Yep, that's right.  I'm 35 today.

Halfway to 40.  (That's going to take some getting used to.  Not that there's anything wrong with 40, but it's not a number I'm accustomed to associating with my own age....)

I'm being a little bit self-indulgent today.  I don't know why, because I've never been that into my birthday before.  But why not?  I'm only getting older, I guess I should start actually celebrating the fact that I've made it another year without keeling over.

I doubt I'll get any presents, which is fine.  I don't really need any.  I still might get myself the Bill O'Reilly mug I mentioned yesterday.  Brian won't get me anything, I'm sure.  Which again is ok.  Today they're tiling the bathroom floor & shower, which is enough of a gift for me.  (Actually, if anyone were to ask him, he'd probably tell you that this bathroom remodel is my birthday present.  This coming from the same guy who once asked me if the crock pot I had my eye on in January would be my birthday present.  I'm not kidding.  Actually, now that I think about it, I think he told me that the HDTV we got in the spring is my present for my birthday and Christmas and anniversary and Mother's Day and Flag Day and Groundhog Day and....) 

My friends Sheila and Kris at work are going to take me out for lunch.  Our tradition among the three of us is that we always go out for birthdays.  I think we're going to Red Lobster.  Oh yeah, and there is no diet today.  That's my other present to myself.

It's going to be a pretty routine day.  I have to take my phlebotomy (not lobotomy) final, but for the first time since I've been in school I don't really care about it.  I truly don't.  I also have to take the kids to the dentist since Brian will be busy laying tile.  Joey has a baseball game tonight.  His team is undefeated with only 3 games to go.  There will be no homework tonight.  Another present to myself.

Sorry, I'm rambling.  I'd thought maybe I'd do a self-reflective kind of post on where I'm at in life and how I feel about those gray hairs that keep showing up, but somehow I don't think that's going to happen today.  That's what happens when you have to get up early & study.  Time to go get my free birthday Caribou!

Today I Like:

 

     Charter will soon be gone from my life!

     Caribou Coffee

     Cool-looking, long painted fingernails of uniform length, despite the fact that they interfere with almost everything I do.

     Cherries….dark red, sweet, & juicy.  And on special at the grocery store.  Yum!

     Cottage cheese & red peppers

     Copious amounts of Diet Pepsi

     Cleaning supplies – from my Norwex party I got a free mop, cleaning cloth, body cloth, laundry detergent, and most of a jar of cleaning paste (as in I only had to pay for a bit of it…I am getting a full jar J).  I also bought some dryer balls so I don’t have to use fabric softener on my towels yet hopefully they won’t be scratchy.

     Cake…as in my birthday is tomorrow!  Not like I’ll do anything but it’s fun just the same.  I might buy myself this for a present.

     “C”-ing (OK, that was a stretch) a new number on the scale this week.  I’ve now officially hit the twenty-pounds-lost mark.

 

Today I Don’t Like:

 

     Logging on to my school email this morning and realizing that I have to take a final tomorrow!  It was on the schedule I got at the beginning of the semester but still it sneaked up on me.

     Lake cabin party for work that I’ll be missing tonight due to the aforementioned lack of planning on my part.  L

     Losing my Charter email address after tomorrow.  It’s hard to try to notify everyone when I get a new one.

     Labor – as in work, as in sitting at my desk today when I’d rather be at home studying or sitting out in the sun (or both)!

Brian's on his way to pick me up from work, so in lieu of doing actual work while I wait (as if), here's my lowdown.

• My main floor bathroom has now been officially gutted.  I moved out yesterday* so every morning for the next month or so I'll be getting ready for work in the upstairs bathroom.  I'm going to miss listening to my beloved Fox & Friends from the kitchen TV, but being as it's temporary, I think I'll live.  Construction was supposed to start tomorrow, but our contractor guy had to take an emergency call from some mutual friends who have some kind of hole in their basement wall with water gushing in.  I suppose that is more important at the moment than my bathroom.
• My little guy left for church camp this morning.  He comes home on Saturday.  I'm not worried at all about him getting homesick, especially given that he went last year so this isn't his first time.  He's going to have a blast.
• Speaking of Joey, we signed him up for 3rd grade football in the fall.  How funny is that?  How funny is spending $132 on second-hand equipment for an 8-year-old?  Ack!  Thank goodness for Play It Again Sports!  But he really wants to play.  He weighed in at 74 pounds.  I'm curious as to whether that'll qualify him as a lightweight or heavyweight.  He's neither fat nor skinny, but he's kind of tall, so I'd guess on a team of 2nd and 3rd graders, he might be among the bigger ones.  I hope he doesn't get pummelled.
• Speaking of camp, Bailey goes on Sunday - the day after Joey gets home.  Our church camp is about 4 hours away, and I get to be one of the vehicles in the caravan taking them up there.  So my Sunday will go something like this: Go to church.  Leave for camp from church, drive 4 hours.  Help get kids settled in and hopefully say hi to a couple of friends up there.  Drive back home 4 hours, hopefully with a stop at Trader Joe's while passing through the Twin Cities.  Get home around 8 or 9 and crash, all the while thinking I should do some homework before going to bed.  But I'm going to let myself not do any.
• Speaking of homework, I have so much this summer it's not even funny.  I'm wishing right now that I'd have taken a clue from Hannah and taken the summer off.  There are too many other things to do, like go to Joey's baseball games and try to get my house ready for some of my girlfriends to come in a few weeks (I apologize in advance if the house looks like crap when you get here!!).  One class has me reading government regulations, which I expect to have to do for work, but it's kind of depressing to have to do it for school.
• I'm having a party on Wednesday.  You know those parties where you send out about 7 million invitiations to everyone you've ever met, and about 3 people come because the goal of the party is to sell stuff?  Yeah, one of those.  This party is for Norwex cleaning products.  The best part is that she wants to demonstrate the products so I really don't have to clean my house!  Woo-hoo!  I need some ideas for quick, easy hors d'oeuvre that don't look like they were quick and easy.  Ideas?

OK, I got a call that Brian's on his way.  See ya!

*I mean I moved all my makeup & stuff out.  I personally didn't move out of the house.  :)

....that even though I've been behind on my homework pretty much ever since the start of the summer semester, I can't seem to find that kick in the pants that I need to just work and get caught up???  Logic would state that if I'm behind, I would work harder, but yet the more work there is to be done, the more I shy away from it.  What the heck?  Either there's something seriously wrong with me, or I'm not fulfilling the real purpose of my life...which obviously must be to just lay around all day and do (next to) nothing.

All right.  Must. listen. to. lecture.

This week is Rochesterfest, our city's celebration of itself.  It lasts a whole week and has some cool stuff scattered throughout.  For example, a parade that I got to be in one year, walking along next to the blood donation float & handing out stuff.  One very cool Rochesterfest tradition is to block off two blocks downtown for A Taste of Rochester.  If you've ever been to A Taste of Chicago, this is similar (although about one-one hundredth the size).  A lot of it is fair food, basically.  There's also a stage to showcase the local talent, and the local news also broadcasts from that street for the week.  People milling about, and all the food you can eat.  It's fun.

At work we always make it a point to visit Rochesterfest for lunch at least once a year.  Today was the day, since my friend Kris had an all-day meeting and she's the one who never wants to go eat fair food.  I know, I can't figure it out either.  South Beach Diet be darned, today I was going to splurge.  And if I'm going to cheat, I'm going to make it count.  So after carefully perusing the long aisle of vendors, I settled on a basket of cheese curds.  Now, if you're not from Minnesota, you may not be familiar with the pure wonderfulness that is a cheese curd.  Think cheese, cheddarish in flavor, slightly rubbery in texture, deep fried to a golden deliciousness.  Salty and greasy and melty and hot.

I paid the typical overcharge and took my first bite.  Imagine my pleasure to discover that not only did I hold deep-fried cheese in my hand, but garlic-flavored deep-fried cheese.  I could've melted on the spot.  I don't know when I've beheld such a taste sensation.  It's all the things I love.  Grease, salt, garlic, cheese.  Need I say more?

My stomach is definitely feeling it now, as I'm no longer used to greasy food (the malt I followed it up with could also have something to do with it), but I would go back downtown right now for another round of these babies if only I had another $4.50 on my person.  Alas, 'tis not to be, and to ease the guilt of yummy food, I'm now drinking a Low-Sodium V-8.

PS - I guess since it's Tuesday, I can make this post serve double-duty by making my Things on Tuesday list.  I'll make it short & sweet:

Love:

  - Garlic-flavored cheese curds
  - Chocolate mint malts

Loathe:

  - The rock that's now in my stomach
  - That cheese curds have to be only an occasional treat

I haven't done this in a while.

Today, I really don't loathe anything!  For real!  Today was a great day.

Today, I love:

• Pistachios
• My Yahoo Music playlist with hard rock songs from my high school/college days.  Think Kiss, G'n'R, Def Leppard, 80's/90s Aerosmith, Bryan Adams, Bon Jovi, Van Halen, Poison, Loverboy, Mr. Big, & Journey, as well as some various one-or-two-hit wonders like Warrant, Great White, Nelson, Extreme, etc.  And a few oldies thrown in for good measure, like BTO, Boston, and 70s Aerosmith.  I'm not kidding when I say it rocks!
• I'm getting a sense of direction as to where I want my career to go.  I'm not ready to make a move yet, but at least I know - or at least I think I know - which way I'm facing.
• As of this morning's weigh-in, I've lost 18 pounds!  Most of my clothes are too big for me!  This is kind of a double-edged sword.  Anyone want to donate to Mello's Hot New Wardrobe Fund?  I take checks.  I even take credit cards if you use PayPal.  I promise I'll post pictures.  No?  Oh well, at least my shoes still fit.
• Oh yeah, new shoes make me happy too.  I found a couple pair while out shopping last week.
• That people are actually starting to notice that I'm losing weight.
• Coffee
• Watching my husband have a grand old time with his new logsplitter.  Not your traditional Father's Day gift, but it sure makes him happy.  (I have to admit, it is rather mesmerizing to watch it split those logs.  I don't know why; it just is.)
• Feeling happy.  Those days off work really did wonders for my disposition.  :)  I feel like myself again.  I think I need to do this every few months.

OK, I had to rip this off from Tamzen because it was so pertinent to my previous post.  This one is almost right on the money!  At least when I'm in a good mood/in my natural personality when not bogged down by stresses and stupid things.  [My commentary in italics].

Spontaneous Idealist (SI)

(Just visiting? Take the free test and determine your personality type!)

Spontaneous Idealists are creative, lively and open-minded persons. They are humorous and dispose of a contagious zest for life. Their enthusiasm and sparkling energy inspires others and sweeps them along. They enjoy being together with other people and often have an uncanny intuition for their motivations and potential. Spontaneous Idealists are masters of communication [I could be better] and very amusing [oh yes, I'm hilarious!] and gifted entertainers. Fun and variety are guaranteed when they are around. [I don't know about that.]  However, they are sometimes somewhat too impulsive in dealing with others and can hurt people without really meaning to do so, due to their direct and sometimes critical nature. [This is so me!]

This personality type is a keen and alert observer; they miss nothing which is going on around them. In extreme cases, they tend to be oversensitive and exaggeratedly alert and are inwardly always ready to jump. Life for them is an exciting drama full of emotionality. However, they quickly become bored when things repeat themselves and too much detailed work and care is required. [Most definitely.]  Their creativity, their imaginativeness and their originality become most noticeable when developing new projects and ideas - they then leave the meticulous implementation of the whole to others. [I hate detail.]  On the whole, Spontaneous Idealists attach great value to their inner and outward independence and do not like accepting a subordinate role. They therefore have problems with hierarchies and authorities. [I don't have a problem with authority but I do have a HUGE problem with someone else telling me what to do and/or how to do it.  Note to future bosses: If you want to p*** me off at work, try to micromanage me.]

If you have a Spontaneous Idealist as your friend, you will never be bored; with them, you can enjoy life to the full and celebrate the best parties. [This is why you all love me, neighbors - I'm great at parties.]  At the same time, they are warm, sensitive, attentive and always willing to help. If Spontaneous Idealists have just fallen in love, the sky is full of violins and their new partners are showered with attention and affection. This type then bubbles over with charm, tenderness and imagination. But, unfortunately, it soon becomes boring for them once the novelty has worn off. Boring everyday life in a partnership is not for them so that many Spontaneous Idealists slip from one affair into another.  [OK, this part is definitely not true.  But my husband does get on my nerves enough that life with him is not boring.]   However, should the partner manage to keep their curiosity alive and not let routine and familiarity gain the upper hand, Spontaneous Idealists can be inspiring and loving partners.

Adjectives which describe your type

spontaneous, enthusiastic, idealistic, extroverted, theoretical, emotional, relaxed, friendly, optimistic, charming, helpful, independent, individualistic, creative, dynamic, lively, humorous, full of zest for life, imaginative, changeable, adaptable, loyal, sensitive, inspiring, sociable, communicative, erratic, curious, open, vulnerable

These subjects could interest you

literature [no], art [yes], music [yes], parties [depends], concerts [somewhat], travel [definitely], dancing [if I could dance], eating out [hello, who doesn't love eating out?]

 

They should have told me what my job should be....... :)

1) What do you do when your MBTI and Kiersey tests don't agree?

I've always known that I'm a little on the odd & scattered side when it comes to personality type.  I know who I am, yet I've never been able to classify myself.  Sometimes I'm an introvert - sometimes I'm an extrovert.  Sometimes I like data - sometimes I work on impulse.  Sometimes I think things through - sometimes I go with my gut.  Sometimes I'm compulsive - sometimes I just don't care.  Sometimes I'm creative - sometimes I'm logical.  People don't generally "get" me, with the exception of two: my husband, because he's lived with me for so long; and my mom, because she's a lot like me.  I'm a little bit unpredictable, even to myself sometimes.  It's kind of weird to be me.

As mentioned previously, I'm trying to figure out what to do with my life.  Do I stay in education, do I try the supervisory track, do I look for another section of lab to work in, or do I go for something completely different?  I just don't know - and lately it's really bugging me.  I think it's because the "next step" has always been in the back of my mind, and for the first time, I don't know what the next step is.  I can't work in a job for any more than 5-6 years without it having to change at least a little bit.  I'm somewhere around the 2-year mark at my current job, and wherever I go next might require extra schooling, which is maybe why I'm stressed - because I would need to get a move-on on that.  I guess I'm easily bored - things become a lot less interesting for me once the novelty wears off.  Which is probably a personality deficit but it is what it is.

So anyway, yesterday while reading a management book for school, I was reading the chapter on Leadership & Management, and I thought how perfect, maybe this will help me to see if this is indeed for me.  The author recommended taking the Kiersey Temperament Sorter, so I did.  I came out as a Guardian - which shocked the heck out of me because I do not see myself as a caretaker.  As a matter of fact, if there's one thing I've always felt I need to work on, it's compassion toward people who (in my opinion) really should know better than to do the things they do and act the way they act.  (Which is why I'm not sure whether I'd be a horrible supervisor or a great one.)  A couple of years ago I took the Meyers-Briggs Type Indicator and came out as an INTP.  Now, if you compare a Guardian with an INTP, they're nothing alike.  So then what do you do with that information?  Apparently, even shrinks can't figure out who I am. 

2) How do you look like a 35-year-old and not look like a soccer mom?

Ooh, another burning question.  I can't deny the fact that I'm getting older.  I want to look my age, maybe just a little younger.  In my mind one of the most undignified things a woman can do is dress & act like she's 25 when she's 45.  I don't want to be that person.  My twenties weren't so great anyway - why try to relive them?  I just got my hair cut yesterday and it's a length that I think is appropriate for my age and place in life, shoulder length.  Some women can pull off long hair well into their forties; not me.  Anyway, today as I was working with it, I wondered whether or not I looked like a soccer mom.  And if so, how can I not?  I think I need help on this one.

 

How many houses have you lived in? How is where you live now different from where you grew up?

I lived in one house from the time I was born until I went away to college.  It's an old farmhouse in rural northwest Iowa.  You can almost see it in the picture below:

In four years of college, I lived in four different places:
  - Dorm room in Cedar Falls, Iowa (University of Northern Iowa) my freshman year
  - Dorm room in Orange City, Iowa (Northwestern College) my sophomore year
  - Shared house in Orange City, Iowa my junior year.  It was campus housing but a real house with real bathrooms and a real kitchen.  I think there were nine of us in there.  It was great fun.
  - Campus apartments in Orange City my senior year.

Every summer I would come home to the above house except between my junior and senior years, which I spent in South Bend, Indiana as a camp counselor.  It was at that camp that I met my husband. 

We got married a week after I graduated from college, so the next real residence for me was here in Rochester, his hometown.  We figured he'd find some kind of a job and I'd get something at the clinic - which I did, but not right away.  For the first 2 1/2 years we lived in this tiny, tiny apartment (it was all we could afford) with a neighbor from Russia who used to cook who-knows-what - I never knew what it was but I can still remember how it smelled.  This kid had this cherubic 5-year-old face but also a mustache...it was funny-looking in an ironic way.  He was also very small, so I suppose the mustache was to establish the fact that he was, in fact, out of grade school.

I digress.

When we found out we were expecting Bailey, there was no way we could stay in our apartment and have a baby, mostly because of all the crap that comes with them.  Cribs, pack-n-plays, swings, strollers, et cetera, et cetera.  (One thing we wouldn't have needed in that place was a baby monitor; in any spot in that apartment you'd never be far enough away from the baby that you wouldn't be able to hear her breathe.)  So anyway, the time was right and the market was good, so we bought our first house:

It was a small house, but was perfect for us at the time.  There are some things I really miss about that house, like the great backyard and huge master bedroom.  We brought both of our babies home from the hospital to that house, but eventually we decided we needed just a little more room so we sold it for a handy profit and moved up just a notch to our current house:

This picture wasn't taken today, although for as cold of a spring as it's been, it wasn't all that long ago that there was still snow on the ground.

This house is really, truly perfect for a family of four.  We've done some landscaping & stuff but essentially, this is it.   I laugh sometimes because it's so......me.  I've always wanted a colonial.  Sure, there are more changes we'd like to make, but it really is the right house for us.

Part 2 of this QotD is that I'm supposed to compare & contrast where I live now to where I grew up.  Well, there's the obvious city vs. country, but essentially it's the same part of the country (SE MN vs. NW IA) so people generally have the same attitudes.   There's a little more cultural diversity here, in all classes of society.  We have immigrants who come to work in the cannery and immigrants who come to be doctors - and everyone in between.  For the most part we are a pretty homogenously white population, though - like where I grew up.  I remember people not being terribly open-minded when I was growing up, but that's not 100% bad.  (I always think of 1 Corinthians: "Everything is permissible, but not everything is beneficial...." In other words, you have to protect your thinking to some degree.)  True to sterotype, people are generally friendlier outside the city, at least that's my experience.  And I think people are more resourceful outside of town too.  It might be that farmer mentality being passed down over the generations.  You don't have it - you make do or go without.  Actually, I think those of us in the city could learn a lesson there.

They make me happy.

OK, not the best picture of me, but the focus here is on my shoes.  Aren't they fun!  You just can't go wrong with red patent!