Thursday, October 25, 2007

30 is the new 20

Yesterday, a simple discussion about Italy turned into a "farewell, sweet youth" situation.

Wedding reader extraordinaire LS and I were talking about vacationing in Italy, and then we started talking about the prevalence of cold showers in Italy, and then we acknowledged that our long hair prevents both of us from taking two-minute showers, and we confided that we both intend to keep our hair long. And then LS provided a poignant observation about long hair--"You can get away with it while you're young--and that's almost over for us."

Youth ending!? Or is it? Everyone says that your 30s are the new 20s, though I don't want to relive my early 20s again in a few years, as once was enough for me. I've come a long way since 20. For example:
  • I eat vegetables now.
  • I carry no credit card debt.
  • I own furniture that I purchased and that is not made of particle board.
  • My expenditures no longer surpass my income.
  • I throw parties at which wine is served out of real wine glasses, not Solo cups.
I suspect that others my age are proud of how far they've come, as well, and none of us wants to regress to a vegetable-free, particle-board, Solo-cup lifestyle. I think that "30 is the new 20" means that your thirties are the time to do what you wanted to do when you were in your 20s, when you didn't know better and couldn't afford "better" anyway. And, of course, the other implication is that you're still young enough to do all of that fun and exciting stuff. And I still feel young enough to do fun and exciting stuff, as long as it doesn't involve kneeling or sitting on the floor for long periods of time because while I still feel youthful and spry, my joints don't lie.

So bring on the long hair, the fun barrettes, and the graphic tees--if you're only young once, you might as well make it last as long as you can.

Wednesday, October 24, 2007

Post-wedding blues?

While I was planning the wedding, I read about a mysterious funk that comes over brides after the wedding and honeymoon is over, and they have to return to real life. The funk is the post-wedding blues.

The symptoms--anxiety, irritability, and depression--appear as a bride is mourning the end of a tumultuous, self-centered period of her life and has to reconcile that everything is no longer all about her.

I want to put everyone at ease--I am not suffering from the post-wedding blues. I am actually thrilled to return to LBW (life before wedding)--I think my blood pressure has improved since I stopped opening the wedding budget spreadsheet, and I no longer have to worry that the tablemates that I've decided upon will get along during the brunch.

I was actually hoping for several weeks of dullness before the holidays set in, but there is still so much to do that dullness will have to wait till January.

Tuesday, October 16, 2007

Happy anniversary to us!

Today marked B's and my one-month wedding anniversary. And since we are jet-setters, we each celebrated solo from our respective hotel rooms.

I was called out of town for a real-life documentation emergency (a tech writer runs into only a few of those in her lifetime--best to make the most of it), and B is doing his usual weekly travel, earning hotel points towards our next vacation (which I have already started planning--I am addicted to travel planning).

We celebrated four weeks of wedded bliss on Sunday to make up for what promised to be a long and lackluster anniversary day for both of us. B cooked a lovely dinner and then we packed together--so romantic.

As I hoped, nothing has changed in the last month. We're the same old us and are trying to get back to our regularly scheduled lives, though our house and its collection of styrofoam peanuts and to-do lists is doing its best to keep us busy. We've had some honeymoon and wedding photos developed but have barely had a chance to look at them, let alone decide what to do with them. I'm hoping that life will be back to normal and that all of the to-do lists will be crossed off by the end of the year. That is the deadline that I am setting, anyway.

Oh, and a lesson learned from my trip--when you bring your room service tray into the hallway, either bring your room key with you or prop the door open with the locking mechanism. Above all else, be sure that you are dressed in presentable clothing.

Thursday, October 11, 2007

Who is this MH person...

Today, I was faced with a difficult task--signing my new name for the first time.

The blank line was in front of me, and I realized that I haven't even practiced writing my new name--I had no idea how to write a capital H in cursive, let alone the full name. H's are tricky! You have to lift the pen, otherwise your H starts looking more like a U with a monkey bar in the middle. You also have to decide if you're going to use the traditional loop at the top of the first stick of the H or if you're going to to throw your weight behind the minimalist H and go loopless. So many decisions! And I haven't made any of them!

After a couple minutes of confusion and no writing, I wrote the letters as I was taught in the third grade. Consequently, I currently have the signature of a third grader. It's marginally better than the signature on my social security card, which I got when I was 7. I am going to have to do some serious practicing before I get my new license.

Writing my new name is only one of the many challenges that I've encountered. For instance, I don't recognize my own name on email messages. I see emails from this person named MH and wonder who she is. However, I must point out that she has a sparkling wit--I will have to invite her over for tea.

Tuesday, October 9, 2007

Customer service is so not my forte

This past weekend, B and I had an extended visit at every cook's favorite store. We were there so long that we started joking with the staff that we should put on aprons and start making sales. One of them took the joke further and said that they were desperately seeking seasonal help, and would I like an application. I wavered, and then he said the magic words: "Forty percent discount!" I decided that taking an application couldn't hurt.

I asked if I would be allowed to work only one night per week. He said usually not, but when they're desperate, they will accept it. I asked what the evening hours were. He said you could start at 5, 6, or 7, and your shift usually ends around 11.

I'm torn. I don't want a second job, and I don't need a second job, but a forty-percent discount is tempting! Then again, it's guaranteed that every penny I earn at this second job--and then some--would be immediately sunk back into the store. Plus the idea of working until 11 any night of the week sounds wretched.

I think the application is going to go into the garbage. After I can reconcile throwing away my forty percent discount.

Monday, October 8, 2007

In good health and in bad

This past week featured a momentous occurrence that had not been seen before--both B and I were sick at the same time. The last honeymoon memento that B and I picked up was a French cold.

We've been together for over three years, and I've never had a serious cold in that time. I am blessed with an amazing immune system. B has had a few minor sniffles but nothing serious either. It took French germs to knock us both off our feet.

This weekend, B's cold improved, while mine took a turn for the worse. A doctor's visit uncovered my fear--a minor case of bronchitis. To put my doctor's visit into perspective, the last time I went to the doctor because I was sick was 6 years ago when I had mono, and I diagnosed the illness before I got there--the doctor didn't believe me but tests indicated one of the worst cases he had ever seen--if only I had understood bio, I might have found my calling in the medical industry.

Anyway. I was given a 5-day course of antibiotics that I do not intend to take. Well, not right away, anyway. I will give my body a couple more days to fight this off on its own, and then if there is no improvement, I will take the pills.

The doctor also offered my codeine to help me sleep. Sniff. Thanks but no thanks.

Thursday, October 4, 2007

The best photographer in the world

Our wedding photographer did am amazing job with our engagement photos, but she has absolutely blown me away with the wedding photos. She is still editing the photos but was kind enough to create a slide show for us. Wow, wow, and wow. You know you have a great photographer when your already wonderful wedding memories get even better after you see the photos from the event.

Now I have a new addiction--watching my wedding slide show! Thank goodness she chose good music for it!

Tuesday, October 2, 2007

Things I learned while on my honeymoon

1. You can adopt as many international customs as you want. For example, you can drink chocolate chauds and eat glace every day if you want--even if you're not French.
2. You can drink as much water as you want in Disneyland Paris because you know the bathrooms are not scary.
3. Walking injuries heal. You just have to keep walking.
4. Take Tylenol PM the first few nights you're in a foreign country, or you might find yourself awake for several hours in the middle of the night.
5. Cheese in France does not taste like cheese in the US. Beware of anything with a cheese sauce. On the other hand, anything with a cream sauce is divine.
6. If you walk for miles and miles every day, you can eat ice cream every day. If you don't walk for miles and miles every day, you can still eat ice cream every day.
7. When you get tired of walking, stop in a cafe. Multiple cafe visits per day are acceptable and reasonable.
8. Buy the souvenirs that you want, or you'll later regret not getting them. Don't worry about how you're going to get them home--you'll figure something out. There is no shame in having the "Overweight" tag on your suitcase. It just means you're an efficient packer.
9. Every vacation should include at least one palm tree sighting.
10. Staying in a hotel room with a terrace that overlooks the Mediterranean should be on everyone's life list.
11. When you have to catch a train, make sure you put the alarm clock across the room so you have to get up to turn it off and can't turn it off in bed and then fall back to sleep.
12. The French are young at heart because they are forced to be. They don't believe in escalators--they believe in stairs. And running up and down them through the Metro with luggage because you're late for your train isn't fun. However, catching the train you thought you'd never catch is a fun little boost, even if your hair is unwashed and you look like you've just completed a triathlon. (And perhaps you fit in better that way, anyway.)
13. Limit yourself to 3 chateaux or fewer per vacation.
14. Buy all reading material while in the U.S.
15. Write down all purchases at the end of each day, and organize purchases into categories to make filling out the customs form easier.
16. There is no shame in returning to a store after you've realized that you haven't shopped there sufficiently.
17. There is no such thing as a quick visit to Vieux Nice because you will never be able to find the store that you are looking for when you need it. When you need patisseries, all you can find are frommageries. When you need frommageries, all you can find are caves.
18. Long flights home are made shorter with a good book, plenty of water, and good snacks.
19. Expect to wake up at 4 AM your first morning back in the US. Revel in it. Enjoy all that you can accomplish before 9 AM.
20. Traveling abroad is divine, but there's no place like home.