The Great Big List of Stresses

One would think that manning the store for nine hours a day would provide me with ample opportunity to keep this lil' blog updated in a somewhat timely manner ------- but, obviously, that's not how things have been working out over here.

In my defense -- I was SILLY sick last week. Everyone kept trying to convince me that I'd finally been blessed with allergies at the age of 38, but I really think it was a case of the flu... I started out with a sore throat and ran through every flu symptom out there. I'm feeling a lot better this week --- just a stuffy nose and a cough that seems to be fading fast, but last week ---- I wasn't good for much of anything but working and sleeping.

Besides the sick bits --- the past couple of weeks have been as crazy as ever. My sister's visit was a great one -- we really needed to spend some time together -- and I feel like that weekend made things a whole lot better between us.

The next show, Stephen Azevedo's, opened in the gallery and went wonderfully well! Over 1/3 of the work sold and the opening was manageable and fun. I will not be doing the private preview again -- unless it's huge show or special occasion -- it was mostly friends and family that came out for that -- which was great, but a lot of extra work. It was basically cramming two openings into one week -- which is one and a half more openings than I have the emotional ability to deal with *grin*

Things have been going well at the shop -- the first month in The Market has been great -- sales are......... well, I'm making sales, every day, which is a far cry from how I was doing in Benson. the only down bit is that I'm still playing catch up from the move and have been able to put aside VERY LITTLE (read: almost nothing) for the build out of the 2nd (still unnamed) gallery space. This is quickly becoming a problem and tops the running list of stresses that I fret about for those nine hours instead of writing. I have shows booked in that space for the rest of the year, beginning in August.... and am quickly approaching panic mode about getting the space finished in time.

And then there's the house. I still own it. Item No. 2 on the Great Big List of Stresses. Ugh.

I just realized that I forgot to write about this before, but last month when I told Tim that I needed to sell the house, he suggested (without missing a beat) that we get a place together. I told him that he needed to think that over a bit, to which he replied that he had been thinking it over......... for months. He was just waiting on me to realize that I had to let the house go {There's a whole other post here about how fuckin' amazing this man is and how insanely fortunate I am to have him in my life -- but I won't go off on that tangent right now. But, believe you me -- it's long over due and coming soon}.

Long ass story made super short ----- after looking at several shit boxes apartments (each of which just made me feel worse and worse about leaving my house) I took Tim over to the old Mercer Mansion, where I had lived for the first two year I spent in Omaha before running off to Seattle. There's an apartment available in the house, which Tim and I fell madly in love with, so my life in Omaha has oddly come full circle, and I'm moving back in. I'm actually really excited about moving back to the Mansion, I'm still great friends with the family who run and live there, and they're thrilled I'm coming back, the apartment is gorgeous -- and the thought of starting this next bit in my time with Tim makes me down right giddy.

I have to admit ----- moving in with Tim, and moving back to that house is making selling the house feeling a lot less shitty. I have my good days and bad days about it ---- but I'm getting used to the idea of not having it. The letting go has been really hard for me.

Anyways -- The tricky bit is that we can move into the apartment right now, but I still have the house. I'm not completely freaking out about that just yet -- but I'm getting there. My friend (and soon to be Jesuit priest) Paul suggested that I bury a St. Joseph in the yard..... I'd never heard of such a thing, but at this point, will try just about anything to be done with this. So, the other night, Tim and I buried a little St. Joseph upside down in the yard................. honestly folks, whatever it takes.

So, these days -- when I'm not at work --- I've been helping cram Tim's life into boxes and dreading the fact that, starting this weekend, we have to start trying to cram my life into boxes. How did I acquire SOoOoOoooOoOOoOOoOOo much stuff in three years?

Don't answer that.

I'm already desperately trying to brainstorm on how I can fit a 2000 sq. ft house worth of stuff into a two bedroom apartment..... along with Tim's stuff and two cats.

This would be Item No. 4 on the Great Big List of Stresses. Item No. 3 is trying to figure out why it's taking the SciFi Channel so damn long to release of the last season of Battlestar Galactica on DVD.





JUST KIDDING!
That's really Item No. 10