Tuesday, February 14, 2012

Happy Valentines Day

Last week I mostly focused on my job search. I still need to put some time into a few federal jobs, but I'm mostly trying to find something here in Anchorage. Certainly in the next five years Leigh and I will be thinking about moving to the East Coast or Seattle, but for now we're really enjoying building a community and settling into our house.

This weekend we decided to settle in a bit more. We have several nice pieces of furniture, but an equal number of Craigslist finds. The pieces weren't quite fitting together and don't exactly fit the shape of the rooms in our house. The most obvious problem was the armoire we converted to hold our media electronics. It was a little too tall, a little too boxy, and a little too light in color for the room. So we decided to look for something that was either 1) built for a corner or 2) a good size to fit along the opposite wall in the room.

Sunday morning we left the house expecting to spend a very long day looking for a decent deal on sub-par furniture. Our first stop was the JC Penny Furniture Store (in Anchorage the furniture store is separate, I don't know why) because it opened first. We did a lap around the store and quickly found not one, but three well-priced pieces we liked for our house! And, as a sign of our new-found adulthood, all of these pieces are made of real wood (not composite) and came assembled for us (no flat-packing, no instructions!). We found a nice TV console that fits beautifully along a short wall dividing our living and dining areas, a hutch that works well for books and knick-knacks, and a pretty mirror we'll eventually hang on the wall.

By the time we got home I started feeling pretty crummy. I went upstairs to lay down, occasionally dragging myself to the bathroom to throw up, then curled up a bit longer. It was awful. But Leigh, being the focused, sweet, and slightly-OCD person that she is, got to work setting up our new living room. She set up the media system, moved furniture, fluffed pillows, the works. When I emerged from my sick, sleepy stupor I came downstairs to a cozy new space. I stayed home from work yesterday waiting for the nausea and body aches to subside, all the while enjoying our new living room. Photos to come soon.

Anyway, today is Valentines Day and I'm well enough to be at work. I normally strongly dislike Valentines Day, mostly because it detracts from my birthday (which is 2 days later). Selfish? Maybe. But as any holiday-born person will tell you, nothing stinks more than the whole freaking world being doted on when it's supposed to be YOUR DAY!

Oh well, at least Leigh and I get to enjoy a nice lunch together at one of our favorite local diners, Snow City Cafe. This place is pretty awesome: tasty food, walking distance from our offices, waiters with tattoos, and today proceeds are going toward One Anchorage, an LGBT equality group here in Anchorage.

The rest of the week we will probably spend more time tidying up the house and preparing for this weekend. Each year my supervising judge hosts a group at a ski lodge about 1 1/2 hours from Anchorage for some cross-country skiing and hanging out. The judge and his buddies rent out nice cabins and have meals catered. The judge's clerk (that's me) arranges for a group of 10-15 clerks and friends to rent out a big cabin together. We will cook meals, hang out, ski, and have a meal or two catered by the lodge. So Leigh and I will spend Friday packing and preparing dishes to take for the weekend. Cannelle is spending Saturday night with a group of friends down the street and Juneau is looking forward to a quiet weekend alone. It should be a good time for all!

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