Sleeping In! (023/365)

Day 23 Happy: Sleeping in!

Today I had every intention of getting up early, doing some homework and housework, and then getting ready for work. Instead, I ended up laying around in bed, half awake, until 10:00, when I finally had to get up for work. I don't usually linger in bed that long, but I figured I deserved it.

A week from today, I start my internship at Graphics Tech in Tampa. I am both nervous and excited about it, but mostly I'm just preparing myself for the exhaustion. For six weeks, I will be working 40 hours a week at my regular job, plus 25 hours a week at the internship, and doing homework for two classes, Adolescent Literature and Survey of Criminal Justice. I am pretty sure that I won't have a chance to sleep in again until the beginning of August, so I took advantage of it today.

Hopefully, when all is said and done, my exhaustion will be worth it! I graduate from college in December, so I only have about 6 more months of this madness!

On another note... I am trying a veggie burger for the first time for dinner tonight. I'm terrified! What will a burger made out of veggie and soy product taste like? My sister, Lyndsey, says that they are pretty good, so I am going to give it a shot. I'll get back on later and let you know how it tastes.

Update: My veggie burger was... not terrible. It was a different texture, and didn't have too much taste, except for a char-grilled taste, which actually kinda made it taste like hamburger. I smothered it with mustard, ketchup, A1 and pickles, and it made for a pretty satisfying dinner. Marc was making fun of me because I was afraid to try it at first, just like I was afraid to try our first attempt at home-made vegetarian Chinese food last night (which actually turned out pretty good, but needs a few tweaks for next time). Being a vegetarian for almost a month has definitely made me expand my normal range of food! So far, so good!

Rain, Rain (022/365)

Day 22 Happy: Rain!

It has been raining for the past two hours. I love this part about Florida summers (not happy for the day... today is the first day of summer, which means it is only going to get hotter. ICK). It is so nice to read my book for homework (The Chocolate War... it is pretty good so far!), all curled up in my PJs on my futon with a cup of hot chai, listening to the rain outside. If only I had a cozy fireplace, the scene would be complete!

Another happy for today... Marc has gotten an insane amount of views and comments on his flickr since posting the pictures from Harry Potter world. It makes him happy to have so many other people enjoy the photos he has taken, and when he is happy, I am happy! Check out his pictures from The Wizarding World of Harry Potter (and others) here!

Acting Like Old People (021/365)

Day 21 Happy: Acting like old people!

We have been crazy busy the past couple of days, between going to the Grand Opening of The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, and going to see Toy Story 3 last night. We are exhausted!

Last night, we made a plan to come home tonight and go to bed early. We are going to be showered, fed and in bed watching movies and playing Scrabble no later than 10:30 tonight! (I know that doesn't really seem early, but we generally get into bed sometime between 1:30 and 2:00 a.m.) I am looking forward to turning in early and just relaxing before starting the work week.

Hope you all have an awesome night, too!

Update: 
We did not end up playing Scrabble (unfortunate. I love Scrabble). Instead, we laid in bed and watched Dear John, which my lovely friend Miranda let us borrow. She said that she hated it, especially the ending, so I wanted to judge it for myself. I actually thought it was a pretty good movie, and very realistic. I am a little biased, though, because I think Amanda Seyfried is fantastic. Talking to a friend today at work, I heard that the book is a little different, and better for those who did not like the ending of the film version. I'll have to read that as soon as I am not being completely overloaded by homework every second of my life. 
My rating for Dear John: 3 1/2 stars

Free Stuff! (020/365)

Day 20 Happy: Free stuff!

Who doesn't like free stuff? Marc and I have a lot of free stuff to do lately. Tonight we went and saw Toy Story 3! We got a free ticket each from buying Toy Story 1 and 2 when they were released earlier this year. It was one of the best movies I have seen in a long time. I laughed out loud and even cried a little bit at the end. Pixar is always great, but it was one of my favorite movies that they have come out with in the last few years. I would definitely recommend seeing it! It was hilarious, especially when Buzz Lightyear goes into Spanish mode!

We also have free tickets to go see a Tampa Bay Storm (arena football) game next Friday, and free tickets to go to the Improv in Tampa for this Wednesday. I love doing fun stuff when you don't have to pay for it!

My Toy Story 3 rating: 4 1/2 stars. 

The Wizarding World of Harry Potter (019/365)

Day 19 Happy: The Wizarding World of Harry Potter

Hogwarts Castle

To me, it rivals Cinderella's castle for "awe" factor.

Being the impulsive, spontaneous (and crazy) people that we are, Marc and I managed to take a trip to Orlando's outlet mall and turn it into a trip to the grand opening of Universal's Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Originally, we had left the outlets on the pretense of visiting City Walk to take in the Harry Potter chaos and see if there was any merchandise for sale outside of the park. After talking to a very nice man who informed us of our awesome Florida resident discount rate (the best part about living in Florida), and realizing that Marc earned enough overtime on his last paycheck to cover both of our admissions, we decided to go in.

It was madness, totally crazy and absolutely wonderful. We had to wait in line for over 2 hours in line once we got into Islands of Adventure just to get into the Harry Potter section. I was so impressed with the castle and with Hogsmeade. It was bigger and more beautiful and realistic than I had imagined! There was a ridiculous amount of people there (of course, since it was the opening day). We didn't get to ride any rides, but we will be able to go back with our year passes. There was a line over an hour long to try the Butterbear and Pumpkin Juice, so I guess we will be getting some of that next time. We waited in line to go into two of the stores, Durvish and Banges and Flich's Emporium of Confisgated goods. I wanted to do some shopping and get awesome Harry Potter gear (especially a Gryffindor scarf, which I have wanted for years), but most of the stuff was already sold out. I ended up with a Gryffindor key chain instead.

It was awesome to go on opening day and be part of the chaos and be some of the first, but we didn't get to see most of the park and will definitely need to go back to get the whole experience.

Pumpkin Juice and Butterbeer

We haven't gotten to try either of them, but we looked at the bottle and it has a small amount of pumpkin puree, and lots of different juices, like peach and apple. The people in line in front of us said it was delicious. The butterbeer is supposed to taste like cream soda and has a little dollop of cream on top. It costs like $10, but you get to keep the mug it came in as a souvenir.

Honeydukes.

We didn't get to go in, because the lines were too long, but they have an awesome assortment of candy and it is connected to Zonkos joke shop. We will definitely have to go next time!

Another view of Hogwarts, and some Remembralls and

Sneakoscopes that were for sale at Dervish and Banges.

The Three Broomsticks in Hogsmeade

(All photos courtesy of Marc Vosburgh)

We had a blast, and can't wait to go back.

When are you going to visit The Wizarding World of Harry Potter? What are you most excited to see and do? Leave your answers in the comments!