Random thoughts

      
My dad has a Rubik's Cube on his Shelf of Awesomeness. (Remember the Rubik's Cube? I'm sure you do... but kids these days have such crappy toys that people seem to forget about the old standards... Etch a Sketch, Tinker Toys, stuff like that.)
   
When I was growing up, I was quite impatient (not much has changed... ha!), so I decided that the easiest way to "solve" the puzzle was to remove the colored stickers and put them in the "right" places. Little did I know that I pretty much ruined the Cube forevermore. Now it can only be a display item, and not a functioning toy. But I digress.
     
Anyway, it's 3 weeks into the school year now, and I had a hell of a time readjusting to my work schedule. Especially with CCD starting up at the same time. The first 2 weeks of September were a mess. I struggled to fall asleep at a reasonable time and as a result, I was exhausted all day. My diet took a nose dive because I didn't take the time to plan out my meals, and I wound up grabbing whatever was easy and quick. I'm pretty sure I gained back whatever weight I lost this summer.
     
You know when you first get a Rubik's Cube and all the sides are matching colors? Everything is perfectly balanced. (My inner-Libra loves that.) When the colors get all scrambled, it's a bitch to put back together. Usually you spend your time working on one side at a time. You get all the green squares together. And then you start working on the next color, orange. But in trying to get the orange pieces in order, the green gets all screwed up. That's what I feel like now. I spent so much time trying to get myself back on a good sleep schedule and getting into "work mode" that I let other things slide. 
        
Anyway, the countdown to settlement has begun. It's less than a month away, and I have plans and calendars and lists. Of course I have lists. My lists have lists.
   
Someone needs to stop me before I start color coding items with my Crayola markers. (Seriously.) But it makes sense that I'm approaching it this way. I've always been a visual learner.
  

I want my house to look like this!

Speaking of which... a friend and co-worker often talks about visualizing what you want for yourself. I've been picturing myself in my new house for the past few weeks now. I see it fully furnished and tastefully decorated. I see myself cooking in the kitchen and I see my family and friends using the basement and sunroom for parties. I see the front of the house decorated for autumn, with a garland of colorful leaves, pots of chrysanthemums, a scarecrow. My little red Hyundai parked in the driveway. A big comfy chocolate brown couch in the living room. 
    
Soon enough :)

Rain on my parade.

This post stems from a comment I made on Facebook a few days ago. It started as a joke, but wound up raising an interesting discussion:
      
"So Facebook friends... tell me why it's socially acceptable for a woman to have a bridal shower and a baby shower, but not a housewarming shower? Why can't I register for the fun gifts, too?"
   
Here's the deal: I'm 33, single and childless. (I swear this isn't a pity party... I'm going somewhere with this!) Over the past 15 years or so, I've been buying shower gifts for friends and family who got married or had children. Those gifts were usually chosen from a registry - so not only does a woman get gifts, but she gets to pick everything out herself! A mommy-to-be or bride-to-be makes a list of what she wants and/or needs, walks around the store with a little zapper gun, selects the style and color and quantity, and then people go out and buy exactly what she wants. It's genius. 
   
I certainly don't begrudge a mom-to-be this rite of passage. It's not like they have cribs and diapers and bottles laying around from their college dorm days. And new mommies get hand-me-downs, but not that's not always practical. Safety requirements change from year to year, so a new car seat is necessary. And not everyone wants a used bib that's been drooled on or a used board book with teeth marks. 
   
So new moms and baby registries are excluded from my rant. But let's talk about these brides.
  
It used to be that a woman lived with her parents until she got married. She went into her new home with literally nothing but her clothes. So a shower was a great way to stock her home with all the appliances, tools and gadgets that she would need in her new life.
  
Things are a little different now. Most women go to college and live in a dorm, and then move into an apartment from there. Many couples live together before getting married. These people already have a coffee maker, dishes, wine glasses, pots and pans. They don't need a shower, right?
    
Wrong.  
   
A lot of brides tend to get a little greedy and see this as an opportunity to get newer and better stuff. "Someone else is paying for it? Well then... I'll ask for a shiny new Keurig coffee maker! And I'll get rid of my old mixer and register for a new deluxe model in designer pink... and while I'm at it, I might as well replace my blender and food processor to match the mixer! And who needs round waffles when I can make waffles shaped like Mickey Mouse?!"
   
The list goes on and on, and the items sometimes border on ridiculous. They can't think of anything else they actually NEED, so they pad the registry with things they think they want: quesadilla maker, ice cream maker, s'mores maker... things they would never buy with their own money and will probably never use. (By the way, if you're looking for a good laugh, check out one of my favorite blogs, Unclutterer, and scroll through their weekly Unitasker Wednesday posts. Pure gold.)
     
So where am I going with all of this? Back to my original point. I've never been married or pregnant, so I've never had a gift shower. In a month, I'll be moving into my first home alone. I have some stuff, but there are other things I want and need. I'm paying a crapload of money for inspection, deposit, down payment, etc... and on top of that, there's a carpet I need to replace... and then there's the dining room set I'll eventually need (so I'll have someplace to eat). My Ikea loveseat is functional, but hardly ideal. I chose it because it was flatpacked, able to be delivered to my 2nd floor apartment, and priced for my budget at the time. I'd love a REAL sofa... comfy and cushioned and good for napping. 
      
I have a lot to take care of before I'll be able to afford some of the bigger things. And my priority list doesn't even begin to include the fun stuff. The little decorative touches that will make it my home. 
       
So why is it considered inappropriate, tacky, socially unacceptable to have a housewarming shower? First time homebuyers are just as needy as new moms... and in some cases, they have less stuff than a bride-to-be who has been living with her fiance for years. 
    
When I posed the question on Facebook, I expected to be met with opposition. Surprisingly, most of the people who contributed to the original discussion thought it wasn't at all tacky for me to create a registry... as long as a friend or family member distributed it for me. (Otherwise it just looks greedy.) People told me that some stores actually have housewarming registries in their computer systems.
   
I have no intention of creating a registry. I feel like it would be telling people that I expect gifts when I move. Plus, most of what I need is either huge (sofa, dining room set, carpet) or petty (plunger, dish drain rack, bucket for cleaning). But there are times (namely when I look at my massive "to do" list) that I wish I could just make a list and hand it out to people. Sometimes it seems grossly unfair that I have to be engaged or knocked up in order to do it. What if I never get married? What if I decide not to have children? What if this is the ONLY major life event that I have? Don't I deserve a chance to go to Pier One and play with the zap gun? 
   
Sigh.
      
(By the way, I found this article online while I was writing this. It pretty much sums up the entire discussion!)

Movin' on up.

 
Elated!
 
Thrilled!
 
Joyous!

 Ecstatic!
      
Just a few words to describe how I'll be feeling for the next few months :)
  

There comes a moment in everyone's life (or at least I hope there does) when all the hard work you've been doing FINALLY pays off. When I registered for grad school 6 years ago, I had no idea where it would take me. Now I can see the end result and it was totally worth it. I left my old teaching job at the Catholic school (a bittersweet, but necessary step) and got an amazing new job with the School District. Not only did my salary increase, but I met an entire network of co-workers who are supportive, friendly, and fun. This past summer, when the district threatened to lay off many of its employees, my co-workers offered a constant stream of reassurance and good wishes. Luckily, I made it past that hurdle and was able to keep the job that I love. Which in turn led to the house hunt... which led to me making an offer... which was ACCEPTED!!!

 

In less than two months, I will be a home owner. I feel like such a grown up :)

 

The home inspection was last Friday and aside from one minor plumbing issue, all was well. I'm already planning ahead by looking at colors for carpet and paint and finding furniture I like online. I've been mentally decorating inside AND out... I know I won't be able to afford everything I want right at the beginning, but I'll add a little at a time until the house is truly my home. There's no rush.

 

In less than two months, I will also be an aunt. This deserves another smile. Or two. :) :)

 

Doug and Jill are expecting a baby girl on October 20th... which also happens to be my settlement date! Talk about a great birthday present - a niece AND a house all in one week! I can't wait to welcome her into our family and spoil her rotten. With the new Mom & Dad's permission, of course. They will be awesome parents. It will be so exciting to watch them take on this new adventure.

  

Autumn has always been my favorite time of year (baseball playoffs, the beginning of hockey season, Halloween, cool crisp weather), but this year I have a lot of extra things to be thankful for. I am truly blessed!