But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith. I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead.
~ Phllippians 3:7-11
I've always felt a kinship with the Apostle Paul. Not so much with his zeal for missions, but more so with his impatience and stubbornness. God had to strike him down to get him under control; and Paul never took that gift of grace for granted.
Just as Paul is my spiritual hero, Philippians is my favorite book of the Bible, and the verses above are my favorite passage. I love that Paul considered himself a bondservant of Christ. I admire how committed he was to spreading the gospel. Whenever I feel discouraged in my walk with God, all I have to do is re-read the book of Philippians, and I remember my calling.
Today was my first opportunity to attend chapel at work, and oh, how I needed that. Sometimes it's so easy to get bogged down in stress and forget why we do what we do. How fortunate I am to work at an institution whose motto is "Christ over all."
Last night I was sitting in my living room, feeling sorry for myself and wondering if I'd made the right decision in changing jobs. And man, did God ever speak to me during chapel today. For months, I've been asking Him for the same thing. My daily prayer to Him was, "I want to know You." How very lucky I am that He's led me to this job. This place where I not only can worship Him in the open, but get to know Him better. We open every meeting in prayer; I can assure you that helps to put issues in perspective.
I often forget that some of God's lessons are best learned through adversity. Paul and Silas found a reason to sing while shackled in jail; I can certainly find a reason to sing while faced with feeling overwhelmed and stressed.
I do want to know Him, even if that means sharing in His sufferings. But what a reward waits for us. I can't wait. How about you?
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Let it snow!
One of the most exciting things about living in Benton County is that we get more snow per capita than just about anyplace else in Arkansas. Unfortunately, most of today's precipitation began much too late in the day to be of any consequence, but it was pretty to open the blinds in my office and watch the big fat flakes come down. This is my house right after work today.
Estella e-mailed around lunchtime and said they had four inches of snow in Baxter County. Obviously we didn't get that much.
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Update, staccato style
And the stress escalates. I'd forgotten what a joy it was to be a supervisor. Ugh.
I did get my shiny new-to-me Blackberry today. The hockey puck-sized one. It downloads my e-mail and calendar 24/7, plus my work phone can be forwarded to it when I'm away from my office, so it's a blessing AND a curse. And for those of you still wondering whether to buy a Blackberry or an iPhone, there's no contest. Perhaps I'd feel differently if I had a cool Pearl kind or something, but the touch screen is just too darned easy to navigate.
This afternoon I had the opportunity to hear a missionary speak during a luncheon at work, and she was talking about how so many of us get bogged down in politics. Her take on the issue? It doesn't matter who's in the Great White House as long as we know who's on the Great White Throne. Kind of puts it in perspective, doesn't it?
My fever blisters are healing. I still have the sniffles, but my throat is no longer sore. The Hogs are winning. We are supposed to have 2-4 inches of snow here tomorrow. No worries... got my Blackberry.
I'm goin' to bed now.
I did get my shiny new-to-me Blackberry today. The hockey puck-sized one. It downloads my e-mail and calendar 24/7, plus my work phone can be forwarded to it when I'm away from my office, so it's a blessing AND a curse. And for those of you still wondering whether to buy a Blackberry or an iPhone, there's no contest. Perhaps I'd feel differently if I had a cool Pearl kind or something, but the touch screen is just too darned easy to navigate.
This afternoon I had the opportunity to hear a missionary speak during a luncheon at work, and she was talking about how so many of us get bogged down in politics. Her take on the issue? It doesn't matter who's in the Great White House as long as we know who's on the Great White Throne. Kind of puts it in perspective, doesn't it?
My fever blisters are healing. I still have the sniffles, but my throat is no longer sore. The Hogs are winning. We are supposed to have 2-4 inches of snow here tomorrow. No worries... got my Blackberry.
I'm goin' to bed now.
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
Settling in, settling down and holding on
Day 2 has come and gone. It was 65 degrees when I got to work and snowing by lunchtime. What's up with that? No wonder I'm sick.
I was only at the office for a mere 90 minutes before an HR meeting and subsequent drive to Rogers for lunch and another meeting. I'm still overwhelmed. This afternoon I stopped by someone's office and he talked to me about greenhouse gas emissions and Checzoslovakian government structure. At least I think that's what we were talking about... I really couldn't tell you. All I know is that, after 12 minutes of droning on about something remotely related to education, he ended with, "So what do you think?" I managed to squeak out, "You know, I'll have to consult with some other folks and get back to you." Wow. I'm an idiot.
But any job where I have a lunch meeting five days in a row can't be all bad, right? Let's go to Prague and visit the Prime MInister.
One of my coworkers sent me an e-mail today and told me that, when I get overwhelmed, just think of Dori in "Finding Nemo" and keep swimming! So that's what I'm doing. Swimming upstream and praying for a tide shift.
I was only at the office for a mere 90 minutes before an HR meeting and subsequent drive to Rogers for lunch and another meeting. I'm still overwhelmed. This afternoon I stopped by someone's office and he talked to me about greenhouse gas emissions and Checzoslovakian government structure. At least I think that's what we were talking about... I really couldn't tell you. All I know is that, after 12 minutes of droning on about something remotely related to education, he ended with, "So what do you think?" I managed to squeak out, "You know, I'll have to consult with some other folks and get back to you." Wow. I'm an idiot.
But any job where I have a lunch meeting five days in a row can't be all bad, right? Let's go to Prague and visit the Prime MInister.
One of my coworkers sent me an e-mail today and told me that, when I get overwhelmed, just think of Dori in "Finding Nemo" and keep swimming! So that's what I'm doing. Swimming upstream and praying for a tide shift.
Monday, January 28, 2008
Survey says...
I'm sure all of my loyal readers are waiting with baited breath to hear how my first day went on the new job. It was fine. You know how first days are... overwhelming, stressful, apprehensive. I woke up with a sore throat, so I had to detour to USA Drug on my way to work for cough drops to go with my fever blister medication.
I feel as though I've been appointed President of a totally different country and am being asked to interpret the Constitution without ever having read it. Yikes! I had several requests to make budgetary decisions today without ever having seen the budget. I was given an enrollment report that included several acronyms I've never seen. I'll put $50K on SHYC.
So aside from feeling stupid and under the weather, it was an okay day. My first staff meeting went well. We had lunch at some Mennonite restaurant that served a killer baked potato soup and brownie sundae.
I have a jam-packed calendar for the week. Death by meeting. Now I shall ply myself with Nyquil and retire for the evening. Sorry Jen, no time to do your stupid survey tonight.
I feel as though I've been appointed President of a totally different country and am being asked to interpret the Constitution without ever having read it. Yikes! I had several requests to make budgetary decisions today without ever having seen the budget. I was given an enrollment report that included several acronyms I've never seen. I'll put $50K on SHYC.
So aside from feeling stupid and under the weather, it was an okay day. My first staff meeting went well. We had lunch at some Mennonite restaurant that served a killer baked potato soup and brownie sundae.
I have a jam-packed calendar for the week. Death by meeting. Now I shall ply myself with Nyquil and retire for the evening. Sorry Jen, no time to do your stupid survey tonight.
Sunday, January 27, 2008
A new chapter begins
I can't believe I actually start the new job tomorrow. It's been nice to have nine days off, but since I've spent the majority of that time packing or unpacking, it wasn't much of a vacation. Luckily I didn't develop the bad habit of sleeping in during that time.
Joe, Chris and Estella came to Siloam yesterday and as of this morning, I can park in my garage and I only have two rooms that aren't straightened up and livable. I've made tremendous progress in the settling in endeavor. I'll post some pics of the new house soon.
Joe, Chris and Estella came to Siloam yesterday and as of this morning, I can park in my garage and I only have two rooms that aren't straightened up and livable. I've made tremendous progress in the settling in endeavor. I'll post some pics of the new house soon.
Saturday, January 26, 2008
Happy birthday, Brad!
Today's my brother's 43rd birthday (Dad... 2008 - 1965 = 43). Hope you have a fantastic day!
Thursday, January 24, 2008
Next come the locusts
Things were just going SO well... I guess I was due a bad day.
This morning at 8 a.m. I had my first meeting on campus since my interview. I'm so excited about the new job; I know it's going to be challenging, but that motivates me. Interesting how the sugar coat melts off once you've signed a contract. We were talking today about some new markets we're trying to penetrate, and my boss says, "That's why we hired you. For your vast marketing knowledge." I didn't know whether to be flattered or insulted. When someone says you have "vast knowledge," is that code for "you're really, really old" ?
During my meeting and subsequent visit to the new office, where they were setting up all my brand-new computer equipment, my lips started feeling weird. Yep... TWO fever blisters... one on each lip. My face started swelling and turning red this afternoon. I had plans with Amanda tonight that I canceled due to my skin abnormality. Sorry, Nanner, but I'd bet you wouldn't have wanted to be seen with me, anyway. Check out these lips:
In addition to my bout of leprosy, I had several plumbing issues this afternoon. My landlord came over to fix the problem with my washing machine (a drain wasn't drilled for the washer when the house was built). So, after it was fixed, I washed my first load of laundry without incident. When I tried to dry the load, however, my house became like a sauna and all the windows fogged up. Evidently my dryer vent came undone. And I couldn't get behind the dryer to fix it.
The landlord had to call a plumber to fix my shower problem (remember this morning's report, that I had no cold water in either shower). Plumber fixed the problem. And luckily landlord and sidekick showed back up to see if I needed anything else, and they reattached my dryer vent.
So all is well with the new casa except it's full of boxes still. But I'm making progress.
And this afternoon I made the first of what I'm sure will be many trips to the Siloam Springs Wal-Mart. Since my bank doesn't have a branch in town, I opened up a new checking account at Arvest Bank last week. I decided the Waltons might as well hold onto my money until I give it back to them at Wal-Mart or Sam's. Cut out the middle man that way.
Yes, I am a dork. So I took some pics of my new hometown this afternoon. Here's one of the downtown park (check out the frozen fountain... it was snowing this morning when I went to the office). Isn't it beautiful?
I love the downtown area. So quaint and Main Street USA.
Say a prayer for Lon, Jen, Memaw and Peep. They're driving all night from Gainesville to Houston. Safe travels!
This morning at 8 a.m. I had my first meeting on campus since my interview. I'm so excited about the new job; I know it's going to be challenging, but that motivates me. Interesting how the sugar coat melts off once you've signed a contract. We were talking today about some new markets we're trying to penetrate, and my boss says, "That's why we hired you. For your vast marketing knowledge." I didn't know whether to be flattered or insulted. When someone says you have "vast knowledge," is that code for "you're really, really old" ?
During my meeting and subsequent visit to the new office, where they were setting up all my brand-new computer equipment, my lips started feeling weird. Yep... TWO fever blisters... one on each lip. My face started swelling and turning red this afternoon. I had plans with Amanda tonight that I canceled due to my skin abnormality. Sorry, Nanner, but I'd bet you wouldn't have wanted to be seen with me, anyway. Check out these lips:
In addition to my bout of leprosy, I had several plumbing issues this afternoon. My landlord came over to fix the problem with my washing machine (a drain wasn't drilled for the washer when the house was built). So, after it was fixed, I washed my first load of laundry without incident. When I tried to dry the load, however, my house became like a sauna and all the windows fogged up. Evidently my dryer vent came undone. And I couldn't get behind the dryer to fix it.
The landlord had to call a plumber to fix my shower problem (remember this morning's report, that I had no cold water in either shower). Plumber fixed the problem. And luckily landlord and sidekick showed back up to see if I needed anything else, and they reattached my dryer vent.
So all is well with the new casa except it's full of boxes still. But I'm making progress.
And this afternoon I made the first of what I'm sure will be many trips to the Siloam Springs Wal-Mart. Since my bank doesn't have a branch in town, I opened up a new checking account at Arvest Bank last week. I decided the Waltons might as well hold onto my money until I give it back to them at Wal-Mart or Sam's. Cut out the middle man that way.
Yes, I am a dork. So I took some pics of my new hometown this afternoon. Here's one of the downtown park (check out the frozen fountain... it was snowing this morning when I went to the office). Isn't it beautiful?
I love the downtown area. So quaint and Main Street USA.
Say a prayer for Lon, Jen, Memaw and Peep. They're driving all night from Gainesville to Houston. Safe travels!
Happy birthday, Alisa!
Birthday wishes go out to one of my closest friends, who celebrates her 40th natal anniversary today. Have a great day, Monica!I'm currently looking for warm clothes to wear to my 8 a.m. meeting. Unfortunately all I've unpacked is t-shirts and summer clothes. It's 12 degrees in Siloam this morning. Brrrr.
Lon and Jen are in Gainesville today, I think, with plans to drive all night to get to Houston by tomorrow morning. Safe travels and enjoy the warm weather!
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Ice, ice baby
My first night in Siloam Springs was quite uneventful. I went to bed before 8 p.m. and slept like a baby. This morning I had an e-mail from my new boss, checking to make sure that I was safe since there was evidently some icy weather last night. Who knew? Certainly not me in my nice little cocoon.
I ventured out this morning for a latte and to get my utilities switched over. Then I headed to Fayetteville for a bit of shopping.
I'm always amazed by the good news/bad news parallels of life. Yesterday when I picked up the keys to the house I was informed that my landlord did not, in fact, put a refrigerator in the house. So not only was I going to have to purchase a washer and dryer, but also a refrigerator. And while I have been mentally spending my higher salary on flat screen televisions and iPod accessories, nowhere in the realm of my daydreams did I want to buy a fridge or laundry appliances. I liken those things to buying tires... necessary but no fun.
So I was in a decidedly bad mood when I started shopping for my fun purchases. Turned out to be my lucky day. Because even though I had to drop $700 on a washer and dryer, I found a used fridge for $120. And it perfectly matches the rest of my kitchen appliances... same color, same brand. Granted, it has a huge scratch on the side, a dent in the front, and is not a pretty stainless steel side by side, but for $1,400 savings, I'll deal with it. I figure it can be scratched and dented like the rest of the furniture in my house. The sales guy showed me some new, beautiful red front-load washer and dryers, but my attitude is, if it's going to be hidden, who cares how hot it looks? The plain white set does the same work for a lot less money.
Hey... I'm frugal. Who knew? But I'm still down almost $850 today. Ouch.
Tomorrow my cable and internet gets installed, so that's good news. I hope to manage to be productive after that. For now I'm stealing the neighbor's Internet. Hooray for no passwords!
Oh, and I talked to Memaw today and they were on the beach in shorts. It was 19 degrees in Siloam at the time. That did NOT make me happy.
I ventured out this morning for a latte and to get my utilities switched over. Then I headed to Fayetteville for a bit of shopping.
I'm always amazed by the good news/bad news parallels of life. Yesterday when I picked up the keys to the house I was informed that my landlord did not, in fact, put a refrigerator in the house. So not only was I going to have to purchase a washer and dryer, but also a refrigerator. And while I have been mentally spending my higher salary on flat screen televisions and iPod accessories, nowhere in the realm of my daydreams did I want to buy a fridge or laundry appliances. I liken those things to buying tires... necessary but no fun.
So I was in a decidedly bad mood when I started shopping for my fun purchases. Turned out to be my lucky day. Because even though I had to drop $700 on a washer and dryer, I found a used fridge for $120. And it perfectly matches the rest of my kitchen appliances... same color, same brand. Granted, it has a huge scratch on the side, a dent in the front, and is not a pretty stainless steel side by side, but for $1,400 savings, I'll deal with it. I figure it can be scratched and dented like the rest of the furniture in my house. The sales guy showed me some new, beautiful red front-load washer and dryers, but my attitude is, if it's going to be hidden, who cares how hot it looks? The plain white set does the same work for a lot less money.
Hey... I'm frugal. Who knew? But I'm still down almost $850 today. Ouch.
Tomorrow my cable and internet gets installed, so that's good news. I hope to manage to be productive after that. For now I'm stealing the neighbor's Internet. Hooray for no passwords!
Oh, and I talked to Memaw today and they were on the beach in shorts. It was 19 degrees in Siloam at the time. That did NOT make me happy.
Monday, January 21, 2008
What a day!
So much for grand plans. As reported earlier, I've been awake since 4:30 this morning. Movers showed up at 8:30. It took almost 5 hours to load the truck. My original plan was to head to Alisa's this afternoon, enjoy a leisurely dinner, then head to Siloam tomorrow to sign my lease and wait for the movers. I found out this a.m. that they were delivering my furniture at 8 o'clock tomorrow. So I called Amanda and made plans for PF Chang's and crashing on her couch.
What happened? Moving guys got the chance for another job if they could be in Chicago by tomorrow night. So they delivered my furniture tonight. I moved across the state in one day. And I'm exhausted. All I unpacked were sheets and pajamas. I christened the garden tub, and now I'm in bed. I'm even too tired to eat... that never happens!
It's friggin freezing here, too. Lon and Jen are on their way to sunny Florida, lucky dogs.
What happened? Moving guys got the chance for another job if they could be in Chicago by tomorrow night. So they delivered my furniture tonight. I moved across the state in one day. And I'm exhausted. All I unpacked were sheets and pajamas. I christened the garden tub, and now I'm in bed. I'm even too tired to eat... that never happens!
It's friggin freezing here, too. Lon and Jen are on their way to sunny Florida, lucky dogs.
Late to bed, early to rise
Did you know that Starbucks opens at 5 a.m.? Know how I know? My couch is NOT comfortable, so I didn't sleep AGAIN. Man, I'm tired. But I'm finally done packing. Woo-hoo!
Sunday, January 20, 2008
Tired, sore and sleepy
I'm officially pooped. For some reason I couldn't sleep last night, so I finally got up at 1:30 a.m. and started packing. I finally went back to sleep around 4 a.m., then got up again at 7:30. I made several fruitless attempts to nap this morning to no avail.
Joe picked me up and we ate lunch at Michelangelo's. It was amazing! I had bruschetta, some kind of pasta I couldn't pronounce and my favorite dessert, tiramasu. Unfortunately the waiter spilled iced tea down Joe's back and on the front of his jeans before the appetizers, but he was a good sport about it. And the poor guy felt very bad.
After a trip to Lowe's for about the fifth day in a row, I came home and napped during most of the Pats game. Then I spent the whole Packers/Giants game, including overtime, packing. I'm so sick of packing! The last day is the worst... that's when you get down to the stuff that won't fit in boxes or doesn't really fit into any category. That's when you start labeling boxes "bunch of crap." Thankfully I'm finally finished and ready for the movers to get here at 8 a.m. Ugh.
The good news is that they're delivering my furniture on Tuesday, which gives me the rest of the week to get settled before starting work on Monday. The bad news is that, should they schedule the delivery as early as the pick-up, I'll have a logistical nightmare. I was supposed to spend tomorrow night at Mount Nebo, but if I have to be in Siloam by 8 a.m. on Tuesday, that's just not happening. Of course, I hate to drop 80 bucks on a hotel room, but I don't think I can handle getting up at 5 a.m. and driving on Tuesday morning. Decisions, decisions.
I'm going to bed. No actually, I'm going to couch since the bed has been stripped and packed. Can't wait for a normal life again!
Speaking of, I haven't scheduled my cable/internet installation yet, so this may be my last post for a few days. Have a great week, everyone!
Oh, and can you believe the G-men are in the Super Bowl? Guess Eli's unstoppable after all. At least 'til he meets the Patriots.
Joe picked me up and we ate lunch at Michelangelo's. It was amazing! I had bruschetta, some kind of pasta I couldn't pronounce and my favorite dessert, tiramasu. Unfortunately the waiter spilled iced tea down Joe's back and on the front of his jeans before the appetizers, but he was a good sport about it. And the poor guy felt very bad.
After a trip to Lowe's for about the fifth day in a row, I came home and napped during most of the Pats game. Then I spent the whole Packers/Giants game, including overtime, packing. I'm so sick of packing! The last day is the worst... that's when you get down to the stuff that won't fit in boxes or doesn't really fit into any category. That's when you start labeling boxes "bunch of crap." Thankfully I'm finally finished and ready for the movers to get here at 8 a.m. Ugh.
The good news is that they're delivering my furniture on Tuesday, which gives me the rest of the week to get settled before starting work on Monday. The bad news is that, should they schedule the delivery as early as the pick-up, I'll have a logistical nightmare. I was supposed to spend tomorrow night at Mount Nebo, but if I have to be in Siloam by 8 a.m. on Tuesday, that's just not happening. Of course, I hate to drop 80 bucks on a hotel room, but I don't think I can handle getting up at 5 a.m. and driving on Tuesday morning. Decisions, decisions.
I'm going to bed. No actually, I'm going to couch since the bed has been stripped and packed. Can't wait for a normal life again!
Speaking of, I haven't scheduled my cable/internet installation yet, so this may be my last post for a few days. Have a great week, everyone!
Oh, and can you believe the G-men are in the Super Bowl? Guess Eli's unstoppable after all. At least 'til he meets the Patriots.
Friday, January 18, 2008
It's my party and I'll blog if I want to
After weeks of thinking the day would never arrive, here it is... my last day at UCA. It was a bit surreal coming to work this morning, and traffic seemed a bit heavier than usual. I can't wait to get to Siloam and have a two-minute commute!
During lunch I had to take my cable boxes back since I'm moving on a holiday. I can still watch TV this weekend, but I won't have digital cable or a DVR. How spoiled am I that 48 hours without those things seems like an eternity?
My coworkers had a party for me this afternoon, so I'm still on a sugar high from all the whipped icing and chocolate cake (my favorite kind!). I've finished all of my tasks and am biding my time 'til 4:30. Wonder how many games of FreeCell I can play in 90 minutes?
Dinner last night at Mike's was amazing! I had some great blackened grouper and crab cake. We also got to tour the new restaurant, which is way too impressive for Conway. It's just gorgeous, and I get to eat there on Sunday! I have some pics, which I'll post later.
Happy my last day at UCA to you all!
During lunch I had to take my cable boxes back since I'm moving on a holiday. I can still watch TV this weekend, but I won't have digital cable or a DVR. How spoiled am I that 48 hours without those things seems like an eternity?
My coworkers had a party for me this afternoon, so I'm still on a sugar high from all the whipped icing and chocolate cake (my favorite kind!). I've finished all of my tasks and am biding my time 'til 4:30. Wonder how many games of FreeCell I can play in 90 minutes?
Dinner last night at Mike's was amazing! I had some great blackened grouper and crab cake. We also got to tour the new restaurant, which is way too impressive for Conway. It's just gorgeous, and I get to eat there on Sunday! I have some pics, which I'll post later.
Happy my last day at UCA to you all!
Wednesday, January 16, 2008
{ last dance }
While I really haven't been in Conway long enough to form major attachments, it's still a little sad to be leaving. This week I've started experiencing all the "lasts" associated with a major life change. Last Monday/Tuesday/Wednesday of work. Last council meeting (and last time to take minutes... yeah!). Last boring and pointless spreadsheet (at least at this job). Turning off utilities, turning on utilities. Packing, packing, packing.
My boss has an all-day meeting in Little Rock on Friday, so tomorrow's our last day together. And while I won't miss most of the mindless drivel I've done for 10 months, I will miss her, because she's been completely awesome. I've learned a lot about managing with respect, grace and ethics from her.
Tomorrow my pal Estella is coming to spend the night, and we're meeting Joe at Mike's Place for dinner. Friday night I'm going to Little Rock to have dinner with Brent and Dave. And Sunday Joe's taking me to Michelangelo's for our farewell dinner/packing party reward.
You'd think as much as I change jobs and cities, I'd be used to this by now, but it's always hard to say goodbye, even if you know it's the right thing to do.
When I gave my notice at the rental place here, they informed me that, since I was breaking my lease, I'd forfeit my deposit. No problem. But then they told me that I was responsible for rent for the final two months if the place didn't re-rent during that time. They haven't shown it at all, so I've been freaking out. But when I called today, they've already rented it sight-unseen. Woo-hoo! No paying rent in two places!
And I got my new job contract in the mail today, which made me VERY happy.
Oh, and Dad reported today that Cecil is finally acclimating to her new digs. Evidently she's still acting like a diva (which is not surprising at all), but she is letting them touch her now. But only when it's her idea.
My boss has an all-day meeting in Little Rock on Friday, so tomorrow's our last day together. And while I won't miss most of the mindless drivel I've done for 10 months, I will miss her, because she's been completely awesome. I've learned a lot about managing with respect, grace and ethics from her.
Tomorrow my pal Estella is coming to spend the night, and we're meeting Joe at Mike's Place for dinner. Friday night I'm going to Little Rock to have dinner with Brent and Dave. And Sunday Joe's taking me to Michelangelo's for our farewell dinner/packing party reward.
You'd think as much as I change jobs and cities, I'd be used to this by now, but it's always hard to say goodbye, even if you know it's the right thing to do.
When I gave my notice at the rental place here, they informed me that, since I was breaking my lease, I'd forfeit my deposit. No problem. But then they told me that I was responsible for rent for the final two months if the place didn't re-rent during that time. They haven't shown it at all, so I've been freaking out. But when I called today, they've already rented it sight-unseen. Woo-hoo! No paying rent in two places!
And I got my new job contract in the mail today, which made me VERY happy.
Oh, and Dad reported today that Cecil is finally acclimating to her new digs. Evidently she's still acting like a diva (which is not surprising at all), but she is letting them touch her now. But only when it's her idea.
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
My latest obsession
Apple introduced its latest amazing invention today, the MacBook Air. 3 pounds and as thin as a manila envelope. I want, I want, I want. If anyone has an extra $1,800 lying around and they want to buy me a present, I'm registered for one for my non-wedding and/or non-baby shower.
Isn't this just the niftiest thing you've seen in awhile?
I finally found my way, say goodbye to yesterday
In a mere 90 days, I'll be on my way to see Bon Jovi and Daughtry in OKC with my brother and nephews. I'm so excited!
Pure torture
Geneva Convention aside, today's been a day of pure torture for me. And I'm not talking about the waiting to move/start a new job kind of torture, but the physical kind. Blinding pain.
Since I've been fighting allergies for over a week and the ol' Center of Learning allows its employees to see the doctor for a mere 10 bucks, I decided to head over to the Student Health Center this morning. Prognosis: severe allergy issues with a mild sinus infection. 10 days of antibiotics and a painful shot of steroids. After I quit hobbling I'm going to the batting cages to see how many homeruns I can hit.
At lunch I had the bright idea to have my eyebrows shaped. Have you ever had toothpicks shoved under your toenails? Me neither. But I imagine it would have felt like my eyebrow experience today. As the tears ran down my face, the lady kept saying "You wait too long between times. More hair, more pain." Yeah, no kidding. And when the steriods shot kicks in, it will probably make my hair grow faster and create the need for another eyebrow intervention. What a vicious cycle.
Since I've been fighting allergies for over a week and the ol' Center of Learning allows its employees to see the doctor for a mere 10 bucks, I decided to head over to the Student Health Center this morning. Prognosis: severe allergy issues with a mild sinus infection. 10 days of antibiotics and a painful shot of steroids. After I quit hobbling I'm going to the batting cages to see how many homeruns I can hit.
At lunch I had the bright idea to have my eyebrows shaped. Have you ever had toothpicks shoved under your toenails? Me neither. But I imagine it would have felt like my eyebrow experience today. As the tears ran down my face, the lady kept saying "You wait too long between times. More hair, more pain." Yeah, no kidding. And when the steriods shot kicks in, it will probably make my hair grow faster and create the need for another eyebrow intervention. What a vicious cycle.
Monday, January 14, 2008
Wait a Minute, Miss Pill
Moving to a new place is a great opportunity to downsize and get rid of things you don't really need. In the past few weeks, I've gone through numerous boxes of treasures to determine what I really want to keep as keepsakes and what's simply been taking up space. It's astounding what we keep for no good reason.
The advent of digital music has changed storage needs as well. While it used to take three or four huge boxes to contain the 5,000+ songs in my musical library, now they're all located on my computer. So, for the past few days, I've been downloading all of my music to my laptop and getting rid of the homemade CDs.
Tonight, while adding some Michael Jackson, I came across one of his better songs, "The Way You Make Me Feel," and it made me think of simpler times, before MJ became a freak and my best pal Tina thought the lyrics to that song were "Wait a MInute, Miss Pill." And I laughed out loud (that's LOL to all of you texting geeks).
Here are some more:
From Blowing in the Wind: "The ants are my friends, they're blowing in the wind."
From Bad Moon Rising: "There's a bathroom on the right."
And my favorite, Phoebe from Friends discussing her favorite Elton John song about "that guy from Who's the Boss... 'Hold me close young Tony Danza.' "
Talk to me... what are some lyrics that you had wrong?!?
The advent of digital music has changed storage needs as well. While it used to take three or four huge boxes to contain the 5,000+ songs in my musical library, now they're all located on my computer. So, for the past few days, I've been downloading all of my music to my laptop and getting rid of the homemade CDs.
Tonight, while adding some Michael Jackson, I came across one of his better songs, "The Way You Make Me Feel," and it made me think of simpler times, before MJ became a freak and my best pal Tina thought the lyrics to that song were "Wait a MInute, Miss Pill." And I laughed out loud (that's LOL to all of you texting geeks).
Here are some more:
From Blowing in the Wind: "The ants are my friends, they're blowing in the wind."
From Bad Moon Rising: "There's a bathroom on the right."
And my favorite, Phoebe from Friends discussing her favorite Elton John song about "that guy from Who's the Boss... 'Hold me close young Tony Danza.' "
Talk to me... what are some lyrics that you had wrong?!?
Sunday, January 13, 2008
Queen of denial (football, part dos)
It's a sad, sad day Cowboys fans. I mean, to lose your first game as the #1 seed in the conference is bad enough, but to lose it to your biggest division rival (who you beat twice in the regular season) is just devastating. I couldn't bear to watch the last 45 seconds or so... I figured I was a jinx since I turned off the Buffalo and Detroit games when it seemed hopeless and the 'Boys found a way to come back and win. But alas, no such luck this time. Guess I'm not the only bad luck charm... I'd bet Jessica Simpson had better not show her face in Dallas for years.
But congrats to the Bolts, who managed to upset the Colts in Indy. Who would have thought that Eli would be the Manning brother in the conference championship?
I feel like I could throw up. But at least I'm wearing my Patriots t-shirt. And I'm almost done packing.
But congrats to the Bolts, who managed to upset the Colts in Indy. Who would have thought that Eli would be the Manning brother in the conference championship?
I feel like I could throw up. But at least I'm wearing my Patriots t-shirt. And I'm almost done packing.
Saturday, January 12, 2008
Football, part uno
Think it's cold here? You could have been in Green Bay today. Man, I thought the Seahawks were going to blow out the Pack early in the game, but Brett came roaring back. Not bad for a 92-year-old.Congrats to Cousin Matt for that unbelievably amazing TD catch against the perfect Pats, the first time under Belichick that New England's been scored upon on an opening drive (not just a touchdown, but any points at all). It was a great catch. Who's lazy now, Del Rio?!?
Man, I love the playoffs being on Saturday and Sunday. But I miss college football already.
Garage sales as sport
My day began at 4:45 a.m. That's when I woke up, pried my eyes open, and made the decision to have a true garage sale (i.e., all items actually in the garage in case of rain or frozen temperatures). I put all the stuff I could fit on the tables, shoved the rest of it in big boxes, and put out the signs around 6 a.m. My street was cold and quiet. It was dark outside, with no traffic. I began to worry that it was too cold/middle of the month/soon after the holidays to have a garage sale.
Turns out that I have the only garage sale in the metroplex for the day. I thought perhaps that was a very bad thing. Guess I was wrong.
I don't profess to enjoy garage sales, either as a shopper or retailer, so I'm not familiar with the culture that evidently lives within the sport of bargain hunting. My sale was supposed to start at 7 a.m., but when I opened the garage door at 6:30, there were three cars waiting. All of them evidently knew each other, allegedly from their garage sale brawls.
They descended like flies on a sandwich, a couple of them working tandem to scope out the good bargains. They were seasoned professionals, questioning if things were collectibles, how old they were, etc. But what they didn't realize is that I have eBay access too, and I knew nothing out there would sell for more than $3 at auction. Amateurs.
And when one of them began to remove things from the pile that another professional garage saler had made, that's when things got ugly. The "Marge, you know darn good and well that was my pile" exclamation followed by the "Why, Shirley, I'm sick of your cheating and coming early to get the good stuff" excuse.
So I guess that frequenting garage sales isn't so much about finding a treasure for oneself as it is about winning. Or about the rush of thinking the seller has no idea what something's worth. I can just see these ladies getting ready for Saturdays, power walking to prepare their legs for quick shopping, pouring over the classifieds for good sales, going to the bank for singles to put in their fanny packs.... that's so not the life for me. I prefer to make a few bucks while peddling my junk after cleaning out my closet. I like storing fewer boxes in my garage. I want only to purge my existence of a decade of my pack rat ways.
It's been two hours and I've made 236 bucks. And I'm friggin' freezing.
I think the hardcore shoppers are done, and I may be closing up early. Someone at Goodwill's going to get some nice Casual Corner clothes. And my movers should be thrilled.
One of the ladies going through the clothes exclaimed, "I don't know who bought this stuff, but they have great taste!" I gave her a good deal.
And I was only slightly alarmed by the skinny dude who bought all my heels AFTER trying them on. Ewww. But he had cash... dollar bills, for some reason.
Turns out that I have the only garage sale in the metroplex for the day. I thought perhaps that was a very bad thing. Guess I was wrong.
I don't profess to enjoy garage sales, either as a shopper or retailer, so I'm not familiar with the culture that evidently lives within the sport of bargain hunting. My sale was supposed to start at 7 a.m., but when I opened the garage door at 6:30, there were three cars waiting. All of them evidently knew each other, allegedly from their garage sale brawls.
They descended like flies on a sandwich, a couple of them working tandem to scope out the good bargains. They were seasoned professionals, questioning if things were collectibles, how old they were, etc. But what they didn't realize is that I have eBay access too, and I knew nothing out there would sell for more than $3 at auction. Amateurs.
And when one of them began to remove things from the pile that another professional garage saler had made, that's when things got ugly. The "Marge, you know darn good and well that was my pile" exclamation followed by the "Why, Shirley, I'm sick of your cheating and coming early to get the good stuff" excuse.
So I guess that frequenting garage sales isn't so much about finding a treasure for oneself as it is about winning. Or about the rush of thinking the seller has no idea what something's worth. I can just see these ladies getting ready for Saturdays, power walking to prepare their legs for quick shopping, pouring over the classifieds for good sales, going to the bank for singles to put in their fanny packs.... that's so not the life for me. I prefer to make a few bucks while peddling my junk after cleaning out my closet. I like storing fewer boxes in my garage. I want only to purge my existence of a decade of my pack rat ways.
It's been two hours and I've made 236 bucks. And I'm friggin' freezing.
I think the hardcore shoppers are done, and I may be closing up early. Someone at Goodwill's going to get some nice Casual Corner clothes. And my movers should be thrilled.
One of the ladies going through the clothes exclaimed, "I don't know who bought this stuff, but they have great taste!" I gave her a good deal.
And I was only slightly alarmed by the skinny dude who bought all my heels AFTER trying them on. Ewww. But he had cash... dollar bills, for some reason.
Thursday, January 10, 2008
One Wild Night
Forgive me if I seem a bit frazzled, but the Huey, Dewie and Louie whirlwind just left my house. Good grief, those boys make me tired. Brady, of course, was carrying a football, and Avery and Peyton spent the entire time trying to get it away from him. Lon and Jen spent the whole time trying to keep the three of them from breaking a vase or an arm.
You know, it's pretty easy to tell what a person is obsessed with simply by reading his or her blog. So if you couldn't tell by the past few weeks' posts, I'm obsessed with moving... I go to bed thinking about it... I wake up thinking about it. This morning I finally got out of bed at 5 a.m. (after laying awake for 30 minutes or so) and starting packing boxes. Aside from the obvious Divine intervention, I think the reason I'm doing such a good job packing this time is because I've had so much practice lately. I'm a moving machine!
Tomorrow night I'm headed to Maumelle to keep Things 1, 2, and 3 while Lon and Jen go to a "meet and greet" at UAMS before her radiology interview on Saturday. Then it's up at 5 a.m. on Saturday to have the garage sale. Man, am I going to be tired Saturday afternoon!
Hopefully I'll talk about something besides moving soon.
Wednesday, January 9, 2008
Hump day
7 days of work
12 days 'til move
I'm officially in countdown mode and it's starting to stress me out. I go to bed and wake up thinking about packing. I don't want to buy any more groceries because there's a gap between when the movers pick up my stuff and when they deliver (could be as many as five days), so I'm trying to eat everything in my fridge and freezer. In a couple of days I'll be down to asparagus, pudding and ketchup for dinner.
The good news is that the packing/purging is going unbelievably well. I gave myself tonight and tomorrow night to finish the garage sale pricing, and I finished at 6:30 this evening. Weird. I'm convinced that God really wants me in Siloam Springs. That's the only explanation for why I seem to be extremely motivated, organized, and speedy. Hey, if He can feed the 5,000 with five loaves and two fish, I know He condense my boxes from 50 to 20.
I'm crossing things off my list at work, too. By next week I should be playing 500 games of Free Cell a day instead of my usual 150.
Today I went to the mailbox and got my reimbursement check for driving to Siloam to find a place to live. Yep, I could get used to this.
12 days 'til move
I'm officially in countdown mode and it's starting to stress me out. I go to bed and wake up thinking about packing. I don't want to buy any more groceries because there's a gap between when the movers pick up my stuff and when they deliver (could be as many as five days), so I'm trying to eat everything in my fridge and freezer. In a couple of days I'll be down to asparagus, pudding and ketchup for dinner.
The good news is that the packing/purging is going unbelievably well. I gave myself tonight and tomorrow night to finish the garage sale pricing, and I finished at 6:30 this evening. Weird. I'm convinced that God really wants me in Siloam Springs. That's the only explanation for why I seem to be extremely motivated, organized, and speedy. Hey, if He can feed the 5,000 with five loaves and two fish, I know He condense my boxes from 50 to 20.
I'm crossing things off my list at work, too. By next week I should be playing 500 games of Free Cell a day instead of my usual 150.
Today I went to the mailbox and got my reimbursement check for driving to Siloam to find a place to live. Yep, I could get used to this.
Monday, January 7, 2008
Progress
While I can't boast of a spotless garage, I have made tremendous progress in the packing/organizing/purging effort (and those of you who helped me move last time can I attest that I didn't have this much packed by moving day last time). I still have a lot to do, but at least I finished going through EVERY box in my garage. That's quite a feat. Plus, I put an ad in the paper for the garage sale this weekend and bought moving boxes on my lunch break.
I also managed to twist my back quite painfully while stacking boxes of books, so we'll see if I can get out of bed tomorrow.
Now I'm sitting in my room eating Oreos and watching the BCS title game. I'm pulling for LSU. And not just because they're in the SEC, but because I cannot, in clear conscience, root for any university pompous enough to insist upon putting the word "The" in front of their name. Nor do I care what a Buckeye is. So "geaux Tigers." And from now on I shall tell everyone that I graduated from The Arkansas Tech University (speaking of random mascots).
Sunday, January 6, 2008
I shall not be moved
If the first step to recovery is admitting you have a problem (see last night's post), the second step is surely to progress toward controlling said problem.
So I've admitted I'm a pack rat. I've thrown away a garbage can full of stuff. I've stacked boxes for the garage sale. I've organized what I'm moving. Yes, I've been working on this for HOURS and I can't see much progress.
Here's the corner of stuff to be moved:
Here's the rest of my garage:
Now, I know what you're thinking... why am I blogging instead of finishing my project? Denial, friends. But my goal is to be finished by bedtime. We'll see.
So I've admitted I'm a pack rat. I've thrown away a garbage can full of stuff. I've stacked boxes for the garage sale. I've organized what I'm moving. Yes, I've been working on this for HOURS and I can't see much progress.
Here's the corner of stuff to be moved:
Here's the rest of my garage:
Now, I know what you're thinking... why am I blogging instead of finishing my project? Denial, friends. But my goal is to be finished by bedtime. We'll see.
3 hours in the car, 3 minutes in the game
One of the things that I loathe about living so far away from my family is that I miss so much. Last year I saw about 75% of Taylor's basketball games. I saw my first one of this year on Friday night.
Taylor's a sophomore this year and doesn't play as much as he did the last couple of years when he started (but still plays significantly more than I did as a sophomore). But still, how bad of an aunt am I? So I drove an hour-and-a-half each way to watch him play for three minutes. Unfortunately, the first team didn't play as well as they could the first half, so Taylor didn't get to go in until well into the fourth quarter, when the "mercy rule" was already being employed (that means they don't stop the clock because one team is ahead by 25+ points, ladies).
But he did get to play. And I got to hang out with my fam. So it was worth the three hour drive. Plus, I got a free meal.
Saturday, January 5, 2008
I'm turning into my mother...
Have you ever seen those TV newsmagazines, like "60 Minutes" or "Dateline," when they do a story about severe OCD? You know... those crazy people who can't bear to throw anything away? Their houses are full of fast food wrappers and dirty paper towels, because they physically cannot get rid of a single thing? I judged those people, wondering how in the world a person gets that delusional.
My mom suffered from a minor bout of OCD. When she'd leave the house for an extended period of time, I'd throw away empty butter bowls that she had stored in her kitchen cabinets (more than 100 of them most of the time... yes, we ate A LOT of butter... no wonder my butt's so big). She always said she kept them in case she wanted to send leftovers home with my brother, but in reality, we didn't have leftovers that often, she just couldn't stand the thought of throwing something away.
Fast forward to the past week, when I've been cleaning out the boxes in my garage that I've moved multiple times without really knowing what was in them. I vowed not to move another box without knowing its contents and ensuring that I did, in fact, find it necessary to keep whatever was so heavy in there. Keep in mind, these are boxes that I paid $40 a month to store for more than a year, so they must contain important stuff, right? Turns out, not so much.
Not only have I been storing candles in varying degrees of melted, I actually had a file for every course I took in college with exams, papers, handouts and syllabi. I still own every yearbook from Kindergarten to my senior year (most of which I had multiple copies). Three huge boxes contained at least 200 pageant programs.
My name is Lori, and I'm a pack rat.
Now my trash can is overflowing with treasures, and my garage sale pile is bigger than the moving pile. Ah, progress.
Mirror, mirror on the wall, I have become my mother after all. Thankfully I use butter in a box. And I throw the boxes away. I'm breaking the cycle!
My mom suffered from a minor bout of OCD. When she'd leave the house for an extended period of time, I'd throw away empty butter bowls that she had stored in her kitchen cabinets (more than 100 of them most of the time... yes, we ate A LOT of butter... no wonder my butt's so big). She always said she kept them in case she wanted to send leftovers home with my brother, but in reality, we didn't have leftovers that often, she just couldn't stand the thought of throwing something away.
Fast forward to the past week, when I've been cleaning out the boxes in my garage that I've moved multiple times without really knowing what was in them. I vowed not to move another box without knowing its contents and ensuring that I did, in fact, find it necessary to keep whatever was so heavy in there. Keep in mind, these are boxes that I paid $40 a month to store for more than a year, so they must contain important stuff, right? Turns out, not so much.
Not only have I been storing candles in varying degrees of melted, I actually had a file for every course I took in college with exams, papers, handouts and syllabi. I still own every yearbook from Kindergarten to my senior year (most of which I had multiple copies). Three huge boxes contained at least 200 pageant programs.
My name is Lori, and I'm a pack rat.
Now my trash can is overflowing with treasures, and my garage sale pile is bigger than the moving pile. Ah, progress.
Mirror, mirror on the wall, I have become my mother after all. Thankfully I use butter in a box. And I throw the boxes away. I'm breaking the cycle!
The new MVP
Congrats to Tom Brady, the new NFL Most Valuable Player, who garnered 49 out of 50 votes (one goober voted for Favre, who most likely would have won by a landslide any other year). He awesome... and he's hot. Have I said that today?
Friday, January 4, 2008
Cecil, the foster cat
More than a decade ago, my niece, Paige, adopted a cat and named him Uncle Cecil Missouri. Upon discovering that Cecil needed to be spade rather than neutered, she refused to change her name, so the girl cat remained Cecil. Cecil lived the first few years of her life in Midland, then she came to live with Mom and me for over a year in Hartford, then she moved with me into the new house in Midland where she remained with my brother's family until last November, when I somehow regained custody and moved her into my house in Fort Smith (did you get all that?). She moved with me to Conway in March. And now, since I can't have pets in the new place and my dad and Vickie were nice enough to adopt her, she's in another new home.
It's been a traumatic day. After work I put Cecil in her crate (which she hates) and in my car (which she hates more) and took her to Dad and Vickie. She cried the whole way. I struggled not to cry, too. Because even though she makes me crazy, it's nice that something cares when I come home. And it was depressing when I got home from the ball game and she wasn't there to greet me. Now I'm laying in bed and she's not on the pillow beside me. And that's kinda sad.
Hello, pumpkin head
So I was going through stuff in my garage last night, and I came across this lovely pic of Lon, Jen, and baby Brady in some old church stuff. At least Jennifer's head is normally shaped. She looks about 12, but I think she had just turned 14 when this pic was taken.
Oops, she did it again
Well, evidently Britney (or "Unfitney" as Perez calls her), finally had a meltdown. I think even Stevie Wonder could have seen that coming.
Thursday, January 3, 2008
2 phones, 1 girl
Today I got an e-mail from my new boss, telling me that I'll need a cell phone for the new job, and since the university doesn't support my iPhone, they've reserved me a Blackberry. Really, I don't mean to sound ungrateful, but since my iPhone contract doesn't expire 'til November 2009, it looks like I'll be carting around two cell phones. Yeah, I'm THAT GIRL. You know, the one who tries to look important by carrying around multiple phones. I swear, if I start wearing a Bluetooth headset into Wal-Mart and talking in the produce aisle, somebody kick me in the rear.
Last night I finished packing up the china cabinet, so things are plugging along. I can't believe I only have 11 more days of working at UCA and only 17 more days 'til the movers are here. I'm trying to be more organized this time and not just throw random stuff in boxes. I won't have to be frantic for another 10 days or so.
Tomorrow after work I'm meeting my dad and stepmom in Ozark for barbeque, then we're going to see Taylor play basketball. I haven't seen a game all year! And, if it's not too cold, Uncle Cecil Missouri will be accompanying me so that we can complete her adoption to dad's house (my new place doesn't allow pets).
Man, this going back to work has been tough. I can't go to sleep early, and I don't want to get up in the morning. I can barely hold my eyes open right now.
So, g'night.
Last night I finished packing up the china cabinet, so things are plugging along. I can't believe I only have 11 more days of working at UCA and only 17 more days 'til the movers are here. I'm trying to be more organized this time and not just throw random stuff in boxes. I won't have to be frantic for another 10 days or so.
Tomorrow after work I'm meeting my dad and stepmom in Ozark for barbeque, then we're going to see Taylor play basketball. I haven't seen a game all year! And, if it's not too cold, Uncle Cecil Missouri will be accompanying me so that we can complete her adoption to dad's house (my new place doesn't allow pets).
Man, this going back to work has been tough. I can't go to sleep early, and I don't want to get up in the morning. I can barely hold my eyes open right now.
So, g'night.
Wednesday, January 2, 2008
Auld Lang Syne
Well 2008 got off to a rockin' start. This is the first NYE in quite some time that I've actually had anything to do, much less stayed up to ring in the new year. Joe and I had fun. The restaurant is beautiful, the food amazing, and a good time was had by all.
This is me with Joe and Kevin, at the party.
Unfortunately my good mood didn't roll over into '08, as New Year's Day was kind of a bummer. I had a headache all day and the Piggies got the poo beat of out them in the Cotton Bowl, but I did get to go hang out with my good pals Brent and Dave and eat good food. Plus, I took a three-hour nap after the game. And I didn't waste time and money going to Dallas for the game (sorry, Sorne).
In moving news, I confirmed with the moving company this afternoon, and they'll be in Conway to pick up my stuff in 19 days... yikes! Must get packed.
Happy belated birthday to my Daddy, who turned 62 yesterday, and I didn't blog. Sorry! But happy birthday, anyway.
This is me with Joe and Kevin, at the party.
Unfortunately my good mood didn't roll over into '08, as New Year's Day was kind of a bummer. I had a headache all day and the Piggies got the poo beat of out them in the Cotton Bowl, but I did get to go hang out with my good pals Brent and Dave and eat good food. Plus, I took a three-hour nap after the game. And I didn't waste time and money going to Dallas for the game (sorry, Sorne).
In moving news, I confirmed with the moving company this afternoon, and they'll be in Conway to pick up my stuff in 19 days... yikes! Must get packed.
Happy belated birthday to my Daddy, who turned 62 yesterday, and I didn't blog. Sorry! But happy birthday, anyway.
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