Wedding Planning Begins

Sitting on the couch right now thinking
a) I wish HuluPlus would work so I can continue watching American Horror Story
b) I need to research affordable caterers in the Champaign area and
c) shit, so much has happened in my life lately and I haven't record any of it in my blog.

So first things first, all that 'stuff' that's happened.

The big one:  Spencer and I are engaged!

He popped the question on October 12, his birthday.  Of course the question then, how did he do it?

Future husband

In short, I had gone to bed on the 12th around 6pm.  Early to bed, since I'm early to rise for work.  A bit later Spencer woke me up, wearing a suit, boxed ring in hand.  He said some amazing lovey things and asked me to marry him.  And then followed up the next day with flowers, and the day after that, a hand-written poem.

So it wasn't the over-the-top proposal I had secretly been hoping for. But, and a big but here, Spencer is amazing.  He tells me everyday how much he loves me.  He truly makes me feel loved.  Up until my work schedule changed in August, I could rely on the sound of him grinding coffee beans downstairs at 10pm as I got up for my overnight shift.  The weekend he proposed, he dedicated his entire Saturday to supporting me: cleaning disgusting kitten cages at a Mega Pet Adoption event I wanted to help with; and then standing by, taking photos, and keeping me company as I emceed an event.  And while it's just minor, I still smile at how be brought me breakfast as I reported in a snow-storm, which led to him being off work, last winter.  He is always there for me.

So.  He didn't do amazing with the proposal, but I'm over it.  I can. not. wait for the rest of our lives together.  Also a cute side note: apparently Spencer's dad also proposed to his mother, yes, in bed.  So we have that going for us.

Two Years

...since Spencer last had a cigarette.  Cue the song.

April Fools' Report

Apparently Spencer is really into April Fools' Day.  It became clear Monday night (my April Fools morning), when I crawled out of bed and into clear tape stretched across the bathroom door.  And when Tuesday night with just two hours left of the 'holiday' he gave me a fake scratch off ticket that we went out of his way to buy.

(Spencer cleaning up the mess caused by the 'sprayer' prank.
(bottom right) Harry probably standing next to fake pee spots.

The last 24 hours have been a battle at our home.  And so, a scoreboard, and a final tally of the pranks.

Good effort by all.  Going to call it a tie so our truce remains effective:)

Just Make Me Feel Loved

Everyone blogs for different reasons.  I blog to remember.  In this case, I want to remember this weekend.  The second anniversary of Spencer and I meeting.

Our anniversary falls on Valentine's Day.  I tell Spencer that's a good thing, that it means he can get the lovey stuff out of the way all on one day of the year.  Spencer would probably argue differently, say that it just puts added pressure on the day and his need to pull out all the stops.  Either way.  My requirement:  you don't necessarily have to buy my anything, just make me feel loved.   It's what I told him all week as he moped around the house saying he didn't know what to get me.

Friday came.  I surprised Spencer with a book he's been wanting.  And while it didn't make it through the mail in time, custom framed the poster from the event where we met.

Not knowing exactly what to get me, he just got me everything:
From flowers, to a bottle of Pink Moscato Champaign ('because we drank this the night we met), to chocolates and a singing monkey from CVS (a nod to this SNL skit).  He created a card for me: a sketch of me holding a teddy bear (because a coworker got similar fan mail recently).  He addressed Valentine card's as though they were from one cat to another, from our dog to one of the cats, etc. AND on top of all that, created a slideshow, complete with music and costume changes. He projected up onto our wall and we danced as it played.

Indeed, I did feel loved.  I do feel loved.  Really loved.

(The other side to this, I feel guilty.  That I put so many expectations, so much pressure on one single day.  That Spencer felt the pressure, likely felt like he had to go out all.  I feel awful that earlier in the day I had been crying to myself because I hadn't been paraded with love yet. But that's another blog post for another time, it's 2:30 pm and this morning reporter needs to go to bed)

Top Left:  Bacon magnet I put on our bathroom mirror for Spencer Vday morning.  He added the other quip.
The rest: gifts from Spee.

Surprise!

Spencer's 30th birthday was Saturday.  We were already in Chicago for a wedding the day before and decided to stay in the city for the big day.   We went out to lunch and dinner.  Stopped by IKEA.  He closed on his car loan, meaning he now official owns a vehicle! It wasn't a bad day, but it wasn't particularly special.  I held back. Didn't decorate or bake a cake.  Because the big surprise was scheduled for 7:30 pm.

After dinner out with his dad (his mom was celebrating with his twin sister in New York), we came home to a house full of people shouting 'Surprise!'  Spencer's best friends from high school, my aunt and uncle, his sister, roughly 10 people were there, all in sombrero's and fake mustaches.  It was awesome.  So much energy and excitement all for the man I love.  And he definitely appreciated it.  I saw a glimmer of a tear in his eye and he tried to register what was happening after the lights came on.

We drank, ate, played Pin the Tale on the Donkey, whacked a pinata, played Cards Against Humanity, and Spencer got so many thoughtful gifts.  Kudos to everyone who made the night amazing especially his older sister who took the party under her wing and organized nearly every detail.

 

Squirrel.

Spent the past weekend in St. Joseph, Michigan.  Such good times.  Dianne Hardy became Dianne Ott.  Saw so many old friends.  This, however, was my favorite part.  Spencer in a toy store.  I looked over and there he was, wearing a squirrel head.

One year.

At this time last year, I was sleeping.  Oh, the joys of an overnight shift.
But in all seriousness, at this time last year I was single.  Fresh off a breakup.  Living in Chicago.  And working in radio.
At this time last year, I also met Spencer.

After a day of running around downtown, turning stories for a radio station that no-longer exists, I opted to go to the Chicago Reader's Anti-Valentine's Day Party at the Logan Square Auditorium. A couple of my friends, already in relationships, were headed there.  I went alone, got there way before them, and made random conversation with Ashley, Spencer's sister.  She then introduced me to him once he came inside from a smoke-break (a year later that habit is long gone).

I love this picture because if you look closely you can see Spencer and I during one of our first conversations.  We're in the lower left-hand corner.

We spent the rest of the evening chatting.  Left together and said our goodbyes on the train.  The next morning as I trudged to work, he text me.  Funny, I still remember where I was sitting and how much I smiled to hear from him.

Anyway,  I'm feeling sappy today.  Not because it's Valentine's Day but because a year ago I met this great guy who is now a major part of my life.  

Family Plan

Spencer has needed a new phone since we met, which by the way, was nearly a year ago.  This past weekend, he finally got a phone that will hopefully hold a charge and with which he can get signal.  This because he change providers and joined my plan.  Yes, we now have a family plan together.  He and I didn't think much about it until we were signing the agreement.  A two-year agreement.  Spencer looked up at me when the salesman mentioned it, which made me laugh, and I totally called him out.  But we decided, eh, two years.  We've got that.  For sure.

So family, friends, plan on seeing him around for a while.

Getting Healthy

Kinda.  But look, we ran a 5k!   And this week marks Spencer's 6 month of not smoking.  Go him, go us.

Roomies

I have a job, I pay my bills, I take care of myself.  It's how it's been for years now.  In fact, I lived alone, with no roommate for nearly five years up until September when Spencer joined me in Indianapolis.

I've had to get used to some less-than-ideal things, at least I thought I had, but right now I can't come up with any.  Really.  Okay, maybe I'm a little annoyed by dirty clothes scattered here and there...and that when he throws plastic bags under the sink for re-use he ties them in a knot first.  But really, that's the most I've had to 'deal' with.

The truth, have a roommate and living with Spencer is amazing.  He makes me coffee as I get ready for work, if I'm sweating as I straighten my hair he doesn't even flinch at running upstairs to grab the fan.  He's taken on my pets as his own, feeds them and probably takes Zoe out more than I do.  And this morning, or last night, however you want to look at it, he continued his streak.  I woke up for work to find, on the kitchen table, all the grocery items I'd mentioned we needed just hours earlier along with some cash and a coupon for an oil change, which he insists I need to get immediately.  It was a tiny gesture in the overall scheme of everything he does for me, but it's a good example of why my life in Indianapolis is going so well.

I can take care of myself.  I always have.  But man, it's really nice having someone else look out for me too.

Catching Up

Posting this as I sit in a station car, waiting to go live to show off how windy it is. Yes, slow news day.

I keep regretting not blogging. Not taking a moment to pause and grasp everything in words. I'm really happy right now. I have Spencer, who is beyond amazing, my new job, and Indianapolis. It's working out.


Spencer's Halloween Costume, Indiana Governor Candidate John Gregg

Spencer has a job now, although likely temporary. He's doing contract IT work with Eli Lilly.  Working a normal schedule of 8 to 5.  Indianapolis has grown on him too.



Spencer first time camping!





Zoe's first time camping too.  She wasn't a huge fan.

The homemade carrot cake I made for Spencer's 29th.

We've tried to make the most of being here.  Last week it was a Colts game, before that we went camping with Walker and Allison nearby, and every Friday evening we get our growler filled for five bucks at Sun King Brewery, just a couple miles from our home.

Mason Jennings!

This past weekend, another one in which Spencer and I took to the town like tourists. We ran into Mason Jennings (a singer-songwriter I once had a poster of on my dorm room wall) while getting Thai. I swooned, chatted his ear off, and then, after being put us 'the list', we went to his show.
Saturday it was a dog costume contest in Broadripple.  Spencer and I threw together an Ewok costume for Zoe, who didn't end up placing.  *sigh*
We took advantage of some free Heartland Film Festival passes I acquired and saw a documentary in theaters on dyslexia. Then later Saturday night joined our neighbors for our first burlesque show, where, by the way, my transvestite cowgirl costume took 'best costume' making up for our earlier injustice.
Sunday was pumpkin carving and Ghostbusters II. And we finally put the scarecrows out that Spencer's mom gave us when the family visited us last week.

Ashley (Spencer's Sister), Spencer, and I at our first Colts game.

After every weekend, as Spencer and I settle back into our opposite schedules, he tells me 'I had such a great weekend.' And I feel the same. We're a new couple in a new city. It's pretty awesome.

Don't get me wrong, I have my days: I came home from work crying yesterday and seeing a woman at the film fest who looked like my mom from behind threw me in a depressed spiral for hours.  But still, I'm happy.



A gift from Spencer's parents.

Bingo Bango Bongo

As Spencer and I drove to 'Hanna's Haunted Acres' last night he was full of song (as usual).  The song he chose this time though, oddly familiar.  "Bingo Bango Bongo, I don't want to leave the jungle.  I refuse to go," he sang.  Bingo Bango Bongo.  My mom used to say that all the time.  She'd clap her hands together and say loudly, in a silly way, "Bingo Bango Bongo, would you like to go to the Congo?"  I always thought it was a phrase she made up, purely out of rhyming.  Thanks to Spencer, and a video game that it turns out drilled the song into his head, I now know my mom was projecting altered lyrics of an Andrews Sisters song.  A piece of my mom, and my childhood, I never fully got, being explained.
'Civilization' by the Andrews Sisters has since become our song for the last 12 hours.  Spencer hooked up with his computer speakers, and as I sat downstairs reading this morning, I heard him blasting it upstairs in our office.

Now some randomness.  First, let me brag about how amazing Indianapolis's downtown library is.  Six floors of anything, and everything you can imagine, about a mile from our home.  Glad I didn't wait to check it out.

 

And some cute pet photos.  Zoe in wrap-around shades Spencer found among his belongings.  Livey, thinking she's hiding as usual, as she sits in a small open box in the middle of the living room.  And a photo of the cats in the kitchen, gathered around me shortly after I got home from work the other morning.

New Roomie

The boyfriend moved in this weekend.  Party time.
He says we're going to take over Indianapolis.

We spent the weekend unpacking.  Made it to Fort Harrison State Park to try out kayaking during the Hoosier Outdoor Experience event.  This 'morning' as I headed to work, he made me coffee, sat with me as I ate my breakfast, and stood outside in the dark as I left for work, holding Zoe and waving her paw at me.

 I feel like we're playing house.  But I like it.

Also, Zoe is better.  After getting sick again thanks to a swollen paw, she was given another rounds of meds...and as of today, is back up and running.

Not in my job description...

...But a very welcome addition.  Rode in the station's chopper three times last week.  Am being trained on how to operate the camera.  Not sure how often I'll actually be riding.  But thrilled I've already had so many opportunities.  Indianapolis is beautiful from above!

  Right, Kurt?

Kurt Vonnegut mural in downtown Indy.

Back to Work

I didn't get another animal.  This is Scraps: A dog up for adoption at the Indy Humane Society, and the station's Pet of the Day.

Well, I'm back to wearing makeup and doing my hair.  Two days into my new job reporting in Indianapolis and I couldn't be happier.  Everyone is welcoming, the station is giving me a full week of training to acclimate me into my position (on air next Monday!), and I have lots of fun new gadgets.  I've been given a Galaxy 3 phone, a brand new Mac Book Pro, and HR gave me a Fitbit today, which is basically a high tech pedometer. 

Fancy new computer!

There is a downside, although as an optimist, I now see it as a positive: My shift.  I'll still be doing the morning show as planned, but with in a half hour of my first day was told I'll be starting my day at 11pm, rather than 3 or 4 am as proposed.  Soooo yeah.  11pm-8am.  Gather new content (primarily crimes happening overnight), get it ready for the show, go live, and go home.  It made me sick to my stomach at first, working overnight hours.  But upon reflection I've realized it simply means I sleep during the day, wake up as Spencer presumably will be getting home from work, spend the evening with him, and then head to the station.  "We'll make it work," Spencer said.

Speaking of Spencer, our six month is today.  He's back in Chicago, working for another month as he tries to find a job here.  But flowers greeted me when I got back to our apartment.  My first bouquet from him.  Flowers, mind you, that I may have implied a couple weeks ago I wouldn't mind receiving.  He did well though, and within two seconds of placing them on the mantle Emma showed her appreciation for them.  I've since strategically put them somewhere the cats can't ruin them.

This post has an air of gloating, but in the last few weeks everything has worked out really well for me.  I got the job I wanted, have a boy I love relocating for me, now live two short hours from Allison (who already visited me for a spontaneous weekeday dinner) and well, the third item I want to mention: I love our apartment.  I apologize for my recent good fortune.

 

Our two-story duplex.  Still unpacking and yet to be decorated. 

Finally...pictures of the actual move.  It happened so fast.  More luck: the movers I hired on both ends were amazing.  I'll miss Chicago, but am feeling pretty good so far about Indianapolis.



Biding Time

While yes, I have been offered a job, starting there takes time.  Drug tests, background checks, and of course, the good ol' apartment search.  My starting date is still up in the air (it was initially August 1).  The station is willing to push it back further since their paperwork isn't in order yet, and because I can't move into my beautiful apartment until August 11th.  I may still be staying in a hotel or crashing on someone's couch for a week if they have me start earlier, however, that is yet to be determined.

Either way, my new home.  Correction.  Spencer's and my new home!  Yes, he is moving with me.  We're both putting our name on the lease.  But also conveniently chose a two bedroom that I can afford on my own, so if things do go sour, well, I'm not completely screwed too as I can then choose to get a roommate.

It's a big deal.  27.  Not only moving in with your boyfriend, but relocating with him.  It will be an adventure, one we probably wouldn't take so quickly if it weren't for the situation, but nonetheless, one we both agree we're ready for.  Also,  in case I haven't mentioned yet, Spencer is amazing.

 

 Apartment hunting aside, I haven't had a ton to do.  If anything I have more free time than ever before I don't have to spend my days applying for jobs.  And so, I've been painting over old paintings...creating even more hideous creations.  Torturing Zoe with the help of Spencer's campy talking bear-rug he just found in his parent's garage.  And I spent a good five hours at the Aveda Institute the other day, having my hair permanently straightened with their Smooth Infusion treatment.  I had it done a year ago and it really works.  Costly, but totally worth not having to fight curls in front of the camera on a rainy day.

Mom

Driving back to my apartment last night, Spencer points to a woman in a car beside us, "She looks like your mom." The woman did.  She had flowing hair just above her shoulders that was mainly gray with remants of brown.  Dimpled arms.  And square plastic glasses.  But Spencer's never met my mom, and that's why the moment was significant.  It reminded me how much she is living on in the stories we tell and the pictures we share.

 

Smoke Free

Today marks 30 days since Spencer has had his last cigarette.  He's amazing.

Nudity, Vacuums, and Beer

Maybe it's because I'm unemployed and I spend the week thinking about what I want to do when other people are finally off work although I like to think it's because Spencer and I generate fun when we're together; either way, this weekend, another one spend hopping around from a garage sales to a brew tour.  We made it to Rib Fest, made it out to the burbs to have lunch with my sister and dad, and saw a lot of naked people. 

The nudity started Saturday morning at breakfast.  Eating bagels at our favorite corner shop and lounging on their couches, Spencer said suddenly, "I've gotta go."  He repeated himself several times as his eyes bulged and darted to something five feet away I needed to look at.  I did.  Balls.  Hanging out of an older mans shorts as he sat reclined and cross-legged.  We left, and later by choice, almost as a bookend to the day, opted to see hundreds of man-berries as we watched the city's naked bike ride make its way through Boys Town.  So much skin.  Such a bottlenecked bike ride.  Most of the naked riders were standing next to their bikes, as they were slowed down, and significantly stalled by the huge crowds that had gathered outside to see the spectacle.  Some bicyclists were obviously not thrilled. Here they thought they'd be streaking through the city with speed, but no, instead they're walking slowly through crowds who cheered for the first couple hundred people and are now just staring quietly at them.

Perhaps the most exciting part of the weekend for me: achieving my goal of 'acquiring a new vacuum.'  Ten dollars at a yard sale.  And I swear, it's like new.  They either never used it or totally cleaned it out before selling it, and not only does it work fifty times better than my old vacuum, it has a brush to clean cat hair off furniture!  After buying it, Spencer carried it a block and half to the car as I danced around in excitement.

 

We also did a tour of the Half Acre Brewery on North Lincoln Ave.  If you're not from the area, the company is newer, small, only distributes around Chicago and a few suburbs, and, in my opinion, puts way too much hops in their beer. 

They give one tour a week, to 60 people; first come, first serve.  So we waited outside in the hot sun about an hour to get a spot, but were rewarded with three beers, a pint class, and an honest, laid back tour for the same cheap price as my vacuum.  Ten dollars.

Oh I love beer.  After my trip to Vegas next weekend, however, I'm taking a break from alcohol.  I'm at my heaviest weight ever (by a few pounds, but still) and need to start taking care of myself again.  And so, hopefully, once High Life's are out of my life, the same will go for a few pounds.