grounded.

i'm probably securing myself a spot in a certain circle of hell for saying this but so it goes.

as i was picking out layers and layers of clothing to brave the chilly wind happening outside for class this morning, i got an email from my professor canceling class. he has the flu. while it would have been a lot nicer to get this email twenty four hours before class, or even twelve (i wouldn't have set my alarm for 5am) - i did a little happy dance in my blue bathrobe and alpaca socks. karma's probably going to kick my ass weakened immune system.

for now it's nice to hang out in my bathrobe for a bit longer, heat up the tea kettle again and boast about how blessed i am for being a part of the ecobambino team. yesterday was inventory day. for those of you who've worked in retail, you should be cringing. for those of you who haven't, inventory day consists of counting everything in the store, entering it in the computer, then checking and rechecking discrepancies in numbers. i won't lie, when kristene (manager) and ariana (owner) explained the process to us and how they haven't gotten out of the store in any less than 12 hours in the past 3 years, i was intimidated and dreading the day.

sunday came, we locked ourselves in, turned on 80s/90s pandora and belted out lyrics we still remember several decades later. manually counted toys, headbands, diapers, and mattresses, searched high and low for jingle socks, knitting needles and button leggings, and set up a brand new, ridiculously awesome train table (then shamelessly played with until kristene told us to get back to work). ariana treated us to an amazing takeout lunch from giuseppe's. we ate indian style in the back room, talked and laughed about drinking, getting older, boys and at what time of the day we no longer exist as functional human beings.

7:15pm rolled around - the fastest inventory day in ecobambino history, ending what felt more like a work bonding retreat in comparison to the torturous day i'd built up in my mind. ariana then spoiled us further by treating us to thai palace, which i'd never been to. we ordered amazing food family style, passed dishes and talked even more. we were interrupted by "go mustangs!" partway through the evening, by a gentleman who'd noticed my cal poly sweatshirt and assumed we all went to school together (only three of us - ariana, as alumni, and alex and i as current students - actually do). he told us he was a professor, asked our majors and if i played basketball (honestly, i'm not that tall), then left with a smile saying he'd bought us dessert.

after saying our goodbyes, kristene and i braved the cold walk home together, we live just a couple blocks apart. i arrived home with a tremendous feeling of thanks for the communities i'm a part of and the fantastic women i work with.

now it's time to get back to the current week and take advantage of these extra 3 hours of time.

happy monday!