More "Top Five" Lists

Best things about living with Rich:
1.) Waking up with him every morning
2.) Making each other laugh
3.) He cooks for me
4.) He fixes stuff around the house
5.) He drives me to and from work

Worst things about living with Rich:
1.) No matter how long I cook meat or poultry it's never "done" enough
2.) Wet towels don't hang themselves up to dry
3.) He doesn't want me to get a cat
4.) He insists on buying the store brand of just about everything now that he actually has to shop for AND pay for groceries
5.) Waits till I'm on a diet to start baking cookies and brownies

Foods I could live on at this point in my life:
1.) Tri-O-Plex protein-enhanced cookies
2.) Pepperidge Farms 15-grain bread
3.) Salads
4.) Almonds
5.) Boar's Head deli meats and cheeses
6.) Olive oil (more a condiment/cooking aid than a food but still an essential)

Things I miss about Bonnie:
1.) The way she'd run across the room to greet me
2.) Her silky soft fur
3.) Her little pink nose
4.) Non-stop cat kisses
5.) Constant purring

Things I love about our apartment:
1.) No stairs!
2.) Oven heats up quickly
3.) Polarity reversed in our kitchen sink (the "cold" tap sprays hot water and vice versa)
4.) Furnished with Craig's List bargains
5.) We finally got the heat to work. Woo hoo!

That Which Does and Does Not Suck

What sucks in my life right now:

- It took me 3 years to complete a 9-month massage therapy certification program due to my chronic procrastination and inability to get paperwork together
- I still don't have a driver's license
- Even though I live in the "Mid South" it still gets cold in the winter
- Most of my size 16 pants are too small for me now. This happens when you're 5'4" and top out at a couple o' bills
- I just got over a cold and generously gave it to my boyfriend
- My temp job calls for 12.5-hour shifts starting at 7am - on weekends! - and I am not exactly a morning person
- Bonnie, one of my cats from back home, recently had to be put to sleep.

What does not suck, to say the least:

- It may have taken me a while, but I finally graduated from massage school. Next stop: taking (and passing) the NCETMB, obtaining a Tennessee massage therapy license, and establishing my practice!
- I'm calling a driving school tomorrow, procrastination be damned! And I'm allowed to use my Massachusetts learner's permit in Tennessee, that'll mean one less DMV fee.
- It's nowhere near as cold, or snowy, in Middle Tennessee as it is in Eastern Massachusetts. Seriously, they freak out here over a dusting the way we hardy New Englanders freak about an imminent blizzard. It's actually quite amusing to watch the weather forecasts.
- Last week I began working out with Roger, my new personal trainer. It's hard work but totally worth it. I'd missed the old post-workout, walking-funny-for-three-days-cuz-my-thighs-are-friggin-killing-me sensation! With Roger's help and my own stubbornness - er, determination - I should be down to a size 12 by summertime. Developing some lung capacity and reducing my risk of various future health problems will be pretty sweet too.
- If Rich has the same cold as me, it's not great but we've both had worse. And it's nice to be sharing the same living space. Very nice.
- Yeah, the hours are weird at my job, but it's a full time paycheck squeezed into a 3 day workweek. That gives me Tuesday thru Friday to do whatever I want. Like take driving lessons, study for the exam, work out, and hang out with my "bah"
- Losing BonBon? A senseless tragedy. The shittiest thing that has happened in a long, long time. The silver lining is that she's no longer suffering, and I never had to watch her suffer. In my memories she will always be a healthy, happy, flirty little girl of a cat.

Overall, things are pretty good. I miss home a little, but it's fun and exciting to explore a new place. When the weather gets better we're going to visit the zoo, take a dinner cruise down the Cumberland River, and check out some of the nearby state parks and historic sites, of which there are many. In the meantime we're content to make the most of our Netflix membership and cable modem. And despite my legendary procrastination I promise to blog more. And upload some pictures once in a while.