2011 Year in Review

1. What did you do in 2011 that you'd never done before?

Moved far away from home for the first time in my life. Moving with my family when I was six doesn’t count.

2. Did you keep your new years' resolutions, and will you make more for next year?

I don’t think I made any particular resolutions, though my general goal was to have a library job for the 2011-2012 school year. Though I didn’t get the job that I originally planned to have, I did get a job and am happy where I am.

3. Did anyone close to you give birth?

My cousin’s wife had a baby, but we’re not particularly close – but that’s the only baby I can think of.

4. Did anyone close to you die?

Thankfully, no.

5. What countries did you visit?

No countries again – but I have hope that I will some day.

6. What would you like to have in 2011 that you lacked in 2010?

I think I would simply like to make more new friends here in San Antonio. I had several wonderful friends back home, but making new friends here has been somewhat of a challenge.

7. What date from 2011 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?

I can’t remember the exact date – around the end of June when I was offered a librarian job in San Antonio.

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?

Moving to San Antonio relatively unscathed and starting my career has a librarian.

9. What was your biggest failure?

I don’t know that anything was really a failure this year – but probably the fact that I gave up on the yearbook and had to have the new adviser finish it for me.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?

Nothing major – typical colds, allergies and such. Lots of bumps and bruises from moving and delivering textbooks.

11. What was the best thing you bought?

My new furniture for my house.

12. Whose behavior merited celebration?

Josh still amazes me – he is doing so well in school and bravely venturing to Tasmania.

13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?

Nobody that I can think of – the sixth graders at the middle school have been trying though. They don’t seem capable of listening or following instructions and are obnoxious most of the time.

14. Where did most of your money go?

Paying for the move to San Antonio.

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?

My new job and going out on dates.

16. What song will always remind you of 2011?

“Changes” - seems this year was full of them!

17. Compared to this time last year, are you:

happier or sadder? Much happier in my job, but a little sad missing some friends.
- richer or poorer? Mostly the same. I make more money now, but I have more expenses here so it comes out about the same.
- thinner or fatter? Slightly fatter – gained about 3-4 pounds that I need to lose!

18. What do you wish you'd done more of?

Riding roller coasters and spending time with friends back in Canyon.

19. What do you wish you'd done less of?

As usual – worrying.

20. How did you spend the holidays?

New Years (2010) – with my friend Kirsten again. Valentine’s Day – alone. Easter – at Church with wonderful friends. 4^th of July – with friends. Thanksgiving – in Vegas with family. Christmas – here in SA without Josh for the first time, but with my new boyfriend, Matt, and his friends.

21. Did you fall in love in 2011?

No, but found a new boyfriend that I really like!

22. How many one-night stands?

None – but considered it with Marty at one point. Also had a single date with a guy from e-harmony that didn’t go anywhere.

23. What was your favorite TV program?

Probably re-runs of Monk and House Hunters.

24. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year?

Nope, I’m a lover, not a hater.

25. What was the best book you read?

Probably the Lee Child books.

26. What was your favorite film of this year?

The Help.

27. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2011?

I still don’t have fashion sense and probably never will. I still wear lots of purple and got new purple Sketchers.

28. Whom did you miss?

All my friends back in Canyon/Amarillo, my fellow speech teachers, and my family that I didn’t get to see much of.

29. Who was the best new person you met?

My boyfriend, Matt.

30. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2011.

Sometimes you have to take risks to get what you want in life. Change can be a good thing. It is important to have a career that you enjoy.

Hugs are getting good

So we had dinner at Olive Garden tonight and it was very good. Some nice conversation at dinner and then we came home to play some Scrabble. I beat him the first game, but then he proceeded to kick my butt for the next five games. I did have some pretty good bingo words playing “maestro” and “sojourns.” He wants me to go to a one day competition with him at the end of the month and play in a novice division. At the end of the night, he gave a very nice tight hug and another quick kiss on the lips and told me before he left that he was glad that I found him.

We are going to go to Mass tomorrow evening together and then Brent is coming over at 7:30. I think it is going to be very nice evening. Tomorrow I have to make the dessert (raspberry and cream cheese squares) and finish doing laundry. I guess I should head to bed and get rested for the full day tomorrow.

Gotta get back on schedule

I hate how my sleeping schedule gets off during the breaks. I’m finding that I stay up later and later and then sleep in as well. When I have to go back to work on Tuesday, it will be tough to get out of bed that morning. I’m sure it will take a few days to get used to going to bed early again.

Yesterday I got out of the house and went to half-priced books. I didn’t find the Harry Potter book I wanted, but did get some other books using the gift card Matt got me. I still have about $9 on the card. After that, I went to the movies to see “Young Adult.” It was ok, but not that great. It was a pretty dark comedy with no real resolution at the end of the movie. It felt good to get out regardless. After the movie I went to Chipotle for a steak burrito and started reading a book on playing Scrabble. A guy at the restaurant saw me reading it and asked me if I was a champion. I told him, no, that I was just learning, but he wanted a hint or tip that he could use. I told him the strategic key is rack management and learning to play “Bingo” words using all 7 letters.

After dinner I drove up to my rental company’s office to drop off my check and then I headed home. I was up until around 1:00 a.m. and even then I had a hard time getting to sleep. Today I cleaned my house including doing laundry and dishes. Matt is coming to pick me up at 6:30 for dinner. Looks like it will be just us tonight.

Lazy Day

I slept in this morning and stayed in pj’s most of the day. I wasn’t completely unproductive though. I mowed the back yard today. It has been so wet lately, I couldn’t mow. I finally got it mowed though the mower clogged twice with wet grass. Some areas were pretty thick. I still need to get the weed-eater out there but I’ll save that for another day. I also went to the store to get stuff for dinner on New Year’s eve. For dessert I’m making raspberry cream cheese squares.

The last few days I’ve been in anxious anticipation. You know that feeling when you’re first dating someone and you can’t wait until the next time you see them? I’m there. I’ll see him on Friday evening though I don’t know if we will be playing scrabble with other friends or just one on one. I kind of hope it is one on one. I’ll see him again for New Year’s eve of course. I’m hoping that I’ll get to kiss him at midnight. If it happens, it will be my first NYE’s kiss since Marty in 2004/2005.

Tomorrow I may head to the one half-price book store that I haven’t been to yet to see if I can find the elusive hard copy of the 2nd Harry Potter book. That’s the only one I don’t have in hard copy right now. Even if I can’t find it, I can probably find something to spend my gift card on.

Reflection

Now that the year is coming to a close, I’ve been thinking about how much things in my life has changed. Sure – things always change for people throughout the year, but this year was full of much bigger changes for me. I went to the movies by myself tonight. As I was driving home I was thinking about the fact that I’m simply happy. Life is good. It’s not just because I have a boyfriend – that is certainly a plus, but I’m finally in a place where I’m happy about where I live, I enjoy my job, and have the freedom to pursue other interests.

I’ve been randomly reading some of my blog entries from earlier this year and the following I wrote in February:

“I’m feeling that itch of needing a change. Problem is that I don’t know specifically what kind change. I just need something different. A different job, a different house, a different city, a different hairstyle, I just don’t know what it is or even how to go about it. I’m sure the itch will go away, but right now I just feel very incomplete.”

It’s amazing how fortuitous that statement was. I hadn’t yet started applying for jobs though I did mention in a January blog that I was interested in a university job opening in San Antonio. I don’t think I applied for it though. I spent much of the first have of 2011 in frustration with my job and my relationship with Michael (aka Matthew as a pseudonym). I sent out numerous applications for library jobs and even though I second guessed my decision to even apply in San Antonio. Luckily I overcame it and everything worked out in the end. I think this is where I’m supposed to be at this time in my life. I wasn’t sure I could ever actually move away from the home I’ve know most of my life. I’ve fantasized about moving away but wasn’t sure if I truly had it in me. I guess I did.

I don’t know where things will go with Matt, but I’m happy to have met him as well. I enjoy spending time with him. I’m really going to try to not overanalyze our relationship (wish me luck on that) and just take things as they come. The fact that we’re not moving very fast is probably a good thing.

I will post the traditional year in review in another day or two, but I wanted to comment in general about the current state of things. I do hope, however, that this isn’t one of those situations where someone finally says “I’m happy” and something in their world comes crashing down. Let’s hope that things continue to be positive here in San Antonio.

One more week of vacation

Time seems to fly when you’re on vacation. Yesterday I was completely lazy. I didn’t even change out of pajamas all day. Today I at least took a shower, but now I’m back in pj’s. I’m actually thinking of getting dressed and going to the movies. One of the theaters here has $6.00 tickets all day. I can’t decide if I want to see New Year’s Eve or Young Adult. I think Matt and I are going to a scrabble party on Friday evening. For New Year’s Eve, my friend Brent is coming down and he will spend it with Matt and I. I think we’ll grill steaks and I will make fettuccine.

Here’s a picture of Matt for those of you that I don’t have as friends on Facebook.

I think Mollie is in love with him. When I’m cooking in the kitchen, she waits by the front door. I think she’s figured out that I usually cook when he is coming over. They cuddled all day on Christmas. Hopefully next time it will be me cuddling.

An interesting day

So I tried to sleep in this morning, but was awake at 8:00 a.m. in spite of my best efforts to not wake up that early. I made myself get out of bed around 9:45 and take a shower. Matt came over around 11:30 and we exchanged gifts. He got me a gift card to Half-Price books and he seemed to enjoy the gifts I got him. He also told me that “I” was the best gift he had this Christmas and gave me a huge hug. I made breakfast burritos (without eggs) and cinnamon rolls. We had a late breakfast and visited for a long while as we ate. After that we watched “A Christmas Story” together. Mollie found a new best friend as she sat on Matt’s lap the entire time and he petted her. After the movie we watched Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. I realized at 3:00 that I needed to start making the apple crisp so I got to work on it. It turned out very well I think. At 4:30 we headed to his friend’s house. There were a lot of different people there, but they were all very nice and we had a lot of interesting conversations. There was a lady there that had just moved back to Texas from Australia so we had lengthy conversations about Josh going to Tasmania. At one point, I was introduced to someone by Matt and he called me his girlfriend. We ate barbeque and played several games of Scrabble. We headed out around 11:30 and came back to my house. He came in to gather his gifts and then he gave me another hug and I even got a quick kiss on the lips. So it is official. I have a boyfriend!

Finally a hug

It wasn’t at the end of the night, but I did get a hug from Matt during the “Peace” at the church service tonight. So here’s hoping to more hugs in the future. We had a nice time at the service. We went to the Mission San Jose. We got back to my place around 1:30 and he came in and had some hot chocolate. He left about 15 minutes ago. He’s coming over in the morning around 10:30 and I’m making breakfast burritos – without eggs. I offered eggs to him, but he said he didn’t have to have them. I will report again tomorrow on how Christmas day goes.

Digging

Well, I got a little more information last night. He told me at dinner that he had been holding out for a Scrabble player – that he had other girlfriends before, but none of them really got into the game. Turns out that Matt also had a rather lengthy relationship with someone before – 7 years in fact. I didn’t get much else in the way of details, but it was someone that he worked with. He said that it seemed to fizzle in the end.

My impression is that he is shy about new relationships and likes to take things slow. I think he really likes me but isn’t sure how to proceed. I’m still holding out for that hug and I think it has to happen soon. He also said that he liked the fact that I was intelligent. I told him that it was nice to hear and that I thought being smart intimidated some men, and he said again that he likes that about me.

I made parmesan chicken for dinner last night and it turned out pretty well. After dinner he helped me put a new t.v. stand for my bedroom together. After that we watched Blazing Saddles. He’s coming back over tonight around 7:00 and then we are going to midnight mass at 10:30. I’m making beef enchiladas for dinner.

Tomorrow he’s coming over in the morning and we will exchange gifts, have breakfast, and watch A Christmas Story. We head to his friend’s house at 2:00. I should probably study some scrabble words as I think we’ll be playing lots of games tomorrow.

I want to wish a Merry Christmas to all my wonderful blog friends. If I leave your name off below and you’re a loyal reader, let me know! I hope that Andrew, Patti, Mago, Jamie, Jan, LM, Leann, Christina, Carol, Rebecca,and Summer have a very happy and blessed Christmas.

Scrabble Success

I finally beat Matt at Scrabble last night. I even had one of my highest scores ever at 453 points. I met him for dinner at a restaurant across the street from where his Scrabble club meets. It turns out his friend Jason and his mom showed up for dinner even though they couldn’t stay for practice. Matt made a comment as we were entering the restaurant that they would finally get to see that I’m “real” and he’s not making me up. Jason and his mom were very nice. Of course she asked how we met and I wasn’t sure if Matt would be embarrassed to tell them that it was on an online dating site, but it didn’t seem to phase him. Michael didn’t really want to tell people we had met that way. My brother and his wife met online, but I’m the only person in the family that knows that. It doesn’t bother me. If I find someone I like through the internet and it turns out he’s not psycho, then who cares? So we had a nice dinner and they got to know me a little more. Even though I have yet to hug Matt, Jason’s mom (I’m drawing a blank on her name right now) hugged me before leaving so I take it that I have her approval. So then we went over to the practice center. When I sat down to play one of the other guys in the club, I was really nervous. I can’t explain why, but I was actually shaking a little. I had to open and I was frantically trying to make a bingo word because I had pretty good tiles. Finally it came to me and I played “stouter.” After that, I did pretty well and beat the first guy – though not by much. For most of the game we were scoring pretty evenly. After that, I played another guy who kicked my butt and I didn’t even break 300 points. Then I played Matt and scored two bingo words – one of them in the very last play. Score was 453 to 368. We played another game – actually Matt played me and another guy simultaneously and he beat me, but not by much. Perhaps I’m getting better and actually learning a few things. Or maybe I just had a good night.

Today I have to go to the grocery store and get stuff to make chicken parmesan tonight. I’m also going to get stuff to make caramel apple crisp for dessert to take to Christmas dinner. Then I’m going to clean the house and do laundry. Matt is coming over for dinner at 7:00. If I can find a t.v. stand for my bedroom, I’ll try to get one and get my new t.v. hooked up. I should go get dressed and head out for my errands.

Early Christmas

Josh and I celebrated Christmas this morning since he was going to be heading out this afternoon. I have to say it was a very nice Christmas this year. Josh bought me a 32 inch flat screen t.v. for my bedroom, the first season of Columbo, a Marvin the Martian wallet, and a model Titanic thing I saw at the bookstore several weeks ago. He’s now headed back to Canyon but I won’t be lonely for long.

I’m going to dinner and Scrabble practice with Matt tomorrow night and then he’s coming over for dinner on Friday. Saturday will be midnight Mass and then he is coming over Christmas morning to hang out and exchange gifts. Then we have dinner with his friends on Christmas evening. So my mission in all of this is to get a hug. I think that would be a good start. If I really feel brave, I will start asking some of the deeper questions that we’ve avoided thus far. We’ll see how it goes.

I had insomnia again last night. I was awake around 5:00 and didn’t get back to sleep until after 7:30. At least I don’t have school right now. And for the rest of the day I haven’t done a thing. I’ve stayed in my pajamas, read some of my book, and watched a couple of episodes of Columbo. Tomorrow I have to pay bills and see if I have any money left.

I think I’ll finish my book and perhaps watch one more episode of Columbo.

Insomnia Strikes Again

This time I’ve been awake since 3-something. I just took a tylenol pm in hopes that I’ll get a little more sleep. If I had to work tomorrow, I wouldn’t take anything and just deal with it. But since I can sleep in, I will – assuming it kicks in and I get to sleep in the next hour or so.

Yesterday I headed out shopping again in search of the final beads for Matt’s rosary. I found some that worked and finished the rosary. I thought it turned out pretty well. Even though it is purple, I wanted it to still be masculine so I used black and silver with it. Matt’s favorite color is purple and it’s my favorite color as well. It seems we have quite a bit in common. We’re both librarians, we both drive a Prius, we both like Scrabble (though he is far more passionate about it), we both like roller coasters (of which I am more passionate), both love to read (duh), and like the color purple. He is a San Antonio Spurs fan and I’ve never been to a professional game, though I think he will take me sometime.

He told me that we have have been invited to Christmas dinner by one of his Scrabble friend’s family. I thought it was interesting that he said that “we” were invited – not “I” have been invited and you can come too. It means that he has mentioned me to these friends. He says that they are like his adopted family as he has mentored their son in playing Scrabble and with no family here, they have kind of taken him in.

Josh and I are going to Austin today. We will drive down this afternoon and go to lunch. Then we are going to go see Marty at work at Home Depot and look at BBQ grills. Matt said he would love to grill the steaks he got for Christmas sometime, but he isn’t allowed to have a grill at his apartment. After that, Josh and I will do a little more Christmas shopping and then meet Marty and my other friend Brent for dinner. I’m looking forward to the company.

Josh heads back to Canyon on Wednesday. I just realized that this will be the first Christmas that we have not spent together since he was born. Though I will miss him, I know that he really wants to spend time with his best friend and girlfriend back in Canyon so I’m ok with it. He’s growing up and I know I can’t always have him here. I’m looking forward to getting to spend time with Matt so all is well. I think it would be more difficult if I didn’t have my new friend.

Well, I will go do some internet surfing until the tylenol kicks in and then try to get a few more hours of sleep.

Why am I up this early?

It’s 6:15 in the morning and I don’t have to work. Even on work days, I’m not up this early. I’ve been awake since 4:53, but finally gave up the bed around 6:00. I do not want to be up this early. But I guess I’ll blog instead.

Yesterday I went to church. I decided to go to the one closest to me. It was ok, but I really miss St. Ann’s. First of all, it was crowded. Even though they have three Sunday services and a Saturday service, it was fairly packed. I guess that is a good thing – to have a church filled with people, but it was warm. They had a choir, but they were not very good. There was only two somewhat familiar songs during the service though they do have the same hymnal that we used at St. Ann’s. I guess it was ok as far as church’s go, but I think I’ll keep looking. Matt and I are either going to the Cathedral or to the Mission for midnight Mass this next weekend.

Josh and I went out shopping yesterday. We stopped at Michael’s where I found a frame for pictures I’m giving my aunt for Christmas, but didn’t find beads that I liked. I headed to Hobby Lobby, but forgot about them being closed on Sundays. I did, however, find a store that had just beads, so I found some purple beads that I thought would do. I may still need to find some additional beads, but I guess I can head back to Hobby Lobby sometime today. I did find out that Matt does use a rosary so I hope it will be a good gift. Josh and I hit several other stores looking for something for his girlfriend. We thought we finally had a great idea – an engraved bookmark from James Avery – but it would take three weeks for the engraving. We are going shopping in Austin on Tuesday and then having dinner with Marty and Brent so I guess we’ll see if we can find something there.

Matt I went to see Hugo last night. The movie was good, but I don’t think my 3D glasses worked very well – everyone in the movie still had doubled faces and four eyes. Still no “moves” to speak of, but he did make a nice comment. We were talking about interests and such on the ride home and I said something to the effect that he did seem to have a few interests beyond Scrabble. He then made the comment that his life had gotten much more interesting since I came into it. So I’ll take that as a continuing positive sign. We talked about going to more movies together, riding rollercoasters, and going to Schlitterbahn this summer. I’m going with him to Scrabble practice on Thursday and then we are going out to eat with a couple of his friends from the club.

Not sure what all I’m going to do today. I need to get some wrapping paper to wrap some gifts. I think that first, I need to go back to bed and try to get a few more hours of sleep. Wish me luck on that.

Christmas Shopping

I don’t mind the crowds in the stores so much, but I mostly can’t stand the stupid drivers all over the place. I went to the mall this morning and picked up some things for Josh. I then went to eat lunch at Chipotle. I went to Michael’s in search of some beads to make a rosary for Matt for Christmas, but I couldn’t find what I wanted. I still couldn’t find anything at Hobby Lobby or Joann’s either. I picked up a couple of stocking stuffers and gifts for the pets, but that’s it. I still need to find a frame for pictures for my aunt and uncle. I will probably send my friend Kirsten a gift card to Amazon. I ordered a calendar and a San Antonio Spurs stocking for Matt. I may still try to find the beads to make a rosary, but if not, I’ll try to find something else.

Matt called this evening to let me know the plans for going to the movie tomorrow. We are going to see Hugo at the Imax and then out to eat afterward. Tomorrow morning I’m going to church and then probably to Walmart to pick up some wrapping paper. I realize that I left all my Christmas wrapping stuff back in Canyon. I guess I’ll have to start over with paper and such. I don’t need much as I won’t have a lot to wrap.

I’m a chicken

Normally I get some kind of signal from a guy that it is ok to make some kind of move. A touch, a glance, a comment… something. I’m getting nothing here. I’ve wowed him three times with dinner and dessert. We’ve done something together almost every weekend for the past six weeks. He wants to spend time with me, and yet he makes no moves at all. I’m ok with the let’s just be friends thing, but usually if that’s the case, I might see the person once a month – if that. He brings me books to read. He asked me to go to midnight mass at Christmas with him and to a possible New Year’s eve party. And still no hug. No hand holding. Tonight I did sit right next to him on the couch and our shoulders touched. I think I conveyed a few flirtatious moments, but not sure. I don’t know if I’m off my game or if I’m just completely in dark and have no idea what to do. We are going to the movies on Sunday evening. He has invited me to go to his scrabble club on Thursday and dinner afterward. I guess we’ll just keep slowly moving forward and maybe one of these days I’ll get a hug or something. I’m not complaining – just confused.

So in other news…. Josh is home. I’m glad he’s here, but it costs me more in groceries. Thankfully I’m able to skip a car payment this month. That way I can buy a few Christmas presents this month. I’m still debating what to get Matt. I have a few ideas. I’ll see if anything else comes to me when I go shopping tomorrow. On Tuesday next week, Josh and I are going to to Austin to go shopping and then we will have dinner with Brent and Marty. It should be fun.

I’m glad that school is out. I spent the day cleaning up and organizing as much as I could. My library is looking pretty nice – at least out front… the back is a whole other story. Hopefully I’ll get to it after the break. I still love the job. I’m still staying busy, but I don’t mind the work. That is the way a job should be. It shouldn’t be a constant level of frustration.

Well, I’m going to go to bed and enjoy sleeping in tomorrow. I’ve already turned off the alarm. Of course that means I’ll be awake at 5:00 a.m. Oh well… that’s the way it usually goes.

Confession is good for…

me, probably. It’s been a while. I haven’t gone to confession since sometime this past summer. I haven’t been to church since August. I guess advent is as good as a time as any to get back on track. I headed to a church mid-town tonight that had a communal penance service. It was a little different than the service I was used to at my old church. Usually we would gather together and go through prayers and the act of contrition as a group before going to individual confessions. At this church, they just pointed out the different places where the priests would be and we just went individually. Luckily I had my iPhone with me so I could pull up the Act of Contrition since I have yet to memorize it. I guess that means I should go to confession more, huh? But I got through it and now I can fully participate in communion again so I’m looking forward to that. I’ve really missed being a part of a church. I think perhaps that is the biggest things I miss about Canyon – the church family I had there. I don’t miss the job, though I do miss some of my co-workers. I don’t miss going to tournaments every weekend, though I miss some of my fellow speech teachers. I don’t miss the cold weather or the wind.

I’m still fighting the cold that is trying to take over. It has stayed fairly mild, but I just felt kind of blah all day. I had to spend the day getting new textbooks out to the English teachers. After school we had a faculty meeting that droned on forever. I came home and ate some leftover chili and rice before I headed out to church. Luckily they had a ton of priests there so there wasn’t much of a line. I was out of there by 7:18 and got home by 7:40. I took a benadryl a little while ago and it should kick in fairly soon. I think I’m going to read a book until I can’t keep my eyes open.

Josh is coming home tomorrow. He’ll be here until the 21st and then he is going back to Canyon. He’ll come back around January 1st for a week and then he’ll go back to Canyon for a few weeks. After that, he’ll spend a few days in Nacogdoches and then he leaves for Tasmania around Feb. 20 and will be gone until June. I’m excited for him, but am worried and will miss him at the same time. He has come a long way and has become such a brave young man. I’m not sure I could do what he’s doing at his age. It was a big deal for me to pack up everything and move to San Antonio at the age of 41. Of course when I was his age, I just had him and was raising him on my own. I guess that’s my show of bravery.

Well, I’m going to call it a night and try to get some rest and get rid of this cold.

Another do-nothing day

I intended to get out and go to the movies today but didn’t make it. I kind of have the feeling that I’m coming down with a cold or something. I’ve just felt kind of blah and tired today. So I just lounged around on my couch watching t.v. and reading a book. I never even got dressed or brushed my hair today. It’s a good thing I never get company. I’ll probably go to the movies next weekend or perhaps one night this week. After Matt reads The Invention of Hugo Cabret, we may go see the movie Hugo together.

So nothing to report today. No housework, no laundry. On to reading book “M.” Going to take a benadryl tonight and go to bed early. I hope I’m not getting sick. That would not be fun this week. Not that it is ever fun, but I’d rather not have to be working while sick.

My Day Off

I slept in this morning in spite of the animals wanting in and out when I wanted to sleep. I got up sometime mid-morning and then had leftover cashew chicken for lunch. I eventually got dressed and headed to the post office in search of stamps. I guess the post office in my area isn’t very trusting as they didn’t have a stamp machine where I could buy stamps during closed hours. I need to mail a check and form to the bank where my car loan is so I can skip a payment for December. That would allow me to have Christmas money to spend. It’s probably wrong of me, but I don’t think I’m going to spend much on my family for Christmas. I will get something for my aunt and uncle because they always send me a check or something. Last year, I did stuff for my brother, sister, and dad but got nothing in return. Though I know it is more about giving, the fact is that I just don’t have much money these days. I’ll spend some on Josh and probably do a little something for Matt, but that’s it. Well, I’m also planning to get the dogs new beds and Lucy a new scratch mat.

It started raining when I left to go on my errands and it has been cold and rainy most of the day. I had to go to Walmart to get catfood and a few things. When I got home, I curled up with a book until I decided to take a nap. I cooked some chili (without beans) and rice for dinner which always seems to be a treat on cold rainy days. I will probably finish my book tonight.

I asked Matt if he was interested in going to see the movie New Year’s Eve but he declined. He said it hadn’t gotten very good reviews and he’d rather see Hugo (though he wanted to read the book first) or The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo – which doesn’t come out until the 21st. I want to see both of those so perhaps we’ll go together. I may go by myself and see New Year’s Eve tomorrow. I’m finding that I actually enjoy getting out and going to the movies – even if it is by myself.

Not sure what the plan will be for tomorrow. Probably finishing my book and some house cleaning. I can’t do any shopping until payday but at least it is early this month. Most of Josh’s presents will be bought online through his amazon wishlist.

Kind of a Success

Overall the evening was pretty good. Matt arrived shortly after 6:00 just as dinner was finished. We ate my wonderful cashew chicken which he said was very good and had two helpings of. Then we put the tree together and decorated it. We had rum and cokes with dinner and then eggnog when we watched my favorite movie Love Actually. So I sat a teensy bit closer this time and our arms touched a little. He seemed to enjoy the movie and afterward we had cake for dessert (cinnamon swirl with cream cheese glaze frosting) and played a couple of games of scrabble. Before leaving he said that he enjoyed the evening very much. So I walked him to the door and… he left. Still no hug or anything of the sort. So I’m not sure if a.) He’s into me, but really shy. b.) he’s really just interested in being friends and nothing more c.) he is interested, but isn’t picking up on any of my signals or d.) like a typical man, has no idea what he wants. I guess it may even be a combination of all the above. I pulled out all the stops tonight – plied him with some alcohol, made an amazing meal and dessert, watched a romantic, yet enjoyable for a guy movie, and let him beat me at Scrabble (ok, so he beat me fair and square, but I told him it was because I was cheering him up after his disappointment last weekend.) So I don’t know what to think, but I kind of think he’s kind of interested because he has now asked me to go to a Scrabble New Year’s eve party with him. We’ve also talked about going to several movies together in the next few weeks. So he obviously wants to spend time with me… it’s just so confusing.

There was also a little bit of an awkward moment when we were putting up ornaments and one of the ones from last year was an ornament that had a picture of Michael and me and I said something to the effect of “I don’t want to put this one on the tree” and set it aside and he asked why and I said it had a picture of someone I was dating last year, but also said that we were still friends. He made a comment that it is good that I stay on friendly terms with exes.

So I guess we’ll just keep doing what we’re doing and see if things progress. Perhaps I need to ply myself with a little more alcohol next time. I had lots of opportunities to ask more leading questions of him and I didn’t.

Well, it is late and I’m going to go to bed. I have to go to the post office tomorrow and then if it’s nice, mow the back yard.

Warmth

My heat has been fixed.  The repairman was here for about an hour and he replaced the thermostat.  Thankfully I don’t have to keep using the space heaters.  Though it’s not as cold here as it is back in Canyon, it does get chilly at night.  It’s dropping down into the 40’s at night and gets into the 60’s during the day.  I’m enjoying the temperate weather. 

So after the repairman left, I headed to the liquor store.  I wanted to get some rum for the eggnog tomorrow night.  I picked up a bottle of Captain Morgan black label spiced rum.  I tried some tonight in a cup of hot apple cider and I have to admit that I’m feeling quite nice.  I stopped at Walmart and got another Christmas tree because the one I was planning to put up in the living room is missing the stand it goes in.  I could probably find a replacement stand online, but it’s a bit late to order one.  I bought a new tree instead.  Tonight I decorated a smaller tree with just my Marvin ornaments and red, white, and green lights.  I have to say that it turned out pretty nice. 

I think I’m going to bake a cake for dessert tomorrow.  I should probably get started on it so I can get to sleep at a decent hour.  I’m really glad tomorrow is Friday.  I can wear jeans to school and hopefully get caught up with some things I need to do.  The of course there is the company I’ll have tomorrow.  Maybe a little alcohol will allow us to let loose a little.  Or maybe a lot of alcohol. 

Getting there

The week is halfway over – yay!  I put in a repair request at my real estate company and I should get a call tomorrow.  The guy said that my thermostat probably needs to be replaced (though they just replaced it this summer).  So I have to figure out how to be here when the repairman can come.  At least I’ll have heat again.  This morning it was 63 degrees in the house.  Right now it is hovering around 68.  I have a space heater at my feet in the living room and have a larger heater warming up my bedroom.  I won’t be able to get to sleep if it is too cold in there.

Things are still hopping in the library.  Luckily I was able to get more done today without dealing with all the English classes.  I finally got some books re-shelved, made posters that I’ve been trying to do for a week now, and got another 20 students caught up with the digital citizenship lessons.  Maybe one of these days I’ll get the newly delivered textbooks (3 weeks ago) put up somewhere. 

Tonight for dinner I picked up McDonald’s.  I also just ate the last two of my homemade cookies.  Now I’ve got to start doing some housecleaning.  I at least started the dishwasher.  I’ll probably finish the “K” book tonight.  Not sure if I’ll start “L” or not.  My goal is to finish them all – including the new “V” book by the end of Christmas break. 

Another busy week

I don’t know if I’ll ever catch up, but I’m at least trying to stay on top of things.  It’s cold here and the heater doesn’t seem to work.  At least I think I have a heater.  There’s a big thing in the attic, but I don’t know what it does other than blow air.  My thermostat has a “heat” setting so I’m assuming that it is supposed to work.  It hasn’t been just horrible – it’s hovering around 69 degrees in here, but in the mornings it gets around 64 degrees.  I guess I’m going to have to call the real estate company and plan a time for them to come out. 

I decided to cook cashew chicken for dinner on Friday.  I also got some eggnog at Matt’s request.  I have to make sure I have some rum for it. 

I feel at a loss for words tonight.  There’s not much to report here.  I’m working on the “K” book, watching t.v., and trying to stay warm. 

Book-aholic

I have a lot books that I haven’t read yet, but I insist on re-reading my Sue Grafton series.  I finally got book “J” today so I can continue.  Of course I have to read them in order.  I found it at a half price book store.  I also got another Titanic book that I didn’t already have.  I wanted to get the 2nd Harry Potter book in hardback – it’s the only one I don’t have as a hardback, but I might have to order it online. 

Last night was my Christmas concert.  My new friend came to the concert.  He seemed to like my cookies and enjoyed the concert.  We went out to eat at Chili’s after the concert.  We had a nice time visiting, but still nothing more.  No hug good-night.  I mentioned decorating my tree and he seemed interested in helping me next weekend so I think I’ll make him dinner.  Though I still can’t tell how interested he is, he seems to want to spend time with me so I’ll take that as a positive sign.  He even mentioned going to Christmas midnight mass together since we’ll both be here at Christmas with no family.  I think I’m going to try to go to a communal penance service in the next couple of weeks and then start going to church regularly again.  I have missed it.  I really need to learn the new Mass parts anyway. 

This morning I slept in which was very nice and then I went to the movies by myself.  I guess that I can admit on here that I’m a closet Twilight fan and I went to see Breaking Dawn.  I actually enjoyed it.  There’s a few other movies I want to see.  I’d like to go see Hugo because I read the book and it was wonderful.  I also want to see The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo when it comes out.  I bet that Matthew would go with me to see it.  I’ll probably go during Christmas break.  After the movies, I ate a burrito at Chipotle, then headed up to the bookstore.  Now I’m in for the evening.  I’ve got the t.v. on and I’ll start reading my new (used) books. 

Baking

We were told at our rehearsal on Tuesday that we were supposed to provide cookies for the reception at our concert on Friday.  After school today I went to the grocery store and got the stuff to make cookies from scratch.  Sure, I could have just bought pre-made dough, but there’s a sense of satisfaction I get from making it from scratch.  Besides, my cookies are quite delicious.  I made chocolate chip cookies and chocolate cookies with peanut butter chips.  One of the cookies happened to come out in the shape of a heart.

Normally I’d give it to someone special, but I don’t really have that – yet - so I think I’m going to eat it myself.  Maybe it is a sign though that love will come my way again some day.   Here’s to hoping.

Today was a relief to be finished teaching the digital citizenship classes.  Now I have a ton of stuff to catch up on.  On the positive side – only two weeks left until Christmas break!