We're too excited to sleep!*

In just a few days I will marry my best friend (aka Chewy) for time and all eternity. 

It's funny to think that he was right in front of me the whole time.  For those of you just joining us, Chewy's brother is married to my sister, they've been married for I think 12 years this month.  So when I say he was right in front of me, it's no joke.  I remember hanging out at my sister's house and he would be there and I would be afraid to say anything because I wanted to be funny but was nervous I wouldn't be. He's funny people, it's intimidating.

Years ago I had a huge crush on Chewy....and when I say crush I think it's important to remember that this was during my phase where I found it impossible to speak to a guy I liked.  I would just hang out on the sidelines while my sister talked to him and tried not to seem too creepy.  Over the last few years our relationship statuses (is that the right way to say it?) have varied and timing just wasn't right.  Then back in July things finally aligned and I haven't looked back since.  It's hard to believe that we haven't always been together and sometimes one or the other of us will have one of those weird moments when we do remember. 

On Saturday, we moved the bulk of Chewy's stuff to the house.  We worked well together getting everything set up and I'm sure I can speak for both of us that we had no problem falling asleep Saturday night! It was a lot of work and there's still a little cleaning to do, but overall I think the hardest part of it is over. 

On our last trip to his house, his nephews were crawling all over the truck.  At one point, Chase (newly four years old) sat down to work on his knot tying skills he was showing me.  He sat cross legged and so I did too.  He looked over at me and said, "You can cris cross applesauce too?"

Me: Yeah, I sat this way when I was a kid.  We called it something else back then.

Chase: Oh. Can you tell me?

Me: Um, Yeah. It was 'Indian Style'.  I'm not sure that's really P.C.

Chewy (walking by): No.

Chase: No. It's not P.C.

Then later his brother and sister-in-law were talking to us while we all stood around the truck.  They were talking to Chewy about how he wasn't allowed to work on the honeymoon.  His SIL said, "Chewy, the place won't fall apart without you." and Chase said, "No, mom, it will."

That little boy is after Chewy's heart.

Code, we're the good guys now.*

I hate change.

It’s as simple as that.

Change = calamity

Change = frustration

Change = well…change

I bought Diego from the dealership a few years ago. I tried to get my dad to talk me out of giving in to the salesman and buying a new car and all I got was, “Well, if you want a new car it’s a really good time get one.” This from Mr. 4.333 budget man. Since I didn’t really care either way, I haggled a bit with the salesman. I got him to get me a refund on what I had just put down on the old car and found some monies in other places. In the end, I ended up with Diego and free oil changes, tire rotations, state inspections, and car washes for the life of the car.

So in January I was upset to find that the dealership I went to for said free amenities had changed ownership. I received this news via email a week before the change was to occur. They assured me that my benefits would still be honored here. Despite that assurance, when it came time at the end of January for an oil change I looked for a similar dealership where they would be honored. I found one that was equal or closer distance to my house and filled out the online form for an appointment. I checked that I preferred email communication and hit submit.

I never heard back from them. Life got busy and I kept putting off calling the old/new place. You see, I hate rejection in all forms, so I get anxiety when having to call someone on the phone. I much prefer email and online communications. So today I finally remembered to contact the place, but found I could do it online. So I went online, went to the service department and filled out the form. Half an hour later, Willie Jones is calling me saying he’s received my credit information and they have 2012 Altima’s available. I was confused, it sounded like maybe he was trying to sell me the make and model I already own. I called him back to hopefully clear up the confusion, but not before looking at the confirmation I printed off and looking at the site again to make sure that I hadn’t accidentally clicked on ‘sales’. Sure enough, ‘Service’. He never picked up.

A little annoyed, I went back to the Mechanicsville site and tried again. This time I clicked that I wanted a phone call, that way I couldn’t accidentally miss the email (which I finally decided MUST be what happened). I didn’t even enter my email address…no more than twenty minutes later I had an email from that location. I THINK I have an appointment set for the 12th, but after stating what time I would like he stopped emailing me. Could this be any more ridiculous? I just want a free oil change!

Tell them the horizon is an imaginary line that recedes as you approach it.*

It snowed today!  We found out at 9 a.m. that our office was closed - luckily I had already decided not to be a hero (boss' snow day motto, "don't be a hero").  I'm hoping that by posting these snow day pictures (which aren't all that exciting because I am all alone suffering from cabin fever) you won't notice how few books I read this past month.

I saw this little creature in snow today so I thought I'd get some shots....this is the only one where he wasn't super blurry.

Now for books

January = 4

February = 1

Total = 5

Weakness is Not Sin by Wendy Ulrich
This book was pretty good.  I know a lot of people who beat themselves up and I think this book addresses those fears and insecurities that people might have.  Here's a quote I sent to a friend:

 "I realized that my weakness was not in my unwillingness to make sufficient sacrifices, which is what I expected the Spirit to whisper.  My weakness, the one God wanted me to humbly bring to Him, was my unwillingness to receive God's grace as enough.  Even if God does not spare us hardship, He can spare us despair.  The comfort and sustenance of the Spirit can truly be enough if we will let them in.  My problem is less my struggle to sacrifice and obey and more my struggle to receive."

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

So that's it - I only read one.  I hit a bump in the road when the person whose library card I use to access library books got a fine and I got restricted.  I think we should take a moment to consider how our actions affect other people...just kidding, I should probably go get my own library card.  I've added it to my "to-do list" that I never seem to accomplish.  Hopefully I'll finish a book or two before next month's book post.

Dude, is my face okay? I think you melted it off. *

I was talking with a friend the other night and one of my old theories came to mind.  When I say old, we are talking several years, back when I used to be funny and creative and my mind came up with quirky nonsense and yet, I could almost make that nonsense make sense.  My friend had actually read it, a theory I developed and wrote about in 2008.  I have known my friend since maybe 2012?  It was another friend that pointed out that this meant some serious creeping occurred.  I mean, that's 6 years ago people (it's 6 right? math has never been my strong suit).  I mean, I'm flattered of course.  I have friends who read my blog and I never even knew it (and/or Facebook notes that should be buried deep down underneath years of status updates).

The theory you ask? Dating and Baking.
Original release date: June 30, 2008
Original Post: http://sixthdonbro.blogspot.com/2008/06/bake-for-9-to-10-years-aka-and-its-more.html

In my memory, this theory was pure genius.  Reading over it, there are some changes I would make.  I mean, at the original release date I hadn't even had a boyfriend.  Dates - yes.  Unrequited love - did Noah have enough water for the flood? 

The first thing I would change is the fact that I used "weather" instead of "whether" - that embarrasses me for some reason.  I would hate to think people thought I was ignant 6 years ago.  So below is the revised theory/advice column.  Take it with a grain of salt (no pun intended - well, actually, yes, yes it was).

Dating and baking – revised


It has been 6 years since I came up with my theory on the similarities between dating and baking. There are many things I would keep the same.

Preheat the oven – In order for dating to even occur, there has to be the attraction. Granted – attraction doesn’t have to go both ways, but if neither side is attracted to other, then no bueno. No attraction = no dates. Preheating the oven/attraction includes shallow physical attraction, sense of humor, common interests/causes, etc.

However –preheating to the RIGHT temperature is attraction from both sides. If it’s one side (unrequited) it’s as though you are placing dough in a broken oven and wasting your time sitting around for it to finish.

So you’ve made it to the working oven that has preheated to the proper temperature. There’s friendly banter, constant flirting, maybe even a date or two. Next, you have timing. How long is it going to take for true feelings to come out or for a relationship to finally start materializing? There are the anxious bakers; the ones that shout it out right away, but that’s like taking a cake out of the oven prematurely, it falls/fails. Then there are those that put everything in the oven, close the door and forget they’ve got a cake in there! There are people who flirt and are friendly but they’ve lost track of time or don’t even know how long it should be left in the oven to begin with.

I think in the baking sense, we all know what happens to something left in the oven at 350 degrees for too long. It burns. People are the same way….it’s why we don’t put them in an oven to begin with. …But with dating, eventually, weeks, months, or years of waiting burns away the feelings that person had for the other. They may even get angry about being forgotten there, but hopefully they just move on the greener pastures.

There are other essential things with baking, like ingredients. The ingredients make the person. You don’t leave out certain ingredients in baking, so there are certain things you don’t leave out in the person you desire to date. Ingredients like the egg or the baking soda, you can’t experiment with these. The real life equivalent to these depends on your standards. For some it’s a shared religion or values. Without these essential items (these “must haves”) what you are baking will not turn out right. Please keep in mind, essentials do not include hair color, body type, an interest in aquatic animal anatomy – these will be addressed later. What I mean here are things that are most essential for this to blossom into a healthy relationship. Without these, things could be looking like they are developing smoothly, but when you pull the cookies out of the oven, it is obvious to the taste that something is missing. Some people will continue to eat these cookies that don’t taste right (like some people will stay in a relationship they no longer care about or know is not good for them), but most will throw the cookie out and start over.

The other aspects of dating, I mean baking, are okay to experiment with, like choosing different baking chips to put in place of chocolate chips. The different chips could represent different personalities, hair colors, body types, sense of humor,insert your random, weird interest you may actually expect to find a ‘soul mate’ in (cue aquatic animal anatomy), etc.

Originally I gave advice to the bakers and the baked goods, one representing men and one women. However, I think we can all simultaneously be the baker and the baked and even if not simultaneously, we could be one or the other at any given time. So when you find yourself the baker, watch the temperature and the timer and don’t be reckless in the kitchen. Remember, if you no longer want the baked good, someone else might – so don’t be selfish and let it burn in the oven. When you’re the baked good don’t let someone leave you in the oven too long, know when to bear the heat and when to get out of the oven.

But always keep trying – it will pay off some day and the rewards are sweet.

No – sweeter.

Of course, same disclaimer, maybe you shouldn’t take dating advice from someone who thinks it’s okay to compare dating to baking.

I'm just jazzed about being on the show.*

Today my first post for LeapBooks published.  Yay!

Check it out here:
http://leapbks.blogspot.com/2014/02/five-on-friday-readingjunky.html

In other news - uh....I get married in 21 days! WTM!?  I am sure glad I delegated everything to family because there's no way I could pull everything together in such a short amount of time.

For those of you who sent me their addresses for announcements - they are coming....I am slow.

Did you just cross off my name? That seems premature.*

We are supposedly getting a lot of snow in the next day or two.  Don't get me wrong, we've gotten snow in the past but it just hasn't been a whole lot.  Not as much as they predict at least.  A few weeks ago we were supposed to get a lot and it was supposed to start around lunch time.  My boss told me that she was going in to a meeting but that if it started I shouldn't just sit and wonder if I should go, I should just go.

It started to snow around lunch time and I found myself staring out the window wondering if it would continue to come down in these large flakes or if maybe it would stop.  Then I realized I was doing exactly what my boss told me not to do - I sat wondering if I should go or not.  So I packed up my stuff, sent her an email letting her know I was leaving and left.

Not even an hour later I found myself looking out a window at a snowless sky. All evidence of the earlier "snow storm" had disappeared.  So I sent my boss a text and told her I was coming back.

Granted, it began to snow that night, but it really wasn't all that much, at least not in my area.  So since then I have been a little bitter and cynical.  I just want a good snow storm, one where I don't lose power but I can curl up in front of a space heater and watch some period piece movies. 

I digress - so they predict a pretty intense snow storm starting tomorrow.  People are talking about whether or not we will have work on Thursday and I am of course, cynical about it.  But that's mostly to not get my hopes up.  Anyway - funny story.

This lady was talking to my coworker and I about the snow and she said, "As long as I have dog food I have plenty to eat".  This struck me as odd and maybe a little sad but no one else seemed to notice, so before she walked away I asked her to clarify this sentence.  I'm happy to report that she meant for there to be a pause, she just wants to make sure she has dog food, because SHE has plenty to eat....so her dogs would just need something.  MUCH better!  I was getting ready to take her to the store and get her some food.

The other thing making me smile today - on Sunday I did some photography homework, one assignment was to take a panning shot.  Where you photograph an object that is moving quickly so they are clear and the background is blurry.  I had to take the shot a few times to get a good one and my niece would only do one before she turned all prima donna on us so my wonderful, agile, fun loving older sister stepped in and let me take the shot over and over.  Here's the winner:

Hope it made you smile too.

That's a lot of meat.*

I got the edited photo back from Katy - she kept talking about the picture with the telephone pole that looked like a cross - I haven't had the heart to tell her that the object of the photo is the nasty looking glove...one thing I have learned from writing, if people want to give you credit for being clever, just take it. 

Edited

Either way - I love the edit.  In case you need to see the original:

For hers - I couldn't decide on just one to edit.  I am trying to get the hang of Lightroom and I'm certain there's TONS I haven't even glimpsed.  So far now it's all very basic.

The left is the original and the right is the edited.