"A wise man will make more opportunity than he finds."

I have had this quote at the top of my blog since I started (how many years ago now!). I saw myself as making the opportunity to go to Georgetown. I didn't realize how much I would come to believe it. How much I would come to believe how much we really DO have power over our circumstances. We set the stage for our own success and failures. And even mediocrity.

Clearly there are many things out of our control. Other people, sickness, the economy to name just few. Bad things do happen to good people. But I keep thinking of that quote I posted a few weeks ago: he who will not economize will agonize. That's me! I am not super good at economizing but I am good at agonizing! I am not set to go broke soon or anything, but I definitely feel like there are days when I buy things I didn't really mean too. Especially when I go back and look at receipts after a few weeks (hindsight being 20/10). Did I really spend $30 going out to eat on a Monday? and that restaurant was lame and carb intensive. Clearly I am not good at economizing with food or money. Hmm.

I guess what I am trying to describe is this: separate from illness and acts of God, if I am unhappy with how my life is going (which I currently am a bit frustrated with since I haven't really done all I could do to pursue my dreams) I need figure out how I am going to change it. Because I am the one who put myself here: in this city, in this job, in this apartment, in this debt, with these friends. Me. I chose it. And God has blessed it (see "with these friends" and "in this apartment" and even "in this city").

Kitchen knives in purses and other stupidities

I have been having a wonderful birthday. I appreciating being 28, a transition between years which is relatively easy, not a completely major adjustment. I am still young (despite the comments of a few irritating co-workers) and have a lot of time ahead to explore.

Mom flew in on Tuesday afternoon just in time for a birthday dinner. I had jokingly told Merissa and Mari I wanted Popeyes for dinner and they went overboard and took me to Nora. I admit a small group fried chicken dinner isn't exactly out of the ordinary, but Restaurant Nora maybe overboard!

For those of you familiar with Merissa's goings-ons, I will say her recent troubles make me realize what brilliant lawyer I could be if I just had the patience and the desire to sacrifice my life to argument. Doing research on a subject quickly (1-2 day period) and doing it every day is another story.

Alright, down to the headline story. Yes, I commited a complete betise and put a kitchen knife in my purse. Merissa gave it to me for my birthday Tuesday night. So when I decided to make this fabulous wild rice salad I wanted to use the new Santoku knife. Mom and I went grocery shopping nuts. Food for the century except focused on perishables (yeah fruit and veggies!). But in line to pay I reach into my purse for my Safeway card, totally forgetting the knife.

I tried to downplay how deep I thought it might be. After all, I was in a Safeway in DC. I didn't exactly want to admit I carried a big kitchen knife in my purse because I am a complete idiot. Nobody freaked out, but I did get tons of free bandaids from the store manager, who now knows who I am and thinks I am a dufus but NOT potentially homicidal (which is good, because that is the best grocery store in DC!). I kept asking the manager, really pleasantly and jokingly, for gauze or something. He kept offering bandaids or alcohol wipes. Finally we managed paper towels.

Another adventure with Malia. Good times.