Spring Has Sprung, And Other Things

by Jess on April 19, 2012

The weather in late March and early April was just my cup of tea — warm enough for skirts and bare legs, warm enough for the cherry blossoms to peak two weeks early (which did not deter the onslaught of tourists) and warm enough for me to realize that I’m probably going to need to replace my air conditioner before it gets really hot.  Fortunately, cohabitating with Jay means that this won’t be an expense I have to shoulder alone.

I hosted Passover for both of our families at my parents house.  My sister came down from Boston, my dear friend Lisa joined us, and the eight of us had a lovely (and often silly) seder.  At some point towards the end of the evening, I tipsily (but nonetheless very seriously) informed my father that I was “done looking” and that Jay was the man I would someday marry.  My Dad just shrugged and said “Okay. So… what? You want my approval or something?” I said something along the lines of “I just want to know that you don’t think Jay is anything like the Italian or the Ex!” To which he smiled and wisely responded, “Of course he’s not. Can we serve dessert now?”

(I get emotional when I’ve had a few drinks. Happy, but emotional. And yes, I did inform Jay of this conversation. He also smiled and said something about wanting his dessert.)

As indicated by the fact that I’m dithering about weather and inebriated conversations with my dear ol’ Dad, instead of gushing about social media and conferences, one can surmise that I did not attend the 2012 NTC.  Instead, I’ve been helping plan the re-launch of a new community for individuals living with lung disease, and talking regularly with my boss about my role in preparing for the new learning management system that will be implemented in the next few months.    There seem to be some positive changes ahead for my work and responsibilities – of which I’ll certainly keep you all posted.

And as for my wishlist — I got new sunglasses. EXCITEMENT.

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A Short Wishlist

by Jess on February 17, 2012

While I realize, dear readers, that you may not be capable of providing me with any or all of these, I’m going to share my wishes with you anyhow:

~ For spring to be here already.  Not because this has been a horrific winter, but because (as you have heard me whine many times before) I’m a sundresses, sandals and 80+ degrees kind of gal.   (Related: Maybe I need to go on a vacation to somewhere where the weather is like that?)

~ For the approximately 12 tons of dirty laundry in my closet to become clean.  This whole living-with-a-boy thing is wonderful, but dang it, laundry is MUCH more challenging these days.

~ For more social media-related work in my life.  This is something that I am trying to weave into my current projects — and I’m convinced it CAN be done!! – but it’s been a slow process.  (Ahem, this is one of those items where feedback would be welcome!)

~ To attend NTEN 2012.  Which I can’t quite figure out how to ask my office to spring for, even though it was an amazing conference last year and I think I’d benefit from it enormously again.

~ A new pair of sunglasses (which I can justify), a new purse (which I cannot) and a David Yurman bracelet like this (which I really, absolutely cannot justify/afford/excuse right now):

In the meantime, I will remember what I do have: A 3-day weekend ahead of me, during which I’m going to finally start watching Downton Abbey, sleep late, spend time with friends, and re-read the last half of The Immortal Life of Henreitta Lacks for my #BookBroads bookclub.

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oh HAI

by Jess on February 2, 2012

Oh, hey, Happy 2012!  How were your holidays? Have a fun New Year’s Eve?

So …um,  how was your January?

Okay.  I’ve been an absentee blogger and have a pitiful excuse for my radio silence of the past month or so:  The simple fact is that I haven’t felt inspired to write. Anything.  Perhaps it’s the winter doldrums; maybe it’s the fact that we’ve been tinkering with my ADHD medication; or perhaps it’s that life often seems a little less bright-and-shiny after the holidays (which doesn’t excuse a lack of late January writing).  Whatever the reason, I just haven’t felt creative.

But here we are, at the start of February, and I felt like I couldn’t let any more time go by without posting something.  So, here’s a few random thoughts, some events of the past few weeks, and random tidbits from my life (y’know, the one that’s a non-profit paradise):

~ I’ve joined Weight Watchers.   It was becoming abundantly clear that the treadmill and using a calorie-counting application on the iPhone just wasn’t working. I accepted the fact that I really needed more guidance for my diet and exercise routine.  I’m in week three and so far, so good.  I have a goal to lose 20 lbs by my birthday, May 29 – and I know I can do it.

~ I bought a crockpot. This is a big deal, because I’ve been wondering how the hell to start eating real meals when I don’t ‘really’ know how to cook. But I’ve successfully made three dishes (chicken chili, turkey chili and coq au vin) and am damn proud of myself. Maybe there’s hope for me being more than just a sous chef, after all.

~ Jay has found employment! (Oh, right … I didn’t tell you he was on the job hunt again.  Well, he was — that last gig from the fall didn’t work out, so he was job hunting after we came back from Iceland. But not anymore! Hooray!)

~ I continue to be inspired/amazed by the blog Shrimp Salad Circus.  Lindsay is very talented and I am quite impressed with her work.

~ In a few days, I’ll have reached the five year mark at my job.  It will be the longest I’ve been employed anywhere, and my work continues to be fulfilling and interesting. Of course, there are crappy days and times when I would rather stay in bed, but all in all, it’s been a damn good place to be for five years.

Okay, that’s all I’ve got for now.  But I wrote, isn’t that delightful? Aren’t you pleased? I hope this will be a sign of a creative February.

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Chappy Channukah

by Jess on December 20, 2011

Having wrestled with Flickr for too long to try and figure out how to share my damn pictures on this blog, I’m giving up for now.  I’ll post photos from my home computer.  (And in the meantime,  you can check ‘em out on Facebook!)

For now I will have to just say, without the aid of photographs to illustrate:

Iceland was fantastic.  Absolutely freezing, but beautiful.  I am grateful for the enormous pink parka that my mother insisted on buying me, becuase it saved my butt.  The hotel had amazing views. The glacier hike was breathtaking.  Our day at the Blue Lagoon was wonderful and relaxing.

All in all, it was a wonderful trip.  We spent 7 days together in closer-than-usual quarters, going on day trips and generally doing everything together … and we still liked each other by the time we headed back to DC.

It took me all of last week to recover from jet lag.  I know I regularly complain about not getting enough sleep, but I’ve never had such a difficult time re-adjusting after travel.  Maybe it’s because the days in Iceland seemed so very short (the sun came up at 10.30 and set around 3pm), or maybe because I came right back to work the day after we came home.  But things seem back on track now.

This past weekend was full of holiday parties and quality time with friends.  Jay and I started to tackle the pile of post-travel laundry and do some serious apartment cleaning.  Plus, my wonderful darling sister and her boyfriend were in town over the weekend.  I came back to work yesterday with the distinct impression that two days is not enough for a weekend.

Fortunately, the office is pretty quiet.  Everyone seems to be winding down for the holidays.

And tonight marks the first night of Hannukah.  If you observe, I hope you have a lovely celebration!

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Iceland, Ahoy!

by Jess on November 28, 2011

~ Thanksgiving was wonderful.  Other than the hours of traffic on our way to Connecticut (over the course of two days, it took us almost 12 hours to get there) and the bickering that resulted from our respective tolerance – or lack thereof – for playing navigator and/or sitting in traffic, it was a great holiday.  Great food, great wine, wonderful company, drunk board game playing… all that you could ask for in a holiday.  And believe me, I am thankful.

~ We saw the Northern Lights on our way up to CT — Jay’s Mom said a few times “Now you don’t have to go to Iceland!”

~ Oh, but we do …. we do.  In less than six days, my friends, Jay and I will be on our way to Reijikivik Reykjavik, the capitol and largest town in Iceland with a whopping six main streets (according to one Thanskgiving guest) and 2/3 of the island’s population.  Our  itinerary includes:

  • Trying to stay awake so we can appreciate the five hours of daylight each day.
  • Seeing what Reykjavik has to offer. Even if it’s just six major streets!
  • A day trip to a glacier, the name of which I hope I can pronounce when I return. This trip consists of a 10 hour round trip bus ride, and 2 hours hiking on the glacier while keeping our eyes peeled for the Northern Lights (which our itinerary has asterisked with “As these are a natural occurance, the Northern Lights cannot be guaranteed”). Our way back to the hotel will include a stop at ”Iceland’s most renowned seafood restaurants for an unforgettable Lobster Soup dinner”.  Mmm, lobster.
  • A visit to the Blue Lagoon, a spa that I’ve heard is a tourist trap… but really, I am going to be a tourist so I’m going to enjoy it.
  • A plane tour called “Air Tour called Ice & Fire: glaciers & volcanos”.  Jay made this reservation and I’m not really sure where we’re going, but I’m sure it’ll be awesome.
  • Last, but certainly not least, staying warm – the average daytime high will be 36 degrees.

I’m excited!

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Thinking of Thanksgiving

by Jess on November 9, 2011

For someone who loves her job, I am incredibly pleased about two things right now:  This is a short week, and I have two lovely vacations coming up.

Thanksgiving is the first vacation on the agenda.  I’m going back to Eastern Connecticut to celebrate the pilgrims with Jay’s family.  He and I invited my parents to come along, but my mother, also known as Dr. Workaholic, cheerfully told us that she’s open for business the day after Thanksgiving, which means there’s no way she and my father could possibly leave town for that long weekend.  With my sister celebrating the holiday in Boston with her boyfriend’s family, I was a little concerned about leaving them alone for the second year in a row.

When I confronted her privately, and asked if it was really okay that she and Dad were going to be alone, she got a dreamy look on her face.

“Did I tell you about last year?” she asked.  “Because it was really … it was just so ….”

“Uh, no. What did you guys do?” I replied warily.

I shouldn’t have been worried about my mother confessing to something scandalous, because this woman’s idea of decadence is taking a long nap (now you know where I get it) after buying all of the women’s size four shoes on sale in the Naturalizer catalog.

“We went to Old Ebbit Grille for Thanksgiving dinner. And that was it. We just did nothing!” She grinned. “I can’t tell you how wonderful it was … no one was here … nothing was happening … it was just GREAT!”

So now I don’t feel so bad about leaving my parents alone for Thanksgiving

I’ve only been to Cloverlea once so far, but I plan to take a ton of pictures and write a more extensive blog post then I did last year. Because this house is ancient and enormous, is filled with family belongings dating back to gods know when, there are rooms that are shut off and I know there are going to be some great stories to hear.

And in early December, Jay and I are going to spend a week in Iceland!

I’ll share the details in my next post. Because the plans for this trip are worthy of their own post :)

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Whining. But Some Good Stuff, Too.

October 13, 2011

It’s been a gloomy, rainy day.  I’m not in the best of moods and I don’t feel very well.  Work has been kicking my butt this week.  Yesterday, I learned what it feels like to have a headache from my blood pressure spiking, and I didn’t like it at all.  Nor did I feel very friendly towards the persons who helped me [...]

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The Good, The Bad, The Effed Up

September 30, 2011

The Good: ~ Trip to Boston was wonderful. I slept a lot, ate several fabulous meals, and, most importantly, I got a ton of quality time with my sister. Whazzup Bahston? ~ There weren’t very many demands on us in terms of Mom’s reunion. Sis and I showed up for the opening night reception as [...]

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Bottoms Up. Or Not.

September 14, 2011

There have been a few people in my life who have recently decided to abstain from alcohol for a while.  One such person is rachaelgk — I read her blog post about her decision while sitting at the bar of Dino, sipping a cocktail and thought, That’s something I really should think about doing …. [...]

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What a Long, Strange Week Its Been

September 9, 2011

Actually, it’s been a pretty strange couple of weeks for me – and for the DC area. Not entirely bad, though… ~ There was the earthquake two weeks ago. Which, on the 8th floor of my office building, felt nauseatingly like the city was in the process of doing a gigantic somersault. ~ Later that [...]

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