Weekend Review {3/9}

FRIDAY

My goal Friday was to be out of work by 1430.  That didn't end up happening.  Who schedules a planning meeting on a Friday after lunchtime?  Just no.  Shut that shit down, plskthx.  The worst part was that my presence wasn't really necessary since they are starting the website architecture (yeah it went over my head too) and there's no documentation until the system admins and architects put it down.  I had been working on our other project since I had something that I'd promised someone on Wednesday afternoon that I still hadn't delivered by lunchtime on Friday, which was incredibly frustrating for me.

Then as I was about to send the manual to the person that needed it, my not-boss supervisor (who is kind of a horrible micromanager and feels like everything should go through himself and my boss (which is NOT the opinion of my actual boss from my understanding)) decided to email me some "suggestions" for the manual that I've been working on for a month.

That fire was fanned with the fuel remaining from a Facebook situation where FB cockblocked me from everything.  Which is not quite an exaggeration.  Let me explain the FB situation then we'll get back to work, mmkkay?

So Friday morning (before I started being productive at work), I posted on the Glass Slipper Challenge group that I talked about on Friday, asking if the characters on 10k and 1/2 were the same.  That is the only thing I did on Friday that was out of my scope of normal FB activity.  Right before lunch time, I needed a break from my manual so I went to FB to see the responses and I had been mysteriously logged out of FB.  Strange, but ok.  When I signed back in, I got this:

I am assessing after some googly help that someone reported me for my name being Teh Megan and I was forced to change it to my "authentic" name.  The reason that I had changed it from my authentic name to begin with is because there's no opt out of FB's search.  If someone searched for Megan "Lastname" then my profile would come up.  Granted, I'm on lock down, so you can't see my business unless we're friends and I only accept people I know in real life, but that's not the point.  I don't want to be searchable.  For a while you were able to change the settings that people could only find you if they had your email address, but I think the days of that have passed.

The reason I didn't want to be searched was that I was job hunting.  Granted, I don't have incriminating photos on my FB, unless you're my landlord, then you need to know that the 3rd dog was only here for a few hours from a friend and he went home.  Point being, I don't want to be found.  It's that simple.  I know in this age of technology everyone is all about wanting to be seen, but I'm all like, I want to be on the internet and tell my story to mostly complete strangers and sit over here in the corner and hide.  Ya'll, I don't even like to "like" things from BuzzFeed or George Takei or huge FB accounts because my name gets tied to those posts and people can click and find me.  I also don't get involved in commenting on many websites I read because that puts my name out there and I don't want that.

The aftershocks from that earthquake are still being felt.  Because FB locked me out until I changed my name (threatening that if I tried to change it to something "non-authentic" more than 2x in a row, I would be locked out of my account until I could provide legal documentation that the name I was putting was an "authentic" name, no I'm not making that up), it auto signed me out of absolutely everything that I had signed into using FB, which seems to be about 75% of my online presence.  So now, I can't listen to Spotify on my computer because it won't authenticate via FB for some reason and I have no idea what my username/password are.  I know, I know, #firstworldproblem.  The point is FUCK FACEBOOK.

So back to Friday, I was already pissed off at the FB situation, then I get this "suggestion" email, which means that I have to go back in this document and make fairly significant changes.  All.the.rage.  I realized I was also working myself up a bit, so I ate lunch and tried to calm down and was mostly unsuccessful.  As it got closer to time to leave, I got a bit calmer.

Then people started migrating to the conference room and Clippy (the guy who has miraculously growing fingernails that he has to clip every.single.day.of.the.week at his desk) walked by and asked if I was going to the meeting.  I said I was working on something, but maybe.  He joked (apparently not at all) that he would tell Boss that I said I didn't have time for the meeting.  If Friday hadn't already been full of lessons, I added another one to the list, don't let bitches say shit.

He kinda shot himself in the foot since he walked in and said, "Rachel said she's too busy to come to the meeting," and no one laughed because they were all looking at him confused and someone finally had to ask, "Who is Rachel?"  He responded, "the new girl?" and then he got educated on my name.  When I walked in the conference room, late, with my laptop so I could continue working since I knew it wasn't going to apply to me, Boss said, "Welcome, Rachel."  At which point, they caught me up and everyone laughed at Clippy.  Serves him right for trying to stir up shit.

After the meeting, I stayed behind to talk to not-my-boss Supervisor to show him the new template he'd asked for.  I figured that sitting beside him and walking him through it meant that there's less of a possibility in a month from now that he will email me "suggestions" the day before it needs to be delivered.

After getting changed into some workout clothes, I headed to base for a run.  I was already pretty sore from my 3.5 mile run on Thursday afternoon, but I figured I could power through it.  4 miles later, and some surprise hills that I hadn't been mentally prepared for, I drove home feeling like I shouldn't have been driving.

Arrrgh, SC and the damn swamp being everywhere.  When I tried to run around a huge puddle by going through the grass, I still ended up getting muddy.

Sometimes I get what I loving call, runner's stupid.  Which means that I'm extra stupid about things people know I know about.  Generally this has to do with a necessity of food and water, and also probably low blood sugar.  Whatever.  I made it home and struggled to walk in the door, something that happens sometimes after I run.  It's a good time.  Only made Teh MD Adult Roomie worry a few times.  I rolled and thought I was dying.  I talked Mr. Scrooge into getting dinner at Carabbas since I had a 15% off coupon from LivingSocial.  Then I showered and harassed him until he was ready to go (I only harassed him because he was playing that stupid video game, which btw, I'M starting to see repeats of the scenes, so that tells you that he needs a new game to play.  Suggestions are welcome.).

We were every server's dream at dinner.  We ordered an appetizer, 1 adult beverage (him), 2 entrees, and a dessert AND we didn't have any kids.  I wasn't even super picky about my order and the waitress magically produced sweet teas.  We thought she was gonna screw herself out of a good tip when Mr. Scrooge's drink didn't appear until we reminded her, but she made up for it by magically producing sweet tea and apologizing profusely.

Raspberry panna cotta!  nomnomnom

On our way home from dinner, I called a bathroom, which is how you know you're truly comfortable in your relationship.  Since my legs were trying to kill me, literally (they'd give out at random times while I was walking (that'll teach me to stop running again)), I took a bubble bath.  What I didn't know was that I bought industrial strength bubble bath (with epsom salts) for Mr. Scrooge.  These bubbles lasted over an hour.  I didn't add water at any point either.  Crrrraazzyy bubbles.  I gave Teh MD Adult Roomie a bubble update every so often.  While I was in the bath, I finally started watching season 11 of Grey's Anatomy (YAY Teh Flamin' Kindle!) while trying to kill the bubbles (unsuccessfully).

After my bath, it was rollin' time, then bedtime.

The worst type of self-torture device.

SATURDAY

Mr. Scrooge agreed to tackle his jeans situation with me and since we were planning on going to Kohls and didn't get up till after 10 we just had lunch at Panera Bread (which I hadn't had since being in MD).  I still had my free birthday pastry on my card, so we took advantage of that sweetness (heh).  I talked Mr. Scrooge into going to Walmart with me first since they sell Wrangler jeans and that was the kind he said he wanted, or Levi's.  Whatever.  We conquered Walmart pretty quickly since the list of items to get was short (and Mr. Scrooge was getting hot because he was wearing extra layers since he was going on a ride).  We only found 1 pair of jeans for him in his size, but he was satisfied with that and refused to come to Kohl's with me to look.  I was pissed about it for a while, but then got over it after I looked in the men's section and didn't see any Levi's jeans in his size.  Then I proceeded to spend another hour in the store perusing for Megan things.

I picked up my 2 sports bras that I had been planning on getting, but I realized that I had a $10 off $40 coupon and the bras were going to be right at $35 each since I also had a coupon to use, which meant that if I picked out 2 other cheaper items, then I could just do separate orders, blah blah blah.. I ended up shopping more than I intended and walked out with 2 sports bras (needed), a slip (been talking about getting one for a while), a cami (I like to pick these up when they are on sale since I wear them frequently), a pair of jeans for me (because fatty Megan), and a Disney skirt (because I'm gonna be a PRINCESS!).

On my way home, I stopped by Publix to pick up some brussel sprouts for dinner and then went into tourist-mode to get across the street to Goodwill to look for Disney books for Teh Sister.  BTW, if you are a yard sale attendee and you happen to find some Disney books, hook a sister (who is willing to repay you for your efforts) up.  I picked up a super adorable dress and 3 Disney books at Goodwill.  When I got home, went through my purchases and tried on the skirt and the bras and the dress.... Things did not go well for my Kohl's purchases.  Le siiigh.

The worst thing ever is when you find a product you absolutely LUUURRRVEEE and then the manufacturer is all like, NOPE!  That's what happened with my sports bras.  The 3 that I already owned are the shiznit and there is no movement at all (almost).  That's how I like it.  Well, this new styling meant no more velco straps, so I couldn't size them to me (which means that they were too big since I'm pretty much a midget by clothing standards), AND there was no more boob seam, which seemed to help keep the bouncing at a minimum, just the stretchy fabric over the entire boobage.. There was so much bounce I don't even know how they put MAXIMUM SUPPORT on the label.  No, go home, Champion, you're drunk.  Stop messing with an already perfected thing.  The slip was just weird and meh.  The Disney skirt was cute, but I really didn't have anything to go with it and it was kinda hard to tell what it was unless you knew what the print was and it was kinda expensive.  I ended up keeping the jeans and the cami though!  The Goodwill dress wouldn't zip because my boobs, which was super upsetting because it was so cute and Minnie!

I was eagerly awaiting a text message to tell me that Xero the foster dog (Meri's brother) was an hour away, and in the meantime, I hung the towel rack that we had purchased for the bathroom.  I'm super lazy and had actually purchased one when I moved in and returned it when I found my over the door hook thingy.   I decided I'd just use the over the door hook to hang my towel on, which was fine until my towels never really dried.  I went into ghetto-fabulous mode and started laying them on the edge of the bathtub instead of buying another rack.  This did cause some strife because Mr. Scrooge took it upon himself to start using my towels are floor towels for when he got out of the bathtub (because the 4 rugs in the bathroom aren't enough to soak up the water, moving on).  After finally settling those arguments, I ended up buying some bath sheets from Woot since I'm a huge fan of mega-huge towels (btw, they were totally worth it).  The issue with the bath sheets is that they were too long to put on the edge of the tub.. thus the necessity of the towel rack.. again.

8 holes in the wall later, success!  I finished it right on time to head to the appointed meeting area to pick up Xero.  Xero is a foster who will be with us until he gets adopted.  He has a serious lack of confidence, so we will be focusing on that.. ALL THE TIME.  He was weird and rode the entire way home on the floorboard behind the front seats instead of on the laid down back seats.  It was strange.

When I got home, Mr. Scrooge was back from his ride and had started dinner, steaks with bacon brussel sprouts, nomnomnom...  I led Xero around so he could kinda get the grand tour of the house and then brought in Meri and Phil so he could meet them.  Then I released all the hounds for supervised playtime in the yard while we worked on dinner. 

When dinner was finished, I called the dogs in and they all settled while we ate and watched Sling Blade which Mr. Scrooge and I had never seen and I'd taken a recent desire to see.   Ok, truth is, it was mentioned in I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell and I've been curious since.  Also, how horrible but hilarious is that book?  Is Tucker Max's 2nd book worth reading?

I felt like a generally awful person when I laughed at the movie and then pretty horrible because of things in the movie and then it was just like... NICE! cause you think he might not do it, then BAM.  Obviously, I'm not giving away any spoilers for those of you who live in a world like mine where you've not seen popular movies from decades ago.  But, it was definitely worth watching.

After the movie ended, I went and took a bath to soak in my epsom salt bubbles because my legs were still killing me.  I didn't use as much of the bubble bath, so there weren't a mabillion bubbles this time, yay.  I powered through another episode of Grey's Anatomy.  Seriously, I need Cristina.  I know she isn't was the show is about, but I'm over the show being about this new girl.  Give me some Alex or Meredith or characters that I know, not some stranger.  I feel like this new, not-Cristina replacement is being shoved down my throat.  I get that it's part of the story line, but I'm over it, 2 episodes in.  It's good I didn't watch this crap in real time.

Eventually, it was bedtime since it was skip ahead hour.  Mr. Scrooge came to chat with me as I got in bed and he said that one of the guys in his motorcycle gang was selling a motorcycle that I might be interested in and I should get some insurance quotes (/girlyscream).  After a bit, he went back out to play video games and stay up till a million o clock.  All I know was that I tried to see my watch to see what time it was when he came to bed (and woke me up), but it was too early to have clear vision, so it was about that time.

SUNDAY

I've been a heathen lately and not went to church since Teh Mom and Teh Sister were in town.  Mostly because I'm in the struggles with the church services and I've not reconciled with that yet.  Also, I didn't get to bed until "midnight-30" depending on if you reset your clocks before you go to bed or wait until you get up (I'm a lets set these clocks ahead during dinner so that way I go to bed at the "right" time and all the clocks are already fixed for the next morning), so I was really interested in just being in bed forever and I knew that Mr. Scrooge wasn't getting up in the near future. 

I had dog duty (meaning of the canines rather than the navy version of dog duty), so I got up and fed them at 8, which was the best part of springing forward an hour.  After breakfast naps commenced quickly and Meri joined us on the bed for snuggles, one of my favorite things about waking up on the weekend. 

 

Mr. Scrooge was going on a ride after lunch with his motorcycle gang (ok, it's not really a gang, but I call it that after he told me a story about a whole bunch of them riding together downtown and blocking off red lights so the whole motorcycle train could get through together rather that breaking apart the train) and I wasn't motivated to do anything.  I did manage to take a mabillion selfies (rough estimate) with the dogs after I got up around 1030/11.  After (human) breakfast, Mr. Scrooge suggested taking the dogs on a walk and I just looked at him with my "that's nice" face.  I probably should have just humored him and taken the dogs, but really, my motivation level was at zero.  He's lucky I accomplished the laundry and furminated the dogs.

Despite my low motivation levels, I did finally make myself publicly presentable so I could go to Victoria's Secret to try on sports bras after the Kohl's fail.  I also went by my new favorite cafe place to eat to get a late lunch of an egg salad sammich.  It was between that and a tuna melt.  I probably should have went with the tuna melt, but I had tuna for lunch on Friday, so I wasn't there yet.  I realized sitting in the mall parking lot how expensive my sammich and drink was, $8.  WOAH.  Yeah, that should help curb that craving from here out.  But, the sammich is at least 2 inches thick, so you definitely get your monies worth.  Whatevs, expensive.

After trying on several bras, I finally found the new one that I'm going to get.  I've just got to wait on them to go on sale because $60 is a little rough for me to swallow.  The only issue with the style that I found was that there are clips on the straps since you can make it cross back or normal and they dig into my armpit/boob fat.  I tried one a different bra and the clips didn't dig into my fleshy bits as much, so I'm willing to take a chance on it.  #nothingaboutbrasarecomfortable

Who runs in just a sports bra?  I'd never be comfortable doing this... ever.

I headed home to relax with the beasts.  I laid out on the hammock and started this post while the dogs played in the yard.  My ADD was on high (and I'm feeling pretty wordy) so this post didn't get close to complete.  I eventually moved back inside to finish the laundry and feed the beasts and start dinner.  Mr. Scrooge came home and picked up my Kohl's stuff to return since he'd said he would do it for me (he really is underappreciated).  Once he finally got home a little before 8 (he's really enjoying this extra hour of daylight for all his motorcycle riding needs), we had dinner. 

While he was getting ready Sunday morning he had asked me who Mushu was.  Of course I knew the answer to that.  The dragon guardian from Mulan (which he had never seen).  We remedied that during dinner.  I only sang along to some of the songs and we both pointed out things that didn't make sense.  Like the fact that Mulan would have been about 13-15 when she ran away since she was at matchmaking age, if not younger.  Additionally, 10 men against the thousands of Huns?  Really this helped me understand just how oblivious I was as a child.. so delightfully oblivious.  I mean, we watched 101 Dalmatians over and over and over and it's about killing puppies and skinning them to make a coat... Hannibal Lector much?  Whatever, I still love Disney.

After Mulan (and still not getting this post finished), Mr. Scrooge went to shower while I "got ready for bed."  Meaning, I prepped the dog food and folded the laundry (with the help of Mr. Scrooge) that was on the bed and got my gym bag ready and brushed my teeth and finally got in the bed. 

It was a relaxing, full of down-time weekend that was much needed.  Skipping ahead an hour really has me dragging this morning.  Nothing about getting out of the bed was appealing to me in anyway.. but I'm an adult and I did it anyways.  Got my big girl pants on today.


Happy Monday, Gentle Readers!




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

The weekend where I judged myself..

Weekend review:

Friday:
-Supervised the PRT in the early morning.
-Chiropractor appointment where I learned that I have "crooked butt syndrome" where my sacrum is all like, yeah you're not doing it right.  Doc straightened me out and scheduled another appointment with me to see if it stays fixed or went back to being "crooked".
-Went home to let Phil-bo out and hear some really awesome news from Teh BFF (YAYYY!!!).
-Went to the command picnic/mando fun.  I should have brought Phil and Miley but didn't because I'm lazy, then I was sad about it because lots of other folks brought their doggies.
-Finally left after getting sunburnt a while to go home and take a nap before going over to Teh Greyhound Neighbor's house for a walk and to return Miley.
-Came home to start my Twilight marathon, which only held a few technical difficulties to include getting the files on the old laptop to play so I could continue using my current laptop while watching movies.
-Completed movies 1 and 2 (forgive me I don't know the names, despite reading the books, having a Nook kinda kills that whole looking at the cover of the book thing) and dinner.

Saturday:
-Woke up and checked the internets and responded to emails and hung out with Phil-boy.
-Headed to the church women's retreat at Camp Maria.  For once, someone asked who was NOT married and suggested they have their wedding at Camp Maria since it's a beautiful location.
-Got to star in a mock production where I was on a boat then stranded on a deserted island then reunited with my kids after being rescued by other members of my group.
-Ate a delicious lunch that I didn't have to prepare.
-Went "rock-climbing" during the scavenger hunt.
-Came home to pick up Phil and head to Teh Greyhound Neighbor's to meet Vanilla, a potential adoptee.
-Got a call from Teh Korean asking if I'd watch the Baby, agreed.
-Got to watch the baby, who watched Twilight #3 with me while being very cranky about her runny nose.
-Baby left and I finished movie #3 with Phil, who wasn't very interested in Jacob's problems.

Sunday:
-I wore a new dress (which I'll talk about in tomorrow's post) to church and it was adorable and I got several compliments.
-Came home for a Skype date with Teh Bear.
-Arranged lunch plans with Teh Humanitarian and Baby.
-Finished my Skype date and headed to Teh Humanitarian's house so we could go to Olive Garden for lunch.
-Pretended to be Baby's mommy and multi-task while feeding her and myself lunch.  She decided to wear her yogurt and play with her spoon and since she was distracted, I finished eating my lunch.  Win, win.
-Lunch ended and I came home to hang out with Phil-bo and finish off the Twilight series and do laundry.
-Technical difficulties meant a delay on the Twilight progress, but soon I was up and running.
-Laundry completed.
-Dinner consumed for Phil and myself.
-Phil actually sat up and watched a short stint of Twilight movie while the wolves were howling during the fight scene.  I wanted to take a photo, but I knew he'd move before I could so I just enjoyed the moment.
-All Twilight movies completed.
-Blogs caught up and scheduled.

It was a very relaxing and enjoyable weekend, especially after last weekend's non-stop activities.  I'm sure my couch is ready for me to go back to work.  Sorry there weren't any photos..  I should have had someone take a photo of me in my cute dress today.  Afterthoughts are so depressing!

Relish 8-14

Continuing to link up with Rebecca @ Finding Freedom in the Leaping for her Relish 2012 series!


8 December:

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Whether we want to admit it or not, whether we give in or deny it, whether we listen, honor, & respect it or not, there is simply NO getting around the fact that part of our lives must include resting & replenishing. Try as we might to ignore, suppress, or push past our pause point, it will always be there, just waiting for us to accept it. In a society aimed so strictly at achievement it can be hard to stop long enough to refill our tanks. But when we sojourn on without that necessary fuel we are always treated to the truth of just how vital it is to our joy, our creativity, our attention, and our efforts in all we do. So, this year how well did you allow for resting and replenishing? Where, when and how did you fill up your tank? Can you show us an image of a restful spot that you loved this year?

Considering I had 2 periods of convalescent leave this year, I'd say there was definitely time for R&R.  But beyond convalescent leave, yes there was still time for R&R.  Oddly enough, my most replenishing spot wasn't my resting spot....  This year I started running.  This year I also got a dog.  These things were related. Greyhound are on a schedule and they need at least a little exercise every day, meaning at least a walk around the block once or twice.  I'm a bit more motivated than that.  Phil and I started out walking, then gradually we worked up to walking and jogging some, then we kept working till we were running pretty much a full 2 miles.  Lucky for Phil, this isn't the type of running he's used to, but he trots along beside me like a trooper and comes home to pass out until dinner and after.  For me, I can be having an atrocious day and going on a run clears my head.  Sometimes, anger makes me run faster, which means I have a better/harder workout, which makes me feel even more proud of myself and almost completely eliminates a bad day.

As for my resting spot...  I'd say Teh Cloud.  I can go to bed and snuggle up with Sherpa Derpa (my sherpa blanket) and a few pillows and feel comfortable enough to sleep.  After enough sleep, I'm a nicer person...  which is why I would always take naps during lunch when I was at NMITC for training, you're welcome A/C school classes!!  Teh Cloud is my bed and that is a place that I will spend significant monies on because I spend so much time there.  Only the best sheets, blankets, and mattress for Teh Megan.  I even bought a mattress pad black friday 2012 because Teh Bear was complaining that Teh Cloud was kinda hard.  I didn't disagree, so I fixed it.



9 December:

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The only constant in this life is change. That’s it. Change can come in all forms; some brilliant, some downright painful. We grow each and every time we navigate change, exposing more strength, wisdom, and courage the deeper we let it do it’s work within us. Some change comes as an ending, some as a fresh start to something totally different. What was one new thing that started for you this year? What was one new beginning in your life?

Sometimes, when I pre-answer questions the day before, it makes me giggle.  So since I already said running and Phil... I'll have to come up with something else.  Hrmmmm....  This year I (re)started going back to church.  I was raised going to church every Sunday and fell from that once I hit college.  I tried getting involved in Christian campus organizations and I always felt like I was on the outside.  Like I wasn't "hardcore" enough to be there.  When I was in bootcamp, I used going to mass as an excuse to get away from my division and I participated in the choir so I'd have an excuse to sing.  Worship music is my absolute fave thing to sing... EVARRRRR.  Old hymns, new praise music, Christmas music.. I love it all.  While in training at VA Beach, I didn't go to church.  I always had a reason.  I'd think about it and then it wouldn't fit in my schedule and I didn't care.  In GTMO, I started going back to mass.  The church was across the street and the service was at 9.  It was convenient so I went when I felt like it.  In Bahrain, my work schedule didn't really fit weekly scheduled services and I probably could have made it work, but didn't.  Once I got back to America though, I knew that I needed to find a church and I did.  Granted, I found it due to a search for churches in the local area and by basing my wants in a church on service times... but I stuck with Lexington Park United Methodist Church because the people are welcoming and the church is involved with the community.. and there's a 9:30 praise service that I absolutely love going to.

Which leads me to my new beginning.  I've started working on my relationship with God.  I don't feel like I'll ever be as "hardcore" as some people are.  Maybe its the repressed Catholic in me, maybe I just don't act when the Spirit moves me, either way...  I'll be there swaying and singing as loud as my lung capacity allows and listening to the messages each week because I've decided this is something I should work on.  There's nothing that says I have to, which makes it more rewarding.



10 December:

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Carve some time out for yourself this week. Hire a sitter, enlist your spouse or family for help. Reach out. An hour or the whole afternoon, it’s your choice. When planning your time think about what your soul needs most. Is it comfort? Lock yourself in the bathroom for a bubble bath. Is it release? Take a drive to a quiet spot and scream at your steering wheel. Whatever it is you are most needing your highest self already knows, so take this time to do it. Afterwards, write about what creating that space meant for you. What emotions bubbled up? Where did your thoughts drift? Could you commit do doing this for you more often?

I don't really have a need for a sitter and since I live alone, this one was a fairly easy challenge.  When I sat down and thought of something I'd really like to do, my answer was easy.  I wanted to clean my apartment.  I don't like it when my place is messy.  When things aren't in their proper place, I know my stress levels are higher.  When I see stuff piling up on my table, I think to myself that those things could be put away in a few seconds.  When I walk in the kitchen and see the rice on the counter that spilled out of the bowl at lunch today, I wonder why I didn't just clean it up then.  Tidying up my space makes my brain feel clean.

So, I went to the kitchen..  where first I started a Honey Apple Cinnamon Pork Loin for the pot luck at work.    Once I was done making a mess, I cleaned.  I put away the clean dishes and put the dirty ones in the dishwasher.  I wiped off my counters.  I cleaned off my love seat.  I gave Phil a hug.  I then decided to take a break, which is what I'm doing now.

If I had days and days of free time (which I have, but don't often take advantage of in ways that I wish I did, not that I regret doing the things that I do) I'd catch up on blogs, for this blog and Phil's blog.  I'd edit photos and finish vacation posts (which I'm sure Teh Bear thinks are completely irrelevant now).  I'd make a list of all the music that I deleted so Teh Bear can reacquire it for me.  I balance out my budget tracker.  I'd become more involved with 20SB again.  Maybe I'd vlog.  I'd write Teh Bear love letters (because I'm horribly out of practice at that currently).  And before I even got through the first task, I'd be checking FB every few minutes.  I'd be checking my phone wondering if my neighbors are doing anything.  I'd be planning to take Phil out for our daily walk/run.  I'd probably be planning to hang out with my neighbors later in the afternoon/evening.  Being alone used to be very easy, because it was really my only option since I didn't know people, but now that I'm friends with my neighbors, I enjoy hanging out with them...

Wow.. hello tangent.  My bad.



11 December:

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True, for some it may only come as a whisper, but for many the call to be out in nature is nearly impossible to ignore. We are a part of it, as much as it is a part of us, and honoring that desire to commune with the land and its creatures is also honoring all that is still very much wild and untamed within ourselves. When did you answer the call of nature this year? Where did you go and how did you spend your time connecting?

OMG so much nature this year!  Most of this was purposeful.  After my year in Bahrain where I spent as much time inside, out of the sand/dust, as possible, and the prior year in GTMO learning what sweating actually was and that yes, you can sweat there...  Coming back to the United States where the temps were reasonable meant that being outside was going to happen.  For probably the first year ever, I appreciated being outside.  I appreciated leaves on trees.  I appreciated trees.  I appreciated days where the humidity wasn't 110% outside.  I even appreciated this summer when the temps were not 100°F.  Despite living on the beach, I didn't actually go to the beach that much.  I enjoyed my walks in the morning, looking at the beach with Phil, but I'm not a huge fan of sand, so eh.  Since I took up running this year, it kinda filled the void I'd been filling in Bahrain about being outside.  I did outside activities in GTMO, but most were usually water (diving) related.  Running in MD reminds me of being outside in NC.  There are trees and leaves and sometimes a nice wind and shade and blue skies and sometimes grey clouds and rain.  Running in the rain with Phil this summer have probably been my favorite runs of 2012.  Being washed clean.

Also, accepting my desire to be outside made it easier to enjoy my trips to Scotland, Australia, and the Grand Canyon and AZ and NC.  When I was in Scotland, we passed a castle that I really wanted to visit and decided we'd come back to it on our way back.  When we came back, it was raining and the coworker I was with was like, "Well, we don't have to go since it's raining."  I shot back with, "I'm not going to melt because of some rain.. Are you?"  He explained he didn't know if I was a "girly, girl" or not, but that definitely answered his question.  With that, we unloaded our camera stuff, paid the admission, watched a video, I purchased a £7 umbrella, and we headed out to conquer some castle ruins.  The rain ended up stopping soon after we got outside, which was good because it was really hard to handle a camera and an umbrella at the same time.

I feel like I "conquered" nature this year.  I enjoy going out in the rain, I'm not worried about my hair, and I'm only slightly worried about my iPod (if I'm running).  I still don't enjoy the heat or the sweating, but I won't let that stop me from having a good time.  I feel like if I hadn't been accepted this mindset, outside activities like hiking at the Red Rock Amphitheater, planning a hike at the Grand Canyon, hiking the 5 mile trail at Price's Park in Boone, and even going to the Renn Faire (where the dust was unbelievably bad) would have been much less enjoyable.



12 December:

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Just as each new day holds unforeseen promise, so too does the way we greet that new day reveal bits of truth about ourselves. When we greet the morning the same way, day upon day, that routine can evolve into something akin to a ritual; distinctive, private, personal. And year by year the way these rituals grow and change reflects similar shifts going on within us. So, did you have a morning ritual this year? What did it consist of? Whether it stayed the same or changed as the year went on, what meaning do you think it holds?

This year, my morning ritual got switched up in Feb when Phil came home.  Instead of just taking care of my business and going to work, now I had to also take care of Phil.  This meant that I got to see lots of sunrises and see the beach almost every morning.   Usually the get ready ritual just involved getting up, taking a shower, getting ready for work, taking Phil out, feeding Phil, and then heading out.  On mornings there was PT, I'd take care of Phil, go to PT, then come back and take care of my stuff.  After going to Scotland, I started adding breakfast to my ritual.  I started bringing it to work at first, then after Australia (where I got up every morning and made toast), I came home and started making eggs and toast for myself most mornings.  It doesn't actually take that long and now I've pretty much got it timed to a T.  I've also taught myself how to make eggs over medium (which is runny yolk, but NO runny white), which is way harder than you'd expect.

I feel like the addition of the responsibility of Phil and of taking care of myself and eating breakfast are good things.  They show growth.  Also, it shows that I'm a "granny" because when I have to get up early to do these things, I usually go to bed early.



13 December:

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In 2012, when did you feel the most yourself, the most in your skin, the most comfortable, the most YOU? Write about that experience and what it felt like, if you were with others or alone, and why or how you came to feel that comfort in exactly who you are. And if you have a photo from that day/experience, share it with your story.

There was one day in Scotland right before we left that everyone was busy.  It was the one day that I had off that no one else did.  I really didn't want to waste the day, so I ventured out on my own (which apparently we weren't supposed to do, oops).  I went to the Glen Levit distillery, I drove through the Cairngorms and even lot radio signal.  For a while I was just riding in silence, exploring a new place, I really had no idea where I was, but counted on instincts and bad map reading to get me back to Lossiemouth.  It was awesome.  I wasn't scared I wasn't going to make it back, I wasn't worried I was lost, I was just completely absorbed in the adventure.  I was driving down the road (on the "wrong" side of the road and the "wrong" side of the car), going where I was going.  I felt at peace in those moments.  It was just me and the adventure... and the feeling that I could do anything I wanted, which is completely liberating.




14 December:

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It could be out your office window, into your child’s eyes, or from a plane at 35,000 feet. What was your favorite view this year? Can you share a photo of it with us?








That guy is definitely my favorite.  >>
He makes me laugh.
He makes me cry (good tears, mostly).
He makes me look forward to One Day.
He makes me practice my lessons in patience every day.
He gives me kisses.
He gives the best hugs (which has been verified by Miss Reflective).
He puts my fears to rest when they are getting the best of me.
He deals with all my crazy.
He endures plane rides frequently to give me all this in person.
He's the person I think of when I listen to sappy songs.
He makes my big comfy bed even more comfortable and warm.
He fits right in with my crazy family.



PS.  I tried to fix the white boxes and it won't fix so I'm just leaving it.  Sorry it looks crappy.  Tell Blogger to fix their copy/paste code.  :(

Fill in the Blank Friday #22

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 1.  One thing I plan on doing to relax this weekend is     taking a nap after the Greyhound haul on Saturday.   Maybe writing some blogs, but definitely being lazy.  Maybe finally finishing the rest of Weeds on Netflix… who knows.

2.  A big pet peeve of mine is    people that drive significantly under the speed limit.. Example: Speed Limit is 50, driver goes 35.  FML. 

3.  I am really loving   not breaking into a sweat every time I walk outside AND seeing red leaves on the trees...  because WINTER IS COMING!!!

4. The rain is    still absolutely one of my favorite things.  Actually, when it started raining in the middle of the night last night, I woke up, said a little prayer of thanks and immediately fell back asleep.  The only thing better is snow, duh. 

5. My favorite girly indulgence is    earrings.  I’m too lazy to paint my nails or wear makeup, but I LUB ME SOME EARRINGS.

6. A song I always get stuck in my head is    whatever was playing last when I get out of car, usually.  Or sometimes my alarm song.  It just depends on the day. 

7.  The best cure for stress is    music and/or working out (in whatever form you choose, naked activity is considered working out in my book.. so what if I’m excited about vacation?). 

Fill in the Blank Friday #14

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1.   This weekend I'm   snuggling   and   having fun times with Teh Bear in FL!!!!!!

2.  My last vacation was   uh, well, right now if you count a 4 day weekend as a vacation.  I'll research this and get back to you..   

3.  My next vacation will be   in February for Teh Stepsister's bootcamp graduation.  Or at least thats the soonest I have anything planned.  I've also never been to Oklahoma, so it will definitely be an adventure...  

4.  My favorite way to relax is   snuggling with Teh Bear while we share cool stuffs from the interwebz with each other and we have nothing else to do.  

5.  When vacationing one should always   eat somewhere unfamiliar, eat somewhere familiar, experience the culture in some way, make a memory, potentially take a picture (or 2k, some people are more dedicated than others), and enjoy not having to do your normal routine.  

6.  When vacationing one should never   rent a car and not know the rules of the road!  Apparently, speeding tickets can be very expensive in other places!  I know a guy who got a $700 ticket in Australia.  Oops....  :(  

7.  The best part about a vacation is   potentially doing new things, or experiences the same stuff from before, but at a more relaxing pace.  

Fill in the Blank Friday #11

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1. I am proud of   myself, for having lost 20 pounds since I left Bahrain... THE HEALTHY WAY.. eating mostly right and exercising regularly.  I don't like to talk a lot about my weight because I know its a very sensitive issue for a lot of people and I don't want people to think that I'm rubbing it in their face., and sometimes, when my clothes don't fit like they always have, it surprises me.. usually in a pleasant surprise kind of way.  

2. This weekend I will   potentially go to the Waldorf meet and greet with Phil for GEGR, stand watch at work, go to church on sunday, and hang out with the boys on Sunday afternoon... unless socializing comes up, then I might throw some of that in there as well.  

3. A secret dream I have is   a secret duh.  But probably weird.  I usually have weird dreams.  Although those wouldn't be secret cause I like sharing those.  Idk.  A known dream I have is snuggling with Teh Bear every night.  Or more recently for Joey to be as good on the leash as Phil-boy is.  (I WISH!)

4. I can't handle   PMS + Friday afternoon + people waiting till the last minute to get things done when they aren't the ones that have to do the work before an event (this may or may not have been my today).  

5. The most annoying thing in the entire world is   People that come to you needing something done RIGHT THEN.  Seriously?  I really need to learn that someone else's problem doesn't constitute an emergency on my part.  

6. The most relaxing thing in the entire world is   snuggling with Teh Bear under the christmas lights.  

7. I think everyone should   love everyone.  Then no body would need to take a side with or against Chic-fil-a and people wouldn't be so inconsiderate of others and terrorists could just hug it out.  Ya know.. in a perfect world.  

Despite how rough my afternoon was, and the fact that I was sure I was going to break down and cry at one point because of how frustrated I was, I came home, ranted a bit to Teh Bear (who listened patiently), then took the dogs out for a run.  Sometimes you just need to sweat it out.  I came back after 1.5 miles way sweaty, way tomato-faced, with 2 wet dogs (because I sprayed them down with the hose), and with a significantly improved mood.  Love how that works.

Now I can say, YAY Friday!

Fashion doesn't agree with me... #2

Gentle Readers,
I know you have long awaited Australia photos, and I made you wait, then I bombarded you, now I'm making you wait again.  I know I am particularly awful.  Promise, I know.  Ask Phil, he knows just how good I am at making him wait, he probably assumes that everyone else has to wait till I remember to say "Ok, you can go," to everyone before they are allowed to eat.

To be honest, you're probably not even interested in Australia pictures anymore.  I mean, it has been a month now.  Teh Bear told me days after I landed in America that he wasn't interested in Australia photos anymore because I was taking too long.  He was only kidding, kinda.  It's ok, I know he was really just trying to motivate me to work on them.  Isn't it cute when men try?

Continuing with the honesty, last week was my first week back to work after my surgery..  Guys and gals.. it ran me into the ground.  Not that my job is strenuous or crazy, just that I was busy at work, then I'd come home and be busy at home as well.  That's not how my life usually operates.  Normally, I go to work, stave off several hours of boredom till its time to go home, then I come home and stave off several more hours of boredom (hopefully with photo editing, but sometimes with The Sims 3 and talking to Teh Bear and taking Phil out for runs/time at the dog park and not being bored, etc).  Last week wasn't like that.

At work, we have a new guy, so I've been trying to go out of my way to ensure that he is doing all the things that it'd be much easier for me to do, but if he doesn't learn them, that means I have to keep doing them.  Additionally, I'm trying to doing something Intel-y, and what started out as a small thing, grew exponentially despite my efforts to be lazy at this.  Really, I'm a go-all-out-or-nothing type girl, and sometimes it is very problematic.

AAANNNDD Teh Stepsister pulled the bootcamp card on me this week.  Which isn't really significant until February, but it is, kinda.  She already asked Teh Bear and I (and the rest of Teh Family, duh) to attend her bootcamp graduation when she found out when she was leaving for bootcamp.  Cool.  I'd take leave for that because it's kinda a BIG DAMN DEAL, yo.  Even though she joined the Army.  Not so cool, yo.  I digress.

She messaged me this week and was like, "You member that my bootcamp gradation is in February?"
Teh Megan: Yes, when is it, do you know?
Teh Stepsister: The beginning of Feb, I think.  Bootcamp is blah blah blah weeks and I leave on blah blah blah day.
*we both open up our calendars and start counting weeks*
tM:  So, I get to celebrate the week of my birthday in Oklahoma?
tS: *laughs*  Welllllll, I was wondering if you'd wear your uniform.  I'd like a picture of us.
tM: *scorns at the well-played I'm-graudating-bootcamp-you-must-submit-to-my-will card*  I think you're the devil.  But for you, FIIIIIIIIINNNNNNNEEEEEE.
tS:  Thank you.  :)
tM:  I guess showing off all my bling to your Army friends will motivate me to get my AW (Air Warfare) pin.

What does any of this have to do with this week?  I've been "working" on my AW pin since I got to Pax River.  At least, I started the program and printed out the book.  Working on it is definitely a relative term.  I did start making flash cards before I went to Scotland and I even brought my AW book with me to Australia (how great is it when stuff is NOT classified!?!  Lookin' at you IDW program!).  I didn't really accomplish much, but this week I sat down and scribbled out a few more sections worth of flash cards.  Gentle Readers, I actually learned something about the aviation community!  Those rainbow vests they wear stand for what jobs they do!  I can't remember all of them, but I definitely remember that purple = deals with fueling.  Also, I knew that the vests correlated with something, but wasn't sure what.  That's what happens when you live in the SCIF.

Most of my afternoons this week were also exciting.
Monday, I was editing photos and making potential arrangements to watch some puppies this weekend.
Tuesday, After it was determined that I'd meet Joey's Mom on Wednesday, I was able to do some chillaxin' and try to catch up on some lost Pinterest time from work.
Wednesday, I left work, came home, changed clothes, took Phil to the dog park, and then headed to meet Joey's Mom in Waldorf.  Bringing Joey into Teh Megan Family has been very fun.  I'll have Joey for probably a month, till Joey's Mom signs a new lease.  Lots more about him on Phil's blog if you're interested.
Thursday, Moe's Mom brought Moe to me.  He's an 85lb, black Greyhound.  He's a lazy boy like Phil.  He only stayed for the weekend.
Friday, I was able to do some chillaxin.  I also discovered The Snark Squad, where Lorraine is reviewing Fifty Shades of Grey.  OMG HUUUUUUHHHHHLLLLARRRRIOUS.  I'm so glad she saved me from reading this.  One of the chapters she did a vlog for.  I want to be Lorraine's BFF.  We'd never stop laughing.  Friday night was spent preparing to wake up at 0230 to go to Ashland, VA to meet the Greyhound hauler.
Saturday, I woke up at 0340, which was 10 minutes after my time to meet my co-pilot.  I called him apologizing profusely, and he went on without me.  I went back to bed.  I got up that morning and took the dogs to the dog park and messaged Teh Singing Cat Lady about going shopping.  She was down.  We met at 9 and I got to do my first french braiding evar.  It was a fun learning experience and once you practice a few times, its not so bad, but I'd never be able to french braid my own hair.  We went out and did our my shopping and her errands.  I came home and talked to Teh Bear for a bit, then it was time to head to work for my glorious watch.  There was no internet on base... the ENTIRE 8 hours I was on watch.  /wrist.  I had a book and played bubble shooter, but after so many hours..  I just wasn't a nice person.  Then I came home and the dogs had ripped open the brand new bag of dog food.  /kill.  Since I didn't know how much Phil and Moe had eaten (Joey was safely in his crate), they still got dinner, despite how angry I was, I wasn't going to starve the dogs.  I went back to work, but not before putting Joey and Moe in crates.  Not that I trusted Phil, but I went with the most unfamiliar dog in the crate.  I came home to no incidents and everyone got to go out to the dog park at midnight.  Blast.  Joey bounced around while the Greyhounds were like, WTF, lets go lady, this is my sleepy time.  After getting them all back in, it was collapse bed time.

Sunday (today), is relax day.  I went to church this morning, daring enough to leave all the dogs out.  No accidents.  Praise Allah.  I think I most definitely woke up on the wrong side of the bed.  When Teh Bear signed online he told me that I just seemed.. angry.  I wasn't exactly angry, but I knew I wasn't in a bubbly mood.  He suggested a nap, I agreed (rare).  Moe's Mom will be around to pick him up today.  I've definitely enjoyed the big soft black boy hanging around.  Watching Phil and Moe walk side-by-side when we go out is awesome.  I'll definitely be down to sit for his Mom again.

SO that's the week/weekend recap.  Apparently thats the cool thing to do now.  I'll have to go find a blog to link up to, cause I love that.

BUTTTTTT.. I do have something special for you.  If you didn't notice, so far the title of this post has had nothing to do with what I've talked about.

I'll make 2 fashion points:
1.  Fashion doesn't agree with me because I'm short.  Apparently, somewhere there is a rule that no matter what size you order, 5'2.5" is too short to exist so they don't make clothes that short.  Particularly dresses and skirts.  My new dress that I was planning on wearing today = miles too long.  Fail.
2.  WHO WEARS SOME OF THIS CRAP?!?!?!?!  When Teh Singing Cat Lady and I stormed Target by surprise (ok, not really, they saw us pull up in the parking lot), she was looking for sunglasses and I was looking for stuff.  You remember the last time I looked at sunglasses?  It happened again!!!  Seriously.. who designs these?!?!?  And why do people buy them?  WHO do they look good on???  SERIOUSLY!?!

I am a robot, come to take over your wor-ald.

I need to have a captain contest with some of these sunglasses photos.  The prize would be the tackiest pair of sunglasses I could find.  Although, each time I thought I'd found the most ridiculous ones (the red frames above), something else would show up..  Like the 2nd to last pair, the black with pointy corners.  I felt like I was in The Jetsons.

So hopefully, I've made up for the lack of Australia photos.  I've had Lightroom up all week as my constant reminder, but sometimes, I just can't help myself.  I must finish Lorraine's FSoG (Fifty Shades of Grey) recaps.  She's too funny.