in which it becomes obvious that i have very little on the to-do list

this past week, i had a bout with a stomach flu that knocked me on my butt. i'm still not entirely recovered energy-wise, and i'm starting to wonder if i have a slight iron deficiency. perhaps i'll mainline spinach for a few days....

yesterday i spent napping, trying to chase away a headache i think was brought on by dehydration, and writing a paper that, once i sat down and actually did it, took me all of 45 minutes. all that procrastination for nothing!

today's plan is to shower, get out of the house for awhile, and then come home and do the four loads of laundry i have waiting on my floor....mostly towels and sheets, but still. i hate looking at it, and i refuse to let it go another week without getting addressed.

in other news, i'm starting to think more pointedly about what i want to do with my graduate degree—and possibly with the next one i get. if i'm going all the way to 'doctor,' i might as well have some actual plans, you know?

more on that as time passes. for now, shower and something to tide me over until lunch. what more riveting update could i give you than that!?

and she nails it!

okay, here it is: i am without excuse for my slackadaisical blogging as of late, so i won't give you some lame spiel about how i've been exhausted. you don't need that from me, internet.

what i will say, however, is that i got my nails! done! on thursday after work. full set with a french manicure, of course - and my toes frenchified for good measure. forgive me, world, for i had sinned. it had been 2 years since my last pedicure! how shameful! i quickly got over the embarrassment of my cracked heels, however, when the massaging chair started kneading my lower back. who can think straight with that kind of awesomeness?

needless to say, i'm feeling the love about this whole nail thing. the last time my nails looked this fab was at least 5 years ago. i decided it was another step in the process of me allowing myself to have some treats that are good for the morale. i'm now up to three: regular hair cuts, cleaning lady, nail care. oh, and did i mention that i currently have a 100 average in my course more than halfway through? perfect excuse for the pampering!

anyhoo, i've got a busy rest of the weekend ahead of me. laundry. meeting some dear friends for wine and nosh. some other fun events planned for tomorrow. maybe a little early homework for the upcoming week. i've got a bit of momentum. why not capitalize on it?

all wrapped up

i should be sleeping right now, and i am quite tired, but i got myself into a book that i haven't been able to put down! i'm reading one of ruth reichl's books, comfort me with apples. it's really engaging and delightfully foodie-ish. it's the first pleasure reading i've done in ages, and it's making me wistful for the days when i'll have hours of time to spend doing whatever i want!!

in the spirit of my book, i did a bunch of cooking today. for lunch i made tilapia lightly slathered in olive oil and sprinkled with a cranberry-herb salt; steamed green beans; and a small red potato that i mashed up on the plate and blanketed with shredded asiago cheese. later i seared some ordinary beef burgers (sometimes plain is best) on my grill pan and served them up with roasted grape tomatoes (apparently safe) bathed in olive oil and herbs and some cheesy macaroni bake with a breadcrumb topping. i also cut up a bunch of strawberries and bagged up some grapes to take to work with me, and with all the cooking i did, i have lunches and dinners for a few days. that feels tremendous.

today was the perfect weekend day: i slept in until about 9, showered, ordered a couple of things from online, cooked, read cookbooks, started and became engrossed in a non-school book, watched some cooking shows, caught up on DVRed programs, made some sun tea (and drank quite a bit of it, i might add), had some great phone convos (happy father's day, dad!), washed all my dinner and lunch dishes, and plan to fall into a delicious sleep thinking about words and sentences and the way that i want to someday tell a story that other people will stay up past their bedtime to read.

and speaking of bedtime, i'm off to it.

why i love weekends

because i don't want to forget this little detail (so apparently my blog has become a notepad of sorts), last year i went to chesapeake wine company with salimah and my friend mel, and i had a glass of the montelena 2003 cabernet sauvignon - normally 100 bucks a bottle (and 20 dollars a glass), but because i was doing a short flight, my taste was only 2 bucks or something ridiculously amazing like that. in short, that wine was divine.

okay, so onto other things....

i've gotten so much done this weekend, my head is spinning! laundry is nearly complete, vacuum and ALL other necessary items have been procured, grocery shopping (including seriously macked out produce and a few staples from trader joe's) was done before 10 a.m., dusting and vacuuming of living room is ova, and dusting and vacuuming of bedroom is about 50% 100% done. i've also reframed a bunch of photos, called to update my info with my alumni organization for a new book they're compiling, and located and activated a replacement credit card.

dinner tonight will be something light with lots of fruits and veggies, although i'm not quite sure yet what that will be. oh, and within the next hour, i hope to sit down on my couch and watch 'blood diamond,' which i've been wanting to see for awhile now.

i'm going back to work tomorrow feeling like i ACTUALLY got something accomplished. gosh, that's just a nice feeling. last weekend's trip to chicago was amazing, but it totally threw off my chore schedule. lots going on in the next few weeks (including the start of my mba program), so more than ever, i need to stay on top of the logistics. even though they tell you not to sweat the small stuff, if that stuff adds up, it can really kill ya.

on duster, on bissell, on swiffer, on sweeper! okay, that's all the reindeer names i've got for now....