The big news...

I saw a house online a few weeks that looked pretty good. The only problem was that it's in Daybreak (west side of the valley, for those of you who don't know). I didn't want to be on the west side. It's a long drive to most of my friends' houses. But I went and looked at this house last week anyway, just in case it was good enough to justify living on the west side. And it was! I fell in love with it almost immediately. I looked again on Tuesday, and still liked it. The agent said there was another offer coming in, so I had to act fast. I made an offer last night. The other offer came in a little higher today, but the agent said that since I was first, if I would match the second offer I could have it. So I had to up it a little (what's a few thousand dollars over 30 years, right? That's what I keep telling myself), and I got it. My real estate agent came over tonight with the paperwork and I signed everything, and that's that. Now I'm in the thick of it- scheduling inspections, talking to the bank, thinking about furniture, etc. Woohoo! The house is 6 years old, has a perfectly-sized fenced backyard (a lot of Daybreak doesn't have yards- that would have been a deal-breaker for me), hard wood floors, and a big porch. And an attached garage in the back. It's super cute.

I Have Arrived

It seems I've reached a new season of my life. As most of you are probably aware, I have not always been the amazing fashionista that stands before you today. In fact, in the not-too-distant past, I was clueless about what clothes went together and what was cute. In high school, I was proud of the fact that I had enough vests to wear a different one each day of the week. And these weren't good vests, either. In college, my roommates wouldn't let me shop alone, and often picked my clothes out for me because they knew if I tried, there would be an implosion from bland, unbalanced outfits. And even just a few months ago, one of my friends saw a picture of me and busted up laughing and said, "See, Carolyn- this is why we don't let you shop alone." Apparently my outfit was wrong. But today, one of the guys at work asked me if I ever watch any of those fashion makeover shows on cable. I said, "You mean What Not To Wear?" And he said, "Yes! Your outfit today looks like Stacy and Clinton put it together." So there you go. I'm now qualified to walk down the sidewalks of New York without feeling ashamed of my too baggy t-shirt or too short pants or too clunky shoes. I've graduated from being helpless in my own closet to being confident in a store!

Siggggggghhhhhhh....... it's amazing what a little golf can do for a person. I've been telling myself for months that it's time to break out the clubs and officially open my golf season. But every weekend, something comes up and I'm not able to hit the golf course. But yesterday, after a few very busy and stressful weekends, I finally scheduled the entire day for fun. I started the day with a good workout while watching Jerry Maguire (edited) on the tv at the gym. It really is a good movie. I've only seen the edited version, so I don't know how bad it gets, but I like it. But that's not the point of this post. After the gym I ate pancakes (one of my favorite foods), then went hiking with my friend and her big black lab. After hiking I worked on my finances (sounds boring, but I love it. I love planning and budgeting and researching investments), then had leftover pancakes toasted and slathered in peanut butter, and a diet Pepsi for lunch. All on my list of favorites. Then I took time for a little shopping. So, already a great day, right? But it got even better. I finally made it to the golf course and hit a bucket of balls. And for the first time out this season, I must say I did pretty well. Many of the balls flew far and straight (many also crept along the ground and barely made it to the edge of the tee area, but we don't have to think about those). I don't know if it's being out in the fresh air and sun and smelling the fresh grass, or if it's the satisfaction of whacking those balls and hearing the little "ping" noise they make when the club hits them, but something about golfing does wonders for me. The world truly is a better place after just a little while on the golf course. I'm more patient with bad drivers, I'm happy with just about anything on the radio, life is just better. Golfing should be a required hobby for convicted felons, serial killers, terrorists, etc. I think it would cure them right up.

Scents and Scentsibility

Okay, maybe I'm stretching a bit for a title for this post. Whatever. I've had nothing terribly interesting to blog about lately, but I'm ready for a new post, so this is what you all get. I've been noticing smells lately, and it's interesting to realize the things I associate them with. So here's a list of some of the smells I like and the things they remind me of:

Freshly cut lawn: this is the smell of summer (one of them, anyway). When I smell freshly cut grass, I immediately think of baseball games, golf courses, and long walks.

Bacon: I don't actually like bacon. But sometimes I like the smell. It smells to me like a winter morning with friends and family. And of course pancakes.

Skunk: Okay, I realize skunk isn't actually a good smell. But it takes me automatically to an evening drive through the country or a night walk through my Virginia and Michigan neighborhoods.

Cigarette smoke: You thought skunk was weird. Well, I don't like being around people when they're smoking, and I certaintly don't want that smell attaching itself to my clothes or anything, but if it's not too heavy, it smells like a street festival or some other type of outdoor crowd. And I love outdoor crowds. It's fun to be one little person in the midst of hundreds of other people, all out enjoying a fun night.

Hyacinths: I love the smell of hyacinths. When I get my first whiff of hyacinth for the year, I know spring has officially arrived. And I got that whiff today. It was wonderful. And speaking of flowers...

Lillies: Lillies have such a strong smell, and they give me a headache after just a few minutes, but it's still one of my favorite smells. I think this is because lillies are popular around Easter, which often falls on my birthday, so lillies are the smell of my birthday (aka, the best day of the year).

Lilacs: Another smell of summer.

Jasmine: The smell of California, and hence, vacations.

Sage: Sage smells like freedom. The Utah mountains abound with sage, so the smell reminds me of hiking and getting away from technology and not having to worry about real life for a little while.

And of course, good cologne. The tiniest hint of the right colognes takes me to so many good times with good friends. I think each chapter of my life has a different cologne, based on my group of friends during that time. And it doesn't just remind me of my guy friends who wore that flavor- it also reminds me of the girls in our groups. Some of my favorites, in chronological order, are Cool Water, Curve, Fierce, and Axe Kilo. And one from either Guess or Banana Republic. I can't remember.

Oh, and just one or two more I just thought of:

Apple soap/lotion: this is the smell of my teenage years.

Hairspray: the smell of the first day of school.

Diesel fuel: London. I love it.

Which State's Plates?

This has been on my mind lately, and for those of you who follow me on Facebook, you know. I don't like Utah's license plates. Now, I'm not really one for accessories (I don't think I've ever bought myself a necklace, I only wear belts to hold my pants up, you get the picture), but I do like the little touches that liven up my car's appearance. One of the things I was most excited for when I moved to Michigan was that they had just released a new license plate design. It has a light green and blue background and a picture of the upper peninsula. It's pretty, and I felt like it was the final touch to my already stylin' car. Coming back to Utah was a different story. The plates here are brown or orange. And even the special interest plates are boring! They're just white with a symbol of whatever group they support. In other states, special interest plates are all different. In Virginia, there was one with an autumn leaf border, another with a blue background and a picture of a cool land formation, another with the Chesapeake bay, some with flowers, birds, etc. If license plates are the fashion statement of a car, Utah provides basically a burlap sack dress. The plates are so boring and flatter very few cars. I wish we could pick which state to register in based on license plates. I'd have a tough time choosing, but some of the contenders would be Arizona's new clean air license plate (light blue with white fluffy clouds), Colorado's new plate (light green with mountains and a sunset, I think), Nebraska, Oregon (that green pine tree in the middle makes any car look good), and South Dakota. On the other hand, the newest Utah plate, with the brown band across the top and the blue mountain background, is unique. I think it would draw the attention of other drivers in other states, just because it has different colors than any other state. It's bold, and for that reason I like it. And I guess my car, being brown, is one of the few that can carry this plate off well. So I'll embrace it.

The way it should be

Last night I was watching tv with my mom, and a toilet paper ad came on in which a man discussed the results of a national survey showing that 72% of Americans believe the toilet paper should go over the roll. Now, as with most things, I have a strong opinion about this. The toilet paper always has, does now, and always will be correct coming under the roll. With so much of America clearly confused about such a grave matter, I knew immediately that, as a possessor of the truth, I have the responsibility to spread this truth across the country. So let this be the beginning of my campaign to right the wrongs of the toilet paper world! Toilet paper goes under! And here's why: when you're in the standard toilet paper-using position, you pull the paper in an out and slightly up direction. If the paper is coming over the roll, that action doesn't meet with any resistance to tear the paper, and you are likely to come away with more paper than you need. On the other hand, if the paper is coming under the roll, a pull in the out and up direction is contrary to the natural directional flow of the paper, and it will tear more readily. Therefore, it is more efficient, environmentally friendly, and sewer sustaining to place the toilet paper coming under the roll than over. I encourage all my readers who share my knowledge of the truth (that's all of you, now that you've read this post!), to do your part in bettering America, and educate your fellow citizens. Under!

Musings on Commuting

Over the last month, I've been getting used to actual commuting to work. I've never really had to commute before. When I lived in DC, I took a 20 minute train ride and then walked a mile to and from work, but that was more relaxing than anything. It gave me a chance to see the city and to have 20 solid minutes of reading every day. And in Michigan I had a seven-minute drive to work, so that doesn't count as a commute. So this new commute of 40 minutes each way has been a new experience. Hence, our topic for today: commuting. And I'll even talk about my non-commutes of days past.

First, in DC, the train ride was fun. Every morning, everybody would stand at their particular spot on the train platform, so the same people ended up on the same train cars every day. This meant that I generally recognized about 90% of the passengers. And, even though we all knew each other and expected to see each other every day, nobody EVER talked. Every now and then, we'd get a new person who would try to start a conversation, and he would either be ignored or shushed. Talking just wasn't socially acceptable on the DC commute.

Here's my favorite story of Michigan commuting. One day, I was driving to work. It was a nice, sunny summer morning. I needed to make a right turn onto one of the busiest roads in the area, but traffic was at a stand still. A few cars ahead, a bunny was sitting in the middle of the road. The driver of the first car had gotten out and was trying to coax the bunny off the road, while all the other drivers just sat there patiently waiting. Nobody honked, yelled, etc. We all just watched as the bunny was gradually persuaded into the forest. Then the driver waved to everyone, got back in his car, and we all went on our way. It was the perfect start to a day.

Now for my new commute. First of all, just like in DC, I'm starting to recognize people on the road. There's the red minicooper, with the license plate "funsizd" (speaking of which, I think minis must have the highest rate of vanity plates- just about every mini I see has a license plate that is trying to be cute); I pass a big 14-passenger van on the beltway every morning that I think is some kind of preschool carpool. It says something like "Mountainland Academy" on the side, and it's always full of little kids in carseats, usually asleep.

One frustrating thing I've learned about commuting is that timing is essential. If I leave the office before about 5:17, traffic is a nightmare. I have a 10-minute wait to get from 2-15 to I-15, and all the Sandy exits are backed up for at least a mile each. But if I leave between 5:18 and 5:30, I have smooth sailing all the way home, besides a little slowing in Sandy. And then if I'm between 5:30 and 5:40, it's bad again. Weird.

And here's a curious little item. Every morning without fail, the ramp between I-15 northbound and 2-15 westbound smells like burnt toast. I don't smell it until I get on the ramp, and it's gone as soon as I'm off the ramp. Why is that?