Ramblings.

Well, Spring is supposedly here. But... I don't see or feel it. I'm pretty sure February was warmer than March, and that's pretty sucky. And since it's been so cold and rainy lately, of course I've managed to get sick. Luckily, not the... flu-like illness that plagued the office earlier this month... but the typical sore throat/sneezing that seems to hit me every few months. But it's not so bad. It's an excuse to sleep all day and not clean...

But it's not an excuse to skip the gym! I think I'm finally falling back into a rhythm, and Andrew's going with me every now and then so it's nice to have some company even though we don't really talk when we're there. I'm only up to about 30 minutes of cardio, but I plan on increasing that soon. Still trying to figure out the best times of the night to go so that I have access to all the machines I want. Friday nights are golden, I know that for certain. I have a wedding to attend this November, and then I need to give my dress size to Amy by January for her wedding in October, so that's definitely extra motivation to get back into this and do what I can to get healthy.

Unfortunately, Matt can't really join me on this fitness journey because his schedule just doesn't allow it (or much of anything else...). We've been trying to go for walks in the park on his days off, but it's typically raining or snowing or dark or 20° by the time I get home from work, so that's only happened... once... so far. I think his schedule is still our biggest hurdle; we really don't see each other a lot. It's like I live alone sometimes. But I think I'm getting used to it. Not sure if that's good or bad, though.

I wish I had something exciting to write about, but things have been pretty chill lately. No real updates on our place; we're not not 100 percent unpacked, but I may have sold my dining room table. (I'm not sure; the buyer is really handling this all in a weird way.) So if that's the case, we'll get a few corners back and might be able to finally use our spare room. Uhm... what else? Work is fine; I'm back on track and feel good about most of the work I'm doing. I was able to get copies of a few books in which the authors acknowledged my work inside, so that's pretty cool.

Hm... Easter's coming up. Not going home because we don't get time off for the holiday, so it'd just be too difficult. Unfortunately, Matt doesn't have the day off, so... It'll just be a lazy Sunday for me, I think. I'll make a salad, do some work, take a nap, and then it'll be Monday and I can pretend I didn't spend the holiday alone. Easter was never a big deal for me, so I'm honestly not too concerned about it. I'm just sometimes bothered by the idea that my family is getting together without me while I sit here by myself. But, I'll manage.

Oh! Our eighth anniversary is coming up in April, too. Matt says he has everything figured out/planned, but I don't know what that means and he won't give me any hints. I don't know if there are reservations in store, or if he plans on cooking something here. I don't know if I need to dress up? And if so, if I have to run out and get something new... I said no gifts this year because we're trying to budget, but he just kind of gave me this look so... I'm not sure what's going on. Trying not to get too excited about it, though, because he's human, as am I, and we both occasionally drop the ball. Looking forward to seeing what he does... It's been a crazy year and we've done quite a few things in the last year that we weren't totally planning so we should definitely celebrate. We just can't afford to really break the bank at this point in time. So, we'll see what happens.

Just kind of wrote this to keep myself awake, as I'm pretty comfy on my couch right now and still have two and a half hours until gym time... I could keep going, but it'd be about a whole lot of nothing. Maybe someday soon I'll have a real story to tell!

While I Was Out...

 
I honestly have no idea where I left off, what I've covered, what I haven't... My bad... Things have been pretty busy.
 

MOVING

Mid-January to early February contained the most hectic weeks of my life I think—topping, even, the move to NYC, which happened gradually and calmly, even though I only had a few weeks to do it all. Moving within NYC, though... Totally different story.

But, that's almost all behind us now. We're 75 to 80 percent unpacked, depending on whether you ask me or Matt. While it's true that we only have three or four boxes left to unpack, we still have so much furniture all over the place (anyone want to buy a pub table or a papasan?) and so many random things to put away/hang/store/throw out, etc. Really no idea when we're going to get around to finishing up, especially since neither of us ever makes much progress on our own (he likes to sleep on his days off; I rarely have days off) and we have like, no time together. But we'll figure it out. Everything's functional for now. When it's tidier, I'll have photos. Until then, check out the empty apartment photos and visualize furniture!

WORK

In the meantime, things at work are finally back to normal. I had a few rough weeks during the move in which I struggled to get to work on time and was just kind of falling behind because of constant phone calls with the real estate agent and picking up the keys from the landlord and signing papers and packing and just... everything piling up. But now, that's all behind me and I've been getting to work not even on time, but early some days! Which, if you know me, is... odd.

Wrapping up spring books a bit early, starting on fall books soon (many of which I acquired myself!), and then looking ahead to winter and spring 2014 and attempting to acquire a few more. I went to lunch with our editor-at-large this afternoon and we had a good time, eating sushi and talking about the acqusitions process. It's definitely something I enjoy and definitely something I want to do more and more of as time passes.

I also received an email from an author today that ended with the following paragraph:

"I can't imagine doing what you do. And you do it so well BTW. You are a saint. A goddess of the publishing world. I'd go nutz dealing with ne'er do wells like me everyday...."

I made sure our director saw this, and we joked about getting me a plaque. Then he dubbed himself a publishing god. Today was a good, amusing day. The office was very... lax. Everyone was joking around, there wasn't a ton of stress. It was almost better than last Thursday, when our publisher treated the entire office to a cupcake and coffee fieldtrip. (I kid you not.)

MATT

Matt works... and works... and works. He has his first social engagement (for lack of better words.. man-date?) that doesn't involve me (or drinks at 2 a.m. after work) on Thursday and is pretty excited about it. They're going to a show downtown that I'm not even the slightest bit interested in, so I'm glad he found someone else to go with! However, I'll have to go if the friend backs out. So... let's hope that doesn't happen.

Like I said, we don't see each other a lot, but it's working. He's hoping to move up to the main kitchen (there are three: main, prep, and pastry) soon, which will also come with the opportunity to create an amuse-bouche (one bite dishes) or two for the menu. He's constantly talking about flavor combinations and this and that, so I'm pretty sure that means he's excited about it. And I would be, too. I think, in SAT speak, his amuse-bouche is to an acquisiton in my world. Maybe. Might even be more exciting than that.

GYM!

I'm back to the gym! And for real this time. The new gym is three blocks away and is wonderful. It's definitely no Planet Fitness, that's for sure. And I'm barely paying more than I was paying at PF. The members don't remind me of convicts—and they don't look at me like I'm a drumstick, either. The machines are new and clean, the locker room is really pretty and has a steam room, and there are two or three classrooms. The classes are included in the membership, and I really think I want to try a spin class eventually. Not right now, though, because I don't think I could handle it just yet.

You can actually tour my new gym on Google+! Check it out if you're interested/jealous/curious/nosy: click! (No judgment here. I'd do it if I was reading your blog.)

Going to try to get back into at least three days a week, at least an hour each day (cardio + strength) to start. Eventually work my way up to 1.5 to 2 hours, like I used to, depending on the day and how much work awaits me at home. One of the good things about Matt's schedule is that I don't have to worry about rushing home to hang out with him because he's not here. Which gives me tons of time to work on myself. Which is healthy and necessary and nice.

OTHER STUFFS

Spending tons of time reading (mostly on the train) and enjoying every second of it. Totally in the right profession; no doubt about it.

Also spending a bit of time working creatively, as I'm finally getting around to helping Sara out with her YA novel. We're about five chapters in now (hitting Chapter Five right after I post this) and I think it's looking good! We'll be looking for Beta readers soon, so if anyone's interested/curious, chat me and we'll set something up.

I can't really think if there's anything else going on. Trying not to spend a lot of money, so there hasn't been much social stuff, other than spending every single weekend with Andrew, my BFFL! ;) I'm trying to challenge myself to spend no more than $50 a week on my own stuff (non-apartment essentials/food). So far, haven't spent a single dollar Monday or Tuesday, so we're off to a good start! (This challenge started Monday, ps.)

Don't think there's really much else... Found out recently that four or five people from high school are out here, too! So we're going to try to plan a night for drinks when everyone's settled. Should be fun!