My Incredible Sense of Timing

I really like my new job. In fact, that's why I took it -- I liked the company and the company's PR goals. I've been with said company for 9 days now, and we just announced that we're being acquired. Yep. 9 days. This combined with the timing of me trying to sell my home right as the housing market crashes and burns leads me to believe that my sense of timing is less than incredible.

I don't know if I'll get laid off. Probably not, but for argument's sake, let's say I do. That leaves me with a mortgage, a Cambridge rent, and no money to pay for either. Woo hoo!

Pedro -- Not So Much

Beer. Check. Pizza. Check. Ice cream. Check. Pedro's triumphant return to Fenway. Eh, not so much. While I like the guy, Mr. Superstar might have wanted to pay attention to where the base runners were in that first inning. And Lastings probably ain't going to be lasting that long. I'm not a Mets fan, but I do like to see them win, provided they aren't beating the Yankees. I really wouldn't give a shit if that petulant little shit, Josh Beckett, hadn't won the game. You know this guy is a three pump chump frattie, and I pray for the day when he lights up his doobage with his bros and trips over something and breaks his arm. Heh.

On the subject of petulant little shits -- A-Rod. I was prepared to rant and rave again, but I just read (arghh...no YES network SUCKS) that he was the one that won the game today. You get a reprieve, my friend. Just for today.

Baseball theme, but unrelated -- Baskin Robbins' "triple play" flavor ice cream is AWESOME.

Other thoughts:

• My sister met David Hasslehoff. For reals. He wanted to come buy pots and pans at her place of bidness, but had his agent call her friend at work and arrange for a visit to his new show. He did not bring Kobie.
• Job still good. Not enough time to mess around on the Internet, though.
• Life still good.
• Days without Tivo -- ouch. I can't believe I'm actually missing Janice Dickinson Modeling Agency.
• Reading -- Get to Work: A Manifesto for Women of the World. Slate covers it here. She's a bit of a nut, but makes some great points.
• Listening to -- the new Beth Orton. Meh.
• Participating in -- another CD exchange. This is the BEST project I've ever done, and I get so much cool music. My fave discovery by way of a friend in Scotland [via Australia] is The Whitlams. You should be listening to them.
• The funny things kids say. YG's daughter, while watching me get changed -- from my work clothes and underwear one wears under work clothes to avoid the dreaded VPL into my "play tag outside" clothes -- said "what's wrong with your underpants?" Followed by something about why would you want to have a wedgie on purpose. Hee. What's wrong with my underpants, indeed.
• Everyone I know is pregnant. Including now one of my best friends from high school. Yay to healthy babies everywhere.
• A note about my finger. Remember gross finger? Yeah, it got infected and should have been stitched. And turned green...and then I thought I had gangrene and vowed to stop the "I don't need a doctor, I can take care of it myself" brand of healthcare I practice. We'll see how long this lasts. I now know, though...skin not supposed to be green.
• I am more interesting than this, really. I think of things to write during the day and then I promptly forget them. Anyway...

Week in Review

Well, I'm back in NJ, but have about an hour or so before I need to head off to another graduation party and then back up to Massachusetts. The movers come in a week and I'm still in overwhelmed mode -- I feel like I got nothing done this weekend.

The job seems great. So far I like my coworkers and I like their philosophy on public relations. I've already started getting involved in projects, and they're REAL -- a few things that will actually have measurable impact on sales and revenue. I'm psyched, but also have my usual nagging shitty committee in my head wondering if I'll be able to handle it and if I'm good enough. Sigh. Oh well. I'm glad that the job seems like a good fit -- it makes everything else seem a little bit easier. And oh yeah -- casual dress code. Woo hoo!

Other random bits:

• I got to ride the rail trail with YG -- 16 miles and got my flat speed up to 20 mph. Very cool. I'm looking forward to much more bike riding this season.
• I joined the gym at work. It's small, but it's FREE. Key word being free.
• Book on CD I'm currently listening to: Devil in the White City. It's pretty excellent and perfect for the 4-hour back and forth.
• Missing: bad TV. Can't wait until the new apartment is set up and I can get back to my craptastic marathons.
• Am caught up on: Rescue Me. Why aren't you watching this show? BEST SHOW ON TELEVISION.
• Suprisingly haven't had time for: much reading or writing. Hopefully this changes soon.

And Some Not-So-Awesome Things

• Still no buyer for the house. Still negotiating. St. Joseph, where are you?
• No money. See above.
• My $115 NYC parking ticket. No parking after 11 p.m. I run back to the car -- ticket was issued at 11:13. Grrr.....
• No money. See above.
• The asshat who threw a milkshake at my windshield on the Turnpike. I hope you find yourself infested with butt mites, jackass.
• The injury report. While closing the window today, my mom's extremely-heavy realtor sign fell and split my thumb. It bled for HOURS and still hurts like a bitch and looks worse.
• Alex Rodriguez. I hate you and I think you suck, and Mike and the Mad Dog can eat it if they think I'm a bad fan for saying that. If you want to be the highest paid player in baseball, try PLAYING like the highest paid player in baseball. And oh yeah, try not to cheat, Mr. Slap Play, because they have this crazy invention called t.v. that might catch you doing it. And before you all start complaining, yes, I know that was 2004. But that was the true start of my deepening hate for this one, and I'd need a whole different blog if I was going to log down every time this whiny brat missed a play or missed a chance to come up big.
• The end of my unemployment. I would really rather like to be independently wealthy.

A Couple of Awesome Things

I leave tomorrow for the first week of my new "journey," and have spent the past two weeks of unemployment reading, riding my bike and most importantly, hanging out with good friends.

• Thanks ML and baby L for cooking me dinner and providing me with cutie baby entertainment. I can't wait to find out if #2 is a boy or a girl and meet him or her too.
• YG planned all the details of last weekend's jaunt into NYC which was excellent.
• The people from my Monday night meeting threw me a going away and good luck party before our usual meeting. I've known most of these people for over five years now and even though I was dragged kicking and screaming into the program and I didn't want to know them, I'm so thankful for everything they've given me. Including taco dip, guacamole, and a t-shirt that reads "Future Ex-Wife" and lists all the gifts of the program. Cheesey? Yes. Still great? Yes. My favorite "gift" is "We will recover the feeling of joy" -- I didn't believe it, but now I do. I used to be fun. Then for a while, not so much. I feel like I'm back again. :-) So thanks to the Monday night group, particularly B, D, and T, for being cool and letting me bratty and not making me hug people.
• An out-of-town friend came back to NYC on Thursday so a bunch of us had dinner at a yummy French place and then had tea and scones the next day at Alice's Teacup. Good food and good conversations. I ran into my first college roommate on the street on the way to dinner -- also a nice suprise.
• I got to kick it old school with NN and K visiting our post-college establishments like Vietnam for shrimp papaya salad and summer rolls and Little Italy for gelatto. I was thinking about this a little bit more over the weekend: NN and I became friends freshman year of college, and I honestly can't imagine ever NOT being friends with her. Even if we don't talk or email every day like we used to, it's just not something I can imagine. But how often does your friend pair up with someone that you like equally as well? Hardly ever. Most of the time, your friends pair up with people that you find tolerable or better, people that you like okay. But K is pretty freakin' great too, and I'm just very excited for these guys to be parents because they're going to be great parents to either a girl or a boy (even if they do chop off his willis. Heh).
• Today was Father's Day and I got to spend it with the family which to me is my parents, my siblings, my aunt, uncle and cousin. For all the bullshit, we're still pretty great. Even though my mother decided to read the entire NJ Zagat Guide OUT LOUD on the drive down and even though I got to sit through the old classics of "Look at this traffic" and "why did you go this way" and "We should get gas" "No, we can make it one more exit," it was still a fun day. I'm going to miss them. Remind me of this when I'm complaining about them in....probably a few hours.

More Movies

Movies that I forgot were totally awesome, but recently watched:

* Antonia's Line -- a Dutch movie about a matriarch and her family. Good plot and pretty people.

* Field of Dreams -- I remember seeing this in the theatre in Long Island as a kid when it first came out. I put it on last night for "background noise" during packing because my stereo speakers don't reach downstairs. Of course, I ended up watching the whole thing and sobbed (the heaving, snot-nosed kind of sobbing) when Kevin Costner's dad takes off his catcher's gear and they end up playing ball. A most excellent movie for baseball fans.

Negotiations

I have my first offer on the house. It's not exactly what I expected, but we're negotiating and it's getting closer to what I wanted. I have St. Joseph to thank for this one.

A discussion with some friends on St. Joe and how he helps sell houses led to the discovery of this. Really, it doesn't get any better than that. The marketing genius of "Put the image of Jesus RIGHT ON FOOD!" sends me into giggle fits.

Listening To Right Now

On my Ipod, my "I'm leaving here and moving to MA" playlist, pared down from about 100 songs:

1. Dirty Water -- The Standells. Boston, you're my town..soon.
2. America -- Neil Diamond. You know you love it.
3. Across the Universe -- Rufus Wainwright. Just because.
4. Seasons -- Neil Halstead. I love it.
5. New York State of Mind -- Billy Joel. Who cares if it's cheesey? It's still awesome.
6. Homeward Bound -- Simon & Garfunkel.
7. The Long and Winding Round -- The Beatles.
8. Good-Bye to Carolina -- Lyle Lovett. LOVE. A friend put this on a mix. How did I not know that Lyle Lovett was cool?
9. Jersey Girl -- Tom Waits. Always.
10. Lowell, MA -- Death Cab for Cutie. Because they're the greatest.
11. Every Ghetto Every City -- Lauryn Hill. Get your groove on.
12. What's the World Got In Store -- Wilco. For me?
13. I'm Leaving on a Jet Plane -- Chantal Kreviazuk. Great Cover.
14. Chinatown -- Luna. This song reminds me of hanging out in New York right after college.
15. As We Walk to Fenway Park in Boston Town -- Jonathan Richman. For YG.
16. NYC -- Interpol.
17. The Only Living Boy in New York -- Simon & Garfunkel. Always been a great song, but thank you, t.v. crush Zack Braff, for putting this on the Garden State soundtrack.
18. Marching Bands of Manhattan -- Death Cab for Cutie. So good.
19. Wish You Were Here -- Pink Floyd. For all my bitches.

An Open Letter to NYC (thank you Beastie Boys)

I had my "official" goodbye to NYC this weekend. YG and I headed in [stopping first at Nordstrom's 1/2 year sale :-) ] and stopped at the W for overpriced but yummy cocktails, had dinner at Sushi Samba and drinks at Flute. We've done this a few times before and I don't care if it's cheesey or bridge-and-tunnelly -- it doesn't disappoint. Ms. Librarian joined us for a round of champagne as well, so that was nice. On Sunday, we got bagels, read the paper, and then went and sat in Union Square Park for a few hours with some eats we picked up at Whole Foods. Overall, low key but fun. I'm going to miss New York, but I'm looking forward to living in the city and being able to do this more often.

My unemployment has been treating me well, although I haven't been getting as much accomplished as I thought I would. I've been taking walks, riding my bike, reading and catching up on a lot of movies I Tivoed. Good: Crash, City of God, Dirty Pretty Things, Supersize Me. Not so much: The War at Home, Coffee and Cigarettes. I've also logged about a billion hours watched tivoed Yankeeographies since Yankee history is much more compelling than the not-so-hot Yankee present. I thought I'd spend more time getting together with friends and hanging out, but I'm having a hard time connecting with people. YG doesn't get why this is so sad for me, and to be truthful, it IS hard to explain the sometimes illogicallness (nice word) of feeling like a kid who is having a party that nobody wants to come to. On the good side, I have plans with some out-of-town friends this Thursday and am hanging out with NN and K and the zygote this Friday. And then I leave Monday. It still seems weird to write that. I leave Monday.

I leave Monday. :-)

MIA

I've been pretty MIA these days. I thought that being off would mean lots of time sitting in front of the computer doing nothing, but I haven't been on that much lately. I did fairly well at the garage sale and am still in packing hell.
The realtor open houses didn't go as well. It was basically me and mom hanging around eating cookies and waiting for somebody to show up. Hopefully this weekend's open house will go better.

What's a Buyer Do?

My sister is a buyer and whenever people ask me what that means, I'm never quite sure how to answer. The NYT explains.

While I love the Times, some of this stuff just floored me:

"The men favored short haircuts and dark suits with white or pale blue shirts. Their physiques were soft, perhaps from riding on the seats of commuter trains. The women, on the whole, looked in better shape, and their attire fell on the side of tasteful rather than fashionable."

Tasteful isn't fashionable? Huh? And yes, only commuters are fat with "soft physiques." This problem doesn't afflict the good people of Manhattan.

And:

"During the meeting, leggings were a source of surprise and excitement. Macy's sold 2,000 pairs the previous week. Customers, filled up on black leggings, now wanted them in stripes and floral prints with lace. "

WHY GOD, WHY? Leggings? Floral print leggings with lace? I think I just threw up in my mouth a little bit. I had those leggings circa 1990. It's like if I went to a designer and said, "Look, I really need a pair of pants that will make my ass look lumpy, droopy and just HUGE too. In a synthetic stretch material. And oh yeah, if you could add a little lace too, that would be great." Leggings = BAD. Just BAD.

Buy My Crap

If you're in NJ, this weekend, please stop by here. Although it will likely be disgusting and rainy, I really need to unload some stuff -- lots of books, clothes (many still with tags on them), kitchen stuff and knick-knacks. I also have some furniture like a stereo table and a dresser that I won't be taking with me to the sale, but am willing to sell (or at this point, just give) to someone.

Insert brief moment where the full extent of my immaturity shines through: The guy who sits in the cube across from me is talking to someone about another guy with the last name Cox, and he keeps repeating "Cox said" and "I was talking about Cox" and I laugh everytime. Because I'm twelve. Heh.

I took a break from packing this weekend and went out to Long Island. This is the first Memorial Day weekend in a LONG time that I can remember being able to go to the beach. It was hot as hell, but I did all my favorite Shirley things including a whole lot of nothing, a whole lot of reading and eating, outlet shopping, and sitting on the beach and staring at the large number of enormous people in very tiny bathing suits -- something of a Shirley phenomenom.

Now it's back to packing and prepping. All the energy that I had for this a few weeks ago has disappeared and I really don't want to do anything. It's a huge pain in the ass keeping the house clean enough for showing and I find myself only wanting to watch t.v. The only big pare down project I have left is to go through all my clothes and shoes -- something I really don't want to do. I was staring at the shoes last night and....I want them all. Sigh.

Brief Moment of Regret? Worry? Followed By "Things I Won't Miss About the Suburbs"

I went out to dinner with my mom, sister and my mom's friend last night after she spent a bunch of time taking pictures of the house and "staging" for showing the house. This apparently consists of putting a LOT of fake flowers, plants and vases (brought over from the Bonnie and Doug basement where knick knacks go to die) everywhere and putting on a nicer bedspread -- one that doesn't show so much cat hair. The place looks good, although I'm almost afraid to touch anything.

Anyway, we were eating dinner and watching the baseball game on the bar's t.v. Yankees vs. Red Sox. Yankees up by 2, but bases loaded in the bottom of the 8th and David Ortiz coming up to bat. Yikes! Watching the screaming fans at Fenway and listening to the always-audible chants of "Yankees suck," I had a brief moment of wondering what the hell I'm doing and where it is that I'm moving to. I'm going to live among these people? I live and breathe baseball. I love the Yankees, I go to games, I read the books, I tolerate Michael Kay, I've been to spring training multiple times....I am a FAN! But those Red Sox fans? Truly, a different animal. :-)

Topic shift.
File under Things I Won't Miss About the Suburbs: The new Walkmen album came out earlier this week. I had to go to 3 different stores before finally locating it at a mega-Borders. NN got me into these guys a few years ago. At first I was unimpressed and didn't understand her undying devotion, but they grew on me and I went through a phase of listening to only Bows + Arrows for about 3 months straight.

I won't miss not being able to find the "good" music I like to listen to. On the flip side, I've never had a problem locating the following out where I live: Ultimate Manilow, REO Speedwagon's Greatest Hits, Glam Rock Hits of the 80s, Poison's Greatest Hits (which KF and I belted out at the top of our lungs driving down the FDR a few summers ago), Bonnie Tyler's Total Eclipse of the Heart, and the soundracks to every nerdy movie, including Fame, Grease, and The Wedding Singer, I've ever seen. So there you go.

Public Service Announcement

Seriously, what the fuck is wrong with this country? Do what you can.

The Senate is scheduled to vote on the Federal Marriage Amendment the week
of June 5th.

The text of the proposed amendment to the
Constitution is as follows:

"Marriage in the United States shall
consist only of the union of a man and a woman. Neither this Constitution or the
constitution of any State, nor state or federal law, shall be construed to
require that marital status or the legal incidents thereof be conferred upon
unmarried couples or groups."

The HRC is delivering postcards
to congressional offices stating opposition to this amendment. Let
your elected representatives know that a vote for the FMA is a vote
against your friends and family by sending one: http://www.hrcactioncenter.org/campaign/fma_postcards.

Maybe Not Homeless (Except for 2 Weeks)

Up in Cambridge/Somerville area for today and tomorrow and I think I may have found someplace to live. I looked at six different apartments today. The first one I saw could have worked. It was in a big house, right near Tufts, and could have definitely fit all my stuff, but it was a little ragged looking -- lots of orange carpet, 70s'-style kitchen, and drafty windows. I thought to myself, "I could live here," but I didn't love it. It was less than a mile from Davis Square, though, so a good location. Everything else in Somerville that I saw was "charming" (read: small) -- lots of places I would have loved if this were my first apartment post-college, but since it's not, I have a hard time rationalizing spending $1650 a month for someplace that wouldn't hold ANY of my furniture.

I sort of fell in love, though, with a place right in Cambridge. Way more expensive, but very modern with 2 bedrooms, walk-in closets, two off-street parking spaces, and a POOL! It's walkable to all 3 squares and easily commutable. The only issue is the move in date -- July 1. My job starts on June 20 so I will be living out of a suitcase for 2 weeks. Kind of sucky. But with a mortgage (someone please buy my house) and rent, this might not be that bad. We'll see. I'm looking at a few more places tomorrow, but if none of them top this place, I'm going to take it.

On the move: I had lunch at a nice place and then got a pedicure -- a perfect day to feel really content about moving up here. I spent last night with YG and the MG too, and we had fun. She's a riot and is constantly giving me shit about liking the Yankees. They are supposedly "mean." The Red Sox, on the other hand, are "nice." Overall, I'm happy to be coming up here.

Enormous

The enormity of what I'm trying to accomplish in just 5 weeks is starting to set in. I'm feeling a little overwhelmed and way overtired. I've been up to 1 or 2 a.m. every night since I've made my decision, cleaning out the house and making lists, and then I sleep through the alarm. Blah. I spent the other night in the garage just trying to make ROOM for crap that I have to throw out.

I feel like this is an opportunity to have a fresh start, to pare down, clean up, declutter....all good stuff. I look at all the things I have and it just makes me sad that I've spent so much money collecting stuff that I never needed and I don't use. Hello, 15 tableclothes? I don't cook and I never eat at the table. It's a waste, and I want to try and keep from doing this in my new place, wherever that ends up being.

I also want to make sure that I keep my food normal during the next few weeks and exercise when I can. This weekend was supposed to be this but I have so much to do that I'm staying home and getting the house ready for showing next week. YG is going to help me since I have no idea what the hell I'm doing when it comes to home repairs.

In other news -- my last official day of work will be June 6, but I'm taking about a gazillion personal days before then. Up in Cambridge on Monday and Tuesday to try and find a place to live. And more good times, over $800 of car repairs. :-(

Busy, Busy, Busy

Insanely busy this weekend and today. I messed around in the house some more, and ended up shredding 4 large garbage bags worth of paper this weekend, making a ton (literally?) of room for myself. Also have dates with Home Depot, the DMV, and Sears Carpet Cleaning. Glamorous.

And have appointments with 5 different realtors next Monday and Tuesday to try and find myself a place to live.

Deep breath. In one month, it will all be done with, but getting there is going to be a bitch.

More Reactions

I'm collecting some of my favorite reactions to the move:

"Only six more weeks until you're beantown's new sassy it girl. Wheee!"

"Wave adios to your sucky job and off to Beantown for you! (We'll make a Sox fan
of you yet... ) "

"Will your new job let you talk about blow jobs at the office? Because it's not
too late to negotiate for extra perks... "

"I am totally coming to visit you , and we can hang out in harvard square and go
to shows at the middle east and pretend we're not 30."

And this gem from my mom because it's absurd...and just odd considering that I'm in the middle of a divorce AND I would presumably tell my own parents if I was thinking of getting married :

"So you're going up there? Um, you're not getting married, are you? Because you should wait a while to do that again. "

This is infinitely more fun than making more lists. I started with one list and then it begat another list and that begat another...and now I'm just feeling overwhelmed. And the best way to deal with being overwhelmed is to procrastinate. I do have a couple of moving quotes, though, so that's a start. Now I just need to figure out how many cubic feet of stuff I have.

My reaction

Like-seriously refers to the reaction that I've been getting from lots of people when I tell them I'm moving. Me: I'm moving to Boston. Randomly-selected friend: Like...seriously? Me: Uh huh...
And then I hit them with the rock fingers.



My reaction on finding out that I got the job I want and am moving to Boston.

Not a Trendsetter

Everyone's got one. Or everyone had one...like two years ago. I'm officially rejoining the blogosphere. I tried this a while back and after three posts, gave up and never went back.
But now I'm moving....and I'm sure that's of much interest to a number of people, besides me.