What I'm Doing

Tuesday, February 19, 2008

Buying a House, Part I

With the wedding, honeymoon, and being sick out of the way, Kristen and I are ready for our next big adventure: buying a house.

Currently, we're living in the apartment I moved into back in November. At the time, I was already planning on getting a house as soon as possible (at least partly to take advantage of the current "buyer's market"), so I only signed for a 6-month lease. This means that I need to have a house by May (I could, of course, renew my lease for another 6 months, or pay an extra $100 monthly, but I don't want to do either of those). So, with less than 3 months to go, Kristen and I decided to call up a friend of mine from our old church who happens to be a realtor, and get started looking for a house.

We met with Eric (our realtor friend) at a local Chick-Fil-A this past Saturday, and he went over a "first-home buyer's" brochure he had put together with us. We also caught up with each other a little, since I hadn't seen him in some time.

After the meeting, both of us were very excited. I can't wait to get out looking, and I know that Eric is a realtor that not only has the experience to be able to help us, but is also trustworthy.

Of course, before we can get out looking at homes, we have to figure out what we can afford. To that end, Eric gave us a card for a lender that he knows, so that we can get pre-approved for a loan. I gave him a call yesterday, but I got an answering machine. Of course, if I'm enjoying a holiday, the banks are, too. So, hopefully, we'll hear back from him today, or I'll try calling him again this afternoon.

I really want to get this show on the road. God-willing, by May, I will own a home. Which means I'll be able to vote! Wait...

Wednesday, February 13, 2008

The Common Cup

At one point during the Orthodox wedding ceremony, the bride and groom drink from a common cup. This is not the Chalice of Communion; it is simply a cup of wine (at our parish, we have wine imported from Cana of Galilee). However, it, like everything else, carries symbolic meaning. The most obvious meaning is that of the bride and groom sharing of one life together, and all that brings.

One interpretation of this that I have come across goes, "Your joys will be doubled, and your sorrows halved, because they are shared."

I've thought about this some since being sick last week. As I said in my last post, I think I had the flu, and it put me out of commission for a few days. During those few days, I was even more grateful for my wife than usual! She took care of me, made sure I ate enough, let me rest, and so on. As I started feeling better, she got sick, and I got to return the favor. I hope I took care of her as well as she took care of me.

I found, last week, that there is certainly something to having a spouse that can take care of you when you're sick. You don't get lonely laying around at home, for one thing. For another, of course, you can relax; you don't have to fix your own meals, which, when all you feel like you can do is sleep is a great blessing. In some ways, it's like being a child again and having your parents take care of you (except, of course, that you're an adult, and your relationship with your spouse is different from your relationship with your parents).

Yeah, this isn't terribly profound, or even well-written, but last week, in a perhaps small way, I think I began to really understand the interpretation quoted above of the common cup. Thank God for my wife!

Friday, February 08, 2008

Down Time

I had some enforced down time this week. In other words, I got sick. I think it was the flu, but all I know for sure was I was out of commission for a few days. I'm still not entirely over it—I've got a nasty cough, and my mind feels a bit muddled and tired—but at least I'm back at work, trying to catch up on everything I missed.

Dr. Q, apparently, had the flu, too, and chronicled his misadventures with DayQuil. All I can say is that I wish DayQuil worked the same for me. It is helping with the coughing and stuff, but, even despite getting 8 hours of sleep last night (with the exception of the alarm in the restaurant behind our apartment going off at 2am—again), I feel like the only thing I want in the world is a nap.

On the upside, I began reading A Commentary on the Divine Liturgy by Nicholas Cabasilas. I'm totally digging this book. It's helping me to better understand what is going on in the Liturgy, and giving me a deeper appreciation for it. I hope I can get the book finished by Sunday.