chellez437

Comment to be added.

Time for my annual LJ update. Sean and I are a little less than a month away from homecoming.

We eloped on April 27th during his 2 week leave. Totally not planned. At all. ( The story, if you are at all interested, behind the cut. )

I quit my job about a month ago due to irreconcilable differences. Instead, I am currently focusing more on my certificate program. (With the economy, I decided to go back for my CCS/CCS-P in medical coding, hoping my previous experience and future certificate will allow me to obtain a better job than, well, my previous one. As I've told Sean and my family, this is a "just for now" thing. I still plan to go to culinary school later.)

Shortly after Sean left, I found a little house in a town nearby for rent. (We are hoping to only stay in IL for another 2.5-3 years, so we didn't want to buy and be stuck with a mortgage when we want to move.) It's cute, it's small. (So small that I like to call it our "vacation home" or our "cabin in the woods".) However, we don't really need anything too big right now, and it's a house. It has a yard, which is good for Bishop (our pit bull). It's right near the lake (with fishing), has a huge fire pit in the back yard, and the minute I saw the place...I could imagine Sean living there. In between classes, I'm slowly getting things ready over there. Moving little things for now, got the painting done a few weeks back thanks to a few of my awesome friends. Just need to move over all my big furniture and clothes and purchase a few finishing touches, and it will be move-in ready. I can't wait! (But I will, until Sean is home.) Less than a month!!

How's that for an annual update? (I promise I'll give forewarning before the next big chapter in our lives. No surprise children during the next update.) ;-)

Sean's orders are in effect. I can't believe it's already time for him to go. These last three months since we were notified flew by. He's got a few days back and forth from the unit to home before he actually has to head out of state.

I'm surprised as to how well I'm doing, save for the random bouts of crying over absolutely nothing. It has actually been pretty comical.

We went up to his parent's property in northern Wisconsin earlier this week. We spent most of our time just enjoying each others company in the middle of nowhere, playing around on the ATV and exploring the 33 acres of woods they have up there. It was pretty fantastic. I think Bishop enjoyed being away from the hellions (2 dachshunds) and his freedom as well. For a few days, I forgot he was leaving. It was a great feeling.

I guess it's time to get back to reality...

Well, what's new?

I figure this is as good a time as any to start posting in here again. I almost want to start a new journal because so much has changed since I started posting on here. I'm pretty sure no one really even logs on here anymore, but...times are changing and I need to start writing again.

So, in the off chance any of your are still out there, here's what's new:

I am back in Algonquin, living with my parents. Sadly, this is a situation that will not change for another year and a half - which brings me to my next point...

...I'm engaged. Again. This time because I found the person I want to be with instead of because everyone was expecting me to be. His name is Sean. He's in the Army Reserves. He deploys for a little over a year soon. Very soon. Too-close-for-comfort soon. We have only been together officially for ten months. We've known each other nearly two years. I pretty much knew he was the one the moment I met him, which was at work. Oh yeah...

...I am no longer in the medical field. After working for three different doctors, I decided that I really do not want to go down that path. I can't stand 'em!! After being unemployed for a few months, I was offered a job at Home Depot. I took it as a temporary position until I could find something new. I'm still there... I work really early hours. By early - I get up when most of you are going to bed. I work inventory there and while I really hate retail and big box corporations, I have met so many wonderful people that I have found it really difficult to leave. Soon, though, I hope to find something else full time so I can get back to a normal schedule and drop to part time there (just so I can spend time with those amazing people.)

I guess that's really all that's been going on lately. Still have that same amazing group of friends I used to mention, plus a few others that have joined the mix. I'm sure you will be reading of their antics soon enough. Oh...and I have a puppy! Well, technically, Sean has a puppy but he's mine by default now. His name is Bishop. He's 4 years old. (I am well aware that this statement contradicts my previous statement about having a puppy, but he acts like a puppy still so I will continue to call him one.) He's a pit bull, and he's phenomenal. The biggest baby I've ever met. I love to gush over him, if you couldn't tell.

I will continue writing in here more often than I had. Promise. (Not a hard promise to keep when my last post was nearly two years ago.) However, as I said before, I have to get up insanely early.

Let me know if you're still around.

~Michelle

Wow.

Holy friggin' wow.

LJ still does not know of my lack of an engagement or wedding. Who would have ever expected that? Not me.

When did MySpace become an LJ replacement?

Anywho, I didn't know people still got on here.

Lots of shit has changed. Way more than I could have ever imagined would the last time my fingers typed away at an LJ post.

I live in a new place and will be moving out within the next two months.
I no longer work where I did. In fact, at the moment, I'm struggling to find a new job in general.
I, again, no longer engaged, did not get married, haven't spoken to Chad in about a year aside from a random meeting at a gas station where he nearly ran me down because he noticed my car.

I'm dealing with things as they come, which is still relatively new to me, though it's a mindset I picked up when I cut ties w/ Chad.

My life is truly nothing like it was when I started this journal, nor nothing like when I last posted in here.

In all honesty, this is more for me as a way of seeing all that has changed if/when I look back at this when I'm older. It's amazing to see how different both my mentality and outlook has changed over the last...5 years of having this.

The only thing that has been a constant is The Office, as I'll be posting this with a related icon, and...yay for new seasons!

K, that's all I have. Nothing insightful. Nothing of importance. Just my usual nonsensical ramblings.

I remember when I would post three to four times a day in here. Now, it seems, I'm lucky if I have something to write about three or four times a month...

Maybe real life has finally become interesting enough to take precedence over my slight internet obsession. However, considering the events of my life, I'm not quite sure that could be the explaination.

We're obviously still getting married, but planning has really come to a stand still. We're lazy. As of this coming Friday, we'll be 6 months out. Time really is flying.

I'm a bit bummed for my dad. The Cubs game today was postponed and he was supposed to go with a few co-workers today. I really hope things calm down weather wise by Monday because Chad and I will be going to our first game of the season. I can't wait. We need this.

Chad quit his job at Best Buy a few weeks back. The shifts he'd work at night during the week would be my time to myself. The first week together was nice, but since then - we've really been at each others throats. Talk about "jelly" fights. Odd thing was - usually I'm the instigator. I like to push the limits - but this time, he was challenging me. I honestly don't even remember what we've fought about.

Things got a bit better this weekend in Iowa. Friday at work I got a phone call from Mandy asking if she could come with to Iowa for the weekend, and was surprised that her mom was allowing this. So, she met Chad and I at the apartment that afternoon. We bowled Friday and Saturday night, and then Saturday night went out for drinks with Chelsea (Chad's sister) for her 21st. Chad's brother wrestled Chad and won - Chad sprained his ankle pretty badly and is still double its normal size. Aside from that, however, we had a really fun weekend, though I'm happy to be home. I love visiting, but I don't know if I could ever make it my home.

Oh yea - bowling - my new favorite thing to do on the weekends. Mainly because I've been getting better, and - beer is CHEAP at bowling alleys. We've gone at least once a week since coming back from the cruise. Chad and I, (along with my brother, my cousin Amy and her boyfriend Jerry, and our friend Zen) plan to join a league soon. Nothing competitive (because we really aren't that great), but just something fun we can do together every week.

I guess that's my boring quarterly update.

So - everyone has been telling me that I'm losing weight. I look at them like they are crazy. I haven't noticed anything myself except for the fact that what used to be much...firmer fat, is now much more flabby skin. I just figured I was more hydrated than usual and that my skin wasn't as tough any longer now that my thyroid levels are at a normal place.

So, out of curiosity (and the fact that we're starting to work out again after a couple month hiatus - brought on mainly by laziness and wedding planning) we bought a scale today.

Apparently I did lose weight. 25 pounds to be exact. I'm going to have to double check myself at the gym because the last time I weighed myself was in November there. I'm not sure what this scale is compared to that - but...I can't complain. That's a crap load of weight loss considering I haven't been doing too too much.

Now - I can only imagine how much more I'll actually notice a difference when we are out walking/riding our bike and doing weights at the gym again.

:) I'm a happy camper right now.

All things considered (new quirky update to our electronic medical records, lack of internet, woke up w/ 3 zits piled on each other to form one mountanous zit, it's Monday, our office was roasting), today turned out to be pretty nice. Even the weather was nice.

Or so it was, until I walked in the door today and found my very ancient 13 year old rabbit was not playing dead like he usually does...

This Anna Nicole crap has got to stop. Seriously.

I got the following message from a pharmacy regarding one of our methadone patients: "Since the Anna Nicole case has come to light, the state investigator is requiring all methadone prescriptions indicate a diagnosis."

I'm not upset that they are requiring a diagnosis. As far as I'm concerned, this should have been required long ago. It would cut back on the amount of unecessary narcotics distributed.

However, why did it take until now, to mandate this? Why does it take America's tabloid queen dying of an overdose of this medication to put this into effect, yet the countless numbers of other people who have died from illegal use have not?

That's my rant for the day.

OK - I'm not sure what it is about me having these weird dreams that might mean something, but...here goes:

I had some random dream, which was set in Algonquin. I lived at my mom's house, but...when I talked about it, I talked about it like I was renting my apartment here and we weren't sure if we were going to find something different or not because while rent was increasing monthly, it might still be more expensive to pay new security and pet deposits at a new place w/ a lower monthly rent. Across the street was the house of my childhood best friend, Johanna. This is true to reality, aside from the fact that Johanna and her family moved to Marengo about two and a half years ago. (And, I hadn't talked to her at length since maybe sixth grade.)

School was at Jacobs (my old high school), however, we were all college students. I randomly ran into Johanna at school in this dream and we started talking. Weird thing is - she looked like/talked like Danielle. (My high school best friend.) However, the content of our conversations was about Johanna and her family. At first, it was uncomfortable talking w/ her - because we hadn't talked in so long. We ended up on the bus going back to our homes. (In my dream, she still lived in her childhood home.) She just started confiding in me - telling me that they just discovered that her mom had cancer, and they couldn't surgically remove it all, so she was starting chemo that same week. I went to hug her as she started crying, but hesitated. She turned into the half hug I'd started, and just cried. The whole time, I wasn't really sure what to do. (I suck at comforting people as it is, but especially people that I haven't talked to in ages.)

Cut to the next day, we're at school again. It's the end of the day, and Johanna and I had spent all our free time together. We're heading for the buses, when this kid turns to me to ask where our bus is. Anthony Pagan. First high school "boyfriend". I put "boyfriend" in parenthesis because we never called each other that, just everyone else in our 5th grade class. [Side story to this - there was this carnival at the Eagle by Lakewood Elementary every year. A few friends in class had boyfriends and they were going to go on a "date" to the carnival. Anthony told them that he liked me, and I thought he was cute, but not too sure why he would like me of all people. So I - being the not so shy girl I was back then - went up to him and asked if he wanted to go to the carnival w/ us, as friends. He of course said yes. We both got permission from our parents to go. When I got there (my brother had come for the ride), I found that only Anthony and Mike Kostecki had shown up, saying that his girlfriend Megan wasn't allowed to come. I did NOT want to be alone w/ them, so I asked Scott to stay. My first "date" consisted of Anthony and I on all the rides together in one seat, w/ Mike and my brother in the next. Anthony was shy - and we sat together the rest of school year, but that was it. I didn't hear from him at all in the summer, so in little school girl fashion, I wrote him a note and put it in his mailbox. (He lived a block away from me.) It said, "Do you still like me? Check yes or no." It took about 2 weeks before I got anything back, but when I did, "no" was checked.] Anyway, the odd thing about Anthony in my dream, is that he looked like Adam.

I pointed out the bus and Johanna and I followed him on. The entire bus ride, he was staring at me. This wasn't typical of Anthony or Adam - so I'm not exactly sure what was going on. When he'd catch me looking back, he'd turn away. He didn't really talk to me much, but was always looking at me.
The next few days, the only scenes I saw were of us on the bus. One time he was in the seat next to us. We'd said a few words to each other. Just a "hi" and "bye" - nothing more. I coudn't figure out why I kept getting butterflies in my stomach when I would catch him looking at me, or when I noticed him anywhere, as that was never the case w/ Anthony.

This whole scenario didn't hit me as weird until I woke up, as that's when I finally realized who each character looked like in the dream. In the Johanna/Danielle thing - it would make sense that I was slightly uncomfortable and hesitant around them, as they were both good friends that I drifted away from and don't really know anymore. And - I guess that explains why I got butterflies when I noticed Anthony - as that used to happen more often than I'd like to admit w/ Adam.

Anyway - what does that mean? I haven't thought about any of them in quite a while - Adam being the most recent because of the last dream.

What does it mean when you dream of your two (ex) best friends as one? What about your first crush/last "crush" (I say "crush" because it was more than that on my end...) as one?

I'm not used to these dreams that could be construed as having meaning.

I'm the girl that dreams of squirrels w/ their own roads/tolls/sidewalks/cars or the teenage mutant ninja turtles abducting her parents - dreams that have absolutely no relevance.

Why am I now starting to have the normal "odd" dreams and what do they mean??