Almost Done

This move is going to go down in history as the longest ever.

EVER!

We go back to Houghton tonight to meet the movers tomorrow and get our stuff delivered on Thursday.

Really, it hasn't been that long. It's just that patience is a virtue I'm lacking.

Big time.

Also, why am I having such a hard time getting used to central time?

I need a good night of sleep.

Or a venti caramel machiatto.

Whatever works :)

Once upon a time...

There was a girl who worked long hours in a newsroom. She loved her job, loved her friends, loved her home. But something was missing.

Until the girl met a prince who convinced her to leave her newsroom for life in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.

The girl was very happy in the Great White North, but just a little sad because the part of her brain that thrived on working in the newsroom was bored.

And then one day the prince took a job in a bigger city, and the girl decided to apply for another job in a newsroom.

AND SHE GOT IT!!!!

I start working again on May 22nd and I couldnt be happier :)

Flight Attendants Prepare for Landing

Somewhere between Iron Mountain and home, I had a revelation. This has all been a holding pattern. Waiting. Flying in circles. Unable, or maybe unwilling, to truly put down roots.
Now we're ready to land. To establish ourselves as a married couple in a new city. To have the life we both want.
And in honor of this momentous occassion, I'm going to quote L.L. Cool J.
Seriously.
Last week, I saw him on the View (I know...WHY??) and he said something that has stuck with me ever since.
"Dreams don't have deadlines"
Think about it.
"Dreams don't have deadlines"
How often do we give up on dreams because it's taking too long? How often do we move on to something else because we're tired of rejection? How often do we do the easy thing?
Now granted, L.L. was talking about how he thinks it's okay to be approaching his 40s and still rapping....but I feel like this quote completely applies to my life.
My life as a wife.
My life as a news producer.
My life as a designer/artist/photographer.
Really, truly, seriously....MY DREAMS DON'T HAVE DEADLINES.

What a Day

It's funny, meeting someone you know. It's a part of the internet world that I still haven't wrapped my brain around yet. The idea that I can email with someone daily for a year, and then "meet" them. But aren't we already friends? Even though we've never actually shared the same airspace? It's just a weird little twist that technology has thrown into our modern day lives. But as weird as the feeling is, I wouldn't trade it for the world. Because without the internet I'd never have met some outstanding women I consider to be great friends.

Like Sharyn, who was nice enough to invite me to freeze my butt off with her at the beach. And she let me take pictures of her kids. And post them on the internet. Because that is what we scrapbookers do. We take pictures of eachother, and then we share them with the rest of our internet friends in the hopes that someday we'll all be able to meet in one big crazy party.

Until then...there's always email.

Cheap Therapy

Thinking a lot about my mom today. And now the question is, will she still love me when she finds out I did a layout about her wrinkles?? Welcome to real life.

Mom

That's my mom. Sometimes she drives me crazy. But I love her. And today she needs prayers. Yesterday, her doctor saw something on her chest xray. She smoked for more than 30 years. She quit two years ago. Tomorrow, she'll undergo a CTscan to get a better look. I'm hoping Good Friday is in fact good this year.

If you're happy and you know it...

It's fun to have a secret for a while. It adds an element of excitement to everything. A reason to smirk at yourself in the mirror. Because you know something that nobody else knows.

That's been me for the past couple of weeks. Even in the midst of my whole back breaking debacle, I still had those crazy little butterflies in my tummy. The sign of something totally exciting right around the bend. My very own little secret.

But the best part of secrets is that eventually you can share them. And then the excitement starts all over again because suddenly you can talk about this exciting thing that you've been hiding from the world. You can watch as other people try not to go crazy as you incessantly talk about your secret.

So...here's mine....

WE"RE MOVING!!!!!

I've said it before: I'm not cut out for life in the Upper Peninsula. I would have lived here as long as necessary. I would have eventually made this place home. But the fact that I don't have to....the fact that I can just visit this place during the summer, or maybe for winter carnival....SO exciting to me!

On May 1st Karl will start his new job in Appleton, WI. That's right, Karl and I are becoming cheeseheads. We were in Appleton this weekend to find a place to live. Mission accomplished. I'm about to be an apartment resident again. For some reason this excites me to. I think everyone expected us to be sad about downsizing to an apartment, giving up the house for a year. But honestly, I'm thrilled. We get to simplify!!! We get to purge!!! It's like spring cleaning to the extreme.

Karl is thrilled about his new job and the oppurtunities it will bring him. And I'm really excited for him because I know how important it is to love your work. The company he'll be working for is huge, and the sky is the limit for his future. I'm so proud of him.

And my personal excitement....the thing that I lay in bed thinking about at night these days....I'm going to get back into television. When I moved here almost two years ago, I thought I could give it up. I loved my career, but I felt like it was time to leave it behind. I figured it would just become a part of who I was...something that gave me stories to share in years to come. What I didn't realize until I left was that news remains a part of me no matter where I am. And now I'll have the chance to use those skills again. I feel like I'm getting the chance to start over. But to be better this time.

So there you have it. My big secret revealed.

Now I have to figure out how to pack boxes without lifting, twisting, or bending.

Thank goodness for movers!

BACKed into a corner

It has been brought to my attention by Sharyn, that it's April.

And I haven't written.

Because my back decided to go and break on me. At a time when there are just a few other things I should be worrying about, I woke up one morning unable to walk. A few xrays and an MRI later I was diagnosed herniated, and torn, and bulging.

I don't like any of those words.

I feel like I'm doing the stages of grief in a way. But in a weird bizarre order, because I'm not really doing grief. Just a bunch of different emotions.

Sometimes all at once.

(Am I channelling Kelli crowe? With the short sentences? She's so cute..and wee. I bet her back doesn't just up and break on her!)

So, I'm broken. And at first I was really scared. Because words like "cortizone shot" and "surgery" scare the bejeezus out of me. Then I was desperate. Because I was on vacation, and away from my husband, and not in my own bed. And missing a really cool scrapbook convention that I was supposed to be working at.

Now: well now I'm mad. I'm blaming the steroids for giving me 'roid rage! Really! Like, I could throw my shoe across the room, that is if I could reach my feet to remove said shoe. I'm mad because I've got stuff to do! Stuff that involves secrets I haven't shared yet. Stuff that involves being able to put my own clothes on, tie my own shoes, shave my own legs. Stuff that involves sitting up in a chair, driving in a car, not having to take mind numbing pain killers.

And have I mentioned we were trying to have a baby? Like, finally. After doing everything we said we'd do so we'd be ready to be parents. Finally, both of us on board. Ready to get to the fun stuff.

And then my back broke.

Thankfully, God saw all this coming and didn't get me pregnant yet, because I don't know HOW that would have worked. I'm pretty sure Darvocet is bad for babies. As are Xrays and MRIs.

But now I've gone from Baby? Maybe? to Baby? Definitely not right now. And maybe not for a while if I have to have surgery.

And I'm sad/mad/and sad again.

My foot itches. I can't reach it.

And I need to buy Nair because at this rate I'm never going to be able to reach my ankles with a razor.

***this rant brought to you by Methylpredisolone and Darvocet. And the letter G for Grrrrrrr****