Summer in KS

It's almost the first day of summer, which means it's almost the longest day of the year.  That is always a bit bittersweet to me, because it seems to me like the last day of summer should be the longest, right?  It's like, "here's summer; and now you know winter is coming."  Yuck.

BUT that being said, I am taking full advantage of it as best as I can.  I haven't experienced the continuous, torturous heat of summer here yet - we had two days this week that were 98 degrees, with a heat index of 105, but it wasn't terrible.  My biggest problem is the same with that as in winter, meaning, I can't walk Bella, and she get stir-crazy.  But I much prefer that situation in summer.  At least now I can take her out at 8:00, 8:30 and I'm not standing there with my shoulders hunched and muttering under my breath how miserable I am.  I swear I will turn into a true "snowbird" and when I'm an old lady I plan on living somewhere very warm.

Back when I last posted, all of a couple weeks ago, I was feeling pretty stir crazy myself.  I didn't want to spend another minute in KS with Patryk unemployed as it is.  My biggest problem, though, was I was bored at work.  I don't consider myself a workaholic by any means, but when I don't have lots going on at work I'm frustrated and grumpy.  This past week, though, I was busy, and anticipate being busy the next couple weeks.  My meeting planning skill set is being put to good use - I have a meeting on June 26 at a country club that I planned totally all by myself, and then myself and the Director of Public Affairs have been appointed in charge of a meeting at the end of August for 168 people - PLUS the CEO of the entire company is coming, and I have to be the one to "handle" him.  They keep emphasizing how important he is.  I get that.  But, really, I worked for a billionaire for my last job, and when I was in Kentucky I had to prepare for the crown Prince of Saudi Arabia when he came to visit.  So a CEO of a privately-held communications company I'm sort of shrugging off.  Not that I won't get done whatever he needs and wants to be done (I've already learned he has to have iced tea available 24/7), but I'm not fussed about it.  I'm good at "handling" people.

Patryk had one job interview already, which went well, but it was a second-shift job - 2:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m.  I'd never see him!  So that one was a 'no.'  He's applied to about 15 jobs already, though, and we're still not concerned about him being unemployed.  At the moment, in fact, it's great for me - he says he is a fantastic 50's housewife (his words).  And he is!  He has dinner ready for me every day when I come home, and he vacuums and cleans the bathrooms....last week he texted me at work to ask where the furniture polish was!  I am ashamed to say we didn't even own any....the only thing he won't do is laundry because he's afraid of ruining my clothes, but that is one task I don't mind doing at all.  And yes, he needs to work, but for the moment I'll take advantage of relaxing on my housework chores :)

Anyway, that's all I've got for now.  I'll try to post again before the Fourth of July - hopefully with a job update for Patryk.

Love to all,

Amy

:)

Happy Memorial Day!

Man, it's hard to believe that summer is finally here, but I'm thrilled.  I was sitting outside earlier, giving myself a pedicure, sipping a glass of Moscato, and watching the grass wave in the wind, and thought, "I'm just fine with this!"  Kansas is still 'okay,' which is good, because in an interesting turn of events, Patryk actually has decided to quit his job.  I think (understandably) a lot of people are shocked by that and wonder if I'm bitter that I left a job I loved and my family to follow Patryk for a job he doesn't even like.  It wouldn't be too surprising if I was upset, but for whatever reason, it doesn't bother me.  

Let me go back.  In March, his company was sold to a much bigger company, which made us a little nervous that he would lose his job because his warehouse is tiny in comparison to the other warehouses in the new company's portfolio.  They didn't close the plant, but they changed senior management and the chain of command.  Without going through the whole long story, it ended up that Patryk was working longer hours (with no more pay and benefits that were actually much worse) and he couldn't deal with it.  If I were him, I would have done the same.  And actually, he was so bummed all the time that it wasn't good for me, either!  All kidding aside, though, I did the same thing when I got my first job out of college.  I was so excited to have a good offer I jumped at it, and was miserable.  I only lasted six weeks, not six months!  It's frightening to quit a job without another offer out there, but it worked okay for me at the time and I think it will work okay for us now.  Luckily, money isn't a concern for us now, so if it takes him a couple months to find something we'll be totally fine.

In another interesting development, my boss has decided to retire!  I'm starting to think Kansas doesn't want us here :)   I didn't expect her to RETIRE, but when she said she had something to tell me I figured she was leaving. I've learned at this company it is normal for the GMs to move from region to region every 2-3 years, and she's been here for two years now, so I thought that might happen.  But in any case, she's here through the end of the year, although I'm guessing her presence will become less and less while Corporate starts looking for a replacement.  The thing is, I figure it gives me an "out" if I need one.  Neither Patryk nor I wanted to make Kansas our permanent home, and we're starting to eye where we could go next....like Kentucky!  I think Patryk feels bad that he asked me to follow him, so he keeps saying next time he'll follow me.  I'm not 100% on Kentucky, because I want both of us to be open to anything else out there, but I appreciate his willingness to move.  And like Kansas, Kentucky is cheap and a little warmer than Chicago, and it's certainly closer to Chicago.

We'll see!  Sometimes I find the options exciting and other times frightening, but we're young and don't have kids, so we have lots of opportunities.

The adventure continues!

Until next time,
Amy

"Spring" is here...?

All right.

It's been nearly two months since I've posted, obviously, but now that I'm gainfully employed I don't have quite as much time on my hands to blog!  No excuse though, right?  I'll do better.  I promise!

So like pretty much everywhere else in the country, it's been a miserable spring so far.  I'm so anxious for each month to be over, mostly because I want that warm weather.  And I NEVER complain when it's boiling lava hot outside.  I swear I don't.  This summer could be interesting, though, since I've learned that Kansas is hotter than I thought it would be.  I figured it would be roughly the same sticky, steamy, legs-stuck-to-the-car-seat, "I-think-my-eyelids-are-sweating" type of summer that I experienced in Kentucky.  But apparently, it's even hotter.  One native I was speaking to said that two years ago they had about 6 straight weeks of 100+ degree weather.  Not 90+.  100+.  Yikes!  In any case, I'm ready for it.  I'm tired of being stuck inside.  And yes, I will go outside when it's over 100.

So what else is going on?

Well, like I said before, I won't talk about my job here, really.  I work as an Executive Assistant like I did at Arlington, but for a communications company, which I know nothing about.  I'm learning, but I'm way behind the curve.   The nice thing is, I get to do some new things that I haven't done before, like mini business trips (I went to Arkansas...and I like Arkansas!) and I have to find local venues where we can hold employee events, so that's sort of neat.  

On another note, one of the (many) problems I have with Facebook is that people tend to only post when things are great in their lives.  It's actually something I saw on NBC News - and it makes other people depressed because they think their lives aren't as good as someone else's, when really, that person is just posting when things are spectacular.  Things aren't spectacular for me here, but I think that's just a good reason to keep blogging.  I call Kansas our adventure, and it is - but adventures aren't always good.  Just ask someone like Aaron Ralston.  Neither Patryk nor I love it here.  We didn't expect to.  But, just as importantly, we also don't hate it here.  We miss our families and our friends.  Patryk misses some of the structure of the Army that in his new job seems rather non-existent.  We miss having a place to live where, when we step outside in the morning, we DON'T smell cow manure.  I miss horses so bad it makes my heart ache  (I've tried to find a place to ride, trust me, and it just isn't happening).  I don't feel like I'm making any advancements, career-wise.  Patryk doesn't enjoy working almost 60 hours a week every week.

But that being said...we're okay.  We found a Spanish tapas restaurant that is so good, we've already been three times since we've moved.  We're going to Kansas City next weekend for a "wine walk" and to see comedian Bill Burr.  We are going to try and get some mountain bikes and go biking in the Flint Hills area, which is a really neat geographic area around here.  We've decided we're going to get tickets to a KC Royals game - hopefully vs. the White Sox!  We're forcing ourselves to do new things, and that's always good.  And since we're both making more money than we were before, we are saving to do another trip to Europe next year.  We're thinking either Germany/Austria or Scotland/Ireland :)

So that's life, right?  At least we have each other, and a roof over our heads and food on our plates.  

Now if only I could find a decent place to go shopping....

It's SNOWING

It's snowing in Kansas, and I am not pleased.

See, one of the things that I was looking forward to about Kansas is that it's warmer here than it is in Chicago.  But unfortunately, it is snowing, blowing, and when it finally all stops we're supposed to have 8-10 inches of snow on the ground.  Oh well.  I always say I don't mind the snow when I don't have to go anywhere, so I'm glad it's this week and not next week when I start working!  Patryk should be home tomorrow, too, so that will be good.  I have a feeling the people here don't quite know how to clear snow very well, and I don't want him driving.

It was 65 and sunny on Sunday.  Stupid snow.

Anyway, I don't have much else to post, so instead here are a couple of videos of Bella and Whiskey playing together.  If you can call it playing, anyway!

This is Bella assuming all toys are hers.  Whiskey is happy to bat the little ball around and watch it.  Bella's opinion is, "how the heck do I get that stupid ball out of there???"

The Adventures Continue.....

Happy late Valentine's Day!

Hope everyone had a nice holiday.  Patryk and I decided a few weeks ago to not do any presents on Valentine's Day, mostly because we have purchased so much for our new place (washer and dryer, bedroom set) and have a lot left to purchase (kitchen table, tv stand).  So instead we went to a nice dinner at the "Number 1 Restaurant in Newton, KS" according to TripAdvisor, a place called Reba's.  It was a good way to spend our first Valentine's Day.

I'm currently having a moment a peace, which has become rare in the past week, due to a new addition to our family.....a kitten named Professor Whiskers, aka Whiskey.  We adopted Whiskey last weekend from a shelter here in town.  He is five months old and is very friendly, playful, and VOCAL.  The vet said he looks like he has some Siamese in him, which wouldn't surprise me, because he is only silent when he's asleep.  And actually, the only reason I'm having a moment of peace is because he is currently on time out up in the spare bedroom.  I've never had a cat before - Patryk grew up with them and wanted one desperately - so I'm learning a lot about kittens.  For example, the news ticker at the bottom of the tv screen is worth attacking....multiple times.  Also, there is no reason NOT to climb into any open cabinet, dishwasher, or even the refrigerator if I have it open for longer than five seconds.  He and Bella are getting along well.  At first, Bella was terrified of Whiskey.  Now she vacillates between wanting to play with him and wanting to pretend he doesn't exist.  And when she wants to "play," she tends to try and jump on him or nip his ears, which he naturally doesn't appreciate.  When he wants to play with her, he lies on his back and boxes her with his paws or pounces on her fluffy tail, which she doesn't appreciate.  Hopefully they'll learn to play together nicely.  Right now the best thing is when I have one toy in each hand so I can play with both of them at the same time.  Frankly, it's exhausting.

I'll post videos this weekend once I find my USB cord!

Otherwise, not much else going on!  Some people wondered about my new job.  It's at a big communications company in downtown Wichita, but I always hesitate to blog about work, so I won't add too much detail.  I still have 11 more days of 'freedom' before I start working, so I'll try to enjoy it.  Right now I have to say I'm an excellent housewife :)  I make dinner five nights a week, clean, do all the laundry, take care of the pets, and I made a fantastic cheesecake the other day just because I was bored.  Of course, all that will change on the 26th, but we're taking advantage of my domestic excellence while we can!  (And yes, Patryk is a good help - he does the dishes a lot and always makes me dinner on the weekend).

Well, no joke, I hear the kitten batting the door upstairs with his paws and meowing to get out, so I'm on the move again!

Love to all,
A

one week

We made it!

Ok, so it's been almost two weeks since my last post, but I didn't have Internet until a few days ago and we've been a little busy :)  I have to say, we are settling in really well.  I like our apartment fine - nothing spectacular, but the fact that I have much more room is almost enough to get over hating the horrible carpet, kitchen cabinets, ugly light fixtures, etc.  Honestly, though, it's a nice place.  I'll add pictures next week but I haven't deemed it "good enough" yet to show to anyone.

We are in a new development, so it's quiet, and there are a lot of young families and Air Force peole around (we're about 30 minutes from McConnell AFB) so the neighborhood is nice, and they're building a church and an elementary school down the road, which seems very Kansas-y.

I'm still unemployed, but I'm ok with that for now.  I've had several interviews with one company but I won't have an answer from them until the middle of next week.  That works out fine, actually, since we're getting our washer and dryer and our mattress delivered next week - I need to be here!

I'm adjusting better than I thought I would to this move.  Patryk is so easygoing, he'll be happy wherever he is, as long as he has his "basic comforts," which for him include Internet, tv a couch, and me.  Not necessarily in that order.  I do wish I had people to talk to during the day when he's at work, but I will once I start working, of course.  I did have a mini melt down the other day when I was at the store and briefly considered buying a small potted plant to have indoors.....then I realized that I have no dining room table, no end tables, and our one coffee table didn't survive the move, so I literally had no piece of furniture to set it on.  That got me sort of down because I thought, "how is this home?"

It's not quite home, yet.  And I do have to remind myself sometimes that I'm not on vacation - this is a MOVE.  I think about spending holidays either here alone, just the two of us, or traveling quite a ways to either of our parents' homes, and I get a little lump in my throat.  But I know we'll get there.  We'll make it feel like our home soon enough.

And in another week, who knows what all could be different?

:)

ALMOST there!

Well we are on our way at last.....

After having to pack up our apartment, Patryk and his dad and brother had to shuffle things from the apartment to a van to a storage pod to a truck to a garage to a car to a carrier.....I helped very, very little.  I fully admit this.  But I was also working all week, which is a wonderful excuse to be "unavailable" to help.  In any case, he did a great job, and we actually will have almost everything with us in our new place.

It was hectic - each night last week I didn't know where we would be sleeping, but I kept telling myself to take it one day at a time.

(Side note: My work had a lovely send-off for me Friday night after work.  It was so much fun.  Saturday morning was NOT fun.  We'll leave it at that)

So now we are in Columbia, MO.  It was right at 380 miles and took us about 6 1/2 hours to get here, but that's okay.  For anyone wondering about our dog Bella, she did great.  She was a little whimper-y when we started, because she's used to riding in the front and we had her in the back on her doggy bed, but she fell asleep soon enough.  She also stayed in a hotel for the first time last night, which she thought was great.  She ate her dinner right away and then got to work on her rawhide donut, so she's a happy camper.

I'm excited.  We're getting ready to start our life, and it's exciting.  I'm not going to lie; I'm VERY excited that in a couple days it will be close to 70 degrees in Kansas.  But I'm also looking forward to getting the apartment set, buying our own washer and drier, picking out a bedroom set, etc.  I like making wherever I live feel like home.

We'll get to Newton later sometime this afternoon - after stopping in Kansas City to get Patryk some barbeque :)

Wish us luck!

Wichita...or, Jack White, get out of my head

Patryk and I took a trip to Wichita this past Thursday, just to see what it was like, since we've decided the reason to move to Newton is because it's close to Wichita.

Every. Single. Time....I say Wichita, I automatically think of "Seven Nation Army" by the White Stripes, where the third verse starts off, "I'm going to Wichita/far from this opera forever more."

I don't even care for the song that much, (although I do like the beat) but when I don't love the song, does it mean I won't love the city?  Maybe not, but Wichita did not impress me all that much.  

The downtown area, which is about 25 miles from our place in Newton, has lots of office buildings, and even a couple "skyscrapers,"about 30 stories high I'm guessing.  I quickly discovered that all of the shopping and restaurants are on the outer edges of the city.  Not in strip-malls, or indoor malls, but just outdoor, busy, crowded shopping areas.  

I wasn't expecting anything outstanding, but I guess I had higher hopes.  I can't complain too much, though - we are going to see Jim Gaffigan in March, and we discovered Tracy Morgan is coming there this spring, too, so maybe we will check that out.  

Living in Chicago, you take all the opportunities and events for granted.....so much so that I think it's easy to not do much at all, because you figure you have lots of options available whenever you want.  Maybe living in an area where Wichita, KS is the "big city" it will force us to really hunt down all there is to see and do.

And yes, now the song is stuck in my head again.  And probably yours, too.  You're welcome.

Seven Nation Army music video