Dancing Through Life

I got lost in the fold last week and just barely got my act together! Here's to trying really hard this week and hopefully staying up with the times ;)

Loathing:

• Being tired and not having a lot of time to myself to regroup
• Having to tell people things that you know they don't want to hear - As much as they don't want to hear it, I don't want to say it, but sometimes not saying it just makes it worse

Loving:

• Making some good money at the second job
• The impact my second job is having on my debt :)
• Meeting awesome new people at my new job
• My training walks for the Breast Cancer 3 Day
• Weekends
• Family
• Friends
• Beautiful weater
• My new Lypsyl lip balm - It's just the right amount tingly and all kinds of moisturizing-awesome, and I love the little honeybee slider to raise and lower it! I'm a Burt's Bees junkie, but I have to say, Lypsyl gives Burt a run for his money :)

I went home to PA this weekend to spend some quality time with the women in my life - my mother, grandmother, and my two aunts, who also happen to both be my Godmothers. I took them out for a nice dinner - a tradition I started a few years ago (before grad school broke my bank) but wasn't able to carry on again until this year (yay for being gainfully - and full-time - employed!). Its a tradition I hope to continue for many years - its the absolute least I could do considering all that these amazing women have done for me over the years. I don't know how I got so lucky, but I'm pretty damn blessed to have been born to this particular family. :) 

To all the mothers (and Grandmothers and Godmothers) out there, thank you for everything that you do! I hope you all had a wonderful Mother's Day!

I've got a million things swirling around in my head, and have been tossing things around to post about for the past few days. But now that I'm finally sitting in front of a computer with time to compose, its all gone out of my head. I'm hoping that a slow(er) weekend at home in PA with my farmily (yes, I meant to type that) will help a little. Or at least give me fodder to post about, lol. I've been so incredibly busy this week that even making a decision hurts. I was meeting people for lunch today, and I asked them what time they wanted to meet and gave them 3 options. Instead of naming a time, I get "Well what time do you want to go?" I literally thought my head was going to explode from the strain of it all. Its been a ridiculously busy week, especially with my allergy issues. I'm hoping that although I now have a second job, things will be a little calmer next week. Just a smidge, that's all.

And I promise to nap during the morning commute on the metro ;)

But first thing's first. I've got two weeks of Loving and Loathing to catch up on.

Loathing:

• tree pollen
• my allergies
• inefficient prescription allergy medication
• tree pollen
• my allergies
• and oh yeah, did I mention tree pollen and my allergies?

Loving:

• Rain, sweet rain! Thank you for coming and taking care of all of that nasty tree pollen! I can finally almost breathe again :)
• Bob Woodward speaking at my job. Talk about cool! I was *so* starstruck!
• Taking a second job at a Ballroom Dance studio (I miss me some ballroom something fierce! Its like a wonderful homecoming!)
• Second job helping to make a nice big dent in my debt
• *NOT* feeling like I'm living paycheck to paycheck
• My friends and how they encourage (and love to partake of) my ridiculosity :)
• Guitar Hero
• My co-workers sharing Mother's Day Gifts with me for being a "kitty-mommy" :)  (I'm the only woman in my office who's not already a mom, so they didn't want me to feel left out)
• And most importantly, my family, who I will get to see again this weekend. Yay for Mothers and Grandmothers and Godmothers!!!

What do you do EVERY day to take care of the earth's environment? What could you do more of?

Recycle! My roommate and I have specific places for our recyclables and we make sure they are disposed of properly. I try to run all of my errands at one time, in one day or on my way home from work, so as to drive as little as possible. I have insulated, reusable bags for grocery shopping so I don't have to use plastic bags. The plastic grocery bags I do sometimes use end up lining all of my small trash cans. I've also recently decided to relinquish my control over my morning commute, OD on bonine and start taking public transportation to and from work again. I wash my laundry (except for my towels and sheets) in cold water, I air dry most of my clothing on a drying rack, and I donate as much as possible of my old wardrobe to clothing drives and good will. Just because I don't wear those clothes anymore doesn't mean someone else can't.

Things I plan to do in the future include buying a hybrid car (when I get a new car - I've been driving the one I own now since it was brand new in 2001 - and I get oil changes every 3,000 miles and rotate my tires every 6,000 to ensure that my car is running at peak performance and leaving as small a footprint as possible). I also plan on trying my green deadly thumb at growing a small garden for fresh produce, and composting when I move out of my swank condo building (which won't be for at least another year).

I know that Earth Day was last week and this post is a little late, but you know what they say... Better late than never!

... but whatever it is, I know I really pissed You off. Normally, I get along very well with You, I try to be very conscientious of the things I do, because I know that what goes around comes around. Apparently at some point in the last week or two, I dropped my guard. I have a feeling I know when it started for me, and You didn't take long to start delivering your reckoning. We don't need to talk about what started it, its too devastating (although, I'm forced to think of it every time I pick up my phone <sigh>). But I'll just list the reasons why I think (and hope and pray) that today was the finale, and that You will finally have finishing waging justice where I'm concerned. At least for awhile...

This morning I woke up late. VERY late. As in, I-should-have-already-been-in-my-car-on-my-way-to-work late. I realized that I could move fast, and I did, but I also didn't want to kill myself. I knew I was going to be late, there was no way around it, so I was just trying to get done and out as quickly as possible to try to be less than an hour late. I made it through without too much of a problem - showered, shaved even, did my hair, make-up, got dressed, got my lunch together. I cut out breakfast and tea - I could easily do both of those things once I made it to my desk. As I was almost finished, I realized I had two water glasses on my night stand, and I wanted to take at least one and put it in the kitchen. Well, I picked up the one that still had water in it, proceeded to lose control of my hand and watch as the glass fell to the hardwood floor, next to my bed, and exploded water and glass shards everywhere. Fine, ok. I'm late, I'm stressed, but I can deal. I tried to keep my cat away from the glass because her curiosity has just increased ten-fold, and I'd prefer that she not get sliced and diced. But in my relative haste to get as many shards off of the floor as possible, I sliced my finger open and started bleeding EVERYWHERE! (no worries, I don't need stitches... I apparently just bleed. A LOT.) I managed to get as much of the glass up as I could, although I'm pretty sure that there are still pieces on the floor under the bed that I missed. I'm going to have to super-clean as soon as I get home. I've been saying silent prayers all day that my cat doesn't injure herself on any stray pieces of glass. Anyone else who wants to contribute prayers for her safety, its much appreciated :)

So anyway, I make it out the door, to my car, get on the road. I made it to work in one piece, only 40 minutes late, and no accidents, thankfully (knock on wood for the drive home). When I get to my desk, I sit down and my chair wheels get caught on a cord and its a veritable avalanche of electronics on me. Shortly after that, as I was transferring my microwave-heated water for tea from my regular mug to my travel mug, I managed to spill water all over myself (and the floor) and burn my hand. My hand was a fabulous shade of scarlet for about an hour. Yep, Karma, you were still working your glorious magic. I had a meeting at 10, and I didn't even change out of my flats and into my heels until right before the meeting. I didn't want to tempt Fate, Karma and all the forces that oversee the world and keep everything in balance. I pretty much kept to my desk after my meeting, trying not to stray too far from the norm. I was meeting people for lunch at 11:30, and for once, I actually brought a Lean Cuisine pizza (I normally make my lunch the night before and bring it with me - cheaper, but not always easier). So I put my pizza in the microwave, it works it's magic, and then I go to pull my pizza out and resituate it in the box to take it to the cafeteria with me, when I miss the box. Yep. Not only did my pizza fall onto a dusty, dirty, low counter, but it also flipped over so as to fling cheese and sop up as much dust as possible with the remaining cheese. Sigh. I didn't care, I ate it anyway. I was hungry, and I guarantee you I've eaten things that were dirtier and probably paid somebody to prepare those things. Maybe it will help me work my way back into your good graces, my Majestic Karma.

I know you've been teaching me a lesson, and its been a long, hard lesson. Long as in, since last Thursday. Some daysyou've gone easy on me, and they have been better than others. Today was definitely the worst, and I'm hoping the culmination/finale/end. I promise you, Karma, I will try my absolute hardest to be a better person. I've learned my lesson. Please believe me when I say this. I will do whatever it takes to win my way back into your good graces, oh Powerful Karma, but if you could maybe bring the punishment back down to a minimum, I would really appreciate it. Thank you so much! As always... 

Yours,
Madelyn

Loathing this Tuesday:

• Crappy weather - I need some blue skies and warm weather again VERY soon or the outcome won't be pretty
• Feeling blue for no good reason, but lots of not-so-good reasons
• The heart-wrenching pangs of sadness I've been getting for reasons I can guess at, but can't really do anything about
• Feeling like I'm living paycheck to paycheck

Loving this Tuesday:

• Escaping the city for a weekend and spending quality time with family and friends
• Short week - heading home to PA around lunch on Friday for Easter weekend
• Spending time with my family
• Getting back to Ballroom and writing and blogging and all the things that really help to make me happy
• Sushi dinners with cute friends

... to escape the city. That's what I did this weekend. A friend of mine (V) and I hopped in my car and went to Colonial Williamsburg. It wasn't a spur of the moment trip, but I'm positive there *will* be many of those in our future :) My mom and her boyfriend - who are both retired - were "wintering" in Florida in his motorhome. They started the Northward Pilgrimage (as I've deemed it) last week, and way back in March had asked me if I wanted to meet them in Williamsburg. I'd never been there before and it was quality time with the parental units - AND another friend from grad school is living and working there (J) - so we decided to kill about 8 birds with one stone, because we're THAT good. :)

Friday was a gorgeous day and I managed to get out of work early, so I spent some time just relaxing on the waterfront in Old Town Alexandria. Then I met V for an outdoor dinner, waited for traffic to die down a bit and got on our way. It was a beautiful drive - gorgeous weather, gorgeous scenery - and we spent a good portion of it flying down I-95S with the top open on my car. It was fabulous, and it gave V and I a chance to just chat and catch up.

Saturday we spent with the parental units in Colonial Williamsburg and we couldn't have asked for a more perfect day. It was warm and sunny, with a slight breeze. Absolutely gorgeous! And Colonial Williamsburg is so beautiful. My mom - because it was only $9 more than the day pass - got me a year pass, so I fully intend to utilize it and go back down. Maybe I'll go again in the summer, escape the tourists in DC and be one myself somewhere, and I'm definitely planning on going again for the fall and for the Christmas extravaganza. I've heard so much about it - and seen enough photos - that I'm definitely very interested. V and I got these great wide brimmed straw hats - I fully intend to use mine at the beach this summer (which also means I'm fully intending on getting some decent beach time in this summer) and maybe possibly if I feel like being touristy downtown, lol.

Saturday night I was able to partake of a Passover Seder at J's place, and it was incredible. I'd never had the opportunity to attend a Seder before, and I'm always interested in learning new things about good and people's religions, so this was something I didn't want to pass up. I ate SO MUCH food and it was all fantastic - even the gefilte fish! J is an amazing cook, and I was not disappointed. It was really cool to see the kinds of traditions that are involved and all of the symbolism. And I thoroughly enjoyed the Paschal Yam (and not the Paschal Lamb).

Sunday it was rainy and gross so none of us - 'rents included - got moving anywhere very early. J took us to the Rockefeller Library where she works, and we went to the Museum, which was really incredible. So many beautiful things, and I especially enjoyed the Dollhouse Exhibition and the Needlepoint Exhibition. By the time we finished in the museum, the rain had let up a little bit, so we were able to walk through Market Square. And then we all hit a wall and realized just how exhausted we were and went our separate ways.

The ride back to DC was interesting - traffic was heavy, the weather was insane, and it rained so hard that it overpowered the weather-stripping on the convertible top of my car and starting leaking on me and V. We had to shove napkins all over the place to try and stop the flow, lol. But I had a new Tomtom to guide me, and it was very nice. Tomtom was like "Don't worry my child. I'll do the thinking FOR you, you just follow my voice and I will guide you home." Uber-fabulous :) (Thanks mom!)

It was just SO NICE to get out of the city and get a break from it all for a weekend. And I definitely saw two palm trees in Williamsburg. They were in front of the Hampton Inn that we passed, and they were the kind that looked like oversized Pineapples :) Seeing the palm trees definitely made me very happy. Today was exhausting though. I don't think I realized how much the weekend had tired me out. It felt good though - it was a good kind of tired, one that you actually feel like you've done something to warrant being tired.

And on that note, I'm going to say goodnight so that I may catch up on my sleep :) Gute nacht!

Do you remember where you were, a year ago today? A year ago, at the very moment that you found out about the massacre at Virginia Tech. I certainly do. I was in the airy and open stairwell in my grad program's section of our building on campus. I was with a close friend and one of the kindest people on the staff. There's a television mounted on the third floor landing, and that's where I first heard the news. None of us knew what to say, as we stood there watching that television screen. I listened to what had happened, and tried to understand, tried to fully comprehend. I was less than two weeks away from my own commencement, and all I could think was that these young people weren't going to see their own, how tragic it was, and how devastating.

I'd be lying if I said the first thought that had gone through my head was anything other than "Not again. Not another school shooting." All I could do was sit down on the steps and take it in for a few minutes. To think about the brevity of it. I was in Michigan, so far away from the actual events, but I felt them very deeply. It could have happened anywhere on any college campus, at any time, to anyone. I thought about the fear that the students must have felt, the adrenaline coursing through their veins, the thought that this might be the end. I can't even imagine what it was like to actually *feel* those emotions.

I thought about those students when I put on my graduation robe, as I pinned the maroon and orange ribbons in memory of them on my robe, and I thought about them as I walked across the stage and was given my Master's degree.

Here, now, in DC, it seems as if the year anniversary of the massacre has taken a backseat to the continuous coverage of the Pope's every move during his visit here. I thought it was important to stop and take a minute to think about what happened a year ago today, to think about all of those promising young people who will never get the chance to live a long and full life, who will never see their dreams coming to fruition - young people who wanted to leave a mark on this world, and without even knowing it, made a deeper indentation than they ever could have imagined. I think of those students today and honor their memory. And I'm grateful that I was given the opporunity that they weren't - to be given another day, another year, to live, to make my dreams come true. To experience 365 more sunrises and sunsets. I think of them today, in sadness, in reverence, and in gratitude.

 

 

Loathing:

• New traffic patterns on the outer loop that make my morning commute hell
• The insane traffic this morning resulting from the Papal visit
• This nagging back pain that after 3 weeks STILL hasn't completely subsided (yes, I know, I'm going to head to the Dr. later this week)
• The fact that I wake up multiple times throughout the night for no reason and end up feeling like a zombie during the day

Loving:

• The fact that my job will pay for me to take public transportation to and from work - this will help me save on gas money and wear and tear on my car (the only downfall is the additional 30-45 minutes this will tack onto my commute).
• 1 month down, 23 left to go! I had my braces tightened yesterday, and I was expecting it to be a lot worse than it was. I guess the old adage is true... Prepare for the worst, but hope for the best :) Perfect smile, here I come!!!
• This week isn't dragging the same way the past 2 have (knock on wood!)
• Veronica Mars - I started watching the DVDs again, and I lovelovelove that show!
• Dinner with the Girls later this week :)
• Road trip to Williamsburg this weekend to spend some time with friends and hang out with my mom, who will also be there this weekend :)