Did you guys know it’s 2012 now? I know a lot of people haven’t really been talking about it lately but yeah, new year. There was a holiday for it and everything!
The Boyfriend and I spend New Years Eve eating Chinese takeout and watching IU beat Ohio State (woohoo!). After the game there was a lot of aimless channel flipping (the BF) and a few games of solitaire (me) before we watched the ball drop.
If we aren’t the wildest and craziest party people you know… well, if we are you might need to reevaluate your definition of the word party.
It was nice to wake up New Years Day with no hangover… I tried to talk The Boyfriend into going out for breakfast to look down on all of the sinners but he wanted to stay home in his pajamas a little longer. We eventually did go to the grocery store to pick up stuff for dinner, and we ended up with brats and sauerkraut. The BF had this theory that if regular cooked cabbage was supposed to be lucky, sauerkraut would be super lucky because he cooked it twice. Once in a saucepan with some green peppers and onions and then again in the crockpot with the brats.
I don’t know about super lucky, but it was super good.
To round our our lucky (and gassy!) meal we had baked beans and raw broccoli with dip. Toot!
We spent the day being incredibly lazy…watching football here and there along with a couple of movies. At one point I dropped a quarter down the back of The BF’s pants while he was bent over trying to get the antenna to work and he decided I was mean. At least, I think that’s what he said…I was on the floor in a fit of giggles and couldn’t quite hear him.
All in all, it was a wonderful weekend and a fantastic start to 2012.
A lot of people on Twitter and Facebook were saying things like “good riddance to 2011!” and part of me wants to side with them. 2011 was a rough year for me and my family and I was happy to see it go away.
Then again…
Some really wonderful things happened in 2011. My Dad’s surgeries, for one thing. Sure, they could easily fall into the ‘not fun’ column because I definitely don’t enjoy seeing my Dad in pain but… I have to put them into the ‘blessing’ column just for the simple fact that my Dad is still here. The way it all played out was honestly better than I could have asked for considering that the blockages in his heart were discovered through tests and not after a heart attack. The surgeries were a bit of a setback in the short term but in the long term…well, who knows? There might not have been a long term had they not happened.
In 2011 I found myself unemployed and struggling to keep my head above water. There were times when I just wanted to give up and I struggled with a bout of depression that made me less than fun to be around. Getting out of bed became a challenge and even close to impossible some days… And I can’t lie, I’m still working through it. Something happened around Christmas that sucked a lot, but it also gave me the swift kick in the ass that I needed to make me want to fight through the feelings of hopelessness that had been consuming me for months. I’m still unemployed, and it still sucks, but I’m trying to have a more positive outlook about things.
In February of 2011 The BF came wandering into my life and turned everything upside down. I can’t believe it will soon be a year that we’ve been together. Will we eventually get married and churn out a litter of rugrats? I don’t know… But I know that I am thankful for every day that he’s in my life.
I hope you all had a safe and happy New Years…And I hope that while you look back on 2011 you choose to focus on the positive things that happened rather than the negative. I know it’s not easy sometimes but it might make you feel a little better about life as a whole.
Here’s to a fresh start and an upcoming year of blessings and happiness for us all.
Happy (belated) New Year, readers!
I’m still unemployed. I had hoped that I’d be hired for one job in particular, but someone from that company was kind enough to send me an email letting me know the position was filled.
They couldn’t even be bothered to spell my name right.
At any rate, I’m still applying and hoping but it’s starting to be almost impossible to hang on to a positive attitude. I’m down to about $100.00 in my checking and I’ve exhausted any money I’d saved up.
If you ever want to know who your true friends are, just spend some time being unemployed. I was pretty surprised at how quickly some “friends” quit calling. I guess when I can’t afford to buy rounds at the bar I’m no longer useful to some people.
I’m also getting really sick of people asking if I’ve found a job yet. It’s never, “Have you found a job? ‘Cause I know of a place that’s hiring…” That would be fine and I would appreciate the suggestion. But when you’re just asking to make conversation? Please don’t. I’d rather stand there in silence than deal with the feeling of awkwardness that comes after I answer your question by telling you no.
If you encounter me in a social setting and you don’t know what to say, here’s a list of topics I like to talk about:
Football
Movies
Scary Movies
Cooking
Baking
Farts
Poop
New and inventive ways to pester my mother
To recap…
“Hey! Didja find a job yet?!” = BAD
“Hey! Have you seen Scream 4 yet?” = Good
“Hey! Didja find a job yet?!” = BAD
“Hey! Watch out for the bathroom.someone really dropped a bomb in there.” = Good
In other news, today’s central Indiana forecast says we’re to expect a high of 65 degrees and a low of 45 with possible wind gusts up to 40 mph.
…So The Boyfriend and I are going camping.
My Blackberry doesn’t work.
Can’t make calls.
Can’t receive calls.
Can’t use the internet.
Can’t text.
Know what I can do?
I can see what time it is.
HOORAY! I’m cut off from the outside world but I’ll always know the time!
…
Now if I had a job that paid me money I would just go buy a new cell phone and that would be the end of it. Since I’m currently unemployed and therefore have no money, I’m just trying really hard to be ok with this…maybe even learn a lesson on how dependent I am upon modern technology.
Who am I kidding? Not having a cell phone SUCKS.
Not being able to tweet or check Facebook whenever I want isn’t so bad. A little annoying when I have to wait in line somewhere, or when I have something really funny to say, but not terrible. It’s the fact that I am completely unable to communicate with anyone unless I happen to be at my mom and dad’s house that’s really boosting the ol’ anxiety levels.
Driving has become a problem because my tires aren’t in the best shape…So if I were to blow a tire I don’t know what I’d do. Walk to the nearest house? Not a good option…I’d rather not knock on someone’s door and interrupt them cooking a big ol’ batch of meth, thankyouverymuch. And really, that’s just the kind of luck I have.
I guess I could stand on the side of the road and try to flag someone down…But getting someone to stop would probably take a while. Not only that, but if someone does stop, I’d be wondering why. Is this person a murderer or a rapist? And if the person does turn out to have ulterior motives I couldn’t just use my handy cell phone to call for help. Then again…if the murderer, you know, actually murders me I wouldn’t be able to, anyway.
Well this is turning out to be quite a conundrum.
I suppose if I did get stuck on the side of the road, and someone DID stop to help me, and that person WAS a bad guy, I could always throw my useless former phone-turned expensive timepiece at him as a distraction and run like hell.
There’s something to be said about preparedness in emergency situations. Obviously you can’t prepare for every possibility, but you can cover your bases. From now on (until I have a working cellular device, that is) I’ll be carrying my trusty ol’ Louisville Slugger whenever I venture out into the scary world. I will also make sure to wear my tennis shoes at all times (have you ever tried to run in flip-flops?) and carry a spray bottle of Sriracha hot sauce in my purse.
What? Have you ever touched your eye after handling that stuff? It hurts.
Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to do some cardio and maybe some calisthenics, just in case I find my self needing to run away from a bad guy in the near future.
Are you guys sick of hearing me whine about things I want yet?
No?
Ok, good.
I love fall for a lot of reasons…Football being one, of course, but also? I adore fall clothing.
Ruche has a ton of cute stuff:
I found these boots at DSW:
Victoria’s Secret has some cute sweaters:
There are a couple of purses at Macy’s I’d definitely love to have:
I want it all!
My Amazon wish list is getting out of hand…
I think that means I need to find employment asap.
So since I’ve been unemployed my daily routine has been as follows:
-Wake up at a ridiculously late hour (before noon, thank you)
– Sit around all bleary-eyed for a good half-hour before putting in my contacts and leaving The Boyfriend’s house
– Sit around my house for a while playing BeZombied on my Blackberry (has anyone else played this game? It’s addicting as hell)
– Shower
– Go to mom and dad’s to use their internet and eat their food
– End up back at The Boyfriend’s to watch tv and listen to stories of his productive day
I know, life has been rough lately.
Today, however, is different. I mean, it started out the same… but after my shower I actually did my hair…and I’m going to put on makeup! AND I’m not wearing my usual t-shirt and whatever pair of jeans smells cleanest uniform!
Dude, that’s monumental.
The Boyfriend has asked me to accompany him to his friend’s house this evening…and I haven’t met this friend (or his girlfriend) yet. I feel like I need to make a good impression, hence the makeup and did-hair and whatnot.
Now, I love when The BF introduces me to his friends and family…But I get really nervous about it. I’m always worried that someone won’t like me or that they’ll think I’m weird and be like WHY ON EARTH IS HE WITH THAT CRAZY WEIRDO?!
I think we all know there’s no question why he’s with me since I’m seriously the coolest chick on Earth (some examples of my awesomeness)…It’s just an irrational fear I have.
Anyway… Since he mentioned it on Monday, I’ve been trying to prepare. The problem is, I don’t really know much about these people. It’s making it really hard to come up with potential conversation topics. Some of my ideas so far:
– Religion
– Politics
Just kidding.
But really, what are we going to talk about? I know The BF and his friend will at some point want to go off by themselves and talk about manly-type stuff. That will leave me with the friend’s girlfriend…alone.
I suppose I’ll just have to rely on my sparkling personality and dazzling wit to get me through…
…
HELLO!
Have you missed me?
Well, I’ve been VERY busy. I became unemployed (yes, again) last Tuesday and let me tell you, there’s been a lot of couch-sitting, movie-watching and parent-pestering going on around here.
Unemployment was a lot more enjoyable when I had internet at my house, that’s for sure. I’ve been at my mom and dad’s house every day to use their internet so I can play games online apply for jobs. I can’t lie, I’m also there to eat their food. Can you believe they decided to have pizza the other night? I was expecting a home-cooked meal! The nerve.
Anyway, I’m hoping to find something closer to home because I’m a bit tired of spending $400.00 (or more!) on gas a month. I would love to find something that would allow me to work from home… Like freelance writing, maybe?
I briefly entertained the idea of making Proud Mary Rollin’ Mechanic a reality until I realized I’d have to actually know how to fix cars. LAME.
I wish there was a job out there that allowed me to do what I’m really good at… Something that would involve surfing the internet, getting on my soap box and telling people way more than they ever wanted to know about me.
And, you know, talking about poop.
Well guys…Tomorrow morning I start my new job. It just doesn’t seem real yet. Oddly enough, I’m not really feeling nervous now but I’m sure that will kick in tomorrow morning.
I don’t know what got into me today, but I went on a crazy organizing rampage in my bedroom. When Stef and Jess moved in I waited ’til the last minute and then piled a bunch of stuff on my bedroom floor. It’s mostly been a mess ever since and it was my goal to take care of it during my unemployment.
Of course, I waited ’til the last day.
I’ve done at least 4 loads of laundry today (including sheets and towels) and I still have a lot left BUT the pile on my floor is gone. Hooray! I also figured out how to store my earrings and necklaces so they won’t end up in a tangled mess. I’m pretty proud of myself.
This morning I printed and filled out all of my new-hire paperwork. I even managed to locate my checkbook so I’ll be able to set up direct deposit.
My travel coffee mug is clean and I have my clothes picked out for tomorrow…I even organized my purse and painted my nails.
I feel like a real grown-up!
Actually, now that I think about it, I feel like tomorrow is the first day of school.
Moving on…
Earlier this week Jesse decided to make fried chicken for dinner so I made mashed potatoes and green beans to go with it. I have to say, for the first time he’d ever tried to make chicken it was pretty awesome. I have pictures, so as soon as he gets home I’ll find out what recipe he used and post it.
Um, hi guys… It’s been a minute.
Things have been SO busy for me lately…I’ve not only neglected my blog but also my Facebook and Twitter. The problem is that I don’t exactly want to share what I’ve been doing.
It’s nothing bad or illegal…it’s just…mine.
I know, I’m not making any sense right now. I’m not used to being quiet about anything, especially when it’s something good. Trust me, a big part of me wants to write a long post in bold caps lock about everything that’s gone on in the last couple of weeks. The thing is, some of it doesn’t involve just me. Out of respect for the other person (who doesn’t even know I have a blog) I’m going to keep my trap shut.
BUT.
Never fear! I do have a bit of good news I can share with you!
Starting Friday morning at 9:00 am I will officially re-enter the world of employment! I got the offer last Friday and I’m very much looking forward to working for this company. It isn’t another school, thank God, but it does still involve sales. It’s also in downtown Indy, which means it would still be an hour drive. Luckily, once my regular hours start after training I’ll be working 11:15 – 8:15 so I won’t have to get up early for too terribly long.
One thing about this job that excites me quite a bit…I can wear jeans every day! They actually said I could wear whatever I want…I saw a couple of guys walking around dressed as if they were going to the gym. The whole atmosphere seems very laid back and everyone seems to be friendly. I’m really looking forward to getting started!
Things are going so well for me that I’m almost holding my breath all day waiting for something bad to happen. I haven’t been this happy in…um…well, I can’t recall. Maybe EVER.
I’m sorry I haven’t kept up with you guys and I promise I’m going to make more of an effort. I hope y’all can forgive me!
Pie can’t compete with cake. Put candles in a cake, it’s a birthday cake. Put candles in a pie, and somebody’s drunk in the kitchen.
-Jim Gaffigan
Sunday was my dad’s birthday and we planned to go to one of his favorite restaurants in Greencastle (a mom and pop place called Mama Nunz) and then hang out for a bit at my Mamaw’s house. Dad isn’t a huge fan of cake but he does love pie so I decided to make him a birthday strawberry rhubarb pie.
I’ve never made a pie before but I heard from more than one person that the filling tends to be runny for this particular kind of pie. I did some internet searching and found a recipe on one of my favorite food blogs, Smitten Kitchen (recipe here). I was a little worried about the use of tapioca because my dad and I are texture people…and we both think tapioca pudding is gross. Still, I didn’t want to chance a runny filling so I gave it a shot.
I did make a change or two to the original recipe. I actually used frozen pie crust (the Pillsbury kind in the red box) because I just didn’t want to mess with making my own, and I left the egg wash off. I also totally forgot about the butter until the pie was already in the oven. Because nothing was in season, I had to use frozen strawberries and rhubarb. They come in one pound bags, so I combined them in a gallon Ziploc baggie and defrosted it all in the microwave.
As you can see, I messed up by trimming the bottom crust before adding the top crust. It was a rookie mistake for sure.
Damn it.
The top and bottom crusts didn’t stay together at all… I think I also may have had a wee bit too much filling in there. The recipe was for a 9 inch pie but mine was a little smaller. BUT.
The filling wasn’t even close to runny…that tapioca worked wonders and didn’t have an effect on the texture at all. HOORAY.
Yes, candles on a pie. I swear I wasn't drunk in the kitchen.
Mmmmmmmmmmmmm...Pie....
My poor mom didn’t even get to taste hers until everyone else was half-finished because I needed to take a picture and she took the prettier slice.
The verdict?
Everyone but my brother loved it. His vote doesn’t count because
A. It just doesn’t
B. He’s not a fan of rhubarb at all
C. It just doesn’t
The filling was just the right mix of tart and slightly sweet, and paired with vanilla ice cream it was delicious.
I did almost have a heart attack when my dad asked what kind of pie I made…
Me: Strawberry Rhubarb *I’m so proud of myself smile*
Dad: …Ah.
Jess: Wait, I didn’t think you liked that kind…
Me: Yes you do! You do, right?
Dad: Well…not really…
Me: YES YOU DO MOM SAID YOU DO SHE TOLD ME TO MAKE PINEAPPLE, APPLE OR STRAWBERRY RHUBARB BECAUSE THAT’S WHAT YOU LIKE
Dad: …
Me: *sadface*
Dad: I’m just kidding *big smile*
My family is so mean to me.
So I thought unemployment would mean I could do some serious couch sitting in my jammies for a few days… It kind of didn’t happen that way, though.
Friday I was jolted out of sleep at 8:15 by a call from my mom reminding me that we were meeting for breakfast at 9:30. I kept the conversation short so I could go back to sleep for a few minutes, but just as I was about to nod off…
Yeah, my phone rang again. I assumed it was my mom reminding me to bring my grandma’s mail or something, but upon checking my caller id (by holding the phone an inch from my face and squinting because I’m blind without my contacts) I realized it was someone else calling. A BOY.
Calm yourself. I’ve known him since close to the dawn of time and we saw each other recently so even though his call was sort of out of the blue it didn’t seem like a big deal.
Of course I tried really hard to sound awake but he still made fun of me for being in bed at the ridiculous hour of 8:30 am. He wanted to know if I would go with him to a birthday thing Saturday night. I agreed, of course.
So I managed to get to the restaurant before my mom and grandma, we had a lovely breakfast chock full of cholesterol and as we were finishing up another friend sent me a text asking me to go shopping with her. I left the restaurant and headed to her house, and when I walked in she handed her baby over asking me to burp her. A lot of my friends keep telling me I need to have a baby of my own but I like being Aunt Ashlee to all of their babies. I get to cuddle and feed and play with them, but when they get fussy or poop I can hand them back over.
We spent the day looking for an outfit for said baby and doing some shopping for ourselves, then parted ways because she had to get to work. I made my way home, prepared to finally spend quality time with my couch and Netflix.
So I got a couple of hours of sitting around in before someone ELSE called to see if I wanted to play cards and have a few beers at her house.
Saturday I did get to be lazy ’til about 6:00 when I had to get ready for the party… My friend asked if I was hungry so we stopped for dinner and then off to the party we went. I had a blast, met some awesome people and had a few too many beers. My friend was cool with me crashing at his place instead of driving home…then I spent the entire next day hanging out with him watching cartoons and eventually Indiana Jones. It was pretty cool, except for the fact that I was supposed to be at another friend’s house at 3:00. When I actually looked at the clock it was 7:00.
Oops.
So I took off and she had saved a plate from dinner for me so I ate and played Legos for a little while with her four-year old. He wanted me to build something “cool” and he ended up with a lopsided house that didn’t really have a door or a roof. It’s pretty sad when a four-year old has to point those things out to you and then calls you silly. Once the rugrat went to bed we had some girl talk ’til her husband came from his job as a pizza delivery driver. He had made a pizza at work that he was kind enough to share with me. He used a hand-tossed crust and topped it with garlic butter instead of pizza sauce, then covered the whole thing in cheese, american sausage and a couple of other things. Healthy? Probably not. Delicious? Absolutely.
I finally made it home around 1:00 and went straight to bed.
Today I FINALLY got the chance to act like someone that doesn’t have a job…Not that I’m super proud to say this, but I didn’t even get out of bed ’til noon and kept my pajamas on ’til almost 6:00. I thought it would be awesome but in all reality I wanted out of the house so badly that I told my roommate we were going grocery shopping when she got home from work.
After shopping we made a pretty fabulous dinner of Salisbury steak (frozen), corn, Brussels sprouts and smashed taters.
Now don’t get me wrong, I love the fact that I actually have time to spend with my wonderful friends and family…But I’m not kidding, the battery to my phone isn’t even lasting an entire day due to the high volume of text messages and calls I’ve been getting.
Does unemployment = popular?
It kind of feels that way.
Willfully Disobedient 