The Best Weekend in the Entire World.

Helllllo Party People!

I hope your weekend was at least half as fun as the weekend I just had. Because it was literally one of the most relaxing//hysterical//exciting//refreshing//FUN IN A MAJOR WAY weekends I have ever had.

What was I doing, you ask?

Well actually, it wasn't just your typical Vegas trip. You know what I'm talking about because we've all done them...the ones that go something along these lines:

And after a while, you realize that you haven't seen the sun in 3 days, your sinuses are killing you from all of the smoke and recycled air, and you really don't even know what day it is? 

Yea, no one really loves that. 

This trip had the added benefit of some glamping, so that really helps balance some of the Vegas. 

gamp-ing ¹  (glmp-ing)

v.

a. A time when one pretends to be camping, but actually is a little diva and stays in a hotel

b. Spending time in the wilderness during the day, but actually going back to a 5 star hotel and showering at the end of the day: climbed in Red Rocks National Park during the day; checked in at the Palms Resort that night

c. The people who are not as hardcore as true mountaineers: ain't no body got time for that.

So in-between the raging twenty-one year olds running around in their underwear, we got a little break to do some of this:

And then we also got to do some climbing. Even though I haven't been climbing outdoor in like 2 years, I felt like I was kicking ass:

Then, once we were sufficiently hot and tired and sweaty (because it was Vegas, and it was 97 degrees by like noon), we hit the Palms pool party, which is basically a sparkly land where all of your dreams come true:

Of course, it is still Vegas, so it was a total scene. There are girls everywhere that look like this:

Meanwhile, I'm a little more like this:

And basically everyone at the pool lives in a place that has actual sunshine, so they roll up to the pool and they're all:

Meanwhile the San Franciscans are just like:

And of course, because it's a total shit-show, there's always some good people watching:

But it was honestly some of the most fun I've had in a long time. Something about new friends + drinks + sunshine + vitmin D + pool party + being on vacation....it was just the happiest sparkly moment ever.

That night there was dinner and dancing, and the obligatory Vegas-stuff. There was also arriving at a bar and realizing you have been there before, but you might have been hammered, so it's all very "Matrix-y."

The only thing that could have topped Saturday's nature//climbing//pool party excellence was the Wicked Spoon Buffet at the Cosmo. I mean honestly.

And then afterward, this happens:

But the best part of all was getting the chance to hang out with some really fun new people. Nothing is better than going out with some new friends and then having this moment:

Looking forward to more climbing shenanigans. And more amazing weekends. And more time with new great people.

Hope your Monday is a happy one. 

Hugs and kisses,

J

We Signed a Lease.

For those of you who have been following my rental-apartment-crisis (AKA on going whining that apartments are hard to find)...this morning we signed a lease!!

Where you ask?

In our same building. For our same apartment.

I know...I know...

Yes, we looked at over 45 different apartments.

Yes, we put in applications on like 4 of them.

Yes, we were even offered 2 excellent places.

Yes, one landlord liked us so much they were willing to bring their rent down by nearly $400 a month.

And yes, we walked away from all of them.

I know it sounds crazy. Or that we did the wrong thing. But after looking at so many places we realized that to get something better than what we have now, we'd have to jump up our rent by $1500+ a month. 

And we looked at a few of those places. And we chatted with the landlords. And like I said, some of them were even willing to come down hundreds of dollars to get us into their places. 

But even though they had beautiful kitchens and front yards and backyards....they were still $500 - $1000 more than we'd pay if we re-signed.  Which is a lot of money to spend on renting. 

With the last house, we actually almost took it. This was the landlord that came down significantly because he really liked us, and really thought we'd be great tenants. 

It was a great house:

With an awesome kitchen:

And a great yard:

So we called Steve's parents. We both were totally conflicted. We really wanted the house, but really felt like it was a) a lot more money than we're spending now and b) had more upgrades than our current place, but not necessarily better. Just different.

Steve's parents have moved a lot so we spent some time on the phone with them asking questions, and letting us ask them questions. As a side note, it is amazing to have parents that can walk you through really complex issues, without telling you exactly what to do. I really love having them as in-laws.

It was Steve's mom that actually said something that jumped out at us:

"If you think about how much more you would spend in rent over the next year, and decide to stay where you are - you can take some of the money that you would have spent and use it to invest in your home. Get some nice art for the walls, or couches, or floor rugs that you thought were "too expensive" before...because if you choose to spend your money on those things, at the end of your lease, you can take those items with you to the next house. If you choose to take the place with the much higher rent, then at the end of the year that money is gone."

Bingo.

We decided to stay. 

And we felt good about it.

Until that night, while walking the dog, we noticed tons of police cars in the Housing Project next to our house. Against Steve's request, I marched over there to find out what was going on. It was another shooting. And this one was 1.5 blocks from our front door.

We both sank. 

No one said anything on the walk home. 

Because at some point, when things like that happen, you have to make a choice. Saying "this is too close for comfort" is a choice.  Not thinking about it and sticking your head in the sand is another choice. 

So that next morning, we did something that felt a little awkward. We walked across the street where there is a police station (yes we are surrounded by housing projects, but live across the street from a police station. It's funny).

But we stood in the parking lot.  And we stopped cops as they went in and out of the building. We asked them about the area, and how they felt the crime trends were moving on our block. We told them that we've lived here for 2 years, and there have been 3 shootings in the last year. And we just want to know if it's getting worse. We want to know if we should be concerned. We want to know if we should decide that saving money isn't worth it, and we need to find a new set of cross streets.

Their answers really surprised us.

They said no, it wasn't getting worse. It's actually getting much better. And fast. They said that when we moved in 2 years ago, this area was way worse than it is now. And 8 years ago, no one would have lived here because it was just dangerous. They told us that Nopa is becoming the "New Mission," (likened to Brooklyn in New York), and just in the last 6 months lots of high end stores have gone in on Divisadero, just near our house. They said if we had a good rent number and a nice apartment, we'd be crazy to leave now because this area is just starting to get hot. 

We left the police station feeling a lot better.

And then we went inside, and I turned on my laptop and I decided to check Craigslist just one more time. I found our exact unit in our building listed for $1700 more a month than we are paying.

It would be crazy to leave.

So it's been a total roller coaster, but I'm glad we're here. We signed the new lease this morning, and I just hit "purchase" on an entire shopping cart of stuff on WestElm.com that I had been holding onto to wait and see how this apartment craze was going to pan out.

And just a few days ago, I received a shipment of about 7 boxes of beautiful new goodies. Things that I probably never would have bought if we hadn't made the decision to stay and make this home.

Maybe once we get a few of these things completed, I'll do a house tour so you can see what we've done.

Ok, happy weekend everyone. Thanks for listening to me whine. I do appreciate it.

Also, we're headed to Red Rocks to go climbing with friends this weekend! Woot woot! Fun pictures on Monday.

Hearts,

-J

Also....BONUS POST.

Think about it....

Think about it....

Think about it.....

Haaaaaaa.

The Happiest Cab Driver in the World

Yesterday I had lunch with a friends, and Ubered a cab to come grab me (if you live in a place where you don't have Uber, I am so sad for you. It's an app where you can see the cabs//drivers//towncars//limos around you, and request a pickup. Then they come to you. No hailing on a street corner. Also, they have your credit card on file, so you don't have to mess around with paying them. They just charge your account directly. It's GENIUS). 

Anyway, everyone knows that Uber drivers are thousands of times better than regular cab drivers. Even the Uber taxis that also drive as regular cabbies the rest of the time. Something about being on the Uber clock just makes them more friendly. Maybe it's because they know that their customers can rate them, and if you have bad customer service reports probably doesn't fare too well.

So yesterday, I get in the cab and this guy starts telling me that he drives in the city only 2 days a week. The rest of the time he lives out in Roseville.

But then he turns to me and asks me something that no one has ever asked in a cab before:

"Can I tell you a story?"

Sure. Why not? We have until Pine and Kearny, so we might as well enjoy our little ride together. Plus his accent was nice to listen to - he seemed a complex mix between an islander and a middle eastern man. He had the sing-song cadence of someone you might expect was Jamaican  and laughed after every sentence he finished. But then he would throw in certain words, and they would remind me of being in Jr High at my best friend's house. She was Persian  and her father used to say"my friend" every few moments the same exact way this cab driver did.  And then he would also trill some of his consonants, making his entire accent impossible to place.

He began by turning to me at a light and declaring: "I have won the lottery."

"Really?" I think, Then, why are you driving a cab?"

"ONE-BILLION-TIMES. I have won!" He laughs. 

I laugh.

"Ten years ago - when I move to San Francisco, I was in a bar. A girl walk in the bar, and I know that I want to talk with her. But I cannot talk with her. I am nervous." He laughs.

"But I make a mistake. I get very drunk. And when I wake up I am in my bed - I touch my body, and [he gasps] I say 'I  am nak-ed!'" He laughs really hard.

"But then I feel skin next to me.  There is someone in my bed....and she is nak-ed!" He laughs.

"AND IT IS THE GIRL FROM THE BAR!!!" He really really laughs.

"In my face, I say nothing. But in my mind I say 'MAN YOU DID IT!!!! IT THE GIRL FROM THE BAR!! YESSSSSSS! You are winning the lottery!" He really really laughs.

He then goes on to tell me how they spent 3 days, romping in bed, eating pizza, sleeping, and then repeating. The girl from the bar called in sick to work for an entire week. 

"It was so beauty-ful my friend! You know? We love on each other so fast. Like, the connection is...." He makes a noise with his mouth that resembles a get engine.

"And this girl...she is the most beautiful girl in the world! She is so nice. She is 5'1 and 97 pounds, and so small, and so nice...she is nicest girl in the world. And we spend days sleep-ing, and eat-ing, and sleep-ing again. IT SO BEAUTIFUL!" He laughs.

Then he tells me that the girl had to go back to her life. He didn't call her. Six weeks later, he was drunk in a bar, and decides it's time to give her a ring. She comes out, they drink, and they fall into another week-long romp, with "eat-ting pizza" and "sleep-ing" on repeat.

This happens a third time. Weeks go by. Someone calls. They spend a week in bed. 

The entire time he is telling me this, he is ranting about how beautiful this girl is, and how beautiful their connection is. And how being with her is the greatest thing in the entire world.

"THEN," he says, "One day, she call me. And she say to me 'I am preg-a-nant.' Because we never used the protection."

"AND I AM THE HAPPIEST MAN IN THE WORLD MY FRIEND!!! She has made me a baby! It is so beauty-ful! My heart say 'Yesssss!!! You did it!!!' It is so beauty-ful!" And then he REALLY laughs.

He goes on to say that they moved in together, and paid of their debts and a few years later bought a 1930s house out in Roseville close to her parents. By this point in time they've been married 10 years, have a ten year old girl and a second child, a son, who is now eight. 

He turns to me and says, "Every day, when I leave my family, or my beauty-ful wife for even two hours, it is like a prison. I cannot wait to go home to my house and be with her, because she is so kind! I have won the lottery - when you have the one-night-stand, you go home next day. But for me, I get a beauty-ful wife, and two babies, and a house! What a beauty-ful life!!" Then he laughs.

Suddenly, he crinkles his eyebrows and asks me, "Do you have a boyfriend?"

"Actually, I'm married...." I start.

"OH YES!!!!" He yells, and then literally claps his hands with excitement. "You need make baby! Do you have baby?"

"No, no babies...."

"Oh, my friend, listen to me my friend. Babies are the most beauty-ful thin'...you need make baby. Nothin' makes the connection better between man and woman than when you make baby. It is so beauty-ful.  Yes, yes, you need make baby my friend!" He laughs.

"Forget the money. Forget everythin'. Just make baby. You can have a house in the middle of no where, and it's not expensive, but you know what? You don't care my friend...because you have husband and you have baby and your whole life is beauty-ful!"

We pull at Pine and Kearny.

He laughs.

"Well, thanks, have a great afternoon..." I call out as I'm leaving the cab.

He rolls down the window, leans out and yells, "Jenny-fer! Make baby my friend! Who cares about they money! Just beauty-ful husband, and beauty-ful baby!! You will have such a beauty-ful life!!" 

And then he really laughed.

It was the funniest cab ride I have ever had. 

-J

Ahhhhhhh.

I have owed you something for two days now. And I PROMISE I have totally been working it (among other surprises!) so please sit tight....good things are coming. Good fun things are on their way....

In the mean time, here's something amazing:

Come back soon and we'll have AMAZINGNESS.

Loveyoumeanit.

-J

Triathlon....tomorrow.

Ok folks we're here. It's happening. Tomorrow.

I AM NERVOUS.

And of course, Steve is not. Because I am married to a person who doesn't have fear. Not because he's bigger or stronger or smarter than everyone else...just because he has no concept of failure. The idea simply doesn't occur to him, and if he does think about it, it's like "Eh, it's will be ok."

I know this sounds like a good trait, or a comforting thing....but it is not. It drives me crazy. Usually while I'm sitting over here pouring over details in my mind, and trying to imagine all of our transitions, stressing about what happens if my goggles get punched off my face, or I get a flat tire, or if I cramp up during the run, or if I am the last person on the course....mean while Steve's like "Oh yeah, we're doin' that race thing tomorrow. That should be fun."

In my last minute research last night I did read something comforting through. I found an article giving advice to first time racers and this part really jumped out to me: "You cannot change your fitness level now. You've done all the training you can. So now, just think of the race as a giant party to celebrate all of your hard work!"

Now a party is something I can totally get down with:

Weeeeeee!

Looking back on the last 6 months of training, I can tell you - I'm super glad we're doing this. Initially  this was just a way to anchor our workout aspirations to a physical commitment. Before Steve and I got married we were WAY more active. I ran half marathons, he was on a track team, lifted every day and I was really into rock climbing. Then all of this storm of a life took over, and I sat up one day feeling like I'd lost a part of myself along the way. 

We'd tried going to the gym, but really it just ended up being an ongoing conversation where we'd promise each other that we'd start going, we'd be more consistant, this month was busy, next month we'll make more time....and we never got there. And we fought about it. A LOT. 

So maybe it was a bit vindictive when I signed us up for this race as an anniversary present. Or selfish. It was a desperate swipe at the life I wanted to get back. A life where we had triceps instead of burrito arm. 

burrito · arm: noun
1) when one's limbs are so flabby, that when held against one's side it appears to resemble a burrito.
2) flabby, or muscle-less
3) pale and unattractive

Last night we wen't for a short 3 mile to just test out the legs before tomorrow. And I realized we've come a long way as a couple in the last 6 months. It's been good to push ourselves together...but also to find our own rhythms as individual race participants. We've learned how to run our own races, and I've had learn how to stay confident when Steve is having an awesome training day and I'm having bricks for legs. Or how to be encouraging when I'm kicking ass, instead of just letting it stroke my ego that I am actually beating Steve for once.

The funny thing is, I still kinda have burrito arm. I'm still scared. I still don't think we're actually trained enough. I still run slow miles, and we've only been in open water once. But here we are packing our transition bags. And I'm glad we're doing it.

Here's to hoping we don't drown.

See you Monday (hopefully with an awesome report),

-J

Project Canaan.

I just got off of a really exciting phone call.

Steve and I had a call this morning with the Director of Development for Heart For Africa, a non-profit group that provides care and hope for the children of Swaziland, which is a kingdom inside of South Africa.

Why are care and hope so important to these kids? Well, because apparently the situation over in Swaziland is pretty abysmal. Check out these staggering facts:

- The country is being complete debilitated by HIV/AIDS. In fact, it has the highest HIV/AIDS rate in the entire world, at 42.6%

- The adults are dying at a rate so quickly the children are being orphaned faster than they can manage.

- The average life expectancy of in Swaziland DROPPED TO AGE TWENTY NINE in 2010.

- That means there are 200,00 orphaned children in a country the size of New Jersey. 15,000 of these children are now the head of their households.

- And the most staggering fact was reported in a local Swaziland newspaper: "Without significant and immediate international intervention, there will be no adults living in Swaziland by the year 2020."

Amazing Shit I Pinned.

We haven't done one of these in a while....so it's time for some Pinterest Pins!

One thing that is funny//interesting//creepy to me is how you can TOTALLY tell what someone is doing based off their pin stream. And I know this is the nature of most social media, but sometimes it's easy to forget or get caught off guard with Pinterst.

Maybe it's because sometimes I really do use it as a way of organizing information or filing away recipes or articles for later - and then BAM, someone's like "Oh, so you're reorganizing your office?" And you're like, "How the hell did you know that?" And they're like, "You've been pinning filing cabinets for a week...." and you're like "Oh...right...."

So the moral of that story is that you should always make sure you're littering your Pinterest with outrageous lies, so no one really knows what you're up to.

With that, here are some amazing things that I could not live without seeing on the Pinterest:

This coffee Bar. Because come on, we all have wet bars at home. Or at least a stash of booze on top of your fridge. But who has a whole coffee bar ready to make your morning just sitting there? I can tell you who.....My friend Brooke. She has one of these in her bedroom. And when I saw it for the first time I thought she was literally the smartest person on the planet.

This wardrobe room. I haven't told you this yet....but we had another offer for an AMAZING apartment come our way. I'll go more into it tomorrow, but long story short, we let it go.  And through the course of our decision, Steve has promised me that one day we will build our own house, where we will be able to create everything from scratch. So, I'm keeping this on file for when I get to design my wardrobe room:

CARROT CAKE.

I am OBSESSED with carrot cake. I have totally been dying to make one, and this recipe just looks at me and is begging to jump in my mouth:

Speaking of things that need to jump in my mouth....Buffalo Chicken Meatball Sandwich. This makes my little heart skip a tiny beat:

The only thing that could make me happier than a buffalo chicken sandwich, is THIS PUPPY IN THIS POOL. Get in my life:

This pin just about changed my life. This is not a scam, this is literally one of the most amazing Internet thing Ive ever seen. Do it. Do it. Do it.

This outfit needs to be in my wardrobe room right meow:

I literally cannot look at this without cracking up.

Also, HOW HAS NO ONE EVER THOUGHT OF THIS BEFORE NOW!?!?!?!?!?

And this last one. I am going to be keeping this in my mind for Saturday. Because yes, as of right now we are still going to be doing our tri. Even thought Steve is coming down with a cold. Even though I don't think we're ready. Even thought my back isn't better. Even though Im developing a sty in my left eye that will feel perfect with a set of goggles pushing up against them. So yes, this is going to play a roll in me finishing the run at the end of the triathlon.

Ok friens, stay tuned for tomorrow. I'll have some fun updates.

Hearts,

-Jenni