Dear Diary,

It is Friday and we are headed into the weekend. I have been exchanging e-mails and phone calls with my sis and stepmom. I want to get an idea of where they want to go and if there is anything specific they want to see. Dad and Suzette don’t get until tomorrow, and I think we are headed to North Beach for dinner.

Tonight, with Shannon and Danny…I don’t know what to do. I think the Redwood Bar would be great for drinks, it is in the Clift Hotel. However, I am torn on whether or not we should do something tourist-y…or something funky for locals.

I tried getting a reservation but I think waiting til the last minute was not a good idea. 

We can just play it by ear. Jeff will be down by the Embarcadero, and he has to work late. So, we can probably just meet somewhere down there. That is the perfect area for out of town guests.

Hopefully, I can rally tonight. I am feeling wiped. I didn’t sleep well last night…maybe it is the anticipation for the weekend.

Talk to you tomorrow,

Dear Diary ,

It is Friday eve, this week went by fast. I wish every week was a four-day week. That would be dope. 

Jeff didn’t get home until late last night. In his line of work, financial guys have a lot of work at the end of the month. All that stuff having to do with analyzing, forecasting, etc…it comes to a head at the end of the month. So, I don’t always count on him for dinner. Which stinks because I don’t cook, Jeff does. So, on those nights it is usually just the Lean Cuisine and me.

My sister called yesterday to chat about what she should pack for the weekend. She is in L.A., which is much warmer than here. I told her not to lug a jacket. If she needs something she can borrow it.

I also hit the grocery store. I detest grocery shopping, but since it is my family I thought I should at least have some good snacks and beverages available. Shannon and I are both cheese freaks, so I got a variety. However, we must have the garlic Triscuits to accompany. I talk about food a lot.

I am looking forward to this weekend. I can’t decide where to take everyone, there are so many fabulous options.

Talk to you tomorrow,

Dear Diary,

I was awaiting a very important phone call this morning. Jeff’s dad was admitted to the hospital yesterday. He had chest pains and they didn’t want to take any chances. He spent the night there and they monitored him all night. Early this morning, they did the procedure where they inject fluid and a camera, and check the blood flow.

After the test, they put in two splints and everything should be okay. I guess the key is being on top of it. There are other members in Jeff’s family who have had heart attacks; his grandfather, his aunt and an uncle. Now, with his dad going through this I told Jeff it is very important to be in tune with you body. If you have a family history, you have to keep yourself in check.

That is why I started getting mammograms at 30. I don’t have to have another until I am 35. My mother, her mother and an aunt in my family have all had breast cancer. I am also bugging my sister to get one. I am not sure if she ever has.

I am so relieved for Jeff. Ironically, it was during a run with our dog that the chest pains were discovered. Jeff’s dad was running Buster. They are watching him while we get settled. If hadn’t been running, it might not have been discovered as soon. Now that definitely shows how everything happens for a reason.

Talk to you tomorrow,

Dear Diary,

This weekend was fantastic, and such a blessing. The third day really came in handy. We finished up the apartment on Friday. Everything now has a place. It felt so good to walk through the hall and have it all organized.

On Saturday, we headed out to the Altamont Raceway. We had such a blast. All four of us got to race on the track; myself, Eddie, Jeff and Tim. It was such a rush. Then we watched the races, it was great. I can’t wait to go back to another race. Kathy was so nice and she said I could come out to the Antioch track and race her car on the dirt track.

After the races, we headed over to Eddie’s house. We grilled out with his friends Chris and Lauren. We played pool. It was such a relaxing night.

Sunday and Monday, we did some touching up around the apartment. We did a little painting. Jeff fixed the towel bar. Now, I feel like we are completely ready for guests. Sunday night, we took it easy and watched movies…three in a row and now we are all caught up on Netflix.

It’s the little things.

Talk to you tomorrow,

Dear Diary,

It is Friday at last and we are headed into a 3-day weekend. I still have this sickness funk. It is flat-out lingering. Hopefully, it will have passed by next week when the family gets in town. I don’t think it is helping my relationship with Jeff. I was trying to wrap up the organization of the apartment. It still has stuff everywhere, and I asked Jeff for a little assistance and I got such a face from him.

That turned into an argument for the rest of the evening. That’s nice, not exactly how I wanted to spend my night. I don’t feel as bad, turns out Ken and Charlene got in a fight. Also, Nikki and Michael did too. The planets must be in Mercury Retrograde.

I desperately just want the apartment to be done. We have people who want to come in town, and I don’t want to think about it anymore. I like my house to be a place of relaxation and a sanctuary. 

We kind of went to bed mad, which I don’t like. But sometimes I feel more like his mother than his wife. That is not a turn on. I am sure we will work it out tonight.

Talk to you tomorrow,

Dear Diary,

I went with Eddie to look at an apartment today. With gas prices the way they are, he wants to move closer to the station. I don’t blame him. It was a great place, very cute and perfect for one person.

We are trying to make our lives as easy as possible in our new apartment. We live on the 11th floor and I guess someone else on the floor had their dog in the hallway. The dog made a big mess, going to the bathroom all over the carpet. No one is owning up to it and now we are getting dirty looks since we are the new ones.

I was in the elevator and someone on the 6th floor asked who I was. When I said the newbies on the11th floor, he asked how big my dog was. When I explained it was a Chihuahua, he said it would have been impossible for that small of a dog to create that big of a mess. Then he asked if we had another dog…wow, does anyone like us in the building?

I am totally minding my p’s and q’s with these tenants.

Talk to you tomorrow,

Dear Diary,

This week is flying by. It is already Wednesday and we are heading into the weekend. Ken is heading off to see his kids, so he will be missing out on a fun Saturday. Eddie, Jeff and I are headed out to Altamont Motorsports Park. It is going to be a blast. Eddie will get to wave the flag at the start of the race. I get to be a part of the trophy presentation. I have to say, one thing I would love to do is drive a race-car around the track. How fun would that be?

I talked to my dad today. He is coming in town next week and there are a couple of dinners he will be attending with my step-mom. One of his students is getting a writing award and he was calling to see if I would want to attend. Of course, I would. One of the dinners is at the Cliff House. I have always wanted to go there. Plus, I am excited to watch this writing award extravaganza.

He and his wife spent their honeymoon in San Francisco and they went to Calistoga Springs. We are talking about the group of us all going, along with my sister and her boyfriend. I love the sound of a mud bath, talk about deep cleansing.

In the meantime, we are on the homestretch in getting the apartment ready. There are definite walkways now and the 2nd bedroom almost sleepable.

Talk to you tomorrow,

Dear Diary,

It is Friday, my favorite day of the week. I found this fantastic consignment shop where I can the pieces of furniture we just don’t have room for. We stopped in there on Saturday and the woman who works there is so sweet. Her name is Phyllis and she said all we need to do is e-mail some photos of what we need to sell and she would give us an estimate.

Those estimates came in today and I am very pleased. I have been debating on whether or not to get rid of this stuff. It was my mom’s and has more sentimental value for me. But their pricing is very fair and I truly appreciate the integrity of the store. I am completely comfortable bringing things there.

Eddie came over and got me over my decorating road-block. Jeff and I have gotten most of our walls done, but there are a few things I still want to hang…I just can’t figure out where to put them without overwhelming the vibe. Eddie has such a great eye, he had the place organized and coordinated in no time.

We are only a couple of weeks out from our first visitors to the new apartment. We have hit crunch time.

Talk to you tomorrow,