Run Like the Wind

So I decided to take the dog for a walk up the hill into the open space behind the academy. On the way down from the top, I slipped on some rocks and landed on my butt. No blood, but I felt quite silly. Fortunately, so one saw except the dog (I hope). Then, on the way down the paved road (which stops half way up the hill), I got the urge to run the rest of the way down. I'm talking full barrel, Forrest Gump RUUUUNNNN. It was GREAT! I love running when it's a slight downhill. Anyway, I get to the bottom and realize, to my horror, that there are a dozen and a half teenagers from the academy sitting silently behind the dugout of the ball field watching my crazed sprint. Fortunately they elected not to laugh out loud. Perhaps they were just in shock that an old lady could run so fast. Hehehe...

House plans are coming along well. They moved our closing date back to Nov. 21 (it was the 14th). It'll probably move again. Just as well. All the more time for us to save money while it's appreciating! We locked our interest rate yesterday and have the loan settled. It's a huge payment, so we'll likely be eating rice and beans and cereal from a bag for a year (or four), but it's ultimately worth it because it's such a great investment. The price has already gone up by $20,000. Can't beat that for one month's investment, huh? We should have the price sheet for the upgrades within a couple of weeks. That's what I'm most interested in.

Here's our new dining room set. Pretty, huh?

Nirvana

Last night we attended the 50th birthday celebration for Ken's boss's boss (the owner/namesake of RKS). They had rented out Nirvana, a swanky Indian/Asian restaurant/lounge in Beverly Hills. There weren't many people we knew because the bulk of the guests were either family members or employees from the design studio. There were only half a dozen or so from the guitar shop. But it was a very generous and delightful evening. The appetizers were my favorite part; chicken and lamb kebabs, stuffed fried mushrooms, and nan with a delightful tomato sauce. The buffet itself had more nan, rice, and an assortment of traditional Indian dishes ... spinach, lentils, chicken, fish and eggplant. All a bit spicy for me, but very delicious. The atmosphere is interesting, dark and Hollywoodish. You can eat on couches, regular tables, or on four-poster bed-type things with small tables in the center. I'd like to go again when it's not set up for a party.

Here's today's view of our construction. The biggest building you see on the right side of the picture is the new YMCA. To the left of that is the Y parking lot. And smack in the middle of the photo is the construction for Brookshire. It's so pretty out there right now because of all the rain. :o)

Calgon! Take me away!

This has been one of those days. Nothing bad, mind you, but I've been in turbo boost mode all day. Wake up, pack Ken's lunch, eat breakfast, input corrections for the magazine, dust and pack up the (100 lb.) keyboard, gather all items for shipping that we sold on eBay over the weekend, load into truck, shower, dress, input more magazine corrections, drive to Paseo Mail Stop in Camarillo to have items (keyboard, amp, bass head, pedal board) professionally packaged for shipping, drive to Oxnard to meet Ken for lunch and pick up pick-ups which also have to be shipped, drive to work to finish magazine and package two other items for shipping, rush home to print/scan docs for 4 p.m. loan signing, drive back to Camarillo to fill out shipping request on keyboard and pedal board, drive back to Newbury for the loan signing, drive home to triple check and pack docs, drive to Westlake FedEx to drop docs, drive back home. I really don't feel like cooking supper. :o)

Back in School

I had my first bass lesson with Master Ken this afternoon. It's pretty fun. He says I have the key skill of a good bass player — rhythm. I knew that already, but it was good to hear. :o) Figures I'd suddenly decide I'm interested in playing bass the day the bass head and cabinet are set to close on eBay. Oh well. Ken will keep his primary bass (he sold the Marcus Miller last weekend), and we can plug it into a guitar amp (with headphones in the new place). So, we'll see if my interest holds up. Bass isn't as intimidating as guitar, so I think I'll be safe against getting too overwhelmed.

Well, we did it!

Today we put 3% down and turned in our escrow paperwork to buy the condo. We're really excited, because in addition to a nice, new place to live, it's likely to be a money-maker. New construction appreciates about 50% faster than existing housing in the first five to 10 years, and since we're only planning to stay about five years, then it should work perfectly. Nothing's guaranteed, of course; nothing ever is. But it's a pretty good bet. Now we wait for the lender to contact us to start loan processing. After that, we just sit and wait for the construction to complete (maybe September?). We'll probably close escrow and move in November/December. Sooner would be nice, but the delay gives us that much more time to save money!

Brookshire

Ken and I are planning to buy a condo. They're new construction, slated to be ready in November. Here's the ground floor of the first building; our unit will be on the far right side of this photo.

Stairway to Heaven

The tall thing sticking up is the staircase leading to the second floor, where our unit will be. The three windows you see right above that orange post will be duplicated directly above; that's the Great Room windows.

Yesterday was my birthday, and I had a really great one. Mom had the beautiful flowers delivered to my office, which was a real treat, because who wants to work on their birthday? My boss also took me to lunch, which was wonderful. I'd been craving curried tofu. When Lori and the kids were here, they bought this gorgeous blue table setting and had it all arranged like this when I came home from work one day. What a fun surprise!

And Ken got me this totally cool apron I'd been eyeing at Anthropologie. Plus a certificate for an hour massage. And we ate at Claim Jumper. Yum!

Happy Birthday to ME!

I can't believe I'm 32. Where does the time go? Am I who/where I should be right now? I guess I never really made a plan for my life, so I can't be off schedule, right? I decided a long time ago that making plans is pointless because God always stirs the pot and laughs at my agenda.

I'm pretty content. I love my job. I love my husband. But I still have room to grow spiritually and financially. Perhaps those will be my goals this year. Maybe this will be a pivotal year — buy a house? have a baby? Or maybe none of that will work out and God will lead us in an entirely different direction that we can imagine now.

Today I'll have a massage; part of my birthday present from Ken. Perhaps I'll have lunch with my coworkers. Then tonight Ken and I will go to dinner. I haven't decided where. Then I think I'd like to see "Failure to Launch." A little Matthew on the birthday can't be a bad thing, huh?

Summary of Recent Stuff

Sorry for the long silence. We've been busy! Besides regular business, we have a lot going on, and yet not much at all. Many pots on the stove, but nothing ready to eat, so to speak. Ken's parents visited for fives days a couple weekends ago. Then his sister and her kids came for a week during their spring break. Had a great time with them; only wish the weather would've been better for touristy activities.

We're in the process of trying to buy a condo. It's new construction, and won't be ready til November, at least. We're just hoping to get in, because there's a long wait-list. The prices goes up by $15-20K with each phase release, so we need to get a contract soon before we're priced out.

Ken and eight or so of his co-workers got laid off a couple weeks ago. But then the company realized how stupid it was to let him go, so they've hired him back (with some sucking up and a raise). He'll probably get some overtime, too. In fact, he's going to work today (Sunday) after we enjoy the Sunday brunch at the Alamo.

We're headed to Hawaii for 10 days in May (5 in Oahu and 5 on the Big Island); can't wait for the night-time manta ray dive! Then Ken starts school after the trip (Computer Network Systems Engineering). That's a reasonable summary of our latest adventures. :o)

Sandy

Went to Loma Linda recently to a family reunion (at which I took no photos, unfortunately). Then to Redlands to visit Sandy. She's enjoying her dietician work and spending time with a nice guy. I spent the night at her place and then to IHOP for breakfast. I think it was IHOP, anyway. I've already forgotten.

Pretty Sunset

Saw a pretty sunset while driving home from work recently.

Ken's sister, Lori, and her kids, Lauren and Brendon, came to visit for the week of their spring break. Most days the weather was bad. This day we went to Malibu; the wind was fierce, but at least it was sunny. Lori's keeping a watchful eye on the swimmers.

Parental Visit

Mom and Dad Adams came for a visit a couple of weekends ago. It was so nice to have them here; we wish they could've stayed longer. But now we can look forward to their next visit!

While they were here, Ken and Dad replaced the faucet in the kitchen. The new one has a pull-off hose and doesn't soak us everytime we turn it on. Nice touch.

Dad the handy-man wriggled his way under that dirty old sink. He showed the patience and perseverance of a saint.