One Year

One year ago today, my dad died. So did Prince, and my family quietly mourned our own loss amidst the swirling grief of the world. As did the families of all the other people who passed on April 21, 2016. Our grief is not special. Our grief is not unique. But it is our grief.

One year ago today, for the first time, we felt external movement from the baby growing inside me. I'm sure many other people felt their unborn children move, too. Our joy and excitement were not unique or special or different, but of course, to us...to me, it was. I wrote about it here.

This morning, I forgot to light the Yartzeit candle for my dad before I left the house. I was late for work, and in the rush to get extra baby snuggles and still get out the door, I left the candle sitting on top of the fridge. I knew I should have put it on the counter last night, where I'd be sure to see it this morning, but I didn't. My brain has a hard time remembering things, which I hear is perfectly normal. It's hard to not be hurt by my forgetfulness sometimes, though I remind myself that these things happen. That it's ok. That it's not really a big deal. And it is ok, and it's not significant in the grand scheme of the world, and my dad would not likely be offended by my slip. But still. We'll light it when I get home from work, and it'll burn for 24 hours, and we'll remember my dad, as we remember him always.

There are good days and hard days, and life with a baby certainly provides a number of distractions I hadn't even imagined. Some days I forget, and I reach for my phone to call my dad, but those days are fewer and farther between. I think I'm starting to learn.

Healing is a tough thing. Reconciling living your new life with remembering your old one. I've been doing a lot of that lately, with the grief over my dad and the challenges of motherhood. Eventually it's not your "new life" anymore, it's just your life. It just is.

I'm about the same age as Margie in this picture, and I still have that satin Paramount jacket my dad is wearing. It's a trip, as my dad would say, to think about the passage of time, and to think that I was once this small, and he was once this young, and here we are today. It just is. And we just are.

What I thought I knew about pregnancy

I'll admit, I was a little cocky about pregnancy. I know a lot of pregnant women and moms. I've done a ton of research. I've read the blogs. I've thought about pregnancy pretty much since I was a kid. I was pretty sure I would rock this thing with minimal surprises.

And while I have generally known what to expect, the symptoms and experiences have been a little different than what I thought they'd be. If you're someone who, like me, thought you knew what you were in for, maybe this post will resonate with you. If you're someone who does not want to know the TMI of pregnancy (mine in particular), maybe skip this one. I've included a handy page break for easy skipping if this isn't your bag. I'm writing about it on the internet because I like normalizing something that should be normalized. Let's not be ashamed to speak candidly about the wacky and awesome things that our bodies do.

Welcome to "What I thought I knew about pregnancy" - aka "TMI: All the stuff going on with my body".

That Week Our Shower Was Getting Re-done

If you've been paying attention to me on Twitter today, you've likely seen some ramblings about watching a Harry Potter marathon while waiting for contractors to arrive to finish our shower. Were you confused? Maybe so.

Fear not. I'm here to provide way more photos and information than you ever wanted to see about our shower remodel. I'll try not to get to ranty.

BEFORE.
Note the mold in the corners.
There is also mold under the seat.
And in the grout.

Day 1.
Bye bye, shower.

Came home from work to find this.
Yeah, they accidentally sledgehammered
through to the bedroom.

Day 2.
Reframing and putting tar sealant stuff down.
 

Closeup on the framing. They were supposed
to build in a little recess for the soapdish on
the left. Spoiler Alert: they didn't. 

Day 3.
This was really Day 4, since they skipped a
day, but who's counting?
I didn't notice the lack of recess for a soap
dish...but on this day they did some drywall?

Oh, and they removed the sink.
For unknown reasons. 

And further messed up the bedroom wall.

Day 4.
More floor work. Mortar I think?
I should note that this was Election Day.

And we were having a party.
So I had to put up a note about the lack of sink.

Day 5.
We have tile!
This is when I noticed that there was no soap
dish built into the wall. Oops.
Also, at this point, we have our landlord ask
to remind the contractors about the marble
seat they're supposed to have shown us two
days ago. Apparently it's going in tomorrow.

Day 6.
Oh hey. They put in the seat. Too bad it's the
wrong color, and too small. It's hard to tell
from the picture, but it's too small to sit on.
Yes, it's still usable for sticking your leg up
to shave...but still. Too small. And wrong
color. Cue landlord calling contractor again.

It's now Day 7, and while we should be able to use the shower tomorrow morning, there is no curtain rod. You see, it was rusty and the contractors threw it (and the towel bar from the adjacent wall) away. Without telling us or the landlord. So...we found out today that they wouldn't be putting it back.

Day 7.
It's "finished".
Still to do: shower curtain rod, towel rod on
adjacent wall. The hose for the showerhead is
stretching out because it was too curled up in
the box for too long. So...yeah.

Please use the kitchen sink.

Our landlord is awesome, and he's been taking care of this for us...but it's still been craziness around here for a week. They did a pretty minimal cleanup job today, which meant I got to bust out the ole Swiffer (and dustpan/broom), and honestly I hope this is the last of them. Even though they have to come back to fix stuff...I'd almost rather not have a sink for a week and let my landlord fix it next weekend when he comes back to do the curtain/towel rod and fix the hole in the wall. And patch some other holes they made in the bathroom. Sigh.

Homeowners: I have some newfound mad respect for you.

People who DIY this stuff: Don't even talk to me. Wow.

Contractors who did our project: You don't get to show up late every day, take twice as long as you quoted, leave our place a hot mess, and expect that I won't blog about it. Not that you'll see this.

But still.

I'll post a final picture when it's all said and done, most likely, but there ya go. Our past week.

Be Prepared

Ok, so not this.

But kind of this?

While I technically missed National Preparedness Month (September), it's never a bad time to check in on disaster preparedness. With Hurricane Sandy terrorizing the East Coast, and the ever-present threat of earthquakes in my homestate of California, we could all use a reminder now and again, right? And apparently, October is Earthquake Month (and National Cyber Security Awareness Month? Does everything have a month?), so my timing is...not too late?

I was lucky enough to receive an emergency kit/backpack back in the day when I worked at Google, as part of their Oprah-like distribution plan (YOU get an emergency pack! And YOU get an emergency pack! Emergency packs for EVERYOOOOOOOONE!) .

My pack contains:

• rope
• thick gloves
• battery/solar-powered radio/lantern
• those shiny silver blankets
• a tent/tube
• ponchos
• glow sticks
• a wrench (for shutting off gas valves)
• a whistle
• kleenex
• a military can opener 
• a swiss army knife
• first-aid kit
• matches
• duct tape
• emergency candles
• water purification tablets
• out-of-state contact info
• expired water (oops)
• expired MREs (oops)

This, combined with our drawer full of water bottles, our always-packed pantry, and our extensive collection of camping/backpacking supplies (including several freeze-dried entrees) means we are pretty well set for a disaster...as long as our house is pretty much intact. If the house were to burn down or collapse and we couldn't go inside, we'd be in a little bit of trouble. 

72hours.org has information on what to do in cases
of all kinds of emergencies...including setting up
your family communication plan, finding shelter,
and stocking your home with supplies.

That's why I finally put together a "Go Bag" as well, something that's easy to grab and contains the essentials. We have the Google Pack, but it doesn't have everything. Like food, for instance. I grabbed an old backpack that I never use anymore, and filled it with canned goods (fruit, vegetables, beans, and spaghetti o's - things I wouldn't mind eating cold if necessary!), candy bars, and crackers that don't expire for a long time. It's a good idea to re-check your expiration dates once a year, just to make sure everything's still good! We each threw a rarely-worn sweatshirt in the bag as well, just in case, and I added some additional items like, um, feminine products and disposable utensils, and I'm considering adding some Clif Bars as well.

I do keep our important documents (marriage/birth certificates, social security cards, etc), my backup external hard drive, and some of our more "valuable" jewelry in a fireproof safe (documents and electronics in heavy duty ziplock freezer bags for water protection), but it's a good idea to also keep copies of the documents (especially insurance/marriage/birth certificates) in your Go Bag as well. Note to self: make copies and put in the Go Bag.

One thing that could prove useful, that I never think about, is a reliable source of fire. If your power goes out, you'll want a flashlight (and spare batteries), of course, but you also might want to light candles. You might need to light a fire for warmth, or to cook food. And in that case, a reliable fire starter will be pretty handy. I would usually just suggest a box of matches (in a waterproof container!), but there are other options too.

I recently had the opportunity to try out the Zippo Emergency Fire Starter, and I highly recommend it as an addition to your Go Bag. I'm not great with lighters, to be honest (I think I'm always afraid of burning myself), and if you don't have matches around (or your matches get wet), this would be a good alternative to have on hand. The waxed tinder sticks light quickly and easily, and stay burning for a good amount of time - definitely long enough to light a fire, I'd say! You can buy them online, or at various sporting goods stores...but one lucky reader is going to get one for free!

Leave a comment below, telling me what you have in your Emergency Kit -- if you don't have one yet, what will you put it yours when you make one? ed note: This contests closes for entries on Sunday, 11/11, at 11:59pm PST.

Seriously, everyone should have one. Don't be caught in a disaster without provisions. Stay safe out there.

Ed note: I actually started writing this post before Hurricane Sandy hit the East Coast, and with the stories of devastation over there, this post just seems all the more relevant now. Please help yourself by being prepared -- and if you want to donate time or money to those in need on the East Coast, head on over to the Red Cross website to see how you can help.

Official FCC Disclaimer: I am in no way affiliated with 72hours.org, and I doubt they even know I'm writing this post. I just think their site is extremely useful. Red Cross Bay Area (with whom I am also not affiliated) pointed me to them a few years ago. Neither company has provided me with any compensation, and my opinions are my own. Zippo sent me a free firestarter (and refills) to try and review, but I was not otherwise compensated, and they did not require that I write a positive review. This is my blog, and my opinions are mine, yo!

Being Married Is Awesome (or We Had a Good Weekend)

Several times this weekend, we caught ourselves saying, "Being married is awesome." Really what we meant was, "It's awesome having a 4-day work week, having friends over to drink beer and do puzzles, sleeping 10 hours, relaxing all day, and watching Jorge and Harper win their Senior Game at Cal (basketball)."  But hey, let's just call that "being married", shall we?  Deal.

It doesn't look like much, but it's not
supposed to. Presenting...bedroom without
giant cardboard box (used to be on that empty
wall; it would be blocking your view of the
brown dresser right now)!

Anyway, it's been a great week (despite battling a gnarly cold), and a fantastic weekend. And today, I was actually productive. Go figure! Maybe I was riding the wave of awesome from the last couple of days, but I was on fire, you guys! I did four loads of laundry, made my bulletin board of "to-do projects", finally unpacked that box in the bedroom that I've been meaning to unpack since...uh...we moved in in August, and miracle of miracles, I actually cleaned the top of my dresser!

This was no ordinary "scoop things up into piles" dresser clean, either. I actually went through old jewelry and got rid of things. I rearranged how things are placed so it makes more sense. I hung my necklaces and headbands and pictures omg pictures on the walls yay. And now, because photos are more fun than just writing, I'll tell the rest of this story with visual aides.

This is one of those times when I'm kicking myself for not taking "before" photos. Someone remind me to do that next time I tackle a house project, mkay?

Oh hello dresser. You are so neat and tidy
and organized.

One of the things I'd been meaning to do is organize my dresser. Again, a "before" picture would be really handy here, but just imagine a pile about 6" high, that had been growing and shifting over the course of several months. I got this dresser sometime in December (I think?), so I suppose it hasn't been that long, but still. At least two months of clutter just piling up does not a lovely dresser make. It had gotten to the point where I had trouble finding things; necklaces were in a tangled pile and pairs of earrings were separated, and despite the fact that I have a bajillion bobby pins, I could never find one. 

Closeup on the left side of the dresser.
Framed photo: Goodnight Moon (card from my grandma)
Black pointe shoes from Nutcracker of years gone by
Clock was my grandpa's (doesn't work, but maybe it will)
Doily was crocheted by my great aunt, I believe (mom? help?)

Now, it's neat and tidy. I emptied every drawer of my plastic jewelry/hair stuff drawer-thing and made a sizable "donate" pile of earrings and necklaces I haven't worn since high school (I don't know why I still had them either). I re-organized my two "nicer jewelry" boxes (to the left of the drawers) so that it's easier to see what's inside. Next on the agenda will be making some sort of wire+frame device like this so that my dangly earrings are easily viewable. Maybe with some way to show off the posts too (stick them into foam, sans backs, perhaps?)

The mirror is actually leaning on the wall (secured with earthquake putty) because I somehow misplaced the bracket that you use to hang it. Oops. Hope it stays - it seems pretty secure, but you never know. Maybe the bracket will turn up. If not, I'll have to get creative at the hardware store (or with the earthquake putty, again).  :)

I hung my necklaces on a branch-looking key hook thing that I bought at Urban Outfitters while visiting my sister at UC Santa Cruz, so I've had it for at least a year. I lost it for a while, but found it again when we moved, so glory glory, I got to put it up! Sadly, it was not as easy to install as it looked...perhaps because it didn't come with screws (sale bin), and the screws I had weren't the right size. Perhaps because the walls are old and not super strong. I'm not really sure why it took so much work to get this thing up on the wall, but it seems sturdy enough for the light weight it's carrying. The headbands and such to the left are just hanging on a silver Command hook (love you, Command hooks!). Much easier to install. 

More on the photo to the left in a minute.

First, how about a nice little close-up of my "handiwork"?

Yeah, that's the stuff.

You'll notice an anchor that doesn't quite sit flush with the wall, a hole too wide for the anchor, a screw that's silver instead of gold, and if you look really carefully, you'll notice a little white putty-filled hole behind the necklaces. That's actually not actual putty and is in fact earthquake putty (previously mentioned...but you know, it's that stuff that you use to secure fancy glassware and crystal in your cabinets in case of an earthquake). Which reminds me, I need to do that in the hutch. In both hutches. Sigh. Anyway...it's staying on the wall, and it's nothing a little spackle won't fix when we (eventually) move out (some day, far away from this day).

And last but certainly not least, the photo. Apologies for the kind of awful picture of it, but I'm super glad to have found this such a great home in our house. This is a photo collage made by mom and aunt, given to each of my sisters, my cousin and me for Chanukkah this year. Clockwise from the top left is my cousin Talia, her mother (my aunt) Nancy, my sister Nicole (sorry I cut your head off in this picture!), me, my mom, and my sister Danielle. All wearing the same dress. It's been in our family since my mom was a little girl (I think she's just barely two in her picture), and we've all worn it (and been photographed in it) over the years. It's definitely one of those family traditions that will live on...as long as we have daughters :)

How cute are we, seriously?

I'm really glad to have gotten this one project (well, two if you count the cardboard box full of office crap that's no longer in the bedroom! yeah!) done. Not the most crazy of house-related projects, but they were things that needed to get done, and the bedroom is starting to look much better. I'm starting to see little glimmers of possibility for our house now...having an unpacked, lived-in-but-not-messy, homey house with our own touches is within reach! Now that I can devote evenings and weekends to setting up the house instead of planning the wedding, I'm excited to continue settling in. I'm a homebody at heart...but we all knew that, didn't we?


PS - I was just looking at old posts, and realized that not one single time during the wedding/reception did I even take notice of the chairs.

I love a piano

We interrupt the "blogging about unpacking and also about how I have a bunch of giveaways to do and reviews to write and a salami party to plan but omg I'm buried in boxes and can't write that fun stuff yet" for some breaking news!

Last night, I saw an ad on Craigslist for a free piano. And then I saw this photo.

I decided that if there was anything I could do about it, this piano would be mine ours.  I talked to the guy who posted the listing this morning, and he said the only catch was that it had to be picked up by Wednesday at noon.  After confirming with my landlord that it was ok to have a piano, I started calling around to figure out how I would be able to get this piano to our house in under 24 hours.

I unsuccessfully posted a TaskRabbit Task, but thanks to Craigslist, I found movers who listed both pianos and last minute moves as things they could do. They asked for $180. I went to look at the piano to make sure I wanted it (you know, to make sure it wasn't broken or anything). I haggled the movers down to $160.  I'm meeting them at the piano's current home between 9-9:30am so they can load it in the truck and drive it to our place.  And then the piano will be mine ours.  I even cleared a little space for it in the formal living room room where I am currently keeping the giant stash one of the giant stashes of boxes yet to be unpacked.

"But Kim! There's no such thing as a free piano! Are you sure it's not terrible? Why would they just give away a perfectly good piano?"  That's why I checked it out tonight, genius.  :)  It actually sounds really nice.  It's in pretty good tune, though I'm sure it'll need to be tuned after the move.  The guys getting rid of it have to move (landlords are selling their house), and don't have room for it in the new place.  One of their old roommates brought the piano with him and left it in the house when he moved out, so they're not losing money on it or anything.  They just need it to be out of the house and can't take it.

Win for me us!  Of course, I am just assuming that Will is going to be happy about this (I'm sure he will be), because it's going to be a big surprise for him when he gets home (along with the Everything Is Unpacked Yay surprise? Right? That's still gonna happen?).  I might get to talk to him tomorrow, and I'll try my best not to say anything about it...hooray for surprises! And a piano!

PIE!

We happened to be in Berkeley today, and decided to take advantage of our location by stopping by the ever-wonderful Berkeley Bowl. Will had told me that we were hosting an impromptu brunch in honor of Cal Baseball's upcoming appearance in the College World Series (Sunday, Father's Day, so it's also an impromptu Father's Day brunch, I guess, except I don't think any dads are coming). Also, "Hey surprise! We're having people over!" Ok, I actually don't mind at all, and in fact, I'm excited. It gives me A) a chance to be a hostess, which (duh) I love, B) an excuse to make some fancy food, and C) practice in not freaking out if people come over and the house isn't perfectly clean and tidy.

ANYWAY. Whilst wandering aimlessly through the abundant produce section, tossing whatever looked good and fresh into the cart, I spotted rhubarb. I've wanted to buy and use rhubarb for years, but it's always gone by the time I get up the motivation to make something. This time, I snatched it up. I thought, "I'll make a strawberry-rhubarb pie! It's one of my favorite kinds of pies, and it's totally in season! YES! RHUBARB! YES!"

No seriously, that happened.

I grabbed what I thought would be an appropriate amount (because of course I didn't have any sort of recipe in mind, only inspiration) and scooped up extra strawberries as well. When I got home, I found this recipe. Thank you, Deb. It looked pretty easy, though I was missing the instant tapioca required for optimal pie texture. A brief Googling led me to believe that I really should get the tapioca, so I cruised over to Whole Foods for a (probably overpriced) box of quick cooking tapioca. Bingo! Oh, and flour. Because apparently we were out of flour. Oops. Luckily, the rhubarb and strawberries I purchased happened to be just the right amount for a beautiful pie. Meant to be, I tell you what.

Anyway, we went to look at a few apartments (including one awesome one, fingers crossed!!), and stopped for dinner, and by the time we got back, it was about 9:30pm. Too late to start making a pie? Nah. By 10pm, my crust was chillin' in the fridge. Note that I do not own a pastry cutter. I used a fork and my fingers, and it was messy but effective. I thought I would maybe make the crust tonight and make the pie itself in the morning, but it needs to cool for several hours (for maximum fruit--texture-jellosity), so late night pie it was!

pre-baked pie, circa 11:15pm
more photos here

And now?

HOLY SHIT, YOU GUYS, I MADE A PIE!!!

(I am a little excited)

The smell of this pie is so unbelievably delicious that it is actually making my stomach growl, despite the fact that I'm not actually hungry at all. 

Maybe I'll take some better pictures in the morning when the lighting is all nice, or maybe we'll just devour it and go "oh crap. We should have taken pictures." Either way, this pie only took like 2 hours to make, and if it tastes even half as good as it smells, I might just cry.

This is the first time I've made a pie from scratch (including the crust), and I'm honestly really proud of myself. It looks like a real pie, you guys! A REAL PIE!!!

Cleaning House

It's no secret that I am a bit of a nut when it comes to cleaning and organizing. I can be a little obsessive at times, it's true, worrying about the dust and the clutter, even when it's not actually so bad (according to 99% of the human population). I'm fully aware that my "eagle eye" when it comes to dust on shelves and mildewy grout is...uncommon. Sometimes I watch shows like Hoarders just to boost my ego a bit and remember that what may look totally unacceptable to me is actually pretty normal. Or at least not that bad.

Anyway, I have a tendency to keep a running log in my mind of all the housework left to be done. Whether I'm thinking about it or not, it's always there. For example, if we were out to lunch, and you asked me, "Hey Kim, what kind of clutter currently sits on your dining room table?" I'd be able to list each and every item, and mention that the kitchen counters need to be cleaned, and the bookshelves need to be dusted, and the blankets on the couch need to be folded and oh, my dresser is covered in things to be put away, etc. etc. etc. It's tiring, keeping this running log that I'm not even always aware of keeping. Anxiety is a tiring emotion; it takes up a lot of energy. Energy that should be used for other things, things that I actually enjoy (not that I don't enjoy cleaning, I do. But I don't enjoy thinking about cleaning, and usually I just don't have the time to do the kind of deep cleaning I'd do if I had the time, so I just think about what needs to be cleaned and then feel badly that it's not being done).

A wonderful friend of mine wrote here and here about hiring someone to clean her apartment. It was like she had listened to my soul and knew what I was struggling with. Seriously, read the first one if you want some insight into Kim's Crazy(butnotreallysocrazyafterall) Brain. Reading her words made me feel like it was all ok, like I wasn't some sort of failure as a woman if I couldn't keep my 840 sq ft apartment up to my standards of cleanliness. Writing it out makes me feel sort of crazy for feeling that way, but feelings are feelings and that's the way it goes sometimes. It's absolutely comforting to know that someone else has gone through exactly what you've gone through. And I want to be where she is now, one month into paying someone to clean her apartment. The end (of that part of the story).

Last week, after a full week of calling around for estimates, I hired my first cleaning crew. They came, they saw, they cleaned, but the visit was not without trouble. They arrived late (making me late for work), and they missed a few key things, but when I called the cleaning company, they promised a 100% Satisfaction Guarantee and said they would return over the weekend to fix the mistakes free of charge. This weekend, they arrived several hours early (throwing off our morning plans), left a bottle of cleaning solution behind, and still missed a spot (though they did end up re-grouting the tub for us) - with the re-grouting, and the early arrival (they offered to come back later, but that would greatly inconvenience them, so I caved), our schedule for the day got a bit out of whack.

When I called back, the company apologized and said it seems there is a problem with this specific cleaning crew, and that for my next service (scheduled for June 1), they would send a different crew. I am giving this company another chance, but as in baseball, three strikes and you're out. Yes? The only reason I'm giving them another chance at all is because I would really hate to start over looking for someone new, doing the whole first-time intro and all that. I'd much rather have this work out. If it doesn't, it doesn't, but I'm going to hope it was just a flukey thing with this one crew.

We'll see. This is supposed to cut back on the anxiety about keeping up house, so here's hoping. It was lovely returning home to a freshly-cleaned house, toaster oven free of crumbs, floors mopped, couch cushions fluffed, blankets folded, bed made. It would be lovely to return home to that twice a month (or more, if we could afford it), not having to worry about scrubbing grout and dusting shelves!

This is all part of a new thing I'm working on called self-care. Finding things I can do to give myself a little break, treat myself a little. More on this later...for now, a clean house!

Payoff

Seven years ago, I leased a brand new car. Approximately 4.5 years ago, I decided to purchase that little 2004 Honda Civic (had I had enough money for a down payment back in 2004, I would have just started buying it outright, rather than leasing it for a couple of years, but such is life).

Last fall, I realized that my anticipated payoff date was some time in October 2011.  The thousands of dollars owed on this car were reaching a point where it actually seemed like paying it off was in my near future.  I could see the light at the end of the tunnel. The beginning of a time in which I would not be paying $258.28 a month and racking up interest (albeit at a fairly low rate).  In January, as part of a New Year's Not-Really-A-Resolution, I decided to double my monthly payments in order to save money on interest and pay off the rest of my balance sooner.

After my most recent payment, I noticed that my account balance was under $100.  Under $100! Wow!  I had planned on making a final payment on my birthday, as a sort of symbolic gift to myself (I like to give myself finance-type gifts for my birthday, apparently), but it didn't make sense to wait another month and rack up interest, even if it was only a few dollars.  Why not just pay it off now?  So happy early birthday to me!*

"After making that last payment, your title will be released and
sent to you in the mail, and the vehicle you've been financing
will officially be all yours." -Honda Financial Services Website

*I haven't written about our weekend getaway yet, but I got an early birthday present while we were there...tickets to see Sarah Silverman (this past Monday), complete with a room service surprise of the most delicious red velvet cake I've ever had and mimosas at 8am :)  And I got Will an early birthday present of the framed team picture from when the Pens won the Stanley Cup in 2009.  It's a year of early birthday celebrations, no?

Just your average Friday

So, I have a crapload of things to blog about (seriously, I need to take a day off work and just sit and blog.  What's that you say? It's called a weekend?  Yeah, well, too bad I am always too lazy busy).  I have blank walls to brainstorm about and gooey cheesy pictures to show you, and yes, the inevitable gardening mishaps. But hey, guess what? Will and I are going to Sonoma this weekend for a little getaway, just the two of us.  We're hoping to kayak in Bodega Bay, and we're getting massages tomorrow night...ahh, to relax. Such a joy. Unfortunately for you (oh I know, I see the tears a-comin'), that means I probably won't blog this weekend, unless I am feeling not lazy inspired on Sunday when we get back.

But oh well.  Because look! I'm blogging now!  Even if it's not what I meant to blog about.  This Friday at work has just had some silly moments, and I've been enjoying myself, and I want to share. Because despite some truly crazypants things that are going on in the world, and in our lives, sometimes you solve a crossword puzzle with your boyfriend, and sometimes things happen that make you laugh, and well, I think those are the things worth sharing.  See how I snuck that whole crossword puzzle thing in there? Yeah, super cool.


Exhibit A:

Yes, I felt the need to include this in our weekly company newsletter.
You may need to click to enlarge to read it.

Exhibit B:

I finally found out why some of the leaves of the plant by my desk look like they were attacked by a five year old with dull scissors.  See: helicopter blades.  See also: inability to control a landing.  Sadly, my iPhone lacks the ability to capture this on video.


I love my job.

PS - We're hiring.  You should work here too.  It's great.  Trust me.

TCB

I was thinking today about the structure of the average workday, and the structure of our days in general, and I thought I'd like to do a little "ask the audience".

See, I enjoy a more loosely-structured workday, without strict hours of attendance and with the ability to get my work done in a way that makes sense for me (and the company, of course).  I realize that I have the luxury of a very relaxed work environment, trust me I do.  Having worked in places with strict rules about start times and end times and break times and clocking in and clocking out and arguing about overtime pay...well, you know I'm serious when I say I know how lucky I am.  I find myself thinking this every day.

But I know what it's like on the other side, and I think more workplaces should allow their employees the freedom to get their jobs done, provided it doesn't affect the business.  Obviously, many businesses have specific hours of operation.  And some types of work require knowing that people will be there at specific times (mostly service-oriented positions I think, but I'm sure there are others). But if an employee's job doesn't require specific hours, why set them? We have a general "be here roughly when everyone else is here" policy, because it's good for morale, more work gets done when you can talk to your teammates, etc. but even with our customer support team (who has dedicated hours to man the front lines), there is some flexibility with start and end times, as well as with how you manage your time during the day.

Personally, I've found that I work much better when I am in the workplace for roughly 8 hours, taking little breaks throughout the day, than when I'm in the workplace for roughly 9 hours, taking an hour for lunch (and those often-ignored but totally legally required 20 minute breaks).  If I'm deep into a project, I don't like to interrupt my workflow with a one-hour break (unless it's a special occasion and I'm making lunch plans with a friend or something).  I prefer to work on a task until I find my brain wandering (usually around 2 hours) and then take a 10 minute break to grab a snack, catch up on personal email, read the latest TechCrunch gossip, etc.  I'll usually take 15-20 min somewhere in the middle of the day to eat lunch at my desk while reading blogs...but this means I am also checking work email and handling any issues that come up.  And I generally check up on work stuff from home at some point later that night, and in the morning before I go into work, just in case there's a fire to be put out.

Allowing my brain to switch from work to non-work throughout the day keeps me more alert and more focused on the work I have to do. And psychologically, I think it makes me a better worker because I feel like I'm in charge of my day.  It's oppressive to feel like someone is counting your minutes (or worse, like you have to count your minutes in order to get paid), monitoring your restroom breaks, keeping tabs on your location every second you're not at your desk.  If someone puts the onus on you, you're more likely to respect it - it's like that whole thing about not giving teenagers so many rules that all they can think of is rebellion, right?

My whole semi-structured day seems funny to me, though, because in my personal life, I'm much more productive when I'm on a schedule - "tonight I will do laundry and Saturday at 4pm I will go return those jeans" and such.  Maybe it's because my personal life consists of more small, schedule-able tasks, whereas my work life consists mostly of larger, more long-term projects (with short-term action items, but still).  Different activities call for different types of time-management, I suppose.

So...how do YOU structure your work day?  (or if you're not working, how do you structure your days in general?) Do you enjoy a longer lunch break? Lots of little breaks?  Do you even get a break at all?  I want to know!

A little PF talk

It's been a while since I blogged about personal finance/budgeting and such, and I've been thinking a bit about it lately, so here ya go.

Topic #1: Credit!  Hi.  My name is Kim, and I just got my first credit card.  Yes, my first.  Yes, I am almost 27 years old.  Yes, I have been living with just a debit card all this time.  I've been thinking about getting one for years, but the combination of not wanting to pay annual fees and wanting some sort of rewards system and not being able to make a decision meant I never had one.  And then along came Banana Republic.  I was already receiving some massive discounts on a recent trip to the flagship store, thanks to a big sale (oh so much pretty there), and the super-helpful salesgirl (no joke, she was great) convinced me to get one (further discounts! I shop here anyway!).  I am usually impervious to the siren song of the store credit card...so why did I give in?

For one, there is actually a decent rewards program when using my card at Banana Republic, Gap, and Old Navy (including the outlet).  Those are the only places I actually shop for clothes anyway, so I might as well be earning rewards for doing it!  I can use the card for other purchases, too (it's a Visa), which I may do eventually, but for now, I'm using it as a clothing shopping card.  I figure this will keep me from spending too much each month, since I don't do much clothing shopping anyway.  I will pay the balance every month (the one downside is a high interest rate - but I don't plan on carrying a balance on any credit card I might ever have).  So yeah.  Now I have a credit card.  So far so good.

I am considering getting a bank credit card through Wells Fargo when I open a new checking account (something I'm planning on doing relatively soon), just to have one for emergencies that has a low interest rate.  Is this something that would be useful?  I hate the idea of spending money I don't have (hence my being ok with a high interest rate on the BR card - I pay it off right after I spend it), but would it be a good idea to have a card I can use in a real emergency?  Something with a low interest rate, in case I have to pay for something I don't have money for (I don't know what kind of emergency that would be...medical expenses? Isn't that what my emergency fund is for?)?  Thoughts?

Topic #2: Debts and Savings!  Exciting news (for me)! I am thisclose to paying off my car loan! I've been working hard to get this paid off, doubling my payments for the last few months.  I gave myself the arbitrary deadline of my birthday (May 10) to have paid off my car, and I am on track to come in ahead of schedule.  I owe just over $1,000 and plan to pay $500 in March and the remainder in April.  And I am stoked.  Woo hoo!  The plan was to then take the $500 I'm not spending on the car payment and put it into my "high interest" savings account, but since the interest on that account is pretty low right now, I have other plans.

See, I also have this student loan.  The loan was originally for about $18,000.  I decided to check up on my account this morning, just for fun (ha).  And according to the loan website, I have paid about $5,000 since I graduated in 2006 (minus about a year when I was on financial hardship deferment during an unpaid internship).  And somehow, I still owe about $16,000.  That's what we call stupidcrazyinterest. omg.  So.  Since the interest on my student loan is significantly higher than what I'd be earning in the savings account, I'm going to take that extra $500 a month and aggressively work on the student loan repayment instead.  It's still going to take me forever to pay off, but if I'm paying $700 a month instead of $200 a month on it, at least it'll take a little less time.   I'm still budgeting about $200 a month for savings (I like a steady contribution to my emergency fund), but I figure it's better to throw my "extra" money at the loan right now.


It feels good to make grown-up decisions about my finances.

I told you there was news...

You may have noticed that over the last few days, I've begun to use Disqus as the commenting interface on this little blog o'mine.  It's not just because I've suddenly gone fancy on you and decided to veer away from the commenting interface that comes pre-installed with every Blogger blog.  No, my friends, it is because as of September 20, I will be working for the small-but-mighty tech startup!  You heard me, new job!

I'll be starting out as their Office Manager, while also taking on some more General Manager-y tasks and helping to develop their internal Human Resources programming.  They are a true San Francisco tech startup in the sense that their staff is comprised mostly of engineers, and the time has come for the company to hire someone to manage the day to day workings of the office while helping to build a solid foundation for growth.  Enter: Kim.

I am beyond excited about this opportunity, which seems like a great combination of using my current skills in office management, organization and communications while developing myself as a Human Resources professional (ooh fancy).  Some of the things they have expressed an immediate need for assistance with are New Hire Onboarding (a particular passion of mine), Office Organization (both physical and structural), and Corporate Culture - they are expanding from what was once a small group of buddies building a product and want to ensure they maintain a consistent message (including training, communications, and general environment) while they grow.  So yeah.  All things that sound great to me.

And oh, did I mention that the office has a ton of windows? One of the hardest things for me about working at the recording studio is the lack of natural light; I didn't realize how much better I feel when I can see the sky.  I will also be commuting via public transportation, and will be getting about two miles of walking in a day, including a nice 10 minutes or so walking lakeside on my way to and from the BART station.  I'm also planning on going back to school part time to earn my Certification in Human Resources Management through the UC Berkeley Extension program.  I recently attended an information session, and was absolutely thrilled at the prospect of taking these classes.  I haven't been this excited about the prospect of going to school since I started my Freshman year at UCLA.

Sorry to tease for so long about the news, but if you're following me on Twitter, you got some of the information already.  :)  And a big hello to my new coworkers, some of whom helped me get Disqus going on my blog (hi, Giannii), and some of whom have been making me feel welcome via Twitter.

Quitting my job was difficult, and there are definitely things and people I will miss when I'm not at the Studios anymore, but I am very excited about this next step in my career.  I'll keep you posted!

20-Something or other

There is a really interesting article in the NY Times Magazine today about 20-somethings and the universal struggle to find your way towards adulthood in this weird space between college and Being A Grown Up.  It's nothing new; people have been talking about this for ages - I know it's a conversation I've had with my peers more than once over the last few years.  For me, turning 20 was shocking.  Even though I was still in college, I had this sudden sense of "Holy cow. I'm supposed to be growing up now."  It seemed like once I hit 20, I was supposed to Get Serious, and think about a Career Path.  And I had no idea what I was doing.


Growing up, my parents always told me I could be whatever I wanted to be when I grew up. They supported me, whether I was serving bagels or belting out showtunes, and were proud when I received my degree in Theater.  I was incredibly lucky.  My mom stressed that when she graduated from college, there were fewer options for women.  Now, she said, I could do anything.  Our generation is lucky; most of us are taught from a young age that we can do more, be more, expect more than our mothers and grandmothers could.   We are to follow our passions, but finding and pursuing them is another story.  


Being blessed with many interests and the opportunities to pursue them doesn't necessarily translate into finding Your One True Passion, and even when you figure out what "it" is, finding the time, energy and financial means to make it your life's work is tricky.  A 25-year old quoted in the article says that “there is pressure to make decisions that will form the foundation for the rest of your life in your 20s. It’s almost as if having a range of limited options would be easier.”  It's like she read my mind.  


I have thought about this a lot in the last few years, particularly when I was unemployed.  The downside to having so much freedom and seemingly limitless opportunity was the pressure to eventually pick something.  Alas, how are we ever to settle down if we are encouraged to keep looking?  That's the trend these days (erm, among the privileged, middle-class, etc.), though, right?  Go to college, experiment, work lots of different jobs until you find something that fits.  Volunteer, take on hobbies and extra-curricular clubs until you feel something stirring inside you.  Turn that into a full time job.  Just like that.  


I suppose careers are like relationships in that regard. You try out a bunch of different jobs (or partners), learning little things about yourself along the way.  You tweak what you love and hate into what you can live with and what you can't live without.  You learn where you can compromise, and where you find fulfillment.  And hopefully, you end up with something that combines a couple of your interests with something you feel good about.


Anyway, this article didn't really tell me anything new, but it was interesting to read.  I don't know about you other 20-somethings out there, but I find it's nice to be reminded that I'm not alone on this journey of Emerging Adulthood.  We are all struggling and creating and building and growing and developing and learning and figuring it out as we go along.  And (shhh) I don't think this journey ever really ends. 

The First Round of the Pictures...

Unfortunately, I don't have any pictures of the whole "we're all settled and unpacked" situation, because, well, life got in the way, and sometimes there are more important things to do than unpack every single box (thanks, Will, for reminding me that it doesn't all have to be done yesterday).

I was finally able to upload some pictures from Moving Day though, so here you go...some pictures of our empty, clean, beautiful new apartment!

The view from the kitchen sink (how appropriate).
The nicest landlords ever left us flowers.
And Triple Karm.

The view from the living room (remember all those "from the couch"
pictures I've been posting? Well, this is what it looks like empty).

I don't know why Blogger won't let me import this picture
vertically, so you'll just have to turn your head. Or not.
Pretty floor.

Having a hallway makes the apartment feel more spacious.
Also, it's 200 sq feet bigger than our last place.
That could help.

The view of the living room from the dining area...you can kind
of see the patio out back.  It's nice.

 

Me saying a blurry bye-bye to our old place.
Yes, I painted it myself (with help).

A celebratory mimosa-filled brunch with cousins.
Not pictured: Will
Guess who was the designated driver?
Hint: he was also the designated photographer.

So there you have it.  Moving Day 2010.  We are about 2/3 of the way unpacked at this point, which at only 10 days into the month is not half bad (get it? because it's more than half? I slay me). Last night, I closed the linen closet door for the first time, which I'll count as a small measure of success. I'd like to be fully unpacked and settled in by the end of the month, but I am also trying to work on just relaxing and not stressing about a few more boxes.  Because (and maybe you know this already) there is more to life than that.  Such as: walks around the lake, photo shoots with Em the Gem, seeing my favorite 10-year old in a play, and last-minute trips to Cafe Biere for Taco Tuesday (if it seems like we're there a lot...well...we have been going a lot in the last two weeks. so you're right).

You know what?  It's all going to be ok.  :-)

Floorplans and Packplans and Letting it Go

It feels like we've reached the halfway point in this whole omigod-the-last-week-before-we-move thing, and I have to keep reminding myself that it's only Tuesday.  Ah yes, the days go by quickly, and time will fly away before we know it, but for now, it's only Tuesday, and I sat in the sunshine while I ate my lunch, and well, sometimes an hour of sunshine in the middle of your Tuesday is just nice.

Tomorrow evening, we get to visit our new apartment (hooray!).  We're going to take the "before" pictures and get keys and ask all the questions we didn't ask before.  We'll do the official walk-through with the landlords; even though it's not being professionally cleaned until Friday, they will be moved out and we can take stock of any repairs that need doing, or any scratches in the floor, or whatever else you notice in such events.  The landlords are having the unit repainted and professionally cleaned - I know this is standard in many areas, but around these parts, it's definitely a rarity.  It's such a radical change from our current place, where I had to make the landlord help me clean the previous tenant's crusty food off the ceiling in the kitchen before I moved in.

I made this floorplan with
www.floorplanner.com
 based on rough sketches from our landlord

The landlords sent us a rough sketch of the floor plan, but I'll probably take some extra measurements too, just for peace of mind.  You see, I can be a bit of a control freak at times.  I have this fear that when the movers bring our furniture in, we won't know exactly where it goes and it'll all just end up in a big clump in the middle of the room.  I want to minimize the shifting we have to do, and basically know where stuff is going to go before we get there.  I worked it all out in my own fancy way (see picture), but the measurements we got aren't all correct, and the dining room and Will's desk area are not quite worked out yet in my head (or on paper).  So there are just a few little things I want to know about, and then I'll feel ready.

I'm trying to relax, and for the most part, I'm doing quite well.  I'm proud of the fact that I chose cooking over packing last night, and that I am feeling remarkably calm (minus a little teeth-grinding) about the fact that we are moving in just over three days, and we are not done packing.  There are things in life that we cannot change, and even when we can, it's sometimes best to relinquish the control and just let life happen. Know what I mean? Last night simply felt like it needed a home-cooked meal, so there!  Tonight, tired as we might be, we'll pack a few more things (personally, I have a big pile of papers to file).  And tomorrow, after we've (ok, I've) taken a million pictures of our new home-to-be, we'll celebrate with dinner and drinks at Cafe Beire (this has now become our go-to place).  Thursday evening, the packing will resume, and Friday I'll be playing on the football field with a couple hundred ladies.

And Saturday?  When the movers show up at 8:30am and we inevitably have to scramble for last-minute items?  Well, it's not going to freak me out.  We're only moving about 5 miles away, after all, and if anything gets left behind and we have to make a trip back with my car later in the day, we'll just do it.  We don't have to be 100% out of the place until the end of the day on Sunday, which gives us a little more leeway and a little less stress.  At least that's what I say now - we'll see how I feel when it actually happens!

Photos of our empty new apartment to come, but for now, enjoy this wonderfully bright and "quaint" (I hate that word; it always sounds sort of condescending to me) kitchen, courtesy of TheKitchn (of course).  Just looking at this picture is calming, isn't it?

Why yes, I could absolutely imagine myself here.  Thank you for asking.

Mid-Pack

Last weekend, I made a promise to myself: Pack one box per weeknight, minimum. I've been doing really well.  In fact, as of bedtime Thursday night, I had packed 7.  Will hadn't really done much; he's more of the "get a lot done at once" type.  That's fine; most of what I packed last week wasn't his anyway (yeah yeah, we live together, it's all "ours" blah blah blah).  The plan is to pack as much as humanly possible this weekend, since oh yeah, we move in a week.  That's right, one week from today, we will be in our new place.  Wowza.

This weekend so far...oh boy.  We took a night off from packing last night to go to our favorite place, where the owner just so happened to be debuting a new menu.  We had flatbread complete with carmelized onions, herbed goat cheese, garlic, and a balsamic demiglaze.  We had the most awesome chicken wings ever.  We had succulent lambchops with garlic mashed potatoes and a balsamic reduction.  And then, for dessert, "chocolate cake" (chocolate stout with a shot of raspberry framboise).  It was a welcome break, to be sure.

Today, we dove right into the packing...after we slept in and had a late brunch.  But we packed almost all of the living room, and I'd say we made excellent progress.  Tomorrow we'll pack the majority of the kitchen, the kitchen island, and probably some bedroom stuff as well.  Then starting Monday, it's back to "one box a night" or so until we finish!  Hopefully we'll get so much done tomorrow that there won't be much more to do during the week!

Because I loved A Serious Girl's mid-packing update photos, here are a few photos I took today to give you the full visuals.  One week to go!

I am afraid of this closet.  It still looks like this.
Luckily, most of it will be taken out in wardrobe boxes.

We have a lot of books.  This isn't even all of them.

Piles of boxes, everywhere.

It's a disaster zone.  Yikes.

The neatest, most orderly pile. It makes me feel good, even if we are being surrounded by boxes.

PS - If you can guess what's on TV, you win bonus points*

*note: bonus points are of no actual cash value

How to Ride a Bike

Today, I learned how to ride a bike. You may recall that this was one of my New Year's resolutions, and I am proud to say that I can check it off my list! Class met at REI in Berkeley at 9:45am, where we piled into the REI Outdoor School van and drove to the El Cerrito DMV parking lot. The parking lot has a driveway with a (very) slight incline, which allowed us to get a little speed without having the instructors run along behind, pushing your bike. You know, like your mom or dad probably did when you learned how to ride as a kid.

For the first few hours (the class was 4 hours long), we rode our bikes without pedals, our seats low enough so our feet could rest flat on the ground. We started at the top of the incline with a bit of a walking/running start, and just sort of coasted down as far as we could go without stopping. The instructors called this "gliding". We practiced gliding until we could get all the way down the incline without stopping; then we practiced continuing with a right-hand turn and coasting through the parking lot down to where the van was parked. I'd say the whole stretch from the incline to the van was a couple hundred feet? I am bad at guessing these sorts of things. Here's a map of the parking lot, with the path marked in yellow arrows (click to enlarge).


Once we had become comfortable gliding through the yellow-arrow path without stopping three or four times in a row, our seats were raised about an inch. This repeated until our seats were raised to their full, pedal-ready height. This is the height at which you are kind of on tip-toe when you put your feet down. This is incredibly awkward for getting on and off the bike if you are not used to it. Just sayin'.

Anyway, I was ready for pedals around 12pm - an hour ahead of schedule, according to the instructor! I was pretty stoked about it; at the beginning of the day, I had no idea how I would do. Turns out, I found the gliding to be pretty easy, and my balance was better than I thought it would be. By the time the instructors said I could move on to pedals, I was ready! I walked my bike to the top of the incline, glided down, turned right, and placed my feet on the pedals. In just a few seconds, I was riding! I pedaled my way all the way back to the top of the incline! Such freedom! I think the best moment of discovery for me was when I was at the top of the incline and had a runny nose. My tissues were all the way back in the van...but I realized I could ride my bike over there in about 10 seconds! Thrilling! I know it's silly and small, but it was a big deal to me to realize that now I can just jump on a bike and get where I need to go. I will have to learn how to ride in traffic/urban areas, and perhaps how to ride on uneven terrain as well, but I feel confident in my ability to do so. Let me restate: I Can Ride A Bike. For someone who has spent the greater part of her adult life feeling left out from this particular part of society, this is a big deal.

I highly recommend this class to anyone who is hesitant to hop on a bike. REI instructors really know what they are talking about, and this particular method of teaching was very successful. After having learned this way (starting with no pedals), I feel like the whole training wheels method is sort of backwards and counter-intuitive. I mean, why start someone on four wheels if you are only going to take two of them away eventually? That way, you don't learn the real balancing thing, since you have the crutch of the training wheels. This makes so much more sense to me...to the adult me anyway. Start off learning how to balance and turn on the bike, just going down a slight incline. Then, once you have control of the bike, add the pedals. I could not believe how simple and fun it was, and I am just so glad that now I can join the rest of the bike-riding world!

And now, a short video of my "Victory Lap". We each did one at the end of the class, at whatever level we had reached by the end of the lesson. For some, this was simply gliding, sans-pedals, all the way to the van. For some, this was gliding and then pedaling back to the starting point. For me and one other woman, this was biking down and then weaving through the cone course the instructors had set up for us. I cannot believe that I went from not being able to ride a bike to doing a difficult cone course in under four hours, but I did it! As you can hear in the video, the instructor was proud of me - and I was proud of myself too!