Big Bowl 'o Greens

Let the suppers of salad for the week begin today. All in all, not too bad. However, I accidentally got turnip greens instead of spinach and a zucchini instead of a cucumber*. What can I say, a "quick trip" to the grocery store is super stressful at 5:00 on the way home. I added carrots, craisins, sunflower seeds, beef (I love red meat!), pepper, and balsamic vinegar.

* Yes, I am aware this may be a pattern for me. Did everyone else know that hominy is not the same thing as corn?

Turkey Day, etc.

Thanksgiving Day consisted of an early morning drive to Savannah to see Grammy in her assisted living home. Recently, she's been down-sized in her home, from an apartment to a room. She's still quite unhappy about it, mainly because they have an eye on her at all times. Even in her mid 80's and with a failing body, she's still a spit fire. We ate lunch there with one of her friends, and I must say that the food was infinitely better this year than last year. Thanks for kicking it up a notch!

After lunch and a bit of visiting, we headed back to Charleston. Thankfully I packed a book: Mary Higgins Clark's I Heard that Song Before. A good, quick read. In non Thanksgiving tradition, mom, dad, and I enjoyed a frozen pizza for supper that night.

Friday morning, the rents and I headed to Wilmington to spend time with Granddaddy. It was a nice visit to see him -- he's such a hoot. We headed home Sunday after lunch...it is nice to be home!

Some highlights:

• I bought a pair of skinny jeans!
• I (finally) got paid after my month of working. In the words of Courtney: Those dirty pirate federal hookers took a lot of my money. I agree, Court; I agree!
• Chick-fil-A peppermint chocolate milkshake. SOOO good! Go get one!
• Finding out that Granddaddy has a pair of fuggs. So funny.
• Watching Granddaddy in his new Rascal scooter -- complete with an orange flag on the back. And I have to say, it's surprisingly quiet...he can really sneak up on you!
• Seeing a store called "Big Gals Boutique" ... really?!?
• Mom and I ran lots of errands and only got lost once!

All in all, I have a lot to be thankful for! My lord and savior -- and being able to have a full life through Jesus Christ, my family, good friends, a job, (too much) food, a place to rest my head at night, and so much more!

I am sad for vacation to end and to return to 5:30 wake up calls... Also, the "salad diet" may start up this week in order for my pants to fit.

Mornings.

I will preface this post by saying I have NEVER been a morning person. A little fact about me that my mom still can't fully grasp, and so at her house I am still woken up to a high-pitched, "Good Morning Sissy!" Ugh. Due to my disdain for mornings, having curly hair is a huge blessing and allows me to shower at night, wake up with dry hair, and cut down on some of the morning routine.

Currently, my ideal morning goes like this: alarm starts going off at 5:30, get up at 6:00 (thanks, Courtney, for turning me into a snoozer), spend some time in prayer and in the Word, get ready for work at 6:30 (wash face, make up, get dressed, make lunch, etc.), and out of the door BY 7:05.

This is a short work week -- 3 days -- wahoo!

Monday: I continued snoozing until 6:45 just because I didn't want to get out of the bed. I was able to spend time with the Lord that afternoon. And Monday night I set my alarm early and went to bed earlier than I had been, so I would get up on time Tuesday morning.

Tuesday: I woke up feeling very refreshed. This is a rare occasion and I thoroughly enjoy it. Until I look at the clock and see that it is 6:30! Apparently my alarm didn't go off?!?

Wednesday: My alarm started going off at 5:30. I snoozed as usual. Then I woke up and somehow it was already 6:24. Really? So I decided to shut my eyes just for a minute more until 6:30. I opened them and it was 7:05!! I yelled, "are you kidding me?" My roommate asked if I was ok. I tossed on jeans (praise the Lord we could wear jeans today!), washed my face, and was out the door and in the car by 7:10.

No make up this morning. For someone with AA this is quite an issue of pride. But life shall go on. I am dreading Harborview Road -- some mornings it so busy that it is the bane of my existence. Yet because public school is out it is virtually traffic less. Yay! Who knew there were so many school kids on the Island?

All in all, it has been a rough week morning-wise. But it's a short week and I am super thankful. And ready to spend time with some of my family for Thanksgiving. And ready to eat lots of yummy things.

Hopefully next week will go more according to schedule...

Food for Thought

I saw a buddy of mine the other day and we were briefly catching up on things. We have both made some life changes recently, and at some point I asked him if he liked his new job. He replied, "I'm not as stressed out as I was at my old job...I didn't need to be stressed out over things that don't matter all that much to me. So the new job is fine...honestly, it's a means to an end. Really."

Hmmm... Those specific words (means to an end) made me think...

I, too, feel less stressed at my new job and mainly think it's because I am able to completely leave work at work. Over the years, I have trained myself to separate work life from personal life as much as possible...practically by going on a walk when I get home from work. Not only is it my form of exercise, but it also helps me clear my head and help me put the work day behind me. It's also beneficial for me (currently) that I'm not friends with my co-workers outside of the office...so work isn't much of my after work conversations.

But I often times think that I still haven't found my dream job...and I want one! Perhaps I have, but haven't been doing this job long enough to know. :) Yet assuming this isn't it, how much effort should I put into finding the best job for me? When job hunting, I heard and thought the gamut of thoughts from "God is big enough to give you a job that you actually enjoy and are made for" to "A job is a job, especially in these economic times." At the end of the day, I think I believe both. Knowing God is in control of all things and is certainly powerful to do anything at anytime, I do trust that I could have my dream job in an instant if that was the Lord's will. Yet in the meantime, I want to be grateful for the job I have been blessed with. So is my job a means to an end (eating) or is it more than that? Should it be more than that?

When looking at the doctrine of the humanity of Jesus in Christian Doctrine senior year at Presbyterian, Dr. Hobbie (wonderful, fabulous, spunky man!) asked the class if we though Jesus ever had an erection. That's another topic completely and a discussion for another day. (However, for what it's worth, I think He did.) But that train of thought leads me to ask: Did Jesus enjoy His job?

Not His job as a full time minister (ministry vs. vocation vs. job still confuses me some and I'm not up for that right now), but did Jesus enjoy being a carpenter? Was that a passion of His? Was He simply following in His father's footsteps? Was He buying time until He turned water into wine at a wedding and then changed the world forever by teaching and healing and giving Himself for us?

Any thoughts out there?

Good Times and Great Oldies

This weekend I was in Columbia/Lexington for an engagement party, weekend with my PC girls, church and hanging out with old roommates that I love. Here are a few highlights:

• Sex in the City -- season 4
• Lots of yummy cheese products -- So much cheese, in fact, that you craved a salad to help it go down. But so good!
• New Moon!
• White elephant gift exchange -- I'm the proud owner of a 24 pack of double roll toilet paper. Charmin no less -- the good stuff.
• Taking pictures with a timer. (Thanks, Margaret!)
• Good sermon at First Pres -- on asking the Lord not to lead us into temptation.
• Moe's. On Main Street -- the best Moe's ever.
• Great friends.
• Lots of laughter.
• Designing tattoos. Don't ask. :)

PS -- The brownie pudding was fabulous. As if one would expect anything less from the Contessa.

Goodies

So last night I was baking up a storm. We're having our office Thanksgiving lunch today -- I'm already hungry. Apparently the entire office smells delightful from the turkey cooking in the oven. I made a cheesecake. Another one. I felt more confident in it doing it since the last one turned out really well, but it takes a really long time to bake! Hopefully the office will enjoy it.

AND I made a brownie pudding...what is that you ask? Well my gameplan was to take step-by-step pictures to show you. Unfortunately, I forgot about it until 1/2 way through. I'm hoping the final version tastes as good as the batter because the batter was unbelievable. It's a Barefoot Contessa recipe. She is absolutely my favorite person to watch cook...I'm still trying to think of ways to become her friend so that I can eat her food and be on her show. Let me know if you have any ideas. Here's the recipe:

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/brownie-pudding-recipe/index.html

Changes I made:

• I didn't add the framboise -- just because I didn't have it.
• I used some vanillla extract rather than a vanilla bean. Again, because it was easier.
• I made 1.5 times the recipe. It's for my PC girls weekend, and let's be honest, 1 recipe just wouldn't be enough!

Also: Remember when I checked the humidity level last night and it seemed like today would be a fine day to straighten my hair. So I did. And of course it is misty and humid this morning...I could already feel my hair curling up a bit. I may or may not have brought my straightener to work with me. And it may or may not be plugged in, on my desk, and ready for a touch up at a moment's notice.

Who is my God?

For the past few weeks, I've been doing a self-guided study of the characteristics of the Lord. A friend recommended it to me (thanks, Shannon!) and I loved the idea. It's been so good for me to get to know more about who my God is. Warning: this "study" is not fancy or polished. So far, I've looked at the Lord being gracious and being powerful. Last night I started looking at the Lord being just. I loved this verse more than before and thought I'd share.

Deuteronomy 32:4

The Rock, his work is perfect, for all his ways are justice. A God of faithfulness and without iniquity, just and upright is He.

This short verse has so much to offer. The Lord, our God, our maker and redeemer, is a rock. And not just a rock, but He is THE rock. He is the firm foundation for us to stand on. We can go to Him with anything and everything. We can rely on Him and depend on Him and trust that He will be strong and won’t move. I think of a large boulder and how sturdy it is – how it withstands the elements and surroundings to remain still and strong. And the Lord is the biggest bounder there is. And that is just from the first two words of this verse! The Lord is my rock and all of his works are perfect…even the works I don’t like or agree with…they are perfect. It is my misunderstanding or pride or selfishness that is so imperfect. But I can praise the Lord, my Lord for ALL of His works. I can praise the Lord that I feel unsettled, that there is pain in the world, that money is a challenge, that I am unsure of my life or what lies ahead, that people suffer, that I long for more. I can only praise Him for these things because the hard things are the things that draw us to the Lord as we see more and more of His character, in all of its perfection and glory. When the world disappoints, He is there.

And I don’t have to doubt His choices, His ways, His works because they are all justice. My God is just. Webster’s defines justice (as an adverb): having a basis in or conforming to fact or reason; faithful to an original; conforming to a standard of correctness; legally correct. The Lord is and/or upholds each of these things. He is the basis of all fact and reason and thereby conforms to Himself; He is faithful to His ways and truths – as He is the original – the alpha (and the omega!); He is correct in all of His ways; and His ways are legally binding (I especially think of the old testament here). There are no grounds for me to doubt Him and because His ways are correct (and also good!), I can rest in His decisions. They are not arbitrary; rather, they have been well thought out and well purposed. These things are giving me all the more reason to trust His ways. So often I am ungrateful – a nasty heart. I want so much to be pure in heart and lovely in being content with the Lord and what He has given me, and how He deals with me bountifully. Come quickly, Jesus, and change my heart. Unlike me, my God is upright and is without sin. He is just and upright. I have been called to follow Him – and a part of that is being just and upright in my doings as well. What are the areas that I have not been correct and godly? Job 34:10 explains these qualities of my Lord in other words, “Therefore, hear me, you men of understanding: far be it from God that He should do wickedness, and from the Almighty that He should do wrong.” Next time I am frustrated or confused by my life or surroundings or cards that others have been dealt, I hope that I remember this. I can be (and am, at times) wicked; God cannot be and has never been and will never be wicked. I do wrong; God can do no wrong. It is his nature to be perfect and just in all things…it is who He is.

Beautiful

The scenery is definitely one of the best parts of living in Charleston. I love water. The smell of marsh makes me feel like I'm home. Even when the traffic is miserable on Harborview in the mornings and afternoons, I'm thankful for the surroundings. I was super excited to find out that my house isn't too far from the water. I took these pictures just a few short blocks from where I reside.

Enjoy!

Welcome to Moe's?!?!

I was a bit more than disheartened to find out that there is not a Moe's on James Island. (Wouldn't you be?) Craving a good buritto, I spent much time searching for the nearest Tex-Mex joint. Sunday night I tried out Barberitos. So, how did it compare? All in all, it was quite delicious and had some major perks:

• They use thickly shredded white Mexican cheese.


• They have an option for spicy chicken. I had it and it was awesome.


• Really good salsa verde.


• Super thin chips...think Chili's thin.

They didn't call anything out as I walked in the door, and I don't know the employees well enough (yet) for them to remember my order like Lance at Moe's on Main in Columbia does.

Overall summary: I'll be back.

http://www.barberitos.com/

New Friend?

I sure hope not!

For those of you that know me well, you know that I am not too keen on animals. I didn't grow up with any pets, so Freud would probably blame my parents, but whatever the reason, I like my friends to be of the human persuasion.*

So this morning, I got quite a surprise in my office. My co-worker came in to talk to me and after a few minutes said, "Don't move. Be calm." Naturally, my biggest fear was that it was a mouse or a rat...they make me want to run and hide. So I was relieved that it was tiny, green, and furless...yet still not super happy about the situation. After chasing the little guy around for several minutes, it was caught in a cup and properly disposed of...let outside. Not by me. Ugh.

* I make one giant exception. Sullivan. Courtney's dog...she is a good friend, adorable, and an awesome walking partner. All in all, I think she is the greatest dog in the world.

Weekend Update

This weekend was my first weekend in Charleston that I didn't go out of town and had no set plans. Honestly, I was a bit nervous about it, but it turned out to be quite nice and very relaxing. And the weather was gorgeous. I hung out with one of my roommates Friday night and awoke Saturday morning to find this note in the kitchen: EA, I know you think I'm crazy, but I flew to Kansas. I'll be back Monday; call my cell. Love, Frasier. She went to see a friend; I had the house to myself.

• Took the best bath ever. It had all the things a perfect bath should have:
• • Warm water with lovely pomegranate bath salts (courtesy of Rachel). The water smelled delightful and was silky smooth.
  • Good music = Patty Griffin.
  • Nice, tall, cold beverage. Typically, I'd prefer an ice cold beer or cocktail. But this time I had a tall glass of sweet tea.
  • Several lit candles.
• Laid out on the beach. Saturday and Sunday. In November. It. Was. Fantastic. Beautiful weather, lovely sound of the ocean, people watching. Glorious. (Picture taken Sunday.) I didn't stay out too long because I didn't want to burn...seeing as how it's been a while since I've been in the sun in a bathing suit. But, I am happy to say that I officially have some (faint) tan lines.

• Cooked a good meal: my version of chicken cordon bleu. I used Swiss cheese and pepperoni, instead of ham. And seasoned the outside of the chicken breast with salt, red pepper, and cilantro, instead of bread crumbs. Seared in a pat of butter and baked. Really tasty.

• Read a book, an easy-reading mystery: Loitering with Intent.
• Tried a new church. Redeemer Presbyterian, downtown. I forgot how strange it was to try a new church. It took me 6 months in Columbia to find the one that was right for me...and since then, that church has been my benchmark for all other churches. I'll be going to back to this one again, and probably trying a few more in the area.
• Took a few nice, long walks in my 'hood.

All in all, not too shabby!

Family Funny

I had supper at mom and dad's house last week...it was delicious and I got parting gifts: leftovers and assorted food items.

As I was loading up the car, the following conversation took place:
Dad: Call us when you get home.
Me: No, I'm not going to do that.
Mom: Ok...she's not going to call us when she gets home.
Me: It's a twenty minute drive...and you've haven't known where I was or what I was doing the past eight years...so, no, I'm not calling you when I get home.
Mom: Ok...[Imagine mom disappointed, yet trying to grasp reality.]

Fast forward a few days to Sunday. I'm in Columbia (see post) And see that I've missed a call from my dad. Being the wonderful daughter I am, I call him back.

Dad: Hey. Two questions. One. I was going to tell you that if you're near the house, I have some fresh red fish and you could join me for supper. But I already ate it. Two. How was the oyster roast?
Me: Roast was a lot of fun. Glad you enjoyed your fish already. Besides, I'm not near the house...I'm eating supper in Columbia and then driving home. I'll get home late so I'll call you when I get there.
Dad: Oh, no. You don't have to call me when you get home.

Again, being the wonderful daughter I am, I called when I was back in Charleston. So this week I was eating with my parents again, and again parting with leftovers and goodies.

Mom: Randy (family friend) was in town the other day. He stopped by the house on his way to Edisto (about an hour away). We had a nice long visit; he didn't leave til around 10 o'clock. Your dad asked Randy to call him when he got to Edisto that night. And Randy called us! [Imagine mom smirking.]

Maybe Randy's the best child?!?

AA

Hi. My name is Elizabeth Ann. I'm 26 and I've been wrestling with Adult Acne since I graduated from college. Highschool presented few problems for me in this area. College gave me nothing to complain about. But I find it is a daily battle for me these days...and gets worse with stress. I've been to dermatologists (some better than others!), been on oral meds, and several expensive lotions. But who wants to be on oral medicine for the rest of their lives for bad skin? Grrrrrrr.

The best thing for me as of the past year has been Pro Active's Refining Mask. Basically, it is some kind of sulfur treatment that Krissie (thanks, KB!) gave me. And my friends love it when I douse my face wit before bed...large white blobs. Last night I showered before Top Chef so I could stay awake for it. Then put on my medicine...as you can imagine, I looked super hot. Then I realized that my roomate would be coming home with her out of town boyfriend...that I don't yet know too well. Cool.

Me: Hey, Rob. I didn't know you were spending the night tonight, or else I wouldn't have gone ahead and put my face medicine on.

Rob: Nah, its cool. (I'm hoping he means it, but I'm sure he thinks I'm a bizarre looking nut.)

Another notch in this awesome single girl's belt.

Modern Family

Have you seen it? It makes me laugh out loud every time! I'm posting a few clips that I've found especially funny.

Enjoy!

Veteran's Day

So I've never celebrated Veteran's day before, but this year I'm happy to celebrate. Not only am I appreciative of all the Veteran's who have fought for our freedom and more, but also for the state of SC for celebrating the Vets by giving us the day off! I've never had this day off before, and I like it.

I know I've only worked seven days, but I was already ready for a day off! If that's wrong, I don't want to be right. Unlike the other days when I wake up too early, run around getting ready, and then enjoy a 40 or so minute commute to my office, today was fabulous. No alarm, no running around, and no commute.

So far today, I've been able to:

• Sleep in several hours later than usual. I got a full 8 hours! That's what I'm talking about!
• Have a nice quiet time with the Lord.
• Eat breakfast at a leisurely pace, not in the car, that may or may not have included a chocolate chip cookie. :)

Things I'm hoping to accomplish:

• File papers that keep piling up.
• Watch lots of TV
• Go for a nice walk...if the rain ever lets up...it's supposed to after lunch time, which would be perfect.
• Supper at Mom and Dad's house (and hopefully some leftovers!)
• Trivia at Kickin' Chicken with Ben and AV...hoping I'm able to stay awake that late!

Go Vets!

My Humble Abode

I thought I'd post a few pics of my room. My roommate (and owner of our home), Marifrasier, selected the wall color and I really love it. It's Sherwin Williams' Meadowlands, 1414. It's and old color, but they still sell it...and I'm so glad. It's very fresh and clean...a bit more mature then something I'd naturally select, or maybe I'm growing up? Ha! And I LOVE my pillows. I purchased the solid green ones last year (and am glad I can still use them!), Courtney found the shams for me at West Elm online, and I fell in love with the paisley printed one at Target. On a shopping excursion with Frances, I almost jumped for joy when I saw it!




My bed is on risers and I'm proud to say that I put it up on rises all by myself! I felt like quite the hoss. Ha! I needed to use the space under my bed as storage and it filled up quickly! Courtesy of a very generous gift from the Lightcaps, I was able to purchase this lovely bed skirt (and a few new bath towels!). It hides the clutter and has a bit of a tailored look.




My dear friend Marshall gave me this this print as a gift when I left Columbia. It's a print of her father's, Guy Lipscomb; he is an extraordinary watercolorist and does beautiful work -- he's the reason I like abstract art. The print is of a stairway outside a home in Charleston, which is all the more fitting for me since I'm back in Charleston. I was thrilled with how well it complemented my room.


And, yes, Jacqueline, that is the cross from Windy Gap women's weekend out and about in my room. I never thought I'd use it, but alas, I did!

The furniture had been my Grammy's and was promised to me. She's still alive and kickin' but was recently moved to an even more assisted living portion of her old folks home and so I got the goods. There's a lot of storage and I'm really thankful to have all the pieces! I really like the dark wood against the fresh color of the paint and white bedding.

And, yes, that is me taking the picture with my MacBook. I don't have a digi cam, so I use Photo Booth...why not?

Make new friends, but keep the old...

Some of you remember this old school Girl Scouts song. I was a proud scout for a few years...and this song is the thing I most remember, "Make new friends, but keep the old...one is silver, and the other gold."

For some reason I thought of this song on my drive home from Spartanburg last night. As I got in the car to drive back to Charleston, I got really sad. I was so thankful for my time in the Burg that I didn't want to leave. The Lord had really given me some good friends and good times there...that season of my life was one of great contentment. I enjoyed being able to spend time at home, hanging out with Sullivan, cooking, etc. I think the challenge of leaving yesterday was three-fold. One. I spent time with my favorite Spartanburg friends (the Hansens, the Lightcaps, the Wests, the Palmers, the Shelton) at the oyster roast. Two. I was so busy with moving and family things that I never really had time to process leaving Spartanburg. Three. While Charleston has not been bad at all so far, I fear that it will be. My first year in Columbia was rough to say the least and I fear that this transition period might be the same.

I've been studying God's graciousness the past few days and He definitely showed me grace upon grace upon grace last night. As soon as I got in the car, I called a dear friend that listened and loved me AND invited me to supper in Columbia. I took her up on her offer and stopped by my beloved First Pres in time to hear the last half of the sermon. It was on my favorite verse in Romans. Romans 8:15, "For you did not receive a spirit of slaver to fall back into fear, but you received a spirit of adoption by whom we cry, 'Abba! Father.'"

I love listening to Sinclair Ferguson preach. The thing that stuck out to me most was: This cry should not be, "Abba. Father." For the Christian, this cry should be, "ABBA! FATHER!" This is a loud cry, a cry of distress, a cry of need. You need this when life is hard, a mess, dark, in time of crisis. In these times, ask the Lord to come to your aid. And He will!" I just needed to hear it and the Lord knew it. Then I saw two of my dear friends, Margaret and Marshall, from Columbia and was able to cry on their shoulders and be myself and listen to them tell me truth. So good! These two older ladies have so much wisdom and love.

THEN I got to eat a delicious meal at Jenn and Nicole's. The food was excellent and the company delightful...the two of them and a newer buddy, Jonathan. Overall, it was just good for my heart to be with them. I forced myself to leave around 9:10 and listened to a Beth Moore talk on Esther in the car. Courtney gave me the talk before I left, and again, the Lord knew what I needed to hear. It was all about being courageous and strong and taking chances for the Lord -- saying NO to the things we fear and instead trusting where the Lord will lead us. When hard things happen to us...if the worst thing in the world happened to us, so what? We'd be drawn closer to the Lord because we would be utterly dependent on Him.

And it is exciting to see where the Lord will lead me and how He will use me and what He will teach me here in Charleston. There is much to be excited about! In time, finding a new church, making new friends, learning new things about the Lord and myself. Once again, and as always, He took care of me in very real and tangible ways last night and I'm so grateful. I made it home just after 11. Needless to say, I'm pretty tired this morning. But it was well worth it!

Cheesecake

I made a cheesecake last night for the first time. I must say, it was quite the labor of love. I hope that it (1) survives the car ride from Charleston to Spartanburg and (2) tastes good. My BFF and HLP* recently celebrated her 27th birthday and the cake of cheese is in her honor.

I know that I've only been away from Spartanburg for a week, but I must say that I'm quite excited about my return visit. It really became home to me for the time I was there. I learned my way around -- for the most part and made some really good friends. You know who you are (all 4 of you!). Courtney's having an oyster roast at her house and I'm pretty stoked. Can't wait to eat myself silly and hang out with good friends!

* In case you don't know what an HLP is, let me share with you. Heterosexual Life Partner. I know, I know...it's a bit silly sounding. But if you don't have one, you might want to consider getting one. My HETEROSEXUAL life partner and I lived together for 3 years in college, recently for a six-month stint that ended a week ago, and talk every day in some capacity. Basically, you do life together...but that's it...if you know what i mean. :)

Sleep Deprived

I forgot how working full time makes me so tired! I know I'll get back into the swing of things, but having been out of the working world for 15 months (grad school and then some), it's taking me a while...certainly more than a few days! It was amazing to me when I wasn't working how (in Columbia) I used to cook and grocery shop, exercise, entertain and have social things to do, do my laundry, etc...all while working 40 hours a week. Whilst writing my thesis or job hunting I could plan my entire day around one or two things that I needed to do. Those days are over!

Last night I had to pick some things up from Mom & Dad's house and had a nice home cooked meal over there. It's always a treat when you don't have to cook for yourself. Thanks mom! But I was ready for bed at 7:30. Whoa. I was determined to watch Top Chef though and forced myself to stay up until 10. Turns out it was a reunion episode...so I went to bed.

This morning I left 8 minutes later than yesterday and made it to the office around 7:55...perfect timing I suppose. When I went to grab my diet coke this morning, I realized that I didn't put any more in the fridge last night like I meant to. Oops! I grabbed a huge tervis tumbler. Of course I spilled a couple of sips worth in my lap on the way to work. Haha. Thank goodness for the napkins in my glove box!

Early bird gets the worm?

Well in order to not be late for the second day in a row, I left my house at 7 this morning. That is quite the feat for a non-morning person such as myself. That means the alarm starts going off at 5:30 and I snooze until 6. Drank my diet coke and ate breakfast in the car. Made it to BFE parking lot by 7:15 and to my office at 7:30.

Yesterday 5 minutes late; today 30 minutes early! Maybe one day I'll get it right? I hope that day is SOON. :)

So far the highlight of my day has been getting not one, but two complements on my new shoes (at the bus stop no less!). Courtney found these shoes for me at TJ Maxx -- super fun and funky. Cole Haan's. $40. Enough said.
Also, I think I'm going to lunch with some co-workers today...another first! (I hope I am because I didn't pack a lunch!)

PS

As bad as my day started off, I was glad to be looking good in a cute outfit! A new shirt and some old favorites -- perfect combination. As vain as it is, sometimes looking good really does make life more merry!

It's been a while...

Since my last post, a lot of changes have taken place.

One. I moved to James Island. I'm learning my way around with a little help from my friend Garmin. However, last night I was walking and I got very lost. Didn't help that it was completely black outside and sans my glasses I had a hard time reading street signs.

Two. My brother got engaged. Congrats Nathan and Shannon! Not sure when the wedding will be or where -- Michigan or Mt. Pleasant?!? I'll keep you posted.

Three. I started working. Monday consisted of orientation, parking pass office, parking in the parking garage only to realize I wasn't allowed to park there, so I ran up to the car before I got a ticket and moved to my designated lot. The Hagood lot. Its location: BFE. Near the Citadel. I'm sure I'll have more to come on this. Apparently, I'll need to be leaving my home around 7 to get there around 7:30 to make it to the office around 8. Oh yeah. Such a treat for a delightful morning person like myself. Then I hit up the office for a bit and was home by 2:30 for a nap! Yay!

Today was my first day in the office all day. It started off terrible! At some point I realized that I left my portfolio on the bus yesterday afternoon. Now this portfolio included my special one day parking pass, my important MUSC password, my dental insurance, and a plethora of other important goodies. Praise the Lord Marcia was available to help me and give me numbers to call! I found it and was able to get it back later in the day! Thanks, God! Then I realized I was going to be late...by about 5 minutes because traffic is ridiculous. Apparently Charleston is the new New York (paying for parking, crazy traffic, expensive housing, etc.) But my boss was gracious and we all had a good laugh at the portfolio situation. The rest of the day was pretty chill...

And it will start all over again bright and early in the morning!