I've been super busy, as usual the past few weeks or so. My boyfriend moved in last weekend and happily my two spare bedrooms have been made into rooms for his two kids who will occasionally stay with us. My house actually looks like people live here now, it's got that cozy lived in quality that my first place never really achieved. The only thing it's lacking now is...a Christmas tree.
I'm actually kind of excited this year about Christmas - well, I usually love Christmas, but it's so much cooler now with kids to do stuff with. For instance, I've never much been one for decorating for the holidays but kids...well, they expect it! Of course, I was in for a little sticker shock. Christmas trees are expensive! Holy crap, are they pricey! So, I've been trying to talk Chris into getting a Christmas Bush instead of a tree. We can put some white lights on it and call it Bob, after Robert Plant. We can even get some ornaments for it! And then we can put all the presents under the Christmas Bush and then after Christmas is over we can still have a plant in the house! Which is good because plants moisturize the air and it gets dry in here.
And another thing I'm looking forward to is buying presents. I know Christmas isn't supposed to be about presents but I've got more people in my life now and I want to let them know how much I appreciate them. And my parents are getting into the act now too, which I find so touching - my mom told me she's already getting Chris' kids some things for Christmas. And, of course, there's Chris. I've got a few things in mind for him myself.
Further, my brother Jeff and his wife Catherine are expecting their first child. When they were in town last weekend for our early Thanksgiving celebration they went and registered at Babies R Us for baby shower items. I'm so excited for them and of course I'll want to get them baby stuff. There are so many additions to my family, it's a little overwhelming, in the most awesome way possible.
Saturday, November 29, 2008
Sunday, November 16, 2008
VACATION!
I have big plans for next year.
Chris, my awesome AWESOME boyfriend, is going on my travel pass so he can travel with me. So far, we have talked about going to Scotland and San Fran but I also want to go someplace warm and beachy so I can sit in the sun (covered in sunscreen) and drink fruity alcoholic beverages. We also have plans to go down to Dallas in February to go to my sister in law's baby anti-shower (she doesn't like those goofy games that get played at baby showers and I have to say that I agree with her).
My vacation awards came out for next year too and I actually got everything I wanted. I got the first week in November, the first week in December, and another week in April, about the time my new niece/nephew will come into the world.
The cool thing about my job is that I can often arrange to have large chunks of time off all at once and still work a full schedule. For instance, I can generally put together five or six days off and do a little travelling if I felt like it but since my boyfriend is landlocked until January 1st, I typically stay home with him. Also, I don't actually feel like doing a ton of travelling when I have time off. I want to be home and enjoy my house and my family. But I do want to travel. I just want to take everyone with me!
Tomorrow I leave for Belfast again, so I've got to do some laundry and get organized, make sure I have enough to keep me occupied while I'm there for 48 hours. I really like the hotel in Belfast, they give us an awesome free breakfast and have a great gym, complete with a pool and sauna. There's a movie theatre up the street and lots of places to eat. My crew looks like a fun bunch and I think I'm going to have time to adjust to the time change there so I won't be exhausted when I get home, which incidentally is the same day my brother and his wife arrive in Cleveland for early Thanksgiving. Since my brother and I both have to work November 27th, we've moved my favorite holiday to Sunday, November 23rd. Chris will be there to celebrate too, so all the people I love most in the world will attend. What could be better than that?
Chris, my awesome AWESOME boyfriend, is going on my travel pass so he can travel with me. So far, we have talked about going to Scotland and San Fran but I also want to go someplace warm and beachy so I can sit in the sun (covered in sunscreen) and drink fruity alcoholic beverages. We also have plans to go down to Dallas in February to go to my sister in law's baby anti-shower (she doesn't like those goofy games that get played at baby showers and I have to say that I agree with her).
My vacation awards came out for next year too and I actually got everything I wanted. I got the first week in November, the first week in December, and another week in April, about the time my new niece/nephew will come into the world.
The cool thing about my job is that I can often arrange to have large chunks of time off all at once and still work a full schedule. For instance, I can generally put together five or six days off and do a little travelling if I felt like it but since my boyfriend is landlocked until January 1st, I typically stay home with him. Also, I don't actually feel like doing a ton of travelling when I have time off. I want to be home and enjoy my house and my family. But I do want to travel. I just want to take everyone with me!
Tomorrow I leave for Belfast again, so I've got to do some laundry and get organized, make sure I have enough to keep me occupied while I'm there for 48 hours. I really like the hotel in Belfast, they give us an awesome free breakfast and have a great gym, complete with a pool and sauna. There's a movie theatre up the street and lots of places to eat. My crew looks like a fun bunch and I think I'm going to have time to adjust to the time change there so I won't be exhausted when I get home, which incidentally is the same day my brother and his wife arrive in Cleveland for early Thanksgiving. Since my brother and I both have to work November 27th, we've moved my favorite holiday to Sunday, November 23rd. Chris will be there to celebrate too, so all the people I love most in the world will attend. What could be better than that?
Saturday, November 15, 2008
Gadget Girl
Yay! I just purchased a new computer! Well...a mini-laptop - it's got a nine inch screen and a little keyboard. It's got internal wireless and is preloaded with Windows XP. I got it with a DVD/RW drive so I can watch movies. It should be arriving in a week or so.
I've been doing the international thing for a little more than half a year now, and while I like it okay, I'm not enamored of it. And I think part of the problem is that it's hard to communicate with my family and my boyfriend from the UK. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE Edinburgh and Belfast has potential. London is okay and Paris was lovely. It's just...
The sleeping thing is hard. We get to the hotel anywhere from 3am-5am eastern. The UK is five hours ahead of us so it's 8 or 10am there. I go to bed pretty uch as soon as I get in (well, I take a shower first) and I try to sleep for about 6 hours. I wake up mid-afternoon UK time, I try for around 3:30pm (10:30 est). Sometimes I go and sightsee, but mostly I find something to eat and meet up with my crew although I've been making more of an effort lately to use the gym facilities at the hotels to try to get off the ten or so pounds that I've gained over the past year. (BOO!) Lots of beer and lack of excercise are a bad BAD combo.
If I'm lucky, I manage to stay up until 11pm or so and then I wake up for my van at around 6am...for those of you playing along, that's 1am eastern. If I'm not so lucky, I fall asleep at 9:30pm and wake up at 11 or so and then I'm up. All night long. I usually read or watch some tv or wander downstairs to the lobby to use the computer.
I can't telnet on those computers. I have to be relatively quick and considerate of other people who want to use the computer (1 computer for a whole hotel? SUCK!). Plus the computer in EDI has a crappy keyboard which causes a lot of typos.
I've been thinking about this for a while - how can I make myself happier when i'm away from home? I don't feel lonely, I just feel bored. I need some kind of entertainment for all those nights where I just can't sleep. I thought about getting an iphone. I thought about getting an itouch more because it doesn't require a data plan, it only requires wireless access. But I still can't telnet on the itouch. And the mini-laptop? Same price, more functionality. Besides, I already have an ipod video.
My new laptop should be arriving in a week or so and I can't wait!
I've been doing the international thing for a little more than half a year now, and while I like it okay, I'm not enamored of it. And I think part of the problem is that it's hard to communicate with my family and my boyfriend from the UK. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE Edinburgh and Belfast has potential. London is okay and Paris was lovely. It's just...
The sleeping thing is hard. We get to the hotel anywhere from 3am-5am eastern. The UK is five hours ahead of us so it's 8 or 10am there. I go to bed pretty uch as soon as I get in (well, I take a shower first) and I try to sleep for about 6 hours. I wake up mid-afternoon UK time, I try for around 3:30pm (10:30 est). Sometimes I go and sightsee, but mostly I find something to eat and meet up with my crew although I've been making more of an effort lately to use the gym facilities at the hotels to try to get off the ten or so pounds that I've gained over the past year. (BOO!) Lots of beer and lack of excercise are a bad BAD combo.
If I'm lucky, I manage to stay up until 11pm or so and then I wake up for my van at around 6am...for those of you playing along, that's 1am eastern. If I'm not so lucky, I fall asleep at 9:30pm and wake up at 11 or so and then I'm up. All night long. I usually read or watch some tv or wander downstairs to the lobby to use the computer.
I can't telnet on those computers. I have to be relatively quick and considerate of other people who want to use the computer (1 computer for a whole hotel? SUCK!). Plus the computer in EDI has a crappy keyboard which causes a lot of typos.
I've been thinking about this for a while - how can I make myself happier when i'm away from home? I don't feel lonely, I just feel bored. I need some kind of entertainment for all those nights where I just can't sleep. I thought about getting an iphone. I thought about getting an itouch more because it doesn't require a data plan, it only requires wireless access. But I still can't telnet on the itouch. And the mini-laptop? Same price, more functionality. Besides, I already have an ipod video.
My new laptop should be arriving in a week or so and I can't wait!
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