The big game

Tonight is the BCS championship game. Everyone have big plans? Our plan isn't big, it's just a plan. We'll watch the game (I believe we're both pulling for LSU) and have fondue. I'll make a beer-cheese fondue with veggie dippers, then for dessert, I'll melt some chocolate in my new "Chocolate Pro" and we'll have fruit dipped in chocolate. Yum!

I don't know the official high temperature here today, but our thermometer read 66° at one point. Wow!

I have a journaling prompt topic for today. "Spend a few minutes thinking about  yourself in the past. What parts of your personality have you lost? What have you gained since then?"

The first thing that springs to mind is socializing. At my first job, they called me the Social Director. I was always the one getting people to go out for a drink after work. A bunch of us went every week, but I'd usually go out more often than that with friends. I was much the same way at my job in Indianapolis, and I'd often go to concerts with friends, or out to eat, that sort of thing. At my current job, we all joke about how I never go out when a group is going! It's so true, and I'm the first to admit it. It's not that I don't like my coworkers--I happen to like them very much. When we do go to things, like some of Ken's work functions, I always have fun and enjoy talking to people. It just seems that these days I have more things at home that make me happy--including a great husband--and I don't feel the need to constantly be away from home. It seems that for many years I was looking for satisfaction elsewhere, rather than focusing on where I should be finding that satisfaction.

I used to be a terrible flirt. I don't know if it's a matter of getting older, but I don't feel I need to prove anything these days, and I've also come to realize that it's disrespectful to your spouse to be that flirtatious, even if you have no ulterior motives.

I feel much more content than I used to, and I enjoy tranquility more. I used to need constant input, mostly music. I still love my music, but there are many days off that I don't even turn on the TV until late afternoon. I've found that living out in the country has made me appreciate the quiet times more--you can't hear the outside sounds when you're blasting the stereo, and the outside sounds are very calming, and sometimes very interesting!

I think I'm less stubborn than I used to be, although some might disagree with that. I used to do what I wanted, when I wanted, and really didn't listen to any advice that anyone gave me. I think I'm more willing to listen to the voice of experience now than I used to be.

I used to love living in the city. Now I reserve that for visits, and I enjoy our rural life. I can't imagine living in an apartment ever again, or in a subdivision.

That's all that I can think of at the moment. I think the main thing is that I now have a feeling of contentment, and I'm very happy with my life. Ken and Nutwood have worked wonders on me!