Friday, February 5, 2010

#1

The #1 on my good list today is "unexpected re-connections".

Today I got a message from a girlfriend I haven't talked to in (at least, if not more than) a year, and we picked up right where we left off. Now, I know I have given thanks for this kind of thing before, but this was extra special, because typically when I talk about good friends being able to catch up right where they left off, they are friends that I have known for years. This woman and I knew each other for (maybe) 6 months, during which time we went out to coffee together once.

And yet today we chatted for well over an hour, and she was able to bless me and fill a very specific need for me. This conversation was so exactly what my heart needed today... it takes my breath away.

Amazing.


...And I'm so thankful.

May your day be blessed, friends.
(And, if you're in OH, like me, may you be blessed with an early dismissal from work and a safe trip home.)

Wednesday, February 3, 2010

Compare and Contrast

Well... I've gotta say, yesterday was definitely "one of those days." ... You know what I mean, we've all been there. And, while I like to always look on the sunny side, yesterday provided me with several obstacles. See for yourself:

1. It snowed on Monday night. And I wore flats on Tuesday morning (collective groan) ... Scraping off one's car in flats is not a pleasant proposition. ... Unless maybe I was being paid. (and, unless you really are creative in your interpretation, ie: "I scrape my car so I can go to work and get paid") ... I wasn't.
2. My "automatic entry key" died a tragic death (note to self: get new batteries ASAP!) somewhere between the hours of 5pm Monday and 7am yesterday. ... Which wouldn't be such a big problem, except that I had used the key ring to lock the car the previous night. ...Which means that not only was I freezing my tootsies off in my inappropriate footwear... but my car alarm was going off. ... needless to say, my father would not be proud of the words that were coming out of my mouth ... It wasn't pretty.
3. My drive in to work took 50 minutes (it usually takes half that, tops.)
4. And all that--- before I got a cup of coffee!
5. Oh yes... and there was that small matter of me "poisoning my husband" ... (more on that later)

But, as a contrast (thank goodness!) here is what this morning looked like:

1. I wore fuzzy boots this morning. It doesn't matter that it didn't snow last night (and it's only "light flakes" this morning), I learned my lesson!
2. I didn't have to scrape my car (I give thanks for this a lot during the winter. I am also counting down the years days until I have a garage :)
3. For some reason I don't understand (and it's at these moment when I do NOT admit that I'm an engineer ...) my auto-entry is working again this morning?! ... Could it have to do with the cold, or snow in some crevice where it wasn't supposed to be (heh)? ...Not one to question a blessing, I just (very) happily went with it ... and am still getting myself to the store for a battery a.s.a.p.
4. My drive to work took the normal length of time -- AND, above and beyond that, I was on time for work this morning!
5. And ... just so I make it clear that yesterday wasn't a total loss... the season premiere of LOST was fabulous. Easily my favorite part of the day :)

So now here I am ... sipping coffee and doing a bit of reflecting on the past week. It's been busy for sure, and there's been a lot of stress and some "not-so-good" things that have happened ... but it's been all right (hey-- I'm still standing!) Last week was "report week" at work (which = crazy busy), but I was really blessed that I didn't have to work any "overtime" (side note: can you still call it overtime if you're a salaried employee? ... or do you just call it "working late"?) There has also been a bit of "personal stress", as I've been praying for a friend whose job is lying in the balance, a friend who has been dealing with some heartache, and my father, who is going through (what will, I hope be the last) round of skin cancer treatment. In short... I'm ready to move forward, so I'm glad that with the start of this new week (and new month! Hallelujah, only 6 more weeks of winter!) I got a fresh start.

In slightly funnier "misfortunate news" ... the past week has held stories of a "kitty-melt-down", and (ulp) the "poisoning". Soo... to be chronologically correct... I've gotta start with the cat story.

Last Thursday, J and I took Baron and Gracie to the vet. I didn't choose to bring them both in together (that was just the way the appointment was given to me), but I thought that there would be several positives to taking "the babies" in together -- (1) Obviously, the biggest "pro" was that we got it done all at once. No need to keep track of multiple appointments, and we only had to "catch and box up" Baron and Gracie once. (2) While Baron isn't too crazy about the vet, Gracie (sweet, friendly girl that she is) doesn't mind. She'll be a little concerned and slink around for a while... but then she'll warm up to the idea. I think (truly) she enjoys people telling her how pretty she is and how well she's doing.... so it's not a bad situation (... eh hem... except the thermometer part-- and who can blame her?) And (3) J & I were taking the cats together... so I felt pretty confident that we could handle anything.

Heh. Famous last words.

Everything started out normally. ...Almost too easy, in fact. J got the cat carriers out of the closet, and the cats hopped in to explore (negating the "chase him down and sit on him while J brings in the carrier" routine)-- and we were on our way. We had the typical "conversation" going the whole way (vet's office is 5 minutes down the road): "Brrrrrowrowrow" -- so you could tell that Baron was a little annoyed ... but once we got him into the exam room, he completely lost his cool. Our sweet tempered, patient cat became possessed. No. joke. He growled and hissed, attacked poor Gracie when she wandered over to see what was wrong, and wouldn't get out of his box. A physical exam was completely out of the question-- and the vet was lucky to get his weight and heart rate (I think she managed to do this "in box" ... and her comment to us was "Actually his heart rate isn't elevated at all." Hmm, that's ironic... she should have listened to me and J....)

Then, as if poor Baron hadn't had enough trauma for the day, she sent him home with "hormone therapy" (in the form of a purple collar containing 'feline pheromones' ,,,, the verdict is still out on that). Needless to say ... J and I needed a drink or 3 . Luckily (and this is definitely a good part of the week!)the next day J and I met up with some friends for Friday happy hour to laugh over our "first major parenting trauma". (Disclaimer: Yes, I KNOW that once I have a child this will seem like nothing... but it had been a long week... and it makes for an entertaining story, so give me a break :)

And now the poisoning story (*sighs*). Keeping in mind that the past week has been somewhat less than stellar, all I wanted to do on Monday evening was curl up in bed with a good book (read: deciding what to cook for dinner was the last thing on my mind.) Imagine my delight when I all of a sudden realized that J and I had in our cabinets all the makings of one of my favorite recipes: Cheesy Chicken and Rice Casserole! I slaved away for 15 minutes in the kitchen, popped it in the oven for 45 minutes, and Voila! Melty, warm cheesy goodness! Perfect for a cold gray evening. Er. Well, it would have been perfect.... if J and I had not started feeling crummy pretty soon after ... I don't know about you, but spending the evening in the bathroom is not exactly my definition of a comfort food. :(

So... definitely my "domestic goddess FAIL" of the week. What makes it worse is that I can't figure out what might have been wrong with it ... All of the ingredients (besides the cheese) were either canned or frozen. The chicken had been thawed properly and completely, and I baked it for the time I was supposed to (there was no question about whether the chicken had been fully cooked.) I guess (truthfully) this fact makes me feel a little bit better ... because it wasn't something silly I did ... but it's still a mystery, and I feel annoyed that I don't have 1/2 a pan of leftovers like I was planning to. Ah well...

All right.... have I talked enough to make up for my lack of blogging last week? (Yes, I missed you, too :)

Now we'll move on to the important part: the LISTS!

Good List

1. J. Still my "bestest" best friend.
2. Planners. For "list-y people" like yours-truly, the bigger the better (although it's still got to fit in my purse!) I love large spaces so I can write lots :)
3. Daydreams. This past week, I have been doing a lot of dreaming about houses (!) attributed mostly to the "Free Homebuyers Seminar" I attended on Wednesday.
4. The Dublin library. I love all the places to sit and read, and I love that I can take "the back way" to get there-- which involves huge trees, huge houses, and old Dublin. Love Love LOVE.
5. Cheeseburgers. Because sometimes, nothing else will do :)
6. Huge coffee cups (for obvious reasons!)
7. Girls' day out (this Saturday) -- complete with massages! Can you believe I've never gotten a (professional) massage before?!
8. Huge purses, that carry books, umbrellas, planners, pictures, and enough pens to share :)
9. DQ Blizzards. A.Maze.Ing. It has been way too long, my sweet love ....
10. Being able to step back and count my blessings, especially when things get a little bit "not so good".

10 things that I believe (from the very bottom of my heart) I could not live without
(This is, of course, completely tongue-in-cheek. I like to think I am a very resourceful girl, and could do without any of these things, if absolutely necessary :)
10. Fuzzy (snow proof) boots
9. Bath tubs
8. Red Wine
7. Quiet, alone time
6. Pizza
5. Sunday comics
4. My i-Pod (how else to conquer the miles?!)
3. COFFEE
2. My library card
1. My weekly "Good Lists"

All right ... that's all for now - Happy Wednesday, friends! Make it a good one :)