Quick Take #18

Number 18: It's November already!?!

1. I'm alive.
I know this is getting to be a familiar theme around here, ha, but I haven't been on Facebook in over a month, so I think a phrase like this is more pressing than usual. I know a few people have been worried about me, but I have friends who know I'm OK and are able to let others know. For those of you who weren't in the know or were wondering where I am, I'm really OK :) I have a post in the works about why I stopped at first, and then why I continue to stay away, but I need to finish it and of course, post it. We'll see if that ever happens, ha.

2. A few quick updates within a quick take:

• Chris is still unemployed. It hasn't been two months yet, so I'm trying to be positive. It can be worse; it HAS been worse. First layoff: 16+ months. Second layoff: 5 or 6 months. The only difference is that I'm not working full time, so thankfully our savings is helping a lot.
• I ran the 5K! I wasn't last! I ran it in 46:15, which was faster than any training I'd done. Chris finished in about 39 minutes. We were pleased at how we did!
• My library school application materials are complete and have been sent to school; now I wait to be accepted. Hurry, acceptance letter!
• I've officially lost 50 pounds since I started my weight loss trek about a year ago. I'm thinking about 30 more pounds would be great, which would be the weight I was when I met Chris. Right now I think I'm smaller than I was when we got married, and probably smaller than I was when we got engaged. I should pull out my wedding dress to see if it's too big...haha.

3. Do you know what a standardized patient is?
It's a person who is playing a patient for medical students. They aren't really sick or injured, they are almost acting it out for the purposes of training and teaching. A local medical school is looking for people to fill these roles, and I was thinking about applying. I go to the doctor enough, so I think I've got a pretty good handle on what goes on. It's $18 an hour if you're selected, which is almost double what I make at the library. It would be sporadic work, days here and there, but it'd be nice to have some extra income. I had been thinking about getting another job, since the library is feast or famine: some weeks I only work two days, others I'm working over 30 hours! However, it might be difficult to juggle full time school with more than one job. A job that I could do 'here & there' would be great!

4. I can't believe it's November!
A true sign I am getting old: I marvel at what month we're currently in. Haha. Thanksgiving was four weeks from yesterday. My godson will be turning EIGHTEEN the day before Thanksgiving. What!? Now I really am getting old...sigh. For Thanksgiving, Chris and I will be going to my parents' house, where my brother and Chris' dad and grandmother will join us. Maybe his brother? My brother-in-law lives in the Boston area and has a girlfriend with family in the area, so maybe they'll be with her family. Who knows. It'll be a small, quiet day. I miss the holidays when I was younger, with my mom's boisterous, bigger family, but that's life...

5. Thanksgiving and Easter are my favorite holidays.
True story. Thanksgiving because it's about the food and family and friends and just enjoying the day. No church to run to, trying to plan out when to cook and eat around Mass/Divine Liturgy schedules. No presents-nonsense. That sounds awful, but I don't mean it in a God-less way. I know of people who do attend church on the holiday, and that's great if it's your thing. It's not ours, nor has it ever been. I'll talk about why I love Easter when it gets closer to that time. Another reason why I love Thanksgiving: we don't host it! We've hosted every Christmas since we've lived here, and we've done two Easters, I think? It's nice to NOT have to prep and cook and clean for a major holiday. Just make a dish or two, get dressed, and drive to someone's house!

6. Speaking of living here...
As of October 26, we've owned this house for four years. October 28 was our four-year anniversary of actually living here. Some days it feels as if we've been here longer, and some days, I think "we just moved in last year." False. Our house has had more done to it in the past four years than the previous owners did in the 7? 8? years they lived here. And it was new construction! When we moved in, everything was white and bare. Inside and out. Now there's color and life and just...it's more of a home than it ever was. But everyone was right: there's always something to be done. Even when you think you're done with one project, you look at something else and think "that needs to be taken care of next/before it gets worse/in the spring/when we have saved enough." That is, if you're into home projects or care about changing things. Some people might have looked at what the house was like when we moved in and thought it was fine.

7. I almost forgot!
In my last Quick Takes, I mentioned that our sixth anniversary was approaching at the end of September. Chris and I had talked about going away, as we have only been away twice since our honeymoon: we took a long weekend trip to Philadelphia for our first anniversary, and over the summer, we went to my aunt's on Cape Cod for the weekend. Then the layoff happened, but Chris took the bull by the horns and arranged a little getaway for the two of us, after checking with me to see if I felt like our finances could handle it. (I do the majority of our money/bills stuff) I said "Why not??? Life is too short, let's do it." It's not like we were going away to some posh resort with airfare and all of that. All I knew is that we were going to the Berkshires (mountains in Massachusetts), which is just under 2 hours from our house. This was very much unlike me not to know what we were doing, where were going. I usually need ALL THE DETAILS. All I asked Chris was to let me know what types of clothing I'd need. We spent three nights at a cute hotel and spent the days fishing, antiquing, visiting some local sites, and just having a great, low stress time. It was badly needed.

Don't forget to visit Jen over at Conversion Diary for more Quick Takes!