If this is the Calm Before the Storm, We're in Trouble

It's the day before I start my new job, and I'm feeling pretty stressed out. I expected yesterday and today to be fairly relaxing days, with lots of house cleaning and lounging on the couch. No such luck -- yesterday was spent wrapping up a freelance project, meeting with a bank to discuss mortgages, several hours worth of errands, and finally some chill time before book club. Thus far today, I worked on a V21 volunteer schedule, met with a pet sitter who's going to help us out with Marty (forgot she was coming, oops), and did some random house chores. Later today, I'll pick Ak up from work so we can go visit with another bank, then I have to pick up my clothes from the tailor and swing by the pet store. Today's tasks are compounded by having a baby kitten shadow who's torn between his deep love for me and his discovery of a new plug under the TV that is apparently lots of fun to bat. That's definitely a perk of going back to an office -- a cat-free work space. Have you ever tried to type while a cat chases the words on the screen? It's exciting.

I think most of my stress is stemming from the sheer volume of tasks I see before and around me. I feel like it's the day before vacation, and I'm frantically rushing to get everything done. I grant that this line of thinking is fundamentally flawed. Yes, going to the pet store and the grocery store on my days off is a good thing to do because that's one less thing I have to worry about this week. However, those things are going to need to be done again... and again... until, well, pretty much forever. And if there're things I don't get to before I start work, then I'll just get to them over the weekend. There's definitely a mindset change that needs to happen here.

Another stresser -- house hunting and all the fun that goes along with that (see above conversations with mortgage lenders). We had a really successful outing last weekend and found several houses we were interested in. We're heading out again this weekend, and the tentative plan is to pick our finalists after that and start narrowing down to THE house. This is all very exciting; we've seen some houses that we would love to live in. But picking a house and finding a lender and all the other bazillion processual tasks associated with this is definitely stressful.

I have a feeling things will be a lot better next week and even better the week after that. Until then, there's yoga and red wine!

Waiting for my Fish to Poop

The title really has nothing to do with anything I'm going to write about today, but it was the subject of one of the most random and hilarious conversations I've had in a long time, so I felt obliged to share. Last night, my friend and former roommate Tina was late to book club because her beta fish was sick. Apparently the poor fish is constipated, and the solution is to feed it a pea and hope that gets things moving. So, scout's honor, the conversation went a little like this: "I'm sorry I'm late, but I was waiting for my fish to poop." At which point my mind immediately went in two different directions. Being an avid animal lover and fostering fond memories of my own dearly departed beta fish, Quincy, I was very sympathetic. However, I might not have expressed my sympathy as well as I meant to because "waiting for my fish to poop" triggered Jason Mraz's "waiting for my rocket to come," and I had a hard time focusing after that. Needless to say, it was a very silly conversation, but I do hope her fish poops soon. And that I eventually get a different song stuck in my head.

Last night was the kickoff of book club! I'm very excited about this new venture. My brain has spent the last two years in a perpetual state of worn out, probably because school forced me to spend all of my waking hours either reading or writing research. I love to read, but I was too tired to read anything of substance so it's been nothing but Harry Potter and chicklit for a long time. I know this sounds a little backwards, but since I've finished school, I've longed to read books that made me learn. Our first book club read was The Kite Runner, which deals largely with politics in Afghanistan. It was a tough read, but also a beautiful story, and I highly recommend it. Then the best part... last night, 4 of us girls got together, discussed the book, discussed lots of other things, drank two bottles of wine and laughed a whole lot. Pretty close to a perfect night, and I can't wait for our next meeting in January. We're taking it easy and reading Marian Keyes next -- one of my fave authors!

One more piece of news -- this morning I signed up for the Cherry Blossom Ten Mile Run. It's in Washington, DC in April. Pretty excited about this too. It will definitely be a challenge, but I'm looking forward to being in training again. I did a half marathon a few years ago, and that was definitley the time in my life when I felt the healthiest and most in tune with my body. This time around, I resolve to condition my whole body, so that means lots of strength training in addition to the running. (In case you haven't noticed, I'm a very goal-oriented person.) Ask me how the training's going periodically, k? I may be in need of a sharp kick in the rear by then. The race registration actually says that if I run slower than 14-minute miles, I'll be asked to leave the course. Wow, harsh! So, there you go. Must be able to run at least 10 consecutive 14-minute miles by April in order to avoid embarrassment and wear my race t-shirt with pride.

Well, busy day so must get back to it. First I'm going to hit the treadmill and take the perfect dog for a walk. Then, lunch with my favorite husband, followed by more work, and tonight, I'm going with a friend to see A Christmas Carol. Fun stuff! Until then, "I'm just a drug store prophet with my hand in my pocket and I'm waiting for my rocket to come... well, it started way back in NYC..."