Wow, it's been a rather long time since I've posted.  I could look at the gaps in my LJ posting throughout the years and try to analyze the patterns- but um, that's a horrible way to spend a day off.  No offense meant if you'd actually be interested in seeing the results of that, as I'm sure I'd enjoy it as well, providing someone else did the research.

In any case, life sans Harry Potter, Arkansas, 20 lbs of fat, and depression is going really well.  I hate to lump HP in with those three other unfortunate things, but I felt I had to purposefully distance myself from the fandom in order to get away from my old, less awesome self, and usher in a new attitude.  

Moving along... 

The job is still going really well!  As with any activity requiring you to make money for performing certain tasks and being supervised by a higher authority, there are some unfortunate aspects.  I'm still far happier and more satisfied than I've been in the professional portion of my career.  I'm living my dream, which is the dream shared by a lot of other people who would be more than happy to take my job and salary without a peep of complaint, so I'm not looking to screw this up with petulant behaviour. 

Other life bits:  I'm adjusting to the ATL really well, which is another reason for my lack of online presence.  There's always something to do, somewhere to go, cute vintagey things to buy, friends to hang out with, stray animals to feed, and strange men to avoid (note: remind me to tell you all about my horrible encounter with the toothless Cuban chef).  

I still have a presence online, which is only natural since 97% of my job is done on a computer.  I have a football/soccer journal (I hate the word blog, though that's exactly what it is) that I'm growing at the moment, as well as another site where my essays will eventually reside when I FINALLY get around to uploading them in free e-book form.  I'm still something of an insomniac (it's getting better!) so to put my brain to bed, I write reviews for ESPN's Soccernet site.  If I'm not tuckered out by then, I listen to The Bugle- an amazing fake news podcast featuring John Oliver from The Daily Show, and laugh myself to unconciousness.

So yeah, things are going well here.  How're you?  Kelly, I'm outraged that you didn't come to Atlanta.  If any of the rest of you are even THINKING about flying through here (I finally live in a major airport hub!) you must let me know, ASAP.  Those of you in England- I'm coming in May.  Yes, I can cross the "getting my damn passport" off the new year's resolution list.

Oh, I can't stop listening to this song.  I was festering away in Arkansas when this came out, which is why I never got to hear it and am just revelling in the infectious bass beat a year and a half later.   That's another thing- I missed SO MANY THINGS while living out there!  When I came to Atlanta, I realized I had no idea what clothes were fashionable anymore, much less what people in their 20s were wearing, since I'd spent so many hours admiring the sensible pantsuits of the Golden Girls.  I'm happy to report that I'm wearing age-appropriate clothing once more, AND it's a couple sizes smaller now, thanks to Haley's boundless enthusiasm for workouts, and my boundless enthusiasm for herbal teas and complex yoga poses.

This entry is mammoth sized, but you must admit, I had a lot to catch up on.  There's plenty more as well, so I'll try to be a bit better at playing catchup in the future.

No promises, of course.

 

I apologize for the uncouth subject line, but it's rather fitting with the book Quinn and I recently discovered called Sextrology: The Astrology of Sex and the Sexes.  It's basically astrological profiles written along sex and gendered lines, and if you're the right sign- or know yourself really well- it's damn entertaining, yet slightly disturbing. 

Quinn posted his wildly exciting prediction for today in his LJ, and I just wanted to highlight the stark contrasts between ours by posting my own for the day.

Daily Extended Forecast for January 21, 2008
Provided by Astrology.com	Daily Teen Forecast

Nice.  So N-Quinn gets to start the most important relationship of his life today, and I get... English food.   A lifetime of happiness, or a plate of bangers and mash.  Yeah, that's a fair trade! 

Before I go get on Travelocity, I'll post my love horoscope for my Sun sign.

Daily Love for January 21, 2008
Provided by Astrology.com	Weekly Love

Daily Flirt: You may find that you're in a different space than your friends or housemates, thanks to some freaky energy that is passing through all of you. Let it go unless it lasts longer than a few days. Daily Couples: Your family is one of the most important things in your life, but it's not always easy to integrate your love life and your relatives. Take it slow and don't expect everything to happen at once. Daily Singles: The couch and the TV have served you well, but it's time to pry yourself off the furniture and get out of the house. Clear your head with a walk around the block. You never know: That cute neighbor might be outside watering the plants.

-Secure building
-Hot guys
-Nice gym
-Comfortable work
-Extremely friendly coworkers, regardless of job title
-free university level courses with company (I'm currently taking Spanish I over again)
-Free assortment of Starbucks coffees in every break room
-Fairly clean and very modern workplace
-Free tickets to local sporting events
-discounts on my cellphone bill, and various other services
-Hot guys
-Decent pay
-Flexible Hours
-4 weeks paid vacation

Just wanted to note how much better this is than the gig in Little Rock!!

Amidst all of the sad things in the news lately, there are some things that are making me VERY happy:

I've lost 10 lbs since Christmas! Basically, I'm just counting on discipline, belief in my myself, boundless enthusiasm, and encouragement from my workout buddy, and it's all going really well.   

I've been struggling to finish my knitting project for dramaquinn , so I found him something he'll like even better (and can sell if strapped for cash). Yes, I know Christmas was weeks ago- stop judging.

I just found out that I have FOUR WEEKS of vacation time to use this year, and on a related note, I'm planning a weekend getaway to the West Coast. How amazing will that be?

ALSO: Here are some amazing kitschy/crafty/knitty vintage stores online:
Day-Lab (I love this because everything is so...me)
Night-lab (I love this because it's so...the boy version of me)
Little Paper Airplanes (the name alone is fabulous, most of the stuff is a little overpriced though) 
Minimus.biz (proof the internet has everything you need.  It's a site with nothing but 3 oz sized products.  That means you can take them on airplanes...but only if they're in a sealed plastic bag.)
Poppytalk Handmade (if anything, you can get some sweet crafting ideas from this)
PurlSoho (posh yarns a-go-go!!!)
Remogeneralstore (an odd old timey online five 'n' dime type of store. They have EVERYTHING. It's awesome!)
Yesstyle.com (sweet import sweaters and such for 20 bucks? Whhhaaaattt?)

The best thing EVER:

Net Granny



Need a grandma who knits? Love the Swiss? Enjoy English-as-a-second-Language websites? Then you'll adore NetGranny.ch! It's an amazing site where you can adopt a Swiss grandmother, and she will knit socks and send them to you. Yes, it costs coin of the realm... 45.00, but it's totally worth it, I'm sure.

I love my grandmas -A LOT- but EVERYONE can use another grandmother.




She's waiting...

Ah, now's the appropriate time for an End O' Year Wrapup and New Year's Resolutions list.

Will I actually write about those things?

( Let's just see how this develops.Collapse )


Happy Holidays to all, and here's to hoping 2008 is as awesome as I believe it will be!

CNN is amazing, and I'm never going back to local news.

I won't see my family for Christmas, but I've been invited 'round to spend the holidays with a lot of other families here- which makes me feel really good.

I am 50% pretty according to that Facebook ranking tool application thing.

In 5 days I will be 26.

However, this is more important than all of that.



That is Jack, from Project Runway. Clearly, his illness is no longer affecting him!! Yay!

I made it here in one piece. Poor Sam (my cat) was fairly traumatized by the whole flying experience, but he's now recovered and has been happily strutting around our new, empty apartment.

Guys, I live in an amazing place.

After 3 years of living in Augusta, Ga and Little Rock, Arkansas I'd forgotten what a real city looks like! I live in the Vinings area of Atlanta, which features lots of high end shops and restaurants, complete with millionaires and famous people wandering around. Buckhead, one of the trendiest neighborhoods, is adjacent to my community and there is already so much to do and see that my head is spinning. My apartment complex is very pretty, and the apartment itself is beyond adorable and cozy.

Also- tonight I found that I can WALK to a freestanding Banana Republic. That may not be much to you, but it's pure heaven for me.

I'm still exceedingly nervous. My first day at work is tomorrow, and I've laid out my clothes in preparation, and did a "test run" driving different routes to the CNN Center. I love the GPS in my rental car (which is a hideous poo brown Taurus- my first unnattractive rental), because I can drive around, stress free and cheery.

So far, so good.

I'm still nervous as all get out, but I'm not immersed in floods of tears like I was in previous entries. I desperately miss my parents, but Haley lives literally a few doors away from me, and my other ATL friends have all gotten in touch, so I'll be okay.

Thank you so much to the lot of you who offered up kind and comforting words. You don't know how much it means to me, really! This is a terrifying time of life, but I'm going to do my damndest to enjoy it and kick a little ass along the way.

[10:10:09 AM] Kimmers says: The moving men are here. They are so elderly
[10:10:23 AM] Kimmers says: I've always had young strapping characters moving my things before
[10:10:32 AM] Kimmers says: one of the guys is pushing 70
[10:19:40 AM] Kimmers says: now he is on my deck, smoking
[10:19:49 AM] Kimmers says: all he did was tape up two boxes
[10:19:54 AM] Kimmers says: and he needed a smoke break
[10:34:20 AM] Kimmers says: oh God, he smells like rum
[10:34:40 AM] Paul Myers says: oh dear
[10:35:06 AM] Kimmers says: and I had to explain to him why I wasn't comfortable with him packing up my lacy underthings
[10:36:36 AM] Kimmers says: and he asked for my cd player
[10:37:08 AM] Paul Myers says: cheek
[10:37:31 AM] Kimmers says: I feel like my dad should be here for this
[10:38:10 AM] Kimmers says: this is why I need less possessions
[10:46:59 AM] Paul Myers says: throw it all away. Start again
[10:47:24 AM] Kimmers says: I want to, but the dumpster is kind of a long walk