RetroPost: 8.3.05

Argh, we're at a crossroads that I never even considered possible... So, we've been bouncing around ideas, trying to get us into Fallon affordably. We don't want to live in Fernley anymore seeing as we both work here now and our house is starting to fall apart. That and, plain and simple, the commute is killing us royally. Physically (since we're too tired to exercise or cook a decent dinner once we get home), mentally (just knowing that when you wake up there's a long drive ahead of you is killer), and monetarily (gas is insane and the car loves to break down). My parents have this nice piece of property they inheirited about 3 1/2 years ago that they subdivided into three lots. They sold the one with the house on it for hella cheap to my grandparents about two years ago, sold one last year and have had the middle lot sitting there. They offered it to us for $40K which sounded great last year but now, with the Fallon housing bubble the way it is, it's worth more than double that. I feel bad having them practically sitting on a gold mine, offering it to us for a few pieces of silver, so to speak. So, that's the main option we've been kicking at, but I'm fairly certain we can't afford it even with the awesome price. So here's the dilemma... Last night, dear mom and dad put out another proposition. They're allowed to build a "guest house" on their lot... So the idea is... build this "guest house" and "rent" it out to us. In all honesty, I'm thinking this is a wonderful horrible idea. It would be so cheap and it would be the perfect little house... But in the same aspect, it seems to be a huge step backwards for us and our independence. Yes, with the other lot we'd be living next door to my grandparents... but this would literally be living in my mom and dad's backyard. It was one thing getting married in their backyard... Since I've had this on my mind, I'll be going along thinking it's a great idea since it would be so cheap. Then, suddenly, I'll panic about how bad of an idea it really is. Truly though, it's the only way we could afford to move to Fallon right now unless we got rid of everything we've ever worked for and started to rent again. I am so confused!!!! Argh! ~Jilli

RetroPost: 8.2.05

{Saved from Xanga} Good God, time passes way to quickly... Kevin left yesterday and it left us all more than a little melancholy. It is kind of nice having the house to ourselves again, tho'. Billy was sweet enough to realize I was feeling a little sick and a little sad about Kevin leaving while at the same time, feeling very drained from the last three weeks. So, being the sweetie that he is, he skipped class and spent the evening with me. Strangely, we both have subconsciously decided to do something to get healthy. I think it was that we spent a month goofing off and since we were getting back to just the two of us on the first day of a new month, it seemed like a good time to make some changes. So we went shopping for healthy food. Which was NOT a relaxing experience. Enlightening as it was, it was tiring!!! See, if we give Tasha cash, she'll give us double that in groceries with her food stamps. Since she's not the brightest when it comes to money (obviously, seeing as they're a welfare/rez family with a brand new Expedition...), we take advantage of it! Unfortunately, it was the first and about 80% of Fallon is on food stamps so it was PACKED. With a capital PACKED. We waited in line for a half hour! So, my elightenment. First off, I have discovered how odd it is to see the dregs of Fallon come up and go shopping. To see these unhealthy looking parents with their dirty, straggly kids with carts of fruit snacks, sugar cereal, soda, and Popsicles was a real eye-opener. I feel just that much more on top of things and blessed to have what we have. It's not much, but it's more than a lot of people have! Not just in material things, but common sense and money management skills. I pride myself in the way I handle our checkbook. It's my one wifely duty that I really excel at. (I can be smug sometimes... hee hee) Anyway, I also learned that I am so not ready for a kid. It was actually kind of a conflict of interest. On the one hand, there was Billy, my gentle giant of a husband, with a bright blue Snugli wrapped around him, looking down at our baby nephew, Chayse, cooing and making faces, bouncing up and down, positively glowing with baby love. It was so adorable. I know he's going to be an awesome dad. But on the other hand, there I was holding a spit-uppy baby while trying to drag two carts of groceries around while he got heavier and stinkier with each passing moment. No babies for us! -K- I gotta go... Jilli

RetroPost: 7.29.05

{Saved from Xanga} So, Missy wasn't mad at me, she was mad at Noah due to yet another gay misunderstanding... Unfortunately, that meant that we spent last night doing nothing since they were fighting. We did go up to Reno to get the boys their tattoos and it ended up being a bust. Between the fighting and our total lack of planning, we drove up there for nothing. So we went home. They seemed to be OK- shaky, of course, as you usually feel after a fight- but they went home last night. It's understandable. You don't want to be away from where you're most comfortable when you feel so uncomfortable. Anyway, the only good thing (sort of) that came out of our pointless trip was the fact that some chick was getting a tattoo on her lower back when we went in and I am now 100% convinced I'm NOT getting a tattoo. I feel kinda bad cuz Kevin and Stef gave me tattoo money for my birthday and they did the same for Missy... But I just don't think I could get myself to do it. No, I know I couldn't. And I won't. So now I have $100. I don't know what I'm going to do with it yet... save it. Having cash like that without a purpose sort of freaks me out. That and I've never had birthday money before. Weird. Anyway, I just hope they get over it and come back to the house for role playing tonight and our Birthday Bash tomorrow. Whatever happens, happens I guess. I'm feeling anxious, tho'.

RetroPost: 7.28.05

{Saved from Xanga} Well, now I'm 21 and it doesn't feel like anything special. Billy did his preoccupied best at making my day special and did an all right job of it. I seriously considered playing hooky today but thought the better of it... But the day's almost over and I'll be back at home exhausting myself again with all our friends. I hope Missy's not mad since I'm sure at this point she's caught wind that I don't want to get a tattoo. It was a very serious consideration for a couple days but I'm fairly sure I'm not going through with it. The idea makes me feel sick at this point so, no. I'm not even sure if Billy and Kevin are going to do it anymore. Maybe. Maybe not. We'll see. I'm not really looking forward to life going back to normal on Monday. I've felt too complete these last couple weeks. We're just falling into the groove of being a group again and now it's damn near over. I'm going to enjoy every last drop of these next couple of days. Many happy thoughts, Jilli

RetroPost: 7.26.05

{Saved from Xanga} Tomorrow's my birthday!!! After bypassing some serious hard feelings about Billy having the day off and me having to work, I'm feeling pretty good about it. I'll just wake him up so he can't sleep in and then make him do something nifty for me when I get off work! Anyway, what I'm really looking forward to is Saturday- Missy and I are finally doing a joint birthday party the way we always should have. We're doing a roving 3-course meal each with it's complimentary alcoholic beverage. And the whole group will be together just as it always should have been. After that, we'll all go our seperate ways but we have this weekend... I wish Kevin wasn't leaving already. He makes the group feel complete again. So here I am on the eve of my 21st birthday and life is looking good and looking up. There's nothing we can't do...

RetroPost: Summer has its ups and downs...

{Saved from The Nest} I think my Billy is going to strangle me one of these nights. Not on purpose, just out of exasperation. I know if I were him, I'd be exasperated with me too. I. CANNOT. DEAL. WITH. HEAT. Seeing as I'm a lifelong Nevadan who was born in the middle of summer, you'd think I'd be used to it by now. But no. I can't take it in any form. So nights are the worst for I am a cranky kid without sleep. I doze off slightly just to awake hot and sticky and thirsty all the while ranting and raving and cursing and causing a horrible ruckus that wakes him up. Our little swamp cooler in the living room has been working double time as of late and it seems to only cool down the front room. It might cool down our bedroom, seeing as the little window fan in there does next to nothing, but we have to keep the door closed at night since one precious little kitty likes to pee on laundry (and sometimes beds) and our fabulous black labs want to sleep on our bed... So no. Not to mention their panting drives me up the wall especially when I'm hot and Puka the Farting Dog could wake the dead when she let's one off. There's just no happy medium... Anyway, I DO like summer. Billy, me and my best friend, Missy are all summer babies so at the very least it's a happy kind of celebration season. I just spend a good part of my night with sincere prayers of one day having central air conditioning... ~jilli~

RetroPost: 7.20.05

{Saved from Xanga} I knew from the moment I sliced my thumb on the box of donuts this morning that today held oddities of a disastrous nature. Well, perhaps not disastrous. But certainly something off would be lurking in the shadows of the day as it progressed. I didn't have to wait very long. Just another half hour drive to see that the new girl's car wasn't in the parking lot again. I voiced the fact that if she kept this up, she would get fired, regardless of the fact that we're perpetually short-handed. Ah, but another few minutes took me inside where my two supervisors were standing behind the teller line with looks on their faces showing a mix of worry, incredulity and a slight whisper of jaded amusement. Seeing as I'm in a Harry Potter mindset at the moment, I'm beginning to view the receptionist position almost as the Defense Against the Dark Arts position. The girl that was originally hired for the position, Daylene, went to work in another branch one day, and never came back. So they gave the position to Jenn because she was pregnant at the time and wouldn't have to be on her feet. When she went on "maternity leave" (aka faking bed rest to get a long chunk of time off while still keeping her job), I got saddled with it, grumbling all the way. I hold the all time receptionist record, sitting there for SIX FRICKIN' MONTHS!!! Tho' I can't complain too much. I don't mind getting paid to sit there and go online all day. Anyway, even after Jenn got back, I stayed there since she was bringing her baby to work. After she quit, they had no choice but to bring me back to the teller line seeing as now, I was the teller with the most experience, aka the only teller. In the meantime, Faith was pushing them to hire Noah which was a mistake. I knew for a fact that he really didn't want the job, but against my advice, he got talked into it. He was receptionist for all of three days, while I was training in California, before he quit to go to a job he really wanted, which was really no job at all. Since they had already given my back my teller station, that I was going to hold onto for dear life, they plopped Kori down behind the front desk which she obviously loathed. Finally, they hired Adriana who seemed like a godsend. Someone with banking experience who was friendly, quick to learn, and spoke Spanish. Perfect! But here we are, a month later, and she's turned in her keys. This is quite hilarious, indeed. Who next, I wonder? And how long will they last?