Our trip is here! Our trip is here! I'm really looking forward to this weekend away with my husband. I got him a couple of little things for our anniversary, and I know he'll enjoy them.

We leave tomorrow morning and will be home Monday afternoonish. Yay!

OK, so I did go with the Orange County thing. I couldn't help it--the only decent shirt I had that was clean was red, and it matched Jon's Hawaiian shirt so nicely.....


I look like I'm growing out of his back. Where's the rest of my body? :)



I got a 5x7 of this one to put in our wedding album for our 2nd anniversary.

Last night was lovely. My flute student cancelled her lesson (last-minute, which means I still get paid), and Jon had a work event to attend, so I had a free night. I went to the Spectrum, bought a nonfat mocha, and went into Barnes & Noble. I found White Oleander, one of the books I'd been hoping to read, and sat in a comfy couch and read the first 40 or 50 pages. (It was really great.) I really needed some alone time like that; I went home feeling refreshed and relaxed, and woke up feeling the same way this morning! Thank goodness for books.

So my friend C is having "personal problems," but I don't know what they are. I'm not sure how that makes me feel. I mean, she's one of my best friends and I'm one of hers. It isn't that I have anything to do with her problems (and if I did, I think she'd tell me)... I think it has something to do with people at church (which people? I don't know) and so she doesn't want to get me involved in whatever issues there are. She says she's working through them. But... what are they? I just feel like, if we had been hanging out as often as we used to before she got the new job and became so busy, I would know what these things are that are going on, because we'd be talking daily like we used to. Well, whatever the issues are, I do not need to know specifics in order to be praying for her and the others involved. I just wish things could go back like they were with us.

In other news, this week was busier than I had even thought it would be, but it's wrapping up nicely today. I'm looking forward to our pictures on Sunday and want to think about something Orange County-ish for us to wear (you know, matching shirts and jeans, or Hawaiian something or other with surfboards)--not. But I do think we should match better than we did for last year's pictures.

What am I doing not posting for a week?! Wait, I know... I'm busy. One of the other proposal writers is on vacation this week, and I'm her backup, which means I have basically double the workload. I'm plowing through it and getting it done, but it doesn't leave much time for meandering around the internet.

As long as we don't get super sunburned on our day trip outing with friends on Saturday, Jon and I are getting our Sears pictures taken on Sunday after church (a new tradition I started last year--pictures at each wedding anniversary to be put into the album I made). And then next weekend (May 29) is our anniversary trip! Woo hoo!

This site predicts your ideal job from your name. Ha.

Katherine Page Varela, your ideal job is an Insurance Fraudster.

Jonathan Shane Varela, your ideal job is a Human Shield.

Books
I love making lists. And today's list is going to be about books...

Books I've recently read and liked--in order of favorites
Stones from the River by Ursula Hegi. Liked this one so much I'm leaning toward reading it again.
City of Light by Lauren Belfer. Set in Buffalo, NY in the early 1900s. Industrialization vs. nature.
No Great Mischief by Alistair MacLeod. I want to re-read this one too. It's my most recent read, so still sinking in.
The Sweet Hereafter by Russell Banks. Intriguing; about a bus accident and our need to place blame...
Midnight Champagne by A. Manette Ansay. Didn't like this one as much, but I think I would still like to read another by this author.

Books I want to get and/or read
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon. I've never read this author, but the description intrigued me. I'm very into reading new authors right now.
All by Ursula Hegi, including The Vision of Emma Blau, Floating in My Mother's Palm, and Salt Dancers.
White Oleander by Janet Fitch. Didn't see the movie but have heard good things about the novel.

2nd-anniversary trip: 19 days
2nd anniversary: 22 days
1 year of employment at current job: 23 days
Trip to Virginia: 33 days
Jon's birthday: 85 days
Trip to Germany: 116 days
3-day cruise to Baja: 158 days

My husband is so cute.
It's 4:30 and my work phone just rang. "Beech Street. This is Katie," I said. "You have a nice flag outside of your work," he said. I turned to look out the window, and there was my sweet husband in the car, just coming by to say hi. He never gets the chance to do that--he works way more than I do and none of his stores or his office is close by. He's only been to my office once. So there he is, still sitting there, waiting for me to be done with work in 20 minutes or so. I love him.

We're probably going to go out to dinner tonight with Scott and Kim, and I'm looking forward to that. They are our closest friends.

What a busy week this has been. I mean, well, I guess it hasn't been that busy, but yesterday it was and so is today. Since I was doing OK workload-wise yesterday, I offered to help another proposal writer by taking over one of his proposals since he has a bunch right now. I maybe should have kept my mouth shut, because I came in this morning to find two new short turnaround requests for me from my own salespeople. So instead of working on the big project I have to have finished in 2 weeks, I have to work on these little things due Monday. It's frustrating that the big work has to be pushed aside for the littler work that someone somewhere along the line just "forgot" to send on time. At least it's mostly enjoyable work. And it's always satisfying to send that finished project out the door.

Weekend recap
Friday - My dear husband took me to California Pizza Kitchen, my favorite lower-cost sit-down restaurant. We went over to Chris and Sabrina's house after that and watched Cheaper by the Dozen (very cute).
Saturday - I attended the annual Women's Luncheon for church. It was scorchingly hot, so I'm very glad they had umbrellas over the tables. I wasn't really in the mood to go to the luncheon, but I did get to wear one of my favorite dresses that I haven't worn in a very long time because 1) it's for warm weather and too fancy/cute for church and 2) at the last appropriate function for it, I was too fat. But Saturday it fit me like the day I bought it (probably in 1999 or 2000). Later that day, Jon and I used our remaining free movie tickets to see Jennifer Garner in 13 Going on 30. I really enjoyed it and liked seeing her in a completely different acting format. We also went to dinner and coffee that night with Neil and Casey.
Sunday - We heard a good message on discipleship and "running the race." I sang backup for the special music selection. A bunch of us went to lunch at the mall food court, and then Jon wanted to get home to catch the rest of the Laker's game. I took that opportunity to go to Robinsons May to find some shoes on sale! I had been needing some shoes to wear to work, and I found some great stuff. I should probably get rid of a couple pairs now, since I am a shoe fiend and have too many for our closet. At 6:00, we drove back down to church for a "young families" meeting with the pastor. We made it home just in time for our favorite show, Alias. Jon says the ratings are bad on the show, though, so it probably won't make it after next season.