Pulled

A year ago I had an overwhelming and frightening pull at my soul to go to Haiti. There were calls going out across the world for volunteers, supplies and help. I felt that I had something of value to give and I could actually provide something worthwhile. They need Physical Therapists. I thought, I can do this… I can help.

And I talked about it. And thought about it. And I researched some organizations with various opportunities available. One of the orthopedic surgery groups in town has several surgeons who volunteer their services in trips to Haiti throughout the year, so I got my name on their email list. I scoured the American Physical Therapy Association website for information about organized missions. Friends passed along Facebook pages and blogs (The Greene Team in Haiti, etc) chronicalling groups of medical professionals making their way to make a difference in Haiti. I was excited and ready and I really wanted to go too.

Then… well, I don’t even really know what happened… it just sort of faded away.

Until now.

My friend, a fellow PT, shared a link that had been posted on Facebook (what a remarkable social media outlet!) with another call for PTs to come to Haiti. I can do this… I can help. This plea comes from an organization called Physicians for Peace in collaboration with their Walking Free program on a new campaign in Haiti. The Walking Free program donates prostheses and adaptive equipment as well as provides rehabilitation and training by a volunteer medical staff including prosthetists and PTs.

I’m starting to feel that pull again. I spent the better part of last night poring over the Walking Free blog posts from PTs and other volunteers, absorbing every word and every emotional tale. It wasn’t enough. I can’t even begin to fathom the logistics of a trip like this. But there’s a 10-day trip at the beginning of April. I’m excited and ready and I really want to go too.

Obviously there is a lot more to this than just booking a plane ticket. I have a full-time job here, and a very limited amount of time-off available to me. Is there a little-known benefit for a humanitarian sabbatical? Will they drain my banked PTO hours, in effect ruining the rest of my meticulously planned year? Will they let me take a week off without pay? Can I afford to take a week off without pay? (What a bittersweet dilemma of luxury!) Would they even consider me “qualified” with the little experience I have with prosthetics and amputees? Is my desire to help great enough to overcome my inexperience?

Time to make a list…

1) Contact the volunteer coordinator at Physicians for Peace to express my interest and determine my eligibility and qualification to make this trip.

2) Contact HR at Piedmont for answers to questions regarding use of PTO, leave of absence, employee assistance for humanitarian missions, etc.

3) Contact my former boss. I had spoken to her candidly last year about my desire to go to Haiti, and would value her insight as to the steps to take as well as advice and recommendations for contacts in the organization who may help me to facilitate my plans.

4) Contact my supervisor and manager. I want to have as much information and as many answers in my hands as possible before approaching them. Past experiences here have taught me that I will get a “no” unless I already have a “yes” from someone higher up the ladder. So that “yes” is absolutely vital to my cause.

I know there are at least 47 more steps in this process… but these four are the beginning of something just incredible. And in this, The Year of Kristen, I don’t want to pass on this amazing opportunity a second time.

My Sweet Carolina

I am so lucky.

Not only do I have the best nuclear and extended family, but I have had the great fortune to have become part of several other families throughout the course of my life. The initial connections were made over classes and cadavers and grew into holidays and my own room in their homes. Now I simply just belong.

I just got back from another wonderfully fun and far too short weekend with two of my other families in Morganton/Shelby, NC, and despite the 4-hour drive, I am still feeling happy and loved and almost overwhelmed by the words that Laura’s mom said when she hugged me goodbye… “You are the sister that Laura never had until now.” There was plenty of “sister” conversations in the past two days as Lily is getting a baby sister in June, but I will never forget those words.

The other role I get to play, and one that I so adore, is Aunt Kristen. Though to Lily, I’m still just “Aunt K.” My friends’ kids are hilarious and so smart and cuddly and loving. And though I’m not able to be around them (or their parents!) as much as I would like, somehow the closeness of our relationship has not been affected by distance or infrequency of our visits. It’s very special.

I am so lucky!

Step-by-stepping

Today’s victory is to embark on my first ever computer file back-up plan.* I bought an external hard drive (it is so tiny, it’s obviously magic that allows it to hold a kajillion bytes-of-some-unrecognizable-denomination) and am currently in the “Initial Backup” phase, which is likely to take the better part of the rest of my weekend.

*Thanks to my sister Jill for her strong encouragement toward this project!

In addition to being an intelligent grown-up decision (baby steps!), this backup device will also help to ease my anxiety regarding my laptop and the current economic state in which people are brazenly and assily (word of my own creation) helping themselves to the personal contents of my neighbors’ homes. I have unfortunately been sensing a slow decline in my laptop’s function and performance over the past 6-12 months. It started with a sudden and seemingly random loss of speaker output. They worked one morning, and did not work that afternoon. And they have not worked since. So I got some external speakers, significantly decreasing the portability factor of the laptop! But at least I have sound. Likely a related issue, the microphone feature has also been rendered defunct. This came to my attention as I was attempting a Skype call with my friend Paula in Portland. I could hear her (through the external speakers only, obviously!) but she couldn’t hear me. Nor could she see me, but that’s understandable as this ANCIENT laptop (circa 2005!) does not have a webcam. Solution: break out the old hands-full microphone! Portability factor now even lower.

Next break-down was the Power button. Does not work. At. All. Push it, and nothing happens. Really jam it down in there (probably a really bad idea actually), and nothing happens. Luckily this machine has a “media quick start” feature in which a swipe of the touch pad at the top of the keyboard will directly open the media menu. I simply close that menu to access my desktop. Roundabout means of access, but effective. Of course, I recently made the “mistake” of shutting down my computer one morning instead of closing it up to put it to “sleep,” and the damn thing ran the “Shutting down” screen for more than 15 hours. It would probably still be running if I hadn’t disconnected the battery to force it. I realize this is not likely the finest technological solution.

I also have a very finicky CD-ROM drive. As in, it may or may not register to the computer that there is a disk with a program to run or a song list to play/input. This is increasingly frustrating since I just bought TurboTax 2010 and can’t get it to install or open. Somehow I intend to win this particular battle. Hopefully with a simple tactic such as restarting the computer.

Sigh.

A Macbook is looking more and more enticing. If only they didn’t cost DOUBLE what a PC laptop does! Of course, if I would stop buying cross-country plane tickets every few months, I’m sure I’d be amazed at the balance of my checking and savings accounts, and the prospect of paying double wouldn’t be so daunting!

For now, I’m making do. And the file backup is a good start on the road to protecting information, past projects, future endeavors, and some really great music.

Coming to you LIVE from 35,000 feet!

This is a great day. Not only am I en route to Portland for a good old-fashioned Grbavac Family Christmas (6 for 6 ZG’s this year!!!), but I’m actually EN ROUTE as we speak… type… whatever. Delta flights have free onboard wi-fi for the holiday season. Merry Christmas to ME! This little nugget of free-ness feels like such an incredible luxury! I’m getting spoiled… I’ll probably have to budget some extra cash into my travel plans to accommodate my new onboard wi-fi addiction!

The Portland itinerary is definitely coming together… arrive late-ish Friday night to an already full Grba-house (Mom, Dad, Scott, Mark, Cousin Mike, and Cousin Katie)… Saturday will very likely bring a trek to the DuckShop for pictures with Santa Duck! (how can I pass that up this year?!)… Saturday night is the always epic Glug Party… Sunday night a new Cousin Christmas tradition will be born: Cousin Bar Night!… There’s Grbavac family Christmas supper at Mary Ann’s and a Ladies Day lunch and Nutcracker matinée downtown and meet-ups with friends and tons of great sibling togetherness time.

THIS is what Christmas looks like.

Fall 2010 Project: Photography

This year, I’ve really started tapping into a more creative, more artistic side of myself. I bought a sewing machine and have completed quite a few wonderful projects: bags, aprons, baby dresses and burp cloths… And I have several ideas and plans for more projects in the textile medium.

But lately, I seem to be more taken with photography. I love turning my digital images into photo books with Shutterfly, and I think they (the photos and the books!) turn out pretty good! At least my friends and family all enjoy looking through them!

So it was really exciting when my friend Sunni asked me to take family photos of she and Brian and their (absolutely adorable!) 8 month old daughter. They have a really nice camera, which made me a little nervous, seeing as how this extremely amateur photographer barely utilizes the functions on my Kodak point-and-shoot! But I’m a quick study, and after a few test shots (while baby Sydney was getting into her first outfit!) we headed out to Glenwood Park for their Fall Family Photo Shoot!

As if there could even be a “bad” photo taken of this darling family!

Turning Broken, Trapped and Restless into Complete, Liberated and Fulfilled

There is a new Plan for me. And yes, The Plan, is spelled with capital letters.

It is a multi-step project, which historically does not bode particularly well for Kristen of Instant Gratification. But the grand scale of The Plan necessitates organization and accomplishments made in several stages.

Baby steps.

And, I’m happy to report, the simple relinquishing of myself into the realization of The Plan has already made all the difference in me. I feel it. I am lighter, more optimistic, motivated toward this goal, even in the small baby steps I take.

And so it begins. Stage 1: Sell the House.

591 Warwick St SE – Atlanta, GA – 30316 – FMLS#: 4098583

The “good news” is that I’m not actually in a pressing must-sell situation, so I have the luxury of sitting back to just see what happens. If it sells in a week, GREAT! If it sells in 3 months, GREAT! If it’s still on the market in 6 months, well, it’s probably time to pull it off the market and revisit my selling strategy… But let’s focus on GREAT, shall we?!

Still the Best. Family. Ever.

…. Sorry for the delay, there are big changes afoot for me… but that is a story for a later date…

Event #5: Zarosinski Family Graduation(s) Celebration – Vancouver, WA – Sunday, June 13

After we had ambled around Portland’s Saturday Market, indulging in cinnamon elephant ears and Isabella’s first taste of fresh lemonade, we headed north on I-5 to Vancouver (Washington, not Canada, to clarify!) where there was to be a Zarosinski mini-reunion. Although it turned out not to be quite so “mini” as we were only missing two of the 30 Don-Z’s.

“There is nothing worth sharing / like the love that let us share our name.” – Avett Brothers

Not too shabby! We were all here together celebrating FOUR cousin graduations: one college (Mark), two high school (Tom and Ian), and one 8th-grade (Anne). Not to mention Fathers Day, several birthdays, and Grandma and Papa’s Anniversary. In our family, the traditional Paper Towel Banner marks special occasions, usually holding court via some masking tape on a kitchen cupboard door. Thanks to cousin Kieran, the tradition stands… 

The weather was absolutely PERFECT, and we spent long hours outside with a delicious spread of food, great beers, and of course an obligatory basketball game.

Event #6: Cousin Michael’s Graduation from U of O – Eugene, OR – Monday, June 14

(Too) early Monday morning we headed back down I-5 to Eugene to attend yet another graduation ceremony. Once again, the weather was stunning, but I was quickly reminded how a sunshine-y summery day in Eugene will wreak havoc on my sinuses. I probably sneezed no less than 284 times in the 6 hours we were in town. But it did give me a great excuse for my watery eyes as graduate after graduate took to the stage at Mac Court (*oh, you sweet old Pit, how I adore you!) to announce their name, major, and a joyful burst of thanks and love to their families in the stands!

“Michael Klaas Zarosinski vanBronkhorst”… it’s a good thing everyone said their own name!

After the ceremony, we met for a reception on the patio at Excelsior. I spent four years at school in Eugene, and never had I once even stepped foot inside this darling Inn! It’s really a beautiful place. The restaurant and kitchen take up several rooms on the main level of the building, with 14 guest rooms tucked away upstairs. I think I’ll definitely be returning here, whenever the next Eugene-event occurs!

Event #7: Visiting Mary Ann’s New House Project – Lake Oswego, OR – Tuesday, June 15

The next day was my first Non-Pre-Scheduled Event Day of the trip, and unfortunately my last full day in town. So, naturally, I filled it right up! First up was an “After” tour of Mary Ann’s project at “Millie’s House,” where I had lived (when it was in its “Before” state) before I bought my townhouse. Then it was off to Lake Oswego to see the new house project. Very, VERY “Before.” But knowing MA, she’s going to do wonders and amazing things with this little place!

Event #8: Happy Hour with the Girls and NoPo Reunion with an ATL buddy

My last night in town, I was able to meet up with two of my oldest friends (Emily and Sarah – and Shawn!) at McMenamins for a bite to eat and a fast catch-up session. It wasn’t long enough to even scratch the surface, but it’s worth it to me to have even a few minutes at a time to stay in each others’ lives. Jill and I then met up with cousin Zach at his sweet condo for a whiskey and downtime. The east-facing wall is entirely windows, and though we didn’t get the 3-mountain view, we were treated to a full-rainbow spanning I-84 instead!

Then it was once last stop in North Portland to see an old friend of mine who had recently moved to Portland from Atlanta, no less! We had a slice of pizza and a couple of beers at Mississippi Pizza Pub, which is one of my absolute favorite spots in town. They have a great, cozy live-music spot and host the Portland Spelling Bee on Monday nights! It’s fantastic.

It was yet another fun, full, happy trip to Portland. And I found it much harder to leave this time than I’ve experienced in the recent past. I still get a little misty-eyed when I think about the breakdown I had when saying goodbye to my brother Scott. It had been two years since I’d seen him last, and it’s hard not knowing when the next time will be. I am so very grateful for the close relationships that the four Grba-siblings have built and maintained, despite the physical distance that continues to separate us.

There’s nothing better than LIKING your family just as much as you love them.

Best. Family. Ever.

No one is as lucky as I am when it comes to familes… except for maybe Jill and Scott and Mark, but that’s because they have the same one that I do! Perhaps THEY are the REALLY lucky ones, because I’M their sister?! 🙂

It was truly a Family-themed trip to Portland last week. There wasn’t any singular occasion that made this a Not To Be Missed weekend in Portland, but a multi-event, multi-city, uber-happy Zarosinski-Grbavac love-fest in the Pacific Northwest!

Event #1: Grbavac Late-Night Happy Hour – Ashdale Drive – Thursday, June 10

My flight left Atlanta at 7:30 p.m. and arrived in Portland at 9:30 p.m. I love flying West! Of course I checked in online (including the $23 checked bag fee… essentially airline piracy) and could drop my bag off at the curb without waiting on a single line! And we all know how I feel about waiting for things! I had a direct flight, which to me is a serious luxury. It took awhile to get off the plane (as usual) but as soon as I came down the escalator to the PDX baggage claim, I saw my bag coming around the carousel! Sweet! Dad and Jill picked me up and we went straight home where Mark and Scott and Isabella were waiting for us. It was SO GOOD to see and hug my brothers again! It’s been 2 years since I’ve seen Scott, and I couldn’t wait to spend the next 6 days catching up. We had cocktails and sat around the kitchen table chatting for a couple of hours, laughing and making our plans for Friday. It felt like a very late night for me, but I like to drop-kick my Circadian rhythms into West Coast time as soon as possible!

Event #2: Grba-Siblings Hiking Adventures – Columbia River Gorge – Friday, June 11

Friday plans included hiking to the top of Multnomah Falls and the Horsetail Falls trail and making handmade pizzas on the grill for dinner. But first, I needed a pair of hiking shoes. And to borrow some hike-worthy clothes. Obviously I was unprepared. We packed a nice picnic lunch and filled the water bottles and were on our way. The Columbia River Gorge is one of the most beautiful stretches of river-side highway in the US. Despite wishing for some whiter clouds in bluer skies, the weather could not have been better for us.

Over a month straight of rain makes for one raging waterfall! I don’t think I’ve ever seen it look like this before! Nor have I (or any of us) ever been to the top of the Falls. But today is the day! It’s not a long hike (probably 1.2 miles) but nearly 1.1 of those miles ascend at nearly a 45 degree angle.

Scott had to be in charge of the camera at this point. The observation platform dangles over the edge of The Falls, and I’m not really a fan of dangling over the edge of anything. The return trip down the now -45 degree angles was fairly frightening due to some painful knees and tired quads. Poor little ACLs!

A few preemptive bandaids and short drive farther out the Gorge later, we were back on the trails to see a few more Falls. First was Horsetail Falls – aptly named!

Next up, Ponytail Falls. I always feel a little bit Last-of-the-Mohicans when I get to walk behind a waterfall!

Finally we made our way to Triple Falls – also appropriately (if not very creatively) named.

Triple Siblings at Triple Falls!

This made a great snack spot for the remainder of our picnic lunch: string cheese, hardboiled eggs, and apples for everyone!

After a delicious dinner of homemade (even the dough, thanks to our amazing Mom!) pizzas on the grill that we ate outside on the new deck, the Siblings headed across the river to meet up with cousins and friends and 25-cent Skee Ball at East Burn. As if there wasn’t going to be enough family-bonding going on downstairs in the TapRoom, another Central Catholic family dynasty was amassing as well. By 11 p.m. or so, it looked like a Harrington-Rice vs. Zarosinski-Grbavac Mafia War Council. *side note: the Zarosinski-Grbavac faction emerged as the clear and decisive winner… They had cleared out by midnight… WE closed the bar down. Bam.

Event #3: Mark’s Graduation from OSU – Corvallis, OR – Saturday, June 12

Closing the bar down at 2:30 a.m. hurt a little bit more when the alarm clock rang the next morning to rouse us for our 8 a.m. departure for Corvaillis. *sigh. But knowing that Grandma and Papa and Dona and Katie and DeAnna and Mary Ann were all going to be there made it slightly easier to get up and going. The weather was PERFECT. Sunny and warm and breezy and simply fantastic!

After the ceremony, we high-tailed it back to Mark’s house in hopes of catching the end of the US World Cup game… we got there in time for the inspiring music and the slow-motion highlight reel. Draw, USA! We soon assembled at King Tin’s Chinese restaurant for a smorgasbord of rice and meat and veggies and delicious extravagance!

A quick stop at the Woodburn Outlets proved fruitful as I found a light-weight, rain-resistant, wind-breaker type jacket. I was in need of something to protect me (read: my hair) from the sudden summer storms of the South. And it’s bright lime green, which makes me smile every time I see it! Yay for Columbia Sportswear!

Event #4: Portland’s Saturday Market – Sunday, June 13

Portland’s Saturday Market actually runs Saturdays AND Sundays in its new location at the Pavillion on the Waterfront.

The Siblings met up with Cousin Katie to spend a relaxing sunny morning/afternoon perusing the booths and taking in the sights of The Market prior to making our way up to Vancouver for the Zarosinski Family Graduation(s) Party.

There just isn’t a nicer or more beautiful place on earth than Portland on a warm, sunny, summer-y day!

Stay tuned for more stories….

Homecoming

It is T-minus 44 hours until I’m leaving on a jet plane, heading home to Portland for a multi-event extended weekend – if you count Thursday to Wednesday as “extended weekend.

Any guesses as to the current completion level of my packing…

In my defense, there IS a suitcase on the floor… in the-opposite-of-my-defense, it’s still half-full of the remnants of last weekend’s trek to Charlotte. Tomorrow evening would not appear to rank high on the Fun Scale.

But ready or not (and I WILL be ready – just at the eleventh-hour as usual!) Thursday night will find me heading West. HOORAY!

Summer Begins!

I. Love. Amphitheaters. Especially those that house such incredible concert experiences as did the Verizon Wireless Amphitheater last weekend.

It was a “homecoming” for the Zac Brown Band and did he ever do it up right! It was just an awesome night – the weather was perfect, the company was wonderful, and the music was absolutely fantastic!

It was a great way to end a very busy (and VERY fun!) weekend with my Dad. He got into town on Thursday, and we promptly dismantled the broken washing machine. After I googled “how to disassemble a GE washing machine” of course!

By Friday at 1 p.m., Dad had already been to TWO appliance parts stores, replaced the broken “rubber-band thingy,” reassembled the blasted thing, and had run a load of laundry! What a guy! And it wasn’t the only home-improvement project – we also added a light fixture to the ceiling fan in my sun room. (which, come to think of it, would have been quite helpful during the poorly lit demolition on Thursday night!)

Not to worry, though – there was plenty of Daddy-and-Daughter fun to be had! We went to the High Museum for the Allure of the Automobile exhibit. Fun to see and hear Dad’s stories of the cars he learned to drive in and the one Grandpa Andy drove when Dad was growing up. We ate well – as we Grbavacs always do on vacation! – Matador for tacos and margaritas on Seis de Mayo, ice cream at Morelli’s, and a lunch at Fox Bros BBQ that ended up being our only meal of the day! Add to that an evening in with wine and some of my favorite friends, and that’s one fabulous weekend! And one that only served to further my excitement for my trip home in June!

Creative Endeavors

Those of you who know me or my family are undoubtedly aware of the incredible creativity and textile prowess of the generations preceding me… all 17 of the Z-cousins have at least two quilts (regular and Christmas) from Grandma Z, and I was lucky enough to have her make two of my Prom dresses in high school. Mom (or “Aunt Debbie” as my friends refer to her when we talk about her craftiness and projects!) can do just about anything with fabric or thread or food or paper! And it’s been somewhat of a running joke that this sort of talent had so obviously skipped over me!

In doing little projects with friends over the years – pillow covers, the dreaded French-pleat drapes (J, you know who you are), table runners – I started to get that feeling of “Wait a minute… I could do that!” But it wasn’t until I found an amazing deal on a cute duvet cover and pillow shams at the Pottery Barn Outlet (I mean an AMAZING deal: queen duvet cover $9 and pillow shams $2) that I decided I really COULD do that! See, in my joyful deal-finding haze, I nabbed two pillow shams… one of which is standard, the other is Euro. Drat. But the Grandma Z/Aunt Debbie-ness started bubbling to the surface, and I somehow figured out how I could MacGyver a standard sham from the Euro one. So I trucked my project over to Sunni’s house to use her sewing machine… *an extra trip I wouldn’t have had to make, if I had my own machine, my brain told me!*

The next project inspiration was Aunt Dona’s wonderful Schlep Bags! Mom sent me the pattern, and one rainy weekend my friend Hillary and I decided to try it. It was a VERY long day. Schlep bags are multi-multi-MULTI-step projects. And we were making two reversible bags (meaning four different “sides” with at least four different fabric squares in each side!) using just one sewing machine. *which wouldn’t have been an issue if I had my own machine, my brain told me again!* While there had to be a few tweaks here and there, the bags turned out so great! I used a lighter-weight fabric, so it’s a bit more delicate than the essentially indestructible one Dona made me. But it looks really good, and I made it myself, and now I’m convinced I need my own sewing machine!

  

So the joke is over! I CAN SEW, TOO!

I got my sewing machine as a pre-Christmas/Birthday gift from Grandma Z and Mom and my Best Friend (Me!) this past Fall. It’s a Singer: Esteem. Which is good to have… esteem of self, that is! And on my fourth re-threading of the needle for some unknown reason, Esteem is a good thing for me to remember! And truthfully, all that (unplanned) practice has made me a very proficient and speedy needle re-threader! (it doesn’t hurt that there’s a very nifty easy-threader device on the machine)

My first project with my new sewing machine was an apron. This is also my first attempt at sewing from a pattern. It turns out I’m a very good visual-learner! All those years of reading the backs of patterns at JoAnns and watching Mom measure and cut out patterns… I already know what to do! And with my friend’s birthday approaching, I thought this sweet apron would be an excellent gift idea! Well, the birthday came and went. Then Christmas passed. And another friend’s birthday. And I was making verrrrrrry slooooooow progress on the apron. Until Mom came to visit in March. No, she didn’t do a single stitch (even though I asked, and might have pouted a little, too) but she talked me through some of the steps that were holding me up, and now I’m just 2 steps away from completion!

One of the steps I’m very excited about… it’s a button-hole! And my magic sewing machine has a special attachment that will do it for me! There will be much practice on many fabric scraps before I try that on my darling apron. I’m not letting myself practice anything button-hole related until after I finish the other step, the one I’m NOT excited about. Hand-stitching the back of the bodice of the apron to the skirt. Booooo hand-stitching! I may or may not have devised a design-alteration that will enable me to avoid the hand-stitching all together… More rick-rack! Haven’t decided if I’m going to short-cut my way out of this… stay tuned.

Pattern-Sewing Project #2 was actually inspired from many sources. Somehow I stumbled across a photo of this cute bag, then (through the wonder of social media that is Facebook) I saw that one of my old friends from high school had made the same bag! So I printed off the pattern, cut and taped it together correctly, and on yet another rainy weekend day my friend Hillary (of Schlep bag fame!) and I each made a fantastic new bag!

Hillary’s (on the left) has a shorter strap that you just wear on one shoulder; my paisley bag has a longer strap so you wear the bag slung across your body, messenger-bag style.

I changed the design slightly from the pattern – originally both interior pockets were to be made from the lining fabric. I immediately knew I wanted at least one of them to be made of the great paisley fabric instead! It was another long day of sewing… but again, we were making two bags, both completely lined, and had access to only one sewing machine and only one iron. We need to start planning our projects better; B.Y.O.SewingMachine. I already have fabric to make two more bags. In fact, all the pieces are cut out and ready for the next step (ironing on the fusible interfacing – probably the most boring of all tasks EVER) so I’m ready for the next rainy weekend day!

The other day I worked a half-day at the hospital. It wasn’t a nice day outside, by any means, so I knew I wanted to work on an indoor project. At the Inman Park Festival last week, WhipStitch Fabrics had a booth and some extremely adorable fabric samples and really cute project ideas. So to WhipStitch Fabrics I went. And found just exactly what I was looking for!

The pattern (from Made By Rae) for an Itty Bitty Baby Dress was simple and darling enough, but it really is the fabric that makes this teeny dress absolutely to-die-for cute!

So… needless (needles?!) to say, I can sew! I have a couple new ideas and patterns in mind for future project-days, and may have reinspired talk of a “Craft Club” with my friends. One thing I know for sure… I’ll be travelling with my sewing machine on road trips, just in case there are any impromptu projects in store!

Mistaken Identity

I live I.T.P.* Which means the urban-sprawl of Atlanta doesn’t really affect me on a day-to-day basis. My morning commute typically takes about 20 minutes. Interestingly enough, the afternoon commute lasts closer to 40 minutes. What this tells me is that the vast majority of Atlantans don’t go into work until after 9 a.m., but still leave by 4 p.m. Slackers.

There are infinite routes I could take to get home from the hospital. Today I was on Spring St. In Atlanta. This is an obvious point, but one that remains quite relevant when you consider what I saw next… I came around a bend in the road and saw Mount St Helens!!! Instant gasp! I’m just slightly embarrassed about how long it took me to realize that it was just the Georgia Dome.

Mount St Helens (as seen from Portland!)

Georgia Dome

That wasn’t the exact view of The Dome I had from the car today… but I hope you get a sense of how I might have been momentarily confused!

Anyway, it made me smile. And then I laughed out loud at myself for the next 10 minutes!

*I.T.P. = Inside The Perimeter (aka I-285)

End of the Hiatus

Not that there was ever a conscious beginning to said hiatus. Regardless… I’M BACK! Back from where, one may query? Back FROM the internalization of the (sometimes) rambling thoughts and commentary on the goings-on of my days, and back TO the e-spilling of those self-same ramblings.

I honestly can’t come up with a reason for the months of silence… perhaps I talked more (telephone calls, text messages, Facebook posts) or had more personal interaction (West Coast Road Trip, multiple NC escapes) and so I didn’t focus so much (or at all) on the transcription of the events of the past six-plus months.

Here’s a Cliff’s Notes version of the last half of 2009… according to Kristen, of course!

August…

Thus began the first full-month of my “new” job. Not new in the sense that I changed locations or careers, but new in that the fifteen months of working and planning and presenting my (brilliant) ideas to The Powers That Be at work finally paid off. I am now the Lead Orthopedic Therapist at Piedmont Hospital. This role enables me to work full-time on the Orthopedic units of the hospital, which is truly where I am at my best, therapeutically. (if, for no other reason, because of the short lengths-of-stay for even the most challenging patients!) Instant gratification abounds! *It is important to note that this has NOT been the case for several patients in the past two weeks who have essentially taken up residency on the unit.

Not only does this job keep me on the Ortho unit, but it also enables me to make the (long, drawn out, sometimes painful) transition into a “leadership” role – at least as far as the orthopedic realm is concerned. I’m working on a multi-disciplinary team that is creating a Total Joint Replacement Bible (my own working title) that will outline the course of events from “You’ve decided to have your hip/knee replaced” to “Yes, you ARE getting out of bed with the Physical Therapist today” to “No, you can’t stay in the hospital one more night because your wife doesn’t want to make the 27-minute drive after 4:30 p.m.” (in so many words) In addition to the patient-information guide, Piedmont Hospital is looking to become an Orthopedic Center of Excellence, a quest I have sought to be a part of since the day I started working here, and one that I am currently contributing to on the planning committee.

September…

This month brought about a long-anticipated vacation! I flew to Portland and took off the next morning for Ashland to visit my friend Paula who was about to start Nursing school at OHSU’s Southern Oregon campus. The timing of my drive put me smack-dab in the middle of Game Day traffic – for both Oregon and Oregon State had home games. Oregon hosted 6th-ranked Cal, and made very short work of them, I must say! Despite my distaste for traffic – especially on 2-lane I-5 – it was great fun to be in the midst of the pre-game merriment. And Paula was such a good sport, ducking (!) into a dive-y pub in downtown Ashland to let me watch the 4th quarter… little did either one of us know, it was the hub for the Ashland chapter of U of O alumni! Go Ducks!

Ashland was lovely, and the company couldn’t be beat! We went wine-tasting and to the SOU bookstore (of course!) and wandered around little Talent, Oregon. Then it was off on the next leg of my journey: to Eureka!

Now, I’ve made the trip through the Redwood National Forest once before, en route to Arcata for Jill’s graduation several years ago. But I must have been asleep for that portion of the car ride, because I was FLOORED at the majesty of these botanical Giants! Could hardly get enough of them. Wow.

Seeing Jill was awesome and getting to spend time in her own town and life was fabulous! I even had the privilege to attend Hot Chick Night! Theme: Goddesses.

We took a day-trip to Petrolia, on the Lost Coast of California where Jill spent three years working for AmeriCorps and the Mattole Salmon Group. It was a stunning drive of cliffs and hairpin turns, gravelly roads and then a sprawling ocean-side highway. It’s totally where you find “Happy Cows are from California!”

We ate lunch on the banks of the (sadly dry) Mattole River after the wind cancelled our attempt to picnic at Strawberry Rock. The wind would NOT deter a photo-op, though!

From Eureka, I headed north along the Oregon Coast Highway. A longer route, but also one of much richer views. I was going back to my old stomping ground in Eugene, Oregon, to meet up with my dear friends Jeff and Laura.

We had a lovely time catching up that evening, and the next morning after tea with Laura and a send-off from Jeff, I went about re-exploring the U of O campus. I couldn’t have asked for better weather. The sun was shining and the breeze was light… reaffirming my stance that there is no nicer place on earth than Eugene when the sun shines in September!

I parked and walked around on 13th, popped into the bookstore (of course!) and got a bagel sandwich that I sat and ate on the Autzen footbridge, just soaking in the sights and sounds of the river and the passers-by.

Go Ducks!

From Eugene, I back-roaded it up to Corvallis to spend some time with Mark before continuing north to Kaiser where I stopped in to see my friend Tiffany (whom I had recently met up with in Charlotte, NC, of all places!) That was my final pre-Portland stop on the West Coast Road Trip. Once back in town, I was lucky enough to reconnect with some of my special lifelong friends. So much “life” has happened since we were all together the last time (a new career, a wedding, a sweet baby boy, a new state of residence) but by some stroke of fate, we were all in the same room again. And (it may sound cliché, but there’s no other way to put it) it felt like we had been apart for no longer than a weekend. So much laughter and fun times recalled – which only served to incite NEW laughter in this fun time. I am so glad that we were able to share that evening together.

October…

There was definitely a transition-period for me coming back to my real life after such an amazing vacation. But then I got an invite from my writing instructor (from my freelance writing class last summer) for a Writers’ Workshop. So I was back in the swing-of-things, Atlanta-wise.

Jocelyn was in town for her birthday, and there was quite the celebration that ensued. So much celebrating on her part, in fact, that I am completely absolved from all back-lash of the now infamous Ruining of Jocelyn’s Birthday in Paris, circa 2006. Let’s just say that while she had Friday off from work, I (the uber-patient and ever-conscientious designated driver for the evening’s events) did NOT. So the 2:45 a.m. return to my house was all-too-quickly followed by my 6:30 a.m. wake-up call. Best. Friend. Ever.

November…

This month brought another self-improvement opportunity: guitar lessons! Well, I took a beginning guitar class with 9 other people, so I suppose “lessons” is a bit of a stretch. I’m not very good, but I think I want to give it another try. Probably in a remedial beginning guitar class.

My friend Laura was inducted into Western Carolina’s Athletic Hall of Fame this year! She’s pretty much all-everything as far as Lady Catamount basketball goes. I was the rope-holder on Lily-patrol so that her family could bask in the glory and honor of the occasion. Lily and I wandered around the facilities, watching the Pride of the Smokies (WCU’s marching band) practice, the football team’s indoor warmups, and a basketball shoot-around, and still made it back for Dad’s introduction and Laura’s acceptance speeches. Way to go, Aunt K!

I’m really starting to believe that Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday – behind my Birthday/New Years, naturally! I had to work T-giving day and the day after, as did several of my friends. After work, we went over to Sunni and Brian’s for “Friends Thanksgiving II.” The first edition being 2 years ago, on the day after then closed on their new house. This year was a far cry from that “first” Thanksgiving when we sat on plastic chairs around a “beer pong” table in an otherwise completely empty house! Their home is absolutely lovely, and this was the first time Sunni got to set out her wedding china! I couldn’t be more grateful for the “family” I’ve found here in Atlanta.

December…

The last month of the year opened with a first for me… Jury Duty! I imagine there aren’t too many people who would put an elated exclamation point at the end of that sentence, but I am definitely one of them! It was a very interesting day. Definitely didn’t do much to make “lawyer” look like a trustworthy and noble career path. I just don’t like the idea of your whole purpose being to trick and undermine people and to make them look foolish or wrong. It left a very sour taste in my mouth and I just don’t like it.

My holiday season progressed rapidly after seeing one of my dear friends take the stage in The Santaland Diaries! Stuart was a brilliant Crumpet, and I’m already looking very much forward to seeing him in his next role, the lead in the musical “Parade” next month.

It sort of feels like I spent most of December in North Carolina! I drove up surreptitiously for my friend Allison’s surprise 30th Birthday dinner party, and made my way to Charlotte on Christmas Eve to spend Christmas with Jocelyn and Hans and the Marshall family. I even had my very own stocking!

It was the first time that I hadn’t woken up at Mom and Dad’s house on Christmas morning. The whole weekend felt just a little bit… off. Sort of like Christmas wasn’t even happening. I mean, there were 6 stockings up on the mantle, just like at home… there were wonderful, thoughtful gifts, just like we do… delicious food and a beautiful tree… everything that said “family Christmas”… except for MY family. Now, don’t get me wrong – I had a great time and a marvelous Christmas. I couldn’t have asked for a better substitute. But I did so miss Zarosinski-Grbavac Christmas this year.

And with that, I put to rest 2009. This new month/year/decade has reinspired me to do the things I enjoy (writing, traveling), restart things I don’t yet enjoy (working out, limiting coffee intake), and learning new things that I hope to enjoy (sewing, guitar).

2010 has been good to me so far! Mom, Dad, Jill and Mark all came to Atlanta for my 20-10th Birthday Party! Everyone stayed at my house (which, if you haven’t seen it, is quite quaint and cozy!) and we had just such a wonderful time together! We took a field trip to Stone Mountain and the siblings went to an Avett Brothers concert, courtesy of Jill. Scott’s Christmas box arrived on New Years Eve! We got to Skype with Scott on my birthday, and (thanks to the wonders of modern technology) took a fairly impressive Family Photo.

2010 looks to be a great year. After all (thanks, Jocelyn!), it’s The Year of Kristen!

Social Experiment

Recently my fairly placid life somehow took a 9-day very significant turn toward bustling, busy, and quite full. It was nine straight days of going out every night to a variety of events, goings-on, and other get-togethers. I felt like a very well-rounded socialite by the end, but I’m not sure I’m quite Paris Hilton’s BFF material… at least not just yet!

Day 1 – Sunday.  It had been a normal Sunday full of laundry and preparations for the busy week-to-come when I got a text message from my friend Amy that she and Jason and Bethany were at the Glenwood in EAV and that I should definitely meet them. What better way to prepare for a busy week than to start it NOW?! A couple Rogue Dead Guy ales were the perfect kick-off to my Social Experiment!

Day 2 – Monday.  Work has been especially challenging in the past few weeks (ahem, MONTHS) so after a particularly difficult and stressful Monday, a few of my fellow coworkers headed down the street to El Azteca for some chips and salsa, tacos, and, of course, the house margaritas – on the rocks, no salt.

Day 3 – Tuesday.  The “Ortho Dream Team” (PT, OT, PA, and PCC) had been planning to get together, though not in any true work-related capacity! We decided on Flip, the burger boutique in a West Midtown neighborhood close to work. I had the delightful “Butcher’s Cut” burger that was topped with caramelized onion, bleu cheese, and a red-wine jam sauce. YUMMY! Pair it with vodka-battered onion rings and a few nibbles of the sweet-potato tots, and that’s one helluva great evening! What I did have was a Bridgeport Ale… what I did NOT have was a Krispy Kreme milkshake. Hindsight is 20/20.

Day 4 – Wednesday.  Tonight I attended a benefit for Music For Tomorrow, a group dedicated to preserving and promoting New Orleans jazz music and musicians. It was hosted by a friend-of-a-friend, and attended by incredible do-gooders, philanthropists, humanitarians, and super-fun people! The music and the company were inspiring, but it was the venue itself that may have been the highlight of the evening. Engine 11is a beautifully renovated and re-purposed firehouse in Midtown just around the corner from the Fabulous Fox Theater… it is also where I will be having my twenty-tenth birthday party in January! Beverage of choice for the evening was Kona Brewing Company’s FireRock Pale Ale.

Day 5 – Thursday.  GO YANKEES!!! It’s that time of year when the American League graces the dirt and grass at Turner Field. And this year the Braves played host to the New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox. I was absolutely not going to miss it. We had awesome seats about four rows back off the left field wall and four yards inside the foul pole… perfect home-run-catching seats! (side note: I did NOT catch a home run… nor am I happy about that.)

 

Of course I had a delicious hot dog and a $7 (only at a ballpark) Bud Light. The game itself was remarkable! Tons of hits, lots of runs, and the Yankees scored more times than the Braves, so all-in-all it was a pretty successful night!

Day 6 – Friday.  Back to the ballpark. If last night’s dense humidity and stagnant air taught me anything, it was that we would have battery-operated mini-fans for tonight’s game. Life-savers! It was still just-this-side-of-miserable to sit packed into that stadium with no naturally-circulating air… but it remained tolerable with the use of the mini-fans and another hot dog-Bud Light combination! Plus, there were Friday Night Fireworks at the end of the game!

Day 7 – Saturday.  Had to get up early to hit the road. I was taking my Social Experiment on the road, heading up to North Carolina for a 3-day weekend. First stop: Shelby, NC, where there was a tasty steak lunch and birthday cake waiting for me (not my birthday, but cake is cake) before Laura, Allison and I got dolled up and took off for the Belk Theater in Charlotte where we were seeing “Phantom of the Opera” in honor of Laura’s birthday (which was in March.) The show was aMAZing, and we are considering that 2009-2010 season tickets might be our birthday and Christmas presents to and from our best friends! We had cocktails at half-time – red wine for me, white for the other girls – followed by rounds 2 (for all of us) and 3 (for them, as I was driving!) at dinner before heading home to Shelby.

Day 8 – Sunday.  In this wondrous age of technology, communication, and the ever-shrinking world, I shouldn’t be quite so shocked when serendipitous moments occur. I was about to turn my computer off in preparation for the early morning departure for NC when I saw that one of my friends from the U of O (Go Ducks!) had posted a Facebook status saying something about how much she was enjoying Charlotte… WHAT?! I’m leaving for Charlotte in 10 minutes! (That might have even been what I replied!) She was in Charlotte for a conference, and I was staying at Hans and Jocelyn’s (also in Charlotte) Sunday night. So I drove into the city and we spent several hours catching up and chatting, reminiscing and laughing at BlackFinn. I had the sliders sampler – one each of southern-style (aka deep-fried) chicken, beef, and pulled pork – to go with my Sam Adams Summer Ale. It was just wonderful to reconnect with an old friend – and we have the Internet, Facebook, and cell-phone text-messaging to thank for it!

Day 9 – Monday.  *I feel that it should be mentioned that my Social Experiment was initially intended to encompass only Monday through Saturday, but due to unforeseen (and, let’s face it, fabulous!) circumstances, it was extended on both ends of its time-frame.*  Monday I took my time waking up at Jocelyn’s. Hans was long-gone to work and Jocelyn was upstairs in the home office waiting for confirmation or cancellation for a few morning meetings before we could go out for lunch. We tried Zoe’s Kitchen after wondering about it during yesterday’s successful guest-room lamp-procurement endeavor. I had the Greek Pita sandwich consisting of grilled chicken with caramelized onions, feta, and tomatoes – except they were out of pita, so it came on regular bread. Regular bread didn’t end up working, so I turned it into somewhat of a Greek non-Pita salad instead. Thinking my Social Experiment was over, I opted for a very large glass of water! I spent some time laying out by the pool before hitting the highway, and to make sure I avoided Atlanta “evening” rush-hour traffic (which starts at 3:30 and might end around 7 p.m., depending on the Braves home schedule) I detoured at Hartwell Lake State Recreation Area, right at the border of South Carolina and Georgia.

The reason Monday counts in my Social Experiment is that I met my friend Amy at El Matador Cantina in Glenwood Park for their crack-tacos (real names: Texas Taco and Taco de Carnitas) and house margaritas. You know, to prepare myself for back-to-work the next day!

Conclusion.  I can be a socialite and go out every night… or I can go to work every day… I cannot do both. But I sure had a great time trying!

Cinco de Bravos!

My friend Hollie came into town this week from Johnson City, TN, where she’s nearly half-way through PT school at East Tennessee State University! She did some volunteer observation hours with me at St. V’s, so I feel partially responsible for her brilliant career choice! 🙂  On the docket for our get-together was a Tuesday night Braves game! (Her first MLB game!) I got the Piedmont-special (2-for-1 tickets) and off we were.

Now, I’ve learned to NOT describe where I live as “down near Turner Field” – apparently it’s not the nicest area for living, though as far as ball-games go, I’ve seen worse! That being said, I will instead describe my ‘hood as “Turner Field-accessible.” We took back roads instead of the somewhat more-direct highway, and avoided ALL gameday traffic. As in, I was the only car on the streets! (In hindsight, perhaps that should have made me more nervous than it did.) Either way, we got a great parking spot with an AMAZING escape route at the end of the game. I will definitely remember it!

We made it to the game and into our seats just in time for the first pitch. (We missed the National Anthem, which hurts my soul a little bit, but I recovered.) Our seats: nearly dead center and about 8 rows off the outfield wall, which isn’t as tall as I was imagining. We were definitely seated among the riff-raff, and the fact that it is Cinco de Mayo only adds to the level of intoxicating that our seat mates are acting. Sombreros were key to getting yourself and your friends on the JumboTron, which towered above us, just behind us over our left shoulders.

After amazing hot dogs and beer, we chatted briefly with some of my friends who were also enjoying the outfield seats. All of a sudden, we’re standing next to this man and his little son, and they’re obviously packing up and getting ready to leave (it’s closing in on 9:30 p.m. and the 7th inning by this time). The man hands us his very fancy tickets – he said, “they’re pretty nice seats” – Yeah, I’d agree that 8 ROWS BEHIND HOME PLATE are pretty damn nice seats!

Hello, Gary… David… nice to see you (up so close!) this evening!

There is a great differential between the personnel in the outfield seats and the 8-rows-behind-home-plate seats. Hecklers both, for certain, but there’s a witty and clever quality to the heckling (in addition to the drunk-speak language that knows no caste) down low that is sadly missing from the outfield jeers of “you suck!”

There’s my buddy Bobby Cox! I may or may not have asked him this once: “Is it in really poor taste, Sir, if I tell you that my brother is a pitcher?!” Of course he wanted to hear all about him, and his immediately made the connection between OSU and a certain lights-out closer currently the Braves system! Nice guy, that Bobby Cox. Don’t let those old YouTube videos of him spitting in the dirt at an umpire;s feet and kicking dirt onto their shoes in a blazing display of disagreement fool you!

No. No to the Bruins.

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.

That’s what “vacation” sounds like. As for what “vacation” looks like, it goes a little something like this…

Well, sort of. That’s little-brother-Mark on the mound at Jackie Robinson Stadium at UCLA! Friday night’s game was a bit on the chilly side – I suppose my blood has gotten south-of-the-Mason-Dixon-line thin in the past couple years – but Saturday dawned sunny, breezy, and warm! PERFECT baseball-watching weather! And very “southern California.” But despite the fact that I took in two baseball game in 2-1/2 days, baseball was NOT the only theme of the weekend.

Thursday night my First Friend and her fantastic husband (and their little Pierce-baby-to-be!) picked Cousin-Katie and me up at LAX (a place I would visit on EVERY single day of my short trip… NOT what “vacation” looks like). We picked up some quick-casual tacos and went on to the Sicking homestead. We all stayed up too late (especially Carie and Steve who had to catch a flight to St. Louis at 6:30 a.m.) chatting and laughing and guessing about Baby Pierce and Baby Sicking, both of whom will debut late this summer!

On Friday morning, I woke up early (stupid East Coast time) and took my coffee outside on the patio while I worked on my homework for writing class. We did a drive-by at Carie and Steve’s house, which is just wonderful! And coincidentally has Kristen’s Perfect Yard: big patio, narrow (about lawn-mower width!) strip of grass along the fence, orange tree smack in the middle. Nice. Then Cousin-Katie and I took of to LAX: Part Deux in the least expensive rental car ever (aka: Carie’s car). We picked up Mom and Dad and after a 45-minute detour the wrong way on Sepulveda (which apparently holds the Guinness World Record for being the longest municipal street in the world – 43 miles long) and a stop-off at the wrong hotel (sigh) we got down to the purpose of our weekend: 1) see Mark, 2) In-N-Out Burger, 3) UCLA Bookstore!!! Those of you who know me well, will understand the joyous glee I get from visiting college bookstores. Of course my Duck pride prohibited me from purchasing anything in that sickly baby-blue color – *shudder* – a distaste that is not exclusive to me, and prompted the Quote of the Day, courtesy of Aunt Dona (also a U of O alum – Go Ducks!) via text message: “No. No to the Bruins.”

Then on to the baseball field – very much an afterthought to the UCLA campus. (semi-unrelated sidenote: What incredible medical facilities they have… right there on main campus! Wow.) We had to leave campus, cruise a-ways on Wilshire Blvd, turn onto (yet again) Sepulveda Blvd, pass the Los Angeles National Cemetery, under the (insanely and continuously traffic-y) San Diego freeway (I-405) and down an alley-esque partially-gravelled road until – BAM! There’s the baseball field. It was a chilly evening, and an icy final score for OSU, too. Luckily we hit up a liquor store on the way back to the house for reinforcements for the evening of story-telling and more fun with old friends.

Saturday. The epitome of what a Southern California day should look/feel/be like. We had a delectable breakfast out on the sunny patio. (Probably THE BEST thing about California… there are NO BUGS… Anywhere… Of any kind… It’s truly amazing.) Cousin-Katie and I did a drive-by the old house on Kiowa Lane, and of course to gawk at “The Castle” on the corner. Yikes. As we turned left onto Magnolia Ave, I told Katie to start counting and stop when she saw ocean… she got to about “4.” Uh-huh. That’s how close I might still be living to the ocean, had we never left Huntington Beach. Still a little hard to get over!

Saturday night’s baseball game was INFINITELY better than Friday’s. For one thing, OSU won! But even more important and more significant was that Mark pitched great! And he had quite a fan-base pulling for him out there: Kristen, Cousin-Katie, Katie’s friend Kelly, Mom, Dad, Jan, Paul, Danny, Kaitie, and Baby-Sicking-to-be! Not too shabby!

After the game, we went BACK to LAX (trip #3 in 3 days) to drop Dad off at the rental car lot before heading “home” to Fountain Valley for a dinner party with the old crew. Old photos, new stories, delicious tamales and homemade salsas… it just doesn’t get much better than this.

Sunday morning brought bagels and OJ – wait for it – on the patiooooo! Mom and Dad would leave me at the airport on their way to the rubbermatch game. For being such a busy airport, LAX is kind of an old, fairly grimy place. But the rest of my long California weekend more than makes up for the aesthetics of its initial welcome and farewell.

Doing Something

The time has come for me to “do something” about writing. It was recently brought to my attention (by my brilliant and sometimes frustratingly omniscient Mother!) that I need to do something other than PT. Well, something in ADDITION to PT… because naturally, National City Mortgage, Verizon and Comcast aren’t particularly keen on not being paid every month. The educational system is quite different in Atlanta in that there is no Portland Community College class catalog mailed to the house every quarter. It took some online searching and researching to locate something similar. It’s Emory University’s Center for Lifetime Learning. There is a multitude of educational opportunities, from a one-day home-staging seminar to 6-week sailing classes. And I’m very interested in only about 73 of their offered classes!

I narrowed my focus to those classes that run for 4-6 weeks… with my ultimate reasoning being almost purely financial: $140 for a one-day seminar, or $140 for four or six weeks of classes? Easy decision. Except that 61 of my favorite-sounding 73 classes run for 4-6 weeks.

My Top Five: Travel Writing, Beginning Guitar, Sailing, Freelance Writing, and French I.

As I pondered and weighed out pros and cons of the various classes, my list was further depleted by “Class Full” notifications on the website. I’m reminded of the old adage about the early bird… While French I would be very interesting, it’s not exactly an every-day-use sort of skill. (but maybe someday, fingers crossed!) Travel writing and Guitar were full (DRAT!) and I sort of chickened out on Sailing. So, on Monday evening I will be on the Emory campus, back in a classroom, sitting in my Freelance Writing class!!!

*Completely unrelated and random side note: OH HOLY HELL – THESE ARE THE EAR-PIERCINGLY WHINIEST TRIO OF CHILDREN IN THE HISTORY OF THE NATURAL WORLD! And they all have the EXACT same high-pitched shrieking voice. All three of them. Triplets? Close enough. And wow, Dad has commanded incredible respect and authority over his children. “Emmett, stay here please.” As the child (Emmett, one would assume) makes a beeline across the Starbucks toward Mom, who has taken Bridget (who happens to be wearing yellow Belle Disney Princess dress-up high-heel shoes, which immediately makes her my favorite!) to the bathroom. I don’t think there was a single request, command, instruction with which any one of those kids complied. Though apparently the third child is the best behaved because I can’t recall hearing either parent calling his name, or telling him to stop, or reminding him which drink is his. That was the longest 20 minutes in Starbucks that I think any of us in here have ever spent.*

Back to my exciting prospects! The course description reads as follows: “Magazine and newspaper articles, ads, speeches, even greeting cards – variety is the essence and joy of freelancing. Learn writing tips that catch an editor’s eye, survival techniques, and the mysteries of marketing. Classes include shake-loose exercises and assignments.” It will be very interesting to see how it goes. I’m excited and a little bit nervous, but above all, very hopeful that this will be the first step toward finding my personal bliss!

Spring?! (again)

I’ve heard that “April showers bring May flowers” but what exactly is it that March snow brings?!

Except, perhaps for pretty photo opportunities…

By about 5 p.m. or so, all roads were passable (even by Atlanta-drivers’ standards) and I went over to my friend Amy’s house for an evening of wine, cheese, bread, and great friends! It was a cozy and fabulous time… even if I did stay waaaaay past bedtime… and on a “school” night!

Water 3 – Kristen 0

This is getting ridiculous. Wait, sorry, this has GOTTEN ridiculous. Three years in a row, almost to the week, there has been some water-related catastrophe in my home. Coast to coast, North to South, rainy climate to drought, I cannot escape my water woes. The 2009 edition of Kristen’s Crappy Water Karma was revealed this past Saturday morning as I was scurrying around my house at 8:15 in the morning trying to locate the metallic sounding,  nearly melodic, drip-drip-drip-drip-drip sound that was SOMEWHERE in my house. (It should also be noted that by this time, it had been RAINING – the capital letters are used purposefully in hopes they will adequately reflect the sheer MAGNITUDE of water that had been falling from the skies over Atlanta for the past 36 hours.) Luckily it was the second stop on my early morning reconnaissance that exposed the problem. Short version: there is water coming into my house. Long version… the wood molding above one of my living room windows was cracked and drips of water were seeping through the (60+ years of) paint layers, and either dripping down the window pane or falling onto the metal latch of my single-hung windows and splattering onto the floor. *sigh* Here’s the order of events as I remember it – 1) move the sofa, 2) mop up the puddles on the window sill and the floor, 3) lay down towels to keep from having to repeat #2, 4) rig up a system to soak up the dripping water (ie, tape a hand towel to the window), 5) call Dad. Who happens to be in Arizona, which is two long early-morning hours behind me here on the East Coast. And also infinitely better than if he were at home in Portland, which is THREE long early-morning hours behind!

But at least he could put some ideas into my head of how I was going to fix this problem. Get up on a ladder (which I would have to borrow from a neighbor because why would I have a ladder?!) and seal up the crack with some plumber’s putty, which is the only thing that might stand a chance at keeping the continuing downpour on the outside of my living room. This was only Step 1 in a multi-step project. (Those of you who know me well also know how I feel about multi-step projects… ick) Step 2 had to wait (yippee!) for the rains to cease and the sun to re-warm the earth and my siding. It also necessitates me purchasing some exterior-use caulking and a caulking gun to further and more permanently seal the window frame from the elements. Step 3 – clean out the gutters, which have the last two years of Autumn leaves negating any chance that rain water is being displaced from my room via the proper channels.

By the time I “took care of everything” the rain had stopped, and so had my living room window water feature. Luckily I re-worked the previously mentioned hand-towel-on-window system because when I woke up Sunday morning (after a long Saturday night of thunderstorms and torrential rains), the entire towel was soaked through and the water continued to drip through the towel and onto the towel-covered floor. Drat. It’s much worse today. Double-drat. I had to fashion a new water-collection system involving a plastic garbage bag, packing tape and two buckets on a side table.

 This was now too big for me to deal with. So I got on the phone to call any and every “handyman” in the book who might be able to help me. Let’s remember, though that it’s Sunday… south of the Mason Dixon line… and it’s now snowing… hard. Show of hands for anyone who thinks I’m going to get a call back before noon on Monday?! Miraculously I did get in touch with someone who came with some industrial-strength silicone magic sealant that can be applied to wet surfaces. Or so he told me – which at this point how can I not trust someone who is going to get up on a ladder in the freezing snowstorm to fix my window? Granted, I may or may not be in the same boat I was Sunday morning, thinking the problem was fixed and I was in the clear. And since the Atlanta forecast shows nothing but clear skies from now until infinity, I may never know if I’m fully sealed or not. But as long as it doesn’t rain, the window has no leak, and I have no problem! 🙂

Needless to say, I am not old enough to be in charge of a real house.

Spring?

February 20th brought two important events to the forefront of my life: 1) baby brother Mark’s 22nd birthday, and 2) opening day of college baseball! And as luck would have it, I got to celebrate BOTH at the same time! Oregon State opened their season on the road, travelling 3000 miles through 3 time zones to Knoxville, Tennessee, to play the University of Tennessee Volunteers. Knoxville being an easy 3-hour drive from Atlanta. My friend Hillary rowed for the Lady Vols Crew team at UT a few years ago, so she came along for a home-coming of sorts. Her Toyota 4Runner has a magic attachment that allows you to plug your iPod directly into the car, thus guaranteeing hours of road-trip-tunes enjoyment! First up was “O State Ballaz” followed by “We Still Ballin (2007)” and the baseball staples “Put Me in Coach” and “Back Home in Omaha.” Then I stopped being mean and we had sing-along tunes for the rest of the trip.

Friday’s game started at 4 p.m. It was chilly, without a doubt, and did get a bit less comfortable when the wind whipped through Lindsey Nelson stadium. But it was fairly tolerable. And I was purposely (and brilliantly!) delaying the addition of extra layers to my person. I started with a tank top under a long-sleeved shirt under my orange #18 jersey with Beavers across the chest and a College World Series patch on right arm. In the 4th inning, I added a white hooded sweatshirt between the long-sleeved shirt and the jersey. Gloves went on in the 6th, shortly accompanied by a set of disposable hand warmers. At the 7th inning stretch, my black pea-coat became my final outer layer. Then the fun began…

Finally in the 8th inning (just about the time the temperature dipped into the high 20’s) Mark made his 2009 season debut. And he was great! Stats: 1 inning, 1 “hit” (a blatant E-3 that the home-town scorekeeper gifted to a Vol who must have been either his son or favorite nephew), 1 K, 0 BB. Happy Birthday to Mark! Even happier birthday if they’d have left him in to finish the game and get the win instead of handing the ball over to the losing, save-blowing closer. Too bad I was the only smart (and least biased) baseball strategist at the field that night.

I’m sure I would have gotten infinitely better photos if I could have tolerated moving from the one warm spot on my seat to stand up and face the frigid winds head on. Those who did so are better people than I. But I had brought a bouquet of balloons (black and orange with a Happy Birthday mylar balloon for my brother) that were tied to the top of the stands at the base of the Georgia SEC flag, which I thought was appropriate. And I did bring Mark a birthday present, too. So there are likely very few better sisters than I. Right, Mark?! And Scott and Jill?!

Saturday’s 2 o’clock game felt practically tropical! Fifty-plus degrees, bright sun, crystal blue skies. I even came away with pink sunglasses lines on my face! Why they didn’t play a double-header in the glorious sunshine? No one can guess. And snow was on its way. And everyone knew it. Sunday morning the predicted “dusting” had dusted, and the non-asphalt ground surfaces were white. The temperature crawled slowly toward 30 as I abandoned my previously successful delayed-layering protocol. And it’s lucky that I did, because it was C-O-L-D outside. Snow flurries continued throughout the morning, though mostly it looked like the very end of a ticker-tape parade or New Years Rockin’ Eve, with swirls of fluffy flakes whirling around in the wind. Truthfully, it was the wind that did you in, not the temperature. Well, I suppose it was the malicious combination of the two.

We arrived to the game and couldn’t even bear to unload our arms of the blankets and coats and extra layers we had brought. It was too cold to go empty-handed. I was wearing 2 long-sleeved shirts, a t-shirt, a black #18 (duh!) OSU jersey (that’s Hillary in the orange one!), my white hooded sweatshirt, tall-socks, and gloves with disposable 7-hour hand-warmers already activated inside them.

I hate to say that I wasn’t really all that disappointed when the called the game at noon. It was not going to be pretty. Or warm. Or even anything close to being compared to warm. So we had our photo-op at the bus. And said a few “see you in L.A.’s” since I’ll be heading west in April to catch another series. Should be a bit nicer weather out there, don’t you think?!

Happy Birthday to ME!

The big 2-9 needed a big 2-Do. Since my holiday time-off didn’t work out the way I wanted it to (in the grand scheme of things, I had 6 days off in a row at Christmas – not too shabby – unless you’re The Birthday Girl Princess who wanted 9 days off in a row!) I was back in Atlanta for my birthday instead of with Jayson and Paula, holding up my end of the We-Came-To-You-In-2008-So-You-Come-To-Us-In-2009 deal. I hate being the deal-breaker. So I decided that it was imperative to do something super-fun for my birthday here instead. And boy, fun was had!

I decided I would be having a K(risten)araoke Party. And after doing some Internet research – please tell me how we EVER lived without the Internet?! – things weren’t looking too promising on the Karaoke bar front. Until I learned about… METALSOME! Metalsome is a rock band that plays almost exclusively at the basement bar portion of the Dark Horse Tavern in Virginia-Highlands. Now that alone is not special or unique or implies anything that would be associated with my K(risten)araoke Party. Except that Metalsome doesn’t have a lead singer… until your name is called and you go up on stage to sing your heart out to any one of the songs on their long set-list. It’s killer.

So my name goes up in lights (aka a projected PowerPoint type slide on the TV screens around the bar) and all of a sudden, I’m up there belting out “Celebrity Skin” by Hole and later Whitesnake’s “Here I Go Again.”

It’s a rock-star dream come true! Not a crappy birthday, if you ask me! I’m starting to plan Kristen’s Birthday Extravaganza 2010 – it’s a big one (30?!) so I figure I can dream big. Barcelona, anyone?!

Christmas Wrap-up

So after all that worrying and stressing out and checking-the-Delta-website-between-every-patient-visit-for-three-whole-days, I had the most enjoyable, worry- and stress-free flight to Portland EVER. Seriously. It was the first time I’ve ever had a flight leave Atlanta ON TIME since I’ve been flying in and out of ATL. Amazing. That being said, I freely admit to being more than a touch unsettled in the last 20 or 30 seconds as we made our final approach into PDX. Everything was SNOWY, and since I spent the better part of 17 winters in Oregon, I know that around here, snow comes with ICE. All of a sudden I’m getting these flashes of my airplane landing and skidding across the runway into the Willamette River… necessitating, of course, the use of my seat cushion that may also be used as a floatation device…. Then my face nearly slammed into the tray table that I (naturally) had returned to its full, upright and locked position. That plan stopped on a DIME. A chuckling pilot got on the intercom to say, “Folks, I guess I could have warned you about the [fill-in-more-technical-term-for-“super-stopping”-brakes] we’d be using tonight. But suffice it to say… Welcome to Portland!” Nervous laughter.

My two siblings currently residing on domestic soil (for anyone who doesn’t know – Scott has in effect defected to Copenhagen, Denmark) met me at baggage claim, amid the stacks of luggage grouped (as best I could tell) by departing airport code. It looked like a cemetery, with Samsonite, American Tourister, and Swiss Army as the major purveyors of headstones. Or a little bit like one of those post-sinkage scenes in “Titanic” when all those frozen people and steamer trunks are bobbing around in the frigid waters of the Atlantic. I was on a direct flight from Atlanta, so there was little-to-no chance that my luggage had beat me to Portland. And yet we did quick drive-by through the abandoned baggage just in case. No dice. HOURS later – real time, probably 10 minutes or so – the belt starts moving, my huge suitcase is swept up by little-brother Mark, and we’re out shivering on the curb, waiting for Mom and Dad to circle around. It is C-O-L-D.

On the drive home, it starts SNOWING!!!!!! I am elated. The rest of the fam, not so much. It’s snowed for the past 9 days. They are over it. I,  however, am certainly not! White Christmas! It was closing in on midnight by the time we got home and to bed – nearly caught Santa coming down the chimney.

Christmas morning felt different this year. Gone are the days of the four of us sneaking between each others’ rooms trying to see who’s awake and who needs waking before we can knock on Mom and Dad’s door. There was no Stairs Picture this year, even though the wonders of modern technology could have allowed us to easily PhotoShop Scott into it. I got up and went downstairs to the family room, where I found Mom and Dad huddled around Dad’s laptop, joining Facebook (not lying!) while the Yule Log “burned” on TV. (Note: this is not THE Yule Log from the fireplace at Timberline Lodge – that one is broadcast Christmas Eve, and we definitely tune into that one, too) A few minutes later, my cell phone rings. It’s Jill. From her room downstairs.

Christmas Breakfast was its traditional menu of The Egg Dish, Sticky Buns, and coffee with Kahlua or hot chocolate with peppermint schnapps. But in sticking with our semi-non-traditional event, we didn’t really sit down for breakfast. Just sort of filtered in and out of the kitchen individually and sat down (or stood!) wherever. Very casual.

Mom set the kitchen timer to count down to Get-Ready-For-Church time, so we wouldn’t . Usually we’d go to Christmas Eve Mass, but since I got in so late, we were going on Christmas morning for the first time since I can remember. Mind you, the driving situation was treacherous at best. Icy ruts and deep drifts from the shoveled walks (which I soon learned are called berms) line the streets. As soon as we leave the driveway, all fingers are crossed and all novenas said in hopes that we don’t meet another car coming UP the nasty, slippery, frightening hill that we are trying to descend. While the neighborhood streets and most all roadways in the city eventually thaw and become easily passable, good old upper Ashdale Drive stays ridiculously perilous the entire length of my stay.

The trip home was much less eventful. Just a strategic packing job (because of COURSE my birthday presents had to fit in there somewhere!!!!) and another direct flight back to Atlanta. I don’t succumb to the post-holiday blues the way some people do. At least not when I have a wicked-awesome birthday party coming up!

My Christmas Wish

As my departure approaches, my poor, exhausted, Christmas-anticipatory brain is over-whelmed with worry and anxiety. I have a Christmas Eve NIGHT flight back to Portland. On one hand, I was hoping that everyone would have already made their way home, and I would have the Atlanta airport (or at least a whole row of seats in the airplane!) to myself… now with Severe Winter Storm Warnings in 37 states, I’m fairly sure I will not only NOT be alone in the airport, but I’ll be there with thousands of people who are two days or more into their attempt to get home for Christmas. And it will only be my first shot at it, so I’m automatically at the back of the line. I can’t talk about it too much, or I’ll get super-nervous again.

My nervous mostly stems from the arrival port of my journey (please, it’s been 70 degrees in Atlanta for the past week – obviously, we’re one of the 13 states NOT under any winter conditions at all). And I can’t say that my fears are quelled at all by my (well-intentioned) family. Mom says I should make a contingency plan for Christmas Eve night, “just in case,” and Jill sent these…

Yep, every branch and twig of that tree is completely encased in a thick coating of ice. Which would be remarkably lovely and I’d be out there shooting very artsy-fartsy photos… if only I were home already.

Winter wonderland, huh? Bah Humbug.

And if I hear “I’m dreaming of a white Christmas…” again on the radio, I’ll probably cry. That would be in addition to the “I’ll be home for Christmas, if only in my dreams” that most definitely sent me running for the Kleenex this afternoon. I’m considering a self-imposed ban on Christmas music, because I only see myself getting more emotionally belligerent as Portland continues to rack up snow days.

I told my parents that the only thing I wanted for Christmas was a plane ticket home. I’m afraid I’ll have to add something to my Wish List. I hope Santa is an eleventh-hour packer like I am, so it’s not too late to squeeze a little something extra onto the sleigh for me… I wish for a day-long heatwave to melt and dry out all the airport runways nationwide so that everyone (me especially!) gets home safe and sound. Tis the season for miracles.

Merry Merry!

Christmas has come to the little house on Warwick St!

There are a few little gifts under the tree already, just awaiting get-togethers with friends. There are even 2 of them in Happy Birthday paper – one to take to NC next weekend and one to wait for January 1… wonder who THAT one is for?!?!

Fontanini nativity – not sure there are driftwood-laden beaches in Bethlehem, but it’s still a nice little vista for the waiting masses! (*note: NO BABY in the manger – he’s born on Christmas, duh!)

Mom sent my Christmas Book along with Dad, who’s in town for some meetings and Daddy-Daughter time. And it’s right on time for St Nicholas Day!

As in “behold, I bring you good tidings of…” But also a concept and a philosophy that I always seek. My preference for Christmas Books has always been those with BEAUTIFUL illustrations, and this book is absolutely gorgeous.

Speaking of Christmas books, I have started my own. It’s called “The Gift of Christmas,” and my goal is to have a copy in my hand – or in a store?! – by the 2009 Christmas season, whether I find a publisher, or use an online self-publishing website. I can picture the whole book in my head right now, and the illustrations are lovely! Of course I am acutely aware of my own insufficiencies in this department, so I will be in search of an illustrator for “The Gift of Christmas.”

Hiking = Nature Walk ???

I’ve been accused of making too much of my recent outdoor quests. So to quell all the nay-sayers, I have come up with a couple definitions with which I feel very comfortable…

Nature Walk – A short stroll out-of-doors consisting mainly of admiring the sunshine and kicking around in the leaves; no water bottle or trail-snacks needed; may or may not be required as part of an elementary school science project.

Hiking – Yes, there are likely leaves that one would most definitely kick around, and yes, the sunshine is still admirable. But when hiking, one must navigate a marked (albeit confusing at times) trail through the forest, that dips along the water and meanders through different terrains of paths strewn with rocks, pine cones, tree branches and, of course, the aforementioned leaves; water and snacks are mandatory; at least one off-road detour is required.

My second field trip to Red Top Mountain State Park was undoubtedly a HIKING excursion. No nature-walks here! *satisfied grin* This field trip was not as impromptu as was my first voyage to My Favorite Place in Georgia. This time I had company! A friend from work had heard me rave about it, and she was intrigued and anxious to get out and hike around. So get out we did, and hike we did, too!

A few of the most interesting shots of the day…

 

Some people go to Joshua Tree – some people would rather seek a “K” tree or a singing tree.

A beached whale? In Georgia? At a LAKE?! Oh, wait, never mind.

A floating Winnebago. Word.