starstruck

first thing’s first
i’m not ashamed to admit that i yelled out loud when i saw this comment pop up in my in-box:
at first, i thought it might not even be real — perhaps someone was messing with me, making fun of the eleventy-billion reference i’ve made to her website and book (hey, now we’re at eleventy-billion and two).

if this were an imposter, what would pop up in my comment box next?

✭ “dear sarah, thanks for your vote and support! i’d love to hear your thoughts on my health care reform plan.” — barack obama

✭ “dear sarah, i really appreciate you spreading the word about my designs!” — orla kiely

✭ “dear sarah, i forgive you for calling your cook-through project doin’ time. want to be on my show?” — martha stewart

✭”dear sarah, thanks for keeping us in business!” — glen sank, CEO of anthropologie

✭ “dear sarah, glad you think i’m awesome. i’m doin’ it for the FAME!” — lady gaga

josh and i nearly suffocated laughing about the possibilities . . . but i’m pretty sure gretchen rubin’s comment was real. i saw that her profile name linked back to her site — a marker of authenticity. thank you, gretchen rubin, for stopping by — and for everything! come back any time!!

spring cleaning, day 1
i started out my spring cleaning week in the bedroom. armed with decluttering tips from organizing your way, i went in with the aim of getting rid of things that had built up just because it was easier to leave them there than throw them away.

i also waged war against something very powerful and aggressive, especially in the south: MILDEW!

here’s a before shot of a particularly clutered area next to our dresser:

before: this pile sucks up the room’s energy

after: much more serene + inviting
here’s an embarrassing picture of our moldy window frame, which appears to be just several steps away from being condemned by the health department:

before: um, OMG.

after: whew!
closet shots! unfortunately, even my ‘after’ lacks that real simple-worthy look. but there’s definitely an improvement! and in my defense, 80% of the paper files on the floor belong to josh, so i wasn’t able to really weed through them.

before: haphazard stacks + all

after: looks like i need to go shopping! although not for jeans.

bonus!
one fun bonus about cleaning is unearthing fun things. sometimes this backfires and i end up sitting in a pile of mementos for an hour when i should be sorting through files. but . . . it’s fun, and a nice break. here are just a few of the goodies i (re)discovered:

the 3rd superman? you know, the cutest one with his head turned sideways? that’s JOSH! yayyyy bowl cut!

victoriously written by me after an ER shift in med school

bday card i wrote to josh the first year we were together. we were stranded in the hospital (due to an epic ice storm) studying for anatomy. it was less than ideal! but i do believe it brought us closer in the end . . .

i just couldn’t let this one go

or these! even though i think the ‘doctor’ one is borderline obnoxious and i would never wear it.

well, it’s off to my day shift! hope you enjoyed the little trip down memory lane! today’s cleaning area is the kitchen, more likely to yield expired products than fun memories. but i’m pretty excited to get it all organized.

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4.12.10

workout: 45 minutes elliptical. my legs felt like lead during this workout and i felt like my heart was going to beat out of my chest! weird.

super-natural and super-awesome: by far, the highlight of last night’s dinner was heidi swanson’s sweet potato spoon bread with goat cheese!

served with salmon marinated with a little maple syrup + mustard, plus salad. the recipe can be found here. seriously, it was comforting and flavorful and pretty much to die for! i highly recommend.

reading: finished an assignment for the ER (we had to pick an article and basically go through it with a fine-toothed comb — i chose one on diagnosing orbital abscesses. random!)

i am grateful for: every comment i get on this blog!