Sunday, September 27, 2009

Are You Thinkin' of Telephones, and Managers and Where You Got to Be at Noon?

This is what parts of Iowa look like in the Fall. Look. I finally got around to taking some outdoor pics today.

This weekend was packed with so much stuff, it felt a lot like a clown car. So, in the interest of now trying to fit it all into one blog post, I will use a nice little series of numbers.

1.) I got off work at noon on Friday and met with a loan officer. He pre-approved me for a home loan. Yea!

2.) I called my brother to get help on what to do next and how all this house buying stuff was supposed to work.

3.) I got the name of a realtor and contacted said person. We set up a time and place to meet on Monday to get the ball rolling.

4.) I went to the dentist to get my teeth cleaned. The dental hygenist praised me on how well I took care of my teeth. It made me wonder how bad some other people's teeth must be and then I promptly shuddered.

5.) After Coadster got home from cross country practice, we went out for steak to celebrate Stinky's birthday. It was very, very good.

6.) Once I got Stinky to her friend's house and Coadster was getting ready for bed, a friend invited me to come over and drink some beer. This particular friend just happens to be extremely knowledgeable about almost everything I'm interested in. So, it was great to have someone to talk and get excited about everything with. And since this friend also makes me laugh harder than anyone I know, it was a perfect end to my day.

Here we are with the birthday girl.

1.) On Saturday I looked at a bunch of on-line real estate sites that the above mentioned friend sent me. I picked out the houses I was interested in and sent the list in an email to my realtor.

2.) I ran my six mile route and felt really strong.

3.) Did some cleaning and made lunch and ran kids around for much of my afternoon.

4.) Missed the early beginning of my friend J.'s birthday because I was busy on mom duty.

5.) Caught the last half of J.s birthday down at the Dublin. I knew it was going to be an interesting evening when my friend G. and I were walking toward the Dublin and two guys stopped us and told us we looked like we were having a rough night. G. had just stepped out of the shower and it was barely 9 o'clock. We both started laughing our asses off. The two twenty something year old boys then decided to follow us down the stairs where we did our damnedest to ignore them. They finally left.

6.) Another group of our girlfriends met us down for some drinks. At midnight, I was starting to turn into a pumpkin, so I let all the girlies know I was leaving and offered everyone rides. Most of my friends took me up on it, and I was able to safely taxi all my friends home.

B. throwing himself at my friend G. ....Again.

1.) On Sunday I got up and went to the running shoe store, only to find out they didn't open until noon. Wah.

2.) I ran my 8 mile route in my old shoes. The weather was warm and windy - my favorite.

3.) I got home and decided to ride my bike for a bit. I ran into my neighbors and stopped to chat with them. One of my neighbors just did a triathlon last May for the first time, so she had some good advice for me.

4.) Rode the rest of my bike route and finally took a few pics.

5.) Tried to give Stinky a lesson in driving a stick shift. She can drive a car with an automatic transmission, but I have a stick. She couldn't get the hang of it and she started getting frustrated. So, we decided to stop and try again another day.

6.) Went to the store, did some cleaning and made breakfast for dinner. (waffles, bacon and fruit) Stinky was in heaven.

Triathlon training this week:

I ran 42 miles.

I biked 10 miles.

I still haven't done any swimming (do you like how I avoided the whole swam/swum dilemma?)

11 comments:

laura b. said...

Almost speechless at the thought of your weekend! However....

Congratulations on getting pre-approved for a home loan. Very exciting! I will look forward to home tour stories.

Also, I have to say that I never have learned to drive a stick comfortably. Stinky will be glad she's learning.

Oh, and I love breakfast for dinner too. Woot!

rel said...

Churlita,
Guit procrastinating girl; get in the pool!
;>)
rel

Ananda girl said...

Sounds like a fantastic weekend. Congratulations on your home loan!!!
That is so exciting.

Stinky is beautiful. Happy Birthday to her.

Waffles... yum!

Tara said...

You will swim when the mood strikes. And when it does, have fun with those laps!

I only used my apartment's pool once this past Summer. It's kind of a boring pool; no slide, no board, and they don't permit people to jump off the sides. No fun!

AlienCG said...

Congratulations on the pre-approval, let the hunting begin. You'll have fun with it.

You'll have all winter to swim.

Pamela said...

You could always do a biathalon!
And good luck with the housing process. Be advised they may/will preapprove you for much more than you want to spend.

As for stick, she'll never be able to drive it well, since there are no hills in Iowa. ;-)

booda baby said...

um ... When do you sleep?

It seems to me you taxied everyone home at midnight and then promptly started your next day. Or maybe that's what I'd have to do to squeeze all that in. Maybe I'd do better if I didn't work all weekend, too. I'm going to try that someday. :)

Here comes some vicariosity, again. I'm OVERLY thrilled about your home loan. This concerns me. What if I don't like the house you pick for us? I can't have any gnomes. :):):)

Brando said...

Congrats on the loan approval. Can't wait to see the house you use it on.

When I was 16, my dad took me out to "teach" me how to drive stick. This consisted of him making me drive into traffic and yelling at me when I kept stalling the car. I was very upset, and that night I dreamed I was driving stick perfectly. I asked him to take me some place I could practice, and after a couple tries got it right. Never had a problem with stick since then.

Poptart said...

OMG! SO exciting about buying a house!!!

Churlita said...

LauraB.,

I've had a stick for so long, it's hard for me to drive a regular car. I keep pressing down on the break as if it were the clutch.

Rel,

I know. I know. I just keep thinking I'll have several months where I can't run outside and the pool will be my best option then.

Ananda,

Thanks. It';s overwhelming but exciting.

Tara,

If it were more handy, I'd be all over the swimming. I jut have to drive to a pool, but with running. I throw on some shoes and go.

AlienCG,

I'm really excited to check out some places. I'm just at the mercy of my realtor's schedule.

Pamela,

My friend who's been helping me with the tri, normally does biathlons. I might end up doing them eventually, but I want to at least try doing a tri first.

Oh, and people who aren't from Iowa think there aren't any hills here. Those people ride RAGBRAI once, and start singing a different song.

Booda Baby,

What's this sleep thing of which you speak? I do get a few hours, but not nearly as many as I'd like.

The big issue is cost right now. If I had more money, I'm sure I could find a place we could both live with.

Brando,

I wish I could buy your old house. I loved that place.

I took Stinky to the Hancher parking lot. Maybe we just need to try again when she isn't so tired.

Poptart,

I just hope I can get a place by the deadline.

Johnny Yen said...

I'm starting my son (and eventually my daughter) on stick. That way they won't have to learn it later.

My god, I thought my schedule was hectic!

CSN's "You Don't Have To Cry" is one of my favorites. I always love the way you have a line from a song in your title, and trying to remember which song it's from.