Relaxing

I wanted to take a break from house stuff and decided to relax for the evening. For the past hour I've been sitting on the balcony and enjoying a glass of wine. Aside from the occasional plane that passes overhead and aside from my music playing inside, all I hear are the sounds of birds chirping or a owl hooting in the distance. Through the green leaves of the trees outside my apartment, I can see the mountains in the distance. With the sun setting, they look like a simple dark blue mass of peaks. There are a lot of clouds in the sky, and they are drifting slowly by, almost inching their way across the sky. It's been beautiful. It's calming and relaxing.

Now it's time to pour a second glass of wine and get back outside.

Current mood: relaxed
Current music: random shuffle of Dead Can Dance and Lisa Gerrard
Current drink: Swanson 2003 Merlot

Getting Settled

I've been in my new apartment for exactly one week, and so far it has been wonderful. I'm still in the process of unpacking a few things and putting everything where I want it. Then I have to figure out where I want to hang all of my artwork. Now that I have a bigger apartment and more walls, this might actually be difficult. Decisions, decisions, decisions... I also want to buy another bookcase (now that I have the room), but I might hold off on that for a while. After spending $200 on the movers, it might be a good idea to save some money.

Our entire complex is in the process of renovating certain things, and on Tuesday the maintenance crew came in to install new windows and a new sliding door to my balcony. These are double-pane windows, so that means they will be more energy efficient. So this will be much better when winter comes around.

All in all, everything has been great and it is all coming together. I've been doing well and settling quite nicely. I've also been sleeping well, so that's a welcome change!

More later...

Silver Lining

Rainbows
Originally uploaded by Tenth Muse

I was having a really rough day at work today. Things have just been busy and chaotic. I was feeling kind of down and apathetic, but then I came home to this...

This is a view from my new balcony.

New Home

Here I am in my new apartment! Yay! The move yesterday went really well. The movers showed up at about 8:30 in the morning, and it took them only about 30 minutes to load up their truck. Of course, since I moved most of my things myself, all they had to move was the furniture and only about four boxes. It took them longer to move things into my new place, but that is understandable considering I'm on the third floor. But, all totaled, the whole move took only two hours. That made me pretty happy.

Then came the task of unpacking everything and placing everything in its proper place. It's all starting to come together. I'm also in the process of getting used to everything. The dishwasher works perfectly fine. Since all of my dishes were wrapped in newspaper, I thought I'd give it a quick clean in the dishwasher to get all of the icky ink or dust off everything. Earlier in the week I turned on the stove to make sure it was working. It turned out that it wasn't, but the maintenance people came right over yesterday and fixed it. Now everything is fine. This morning I made hash browns and scrambled eggs for breakfast!

The place is wonderful. Last night was beautiful. It was really hot during the day, but things cooled off at night. I had a nice breeze coming through my windows in my bedroom, and I fell asleep right away. I felt pretty rested today, but my body is still a bit sore and tired. Other than a tired, old, and sore body, things are wonderful.

Packing Booze

I've been procrastinating for the longest time on packing my alcohol. But tonight I decided to finally do it. First I put each bottle in those plastic newspaper bags. I double bagged it, of course. Then I wrapped the bottle in newspaper. I then packed the bottles in some boxes and added some extra newspaper for some extra padding. All totaled, my alcohol filled only two small boxes. I'm not sure if I should be proud or ashamed...
+++++
Update: make that three small boxes. I found some more booze.

Moving...Yes, STILL...

I'm sure my loyal reader(s) will be happy once I move so that they won't have to read any more of these posts...

But, yes, I'm still in the process of moving, but I'm making better progress. I'm now forced to move quicker because of having the pressure of an actual "move-in date" when the movers will be here to take the big furniture. Most of my non-essential items and smaller things are already in my new place. I just need to make a few more trips with some of the bigger things. Then all I'll need to do is get things organized for the movers. Then on the day of the move, I'll probably use my bathroom as a storage room for things that I'll be using that morning and packing later--sheets and pillows on my bed, my teddy bear and doggie, the coffee maker, etc. I'm hoping it will be a smooth and quick move...and the smoother and quicker it is, the less it will cost!

And, now that I have a bigger place, I "had" to buy a few more pieces of new furniture. My current computer desk/workstation is really a dining table. Now that I have a dining room, I will be able to use the dining table for actual dining. But that meant that I needed a new computer desk/workstation, so I went out and bought one. It's nothing big and nothing fancy, but it will do the trick. It's all packed in a box and needs to be assembled, but fortunately that made it easier to carry it up the stairs. But, considering it's around 25-30 pounds, I'm pretty impressed that I was able to carry it all the way up by myself! Go me!

Now I just need to find time to assemble the desk. The cable and internet people will be at my apartment the day after I move to set everything up and to install everything. (No, I can't possibly go a day without internet access. I'm a pathetic internet addict, I know!) So the desk and computer have to be ready by Saturday afternoon. Just a little more pressure for me to get things done...

Moving...Yes, Still...

Needless to say, I've been busy. I'm still in the process of moving, but now I have an "official" move date. I've hired movers to take care of the big heavy stuff, and they will be moving my things next Friday on the 14th 18th. (I'm so confused!) I think that I'm going to be glad when that happens, because I just want to be in my new place. I'm getting a little tired of moving a little bit each day. My body is getting tired of it, too! My legs are getting sore, and my back is starting to hurt. Strangely, though, it's not my lower back that is hurting. My upper back right below my shoulder blades is hurting. And it is starting to hurt whenever I move any part of my upper body. I don't think I pulled or strained anything. I think I'm just sore. I suppose I'm lifting the boxes correctly by not straining my lower back, but by using different muscles, I'm sore in different places. Can't win, I suppose...

I need a back rub... :(

Moving...Still...

I was going to move some more stuff today, but when I woke up, I decided I wasn't in the mood to move anything. I was feeling too tired and a little sore. So instead I just packed some more things today, and I'll move it all tomorrow after work. I am making progress, though, so I suppose I can be happy about that. All I can say is that I'm going to be very happy when I'm officially moved in!

Current mood: tired
Current drink: Jack Daniels...straight up

Moving (cont.)...

I just got home after moving another carload of things into my new apartment. While I was at my new apartment, there was a sudden rainstorm, so that interrupted the move a bit. But it was a nice break. I was able to stand outside on my balcony and watch the rain fall, and I didn't get wet. There were a few times when a gust of wind would spray some of the rain into my face, but that actually felt nice after making several trips up and down the stairs. There were even a few rumbles of thunder. So I guess you can say that I experienced my first thunderstorm (although it wasn't a big one) in my new apartment!

Now I'm just taking a little break before I figure out what I need to/want to move next.

Current mood: getting tired
Current music: iTunes on shuffle - Kelly Clarkson "Sober"
Current drink: Barq's root beer

Long Weekend

I finally have a chance to write something today. Things have been busy this week. After a wonderful week off last week to spend time with my family, I was back to work this week. Whenever you take time off from work it always takes a few days to get resettled and to get things back in order. It was a rough week, though, and it was tough to be back after having so much fun the week before. On the first day, I immediately feel the stress and tension come back to my shoulders. Oh well, what are you going to do...

Fortunately, though, this is a short workweek because of the Fourth of July holiday. We got out of the office today at about 1:00 and we have the day off tomorrow. But this probably won't be a weekend for me to relax. I still have a lot of things I need to move into my new apartment. I'm still moving everything myself, and still moving a few carloads each day. In a few weeks, I'll be hiring movers to take care of all of the furniture and other heavy stuff. There is still a lot more I need to do, but I'm making reasonable progress. Since I have a three-day weekend, I'm hoping that I can get a lot accomplished. Hopefully my strength and endurance lasts all weekend!

That's all for now. I'll post more when I have more time...

Sunset and Camera Features

Sunset
Originally uploaded by Tenth Muse

I was taking some pictures of the sunset and thought I'd play around with some of my camera features. I also thought I'd try out Flickr's "Blog This" feature...

Reunion

Last night and this morning I said good-bye to the family that was here for our family reunion. Although we were really missing some members of the family who couldn't come, we still had a lot of fun. The best part was just getting together and talking about the "good old days" and all of the memories that we've made over the year. It was a great time.

I'll probably post more about the whole reunion later, but here is a short video clip. Yesterday was my Pa's 76th birthday, and we got the whole group together for a dinner at P. F. Chang's in Flatirons Mall. During the summer they have concerts every Thursday, and last night they had a really great band called Chase 'n the Dream. My Ma and sister got out on the floor and did a little dancing.

Family Reunion

I haven't posted that much recently because I have most of the family and extended family here in Colorado for a family reunion. Who knew there was so many of us?! Things are great and we're having a fun time! And I'll be taking the week off of work, so this will be my first time off since Christmas. Yay for me!

More to come later...

The Check Is in the Mail...

It has recently occurred to me that I haven't received my "economic stimulus" rebate check from the government. It was supposed to be sent in the mail this month, and I'm still waiting for it. Maybe the IRS is sending it via pony express because the cost of gas is too high to put gasoline in the mail trucks because this sorry excuse for a government ran our economy into the sewer... But I'm not bitter. And, sorry, George W., I'm not going to stimulate the economy you ruined by buying a new car or TV. I'm going to try to pay off some bills and maybe buy some overpriced food, because a girl has to eat...

Just thought I would write about something other than moving...

Current mood: bitter and annoyed
Current music: iTunes on shuffle - Dave Matthews "Crash Into Me"

Moving (cont.)...

With the exception of all of my dictionaries and grammar books, all of my other books are moved into my new apartment. And I'm so tired! However, I'm pretty impressed and proud of myself for moving it all by myself without any help from anyone.

Now I have to figure out what is next...

Moving (cont.)

I had grand plans to wake up early so that I could get a lot done with my move. But then I decided to sleep in this morning. However, I was still able to move a reasonable amount of stuff today. I've only made a few trips to my new place, but most of my books are moved in. I have only about 100 more to go. Yay! I think those can wait for tomorrow. I'm a little tired and I'm hungry. More later...

Moving

Since we have Summer Hours today, I have a chance to write a quick post. Actually, I'll probably be writing a lot of little posts over the next few days, because I've been slacking on my blogging this week.

So far the move is going okay. As I mentioned before, I got the keys to my new place last weekend, and I've been moving a little bit each day. For the most part, I'm moving things that I'm not going to be using anytime soon--winter clothes, extra blankets, books. Damn, I have a lot of books. And books are such a pain to move, too. Since they get heavy really quickly, I've been putting them in small boxes so I don't break my back carrying them. They are light enough, but that also means that I have to make more trips up and down the stairs to get them from my car. It definitely gives my legs a workout! And if my legs and butt don't look good when this is all finished, then I'm going to be really angry! Although, considering I have stick legs, I'm probably going to be disappointed anyway...

So, I've made a little dent in the things that I have to move. Moving the books is really going to take the longest time, because I have so many. I've already moved a respectable amount of books from my "library" but I still have about 200 or 300 more to go. Then it also occurred to me a few nights ago that eventually I'll need to move the contents of my liquor cabinet. That alone could take a week or two!

I still have a lot to do and this will probably be a really busy weekend, but all I can do is keep chipping away at this in stages. Eventually it will all get done!

Current mood: busy
Current music: iTunes shuffle - The Killers "Mr. Brightside"
Current drink: Barq's Root Beer

Baking Adventures

I like to think of myself as a pretty decent cook, but I've never been much of a baker. I can't say that I'm a bad baker, because I've never really baked anything before. I mostly don't bake because the "easy-bake oven" in my current apartment sometimes scares me. The few times that I have baked meals--mac and cheese, other pasta dishes, pizza, a potato that always gives me problems--I've had mixed results of things being either slightly overcooked or slightly undercooked. So baking real baked goods scared me a little because it's supposed to be so precise. Anyway, this week is my week (with a partner) to bring in something for our office food group. I decided to test out something new, so I had a little baking adventure today. (I always like to test new recipes on myself first, before bringing it into the office. If it is a disaster, then I can come up with a plan B. And if I don't kill myself, then I know it's safe for everyone else...)

I found a recipe on the Betty Crocker Web site for Baklava Bars that sounded really good. Traditional baklava is really difficult to make, and it is a long, tedious process. But the recipe I found is much easier, even for me! It makes use of some handy shortcuts like sugar cookie mix and crushed phyllo shells. I just used regular phyllo dough and tore it and scattered it over the baklava. Next time I'll probably use more nuts, but, other than that, it turned out great!

This is really loaded with butter and sugar and honey, so it's not exactly healthy. But what do I care? I'm not watching my weight!!

Stray Cow

After signing all of the paperwork on my new apartment, I came back to my current apartment for a quick lunch and the previous, quick blog post. I then went back to my new apartment because I wanted to do some cleaning. Everything in the apartment is fresh and clean, but it's always nice to give an extra scrub to the bathroom and kitchen, because then I know that I'm cleaning it my way. And, naturally, it will be perfect. On my way back from my new place to my current place, I was driving along the "country" road. Really, I'm not living in the middle of nowhere. It's just a road where there is a lot of open space and where people have a lot of land. It was probably old farming land at one point, but some people still have horses and cows and such. Earlier in the afternoon, when I was on my way to the new place, there was a cow standing by the fence near the road. It is pretty much just a wire-type of fence, and the cow was scratching her chin along the wires. A few hours later, when I was leaving and driving back to my current place, the cow was now on the other side of the fence and standing on the shoulder eating the grass along the side of the road. Fortunately the cow wasn't walking in the road, but what in the world are you supposed to do when a cow gets out of her pen??

I wonder how often this happens? I wonder if it will ever happen when I'm trying to commute to work? Yeah, sorry I'm late, boss, but there was a cow in the road and I couldn't get around her...

Current mood: relaxed...and excited
Current music: iTunes on shuffle - Beth Waters "Sweaters"
Current drink: Barq's Root Beer

More on My New Apartment

Today I went to my new apartment complex to sign all of the paperwork and to pick up the keys for my new place. So everything is all settled.

The place looks great. There is brand new carpeting and a fresh coat of paint. It's amazing. Right now I don't quite know what to do with so much more space, and I'm trying to visualize where I'm going to put everything. I'll have a little dining area, which will be nice, because in my current place I don't have any real dining area. I have a "dining" table, but I currently use it as my desk/office space, so now I probably need to buy a real desk (or another table) for my computer and stuff. And since I have more room, I could probably buy another bookcase. I certainly could use one! My balcony is huge and has a nice view. The trees in front are pretty tall and full, so you can't quite see the mountains, but it's still nice. There is plenty of light in the apartment, and it's very bright, and I really like that. I have lots of closet space, and there are lots of cabinets and drawers in the kitchen. And the cabinets in the kitchen are nice because I'll be able to reach the top shelves without standing on a chair or crawling on the counters. (And I don't want to hear any of my friends or family tease me about how short I am!!) The kitchen has a big sink and a dishwasher. The refrigerator/freezer are bigger than what I have right now. And the stove and oven are bigger.

There are only two things that I don't like about the new place. In the bathroom there isn't a shower rod but, instead, there are some strange shower doors. I don't like shower doors as much. Plus, without a shower rod, I won't be able to use my cool Greek-inspired shower curtain, and that makes me sad because that shower curtain is so awesome! It's so me...and, yes, I mean that I'm awesome! I also wish there were some more overhead lights in the place. There are some in the dining room, the kitchen, the bathroom, and my closet area off the bedroom, but there aren't overhead lights in the living room or bedroom. That means that I'll need to buy some lamps. But, other than that, everything else is great.