Moments Worth Mentioning

Yesterday morning started off like any other. I got up, got ready and got out the door right on time. Unlike most mornings though, I had to actually open up our little physical therapy clinic that day since one of our therapists had taken the day off. Not a problem. (Insert skeptical laugh here).

About 15 minutes from my house it happens. I was the Lucky chosen one that was hand picked (I’m sure) to run over a HUGE screw that a previous driver nicely dropped from his truck/piece of crap car. I remained calm and pulled into a bank parking lot. I knew immediately what had happened thanks to my car telling me when my tires need more air with the help of a bright flashing light on my dash. Whats a little flat tire to start off a Monday morning?

Being the strong, independent women that I am I calmly (angerly) pull out my spare tire, jack, wrench etc. I actually turn down the assistance of several bank employees as they walk into their workplace. (I was that confident). Moments later, I was rethinking their offered help. I had everything under control up to the point where I couldn’t get the lug nuts off the wheel. I choose to blame it on the Michigan salt that gunked up my wheels and not my lack of strength. No worries. I call my dad.

Dad shows up about 25 minutes later half laughing half annoyed that I got him out of the house on his day off. He confidently goes to take the wheel off. No luck. And unlike me, he didn’t take it well. He muttered something about finding the guy at the Mazda dealership that thought it was necessary to put the lug nuts on that tightly…. Please Mr. Mazda man don’t come to Georgia. My dad has a death wish for you… something about death by metal wrench.

After my dad pulled his flat tire tools out of his car and was still not able to get my tire off he suggested that I take it to a place with an air wrench. (Really? I have a flat tire.) So, like a good daughter, I listened to dear ol’ dad and drove (slowly/embarrassingly) to a tire place. They were easily able to get the lovely tire off my car and I was on my way… a mere 45 minutes after I should have been at work. Cleveland was still 20 miles away, and now I was limited on my speed due to the cute little spare tire I now had to contend with/show off.

The patients waiting by the door (in the 30 degree temperatures) were surprisingly understanding. I was (unsurprisingly) frustrated. YAY for Monday mornings!

In other news: I talked to my new company yesterday. They have the next two weeks of my life filled with plane tickets, hotel reservations, car rental agreements and expense report allowances. Basically, I get to go to three different cities with all expenses paid. (One being St. Louis, which I find ironic sense my previous company was supposed to send me there. I digress.)

Also, I am trying to find a great deal on a laptop to take with me for the journey… Cause ya know I can’t be unplugged for that long. Anyone have any suggestions?

I had my surgery Monday morning. Everything went as planned and I was at home resting on the couch by early afternoon. My dad was a great cheerleader and made for a great “Mr Mom”. =) Thanks to the remnants of anesthesia and some great pain meds I was feeling pretty good that afternoon. In the midst of my recovery haze I got a phone call from one of the companies that I had been interviewing with… They were offering me a job! I somehow managed to form complete sentences and accepted the offer. I also managed to pull it together long enough to call my current company to give them my notice. (At least I think I did all of that).

Tuesday morning my dad and I were up early to be back at the eye doctors office by 9am. This was the part of the procedure that I was not looking forward to. The doctor removed the bandages, numbed my eye and did some final adjusting with the sutures he had placed the day before. All I will say is that it was not an enjoyable experience. I left his office looking like I had been in a fist fight… and I was on the loosing end.

My dad and I had a quick bit to eat at our local Waffle House (don’t judge me). I was mortified by my appearance and sat through the meal with sunglasses on. At that point, my eye looked much worse than I felt. I had the rest of the day off and so did dear ol’ dad. It was 70 degrees. So what did we do? Went to the lake of course! The two of us met up with my uncle and spent the rest of the afternoon cruising around on Lake Lanier. In my opinion the sun and fresh air were just what the doctor ordered!!

Today I am back at work. My eye looks…. horrible. It is extremely blood shot and swollen to the point where I can hardly open it. I tried really hard to make it through the day without pain meds, but around 11am I gave in. I think my coworkers appreciate the “partially drunk Michelle” over the “it hurts to breath Michelle”.

As if recovering from surgery wasn’t enough I am now officially looking for a new place to live. My new job will be down on the west side of Atlanta and waaaaay to far away for me to commute from Gainesville. I am hoping to do some apartment searching this weekend. I also have to pass a drug test this afternoon for my new company…. which is almost comical at this point. I had my doctor put together a list of all of the drugs that I have been on since Monday. Its two pages long. The highlight is the Cocaine drops (I kid you not) that were used in my eye yesterday. I am sure to fail that drug test with flying colors!!

Starting in infancy my parents shuffled me around to never-ending eye doctor’s appointments and tried everything under the sun to try to get my right eye to function correctly. As a child I was “tortured” with eye patches and painful eye drops. Long story short: Because of the birth defect I am blind in my right eye. Because my brain doesn’t use the eye for vision it has no reason to track properly and looses the ability to focus on objects.

The summer before I entered high school my parents and I decided that I was old enough to have some corrective surgery to try to fix the alignment of my eye. Basically they went in and manipulated the muscles surrounding my eye… Makes me queasy just thinking about it. The doctor hoped for 10 years worth of “normal” eye function. That was thirteen years ago.

Things have changed a little in the last decade and the procedure is now a two step/two day procedure involving a hospital and full blown anesthesia. I will spare you the details… All I know is that I hope to wake up after day two feeling much better about my impression I put out into the world.

Well, its official: Burning the candle at both ends will (and does) catch up to you. Most likely in the form of a head cold.

As I was coming home from “a night on the town” Saturday night I realized that my throat was just a little sore. By Sunday morning I officially didn’t feel so good. After a day of church, lunch with friends, a movie with friends and a home-made dinner/Wii tournament with some more friends I was done. Done and done to be exact. Here’s to Vitamin C tablets, orange juice and a few good nights sleep…. and Cold Medicine.

And the job search continues…

After a month of interviews done over the phone, a day taken off from work for an in-person interview and the company calling/bugging my references, my “first pick” made their decision. And… drum roll please….it wasn’t me. I was one of three final candidates…. so close, and yet so far away from actually getting the job. Boo. Hiss.

I still have another company that seems to still be very interested. I actually have my 4th (yes-4th) interview set up with them for next week. I am hopeful, but not terribly excited about the location or the potential pay check.

The great search continues.

This past Saturday (exactly one week after Georgia was pelted with a freak snow storm) it was almost 80 degrees. And what better way to welcome in Spring/Summer than to go to a park?!

Downtown Atlanta is like all major cities… made up of concrete, noise, sky scrappers and traffic congestion. But somehow, Piedmont park has survived, and is a huge green space in the middle of it all. The stark contrast between nature and the city skyline was amazing! (Have I mentioned that I am falling in love with the city?)The park was jammed packed full of people playing with Frisbees, walking their dogs, flying kites and eating picnic lunches.Ahh… the feel of the warm sun! Welcome Spring!

Last night was the season finale of the Bachelor. And seriously…. ARE YOU KIDDING ME???

My step mom and I literally sat on our couch and yelled at the TV as Jason changed his mind AFTER proposing. Even my dad, who abruptly leaves the room every Monday when the show starts, put in his two cents last night. I am fairly certain that Jason is the most hated man in America this morning. He better hope ABC has put him up in a top secret location, with guards at the door.

Its Monday. And it feels like a Monday in more ways than one.

First of all, the huge snowstorm that hit Georgia forgot to roll through Gainesville and Cleveland. Its an understatement to say that I’m disappointed that I had to actually go to work this morning. (As ridiculous as it is, us Georgia folks stay at home at the sight of snow… and I’m OK with that.) I did however get to drive through a very Detroit-like blizzard yesterday as I made my way home after church. No comment about the 15 mph that we did on GA-400.

Secondly, on this particular Monday I seem a little extra rundown. For the last month I have basically lived out of a suitcase as I traveled, played and played some more. After a late (and slightly drama filled) Friday night a light bulb went off Saturday afternoon…. I have to take a breather. “Too much of any one great thing can easily turn into a bad thing.” I therefore pulled the Lame Card and told my friends that I would not be attending our Saturday evening festivities. I used the excuse of lack of sleep, lack of time with my parents and a bank account that has taken a hit with the drastic increase in my social schedule. It worked and I was off the hook. I managed to actually get a couple loads of laundry done and share a meal with my parents.

Lastly, I am still a little sad today. I have mentioned that a recent friend (of the male species) decided he wasn’t quite ready to jump headfirst into anything. Under normal circumstances this is really not a big deal, and definitely not “blog-worthy”. But since our circles of friends are one in the same I continually see him. We are polite and very friendly. There is no reason not to continue to enjoy his friendship…. Except that I have come to the realization that I am still holding onto some hope that he would wake up one morning and change his mind. And call me crazy, but its no wonder that I am holding out hope as we have continued to see each other outside the group setting, have daily phone calls and show up to events together. Its always very platonic, but there remains an undercurrent that is undeniable that we are both wanting more. Its a horrible grey area in which I find myself constantly questioning the length of our goodbye hug and analyze how close we sit next to each other. I have always been fairly confident when it comes to the matters of dating etiquette. This new wave of doubt when it comes to what is appropriate is not fun. In the mean time our friends are confused and have been asking lots of questions that I don’t have answers too (as they should be). Its a perfect situation that my mind is telling me to throw in the towel and my heart just wont listen. We talk (too much) about his ex. He is clearly still not over her. Part of me wants to be angry at him for selfishly wanting my company without any emotional commitment. In the grand scheme of things I’m sad about the whole situation and choosing to throw it into the big pile of Monday Blahs.

And while I’m venting…

I am running around like a crazy women trying to manage interviews around my current work schedule and/or trying to make excuses for why I need to take time off. Its slightly exhausting. I am on round three of interviews with two different companies. Do the math-that makes 6 interviews in the last few weeks. That’s way too many doctors, dentist and family emergencies to account for. Heaven forbid I actually have a legitimate doctors appointment. And seriously, a girl has to go to Mardi Gras. Work feels like such an inconvenience right now.

Thankfully, tomorrow is Tuesday and I have six more days until the next Monday.