Saturday

A second Iris stalk started blooming this morning. It's much darker than the first - very striking! I wish I had thinned them out like I originally planned so that more of them would have had a chance to bloom - they are so fun to watch. Next season, for sure.

We finally saw Star Trek last night. I thought it was great - very entertaining. Ross was less impressed but still enjoyed it.

We saw it at the theater on Western in Chicago that we used to go to when we were dating. It was fun to be back in Ross's old neighborhood. We meant to drive by the old apartments but ran out of time. We will definitely have to go back soon and visit some of our old hangouts. I especially miss the little Thai restaurant we used to go to with it's aqua blue walls and hypnotic, tinkly music.

So it looks like the dryer has really bitten the dust this time and it's stressing me out. I hate the idea of having to buy an expensive new appliance when we don't have a job. Oh well, that dryer is probably as old as I am and we are extraordinarily lucky that it held out this long. And now we have the tax return so it's not the crisis it might have been. Still, I'm grinding my teeth just thinking about it. I think Ross's frugality is really rubbing off on me!

I am so looking forward to our trip to North Carolina. Just 4 days to go! The plan is to fly there, spend some time at his parents places in Raleigh and Gaston, maybe visit his sister in Wilmington, and then drive the Yukon his parents are giving us back to Illinois. I plan on taking LOTS of pictures :P