4am wake-up

At 4am this morning, I was awoken by my husband screaming. Though I was quite startled, I right away realized he was screaming in his sleep. I turned over and nudged him (Is that the right thing to do? I don't know.) and asked if he was alright. Apparently he had some nightmare involving ghosts, but he was fine. I've been in the same room with sleepwalkers, sleep talkers, and snorers, but this is the first time I've experienced sleep-screaming. It's a bit scary, and I hope it does not happen often. I'm a pretty deep sleeper myself (I did not wake up when my husband accidentally elbowed me the other night though it woke him up), but a scream or shout seems to do it.

Thanks to the library

I have another job interview today, and I really hope I get it. Though I will have plenty to keep me busy once we move into our new house and get a dog, I get quite bored right now. I've made good use of the library by checking out books and DVD's that I now have plenty of time to read and watch.

After falling in love with Anne of Green Gables, I checked out Anne of Avonlea and Anne of the Island. L.M. Montgomery writes delightfully enchanting stories filled with fascinating and well-described characters. Anne Shirley will forever be one of my favorite heroines of literature.

Though I had previoulsy been daunted by the fact that The Story of Edgar Sawtelle is 500+ pages, I wanted to read it and figured now was the time. The story was rich in detail and character development. A beautiful coming-of-age American tale, Edgar Sawtelle by David Wroblewski is enriching and enjoyable.

Now I'm reading Consider the Lobster by David Foster Wallace and Cesar's Way by Cesar Millan.

I tried watching The Caberet and Blazing Saddles, but didn't finish either of them. I wasn't a big fan. I did enjoy Sophie's Choice, To Catch a Thief, and Billy Elliot though. Watching last year's Academy Awards, I realized I had only seen two or three of Meryl Streep's movies (Mamma Mia! and The Devil Wears Prada). I wanted to see what many consider to be her best role ever, and I also like seeing movies or reading books that are frequently referenced, hence Sophie's Choice. And it was a really terrific performance. To Catch a Thief is an Alfred Hitchcock film starring Cary Grant and Grace Kelly. As far as classics go, I really liked it. There are some classics that I just don't get (Citizen Kane?), but this one was good. Billy Elliot I watched because a friend kept telling me that I should. There wasn't nearly as much ballet as I thought there would be. Instead, the story was much more about Billy's family, relationships, and life struggles. I would also recommend it.

Home Sweet Home

Michael and I are buying our first house!
After a month of searching and looking at nearly 30 houses, we finally found one we really wanted. It was the very last house we looked at. Go figure! We won't move in until mid-August, so I'm anxiously planning what to do with all the space. The only real furniture we have is for the bedroom, so we are starting completely from scratch. It's very overwhelming. Michael's going to start with the kitchen, and I'm going to start with the family room. This is what it looks like now with the current tenants' furniture. The first view is through the breakfast area, and the second is looking right over the railing.

I'm thinking of painting the brick fireplace. I really think it would brighten the room to paint it a light color. Of course, that means picking out a color, and I don't know where to start. We don't have any furniture or art or anything else to use as a jumping off point. I need to find something to use. I'll be sure to post some before and after pictures though.

4th of July in Dublin

Who knew little Dublin, OH would have so much going on for the 4th of July? Michael discovered that Boyz II Men would be here in concert with the Four Tops at Dublin-Coffman High School to celebrate July 4th. My very first concert that I remember going to was a Boyz II Men concert in Phoenix in (I believe) 1991 or 1992. They have had so many hits and were so popular that I had a hard time believing they would be coming to perform at a high school in this small suburb of Columbus. To top it all off, the concert was free! We were sure that the place would be packed, but we showed up about 30 minutes before they were to go on and found great seats in the bleachers. The stage was set up on the football field and people could buy tickets to sit at tables on the field, but everything else was fair game. We went with Matt (who is Mike's friend from IU and also got a job in Columbus) and his wife Kristen.

We were really impressed that after 20 years and being short one member of the original group, Boyz II Men was still quite good. We truly enjoyed the concert and felt rather nostalgic singing classics from our junior high and high school days. The Four Tops, who have replaced three of their original members, performed second, and though they are possibly a more classic Motown group, we all prefered Boyz II Men and thought they should have been the highlighted act instead of the openers. After both performances, there was a terrific fireworks display. Though it couldn't rival the New York fireworks on the East River that we watched last year, it was still a great show.