Seventy Times Seven.

I love the number seven. It is the perfect number.

How do I know?
Well, first off, I was born on July 7th.

That's 7/7, to dispel any confusion.

And then, if that weren't fan-freaking-tastic enough, just think of this. I... had a birthday... in 200... 7.

07/07/07. Hoo-SHA!

In case you were wondering, Wikipedia informs us that '7 is the natural number following 6 and proceeding 8'.

We are an edjukated nation, people.

Know what else?

There are seven girls in my family. (Mom included.)
Snow White had seven dwarfs.
There are seven days of the week.
Seven wonders of the ancient world.
Seven brides for seven brothers.
Sailors sail the seven seas. (Say that ten times fast.)
Seven deadly sins.
Seven days of creation.
7-Eleven.
7UP.

Freak. I even stop the microwave at seven seconds.

Don't judge.

More?

The number of servings I had of my smothered burritos with Mexican rice. Or at least wish I had.

The number of times a day I admire my new shoes.

The number of times Davey-baby and Candy laughed when they saw their handmade wedding present from yours truly.

 

The number of times 'Da Twinneh' complained that I didn't have enough pictures of her in my room. -AND- The number of times a day 'Da Twinneh' proclaims how much she hates the pictures I chose.

How many times I doubted whether the ratty DI decoration 'Da Twinneh' scavenged would amount to anything adorable. It did.

The  number of years it took to convince my roommate that SPAM is second only to bacon.

And lastly, the number of milliseconds it took to realize Gem would absolutely capital L-O-V-E this pillow.

So when my nieces woke up at 7:00AM by screaming loudly seventy times, demanding seven different breakfast cereals and asking to swim AGAIN 7,000 times, did I forgive them?

Of course. Seventy times seven.

More of Ze Grande Tour.

How's about I squoinch a few more photos of my apartment on here ta'day?

How's that for a word: 'squoinch'. I'm not exactly sure how I came up with that one? Perhaps a mixture of squish, oink and pinch?... You figure out how that works.

All I know is that it has so many perfect uses in so many, many circumstances...

Here's da bathroom. For kind of a tight fit, I feel like I've got a pretty good balance goin' on in here. I found the candle sconces at D.I. for a buck a piece, the black shelf at D.I. for a dolla, stole the candles from my mom, the three glass jars to hold Q-tips/cotton balls/cotton pads at The Dollar Store, the purple berry wreath out of a junk pile for free, the frog hand soap dispenser as a birthday gift, the toothbrush holder from The Dollar Store, the jewelry containers as gifts, the hair accessory tower from D.I. for (you guessed it) one buckaroo, the basket on the tank of the toilet from Da Twinneh and *phew* the towels as gifts.

Therefore, according to my calculations, this room cost me a whopping: $10.

And now for ze bedroom.

First off, I can't be held accountable for the lack of frames/photos on that wall.

However, I will take credit for it's future glory. That, my friends, I purchased (almost entirely honestly) from the D.I. for $2. The frames were also thrift finds and rest assured, I have two additional frames and five adorable 5x7s to fill them as soon as I move back after the break. If you're good, I'll show you the finished product.

But the breakdown: the paper lanterns were $.75 each at the D.I., the reversible comforter was a gift (pardon the messy bed... that's twice now! I'm going to hell...), the sheet set was purchased for a ridiculously good price from JC Penney online and the pillows were all stolen from my parent's house. Well... almost all.

I cry to think of the number of pillows they've had to purchase to make up for my fetish. Okay. Not really cry, per say.

I may be laughing on the outside but on the inside, I'm crying.

My brother and sister-in-law gave me the TV out of pity (I love pity gifts!), the wall sconce and candle were from the D.I., the reversible word wood blocks I featured HERE, the cutest-flower-lamp-in-existence my sister bought for me at IKEA, the bead curtains I got for $2 at DEB and the other knick-knacks I probably either got as gifts, from The Dollar Store or (you know it) the D.I.

Are we sensing a pattern here?...

The butterfly chair was a spur-of-the-moment purchase at Walmart for $20 and the clock $5. Ah, to be young and impulsive again. Wait...

You can't really see it so well here, but there's a little green wooden sign over my closet that says 'WHATEVER'. It's pretty much my pride and joy.

I'm tellin' ya people. EVERYTHING is at the D.I.

So long as you're brave enough to sift through the crap.

So... that's about it. I've 'squoinched' (eh?... eh?... :D) in everything I can think of. What do you think of my humble abode?

Merry Little 'Fish'mas

SANTA CAME WHILE I WAS SLEEPING!!!

(My mom would like to insert that the 'sleeping' part lasted far longer than it should have. Sorry to disappoint ya mommy baby. After all, I am 21 ya know. Twenty. One.)

I'm excited to report that I am now the proud owner of a Panasonic FH20. (Complete with waterslide.)

Take a look at this little beauty.

Little did you know, it's also a present for all of you! I will now post photos with actual quality. Not the pixelated blurry blobs to which I have previously stooped. Hoo-SHA. You thought this day would never come. Right? Right?

But, to be sure, I was rather proud of my thrifting skillz this holiday. Particularly with Da Twinneh's gift. It started off as a really hideodorous green shelf with a nasty wallpaper pheasant scene...

and turned into...

the most fantastical bear painting you ever did lay your sweet little eyes upon. (Notice the 'bear'-'bare' pun. What can I say? It runs in families.)

Da Twinneh loves all things bear (especially black bear, she's racist). So when she saw this sign online...

naturally, her first response was to have me create a rip-off version. (I'll have you know that I just typed 'bare bottoms welcome' into a Google image search. This was a highly risky flub and I'm not sure I've come away completely unscathed.)

I tend to think that mine is a gajillion times better. Especially free-handed! And judging upon the screaming and the bouncing and the flailing that took place upon removing the wrapping paper, I think Da Twinneh does too.

And now, I shall relate a Christmas tragedy.

It all came about when a certain little boy, with a twinkle in his eye, asked his adoring Grandpa if he could feed the gleaming fish in his immaculate aquarium.

Without hesitation, the beloved gramps gave an approving nod and the youngster scampered away to throw a few pinches of fish flakes into the pristine water.

Meanwhile, various holiday tunes were plunked away by a line-up of other grandchildren on the decrepit old piano as the rest of the family dutifully applauded each performance attentively.

Corinner-Elly watched as her nephew reached far above his head, impatient to push open the tank lid and feed its hungry inhabitants.

And that is when it happened.

CRASH! Instead of simply lifting the hinged cover to dust off the contents of his hand, the young lad pushed what he supposed to be a sliding lid with all his might, resulting in a dramatic display as it, and the items resting on its perimeter, crashed to the floor.

The now morbidly silent crowd watched as the old man rushed to the cowering boy's side, eyes wide with fright as the contents of an old soda bottle, used to produce needed CO2 for the tank's live plants, pumped deadly yeast water into the small ecosystem.

The room was tense for a small moment as the Grandpa regained his composure and softly reassured his offspring that everything would be alright. Activities resumed but all could tell that the man was concerned for the many small aquatic lives he had spent countless hours nurturing over the past many months.

Intuitively recognizing this in her father's worn face, Corinner-Elly silently prayed for the fishs' survival. (Actually... she just went and got some more shrimp and cocktail sauce but... almost.)

But alas. The very next morning, after gifts were unwrapped and relatives were visited, the family came home to a gruesome sight.

Each small corpse floated belly-up, faces contorted in a terrific fashion as if to suggest they died mid-scream. The last few struggling survivors twitched a fin frantically here and there, propelling them in pathetically irregular circles.

"WE CAN SAVE THEM!!!", Gem yelled as she frantically collected the necessary medical tools.

If you haven't read this story, you haven't lived.

No pun intended. Read HERE.

But dad knew the truth. He laid a tired hand on the now darkened container and gazed at the carnage sadly.

Before long, each small body had been scooped from the scene, the water de-contaminated and they had done their best to revive the few fighters.

Leaving Corinner-Elly to wonder pensively,

is there such a thing as fish CPR?...

It's... Complex.

Is it bad that I kinda enjoy giving people complexes?
If it makes you feel any better, most of the time it's an accident.

Really.

I think my older sister, Katerina Cupcake, introduced me to this guilty pleasure. One day, she noted that 'Da Twinneh' has a head that is unusually egg-shaped and guess what?

'Da Twinneh' has a complex. Majorly.

All it takes is one well-placed comment and shiz-zam.
Com. Plex.

But it doesn't end there, oh no.
One time, I told Gem that she had a butt-crack forehead.

It's true!

Whenever that girl knits her eyebrows, (where most people would have two indentations) she has only one crease.
A single, uni-wrinkle.

And it looks like a butt-crack.

But I do feel a little remorse for some of the complexes I've unduly issued. Take my friend Hamm for example. (Hamm is new to the Corinner-Elly scene so let's give her a big 'hello'. Everyone say 'Hi Hamm'. Good.)

She has a middle toe that's longer than all the rest.
It's cute! I love it! No reason to change a thing!

Except for that it kinda looks like she's flipping people off.
Foot style.

Oh! And I also may have prompted her into an unreasonable distaste for her own tongue... (Distaste... hehehe... Ba dum dum. Chee!)

It's just different, okay!!? But different's not always bad.
'Da Twinneh' may say otherwise but she doesn't count.

The point is:
I love 'Da Twinneh', Gem and Hamm.
Even if they do have egg-shaped heads, butt-crack foreheads, weird toes and funny looking tongues.

CHEAP SHOT.
Sorry. I will resist.

So... the weather, eh?
Bleck. Scratch that.

Worst conversation starter EVER.

I'd better just quit diggin' this hole I'm in.
But before I go, take a looksie at the wood blocks I found at D.I. (for .50 cents all together!) then painted and modge-podged letters on.

I was trying to think of two five-letter words to put on both sides that were either witty, ironic or sarcastic. But, alas. I think I'm losing my touch.

All I could come up with was 'sweet'...

and 'bliss'.

And, of course, if I'm in a cheesy mood:

Smell ya' later.
 P.S. Hamm has voluntarily signed up to be featured on ze blog. I don't know why someone would submit themselves to such cruel and unusual punishment but... what the heck. My creative juices are already stewin'...

Put a Fork in Me, I'm Done.

Guess what I just realized?
This is my last semester taking a full load of credit hours at BYU! WOOP! (Yah... It's like 'WOOT' but better.)

Where has the time gone, people? Where has the time gone.

Isn't that the craziest thing you've ever heard??
Next semester, I'm gonna be all fun and fancy free, takin' like six credit hours and livin' it up at my new internship. That's right. You heard me. INTERNSHIP.

I'm gonna be spending my time in Lehi at Osmond Designs, helping in their design center and office. It's gonna be brilliant. Because they're awesome.

Wanna know why? I'll tell you why.

Not only do they specialize in Interior Design, their website has a quiz. A 'Find Your Style' quiz. And everyone knows how exciting those are! (Not the evil 'pop' quizzes teachers spring on you in college, dummy. The pointless 'How Many Kid's Will You Have', etc. quizzes on Facebook!)

I know how much you're dying to know what my results were. Really. I do. So, without further ado... Corinner-Elly's style is:

... wait for it ...

Casual/Traditional
And now for a blurb about what that means! (I may or may not post this on my wall later to annoy all my 'friends' and turn into the world's greatest nuisance.)

"Your responses place you within the Casual / Traditional design category. Interior styles suited to your tastes might include the casual country styles of American Country, Cottage, French Provincial and English Country. Americana styles might also be suited to your tastes in the variations of Arts & Crafts / Mission Style, Shaker and Southwestern / Lodge / High Country. Coastal Atlantic Seaboard and California Coastal styles are other alternatives for a breezy variation of casual traditional style."

Why do I feel as though I'm being given the virtual stink eye?

*sigh*

I see that the only person who will actually be able to respond/relate to this is Katerina Cupcake. I expect to see a comment from you, little Missy. Tell them I'm not crazy.

And now that you've all gone and crushed my spirits, I don't even feel like tellin' you about my latest projects.

PFFT. Who'm I kiddin'?

Look what I made! Okay, okay. I didn't really make it, per say. But I did find it at DI and spray paint it. It was an assignment commissioned by my mom and, by golly, I think I get an 'A+'.
(P.S. It's a shoe basket, in case you were confused on that subject.)

And looky, looky! I started my Floral Design class and in the first lab we learned how to design/wrap bouquets. I chose a monochromatic color scheme. (Green doesn't necessarily count as a 'color' in the flower world. Strange, eh?)

I gave it to Lera for her birthday. She loved it! (More than the one her boyfriend gave her, truth be told. But that's a secret for me to know and him to never find out.)

And now, to finish off what might otherwise be termed a 'non-reaction worthy' post, I'll entertain you with this:

Corinner-Elly's All Time Favorite Phrases:

• You have the brain capacity of a mentally impaired goldfish.
• That was slower than a herd of turtles tramping through peanut-butter.
• Quicker than crap from a goose!
• Well, Poop.

Hehe. :D Good, right? Am I right?

What do you mean they aren't entertaining!?? You've gotta be kiddin' me. Everybody likes my 'All Time Favorite Phrases'!

You know what else everybody likes? My blog. Have you ever met a person, you say, "Let's go read Corinner-Elly," they say, "Heck no, I don't like no Corinner-Elly"?

Corinner-Elly is awesome.

No?...

Well. How wude.