Praises

I think that a lot of my blog is me being negative; wishing I was elsewhere, never being satisfied with my current situations, complaining about work, dreaming of other jobs, complaining about waiting for school, et cetera.  Well, folks...this one is different. I'm singing praises.

I have the most amazing boyfriend. He randomly got me flowers today. I'm not a huge flower girl, but it is the thought that counts, right? It's a really nice gesture.  He willingly went to my mom's house this past weekend. I didn't even really have to ask....and he ENJOYED IT! What man enjoys spending time with his girlfriend's family? Maybe he's just lying to me, but that's okay in this case, haha. He cooks me breakfast on the regular and dinner when I'm around. He opens the door for me - the car door and public doors. He comes from a great family, and he tells me he hit the jackpot by finding me. Plus, he's attractive, to boot. I'm one lucky gal.

The Itch

Have any of you seen "Black Snake Moan?" If you have, then you'll know what I'm talking about...somewhat. Of course, my itch isn't sexual, but pure, unadulterated, desire...

to change.

For those of you not knowing what "Black Snake Moan" is about, here is a concise synopsis. This chick was abused as a child and grows up being quite the town floozy. She gets the "black snake moan"/the itch, meaning she needs to have *clears throat* relations with a man. So she does. Samuel L. Jackson comes along and saves her. The end.

I have the itch. I'm discontent. I crave a change of location, or change of pace, or change of something. (JOB!!) Maybe I'm just craving an adventure.  My friends Mikayla and Vince just got back from hiking half of the Appalachian Trail.  Christopher and I have been talking of thru-hiking it. Of course, he's quite settled in his job at the moment, and we're quite settled in our 2 year lease. (ugh).

If there is one thing I'm good at, it is slipping out of a contract :) But in this case, I'm sure it would cost me a pretty penny to end a 2 year lease. So...here I am, existing. Looking at job postings daily. Looking at apartments in NYC. Looking at teaching overseas again, but somewhere besides Korea. Looking at driving a tool truck for a company across the United States, but only coming home on the weekends. I'm quite a contradiction, you know. I love all these ideas, but I also love having the stability of friends and family being close. The grass is always greener.

Positive notes: I get to babysit my sister's puppy while she goes home for her 10 year high school reunion. This weather we are having is amazing. Stoli Jolene is getting bigger by the day (and cuter).

This is not a Race

I had another couchsurfing experience.  I hosted two wonderfully funny and awesome guys from England, Nick and Greg.  Unfortunately, they only stayed at the house for one night, but they arrived around 7pm (after being lost in Charlotte for about an hour). We chatted, they showered, and we headed off to Jackalope Jack's, a local watering hole, for some real American fun.  I directed them to try Olde Mecklenburg Copper and they loved it.  For those of you unaware, Olde Mecklenburg Copper is one of three beers brewed in Charlotte. It is truly Charlotte's brewery. Of course I cannot allow someone to come to Charlotte and not try local products. We headed outside to play cornhole - a game neither of them played (and to be quite honest, neither of them were particularly good at it); but it was great fun and we shared stories and laughs. They are great guys, and I feel that if they lived here or we lived there, we'd all be good friends.

Greg is beside me and Nick is the far right.

On another note, work has been occupying my time wholly.  I haven't spent any time with Christopher in 8 days. That's a bit absurd when I live with the guy. Work is completely monotonous, dreadful, and mindless. I remember working at Miyo's throughout college and loving going to work. I didn't curse everyday knowing that I had to spend x amount of hours there. I hung out with the people I worked with, and had an overall good time. But here, I hate waking up only to go to work all day then come home to sleep. I don't hang out with my co-workers (aside from Brooke whom I was friends with before I worked with her). I cannot wait to get way ahead on my bills so I can quit and find another job that I can work part time while I go to school.  I mean, I'm paying 200 less for rent here in Charlotte than I was in Columbia. I believe that everyone needs to be happy, for life is short, no? So, I'm working on being entirely happy.  Work is the only obstruction. 

I cannot wait to go back to school. I believe I've settled on Dental Hygiene. Good hours. Good work environment. Good pay. I sometimes feel I am so far behind others. Many of my friends have "real" jobs and I'm just stuck being a server. Although, none of my friends can say they've lived in Korea, ha! I often find I have to tell myself not to hold onto these expectations of everyone else. Life isn't a race and I don't need to rush to find a "real" job. I don't know any other job that will let me take off random days when I want or need, which I enjoy.

Upcoming things I'm super excited for:

- Football season!!

- Aly's wedding

- Thanksgiving/family time!!

- Friendsgiving (friends get together with tons of food and wine)

- Christopher's birthday/NYC trip!! (our Book of Mormon tickets arrived yesterday)

While others say winter is depressing, I delight in the cold, gray days. Can't wait!

Hosting

As some of you may know, I am a part of a community called "Couchsurfing" (www.couchsurfing.org).  This is a website where people from all over the world sign up to host or travel, or maybe both. This is how it works:

I'll be traveling to Austin, Texas, in November. I want a place to stay. I log onto couchsurfing.org and browse the hosts in the Austin area. If I find someone whom I may want to stay with, I contact him/her and send a request.  He/She reviews my profile and decides if he/she wants to host me. If so, we contact each other more and work out the details.

A lot of surfers bring food, recipes, a bottle of wine, or something else to thank you for hosting. I've been a part of this community since 2009, but I never had anyone surf, and I never surfed while I was in college. Now that I have my own place, I've had 3 couchsurfers in Charlotte. One, Daniel, was from San Diego and was doing a cross country trip. He was a great surfer and LOVED Stoli.

I currently have two surfers, Julia and Becky, from Germany and Malaysia respectively.  They are great girls and I'm having a blast. It just so happens that my work schedule this week was easy so I've been able to hang out with them.  Yesterday, we went to Reed Gold Mine and mined for gold. Julia and I did not find any gold, but Becky had a little flake.

Julia and I in front of the underground portion of the mine

Julia and Becky panning for gold!

Yay for meeting awesome people from around the world! I now have a free place to stay in Germany, Malaysia, and Canada. (Becky is from Malaysia, but is studying in Canada).

Drone

It's back to the grind, here. I took a bit of a vacation last week - Thursday through Sunday I was at the beach with my family.  It was a great break from the every day monotony of my life in Charlotte.  I find myself thinking about my times in Korea more and more frequently these days.  I think about the food I ate, the places I went, the conversations I had with Trisha, the fun things we did. We were always going new places, painting pottery, seeing a movie - and it seemed like I was living the good life. I think I have a case of Stockholm Syndrome (of sorts), haha

Maybe I just feel I need something new. Although, I absolutely cannot complain about my life. I have a job where I make enough money; I have amazing roomates (and an awesome boyfriend), a wonderful little pup that is cute as can be, a supportive family, and fantastic friends. So in the grand scheme of things - I am doing quite well.

I hope to take Stoli to the groomer today (apparently she smells), get my oil change (a whopping 4,000 miles overdue), and do some grocery shopping (I've been eating bagles since I returned from the beach). One thing that is super exciting - FOOTBALL SEASON!! It's right around the corner. With that comes cooler weather!! I can't wait.