Thursday, December 2, 2010

DIY not entirely FUN

I bought this townhouse in Houston, knowing I would have to put in some work to make it look presentable. Knowing this, of course, did not prepare me for actually tackling the many "little" jobs I've decided need to get done. The first thing I did was handle the closet situation: I had to have my clothes organized so that I could feel like my life was back in order after living out of suitcases for a month. That job was fairly easy and only required a few hours of my time. The rest of the work has been all but smooth sailing.

  
Before
One day, I went to Sears to find an over the range microwave and instead ended up buying a new washer and dryer. I can be impulsive at times, so this didn't come as a big surprise. I bought the things (on sale of course) and hoped they would fit in the tiny room you could (but shouldn't) call a laundry room. It's more of a closet. I did my prep work, sold the old washer/dryer that came with the place, painted, laid tile down and waited for my beautiful new W/D.
After








They finally arrived and the guys that were supposed to install it told me there's no way they will fit in that small space. I told them to try anyway because, COME ON, you can't do that to a lady who clearly is really excited about the new W/D. So they shook their heads and did as they were instructed. Of course, they tell me that the drain for the washer (in the wall) is too small to accommodate the hose. Could they get a different hose? No. I need to call a plumber and have them put in a different pipe. Awesome. Thankfully, Spencer was here helping with renovations, and he trotted off to the local hardware store and bought the necessary pieces to make the whole thing work. Kind of my hero. So once that was done, we faced the problem of getting the stacked W/D into the small space with no dolly. Much grunting and swearing was involved, but we got it in most of the way. At one point, it seemed as if we could push no further and the door to the "room" would not close. I was faced with two options: either return the W/D (not going to happen) or take off the door and put up a curtain to cover the W/D. Spencer offered up another solution. Try to push it in juuuust a little more. It worked. I squealed with delight and couldn't be happier.
New W/D in tiny "room"

This, unfortunately, was not the only problem I faced that day. I was supposed to have the over the range microwave installed (I actually went out and bought one!). The guys arrive with the 72 (!) pound microwave and take one look at the 30 year old hood in place over the stove and tell me it's not going to happen. Why? The hood is most likely hard wired and the microwave has to have a plug. I pointed to the plug next to the stove...no, something needs to be done with the wires from the hood. I need to call an electrician. Seriously? Spencer jumps in and says, of course he can install an outlet for me. What? Well, ok. So off he goes, yet again, to the store, buys the necessities and within hours I have a new outlet above the stove, hidden in the cabinet. Wow. Problem solved, right? Nope. The microwave is actually way too big to fit in the designated space, so I need to buy a much smaller (yet more expensive, somehow) microwave and have it installed. Life without a microwave is a little frustrating, but not impossible. I'll just have to reheat things on the stove for a while longer.

Today I installed a new light in the bathroom and grouted the tile that Spencer laid yesterday. He also painted the bathroom for me (no more bright green!) and had removed the old vanity the other day. The light fixture was not too difficult to install, maybe a 30 minute job, and it only took that long because, like everything else in this place, the light box was off kilter and I had to figure out how to mount the light properly. Grouting took even less time, and now I just have to wait for it to fully dry before I can put in the new vanity, vanity top, faucet and baseboards along the wall.

New light fixture

It's coming together, slowly...and I'm trying to learn to be more patient when things go wrong. Murphy's law is at work with these renovations, but I'm determined to get this done no matter what. Every problem has a solution and with a little help from my friends, I'm sure I'll be able to tackle anything that comes my way.

Saturday, November 27, 2010

The Craziest Frickin' Day of my Life

Last weekend, I drove to Austin to see some friends and to participate in the Warrior Dash with Nichole. Some of my friends ran in the race on Saturday, so I got to hear all about the race first hand. They had some good advice, such as to bring a change of clothes, a trash bag and extra shoes. This advice only made me even more excited to get out there.

Nichole was gracious enough to let me stay the night at her place, so that we could head East in the morning for the race together. We woke up around 6:30 AM and groggily ate oatmeal and gathered our things (including the provisions we were advised to bring) and left shortly after 7:15 AM. According to the race website, we were supposed to arrive at least an hour before our run, which in retrospect was just a rouse to get us to wander around aimlessly and buy things from the many stands of Warrior Dash gear. We stood around watching the previous waves of people (a new wave started every half hour) racing through the last 3 obstacles of the race: a rope wall to climb, fire to jump through and a mud pit with barbed wire. We were very anxious to get started.

Excited about the race

After what seemed like entirely too long, it was finally our turn to start. The race started off easily enough, with just some hilly terrain and a few small walls to jump over. Then we rounded a corner and saw a sign that said "Danger, Obstacle Ahead." Sweet.

Jumping over cars
There were three rows of beat up old cars, not vintage, just circa 1990s, perhaps 80s, that we had to jump on top of to continue the race. There is something inherently fun about hearing the pounding of feet jumping on metal that made me smile. We continued along the trail and discovered more obstacles, some more fun than others. The easiest was a wall we had to climb up by way of rope. The most treacherous was the creek we had to wade through, only because we listened to the race staff and ran through it instead of treading carefully. Half of my left calf is covered in blue and purple bruises as well as scrapes that extend to my knee. Despite the fall (into a branch underwater? or perhaps an attack by an angry fish?), Nichole and I kept running, hopping through tires, crab walking over rope cargo nets (probably the most difficult obstacle), climbing through a web-like structure of rope and finally rounding the bend to the finish line.

Seeing the two rows of fire get closer and closer, I nearly had to stop because I was beginning to panic. The flames were so high...could I jump over the fire? Not a chance. I was doomed to trip and fall face first into the fire. I could see this happening in my mind as I effortlessly jumped over the fire and made it safely to the other side. Worried for nothing. The final obstacle was a giant pit of mud, filled with water and covered with barbed wire overhead so that you had no choice but to crawl through. As I came to the edge, I could hear the crowd yelling "dive!" - and not wanting to disappoint them, (and because when am I ever going to have this chance again?) I dove.

Muddy shoes for Green Sneakers
I know now why I was asked to bring the extra clothes and trash bag. I was drenched in mud and muddy water from head to toe. I crawled through the mud pit, with the nearby crowd cheering me on after my dive, unable to see because there was mud in my eyes. I probably should have left my contacts at home. I struggled to see and keep my clothes in place (mud is pretty heavy) and somehow managed to make it to the finish line. I did not win anything, but the experience was worth the trouble. I saw all kinds of people in that race, from a 9 year old boy holding his father's hand, a man in a kilt, with a long beard, Viking helmet and sword, to a woman in her 60s, smiling as she crawled out of the mud pit. This is definitely the craziest race I've ever done and I don't know if I will sign up again, but I am so glad that I had the chance to take part in it this year. I wonder what races await me in 2011...

Sunday, November 14, 2010

(Not so) Quick Recap

I haven't been blogging lately, but the fault is hardly mine. In the past month I have packed up my belongings, rented out my apartment, moved 3 hours away to live with my mom, started a new job, bought my first house (condo), begun some serious renovations, attended Hannah and Jessica's amazing wedding in Philly and had time to make jewelry...WHAT?

I believe the most stressful part of the last month was closing on the property I purchased, because who really ever knows what they're getting themselves into? And of course, as usual, I just HAD to get the place as soon as possible, only adding to the stress level. Patience is a virtue...well that may be so, but it's one I claim to hold. Now that the place is officially mine, I am thoroughly content with my decision, although a little overwhelmed by the renovations that need to occur. I keep telling myself that there is no rush and to commit to one project at a time, but we will see how it all goes.

Home Sweet Home

Now for the wedding! I arrived in Philly shortly after 2pm EST, but had to wait until Christie and Olivia's flights came in, so that we could all take a taxi together to the church for the rehearsal. Thank goodness for technology and internet on my phone to keep me occupied for 2 hours. :) The rehearsal was intense, but we got through it and went to Hannah and Jessica's apartment for the rehearsal dinner party. I believe some fire codes were being violated that night, but we all had such a great time squeezing around each other in the beautiful apartment that the new Jones-Lewis ladies share. Once everyone left the party, Hannah's bridesmaids and coordinators (Matt and Emma) started making bouquets for the following day. What a great idea! None of us had any experience arranging flowers, but they were all so beautiful that each arrangement was just gorgeous! To keep us happy, Hannah brewed up some yummy apple cider. It was a great end to the day.

The next morning (the wedding day!) was very relaxed...until we all had to cram into Jessica's car (Christie, Hannah, Olivia, Emma, Matt and me), with the flowers (8 bouquets) and dresses! We managed to laugh about the situation and dropped off Matt and Emma at the church to start setting up while the rest of us went to the Aveda school to get our hair and makeup done. I still can't believe it took 4 HOURS, and almost all of us redid our makeup once we got to the church, but it was nice not having to worry about the hair. The lady doing my hair told me after she had finished that it was her very first updo and proceeded to take about 75 pictures of my hair at all angles. Another 30 were taken after she did my makeup. Approximately. I am really glad she waited to provide me with this little tidbit after she had finished because she really did a great job and I would have worried for no reason.

My hair for the Jones-Lewis Wedding
Once we got to the church and into our dresses, it was getting serious. Hannah's dress was amazing, she looked so beautiful. Matt came to get us at 5:25 to go stand outside the church. I was the first bridesmaid on Hannah's side to go down the aisle, followed by Olivia and then Christie. We all stood at the front of the church as Hannah started walking down the aisle. And wouldn't you know it, I started to cry. In a room full of people, mostly strangers, my face was scrunched up in a feeble attempt at maintaining my perfect makeup. All eyes were on the bride as I let one tear escape, and the memory of the moment is bringing tears to my eyes right now. I guess I hadn't really thought about what was happening until that very moment, when I saw my friend of more than 10 years walking down the aisle to get married. MARRIED. (fights back tears)

Jessica walked down the aisle next, and joined Hannah at the front of the church. They each wrote their own vows and again I found myself struggling to hold back tears as I heard them making promises to love one another...why do I keep crying in public these days?! Hannah and Jessica had a unity sand ceremony, two vessels of different colored sand are poured into a third, larger vessel to represent the coming together of two lives. It was such a wonderful addition to the wedding and if I ever get married, it's def going to be a part of my wedding. The wedding actually only lasted maybe 15 minutes, and then we were off to the reception! It was at World Cafe Live and they had a nice buffet and a DJ playing only all the greatest songs ever! I kept waiting for a bad song, so I could take a break from dancing, but it NEVER happened. :) At some point in the night, I ran to the car to get the flip flops. It was necessary and I am not in the least embarrassed.

Getting ready for the wedding; Starbucks coffee a necessity.

Overall, the wedding was a huge success, and I was sad to leave Philly. Hopefully, once things settle down here, I can go visit again. In the meantime, I need to get this condo whipped into shape!

Monday, October 18, 2010

Project Coordinator: Day One

Let me start off by saying that while I am an early bird, 5:45am is just insane. I had a fitful night's sleep due to being A) excited about the first day of work B) afraid that I would oversleep and C) in a bed to which I'm not accustomed. Despite these issues, I still had a hard time getting up at 5:45am. To my frustration, I walked into the kitchen to find my mom already awake and asking a million questions about whether or not I'm ready for my first day, am I awake yet, what do I want to eat, etc. I realize it's nice of her to wake up with me and try to help me do things, and I really wish I could take her help graciously, but I am not that kind of person. At 5:45am, I want to make myself coffee and get ready without talking to anyone. I also have a severe problem with accepting her help with anything, I'm not sure why, but I get very anxious when she does things for me without asking. Instead of thanking her, I get upset.

 Traffic at 6:30am

Anyway, I leave from my mom's house at 6:30am and proceed to drive down I-45 to Sam Houston Toll to I-10 (kind of missed the exit, but this is the route I should have gone) to HWY 6. I had to go a roundabout way today because I have mush for brains this early in the morning and I missed the exit for I-10, which, by the way, is kind of hard to miss. I get to work just before 8am, get handed a stack of paperwork to fill out and then get introduced to about 15 people, and I can now tell you maybe what 3 of their names are.

I spent most of the day reading over the employee manual (about as exciting as it sounds), another manual about what I'll be doing (overwhelming) and training with my manager, Olga. Olga! She's from Russia, and there's another lady from Russia in the office with whom she frequently speaks Russian...it's very distracting because I want to understand what they're saying and I hear familiar words every now and then. The office (shared by everyone in the Translating Division) is large and I get my own L-shaped desk, complete with two monitors that go to the computer, a telephone (which rings incessantly) and a view of the vultures (wtf?) out in the parking lot. Not a bad setup.

Some highlights from the day: Olga seemed very impressed when I could answer her questions about what I'd learned (hooray for a pretty decent cramming memory) and I didn't cry on the drive home! Also, my "first day on the job" outfit was pretty great.

Note the subtle gray/black zebra printing on the skirt

Friday, October 15, 2010

Playing Tetris with my Belongings

Tomorrow is the big day: Moving Day. Being a procrastinator, I still have a lot to do, but I seem to work well under pressure, so I'm not too worried. I managed to fit the entire contents of my closet into the trunk of my Honda Accord, still on the hangers for optimal ease of unpacking (hopefully). With my closest barren, I realize that this is really happening. I am moving to Houston and starting a new job in mere days! I have been ignoring the obvious for at least a week now, keeping my mind busy with day to day things so that I would not freak out. I am feeling some panic right now, but it's probably only temporary. I have so much left to do that I don't have time to panic.

Moving has got to be one of the worst things in life. The only upside is that I have purged a LOT of stuff (either because I didn't want to pack it or because if I haven't even seen it in a year, it's of no use to me) and I will hopefully learn to not purchase frivolous things anymore. Or at least not as much. One can dream.


Yesterday was my last day at work and the ladies got me a cookie cake. I thought it was really sweet of them and wish I had thought to take a picture before everyone got a piece of it. They also had everyone meet for Happy Hour at Botticelli's on South Congress and we had a lot of fun! They had me take a shot and wished me well with my new job in Houston.


Speaking of procrastinating, I suppose I had better get back to packing so that I can do some more celebrating tonight. I am looking forward to seeing how much stuff I can fit into my car...

Wednesday, September 29, 2010

150 Mile Commute

It's times like this that really make me wish we had flying cars. I mean, come on, 2010 and I still have to drive on the road at no more than 70(ish) MPH? Lame.

The good news is that I finally got a job, in my field, closely related to languages, with other language nerds, that will give me great experience for jobs in the future. But I absolutely hate the idea of leaving Austin. And maybe I would hate the idea less if I were moving to Boston or New York, or even Seattle. These cities remind me of Austin, but the job is in Houston, aka Humidity Capital of the World. I am thankful that it is almost October and humidity should not be an issue, but my friends, my apartment, my activities, and my entire life is in Austin. How will I survive in Houston without these familiar things?

I did not have this feeling of utter despair when I moved to Croatia and I'm not sure why. Maybe because things were ending here, school was over, I had no job, I wasn't into any of the things I am doing now (kickball, book club, trivia night, races, etc.) and I wasn't leaving much behind.



I know it's only 150 miles away and I can visit over the weekends and Houston is probably a great city and the job is something that will be really good for me, but I am having the hardest time being happy about it. People are confused when I tell them I got a job because my face probably looks more like I'm telling them I just got rejected from 20 jobs.

I have so much to do before I move that I don't even want to think about it. Packing, what to do about my mail, where will I live, what should I do with my apartment here, I need to put in my 2 weeks at the bank, *ugh*. The "what ifs" are slowly driving me insane. I think once I just accept the situation, things will run more smoothly, but I really don't want this to be happening. It's all so fast.

I start work October 18th. I have about 2.5 weeks to move my life to Houston. Le sigh.

Sunday, September 19, 2010

Tri-Hard Challenge

800 Meter Swim
18 Mile Bike Ride

3.1 Mile Run

Completed.

















And I am really happy to have accomplished my goal...to finish the race. There were a few points during each part of the race where I wanted to give up (i.e. when I got kicked in the face while swimming; trying to climb those hills biking; seeming to NEVER get to the turn around while running), but I kept going and finished in 2:23:38 (2 hours, 23 minutes and 38 seconds). I was not aiming to finish in a certain amount of time since this was my first Sprint Triathlon, but with that time, I actually came in 2nd in my division.

Except they put me in the wrong division. Savanah finished the race almost a minute after me and got a 2nd place medal, and I got nothing because I finished 8th in the wrong division. 20-24 should have been my division (seeing as I'm 24), but they stuck me in 25-29 because I turn 25 this year. Well, they can suck it because I'm saying I got 2nd. I'll make my own damn medal.

The drive to Burnet was not bad, but I'm glad we went the day before so that we didn't have to get up at 5am race day and head out there. Our cabin was about 10 feet from the race starting point, kind of awesome. We went on a bike ride when we got there, just to see the road that we would be riding on the next day. After that, we went for a nice swim in the lake right before sunset and it was very relaxing. Dinner was pasta, some good carbs to have us nice and ready for the race the next day. We went to bed early (10pm) and woke up at 6:20am to get ready. It was still dark out, but people were ALREADY setting their bikes up at the transition area. Crazies.

Our wave started at 8:05 and I was ready...until I realized there were 80 people around me also trying to swim in the same direction, feet kicking and arms flying everywhere. I definitely took in some water and had to stop a few times to catch my breath. Savanah blew past me (as I knew she would) and finished a good 2 minutes before me. I caught up to her during the bike ride because her bike could not shift fast enough for the grueling hills (whoever said the ride was mostly flat, lied like a dog). Apparently it took me over 3 minutes to transition from Swim to Bike and only 52 seconds to go from Bike to Run, so you would think that I had more energy for the run. Wrong. I started running and it was tough! I walked a lot, which is how Savanah caught back up to me, finishing less than a minute after me.

It was tough, but I'm so glad I did it. The 8 weeks of training really helped; I don't think I could have finished without it. Now on to my next challenge...The Warrior Dash.

Tuesday, September 14, 2010

Boot Camp, Take 3

I'm not quite sure why I thought it would be a good idea to give Boot Camp another try (after failing miserably to complete the last two I signed up for), but Nichole asked if I wanted to do a free class with her and I said yes. Mostly because I wanted to hang out with her and exercise is good for you. Lunges, I have come to decide, are the devil.

The class started out simply, a short jog to the other side of the Mopac pedestrian bridge, and then it got serious. Relays. Lunges across the field followed by something I've forgotten the name of (essentially consists of jumping down into Plank and coming back up into a jump) X3 and a sprint back where your partner awaits you. While your partner does what you just did, you must do tricep push-ups until they come back. And then it's time for another round of relays, this time with different kinds of lunges, and this goes on for way too long in my opinion. After this wonderful bout of exercise, we repeated everything in rapid succession, without the trade off with the partner - followed by endless crunches. As if this was no enough, we then had to hold Plank while each member went around the circle and jumped over us. If you made it to the end (everyone did), you had to run back to your car and call it a day...

Except that I thought it would be a good idea to ride my bike to Town Lake...meaning I had a good 30-40 min ride back. Needless to say, I am TIRED. Around 6th and Congress, I saw an accident involving a pedestrian and a car. I hope that guy is going to be OK. Sobering thing to see. Reminded me of the book I just finished reading last night, The Elegance of the Hedgehog. (Spoiler Alert!)



This book really threw a curve ball and upset me to no end. I nearly cried and that's really saying something. How could you just kill off one of the main characters? How heartbreaking! I truly enjoyed the book, but the last little bit seriously threw me for a loop and I am not a big fan of the ending. Or maybe I am, because it really does make you realize how precious life is and how little we appreciate it. Something to think about...

Friday, September 10, 2010

Life Right Now

I am currently working at Frost bank as a Teller and trying to figure out what I really want to do. I know this is not it. I would really like to go back to school and get my Masters, but I have yet to decide what I would like to study. Rather than sit back until a revelation hits me in the head like a falling brick, I'm taking steps toward figuring things out. I am studying for the GRE, which I am scheduled to take October 2nd. I just finished going through the book I bought today, and now I need to practice what I "learned." It has been nice getting a studying routine down again, but it has not gotten me closer to understanding my future.

I remembered today that when I take the test, they will ask me which schools I want them to send my score to...and I have no idea. Do I want to stay in Austin or should I go somewhere north like Boston or New Jersey? I have no idea. I am so tired of not knowing. I just need to make a decision, but I am so afraid that it will be the wrong one that I am stuck at a standstill. I think the only thing worse than making the wrong decision is to never make one at all, so I need to step up, make up my mind and just go for something. I will look into schools and programs this weekend and narrow it down to 5-10 options. That will give me a good start.

My first Triathlon is next weekend; I can't believe 7 weeks have already gone by since I signed up for this race. I am somewhat nervous, but excited as well. I have been training for almost 2 months, so I don't think endurance will be an issue, but we will just have to see. I already signed up for my next race, the Warrior Dash on November 21st. After reading about that race, the Triathlon seemed like a piece of cake!

Today marks 3 weeks since Lauren left Austin and I am definitely feeling her absence. She was my go-to friend for everything and she was always up for doing random things around town or just painting our nails and talking. It's Friday night now and none of my friends want to hang out. I'm going to try to take this as an opportunity to study and catch up on sleep instead of wallowing. Well, maybe I'll study after a little bit of wallowing. I'm entitled. My bff is an ocean away!

Thursday, September 9, 2010

iBlog

A few of my friends have recently started their own blogs, so I finally decided to do the same. I believe the most difficult aspect of any blog is coming up with a name and although I am not entirely happy with the one I have chosen (my other choices were already taken), it should no longer keep me from blogging.

My hope is that this blog will somehow allow me to express my thoughts in a way that, upon reflection, will bring me closer to understanding my place in the world. Perhaps those that read my blog will also be able to help me along the way.

A fairly vague introduction, but this is only the beginning...