8:00- Wake up. Probably grab whatever book I was reading the night before and sit in bed reading.
9:00- Try and finally escape my room. Take aforementioned book with me downstairs while I one handed-ly scavenge for food.
9:30- Give up on scavenging attempts and resort to eating shortbread cookies for breakfast.
10:00- Consider the soccer game on tv. If not tempted, continue reading.
11:00- Shower.
12:00- Finally get dressed. Scavenge for lunch. Run errands with Mother.
2:30- Consider the soccer game on tv. If not tempted, consider going to the pool.
4:00- Spend obscene amounts of time online catching up with friends, playing sporcle, reading cakewrecks.com
6:00- Chat with Mother while she cooks dinner.
8:00- Hang out with family and practice bartending.
11:00- Come upstairs and respond to a certain No Luck Clubber's plea for more blog updates.
12:00- Bed.
Rinse. Repeat if desired. Gentle enough for every day.
Seriously though, my life is boring. Hopefully when I call in on Thursday I'll find that I've been scheduled a lot of hours these upcoming weeks. Also, occasionally play dates with friends are scheduled. Such as tomorrow. I have a friend with an undying amount of patience and access to a horse barn who is going to teach me to ride. I say undying amount of patience because I've found that being at home causes me to speak in even more ridiculous accents than usual. Tomorrow I plan on testing out my feminine John Wayne accent as I learn to ride my hoss.
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Monday, June 28, 2010
Weekend away
I know, I know. The blog has been silent too long. In my defense, nothing happened.
This past weekend I went back to my college town to visit friends doing research or working for the summer. I found that while I'm perfectly okay accepting my alumni status and the fact that last year's juniors are now seniors, it's weird to see last year's sophomores be called juniors. Maybe just because they were the first group that just seemed so young to me when they entered. The class behind mine was only a year younger (many of them actually older than me) so it's okay to see them grow up. Two years behind however? Eerie. All in all, it was a good weekend. I got to see two other alum friends and catch up with them. It felt strange to have to "catch up" when it's only been a month since graduation, but a lot has happened. Amazingly enough, the real world has just as much drama and intrigue as college ever did; it simply adds bills and housing and jobs to the mix.
Saturday was spent with pretty much the entire undergraduate crowd at school for the summer in one of the two bars watching the soccer game. Sad result, but incredible atmosphere. Somehow, I doubt I'll have any similar experiences while I continue to watch my beloved Spanish side throughout the rest of the World Cup...
Unfortunately, or maybe not, my weekend was cut short due to the need to be trained for my part time job as a sales associate (aka retail drudge) at a store in the mall. I woke up and drove the threeish hours back home in order to be at the mall by 11:30. That journey was mildly uneventful with the exception of my first true roadkill accident. I was driving along, minding my own business, not speeding terribly much for once (recent ticket encounter has caused me to be a bit more cautious), when out of nowhere BAM! A small winged creature made contact with my car. I saw it happen in slow motion practically. Bird flying low, crossing my path, making contact with the left hand side of my car. Feathers exploding and going everywhere. It was like a mini down pillow fight taking place in front of my car. I was a trifle traumatized. The poor bird. Not to mention, the feathers. I had feathers in my windshield wipers. Luckily, I had no reason to use my wipers or each swipe would have been a little reminder, "bird killer.... bird killer... bird killer...".
In any event, I came home, took a quick shower and was off to be trained. Which is when I discovered that being in a sorority does have some benefits. Years of training in recruitment procedure has made retail a cinch. I felt like I was sitting in a recruitment workshop all over again when the managers were explaining what to do to be a successful sales associate:
- try and use the customer's name whenever possible to put him/her at ease
- find a way to relate to the customer ("I have that same skirt! I just love it!" vs. "I have that same skirt! I just love it!")
- find a way to bring the customer's interests back to the store's interests ("You know what would go great with that skirt of yours? This lovely little tank top!" vs "You say you love volunteering? Our sorority is SO involved with philanthropy!")
- compliment the customer ("I love your necklace!" vs "I love your necklace!")
- ask open ended, as opposed to yes/no, questions ("What kind of clothes do you tend to go for?" vs "What did you do over Christmas break?")
- if a customer has an item in her hand, suggest similar or complimentary items ("This cardigan would go great with that dress!" vs "You like watching football? My friend Tara is absolutely obsessed with the Patriots! I'll have to introduce you guys!")
And so on and so on. Glad to know that if the whole teaching bit doesn't fare well for me, I can always go into retail.
This past weekend I went back to my college town to visit friends doing research or working for the summer. I found that while I'm perfectly okay accepting my alumni status and the fact that last year's juniors are now seniors, it's weird to see last year's sophomores be called juniors. Maybe just because they were the first group that just seemed so young to me when they entered. The class behind mine was only a year younger (many of them actually older than me) so it's okay to see them grow up. Two years behind however? Eerie. All in all, it was a good weekend. I got to see two other alum friends and catch up with them. It felt strange to have to "catch up" when it's only been a month since graduation, but a lot has happened. Amazingly enough, the real world has just as much drama and intrigue as college ever did; it simply adds bills and housing and jobs to the mix.
Saturday was spent with pretty much the entire undergraduate crowd at school for the summer in one of the two bars watching the soccer game. Sad result, but incredible atmosphere. Somehow, I doubt I'll have any similar experiences while I continue to watch my beloved Spanish side throughout the rest of the World Cup...
Unfortunately, or maybe not, my weekend was cut short due to the need to be trained for my part time job as a sales associate (aka retail drudge) at a store in the mall. I woke up and drove the threeish hours back home in order to be at the mall by 11:30. That journey was mildly uneventful with the exception of my first true roadkill accident. I was driving along, minding my own business, not speeding terribly much for once (recent ticket encounter has caused me to be a bit more cautious), when out of nowhere BAM! A small winged creature made contact with my car. I saw it happen in slow motion practically. Bird flying low, crossing my path, making contact with the left hand side of my car. Feathers exploding and going everywhere. It was like a mini down pillow fight taking place in front of my car. I was a trifle traumatized. The poor bird. Not to mention, the feathers. I had feathers in my windshield wipers. Luckily, I had no reason to use my wipers or each swipe would have been a little reminder, "bird killer.... bird killer... bird killer...".
In any event, I came home, took a quick shower and was off to be trained. Which is when I discovered that being in a sorority does have some benefits. Years of training in recruitment procedure has made retail a cinch. I felt like I was sitting in a recruitment workshop all over again when the managers were explaining what to do to be a successful sales associate:
- try and use the customer's name whenever possible to put him/her at ease
- find a way to relate to the customer ("I have that same skirt! I just love it!" vs. "I have that same skirt! I just love it!")
- find a way to bring the customer's interests back to the store's interests ("You know what would go great with that skirt of yours? This lovely little tank top!" vs "You say you love volunteering? Our sorority is SO involved with philanthropy!")
- compliment the customer ("I love your necklace!" vs "I love your necklace!")
- ask open ended, as opposed to yes/no, questions ("What kind of clothes do you tend to go for?" vs "What did you do over Christmas break?")
- if a customer has an item in her hand, suggest similar or complimentary items ("This cardigan would go great with that dress!" vs "You like watching football? My friend Tara is absolutely obsessed with the Patriots! I'll have to introduce you guys!")
And so on and so on. Glad to know that if the whole teaching bit doesn't fare well for me, I can always go into retail.
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
Bar opening
Mom and I went to the liquor store today. It was nice, roaming the aisles, knowing exactly what all the lesser known liquors and liqueurs were. Mom made some purchases towards my own bar and tonight I will begin my bartending for real. Up to now, I've only been studying recipes and techniques and the flavors of the alcohol. Time to put my studying into practice. I think I'm going to start with a gin fizz. Or perhaps a martini. Or even maybe a daiquiri. I would say the sky's the limit, but we didn't get a complete bar just yet. I'm going to focus on the clear/white liquors first. Play around with those flavors.
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
My family
Living at home has reminded me of some the more interesting quirks of my family. For instance, our various collections over the years.
My older sister had the most normal collection. She collected stamps. Not sure if she has her stamp collection, but she mostly got interested in stamp collecting from all the various foreign stamps we would receive when our grandparents would travel and mail us letters.
My little sister has probably the most unique collection. She collects plastic spoons. As she pointed out tonight while eating her ice cream, you never notice how many types of plastic spoons there are until you collect them. There are quite a variety of spoons. There are the short taste testing kind you get at the ice cream store, the wide spoons that come with your fast food soup/chili, the ones with long handles for drinks in big cups...
I had the weirdest collection. For a span of about 3 years as a kid, I collected travel brochures and paint samples. My mother must have hated me. I imagine that this collection doomed me to be labeled as a hoarder forever. I would go to Lowe's or Home Depot and discretely take as many paint samples as possible. I say discretely because I once was told off by an employee for taking too many. Hah. Then, when I got home, I would do the worst thing I could do to a stack of hundreds of paint samples. I would cut them up into each individual shade, creating a pile of squares of paint colors. At least this collection was arguably artistic in value; my collection of travel brochures was pointless. Every rest stop or tourist stop on any of our countless trips would secure me at least an extra one or two brochures. These travel brochures were then dutifully filed away in alphabetical folders by name of the attraction. At one point, I know I had over 400 unique travel brochures. I have no idea what I meant to do with them. I was a rather odd child.
My older sister had the most normal collection. She collected stamps. Not sure if she has her stamp collection, but she mostly got interested in stamp collecting from all the various foreign stamps we would receive when our grandparents would travel and mail us letters.
My little sister has probably the most unique collection. She collects plastic spoons. As she pointed out tonight while eating her ice cream, you never notice how many types of plastic spoons there are until you collect them. There are quite a variety of spoons. There are the short taste testing kind you get at the ice cream store, the wide spoons that come with your fast food soup/chili, the ones with long handles for drinks in big cups...
I had the weirdest collection. For a span of about 3 years as a kid, I collected travel brochures and paint samples. My mother must have hated me. I imagine that this collection doomed me to be labeled as a hoarder forever. I would go to Lowe's or Home Depot and discretely take as many paint samples as possible. I say discretely because I once was told off by an employee for taking too many. Hah. Then, when I got home, I would do the worst thing I could do to a stack of hundreds of paint samples. I would cut them up into each individual shade, creating a pile of squares of paint colors. At least this collection was arguably artistic in value; my collection of travel brochures was pointless. Every rest stop or tourist stop on any of our countless trips would secure me at least an extra one or two brochures. These travel brochures were then dutifully filed away in alphabetical folders by name of the attraction. At one point, I know I had over 400 unique travel brochures. I have no idea what I meant to do with them. I was a rather odd child.
Rejections
Got an email this morning informing me I was rejected from one of the many places I applied earlier this month. Only serves to reassure me that I did a smart thing accepting the teaching position.
Monday, June 21, 2010
Lesson planning!
This weekend was filled with the usual humdrum nothingness that results from having no real occupation. I spent most of it at the pool rereading Harry Potter (hard to believe I read my first HP book 11 years ago!) or getting together with friends. I need to find a new hobby. The quilt is still half done, but that's because I'm waiting for the appropriate backing. I plan on going back to my college town this weekend to visit with all of my friends doing research and while I'm there, I figure a trip to the overpriced school bookstore might supply me with a sweatshirt blanket complete with appropriate school insignia that I could use as my quilt backing. Who knows?
In the meantime, before I head off this weekend, I can start my lesson planning. I picked up my two texts that I will be using next year. In addition to the mixture of junior/senior students I will have in my trig/pre-calc classes, I am now teaching a geometry class for freshmen/sophomores. I get to teach such a broad range of students; it's both nerve wracking and pretty exciting. I forgot how nice it was in high school to have answers to exercises in the back of the text. Now, as an educator, I have to figure out how I'll assign hw around those freebie answers. And plan tests. And quizzes. And figure out how to come across as the right balance of demanding without being ridiculous. Of course I did none of that today and instead worked on how to dress like a professional teacher without looking frumpy. Mildly challenging. There are several stores in the mall that scream "only teachers shop here!". Needless to say, I avoided those.
Also, my room is a complete mess again. I suppose that's not entirely accurate though, as I never really had it perfectly neat/clean to begin with... At school, I would allow my room to stay messy for about three weeks before I'd reach my limit and force myself to clean. At home? My parents are getting home in an hour and I feel like I need to shove the mess under my bed or something. I haven't really felt accountable to anyone like this in years. Unnerving.
In the meantime, before I head off this weekend, I can start my lesson planning. I picked up my two texts that I will be using next year. In addition to the mixture of junior/senior students I will have in my trig/pre-calc classes, I am now teaching a geometry class for freshmen/sophomores. I get to teach such a broad range of students; it's both nerve wracking and pretty exciting. I forgot how nice it was in high school to have answers to exercises in the back of the text. Now, as an educator, I have to figure out how I'll assign hw around those freebie answers. And plan tests. And quizzes. And figure out how to come across as the right balance of demanding without being ridiculous. Of course I did none of that today and instead worked on how to dress like a professional teacher without looking frumpy. Mildly challenging. There are several stores in the mall that scream "only teachers shop here!". Needless to say, I avoided those.
Also, my room is a complete mess again. I suppose that's not entirely accurate though, as I never really had it perfectly neat/clean to begin with... At school, I would allow my room to stay messy for about three weeks before I'd reach my limit and force myself to clean. At home? My parents are getting home in an hour and I feel like I need to shove the mess under my bed or something. I haven't really felt accountable to anyone like this in years. Unnerving.
Saturday, June 19, 2010
So many exciting things to do at home
There is a big arts festival going on at home right now. Today are the big (hah) annual Weiner Dog Races. Apparently, there are quite a few dachshund aficionados here in town. Who would have guessed? Supposedly there are flash mobs happening also. Yet another sign of how Glee is taking over the nation.
On an unrelated note, this weekend, unlike last weekend as previously thought, my parents and brother are out of the house. My mom was worried about food for my little sister and I so in addition to going to the grocery store and loading up on everything, she left us giftcards to go out to eat if we want. Mind you, my parents will only be gone for three days and my sister and I are both out of high school and perfectly capable of scrounging for food. I've become quite good at sustaining off eggs, cheese and tortillas for days upon end. I also know how to cook. Or if not cook, I know how to follow a recipe. So I was a little surprised by my mom's need to provide multiple sources of food for us until I thought back to my last kitchen experience. I decided to make Martha Stewart's salted caramel chocolate cupcakes. Besides making an all out mess of the kitchen, I discovered the hard way that burning sugar is disgusting. It smells horrible and can be hard to clean. Considering it took me about 3 hours to make the cupcakes and clean the kitchen, I realized that perhaps my mom wants to prevent any serious damage to the kitchen while she's gone. Maybe I should stick to watching Top Chef as opposed to trying to be on it.
On an unrelated note, this weekend, unlike last weekend as previously thought, my parents and brother are out of the house. My mom was worried about food for my little sister and I so in addition to going to the grocery store and loading up on everything, she left us giftcards to go out to eat if we want. Mind you, my parents will only be gone for three days and my sister and I are both out of high school and perfectly capable of scrounging for food. I've become quite good at sustaining off eggs, cheese and tortillas for days upon end. I also know how to cook. Or if not cook, I know how to follow a recipe. So I was a little surprised by my mom's need to provide multiple sources of food for us until I thought back to my last kitchen experience. I decided to make Martha Stewart's salted caramel chocolate cupcakes. Besides making an all out mess of the kitchen, I discovered the hard way that burning sugar is disgusting. It smells horrible and can be hard to clean. Considering it took me about 3 hours to make the cupcakes and clean the kitchen, I realized that perhaps my mom wants to prevent any serious damage to the kitchen while she's gone. Maybe I should stick to watching Top Chef as opposed to trying to be on it.
Thursday, June 17, 2010
Adulthood
I was discussing with my mom the practice of calling people by his/her first name. Growing up, unless specifically told otherwise, my friends' parents were always Mr. and Mrs. So and so. Now, as I get older, it's much more common to call my friends' parents by their first names. I kinda feel like the threshold of adulthood is crossed when all adults are referred to using their first names. It's this little club where everyone is on a first name basis and we're all considered to be on the same respect level. I don't have to talk "up" so to speak.
Other things that come with adulthood- paying my own phone bill. I've been looking into the costs of a phone bill and have to say that I wish you could pay a flat rate for texts and pay an additional charge for talk time. I rarely use my phone for a phone call. Texting, however, comprises 95% of all phone communication for me. I hate that I have to pay a minimum of close to $40 for 450 minutes of talk time (of which I'll probably use maybe 20 a month) and then another $20 to text. Why can't I switch those around? Pay $40 to text and then, if I want to, I can add in minutes? Lame lame lame. However, I think as a present to myself for landing a job, I might get an iPhone. I'm a sucker for Apple products. I get that they're over priced and what not, but I love them anyway. So fun. So sleek. So snazzy. Even when their products don't function 100% (like my laptop battery), their customer service is even fun. I didn't mind being on hold for a while today because their hold music is good music. None of that elevator music baloney. Kinda awkward when you're caught singing along though.
Also, with any luck, I got the job selling bras part-time in our mall. I realized that there is a potential I might end up selling bras to future students. Hah. I can't even begin to imagine how mortifying it would have been for me in high school if I had seen a teacher while I was buying a bra. Or worse, a thong. Granted, most of my teachers were all old enough to retire.
Speaking of clothing, it is strange to be home. At school, I hated doing laundry. Who doesn't? I lived in the dorms, I mean, residence halls, all four years. That means four years of scrounging for quarters. And when a machine would eat a quarter? And you had counted out exact change? Frustrating. Not to mention the hassle of dragging your laundry to the laundry room, scouting out free washers/dryers, waiting for it to finish, coming back to find a load finished early and some punk put all your clean clothes scattered about on a table, dragging it back to your room and then folding it. Thus, I avoided laundry for as long as possible. I could make it a good 3ish weeks before I had to do a new load. Which is why I was disconcerted when my mom had me bring my laundry down since it was laundry day. She had just done laundry last week for goodness sake! Very unnerving. But, I'm always a fan of more clean clothes. Could be good to live at home next year.
Other things that come with adulthood- paying my own phone bill. I've been looking into the costs of a phone bill and have to say that I wish you could pay a flat rate for texts and pay an additional charge for talk time. I rarely use my phone for a phone call. Texting, however, comprises 95% of all phone communication for me. I hate that I have to pay a minimum of close to $40 for 450 minutes of talk time (of which I'll probably use maybe 20 a month) and then another $20 to text. Why can't I switch those around? Pay $40 to text and then, if I want to, I can add in minutes? Lame lame lame. However, I think as a present to myself for landing a job, I might get an iPhone. I'm a sucker for Apple products. I get that they're over priced and what not, but I love them anyway. So fun. So sleek. So snazzy. Even when their products don't function 100% (like my laptop battery), their customer service is even fun. I didn't mind being on hold for a while today because their hold music is good music. None of that elevator music baloney. Kinda awkward when you're caught singing along though.
Also, with any luck, I got the job selling bras part-time in our mall. I realized that there is a potential I might end up selling bras to future students. Hah. I can't even begin to imagine how mortifying it would have been for me in high school if I had seen a teacher while I was buying a bra. Or worse, a thong. Granted, most of my teachers were all old enough to retire.
Speaking of clothing, it is strange to be home. At school, I hated doing laundry. Who doesn't? I lived in the dorms, I mean, residence halls, all four years. That means four years of scrounging for quarters. And when a machine would eat a quarter? And you had counted out exact change? Frustrating. Not to mention the hassle of dragging your laundry to the laundry room, scouting out free washers/dryers, waiting for it to finish, coming back to find a load finished early and some punk put all your clean clothes scattered about on a table, dragging it back to your room and then folding it. Thus, I avoided laundry for as long as possible. I could make it a good 3ish weeks before I had to do a new load. Which is why I was disconcerted when my mom had me bring my laundry down since it was laundry day. She had just done laundry last week for goodness sake! Very unnerving. But, I'm always a fan of more clean clothes. Could be good to live at home next year.
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
Employed!
Although I haven't technically signed the contract, so I suppose it isn't 100% official just yet, I have accepted the teaching position! After thinking it over, soliciting the opinions of friends and discussing with my family, it seemed like a good fit for me. I hadn't realized how on edge and stressed I was about the prospect of finding a job until I got one. My body is 10x more relaxed and I feel like I can now enjoy the nothing ness that every day entails. However, I am still working on a part-time job for the summer. I have an interview at a store in the mall this afternoon and will hopefully get that job.
Plans for the summer:
Start preparing teaching lessons. Terrifying to think I will have to control a classroom, but oh so exciting as well.
Part-time employment.
Relax.
Continue improving my bartending skills.
I have discovered that I have more readers of this blog than originally expected. I knew one member of the No Luck Club more or less stalked this having received angry texts when I didn't update regularly, but I did not realize that more of my friends depended on hearing about the boredom/job search to make their own jobs more enjoyable. Not wanting to deprive anyone of my ready wit and humor (hah), the blog will continue. It will be renamed, of course. I imagine I'll accumulate several interesting stories over the summer to keep the summer material flowing. And then in the fall, this will turn into a blog on the joys of living at home and being a working professional. My younger sister will be going off to college in the fall so it will be just my younger brother and me. It'll be an interesting dynamic. I have never really spent an extended amount of time with my younger brother without another sister around.
In sum: FUNemployment will hopefully become Fun Employment now.
Plans for the summer:
Start preparing teaching lessons. Terrifying to think I will have to control a classroom, but oh so exciting as well.
Part-time employment.
Relax.
Continue improving my bartending skills.
I have discovered that I have more readers of this blog than originally expected. I knew one member of the No Luck Club more or less stalked this having received angry texts when I didn't update regularly, but I did not realize that more of my friends depended on hearing about the boredom/job search to make their own jobs more enjoyable. Not wanting to deprive anyone of my ready wit and humor (hah), the blog will continue. It will be renamed, of course. I imagine I'll accumulate several interesting stories over the summer to keep the summer material flowing. And then in the fall, this will turn into a blog on the joys of living at home and being a working professional. My younger sister will be going off to college in the fall so it will be just my younger brother and me. It'll be an interesting dynamic. I have never really spent an extended amount of time with my younger brother without another sister around.
In sum: FUNemployment will hopefully become Fun Employment now.
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
New blog name?
This blog might be defunct in the next 24 hours. I just received an offer of employment by the local private school. I'd be the junior year trig/pre-calc teacher. Which ironically enough, is the math class my younger brother will be taking next year. If I take the job, I won't be unemployed anymore, now will I? I have 24 hours to decide whether or not I'm going to take the job. A lot of soul searching is going on right now. If I take it, it will mean another year at home. That's really the main con to the job. Do I want to be that girl who lives at home? Decisions, decisions, decisions.
Monday, June 14, 2010
My weekend...
I recognize that I have not blogged in several days. It coincides with a definite dip in my applications. I've still managed to apply to an average of 2 per day, so I haven't lost track of my responsibility. However, I need to get back into the job search. After all, it seems to be the only thing to blog about because I do very little else.
Saturday was actually a decent day. I, along with two other friends, went over to an old high school friend's house to watch the world cup game. Tragically, in the 88th minute, the power went out. While it came back on almost immediately, the tv box had to reset. By the time we got the tv on again, the game was over. All the same, good job to the USA.
Yesterday, I walked 3 or so miles to the pool. Miserable. It was humid and sticky. Luckily, it wasn't that hot, but the humidity was pretty unbearable. That's my physical exertion quota for the week.
The best part about yesterday was the two phone calls I received, approximately ten minutes apart. One was for an English teaching opportunity in South Korea and the other was from a friend who tipped me off to a potential job. I love networking, if it works in my favor.
The good job news continued this morning when I received an email letting me know I had passed onto phase two of one of my applications. Phase two meant taking a test of "which comes next" questions. I usually love those kinds of tests. It's logic and analytical thinking- two things at which I'm generally pretty good. I used to love solving those logic puzzles as a kid. Even wrote some. This test, however, was incredibly difficult. I took to guessing on a couple. I wish they had an answer key so I could figure out the harder ones.
Today also saw me making major headway on my t-shirt quilt. Part of my path to domestication- I was using the sewing machine today. Tricky little devil, but I managed. I now have 5 columns of t-shirts sewn together. When I finish, my quilt should measure 5' by 6'. It's looking pretty good so far, but I still have to sew the columns together and then find a backing for the quilt.
I might also have temporary employment soon. My younger sister and I went to the mall to apply at various stores. One store scheduled an interview with me for Wednesday. My sister was a bit, ahem, peeved that I was the one who received an interview when she applied to many of these stores weeks ago. I suppose this mainly is because I am the only one of us who is over 18. I remember the terrible time I had trying to find a job after my senior year of high school. I wasn't 18 yet and only finally found employment in the form of being a "courtesy clerk" for a local grocery store. Courtesy clerk is a polite way of saying "minimum wage job that sucks the life out of you". I bagged groceries, cleaned bathrooms, put away unwanted food items and gathered carts from the parking lot. All for $5.15 an hour. It was hell.
Application count: 28
Saturday was actually a decent day. I, along with two other friends, went over to an old high school friend's house to watch the world cup game. Tragically, in the 88th minute, the power went out. While it came back on almost immediately, the tv box had to reset. By the time we got the tv on again, the game was over. All the same, good job to the USA.
Yesterday, I walked 3 or so miles to the pool. Miserable. It was humid and sticky. Luckily, it wasn't that hot, but the humidity was pretty unbearable. That's my physical exertion quota for the week.
The best part about yesterday was the two phone calls I received, approximately ten minutes apart. One was for an English teaching opportunity in South Korea and the other was from a friend who tipped me off to a potential job. I love networking, if it works in my favor.
The good job news continued this morning when I received an email letting me know I had passed onto phase two of one of my applications. Phase two meant taking a test of "which comes next" questions. I usually love those kinds of tests. It's logic and analytical thinking- two things at which I'm generally pretty good. I used to love solving those logic puzzles as a kid. Even wrote some. This test, however, was incredibly difficult. I took to guessing on a couple. I wish they had an answer key so I could figure out the harder ones.
Today also saw me making major headway on my t-shirt quilt. Part of my path to domestication- I was using the sewing machine today. Tricky little devil, but I managed. I now have 5 columns of t-shirts sewn together. When I finish, my quilt should measure 5' by 6'. It's looking pretty good so far, but I still have to sew the columns together and then find a backing for the quilt.
I might also have temporary employment soon. My younger sister and I went to the mall to apply at various stores. One store scheduled an interview with me for Wednesday. My sister was a bit, ahem, peeved that I was the one who received an interview when she applied to many of these stores weeks ago. I suppose this mainly is because I am the only one of us who is over 18. I remember the terrible time I had trying to find a job after my senior year of high school. I wasn't 18 yet and only finally found employment in the form of being a "courtesy clerk" for a local grocery store. Courtesy clerk is a polite way of saying "minimum wage job that sucks the life out of you". I bagged groceries, cleaned bathrooms, put away unwanted food items and gathered carts from the parking lot. All for $5.15 an hour. It was hell.
Application count: 28
Friday, June 11, 2010
Cooking class cont.
I learned a new recipe today. Black bean salad. I'm trying to commit these wonderful recipes to memory so let's see if I can remember the ingredients: 1 package italian dressing, 1 can black beans, 1 cup crushed pineapple, 1 bunch cilantro, 1/4 cup lime juice, 1/2 cup red pepper, 1/2 cup sweet onion, 1 cup white corn. So good. I'm becoming domesticated haha. Which makes me sound like a dog.
Seriously though, certain actions make me feel more like a grown up. Vacuuming out my car for one. Or well, half of it. I vacuumed the mats and the seats on the driver side of the car but the vacuum acted up when I got to the passenger side so.... Messy passenger side of the car still.
Also contributing to the feeling like an adult thing, thinking about all the stuff I have for my future permanent residence. The window seat in my room has a pile of kitchen utensils; my mom has a set of old dish ware for me and a table; I have countless knick knacks from my travels that would help any apartment feel like a home.
Just got to get that apartment first...
My mom suggested I look into becoming a travel agent today. I love traveling and planning my trips. Do I want to make that a full time profession? If it meant free traveling for me, probably.
Applied for a waitress position today. Here's to maybe getting it?
Application count: 27
Seriously though, certain actions make me feel more like a grown up. Vacuuming out my car for one. Or well, half of it. I vacuumed the mats and the seats on the driver side of the car but the vacuum acted up when I got to the passenger side so.... Messy passenger side of the car still.
Also contributing to the feeling like an adult thing, thinking about all the stuff I have for my future permanent residence. The window seat in my room has a pile of kitchen utensils; my mom has a set of old dish ware for me and a table; I have countless knick knacks from my travels that would help any apartment feel like a home.
Just got to get that apartment first...
My mom suggested I look into becoming a travel agent today. I love traveling and planning my trips. Do I want to make that a full time profession? If it meant free traveling for me, probably.
Applied for a waitress position today. Here's to maybe getting it?
Application count: 27
Day Eleven
Desperation has set in. I have several friends either in Europe currently for vacation or school and another moving to Europe in a couple weeks for work. I realize that the only way I will ever return for a similar visit is if I start making money. And to do that, I need a job.
I wonder what my final application count will be before I get a job. I'm considering having a betting pool. My current bet is 58. Anyone else want to join in? In today's market, it could be the hottest new gambling trend...
Yesterday I met up with an old friend. We went to Applebee's for lunch and amazingly enough ended up being there all day. Neither of us realized what time it was when we finally got up to leave. Oops. My friend just graduated and is an officer in the Navy so he has a career (for the next five years at least). I'm so jealous of that security. I mentioned this to my mom and she suggested I consider applying for officer command school. I could become an officer in the Navy. If still jobless in September, I will consider the suggestion more seriously. As it is, I don't know that I'm cut out for that line of work. I don't know that I stepped foot inside my university's fitness center more than twice in the last two years. And that twice is probably an over estimation.
I finally got around to more or less cleaning my room. I found a copy of an old student newspaper, one that is now obsolete. In my sophomore year, the paper ran an article of a March Madness style bracket to determine the member of the student body who had most made him/herself into a public spectacle. Quite the controversy. It was interesting to reread the controversial article in question and relive that whole debacle.
Also on this edition of Hoarders: Buried Alive:
a record of "Babar's Birthday Surprise"
a copy of my high school transcript
a list of movies I watched in March of 2008 (17 in the first 17 days alone...)
a yellow recorder
I wonder what my final application count will be before I get a job. I'm considering having a betting pool. My current bet is 58. Anyone else want to join in? In today's market, it could be the hottest new gambling trend...
Yesterday I met up with an old friend. We went to Applebee's for lunch and amazingly enough ended up being there all day. Neither of us realized what time it was when we finally got up to leave. Oops. My friend just graduated and is an officer in the Navy so he has a career (for the next five years at least). I'm so jealous of that security. I mentioned this to my mom and she suggested I consider applying for officer command school. I could become an officer in the Navy. If still jobless in September, I will consider the suggestion more seriously. As it is, I don't know that I'm cut out for that line of work. I don't know that I stepped foot inside my university's fitness center more than twice in the last two years. And that twice is probably an over estimation.
I finally got around to more or less cleaning my room. I found a copy of an old student newspaper, one that is now obsolete. In my sophomore year, the paper ran an article of a March Madness style bracket to determine the member of the student body who had most made him/herself into a public spectacle. Quite the controversy. It was interesting to reread the controversial article in question and relive that whole debacle.
Also on this edition of Hoarders: Buried Alive:
a record of "Babar's Birthday Surprise"
a copy of my high school transcript
a list of movies I watched in March of 2008 (17 in the first 17 days alone...)
a yellow recorder
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Day Nine
Applying for jobs is exhausting. I'm sick of the number of times I've written my name, primary residence and contact number.
However, probably not as sick as my little sister is right now. Dinner was hard for her. Mom likes to use vegetables straight from the garden. As my sister learned tonight, sometimes little snails get stuck on lettuce even after Mom washes each leaf individually. Ewwwww.
Application count: 25
However, probably not as sick as my little sister is right now. Dinner was hard for her. Mom likes to use vegetables straight from the garden. As my sister learned tonight, sometimes little snails get stuck on lettuce even after Mom washes each leaf individually. Ewwwww.
Application count: 25
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
Rejection
Today was my interview for the teaching position in town. It was also the day I received my first rejection. Well, rejection of this current round of applications. One of my friends at school kept a wall of rejection letters in her library study. It was quite aesthetically pleasing, actually... if not perhaps, the most uplifting of artworks. In any event, I'm not completely disheartened by this rejection. I applied for two positions with this company and was only rejected from one of them. I suppose I can take that to mean I might still have a shot at the other position?
Hobbies/goals for this week:
-put bartending reading into practice (as in actually begin making drinks)
-seriously finish unpacking
-seriously find a part time job (the aforementioned friend was making dog walking flyers last I heard...tempting idea)
-World Cup
-master 3 solid dinner recipes
-make a t-shirt quilt of all those sorority t-shirts I'd never actually wear in public anymore
Application count: 19
Interview count: 1
Rejections: 1
Hobbies/goals for this week:
-put bartending reading into practice (as in actually begin making drinks)
-seriously finish unpacking
-seriously find a part time job (the aforementioned friend was making dog walking flyers last I heard...tempting idea)
-World Cup
-master 3 solid dinner recipes
-make a t-shirt quilt of all those sorority t-shirts I'd never actually wear in public anymore
Application count: 19
Interview count: 1
Rejections: 1
Haircut
My dog received a haircut this morning. A porcine little pup, his longish hair always makes him look a bit more rotund than he actually is. For some as of yet unknown reason, my mom decided to trim some of his hair. But wait. It wasn't a complete trim of all his hair. Just his rear. My poor dog has this short crop of hair on his rump and long hair everywhere else. It's like a poodle cut, but so so much worse. I wonder if dogs can be embarrassed?
Monday, June 7, 2010
Living week to week
I really do save too many things. I have two large plastic tubs beside my bed, filled with various remnants of my college career, that in all honesty should probably just be thrown away. I'm forcing myself to get around to the odious task of actually sorting them into trash/save piles.
Hopefully between the tubs and applications, this week will go by quickly. After all, this weekend is the World Cup! Currently, I believe my parents and brother are going to be out of town at my cousin's college graduation ceremony (not sure yet about his employment status...), leaving my little sister and I to house sit. She just graduated high school and is summer jobless so we've got nothing better to do than plan a WILD PARTY!!!
...Just kidding, Mom and Dad. Figured I'd check and see how often my parents check up on me on this thing.
But seriously, I anticipate a weekend that at least one of my fellow No Luck Clubbers would appreciate- junk food and high def soccer. I'm rooting for USA of course, but realistically rooting for Spain. Iker Casillas captured my attention during the Euro Cup two years ago and never lost it. He's the reason I'm a half hearted Real Madrid fan. I know, I know, Barca is the more legit club since they home grow their talent. Whatever. A No Luck Clubber who shares my appreciation for Casillas sent me a website with "15 World Cup Hotties". Four of them are Real players. So Barca may be more admirable/talented as a team, but Real is the better looking one. Looks aside, the games should be exciting to watch as well. USA vs. England?
However, the truly pressing issue at the moment is my interview tomorrow morning. Nerve-wracking! Some people get stage fright over something as small as presenting in class, but the one thing that really gets my stomach churning is an interview. Worst interview question I ever had?
If you were a body of water, what would you be?
My answer? An ice cube. Needless to say, I didn't get what I was applying for that time.
Hopefully between the tubs and applications, this week will go by quickly. After all, this weekend is the World Cup! Currently, I believe my parents and brother are going to be out of town at my cousin's college graduation ceremony (not sure yet about his employment status...), leaving my little sister and I to house sit. She just graduated high school and is summer jobless so we've got nothing better to do than plan a WILD PARTY!!!
...Just kidding, Mom and Dad. Figured I'd check and see how often my parents check up on me on this thing.
But seriously, I anticipate a weekend that at least one of my fellow No Luck Clubbers would appreciate- junk food and high def soccer. I'm rooting for USA of course, but realistically rooting for Spain. Iker Casillas captured my attention during the Euro Cup two years ago and never lost it. He's the reason I'm a half hearted Real Madrid fan. I know, I know, Barca is the more legit club since they home grow their talent. Whatever. A No Luck Clubber who shares my appreciation for Casillas sent me a website with "15 World Cup Hotties". Four of them are Real players. So Barca may be more admirable/talented as a team, but Real is the better looking one. Looks aside, the games should be exciting to watch as well. USA vs. England?
However, the truly pressing issue at the moment is my interview tomorrow morning. Nerve-wracking! Some people get stage fright over something as small as presenting in class, but the one thing that really gets my stomach churning is an interview. Worst interview question I ever had?
If you were a body of water, what would you be?
My answer? An ice cube. Needless to say, I didn't get what I was applying for that time.
Day Seven
I hate writing cover letters. Somehow you have to convince someone that you are worth looking at and you have to list some of your qualifications for the job, but yet, don't repeat anything you list in your resume! Because of course, everyone has so many qualifications for everything that they don't bother to list the good stuff in his/her resume already and so have extras to share in the cover letter. Argh. Also, I hate marketing myself. Trying to toot my own horn is difficult.
Application count: 19
Application count: 19
Emails
I woke up this morning and finally put my finger on why checking my email has seemed so weird for the last several days. After four years, I no longer receive the daily campus notice from school. I am now considered too old to be bothered with who lost what, what movies are playing on campus, what organizations want volunteers... I've been kicked to the curb so to speak.
Sunday, June 6, 2010
High school friends, or lack there of
In high school, I more or less had a one track mind. "Get me out of this place, get me out of this place, get me out of this place." Think Dorothy and the ruby slippers, but the exact opposite meaning. I wanted nothing more than to escape the state and get out and see the world. I've done a fair bit of seeing the world, but as I'm currently back home, I haven't escaped yet. However, since I had tunnel vision about the whole going out of state thing, I didn't really connect with many of my classmates in high school. My group of friends that I would eat with were generally all thinking along the same lines as me- get me out of here. Out of the main group of six or seven of us at my usual lunch table, we all went to different colleges. A surprising feat, honestly. We graduated and dispersed and never looked back.
Which means now, when I'm back at home, I don't really have a group of people to hang out with who are all in the same place as me. The friends I did try and keep in touch with during my college years are all still in college. They're great, but it'd be nice to have a circle of post grads to hang out with and complain about the job market together.
Granted I just might be the fun new kid on the playground after I finish this monster bar tending book I have. Only just now reaching the recipes section and I've already started picking out the ones I want to try and make/learn. Luckily, perhaps due to our wonderful Scotch-Irish heritage, my parents are very supportive of this hobby.
Recipes I want to learn/try (bear with me, I'm still just in the gin section so they're all gin based drinks):
Gin Fizz
Tom Collins
Martini
My Fair Lady
Lady Killer
Bee's Knees
Maiden's Blush
Which means now, when I'm back at home, I don't really have a group of people to hang out with who are all in the same place as me. The friends I did try and keep in touch with during my college years are all still in college. They're great, but it'd be nice to have a circle of post grads to hang out with and complain about the job market together.
Granted I just might be the fun new kid on the playground after I finish this monster bar tending book I have. Only just now reaching the recipes section and I've already started picking out the ones I want to try and make/learn. Luckily, perhaps due to our wonderful Scotch-Irish heritage, my parents are very supportive of this hobby.
Recipes I want to learn/try (bear with me, I'm still just in the gin section so they're all gin based drinks):
Gin Fizz
Tom Collins
Martini
My Fair Lady
Lady Killer
Bee's Knees
Maiden's Blush
Day Six
At this point, I feel like all I do when I'm bored is submit applications. This most recent application would hopefully propel me towards a future in travel blogging...
Application count: 16
Application count: 16
The Joy Luck Club
Of my recent grad friends, three of my closest friends are also engaging in this game called "finding a job". We are all in constant communication with each other, exchanging tales of boredom and respective failure in the job hunt. It's like our own little Joy Luck Club, but I think I might have to rename it the No Luck Club. I was speaking with one of the No Luck Clubbers today, comparing our Friday nights (She spent hers alone in her room watching bad chick flicks and eating various snacks while I spent mine watching the 2010 national spelling bee. Tough to say who had the more uninteresting night.), when she told me quite possibly the most horrifying stories I could hear at this point. My friend's friend, a chemical engineering major, applied to over 100 jobs before she got one. Terrifying. It made me feel even worse about the fact that I slipped up and didn't apply anywhere Saturday (though I forgot to update that I submitted four more on Friday, bringing my application count up to 15). I am going to have to step my game up to accomplish my goal of employment by my birthday.
Throwing this out there, for any and all with the means and interest in helping me- my dream job would be to travel the world and blog about my adventures (and obviously, get paid to do so). I kept a blog from the semester I spent in Sevilla my junior year and wrote over 30,000 words. I had considered printing it off... then I realized I didn't have enough remaining printer ink for that big of a job. So if anyone is looking for a travel blogger, send them my way.
However, the home front has been growing both more and less fun the past couple days. More fun in the sense that I have reconnected with old high school friends and gone out with them, but less fun in the sense that I am feeling very useless in my unemployment. I need some way to occupy my time. Though, I suppose, I could finish unpacking.
Update on the cooking lesson: spaghetti making success. I can now make spaghetti sauce and meatballs. And no, I'm not referring to opening up a jar of Ragu. Crushed tomatoes, onions, garlic, basil... delicious! Let's see if I can remember all the ingredients for the meatballs- ground beef (or maybe chuck?), 1/2 cup bread crumbs, 1 egg, 1 tbsp of onions, 1 tsp salt, some pepper, chopped fresh parsley. Speaking of parsley, dried parsley is more or less the devil incarnate with respect to food. At least, that's the impression I got.
Also: living at home with my younger brother has introduced me to the world of men's body wash. During my shower this morning, I discovered that RedZone makes a body wash called Swagger. Apparently, Swagger smells vaguely like old man and baby powder.
Throwing this out there, for any and all with the means and interest in helping me- my dream job would be to travel the world and blog about my adventures (and obviously, get paid to do so). I kept a blog from the semester I spent in Sevilla my junior year and wrote over 30,000 words. I had considered printing it off... then I realized I didn't have enough remaining printer ink for that big of a job. So if anyone is looking for a travel blogger, send them my way.
However, the home front has been growing both more and less fun the past couple days. More fun in the sense that I have reconnected with old high school friends and gone out with them, but less fun in the sense that I am feeling very useless in my unemployment. I need some way to occupy my time. Though, I suppose, I could finish unpacking.
Update on the cooking lesson: spaghetti making success. I can now make spaghetti sauce and meatballs. And no, I'm not referring to opening up a jar of Ragu. Crushed tomatoes, onions, garlic, basil... delicious! Let's see if I can remember all the ingredients for the meatballs- ground beef (or maybe chuck?), 1/2 cup bread crumbs, 1 egg, 1 tbsp of onions, 1 tsp salt, some pepper, chopped fresh parsley. Speaking of parsley, dried parsley is more or less the devil incarnate with respect to food. At least, that's the impression I got.
Also: living at home with my younger brother has introduced me to the world of men's body wash. During my shower this morning, I discovered that RedZone makes a body wash called Swagger. Apparently, Swagger smells vaguely like old man and baby powder.
Friday, June 4, 2010
Applications, applications, applications
Thanks to the wonder of the internet, I have just submitted not one, not two, not three, but five more applications. Granted, all within the same company. It's nice when you apply for multiple positions with the same company and all you have to do is fill out one form and hit 'apply' over and over and over again. It would be nicer if someone were to respond to my submissions so far. Can't have everything I suppose.
I feel like all I need to do is get my foot in the door somewhere. One foot, one door. As soon as I have a full time job and have to support myself, I think the world will just kinda slide into place for me. Sure, I don't know the ins and outs of taxes or cooking for myself, but I relish the opportunity to have those challenges. I'm already on my way with the cooking thing. Mom is permitting me to attend cooking "class" this evening while we make dinner.
Tonight's cooking lesson: the perfect spaghetti sauce. Skills I'll practice while making said sauce? Chopping and cutting. Gotta start somewhere. As long as no digits are lost in the process, it should be a success.
Application count: 11
I feel like all I need to do is get my foot in the door somewhere. One foot, one door. As soon as I have a full time job and have to support myself, I think the world will just kinda slide into place for me. Sure, I don't know the ins and outs of taxes or cooking for myself, but I relish the opportunity to have those challenges. I'm already on my way with the cooking thing. Mom is permitting me to attend cooking "class" this evening while we make dinner.
Tonight's cooking lesson: the perfect spaghetti sauce. Skills I'll practice while making said sauce? Chopping and cutting. Gotta start somewhere. As long as no digits are lost in the process, it should be a success.
Application count: 11
Day Four
My first job interview! Next Tuesday, at 9:30 AM, I will be interviewing for the teaching position in the parochial school here in town. Here goes nothing...
Thursday, June 3, 2010
Day Three
My, my, my. What a busy day.
I started off by running an errand to the doctor since, after all, I have nothing better to do. This was followed by a quick trip to the mall where I applied for yet another part-time job to tide me over for the time being (application count of part-time jobs: 4). And then I returned home. Where I submitted more applications. Two applications in with the same company, another fashion company. My philosophy on job hunting is to apply to companies whose products I enjoy. I've accumulated quite a list of products and brands I frequent/enjoy and am making my way down the list. Also, I accompanied my mom on other brief errands throughout the day.
The highlight of the day, however, was a lead on a potential teaching job in a parochial school here in my home town. I have to call the school tomorrow and schedule an appointment/meeting/interview for next week. If I got the job, I would be teaching high school trigonometry. My mother has graciously promised me rent free living for next year if I get the job. I would be responsible for car payments/insurance as well as taking over my own phone bill, but I don't anticipate either being as costly as finding my own place to live. It would be an excellent experience, so I'm hoping that this pans out successfully.
I've been doing some mild soul searching. I've come to recognize that few times in my life compare to the semester I spent abroad. I spent my fall term of my junior year in Sevilla, Spain. More or less, every other weekend was spent in a different city, exploring the world with Europe as my main playground (there was one week long foray into Morocco, a decidedly non European country). That being said, any future career or occupation I have will have to be one that will afford me the opportunity to embark on similar travels and adventures. I have three continents left to explore. My current goal is to save up enough money so that I can do South America and Antarctica in one fell swoop that also permits time to play with penguins. An unemployed girl can dream, I suppose.
Application count: 6.
I started off by running an errand to the doctor since, after all, I have nothing better to do. This was followed by a quick trip to the mall where I applied for yet another part-time job to tide me over for the time being (application count of part-time jobs: 4). And then I returned home. Where I submitted more applications. Two applications in with the same company, another fashion company. My philosophy on job hunting is to apply to companies whose products I enjoy. I've accumulated quite a list of products and brands I frequent/enjoy and am making my way down the list. Also, I accompanied my mom on other brief errands throughout the day.
The highlight of the day, however, was a lead on a potential teaching job in a parochial school here in my home town. I have to call the school tomorrow and schedule an appointment/meeting/interview for next week. If I got the job, I would be teaching high school trigonometry. My mother has graciously promised me rent free living for next year if I get the job. I would be responsible for car payments/insurance as well as taking over my own phone bill, but I don't anticipate either being as costly as finding my own place to live. It would be an excellent experience, so I'm hoping that this pans out successfully.
I've been doing some mild soul searching. I've come to recognize that few times in my life compare to the semester I spent abroad. I spent my fall term of my junior year in Sevilla, Spain. More or less, every other weekend was spent in a different city, exploring the world with Europe as my main playground (there was one week long foray into Morocco, a decidedly non European country). That being said, any future career or occupation I have will have to be one that will afford me the opportunity to embark on similar travels and adventures. I have three continents left to explore. My current goal is to save up enough money so that I can do South America and Antarctica in one fell swoop that also permits time to play with penguins. An unemployed girl can dream, I suppose.
Application count: 6.
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
The Little Things
As miserable as it may be to have to return home at a time when the world is ready to accept me as a full fledged adult member of society, there are a few little things that make up for the self-pity party.
Mom's cooking.
As much as I enjoy cooking and have many of the tools to do so (Mom decided to start giving me various kitchen supplies for every major gift giving event when I entered college. I might be one of the few people my age with my own 17 piece Pyrex glassware set, cheese grater, cutting board, chef's knife, etc.), nothing tastes as good as when Mom makes it. Part of that whole reliving my child hood thing.
The Dog.
I love my dog. Minus my minor allergy to animals, I would love to own a dog someday. However, even if I had my own snazzy apartment somewhere in a building that permitted pets, I doubt I'd be capable of looking after a dog at this point in my life. So I'm cashing in on the dog time I have now.
Big screen high def tv with DVR.
I have a feeling I will appreciate this most in approx. 8 days when the World Cup starts. I never used to understand the appeal of high def until I started watching sports.
The library.
My little sister has a library in her room (complete with colored stickers on books to denote genre etc.). Whenever I want something new to read, all I have to do is go next door. Current reads include Empire of the Sun and The Case for Israel. I've missed pleasure reading.
Mom's cooking.
As much as I enjoy cooking and have many of the tools to do so (Mom decided to start giving me various kitchen supplies for every major gift giving event when I entered college. I might be one of the few people my age with my own 17 piece Pyrex glassware set, cheese grater, cutting board, chef's knife, etc.), nothing tastes as good as when Mom makes it. Part of that whole reliving my child hood thing.
The Dog.
I love my dog. Minus my minor allergy to animals, I would love to own a dog someday. However, even if I had my own snazzy apartment somewhere in a building that permitted pets, I doubt I'd be capable of looking after a dog at this point in my life. So I'm cashing in on the dog time I have now.
Big screen high def tv with DVR.
I have a feeling I will appreciate this most in approx. 8 days when the World Cup starts. I never used to understand the appeal of high def until I started watching sports.
The library.
My little sister has a library in her room (complete with colored stickers on books to denote genre etc.). Whenever I want something new to read, all I have to do is go next door. Current reads include Empire of the Sun and The Case for Israel. I've missed pleasure reading.
Day Two, cont.
After waking up at noon (one perk to having no current responsibilities) and leisurely getting ready for the day, I tried to do something productive.
I have so far mailed out all but two of my thank you notes.
I am still organizing my room, but I have made a small dent into the pile consisting of the last 4 years of my life.
Most importantly however, I applied for yet another job.
This time I applied for a retail analyst position with an international fashion company. Sending out these applications has reminded me that the worst is yet to come. The Wait. Waiting for a response, of any kind, from these companies will surely be just as miserable as it is to try and figure out a way to market myself.
I need to get around to finding a job in town. If I do not get a part-time job soon, I will find myself broke and bored. Two terrible things that do nothing to alleviate the pain of each other.
Application count: 4
I have so far mailed out all but two of my thank you notes.
I am still organizing my room, but I have made a small dent into the pile consisting of the last 4 years of my life.
Most importantly however, I applied for yet another job.
This time I applied for a retail analyst position with an international fashion company. Sending out these applications has reminded me that the worst is yet to come. The Wait. Waiting for a response, of any kind, from these companies will surely be just as miserable as it is to try and figure out a way to market myself.
I need to get around to finding a job in town. If I do not get a part-time job soon, I will find myself broke and bored. Two terrible things that do nothing to alleviate the pain of each other.
Application count: 4
Day Two
It is currently 12:05 AM and therefore June 2nd. Which makes the application I just submitted online count towards my one a day total. A position for someone with some Python programming experience, a college degree, skills in analysis? Hire me! Not to mention, it's a position with a company with a reputation for being inviting and fun to work for...
Somehow, I seem to find it easier to find and start applications online than clean my room. Go figure.
Application count: 3
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
Another gem discovered while cleaning/organizing...
I found a collection of poetry that I wrote between 2003 and 2006. I found this acrostic to be particularly insightful into the kind of childhood that I led. It is perhaps a good thing that I decided not to pursue a literary career. At least not one that involves creative writing.
Poems
Padlocks
Or
Enforcement
Means
Security.
Life at home
It is amazing really, the ability I have to accomplish very little in a day.
I have begun the arduous process of moving back home. I have not lived at home since the summer after my freshman year of college. Even then, I was not truly moved in. My room at home is a little used room often referred to in other households as the "guest bedroom". Therefore, I am not comfortable residing in said room for long periods of time. Clearing out an old dresser to move my clothes in feels odd. Even odder is the little row of dress shoes, shoes which I imagine might not be worn again for a very long time, looking a tad forlorn under the dresser.
My friends who are also in the process of moving back home (oddly enough, none of us seem to have any idea what we are doing with our lives and are all capitalizing on the free rent provided by the Mom and Dad Rental Co.) have been discussing how we all seem to belong on the show Hoarders: Buried Alive.
Fun relics discovered include, but are not limited to:
-an unopened box of 3.5" floppy discs, unusable by any relevant computer
-Who's Who in the Bible: An Illustrated Guide
-a Hillary 2008 campaign poster
-American Girl paper dolls
-frog magnet from Costa Rica
-leftover wallet sized senior portraits from high school
-a small pouch containing 1000 Lebanese livres, 2 Bahrainian dinars, 1 Euro
Day One
Day One of the Plan.
I have successfully just submitted not one, but TWO applications to be a health and benefits analyst for a major international consulting firm. Success.
How do I plan on celebrating this monumental step forward in my quest for employment? By writing thank you notes, cleaning my room, putting things in the attic, paying my credit card bill, depositing money in my bank account (should probably do this before I pay my credit card bill actually...), reviewing my French and Japanese and perhaps going to the pool where I will read about bartending. Funemployment has a surprisingly large amount of responsibility attached. Who knew?
Goals for the week:
-Officially move into my parents' house so I don't feel like a guest living out of a suitcase
-Find temporary employment to allow me some form of fun on occasion
-Apply for at least 7 potential careers
Application count for the Plan: 2
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