Utils in Bat Country

Bottoms, again

Of course, 3 days after my full price pants purchase spree, Old Navy has stuff and save with 30% off your purchase.  Since I'm here in NJ house/pet sitting, I made the much easier drive and I'm pretty sure I managed to repurchase everything from last weekend. Thanks to the sale, for a net increase of $25 I was able to repurchase everything from last week plus 2 skirts, lounge pants, a cardigan, 3 pairs of flip flops and a shirt.

This round to me, Old Navy!

(so long as I actually return the original set)

A check in the pro column

One of the reasons I wanted to move back East was so I'd be able to attend the non  major holiday family events that wouldn't be feasible with an 8hr drive.  And since today was my uncle's birthday and my other aunt emailed me yesterday to say everyone was going to get together for a family dinner, I was happy to be able to make the drive up.

We met halfway between the two houses, in New Hope, PA which is an adorable little town.  Gorgeous stone farm houses, charming main street, bunches of restaurants and shops.  Am definitely going back there sometime this summer to wander around. There were 12 of us at dinner and true to form, we spent most of the time laughing. AJ had emailed P to ask what UJ wanted for his bday and she said ipad accessories (someone got a 3, lucky duck) and socks. So AJ told Gma who went to Macys and bought 7 pairs of various dark colored socks (along with the traditional birthday check).  UJ looked a bit confused when he unwrapped them and then P started cracking up and cackling that she couldn't believe they thought she was serious.  And when Gma then exclaimed, I couldn't believe he needed more socks, I just bought him socks for Christmas, what does he do with them?!, it only added to the hilarity. Unfunny in the retelling but, trust me, there were guffaws in person.

AJ and UP have one of the few no shoes allowed on inside houses among people I know and it's always a joke between all of us because I cannot remember until I'm halfway up the stairs and hopping around trying not to fall over and leave the precious, precious carpet unsullied.  So when I was getting dressed in some lovely springy Anthro pieces, I had to send him a picture showing how I obeyed all the rules because I am just that good of a person.

No shoes on upstairs, see UP!  I'm so facetiously cheeky.

Happy sighs for nights like this.

Sometimes, little things just make your day

I had walked down to the grocery store with a couple of the girls from work and was wandering around and had zeroed in on the bin of pretzel rolls and was just about to grab the tongs when a guy comes over and says 'excuse me, I'm sorry to bother you but I just had to come over and tell you that you are very pretty.'

Not what I was expecting so my cynical wariness was replaced by a blink of surprise and garbled exclamation of thank you.

(The only time I'll cop to a bit of a southern accent is when I'm taken by a surprise so I could hear the thank quuuuue coming out of my mouth and could do nothing to stop it.)

My pretzel roll was scrumptious, too.

Just keep swimming

Friday night and I'm trying to keep my eyes open.  Not because I'm out on some fabulous adventure but because it's my last night in the nest, such as it is.  Am up in NJ at my aunt and uncle's house (only an hour and a half away, yay!) hanging out with them for a couple of days.  Dad flew out of PHL so we were going to be in the area regardless.

Contrary to what I thought, I didn't sob when we dropped him off, just sniffled.  But then my uncle was all snap outta it, goober, which made me laugh.  We shall see how hard I have to grip the steering wheel when I head back down to Bmore tomorrow.

My addled brain has been coming up with truly terrible puns and metaphors all week and my latest is that I'm operating like a shark.  If I stop moving, I'll die.  As Dorrie says, just keep swimming.  If I keep swimming and moving, I won't be able to focus on the enormity of what begins on Monday.

Towards that end, I went with aj and up to their gym and did a zumba class with them.  That hour alone was worth all the hassle and uncertainty about moving.  Hifreakinglarious.  The instructor was some insane woo girl who said she didn't show moves, just follow along and do what feels good.  So there was wild, uncontrolled arm flailings everywhere.

Since I've danced, I picked most of it up pretty quickly but counting off the 8 counts.  Though I did trip over my own feet and get a case of the church giggles when I realized I had been staring intently at the instructors butt and muttering step, two three four, back, two three four, pivot around three four for an entire track. But girlfriend was doing some Beyonce level booty moves and if I just stared hard enough perhaps I could gain some groove by osmosis (I couldn't).

And when things get rough next week, I can pull up the mental image of UP shaking it to some belly dance moves to cheer me.

(Everything begins Monday - if you could spare some good thoughts and pixie dust for me, it'd be much appreciated)

An odd goodbye

In most moves there's the deliberation of do I actually want to pack, move, and unpack this with each of one's belongings.

I had gone through all my clothes but had forgotten that I had some things in the upstairs closet.  Went up there and happened upon my wedding dress.  Huh. I'm not going to use it, I don't really want to keep it, but I feel bad about throwing it away.  So I'll try and sell it.  I had listed it a few months ago but didn't get any hits and forgot about it.  Lowered the price in a flurry of everything else and forgot about that.  Got an email last week inquiring about it and was able to sell it.  For 2/3 less than it cost.  Ouch.  But something's pretty than total loss so into a box it went.

I've been pretty divorced (ha) from the idea of that wedding for years but it was still a pull of nostalgia for what could have been.  But like my stools, hopefully the dress is off to a good life where it will be worn and photographed and exclaimed over. 

I mean, it's a wedding dress, if clothes were sentient, I imagine it and a tutu would be two of the things most sad to never be worn.

Just in time for Valentine's Day

Within the last few months, I've started to read Nicole's blog and enjoyed it.  A few weeks ago, she posted about a pay it forward kind of thing, where people can pool their goals and others can crowd source and help and get help on their own.  Excellent idea, no?

I gave my $.02 on a couple of items and figured, what the heck, I'll list one of my own.  I'm doing some big, scary things, surely seeking help from people is better than rocking in the corner, gnawing on cookie dough while staring and mumbling at a train schedule.

So I wrote out my wish (basically, to make friends), posted it and then, because I figured no one would respond, I FORGOT ABOUT IT.

My new tag line: A nincompoop that shoots herself in the foot.

I was reading another of her posts today and a light bulb popped in my brain that hey, perhaps I should check.  And lo!

Responses!  From honest to goodness non serial killer people including one of my favorite bloggers!

Who needs a date when I have the Internet to make me feel all warm and fuzzy on Valentine's Day?

(Though I may need some of that cookie dough while I sit here and compose emails to the very nice responders explaining that I'm a well-meaning dolt.)

Balls Eggs Breathe Fear Do Go Panic

You know what's an excellent idea for this here Util?  The one who loves logic and routine and parking lots?

Make major changes to every possible area of life (except my hair, because I do have my limits).

Fingers crossed nothing unexpected happens, this month will find me:

In a new job

In a new city

Working in a different new city

Longer hours

Unfamiliar roads

Near total absence of parking lots

Leaving most everything I own and just moving what I can fit in my car (mostly)

Leaving Tilly and Giotto (pretty sure Bella is coming with me)

Nearest family an hour away

Knowing one person

Having a non romantic roommate [it's my illustrious and absent co-author!  Am pretty tickled about this even though I think she's about to block my phone number]

New bank accounts (my current bank is in the Midwest only)

With the same salary and a twice as expensive cost of living.  But more future opportunity.

New passport (had to call to figure out how to get in renewed by being mailed from one address but sent to another)

Dealing with car registration, windshields, inspections, batteries, insurance, licenses

Did I mention the commuting?  I haven't even begun to panic about the job because I am near catatonic just trying to figure out the commute.

Am barely holding it together.  Grasping at straws in a sea of I can't do this by myself. I hear myself start to spiral when I'm talking to people and I'm so beyond myself that I can recognize it but I can't stop it and it's just a 20 minute babble of my to do list and no sense or logic and I finally smash through the haze long enough to stammer out an I'm so sorry, I know what I'm doing and how annoying this is but I can't help it before hanging up and whimpering into Tilly.

There are beams of solace.  A random tweet with a quote from Eleanor Roosevelt: "You must do the things you think you cannot do"  A blog entry with a comment about it's ok to be juggling everything and some things drop so long as it's a ball that drops and not an egg.  Focus on the eggs.  One day at a time. Just keep breathing.

How will I get to the post office? The DMV? Wait for the cable guy? Go to the doctor?

I'm exhausted from staying up worrying so I drift off on the couch before 10 while watching reruns of the Big Bang Theory, wake up cold, go to bed and lie awake till 3am whirling.  Then I'm so tired the next day I fall asleep on the couch again and lie awake half the night.

What if the mild winter ends before Spring and there's a blizzard when I'm moving or trying to learn the commute?

Things are falling into place, which, oddly, makes things almost worse.  It can't be this easy.  Something bad is going to happen.

While I'm still here, am seeing how people are there for me.  D is home more during the day to deal with the uship guy.  When he was gone yesterday and there was a minor crisis about the bid price being driveway to driveway only and I was gasping at my desk because I can't move the dresser and tabletop on my own, I was able to frantically text T who said he'd be able to come over and help me.  And D is there now, waiting for the guy, because I'm at work and he can load the things so I don't have to pay extra.  [If you happen to be reading Tass I gave him extra $ for the unloading in Bmore]  What am I going to do without them?

How am I going to be able to afford a place of my own? How am I going to be able to even go look at a place with no time off?

The logistics will work out. I have rational people who are still talking to me who help me focus on the ok things.  Ex: it is going to cost a significant amount of money to park at the train station where there's a lot so I called the MTA and the very helpful woman was giving me ways of taking various bus transfers with stops that involve walking through parking lots to navigate.  Me? OMFG NO.  Rational coworker?  Sounds would be much more worth it to pay to park but this way you know if your car doesn't start or something, you still could get to work.  Yes. Good.

What if I hate the urban environment? What if I get attacked?

I can do this.  I have done this.  Sure, I was with D when I moved to Hbg but he was in school in Florida at the time and I lived by myself and it was good.  (Except I walked to work and had a parking garage)  The commute will sort itself out after doing it for a couple of weeks. The federal government accepted my tax return so I have some money as a cushion. It's fine to be scared. I can still do this.

I'm petrified.

Darn you, logic

Ironic since I was waxing poetically about how logic and order gives me peace over on fb.

On Saturday, C and I saw Beauty and the Beast in the theater.  Now, I don't particularly care about the 3d aspect but the opportunity to see the ballroom and the library on the big screen?  Absolutely not worth $13. We settle in and enjoy our 84 minutes of animated delight but every so often a niggle of something would intrude and cause my forehead to wrinkle behind my cardboard glasses.

In Be Our Guest, the line is for 10 years we've been rusting but then in the prologue the voice over (is it you, Walt?) says the rose will only bloom till the Beast's 21st birthday.  So the curse went info effect when he was 11?  That seems...harsh of the fairy.

And Maurice.  I understand that the townspeople are sycophants and that you felt you had to rescue Belle on your own.  But you really couldn't have put on a pair of pants before heading out into a blizzard?  No wonder you end up coughing on the floor of the forest.

The whole Stockholm Syndrome/Beast is abusive angle never really bothered me when the movie first came out and all subsequent viewings and it didn't really bother me this time.  I guess I ignore relationship red flags for pretty dresses and books?  But it always did bother me that the Beast never fought back against Gaston until Belle showed up.

Really? You've known her for all of 4 days and you can't go on without her?  That part of relationships bugs me, in fantasy and real life.  Things happen, people break up and get sick and you should really be able to function as a member of society even if the love of your life isn't with you.

But I mostly feel for Phillipe.  Poor Phillipe who just wants to eat his hay but nooo.  First he gets attacked by wolves because Maurice can't read a map, then he makes his way to safety and Belle makes him go back.  Then he gets attacked again when she runs off and has to carry the Beast, who must weigh as much as he does.  And all he gets as a thank you is a stroll through the snow covered castle grounds.  I'd build you a two story stable Phillipe.

But, man, the library. And the ballroom.

Ridiculous quibbles aside, sigh, this movie is made of magic.

A soiree

I was hanging out with my neighbors Friday night and we were talking about the Golden Globes and I decided I wanted to make cake pops and drink champagne and since that can easily cross into troublesome when doing it alone, I'd just have a party (or, awards soiree) to spread the sugar.  And M's bf piped up and said we should all dress up.  Yes, yes, we should.

I even left the heat on for many hours at 70* since I knew there would be spaghetti straps involved. The things I do for cake.

Whilst perusing my boxed cake options, I decided that red carpet = red velvet cake. Came home and started baking and realized that baking red velvet cake hours after finishing the Hunger Games series (which is a whole other rambly yelly post of omg is she serious with this) was a poor decision as I wiped the blood batter splatters and washed my red stained hands.  They were tasty though.  I even got fancy gold sprinkles.  I decided to forgo the candy melts and grabbed some dark chocolate chips to dip and ended up having to add a bunch of half and half to get the mixture to melt and spread out and while I made delicious chocolate ganache, it was THICK.  So each cake pop had about a half inch outer layer of fudge on it.  Not my finest baking job, aesthetically.  Taste wise though, these were good.  And surprisingly, not that sweet.

Since it was a fahncee to do, I indulged and got some Tilamook sharp cheddar but didn't buy crackers because I knew I had some in the pantry.  And I did, I had just forgotten that they were store brand Saltines. Eh, the cheese was the star, crackers were just a delivery vehicle.  I was able to  use the only surface tall enough to keep the puppy off gussy up my sideboard with the foodstuffs.

Everything was assembled, so I dug out my one fancy dress that I have here in MI.  Which just so happens to be the dress I wore to Homecoming in the fall of 1999.  How many years old does it have to be before it's vintage?  I'm actually amazed, the dress has held up remarkably well considering it lives in a crumpled up ball shoved up on a shelf.  Popped it on, seized the opportunity to wear my ridiculous BHLDN pink patent hells, sat down and the puppy promptly decided she had to go out right that second.  Fine. Zipped up my coat, switched out the shoes for Merrels and off we went to frolic in the snow.  After she had sufficiently romped, I came back up and cranked up the space heater for a while so I could stand in front of it to thaw my feet.  The life I lead, so glamorous...

Bring on the Oscars.

 

2011 in Review

Nothing like a year-end, wrap-up blog post two weeks into the new year, amirite?

1. What did you do in 2011 that you’d never done before? Swam in the ocean. No seriously, I never had. It was awesome. And salty.

2. Did you keep your New Year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year?  I don't remember that I made any, and I am making ZERO this year. I just want to live.

3. Did anyone close to you have a child?  Not close-close. I know some folks who've been popping out the kids, but no one I was rushing to the hospital to see.

4. Did anyone close to you die?  No. I am thankful.

5. Where did you travel?  I went to Rehoboth Beach in Delaware twice (once cold, once hot), camping in Ohio and Virginia a bunch, and back to Michigan in December. Lollapalooza in Chicago in August. The Guy and I had many plans to travel and never did it, outside of Rehoboth and the concert. Oh well. Some day.

6. What would you like to have in 2012 that you lacked in 2011?  A big kid job again.

7. What dates from 2011 will remain etched upon your memory? Finishing my student teaching, splitting up with The Guy, a random Sunday night in November.

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year? Getting through my student teaching.

9. What was your biggest failure?  My inability to maintain a relationship? I feel as though all my failures last year were little. Some of them compounded to seem big, but on the whole I was OK.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?  I had the flu, I think. And the number of bruises I've received working at a restaurant are innumerable. But nothing serious.

11. What was the best thing you bought?  Not kidding here, but my counter-top dishwasher. If I even bought that this year. Otherwise, I have no clue.

12. Whose behavior merited celebration?  My mom, for keeping her head up through more bullshit than I ever thought possible.

13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?  Appalled? Depressed? I try to stay away from those people. A friend of mine has a JERK of an ex-boyfriend who turned out to be a giant asshat. I mean, epic proportions. He pissed me off something fierce.

14. Where did most of your money go?  Living expenses.

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?  Getting my car back after a tire fiasco just before New Years.

16. What song will always remind you of 2011?  Anything by Eminem will make me think of Lolla 2011 and how damn good he was live.

17. Compared to this time last year, are you:  a) happier or sadder?  b) thinner or fatter?  c) richer or poorer? Happier, thinner, probably richer, but we're talking millimeters.

18. What do you wish you’d done more of?  Going out.

19. What do you wish you’d done less of?  Being lazy. Except that I LIKE being lazy.

20. How will you be spending Christmas/NYE?  I spent xmas with my folks in Michigan. I spent New Years Eve day working, and that night out at a party and at karaoke. After drinking myself into a frenzy around 1 in the afternoon.

21. Did you fall in love in 2011?  I fall in love on a near-daily basis.

22. What was your favorite TV program?  No TV = no favorites. Although watching Michigan play football this year was great, for the first time in seveal seasons.

23. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year?  I'm pondering this, but I don't know of anyone who creates a visceral reaction in me. I'm working hard to being calmer about everything.

24. What was the best book you read?  I read the Sookie Stackhouse books, and I won't lie. I loved them.

25. What was your greatest musical discovery?  That Em rocks live.

26. What did you want and get?  A pink sparkly guitar.

28. What did you want and not get?  House cleaning fairies.

29. What was your favorite film of this year?  True Grit 

30. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?  I turned 33, and I'm pretty sure I was camping in Ohio.

31. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?  The ability to love myself unconditionally (blah to world peace)

32. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2011?  Jeans and tshirts

33. What kept you sane? My dogs. As always.

34. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?  I hear Kirk Herbstreet is getting a divorce.

35. What political issue stirred you the most?  Every festival in Baltimore city has a tent for the mayor. She is never in said tent, and thus I cannot talk to her. And it pisses me off. Get the woman a folding chair and let's chat.

36. Who did you miss? My Michigan friends, my Ohio friends, and most of all my parents.

37. Who was the best new person you met?  I have met a SLEW of amazing people at the restaurant.

38. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2011.  You can pull of wearing hot pink skinny jeans so long as you just don't give a fuck.

 

Also, here's what I read this year:

January
Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen (Finished 13 January 2011)
Persuasion by Jane Austen (Finished 31 January 2011)

March
One of Our Thursdays is Missing by Jasper Fforde (Finished 16 March 2011)
Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris (Finished [and started] 17 March 2011)
Living Dead in Dallas by Charlaine Harris (Finished [and started] 27 March 2011)
Club Dead by Charlaine Harris (Finished 30 March 2011)

April
Dead to the World by Charlaine Harris (Finished 5 April 2011)
Dead as a Doornail by Charlaine Harris (Finished 7 April 2011)
Definitely Dead by Charlaine Harris (Finished 11 April 2011)
All Together Dead by Charlaine Harris (Finished 14 April 2011)
From Dead to Worse by Charlaine Harris (Finished 19 April 2011)
A Touch of Dead by Charlaine Harris (Finished 19 April 2011)
Dead and Gone by Charlaine Harris (Finished 21 April 2011)
Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier (Finished 29 April 2011)
Dead in the Family by Charlaine Harris (Finished 30 April 2011)

May
The Swan Thieves by Elizabeth Kostova (Finished 9 May 2011)
Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason by Helen Fielding (Finished 10 May 2011)

June
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Steig Larsson (Finished 5 June 2011)
The Girl Who Played With Fire by Steig Larsson (Finished 16 June 2011)
The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets Nest by Steig Larsson (Finished 23 June 2011)

July
Emma by Jane Austen (Finished 5 July 2011)
Cut by Patricia McCormick (Finished 5 July 2011)
Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen (Finished 6 July 2011)
Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris (Finished 8 July 2011)
Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Hunter by Seth Gram-Green (Finished 25 July 2011)
52 Pick-Up by Elmore Leonard (Finished 31 July 2011)

August
How to be Good by Nick Hornby (Finished Lolla weekend)
Mariette in Ecstasy by Ron Hansen (Finished Lolla weekend)
Good Omens by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman (Finished 24 August 2011; Reread)
The Thirteenth Tale by Dianne Sutterfield (Finished 29 August 2011)

September through December
The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan
Waiter Rant by Steve Dublanica
The Cider House Rules by John Irving
Alice's Adventure in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll (Finished 16 December 2011)
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon (Finished 17 December 2011)

Books read in 2011: 34