Quarterly Buying: Brilliant or Bogus?

So, I have this harebrained idea I've been tossing around. I'm wondering if quarterly shopping would be profitable to me in terms of both time and money. At first, I was thinking just of my typical Target trips, but then I started thinking that maybe it would work for groceries, too. Here's how I think it would work:

• Make a "standard" list of all the things I normally purchase during the year other than clothing, furniture, etc. So, napkins, shampoo, cleaning products, make-up.
• For the first "quarter", I'd have to make an inventory of all of those items and then decide what quantity of each needed item to purchase.
• For later quarters, it would be a matter of monitoring how much I've used and purchasing anything I'll need for the next three months.

Eventually, I would fall into a rhythm where I would know what quantity I need to buy. In the past, I've been very against bulk buying because of limited space. However, quarterly buying seems like perhaps a happy medium. The groceries would be tricky, but I could at least stock up on dry items and maybe frozen items, too. I'm going to have to buy produce on a weekly basis anyway.

I'm hoping it would save me time because I'd only have to do major shopping 4 times a year. And, I'm hoping it would save me money because perhaps the items I buy more than once a quarter, I could buy in multiple and take advantage of a deal.

Anyone out there that's tried this?

Successes!

Success #1: I changed my headlight today. And, I didn't even call my dad for help or advice. Oh yeah!

Success #2: I ran 3.2 miles this morning! Yippeeee! I am so excited. I've been hovering between 2.5 and 3 for a while now, but today I did it. Part of it is just making sure I run a big enough route to be that long, but also, feeling good enough to keep running that long is quite an accomplishment. Yay! That was longer than the 5k I'm going to run in November. My goal is to be able to run five miles by that point. Then, I'll probably just maintain the distance and try to get a little more speed. It just seems so crazy to me that I am able to run that far. I'm the girl accused of cheating on the one-mile run in the fifth grade. Anyway...

Various and Sundry Thoughts

1 - The fact that my middle-aged stats professor drinks juice boxes in class is awesome.

2 - Today, I drove by that tuba-playing guy on Braddock Road again. Hilarious! Also, his tuba has a license plate that reads "TUBA"

3 - Last night I followed someone whose plates read, "CMYKRGB" I thought that was pretty dorkily awesome, too.

4 - I FINALLY got back on track with the Bible reading plan today. (Our church is doing a year-long reading plan called From Garden To City) Today's reading was Proverbs 3-4. Wow... that's some challenging stuff. This passage has a beautiful contrast between seeking wisdom and the value and glory in that and yet not resting on your own wisdom. It's pretty profound stuff. Proverbs 3:7 particularly hit me-- "Do not be wise in your own eyes." How often do I pat myself on the back for how very wise and astute I am!? Ahh... but to seek after a higher wisdom. Humbling, terrifying, but yet exciting.

5 - I've been working out a lot (for me, at least) lately and I'm starting to feel perpetually achy and sore. It's a good feeling, but for the first time in my life, I kind of want a massage. Ack! I do NOT have room in my budget for another luxury item!!

A few random updates

• Today, I ran 2.8 miles. I'm getting there. I was hoping it would be 3mi, but when I got home and tracked it, it was not. I can almost taste the 5k!
• I got a new shiny computer. yay.
• I do not enjoy the discipline of studying. I'm not doing so well with the transition back to school this semester. Oh well... it will happen.

Yesterday....

I saw a giant green John Deere tractor going down 8th Street here on the Hill.

Hilarious and Bizarre.

More weekend thinkings

There are lots of things that I wish I could do every day or most days, but alas, my schedule is just not conducive to that. Other things (like work and MBA) kind of get in the way. If I could I would do the following things most or every day:

• read scripture
• play flute
• work out
• cook

I played flute several times this weekend. It was so so very good. This marked a break in the longest playing hiatus yet. I played two weddings in 2008 and I honestly can't remember if I've played at all since then! I definitely felt some fear getting the instrument out of its case. I was afraid that I wouldn't remember how to play.. that I would sound so awful that I wouldn't want to play anymore...that my technical ability would be so far gone that it would just be ultimately too frustrating. I can't quite explain how I felt when I started playing. I put Mia (that's my flute's name) together and started with some long tone exercises just to warm up a little. I was nearly overcome with emotion. I fought back the tears, but they were close. It was beautiful. Such a warm, beautiful sound that was so familiar... like someone's voice you haven't heard for years. Comforting, intimate, mine. This may sound corny, but I felt whole again.

It feels so good to be playing again. Right now, I'm not sure exactly where this will go. If I'll find an ensemble to play with, start playing at church again, build a teaching studio, or what. But, I absolutely can't stop playing. This is part of who I am and I never want to lose it again.

Fatgirl's triathalon thinkings

I am considering doing a sprint Triathalon next June. It is a .62 mile swim, 17.5 miles biking, and 3.4 miles running. I am no athlete by any man's standards. However, there is something in me that makes me think I could actually do this.

Reasons I think I could do this:

1 - Though I haven't been swimming for a while, I was regularly swimming a mile as my workout so .62 mile wouldn't be that bad.

2 - I don't really find biking all that hard. 17.5 miles is kind of far, but if I actually trained, I think I could do that without much trouble.

3 - I'm learning to run. Today, I ran 2.4 miles (my longest run ever) so 3.4 doesn't sound so scary anymore.

4 - I have friends that are not in the best of shape and they did the sprint tri without dying.

5 - I am generally capable of doing most things I set my mind to... this should be no exception.

Reasons I think I could NOT do this (or obstacles):

1 - I have never done a workout consisting of two different activities right after each other... let alone three!

2 - I don't even own a bike right now. It is difficult to train for a bike ride without an actual bike.

3 - I am fat. lol Ok, so, I am considerably smaller than I once was, but I am still a big girl and this sounds scary to me.

4 - This will require some serious training, which I don't really have time for given the MBA program, work, intense commute, etc.

5 - I might die.

All of that considered, I think I'm going to give it a sot. Time to start finding a training schedule, I guess. Registration starts 9/20 so I guess I have until then to chicken out.

Today's New Experience

A few days ago, I finally ran into the clarinet player that I've heard practicing in the building over the last year. It turns out that she and her boyfriend play in the marine band and she is working on a masters' program in the area. Anyway, she mentioned that she was playing a solo tonight at a concert on the capitol steps and invited me to come. So, I did!
Shamefully, I have never gone to any of the concerts on the capitol steps, even though there are concerts four night s a week in the summer. It had also been a LONG time since I had gone to a wind concert at all. I have to say that I enjoyed myself. It was 95 degrees, at least, so intonantion was a challenge at points, but there is just something so gratifying in watching people do what they absolutely love to do. Plus, I was introduced to some new music. She played a piece by Andreas Makris called Intrigues. It turns out the composer has deep local connections. Anyways, it was an interesting piece with some real challenges... especially in the heat.
So, there we go -- I discovered a new, fun activity for the summers... and met a new person and a new piece in the process.

Notes of Joy from a Long Trip with a Short Boy

Backstory: Yesterday, I got up early and flew with my 6-year-old nephew back to Phoenix and then immediately turned around and flew back home. The boy was safely delivered back to his parents and I was safely, but tiredly delivered back to DC.
Small Joy 1: Just hanging out with my nephew. I rarely get to see him so it was fun to get some one-on-one time with him. Who knows? Maybe this will be something he'll remember when he's grown up.
Small Joy 2: Watching him from a distance and seeing a little piece of my brother's wonderfulness in him. We had about an hour to wait for our first flight so we went and sat at the gate at the end of the terminal so he could watch the planes. He walked over to the window and within two minutes had made a friend with another little boy who was five. One of Scott's great attributes (in my humble, yet accurate, opinion) is that he can engage anyone in a conversation and make them feel special and included. It looks like his son is well on his way to mastering that art.
Small Joy 3: Watching my nephew study the step-by-step safety guide in the seat-back pocket. Seriously. He studied that thing front and back for a good 20 minutes on each flight. If the boy doesn't become an engineer or an architect, the world will be a worse place for it.
Small Joy 4: Getting to see my sis-in-law's excitement at having her little boy back after more than three weeks away from home!
Small Joy 5: The descent into Salt Lake City. Holy cow! What a gorgeous, gorgeous sight. I had been in Utah, and even Salt Lake City, but I had never flown into it. That was one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen from the sky. And, it was a total surprise because I didn't even look to see where I was connecting until that morning. Very cool.
Small Joy 6: Making it back home and falling into my bed. A pillow rarely feels as good as it does after a 19-hour day filled with 6000 miles of air travel.

Good times.

Caring for a Small Human

This evening, I'm hanging out with my little nephew before we fly back to his home tomorrow. We went to the park, looked through all of his pictures from his Pennsylvania vacation, grabbed some dinner, and then pretty much hit the hay. He must have been tired... I don't think he even moved after he laid down. Tired little boy, I guess.

I love this kid. I gave him three choices for dinner. 1 - sushi, 2 - Thai food, 3 - pizza. The kid chose Thai! How awesome is that. Now, to be fair, I knew ahead of time that the kid loves Thai food and that was pretty much what I wanted, but I thought it might be a crapshoot with the pizza thrown in there. Anyway, that was awesome.

Tomorrow: 4 airports, 4 flights, 1 6-yr old, and an awful lot of work time

Random Things

Favorite new website: StillTasty.com - As its name suggests, it is a searchable database of shelflife for all kinds of stuff. So far, I've only looked up black beans, but just knowing that it exists makes me a very happy girl.
Thoughts on Inception: I definitely liked it. I don't know that it will go on my list of favorite movies, but I am glad that I saw it. Definitely an originality factor to it. I could have done without some of the gunfire. Ok, so I realize that there's some mass appeal, male audience drawing power with guns and explosions. However, I'm not sure that all of that was really all that integral to the heart of the story. Also, fewer gunshots would have meant fewer minutes spent watching the movie through the crevices of my fingers. Just sayin'. I also thought that a few points were belabored. Some things maybe weren't quite clear enough (though the ambiguity is definitely part of the intrigue), but then other things repeatedly hit the audience over the head. And, of course, no commentary from Hyla would be complete without something about the soundtrack. They definitely chose one emotion and carried it through the whole film. At different points, I kept thinking, "If the music was lighter here, this whole scene would be light." But, truthfully, there was almost no reprieve from the pulsating intensity... if I was recording that score, I think my stress levels would be through the roof at the end of every session. It's just an awful lot of very similar, intense music. Once I saw at the end that Hans Zimmer wrote the score, though, it made a lot more sense.
National-Hyla-relearns-the-flute-month: August will be this month for me. I'm planning to spend the first week just doing tone and technical exercises. That way I won't feel so "flabby" when I actually start reading music again. It's been a long time since I've read much music. I'm hoping that after a month-long action plan, I'll be ready to consider playing in public again at some point.

Things that make me happy

(taken from today's experiences)

1 - holding Sebastian

2 - Pasta with shrimp, dill, peas, and feta

3 - Killer breakfast sandwiches from Presto Gourmet. (No seriously, they'll actually kill you.)

4 - calm evenings -- even if I am working

5 - editing copy (Yes, I know I'm weird.)

6 - planning stuff, like my super-fast visit w/ my sis-in-law on Monday, and seeing Jeremy this weekend.

7 - blogging

8 - diet coke

Dear weather gods,

Remember this?

Dear first (or 2nd?) date girl,

Don't let him do that to you again. Seriously. He had 150% of the control of your date. He owned the physical space by leaning like that. He owned the psychological space by asking you all of the questions and then butting in with his own stories. He did everything he needed to do to see if all the little details of your life, your ambitions, even your body would fit into what he wants. The date-cum-interview was honestly a little hard to watch. Don't you see how there would be absolutely no give-and-take in your relationship? Don't go out with him again. You're just going to end up feeling stifled and used.
Sincerely,
eavesdropping-while-waiting-for-my-friend girl

PS - You're really quite beautiful. A little less hairspray and makeup would become you.

Stuff I'm good at

Making quiche and business law exams
1 - Tonight, I made a quiche, including a homemade crust. It was awesome. And, it wasn't difficult at all. I am totally adding that to my repertoire. This one had onions, mushrooms and spinach, but I could add lots of different ingredients. I took it to Colleen and Nathaniel's and it disappeared in good time. (Although, I may have been the one primarily making it disappear. )
2 - I've been hesitant to put this on facebook or anything because I don't want to be too boast-y, but I totally kicked butt on my Law Exam this week. I actually got a 100. (There were 6 bonus points available so I did miss a few questions, but still....) I am very proud of myself. Never mind the intense level of fear I have about my grade on the Cost Accounting exam from last night.

New Goal: Survive this week!

Wow -- One crazy week down -- one crazy week coming up! Today I got up and studied for a few hours, threw some things in a bag and headed for Ebensburg, but not before catching about half of leadership summit. I have about 24 hours here with my big brother and little nephew before I have to head back for a week of work, two finals, and a couple of dr's appointments thrown in there. Whew - hoping I make it through this whirlwind!
More soon!

another life changer

Cilantro and Jalepeno hummus from trader joes. Seriously, I will never be the same again. You should go straight to Trader Joe's and get some. Do not pass go. But, go ahead and collect $200 if the opportunity presents itself!

Super-Hyla!

Well, paint me an S on my chest. I just got back from a run in which I did not stop and walk at all. When I got back, I promptly went to mapmyrun.com and discovered that it was 1.76 miles. Now, this may not sound particularly feat-ful to you, but to me.... well, I feel like a superhero. I don't think I've ever run more than about a mile without stopping before. So, this is a major accomplishment to me. I realize it's not exactly a marathon, but hey, it's something.
Yippity yay for the awesome weather outside tonight so I could do that!

the last, not the next

I woke up in the middle of the night with this going through my head:

I'm not looking for the next guy. I'm looking for the last guy.

I suppose I've felt like this for a while, but I don't know that I've thought about it quite like this. I don't want someone to date anymore. I want someone to spend my life with. I want to stop looking. Dating is difficult and often so hurtful... not only do I get hurt, but all too often, I'm the one hurting someone else. I'm not foolish enough to think that the hurting will stop if I get married, but at least a path of wanton hurt can stop at that point.

I no longer have time or energy for the next guy. But, I certainly have the energy for the last guy.

Today's score

Getting to sleep in a little since I was driving today: +1
Hearing "Single Ladies" on the drive in: +2
Learning that McDonald's now has breakfast snacks: +1
Resisting using new information about McDonald's morning menu: +2
Getting "Straight Up" (that's right - Paula Abdul, baby!) stuck in my head: +4
----------
Today's score so far: +10