The Year of the Volunteer!

As I begin my second year of Florida life, I'm feeling really good about a lot of things. Having the dreaded "first year" behind me is allowing some perspective and helping me reflect on what brings balance and happiness to my life. When I lived in Minnesota volunteerism was a unique and nourishing role for me, and being away from it for the past year has definitely created a void. I've been dipping a toe into the volunteer scene in Jax lately to see where I might fit in, and recently signed on with a couple great organizations!

Ronald McDonald House is a charity I consider near and dear, thanks to my previous affiliation with the Rochester House, so I was extremely happy to find a House here in Jax! It's a beautiful 30-room facility situated near the river (yes, this locale requires me to drive into downtown... nerve-wracking, but also good for sharpening my lay of the land!) I went in for my first shift yesterday. I'm not actually working at the House, though - I'm a host in the RMH Family Room located on the 3rd Floor of the nearby Wolfson Children's Hospital. The Family Room is an additional resource to the House, and it's open to anyone with a child in the hospital (whether they are staying at RMH or are a local family just needing a place to hang out while their child receives care). The four hours I spent there were a whirlwind of activity, and I'm excited to go back. ;-) Here's a link to more Family Room info. on RMH's website: http://www.rmhjax.org/our-family-room

Junior League of Jacksonville recently accepted my application for membership. JLJ is volunteer organization I learned about from colleagues who are current members or have been previously involved. It's comprised of a diverse group of women "committed to promoting volunteerism, developing the potential of women, and improving communities through the effective action and leadership of trained volunteers." (quote from the website ;-) Their primary focus - to provide support for public education and foster care issues - affiliates the group with MANY great initiatives and organizations throughout the Jax community. It seems like a wonderful opportunity to invest deeply in an org. and to develop relationships with a lot of impactful, positive people! As a new member, I'll be kicking off my "provisional year" with a training retreat starting in August. More info. about JLJ an be found here: http://www.jlweb.org/jacksonville/npo.jsp?pg=home

Ending on a good note

Despite dedicating last Wednesday's entire post to rantings about the pitfalls of moral decency and basic human goodness, it didn't turn out to be such a bad week!

On Thursday five of MCF's outpatient buildings experienced a rolling black-out, plunging hundreds of us into a dim, computer-less void with nothing more to do than sit dumbly in our chairs whilst straining our ears in silent prayer for the ongoing hum of air-conditioning. The black-out was not necessarily a good thing, but it was an interesting three hour exercise in adaptability and creativity. Those old reports stacked under my desk awaiting dismantling? Gone! That outdated list of "to-do's" on my white board? Call them current! The mailings being neglected all week? Signed, sealed, delivered! The filing that's been piling up forever? Completed! (by our marvelous secretaries, who worked by FLASHLIGHT). It's truly amazing what you can accomplish without electricity...

Arriving home on Thursday evening brought another noteworthy occasion... the return of my plant! I'm still pondering what on God's green earth motivated my neighbor to swipe the thing for one day, but I'll probably never know. What I DO know is that this leafy number's permanent new home is MY deck -- an enclosed, secure second story area.
So what do you do to celebrate when good wins over evil? You go to a fashion show! And when you realize upon arriving that the size 0 models will be a bit delayed in hitting the runway in their fabulous, barely-there frocks, you head to the bistro next door to slurp up wine and decadent appetizers. ;-)

Friday, as it turned out, marked my one year anniversary of beginning work in Jax. I was so excited I stayed up late baking muffins for the crew. Here's a recipe that seemed to win a few fans (especially Mr. Befort, who walked into my office to hoist his third serving in the air and proclaim, "Well done... well done!").

BANANA NUT MUFFINS
1/2 cup(s) sugar
5 tbsp unsalted butter, softened
1 large egg(s)
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 cup(s) all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 teaspoon each of cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger
1/4 cup(s) fat-free skim milk
4 large banana(s), ripe, mashed
¼ c. small walnut pieces

Preheat oven to 350ºF. Line 18 muffin holes with paper liners.

Place sugar and butter in a large bowl; cream with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add egg and vanilla; beat until thoroughly mixed.

In another large bowl, mix together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger. Add half of flour mixture to butter mixture; beat well with mixer. Add milk and remaining flour mixture; beat until batter is combined and then fold in mashed bananas.

Spoon batter into muffin liners about 3/4 full. Top with walnuts pieces. Bake until muffins start to brown and a tester inserted in center of a muffin comes out clean, about 25 to 30 minutes.

Current mood: Absolutely livid

It's been darn hot in Florida this week, folks -- I'm not going to lie. Successive days of mid to highs 90s (mind you, those temps become three digits once the heat index is factored in) when your car air-conditioner is hopelessly broken and in need of a $1,000 repair job can cause some discomfort and irritability. Such was my state when I trucked home tonight late from work and from picking Libby up at the groomer where, surprise, surprise it was also time for lots of expensive annual shots and exams!

So I dodged the beams and barricades roping off the recent re-pave job in the parking lot and ascended the breezeway stairs with nothing on my mind but getting into the cool reprieve of my apartment. But as I approached the door I immediately noticed something was awry... my plant was missing! When I moved here last year and was sprucing up my digs, I bought a pot with large, palmy foliage to green things up a bit. It's been with me for almost a year, and when I moved over to the new unit I thought it might look nice sitting just outside my door. And it did... until it was STOLEN.

Honestly, who steals a plant?! And more importantly, who is inane enough to steal a plant and then display it on their deck for your plain view as you walk your dog around the path of the complex where you both live? My neighbor, that is who. Un-freakin-believable. I don't know who lives in the unit directly across the hall from me, but I am 100 percent positive that the individual or individuals took my plant today. I seethed all through my walk and ultimately decided to attempt an even-tempered, proactive reaction. I steeled my courage, positioned myself in front of the perp's door, plastered a smile on my face and delivered two sharp knocks. Light was shining from behind the window blinds and noise could be heard within, but no one came to the door. I knocked again. And again. Whoever was in there had enough time to peek through the peep hole, see my falsely assertive smile and decide it was better not to answer the door.

But I will not be deterred. I personally wouldn't think of walking off with someone else's pen, so the idea of stealing another's belongings absolutely abhors me. Could I skip up the road to Wal-Mart and plunk down another $15 for a new plant? Yep, I definitely could. But I'm going to try really hard to get this one back!!! Even if it brands me "weird, obsessive girl in #308." ;-)

Dress anxiety

So I'm going to the alterations shop in about an hour to have my bridesmaid dress scrutinized. Gulp. No big deal. I've been working out... I've been feeling good... I've been cutting back on sugar... Okay, let's be honest - I'm more confident about the fact that I've got a pair of Spanx buried somewhere in my dresser drawer that have at least half the intended degree of elasticity still intact. Wish me luck!

Hope everyone is having a great week. ;-)

Progress?

So Libby and I have been in the apt. unit for a full week now. I think the new digs are starting to grow on her. In the mornings she no longer greets me with sleepy little eyes peeking out from under the pantry shelf - she's now curling up into a ball just OUTSIDE the pantry door. (I swear there is a comfy pink doggie bed beckoning from the other end of the kitchen - odd how it's not appealing to her).
It's worth sharing that Libby is a pretty decent roommate most of the time; however there are times like tonight where the skill of speech would be greatly appreciated. Accusations like, "What happened to the last jello cup?" and questions like, "Have you seen my i-pod charger?!" and shrieks like, "Stupid baby gate!" as one trips, sprawls and bangs one's knee on the linoleum are somewhat lost. I think I have a couple ice packs in the freezer...

6.6.09

I feel like the biggest poser right now... I'm sitting at a Barnes and Noble Starbucks, plugged into my laptop and headphones with every intention of finishing up a report. The older gentleman at the next table interrupted me to comment on how much he's enjoying my expressions (evidently I wear every instance of frustration and break-through on my face!) Thank goodness the only thing I face at work is a monitor and a very un-inspiring papered wall.

It's the end of another steamy, rainy weekend in Florida, but my thoughts were definitely in Minnesota the past few days. Mikey and Carv tied the knot on Saturday. ;-) Congrats to the only couple I know whose history dates back to the pre-driver's license era! There's no doubt their wedding was an amazingly memorable, wonderful, hilarious affair. Pictures can't come fast enough -- start facebooking NOW, all you lucky attendees who likely gripped and flashed your digital cams through every dancing, druken moment of the night.

A priceless Memorial weekend outing

Discounted tickets to spend 5 hours aboard the SunCruz Casino Boat (the only gambling venue in Jax): $3.00
Picturesque evening view of the Mayport shore as you cruise out into the choppy Atlantic waters: Free.

Bottom-of-the-barrel mixed drinks served up in tiny plastic cups: $5 each.

Realizing half an hour into the adventure you are terribly vulnerable to seasickness and it's too late for dramamine to help you: PRICELESS.

Aaaaand we're off!

Today marks the first official day of Hurricane Season! Thus, I'm staring down the barrel of six months worth of grim-lipped, brow-furrowed, worrisome weather watching -- not by me, but by my nervous mother back in MN. (Honestly, does the national forecast really need to air on Midwestern news stations?!) All kidding aside, I probably do need to give some thought to a personal hurricane plan this year. Last summer I kind of skirted through by purchasing a couple extra gallon jugs of water to plop on my pantry shelf and called it a day. Jax was fortunate, though, (and has been so historically) so I'm going to cross my fingers for another mild season!

Today is also my first full day in the new apartment unit. After a full weekend of packing, lifting, climbing stairs, directing movers, unpacking, breaking down boxes and cleaning, I'm still not completely settled in - but I'm pretty close! I'm running into some storage challenges (no more guest bedroom closet to stash the random/bulky items in) but overall I'm really happy with the new layout and cozier set-up. This morning I came into the kitchen to greet Libby, and found her curled into a ball under the bottom shelf in the little pantry closet. She's obviously going to need a couple days to adjust to our new environment!

Of Mice and Moving

A very exciting day to blog about! This morning at work Jason discovered a live mouse wedged between his file cabinet and cubicle partition. SICK. We all peered in to get a look at the scared little thing, and when I spied its beady black eyes I couldn't help but scream and jump from the counter I was standing on (nearly twisting my ankle landing in heels). Good way to get the whole office tweaked! Maintenace came a bit later on and clobbered it... I was in a meeting at the time, but those nearby reported trauma at hearing the terrible squeals and shrieks. Though general consensus was to donate our furry friend to one of the research buildings, I'm fairly certain he met a different end. First task tomorrow morning? Empty the orange peels and used yogurt containers from the garbage under my desk!

This evening I continued my moving efforts. Nooo, I'm not moving back to Minnesota - I'm only traveling two buildings away to a smaller (cheaper) unit on my current complex. Earlier this year the management office sent me the renewal offer on my current apartment at a much higher rate - and refused to negotiate. ARGH! The letter came the week I was on a big "I refuse to spend money on things I don't really need!" kick, so partially out of defiance and mostly due to frugality, I decided to downgrade to a one bed/one bath. The prospect of a little less space is forcing me to go through bins, boxes and cabinets to purge excess. It's been a good cleansing activity, and will culminate in one large haul to the local Goodwill. ;-) Movers are coming this weekend to do the heavy lifting and hauling. Starting Monday, I'll be in #308. Please feel free to update your contact information!

Jax = spring break for Minnesotans!

Earlier this year Kristi Jean the school teacher got to escape Minnesota while her students were escaping the classroom for spring break. We had a great time bumming around Jax while she was here for nearly a week in late March/early April! Fortunately there were enough nice weather days to do a lot of the things we had planned outdoors as well as indoors... We made it to the beach, pool, baseball game, an afternoon at the Landing and Main Library, a Dueling Pianos performance, and some fun dinners.

Cheering on the FSU/UF players at Jax Baseball grounds (and probably still a little elated from inhaling huge ball park franks with all the fixings. ;-)
Go Seminoles! Er, go Gators! I guess we wanted both teams to have a good game. Unfortunately a winner was never determined, because a huge storm hit at the bottom of the sixth inning, the game was cancelled and the park vacated.
Posing in front of the big blue bridge downtown.
An afternoon at the Jacksonville Landing...

...where we found some very cultured establishments!
Drinks and bruschetta at The American Cafe! Notice our opposing team shirts? We had a little fun with letting people think we were bitter sports rivals (when in reality we'd run out to Wal-Mart the night before and raided the clearance racks. ;-)

We had an indulgent four-course dinner at The Melting Pot... seriously, food has never been such an event. Uffdah.