Finally, today, by popular demand, we’re giving you the “after” photos from our garden makeover. All in all, the transformation to our garden took weeks. And a lot of work. And Bear and Mary Alice. Seriously, it wouldn’t have happened without them. We’re pretty happy with the result. But, unfortunately, we’re not done. Because you’re never done. You always must mow and weed and water and…well…keep all the shit alive. It’s exhausting. I don’t recommend it. I do, however, recommend looking at these photos. -Jess
So like I was saying, we really busted our asses to make our yard, our garden, look as good as it does today. All of the work was completed by Jess and I with tons of help from my Dad and step-mother, Mary Alice. We worked a couple of weekends, and a few nights in between to get it all done. For starters, we bought 5 yards of dirt and had it delivered to the house. I ended up getting it from Alfonza’s in Irmo. I highly recommend them! They were able to deliver in a matter of hours, and their prices were really reasonable. We were much better off than if we would have gone to Lowe’s and bought bagged dirt. Anyway, Dad and Jess hand-shoveled every last drop of it to different points in the yard. It took forever. They called it “dirt patrol.” I got out of most of the heavy lifting because of my lack of upper body strength, thank goodness! -Addison
So Glad to Be Home
I’ve been back in Columbia for just over a week, and I can’t tell you how happy I am to be home. Not just in our house but in Columbia and even in our little neighborhood. I’m downright giddy. Of course, there’s been a little bit of stress involved with all of this as well. I am unemployed and trying to figure out what to do about that. Fortunately, I have a lot of connections with folks in Columbia, and I have met with many people and discussed various possibilities and opportunities. What I didn’t realize before I left Columbia was that I had made a little name for myself in the advertising / marketing community here. Not a big name. But a little one. People know me, and they’re generally familiar with my skills. So, in most cases, the people I’m calling are interested and willing to meet with me because they think I’m worth their time. That’s a pretty good feeling, if I do say so myself. Of course, good feelings don’t amount to jobs. But I’m hoping they will soon. I have a lot of things cooking, and I hope to have some news to share in the coming weeks. Unlike me, Addison is working her little butt off. She’s my sugar mama, and I like it. But really, she actually has two jobs. She’s working as a crew leader for the census, supervising 15 of the folks who might be knocking on your door. She doesn’t actually have to go door-to-door, which is a good thing in our area, but she still spends 40 hours a week making sure that the people who do go door to door are doing things right. It’s a big job that keeps her very busy. Also, thanks to some of our connections and her sparkling personality in interviews, Addison has been hired at Wachovia as a teller. This is super exciting because Addison recently decided that she really wants to give banking a try as a career. As you may know, Addison has a Bachelors degree in Architecture, but after serving as a draftsperson / architecture apprentice for just over two years, she decided that she didn’t have enough passion for the field to go back to school for her Masters and be a full-blown architect. So she left the industry and worked as a receptionist in a physical therapy office while she figured out what she wanted to do next. For about the past six months, she’s been talking and thinking about trying to get into banking. She talked with friends in the industry and discovered that banks really promote from within so she can get a job at the bottom of the ladder (even with a totally unrelated degree like Architecture) and work her way up to management, which is exactly what she’s hoping for. I’m so proud of her and excited for her. I know she’s going to be an awesome teller, and she’ll be climbing the ladder in no time. So the moral of today’s post is–Addison and I are so very happy. We’re so glad to be home. Addison is so glad to be working. And I’m so glad to be searching for a job in a place where I have a lot of resources and connections. Last night is a perfect example of why we’re so thrilled to be home. Addison and I joined six of our favorite friends for dinner at a delicious local restaurant (Terra) and for a (lesbian-focused) play at the fabulous Trustus Theatre. It was awesome. Yummy food, great company, and a wonderful performance that was about lesbians and filled with lesbian actors (right here in Columbia). What a night! Nights like this make Columbia home. I guess that’s the biggest lesson I’ve learned from our recent adventure to Asheville. Home is not a location. Locations are all the same. Home is people. Family and friends and time spent together. We are so glad to be home. -Jess
