i really shouldn't complain about things...something worse usually comes along. e.g. - mortgage companies. i only thought wamu was the worst thing out there. check out complaints about homecomings financial. oy. all my dealings with them from now on are going to be in writing, certified return receipt. including payments. i don't feel like fighting mortgage companies today, though. gotta conserve my energy.
working out at lunch is really working well. melanie and i have actually managed to stick with it. i weighed/measured today and found out i've lost a total of 6 inches since last august. i could have told them that, though. i'm down another dress size...almost two. most of it's probably been in the last three months. i really wasn't watching anything before new year's. ;)
competition work for the international balboa championships is kind of getting a little frantic. sorta. aaron and i had a private lesson with joel and alison last night. they gave us some great pointers -- hopefully we can remember them all come competition time! (less than two weeks, now!) me? nervous? not too bad...
i swear. nearly everyone that i've had to deal with at washington mutual loan department is completely clueless. i've been dealing with a lost mortgage payment since last november. i *finally* get them to agree to sign this stupid affidavit needed by the bank for us to get our money back and, after sending them a detailed cover letter about what they needed to do (not, i might add, what i really wanted them to do...), and they totally ignore it. hello? what part of sign, notarize and mail original back to bank at the following address do you not understand??!? i never said sign and fax back to me. sheeeesh! i should bill them for the 8 hours (at least) i've spend on hold and talking to them on the phone.
actually, it's hard to describe the frustration i feel. but i do know that it will be a cold day in hell before i do any banking with wamu unless they drastically change their customer service and banking systems.
they sort of work. i got them in a few times when i was practicing with aaron and again when i was at henry's, though i think i'm still rushing them. heh. i can't believe after 4.5 years of dancing i have to go back to counting again. ah well. this too shall pass.
sal is no longer allowed to miss henry's. when he doesn't go, it's always follow heavy. you hear that? if you don't feel well, bring gloves and a mask. ;) hehe.
i got an email from joel yesterday letting me know i'm officially entered in the competitions...and that he thinks i'm ready for the master-level classes. whee! should be interesting to see how much of a challenge this is...whether i'll be discouraged afterwards or challenged just enough. i suppose, worse comes to worse, i can always drop back down to the challenge level. :) suddenly, i'm really really looking forward to the bal rendezvous! (of course, getting my hosting assignments yesterday helps!)
it always seems like i cook something that is spectacularly good when i'm the only one about to taste it. then again, dinner tonight was really simple, so maybe i was just in the mood for what i made: a grilled pork chop, yellow squash and a spinach mix salad. i didn't have salad dressing that would be good on the salad, so ended up making my own basalmic vinegarette. sometimes i am just so amazed at how simple some things are to make...and here we spend all this money buying stuff at the grocery store. probably the most difficult thing about the salad dressing was mincing the garlic. heh.
earlier this evening i had a balboa semi-private with joel and alison. i think i may have finally mastered adding triple steps to my basic. it's only taken me what, two months? maybe three? we'll see when i get out on the social dance floor just how ingrained they are! i was thinking of entering some of the comps at the bal rendezvous, but i have a slight problem. no partner. they suggested i ask aaron as he's coming getting to be quite a good lead. i just might do that. i already entered in the jack and jill. we'll see how all this goes. at least i have one comp experience under my belt after the new year's exchange. it really wasn't as bad as i thought it would be.
in the end, it's nice to have an evening at home to just veg and "play house." i think i might even go to bed somewhat on time. imagine that.
everyone that i've mentioned my 3-hour nap yesterday and my 4-hour nap today to has made some comment about messed up sleep cycles. no. not really. the sad thing is that i'll sleep a full night's sleep tonight too. sleep deprived? probably.
i stopped by lindy loft for about an hour and half, then decided to call it a night. after i get done putting away laundry, it's time for bed!
friday night i had friends over for a pizza night at my place, then we all waded out throught the pouring rain to go to tio leo's to watch the freemonts play. i had bought a new knee brace the day before, but discovered that it was a little too large (i'm down a size in knee braces too??!?) as it kept sliding down around my ankle while i was dancing. i ended the night by just taking it off. i think the working out has been helping as it didn't feel any different from my "good" knee.
last night a rather large group of us went to irvine to hear campus five play for atomic ballroom's first anniversary. i pretty much danced my feet off, so today i'm pondering whether i'll make it to lindy loft tonight. between you and me? i'm sure i'll make the sacrifice. i'm not doing much else besides laundry today. ;)
ever had someone say something to you and about 45 seconds later you realize what they really said is not what you thought they said?
ok. so i've been working really hard to get back to my pre-college look. i went to pick up lunch from panda express after working out, and i was standing by the door, waiting for my friend melanie to catch up. i had accidentally made a comment to this guy in the parking lot, because i thought he was melanie catching up to me after we'd gotten out of the car...but anyway. he was in line behind me, and i didn't think much about him. on his way out the door, he walked by me and said something to me. what i thought i heard: "you have a nice day." what he actually said "you have a nice figure." of course, i had already mumbled a "thank you" and given him a faint smile. but he wasn't leering when he said it. so. well. i do have a nice figure again. thank you. i'm officially down 30 pounds from my heaviest weight and i'm fitting into a size 4(!) again.
go me!
i got home from bal class tonight in a bit of a funk. i was going to just go straight to bed and sulk, but instead found myself in front of my dulcimer, pondering. dad sent me new dulcimer hammers for christmas and i really haven't had much of a chance to play with them. they're a different weight and definitely a little bit longer. and tonight, i noticed that i can feel the string vibration through them. heh. strange how i can't just pick them up and play. it required me shifting my playing habits down about an inch and a half...heck, i even had to take a step back to shift down. dad said he thought they might help with faster music. i think i could see this being true. the weight is more in the head of the hammer so they have a bit more bounce to them. my other ones have ebony handles, so the weight is between my fingers. hah. more than you ever wanted to know about hammered dulcimer hammers. ;)
anyway. the fact that i had to completely concentrate to even do triplet scales helped my mood. and then there's 'midnight on the water'. i love that song. makes me feel like i should be on the banks of the mississippi somewhere, listening to the crickets chirp while the fireflies wink in and out of the trees.
anyway, i'm still sulky, but not quite so much as earlier.
i miss cooking. i love to cook actually, it's just that cooking for one isn't much of an incentive. i suppose that's why i randomly invite friends over for dinner rather often. a group of us had plotted a monthly supper club kind of thing, but it has yet to get off the ground. perhaps i should look at trying to start it up again...
and yes. all of this is from last night's class. my mom and sister nearly fainted when i ate the stuffed tomatoes. hehe. i guess i forgot to mention to them that i'll eat them cooked now. really, it's just the raw texture that i don't care for. well...and maybe a little bit of the raw taste.
now if only i could find a good grocery store that has some of the not-so-common items that i'd be interested in trying, i'd be in business. i keep forgetting there's a trader joe's near my place. hmmm...
otherwise...
as for tonight, it's another balboa class. last night at henry's was too much fun. a ton of people showed up, and i didn't lack for dances. i found out matt ended up accepting his job offer, so it looks like he'll be sticking around for a while. yay! after the number of good leads that we've been losing lately, it'll be nice to have a few stick around for a while.
well, it looks like my high school reunion might actually happen this year. this summer, to be precise. i got an email yesterday asking which month would be best for me - june, july or august. truthfully, any of them are good...just don't mess with my hepspot night. ;) then again, of the three bands that are playing, it's only really the june one that i'm anxious to be there for. i *suppose* i could miss a night of dancing to see people i haven't seen in 11 years. i guess. ;)
the rain has stopped here for a little bit, so we're actually drying out some. they're going back to work on recoating our balconies at my apartment complex...just after i put all my stuff back out. at least i have a patio so i don't have to worry about it.
i can't believe it's march already. day one of rent collection. my annual review is one day late (eek!). henry's night(!). workout day. it's getting light earlier so i'm waking up 15 minutes before my alarm goes off. (time to set the alarm back a bit?) oh! and i've got a cooking class at 6 - not that i remember which class we signed up for. *pauses to look* oh yeah - "do-ahead spring brunch." i keep meaning to take a knife skills class too. be afraid. be very afraid...