Growing Up?

So, I think I have decided on whether I want to rent or buy. I looked over my finances and thought about my pro and con list, and I think buying a place would be a good choice. I won't be able to act on that decision for a bit, since I will need to save up a bit of money for a down payment. But I feel like I have a direction and now I get to work toward my goal.

It feels a little weird though to think of myself as old enough and established enough to even be considering this step in my life. I probably should get over that though, since I am in my thirties now.

Who wants to be a Millionaire?

Yesterday, I went into the city and watched the ING Direct Cycling Criterium. I didn't know what that was either. Apparently, a criterium, or crit, is a type of bike race held on a short course (usually less than 5 km), often run on closed-off city centre streets. My BF is into cycling, he wanted to go, and it ended up being a really fun day. The weather was awesome, the race was fun to watch and we ended up getting free cute, little orange cow bells. Very cool. I took a quick video of the final two laps, the annoying high picked noise is everyone ringing their cow bells like a bunch of maniacs. Can anyone say, "More cow bell?"

On our way back to Virginia we ended up going past a condo building my BF had been telling me about, The Odyssey in Arlington. He can see it from his office and really thought it looked cool. So we drove around it and then found out they were having an open house. So we thought, why not pretend like we were able to afford the place and go inside. It was crazy! The one unit we went to was 1.2 million dollars.... Yeah, Million! For a two bedroom condo. It was insane. The whole one side of the unit was windows and it overlooked DC. It was so pretty. But my favorite part was the kitchen. The appliances were amazing and the whole layout was so open. If anything the whole experience just made me sad that I'm "poor" and can only afford a condo one sixteenth that price.

We did go to a more affordable unit. It was an efficiency, but the layout was again, really open. It didn't feel like a studio at all. Only problem was it was going for $349k, which I felt was a bit much for a condo. Ok and also out of my price range. But it was really cool! Oh well, I guess I will have to eventually come back to earth and maybe look at things within my budget.

Decisions Decisions

Going through my finances and looking at apartments, has made me also think about possibly buying a condo. I found out I could afford it, but only after I save for a few months. Now I have to decide, do I want to move right away into an apartment and continually pay rent until maybe years from now when I might have saved enough money to buy a place? OR do I want to stay in my current windowless apartment which is not as close to the city as I would like, but save up a good amount of money so that possibly if the market stays good for buyers I could buy a condo?

Here is my Pros and Cons list:

Apartment
Pros
Get to move now
Won't have to fix things myself
Could have cool amenities
Could change places after a year
Dishwasher
Washer/Dryer
Windows

Cons
Have to pack now
Rent could raise
Could have insects
Could have weird neighbors
Landlord might stink, not actually smell just be horrible

Condo
Pros
Can paint it
Can hang things on the wall
Could redecorate
Could upgrade appliances
Windows
Hopefully Dishwasher
Hopefully Washer/Dryer
Would get a tax break
Feel grown up (not sure if this is pro or con)
Could make some money when I sell it
Good investment?

Cons
Have to Paint it
Might have to do some work
Could lose money when sold
Condo association
Condo fees
Have to fix things when they break

My lists aren't done, so far I'm no closer to a decision. If anyone has any advice, I would greatly appreciate the help. Thanks!

Home is where the heart is.

Recently I started researching and scrutinizing apartments to find a new home. I'm not moving far, I haven't changed jobs, nothing like that. I just feel like after living in the same apartment building since my last year in college maybe a change would be nice. So I have begun scouring the Internet and itemizing my budget to figure out what I want and what I can afford. Why is that so difficult?

I have some musts... Such as must have windows. Not something that many people think of as an amenity when searching apartments, but after living in a windowless apartment for four years, I need windows! Second and a bit more luxurious, a dishwasher. Ahh, to have a machine to wash my dishes for me. That would be the life. In that line of luxurious amenities, I would also like a washer/dryer in my own apartment... yes, my own clothes washing machine. Something that needs no coins and my neighbor, the roofer, won't put his tar filled clothes into. I don't think that is asking too much.

My search has only started, I haven't seen many places yet. But last weekend, my boyfriend and I went to look at three in the Alexandria area. We started off with what we felt at the end of the weekend, was the best. Which was unfortunate for the later two, it had a lot to live up to. The first place, Riverside, had awesome amenities (not just windows, it also had a fitness center with aerobics room and classes!) and it was super pretty! Which you know is very important when finding an apartment. The only problem with the Riverside was that I haven't decided if I want to pay that much for rent yet. I guess I'll have to figure that out after I see more places.

The second place was cute and the amenities were cool, everything just seemed a little less polished as the Riverside. Plus with the extra fees it felt a bit like I would be nickel and dimed to death. The last place was the worst. The apartments themselves weren't horrible, they were actually cute and very affordable. It was the halls and the outside of the building that gave me a very distinct feeling that I might be bludgeoned to death near my car or raped in the hallway. Also every single hallway had its own distinct mixture of the aromas of old buttered popcorn, curry and gym socks and a few other things that could not be distinguished.

At the end of the weekend, the first of many apartment hunting weekends I'm sure, I feel slightly more unsure of where I might be able to find an affordable, yet non stinky safe apartment with the three things I need.

Ok People!

I'm sort of getting burnt out on blogging, at least about everyday life. So I think I've decided to mostly leave this blog for when I have trips or am planning trips or doing fabulous things... you know stuff like that ;-) At the moment, I'm working and spending time with my boyfriend. Which by the way is a new development since the beginning of the summer. So... I kind of have nothing else to blog about.

My family went to Bethany Beach a week ago for our summer vacation. It was awesome and relaxing and way too short. But blogging about that would read something like this: Day 1 - Beach, Day 2 - Beach, Day 3 - Beach, and so on.... not extremely riveting. I did get a suggestion to write a food blog about going out to restaurants. So we will see, I'll keep you posted... you know since I have so many readers!

Did you know I was famous?

Sorry

I've been a little busy.

Another Trip

I just got back from another trip to Europe. This time I went to Ljubljana, Slovenia and London, England. Since I had never been to Slovenia before I took a lot of pictures there... also because it was BEAUTIFUL!!
We also drove up to Bled, Slovenia one afternoon. It is a beautiful lake at the bottom of the Alps with a cute little island in the middle. Also there was a castle on the hill, this was the view from it.
I fell in love with Ljubljana, there were cafes all along the river, everyone was super nice and the weather was pretty nice almost everyday.















And here are a few of me in London.



I had a pretty awesome time!

Wrap Up

I realized a few days ago that May was a very, very busy month for me and I did a mess of stuff. But I forgot to write anything about any of it. So here is my wrap up of May.

My friend and I took the bus up to New York City for a girl weekend. We stayed with my cousin in Brooklyn and had a great time. We shopped on Bedford Avenue in Brooklyn. I bought these AWESOME pink shoes at Catbird, I know that doesn't sound cool, but believe me they are the hottest shoes I own. Plus the store was super cute. I also bought a very cute top at Pema.
Then we saw a comedy show and ate at a Thai place that night, so of course I got to wear my new clothes! Our second day in the city we went to the Brooklyn Museum and the Botanical Gardens. They were having their cherry blossom festival, so it was a good day for people watching and the weather was beautiful.

I also went to see a few shows. The new Shakespeare Theater had Anthony and Cleopatra, so I went to that after work on day with my friend. The play was good and we had a good time, but I think the highlight to the evening was just seeing the new theater. It was beautiful.
A friend and I also went to the Flight of the Conchords show.... funniest thing I've seen is a long time. I have such a huge crush on those boys! I don't know if it their nerdiness, their music, their jokes or their accents that I like the best, but I'm such a Brettrosexual and a bit of a Jermaniac. If you have never seen them and have no idea what I'm talking about... Google them! They are HILARIOUS!!
I did a few other things this month, but those were definitely the top three.

Something Cute

My niece Lucy is adorable, I'm not biased really. She decided to read a bedtime story to her Aunt Katie, it was awesome.

Sorry

Just in case anyone actually reads this, sorry for the break in between posts. From working a weird schedule at work for a few weeks, enjoying the start of spring and feeling a little stumped with writing, I hadn't really thought of much to say.

Lately though, I've been trying to figure out what I want to do when I grow up. My current job is not bad and could be a fine career for me. But I am feeling like when I look back, much later on, I don't want to see endless days spent in a cubicle in front of a computer as the sum of my life. When in college, I thought being a travel writer would be an awesome job. I could see the world, experience other cultures, learn new languages and be outside. I have no idea how to go about pursuing this job and there is no set path. Probably being a writer first would be a good step.

Half of my problem in pursuing my dream is that I'm scared. I have no idea if anything I write would be any good. I was an English Lit major in school, I read books and wrote research papers, I didn't write anything creatively. Creative Writing. That probably would have been a better major choice, hindsight is always clearer.

I think the other half of the problem is that at this point in my life I finally am making enough money to support myself. If I totally switched career paths I would probably have to take a pay cut. Which I guess I could suck up and do, but I have bills and responsibilities... so do I want to?

Oregon Part 2

Ok, so I did get a bit lazy about typing... although I don't think anyone actually noticed.

My cousin's wedding in Oregon was great fun and a good time for my family to get together. There were some funny things I noticed about the event though. About half the people in attendance seemed to feel that flannels and jeans were proper wedding attire. Didn't bother me, just found it a humorous split in the crowd between "The Flannel/Jeans" and "The Tuxedos." Also, during the exchange of the rings, my cousin (always the comedian) took a swig from a flask handed to him by the best man and then proceeded to pass the flask to the other boys. Silly boys.
The rest of my trip was spent in Eugene, Oregon at my uncle's new place, which was huge and on top of a hill in the woods. It was a great place to have the family hang out, eat a lot, play poker and enjoy the view from the top of the hill.















We also took mom and dad to the coast, since the girls and I had enjoyed going there when we were out West for our road trip. The only problem was that it rained all day. But we were not going to let that stop us from having a good time and taking pictures.




We had a great time, I can't wait to go back!

Now Some Pictures

The Chinese Garden in Portland

Congrats Cous!

I returned home Tuesday after being in Oregon for a week. My cousin got married to his longtime girlfriend in Portland and we all partied hard. It was such a West Coast affair, three minute ceremony and hours of dancing. Pretty Nice.

My trip started in Portland. My sister and I had to wait for my other sister's flight to come in. So we had plenty of time to explore Portland. First we had lunch at Kell's Irish Pub, since it wouldn't really be Saint Patty's Day without going to one. We went to the Chinese Garden on a tip from our waiter. What a cool place! Then we drove around a bit and found Pittock Mansion, it was incredibly beautiful. Before we headed back to the airport, we ended the evening at Powell's Bookstore. I even got to go to a book reading by Joshilyn Jackson (The Girl Who Stopped Swimming) she was very cool, I bought her book and I will have to post later about what I think.

Day one in Oregon was pretty packed. Day two was much more laid back. We got into Eugene super late the night before, so we slept in as long as possible. Than we got to hang out with the family, see my uncle's new home and try to stay warm during all the rain.

We headed back to Portland the next day and got to see the place where the wedding would be, McMenamins Edgefield. It was a crazy, cool place. We had the rehearsal dinner and the wedding there. They had a winery, brewery, golf course, distillery, pubs, restaurants, spa and pool hall there. I got myself over to the spa for a pedicure, it was the nicest pedicure I have ever had!!

Not only did my toes look great, but I had a glass of wine and a nice setting to top it off. I'll finish up my trip and post pictures next post, since this is getting a bit long.

Lucky Charms

Sunday I kicked off my St. Patrick's Day celebrating early by going to The Pogues concert. My girlfriend from work took me for my birthday. It was a sold out concert at the 9:30 Club. It was great. The music was fun, the band rocked, and we just danced and danced... I even met a cute Irish boy! It was a pretty great night.

Thanks Megs!

Good Times

Another year has past and another birthday. I had a party at my place, so I was a bit stressed out with all the prep work. But I think it really paid off and everyone had fun. Here are a few before shots:



And a few from the shindig:

Congratulations Nikki & Ryan!!!!

My cousin Nikki and her husband, Ryan, just had their baby girl, Linnea Grace, a few days ago. I can't wait to plan my trip up to Chicago to see her.

They also made a blog for their new family. http://thedanielsingeneva.blogspot.com/

So, this is why I wrote that last one.

Audio or video devices are allowed as long as you use headphones.

I was too tired last night to really type out much, but I'm getting a little tired of being able to hear other people's music through their head and my own music! Seriously?!?! Is that absolutely necessary?

I realized after I posted this a few days ago that maybe I was too sleepy or tired to notice that I didn't really make any sense. Since technically the people I was upset with actually were following the rules by having their headphones on... So Maybe I should have posted that I think the rule needs to be changes and say something like this:

Audio or video devices are allowed as long as you use headphones and the volume on said devices are at a reasonable level... No one needs to hear the music that is being broadcasted through your head!

Why Can't Some People Follow These?

Metro rules and manners

Please don't eat, drink, smoke or litter on Metro vehicles or in the stations. Metro Transit Police issue citations or make arrests to enforce the law.

Audio or video devices are allowed as long as you use headphones.

Let passengers get off the bus or train before you board.

Be courteous. Seats next to the doors are reserved for senior citizens and riders with disability. Please give your seat to someone who needs it more than you.

Put trash in trash bins and newspapers in the newspaper recycling bins.

When riding the escalators, stand to the right, walk on the left.

Please give seniors priority when using the elevators.

Something else

So if my last post wasn't bizarre enough, here is something else to add to the story. For those not familiar with Missed Connections, on Craigslist you can post "ads" for people who you felt you had a connection with, but have no way of contacting them.

Last week when I got back to work, I was still amazed by the events of last Friday, so I was telling my girlfriends and my gay boyfriend all about that guy. Well, my one friend said he thought my situation sounded like something he had read on the Missed Connections. He told me what the ad said and I knew immediately it was for me. I would put the link up, but I just went to go check for it online and apparently Craigslist only holds the ads for up to a week. So here is what it said:

Had a blast chatting, dancing and laughing with you (and your friends) at the Rock-it bar in Alexandria. I should... have taken you up on your offer for a ride but thanks to the two creepy out of towners picking up my bar tab (still perplexed at that one) and the seemingly endless round of Mandarin Orange Vodka and Red Bulls I had a bit more to drink then one possibly should have and I did realize it. I also realized that home ASAP was my best option and a mature decision and I hope you can understand that.

Hopefully we can connect again and next time maybe coffee would be an intelligent option. I know of a great little hole in the wall that is a best kept DC secret and the service isn't that bad either.

That was nice, but I feel like he conveniently forgot to mention his weird offer to go home with me. Maybe he had so many drinks he couldn't figure out that he was the one who asked me that.

Wow! Really?

My weekend was pretty normal. I ran errands, vegged out, got a few things done around my apartment and even got to hang out with my friends a bit. The weird part of my weekend happened on Friday night.

I went to a karaoke night with a few of my friends... I didn't sing, just enjoyed the entertainment. I arrived before my friends and ended up feeling stupid at the bar for a bit. These two old guys started talking to me and it was weirdly uncomfortable. They were nice old guys... but #1 I don't date old guys and #2 they had been drinking a bit. There was a tall nerdy guy on the other side of me and I started bringing him into the conversation for safety. I kind of have a thing for tall nerdy guys, so I thought that was an added bonus.

After my friends arrived, tall nerdy guy kept hanging out with me and we chatted a bit. We ended up having a few things in common and I started feeling like hanging out with my friends might have more benefits than just having fun with friends.

When I was tired and ready to go home, tall nerdy guy said he would walk me to my car. We got outside and he asked if I wanted to go get a beer or something.... I reminded him that I was driving. To which he replied that we could go get a water at 7-Eleven... I really didn't know what to say to that one. So I offered to take him to the metro, but he said he wasn't ready to end the evening and would go with me where ever I was headed. I was shocked, but simply said "I'm going back to my home alone." I thought this would have been the normal time for a guy to say something like, "well, I'd really like to see you again, can I give you a call sometime?" But instead he said, "OK, well I'm not really ready to end the evening and I'm going to go back inside." I said, "Alright?!?!? (looking at him like I was saying, WHAT?)" and the said "ok, see you around." And he just said ok... didn't ask for my number or for a date or anything. As if because I wasn't going to take him home with me than there was no reason to see me again? I really wanted to say something to him like, "Hope you have a good time trying to find a stupid, drunk slutty girl!"

Seriously!?! What is it with dudes these days? Did he really think I was going to sleep with him after knowing him for like three hours? I know the answer to that one, it is just super annoying and stupid. And the MOST annoying part of the whole thing was that he wasn't even that cute! What an idiot.

Bad Day

Quite possibly today I was already annoyed from things at work, but I felt like people on the metro were more of a pain in my behind than usual. It all started on my way home from work. I was waiting on the platform... like everyone else. I had even let one green line train (my line) go by because there were way too many people rushing for the door. So I wasn't in any sort of mad rush. I mean, I like to get home, but I have the ability to wait 2 minutes for the next train rather than pushing my way onto an already packed train.

OK, so I'm on the platform in the spot that I always stand in because I know the door will be close when the train pulls up. (that possibly makes me sound crazy, but I just ride the metro too much and I have a routine) I'm standing on the platform as close as I feel is humanly possible without being hit by the train. The train pulls up and the door lands practically right in front of me. I take one step closer to the train, so that now I could touch the train if I put my arm out in front of me. I'm on the side of the door (to be curious to the people who are exiting the train) and some crazy, pushing woman slides in front of me, right in between my body and the train!

I don't know what she thought I was doing standing on a train platform, waiting for my train and stepping closer to my train. But apparently to exhibit my intentions, I should have been kissing the train! Sorry I wasn't obvious enough for you!

What is with all the rude people? Next time, I think I will say something... or I will just stretch my arm out in front of me and clothesline someone..... or I will push them onto the tracks and ask them if that got them close enough to the train!

In Need of a Little Advice

In the past few weeks I have obtained a slight dilemma, which I can't decide on how to handle. So I'm hoping that the few people who read my blog might be able to help me out. Here it is:

I received a phone call (voicemail) from a person I used to be friends with about five or six years ago when we used to work together. She was a bit crazy when I knew her, but she was one of the only other girls at work and we bonded. We had good times and we had some bad times. Not between us, but rather because of her I was put in some bizarre and possibly dangerous situations. They weren't all really dangerous except for the time I thought I would be a good girl friend and help her move her stuff out of her apartment she shared with her fiancee.... he came home, words were exchanged and the next thing I know I'm explaining to the police why we shouldn't be questioned. If it hadn't been for me not being a raving lunatic, my "friend" would have gone to the police station.

OK, so that was an extreme situation, but you get the point. I got a new job and we drifted apart. I felt bad and ended up hanging out with her one more time a year or so after that. It wasn't horrible but she mentioned something about me getting fat since the last time she had seen me. I don't think I'm a super vain person, but that hurt and I didn't really feel like I should go out of my way to hang out with her.
So now, three or four years later I get a random voicemail from her seeing how I'm doing. I didn't know what to do and hadn't called her back. Then about a week later she called me again. I'm torn. On one hand I feel like she is reaching out and honestly checking in to see how I have been. But on the other hand, she could just be calling me so that I could possibly get her out something and using me.

What should I do??

Still Working

During the last few weeks I have been getting over a cold, working a different shift without a weekend and went on vacation, so my workout schedule hasn't been all that regular. But I haven't stopped exercising! Just in case anyone really cares.

OK, not to sound like someone who is not me, since I'm not a workout addict, so don't hate me. I actually missed working out during the days that I skipped going to the gym! I know, it is weird. I think I might be turning into someone who enjoys exercise..... I guess anything is possible now.

Bonita Miami

I'm back home to chilly DC and missing Miami already. We arrived Thursday night and the weather was such a wonderful change. Thursday morning in DC the snow started, so I was a little worried about actually getting to start my weekend getaway. But I escaped the cold and just in time.

Friday it was 80 degrees and we headed to South Beach. We had a great lunch at the Beacon and watched all the beautiful people walking by. Friday night we had dinner at Sushi Samba, a cool place on Lincoln Road, and then did a little salsa dancing at Salsa Mia at Yuca. The people there (not me) even did that awesome Cuban Rueda dance like from that movie Dance With Me. Is that retarded that I just admitted that I've watched that movie? More than once? oh well, guess I'm a nerd. Check out their site, they have video clips of everyone dancing. It is the same club that Giada De Laurentiis went to on her Weekend Getaway show, pretty cool!

Saturday was also a sunny day, not 80 but still nice. The girls and I had a spa day after a luxurious breakfast. Then we ended up doing some shopping and having dinner at a Nicaraguan restaurant in Miami Lakes.

Sunday was a bit rainy and chilly, but my friend and I went to South Beach again to walk around and look at all the hotels. The Art Deco Festival was going on along Ocean Drive, so there were street performers and booths selling crafts. But we just focused on the hotels and buildings. My friend is an architect and had never been to Miami before, so she was very excited about looking at and inside all the hotels. We ended up eating lunch at Wish, which was fabulous, and just generally enjoyed the sites. We ended the day with going back to our friend's place and hanging out with her Colombian family.

It was a great time and a good way to warm up during one of the coldest weeks this winter.

2008 Plans

The New Year's Parties are over and people are back to work... now the January and February doldrums are ahead of us.

Not for me though! This weekend I bought my tickets for two trips. I'll be heading off to Miami in a few weeks, just for a quick weekend getaway. Then in March I'm going to Oregon. That trip is for my cousin's wedding and mostly will be with family, but I'm really looking forward to it.

Having trips to look forward to really helps cheer me up.