I believe there’s magic here in these sails In the wake of these old pirate trails

So hubs and I are planning on going to the western caribbean in 66 days and the amount of planning in a 7 day cruise is enough to make me hit babies.  You have to pick dinner times ahead of time, pack casual clothes, nice clothes and formal clothes.  Over the door shoe hangers for the bathroom because I have a ton of toiletry shit, coolers, water canteens, coolers, speakers for the ipods, duck tape, zip ties, water proof cameras…its exhausting.  So far I have a list, thats it, a list of what we need to buy/pack.

I have decided the 8 dollar price per alcoholic drink is OUTRAGEOUS so I am going to be bringing my own.  This is where the water canteens come in.  Figure I will put two in our checked luggage, one filled with vodka and the other with rum.  Should cut on some of the cost.  Also going to bring two cases of water each.  One of plain drinking water to take on shore and then a case of vitamin water-partly because it is a great mixer and because it to will be used on shore.  The duck tape is for marking our luggage and for closing the dresser drawers at night.  Zip ties is to secure our luggage because I have learned they are less likely to mess with luggage closed with zip ties.  But my good friend Linds told me that when she and her hubs went  on a cruise no one even looked in their bags so I am not that scared.  But I am also going to buy two stainless steel food grade water canteens with thermal covers because truth be told we don’t have enough water canteens for the amount of water we drink

We are trying to figure out what shore excursions we want to do.  I really want to not be stuck with the cruise people the whole time.  I would like to think that we are capable enough to spend time on our own or with smaller tour groups.  I know when we get to Cozumel we are just going to rent a car and do the damn thing on our own.  There are a few Mayan ruins on the island and I would rather spend 30 dollars renting a car and driving to them than spending 60 per person to go with the cruise tours.  The one I really want to find our way to is the ruins of Tulum.

Khaki Skirt Failure

 

 

 

Why is it when I wear Khakis I always spill something on myself. Never when I wear black or dark denim jeans. Always Khakis. I was sitting at my desk this morning getting myself situated when coffee literally jumped from my coffee cup onto my skirt. I don’t know how it happened but it is infuriating.  I don’t like using the tide pen or the shout wipes because those can leave a grease mark on some fabric.  I would rather douse said stain in water and have a wet spot for 20 minutes than a grease mark on my clothes all day.

I’m trying to find unique items online to fill our apartment with. Since the hubs is in the military it is unlikely that we will have a house of our own for quite some time, but we will have to move a lot and I want us to have items that will give where ever we are an eclectic vintage feel. Something that is homey but not cheesy or stereotypical.   Right now our home is a mess of mismatched items and nice furniture and then deals from Ikea.  I am going to be sanding down and restaining some furniture this summer but I want more stuff on my walls or around the apartment.   Normally I keep these things to myself because I like the idea of being the only person I know in on secrets but since other people are broadcasting it now it’s not as important.

      

These are totally cool and fresh.  I love it when I see something you won’t find at bed bath and beyond at people’s houses.  Its refreshing to know that some people take pride into what they have in their homes.  I would rather spend a few extra dollars on something unique than waste my money at walmart.

These are my new favorite coffee mugs and they come in tons of colors and shapes.  Plus the company also specializes in making “green” drinkware which means a lot to me because I try to incorporate as many green items in my day to day life as possible.  I found them in a small coffee shop in Raleigh that I always return to for their creme brule late.

I’m trying to spend more time taking pictures.  I hate it when I see people that call themselves photographers and sell their prints when it is generic pictures someone took with a camera of birds or plants.  I may not know my way around lighting but I can figure out cool angles thanks to my background in painting and some of pictures come out fairly decently.  I don’t really know what to do with them besides store them on my computer but photography has become an artistic outlet for me now that I don’t have as much time to paint as I like.

 

 

 

 

Alone in an empty office.

The hubs and I

I’m not new to this blogging world. I’ve had a few other online journals but seeing how I start out with the best intentions and then forget a few days later I have either forgotten what website I used or my passwords and usernames so here I go again.

I recently got married to Phillip and I’m living in Fayettenam with my little family (it includes our dog Freyja who I believe is not a Rottweiler/Lab mix but a Lab/Minitature Pincher mix because of her lack of growth). I moved down here in November and we got married in April. I have come to believe whatever girl tells you how much different marriage is from dating didn’t fully get to know their significant other and married them without having been through both the best and worst of times with them. The only things that are different, to me, is getting used to saying husband and signing a new last name. Otherwise its exactly the same.

I started a new job at a counseling center three weeks ago so it has been three weeks since I have had a day off. I also work part time at the local hospital. I got my new job because the job at the hospital started calling me out all the time. I have bills to pay so I found a better job. Nine to five type and I get to wear dressy/casual clothing and sit in nice chair. I didn’t think the hospital really needed me so I kept weekend hours (I am obligated to work at least 48 hours a month for the unit I am employed) which was a complete mistake because I have worked every day that I am scheduled so far. Its exhausting. But at least I am home in the evenings now and we get to have dinner together and not fall asleep at one or two.

I am trying to get used to having not quite the same income as before. I am a surgical technologist but I hate it. I don’t want to be defined by working in a hospital, it’s great for others but not for me, so I paid off my student loan (which almost sent me to the bathroom throwing up because I paid it the same week my car payment is due) and Phillip and I are going to head to base in the next week to figure out how to transfer his GI bill to me so I can get back into school. I have almost an associates degree in liberal arts but neither one of us has a real degree. He is getting ready to start training for a new job in the airforce and if it doesn’t work out he is going to leave and we both want me to have a degree so that if he does leave, we aren’t left in a tight spot. We live fairly well compared to others our age. We don’t worry too much over money, we drive nice cars, we are able to travel, but if he leaves the airforce then we are screwed unless I get back into school, My problem has always been going back and forth over what I want to study. Art and art history is my passion but that’s not a job that I can carry with me if we move overseas (fingers crossed). And I have thought about becoming a teacher but then again, I only want to teach art. My other love is psychology. And it was my first major. I totally missed out on a mentorship at UVA for forensic psych in 2003. I could have had it handed to me through friends and alumni, and I had the grades to transfer but I decided to be the weird art student instead. I guess I have a lot on my plate. Getting used to depending on somone besides my dad (the hubs took my car to get the oil changed yesterday since I always forget to), getting back into school, living in the armpit of North Carolina and knowing no one. Dealing with the stress of a different pay grade but not really suffering because of it. I don’t know. All the experiences I have will make me a stronger person. Let’s just keep fingers crossed no babies are in my future because that would send me over the edge.