Wednesday Mind Musings

* I've been relaxing and getting LOTS of rest lately! Work schedules are changing to summer hours so I've had lots more time off. I sleep in every day, I've been taking lots of naps, I've had more time to hit the beach and have found more time to catch up on my reading. This light schedule won't last long, but for now I'm really enjoying it!

* My latest read that I completely fell in love with and want to recommend is The Island by Elin Hilderbrand. I picked it up on Friday morning and was finished by Sunday afternoon, and I was sad the story was ending! I've randomly read 2 other novels by this author, but after this book, I'm definitely a fan!

 * BABY FEVER x 1,000,000,000= Me! The PLAN, however, is to wait for several years...

* I very much look forward to living in a house with a dishwasher, a washer and dryer, and an oven again. I miss baking terribly! I will never take these amazing, albeit everyday items, for granted again! Life without modern conveniences is no life for me!

* Therapy is going great! After a year and a half and several false starts and duds I think I've finally found a good fit where a therapist is concerned here in the VI. She's been extremely helpful and wonderful and I wish I could see her every day! The only sad thing about this? I only have a handful of months left with her until we move!

South Carolina's state flag

* Our plans to relocate seem to change constantly, but the latest plan will hopefully find us settled in Charleston, SC by October of this year. We'll see how that turns out, but I'm super excited and hopeful for the move!

* Since moving into our new apartment, I have been glued to the television. I have 1 1/2 years of tv to catch up on! I try to balance out the trashy reality tv I can't get enough of with educational programs on Discovery, History Channel, and PBS. I'm also still obsessed with any show having to do with babies, weddings, houses, fashion, interior design, and travel. Now that I think about it, it seems like I spend a lot of time in front of the tv these days! But I'm okay with that :)

* Nothing too spectacular or extraordinary is going on in my life! Here's hoping everyone is having a beautiful day!!

Wednesday Mind Musings

* I can't believe I haven't blogged since January! Terrible of me. Lack of accessible internet has been an issue, but that will change very soon!

* I've been on a great reading streak lately! The last few books that I've found have been wonderful! I just finished Pray For Silence by Linda Castillo which is about a murder in Amish country. I happened upon it randomly, but it was such a good book! I recommend it if anyone is looking for an interesting thriller. I also just started reading Before I Go to Sleep by SJ Watson. It's about a woman who loses her memory every night when she goes to sleep. I'm only a few chapters in but I love it! It's another book I would recommend!

* Sky and I are moving to a new apartment this weekend! 1 bed/1 bath, WIFI, cable, great cell signal (it's a big deal on this island to find an apartment where your cell works) and it has all its walls and doors lol. It's a short term rental until we leave, but I'm excited to move into a nicer place! I do hate the packing and moving part though...

* My current favorite iPhone games are Draw Something and Words with Friends. I think I'm behind on finding them, but whatever! They're fun and addictive, like everything else on my iPhone.

* So far married life is lovely! Sadly neither of our jobs would let us have more than a few days off, so we stuck around St John after we got married. I am very much looking forward to taking a mini vacation with my husband soon! We won't be taking our official honeymoon until later this year, but we're planning a couple of long weekends between now and then to tide us over. I'm looking forward to it!

* Our move to Colorado has been pushed back a couple of months. We decided to stick around St John for the summer. We're taking the extra time to enjoy the island (something we haven't been able to do much of lately) and spend time with friends before we pack up and go. And we'll be here for Carnival, one of my absolute favorite times on St John! I'm excited for an awesome summer!

* I'm looking forward to a surprise day off tomorrow! I'm thinking sleeping in, then the beach:) Sounds like a wonderful plan to me!

Happy Hump Day friends:)

Monday Mind Musings

* WHY is it Monday already?! I'd rather be in bed. As usual.

* Speaking of bed, I was in it for most of the day yesterday! The weather was yucky and rainy, and I had the day off! So I was content to spend the day napping, watching tv and reading, all from the comfort of my cozy bed. As a matter of fact, I stayed in bed until about 6:30pm when Sky suggested we get dress and venture out into the real world! I'd say it was a pretty successful Sunday!

* Only 1 1/2 days left in January 2012! Here we go with another whirlwind year as time slips by faster and faster (it seems that way to me anyway).

* I've totally been dropping the ball on my domestic responsibilities lately, and I want to do better! As soon as I'm done with work for the day I'm heading home to clean the house and start cooking dinner. I'm trying out a new recipe tonight; I'm hoping it turns out well!

* I'm 250ish pages into The Witching Hour by Anne Rice. I can't tell you how many times I've read this book, but it's been a favorite since the first time I picked it up. And reading it again reminds me why I love it! It is so, so, so good! Such good storytelling, so imaginative, very suspenseful and romantic, so addicting I have trouble putting it down to go to bed... Oh, how I love books!!!!

* Big, big, big changes are afoot. It seems I rarely have dull moments in life, and this is no exception. I'm looking forward to sharing the news of these huge changes, as soon as I figure them out and have a plan! Ain't life grand!

It's just another manic Monday

I wish it were Sunday

Cause that's my fun day

My I don't have to run day

It's just another manic Monday

- The Bangles

Friday Mind Musings

* I started a new journal this week! I'm guessing this is around journal #40 or so! I stopped journaling right after I lost the Blueberry last year, but I felt ready to start back up. It feels good to be writing for myself again:)

* The modeling job I booked back in November was supposed to happen on Thursday, but the ocean was a choppy and it was overcast and rainy so we had to postpone. Still looking forward to a day out on a boat as a bikini model!

* I'm so excited!!!! I'm no longer working 7 days a week! I actually have a whole day, Sunday, off! Working every single day was definitely starting to wear me down, so I'm very much looking forward to a day to do nothing every week!

* 1,000 government jobs have been cut in the USVI, the oil refinery on St Croix closed leaving 2,000 more people unemployed, and 2 popular restaurants on St John closed within the last week. For a territory that employs around 120,000 people, losing that many jobs seems troubling. I said it before and I'll say it again, the economy here is making me nervous! Sky figures we'll cross that bridge when it gets here, but I plan on having several back-up plans, just in case that bridge is nowhere to be found when we get to it.

* My new favorite Pandora station is Indie Kids. Don't ask me why! But really I'm loving the mix of music!

* I'm still ridiculously obsessed with Pinterest!!!!!!!!!!! I. CAN'T. STOP!

* I've heard that AT&T is raising their prices, again. I already pay an arm and a leg, AND the signal is on the shittier side of shitty here. So yeah, I'm thinking we may be ditching that company.

* I'm doing my best to become an impressive, world class DIYer (Do-it-yourself-er) buuuuuuuut, it's so hard to find the things I need on this little island! I'm in the middle of 4 or 5 DIY projects that I can't go any further on. Why? Because I can't find simple things like knitting needles, fabric, non-slip rug mats, buttons, canvas or about 10 other things necessary for my projects. I'm not going to lie, it's a bit discouraging. It'd probably be easier to just buy things new, but that would be completely against the point, right?!

* I'm finished with work for the day, and I feel TERRIBLE!!! So I'm going home to dive into bed and watch movies and stuff my face with ice cream and other goodies!

Happy Friday and Happy Weekend friends!!!!!

xoxo

Wednesday Mind Musings

* I can't believe it is 2012!!! Can you?! I caught myself writing "2010" the yesterday. Not sure where that came from! Anyway, I'm very much looking forward to this year! I have a feeling LOTS of amazing things are ahead of me!

* Speaking of amazing things, Sky and I are GETTING MARRIED this year!!!!! I'm so happy and excited and nervous and in love and a plethora of other emotions! 244 days before we say "I do"!

* My birth control is the devil. It makes me nauseous every single day, it gives me headaches, tummy issues and my boobs hurt if you even LOOK at them. I was told to give it 3 months to even out and for my body to get used to it. I don't know if I can last 3 months with side effects this awful.

* I'm obsessed with Pinterest. If you aren't on it, I encourage everyone to at least check it out! I'm in love! I now have endless ideas for crafts, room decor, recipes, clever ideas, genius tips and DIY projects to last me a lifetime. I'm telling all my friends here about it!

* My music vibe lately has been easy, breezy 70s: Carly Simon, Seals & Croft, Chicago, Player, Paul Davis, Carole King, James Taylor and the like. I can't get enough!

* I got a Brazilian wax today for the first time this year, and WOWZA did it hurt! But I love the look of it! I started getting Brazilians done last year to stop the vicious cycle of shaving and razor bumps since it's bikini weather year round. Supposedly the longer you wax, the softer and finer your hair is, the easier it is to remove. I haven't noticed the waxing sessions going any easier yet, but I'm still hopeful. Painful, but totally worth it!

* Season is in full swing here! The island is packed, both of my jobs have been crazy busy, traffic has been nuts (nothing compared to state-side traffic mind you) and the grocery store lines are always out the door now! Our little island is very active these days!

Happy Hump Day! Hope it's a good one for everyone:)

Friday Mind Musings

* I feel like December just started, and already it's 2 DAYS until Christmas!!!!! How did that happen?! I swear my life is flying by right before my eyes! But I've finished my shopping and all my Christmas cards went out, everything is wrapped, and we've been baking like crazy so I'm feeling pretty accomplished as far as Christmas spirit goes!

* My laptop is broken, AGAIN. I hate Gateway with a passion, and I will never, never, never, EVER buy an Acer product again. This makes 7 repairs on a laptop that's under 2 years old. So very frustrated...

* Sky got me a new engagement ring! To make a long story short we found out through a jeweler that blue topaz (the stone in my first e-ring) isn't suitable for everyday wear. So when we found that out I was a little sad and disappointed, but then Sky pointed out that it means I can have more than one ring, since they suggested I rotate it with another ring! And now I love the idea of having more than one ring! The second ring is a white topaz solitaire, and I love it! Yay for sparkly things:)

* The island seems to be so cold lately! And I should clarify that it seems cold to those of us with island blood now! It got down to the low 70s the other night and people on island were walking around in sweats and jeans and jackets and long sleeves (including me!). It was hilarious! And if you think I'm joking that people were calling it "cold" you can ask anyone who lives here how the weather has been lately and see what words they use to describe it!

* I'm currently reading The Radleys by Matt Haig. It's about vampires, although I didn't know that when I picked it up. But so far (about 100 pages in) it's funny and dark and takes a slightly different view of vampires than the norm. Very interesting!

* Not having access to my bank down here has got to be one of the most frustrating things about living here. It takes way too much time and effort to do business with Wells Fargo from St John. But the alternative is banking locally, which for many reasons I just won't do.

* Christmas and Hanukkah music has been playing non-stop in our home, much to Sky's chagrin. But we only listen to it once a year for 3 weeks, so really I'm going to keep playing holiday music until Christmas is here, and maybe even until New Year's! I just can't get enough!

* I am one slacker of a bride. Less than 9 months until the wedding and Save the Dates are still not out! Ahhhh! I need a kick in the pants, or maybe just some inspiration. It seems like every time I decide on a detail of the wedding, I change my mind! The joys of indecision!

I hope everyone is having a wonderful day! Happy Friday, Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah!

Thursday Mind Musings

* Christmas is only 17 days away!!!!! I'm so excited I can barely stand it! How am I going to get all my shopping and decorating and baking done before Christmas?! Ahhh!!!

* The weather is definitely cooling down here on St John! The days remain a balmy 80 to 85 degrees, but the nights have been bringing cooler air in, which is awesome since like a majority of the island, we don't have AC!

* I've been listening to Christmas music non-stop! My playlist of favorite Christmas and holiday tunes grows by the year:

Christmas Eve/ Sarajevo 12/24 by Trans-Siberian Orchestra

The Holly & The Ivy by Annie Lennox

All I Want for Christmas is a Real Good Tan by Kenny Chesney

Ave Maria by Celtic Women

Carol of the Bells by Mannheim Steamroller

Last Christmas by Wham!

Christmastime is Here by Charlie Brown Holiday Hits

Silent Night by The Temptations

All I Want for Christmas is You by Mariah Carey

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year by Andy Williams

Happy Xmas by John Lennon

* To sum life up these days: work, beach, bar, home, love, friends, happiness & laughter: Life is good, and I am very thankful:)

* Oh and I've decided to rename these entries from "Mind Dump" to "Mind Musings" for two reasons: first, I love alliteration! And second the word "dump" was making me uncomfortable!

Hope everyone has a beautiful day!