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Phoenix Wedding Celebration

What a great weekend! Chris's parents came to visit us in Phoenix for the first time. It was really cool to have them see the house, show them a little bit of the city, and just hang out. Friday night we cooked a fabulous steak dinner and drank some really good wine.

On Saturday, my parents came into town as well. Chris cooked a big breakfast for all of us. Then the guys worked on a plugged sink and a unbalance dishwasher while the ladies went grocery shopping.

Saturday night we had the Phoenix wedding celebration. (Yes, this is the wedding celebration that never ends.) This party was much more laid back than the event in Texas. We grilled out some hamburgers, drank some beer, and just hung out at the house. I loved that our parents go to meet so many of our friends and enjoy them so much. I loved having so many of my friends over - the house was packed! We think it was close to 50 people. It was a great celebration and we're blessed to know so many great people. The only regret is I didn't take any pictures! I was too busy having fun, which in my opinion, is a great excuse.

Sunday we got to enjoy breakfast with the family at Taggia in the FireSky Resort, where the family stayed. After breakfast but before Chris's parents headed back to the airport, we all hung out. We're very lucky that our parents enjoy each other! Then we spent the afternoon in the pool with my parents. FireSky is a nice little resort.

The weekend ended with a Sunday afternoon/evening nap and a movie, In the Valley of Elah. I had a great, great weekend.

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Transportation

On Monday, I filled up my car, a Honda Civic, with gas. It cost about $43.00. "Wow," I thought. But at $4.09 a gallon, it gets expensive really quickly. I'm thankful to have a small car that is pretty fuel efficient, because as we all know, it could be worse.

The gas prices aren't hurting me as much as it's hurting others. However, some of it has to do with the lifestyle changes I've made. Since I started the new job in April, I've been riding public transportation and carpooling with a coworker. These things have made a huge impact on how much gas I use.

They've made such a big impact that I couldn't remember the last time I filled up with gas. A quick look at the bank account indicates the last time I bought gas was on May 19. That means I almost went a whole month on one tank!

I've decided to do a little math about my transportation costs. This probably isn't interesting to anyone except me and Chris. MilesPerGallon.com helped me calculate my price per gallon ($.13).

Bus - $2.50
Car through town (28 miles) - $3.64
Car on highway (44 miles) - $5.72

When I drive by myself, I typically take the "through town" route. When I carpool, we take the highway because we get the benefit of driving in the HOV lane and missing all the traffic. I didn't realize there was such a discrepancy in the distance therefore the cost.

Time is definitely a part of the equation as well.

Bus - one hour
Car through town - 35 minutes
Car on highway (with carpool partner) - 25 minutes

While the bus takes considerably longer, I like the fact that I can read. Getting to dedicate two hours to reading is pretty wonderful. (Getting all the books for free at the library is even more wonderful!)

Parents' Vacation Update

Mom and Dad are on vacation. With all the Internet cafes around the world, my sisters and I occasionally get updates. Today's update was awesome.

We're spending the afternoon in Salerno, walking around, seeing sights. The cruise is going great, but we only came in 3rd in the dance contest last night. Personally, I think they favored the Italians and we should have come in Second.

I can't wait to hear the full story about the dance contest!

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Sick

I'm sick. It sucks. I must have caught a stomach flu. Yesterday morning before work, my stomach was in all sorts of knots. After breakfast I felt a bit better. Later in the afternoon I started getting a backache. It progressed to chills and I decided to head home. When I finally got home, I was freezing despite it being 77 degrees inside and I was under three blankets. I immediately fell asleep for a couple hours. Last night I just laid around and took it slow. Today I'm not much better. I've got a lot of stomach cramping but the body aches aren't as bad as yesterday. I sure hope this passes quickly and I get back to normal. Health is so much better than sickness and something I definitely take forgranted.

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Talking in the Elevator

The new job is going well. I really like the clients and the work I get to do with them. I enjoy working in downtown and riding the bus to work a couple days a week. However, this is something I'm unsure of.

It's the elevator. My office in on the 10th floor of the building so I ride the elevator. It's not a big deal except that sometimes people in the elevator want to talk. I am NOT one of these people. I'm uncomfortable sharing such a small space with total strangers. Plus, I'm bad at small talk and it's always small talk.

I wish I could take the stairs just to avoid these awkward conversations, but the stairs are for emergencies only and are locked. I guess I'd better find the elevator-talking mindset so I can come up with appropriate responses. I think elevator meditation is in my future.

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Proud of my Little Corner of the Internet

I've always been proud of my blog. It's mine...all mine. But now I have something else on the Internet to be proud of. I'm really, really proud of ReadPhoenix.com. As of today, ReadPhoenix has 168 blogs listed. Some are personal, some professional, some company blogs, but all of them are related to Phoenix. This number has exceeded my expectations and definitely makes me proud of it. I feel like I filled a need. I hope I'm bringing the community together.

Of course none of this would be possible without the awesome coding & design skills of the Integrum team. They were able to quickly turn my dream into reality. They turned it into something that lots of people use! It's a testament to Integrum's investment in the Phoenix community that they would do this project. Thank you, Integrum!

A couple weekends ago, Chris and I went to a party. While there, a woman I hadn't met before recognized my name and said she was on my site. I immediately thought about EricaLucci.com and was confused. Then she explained she had recently added her blog to ReadPhoenix and that it was her favorite site of recent. I was so flattered and excited! I'm glad a little site like ReadPhoenix could make other people happy. I'm very proud of it.

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Job Change

Friday, March 28th was my last day working at Integrum Technologies. It was just a little over a year ago that I started working there as a project manager.

There is a time and place for everything and it's now my time to leave. I'm moving to a slightly larger company of 70 people. The office is in downtown Phoenix, which will be an improved commute for me. My role will be "Client Services Project Manager" which is a fantastic fit considering my previous experience. Plus, the company focuses in an area that I've been interested in since graduate school. For the time-being the employer will remain unnamed on my site, but it's not a secret. I'm happy to share in a non-Google-able forum. Drop me an email or instant message me.

Making the decision to leave Integrum was very hard. Integrum is like a family to me. Every single person there is someone I hold in high regard due to their skill, creativity, and personality. I know our friendships will change now that we're not going to see each other five days a week, but they'll never go away. These are people who have challenged me and taught me and cared for me. Never before have I made these kinds of friendships with coworkers but through this experience I hope to always make these kinds of connections.

Working at Integrum gave me so many things, but the most important thing it gave me was perspective. The environment helped me realize that really, really good work can be done in a really, really, really fun space. It helped me redefine work and my new definition will always include fun.

Work is about people and relationships - both with coworkers and clients and even your competition. It's about doing your best while you're at work then turning off and changing focus when you're away. Work is about doing the right thing. It's about listening to others. It's about being open and honest. It's about improving constantly. It's about laughter.

I've never laughed as much as I have with my team at Integrum. And when I first started there, I really needed the laughter. All of that laughter and all the other experiences have made me into a better person, which makes me a better worker. I'm lucky to have gotten this perspective, especially so early in my professional career. I hope I'm able to carry it with me always. I owe the team at Integrum a lot for giving it to me.

Thank you, Jade, Heidmo, Lindsay, Gist, Curtis, Young, Josh, Curtis, Derek, and Irish.

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