I'm Alive

Wow, it's already ten days into 2010.  Needless to say I've been busy, you know with the whole trip to Pensacola and then to Nawlins, but Honey I'm back.

First up, my trip back to P'cola was great.  I love getting to see my grandparents down there, and as a bonus my aunt and cousins got to see my mother can't stand up drunk.  Luckily my stay only overlapped with my mother's stay for two days and one of those days I took the car and left for two hours and then went over to my aunts for dinner to minimize the overlap.

Then I rented a car and drove to Nawlins.  It was a wonderfully pleasant drive, oh how I miss the south and can't wait to get back down there in May.  I stayed the same place I stayed last New Year's and as always it was wonderful to be a block from Canal St.  I rented a moped and drove over to Metairie to do some apartment hunting.

Seeing the studios in person really helped me to see where I can make more reductions in my life and even though I thought I was done decluttering, I'm happy to have a renewed spirit for my move which does include more reductions (hey, less stuff means an easier move, right?).  Sadly it was raining while I was apartment hunting and had a minor wipe out.  Thankfully it was just my pride that took the biggest injury.  I was more worried about whether or not my jeans where ripped than the fact that my knee was skid.  Since I only have one pair of jeans I need them for waitressing it was a very good thing that they weren't ripped.

I had to cut my Nawlins trip short since I'm waiting tables and couldn't get away with missing Christmas Eve, Christmas, New Year's Eve, and New Year's Day, so I flew back on New Year's Eve, which really isn't a big deal for me since I'm not a big partier nor do I live for fireworks (though they are fun if I'm not too close that they booms hurt).  I made it back to my apartment about 30 minutes before the ball dropped for the east cost.

While I was away I got two calls for interviews which I wrapped up on Friday.  The first interview was for CBP as government position.  It was actually with a bunch of people that I know so I feel really good about it.  I should hear back from that one in two weeks with a tentative selection offer.  The other interview was for Catherine's (same parent company as Lane Bryant, Fashion Bug, Petite Sophisticate).  I got the call yesterday and I got the job.  It's only part time, but they don't have a full staff at the moment.  I start training next week up in Springfield while the new store is being renovated from a Petite Sophisticate to a Catherine's.

Also one of the guys I'm waiting tables with is going to move into the master bedroom as soon as he gets his second job.  He's coming over today to look at it, but basically said he need to get out from his mother's and it's just a matter of getting the second job.

So while things are still going to be tough for the next month or so there is light at the end of the tunnel.

Wrapping up 2009

Well 2009 is on it's way out the door and 2010 is promising to be filled with BIG adventures.  After spending a few days in (not so) sunny Florida, I'm relaxing (and job/apartment hunting) over in the Big Easy.  My parents dropped in on grandparents and greeted lots of DRAMA.  My mother made a fool out of herself getting piss ass drunk on her first night.  At least the family down here got to see it first hand and know how much my brother, sister and I weren't blowing it out of proportion.  Today I rented a moped and went looking at apartments.  Everything went well, despite the rain and my wipe out.  I'm still bruising at the moments, but only got minor raspberries on my knee and some scratches on my thigh.

Before heading off to the airport I did finally run out of deodorant and made my own solid using coconut oil.  The jury is still out on it's effectiveness, some days good, some days not so good.

I got a text from one of the waiters at the cafe and they're interested in renting out my master bedroom.  Hopefully this doesn't fall through, cause I could really use the help.

Sadly my dad has yet to come pick up the dresser out of my living room.  I did corner him and get him to commit to doing it some time in the near future.  I'll just have to harass him until it gets done.

On Monday I got a call for an interview.  So next Friday I'll be re-interviewing for a new position with Customs and Border Protection.  It's not really what I want to be doing, but I need some money until I get out of Virginia.

Moped/Scooter Purchased!

Well I did it.  I've got me a shiny new (to me) scooter.  Ok, technically Zoe is a motorcycle, but only cause she's got a 150 cc engine.

I've paid down Baby Car and am just waiting for the payment to clear (by Thursday) and then Baby Car is going to CarMax.

I Got a Job!!!

I got hired on the spot today at a local bar/restaurant/pool hall.  I start work tomorrow.  I'm so excited to have a job that will not force me to sit behind a desk all day.  I loved waitressing in college because I get to interact with so many different people.  As shy as I may come off at first in person, I really love being around people.  I still need a second job, but I've got lots of applications out there and I'll continue to stalk apply for retail jobs locally.

In the mean time, I did the very scary thing of cashing out my 401k. 0.o  Considering I'm still waiting on money from my unemployment claims and my bank account was to the point where I could pay any bills this month something had to be done.  So as soon as the check comes, the car will be sold and the moped purchased.  I've got the moped all scoped out and am anxiously checking the mail already for the cash so I can put my plan into action.

In paper news, I'm currently at 39 pages.  Just one page short of the 40 page minimum and I've still got three and roughly a quarter chapters left to finish editing/expanding.

So today is definitely a day for celebration.  Things are going good.  I'm gonna survive!

No, My Paper Hasn't Killed Me Yet...

but there were definitely a few days/weeks that I felt like the pressure was going to.  I've finally gotten my spirits up, have some motivations, and have a plan.  So after my one day pass not to work on my paper turned into a four day pass I've got to crank out two chapter this weekend and then I won't be technically behind.

Other than that I've had to take a hard look at my finances and see where I can make cuts, so I will be trading in my car before the month is out to get my car payment down. I've already cut out Netflix and reduce my cell phone bill by $40. I'm trying to sell one of my time shares, and will be talking with the time share company for my other about selling it back.

But in other more exciting new I've made a big decision: I will be moving out of Virginia when my lease is up (May 25). I have decided to really overhaul my life which has started with getting me eating three times a day (like I should be) and getting me active again.

After New Years I will be looking for the first retail job that I can find that will hire me (I no retail experience). My current dream job is to work in the Apple Store (and eventual get enough training to become a Genius Bar Genius, but I'm willing to working my way up through the retail bitch food chain and put in some long hard hours) and to bartend at night to make up the difference in pay/for extra cash on hand.

So where will I be moving? New Orleans. Which means while I'm there for New Years I will be making my housing arrangements, a studio apartment. Why New Orleans (besides the obvious, they have a Apple Store)? Because it's about three hours from my grandparents and aunt: close enough I can go visit but far enough to deter them from constantly being in my business.

I'm also very excited to being having a Florida Christmas this year. I used some of my school money for plan tickets to Pensacola for Christmas and then I'll get dropped off in New Orleans for New Years and fly back from there.

Well, I've got two of the nephews here so I'm gonna run.

I'm Back

I’m alive and survived my marathon road trip! I’ll try and recap as quick and short as possible.

Thursday:
Finished up work and picked up Five Guys for dinner
At apartment I packed, had my dinner and took care of the cats
Left apartment and headed for Richmond to pickup my crutches
Mini-adventure in Richmond to find out who had my crutches
Located and retrieved crutches
Received at least four calls from my sister
Passed through Greensboro, NC sometime around midnight/1 am

Friday:
Passed through Greenville, SC
Had to stop for dramamine…apparently I get car sick driving long distances
Received call from my sister demanding I take a nap before driving through Atlanta
Stopped about 30 minutes outside of Atlanta at an Exxon and Huddle House to nap
Woke up 2 hrs. later
Missed Bypass so drove through Atlanta at 9 am
Finally made it out of Georgia and into Alabama
Stopped in Auburn to pick up a present for my sister
Eventually made it my grandmother’s around 2 pm EST
Of course, MaMa isn’t home when I arrive
My cousin Tori let me in and we waited for MaMa to return home
Surprised MaMa, Pops and Aunt Vickie

Saturday:
Sleep in
Lunch with MaMa, Aunt Vickie and Tori at O’Charlie’s
Hung out and spent time with everyone

Sunday:
MaMa made me breakfast and we got to talk to just the two of us
Sadly headed back home
Made it through Alabama and into Georgia with no major problems
Made the Bypass for Atlanta around 5 pm
South Carolina was a blur
Made it into “Construction Zone North Carolina” around 9
Made it into Virginia around midnight

Monday:
Finally made it home around 2 am

I would have slept all day yesterday if I didn’t have two doctor’s appointments. So five hours after dragging my butt to bed I had to drag it out again and go to the Neurologist and the Dentist. Needless to say I was still dragging and took the rest of the day off to sleep on the couch with the cats lying on top of me.

On the trip down the only thing I bought (besides gas) was dramamine somewhere north of Greenville, SC, and a razor, bandana, and the present for my sister in Auburn, AL. I had packed enough snacks and drinks so I was ok food wise.

On the trip back, I had to stop for energy drinks and snacks, and some more dramamine and Advil.

Overall not bad, other than being completely exhausted.

Road Trip: Fast and Furious Style

Well, after conferring with my sister, I've mapped out my Fast and Furious Road Trip back home to see my grandparents. After conferring with several maps, I picked my stops along the 16 hour route. And five pages of directions later I hopefully won't get lost seeing as I've never actually driven from Virginia to Florida (ever...only been a passenger). South Carolina is the farthest that I've ever driven, but I know my limitations.

• I've got stops planned at least every three hours.
  
• Starting tonight my water consumption stops except for medication (other wise I will have to stop every hour to pee, and that's not an over exaggeration).
  
• I've got cheese snacks and cereal to fill my lunch box with and will stock up on RockStar energy drinks tonight.
  
• I've got my iPhone chalk full of audio books and my iPod filled with my entire library of music.
  
• Washed my hair this morning so I can snag every possible minute of extra sleep in the morning and not have to worry about it all weekend.
  
• I'll be throwing a change of outfits and my iPhone charge in my book bag and some blankets and a pillow in my car.
  
• Just grab my toothbrush and toothpaste and I'm good to go (a hairbrush and endless supply of rubber bands live in my car).

Now I just have to make it the last hour of work today and then work all day tomorrow.

Confesions of a Hoarder

Some may be wondering why I'm so hellbent on my adventure overseas. First and foremost, this is a once in a lifetime learning opportunity: the opportunity to work in network management and not be hindered by compartmentalizing and the opportunity for me to learn and grow.

And not just grow my technical skills. The truth of the matter is I'm a hoarder. I like stuff in my possession, and most of the time it is stuff that I don't need, use, like too terribly much, or have trouble letting go of. Now while I'm getting better at letting go of things, the only real way I'm gonna learn the lesson I need is to be somewhere where I just don't have anywhere to put it or somewhere where I have to literally haul it around with me.

And placing it all in storage is not the answer. I did that when I moved back in with my parents for a year and a half and it was a mess. When I finally moved into my apartment last year I rediscovered stuff I didn't even realize I had, and a good 50% of that was stuff that I don't need.

In trying to train myself that "less is more" I'm working on decluttering my apartment and making many many drop offs at Goodwill and the Salvation Army. I reclaimed my kitchen counter space by selling my small kitchen appliances that I don't use enough to warrant keeping on eBay; like my poor crock pot in which everything I have ever attempted to make in it has failed miserably. I parted with everything but my electric kettle, mini food processor (which I could probably get away without), and my hand mixer.

I cleaned out my fridge and found food that was over a year past it's expiration date and eventually found all the shelves. I also went through all my sewing/crafting boxes/bags/stashes and managed to pair that down to just two small boxes with fabric and patterns and a bag of yarn. The knitting needles are still hanging out in the closet (that way the circular needs don't get tangled or kinked).

I eventual need to get around to my filing, which has overrun from one box into the draws of the tv stand. I'm pretty sure that at least 90% of my "to be filed" can go to the recycling center after it's been through the shredder. But that's still a little to intimidating for me, so I'm off to clean my desk in my bedroom this weekend (I have three desk: 1 that is my main computing station, 1 that's in my bedroom that was my computing station in my first two apartments, and 1 that's the sewing station). If it's not completely clean/decluttered by the end of the weekend, than hopefully I will have made a big dent in the clutter.

the Beginnings

Why hello there Blogsphere. You may, or may not, be wondering why I chose to begin a blog since it seems everyone and their grandma has one. Well, I'll tell you. An adventure is afoot.

At the beginning of June I found out that my job was being eliminated and I have until the end of July to find a new job (less than four weeks left). With the economy in the crapper there could not be worse time to hear this news. I've been searching for a job since Christmas due to some workplace difficulties (read: my mother invaded my work life by joining my team last year and started harassing me at work). I was more than a little disheartened by the news, but quickly saw it as an opportunity to make my work life a better situations and a chance to get back to my real passion and work with computers.

Well, at the end of the second week after receiving the bad news I received a call from a former co-worker urging me to consider working overseas. She spent a year in Iraq and is currently in Afghanistan working as a contractor at a US military base as a network administrator. At first I completely dismissed the idea as crazy. But after some heavy internal debating I decided to take the plunge and just apply, hey what could it hurt right? I've done tech support, my concentration in undergrad was technology and I'm one paper away from having a Master of Science in Information Systems (MSIS). My only downfall is certifications; the only one I have is CHDP (that's Certified Help Desk Professional). I'll have to check and see what I need to finish my CCP (that's Certified Computer Professional) after my master's completed.