Taking note

I am grateful for family and friends that make me feel so special on my birthday!
I've had an excellent weekend at Mt. Hood...mostly being lazy. I didn't even take one picture, sorry!
I'd like to capture this memory in virtual land. I am grateful for Toby and his self-less-ness. Grateful for Keisha and Chris...wishing them the best with their new home and baby on the way! Grateful for Jen and Aaron...we rock the casbah! Grateful for my Dad and proud of his accomplishments. Grateful for Mommy and wish she had been given a stronger body. Grateful for grandparents that always show they care. Grateful for finding lost friends and hearing about their successes. Grateful for Harold and Judy, my Oregon parents. Grateful for all the well wishes sent in all ways technological and sentimental. Grateful for Jessica's strength in my life and hope she carries it through in her own. Grateful for the love Colette always provides. Grateful that Sister and Alex are welcoming another bright light and the sweet words from Ella this morning. Grateful for Kirsta and Erle's love and the smiles their little ones bring to me.

Thank you.

Blah! Being an adult

I cant recall a time where I had to make decisions this important. To apply or not, to stay or go, to upgrade or simply replace. I can recall a simpler time where my decisions did not have such a lingering impact...such as high school. I was not a fan of that time in life, but I'm starting to appreciate it's simplicity. I remember when an 18 year old was applying for a car loan with their mom, and they made a comment about how life was difficult and they were busy because "they were in high school." I looked at the mom, as if to ask if I could give a reality check at that point. Mom smiled, so I did. I said "if you think you are making decisions now, and that you are busy...wait until college. Then wait until you graduate. That is just the begining!" I didnt want to get all "when you are my age" but I couldnt just let that comment slide.
Oh yeah, and the young man wasnt involved in team activities or a job. So busy!?! At least mom was fine with a little reality check.

This week I have been consumed by a job I have applied for...applied for 2 months ago. I didnt hear back for 30 days because apparently they went through the entire process with another person, offered the position, and were declined because said person didnt want to give up the flexibility that her current job offered. She's a mom, and when you have tenure, you dont have to start again. Makes sense....and I wonder now if there was more to it.
First phone interview was ok...not all that inviting but kept me interested. Then I had an in person interview with my potential new boss. She was inviting, and I felt we connected. She had great things to say about the company (peci.org), and I knew that I could work with this person.
Never in my mind did I doubt if I could work in another training capacity, other than for a financial institution. Never did I doubt that my questions were in the wrong direction. I didnt doubt at all, and looked forward to a call back.

So, 3 weeks later (which is what was the deadline), I get the call back. I get SO excited I tell my coworkers and I start to realize that the decision to apply for this job means I might have a BIG change in my life. Oh, and if I perhaps wanted to make other big decisions in my life, that would have to wait.

Then I get the interview schedule emailed to me. Mind you, I had been prepped by the manager at the previous interview, but here's when reality sank in:

1:30 - 2:30: Interview with Training Manager, Sr. HR Manager, Staffing Manager and Associate Director in Operations

2:30 - 3:00: Interview with Associate Director in Commercial-Retail and HR Manager

3:00 - 3:30: Interview with Senior Program Manager in Large Commercial and Associate Director in Residential

3:30 – 4:00: Your presentation and Q&A

For your presentation; pick a topic of your choice to present to a small audience. You’ll have 15-20 minutes to give your presentation, including any discussions or activities you may want to include This presentation is intended to give us an idea of your teaching style and how well you organize and instruct curriculum. You are welcome to bring any PowerPoint or presentation materials as you see fit.

WOW...so this is an adult interview!?! Yes, and it was actually refreshing to me that so many people were interested in the decision. Finally! Executives that care!
So I started preparing, did research, gathered questions for each person, and made a fun presentation. I even used their logo in my materials. I was ready to kick some butt!

First interview, with 4 people. They did a good job at making me feel relaxed. It lost it's warm and fuzzy feeling as the Assoc. Director in Ops started to control the conversation. I kept the perspective that they just wanted to make sure I am a good fit, and sometimes difficult questions need to be asked.
Next interview...hmmm, only the HR Manager showed up. Well, I can understand a meeting running late. People are VERY busy at this organization. Due to the missing person, we went through the planned questions quickly and I got a chance to just start probing. She was saying magic words like "communication" and "transparency." I'm back to being excited! I'm building relationships!
Next interview...hmmm, only the SR Program Mgr for Large Residential showed up. There was a definite feeling of "I showed up because they asked me too, but I have no idea what to really do here" from the person. She was very nice, and did have interview questions on a familiar page...that she ignored. I realized she just wanted to get to know me, and understand how someone can walk into an organization with little knowledge (of the company) and turn around and train it. They didnt have a training dept before, so the concept is a bit new. In the end, it was like I was interviewing her a bit. I did feel that rapport was built.

In the back of my mind it was...hmmm, why didnt people show up? And the operations manager left me with a funny feeling. And these titles that people have here, so many associate ___ and senior ___. They have an interesting structure...
So, then I give my presentation, to 3 of the 4 people from the first time slot. It seemed to go well, but I'm used to a bit more, involvement...enthusiasum...appreciation...? I know I did well. I really dont think I'm misjudging that. But what happened here...did they realize I may not work and now they are going through the motions? Well, that is what it felt like.

So now I dont know if I want to work there. I dont know what I want. And this decision DOES impact future ones I need to make. In a huge way to me. So, we will see. Maybe I'm just tired (note time of post), maybe I read things wrong.
I've got to think on this a bit...I may even call the hiring manager just to talk to her some about the experience. At the very least, she displayed that she had confidence in me.

10 things I've discovered during this heat wave

This is a real news photo from Portland during this heat wave. Crazy lady.

10. Portland can have warmer weather in July than Vegas
9. It's good to wait until it is 100 degrees to sell an old a/c unit
8. You can bring your dog to home depot for her daily walk
7. I was immune to heat as a youngster, since I used to show horses with layers of clothes on in similar heat.
6. Dont try to cool off the whole house, just pick a room
5. Make sure your a/c is turned to "cool" instead of "fan" when you set the timer
4. Family will always rub it in that they are in better weather conditions
3. Camping out in the living room means I get to snuggle with Kitties
2. Work is something to look forward to (it is climate controlled)
1. Make a tent over the a/c unit with a bed sheet, and you can have some cute fun with your man.

More home improvements!

So I've been toying with the idea of getting a microwave for over my range. Since I bought the house, and my counter microwave took up a ridiculous amount of space.

First, we took down the old hood. Notice the two holes in the drywall. The one on the left must have been a "tester" to find the electricity.

One thing I forgot to think of is where to plug the new microwave in...so I installed my first outlet. Yes, ME. Hence, the broken outlet cover because there was not enough room to fit it under the board at the top of the cabinets. But, I still think I did an excellent job.

I then had to fill in the drywall holes. I couldnt just leave those other ones.

I know it's hard to see, but the picture (of the picture) below is how the kitchen looked before I bought the place.

Below is a shot I took after I painted last February. Old hood.
Now scroll...

YAY! Notice my new magnetic knife holder on your left.

Pretty exciting to me! This is basically how I spent my Memorial Day weekend. I did purchase a cabinet for the bathroom upstairs. My roommate has a tendency to fill up ALL counter space and it drives me batty. So I took that as a hint we needed more storage. I bought the cabinet online and then painted, assembled, and let her fill it up. I am now content.

Kate may notice the ihome in this pic. It isnt below a cabinet, as supposed to be, but I cannot express how excited I am to have music and radio in the bathroom. I'll get my morning fix of NPR and fun iPod tunes during a shower.

Grrr

The "before shot."

The after, ouch, I'm in pain shot. Makes my old tattoo look ghetto.

It has been 10, yes 10 years since I first got the butterfly (thanks Kate), and the whatever stuff. I am so uber happy with this change!! The pain of this tattoo was an 11 (on the scale of 10). Serious pain. Went from feeling like a drill, literally, going through my body, to a razor peeling my skin away. It NEVER hurt this bad at 17. If you want to know how I got a tattoo at 17, ask my sister. Bet she would freak if Ella did that.
I really cannot speak enough about how bad this hurt. Two hours, of the worst pain ever, that I had to pay for. The butterfly took about 45 minutes and the whatever stuff took 45 minutes. I was not prepared for the longevity. My body was shaking because I was trying to hold still for two hours during dumb torture. Needless to say, I am going less needles. ;)

Second reason for the grr is my odd sickness. I rarely get sick once a year, and the first time I wanted to cry and ask mommy to come take care of me. I felt like there were abscesses in the back of my sore sore throat. Two visits to the urgent care and all i needed was nyquil. THIS time felt like allergies. I've never had them, but in Oregon, everyone gets them. So I'm stuffy nosed and sneezy. That was Satuday, and it is Tuesday. Now, I know allergies can last a whole season, but I'm finding cold medicine gives some relief while allergy medicine does nothing. I'm so sick, I once again want to call for mommy. But she had back surgery, so I'm back to being an adult. My head has that earache too. Sheesh, bad cold.

Overall, I've learned you may have less pain tolerance as you reach this stupid thing called "adulthood."

Pros and Cons of traveling for work

Pro: free sushi

At first, I was quite happy to leave town. I can eat out, have exercise equipment for free, and enjoy a change in pace. That was last week, around Monday. Now, I want my bed, baybe, dog, car, couch, sheets, space. I want rest.
I left town last Monday for work to come to Seattle (well, Bellevue specifically). It was great timing. We just got paid...for 10 days...with 3 weekends to go until more money. What better time to have an unlimited cash fund from work for room and board. I took Vi with me last week, and we stayed in the "crummy" motel. It's a small kitchenette studio with rough sheets and rough receptionists.

Con: everything below

Woke up on Tuesday morning sick...I tend to say I'm fighting something but there was no fight here. Wednesday I would normally have called in sick, but could not because I was the only trainer available...hello! I'm traveling! Thursday I would have called in sick, but could not because I had to drive back home....hello! I'm traveling! Friday I did call in sick.
Saturday. Finally slept the night before. Two doctors visits and all I needed was some effing nyquil. Dumb.
Monday, go to work, regular desk. Ho hum I know I drive tomorrow so what do I do with my day. Look busy.


Tuesday, hit the road. Better car, satellite radio, sun shining. Whew. Oh, surprise training tuesday night. Then, train on wednesday...two different classes. Train on Thursday, third subject. I'm done. I go to Claim Jumpers and order beer, meat, and mashed potatoes. Comfort food.
Tomorrow, train fourth subject (my brain hurts), do a bit of extra training, and drive home. It'll take an extra two hours because of traffic. At least I have the good car and satellite radio. Light at the end of the tunnel is Toby. Vi, Sisder, and Joeseph. Bed, sheets, couch. My life, back.

Ow!

So for the past two days I have ran. Yup, feet pounding the pavement, lets finally take our body seriously run. I will admit the distance wasnt that far, as in, a mile or so. I'll also admit the primary motivations.
#1: Toby exercises for over an hour every night and he is looking damn good. I am inspired by his willpower and feel lazy for not even trying to become physically healthy. He is great about asking me if I want to join, accepting my declines, and telling me I'm still hot. Although, I sure dont feel hot.
#2: The first time I stepped on the wii fit, it weighed me and my bmi was in the overweight range. As if that wasnt enough, my mii gained 10 lbs in the belly, arms flew out, and a "ba-oump" sound emerged from my television. Seriously bad news there.

So about the running. The first night Toby and I wanted to go to the local highschool track because I whined about impact. Too bad lacrosse practice was going on, so we went around this tiny section of a nearby neighborhood that actually has street lights.
Second night I took my dog. She thinks running = grab the leash in my mouth and play tug of war. I quickly stopped that with my man voice of discipline. So we are doing good until 2 stray dogs come running up on us. I go on this mile loop daily for dog walks and have never seen these dogs. One labradoodle, one lab. Play time ensued, just as my heartrate and breathing was stabalizing. Eventually, the dogs run ahead, and run back around me, and I have to use my man voice of discipline on them too. They still stuck around, and I'm about 3/4 of the way through my mile when I realize I'm leading these stray dogs to a very busy road by my house. I can't let this mess up traffic or let the dogs get hit. So I turn around, ready to go another 3/4 mile...I'll admit there was walking involved too. Dogs still running around us like crazy, but my dog is doing well and probably in shock that her mother is running. Eventually, the dogs go up a side road and I take the opportunity to engage my fast-twitch muscles and start running fast. We lost them just before I revisited the busy road.
So now, I'm real sore. I look like an old lady when descending stairs. I power walked for a mile today. Tomorrow, maybe tae-bo. The goal is 3 days of exercise a day.

Please pray to the health gods for my persistence.

Sorry for no recent post. I do not have an excuse even (thanks dad), however I can tell you what is new.
Sister is preggers, and quite grumpy.
Grandpa has a condition, but chooses quality over quantity.
Mom is in Argentina, texting me at 5am about the beach.
Dad is glad it wasnt his old age that lead to the misunderstanding.
Kirsta and Dustin must be ok because no news is good news.
I am watching Man From Snowy River...

Jessica!

Angel's rest hike pics

This was Vi's idea. Yup.

Dog, and snow too

Can you tell it is cold?

Jen, Keisha, and I

View from the top. This is the Columbia reever.

Mii, Wii, and knee

Well, I cut my hair even more, and dyed it even more blond. Solid blond on the top even! Its fun, but not sure I'll keep it. I dont think it is quite as professional as I want to look, but then again, I need to do fun things with my hair whilst I am young!
I've been watching (very carefully) what I eat. I'm staying low on calories and saturated fats, as well as sodium and sugars. Its been a few weeks, and my pants still fit the same. I'm pretty anti-exercise, so that makes this process slow. I busted out my roommates wii fit, and realized that I had actually already lost 10 pounds. That is a nice reinforcement. I then exercised for an hour (well, it was more balance focused but I beat all my roommates records). I also hiked 4.6 miles of moderate difficulty on Sunday. It was fun, however, it was a bit icy on the way down so I fell a few times. Good news is that I actually was not very muscularly sore, just my knees hurt from the multiple falls. Vi thought the hike was no big deal and didnt even get sleepy at bed time. She is crazy!
I'll post some pics of the hike soon. It was really pretty, and really cold. Well, cold for Oregon.

Oh! I got a wild hair and went to a Survivor audition last week. That was not so fun, but an interesting experience. I wasted 5 hours of my life, but learned how seriously people take these tryouts. I was like, "What the heck?" and dont feel anything will come of it. Some people had monologues written out and already spoken with their bosses about possibly leaving work for 7 weeks.
The basic process is that you fill out a 10 page application (sheesh, I know) and give them a picture, and say what you want to say in 2 minutes or less. I told the camera that Survivor needed a female figure that knew a thing or two about outdoor survival. I know I have the basics down, and I am damn resourceful.
Let's pretend for a second I did get on the show. First goal, get to the jury. About half way through the 7 weeks, people who get voted off stay on location and decide who gets the million dollar prize. So let's pretend I get to the jury, and get voted off. Bummer...now I just have to wait one to three weeks in paradise. In a hotel, all expenses paid. Real bummer.
Ok, now let's pretend I get the grand prize, 1 million dollars. After taxes, I'm not looking at all that much. I'll pay off my home and do upgrades. I donate to some college education funds for the little Brittons and Yancey(s). I donate some to an ALS research foundation. Then...I buy a house in South America for all friends and family to use. Then I'm 1/3 of the way to my big goal in life...owning a home on every (habitable) continent. Lofty, yes.
That probably leaves me with some to save for retirement too. I guess.

New year...changed gal

Ahhh. The snow has stopped, but now all it is is rain rain rain. I really wanted to wash my car 2 weeks ago, but what is the point? With the snow melt and 2 weeks of rain, almost every river is at the flood stage. They have shut down all major highways between Portland and Seattle. At least there aren't any holidays....
I am grateful that everyone I know that owns a home does not live near a river!


Other news is that I have just realized that in about a month I will celebrate my 5 year mark in Oregon. Very crazy! I have worked at First Tech the entire time, but have moved four times. That will not be happening for awhile now!

Here is a picture of me 5 years ago!

I've shed lots of hair and gone from blond, to brunette, and back to blond. I've gone back to school and gotten a Master's Certificate. I've convinced my good friend Jen to move out here and now she's engaged. I've move through a few relationships and am very happy with my musical Toby. I've bought a home and ventured into home owner's association presidency. I've watched Judy and Harold become grandparents twice. I've missed my nieces and nephew greatly. I've had my family come visit me multiple times. I've grown up...just a little bit :)

Speaking of my home, I am about to welcome a new roommate. She is a cute gal from Croatia who can't wait to gain independence and move out of her parents home again. She has never lived with this many animals and she thinks she wants a dog.....hahahaha we can fix that! Her name is Dijana (di-yana) and I think it will be fun to have her around.

Looking forward, I don't have many plans. 2009 is still very new, and it will be interesting to see how our country changes. Now that I've started watching the news and following politics, I may be growing up more than I thought....