Thursday, January 27, 2011

Maybe Someone Would Have Benefitted From Montessori School

Joe:  What's a Montessori school?

me: I went to one for preschool.  It's a way of teaching that basically involves touching, feeling and experiencing rather than being lectured at or doing what everyone else is doing.

Joe:  They must have to be really good at screening their teachers.

me:  They don't teach by touching and feeling the children, you nutbar!  You touch and feel things.  Like touch something cold to learn what cold is. 

Joe:  Well, that's much more reasonable.

me:  You don't...I can't...Honestly...I need you to not talk until we get home.

Wednesday, January 26, 2011

One More Reason I Love Winter

Is there anything better than waking up on a Wednesday morning, smack in the middle of a stressful, lots-to-do week, peeking from under the covers out the window to see furious snow fall, reaching out a hand to grab the cell phone, blurrily finding the emergency closure number for school, dialing, waiting, only to hear the most glorious words ever spoken: "Today is Wednesday, January 26, 2011.  Due to inclement weather, the law school is closed"?  And on top of that, you already got someone at part-time job #1 to take your hours today because you knew you had too much going on this week?  There is not. 

No one ever got out of anything because it was sunny and mild every day, all day, forever and ever, is all I'm saying.  Boring.  Where's the sense of possibility?  Where's the I have to stay in bed today and drink hot coffee and make hot soup and watch daytime TV and wear thick socks?  I have to.  There is nothing else to do, nowhere I can go. 

There are so many productive things I could do with this gift of time.  I will likely do none of them.  That's how snow days work.  I am going back to bed. 

Stay warm and safe, please. 

Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Successful Manipulation of My Feelings

The first car I ever loved was an SUV.  My dad passed down his Pathfinder while I was in high school and I adored that car.  When I returned home after my first year at college in New York, I did not cry when I said good-bye again to my parents or my brothers.  The tears came when I had to say good-bye to my Pathfinder.  That is slightly ridiculous, but the point is, I loved that SUV very, very much. 

When I graduated college and needed a car again, I did a ton of research and settled on a Civic Hybrid, which my mom helped me buy.  I am not in love.  The gas mileage is fantastic and it serves its purpose getting me from point A to B, but I was SUV-spoiled.  I don't like being so low to the ground, I miss being up high on the road.  I don't feel as safe in a little car and I definitely miss the cargo space. 

But I do feel really, really good about the idea of driving it.  My guilt over driving anything else will not let me go back.  My feelings are summed up in this commercial, which makes me want to weep a little.  I have been driving my hybrid for almost five years now, though, and not once has a polar bear hugged me.  I gave up my SUV and I want my polar bear.  It's only fair. 

Monday, January 24, 2011

Good News!

I got a part-time job at a great law firm that practices the kind of law I think I might want to do.  The pay is awesome and the experience I think will be amazing.  There are no guarantees, though, that this will lead to a job after graduation.  It's a small firm and they're not looking to expand right now, but there are promises that they will introduce me to people and help me to network and find my place.  I'm hoping for the best. 

I am going to try to keep my part-time job at the children's clothing store as well.  I think it's a lot to manage but I'm really worried about having enough money to get me through this summer.  Everyone who knows about these things is advising me that working while preparing for the bar is a bad idea.  So ideally I'll have enough money saved to get me through the bar exam.  Which means working every job offered to me. 

For those that don't know, the standard post-graduation schedule for a law school grad is to spend the summer studying your ass off for the July bar exam and then you start working full-time in August or September.  You find out if you passed the bar usually in early October and then you continue very happily with your life.  Right?  Lawyers?  That's what happens, right?  Until you open your bakery

I am very excited about this opportunity, though, and also very grateful.  It can only lead to good things.  Yay!

Sunday, January 23, 2011

Really, Really Good Advice

Do not have two glasses of wine and a beer and start shopping online.

Goodness, I cannot drink like I used to.  Though I'm really looking forward to my purchases.  (Most of which should definitely, probably be returned.)

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Make 1000 Desserts

Make 1000 desserts is on my life list.  Everyone (hopefully) has at least one thing they know they are really, really good at.  Fashion isn't really my thing, decorating doesn't come incredibly naturally, I can't sing, I can't even clap on beat, and even though I like myself I know I'm not the most smart or the most funny or the most pretty.  But cooking and baking?  That I know I can do really, really well.  And I love it.  I don't make any secret of the fact that I really want to go to pastry school and open a bakery one day.  I dream about it.  I know what I'm going to name it and how I want it designed. 

But I'm going to be a lawyer first.  No one is putting any pressure on me to be a lawyer.  Every person close to me (including Joe and my parents) who knows about this dream tells me to go for it.  Do what I love.  I even have a sweet and lovely cousin, who is actually in a position to make good on such a promise, offering to back me financially to make it happen.  But the thing is that it's not a right now dream.  It's a later in life dream.  It's so big of a dream for me that it has to be done right.  It will take years for me to acquire the necessary skills and then test and develop enough of my own recipes to sustain a bakery that lives up to my vision.  So in the meantime, I will make delicious treats for family and friends.  They are not complaining.

To qualify for the 1000 desserts list means the dessert has to be completely homemade and should be slightly more complicated than your average I just want something sweet on a weeknight concoction.  Not a very scientific standard but I'll know it when it happens.  I'm not yet at the point where I can develop my own unique recipes from scratch, so I make recipes I see on TV or find online or in cookbooks and think about what I like about it and how it can be better and then I tweak a little.  Sometimes it works and sometimes I ruin it, but it's a lot of fun to play.  Especially when you get to eat the results.

Sorry for the picture quality.  One day I'll be able to take pictures worthy of the deliciousness.

1) The most delicious chocolate cake with homemade chocolate buttercream icing you've ever had in your life.  I'm only counting this cake once but I have made it six times in the last six months because everyone keeps requesting it.


2) Carrot and pineapple cake.  This cake is moist, delicious, spiced perfection.  And the homemade cream cheese frosting is representative of everything that is right with the world.  I left out the raisins because I hate them.  They serve no purpose.  No one has ever gone back for seconds of a dessert because the raisins just could not be resisted.  Though I did not do so here, you should replace raisins with chocolate chips whenever possible. 


3) Homemade white and dark chocolate bark studded with cashews, pecans and dried cranberries.  A great hostess gift and so, so easy.  Just melt the chocolate, pour it onto parchment paper, cover it with toppings, let it harden and then break into pieces. 


 These I did not make but my cousins spent the morning of my birthday making a table-full of yummy cupcakes offered in several flavors and varieties.  I love cupcakes because you can only really get away with eating one or two pieces of cake but you can have like 5 cupcakes before anyone notices.  Yummy.

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

The Last Time: First Day of Class

As of today, I have attended all of my classes at least once, marking the last time I will ever have a first day of school. 

I have not done any readings thus far because I have none of my books yet.  Law school is so easy without textbooks.  I am almost dreading their arrival. 

My class schedule has been cleverly designed so that I have to do as little work as possible. Oh, you're going to require us to write papers?  DROP.  Outside projects?  DROP.  Only class readings and a final?  ADD.  Last semester was so intense I could barely catch my breath.  I'm not going out like that.  Bare minimum without embarrassing myself.  That is this semester's theme.  Get a job is also this semester's theme.  Also, save money for a summer that will be spent doing bar prep. 

Oh alright fine, I'll do a little more than bare minimum.  Depending on my grades from last semester which still have not been released, I am on the razor's edge of being able to graduate with honors.  I do want to try to at least accomplish that. 

The last passing around of syllabuses, the last time I write my name on a seating chart, the last time I have to do that awkward look around to see if I have any buddies in the room.  Check, check, check.

Tuesday, January 11, 2011

Joe Turned 30!

uh...4 months ago.  I've been a little busy.  But yay!  Joe's 30!  On September 4, four days before his actual birthday, I threw him a surprise party.  Joe hates surprises.  But throwing a surprise party was on my Life List so, you know, priorities.  I was not insensitive to his aversion, I can even relate since surprises tend to make me more anxious and uncomfortable than excited, but I wanted to do something special (30!) and I wanted him to have something bigger and better than he would plan or expect for himself.

I did try to do it with sensitivity so I told him I was planning something, told him his friends were involved, and told him if at any point he was uncomfortable or getting anxious and he wanted to know what was going on, just to speak up and I would willingly tell him everything.  He luckily trusted me the whole time and let me carry on without interference.  It actually made the whole thing easier to plan that he was kinda in on it, because if he was hanging out with a friend I needed to talk to I could just say to put that guy on the phone for a second instead of trying to sneak around behind his back.  Not that I didn't try to throw him off for weeks leading up to his birthday.  There were a lot of conversations that went like this:

Joe: Hello?

me: Hey, quick question.  You know all the words to Achy Breaky Heart, right?

Joe: Um, no.

me: Aw, crap.  I'll call you back later.

or

me:  So you're okay with choreographed dancing, right?

Joe:  I am NOT.

me:  Do you mind taking your shirt off in front of a crowd?  And is your passport current?

Joe:  WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?

That was worth it right there.  In reality, I rented out a back room and adjoining patio space at a local pub, arranged for appetizers for everyone, invited as many of his friends as I could manage to reach, ordered a custom cake, and it was as easy as that.  He was thankfully kept occupied all day playing with some of his buddies in a softball tournament so I had the day free to run errands and relax.  I had made reservations to take him out to this gorgeous restaurant on the Hudson River that night for his birthday and the plan was to hit the pub after for drinks.  He just didn't know the bar would be filled with about 35 of his people. 

Dinner was amazing, spent reminiscing about the past and dreaming about the future.  One of the things I love about being with someone so long is we can see how much we've both grown and changed over the years.  I'm just so proud of him and who he's become and I appreciate it all the more because I've been there since the beginning.  I toasted him over champagne and quizzed him about his 20s.  Favorite moment?  Favorite year?  Best thing that happened in your 20s?  Worst thing?  Biggest lesson?  Biggest regret?  Thing you're most looking forward to in your 30s?  Thing you're most nervous about?

We got all the way through dinner and we were ready to pay the check when I got a text from one his best friends.  Not there yet, please stall.  The evening got a little awkward after that.  I went to the bathroom three times.  Kept asking for refills of water.  Made unnecessary conversation.  For a really long, awkward time. 

The only remaining hitch in the plan came when, after dinner, Joe said he was exhausted from softball all day and asked if we could just head home instead of going out for drinks.  Um...it's your birthday!  Just one drink and then we'll go home.  Okay?  Yes?  Please!

The night was amazing.  He was surprised and so happy and grateful.  The weather was gorgeous and we all ended up on the patio until everyone finally left around 2am. 

Plan a surprise party?  Check. 

Surprise!

Making the rounds




Joe and his mama

us before heading out to dinner (we did not intend to match)

Monday, January 10, 2011

I Wouldn't Mind So Much if I Had Any Hope That You Eventually Reach an Age at which the Breakouts Stop

I have become concerned of late that two very good friends of mine have not been getting the support they need lately.  This realization coupled with the fact that my own mother, my own mother, referred to me recently as almost 30 (which makes her almost 60: suck it), has motivated me to take action. 

Friends, I have purchased a sleeping bra.  Patty and Selma are rather large, you see, and I can no longer allow them their freedom as they are starting (only ever so slightly) to be bored with their current surroundings and have a notion to go a-wandering.  I cannot allow it.  I don't mind them carrying on a friendly conversation with my navel from a distance, but they shan't be allowed to meet. 

Hopefully, providing 24 hour support will stop gravity from doing its nasty work.  It will also provide me some small comfort should the need to run from an intruder ever arise, since I will be spared the indignity of making my police report with my arms crossed self-consciously.  Only good can come of this. 

Next: my recommendations for wrinkle creams, girdles, and support hose.

Thursday, January 6, 2011

Question

The new apartment has lived up to my expectations.  I love it.  This place is the most home I've felt since I actually left home.  I feel settled here.  For the first time, there are framed family photos on the walls, bookshelves filled with personal effects, and although the place is a work in progress due to my limited budget and need to get more creative with what I can do with a rental, I love the little home I've created here. 

Except the bedroom.  The room feels incomplete.  I cannot find enough budget-friendly things I love for the walls and I think the room is suffering largely due to the lack of a headboard or proper frame for my bed.  I am still rocking the original, ugly metal frame that was delivered with the mattress and have not even deigned to adorn the thing with a proper bed skirt.  Shameful.  But have you checked out how unbelievably expensive headboards are?  $250 for a piece of plywood with some upholstery attached?!?  Ridiculous!  And yes, I know I could make my own, but let's all move on. 

So I am exploring other options but I need a second opinion. What do we think of decals?  I cannot decide.  Would it look too temporary and budget-friendly?  Or does kinda cute and clever win out? 



Please leave your thoughts.  Surely, you had nothing more important to do today.

Regardless of where we land on the headboard, I am kinda loving the idea of the grandfather clock in the living room.  In charcoal.  Clock sold separately.


All products and photos via Blik.

Wednesday, January 5, 2011

The Last Time: Textbooks

I imagine the next few months are going to be filled with lots of exclamations to the effect of "this is the last time I will ever do this!" 

For instance, today?

THE LAST TIME I WILL EVER BUY TEXTBOOKS! 

And because I have been buying textbooks every year (with a two year hiatus between undergrad and law school) since my freshman year of high school, by now I am very blase about the whole thing.  I no longer panic over the fact that I ordered them the Wednesday before classes start on Monday.  They will likely not be here until classes are in full swing.  I will not be able to do my reading.  I will be behind before I even start.  But I do not care.  Because THAT'S THE LAST TIME I EVER DO THAT! 

I used to not be able to buy used books.  I did not want someone else's notes and highlighting to sully my clean slate, did not want their ideas of what was important to influence my own academic journey, did not want to imagine someone sneezing and snotting all over the page that is now 10 inches from my face.  But now?  Give me what's cheapest.  I'd rather save $30 than be influence and germ-free.  I do not care.  I am over it.  I am too cool for school.  Never again will I pay $180 for a single book.  Never again.  Unless Oprah writes a book and that is what it costs.

Tuesday, January 4, 2011

It's So Totally True About the Fur Pillows

I love Josh Groban.  I love Kanye West.  I love Jimmy Kimmel.  I love this clip.

Saturday, January 1, 2011

Sappy McSapperson

The arrival of 2011 for some reason makes me very aware of how fast time goes by.  The older I get, the faster it seems to go.  The first decade of the new millennium brought me from 16 through 26.  Those are some major years.  Years of growing and learning and figuring things out.  And even though I would not trade those years for anything, I totally get now why people say they would not want to do their teen years or 20s over again.  It's fun and awesome but it's also painful and confusing and scary and I look forward to the next decade when I will settle gracefully and comfortably into full-fledged (and fun) adulthood.  I'm so glad to be where I am now and can't wait for what's next.

In 2011, I will graduate law school, pass the bar exam, and start a brand new career.  I will move towards lifelong financial independence and relieve my parents of the burden of helping with my bills.  Joe and I will figure out the next step in our relationship and maybe we'll take it, since we'll finally actually have the option of not just talking about it. 

As for 2010, I am so, so grateful for the friends and family in my life.  I am ever aware that my phone is filled with the numbers of people who are absolutely there for me.  Whether it's friends who fly in just to spend a weekend with me, or parents who sacrifice to make sure I have everything I could possibly need, or brothers who have already requested off work in anticipation of my graduation, or a new friend I've never met who sent me an envelope full of cash simply because she read on this blog that I was financially struggling (so unbelievable and kind and wow), I am full of gratitude and warm and fuzzies.

All I can do is dare to hope for more of the same in 2011.  And also that each and every one of the people in my life who are so important to me get all of that back from me and then some because they deserve it.

Love and blessings and fun to all this year!