Stupidity.

We are all born ignorant, but one must work hard to remain stupid.
Benjamin Franklin

My Dad Blogs, Too!

My dad is one of my favorite people. He's hilarious, super cool and killer at choosing restaurants. He also is a worship pastor at the church I was raised in, and he's finishing up his Music Performance degree from the University of Central Florida. One of his classes required him to create a personal website for promotion. I told him to add a blog, and he did.


Here's what life is like for my dad, the worshop pastor and funnyman, David Mander:
TODAY I BECAME AN ORGAN DONOR
We have had an organ in our church since I came there with my family nearly 16 years ago. We also had a Grand Piano but that is another story. The organ was played at the early service by an elderly man who went to the early service. I used to think he was kind of a quirky man and then I went to his home one day for a church party. In his home he had not one, but two organs. IN HIS HOME. Now I thought that was a bit strange, especially when one of them was a true pipe organ, complete with a set of very loud pipes in the living room. The Music Minister before me was an outstanding musician, a pianist especially. He would play the organ on many Sundays. Since I took over as Music Minister or Worship Pastor, or whatever title works for you, I have not played the organ in a service. We have had a few fill-in players but mostly it collected dust. So after 10 years I did some research and found our Rodgers 3 tier organ was built in 1963. With most instruments that would be great, but the new technology in organs is MIDI and digital interfaces it made our instrument obsolete. Not a problem I thought. We can list in on Craig’s List and sell it for $500. Not the case. Instead, I had a Hatian Pastor with a strong French accent call me to inquire about the organ. He told me they were buying a new building and had nothing. He wanted a good deal. So, thanks to a generous church, we decided to give him the organ and speakers. He came today in a U-Haul truck and we sent it off. We also threw in the old sanctuary cross that used to hang in the church until we got a new one. The Hatian church was so pleased to have these things and he promised me a CD of his choir singing French/Creole praise and worship music. When I get his CD I will post a sample on this site.

Follow his blog here.

And I Still Love Him

Four years ago today, Bryan went for the kiss. And the rest is history.

Here's some of my favorite pictures of us throughout the years.
Big Bash, April 2006: The night after Bryan first kissed me.

Halloween, 2006

ABC Party, March 2007

Gainesville Improv Festival, January 2008

Our wedding, December 31, 2008

DSI Adventure Trip, June 2009

Disney Vacation, October 2009

Philadelphia Photoshoot, November 2009

South Carolina Visit, January 2010

Winter Snowpocalypse February 2010

Philadelphia Party, March 2010

Last weekend, April 2010

And since we've been together for four years now, I've made a list of four things I love about him.
1.) His face in pictures
2.) His constant desire for adventure
3.) His brilliant economic mind
4.) How devastatingly sexy he is

These four years have been incredible. Here's to many more!

Art: GoogleMaps

More of them found here.

Family

Other things may change us, but we start and end with the family.
Anthony Brandt

One of the great things about my marriage to Bryan is that we agree about what's important in life. We both put great emphasis on family. We find great importance in our parents, our sisters and our extended family. I'm lucky to have the ability to fly home for a weekend to celebrate the success of my sister.


This weekend, I'm heading to Orlando, Florida. I'm going to celebrate my younger sister Caralyn's graduation from college, in three years due to brilliance and perseverance. Caralyn's genius graduation is definitely reason to celebrate, but I'm also excited about seeing my baby cousin Jacob (7 months), my parents, my grandparents and my aunts and uncles. Not to mention: the beach, Jeremiah's Italian Ice and beautiful, sunny 80 degree weather.

Moving Tip

If you are moving somewhere far away (far enough that you cannot visit), become best friends with your realtor. Done. Ask for lots of pictures, of the outside, each room, close ups of appliances. Done.

MOST IMPORTANT: Get someone you know to visit it.

This saved me. I thought my realtor had found us the perfect house. It was big, modern, had a great yard/view, big windows and the price was good. Bryan's colleague visited the house with his wife. Their review of the home itself was the same as mine: awe of how great it is. But, they had two interesting points. One, it was a gravel road on a hill, so if an ice storm came (it's inevitable), we'd be stranded and possibly without power for awhile since the house is outside the town limits. Two, it's fifteen to twenty minutes from campus. Too far.

Once again, my dream house has slipped between my fingers. We're 0 for 2 on houses. Cross your fingers. I'm a month from moving!! We need a house!

5 Year Anniversary of N Crowd Comedy

Tonight, I, along with my husband and my friends, will be performing a very special show. So special, we're all dressing up. So special, we're getting (free) snacks for the audience. So special, we have an afterparty with a closed down bar and dancing. So special, we're all playing!

Come celebrate the N Crowd's 5 Year Anniversary Show at the Ruba. Buy your tickets here.

It will be a night to remember!

What's up with your Vagina?

In case you were following my vagina's adventure with Paraguard, here's an update. This month has been great for me. I feel a lot better, I've lost three pounds, and I had zero PMS or cramping. My period came right on time yesterday, and my body feels incredible. But, it's routine to see your doctor one full month later. I literally just got home from the doctor. It should have been a simple check up on the IUD.

Should have been. Within minutes of my doctor entering the room, she was looking up at me from between my legs with a look. A look that says something is wrong. In my head, I run through all the worst possibilities: she sees a baby, my vagina has run away, the IUD has rusted the inside of my cervix. WHAT IS IT!?! She says that my IUD has fallen almost out of my cervix and she can see it just through her duck clamp binoculars. She says she's never seen this before, and she leaves. For a long time. I'm trying to remain calm.

She returns with the same nervous look and tells me to follow her to the ultrasound room. I immediately know that I'm pregnant, and I'm terrified to see a tiny bean living inside of me. Hello, that was the opposite of what I wanted! She squirts some cold jelly on my stomach and rubs a wand and I, with as much fear as I am able to feel, search the screen for a tiny baby bean. She shows me the IUD and how it is mostly out of my cervix. She also answers my fear and tells me that there is no baby. But there could be if she doesn't fix this. Apparently, the IUD is ineffective if it isn't in place.

Thirty minutes later, my IUD is back in place, my cervix is sore (again) and my doctor doesn't look nervous anymore. She says my cervix is unusually small (so is my whole body, lady!) and that my lack of birthing children means it is difficult for the IUD to remain in place. I had to set up another appointment to see her and check on the position of my IUD. The day before we move. It better be in place! And there better be no baby Buckley in there!!

I am relieved and happy that my doctor was able to reinsert the IUD (free of charge). I hope that my experience does not scare you, or if it does, that you use this as a launching point to a discussion with your doctor. Every woman is different, and I am apparently the one in a hundred that faces difficulty with IUDs. This freak appointment caused Bryan and me to evaluate our baby plans, and we are still certain that we are not ready for babies. And we are still certain this is the right birth control for us. I'm hoping for a better visit May 27 and a better blog update.

As always, ladies feel free to discuss in the comments or shoot me an email AlyssaMBuckley at gmail dot com.

Promiscuous Women Cause Earthquakes

“Many women who do not dress modestly ... lead young men astray, corrupt their chastity and spread adultery in society, which (consequently) increases earthquakes.”
— Hojatoleslam Kazem Sedighi, a prayer leader in Tehran, as quoted in Iranian media [AP]

Wow, ladies. People truly believe this. How terribly sad.

Things That Make Me Feel Safe

well-lit areas
Bryan
the daytime
a place I know
places where friends hang out