Win Some... Lose Some...

Today was full of wins and losses

Win:  We don't have to clean the carpet at the old apartment
Loss:  over Christmas vacation, homeless people were living in our apartment, and went through all of our stuff

Win:  Nothing was stolen!
Loss:  Who knew that I had an old social security card in the bottom of a jewelry box

Win:  Credit Fraud Protection is free, and took 5 minutes to set up
Loss:  Misty ate an Oreo

Win:  The party kit for the ABC Family Sneak Peak party pack arrived!
Loss:  The Pretty Little Liars favors are a total loss

(Viewing party, anyone?)

Win:  My Bath and Body Works order came!
Loss: We have more crap in this house!!!

Win:  My Gold Starbucks Card came!!
Loss:  it has my married name on it.  I need a gold sharpie to cover it!

And now, time to take down the tree!

Well that was unexpected!

This was my weight before we left for Texas.

In Texas I didn't exercise.  I ate like a pound of fudge, and smothered, covered, bacon topped, fried and smoked things.  Vegetables? Not a one.  I had cereal for breakfast every day, with whole milk.  I haven't had whole milk in YEARS!

Don't get me wrong.  it was all tasty.  So I figured that I'd gain a few pounds then work harder when I got home.  (I didn't factor getting sick)

This morning. I step on the scale and see this:

I lost a pound.

(The 169.4 goal is my 10% Weight Watchers goal)

Color me surprised!

Merry Christmas from the Lone Star State

Warning! This is going to be a long blog post. It's a collected post from my entire trip to Texas!

~December 20, 2013~
Greeting from the Lone star State! We're spending the week with the Spousal Equivalent's family in Texas.

The trip started with a red eye into Houston. We landed well after 11 (local time) and were picked up by the SE's step sister. We then drove to the outskirts of Houston, out where the roads and narrow and curvy. Out where the pavement ended. Out where the stars were bright.

SE's dad's house reminds me of Camp Talooli. A pond and fishing and the like.

Everyone in his family was so warm and friendly. I felt so welcomed by the family.

~December 20, 2013~
The day after we got there, it was decided that we would borrow a car and drive to SE's mom's place. The drive was just over 4 hours. We drove through wide farm land, with vistas larger than I've ever seen. We drove past ranches. Everything was wide open and green.

Eventually we started traveling up, gaining altitude. The green grass was replaced by brown grass and brushy shrubs. Then we started seeing cactuses. We had eventually reached Texas Hill Country. The topography was exactly what I pictured Texas

would look like.

~December 23, 2013~
We made sure that we got time to see his mom. She's currently undergoing treatment for Breast Cancer. She seems to be doing well, but she gets tired so easily. After only 2 days there, we left to come back to his Dad's place. I don't think she could handle any more of us.

~December 24, 2013~
Christmas Eve morning started too early. I couldn't sleep. I was trying to puzzle out gifts to buy for SE's family (that could be obtained at Wal Mart). The SE was just up. He couldn't sleep.

Later on we found out why. This year the SE got the Flu for Christmas. He slept on and off all day. I hung out with his family. Thankfully his family is the easiest family to hang out with!

Today was also a first. It was the first time that I heard the phrases "dagum" and "fixin' to" used in a sentence.  Unironically! Yup, I'm in Texas!

~December 25, 2013~
All too soon, Christmas was upon us. We actually woke before anyone else in the house, due to the both of us being such morning people. Thankfully the Spousal Equivalent is feeling better. He's still not well, but he's doing much better than last night.

~December 27, 2013~
Our last night in Texas passed with little fanfare. Leftovers were eaten. Movies were watched. The lingering cigarette smoke in the house really was bothering me, so I went to bed at a reasonable hour.

I woke before dawn, after a night of tossing and turning. I didn't feel so hot.

We left before first light for the airport. And the unthinkable happened. The plane was broken. After a delay of almost 4 hours (and the complete missing of our connecting flight), we finally got into the air, headed to Atlanta. Our connection was rebooked, landing at 10pm, instead of 3:30. Which is quite the difference. I'm sick, and in need of my puppy.

The vacation was great, but I just want to be home.

I got choked up as we left this morning. I went into this trip nervously. I didn't know what to expect. And as much as I desperately want to be home, I will miss the adventure that we are on.

Edited to Add:

We spent the last few hours of the trip at a gate at the Atlanta Airport.  Maybe 3 gates down from us was this Asian Gate agent.  He had an accent that wold have been offensive, if the guy wasn't already Asian.  And man, was he funny!  At one point, as people were crowded around the gate, for an already late flight he enthusiastically asked:  "Who is ready to go to Mobile?"  The crowed answered "We are!"  he then added, "Great, can one of you fly the plane?  We need a pilot."

Can I have some wine with lunch?

Here in the department it's Graduate Application season.

This is me.  For like the last few weeks.

Why?  Because for some reason there is a mountain of trouble associated with the applications this year.

• I've had a record number of people that claimed that they uploaded materials, when there was no place TO upload them.  
• I've had multiple people send me copies and scans of transcripts, even after I ask for them to from the registrar, in a sealed envelope.
• I've had more than a few people not able to find the mailing address, even when it's on the website.  In bold.  With a title.  Centered on the page.
• Many supplemental materials are late because they were sent to the college's PO box.  Just the PO box.  With no department or name on it.  
• The post office has been sending out transcripts that DO have the department's name on it to Undergrad Admissions.
• GRE scores from October never showed up.  Simply never showed up.  I can't do anything about it.  Somehow this is my fault.
• Somehow not knowing that we require official transcripts and GRE scores.  even after you've applied here before

I spent 5 hours yesterday sending emails detailing what materials were missing.  Which triggered an avalanche of emails back INSISTING that their materials were in.  In some cases, they are transcripts that I suspect are misplaced in other offices.  In others.... seriously... write the correct address!!

Can I have wine now?

It's been one of those days

I decided to go to Target after work. So I get on the highway....

And forgot to get off.

I know. Seriously. I ended up on the same road that the old apartment is on, so I decided to pick some things up. Of course, I forgot the cat litter scoop.

I got home and unloaded the car. After taking everything inside, I let out the dog to get her leashed up for a walk.

I opened the door and who went out? The cat.

Yes. The cat. I shouted. The cat froze. She ran in and was pounced by the dog.

That was a perfect summing up of my day. After a day alone in the office, forgetting to run the errand that I left to run, forgetting to pick up the item I went to the old place to get, and the cat getting out.... I needed wine.

So dinner was spaghetti carbonara with a side of wine.

No dishes, laundry and maybe some unpacking.

Race Day!

Yesterday I did this!!

My day started early.  My alarm went off at 6.  I got up and made breakfast, only eating half of it.  I didn't know what to wear.  How hot the day would get.  How warm I'd feel in the race.

I settled on a pair of yoga pants, my cold weather running top, with the official race shirt over it.  I wore my Jayne hat (which I took off half way through the race).

We got there, and I found my friends.  My Weight Watchers group.

(This picture is actually from the end of the race)

Soon after the race started, it was clear that I needed to keep my own pace, so I ran alone.  The race course started out in the parking lot before going into the park.

We ran into the park on the path between Ireland and New France.  On that hill.  Seriously!  The hill felt almost vertical!

We ran through New France, then into Germany.  We circled the tree that is outside of Das Festhaus before heading to the bridge that leads to San Marco.  There were Marines stationed on the bridge in full uniform.

From San Marco, we ran to Holiday Hills.  Around the tea cups (my favorite ride), then down by Escape to Pompeii.  Then through England, Ireland and back out to the parking lot.  From here, the race route snakes back and forth in the parking lot.  The back and forth was rather advantageous.  I'd run into the faster runners from my group.  They shouted encouraging things to me.  I shouted encouraging things to the runners from my group that were behind me.

Now, when I say run I was overstretching the truth.  I half run and half walked the race.  Until the end.  I saw the finish line.  And I saw my Spousal Equivalent.  And I shouted to him (the quote on the button, which, like the hat is from Firefly):

And I crossed the finish line.

1:12:33

I did it!!!

Well, we've done it. We're living somewhere else now!

Well, my birthday weekend was quite the weekend.  Saturday started early.  It was cold and wet.  And I had the pets in the car.  You see, the pets were to be the first of our family to move into the new house.

The next few hours were filled with a flurry of incredible helpful friends helping us pack our crap into boxes and bags and haul it to the new place.  Our old apartment looks like a tornado hit it, and is in desperate need of cleaning.

The new house?  It's coming along.  My books are unpacked.  His are getting there.  We still have random boxes of things.  There are still things that we can't find.

But the living room is put together.  The tree is up.

Everything else will happen when it happens.

As for the rest of my birthday weekend?

It didn't go as planned.  Most of the scheduled activities were rained out.  My race was postponed.  Christmas Town was put off for another day.

Come to think of it, I didn't have any cake....

There is so much to do!!!!

Yesterday and today, around 4pm, it happened. The panic attack. The muscles in my jaw were so tight and overused that my chin hurt. Mind you, I'm not grinding my teeth, just clenching my jaw.

Why am I stressed? Oh, let's see.

~ Thursday is a big deadline at work. This deadline means a massive amount of work in the next two weeks

~ new choir music! and a backlog of work that needs to get done, with no time to do it

~ we're moving!!!! On Saturday!!!

~ I'm running a race on Sunday. Apparently I'll be running it in an ice storm. A storm that will ruin my birthday plans

I have decided that tonight I'll have cake and I'll take tomorrow as it comes. Maybe I'll take an afternoon off of taking things over to the new house.

But now...cake.

December 1, and I have too much to do!

It's official.  In 6 days we move.  In 7 days it's my race.

I can see that we have a good amount of items already out of the house and safely at the new place.

But there is so much more to do!

I've already brought over the lion's share of my clothes, all of my books, all of the clothes in my closet, and all of the items that I have stored.

And it doesn't seem like it's made a dent.

So here's my plan for the rest of this week:

Today: pack everything.  Fill every box that we have left here.

Monday-Thursday: Fill the back seat of my car with said boxes every morning and deliver the boxes to the new place every evening on my way home.

I think along the way I'll make even more bags of stuff to donate.  I have WAY too much stuff!

Now, off to pack.
But maybe a nap first.  We went to Christmas Town yesterday and I am tired!