Kindness of Strangers

So I was just on my way home when all of a sudden the bus started making a horrible noise and came to a stop.  The bus driver hopped out to check things out and then gave it another go and clearly the bus had reached it's end.  Luckily, I was relatively close to home, unfortunately it was still about a 20 minute walk home.  And did I mention it was cold.  As I was taking a moment to think what to do next, the bus suddenly emptied out.  It was a fairly full bus and all of a sudden everyone but three of us and the bus driver were gone.  And they weren't just waiting on the sidewalk or the next bus stop for the next bus.  They were just gone, they faded away into the darkness.  And there is no way they all lived nearby. The bus always has a good chunk of people when I get off much further along the route. I'm still stumped where they all went.

We asked the driver if we could wait in the heated bus until the next bus comes along and he was nice and friendly.  The three of us left were youngish women. I ended up checking my app and saw it was another 10 minute wait and struck up a conversation with the bus driver, chatting about where I was going, that it was his last run and what happens next with the bus.  When suddenly one of the other passengers was ready to get off, she had called her husband to come pick her up and she offered a ride, saying that she overheard where I was going which was where they were going (mental note, it's beneficial to be chatty). The other young woman asked if she could come since she was just the next street up from us and didn't want to be last one left on the bus.

We all had a nice little chat on the 5 minute ride.  The couple had moved from Michigan, upper peninsula area so chatted about how our weather isn't that bad compared to that.  And then we all bonded over the Whole Foods we were all near. 

It just gave a nice light step in my walk home.  It's a nice community I live in and now I just have to remember what they all looked like in case we run into each other next time at Whole Foods. 

East coast

Note: supposed to be published 1/9

I'm still surprised when I come across my little old town. And yesterday I came across it twice!  First there was a caller on the NPR show I was listening to in the morning (and he had a very good point - way to represent!) and then when I got to the airport in the afternoon and was checking the screens I see it listed. 

I don't usually fly US Airways and today I'm reminded why. Trying to get home I get to the airport early and try to do standby on an earlier flight. Success for my colleague but I'm stuck because my original flight was through Laguardia and they won't switch me over to the direct flight unless I shell out $300 and buy the ticket. So as my colleague is landing as we speak I'm sitting waiting for the first leg of my flight and praying my connection goes smoothly and getting in four hours later, best case scenario. And the kicker?! The flight I was trying to get on is empty - my colleague sent me a picture. Pointless I couldn't be on that flight - same cost tickets. 

I'm letting it go and am off to splurge on a fruit smoothy - trying to fend off the scratchy throat I have - ugh. 

Cold

Note: supposed to be published 1/22. 

Mental note: don't use headphones when it's 12 degrees out. Walking from the office to the subway station my headphones are frozen stiff!  It's cold but not that cold since it's snowing. Hopefully the headphones warm up before I accidentally snap them and break them. 

Also, must remember that although my tall boots look nice and allow me to wear warm socks, they have no tread and are super slippery. I almost fell a few times on the way home tonight. 

Baby it's cold outside!

Walking into work this morning I saw the Boston Chanel frozen over - first time since I've been in Boston. 

Tonight I'm greeted by this image as I walk to my bus stop - everyone is waiting  "inside" since "outside" is so cold. It's all relative since both are underground - it's just one area is slightly conditioned more than the other. 

I'm opting to wait "inside" and almost missed my bus - stupid app said there was still a 5 minute wait before the next bus.   But made it and the bonus is the heat is cranked on the bus. 

After Work Social

I'm just heading home after a nice evening out with some coworkers.  It was a little strange though. Not because of the company but because of the location. We ended up going to this place that is tucked away in Downtown Crossing that is close by my old place of work. I used to go there with my coworkers from that old job for drinks after work. 

So it was a little déjà vu-like. Same venue only five years later. And the place was remodeled and new ownership/name. But overall pretty much the same. 

I couldn't help noticing the differences. The company was all women both now and then. Except now we are all engineers and before more liberal arts group. Before we just got drinks and maybe splurged for an appetizer to share. This time it was drinks before the dinner reservation and the company picks up the tab. BTW the mussels in the creme sauce we shared as an appetizer was so good I didn't have much room left for my French entree. And if I really think about it I was just as stressed about my job then as I am now. It was just before I didn't realize it wasn't that bad but have since picked up skills to deal with all the demands so in the end, even though it's different levels of work demand the stress level is similar. 

Besides the company I really took stock of myself and the changes. Financially it's much better - student debt is gone, retirement is growing, I bought my place. Career wise I'm on a path up the corporate ladder and have the opportunity to influence a ton of items I hold dear - including women in my field - need to advocate. 

I've stepped back and made some lifestyle changes - less quantity on the social calendar and more quality. I cut drinking out pretty much - maybe a social drink a month. Separating work life from free time and scheduling me time. 

I do miss the old gang as we all moved on and away and don't see each other much anymore. But I enjoyed having that era and really enjoy where I am now. A nice note to end the evening on. 

And a really nice note for tonight. I was just running to catch my bus (after I rode the subway to my stop). And my bus pulls away just as I run up. Bummer. But two minutes later a second one comes (I should have waited for 15 minutes) and there is barely anyone that boards which means we quickly overtake and pass the first bus and I get home much faster!

Random Monday Post

I just saw that all the blog posts I’ve been working on in the past month never were completed and made their way up on the blog.  I know I should finish and post them first, but that’s where I usually sink into the black hole (doing things in a certain order).  I don’t want to miss posting some other random items, so here goes:

1.     Work - I moved desks!  I went from an interior desk that was pretty much in the center of my department - a good command center, to a desk along the wall that has a window and a nice view out to the brick building across the street and even a little bit of the sky.  I did get a little nostalgic about leaving my first desk.

2.     Downsizing - I’ve been slowly going through everything I own and if I’m not using it, trying to get rid of it.  I still haven’t been able to let go of the first sweater I knit that I haven’t worn in years.  Ironic since I’ve been able to help others let go of things they don’t use when I help them organize.  I have a ton of stuff I want to hang up on the walls and have been finding room for most things without it getting to crazy.  But there have been a few nice pieces that I just don’t have a space for but that I don’t want to get rid of.  Solution - bring them into work to personalize my new desk.  Win-win!

3.     Reading minds - yes, apparently I can read minds.  I was talking with one of my staff about his soon to be son and what name he should name him.  Apparently he and his wife have already picked out a name but didn’t want to share it.  I threw out “Howard” as a joke initially and we all had a chuckle.  Then I sat and thought about it a little, and suggested another name.  I then went on about why it would be a good name, the alliteration, the nick-name, the strength in the name and guess what - that’s the name.  He was quite surprised that I got it.  And so was I.  Who know I had this special power?!  Looks like it only is available in a blue moon though.

4.     House projects - I have this rule that I can only have two renovation projects going on at the same time.  Right now it is the loft floor and the clothes closet - installing the custom shoe rack.  Guess what the two projects were 6 months ago - yup, same two.  And 9 months ago, probably the same two.  I have some many things I want to work on but I hate it when I get stuck but I also don’t want to live in a place with a million unfinished projects.  So this last weekend, I purposely kept the calendar blank so that I could tackle one of the two projects.  Guess what, I didn’t touch either.  I figured I should work on cleaning first since someone is coming by Tuesday.  And I underestimated how long it takes to clean, yet again.  Ugh.  I’ve blocked out the first weekend in February to work on the loft and am planning on cleaning a little every night.  There must be a way to make this work without paying for a cleaning person.  I mean my place is only so big. 

5.     Assessment - I noticed that my real estate taxes are based on a higher number than what I bought my place for.  I looked into this 9 months ago and apparently you can only dispute the assessment at the beginning of the year.  I waited and remembered and sent in the paperwork at the beginning of the month showing what I bought my place for and the assessed value that was done by the banks to determine mortgage amount (which was lower by the way).  I thought I had a good case and then last week I got a call to make an appointment for the assessor to come by and assess my property.  They’re scheduled to come by tomorrow.  They can’t assess it at an even higher price can they?  I think they can and I’m starting to rethink what I did.  Maybe I should have just kept my mouth shut.  Oh well, taxes are good right?  Investment in all the services that make my town awesome.

6.     Moths - so it’s been awhile, quite a long while since I’ve found any traces of moths - living or dead.  I’m starting to think that I got them all and I can start unpacking all the stuff in bags and have my life get back to normal.  And then last week, I had left a magazine on the empty kitchen counter and there it is - a dead moth.  Just laying on the cover.  I can’t tell if it’s dead body just floated down from something and it had been dead for a long time.  Or that it had been flying around laying eggs before it died on my magazine.  And in the kitchen where there really isn’t anything.  And yes, it’s definitely a cloth moth and not a food moth - I checked and there is no evidence of them anywhere else.  The problem is that my moths seem to live on dander so if I have dust or anything they seem to be able to subside even after I’ve packed away all the wools and other traditional food sources.  I think they are starting to play with me.  That and I need to move out all the appliances and do a really thorough cleaning of the fridge/stove/dishwasher.  Ugh.

7.     Savings - On an upside, I’ve been updating my savings/retirement plan and earlier this year I was not sure if I could swing buying both an IRA and paying back some of my personal loans I had taken for my down payment on the house the year before.  Good news is that with the stringent budget I’ve been adhering to, I saved extra and can buy the IRA and even have a little bit extra.  I love feeling good about money.  Having spent years in grad school, and the time when my house in Michigan wasn’t selling, being in the black is so nice.  My target is to retire with $2 million - figure that’s about what I’ll need in the future with increased costs of healthcare, inflation, etc.  And this last year, I was able to shift my retirement age down a year to 64.  I guess that is one advantage of being stuck on the same house project for almost a year - less money spent on supplies!