Wedding Party

After being sealed together at the Washington, DC Temple, Leah and I headed back up to Harford County for the wedding reception. When we arrived, preparations were still being made, though the majority had been done on the days leading up. What was left was mostly related to food. We had a relatively simple meal of baked ham, baked potatoes, and green beans, helpfully prepared by people of Debbie's ward.

Leah's younger brother Ryan and his wife Dana preparing food in the kitchen

Look at that spread!

We also had lots and lots of sugar. We had a hot chocolate bar (which used a cocoa mix that I made myself) with oodles of toppings and a chocolate fountain with lots dipping choices. We got lots of compliments on both features, though the biggest compliments were from our young nieces and nephews who, towards the end, were running around with chocolate smeared on their faces, resembling hyperactive Dickensian orphans.

Sherlin provided all of the calligraphy work 

A dream come true

Since we knew we’d be hungry, we scheduled dinner first, which was served buffet style (we already recruited cooks, I can't imagine recruiting servers). After some time to eat and visit, speeches were given by the Matron of Honor, Rachel, and the Best Man, Isaac. Rachel, one of two of Leah's best friends, gave a sweet speech about how she sees how happy I make Leah. Isaac’s speech was about how salt is a seasoning that brings out the best flavors in a dish and how Leah is the salt in my life. Both Leah and I were touched by their heartfelt words.

Raise your mugs in a toast!

Rachel mentioned that I made her a pie for her birthday, which helped win her over

I admit to being a little confused at the beginning of Isaac's speech at first, but he really brought it all together at the end

Next, came our first dance. We had a little trouble picking a song, largely because Leah and I have different musical preferences, but we settled on "All of Me" by John Legend—I liked it because it has a traditional jazz feel and she liked it because the lyrics are sweetly romantic. As we danced, we talked and made each other smile and even laugh, which is kind of perfect for us.

Looks like we caught Leah mid-giggle

After our first dance, the floor was opened for everyone to dance. (I may post our song list later, but one song that’s proven to be Leah’s "get-up-and-go" song, was featured early on.) We didn’t get a chance to do any more dancing because we were pulled away for more pictures.

 We are full of sugar, so we must dance!

Sugar highs lead to sugar crashes

Leah's oldest brother, Rob, had to leave the temple early and wasn't there when we exited, thus he missed the family pictures. Since he was at the reception, we decided to try again and gathered in the Relief Society room. Being in a heated building made pictures much easier than the chilly winds outside the temple, so everyone loosened up and had fun.

The newest member of the Grabowski family 

It's nice to have the support of my wife's family

After pictures and a little crowd work, we cut our wedding cake that Sherlin had very kindly prepared for us. Leah had warned me ahead of time not to smash the cake in my face, which I wasn't planning on anyway: smashing the cake in the bride or groom's face is only funny if it's unexpected, but people have been doing it for a long time, so it's no longer unexpected and thus not funny. The tiers that were sliced up were lemon-raspberry and funfetti with sprinkles of our colors of purple and silver, but the way they melted made the cake look like it was blueberry-flavored. Regardless, it was quite tasty.

The youngest guest, Emma, with the eldest guest, Grandma Bonnie

We even found a way to include Pinto!

Cut…

… and serve

Two flavor options

The time flew by and before we realized, it was time to leave. Instead of throwing rice or blowing bubbles, we had our guests hold up sparklers. (Our photographer told us later that she's seen sparkler send offs before, but ours was the best looking she’d ever seen.)

Sparks were really flying that night

Once we got to my car, we discovered that it had been "decorated." At some point during the reception, Margot came and got my keys from me, not saying why she needed them, so I assumed that the car was being prepared for our departure, though I wasn't prepared for what was actually done. The car had been plastic-wrapped to a nearby light pole, though that was easy enough to remove. What was particularly annoying was that the car was filled from floor to ceiling with balloons. I pulled out enough balloons from the passenger side so that Leah could get in, but when I started doing the same on the driver's side, someone took pity on me and passed me an unlit sparkler, of which I was able to use the handle to pop the remaining balloons. With the balloons gone, I got into the car and drove home with my new bride.

 That's not too bad

Leah thought it was funnier than I did

A man unamused

I'm really happy with how the wedding reception turned out. A lot of work was done by not a lot of people in a short period of time and I'm so happy with the result. The reception was a way for us to celebrate our new marriage with our friends and family, which I think we accomplished in spades.

Mere symbols of our covenants, but ones that match

A Unique(ly Stupid) Present

For Susannah and Michael's wedding, Leah and I bought them a present from their gift registry. However, that didn't seem like enough. After all, Michael and I had grown pretty close after working together for more than two years. But what could I give them that was truly representative of our relationship?

After a lot of pondering, I decided to get them something really, really stupid: a framed 8 x 10 portrait of me with pixelated sunglasses superimposed over my eyes. I had created a similar image before and used it in an instant messaging conversation at work, and this was in reference to that. (If you're curious why I would create such an image in the first place, you can read about the meme here.)

When the day of the wedding arrived, I brought in a modest yet handsome gift bag that contained both their real gift and this stupid one and set it on a table with their other gifts. I was a little annoyed that I wouldn't be present as they opened their gift, but hoped that it would make them laugh.

On Monday evening, Michael sent me a text message with this picture:

He added my ridiculous portrait to his collection of family pictures! I'm guessing that it won't stay there long, but I'm pleased that they enjoyed my dumb little joke, at least for a little while.

Take Me Out to the Ballgame

On Friday night, all of the wards in the Baltimore area had the opportunity to attend an Orioles game as part of Mormon night.  These sorts of events happen all over the country (including in the land of my nativity, San Diego), so it was nice to be a part of it here.

As you can see in the above picture, we had seats just right behind home plate, which made following the game easy.  Unfortunately, we were way up in the nosebleed section.  Still, I had a bird's eye view of the whole thing.

The first inning was really exciting, with the Orioles scoring five home runs to the Houston Astros' one.  After that, however, the Astros just kept getting home run after home run.  The final score was 8-15, with Houston winning.

Even though the O's didn't perform as well as I'd hoped, I still had a great time.  I sat with Leah and her mom, along with one of Leah's best friends, Katie, and her husband David.  Plus, lots of other people from my ward were there, too.

David, Katie, Leah, me

(Leah's mom, Debbie, had stepped away)

Baltimore pride!

I still don't consider myself a sports guy, but I'm always up for going to a baseball game, especially when the company is so nice.

Surf and Sun

Leah and I have been texting a lot since we first met and during one of our conversations, it was brought up that we both like the beach, though neither of us had been in a long time -- she hadn't been since sometime last year and I haven't made it to the beach since moving to Maryland.  Some time later, she said she wanted to surprise me with a weekend activity, but I needed to pack my swim suit, a towel, and sunscreen.  It seems pretty obvious where we were headed, right?

It's the first place I think of when I think of the beach.

Well, because the forecast called for rain, she decided to go with her backup plan, so we went to a water park.  We went with Leah's friend, Katie, and her husband, David.  We got to the park right when they opened and were able to try out all of the attractions at the park before noon.  After a trip to the van for lunch, we went back to discover that the park was now really crowded.  With the weather outside looking nice enough, we decided to see how long it would take to get to a beach.  Since we could get to one in about an hour, we decided to give it a try.

Leah and me in the backseat

I took this picture at the end of the day because I forgot to take one at the beginning

Well, I'm glad we decided to chance the rain.  The weather was perfect and it was amazing being back at a beach, though this was my first time to one on the east coast.  The waves were great for wadding and swimming, but didn't break properly for surfing (which was just as well since we didn't have any boards).

On the beach with Leah

I planned ahead and wore sunscreen, but we were there long enough that I still got a mild sunburn.  Even so, I'm so glad that I went.  It was great being in the water again, I enjoyed meeting Katie and David, and I had a blast with Leah.  I even helped out by taking a shift driving home when everyone else was too tired.

Now, I just need to make sure that I make it back to the beach sooner than once every three years.

Sunset at the beach is still awesome, even when the sun drops behind the wrong horizon

True American Independence

On July 4, 1776, our nation's forefathers signed the Declaration of Independence, severing ties to England and ending their oppression at the hands of King George III.  To commemorate that fateful day, we as a nation eat flame-cooked meat and blow stuff up.

The first part of the traditional celebration was handled by my good friend Mark Simcik, whose grill-roasted chicken recipe was perfected over the course of a decade.

 That sauce is a homemade recipe and it's awesome.

Me with Lori and Mark.

As for the blowing stuff up portion of the day, I left that to the professionals while I watched from a safe distance with Jenn, the woman I met at temple on Friday.

The rain had left the ground wet, but we made do with a jacket and a backpack.

You know it's a good fireworks display when the crew lighting the rockets are in danger of smoke inhalation.

This was a great holiday, spent with both old friends and new.  My only regret is that I didn't have more time with both parties, but there's only so much time in the day.

The Weekend Where Everything Happened

My weekend was long and full of adventure:

• I reduced my medication and was full of energy again starting Saturday.
• I met Ian, Sherlin, and the kids for lunch and playing.  The younger kids still make sure that I take turns flipping them around and fulfill my duties as the Fun Uncle.
• We went to a barbecue hosted by Jimmy, the guy who plays lead guitar in our not-a-band.
• We had a jam session in front of everyone (the only people who were really invested were the ones we brought).  We were missing our drummer, Joe, and his absence was really felt, but it still felt so good to play with a group again.  And I don't know if the others could tell, but my lessons are really paying off.
• I got home late because I stopped for groceries on the way home and my neighbor asked for some help moving a dresser into his upstairs apartment.  After the dresser was in its new home, he offered me money as reward, but I refused (as I did to his offer of beer); I did, however, accept a box of high-quality chicken breast -- the man works as a delivery man for a meat company and was allowed to use some product for his own purposes, so he used one box to pay me. I may have to help him again.
• I attended a Linger Longer after church on Sunday and stayed the whole time and talked and met new people -- it's amazing what happens when you're not depressed and have energy to do something about it.
• I cleaned up my dining room that had been messy for months due to my depression.
• I baked a loaf of whole wheat fig bread, a strawberry cake, and a double batch of cream cheese cookies.  I took them with me for my visit with my good friends the Simciks.  It was so good seeing them again.  In fact, when I got there, my arms full of goodies, I went right in their open door so I could put the food down before turning to see Mark and suddenly I was giddy with excitement.  Based on how he and Lori reacted, they were too.  It was just like seeing family that you haven't seen in a while.  It was so wonderful talking with them and sharing a meal (the loaf of bread was intended for Samuel, my old roommate, which they promised to pass on).  When it came time for them to leave for a dinner engagement, Lori started debating if they should flake out to stay and continue visiting, but I made their decision easy for them by making my way to the door.  Hugs were exchanged and we agreed that we needed to meet again sooner and not go so long between visits.
• On my way home, I stopped by a clothing store to return some pants that I decided did not fit as well as I had thought in the store.  When I was parking, I noticed a set of missionary Elders walking around.  I made sure to say hi them and ask how they were doing.  I told them what ward I attend and they named some of the Elders serving there, though I had trouble confirming all of them (we have four companionship in my ward).  It was about 5:30, so I asked them if they had a dinner appointment that evening.  They admitted that they did not, so I told them to wait while I handled the return and then I'd take them to dinner.  I had them pick the restaurant because I didn't know the area very well (I knew the store I had gone to and not much else), so we went to a Chinese buffet.  We talked about where they're from and what they're plans are for careers and education, but they mostly asked about me.  After they were sufficiently fed (I had a few pieces of sushi, but I was mostly full from my visit with the Simciks), I paid the bill and I drove the Elders back to their car in the parking lot where I had seen them earlier.  As they got out of the car, they asked for my name because they want to talk me up to the Elders in my ward when they see them at the next Zone meeting.
• I came home and made banana bread to take to work tomorrow.

Like I said, my weekend was busy.  Busy, but great.

Take Me Out to the Ballgame

Yesterday, I went to see the Baltimore Orioles play against the New York Yankees at Camden Yards.  Just like the last time I attended a live game, I went with my coworkers.  However, unlike last time, I actually liked the people I went with.

Several weeks ago my department had one of our weekly meetings and someone (I think it was me, but I don't remember for sure) brought up the idea of doing something outside of work to build camaraderie and the idea of going to a baseball game was brought up.  Magda, the department manager, loved the idea, despite being completely unfamiliar with the game.  We agreed to look up the game schedule and figure out a date that worked for everyone.  I suggested that we go yesterday as a friendly ribbing to my coworker, Michael, who's originally from New Jersey and is a loyal Yankees fan.  He thought that was pretty funny, so we scheduled the game in our calendars.

Last week, I asked Magda if the department was going to pay for our tickets or if we were expected to buy our own way (I made it clear I was happy either way).  She looked disappointed told me that I ruined the surprise she was planning.  Apparently Magda's boss liked the idea of this team building outing so much, that he bought the tickets for us, as well as gift certificates for food or souvenirs.  All that was left was for us to arrange transportation.  We decided that it would be too much of a hassle to all go in one car, so we split up, with Chelsea and Magda commuting together and Michael and I going in the same car.

As for the game itself, it was a great example of both teams' strong defense.  On both sides, no one got a run in.  One of the Yankees made it third base at one point, but was taken out before he made it home.  Magda asked a lot of questions and we all took turns answering them (I hadn't realize how complicated baseball is, but it has a lot of subtleties that take time to explain).  Eventually, we got to the ninth inning and the game was still tied at 0-0.  Finally, at the bottom of the tenth, Hyun-soo Kim of the Orielos, stole home.  After an entire game of building anticipation, the crowd went wild.

It was a good time.  I enjoyed the company of my coworkers, I had fun at the game, and I got to see more of downtown Baltimore.  We all agreed that we needed to do something similar again sometime.

From left to right: me, Magda, Chelsea, and Micheal.

Yes, I painted my beard orange, and yes, I got a lot of compliments from other fans.

And Now We Meet Around the Board Game

Last night was game night at Mike's house.  I met Mike and Rob, along with two of Mike's coworkers, Joe and Jason.  Mike, Joe, and Jason are all salesmen for Vivint Solar and Rob is a professor that trains new professors how to teach.  An interesting group, but I was able to find things on which we related, so there was always something about which to talk.

The game that Mike chose was Chicago Express, a game about buying stock in railroad companies and building track to Chicago.  Because there are multiple stocks per company, the dynamic of the game was constantly changing: a rival could sudden become a teammate if they buy a share of stock in your company.  I didn't win, but I still had fun.

I usually try to go to the gym during the week to help keep my spirits up, but I'm glad I took a night off and had some fun with some friends.

The Challenges of Vehicle Ownership

Things are much better for me now than they were the same time last year: I've been employed with Danfoss for over a year, I live close to my job, I'm living within my means, and I have a much nicer car that's also in my name.  And while that last point is true, it was tested a bit last week.

After a good workout at the gym, I stopped at a grocery store on the way home to pick up a few essentials.  It was an uneventful trip, until I got in the car to go home.  I turned the key, but the engine wouldn't start.  It seemed like a low battery, except that my headlights, dome light, and wipers all worked.  I called the closest repair shop and asked them if they could see me that night.  They couldn't, but they invited me bring my car in the morning (the man to whom I spoke suggested that the working lights and wipers could mean that the battery charge was too low to start the car but high enough to operate the peripheral).  In the meantime, I still needed to get home.

I called my friend Erin and asked if she had a set of jumper cables.  She didn't, but her parents did and they were on their way to the church for tithing settlement and were happy to swing by to give me a jump.  After about fifteen minutes, they arrived and we hooked up our car batteries.  My car started right up.  I thanked them for their help before I drove around for twenty minutes in an attempt to charge the battery.

The next morning, my car wouldn't start again.  I didn't want to trouble my neighbors, so I walked over to the main office and asked if for a member of the maintenance staff to come and give me a jump.  The guy in the office is a bit of tool and said that he would pass the message along, but refused to give me an estimate on when I would be helped.  Two hours later, one of the maintenance guys knocked on my door.  He was very polite and more than happy to jump my car.  I, of course, went straight to the repair shop.

Since my car isn't that old and hasn't had any trouble with the battery before, I paid extra for an electrical system diagnostic, which simply proved that the problem was with the battery.  The guy working the desk was the manager and felt bad that I needlessly paid for the service, so he gave me a discount on the battery itself -- not for the full price of the diagnostic, but I still appreciated the gesture.  It took nearly two hours before my car was ready, but it hasn't had anymore trouble starting.

While this was a frustrating experience, I'm grateful that I have friends on whom I can rely for help and that I have the means to take care of unexpected emergencies like this when they arise.  When the last car I drove started breaking down, it proved to be a huge burden.  This time, it was merely an annoyance.

Tried and Tested

Yesterday was the company luncheon.  As promised, I made the new recipe I posted on Monday.  So how did they turn out?

Better than the first recipe, but they're not my favorite.  That's not necessarily a bad thing, it just means that for my pallet, they don't do the trick.  Even so, the new recipe was much better than the original.  The oatmeal made the cookies chewier, the orange zest brought out the tartness of the cranberries but otherwise went unnoticed, and the reduced sugar helped the cookies to achieve a better balance.

All of the cookies were gone by the time the luncheon was over, but that doesn't necessarily mean that everyone loved them.  I've established a reputation for myself as a skilled baker and several people asked me what I brought so they could have a taste.  I only got feedback from two people (who had nothing but positive things to say), so I can't speak for the others.

Even though this recipe isn't my favorite, it was a lot of fun to make something that was created specifically for me and I hope to get the chance to help build a recipe again in the future.

New Recipe

On Saturday, I went and visited with my good friends the Simciks.  As I often do, I brought some baked goods to share.  My sister Margot had suggested cookies with white chocolate chips and dried cranberries as a fun fall flavor, so I looked for such a recipe online.  I decided to go with this one, though I left out the macadamia nuts since I think of that as more of a summer flavor.

While the Simciks were very appreciative of the cookies, I wasn't terribly happy with how they turned out.  There was too much sugar, with nothing to cut through the sweetness but some also sweetened cranberries.  Lori is a very skilled baker (her first job was working in a bakery while she was still in high school), so she asked me some questions about the recipe and what I wanted from it when I baked the cookies.  As we talked through some changes, I realized that we were making an all new cookie recipe.  While it's not exactly from scratch (we used the first one as our starting point), it's its own thing.  Here's what we came up with:

1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 baking soda
1/4 salt
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp orange zest
1 egg
1 tbsp vanilla
1 tbsp milk
1 cup rolled oats
3/4 cup dried cranberries
3/4 cup white chocolate chips
3/4 cup chopped pecans

Preheat the oven to 350.

In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt and set aside. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugars. Mix in the zest, egg, vanilla, and milk. Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients and combine. Stir in the oats. Add the cranberries, white chocolate chips, and pecans and stir to combine.

Line cookie sheets with parchment paper and, using a cookie dough scoop, drop the dough on the sheets. Bake for 15-17 minutes or until golden brown. Let the cookies cool on the cookies sheet for a few minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely. Store in an air tight container.

I haven't had a chance to try the recipe yet, but I'm really excited to.  I've got an office luncheon on Thursday, so I'll let you know on Friday how things turned out.

Worth the Pain

After my panic attack on Thursday, I ended up being unable to sleep until about 3 AM.  Thankfully, the work that I had on Friday was engaging enough that I wasn't in risk of falling asleep at my desk.  However, due to my fatigue, I strongly considered skipping the Elder's Quorum activity that was scheduled for that evening.  After a lot of consideration, I decided to attend anyway because I need meaningful human interaction whenever I get the chance for it.

I met those that attended the activity at a local driving range.  I admitted when I arrived that I was in high school when I last had swung a golf club.  Everyone else in the group had had a similar experience -- in fact, the most recent anyone had done anything golf related was last year when the Elder's Quorum went to the same driving range -- so I fit right in.

Since I haven't used a club in so long, I lack the necessary callouses to golf pain-free.  Around ball fifty (there was a counter in the stall from which I was driving), I noticed that I had a couple of mild blisters on my right thumb.  They were more annoying than painful, so I just kept swinging.  By the time I got to ball eighty (out of a hundred balls), the blisters had combined together and had been ripped off.  The blister had been shallow enough that I wasn't bleeding, but my raw skin was exposed.  Even so, I finished out the rest of the bucket before calling it quits.

After everyone was done, we all got ice cream to finish off the night.

While this wasn't the best experience I've ever had at a church-sponsored event, it was still well-worth attending and I'm glad that I struggled through the fatigue and discomfort to unit with my brothers.

Small World

This past Friday I attended a game night hosted by a family in my new ward.  The family's adults are Dave and Naomi, the latter of whom I wrote about a couple of weeks back.  It was a lot of fun and I got to interact with plenty of people I hadn't met before by playing lots of weird and silly games.

At one point during the night, Naomi referenced the area from which I just moved and asked which ward I had attended.  I told her and she asked if I knew a family that also attends the ward in question, the Simciks.  I told her that I was very close the Simcik family and that I still stayed in touch with them since moving from that area.  I asked her how she knew them.  Apparently, Mark and Lori's daughter just married Dave's cousin.  He and Naomi had attended the reception a weekend or two prior.

In most circumstances, I would brush it off as being a coincidence or at most serendipity, but this feels more divinely organized than that.  Perhaps I'm reading too much into it, but it was a loving connection and I was glad to make it.

Movin' in the Rain

Due to a mix-up, my records were delayed in being transferred to my new ward.  That's been frustrating because I haven't been able access the member directory or activities calendar for my new ward.  It also meant that I was still receiving emails from my previous ward, including from the Elder's Quorum.  I mostly ignored them, but I got one last week that caught my attention: my good friend and old home teacher, Dan, would be moving with his family and could use some help loading up the moving truck.  Despite the fact that I knew I had no obligation to help out with this move, I replied back that I'd be there.

The move happened yesterday evening, which gave me time to go home, eat, and change into more suitable clothes.  As I drove, the heavens opened and it rained so hard that my windshield wipers had trouble keeping up.  Just before I arrived at the family's apartment, the rain subsided and eventually stopped.  The ground was wet, but it wasn't raining.

I got there later than I wanted to (my driving slowed due to the rain) and immediately got to work.  I helped move as many big, heavy pieces of furniture as I could, reasoning that that's what they needed help with the most.  We made it through all of the big stuff and were started to finish up with miscellaneous items when it started raining again.  At first we just trudged along, continuing to fill up the truck, but it wasn't long before we had to stop and wait it out.  Most of the workforce was stuck in the truck, not wanting to even sprint for the building as they would probably have been soaked through by the time they made it -- the truck was parked only about fifty yards from the door of the apartment building.  I was stuck inside, but I was able to chat with some of my old ward mates.  After about twenty-five minutes of hard rain, it finally stopped and we were able to finish loading the truck.

As sad as I was to move out of my old ward, knowing that this family was going to be leaving in a few months anyway made it easier: I was close with both Dan and his wife, Allison, so knowing that I'd be losing them soon enough even if I'd stayed made leaving on my own was that much easier.

I contacted my previous bishop and my records should arrive to my current ward sometime this week, but I'm glad that the delay happened so that I could help out some friends one last time.

Eaten Alive

Since I had work off on Friday, I went and visited with the Larsens for a Day Before Independence Day celebration.  Ian grilled hot dogs and corn on the cob and we ate fresh-cut watermelon.  Later on, the kids wanted to do some baking, so we made some double chocolate cookies that are always a hit -- I let each kid drop one cookie on the baking sheet and they were both eager to eat the cookie that they made.

While I was there, I spent a little time outside with the kids.  They love running around outside, but it's extra fun when a visitor does it with them.  I was only outside for about thirty minutes, but I got bit four times by mosquitoes, twice on my right leg (I was wearing shorts).  I thought the bug bites were strange, since I didn't notice too many bugs the last two summers, but didn't think much else on the matter.

The next day, I spent the bulk of the day at the Simcik's, helping them clean out their garage.  When they first moved to Maryland, a lot of their stuff was just shoved into the garage.  Now, after three years, they're trying to find everything a home.  I was happy to help and it was great to spend time with my good friends -- I even made a dessert that I hadn't tried before to share (it was really good).

Unfortunately, we were working outside and since it was hot, I was wearing shorts again.  When I made it home, I counted fifteen mosquito bites, ten of which were on my right leg below the knee.  In an attempt to fight against the itching, I took an antihistamine and went to bed.

The next morning, I was so groggy from the medication that I couldn't get out of bed. My church meets at ten, but I was in and out of sleep until after noon.  And while the allergy medication did help take the edge off the itching, it had worn off by the time I could function, so I never got to enjoy it.

While staying cool is important, the next time I spend time outside this summer, I'll either wear bug repellent or long pants.  Possibly both.

Apartment Pros and Cons

I like my new apartment, but there are some things that were nicer about my old place.  Here's a list of pros and cons regarding my new home.

Pro
It's close enough to my office that my commute is only about twelve minutes long.

Con
I have to figure out a new morning routine since I don't have enough time to listen to the scriptures on the way to work.

Pro
I'm halfway underground, which should make a huge difference in my heating/cooling bill.

Con
I'm no longer on the top floor, so I get to hear my neighbors whenever they move around, despite them not being particularly noisy.

Pro
The rent is much lower than my previous place, meaning I don't need a roommate in order to live comfortably.

Con
I'm not in as nice a neighborhood.  I don't fear for my safety or my property, but there's a reason this place is cheaper.

Pro
I get free access to a pool and a small gym.

Con
Being that the neighborhood isn't as nice, I don't have access to several miles of non-busy streets to go running on, so I may end up using the gym more often than I'd like (I ran for about an hour yesterday, but nearly all of it was spent on the sidewalk of a main road).

Pro
I've already found a tasty and inexpensive Chinese/Japanese restaurant within walking distance -- the only Chinese or Japanese places near my old place were either expensive, not very good, or both.

Con
I have yet to find any Korean restaurants in the area.  My old place had five or six Korean places nearby and they were all great.  Maybe I just haven't found it yet...

Pro
I'm where the Lord wants me to be.  I'd put a "Con" about how I'll miss my old ward, but that would make my complaint appear to have equal weight to the Lord's desires for me, which it does not.

So, while I'll miss certain things about my old place, it's nice that I've so quickly found things that I like about my new home.

The Big Move

I guess I've put it off long enough.  So, how'd the move go?

I stayed up late the night before, packing.  I didn't quite finish, but I was ninety percent done, so I figured I was close enough.  I then slept fitfully, probably due to the stress of moving the next day.

The morning arrived and I realized that I hadn't planned for picking up the U-Haul, so I made a few calls and found someone who could give me a ride so I wouldn't have to leave my car at the rental place.  Picking up the truck was a little weird: there were no signs that this place rented out trucks other than half-a-dozen trucks parked out front, the building looked like it was abandoned, and I signed a hand-written contract.  If that wasn't strange enough, I made it half-way to my apartment when I got a call asking me to come back since they had rented me the wrong truck.

When I finally got back home, I made it just as the first mover, my friend Mark Simcik, arrived.  We started moving some things, but with my left arm still out of commission from my seizure, we mostly just planned things out.  Soon enough, the missionary Elders arrived and moved the four major pieces of furniture for us, before they had to leave.  Luckily, that's right when another family from the ward came to help with the rest.  Ian showed up towards the end, but he brought pizza, so he was heartily welcomed.

When it came time to drive to my new place, the father of the other family asked if we would need any help unloading.  We accepted his help and drove to the new place.  After some traffic issues, we made it and started unpacking.  The unloading went much faster and right at the end, the first two Elders from before showed up to lend a hand one more time -- apparently, they were in the area to help out with a baptism, so I'm certain they got tons of extra blessings for all of the work they put in that day.

One problem that I discovered when we first got to my new place was that the power was off.  I had planned ahead and had contacted the electric company, asking them to start the service in my new place.  They assured me it was all taken care of, but such was not the case.  And, because it was the weekend, my power stayed off until I could call and talk to someone on Monday, which is when it was actually activated.  I asked Ian if he would mind me staying at his place over the weekend, which he was happy to accommodate.  I packed a bag, threw it in Ian's truck, and we went to deliver the moving truck.

The first place that we went to (address provided by Google) was just a gas station with a drop box for the key.  With only my hand-written contract, I decided to try for something a little more official.  There was an actual U-Haul center not far away, so we set off again.  When we got there, they had no record of me renting the truck.  They had the truck on file, but not my rental agreement.  I showed them the contract (actually, a carbon-copy of the contract), which they didn't know how to process.  After a few calls to managers were made, they figured it out and gave me an official, laser-printed receipt saying that I had paid my balance and that I owed nothing.  Happy with the result, we drove back to my old place for me to pick up my car (and to drop the other Brother off).

My weekend at the Larsen's was enjoyable, as expected.

On Monday, I got to have a long commute again, since I was driving from even farther away than I was used to when living at my old place.  I called the electric company as soon as their office was opened and I was promised that the power would be turned on as soon as a technician could get there.  I went by my apartment on my lunch break to see if the power was indeed on, which it was.  I set the A/C to something reasonable so that everything would be nice and comfortable when I got home from work.  That was a good plan, since it was particularly hot and humid that day.  Unfortunately, maintenance had done a lousy job of preparing my apartment, because when I got home, it was hotter inside than out.  The thermostat said it was 92 °F and what little air was blowing out of the vents felt only slightly cooler than my skin temperature.  I called emergency maintenance to come take a look and when the technician arrived, he discovered that my apartment was equipped with a "manual override" on the heater, which had been left on.  So the A/C was on, but so was the heater.  He also found that the air filter was filthy and in desperate need of replacing.  With these issues taken care of, the place finally started cooling down and was a comfortable 75 °F when I went to bed that night.

So, I'm all moved in.  It wasn't as easy as I was hoping for, but it was still mostly straight forward.  Now I just need to learn the area I'm living in now and I should be all set.  With my sense of direction, that should only take a year or two.

Barking Dogs

Here's something to not try: run 7 ½ on a Saturday morning and then offer your help to a friend who has you mow his rather large lawn.  I know, I know: it seems like a fine plan, but if you try it out, you'll barely be able to stand by the end of the incredibly long day.

Thank goodness Sunday is the day of rest.

All of It

Something drastic happened Friday evening.

Before:

After:

It's so drastic that my friends and family barely recognize me.  Hopefully, I'll find a way to cope.

Rain, Rain, You Can Stay

After my knee problems on Monday, you'd think I'd hold off on running again this week, right?  No, sir or madam, I did not.  My knee made an audible "pop" sound Wednesday evening and nearly all of the pain I'd been feeling disappeared.  And since Thursday's weather looked so nice, I decided to go for another run, this time wearing the knee brace.

Just as I was starting my run, I noticed that the sky looked a little darker than I had first noticed.  I remembered that I had seen that there was a chance of showers that evening, but only 50%.  So I ran.  My knee felt fine and once again, it felt great being outside pounding pavement.  When I was a little past the halfway mark, it starting lightly sprinkling.  My fastest option home was just to finish, so I picked up the pace a little.  The rainfall increased to the point that by the time I made it home, the front of my shirt was damp all the way through, though I wasn't actually dripping.  I also wasn't in danger of hypothermia since the rain didn't really get heavy until right at the end.

I had barely stepped inside when I got a text message.  My friend, Lori, asked if I could come by to administer a priesthood blessing to her husband who was having an asthma attack.  I immediately turned around to head out the door, but first, I told Samuel to put on his shoes and come with me.  Even though Samuel hadn't been invited, I thought that bringing him would be appropriate and it would give him a chance to participate in a blessing for the first time (he only recently received the Melchizedek Priesthood).

We arrived, me in my wet running clothes, and were warmly welcomed.  After a quick explanation from Mark on what was ailing him, we administered the blessing, with Samuel anointing and me sealing.  Mark was clearly grateful and gave us each a big bear hug.  Not wanting to get in the way of his recovery, we soon left to go home, with Samuel talking excitedly about how he got to be involved.

These stories are connected in more than just their sequence.  My original plan had been to run two loops again, like last time, which would have taken me over an hour.  I did have my cell phone on me, but with my earbuds in and my legs constantly moving, the chances that I would have either heard or felt my phone (I have it set to both chime and vibrate) are low.  If the rain hadn't come, I probably would have lost the opportunity to exercise my priesthood and help a dear friend.  I was annoyed at the rain when it first started, but now I'm grateful it came.