Just a little update, not much going on. Geoffrey and I did some wedding errands today, most important of which was buying our wedding bands! Mine is just a simple platinum band that goes with the engagement ring. Geoffrey's is also platinum, but with this interesting braid-ish patterrn. It's really very "him," I think, and he likes it, too. Here's a peeshure. It's the one on the far left. His doesn't have the dotty stuff on the side of the braid, though, like the one pictured there. Just braid, then plain platinum. So now we're trying to think of something to engrave in each other's ring. Twenty-five characters or less, so not a lot of room for poetic verse or complicated jokes. Probably just gonna go for one word and maybe the date. Any suggestions are welcome. Especially if they're funny. :)

Also, I bought a wedding dress today (I think). Went shopping for one with my friend Sharon (works at Stripes, married last year) last night. Tried on a few but nothing too exciting. Went today by myself and found one at Macy's. It is completely opposite from what I thought I was looking for. I thought I would end up with something off-white, with sleeves, not traditional weddingy. But what I found today is real white, no sleeves and, well, pretty much something you might see in a Brides magazine, except not $7,000. But it looks purty and I like it. It is, you know, like I said, white, with just little spaghetti straps (though I also bought a matching wrap to kinda go around my shoulders and back), flowers embroidered on with beads and a chiffon covering on the skirt part. Yes, I realize that makes no sense. Can't post a picture here because (a) I don't have one yet and haven't found anything on the Internet that too much resembles it, and (b) Geoffrey is not allowed to see it. I really want to show it to someone, though, so today's been hard. I will take pictures and e-mail it to those of you who are interested in seeing it and who are, simultaneously, not Geoffrey. Still a chance I will find something else and change my mind (which is do-able since I can take back the dress anytime as long as the tags are still on), but for now I'm happy with this.

In other big news, we're about to sign a lease on a new apartment! Here's the floorplan. Friggin' huge, no? We're really excited. It's near Metro and a bunch of shops, restaurants and, yes, bars so the stumble-home Thursday tradition may continue. Best part is it's connected to Metro via an underground labyrinth of hallways, so in winter, for example, you never have to go outside. Hooray! Note, on the floorplan, the huge ass balcony. We get misty when we think about that. The building is older and therefore VERY quiet, and we have spoken to folks who live or have lived there and hear good reviews. We have that apartment a little earlier than we wanted: May 10. Still have this teenyweeny paper-walled apartment 'til June 18, so the move can go at a nice, relaxing pace to say the least. Considering we were awake last night 'til 2 a.m. or so thanks to an assortment of some drunk high-schoolers gathered on the gazebo outside our window (let in courtesy of our always-yawing-open "security" gates) that no one was here to clear out, I think we'll be taking up residence in the new apartment as soon as possible. Will keep everyone posted on new address, etc., not to worry.

Also today, Geoffrey and I bought 40 fruit leathers at Trader Joe's, this wonderful hippie grocery chain we have come to love. Fruit leather makes us happy, and it makes a wonderful snack. We also got some turkey sausage strombolis and some vanilla bean cream soda that is very yummy.

I have learned a new HTML trick, I think. Lemme try it out:

I can make my text bigger!

Neat, eh?

Only one week 'til Merlefest! I'm really starting to get excited. Hoping the weather will be nice, but it doesn't even matter that much. It's always a good time.

LISTENING TO: The new LUCINDA WILLIAMS, World Without Tears. Wowie zowie. The new JAYHAWKS also is quite good. I bought RAILROAD EARTH, too, finally -- they're a band I saw at last year's Merlefest. Saving that one for the drive to North Carolina. Also just got my order of the CD and DVD of last year's Merlefest. Likewise saving that CD for the drive. Lots of good music! Which is good, as I am going to be on moratorium again for a loooong time. Will try to uphold moratorium during this year's Merlefest, when I'm actually there and surrounded by all these awesome bands and their CDs. Sigh. Not going to be easy, probably not going to be successful, either. :)