Climbing in Skirts

I turned 30 on Friday. 30 doesn't feel that much different than 29. Some people say that it is the new 21. If it really was the new 21 I would have had a margarita machine and a bouncy castle...

The festivities began on Thursday. My co-workers decorated my office with a ton of balloons. Then they cookied my car when I was in a meeting.

Those would be lemon-cream filled sandwich cookies plastered all over my car (no, they didn't hurt the paint). This was how I started my long weekend (I had scheduled myself to be off through Tuesday)

After work I went to the container store (my car was still covered in cookies and only a few were lost in transit). I picked up shelves so I could finish my pantry project. The shelving project required a drill bit I didn't have so I tabled installation until Friday.

I slept in on Friday morning (till about 10ish). I had a chocolate-chocolate chip cookie for breakfast (I was meeting my parents for lunch at noon so I didn't eat a "real breakfast"). I removed most of the cookies from my car and then I headed off to meet my parents for lunch at Hyde Park Bar and Grill.

After lunch I headed out to FirstSamples. I needed to return a key and talk to Shauna about the future of Level IV. There is still one cookie stuck to the top of my car (this cookie was still on my car when I took it to be washed on Monday afternoon).


I went to Home Depot on the way home from the studio. I had to get the giant drill bit in order to install my new shelves. I bought a nifty new set of drill bits and headed home to my lemon-scented garage.

Shelf installation went pretty quick. I was done in 20 minutes or so. All of my food is one space now. I no longer use a giant rubbermaid tub for food storage. Elfa is expensive, but it rocks.

I went to Trudy's for dinner (and my free Mexmart). I was shocked that my party of 10 was seated in 45 minutes and not the hour and 30 minutes we were quoted. After dinner I finished the night off at the Alamo Drafthouse (Spike and Mike's Sick and Twisted Animation Festival). The festival has seen better days but it is pretty hard to compete against YouTube.

Saturday was spent cleaning my house and loafing. I did some prep work for the dinner party I was hosting on Sunday. I went back to the container store (they are having a sale). I went to World Market (they have a great wine selection and the prices are pretty good). I went to the grocery store (which I hate) because I needed some key ingredients for dinner. Before retiring to the couch for the evening I made the chocolate mousse and biscotti. I ended up watching Life Aquatic with the commentary on (and falling asleep because I was worn out).

Sunday I was up early. I went to Costco (I drove by on Saturday and it was a zoo). I washed my hair and began the baking marathon (ok, not like my Christmas baking marathon). Portobella Brie cups for the appetizer. I made pasta with artichoke hearts, spinach and feta for the main course. Chocolate mousse with whipped cream (from scratch and spiked with Bailey's) for dessert.

I had 7 of my closest friends around one table. This has NEVER happened before. I can rarely arrange time with just two of them. Most of them I have known since college. Some have been roommates. We ate and drank and talked from 7 until around 10 ish. Keely and Megan ended up staying until 2am (It was nice. The last time we did something like that was after I broke up with the first boy. This time all of us were resting firmly on the plateau without issues).

Monday I slept in until around 10:30. Mom came over to drop off some things. I went to the post office and ran a few errands. I got my car washed. They did a pretty crappy job. There is still some lemon frosting here and there. I spent a big chunk of my evening organizing my sewing room and pondering if I could skip another day of work. Maybe I could become a professional organizer. Maybe work at the container store?

So that would be my 30th birthday weekend.

Ok, I have been trapped in the house for a full 5 days and I will be stuck here tomorrow. I did manage to back away from the internet for a few hours to read a book and make pizza dough. Unfortunately I returned to this...















Why is it unfortunate that this green eyed stranger greets me when I am checking my MySpace mail? Well, it's because this man is not waiting for me and if he is he is most likely a smoker or gay (or maybe both). I've checked out a billion online dating sites and this is not out there. Nothing remotely close. I think that this man is some sort of digitally enhanced clip art that was generated to lure people in.

But if he is real, and waiting for me, I hope that he isn't some sort of stalker waiting outside my bedroom window with a knife.

I haven't left the house (other than to walk out to the mailbox) in 4 days.
This is what it looks like outside...
















Yes, those are icicles.

















There is also a bit of snow/ice on the ground.

















Louis is NOT a happy camper right now. But alas, he refuses to use the litter box so he must go outside.

Did anyone else have one of these when they were a kid?

I've been trapped in the house because of foul weather and allergies since Friday afternoon. I am running out of things to keep me entertained. I suppose I could sew my entire spring wardrobe but it is too damn cold to be thinking about that.

So why is a hermit like me complaining about being stuck inside. I think it's because it is one thing to choose to stay inside and another to be stuck inside.

So what have I done to keep myself entertained?

• I started practicing my guitar again. I was feeling a little guilty that I had abandoned it for a month.
• I made soup yesterday. From scratch. Vegetable chowder with quinoa. I also made whole wheat biscuits.
• I vacuumed out my sewing machine and serger.
• I've done 3 loads of laundry and changed my sheets.
• I busted out my new pilates video and the pilates ring that Megan got me for Christmas.
• I cut out a few shirts and a hooded sweatshirt.
  
• I watched the video for my serger again in the hopes of learning how to make the thing work the way I want it to.
  
• I've spent countless hours on the internet. Some of it was research on how to use my serger. Some of it was totally wasted time on craigslist and myspace.

I am running out of things to do and it looks like I could be stuck inside for another day or so. This is one of the very few times that I actually wish I had a roommate to keep me entertained. Someone to prevent me from listening to Beck "Sea Change" and surfing the personals on craigslist (I am just surfing, not posting/responding. I am not that desperate). A roommate would make roasting marshmallows in the fireplace fun right now. Roasting marshmallows and making s'mores with the cat just doesn't seem right.

Part of me is wishing that the power goes out. First of all it would break me of my internet addiction. Second, it would give me a good reason to light the fireplace without feeling like something is missing (like another warm body besides the cat to share it with). Maybe I will get around to making those s'mores.

Part of me is wondering why I never get lucky enough to be iced in with someone marvelous.

I suppose if I am trapped at home for another 24 hours I should take down my Christmas Tree. I have a feelling that I will skip that and move straight to baking again.

I was remarking to Megan that I wished that I hadn't accumulated so many memories that included people who are no longer part of my life anymore. For a while I wished that I could just go somewhere and have those memories erased (a la Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind).

I happened to catch a documentary on American Masters tonight on Annie Leibovitz. The amazing photographer that captured tons of personal moments in Rolling Stone and Vanity Fair. The way she photographs people made me think (I could go on and on about her style but I will get back to my point).

Erasing everything is pretty harsh. Because there is some good even in the bad moments. You just have to look deeper (this is beginning to sound a little too Pollyanna, forgive me). Everything has a purpose. Erasing everything means that nothing happened. I made no progress at all. Sure remembering some things may hurt, but that is what makes us human.

So even though I have deleted all the emails and destroyed a few items, I still have me, my memories (or how I chose to remember how everything was). I know what was good, what was bad, and what I hope to not do over. I know how they made me feel. I knew that I didn't have to live behind that wall of ice. I remember what it's like to trust someone.

Part of me wants to write them all thank you notes in my personal journal (not everything goes on the internet). Maybe I will just make a collage.