Laundry Inflation

I've just been reminded of that thing you learn in kindergarten - sometimes one naughty kid can spoil it for the rest of the class. I've just come up from the laundry room where a wash and dry of one load of laundry has gone up 75 cents. Now - in the long run 75 cents isn't that much money - however, what used to cost me $1.75 now costs $2.50, which translates to a 42% increase in the cost of doing laundry. There was a note taped to both washers and both dryers indicating that it had cost the landlord a hefty repair bill to fix the machine after someone had gotten a quarter with a string attached to it stuck. (i.e. they were trying to rip off the machine) My landlord seems to have taken this a bit personally and has understandably raised laundry prices to cover her costs. I really like my landlord - mostly because she's invested in making the building a great place to live - and I think that's probably why she took this personally. That and any attack on your pocketbook takes a little away from you - at least it does to me. My only wish (and I understand this is a pipe dream) is that whoever did this could take responsibility so that laundry costs could go down a bit. Whew - feel a bit better now - thanks!

Basking in the Glow

I think I will look back on this Thanksgiving for years to come and still get that warm feeling that starts in the pit of your stomach and spreads to the rest of your body. I woke up yesterday morning feeling as excited for Thanksgiving as I usually do for Christmas Morning and really never lost that feeling of excitement and celebration.

Sheralee hosted Thanksgiving and it ended up that we were 11 to sit and eat dinner at a table laid out in her living room. The company consisted of a few of Sheralee's neighbors, her brother, some friends from Boulder and a few people that I know originally from Radius. The food was amazing - a blend of traditional fare like turkey and mashed potatoes and green bean casserole and a little more gourmet like chipotle sweet potatoes and arugula salad and a chocolate cake that was to die for. My pie from my grandmother's recipe turned out wonderfully!

After dinner we played trivia. At the end it was ALMOST like being at the Gorts - instead of playing trivial pursuit with the board we were just answering questions and the first one to three right got a prize. We played a number of times, I usually had two points when someone else won and I was having a good time. A neighbor really really wanted to win so we were playing one last round - I was killing in this round. Getting two answers up front that were actually quite surprising even to me and then got a third answer right to tie with said neighbor. Now - I like this guy, and in the moment he was getting on my nerves. We had a tie-breaker question of which he was VERY certain of his answer. I had a different guess, and even though I was not as certain as he I went with it. And I was right! I think I may have gotten a bit too much joy out of the win - and I won a very nice candle.

Also - I learned that another of my friends was at the first Thanksgiving! Shows that it's good to keep talking with your friends - they may be holding something back :) (Turns out he was at a dinner before ours and meant that as his first thanksgiving of the day. But we never stopped giving him a hard time.)

In any case - this was a Thanksgiving for the record books :)

Yay Thanksgiving!

I just got home from shopping for Thanksgiving. Sheralee's hosting this year and I for one am looking forward to it. I think there are going to be about 10 people there and we're going to put a couple tables in her apartment and sit down and everything. So exciting. This year I'm cooking green bean casserole, pumpkin bread, and my Grandma's Cherry Pie. I've rocked the green beans many times, I'm not to worried about the pumpkin bread - but I am really nervous and excited about trying a pie. Grandma's pie! I'll let you know how it works out.

PS - Beyonce is accepting a big award on the AMA's right now. I HEART her!

Cabbage Soup - Done

Well the week of cabbage soup is over! It went well and while I'm not 100% sure how much I've lost, I do know that all my clothes are fitting better and I'm using one smaller notch on my belt. The soup itself wasn't bad until day 5 and then eating the soup for those last few days was almost torture! Last night was a friend's birthday dinner and all week I was so looking forward to ordering off the menu but when we got there I really wasn't even hungry and ate about half of my meal. It was great!

I felt a lot better during the diet than I had felt before so now I'm even more motivated to eat fresh fruits and vegetables and less in general! Don't know if that will last through Thanksgiving - but we'll see :)

Cabbage Soup

Yesterday I started the week-long Cabbage Soup diet with Sheralee. If you're not familiar with this specific diet it goes basically like this - every day you eat as much cabbage soup as you'd like and each day has other assigned foods. For instance today I can eat as many vegetables and
cabbage soup as I want. Yesterday it was fruit. So far I feel okay - although I'm not feeling the pounds roll off...maybe I should wait more than one day to feel that though. However - it was not pleasant to eat cauliflower for breakfast today.

I'm curious though if a side effect of the diet is strange dreams. I've had some weird ones the past couple of nights and I'm hoping to blame it on the diet. Yesterdays made a bit of sense but I can't quite remember the ones from last night - I just know they were strange and long and drawn out.

Disoriented

This week I've felt extremely disoriented. I have a great new job which I'm 100% thankful for. At the same time I went from unemployment to vacation to working full time and at the moment I have no idea which way is up. On top of this the Rob Bell show was in Denver last night - I miss being under his teaching on a weekly basis - perhaps it's time to start listening to the podcasts. But that's not exactly the point - it was also absolutely strange to see him here instead of at Mars Hill. Hopefully I'll find myself back soon.

Day One Down

Day one of the new job went well. Yay. I'm gonna go back for day two, how cool is that?

Heeeeere's Autumn

Fall came to Denver while I was in Puerto Rico. The leaves are absolutely gold (not really any other colors here like in Michigan) and there's a chill in the air even though the temperatures during the day have been pleasant. I'm not usually a fan of fall - mostly because it means that dreaded winter is on the way. Today however, a sunny day with highs around 70, feels like the perfect fall day and I really hope to enjoy it. Not exactly sure of how because I'm headed to Boulder for a jewelry party featuring jewels designed by a friend of a friend and then back to Denver for Faure's Requiem at St. John's. I'm afraid that I'll have to enjoy the weather on the drives because now that daylight savings time has hit (or has it left - so confusing) the sunset is before 5! This I do not like.

I'm also sitting today in anxious and excited anticipation of starting my new job tomorrow. The position has responsibilities I know I can do from the start and others that I am going to have to learn. I so, so want to do a wonderful job, find pleasure in what I'm doing, and most of all, last at a job longer than 10 months. That's my record since leaving Grand Rapids, where I held a job for 4 years. I know I can do it! (At least I keep telling myself that.) I accepted this position because I believe it holds the possibility of these things I long for, and so now it's up to me to wow my new employer and kick ass. Starting with going through my closet and continuing through performing above and beyond their wildest imagination.

Grass Is Greener?

My high school class celebrated it's 10th Anniversary with a dinner in October. I didn't go to Michigan for the occasion, and honestly I probably wouldn't have gone even if I did live in Michigan. Unlike most people, I have almost no good memories of high school and the only reason I would be tempted to go is to see who got fat. Harsh yes, and it's the truth nonetheless.

I did however order the commemorative book to see what was going on with people. Seems I'm in the 5% of people who aren't married with at least one kid living in the suburbs of Grand Rapids. It was interesting to me that my reaction was almost one of relief. If you would have asked me 10 years ago where I would be in 10 years I would have said by 28 I would absolutely be married and have kids - although I would have been living in the city, probably in Chicago. I've always loved the city. In any case, I can't remember a time where I've been so thankful not to have what I thought I wanted. Do I still want a family - yes - however I don't want to have a typical suburban family. I'm sure that my classmates find some joy in being a family - most of them listed having kids or getting married as their greatest accomplishment. Thing is, I want a family and so much more out of life and I think that the bumpy road I'm on is the right one for me.

Moral of the story - this is the first time in a while I truly feel like the grass is greener on my side of the fence.

And We're Back...

The past week and a half has been overly eventful - here's a quick update.

I had the luxury of taking a week long trip to Puerto Rico. I was good to get out of Denver for a bit and see another island and culture. I had hoped to spend tons of time one the beach but alas Tropical Storm Noel, or more specifically his predecessor Tropical Depression 16, dumped inches and inches of rain on the island and sent a thick layer of clouds for the entire time that we were there. I was able to see much of the island - if in the grey - and I'm glad to be home now.

I'm also newly employed! This morning I accepted a great position and I'm excited to start on Monday. The job is in downtown Denver and is a great opportunity for me. I'm pumped, and ready to use these last couple days of unemployment to their fullest. Here's to the next chapter.