Finishing old tasks

Well, between a busy last week of work, working on the house, and various internet outages, it has been awhile since I last posted. Actually I must review what my last post was...ah yes.

We have had some major successes on the house front. The boys bathroom is done. (Huzzah!) Sweetie finished painting the cabinets, and made some curtains, and it looks great. The new carpet has been laid in the family room. (Huzzah!). This means the family room is done except for the hole in the wall. This weekend Sweetie worked on the curb appeal. She planted annuals and hung some baskets and, again, it looks great. Yesterday, the lawn was mowed. (Huzzah!) Now our house looks occupied. The new microwave is installed. (Huzzah!). The kitchen cabinets are done. (Huzzah, huzzah!) What a pain they were, but it has really made a difference. The whole kitchen looks updated, and the dingy old floors even look better. Besides painting the kitchen (and installing the backsplash on the countertops) about the only thing left is cleaning and decluttering. (Which will be a huge job.)


So yesterday (Monday) was my last day at the Institute Formerly Known as TIGR (they're still trying to come up with a symbol for that...) The day was mostly spent packing boxes and talking to people - saying goodbye - but I also had a nice lunch with some colleagues and sent some thanks-and-keep-in-touch emails. It was very odd carrying out my boxes of books etc. to the car and turning in my security badge. The feeling was not that I wasn't going back, but that I couldn't go back. Having spent eight years feeling secure in the knowledge that I could walk into the building anytime I wanted and do the things I do, I now am on my own with significantly reduced (or at least unknown) resources. I have definitely stepped outside my comfort zone.

Maybe I will start developing a new one next week. I will be flying to LA for a week to go through new employee orientation and sign up for benefits, look at housing on the island, and coordinate with John about work moving forward. I should have some time off, both at the beginning and the end of the week. Perhaps I can do some sight-seeing (stupid question, but what is there to see in LA?), or visit an old roommate.

Friday, (note the complete lack of linearity in this posting) there was a happy hour at the local pub to honor my tenure at TIGR. It was good to see people who don't often attend happy hours to show up: my office mate, certain other colleagues who are married with kids. I tried to get around and talk to everyone, but I'm not sure I did. I had a great time, reminiscing and just feeling good about both my time there and my decision to leave. A fun evening, although I really should've eaten something. I woke up early with a splitting headache - not ideal when the rest of the day was going to be taken up painting.

I should note that the Ebay auctions went well. I think only one item didn't sell (the bucket truck). Shipping all this stuff is a bit of a hassle. Hard to believe some people make their living doing this. (Where do they get the boxes?) I am thinking of auctioning off some more things, but perhaps I'll take my mom's advice and use one of those auction services.

Well, tomorrow will be a new adventure, just like every day. Best get some rest.