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Mercredi des Cendres

I did some things today! And some things happened this weekend! Were they exclamation point worthy? MAYBE!!! YOU decide!

Friday morning, it was 29⁰F (the coldest this winter that I can think of). I sat in my car until the window defrosted thinking “Friday before a long weekend, YASSSS.” About halfway to work, my car started acting funny. It ran hot when I was going over 20mph and the battery light came on. When I got to work, I checked my liquid levels and hoped I could make it home and maybe it was a fluke. About halfway home, it started going nuts. The dials weren’t working well, it kept saying the battery was dying and that it was overheating. Finally it died…and I pulled into an empty parking lot. It wouldn’t start again.

Z biked back to his house to retrieve his gallant steed and rescued me from certain death (waiting around). He brought me to my house and that’s where I spent most of Mardi Gras break. I got to see him again Saturday night – we went out to Hibachi to celebrate his passing his candidacy exam for his math PhD program!!! #soproud 

I cleaned and lazed Sunday. Monday, I made gumbo and got to see Casey and her toddler (who is adorable).

Her: “What color is this?”

Me: “It’s yellow”

Her: “It’s yellow! Bery [Very] good!” 

I later made gumbo and watched Despicable Me 2 (adorable) with Z. Mardi Gras started with my first attempt at banana pancakes followed by Casey came back over without her mini-me to pick me up. My friend Bella had offered to let me drive her jeep until my vehicle is fixed. Did I mention I have the very best friends? I have the very best friends.

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So as of today, I have arranged for my car to be towed to a auto-repair place. Apparently the serpentine belt has broken, so counting being towed, it should hopefully be only around $250 or less!

UPDATE: Repairing the serpentine belt (with towing) is only $201…however it’s leaking oil, coolant, power steering fluid, and needs work on the head…so the total to make my car actually driveable will be $1744. So now is the search for a new vehicle 😦

 

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I know Thanksgiving was yesterday, but I spent most of the day with my family and friends in some capacity. And as Cicero says, Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all others. I’m allowed to be thankful each day, including Black Friday, a pseudoholiday wrought with irony. This isn’t a challenge to any cosmic entities, but this year has been relatively quiet compared to past years – this has probably been the longest “break” experienced without tragedy since 2008. In 2008, my little brother had a cardiac aneurysm and died in my parents’ arms. I was 20, and he was 15…it was a difficult thing for my family to even attempt to come to terms with. From that point on, my struggles with anxiety and academia were exacerbated to the point of being unable to complete my coursework until help was sought. In October 2010, my 19 year old cousin was hit by a car on her college campus and died. This was a difficult thing for everyone, especially my parents, so soon after already having lost one person so young and close to us. A month and a half later, we watched our house burned down the day after Thanksgiving. Someone had stayed up all night playing games and saw the spark from the outlet…otherwise my brother, dad, and I wouldn’t be here today. A year later, one of my close friends died in a car accident, and the year after that I had a nervous breakdown. In 2013 we lost my grandfather, the only one who was alive while I was old enough to get to know him. 

Every time I get caught up in a difficult situation, I try to put it in perspective. I don’t participate in the “others have it worse” mentality, because that will always be trivially true. No one’s struggles should be minimized and marginalized because of an obscure and biased ranking system. I think about my own experiences with respect to my own past. I am grateful to be able to do this and be able to be empathetic to others. I am thankful my parents and brother are doing well and that I have a friendship structure that has withstood the test of time. I hope that my romantic life pans out and instead of trying to adhere to some sort of weird societal standards, I can keep the person I’ve come to fit with like a puzzle-piece. I think being more secure in myself and being willing to speak another’s love language will help. Right now we’re both so busy, so I hope after the next couple of weeks are over I don’t lose someone I really care about.

But if you just came here for a bulleted list of things I’m thankful for: 

  • My family and I are getting along better than we have in years
  • My friends are amazing and supportive and everything I dreamed of having when I was younger
  • Z having a smile that makes me smile
  • Kitty cats :3 because kitty cats
  • My job pays bills
  • My car still runs
  • I live in a nice and secure apartment
  • My hair is back to my natural color (light brown vs. black)

Ugh, Moving

boxesMoving is a pain. In. The. EVERYTHING. I live two towns and one parish over from the school I teach at. The reason for this is because I was originally supposed to move into a complex with my ex, a terrible goblin. Not together in the same apartment, mind you, but in the same complex so we could see each other more often than we were. And wouldn’t you know it, we broke up the day after I signed the lease. I don’t mind where I live…it’s actually only a 30 minute drive, and the complex is reasonably priced and has great amenities. It is also more…residential than college, so there aren’t wild parties everywhere all of the time, and people go to bed at a reasonable hour.

I lived in a one bedroom apartment with a little balcony…750 sqft for $750 for me and my two cats, Max and Kat Kat. My friend Bayleaf and I had talked about living together the next year, but I had to renew within 60 days of my lease ending (July), so I did because we hadn’t set plans in stone yet. She wanted to find a place closer to her job (which would also be closer to mine), but I wasn’t crazy about that idea either. Then she stayed over a few times and commented how she really liked my apartment complex, and how the drive wasn’t even that bad. So I thought “Well maybe my complex will let me transfer my lease?” And they did! Yay! Living with a good friend, cheaper rent, a dog, bigger living room, more private building in the complex, and I didn’t have to move far! It’s all good in the neighborhood, right?

Well…aside from the hunting someone down with a trailer/truck to help move furniture (thanks friends who helped!), Bayleaf and I had to take care of miscellaneous tasks that one forgets sometimes…

  • Transferring Internet (vital)
  • Signing the lease and paying/transferring the deposits/rent
  • Transferring the electricity
  • Cleaning the old place

So the only one of these that caused a real problem was transferring the electricity. So basically…it’s a $35 transfer fee (whatever), but I had to reapply for an occupancy permit within my parish ($25). I wouldn’t have been as ticked about it if it didn’t require me to drive 25 miles immediately after work to turn in a paper copy of a simple application for occupancy in the parish I already live in. I literally am moving across by four buildings. But whatever. WHATEVER. It’s all taken care of now 🙂