I Am Ridiculous

Honestly, I have been so crazy happy for so long now, I'm beginning to feel like I'm in a freaking television show. Everything is going right times about a thousand. It's weird. It's fantastic. I love it.

Reno Stalking

Alrightie, now that we've bought a three-level house that features one completely renoed floor, and two floors in need of all new cosmetics, I am obsessed with learning about renovations. To begin, I know absolutely nothing. (Fortunately, Dave is the complete opposite of me - both handy and meticulous - or we never would've considered such an endeavour.) I can't stop watching HGTV. I am constantly googling things like "finish hardwood" and "environment window install". It's an obsession.

So here, in a very particular order, is our first year of renovation, which will result in finishing the second level of the house.

(1) Finish second level floors. Beautiful old hardwood needs refreshing in hallway, master, and guest bedroom.

(2) Master bedroom. Replace walls and ceiling. Paint. Gorgeous baseboards. New green-friendly windows and coverings of some sort (blinds? drapes? unsure). Light fixtures should be replaced, but still debating how to light the room. Maybe more little things like closet organizer and stuff, to be determined.

(3) Spa bathroom. Taking the second level third bedroom and knocking down a wall so it joins forces with its neighbour, the 1970s-looking bathroom. Gutting. Whirlpool tub. Glass shower. Vessel sink. That's all I know.

(4) Guest bedroom/office. Same steps as master bedroom, but smaller and less need to be just-freaking-perfect thus less time consuming. Will act as office (with sofabed for guests?) 'til the third level renos can take place.

With any luck, we won't kill each other, and it will be stunning. Hah.

Social Brand Value

Is it possible that the greatest value held by the brand is owned by the consumer, not in the commitment to quality or great prices or anything of the sort, but that it forces the corporation to act with some socially acceptable level of ethics, given that its behaviour will be felt by customers ' perception via its bottom line? Is it possible that this created value is a value now owned by society, dictated by consumers, and experienced by all of us?

Weird.

Why Life is Good

Well, you know. It mostly just is.

(1) We bought a house - the deal was completed on my birthday, we move January 7. Never in my life did I think we'd have a gorgeous home downtown. Well, the first floor is gorgeous, and I've got two floors of cosmetic fun to work on. Whee!
(2) I finish my MBA coursework on February 10. Eeee!
(3) My job, which has been known to drive me over the edge on occasion, has settled into awesomeness. I am doing the kind of work I've always dreamed of - strategy! financial analysis! operations! - and I was right: it flipping rules.
(4) I get to hang out with the best boy in the world all the freaking time.

Yay.

Thirty

I know, I have completely and utterly sucked at keeping the blog updated since relaunching Hitched! It turns out it's a fair amount of work trying to keep that baby updated, and my writing time is limited. With that said, I am going to try for a weekly update again. So I shall return with a disgustingly uber-sincere post.

It's a few days 'til my thirtieth birthday, and I'm pretty excited about the whole thing. The last decade has been interesting and challenging, and I'm certain that the thirties will bring all kinds of new fun. I've always imagined this age series to be likely the best of one's life - old enough to feel a pretty solid sense of stability (no more quarterlife crises, no financial meltdowns, no state of complete confusion as to what one is doing with her life) but young enough to have lots of fun (minor obligations, easy disposable income to invest in silly things, dream vacations to pursue, classes to take just for fun).

I entered my twenties with a pretty solid list of things I wanted to accomplish: complete a graduate degree, achieve a certain level of career success, do some travelling, find a reasonable and sustainable level of health, and purchase an abode in some urban area or another. While I have a semester left 'til I'm done grad school, I can safely say I've completed all the objectives that I set out for myself. They didn't necessarily come as I'd anticipated nor did things really go according to plan while getting here, that matters not a bit. The point is that I set up the goals and achieved them. This feels darn good. This is also one of the reasons I suspect I have little to no regrets in my life thus far - I've been taking on challenges like a mofo and even the hideously poor choices have assisted in getting me where I needed to be.

Now that I'm entering my thirties, I feel like I need a new agenda. But what does that agenda entail? Here's the thing: I'm not sure. Sure, I'd like to achieve more in my work life, I'd like to travel to new places, I'd like to stay fit and active, I'd like to get a house downtown. And maybe someday I'll get an opportunity to do further studies as the dilettante that I am. But those are kind of just extensions of the twenties list. Is there anything unique I need to set out for myself in this round? Is there anything for me to pursue that is entirely novel and challenging? What will it take for me at forty to feel that my thirties have been a success? I am at a bit of a loss here. History has taught me that, being intensely goal-driven, I respond well to such things. But I don't really know what those goals are.

Pipe dreams? Easy. I'd like to be a consultant. I'd like to write a book. I'd like to work for myself. I'd like to see the world. There are a gazillion items to list here, but these are more fodder for my fantasy life than concrete objectives for which to aim. Sure, it would be great if any came to fruition, but I won't feel that I've let myself down if they don't in the next decade.

So perhaps rather than setting new and specific goals, the thirties objective needs to be as follows: keep moving positively along the very clear path I spent my twenties building and enjoy the ride. Accept that the hardcore goal-setting era of my life - while a certain necessity at the time, given my personality - has been successful and is now complete.

If you have a better plan, just let me know. I'm open.