Frustrated...

There've been a whole bunch of things that I've contemplated writing about in the last 2 weeks but somehow everytime I sat down to type nothing seemed to flow coherently.

There's a lot of stuff going on right now at work - lots of crazy politics, we're horribly understaffed, some silly people doing all sorts of silly things. It makes for a frustrating day and I've been feeling tired. Mentally, physically, emotionally.

After we got back from our trip I made a personal vow to myself to be more tolerant. Try to let the small things slide and focus on the big picture. So far I think I'm doing a pretty good job of that. There have been brief lapses, of course, but overall I'm feeling less tense and stressed out overall. Believe me...that's a real improvement for me!

Nothing much new to say. I mean, there's tons to say but I think I'll just stay away from that can of worms. Life is still good. How 'bout you? Have you recently promised to do something good for yourself? Have you been able to follow through?

Surprise!

We don't celebrate special days like birthdays or specific holidays. Instead we choose to celebrate each and every day :)

What a nice sweet surprise on our first day back from a somewhat harrowing vacation.

Home sweet home

There's nothing like sleeping in your own bed after being away. Somehow the sheets feel softer, pillows fluffier, mattress firmer. Sigh. It's all good. I definitely had a restful sleep especially after another automobile almost-fiasco at the park and ride last night.

So, we get off the plane, our luggage is among the first on the carousel and we're off to the park and ride! Woohoooo....that much closer to home and even a couple of minutes early!! Get off the bus and get to the car, settle into the seat and............the engine won't turn over. I mean, not even the sad sputter of the starter trying. Absolutely nothing. Nada. Not a peep.

Picture Kev behind the wheel of the car, one leg out the rest of him mostly inside to steer and me pushing from the front to back the car out of the spot. Yup. We got it out. Then imagine me pushing from behind to try to get enough of a rolling start hoping for the starter to catch. No cigar. Fortunately there are still people out there who carry jumper cables in their trunks and after some time the car finally started. I'm just glad it started before the tow truck arrived 'cuz they would have charged us $55 just for a jump. What a ripoff.

So, from beginning to end it was an ill-fated car trip. I'm tempted to never leave the house again =) Today the sun is shining and I'm just piddling around getting caught up on chores and errands. Chat with y'all later.

Leaving.....on a jetplane

Indeed....our brief vacation is drawing to a close and we're heading back State-side this afternoon. Having time off was nice but I'm looking forward to getting back to my comfort zone.

We may be leaving today but not before we stuff our faces with dim sum. What I wouldn't give for some good dim sum in our neck of the woods but, sadly, NC isn't really known for its ethnic diversity and consequently it lacks in food choices. So, we're taking the in-laws for a last food hoorah before getting back to the land of fried chicken and biscuits =)

Speaking of food....one of my favourite posts on LE is the one about bubble tea and I have to say that if you're ever in Toronto you simply must go to Destiny Tea House at the intersection of Midland and Steeles. The bubble tea combinations are to die for!

Catching up....

I can see how this blogging thing has the potential to be somewhat disjointed - i.e. not all my thoughts necessarily come in chronological order in one blogging session so the writing follows my convoluted stream of consciousness.

My goal with this post is to catch up on all that's happened in the last couple of days. It was particularly eventful so this could be long.

Let's see.....this particular adventure started last Wednesday when we flew from Raleigh to Buffalo. There we rented a car and drove across the border into Canada and up to Barrie, ON to stay with the in-laws. After a fairly uneventful 2 days we were rudely awakened on Friday morning by the sound of a big crash. Long story short - our rental car got rear-ended by someone who, I suppose, was in a rush and not paying attention to the road. The good news? That no one was injured - after all, we were still in bed! The bad news? The driver was uninsured, driving on a suspended license in a car that wasn't titled in her name with illegal plates. Could it get any worse?

That, of course, was a rhetorical question. It DID get worse. Turns out that Budget in Buffalo is an independent Budget franchise which means that we could not simply to to a local Budget to get a replacement vehicle. We would have to go all the way back to Buffalo to pick up another car. Yeah, right. They had to send up a flatbed to pick up the car and have it towed all the way back to Buffalo. How much do you want to bet that charge shows up on our bill somewhere?

So, that really stank. There's more but those were the highlights.

On a totally happier note one of my favorite pals from highschool got married on Saturday. I couldn't be more pleased for him. Seeing him so positively happy - there never was a more deserving person. And, I got to catch up with some folks I hadn't seen in close to, if not over, a decade so it was a renewal of old friendships. I hope that we'll all continue to stay in touch now that we've gotten back in touch!

We head back State-side on Tuesday. While I enjoyed having some time off I'm also looking forward to getting back to my life. What can I say? I'm a Virgo. I need structure and schedules :)

Etsy is my friend.....

Check out my mini Etsy S&T!

My first ever blog post!

Yup...I finally caved and decided to join the world of blogging. Now, who knows how long this will last but I sorta like the idea of being able to put down my thoughts and maybe even sometimes use this as a form of catharsis.

I have to admit being inspired to try this by one of my favorite bloggers out there - Kerry Bogert - who has some of the most interesting, introspective blog posts that I've read. I'm sure that in time this particular blogspace will evolve as I get the hang of it but for now I'm just typing and hitting the "post" button to get send my ramblings into internet ether.