I was in the shower last night and realized that I'm not very interesting. Yes, I can carry on interesting conversations with people, and talk about things that are beyond my daily routine, but for the most part, the things that are on my mind are my own concerns: my money, my health and body, my relationships and my job. And outside of that, what do I have?
Well, let's see. I like to read. I like music. I like going to concerts and downloading new singers and musicians, but I don't make music anymore. I like art and finding new artists, but I'm not particularly knowledgeable about any of them, nor do I make it a point to seek out art in my day to day life. I even stopped going to sketch class on Mondays and Wednesdays. I like cooking and dining out, but I don't think I know enough about gourmet food to be considered a true "foodie". And I love wine, but I'm definitely not up to speed enough about wines to be considered an expert on that. I enjoy political discussions, but I'm not informed enough. I love traveling, but I don't make or save enough money to do it regularly.
I guess what I'm saying is that I like a lot of things, but I don't think I'm particularly great at any one thing or pursue anything with abandon enough to say that I have a passion. So that most of the time, my brain is not consumed with any deep amazing thoughts that keep me in a state of thinking and thinking, I'm mostly pondering what I should do about my credit card debt and how I shouldn't have bought those concert tickets yesterday, even though it's going to be an amazing time.
I don't know if this means I should pick something to be passionate about and pursue it, or if I'm ok leading a life without that kind of fire for say ART! Or WINE! Cause I'm an ART PERSON! OR A WINE PERSON! Also, with all of my time spent seeing friends, running errands, going to the gym and working, I don't know when I would find extra time to put into something that I'm assuming would take a lot of extra time.
My dear friend Kaela volunteers as the Executive Director now (she has risen high in the ranks) of the Boho Theater Company in Chicago and spends many hours every week meeting, planning, coordinating, attending rehearsals or auditions and anything else that needs to be done. She does this in addition to her day job AND her school work (she is getting her masters degree currently). I cannot fathom how she finds the time for everything and still has time for herself.
I was actually thinking of applying to get a masters degree myself last year, before I made the decision to pursue writing at my company. I knew it would be a lot of work, and I vowed that I would still find time for all the things I loved. But to be honest, I don't know if I could have done it and still kept up with everything I want to do. At this point in my life, I am happy supplementing my knowledge and degree with conferences, meetup groups, articles and books: things that are manageable in pieces and do not span months or years of my life.
But this brings me back to the place where I still worry that I am not interesting enough. That I am not passionate enough about any one thing to be a person with passion. Does it count to be passionately in love with one's partner? Does being in love make you interesting? I'm thinking the world of single people thinks it does not. And I think it makes people glad that you're in a relationship that makes you happy, but they don't wish to see you more because of it. They don't say "Oh Amanda was cool before, but ever since she got that boyfriend, she's been AWESOME to hang out with!"
I guess to broaden that concept a bit more, I could simply be passionate about my relationships. I think that's what it's all about anyway. That's what I could dwell on in the dark of night: how to strengthen my relationships with my friends, my family, my boyfriend, my coworkers. That's something that's important to me. And whether or not that makes me interesting, I guess will just have to be determined later. I could take all of my little interests and infuse them into my relationships in little ways thereby making them bigger by the communities of which they're a part. And that doesn't sound half bad.
Showing posts with label boyfriend. Show all posts
Showing posts with label boyfriend. Show all posts
Saturday, February 23, 2013
Monday, February 18, 2013
Just, you know, a regular Monday... :)
It's Monday! And I didn't have a bad day! Even though I slept in! And I had a shit ton to do! And I made it to the gym! And ran all of my errands! And I'm making dinner for Dylan and me! It's Monday and everything is OK! I can't take these things for granted because just a couple of months ago, this was unheard of. Or at least rate. But I am eternally grateful for my psychiatrist and his tip that I should try taking Topomax. It has saved my life on Mondays, even though it may not sound like much.
On this particular Monday, I am making stuffed peppers for dinner. I had an idea in my mind of what stuffed peppers were, or should be, and I kind of just went with it from there. I knew I had rice, so I bought peppers and beef and an onion for flavor. At home, I added some fresh garlic and garlic powder, salt and pepper, seasoned diced tomatoes and even some spinach. And man, do my stuffed peppers look way better than the ones on the internet. I think I might post my recipe on the google share page!
So I don't know if it's the Topomax or what, but I am having a very hard time waking up at or before 6 in the morning lately. In fact, I have had a hard time getting out of bed anytime before 7! I am not sure what the reason quite is, but I'm not terribly concerned. My goal is going to be to take a pre-7 am train at least 2 times per week, whether it be the 6:12 or the 6:45. And hopefully, from there, I can build back up again. We'll see!
I'm also not 100% convinced that I should be continuing with this gluten-free business for as long as I was going to (she says as she drinks a Dos Equis Amber). I think I have to change something drastic if I want to lose the 10 or 15 pounds that I wanted to by my birthday, but I don't think going gluten free is the way to do it. Though, it does make me feel good, and it has been good for maintaining my weight over the course of 3 weeks and that's not something to look down upon, when those 3 weeks have included decadent Italian dinners, binge drinking, nights full of cheese and lots and lots of sweets!
On my list of things to do today, and something I didn't get to, was to call my insurance company and find out what my roadside assistance happens to be, since I don't know much about it. I received an offer in the mail to become a AAA member for just $52 a year and I have to be honest, it sounds like a pretty good deal. I'd consider doing it, but I just don't want to double up since I specifically remember that I get roadside assistance with Progressive. I'll find out tomorrow, hopefully!
I also have to drag my butt down to the doctor's office tomorrow to drop off a bloodwork prescription from my psychiastrist for my primary care doctor who has got to write the master prescription. It's that time of year again! I have been a healthy beast over the past year, but one thing I was specifically told to do that I did NOT do was take Vitamin D supplements. That might be on my "next year's" list of things to do. Not 2014, per se, but my "before 30" bucket list. BEFORE 30. Damn, I am getting old.
I talked to Jo and Nancy about doing a brunch at Mad Mex for my birthday again this year, making it kind of like a tradition, but I was thinking that it might be good to have kind of a low key birthday this year. It seems like each year keeps outdoing the last and I don't want one of these birthdays to end up a colossal disappointment. So maybe this year, I can have a little brunch with my coworkers, a night out with Bob and Justin in NYC, and maybe a night out in Ardmore with Callan and Sean. Hopefully, we can catch up with Anya and Jeff in NYC too, since they seem to be my birthday buds lately! Since I have 2 whole months to figure this birthday business out, I think I'll be safe. For now, I have to plan this night out to see Stephen Lynch w/ Jo and the gang, the Carpe Diem party on Friday and the next Philadelphia FTI event!
On this particular Monday, I am making stuffed peppers for dinner. I had an idea in my mind of what stuffed peppers were, or should be, and I kind of just went with it from there. I knew I had rice, so I bought peppers and beef and an onion for flavor. At home, I added some fresh garlic and garlic powder, salt and pepper, seasoned diced tomatoes and even some spinach. And man, do my stuffed peppers look way better than the ones on the internet. I think I might post my recipe on the google share page!
So I don't know if it's the Topomax or what, but I am having a very hard time waking up at or before 6 in the morning lately. In fact, I have had a hard time getting out of bed anytime before 7! I am not sure what the reason quite is, but I'm not terribly concerned. My goal is going to be to take a pre-7 am train at least 2 times per week, whether it be the 6:12 or the 6:45. And hopefully, from there, I can build back up again. We'll see!
I'm also not 100% convinced that I should be continuing with this gluten-free business for as long as I was going to (she says as she drinks a Dos Equis Amber). I think I have to change something drastic if I want to lose the 10 or 15 pounds that I wanted to by my birthday, but I don't think going gluten free is the way to do it. Though, it does make me feel good, and it has been good for maintaining my weight over the course of 3 weeks and that's not something to look down upon, when those 3 weeks have included decadent Italian dinners, binge drinking, nights full of cheese and lots and lots of sweets!
On my list of things to do today, and something I didn't get to, was to call my insurance company and find out what my roadside assistance happens to be, since I don't know much about it. I received an offer in the mail to become a AAA member for just $52 a year and I have to be honest, it sounds like a pretty good deal. I'd consider doing it, but I just don't want to double up since I specifically remember that I get roadside assistance with Progressive. I'll find out tomorrow, hopefully!
I also have to drag my butt down to the doctor's office tomorrow to drop off a bloodwork prescription from my psychiastrist for my primary care doctor who has got to write the master prescription. It's that time of year again! I have been a healthy beast over the past year, but one thing I was specifically told to do that I did NOT do was take Vitamin D supplements. That might be on my "next year's" list of things to do. Not 2014, per se, but my "before 30" bucket list. BEFORE 30. Damn, I am getting old.
I talked to Jo and Nancy about doing a brunch at Mad Mex for my birthday again this year, making it kind of like a tradition, but I was thinking that it might be good to have kind of a low key birthday this year. It seems like each year keeps outdoing the last and I don't want one of these birthdays to end up a colossal disappointment. So maybe this year, I can have a little brunch with my coworkers, a night out with Bob and Justin in NYC, and maybe a night out in Ardmore with Callan and Sean. Hopefully, we can catch up with Anya and Jeff in NYC too, since they seem to be my birthday buds lately! Since I have 2 whole months to figure this birthday business out, I think I'll be safe. For now, I have to plan this night out to see Stephen Lynch w/ Jo and the gang, the Carpe Diem party on Friday and the next Philadelphia FTI event!
Saturday, February 9, 2013
Victorious Adventure!!!!
I'm at my mom and dad's house! Yay!!!!
We had such an adventure on the road yesterday and today. Driving through New Jersey was not too terribly bad; it was mostly raining until we got into northern New Jersey, and then the slush on the roads started. It wasn't until the very top of New Jersey that things started to get really bad. Once we entered New York, things got marginally better, but I still couldn't drive faster than 40 or 45 miles per hour, so we basically had to double whatever the GPS said for our estimated time left for the journey. When we got to about 2 and a quarter hours left, Dylan took the road conditions and my nervousness, and suggested that we call it a night and pull off the highway and stay somewhere. He said today that it took some convincing, but all I remember from last night was being over the moon happy that he suggested it because I could finally relax and not feel so tense and scared about driving any more for the night.
We only had about 8 or 9 miles left to go on the highway and then we pulled off the first exit we saw and found a hotel. Originally, we were following Siri to a Travel Inn a few miles from the highway, but we seemed to be driving into seedier and seedier territory, so we took a bit of a U-turn, and went back towards the highway to a Howard Johnson's we had seen from the road. The snow was so bad on the main road that you basically couldn't see anything that resembled lanes and just had to kind of stay on your side of the road. We made it to Howard Johnson's alright, and to my surprise the cost of the room was only $67 with tax.
We parked quickly next to the lot and brought our stuff upstairs. The hotel wasn't great, but it was safe and warm and had a TV and a shower and a bed and being there meant we didn't have to drive in the snow anymore. We dropped our stuff off in the room and went off in search of food. We found Neptune's Diner that we had passed on the way in and after we parked and trudged in, we were disappointed to hear that they were closing up shop in just 10 minutes. We asked for a recommendation for another restaurant in town, and they let us know that they had been the only place open. Sure enough, every place we passed was closed: Panera, TGI Friday's, Chili's, IHOP. So we went to the place that I knew best would have SOMETHING we could eat: Stewart's!
I'm still trying to eat gluten free, so I had to get a little creative (and be ok with not eating THAT healthy for a night!) I got a bowl of chili that I ate with a big bag of Tostito's scoopers chips and a can of not-so-good-for-you, but gluten free, jalepeno cheese. I also snagged an apple, an orange, a piece of cheddar cheese and a Cadbury caramel egg and Dylan picked up a pint of Death by Chocolate ice cream. Yum! We basically went back to the hotel (after chatting with the nice Stewart's employees who had to stay at work in the horrible snow storm) and feasted on all this tasty food while on the bed since our hotel room only had one chair.
We watched some bad TV, and then snuggled into bed while watching The Office on hulu plus (we were four episodes behind! Huzzah!) Megan Shedden also saw on facebook that we had landed in Newburgh for the night, so she caught up with me via text and we arranged to meet at IHOP the next morning for brunch!
Dylan woke up this morning around 7:45 and went to the bathroom, checking on his phone for road conditions. It had stopped snowing and was sunny! It wasn't for another hour and a half that we got up, but at around 9:30, I finally showered and then went out to clear off the car while Dylan got ready. There must have been a foot of snow at least! We got our stuff together and met Megan for a wonderful brunch and caught up for about an hour, and then we were on our way again!
It only took us a couple of hours to get to Queensbury from Newburgh, which was not a bad drive for a Saturday afternoon. We dropped off presents for the Fallons and then picked up some bacon and chocolate which I am about to make into a wonderful snack for Feb Sux! So, adventure for the win! And here's to a fun night out with wonderful people tonight! Hope everyone stayed safe and warm in the blizzard!!!
We had such an adventure on the road yesterday and today. Driving through New Jersey was not too terribly bad; it was mostly raining until we got into northern New Jersey, and then the slush on the roads started. It wasn't until the very top of New Jersey that things started to get really bad. Once we entered New York, things got marginally better, but I still couldn't drive faster than 40 or 45 miles per hour, so we basically had to double whatever the GPS said for our estimated time left for the journey. When we got to about 2 and a quarter hours left, Dylan took the road conditions and my nervousness, and suggested that we call it a night and pull off the highway and stay somewhere. He said today that it took some convincing, but all I remember from last night was being over the moon happy that he suggested it because I could finally relax and not feel so tense and scared about driving any more for the night.
We only had about 8 or 9 miles left to go on the highway and then we pulled off the first exit we saw and found a hotel. Originally, we were following Siri to a Travel Inn a few miles from the highway, but we seemed to be driving into seedier and seedier territory, so we took a bit of a U-turn, and went back towards the highway to a Howard Johnson's we had seen from the road. The snow was so bad on the main road that you basically couldn't see anything that resembled lanes and just had to kind of stay on your side of the road. We made it to Howard Johnson's alright, and to my surprise the cost of the room was only $67 with tax.
We parked quickly next to the lot and brought our stuff upstairs. The hotel wasn't great, but it was safe and warm and had a TV and a shower and a bed and being there meant we didn't have to drive in the snow anymore. We dropped our stuff off in the room and went off in search of food. We found Neptune's Diner that we had passed on the way in and after we parked and trudged in, we were disappointed to hear that they were closing up shop in just 10 minutes. We asked for a recommendation for another restaurant in town, and they let us know that they had been the only place open. Sure enough, every place we passed was closed: Panera, TGI Friday's, Chili's, IHOP. So we went to the place that I knew best would have SOMETHING we could eat: Stewart's!
I'm still trying to eat gluten free, so I had to get a little creative (and be ok with not eating THAT healthy for a night!) I got a bowl of chili that I ate with a big bag of Tostito's scoopers chips and a can of not-so-good-for-you, but gluten free, jalepeno cheese. I also snagged an apple, an orange, a piece of cheddar cheese and a Cadbury caramel egg and Dylan picked up a pint of Death by Chocolate ice cream. Yum! We basically went back to the hotel (after chatting with the nice Stewart's employees who had to stay at work in the horrible snow storm) and feasted on all this tasty food while on the bed since our hotel room only had one chair.
We watched some bad TV, and then snuggled into bed while watching The Office on hulu plus (we were four episodes behind! Huzzah!) Megan Shedden also saw on facebook that we had landed in Newburgh for the night, so she caught up with me via text and we arranged to meet at IHOP the next morning for brunch!
Dylan woke up this morning around 7:45 and went to the bathroom, checking on his phone for road conditions. It had stopped snowing and was sunny! It wasn't for another hour and a half that we got up, but at around 9:30, I finally showered and then went out to clear off the car while Dylan got ready. There must have been a foot of snow at least! We got our stuff together and met Megan for a wonderful brunch and caught up for about an hour, and then we were on our way again!
It only took us a couple of hours to get to Queensbury from Newburgh, which was not a bad drive for a Saturday afternoon. We dropped off presents for the Fallons and then picked up some bacon and chocolate which I am about to make into a wonderful snack for Feb Sux! So, adventure for the win! And here's to a fun night out with wonderful people tonight! Hope everyone stayed safe and warm in the blizzard!!!
Friday, February 8, 2013
Stressed Out By Snow
We were scheduled to leave for upstate New York today at 1:30 or so,
and then a few days ago, it became clear that a giant snowstorm would be
headed for the northeast this very afternoon. I've gotten lots and lots
of warnings from friends, coworkers and family not to drive in the snow
and to wait until Saturday and to stay home. I am honestly torn as to
what to do. I just checked out some traffic cameras in middle and
northern New Jersey, and so far there is no snow. I think if we left
right away and got on the road and just powered through until we hit
snow in New York state, we could take it easy as we drove into it, and
it might only add an hour or two onto our trip. But at the same time, I
don't want to end up in a spot where we're still over a hundred miles
from my parents' house and it's dark and the snow is terrible and the
plows aren't in front of us. That's my biggest fear- getting to a point
where driving scares me and I feel unsafe, but I've gotten us far enough
that we have to keep going.
I know I may have regrets either way, and it would be better to be safe and stay home than to potentially put Dylan and I in danger on the road. But I will be so disappointed to miss the party and see photos of everyone having fun without me. What did Bridget call it? FOMO? Fear of missing out. That was it. I have it, big time.
So basically, I don't know whether I should consult some ultimate higher power (the highway department, my mom), decide to just go for broke and DO IT and know that I can pull off and go somewhere safe if I feel like I can't do it anymore, or if I should just suck it up and do the safest thing which would be to wait until tomorrow morning and decide then. Something tells me the roads in Jersey will be twice as bad tomorrow morning than they will be today.
I guess ultimately I will talk it over with Dylan and see what he thinks we should do. I will show him the traffic cameras and we can look up the forecasts for the storm in New York and New Jersey and call my mom, if he wants. But I know this is not just my decision to make. The only thing is if we decide to stay the night tonight, we should most certainly head back to my house. I don't want my car getting towed from University City for some obscure snow removal law.
Why are these decisions so tough to make? There's no clear answer!
If I don't go, I'm not just missing out on Meredith and Alan and Kelly and Addison and Danielle and Ron and Kim and Jen and Sean and Beau and Shael and Jason and Sarah and Nadine and all the people I would see at the party. I'm missing out on seeing my parents. And I'm missing out on seeing my little girls.
I know this much - if we make the drive and it's crazy and awful and we make it, we will certainly need a drink tomorrow night! I still need to think about making the bacon as well, which hasn't even crossed my mind until we figure out what we're doing as far as driving. I don't even know how to MAKE chocolate covered bacon. I'm assuming I'll just buy some semi-sweet chocolate chips and melt them down on the stove with a little milk maybe? And then dip cooked strips of bacon into the chocolate? I'll do my best! And here's another question. If we decide to play things by ear and see what the weather holds for us tomorrow instead of driving today, should we make the bacon tonight?? I don't want oodles of chocolate covered bacon around my house and I certainly don't want Dylan housing it all on his own.
Basically, I am a hot mess and need to figure my shit out. I am picking up my car in less than an hour. Agh.
I know I may have regrets either way, and it would be better to be safe and stay home than to potentially put Dylan and I in danger on the road. But I will be so disappointed to miss the party and see photos of everyone having fun without me. What did Bridget call it? FOMO? Fear of missing out. That was it. I have it, big time.
So basically, I don't know whether I should consult some ultimate higher power (the highway department, my mom), decide to just go for broke and DO IT and know that I can pull off and go somewhere safe if I feel like I can't do it anymore, or if I should just suck it up and do the safest thing which would be to wait until tomorrow morning and decide then. Something tells me the roads in Jersey will be twice as bad tomorrow morning than they will be today.
I guess ultimately I will talk it over with Dylan and see what he thinks we should do. I will show him the traffic cameras and we can look up the forecasts for the storm in New York and New Jersey and call my mom, if he wants. But I know this is not just my decision to make. The only thing is if we decide to stay the night tonight, we should most certainly head back to my house. I don't want my car getting towed from University City for some obscure snow removal law.
Why are these decisions so tough to make? There's no clear answer!
If I don't go, I'm not just missing out on Meredith and Alan and Kelly and Addison and Danielle and Ron and Kim and Jen and Sean and Beau and Shael and Jason and Sarah and Nadine and all the people I would see at the party. I'm missing out on seeing my parents. And I'm missing out on seeing my little girls.
I know this much - if we make the drive and it's crazy and awful and we make it, we will certainly need a drink tomorrow night! I still need to think about making the bacon as well, which hasn't even crossed my mind until we figure out what we're doing as far as driving. I don't even know how to MAKE chocolate covered bacon. I'm assuming I'll just buy some semi-sweet chocolate chips and melt them down on the stove with a little milk maybe? And then dip cooked strips of bacon into the chocolate? I'll do my best! And here's another question. If we decide to play things by ear and see what the weather holds for us tomorrow instead of driving today, should we make the bacon tonight?? I don't want oodles of chocolate covered bacon around my house and I certainly don't want Dylan housing it all on his own.
Basically, I am a hot mess and need to figure my shit out. I am picking up my car in less than an hour. Agh.
Tuesday, September 18, 2012
Life is kicking along...in a good way.
I'm going a little crazy today. I don't know why. I'm just having trouble focusing. I guess you can't help that sometimes. Mostly, things are going really well. I really have very few complaints about my life, even though I bought a car without thinking and am living on a crazy budget all of a sudden. It's kind of an adventure...surviving without money. I'm digging it so far, but it's only been 2 weeks. Talk to me about it in 2 months.
My main goal is to keep putting money in savings and NOT rack up crazy credit card debt by doing so. If I can get to my bonus and tax return doing these two things (and that means making it past Atlantic City, DC, Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas), I will be a champion in my own eyes.
Oh yeah, and while doing that, I'm trying to lose even more weight and take on a new role at my company while simultaneously doing the job I do now. Holy wow, it seems like I'm taking on a lot. I read on facebook the other day "If it scares you, you might want to think about doing it" or some such stuff. (That's not verbatim.) I believe that's what I'm doing with the second half of this year.
It's been a pretty awesome year with Dylan and reveling in all that being in love stuff, but I guess I was finally ready for new challenges, so I'm taking on the world. On top of the financial goals, the health goals and the work goals, I also want to volunteer! And organize my house, getting rid of things I don't need anymore. I'm supposed to tackle clothing tomorrow. I think it'll make getting dressed in the morning a lot easier if I'm not sifting through a million things to get to the clothes that fit and look good. It's the borderline stuff - the stuff you can pair with other things and have it look alright - that is going to be tough to deal with. I don't want to pare my wardrobe down so much that I only have a few outfits. But at the same time, if it doesn't fit, I've got to get rid of it and get a new one! Or get something else that's even better. Either way, I've got a lot of work ahead of me.
And maybe once all that money is saved up, and my credit card is free and clear, I can go on a little shopping spree and get myself some nice new clothes that fit well and are good quality. I'm thinking good stores + sales rack = the way to go.
Not even thinking of all the things I want to get for my house. I just wish Dylan was done with school sooner so we could start our dual income life. It's going to be a lot easier to afford things like vacuum cleaners and ironing boards and Dutch ovens, when I'm not the only one paying rent and utilities. I know it won't be perfect, and I know life will be an adjustment no matter what, but I'm really looking forward to building my life with him.
And of course, it has a hell of a lot more to do with waking up next to him each day and snuggling up to him each night than it does to do with splitting expenses. It's just a nice bonus, and I think once we're both working, we can have a really good life together. I'm excited for that day to come.
I have always had a hard time coming up with a 5 year plan, but I think I'm close to finally being able to come up with one! With work, my relationship, my goals...the stars are aligning, and I feel like the road in front of me is actually clearing up a little bit and I can see where it is that I'm going. That is, instead of just going day by day, week by week, and hoping I end up somewhere I want to be. Not that that hasn't worked out well for me these past few years! Nonetheless, I'm happy to say I'm in a good place, and working on making it even better. Here I go :)
My main goal is to keep putting money in savings and NOT rack up crazy credit card debt by doing so. If I can get to my bonus and tax return doing these two things (and that means making it past Atlantic City, DC, Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas), I will be a champion in my own eyes.
Oh yeah, and while doing that, I'm trying to lose even more weight and take on a new role at my company while simultaneously doing the job I do now. Holy wow, it seems like I'm taking on a lot. I read on facebook the other day "If it scares you, you might want to think about doing it" or some such stuff. (That's not verbatim.) I believe that's what I'm doing with the second half of this year.
It's been a pretty awesome year with Dylan and reveling in all that being in love stuff, but I guess I was finally ready for new challenges, so I'm taking on the world. On top of the financial goals, the health goals and the work goals, I also want to volunteer! And organize my house, getting rid of things I don't need anymore. I'm supposed to tackle clothing tomorrow. I think it'll make getting dressed in the morning a lot easier if I'm not sifting through a million things to get to the clothes that fit and look good. It's the borderline stuff - the stuff you can pair with other things and have it look alright - that is going to be tough to deal with. I don't want to pare my wardrobe down so much that I only have a few outfits. But at the same time, if it doesn't fit, I've got to get rid of it and get a new one! Or get something else that's even better. Either way, I've got a lot of work ahead of me.
And maybe once all that money is saved up, and my credit card is free and clear, I can go on a little shopping spree and get myself some nice new clothes that fit well and are good quality. I'm thinking good stores + sales rack = the way to go.
Not even thinking of all the things I want to get for my house. I just wish Dylan was done with school sooner so we could start our dual income life. It's going to be a lot easier to afford things like vacuum cleaners and ironing boards and Dutch ovens, when I'm not the only one paying rent and utilities. I know it won't be perfect, and I know life will be an adjustment no matter what, but I'm really looking forward to building my life with him.
And of course, it has a hell of a lot more to do with waking up next to him each day and snuggling up to him each night than it does to do with splitting expenses. It's just a nice bonus, and I think once we're both working, we can have a really good life together. I'm excited for that day to come.
I have always had a hard time coming up with a 5 year plan, but I think I'm close to finally being able to come up with one! With work, my relationship, my goals...the stars are aligning, and I feel like the road in front of me is actually clearing up a little bit and I can see where it is that I'm going. That is, instead of just going day by day, week by week, and hoping I end up somewhere I want to be. Not that that hasn't worked out well for me these past few years! Nonetheless, I'm happy to say I'm in a good place, and working on making it even better. Here I go :)
Wednesday, August 15, 2012
Is it August already?
It's been a long time since I've written, and I feel like I miss writing so much. I really want to get doing this again every day, but it's so hard when you're not in the rhythm to make it a priority. I'll try for September's challenge I suppose. Though, we're going to the shore Labor Day weekend, so I don't know how that will go (if we'll have wifi or not).
Life is going quite well. Things with Dylan are great, I've been having fun with friends and coworkers, I'm actually genuinely excited to try new things at work, and I'm about to go see my family for the third time this summer. I've decided to stay in my place for another year or so, even though Dylan got into the University of Pennsylvania. Both cats have been to the vet and are healthy. And I've been great with going to the gym and have even dipped below 200 pounds, though with eating a half a pizza last night, we'll see how I fare on the scale today!
So all these good things ought to make me the happiest girl in the world, right? Well, for the most part I am. But I still feel really anxious some days (usually Mondays), and I had a day on Saturday where all I wanted to do was sleep and sleep and sleep some more. I didn't want to watch shows or do things, I just wanted to nap. Dylan gave me kind of a hard time about it, and I don't know if it was from exhaustion or from a minor bought of depression, but it was hard for me to snap out of it. This upcoming weekend, going home for the summer picnic, is going to be more busy and crazy, so I won't have time to sleep the day away, but when we come back, I want to make an effort to get up by 9AM on the weekend and maybe do some light exercise to get my body going. Maybe write! Wink wink nudge nudge. I'd love to get into more of a routine on the weekend and maybe get stuff accomplished, but it's hard when Dylan's there and there's not much for him to do at my house except watch TV.
Anyhow, other than my anxious days and the occasional super sleepy day, life has been good. As I said, Dylan got into Penn and I couldn't be happier for him. He's already invested in lots of Penn gear - 2 sweatshirts, a polo and a cute sporty T-shirt for me! We decided to put off moving in together for the time being, since he doesn't have a job aside from tutoring and it could put a strain on us for him not to have an income and us having all sorts of expenses. I think it's smart, but there's still part of me that's yearning to come home from work each night and get to see him. Even if we don't hang out all night, just to be able to give him a kiss or make him dinner would be lovely. But all good things come in time. So I'm sure whenever it does happen, it'll be worth the wait. And by then, we'll be even more sure that it's right.
Work has been pretty exciting, as I said. I've been spending lots of time after work with other coworkers as well as investigating new avenues of work itself. I rented a car and took a trip up to Morristown to meet with our resident social media expert on Monday. She told me a lot about what it is she does - profiling and auditing clients social media presence, sometimes in a crisis, to find out what people are saying (good and bad) and then making recommendations based upon this to help them engage with their customers or investors, whoever their audience might be. It's all incredibly interesting to me, and it's in a space I feel very comfortable in, since I've been involved in social media for the better part of 10 years on some level. I'm going to have one other chat today, with someone else in a different department. But I'm actually getting excited about new opportunities to learn and grow and work with different people!
I'm about to dive into my last full work day before my trip, and there's a lot to do, but I'm glad I could take a few minutes to write. I've owed it to myself, at the very least :)
Life is going quite well. Things with Dylan are great, I've been having fun with friends and coworkers, I'm actually genuinely excited to try new things at work, and I'm about to go see my family for the third time this summer. I've decided to stay in my place for another year or so, even though Dylan got into the University of Pennsylvania. Both cats have been to the vet and are healthy. And I've been great with going to the gym and have even dipped below 200 pounds, though with eating a half a pizza last night, we'll see how I fare on the scale today!
So all these good things ought to make me the happiest girl in the world, right? Well, for the most part I am. But I still feel really anxious some days (usually Mondays), and I had a day on Saturday where all I wanted to do was sleep and sleep and sleep some more. I didn't want to watch shows or do things, I just wanted to nap. Dylan gave me kind of a hard time about it, and I don't know if it was from exhaustion or from a minor bought of depression, but it was hard for me to snap out of it. This upcoming weekend, going home for the summer picnic, is going to be more busy and crazy, so I won't have time to sleep the day away, but when we come back, I want to make an effort to get up by 9AM on the weekend and maybe do some light exercise to get my body going. Maybe write! Wink wink nudge nudge. I'd love to get into more of a routine on the weekend and maybe get stuff accomplished, but it's hard when Dylan's there and there's not much for him to do at my house except watch TV.
Anyhow, other than my anxious days and the occasional super sleepy day, life has been good. As I said, Dylan got into Penn and I couldn't be happier for him. He's already invested in lots of Penn gear - 2 sweatshirts, a polo and a cute sporty T-shirt for me! We decided to put off moving in together for the time being, since he doesn't have a job aside from tutoring and it could put a strain on us for him not to have an income and us having all sorts of expenses. I think it's smart, but there's still part of me that's yearning to come home from work each night and get to see him. Even if we don't hang out all night, just to be able to give him a kiss or make him dinner would be lovely. But all good things come in time. So I'm sure whenever it does happen, it'll be worth the wait. And by then, we'll be even more sure that it's right.
Work has been pretty exciting, as I said. I've been spending lots of time after work with other coworkers as well as investigating new avenues of work itself. I rented a car and took a trip up to Morristown to meet with our resident social media expert on Monday. She told me a lot about what it is she does - profiling and auditing clients social media presence, sometimes in a crisis, to find out what people are saying (good and bad) and then making recommendations based upon this to help them engage with their customers or investors, whoever their audience might be. It's all incredibly interesting to me, and it's in a space I feel very comfortable in, since I've been involved in social media for the better part of 10 years on some level. I'm going to have one other chat today, with someone else in a different department. But I'm actually getting excited about new opportunities to learn and grow and work with different people!
I'm about to dive into my last full work day before my trip, and there's a lot to do, but I'm glad I could take a few minutes to write. I've owed it to myself, at the very least :)
Wednesday, June 13, 2012
Attitude is everything. And also money.
Side note, preface-thingy: yesterday, I felt awful. I wanted to move away and start a new life. I felt like a failure in every way. I couldn't even watch TV without my brain telling me all the things that were wrong with my life. And then this is today:
OMG. Today has kicked yesterday's ASS. I don't know what my problem was yesterday. Scratch that. I do know what it was. I was second guessing myself. I was taking things personally, and I was letting negative thoughts overtake my brain. Today, I have taken charge of the world and it is MINE! I've talked, hung out, gone on walks, brought my own lunch, and am about ready to hit the gym for a good old fashioned RUN. I am so psyched for life today, which is the exact opposite of how I felt yesterday. Today, nothing can stop me. I think it's all about attitude. The thing I've noticed about the two really good days that I've had this week has been that I've come in with a plan. Just a simple plan to make an effort to talk to the people around me. Obviously things escalated from the plan, and have gone well from there, but I think the attitude of having a plan makes things worlds better.
Maybe I should start every day like that. I don't know if I would absolutely need that, but I do need to remind myself that I'm worthy and smart and funny sometimes. Dylan does a good job of reminding me too. I can't believe how upset I was last night, and how things seem so much better and brighter today. I guess I am no longer the bright, shiny, positive person I am EVERY day. But I certainly am today.
One of the things that is on my mind today is saving money. If I can start bringing in salads or wraps from Trader Joe's instead of buying my lunch out everyday, I think I can save myself at least $20 per week. Maybe $30. And with ceasing the organic produce delivery for the time being, I'm eating less fruit, but I am able to snack on baby carrots and cherry tomatoes for only about $3 a week from Sue's. And buying salad stuff for home only costs another $8-$10 a week which saves me $15. That's $45 in my pocket right there, just from eating smarter! And with Dylan and I going out less (or him getting paid more and paying for us more!), I think I can work to pay down my credit card this summer and save the money I need for our vacation to Atlantic City this fall.
I'm hoping our other trips this summer can be low-budget. Aside from gas and tolls, we'll be doing a lot of meals with family, and like Kaela's mom's party, catered by others! I will make sure to pack lots of yummy road snacks from Trader Joe's and the odd order of fries from a rest stop won't kill our budget. The more I figure out where my money is going, the more I feel like I could really run a household and a family someday. It's a very empowering feeling. And to someday have BOTH of our incomes to use and plan with- well, gosh, that will be just heaven on earth. I'm sure we won't ever have more money than we know what to do with, or fatty fat fat savings and trusts for our children, but I have a feeling we'll be doing alright for ourselves pretty soon down the line.
And gosh, I know Dylan sleeping over last night was nice. He really makes me happy. I can't wait to spend my life making him happy too. That's it. My sappy romantic blurt is over.
Back to money! I joined Pear a few months back, a really cool budgeting website. I've been supremely diligent about inputting all of my expenses, but I haven't actually gone through and revised my budget or analyzed my spending. I think I might need some help with that. Maybe my mom or Dylan would be able to take a look and advise me. I think I'll be able to tell where I'm going over in spending (TRAVEL! CLOTHING!) but I'm not sure really what to do about that except to adjust my budget to account for the things I need to spend. To be honest, I don't buy THAT many clothes. And I think I only budgeted $500 for each for the year, and that doesn't seem like that much when you break it down by month.
Something I always want to be able to do is go out to dinner. It doesn't have to be at fancy places, but it is my biggest indulgence, and I'd gladly give up take out and restaurant lunches to be able to go out to dinner every now and then. I think it's time to set some financial goals! Stand by. (But not really, because it won't be for a few days!)
OMG. Today has kicked yesterday's ASS. I don't know what my problem was yesterday. Scratch that. I do know what it was. I was second guessing myself. I was taking things personally, and I was letting negative thoughts overtake my brain. Today, I have taken charge of the world and it is MINE! I've talked, hung out, gone on walks, brought my own lunch, and am about ready to hit the gym for a good old fashioned RUN. I am so psyched for life today, which is the exact opposite of how I felt yesterday. Today, nothing can stop me. I think it's all about attitude. The thing I've noticed about the two really good days that I've had this week has been that I've come in with a plan. Just a simple plan to make an effort to talk to the people around me. Obviously things escalated from the plan, and have gone well from there, but I think the attitude of having a plan makes things worlds better.
Maybe I should start every day like that. I don't know if I would absolutely need that, but I do need to remind myself that I'm worthy and smart and funny sometimes. Dylan does a good job of reminding me too. I can't believe how upset I was last night, and how things seem so much better and brighter today. I guess I am no longer the bright, shiny, positive person I am EVERY day. But I certainly am today.
One of the things that is on my mind today is saving money. If I can start bringing in salads or wraps from Trader Joe's instead of buying my lunch out everyday, I think I can save myself at least $20 per week. Maybe $30. And with ceasing the organic produce delivery for the time being, I'm eating less fruit, but I am able to snack on baby carrots and cherry tomatoes for only about $3 a week from Sue's. And buying salad stuff for home only costs another $8-$10 a week which saves me $15. That's $45 in my pocket right there, just from eating smarter! And with Dylan and I going out less (or him getting paid more and paying for us more!), I think I can work to pay down my credit card this summer and save the money I need for our vacation to Atlantic City this fall.
I'm hoping our other trips this summer can be low-budget. Aside from gas and tolls, we'll be doing a lot of meals with family, and like Kaela's mom's party, catered by others! I will make sure to pack lots of yummy road snacks from Trader Joe's and the odd order of fries from a rest stop won't kill our budget. The more I figure out where my money is going, the more I feel like I could really run a household and a family someday. It's a very empowering feeling. And to someday have BOTH of our incomes to use and plan with- well, gosh, that will be just heaven on earth. I'm sure we won't ever have more money than we know what to do with, or fatty fat fat savings and trusts for our children, but I have a feeling we'll be doing alright for ourselves pretty soon down the line.
And gosh, I know Dylan sleeping over last night was nice. He really makes me happy. I can't wait to spend my life making him happy too. That's it. My sappy romantic blurt is over.
Back to money! I joined Pear a few months back, a really cool budgeting website. I've been supremely diligent about inputting all of my expenses, but I haven't actually gone through and revised my budget or analyzed my spending. I think I might need some help with that. Maybe my mom or Dylan would be able to take a look and advise me. I think I'll be able to tell where I'm going over in spending (TRAVEL! CLOTHING!) but I'm not sure really what to do about that except to adjust my budget to account for the things I need to spend. To be honest, I don't buy THAT many clothes. And I think I only budgeted $500 for each for the year, and that doesn't seem like that much when you break it down by month.
Something I always want to be able to do is go out to dinner. It doesn't have to be at fancy places, but it is my biggest indulgence, and I'd gladly give up take out and restaurant lunches to be able to go out to dinner every now and then. I think it's time to set some financial goals! Stand by. (But not really, because it won't be for a few days!)
Friday, May 11, 2012
Life This Week
Well hello there! It's Friday, one of the best of all of the days of the week. It's been a good week here for me, aside from a few little road blocks here and there. Lots going on! First of all...Tonight is the Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes concert with Dani at the Tower Theatre. We're both taking the trolley into 69th Street to meet. I have to admit - I had only heard one of their songs before buying the tickets. Now that I've investigated them a bit more on Spotify, I am not 100% sure I dig all of their music. Compared to the first song I heard, much of their other stuff is calmer and almost, blander? But then I heard the newly released sneak peek single from their new album...and it's AWESOME. So happy. And amazing. So hopefully, I will enjoy the concert tonight! And hopefully Dani will too, since she's gotta fork over forty dollars for the ticket I bought her after she drunkenly agreed to go with me back in March :)
More exciting life - we're making pizza this weekend. Yummy, yummy BBQ pulled pork pizza with ooey gooey mozzarella and white crust, per Dylan's request from the last time we made pizza. I haven't cooked up anything complicated in a while, and this definitely isn't it. But I'm excited to cook ourselves a big yummy dinner. WHICH will be accompanied by freshly baked biscuits and strawberries and whipped cream for strawberry shortcake AND some sort of cocktails, depending on what we decide to drink. I had a conversation with Mer G. about kissing skills, and whether or not being drunk makes you a better kisser or just a more confident kisser. So I talked it over with Dylan, and we're going to do a kissing experiment. After every drink, we're going to kiss, and he's going to rate it! We'll see how this goes, but I foresee it being a lot of fun.
Susan invited us to her art show tomorrow afternoon, but it's in god-knows-where South Philly, I think, and with Dylan wanting to do absolutely nothing, and his spare being on his car, and the fact that we'll probably have to drive to the airport anyway to pick up his Mom's car, I don't think we're going to make it. I want to make Susan something nice, a card or something, congratulating her on the show. I haven't seen her to hang out in forever, but I'd really like to. I think I'll make her a card this weekend, and demand we do lunch some day next week!
On another friend note, I'm sad, but I think I've lost Raquel as a friend. I reached out to her multiple times over the past few months, both just sending cute little hellos, and invitations to hang out. She IM'd me briefly after one such invitation, saying she was super busy and she'd get back to me, and the next thing I know, I'm invited to her going away party. She's leaving for Washington soon for a new job. Needless to say, I don't think we're going to be hanging out anymore, and we rarely if ever talk as it is. I think I'll have to mail Bayrex his movies back, and consider myself officially removed as a member of their group of friends. It was fun while it lasted, and I will always remember my time with them. It meant a lot to me to feel accepted in such a fun group, but those days are clearly past us. Time to move onwards and upward!
I look forward to making new friends later on in life with Dylan. Maybe friends in a new town that I move to. Friends from a class I take. Friends from my future kids' school someday! I feel like I haven't made many new friends outside of work in a long time. I guess last year, I made friends with Dani and Bryan and Alexa and Gist. But since then, my life's been pretty much full of boyfriend time. I guess I don't know how much time I would have for new friends. I have enough trouble trying to keep in touch with the friends that I do have. As Bob said, I spread myself too thin. But I definitely love new friends.
Well, off in a bit to enjoy the weekend. Have a good one all!
More exciting life - we're making pizza this weekend. Yummy, yummy BBQ pulled pork pizza with ooey gooey mozzarella and white crust, per Dylan's request from the last time we made pizza. I haven't cooked up anything complicated in a while, and this definitely isn't it. But I'm excited to cook ourselves a big yummy dinner. WHICH will be accompanied by freshly baked biscuits and strawberries and whipped cream for strawberry shortcake AND some sort of cocktails, depending on what we decide to drink. I had a conversation with Mer G. about kissing skills, and whether or not being drunk makes you a better kisser or just a more confident kisser. So I talked it over with Dylan, and we're going to do a kissing experiment. After every drink, we're going to kiss, and he's going to rate it! We'll see how this goes, but I foresee it being a lot of fun.
Susan invited us to her art show tomorrow afternoon, but it's in god-knows-where South Philly, I think, and with Dylan wanting to do absolutely nothing, and his spare being on his car, and the fact that we'll probably have to drive to the airport anyway to pick up his Mom's car, I don't think we're going to make it. I want to make Susan something nice, a card or something, congratulating her on the show. I haven't seen her to hang out in forever, but I'd really like to. I think I'll make her a card this weekend, and demand we do lunch some day next week!
On another friend note, I'm sad, but I think I've lost Raquel as a friend. I reached out to her multiple times over the past few months, both just sending cute little hellos, and invitations to hang out. She IM'd me briefly after one such invitation, saying she was super busy and she'd get back to me, and the next thing I know, I'm invited to her going away party. She's leaving for Washington soon for a new job. Needless to say, I don't think we're going to be hanging out anymore, and we rarely if ever talk as it is. I think I'll have to mail Bayrex his movies back, and consider myself officially removed as a member of their group of friends. It was fun while it lasted, and I will always remember my time with them. It meant a lot to me to feel accepted in such a fun group, but those days are clearly past us. Time to move onwards and upward!
I look forward to making new friends later on in life with Dylan. Maybe friends in a new town that I move to. Friends from a class I take. Friends from my future kids' school someday! I feel like I haven't made many new friends outside of work in a long time. I guess last year, I made friends with Dani and Bryan and Alexa and Gist. But since then, my life's been pretty much full of boyfriend time. I guess I don't know how much time I would have for new friends. I have enough trouble trying to keep in touch with the friends that I do have. As Bob said, I spread myself too thin. But I definitely love new friends.
Well, off in a bit to enjoy the weekend. Have a good one all!
Thursday, April 26, 2012
Awesomeness Turned Anxiousness
I had a wonderful night last night, but a very anxious morning today.
Last night, I came home around 6 and talked to my brother for about a half hour. We don't talk on the phone very often, but last night I questioned why that is. It's not that we don't get along. I could talk to him for hours! We just don't find occasion to call each other that often. I must make a mental note to call him more often.
While on the phone with Josh, I made baggies of the (censored for Dylan) I got Dylan for his birthday. Josh had an idea to draw pictures of the (censored for Dylan) on the bag, but make them looks like Dylan. I did ones in four different colors on four sandwich ziploc bags, and put glasses on all of them to make them look like Dylan! I think he'll appreciate the little extra touch there.
I sent a picture of the baggies to Josh after we got off of the phone and one to Alex since she was with me when I bought the (censored for Dylan) yesterday. Then, I wrapped Dylan's other presents, the (censored for Dylan). I know he got me two sets of really awesome tickets (the chamber orchestra and Wicked), and a surprise trip to NYC for the shebang, but I think he'll like the presents I got for him as well.
After that, I settled down with a glass of wine and my computer, only to have Dylan call me a few minutes later to let me know he'd arrived. We went to Wawa and got the most wonderful $16 feast - two 10 inch subs (one Classic California with bacon, turkey, tomatoes, cucumbers, pepper jack and guacamole, the other a Buffalo Chicken Cheese Steak), a giant bag of salt and vinegar chips and chocolate milk for Dylan. We then went to the liquor store and picked out a really cute bottle of wine...I don't remember the name, but it came in a cylindrical bottle that was super adorable.
We headed back to my house, and ate and drank while watching New Girl. Then Dylan started to feel not so well, so we went to lie down on the bed, while watching The Office and 30 Rock. Afterwards, I got him some water, and snuggled him lots to help make him feel better, then suggested he sleep over at my house, so I could take care of him properly. After a couple disastrous school night sleepovers, where I didn't want to get out of bed for the life of me, last night went pretty darn well. After I set Dylan up with a big bottle of water, we both snuggled into bed, and turned out the big light. He watched anime cartoons and I read Catching Fire, the second book in the Hunger Games series, that I'm JUST LOVING. We laid like that for 45 minutes or an hour, then shut down and turned off the lights. He told me he was feeling better, which made me happy, and we were asleep not too long after.
Before I knew it, I was rousing and it was light out and then my alarm went off. I still snoozed a couple times, for sure, since it was so nice to be in bed with him. But when 6:30 came, I was up and at 'em. Within 20 minutes, I had done my hair and makeup, eaten breakfast and checked the weather. I came to kiss him and see if he wanted to get up with me to drive me to the train and go home or stay sleeping. He said he'd like to sleep more, and it really was the sweetest thing for me to tuck him in and kiss him goodbye, after I'd dressed and packed. I made it to the train in plenty of time, breaking into a wide grin as I walked now and then, remembering my sweet boyfriend back at my house, keeping my bed toasty warm. How I wish I could go back there now and surprise him with a hug and kiss. But alas, I'm responsible.
I've made it almost to the end of this entry, and only talked about the happy things in life so far. I guess that's ok. The things I was anxious about this morning included that my train pass hasn't come for next month yet (but I looked it up and found out that it just got mailed on Tuesday - it's Thursday today), and that I ran my credit card up almost as much as I paid it down last paycheck ($400), and after my rent check and my bachelorette party check this pay period, I only have another $400 to put towards credit card, Dylan's birthday meals and movie (easily $150), plus dinner and breakfast with Josh and Kristi and anything I'll need to buy in Chicago. The kicker is I only get paid one more time between then and the next trip to Chicago, when I'll get paid on Friday the 25th, while I'm in Chi-town. I guess I'll just have to pace myself as much as possible, maybe put $250 towards my card this time, and see if I can be frugal in Chicago this weekend. Maybe Dylan can pay for the movies next week or chip in for Iron Hill.
Other miscellaneous things making me anxious: checking in for my flights this weekend, getting through the airport alright, packing my bag sufficiently, getting to the airport with enough time, getting the letters out to my dad before this weekend, keeping my house clean when everything's been so busy and I have guests coming tomorrow night, getting Dylan's mom's jacket back to her in good condition, reading all the millions of magazines I have, losing weight...and OH- the dress I gave to the cleaners to have their tailor look at on Saturday morning, that I STILL haven't heard back about yet. I have no idea when they will get back to me, if they'll be able to do anything with it, and if, thank heavens, they are, what it will cost. BIG SIGH. I need to calm down. I will drink my iced coffee, listen to my jazz, and focus on how happy I was to see Dylan this morning, how lucky I am to have an awesome job to come to everyday, and how nice I feel in my silky blue dress and pearls.
Last night, I came home around 6 and talked to my brother for about a half hour. We don't talk on the phone very often, but last night I questioned why that is. It's not that we don't get along. I could talk to him for hours! We just don't find occasion to call each other that often. I must make a mental note to call him more often.
While on the phone with Josh, I made baggies of the (censored for Dylan) I got Dylan for his birthday. Josh had an idea to draw pictures of the (censored for Dylan) on the bag, but make them looks like Dylan. I did ones in four different colors on four sandwich ziploc bags, and put glasses on all of them to make them look like Dylan! I think he'll appreciate the little extra touch there.
I sent a picture of the baggies to Josh after we got off of the phone and one to Alex since she was with me when I bought the (censored for Dylan) yesterday. Then, I wrapped Dylan's other presents, the (censored for Dylan). I know he got me two sets of really awesome tickets (the chamber orchestra and Wicked), and a surprise trip to NYC for the shebang, but I think he'll like the presents I got for him as well.
After that, I settled down with a glass of wine and my computer, only to have Dylan call me a few minutes later to let me know he'd arrived. We went to Wawa and got the most wonderful $16 feast - two 10 inch subs (one Classic California with bacon, turkey, tomatoes, cucumbers, pepper jack and guacamole, the other a Buffalo Chicken Cheese Steak), a giant bag of salt and vinegar chips and chocolate milk for Dylan. We then went to the liquor store and picked out a really cute bottle of wine...I don't remember the name, but it came in a cylindrical bottle that was super adorable.
We headed back to my house, and ate and drank while watching New Girl. Then Dylan started to feel not so well, so we went to lie down on the bed, while watching The Office and 30 Rock. Afterwards, I got him some water, and snuggled him lots to help make him feel better, then suggested he sleep over at my house, so I could take care of him properly. After a couple disastrous school night sleepovers, where I didn't want to get out of bed for the life of me, last night went pretty darn well. After I set Dylan up with a big bottle of water, we both snuggled into bed, and turned out the big light. He watched anime cartoons and I read Catching Fire, the second book in the Hunger Games series, that I'm JUST LOVING. We laid like that for 45 minutes or an hour, then shut down and turned off the lights. He told me he was feeling better, which made me happy, and we were asleep not too long after.
Before I knew it, I was rousing and it was light out and then my alarm went off. I still snoozed a couple times, for sure, since it was so nice to be in bed with him. But when 6:30 came, I was up and at 'em. Within 20 minutes, I had done my hair and makeup, eaten breakfast and checked the weather. I came to kiss him and see if he wanted to get up with me to drive me to the train and go home or stay sleeping. He said he'd like to sleep more, and it really was the sweetest thing for me to tuck him in and kiss him goodbye, after I'd dressed and packed. I made it to the train in plenty of time, breaking into a wide grin as I walked now and then, remembering my sweet boyfriend back at my house, keeping my bed toasty warm. How I wish I could go back there now and surprise him with a hug and kiss. But alas, I'm responsible.
I've made it almost to the end of this entry, and only talked about the happy things in life so far. I guess that's ok. The things I was anxious about this morning included that my train pass hasn't come for next month yet (but I looked it up and found out that it just got mailed on Tuesday - it's Thursday today), and that I ran my credit card up almost as much as I paid it down last paycheck ($400), and after my rent check and my bachelorette party check this pay period, I only have another $400 to put towards credit card, Dylan's birthday meals and movie (easily $150), plus dinner and breakfast with Josh and Kristi and anything I'll need to buy in Chicago. The kicker is I only get paid one more time between then and the next trip to Chicago, when I'll get paid on Friday the 25th, while I'm in Chi-town. I guess I'll just have to pace myself as much as possible, maybe put $250 towards my card this time, and see if I can be frugal in Chicago this weekend. Maybe Dylan can pay for the movies next week or chip in for Iron Hill.
Other miscellaneous things making me anxious: checking in for my flights this weekend, getting through the airport alright, packing my bag sufficiently, getting to the airport with enough time, getting the letters out to my dad before this weekend, keeping my house clean when everything's been so busy and I have guests coming tomorrow night, getting Dylan's mom's jacket back to her in good condition, reading all the millions of magazines I have, losing weight...and OH- the dress I gave to the cleaners to have their tailor look at on Saturday morning, that I STILL haven't heard back about yet. I have no idea when they will get back to me, if they'll be able to do anything with it, and if, thank heavens, they are, what it will cost. BIG SIGH. I need to calm down. I will drink my iced coffee, listen to my jazz, and focus on how happy I was to see Dylan this morning, how lucky I am to have an awesome job to come to everyday, and how nice I feel in my silky blue dress and pearls.
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