... and good riddance! Ugh!
Overall, it has been a fairly crappy year - one that I am glad to see come to an end. No it wasn't the worst year ever (none of my friends/family members died this year, which is always a good thing), but it was filled with far too much emotional drama, job loss/disappointment, painful memories, and health issues. Unfortunately, some of these issues will carry over into 2010 (M is still unemployed, I'm still looking for a new job, and we're still working on relationship stuff), but things have been looking up lately, so I have a better attitude about everything.
Despite the crappiness, 2009 had some definite high points: a few fun trips; Morrissey!!; birthday celebrations; Margaret Atwood; and lots of fun times with friends. I celebrated my five year blogiversary, discovered my love of zumba (I look like a fool doing it, but it's fun & I burn an average of 800 calories p/hour, which is a huge bonus!), and had the opportunity to deepen some friendships with some fantastic ladies. I also had a wonderful Christmas with M & Beebs' family (I am sooo in love with my new iHome!). :)
I'm not going to set any new resolutions/goals for the year; instead I'm going to continue to focus on my goals I set last year. I will continue to work on my relationship (which has improved, but still needs some major TLC). I will also continue to focus on living a healthier lifestyle (lose weight, eat better, get more sleep), save more money and pay off debt, and use my eye cream & floss every night (I currently don't have any wrinkles or weird skin and I would like to keep it that way for as long as possible). I also want to make it a year filled with more fun (all work and no play makes me a very cranky girl). The relationship part took a big hit this year, but I managed to do some good things with all of my other goals - not including the few months I was out because of the surgery, I managed to set & keep a regular exercise schedule and I paid off a huge chunk of debt. I didn't quite manage the eye cream every night, but I'm up to 3-4 nights a week, which is a improvement. Flossing? Sigh. Let's not talk about that one. :)
Here's to a healthy and happy 2010! :)
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Friday, December 25, 2009
Wednesday, December 23, 2009
Christmasy stuff
I thought about setting up the little red tree for the fourth year, but honestly, I really didn't feel like digging through our storage unit to find the tub with the Christmas decorations (lazy, I know). However, I still wanted some sort of festive decorations, so I decided to improvise with some poinsettias and lights.
I also spent most of today playing tourist downtown with Beebs, her kids, and her mom (my adopted mother). We visited Macy's to gawk and the big tree and took a carriage ride (a bloody freezing carriage ride!) through the city to check out the lights. We ended the night with salted caramel hot chocolates at the Ghirardelli store - yummy! :)
I also spent most of today playing tourist downtown with Beebs, her kids, and her mom (my adopted mother). We visited Macy's to gawk and the big tree and took a carriage ride (a bloody freezing carriage ride!) through the city to check out the lights. We ended the night with salted caramel hot chocolates at the Ghirardelli store - yummy! :)
Monday, December 21, 2009
90s girl
I spent all of last week in a rental car while my baby hung out at the collision shop (still dealing with everything from the accident) - there was XM radio, which was so freakin' awesome! Practically every moment I was in the car, the radio was tuned to the 90s station... Prince, Nirvana, Sarah McLachlan, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Ace of Base, Soundgarden, The Lemonheads, Pearl Jam, Roxette, EMF, Indigo Girls, Gin Blossoms, and Blind Melon during my commute? Um, yes, please!
The 90s songs are those of my pre-teen/goofball years (7th & 8th grade), teenage/angst-ridden years (all of high school), and young adult/coming into my own years (all of college). Practically every popular 90s song has a memory attached to it; I can pretty much pinpoint what grade I was in when the song was released, and in some instances can even remember where I was when I first heard it (or who I was mooning over). I know some people hate the music from that decade (*ahem* Brazen Hussy), but I think it's fantastic. As much as I love 80s music, I really don't have many memories/attachments that actually came from the 80s as I was a little kid for most of the decade (well, except for "Little Red Corvette" - the video that cause my mother to ban me from watching MTV). My love for 80s music didn't really develop until I was in my 20s. Nineties music? It's the soundtrack of my life.
Christina: I took this pic just for you! 1990, baby! :)
The 90s songs are those of my pre-teen/goofball years (7th & 8th grade), teenage/angst-ridden years (all of high school), and young adult/coming into my own years (all of college). Practically every popular 90s song has a memory attached to it; I can pretty much pinpoint what grade I was in when the song was released, and in some instances can even remember where I was when I first heard it (or who I was mooning over). I know some people hate the music from that decade (*ahem* Brazen Hussy), but I think it's fantastic. As much as I love 80s music, I really don't have many memories/attachments that actually came from the 80s as I was a little kid for most of the decade (well, except for "Little Red Corvette" - the video that cause my mother to ban me from watching MTV). My love for 80s music didn't really develop until I was in my 20s. Nineties music? It's the soundtrack of my life.
Christina: I took this pic just for you! 1990, baby! :)
Thursday, December 17, 2009
Yippee!
The essays, portfolios, and exams have all been read & graded, final grades have been submitted to the registrar, and the students have been sent on their merry way.*
Oh yes, the semester has finally ended! Woo-hoo!!
--------------------
*No plagiarizers this semester - the first time in three years I haven't ended the year with a major plagiarism case (or four). It's a Christmahanukwanzaakah miracle!
Oh yes, the semester has finally ended! Woo-hoo!!
--------------------
*No plagiarizers this semester - the first time in three years I haven't ended the year with a major plagiarism case (or four). It's a Christmahanukwanzaakah miracle!
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
'Tis the season
We're two days from the end of the semester and in the midst of the essays and tests, the crazy emails are also rolling in...
Dear Mrs. Comeback:
I'm sorry I didn't upload my essay last night. It's my time of the month and the cramps were very intense. I'm also bleeding heavily and that caused me to have to leave school early today. I'm sure you understand what it's like. I promise I'll have the essay before you turn in grades.
-SR
Please explain to my why your cramps were too intense to upload a paper, but they weren't too intense to send me an email about your cramps? Also, I don't need to know about your cycle, but thanks for sharing - sending you happy thoughts of Midol and super absorbent tampons!
Miss Nikki:
Could you please send me all of the assignments you did during the last 4 weeks? Sorry I wasn't there, but I took a trip to Dc. Asslo I need an extension on the assignments as I have 5 classes to catch up on. I won't be able to finish before the end of the semester.
-SS
1. No.
2. Not my problem.
3. What's an "asslo"?
4. Sucks to be you.
inaructor:
why is my grade f? i trnd in yr paprs but they wnt to mz c instad. i told hr to gve to but i dnt see grdes. mz c has both. c-ya!
Sorry, no comprendo.
Delete.
Dear Mrs. Comeback:
I'm sorry I didn't upload my essay last night. It's my time of the month and the cramps were very intense. I'm also bleeding heavily and that caused me to have to leave school early today. I'm sure you understand what it's like. I promise I'll have the essay before you turn in grades.
-SR
Please explain to my why your cramps were too intense to upload a paper, but they weren't too intense to send me an email about your cramps? Also, I don't need to know about your cycle, but thanks for sharing - sending you happy thoughts of Midol and super absorbent tampons!
Miss Nikki:
Could you please send me all of the assignments you did during the last 4 weeks? Sorry I wasn't there, but I took a trip to Dc. Asslo I need an extension on the assignments as I have 5 classes to catch up on. I won't be able to finish before the end of the semester.
-SS
1. No.
2. Not my problem.
3. What's an "asslo"?
4. Sucks to be you.
inaructor:
why is my grade f? i trnd in yr paprs but they wnt to mz c instad. i told hr to gve to but i dnt see grdes. mz c has both. c-ya!
Sorry, no comprendo.
Delete.
The Ex Files, part 2 (again)
I just realized my last post is a lot darker than I met it to be... really, I just wanted to tell the baggie story because it's so weird/funny, but I got caught up in discussing some of the other issues I had with J. If you want the condensed version (or just want to read the funny part), skip down to the 5th paragraph.
Monday, December 14, 2009
The Ex Files, part 2
Some details have been changed to protect the innocent (well, he really wasn't so innocent, but I decided it was best to change any identifying details).
The day I saw J showering with a Ziploc baggie on his hand was the day I realized things had gotten way out of control. It was also the day I realized exactly how unhealthy our relationship really was - the baggie was the thing that pushed it over the edge.
J and I had been dating for almost two years; they weren't unhappy years, but looking back, I wouldn't say that I really was happy. J was a bit of a loner and had pursued me through poetry, quotes from obscure novels, and meaningful mixed tapes. I fell for his quirky humor and intense personality. What I didn't realize about J (until we were already firmly into a relationship) was that he was both obsessive and possessive, which was a dangerous combination.
J didn't like when I hung out with other people - he wanted me to spend all of my free time with him. He was insanely jealous of my relationship with my best friend (C). Although he was always nice to her face, he constantly put her down when she wasn't around, which caused massive arguments. He felt I spent too much time with C and thought I should be confiding in him over her (in all situations). At first I thought his jealousy was sweet, but I quickly grew tired of his complaints. He also hated for me to talk to other men. He had low self-esteem (although he was good at faking confidence when he needed to) and worried that I was potentially starting something/having sex with/lusting after every man I was friends with/studied with/talked to for more than 10 minutes. If I wasn't with J and/or if there were too many other people around us for too long, he wasn't happy. He always wanted it to just be the two of us.
Not only was J possessive, he also had this weird obsessive thing... it was part of what drew me to him in the first place, but at that time I didn't realize how it was actually extremely unhealthy (for both of us). If J wasn't around me, he was writing poetry about me, or long letters to give me (we lived together, so it wasn't like we went all that long without seeing each other). When we were together, he always had to touch me - even if I didn't want to be touched and/or it wasn't appropriate. We talked about our future regularly and his version always involved us living in a remote cabin in the northern woods of WI without much human contact. Again, I thought it was romantic at first, but about a year into the relationship, I started to become uncomfortable with his ideas and actions. It was the baggie incident from the second year of our relationship that finally moved everything over into the creepy realm.*
I walked into the bathroom to say good-bye to J before I left for work. He was still in the shower, so I stuck my head around the curtain to give him a kiss... and that's when I saw the baggie on his right hand. I laughingly asked him what was going on and he looked back at me with an embarrassed half-smile on his face. After a bit of stuttering, he finally fessed up - he was wearing the baggie because he wanted to keep a certain scent on his hand. He wanted the scent to stay so that he could continue to sniff it throughout the day and think about me. Yes, he had a baggie on his hand so that his shower didn't wash away the... well, sex smell from the night before. He also mentioned that it wasn't the first time he had done it - it was a fairly regular occurrence and something that he enjoyed doing because he kept us close throughout the day. He even seemed proud that he had thought to start showering with a baggie to um, preserve the scent. [Yes, I know!! WTF?!?]
I thought about that damn baggie all day. While some women may have found his actions flattering, I was very creeped out by what he had done... part of me understood that he wanted to feel close to me, but his adoration had turned into an unhealthy (and unsanitary!) obsession. Although I loved him, I realized that what he was doing wasn't about love; it was just pain weird and uncool.
I was an hour from leaving work when J came in to start his shift. As our boss said hello to J, I saw him casually lift his right hand to his nose and sniff. I stared him in horror as he flashed me a huge smile, turned to our boss, and stuck out his hand to shake her hand. She grasped his hand, looked at us quizzically and just giggled - she knew we were dating, but had no idea what J had just done. I was simultaneously repulsed and mortified. He spent the next hour giving me sly glances and sniffing his hand. I tried to act like I normally would, but I was seething inwardly. Every time he touched someone's hand (there was a lot of handshaking at this job) or sniffed his own hand, I wanted to smack him. At one point, I even thought about stabbing him with my pencil, which would cause him to bleed & bandage the offensive hand.
There was a lot of talking and arguing later that night, and our relationship came to and end shortly afterward. J never understood why I was upset about what he had done, nor did he get why I thought it was weird/inappropriate. He also continued to write me love letters and hate letters (you ruined my life/why did you leave me/don't you love me/what's wrong with me) for the next six years. Yes, he followed me for six bloody years! Thankfully, he's pretty much completely out of my life now... except for in the form of the Ziploc baggie story (which is still weird, but I now see the humor in it). That's one that will never go away. :)
----------------
*I know this all sounds so negative & it's obvious I shouldn't have been with him, but, this is me looking back at things that happened over 10 years ago... things weren't so obvious back then.
Ex Files, part 1
The day I saw J showering with a Ziploc baggie on his hand was the day I realized things had gotten way out of control. It was also the day I realized exactly how unhealthy our relationship really was - the baggie was the thing that pushed it over the edge.
J and I had been dating for almost two years; they weren't unhappy years, but looking back, I wouldn't say that I really was happy. J was a bit of a loner and had pursued me through poetry, quotes from obscure novels, and meaningful mixed tapes. I fell for his quirky humor and intense personality. What I didn't realize about J (until we were already firmly into a relationship) was that he was both obsessive and possessive, which was a dangerous combination.
J didn't like when I hung out with other people - he wanted me to spend all of my free time with him. He was insanely jealous of my relationship with my best friend (C). Although he was always nice to her face, he constantly put her down when she wasn't around, which caused massive arguments. He felt I spent too much time with C and thought I should be confiding in him over her (in all situations). At first I thought his jealousy was sweet, but I quickly grew tired of his complaints. He also hated for me to talk to other men. He had low self-esteem (although he was good at faking confidence when he needed to) and worried that I was potentially starting something/having sex with/lusting after every man I was friends with/studied with/talked to for more than 10 minutes. If I wasn't with J and/or if there were too many other people around us for too long, he wasn't happy. He always wanted it to just be the two of us.
Not only was J possessive, he also had this weird obsessive thing... it was part of what drew me to him in the first place, but at that time I didn't realize how it was actually extremely unhealthy (for both of us). If J wasn't around me, he was writing poetry about me, or long letters to give me (we lived together, so it wasn't like we went all that long without seeing each other). When we were together, he always had to touch me - even if I didn't want to be touched and/or it wasn't appropriate. We talked about our future regularly and his version always involved us living in a remote cabin in the northern woods of WI without much human contact. Again, I thought it was romantic at first, but about a year into the relationship, I started to become uncomfortable with his ideas and actions. It was the baggie incident from the second year of our relationship that finally moved everything over into the creepy realm.*
I walked into the bathroom to say good-bye to J before I left for work. He was still in the shower, so I stuck my head around the curtain to give him a kiss... and that's when I saw the baggie on his right hand. I laughingly asked him what was going on and he looked back at me with an embarrassed half-smile on his face. After a bit of stuttering, he finally fessed up - he was wearing the baggie because he wanted to keep a certain scent on his hand. He wanted the scent to stay so that he could continue to sniff it throughout the day and think about me. Yes, he had a baggie on his hand so that his shower didn't wash away the... well, sex smell from the night before. He also mentioned that it wasn't the first time he had done it - it was a fairly regular occurrence and something that he enjoyed doing because he kept us close throughout the day. He even seemed proud that he had thought to start showering with a baggie to um, preserve the scent. [Yes, I know!! WTF?!?]
I thought about that damn baggie all day. While some women may have found his actions flattering, I was very creeped out by what he had done... part of me understood that he wanted to feel close to me, but his adoration had turned into an unhealthy (and unsanitary!) obsession. Although I loved him, I realized that what he was doing wasn't about love; it was just pain weird and uncool.
I was an hour from leaving work when J came in to start his shift. As our boss said hello to J, I saw him casually lift his right hand to his nose and sniff. I stared him in horror as he flashed me a huge smile, turned to our boss, and stuck out his hand to shake her hand. She grasped his hand, looked at us quizzically and just giggled - she knew we were dating, but had no idea what J had just done. I was simultaneously repulsed and mortified. He spent the next hour giving me sly glances and sniffing his hand. I tried to act like I normally would, but I was seething inwardly. Every time he touched someone's hand (there was a lot of handshaking at this job) or sniffed his own hand, I wanted to smack him. At one point, I even thought about stabbing him with my pencil, which would cause him to bleed & bandage the offensive hand.
There was a lot of talking and arguing later that night, and our relationship came to and end shortly afterward. J never understood why I was upset about what he had done, nor did he get why I thought it was weird/inappropriate. He also continued to write me love letters and hate letters (you ruined my life/why did you leave me/don't you love me/what's wrong with me) for the next six years. Yes, he followed me for six bloody years! Thankfully, he's pretty much completely out of my life now... except for in the form of the Ziploc baggie story (which is still weird, but I now see the humor in it). That's one that will never go away. :)
----------------
*I know this all sounds so negative & it's obvious I shouldn't have been with him, but, this is me looking back at things that happened over 10 years ago... things weren't so obvious back then.
Ex Files, part 1
Monday, December 07, 2009
RBOC
- I have a bit of a cold. It's not full-blown, thanks to the Umcka I've been pounding, but it's enough to make things fairly miserable. Throat of fire & evil cough, please go away!
- I saw The Addams Family on Saturday with Beebs and her family. Bebe Neuwirth + Nathan Lane = awesomeness! It's probably not a show I would have picked out on my own (it was part of the Broadway in Chicago package, which Beebs bought me a season ticket to for xmas last year), but I'm really glad I saw it. I've always loved Bebe and it was so fun to see her live!
- It finally snowed last night... I normally enjoy the first snow of the season, but on a Monday morning after a restless night (and with a cold)? Not so much.
- There's some major restructuring happening at Large College. This restructuring involves course numbers/descriptions and who's eligible to teach what classes (post-changes). Because of the changes, instructors who have been teaching certain classes for years may no longer be eligible to teach anymore. There are even several situations in which certain instructors have developed specialty classes, but with the new credentialing system can no longer teach those classes (I'm one of those people). As you can imagine, it's a complete nightmare.
- We love the couch! :)
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