My Life, As Told Between (Baby Cakes') Naps

So I turned 29 on Tuesday. All in all, it wasn’t nearly as traumatic as I had feared. Being a workday, I didn’t have any special plans, but T surprised me by taking the night off work and having a lovely bath drawn and dinner planned when I got home.

Our condo purchase is moving along, and while it’s all gone fairly smoothly, I find the entire process nervewracking. So much money! And what if something happens and escrow doesn’t close as planned? Ack! We’ve already submitted our intent to vacate our apartment! We could be homeless!!

Poor T is discovering the hard way that I don’t deal well with uncertainties. I had a slight meltdown this past weekend when our mortgage broker called and asked us to submit additional documents, which I couldn’t do right away because we were out and about. Fortunately, T talked me down from the ledge and made me realize I was being anxious just for the sake of being anxious. (Personally, I think it’s the job. I remember once being a rather cool and collected individual. Although my closest family and friends tell me that perception was more self-delusional than accurate and that I’ve always been somewhat spastic.)

Heading to Portland this weekend for a get together with some of my girl friends from law school and to celebrate another one of us (this time Roomie) turning 30. We had our first reunion a couple of years ago when C. turned 30 and we all realized our 30th birthdays were spread far enough apart that we could get together every few years to celebrate and support each other as we entered our thirties.

This past weekend really felt like summer to me, probably because we spent Sunday at Hermosa Beach playing volleyball with some of T’s friends (well, T played, I watched and socialized and ate), followed by a barbeque at my friend’s place in Marina Del Rey. Poor T got a sunburn on his back, specifically in the area I was responsible for – high on his back, between his shoulder blades. I feel especially bad because I’m very paranoid about sunblock generally, but am apparently not particularly careful in its application when its on someone besides myself!

This week has gone by fairly quickly. Work’s been busy, but not brutal and I’m trying to wade through the homebuying process. I’ve also been gathering decorating ideas, buying books on housekeeping, and contemplating cooking regularly. We’ll see if I actually execute any of these things. I don’t know why I think I’m going to turn into some kind of domestic goddess with this purchase, but I’m living in the realm of delusions and possibilities at the moment.

Oh, and I read Blink, which was a fun, interesting read.

I was telling Roomie this morning that I didn’t understand what T ate before we moved in together. His old fridge was always empty when I visited and he makes no effort to stock our fridge now. He just assumes there will be something to eat around the apartment. Considering my (non) culinary skills, this usually consists of sandwiches, cereal, and pasta. . .but at least there’s something. It reminded me of a story one of T’s friends had told me about a skiing trip the guys all went on in college. They’d neglected to adequately stock up on food and woke up one morning after a night of drinking to realize all they had on hand was beer and Cheerios. Hence, the advent of Beerios. Ewwww.

And on a random note:

This is a neat article Roomie pointed out to me. Mostly because the slideshow pictures are just so cool.

Bought and read this book recently at the airport. It’s meant for children and young adults, as evidenced by the sketches scattered throughout the book, but it’s clever and funny and insightful. If you liked The Eyre Affair, one of my favorite books, you should check it out. Just be prepared to get some odd looks if you’re over twelve and reading it in public.

Whew, back from northern California. Had a terrific time catching up with my friends and family this weekend. I didn’t find out until Thursday whether I would make it this weekend and had to scrambled to finish some things on Friday before rushing to meet with the agent to sign our purchase agreement (!). We then speed over to the airport to catch our flight and rushed to our hotel to change and make it to dinner. Was nearly brought to tears by the lack of available taxi cabs in SF on a Friday evening and ended up being an hour late to dinner at Ti Couz — the dinner I had planned. Fortuntely, once I arrived and had some food, and drinks, in me the night started picking up. After dinner we went to one of my best friend’s 30th birthday party, which was a terrific chance to see friends I haven’t seen in too long and catch up with friends of friends I hadn’t seen in even longer.

T and I spent Saturday morning exploring the streets and hills in SF. We walked through Chinatown (somehow accidently having lunch at the one restaurant in Chinatown that didn’t appear to have any Chinese diners) to Coit Tower and finished at Fisherman’s Wharf before heading back to meet up with some friends for dinner and a movie (Shrek, it was cute).

Rented a car Sunday and drove home to spend the day with my family, who appeared more excited to have T there than me. My mom prepared an elaborate Vietnamese meal so we all gorged ourselves, then spent the rest of the day sitting around, talking and reliving the wonders of the meal.

Been super busy at work lately. I think the previous six months of relatively decent hours (out by 6:30 or 7:00pm) has spoiled me. I’ve been here until 9 or 10 all week and I’m exhausted. Can’t seem to get started today and there’s so much more to do! Fortunately, the firm realizes we’re all working a little too hard and they’re trying to hire another associate, so hopefully this is temporary.

In other news, T and I are close to buying a condo in Playa Vista! There’s tons of controversy and problems surrounding the development at Playa Vista and the purchase is forcing me to face many of my hypocrisies (i.e., I’d like to think of myself as someone who cares about the environment but am balking at the fact that I have to pay extra taxes to preserve the nearby marshes as part of living in the area). On the other hand, T and I love the condo and the neighborhood. We’re going in tomorrow to sign the Purchase Agreement – wish us luck!

Saturday morning, I slept through my alarm and woke up too late to meet up with friends for our 13 mile run. Although I debated staying in bed, I eventually forced myself out of it, haunted by visions of the cheeesecake I had consumed the night before. The solitary run turned out to be exactly what I needed. I haven’t gone on a long run outdoors by myself in months. It was nice to be out early in the morning with nothing to do but focus on my music and the pavement beneath my feet.

After the run, T and I finally got to go for a somewhat extended bike ride. We biked down LA’s southern bike path, which stretches along the Ocean all the way to Redondo Beach. It was exhilarating. The sourthern path is much more desolate than the northern route, which takes you through tourist laden Venice and Santa Monica.

Ever since I’ve moved to the west side, I’ve increasing felt the need to be one of those outdoorsy people I use to semi-loathe. It’s hard not to when the weather’s so nice and the Ocean’s so accessible. Plus, everyone else is doing it. There are people biking, running, surfing, sailing, swimming, etc. everywhere you look around here! Unfortunately, between my fear of water and my poor hand-eye coordination, I think running and biking pretty much exhaust my options. . .

Nifty! Or maybe a little scary? Possibly inconsequential.

I’m going with nifty for now.

I just discovered Jamba Juice apparently has a “secret menu.” I feel like I’ve stumbled across the Loch Ness Monster or discovered what happened to Amelia Earhart! (Yes, my life is just that boring.) =)

Who knew? And why didn’t anyone tell me?

T and I have been watching Battlestar Galactica in spurts, whenever we find time, usually late at night. There’s a pattern to our BSG viewing. We watch an episode. I fight the urge to fall asleep, riveted by the show. We finish the episode. T insists I go to sleep since I either have to get up early for a run the next morning or for work. I beg and plead and whine that I really can watch just one more episode and be fine. T caves.  We watch another episode. The urge to sleep increases exponentially and I barely manage to keep my eyes open through the second episode. I fall asleep the second it finishes and wake up the next morning exhausted and bemoaning that lost hour, wishing T was stronger in the face of my whining (because, yes, nothing is ever my fault).

Last night we watched the last two episodes and the new season doesn’t start until January 2008 (I know, WTF right?).  I’ll probably be getting more sleep as a result, but I already miss our BSG banter. 

I live in a huge apartment complex with five buildings. Ordinarily this doesn’t bother me greatly. Sometimes, it drives me batty. Today was one of those days.

The elevator closest to our apartment is being renovated and has been out of commission for a week. I’ve been taking a set of nearby stairs. I figure the added five flights a day would be good exercise. (Plus, I have no idea where the other elevator banks are.) This morning, while heading to the building’s gym, I discovered to my dismay that the lights in the stairway were mysteriously out and the entire stairway was pitch black. That fact, plus the fact that I didn’t have my glasses or contacts, forced me to look for the elusive second set of elevators in my building. Through some stumbling and much blind luck, I finally found it.

Unfortunately, the elevator must have disappeared during the time I was working out because when I finished, it was nowhere to be found. I wandered, dazed and confused (and yes, perhaps crying a little bit), for a full twenty minutes, peering intently at doors that looked like they could be elevators and riding elevators in buildings that weren’t mine (and weren’t connected to mine) before eventually stumbling across the second set of elevators I had taken that morning. Or perhaps yet another set of mysterious elevators.

Score? Elevators 1, Me 0.

Back from visiting T’s mom in Fresno. Got to spend tons of time with their adorable family dog, Buddy Lee, also known as Best Dog Ever.

T managed to wake up early enough on Saturday that we were able to get in a nice relaxing run around his neighborhood before the Fresno heat set in. Afterwards, we did some chores for T’s mom – fixing her trellis, cleaning patio furniture, and taking things out of winter storage. It was a little tiring, but fun to spend time together, doing something productive, and enjoying what turned out to be surprisingly nice weather. We topped off the day of chores by seeing Blades of Glory, which was dumb but funny.

I slept in Sunday and had a horribly lazy morning while T and his mom went to church for Easter service. Got up in time for a lovely Easter buffet brunch with them and his extended family. Stuffed myself silly. Spent the rest of Sunday lounging around, napping, eating some more, and getting to know T’s extended family.

Off to San Jose next weekend for a haircut! =)

(Hm, sorry for the extremely boring post. It was a very pleasant weekend. But pleasant weekends tend to be boring to write about, which explains all of my posts for the last year…)

Things are going smashingly well right now. So well in fact that I’m very worried.

I’m a pretty upbeat person, probably because I’ve been very very fortunate in my life and have had little cause to be downbeat. However, this stretch of feel-goodiness has lasted far longer than any such previous periods. Sure, there are some things I’d like to change (I wish my best friends weren’t moving out of LA, I wish I had more money saved up, I’d like to be 10 pounds thinner, etc.) but for the most part, things are going eerily well. So, naturally, I’m getting increasingly worried about what lurks around the corner. Something’s gotta give. Until then though, I guess I just need to let it go and try to enjoy this stretch while it lasts…and continue crossing my fingers, knocking on wood, and avoiding black cats and ladders…

For those who weren’t subject to my whining last weekend, I was plagued by the worse toothache ever. A pounding, aching, horrifying pain in my lower left jaw that just. would. not. STOP!! Urgh.

It started late Friday and persisted throughout the entire weekend – extra unfun because it was the weekend of the Frog’s suprise party and several of our best friends were in town for the occasion. I tried dosing it with painkillers, both topical and of the pill kind, but nothing seemed to work. Sadly, I’m afraid I was a bit of a bore at the Frog’s party because of the evil tooth. At the party, T. very sweetly tried to cheer me up with more pain medication and ice cream (let’s not analyze the irony of being given ice cream to cure a toothache) but nothing worked. It was great seeing everyone, but I’m afraid I spent too much of the night grimacing in the corner rather than socializing.

Well, I woke up last Monday morning to find the pain had mysteriously lessened. By Tuesday, it had disappeared altogether! I’ve been waiting in fear all week for it to returned, but today marks a full pain free week. So I celebrated by getting some candy after lunch.

(Now, I realize the wise course of action would be to see my dentist, but I had just seen my dentist a month ago. And the pain was in a tooth that I’d had crowned and which I knew was problematic. And I don’t have dental insurance so…well…I’m just going to keep my fingers crossed and hope for the best.)

[Update:  Thanks for all the concern guys.  I ended up calling my dentist to see if I should come in and he informed me that unless there’s more pain, it can wait until my next checkup.]

We started off the weekend Friday night having dinner with T’s mom, who was here on a four hour layover on her way to Costa Rica, and brother at a cute little restaurant suggested by a friend of mine.

Got up early Saturday morning for my first long run (14 miles) since the marathon three weeks earlier. It was great to be back out there running. Got to know some fellow runners that I’d seen but had not really had the chance to talk to, caught up with an old friend who’s been out for the last ten weeks due to a running injury, and received a compliment from a fellow runner who’s been out of the country the last five months. She thought I’d lost weight since the last time she’d seen me! (This, of course, totally gave me license to pig out the rest of the weekend.) Oh, and the actual run was nice too.

After the run, I dragged T out of bed and we had a wonderful brunch at a local restaurant. Feeling sufficiently stuffed, we headed out to the beach to meet up with my little sister L, who had announced the day before that she was in town with nine of her best girl friends. After ten minutes with a gang of giggling girls, T and I had to call it quits and headed out to do some bike shopping. Two test rides later, we found the bikes for us. My key criteria in bike shopping was finding one that I would be able to stay on. Fortunately, although wobbly, I managed to stay upright despite it being decades (literally – more than one decade!) since I’d last ridden.*

(Isn’t she a cutie? She’s little, but powerful. I’m going to give her a big, intimidating name, to make up for her diminuative size.)

Saturday night was spent at the Frog’s surprise going away party. I think we did a pretty good job gathering together lots of the Frog’s closest friends and family members for a big bash. (We love you Frog and will miss you horribly!) Surprised even myself by staying at the party until 2am. Didn’t get to sleep until 4am (due to some time collecting and ensuring that our drunken friends were all okay and could safely get home). =)

Sunday started off with another brunch, this time featuring the Frog, the Wombat, Savor, and KM (who is sadly blogless). Got back just in time to meet the realtor for some condo-shopping. Saw one that was almost perfect, but it’ll probably be off the market by the time we’re actually ready to buy (July). It gives us hope that we’ll find something we both really like come July though.

Finished condo-shopping just in time to rush back to the bike shop before it closed to pick up the two bikes we fell in love with on Saturday (but were unable to pick up because we had to hurry home to catch the UCLA game).

Collapsed, exhausted in our bed early Sunday night.

*Note: I did a little bit of bike riding in Santa Barbara with my Quad friends, but I was the caboose on a tandem bike, which totally doesn’t count.

I miss my old co-workers, J and A, who became very good friends in the two years I was working at my old firm.

Today, someone brought in a box of chocolates to share with the office. The chocolates are sitting at the receptionist’s desk, tempting me. I’ve already swung by to grab a few pieces but that merely fed the craving for more. Sadly, the receptionist’s desk is waaaaaaaaay on the other side of the office from me and I can’t think of any excuse to wander over to that side of the office and surreptitiously steal some.

If J or A were here, I’d send them out to get some for me.

(And if you have to ask why I don’t just got get some more myself, you wouldn’t understand the answer.)

Back from a fabulous weekend with my Quad friends. We started the weekend with wine, gossip and cheesy picture taking on Friday night. Very relaxed night of hanging out and catching up in our adorable beachside cottage rental.

On Saturday, we took some picture and then walked to the beach and rented tandem bikes. Biked just long enough to get some (more) good pictures. During our bike ride, we stopped to on the beach for a bit to take incredibly cheesy, embarassing-to-think-about pictures. Although I groaned at the time and feigned disinterest, I’m (secretly) glad we took them. =) I just can’t stop looking at them and smiling.

After the bike ride, the picture taking, lunch, and more picture taking, we drove to some local wineries to do some wine tasting. Drank wine, took pictures, had an impromptu picnic at one of the wineries, took pictures, and then headed to Solvang, a cute little Danish town nearby, where we (surprise!) took more pictures and drank more wine.

Headed back early enough for a quick nap before heading out to dinner. Sadly, due to my poor planning and the surprisingly cold weather, I was forced to wear a hideous jean on jean outfit that earned me the moniker “Tex” (as in “Texas tuxedo,” a term I made the mistake of sharing with my friends).

Fortunately for me, we ended the night early, as none of us felt like squeezing into an Irish bar with tons of drunk college students (and I especially did not want to be spotted in my Texas tuxedo). Plus, we had to wake up early the next morning to take more pictures before heading home! All in all, it was lovely to catch up with my girls and I’m looking forward to our next annual Quad Reunion trip. =)

Sadly, these days, I’m finding it all too easy to go too long without seeing some of my best friends. We all get caught up in the day to day routines of our lives. I see some friends frequently because they’re part of that routine – my work friends, my running friends, my dinner party friends, my going out friends, etc. But I see other friends very seldomly, either because they’re too far away or, sadder still, they’re very close but we’re not a part of each other’s routines anymore.

One of my best (Quad) friends actually lives in LA, but somehow we’ve both fashioned lives for ourselves that don’t really include each other. I know she’s always there for me and I’m there for her, but the only time we really spend any time together is during Quad reunions – one of which is coming up this weekend! We’re taking a break from our routines and heading out to a beach-side cottage in Santa Barbara for our third annual Quad Reunion. (We went to Vegas two years ago and Tahoe last year.)

I hope we manage to take a trip together every year, regardless of what life brings us. It’s all too easy to take friends for granted and assume they’ll be there when you need them. I’m trying to remember how important it is to nurture these friendships in the in-between time. That gets even harder when one gets into a relationship, as the Frog very eloquently pointed out. (Speaking of which, T.’s sulking a bit because this SB trip was originally supposed to be a couples event, but we changed it recently and disinvited the boys.)  I’m very fortunate to know so many stellar women (and a few stellar men) and I never want to get so wrapped up in my life and my routines that these friendships fall entirely to the wayside.

To my (three) friends who read this blog: I may not always need you but you are always always wanted!

One of T’s best friends from high school visited us this weekend from Boston, bringing his wife and newborn son (Q) with him. Several other high school friends drove down to LA to meet Q.

Isn’t he a cutie? He looks a bit like the Travelocity Gnome in that outfit. =) I think he liked me best – T claims it’s because Q likes the fact that we almost see eye to eye (he really just can’t get enough of the short jokes!).

T and I babysat for a few hours to give the parents a chance for a rare diner alone. We’d spent much of the day with Q and thought babysitting would be relatively easy. From what we seen, he was a very well behaved, good-natured baby. He wasn’t mobile yet, had just been fed and would be going to sleep soon. How hard could it be?

What we didn’t realize was the near neurotic need to make sure nothing happened to Q on our watch. We simply sat and stared at him sleeping for several hours, periodically peering intently to ensure we still saw that little chest moving. It was nerve wracking! I can only imagine how parents do it…

I am insanely obsessed with sweets, as Fat Mikey (aka my belly) can attest too.

On Sunday, I decided to wage war against Fat Mikey. So far, he’s winning the battle.

On Monday, I decided I needed a day to recover from the marathon. I can start my diet on Tuesday, I reasoned. Fat Mikey agreed that this was for the best.

On Tuesday, it occured to me I should eat all the chocolate at the apartment so I wouldn’t continue to tempt myself. Fat Mikey thought this was a brilliant idea.

On Wednesday, one of my co-worker’s started selling chocolate for her son’s school. I had to buy one and supoprt my co-worker’s son, I rationalized. Fat Mikey concurred.

On Thursday, I did a host of chores that had been neglected for awhile. Naturally, I had to snack while doing them to keep my energy level up. Fat Mikey started to gloat.

Today, well, today I discovered this site. I fear all hope is lost. My only salvation is that I’ve eaten all the chocolate in my apartment already (a better plan than it sounded at the time!) and I’ve forbidden my co-worker from selling me any more candy. So now I just need someone to sit and monitor me for the rest of the day to make sure Fat Mikey doesn’t do anything devious – like sneaking off to the store to buy chocolate while I’m not looking.

[Update] Fat Mikey struck at 1:15pm, after lunch. Before I knew it, I’d eaten half a bar of dark chocolate purchased at my local Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory.  Woe is me.  Double woe is me for having to get into a swimsuit and go to the beach tomorrow!

The LA Marathon was yesterday. Of the three marathons I’ve done, this was far and away my worse one yet. I think part of it was that I’d eaten too early the day before and was starving even before the race started (despite my friend’s thoughtfulness in sharing her boiled eggs!). I then ate too much during the run in an effort make up for it, but it didn’t digest in time to give me any extra energy – just an upset stomach!

“Hitting the wall” is when you’ve burned through your body’s fuel and it feels like you can’t put one foot in front of the other anymore. In a marathon, this often hits around mile 20 because your body can only store a certain amount of calories to burn (or something like that, but more complicated). Although I generally find the last 6 miles of a 26 mile run difficult, I’ve been fortunate in that I’ve never really “hit the wall,” at least not like yesterday. Yesterday, I felt like the wall fell on me around mile 15.

The new downhill course also did a number on my toes. I lost feeling in some of them relatively early on in the race. Combined with my waning energy, upset stomach and the unexpected heat, it was all I could do to keep running. Rather than enjoying the race, I spent much of it focused on just finishing. One. Step. At. A. Time. I finished in 05:23:17 and while I’m happy that I was able to finish the marathon without taking any extra walk breaks, I’m disappointed that I finished 33 minutes slower then my time last year and 48 minutes slower than my goal time.

I guess I’ve learned some lessons for the next race though (either San Diego in June, Long Beach in October or SF in October). And I was fortunate in that I finished without getting sick or needing an IV drip, which happened to some of the runners because of the heat. In any case, I’m giving myself one more day of semi-indulgence before I get back on my diet and attempt to destroy Fat Mikey (as I’ve taken to calling my belly)!