10 Years Later

Last night Rob and I attended my 10 year high school reunion. I wasn't sure I really wanted to go, but I felt that I would feel regret if I didn't attend. Like I had missed out. So Rob and I got ready and headed into the metropolis known as Phoenix with our two stop lights and our one local bar where my reunion was happening.

We got there a little after it started and I immediately spotted Ryan who I haven't seen in about a year and was truly looking forward to seeing. I greeted him with a hug and he pointed out the "sign in location" where I was to get a name tag and my bracelet for the night. Our name tags had our senior picture on them which brought back some memories. Shortly after we greeted Shawn and Bonita. They finally got to meet Rob which was super nice. Then Megan showed up and joined us which was great. She and I were roommates briefly in college, but haven't seen each other since.

Throughout the night I got to meet and greet with some people who I wanted to catch up with, but most of them are mentioned above. I did get to talk with a few people that I was curious about how things were going with them, but largely, there were a number of people I didn't talk to in high school and it just felt bizzare to ask those people, "So, how have things been? What are you up to these days?!" I don't say this to be mean, but what do you say to someone that you never really knew? I got a lot of those kind of head nods and recognition, but that's about where it ended.

Everyone fell back into their own clicks, but I think it's only natural. Those were the people who you spent a lot of time with during our younger years. I wasn't really that surprised. There were some people who were really nice and some people who were still big snots, but hey, we all can't change for the better. :) There was a lot of awkward moments that were like, ummm ok, moving on. I wished there were a lot more people there that I wanted to see. Overall it was kind of a small turn out, although more people showed up after our event "ended". We left shortly after that because we were pretty much ready to go and thought we wouldn't get much more out of staying. We came back to our house and hung out playing the Wii and flipping through the yearbook. Honesstly, between all of us, I got more information on where people were than if I had stayed chatting with people.

I thought about what has changed with me since high school. There are some things that haven't changed like my hair color, my ability to laugh at silly things, and my parents home address. But there's lots that has. So I thought I would compile a small list of things that I thought of.

- I like sushi
- I have lived in big cities and survived (Washington, DC and Atlanta)
- I have moved more than a dozen times
- I have a pretty good career
- I have been skiing out West
- I made my first international trip
- I dated a few losers
- I found the man I will marry and whom I am very much in love with
- One of my most fun jobs was in college scrubbing dishes and mopping floors
- I have officially watched the all of the Star Wars movies
- I own a guitar I can't play
- I have two cats who provide much entertainment and comfort
- I have great friends
- I enjoy a dinner party and game night more than being at a bar and at the movies
- I don't dress like a dork anymore :)
- I wear make up
- I donated my hair to Locks of Love and will donate it again to Pantene after my wedding
- I practice yoga

I am sure this list could go on, but I have a house to decorate for the Christmas season. :) I had a good time, but I don't know if I am interested in going again. I probably will for the same reasons I went to this one. The hopes of seeing people I really would love to see. Let's just hope next time we don't plan on in the middle of the worst economic downturn/recession ever. :) That might help.

Kitty Cuteness

Since I don't have kids, occasionally I subject people to pictures of my kitties. Technically they are cats, but they will always be my kitties and sometimes are referred to as my fat fuzzies. Anywho, after Rob's nap the other day, my fuzz butts curled up on the blankets and didn't move after I grabbed my camera so I was able to snap a photo.

Where Did You Go?

I'll have to admit, since moving to NY, I haven't been very good at keeping up the blog. I am not counting the Germany posts because those were like a gimme. And even still, took a month to post properly. For everyone's knowledge, no I am not dead, just having a bit of writer's block lately. Mostly this stems from a number of things we are working on that we aren't telling people about. These things include some of the wedding decisions and some of the things we are doing for Christmas gifts. However, these things seem to take up a bunch of our time so that I have no easy topics left to pick from. :P

I suppose I could mention I have a new job. After 4 months of wanting to rip my hair out every day, I have been relocated to work in building 6 in production control. I basically release parts for sub assembly builds and then put them back into stock once they are built until the whole unit is made. In the meantime I track where the parts go, who has them and their status. So far I still like it. It's a lot more engaging than my last assignment. I wouldn't mind doing this work off program. We will see what the future holds.

I have been volunteering a lot lately too. Last Friday I raked leaves and trimmed hedges at the CNYSPCA for a few hours and then today I spent 3 hours after work hanging clothes at the Rescue Mission. This is on top of the extra time I have been putting in at work to coordinate people to volunteer for the Salvation Army events Lockheed Martin is hosting. It takes way longer to answer emails than I ever thought it would. But the good news is, all the events are being covered and we have a good turn out of volunteers.

So I have been keeping busy, but I am looking forward to a break. That's what the holidays are for right? :)

B&B Party

I figured it was probably time for the official B&B Party post. Everyone has had a chance to recover from their party escapades and to make it home safely. :) This year was a little different for Rob and I because it didn't involve getting on a plane and therefore we didn't have to figure out our costumes based on airport security rules. We were only restricted based on the size of the car. Also, we actually finished out Halloween costumes two days before the party. We are pretty sure that's a first. I have been known to sew leaves on a costume on a plane before or glue things on the day of.

And since we could drive, we were able to bring a pumpkin to the carving table this year. I haven't had as much practice as other pumpkin carvers (I haven't carved a pumpkin in probably 10 years), so I decided to kick it old school. This picture isn't the best, but I blame the bad lighting and a few drinks.

Our costumes this year required some creativity. We needed something that people haven't done before (getting harder every year) and something that wasn't going to take forever or cost $$$. All of this combined put our thinking caps to the test, but we found a pretty fun solution. We decided on costumes that "go together like". So we settled on Bees and Honey. I went as a giant bumble bee and Rob went as a pot of honey. Now, the added layer of fun is that all of Rob's friends call me Sarah B and Rob's my honey. Yup, just over the top sweet.

In the picture of Rob and I, you can't see it too well, but I have an extra pair of arms attached on string (left over costume part from years past) to make the 6 legs necessary for a bee. It shows up better in the picture of Melissa (flapper) and I as well as my butt. That was probably the hardest part of my costume this year, trying to figure out how to make that part proportioned properly to the rest of me and then how to get the shape. One of these years, I am going to get back to making a costume from a pattern. Rob's costume is constructed out of two wreath hoops and a large quilting hoop about the middle covered in fabric. My cats enjoyed laying in and on his costume as he made it. :)

We even got to make a few side errands (thanks to having our own car) while we were in town as well. We were able to meet up with Meredith and discuss wedding ceremony plans (it's going to be AWESOME) and also hit up Total Wine. It's nothing like the Total Wine in GA and yeah, I probably sound like a wino, but if I know I can buy wine at a 50% discount, you better believe I will. Also, to boot, I got free dress socks out of the trip by using a gift card from Banana Republic on the day it expired. Nothing like cashing in free money for a much needed clothing item.

All in all though, it was another great weekend spent with friends. We even got to see Rummy, although we are pretty sure he doesn't remember who we are anymore. That part was really sad. :( We must visit more often to make him remember.

Until next year, Happy Halloween!