Take your Vitamins

Last night, Chris and I were doing some work on the wedding plans. During the course of our conversation, we came to a stumbling block: Did we want classical music during our ceremony (he did), or did we want more contemporary music (I did)? Well, we decided to turn to the ever-trusty KCRW and find a compromise. And find a compromise we did.

I won't bore you with the details except to say that through much internet-based research, we found The Vitamin String Quartet. Basically, they take modern rock, indie, pop, what-have-you, and rearrange it for the string quartet. Here is my favorite, a cover of Snow Patrol's Chocolate. Very cool.

Chris and I were thrilled, to say the least. It really is the small things that make me happy.

Another one bites the dust...

We're engaged!

Chris proposed to me last night and I, of course, said yes. After a wonderful dinner at T.L. Maxwell's, this is what was awaiting me:



He made chocolate covered strawberries, bought a super nice bottle of champagne, and made a fantastic scrapbook of pictures of us from our relationship. Then, he gave me the ring. Here are some pictures:





So exciting! :)

To air is human, to air guitar... divine.

So, a lot has been going on in my world lately. Some of it good, some of it not so good, and some of it down right bad. I guess I will start with the good, which is that Chris and I have decided to start looking for a house together. We have gone through the necessary steps of getting pre-approved, etc. and have looked at about 20 houses in Bakersfield so far. As many of you are aware, the housing market is incredible right now for buyers, but unfortunately this is because so many homes are being foreclosed because the owners couldn't keep up with the rising interest rates (always get a fixed rate!!!). So, many of the houses we have been looking at are not in the cleanest condition since the owners had to move out in a hurry. For the most part, this is not a problem because the houses are so new, the damage is mostly superficial. However, there have been a few houses that have definitely been put through the ringer, to say the least. One house, in particular, stands out. Put it this way: Our real estate agent said that in his 20+ years doing real estate he had never seen a house so bizarre. He labeled it, "freak show." In addition to all the bad, we have found a few that we really like and would definitely consider buying. Very exciting!

So, that is some of the good stuff going on. Some of the not so good stuff includes bad news about my dad and my apartment being robbed, which are kind of linked. My parents went to Houston last week to meet with my dad's doctor and while they were away, I house sat for them. While I was house sitting, my apartment was broken into. They got my computer (I am currently using Chris's), router, printer, two bottles of wine, and my costume jewelry. Overall, it could have been so much worse. They left my brand new DVD player, my wine fridge, and all my DVDs. Still, though, I feel so violated. My bedroom was the worst. But, I have the best boyfriend on the planet, so while I was at work on Saturday, Chris went to my apartment and cleaned everything up. He's amazing.

Anyway, while my dad was in Houston, we found out that the Gleevec has stopped working. Fortunately, there is another chemo they can try called Sutent. Unfortunately, it only works for an average of 6 months. Take from that what you will.

So, that is pretty much what has been going on with me lately. Before I wrap this up, though, I have to tell you all about Air Guitar Nation. All I am going to say is that it is a documentary about the International Air Guitar Championships and it is amazing. Go rent it. Now.