Year in Review

What a year it has been. Full of all kinds of ups and downs. It's been an interesting ride.

This year:
1. I have moved around the country. (Los Angeles to Chicago, then to Raleigh, N.C.)
2. Been away from a state I called home for 13 years.
3. Had the worst boss I've ever had.
4. Got a different job, which is one of my favorite jobs.
5. Got divorced (well on paper)
6. Fell in love
7. My cat Loki passed away, first cat I ever owned. I still miss him.
8. I haven't seen my dogs in a year, they are with my ex in California.
9. Touched snow for the first time in 13 years.
10. Gained weight, finally in a normal weight range for my height.
11. Got cake on my birthday, first time in many years.
12. Got my first Christmas tree since 1995!!!! (that's just wrong)

There are things that happened this year that I will take with me for the rest of life. I have been happier than I remember being this year. I have cried and been sad this year. But with all it's ups and downs, I've enjoyed it so much. Thank you to my friends and the people I love that had stood by me and helped me when I needed it. I hope the new year brings more adventure, but I wouldn't mind if it won't be quite as stressful.

Happy Holidays.

Almost there

It's almost the end of the year, and I think I will be selling the house in L.A. The person that''s living there does not seem they will be catching up on their rent any time soon, and I am done with the excuse d jour that he's handing me. Friendship be damned at this point, I can't afford to take care of somebody else and let them live for free. It's time for me to take care of myself.

On another note, Clay's birthday was on Wednesday and we both had the day off from work. It was nice. We got to spend all day together. He liked his birthday present, a Sansa mp3 player, and I got him a carrot cake. Man, that was some tasty cake too, thanks to Hereghty's bakery for that one. I highly recommend them for any dessert delights. Then we went to Bogart's for dinner, not a bad place. Nothing fantastic, although they have a long fancy drink menu there was not much actual alcohol in our beverages. I think I would eat there again, but it wouldn't be my first choice. 

That has been one problem Clay and I have found in Raleigh, no restaurants that really stand out. I like the option of going out for a nice dinner, it doesn't have to be expensive. Just good food, and good drinks. We will keep looking and hopefully we will find it here. I think we are spoiled considering he comes from Chicago, and I lived in L.A. and San Francisco. It's really hard to compete with the places we are used to. We'll keep trudging along and find at least one that speaks to us here. I hope.

So it's been a pretty good week. Christmas is almost here and I'm done shopping. Now I need to finish wrapping everything. Maybe I'll do that tomorrow. Hope all is well in your lives.

The past year

The past year of my life has been one topsy turvy ride. I left Los Angeles and moved to Chicago to be with a wonderful man that I love. Then both of us packed up, left Chicago and moved to Raleigh. Now we are contemplating another move. To where? Well that is the big question. I still own a house in L.A. And we could go back there. It would be a long expensive move. Most likely it would not be forever, which would mean another move would be in the future. That is not appealing to either of us. There has been talk of Denver or Charlotte as well. No real reason for either one of those destinations. We are just looking for a place to call home. A place we can afford to buy a house, and still have money to do other things. It's why we left Chicago. We could never buy something and have any money left over. Okay and the negative temperatures during the very long winter wasn't very fun for me, especially after living in Southern California for so long.

I'm just tired of the whole thing. The constant questioning of where my life is heading or where we are going to live. I want to find a place where we can feel at home and be happy. I don't want to keep thinking about moving. I don't want to keep starting over. I just need to sell the house in L.A. And be done with it. At this point I don't really care how much it sells for. Okay, maybe that's just frustration talking. A decision needs to be made. I am giving myself until the end of the year to figure this out. That's not much time. I have some things that just need to be dealt with, and I've been putting it off. The more I look at Charlotte, the more I think it's really worth checking out. Close enough to my family, with a little buffer in between. Moving to Denver would probably be as expensive as moving back to L.A. I think a weekend trip to Charlotte is in order to take a look around. I don't think either of us really want to stay in Raleigh. It holds a lot of memories for both us, good and bad. I think a fresh place with a fresh start would be nice. Plus it would be nice to take a short trip over the NC border and get real liquor. This ABC store thing that NC has is a little frustrating when you want something top shelf. I'll figure this out, and all will be peaceful again.

Getting Ready

Christmas is coming, and I have a tree! It's been a long time since I've had a tree so this is very exciting for me. I had to buy all new decorations, I'm still not sure if I have enough. I'll have to wait and see after I get the tree decorated and see how sparse it is. Three more weeks to hold out. Then I can give presents and watch them make people smile. I love giving presents to people, it's fun. I like getting presents too. This weekend Clay and I will go to his parents house and help decorate their tree. At our house we have the most obnoxious lights on the house, they have 15 different settings. So each day we pick a new setting. I wish I had some of those giant decorations to put on top of the house, maybe next year. After Christmas is New Years. 2008 should have some interesting turns. I wonder if I'll sell the house in LA. Will I pick a place that I want to live for more of a long term stay? What else will happen? This past year has had many ups and downs, but all in all it's been a pretty good year. I'm enjoying my life and the person that I am. Happy holidays to everybody. I hope you get everything you wish for.

Turkey Day

Turkey Day was fun this year. In 24 hours I had 3 Thanksgiving dinners.
The first one was at 2:30 on Thursday at Clay's parents house, the next one was at 6 at my Mom's house, and the third was 12:30 the next day at work. So much turkey, good stuff! Then Friday night it was dinner with my Dad and stepmother. Too much family!!! My brother, his wife, and their 2 sons drove down from DC. It was weird to see my brother twice this year. When I lived in CA. I only saw my brother every few years. So that was my Thanksgiving. I haven't done any shopping yet (besides online) because I've been working all weekend. I'm off for the next 3 days, so I'll have to get some shopping done then.

I hope all is well in the rest of the world. I hope all my friends had a nice holiday. Please remember when you are out there trying to get the best deal, don't knock people over to get it. Be nice, and stay in the holiday spirit.

Rabies

The vet clinic I work at requires a Rabies vaccine, and today is the day
I start my series. I am not looking forward to this at all. I've worked
in vet medicine for 7 years and no other place I worked required a
vaccine. Then again Rabies is not an issue in Southern California. At
least not in domestic animals. So I'm off for a shot soon. Hopefully I
won't get a reaction since I've been sick this past week with the flu. I
let you know if I start foaming at the mouth.

Sick

I am sick! SICK, SICK, SICK! This is awful. Right now I'm at work (on a
break), hopfully I'll be able to leave early. I want to go back to bed.
Meh.
--bkeul

At Work

Today is absolutely beautiful outside, it's a perfect temperature, and
I'm at work. I'm wishing I could go on a hike through Umstead Park.
Yesterday I went running for the first time in a long time, and it felt
pretty darn good. My legs are hating me today but that's okay. I keep
thinking I should join a gym, but I really only want to if they have a
pool. Swimming is my favorite form of exercise, I would probably do it
every day if I could. Maybe that should be my goal over the next month.
We'll see. I do feel better when I exercise.

--bkeul

Happy

You know something? I am pretty happy with where my life is at this point. I have a boyfriend that loves me, a job that I like, and just a general joy with my day to day life. I'm not really sure about where I physically live, that's an ongoing decision. Some days I feel like selling my house in Los Angeles, and just being done with it. Other days I just want to move back there and take the house back for myself. Is LA where I'm supposed to be? Right now I'm in NC and it's okay, not ideal but okay. I could sell my house in LA and buy a nice place here. I just don't know. When my ex husband and I split up I wasn't sure where life would take me, and to some extent I'm still not sure. I'm just taking it one step at a time, and keep moving forward. I really want the more normal things that life has to offer. I want a husband that is a true partner in life. I want a family. I want a home that I own and live in. I want to be comfortable with my life and happy when I wake up in the morning. I want adventure and to be able to travel some to places I've never been. And I want to quit smoking. That's an odd one to throw in at the end, but it's true. It's something I need to do for myself and my health. So that's where I'm at right now. I'm good with that.

Today

Today is my day off. There are some things I need to get done. Paperwork for the house, pay some bills, and figure out how to be a bitch to a friend. See my friend is renting my house in LA, but he hasn't been paying me. I've been understanding, but now i just can't afford to be nice anymore. If he can't afford to live there I need to figure something out. I don't know if I'd sell it or rent it out to someone else. It's not really a good time to sell a house, considering the market. Some days I just want to sell and be done with the whole thing. The logical side of me says to hold on to it, it's a good investment. Maybe I should just move back to LA, and take the house back for myself. I'm not sure what's going to happen here. I just hate being put in this position. Don't ever rent property to a friend. It can come back and bite you.

Another blog

So here's another blog for me to write. I have a few out there in cyberspace, but why not one more? I am 33 years old and divorced as of this past year. I am exploring myself and figuring out where my new life will take me. I was born in North Carolina and moved to San Francisco when I was 19. Seven years later I moved to Los Angeles and stayed there for 6 more years. Then I tried Chicago for about 6 months, and currently I am back in North Carolina. Who knows if I'll stay here, It's okay for now, the prices for property are so cheap compared to California. I still own a house in Los Angeles, and I need to figure out what to do with it. My life is in a constant state of change right now, and I don't see that ending anytime soon. If you start reading this you'll find out about all the twisits and turns it takes. So there that's a little background info about me, and my first entry for this blog.