Who Leaves Nails Just Laying Around? Honestly?

I stepped on a nail tonight. And not just any nail - it was a giant nail. I did not enjoy that sensation much at all.

It was a good day overall. Starting off with some apple cinnamon pancakes, I spent most of my day enjoying the beautiful, breezy Summer weather while reading on my back patio, occasionally cooled off by the wind kindly peppering me with water from the fountain next to me. I then took my evening to the gym and managed to stay on the elliptical for a good 45 minutes. I also managed to work somewhat hard for 30 of those 45 minutes. My parents were gone all day and evening, enjoying the canyons in Park City for their anniversary, so I felt at my leisure to do what I wished. I felt that tonight would be a good night for ice cream, and it was decided that I would take a quick after-workout walk to Arctic Circle for a small shake once it got a little darker and I had eaten some real dinner. Then I would busy myself until 2am or so, followed by a little star-gazing to see if I'd be able to catch some of the Perseid meteor showers despite the poor viewing conditions of a suburb.

My friend Nate has impeccable timing sometimes, and tonight was one of those nights. He called just as I finished eating dinner and said he was feeling Arctic Circle tonight, so we decided to go a little earlier than I had originally planned. Nate biked to my house and then we took a short walk to AC for our nighttime snack. I went in craving a strawberry shortcake shake and ordered a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup shake. What can I say? My chocolate cravings are sudden and over-powering at best. We sat and ate and talked, and 15 minutes after Nate had finished his shake, I finally finished mine (I'm a very slow ice cream eater). So we headed back to my house. We cut through the parking lot of the apartment complex across the street from my house, where AC is located, and as we passed a car, I felt a sudden force hit my rubber flip flop. I thought I'd stubbed the front of my foot on something, but when I looked back, there was not speed bump, car stop, or anything of the sort where I had just stepped. I also shook my flip flop a little to dislodge the rock I had felt come under my foot. I stepped again. The rock had not budged. I took my flip flop off and when I pulled it up - having shaken it once for good measure to get that pesky rock out - I saw a giant nail poking through, having come in at a 45 degree angle.

I was quite surprised at the sight, you could say.

I pulled the nail out and wondered what to do with it. Nate said to take it home and throw it away, which was the obvious answer, but to be honest, I wanted to be done with it then and there. I didn't want to carry the blasted thing back with me, after what it had done to me! But I clutched it between two fingers, checked if my foot was bleeding or punctured at all - it was not bleeding, thank goodness! - and then made the walk home, pain quietly searing my foot. The whole time Nate kept putting my mind at ease with his vocal hopes that I didn't get tetanus. Each step was a little more painful with every reminder that I very well could get tetanus - so hopefully I didn't actually get it. Thanks Nate.

In my surprise by the sight of that very unwelcome visitor, the rusty nail, I was having a hard time making my key work to unlock our front door, and finally my mom came to my rescue and opened the door. Before she could finish her question of "where've you been?" I thrust the pesky nail between us and said, "I stepped on a nail!" I didn't really feel like beating around the bush regarding the incident. It seemed better to just say it like it was. I stepped on a giant nail. It wasn't pleasant. The ball of my left foot was throbbing slightly on the left side, under my pinky toe.

After we concluded that my foot was not bleeding, my parents sent me to wash my foot off and see if we could make it bleed. I didn't particularly care for that to happen, but I trusted them to know what was best. I washed my foot, and then brought it back out for them to look at. It continued to stubbornly remain dry, and I realized that this was actually better. Than perhaps dad would not send me to the doctor for a tetanus shot. We had decided I must have gotten one in high school at least, so the 10-year limit on the shot must still be valid. But I brought my foot to my mother to look at, and a small, gray spot that hurt when she pushed against it, next to it, around it, on it, made her wonder if it was a sliver. So handy daddy busted out a needle and his clippers, sat down on a chair, propped my foot up on a pillow - the rest of me lay on the floor, covering my eyes, flexing the right foot in sympathy for the left - and went to work digging around the spot with the needle to loosen the skin and get the "sliver" out. Cat came and rubbed his head on mine, staying close as my comfort.

After 10 minutes of little progress and one more foot bath, we decided the best action right now would be to throw some neosporin on the pained, slightly punctured skin, cover it with a bandaid, and see what tomorrow brings.

So here I sit, a bandaid on a foot that stings a little when I step on the ball of it, rather frustrated that I had to step in the exact spot of that nail, hoping I don't have tetanus, mildly impressed at how it entered my shoe and that I'm not more wounded. To be perfectly frank, it sucks, stepping on a giant, rusty nail, and my foot hurts. But if I want to look at the bright side, which I think I will (life is easier when you end thoughts on a more positive note), it could be quite a bit worse. The nail could've gone straight up through my foot, it could've punctured my skin a lot more, and I could have much less competent parents who do nothing for me. The fact remains, despite the needle dad kept rubbing slightly painfully around my wound, my foot got a tiny little massage tonight as well, so that's gotta count for something, right? Hopefully everything will be alright, but I'll definitely let you know if I end up getting my foot cut off or something. Because that seems like a big enough event to write about.

Pardon the last post...

A Quick Note: Please pardon anything in the previous post that seemed random, had missing letters/words, or didn't make any sense at all. I started falling asleep near the end typing it - it had been a very long day/week, and I surprised myself at how quickly my mind and body shut down on me. In all honesty, I'm not sure why I even started writing a blog post - the night is a bit blurry - but I think it came from the desire to celebrate my last day of work on my actual last day of work. One of those "must be written on the day" things, to mark the holiday. Don't judge me by what I said. Instead, celebrate that I even thought about the faxt that I have a blog, and that I wanted you to be joyful with me.

And now on to bigger and better things.

Actually, I don't really have anything bigger or better to talk about. But I felt like I was neglecting my little blog, after having been really good at writing in it for a little bit (kind of), and I wanted to get back to it with full force. So let's see, how to recap the last few days:

1. I gave a talk on Sunday at church. I actually think it turned out decently - better than I anticipated. I made my mom read over it first, to make sure I didn't sound insane, or like my last blog post. She could've lied to me and said it sounded good, and that would've been enough for me to go in with a little confidence booster. But she sounded sincere enough as well, so that was nice. Then mom and dad came to hear me speak, and my bishop's wife later spent 10 minutes talking with my mom about random things, namely how wonderful I am - I love people like that. Who think you're great based on their first impressions of you, and never take the time to update their opinions. I appreciated her kind words.

2. I helped mom and dad plan my grandma's 90 birthday bash at our house Monday. I went shopping with mom, made the table all lovely and inviting. The table setting skills would've made any cotillion teacher glow with pride. I helped skewer shrimp (which look like maggots before they're cooked, by the way. Who originally decided those translucent buggers would likely be good to eat?! Blegh). I cleaned the bathroom, and I dusted to Neil Diamond's Jazz Singer and ABBA. It was a good day. Then the guests came over, and I quickly cleared out after saying hello to well-known and long-lost aunts and uncles alike.

3. I played volleyball through Monday night, while the party continued at my house. I've been playing sand volleyball at least once a week for this 2nd half of the Summer, and it's been a blast. And might I say, I'm pretty good. I play with a pretty fun, rotating crowd, and we have a lot of fun with it. Though the rules are not always known/played by, which sometimes affects the lightheartedness we generally play with. But overall, when someone isn't dunk/spiking it or stealing a hit clearly called by another play, it's fun. On Monday, I made a motion that 2 boys who were playing can never be on the same team again (they make each other play worse, which is no good, since they didn't start very high), and that I never have to play directly next to one of those boys - because if I do stand by him, I never get to play at all. But enough with my little rants - it was fun, so why complain?

4. I slept in late this morning, woke up to an empty house, and spent the majority of my afternoon reading on our front porch. I started reading on our back patio, but a hovering hornet forced me from my luxurious setup near the fountain. I'm pretty sure that hornet hates me - I swear he's always around, and he hangs out really close to my legs, daring me to shoo him away. I'm pretty sure I wasn't smelling like a flower or anything - I hadn't showered yet today - so I don't know where he comes off thinking he can stalk me like that. Bah, stupid bugs. Speaking of, I have far too many mosquito bites right now, and yet I still find it hard to complain since this has been a much better summer for me and mosquitos than any I ever spent in Wisconsin. Maybe one day I'll learn to like bug spray. But probably not.

So that's been the life so far. I sure do enjoy spending Tuesdays like they're Saturdays. And I'm looking forward to spending Wednesday the same way. I love long vacations!

I'm Done!!!

Today was my last day of work! Woohoo! After just over 20 months of working at my job, having put in my 2 weeks notice 10 months ago, I have come to the end of my run at Northwestern Mutual. I leave with an increased respect for the company that helped raise me, and a greater appreciation for the awesome reputation held by the company I grew up with. I'm glad I could add my story line to "the family business."

But I'm also glad I'm out of the family business. I learned a lot from working as an administrative assistant to two financial representatives. I learned all about the different kinds of life insurance, disability insurance, and old person insurance (formally known as long-term care). I understand so much more about investments and all the different types of accounts you can set up. But I also learned I hate dealing with money - namely, other people's money. I hate customer service jobs. I don't like having my phone ring, just to hear that someone needs me to do something, which I generally don't know how to do in the first place. I learned I don't like the financial arena. It's all very important, and I'm glad to have learned it, but I don't want to deal with it daily.

Ultimately, I didn't feel the satisfaction of a job done well like I wanted to. I'd get excited about things - a case that finally got completed, a form that came in after months of tracking, etc. - but I didn't feel accomplished or like I played any part in the successes we had in our office. I did play a part, but it didn't hit me the way a well-written paper I would submit did. Call that selfish or self-centered, that's just how I work.

But I did enjoy it there, and I worked with some really fantastic people. Today was a fun day - we went to lunch at Thai Lotus (sooooo deliciouss~) - and then I spent the afternoon working on cleaning my cubicle. It felt like the last day of school! I was cleaning out my space (locker), and I ended up staying later to move everything back to co-worker Elizabeth, and saying hi/bye to people. It was such a wonderful feeling!

I'm so excited about these next few weeks! I'm sleeping in and going to be late...like tonight! But first things first. My job is now over. Time for job two - church. I better go write my talk for Sunday...I just found out I was speaking Wednesday, so this is going to be interesting. And my talk is on patience...awesome. What do you say about that? Well, I guess I'm at least lucky that I've perfected the skill of patience over those last 8 months as I waited to decide when to go back to school, when to move, if I should move. If that doesn't show patience, I don't know what does.

Any good ideas beyond Elder Uchtdorf's great talk on patience? Because I could use some good ones!

3 weeks vacation, here I come!

Sunny Day Rain

So I'm walking home from my bus stop this evening, my footsteps falling to the beat of Taylor Swift's "Fearless." The sun is shining, and I'm happy for the heat, though I'm looking forward to a nice cold glass of water to cool me down a little when I get home.

Taylor starts to sing her chorus, and when she gets to "with you I'd dance in a storm in my best dress," it starts raining on me - while it's still SUNNY out! It's not raining hard, but it's raining big drops, hitting me on my arm, my cheek, my shoulder, my foot, each drop splashing a little on contact. What a great treat! First of all, because it fits my personal music video I'm living at the moment with my song. Secondly, because sunny day rain is one of the most fun things! Knowing you won't actually get/stay wet, you can enjoy walking around in the rain, while also still enjoying a beautiful sun.

I just love the magic of it. I looked up to a nearly cloudless sky, and then got hit near my eye by a giant raindrop. Where'd it come from?! I admit, I first wondered who's sprinkler broke and started spraying everywhere -which wouldn't have been very magical at all. More like a headache for the homeowner. But to my, and all the homeowners', relief (whether they realize or not), it was the sky's broken sprinkler! A quick rest from the hot sun without having to fix anything later!

It was a beautiful little walk I got to enjoy this evening. It was the perfect treat after a very long, tiring day inside.

Note to Self...

When at the gym, do NOT watch the Food Network while attempting a hard workout on the bike/treadmill/elliptical/stair climber. It just complicates things.

First off, I went to the gym at the wrong time - I made it there with roughly 10 minutes left in the 8pm shows. And apparently 9pm on a Monday night doesn't have much to distract me from my workout. So, I finished my warm-up jog on the treadmill about 10 minutes early, and moved on to a stationery bike, hoping I might get myself moving a little more. While the treadmill I was on had my own personal tv, the bikes just had the giant shared ones, which I couldn't locate remotes for (I didn't look hard though - I try not to look like an idiot at places I already feel awkward and stupid in). I ended up right between the History Channel (which was almost interesting, but came just short of engrossing me in any way), Comedy Central (which was not very comedic to me at the time), and the Food Network.

Now I love, love, love the Food Network. I watch it all the time. But I don't really love, love, love working out. I just kind of like it for the endorphins that stick around a good while after.

So I'm sitting on the bike - which I might admit is not the best position for me if I'm looking for an actual workout (I'm more of a social stationery biker) - watching the Food Network's show about how some of the great treats in America are made. And I'm suddenly in love with sno-balls from Hostess. I can think of nothing but really wanting anything Hostess, wishing I was power-walking through the grocery store instead of casually pedalling on a bike going nowhere (which still makes me sweat like a beast - this is why I will never be hit on at a gym). Then I remember there's an Arctic Circle just on the other side of the parking lot! Celebrating July with birthday cake shakes! I force myself to stay at the gym for another 20 minutes, giving up on the bike as soon as a commercial abets my escape from Food Network torture, opting to do some situps and cool myself down a little.

I walk home (the gym's right across the street - sweet, huh? Makes for a great warm-up and cool-down!), wondering who of my friends might be up for a little field trip back across the street for shakes. The birthday cake shake will not stop dancing in my mind. I allow a break from my obsession by finding the perfect song to walk home to on a beautiful, warm Summer evening, my footsteps falling to the 2/4 beat, lips quietly singing the song to the breeze.

As soon as I walk into my room, I kick off my shoes and start texting a friend a very casual note that I hope implies that I want a response of "let's go over to Arctic Circle and get shakes" or "I want a Hostess cupcake really badly as well, let's get some!" Instead, I don't even get halfway through my casual note before another friend calls with some casual question. Recognizing this as destiny for me and my shake, I quickly answer the question, then say, "I really need a birthday cake shake from Arctic Circle - do you want to walk...," cut short by, "I'm on my way, I'll meet you near your house."

Fate, it would seem, meant for me to have my shake last night.

We met right outside my neighborhood and made our way to Arctic Circle. The birthday cake shake did not disappoint.

My friend and I decided this might become the perfect 10pm on a Monday night trip. Celebrating making it through one more Monday with a new flavor every week.

On the downside, that's one more workout that will need to be made up for, since it was offset by a delicious, but grossly fattening treat.

On the plus side, that's one more grossly fattening treat that was negated by a tiring, but somewhat hard workout.

What flavor do I try next Monday?

The Phantom Faxer

There are a lot of times that I really enjoy work. There are also a lot of times I really don't enjoy work. But the times that I enjoy work are always a lot more meaningful to me. And I know it's a really bad day when co-worker Elizabeth and I don't have at least one conversation that makes us laugh for 5 minutes at one or both of us.

Take today, for example. We have an online fax service for 'the Barlow offices' that we use, instead of a clunky piece of equipment (yeah, we're a forward-thinking office. We also have a bowl full of fruit on our desk, to make us look healthy as well. It's all about perception). This online service sends us an email when a fax we sent was "sent successfully" or when one comes in, blah, blah, blah. When I've sent a fax, Elizabeth puts the email in my folder from Jeremy's email (where the email is sent to). Then I can know it was successful in its sending. When she sends one, she saves it in her own spot. It's very advanced record-keeping.

Today, I looked at my folder around 9:45 this morning and saw that a fax was 'sent successfully' somewhere. Cue conversation:

Me (while staring at my email): Um...did I send a fax today?

E (while looking at her computer): Well, you must have. I haven't been in the fax system for a couple of days. So it's not mine.

Me: I can't for the life of me remember sending a fax today. I don't think I've been in there for a couple days either...

E: Go and check then. But I haven't faxed anything.

Cue me going into the fax website and looking at what was sent. Fax sent out roughly 9:05am on 7.12.2010. Cover letter is signed by E.

Me: So...E, this is what was sent. I don't think I sent this. Are you sure you didn't send a fax today?

E (comes over to see my screen, blushes): Uh...okay...so maybe that fax was sent by me. Wow.

Cue 5 minutes of laughter, followed by Elizabeth leaving and coming back, with a formal apology for telling me I had to have sent a fax I clearly didn't send. I giggle my acceptance.

It's the little - very little - things that often make my day enjoyable. And stupid conversations like that are sometimes the only thing that can bring a smile to my face at work.

Summer Tar

One of my favorite things about summer is walking around in the neighborhoods near my house and finding the lines of tar put down to cover big cracks in the road. I love to step on the tar with the ball or heel of my shoe, and twist so that the softened tar moves and stretches with the pressure of my foot, leaving an imprint of my step for a few seconds before returning to it's original smoothness.

It's best when I'm weaing a sneaker, or some type of shoe with a tread on its sole. The imprint of the tread lasts longer, like I'm leaving my signature, letting the next passerby know "I was here."

A thicker muck of tar is the best. My heel sinks lightly into the soft mush, like I'm checking the temperature of a pool of pudding. And when there is a whole group of goopy tar all spiraled together in a coiled pattern, so every step delves into another pool - I can't hide the silly grin that crosses my face. I giggled out loud yesterday when I got to my favorite cluster of tar snakes during an exceptionally warm day. I'm glad my neighbors don't seem to exist outside their homes these days. I don't know if they'd understand the joy I feel from smushing my foot into the gooey substances on their roads.

In all honesty, I don't really understand it either. I'm not sure why this tickles my fancy so much, but I think it has to do with the natural happiness I feel about Summer. It's hot and sometimes uncomfortable, but I can't deny the giddiness I feel everytime I walk outside to an inviting sun, beckoning me to play. I automatically close my eyes and smile whenever the warm breeze gently plays with my hair and tickles my neck. It's like flirting with that cute boy I finally got up the courage to talk to - I can't get to sleep because I'm so giddy, and I can't wait to find out what it will be like tomorrow. Will I be just as happy? Will he notice me again? Will my cheeks turn red just at the sight of him?

And it seems to turn out that, every next day, I am just as happy. He does notice me again. My cheeks do go red. Then they peel, and I feel like I have a disease as my skin flakes off on my face and arms. But even that brings a smile to my face. Because it means I've been spending the day playing in beautiful, sunny, warm weather! It's summer, and I'm going to go play with the tar on the streets!