Starbucks Annoyance

The line at the hotel lobby Starbucks was 10 people long. The woman in front of me ordered 8 complicated drinks (grande, blonde roast, with steamed oat milk, honey, and cinnamon was the least elaborate). She micromanaged the barista and then asked him to redo 3 of the orders.  She seems like real fun lady. 

Staycation: Atlanta

This morning Korra left for Pensacola with Nate's parents where she'll spend the week going to camp with her cousins. 

Meanwhile, Nate and I are having a little vacation before I start my new job. Today we checked into the Westin, only a mile from our house. Our room is on 37th floor and has a great view. 

We walked to a sports bar where we watched the Euro soccer final and then walked to dinner at Amifa Cucina before going to see Joe Pera perform at the Tabernacle. We had great seats and Joe was delightfully funny. 

Mosquito Bites

I walked around our complex for 15 minutes last night and ended up with 7 mosquito bites- 5 of which are under where my jeans were covering. How did they bite through my jeans without me noticing?  I'm so itchy!

Pillow Cat

I sewed this today.  

Another bike ride

This morning I decided to go for another bike ride- this time on a route that took a section of the Beltline (for people who don't live near Atlanta, that's a walking/biking trail that's very popular). While I really appreciated how smooth and relatively flat the ride was, and how there were no cars to contend with, I did have occasional trouble with the pedestrians. Sometimes it was a group running or walking 3 across so I couldn't get around them. Sometimes they were stopping in the middle of the path to take selfies or pet someone's dog. Pedestrians seem just as annoyed with cyclists as drivers do (and maybe that goes both ways). 

I rode nearly 9 miles in about 45 minutes. I feel like I've found the joy in biking again, thanks to pedal assist up the most daunting hills. 

Practice Ride

I practiced riding to my new school this morning. I wanted to time it and check the traffic at the time of day I'll be going in. I left a little after 7. It took me nearly 5 minutes to maneuver my bike off the balcony, through the living room and hall, out the front door and carry it down a flight of stairs, but I don't see any better way for it. 

Once I got going, it only took me 13 minutes to make it the nearly 3 miles. I wasn't at all out of breath and only mildly sweaty (but still managed an average heart rate of 135 bpm). 

I took a different way home and took 14 minutes, but that could just be the luck of the lights. Both routes felt safe, though they had plenty of bumpy patches in the roads that jostled me around a bit. Atlanta's infrastructure leaves much to be desired. I will say there are dedicated sections of bike lane on both routes that I really appreciate, even if they don't extend the whole way. 

My bike is brilliant and the pedal assist allowed me to eat up the couple of big hills like they were nothing (which is especially important when not on the bike paths- it makes me feel so much safer to be moving more quickly and easily with cars next to/behind me).  

I feel ready to take on my new bike commute next week!

12 Year Olds

Nevermind that I've been awake since 4:30...

I was trying to remember what year Austin came to live with us and for how long so I went through my blog. He had just turned 12 in July 2010 when he moved in. Reading over the experiences, remembering... it's crazy because 14 years later, Korra is almost exactly the same age and we're definitely experiencing the same tween behaviors.  

Anyway, we're meeting Austin and his wife and son next week. I kind of wish Korra could be there (she'll be at camp) just so I could point to her and say, "that's how old you were."  I'm feeling very nostalgic and old. That might also be the lack of sleep. 

Painter

Korra and I did some painting!

Tomato Pie and Corn on the Cob

We had a very summer-y dinner tonight after a visit to the farmers' market!

New Water Heater

A new hot water heater is being installed!

Get out of the Pool

15 minutes into Korra's swimming playdate, a neighbor texts me a notification that the HOA said pool is not currently clean enough to swim in. Awesome. Quick change of plans and the girls are spending the the afternoon at the playground/splash pad. It's a much different experience with middle schoolers than when they were little. A lot more sitting on the swings and talking. 

Just a Girl Who Loves Cats

Earrings!!

I am SO proud of myself. I made these "I'm definitely a children's librarian" earrings!

I have always thought it helps kids connect to a teacher when they have a "thing"- something they love (or hate) or collect. For some teacher's it's a sports team or color. I've been the "Harry Potter" teacher and I've collected gnomes. This go-round, I'm going to be the crazy earrings teacher. I have plans to make more (maybe even let kids draw/design some for me!) and I also bought a handful of new ones- pickles, globes, ice cream cones, stacks of books, and dinosaurs. 

No hot water, again

Went to take a long shower after dinner only to discover we have no hot water again. Checked and the pilot light was out and wouldn't relight when we tried. Put a call in to the property manager but we're stuck with cold showers again tonight. 

Work Call

Today I got a frantic phone call from one of my former coworkers. Poor guy had a cell phone emergency and the only 2 people who could handle it were on vacation (and not answering their phone) and me (who no longer works there). It took me about 20 minutes to help and I did it because I genuinely like most of my former coworkers. Nate thinks I should send them a bill. 

Weird Dream

I didn't sleep well last night, but I did have a wild dream where I went to a wedding that was absolutely full of guests from high school- people I haven't thought about much less communicated with in years. There was a part in the dream where the wedding guests had to participate in a mock UN (and my country was fictional) and I was expected to share a bed with the wedding venue host's great-grandparents who were on death's door and in a bed in the style of the grandparents in Willy Wonka. It was bizarre. 

To Do List

I've got a list of things I want to get done during this week at home before Korra goes to Pensacola and I start my new job. Today we checked off: grocery shopping, washing the car, and going to the library. 

Tomorrow we have plans to bake muffins, paint, and go to the park. 

So many repairs

The first person who came to take away the fan and check on the hot water heater discovered that something was actually broken on it and he had to call in a plumber. Before he left, he looked at the shower and commented that the whole thing probably needs to be replaced. He also noticed the water spots on our ceiling and said they'll come repaint. The plumber came and replaced whatever ignition/pilot thing that was broken and then told us the hot water heater is 13+ years old and needs to be replaced soon. He agreed with the first repair guy that the shower needs to be replaced. 

I'm thankful it's not my house to repair but also a little worried that all these expenses will make our rent go up a lot next year. 

Bathroom leak update

We arrived home this afternoon to find a large fan in our bathroom, the line fixed, and our water turned back on. Thankfully our neighbor moved Mrs' food, water, and litter box because she would have had to walk in front of the industrial fan to get to them (which we all know she wouldn't do). 

We discovered that somehow the hot water heater had been turned off and despite reading all the directions, we couldn't get the pilot light relit. I guess I'm thankful it's 95 degrees outside and so a cool shower wasn't unpleasant. (I'll call about that tomorrow). 

I saw our downstairs neighbor and he said they had to remove all the drywall of one wall and the whole ceiling of his bathroom. He said all the workers and insurance people have been quick and helpful. I feel bad even though it wasn't our fault at all. I think I'll bake him some banana bread or something. 

Cabin Recap

I got bug bites on my feet. We set off the amazing fireworks we bought in South Carolina (the unlicensed Pikachu was the uncontested winner). The kids played in the creek, had a Nerf gun war, and worked on their fort. We went tubing. I read two books and deep cleaned the inside of the car. We built a puzzle and played some games. 

Broken water Supply Line

I got a text from our downstairs neighbor last night. Thank goodness he has an iphone and the message came through on the wifi. He said that in the early morning he noticed water running down the walls of his bathroom. He went upstairs to our place, knocked and left a note, and then called his insurance and the neighborhood home owners association, who in turn contacted our property manager. I called our downstairs neighbor and the neighbor who has our spare key and was going to check on the cats. On the instructions of our property manager, he went to our place and turned off the water. It seems like all the damage is under our bathroom floor and in the neighbor's unit. I am so thankful for good neighbors and to be a renter. Hopefully we'll know more today and the supply line will be fixed before we get home on Sunday so we'll have water. 

Blue Ridge Cabin!

After Nate finished work at lunchtime, we hopped in the car to drive to the cabin where we'll get to spend the next 4 days. Great way to kick off my 2 weeks of vacation between jobs!

Last Day

I was the first one in the office this morning.  I watered all the plants, made coffee, ran the dishwasher.  It was nice to be in the office alone for about 30 minutes.  A thoughtful coworker had ordered breakfast for the staff for my going away celebration.  It was lovely to eat and chat with everyone.  I worked on the puzzle.  I cleaned out my email inbox.  I had my brief exit interview.  Now all that's left is to factory reset my computer.  The goodbyes are awkward.  I'm ready for my next adventure.  

My New Bike is Amazing

I rode my new bike to work this morning. Thanks to that sweet pedal assist, I cut my commute from 11 minutes to 7.

Second to Last Day

This morning I worked from home for a bit and then Korra and I both had eye doctor appointments. I've had some cloudiness in one of my eyes and thankfully, it seems likely that it's a dry eye condition (much more treatable than the glaucoma I'd convinced myself it was). Unfortunately, the extra examination made the appointment longer than expected so I had to go directly to work- and took Korra with me. She enjoyed helping out a little and eating the office snacks. 

I had my last staff meeting and said my goodbyes to people on the call. It still feels a little surreal.