tick tock . . .

so the clock is ticking on my departure date and it's starting to get a bit overwhelming. the very thought of being away from mac for 3 weeks seems unbearable at the moment ... and then i have the thought of being away from my dog and it all becomes too much. i know it will be a blast once i get there but, to be honest, right now i don't even want to go.

on the house front, there's lots of activity. the floors have been installed. the orange marmoleum was a fantastic choice. it looks great and will look even better once the cabinets get installed on tuesday. then on thursday they come to make the template for the corian countertops. i won't see them installed before i leave but i'm sure the cabinets will make a huge difference. of course, if this were the only thing going on, the stress level wouldn't be so high but it's not! once we finish my kitchen, we'll be starting on mac's. we're suckers for punishment, i know. but hers needs it badly and we figure we'll be in practice.

the car has gotten some interest on craigslist and a woman came by last night to leave a deposit so she could take it to her mechanic today. am waiting for the phone to ring with her answer. it will be nice to have the $$ for the trip and house stuff. i love rosebud (my neighbor, wilson, named her - it fits) but i just can't justify owning a car when i drive all of 2,000 miles in 9 months . . . and that includes a trip to the coast! besides, the bike will get more action if i don't have a car to fall back on all summer. so keep your fingers crossed that her mechanic gives it his blessing and she buys it!

sunday is the season finale of the l word and the girls are coming over for a 3 episode extravaganza. great timing for me. i was worried i was going to miss the last episode. worked out nicely to move the yard sale to the following weekend. was just going to be too much.

almost forgot, we're going to see some roller derby this weekend. neither mac nor i had ever been so we got tickets and it's our big date night this weekend. should be fun. a full report will follow i'm sure so stay tuned.

been watching some march madness but not sure how much of the tournament i'll be able to see. my brackets are already shot so i'm not too bummed.

so today i'm thankful for . . . an early closure for the easter weekend at work (was a pleasant surprise to find that e-mail this am. gonna go pick up my taxes and run some errands ... lookout! i know how to have a good time!)

the kitchen remodel has begun . . .

so the kitchen remodel officially started today. the contractor is there as we speak tearing out the cabinets & the floors. we had the floor installer come by on saturday am to measure and give us a quote. the cabinet installer comes tomorrow to do the same. the floors have been picked out, the cabinets have been chosen, and the countertops have been ordered. we've got the sink and range purchased and the lighting selected (with some purchased). i need to pick a range vent/fan and order the floors. at some point soon i'll go buy the dishwasher from lowe's but we're a ways out from that.

mac & i spent the weekend packing up my kitchen and getting her house ready for suki and i to descend upon. it's been fun and exhausting. yesterday was our 6 month anniversary and also the first night i'd *moved in*. it was nice serendipity that timing worked out that way. i brought some kitchen stuff over and packed other stuff away for revisiting later. we're planning a yard sale the weekend of march 22nd to get rid of some big stuff as we start to consolidate households. it's fun to plan a home together.

of course adding to all of this stress is that i leave for 3 weeks in, well, 3 weeks. i'm mildly relieved that i won't have to be here to witness/live through the mess but wish i could watch the transformation and feel bad that i'm leaving mac to deal with it all ... but i guess as a designer it's her forté to oversee a project without the client around. am starting to get excited about the trip (although i do wish the timing was better) and finally booked my hotel in rome over the weekend. it was the last straggling part of the itinerary i hadn't handled so i'm relieved i finally did.

work is good. am starting to settle in and am getting excited about my first site launching in late march . . . right before i leave of course. isn't that always the way? speaking of work, it's almost time to head out so i should get a few things wrapped up before i head home to see the house.

i'll post pics when i can so y'all can follow the progress with me.

today i'm thankful for . . . 6 months with an amazing woman who's willing to design my kitchen and put some sweat equity in

no trip for me . . .

just found out that i won't be making the trip to meet the new client on tuesday ... kinda bummed, kinda glad since it means i won't have to be up at the ass-crack of dawn for a 650a flight.

oh well, maybe next time . . .

new beginnings . . .

so i'm on day 3 at the new job and trying not to be completely overwhelmed! the folks are very nice though and i have a nice office that i share with another sr. project manager and i can look out the windows out onto the pearl and the west hills. the office is very cool and well designed. the picture at left is in our main atrium as you get off the elevator ... cool, huh? i have been assigned an account and already have to travel to san francisco on tuesday for a meeting. suffice it to say, it's been a whirlwind.

my new office is only a few blocks from my old one and a 4 blocks from where mac works. so we've been carpooling and it's been very nice. on my first day, the folks took me out to lunch at mio sushi and as i got back there was a beautiful flower arrangement waiting for me from mac. it was so thoughtful and sweet. i am very blessed to have such a wonderful woman in my life.

last night, i met up with mac after work for a nice quiet dinner of tapas at colosso and then was off to meet up with my some former co-workers/buddies at the mash tun. it was good to see lara and todd and, of course, my lil bro, ryan. what's a trip to the tun without ryan? ;-) it was great to see them and catch up.

stopped for a coffee at the new café in my building this am. was nice to write in my journal and have a bit of time to myself before heading into the office. am reading eat.pray.love by elizabeth gilbert and am so sucked in. the book is great and so timely given the year i've had. i highly recommend it to everyone!

so today i'm thankful for ... new beginnings, old friends, and appreciating every day

change is afoot . . .

so to continue the theme of change of the last year, i'm about to make another huge change in my life. i have accepted a new job. next week i'll be leaving the world of software to go back to being a project manager at an ad agency. my background is in the agency world and it's time for me to go back to my roots. i'll be sad to leave the great group of incredibly talented people i've worked with for the last 2+ yrs but i feel as if it's the right time and the right opportunity. i'll only be going about 4 blks away so i hope to stay in touch with many of these folks and continue to meet up for happy hours and such. i'm excited to start a new chapter in my career and look forward to the challenges ahead of me. of course, the timing is impeccable as life is super busy right now!

the kitchen remodel i've been considering since i moved in last april is starting to get going. the planning has begun and i'm working on the financing for it. am hoping for it to be complete by the time i leave for my europe adventure at the end of march. it's exciting to think about the possibilities and i'm glad i held off on doing the remodel until i'd lived there for a few months. i definitely have a better idea of what i want now that i've worked in the kitchen for awhile. mac is doing the design and has the contractor lined up. i'm excited for us to work together on this project and i have a feeling there will be many more like it in our future together.

life's also been super busy because lacrosse season is gearing up. once again, i'm the league commissioner for the girls high school lacrosse league. this basically means i'm in charge of scheduling all the games for the state. luckily, i've completed the varsity schedule but this saturday i'll need to finish up the jv schedule. should be a good season as we keep adding more and more programs across the state. i'm still debating how much i'll actually get to officiate any games given my travel and new job. am hoping to at least do a few games ... it's pretty fun to don the stripes!

so today i'm thankful for . . . new opportunities and new challenges

company picnics . . .

so today i had to go play the political game at our annual company "luau". so the story goes that our company was *founded* by two friends as they sat on a beach in hawaii. so every year around the time of that conversation we have a luau. usually it's held at some random place and usually on a weekday toward the end of the workday but this year our COO decided to host it at his house on a saturday so folks could bring their families. i was not sure i was going to make it but got a call from my boss offering to drive me. now very few of the people in our usual circle were going to be there so she was hoping she could convince me to join her and her husband. i really like her so i told her i'd think about it. well today i got all the things done i wanted to get done so i decided it would be a good *political* move for me to attend. it was as expected. the cliques emerged early and the kids were all wound up. we were there for less time than it actually took us to *drive* out to the scary 'burbs. just driving through that neighborhood made me uncomfortable. we came and went but we did at least show.