So today was unexpected. I had to go to work for 3 hours. That isn't the part that was unexpected because even though I was on vacation I knew I had to work today weeks ago. And work is a flexible term for what I did today. I went to a Luncheon Awards Ceremony. I've gone every year and even though I was on vacation I wanted to go this year.
So I left home today knowing I was going to go do that but then the rest of the day... I left open to figure out. I also figured I'd be back to the apartment sometime before the end of the night so I didn't take my "To Do" list from A.D. After the luncheon I decided to take the remaining time in the afternoon to go to look at apartments. My lease is up in January and I've decided that living 35 minutes from work, 45 minutes from church and any where from 30-60 (if not longer) minutes from all my friends and family members was just not worth it anymore.
I have a friend at my church that has been chatting with me about being roommates. It came up because we both found out our leases were up around the same time and we both want to save money. She currently lives a mile from our church in Chandler, AZ. If you don't know about the Phoenix Metropolitan area, Chandler has higher rents then where I currently live in north Phoenix. Her current one-bedroom rent is $700 something. I pay $500 for a studio in north Phoenix. If we move in together we could get a two-bedroom and each pay $450-$500. It wouldn't be much of a change for me, but I would save on gas and at least my rent wouldn't increase by $200.
So I went to check out a property that she had seen and liked. It was very nice but the cheapest apartment was $935. I was expecting that amount so it wasn't a deterrent but I wondered if I could find better. So I started driving. I called a friend (yeah I know - not good talking on the cell and driving - I need to kick the habit!) and while on the phone I turned into the next apartment complex down the street without really thinking about it. However, when I saw "Luxury Apartments" on the sign I pulled back out because I just didn't think we could afford that. So I kept driving, saw another apartment complex, but then decided to try and go to Walgreen's and see if they have one of those local apartment magazines. When they didn't I decided to just head back around to take a look at the apartment complex I saw after I turned out of the "Luxury Apartments."
As I drove back I laughed at how close the "Luxury Apartments" were to my church - literally can see the church from the property across the freeway. And I thought why not? Why not just see the property? You look really nice today and if its really incredibly expensive, just don't show it on your face, take a look and call it just plain fun. I toyed with the idea that this could be my new thing for the day - Touring a property you know you can't afford. It reminded me of something my high school guy friend and I almost did years ago. I had returned to visit from college and we had gotten together and we were driving around trying to figure out what to do. We suddenly saw an "Open House" sign and we decided to act as a prospective couple and take a tour. We almost did it but I chickened out. As this friend impossibly hilarious I didn't think I could contain myself during the tour. To this day I wish we had done it because I thought it would be a hilarious story.
I went into the property and was stunned to find out as she showed me the floor plans that they were running a special. The cheapest two-bedroom was $767! Almost $200 cheaper than the last place. It about bowled me over.
So while I couldn't say this was my new thing of the day I definitely took it as a sign to look at the apartment and seriously consider it. On top of all that the sales associate also attends our church! In the end I wanted to jump at it! However, even though I could put the holding cost and my application fee down and get the majority back in 48 hours if we decided against it, I just couldn't do it with out checking with K (my friend) first. As the sales associate and I were talking numbers K returned an earlier text I sent and I immediately called her back. And to make a long story short: I went and got her, she saw the model and we put the holding cost down. We even choose one that cost a little more so that we could have a first floor apartment (something we wouldn't have been able to afford at the previous apartment complex). My assignment for tomorrow is to call around and see if this is truly the best deal for us. However, this feels like it will be the place.
By the time we finished all of this it was 6:15. K was co-leading a bible study or as our church calls them a "small group" at 7:00. In fact she had invited me to attend weeks ago, but I honestly thought I had too much on my plate. I ended up telling her no for time being, but that I'd reconsider in the spring.
You see currently, I have:
1. an abuse step-study (I'll get into at a later time) support group I meet with on Monday nights.
2. a program called GriefShare - a Christian based support group - on Tuesday nights (my father died in July and I have been attending this group to support the grief process).
3. a program called Celebrate Recovery (the abuse group is an extension of this program) on Friday nights.
4. and of course Church on Sundays.
(all of which I will touch on in later posts)
For a woman who has been leery of religion for so long I was a bit overwhelmed by my schedule. Don't get me wrong, I love all the work and all the people I'm interacting with, but it sometimes is remarkable to see myself sitting in a Christian based support group almost every night of the week.
As I was taking her to this "small group" meeting she invited me again, this time saying, "Come to the first one. We are just meeting each other tonight and if you don't like, it then you don't have to continue." And I thought about it - my Monday and Tuesday groups will all end in the next month, so I could see about handling the additional night if I decide to continue, knowing it would be short term. The only thing that was holding me up was my "New Thing" commitment. And then it was like this "ah-hah moment" - this group can be my new thing for today. It wasn't on A.D.'s list, but the reality is I have added other things to the list, so not everything is going to be A.D. inspired. And the truth is I've been attending my church for over a year now and have been intending to join a small group for some time, but have always put it off. So this will actually be my first time joining an (official) Bible study.
In the end I joined her and it turned out that it was divinely inspired! I love the women in this group - they are real women with real issues, dynamic lives and interesting stories. Add to that it is a relaxed setting to dive into studying God. And that really was the part that made me hesitant to join. I was worried that it was going to be this hugely structured thing that would remind me of why I stayed away from religion for so long in the first place. And it wasn't like that at all.
And that's where I learned that this "Try a new thing" is actually just giving me a different view of the world. I'm not planning my life as much as I thought I would with it. I thought my whole vacation was going to be one thing after another but instead its just about opening up to possibility. And my life is just coming together so beautifully without me even trying.
I also love that I'm just listening to the unexpected idea that comes into my head like "Take a look at the apartments out of your league - it will be fun."
And that's how I accidentally stumbled into my new thing...
Day 3 - Wednesday, November 9, 2011: Start attending a Bible Study.
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