Classy Earl's House of Class and Tits

I recently returned home from my weekly grocery trip. My bill ended up a tad higher than I wanted, and I began to really worry about my finances. As soon as I got all the fruits and veggies and cheeses and breads put away, I sat down at the computer and checked my bank balance. I saw my first paycheck, deposited Friday, and I saw what I'd just spent on food (I love you, instant updating!) and a couple of other places over the weekend, and I was absolutely just fine. Even though my rent and 3 other bills will be taken out this week, I'm still a-ok. After the next two paychecks come in, on July 24 and August 7, I think I will be in a really good spot. Rent won't come out from either of those checks, so I'll just be building my balance back. I might even be able to pay off a good chunk of my (minor, but still present) credit card balance, and return $100 or so to savings. It's so nice to be employed again. Whew!

Whoa, this Wimbledon final is seriously incredible. I think this 5th set may go on forever, until one of them FINALLY manages to break the other's serve. It's currently tied at 10-all. I've never seen Roddick play this well.

ETA: Whoa, Roddick was pissed and not very sportsmanlike at the trophy presentation. A little taste of the old, nasty Roddick flared up when he yelled at Federer during his interview. I don't blame him, but man...

What a complete moron. As far as I can tell, her thought process went in this order:
1) I'm governor of Alaska! Awesome!
2) Oooh, but I could be VP!
3) I don't know what a VP really does, but gosh, I like all these people listening to me!
4) I don't like people who are smarter than me.
5) Oh, wait, I guess I won't be VP. Boo!
6) People are mean to me! Boo!
7) Wow, those old guys sure do like to listen to me talk about the abstinence and no abortions and no gay marriages and ssshhh, please go hide my daughter and her love child somewhere, please.
8) Talking to those old white men sure is more fun than being governor. They buy me clothes!
9) I don't want to be governor anymore.
10) I resign and I quit.
11) You betcha!

I just read this article on the dangers of the current trends in dieting. Although this article is actually pretty good, covering all the dangers inherent in all the "cleansing", raw, "healthy" diets, I hate reading things like this, because it makes me sad. I don't like knowing that women feel forced or coerced into doing this to themselves. It has catastrophic effects on the body; what they think is cleansing their systems is really having a detrimental effect on their organ function. The human body is a self-cleansing organism; there is no need to help it along by screwing up your nutrient intake.

( Long screed about what it means for me to be healthy, and my recent experiences in healthy living. )

So, Michael Jackson died. He pretty much stopped existing for me in any sort of enjoyable, watchable, non-crazy-person sense in about 1994. Still, the news that he died today made me really sad. More than making really incredible music for a long time, he was an icon for multiple generations, someone tons of kids grew up watching and enjoying and being fascinated with. I was only 2 or 3 when Thriller was released, but I remember my mom having the tape, and listening to it in the car during carpool to and from school, vividly. I remember when he was shooting that Pepsi commercial and a pyrotechnic effect went wrong and burned him, and it was all over the news. I remember imitating his dance moves with friends, singing along to "We Are the World", looking forward to new videos, being amazed by the "morphing" effects in the "Black or White" video, etc. He was a large cultural part of my childhood, and of childhood in the 1980s in general. He spawned a ton of fads, sold tons of records, and was sort of everpresent then. It just feels, literally, like a little bit of my childhood passed away with him. And maybe that's maudlin, and an overreaction, but that's what it feels like. I was never obsessed with him, never wore a red leather zipper jacket or a single glove in imitation, but he was just big. He was there. I really enjoyed my childhood, enjoyed the the popular culture I grew up with, and a big part that died today. Weird.

Even though it is about eleventy billion degrees here, with no relief in sight, and it hasn't rained in weeks and weeks and weeks, I am still enjoying this summer. I got a job, the pool is open, tra la tra la tra la. I've gone to the pool 4 times now to swim laps, and I can already feel an increase in strength and stamina. It feels so good not to be out of breath after a single lap, and to watch my lap times come down. I bought a kickboard a couple of days ago, and will be using that for my first 10 laps when I go from now on. It feels so good to be immersed in the nice cool water, making my muscles stronger, and feeling my lungs work with ease. I love it!

Work starts on Monday. I got a lot of my work clothes dry-cleaned yesterday, and I'm all ready to go now. So excited....

I just got a call -- I got a job!!! I'm going to be the assistant to the conservation department at the Museum of Fine Arts here. I'm so happy, relieved, ecstatic, thrilled, etc. etc. etc. There are no words. Or way too many. As I just said to my sister, I'm happy mainly because I can afford to buy a new dress and get my brakes fixed now. And I have INSURANCE. This is huge. I'm grinning ear to ear.

The most major bonus of the house we rent here in Houston is our location. We have a great little quiet neighborhood full of well-kept little houses with nice yards, close to all the major highways, and about 20 minutes from the center of town. The best part by far, though, is the huge park that borders the western edge of the neighborhood. It's a mile long end to end, one of the bayous runs through it, there are two walking/biking trails (one of which is part of a longer 10-mile loop trail), a softball field, two playgrounds, and a 50-meter public swimming pool.

The pool opened for the summer on Saturday, and I figured that since I'm unemployed, I might as well put my time to good use. I put on my speedo and grabbed my goggles and walked to the pool. They keep a lane marked off solely for lap swimmers, and I had it to myself for 45 minutes. Despite the throngs of kids in the rest of the pool, the lap lane was blissfully quiet. I swam 20 laps (2/3 mile) of breaststroke in about 45-50 minutes (considering that I'm asthmatic and haven't done any lap swimming of any sort in about 15 years, that's good), and walked back home. I feel great, and I feel like my whole body got a great workout. It was an excellent summer day.

It seems as though there might be a faint glimmer of hope on the horizon down here. I had a great, great interview for a position at an art museum here on Monday; a friend of one of my cousins works there, and put in a good word for me after I submitted my application. I should hear about that next week. I am cautiously optimistic about it, after the way everything felt on Monday. It's less responsibility than I've had in my last couple of jobs, much more administrative in nature, and has lower pay to match, but I think it's what I need at this point. I am ready to be really good at what I do again, work for people who respect me, and work my way back up with my credentials at my back.

Also, R got a call this morning from a company he applied to a couple of days ago, and he has an in-person interview with them on Monday. I'm crossing my fingers that the interview goes well, the pay is what he wants, and the work is something that he would be, if not completely happy, certainly willing to do. He really wanted to change his career path when he moved here, but since he's now sat through a year of unemployment, he really just wants something that will pay the bills for a while.

Other than that, we have really been focusing on our health and fitness lately, trying out new recipes and trying to watch what we eat more carefully. We've been walking a lot, probably around 20-25 miles per week. I refuse to use low-fat, crappy versions of various foods that I like, so we're working on portion size, and adding more vegetables to our dinners. We still get one "treat" meal out per week, but even then are trying to watch what we order. Last weekend, we went out for Mexican food, and had some really yummy grilled fajitas in corn tortillas. This week, I tried out a new recipe that I found in a slow-cooker/crockpot cookbook -- a Moroccan-style chicken dish made with tomatoes, raisins, and chickpeas, and served over brown rice. I put a dollop of plain yogurt on top, and it was delicious. Things feel good right now. On an upswing, I hope.

One of the things I've been spending a lot of time on for the past few months is knitting. My mom taught me how to do it over Christmas, and I'm loving it as a hobby. I don't have to spend a ton of money to get a nice product. Yesterday, I finished my first sweater, which makes me so happy!

( Click for picture )

- My 1st wedding anniversary was a week ago. It doesn't feel like we've spent a year together; it feels like the time flew by. I don't think that either of us was truly prepared for marriage when it happened to us, but we're very happy now, and I'm better for having him in my life. It has been a hard year, full of ups and downs (mostly downs), but we have gotten a lot stronger through it.

- I am still in the mighty grips of depression. This one has been going on for months now, and I am tired of it, but I don't see an end to it until I'm employed again.

- Speaking of employment, I didn't get that job I was hoping for.

- I have 4 applications in for jobs around here, and I hope I'll get interviewed for all 4. I should. There's one I want more than any of the others. I'm overqualified for it, but I think it would give me the most security and comfort and happiness.

- Why the hell are groceries so damn expensive?????

- I'm almost done knitting my first sweater, which is very exciting. I learned over Christmas, from my mother, and have been making really good progress, and challenging myself a lot. It's one thing that keeps me sane in all my hours at home. I'll post a picture when it's done. It's cute.

I didn't get that job. They let me know today. I'm feeling discouraged and depressed, and a little bit like I wasted a lot of time and money in grad school for something that will never materialize now. The museum job market is a wasteland. Back to my administrative assistant skills, I guess. I should have become a nurse.

So, depending on which part of town you're talking about, Houston has gotten between 5-12 inches of rain in the past 24 hours. Consequently, large chunks of town are experincing flooding (not at my house, thank goodness).

One result of the flooding: there is a loose emu somewhere in west Houston. There was just aerial footage of it on the news. There are animal control personnel out trying to catch it, but it is naturally freaked out by being in water up to the tops of its legs, and keeps running away from them. I repeat, EMU ON THE LOOSE.

ETA: Wait, there is updated footage on tv right now. There are actually several loose emus, from a petting zoo in west Houston, and the animal control people are trying to rescue them and get them to higher ground. But, the emus are very frightened, and continue to elude capture. The footage is, frankly, hilarious.

My current pack of birth control pills is winding down. It occurred to me a couple of weeks ago that I couldn't get any more pills on my current prescription without another annual exam. However, having no income and no health insurance, I couldn't afford to go to my normal doctor. I was in a pickle. Then I remembere that Planned Parenthood existed. I called them up, made an appointment, showed them some documentation of my identity and lack of income, and voila -- after 45 minutes, I have 12 months of free bc pills. I *heart* Planned Parenthood. As soon as I have income again, they are getting a donation.

*****

Other humpingbears news:
I had an in-person interview with that museum last week, a week after my phone interview. They met with me for 2 hours, gave me a tour of the museum and its storage area, a tour of the university campus where the museum is, and then later took my husband and I out for an early dinner. I couldn't be more qualified for the position, and everything went as well as it could. My hopes were sky-high, and then they told me that they had 2 other candidates to see in person, who they had fly in, and I would have to wait until May 1 for a decision. For some reason, despite the fact that everything went as perfectly well as possible, this sent me into a mini-downward spiral of depression that I am currently trying to keep myself out of. I am so tired of waiting for good news. Please keep your fingers and toes crossed for just a bit longer for me. I really want this.

In order to keep myself from overthinking everything, I have been reading a lot. I finished 2 books in 48 hours last week, just to keep my mind occupied. I re-read The Virgin Suicides and Megan McCafferty's Sloppy Firsts (a YA book, the first in a series of 5); both were much better on 2nd read than they were initially, and I loved them initially anyway. I'm going to start re-reading Wicked today. I've also got some knitting to work on -- I'm doing a baby blanket as a surprise for one of my cousins, who is due in late June. Just have to keep my mind off of the wait...

Good: I made delicious pork quesadillas for dinner tonight -- skillet-fried a couple of pork chops (seasoned with chili powder), let cool, de-boned and de-fatted them, sliced them thinly, and then mixed with a little sour cream and green salsa. Then let that cool, and then spread evenly on 4 tortillas with some chopped tomatoes and a generous portion of grated cheese. Covered each one with another tortilla, and baked in the oven for 20 minutes. Yum.

Better: I had a very good interview today for that job that I mentioned a couple of weeks ago, the one that would require an in-state move. I really want this. The job is a perfect fit for me, and the city where the job is would be a better fit for us.

Best: We're headed out of town tomorrow, up to Oklahoma, to the town where my grandmother lives. She's 91, in a nursing home, but my mom, dad, and uncle (mom's brother) are coming in as well to spend a long weekend there with us. We'll bring my grandmother back to her house for a few days. I'm looking forward to a few days of family. :)

I finished the Avon Walk today at a little past noon. 26.2 miles yesterday, camping overnight in a field in the southwest section of the city, and 13.1 miles today. I have a couple of blisters (including a particularly large and gnarly one on my right pinky toe), and some leg/knee/foot pain, but I feel so good for having completed this.

1. Leave me a comment saying, "Interview me!"

2. I will respond by asking you five questions. I get to pick the questions.

3. You will post the answers to the questions (and the questions themselves) on your blog or journal.

4. You will include this explanation and an offer to interview someone else in the same post.

5. When others comment asking to be interviewed, you will ask them five questions. And thus the endless cycle of the meme goes on and on and on and on ...


I am interviewed by amojojo!

1. If you could be rich enough to commission lots of art, or be an artist given lots of commissions, which would you choose?
I would rather be able to commission a lot of art, so that I could be surrounded by a lot of other people's visions of their worlds. Plus, I get more inspiration from other people's methods, materials, and products, than I do from being surrounded by my own stuff. Plus, how great would it be to be able to commission something from, like, Kara Walker or someone? So great.

2. How do you like your Christmas tree to look?
Like my parents' -- tall, full, real, with the little multi-colored strings of lights, and loaded chock-full with ornaments that tell stories about the family. The last time my mom counted, she had something like 800 ornaments on the tree. They range from fragile construction paper doo-dads that my sister or I made in kindergarten, to brightly colored Mexican tin ornaments, to elaborate little trinkets picked up all over the world on various vacations. Each one has a story or sentiment attached.

3. What is your favorite flower in cut arrangements?
I love ranunculus flowers -- beautiful, full blooms that still have a slightly wild-flowery look. And, they come in great colors; my favorite variety are orange with lime green centers. I also love snapdragons (particularly for height), green roses, green orchids, and peonies. Those were all in my wedding bouquet, which was gorgeous.

4. Do you like perfume? Do you wear any?
I do like perfume, but I tend to like single-note scents more than layered, complex perfumes. My favorite perfume is called "Dirt", and it's made by Demeter. It smells like working in the garden, and earthworms. I also like ginger-y scents. Origins makes a lovely ginger-scented range of products.

5. Were you the kind of kid who was super excited to start kindergarten?
I don't really remember starting what technically counted as kindergarten, age-wise. I started pre-school when I was 3, so I'd been in some sort of semi-daily learning environment for quite a while by the time I was 5. I really enjoyed going to school -- I don't remember ever *not* wanting to go to school, or crying when my mom left, or anything. I really liked all the stuff we did there, and I remember weird little things about it, like learning what the colors of a traffic light meant, and thinking it was a major deal that my friend Jay knew that yellow meant "caution". I know I was excited to move over to our primary school when I was 4, because I could go to the same school as my sister.

- This weekend is the Avon Walk. I have to get up at some ungodly hour tomorrow morning (probably around 5ish) to get up, get ready, and get my bottom down to the event start area, grab a little something to eat, and get going. 26.2 miles tomorrow, camping overnight at the football stadium at the U of H, 13.1 miles on Sunday. My feet are sort of ready. I think.

- I have a phone interview next week for a job that I really, really, really, really, really want. I'm fairly confident about it, but you never know. My fingers and toes are crossed, but I will have to take a reprieve from that over the weekend, lest I give myself blisters.

- If I get this job, it will mean a move for us. In-state, but a move nonetheless. I think we're pretty much a-ok with that at this point.

- My parents and uncle are going to my grandmother's house in Oklahoma for a visit next weekend, and R and I are going to drive up and join them for a nice little mini-vacation. The upside is, my grandmother's house is a not-far drive from where the potential job is, so if the phone interview goes well, I can go see them in person with no problem.

- The weather here is beautiful today, and should stay like this through the weekend. Thank goodness.

Happy weekend to you all!

I had a really good therapy session today. I've been seeing my counselor every other week since the beginning of January. During my first session, I think I cried about 50 minutes out of the hour -- I was terrified, depressed, sad, tired, and overwhelmed. There was so much on my mind then -- worried about my crappy job (I lost it before my 2nd session), scared of tensions in my marriage, lonely in a huge city, and just unsure about the future. I have cried in every single other session since that one, until today.

My therapist has made me talk about a lot of my insecurities, and these irrational fears that I create in my head and get wrapped up in, to my detriment. Quitting my first job here, and then losing my second one, made me lose all sorts of self-confidence -- I felt very much like all the work I'd put into my career and professional life to this point was worthless -- a lot of effort and money down the drain. And, my marriage felt scary -- we were arguing a lot, mostly because I was making myself miserable by believing that I wasn't living up to some invisible standard.

Today, I didn't cry. I was happy. I've been knocking out good job applications (and am quite optimistic about one in the pipeline), have a good volunteer opportunity on the horizon, and despite the fact that unemployment in and of itself is scary, I'm handling it pretty well right now. My marriage feels very strong right now. I've been focusing a lot on how I react to things, being careful not to overreact to things, and to take R's intentions into my reactions. R took a trip back to England a few weeks ago, and was gon for 15 days, visiting friends. I think both of us noticed how much we missed each other during that time, which was a really nice thing to feel. It was good to know that my first reaction to being without him wasn't a feeling of relief that I had my personal space back, but a weird feeling of emptiness, and missing his presence and noise in the house.

My therapist complimented me on my growth over the last couple of months, and said she can see a lot of emotional strength building in me. It was a really nice thing to hear.

In the past week, I've walked 40 miles!! 40 miles!!!!! 40 miles is the distance from here to the nearest little city that doesn't count as a suburb. I did 18 miles on Monday, 6 on Friday, 8 yesterday, and 8 today. I have less than 2 weeks until the Avon Walk. I'm going to do a total of 18 this coming week, over 3 days, and then lay off between this coming Sunday and the start of the walk on the 4th.

********

We went to the Houston Rodeo today -- fun, but a little over-hyped. We watched the "XTreme" bull riding finals, which was quite exciting, and for which we had very good seats. 52 rides in all -- the winner had 2 rides, and scored a 92 on his winning one, which is really high for "XTreme" riders. (Yes, I really like watching rodeo events when they happen to show up on tv.) The "XTreme" circuit bulls are more difficult, and the riders more skilled.

After the bull riding, there were a couple of chuckwagon races, a calf wrangling demonstration by a group of 4-H and FFA students, and some adorable mutton races by a bunch of 7-year-olds. And then ZZ Top did a concert, but their sound system was HORRIBLE. I don't know why, because the announcer's sound system during the rodeo events was loud and crystal clear. But, when the band came on, the sound system suddenly sounded like the volume had been knocked down several notches, and the amplifiers had been submerged in 25 feet of water -- quiet and muddy, which isn't a good combination.

The Houston Rodeo just seems really overblown and over-commercialized, though. EVERYTHING there has a corporate sponsor, and everything costs money, and everything's crowded. It's not really very fun. I love rodeo-type events, I just don't want all the hype and carnival food and expensive tickets that they tack on here.