Gift Card Madness

I think I already mentioned that Lance and I got 4 Home Depot gift cards for Christmas. Those will be used for practical things, except for maybe a houseplant, which is considered to be more frivolous. But my poinsettias (I have 2 now) need some company, and will doubtless end up in the compost heap within a few months (I am good with other houseplants, but have never been able to keep poinsettias alive for long).

We got a Sears gift card as well. Not sure whether to spend that practically or frivolously. I'm sure Lance has some idea what to do with it, seeing as how he keeps drooling whenever we're in the Craftsman section.

World Market - my mom sent this as a housewarming gift and insisted it is for frivolous stuff only. I am happy to oblige. I was ridiculously excited to get this gift card, particularly because my parents led me to believe that they were sending one from Home Depot (which would have made a Home Depot gift card total of 5). World Market is one of my favorite stores. I intend to get a couple of awesome picture frames and maybe some gourmet food with it.

Amazon.com - my older brother and his family sent this one to us...we get one from them every year. Oh, the damage I can do with this... I have so many things on my wishlist that it's hard to choose. And of course, I have to let Lance spend half of it. :P

***

I got another housewarming gift from my Aunt Sue a couple of days ago. She told me about it at Christmas, so I was expecting it.

There is a bit of backstory to this.

When I was in Ohio over the summer, I was up in Grandma's upstairs bedroom, which is rarely used (only when the house is full of people, generally at Thanksgiving). She has a bunch of old family photos lining the wall, including one of me, taken when I was probably 2 or 3. Sue photographed it, and it's an artsy portrait. I am wearing a cowboy hat and sitting Indian-style in a rocking chair with a book cradled in my arms (the book is Roots, as if I ever read it in my life, especially when I was that age), looking at the camera with a completely serious, wiser-than-my-years expression on my face. The photo is also in black and white.

I took the photo downstairs and asked Grandma if I could have it, or at least have Sue make a copy of it. The photo wasn't framed, and had gotten somewhat damaged over the years, getting spotted with something (a beverage of some sort, I'm thinking) and being slightly cracked and torn in spots. Sue said that it only added to its charm, and she would be happy to get the portrait matted for me.

And so, that is what she sent me. She got it professionally matted, with a space next to it for one of Lance's childhood photos. So now I have to find one of him to put alongside it. Sue offered to take any photo of his, as long as it was clear, and enlarge it and change it to black and white so it matches mine more closely.

Anyway, it looks really nice, and I'm really excited about it.

I have photos to upload from my camera later...a mishmash of things from my last days in Germany as well as Christmas photos. Must get to that later. Lance and I have to drive down to McChord. His truck has to undergo an exhaustive (no pun intended) amount of maintenance today (things he couldn't get done in Germany) and we have to do our grocery shopping.

By the way...

We applied for financing 2 nights ago for my car, and got it (more than twice what we needed, actually).

We made contact with the dealership...we're going through a USAA program where they give us the name of the dealer and dealership (much like the program we used to buy this house)...and we tell them what we want and we get it for $200 over invoice.

Yes, $200 over invoice.

Tomorrow we will drive up there to test drive a Mazda3 and make sure that's what we want, and then we'll confirm with the dealer and he'll see to getting a hold of my customized vehicle.

Hopefully I'll get it soon.

And a job as well. Hopefully soon. But obviously, I can't have a job without a car, and I can't afford the car without a job.

I think I will feel less tense once I have both.

***

I never thought I would say this, but hell, I'll say it...

I LOVE THE MCCHORD COMMISSARY!

Hated Schinnen, and I thought it ruined the commissary for me for good, but no...McChord is a million times more awesome. The groceries are incredibly cheap, and definitely worth driving 30 miles each way instead of shopping here in Kent. We got nearly twice as many groceries as what I bought last week for only a few dollars more than what I paid. The only scary thing was being stuck in bad traffic on the way home with frozen and refrigerated items. Will bring a cooler next time.

And the variety at the commissary...the selection...the good deli and bakery, the HUGE produce section...SEAFOOD! Fresh! Amazing. It's an embarrassment of riches.

Unfortunately, the huge crowds at the commissary today made me feel uncomfortable and rushed, so I didn't have a chance to actually take the grocery shopping slowly. I like to go slow when I'm someplace new so I can check out everything and see what they have to offer. I felt rushed, too, because we had already been at McChord for 5 hours...Lance was getting a lot of work done on the truck. We killed time by browsing around AAFES and bowling a couple of games at the bowling center.

When we got home from the commissary, Lance checked mail while I was putting away the groceries. Apparently, his great uncle, who lives in nearby Maple Valley, stopped by for a visit, only to find nobody at home. So he left a note in the mailbox. Lance needs to call him back and give him our number so he can call us before he tries to visit again.