Packing it up

Lots of big changes happening in my life right now. Just finished my very long tenure as a student which means an identity shift. Starting a new position as a postdoctoral fellow and having to learn to make the best of a less than ideal situation. Hopefully moving to a new, more modern apartment with actual amenities. As a way of marking a new phase of my life, I am moving to a new blog after 4+ years. Almost like EnnuiHerself 2.0.

I've chosen to jump ship and move to Wordpress for no other reason than I think it's prettier. It does seem to be a little more user friendly, but mostly it's prettier.

My current readers are welcome and encouraged to join me over at my brand new blog: The Artistic Vision of My Life.

I'm probably going to deactivate this blog in a few weeks, so be sure to bookmark the new blog soon.

"What, did you think it would be some sort of dump?"

Yesterday, I wrote about my concerns over riding the train for 2 days straight. To allay my concerns, The Boyfriend scoured the internet (well, mostly the Amtrak site) to find pictures and information. I am a woman who does well with knowledge; if left to my own devices, I will envision all kinds of scenarios, usually bad.

We're going to be on the Empire Builder line which apparently got quite the facelift a few years ago. I now have a detailed route map and schedule so I know exactly where I'm going.

While the people and finding ways to occupy myself are issues, honestly, my chief concerns are basic needs: sleeping, food, and the potty.

Here's an interactive map of the sleeper car, in which we will spend two nights. I'm told that there are locking doors so no one can come in and molest me at night.

The food looks pretty good. I was worried that not only would I be bored, I would be hungry - not a pretty mix. The food is pricey but free to us as first class passengers so I don't have to worry about rationing or bringing snacks. Also, they provide free libations . . . although I suppose that won't help me stay upright. Perhaps even more important than the booze is the free bedtime cookies.

My biggest concern, though, was the bathroom. Specifically, would it be cramped, dark, and/or icky? I considered bringing a bottle of Lysol but worried about getting that through airport security. The Boyfriend, being a gung-ho train advocate, even found pictures of the shower (1 and 2) and the toilet. Okay, they're both a little on the smallish side (definitely no singing and dancing in that shower) but I think it'll be okay.

Yes, this will be fun.

Sometimes a girl needs a vacation from her vacation

And so it seems that travel is in the cards for me.

I just returned from a friend's bridal shower and bachelorette party near Rochester, NY. Upstate NY is beautiful and is now in the running for list of places where I might like to retire. Living in Cleveland has deprived me of trees and mountains and lakes, all things I like very much.

In bigger travel news, The Boyfriend and I just booked a 10 day trip to Santa Fe and Seattle. We're flying out to Santa Fe to spend a few days with his Nana (I'm betting that there will be stories to tell when I get back - she sounds like a real firecracker!), then flying up to Seattle for a few days (long-time readers know of my love affair with The Emerald City), finally ending with a 2.5 day train trip back to Cleveland.

Now, let's talk about this train trip.

The trip from Seattle to Chicago is 2 days with a 3 hour break before we re-board for Cleveland (arriving, I might add, at 2am). The longest I've been on a train is ~6 hours; I will be stuck on this train for 2 full days.

You would be amazed at the amount of mental energy I have expended thinking about this portion of the trip. What does what do for two days in a small enclosed space? The Boyfriend assures me that the other people will be wonderful and friendly. However, he has never had the "pleasure" of seeing me cooped up with many people, let alone complete strangers, for any extended period of time. I can hold it together for a few hours but even I'm not entirely sure what will happen when I'm feeling bored and anti-social and trapped. Deep down, I am a Crank.

To try and avoid any sort of meltdown, I've packed three books and loaded up my iPod with podcasts of This American Life. The Boyfriend is bringing his laptop and fancy wireless card thing.

But then there are the sheer logistics, like showering on the train. I've showered in small spaces before but the shower was never in motion. As far as sleeping, our cabin/room has bunk beds. The resentful only child in me foolishly called the top bunk. Again, I've slept in small, lofted beds before but they were always stationary.

I am absolutely convinced that I will spend a considerable amount of time picking my ass up off the floor of the train.

Sorry to leave you hanging

Right, so last we spoke (oof, over a month since my last post!), I had defended and was mostly unemployed. I was busy doing a whole lotta nothing (screwing around on Facebook and napping, for example) and bitching about being fat and out of shape.

Here's a brief summary of what I've been up to this past month:

1. Had a preliminary job interview. Very brief, not super optimistic. Had to wait over two weeks for my graduate advisor, my primary reference, to return to the country and to then contact her.
   
   
2. Had an all day interview with a second potential employer. Met the principal investigator (PI), the lab, and most of the faculty in the department. Gave a seminar. Got a free lunch. Very optimistic. Had to wait a week for my advisor to return.
   
   
3. Got a new Ohio license after living here for 8 years. It's pink and very pretty. Guess I'm officially an Ohioan.
   
   
4. Advisor finally returned. Had to badger him to call my interviewers. All those years of badgering in grad school apparently paid off.
   
   
5. Found out that the PI from Interview #2 is having unexpected funding issues. Looks doubtful.
   
   
6. Follow up meeting with Interview #1, met the rest of the lab. Car broke on the way to the meeting thus making me an hour late. Bought a new battery so my car will start; bought new brake pads so my car will stop.
   
   
7. Informal job offer from Interview #1. Waiting for the official offer from human resources. Barring loss of funding or some paperwork screw-up, looks like I have a job. :)
   
   
8. Picked up my degree today. Looks like I have a Ph.D. for reals. :)
   

Tangible success

I finally got around to ordering the bridesmaid's dress for my friend's wedding (apparently I ordered just in time for an October wedding).

She's being an awesome bride in that we can choose our dress within fairly broad parameters. The dress I chose is fairly simple: charmeuse, square neckline, empire waist, rouched bodice. While trying on the sample dress at the store, I learned that charmeuse is one of those fabrics. Oh, you know, the type that skims the body and shows every bump, roll, and bulge. Of all the dresses, I had to pick that one. Even the sales associate seemed a little doubtful as I fought my way into the size 14 sample. Let's just say it was . . . snug; there was some definite structural stress in the hip area.

I tried that same sample dress on again only a couple of days after lamenting that my commitment to a healthy lifestyle had generated few to no results. And wonders of wonders, it fit. Perhaps a little tighter than I would want to wear in public but it was noticeably looser.

I've lost the three pounds that I gained plus two more. Despite The Boyfriend's insistence that I can't have visible muscle definition after only a month, I still believe that I'm seeing something in my quads and triceps. And it's my blog, so I'm right. :) So I guess my hard work is paying off even if it's not as obvious as I might like.

To kick it up a notch, I've signed up for the Personal Touch class through Jazzercise which starts today (at the unfortunate time of 8am). A combination of pilates, weight training, and those accursed exercise balls that I have a tendency to fall off of, I'm told that this is an ass-kicking, body-sculpting class that will amp up any exercise regimen. It's only 4 classes but I've been assured that it works.

I hope I don't schooled by a giant ball.

Intangible success

I announced my committment to a healthy lifestyle several months ago. With my defenses and everything, I got a little sidetracked, but I have been quite diligent for a solid month. Going to the gym at least 3 times a week for an hour of aerobics and strength training and eating in a more consistently healthful manner.

What do I have to show for this discipline? An additional 3 pounds!

I'd like to believe that this gain represents increased muscle mass, which should make me trimmer, but sadly none of my clothes seem roomier. There goes that theory. (Although I haven't actually busted out a tape measure to check.)

Despite my lack of tangible improvement, I have noticed some differences. When I first started back to Jazzercise, I would occasionally have to take a break because I was winded. Now, I find myself able to keep going and, if I do need to ratchet down the intensity, it's because my muscles are refusing to cooperate. So . . . my cardiovascular system is at least getting some benefit out of my hard work. That's not quite as satisfying as dropping a size but I'll take it.

It may be wishful thinking but I'd like to believe that I'm seeing some new muscle definition (beefcake!). Also, I need to remember that my goal wasn't necessarily about weight loss but about improving my health overall.

If there is a heaven, I hope that Michael Jackson and the angels are all gettin' down

I'm sure that I've written here about my unhealthy compulsion with singing and dancing. I estimate that I waste at least 10 minutes every morning bustin' a move in the shower. My singing and dancing used to be strictly limited to my apartment but it's recently expanded to include my car, work, and the grocery store. If you ever see some strange Black woman rocking out to the muzak at the mall or next to you on the highway, it's me.

I was never quite sure where this tendency came from. I only took ballet for 2 months and I was never much inclined towards the performance arts in school. Well this weekend, I figured it all out.

With the passing of Michael Jackson, I have been reliving my childhood by watching dozens of old MJ videos. I proclaim that, hands down, Smooth Criminal is the coolest video ever made. I mean, sh'mon, MJ was slick in that video with that badass lean. Between that and Janet Jackson's Rhythm Nation, it's no wonder I got hooked on the music and the moves.

Michael Jackson was a major influence in my young life. He was the first celebrity that I knew anything about; he was certainly my first, if not only, celebrity crush. Thriller was the very first cassette tape that I ever owned. I still remember the poster I had in my childhood room.

He certainly had more than his fair share of troubles these last few years and yes, he did kind of lose touch with reality (to put it mildly), but he was an amazing performer. He revolutionized pop music and the music video. He was a certified megastar, billions of people across the globe knew him and loved him. Fans searching for information about his death almost broke the internet. Because of that, Michael Jackson deserves to be remembered for his contribution to the world of music and for all his philanthropic works.

Now, if you need me, I'll be practicing the moves to Smooth Criminal. Sh'mon