Lead Feet

I think Dave and I are cursed somehow! Not only does someone ALWAYS sit directly next to, in front of or behind us in an empty theater (complete with loud popcorn chewing and kicking of the seats); but we also have a talent for finding the noisiest people in town and renting an apartment directly below them! Now, we love our apartment...the lake, the neighborhood, the large bathroom; my friend even said it feels like a resort. However, the upstairs neighbors couldn't possibly make more noise! As I sit here now at 6am, they are awake and walking around with lead weights strapped to their ankles! I have never heard someone walk that much either!!! They are constantly pacing, wondering, galloping, annoying... And it seems they never sleep! They awake at 5:30 like I do, but they don't quiet down until well into the night. In fact last night, I awoke to use the restroom only to find that Dave was gone!!!! He walked in before I has a chance to panic and told me he banged on their door upstairs and they never answered! This is all after we complained to the office and they gave them a letter. Oh, and I say "they" because we have yet to confirm the sex of the occupant as well as if there is more then one. All evidance suggests that it is actually just one lady, but we have a hard time believing that one person could make such a racket! Anyway, thanks for listening to me vent! We will be taking another trip to the office to complain today! Ahhh, the joys of apartment living....

Disney Photos

We finally received our "Disney Photo Pass" cd in the mail! We were very excited, because while we were at the parks there were a lot of photo oppurtunites that we only had the professionals take pictures of, such as almost all our character photos (Minnie, Mickey, Pluto, etc). So, without this cd, we wouldn't have some of the best pictures from our trip! Although, the cd was a little pricey, we felt it was well worth it! Hopefully, later today I'll get them on Walgreens.com so you can see all of them! Of course the highlight for me was kissing R-2! I tried to download some of them to the blog, but the files are way too big! So, keep your eye out for an e-mail telling you how to view them! Unless, that is...you are already sick of the hundreds of photos we are sharing!!! he, he, he.

It's Official

As of 2 days ago, I am officially...Laura Clare Koch! I received my new social security card in the mail! So although I had changed some of my credit cards, bank information, etc, it didn't feel official until that moment. I was also then able to change my name at work, which I did yesterday! It feels weird to give up my old name, but I am proud to take on my new name! I'm sure I'll keep finding new places I need to change my name with for a long time, but for now the important ones are done! Sorry Yvonne - I can't figure out how to change it on Walgreens.com; so it'll still say Wachowiak when you pick up pics from us. No giving me a hard time!!! :) ha, ha
Anyway, I thought it was a pretty significant moment in my life, so I thought I'd share! Hope everyone has a good day!

Back to Reality

Dave went back to work on Monday and I returned on Tuesday! Although, we both really enjoy our jobs, it was hard to go back. Lucky for Dave his second day back was a half day and his third day was the Fourth, so he had off. I unfortunately had a 12 hour day my first day and had a hell of a time getting through it. I know...cry me a river...we had 3 weeks off! In any case, it was kinda a shock for us both to get back to reality. One thing that made it easier for me is that I am being trained in a new area!!! The primate department has 6 different rotations/beats/sections (whatever you want to call them). Since, I have only worked there a couple months, I only was trained in one section thus far (Tamarins, Lemurs and Howlers). Now, I am learning a section that has a Mandrill (soon to have 2 more), Debrazza's Guenons, Siamangs and an Agile Gibbon! I have never worked with these species before, so it is very fun and a great learning experience! These particular species are of higher intelligence than the ones I was working with, so I really have to be on my toes. The Mandrill, "Jesse", for example, will reach her hand out the cage and check your locks when you shift her into a new cage. Cute, unless you didn't lock the cage properly!!! She also knows how to open and close shift doors, so everything has to padlocked and checked and then checked again before you enter a cage or shift her! Anyway, I'm having a blast learning the new section and am excited to have more variety in my week, since I will still work the other area as well!
It seems like we have been non-stop busy catching up with everyone since we got back! We went to Dana and Ruben's house last night for some pizza and a movie! We watched Crank, which was odd to say the least. It was entertaining enough to watch the whole thing, but I don't think any of us would watch it again. It had some very unique camera angles and effects, but it had no real point and you never cared about the characters. The important part, is that we had fun...good company and good food. Right now, Dave is at a 311 concert and I had some friends over. Tomorrow is Dave's birthday and while he is at work, I will be relaxing on the beach with friends. Doesn't seem fair, does it? Tomorrow night I have something planned for Dave's birthday, but of course cannot tell you because it is a surprise. Then next weekend we have a wedding to attend. And I am sure that there is a lot more going on that I can't think of right now. So, until next time...goodnight!