friends

What a fun weekend down in Surf City! I’m glad the week is over though. With family and friends in town since last Sunday, all while sick and working, I am beat! I woke up at 3:30 AM this morning to see off a friend catching an early morning flight, so I am chugging the coffee and pounding the vitamins to keep from relapsing…

On another note, this is my last full week at the Chamber. I am sad to leave, but more ready than ever at this point. The mental detachment phase is fairly complete, and I have “senioritis” like none other! I’ve transitioned all my work to my replacement by now, so I pretty much just putz around. I have a lot of meetings this week though, so it shouldn’t drag too much. Regardless – I’m excited for one more week’s pay, no matter how slow it is! 😉

I don’t typically do much to celebrate my birthday, but this year it was really special. Chuck was gone for my actual bday, so my girl friends in the area took me out for dinner and drinks at an adorable French restaurant downtown called Caprice Bistro. It was delicious and so much fun. Then my co-workers surprised me at “staff meeting” with tiramisu cake and sweet (but embarrassing) fanfare. Then Chuck came home, a gift in and of itself. We drove home to NoVA, and he took me to the Washington Ballet’s Nutcracker and gave me some beautiful diamond earrings. 28 may not be so bad 🙂

Had a lovely Thanksgiving here in Holly Ridge. Our friends Shane and Katy welcomed us into their home to celebrate with their family in town. Plenty of calories consumed and laughs shared! Lots to be thankful for this year. I feel like we’ve come a long way since our initial weeks here, as newlyweds!

Shane leaves for Djibouti next week, and Chuck leaves for 29 Palms tonight. It was good to get some time together before things change…

Now… off to get a Christmas tree! I’m making Chuck decorate with me even though he won’t be here most of the season, and we are spending Christmas in NoVA. But I love Christmas, so here goes! 😀

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My Trip Back Home

Whoaaa where have I been?! I was MIA the past two weeks, first because I was sick post-Miami, and then because I went home to Northern VA for the whole 4th of July week. I have yet to fully recover from either…

That being said, the trip was very successful, despite my forgetting the fact that just because Chuck and I had the whole week off, doesn’t mean everyone else did. We still managed to see *almost* everyone from both of our social groups, which almost never happens… so I’m pretty happy about that (just ignore the fact that all the pics I’m posting are only of my friends, ha!)

Anyway, our visit also happened to be during the heat wave of 100+ degrees and no power (post Crazy Thunderstorm of 2012), and fortunately for us, Chuck’s parents (our hotel service) were among the fortunate few with power. The excessive heat made for too much sweating for my taste, but also for lots of pool time! I’d forgotten how much I’ve missed the pool. The beach is nice, but sometimes it’s great to take a dip and not deal with sand and overly-aggressive waves bitch-slapping me in the face and ripping off my bikini. 🙂

4th of July itself was awesome. It didn’t consist of the usual high-end, pretentious Georgetown mansion and yacht parties I’ve attended in the past (those invites suddenly stopped once I got hitched), but of low-key BBQ’s and poolside lounging instead. The fireworks in particular were special for me this year. Last year I watched at the USMC Iwo Jima Memorial, while Chuck was in Afghanistan. Fireworks – particularly ones associated with patriotic pride – always have a way of making me cry, and it was only more emotional with Chuck gone. As fate would have it, I got a phone call from him last year, right in the midst of it. This year, I watched from the same spot, with Chuck actually by my side. Like I said – truly special!

We wrapped up the whirlwind week with a HinJew wedding on Maryland’s Eastern Shore. That’s right folks, you heard it right – a Hindu and Jewish wedding! It was such a fun experience, despite the suffocating heat and a few travel mishaps along the way (exacerbated by the fact we were traveling with a miserable feline.) I learned a lot and it was simply beautiful. Better yet – I got to see even more great friends, and danced the night away with them like old times.

Ultimately, I came away from the week realizing a few things. 1) Old friends are one of life’s truest joys and it’s always good to go back home. 2) Some things never change. 3) Almost everything else does change. 4) At the end of the day (or at the end of a nostalgic week going back) I can see that I am exactly where I need to be to move forward – here, in NC with my husband, starting a new life together.

People tend to fear change, but Life isn’t meant to be static and redundant. It’s truly dynamic. You have your constants for sure, but the river keeps flowing and very little is guaranteed. As I reunited with college friends, work friends, and miscellaneous hometown friends, Chuck and I both saw that while we still all have each other to an extent, we are also exploring different paths…Doing our own thing… Moving in various directions..embracing change. We aren’t all so reliant on each other anymore. It’s not like the old days – some things are not quite like they used to be. And yet, we are all more enriched as individuals because of it. Bloom where you’re planted. Always.

I don’t know if that made any sense out loud, but it did in my head… Anyway. Done waxing poetic now 🙂

Had another great weekend with an old friend! Mimi and I go back to sophomore year of college, where we were the dorks serving on Brown Hall Council at W&M. We spent junior and senior years as RA’s (pretty bad ones, I might add), then both ended up working and living the yuppie lifestyle in Northern VA, where she still lives and works. She was also a bridesmaid in Chuck’s and my wedding. The weather turned out less than beach-friendly for her visit, but we still had fun with the beach bars, restaurants, and the Pirates of the Caribbean ship in Downtown Wilmington! I’m loving that friends are coming to visit me. I always feel bad when I go up to DC for a visit, and have to squeeze so many people in that I barely get quality time with anyone. So, it’s nice that we are not so far away from home that visits are still reasonable. 🙂

I love it when my old and new worlds collide!! This past weekend, my good friend Laura came to visit from DC. We had so much fun enjoying the beach, downtown Wilmington, and a rousing Cinco de Mayo party in the midst of a southern thunderstorm. Ole!