Below are the 20 most recent journal entries recorded in Amy's LiveJournal:

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Sunday, August 3rd, 2008
1:35 pm	Puppies, puppies, puppies.... I now have two beautiful puppies.  The first is a beagle mix now about 8 months old.  She was adopted through an agency near Evansville.  Her name is Bailey and she is a medium sized dog, just a little over 20 pounds, brown and white in coloring.  She is somewhat shy and has seperation anxiety, but she is very intelligent and has learned many different tricks.  Kye is the newest addition, being adopted about 2 1/2 weeks ago.  We adopted her at about the age of 5 weeks.  She is pure mutt, but that's okay.  Kye is black with brown and white markings on her.  In some ways she has the coloring of a Rotweiler, but I don't think that's her main breed.  Her starting weight was 2.8 pounds and has since put on a little more weight.  We think she's going to be about a 40 pound dog, but only the future will allow us to know for certain.  I have posted pictures of them on facebook if you wish to see them. (Comment on this)
Monday, July 16th, 2007
9:56 pm	Randomness.... I just got done watching the movie "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe" .  Such a good movie!!  I enjoyed the cartoon version from when I was a child, but the newest movie of it is done so very wonderfully.  I should probably read the book if I love the movie this much.  But alas, it doesn't look like it will happen in the very near future. (Comment on this)
Tuesday, July 10th, 2007
12:06 am	tonight was fun.  i was invited by beck to go to the wizards' game with her.  as it turned out, carrie hook was there as well!!!!  the three of us hung out, caught up on news/events/life until the weather threatened to cut loose at any time.  so we decided to venture over to applebee's and get a bite to eat.  i have missed hanging out with the two of them so very much it's not even funny.  i'm so happy to have friends like them. (Comment on this)
Monday, May 21st, 2007
10:22 pm	I am/feel: sad depressed alone supported ashamed hated loved I dissappoint the ones i love scared excited timid confused stressed happy accomplishment stuck exhausted undone overwhelmed overall... indiscribable. (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Tuesday, May 15th, 2007
9:55 pm	birthday wishes Thank you to all who sent me birthday wishes.  It was realtively a good day considering I worked for 13 hours today as the only office manager.  Yes, that's right, I got a wake up call at 6:30 asking me to be in around 8-9am.  So 8:30am here I came.  But I got cupcakes at work (I ended up eating 3 of them), lots of birthday wishes..... everyone seemed to know it was my birthday, and the other 2 office managers and accounts payable got me a gift certificate to applebee's. So yes, overall I had a very good birthday:) Thank you everyone! Current Mood: happy (Comment on this)
Thursday, April 19th, 2007
4:14 pm	life LIfe is busy as usual.  work keeps me on my toes and working hard.  i switched my weekends, yet again, this week.  So this will be my permanent weekend rotation,at least until they tell me otherwise.  I'm rather nervous about it because it's the first time that  I will be the only manager on duty.  Unfortunately, it's not like a department on the floor where things stay consistent for the most part.  Here I will be hit with every curve ball that they can possibly throw at me.  I keep reminding myself that I can do it.  I have a lot of support around me that I can always call on so that's a good thing.  I hate the fact that I no longer work with Rachel on the weekends.  She and Little Rachel (my head cashier) made the weekends kind of fun somehow.  But it looks like Little Rachel will be moving to my weekend, so that should be fun.  Other than that work is going pretty well.  It's hard to believe that in two months I will have  been there for an entire year.  So much has happened in this year, and knowing that there is only more to come keeps me looking forward to the future and wondering where it is my life will take me.  I think because I went through the Management Training Program at Menards the General Office won't really be happy with where I settle down until I am a department manager, which in some ways is kind of scary to think about.  But then there's always the question of is this what I want to do when I eventually want to start a family?  Do I really want to work every other weekend?  Will I want to put in 45-50 hours a week on a regular basis and sometimes more?  Can it be done, yes it can, but do I want to be the one to do it, that I don't know for sure.   Other than that, I'm ready for the warm weather to return.  I wish more than ever I had a porch to sit out on and soak up the sun, but alas I do not.  So someday when the ground is not so cold or wet, I will have to take out my blanket to lay on and soak up the sun.  I also really want to get out and do some stuff with friends.  I, too, feel like I only have a social life at work or through Flint's work, and no social life outside of those two places, which can put anyone into a slump.  I'm not saying it's completely a bad thing, but it is fun to go out outside of working.  And oddly enough, you'd think since I live so close to Manchester or Becky and Carrie in New Haven I'd see people from either place on a regular basis, but I don't.  I've seen Becky once and have only made it to Manchester twice since I've moved to see the dance team dance and visit with Lindsey.  I need to get a hold of a lot of people and try to find time when I can get together with them.  For instance, I think it would be fun to go see Beck coach the softball team at her high school.  I also want to try and get with Chele and go see her on a long weekend.  I wish I had more time and money to travel farther than possibly  Kentucky to go visit other friends farther from the state, but I don't have those resources just yet.  So I must be patient until then. I think that's the majority of things for right now.  I missed the drag show this year.  I had to work that night and by the time I would have gotten out and over there, I would have missed the entire thing.  Plus the freak snow storm that popped up that day would have made the drive not so much fun.  Besides, I'm not sure how exciting I would have been to be around considering I worked 6:15am to 9:45 pm.  A 15-hour day knocks me out quickly it seems like.  So until next time I find the time to write and update, I'm going to go pay bills, clean up some more, and relax a little bit. *sending my love to you all* (Comment on this)
Monday, February 12th, 2007
11:15 pm	i just spent a lovely 7 hour shift outside in our guardshack so that i can say i completed the rest of my training for the front office.  was it ever so exciting.  i got paid to sit and do sudoku games while checking people in and out of the yard and making sure they left with the correct product and the right amount.  sounds thrilling, doesn't it......  at least i can say it was warmer than what it has been.  it was one of the fastest longest days of work for me, if that makes any sense. Current Mood: tired (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Sunday, February 4th, 2007
11:13 pm	We are finally SUPERBOWL CHAMPS!!! hoo-rah! i'm excited can't you tell :) Current Mood: excited (Comment on this)
Thursday, January 4th, 2007
10:29 pm	not quite another month has gone by i feel the need to post an entry... i don't know why, but i do.  maybe it's restlessness tonight, maybe its guilt for feeling like i leave my friends and family out of date on what's going on in my life.  who knows. anyway, way back when, i told you that i was going to be part of an overnight remodeling project for my store, however, due to various circumstances i was told that i could no longer be on the remodel.... nothing bad, just orders from general office.  but don't fear my life is not to stay so placent in plumbing & housewares.... no sir-ee, starting january 14th i am going to another department.  floor coverings is the lucky winner.  i will be there for 3-5 weeks to take the place of a manager who is leaving the store.  after which time i will then either move back to plumbing & housewares, stay in floor coverings, go to hardware, or up to the front end (the front end deals with all the cashiers and what not).  so one could say that life is not boring by any means right now. backing up a week or two.... the holidays were good and busy.  i only had christmas day off of work so had to rush home after working christmas eve day and then rush back the morning after christmas to work at noon.  the weekend of new years was my weekend off, so i decided to sit at home, watch movies, and do nothing but relax.  it felt wonderful.   polly came up to visit and stay a night over her break.  unfortunately, i still had to work, but it was wonderful to see and talk to her for the short duration that i got.  she is doing well at IU in her grad program and exceling which is to be expected. but anyway, it's time for me to finish up and head to bed.  tomorrow will be a long day of work flowing right into the weekend.   miss you all something feirce.  talk to you later. lovers. Current Mood: okay (Comment on this)
Friday, December 8th, 2006
1:53 am	woops.... so it's been awhile i guess i didn't realize how long it's been since i last posted.  i am doing well, extremely busy at work.  still in the plumbing/housewares dept. and trying to decide how much i like it.  i am no longer on the overnight remodeling project due to a change up in plans from the general office.  kind of sad about that cause i was looking for a change in pace for a while, but oh well, somethings you just don't have control over. thanksgiving was good, but the "break" was short-lived due to the fact that i now work in retail and we revolve around "black friday" or as chad puts it "crazy friday".  i didn't get to open that day, but from what i saw later on in the day it was very crazy.  the wednesday after thanksgiving flint and i went and got a live tree to put in the apartment.  it's a little over 5 1/2 feet tall, but very appropriate for our apartment.  we have decorated it with lights, bulbs and a few ornaments and it looks absolutely beautiful.  i also got to put other decorations up around the apartment, which made me very happy.... it's weird how this is actually starting to feel like "home".  i also got crazy and creative and decided to make my own christmas cards this year.  i'm excited about them.... i just hope that other people appreciate them. christmas shopping has yet to be finished.... i have the bare minimum started but either way you look at it, it's a start.  other than that, life is pretty good.  no real complaints i guess.  as always there are worries, stresses, concerns, and general everyday problems that never seem to fully go away.  it snowed here today as well.... i am not ready for the harsh winter to set in yet, but it looks as though i don't have much of a choice. oh, and bev is throwing chele, wendy, and me a "going away party" since i've been gone and the other two are departing as well.  i'm hoping for good whether for the trip to north manchester and hopefully it will be a lot of fun. alright.  past time for bed.  long day of work tomorrow.  (day 2 of a 6 day work week.) <3 (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Monday, October 16th, 2006
10:40 pm	This weekend I went home.  My sister, brother and I decided to throw a surprise anniversary party for my grandparents and parents.  We had it yesterday afternoon/evening.  It went very well and they all enjoyed it.  Mom and Dad celebrated 25 years and Grams and Gramps celebrated 50 years.  The best part of the party was my Grandmother.  I had mailed her a faux invitation stating that the party was for only mom and dad.  Then I got them a gift certificate from Red Lobster and had my grandparents ask my parents to go out to eat with them.  That way mom and dad would be out of the house long enough for us to get the house ready and then both couples would show up at the same time.  When they got back we "surprised" all of them.  Grandma was so proud of herself at getting mom and dad out of the house that she was doing a little happy dance.  Then we proudly told her that the surprise was on her.... it was a party for she and gramps too.  Grams had to stop and you saw her processing everything that we just said and then you saw the lightbulb come on and her reaction was even better than my parents. I was watching Law & Order and saw a commercial advertising GLBT history month for October.  This is a first for me and I thought it was kind of cool.  They also have a website..... www.glbthistory.com      (at least I believe that is correct.)  Any way, that's it.  Gonna go relax before I go to bed.  I open at 6 in the morning tomorrow. <3 Current Mood: content (Comment on this)
Friday, September 29th, 2006
3:43 pm	HoOrAy!! This Wednesday was my final quad test and I passed it.  As of now, I have finished my Manager Training.  Effective Sunday, October 1st I am the 2nd Assistant Plumbing/Housewares Manager!  I am excited to be finished.  It will be interesting and challenging to learn a new department on top of learning and remembering the duties of management, but that's what I have been training for, so we will see how much of it I actually retained when put into practice.   As for Christmas set-up... there will be no more of that until probably the last "wave" when they decorate the trees.  Even then, it will have to be on my day(s) off or before or after my work shifts.... unless the department is extremely slow and I need the hours. The apartment is settling in well.   I enjoy the 7 minute commute to work. My next big challenge is putting together a double wedding anniversary party that is supposed to be a surprise for my parents and grandparents.  We are shooting for in 2 weeks, but I'm starting to worry that it won't happen.  Wish me luck in preparing all of that stuff.  Life could get a little complicated in the near future. I think that's it for now.  I've got to go feed my roomie. love. Current Mood: happy (Comment on this)
Saturday, September 23rd, 2006
11:07 am	I have now moved into the apartment.  Life is good, we are pretty much unpacked which is also nice.  Work is going well.  I just spent a week putting up Christmas stuff.  I built I don't know how many trees.  I've already picked out some of my favorite ones and want to buy them when Christmas time comes around, but I know that I must wait until it is time for that stuff and to make sure that I have the money to spend on that stuff.  This coming week is my last week of training provided that I pass my test on Wednesday, so let's keep our fingers crossed.  After that I will be placed in the Plumbing Department for a while, not as a manager, but as a full time employee until they are ready to put me into my Management postion.  (We think they are going to be doing some rearranging before they can place me into the department I am acutally supposed to be managing. Nothing much has been happening.  Flint and I met with Lindsey Weld in Ft. Wayne last night for dinner and got to visit.  I really enjoyed that.  It was good to see her and chat about this, that, and everything else.  I am dragging Flint along with me next weekend to the Homecoming game at Manchester because I want to see the dance team girls perform.  I miss them and all the fun times we had together, even if it was crazy, stressful. I do have internet at the apartment now ifi you want to get in contact with me.  I know a lot of times it is just easier to do it over the internet than by phone.   Here is my updated information if people are looking for it: Amy Brouse 6510 Covington Rd Apt 124 Ft Wayne, IN 46804 765.730.0030 I will have a new email address soon and will let you know when I get it up and running.  Got to go!  Lovers you all :) Current Mood: calm (Comment on this)
Thursday, September 14th, 2006
2:57 pm	I move on Saturday! woo hoo for me :)  Flint is down here now.  my entire family is coming up to move me (mom, dad, adam, grams, gramps, tom, cindy, and probably the dog as well.)  it should be fun and interesting times.  work is going well.  i took my next to last test yesterday.  i have yet to find out if i passed, i could call in today to find out, but i'll be there tomorrow so it can wait another day.  if i do pass, then monday will start my last quad and it will only be for 2 weeks i believe. i met up with amber this past saturday and then flint ended up meeting up with us.  we went out to eat and then visited rum runners.  it was a lot of fun and i could see myself visiting that place more often now that i will be in ft. wayne. that's about it for the moment.  i slept in today and it was oh so nice.  flint and i also ate cinnimon rolls today!  i love those :)  gotta go. (Comment on this)
Wednesday, September 6th, 2006
7:49 pm	woo hoo for updates! Small bits of information that has been happening recently.  I went up to see Flint at her home on Friday and stayed until Monday, then drove back to work on Monday.  Then I drove home on Monday evening and got my hair highlighted on Tuesday.  I like it a lot and got a lot of compliments on it today at work.  Mom and I also got to go shopping last night for the apartment.  We got kitchen and bathroom stuff. I will have to expand on this later seeing as I am being kicked out of the library as I type. I move on the 16th.  Hopefully I will have the internet in my apartment not long after that so that I can be on AIM and update more often.  I miss you all and hope you are all doing well. (Comment on this)
Tuesday, August 29th, 2006
3:13 pm	i have passed my second test for menards and sunday i moved into building materials to start the third out of four quads.  i'm about 6 weeks away from being done with my training which makes me very excited.  i have an apartment at colony bay and will be moving in on the 16th of september. that's about the most exciting events in my life right now.   chat with you all later! (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Thursday, August 10th, 2006
12:42 pm	small bit of news: i am staying at the ft. wayne west menards store definitely!  hooray for me since i really like it and the people there.  my hr director (christy) said she's about 95% certain where i will end up after my training, but can't tell me.  i'm about 60% certain where i will end up.  and that is at the front end.  they are in charge of the cashiers, the returns desk, all intercompany issues, and so much more.  i enjoy working up there, and the ladies that i work with.  they are all hilarious and can sometimes be a rough crowd! i am hoping to move soon since i now know that i am staying.  i have an apartment complex in mind so hopefully i can look into it soon and maybe get the ball rolling on my move. <3 (3 Comments |Comment on this)
Wednesday, July 26th, 2006
4:07 pm	help for those of you in or around the ft. wayne area.... i am looking for an apartment.  2 bedrooms.  reasonably inexpensive.  near the illinois road area if at all possible?  and for the time being with a short term lease agreement because i am not sure how long i will be at this menards.  hopefully for a while since i enjoy it so much. if you know of anything, email me or call me. thanks!! love :) (Comment on this)
Tuesday, June 13th, 2006
2:25 pm	issues/problems in my last entry i mentioned that i have a job with menards in ft. wayne now.  they called on the 5th to set up a time for orientation, i go in for that on the 20th.  i have to start working there within 2 weeks of orientation.  this is good, i am/was excited and nervous all at the same time.  and now i have a problem.  when i got back from vegas, there was a message for me on the answering machine.  my high school wants to hire me as an "instructional assistant".  they are taking away study halls and making students take elective classes in place of them.  for those students who start to fail their core classes (math, english, science, etc.) they will be removed from an elective and placed in the instructional assistant's room.  their job is to help them start passing the classes in order to graduate and pass the standardized tests issued by the state.  I have two weeks to decide what job i want.  neither relate to one another.  your input is greatly needed and appreciated. menards +working 40+ hours each week +higher pay +more benefits/insurance +fast promotions +working more than a year -working weekends/holidays -swing shifts -can't think about going back to school for a while +/-relocation when promoted high school +free room/board till i decide to move out +working one shift only +weekends, holidays, summers off with no question -work not guaranteed after this year -less pay -not full time -very, very few benefits +/-could go back to get my teaching license anyway, like i said.  i have two weeks to decide and i have no clue what it is that i want to do.  i feel like this door was opened for me for a reason and that maybe i should take it, but then again, who's to say i won't be happy at menards.  i'm just scared and worried and only have a short amount of time to make a decision. but in the meantime.... vegas was a blast.  we stayed at the luxor hotel which is the pyramid one.  we walked all over the strip and saw many of the casinos, hotels, and different attractions.  we went to M&M world which was filled with their merchandise (4 floors of it).  saw the musical "mama mia" that was an excellent show.  we drove out to the hoover dam one day.  that was kind of interesting and from there drove out to kingman, az to the area around route 66, coming back we saw the sign for california so we drove there, took our picture near the sign, drove a mile into california and then turned around and went back to the hotel.  we were in 3 states in one day.  and then our very last night, we went and dabbled at the slot machines.  i won $25.00 in the nickle slots.  i was happy for the simple fact that i made some money instead of losing all of my money. over all, it was a lot of fun and i enjoyed myself.  (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Monday, June 5th, 2006
12:15 am	random things i am home right now.  i came home on saturday morning to attend my sister's graduation party.  it went well and i saw a lot of people (friends, family, and so on).  the day was even perfect for it all.  today was my sister's graduation and that was very nice as well.  it is interesting that for such a small town as union city is, it supports its youth so very very well.  i wrote down the totals stated at this year's graduation and for the 100 local scholarships that the area gives to students the total was $123,270 and total scholarships awarded (including college and university scholarships and out of town endowments) the grand total (including local scholarships) was $842,900.  this is amazing.  totals in years before are sometimes more... sometimes less.  i know we have hit above a million dollars from time to time. other than that, i leave tomorrow for vegas.  i will be back on saturday.  it is supposed to be above 100 degrees the entire time we are there.  so i could quite possibly come back burnt to a crisp.  it should be a lot of fun.  i am excited, but think i will be more excited on the way there.  at least i hope so. i got two more presents for graduating from college.  they must want to make sure i eat well.  the one was a cookbook and the other was a set of silverware that has the letter A engraved in them at the ends.  they are beautiful :) and other exciting news includes the fact that i may soon be employeed by someone other than bev at the sandwich cellar.  menards in ft. wayne interviewed with me a week and a half ago and i filled out an application for them.  i went in to drop stuff off for them on thursday and they handed me other information.  once i completed that stuff and they received the results they are going to be calling me about a time to set up my orientation.  i'm kind of excited yet very nervous at the same time.  i am entering into their management  trainee program and it will take me approximately 3 months to go through all of that.  then i will be able to start moving my way up the management ladder.  with advancement i can relocated as i need/want to.  grandma whitesel wants me to go to celina, some would like to see me go to muncie, and others would like me to be in bloomington.  so we'll see.  i'm in ft. wayne for now which pleases me.  michele and i are going to continue rooming together.  we are talking about possibly moving out of manchester to a place that is centrally located between our two places of employement.  and many of you will be happy to know that we are trying to get away from walker as well.  but don't mention anything to him... however most all of you that read this won't know or see him. oh and this may crack a lot of you up.... last thursday i went to watch chele play slow pitch softball and to see some of the others play that i know.  her team ended up being one girl short and i was sweet-talked into playing with them.  i have not played any sort of game where you have to hit a ball with a bat in about 8 years.  the last time was middle school gym class.  besides i have never played softball or even an official game of baseball.  but i can proudly admit that i didn't do that bad.  i hit the ball every time that i was up to bat.  i got on base a few times, scored a run once, and played in the field as well.  aparently i am now on the roster and they want me to play again.  so this could be interesting times. otay.  that's it.  i will talk more later.  just wanted to give that small update on things.  talk to you all later.  love! (1 Comment |Comment on this)