In my last entry, I had just received my diary. Now, two years later I have managed to write only nine times. I'm nine years old now. Last names have been removed to protect the innocent.
Dear Diary in 4th grade Rhonda Liked Jim I Like Mike Z. Amy liked Dean Kathy likes Henry so did Lori Z. So did Lori K These are people that liked other people. I think Mike Z. Likes me too.
This is followed by a picture of a heart with my initials + M. Z. Everyone in my family knows who Mike Z. is. In sixth grade we kiss. I wonder if I wrote about it.
Because of business/craziness I'm really feeling like I'm neglecting this blog. But, fortunately for you, dear readers, I've found my childhood diaries. Now you'll get to experience some highlights of my childhood (wait until I get to my teenage angst), without me having to come up with new content (typos, grammar problems, and all). I am going to x-post on FB too.
December 25, 1974 (I was seven)
To day is Christmas. I am by my Gandma's house Hear ar some of the presents. braclet with my name on birthstone ring woodsee owl ring and neckles. holy hobby pin autagraf elephant diary. By Lisa.
This is the first entry in my very first diary. Apparently, my love of
jewelry began at a young age. I'm pretty sure I still have the Holly
Hobby pin and I definitely have the elephant.
I have to admit that I'm diggin' Facebook. It is an easy way to reach
lots of people quickly. And, I really like using Twitter to update my
FB status. These two marvelous inventions have contributed to my lack
of blogging. It is really easy to dash off a tweet rather than compose
an entire post. So, if you like my stuff here, I encourage you to also
follow my Twitter feed (or join FB - I'm looking at you, Shan).
Lots of stuff has been happening around here, mostly to do with the
move that deserve mention, but are going to get short shrift. But
here's a few:
I sold my curio cabinet to a woman who sells antiques and home goods.
She showed up to get it by herself, wearing a foot boot/cast. I don't
trust myself enough to carry a heavy, glass-sided piece of furniture
down my front steps. So, J helped her move with the assistance of my
neighbor, who we had to call for help at the last minute. I was happy
to get rid of it, but surprised at the woman. She told us she was
planning on moving it herself.
As if you didn't know, Craig's List is full of scammers. $300 seems to
be a sweet-spot for them. List something for that price or more and you
are bound to get an email saying something about a cashier's check. I'm
not so stupid, but I wonder how many people are taken by these scams.
Speaking of furniture, are you sure you don't need a big closet/cabinet or a bedroom set?
---
We move J into his little studio this weekend. His new position starts
next week. I'm hoping this house will sell. We are putting about $4000
into the house just to put it on the market for the same price we
bought it for seven years ago. One bright spot is that sales seem to be
up and my price range seems to be a sweet spot for St. Paul, but I'm
worried. We had the electrician here last week and the plumber here
this morning. Next week the handyman arrives followed by the painters
the next week. The house is a disaster and I'm tired of living in the
mess, but I guess this is how it has to be.
We moved our king bed into the garage this past weekend when I had a
bunch of guys over to move things around. So, I'm sleeping on the futon
in the guest room and J is in the basement on the bed that will move
into our bedroom once it is painted. I can't sleep in the basement
because of my allergies. I feel like a college student in my futon.
We've spent the last few weeks really cleaning out the crap and
donating lots of nice things to Goodwill. We've also given a number of
things away (more to come). And, are trying to sell the rest. It isn't
a great time to be selling furniture because everyone seems to be doing
it. Bad economy = selling things to make food money. My electrician,
one of the highest rated ones in the city, was telling me just two
years ago he had a crew of five. Now it is just him. His wife was laid
off and they are selling everything in their house to afford college
tuition for the kid. He just has no business.
---
Finding J's studio in Chicago was interesting. We ended up with a tiny,
but very sunny unit right in the Loop a few blocks from his job. One
problem was trying to find a place that permitted a six-month lease.
That limited our options. We ended up looking at three places in one
building and one in another. The building he selected has few amenities, but is cheap, while the other building had everything under
one roof, but was expensive. I rooted for the one he ended up picking
because it is on a corner and gets cross-ventilation.
He'll be home every weekend for a while because he is teaching a class
at the U, which has been move to Sunday nights. It was that or do it
via video conference, which the students don't like.
---
I am really beginning to feel normal. The more activity the better, but
my stamina is still really not there. Moving, cleaning, and packing
isn't the best way to get back in shape, so I'm looking forward to
walking as soon as it is slightly warmer. I might even get in a short
walk later today. One of the biggest problems I'm having (along with
just being generally weak and inflexible) is with my feet. The one that
I broke a few years ago is back to acting up and the other one has
terrible plantar fasciitis. I'm thinking both of these things will go
away (again) when I am walking more. I am doing my stretches, which is
helping, but I need working feet. After trotting around all day in
Chicago, I didn't go out at night because I couldn't imagine any
further walking.
Earlier this month I went and visited the kids via the train. It was
the first time I traveled by myself or on public transportation since I
caught cancer. It was wonderful to see the kids in their own element
again. I'll get the pictures posted to Flickr one of these days, but I
have uploaded the videos to YouTube. There are a bunch under the
username questioningyou. Here is a super cute one to get you started. Note that she has a cold so her upper lip is full of snot.
---
Guess what? My entire family, sans J, is going to Disneyworld in
October. My brother, the dad, really wants to do this trip so his tax
return is going toward paying for their family. He is looking at it as
a celebration of health and life. The kids will be 5, 5, and 3. Oatmeal
is already suspicious of our plans. We speak in code, but she still
figures out we're talking about Disney. She knows more about the place
than I do.
---
I liked the changes at the Oscars, particularly when the old winners
came out and said nice things about the nominee. I also liked the first
and later musical numbers. They were fun. And, I loved Kate Winslett's
dress.
When we were in Chicago we watched Milk via on demand. I liked this movie far more than I thought I would. Two thumbs up for this one.
---
J needs a new computer (he is using a laptop that I got almost seven
years ago). So, I got a new MacBook Pro (bought with his
student/teacher discount) and he is getting my old one. The coolest
thing ever is how you can connect the two laptops and just move
everything from one to the other.
I like Hampton Inns. They are a good, mid-range hotel chain with
consistent amenities and friendly people. They have a decent breakfast,
free wireless, and comfy beds with duvets rather than icky never-washed
polyester blankets. When I stay at a Hampton Inn I know exactly what
I'm going to get. But that's also a problem. Hampton Inns (and most
Hiltons) won't shell out for full basic cable in the rooms and limit
the choices to almost all sports and news channels. It makes me wonder
if Hampton Inn really thinks about their female visitors. It drives me
batty. To the point that everything else being equal, I'll choose
another chain over Hampton Inn just so I can watch popcorn television
as I'm trying to fall asleep.
Case in point. J and I are staying in a Hampton Inn in Chicago. We
wanted to stay in the Loop because of the proximity to the apartments
we're looking at. The Hampton Inn offered unbelievably cheap $110/night
rates. And we haven't been dissatisfied with the location or the hotel.
Except when I turn the TV on at night and am faced with this channel
lineup (Note: the room has a large flat-screen HD TV):
NBC, ABC, CBS, FOX, CW, HBO (and HBO HD), Weather, MeTV (all pretty standard)
ESPN (HD), ESPN2 (HD), ESPN News, ESPN Classic, ESPN, ESPN2, ComCast Sportsnet, The Golf Channel
CNN, CNN Headline News, FOX News, CNBC, MSNBC
Discovery, TNT, TBS, USA, A&E, History Channel, Cartoon Network, Animal Planet, ABC Family
I have no idea why they have to have both the HD and non-HD versions of
HBO and some of the ESPN channels. Couldn't they use those channel
slots for, I don't know, HGTV or TLC? And the Golf Channel? Really? The
other 7 million sports channels don't carry golf?
Then when they do get to picking basic cable channels, I'm stuck with
male oriented (Discovery and History) or family and kids (Cartoon,
Animal Planet, and ABC Family). That leaves TNT, TBS, USA, and A&E,
which have become the repeat channels (or, in the case of TNT, repeats,
bad movies, and basketball).
So, Hampton Inn, what you're trying to tell me is that you'll cater to
men and you'll cater to men with kids, but you won't cater to
women/moms?
Are you annoyed yet by my blatant use of my blog and Facebook account to sell and give away my worldly possessions? Well, it is going to get worse. J and I are moving to Chicago. I didn't feel I could divulge this news publicly until he gave notice at work, which happened today. We are moving because he accepted a new position. He originally interviewed for this job before I got sick and took himself out of the running for it after my diagnosis. Late last year he emailed them to see if it was still available. It was and he re-interviewed. After negotiations over just about everything, including the kitchen sink, he begins his new job on March 2. We're renting him a little downtown apartment where he will live until after the house sells. I'm staying up here to oversee the painters, electricians, etc. I'm hoping we'll both be in Chicago by mid to late summer.
We're both excited and scared. I've lived here for 15 years and have become quite comfortable with my life and my friends. At Pilates today I realized just how much I am going to miss my classmates, my neighborhood, and all the people and places that make the Twin Cities great for me.
I'll be blogging about putting a house on the market in these uncertain times as well as my feelings about making a move to a city where I don't know many people. I'm a Myers-Briggs I, y'all. I don't meet new folks easily.
Oh, and to celebrate being cancer-free, graduating, and leaving town, we're throwing a party Memorial Day weekend. Watch for your invites.
I'm cleaning out. Lots of my things are going to Goodwill, but I have some almost-new purses that I'd like to offer up to the masses (free) before I give them away.
I wonder how often cleaning out a house to ready it for sale leads to
divorce? J has, what I call, a schnibble pile. Every receipt, playbill,
important paper, or ad that makes it into his hands ends up in his
schnibble pile. The schnibble pile goes back years and sits on a table
in our basement. Like looking at the rings of a tree to determine when
a fire occurred, he can often find something in the schnibble pile by
going backward through it. It is stacked, roughly, by date. Much to my
dismay (and after harping on him about it for years), the dismantling
of the schnibble pile is going to fall to me. Oh, how I wish it only
contained playbills and grocery receipts. But it doesn't. Somewhere in
the schnibble pile are important receipts and documents for things like our house
refinance. A few days ago, I told him that I didn't think we'd ever get
the house on the market because I'm not sure I can deal with the
schnibble pile. I picture myself old and gray, sleeping in a pile of
paper, surrounded by my cats.
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