Leapin' Lizards!

It's Leap Day of the Leap Year. The one fun day when it's actually February 29th and not just a glimmer in the distance.

Today was normal for me, though. Meeting day, since it was Wednesday; lots of work on papers and award pacakges; an employee meeting in the afternoon; and then a couple extra hours of comp time to finish it off.

I love my job. Have I said that lately? I have a great boss, a great office, and a great job. I'm a happy camper.

But there's this other job open. Applications are due by Tuesday. I don't really want the job, but it's expected by several that I should apply. I'm not quite sure how to deal with this, and I haven't had a chance to talk with my boss about it yet. So I'm in limbo, with little time to decide.

It's not that the job is bad, it's very similar to mine but on a slightly higher scale. I just don't know that I really want it. I still have things I want to do in my current job (which I probably need to get on soon). KC is planning to apply, but I'm not sure she'll get it. AP is also applying. He has a good shot. There are others applying, too. I know the competition would be tough but that doesn't worry me. I suppose I could apply, for the experience, but then if I got it I'm not sure I want it and I've always felt if you don't really want the job you shouldn't apply.

I don't know. I need to talk to the boss. That's step one. Well, that's step two - I need to finish the pressing project due tomorrow first. Then he and I can both breathe a sigh of relief and then talk.

Fixed!

Thank goodness I have friends in high places - or at least in places where they know how to fix things. KG helped me out a ton, fixing my computer in short time. He's awesome.

My brain is fried, so thanks, but tonight, I'm going to sleep.

Sick 'Puter and a dress

Okay, so I know this is my Lenten discipline - to journal daily. I missed yesterday, yes, but in some ways I am okay. Technically, Sunday's don't count as the 40 days between Ash Wednesday and Maundy Thursday, but I should have written anyway. The only bad thing is that my computer is sick.

Yesterday I was looking up Guinness cupcake recipes and suddenly it kicked me off the Internet and some stupid security scan started (not my normal scanner). I called my favorite comm guy this morning and he graciously invited me to drop off my computer to him at his house and he'd fix it while he was home today. Ah, it pays to have great friends but I owe him BIG!

So today I spent in town, went to work for a bit and then ran some errands and made a plan to knock another box off the wedding planning list: the dress. I'm running out of time and I'm so indecisive. Over the weekend, M&I set up our cake and he was so elated that I finally settled on something that while we were out looking at other things I started thinking about which dress I should get. In a moment, of weakness I called one of the upscale dress stores to try on dresses. I got there and the cheapest one was $750 and that was discounted. OMG! I, for fun, also tried on one that was $1250.

Anyway, I met up with my dear friend, Bridget, and she helped me decided on a dress. It was one that I had liked but SBK didn't. She liked it though and so we went with it and ordered it. Britt, my gal helping me out at the dress place (the inexpensive dress place), initially scared me when she said it'd take 6 months to get the dress in. Uh, I have 130 days until the wedding. Britt went in the back and talked with her boss. They remeasured me so I could drop a size down in ordering (which is where I was leaning anyway - I have a feeling I'll be taking it in no matter what) and we ordered. They said I should have it NLT May. Whew.

Then Bridget and I went to some places to look for bouquet and centerpiece ideas. I may be leaning away from my original idea of daisies. Thank goodness I didn't have a longer engagement, this would have been awful. At least now I have less time to make decisions so I have to do it quick. :) This is a good thing for me. Decisions aren't the best in my world - I want to make everyone happy, forgetting that for this I only have to make me and M happy. Now, I just have to remember that. :)

Awesome Date Day

M&I had a great day today. I started with FIT class - kickboxing and lower body resistance bands. It was great - 75 minutes of intense work and sweating.

Then we went to Zach's basketball tourney and watched one of his games. He plays really well. I'm glad we got to see him. Zach is a great kid - I can only hope if M&I have kids that ours are like him.

Then we headed into the big town and did some wedding shopping. We booked our cake, looked at centerpiece ideas, walked through Home Depot and Menards and then hit a movie.

Our movie of choice today was Act of Valor. M wanted to see this since he was part of the Navy back in the day. It really opened my eyes to what he used to do. It was crazy, intense and incredible. I cried, I'll admit it. It was great. We also had dinner, which was great but the place was so crowded we could barely get out when we left, the entryway was SO crowded.

Anyway - it was an awesome day. Now, I need a nap. 

Slow 'net

Our Internet is acting weird tonight so this will be short.

Can I just say that, while I'm really excited for our wedding, I'm really tired of people asking me how wedding plans are going? UGH!

For the record, everything is going well. I need to find a dress...that's my main goal at this time. After that, all will be smooth sailing, right? :)

Catch up

I got to thinking tonight, while I was doing dishes, that I haven't really caught my ever faithful readers (not that there probably are any anymore) of what transpired between November 16 and a few days ago. Well, let's see...

I got engaged. :)

M&I got engaged November 12. We had some chili and then sat on the couch and decided to get married. :) It was a bit more complicated than that, but I already blogged that on our blog (which is currently just for select folks - sorry). It was really sweet.

The next day, we went to YOB's for Thanksgiving/Ava's B-day. We decided, since the ring didn't fit and we needed to get it sized, to hold off on telling anyone. Plus M hadn't asked my Mom for permission, so he needed to do that.

The next weekend, on Sunday, Mom and I got together for our yearly tradition of making flatbread and krumkake. I love that we get to do this together. It's like "our thing" since the rest of my siblings don't make flatbread. Lisa makes Krumkake, but not flatbread. It's a great tradition.

Anyway, we talked wedding things during that time, after I told her M had proposed. We had a big hug, a few tears (happy ones) and a nice afternoon together. It was then she agreed to share her anniversary with us. I had asked M if he was okay if we got married on the same day my parents did, in the same church. This year would have been Mom and Dad's 50th anniversary, and I felt it'd be a fitting tribute since Dad is not able to be with us. I wanted to clear it with Mom first though. She agreed, and said that the date is even 50 years to the weekday - she got married on a Friday as we will.

Thanksgiving went without a hitch - I made turkey and all the fixin's again. We had a nice afternoon. The next day I ran in the Jingle Bell Run with the Runner's Block gang. We had a group thing going with reindeer and Santa. It was really neat. I really should be posting pictures of all this. I'll have to do that and then link to this post once I do. :)

December was good. A job came open at work. Boss2 was moving to HQ and so a new Boss2 was announced and his replacement was announced which opened her job. I talked it over with Deaner and after reading the job announcement closely, I realized I couldn't truly apply. It was an officer position and I don't have those qualifications. So I helped SBK apply instead.

Christmas was good. M&I bought an elliptical during a Black Friday sale so we had that. M got me fingerless boxing gloves which are great for FXB. We had the Moe Christmas at Mom's. It was fun having all the kids around. Lisa got M&I a Whirley Pop popcorn maker. We have yet to use it, but I am excited for the time when I get to. We've become addicted to air popped popcorn, so the oily stuff isn't as appealing right now. Maybe after the wedding.

New Year's was great - we went to bed at 10. :) Typical.

In January, SBK was hired into the new job. We had a ceremony for the new Boss2 leaving his old position and the new lady coming. That was bad. I'm not sure I want to relive it right now. So I won't. But because SBK was hired, that means her job is open now, which leaves me in a pickle. It's an officer position, but I'm not sure I want it. But it's a great step up. It's complicated.

I continue to do FXB - went to instructor class at the end of January in hopes of learning some new stuff and picking up a few classes to teach. Right now I don't have time, with all the wedding planning. I still need to find a dress for that venture and time is a-tickin'. We have a lot of the rest of it planned - the photographer, location for reception, caterer, meal, DJ. Just need a dress, flowers and cake. Oh and invitations.

So there...you're caught up. See - you didn't miss much. :)

The Art of Fielding

Like I said in my previous post, I spent Monday doing laundry and reading a book. My friend, Kari, had recommended The Art of Fielding (and I read about it on NPR where I find all my fun books).

It was truly a great book. It's been awhile since I've written a review, so please bear with me.

The book is about several characters and how they intertwine. Skrim, Schwartz, Pella, Affenlight, and Owen are the key ones. Part of the appeal is that Skrim is from "Lankton, SD" which makes me laugh. I get that it's fiction, but to change the town that minutely seems silly. I'm surprised the author even used "SDSU" later in the story when talking about one of the state colleges.

Anyway - the story is about baseball, relationships, growing up, decisions, and taking a leap of faith in all of these. I felt a lot of me in several of the characters. The struggle they felt when trying to find themselves is evident in my daily life. It was beautiful. I laughed; I cried. An excellent read. I can't wait to read it again.

That awful "SH" word

No, I'm not talking about the 4-letter sh word, I'm talking about the longer one:

should

And even more so, "should have". As in, "I should have ... "

Last night, i.e. this morning, I woke up hearing the two words repeatedly in my head, "should have should have should have should have". They blended together so well they became that dreaded English faux pas, "shudof shudof shudof".

Yesterday, was my 4th day off in a row. Because of how our job lines up we had the day off and so I was able to relax. Saturday I had a girls party, Sunday M&I ran some errands and had supper with my mom (saving her from the hospital for awhile - her SO has been in since Friday), and Monday we hunkered down during bad weather, doing laundry and reading (I read an awesome book, but more about that later). So Tuesday should have been my day to run my errands and get some taskers accomplished. Should have.

Instead, I got home from resistance class and took a 90 minute nap. I took a shower and then got on the Internet - not good. I intended to go into town and run my errands, especially trying on dresses for the wedding, but around the time the stores started opening, I decided, "eh..." I was not in the mood. Mid-afternoon I made some cookies and watched Psych. M came home and I made dinner and we watched NCIS. It was a good day.

Until I woke up with my list in my head and my brain screaming, "SHOULD HAVE". Not pleasant. Someday I'll learn that it's okay to relax, but part of me still has that great guilt that I didn't take advantage of the day and get things accomplished as I could have (re: should have).

It's a struggle. I struggle with a lot of guilt anyway (Yay, for Lutheran upbringing!) so this didn't help. I have some work to do. Good thing it's Lent.

Anniversary

In 2005, J-man came up to my desk and said I should start a blog. Facebook wasn't in place at that time, and blogs were THE THING. Several of my friends had blogs at that time and it was a great way for us to set up something that would continue for years to come. We started the blogs to keep in touch. We started them to share information, support, prayers, and our lives.

Over the years, a few of us have slipped through the cracks. Others have gone "off-grid" no longer sharing their blog with everyone, but keeping it close to their chest and families as it were. Others, like me, have created multiple blogs and now, especially me, have fallen to the wayside, not writing as much as I want.

Today is Shrove Tuesdays. I don't like pancakes, I like popcorn. I had some earlier today while I thought about what I can do for my Lenten discipline this year. There are many things I need to work on, many things I could give up to better my life, many more I should add.

I'm going to be writing. I need to write. I have several blogs, so if I don't show up here, I may be at one of the others. I still owe a meme to jillwillrun from the other day (I'm working on it!). But I will be writing.

So, a tip of my hat to J-man, who still blogs. And to E & K who blog as well. And to Kat who doesn't anymore, to jill and bethany who do and all who make me glad. I'll be back.

Meme and an excuse

I haven't posted in a while. It hasn't been because I don't have anything to say, but I just haven't written. I'm hoping that with this meme I'm going to do from Bethany that it might trigger my brain into wanting to write more again. Crossing fingers!

On to the meme.

A. Age: 36 for a wee bit more, though I celebrate turning a year old each new year's eve, so in my head I'm 37.

B. Bed size: We sleep on a queen which is nice, but I miss my Original Mattress Factory full-size bed which was glorious.

C. Chore that you hate: Cleaning, in general, but especially toilets, showers and smelly, moldy dishes.

D. Dogs: I like them, but we don't have one. I'm not a fan of slobber and wet dog smell, so I'm more inclined to visit people who have them for a short while than own one myself.

E. Essential start to your day: My workout. Sundays I don't work out (rest day) which is probably why I feel like a tub of goo on those days.

F. Favorite color: Blue, green - but not blue-green. Aqua is icky.

G. Gold or Silver: Silver.

H. Height: 5’5″

I. Instruments you play: Piano, clarinet, though I can technically play them all since I took all the methods classes. I also sing (mezzo-soprano).

J. Job title: Administrative Assistant to the WC. I run the place.

K. Kids: Does M count? hahaha...no kids yet.

L. Live: Hicksville, SD

M. Mother’s name: Mom

N. Nicknames: Moe, The Little General

O. Overnight hospital stays: I haven't had the pleasure (knock on wood) though I expect it when I have kids.

P. Pet peeves: Too many to name. :) hahaha... A big one that comes to mind happens a lot at work. Despite the fact I have several options for in-boxes for people to use, many just lay papers on my desk without notes on why or what the purpose is, but then expect me to follow through with whatever it is they needed and return it to them in a proper time. Example: Someone laid a letter on my desk for my boss to sign, but didn't have any information on who they were to return it to them, nor a reason on why the letter needed to be signed or by when. These I get the boss to sign and then set it aside. They call me a week later wondering why they didn't get their letter back...I do my best not to get annoyed. :)

Q. Quote from a movie: "...but what you're doing is complete lunacy...General, Sir."

R. Right- or left-handed: Right. But I have always wished I were left-handed.

S. Siblings: Three: one sister, 12 years older; brother (OOB), 10 years older; brother (YOB), 5 years older; one BIL and one SIL

T. Taste you do not like: Mushrooms - too slimy or something.

U. Underwear: Usually

V. Vegetable(s) you hate: See T (is that a mushroom), cauliflower, raw onions

W. What makes you run late: I pretty much always underestimate how long it will take me to do everything. I know this and try to compensate by adding 10-30 minutes to my estimates, but it doesn’t always work. (I stole this from Bethany, but it's pretty much my issue, too.)

X. X-Rays you’ve had: My teeth during regular checkups, and once my foot because my tendons were squeaking over my bones (literally) and they wanted to see what was going on.

Y. Yummy food that you make: Chocolate chip cookies (or any cookie, really); Apple Pie; an Italian Chicken things; banana bread; lots of others...

Z. Zoo animal: I love the penguins, lions, bison, and hippopotamus's. :)