Been a long time gone.

Wow, hi, guys. It's been two weeks since the last update, sorry about that. I never got around to posting last week because I've been sick. But let me recap what's been going on.

The gathering at Brad and Jen's house was awesome. I met a really neat young woman named Jen, and we clicked immediately. At the end of the evening, we exchanged phone numbers, but I haven't called her because I've been ill -- don't want to try to make plans I might have to cancel. But later this week, if I'm feeling better, I'll try to connect. My prayers against nerves and to hopefully met a friend were answered; not going to forget about it because of a cold.

Wasn't feeling well Tuesday night so didn't attend the yoga class. Had Wednesday off and started to feel awful; missed the first meeting of the Bible study. Felt disgusting by Wednesday night and ended up calling in sick to work Thursday and Friday. Anyone that knows me knows that is not typical Erica behavior. I'm usually a trooper, but I was too exhausted to get off the couch, much less be perky at work.

Friday night, I finally started to feeling better and made a trip to Target just to get out of the house (be glad you didn't have to look at me; I looked a mess!). Saturday was a productive day -- cleaned the house (dishes and laundry and 409, oh my), listened to a message on dating by Brad, shopped at Borders (five books for under $25 and I had a gift card), read and journaled at Starbucks, and saw Juno in the theatre (wonderful movie). That was the first time I'd ever been to see a movie alone. It was kind of weird, just because I was early (of course) and didn't have anyone to talk to, but I didn't feel as awkward or self-conscious as I expected to. And I'm so glad I went because I loved Juno. It's the kind of movie you want to see again as soon as it's over. What can I say, I'm a sucker for a good story and witty dialogue.

Sunday morning brought church then work. So disappointed that I didn't get to see Eli win the Super Bowl -- woo! I would have been adequately impressed if the Patriots had completed a perfect season (it's an admirable feat), but I'd rather root for the underdog. Work itself went well, but I was exhausted by the end of the night. I couldn't remember feeling that tired for a long time.

Now we're only two days in to this week, and it's already been rough. Even though I felt better over the weekend, I'm still congested and phelgm-y. Breathing is wheezy and labored. Extremely tired, easily fatigued. Monday was a fairly productive day at work. When I finally left the store at 430p, I got in the car, turned the key, and ... nothing happened. Absolutely nothing. Got out of the car, popped the hood, and stared at the engine like I might magically conjure up car knowledge that would give me some insight. No such luck, but the battery did have some ick on it.

Hoping my battery was just dead, I went back inside but no one working at the store had jumper cables. Thankfully, Brooklyn was brave enough to ask the lobby full of people if anyone could help. A guy who had just come in the store to put up a flyer on our community board offered to give me a jump, just like that. This Josh, he restored some of my faith in humanity. After pulling his old Mustang around in front of mine, he jumped the battery and was on his way. I went back in the store to get my purse, and when I come back out ... the car was dead again. (NO!!!) This time, I called another Starbucks, and Casey, another partner, offered to come by on her way to the dinner for Serena (it had been changed from Friday to Monday) and jump my car again (she rocks).

This time, I headed to Wal-mart, praying the whole time just to make it there. Once at Wal-mart, I waited for two hours to have the battery replaced (note to self: learn to install car battery). It was after 8p by the time I got home, and I was dead on my feet. But the car is functional again. I think there was some damage from the cold in Cleveland, but who knows. Yet another reason to revel in a snowless Central Valley.

Today was a good day, all things considered. I had my Store Plan of Action visit with Autumn, and it was really nice to spend time connecting with her, even if my head was foggy. We spent most of the morning in the cafe, surrounded by sixth graders having a "field trip" at my store for scholastic excellence. While it's flattering that they came to our store, it was so distracting. Autumn even commented that it was strange to see me so easily distracted. But all I can do is try, eh. I have a doctor's appointment Thursday afternoon to hopefully get some help with the cold that never ends.

Ups and Downs:
- I haven't seen my parents for a month. Might as well be living in Cleveland (but glad I'm not!).
+ Giada's learned to play Fetch, and it's the cutest thing! It works best with elastic hair bands -- I sit somewhere and toss it; she runs over, picks it up, and carries it back to me like a little dog. She usually drops it and starts to bat it around until I pick it up and throw it again. I'll have to make a video one of these days.
+ I'm growing in my relationship with God, slowly but surely. He's been showing me some awesome, interesting things lately.
+ In an effort to continue organizing my store's backroom, I spent a couple of hours on Monday banging on metro shelving with a rubber hammer to move things around. It actually made me feel better, all that moving around. And now I know how to release anger should I be having a bad day!
+ On Saturday, I'm attending a series of classes at The Well to learn more about the church. Looking forward to meeting more people.

All righty, time to peace out. It's been a boring entry -- really, all that's happened the past two weeks is: Erica hopefully made a new friend! Erica got sick! Erica replaced her car battery! There you have it. Have a great week.