open up your eyyyyyyyeeeesss, just open up your eyes
Well, apparently I am sucking a little at updating so far this year, huh? To be fair, it has been kind of a whirlwind from about the last time I wrote until just a day or so ago. Friday the 15th I took Greyhound down to Silver Spring to visit Kelly for the weekend. We didn't do anything super fancy or exciting, but still had a great time. We went to dinner at . . . some restaurant-cum-brewery whose name totally escapes me now. Saturday, after a vet appointment for one of her rats, we went into DC to hang out with Sean and one of his friends, which involved walking around Dupont Circle, lots of chatting, dinner at Banana Leaves, and a few stops at Kramerbooks, where I was quite sad to not be able to buy anything. Sunday we went to Roy's Place in Gaithersburg, which had a selection of over 200 sandwiches to choose from, and then wandered around the mall for a bit. Then Monday I took the bus back to New Jersey. So like I said, nothing terribly exciting, but it was so good to see her and catch up on things and just hang out for a bit.
Monday night after getting back, I had dinner at my dad's. I don't think I've mentioned much about my family in here recently, but after a lot of ups and downs (mostly downs) in family relations over the last few months, I think things are at a pretty decent/neutral level right now. Let's hope they stay that way, at least for a little while. Anyway, Tuesday I did laundry and packed up all my stuff to get ready to leave. I think it was that night that Kristian and I made delicious cream cheese brownies and had an utterly ridiculous game of Scrabble. Aquadog playing aquagolf, anyone? It was hilarious. And I still maintain that Jewy is not a word, lol. So Wednesday morning we loaded all my crap into my car, then hung out for an hour or so until I took off for South Jersey to go see The Lovely Bones with Kira, Alison and Brian. I thought the movie was pretty decent, and for the most part it seems like they kept to the book, which I appreciated. I'd still pick the book over the movie if you could only do one, but the movie was worth a watch.
After the movie, I proceeded to drive up to Caldwell so I could have dinner with Janet and Liz before I left for Canada. It's always so good to see and talk to Janet; I wish I could do both more often. Dinner was good, although I woke up in the middle of the night feeling very nauseous and queasy, so something must not have agreed with me. But Thursday morning, I left from Janet's and hit the road, making incredibly good time all the way and (knock on wood) getting absolutely no hassle at the border. It was seriously amazing - I left Janet's at 8 am, and I was at Brad's shortly after 4 pm, even with two stops along the way. And there was literally no line at the border; I drove right up to a booth and was asked the standard questions and then let through. I wish all my trips were that easy!
Since then, obviously, I've just been enjoying my boytime and reveling in being back here. Despite all the difficulties and the obstacles we've dealt with (and continue to deal with), this feels like home to me now, and it makes me very happy to be here. Good news (hopefully): the FBI, when I spoke to them yesterday, said that my background check should be done by Friday, so hopefully that means I will actually have results in my hand very soon, and then maybe we'll be able to get the ball rolling on this job process. Not a moment too soon, either, because I've only got two more unemployment checks, and then maybe my tax return, before I have no source of income whatsoever. So please keep your fingers crossed and send some more positive vibes my way!
Besides that, not much else to report right now. I joined swaptree at Lori's invitation, and it's a pretty cool site. Basically, you list any CDs, movies, books or video games you have and are willing to trade, then you create a list of items you want and the site sets up trades for you. You only have to pay to ship your item to the recipient, and then you get something you want in return. It's pretty sweet. So far I've participated in two trades, and assuming all goes well with shipping, I will soon be getting two books I want, in exchange for a CD I already burned on my computer and a book I didn't want. Pretty good deal if you ask me. You guys should sign up, too! Okay, and now I am going to go attempt a million pounds of laundry. Fun times!
Monday night after getting back, I had dinner at my dad's. I don't think I've mentioned much about my family in here recently, but after a lot of ups and downs (mostly downs) in family relations over the last few months, I think things are at a pretty decent/neutral level right now. Let's hope they stay that way, at least for a little while. Anyway, Tuesday I did laundry and packed up all my stuff to get ready to leave. I think it was that night that Kristian and I made delicious cream cheese brownies and had an utterly ridiculous game of Scrabble. Aquadog playing aquagolf, anyone? It was hilarious. And I still maintain that Jewy is not a word, lol. So Wednesday morning we loaded all my crap into my car, then hung out for an hour or so until I took off for South Jersey to go see The Lovely Bones with Kira, Alison and Brian. I thought the movie was pretty decent, and for the most part it seems like they kept to the book, which I appreciated. I'd still pick the book over the movie if you could only do one, but the movie was worth a watch.
After the movie, I proceeded to drive up to Caldwell so I could have dinner with Janet and Liz before I left for Canada. It's always so good to see and talk to Janet; I wish I could do both more often. Dinner was good, although I woke up in the middle of the night feeling very nauseous and queasy, so something must not have agreed with me. But Thursday morning, I left from Janet's and hit the road, making incredibly good time all the way and (knock on wood) getting absolutely no hassle at the border. It was seriously amazing - I left Janet's at 8 am, and I was at Brad's shortly after 4 pm, even with two stops along the way. And there was literally no line at the border; I drove right up to a booth and was asked the standard questions and then let through. I wish all my trips were that easy!
Since then, obviously, I've just been enjoying my boytime and reveling in being back here. Despite all the difficulties and the obstacles we've dealt with (and continue to deal with), this feels like home to me now, and it makes me very happy to be here. Good news (hopefully): the FBI, when I spoke to them yesterday, said that my background check should be done by Friday, so hopefully that means I will actually have results in my hand very soon, and then maybe we'll be able to get the ball rolling on this job process. Not a moment too soon, either, because I've only got two more unemployment checks, and then maybe my tax return, before I have no source of income whatsoever. So please keep your fingers crossed and send some more positive vibes my way!
Besides that, not much else to report right now. I joined swaptree at Lori's invitation, and it's a pretty cool site. Basically, you list any CDs, movies, books or video games you have and are willing to trade, then you create a list of items you want and the site sets up trades for you. You only have to pay to ship your item to the recipient, and then you get something you want in return. It's pretty sweet. So far I've participated in two trades, and assuming all goes well with shipping, I will soon be getting two books I want, in exchange for a CD I already burned on my computer and a book I didn't want. Pretty good deal if you ask me. You guys should sign up, too! Okay, and now I am going to go attempt a million pounds of laundry. Fun times!