Tuesday Tidbits

Tuesday afternoon and lots of random stuff going through my brain... First of all, giving notice at the restaurant went about as well as it could have and they were very gracious about it. The manager even offered me an opportunity to take on some dinner shifts at the restaurant while at my new job, but I think I need to see how my "real" job goes before I even consider that. If it's like most agencies I've worked at, there is no set or predictable start or end time each day. You roll in anywhere from 7:30 to 9:30am depending on what the day has in store for you, and you work until you're done, or are at least done with that day's pressing deadlines. Occasionally that's 5pm, but more often than not it's 6, 6:30, or later. So adding a dinner shift on top would be pretty difficult to juggle. But keeping my options open is never a bad thing...

We're headed back to Seattle on Thursday for J's sister's wedding, which I am super excited about. Not only do we get to celebrate with the lovely Kristin and her dashing fiance, Dan, as well as spend time with J's parents and the rest of the S clan, but my parents will also be attending, so I'm very excited to see them too. I'm also getting together with my Seattle ladies on Thursday night at our favorite wine bar that we used to frequent all the time back in our wild and crazy ("wild and crazy" being two glasses of syrah on a school night) single days. Not everyone is paired up now, but somehow it seems like each year we all take on more and more responsibilities that make those fancy free weeknight evenings of our early to mid-20s exceedingly rare. So this will be a fun blast from the past.

This evening I'm headed out to see "Julie and Julia" with some of the other wives / fiances / girlfriends of students in J's program. I'm starting to get to know a few of them a bit better, which is nice. It's amazing how long it really takes to build real friendships though... the kind where you can randomly call up your pal on a Sunday morning and meet for coffee, un-showered and/or in your workout clothes, and just have a blast talking about everything from US Weekly's latest cover story to intimate details about your family or relationship. Outside of college, where the hyper speed bonding of freshman year enables everyone to find their BFF before the end of orientation week, I think it takes 1-2 years to develop that kind of friendship with someone. I'm grateful to be getting to know smart, funny, intelligent women here, but it also makes me miss my best friends from way back who are scattered all across the U.S., from Seattle to Miami, and even in Africa (shout out to you, Diana!)

Lastly, but definitely not least, tomorrow is my birthday! Weeeeeeeeeee!! After working my final shift at the restaurant tomorrow, I've got a taxing schedule of a mani/pedi at a swanky Austin nail establishment, Polish, followed by appetizers and perhaps some presents at home, followed by dinner with J at a location to be revealed. I love my birthday!