Discover Downtown Lynchburg - it's not that far away

Hello. My name is Laura and I am from Virginia.

Let me re-phrase that: My name is Laura and I am from Northern Virginia. I know that those of you also from Northern Virginia intentionally make that distinction. However, after living in Lynchburg, aka "real Virginia", I prefer to call myself a Virginian without the geographical pre-fix.

Now, when it comes to Lynchburg, there is also a geographical distinction between "Liberty Lynchburg" and "downtown Lynchburg". I work at Liberty University which is a very new landmark for this 300+ year old town. Liberty has only been here for about 10% of the town's existence. My husband and I lived on the Liberty side of Lynchburg for the first two years of our marriage; close to Target, Walmart, Panera, and every other commercial necessity for a Northern Virginianer.

One day while parusing Craigslist, I stumbled up on a beautiful ranch style home that was built in the 1920s. Being obsessed with anything vintage and historical, I jumped on the chance and we moved in a week later. This house is only 4 miles away from our prevoius abode, yet it seemed to be a world away. We now sit about one mile from downtown Lynchburg and close to small businesses on nearly every corner. We still have the "necessities" of commercial fast food, but what a difference 4 miles can make!

Here is a snapshot of the fun one can have in downtown Lynchburg:

Saturday morning begins with the sound of windchimes and birds chirping. I wake up to see the church steeple of the West Baptist Church as it pokes through the hilly residential neighborhoods of Lynchburg. I kiss my husband goodbye as he heads off to work, then I start my own adventure of estate and antique shopping. A quick car ride to downtown Lynchburg later, I find myself in my normal parking lot that is jam packed with no vacancies. I drive one more block and use my mad parallel parking skills that were perfected on the streets of Washington DC.

I venture to my first antique store, Estate Specialists, where I snag some killer deals. I found the perfect $5 Mary Poppins hat that I plan to use for my newest Halloween costume, a $6 hand painted enamel ring, and a $3 "miscellaneous" bag with two brooches, huge earrings that I plan to use as tiebacks to my new curtains, and an old toy car for my husband. (total of $14)

My next stop was Hardwick's where I headed straight to the clearance section, one of my favorite destinations in any store. I find an adorable and very Southern pineapple candle. (The pineapple is the Southern symbol for hospitality). The woman was incrdibly helpful and brainstormed with me on what I can do for my new blue front porch and how to make it welcoming. She recommended a small table with stained glass or a large vase of flowers that can be brought inside if the wind picks up during one of Virginia's infamous summer storms. (total of $6)

I continued on my way to Scarlett's Main Street, one of my favorite antique and estate stores. The people who helped me were so excited to have a conversation about antiques, old coins, and old books. I found many great deals, including two beautiful $3 scarves (one for my mother and one for myself), a $10 stained glass scene that proclaims "California Perfume" that is reminiscent of my favorite artist Alfons Mucha, and I also bought two amazing $8 necklaces that can pass for modern and vintage in the same breath. (total of $33).

Any trip downtown must include a stop at the White Hart where I bought a delicious cup of organic coffee for $1.60.

All in all, my downtown soiree was a breath of fresh air from the commercial side of "Liberty Lynchburg". Small businesses rock.

is it me or..

..does there seem to be no shortage of multiple babies and little people on television?

..does it seem like makeover shows have been outrun by "real" housewives?

.. does the media's love affair with Obama seem to be going sour?

just a few things I've noticed.

Snow

I love snow when we are prepared with groceries :)

The last time it snowed almost two feet, we were planning to leave right after my shift at work to drive 3 hours north to our parents' houses. The road we take is full of hills and heavily wooded. 5 hours later, we were 10 minutes away from our halfway point and we were stopped by three jackknifed tractor trailers. We had to turn around and go back home, with cars in ditches and "manly" men showing off how cool their trucks are as they skid across the highway.

We arrived back home with an empty fridge and barren cupboards. Our plan was to be away for 10 days so we intentionally ate through everything we could prior to that. We survived on water, popcorn, and lots of canned food we forgot we had in the back of our cupboard. We made due and it turned out to be one of the greatest times I've ever had with my husband. :)

'tis the season I suppose.

New Opportunties!!

Hello Blog world! I come to you a new woman. Well, sort of :)

I have been experiencing a "holy discontent" in my job with LUO for quite some time. I loved my Director, loved my co-workers, but I knew I was being under utilized in my abilities.

Well, one October day when shopping at Target, I saw desk calendars in the $1 spot. I picked one up and said/thought to myself, "I'm going to use this calendar in my new job." I didn't know where or how soon or even how it would happen, but I had a peace that God would have be in a new place at the beginning of 2010. The next few days pass and our office admin assistant Emails everyone asking what kind of desk calendar they wanted. I did not reply because I knew I would not be needing one from that department.

A full month passes with nothing. I am feeling incredibly discouraged, but still walking in faith that I would not be in this position in 2010. Thanksgiving was a dark holiday because I knew I would have to go back to work again. (It was also a big ol' mess because I was gone on a recruiting trip on Saturday through Tuesday, had to drive back to work Wednesday, then had Thursday through Sunday off for the holiday. I drove 6 hours for a 6 hour work day. Needless to say, this did not contribute to my joy for the job.)

I applied for job after job with no responses that HR would allow me to pursue. (I did hear back from several positions but HR denied sending my application through to them because of various policies). 12 applications go by. In early December, I hear back about 3 opportunities in the same week. I interview for all three in the same week and I am called for a second round interview for 2 of them. God's hand moved and I got a job in a new department with better pay, better hours, and my own office. The Lord provided far beyond what I had been praying for initially. As soon as I started praying for God's will, He showed me what He was preparing.

So here I am today on January 28th in the 4th week of my new job in the Registrar's Office. I LOVE my new job! I wake up every morning refreshed and ready to tackle another day. I am constantly busy with something and I am a manager to 20 individuals who do a fantastic job at what they do.


If you look at my tweets and facebook statuses in the past year, you can see the progression from "okay God.. what are you doing?" to "when does this desert end!" then to "God is so good!!".

One underlying theme to all of this: "God knows what He is doing."

Drive Through Zoo

There is a fantastic drive through zoo here in Central Virginia. It is called Virginia Safari.

Check out my photos:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/lomasos/

The Green Workplace

I adore this blog. This article is great in particular.

The Green Workplace

Shared via AddThis

Are you Linked?

So, I need to confess something. I'm addicted to Facebook. It's such a brilliant invention for socially driven people like me who don't like talking on the phone! I have the chance to upload photos, share great websites, and have a running blog all at the same time. Although lately, it's turned into a breeding ground of false intimacy. People I am "Facebook friends" with aren't necessarily my best buds in real life, yet they may know some details about me that my parents don't even know.

Another almost funny part about Facebook is that employers have started to look at interviewees' profiles while they are answering questions like "Where do you see yourself in 5 years?". My boss is a perfect example of this. He will interview people, find a questionable photo, flip the computer around and say "well, this doesn't look like the same person."

Don't get me wrong, I am very protective of what I put on my profile. I don't have incriminating photos that would make my mother cry. I do however tend to use this platform as a stage to show high school classmates that I'm not the same person I was. But really, who doesn't do that?

Now that I'm all grown up and have my first cubicle (look how far I've come, baby!), I have moved into another rhelm of social networking: LinkedIn. I LOVE this website. I spent hours perfecting my profile with my resume, linking to former professors, current co-workers, and future employers.

If you're looking for that extra umph to your resume, create a profile on this website. It is a brilliant way to not only connect with people you already associate with, but to get their contacts and to further get your name and your skills to hundreds of new people every day.

Here is my page: http://www.linkedin.com/in/lrmills

Check it out! Connect with me. We'll have a grand ol' time.

Being sick while breaking a toenail: A surprisingly fun day!

Today was actually a very good day, besides feeling miserably sick and tripping up my stairs and breaking my left big toenail off.

Nilsa and Anderson came to visit us in Lynchburg! I took a full dosage of mucinex, tissues, my regular meds, and a bottle of water. I was ready to face the day. We had breakfast at the Blue Dahlia, which is a really nice place to have breakfast. We were there for at least 2 hours, just hanging out, talking, etc. I had tons of water, hot food, and tea which helped clear my clog.

We then showed them where Jon proposed!! (photo) We traveled to campus, dropped by the BN Bookstore for more tea and ventured to the Prayer Garden, Jerry's old office, and the eternal flame of Liberty. We traveled just nextdoor to the stadium to watch the football team scrimage. They were histerical, making loud ridiculous noises and hollars for every play. It was great!

Left campus to go up up up the hill to SNOWFLEX! (oooh, ahhhh). This place is really cool. I was highly skeptical during the planning and construction, but it really is a fun place to hang out. It has gorgeous views of the city, a great coffee shop (that gave me more hot water for my tea!), and its fun to sit on comfy couches surrounded by animal heads (photo) and falling skiiers. Wrapped things up with lunch at Vinny's, my favorite pizza place. All in all, a great way to spend the afternoon.

As I was walking up my stairs, I missed. I tripped and my flip flopped feet flew into the wooden stair. Broke my big toenail and immediately got into Ballet dancer mode. (I danced for 10 years, so I'm used to broken toenails and feet injuries). I didn't waste time as I immediately got my nail stuff, clipped my toenail, and bandaged the damage. It still looks gross, but I am glad to have recovered half of my nail. (no photo.)

We all continued the day watching Madea's Family Reuinion. I was dying with laughter and feeling sick, so I took more meds and laughed my congestion away. Or tried to. Finished the movie, then headed to the White Hart, which is a very fun coffee house downtown. Ate a very light dinner (I had apple cider and a muffin), and we parted ways.

I had so much fun spending time with Nilsa and Anderson, and I probably pushed myself too hard. I tried to sit and rest and drink lots of tea, but my body hates me right now.

Tomorrow, SLEEEP.

Favorite buying / selling websites

Just wanted to say hello :)

I like http://www.eBay.com, I really do. I have bought and sold about 157 things (at least according to my status). My favorite articles of clothing have been purchased via eBay, my best entrepreneurial opportunities have been seized on eBay, and it's just really fun to see what people buy and sell!

I also use http://www.half.com to purchase all of my textbooks. I save TONS of money, and then I sell them back. I usually spend about $30 a semester on books to buy then re-sell the books. Sometimes the books update to a new addition, but people are still willing to buy old versions for cheaper.

http://www.Etsy.com has turned into my new obsession. I love how creative people are! They have anything you can think of, and if they don't have what you want, there is a place on the site where you can request something to be made!! It's fantastic!

Go visit these website to save money, make money, and look fabulous.

Reclaiming my Bathtub, with the help of KABOOM!

Billy Mays brought us many spectacular products. The most popular of course being Oxyclean. Oxyclean boasted the cleansing power that surpassed the previous kings of clean, and it held true! Oxyclean flew off the shelves, due in part to the salesmanship of Billy Mays.

Well, he had another product called Kaboom. Boasting the same cleansing abilities but this time in one's bathroom. Toilets, showers, you name it! This product did quite well in sales as well.

Now what does this have to do with my bathtub? When Jonathan and I moved to our current duplex, the tub was not in the best condition. Here is a before picture:

I've always wanted to be able to take a soothing bubble bath after a rough day, but the tub freaked me out. We would clean it and clean it, but the color never changed. Clorox didn't do anything but make small scratches on the surface. After Shower cleaners kept the gunk from getting worse, but didn't make it better. My last try was Kaboom, and it delivered! I sprayed Kaboom, let it sit for about 2 minutes, then I used the rough side of a Scotch sponge to scrub and scrub and scrub all the gunk. It was disgusting, but very rewarding.

Check out the after photo:

This is only after 10 minutes of scrubbing. We are nowhere near done, but the worst is over. I'm looking forward to reclaiming my bathtub!!

Viva la Kaboom!!