Get. OUT!

I still can't believe it, but somehow I won the "People's Choice" chili award on Saturday night. I really only won because one person loved my chili so much that they voted with a twenty dollar bill. 1 penny = 1 vote. Anyways, I was definitely excited to have won something. I may have even pumped my fist in the air when they called my name.


Somehow, the minutes ticked by and we ended up spending almost five hours at the chili cook-off/auction. It was really great being able to spend time with our church family and donate to such a worthy cause. At last count, the Cook-Off ended up raising about $8,000 for the youth group. Awesome.

After the Cook-Off, we headed to Rachael and Chuy's place to hang out with some other friends and talk, and that was wayyyy too much fun. Hahaha. I think we got home at 3 AM. It was worth it, though. There were more than a few laughing-so-hard-we-were-crying moments.

Miraculously, we were able to wake up early on Sunday.

Dave went out on his first bike ride of the season with Justin (he owns Indiebike.com) and a few others. After he got home, I was itching to go riding myself, so he ate about 3,000 calories worth of food and then was nice enough to go out again with me. The Monon Trail was SO crowded because of the unusually nice weather. We got off the trail as soon as possible and onto some side streets. We only went 9 miles, but I was happy to be outside at all. I took my hybrid, but I vow to take my road bike the next time. I only hope that we go riding at 3 AM or a place at which people can't see me panicking after not being able to clip-out my shoes and then falling over, embarrassing myself, and scratching my arms and legs. Is that too much to ask for?

New Addition to the Family

Pump Up the Chili

Well, it's D-Day. Or C-Day. It's the day of the Chili Cook-Off, and I'm pretty sure that I'm going to get last place. I tried four different chili recipes, and now I've run out of time without finding one that I'm really happy about using. Many of the recipes had too much tomato and too much sweetness. Personally, I like a chili that is super spicy and a little salty. We'll see, I guess! The chili is made already and is simmering in the crockpot, and I am going to attempt to add some Katherine-ness with the addition of unsweetened cocoa, more jalapenos, and some Guiness.


Yesterday we went to the Five Guys burger place in Fishers for dinner. The place has been getting glowing reviews since it opened not so long ago. Dang, that was some greasy shiz. It was delicious of course, but not as good as our beloved Schoop's back in Crown Point. I'm embarrassed for even thinking that Five Guys could beat Schoop's. It wasn't even a contest!

Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go daydream about Schoop's own hamburgers, cheese fries, and Coke with cherry syrup... Oh God.........

Excitement

For some reason, I feel so excited today. Things have been going really well for David and I lately, and I can't shake these feelings of... joy? Not that I want to. It's just that I am a person that is plagued by anxiety and "what-if" thoughts, so I can't help but be skeptical when I feel carefree or exceptionally happy.

I can't wait to ride my bike, I can't wait to get more involved at church, I can't wait for this chili cook-off on Sunday, I can't wait to clean the house this weekend, I can't wait for Spring!

I keep wondering if I should stop seeing my therapist, but it's kind of like breaking up with someone.

Maybe I can convince Dave to ride bikes with me tonight. (Does that make me sound like I'm 8 years old? Perhaps I should say, 'Maybe I can convince David to go cycling with me tonight.')

Mail + Potential Study #0

More snow today. It's never enough, though. I am dying to go sledding.

A few days ago we went for a walk in the snow. It was quiet and peaceful and beautiful outside, and we spent time commenting on our neighbors' houses. Surprisingly, there were a lot of jumbo mailboxes. Like, triple the size of ours.

I wonder what a graph of the amount of mail the USPS delivers would look like over the past two decades. Has email lessened the amount, or have credit card offers counteracted the email effect? I am curious to see how much junk mail we receive annually. It's terrible. I love mailmen, though. And mail trucks.