Last night when Mike and I got home from dinner, there were two somewhat manic messages from Dana on my voicemail. The first said "Call me, CALL ME when you get home!! I don't care how late it is!" Her tone of voice was such that I knew this wasn't a bad news call. The second message said "Oh, okay, you're still not home so I'll just tell you I'm engaged!!!!!!" A little while later, Dana and Tom knocked on my door with a bottle of champagne and there was much squealing and laughter as I hugged them both. The four of us toasted their love, and shared the bottle as they told us how he proposed, etc. Good news, indeed. And it couldn't happen to two more deserving people. I've only known Dana a couple of years, but she's become my rock, the person I turn to with the hard stuff, the bad stuff, the good stuff. She's seen me through some tough times, and I appreciate her friendship so much. And Tom's wonderful, too. He's such a caring guy, and he'll do anything for a friend. He's been a big help to me, providing the male perspective as I navigated the murky dating waters these past months. I've got to say, it couldn't happen to two better people. Congratulations, Tom and Dana!

So, you want the whole story? It's fairly straightforward, really. Girl puts up personal ad. Boy puts up personal ad. Boy "winks" at Girl. Girl ignores "wink" for several weeks because she has her hands full with other boys who have sent her e*mails. A month later Girl's situation has calmed down significantly and she sorts through her "winks" and sees Boy. "Ooh," thinks Girl. Girl e*mails Boy, asking "Better late than never?" E*mails fly, IMs are exchanged, webcams are activated. Girl is intrigued, invites Boy for coffee one night (October 2, as Dana helpfully reminded Girl last night). Coffee is drunk, Thai food is consumed, talk is talked, and talked, and talked. The next night, Girl and Boy bashfully admit to wanting to see each other again...NOW. Apart from two nights last weekend when Girl was camping with her Parentals and their Dogs, they have not really spent an evening apart. Girl and Boy discuss at length "moving too fast", "rebound relationships", "throwing caution to the wind", and "absence...heart...fonder" but agree that some things just can't be navigated with a map and compass and rule book. Girl and Boy agree early on to "see where this goes" but quickly realize it's moving fast, furious, and out of their control.

And so, Girl and Boy join hands and decide to enjoy the ride.

Something fairly rare happened last night..I went mental. Completely, absolutely, off-the-deep-end batshit.

I left work at the (relatively) customary hour of 5:45 p.m., and entered traffic to travel down the hill to Belltown and an appointment I was meant to keep at 6:20 p.m. It took me forty-five minutes to get there. FORTY-FIVE-FUCKING minutes to travel what Expedia Maps tells me is 2.2 miles (and should be accomplished in five minutes). At some point in the journey I accidentally listened to several minutes of the Tom Leykis show (I surfed into a diatribe that began "All women are gold diggers...." and was transfixed like a rubbernecker cruising a ten-car pileup) and the rage factor went up by a power of at least ten. God, I hate that idiot. And the car next to me was emitting so much bass that my truck was literally shaking and I started muttering phrases that began "Damn kids today..." making me feel not only mental, but crotchety as well. It was not the most pleasant trip. Actually, by the time I made it to my appointment (late) and drove another half hour back the other direction to Issaquah (and Mike's place) I was ready to throat-punch someone. Really, truly, I was out of my mind and it was really not the most pleasant sensation. Luckily, an understanding boyfriend-type person, the guzzling of a Mike's Hard Lemonade, and the good company of two new friends had me back on fairly even keel an hour or so later, but I was worried there for a while. I could have easily perpetrated violence on a person, the right person, had said unfortunate soul been within arm's length at precisely the wrong time.

The above road rage bit is actually kind of surprising, because I have been happier these past two weeks than I can ever remember. Ever. My absence around these parts is also explained by this happiness...I'm lost in the unreality that is the start of a new, promising, and utterly fulfilling new relationship. And that's all I've got to say about that, for now.

Normal (relative term) service ought to be restored sometime in the next few weeks...please stand by.

It was pointed out to me that I've been silent these past few days, and that I ought not leave that last heart attack entry hanging out there for days and days with no update. Thank you for your concern, dear friend, but I assure you I am alive and well, or at least middling. I hab a code in by nose. *snif*

I spent the weekend pretending to take it easy and getting well, but somehow managed to fit in renting a Halloween costume from a local vintage costumer, afternoon coffee with an online personals neophyte friend of mine who was having cold feet, a short but entertaining visit to Hugo House for the Inquiry on Saturday night with David (where I got to watch Dunsany moderate a panel discussion on video game violence, but where I did not get to meet Matthew Baldwin of Defective Yeti), and spent Sunday at the Seattle Home Show (Megan, it wasn't near as cool as yours!) with Mike of Icarus World, someone I met (via match.com) for the first time last Thursday and have become very fond of in a very short time.

Dana and Tom gave me the coolest calendar last night...entitled London: London's Transport Museum...the description reads: Representing some of the finest examples of twentieth century graphic art, this collection of transport posters was commissioned by London Underground to promote their services, c. 1920s-1950s. I have the best friends. *grin*

My jobshare partner is on holiday in Italy for the next three weeks, so I'm doing the office gig Monday through Friday like a normal person until the last week of October. Or as close to normal as someone like me can approximate. Yesterday was manic, crazy-busy, and I was sickly...today can only be better, right? Right?

I feel a bit silly. Only in retrospect, though. Earlier, I thought I was dying. Or in serious trouble, in any case. I woke up at five and wasn't able to get back to sleep, for feeling sick, so I got up and took some cold medicine and a swig of codiene cough syrup in an effort to go back to sleep. An hour later, I thought I was having a heart attack, no joke. Serious, stabbing, unrelenting pain in my chest, on the left side, not quite over the heart area, but in the near vicinity. This went on for about half an hour, and with each passing minute various thoughts tumbled through my head. Thoughts like:

° People who have heart attacks under age 35 usually don't survive.
° I'm alone, here. If I kick it, no one's going to know for days, until the smell wafts out into the hallway.
° I could call someone, but pretty much everyone I know lives fairly far away, and by the time they got here, the pain would be gone₁.
° I could call an ambulance, but by the time they got here, the pain would be gone₁.
° Oh Jesus, please, not like Zoe.

After thirty minutes of this, I decided I'd had enough and needed some help, so I (yes, I know) drove my weepy, hurting self down to the emergency room, where I became "female, thirty, chest pain" and was made to register with the nice lady in admissions before they took me in the back and worked me up. My blood pressure was something like 145/94 (normal for me is around 110/65) but aside from the crushing pain, all else was found to be unremarkable. Chest X-ray and EKG tracing came back normal. After about an hour, the pain was pretty well gone, or at least not so severe, and I was able to nap for a while until the lab tests came back. They also showed normal values, and so although no root cause of the pain was found, the tentative (read: guess) diagnosis was gastroenteritis/reflux (despite the lack of any sort of digestive upset or symptoms) and I was sent home.

So that was my bit of excitement this morning. Now sat at home watching crap daytime television and forcing fluids. Speaking of television...

Random Beth Trivia: I can't watch Golden Girls, not since an ex-boyfriend told me that he and his former girlfriend used to come home from work every afternoon, turn on Bea Arthur and Co., and enjoy a little "afternoon delight." *shudder*

₁ In much the same way that the moment you drive your car to the mechanic, suddenly "that noise" disappears.

I really loathe coming up with titles....

I got sick yesterday. One of those sicks that hits you like a ton of bricks, heralded only by a slight itch of the nose a couple hours prior to the unleashing of the bricks. Unfortunately, I was at work at the time, but fortunately, was able to sneak out a couple hours early and go home and drug myself up a bit before heading down to sign the lease on the new apartment.

Oh, didn't I mention that? Well, my lease is up at end of month, and I was kind of half-assedly pondering what to do about that when I came across one of those too-good-to-be-true deals (via the blogosphere, no less!) and a week later, I'm signed on to rent a two-bedroom, 1100 square foot mother-in-law daylight basement apartment near Pill Hill. Suh-weet.

However, having travelled for much of the past couple years, and living in a studio apartment the past near-year, things are a bit barren 'round here. I'm going to have to get some furniture. Ikea, here I come.

So, aside from the apartment news, not a terrible amount if immediate news to report. I happened to hear that David Bowie tickets were going on sale last weekend, and so was able to score two excellent tickets. Concert's not until January, but always nice to have things to look forward to.

That same day I spent six hours in a homebuyers' seminar, learning all about the real estate business, how to go about finding and purchasing a home, and the various loans available to a young(ish) single first-time(ish) homebuyer. My timeframe for buying is about six months to a year...I'm in phase one, that being going over my credit report and making sure everything is correct and in order (it is, for the most part, and I'm happy to see that my credit score has gone up quite a bit in the two years since I last ran a credit check on myself). Phase two will involve going to visit various mortgage lenders to see who can cut the best deal at the best rate. Apparently, it's a good time to buy. I like the idea of getting pre-approved for a certain amount of money, and with that headache out of the way, taking my time to choose the right home.

If you're looking for something to do this weekend, may I suggest the Richard Hugo House's Sixth Annual Inquiry, entitled "Games." In lieu of trying to explain what an Annual Inquiry is (I'm still wrapping my mind around it), I'll just quote from their website: "Each fall Richard Hugo House hosts a weekend symposium focusing on a significant cultural question that arises in art, politics and the media. We invite writers, artists, scholars, community activists and neighborhood residents to come together around a theme, creating a new forum for civic debate around the roles of art and community in effecting neighborhood change. Throughout the year the theme infuses all Hugo House programming. The theme for the 2003 Annual Inquiry is Games." So, go play.

I think I'm going to go test drive a Mini this weekend if I'm feeling better. Little yellow beastie, anyone?

For today I'm sat on the couch watching DVDs...currently About a Boy, recently sent to me by a person who noticed I have an Amazon Wishlist on my site (Hint: a little lower and to the left) and knows I've been going through some rough stuff not able to be mentioned here on the site. A nice gesture, and much appreciated.

Bad habits update: Twenty-six days smoke free (except that one...). Two weeks of eating right and down four+ lbs, feeling good (aside from the cold, of course). Mental status holding steady(ish).

I didn't know how to title this, and now I don't know how to end it, so I just...will.