The Bridge

What is it about crossing a bridge that seems to put negative images in my head?

It may be a result of the cold weather as I've been on a HUGE soup kick lately. I made homemade Chicken Noodle Soup two nights ago and had leftovers for two meals yesterday. It was amazing! Right now, I'm craving some sort of seafood soup, though I haven't pinpointed exactly what I want.

I've never made seafood soup and it sounds slightly more complicated than the old fashion chicken noodle. After browsing recipes, I thought I'd glance at local eateries as what better night to go out than Friday. Living right on the edge of the Ohio River, I always have the choice to stay in Louisville or venture to Indiana, which in some respects may be closer at times. More often than not, I find myself avoiding the bridge.

I can't quite figure out why. It could be the preconceived notion that it always takes longer to get over the bridge. This stems from the fact that some of the worst traffic in and around San Francisco is due to the Bay and Golden Gate Bridges. I know the junction coming from Indiana can be backed up at times, but nothing compared to California. Just a random thought during the lunch break as I look out on the Ohio River and its trusty bridge.

One month left in Louisville...

Soapbox

It was a blur. The last two weeks had me in four different cities with two stints in Chicago. Every time I'm in Chicago, I set up the house just a little more. However, not being part of a divorced family, I'm starting to sympathize with those who have had their stuff in two places. I managed to remember I needed a black dress for a bachelorette party in mid-January. Forgetting that with any good black dress and night out in Miami, I should have a pair of cute, likely open-toed, shoes. Ooops. Either I'm going shopping or wearing flats.

It's funny how I return to Louisville and feel less and less like this is home. I'm sick of having a hotel key in my wallet. I returned, thinking I'd have a stack of mail including at least 3 bills. Instead, I had one lonely letter in my mailbox. I panicked as one of my bills was due in 7 days. Thoughts of "what if it never shows up" closed my mind. The next day, I received the rest of my mail, including two packages. USPS holiday backup or Galt House fail? Hmmm.

Two friends visited for New Year's in Chicago. Besides a little rain, NYE was a cloudy 50 degrees. I promised snow, they received warmth in Chicago terms. Maybe they brought it from Houston. My night concluded with me picking up the place and taking this photo:



Incredible view if I do say so myself! This will be the first thing I see every morning, assuming it's not dark outside. I can't wait. It's possible that I'm counting down the days until my move... 34.

Great Moments of 2010

Every year has its ups and downs. I suppose it's just a part of the rollar coaster we call life. While the downs remind us that we're human, it's the ups that make us feel the downs are worth it. The last three years, I've compiled a great moments list. It's incredible to see what I've done and remember that each year has many moments I'd like to remember. Here are my great moments from 2010 (in no particular order):

1. Graduated with my MBA from Darden
2. Received an award for Academic Excellence (Top 10%) on the day of Darden's graduation
3. My amazing day in Stockholm, Sweden including the best blueberries I've ever had and mouth-watering dark hot chocolate
4. Visiting Swedish Lappland
5. Leadership and Theater J Week
6. London
7. Paris
8. Buying my first adult couch (to be delivered Feb 2011)
9. Receiving my Darden 10-K (Yearbook)...very nostalgic
10. Paramore in Cville
11. Duke's MBA Games - specifically the business suit swimming relay race and dizzy bat
12. Bahamas (crashing my friend's honeymoon!)
13. Receiving and accepting a full time job offer
14. Permanent placement = CHICAGO
15. Sushi Mondays!
16. Birthday in Louisville with Mack and Lauren
17. 2nd Annual May Vegas Trip with Schnepp and the man
18. San Francisco Giants win WORLD SERIES!
19. Passing my Life and Health Insurance exam with flying colors
20. Night out in SF with my soccer peeps
21. Weekend of girl time with my mom in Chicago
22. Junior League of Louisville's Second Sunday event (I was in charge of Hula Hooping)
23. Darden dinner and night out in Chicago (Oct 2010)
24. My first Ohio State football game
25. Shooting clays at the Greenbrier (Thanksgiving)
26. Follies - Darden Dancing
27. Becoming an Illinois resident (my first license after California, which I had for 12 years)
28. NYE w/ BVB, Jackie and her man @ The Drake Hotel in Chicago

New Credit Card

I'm going to regret being up this late on a work night, but it's worth it. I've been contemplating a new credit card lately. While I'm not a proponent of changing cards frequently, sometimes the good "rewards" vanish as credit card companies update their programs. I pay off my credit card monthly and thus, I'm not concerned about APRs, but more about what I get for the money I spend. I'm an AmEx lover. However, not everywhere takes AmEx, so I needed a backup card. There are credit card sites galore that all basically have the same information, which hasn't been very helpful. I wanted to share one site I found that seemed better than the rest, check it out.

Bring on the New Year

Work has been beyond slow as of late. I wish I could say that is a new thing, but not the case. Sadly, I'm getting VERY good at Angry Birds (if you haven't checked it out and have a smart phone, it's definitely addicting!). My first finance-related market visit to Chicago is next week and as luck would have it, my future boss won't be there at all. I've decided that picking dates around large company and/or national holidays is the worst time to visit the market. Far too many people decide to take vacation and I don't blame them. My current boss has told me that she is ok if I do mostly personal stuff during my trip. First item on the list -new driver's license and car registration.

I'm not sure if it's just me, but I haven't had a new driver's license picture since the day I passed my exam. Not to mention all of the physical details are also from when I was 16. Luckily, I haven't changed THAT much. And come to think of it, I've never had a license anywhere except California. Here's to change!

For the next two weeks, I'm taking another whirlwind "vacation." I suppose I wouldn't be me if I stayed in one place long enough to get my feet wet. Tonight I'm headed to Evergreen, CO to spend time with my boyfriend, his parents and his siblings. After two days in the mild cold, I will head east to Chicago, where my new full length black parka will likely be my best friend. This is a "working" trip, though I use that word loosely and will likely be decorating and moving in. We leave on the eve of Christmas Eve to go to Southern California for more celebrations with my boyfriend's family. My family will be sailing the caribbean. Rough life huh? Next up, Vail! Hopefully that storm that just hit the mountains in California continues eastward and dumps in Vail. I'd like some powder days (please, Santa!). Finally the whirlwind wraps up with New Year's Eve in Chicago at the Drake. I have a friend from home who now lives in Houston coming into town with her boyfriend. She said she wanted snow on NYE, but I have a feeling she's going to regret that when she arrives. WEATHER SHOCK!

I'm excited for the next couple months. I attend my first of FIVE weddings in February. I move to Chicago in February, which should coincide nicely with the delivery of the couch that was ordered last weekend. My mom is throwing a large gala in March. And who knows what the rest of the year will bring.

It's hard to believe that 2010 is over and it's been a great year! I'll have to countdown the best moments of 2010 on the next post. :) Plus, they're fun to review.

2009
2008
2007

What Happened?

Writing used to be therauputic. It was a way to share myself with myself (and perhaps a dozen or so readers). Lately, I've been completely radio silenced. What happened? When I hit road blocks in business school, writing for 20 minutes cleared my mind enough to tackle the next big project. I attempted that at work once and when I hit "post," I received some sort of failure notification. My company doesn't allow you to post to blogs. I suppose I can't blame them. Work time is for work, right? Not to mention, there's fear that I'm posting sensitive company information. I'd like to think that most people are good natured and hearted, yet with scandel after scandel, it's hard to believe that.

 

Work is overly slow these days. I finished my morning responsibilities at 11:30a today and now I'm waiting for a 3p meeting. Yes, literally, waiting. Tomorrow, this place will likely be a ghost town. If it were up to me I'd skip the entire day completely. However, instead I have a 30 minute meeting at 8a, which will be my first and last bit of responsibility before the holiday weekend. Still contemplating if it is ok to simply leave when I'm done. Hmmm.

 

In good news, I received my market location 2 weeks ago. In February 2011, I'm officially moving to CHICAGO!! I couldn't be more excited and I wish February were tomorrow. Though I know now that it's Thanksgiving, the time between now and February is going to absolutely fly. The boy and I have trips planned for the holidays to see both of our families. I'm also looking forward to catching up with some friends along the way. My first trial run in Chicago will be right before Christmas for a market visit. Hopefully it's not too cold then! 

 

I can't promise more musings, but I'm definitely going to try. Happy Thanksgiving! Gobble Gobble!  

World Series

It's Monday night and I'm halfway glued to my TV, hoping the SF Giants can clinch the title. Mom, dad, brother and brother's GF attended Game 1 in San Francisco. Brother + 1 attended Game 2 as well. Giants fever has hit almost every Facebook status message I read during the nights they're playing and sometimes, the days they are not. I can almost tell what happened in the games based on the name updates... Sanchez, Cody Ross, Uribe, Buster Posey and the list goes on. More photos and tag lines of "Fear the Beard" arrive daily. It makes me miss home.

I'm not sure the Bay Area will ever not be home. I guess sometimes I'm just waiting for that day. Will I ever stop telling people I'm from SF? Living in Louisville, I often receive a slightly odd look, asking how did you end up here?! These days, I don't even know.

I await anxiously to find out where my next residence will be. In the last two years I've lived in Charlottesville, Atlanta, Louisville and even Stockholm, Sweden for a couple months. Friday, I will know where I move in February 2011. I'm excited and scared. The anxiety has seeped into my dreams as I cross my fingers for Chicago and try to remember that everything happens for a reason. Those dreams can turn to nightmares, so anything I can do to not focus on the next move is good as it hopefully leads to better sleep.

Therefore, bottom of the 7th, Giants lead 3-1. Let's go SF!