Change for America

It gives me chills to hear "the First Black President". It seems unreal!

Congratulations Barack Obama and Joe Biden!

I'm happy to live in a blue state (even though it sure doesn't look like one!) and I'm happy that both Ohio counties I call home are blue :-)

Random thoughts on a chilly Thursday

Yes, I'm still alive. For most of October I was working every day of the week, except Wednesdays. I'm now a supervisor, which means I get to be the night manager on duty on Tuesdays. Whee! I really like doing it (in addition to the nice paycheck it brings).

My AeroGarden plants are growing well. Of the three, one didn't germinate. I think that's because the seeds were on TOP of the pod instead of in it.

I managed to make my desk more comfortable today. It has a keyboard tray, and before the tray would only pull out a little bit (about halfway out from under the desk top). Frustrated with that this morning, I pulled it really hard and it slid out "all" the way. There must have been some "stop" that I needed to get past and hadn't done before.

My favorite Quaker Instant Oatmeal is Dinosaur Eggs. Yes, it tastes the same as the other brown sugar oatmeal. But I love the dinosaurs!

I'm applying to three optometry schools: Ohio State, Indiana University, and Illinois College of Optometry. I just have to finish the personal statement for the applications, get my letters of recommendation into the colleges, and take the Optometry Admissions Test. I take that on December 3, so wish me luck. I'm SO nervous.

My boyfriend is on the "nights" portion of his shift work, so he works from 7p to 7a, and sleeps all day. It's very strange to know that he's here...but I can't talk to him. Urgh. It gives me plenty of quiet time to study, but I don't get to see very much of him. Just a smidge here and there. Tonight we both don't work, so we'll get to hang out for awhile. Yay!

I love walking to the grocery! We live right across the street from Kroger, and I get some minor exercise by walking over there a handful of times per week. It also ensures that I don't overbuy things since I have to carry it all home. Nice little system :-) I really need to make a walking plan and walk every day, but I haven't gotten motivated yet. And then it got cold. Bleh. Perhaps when spring arrives?

Gas prices are absolutely amazing right now. $2.18 at my favorite gas station.

I wish we had a kitty to keep me company. And to roll around in the glorious patches of sunshine on our carpet. *Sigh*

Until next time...

New Toy

This is my new toy. The AeroGarden3. It was impossible to get a good picture of it because of the bright growing light! I've wanted one for a LONG time, and now that they sell a slightly less expensive 3 plant model, I decided it was time. I really want to be able to grow herbs in my kitchen. I tried the Chia Herb Garden, and it went well for awhile, then everything died. There are currently flowers growing in there because I didn't want to waste herb seeds if it didn't work. So far, after 3 days I've got...

Fantasy petunia!


Stock! I assume it's just a random flower with no name :-)

So I'll let these grow until they bloom, then I'll plant my Tuscan Italian Herb pods. I'll have to choose from these: Mint, Genovese Basil, Marjoram, Oregano, Italian Parsley, and Savory. Decisions...

Major Power Outage

Well, count me (and my brother and boyfriend) in among the 231,000+ Columbus residents still without power after Ike ripped through the midwest. Luckily, my brother and I were coming back to our hometown, so we're not suffering in the dark. Our power has been out since about 4:15pm on Sunday. Needless to say, all our food is a lost cause now! We didn't have too much to lose, but it still is going to be a pain to restock.

In other news, my brother will be moving into his new apartment this upcoming weekend. Finally we'll be able to fully settle everything into our new place, and hopefully I'll take some pictures. Other than that, not much is going on.

We Are Moved!

We're all moved in! Friday and Saturday were our big moving and cleaning the old apartment days. My boyfriend's brother came down to help us out and with the three manly boys (including my brother), they got to do all the hauling. I got to sit in the new place and assemble furniture (my new computer desk, a 5-shelf bookcase, and our entertainment center). I love assembling furniture. I'm sad that we didn't have more!

Everything is pretty much settled here. We have a few issues we need fixed (all our outlets are upside down and my key broke in the lock on Sunday), but overall we're very happy. All we need now are a few more pieces of furniture and to finish finding homes for all our stuff.

Pictures in a few weeks when everything is more settled!

Why?

I feel like I've complained about this before, but I'll do it again.

Why do people feel the need to openly judge my choice of being a server in the time I have to wait to go to optometry school? I hate it. I realize that it would be a better use of my degree to get an engineering job, but I don't want to a) get burnt out on a career path I don't want to follow anyway and b) work somewhere real for a year and then up and quit on the company.

Everyone has the same reasoning behind their logic that I should have gotten an engineering job: I'm wasting my natural abilities or as a smart woman I could "write [my] ticket anywhere". I hate that last bit, because it makes it sound like someone or something else is making me be a server and go to optometry school instead of a more lucrative engineering career. UGH.

I feel like I've made the choice that will make me most happy. And truly, I'm learning "customer service" which as a doctor is critically important! I wouldn't learn that behind a desk or in a research lab. I'm also not in dire financial straits. I make decent money, especially now that business is picking up again. I don't need to make a ton of money right now, I'm meeting my expenses just fine (even with the new car).

I wish people would keep their thoughts to themselves. It does me no good to hear them.

Smorgasboard.

It took way too many tries to get this shot!

In lieu of going through my pictures and posting them with the hope that blogger won't mess up, here's a link to the Picasa album. If that doesn't work, let me know! It was an excellent trip, but I really need to take more pictures!

Today's was Farmer's Market Day...$27! This will be the last one for a few weeks, until we're settled in the new place. Two week hiatus. Ouch.
*10 peaches
*6 ears of corn
*watermelon
*cantaloupe
*pint of mixed cherry tomatoes
*cucumber
*2 eggplants
*6 poblano peppers
*2 green peppers
*2 yellow onions

And last but not least, say goodbye to:

Oh Bessie, you'll be greatly missed for your carpooling to bowling and your sporty spoiler.

And hello to:

Oh...new car. I'm still working on a name for you. But I think you're a boy.

This is my "new" 2005 Honda Civic LX. It's not the best picture, I'll try to get some better ones! I got it on Thursday. So yay, and finally! I'm going to miss my van, but it was getting to be a pain. People were already looking at it at the dealer before we even got the plates onto my new car. I hope it finds a good home. *tear* I have to take it over to the dealer on Monday to get detailed, and then it'll be CLEAN and mine :-)

Farmer's Bounty!

Last week's farmer's market haul: $25
*2 eggplants
*1 lb green beans
*1 zucchini
*1 cucumber
*1 overfilled pint of baby red potatoes
*4 ears of bicolor sweet corn
*1 large yellow tomato, 4 yellow cherry tomatoes, 1 heirloom striped "roma" tomato
*LARGE bunch of basil
*1 pint blackberries

This week's farmer's market haul: $17
*2 large red tomatoes
*1 lb tomatillos
*1 red onion
*1 white onion
*1 bunch of scallions
*2 generous handfuls of green beans
*9 peaches
*1 bunch cilantro
*5 jalapeno peppers

I LOVE IT. It's worth getting up early on a Saturday to get all that fresh produce. My friend from work and I are making this a regular event. We might even try to find a U-Pick farm to get fresh berries!

Finally, A Trip Post!

So my mom and I were in Maryland for roughly 8 days. Sunday was the first of those! It was pretty boring, but RELAXING. Until we tried to drop my sister off at Georgetown in the middle of Washington DC. Then Sunday was hellish. All ended well though, and despite getting turned around MANY times, we ended up back at my Aunt and Uncle's house. We ate at the Congressional Country Club for dinner (I had amazing fried calamari and delicious prime rib), and basically called it a day. They literally live around the corner from the club, so it was a crying shame that the outdoor pool was closed for the summer.

Monday was one of two shopping days. We went to Target (Rockville MD) and my mom and I were both impressed that it had a 5 story parking garage and 2 store levels (including a cart escalator!). We also went to a Bed Bath and Beyond that was certainly beyond--it had an entire section of stuff you'd typically get at CVS (shampoo, hair dye, lotion, body wash, etc). The moral of the story is that the Maryland/DC area is totally different from Ohio. Chico's was also a stop on our outing. What fun that store is--they have 4 sizes, 0-3. I'm a 0! Heh. Unless I want sleeves that are long enough, then I need a different store. I got a really cool necklace and earring combo that I'm trying to find reasons to wear ALL THE TIME! As Kindred Spirits was another stop. I didn't get anything, but they had a lot of neat jewelry and little gifts. Whole Foods was the last stop on our outing, and it was awesome. It's certainly bigger than the Whole Foods that's up the street from me, and it made me a teeny bit jealous. My new aim is to find a bigger Whole Foods in Columbus (as there is only one other, I need to go visit it).

Tuesday we went to the National Zoo! We started the day off watching a baby elephant get his spa treatment. Then we saw the pandas!! I wasn't able to get very good shots of them, because the baby refused to turn around and face us. Very cute though! Other highlights included meerkats! baby goats! orangutans!

Tuesday was my favorite dinner day--Bethesda Crab House! What an experience! I was a little leery of it since it's not crab legs, it's whole crabs with all their...stuff...still inside. In the end it was AWESOME. I honestly cannot wait to go back. It was delicious and fun. What more can you ask from a meal?! We also went to Gifford's for ice cream, and I finally found the replacement ice cream to one from a local shop. Peppermint ice cream, yum!

Wednesday was day 2 of shopping. My mom made the mistake of mentioning that I needed something to wear to a wedding I'm going to in September, so that was the main shopping goal. The first shop we went to was Lucy--I bought a really cute knit racerback dress in magenta. We had Japanese for lunch and I experienced my favorite sweet potato cooking method--tempura! Delish! Then we popped over to the mall (specifically Nordstrom's and Macy's) where I got a basic little black dress for any occasion and a black "bubble" dress for fun occasions. I also got jewelry to wear with the LBD for the wedding, so the last thing I need to find is a shrug or little jacket. It was an exhausting day though--8 hours of shopping. Not my cup of tea, but once in a blue moon is okay.

Thursday we recovered. So tired! I also worked on reading The Red Tent by Anita Diamant. My aunt suggested I read it, so I did while I was there. It was a great book and had a very interesting premise.

Friday, mom and I went to DC. We mastered the Metro! We started off at Madame Tussaud's, which was a blast. It left me wanting to go to one of the bigger Madame Tussaud's though! After that, we just wandered around and ate lunch at the Ronald Reagan Trade Center (or some name like that, heh). Then we went on the DC By Foot walking tour, which was great and I highly recommend it! We went at a relatively easy pace and our tour guide found plenty of shade for us. We walked right up to the Washington Monument (but not inside), learned some trivia about the Captiol, learned about Jefferson Memorial (too far away to walk to!), walked through the WWII memorial (my favorite), walked past the Vietnam wall and smaller monument, and ended on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. Very informative, and certainly better than trying to do it on our own. My mom and I also walked over to the Korean War memorial, and revisited the WWII memorial. Then we walked up to see the White House, where we saw his helicopter take off. We managed to fit a lot in without feeling overwhelmed. I'm definitely making plans to go back, so I can do more stuff!

Saturday we went to Mount Vernon (after retrieving my sister from Georgetown), which was very pretty. What a great location for Washington's house--right on the Potomac River. I'm also always a dork for homes from the past, so that was very cool. Washington's tomb was cool too, I want to go back to see that again (too many people right in front of it!).

Sunday was our last tourist day. Fittingly for a Sunday, we went to the National Cathedral. Absolutely gorgeous architecture! Gorgeous stained glass! There's an observation gallery on the 7th floor and you can see the whole area surrounding--all the way to Washington, where the Washington monument looks like a tiny speck! We went on the tour and learned a TON of information about the different chapels and the cathedral itself. I want to go back after learning how to take better stained glass pictures in the dark. That night we had Thai for dinner, and it was great! My first Thai experience, and it was definitely a good one.

And Monday was our travel home day. It was a great, relaxing, fun trip. I loved hanging out with my 11-year-old female cousin all week (my 13-year-old male cousin spent the week brushing up on his golf skills to be able to make the high school golf team). I can't wait to go back!!

I'll put up another entry with pictures. It was enough just to type this out!! Thanks for reading!

Yes, I am alive.

I'm back from vacation (have been since Thursday!), but I've been a little lethargic in addition to getting back into the swing of working all weekend. I'm not ready for the whole breakdown yet, but I wanted everyone to know I'm still here!

In all, it was a mighty good break--from Columbus, from work, from general stress.

Look for an update somewhere around Wednesday!