Ok so most of you know that Erin is getting married. Yes Erin the girl I have been friends with since 1st grade(I don't know how she has put up with me for this long either). I am a bridesmaid in her wedding so last week I went to look at wedding dresses with her, Adri, and Erin's Mom. WOW. OK I have been in seven weddings and this will be number 8 for me so all of this should be no big deal to me now or so I thought. Then she came out in a wedding dress and let me just say that the dress didn't do anything for me. I didn't think it was the right dress for her but I saw Erin in a wedding dress and immediately without me even realizing it I let out a sigh. OK some of the girls will know what I am talking about here the sigh that when you see someone in the right dress or you see a bride walking down the aisle it just slips out. Well when I saw Erin in a wedding dress it slipped out. She looked at me and goes "Jack are you serious?" Because usually this reaction is saved until you see them in THE dress not a dress but THE dress. I look at her and I was like. Look it's my first time seeing you in a wedding dress give me a break. She laughed. Then I realized that since Erin and I have done everything together for as long as I can remember and that she has always been there for me through everything. Now she is getting married and I am going to be able to be there for her for this next big step in her life. This wedding is going to be very emotional for me. Now she isn't getting married until next October so don't worry about it yet but wow this is going to be strange.
After our appointment to try on dresses we went across the street had some appetizers and chatted about other wedding planning stuff. It made me realize how happy I am that I am done with school now. That if she got engaged before this that I wouldn't really have been able to help out. I love being able to be involved in the wedding planning and helping her figure out what she wants to do. I still can't believe that Erin is getting married but I do have to say that I love Ryan for her. I know that they will be happy together and that makes me even more excited that I get to be a part of this.
It seems like my life is settling back to the chaos it was before law school where I think I have a low key week planned and not much going on and things always seem to be added last minute or changed. I wouldn't want it any other way because I love having the friends and family that I do. I know I am spoiled. I'm trying to think about what else is going on with me right now and there isn't much to tell. My friend Andrew's band has a concert tomorrow night which I am sure will be awesome. I will tell you all about that next time. Otherwise just another day in the life. Hope you are all doing well.
Wednesday, October 10
Thursday, September 20
Life after Law School
OK so we all know I have been running on empty for a while now. I went straight from graduating law school to taking the bar to buying a condo. I am happy to report that things are finally starting to settle down for me. My sister Jen and my Mom came by last Friday with the last of the things that I needed for my place. Now I look around and it's a weird feeling to see what you envisioned now real. That I actually live there now and not only that I own it. It's my own little oasis that is all mine. Right now I am trying to figure out how to make some extra money and what costs are necessary and what I can do without but I think that would happen no matter what. It is all part of the process of growing up and getting older. Man I really hate to admit that. I actually spent time trying to think of a different way to say it. Why? I mean it's natural to grow up and I don't want to be seen as some immature person that is out of touch with reality but somehow I don't want to admit that I am growing up.
I don't know I guess part of it is I feel like the past four years I had to put my life on hold. You all know that I am horrible when it comes to boys and relationships and the first two years of law school showed me that trying to work on that while I was working full-time and going to law school just wasn't a good idea. My life kept blowing up at the worst possible times and there really wasn't much that I could do about it. So I decided I need to follow the law school thing to the end and then worry about it. I give a lot of credit to my classmates that were married and had kids while going through law school at night. I don't know how they did it. The whole relationship thing is a mystery to me. I just can't seem to get it right. I just hold out hope that there is a guy out there that is going to be able to deal with all my idiosyncrasies.
OK enough about that and back to why I started this post in the first place. I have been jumping from one big thing to the next for so long and scheduling in dinners and drinks and Red Sox as much as possible to see everyone that I have been neglecting while I was finishing up with school and the Bar Exam that I have still been running around like an idiot. Last week I realized I didn't have a lot going on that weekend and I decided I was going to keep it that way. The only thing that I had going on this week was Karaoke on Wednesday but that doesn't even seem like plans to me anymore. I have to say that going home every night this week and just being able to relax and put around the condo and do some small stuff it feels really good. I am going to try to not overbook myself. I need some me time and I need some time to unwind and just relax. So I will apologize now to the people that are going to ask me to do things and I am going to turn you down to sit on my couch but I promise I am not going to become a total homebody. All of you know me too well that could never happen. I have to admit that I am really enjoying life after law school and looking forward to seeing where it takes me.
I don't know I guess part of it is I feel like the past four years I had to put my life on hold. You all know that I am horrible when it comes to boys and relationships and the first two years of law school showed me that trying to work on that while I was working full-time and going to law school just wasn't a good idea. My life kept blowing up at the worst possible times and there really wasn't much that I could do about it. So I decided I need to follow the law school thing to the end and then worry about it. I give a lot of credit to my classmates that were married and had kids while going through law school at night. I don't know how they did it. The whole relationship thing is a mystery to me. I just can't seem to get it right. I just hold out hope that there is a guy out there that is going to be able to deal with all my idiosyncrasies.
OK enough about that and back to why I started this post in the first place. I have been jumping from one big thing to the next for so long and scheduling in dinners and drinks and Red Sox as much as possible to see everyone that I have been neglecting while I was finishing up with school and the Bar Exam that I have still been running around like an idiot. Last week I realized I didn't have a lot going on that weekend and I decided I was going to keep it that way. The only thing that I had going on this week was Karaoke on Wednesday but that doesn't even seem like plans to me anymore. I have to say that going home every night this week and just being able to relax and put around the condo and do some small stuff it feels really good. I am going to try to not overbook myself. I need some me time and I need some time to unwind and just relax. So I will apologize now to the people that are going to ask me to do things and I am going to turn you down to sit on my couch but I promise I am not going to become a total homebody. All of you know me too well that could never happen. I have to admit that I am really enjoying life after law school and looking forward to seeing where it takes me.
Tuesday, September 11
I'll Never Forget
Today is a very bittersweet day for me. I got great news last night. One of my good friends that was over in Iraq on his second tour of duty is home and safe. When I saw his name on my phone I nearly jumped out of my skin. So last night was a really good day. He is going to take some time to come home in the next few weeks and I am going to get to see him. So that makes me very happy and grateful that he made it home safe again.
Today is September 11th. It is the day the world changed for me. I can still vividly walk you through that day if you ask me too. I can still remember the feeling of relief when I found out that the last of my college friends living in NYC was OK. Then getting the phone call from a friend I used to work with to tell me that my manager from there was on that second flight. I can still remember that I was silent and felt like my heart stopped beating for a few seconds. All the sudden it wasn't just a tragedy it was a personal tragedy. My manager and the closest thing I had to a mentor at my first job was dead? How is that possible? How is that fair? What is going on in the world?
I know that it affected all of us and touched all of us in our own way. There is something about this day that always get me reflective and always gets me thinking about Shawn. I wear my red, white, and blue ribbon with an American flag and I want people to ask me about it so I can tell them about Shawn. What a great guy he was, how much he was full of life, that he had one of those smiles that was infectious and you just couldn't help but smile back.
I can't believe that six years have passed and that we as a country have gotten to the place that we are in now. I don't want to turn this into a place I talk about my politics because one of the things I love is that I know a lot of my friends have different views then I do when it comes to that stuff. I value the fact that we respect each other's right to have a different view point. I do want to say this. I just wish we had seen the good that came from the aftermath actually stick around in society. More of people giving of time and working together and that some of the stereotypes and walls could have been broken down for good. Wouldn't it be great if instead of Paris Hilton going to jail being a story on CNN if instead they used that time to talk about some community service initiative that is underway or the rebuilding of New Orleans after Katrina. Why do we only hear about the bad on the news? Can't we use some of the time to tell us about the good in mankind as well? OK I am going to get off my soap box now and get back to work. Just wanted to give you a little insight into my feelings.
I will never forget September 11th. It showed me the best and worst of mankind from one event.
Today is September 11th. It is the day the world changed for me. I can still vividly walk you through that day if you ask me too. I can still remember the feeling of relief when I found out that the last of my college friends living in NYC was OK. Then getting the phone call from a friend I used to work with to tell me that my manager from there was on that second flight. I can still remember that I was silent and felt like my heart stopped beating for a few seconds. All the sudden it wasn't just a tragedy it was a personal tragedy. My manager and the closest thing I had to a mentor at my first job was dead? How is that possible? How is that fair? What is going on in the world?
I know that it affected all of us and touched all of us in our own way. There is something about this day that always get me reflective and always gets me thinking about Shawn. I wear my red, white, and blue ribbon with an American flag and I want people to ask me about it so I can tell them about Shawn. What a great guy he was, how much he was full of life, that he had one of those smiles that was infectious and you just couldn't help but smile back.
I can't believe that six years have passed and that we as a country have gotten to the place that we are in now. I don't want to turn this into a place I talk about my politics because one of the things I love is that I know a lot of my friends have different views then I do when it comes to that stuff. I value the fact that we respect each other's right to have a different view point. I do want to say this. I just wish we had seen the good that came from the aftermath actually stick around in society. More of people giving of time and working together and that some of the stereotypes and walls could have been broken down for good. Wouldn't it be great if instead of Paris Hilton going to jail being a story on CNN if instead they used that time to talk about some community service initiative that is underway or the rebuilding of New Orleans after Katrina. Why do we only hear about the bad on the news? Can't we use some of the time to tell us about the good in mankind as well? OK I am going to get off my soap box now and get back to work. Just wanted to give you a little insight into my feelings.
I will never forget September 11th. It showed me the best and worst of mankind from one event.
Monday, August 27
I'm a Home Owner!!
Well it's official on Friday I signed the dotted line and now I am officially a home owner. I got the keys to my new place, then went to get some supplies so that I would be able to paint up a storm this weekend. My Mom stayed with me at the condo all weekend and we were very productive I have to admit I wasn't sure if we were going to be able to get it all done. Every time I finished a room this weekend I would look around and get a big smile on my face. We worked long hours this weekend but man was it worth it. My Dad helped out every day this weekend and my sisters Laina and Jen came by yesterday and without them I don't think we would have gotten it all done. It was just a matter of needing a couple more hands. Over the course of the weekend we got all the rooms painted. A first coat of the trim done in the two rooms that were being sanded and polyurethane today.
I don't want to bore you with a bunch of before and after shots but let me know if you want them I can definitely forward those to you but here is what the finished rooms looked like in the order that we tackled them:
First we did the Living room since this is the biggest room and one of the rooms with hardwood floors since those are being done today.
Next we did my bedroom and I absolutely love the way this color came out and I can't wait to get my stuff in there and figure it out.
After that we decided to tackle the kitchen because the office is the only room without any pipes so we figured we would leave that until the end.
Here is the office/guest room. It is the most neutral of the colors since all the rooms lead into this one.
Finally this is my new bathroom. Once I have it decorated I know that this is going to look phenomenal. I still can't believe that I bought my own place.
I know that money is going to be tight for a bit until I figure things out and I am sorry if my social calendar winds down for a bit while I figure this out. Not to worry if you need a place to stay in Boston that is right off the T look no further. Once I am all moved in and settled not to worry I will send out another update. Just wanted to let you know it all seems to be working out.
I don't want to bore you with a bunch of before and after shots but let me know if you want them I can definitely forward those to you but here is what the finished rooms looked like in the order that we tackled them:
First we did the Living room since this is the biggest room and one of the rooms with hardwood floors since those are being done today.
Next we did my bedroom and I absolutely love the way this color came out and I can't wait to get my stuff in there and figure it out. 
After that we decided to tackle the kitchen because the office is the only room without any pipes so we figured we would leave that until the end.
Here is the office/guest room. It is the most neutral of the colors since all the rooms lead into this one. 
Finally this is my new bathroom. Once I have it decorated I know that this is going to look phenomenal. I still can't believe that I bought my own place. 
I know that money is going to be tight for a bit until I figure things out and I am sorry if my social calendar winds down for a bit while I figure this out. Not to worry if you need a place to stay in Boston that is right off the T look no further. Once I am all moved in and settled not to worry I will send out another update. Just wanted to let you know it all seems to be working out.
Wednesday, August 22
Rafting Trip
Ok so Andrew was nice enough to organize a rafting trip and we thought it was going to be white water rafting it was more like a nice 10 mile rafting excersion on mostly calm waters. Did that stop us from having fun. Hell no. We had water fights with other boats and we were able to get out and swim a few times. We stopped halfway and had lunch provided for us and here is our group photo:
You all know how not graceful I am so here I am trying to get back into the boat. I am trying to pull myself up and I see Deb snap a picture. I called her a not so nice name after it was taken. Oh well now I can laugh at it.
There was two boats and Gabe, Becca, Deb and I were in a raft with another Gabe. Little did we know that we ended up with the bitter, Racist rafting guide. I didn't know that this was possible but here is a picture of Racist Gabe falling into the water. We were all cheering when this happened we just were able to do it too much out loud.
Then after a day of rafting we all set up our tents and had a bit of a girl mishap. The mishap being it would never really heat up and the burgers that we enjoyed were slow cooked over a flame for two and a half hours. After we enjoyed our dinner and many drinks that were consumed it was also a weekend of meteor showers. So we all headed down to the parking lot where there was a good opening to be able to check it out and enjoy the show. We all had an absolute BLAST! I can't wait to go and do it again. Of course the next time I go I want some actual rapids. Oh well. You can't have it all.
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