the pillow cases and buttons, ladies. You know you had them.

Forcast for the Day: Awesomeness

Just to give you a little sneak preview of what's in store for me today, it involves dancing and Will Ferrell. And paper writing. But that's not the fun part. Stay tuned!

Oooh!

Today is someone's birthday. Happy 27th, babe.

Life is too short to wear a bikini.

Or, at least a cheap bikini.

Let me explain by first giving you a little background. My good friend, Kim, and I spent most of our summers in high school at Limberlost Lake and we often joked that she would be the fat, tan one, while I would be the skinny, pale one. While Kim worships the sun, laying out bores me to tears. So, there we'd be, settled on the dock, and I'd ask, "Wanna see how long we can hold our breath? Or we could try to swim out to that island. Oooh! We should have a diving contest! Better yet - let's create a synchronized swimming routine!" And Kim, understandably, would turn the radio up louder, flip from her back to her stomach, and ignore me.

Fast forward about ten years and I've given in to peer pressure, now wearing a bikini and doing the sociably acceptable thing of laying out on the beach, reading magazines, while all the guys play. But this last weekend I said, "No more!" And I proceeded to spend the next five hours in the ocean, diving into the waves, body surfing, competing in long-jump contests, and trying to not be the weakest link in the human chain verses the wave game. This would have been all fine and dandy if the ocean hadn't decided to have its way with me. It was all I could do to keep my bikini on! After getting knocked silly by the first big wave, I opted to put Ben's rash guard on, that way I would at least protect innocent bystanders from getting flashed by me. My bottoms were also an issue - half the day I was tugging and holding on to them for dear life as the waves forced me into out of control somersaults. It was all so annoying and cramping my style. Thus, my declaration: life is too short to wear a bikini. Next time I'll be dusting off the old, trusty speedo.

Aside from the wardrobe malfunctions, I had the best beach day I've had in a long time. Perfect temps, beautiful day, and rock climbing! If only every day could be that much fun.

Fellow Frolickers.

Sunblock, according to Laine.

Emily, teaching me the ropes. HA! Get it?!

Jordan, totally kicking my butt as he raced to the top and I eventually gave up. I did make it all the way up the other side, though!

Ben and Barry.

I think Barry's saying, "Can you BELIEVE this view?!" He might have been referring to himself......but this is what I was thinking of - backdrop to the rock we were climbing. Amazing!

And, last but not least, the baby seal that paid us a visit. I was told he was probably disoriented from some bad algae, but I'm pretty sure he made back into the ocean okay.

I really wish I liked classical music.

But I don't. Not really, anyway. I can appreciate the complexity of the music and the talent of the musician, not to mention the genius of the composer, but I've discovered that appreciation turns into boredom after about ten minutes. So much for that marker of maturity, sophistication, and culture.

Andrew and Lauren received these tickets from his boss and the seats were awesome - way better than we could have done on our own. The tradition is to bring a picnic basket of goodies to eat before the show begins, so Ben and I came prepared, with a beach cooler of wine, fruit, and oreo cookies. As an usher showed us to our box, I realized we were in a bit over our heads with this crowd - most of them had fancy picnic baskets, place settings, cloth napkins and tablecloths, and catered food. We kind of stood out, you could say.

Then the music started and we stood out even more. There is a breed of people that take classical music very seriously. It was so quiet in the audience that I had to strategically plan when to eat a chip! So, as you can imagine, talking was out of the question. Lauren wanted to know the details of how my proposal went and we generally just needed to catch up, so pretty soon we just pulled out our phones and started texting. And it seemed like the more wine I had, the funnier Lauren and everything else became, so I got the giggles. A lot. Which might explain why you thing the following isn't funny at all, but just humor me.

Lauren: I can't wait for this piece that doesn't have an end.

Robin: What the heck is a movement?

L: I don't know what a movement is. I feel like I have agenesis of the corpus collosum because I don't get any of these jokes...did you just hear that guy two rows back burp?

R: No...I'm too busy trying to figure out how I'm going to transcribe this for a blog.

L: Oh yes. I think you and I are pretty hilarious tonight if I do say so myself.

R: It might be the wine. Maybe. Or...we're bored out of our ever loving mind.

L: Mmm..the music got dark there for a second. Do you think that was the part where the guy said the composer wanted to kill his lover?

R: Some one's paying attn! I didn't even notice.

L: I think Andrew is more mature than me...or is he more drunk?

R: Your husband just closed his eyes and bobbed his head. He's like a girl at an Nsync concert.

*Julia*: Who is my husband? [Julia and I were also texting, as she was reporting on SYTYCD results show]

R: Crap! Lauren and I are so bored that we're texting...sent the text to the wrong person.

L: The stage looks like a spaceship...it also looks like inside the human body...ribs.

R: The guy behind you has binoculars. I bet we're really annoying everyone around us.

L: Wow. Really? Binoculars?! I almost feel guilty for my irreverence.

R: Almost. Why do they keep showing close ups of the tuba players?! You can't even see their heads, for cryin out loud.

So, there you have it - culture wasting at its finest. Here are some more pictures for you to enjoy.

Andrew, trying to open some food very, very quietly.

Ben, after Andrew spilled some wine when a leg of his chair finally fell off the step leading up to our box.

The mature one who truly appreciated the music.

Passing the Proposal Celebration Kiss. And a picture proving that I'm on a one-woman mission to bring back the banana clip!

Ummm....

If you see me walking with this guy around town, pretend like we're not together. Because that's what I'll be doing. Ben thought it would be fun to wear his Richling mustache to Vegas. I think he looks like he's an extra on My Name Is Earl. And I'm slightly worried that he and the other two guys at work who own scooters are going to make mustaches part of the scooter gang attire.

Pass!

To mark the momentous occasion of passing my dissertation proposal yesterday, I would like to make an acceptance speech:

To Amy, my lab mate who is one step ahead of me in the process and whose guidance, assurance, and generosity with tips and articles will forever be appreciated. I am incredibly in debt to her kindness. To Emily, who was always willing to share the details of lecture that I missed because I wasn't paying attention while I worked on polishing the proposal and PowerPoint presentation during our one-week intensive class. To Nikki and Sabrina, who helped trouble-shoot and advert a crisis when I wasn't able to print my PowerPoint notes a few hours before the presentation. To Cisco, who gave me a quick ride home on my lunch break so I could print said notes. To Julia, who texted me this prayer yesterday morning: God, give Robin peace and take away any anxiety that is wrestling inside her. Giver her the words to say during her proposal - may she kill it. Amen. To all my friends who sent me warm wishes, good luck messages, blessings and prayers throughout the day via text, Facebook, and G-chat. To my dissertation committee members, who didn't ask any questions I couldn't answer or b.s. my way through. To Lauren and Andrew, who helped Ben and me celebrate last night by taking us to the Hollywood Bowl to listen to the Los Angeles Philharmonic. And finally, to Ben for putting up with my grumpiness this week as I sat through eight hours of class and two to three hours of dissertation homework every day. Thank you all for the support and encouragement. I've learned that it takes a village to produce a dissertation - and I couldn't ask for better village people!

With such a big milestone (aka hoop) out of the way, I plan on taking this weekend off. Ben is going to Vegas with some buddies, so first on the schedule is happy hour tonight with some girlfriends, followed by rock climbing and beach day tomorrow, then church and maybe salsa dancing on Sunday (if I can work up the nerve). All interspersed with lots of reading of fluff books, newspapers and hours and hours of sleep!

Are you ready for this much cuteness?!

This is my niece, Vivi. Look out, world - she's gonna be trouble!

Attention Pregnant Friends.

Please stop having boys. Because I really want to give someone a pair of these:

Happy Endings Still Exist

Mia and I came across this on our walk last night. And all of a sudden the world was a brighter place.

It doesn't just happen in movies.

I failed to mention that when I went to that documentary screening last week, I carpooled with some friends. There were five of us, and no one realized the "No Parking - Tow Away Zone" sign applied to us (who am I kidding - I didn't even see the sign). So, once we realized the car was, indeed, not where we had left it, there was a moment of panic. Like this commercial. Almost. I kid you not - I did look around for a cat to bark at me. When a quick phone call confirmed we had been towed, and not royally ripped off, we all breathed a sigh of relief and started walking to the impound station. It wasn't a bad part of town, exactly, but I did have the thought that it would be just our luck to get mugged on the way. But I didn't say that thought out loud, as right before (not) finding the car, one guy of the group was yammering away about his biggest fear of returning to his car, only to find it missing. Needless to say, I didn't want to speak two things into truth that evening. I later revealed this somewhat irrational thought to another person in our group, and she scoffed, saying we were perfectly fine the whole time. But she also ministers to hookers in the wee hours of the morning in scary neighborhoods in L.A. So you can understand why I didn't exactly trust her judgment of safety. :) Besides, it's a scientific fact that she is ten times more likely to get hit on than mugged.

But all's well that ends well (albeit expensively). Just another L.A. adventure.

One of the Top 10 Ways to Give Robin a Heart Attack

Lose the final paper she submitted a week early that discussed the debate between the inerrancy and infallibility of Scripture and give her an Incomplete for the class, which then translates to an "F" on her transcript.

Awesome.

Luckily, I was able to contact the professor and remedy the situation.

Crisis adverted. Continue about your business.

Souvenir

Ben and I have started collecting art from the countries we visit. Some day we'll display it all in that dream library of ours. Until then, all the pieces are hanging in our bathroom...which, if you think about it, is kind of a library in and of itself.

Obliviousness to Devastating Paralysis

These seem to be the two extremes I waiver between in life and yesterday found me face to face with both of them.

After trying a new route with Mia in the morning and ending up lost in San Marino, a neighboring town known for its deep pockets and sprawling estates, I found myself coveting and daydreaming. I'm incredibly househungry right now. I long for the day when I have a dishwasher again, and my own washing machine and dryer (!). I have great dreams of a library with built-in bookshelves and a rolling ladder, of a wrap-around porch with a swing, and a few acres of land. It is so easy for me to get caught up in these desires, which aren't inherently bad, but can distract me from what Really Matters. Later that day I found myself having a discussion with someone about a commitment I've made that I'm now regretting because it's time consuming and puts me in a place (in more ways than one) that I'm not comfortable being. I was having bitter and self-entitled thoughts that, all in all, gave me a bad attitude that was incredibly self-serving.

Then, last night, I went to a screening of a "rockumentary" about modern day slavery and trafficking that served as a sobering shock to my system. If those topics don't take the focus off of yourself for a moment, I don't know what will. The documentary showcases some incredible musical talent, mixed in with interviews, and hard-to-wrap-your-mind-around hidden film footage. I don't know that I can put into words how I was affected by what I saw and heard, but I can tell you that I was reminded of how much I need to be reminded...if that makes sense. I desperately need my little bubble of a world popped on a regular basis to keep me from getting too comfortable and passive, because my natural tendency is to look the other way when it comes to suffering. I fear I can't bear all the pain that exists in the world, so I ignore it. How I ended up in the profession that I'm training for is any one's guess. I think my fear is that I will become so overwhelmed that I become incapacitated, that I will be swallowed up by all the suffering, paralyzed by the seemingly insurmountable odds. After all, isn't not caring or knowing enough to do anything better than being unable to do anything? Who wants to acknowledge that kind of helplessness within themselves, even if it we can recognize it as a lie from Satan?

How does one find the balance between these two extremes so that something can be done? I'm guessing the answer lies in looking to God to find the strength to carry on and to stand up for the rights of others, rather than trying to find it in ourselves. I don't know about you, but I find this to be incredibly challenging. One of my greatest downfalls is my desire to be self-sufficient.

Anyway. Please watch this trailer and be sure to go see the film when it's released. The soundtrack will also be for sale, and 100% of all the proceeds will be donated to charity. I might feel overwhelmed with how much needs to be done, but I can do this. And so can you.

When the Nazis came for the communists,I remained silent;I was not a communist.
When they locked up the social democrats,I remained silent;I was not a social democrat.
When they came for the trade unionists,I did not speak out;I was not a trade unionist.
When they came for the Jews,I remained silent;I wasn't a Jew.
When they came for me,there was no one left to speak out.
~ Martin Niemöller