Definitely the phone :-)
I can live without a phone, but I can't live without chocolate ^_^
I am not much of a phone person, and rarely talk on it, and mainly use it to text for making plans. I can easily do that with the house phone if I had to, or over the computer.
Chocolate, on the other hand, has no substitute. I adore all different kinds of chocolate, and can't imagine even going a day without at least one small piece of it :-)

We got quite a bit of snow last night, so today I took Yoshi and Ayla out. This is their first snow together :-)

Behind a cut to not overflow friends' pages:

( CLICK HERE for doggy snow photos!!! )

Yes, there is definite pressure. But, it's up to the person to stand up for the lifestyle they chose and not make themselves miserable just to fit what is socially acceptable.

I was always considered odd in my school years for not having boyfriends, or making out with guys I didn't even know, etc. I had very few boyfriends over my lifetime because it wasn't something I HAD to have. I always knew there may be someone special for me out there, but I had no desire to just 'play around' or settle for any guy b/c 'you are supposed to have someone'.
And now I do have that special someone who was more than worth waiting for that I have lots of things in common with, and can genuinely have fun with.
But, there are plenty of people who are happiest to remain single for life. I know sooooooo many people who are miserable in their marriages b/c they aren't with someone they truly love and consider the only person for them. They give in to society's pressure to marry as soon as you hook someone and end up being miserable.

I also do not want kids. Especially in these days where, after working in an elementary school and seeing first hand, kids are not 'kids' anymore. 2nd graders are bringing in porn and talking about sex. 3rd graders are breaking into each others' houses to beat them up. They don't know any cartoons b/c they only know horror movies and laugh when things are hurt or killed. etc.
I do not find babies 'cute' or 'fun' anyway. And I have no desire to go through a painful pregnancy and labor for one.
I also have a lot of hobbies and dreams I would have to give up if I had a kid.
And I cannot even tolerate having to sit near a crying baby in a restaurant, let alone having to live with one 24/7.

I always get the "Oh you're so selfish for not wanting kids!" crap. So what if I am selfish. We are all selfish in different ways. If I meet someone who doesn't have a dog, I don't yell at them saying "Well why not? You are too selfish to dedicate your time and money to a dog???" Dogs aren't for everyone, lizards aren't for everyone, and kids aren't for everyone either.

Matt and I have a wonderful future to look forward to together that doesn't involve giving up the things we enjoy for spending the day listening to a crying baby, changing diapers, preparing formula, packing and unpacking strollers and car seats and diaper bags every time we leave the house, etc!

New pic of my Shiba Inus, Yoshi and Ayla :-)
I love my furbabies so much! Getting a 2nd shiba was one of the best things I ever did! I've had Yoshi, the red one, for 9 years, and Ayla, the cream one, for 3 months.

Matt took me last night to see "The Fantastic Mr. Fox"! I have been impatiently waiting for this movie to come out since I first saw the trailer online awhile back! It was wonderful! I loved it!

Oh, if you see this movie, see if you catch the subtle homage to Robin Hood in one of the scenes :-)

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Taken from foxx278

You know how sometimes people on your friends-list post about stuff going on in their life, and all of a sudden you think "Wait a minute? Since when were they working THERE? Since when were they dating HIM/HER? Since when???" And then you wonder how you could have missed all that seemingly pretty standard information, but somehow you feel too ashamed to ask for clarification because it seems like info you should already know? It happens to all of us sometimes.

Please copy the topics below, erase my answers and put yours in their place, and then post it in your journal! Please elaborate on the questions that would benefit from elaboration. One-Word-Answers seldom help anyone out.

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1. First Name: Tara. Named after the land in Gone With the Wind.

2. Age: I am 30... but people usually think I am somewhere between 16 and 20 caus I look so young.... I used to hate that I look so much younger than I am, but as you get older it finally starts feeling good haha.

3. Location: I'm in NJ...

4. Occupation: Former cashier, I am now a PCP. I work one on one with a special needs student in a regular classroom. The student I work with is awesome thankfully.

5. Partner: Matt. I always assumed I'd remain single, but we match up so well and are genuinely happy together.

6. Kids: Definitely not...

7. Brothers/Sisters: I have 2 brothers, and 2 sisters. 1 sister who doesn't really count for reasons I won't get into... and my other sister who I was always close to unfortunately lives very far so we don't get to see each other anymore :( One brother passed away years ago, and another brother lives nearby but we haven't talked to in so long for whatever reason.

8. Pets: I have 2 dogs (my shiba inus, 'Yoshi' and 'Ayla'); 3 cats (Poofie, Xenia, & Saria); 3 bearded dragons (Ridley, Samus, & Brinstar); 10 Crested Geckos (I had many more, but lost a lot due to an Entamoeba Invadens outbreak. But now I have Deku, Charmander, Chozo, Zebes, and 6 babies that need names); 1 blue crayfish (Ruto); 1 Oscar Cichlid (Snape); 2 Green Terror Cichlids (unnamed); 1 Tokay gecko (Salamence); and another fish tank of just random community fish (angels, tetras, etc.).

9. List 3-5 biggest things going on in your life right now: Ummm.... let's see. 1.) Work. It's a pretty new job since I was at the same supermarket thing for so damn long, and it's very stressful to work in a classroom of psychotic, uncontrollable kids. But thankfully the one kid I am assigned to is wonderful so makes it worth it. And getting off for holidays and summer makes it worth it as well haha! 2.) Entamoeba Invadens... I had a beautiful colony of crested geckos that I was starting to breed as a hobby, and I was never told about this terrible disease that is fairly common, and can remain dormant in a gecko for quite some time before it comes out. I lost many cresties to this, and will not be breeding them anymore. My remaining 10 will just continue to be pets for me b/c I do not want to risk continuing this disease if there are any left dormant in my cresties that the medicine didn't take care of. 3.) ummm I can't think of a 3rd haha...

10. Parents: I live home with my dad. My mom passed away over 2 years ago, and I still miss her every minute of every day :-(

11. Closest Friends: I can't do the friend thing anymore. I am too independent to go through the people being unaccepting of who I am if it doesn't match their beliefs, opinions, and lifestyles.

;-) Coffee and M&M's.
Try talking to me on a rare day I miss out on coffee and a bit of chocolate and you'll soon agree that it's healthier for both of us if I get my caffeine bwa-ha-ha :-p

I wanted to let you all know how the baby is doing that hatched very prematurely.

She is doing good and bad at the same time...

Her tail, which was zig-zaggy and dry- finally dropped last night so she is now a preemie frog-butt. It is healing very well.
She has a terrible time shedding, and I have to do a lot of soaks to help her because it comes off in very ragged chunks that she has trouble getting off herself even in the good humidity.
She is not really growing much at all. She is over 2 months old now, and still doesn't register on the scale.

Her clutchmate, however, is doing great. Healthy and growing.

The preemie, despite all the negatives, is still active and alert, so that is good. I have her in her own separate enclosure since she is too small to be kept with her clutchmate.

I wonder how she will do as time goes on. Is she strong enough to make it, or will the flaws catch up with her and take over? If she can't grow, will her organs still grow inside- kind of like what happens to fish whose growths get stunted and they end up dying because their organs get too big for their bodies? Or will she live a long, happy life and just be a tiny crestie with special needs?

These pics were taken just a few minutes ago. Look how tiny she still is, and how bad the sheds stick to her :-(


( Click for more pics )

I groomed my Shibas today. Brushed them nice, sprayed them to smell pretty, etc... and as soon as I finish, what is the first thing that happens? Yoshi runs to dig in the dirt, then Ayla runs to follow him! Then, of course, Yoshi leaves the scene right away and lays off to the side as Ayla continues to have fun ruining her lovely white coat! Yagh!!! Can't help but laugh though. Good thing I enjoy dog grooming enough to have to do repeat sessions sometimes...
( Pics through here! )