miss independent.

A fairly independent person, I like to rely on myself as much as possible. This does not mean I do not ask for help, because that would just be ridiculous (Mikey, this is your shout out...I hope you're reading this). But I do try to do things on my own *when* and if possible. However, being fresh out of a relationship has really been a wake up call for how much I relied on a boyfriend to do things for me. While I did recruit a few guy friends to help me with my recent move across town, I was left by myself to do the things that I normally would simply ask a boyfriend to do....for example...


I was in dire need of a few things for our apartment...a shoe rack, a bookcase, lamps (because why would there be a single ceiling light in our entire apartment!?), curtain rods, etc. Given all of my needs, I decided that Lowes would be my best bet. The most bang for my buck. The quick and easy fix. Don't get me wrong, I love, love, love to shop. Just not for this type of "stuff." I have never gone into Lowes alone, and I must admit, I was a little intimidated when I walked through the entrance. There I was, practically prancing through the doors with my high heels, black tights, and pencil skirt only to come face to face with aisles upon aisles of....manly man stuff! Stuff that I don't normally just go out and purchase, or even have a desire to shop for. Confidently, I grabbed and a cart and whisked away...a serious woman on a very serious mission. First stop...the "home storage" section to find a shoe rack...Mistake number one. 


What I'm about to say may sound a bit presumptuous, but I'm speaking based on pure observation. The way I see it, if you're a single girl, and you want to meet a guy, go to Lowes, Home Depot, or any other "guy" store. And wear a skirt. Because I swear, as soon as I walked down the aisle, I was practically double teamed. I was not asking for it. I tried to be confident. I tried to be that girl...you know what I'm talking about...that girl who doesn't need a man to do things for her and can do everything herself. Unfortunately, I was not faking anyone out as I walked aimlessly up and down the aisle trying to find a damn shoe rack. Instantly, an employee came up to me and asked if I needed help. Yes, this is something that employees are required to do. I get that. But, my God, give a girl a break! I explained to one of the guys what I was looking for and he starts asking me all these questions about what type of shoe rack I need. And then just for kicks, he decides to flirt. So of course I start to babble on and on, wondering the whole time how many types of shoe racks exist and whether this guy really thinks I'm just going to give him my number?! My God, we're not talking about actual shoes here! I just need that thing that stores all of my shoes! After a few minutes, it was decided that they didn't have the particular over the door shoe rack I was looking for. Whatever, I had other things on my list. I ditched the guy before he could ask me another question and off I went. Next stop - curtain rods. Holy sh*t, I'm going to be in for it whenever I have an entire house to furnish. I had *no* idea that there were so many curtain rods to choose from! And could they be any more expensive!?! Desperate to not walk out of the store empty handed, I saw what I thought may be the light at the end of my failing shopping attempt....the aisle of lamps!  I should have known the game was over by that point. Three aisles of lamps!? Is that really necessary?! So much for the light at the end of the tunnel. Frustrated and tired, I decided I had had enough. I pushed my cart to the side and tried to make a quick exit out of the building. But, no I couldn't even leave incognito! As I'm hurrying out of the store, who do I bump into but "Mr. Allow me to find you a shoe rack and anything and everything else you may need." Of course he noticed that I no longer had my cart and asked if I needed more help. Blushing, I quickly smiled and told him I was just way too overwhelmed to buy anything. Really, Court? Overwhelmed?! As I walked away, I could hear the guy getting a good chuckle out of my ridiculousness and I desperately wished that I had brought a guy with me to help me navigate through the store without being preyed on. When I finally exited the building, I took a deep breath of fresh air and made a dash for the store right next door. A store where I didn't feel like a complete idiot. A store where I didn't need a guy to help me buy what I needed. Hello, Pier 1 Imports. 


My euphoric feeling of triumph lingered as I moved on from Pier 1, to Marshalls, and then to Wal-Mart (I'm on a budget, and as much as I prefer Target, Wal-Mart's just a tad less expensive).  By the end of night I had successfully purchased everything on my list! Sans the help of a boyfriend!


Last Friday night I was getting ready to go out, nursing a beer (I swear I don't normally drink alone!), and continuing the seemingly neverending unpacking process. In an effort to make my room less of a dorm room and more of a professional 26 year old's, I desperately wanted the clutter to disappear so I could start to enjoy the benefits of a peaceful living environment. So as I sat there in the center of my room, as I often do, I had this brilliant idea to put up my curtains. I had purchased two curtain rods during my shopping adventures earlier in the week. I dug out Kaitlin's toolbox, found a hammer and a screw driver and peered up at my window, almost a bit curiously, wondering what I should do first. In the pre-single Courtney days, a boyfriend would have done this for me. No questions asked. Why would I waste time putting them up, when a boy could do it for me? But I was alone, nevermind the fact that I may or may not have been a little tipsy, and I was determined to put up the curtain rods. I climbed up on my super shaky, for looks only, vanity stool and attempted to screw in the first screw. Mega fail. I know the whole lefty lucy, righty tight bit, but the screw simply was not screwing. So I switched to the other side of the window. I got lucky with this side and was able to get one of the screws in. Kind of. I latched on the curtain rod to that side and wondered what I was going to do with the other side. In comes the hammer. God bless my neighbor with all of the racket I was creating. I climbed back up on the vanity stool and started hammering the hell out of the screw, forcing it to go into the window. Easy enough, right? False. Now I couldn't get the rod to latch onto that little metal thing that goes over the screws. Back to the drawing board. A huge part of me wanted to just say "screw it" - no pun intended - and wait till my Dad could come over and  fix it for me. But as I sat there, drinking my beer, watching the curtain rod dangle back and forth, I decided that this was my project and I had to finish it. So I got back onto my dainty little vanity stool again and didn't get down until I basically forced the curtain rod to stay in place. I swear I was so close to taping the damn thing in place, but I got it. Mission accomplished. No boys necessary.


Oh and my bookshelf....well my Mom ended up helping with that...but I've done everything else I ordinarily would have relied on a guy to do for me. And I must admit, it feels fabulous to know I can do these things on my own :)