New & Old Obsessions

I realized I have a ton of thoughts about Twilight, and no outlet for them.  For my Disney obsession, I have tons of Disney podcast and Twitter friends -- but for Twilight, not so much.  There are a few Twilight podcasts I love, but I haven't managed to build online relationships like I did in the Disney world.

Twilight Series Theories is a fave -- love those girls!  I also look forward to the Bite Club, Before the Dawn (Marina and I are on the same page about Breaking Dawn), and of course, Imprint (when Andrew can fit one in).

So, the new direction of my blog is Twilight, but I will never lose my love of Disney.  So to catch you up on what's happened in my life since my last blog (March 2010?!!), here's the scoop:

Although I enjoyed the bank work, I have to admit I didn't love selling services.  It was cool to only work 30 hours a week, though.  I got to see lots of movies and was able to make it to the gym regularly!

But as fate would have it, an opportunity opened up for me at a local university, working in PR & Marketing with a former co-worker.  And I love it!!!!  Although the hours are much longer, and the gym went by the wayside until recently, I am inspired and excited by the university environment!

I just recently joined a Powerhouse gym.  It's reasonable, roomy and an easy stop on my way home from work.  I've been working towards getting back into my routine again.  Doing pretty good, and starting to love working out again :)

So now on to Twilight ... but first I have to head to the gym ... more tomorrow!!

Success Leads To Changes

I was successful at finding a new part-time job! I'm going to work at a local bank as a part-time teller, something I did at the very beginning of my work career and really enjoyed. The only thing different now is that the computers are faster, and everyone in a bank including tellers are expected to sell -- in the old days we just had to be friendly!

So I learned a few things in the last few months -- some good, some bad!

The first thing I learned again, the hard way, is that I am a stress eater. All those pounds I lost last year training for the Half Marathon have come back with a vengeance! So I am trying to get going again, with the gym and running. I'm hoping it won't be too hard once I get into a routine with my new schedule and it's close to spring here in Michigan. And I'll also join Club 8 with some seriousness, not just for the fun of it!

The second thing I learned was that hourly retail jobs are pretty hard to come by. I originally was just looking for a job I could do at night and weekends, which would be easier than juggling two daytime jobs. I didn't apply at a ton of places, but never even got a nibble.

And the last thing I learned -- finally, in my old age -- was to listen to my mother!! If only I had done that years and years ago, I would be a lot better off in a lot of ways!! So this time, when this big change came along in my life, I decided I would do everything she suggested. So when she said try some banks, I did, and boom, success! Needless, to say, she will be very happy to say "I told you so"!

Happy Easter everyone!

Love Your Library

I'm at a local library today -- not my town's, which is a little small. But one that's two towns over from me. And boy, is it a cool place.

I haven't been in a library for 10 or 15 years, and I had forgotten what wonderful places they are! This one is fairly modern and medium high-tech. But it's got a lot of tables, study rooms, carrels, and computer stations. And loads and loads of bookshelves and books!

It brings back the feelings I had when I was younger, of possibilities and knowledge and quietness and studiousness and learning. Ahhhhh.

When I was little, growing up in Concord, NC, our local library was in an old, two story, white, small Southern mansion. It was donated to the town by the Cannon family, of the Cannon towel/textiles fame. It had old, creaky wood floors and lots of small and medium sized rooms full of old wooden bookshelves and what seemed like millions of books! And since it was an old house, full of mostly old books, it had an old smell -- not unpleasant, but a very specific antique smell.

When I was little, I went straight for the Nancy Drew and "You were there" young history books. Later I grew into biographies and fiction, and the taller bookshelves.

Now, sadly, that old house is gone and the library is in a new, nicely modern building. I still remember that old wonderful, magical place every time I drive by the corner it used to sit on.

But back to today. I'm looking for a part-time job, and am here filling out apps online. At home, there are distractions and cats that need something every 12 minutes. So coming to the library is working out great for me.

And hopefully, I will get a part-time job soon, and then I'll be able to come to library for fun instead of work!

Happy Holidays!

Happy Holidays to everyone! Hope everyone enjoyed time with special people, and at least enjoyed the calories that none of us really should have consumed! My crazy food included a Paula Deen butter and cream cheese cake. I could feel my arteries hardening.

But my first Christmas without my dad turned out okay. My mom, brother + fam, sister + fam enjoyed our time together, and no one caused any big uproar -- always a good thing.

Spending time in NC with my mom has made me realize I really need to find a way to get back down here quicker. Since my Michigan job has now turned into part-time, I'll definitely include NC in my job search. It sure would be nice if I could spend a significant part of the year with her. We'll see.

My running has been lame. But I'll keep at it.

Amanda had a great idea -- if I'm not running the Disney Half in the future, I could volunteer! I think it would be super fun! I will run local 10Ks, by the way. I won't give up running, just will run shorter distances.

See some of you soon!

What a year. And I don't really mean that in a good way!

It has been interesting. Lots of ups and downs, for all of our gang.

For those of us who didn't have a great year of training and eating right, and know that we left opportunity on the table -- it is what it is. But every morning, every minute, we can start fresh. So let's keep trying to move forward.

I am pretty sure I am done with half marathons, but I hate that this year hasn't been an improvement over last year. I really was looking forward to building on what I accomplished last year. But I didn't know I would lose my dad this year, and I didn't know that training without that "fear of being swept" would be harder. I also didn't know our Team Voice would be more distracted and busy and less connected this year (I'm a prime example) -- but it's totally understandable. And it certainly makes me understand how TRULY MAGICAL our experience was last year.

But it seems like we do have some Team Voicers who have had a great year, and are destined to have fabulous runs -- and I am SOOOO happy for them! You know, all year I've watched Rae's training and races, and am still amazed and flabbergasted by her drive! Could we please bottle some of this up, Rae?!!

Hopefully I'm not speaking out of turn about everyone's experiences this year. Please forgive me if I didn't say something quite the right way.

Now despite my bummer of a year, I am still VERY excited about seeing some of Team Voice in a few weeks at WDW! I'm NOT excited about the race, but I'll just gut it out and try to enjoy the experience as best I can.

And after MILE 13, I'll start looking forward to enjoying some 10Ks!

Back, And Gone Again

I'm back from WDW. It was a great trip! More on that later.

Tomorrow I'm driving to NC to spend Thanksgiving with my family, the first without my father. I think we'll be fine, and will enjoy our time together.

It's also the weekend of my mom's class reunion, and mine too! It's going to be interesting. Since I've been gone from town for so long, and have a terrible memory, I am going to be clueless about who the heck everyone is!

More next week!

Enjoy your turkey and your families!

Hey, I'm Going to Disney World!

I've been so lame about blogging, that I just realized today that it might be a good idea to mention that I'm going to WDW on Sunday!

Me and my sister will be there for a week to celebrate my birthday on Tuesday. This is the first time the two of us have gone alone, and I think it will be a cool, bonding experience. Either that, or we'll be sick of each other by the end of the week!

She was not able to come in January 2009 for marathon weekend -- my parents and brother did. So I told her we would do this trip as her replacement, and finally I would get to have a birthday at WDW.

I'm going to try the dining plan for the first time this trip. I've always liked to have one table-service meal each day, usually lunch, just to have a break and some quiet time before heading out again. So the plan should mesh with my normal routine -- except for dessert. Usually I'm full enough that I'm okay skipping dessert to save calories and money, but now I will feel obligated to get a dessert! Could be trouble!

We're staying at the Boardwalk (DVC). MK will be open til 11 one night and EC will be open until midnight, so that will be cool. I love the parks at night.

And speaking of night, AK will be open until 8 one night, and I will finally get to see AK after dark! Usually we go in the morning, have lunch at Rainforest (can almost always eat at the bar without waiting), and then head back to BW because we can't take any more of the heat and humidity of the AK jungle!

This time, we'll probably head over to AK around 3, eat an early dinner at Y&Y, and then walk around and see how the park looks under lights! I'm really looking forward to it.

What else is new this trip? My birthday breakfast will be at Norway with the princesses. I happen to love buffet breakfasts -- love the fruit, pastries, and breakfast items -- and then I have the rest of the day to work off the calories! Much better than an evening buffet (except for not maximizing DDP dollars).

As I was making ADRs for the trip, I walked that fine line of choosing expensive spots (to maximize the DDP dollars) versus choosing spots that I like, had a menu me and my sis could enjoy, and had ADRs available. I suspect I'll end up about breaking even when all is said and done.

I'm also really looking forward to new Space Mtn and Kim Possible. I'm going to try and do all the countries, since I have five days. I also need to check out Vinylmation, and hope I don't get hooked!

I'm also going to use Photo Pass for the first time this trip. I've gotten pretty jaded about taking pics lately -- I took hundreds the first few times I went to WDW. But since it's me and my sis, I want to have lots of pics to commemorate the trip, and why not let the Disney photographers do the work for me?!

I also plan to Tweet, blog and record some audio. Now whether my iPhone battery will cooperate is another story! We'll see what happens, and how many outlets I find to use. Wonder if anyone ever asks for a table near a plug, instead of near a window?!!!