Good riddance, March 2010!

March has felt like a very long month. The entire month has been part of Lent, and we've gotten all sorts of unexpected bad news (is bad news ever expected?). I can hardly wait for April. . .

Good heavens!!

"Forevermore. . ." That's what my co-worker Donovan says whenever I say, "Good heavens!" at the office. He thinks it makes me sound like an old lady. Whatever. At least I'm not cussing!

I said "Good heavens!" though, because it's been almost a month since I've blogged. I guess I'm not very good at this. I have, however, written two blog entries for work. You can find them here and here.

A couple of weeks ago, Einar and I got in touch with Tempur-Pedic because we've been feeling like our mattress (purchased last December) wasn't living up to the description given and promises made. Last Monday, we submitted a relatively simple claim - which required us to take some pictures of the mattress to show a sag - and then began to wait. We were told we'd hear from them in 2-3 weeks. I'm happy to report that we got an email from the warranty department yesterday, stating that our claim had been approved. We will be getting a new mattress and foundation in the next 7-21 days!! Hooray. Now hopefully this new one won't have the problems our current one has, and we'll be sleeping better than ever!

I decided last week that I really need to be getting up and taking Bella for a good walk or jog before work. She has been destroying some of her toys when we've been at work, and I think it's because she's bored. So, I think if I can get her a little tired before work, she'll sleep more and destroy less. All this dawned on me last week when we had gotten her a new sleeping pad for her bed. The website said it was really good, and in the customer reviews, people commented that it was quite durable. Well, Bella chewed through the corner of it the day after she got it! Luckily, the company agreed to exchange it for a new one. We're still waiting for it to arrive, but my hope is that the early morning exercise will deter Bella from eating her new bed. I'll keep you posted. The picture below is after she had destroyed the bed pillow we had in her kennel for her, which prompted us to order the sleeping pad.

War

I was listening to NPR this morning while I exercised, and I heard a couple stories back-to-back about war and violence in Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iraq, and Iran. It makes me so sad to think about these places where violence is so common. I think about the children, especially, who live in fear. And I feel so helpless to do anything, knowing that I don't really know or understand the conflicts. But then I think of the book Three Cups of Tea about Greg Mortenson, who is doing great things in Pakistan to work toward peace. One person really can make a difference, but how do you begin?

About time

I don't know how this keeps happening. I think of blogging nearly every day, and yet it has been almost 2 weeks since I've taken the time to post. Argh.

Anyway, a couple weeks ago, I decided to try to donate blood again. If you've talked with me this spring, I'm sure I've told you about my difficulties donating recently. First, it was low iron. Then, it was small, rolling veins. But I thought, it's been quite a while since I've tried, so I'm going to give it another shot. My iron was great! And the phlebotomist said my veins were no problem - just kinda deep. Hooray!! A pint of blood given to someone who needs it.

I really don't understand mean people. You know, people who are mean either because they take some sort of joy from making other people miserable or because no one ever taught them differently. It seems like life is just so much easier if you're nice. People are more willing to help you and interact with you. It has always seemed to me that being mean takes a lot of work. Why not just be nice? Forgiving? Accommodating? I think a lot of my mindset comes from my faith and my attempt to be Christ-like. I know I often fail at this, hurting family and friends when I lose my intentionality. I guess, then, when I encounter a mean person, I should just see it as a reminder of my own desire to be nice.

Spring rain

It is very gray and rainy today. It makes me want to curl up on the couch with a good book, a cup of hot chocolate or hot tea, and Kimchi.

I've noticed the past couple of mornings that it is lighter out when I get up than it was a couple weeks ago. I know this happens, that the amount of daylight increases from the winter solstice to the summer solstice, but it's pretty cool to notice it. After the switch to daylight savings time, it was pitch black at 6am. Now, it's not bright by any means, but the sky is definitely less dark. That makes it a little easier to get out of bed and exercise. And once the temps are above 40 in the morning, I'll head outside to jog. Hooray!!

I have a box of Betacam tapes sitting on the corner of my desk, ready to be shipped. I had to use a Sharpie to cross out some of the pre-printed writing on the box. The air smells of Sharpie. For some reason, though, my nose is interpreting that smell as pepperoni. Weird.

March 21

March 21 was a big day: Disa turned 12, and Hannah and Noble both competed in their regional History Day competition and will advance to the state competition at the end of April. Hooray for the nieces and nephew!

It seems like this is a busy week, but I don't think it's any busier than normal. I worked at the restaurant on Monday night, and Einar had band rehearsal. Last night we met some friends for dinner and then played a trivia game on their PlayStation3 (super fun!). Tonight, I work at the restaurant again, and Einar has band rehearsal. They usually only practice once a week, but they have a gig on Friday and want to be ready. I might work tomorrow night - if Bryce needs me to cover his shift. Then, Friday night I have off so I can go see Einar's band perform. Club Tavern in Middleton, 10pm. I've never seen them play, so I'm really looking forward to it.

The Real Unemployment Number

As I've mentioned in a previous post, I really like NPR's Planet Money podcast and blog for explaining the economy. Today, when new unemployment numbers were released, they posted this on their blog. If you don't want to click on that link, the final sentence of their post is: "For now, the broadest measure of unemployment stands at 14.8 percent." 14.8% A staggering number. Almost 3 people out of 20 either unemployed or underemployed.

I am extremely grateful to have a full-time job AND a part-time job. And I am also grateful that Einar has gotten full-time work. But I cannot stop thinking about those people who are affected by this economic crisis. It is hitting close to home. And economists are predicting it'll be 2010 before we see real change.

Bowlin' for Colons

Yesterday afternoon, Einar and I joined two of our friends for the 8th Annual Bowlin' for Colons fundraiser. The proceeds benefit the U.W. Cardone Comprehensive Cancer Center and specifically go toward colon cancer research. It was fun! We each paid $30, which included a t-shirt, shoe rental and 3 games of bowling plus a $15 donation. Some local business had donated prizes, so there were raffle drawings every half hour with 8 prizes given away. And we got to bowl!! It was a great way to support a good cause.

We had a great time, and we're already planning to do it next year. If you are interested in participating with us next year, let me know! (You can leave a comment below.) It is the first Sunday in March, so it should be March 7, 2010. And if you can come up with any funny/clever team names, we'd love to hear them!

Thumbs

I've never really noticed how much I use my thumbs. I mean, I know opposable thumbs separate us from many other animals, and I'm always thankful that I can easily open doors and jars and my cat cannot. Last night, my right thumb starting hurting while I was waitressing. I can't recall hitting it on anything. It seemed strange to me. I even commented to the bartender about it being sore and how odd that was. It was a little swollen, too, making it difficult to bend. When I got home, it continued to swell and be painful. It is still swollen and painful, and the cause remains a mystery.

If you read my post from yesterday, you know that I was fasting in observation of Ash Wednesday. I made it almost the whole day - I ate a roll while I was waitressing because I started to feel lightheaded and dizzy. Other than that, I avoided the temptations of bagels in the office, Riesen chocolate caramels on my desk, Starburst in the conference room, and a whole restaurant full of food. It may not have been 40 days, but it was full of temptations, nonetheless.

Employment and Other Thoughts

Einar had a second interview yesterday with a real estate office in DeForest. He accepted the position and starts at 8am on Monday. He will be doing office administration work - inputting property information into the computer, scheduling appointments, etc. He has been guaranteed 24 hours/week with the possibility that it'll be 40 hours/week shortly thereafter. Einar thinks it'll probably be closer to 40 right away while he's learning and figuring out their system and getting caught up with anything. It's a small real estate office - the owner, 3 other real estate agents, and 1 other guy who does property maintenance. There seems to be potential for growth, as the owner indicated that he wants Einar to become the office manager. The owner also said Einar could get his real estate license, but that will have to be something Einar will have to determine his interest in. All in all, it feels like a good opportunity.

Last night, Einar and I had dinner with his parents at Granite City. It was a fantastic way to share our good news and get caught up on what is happening in our lives. Unfortunately for me, I didn't have anything new and exciting to share - it was Einar's night.

Today is Ash Wednesday. I have to work both jobs, so I won't be able to attend any Ash Wednesday service. I wish I could. I have decided to fast as a way to observe this holy day, but I'm not sure if that's a good idea for when I go waitress. And then, I get to work, and one of my co-workers has brought in bagels! Oh the temptation!! I have not caved in, but I have 7 and 1/2 hours left in the workday. And I can smell them. . .

Segue

I'm somewhat embarrassed to admit that until October 2008, I thought segue was pronounced SEEG, not segway. I knew that "SEEG" meant the same thing as "segway," but I had no idea that segue should be pronounced the same way as "segway." *sigh* Better late than never, I suppose.

Back-to-Back

I'm not big into name-dropping, but sometimes working in video production means that you get to meet some local celebrities. I always like the opportunity to meet these people, especially when they are down-to-earth. This week at work, I got to meet a couple of well-known Wisconsinites. I went on a shoot on Wednesday where I met UW men's basketball coach Bo Ryan. It was really quick - he was probably only there for about 15 minutes, but I got to shake his hand and run the TelePrompTer for him. He was a very nice guy. Then on Thursday, we had a shoot with the Wisconsin Attorney General, J.B. Van Hollen. We've done shoots with him before, and he has become more and more relaxed with each shoot. On this particular shoot, he came into his office, and I asked him what he was drinking. He said, "Do you want some? I can get you some." I told him that I didn't want any, but that it smelled really good and was wondering what it was. He jokingly asked me what made me think it was his drink I was smelling. I told him that the only new scents in the room were him and his drink-- And he jumped in and said, "And you just knew it couldn't be me, right?" Then he laughed. So there I was, holding a boom microphone, insulting the AG. Oh, well. Just another day at the office. . .

Happy New Year!

Today ends the first week of 2009. And I've been meaning to write a new post since New Year's Day. . .

Einar and I rang in the new year at work. Seriously. Mariner's Inn does not allow its employees to request New Year's Eve off, so we were both working. I figured we'd be home by midnight, but no. By the time all of the serving was done, the closing work finished, and the last server checked out, it was almost midnight. And by the time the tip money was divided among all of the servers, it was 11:58. I quickly made my way to the bar, where Einar was bartending, to bid him "Happy New Year" when the clock struck midnight. We wished and kissed, and I headed home - about 10 after midnight. Unfortunately for Einar, there were 2 women in the bar who did leave until 12:30. So, it was almost 1am when he got home. Not our prefered way to ring in the new year, but at least we were in the same location. . .

We spent New Year's Day having a Lost marathon. We are trying to re-watch all 4 seasons' episodes before the season 5 premiere on January 21. I'm not sure we'll succeed, but it'll be close.

Best wishes for a wonderful, healthy, and prosperous 2009!

Let it snow!

It's snowing again today. At least the temperatures have gotten above zero. When I left my house this morning, I was pleasantly surprised by the not-frigid temp. Don't get me wrong - it's still cold. My feet have yet to warm up. I will spend part of Christmas Eve shoveling, and I'll probably have a bit more to do on Christmas Day, too, depending on when the snow stops. On the upside, Thursday and Friday are predicted to get above freezing. Wow! (That picture of me is my sad imitation of the "American Gothic" painting. Had one of my neighbors been out shoveling, Einar would've joined in the photo and it would've been a bit more effective. Oh, well - it seems like there will be time this winter for another photo op.)



Our kitty, Kimchi, still thinks it might be okay to go outside and see what's happening. At least she has a fur coat.

How the Grinch. . .

Einar and I watched the old cartoon version of "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" on Monday night. I was tired from a long day on a video shoot and still trying to warm up (high of only about 5 that day). Watching the Grinch (and eating spicy-hot shrimp creole) helped me warm up. I sang along with some of the songs, and Einar even joined in! I always treasure the times when he'll sing, and they are few and far between. My favorite part of the whole 26 minute cartoon comes toward the end, when all the Who's are singing and the narrator says, "Christmas time will always be just as long as we have we. Christmastime is in our grasp, so long as we have hands to clasp." Beautiful. Christmas is coming. Can you feel it?

A new bed!

Einar and I used our remaining wedding gift money (and then some!) to buy a new, queen size, Tempur-pedic mattress. It arrived last Friday, and so far, so good. They told us it would take about 30 days to adjust, so it's hard to give a final grade, so to speak. I really like it so far, and I feel like I am sleeping better and better each night with fewer aches when I wake up. We'll see how I'm feeling (and how Einar's feeling) in a month!

Good-bye, Barney!

Since July, Einar has been driving a 1994 Ford Escort wagon, lovingly named Barney.  Barney is a purplish-pink monstrosity that needs a new muffler and new tires.  Happily, Barney has been replaced by a 2007 Nissan Sentra that we bought from Ingrid and Mike.  Oh, happy day!  It needs a name, but I can't express how nice it is to know that my husband is no longer driving something that seems like it might fall apart at any minute.

New Roads, Part 2

Since the end of June, Sherman Ave has been under construction.  I use this road to get to my job at Tweedee AND to get to my job at Mariner's Inn.  I also use it to go downtown, to go to church, and to go to Mount Horeb to visit family.  It has been a minor inconvenience all summer.  But, it is finally done!  And, boy, is it nice!  Come to my house sometime and chances are you'll get to experience it yourself.

Obama wins!

I am overjoyed with the election of Barack Obama.  Truly overjoyed.

Welcome to Alphabet Soup!

This is my first foray into the blogosphere, and I'm not sure exactly what I'll do here.  I'm hoping to share thoughts, pictures, and general life stuff.  So, thanks for stopping by.  Feel free to leave a comment and check back often to see if I've updated anything!