Oooohhh Nooooo

This just in:

San Antonio is the second fattest city in the United States.

Only Las Vegas is fatter.

Awesome.

http://www.bizjournals.com/sanantonio/stories/2007/02/05/daily34.html

A Story of Anxiety...(and one pug's silent protest)

A few weeks ago, our pug started to exhibit strange behavioral changes. He wouldn't eat his breakfast, he wouldn't eat his treats, he would barely nibble at his dinner...and then he would throw it up. I scanned the pet food recall list over and over and over again because I was certain we were inadvertently poisoning him with his IAMS.

Then we realized that the days he does this are only and always the days that we are scrambling to get the loft all cleaned up because the realtors want to show it to a client.

He has also started to strategically pee...inside...on white linen things...right before the realtors show up. For example, the white floor-length curtain that covers my closet in the bedroom - or - the white bedding. It's like clockwork. The realtor calls....he lifts his leg...we walk in the room to find him mid-pee, staring at us like we're crazy for thinking we can sell *his* house.

Over the last month we have perfected the routine of dusting, windexing, sweeping, washing, turning lights on, lighting candles, cueing music, etc. to get it all done right before they show up. And, part of that routine includes moving Muggsy's crate out to one of our cars so that it isn't an eyesore. This sends him over the edge. You'd think he was going to have a heart attack - he shakes and whines and just generally freaks out. Poor little guy. When we first got him and started to crate train him I didn't believe the books that said "your dog's crate will be his safe space, and soon he will love to spend time in there". Well, I'm pretty sure that he has never "loved to spend time in there". In fact, he HATES to go in there most of the time. If the door isn't shut, he won't stay in it. So, why all the anxiety when we take the crate outside? You'd think he'd be happy to see it go away.

I recently tried to explain this whole moving process to him, using my best "dog language". I don't think he gets it. Or if he does understand, then he clearly doesn't want to go anywhere. The conversation went something like this:

Me: Cheer up Muggsy Boo Boos, once our home is sold and we move to Texas you'll have a new house and a backyard to play in (and pee in til your heart's content!). You won't need to stay in your crate anymore and it will be much more fun.

Muggsy:

Reasons to be cheerful...

or not...

The news this week has dealt a blow to the ole' confidence. A couple of my favorite headlines:

Apparently, we will be lucky if we can sell our loft any time in the next decade...
Home Sales: Worst Drop in 18 Years

And, when and if I finally find a job, I can be expected to still be poor because I'm not a man:
On Payday it's still a Man's World

At least things started to look up when I visited mysa.com (San Antonio Express-News) and found out that South Texas real estate is still "habanero hot"!

So, according to the media and general economic forecast, Jarrod and I will struggle to sell our loft, move to Texas where we will struggle to afford a decent "hot!" piece of real estate, and I will get paid considerably less than my male counterparts (but seriously...that ain't new).

Uplifting huh? Yeah...I need a fudgesicle now.

Frustration...

As you've probably noticed, I haven't posted in over a week. That is most likely because NOTHING seems to be happening on the real estate front. Here is the update for curious minds:

We've had a fair amount of traffic through the loft, but no offers yet. (One girl wanted to buy it , supposedly had the funds to make the investment, and her mother talked her into r-e-n-t-i-n-g. What on earth?!?)

We met with a financial specialist at our bank to discuss our move/finances/loan approval, etc. He basically told us nothing and it was a big fat waste of time. We can't get any answers until our loft sells!

It is looking increasingly as though we will not be able to purchase a home in San Antonio until at least the end of summer, if even that soon...unless our loft sells within the next week or so.

The bottom line is - we need to sell our loft. Preferably sooner than later.

Keep wishing us luck!

Must. Work. On. Spanish

So, once upon a time, there was a girl (we'll call her Becca...and her spanish name became "Beca"...pronounced "bey-kah") who entered college, terrified of the foreign language requirement. Despite taking 2 years of spanish in high school, traveling to Guatemala, and growing up in Texas, she still viewed the foreign language requirement (that each student must reach the "literature level") as a very daunting and scary task.

She took the Wake Forest placement test and ended up in a level that would require three semesters of study. Three very difficult, class-every-day, semesters.

Semester 1 was interesting. Professor Jesus Pico-Argel was a very sweet, enthusiastic little man, who could barely contain himself when talking about his homeland of Columbia. And he tried his hardest to make class fun. Hard...but fun. Becca drew the line though when he requested that his students sing Shakira songs in front of whole class. So embarassing, and definitely not easy.

Semester 2 was nice. Professor Carlos Valencia (pronounced Carlos ValenTHia) was the opposite of Professor Pico. He was tall and dreamy. And yes, dreamy is the appropriate word. Every girl at Wake Forest knew of his existence and every girl who took spanish wanted in his class. There is a legend (scratch that - it is a true story) that goes something like this: An intelligent female junior got drunk one night, went home to her apartment mad at her boyfriend, and in her drunken stupor...emailed dreamy Carlos...to tell him how dreamy he was. She realized it the next morning and spent the rest of the semester going to class with a beet red face and a complete inability to look at him. (No - this was not Becca. It was Becca's class partner, whom she felt terribly sorry for!)

Semester 3 was tough but short because it was in the summer. Luckily, Becca felt as though she was in familiar territory because the class was taught by Pico again! She suffered through every day and at the end of the class was able to speak, read, and write fluently enough to get an A and fulfill the entirety of the foreign language requirement.

That was before her sophomore year in college.

Seven years later, she has not spoken, read, or written a darn thing in spanish and doesn't remember much more than the absolute basics. Unfortunately, this is not good since she is about to move to a city where it is very helpful to know spanish! Gasp! What would Carlos think?!? The horror!

-----

Alright, I'm done speaking about myself in the third person. Seriously, I have GOT to re-learn spanish.

Eeeewwwww!!

So, if you were going to list your home and your real estate agency was going to post pictures of your home in the online listing...then why, oh why, would you allow the pictures to be taken on a day when your kitchen looks like this?!?!? And what realtor allows you to represent your kitchen this way?!?

I am baffled. Everything I've read about selling homes says that the place should look clean and spacious...and even an idiot knows the best way to make a space look "spacious" is to NOT have clutter everywhere.

I don't think we'll buy this one. There appears to be a massive shortage of cabinet space in the kitchen! Either that, or these people have a serious aversion to doing the dishes, which means there is probably an uncontrollable bacteria problem.

Hehehe. :)

HGTV.com

OMG this is fun! I'm just about as in big in to this as I am in to the Food Network. (And that is big!)

This site is perfect for me as I start to think about my next decorating/designing project. And by next project, I mean our future house. This site has a gazillion ideas/tips/articles on decor and interior design...but the best part is the color section. It is like a big online swatchbook!

If you want to know what your fave colors say about you, then go here.

In other news...we were told the caravan show went well a few days ago, so now we're just waiting for our first official showing (tomorrow!). Stay tuned for updates.

A Few of My Favorite Things

Today was a bit stressful. Actually, this week is turning out to be very stressful, due mostly to the amount of things I need to accomplish and the lack of time with which to accomplish them. To top it all off, I am growing more impatient by the hour that nobody has come to look at our house since we listed it last week! Of course, tonight I find out that the realtors are bringing a "caravan" of other realtors through tomorrow morning . Tomorrow morning. This. Is. Very. Bad. Timing.

I have to meet the harpist I have hired to play at tomorrow's event at 8:00 a.m. so she can deliver her harp to the venue to allow it to properly adjust to the temperature of the room (oh the things you learn when you're an event planner!) then I have to race back to the loft to be here when the caravan shows up to remove Muggsy until they leave, then race back to work and get everything done in time for my event set-up. Uggghhhh. And of course, Jarrod is out of town and though he returns tomorrow, it will not be in time to help with any of this scheduling nightmare. And it ain't like the schedule gets any easier the rest of the week either!

So I got home from my junior league meeting tonight* and decided to chill and reflect upon the things that give me comfort. And really, these are things that can brighten my mood just about any day because they are some of my favorite things.

In no particular order, here they are:

• Swatches - paint swatches, linen swatch books, etc. I love swatches because they entice me to think creatively. Today I was trying to pick linens for an upcoming event but I felt hampered by the fact that my venue has truly heinous (and I do mean HEINOUS) carpet. Fornately, I pulled out my handy linen swatchbook and the next thing I knew I was lost in my own little world of thinking about all the linen combinations and possibilities. Yes, I know I am a big dork, but I also enjoy spending time on the BBJ linen website. I also make a beeline for the paint section whenever we go to Lowe's or Home Depot, just so I can swipe as many paint swatches as I can grab. Don't worry - it's legal people! They WANT me to take lots of swatches, I promise!
  
• Edamame - Little soybeans that you have to suck out of the pods which if properly prepared to my liking are steamed and then coverd with sea salt. Yum! Part of my dinner tonight!
• Cake Batter Ice Cream from Cold Stone Creamery - Do I need to explain this?
  
• Muggsy - Seriously, he is so happy to see me when I get home...even if he should be ticked that I've left him alone for eight hours, it is like he forgets about his anger the minute I walk through the door and can't wait to cuddle up with me on the couch or play some game involving a slimy dog toy that he has chewed to a barely recognizable state. So adorable...do devoted...so welcoming at the end of even the worst days.
  
• Hypothetical Furniture Shopping - You know, this is what you do when you're getting ready to move and know you will have a lot of space to fill because you have almost no furniture that you didn't have in college! I truly enjoy browsing crate&barrel.com, ikea.com, restorationhardware.com and random interior design blogs and sites.** The problem is, I don't have much time to do this right now!
• My Fake Purple Orchid - This plastic and silk plant sits in my office window and much to my delight, it elicits numerous compliments from office visitors. "How on earth do you keep that beautiful orchid in such good condition Becca?" "That is blooming so well!" Ha ha ha - if they only knew that I've never owned a real plant I haven't killed. Well...that's not entirely true. I have kept a bamboo tree alive in our loft, but that is because it is nearly impossible to kill a bamboo plant. Anyway, the purple orchid makes me happy because it always looks perfect.
• Shoe Shopping - Total therapy. You can never have too many shoes, and the perfect pair can make even a bad hair day or ill-fitting outfit (ill-fitting due to temporary fatness of course) seem like no big deal. (Ha - temporary fatness.)
  
• Wedding Planning - Today a student stopped by for some unofficial non-UGA sponsored wedding planning advice. I love it. It is so fun to help someone plan such a huge day in their life. So rewarding and so invigorating! And...another reason to pull out the linen SWATCHBOOKS! :)
  

Alright, I'm feeling better already. Time to clean the house...AGAIN...for the circus...I mean caravan...of realtors.

*Tonight I found out that I was placed on the public affairs committee for next year. I was one of only six women who got this placement, and honestly it was probably because only six of us requested it. But whatever...despite my good fortune, it won't matter because I won't be here next year and since I wasn't in San Antonio when they chose committee placements for 07-08, I'll probably end up on some terribly boring ways and means committee when I transfer to the SAJL.

**On the other hand, this activity can backfire when you realize you have no money to back up your grandiose decorating plans.