it's been a while, huh?

I'm finally done with wedding season! BF and I have been to 3 weddings in the last 5 weeks. One in W. Virginia, one in Charlotte, NC, and one right here in DC. All of them were great, but I'll be happy to have a few quiet weekends at home.

Then, last weekend, BF and I went to look at a new apartment. The two of us have been living in the same apartment for about two and a half years. We found our current place through Craigslist, and quickly fell in love. It's in a rowhouse on a quiet street...Well, since moving in, we've had one problem after another. It started with a leaking ceiling that ruined boxes of stuff within a month of moving in. Then, there are the huge heating bills during winter...Oh, well, the point is that it was time to look for a new place.

So, we'll be moving next month. This apartment is about the same size as the one that we have and all Utilities are included in the rent. And, it's in a managed building with an office in the lobby.

809...

Equifax says my credit is excellent! Last week, I got one of my free credit reports. For an extra $6.95 you can throw in your credit score.

Last time I found out what my credit report/score, I thought I was doing pretty well. I had a score in the 760s. Since then, I have finished paying off my student loan and I have paid off all credit card debt. All the hard work has paid off.

a good nights sleep...

Over the weekend, my fiance and I went shopping for a mattress. It's one of those things that I knew we needed, but he thought we could just let slide. Well, after months and months of coaxing, I convinced him it was time to make the investment.

We had gone into a store in our neighborhood the previous weekend, with little luck. The salesman was very helpful at first. We told him what we were looking to spend and he showed us a few beds...all of them out of our price range. When we finally picked one that we liked, he told us the mattress would be $100 more than we said we wanted to spend. Then he asked us about delivery. Since we live about 10 blocks away, we told him we'd pick it up from the store. For some reason, he didn't like that Idea. He just started telling us what we could do to get free delivery...as if that would make us feel better about the price. Turns out they don't deliver on Saturdays and they wouldn't schedule a window of time, so one of us would have to take a whole day off. It shouldn't be a surprise that we walk out of there. No Sale!

So Saturday, we went out to the 'burbs. At the 2nd store, we were helped by a younger guy...probably mid-twenties. We told him how much we wanted to spend, and he instantly directed us to two choices that were in the right price range. He didn't try to up-sell us at all. Then, when he found out that the one we wanted wasn't in stock, he called other stores to see if we could take it home that day...no luck. But, he put in an order for it to brought to the store on Tuesday, with no hassle about having it delivered instead.

Last night, we picked up the new mattress, and I had the best sleep I've had in years!

mid-year round up...

Since I've passed the half-way mark, I figured it would be a good time to take a look at those resolutions for 2005. I think I'm doing pretty well so far. The first half of the year has been focused on getting rid of debt. So, now that I've finished paying off my student loan and credit card bills, I can focus on other things that I need.

I am going to wait until September to take a look at my credit report. That's when DC is eligible for free credit reports. I plan on getting all three at once, plus my FICO score(s). I got my credit score last summer, and thankfully, it was pretty good. So, I'm very interested to know what it looks like now that I've paid off all of my debt. I'm also hoping that the credit reports will help me determine if I should cancel some of my credit cards. Regretfully, no one ever told me that having too many cards is bad...even when you don't carry balances on them!

It's also about time I went through my closets and started getting rid of some stuff. I never had "spring cleaning" day this year. Right now, I have a lot of clothes that don't fit correctly. Most importantly, I have a stack of skirts and pants that I bought with the intention of hemming. So, I just need to sit down and fix these items.

All-in-all, 2005 has been a good year. And, I still have 6 months to go!

just in case you wondered...

I am: 13% Republican.

"You're a tax-and-spend liberal democrat. People like you are the reason everyone else votes for guys like Reagan or George W."

Are You A Republican?

a year on the beach...

A year ago, I went on the South Beach Diet...Hokey as it may sound.

I have a friend in New York who had gone on the diet and had much success. She was still able to eat out all the time and live a normal life. So, I decided to give it a try. In no way would I have called myself "fat." I just wasn't happy with the direction things were headed.

The day I started the SBD, I weighed in at 141.5. Well, now that it's been a year, I can truly say that this has worked for me. I woke up this morning and weighed myself. I'm holding steady at 127.5! That's the weight I reached some time last September. And, I've stayed under 130 throughout the holiday season.

I would like to get down to 125, but I'm not going to stress out about it. I consider myself to be on Phase 3, and don't see too many reasons to change that. Instead, I'm hoping to fit more exercise into my routine.

I can't recommend this thing to everyone. It takes a lot of time to cook and plan meals. And, some of the foods that are in the plan are a bit more expensive. But, the results are worth it. And, thankfully, my BF was (and is) supportive.

on the eve of my 29th birthday...

Okay, I don't want to get all mushy or emotional about my birthday. I can't think of the last time that I got truly excited to be celebrating a birthday...probably not since my 21st. At the same time, I know that the last 29 years have been pretty good to me...I'm healthy, happy more days than not, and I still have most of my own teeth. (I'm especially glad that in 29 years, I've developed a sense of humor that lets me say stuff like that).

So far, 2005 has been pretty good to me. For instance, check out the resolutions on the sidebar. I'm only a quarter through the year, but I'm already a third of the way to my savings goal. I've gotten to visit good friends in New York, and even had someone fly clear across the country to see me. (Thanks again, Maya). I've been holding steady at a fit 126.5 lbs for the last couple of months. And, sometime next month I'll be making my last credit card payments...That's right! I'll be debt free!

I'm also looking forward to the rest of the year...I'm going to try to work my way through the rest of the resolutions and get ready for the BIG 3-0. I hope to get there without flipping out, without getting depressed, and with the realization that 30 is the new 21...at least in my mind it is.

back to the beach...

I'm going back to Phase I for a week (or two). Surprisingly, I've been holding steady weightwise, but I've been eating very poorly. Since Maya got here, I haven't had time to go grocery shopping. In New York, we ate out every meal, and I have only cooked once since getting back to DC. I've really enjoyed the food, but I'm starting to feel pretty bloated and run down.

Tonight, we're going to have tapas at Rumba Café. What I love about this place is that the tapas aren't strictly Spanish. They incorporate a lot of South American and Caribbean flavors as well. Tomorrow, my BF has invited our friend Paul over for dinner. Paul has a culinary degree, specializing in French cuisine. But, he's always wanted to learn how to make pierogi. So, the plan is that the two of them will spend the day making them, then we'll have a dinner party...I'm pretty excited that I won't have to cook!

So, my plan is to enjoy this weekend while Maya is still in town. On Sunday, I'll go over to Safeway and buy everything I need to go back to Phase I. Hopefully after a week, I won't feel like snacking and eating salty, fried food. If I still have cravings, I'll continue for a second week. At this point, I'm not looking to loose any more weight. I just want to sweet/snack tooth to turn off again.

trouble in kitty heaven...

Last night my BF had a horrible cough and trouble breathing. He knew that he was mildly allergic to cats when we agreed to look for a kitten. We have stayed with friends that have cats and usually the most severe reaction has been some sneezing and watery eyes. I've never seen him wheeze or cough.

I feel really bad for him right now because he's trying to stay in good spirits. But, in the back of my mind, I'm also worried about having to give up Auggie. We haven't even had her a month, but I feel very connect to her. BF also loves having her. As a matter of fact, while he was having a coughing attack last night, he was still trying to stroke and play with her.

He says it's going to work out...I just can't really see how. It might be time to consider giving Ms Auggie a full bath.

left in the cold...

My BF and I have been having some weird problems with our heat in the last week or so. Every once in a while we smell gas in the apartment when the furnace is running. Well, one day last week I mentioned this to my neighbor upstairs and he said that he had smelled something funny in the back of the building when he walks up the stairs.

Well, my BF and I kind of let it go since there was nothing consistent about the pattern...Until last week. There were 3 days, spaced apart, that the smell was very strong. So, I called my landlord...he didn't get back to us until yesterday! Usually if something goes wrong we let him know first so he can choose who he has come out to do service, and so we don't get stuck with bills related to upkeep of the property. When he finally called back, he told us that we should be calling the gas company and that it's not for him to take care of...this, of course, made me a little frustrated.

After hearing this message and having a really bad incident on Sunday night, I called washington gas. They sent someone out last night...about 2 hrs after I made the service call. I had turned the furnace off while we waited, so there was no smell when the tech got there. He told us that he had already checked the lines outside and there was nothing unusual...so we showed him the furnace. That's when we got our scared-straight talking to.

Our furnace and/or flue are so backed up with soot, that the furnace has been trying to burn that off. In the process, it has been putting off carbon monoxide and aldehydes! It wasn't gas that we had been smelling, it was the burning aldehydes. The tech asked us if we had been waking up thirsty or with scratchy throats. We said yes, but figured it was because we just got the cat. Based on the amount of soot he saw, he said, we should be glad we woke up at all! As standard practice, he had to disconnect the gas that goes to the furnace and deam our apartment an unsafe environment!

Thankfully, we had bought space heaters at the beginning of winter. It was a little colder in the apartment overnight, but not freezing. Our landlord said he would call someone today...

the joy of kitten...

I picked up the cat formerly known as "Dizzy" on Wednesday evening. The shelter wasn't open to the public but they allow people to pick up adopted pets. They gave me a packet of information and her clean bill of health. The person working the desk took our carrier back and loaded her up. When he came back up front, you could see she was very alert and looking around at everything.

The car ride home was quiet, but I could tell that she was turning around in the carrier and sniffing around. When we got her home, we brought her into our smaller bedroom/workroom that had been cleaned up and set with everything she might need. A lot of people told me that she would probably hide out in a corner somewhere. It brought back memories of when my old roommate Maya got a cat in college. As I recall, Mitzie hid under Rob's bed for several days...I don't remember seeing her the first time for about a week.

Well, we opened the carrier and "Dizzy" just went around the room sniffing everything...including my BF and I. We just sat down and watched her for a bit. Within minutes, so was already jumping onto tables and furniture. Let's just say she's not timid!

So far I'm really impressed by how friendly she is. We even invited the neighbors (Amanda and Josh) down to take a look at her. She didn't even make a fuss when Amanda picked her up.

I know it's only been two days, but I'm already glad we got a cat. Now, all I have to do is pick a new name. It's not that I don't think "Dizzy" is a good name. I just want to name her myself. And, I figure she never answers when I call "Dizzy" so there's no harm done.

wish i had a snow day...

Headline news: Snow Frees Kids But Not Adults

It has been snowing constantly since about four this morning. When I finally got up at 6 am and turned on the news, there was an announcement that most of the schools in DC, MD, and VA had closed for the day. Unfortunately, the government hasn't closed, so I had to make it to work on time.

i'm highly successful...

Yup...I just had my annual performance appraisal. And, even though I feel like I drag through work most days, I got a good rating. Not the highest possible, but an improvement over last year when I was only "fully successful."

The comments that were written by my supervisor (and department director) were nice...there's just something about seeing praise in writing. woohoo! Unfortunately, there is no additional monetary value assigned to my "highly successful" job. And, no promotion mentioned either. Oh well, c'est la vie.

another bump in the road...

On Saturday, I was supposed to go pick up "Dizzy" from the shelter. When we left the shelter Thursday afternoon, the worker who had been helping us added Dizzy and University (our 2nd choice) to our application. We when asked if there was an adoption coordinator available to tell us if there was room in the spay/neuter clinic. Everything seemed great!

Unfortunately, I got a call Friday night what put the plan on hold. Someone from the shelter called to confirm that we were going to be picking up University on Saturday and to let us know what our fees were going to be. At first I thought she was calling the wrong person...then we both realized that the wrong cat had been neutered! Even though the application clearly said that Dizzy was our first choice, someone had highlighted University and sent him to the clinic.

For a moment, I pondered whether we should take University, since we would be able to pick him up on Saturday. And, I would be able to spend the long weekend getting him accustomed to the new surrounding/cleaning any "accidents". But, I really did like Dizzy better...The new plan has Dizzy going to the clinic today, so that we can pick her up on Wednesday.

ladies and gentlemen, we have a winner!

I found out that Lucky went home with his owner on Wednesday. The Humane Society worked with the owner to make sure Lucky wouldn't get out of the house again. Once I heard that I was really happy to hear it and knew that the people running the shelter really cared for the animals that came in...And, I was ready to go back down and look at the cats they had available.

So, that's what my BF and I did yesterday afternoon. Some of the same cats that we saw on Sunday were still available, but there were also some "new recruits." We played with three young cats (between 4 and 8 months). In the end I chose "Dizzy" a 7-month old grey, tiger-striped cat. When we walked into the first room, she was the first cat to get up and say hello. And, when I held her she was very calm.

The shelter is going to send her to their spay/neuter clinic today, and we will be able to pick her up on Saturday! So, today I'm going to be running to the pet store to buy all the supplies she'll need.

the one that got away!

Argh! I'm a little mad and a little sad this morning. Mad, because the shelter volunteer that was supposed to meet with us yesterday never showed up. I'm hoping that it's confusion on my part...having wanted to schedule the appt for Wednesday but her wanting to do it last night. Sad, because I just got a call from the shelter saying that Lucky's owners finally came in looking for their cat, even though, it's after the 5 day period that they have to claim him! I was told that the shelter manager made the decision for give it back to them because they were hearing impaired and might not have understood the process. So, the cat gets to go back home and I get to go back to the shelter and pick another kitty.

adoption update...

Wow! The Humane Society here doesn't waste any time. I have already been contacted for the phone interview. It was mostly informational. The only questions that they really asked were about whether you've ever had a pet and make sure you know about keeping the litter box clean.

And, I just got a call to set the the in-home interview. I wanted to set it up for Wednesday, but the volunteer was a little "insistant" on making it today. Well, that's just fine...So, I called my BF, who gets home at 2:30 most days, and asked him to do a once over on the house.

Things are looking good! If the in-house visit goes alright, we should be able to pick up Lucky Thursday or Friday!

it's valentine's day, and i'm in love...

Over the weekend, my BF and I celebrated Festivus. We spent it at home this year. See, for Christmas, my aunt and uncle gave us a gift certificate to Dean & Deluca since they know that I/we like to cook. Last week as spent planning what we were going to make for dinner. First, we settled on having a cheese plate and salad. For the main course, I made a bacon wrapped filet with Maker's Mark pan sauce -- using a recipe from this book. Funny title, great recipes! BF made the dessert. (For some reason, he really likes to make desserts.) He made a Grand Marnier souffle! Everything was awesome...and, we only spent $1 more than the value of the gift certificate!

Then, yesterday, we went to the DC Animal Shelter to look at kittens. They had two rooms with cats available for adoption, and all of them were really cute. In the first room we saw a little, striped grey kitten. That was my BF's instant first choice because it was truly a kitten. Then we went to the other room. There were a group of 5 more kittens, most of them about 3-months old.

The cat that caught my attention was quietly, hiding in a corner cage. "Lucky", a ~year-old bengal cat, is the most beautiful cat I've ever seen. We had one of the volunteers bring him out of the cage, and the second I had him in my arms I knew I was in love! He was very calm and friendly...This was surprising once the volunteer told us how he ended up at the shelter. The animal rescue brought him in after being attacked by a dog. They did test and x-rays and determined that all injuries were superficial...Lucky is missing a little patch of fur where they shaved him to check for wounds, but other than that he's in good shape.

Yesterday, was the last day that owners could come to the shelter to claim the cat, so we put in an application to adopt him. As it was explained to us, the adoption process is very thorough. First there is a phone interview. Then, they will check with our landlord to make sure we are allowed pets in the apartment. If approved, one of the volunteers will come to our apartment to check it out and counsel us on what to expect when we bring a new pet home. Assuming we get approved to adopt a cat and Lucky is still available for adoption, we will get to bring him home.

On the application, you can choose and first choice and second choice. We didn't put down a second choice. The other cats that we had taken out of their cages didn't click the way that Lucky did. One was a 3-yr old snowshoe. Although it was a pretty cat and very friendly when you approached the cage, the second I picked her up, the cat started getting nervous and hissing. The other cat that we interacted with was the little grey kitten that my first saw. Unfortunately, it wasn't cleaning itself properly and had a little poo on its back legs and tail. While my BF was holding, the volunteer tried to clean it up a little. That made the kitten nervous and it started pawing/scratching.

it's time to start paying myself...

I've been really good at saving money over the last year and plan on continuing that in 2005. I made it a resolution to save $3,500 this year...that's outside of the money that goes straight to my retirement plan through work. I know that I should be able to save more than that, but I wanted to start with a conservative number.

Well, last week, I made my first payment to myself in 2005!

tax season!

In case you haven't heard, it's really f*ckin' easy to file your taxes online. Oh, and it's free! So, there's really no excuse to wait on doing your taxes. I just filed mine today.

Unfortunately, I have to wait until the 28th before I can file my DC tax return. I guess that will be on my list of things to do this weekend.

done with school...

It's official...I have made the last payment on my student loans! And, even though my burden was a lot smaller than many of my fellow alum, I feel a sense of accomplishment.

My BF and I have argued at times about whether private universities are worth the money. I usually go with the argument that private universities are often able to provide financial aid in ways that some state schools cannot. Perhaps I feel that way because my university was very generous in helping me pay for my education, largely through private grants. I was also fortunate enough to get work-study as part of my aid package. These factors made NU very reasonable for my parents...Who, thankfully, only made me take on loans in my final year of school.

So, this week, I get to cross off one of my new year's resolutions and say good bye to my month loan payment. It's like I've graduated all over again!

i'm gettin' a kitten...

Woohoo! Last year around festivus, I told my BF that I wanted a cat. At that point we had been living together for about 8 months. We were still working out the kinks of where things go, what we could get rid of, etc...you know, still settling in. We both decided that even though it would be cool to have a pet, we didn't have space for the essentials that we would need.

Since then, we've discovered that there is cat that lives in our back alley. Our downstairs neighbor feeds the cat and brings it into his apt every once in a while. So, over time, the cat has become very friendly and will come talk to us whenever we hang out back there. I think that being around this cat has warmed my BF up to the idea of getting us our own!

So, this festivus, he said he would get me my own cat. I'm really excited! And, it's funny, he's being a little more particular about what cat we get. He definitely wants a kitten, and he prefers to get a Siamese. So, this weekend I'm going to take down the Christmas tree and start "cat-proofing" our apartment. I'll probably spend the next couple of weeks reorganizing some of the closet to make room for things that are usually out on the bookshelves and desk.