When the Unknown becomes Known

 Whelp, Biden is forgiving $10,000 in student loans, but I don't qualify cuz mine are for a grad degree, not an undergrad.  Ah well, he's also extending the pause until Jan, so any payments I make now go to principal.  I did miss a few payments after the move and everything, so I'm happy to have a few more months to get situated before they turn back on.  It's been nice knowing that I've been paying down my principal balance... not gonna lie, if they just made student loan interest at 0%, I'd be happy.  I don't mind paying back what I owe, but the MASSIVE amounts of interest is rather unnecessary, IMO.

My apartment complex is still messing me around by charging me an extra $15 per month for not having renter's insurance... when I DO have renters insurance, and I sent them the proof at the end of JULY but apparently they are using a 3rd party company and so any attempt to complain/notify the apartment complex has resulted in a "not our problem" message.  Needless to say, that did NOT go over well with me, but I don't exactly have much recourse.  I did email the 3rd party again with the same info and a message about being afraid I'd 'fallen through the cracks' which is a legit thing.  I mean, for some reason the lab didn't send my doc the results of some of my tests because I'd 'fallen thru the cracks' so, I didn't feel too bad about sending the follow up email.  I'm supposed to get the overpayment back in the form of $ off my rent, so rest assured, I'm keeping score... I mean, track.  I'm about to get both super petty and understandably miffed by sending in maintenance requests for things like my slow drain in the bathroom sink (2 Draino treatments later, still slow), and the outlet that seems to be shorted out (it would be nice to turn on a light when I get home by just flipping a switch next to the door).  I've given up on closet doors at this point, and will just make it work by having the most ORGANIZED CLOSET EVER.  I didn't realize that seeing my clothes all the time would make me want MORE CLOTHES.  Sigh... one black slip dress and a see-thru stadium backpack are the LAST purchases of the year... I promise(ish).

Still nothing else from the towing company... on the other hand, no one has been towed so... yay.

It's amazing how stressful it is knowing that people you don't know are truly affecting your life.  Biden's payment pause affected me this time more than any of the other ones did (and I was able to continue paying).  Apparently my student loans are supposed to be transferred to another company to manage them, though I got an email at the end of July stating that they had NOT been transferred, so I'm not sure if I should pay my original company or wait until they've been moved to the new company.  With September being a 3-paycheck month, it's freed up some funds this month meaning I could open a new savings account (no minimum balance, no fees... I'm prepared to say I LOVE Capital One), which makes me feel slightly better.  There's not much $ in there right now, but it was possible for the first time since I had to close out the Chase one.  Not knowing what's going on with my apt complex is also maddening.  This is not an ideal situation for a CONTROL FREAK!!  LOL.

It's also fun dealing with insecurities when they pop their nasty little heads up.  I've been cooking for my fella and while it has generally gone well, I'm learning that I'm still not 100% comfy cooking for others.  Case in point - I had a dream that I was in a cooking competition and Alton Brown yelled at me for screwing up a chili-honey salmon dish.  In his defense, apparently I'd added walnuts (?!?!).  I like my own cooking, I think I'm a fairly good cook, but cooking for (new) others is WAY ANXIETY INDUCING for me.  When cooking for a person with whom I have an established relationship, it's not so bad.  Especially when we've been cooking for each other over a longer period of time.  I had no problem leaving A with leftover peanut noodles.  She liked em, tho I think I needed to add more peanut sauce and veg.  I have one more sauce recipe to try and tweak.  I'm also gonna cut down on the noodles.  Cooking for pot lucks is fine as well - if someone doesn't like my cooking, they can eat something else.  But cooking for someone new who I'm still getting to know and taking them at their word that they are not picky... that give me HUGE anxiety.  Which it shouldn't - if the food isn't to their liking, there are LITERALLY plenty of places they can get food from.  Why do I put so much pressure on myself?!?!  Ugh... my brain is a jerk sometimes.  

So here's how the BH weekend went: 

First: some trips to the store.  

As I've mentioned, I decided to organize my closet.  Originally I was going to get a shelving unit and baskets to put clothes in, but the thrift store I like was closed and Goodwill didn't have much (tho I did get a bathroom trash can).  The hanging shelves helped free up some space, as well as a couple belt hangers that I'm using for tank tops.  It works, I'm happy.  Bed, Bath, and Beyond had the stuff I needed for organizing.  I was able to unpack all of my sweaters and cold-weather gear... I'm so ready for it.

As I was cleaning, I ran across my Halloween spider poncho which I decided would look REALLY good on my table.  I was right.

BB&B also had some fun Halloween stuff and when we were on our way to the checkout, I simply couldn't resist getting this.  I think it looks nice and it cuts down on the glare on the TV when you're at the opposite end of the couch.  Win for all!

Since BB&B was right next to Michael's, we popped in there to see what they had and I found these.  I think it's $10 well spent.  Spooky season has officially come to my apt and I couldn't be more ready for it.  Now, to get dressed up in my witch dress and go to dinner.  :)

I decided to make some of my favorite dishes.  This is Eggs in Purgatory - an Italian take on Middle Eastern shakshuka (which someday I will try with pita or naan bread).  Basically it's marinara sauce with eggs and I always put cheese over it.  

Cheeesy goodness.

To add to the fun, I don't use utensils when eating this, rather I used these garlic toast points, which were ok, but I think my usual heated bread would have been good as well.

Yolk slightly runny... *chef's kiss*

Next day was spicy Italian sausage sandwich.  Here we have half of the French loaf I bought.

The olives, cheese, mayo, and butter mixture that looked SO GOOD on the recipe.

The sausage was nicely browned.

I sautee'd the peppers in some of the leftover fat from the sausage, I also used some Italian salami.

Baked for a bit, added banana peppers, slapped both halves together, cut into 4 and then realized... I'd forgotten the marinara.

So I heated the marinara in a glass and dipped the sammich.  It was gloriously messy and delicious.

The next day, I used the leftovers for another sammich.  This time the marinara went on the bottom, then the sausage, then the leftover cheese mixture, topped with all the leftover black olives and a smattering of more cheese.

This time only 3 from the one.  Still quite messy, but OH so good.  Also, I did add the banana peppers again before slicing the sammich.

I also spent the weekend watching movies, finished my book (The Return Man - a well written post-zombie apocalypse book that answered the question: what about the rest of the world?), took some naps, and just generally enjoyed the solitude.  I feel more like me now... ready to face the world again!  LOL - the agenda for next Friday includes: finding a lightbulb to replace the one that's been burned out since I moved in, going to the library, and probably visiting the Spirit Halloween store that just opened up next to me... I'M SO EXCITED!!  But I promise to be frugal.... I'm also switching to Mint Mobile and I'll have 2 Verizon bills before the change is complete.  I'm trying to let go of the animosity toward the new managers of the apt, but they make it difficult.  We got a new nasty-gram email about how none of us took them up on their generous offer to rent washers and dryers for $50 a month so they were offering again.  I did the cost-benefit analysis and frankly, $5-$15 per month depending on how many loads at the well-lit, clean laundromat about 2 mins away makes more sense to me than $50 a month for the appliances, as well as the extra water and electric to use them.  The laundromat usually takes about an hour, and I always bring a book, so nah... not worth it.  I don't do all the folding and stuff there, tho... it's a wash, dry, back into the basket, home, THEN fold, and put away.  No one needs to see my undies.  It's one of my hang-ups and frankly not the worst one, so I'm ok with it.