More Cold

The groundhog called for six more weeks of winter. But I'm hoping that all six of those weeks were crammed into this one week. That's sure what it felt like. The weather just switched between snowing and below zero temps. I read somewhere on the oh-so-reliable internet that all this weather was actually created by Disney to promote their movie "Frozen". Well Disney, if you're reading this, I can guarantee that I will no longer be singing "the cold never bothered me anyway". It definitely has.

I've basically been suffering from cabin fever. Other than getting my drivers license and plates switched over to Ohio on Tuesday (about time, I know), I've only been going out to get to work. Yes, that means I haven't even gone outside long enough to take off my Nebraska plates and switch them to Ohio. In the rare case I see a cop, much less get pulled over by one, I'm sure they'll understand that the weather has made this impossible.

Take today for example. I go to church north of Delaware (the city, I don't drive hundreds of miles to go to church in another state). Delaware happens to be the city that our former president Rutherford B. Hayes was born. I thought it might be fun to visit his birth site after church today, and then maybe go across the street to tour the Ohio Wesleyan University campus. On my way to church, between enduring the bitter cold and sliding around the icy streets, I decided that I would probably just make a quick stop to the birthplace and save the college for another day. By the time I actually made it to church (miraculously on time, despite driving twenty mph slower than the regular speed limit), I knew that, unless some weather miracle happened, it would be wisest to go straight home after service. But as I drove home without any fun activities checked off of my to-do list, I remembered that I was going to meet up with a neighbor I have yet to meet at IGA to hand off some books I no longer want. But about an hour before our meetup time, she messaged me saying there was no way she would be able to get out today. So since then, I've been at home, snacking, napping, and watching Duck Dynasty and 19 Kids.

I wish I had something more exciting to report, but all I have now is hopes to one day see more of the world. I try to take a monthly trip, but it just wasn't possible in January. (However, on the first day of February, I ended up riding along to see downtown Columbus, which I hadn't seen before. And I also attended the CCCA sectional at Heartland in late January. I guess one of those could count.) I'm hoping to go to the Creation Museum in a couple weeks, especially after watching Ken Ham's debate with Bill Nye this week. Yeah, watching TV has been one of my few forms of entertainment in this weather. There was watching the debate (which was plan B because I had original plans to go to a movie prescreening that night), having a movie night with coworkers watching "CAMP", and then just watching some different reruns. But of course, getting there is all dependent on if I feel safe driving all the way down to the Kentucky border.

In all, I'd just like to apologize for no postings, no pictures, no interesting stories. I really wish I did have something to share. At least now I have the experience of these incredible temperatures and weather. But I'm hoping that it ends up being a literal once-in-a-lifetime experience!

A Busy Weekend

 This week wasn't all that restful at all. I didn't even go into the weekend with any plans. Here's some of what happened:

I woke up on Saturday fairly early. The weather wasn't too miserable, so I decided to walk to town. First I went by the pharmacy to drop off a letter at their mailbox and get a new book at the lending library. Most of the books this time were kids books, but I did find this book that is basically chock full of life hacks, which has actually been fun to read. I went by the thrift store where in the past I found a Disney trivia game and what is now my favorite pair of jeans, but sadly, that shop now has a "for rent" sign in the window. I went to the consignment store instead, but didn't see anything I wanted.

After reading and such for awhile back home, I ended up making food. Pepper couscous for lunch...

 ...and Cranberry-Apple-Acorn Squash for dinner. (I made the denim potholder last week.)

As I was going through my e-mail, I discovered that Full House Season 5, which I had ordered online just a couple of days prior, had arrived. That warranted a trip to the mailbox. And when I mentioned that there were sewing machines at the consignment shop, that got my roommates out of the house long enough to pop my new shows into the DVD player and watch them... for several hours. 

While watching TV, I noticed a post on the community Facebook page for a cheap dryer. After contacting the owner, an offer was made to deliver it to our place for free if we bought it that night. I accepted. Finally, I'm able to do laundry in the comfort of my own home! (Something I'm taking advantage of as I type this!)

Unfortunately, the dryer cord was the wrong type for our socket, so we would have to buy one at Lowe's. We planned to do that the next day after church, and buy curtains as well. 

Church was a lot of fun. The theme was "On a Mission from God", quoted from the Blues Brothers movie. At the end of the service, everyone was given free sunglasses and the worship team came out in suits, sunglasses, and fedoras. They performed a Christianized parody of "Jailhouse Rock" (which is actually Elvis, but no one seemed to care). You can watch it here if you use the password "jailhouse": http://vimeo.com/83997694.

Then it was shopping time. We did manage to get curtain rods for all the windows, and we even went for lunch at Panera, but after four hours and three different stores, we only ended up getting curtains for this window.

This room  isn't quite so ugly anymore. And there's no longer snow outside either. The stockings are down, and I lined the floor of that wall with candles. My yoga mat is in the center of the room. We got the turquoise energy-efficient curtains with a lighter white curtain on top. 

We borrowed some tools to make curtain hanging possible, including a cordless drill. However, we needed screwdriver bits, but accidentally only ended up with drill bits. But I had a bit of my own. I had bought a bed frame about a month ago, but haven't had the chance to put it together. The bed came with a bolt bit, and now that I had all the supplies, I finally assembled it. 

I bought the bed from Buckeye Bunkbeds, which is a home business between my home and work. They were awesome about making things exactly the way I wanted them, but it turned out even better than what I knew was possible! It's very good quality and a reasonable price. The family the runs the business was very friendly and sociable. I got the under-bed storage drawers to keep things organized, and they are the same size as the entire bed. I don't think I have enough stuff to fill those drawers! With my box spring, my bed is now over three feet high, which is perfect for someone of my stature, and just the way I wanted it. It certainly beats sleeping on a mattress on the floor! I really like the way my bed turned out. Even the handyman (who was installing our washer and dryer) complimented the frame as he passed by my bedroom! 

And what better way to follow up a busy weekend than with a busy week? Today I started building a log cabin with my bare hands. Okay, maybe it wasn't quite that dramatic, but it was very uncomfortable work to skin logs most of the day. My back and legs are killing me! At least tomorrow I'll get temporary reprieve by working with the housekeeping staff. The only caveat is that they start a half-hour earlier than my department; but that does mean they get off earlier too! Between work and my personal to-do list, I'll be going non-stop! (Which will make for quality sleep in my new bed when I get the opportunity!)

How Cold Is It?

-It's so cold that it actually warms up at night.
-It's so cold that I could have won a million dollars and not know it because walking to the mailbox is out of the question.
-It's so cold that I have blankets hanging over the sliding glass door to prevent draft.
-It's so cold that I'm actually excited about finally losing the negative sign on the weather forecast, even though it will still be well below freezing.
-It's so cold that we lost our water for almost an entire day.
-It's so cold that I'm spending more gasoline warming up my car than I am driving it.
-It's so cold that today at work, I started planning a way that we could move to Australia to offer summer camps there during the northern winter months.
-It's so cold that it took me days to finally take out the trash. And the trash can is right next to the door.
-It's so cold that I go to bed early. I don't fall asleep any sooner; I just like the warmth of the blankets.
-It's so cold that I'm purposely trying to bake in the oven so I can stand by it as the warm air comes out.
-It's so cold that I have to walk around my entire car in the morning, testing to see which door I can get in from. (Sometimes it's only the back hatch.)
-It's so cold that I'm done writing this post. I need to find some ways to warm up!