Act Naturally

Prague! I miss you today!

Thu, 16 May 2013 11:28:00 -0600

Prague! I miss you today!

My new favorite name for him came from Joe’s tongue...

Wed, 15 May 2013 21:37:21 -0600

My new favorite name for him came from Joe’s tongue getting tied up: Odious Odorous Otis. He is adorable, but stinky.

I think he looks like an ocelot, and I love that some of his whiskers are black, and some of them start out black but then turn white.

I can give you wood.

Wed, 15 May 2013 21:20:59 -0600

I can give you wood.

It’s my mom, being cute with my husband! Happy...

Sun, 12 May 2013 22:40:23 -0600

It’s my mom, being cute with my husband! Happy Mother’s Day! ~~(Or as Joe said, “Happy Sunday!” … Jerk!)~~

Photos of Happiness. 011. I can’t help but giggle every...

Mon, 06 May 2013 15:11:54 -0600

Photos of Happiness. 011.

I can’t help but giggle every time I see this photo of Sam photobombing Katie. This was on an island in the middle of the Vltava River in Prague, where I was adoring the greenery. Katie seemed very at peace so I went to take a picture… and then Sam swooped in! What are (twin) brothers for, anyway?

Andrea E. Peterson » Moving On

Sun, 05 May 2013 22:00:30 -0600

Andrea E. Peterson » Moving On:

A new post about my life… tried to make it a bit more professional in nature so that possible employers might see it down the road.

“Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the...

Tue, 30 Apr 2013 17:04:00 -0600

“Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great.”

— Mark Twain

It’s amazing to me how relevant quotes by this man show up at just the right time in my life. My current boss, a manager at Starbucks, has regularly made me feel belittled. He often brags about how little education he has, yet he’s the one in charge (though, cringe-inducingly, he also says he’s the “stupidest” one there). I tend to think of him as someone who has overcome hardships—something I admire, to a certain extent— but he also says and does small things and acts like a small person when talking to me.

My ambition in the last few months has been to pursue my photography and to finish my Master’s degree. I did the photography thing and loved it, but his distinct lack of interest (despite butting his head into my personal life all the time otherwise) was disappointing. But worse has been the attempt to finish school. I’ve almost felt he has been actively blocking me from working on it. I asked for closer to 30 hours at work, instead of 40. Instead, because I have open availability, I get more hours than most of the other partners at Starbucks. He does nothing but roll his eyes when I bring my laptop to work on papers or study.

To top it off, he makes me feel small by sometimes insinuating that I am stupid. My least favorite thing in the world is when he says, “Y’all are special” in his typically Alabaman accent.

That, among myriad other reasons, is why I am proud to say I have put in my two weeks’ notice and will be done at Starbucks by 12:15PM on Friday May 10.

YAY!

Photos of Happiness. 010. Rory! Poor thing needs to get used to...

Mon, 29 Apr 2013 20:49:00 -0600

Photos of Happiness. 010.

Rory! Poor thing needs to get used to the new kitty. I love her so much. I can’t wait until she has settled in with the new cat.

Surprise! Two pieces of news! Joe has accepted a post-doctoral...

Mon, 29 Apr 2013 18:17:57 -0600

Surprise!

Two pieces of news!

Joe has accepted a post-doctoral position at Washington State University, so we’ll be moving to Pullman, Washington by the end of May.

THE other news is that we finally bit the bullet and got the companion kitty we’ve been hoping to get for Rory. We adopted him from the Los Alamos Animal Shelter today. His name is Otis, which I LOVE! He and Rory are still getting to know each other, but I hope in time they’ll be beating each other up in good fun.

Photos of Happiness. 009. I am not happy today. Not at all....

Sun, 28 Apr 2013 17:53:35 -0600

Photos of Happiness. 009.

I am not happy today. Not at all. Won’t talk about it. Here’s me on my Honeymoon in Cyprus. This is at the UNESCO World Heritage Site, the Tomb of the Kings. I was giddy because the site was closed down for New Year’s Day, but there was a bit of fence pulled back where others were obviously letting themselves in. We were giggling at the fun we were having trespassing, and how little the Cyprian authorities seemed to care.

Photos of Happiness. 008. Because… well. I laugh every...

Fri, 26 Apr 2013 09:59:03 -0600

Photos of Happiness. 008.

Because… well. I laugh every time I see this! What were the owners thinking?!

Photos of Happiness. 007. Model UN was the single greatest thing...

Thu, 25 Apr 2013 15:45:00 -0600

Photos of Happiness. 007.

Model UN was the single greatest thing I did while at NMSU. I was on the team for five years, rockin’ it with one of my best friends (probably the best one made after high school age other than Joe), Lauren. I also believe my bff Mandy has Model UN to thank for meeting Jacob, who is in this picture, as is Sarah. I even got Joe, a physicist, to take part one year, and he’s in the photo above too. I am so proud of this team for doing so well when I was counting on them. It was a challenging year, being head delegate with our faculty advisor on sabbatical. Instead of our usual faculty advisor being there, my own advisor and one of my favorite people of all time, Dr. Baker, was there (next to me on the far left).

I just finished writing and editing a 34-page paper about Model UN and why it’s so awesome as an educational tool. I freaked out this morning when I realized I needed to get some paperwork in TODAY, along with signature… but but I am 300 miles away! The good news is, Joe’s in Las Cruces right now. I love and trust him, and he can follow instructions if you give them to him completely, which is something I learned fairly well from MUN. He was able to do all the running for me. All the paper work is in!

All that’s left for me to get a master’s degree is an oral exam and a written exam. I honestly don’t know what to expect… but I feel like the hardest part is over with. My committee has the three people from my department I enjoyed taking classes from the most, and my fourth committee member (who has to be outside-department), is Joe’s advisor. His advisor is probably as wonderful as mine—he’s the reason we got to go to Prague for a month and why Joe has had such amazing research experiences—and though I don’t expect my committee to take it easy on me, I feel comfortable in front of these folks. I respect all of them, and I’ve felt so much like I was letting them down by not getting this done. Now I am, and I can look them in the eye again.

Anyway, this bunch of people in the picture mean a lot to me, now matter how much I may have been frustrated by certain ones that year. Also, Switzerland means a lot to me, too, because of what an amazing country they are to represent. I learned recently about Swiss ancestry I have, and I am always in awe of how beautiful every. single. picture I’ve seen of the place is. Can’t wait to visit!

Now, who wants to read a sprawlingly long essay about MUN, complete with very few academic sources and way too many pages of appendices? =)

Ugh I LOVED meeting this pup! Yet another foster puppy. Her name...

Wed, 24 Apr 2013 23:57:55 -0600

Ugh I LOVED meeting this pup! Yet another foster puppy. Her name is Shirley (I like to imagine it’s spelled “Surely”).

Doesn’t she look like an Ewok?

Photos of Happiness. 006. Basically, this is a post of photos of...

Wed, 24 Apr 2013 19:58:10 -0600

Joe's older brother trying to get their dad to drink with them.

Sam and Mandy were having a VERY important discussion. About wine.

May not be easy to tell here, but Joe and I are holding up his quite inebriated brother.

The group hug at the end of the night that started with three and grew to something like 10.

Photos of Happiness. 006.

Basically, this is a post of photos of my wedding party getting drunk at our wedding. If it were not for an open bar and willing participants, there would not have been as much dancing, laughs, or all-out declarations of love for the world at our wedding. Seriously, I cannot thank you drunkards enough.

Shoulda coulda woulda

Tue, 23 Apr 2013 18:32:48 -0600

I’m finally writing my last major paper for my Master’s, and I’ve finally got a (very long) rough draft. I honestly don’t care that much to refine it today, but I want to be done with it NOW. I could be if I didn’t feel like sleeping, but I have a likely horrible day ahead of me tomorrow. I must sleep more tonight.

I realize now that this is what I should have written a full thesis on. I may not care that much about international relations, but my depth of experience in Model UN is such that I wrote this whole thing from scratch, almost. I’ve only used four outside sources (not a good thing), but I mean, if I lived it, then why do I have to put a bibliography on my life?!?

Truth be told, there just aren’t a lot of published resources on how Model UN students are better speakers after taking part (though I’m sure research would back me up) or on how students have better understanding of concepts like collective security and sovereignty (though I know they do). I realize now that I should have been the one to do this research. And it would have been easy to do back in 2010, when I was in my 4th—and supposedly final—semester of grad school, and when I was still doing Model UN. Why didn’t I do this then?

Oh well. Maybe if we move, I’ll take the GRE and attempt my own doctorate in the field. If I get the itch. I seriously doubt it, though.

Photos of Happiness. 005. The day my best friend, Laura, came...

Mon, 22 Apr 2013 19:20:52 -0600

Photos of Happiness. 005.

The day my best friend, Laura, came back to visit, and we gave her a grand welcome. As there were five of us, we all took a letter and wrote out her name to meet her at the airport. Most of us are 18 in this picture. That’s me in the front, holding the U, and damn if I don’t look great in those shorts!

Today, I’m really missing having a core group of friends that isn’t predicated on a working relationship. I really despise my work now, and that the only friends I have in this town are coworkers. How did I used to make friends so easily? How did I get so lucky to have such great ones?

Well, I guess this post is a bit sad in its purpose, but it does cheer me up to remember these times.

Photos of Happiness. 004. Some have told us that mine and...

Sun, 21 Apr 2013 18:11:24 -0600

Photos of Happiness. 004.

Some have told us that mine and Joe’s wedding was “in the top five weddings” they’ve ever been to (that came from a sorority girl, and if Facebook is right, then you know they go to a lot of these things), and that it was “too much fun” (that came from all the people who had hangovers the next morning as a result of the open bar). In the photo above, my bridesmaids from left are Laura, Katie, Brittani, and Mandy. Then there’s me, and then the back of Joe’s head.

I love this photo because just out of frame, Joe’s best friend Greg is giving his toast, revealing how nerdy both of us are. Apparently, Joe sent Greg a message on Facebook after a few dates with me expressing how awesome it was to be dating a girl with interests as nerdy as his.

That’s my embarrassed laughing face, because everyone really was laughing at how geeky it all sounded. Greg is an amazing writer, though, and we didn’t stay embarrassed for long. He wrote one of the greatest, most meaningful toasts I’ve ever heard.

Afterward, Laura and Mandy would both end up standing up and giving toasts that had similar themes—about how nerdy Joe and I are—and it was great. This prompted a random toast by a wedding-goer (a lady from my church), which was simply, “May the Force be with you!”

Photo by the amazing Josh and Dawson Hunt.

Photos of Happiness. 003. That’s me and Mandy on the day...

Mon, 15 Apr 2013 22:23:06 -0600

Photos of Happiness. 003.

That’s me and Mandy on the day we graduated with our bachelor’s degrees in 2008. I love this photo because we look really cute (I rarely wore that pencil skirt and now I have no idea where it went). Also, good hair. Also, the day after, we left for our big trip to Disney World! I need to finish another degree… I doubt I’d walk again, though the master’s garb does look pretty appealing.

Photos of Happiness. 002. This was a great day for me in 2008...

Sun, 14 Apr 2013 19:24:00 -0600

Photos of Happiness. 002.

This was a great day for me in 2008 (and I had a lot of great days that year). In an otherwise frustrating week, I felt vindicated by this opportunity. I had taken a role as a rapporteur, which my Model UN team’s advisor had warned against (mistakenly, I still believe). This was not just any rapporteur position; it was for one of the Security Council committees. It ended up meaning that I got to chair the committee, as they don’t have a formal chairmanship (the real version has a rotating presidency, which is hard to enact in only a week’s time, though we did manage it for an afternoon).

Anyway, the final day of any National Model UN conference takes place in actual committee rooms at the United Nations Headquarters in New York City. Usually, they put the Security Council in some nameless conference room, but as it just so happened, our room had been overtaken by actual business at the UN—- so we were sent to one of the real conference rooms, where 15 real-life delegates sit in private and discuss sanctions against Iran and warnings against the DPRK. As rapporteur, I spent most of my day at the head of this rectangular set of desks behind a sign that said, “Secretary,” but during caucusing, I just fiddled around. In this case, I got Kathy to take a picture of me in the place where the US Ambassador to the United Nations sits.

Even though I have pictures of myself at the dais in the General Assembly Hall, I still consider this more special. It warms my little Model UN heart to think of being in this room.

Today is Kathy’s birthday. Kathy inspires me to do great...

Sun, 14 Apr 2013 08:00:16 -0600

Today is Kathy’s birthday. Kathy inspires me to do great and beautiful things because she has a deep love of the beauty in life.

Kathy, I hope you have a wonderful birthday!