my left foot

yesterday, heath was planning on going fishing with a friend of his. due to some last minute switching, i ended up going along with them. i haven't been fishing in awhile, so it was a lot of fun to go out there. i borrowed heath's 2nd rod and reel and his other fishing stuff, but i want to definitely get some of my own for future ventures. we got a much later start than anticipated, so it was too late to rent a boat. as a result, we did some shore fishing, but the lake was really busy where we were at (near a main launch). mark and heath had a couple of bites, but i had nothing. even though we had no luck, it was still a good time to just get outside and have a break from the usual stuff.

the highlight of the afternoon was when i miscast (whoops) and my line went over a giant log sticking out of the water up the shoreline by where heath and mark were standing. being the smart girl that i am, i walked up the shore that way rather than reeling it up into the log. being not that smart of a girl, i failed to see the big mucky hole between me and them. in went my left foot.

up. to. my. knee. ew.

so i yanked my leg back up out of it, but my adorable mary jane croc was no longer on my foot. crap. since i was only able to deal with one disaster at a time, i gave my pole to heath, who, rightly, found this very amusing. then, i had to work up the nerve to reach down into the shoe-eating muckhole (up to my elbow! ew!) to try to fish my croc out. to add to the fun, heath kept reminding me that whatever was in there was probably gone by now. thanks.

i managed to feel around and find the back strap of the croc and yank it out. it was completely coated with and filled with sludge. thankfully they are all rubbery and stuff, so i was able to just rinse it off in the lake water. but, overall, ew.

oh, and the line didn't end up getting tangled. heath had it all reeled in by the time i retrieved my muck shoe.

we'll probably go fishing again soon, maybe out by heath's parents' where his boat is (yeah, you read that right, my boyfriend has a boat. jealous? :P), or back up to where we were yesterday and just rent a boat. next time, i'll be more careful where i step.

tour de drama

so as i've gotten into cycling a bit, i've gained an appreciation for the sport and for the importance of the tour de france. i've also gotten a stronger sense of how prevalent doping is in the sport. all year people have been implicated left and right. the floyd landis case is pretty well known to most people at this point (outcome still pending).

never, though, has doping been more out there than in this year's tour. so far several riders have tested positive, two entire teams have withdrawn due to doping related issues, and just today, the leader of the tour, danish rider michael rasmussen, was fired by his team and kicked out of the race. there is no positive test for him, but he failed to adhere to team rules regarding reporting for testing prior to the race which definitely is suspicious. there are rumors that he wasn't where he said he was.

doping in cycling is a huge problem. so many riders do it. the ones that don't are at a physical disadvantage. it's definitely a culture of doping. lately it seems that anybody who is winning is a suspect. who knows how justified some allegations are, but with more and more top riders coming forward and admitting to drug use, and several more testing positive, it's clearly going on. hopefully the sport can clean up its act. i'd like to think that lance and floyd didn't dope and that the current top riders (contador, the best young rider and new tour leader after rasmussen got booted, and leipheimer, teammate of contador, top american, and currently 3rd place overall) are riding clean.
update: interesting post on the freakonomics blog about tour doping. they suggest that maybe cyclist be allowed to dope since they all are anyhow. they also point out that cycling was the sport that introduced doping to the sports world. what a claim to fame!

exhausted, but in

well, we survived. we got everything of mine and most of heath's stuff moved in to the new place. we did three trips with the rental trailer behind heath's jeep, and ended up working on it on saturday from 8am to about 6pm, then priming the office, arranging the bedroom, and otherwise trying to make the place livable for basic needs until about 10pm. up at 8 again on sunday and back to it with another jeep load, car load, and painting the office (yeah, took 2 coats, grr). worked again from 8 to about 6, then a little more when we got home. we both suffered a few wounds in the process, and there is still a ton to do, but it's nice to be pretty much in the new place.

to add to the "excitement" on saturday, 2 other people were moving in/out at the same time as we were, and we all had to use the same stairway/doorway/alley. it ended up not being too bad, and we even paid the one girl's movers to move some of our heavy stuff in for us since we were already tired and kept having issues running into them on the stairs anyhow. it was worth the $ to not have to move the heavy stuff when we were already so tired. heath's friend had also come by in the morning to help with some of our other heavy stuff, so that helped a lot. overall, though, for just the two of us for the majority of stuff, we did pretty well, though we were really achy yesterday and really tired today. i'm getting too old for this stuff. movers are the way to go.

today, i'm back at work, but heath is at home today (lucky guy with summer hours). he's waiting for the cable guy to come and connect us with the rest of the world this morning. then, he plans on spending most of today unpacking things and getting some of the stuff that is still at his old apartment. the only big thing left is the aquarium, which will have to wait until the dining room (a.k.a. box and other crap holding room) is cleared out a bit so it has a place to sit.

i'm trying to work, but i've got that low grade anxiety/stress of knowing how much there is yet to do. that, coupled, with how exhausted i am, is making it hard to concentrate. i considered grabbing a latte or something, but can't decide if the caffeine would ramp up the stress/anxiety too much or will get me over the tiredness so i have more energy and focus... aaargh!

i'm heading over to bed bath and beyond at lunch with 4 coupons in hand (the only ones we could find this morning) to get some stuff we need (shower caddy, bedskirt, other randoms). the place is going to be really cute once we get settled and unpacked. i'll definitely post pictures once we get it presentable.

housing insanity

okay so several people i know are either buying, selling, or looking to buy a place (or all three). so, on my way to work today, i noticed a home for sale. they had a website listed, so i just had to check it out. bear in mind that this is by no means the nicest place i drive past.

www.40devonshire.com

feel free to browse the website. the point of most interest is going to be listing detail page here and the brochure (with pictures) here. yes, that's right, asking $14.9 million. eeks! granted, it is 2.2 acres right on lake michigan, with an indoor pool, 8.5 bathrooms (8.5, seriously..) and so on. but the property taxes in 2005 were over $88,000. after looking at all the pictures, the place isn't really my style, so i think i'll keep looking. oh, and the property taxes are more than i make in a year, so that would be a problem, too.

some other less expensive (but still ones a wee bit out of my price range) homes i passed (i love that they put the website on the sign!):

www.909sheridan.com
www.1064sheridan.com
www.940sheridan.com (this one isn't working for me, but feel free to give it a try)

moving again

the next and (hopefully) final move is coming up this weekend.

we've had access to our new place since last saturday, but haven't had the time or motivation to move much in there during the week, particularly considering the rain and/or threat of rain the past couple of days. heath was awesome and moved some stuff in by himself last weekend while i was out of town. there is still a ton to do, and the goal is to get the vast majority of it done this weekend. i just can't wait for it to be over. hopefully we can get things physically moved to the new place saturday and spend a lot of sunday getting things organized/settled.

i'm really excited about this new place. it's older so it has its problems (no lights in most of the closets, some cracks in the ceiling plaster, a wobbly living room ceiling fan), but it has a lot of charm, too with the built in glass door cabinets, old wooden doors, hardwood floors, molding, etc. the kitchen cabinet space is insane and we'll have lots more room than we are sharing in heath's place now. plus, i'll have more real furniture for my stuff. oh, and actually have my stuff.

things have been a bit stressy lately with so much going on: trying to manage triathlon training and my new job and feeling like i'm just crashing at his current place since so little of my stuff is there, dealing with these moves and all the associated headaches. but, a lot of that is resolving itself now, and despite the stressful last few weeks, it's very comforting to know that when i go home at the end of the day, i have a great guy that will be there to talk to and laugh with. i'm really looking forward to settling into "our" place with him. :)

zafu does bras

i recently posted about the success i had with zafu's jean fit guide. i got an email notification today that they now do the same thing for bra fit. (yes, they ask about the pencil test.)

bra shopping is nearly as painful as jean shopping, so this is a welcome addition and i'm looking forward to trying it out. that is a segment of my wardrobe that needs updating for sure.

well i'll be darned

so, as i posted fairly recently, i moved out of lisle, il and into evanston, il. this is definitely a step up, right? hah! not according to money magazine. they came out with their top 100 places to live in the united states, and the top city in illinois is... you guessed it lisle! at number 20 on the list! the next illinois town isn't until #51 - libertyville. also on the list is woodridge, at #61, where i lived a few years ago.

ahh the irony! at any rate, lisle is a great place to live, and if i had a family of my own and would be looking to buy a place, it would definitely be in the running for places around the chicago area that i'd like to live.

evanston is great for me right now, though. very accessible to the lake and the city, lots to do, tons of restaurants, decent commute, and so on. it's a bit pricey, which makes prospects for buying there any time soon quite challenging. i'm definitely happier in evanston than lisle, but i feel better now for all those times i'd been asked where i lived and said "lisle" and subsequently got that look of "uhh, where?" seee!!! it is a nice place to live!

baltimore trip

just got back today from my trip to baltimore. this is the third year that my sister, my mom, and some of my aunts get together for a long weekend somewhere. last year was golfing and beach time in ludington, and the year before was white water rafting in west virginia. this year, the four of us that live in the midwest flew from o'hare to baltimore to stay with pam and teri. we went horseback riding and visited the town of frederick, md on friday. saturday included a run in the morning, followed by hiking at great falls national park in virginia and a little shopping. we went to washington, dc to see a performance of phantom of the opera at the kennedy center. it's a musical i've always wanted to see and very much enjoyed it. this morning, we went for breakfast and then walked around the inner harbor in baltimore before flying home. every evening was filled with fun casual conversation at pam and teri's house. a slideshow is embedded below, and the album can be seen on my picasa site (link in the left margin).

hope college alumni hate

all i wanted was a reprint of my college diploma with my maiden name on it. i was married when i graduated, but am now divorced. my diploma has my married name on it. i want to feel proud of my degree and of attending hope college, but when i see my married name on the diploma, many difficult memories come back. that isn't me anymore, and i'd prefer if my name were on my diploma.

hope will not provide me with a new diploma. i'd be willing to pay, wait, send documentation, do anything they want, but they will not even consider it.

they are failing to assist me with the one and only thing i've asked for since graduating. it doesn't seem unreasonable to me. other universities allow you to get a reprinted diploma with a new name by paying a fee, turning in your old one, providing documentation, etc, but hope refuses.

secret rules for snail mail

i'm going to lend everybody here a hand. i'm going to let you in on a secret. apparently in evanston, il, the post office will not deliver mail unless your name is on the mailbox. who knew? not me. i just found out today. it would've been a tad handier to know this about 3 weeks ago when i started forwarding my mail to my new (temporary - this comes into play later) address.

since i was just moving into heath's place for about a month, i didn't bother worrying about getting my name on his lease or getting the address changed on my driver's license. it wouldn't be worth the hassle to change it all on june 20th, since i would have another address change as of july 15th. i did, however, have my mail forwarded, since receiving bills and other correspondence is something i did want to maintain for those three or four weeks (crazy, i know).

after 2 weeks of not receiving any mail, i called the lisle, il (former) post office to inquire about my mail. they said, yep, it's going to evanston, you should be getting it soon. i figured it was just delayed - no big deal, just an annoyance. after three weeks went by, i started to get worried. lisle told me to call evanston. when i did, they informed me that they were holding all my mail until my name appears on the mailbox. what? am i supposed to psychically know this? yes, apparently so.

i asked about picking my mail up, and she said i could come down there, but i'd need my updated driver's license (doh!), lease with my name on it for that address (i repeat, doh!) or a piece of mail (.........). she immediately identified her error in suggesting a piece of mail, since she was probably staring at the mountain in front of her that is my mail (thank you, usps employee for not being entirely dense).

i've manged to print off a bank statement with my new address on it. (thank you internet.) hopefully they take that as proof, particularly when i present it alongside a credit card statement, cell phone thing, another credit card statement, and my sad, sad, pleading expression complete with puppy dog eyes.

so a word to the wise: make sure you put your name on your mailbox if you move to evanston! i'll have to figure out a way to stick my name on there with heath's for the remainder of this week. how silly. somehow i think my preferred solution of a post-it note isn't going to fly in this case. can't wait for the continued adventures when i have a mail forward on top of a mail forward following this next relocation. let's see what you do with that one, post office!! muahahaha!

neck

somethings not right with my neck (in the back at the base). it's been hurting more and more over the past two days. i think that it's partly stress and the resulting increase in muscle tension in that area. i may also be sleeping on it wrong. either way, it's very uncomfortable. it isn't always really painful, but it's more of a nagging pinchy feeling. ugh. i thought swimming last night would loosen it up, but it hasn't improved. last night heath rubbed my neck/back a little bit and i have all these weird little knots in random places that were really painful. it's aggravating because i'm not sure what to do about them. i may end up going with some tylenol pm tonight. maybe i should dip into the jacuzzi at the gym tonight to see if that helps at all...

my 4th

having a holiday smack in the middle of the week makes going anywhere kind of a hassle, especially when you just started a new job and therefore have no vacation days or anything accrued.

so, heath and i decided to just stay around evanston for the day. things have been so hectic lately, and a lower key day was something that we both needed. we started out with the 10am showing of transformers, which was very good - not more than a few seconds here and there that weren't bursting at the seams with action. after the movie, we did a little shopping around in evanston. (super sale at urban outfitters: a skirt, cute sandals that i'm wearing today, and a bra for under strapless things for about $25 total.)

then we dawdled a bit before walking out to the beach. it was much less crowded than i would've expected, which was kind of nice. the breeze kept us from overheating too badly, but after throwing the frisbee around for a bit, we took a dip in the lake. a bit chilly, but very refreshing.

after that, we wandered back to the apartment and changed. we got some subway on the way back to the beach for the fireworks. we plunked down near the breakwall, which led to some interesting pingy echos from the fireworks. the fireworks were good. once they started. they were supposed to start at 9:15, but didn't get going until well after 9:30 (?), so we peeked over the breakwall and could see 2 or 3 other displays happening south of us along the lake. seemed to be in edgewater and we maybe even saw the chicago show, but it was so hard to tell and to judge the distances. the evanston show was quite good, had a nice variety of colors and designs. we didn't have a radio to listen to the musical accompaniment, but that's alright. we did have a few rogue public pee-ers that did their thang down at the water's edge a mere 30 feet away, but we can pretend that didn't happen.

all in all it was a nice night, but we didn't get back to the apartment until 10:45 and we both had to be up early for work today. at least there are only 2 days until the weekend! 7/7/2007 is a few days away, and we are going to a 7 & 7 party at 7pm. ohh how clever. :P

new wallet

i think it's time for me to get a new wallet. the one i'm using currently is alright. it does what i need it to do, plus, it's something i handmade myself. i sewed it up using a pattern i found on the internet, and used some cutesy fabric i got on sale at joann's. but, it's starting to wear out and not hold my stuff as well, so i think it's time for an upgrade.

the problem is that i loathe wallet shopping. i can never quite seem to find what i'm looking for, which is part of the reason i had resorted to making this last one. on the other hand, as i think about what i need and what my current one does (next to nothing - holds cards and cash, pretty basic), i think i may have less trouble finding one than in recent years.

must haves: easy access to debit card/drivers license. place for cash. not very bulky. probably not a long checkbook one, though with the right design, i could be amenable to that. not sure what to do as far as loose change goes. it's nice to have a place to put it, but it tends to bulk up a wallet. it'd be nice to have one that is on the cute side, too, as a bonus.

i also kind of want to go down the (not that high end of a) designer track, and get a nice fairly high quality one that will last a long time. i'm not in a position to spend $300 on a wallet, but i don't think i need to scrape the bottom of the barrel and settle for an $11.99 one either...

maybe something like this one from kate spade ($125 - still a tad steep...)?

blockage

one thing that is vastly different from my old job to this new one is the extent to which i am allowed to access websites. i've come across various sites that are blocked that make sense (myspace, for example, plus all the porn sites i frequent (JOKING!)).

however, all my webmail is also blocked, which was problematic, since important messages regarding moving/bills/etc are sent to those accounts. i've managed to work around it and access my gmail from work via thunderbird portable, which works nicely, but my yahoo mail is unavailable to me, so the messages sit longer than i'd like them to. thankfully, i'm using gmail as my primary email now so fewer and fewer important things are going into my yahoo mail now.

i also found out today that hallmark.com is blocked, so that means no sending or receiving ecards. that kind of sucks because i like to send them occasionally, and now i can't do it. (so if you haven't received one from me, it's not that i don't wan t to, it's that i can't!) there have been a few other sites here and there that are blocked as well, including any and all music related sites (radioparadise, radioio, project playlist). i can understand the need to block certain content to maintain workplace decorum and avoid impacts on productivity, plus if everybody was streaming music, our bandwidth would get eaten up, which is no good.

however, music increases my productivity, especially when there are people chattering away noisily, distracting me while i'm working. good thing i can get a micro sd card formy new phone. i can load it up with music and listen away while at work. 2gb should be enough! i'll just need to bring my charger with me in case i wear down the battery. i guess i was spoiled with full access before. at least blogger isn't blocked! (yet!)

zzz and grr

my long weekend in cleveland has left me pretty groggy at work today. zzz. i'll post pics and blog about it as soon as i can get my laptop hooked up to the internet. heath's wireless router went haywire so no wifi for me as of late.

also, i was so excited to get my new phone today, but i just found out that fedex home delivery does not deliver on mondays. what? they deliver tuesday through saturday. never heard of that. so, i guess i have to wait one more day for it. i was all excited, too! grr.