HELLO??

Hello, hello.
Testing testing. Is this thing on? Can you hear me?

So, I've had the thought of coming back to my blog for a while now. I was going to say I've been thinking about coming back for about a year now, but then I saw that it's actually been less than a year since I left. The main thing that has kept me from coming back is THIS post- the "oh I'm back" post. Like maybe I should apologize for leaving in the first place... but I'm not sorry. And I didn't want to have to post an update on everything that happened in the past however months I've been gone. Because there's been a lot of cool stuff that happened. There's been many a times in the past year when I was like "man, I wish I could post about this on my blog". But I didn't want to have to do the "i'm back" post first, so I just didn't do it at all.

So why did I decide to finally do it now? Well, I'm going to California tomorrow. SO excited for this trip!! When I went to Europe with Jodi, I created a blog just for the trip- "googly eyes on french fries". And I don't want to go to California without being able to blog about it. I feel that in order to get the most out of all the effort and money that's been put into making this trip happen, I'd better blog about it. And creating a new blog, just so I don't have to do an "i'm back" post on this blog is taking the easy way out... I don't want to do that. And besides, life really did seem more fulfilling when I had a blog to show for it- even if I couldn't exactly blog about everything in my life.

I'm excited and nervous for this trip. Excited because I'm going to see a bunch of outsider art environments that I've been researching and dreaming of seeing for a long time now. Nervous because I feel like I'm taking fate into my own hands... which is dangerous... I think. I was trying to explain this feeling to a friend yesterday, and I said that if I had won a trip to California, I would feel like God had destined it to happen and that would make me feel secure about going- like it was meant to happen. Then that friend responded by saying that the only time she had ever been to California was when her daughter won a coloring contest and was awarded a trip to California. That had to be God. I must subconsciously think that God only works through contest prizes. When I was in Scotland with Jodi, I won a couple hundred dollars in tattoo work. Never would have I normally thought that getting a tattoo while on vacation was a good idea. But since I WON the tattoo, I felt like it was a sign. So I got a heart tattooed on my ring finger. I'm not sure if I'm happy about that decision... I also had been drinking when I made the decision. But why would have God let me win tattoo gift certificates if he didn't want me to get a tattoo? And if I was REALLY supposed to be going to California, why wouldn't he arrange for me to win a trip there? But the tickets been bought, and unless God intervenes, I'll be on the planE tomorrow.
(This is me in Edinborough, about to get a tattoo)

Although I'm back to blogging, I feel it's important to say that I'm not going to put any pressure on myself. There will be absolutely no standard of quality for my posts. None. They don't have to make any sense. Or be entertaining. Or look nice. Don't let me know when theres a missing apostrophe. Especially because I plan on doing a lot of it from my phone- I'll have to when I'm out of town.