Today I missed a baptism for a close friends' baby. But this wasn't the first event I've had to skip because of my choice to live over 2,000 miles away. It hurts similar to heartbreak to know that I can't be back in San Diego for these events. Sometimes I reflect on this move and am hurt by the timing of it all: I'm 26. Knowing we'll be here for the next 2 years or so, I realize that I'll be missing numerous baby showers, bachelorette parties, and countless other small events (birthdays, dinners, reunions) because of work obligations and/or the high cost of plane tickets.
It's ironic, isn't it? Your mid-twenties is supposed to be the key time that you can adventure and discover yourself; the time where you can pick up and move at a moment's notice because your ties are limited. It also turns out to be the time where these monumental life events--weddings, baby showers--also take place. Now I feel like I'm always choosing between saving up for my wedding 2+ years away or maintaining the ties that I cherish so much.
Frankly, it's hard. I've already missed a bachelorette party in Vegas and a bridal shower in San Diego because I had to choose between these other events and the wedding itself. Plane tickets to California, at BEST, turn out to be something near $200+ round trip...but are more frequently in the $320-350 range (sometimes more, with bad timing). My early childhood education salary isn't giving me a lot of leeway to spend money on plane tickets whenever I want to go home--especially since I'm trying to pay off that early purchase of the wedding dress.
Modern technology makes it easier to keep in touch with people, but sometimes videochatting with family and friends from afar makes me miss them more. Seeing my nephew's new developmental milestones, for example, just isn't the same over videochat than in person.
How do you minimize these feelings of missing out when you're far away?
Showing posts with label California. Show all posts
Showing posts with label California. Show all posts
Sunday, February 10, 2013
Monday, January 14, 2013
Layering for Weather
This blog post may seem silly to most people from these colder climes, but I guarantee this is useful information for people from warmer places (like me). After much trial and error, I have figured out how to appropriately layer for different temperatures. Granted, Chicago's winter thus far has been fairly mild (just cold, not too much snow), so maybe I'll be screwed when the snow/ice really starts to hit. Anyway, this is what I have so far:
-Eddie Bauer coat (to my waist) with fur-edged hood, guaranteed good for 0-20 degree weather
-J. Crew Factory belted puffer coat: I was really opposed to wearing these because I think they look like a black version of the Michelin man, but I see why they are necessary now! The only part of my body that gets cold when I wear this coat is between my boots and my coat...and I have legwarmers now to remedy that.
-CK belted puffer coat: looks similar to above but has fur around the hood. My mom gave this to me for Christmas!
-a bunch of California winter coats (read: not thickly lined, with varying wool weights). Okay, I'll be honest, some of these are cotton. I don't wear those ones much, though...
-long underwear (I don't wear these too often yet, but I have both Cuddl Duds and REI brand. I wore the Cuddl Duds under thick leggings and had no issues getting the layers on or off because they are silk, and they didn't slip and slide around under my clothes)
-down vest that folds up really small into a bag that it comes with (used frequently)
-180 earmuffs (that's the brand), which go behind your ears like those erstwhile popular Sony headphones. These are most useful for when I wear glasses or don't feel like wearing a hat (because it seriously feels like your ears will fall off when you're walking around in the cold for extended periods of time)
-a variety of
When we first moved here in August, I went to Nordstrom Rack and bought the down vest. It was seriously the best purchase I've made thus far. It meant I could wear all my existing coats, and added warmth without too much bulk. Best of all, since I was crazy paranoid about freezing to death, I could tuck it (in its convenient bag) into every purse I carried and not have to worry about the temperature dropping too far at night and getting cold! I seriously carried it from the end of August (started getting cold) til I started wearing it every day or using my down coats. That's how nervous this California girl felt about her first real winter.
Anyway, here is the breakdown of my outerwear by temperature:
 |
| Eddie Bauer Northern Aurora Down Jacket in Capri Blue, with my Modcloth owl mittens (gift) |
-J. Crew Factory belted puffer coat: I was really opposed to wearing these because I think they look like a black version of the Michelin man, but I see why they are necessary now! The only part of my body that gets cold when I wear this coat is between my boots and my coat...and I have legwarmers now to remedy that.
-CK belted puffer coat: looks similar to above but has fur around the hood. My mom gave this to me for Christmas!
-a bunch of California winter coats (read: not thickly lined, with varying wool weights). Okay, I'll be honest, some of these are cotton. I don't wear those ones much, though...
-long underwear (I don't wear these too often yet, but I have both Cuddl Duds and REI brand. I wore the Cuddl Duds under thick leggings and had no issues getting the layers on or off because they are silk, and they didn't slip and slide around under my clothes)
-down vest that folds up really small into a bag that it comes with (used frequently)
 |
| Available on Amazon (men's and women's are exactly the same, except women's come in different girly colors) |
-180 earmuffs (that's the brand), which go behind your ears like those erstwhile popular Sony headphones. These are most useful for when I wear glasses or don't feel like wearing a hat (because it seriously feels like your ears will fall off when you're walking around in the cold for extended periods of time)
-a variety of
- scarves
- hats: knit hats for everyday, a Goorin Bros. wool hat (I wore this last night in the rain and stayed so dry! Only issue is my ears get a little cold, but I could easily put a beanie on under it to fix this), and a variety of warmer hats (including a Russian or Fargo hat for painfully cold days, a knit hat that looks like a deer's face for when I'm sad about the cold)
- gloves: leather gloves for fall, North Face gloves for playing in the snow/serious winter (they were around $50 retail at the North Face store on Michigan Ave.), knit gloves with cute patterns for slightly warmer weather or when I know I'll tuck my hands into my pockets often
When we first moved here in August, I went to Nordstrom Rack and bought the down vest. It was seriously the best purchase I've made thus far. It meant I could wear all my existing coats, and added warmth without too much bulk. Best of all, since I was crazy paranoid about freezing to death, I could tuck it (in its convenient bag) into every purse I carried and not have to worry about the temperature dropping too far at night and getting cold! I seriously carried it from the end of August (started getting cold) til I started wearing it every day or using my down coats. That's how nervous this California girl felt about her first real winter.
Anyway, here is the breakdown of my outerwear by temperature:
- 40-49 degrees: California winter coat, scarf, maybe thin gloves if I'm walking far.
- 30-39 degrees: down vest under California winter coat, gloves, earmuffs or hat. Closer to 30 and I'll probably bring a scarf along just in case.
- 20-29 degrees: Luckily, my Eddie Bauer coat told me exactly what temperature at which to wear it! I'll pick one of the below:
- Eddie Bauer down coat by itself (sometimes I'll sweat in this, though). Definitely earmuffs or hat, unless I put my hood on. Leather gloves at the lightest (closer to 20 degrees, I'd put on my North Face gloves...or if I think there's a potential to play in the snow!!)
- sweater, down vest, California winter coat. The issue with the down vest is that it doesn't have sleeves, so my arms sometimes get cold when those Chicago winds blow up loose sleeves. Thus, you have to wear a cardigan or sweater under the vest! +scarf, hat or earmuffs, and North Face gloves (since the coat itself isn't as warm, I make sure my extremities are).
- 10-18 degrees: this is damn cold. These are the days I walk outside and mutter an expletive to myself, then pull my hood on and trudge to work, watching for ice.
- Eddie Bauer down coat, high boots (very cold legs otherwise!), legwarmers or long underwear (if I'm walking far). Scarf, hat, North Face gloves.
- Either puffy coat, scarf, hat, any gloves (these long coats keep most of my body warm and I can tuck my hands into the fleece-lined pockets!)
- 10 degrees or below: No. Don't go outside. That's not normal. Okay, maybe I haven't experienced this too much yet (ignoring windchill). I haven't yet felt the need to wear my down vest under my down coats, so I think so far I'm okay...and the coldest it has hit when I was outside was -8, I believe.
To be honest, the windchill is what is the worst part--it might actually be in the teens, but it feels WAY COLDER. I still can't wrap my head around what this means, other than it makes me miserable. Also, obviously this is just what I have found helpful, and it might be different for others. I tend to get really hot when I'm moving around a lot, so I'll layer up and prefer to take off layers as I walk. Others prefer just one thick layer so they don't have to worry about the hours it takes to put them all back on.
As a sidenote, I work with children--1-2 year olds. They don't layer quite as much, though I have seen a few children who wear long underwear. Usually they're just in big puffy coats, hats, and mittens when we're running around! Additionally, we don't go out if it's below 32 degrees. This is drastically different from working with children of this age in California, where we were blissfully barefoot and outdoors through most of the "winter."
What do you wear in the winter? Any thoughts from local Chicagoans or people who grew up in cold areas? Was this helpful to anybody moving to colder climes?
Sunday, January 6, 2013
The Trek: Part 1
As the entire premise of this blog suggests, I am not native to this city of Chicago. In fact, I originally grew up in a wonderful place called San Diego, where I am convinced time stands still--the radio stations still play the same music from 10 years ago, all of my favorite places still stand, and many of my high school friends are still there and when we get together I know why I've always called that place my home. I'm actually almost positive San Diego is like that little Irish town from that old movie that disappears into the mist and only comes back every 100 years or so, completely untouched by the rest of the world and thus unchanged. Anybody? No? I'm not sure what it's called, either.
Anyway, I'm not from here. I'm a born and raised California girl at heart, and when the Beach Boys sing that song, I puff out my chest and smile proudly, then do a little dance that can only be done to catchy Beach Boys songs. Thus, when my now fiance told me the news that it was Chicago or bust (rather than UCLA, our mutual alma mater but unfortunately not as high in the business school rankings as U of Chicago), I sighed, packed up all of my things, and said farewell to California.
[This will be a two-part post because frankly, I don't know how interested you'll be in reading all of it at once, and my OCD nature prevents me from leaving things unfinished...thus, for you fellow people who feel the need to read it all, I'll break it up.]
Anyway, I'm not from here. I'm a born and raised California girl at heart, and when the Beach Boys sing that song, I puff out my chest and smile proudly, then do a little dance that can only be done to catchy Beach Boys songs. Thus, when my now fiance told me the news that it was Chicago or bust (rather than UCLA, our mutual alma mater but unfortunately not as high in the business school rankings as U of Chicago), I sighed, packed up all of my things, and said farewell to California.
[This will be a two-part post because frankly, I don't know how interested you'll be in reading all of it at once, and my OCD nature prevents me from leaving things unfinished...thus, for you fellow people who feel the need to read it all, I'll break it up.]
We started our drive at the end of August and laid out our 4-day journey to the pinnacle of Mt. Doom...no, that's a different journey, now that I think about it. I digress. Our journey from San Diego to Chicago could have gone along the northern route (stopping in Colorado, going through Wyoming, and hitting up Kansas City for BBQ), or the southern route (Arizona, New Mexico, then curving up through OKC and St. Louis). We ultimately settled on the southern route because it meant each leg of our drive was 8 hours or less, and the simple idea of having to be in a car for 13 hours or so (San Diego -> Denver) made me want to punch out a window. It was definitely a good call.
I should clarify: my then boyfriend (now fiance) and I lived in different cities for the entirety of our relationship. I'll tell you our love story in a bit, but suffice it to say, coordinating moving his stuff and then my stuff across the country...not an easy logistical task.
Most of our things were packed up in a Pod (they are these boxes you pack yourself and other people drive them across the country for you...it was the cheapest option we could find); first his things, then mine a few weeks later. The rest went into my Corolla, with Professor X (my wonderful dwarf hamster) strapped into the middle seat (literally), and nestled in between two dining room chairs. Yes, we drove two full-size chairs across the country in my backseat. I crafted a sunshade for the fine Professor, as obviously a hamster should not be sitting in the sun all day. After a few tearful goodbyes (on my end), we were off!
The first leg of our trip was from San Diego to Sedona, AZ. Have you ever been there? It's lovely red rock country. I've never seen land like that before...California gets rocky sometimes, but doesn't have that brilliant ochre contrasted against the blue sky. It was unbelievable. It was basically a one road town with a lane in each direction, and one long, curving road that took us through all the pretty scenery. We stayed at some little hotel (with Professor X comfortably on the dresser) and reveled in finally being in the same city.
I should clarify: my then boyfriend (now fiance) and I lived in different cities for the entirety of our relationship. I'll tell you our love story in a bit, but suffice it to say, coordinating moving his stuff and then my stuff across the country...not an easy logistical task.
Most of our things were packed up in a Pod (they are these boxes you pack yourself and other people drive them across the country for you...it was the cheapest option we could find); first his things, then mine a few weeks later. The rest went into my Corolla, with Professor X (my wonderful dwarf hamster) strapped into the middle seat (literally), and nestled in between two dining room chairs. Yes, we drove two full-size chairs across the country in my backseat. I crafted a sunshade for the fine Professor, as obviously a hamster should not be sitting in the sun all day. After a few tearful goodbyes (on my end), we were off!
The first leg of our trip was from San Diego to Sedona, AZ. Have you ever been there? It's lovely red rock country. I've never seen land like that before...California gets rocky sometimes, but doesn't have that brilliant ochre contrasted against the blue sky. It was unbelievable. It was basically a one road town with a lane in each direction, and one long, curving road that took us through all the pretty scenery. We stayed at some little hotel (with Professor X comfortably on the dresser) and reveled in finally being in the same city.
You know how at Disney's California Adventure they have the new Carsland?
Yeah, this whole place looks like Radiator Springs.
That brings us to the end of this part of the journey! I feel a little like Tolkien, riding out a long and complex story in multiple pieces...I don't think I'm aiming for a trilogy here, but if I put enough pictures, maybe that'll be necessary! Additionally, less walking. Especially less walking than The Two Towers.
Also, no lembas. I definitely packed a lot of snacks, but they were mostly of the beef jerky and trail mix variety.
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