after (1) i was able to use enough hairspray to burn my own personal hole in the ozone layer; (2) i danced the best i could with my two left feet; (3) i struggled to fit into gowns, cocktail dresses, and what-nots a beauty pageant contestant had to go through; and (4) spend my savings on a myriad of things pageant-related...

... i finally got through the entire ordeal and walked away with the second runner-up position and the special award for ms. personality.

now i'm not going to lie and say i didn't hope to god that i'd walk away with the plum prize but then when you got every other justice walking up to you and whispering to your ear "i gave you a perfect score in the interview portion" or "i believe you should have won" and after i made my boss and the entire office proud, i guess i'm mighty proud of the fact that i walked away with something.

*pictures up at my flickr site. click on one of the pictures on the right-hand side of this blog and that'll hopefully take you to my flickr page.