Because I Just Can't Get Enough of Me

I haven't even been tagged and I'm doing this. Why? Because I just watched the recent episode of Grey's Anatomy but didn't really want to write (and didn't think anyone really wanted to read) another whiny piece on how surreal life is, death comes to us all and I just want to lie on my bed in the fetal position.

10 years ago:
1. I was pregnant, heavily pregnant, with child #1. He was born December 30 and over Christmas all I could think of was poor Mary, riding on a donkey from Galilee to Bethlehem. All I could think of was how to maim my physician when I came in on the 22nd and announced that I was two days overdue and she argued with me. SHE ARGUED WITH ME!! That the 22nd was really my due date. Really, who does that to a seriously fat pregnant woman? Apparently Dr. Kay Taylor of Issaquah, WA (never go to her.) I went home and cried (I know, shocking) because I was no where near delivering. And I so, SO, wanted to be done.
2. Rob and I were living in a tiny (600 sq. ft) house with 2 bed and 3/4 bath. In the "master bedroom," one window looked out on the local hardware store's parking lot and the other was only a few feet from the train track. Toot! Toot! So much fun when you're trying to take a much needed Sunday afternoon nap!
3. Got my first job post college as a file clerk. I was a file clerk with a BA making $8.50/hour with a 1/2 hour commute to Bellevue in nasty traffic. And you wonder why I laugh when people ask what I majored in. (Liberal Arts)
4. I cross-stitched like a mad fiend to get my SIL Julie's Christmas present done - the prayer of St. Frances of Assisi. Literally. I sat my heavily prego butt in a chair for two days straight trying to get the darn thing done before Christmas.
5. Spent a lot of time alone in that little house because Robert was going to school and working. Blech. And I knew no one in this new town. Blech. And I learned that it's near impossible to make friends in a new Mormon family ward when you're working because everyone one else is having family time when you're not working. Double blech.

Five things on my To-Do List today:
1. Get out of bed.
2. Do some laundry.
3. Don't cry.
4. Get out of bed.
5. Kiss Robert

Five Six things that I would do if I were a millionaire:
1. Pay off my house and keep as a rental property so we could move. Now.
2. Buy a house in Alaska with an apartment so my dad could live with us.
3. Let Robert buy more guns. And fishing equipment. And hunting trips. And cammo gear. And a boat - because the man needs a boat. And a quad or some other 4x4 vehicle. Maybe both. And a man cave. Because he needs a place to display his fabulous baseball cap collection (which is really more of a Snap-On/Mac hat collection - because they're free with a $500+ tool purchase).
4. Visit Europe (mais oui!)
5. Take the kids to Disneyland and Lego Land and somewhere where I could ride a real roller coaster for the very first time.
6. Buy some vomit bags for #5.


5 Places I have lived:
1. Juneau, Alaska - Amy had all these interesting things to say about the places she's lived. I'm trying to think of any thing noteworthy about Juneau. Technically, it's not even the state capital (that's Wasilla or Willow or some town in the greater Anchorage area) as voters chose to move it; they just never approved the funds to do so.
2. Santa Fe, New Mexico - it was brown. Very, very brown. I grew up surrounded by the very, very green. It took me four years (during which I acquired some HORRIBLE allergies) but I finally learned to love NM for the sunflowers and the amazing sky. And 10,000 Waves. Bliss.
3. North Bend, Washington - It was small. All housing was built either in the 70's or late 90's; there were LOTS of split levels.
4. Small Town, Oregon - I'm surrouded by Christmas trees, cows, pigs and sheep. And lots of scrubby oak trees that are draped with moss and lichen in the winter. If you drive by on I-5, I'll try and hit your car with a rock thrown from my front porch!
5. ? - umm...does it count if I lived there before my memories actually kicked it....Oooh, Even Smaller Town, Oregon where we lived with Rob's parents for 3 mo. It was the closest we've ever come to splitting. I'm so not kidding on this.


5 Jobs I've had:
1. Runner/Clerk for Legal Aid - I had thighs of steel from running up and down the hills of downtown Juneau.
2. Barista - is it anti-Mormon to say I loved slinging coffee? And I was really good at it? (My boss asked me once if that wasn't like being a pimp.) I had regulars that even sent me money at college - they loved me that much! And when I left, they stopped going because the coffee quality went downhill. I've always wondered how much I would love being an actual bartender. It'd probably be great except for the drunks.
3. Customer Service Rep for a Cruise Line - this is how I met my hubby, learned to play cribbage (which I've since forgotten), was personally seranaded by a Barbershop Quartet and had to report that my "20" was in the bathroom. Good times.
4. Bus Driver/Tour Guide - same cruise line/better tips. I ran over my step stool because I forgot it was there and managed to have two accidents while driving a bus. (All with inanimate objects - is that a good thing or a bad thing? Don't worry about my driving unless you happen to be sitting in a parked car.)
5. Orthodontic Assistant/Appliance maker - I learned that soldering is much more difficult than it looks and that the mouth heals quite quickly. I also learned that dental smocks can cover up a pregnancy until well in the 3rd trimester.

*sigh* I'm feeling better already. Thanks for being indulgent so I could cheer myself up!