Currently....

Homeowners!

May has been a hectic month getting moved. We closed on our home May 1 and took our time moving slowly over a week and a half. It was kinda nice doing a couple small loads of things every day after work, but I also didn't know where anything was. Anthony wasn't feeling well during most of the move, and thankfully friends and family helped out a lot at the last push - moving the bigger items and cleaning up our old place. Nice to have a full deposit returned.

Family came to town for Archer's baby blessing, but right in the middle of moving.

I think we're mostly sleeping on the floor for now.

I had to go to Florida for work last week, a quick 48 hour trip that felt way short and exhausting. 

And while there, my eyelid decided to break out with cold sores. Not fun. 

I got home late Wednesday night and didn't want to go to work because of that. Also because I hadn't showered and I was exhausted. Except, surprise, we still don't have internet at our new house, so I couldn't work from home. I texted a friend about working from her house that day, which was no problem. She set up an access code for me to get into her house, and as soon as I sat down to log onto her internet and start working, the power went out in her whole neighborhood. Foiled!

I had no choice but to go into the office, but I didn't want anyone to see me. I wasn't really dressed to be seen in public, so I pulled a hoodie over my face, went to a different floor and hid out all day. Thankfully I could confide in one person who brought me a plate of food and some drinks.

The next day my eye was clearing up, but I got a terrible sinus infection and got really sick. Just in time for Shannon to fly in and be our first houseguest, so we could both celebrate Meghan and Kevin's wedding this weekend. I took lots of drugs and rallied, but I didn't feel well at all. And still had to go to work for one Friday afternoon meeting because, no internet at home. Ugh.

I'm finally feeling a bit better, but now it's off on another weekend trip tonight. I kinda wish I could just have a few days at home feeling well and competent so I can get my life/house together. Yes, I know I'm complaining, but if you can't complain to the internet, where can you complain?

I'm Alive. Barely.

Yep, still here. And would rather be updating this old thing than doing school. My hard, horrible class is over on April 22. One will still linger until the 30th, but the worst will be over. And then I'll have a life. Until then....

What Day is It?

Whoa, things have been moving in a whirlwind for the last couple weeks. I walked into work on Monday this week so confused, actually thinking it was a Friday. The next day I thought it was a Thursday. I'm clearly all turned around.

I took on a holiday season job at a store in the mall, since I'd worked there in a prior life and loved it. I was at the mall one day and saw their sign for holiday help, and I got all inspired to apply for the fun of it and the discount. It's been good, but it also means a busy schedule. Lately I have been on closing shift on Thursday and Friday nights, and then working Saturday morning through most of the day. Weekend plans with anyone are shot, though I do manage to see Anthony.

In the middle of two jobs and holiday events, I've been scrambling to take the GRE and finish a grad school application. As of Monday this week, that is complete! I took the GRE on a Tuesday, so I was gone from work most of the day, and it made the rest of the week feel strange. I worked so much in the following days, somehow that weekend still made it to a coworker's dinner party and Anthony's Army holiday gathering, and give a short lesson at church. And on Friday Anthony had an outpatient procedure on his heart, and I took him to the hospital early and picked him up between my two jobs so he could get home and rest. I did enjoy being his caretaker, and I know he'd be just as good or better if the roles were reversed.

This week I've had a Christmas concert and took my Iraqi friends to Temple Square to see lights, and I had to interview a Georgetown applicant and complete another lesson for church this week, and I'm working even more extended hours at the mall this weekend, but hey! Sure keeps things interesting. I'm impressed that I'm actually showing up to the right place at the right time lately.....

And now, a couple photos from Black Friday adventures before I had to go to work that day... Back to the grind. Hopefully I'll catch up on this year's adventures on here before the end of the year!

Life Lately

Today is little Q's first birthday! I think she's just so fun. Ignore my pile of laundry in the background. 

Tonight's the first night it's getting really cold and it's gonna snow and I just had to turn on my heater and I'm scared of winter cause the air quality is already really bad. Ugh.

I also just started a holiday job at a favorite store and I kinda love it, even though it makes for long days and no weekends. Not sure why I did it exactly? And then I'm taking the GRE in 2 weeks and trying to get into grad school that starts in January, which is nuts, but I need to because I'm probably getting laid off next year. Time for skill building and networking and recruiting services!

The Crown is excellent (especially episode 5 - whoa) and I'm going on a diet next week and this guy is still really great.

This has been your November update.

Life, Currently.

I'm almost done with the Balkan updates, and hoping to finish those posts soon, but I've been doing other stuff too.

A couple things lately - I'm kicking off No Shop November. Not that my shopping is out of control, but trying to trim the budget a bit, just cause. I did my last bit of shopping on Halloween, and I hit up the favorite Athleta for a couple winter pieces. Still loving the workout gear, and with more classes at OrangeTheory, it's less laundry for me.

Also I've been doing a whole lot of this lately. I'd deleted Tinder for months and months, and recently decided to join again. I'll probably quit again next week - it's like a bad drug addiction. You come crawling back for that swipe fix, then realize it gets you nowhere and you quit. For now, I'm swiping and embracing the awkwardness. I don't think I've been more apathetic about dating ever in my life.

Here's a quick recap of the latest dates.

Date 1: Before my Balkan adventure. Met a nice guy who recently moved to Utah. Not LDS, but that's okay with me. We had a great dinner at Rusted Sun pizzeria, which I'd never tried before, and it is super good. Next time I get pizza in SLC, it will be there. We had good conversation, I dropped the Mormon bomb toward the end of the night (it naturally came up in conversation), and then we parted, never to speak again, despite him saying he'd like to see me again. 

Date 2: Saturday afternoon lunch with a kid who lives in Provo. I was excited that he's from back East, but apparently the East Coast has all worn off, since he moved to Provo right after high school and has been there ever since. During lunch he kept getting me confused with all the other girls he's chatting with on Tinder (c'mon, we all talk to multiple people, but come up with a way to keep people straight!). Like - oh! you're the one who likes science! Nope, not me. Multiple times. I was just rolling with it. He was very considerate during lunch, despite the confusion, and I'm trying really hard to date Mormon guys, so when he asked if he could call me again, I said sure.

The next week he calls me again, leaves a voicemail, I call him back, and we discuss schedules. We agreed on the next Friday evening. He said he'd look around and see what was going on, and come up with a plan. On Tuesday of that week I send him a text just to see how he's been doing. He writes back with a generic good message, including a line of 'not sure if I told you xyz....' Of course, he doesn't know what he's told me and what he's told some other girls. By Wednesday evening I'm fully convinced that he's made plans with me, but thinks it's another girl, and is so confused and this date isn't happening. I certainly didn't want to remind him, so I made other plans, and sure enough, I didn't hear from him at all. So weird! He's now unmatched on the Tinder.

Date 3: Happened right after date 2 - met at a tea shop for afternoon tea. Who am I doing back to back dates? I guess I am in Utah after all. Really nice guy, no longer a practicing Mormon, which he brought up before we met, but I was game to meet anyway. We had a really fun time and chatted for a couple hours. We texted for several days after, and then he dropped off.....whatever.

Date 4: About to happen this week. A funny guy with an endless pasta pass at Olive Garden. It's got to be good for stories at the very least. Let's see how the OG since I was last there 15 years ago.

Date 5: About to happen tomorrow. Some guy in town for work, looking to meet a nice Mormon girl in SLC. I'm game for a free dinner. 

Oh - and I went to a singles fireside last night where 66% of the population was old enough to be my parents, 30% old enough to be my grandparents, and 4% in my age range. Expect more dating stories here - nothing to lose!

Take Me Outta Funky Town...

Update to the Garmin saga below....
-------------------------------

Eh...so I haven't had the best last few weeks.

Boy I was dating, the one mentioned is a recent previous post, broke up with me for a reason I still can't exactly decipher, after we spent a great day together and then he came and met my brother and his family and had dinner with us. Who does that? I was a bit blindsided.

I started an eBay store to get rid of some clothes that I've barely or never worn, and I've made a few sales. But after fees the eBay is taking, I don't even know if it's worth it. And so many trips to the post office! I always use the automated machine to mail my stuff, and I had several packages returned for insufficient postage. What? You weighed the thing and told me what to pay! And then sent it back for more funds. This isn't worth the hassle.

I keep turning down wrong streets while driving and not remembering where things are located. My mind is not sharp lately. That's so not like me.

Mom flew into town last Friday, and I was walking out the door to go pick her up when I decided to grab the broom and sweep the front porch quickly. And then I locked myself out of the house. No car keys. No house keys. At least I had a phone. And then I tried a credit card in the door and it opened much too easily. Always lock that deadbolt!

This article came out, and it sums up my experience pretty well, and it's pretty depressing. I don't know what to do or how anything is going to work out, other than start a convent full of ice cream and Netflix. I've got at least one girl friend on board.

I asked my brother if I could borrow his GPS for my upcoming European road trip, since it'd be a little less expensive than renting one every day, even with buying a new map. He sent it with my parents to Utah this weekend, however, he didn't include the connection cable for the computer. I went through my pile of cables and found one that would work. Then I downloaded the Garmin Express software that I seemed to need to manage the device and map updates. I couldn't get it to install on my computer. After multiple tries late last night, it finally installed. Then I plugged in the GPS with the cord I'd found and it wouldn't recognize. Fine - I installed some drivers. Still didn't work. A restart and a few tries later, device recognized. Hooray! I wouldn't have to send it back to Tanner and not use it, so I went to sleep thinking it would work just fine.

Today I decided to purchase the map. Of course Garmin needs me to make an account on their site. Fine. I pay for and download the map. Then it tells me I need a different program to get the map from my computer to the GPS, and not the one I had installed the day  before. What? I try to download the program and the extension isn't available on Chrome. Seriuosly? I had to go to old IE. Ick. I finally get the extension downloaded and installed. Then I plug in my device to make the transfer. And it won't recognize my device! At this point I'm hella mad cause I just spent $75 for a product I can't get refunded and now apparently can't use. I rummaged through my old electronics pile and finally found another cable that fit. It finally worked and I think the map transfer was successful. Bottom line - never try to borrow a Garmin and install a map on it. This is much more difficult than expected, and I think I'm fairly tech savvy.

Update: Though the map downloaded, it did not activate on the device. I just spent 30 minutes on the phone with Garmin. They show the map activated and unlocked, however it's not on the device. Apparently they have a technical issue with this specific map, and have a ticket open to fix it on their end. I got a refund. All this hassle for absolutely nothing. Ugh. Never again.

In the midst of all this, I'm really looking forward to fall coming (I know, a little early, and I'm scared of the season after, but bring the layers!), and a new start of a season, and this epic European road trip I'm about to take. I think it will do me some good. I'll come home to another birthday and I'm hoping to make it a great year, despite some crappy things still looming around. My dad gave me a blessing today before he left Utah and I've had a better outlook today. And if these things above are the only things I have to complain about, I'd say I've got it pretty easy.

A Week in the Big Apple

At the end of May I had a bit of a last minute work trip to New York. I was kind of looking forward to staying home after so much travel, but this work project meeting came up, and it was a good time to meet a lot of people in person. I haven't been to this particular NYC office since I switched business units last year, and it's quite a bit different from the usual office.

The meetings were happening in the week of Memorial Day, so I took the opportunity to stretch the trip into spending two weekends in NYC with some work (and other stuff) in the middle. I flew in Sunday afternoon and settled into a hotel (thanks for the discount, Becca!) for a few days. I liked the elevators.

Then I headed out and about to meet up with Scott, taking a walk through Bryant Park on the way.

Skahtee! High school friends, still friends, still meeting up wherever we are in the same city. We grabbed a bite at a new food kitchen that had opened off 8th Ave. Why do I feel like I spend a lot of time on 8th Ave?

This City Kitchen had a Dough in it, which made me so happy! Their hibiscus donut has been tempting me via Instagram for months, and I finally got to eat one! Yes, it is delicious.

Then I headed south a bit to meet up with Angela. We both love music, and good ole Willie Fitzsimmons was playing at a little venue. His stuff is a bit too depressing for me, but we had a good time.

Memorial Day Monday! I walked over to Chutney Kitchen (on 8th Ave, ha) to meet up with Brig, who had to work that day.

We had some lunch and photo taking time.

Then I hustled up to Harlem to meet Angela and some of her friends so we could get to the Yankees game.

We had some decent seats that were in the shade at first, but we ended up moving way up top for some shade.

I apparently didn't get the 'wear blue' memo. Oh well. Yankees had an incredible game without my support. So many runs!

Tuesday - off to work! I took a cab downtown with all my luggage so I could settle into my new hotel in Tribeca. I had lunch on the roof with a few people - rooftops in NYC are the best.

Tuesday night I had dinner with coworker Lynsay in the West Village. She joined my team sometime last year, and she also went to Georgetown for undergrad. Nice to have those connections. Then I headed over to Milk in SoHo for my Candy Bar Pie fix. Brig met up with me after tutoring.

Not the only one I'd eat this week.

More work on Wednesday back in the main office building in the Financial District. Even though I'm an employee, it's still impossible to get into that building if you don't normally work there. And once I was in, I probably spent more time walking around trying to find a spot to work and moving between meeting rooms than actually working, But whatever.

Wednesday night was packed with fun. First stop, Madison Square Eats with Josh and Carly. It rained a bit, but then the light on the side of the Flatiron Building was just lovely.

Roberta's. Yes.

Round 2 - Lobster roll.

Always glad to see these two.

I popped underground and headed towards Bowery, but not without an underground rendezvous with Bryndee! She'd been out of town over the long weekend, and was only in town for two days before taking off away. We had a half hour chat in a subway station, but it was so great to catch up despite the funny circumstances. Then I came up above ground for a show at Bowery Ballroom - Beacon and Kiasmos. Kiasmos is the side project of Olafur Arnalds, who I totally dig. I saw that they had a few tour dates, mostly in the northeast, and didn't think I'd be able to make a show. But alas! Luck was on my side and this trip worked out.

A video posted by Lauren W (@laurenhoya) on May 27, 2015 at 9:20pm PDT

I had a nice walk back to my hotel after the show. I always prefer the walk home at night over the subway. Something about taking in the city streets. I had a lot to think about for the next day too. It was going to be 'the big day' at work - the biggest day of meetings and trying to get through a lot of material. Funny thing - I forgot to wear deodorant that day, whoops! Meetings went well and thankfully I had time to go back to my hotel after because....

That night I was meeting up with someone I met back in February on a certain dating app, and we'd been talking for months, since he lived on the east coast. With this work trip, it coordinated just perfectly that he could come to NYC to meet up, and we planned to spend the weekend together. I won't give too many details, other to say that the weekend was a natural extension of the time we'd spent talking and turned out to be a great weekend.

Thursday night we met on a street in the West Village and headed to a play and dinner. We saw The Flick and then had dinner at the Spotted Pig, which always has a line and doesn't take reservations. Unless you go on a Thursday night at 11:15pm, and then you can walk right in and settle into a cozy spot. Taylor Swift had apparently eaten there for lunch that day. He walked me back to my hotel and that's definitely all I'm saying about that.

I had to head back into work the next morning for a final day at the office, but I ducked into Bubby's quickly for breakfast with LA friend Dave. He was gracious enough to come down from Harlem, where he now lives. We had a good time catching up, then back to the office for me.

I left work in the early afternoon, checked out of my hotel and moved up to friend Jason's apartment where I could stay free the rest of the weekend. Then I hopped the train again to head south and meet up with guy at the new Whitney Museum. Thanks to work, we got in free.

View from Jason's window. He's got a nice place, though small. But it's NYC.

And view from the Whitney. Lots of outdoor space and nice views of the city. 

After getting our fill of art, we walked across the Brooklyn Bridge. 

Pizza at Juliana's. This is the place, not Grimaldi's. Ole Patsy was out front, and somehow we walked right into a table outside, despite the line. Patsy himself told us to sit! Next time you're in NYC, skip the Grimaldi's line and walk next door. You won't regret it.

I had to walk over and see the stained glass house near the bridge.

Then back to Manhattan for another stop at Milk bar - I needed more sweets.

Saturday morning brought brunch with Brigham at Mission Cantina. He writes a lot about this place, and finally I got to try it. Turns out owner and chef Danny is from Oklahoma - crazy connection! We saw him come in that morning. 

Bathroom selfie. I still don't believe in selfies.

After stuffing ourselves with chilaquiles and quesadillas and more, we walked over to Doughnut Plant for even more food. Glorious. Then guy and I took off back to the West Village to catch a movie - White God - a Hungarian food about dogs. Sort of.  Then we laid in the grass in Washington Square Park for a bit. I desperately needed a nap, so we parted ways and I was off to sleep.

We regrouped at Upright Citizens Brigade for a comedy show. I was running late per usual, and Uber became my best friend this trip. I met some friends of guy, and we grabbed some tacos after the show. Then we were off to another show at Bowery Ballroom. I'm obsessed lately with Other Lives and think what they're doing musically is just wonderful. I wasn't going to miss them (even though I knew I could see them in Utah a couple weeks later). They're from Oklahoma - another reason they're close to my heart.

Sunday was a day of church and a picnic in Central Park and a stop at Levain Bakery for cookies, which I wouldn't eat til later. Guy was going to drive me to the airport, since he'd driven into town. But first, to Hell's Kitchen to get my stuff, then a cab to Gramercy, to get his stuff, then subway to Brooklyn to find his vehicle, right as it started to pour. I was running so late for my flight at this point. So so late. I arrived at JFK at 5:13 for a 5:45 flight, too late to check my bag. I tried to find a person to help, but lines were so long and only kiosks were open, and time was ticking. Guy offered to take my suitcase since he was coming to Utah this next weekend, so I ran back outside and threw it into the car. No time for goodbyes, so many emotions going on at this point. I was a mess.

I ran back in, got into the security line and tried to make my way forward. But once through security, I had to take a bus across the tarmac to another terminal where my gate was. It. Took.For. Ever. I hopped outta the bus at 5:35 and sprinted down the corridor. As I'm rounding the corner to my gate, I hear "The flight to Salt Lake is now closed." I started to yell some nonsense, like please let me on! And they let me on. Glad they didn't give away my seat!

I was a mess. Humid air, sweaty from running, not even sure what I'd left behind, though I did manage to grab my makeup bag, and of course I had my purse and laptop. But nothing else. No time for a nice goodbye, just stress and panic, and as he said - hey, you learned you can make it in 40 minutes! No need for 2 hours. Um....yeah.  Turns out my work friend had the same situation two weeks later at JFK and missed her flight....so funny. Down with JFK and NYC traffic!

Anyway. Great week in NYC, and so glad I packed in all that fun and work and hopefully made a good leap forward in my dating life. Time will tell. Maybe I'll keep you posted.....