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.