...or a city and a town? I'm talking about Baltimore and Annapolis, of course. Since J and I have been dating and engaged, I've spent a lot of time on the road between these two places. It's a 40 minute drive late at night in no traffic, and about an hour or so if there is traffic. Now that we've bought the house, I am spending even more time in Baltimore! It's hard, because I feel like my life, time, and priorities are quite divided.
I'll be living in Annapolis until after the wedding, and I'm very happy about this. I had visions of one more care-free (ha ha!) summer in Annapolis sitting on the back deck with a glass of wine, going to happy hours with my friends, and so on. Boy was I deluded! Between wedding planning and house-settling, I'd say my time is pretty evenly divided between being in Annapolis and Baltimore! I WANT to be relaxing in Annapolis with my girl-friends, but I NEED to be in Baltimore with my future husband doing house-related things. Well, and I want to be doing those things too. It's definitely going to be a balancing act. I'm hoping I can figure out how to get things done for the wedding and at the new house and still have some time for lazy dinners on the back deck of the Home for Wayward Chorus Girls. Happy Hours may be a little out of the picture since most of my disposable income is going towards the wedding or the house, but that is ok.
The next two weekends I'll be in Baltimore, but then over July 4th J has a concert to rehearse for/sing in, so I think I will definitely spend that time in Annapolis!
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
Gulp...I'm a Homeowner?
It's official. As of May 28th, I am a home owner. A co-owner, actually. Thankfully, our Settlement was uneventful...if you exclude the fact that J was in France visiting/helping his sister, and I signed both of our names on everything. He skyped in while drinking wine and eating cheese and bread. Doesn't seem quite fair, huh? Don't worry, I'll get some work out of him in return! Even though we are not married yet, we now are both joined on a legally binding contract. Good thing neither of us has any reservations about getting married or plans to back out! Of course, I am rather skilled at jumping the gun on things like buying a house, etc.
So now we own a house. THE house actually. This old Victorian seems to have a personality of her own. I think we are going to get along, but we are definitely still getting acquainted! I won't be moving in until after the wedding, but in the process of getting J moved in (which is only about 25% complete), I've learned a lot about our house!
1. She has high ceilings! We painted the living room and dining room, and I spent most of the time taping and cutting in the ceiling on an 8 foot ladder. The first floor ceilings are 12 feet! The second floor are 10 feet. Thankfully, we only have one room left to paint on the 3rd floor!
2. Her kitchen is very inviting. Copper ceiling, cherry cabinets, stainless appliances...nice and cozy. J's counter height dining room/kitchen table fits perfectly!
3. She likes antique furniture. Luckily, between our two families, we have many lovely pieces that fit perfectly in the house.
4. She collects dog hair. Or maybe, the dogs like to give her hair. In any case, it looks like I'm going to become a 2 times a week vacuumer. At least.
So at some point, I PROMISE I will post some pictures. Not having a camera makes it a bit difficult, though! In the meantime, you'll likely find me painting, organzing, or moving furniture somewhere in our BIG new/old house!
So now we own a house. THE house actually. This old Victorian seems to have a personality of her own. I think we are going to get along, but we are definitely still getting acquainted! I won't be moving in until after the wedding, but in the process of getting J moved in (which is only about 25% complete), I've learned a lot about our house!
1. She has high ceilings! We painted the living room and dining room, and I spent most of the time taping and cutting in the ceiling on an 8 foot ladder. The first floor ceilings are 12 feet! The second floor are 10 feet. Thankfully, we only have one room left to paint on the 3rd floor!
2. Her kitchen is very inviting. Copper ceiling, cherry cabinets, stainless appliances...nice and cozy. J's counter height dining room/kitchen table fits perfectly!
3. She likes antique furniture. Luckily, between our two families, we have many lovely pieces that fit perfectly in the house.
4. She collects dog hair. Or maybe, the dogs like to give her hair. In any case, it looks like I'm going to become a 2 times a week vacuumer. At least.
So at some point, I PROMISE I will post some pictures. Not having a camera makes it a bit difficult, though! In the meantime, you'll likely find me painting, organzing, or moving furniture somewhere in our BIG new/old house!
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
One of the Challenges of Being Engaged to an Opera Singer
There are definitely some challenges related to being engaged to an opera singer, or really a performer of any kind. During rehearsals and performances of a show, they are rarely available, most evenings are taken up with the performance, etc. But really, those types of "time together" challenges can be an issue for any engaged couple. However, today I ran into a challenge that is quite unique to being the significant other of an opera singer.
J is a performer who is very willing to change his appearance for a show. In the time that we have been together, he has sported quite a few different facial hair looks, almost all for different shows. A trimmed beard, a bushy beard, a weird Edwardian Goatee, a Handlebar mustache, a 70s pornstache (ew!), and even some clean-shaven times. Though, the clean-shaven time is generally to get rid of whatever strange facial hair look he was sporting in a prior show.
It's kind of funny how my view on facial hair has changed since I started dating J. From high school through college and beyond, I was pretty much against any guy having facial hair (any of my college friend readers remember when we painted mascara beards on our faces to protest the facial hair growout of our guy friends?) However, as I stated above, J has had some facial hair for almost all of the time we've been together. He even met my parents for the first time sporting the Handlebar mustache! After we had been dating for about 6 months, he had some time without a show on the horizon and asked me what he should do with his facial hair. I told him I wanted to see him clean shaven. So he did. And you know what? I really wasn't a fan. I'd become so used to him with facial hair, that he didn't look like J without it. Crazy, huh? For some reason, when he is clean-shaven, it looks like he is trying too hard to be presentable! My favorite J look is a nicely trimmed beard. Presentable, but still my J. Which is what I hope he will be sporting for the wedding!
Anyway, for his current role as Monostatos in the Magic Flute, the director has the vision of Monostatos as a former gang-banger ex con Hispanic chaffeur. Yeah. Go figure that one...it's going to be an interesting performance, complete with a hispanic accent. I haven't seen J since he shaved his beard into these odd L-shaped sideburns. And then this morning, he sent me a picture of his self-tanned face. Which in the picture looked rather orange. Normally, I'd just shrug and say, "Oh well, he'll be back to normal J in a few weeks". The problem? We were supposed to shoot our Engagement Photos next Tuesday, in the midst of this Magic Flute run. I had been so concerned with figuring out what I was going to wear to look most myself (as you are supposed to for Engagement pics), how I was going to do my hair, make-up, etc....that I forgot about J's appearance!
Luckily, we have a very flexible photographer who was able to reschedule for us! I just want to be able to look back at the pictures and look like "us"...not..."Oh, right, J was in that show where he had wacko sideburns and was orange." :) So ladies, a warning...if you find yourselves engaged to a stage performer, be sure not to schedule photo-ops while they are in the middle of a show!
J is a performer who is very willing to change his appearance for a show. In the time that we have been together, he has sported quite a few different facial hair looks, almost all for different shows. A trimmed beard, a bushy beard, a weird Edwardian Goatee, a Handlebar mustache, a 70s pornstache (ew!), and even some clean-shaven times. Though, the clean-shaven time is generally to get rid of whatever strange facial hair look he was sporting in a prior show.
It's kind of funny how my view on facial hair has changed since I started dating J. From high school through college and beyond, I was pretty much against any guy having facial hair (any of my college friend readers remember when we painted mascara beards on our faces to protest the facial hair growout of our guy friends?) However, as I stated above, J has had some facial hair for almost all of the time we've been together. He even met my parents for the first time sporting the Handlebar mustache! After we had been dating for about 6 months, he had some time without a show on the horizon and asked me what he should do with his facial hair. I told him I wanted to see him clean shaven. So he did. And you know what? I really wasn't a fan. I'd become so used to him with facial hair, that he didn't look like J without it. Crazy, huh? For some reason, when he is clean-shaven, it looks like he is trying too hard to be presentable! My favorite J look is a nicely trimmed beard. Presentable, but still my J. Which is what I hope he will be sporting for the wedding!
Anyway, for his current role as Monostatos in the Magic Flute, the director has the vision of Monostatos as a former gang-banger ex con Hispanic chaffeur. Yeah. Go figure that one...it's going to be an interesting performance, complete with a hispanic accent. I haven't seen J since he shaved his beard into these odd L-shaped sideburns. And then this morning, he sent me a picture of his self-tanned face. Which in the picture looked rather orange. Normally, I'd just shrug and say, "Oh well, he'll be back to normal J in a few weeks". The problem? We were supposed to shoot our Engagement Photos next Tuesday, in the midst of this Magic Flute run. I had been so concerned with figuring out what I was going to wear to look most myself (as you are supposed to for Engagement pics), how I was going to do my hair, make-up, etc....that I forgot about J's appearance!
Luckily, we have a very flexible photographer who was able to reschedule for us! I just want to be able to look back at the pictures and look like "us"...not..."Oh, right, J was in that show where he had wacko sideburns and was orange." :) So ladies, a warning...if you find yourselves engaged to a stage performer, be sure not to schedule photo-ops while they are in the middle of a show!
Thursday, April 22, 2010
More News...
Oh, hi there. Welcome to the blog I update monthly, I suppose. I really do have these grandiose dreams of updating this thing daily...or every other day...but life gets in the way. As many other bloggers have written, "I've been busy living life instead of writing about it". This pretty much sums up my situation.
However. You are certainly due an update. So here goes...
First of all, we are under contract for a house! What? You didn't know we were looking for a house? I think I mentioned in my last update that we were merely thinking about looking. Actually, it's kind of been a whirlwind search/offering process. I looked at real estate one day and thought it seemed like a good time to buy a house, mentioned it to J...and we were off and running. The tax credit ending April 30th had something to do with it as well. The house is an old Victorian, circa 1890, that has been completely redone from a shell. The folks who renovated it restored everything exactly the way I would have..black and white tile bathroom, pressed copper kitchen ceiling, etc. Your next question must be, "How can a lowly software trainer and opera singer/private club membership director afford such a grand home?". Well...it's in a transitional neighborhood. Most of the houses around it have been redone, but two blocks over and back is a different story. I always said that I'd love to live in a historic home, even if the area was not so good. My only stipulation was that I'd have to be married. And I will be.
Wedding plans are coming along. My goal of having most everything planned by Mother's Day is becoming a reality. Now we just have the fun details to complete.
This past weekend, J and I drove to SC for the ginormous Engagement Party dessert drop-in my parents threw. Our parents also met for the first time. It was quite an eventful weekend! Everything went well, and overall, I had a good time. The party itself was a bit overwhelming...I haven't talked to that many people in 5 hours ever. EVER. I felt like I spent too much time talking to people I didn't know well, and didn't get to spend enough time with those I wanted to. I guess everyone understood, but it still was difficult for me. J was a real trooper, considering the fact that he knew almost no one. Thank goodness he is quite an extrovert!
Well goodness. I think that is all. I can't promise an update anytime soon, since I will hopefully be busy living life. We'll see.
However. You are certainly due an update. So here goes...
First of all, we are under contract for a house! What? You didn't know we were looking for a house? I think I mentioned in my last update that we were merely thinking about looking. Actually, it's kind of been a whirlwind search/offering process. I looked at real estate one day and thought it seemed like a good time to buy a house, mentioned it to J...and we were off and running. The tax credit ending April 30th had something to do with it as well. The house is an old Victorian, circa 1890, that has been completely redone from a shell. The folks who renovated it restored everything exactly the way I would have..black and white tile bathroom, pressed copper kitchen ceiling, etc. Your next question must be, "How can a lowly software trainer and opera singer/private club membership director afford such a grand home?". Well...it's in a transitional neighborhood. Most of the houses around it have been redone, but two blocks over and back is a different story. I always said that I'd love to live in a historic home, even if the area was not so good. My only stipulation was that I'd have to be married. And I will be.
Wedding plans are coming along. My goal of having most everything planned by Mother's Day is becoming a reality. Now we just have the fun details to complete.
This past weekend, J and I drove to SC for the ginormous Engagement Party dessert drop-in my parents threw. Our parents also met for the first time. It was quite an eventful weekend! Everything went well, and overall, I had a good time. The party itself was a bit overwhelming...I haven't talked to that many people in 5 hours ever. EVER. I felt like I spent too much time talking to people I didn't know well, and didn't get to spend enough time with those I wanted to. I guess everyone understood, but it still was difficult for me. J was a real trooper, considering the fact that he knew almost no one. Thank goodness he is quite an extrovert!
Well goodness. I think that is all. I can't promise an update anytime soon, since I will hopefully be busy living life. We'll see.
Monday, March 29, 2010
Whirlwind of Life
Oh hello! Why yes, I am still living, breathing, thinking, feeling, loving, and planning. Just still not picture taking. :( However, I will be getting a new camera verrry soon (hopefully this weekend), and I will try to resume my 365 project. I'm just considering the month of March a FAIL, and moving on. Anyway, I thought I'd do a quick bullet point update for anyone who has missed me!
- Oh my, I am neck deep in wedding planning. Enjoying some moments immensely (cake-tasting and wedding discussion time with J)...and others not so much (emailing and calling vendors with no response). So far, we have a church, a reception venue, a cake, and a photographer. I have a dress and shoes. We registered for gifts. We still need a DJ, official hotel block, and flowers. But all in all, I think it is going well!
- On the topic of wedding planning...I find it ridiculous that it is so difficult to get vendors to respond to emails requesting information. We're in a recession...and I am a potential source of money! If you aren't going to respond to a contact form on your website, then don't put it out there! I even had a hard time getting some people to call me back. I can tell you, though, that I am not hiring anyone who won't call back. As much as I hate the phone, it makes me nervous to think I wouldn't be able to get in contact with someone before the wedding if I needed to!
- At the beginning of this month, some of my friends threw us a fabulous surprise engagement party! I honestly had NO idea it was coming. It was a fabulous party with many of our favorite people...complete with a piano player, bartender (the very same one who witnessed our engagement!), fabulous food, and valet parking. I was so shocked when we walked in, that I think I was speechless for awhile! We were so grateful for such a special party, and all the effort and love that went into it! I must also confess that I broke my Lenten discipline and had wine. But, I figured it is the only surprise engagement party I will have in my life, and I would regret not having some of the tasty bordeaux and cabernet that was provided. I always say that I am not legalistic about my faith...and this was a night to prove it! :)
- We are headed to SC in a few weeks for an engagement party that my parents are throwing for us. I am looking forward to that as well!
- On a non-wedding note, we sang Bach's St. Matthew Passion this past weekend. I hope I can write more about this piece later, because it really moved me so much more than I expected. I was fighting back tears through both performances. I am normally not one to jump on a musical bandwagon, but I am really quite a fan of this piece.
- I am really excited about Holy Week and Easter this year. I am loving singing in a church choir again, especially one that performs works from composers that lived 200 years ago or more. I have seriously missed good choral church music.
- J and I are thinking about buying a house this summer. An exciting and frightening prospect.
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
Searching...
Just so everyone knows, I am still here. And alive. And taking pictures...through last Friday, at least. I seem to have misplaced my camera, which has caused a lack of motivation for taking pictures. I hate the way the pictures come out on my Blackberry, but it looks like I will be using it for awhile until I either find my camera or get a new one...
Monday, March 1, 2010
60/365 Wounded Car
My car was broken into in Baltimore on Saturday night. Luckily, there was nothing to take but a few CDs, but my poor window got bashed in. Thankfully, I have a handy fiance who has experience with plastic-wrapping car windows. While really loud, the plastic wrap does block a lot of the wind. Now, I'm working from home today waiting on the Safelite folks to come and give me a new window.
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