Weekend Review {12/26}

FRIDAY

I worked from home on Friday since the majority of the office was doing the same thing.  I'm sure my coworkers were able to be much more productive than I was.  In between being accosted by the 4 dogs in the house and yelling no at them when they'd start barking because our wonderful neighbors left their dogs outside ALL DAY to bark at everything that passed by, not much was really accomplished.

Nonetheless, I had my hours by lunch time and decided that since it was #treatyoself weekend, that I'd start it off with a bubble bath.  #noregrets

I had a hair appointment scheduled for 3 on Friday, so after my midday bubble bath, I passed the time somehow until it was time to leave.

My hair appointment took a few hours because I had some color added.  The blah blah brown was getting to me and I needed something fun.  I really like it, but I was going for something a little more... "fun"?  Yeah, fun.  But it's a good smooth transition into something a little more fun next time.

Teh PT Fam had agreed to go to the Stingrays game with us that night, so we met at the Coliseum for the game.  Teh PT Kid is now a hockey lover, which brings me great joy.

After the super shitty game (because the refs), the men bitched out on looking at Christmas lights and went home to smoke cigar while Teh PT Wife, Teh PT Kid, and I went on a food adventure and to look at Christmas lights.

I say food adventure because after sitting in 3 different drive thrus for no less than 40 minutes total, we finally pulled into a Denny's and had quicker service at Denny's than our entire waiting time at the fast food places we had tried to eat at.  When we finally got to Park Circle to see the lights, we ended up driving around the circle super slow our with the hazard lights on.

When we eventually made it home, Max refused to go inside and get warm and opted to snuggle with me over Teh German, which was odd.  Nonetheless, some epic selfies were acquired.

We were all tired and we called it a night around midnight.

SATURDAY - Christmas Eve Eve

It was a slow start to the day with nothing planned in the AM.  I started off with some puzzling.  I almost lost my shit when the neighbor's dogs who were, again, tethered outside, started barking at me because they could see me through the dining room window.  Ya'll.  That's my hard limit.  I was struggling with your dogs being outside ALL FUCKING DAY LONG barking at everything the day before, but if your dog starts barking at me when I'm in my house, I WILL KNOCK ON YOUR DOOR.  I will NOT deal with that bullshit.  Nope, nope, nope.

After breakfast, everyone was upstairs and Pax was being the most adorable so I snuggled with him for a bit.  

I then laid down and took a real nap until it was time for my spa session at 3:30.  I was scheduled to get an hour and a half massage, to include a foot "refresh" and I added on a 30 minute head massage.

Let's talk about things I won't do again: Go back to that spa.
The spa wasn't bad, but the massage was mediocre and for what I was paying?  Nope.  The head massage was mostly her putting coconut oil on my hair and tangling/pulling my hair.  She also added a "free" mask since I was so congested, which conveniently took up a significant portion of my head massage time, as well as her getting all the ingredients.  When she was doing my massage, she kept trying to work out my shoulder knots which I'm pretty sure are permanent.  Yeah, I was SUPER sore by bedtime.  

I didn't get a post-massage picture of my hair, but I kinda looked like Medusa.

After I got home, Teh German asked me if I wanted to go to a bonfire with Teh PT Fam.  I said that was ok and we headed to Summerville to make friends.  We stopped by Carolina Ale House to pick up dinner to go and then headed to the fire.  It was fun.  I showed off my marshmallow toasting master skills, several people were introduced to smores with Reese Cups instead of plain chocolate, and there was singing.

We headed home at a decent hour since Teh PT Family had to get up early on Sunday for church.

SUNDAY - Christmas Eve

Teh PT Wife and Husband made their debut at their church's Christmas play and we went to see them.  Roux's Humom and Mr. Golfer also came.  Teh German doesn't do church, but no one burst into flamed when we went in the building.

GLCK parking.

Husband and Wife selfie!

Festive stage

The play was very good, as was the sermon.  I enjoyed the music as well, which Teh PT Wife had told me I would.  She gets me.

After church, we headed to Michael's to pick up some crafting stuff for Teh German and then we headed to brunch at Crackle Barrel with Mr. Golfer and Roux's Humom.

After brunch, Teh German and I made, what I expected to be a poor life choice, a pit stop at Walmart to pick up a few items.  We were in and out in 20 minutes!  We happened to find a register open with no one at it!  Mind = blown.  It was obviously the 2017 Christmas miracle.

When we got home, Teh German started working on his project while I headed upstairs to nap.  I love naps.  Teh PT Family was hosting a Fishy Feast (or something Italian about fish and Christmas?  IDK) and we headed over around 4 for dinner.

Tom-fecta

The food and company was great.  We ended the night with smoking hour and then finally headed home for bed.

MONDAY - Christmas!

We had a slow start to Christmas day, which was perfect.  Well, kinda.  We had a Skype date with Papa G at 0900, so we set an alarm to get up in time.  I had made some pretty spectacularly horrible coffee on Sunday morning, so I waited for Teh German to come down to make the coffee.  After we Skyped with the Germans, we agreed on a breakfast plan.  Teh German makes the bacon better than me, so he's in charge of that, and after he flips it over, I start the eggs.  I also had a can of biscuits in the fridge that didn't get cooked from chicken and dumplins earlier in the week, so we added those to the menu as well.

Christmas selfie

Breakfast

The beasts.

Scrooge, I mean Teh German, hadn't wrapped my presents until after he started cooking the bacon.  Here to hoping that next year he can assimilate to American culture and at least get something under the tree for me by Christmas Eve....

Can we be impressed with his ability to tie a bow out of wrapping paper?

I surprised Teh German with a new robe and a new Stingrays shirt that he had wanted when we went to the sale over the summer, except we/I wasn't willing to wait in line for a single t-shirt that was regular price.

Those are sheep.
I could have gotten him a boring plaid one, but no.

The bottom earrings are my Christmas/wedding presents from Teh German.
Rose gold earrings to match my wedding band.

He also ordered my planner that I wanted.  No surprises.  There's always next year.  After cleaning up, we marathon-ed Mad Men until it was time to become publicly presentable.

Because our neighbors were feeling super sorry for us because we didn't have anything planned on Christmas day besides laziness, we were invited to Roux's house for Christmas dinner.  Then we migrated with the GLCK to another neighbor's house for dessert.

By 10pm, I was exhausted and we finally headed home.  After reading for 20 minutes, it was lights out and Christmas was over.

______________________________________________

It was a super awesome lazy holiday.  It was nice to be on our own schedule and not have to travel back home.  I was able to take unlimited naps, which is always the best.  I was mostly unproductive, which was also awesome.  I'm working from home today, but tomorrow is back to normal.  Teh German is off all week, which I'm pretty jealous of.... butttt next weekend should be another lazy weekend and I'm already ready for it.  ALL THE NAPS!

This week you can look forward to the 2nd installment of wedding photos and I'll probably have a Friday post, as long as nothing wacky happens.

I hope all my Gentle Readers had a great weekend/Christmas/holiday celebration/whatever you did was good.

PS.  No I did not watch Star Wars.  Teh German mentioned going to watch it and then laughed at himself.  At least he knows.
PPS.  I DID order the entire Wrinkle in Time quintet since I've never actually read it.  The only L'engle book I've read was A Ring of Endless Light, which I discovered today is actually in the middle of that series.  Womp womp.  I'm considering reading that series as well, but after I finish A Wrinkle in Time.  The real push is that the movie is coming out and it looks like something I may be interested in seeing in theaters.  We'll see.  School will be back in session by then...

Weekend Review {8/24}

FRIDAY

After work, Teh German came over and we headed out to dinner at Sesame in West Ashley.  He'd never been to Sesame and I'd never been to the West Ashely location, so it was a win.  Also, the food was delicious.  After we had planned to either go see a movie at the park we went to last weekend or do the indoor trampoline thing in North Charleston.  We ended up doing neither since the movie got cancelled due to weather and his friends invited us out to get drinks with them. 

I'm not sure who invited adult bar Jenga, but they are most excellent.  Sorry for the dark photos, Suzy was at 1% when we got back to my house, so it was the no flash party going on for me.

Teh German concentrating and being photobombed.

Oh noes!

 

Group shot by a stranger.
*Also, yay for a new cute monster shirt that I'm wearing (that you can't really see (It's awesome just take my word on it)).

It was wwaaayyyy past my bedtime when we got back home so it was definitely sleepy time.

SATURDAY

Originally, Teh German and I had planned to do a beach/10 mile run (since I needed to get in 10 miles this weekend), but that didn't happen.  Nope, nope, nope.  Instead, we adulted the shit out of Saturday and stayed in bed until 2pm.  We would have actually probably stayed in bed until we had to leave for the Riverdogs game we had tickets for, but hunger started to set in and we wanted to go to Early Bird Diner, which closes from 3-5 on Fri/Sat because they are open so late, so that meant we HAD to get up.  Bleh, but Teh German finally got to experience their chicken and waffles, so it was a win.

We went back to my house after lunch? dinner? whatever the meal is when you eat mid-afternoon.  We hung out with the dogs and eventually settled down on the couch.  I read while Teh German slept.

I roused him when it was time to leave for the game.  We were concerned it was going to be cancelled due to weather, but the game went on.  When we arrived I met a different friend of Teh German who had our tickets.  We stayed at the game for a while, but left early due to rain and general disinterest (the tickets were free).  We decided to go out and get drinks with Teh German's friend and his wife would met up with us later.

Our first stop was Voodoo, but we decided to head to Triangle Char and Bar since Voodoo was dead.  After eating some food at Triangle, I was set for more drinking.  When Teh German's friend's wife showed up, we decided to go back to Voodoo.  While there we got to experience a super drunk dude break it down and try to grind up against several women.  He tried to get me to hold his beer and I was like, nope, go over there and dance with the girl who is trying to wave you down.  He was too drunk to understand.  I was too sober to give any fucks.  Nope. 

I got the Painkiller (description to the right of the beverage) and it came with a little pineapple straw!

After we finished our drinks at Voodoo, it was suggested we go to DD Peckers.  I'll just come clean here and now.  This is my first ever "bar hopping" in my adult life.  See, I'm a classy drinker.  I go to a gathering of my friends at someone's house and drink and drink and we never leave.  We just keep drinking.  If someone is leaving, they have a DD worked out (which for me usually meant I wasn't drinking since I was driving).  In GTMO, I would walk to other rooms since it was semi-communal living, but that was s much traveling as I did.  Yeah, this is adulthood.

So at DD Peckers we ordered drinks and chatted some.  We agreed that if Guardians of the Galaxy is playing at the park next weekend we should all go and that we should pre-game the movie with sushi downtown.  Having introduced Teh German to sushi on one of our first dates, he was super interested since he liked really liked it.

Yawns started happening and it was finally time to go home.  There was a short discussion about ordering another round and Teh German looked at me questioningly and I told him, "Sorry I'm too drunk to drive us home."  He then said, "Even if you weren't, you can't drive my car, it's a stick."  Bahahahahahahahah.  I told him that he'd cut me deep and explained that Teh Kaar was a stick and I drove it for almost 10 years.  Can't drive a stick, beech please.  Lesson of the night: Never underestimate Teh Megan. 

I've kind of stopped worrying about time over the last week.  I get to bed when I get there and I get up in time for work.  Who needs sleep? 

SUNDAY

Sunday morning, I woke up and fed the dogs and went back to bed for snuggles.  Teh German and I figured out a game plan that I'd go to church, which would give him the chance to run some errands and go to his "closet" and pick up his Suzi (motorcycle) then come back to my house, at which point we'd head out to meet Teh SC House Finder and Teh Architect at Fat Hen. 

As has been the case, my pew at church was open (3rd row on the left side, sitting towards the center, if you're interested), so it was like I needed to be there (I can hear Teh WJL reading this and going duhhhh).  After church, I headed back home to hang out with the dogs and read while I waited on Teh German to return.

We met up at Fat Hen around noon (we were late) and had a delicious brunch.  Teh German and I considered riding around more, but I suggested we go to the motorcycle shop so I could pick up a bluetooth headset.  Truthfully, I was super jealous that Teh German had all the jams and super frustrated that I can't really communicate with him, especially since my horn doesn't work (I can't even discuss it).  Mr. Scrooge had bought similar headsets for us and I had updated the software and they had been charged, he just never installed them on our helmets.. and then I left, so ya know that part makes sense if you don't consider that they sat on the bar for 2 months prior my leaving.   

I didn't plan it properly and had no where to put the headset after I purchased it, but Teh German was awesome and told me he could carry it under his jacket.  WIN.  I was thinking I'd have to go 5 minutes home and get my backpack and come back.  His idea was better.  When we got back to my house, Teh German set it up for me and we tested linking to my phone and then talking to each other.  I'm super pumped to go out on a ride and test it out... AND BE ABLE TO COMMUNICATE WITH THE PERSON I'M RIDING WITH.

After testing out the headsets, we were lazy for the rest of the afternoon.  We watched Hercules so Teh German could see it in English to get some of my references, then I finally finished Modern Romance and then started on dinner while Teh German was napping.  We started watching The Americans during dinner. 

I'd heard it was an excellent show, so it's been on my list for a while and it's available on Prime, so I was excited.  And then... in the pilot episode, it shows the female lead getting raped (around 17ish minutes in (I checked that for you)) and I wasn't even a little bit prepared and it I never recovered.  I wanted to but my reaction was so evident that I knew that it would have to be discussed and that was awkward and I was quite distracted for the rest of the episode, which is over an hour long, also unprepared for that.  At 43 minutes I'm definitely getting antsy.  By 60 minutes I'm obviously floundering around wondering when it is gonna end. 


I was obviously struggling during the episode, but I told Teh German we could discuss it after it ended.  Several things actually, 1- the rape scene and being unprepared for that.  It felt just like when the shrink had asked me about if something had happened and I had to decide then to lie and say no or admit the truth and then discuss it.  2- I don't really talk about my actual navy job on Teh Blog much because it was a sensitive position and the less people that knew, the better, mostly just in case, but because personal security is totally a thing.  The Americans entails some aspects of my real navy job and I found myself making comments then realizing that those comments to a German citizen were probably less than ok and I needed to think before I made my flippant comments about workings of the US Intelligence Community.  (In case you one day read this, I'm sorry it's awkward, but just remember that I reported our relationship to my security manager less than 3 weeks after our first date!)

Teh German had to leave to run to his house to drop off his bike and pick up clothes for Monday but was coming back.  This was tough because as I admitted on Friday, he makes the bad places in my mind quiet down, and even if he didn't know it, he was leaving me in a pretty bad place despite how much I was trying to cover it up.  While he was gone, I started putting dinner leftovers away and just couldn't focus.  I went to the computer and reached out to Teh Dive Buddy to ask if he'd watched The Americans, but he wasn't available so I listened to some Spotify and tried to just relax a bit.  When I was a slightly less wound up, I went to the kitchen to finish cleaning up dinner.  When I was putting everything away, I may have stopped by the freezer for 2 (not small) sips of the sherbert vodka that Ms. Boomkin introduced me to.  The episode was truly too much for me and I could feel myself winding back up as I was finishing putting food into bowls and I had only been away from the music for 3 minutes.  

I did finally finish everything up in the kitchen and started getting ready for bed while waiting on Teh German to get back.  I had to keep busy otherwise, I knew I'd go back to the freezer and I knew that wasn't the solution.  When Teh German finally got back, it was bedtime.  We had a very generalized conversation about something happening but I he didn't ask for specifics so I didn't clarify.  I didn't mention the vodka. 

Teh Dive Buddy had responded last night, but I didn't see it because I'd already walked away from the computer.  We chatted this morning about the show and how I had struggled with the scene and used some "assistance" in dealing with my problem.  So I did at least admit that I had taken some shots to someone, because I know better and recently it's just gotten bad.  I think mostly it has to do with the fact that I'm introducing lots of new people into my life right now and they don't know.  They don't know my entire life story like 99.9% of My People.  So when Ginger Beard would make a rape joke and I didn't take it well, he had no context and when I had an obvious reaction to a rape scene, Teh German had no idea why. 

It's just not something I want to discuss, which makes it even worse.  Even typing this, I'm in tears because I hate it all so much.  I hate that it happened, that it happened to me, that I didn't say anything but at the same time glad that I didn't say anything, it's just a completely fucked up situation and it's tangled up with my disability rating which makes me feel guilty for those people who get out of the military who are struggling with physical disabilities that are more obvious than PTSD (which is what they deemed this situation to be since it includes some racism, trust, etc issues).  This isn't "regular" PTSD.  I didn't get shot at, but I guess in my own way I'm fucked up now and have to struggle with these demons so maybe I deserve what I got in the end?  Idk, but this isn't how I planned to end this post!


Overall, a spectacular weekend with Teh German.  We've discussed how fast it feels like everything is going, but that's it's comfortable and we fit so well together.  We're not doing anything crazy for the time being, just enjoying the comfort (and sappiness if you're me).  There are many plans in the works, which is exciting!

Happy Last Week of August 2015, Gentle Readers!

Weekend Review {7/20}

FRIDAY

Some drama was going down at work.  Always a good time.  Due to hours, I got to leave at 1230.. make that 1245 because I got tasked with some drama mitigation at 1230 as I was literally about to turn off my computer.  It got pushed to Monday.  #sorrynotsorry #taskmeintheAM

When it gets rough, I just minimize all the windows and stare at my cute puppies.

I had some returns to make at Lowes and Walmart, so I got those done and picked up a delicious Jr. Bacon Cheeseburger from Wendy's (which is the only burger I ever get there) and a mega-ultra-huge sweet tea.  After accomplishing my errands, I headed home to hang out with the dogs and play on the online dating site.  Seriously, these profiles are hilarious to me.  Some are legit funny, some are me literally laughing at these people.  In fact, I created an entire post about it.  Gentle Readers can look forward to that later in the week (I think/hope).

The feels like temp outside kept me from walking the dogs in the evening, but I wasn't overly concerned because I pounded out 4.5 miles in the morning.  I ended up being lazy for dinner and eating leftovers.  The "breakup" diet this time is more about eating less when I eat, than not eating, so my friends can rejoice that I will not drop dead from not eating!  It's actually kinda nice not to feel so stuffed after meals.

I finished up season 5 of Downton and there were tears.  I'm not ready for it to end!  NO NO NO!!!  I stalked some strangers** and finally I went to bed around 10 since Mr. Scrooge and I were going on a ride on Saturday morning.

MUST PLAY WITH ALL THE TOYS!!!! -Meri

SATURDAY

I was completely lazy and instead of taking the dogs out on a walk, I just let them stay outside for the hour between waking up and leaving.  Meri didn't mind.

After an almost disaster where Mike died as I was driving down the interstate and wouldn't start because he was trying to run out of gas (luckily he wasn't completely empty and we were able to make it to a gas station without walking Mike down the side of I-526), we headed towards John's Island.

Our first stop was Sunrise Bistro again, which was just as delicious the 2nd time.  What Mr. Scrooge described as me "aggressively looking" at a dude's shirt to read it, I was excited to see a greyhound person sitting beside us as the bar!  My trying to read his shirt might have been a little creeptastic, but it was worth it!  We chatted for a bit and shared some photos.  He didn't even know there was a Charleston greyhound group.  Le sigh.. I wish this group didn't suck so bad.  

After breakfast, we headed to the post office so I could mail Teh WJL a present (for being awesome and helping me move).  Then we headed to Angel Oak.  It's this MASSIVE tree.  Super old.  Photo below gives you all the details.  If you're ever in the Charleston area, it's definitely worth the look.

After the tree, we agreed to go to Edisto beach.  This is significant because we were headed to Edisto beach when I crashed Mike a week after I got him.  You memberrrr...  Anyways, this was more of a big deal for Mr. Scrooge than me.  I had wanted Edisto beach to be the first place we went after I got Mike back, but Mr. Scrooge wasn't really up for it and I didn't push it.  So this was the first time we took that road since that disastrous first time.

Nothing of significance to report.  Mr. Scrooge took it quite slow for me, at times I wanted him to go faster, but I just accepted it because he was nervous and we were being safe.

We hung out on the beach for a short bit once we reached our destination.  Also, we discovered that the gas station across from the public access had a walk in beer cooler, which was SUPER nice to cool off in after sitting outside in our jeans and boots and riding so far in all our gear.  Soooo sweatyyy.

Mr. Scrooge had been slightly grouchy when we arrived at the diner, which I assumed was because of my gas mishap but... I also knew that he recently started to express interest in reading my blog and I posted on Friday about the online dating thing.  He didn't say anything about it at breakfast, but he wasn't really "friendly" either.  I just assumed he was in one of his moods and went on about my business.  Finally at the beach, he alluded to something about how I was "looking."  This was my confirmation that he HAD read my Friday post, and I explained to him that I wasn't necessarily interested in jumping straight into a relationship.  I was also looking to be entertained.  At the worst, I'm getting funny stories and possibly free meals/food.

I could tell he felt better after he finally said something.  I just wish it wouldn't have taken him so long.  The rest of the trip, he was much nicer and normal.  I guess this means he probably also read that thing about poking my boob.  #sorrynotsorry  That said, how long has he been reading?  The whole time?  I guess this could explain some of the moodiness that I had to deal with.  Then again, I felt like anything I put on Teh Blog, personal drama wise, I made a point to discuss with him first.  I feel like to be in a relationship and finding something out on your significant other's blog is a pretty shitty modus operandi.  I like to think that didn't happen.  I'm sure I'll never know if it did.

Pelicans!

I told this guy that it might be too soon for a shark on the beach in a Carolina, but I don't think he got it.

After ice cream and rehydration, we decided to head back to civilization.  I asked Mr. Scrooge to stop on one of the bridges we crossed if there weren't any no stopping signs (there weren't).  Which meant I was able to get this shot:

I got a panoramic of that scene as well, but all the photos are still unedited, sorry/you're welcome.

Once we got back to my house, Mr. Scrooge came in to say hey to the pups and cool off for a bit.  After showing him the photos I took (I seriously need to figure out this polarizing lens because I think it killed my tree images (my own fault)) he headed back to his house.  He later invited me over for dinner, but Meri ended up puking several times, so I opted to stay home and give her extra attention.

Mike got put into his new cubby.  Mr. Scrooge noticed some rust on part of the wheel, which was motivation to get Mike out of the elements.

I spent the evening playing on the internet and messaging strangers.  I probably should have cleaned, but meh.  I deserve a lazy day.  I went to bed around 8:45 because I was exhausted and I didn't take a nap all afternoon.

SUNDAY

After being guilted by a stranger for not getting in my run on Saturday (it wasn't intentional and I'll take whatever motivation I can get), I got up on Sunday morning early enough to get a run in before church.  In order not to DEmotivate myself, I didn't even check the weather before getting out of bed, which is often the ONE thing that significantly deters me from going on my runs.  It was the most effective solution to the problem that I will continue to employ in the future.  Seriously.

I did 6 miles in 1 hr and 5 minutes.  I was pleased with that time considering the humidity level was in the 90% range.  I could actually see the mist where the sun was shining through the trees in some places.  So yeah, running through a fog was pretty much the most miserable thing I did all weekend.  I got home and showered and headed to a new church I discovered on the internets.  I was pretty excited about it honestly.

Then I got there and the church was under construction and I had no idea where to park or how to get to the sanctuary...  It's really my luck.  I was not deterred.  I parked where I saw some other cars and started to walk where I'd seen someone else.  A lady and her daughter happened to be walking through at the same time as me, which was helpful.  Then she stopped to talk to some strangers and they all pretty much ignored me while I stood there while they chatted (I didn't want to interrupt them) and I started to get pissed.  I finally got to ask where the sanctuary was since the lady didn't seem to be leading the way anymore.  At which point, we continued on.  She asked if I was new and I said yes, and she introduced herself and her daughter.  The daughter ended up leading me into the sanctuary because the mom was ADD apparently.

I had heard the praise band practicing when I walked in behind the lady and I figured I was late.  I had seen 8:45 on the website and it was 8:46.  Oops.  When I walked into the sanctuary, there was ONE couple and the praise band.  I just kinda stood at the entry way stunned.  All I could think was, "There is no way there is only one couple here at this service.  No.way."  At that point, the band members were starting to look at me standing there, stupefied.  I figured that at this point, what did I have to lose?  I sat down towards the front on the left side (always and forever).  The band finished the song and they started talking to the person in the soundbooth and I realized why there was no one else there.... the service hadn't started yet.  0845 was the start time for the other church I had looked at.  /facepalm.

The couple in front of me introduced themselves, and so, so many others.  I forgot how hospitable southerners are.  Southerners meet no strangers, that's probably on a mug somewhere... probably beside a Confederate flag mug.. too soon?  my bad.  The service was awesome, although the music was a bit loud (which could have been my own fault, I'll get back to this).  The crowd wasn't all old people (which makes a difference).  The pastor that spoke didn't read from notes, although I really felt like he could have done with a little less bible lesson and a lot more "how to apply to your life" lesson since we all know the story of Joseph and the coat of many colors and his life as adults.  If not a short summary could have sufficed instead of telling the entire story in detail then a quick wrap up at the end.  I'm picky, I know.  After the service, several people came up to me and said I looked familiar, like someone else who attend there.  The lady that had escorted me in even apologized for ignoring me before because she thought I was the person that everyone else had thought I was, who would have known her way to the sanctuary.  Fully understanding what was going on made me laugh and tell the lady it was ok.

By the time the service ended, I had a full-on headache.  I had ran 6 miles and drank plenty of water, but hadn't remembered to grab a piece of bacon from the fridge before I left so I was getting a no-food headache.  As I was debating my options, I decided to message Teh SC House Finder, who I hadn't seen in a hot minute, and asked if they had eaten breakfast.  Right as I got home, she responded and asked if I wanted to go to brunch with them at Ms. Rose's, of course I said, "Yes please, when?"  Her mom had to get ready, but then it was time.  That gave me a few minutes to hammer down a piece of bacon to maybe help mitigate the headache some.

We arrived at Ms. Rose's at 11 and our food (thankfully) came out fast.  Sorry there were no pics of my biscuit and gravy with an egg on top, I NEEDED food.  It was super fun catching up with Teh SC House Finder and her family.  I forgot that they hadn't even seen my new hair do!  Teh Teacher's Assistant has the same cut, so I told her how much I loved her style too.  :)  That's how long it's been since we hung out.  So I got to update them on all the things.  I told them that soon we'd have to have a gathering at my house so they could come check out the new place and so Teh SC House Finder's Dad could hang out with Phil and Meri (he really loves Phil and thinks Meri is "very interesting" since no other dog looks like her (it's the ears)).

After brunch, I came home and took a nap to help fight the headache.  I woke up with it still lingering, but it was tolerable.  I got up and read some and messaged some strangers and ate my pineapple upside down cake that I had gotten to-go and was generally lethargic with the pups.  A storm rolled through, which would explain the lingering headache that vanished after the storm was finished.  Thanks Barometer Head, thanks.

Storm dog is weird.

Despite not getting the cleaning done that I had planned, I did do some laundry and the dishes.  Not having a dishwasher is really killer.  I would have never survived as a 50's house wife.




Overall, an extremely satisfying weekend.  I think I might have found my new church!  I haven't decided yet if I want to check out church with the 0845 contemporary service or not.  I'll figure it out soon enough.  I also set up a time and date to meet one of the strangers that I've messaged throughout the weekend.  I will proceed to text my dates/time/location to someone so that way they know I've been abducted if I don't call them by a certain time.  I'm nervous/excited about it.  This guy seems very nice and non-douchy.

Meri is still not at the top of her game.  She's been pretty lethargic all day Sunday and not playing very much, but she hasn't puked, which is progress!  She puked on both her crate blanket AND Phil's crate blanket, which meant they BOTH got washed!  She's the best at motivating me to do things, little turd monkey.





**strangers are the dudes on the dating site.  I felt like it was fitting.

Linking up with these ladies:
Ashely @ A Cute Angle
Meg @ Life of Meg
Biana @ BLovedBoston

Confessions {4/8}

-I do not find the mini-Cadbury eggs as satisfying as the regular eggs... and neither did Teh MD Adult Roomie, so she bought us 2 packs each of the regular and caramel eggs.  #keeper

-I bought a 5 pack of the regular Cadbury eggs on Easter weekend and I felt slightly guilty, but they are delicious and I'm making up for the last 7 years when I thought they were too sweet.  #getinmahbelly

-TMI alert: Apparently, my body thinks its funny to NEED to go business during my morning meetings.  Recently, I was telling Teh Sister about my woes (because relatives and people you live with are really the only ones who you should tell about poopin' (unless you have a blog and no filter and happen to be Teh Megan)) and she was laughing at my plight.  When my meeting was finally over, I booked it to the bathroom and sent Teh Sister a gif of an explosion knowing how much she would appreciate it.
Her response: Was that your butthole?
My response: Nope, that's what happened to the potty.

I don't care who you are, that's shits funny right there (pun intended).  #poopstoriesmakemelaugh #ihavebeenmistakenforachild

-There aren't that many women who work in my building and I wish that we could create some bathroom rules.
1.  From the hours of 0900-1500, if there is someone in the bathroom when you walk in, just walk back out and try again in 5 minutes.*
*This rule doesn't apply if the person is at the sink washing their hands, but the incoming person must wait until the outgoing person exits before going #2** if that is the intention of the visit.  #1 can commence at anytime, especially if the outgoing individual is lingering for too long (it's those magnifying mirrors).
**This is especially important if you aren't sure if it's going to smell or not.

See that was simple, one rule.  This would eliminate the following problems:
~someone being in your stall when you come to the bathroom (don't even pretend like you don't have a preferred stall/bathroom you use)
~poop standoffs (where you are waiting on the other person to leave so you can poop)
~having to smell someone else's poop
~awkward bathroom nods/conversations
#bathroometiquette #solitarypoops  #sorryforallthepooptalk

-I can listen to most country music stations all day long.  I can't tolerate pop stations for very long and end up skipping 75% of the songs.  That said, all these songs about drinking make me want to punch a baby.  #idonthavetodrinktohaveagoodtime

-I didn't go to church on Easter and I'm feeling that #catholicguilt something fierce.  Seriously though, the church struggle is real.
 

-I wasn't really planning on buying a motorcycle last weekend and I think no one was more surprised than Mr. Scrooge who was like, you're just gonna write a check for that?  Me: Yep.  #motorcyclebabe

-I knew after seeing Cristina get off a motorcycle in the first season of Grey's Anatomy that I'd eventually own a bike so I could toss my hair around all sexy after getting off the motorcycle (which is ridiculous because it's completely impossible not to look completely disheveled after removing my helmet).  #Cristinaismyfavoriteforever #helmethair

 (I looked for a gif of Cristina/a female removing their helmet for over 10 minutes and they don't exist.. 1, that hurts my soul because that's one of my favorite Cristina Yang moments, 2, wtf internet, y u fail me?)

-I started our grill last weekend.  This is a confession because until then I had never started a charcoal grill in my entire life.  I'm pretty sure I almost singed off my eyebrows.  Mr. Scrooge couldn't figure out why I wouldn't give him a straight answer when he asked if I started it.  When he assessed my work (he said I hadn't added enough charcoal, but dinner still got cooked so maybe he's just wasteful?) he couldn't figure out why I hadn't ever started a charcoal grill before and I had to remind him, "We always had gas grills.  Turn the knob, press the button, POOF!"  #firsttimeforeverything

-Easter is not Christmas.  Ugh, stop commercializing all the holidays, People, and just spent some time together as a family and share a bag of candy.  You have permission to buy extra candy if you're not spending the holiday with family.  #familytime

-I started noticing recently that most of my blogs that I read have vanished from my Feedly.  It really sucks and it now makes more sense how I was able to be so caught up on blog reading for the last few weeks.  #technologyhatesme

-You might have a (foam) roller addiction when you find thing to rub your sore muscles on.. like the arm rest console in your car for your arms or your seat edge for your legs.  #imaddictedtomyfoamroller  #runningmademethisway


-No jk, I listened to Withdrawal by Tyler Farr on repeat all.day.long yesterday.  It's really good that modern technology has given us earbuds so no one else has had to experience my repeat problem.  When it was time to leave work, I queued up Spotify on Suzy and pulled out of the parking lot jamming to this song, singing at the top of my lungs.  #carconcertperformer

-I'm trying to find a trail/place where I can get in a 8.5-9.5 mile run by Saturday and it's making me pretty anxious.  I like having a plan and knowing where I'm going ahead of time and running somewhere new the first is always horrific because it feels like it takes soooooo long.  #runningproblems  #trainingwoes

-Clip "Clippy" McClippington III has had high levels of activity this week.  His nails must have hit a growth spurt.  If you don't follow Teh Blog on FB, you're missing out on the Clippy Saga.  This message from one of my coworkers summed it up nicely, "It's like he has 35 fingers."  Another coworker and I discussed how it was possible that his fingers weren't bleeding all over his keyboard.  The puns that come from these conversations are awesome.

Coworker: Clippy McClipington III over there...
Me: :(  i sometimes want to ask him if he takes biotin as a supplement.  it makes my nails grow super fast..  but i don’t clip them at work every.single.day
Coworker: Megan, when it comes to comedy,. you NAIL it.
Me: I hate myself for laughing at your puns.  But this short clip must end.
Coworker: I hate you too :(  HAHA!  You keep the jokes coming at a nice...  ...CLIP
Me: I’ll FILE that away for later.

Coworker: One positive, he works at a pretty good clip though.  Sorry I didn't mean to get cute(ical).

Did I mention I love my job and my coworkers are pretty awesome as well?  Truth.  #nailedit #punintended

-I just lost an hour of my life looking back at webcomics that I used to read.  Damn I miss those.  Go check 'em out if webcomics are your jam...  #webcomicsrock #nevertoooldforcartoons
Questionable Content (which I still follow and several people think that this is where Teh came from since Martin wears a Teh shirt (which I own) reguarly)
Something Positive (which I no longer follow because I got a few years behind (blaming bootcamp/NMITC/GTMO/Bahrain) and have never taken the time to catch up.)
Queen of Wands (which sadly ended, but they started the next comic)
Punch an Pie (I stopped following this one and never really got back into it)
Two Lumps (which I forget and remember pretty regularly)
Striptease (which has ended and made me super sad)
Red String (which I stopped following because I got behind)
Finally, there was one that was Asian themed with people that turned to dragons (or something weird related to dragons) and there were spirits and I loved it and lost it and haven't been able to find it since college, after Ex-Fiance' and I broke up and I'm STILL crushed about it.

Weekend Review {2/2}

IT'S FEBRUARY!!!!!!  The month we've all been waiting for!  You know why?  (Shh, it's about me right now.)  IT'S MY BIRTHDAY MONTH!!!  In case you were wondering, my birthday is the 3rd.  Oh, and yes, I have an amazon wish list.  :)

Let's talk about this weekend though, shall we?
PS. This is a long post, consider yourself warned.

FRIDAY

Work kinda dragged on and on Friday.  Mostly because starting Wednesday morning I had ZERO desire to get out of the bed when my alarm went off, which continued through.. today.  Every time I started to get really into doing work things, I'd get a message or I'd need to change my Spotify song, or I'd get distracted and ugh, it was irritating.  Mr. Scrooge met me for lunch since we have a food truck (several trucks rotate through on a schedule) a short walk from my building.  This was cajun food, so my food was a bit too spicy for me to really enjoy, but I toughed it out.

When Mr. Scrooge left, I buckled down and turned off all the ways to get messages, sans the work ways.  In reality, this is my biggest ADD source.  The tech guys like to send messages to the group instead of just to each other so they can get feedback from anyone who knows about the issue.  My problem is that my job has nothing to do with their job so all day I get to listen to Skype binks (the notification noise) and it's unbearably distracting to me.  I'd turn it off, but what if I get a message and I don't see it?  Ugh.

Also, since Spotify has really become a source of ADD, I found a deep focus playlist and I rocked on with my documentation.  Explosions in the Sky is probably one of my favorite no-lyrics artists.  Despite having done some work on Thursday night (I never thought I'd be the person that brings work home with me, FYI), I still stayed my full 8 hours.  I left and hit up the gym on my way home (for the 5th time last week, woot!).

When I got home, it was dinner time.  I'd put a beef roast in the crockpot before leaving for work so I didn't have to worry about dinner.  Since we had leftover pasta, I reheated that, and we had leftover spinach from chicken and gnocchi soup last week, so a salad was our veggie.  Lazy, aye.

After we ate, Mr. Scrooge played video games and I played on Teh Flamin' Kindle (which I often refer to as my Nook, oops).  We managed to coax the dogs Phil (since Meri was already with us) up on the couch and we had some family snuggle time which just melted my heart.  I also talked with Teh MD Adult Roomie about going to Greyhounds in Gettysburg (GIG) in April.  YAY GIG!!!

Mr. Scrooge said that we could go for the entire weekend, which is super awesome for me because I've always wanted to go and never did when I lived in MD (aka, when it was MUCH closer than it is from SC. /facepalm).  His reasoning is because he loves old shit, which is fine with me because I, too, love old shit, and I definitely want to do some battlegrounds walks and hang out with my dog peeps and meet some of my instagram friends/followers in real life (yep, I'm a nerd).

Mr. Scrooge ended up going to bed before me, which meant I had some alone time (aka the tv wasn't on so I could focus) to finally catch up on Wednesday Confessions and comment on everyone else's posts.  After closing all my open tabs, it was bedtime.

SATURDAY

Mr. Scrooge and I slept in, which was delightful.  Of course, a little after 9, Meri joined us in bed, as is her rule.  We then coaxed Phil up on the bed too and had MORE family snuggle time.  A girl could get spoiled with all these good doggy snuggle sessions.

I had been talking about wanting an egg salad sammich all week from a local restaurant, so Mr. Scrooge had suggested that we go there for lunch and, of course, I said yes.  It was everything I needed it to be.  While I was waiting on Mr. Scrooge to finish getting ready, I prepped the dog's pills for the week (Phil takes more pills than I do each day, that's how you know I love him the mostest).  We reached the dog's favorite point of the PB jar, when it gets empty...

After lunch, we came home and Mr. Scrooge went out on a motorcycle ride, while I stayed home and was lazy.  Before he left, he brought all the mail inside and it was an EXCELLENT mail day.  I had TWO birthday packages (one from Teh BFF and one from Teh MD Adult Roomie), a check from Chase (which we will talk about later), and my new (health) insurance card!  Teh BFF agreed that I could open her package right then, but Teh MD Adult Roomie said I had to wait, then she said I could open it then, but I had already agreed to wait so I had something to open ON my birthday since I think I know what it is.. or at least I hope I think I know what it is, because if it's what I think it is, I'm SUPER pumped.

I was also fighting a headache, so after talking to Teh Dad and an episode of Downton Abbey, it was nap time.  When I woke up, I accomplished some tasks on my to do list, like put my new NCSU SC tag on Yurtle, put away the clean laundry, move the sheets to the dryer.

Friday night, we had decided to try a place called Bowens Island Restaurant after our decision to go to improv downtown had been foiled since I couldn't order 2 tickets online.  No big deal since we had a backup plan.  All their oysters are local and you either love it or hate it.  I didn't hate it, so there's that.  It's also one of the best places to catch the sunset in the area, and I got SOOOOO many photos (#ilooklikeatourist #idgaf).

It's one of those places where you go up to the counter to order, then you find a seat.  When your food is ready a food attendant will bring it out and yell your name to find you.  The line was out the door the entire time we were there and we arrived shortly after 5, when they opened.  We had planned on being there at 5, but Mr. Scrooge was a little late coming home and we still had to feed the dogs before we left and Phil was eating as.slow.as.possible.  Really, it's good he's my favorite.

Incredible sunset.  I just couldn't stop snapping photos.  I probably took 20 photos sitting on the deck while Mr. Scrooge was inside in line to order food.

A tray of oysters (local), boiled shrimp, fried fish, hush puppies, cole slaw, and fries.

That's his concentrating face.

Sluuuurrp.

It was so big!

I did help Mr. Scrooge eat some of the oysters (but didn't help with the shuckin' part what with my minimal ability to use a knife to cut a steak) and I shared some of my dinner (the not oysters) with him.  I was a failure and deleted the photos of Mr. Scrooge with his napkin bib on, which makes me super sad since it was ridiculous.  Also, one of the most dangerous things I've ever encountered with Mr. Scrooge is being in such close proximity of him while he was trying to shuck the oysters.  I was sure I was going to lose a finger.. or an eye... or walk out of there bleeding in some way.

After we finished dinner, we headed to a place called Rollin' South Kitchen for dessert, which was on James Island.  The bartender at Bowens Island had recommended it, so we figured why not.  I was slightly disappointed that the only dessert they has was Hummingbird Cake, which is essentially carrot cake without the carrots.. aka a light spice cake.  I wasn't overly impressed but it was ok.  It wasn't something I would have ordered if I would have had the choice of something chocolate, but it was their specialty, so definitely worth trying.  While Mr. Scrooge was finishing his beer, I pulled out Teh Flamin' Kindle and we played some Fruit Ninja.  I lost 3 times, but won once, so I'll take it.  In my defense, Mr. Scrooge kept knocking Teh Flamin' Kindle and it would move.

We finally headed home and I took all my electronics (really it's ridiculous) into the bedroom and did some work.  Mr. Scrooge was gaming so it wasn't like he really missed my company.  After my eyes started to cross from dealing with computer code, I put away the work computer and read the book club book (Where'd You Go Bernadette) for a little while before finally deciding it was bedtime.

Despite my encouragement to come to bed, Mr. Scrooge stayed up until 3am doing whatever is it he does until 3am.  I know it involved cooking a pizza at 0130, since the dogs woke me up scratching on the door because he had opened the fridge (beggar dogs much? uggh).  Let's just say it's good he's cute and I was exhausted and I had earplugs and I realized that I was working myself up over nothing (mostly because I hadn't gotten my way when I encouraged him to come to bed and he said soon and then it didn't happen until 3 hours later).  Let me make that make sense for you.

Part of my own personal goal when Mr. Scrooge and I had our serious talk a few weeks ago was that I'd stop getting worked up over non-issues.  Seriously, Gentle Readers, not only was I pissed that he was still up at 0130.. then he was making an ENTIRE PIZZA?  AND it was like 3 inches tall because of all the crap he'd added, including almost an ENTIRE bag of mozzarella cheese (nope, not making that up).. AND he'd used the pepperoni stuffed crust pizza!  I was so angry.  I almost couldn't get to sleep.

I think it started with the dogs waking me up, which is never a good thing.  From there it spiraled out of control because I knew Mr. Scrooge was drunk (whatever, he was at home, who cares?).  I laid in bed being pissed off and knowing I wasn't going to be able to go to sleep because I was so mad and then being pissed off at myself for being mad.  Then I remembered there was a stuffed crust pizza in the freezer (my favorite) and I actually got out of the bed to see which pizza he'd used (my favorite one, duh), which only served to fuel my rage fire.  Then I moved on to the next step, which was knowing that there was going to be a huge mess in the kitchen in the morning, I just knew it.  All the while, I'm trying to talk myself down.  I literally got out of bed to see which pizza he used BECAUSE I knew which one it was and I KNEW I'd be pissed off.  I mean, really, Megan, REALLY?  Sit the fuck down and chill out.  Bitch please, ain't nobody got time for that kind of rage at 0130.  THEN, to prepare myself to be pissed off first thing in the morning.  I'm ridiculous.

I had woken up at 03 and checked the time, because I was still pissed off.  A few minutes later, I felt Mr. Scrooge get in the bed.  I was such a bitch too.  I felt him, but still hogged the entire bed.  When I woke up Sunday morning, he had the majority of the bed, but still.  I was ornery and difficult.  I had in earplugs and I think I heard him tell me good night, but I didn't respond because I knew whatever came out of my mouth would be dripping with rage that was blown out of proportion for no reason other than I'm me.

Seriously.  Someone tell me I'm not the only one who does this?  The worst part is definitely being in the midst of all that rage and KNOWING you are blowing it out of proportion and you're working yourself up over something that shouldn't be an issue at all. but it totally is.  So I'm angry but I feel bad for being angry which means I get frustrated at myself and it's just a hot mess.

SUNDAY

I had told Mr. Scrooge that I was possibly going to church.  I kinda doubted I'd go when I woke up at 0130 with all the rage that felt like it kept me awake forever, then waking up again at 3.  But, I woke up at 0750 without an alarm, and figured that was God's way of being like, alright, get your ass to church, missy.  Mr. Scrooge had gotten up with the beasts at 06 when they roused him.  He said I didn't move.  I didn't, but I was aware enough to hear him get out of bed.  He had actually heard the dogs before me because I had my earplugs equipped and I wasn't a bit sorry.

I was almost ready to head out the door to church and I remembered the chili needed to get put in the crockpot, which meant I was going to be late for church.  Fortunately, Mr. Scrooge had gotten up and was about to get in the bath (he seriously takes more baths than anyone I've ever met, but whatever makes him happy) and he agreed to help me by browning the meat and cooking up the onions while I drained and rinsed the beans and put everything else together in the crockpot.  I was only 15 minutes late for church instead of 30.  I almost tried to talk myself out of going since I was going to be late, but I just felt like I NEEDED to be at the first church this morning.

I had actually planned to go last weekend, but I ended up sleeping in instead.  Slacker, aye.  But this weekend, I needed to be there, even if I was late.  I forgot that the first church was more dressy than the 2nd church I went to.  I was one of two people in jeans.  Whatevs.  There's been a lot of chatter lately about it NOT being about what you wear to church, so I tried to just be comfortable.  I sat in the back since I was late, which is strange for me since I'm an up-front-sitter.  But, the seat I took was facing the pastor directly.  It was like God was giving me all these signs.  I woke up on my own to get there on time, I still went even though I was late, my chair was directly facing the pastor (instead of having to turn my head to see him, which isn't really that big of a deal, but is kinda like God being like PAY ATTENTION, MEGAN).

The sermon was about praying, based on the chapter in Luke where the disciples as Jesus to teach them to pray.  This is the same passage where the Lord's Prayer is given to the disciples, which means not only was the sermon about praying (and it sometimes feeling like a one sided conversation) but the pastor broke down the part of the Lord's Prayer (and made everyone laugh when he said he was sure there would be lots of praying yesterday; some prayers for the Patriots to win, some prayers for the Seahawks to win...).  The very first sermon I heard at LPUMC in MD was the pastor breaking down the Lord's Prayer.  It was part of why I picked LPUMC as my church.

But the most important part of the sermon was when the pastor was speaking about praying sometimes feeling like a one-sided conversation and how it was sometimes difficult to hear God talking to you because there's just so much noise all the time in our lives.  At which point he quoted my absolute favorite Bible verse, Psalms 46:10: Be still, and know... (the one I will eventually get as a tattoo)..  I knew RIGHT THEN that this was my new church.  That tingle went down my entire body.

This time, the pastor didn't read his entire sermon, thankfully.  I wasn't there for the beginning worship songs, but the ones I did get to participate in were pretty good.  During the entire service I knew that God had been directing me to this place, and I was thankful in all the ways.  One of the biggest concerns in my life since I made the decision to get out of the navy has been about the dollas.  When I didn't magically get the job that everyone said I was going to get at the start of my terminal leave, I was worried and full of doubt and oh were there prayers.  LOTS of prayers.  I hadn't been good about going to church since I got to SC, but everyone's faith journey has valleys and peaks.  I'm not sure if this was a valley or a peak, honestly and here's why: despite my consistent worry about money, there's never been a time when I've gone hungry or struggled.  There's been times when the money has been low, but even now, when I've been using my credit card for the last month so I don't have to dip into my savings (since I know I'll be getting paid soon), I could pay off my credit card if I needed to and still have money to pay Yurtle's payment each month.

It makes ZERO sense.  Seriously.  ZERO.  I've been buying groceries and paying the cable/utility bills since I moved in (well, I started paying the utility stuffs in Nov).  Groceries aren't cheap and Target paychecks were... lacking.  But when I needed money, it was miraculously there.  I haven't had a paycheck since the beginning of January and I won't get paid from Company until the 2nd week of February, but I received a pretty large refund check from Chase saying they charged me too much interest over the last 6 years while I was in the Navy.  I also filed my taxes and have already started getting them back.  I also have a check coming from Kia because some magical lawsuit happened and they claimed Yurtle got better gas mileage than she actually does, so people get dollas and I'm one of those people.  I paid for SC car insurance and registration and I'll get my NC insurance and registration money refunded.

To some it may be a serious of fortunate events, but to me, this is something larger at work.  It kinda hit me what was going on when I received my contributions letter from LPUMC from my tithes that I paid to them in 2014 (yay tax deductions!).  It was a LOT of money.  I had felt the crunch some months when I was writing the checks, but it wasn't so bad that I didn't write the check.  There have been many ways in which I've been taken care of since October.  From Teh MD Adult Roomie telling me not to worry about paying for bills for the last week that I was there, to Mr. Scrooge taking care of our activities and eating out and the cable bill for a few extra months, to magical lawsuits where Kia is going to give me several hundred dollars to make up for something that I was completely unaware of.  Some of these things make total sense, but the influx of money in January when I'm not receiving any income?  I'm giving God that credit.

That's really a lot of Jesus talk for one post, but this has been weighing on my heart since I received my LPUMC contributions letter.  I remember Teh Mom talking about ways we were taken care of, after she and my dad split up and how it made no sense most of the time how things just worked out.  I remember her saying it was a miracle.  I believed her then, because I understood our situation, but when you yourself are in that situation and you get those feelings and that tingle down your spine and you know that all those conversations that you thought were one-sided, weren't one-sided at all.. that's when you KNOW, without a doubt that it's something much bigger than you in charge of all this.

Ahem.. continuing on with the weekend though (sorry not sorry for the soapbox)...

After church, I went to Kohl's to spend some Kohl's cash (which I really wish I could stop getting, seriously).  I first stopped at Starbucks to obtain one of my free birthday drinks (I have 2 since I have 2 Starbucks rewards cards, don't ask), then headed to Kohl's.  Right before I went into Kohl's, I was talking with Mr. Scrooge and asked him if he wanted to do lunch since we were both out and he was planning on going on a motorcycle ride since it was a gorgeous day.  He agreed to meet at SmashBurger.

While he headed my way, I scavenged through Kohl's shoe section for some new gym shoes because ALL my gym shoes have/had holes in the back at the ankle area.  I ended up buying 4 pairs of new shoes for $138.  Teh MD Teenage Roomie's response was, "WHY do you need FOUR pairs of shoes?!"  Well, 1, all my shoes had holes in the fabric and I usually try to keep 2 pairs of gym shoes around on principle.  2.  They were on sale.  3.  Shoes are an investment and my investment averaged about $35 per set of shoes, which is pretty good if you ask me.  4.  I won't have to buy new gym shoes for a year.  I did consider returning one pair, but I haven't made that commitment yet.

These were NOT a consideration.
But really, WHY are these stretchy shoes a thing?

While I was trying on shoes, there was a couple there and the husband was trying to find some new gym shoes.  He needed some with lots of padding.  He tried on some Nike's then told his wife that they had the padding of walking on newspapers.  I couldn't help but laugh.  At that same time, I was trying on a pair of Asics and suggested that he try them (in the men's version) instead, because the pair I had on were SUPER padded.  Before I walked away with my 4 boxes of shoes, he was giving grunts of approval as he walked around looking for his wife.

I was trying to hurry and check out and there was an older lady in front of me who was taking FOREVER to check out.  As in, she was about to write her check (who does that still, really?) and then was like, nah take those shoes off, they were too much... GRANNY GET OUT OF MY WAY I'M HUNGRY AND I'M ALREADY FEELING BUYERS REMORSE!!  Finally, another sales rep came up to help out the lone cashier.  She wouldn't honor my 30% off coupon (of course, since it was expired even though she couldn't read and thought it said it wasn't valid until Feb 15, not that it was valid Jan 15-28th), but she gave me 20% off after I told her the reason I was buying FOUR pairs of shoes was because I thought I had my 30% and I told her that the lady at the other register had just used a 20% off coupon.  BOOM.  Plus $10 Kohl's cash (ugh), plus $10 birthday rewards = $138... plus $20 in Kohl's cash.. FML.

After Kohl's, I headed to the grocery store to pick up some juice and a replacement frozen pizza (don't judge me, ok?) and milk so we could survive the week.  I came home and unloaded Yurtle, while Phil and Meri side-eyed me waiting for me to tell them they could get in the car, which they eventually did after it was almost completely empty, silly dogs.

After getting everything put away, I sat down at my computer to power out this post because I really wanted to talk about what an excellent weekend it was and talk about finding my new church and just all.the.things, really.  I had asked Mr. Scrooge to be home by 4:30 so we could head to Teh SC House Finder and Teh Architect's house for a super bowl gathering.  When he showed up at 3:30, I was super surprised.

I made chili for dinner to bring to our gathering and Teh SC House Finder did wings and Teh SC House Finder's Mom brought dessert.  I wasn't super interested in football (ever), but I have missed our weekly gathering so much.

YYYYAAAAYYY for a superb weekend with excellent weather.






Linking up with these ladies:
Weekend Recap w/ Bella and the City | Weekending w/ B Loved Boston