Friday, August 27, 2010
New Name
I need a new name for the blog. A lot of people offer prizes for those who come up with the best blog name, but I don't embroider or sew, and I can't really cook/bake you something if you don't live in Dallas. However, if you want your name announced on this super cool blog, I am taking suggestions! Hope everyone is having an awesome Friday!
Thursday, August 26, 2010
Is There a Need for TV?
For two weeks, I was given the opportunity to see what our lives would be like if we didn't have television as a distraction. Aside from missing internet, I was so happy. There was no constant noise from as soon as we woke up until the time we fell asleep at night. You could have a conversation without asking/yelling that the tv be turned down, or "could you please pay attention to me rather than staring at some crime show that you can pause?"
I will say that we missed the news, but isn't that what the newspaper is for? Mike and I also watch different types of news. He enjoys Fox News while I prefer CNN. When CNN is on, Mike feels the need to make comments like, "Oh Obama, I am so glad that you were able to take a vacation while the United States is in crisis." Ok - if this was reported on Fox, would I get the same reaction?? He went on vacation either way! Regardless, it is just the point of having the noise.
We seemed to forget in these two weeks, how important it was that we not miss an episode of "Jersey Shore" (yes, I am honest. We watch it) or "Project Runway." In fact, when we were setting up our recordings, I couldn't remember half the things that I HAD to watch before we moved here. I am not all high and mighty. I definitely watched movies when we didn't have cable and I was too tired to read, but still, I think TV has gotten a little out of control.
By the way, did you know you can get books read to your children on video now?? We seem to be missing the point...
That's all for now. I am going to attempt to organize our bedroom...somehow in just 4 days we have a laundry pile up! How does this happen??
I will say that we missed the news, but isn't that what the newspaper is for? Mike and I also watch different types of news. He enjoys Fox News while I prefer CNN. When CNN is on, Mike feels the need to make comments like, "Oh Obama, I am so glad that you were able to take a vacation while the United States is in crisis." Ok - if this was reported on Fox, would I get the same reaction?? He went on vacation either way! Regardless, it is just the point of having the noise.
We seemed to forget in these two weeks, how important it was that we not miss an episode of "Jersey Shore" (yes, I am honest. We watch it) or "Project Runway." In fact, when we were setting up our recordings, I couldn't remember half the things that I HAD to watch before we moved here. I am not all high and mighty. I definitely watched movies when we didn't have cable and I was too tired to read, but still, I think TV has gotten a little out of control.
By the way, did you know you can get books read to your children on video now?? We seem to be missing the point...
That's all for now. I am going to attempt to organize our bedroom...somehow in just 4 days we have a laundry pile up! How does this happen??
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
How to Be Hired and Fired in 7 Days
Before I start this story, I have to say CONGRATULATIONS to my friend Ellen and her husband, Chuck. They had their first baby this afternoon, a beautiful little girl named Kate. So exciting!! I keep having dreams that I am in Birmingham meeting my little nieces, but alas, we are not. And would you believe that I have two more friends expecting in the next six months?? These are all friends that I grew up with in Birmingham!
Instead, we are adjusting well to Dallas, and I was even pleasantly surprised when I woke up this morning to find the temperature had dropped 30 degrees! It was 75 this morning and I was FINALLY able to go for a run. I know Mike was happy that I was able to run out some of my energy and anxiety.
Now, for the job. When we came down here, I was referred to a real estate agency by one of my college friends. She went to elementary school with the guy who owns the company and he is doing really well. Please keep in mind that he is also 30. Once we rented our house, I became friends with him on Facebook (always the social networking site) and noted that he needed a personal assistant. I decided to contact him about this and was hired as soon as we met. I worked for 2 days and then the entire next week. My list of duties included: Getting his Escalade gassed and washed, letting his dog out three times a day, and picking out new brown dress socks for him.
However, I was also given some responsibilities at the office. Suddenly, I was in charge of marketing, as well as the hired on I.T. person. It was stressful and I stayed several evenings until almost 7 pm.
On Friday evening at 8:00, I received a phone call from my boss. I was already dressed up to go out with Mrs. C and Mike and we were literally getting ready to drive away. My boss informed me that this relationship was not working and he would have to go "a different avenue." I was shocked. I asked three times for specifics as to what had gone wrong, and reminded him that I had only been around for a week - how do you know someone that quickly? Each time he was questioned, he stated that the relationship was not working and he was not going to go into details.
I burst into tears after I hung up. Mrs. C was FURIOUS. She kept talking about what a jerk he was, and how I couldn't take it personally - he didn't even know me! She offered to stay in, but I knew I would just sit there and try to figure out what I had done wrong. So we headed to a piano bar, I got a martini and proceeded on with the night. I am still having a hard time digesting this (who gets fired???) but also accepting this guy is a narcissistic jerk who seems to want everything placed as the most important thing going. By the way, did I tell you I drew up a contract for him, and also read through a contract and dumbed it down for him? All for an hourly wage?
Regardless, I am going to focus more on my legal career and look at this as a blessing. (Maybe tomorrow. :-) )
Instead, we are adjusting well to Dallas, and I was even pleasantly surprised when I woke up this morning to find the temperature had dropped 30 degrees! It was 75 this morning and I was FINALLY able to go for a run. I know Mike was happy that I was able to run out some of my energy and anxiety.
Now, for the job. When we came down here, I was referred to a real estate agency by one of my college friends. She went to elementary school with the guy who owns the company and he is doing really well. Please keep in mind that he is also 30. Once we rented our house, I became friends with him on Facebook (always the social networking site) and noted that he needed a personal assistant. I decided to contact him about this and was hired as soon as we met. I worked for 2 days and then the entire next week. My list of duties included: Getting his Escalade gassed and washed, letting his dog out three times a day, and picking out new brown dress socks for him.
However, I was also given some responsibilities at the office. Suddenly, I was in charge of marketing, as well as the hired on I.T. person. It was stressful and I stayed several evenings until almost 7 pm.
On Friday evening at 8:00, I received a phone call from my boss. I was already dressed up to go out with Mrs. C and Mike and we were literally getting ready to drive away. My boss informed me that this relationship was not working and he would have to go "a different avenue." I was shocked. I asked three times for specifics as to what had gone wrong, and reminded him that I had only been around for a week - how do you know someone that quickly? Each time he was questioned, he stated that the relationship was not working and he was not going to go into details.
I burst into tears after I hung up. Mrs. C was FURIOUS. She kept talking about what a jerk he was, and how I couldn't take it personally - he didn't even know me! She offered to stay in, but I knew I would just sit there and try to figure out what I had done wrong. So we headed to a piano bar, I got a martini and proceeded on with the night. I am still having a hard time digesting this (who gets fired???) but also accepting this guy is a narcissistic jerk who seems to want everything placed as the most important thing going. By the way, did I tell you I drew up a contract for him, and also read through a contract and dumbed it down for him? All for an hourly wage?
Regardless, I am going to focus more on my legal career and look at this as a blessing. (Maybe tomorrow. :-) )
Monday, August 23, 2010
Moving to the Big D
Well. We are here! I don't even know where to start because so much has happened in the past two weeks. Let's begin back in St. Louis when we rented a 22 foot truck, two guys to load it up and 6 hours later. We STILL had more furniture to load up. So the next morning, Mike's father left in the truck as I called around frantically trying to find a U-Haul trailer that we could load and hitch to Mike's car. We finally found a place available and started loading up. I can't even tell you how many boxes we loaded, unloaded, packed, repacked and STILL left things in our storage unit. I can't get over how much stuff we have. At 5:00 am one morning (the second night of sleeping on the floor in our condo)I told Mike I was done. I was leaving and refused to spend one more night in that place. When we woke up, I helped him load the last bit of things into the trailer and took off. I rolled into Dallas around 1:00 am. Mike didn't leave with me and secretly unloaded the trailer AGAIN trying to fit more things in.
Once we all got here, we began unloading. And unloading. We still can't use our garage because there is so much stuff in there. And oh, did I mention it has been 107 degrees here every day since we arrived?? You don't leave the house here unless you have your hair in a ponytail and are very scantily clad! Mike's mom left yesterday after helping decorate and unpack. She was so helpful in organizing things and "helping out" to buy a few "necessary" things for the house. Who can live without a few new candles and extra decorative accessories?
I made my first and last trip to IKEA. That place is nuts. We walked, and walked and walked some more. When we finally checked out, we had more in our cart than we came for, and I had popped an anxiety pill. BUT we were able to enjoy 2 hotdogs, 2 waters and a bag of chips for $2. Mike and I may end up heading out there just for cheap date nights!
So, Mike started classes last week. I will write in my next post about how I was hired and fired as a personal assistant within one week. (I know, I can't get over it and am still dealing with the blow to my pride.) However, we are getting settled in and are really happy to have relocated. We have already hung out with some friends that I knew in college and I just feel like we are going to be very happy here.
PS - Mike has not moved from the couch since the cable guy came today. Apparently we moved to Dallas so we could get a discount on U-Verse. I can't really tell a difference except that I now know I can know watch my DVRd Real Housewives of New Jersey in the other room.
PPS - I turned 30.
I will post again tomorrow to continue to catch you up. I want to show you pictures of our house! I am headed to bed as it is already 12:30. Good night!
Once we all got here, we began unloading. And unloading. We still can't use our garage because there is so much stuff in there. And oh, did I mention it has been 107 degrees here every day since we arrived?? You don't leave the house here unless you have your hair in a ponytail and are very scantily clad! Mike's mom left yesterday after helping decorate and unpack. She was so helpful in organizing things and "helping out" to buy a few "necessary" things for the house. Who can live without a few new candles and extra decorative accessories?
I made my first and last trip to IKEA. That place is nuts. We walked, and walked and walked some more. When we finally checked out, we had more in our cart than we came for, and I had popped an anxiety pill. BUT we were able to enjoy 2 hotdogs, 2 waters and a bag of chips for $2. Mike and I may end up heading out there just for cheap date nights!
So, Mike started classes last week. I will write in my next post about how I was hired and fired as a personal assistant within one week. (I know, I can't get over it and am still dealing with the blow to my pride.) However, we are getting settled in and are really happy to have relocated. We have already hung out with some friends that I knew in college and I just feel like we are going to be very happy here.
PS - Mike has not moved from the couch since the cable guy came today. Apparently we moved to Dallas so we could get a discount on U-Verse. I can't really tell a difference except that I now know I can know watch my DVRd Real Housewives of New Jersey in the other room.
PPS - I turned 30.
I will post again tomorrow to continue to catch you up. I want to show you pictures of our house! I am headed to bed as it is already 12:30. Good night!
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
The Last Three Days
We are moving on Friday. Mike's parents are going to be here in a few hours and I am very concerned that they are going to look at our condo, get back in the car and head back to Atlanta. Although we have been packing things, they are not as visible as all the stuff that is still laying out. One thing I discovered yesterday as I attempted to shove coats into a plastic tub is: we have too many jackets. What are we going to do with these in Texas and how in the world did we manage to accumulate so many over the past few years? Apparently I needed a jacket for every outfit, but Mike was not far behind me.
I am exhausted and am waiting for my coffee to kick in before anything I attempt to organize anything else. Last night Mike grilled hamburgers and I asked him what three things he was going to miss about St. Louis. After informing me that we were not on the Bachelor and that it was a "staged" question, he answered with, "The ability to find your way easily around the city??" and several other very boring points. Mine were:
1) My friends
2) The running routes I have discovered.
Do you think it is time for us to leave?
I am exhausted and am waiting for my coffee to kick in before anything I attempt to organize anything else. Last night Mike grilled hamburgers and I asked him what three things he was going to miss about St. Louis. After informing me that we were not on the Bachelor and that it was a "staged" question, he answered with, "The ability to find your way easily around the city??" and several other very boring points. Mine were:
1) My friends
2) The running routes I have discovered.
Do you think it is time for us to leave?
Monday, August 2, 2010
Packing and Relaxing
This is what I woke up to today. Before I went to sleep last night, Mike informed me that he needed to go through and pack up some of his papers. Apparently, he got distracted before that last key part was complete. href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCt4hYoxpGIMMxuBXBfYQyevQHXaZ6I994Zl-TocOqPnqHnbus9XGNu8QAQ5BofD-xf4NtIJYAH4e80soynpH8TgXwkUw41s7H_dee6GdFUHADAExbLtJH1th-hyCaSppyohYij0Kadink/s1600/IMG_0205.JPG">
href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8OqMMFaGFL50pY0iohH8P_V_bI5-7rRDm9IEmjaPUdpveZTDSDy24zFF_Mt8jDe5glMIoQBQ6xLJzlhpAnMS_EnzozDIZJWKNtiGZvBCEAaQ06GrWOUubedMc00OLSomrnQvOglkDEg4U/s1600/IMG_0204.JPG">
Here's the deal. I can't figure out how to write in between the pictures, and I don't know why there are weird symbols showing up, so I am just going to write what I need to write down here. First of all, the second and third pictures show just how much packing we have left to do. That has been our designated spot for wedding presents since we have run out of storage. Surprisingly enough, we have actually packed up quite a bit of it....you just can't tell. Look at sweet Lullabelle. I don't know who is going to have the panic attack first - her or me.
The next pictures were to show that we took some time off Saturday night to spend some much needed quality time with some of our favorite people in St. Louis. Mike grilled, we drank wine and played board games. It was a lot of fun, and something to look forward to as we continue to wake up every day trying to figure out what to pack next. Thankfully, Mike's parents are coming in town Wednesday. Mike's father has volunteered to drive the U-Haul truck, and I am hoping that we might get a little extra packing help from a new set of eyes. Sometimes it is easier to pack/clean when it is not your house!
As promised before, I need to tell you about our trip to the University of Texas - Dallas (UTD) and the floozie secretary. Mike and I met with the graduate director of the school to help him figure out more precisely what his plan is next year. She then took us to meet the Dean of the school. As we walked into his office area, we were met by what I can only call a Texas Barbie. Her blonde curly hair flowed gracefully down her shoulders and her flawless skin and perfect smile greeted us when we opened the door. Mike's teacher introduced her, and I quickly dismissed her name because I didn't think we would be having a lot of interaction with her. UNTIL, the teacher introduced Mike and stated, "Mike is also in the Phd program with you." Of course he is.
Mike began babbling about how he will "see her in the fall" and walked away to meet the dean as I stood there feeling very short and pimply. Kind of like 7th grade all over again. I stuck my hand out and introduced myself as Mike's wife. She was very nice and of course, I don't think she is out to steal my husband, but it was a little intimidating. As we walked outside, Mike's professor whispered to me, "Don't worry, they don't all look like that." See - even she gets it!
So, we are going to be packing up the rest of the week. Please be thinking about us as make this crazy move without hopefully going crazy ourselves!!
Now, if I could only get this one to get out of the bed....
Have a wonderful Monday!!!
href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8OqMMFaGFL50pY0iohH8P_V_bI5-7rRDm9IEmjaPUdpveZTDSDy24zFF_Mt8jDe5glMIoQBQ6xLJzlhpAnMS_EnzozDIZJWKNtiGZvBCEAaQ06GrWOUubedMc00OLSomrnQvOglkDEg4U/s1600/IMG_0204.JPG">
Here's the deal. I can't figure out how to write in between the pictures, and I don't know why there are weird symbols showing up, so I am just going to write what I need to write down here. First of all, the second and third pictures show just how much packing we have left to do. That has been our designated spot for wedding presents since we have run out of storage. Surprisingly enough, we have actually packed up quite a bit of it....you just can't tell. Look at sweet Lullabelle. I don't know who is going to have the panic attack first - her or me.
The next pictures were to show that we took some time off Saturday night to spend some much needed quality time with some of our favorite people in St. Louis. Mike grilled, we drank wine and played board games. It was a lot of fun, and something to look forward to as we continue to wake up every day trying to figure out what to pack next. Thankfully, Mike's parents are coming in town Wednesday. Mike's father has volunteered to drive the U-Haul truck, and I am hoping that we might get a little extra packing help from a new set of eyes. Sometimes it is easier to pack/clean when it is not your house!
As promised before, I need to tell you about our trip to the University of Texas - Dallas (UTD) and the floozie secretary. Mike and I met with the graduate director of the school to help him figure out more precisely what his plan is next year. She then took us to meet the Dean of the school. As we walked into his office area, we were met by what I can only call a Texas Barbie. Her blonde curly hair flowed gracefully down her shoulders and her flawless skin and perfect smile greeted us when we opened the door. Mike's teacher introduced her, and I quickly dismissed her name because I didn't think we would be having a lot of interaction with her. UNTIL, the teacher introduced Mike and stated, "Mike is also in the Phd program with you." Of course he is.
Mike began babbling about how he will "see her in the fall" and walked away to meet the dean as I stood there feeling very short and pimply. Kind of like 7th grade all over again. I stuck my hand out and introduced myself as Mike's wife. She was very nice and of course, I don't think she is out to steal my husband, but it was a little intimidating. As we walked outside, Mike's professor whispered to me, "Don't worry, they don't all look like that." See - even she gets it!
So, we are going to be packing up the rest of the week. Please be thinking about us as make this crazy move without hopefully going crazy ourselves!!
Now, if I could only get this one to get out of the bed....
Have a wonderful Monday!!!
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