Spring 2009

Fulltime work and fulltime school allow for little else... I'm hoping to blog more over the summer once classes are over. But for now, here's the quick update:

• We've moved! My drive is shorter, the house is great, and there are lots of crazy DIY projects in our future. (And yeah, it's rather scandalously large--we weren't looking for anything that grand, but it was the right price.)
  

• Alex is still doing a lot of work traveling, and is on a crazy overseas-more-than-home schedule for awhile. He's very much enjoying the work, and I'm glad he isn't just stuck home evenings, watching me do homework.
• I will complete my PhD's residency requirement May 14th, and will be taking NO classes this summer. I will be taking two classes in fall again, but won't have to take fulltime school ever again (unless, for some crazy reason I actually want to).
• Once this semester is done, I will have completed 39 out of 60 credit hours for my degree... I'm hoping to finish up classes in about a year and a half--I think December 2010 will finish me up. (Then it's on to the dissertation, but let's not talk about that, as I don't need any further reason to hyperventilate.)
• I'm getting excited, now that summer is in sight. My summer projects include: 2 (3?) research projects, finishing the first draft of my novel, some DIY house stuff, unpacking the house, rediscovering that "art" thing I used to do, and possibly learning how to knit. Also, helping my BFF/"sis" Amy with her new arrival sometime around June (I'm so glad I live close now!).
• My mom is the Best Ever; she's come to spend over a week with me, to both keep me company while Alex is gone, and to start painting this mammoth house. Huzzah!!

Oh yeah--I also hear this rumor that after classes are done, I can READ FOR FUN this summer. Hmmm. I may have to try this odd idea.

Looking forward to getting reacquainted with you all, come June. Why hello, there Social Life! I've forgotten what you looked like!!

UPDATE: ooo, look, new blog colors! thought it was high-time for even a tiny refresh.
UPDATE 2: i forgot to include a photo of the new house. sigh, silly me!

Solo Weekend

So, Alex is now in St. Petersburg; he informs me that as he is nine hours ahead of us, he'll shortly look up the winning lotto numbers and give them to me. Heh.

In any case, I'm off to ALA in Anaheim early Thursday am, and he's back in Texas the day afterward... I'll be back late the following Monday. We do get around these days.

Yesterday, my department enjoyed a lovely party at Clarice's house. Four of us ladies actually stayed in the pool until 10pm. 'Twas quite nice; I haven't been night-swimming in quite a while, and I've sorely missed Clarice since her retirement a few weeks ago. I stayed to chat with the last stragglers until 11pm, and was back in McKinney at midnight, then groggily woken up at 6:30 by Alex's call to say he was at his layover in London. Then it was off to church with pals Amy and Jaime, who also treated me to a scrumptious lunch of breakfast tacos, and rushed home for my first IM-session with Alex, once he finally got to his St. Petersburg hotel. We talked about Russian traffic and vessel sinks, primarily. (Ah, the joys of house-building.)

I believe the only things on my weekend list that actually got accomplished were purchasing a vanity for the new house's downstairs guest bath, and looking at a lot of vessel sinks and faucets. Here it is nearly 10pm and I haven't ripped a single CD, or cleaned my desk, or packed for California, or written any in my novel. Ah, well.

I have discovered this, however: Vader and stormtroopers dancing to Thriller. Which pretty much glows with Pure Awesome, considering it combines two of my greatest delights. Actually, make that three--I was going to say Star Wars and Thriller, but also the concept of a Dance-Off itself. Yep, Pretty Stinkin' Awesome.

Leaving Home

Oh, the emotional investment in the place in which you live. This afternoon, I looked at the key my mother-in-law had made for me to use while we live in their upstairs addition for the next eight months, while we're building The New House. The key is blue with yellow happy faces all over it, in a cheesy fake-hippie style that makes me laugh, and she said she picked it so that when it gets hard living there, not in our own home, I can look at it and know she loves me. So very, very sweet.

I immediately, with my blogger-and-photographer hat on, thought I ought to take a photo to post here. And half a second later, got a sick feeling in my gut, realizing that I couldn't take a photo my house-key, the key to our Old House that we left for the last time this morning at 2am, because it was on the counter in that house we no longer own. Or more likely, by this point, it's on someone else's keyring. It made me want to cry, then and there, but I cried so much last night/this morning that I'm in the brush-it-off stage. After all, I've got tons of homework to do, all of it due this Friday.

But let us have a small moment of mourning for the passing of this age, the age of Our Very First Home together, the house in which our marriage survived four flooring projects, a 30' by 40' building project, thirteen fireworks parties, and innumerable amounts of painting. The house in which we kind of grew up together, dreamed together, and even planned The New House together. The house in which we spent 6 and a half out of over 7 years together, the house in which we did not raise any children--a house they will never know. Truly the end of an era.

Eesh, I don't even know how or where to end this post. Looking forward to the next house? Still more reminiscing about the old one? Talk about the past three days of moving and the pain and the tired and the wonderful family help? Obsessing about the last week of homework? Looking forward to summer? Gratefulness for a place to live while simultaneously mourning the loss of space and privacy?

Hmm, yes, total and utter confusion of emotions, I think that about sums it up.

P.S. Have lots of old-house photos to get up later. Probably will be a post-homework project, so look for them in May.

P.P.S. Bonus points for anyone who noticed that the label of this post is also the title of a Garrison Keillor book. There is a reason you and I are friends. (And now I know that an appropriate gift for you is a NPR mug.)

Spring Has Been Broken

er... I mean, how was your Spring Break?

We don't really get Spring Break anymore at UNT as employees, due to a long story that most of us can only tell with a lot of grumbling and an exasperated expression, so I'll spare you. I took three of my vacation days, though, because I had so much homework slip by the wayside during the month and a half we've been working our tails off trying to get the house on the market.

Well, that was the plan, anyway. Actual Spring Break went like this:

• spent Wednesday morning with an upset stomach, but managed to finish New Moon
  
• spent Wednesday/Thursday on still more house-readying tasks (while grumbling)
• spent Friday, Saturday, and a bit of Easter Sunday on homework
• painted toenails two shades of orange (as per my Spring Break tradition)
• took some photos
• got house on the market Saturday morning
• read over script for a comedic video I acted in Monday
  

...And believe it or not, in the only four days we've been on the market, we've had several showings and already have one offer! Talk about blessed. I have no idea if this offer will pan out or not, but man it's nice to get some feedback after all those weeks of work.

Now, I just need about four clones to help me with homework, work-work, keeping the house clean, and planning my 30th birthday party this summer... sigh.

Hey There, Strangers

I see a light at the end of the tunnel... it still feels about a mile off, but still.

So, remember that whole thing about fulltime work, long commute, and fulltime doctoral classes? And how overwhelming busy it all made me? Ha.

(beginning of rant)
We decided to put our house on the market. To make a long, long (two-month long, really) story somewhat manageable, here are the highlights:
we had to help finish constructing our in-law's two-story addition, so that when our house sells (crossing our fingers), we have a place to live until the new place is built
we had to get our old truck running, so that it wouldn't be rusting in our driveway (and so Alex has something to drive to work)
we had to move over half (no, really) of our belongings/furniture/crap into that addition
then, we could see what paint/repairs/etc. had to be done before putting the house on the market
in sum: Alex and I have not done much other than work and work on the house(s) for the past two months. Every evening, every weekend. We are very, very tired and beginning to get a tad grumpy.

Two weeks ago, I took three days off and my wonderful awesome incredibly helpful Mom came up to help me--for five days straight, fourteen hours a day, we painted and packed and moved. And still, there is work to be done. The mind reels.

Thankfully, we have come to our senses, realized that with both of us working/schooling until about 8 or 9pm most nights, we can't finish this ourselves--we are officially overcoming our DIY-disease inherited from our parents and hiring help. Praise God.

Anyway, we're hoping (keep those fingers crossed, seriously) to be done this coming weekend. I am, pretty much, done with this house now. I very much would like to scream every time I see a paintbrush, considering that my schoolwork is beginning to suffer dreadfully because, let's face it, I didn't have time to read and write and study *before* this lovely hog of a project.
(end of rant)

Anyway.

Am I the only person unexpectedly addicted to "Eli Stone?"* And I didn't even know he was the kid from "Hackers" until four episodes in. Now, normally I am not a big fan of "laweyering" shows--or, for that matter, any of the occupational dramas, be they medical/legal/cop, etc. Too "real" for my escapist tastes.

However. This show has this amazing mix of hilarious fun, big musical numbers (which we all know I love), and unexpectly, real drama. In the last three episodes, I've laughed out loud numerous times, but I've also come close to crying in each one. And, um, I'm not a big cries-at-TV-shows kind of person. I mean, I cried at the last episode of Friends... and Star Trek TNG... but hey, those were series finales.

*(In the one hour of "fun" we alot ourselves before going to bed, this is one of the few shows we've been watching. That and, of course, the so-awesome-it-makes Friends-pal-in-comparison "How I Met Your Mother." Thank you, Tihleigh, for introducing me to the greatest show ever!!!)

Under the (McKinney?) Sun

There are certain movies that Alex and I fall in love with, and watch a dozen times, in any mood we happen to be in. And surprisingly, there's not a scifi epic among them:

• Amelie
• Chocolat
• Love Actually
• Under the Tuscan Sun

What do they have in common? All of them feature narration, all of them take place in a foreign country.

Under the Tuscan Sun has been our most recent fall-back, the film equivalent of comfort food. I think one additional reason that we love this film is because it features a house, and a lot of ill-advised DIY home improvements.

I've been re-reading snatches of this book this morning while my truck is being serviced. And while it's different in book form--it takes place over four summers instead of one year, no seeking-love plot, no crazy Fellini-inspired friend, even more focus on delicious food--it's still glorious. I listened to the audio version of it last year, and loved that, as well--it will likely make its way onto my wishlist.

The real advantage of this book, of course, is that rather than feel overwhelmed by all the house fix-up projects we've come across lately, I now feel energized and ready to tackle them in order.

Now, if only I didn't work until 9pm tonight...

A List of Accomplishments

Since I work the evening shift today, that made this morning errand-day. This morning, I:

• got my oil changed
• made a bank deposit
• got my wedding rings inspected
• read a few lovely chapters of Under the Tuscan Sun
• got a spectacular brainstorm about tiling various rooms in our house
• listed out all the DIY projects we have to accomplish, and managed not to feel overwhelmed, but energized

All of these things go to prove my life's thesis: this is what is possible when coffee is consumed early enough in the morning.

Playing Catch-Up (Not Catch)

School's done, and now I can finally blog all the thoughts I've kept pent up in random wordpad documents for the past week and a half.

Thanksgiving Holiday
Alex's first-cousin-once-removed, David, came to my parents' house in San Antonio, and we joined them for a fun three-day holiday. During that time, we:

• played Canasta and San Marco
• sorted through family photos for my school archive project
• tested Alex's awesome new camera-phone
• saw the Riverwalk parade and Christmas lights
• had some really crappy Mexican food (on the Riverwalk, no less!)
• had great Thanksgiving food--oh, the joyous holiday spread!
• came up nearly empty-handed on Black Friday (I won't admit I bought this CD; you can't make me!)
  
• saw Alex's first shooting star

Then we came back and worked on the building, and I dubbed myself the Insulation Queen (to the tune, of course, of Abba's "Dancing Queen"). And had to take two sick days thereafter because I didn't wear a dust mask.

And in the mail: a collection of 50 martyr stories told by various comic artists. Hagiography and graphic storytelling: a bizarre pairing made in my kind of heaven.

Last Weekend
The use of a dust mask this go-round averted further insulation-related misery on my part, although Alex couldn't handle his mask for long and thus suffered, sadly. At least neither of us took sick days as a result, this time.

I spent Sunday working on my school projects--just like old times, before I graduated! Alex went shooting with our friend Brandon (the boardgame geek, not the Star Wars geek), and then they came back to the house and we all played Carcassone the City (which I beat them both at--woohoo!), and Mykerinos (which I was horrible at, but found interesting). We had much fun, but also much sadness, as Brandon is soon moving to Seattle.

And as for the rest of what happened on Sunday... we suffered the Great DVR Crisis. You can read about it in a post I'm titling, "Pop-Culture Junkie."

Sick Day

My apologies for lack of posts--our trip to San Antonio for the holiday was followed by a day of insulating the bathroom in the building, which was followed by two sick days of misery related to my lack of common sense, i.e., not wearing a dust mask during afore-mentioned insulating. I'm only now back at work; I've got notes and some photos to share about the holiday that I hope to get up later this week, but from last weekend until next Tuesday promises to be my busiest, most stressful period all year. Expect my full triumphant return here in early December.

Which reminds me, wasn't there something about putting up some kind of tree...? Perhaps I'd better get around to that before Christmas, eh?

TGIF... Hold That Thought

So much for being happy that it was the weekend. The highlights were: being with Alex, and going out for a birthday dinner for one of Alex’s friends. Other than that, Alex worked—yes, beyond working late every single evening, and this is not the first weekend he’s worked—we loaded scrap metal onto my father-in-law’s trailer, and we finished the building. Which is great on the one hand—hooray! Inspections this week, then we can move our project stuff out there!—and frustrating on the other—it took us from 3pm to 8pm yesterday to finish, and after that whole weekend of work, we were absolutely dead. At 8:30pm on a Sunday. Sigh…

Actually, perhaps my favorite part of the weekend was on the way to Home Depot (for building supplies, of course), Alex and I remembered that it was the debut day for the Nintendo Wii, and Alex called Jared. Because of course, there was no doubt in our minds that Jared had not only purchased said console, but had already played several games with Justin and therefore would have gleeful and valuable information to convey. Short version: he likes the remote controller evern better than he thought he would, and from first glance, Zelda rocks. I am gleeful with anticipation, and suddenly Alex is wanting to drive to Tyler (closest place with a Wii left!) to get one. My hope is that this controller will finally let me become the Uber-Gamer I have always dreamed of being (but lacked the time/training/skilz to be). I wish to play a Zelda game completely through for the first time (okay, not counting Four Swords which rocked the hizzy, but since I had three teammates, it wasn’t achieved fully on my own merit).

Unrelated Banter:

• Here’s a free information number (they play short ads before giving you the number, but free beats 411 charges): 800-373-3411
• Along those lines, I’ve been screening my calls when a caller ID doesn’t show up—reject the call, then look up the number on this website. When it’s obviously a telemarketing call, I save the number under the contact name “Telemarketer”—I’ve got five numbers saved under that name now, and they immediately pop up as “telemarketer” when they call. This website’s also a fast way to report a No-Call-List violation.
• I finally added the “Best Of” shots from our DC trip to my newest flickr account: enjoy!
• Oh no, the movie "Stealth" comes to life! Aiieee!!! (Heh, heh, heh.)
• Even if you already type well, you'll want to play this typing game: Qwerty Warriors. Typing "detonate" when that word appears will obliterate all other enemies/words on the screen, heh heh.
• Very interesting, very controversial article.

Surrealism

...No, I'm not talking about Max Ernst.

This weekend Alex and I helped his parents fix up a rental property they recently purchased. A house which is one street from the house Alex and I rented during our first year of marriage. A house which features the exact same floorplan as that rental.

It was like stepping back in time five years, only with better carpeting.

Alex worked there on Saturday while I was up at UNT, and yesterday I joined him (during the Day of Deluge) in tiling the kitchen backsplash with about 25 sf. of ceramic tile. I've got to say, I'm impressed with our work; we've tiled three floors together, but never a wall. We were both pleasantly surprised by the fact that it's much easier, there's no on-the-knees or back bending involved, the adhesive is easier to work with than mortar, and ceramic tile just cuts darned faster than granite. I am also proud to report that I figured out how to change out an outlet (by myself--no question-asking!) and promptly replaced about ten outlets in the house (by that time we ran out of new outlets to use).

Now I'm realizing that it's far less than a week before DC and Abilene, and that I have two trips to prepare for in far too little time. My errand list is frightening. One of the errands involves getting my bridesmaid dress (received in the mail Saturday) in for alterations before I leave--but before I can get it altered, I have to find a strapless bra for it. It fits my waist, but the thing is at least 6 inches too long (and its numerous flowy chiffon layers mean I can't hem it myself), and let's just say that in the chest area, it looks a tad... deflated. Being as the bodice is beaded, I'd rather not deal with the nightmare of having it altered, so off to Vickie's Secret it is.

Oh, the miracles they work.

Update:
Perhaps not so miraculous, then. Two hours of the frustrating humiliation of trying on strapless bras later, I have two extremely questionable candidates and the distinct desire to drive home and drown my sorrows in a tub of Dreyer's Slow-Churn Raspberry Chip Royale. I think perhaps I'm better suited to the part of flower girl than bridesmaid; at least I know those dresses fit.

Ah, well. I may have to stuff the bodice of both strapless bridesmaid dresses with two pairs of woolen socks, but at least they're gorgeous.

A Weekend Well-Spent

• two cheaply-purchased panel monitors
• a hearty helping of HGTV
• a cleaned and repaired (cross your fingers) fridge
• an interesting and brief gunshow
• an awesome, awesome ballgame with fantastic seats [Lexus Club Box], which included:
• catering at our seats
• tasty seven-layer dip & chips
• chili dogs
• ice cream in a hat (it's tradition, man)
• incredibly-painful-but-awesome-shoes
• a hilariously fun near-rain-out
• a whomping of the Mariners (well, it was a whomping until the seventh, but we still won)
• a clean (and-soon-to-be painted, floored, and cabineted) laundry room
• a well-laid-out plan for said laundry room (forethought: amazing!)
• a tasty and always-fantastic episode of Feasting on Asphalt
• snuggling funtime
• frozen fruit-bars

...and a happy congrats to my pal Auntie K!

Unrelated Banter:

• Just to continue the theme, here are some jolly Trekkie inspirational posters. ("Expendability"--reminds me of a family joke: Ensign Justin Case.)
• Userfriendly answers the age-old question: What happens when an AOL employee gets fired?
• Nice barcode placement.

Our Priorities

I just found out in a roundabout way that The Man has a Skype account. And I think--What? How did I not know this?

Then I think--Well, does he even know I have an AIM account? What the heck do we talk about, anyway?

And then the answer hits me: we talk about home improvement, which ice cream flavor we're craving, and the sci-fi/cartoon OOTM (obsession of the moment).

Gotta have your priorities, man.

Impromptu Presto-Chango

Those of you who know myself and my man in Real Life (that's the sunshiny-space outside your blacked-out window to you virtual-life die-hards) are well aware of the fact that Home Improvement is a genetic... curse? flaw? ...in both our families. We got not only the "do-it-yourself" gene from both of our families (closely related to the "I-could-make-that-cheaper-and-better" gene), but we're both addicted to before/after scenarios. Makeovers, project cars, remodels, whatever--if it was old and boring and now it's miraculously snazzy, we're into it.

This sick urge tends to strike us in six-month intervals, ironically coinciding with a college-alum party we host every six months. Which inevitably makes finishing our latest project a mad race, the last twenty-four hours of which we spend scrubbing off grout/installing trim/etc. while frantically muttering to each other, "Why do we always do this? Why? Why?"

I theorize that there are two reasons for this. First, it takes six months for us to forget the pain, sweat, and complete insanity of the latest project. Second, subconsciously our minds realize that if we schedule a project shortly before the party, we have a strict deadline, causing our natural procrastination to be obliterated in the panic of knowing that 30-50 people will be walking into our house 2-4 weeks from now. (Third may be that paint samples and tile give off a powerful pheremone to which we become temporarily immune, but which eventually cripples our good sense.)

Reason #2 is the best reason, really, since it impels us to be finished, and after the party we can sit back and bask in the loveliness of a finished project. But it can also be incredibly stressful.

We've been working on our metal building since before the last party at New Year's--although it wasn't completely sided at that point--and was our only home improvement plan to complete before the party. But in the past two weeks, although the exterior is quite finished, we realized we would be unable to complete the bathroom inside. Enter frustration over an unfinished project.

Then add in tremendous heat that makes us want to stay indoors. And a good dose of home makeover shows. (Drat HGTV, TLC, and satellite itself! The peer pressure is too much!)

So Saturday, after three years of hemming and hawing over a bedroom wall color, we instantly picked a greyish-blue shade. Much like we picked the living room wall color after a year or two of undecided frustration--one random day we picked a green we liked and painted it that week.

And of course, there are all kinds of things that crop up after you pick out a wall color. Lest I reveal too much of our mad plot, I'll let that tantilizing suggestion... er... tantilize you for awhile as we tackle this epic endeavor. I'll post some before/after photos (see, I told you) when we're done--hopefully next week, just in time for the party.

In the meantime, don't be surprised to see a bit of lag in this blog for the next week. I'll regale you with stories of home improvement mishaps next week.

Are Weekends for Relaxing?

Such a full weekend--where do I begin?

Friday, as evidenced by this photo, was University Day at UNT. I couldn't participate, as I was on duty at the desk, but wore my green U-day shirt in celebration. I'm rather fond of the 'ol green and white.

I'm battling to get taxes done right now, particularly when there are so many interesting things going on. One of those is working with Annie and Monika on several library displays--we finished one last week. The posters read, "Take a break: read a book!" and there are a lot of great pleasure-reads on the table, which faces the library entrance. It's been heartening to notice so many students stopping and looking on their way in--at something I was a part of! I'll try to snag some photos and post them later this week.

After fighting with Photoshop, Illustrator, and MS Publisher Friday afternoon, Alex and I went to Bullet Trap with his dad. I'd have taken a few amusing photos, but you're not supposed to use cameras or cell phones on the range--which I suppose particularly applies to camera-phones. The spent brass from several people kept jumping into the cuff of my jeans; eventually I stopped dumping them out and waited till I got home. I used a Beretta Tomcat 3032, which I find much easier to handle than anything else I've shot. It actually fits my shrimpy little hand, and the kick is pretty minimal--I can actually hold it steady while I shoot. It's nice to have a real target to shoot at, but the range is so noisy that I really prefer shooting out in the country--much more peaceful. It's hard to hold your arms steady when 40-caliber gun reports are echoing off concrete walls.

Saturday Alex and I went to a gun show in Big Town, and I enjoyed it a lot more than the last two I attended, though I can't say why. I love all the history on display--Civil War artifacts and Nazi paraphenalia abound in glass cases. It continues to take my breath away, being inches away from something fifty or more years old, that played a part in a world-changing event. You'd think that it wouldn't seem so impressive, maybe, after seeing something as old and famous as da Vinci's Last Supper up close & personal, but any piece of history is amazing to me. I don't know exactly what it is--perhaps just tangible proof that these storied events actually took place, that people like my Grandpa actually lived through these things. (He's got some amazing stories about life as a POW in WWII--hard to believe that my jolly, smiling Grandpa lived in such gritty circumstances.)

Sunday, some of Alex's work buddies were gracious enough to help us roof half of our building! (Remember that building I was talking about waaay back in December? Yeah, that building.) Thanks to Keith & Josh's hard work, and some help from Rudy--while Mylene and I supervised--we got half the roof up in about five hours. We're all feeling the aches and lack of sleep today, though. (Thank you, guys!!!)

Aaaand that takes us up to today, which was spent cleaning, filing, and looking for my 2004 mileage book. Did I mention that I dislike filing taxes?