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| Foster's Market Outdoor Seating |
Sunday, April 22, 2012
Springtime in the South
Sunday, January 01, 2012
Happy 2012!
1) I'm in graduate school, working on a Masters of Library Science. Fall semester 2011 was my first, so I have several more classes planned for 2012 (and probably a couple of years after this one!).
2) I'm going to Anaheim in June for the American Library Association's Annual Conference. It'll be my first ALA conference, and my first time to Anaheim. (Where's Mickey Mouse?!)
3) I've signed up for two half marathons this spring, the Tobacco Road Half Marathon and the Flying Pirate Half Marathon. These races will be a stretch for me, mixing consistent training with graduate school and a full-time job. I'm kinda nervous, so wish me luck!
4) George and I will celebrate 10 years together in October!
With these things and more on my plate, I've decided not to set any "New Year's Resolutions" this year. I already have several goals and personal projects in progress, so this year, January 1 feels like just another day, but thankfully, it's a day for a little more R&R!
Clipart from Clipartheaven.com
Thursday, November 24, 2011
Happy Thanksgiving 2011
George and I are both off today, as usual, so we're celebrating Thanksgiving in two different places. First, we're going to a church we've been visiting for a potluck Thanksgiving lunch. Then we're joining George's family for more food in Cary! Looking forward to seeing everyone, and also look forward to talking with family vacationing in Florida.
I took yesterday off from work, and while it wasn't very restful, I got a lot of errands done. It's often nice to have a workday off for errands, especially with grad school in the mix this semester.
I took yesterday off from work, and while it wasn't very restful, I got a lot of errands done. It's often nice to have a workday off for errands, especially with grad school in the mix this semester.
Wednesday, November 02, 2011
Staycation 2011: Prairie Ridge Ecostation, Raleigh, NC
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| Prairie Ridge Ecostation |
There's no admission fee, and it's a delightful step into nature. There's a small trail system (about a mile's worth if you walk it all), with lots of plants and birds around.
Do yourself a favor and check out the Prairie Ridge Ecostation sometime! You'll be glad you did!
Check out the rest of my photos from the Prairie Ridge Ecostation here.
Monday, October 03, 2011
Show Me the Money
One of the benefits of being a grad student is that it's prompted me to take care of some things in my personal life that needed attention. I'm discovering that crossing things off of the To Do List helps me concentrate more on school!
With all the talk about banking fees, including the disappearance of free checking accounts and some banks starting to a monthly fee for using debit cards, I decided to work on getting my financial ducks in a row. Turns out I had FIVE "free" checking accounts floating out there! Yikes! I did a little homework to catch up on bank fees of the financial institutions I was dealing with (in varying degrees of infrequency!), and learned that two of those checking accounts had recently started having monthly fees taken out, and another would have fees starting in November. One of those checking accounts with new monthly fees was actually at a credit union, so be careful even with credit unions! So, I closed all three of those checking accounts out, which netted me about $50 total. Small potatoes, so I'm not worrying about fees or keeping track of those miscellaneous accounts anymore.
I was intrigued by the varied reactions of the different banks/credit unions, especially since I did all of this late on a Friday afternoon. The banker at SunTrust asked nicely why I was closing my account, shook my hand after completing the transaction, and invited me to consider bring my banking business back in the future. (He even gave me a brochure about their Student Banking accounts, since I'm a grad student.) The banker at the credit union pulled out the fee schedule and went over it with me to make sure I understood it. Part of that, I think, was because I still have a savings account at that credit union, which is affiliated with my workplace. That credit union seems to be geared more to financial education opportunities than regular banks around here; they even offer seminars/workshop on a regular basis for various financial decisions/activities, like purchasing a first home or planning for retirement. My last stop, Bank of America, where my account was $1.66 in the red, had me in and out as fast as possible. That was the bank I was most relieved to free of, so I didn't mind. Their reputation for nickle-and-diming their customers is pretty bad in these parts.
What have I learned?
1) There ain't no such thing as a free lunch, and free checking accounts are becoming a thing of the past (unless you have direct deposit or a minimum balance).
2) It pays to take care of the nagging little things. They take up vital brain space in the remembering or the tracking. And much like letting your car go too long without a simple oil change, little things can turn into big things.
3) Taking care of one little thing can give you momentum to take care of other little things, the snowball effect.
Clipart from Clipartheaven.com
I was intrigued by the varied reactions of the different banks/credit unions, especially since I did all of this late on a Friday afternoon. The banker at SunTrust asked nicely why I was closing my account, shook my hand after completing the transaction, and invited me to consider bring my banking business back in the future. (He even gave me a brochure about their Student Banking accounts, since I'm a grad student.) The banker at the credit union pulled out the fee schedule and went over it with me to make sure I understood it. Part of that, I think, was because I still have a savings account at that credit union, which is affiliated with my workplace. That credit union seems to be geared more to financial education opportunities than regular banks around here; they even offer seminars/workshop on a regular basis for various financial decisions/activities, like purchasing a first home or planning for retirement. My last stop, Bank of America, where my account was $1.66 in the red, had me in and out as fast as possible. That was the bank I was most relieved to free of, so I didn't mind. Their reputation for nickle-and-diming their customers is pretty bad in these parts.
What have I learned?
1) There ain't no such thing as a free lunch, and free checking accounts are becoming a thing of the past (unless you have direct deposit or a minimum balance).
2) It pays to take care of the nagging little things. They take up vital brain space in the remembering or the tracking. And much like letting your car go too long without a simple oil change, little things can turn into big things.
3) Taking care of one little thing can give you momentum to take care of other little things, the snowball effect.
Clipart from Clipartheaven.com
Sunday, August 14, 2011
Heading Back to School
Now I can say that I'm going back to school NEXT WEEK! Yikes! My first class in the Master of Library Science program at North Carolina Central University is on August 23, a week from Tuesday. As expected, I'm both excited and nervous, but mostly excited!
For the past few weeks, I've been taking care of some things on my larger to-do list, things that I've been putting off for a while. Having the start of grad school looming large has been a nice deadline, really. Mostly, I've been getting doctor's visits in, ones I've been neglecting, like getting my teeth cleaned and a mammogram (but not at the same time, thank goodness!). It feels satisfying to be on the other end of appointments like that, peace of mind that will help me focus on my studies a little better, I hope!
Meanwhile, I'm staying busy at work at the library, which will continue as I take classes. Also, I've signed up for the City of Oaks Half Marathon on November 6. I just finished Week #4 of my current training schedule, and so far it's going well, which means I haven't gotten injured! :-)
George and I continue to shop around for a new church home, so we visited a new-to-us church in Raleigh this morning. The funny thing about it was that we heard the today's minister last weekend at a different church, where he was the guest preacher. Today he was back at his home church, and we heard the SAME SERMON today that we heard last Sunday!
For the past few weeks, I've been taking care of some things on my larger to-do list, things that I've been putting off for a while. Having the start of grad school looming large has been a nice deadline, really. Mostly, I've been getting doctor's visits in, ones I've been neglecting, like getting my teeth cleaned and a mammogram (but not at the same time, thank goodness!). It feels satisfying to be on the other end of appointments like that, peace of mind that will help me focus on my studies a little better, I hope!
Meanwhile, I'm staying busy at work at the library, which will continue as I take classes. Also, I've signed up for the City of Oaks Half Marathon on November 6. I just finished Week #4 of my current training schedule, and so far it's going well, which means I haven't gotten injured! :-)
George and I continue to shop around for a new church home, so we visited a new-to-us church in Raleigh this morning. The funny thing about it was that we heard the today's minister last weekend at a different church, where he was the guest preacher. Today he was back at his home church, and we heard the SAME SERMON today that we heard last Sunday!
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Saying Goodbye
Last night, George and I hosted our last Covenant Group with this particular group, which we've been with for several years. It just happened that our last meeting with the group was at our apartment, so I enjoyed fixing dinner for the group. When someone hosts the group, it's usually light snacks, but I decided to throw some chili fixings into the crockpots (one beef, one veggie), and it all turned out well. In fact, we ended up staying around the dinner table for the whole two hours, rather than moving into the living room. The fellowship was really nice, and the discussion, as usual, was interesting and insightful.
I must admit that I'll miss the discussions and fellowship of this group, which meets twice a month to discuss spiritual topics. The membership has changed a bit over the years that George and I have been members, but a core has stayed the same. I've really enjoyed getting to know the group members, and sharing good food and fellowship for several years. It's a little hard bowing out of the group, but I decided that I needed to free that time for my graduate studies, which start next month.
Meanwhile, George and I continue to look for a new Unitarian-Universalist church home, and it's going to be an interesting journey. We've decided to give ourselves plenty of time to visit, and not jump on the bandwagon too soon. The Covenant Group was our last connection to our last church, so it feels a little sad to be done with that. (Well, we are joining the group a couple more times, one for cookie baking and lunch, and another to fix dinner together at the local homeless shelter.) But the future looks interesting, between my grad school and our looking for another church home. George and I have enjoyed the churches we've been to so far, and have already been discussing how we might get involved.
What do you look for in a church or place of worship?
Clipart from Clipartheaven.com
I must admit that I'll miss the discussions and fellowship of this group, which meets twice a month to discuss spiritual topics. The membership has changed a bit over the years that George and I have been members, but a core has stayed the same. I've really enjoyed getting to know the group members, and sharing good food and fellowship for several years. It's a little hard bowing out of the group, but I decided that I needed to free that time for my graduate studies, which start next month. What do you look for in a church or place of worship?
Clipart from Clipartheaven.com
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