As for the car, after two straight weeks of not driving it, and after a total of $1,500 being spent on new brakes, alignment issues, and tires, I got a speeding ticket and two points on my license. Yessss. Don't depend on your cuteness to get out of 'em, ladies. Doesn't always work. Will hope for better in the courtroom. (A male or lesbian judge would be preferable.)
Of course, this is coming from someone who "flatters" herself. According to a classmate of mine, anyway. As I'm walking toward the parking garage coming from class this evening, eager to get home and have a dinner of leftovers at 9:30, I'm approached by a classmate who has quickened his pace to catch up with me. He starts up a conversation, innocently enough, and I'm happy to talk. But I'm already starting to think how I'm going to insert the "I have a boyfriend" thing into the conversation. Because I think most people agree that when a dude comes up to a chick to ask, "So do you like that class?" (or, "Do you come to this bar often?" or "Do you want to come back to my place?") that he is interested in more than just a one-time small talk incident. Maybe I'm close-minded, but I think of this as generally agreed upon.
So as we're about to part ways, he thanks me for talking with him and says he's wanted to do so for some time. My opportunity! Well that's nice of you, I say. But I do have a boyfriend. You know, if that's what you were... yeah. He says it jokingly, but still he says, Way to flatter yourself! And this is where girls can't win. Because if we let guys continue to flirt with us and are just polite in return, not wanting to say outright that we have boyfriends because it would seem rude (or something), we've led them on and are, therefore, a tease. But if we tell a guy right off the bat (right after he's just confessed he's wanted to talk to us for a long time) that we're not available, we're conceited.
Next time a guy asks me if I like a class, I'll say, Yeah! But my ex-husband thinks I should drop out of school since I'm pregnant with his baby and all.
Anyway. I'm good at ranting about the annoying stuff. Maybe I should shut up and post pictures from California. I won't post all 150+ photos, but I'll pick the best of the bunch. The whole collection in sequence could be made into a book about a man named John who roams around California because I lingered behind him so much, taking pictures all the while.