What was something you wanted today, but couldn't have?...

...More time! After church, I studied for the CTP exam (which I'm taking in late June) and then went to Fat Cat and Green Mill (for the Uptown Poetry Slam) to celebrate Suzanne's birthday - lots of stuff for the Sunday of daylight savings! I could have spent some time decluttering and/or taking a nap!

What was the last movie you rented?...

...Courageous, which I rented three different times and should've just bought it! I rented it once to watch by myself, but never did (even though I had it for 10 nights)! Then, I rented it with Debbie when I went to Tulsa and we actually watched it and laughed and cried a lot, especially at the inside joke about Chick-Fil-A :)  Then, the next weekend when I was in Alabama, I wathced it again with Linda and laughed and cried some more.

What's your favorite word right now?

Crackers, cracker jacks and mother trucker (all replacements for bad words)!

What's the last song you listened to?

Manic Monday karaoke @ Carol's Pub with Suzanne and all the other girls from church! Holly was able to get everyone together for a random Thursday night gathering. We had a blast singing country songs (Down on the Farm, Fishing in the Dark) and 80s songs (Hold On and Manic Monday). We were no match, though, for Jill, a random middle-aged lady who sang "I'm An Asshole," "I'm Just A Girl," "Blister in the Sun," and "Shoop"!

Leap year? What did you do with the extra day?...

...I woke up at 5am and went to the exercise room in my condo building to use the eliptical (after listening to God's words, "I will give you rest"). When I was done working out, I watched Church on the Move's Weights Part 3 (about forgiveness). At lunch time, I went outside (it was 60 degrees! but windy). Then, I finished my night by watching Survivor - love that show!

What was the last performance or concert you went to?...

...I guess it was "A Christmas Story: The Musical". But tomorrow night (this was originally written on Feb 16), Cindy and I are going to see "Assisted Living" at Profiles.

If this day was an animal, which animal would it be?...

...It would be Hammy the squirrel from Over the Hedge because of all the schedule changes with the flights to Tulsa and then the tram being stuck at the parking lot.

Back story: Another snowy Friday afternoon commute in Chicago where I have a flight planned! My flight to Tulsa was supposed to leave at 8:30pm. All day at work, I was checking the status of the other flights going back and forth to Tulsa. The flights earlier in the day were delayed for an hour, then two hours and then they were cancelled. Then, my flight showed as being delayed one hour. I thought about just changing my flight to Saturday, but never pulled the trigger. So, since my flight was delayed an hour, after I left work, I decided to go out of my way to Old Orchard to pick up a pair of jeans I was having hemmed when, on my way - what do you know - my flight status changed to being on time!

At that time, it was 7pm and I was further away from the airport than I was when I was at work...and did I mention it was snowing?! I made it to the remote parking lot at the airport around 7:45, but the tram was stuck! During a heated exchange with the parking lot attendant where I was demanding that I would not pay the $2 "under 1 hour" fee for the privilege of coming into the parking lot just to realize the tram wasn't working and that instead, I was going to have to go to the terminal parking lot (and pay double, by the way) in order to make my flight, the tram started working again. So, I put the car in reverse, found a parking spot, got stuck behind a dad and his kid on the escalator and thought I was going to miss the tram, but finally got into the terminal at 7:55 and was at the gate at 8:10. Phew - made the flight!

Yes, I've had some close calls at airports in the way past and even missed flights, but for the last several flights, I'm proud to say I've been there before they even start boarding! This was stressful and I'll stick to my new habit of getting to the airport a little earlier...starting today!

PS: Benefit of taking Friday night flight = seeing Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood, looking like totally normal people, picking up their buddy at their airport!

What are three things you have to buy?...

...#1 A pair of the new Toms Ballet Flats!
...#2 Plane tickets - to visit Debbie in Tulsa to celebrate our birthdays, to visit my family in Bama (more birthday celebrations) and to NYC for a weekend of theater with Cindy in March
...#3 A new sofa (see picture of my current sofa here) - - but that's such a big commitment!

Are you seeking contentment or excitement?...

...maybe a little excitement...had a fun weekend (volunteering at the Salvation Army Super Bowl party and tax prep) and tonight was game night at the Hudsons.

What a fun-filled weekend I just had...and it pumped me up for the busy weeks I have ahead!

I had my first volunteer session with the Center for Economic Progress doing tax preparation. I spent two hours on my first return and wasn't even able to finish it =( I was helping a taxi driver and we were trying to figure out the best way to record the expenses related to his new car. He also had a separate company on the side and although I was pretty sure we couldn't do that tax return, I brushed off the $17 loss his separate company had ($17 isn't material!) and went ahead with the personal return. What I didn't realize (until 2 hours later) was that the company's tax return had to be done first and then that $17 loss had to be shown on his personal return. I guess I need to get in a little different frame of mind from what I'm used to at work where not even a million dollars is material! Then I started the tax return for another guy who was insistent on filing using the married filing separately status - even though he and his wife were happily married. I tried to tell him that was not in his best interest, but he wanted me to do it anyway. When I input all the numbers and showed him that he was looking at a $1,500 refund vs. a $6,500 refund, he finally listened to me and said he'd come back later with his wife. That took about 30 minutes. Then, for my last return of the day, I told the intake person to give me an easy one! I finally was able to get a full tax return completed and filed for a couple that had a 19 year old daughter that was in college (the daughter's name was Jennifer!). It was fun, but more difficult than I thought it would be.  Oh, and apparently Governor Quinn was there that day at 10:30 (while I was debating a depreciation schedule vs. mileage expense for the taxi driver's new car) for a press conference.

After the tax prep, I did a few loads of laundry and went to Target (with my new-found coupons in hand!). Then, I got ready to go out to dinner at Noodles in the Pot to celebrate (with 20 other people!) two friends' birthdays. After dinner, we went to Kingston Mines - - can't believe I've lived in Chicago for 10 years and never gone to a Blues club! The music was great and we had a fun time.

The Sax guy roamed around the audience for a while!

On Saturday, I had also started putting some of my old clothes in piles to donate (like the ones I haven't even taken out of the box that I moved them in 5 1/2 years ago!). But, I started thinking that I should give them to somebody I know because they're pretty nice! So, after church on Sunday, my friend Ranae came over and she took some skirts from my skinnier days. I think I'll look into donating the rest ofmy nicer clothes to Dress for Success.

After a short nap, I headed to the Salvation Army's Harbor Light Center to volunteer for a sober Super Bowl party with a friend from church. It was a lot of fun, but a lot of work! Mostly, we just served food to the 200 guests. It was a pretty yummy setup: Nachos in the 1st Quarter, Potato Skins in the 2nd Quarter, Pizza in the 3rd Quarter and Brownies/Cake in the 4th Quarter. In between, we passed out pop that Pepsi had donated and went around with trash bags to pick up empty plates. I'd definitely do it again next year!

Me and Suzanne
Gotta love the hairnets and plastic aprons!



Another picture I found from the Tribune.
The event was held in an old gym.
This pic was taken during the national anthem while
we were way in the back getting the nachos ready!


After the long weekend, I still managed to make it our Gospel Community game night on Monday  after work. I learned a new game - Dutch Blitz (like Nertz...if you've heard of that, which I hadn't). I experienced some beginner's luck (partly because I didn't know the rules), but ended up in last place. Then we played a round of Taboo and surprisingly, Jonathan from South Africa did the best when it came to clues about American History! Good times =)

Lazy and comfortable

I found a theme in 3 of my journal entries from the past week that I think hints of the winter blues:

January 22 - Are you seeking security or adventure?...Security and comfort
January 23 - Do you need a break? From what?...Not really - - unless you consider needing a break from being too lazy as needing a break
January 28 - How do you describe home?...Cluttered! But comfy.

Hmmm....not much more to say about that!

What are you looking forward to?...

...spending some much needed time with Debbie in Feb! Oh, and to meeting Mr. Benjamin Charles Donahue when he decides to arrive!

Back Story:
First, the easy (and short) part. Jeanette - a friend I made while I was working at Accenture - was due with her first baby, Benjamin Charles Donahue, on Friday the 13th of January. I wrote this journal entry on January 21, when she was a week past her due date. I'm happy to report that I did get to meet him this past Thursday...so tiny, so cute!

Benjamin Charles Donahue - January 25, 2012

Now, the longer part. Debbie is one of my friends from college and we've gotten to be even better friends over the years. College friends are irreplaceable. College friends were easy to make. In college, my full time job was having fun! (I'd worked hard enough in high school that college wasn't too difficult, so I was making up for lost time!) Now, my full time job is, well, a job. And when I get home at 7 or 7:30, I'm pretty content with eating dinner, watching some tv and going to bed. It takes effort - persistent effort - to build quality, lasting friendships.

Chicago is a town where, after college, most people move here with their college friends or come back home and re-join their high school friends. I didn't meet that criteria - and most of the friends I've met throughout my 10 years here are friends I've made for a season - - depending on what job I have, what groups I'm a part of, what church I go to. People change jobs, people move, people have lots of other things going on that take up their time. Combine that with the fact that after a long day of work, I can be pretty lazy and be content just staying at home...it doesn't make a good recipe for building those types of relationships that were so easy to make in college. 

All friendships are different. And we do go through different seasons in life. And some friends are just for a season. And even the longest-lasting friendships have their peaks and valleys - sometimes you talk every day and sometimes you go for months without talking. I'm thankful for every one of you that God has ever brought into my life - whether it's been for a short season or a long season. Friendships take effort. Relationships take effort. And I'll be honest: sometimes I'm just not willing to put out that much effort. Hmmm...I guess I'll continue to ponder on that for a while...it'll be a good topic of conversation for when I do find a cheap, last minute ticket to fly to Tulsa and see Debbie in February to celebrate our birthdays! 


Debbie's wedding - May 2004



Our traditional "couch picture" when college friends gathered
in Tulsa (Feb 2006) to celebrate birth of Debbie's baby boy, Everett!



Our traditional couch picture when everyone gathered in Chicago (Sept 2011)

In the meantime, I plan to add Rachel Bertsche's book, "MWF seeking BFF: My yearlong search for a new best friend" to my list of books to read. Maybe it'll inspire me to put myself out there more! Of course, her fall back night at home is with her husband....my fallback is a night at home with my cats ;)

Here's an excerpt from Rachel Bertsche's book that I think sums up the friend-finding experience in  Chicago quite nicely: 

     Aside from my coworkers, I’ve made exactly one new friend since I moved to Chicago. Matt and I met Lindsey and her boyfriend at a wedding. I see her every month or so, when we gather for dinner with the bride and a few ex-Northwesterners we both know. They’re fun, but even after two years we haven’treached that call-on-a-Sunday-morning level.
     That’s the bestfriendship test, I think. The “What are we doing today?” phone call. If you have that, you have someone with whom it is implied you will spend the day or at least anhour. That’s the level of BFF I’m in the market for. At this point, I have girls in Chicago who I could email to set up a dinner date. But when Matt decides at the last minute to take a Friday-night trip to the casino, I use the time to catch up on Grey’s Anatomy. When he has to work on a weekend, there’s no one, save for my mom (who followed me, er, moved, here a few months ago), whom I feel comfortable enough to call and say, “What are you up to?”
     Getting to that level is tricky. It’s essentially dating. At what point after meeting a new friend is it acceptable to call “just to say hi”? When is it not overly aggressive to text “Pedicure in a half hour?” The first time I saw a coworker outside the office, we’d been texting on a Saturday about a work-related issue. When Lynn wrote, “If you’re not doing anything, come over for Guinness and oysterfest!” I went into a tizzy. I wasn’t doing anything! I’d love to come over for Guinness and oysterfest! But could I just say that? No one wants to be the pathetic girl sitting by the phone, waiting for an invitation. I wrote back a few minutes later. “Have to get lunch and run some errands . . . How long will you be there?” It wasn’t entirely untrue—I did have lunch plans. With my 60- year-old aunt, my cousin, and my brother’s girlfriend, Jaime. Easily cancelable, but made me look less eager. There were no errands.
     This was big-time. It could be the transition from “work- friend”—Lynn sits in the cubicle next to me at the office where we are both web producers—to “friend.” I wanted to play it exactly right. At lunch, Jaime laughed as I dealt with my nerves by asking a zillion questions. Did the outfit I’d thrown together for lunch look weekend-casual-but-cool enough? Was Lynn just being nice, or did she really want me to come over? “It’s not like you’re trying to hook up with her,” Jaime said. “You’ll be fine.”
     And I was fine. My T-shirt and yoga pants were perhaps a little more weekend-pajama than weekend-cool, but I walked the street fair with Lynn and her college friends, passing on oysters and Guinness in favor of a Bucket O’ Fries. (Cool girls eat fries, right?) These could be my friends, I thought. I could infiltrate the clique! At one point, Lynn’s friend Karen put her arm around me. I was awkward but tried to go with it. It was a great day.
     Other than Lynn, I haven’t seen any of them since.
     Around that same time, Lynn was the friend-to-be I invited to join me for my first wedding dress fitting. Callie and my mom had flown in from New York for the shopping, but I was on my own for this appointment. My aunt was supposed to come, but a last-minute doctor’s appointment forced her to cancel. Even though I knew it was a big step for our fledgling friendship, I was desperate.
     “Are you doing anything Saturday?” I asked Lynn at work one day. “I have to go try on my wedding dress and would love your opinion. Do you want to come?” Bridal-related activities are usually reserved for VIPs, so I knew it was a monumental request.
     “Just me?” she asked. The look on her face reminded me of the male lead in a romantic comedy when the girl says “I love you” too soon. It was a startling combination of fear and confusion and whoa-slow-down-there-lady. “Um, I’m not sure. I might have plans.”
     I tried to backpedal. “What? Oh no, never mind actually. I was just thinking, but actually I, well, I’ll let you know. I probably won’t need you.” It was a poor exit strategy but Lynn took it.
     It’s possible that I read more into my coworker’s reaction than was actually there, but I’d already psyched myself out. I didn’t mention it again and a few days later I went to my fitting. Alone. But not before having a minor breakdown on the phone with my mom, devastated that I had no companion to tell me how blushing bride–like I looked.
     All of this makes me realize one thing: I do not miss dating. Matt and I met freshman year of college. He went from friend- with-benefits to boyfriend to husband. My experience with all this courting and shoduld-I-call-the-next-day is limited, and the thought of diving back in—even if only platonically—is seriously daunting. 

Random journal entries...

...I've been little busy and this week's questions didn't really lend themselves to a lot of back story, so I thought I'd just randomly post a few of the questions from the last week:

• What song is stuck in your head? Too many to count! Jesus Loves Me, Lead Me, Before the Throne of God, and always, the "There is no one, no one at all - no detergent, lotion or oil with such power" song from Evita! [weird? yes, but I do sing that song all the time]
• Was today typical? Why or why not? Yes, if you count Bama winning the national championship as typical!
• What's your favorite accessory? My watch, since I wear it every day. [Yes, I still wear a watch! And, I've managed to not lose it for almost a year now.]

What is your mission?...

...To live a Christ-centered life by trusting in Him, connecting with others and seeking Him with all my heart.

Backstory:  One of Dave Ramsey's first newsletters of 2011 was about coming up with a personal mission statement. The one above just kind of fell into my lap when, on December 29, the question in my 5-year journal was "what are your top three wishes?" Then, when the "What is your mission?" question came up 3 days later, I realized they were the one in the same!

I was also listening to a sermon that Joe McGee gave at Church on the Move in Tulsa, OK about vision and that got me thinking about a 5-year vision statement. I'm not there yet. Right now, I just have my mission statement. Well, that and a whole list of things I'm looking forward to in 2012...

• Using my re-usable bags more (even if it means going back to the car when I'm ready to check out at the register, which I've already had to do TWICE today)
• Cooking with my new Staub Grill Pan! We'll see how it goes the rest of the year (heck, we'll see how it goes the rest of this month!), but the first "Staub Sunday" of 2012 resulted in a wonderfully delicious filet mignon!!!
• De-cluttering and then investing/sinking some time and money into sprucing up my condo with new paint/wallpaper, a new bed, a new sofa and some closet organizers



This couch has been through the wringer...it's got cat scratches, tape residue (from trying to keep the cats from scratching) and two gashes! Definitely time for a new couch....anybody want this one? Haha! 

• Meeting up with Suzanne once a week to do water aerobics
• Volunteering more - - starting with a stint doing tax return preparation through the Center for Economic Progress
• Exploring the Greek Isles with my mom on a Seabourn cruise
• Trying out to more of Chicago's fabulous restaurants...even if it means that my friends with kids have to get a baby-sitter and drive to the city! Restaurant Week 2012 in February will be a great kick-start...who wants to join me?
• Taking the Metra to work more regularly now that the construction on Lake Cook Road is finished!
• Studying for the Certified Treasury Professional exam in June
• Come up with a 5-year vision statement

That's 10 things, so I'll stop there before I get overwhelmed! Of course, the above list was in no particular order. Hope you're having a fabulous start to the new year!

So, what's your answer? Do you have a personal mission statement?

What is your most cherished memory of this (past) year?...

...when I sought God's guidance and saw His work in my life!

There are lots of great memories from 2011, so let's count them down:

#10. Finally getting an iPhone - can you say, Words With Friends?! I love having all my music and podcasts available in one device...and I haven't carried my real camera since getting the iPhone!

#9. Flying to Alabama last minute to surprise my dad for his birthday.

#8. Spending time with the "Yia Yias" when Debbie, Missy and Sarah came to Chicago for a weekend of shopping and dining in September.

Our standard "couch picture" when we stopped for cocktails at RL


#7. Reading Laura Hillenbrand's recount of Louis Zamperini's amazing story in "Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption." It sparked a lot of great conversations between me and my mom's dad, Papa (who served in the Army in the late 50's, where he learned electronics that led him to a wonderful career at NASA) and my stepmom's dad, PawPaw (who retired from the Navy and traveled the world for 20+ years, including a tour in the Korean war).

#6. At a church women's retreat, being convicted to give up sugar/chocolate and successfully completing a 40-day fast of giving up the 5 C's: Chocolate (even my sugar-free chocolate pudding and my chocolate protein shake), Candy Bars, Coke, Cake, Cookies.

#5. Celebrating my grandparents' 50th wedding anniversary in June (and celebrating the 50th anniversary of when they met on New Year's Eve 1960...technically not a 2011 memory, but close enough).

#4. Remy Bumppo's production of The goat, or Who Is Sylvia? by Edward Albee. There were two moments in the play that just really struck a chord with me and stirred up some deep emotions. It was fabulous! I would love to see it again, but I would have to make sure the theater company producing it handled it with the same care as Remy Bumppo.

#3. Becoming debt free (well, except for my underwater mortgage) and being able to, as Dave Ramsey says, "give like no one else!"

#2. Traveling to NYC twice in one week to watch the Shockers play in the NIT Semifinals and then win the NIT Championship!

#1. Seeing God's plan for my life worked out in ways I never thought it would! I can point to many examples of looking back on life and seeing how all things have worked out for the best, but the most evident example I can think of in 2011 is job-related. In January, I had spent some time praying about what the next step in my career should be and felt led to apply for a job that - when it had been posted three months earlier - I thought, "Who would ever want to do that job?" The next day, I applied for the job...the next week, I interviewed for the job...and the next month, I was offered the job (on my birthday, no less)!! Of course, I accepted :)