Chi-town Rain or Shine

Here’s what I have to look forward to in Chicago:

Aren’t you jealous?

This packing crap is really starting to get to me. It’s 11:07 PM and I’ve had all day to prepare (vacation day) but I am just now getting around to it. Been juggling a million other things. Today I went to the foot doctor and got my feet taped (helps with the plantar fascitiis…also have orthotics on the way), had an eye appointment (Optik in Birmingham…I highly recommend), got a cell phone (my first in years), washed clothes, and am now trying to get some CDs imported into my iTunes so I may transfer them over to my iPod Shuffle.

I’m pooped. Did I mention the train leaves at 7 something in the morning.

You guys have a wonderful weekend. Enjoy your holiday. See ya soon!

The View or Jerry Springer?

So I was just catching up on my news and read an article about how Rosie is off The View. I wanted to know what this “catfight” was all about so I immediately went to YouTube for the goods. I can’t believe how nasty it got. Whew! These chicks were on the verge of starting their own Jerry Springer show. It was tense.

I wanted to be the mediator.
“Rosie! Shut yer big fat trap! You’re only making things worse.“
“Elizabeth, calm down, you’re pregnant! This stress can’t be good for the baby.“

Can’t we all just get along?!

I’m a superman fan and all…but…..

This is up there with the Thriller video I posted a while back.

Hello!

Meet my shiny new bike. I got her for 15% off! See Flickr pics for details on why.

Bike ride anyone?!

The Charlie Horse

Last night I woke up moaning in the middle of the night. It was a charlie horse. The long sharp pain was in my left calf and felt like it would never end. If I moved it was likely to get worse, so I tried to stay still and ride the pain out. It was hard, but eventually the pain subsided and I was able to fall back asleep again.

Could that be a metaphor for my life lately?

Things haven’t been super lately. I applied for a full-time position at another library where I met every requirement listed in the job posting. I thought for sure, it was “the one.” Then a week later (the other day) I got a notice in the mail telling me I was not one of the final candidates to be interviewed.

Also, lately the house has become a strain on Jeff and I’s relationship. Yes, I’m being VERY honest here. I’ve lived in a construction zone for many years now and it’s HARD. Harder than most of you could ever imagine because you have either never seen how we are living or you have only come inside once or twice for only a few minutes. For those of you who have never seen it, the house is down to the studs. We have no walls. We have no stairs. The bathroom has no walls. The kitchen has no sink. I could go on, but I think you get the picture. Since I’m being truly honest here I won’t hide the fact that I have broken down in hysterical tears more than 3 times in the past couple of weeks. The kind of tears that leave me incapacitated and unable to think thoughts about the future. All I can see is undone everything and it tears and tugs at my heart and my dreams for the future. I don’t resort to calling family or friends when I go through this stuff. Most of the time I want to be alone and not burden anyone with my “poor me” attitude as it usually doesn’t last all that long anyway. Also, I’m not one to cry in front of people unless it is family. I’ve always been that way. Just the tough tomboy inside of me. Anyway, I’m not putting any blame on Jeff because this is not all his fault. When I met him he was in the middle of this house project and I knew all along it would continue. It is his baby. I love that he’s recycling something old into something new. I love that what ties him to his house is blood and history. I love that look he gets when he is showing someone the things that he has done on the house; the pull out stairs in the washroom, the steam shower, and so on. His house has been in his family for many generations. His grandma was born here and she is in her late 80’s now. It’s just hard when he’s the only one doing EVERYTHING to it and it moves at the speed of a snail while the years seem to fly by at light speed. I love him, but sometimes his house comes between us and the things I want with him in the future. It’s very hard.

Without getting into further detail, we’ve sort of come to the determination that me moving out for the summer is a good idea. This will afford him the time he needs to focus on the house and me a space to relax when I get off work, etc.

This will be quite an adjustment, but one that is needed.

Next weekend, I will be taking the train to Chicago to visit with my friend Claire. It’s been so long since I’ve taken a trip all by myself. I’m really looking forward to the alone time.

Sometimes we just need that, you know?

Spiders.Creep.Me.Out

I was cringing when I read this. Seriously. I despise spiders. I’ve been known to almost crash my car when they’ve come down from my rear view mirror (always in the dark). Usually there is screaming involved and me trying to brush myself off while also trying to keepy my hands and eyes on the road. Can you imagine how crazy I must look when this happens every so often. It happened most often when I lived in Ypsilanti. One time I was on a date telling this guy about how spiders were always in or around my car. After he walked me to my car, I reached for the handle and screamed. There was an ugly scary spider just sitting there…… waiting for me.

I really hate spiders.

Except daddy long legs. They are not as scary for some reason. My grandma always called them her “friends”. They lived in her bathroom for most of my childhood. I have many memories of sitting on my grandparents toilet, keeping my eyes focused on the spiders to make sure they kept their distance. I’d also count them. It was always very disconcerting when one was missing. My eyes would dart around the bathroom until I found where one had moved to the other side of the ceiling corner. I hated taking baths over there though. I would usually want to get it over with as quick as possible because I was scared the spiders would get too close to me. They lived in the corner above the tub as well as in the corner behind the door.

I know it’s weird, but whenever I go over my grandpa’s house and use his bathroom, I still look for my grandma’s little “friends.”

Seems they’ve moved on.

iGoogle Themes

The other day Google added a new feature to iGoogle (Google Personalized Homepage). They now allow users to add a theme. The cool thing about their new themes are the fact that they dynamically change to match whatever time of day it is in your zip code. For example, my co-worker/former boss showed me her iGoogle page with her new Beach theme. She said when she set it up the sun was somewhere else on the page but as the day progressed, the sun moved. I am using the Teahouse theme right now and have to watch and see what happens with this theme. I know the sun will set, but do the characters change or do other things? Hmmm….time will tell.

Not sure I like the “i” before Google though. Kind of annoying how everyone thinks they have to throw it in front of their product name to make it “cool”. Just my opinion